Agapetes heana, a new species of A. ser. Longifiles (Ericaceae) from Yunnan, China

Agapetes heana Y. H. Tong & J. D. Ya (Ericaceae), a new species from Lüchun Xian, Yunnan Province, China is described and illustrated. This new species is assigned to Agapetes sect. Agapetes ser. Longifiles Airy Shaw. It is closest to A. inopinata Airy Shaw and A. oblonga Craib, but differs in having bead-like tubers, leaf blade with a wholly serrulate margin, subulate and much longer calyx lobes, much larger corollas that are carmine, green at the apex and maroon on angles, and longer stamens without spurs on the back

Taxonomic studies on the genus Isotrema (Aristolochiaceae) from China: II. I. brevilimbum (Aristolochiaceae), a new species from Guizhou, China

A new species of Isotrema was recently discovered from Guizhou, China and is here named as I. brevilimbum. It is most similar to I. ovatifolium and I. wardianum, but differs in the morphology of leaves and flowers. A detailed description for the new species, along with line drawings, photographs, as well as morphological comparisons with similar species, are provided. In addition, the distribution of I. wardianum in China is here confirmed

Marsdenia yarlungzangboensis (Apocynaceae, Asclepiadoideae), a new species from Xizang, China

Marsdenia yarlungzangboensis (Apocynaceae, Asclepiadoideae), a new species from Motuo County, southeastern Xizang of China, is described and illustrated. It is morphologically similar to M. medogensis, M. tenii and M. yuei, the major differences between the new species and the morphological relatives are outlined and discussed. A diagnostic key to the new species and its closely related species in China is provided

Bulbophyllum reflexipetalum (Orchidaceae, Epidendroideae, Malaxideae), a new species from Xizang, China

Bulbophyllum reflexipetalum, a new species from Motuo County, Southeast Xizang, China, is described and illustrated here. This new species belongs to Bulbophyllum sect. Umbellata Bentham & J. D. Hooker, and it is morphologically similar to B. umbellatum Lindley, B. guttulatum (J. D. Hooker) N. P. Balakrishnan and B. salweenensis X.H. Jin, but is distinguished from them by having reflexed petals, base of dorsal sepal with 1 dentate on each side, lip with significantly revolute margin, adaxially with dark brown spots or patches and one longitudinal groove

Targeted Expression of miR-7 Operated by TTF-1 Promoter Inhibited the Growth of Human Lung Cancer through the NDUFA4 Pathway

Targeted expression of gene technique is an important therapeutic strategy for lung cancer. MicroRNA-7 has been well documented as a promising tumor suppressor but never been test in specific gene-promoter-targeted expression in cancer gene therapy. Here, we first evaluated the efficacy of miR-7 expression operated by the promoter of TTF-1, a lineage-specific oncogene in lung cancer, in vitro using an eukaryotic vector of TTF-1-promoter-operated expression of miR-7 (termed as p-T-miR-7). Interestingly, using a nude mice model, the growth and metastasis of human lung cancer cells in vivo were significantly reduced in remote hypodermic injection of the p-T-miR-7 group, accompanied by increased expression of miR-7 and reduced transduction of the Akt and Erk pathway in situ. Mechanism aspect, global gene expression analysis showed that downregulation of NDUFA4, a novel target of miR-7, contributed to the effects of miR-7 expression operated by TTF-1 promoter on the growth and metastasis of human lung cancer cells, as well as altered transduction of the Akt and Erk pathway. Finally, there was no significant difference in weight or histopathology of other organs. These data provided a basis for development of novel modality of miRNA-based targeted expression therapy against clinical lung cancer. Keywords: miR-7, TTF-1, 95D cells, lung cancer, growth, NDUFA

MicroRNA-7 deficiency ameliorates the pathologies of Acute Lung Injury through Elevating KLF4

Recent evidence showed that microRNA-7 (miR-7) played an important role in the pathologies of lung-related diseases. However, the potential role of miR-7 in acute lung injury (ALI) still remains poorly understood. Here we assessed the effect of miR-7 deficiency on the pathology of ALI. We firstly found that the expression of miR-7 was upregulated in lung tissue in murine LPS-induced ALI model. Notably, we generated miR-7 knock down (KD) mice by using miRNA-Sponge technique and found that miR-7 deficiency could ameliorate the pathologies of lung as evidenced by accelerated body weight recovery, reduced level of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) proinflammatory cytokines and decreased number of BAL cells in ALI mice. Moreover, the proportion and number of various immune cells in BAL, including innate immune cell F4/80+macrophages, γδT cells, NK1.1+T cells and CD11c+DCs, as well as adaptive immune cell CD4+T cells and CD8+T cells, also significantly changed respectively. Mechanistic evidence showed that KLF4, a target molecule of miR-7, was upregulated in lung tissues in ALI model, accompanied by altered transduction of NF-κB, AKT and ERK pathway. These data provided a previously unknown role of miR-7 in pathology of ALI, which could ultimately aid the understanding of development of ALI and the development of new therapeutic strategies against clinical inflammatory lung diseases

Five new and noteworthy species of Epidendroideae (Orchidaceae) from southwestern China based on morphological and phylogenetic evidence

Five new orchid species from southwestern China’s Yunnan Province and the Tibetan Autonomous Region, Neottia lihengiae, Neottia chawalongensis, Papilionanthe motuoensis, Gastrochilus lihengiae, and Gastrochilus bernhardtianus, are described and illustrated. To confirm their identities, and to resolve phylogenetic relationships, we sequenced the complete plastomes of these taxa with their congeneric species, adding new plastomes of three Neottia species, two Papilionanthe species and nine Gastrochilus species. Combined with published plastid sequences, our well-resolved phylogeny supported the alliance of N. lihengiae with the the N. grandiflora + N. pinetorum clade. Neottia chawalongensis is now sister to N. alternifolia, while P. motuoensis is closely related to P. subulata + P. teres. Conversely, phylogenetic analyses based on complete plastomes and plastid sequences showed inconsistent relationships among taxa in the genus Gastrochilus, but the two new species, G. lihengiae and G. bernhardtianus were supported by all datasets

The Role of MicroRNAs in Aβ Deposition and Tau Phosphorylation in Alzheimer’s Disease

Alzheimer’s disease (AD), with main clinical features of progressive impairment in cognitive and behavioral functions, is the most common degenerative disease of the central nervous system. Recent evidence showed that microRNAs (miRNAs) played important roles in the pathological progression of AD. In this article, we reviewed the promising role of miRNAs in both Aβ deposition and Tau phosphorylation, two key pathological characters in the pathological progression of AD, which might be helpful for the understanding of pathogenesis and the development of new strategies of clinical diagnosis and treatment of AD

Gentianella macrosperma, a new species of Gentianella (Gentianaceae) from Xinjiang, China

Volume: 130Start Page: 59-7