Impact of early postoperative enteral nutrition on clinical outcomes in patients with gastric cancer

The impact of early enteral nutrition (EEN) on clinical outcomes of gastric cancer patients was investigated. Three hundred pa-tients undergoing gastric cancer surgery from July 2010 to May 2014 were randomly divided into experimental and control groups (n = 150/group). Experimental group patients received enteral nutrition in water during the early postoperative period. Control group patients received conventional perioperative treatment. Patients' clinical outcomes, post-operative immune function, and nutritional statuses were compared, which revealed that the postoperative fever duration (80.2 ± 6.0 vs 88.1 ± 8.1 h, P < 0.05), anal exhaust time (78.8 ± 9.3 vs 85.3 ± 8.4 h, P < 0.05), and length of hospitalization (7.73 ± 2.13 vs 9.77 ± 1.76 days, P < 0.01) differed significantly. Treatment costs in thousands of dol-lars were 31.24 ± 3.21 for the experimental group and 35.61 ± 2.32 for the control group; this difference was statistically significant (P < 0.01). The incidence of postoperative complications did not significantly differ between the experimental and control groups [14.0% (21/150) vs 17.3% (26/150), P > 0.05]. At postoperative days 3 and 7, the CD3(+), CD4(+), natural killer cell, albumin, and prealbumin levels and CD4(+)/CD8(+) ra-tio were significantly higher in the experimental group than the control group (all P < 0.05). CD8(+) cell counts were significantly lower in the experimental group than the control group (P < 0.05). Postsurgical oral EEN can improve nutritional status and immune function and promote early recovery of intestinal function in patients with gastric cancer.

Validation of aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio for diagnosis of liver fibrosis and prediction of postoperative prognosis in infants with biliary atresia

AIM: To validate the value of aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio index (APRI) in assessment of liver fibrosis and prediction of postoperative prognosis of biliary atresia (BA) infants from Mainland China.

METHODS: Medical records of 153 BA infants who were hospitalized from January 2010 to June 2013 were reviewed. The efficacy of APRI for diagnosis of liver fibrosis was assessed using the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve compared to the pathological Metavir fibrosis score of the liver wedge specimens of 91 BA infants. The prognostic value of preoperative APRI for jaundice persistence, liver injury, and occurrence of cholangitis within 6 mo after KP was studied based on the follow-up data of 48 BA infants.

RESULTS: APRI was significantly correlated with Metavir scores (r_s = 0.433; P < 0.05). The mean APRI value was 0.76 in no/mild fibrosis group (Metavir score F0-F1), 1.29 in significant fibrosis group (F2-F3), and 2.51 in cirrhosis group (F4) (P < 0.001). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) of APRI for diagnosing significant fibrosis and cirrhosis was 0.75 (P < 0.001) and 0.81 (P = 0.001), respectively. The APRI cut-off of 0.95 was 60.6% sensitive and 76.0% specific for significant fibrosis diagnosis, and a threshold of 1.66 was 70.6% sensitive and 82.7% specific for cirrhosis. The preoperative APRI in infants who maintained jaundice around 6 mo after KP was higher than that in those who did not (1.86 ± 2.13 vs 0.87 ± 0.48, P < 0.05). The AUC of APRI for prediction of postoperative jaundice occurrence was 0.67. A cut-off value of 0.60 showed a sensitivity of 66.7% and a specificity of 83.3% for the prediction of jaundice persistence. Preoperative APRI had no significant association with later liver injury or occurrence of cholangitis.

CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrated that APRI could diagnose significant liver fibrosis, especially cirrhosis in BA infants, and the elevated preoperative APRI predicts jaundice persistence after KP.

miR-200a inhibits tumor proliferation by targeting AP-2γ in neuroblastoma cells

BACKGROUND

MicroRNA-200a (miR-200a) has been reported to regulate tumour progression in several tumours but little is known about its role in neuroblastoma. Our aim was to investigate the potential role and mechanism of miR-200a in neuroblastomas.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Expression levels of miR-200a in tissues were determined using RT-PCR. The effect of miR-200a and shAP-2γ on cell viability was evaluated using MTS assays, and target protein expression was determined using Western blotting and RT-PCR. Luciferase reporter plasmids were constructed to confirm direct targeting. RESULTS were reported as mean±S.E.M and differences were tested for significance using the 2-tailed Students t-test.

RESULTS

We determined that miR-200a expression was significantly lower in neuroblastoma tumors than the adjacent non-cancer tissue. Over-expression of miR-200 are reduced cell viability in neuroblastoma cells and inhibited tumor growth in mouse xenografts. We identified AP-2γ as a novel target for miR-200a in neuroblastoma cells. Thus miR-200a targets the 3'UTR of AP-2γ and inhibits its mRNA and protein expression. Furthermore, our result showed that shRNA knockdown of AP-2γ in neuroblastoma cells results in significant inhibit of cell proliferation and tumor growth in vitro, supporting an oncogenic role of AP-2γ in neuroblastoma.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study revealed that miR-200a is a candidate tumor suppressor in neuroblastoma, through direct targeting of AP-2γ. These findings re-enforce the proposal of AP-2γ as a therapeutic target in neuroblastoma.

Femtosecond all-optical synchronization of an X-ray free-electron laser

Many advanced applications of X-ray free-electron lasers require pulse durations and time resolutions of only a few femtoseconds. To generate these pulses and to apply them in time-resolved experiments, synchronization techniques that can simultaneously lock all independent components, including all accelerator modules and all external optical lasers, to better than the delivered free-electron laser pulse duration, are needed. Here we achieve all-optical synchronization at the soft X-ray free-electron laser FLASH and demonstrate facility-wide timing to better than 30 fs r.m.s. for 90 fs X-ray photon pulses. Crucially, our analysis indicates that the performance of this optical synchronization is limited primarily by the free-electron laser pulse duration, and should naturally scale to the sub-10 femtosecond level with shorter X-ray pulses.

Few-femtosecond synchronization at free-electron lasers is key for nearly all experimental applications, stable operation and future light source development. Here, Schulz et al. demonstrate all-optical synchronization of the soft X-ray FEL FLASH to better than 30 fs and illustrate a pathway to sub-10 fs.

A conceptual approach to a citizens' observatory--supporting community-based environmental governance

In recent years there has been a trend to view the Citizens' Observatory as an increasingly essential tool that provides an approach for better observing, understanding, protecting and enhancing our environment. However, there is no consensus on how to develop such a system, nor is there any agreement on what a Citizens' Observatory is and what results it could produce. The increase in the prevalence of Citizens' Observatories globally has been mirrored by an increase in the number of variables that are monitored, the number of monitoring locations and the types of participating citizens. This calls for a more integrated approach to handle the emerging complexities involved in this field, but before this can be achieved, it is essential to establish a common foundation for Citizens' Observatories and their usage. There are many aspects to a Citizens' Observatory. One view is that its essence is a process that involves environmental monitoring, information gathering, data management and analysis, assessment and reporting systems. Hence, it requires the development of novel monitoring technologies and of advanced data management strategies to capture, analyse and survey the data, thus facilitating their exploitation for policy and society. Practically, there are many challenges in implementing the Citizens' Observatory approach, such as ensuring effective citizens' participation, dealing with data privacy, accounting for ethical and security requirements, and taking into account data standards, quality and reliability. These concerns all need to be addressed in a concerted way to provide a stable, reliable and scalable Citizens' Observatory programme. On the other hand, the Citizens' Observatory approach carries the promise of increasing the public's awareness to risks in their environment, which has a corollary economic value, and enhancing data acquisition at low or no cost. In this paper, we first propose a conceptual framework for a Citizens' Observatory programme as a system that supports and promotes community-based environmental governance. Next, we discuss some of the challenges involved in developing this approach. This work seeks to initiate a debate and help defining what is the Citizens' Observatory, its potential role in environmental governance, and its validity as a tool for environmental research.

MicroRNA-210 knockdown contributes to apoptosis caused by oxygen glucose deprivation in PC12 cells

It was previously demonstrated that microRNA-210 (miR-210) exhibited neuroprotective effects in a murine model of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy via inhibition of apoptosis. The aim of the present study was to further elucidate the effect of miR-210 on apoptosis in PC12 cells following transfection with miR-210 inhibitors and exposure to oxygen glucose deprivation (OGD). The expression levels of miR-210 were identified using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis. Apoptosis was investigated using Annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate assays. Apoptosis-related protein expression levels were studied with western blot analysis. The results showed that the expression levels of miR-210 were upregulated in PC12 cells following a 4-h exposure to OGD, relative to those in normoxic control cells. miR-210 knockdown increased cell apoptosis by inducing caspase activity and regulating the balance between Bcl-2 and Bax levels. The present study demonstrated that miR-210 knockdown induced cell apoptosis using an ex vivo model of ischemic hypoxia (IH). Knockdown of miR-210 represents a potential novel therapeutic approach to combat neonatal IH.

Promoter hypomethylation and increased maspin expression in preeclamptic placentas in a Chinese population

OBJECTIVE

Preeclampsia is thought to begin with shallow trophoblast invasion and inadequate spiral artery remodeling. Maspin, a tumor-suppressor gene, plays a regulatory role in trophoblast invasion and motility. The tissue-specific methylation of the maspin promoter can regulate maspin gene expression in various cancers. We sought to detect maspin gene expression and assess the degrees of methylation of maspin promoter regions in preeclamptic placentas in the Han Chinese population and to investigate the potential role of maspin in the pathophysiology of preeclampsia.

METHODS

We conducted RT-PCR, immunohistochemistry and western blotting to characterize maspin gene expression and protein levels in the placentas from normal and preeclamptic pregnancies. Finally, using methylation-specific PCR and bisulfite sequencing PCR, we detected the degrees of methylation of the promoter regions of maspin in each of the two studied groups.

RESULTS

Maspin expression was increased at the mRNA and protein levels in the preeclamptic placentas compared to the control group. Maspin immunohistochemical staining revealed positive staining in the syncytio-cytotrophoblast layers and more diffuse staining in the preeclamptic group. The mean methylation level of the analyzed promoter region was significantly hypomethylated in the preeclamptic placentas compared to the control placentas, pointing to a negative relationship between maspin promoter methylation and gene expression.

DISCUSSION

Hypomethylation of the maspin promoter results in increased expression of maspin in preeclamptic placentas, which suggests a negative relationship between maspin methylation and maspin expression in this Han Chinese population. Thus, maspin is likely involved in the etiology of preeclampsia.

A subpathway-based method of drug reposition for polycystic ovary syndrome

The need for development of new therapeutic agents for polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is urgent due to general lack of efficient and specialized drugs currently available. We aimed to explore the metabolic mechanism of PCOS and inferred drug reposition for PCOS by a subpathway-based method. Using the GSE34526 microarray data from the Gene Expression Omnibus database, we first identified the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between PCOS and normal samples. Then, we identified 13 significantly enriched metabolic subpathways that may be involved in the development of PCOS. Finally, by an integrated analysis of PCOS-involved subpathways and drug-affected subpathways, we identified 54 novel small molecular drugs capable to target the PCOS-involved subpathways. We also mapped the DEGs of PCOS and a potential novel drug (alprostadil) into purine metabolism pathway to illustrate the potentially active mechanism of alprostadil on PCOS. Candidate agents identified by our approach may provide insights into a novel therapy approach for PCOS.

Identification of biological targets of therapeutic intervention for diabetic nephropathy with bioinformatics approach

We aimed to discover the potential microRNA (miRNA) targets for diabetic nephropathy (DN) treatment. The microarray data of GSE1009 was downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between DN patients and normal individuals were analyzed using limma package. The significant miRNAs targeting DEGs were collected based on Web-based Gene Set Enrichment Analysis Toolkit (WebGestalt) system. Then we predicted the protein-protein interaction (PPI) pairs regulated by significant miRNAs and constructed the PPI pairs-miRNA network using Cytoscape software. Besides, the significant function modules were explored using Molecular Complex Detection (MCODE) and Biological Networks Gene Ontology (BiNGO) plugin. Total 752 DEGs were obtained, including 318 down-regulated ones and 434 up-regulated ones. There were 10 significant miRNAs, among which miRNA-25 was the most significant. The PPI pairs-miRNA network was established with 103 PPI pairs and 10 miRNAs. Three function modules were obtained, including module A involved with miRNA-29, module B with miRNA-106 and module C with miRNA-124A and miRNA-21B. MiRNA-25, 29, 124 and 21 play key roles in DN progression and these miRNAs may be potential targets for DN treatment.

First Report of Nigrospora Leaf Blight on Sesame Caused by Nigrospora sphaerica in China

Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) is an important oilseed crop widely grown in the central regions of China. A new leaf blight has increasingly been observed in sesame fields in Anhui, Hubei, and Henan provinces since 2010. Approximately 30 to 40% of the plants were symptomatic in the affected fields. Initial symptoms were yellow to brown, irregularly shaped lesions. Lesions later expanded and the affected leaves tuned grayish to dark brown and wilted, with a layer of whitish mycelial growth on the underside. Severe blighting caused the center of lesions to fall out, leaving holes in the leaves. Sections of symptomatic leaf tissues were surface-sterilized in 75% ethanol for 30 s, then in 1% HgCl₂ for 30 s, rinsed three times in sterile distilled water, and plated onto potato dextrose agar (PDA). The resulting fungal colonies were initially white, and then became grayish-brown with sporulation. Conidia were single-celled, black, smooth, spherical, 14.2 to 19.8 μm (average 17.1 μm) in diameter, and borne on a hyaline vesicle at the tip of each conidiophore. Morphological characteristics of the isolates were similar to those of Nigrospora sphaerica (1). To verify the identification based on morphological features, the ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 region of the ribosomal RNA was amplified using ITS1 (5'-TCCGTAGGTGAACCTGCGG-3') and ITS4 (5'-TCCTCCGCTTATTGATATGC-3') primers (3), and then sequenced and compared to the GenBank database through a BLAST search. Comparison of the sequence revealed 100% similarity to N. sphaerica (GenBank Accession No. JF817271.1). On the basis of morphological data and the ITS rDNA sequence, the isolate was determined to be N. sphaerica. Pathogenicity tests were conducted using fresh and healthy sesame leaves of 10 plants. A conidial suspension (10⁶ conidia/ml) collected from a 7-day-old culture on PDA was used for inoculation. Leaves of 10 plants were spray-inoculated with the spore suspension at the 6-week-old growth stage, and an additional 10 plants were sprayed with sterile water. Inoculated plants were covered with polyethylene bags to maintain high humidity. Plants were kept at 28°C and observed for symptom every day. Ten to 15 days after inoculation, inoculated leaves developed blight symptoms similar to those observed on naturally infected leaves. No symptoms were observed on the control leaves. N. sphaerica was re-isolated from the inoculated leaves, thus fulfilling Koch's postulates. N. sphaerica has been reported as a leaf pathogen on several hosts worldwide (2). To our knowledge, this is the first report of Nigrospora leaf blight on sesame caused by N. sphaerica in China. References: (1) M. B. Ellis. Dematiaceous Hyphomycetes. CMI, Kew, Surrey, UK, 1971. (2) D. F. Farr and A. Y. Rossman. Fungal Databases, Systematic Mycology and Microbiology Laboratory, ARS, USDA. Retrieved from http://nt.ars-grin.gov/fungaldatabases/ . July 01, 2013. (3) M. A. Innis et al. PCR Protocols: A Guide to Methods and Applications. Academic Press, San Diego, CA, 1990.

Role of 5-aminolevulinic acid in the salinity stress response of the seeds and seedlings of the medicinal plant Cassia obtusifolia L

BACKGROUND

Soil salinity, one of the major abiotic stresses affecting germination, crop growth, and productivity, is a common adverse environmental factor. The possibility of enhancing the salinity stress tolerance of Cassia obtusifolia L. seeds and seedlings by the exogenous application of 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) was investigated.

RESULT

To improve the salinity tolerance of seeds, ALA was applied in various concentrations (5, 10, 15, and 20 mg/L). To improve the salinity tolerance of seedlings, ALA was applied in various concentrations (10, 25, 50, and 100 mg/L). After 10 mg/L ALA treatment, physiological indices of seed germination (i.e., germination vigor, germination rate, germination index, and vigor index) significantly improved. At 25 mg/L ALA, there was a significant protection against salinity stress compared with non-ALA-treated seedlings. Chlorophyll content, total soluble sugars, free proline, and soluble protein contents were significantly enhanced. Increased thiobarbituric acid reactive species and membrane permeability levels were also inhibited with the ALA treatment. With the treatments of ALA, the levels of chlorophyll fluorescence parameters, i.e., the photochemical efficiency of photosystem II (F_v/F_m), photochemical efficiency (F_v'/F_m'), PSII actual photochemical efficiency (ΦPSII), and photochemical quench coefficient (qP), all significantly increased. In contrast, the non-photochemical quenching coefficient (NPQ) decreased. ALA treatment also enhanced the activities of superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, and catalase in seedling leaves. The highest salinity tolerance was obtained at 25 mg/L ALA treatment.

CONCLUSION

The plant growth regulator ALA could be effectively used to protect C. obtusifolia seeds and seedlings from the damaging effects of salinity stress without adversely affecting plant growth.

Mobile phone tracking: in support of modelling traffic-related air pollution contribution to individual exposure and its implications for public health impact assessment

We propose a new approach to assess the impact of traffic-related air pollution on public health by mapping personal trajectories using mobile phone tracking technology in an urban environment. Although this approach is not based on any empirical studies, we believe that this method has great potential and deserves serious attention. Mobile phone tracking technology makes it feasible to generate millions of personal trajectories and thereby cover a large fraction of an urban population. Through analysis, personal trajectories are not only associated to persons, but it can also be associated with vehicles, vehicle type, vehicle speed, vehicle emission rates, and sources of vehicle emissions. Pollution levels can be estimated by dispersion models from calculated traffic emissions. Traffic pollution exposure to individuals can be estimated based on the exposure along the individual human trajectories in the estimated pollution concentration fields by utilizing modelling tools. By data integration, one may identify trajectory patterns of particularly exposed human groups. The approach of personal trajectories may open a new paradigm in understanding urban dynamics and new perspectives in population-wide empirical public health research. This new approach can be further applied to individual commuter route planning, land use planning, urban traffic network planning, and used by authorities to formulate air pollution mitigation policies and regulations.

Autoantibody detection to tumor-associated antigens of P53, IMP1, P16, cyclin B1, P62, C-myc, Survivn, and Koc for the screening of high-risk subjects and early detection of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic values by detecting sera autoantibodies to eight tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) of P53, IMP1, P16, cyclin B1, P62, C-myc, Survivn and Koc full-length recombinant proteins for the screening of high-risk subjects and early detection of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to detect autoantibodies against the eight selected TAAs in 567 sera samples from four groups, including 200 individuals with normal esophageal epithelia (NOR), 214 patients with esophageal basal cell hyperplasia (BCH), 65 patients with esophageal dysplasia (DYS), and 88 patients with ESCC. In addition, the expression of the eight antigens in esophageal tissues was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. Statistically significant distribution differences were identified among the four groups for each of the individual autoantibodies to six TAAs (P53, IMP1, P16, cyclin B1, P62, and C-myc); the detection rates of antoantibodies were positively correlated with the progression of ESCC. When autoantibody assay successively accumulated to six TAAs (P53, IMP1, P16, cyclin B1, P62, and C-myc), a stepwise increased detection frequency of autoantibodies was found in the four sera groups (6% in NOR, 18% in BCH, 38% in DYS, and 64% in ESCC, respectively), the risks to BHC, DYS, and ESCC steadily increased about 3-, 9-, and 27-folds. The sensitivity and the specificity for autoantibodies against the six TAAs in diagnosing ESCC reached up to 64% and 94%, respectively. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for the six anti-TAA autoantibodies was 0.78 (95% confidence interval 0.74-0.83). No more increasing in sensitivity was found with the addition of new anti-TAA autoantibodies. A combination detection of autoantibodies to TAAs might distinguish ESCC patients from normal individuals and the patients with esophageal precancerous lesions.

[Finite element analysis of lumbar fusion and Topping-off surgery]

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the effect of Topping-off surgery on the adjacent segment of PLIF.

METHODS

A finite element model of the human lumbar spine (L1-L5) was developed. The intact spinal model was validated by comparing it with previously reported models. Then, 2 models were analyzed and compared: (1) posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF) at L4/5; (2) posterior lumbar interbody fusion at L4/5 and implantation of the interspinous spacer (ISP) at L3/4 (Topping-off). Then 500 N compressive loading plus 10 Nm moments simulating flexion, extension, lateral bending and axial rotation were imposed on both the L1 superior endplates. The ranges of motion, intradiscal pressures, facet stresses in L3/4, the stresses on spinous processes in L3 and L4 were investigated. All the measured data were analyzed by SPSS 21.0.

RESULTS

The effect of the Topping-off on the adjacent segment appeared mainly in flexion-extension: the ranges of motion, intradiscal pressures (annulus and nucleus pulposus), both facet stresses were lower than that of the PLIF model, and the stresses on spinous processes in L3 and L4 were larger. Besides, the facet stresses on the left side in the left lateral bending were also lower than those of the PLIF model.

CONCLUSION

Topping-off model is able to restrict the range of motion of the lumbar adjacent segment, decrease the intradiscal pressure and facet stresses, and has a potential effect of preventing adjacent segmental degeneration.

Mesenchymal stem cells transplantation ameliorates glomerular injury in streptozotocin-induced diabetic nephropathy in rats via inhibiting macrophage infiltration

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) treatment has been shown to be effective in diabetic nephropathy (DN). However, the mechanisms involved in the renoprotective effects of MSCs have not been clearly demonstrated. Especially, there was no study on the relationship of MSCs and macrophages in diabetic kidney. To explore the effect of MSCs on macrophages in DN, streptozotocin-induced diabetes animals received no treatment or treatment with MSCs (2×10(6), via tail vein) for two continuous weeks. Eight weeks after treatment, physical, biochemical and morphological parameters were measured. Immunohistochemistry for fibronectin (FN), CollagenI, ED-1, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) was performed. Expressions of pro-inflammatory cytokines and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) at gene level and protein level were determined by real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, respectively. Blood glucose, urinary albumin excretion, creatinine clearance were significantly reduced after MSCs treatment. The glomerulosclerosis as revealed by periodic acid Schiff stain and expression of FN and CollagenI was also dramatically attenuated. Most importantly, the expression of MCP-1 and the number of infiltrated macrophages in kidney were effectively suppressed by MSCs treatment. The expression of HGF in MSCs group was up-regulated. Meanwhile, the expressions of IL-1β, IL-6 and TNFα were significantly down-regulated by MSCs treatment. Our study suggest that MSCs treatment ameliorates DN via inhibition of MCP-1 expression by secreting HGF, thus reducing macrophages infiltration, down-regulating IL-1β, IL-6, TNFα expression in renal tissue in diabetic rats.

III-V quantum light source and cavity-QED on silicon

Non-classical light sources offer a myriad of possibilities in both fundamental science and commercial applications. Single photons are the most robust carriers of quantum information and can be exploited for linear optics quantum information processing. Scale-up requires miniaturisation of the waveguide circuit and multiple single photon sources. Silicon photonics, driven by the incentive of optical interconnects is a highly promising platform for the passive optical components, but integrated light sources are limited by silicon's indirect band-gap. III–V semiconductor quantum-dots, on the other hand, are proven quantum emitters. Here we demonstrate single-photon emission from quantum-dots coupled to photonic crystal nanocavities fabricated from III–V material grown directly on silicon substrates. The high quality of the III–V material and photonic structures is emphasized by observation of the strong-coupling regime. This work opens-up the advantages of silicon photonics to the integration and scale-up of solid-state quantum optical systems.

Soil moisture effect on bacterial and fungal community in Beilu River (Tibetan Plateau) permafrost soils with different vegetation types

AIM

This study investigated the effects of environmental variables on the bacterial and fungal communities of the Beilu River (on the Tibetan Plateau) permafrost soils with different vegetation types.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Microbial communities were sampled from meadow, steppe and desert steppe permafrost soils during May, June, August and November, and they were analysed by both pyrosequencing and the use of Biolog EcoPlates. The dominant bacterial and fungal phyla in meadow and steppe soils were Proteobacteria and Ascomycota, whereas Actinobacteria and Basidiomycota predominated in desert steppe soils. The bacterial communities in meadow soils degraded amines and amino acids very rapidly, while polymers were degraded rapidly by steppe communities. The RDA patterns showed that the microbial communities differed greatly between meadow, steppe and desert steppe, and they were related to variations in the soil moisture, C/N ratio and pH. A UniFrac analysis detected clear differences between the desert steppe bacterial community and others, and seasonal shifts were observed. The fungal UniFrac patterns differed significantly between meadow and steppe soils. There were significant correlations between the bacterial diversity (H') and soil moisture (r = 0.506) and C/N (r = 0.527). The fungal diversity (Hf') was significantly correlated with the soil pH (r = 0.541).

CONCLUSION

The soil moisture, C/N ratio and pH were important determinants of the microbial community structure in Beilu River permafrost soils.

SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY

These results may provide a useful baseline for predicting the variation in microbial communities in response to climate changes.

Localisation and role of activin receptor-interacting protein 1 in mouse brain

Activin A, a stimulator of follicle-stimulating hormone secretion from the pituitary, acts as a neurotrophic and neuroprotective factor in the central nervous system. Activin receptor-interacting protein 1 (ARIP1) has been identified as a cytoplasmic protein that interacts with the type II receptor of activin (ActRII). However, the distribution pattern and function of ARIP1 are not well characterised in the brain. In the present study, we confirmed the existence of mRNA and protein of ARIP1 in the mouse brain, and found that ARIP1 was mainly localised at the hippocampus and hypothalamus in the cerebrum, granular layers in the cerebellum (especially in Purkinje cells of the cerebellum) and choroid epithelial cells by immunohistochemical staining. Furthermore, in contrast to the significant increase of activin A mRNA, ARIP1 mRNA and protein expression decreased in the mechanically lesioned brain of the mouse. Using neuroblastoma-derived Neuro-2a cells to investigate the function of ARIP1, we found that overexpression of ARIP1 down-regulated the activin A-induced signal transduction and significantly decreased the voltage-gated Na(+) current (I(Na) ). These data indicate that ARIP1 is a key molecule for the regulation of the action of activin in neurones, and also that decreased ARIP1 expression in the lesioned brain may be beneficial to the neurotrophic and neuroprotective roles of activin A in recovery after brain injury.

Characterization of plant-growth-promoting effects and concurrent promotion of heavy metal accumulation in the tissues of the plants grown in the polluted soil by Burkholderia strain LD-11

Plant-growth-promoting (PGP) bacteria especially with the resistance to multiple heavy metals are helpful to phytoremediation. Further development of PGP bacteria is very necessary because of the extreme diversity of plants, soils, and heavy metal pollution. A Burkholderia sp. strain, numbered LD-11, was isolated, which showed resistances to multiple heavy metals and antibiotics. It can produce indole-3-acetic acid, 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid deaminase and siderophores. Inoculation with the LD-11 improved germination of seeds of the investigated vegetable plants in the presence of Cu, promoted elongation of roots and hypocotyledonary axes, enhanced the dry weights of the plants grown in the soils polluted with Cu and/or Pb, and increased activity of the soil urease and the rhizobacteria diversity. Inoculation with the LD-11 significantly enhanced Cu and/or Pb accumulation especially in the roots of the plants grown in the polluted soils. Notably, LD-11 could produce siderophores in the presence of Cu. Conclusively, the PGP effects and concurrent heavy metal accumulation in the plant tissues results from combined effects of the above-mentioned multiple factors. Cu is an important element that represses production of the siderophore by the bacteria. Phytoremediation by synergistic use of the investigated plants and the bacterial strain LD-11 is a phytoextraction process.

Respiratory disease in relation to outdoor air pollution in Kanpur, India

This paper examines the effect of outdoor air pollution on respiratory disease in Kanpur, India, based on data from 2006. Exposure to air pollution is represented by annual emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO(2)), particulate matter (PM), and nitrogen oxides (NO(x)) from 11 source categories, established as a geographic information system (GIS)-based emission inventory in 2 km × 2 km grid. Respiratory disease is represented by number of patients who visited specialist pulmonary hospital with symptoms of respiratory disease. The results showed that (1) the main sources of air pollution are industries, domestic fuel burning, and vehicles; (2) the emissions of PM per grid are strongly correlated to the emissions of SO(2) and NO(x); and (3) there is a strong correlation between visits to a hospital due to respiratory disease and emission strength in the area of residence. These results clearly indicate that appropriate health and environmental monitoring, actions to reduce emissions to air, and further studies that would allow assessing the development in health status are necessary.

Respiratory disease in relation to outdoor air pollution in Kanpur, India

This paper examines the effect of outdoor air pollution on respiratory disease in Kanpur, India, based on data from 2006. Exposure to air pollution is represented by annual emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO(2)), particulate matter (PM), and nitrogen oxides (NO(x)) from 11 source categories, established as a geographic information system (GIS)-based emission inventory in 2 km × 2 km grid. Respiratory disease is represented by number of patients who visited specialist pulmonary hospital with symptoms of respiratory disease. The results showed that (1) the main sources of air pollution are industries, domestic fuel burning, and vehicles; (2) the emissions of PM per grid are strongly correlated to the emissions of SO(2) and NO(x); and (3) there is a strong correlation between visits to a hospital due to respiratory disease and emission strength in the area of residence. These results clearly indicate that appropriate health and environmental monitoring, actions to reduce emissions to air, and further studies that would allow assessing the development in health status are necessary.