GPI transamidase complex is required for primordial germ cell migration and development in zebrafish.

Proteins without transmembrane domains could be anchored to the cell surface for regulating various biological processes when covalently linked to glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) molecules by the GPI transamidase (GPIT) complex. However, it remains poorly understood whether and how the GPIT complex affects primordial germ cell (PGC) development. In this study, we report the important roles of GPI transamidase in PGC migration and development in zebrafish embryos.

Znf706 regulates germ plasm assembly and primordial germ cell development in zebrafish.

The cell fate of primordial germ cells (PGCs) in zebrafish is pre-determined by maternally deposited germ plasm, which is packaged into ribonucleoprotein complex in oocytes and inherited into PGCs-fated cells in embryos. However, the maternal factors regulating the assembly of germ plasm and PGC development remain poorly understood. In this study, we report that the maternal transcription factor Znf706 regulates the assembly of germ plasm factors into a granule-like structure localized perinuclearly in PGCs during migration.

Enhanced risk of record-breaking regional temperatures during the 2023-24 El Niño.

In 2023, the development of El Niño is poised to drive a global upsurge in surface air temperatures (SAT), potentially resulting in unprecedented warming worldwide. Nevertheless, the regional patterns of SAT anomalies remain diverse, obscuring where historical warming records may be surpassed in the forthcoming year. Our study underscores the significant influence of El Niño and the persistence of climate signals on the inter-annual variability of regional SAT, both in amplitude and spatial distribution.

The roles of migrasome in development.

Migrasomes are newly identified vesicular structures that mainly come from the ends and crosspoints of retracting fibers in moving cells. Their creation is closely linked with cell movement and goes through three key steps: Nucleation, Maturation, and Expansion. They eventually get released in an event called migracytosis.

Bio-friendly long-term subcellular dynamic recording by self-supervised image enhancement microscopy.

Fluorescence microscopy has become an indispensable tool for revealing the dynamic regulation of cells and organelles. However, stochastic noise inherently restricts optical interrogation quality and exacerbates observation fidelity when balancing the joint demands of high frame rate, long-term recording and low phototoxicity. Here we propose DeepSeMi, a self-supervised-learning-based denoising framework capable of increasing signal-to-noise ratio by over 12 dB across various conditions.

The formation of migrasomes is initiated by the assembly of sphingomyelin synthase 2 foci at the leading edge of migrating cells.

The migrasome is an organelle of migrating cells with diverse physiological functions. How migrasome formation is initiated is unknown. We found that sphingomyelin is enriched in migrasomes and identified sphingomyelin synthase 2 (SMS2) as an essential protein for migrasome biogenesis.

The phosphatidylinositol (4,5)-bisphosphate-Rab35 axis regulates migrasome formation.

Migrasomes are recently discovered organelles, which are formed on the ends or branch points of retraction fibers at the trailing edge of migrating cells. Previously, we showed that recruitment of integrins to the site of migrasome formation is essential for migrasome biogenesis. In this study, we found that prior to migrasome formation, PIP5K1A, a PI4P kinase which converts PI4P into PI(4,5)P, is recruited to migrasome formation sites.

A Manually Curated Gene Model Set for an Ascidian, ( Type A).

Gene/transcript model sets predicted from decoded genome sequences are an important resource for a wide range of biological studies. Accuracy of gene models is therefore critical for deducing accurate conclusions. Computationally predicted models are sometimes inconsistent with experimental data from cDNA clones and RNA-sequencing.

Anxiety, depression and associated factors among caretakers of children with atopic dermatitis.

Background: The prevalence of anxiety and depression symptoms among caretakers of children with atopic dermatitis (AD) and associated factors is unclear. The study was designed to explore anxiety and depression symptoms among caretakers of AD, and screen factors associated with anxiety and depression symptoms.

Methods: A total of 901 children with AD and their caretakers were continuously enrolled and interviewed at dermatology department of Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Beijing, China.

Smoking-related cancer death among men and women in an ageing society (China 2020-2040): a population-based modelling study.

Background: China is experiencing a postpeak smoking epidemic with accelerating population ageing. Understanding the impacts of these factors on the future cancer burden has widespread implications.

Methods: We developed predictive models to estimate smoking-related cancer deaths among men and women aged ≥35 years in China during 2020-2040.

The genetic program to specify ectodermal cells in ascidian embryos.

The ascidian belongs to the sister group of vertebrates and shares many features with them. The gene regulatory network (GRN) controlling gene expression in ascidian embryonic development leading to the tadpole larva has revealed evolutionarily conserved gene circuits between ascidians and vertebrates. These conserved mechanisms are indeed useful to infer the original developmental programs of the ancestral chordates.

Foxg specifies sensory neurons in the anterior neural plate border of the ascidian embryo.

Foxg constitutes a regulatory loop with Fgf8 and plays an important role in the development of anterior placodes and the telencephalon in vertebrate embryos. Ascidians, which belong to Tunicata, the sister group of vertebrates, develop a primitive placode-like structure at the anterior boundary of the neural plate, but lack a clear counterpart of the telencephalon. In this animal, Foxg is expressed in larval palps, which are adhesive organs with sensory neurons.

Is exposure to tobacco associated with extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma epidemics? A retrospective proportional mortality study in China.

Background: Extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ECC) has become one of the most rapidly increasing malignancies in China during recent decades. The relationship between tobacco exposure and ECC epidemics is unclear; this study aimed to explore this relationship.

Methods: We included 55,806 participants aged 30 years or older from the National Mortality and Smoking Survey of China.

Passive smoking and stroke in men and women: a national population-based case-control study in China.

An association between passive smoking and stroke is unclear in China, particularly the association with hemorrhagic stroke. This study included 16205 deaths due to stroke aged ≥30 years and 16205 non-stroke controls randomly selected and frequency-matched to cases on gender and age. Smoking of spouses, defined as ≥1 cigarette per day for up to 1 year, was taken as a measure of exposure to passive smoking of subjects that was retrospectively ascertained by interviewing surviving spouses.

Nitrogen deposition may enhance soil carbon storage via change of soil respiration dynamic during a spring freeze-thaw cycle period.

As crucial terrestrial ecosystems, temperate forests play an important role in global soil carbon dioxide flux, and this process can be sensitive to atmospheric nitrogen deposition. It is often reported that the nitrogen addition induces a change in soil carbon dioxide emission in growing season. However, the important effects of interactions between nitrogen deposition and the freeze-thaw-cycle have never been investigated.

Aquaporin-1, a New Maternally Expressed Gene, Regulates Placental Development in the Mouse.

Imprinted genes play an important role in placental and embryonic development. Abnormalities in their regulation can result in placental and embryonic dysplasia, leading to congenital diseases. The imprinting state, expression, and function of aquaporin-1 (Aqp1) were explored in knockout mice by imprinting analysis, real-time PCR, and immunohistochemistry.

Annual soil CO2 efflux in a cold temperate forest in northeastern China: effects of winter snowpack and artificial nitrogen deposition.

We conducted a snow depth 0 cm (non-snowpack), 10 cm, 20 cm, 30 cm and natural depth) gradient experiment under four quantities of nitrogen addition (control, no added N; low-N, 5 g N m(-2) yr(-1); medium-N, 10 g N m(-2) yr(-1); and high-N, 15 g N m(-2) yr(-1)) and took an-entire-year measurements of soil respiration (Rs) in Korean pine forests in northeastern China during 2013-2014. No evidence for effects of N on Rs could be found during the growing season. On the other hand, reduction of snowpack decreased winter soil respiration due to accompanied relatively lower soil temperature.

Smoking and adult glioma: a population-based case-control study in China.

Background: Smoking increases the risk of numerous cancers; however, an association of smoking with adult gliomas has not been found in a population.

Methods: This case-control study included 4556 glioma cases (ICD-9 code 191.0-191.

Effects of active, passive, and combined smoking on cervical cancer mortality: a nationwide proportional mortality study in Chinese urban women.

Purpose: To determine whether smoking, in any form, is a risk factor in the development of cervical cancer (CC) among urban Chinese women.

Methods: We ascertained retrospectively the smoking habits of 1,865 women (aged 35+) who had died from CC (cases) and 48,781 who had died from causes unrelated to smoking (controls) in 24 cities using data from a large national survey of smoking and mortality in 1989-1991. We assessed the risk of smoking on CC mortality with and without considering passive smoke exposure from a spouse using a proportional mortality study design.

Contributions of major smoking-related diseases to reduction in life expectancy associated with smoking in Chinese adults: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Cigarette smoking is a prominent risk factor for a wide range of diseases. The current study aimed to evaluate the impact of smoking on deaths from major smoking-related diseases (neoplasms, vascular diseases and respiratory diseases) in Chinese adults by estimating the potential gains in life expectancy (LE) that would accrue from eliminating deaths from these diseases, and to determine the contribution of each disease to the reduction in LE associated with smoking.

Methods: Two cohorts of Chinese smokers and non-smokers were constructed from a retrospective national mortality survey that had been conducted in 1989-1991 and included one million all-cause deaths among adults during 1986-1988 in 103 geographical regions.

Phage displayed peptides recognizing porcine aminopeptidase N inhibit transmissible gastroenteritis coronavirus infection in vitro.

Porcine aminopeptidase N (pAPN) is a cellular receptor of transmissible gastroenteritis virus (TGEV), a porcine coronavirus. Interaction between the spike (S) protein of TGEV and pAPN initiates cell infection. Small molecules, especially peptides are an expanding area for therapy or diagnostic assays for viral diseases.

Binding characterization of determinants in porcine aminopeptidase N, the cellular receptor for transmissible gastroenteritis virus.

Four truncated porcine aminopeptidase N (pAPN, a cellular receptor for porcine coronaviruses) proteins were expressed in prokaryotic cells. The recognizing of a specific serum against pAPN to these proteins was investigated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunoblotting. The binding ability of the proteins to transmissible gastroenteritis virus (TGEV), a porcine coronavirus, was analyzed by ELISA.

Case-spouse control design in practice: an experience in estimating smoking and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease deaths in Chinese adults.

Background/purpose: We assessed the effect of smoking on death from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in China by employing a large population-based, case-spouse control study design using data from a nationwide survey of mortality.

Methods: During 1989-1991, a nationwide retrospective survey of mortality was conducted in China. For approximately 1,000,000 adults dying from all causes during 1986-1988, their surviving spouses or other informants provided detailed information about their own as well as the deceased person's smoking history.