Quantifying the global biodiversity of Proterozoic eukaryotes.

The global diversity of Proterozoic eukaryote fossils is poorly quantified despite its fundamental importance to the understanding of macroevolutionary patterns and dynamics on the early Earth. Here we report a new construction of fossil eukaryote diversity from the Paleoproterozoic to early Cambrian based on a comprehensive data compilation and quantitative analyses. The resulting taxonomic richness curve verifies Cryogenian glaciations as a major divide that separates the "Boring Billion" and Ediacaran periods, with the former characterized by a prolonged stasis, and the latter by greater diversity, more-rapid turnover, and multiple radiations and extinctions.

Redox Control of Seed Germination is Mediated by the Crosstalk of Nitric Oxide and Reactive Oxygen Species.

Seed germination and seedling establishment are characterized by changes in the intracellular redox state modulated by accelerated production of nitric oxide (NO) and reactive oxygen species (ROS). Redox regulation and enhanced accumulation of NO and ROS, approaching excessively high levels during seed imbibition, are critically important for breaking endodormancy and inducing germination. Upon depletion of oxygen under the seed coat, NO is produced anaerobically in the reductive pathway associated mainly with mitochondria, and it participates in the energy metabolism of the seed until radicle protrusion.

Paleontology: Ediacaran ecology drove ocean ventilation.

Fluid dynamics modeling of an Ediacaran ecosystem illustrates an important positive feedback loop between early multicellular organisms and environmental water flow. Early communities thus helped to chemically shape new environments where oxygen-dependent organisms could thrive.

Diversity of transgene integration and gene-editing events in wheat ( L.) transgenic plants generated using -mediated transformation.

Improvement in agronomic traits in crops through gene editing (GE) relies on efficient transformation protocols for delivering the CRISPR/Cas9-coded transgenes. Recently, a few embryogenesis-related genes have been described, the co-delivery of which significantly increases the transformation efficiency with reduced genotype-dependency. Here, we characterized the transgenic and GE events in wheat (cv.

Multiple Sclerosis Is Associated with Immunoglobulin Germline Gene Variation of Transitional B Cells.

The regulatory functions of the B-cell compartment play an important role in the development and suppression of the immune response. Disruption of their anti-inflammatory functions may lead to the acceleration of immunopathological processes, and to autoimmune diseases, in particular. Unfortunately, the exact mechanism underlying the functioning and development of regulatory B cells (Breg) has not yet been fully elucidated.

Mitochondria in photosynthetic cells: Coordinating redox control and energy balance.

In photosynthetic tissues in the light, the function of energy production is associated primarily with chloroplasts, while mitochondrial metabolism adjusts to balance ATP supply, regulate the reduction level of pyridine nucleotides, and optimize major metabolic fluxes. The tricarboxylic acid cycle in the light transforms into a noncyclic open structure (hemicycle) maintained primarily by the influx of malate and the export of citrate to the cytosol. The exchange of malate and citrate forms the basis of feeding redox energy from the chloroplast into the cytosolic pathways.

Deconvolution of B cell receptor repertoire in multiple sclerosis patients revealed a delay in tBreg maturation.

Background: B lymphocytes play a pivotal regulatory role in the development of the immune response. It was previously shown that deficiency in B regulatory cells (Bregs) or a decrease in their anti-inflammatory activity can lead to immunological dysfunctions. However, the exact mechanisms of Bregs development and functioning are only partially resolved.

Metabolic Changes in Seed Embryos of Hypoxia-Tolerant Rice and Hypoxia-Sensitive Barley at the Onset of Germination.

Rice ( L.) and barley ( L.) are the cereal species differing in tolerance to oxygen deficiency.

PECULIARITIES OF EVALUATION OF THE ORAL FLUID ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY IN PATIENTS WITH LOCAL OR SYSTEMIC DISEASES.

The aim - in the given research, the difficulties in interpreting the study results of oxidative homeostasis of oral fluid are analyzed. Changes in the total antioxidant activity of blood and saliva can be multidirectional - an increase or decrease in the oral fluid indicator and a reduction in the parameter of blood plasma can be recorded. To resolve the emerging difficulties, there was proposed a parallel assessment of the dynamics of changes in the total antioxidant activity of blood plasma and oral fluid in the patients of 4 groups with nosological forms of fundamentally different in the distribution and localization of the pathological process, which include: phlegmons of the maxillofacial region, partial absence of teeth, type 2 diabetes mellitus and the pelvic inflammatory diseases.

Pet-Human Gut Microbiome Host Classifier Using Data from Different Studies.

(1) Background: microbiome host classification can be used to identify sources of contamination in environmental data. However, there is no ready-to-use host classifier. Here, we aimed to build a model that would be able to discriminate between pet and human microbiomes samples.

The influence of environmental setting on the community ecology of Ediacaran organisms.

The broad-scale environment plays a substantial role in shaping modern marine ecosystems, but the degree to which palaeocommunities were influenced by their environment is unclear. To investigate how broad-scale environment influenced the community ecology of early animal ecosystems, we employed spatial point process analyses (SPPA) to examine the community structure of seven late Ediacaran (558-550 Ma) bedding-plane assemblages drawn from a range of environmental settings and global localities. The studied palaeocommunities exhibit marked differences in the response of their component taxa to sub-metre-scale habitat heterogeneities on the seafloor.

Immune Response and Protective Efficacy of Inactivated and Live Influenza Vaccines Against Homologous and Heterosubtypic Challenge.

Inactivated (whole-virion, split, subunit, and adjuvanted) vaccines and live attenuated vaccine were tested in parallel to compare their immunogenicity and protective efficacy. Homologous and heterosubtypic protection against the challenge with influenza H5N1 and H1N1 viruses in a mouse model were studied. Single immunization with live or inactivated whole-virion H5N1 vaccine elicited a high level of serum antibodies and provided complete protection against the challenge with the lethal A/Chicken/Kurgan/3/05 (H5N1) virus, whereas application of a single dose of the split vaccine was much less effective.

Roles for Plant Mitochondrial Alternative Oxidase Under Normoxia, Hypoxia, and Reoxygenation Conditions.

Alternative oxidase (AOX) is a non-energy conserving terminal oxidase in the plant mitochondrial electron transport chain (ETC) that has a lower affinity for oxygen than does cytochrome (cyt) oxidase. To investigate the role(s) of AOX under different oxygen conditions, wild-type (WT) plants were compared with AOX knockdown and overexpression plants under normoxia, hypoxia (near-anoxia), and during a reoxygenation period following hypoxia. Paradoxically, under all the conditions tested, the AOX amount across plant lines correlated positively with leaf energy status (ATP/ADP ratio).

Matrix Redox Physiology Governs the Regulation of Plant Mitochondrial Metabolism through Posttranslational Protein Modifications.

Mitochondria function as hubs of plant metabolism. Oxidative phosphorylation produces ATP, but it is also a central high-capacity electron sink required by many metabolic pathways that must be flexibly coordinated and integrated. Here, we review the crucial roles of redox-associated posttranslational protein modifications (PTMs) in mitochondrial metabolic regulation.

[Pharmacotherapy of psychoneurological disorders in children as predictor of oral pathology].

The aim of the study was to determine the relationship between the background on-life drug therapy of psychoneurological disorders with dental pathology in children by analyzing the characteristics of pharmacotherapy and the physical characteristics of the oral fluid. The study involved 277 children with psychoneurological disorders and 270 children without comorbid pathology. The deterioration of the physical characteristics of the oral fluid in children with psychoneurological pathology associated with the experience of comorbid disease and drug therapy for the comorbid background has been established.

Arabidopsis thaliana alcohol dehydrogenase is differently affected by several redox modifications.

In plant cells, many stresses, including low oxygen availability, result in a higher production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS). These molecules can lead to redox-dependent post-translational modification of proteins Cys residues. Here, we studied the effect of different redox modifications on alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) from Arabidopsis thaliana.

Analysis of the Minor Histocompatibility Antigen Landscape Based on the 1000 Genomes Project.

Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is routinely used to treat hematopoietic malignancies. The eradication of residual tumor cells during engraftment is mediated by donor cytotoxic T lymphocytes reactive to alloantigens. In a HLA-matched transplantation context, alloantigens are encoded by various polymorphic genes situated outside the HLA locus, also called minor histocompatibility antigens (MiHAs).

Evolutionary Interplay between Symbiotic Relationships and Patterns of Signal Peptide Gain and Loss.

Can orthologous proteins differ in terms of their ability to be secreted? To answer this question, we investigated the distribution of signal peptides within the orthologous groups of Enterobacterales. Parsimony analysis and sequence comparisons revealed a large number of signal peptide gain and loss events, in which signal peptides emerge or disappear in the course of evolution. Signal peptide losses prevail over gains, an effect which is especially pronounced in the transition from the free-living or commensal to the endosymbiotic lifestyle.

Role of organic acids in the integration of cellular redox metabolism and mediation of redox signalling in photosynthetic tissues of higher plants.

Organic acids play a crucial role in numerous metabolic processes accompanied by transfer of electrons and protons and linked to the reduction/oxidation of major redox couples in plant cells, such as NAD, NADP, glutathione, and ascorbate. Fluxes through the pathways metabolizing organic acids modulate redox states in cell compartments, contribute to generation of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, and mediate signal transduction processes. Organic acid metabolism not only functions to equilibrate the redox potential in plant cells but also to transfer redox equivalents between cell compartments supporting various metabolic processes.

[T Lymphocytes with Modified Specificity in the Therapy of Malignant Diseases].

Immunotherapy is one of the most rapidly progressing and promising fields in antitumor therapy. It is based on the idea of using immune cells of patient or healthy donors for elimination of malignant cells. T lymphocytes play a key role in cell-mediated immunity including the response to tumors.

[Optimization of reparative dentinogenesis in experimental osteoporosis].

The aim of the study was to assess histochemical changes of the dental pulp in direct pulp capping/experimental osteoporosis animal model. The study was performed on 20 two-year sheep with simulated acute pulpitis divided in 2 groups: main (15 animals/120 teeth) and control (5 animals/40 teeth). Direct pulp capping in the main group included tissue-engineered structure composed of a hydrogel PuraMatrix/3DM with ectomesenchymal stem cells immobilized on collagen sponge.

A new parameter-rich structure-aware mechanistic model for amino acid substitution during evolution.

Improvements in the description of amino acid substitution are required to develop better pseudo-energy-based protein structure-aware models for use in phylogenetic studies. These models are used to characterize the probabilities of amino acid substitution and enable better simulation of protein sequences over a phylogeny. A better characterization of amino acid substitution probabilities in turn enables numerous downstream applications, like detecting positive selection, ancestral sequence reconstruction, and evolutionarily-motivated protein engineering.