The OsMAPK6-OsWRKY72 module positively regulates rice leaf angle through brassinosteroid signals.

Leaf angle is a major agronomic trait that determines plant architecture, which directly affects rice planting density, photosynthetic efficiency, and yield. The plant phytohormones brassinosteroids (BRs) and the MAPK signaling cascade are known to play crucial roles in regulating the leaf angle, but the underlying molecular mechanisms are not fully understood. Here, we report a rice WRKY family transcription factor gene, OsWRKY72, which positively regulates leaf angle by affecting lamina joint development and BR signaling.

Nei 6 You 7075, a hybrid rice cultivar, exhibits enhanced disease resistance and drought tolerance traits.

Background: Rice is the main food crop for much of the population in China. Therefore, selecting and breeding new disease resistance and drought tolerance in rice is essential to ensure national food security. The utilization of heterosis has significantly enhanced rice productivity, yet many of the molecular mechanisms underlying this phenomenon remain largely unexplored.

Clopidogrel ameliorates high-fat diet-induced hepatic steatosis in mice through activation of the AMPK signaling pathway and beyond.

Introduction: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) frequently confers an increased risk of vascular thrombosis; however, the marketed antiplatelet drugs are investigated for the prevention and treatment of MASLD in patients with these coexisting diseases.

Methods: To determine whether clopidogrel could ameliorate high-fat diet (HFD)-induced hepatic steatosis in mice and how it works, mice were fed on normal diet or HFD alone or in combination with or without clopidogrel for 14 weeks, and primary mouse hepatocytes were treated with palmitate/oleate alone or in combination with the compounds examined for 24 h. Body weight, liver weight, insulin resistance, triglyceride and total cholesterol content in serum and liver, histological morphology, transcriptomic analysis of mouse liver, and multiple key MASLD-associated genes and proteins were measured, respectively.

Sex differences in the metabolic activation of and platelet response to vicagrel in mice: Androgen as a key player.

As a biological variable, sex influences the metabolism of and/or response to certain drugs. Vicagrel is being developed as an investigational new drug in China; however, it is unknown whether sex could affect its metabolic activation and platelet responsiveness. This study aimed to determine whether such differences could exist, and to elucidate the mechanisms involved.

The metabolic activation of and platelet response to vicagrel vary with P-glycoprotein deficiency, rather than P-glycoprotein inhibition, in mice.

This study aimed to determine changes in the hydrolysis of vicagrel, a substrate drug of arylacetamide deacetylase (Aadac) and carboxylesterase 2 (Ces2), in P-glycoprotein (P-gp)-deficient or P-gp-inhibited mice and to elucidate the mechanisms involved.Male wild-type (WT) and P-gp knock-out (KO) mice were used to investigate the systemic exposure of vicagrel thiol active metabolite H4 and platelet response to vicagrel, and the mRNA and protein expression levels of intestinal Aadac and Ces2. Moreover, WT mice were administered vicagrel alone or in combination with elacridar (a potent P-gp inhibitor) to determine drug-drug interactions.

Transcription factor NAC78 cooperates with NAC78 interacting protein 6 to confer drought tolerance in rice.

NAC (NAM, ATAF1/2, and CUC2) family transcription factors are involved in several cellular processes, including responses to drought, salinity, cold, and submergence. However, whether or how certain NAC proteins regulate drought tolerance in rice (Oryza sativa) remain unclear. In this study, we show that overexpression of OsNAC78 enhanced rice resistance to drought treatment, whereas Osnac78 mutant plants were susceptible to drought stress.

Multiplex-genome-editing based rapid directional improvement of complex traits in rice.

Although thousands of genes have been identified or cloned in rice (Oryza sativa) in the last two decades, the majority of them have only been separately characterized in specific varieties or single-gene modified backgrounds, thus limiting their practical application. We developed an optimized multiplex genome editing (MGE) toolbox that can efficiently assemble and stably express up to twelve sgRNA targets in a single plant expression vector. In this study, we established the MGE-based Rapid Directional Improvement (MRDI) strategy for directional improvement of complex agronomic traits in one small-scale rice transformation.

OsBBP1, a newly identified protein containing DUF630 and DUF632 domains confers drought tolerance in rice.

Domain of unknown function (DUF) protein families, which are uncharacterized and numerous within the Pfam database. Recently, studies have demonstrated that DUFs played crucial roles in plant development, but whether, or how, they function in drought resistance remain unclear. In this study, we identified the Os03g0321500 gene, encoding OsbZIP72 binding protein 1 (OsBBP1), as a target of OsbZIP72 using chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing in rice.

The Complement System and C4b-Binding Protein: A Focus on the Promise of C4BPα as a Biomarker to Predict Clopidogrel Resistance.

The complement system plays a dual role in the body, either as a first-line defense barrier when balanced between activation and inhibition or as a potential driver of complement-associated injury or diseases when unbalanced or over-activated. C4b-binding protein (C4BP) was the first circulating complement regulatory protein identified and it functions as an important complement inhibitor. C4BP can suppress the over-activation of complement components and prevent the complement system from attacking the host cells through the binding of complement cleavage products C4b and C3b, working in concert as a cofactor for factor I in the degradation of C4b and C3b, and consequently preventing or reducing the assembly of C3 convertase and C5 convertase, respectively.

Overexpression of a GIPC glycosyltransferase gene, OsGMT1, suppresses plant immunity and delays heading time in rice.

Glycosylinositol phosphorylceramides (GIPCs) are the major sphingolipids in the plant plasma membrane. In Arabidopsis, mutations of genes involved in the synthesis of GIPCs affect many physiological aspects of plants, including growth, pollen fertility, defense, and stress signaling. Loss of function of the GIPC MANNOSYL-TRANSFERASE1 (AtGMT1) results in GIPC misglycosylation and induces plant immune responses accompanied by a severely dwarfed phenotype, thus indicating that GIPCs play important roles in plant immunity.

Enhanced metabolic activation of and platelet response to clopidogrel in T cell-deficient mice through induction of Cyp2c and Cyp3a and inhibition of Ces1.

Background: T cells and platelets reciprocally coordinate mutual functions through crosstalk or interaction. However, it is not known whether metabolic activation of and platelet response to clopidogrel could be changed if T cells were deficient or impaired in some cases and, if any, how it would work.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to dissect the potential changes in platelet responses to and metabolic activation of clopidogrel in the case of T cell deficiency and to elucidate their mechanisms involved.

IPA1 improves drought tolerance by activating SNAC1 in rice.

Drought is a major abiotic stress to rice (Oryza sativa) during growth. Ideal Plant Architecture (IPA1), the first cloned gene controlling the ideal plant type in rice, has been reported to function in both ideal rice plant architecture and biotic resistance. Here, we report that the IPA1/OsSPL14, encoding a transcriptional factor, positively regulates drought tolerance in rice.

Controlled Synthesis of Sub-Millimeter Nonlayered WO Nanoplates via a WSe -Assisted Method.

2D metal oxides (2DMOs) have stimulated tremendous attention due to their distinct electronic structures and abundant surface chemistry. However, it remains a standing challenge for the synthesis of 2DMOs because of their intrinsic 3D lattice structure and ultrahigh synthesis temperature. Here, a reliable WSe -assisted chemical vapor deposition (CVD) strategy to grow nonlayered WO nanoplates with tunable thickness and lateral dimension is reported.

Vicagrel is hydrolyzed by Raf kinase inhibitor protein in human intestine.

As an analog of clopidogrel and prasugrel, vicagrel is completely hydrolyzed to intermediate thiolactone metabolite 2-oxo-clopidogrel (also the precursor of active thiol metabolite H4) in human intestine, predominantly by AADAC and CES2; however, other unknown vicagrel hydrolases remain to be identified. In this study, recombinant human Raf kinase inhibitor protein (rhRKIP) and pooled human intestinal S9 (HIS9) fractions and microsome (HIM) preparations were used as the different enzyme sources; prasugrel as a probe drug for RKIP (a positive control), vicagrel as a substrate drug of interest, and the rate of the formation of thiolactone metabolites 2-oxo-clopidogrel and R95913 as metrics of hydrolase activity examined, respectively. In addition, an IC value of inhibition of rhRKIP-catalyzed vicagrel hydrolysis by locostatin was measured, and five classical esterase inhibitors with distinct esterase selectivity were used to dissect the involvement of multiple hydrolases in vicagrel hydrolysis.

SH3P2, an SH3 domain-containing protein that interacts with both Pib and AvrPib, suppresses effector-triggered, Pib-mediated immunity in rice.

Plants usually keep resistance (R) proteins in a static state under normal conditions to avoid autoimmunity and save energy for growth, but R proteins can be rapidly activated upon perceiving pathogen invasion. Pib, the first cloned blast disease R gene in rice, encoding a nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat (NLR) protein, mediates resistance to the blast fungal (Magnaporthe oryzae) isolates carrying the avirulence gene AvrPib. However, the molecular mechanisms about how Pib recognizes AvrPib and how it is inactivated and activated remain largely unclear.

Transcriptome Analyses Indicate Significant Association of Increased Non-Additive and Allele-Specific Gene Expression with Hybrid Weakness in Rice ( L.).

The heterosis in hybrid rice is highly affected by the environment and hybrid weakness occurs frequently depending on the genotypes of the hybrid and its parents. Hybrid weakness was also observed in our field experiments on nine rice hybrids produced by 3 × 3 incomplete diallel crosses. Among the nine hybrids, five displayed mid-parent heterosis (MPH) for grain yield per plant, while four showed mid-parent hybrid weakness (MPHW).

Characterization and expression analysis of the glycosyltransferase 64 family in rice (Oryza sativa).

The glycosyltransferase 64 (GT64) family is widely conserved in many species, including animals and plants. The functions of GT64 family genes in animals have been well characterized in the biosynthesis of extracellular heparan sulfate, whereas two GT64 members in Arabidopsis thaliana are involved in the glycosylation of plasma membrane glycosylinositol phosphorylceramides (GIPCs). GIPCs are the main components of plant sphingolipids and serve as important signal molecules in various developmental processes and stress responses.

Is platelet responsiveness to clopidogrel attenuated in overweight or obese patients and why? A reverse translational study in mice.

Background And Purpose: Overweight or obese patients exhibit poorer platelet responses to clopidogrel. However, the mechanisms behind this phenotype remain to be elucidated. Here, we sought to discover whether and why obesity could affect the metabolic activation of and/or platelet response to clopidogrel in obese patients and high-fat diet-induced obese mice.

Short-term standard alcohol consumption enhances platelet response to clopidogrel through inhibition of Nrf2/Ces1 pathway and induction of Cyp2c in mice.

Aims: Drinking alcohol is prevalent worldwide; however, it is unknown whether alcohol could affect the antiplatelet effects of clopidogrel in patients when taking both concomitantly. This study was designed to investigate the influence of short-term standard alcohol consumption on the metabolic activation of and platelet response to clopidogrel in mice as well as the mechanisms involved.

Main Methods: Male C57BL/6J mice were administered with normal saline (vehicle control) or alcohol at 2 g/kg/day for 7 days, and then gavaged with vehicle control or a single dose of clopidogrel at 10 mg/kg.

Single-Cell RNA Sequencing Efficiently Predicts Transcription Factor Targets in Plants.

Discovering transcription factor (TF) targets is necessary for the study of regulatory pathways, but it is hampered in plants by the lack of highly efficient predictive technology. This study is the first to establish a simple system for predicting TF targets in rice () leaf cells based on 10 × Genomics' single-cell RNA sequencing method. We effectively utilized the transient expression system to create the differential expression of a TF (OsNAC78) in each cell and sequenced all single cell transcriptomes.

P-glycoprotein deficiency enhances metabolic activation of and platelet response to clopidogrel through marked up-regulation of Cyp3a11 in mice: Direct evidence for the interplay between P-glycoprotein and Cyp3a.

Variability in P-glycoprotein (P-gp) efflux transporting activity was supposed to be involved in altered intestinal absorption and bioavailability of clopidogrel in patients; however, reliable evidence is still lacking. In this study, we sought to determine whether P-gp could play an important role in the metabolic activation of and platelet response to clopidogrel in mice. Abcb1a/1b knock-out (KO) and wild-type (WT) mice were used to evaluate differences in the intracellular accumulation of clopidogrel in the intestine, liver, and brain tissues and in systemic exposure of clopidogrel and its main metabolites as well as the mechanisms involved.

Engineering the Phases and Heterostructures of Ultrathin Hybrid Perovskite Nanosheets.

Low-dimensional perovskites have gained increasing attention recently, and engineering their material phases, structural patterning and interfacial properties is crucial for future perovskite-based applications. Here a phase and heterostructure engineering on ultrathin perovskites, through the reversible cation exchange of hybrid perovskites and efficient surface functionalization of low-dimensional materials, is demonstrated. Using PbI as precursor and template, perovskite nanosheets of varying thickness and hexagonal shape on diverse substrates is obtained.