[Review on the effects of heavy metal accumulation in flowers on the mutual benefit relationship between plant and insect pollinators].

The global sharp decline of pollinators is one of the hot issues concerned by ecologists, mainly driven by global climate change, land use change, habitat fragmentation and harmful substances such as pesticides brought by industrial and agricultural production. In contrast, the potential impact of soil heavy metal pollution on pollinators is lack of in-depth evaluation. Heavy metals in soil would enter plant tissues, such as flowers, .

Spectroscopic insights into the Photoreduction of Cytochrome c with UVA-Vis Light Irradiation.

With the particular conjugation structure in the heme prosthetic group, Cyt c shows unusual functions similar to chlorophyll while irradiated by specific wavelength of UV-Vis lights. To further reveal mechanism of the photo-irradiation of Cyt c, we then studied various external factors that may influence the photo induced process. The absorbance intensity increase of band (317 nm) and Q band (520 nm and 549 nm)indicated Cyt c in phosphate-buffered saline within N2 atmosphere was photoreduced to Fe(II) Cyt c.

Insulin induces proliferation and cardiac differentiation of P19CL6 cells in a dose-dependent manner.

Insulin is a peptide hormone produced by beta cells of the pancreas. The roles of insulin in energy metabolism have been well studied, with most of the attention focused on glucose utilization, but the roles of insulin in cell proliferation and differentiation remain unclear. In this study, we observed for the first time that 10 nmol/L insulin treatment induces cell proliferation and cardiac differentiation of P19CL6 cells, whereas 50 and 100 nmol/L insulin treatment induces P19CL6 cell apoptosis and blocks cardiac differentiation of P19CL6 cells.

Insulin induces C2C12 cell proliferation and apoptosis through regulation of cyclin D1 and BAD expression.

Insulin is a secreted peptide hormone identified in human pancreas to promote glucose utilization. Insulin has been observed to induce cell proliferation and myogenesis in C2C12 cells. The precise mechanisms underlying the proliferation of C2C12 cells induced by insulin remain unclear.

Differential effects of nectar robbing by the same bumble-bee species on three sympatric Corydalis species with varied mating systems.

Background And Aims: Most research on the widespread phenomenon of nectar robbing has focused on the effect of the nectar robbers' behaviour on host-plant fitness. However, attention also needs be paid to the characteristics of host plants, which can potentially influence the consequences of nectar robbing as well. A system of three sympatric Corydalis species sharing the same nectar-robbing bumble-bee was therefore studied over 3 years in order to investigate the effect of nectar robbing on host reproductive fitness.

[cDNA microarray-based study of gene expression profile changes in human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma].

Objective: To investigate the differentially expressed genes between human esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) and normal esophageal mucosa and explore an effective method with high throughput for screening the molecular markers closely correlated with the development, invasion and metastasis of ESCC.

Methods: With cDNA microarray and laser capture microdissection, T7-based amplification were used to detect the mRNA from both the primary carcinoma and the corresponding esophageal epithelium in 15 ESCC cases, and the results were analyzed by bioinformatics methods.

Results: Among the 886 target genes, 110 (12.