Crocodile optimization algorithm for solving real-world optimization problems.

Nature-inspired bionic algorithms have become one of the most fascinating techniques in computational intelligence research, and have shown great potential in real-world challenging problems for their simplicity and flexibility. This paper proposes a novel nature-inspired algorithm, called the crocodile optimization algorithm (COA), which mimics the hunting strategies of crocodiles. In COA, the hunting behavior of crocodiles includes premeditation and waiting hunting.

Therapeutic Targeting of the GLS1-c-Myc Positive Feedback Loop Suppresses Glutaminolysis and Inhibits Progression of Head and Neck Cancer.

Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is addicted to glutaminolysis. Targeting this metabolic dependency has emerged as a potential therapeutic approach for HNSCC. In this study, we conducted a bioinformatic analysis of The Cancer Genome Atlas HNSCC cohort that revealed a robust correlation between expression of MYC (encoding the protein c-Myc) and glutaminase 1 (GLS1), which catalyzes the first step in glutaminolysis.

Epidemiology of the non-head and neck sebaceous carcinoma and implications for distant metastasis screening.

Introduction: Extraocular sebaceous carcinoma (SC), particularly those outside the head and neck region, is rare and not well-described.

Purpose: This study aimed to explore the epidemiology and identify the prognostic factors of non-head and neck SC, describe the possible relevant factors of distant metastasis, and provide implications for distant metastasis screening.

Methods: Data from the 17 registries in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database were retrospectively collected for patients with SC outside the head and neck from 2000 through 2020.

Cancer metabolism and carcinogenesis.

Metabolic reprogramming is an emerging hallmark of cancer cells, enabling them to meet increased nutrient and energy demands while withstanding the challenging microenvironment. Cancer cells can switch their metabolic pathways, allowing them to adapt to different microenvironments and therapeutic interventions. This refers to metabolic heterogeneity, in which different cell populations use different metabolic pathways to sustain their survival and proliferation and impact their response to conventional cancer therapies.

Multi-Omics Analysis Reveals Intricate Gene Networks Involved in Female Development in Melon.

Sexual differentiation is an important developmental phenomenon in cucurbits that directly affects fruit yield. The natural existence of multiple flower types in melon offers an inclusive structure for studying the molecular basis of sexual differentiation. The current study aimed to identify and characterize the molecular network involved in sex determination and female development in melon.

N4-acetylcytidine-dependent GLMP mRNA stabilization by NAT10 promotes head and neck squamous cell carcinoma metastasis and remodels tumor microenvironment through MAPK/ERK signaling pathway.

N4-acetylcytidine (ac4C) is a post-transcriptional RNA modification that regulates in various important biological processes. However, its role in human cancer, especially lymph node metastasis, remains largely unknown. Here, we demonstrated N-Acetyltransferase 10 (NAT10), as the only known "writer" of ac4C mRNA modification, was highly expressed in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients with lymph node metastasis.

How teacher-student closeness and conflict contributes to mathematical problem solving in Chinese adolescents: a multilevel moderated mediation model of self-efficacy and school climate.

The current study investigated how and when two different aspects of teacher-student relationship (TSR; closeness and conflict) influence students' mathematical problem solving ability. Participants were 9163 eighth-grade Chinese adolescents (53.5% male) nested in 908 schools, who took part in a standard mathematics assessment and survey using student questionnaires that were all developed by the Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment toward Basic Education Quality (CICA-BEQ) in China in 2015.

Efficient Drug Delivery of TiCT MXenes for Synergistic Treatment of Human Hypopharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

TiCT MXene is a versatile two-dimensional material that exhibits exceptional properties, such as an abundance of surface functional groups that facilitate modifications. Additionally, TiCT MXene possesses remarkable photothermal effects. In this study, ultrathin TiCT nanosheets with dimensions (∼200 nm) suitable for biological applications were prepared by ultrasonication of larger pieces of TiCT MXene with a cell pulverizer operating at a specific power.

Harnessing cancer stem cell-derived exosomes to improve cancer therapy.

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are the key "seeds" for tumor initiation and development, metastasis, and recurrence. Because of the function of CSCs in tumor development and progression, research in this field has intensified and CSCs are viewed as a new therapeutic target. Exosomes carrying a wide range of DNA, RNA, lipids, metabolites, and cytosolic and cell-surface proteins are released outside of the originating cells through the fusion of multivesicular endosomes or multivesicular bodies with the plasma membrane.

Higher N Addition and Mowing Interactively Improved Net Primary Productivity by Stimulating Gross Nitrification in a Temperate Steppe of Northern China.

Anthropogenic disturbance, such as nitrogen (N) fertilization and mowing, is constantly changing the function and structure of grassland ecosystems during past years and will continue to affect the sustainability of arid and semiarid grassland in the future. However, how and whether the different N addition levels and the frequency of N addition, as well as the occurrence of mowing, affect the key processes of N cycling is still unclear. We designed a field experiment with five levels of N addition (0, 2, 10, 20, and 50 g N m yr), two types of N addition frequencies (twice a year added in June/November and monthly addition), and mowing treatment in a typical grassland of northern China.

Whole-transcriptome analyses identify key differentially expressed mRNAs, lncRNAs, and miRNAs associated with male sterility in watermelon.

Male sterility is a valuable trait for watermelon breeding, as watermelon hybrids exhibit obvious heterosis. However, the underlying regulatory mechanism is still largely unknown, especially regarding the related non-coding genes. In the present study, approximately 1035 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), as well as 80 DE-lncRNAs and 10 DE-miRNAs, were identified, with the overwhelming majority down-regulated in male-sterile floral buds.

Seasonal precipitation regulates magnitude and direction of the effect of nitrogen addition on net ecosystem CO exchange in saline-alkaline grassland of northern China.

Increased nitrogen (N) deposition and altered precipitation regimes have profound effects on carbon (C) flux in semi-arid grasslands. However, the interactive effects between N enrichment and precipitation alterations (both increasing and decreasing) on ecosystem CO fluxes and ecosystem resource use efficiency (water use efficiency (WUE) and carbon use efficiency (CUE)) remain unclear, particularly in saline-alkaline grasslands. A four-year (2018-2021) field manipulation experiment was conducted to investigate N enrichment and precipitation alterations (decreased and increased by 50 % of ambient precipitation) and their interactions on ecosystem CO fluxes (gross- ecosystem productivity (GEP), ecosystem respiration (ER), and net ecosystem CO exchange (NEE)), as well as their underlying regulatory mechanisms under severe salinity stress in northern China.

The HD-ZIP Gene Family in Watermelon: Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Analysis under Abiotic Stresses.

Homeodomain-leucine zipper (HD-ZIP) transcription factors are one of the plant-specific gene families involved in plant growth and response to adverse environmental conditions. However, little information is available on the HD-ZIP gene family in watermelon. In this study, forty were systemically identified in the watermelon genome, which were subsequently divided into four distinctive subfamilies (I-IV) based on the phylogenetic topology.

[Intra-annual radial growth of and and its responses to environmental factors in the Baima Snow Mountain, Northwest Yunnan, China].

Using high-resolution dendrometers, we monitored the intra-annual stem radial variations of and in the subalpine coniferous forest in Baima Snow Mountain, Northwest Yunnan Province. The seasonal dynamics of stem radial growth of both species and their responses to environmental factors were analyzed. The results showed that the stem radial growth of and mainly occurred during April to August, with the maximum growth rate in June.

Exosomes Derived from Adipose Mesenchymal Stem Cells Carrying miRNA-22-3p Promote Schwann Cells Proliferation and Migration through Downregulation of PTEN.

Peripheral nerve injury (PNI) is often resulting from trauma, which leads to severe and permanently disability. Schwann cells are critical for facilitating the regeneration process after PNI. Adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADSCs) exosomes have been used as a novel treatment for peripheral nerve injury.

Abscisic Acid Mediates Grafting-Induced Cold Tolerance of Watermelon Interaction With Melatonin and Methyl Jasmonate.

Grafting is widely used to increase plant defense responses to various stresses. Grafting-induced cold tolerance is associated with the increase of the antioxidant potential of plants; however, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we found that pumpkin rootstocks promote antioxidant enzyme activities and alleviate cold-induced oxidative damage, accompanied by increased abscisic acid (ABA), melatonin, and methyl jasmonate (MeJA) levels in leaves.

Disruption of the bHLH transcription factor Abnormal Tapetum 1 causes male sterility in watermelon.

Although male sterility has been identified as a useful trait for hybrid vigor utilization and hybrid seed production, its underlying molecular mechanisms in Cucurbitaceae species are still largely unclear. Here, a spontaneous male-sterile watermelon mutant, Se18, was reported to have abnormal tapetum development, which resulted in completely aborted pollen grains. Map-based cloning demonstrated that the causal gene Citrullus lanatus Abnormal Tapetum 1 (ClATM1) encodes a basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factor with a 10-bp deletion and produces a truncated protein without the bHLH interaction and functional (BIF) domain in Se18 plants.

A 2.09 Mb fragment translocation on chromosome 6 causes abnormalities during meiosis and leads to less seed watermelon.

Seedlessness is a valuable agronomic trait in watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) breeding. Conventional less seed watermelons are mainly triploid, which has many disadvantages due to unbalanced genome content. Less seed watermelon can be achieved at the diploid level when certain reproductive genes are mutated or by chromosome translocation, which leads to defects during meiosis.

The role of watermelon caffeic acid O-methyltransferase (ClCOMT1) in melatonin biosynthesis and abiotic stress tolerance.

Melatonin is a pleiotropic signaling molecule that regulates plant growth and responses to various abiotic stresses. The last step of melatonin synthesis in plants can be catalyzed by caffeic acid O-methyltransferase (COMT), a multifunctional enzyme reported to have N-acetylserotonin O-methyltransferase (ASMT) activity; however, the ASMT activity of COMT has not yet been characterized in nonmodel plants such as watermelon (Citrullus lanatus). Here, a total of 16 putative O-methyltransferase (ClOMT) genes were identified in watermelon.

The impaired biosynthetic networks in defective tapetum lead to male sterility in watermelon.

Heterosis has been widely applied in watermelon breeding, because of the higher resistance and yield of hybrid. As the basis of heterosis utilization, genic male sterility (GMS) is an important tool for facilitating hybrid seed production, while the detailed mechanism in watermelon is still largely unknown. Here, we report a spontaneous mutant Se18 exhibited complete male sterility due to the uniquely multilayered tapetum and the un-meiotic pollen mother cells during pollen development.

A point mutation resulting in a 13 bp deletion in the coding sequence of leads to a GA-deficient dwarf phenotype in watermelon.

The dwarf architecture is an important and valuable agronomic trait in watermelon breeding and has the potential to increase fruit yield and reduce labor cost in crop cultivation. However, the molecular basis for dwarfism in watermelon remains largely unknown. In this study, a recessive dwarf allele (designated as ()) was fine mapped in a 32.