Publications by authors named "Kexin Peng"

Many bird species in montane regions display altitudinal migration, but so far, the underlying ecological driving mechanisms are not clear. We studied the altitudinal migration behavior patterns and factors influencing altitudinal migration in the Xiling Snow Mountains, which are part of the Hengduan mountain range in southwest China. We recorded the local bird diversity, the seasonal change of: the average temperature (AT), the average humidity (AH), the average invertebrate biomass (AIB), and the amount of plant food sources (PFS) at two study sites (∼1300 and ∼2100 m a.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Porokeratosis (PK) is an autoinflammatory keratinization disease (AIKD) characterized by circular or annular skin lesions with a hyperkeratotic rim, pathologically shown as the cornoid lamella. Four genes that cause PK are associated with the mevalonate (MV) pathway. In Chinese PK patients, mevalonate diphosphate decarboxylase (MVD) is the most common causative gene.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Hydrogel adhesives are extensively employed in biological interfaces such as epidermal flexible electronics, tissue engineering, and implanted device. The development of functional hydrogel adhesives is a critical, yet challenging task since combining two or more attributes that seem incompatible into one adhesive hydrogel without sacrificing the hydrogel's pristine capabilities. In this Review, we highlight current developments in the fabrication of functional adhesive hydrogels, which are suitable for a variety of application scenarios, particularly those that occur underwater or on tissue/organ surface conditions.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Migratory birds experience changes in their environment and diet during seasonal migrations, thus requiring interactions between diet and gut microbes. Understanding the co-evolution of the host and gut microbiota is critical for elucidating the rapid adaptations of avian gut microbiota. However, dynamics of gut microbial adaptations concerning elevational migratory behavior, which is prevalent but understudied in montane birds remain poorly understood.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The kiang (Equus kiang) can only be observed in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP). The kiang displayed excellent athletic performance in the high-altitude environment, which attracted wide interest in the investigation of the potential adaptive mechanisms to the extreme environment. Here, we assembled a chromosome-level genome of the kiang based on Hi-C sequencing technology.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Kidney organoids derived from human pluripotent stem cells (HiPSCs) hold huge applications for drug screening, disease modeling, and cell transplanting therapy. However, these applications are limited since kidney organoid cannot maintain complete morphology and function like human kidney. Kidney organoids are not well differentiated since the core of the organoid lacked oxygen, nutrition, and vasculature, which creates essential niches.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Trematodes can adversely impact the health and survival of wild animals. The trematode family Cyclocoelidae, which includes large digenean bird parasites, lacks molecular analysis, and reclassifications have not been supported. This study produced the first fully assembled and annotated mitochondrial genome sequence for the trematode Morishitium polonicum.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The mevalonate-diphosphate decarboxylase (MVD) gene, a member of the mevalonate pathway, plays a critical role in regulating the biosynthesis of cholesterol, steroid hormones, and non-steroid isoprenoids. Previous studies have suggested that the MVD c.746 T > C mutation is a major pathogenic gene of porokeratosis (PK), an autoinflammatory keratinization disease (AIKD) with unclear pathogenesis, few effective treatments, and no suitable animal model.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Sperm whales are a marine mammal famous for the aromatic substance, the ambergris, produced from its colon. Little is known about the biological processes of ambergris production, and this study aims to investigate the genetic mechanism of ambergris production in the sperm whale based on its chromosome-level genome. Comparative genomics analyses found 1207 expanded gene families and 321 positive selected genes (PSGs) in the sperm whale, and functional enrichment analyses suggested revelatory pathways and terms related to the metabolism of steroids, terpenoids, and aldosterone, as well as microbiota interaction and immune network in the intestine.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The Tibetan partridge (Perdix hodgsoniae) is a widely distributed endemic species in high-altitude areas across the Tibetan Plateau where the hypoxia, lower temperature and high ultraviolet radiation are pivotal factors influencing survival. However, the underlying genetic adaptation of the Tibetan partridge to extreme environments remains uncertain due to limited genomic resources. Similarly, the phylogenetic position of Perdix within Phasianidae remains controversial due to lacking information.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objectives: This study is conducted to examine whether overall workplace violence (WPV) and its five types are associated with high burn-out among healthcare workers in China.

Design: A WeChat-based cross-sectional survey. Snowball sampling was used in this study.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Vγ9Vδ2 T cells play an important role in the development and progression of psoriasis vulgaris (PV), but how they promote skin inflammation and the molecular mechanisms underlying Vγ9Vδ2 T cell dysfunction are poorly understood. Here, we show that circulating Vγ9Vδ2 T cells are decreased and exhibit enhanced proliferation and increased production of IFN-γ and TNF-α in PV patients. Monocytes from PV patients express higher levels of the phosphoantigen sensor butyrophilin 3A1 (BTN3A1) than monocytes from healthy controls.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Rhythm control is the core part of the integrated management of atrial fibrillation (AF), especially in the early stages. Despite advances in catheter ablation (CA), the recurrence rate of AF after CA remains high. As a result, stratification and early management of AF recurrence after CA are critical.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Gorlin-Goltz syndrome (GS) is an inherited disease characterized by predisposition to basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) and various developmental defects, whose numerous disease-causing PTCH1 mutations have been identified in the hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway.

Methods: In this study, whole exome sequencing was used to screen for both somatic and germline deleterious mutations in three sisters with a lethal GS. The mutations we found were confirmed by subcloning and Sanger sequencing of the genomic DNA.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Defects in ataxin-3 proteins and CAG repeat expansions in its coding gene ATXN3 cause Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 3 (SCA3) or Machado-Joseph disease (MJD) polyglutamine neurodegenerative disease. The mutant proteins aggregate as inclusion bodies in cells and compete with wild-type ataxin-3, which leads to neuronal dysfunction or death and impairs Beclin1-mediated autophagy. It has been reported that Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can reliably treat several neurodegenerative diseases.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Non-pathological cognitive decline is a neurodegenerative condition associated with brain aging owing to epigenetic changes, telomere shortening, stem cells exhaustion, or altered differentiation. Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUCMSCs) have shown excellent therapeutic prospects on the hallmarks of aging. In this study, we aimed to elucidate the role of hUCMSCs with down-regulated miRNA-206 (hUCMSCs anti-miR-206) on cognitive decline and the underlying mechanism.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Currently, the tuberculosis (TB) detection model based on chest X-ray images has the problem of excessive reliance on hardware computing resources, high equipment performance requirements, and being harder to deploy in low-cost personal computer and embedded devices. An efficient tuberculosis detection model is proposed to achieve accurate, efficient, and stable tuberculosis screening on devices with lower hardware levels. Due to the particularity of the chest X-ray images of TB patients, there are fewer labeled data, and the deep neural network model is difficult to fully train.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Alopecia areata (AA) is a common autoimmune hair loss disease with increasing incidence. Corticosteroids are the most widely used for hair loss treatment; however, long-term usage of hormonal drugs is associated with various side effects. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) therapy has been studied extensively to curb autoimmune diseases without affecting immunity against diseases.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Activation of PRR ([pro]renin receptor) contributes to enhancement of intrarenal RAS and renal medullary α-ENaC and thus elevated blood pressure during Ang II (angiotensin II) infusion. The goal of the present study was to test whether such action of PRR was mediated by sPRR (soluble PRR), generated by S1P (site-1 protease), a newly identified PRR cleavage protease. F1 B6129SF1/J mice were infused for 6 days with control or Ang II at 300 ng/kg per day alone or in combination with S1P inhibitor PF-429242 (PF), and blood pressure was monitored by radiotelemetry.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The therapies available for management of obesity and associated conditions are limited, because they are often directed toward an individual component of metabolic syndrome and are associated with adverse effects. Here, we report the multifaceted therapeutic potential of histidine-tagged recombinant soluble (pro)renin receptor (sPRR), termed sPRR-His, in a mouse model of diet-induced obesity (DIO). In the DIO model, 2-week administration of sPRR-His lowered body weight and remarkably improved multiple metabolic parameters in the absence of fluid retention.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

We have previously shown that activation of (pro)renin receptor (PRR) induces epithelial Na channel (ENaC) activity in cultured collecting duct cells. Here, we examined the role of soluble PRR (sPRR), the cleavage product of PRR in ENaC regulation, and further tested its relevance to aldosterone signaling. In cultured mpkCCD cells, administration of recombinant histidine-tagged sPRR (sPRR-His) at 10 nM within minutes induced a significant and transient increase in the amiloride-sensitive short-circuit current as assessed using the Ussing chamber technique.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The antidiuretic hormone vasopressin (AVP), acting through its type 2 receptor (V2R) in the collecting duct (CD), critically controls urine concentrating capability. Here, we report that site-1 protease-derived (S1P-derived) soluble (pro)renin receptor (sPRR) participates in regulation of fluid homeostasis via targeting V2R. In cultured inner medullary collecting duct (IMCD) cells, AVP-induced V2R expression was blunted by a PRR antagonist, PRO20; a PRR-neutralizing antibody; or a S1P inhibitor, PF-429242.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF