Müller Cells Harboring Exosomal lncRNA OGRU Modulate Microglia Polarization in Diabetic Retinopathy by Serving as miRNA Sponges.

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is one of the most common complications of diabetes worldwide and is associated with visual loss and blindness. However, effective treatments for both early- and late-stage DR remain lacking. A streptozotocin-induced diabetic mouse model and high glucose (HG)-treated Müller cell model were established.

TRIM40 ameliorates diabetic retinopathy through suppressing inflammation via Reelin/DAB1 signaling disruption: A mechanism by proteasomal degradation of DAB1.

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a common microvascular complication of diabetes mellitus. Reelin, an extracellular matrix protein, and its effector protein Disabled1 (DAB1) have been linked to cellular events and retinal development. However, whether and how Reelin/DAB1 signaling causes DR remains to be investigated.

Long noncoding RNA UCA1 promotes carboplatin resistance in retinoblastoma cells by acting as a ceRNA of miR-206.

Chemoresistance has become a major obstacle to effective retinoblastoma treatment. The urothelial cancer-associated gene 1 () is commonly considered an oncogene in certain types of cancer and is related to drug resistance. Nonetheless, the molecular mechanism and effect of in carboplatin resistance in retinoblastoma are unclear.

Dickkopf-1 exerts protective effects by inhibiting PANoptosis and retinal neovascularization in diabetic retinopathy.

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a key reason for legal blindness worldwide. Currently, it is urgently necessary to determine the etiology and pathological molecular mechanism of DR to search for resultful therapies. Dickkopf-1 (DKK1) is inhibitive for canonical Wnt signaling via negative feedback, and has been reported as a biomarker for DR.

A genome-wide CRISPR-Cas9 knockout screen identifies essential and growth-restricting genes in human trophoblast stem cells.

The recent derivation of human trophoblast stem cells (hTSCs) provides a scalable in vitro model system of human placental development, but the molecular regulators of hTSC identity have not been systematically explored thus far. Here, we utilize a genome-wide CRISPR-Cas9 knockout screen to comprehensively identify essential and growth-restricting genes in hTSCs. By cross-referencing our data to those from similar genetic screens performed in other cell types, as well as gene expression data from early human embryos, we define hTSC-specific and -enriched regulators.

The Association of Axial Length with Macular Microvascular Changes in Chinese Diabetic Retinopathy Patients.

Objective: To use optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) to compare macular blood flow density, subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) and outer retina thickness (ORT) in non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR) patients with different axial length (AL).

Methods: Total 42 patients with NPDR with different eye axis were divided into three groups: group A: 22 mm≤AL<24 mm; group B: 24 mm≤AL<26 mm; group C: AL≥26 mm. Superficial capillary plexus (SCP) in the macular area, vascular length density (VLD) and vascular perfusion density (VPD) in the foveal region, the parafoveal region, the perifoveal region and whole macular region were analyzed.

MiR-195 inhibits the ubiquitination and degradation of YY1 by Smurf2, and induces EMT and cell permeability of retinal pigment epithelial cells.

The dysregulated microRNAs (miRNAs) are involved in diabetic retinopathy progression. Epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) and cell permeability are important events in diabetic retinopathy. However, the function and mechanism of miR-195 in EMT and cell permeability in diabetic retinopathy remain largely unclear.

Suppressing long noncoding RNA OGRU ameliorates diabetic retinopathy by inhibition of oxidative stress and inflammation via miR-320/USP14 axis.

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are important regulators in various diseases including diabetic retinopathy (DR). In this study, DR patients exhibited significantly increased expression of serum LncRNA-OGRU compared with normal individuals. Streptozotocin (STZ)-challenged rats with DR also had higher OGRU expression in retinas than that of the control group, which was confirmed in Müller cells upon high glucose (HG) stimulation.

miR-132 mediates cell permeability and migration by targeting occludin in high-glucose -induced ARPE-19 cells.

This study investigated the effects and mechanisms of miR-132 related to the permeability and mobility of human retinal pigment epithelium ARPE-19 cells in high-glucose (HG) condition. ARPE-19 cells were cultured in normal and HG condition and identified by immunofluorescence staining. Cell viability was assessed by the MTT assay, cell permeability was assessed by the FITC-dextran assay and cell mobility was assessed by the wound healing assay.

Endothelial Dysfunction in Diabetic Retinopathy.

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a diabetic complication which affects retinal function and results in severe loss of vision and relevant retinal diseases. Retinal vascular dysfunction caused by multifactors, such as advanced glycosylation end products and receptors, pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, proliferator-activated receptor-γ disruption, growth factors, oxidative stress, and microRNA. These factors promote retinal endothelial dysfunction, which results in the development of DR.

Tissue-specific usage of transposable element-derived promoters in mouse development.

Background: Transposable elements (TEs) are a significant component of eukaryotic genomes and play essential roles in genome evolution. Mounting evidence indicates that TEs are highly transcribed in early embryo development and contribute to distinct biological functions and tissue morphology.

Results: We examine the epigenetic dynamics of mouse TEs during the development of five tissues: intestine, liver, lung, stomach, and kidney.

Comparison of differential accessibility analysis strategies for ATAC-seq data.

ATAC-seq is widely used to measure chromatin accessibility and identify open chromatin regions (OCRs). OCRs usually indicate active regulatory elements in the genome and are directly associated with the gene regulatory network. The identification of differential accessibility regions (DARs) between different biological conditions is critical in determining the differential activity of regulatory elements.

A study of dry eye after cataract surgery in MGD patients.

Objective: To investigate the dry eye symptoms after cataract surgery in MGD patients and their relationships METHODS: The study included 115 patients (115 eyes) with age-related cataract that underwent uncomplicated cataract surgery, and the patients were divided into two groups according to the MGD diagnostic criteria: group A (MGD group) and group B (control group). Schirmer I test (ST-I), tear breakup time (TBUT), and corneal fluorescein staining (CFS) were performed preoperatively and at 3 days, 7 days, 14 days, and 30 days postoperatively. We also measured eyelid meibomian gland morphology, meibomian gland expression, and meibum character scores before and after the cataract surgery.

Gene expression correlates of facultative predation in the blow fly (Diptera: Calliphoridae).

Effects of intraguild predation (IGP) on omnivores and detritivores are relatively understudied when compared to work on predator guilds. Functional genetic work in IGP is even more limited, but its application can help answer a range of questions related to ultimate and proximate causes of this behavior. Here, we integrate behavioral assays and transcriptomic analysis of facultative predation in a blow fly (Diptera: Calliphoridae) to evaluate the prevalence, effect, and correlated gene expression of facultative predation by the invasive species .

Identifying similar transcripts in a related organism from de Bruijn graphs of RNA-Seq data, with applications to the study of salt and waterlogging tolerance in Melilotus.

Background: A popular strategy to study alternative splicing in non-model organisms starts from sequencing the entire transcriptome, then assembling the reads by using de novo transcriptome assembly algorithms to obtain predicted transcripts. A similarity search algorithm is then applied to a related organism to infer possible function of these predicted transcripts. While some of these predictions may be inaccurate and transcripts with low coverage are often missed, we observe that it is possible to obtain a more complete set of transcripts to facilitate possible functional assignments by starting the search from the intermediate de Bruijn graph that contains all branching possibilities.

A comparative evaluation of hybrid error correction methods for error-prone long reads.

Background: Third-generation sequencing technologies have advanced the progress of the biological research by generating reads that are substantially longer than second-generation sequencing technologies. However, their notorious high error rate impedes straightforward data analysis and limits their application. A handful of error correction methods for these error-prone long reads have been developed to date.

Down-regulation of microRNA-216a confers protection against yttrium aluminium garnet laser-induced retinal injury the GDNF-mediated GDNF/GFRα1/RET signalling pathway.

Retinal injury plays a leading role in the onset of visual impairment. Current forms of treatment are not able to ameliorate scarring, cell death and tissue and axon regeneration. Recently, microRNA-216a (miR-216a) has been reported to regulate snx5, a novel notch signalling pathway component during retinal development.

Emerging roles of transforming growth factor β signaling in wet age-related macular degeneration.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the major causes of irreversible blindness among aging populations in developed countries and can be classified as dry or wet according to its progression. Wet AMD, which is characterized by angiogenesis on the choroidal membrane, is uncommonly seen but more severe. Controlling or completely inhibiting the factors that contribute to the progression of events that lead to angiogenesis may be an effective strategy for treating wet AMD.

IDP-denovo: de novo transcriptome assembly and isoform annotation by hybrid sequencing.

Motivation: In the past years, the long read (LR) sequencing technologies, such as Pacific Biosciences and Oxford Nanopore Technologies, have been demonstrated to substantially improve the quality of genome assembly and transcriptome characterization. Compared to the high cost of genome assembly by LR sequencing, it is more affordable to generate LRs for transcriptome characterization. That is, when informative transcriptome LR data are available without a high-quality genome, a method for de novo transcriptome assembly and annotation is of high demand.

VEGF as a Trophic Factor for Müller Glia in Hypoxic Retinal Diseases.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic retinopathy (DR), leading causes of blindness, share a common retinal environment: hypoxia which is a major stimulator for the upregulation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), a cardinal pathogenic factor for the breakdown of blood-retina barrier (BRB). As a result of intensive studies on VEGF pathobiology, anti-VEGF strategy has become a major therapeutics for wet AMD and DR. To investigate the potential impact of anti-VEGF strategy on major retinal supporting cells, Müller glia (MG), we disrupted VEGF receptor-2 (VEGFR2) in MG with conditional knockout (CKO) and examined the effect of VEGFR2-null on MG viability and neuronal integrity in mice.

Hybrid Sequencing of Full-Length cDNA Transcripts of Stems and Leaves in Dendrobium officinale.

is an extremely valuable orchid used in traditional Chinese medicine, so sought after that it has a higher market value than gold. Although the expression profiles of some genes involved in the polysaccharide synthesis have previously been investigated, little research has been carried out on their alternatively spliced isoforms in . In addition, information regarding the translocation of sugars from leaves to stems in also remains limited.

Genome Sequence of a Strain Isolated from Salivary Glands.

We present here the draft genome sequence of a strain, derived from the salivary glands of larval , a common blow fly important to forensic, medical, and veterinary science. The genome sequence will help dissect coinfections involving and , as well as blow fly-bacteria interactions.

Genome Sequence of a Proteus mirabilis Strain Isolated from the Salivary Glands of Larval Lucilia sericata.

We announce a draft genome sequence of a Proteus mirabilis strain derived from Lucilia sericata salivary glands. This strain is demonstrated to attract and induce oviposition by L. sericata, a common blow fly important to medicine, agriculture, and forensics.

Heuristic pairwise alignment of de Bruijn graphs to facilitate simultaneous transcript discovery in related organisms from RNA-Seq data.

Background: The advance of high-throughput sequencing has made it possible to obtain new transcriptomes and study splicing mechanisms in non-model organisms. In these studies, there is often a need to investigate the transcriptomes of two related organisms at the same time in order to find the similarities and differences between them. The traditional approach to address this problem is to perform de novo transcriptome assemblies to obtain predicted transcripts for these organisms independently and then employ similarity comparison algorithms to study them.