Establishment of an efficient transformation protocol and its application in marine-derived Bacillus strain.

Marine-derived Bacillus strains have been proved to be a very promising source for natural product leads. However, transformation of environmental strains is much more difficult than that of domesticated strains. Here, we report the development of an efficient and robust electroporation-based transformation system for marine-derived Bacillus marinus B-9987, which is a macrolactin antibiotics producer and a very promising biological control agent against fungal plant diseases.

[Growth inhibitory effect of microRNA-519b-3p on larynx squamous Hep-2 cells].

Objective: To investigate the effects of microRNA-519b-3p (miR-519b-3p) on laryngeal carcinoma Hep-2 cell growth, and to analyze the underlying molecular mechanisms.

Methods: The effects of miR-519b-3p on the growth and cell cycle of Hep-2 cells transfected with miR-519b-3p mimic were tested by MTT assay and flow cytometry, respectively. The mRNA and protein expressions of the related genes were tested by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Western blot, respectively.

Extended wakefulness: compromised metabolics in and degeneration of locus ceruleus neurons.

Modern society enables a shortening of sleep times, yet long-term consequences of extended wakefulness on the brain are largely unknown. Essential for optimal alertness, locus ceruleus neurons (LCns) are metabolically active neurons that fire at increased rates across sustained wakefulness. We hypothesized that wakefulness is a metabolic stressor to LCns and that, with extended wakefulness, adaptive mitochondrial metabolic responses fail and injury ensues.

Metabolic syndrome and its factors affect cognitive function in chronic schizophrenia complicated by metabolic syndrome.

The aim of this study was to investigate the characteristics of cognitive function damage in chronic schizophrenia patients with metabolic syndrome (MS); 388 patients were divided into two groups: MS group (180 people with schizophrenia and MS) and non-MS group (208 people with schizophrenia but without MS). The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and the Treatment Emergent Symptom Scale (TESS) were used to evaluate clinical symptoms and drug adverse reaction. The Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) was used to assess cognitive function.

Effects of chronic sleep fragmentation on wake-active neurons and the hypercapnic arousal response.

Study Objectives: Delayed hypercapnic arousals may occur in obstructive sleep apnea. The impaired arousal response is expected to promote more pronounced oxyhemoglobin desaturations. We hypothesized that long-term sleep fragmentation (SF) results in injury to or dysfunction of wake-active neurons that manifests, in part, as a delayed hypercapnic arousal response.

Different non-host resistance responses of two rice subspecies, japonica and indica, to Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici.

Key Message: Japonica and indica have different non-host resistance (NHR) abilities to Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici ( Pst ), and hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) has a positive function in NHR to japonica against Pst.

MicroRNA-519a demonstrates significant tumour suppressive activity in laryngeal squamous cells by targeting anti-carcinoma HuR gene.

Objective: This study investigated the expression and functional effects, and related molecular mechanisms, of microRNA-519a in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma.

Methods: MicroRNA-519a and HuR messenger RNA in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma were measured using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. MicroRNA-519a effects on the growth of human epithelial type 2 cells were tested using an MTT assay.

Fluorescent sensor for selective determination of copper ion based on N-acetyl-L-cysteine capped CdHgSe quantum dots.

Using N-acetyl-L-cysteine as a stabilizer, well water-dispersed, high-quality and stable CdHgSe quantum dots were facilely synthesized via a simple aqueous phase method. The as-prepared N-acetyl-L-cysteine capped CdHgSe quantum dots were thoroughly characterized by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction spectroscopy and FTIR. A fluorescent sensor for selective determination of copper ions was developed using N-acetyl-L-cysteine capped CdHgSe quantum dots as fluorescent probe.

Basic properties of sintering dust from iron and steel plant and potassium recovery.

With the production of crude steel, China produces several million tons of sintering dusts which contain a great deal of valuable metals such as, K, Na, Zn, Pb. If discharged directly without adequate treatment, these elements can lead to adverse effects on the environment. Therefore, it is very necessary to determine how to separate these elements from the dust before discharge.

High genome heterozygosity and endemic genetic recombination in the wheat stripe rust fungus.

Stripe rust, caused by Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (Pst), is one of the most destructive diseases of wheat.

Facile synthesis of N-acetyl-L-cysteine capped CdHgSe quantum dots and selective determination of hemoglobin.

Using N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) as a stabilizer, well water-dispersed, high-quality and stable CdHgSe quantum dots were facilely synthesized via a simple aqueous phase method. The as-prepared NAC capped CdHgSe quantum dots were thoroughly characterized by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. A novel method for the selective determination of hemoglobin (Hb) was developed based on fluorescence quenching of the NAC capped CdHgSe quantum dots.

Psychiatric illness and intellectual disability in the Prader-Willi syndrome with different molecular defects--a meta analysis.

Background And Objectives: Several studies have suggested a difference in clinical features of intellectual ability and psychiatric illness in the Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) with the 15q11-q13 paternal deletion and maternal uniparental disomy (mUPD). Our objective was to appraise evidence on this association through a meta-analysis.

Methods: The electronic records PubMed and EMBASE from 1956 to 2012 were extracted for meta-analysis.

A twenty-four-week, open-label study on ziprasidone's efficacy and influence on glucolipid metabolism in patients with schizophrenia and metabolic disorder.

Background: The risks of antipsychotic drugs on metabolic syndrome (MS) present many challenges for psychiatrists.

Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness and influences on glucolipid metabolism in patients with schizophrenia and metabolic disorders switched from clozapine to ziprasidone.

Patients And Methods: Schizophrenic patients with metabolic syndrome who had been treated with clozapine for ≥ 2 years were enrolled in the open-label study.

Micranthanone A, a new diterpene with an unprecedented carbon skeleton from Rhododendron micranthum.

A new diterpene with an unprecedented carbon skeleton, micranthanone A (1), two new grayanane diterpenoids bearing an unusual 5,6-(3,4-dihydroxylbenzylidene acetal) motif, rhodomicranols A (2) and B (3), and three known grayanane diterpenoids (4-6) were isolated from Rhododendron micranthum. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic analyses, calculated ECD, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The in vitro immunomodulatory activities of 1-6 were evaluated, and a plausible biogenetic pathway for 1 is proposed.

Theoretical evaluation of flotation performance of carboxyl hydroxamic acids with different number of polar groups on the surfaces of diaspore (010) and kaolinite (001).

The adsorption behaviors of three carboxyl hydroxamic acids on diaspore (010) and kaolinite (001) have been studied by density functional theory (DFT) and molecular dynamics (MD) method. The results indicated that carboxyl hydroxamic acids could adsorb on diaspore surface by ionic bonds and hydrogen bonds, and adsorb on kaolinite surface by hydrogen bonds. The models of carboxyl hydroxamic acids adsorbed on diaspore and kaolinite surfaces are proposed.

Three common polymorphisms in the IL-4 gene and cancer risk: a meta-analysis involving 5,392 cases and 6,930 controls.

Unlabelled: Interleukin-4 (IL-4) is a typical pleiotropic T helper 2 (Th2) cytokine. This cytokine is a critical mediator of the Th1/Th2 balance and apoptosis potential and involved in the process of inflammation-mediated carcinogenesis in human organs. IL-4 gene polymorphisms influence IL-4 transcription and have been implicated in cancer risks.

C/EBP homologous binding protein (CHOP) underlies neural injury in sleep apnea model.

Study Objectives: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is associated with cognitive impairment and neuronal injury. Long-term exposure to intermittent hypoxia (LTIH) in rodents, modeling the oxygenation patterns in sleep apnea, results in NADPH oxidase 2 (Nox2) oxidative injury to many neuronal populations. Brainstem motoneurons susceptible to LTIH injury show uncompensated endoplasmic reticulum stress responses with increased (CCAAT/enhancer binding protein homologous protein (CHOP).

Identification of eighteen Berberis species as alternate hosts of Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici and virulence variation in the pathogen isolates from natural infection of barberry plants in China.

ABSTRACT The wheat stripe rust pathogen (Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici) population in China has been reported to be a distinct genetic group with higher diversity than those in many other countries.

Current evidence on the relationship between three polymorphisms in the CYP1A2 gene and the risk of cancer.

CYP1A2 is an important cytochrome P450 enzyme that is involved in the metabolism of many clinical drugs and activation of some precarcinogens. Functional CYP1A2 polymorphisms are considered to exert significant effects on the risk of cancer, but the conclusions are inconsistent. Three commonly studied CYP1A2 polymorphisms, namely rs762551 (A>C), rs2069514 (G>A), and rs3569413 (T>delT), were selected to explore their association with the risk of development of cancer by meta-analysis of published case-control studies.

Virulence Characterization of International Collections of the Wheat Stripe Rust Pathogen, Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici.

Wheat stripe rust (yellow rust [Yr]), caused by Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici, is an economically important disease of wheat worldwide.

Sensitive amperometric biosensor for phenolic compounds based on graphene-silk peptide/tyrosinase composite nanointerface.

New graphene-silk peptide (Gr-SP) nanosheets were prepared and successfully fabricated with tyrosinase (Tyr) as a novel biosensor for the determination of phenolic compounds. The Gr-SP nanosheets were fully characterized with transmission electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, UV/Vis and FTIR spectra. The developed biosensors were also characterized with scanning electronic microscopy and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy.

Population genetic diversity of Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici on different wheat varieties in Tianshui, Gansu Province.

Population genetic diversity in Tianshui city was analyzed with SSR markers in 605 single-pustule isolates of the stripe rust pathogen, Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (Pst), obtained from 19 varieties of wheat.

Comparative virulence phenotypes and molecular genotypes of Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici, the wheat stripe rust pathogen in China and the United States.

Stripe rust (yellow rust) of wheat, caused by Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici, is one of the most important diseases in both China and the United States.

Simultaneous biodegradation of Ni-citrate complexes and removal of nickel from solutions by Pseudomonas alcaliphila.

The objective of this study was to study the simultaneous biodegradation of Ni-citrate complexes and removal of Ni from solutions by Pseudomonas alcaliphila. Adding excess citrate to 1:1 Ni-citrate complexes promoted the degradation of the complexes and removal of Ni. The alkaline pH generated by the metabolism of excess citrate caused partial dissociation of citrate from the Ni-citrate complexes, allowing degradation, and the released Ni was removed through bioaccumulation and precipitation.