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Background: Monoterpenes are among the most important volatile aromatic compounds contributing to the flavor and aroma of grapes and wine. However, the molecular basis of monoterpene biosynthesis has not yet been fully elucidated. Results: In our study, transcriptomics and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) were used to mine candidate genes and transcription factors involved in monoterpene biosynthesis between high-monoterpene and zero-monoterpene table grape cultivars. We found that monoterpene biosynthesis was positively correlated by the expression of five genes encoding 1-deoxy-D-xylulose-5-phosphate synthase (VvDXSs), one encoding 4-hydroxy-3-methylbut-2-enyl diphosphate reductase (VvHDR), three hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA synthases (VvHMGSs) and one mevalonate kinase (VvMVK), whereas the expression of one isopentenyl diphosphate isomerase (VvIDI) and one 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase (VvHMGR) negatively correlated monoterpene biosynthesis. Of these genes, VvIDI was selected to validate its function in monoterpene accumulation through a transient overexpression experiment, and was shown to inhibit the biosynthesis of grape linalool and α-terpineol. Meanwhile, we found that a 64-amino acid extension sequence at the N-terminus can guide the VvIDI protein to target the chloroplast. Conclusions: The findings of this study should help to guide future functional analysis of key genes as well as mining the potential regulatory mechanism of monoterpene biosynthesis in grapes and grape products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although nanosilver particles are commonly used as oil lubrication additives, their mechanism for improving lubrication at the atomic scale remains unclear. This article explains how the performance of a pentaerythritol oleate lubrication system can be improved using silver nanoparticles through molecular dynamics simulation. Additionally, tribological tests were conducted using a reciprocating friction and wear testing machine. The relative concentrations and simulated shear conformation revealed that silver nanoparticles underwent deformation under shear stress and fractured at the interlayer slip. This resulted in the formation of a deposited film that spread over both the top and bottom Fe layers. We characterized the interaction between pentaerythritol oleate molecular chains and Fe layers by analyzing interfacial interaction energies, mean square displacements, and self-diffusion coefficients. Our findings indicate that the presence of silver nanoparticles improves both the adsorption of pentaerythritol oleate molecular chains onto the Fe layer and their diffusion behavior. The results of tribological tests indicate that adding silver nanoparticles significantly reduces friction coefficient and frictional wear across various lubrication conditions. The addition of silver nanoparticles at different loads and temperatures resulted in varying reductions in the coefficient of friction and wear. At a load of 20 N and a temperature of 298 K, the coefficient of friction decreased by 9%, and wear decreased by 31%. When the load was reduced to 2 N while maintaining a temperature of 298 K, the coefficient of friction decreased by 8% and wear decreased significantly by 84%. Finally, at a load of 20 N but with an increased temperature to 373 K, there was a larger reduction in the coefficient of friction (23%) compared to wear (50%). The film-formation mechanism of improved lubrication by silver nanoparticles was verified through tribological tests and simulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Abdominal penetrating aortic ulcer (aPAU) is defined as an ulceration of the aortic intima and media lamina, even with rupture of the internal elastic lamina. Recently, there have been an increasing number of publications on endovascular treatment for aPAU. This review aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of endovascular treatment and provide clinicians with the latest evidence-based medical data. Methods: 3 academic databases (Embase, PubMed, and Scopus) were systematically searched for literature reporting on aPAU from 1986 (the earliest appearance of the concept of aPAU) to September 1, 2021, and related data were collected and evaluated. A fixed/random effects model was used to construct the forest plots. Funnel plots and linear regression tests were used to assess the publication bias. Results: 6 articles including 121 patients were included in the analysis. The average age was 71.4 years, with 72.7% of males and 85.6% with hypertension. Saccular aneurysms (SA) were the most prevalent complication (35.5%). Endovascular treatment had a perioperative mortality rate of.24% (95% CI,.00-2.70). The technical success rate was 99.15% (95% CI, 96.49-100). The type-II endoleak rate was 5.69% (95% CI,.00-12.13). The 1-year survival rate was 95.69% (95% CI, 90.49-100). The revascularization rate was 7.20% (95% CI,.07-14.32). Endovascular treatments for aPAU would lead to a high rate of technical success, few complications, and satisfactory 1-year survival. Conclusions: aPAU are a common disease that mainly affects elderly males with hypertension and hyperlipidemia. Endovascular treatment is required when an ulcer progresses rapidly or manifests symptoms. Endovascular treatment is associated with high technical success, low complication, and satisfactory 1-year survival. Further investigation into the long-term results of endovascular treatment is necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flexible strain sensors have important applications in wearable electronics, human motion monitoring, and healthcare. Soft, compatible, and conductive hydrogels are considered promising stretchable materials. However, hydrogel-based sensors still face challenges with the combined advantages of good electrical conductivity, low strain limit (less than 5%), mechanical strength, and anti-interference. As a result, most hydrogel-based sensors cannot stably recognize human tiny movements (such as pulse, throat, etc.). Herein, we constructed a double network (DN) hydrogel consisting of SA–Zn and P(AA-AM) to boost the mechanical performance and prepare the graphene oxide (GO) modified by polydopamine@Ag nanoparticles (PDA@Ag) via a one-step redox reaction method to enhance the sensitivity. The prepared GO/PDA@Ag/SA–Zn hydrogel strain sensor has an ultralow strain detection limit (0.1%), good gauge factor (GF = 8.29), and high stretchability (600%). It is proven that the hydrogel strain sensor can work as a wearable device to continuously monitor full-scale human motions. Furthermore, it works as a speech interface to detect subtle throat speech movements and which is further classified by a transfer learning algorithm based on the Resnet50 neural network, demonstrating that our sensor can recognize ten kinds of common words expressing physical demands with a precise accuracy of 100%. It provides the possibility to help patients or weak people with voice disorders in the hospital express their requirements. This work provides new insights into fabricating flexible hydrogel strain sensors with promising applications in next-generation intelligent wearable devices for healthcare, medical treatments, diagnosis, therapy, and rehabilitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Suboptimal light stress in grapevines is increasing worldwide with the spread of grapevine cultivation, which can affect grapevine physiology and productivity, such as in Southern China. Abscisic acid (ABA) is an important hormone in plant adaptive responses to abiotic stress, including low light stress. However, ABA signaling pathway genes (APGs) are not well characterized in the grapevine, and little is known of their potentially mitigating role in grapevine growth under weak light stress. Our study aimed to explore the potential role of the ABA signaling pathway in the response of grapevines to suboptimal light conditions. In this study, APGs were identified in the grapevine genome, and the distribution of conserved motifs was shown to reflect their phylogenetic relationships. Gene duplication analysis indicated that segmental duplication was an important driver for gene expansion in the grapevine ABA signaling pathway. Suboptimal conditions of light were shown to seriously affect the growth of grapevine leaves and berries, with the differential regulation of APGs in the grapevine. Our study summarizes the basic characteristics of APGs in grapevine, which can now be examined further for their roles in grapevine's response to suboptimal light conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Respiration is an important physiological process of the human body and can assess an individual's health status. Humidity detection is an effective method for real‐time breath monitoring. Herein, the α‐Co(OH)2‐based quartz crystal microbalance humidity sensor (Co‐QCM sensor) is prepared via the hydrothermal method. The Co‐QCM sensor is characterized by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier‐transform infrared, and X‐ray diffraction. The α‐Co(OH)2 with hierarchical nanostructure and hydroxy functional groups leads to good humidity‐sensing performance. The Co‐QCM sensor exhibits high sensitivity (23.1 Hz/% relative humidity), fast response and recovery times (within 3 and 4 s, respectively), high linearity (R2 = 0.994), and long‐term stability (≈30 days) in the humidity range of 4–73.3%. In addition, different human breathing signals, including free breathing, shallow breathing, and deep breathing, can be detected and distinguished by this humidity sensor, showing the potential application in human respiratory detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Detection and conversion of mechanical forces into biochemical signals is known as mechanotransduction. From cells to tissues, mechanotransduction regulates migration, proliferation, and differentiation in processes such as immune responses, development, and cancer progression. Mechanosensitive structures such as integrin adhesions, the actin cortex, ion channels, caveolae, and the nucleus sense and transmit forces. In vitro approaches showed that mechanosensing is based on force-dependent protein deformations and reorganizations. However, the mechanisms in cells remained unclear since cell imaging techniques lacked molecular resolution. Thanks to recent developments in super-resolution microscopy (SRM) and molecular force sensors, it is possible to obtain molecular insight of mechanosensing in live cells. We discuss how understanding of molecular mechanotransduction was revolutionized by these innovative approaches, focusing on integrin adhesions, actin structures, and the plasma membrane. Mechanotransduction is involved in a variety of cell and tissue processes. For this, mechanosensitive structures, such as integrin adhesions, the cytoskeleton, or the plasma membrane, are key to sense, integrate, and transmit mechanical forces. Novel imaging methods and molecular sensors have unveiled how molecular mechanosensing occurs in these structures within the context of live cells. These include super-resolution imaging, single particle tracking, and molecular force sensors. Super-resolution microscopy and single protein tracking have revealed the 3D nanoscale organization and dynamics of integrin adhesion structures in various cell types, which are divided into functional nanolayers with specific paths for protein diffusion. Forces on actin regulators and F-actin trigger conformational changes controlling actin regulator function and binding, and therefore F-actin assembly and architecture. In migrating cells, mechanical plasticity emerges from global geometrical reorganization of actin networks under loads, or forces from elongating actin filaments controlling locally actin regulators dynamics and functions. Cell surface mechanics are emerging as a key parameter controlling cell motility, division, and differentiation. Variations in cortical tension and membrane-to-cortex attachment regulate the timing of differentiation while the nanoscale architecture of the actin cortex is linked to cortical tension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the frequent occurrence of extreme natural disasters, unfavorable growth environment is a common phenomenon in the life cycle of plants. In recent years, universal stress proteins (USPs) have attracted extensive attention in the field of plant science for their expression patterns and functional analysis. However, the characterization of the USP family remains unclear in grape. In this study, we identified 30 VvUSPs in the grape genome, which could be divided into three classes according to their encoded protein sequences, and this classification was reflected by the distribution of conserved motifs. Gene duplication analysis demonstrated that segmental duplication was an important pathway in the expansion of the VvUSP family. The expression patterns of 12 VvUSPs were significantly different between tissues, implying they had different functions in various tissues. Cis-acting element and expression analysis showed that most of the promoter regions of VvUSPs contained sequences responsive to hormones and stress elements, especially the promoter region of VIT_16s0013g01920. In conclusion, our findings provide comprehensive information for the further investigation of the genetics and protein functions of the USP gene family in grape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Fosfomycin resistance has become a clinical concern. In this study, we analysed the dynamic change of fosfomycin MIC in the epidemic Staphylococcus aureus lineages in a teaching hospital in Shanghai for 12 years and sought to elucidate the major underlying mechanisms.Methods: MLST was conducted for 4580 S. aureus isolates recovered from 2008 to 2019. Fosfomycin MIC was determined by the agar dilution method. The genome data of 230 S. aureus epidemic lineage isolates were acquired from a next-generation sequencing (NGS) platform. Gene deletion and corresponding complementation mutants were constructed to confirm the mechanism of fosfomycin resistance.Results: The predominant S. aureus lineages during the past 12 years were ST5 and ST239 (45.6%; 2090/4580). However, ST5 has been spreading clinically, while ST239 has gradually disappeared recently. Consistent with epidemic trends, fosfomycin-resistant ST5 increased from 19.5% to 67.3%. Most fosfomycin-resistant ST5 isolates (92.7%; 647/698) possessed high-level resistance (MIC > 1024 mg/L) with combined mutations mainly in glpT and uhpT. In contrast, fosfomycin-resistant ST239 isolates (76.8%; 149/194) mainly acquired low-level resistance (MIC = 64-128 mg/L) with mutation primarily in hptA. Deletion of a single resistant gene merely resulted in low-level fosfomycin resistance, while double-gene mutants ΔglpTΔuhpT, ΔglpTΔhptA and ΔglpTΔhptR acquired high-level fosfomycin resistance.Conclusions: The high-level fosfomycin resistance of S. aureus epidemic lineage ST5 is mainly due to the accumulation of mutations in the resistant genes related to membrane transporter systems, and partly contributes to its persistent prevalence under clinical antibiotic pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What social progress is and how to measure it are seemingly plain but essentially intri-cate questions that have not been clarified to date, which has led to various social problems and development failures. Designed after the Great Depression in the 1930s, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has been, on the one hand, regarded as the greatest invention of the 20th century and is widely accepted as the primary indicator for social progress, but on the other hand, it has been criticized as knowing the price of everything but the value of nothing. The Beyond GDP Movement that has been active since the 2010s has inspired global interest in designing indicators to replace or supplement GDP, but none of them stands out as GDP's successor. We take 12 influential indicators that consider beyond GDP and carry out a Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to investigate their correlations. The results indicate that GDP per capita (GDPP) can explain 65.61% of the information in the first principal component (PC) and account for 51.10% of the information related to the total 13 indicators, indicating its major role in social progress. Most indicators have strong correlations with GDPP, not beyond, and only the Ecological Footprint per capita (EFP) and Happy Planet Index (HPI) that have negative and weak correlations with GDPP, respectively, can provide new perspectives and values beyond GDP. Social progress is based upon various public values, and the indicators are the measurements of these values. Although GDP and economic values play major roles during social development, other indicators and their potential public values cannot be ignored. Prioritizing these public values and monitoring their indicators are essential to achieving sustainable and comprehensive social progress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aroma is one of the most important indicators of grape quality. Girdling and foliar fertilization with K (K2O) are common agronomic practices applied to improve berry quality in grape production. However, little is known about its effect on the accumulation and biosynthesis of the entire aromatic profile. Our study was aimed to explore the influences of girdling and foliar fertilization with K (alone or in combination) on the general properties, phenolic composition, volatile free aroma compounds, spatial and temporal expression of terpene-related genes and sensory properties in 'Hanxiangmi' table grape. In this study, we found that girdling and foliar fertilization with K (alone or in combination) facilitated fruit enlargement and increased the accumulation of phenolic compounds in skin. The combination treatment of girdling and foliar fertilization with K significantly promoted the concentrations of total soluble solids (TSS) in the pulp and proanthocyanidins in the berry skin, and had a lower titratable acidity (TA) compared to those of the control. In contrast, girdling treatment alone increased the concentrations of titratable acidity. Volatile free aroma composition analysis revealed that the combination treatment increased the volatile compounds and concentrations significantly, most notably in terpenes, such as nerol, citronellol and linalool. Spatial and temporal expression analysis showed that the expression level of VvDXS was significantly correlated with linalool and total terpenes concentrations, as a result of which, we speculated that VvDXS is the candidate gene for the regulation of important grape terpenes. We hope that our results can direct farmers to better apply girdling and foliar fertilization with K in grape production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bacterial membrane vesicles (MVs) have recently gained much attention and have been shown to carry a wide diversity of secreted bacterial components. However, it is poorly understood whether MV carriage is an indispensable requirement for a cargo's function. Bacteriocins as weapons of bacterial warfare shape the composition of microbial communities. Many bacteriocins have pronounced hydrophobicity that is imposed by their mechanism of action, but how they diffuse through aqueous environments to reach their target competitors is not known. Here we show that antimicrobial competitive activity of an exemplary hydrophobic bacteriocin of the thiopeptide antibiotic family, micrococcin P1 (MP1), is dependent on incorporation into MVs, which were found to carry MP1 at high concentrations. In contrast, MP1 without MV association was poorly active due to low solubility. Furthermore, we provide previously unavailable evidence that MVs fuse with a Gram‐positive bacterium's cytoplasmic membrane, in this case to deliver a bacteriocin to its intracellular target. Our findings demonstrate how bacteria overcome the problem associated with secreting hydrophobic small molecules and delivering them to their target and show that MVs have a key function in bacterial warfare. Furthermore, our study provides hitherto rare evidence that MVs provide an essential rather than merely accessory function in bacterial physiology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gait event detection is a crucial part in the motion control and performance evaluation of exoskeleton robots. To detect the whole gait events conveniently and effectively, a wearable system based on infrared distance sensors is proposed. The heel and toe clearances were used for the first time for the online detection of all six gait events in one gait cycle. Smart shoes integrated with three infrared distance sensors were designed to obtain stable distance signals, which were then converted into effective foot posture information. Moreover, an online detection algorithm was proposed using local search windows and fixed thresholds, resulting in a minimal time delay and a small computational burden. By comparing the system with the motion capture system at different walking speeds, the average detection error of gait events is within 34ms, and the average detection rate of the system is 99.62%. When applied to a lower extremity exoskeleton robot, the system successfully detects all gait events of the human-robot synchronous walk. The results show that the system has good real-time performance and high detection rate. This study provides a convenient and reliable detection method for gait research of human body and exoskeleton robots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aerospace industry has extremely strict requirements for metal materials, especially the stability of the material at a low temperature and in harsh environment. Herein, superhydrophobic anti‐icing aluminum sheets are fabricated with traditional hydrothermal reaction and modified by (heptadecafluoro‐1,1,2,2‐tetradecyl) triethoxysilane (AC‐FAS). Field‐Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) are used to analyze the surface morphology and chemical compositions. The satisfactory properties of superhydrophobicity and anti‐icing result from its dense microcosmic array structure and its low surface energy. The prepared superhydrophobic aluminum surface can realize wettability alteration, in which the contact angle increases from 118° on the original aluminum sheets to 155° with a rolling angle of 10°. In addition, the prepared superhydrophobic surface has anti‐icing and self‐cleaning ability. According to the aforementioned results, it is believed that the superhydrophobic aluminum sheets can be an excellent candidate in the aerospace field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases begins with endothelial dysfunction. Our previous study has shown that advanced glycation end products (AGE) could inhibit the expression of homeobox A9 (Hoxa9), thereby inducing endothelial dysfunction. Leucine-rich repeat flightless-interacting protein 1 (LRRFIP1) has been found to participate in a variety of pathological processes, but reports of its role in endothelial dysfunction are rare. Objectives: This study aims to investigate whether LRRFIP1 is involved in AGE-induced endothelial dysfunction through Hoxa9-mediated transcriptional activation. Methods: Chromatin immunoprecipitation was used to detect the transcriptional regulation of Hoxa9 on LRRFIP1 promoters. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells were treated with AGE or pyrrolidinedithiocarbamate (nuclear factor kappa-B [NF-κB] inhibitor). Moreover, changes in apoptosis, proliferation, migration, release of nitric oxide, and angiogenesis were detected. Results: Hoxa9 promotes LRRFIP1 expression by binding to the -LRRFIP1 promoter. Meanwhile, overexpression of LRRFIP1 inhibited phosphorylation of P65 and elevated expression of Hoxa9. Overexpression of LRRFIP1 or/and Hoxa9 reversed the effects of AGE on HUVEC. AGE-induced inhibition on the expression of LRRFIP1 and Hoxa9 could be reversed by the NF-κB inhibitor. Conclusion: LRRFIP1 is involved in AGE-induced endothelial dysfunction via being regulated by the NF-κB/Hoxa9 axis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The LiNi 0.5−x Zn x Mn 1.48 Y 0.02 O 4 (x = 0.01, 0.03, 0.05) series were prepared via a sol-gel method. The mechanism of the Zn2+ and Y3+ co-doping on the structural morphology and Mn3+ ion dissolution, which led to the improved electrochemical performance of the LiNi 0.5 Mn 1.5 O 4 (LNMO) sample, were studied. Compared with the pristine LNMO, Zn-Y co-doping led to increased lattice parameters, morphological evolution, decreased Mn3+ content, and better electrochemical properties. Among all the samples, LiNi 0.47 Zn 0.03 Mn 1.48 Y 0.02 O 4 (0.03ZnY) showed optimal electrochemical properties at room temperature and elevated temperature. After 200 cycles, the 0.03ZnY sample showed excellent cycling performance, i.e., 134.529 mAh g−1 at 1 C (with a capacity retention of 94.7%), which was higher than the pristine sample (104.913 mAh g−1, with a capacity retention of 92.7%). Furthermore, when tested at 1 C, at a high temperature (55 °C), the 2.03Zn-Y sample reached a discharge capacity of 94.004 mAh g−1 and maintained a 79.6% capacity retention after 120 cycles, which was higher than the pristine sample (52.430 mAh g−1, 43.6% capacity retention). • The pristine LNMO and Zn-Y co-doping cathode materials was synthesized via sol-gel method, co-doping did not change the structure of materials, and the lattice parameter of materials increased, enhancing the electrochemical performance. • LiNi 0.47 Zn 0.03 Mn 1.48 Y 0.02 O 4 (0.03ZnY) process the best electrochemical performance, which obtain 134.529 mAh/g at 1 C after 100 cycles at 25 ℃, higher than that of pristine sample(104.913 mAh/g). • Moreover, 0.03ZnY process 94.004 mAh/g at high temperature(55 ℃) at 1 C for 120 cycles, much higher than pristine sample(52.430 mAh/g). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Superhydrophobic PLA surface can be prepared by a one-step spraying methods. • The as-prepared PLA fabric can be used for continuous oil-water separation. • The as-prepared PLA fabric can separate oil-water mixtures under harsh environments. • The as-prepared PLA fabric exhibits outstanding environmental and mechanical stability. Various types of functional materials incorporating superhydrophobic components have been rapidly developed for efficient oil/water separation. The post-processing of these used separated materials remains a challenging problem due to their non-biodegradable characteristics in natural environments, thus easily contributing to secondary contamination. Herein, we report a biodegradable superhydrophobic PLA fabric with hierarchical coral-like micro/nano structures by a one-step spraying method. The as-prepared PLA fabric was found to be both superhydrophobic and superoleophilic with a static water contact angle of 161 ± 2° and an oil contact angle of 0°. In addition, the as-prepared PLA nonwoven fabrics also revealed efficient continuous oil separation efficiency (>97.5%) and tiny water droplet collection efficiency, as well as high oil flux ranging from 2239 L·m−2·h−1 to 59,713 L·m−2·h−1. Furthermore, these fabrics retained their inherent wetting property and oil separation ability in a variety of acidic and basic solutions, 3.5 wt% NaCl solution, hot (100 °C), and freezing (0 °C) temperatures. This study provides a novel and environmentally friendly method for preparing biodegradable oil–water separation materials with green post-treatment characteristics when compared to the non-biodegradable separation materials, indicating potential applications in the fields of green water treatment and petroleum refining. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Grape production in southern China suffers great loss due to various environmental stresses. To understand the mechanism of how the grape plants respond to these stresses is an active area of research in developing cultivation techniques. Plant stress resistance is known to rely on special proteins. Amongst them, DnaJ protein (HSP40) serves as co-chaperones of HSP70, playing crucial roles in various stress response. However, the DnaJ proteins encoded by the DnaJ gene family in Vitis vinifera L. have not been fully described yet. In this study, we identified 78 VvDnaJs in the grape genome that can be classified into three groups—namely, DJA, DJB, and DJC. To reveal the evolutionary and stress response mechanisms for the VvDnaJ gene family, their evolutionary and expression patterns were analyzed using the bioinformatic approach and qRT-PCR. We found that the members in the same group exhibited a similar gene structure and protein domain organization. Gene duplication analysis demonstrated that segmental and tandem duplication may not be the dominant pathway of gene expansion in the VvDnaJ gene family. Codon usage pattern analysis showed that the codon usage pattern of VvDnaJs differs obviously from the monocotyledon counterparts. Tissue-specific analysis revealed that 12 VvDnaJs present a distinct expression profile, implying their distinct roles in various tissues. Cis-acting element analysis showed that almost all VvDnaJs contained the elements responsive to either hormones or stresses. Therefore, the expression levels of VvDnaJs subjected to exogenous hormone applications and stress treatments were determined, and we found that VvDnaJs were sensitive to hormone treatments and shade, salt, and heat stresses, especially VIT_00s0324g00040. The findings of this study could provide comprehensive information for the further investigation on the genetics and protein functions of the DnaJ gene family in grape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the continuous increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide emissions, nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) as mineral elements increasingly restrict plant growth. To explore the effect of deficiency of P and N on growth and physiology, Fraxinus mandshurica (hereafter "F. mandshurica") Rupr. annual seedlings of Wuchang (WC) provenance with fast growth and Dailing (DL) provenance with slow growth were treated with complete nutrition or starvation of N (N-), P (P-) or both elements (NP-). Although P- and N- increased the use efficiency of P (PUE) and N (NUE), respectively, they reduced the leaf area, chlorophyll content and activities of N assimilation enzymes (NR, GS, GOGAT), which decreased the dry weight and P or N amount. The free amino acid content and activities of Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC) and acid phosphatase enzymes were reduced by N-. The transcript levels of NRT2.1, NRT2.4, NRT2.5, NRT2.7, AVT1, AAP3, NIA2, PHT1-3, PHT1-4 and PHT2-1 in roots were increased, but those of NRT2.1, NRT2.4, NRT2.5, PHT1-3, PHT1-4, PHT2-1 and AAP3 in leaves were reduced by P-. WC was significantly greater than DL under P- in dry weight, C amount, N amount, leaf area, PUE, NUE, which related to greater chlorophyll content, PEPC enzyme activity, N assimilation enzyme activities, and transcript levels of N and P transporter genes in roots and foliage, indicating a greater ability of WC to absorb, transport and utilize N and P under P-. WC was also greater than DL under N- in terms of the above indicators except the transcript levels of N and P assimilation genes, but most of the indicators did not reach a significant level, indicating that WC might be more tolerant to N- than DL, which requires further verification. In summary, WC was identified as a P-efficient provenance, as the growth rate was greater for the genetic type with high than low tolerance to P-. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The CD47–signal regulatory protein α (SIRPα) axis inhibits dendritic cell (DC) phagocytosis and contributes to immune evasion. However, the behaviour of DCs and the potential crosstalk between DCs and natural killer (NK) cells in the hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) microenvironment after CD47 blockade remain unclear. The infiltration of CD103+ DCs and NK cells were analysed by immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence in both human and murine HCC specimens. An orthotopic liver tumour model was used to evaluate the function of the CD103+ DC–NK cell axis after CD47 blockade in vivo in wild-type, Rag1 -/- , Batf3 -/- , and STING1 -/- mice. Phagocytosis assays were performed in CD103+ DC and HCC cell lines. CD103+ DC-derived cytokines were analysed by chemokine array. Spleen-derived NK cells in C57BL/6J mice were used to evaluate cytotoxic functions in vitro. Higher CD47 expression was associated with worse prognosis in patients with HCC. CD47 blockade enhanced antitumour efficacy by stimulating the CD103+ DC–NK cell axis. The hypoxic microenvironment promoted CD47 blockade-induced tumour DNA phagocytosis by CD103+ DCs. By releasing IL-12 and CXCL9, activated CD103+ DCs induced the recruitment of NK cells with upregulated expression of granzyme B, NKG2D, interferon-γ, and tumour necrosis factor-α and downregulated expression of NKG2A. The antitumour effects of CD47 blockade could be abolished by cyclic GMP–AMP synthase (cGAS)–STING pathway inhibition. In addition to the classical DC–T cell axis, CD47 blockade significantly enhanced the ability of CD103+ DCs to take up tumour DNA, resulting in the stimulation of the cGAS–STING pathway, which promoted the infiltration and activation of NK cells in liver cancer. Hypoxia (low oxygen levels) is prevalent in the hepatocellular carcinoma microenvironment and promotes the phagocytosis (ingestion and elimination) of tumour DNA by CD103+ dendritic cells (a type of immune cell). Blockade of the cell surface protein CD47 resulted in activation of CD103+ dendritic cells which led to the recruitment and activation of natural killer cells (a different immune cell). When activated, these cells exhibit an antitumour effect. [Display omitted] • CD47-blockade enhances antitumour efficacy by triggering the CD103+ DC–NK cell axis in HCC. • CD47 blockade promotes CD103+ DC phagocytosis in synergy with hypoxia. • CD103+ DC-derived IL-12 and CXCL9 are responsible for NK cell activation and recruitment. • The intrinsic activation of the cGAS–STING pathway of CD103+ DC facilitates NK cell activation and recruitment in CD47 blockade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we improve the learned digital back propagation (LDBP) and propose a novel joint intra and inter-channel nonlinearity compensation scheme for polarization division multiplexing wavelength-division multiplexed (PDM-WDM) systems. From the perspective of interpretable neural network, the scheme realizes the alternating compensation of chromatic dispersion (CD) and nonlinearity based on physical models. The chromatic dispersion compensation (CDC) adopts one-dimensional convolution operation in the time domain. Moreover, the pulse-broadening effect is introduced into the overlap-and-save method. For nonlinear compensation, the improved joint model is applied, and the impact of the intra-channel pulse broadening and the walk-off effect between different channels caused by CD on the nonlinear effect is considered. To validate the effectiveness of the proposed scheme, we construct an 11-channel simulation system of 36 GBaud PDM uniform 16 quadrature amplitude modulation (PDM-16QAM) 1600 km and 64 GBaud PDM-64QAM 400 km, as well as a 5-channel experimental system of 28 GBaud PDM-16QAM 806.4 km. The simulation results show that the performance of PDM-16QAM with 0.5 steps per span and PDM-64QAM with 2 steps per span improve the Q-factor by approximately 0.75 dB and 0.54 dB at the optimal launch power, compared with the linear compensation scheme. The transmission performance of PDM-16QAM is higher than that of digital back propagation with 5 steps per span (DBP-5StPS), and the complexity is only 31.36% of that of DBP-5StPS. The performance of PDM-64QAM is higher than that of DBP-10StPS, with a complexity of 62.72%. The experimental results show that the performance of PDM-16QAM with 0.5 steps per span is improved with 0.86 dB Q-factor improvement compared with the linear compensation scheme at the optimal launch power, and the performance of the proposed scheme is higher than that of DBP-5StPS with a complexity of only 23.68%.

OXA-232 is one of the most common OXA-48-like carbapenemase derivatives and is widely disseminated in nosocomial settings across countries. The bla OXA-232 gene is located on a 6-kb non-conjugative ColKP3-type plasmid, while the dissemination of bla OXA-232 into different Enterobacterales species and the polyclonal dissemination of OXA-232-producing K. pneumoniae revealed the horizontal transfer of bla OXA-232 . However, it's still unclear how this non-conjugative ColKP3 plasmid could facilitate the mobilization of bla OXA-232 . Here, we observed the in vivo intraspecies transfer of bla OXA-232 during a nosocomial outbreak of OXA-232-producing K. pneumoniae . We demonstrated the presence of ColKP3 OXA-232 plasmid in the outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) derived from clinical isolates, and OMVs could facilitate the horizontal transfer of bla OXA-232 among Enterobacterales . In contrast, for the most prevalent carbapenemase genes, including bla KPC-2 and bla NDM-1 , though the presence of carbapenemase genes and plasmid backbones in the vesicular lumen was observed, OMVs couldn't promote effective transformation, probably due to the low copy number of plasmids in clinical isolates and the low number of plasmids loaded into vesicles. Conjugation assay revealed that the epidemic IncX3 NDM-1 and IncFII(pHN7A8)/IncR KPC-2 plasmids were conjugative and could be horizontally transferred via independent conjugation or with the help of a co-existent conjugative plasmid. For the large-size and low-copy number conjugative plasmids carrying carbapenemase genes, OMVs-mediated gene exchange may only serve as an alternative pathway for horizontal transfer. In conclusion, diverse mobilization strategies were employed by plasmids harboring carbapenemase genes, and plasmids display a proper choice of mobility pathway due to their individual properties.

Background Aims: Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are an obstacle to PD-1 blockade-mediated antitumor efficacy. However, the behaviors of Tregs response to anti-PD-1 in HCC and the characteristics of Tregs tissue adaptation from peripheral lymphoid tissues to the tumor are still unclear., Approach Results: Here, we determine that PD-1 monotherapy potentially augments the accumulation of tumor CD4 + Tregs. Mechanistically, anti-PD-1 mediates Tregs proliferation in lymphoid tissues rather than in the tumor. Increased peripheral Tregs burden replenishes intratumoral Tregs, raising the ratio of intratumoral CD4 + Tregs to CD8 + T cells. Subsequently, single-cell transcriptomics revealed that neuropilin-1 (Nrp-1) supports Tregs migration behavior, and the genes of Crem and Tnfrsf9 regulate the behaviors of the terminal suppressive Tregs. Nrp-1 + 4-1BB - Tregs stepwise develop to the Nrp-1 - 4-1BB + Tregs from lymphoid tissues into the tumor. Moreover, Treg-restricted Nrp1 depletion abolishes anti-PD-1-upregulated intratumoral Tregs burden and synergizes with the 4-1BB agonist to enhance the antitumor response. Finally, a combination of the Nrp-1 inhibitor and the 4-1BB agonist in humanized HCC models showed a favorable and safe outcome and evoked the antitumor effect of the PD-1 blockade., Conclusion: Our findings elucidate the potential mechanism of anti-PD-1-mediated intratumoral Tregs accumulation in HCC and uncover the tissue adaptation characteristics of Tregs and identify the therapeutic potential of targeting Nrp-1 and 4-1BB for reprogramming the HCC microenvironment., (Copyright © 2023 American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.)

Objectives: To investigate the role and mechanism of circRNA-SR-related CTD associated factor 8 (SCAF8) in regulating endothelial cell pyroptosis in high glucose environment., Methods: Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were cultured and divided into six groups. The normal control group and high glucose control group were cultured in cell culture medium with 5 and 33 mmol/L glucose, respectively. The RNA control group, circRNA-SCAF8 inhibition group, miR-93-5p overexpression group and miR-93-5p inhibition group were added with non-functional siRNA, circRNA-SCAF8 inhibitor, miR-93-5p overexpression molecule and miR-93-5p inhibitor in high glucose environment, respectively. Cell viability and pyroptosis were detected by cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay, flow cytometry and Hoechst 33342/propidium iodide fluorescence double staining. Western blotting and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay were used to detect the expression of pyroptosis-related factors including apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD (ASC), cysteine aspartic acid specific protease-1 (caspase-1) and Gasdermin D (GSDMD), NOD like receptor protein 3 (NLRP-3), thioredoxin interacting proteins (TXNIP), IL-18 and IL-1β. The expression of circRNA-SCAF8, miR-93-5p and TXNIP was detected by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) was used to locate circRNA-SCAF8 and miR-93-5p. Dual luciferase assay was used to verify the targeted regulatory relationship between miR-93-5p and upstream and downstream molecules., Results: Compared with the RNA control group, the cell survival rate of circRNA-SCAF8 inhibition group and miR-93-5p overexpression group increased (both P <0.01), the pyroptosis decreased (both P <0.01), and the expressions of pyroptosis-related factors such as TXNIP, NLRP-3, caspase-1, GSDMD, ASC, IL-18 and IL-1β were significantly decreased (all P <0.05). The expression of miR-93-5p was significantly increased after inhibition of circRNA-SCAF8 ( P <0.01), and the expression of circRNA-SCAF8 tended to decrease after overexpression of miR-93-5p, but with no statistical significance ( P >0.05). Dual luciferase assay showed that miR-93-5p downre-gulated circRNA-SCAF8 expression by binding to the 3 ´ UTR region of circRNA-SCAF8, and miR-93-5p downregulated TXNIP expression by binding to the 3 ´ UTR region of TXNIP . FISH showed that circRNA-SCAF8 and miR-93-5p were both located in the cytoplasm and were highly associated in the cells. qRT-PCR showed that the relative expression of TXNIP increased or decreased after overexpression or inhibition of miR-93-5p compared with the RNA control group, respectively (both P <0.05), suggesting that miR-93-5p could regulate TXNIP gene expression., Conclusions: CircRNA-SCAF8/miR-93-5p/TXNIP axis is involved in the regulation of pyroptosis in HUVECs under high glucose.

Objective: To report demographics and clinical, laboratory, and imaging features of acute renal infarction (ARI) due to symptomatic isolated spontaneous renal artery dissection (SISRAD) and to analyze outcomes after the initial therapy for SISRAD., Methods: Thirteen patients with ARI due to SISRAD between January 2016 and March 2021 were enrolled in this retrospective study. We reviewed the demographics, clinical, laboratory, and imaging features (location of the infarct kidney, the branch artery involved by dissection, true lumen stenosis, false lumen thrombosis, and aneurysm), treatment modalities, and follow-up results; analyzed the difference between SISRAD and other causes of ARI; and propose an appropriate therapy strategy for SISRAD based on our data and literature., Result: Patients with ARI due to SISRAD were mostly young men (43 [24-53] years; 12/13 [92%]). No patients had atrial fibrillation or acute kidney injury at admission (0/13). All 13 patients received conservative treatment as the initial treatment. Sixty-two percent (8/13) of patients progressed, and 88% (7/8) of them had dissection aneurysm on the admission computed tomographic angiography (CTA) image. Seventy-five percent (6/8) of patients underwent endovascular intervention as follows, stent placement in 1 patient, renal artery embolization in 1, and stent placement with embolization in 4. Two patients with disease progression died: 1 during the conservative treatment period and 1 after the stent placement. Thirty-eight percent (5/13) of patients in remission continued to receive conservative treatment, none of whom had dissection aneurysm on the admission CTA., Conclusion: Symptomatic isolated spontaneous renal artery dissection is a rare and fatal disease. For young ARI patients with no previous history of tumors and cardiogenic diseases, CTA examination is recommended to exclude SISRAD. Dissection aneurysm seems to be a risk of progression for SISRAD in this series. Conservative treatment, a recognized initial treatment, has a good effect on patients without dissection aneurysm, and we recommend endovascular intervention as the initial treatment for the patient with dissection aneurysm at admission. Multicenter clinical studies are needed to explore a more-appropriate treatment for patients with SISRAD., Clinical Impact: This article report the related factors, risks, demographics and laboratory data of Acute renal infarction (ARI) due to Symptomatic isolated spontaneous renal artery dissection (SISRAD) and explore a better initial therapy strategy for SISRAD. It will help improve the effectiveness of SISRAD treatment and reduce the mortality rate from this rare but lethal disease.

Staphylococcus aureus (SA) is a relatively uncommon cause of urinary tract infections (UTIs) in the general population. Although rare, S. aureus- induced UTIs are prone to potentially life-threatening invasive infections such as bacteremia. To investigate the molecular epidemiology, phenotypic characteristics, and pathophysiology of S. aureus- induced UTIs, we analyzed non-repetitive 4,405 S. aureus isolates collected from various clinical sources from 2008 to 2020 from a general hospital in Shanghai, China. Among these, 193 isolates (4.38%) were cultivated from the midstream urine specimens. Epidemiological analysis showed UTI-derived ST1 (UTI-ST1) and UTI-ST5 are the primary sequence types of UTI-SA. Furthermore, we randomly selected 10 isolates from each of the UTI-ST1, non-UTI-ST1 (nUTI-ST1), and UTI-ST5 groups to characterize their in vitro and in vivo phenotypes. The in vitro phenotypic assays revealed that UTI-ST1 exhibits an obvious decline in hemolysis of human red blood cells and increased biofilm and adhesion in the urea-supplemented medium, compared to the medium without urea, while UTI-ST5 and nUTI-ST1 did not show significant differences between the biofilm-forming and adhesion abilities. In addition, the UTI-ST1 displayed intense urease activities by highly expressing urease genes, indicating the potential role of urease in UTI-ST1 survival and persistence. Furthermore, in vitro virulence assays using the UTI-ST1 ureC mutant showed no significant difference in the hemolytic and biofilm-forming phenotypes in the presence or absence of urea in the tryptic soy broth (TSB) medium. The in vivo UTI model also showed that the CFU of the UTI-ST1 ureC mutant rapidly reduced during UTI pathogenesis 72 h post-infection, while UTI-ST1 and UTI-ST5 persisted in the urine of the infected mice. Furthermore, the phenotypes and the urease expression of UTI-ST1 were found to be potentially regulated by the Agr system with the change in environmental pH. In summary, our results provide important insights into the role of urease in S. aureus- induced UTI pathogenesis in promoting bacterial persistence in the nutrient-limiting urinary microenvironment., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Xu, Wang, Jian, Chen, Liu, Wang, Li and He.)

A design for genetically encoded counters is proposed via repressor-based circuits. An N -bit counter reads sequences of input pulses and displays the total number of pulses, modulo 2 N . The design is based on distributed computation with specialized cell types allocated to specific tasks. This allows scalability and bypasses constraints on the maximal number of circuit genes per cell due to toxicity or failures due to resource limitations. The design starts with a single-bit counter. The N -bit counter is then obtained by interconnecting (using diffusible chemicals) a set of N single-bit counters and connector modules. An optimization framework is used to determine appropriate gate parameters and to compute bounds on admissible pulse widths and relaxation (inter-pulse) times, as well as to guide the construction of novel gates. This work can be viewed as a step toward obtaining circuits that are capable of finite automaton computation in analogy to digital central processing units., (© 2021 The Author(s).)

Background: Bloodstream infections (BSIs) are recognized as important nosocomial infections. Klebsiella pneumoniae is one of the major causes of bacteremia. This retrospective study focused on drug susceptibility and molecular epidemiology of K. pneumoniae isolated from intensive care unit (ICU) patients with BSI in Shanghai, China. Methods: Consecutive K. pneumoniae isolates were collected from ICU patients. Antibiotic susceptibility testing was conducted by the broth microdilution method. PCR was performed to detect antimicrobial resistance genes. We also completed multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and GoeBURST was used to analyze the result of MLST. Results: A total of 78 K. pneumoniae isolates were enrolled. K. pneumoniae from ICU-BSIs were highly resistant to almost all common antibiotics. The most frequent resistance determinants responsible for extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) producers were bla CTX-M-14 , bla CTX-M-15 , and bla CTX-M-55 . KPC was the only enzyme, which was detected by the carbapenemase producers. The most principal sequence types (STs) were ST11, ST15, and ST23. Conclusion: This study presents for the first time the antibiotic resistance phenotype and molecular epidemiology of K. pneumoniae isolated from ICU patients with BSIs in Shanghai. ICU-BSI K. pneumoniae is characteristic of a high resistance rate. The occurrence of the KPC-2 enzyme may result from nosocomial clonal dissemination of ST11 K. pneumoniae ., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Xiao, Chen, Wang, Zeng, Chen, Yang, Han and Chen.)