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Background: The plant-specific YABBY transcription factor family plays important roles in plant growth and development, particularly leaf growth, floral organ formation, and secondary metabolite synthesis., Results: Here, we identified a total of 13 OfYABBY genes from the Osmanthus fragrans genome. These 13 OfYABBY genes were divided into five subfamilies through phylogenetic analysis, and genes in the same subfamily showed similar gene structures and conserved protein motifs. Gene duplication promoted the expansion of the OfYABBY family in O. fragrans. Tissue-specific expression analysis showed that the OfYABBY family was mainly expressed in O. fragrans leaves and floral organs. To better understand the role of OfYABBY genes in plant growth and development, OfYABBY12 was selected for heterologous stable overexpression in tobacco, and OfYABBY12-overexpressing tobacco leaves released significantly fewer volatile organic compounds than wild-type tobacco leaves. Overexpression of OfYABBY12 led to the downregulation of NtCCD1/4 and decreased β-ionone biosynthesis. Correspondingly, a dual-luciferase assay showed that OfYABBY12 negatively regulated the expression of OfCCD4, which promotes β-ionone synthesis. Furthermore, tobacco leaves overexpressing OfYABBY12 were curled and wrinkled and had significantly reduced leaf thickness and leaf inclusions and significantly extended flower pistils (styles)., Conclusion: Overall, the results suggest that the OfYABBY gene family may influence the biosynthesis of the floral scent (especially β-ionone) in O. fragrans and may regulate leaf morphogenesis and lateral organs., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

WRKY transcription factors, one of the largest transcription factor families, play important roles in regulating the synthesis of secondary metabolites. In sweet osmanthus (Osmanthus fragrans), the monoterpenes have been demonstrated as the most important volatile compounds, and the W-box, which is the cognate binding site of WRKY transcription factors, could be identified in most of the terpene-synthesis-related genes' promoters. However, the role of the WRKY family in terpene synthesis in sweet osmanthus has rarely been examined. In this study, 154 WRKY genes with conserved WRKY domain were identified and classified into three groups. The group II was further divided into five subgroups, and almost all members of IId contained a plant zinc cluster domain. Eight OfWRKYs (OfWRKY7/19/36/38/42/84/95/139) were screened from 20 OfWRKYs for their flower-specific expression patterns in different tissues. Simultaneously, the expression patterns of OfWRKYs and emission patterns of volatile compounds during the flowering process were determined and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry results showed that monoterpenes, such as linalool and ocimene, accounted for the highest proportion, contributing to the floral scent of sweet osmanthus in two cultivars. In addition, correlation analysis revealed the expression patterns of OfWRKYs (OfWRKY7/19/36/139) were each correlated with distinct monoterpenes (linalool, linalool derivatives, ocimene and ocimene derivatives). Subcellular localization analysis showed that p35S::GFP-OfWRKY7/38/95/139 were localized in the nucleus and OfWRKY139 had very strong transactivation activity. Collectively, the results indicated potential roles of OfWRKY139 and OfWRKYs with plant zinc cluster domain in regulating synthesis of aromatic compounds in sweet osmanthus, laying the foundation for use of OfWRKYs to improve the aroma of ornamental plants., (© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are responsible for cancer progression and patient prognosis. Tripartite motif 16 (TRIM16) is a proteasome coactivator that regulates proteolytic activity in eukaryotic cells. Abundant evidence has shown that TRIM16 is lowly expressed in a number of human carcinomas. In a previous study, we demonstrated that TRIM16 suppressed cancer malignancy and that TRIM16 expression levels were associated with favorable prognostic parameters of patients with cancer. However, the precise role of this motif in the pathogenesis of breast cancer remains unknown. In the present study, we examined 29 human breast cancer specimens, and found that TRIM16 was lowly expressed in breast cancers; thus, TRIM16 expression is negatively correlated with metastasis in breast cancer patients. Moreover, we showed that TRIM16 suppressed CSC properties in a population of breast cancer cells. TRIM16 depletion resulted in an increased proportion of CSCs relative to breast cancer cells when several assays were used to assess CSC properties. Finally, we demonstrated that TRIM16 directly regulated the degradation of Gli‑1 protein via the ubiquitin‑proteasome pathway. In conclusion, we propose that inhibition of CSC properties may be one of the functions of TRIM16 as a suppressor of breast cancer progression.

Metastasis is the leading cause of death in breast cancer (BC) patients. However, until now, the mechanisms of BC metastasis remain elusive. GATA6 is a member of the GATA transcription factor family that plays critical regulatory roles in tissue development, which has been proposed as an oncogene in many types of tumors; however, its role and underlying mechanisms in BC remain unclear. Here we show that GATA6 is elevated in BC and its expression level is positively correlated with metastasis. In addition Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that high expression of GATA6 was associated with decreased overall survival of BC patients. Overexpression of GATA6 in BC cells increased epithelial-mesenchymal transition. In contrast, silencing GATA6 in aggressive BC cells inhibited this process. Mechanistically, we found GATA6 exerts its function through active slug transcription. Slug knockdown blocked the GATA6-driven EMT. Furthermore, slug expression in human BC is positively correlated with GATA6 expression. Our results, for the first time, portray a pivotal role of GATA6 in regulating metastatic behaviors of BC cells, suggesting GATA6 is a potential therapeutic target in metastatic BCs., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The present study was to examine the effect of Tripartite motif 16 (TRIM16) on epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and metastasis in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells, and its clinical significance in NSCLC. The correlation of TRIM16 expression and clinical features of NSCLC was analyzed in paraffin-embedded archived normal lung tissues and NSCLC tissues by immunohistochemical analysis. The effect of TRIM16 on EMT and metastasis was examined both in vitro and in vivo. The expression of TRIM16 was markedly decreased in NSCLC and correlated with tumor metastasis. Upregulation of TRIM16 significantly inhibited EMT and metastasis of NSCLC cells. In contrast, silencing TRIM16 expression significantly promoted the EMT and metastasis of NSCLC cells both in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, we demonstrated that downregulation of TRIM16 activated the sonic hedgehog pathway, and that inhibition of the sonic hedgehog pathway by cyclopamine abrogated the effect of TRIM16-downregulation induced EMT and metastasis on NSCLC cells. Our results suggest that TRIM16 is a potential pharmacologic target for the treatment of NSCLC and promotion TRIM16 expression might represent a novel strategy to NSCLC metastasis., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: The pathogenesis of temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis (TMJOA) remains not fully understood. Our previous studies demonstrated that miR‐21‐5p may participate in the TMJOA development and the interaction between circRNA‐ACAP2 (CircACAP2) and miR‐21‐5p. Our present study aimed to explore the biological functions and regulatory mechanisms of CircACAP2 in TMJOA. Materials and Methods: The differential expression pattern of CircACAP2 in OA and normal tissues or cells was detected. CircACAP2 biological functions experiments were performed in chondrocytes by overexpression and interference techniques. The interaction of CircACAP2 with miR‐21‐5p and downstream target mRNA, polymorphic adenoma gene 1 (PLAG1), was predicted by bioinformatic databases and then demonstrated by dual‐luciferase reporter assay. The biological role of CircACAP2 in TMJOA was investigated and validated in a mouse model. Results: The expression level of CircACAP2 was markedly reduced in OA cartilage and directly related to chondrocyte proliferation and apoptosis as well as ECM metabolism in the cartilage. CircACAP2 functioned in chondrocytes via targeting miR‐21‐5p and PLAG1. Overexpressing of CircACAP2 alleviated TMJOA in mouse models. Conclusions: The present study unveiled that CircACAP2/miR‐21‐5p/PLAG1 axis may play an important regulatory role in TMJOA progression, which may highlight a potentially effective intervention and therapeutic strategy for the treatment of TMJOA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sweet osmanthus (Osmanthus fragrans) is an evergreen aromatic woody tree widely used in landscaping. However, O. fragrans is very sensitive to cold stress, which seriously limits its cultivation and application in regions of low temperature. The NAC transcription factor gene family which has been characterized in many plant species could participate in multiple processes and play critical roles in plant response to external stress. However, little is known about this family in O. fragrans, an important woody ornamental plant. Here, the structural characteristics, chromosomal location, evolutionary relationship, cold stress expression patterns, and subcellular localization analysis of NAC family genes in O. fragrans were analyzed on a genome-wide scale. A total of 119 O. fragrans NAC genes were identified, and gene structure analysis showed that most OfNACs contained two introns, suggesting that structural diversity of the O. fragrans NAC family is relatively low. The phylogeny evolutionary tree showed that the NACs of O. fragrans were classified into 13 branches. The transcriptome data suggested that each branch members had different expression patterns in various tissues and a number of OfNACs showed tissue-specific expression profiles. The quantitative real-time PCR and subcellular localization results indicated that expression patterns of most branch '5B' members were significantly induced by cold stress and they were mainly located in the nucleus, especially OfNAC49 and 59, indicating that branch '5B' members could have important roles in cold tolerance in O. fragrans. Remarkably, expression levels of many branch '5B' genes were also significantly changed under waterlogging stress, suggesting that this branch might be widely involved in tolerance to various abiotic stresses. Our study should supply useful gene resources for the cold resistance breeding of O. fragrans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Osmanthus fragrans have a unique aroma, its extracts and its constituents have a wide range of biological activities, making them of great industrial value. β-ionone is a crucial factor in determining the aroma quality of O. fragrans. The synthesis mechanism of β-ionone is essential for studying the aromatic compounds in O. fragrans. This study demonstrated that the OfMYB1R114-OfSDIR1-like- OfCCD4 module regulates β-ionone synthesis in O. fragrans. A MYB-related transcription factor OfMYB1R114 increased β-ionone aroma substance and elevated OfCCD4 expression level through binding to the OfCCD4 promoter and activating its expression; this demonstrated a positive loop in β-ionone synthesis. Screening for interacting proteins using a cDNA library of O. fragrans petals, the interaction pair between OfMYB1R114 and OfSDIR1-like was validated. In addition, OfSDIR1-like negatively regulated β-ionone synthesis by ubiquitinating the OfMYB1R114 protein and decreasing the ability of OfMYB1R114 to activate its downstream target gene OfCCD4. Interestingly, OfMYB1R114 could directly bind to the OfSDIR1-like promoter and repress its transcription, revealing a negative feedback loop between OfMYB1R114 and OfSDIR1-like. Hence, this suggests that OfSDIR1-like is a new novel regulator that functions in β-ionone synthesis via the OfMYB1R114-mediated aroma pathway. The mechanistic framework revealed by the studies is that the OfMYB1R114-mediated module OfMYB1R114-OfSDIR1-like- OfCCD4 regulates β-ionone synthesis. It sheds light on the molecular mechanisms at the basis of aroma synthesis in O. fragrans and provides theoretical basis and technical guidance for the comprehensive utilisation and industrial development of O. fragrans aroma substance. • OfMYB1R114 positively regulates β-ionone synthesis. • OfMYB1R114 targets OfCCD4 and OfSDIR1-like promoters. • OfSDIR1-like negatively regulates β-ionone synthesis by ubiquitinating the OfMYB1R114 protein. • We propose a β-ionone regulation module OfMYB1R114-OfSDIR1-like- OfCCD4 in Osmanthus fragrans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To study the mechanism of the biomolecular response in Exopalaemon carinicauda to starvation stress, we subjected muscle tissue RNA samples from four stress points, including 0 d(control group), 10 d, 20 d, and 30 d, to starvation stress on white ridgetail prawn with a body weight of 1.41 + 0.42 g, aquaculture water temperature of 23–25 °C, salinity of 26, dissolved oxygen ≥5 mg/L, and pH 8–8.5, Then performed de novo transcriptome assembly and gene expression analysis using BGISEQ-500 with a tag-based digital gene expression (DGE) system. By de novo assembling at the four times, we obtained 28,167, 21,115, 24,497, and 27,080 reads, respectively. The results showed that the stress at 10 d led to no significant difference in the expressed genes, while the stress at 20 d and 30 d showed a significant increase (or decrease) in the expression of 97 (276) and 143 (410) genes, respectively, which were involved in 8 different metabolic pathways. In addition, we detected 2647 unigene transcription factors. Eleven upregulated and sixteen downregulated genes from the different starvation stress groups were choose to verify the reliability of the transcriptome data, and the results showed that the expression trends of these genes were consistent with the results shown by the transcriptome. The analysis of the experimental data and our discussion of the response mechanism of white ridgetail prawn under starvation stress provides a foundation for further screening of the key genes of starvation stress and may help to elucidate their functions. • De novo transcriptome of Exopalaemon carinicauda was done under four starvation stress points, 0, 10d, 20d and 30d. • Stress at 20 d and 30 d showed a significant increase (or decrease) in gene expression, compared to control and 10 d group. • Expression trends of 11 upregulated and 16 downregulated genes were consistent with the results shown by the transcriptome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• In O. fragrans , 206 OfbHLH genes were identified and classified into 25 subfamilies. • OfbHLH gene expression profiles were organ-specific and varied in seven different organs. • Members of five OfbHLH subfamilies related to cold-induced were identified. • OfbHLH120/128/163 could have important regulation roles in cold resistance. Sweet osmanthus (Osmanthus fragrans) is a widely used evergreen aromatic ornamental tree with poor tolerance to low temperatures. The basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factor protein family, which is the second largest protein family in plants, has been found to play essential roles in the response to multiple abiotic and biotic stresses, especially cold stress. However, the bHLH gene family in sweet osmanthus has not yet been analyzed. In this study, 206 OfbHLH genes, which were classified into 25 subfamilies, were successfully identified from recently released whole-genome sequence data. Segmental duplication events had contributed mainly to the expansion of the OfbHLH gene family and all these duplicated gene pairs had experienced purifying selection. The transcriptome data exhibited different expression levels of OfbHLH genes in various tissues. Quantitative real-time PCR results indicated that the expression patterns of most IIIb, III(d + e), IVc, IX, and XII subfamilies could be up- or down-regulated under cold stress, and, among them, IIIb, III(d + e), and part of the XII subfamily participated in the response to multiple abiotic stresses. Six candidate OfbHLH genes (OfbHLH120 / 128 / 133 / 163 / 164 / 191), which were significantly up- or down-regulated during the cold stress process, were identified. Further studies indicated that OfbHLH120 / 128 / 163 had transcriptional activation activity and were located in the nucleus, implying that these genes are involved in the regulation of expression of cold tolerance genes. This study provides a solid foundation for the functional analysis of the OfbHLH gene family members involved in cold stress response and could be useful in the breeding of sweet osmanthus with improved cold tolerance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]