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Abstract Psychological stress contributes to cardiovascular disease (CVD) and sudden cardiac death, yet its molecular basis remains obscure. RNA binding protein RBM24 plays a critical role in cardiac development, rhythm regulation, and cellular stress. Here, we show that psychological stress activates RBM24 S181 phosphorylation through eIF4E2-GSK3β signaling, which causally links psychological stress to CVD by promoting APOE translation (apolipoprotein E). Using an Rbm24 S181A KI mouse model, we show that impaired S181 phosphorylation leads to cardiac contractile dysfunction, atrial fibrillation, dyslipidemia, reduced muscle strength, behavioral abnormalities, and sudden death under acute and chronic psychological stressors. The impaired S181 phosphorylation of RBM24 inhibits cardiac translation, including APOE translation. Notably, cardiomyocyte-specific expression of APOE rescues cardiac electrophysiological abnormalities and contractile dysfunction, through preventing ROS stress and mitochondrial dysfunction. Moreover, RBM24-S181 phosphorylation acts as a serum marker for chronic stress in human. These results provide a functional link between RBM24 phosphorylation, eIF4E-regulated APOE translation, and psychological-stress-induced CVD.

The role of the gut microbiota in the occurrence and progression of primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) is not fully understood. First, the fecal microbiota of patients with PBC (n = 4) (PBC-FMT) or healthy individuals (n = 3) (HC-FMT) was transplanted into pseudo germ-free mice or 2OA-BSA–induced PBC models. The functions, histology and transcriptome of the liver, and microbiota and metabolome of the feces were analyzed. Second, the liver transcriptomes of PBC patients (n = 7) and normal individuals (n = 7) were analyzed. Third, the liver transcriptomes of patients with other liver diseases were collected from online databases and compared with our human and mouse data. Our results showed that PBC-FMT increased the serum ALP concentration, total bile acid content, liver injury and number of disease-related pathways enriched with upregulated liver genes in pseudo germ-free mice and increased the serum glycylproline dipeptidyl aminopeptidase level and liver damage in a 2OA-BSA–induced PBC model. The gut microbiota and metabolome differed between PBC-FMT and HC-FMT mice and reflected those of their donors. PBC-FMT tended to upregulate hepatic immune and signal transduction pathways but downregulate metabolic pathways, as in some PBC patients. The hematopoietic cell lineage, Toll-like receptor, and PPAR signaling pathway were not affected in patients with alcoholic hepatitis, HBV, HCV, HCV cirrhosis, or NASH, indicating their potential roles in the gut microbiota affecting PBC. In conclusion, the altered gut microbiota of PBC patients plays an important role in the occurrence and progression of PBC. The improvement of the gut microbiota is worthy of in-depth research and promotion as a critical aspect of PBC prevention and treatment.

Fruit tree leaf diseases affect both fruit survival rate and orchard revenue. Rapid and accurate classification of tree leaf diseases not only prevents the spread of diseases but also ensures healthy tree growth and improves fruit quality. Existing models mainly focus on individual types of tree leaf diseases, with limited applications in identifying multiple tree leaf diseases. To address the insensitivity of current classification models to disease region features and the issue of increased error rates due to the presence of similar diseases, this study proposes a residual network model combining channel attention mechanism (ECA) and meta-Acon adaptive activation function. The model employs ResNet34 as the backbone network and incorporates the ECA channel attention module after each residual block to focus on relevant feature information. Additionally, a new activation function called meta-Acon is introduced to enhance the model’s generalization ability through its dynamic learning capability. Finally, the model’s recognition performance is improved by fusing bottom-level features with features from other layers using the Feature Pyramid Network (FPN). Experimental results on a dataset augmented with Mosaic processing show that the FPEM-ResNet34 model achieves a classification accuracy of 98.46%. Compared to other common models such as VGG-16, Inception-V1, ResNet50, and Yolo-V8 m, the proposed method in this paper demonstrates more effective improvement in the accuracy of fruit tree leaf classification, making it highly valuable for practical applications.

Aging is an important process for improving wine and brandy quality. In this study, the chemical characterization and sensory properties of spine grape brandies were compared after aging with various species of wood chips, including French oak (FO), American oak (AO), Mongolian oak (MO), Japanese blue oak (JO), chestnut, catalpa, and cherry. The results showed that high color intensity and significant concentrations of tannins and polyphenols were observed in the brandies aged with FO, AO, and chestnut chips. The volatile compounds, such as ethyl decanoate, ethyl 2-methylbutanoate, ethyl octanoate, methyl salicylate, (Z)-2-hexenol, and furfural, contributed to the floral, fruity, and roasted/smoky attributes of the brandies aged with FO, AO, and chestnut chips. The 1-butanol, 1-propanol, phenylethanol, phenylethyl acetate, isoamyl acetate, and linalool contributed to the fruity, honey, and floral attributes of the brandies aged with JO and cherry chips. These findings are extremely useful for the production of differentiated and high-quality spine grape brandies.

With the advancement of multi-frequency and multi-constellation GNSS signals and the introduction of observable-specific bias (OSB) products, the uncombined precise point positioning (PPP) model has grown more prevalent. However, this model faces challenges due to the large number of estimated parameters, resulting in strong correlations between state parameters, such as clock errors, ionospheric delays, and hardware biases. This can slow down the convergence time and impede ambiguity resolution. We propose two methods to improve the triple-frequency uncombined PPP-AR model by integrating ambiguity constraints. The first approach makes use of the resolved ambiguities from dual-frequency ionosphere-free combined PPP-AR processing and incorporates them as constraints into triple-frequency uncombined PPP-AR processing. While this approach requires the implementation of two filters, increasing computational demands and thereby limiting its feasibility for real-time applications, it effectively reduces parameter correlations and facilitates ambiguity resolution in post-processing. The second approach incorporates fixed extra-wide-lane (EWL) and wide-lane (WL) ambiguities directly, allowing for rapid convergence, and is well suited for real-time processing. Results show that, compared to the uncombined PPP-AR model, integrating N1 and N2 constraints reduces averaged convergence time from 8.2 to 6.4 min horizontally and 13.9 to 10.7 min vertically in the float solution. On the other hand, integrating EWL and WL ambiguity constraints reduces the horizontal convergence to 5.9 min in the float solution and to 4.6 min for horizontal and 9.7 min for vertical convergence in the fixed solution. Both methods significantly enhance the ambiguity resolution in the uncombined triple-frequency PPP model, increasing the validated fixing rate from approximately 80% to 89%.

Tauopathies are neurodegenerative diseases characterized by deposits of abnormal Tau protein in the brain. Conventional tauopathies are often defined by a limited number of Tau epitopes, notably neurofibrillary tangles, but emerging evidence suggests structural heterogeneity among tauopathies. The prolyl isomerase Pin1 isomerizes cis P-tau to inhibit the development of oligomers, tangles and neurodegeneration in multiple neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, traumatic brain injury, vascular contribution to cognitive impairment and dementia (VCID) and preeclampsia (PE). Thus, cis P-tau has emerged as an early etiological driver, blood marker and therapeutic target for multiple neurodegenerative diseases, with clinical trials ongoing. The discovery of cis P-tau and other tau pathologies in VCID and PE calls attention for simplistic classification of tauopathy in neurodegenerative diseases. These recent advances have revealed the exciting novel role of the Pin1-cis P-tau axis in the development and treatment of vascular contribution to cognitive impairment and dementia and preeclampsia.

Abstract Geodetic applications of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites requires accurate satellite orbits. Instead of using onboard Global Navigation Satellite System observations, this contribution treats the LEO satellite constellation independently, using Inter-Satellite Links and the measurements of different ground networks. Due to geopolitical and geographical reasons, a ground station network cannot be well distributed. We compute the impact of different ground networks (i.e., global networks with different numbers of stations and regional networks in different areas and latitudes) on LEO satellite orbit determination with and without the inter-satellite links. The results are based on a simulated constellation of 90 LEO satellites. We find that the orbits determined using a high latitude network is worse than using a middle or low latitude network. This is because the high latitude network has a poorer geometry even if the availability of satellite measurements is higher than for the other two cases. Also, adding more stations in a regional network shows almost no improvements on the satellite orbits if the number of stations is more than 16. With the help of ISL observations, however, the satellite orbits determined with a small regional network can reach the same accuracy as that with the global network of 60 stations. Furthermore, satellite biases can be well estimated (less than 0.6 mm) and have nearly no impact on satellite orbits. It does thus not matter if they are not physically calibrated for estimating precise orbits.

Catalysis and fidelity of multisubunit RNA polymerases rely on a highly conserved active site domain called the trigger loop (TL), which achieves roles in transcription through conformational changes and interaction with NTP substrates. The mutations of TL residues cause distinct effects on catalysis including hypo- and hyperactivity and altered fidelity. We applied molecular dynamics simulation (MD) and machine learning (ML) techniques to characterize TL mutations in the Saccharomyces cerevisiae RNA Polymerase II (Pol II) system. We did so to determine relationships between individual mutations and phenotypes and to associate phenotypes with MD simulated structural alterations. Using fitness values of mutants under various stress conditions, we modeled phenotypes along a spectrum of continual values. We found that ML could predict the phenotypes with 0.68 R2 correlation from amino acid sequences alone. It was more difficult to incorporate MD data to improve predictions from machine learning, presumably because MD data is too noisy and possibly incomplete to directly infer functional phenotypes. However, a variational auto-encoder model based on the MD data allowed the clustering of mutants with different phenotypes based on structural details. Overall, we found that a subset of loss-of-function (LOF) and lethal mutations tended to increase distances of TL residues to the NTP substrate, while another subset of LOF and lethal substitutions tended to confer an increase in distances between TL and bridge helix (BH). In contrast, some of the gain-of-function (GOF) mutants appear to cause disruption of hydrophobic contacts among TL and nearby helices.

The ultrasonic shot peening (USP) treatment was adopted to improve the compressive residual stress, microhardness and corrosion resistance of Ti–6Al–4V (TC4) titanium alloy fabricated by selective laser melting (SLM). The optical microscope (OM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and hardness test were used to investigate the microstructure evolution. The effect of the USP on electrochemical behaviour of the SLM TC4 alloy in a 3.5 wt. % NaCl solution was studied using potentiodynamic polarization. After USP treatment, compressive residual stress was induced and microhardness significantly increased. Proper USP treatment can effectively improve corrosion resistance of the SLM TC4 alloy, which is manifested by the increase in corrosion potential and decrease in corrosion current density.

The low-cost Fe-based amorphous coating with the composition of Fe49.9Mo32.9Cr9.32Co4.55Si2.28Al1.55 (wt.%) were deposited on 316L stainless steel substrate by subsonic flame spraying under optimum spraying parameters. The microstructure, phase composition, microhardness, corrosion-resistance, and wear-resistance properties of the coatings were systematically investigated. The prepared coating primarily consists of amorphous phase (calculated amorphous phase content was 90.23%), and the hardness of the prepared coating can reach 981.6 HV0.1, which is much larger than that of the substrate material 316L stainless steel. The corrosion potential and corrosion current density of the prepared Fe-based amorphous coating in 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution are −438 mV and 6.9 μA/cm2, respectively. Compared with 316L stainless steel and some newly published Fe-based amorphous coatings, the prepared coating shows better corrosion resistance properties. The dry sliding wear rate of the coatings with 0.45% C steel balls at 19.6 N is 1.68 × 10−5 mm3/Nm. The friction coefficient of the coating is at an ultra-low level (about 0.26) and can keep relatively steady throughout the sliding test. The study shows that the prepared Fe-based amorphous coating has high amorphous phase content, high hardness, superior corrosion-resistance, and wear-resistance properties.

Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPRs) that produce 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC) deaminase are capable of reducing limits to plant growth due to water-deficient conditions. Here, seven PGPR strains that can produce ACC deaminase were successfully obtained from the rhizosphere soil of grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) in arid regions of China. The strains belonged to three different genera: Pseudomonas, Enterobacter, and Achromobacter, according to their 16S rDNA sequencing analysis. A drought tolerance experiment revealed two PGPR strains (DR3 and DR6) with exceptionally high phosphate solubilization, nitrogen fixation, indoleacetic acid (IAA), and exopolysaccharides secretion potential. Both strains were selected for use in a pot experiment to evaluate their growth-promoting effects on grapevines under drought conditions. Each of these two PGPRs and their mixed inoculation into grapevines were expected to alleviate the comprehensive growth inhibition of grapevines caused by drought stress. The mixed inoculation was hypothesized to elicit the best growth-promoting effects. Inoculation with the PGPRs not only enhanced the root-adhering soil/root tissue ratios and soil aggregate stability, but it also increased the nitrogen and phosphorus levels in the soil and plant leaves. Further, inoculation with PGPRs significantly altered the plant height, biomass of shoot and root organs, relative water contents, and net photosynthetic rate of leaves, enabling grapevines to better cope with drought. Moreover, the contents of IAA, abscisic acid, and malondialdehyde in these grapevines under drought stress were significantly changed by PGPRs. They indirectly affected biochemical and physiological properties of grapevines to alleviate their drought stress. Taken together, these results demonstrate that the DR3 and DR6 PGPRs might be useful for effectively weakening the growth inhibition caused by drought in grapevines. The strains might also be applied as effective bioinoculants to maintain the quality of wine grapes.

Secondary metabolites of the flavonoid pathway participate in plant defense, and bHLH and MYB transcription factors regulate the synthesis of these metabolites. Here, we define the regulatory mechanisms in response to pathogens. Two transcription factors from Populus alba var. pyramidalis, PalbHLH1 and PalMYB90, were overexpressed together in poplar, and transcriptome analysis revealed differences in response to pathogen infection. The transgenic plants showed elevated levels of several key flavonoid pathway components: total phenols, proanthocyanidins (PAs), and anthocyanins and intermediates quercetin and kaempferol. Furthermore, PalbHLH1 and PalMYB90 overexpression in poplar enhanced antioxidase activities and H2O2 release and also increased resistance to Botrytis cinerea and Dothiorella gregaria infection. Gene expression profile analysis showed most genes involved in the flavonoid biosynthesis pathway or antioxidant response to be upregulated in MYB90/bHLH1-OE poplar, but significant differential expression occurred in response to pathogen infection. Specifically, expression of PalF3H (flavanone 3-hydroxylase), PalDFR (dihydroflavonol 4-seductase), PalANS (anthocyanin synthase), and PalANR (anthocyanin reductase), which function in initial, middle, and final steps of anthocyanin and PA biosynthesis, respectively, was significantly upregulated in D. gregaria-infected MYB90/bHLH1-OE poplar. Our results highlight that PalbHLH1 and PalMYB90 function as transcriptional activators of flavonoid pathway secondary-metabolite synthesis genes, with differential mechanisms in response to bacterial or fungal infection.

This study was conducted during the 2014 and 2015 vintages on Vitis vinifera L. cv. Merlot and Cabernet Gernischt to investigate whether natural variation in berry size could affect grape aromatic compounds. Grape berries were separated into three size categories based on their diameter: small, middle and large. The results showed that berry size exerted a significant influence on the volatile profiles of both winegrape varieties. Hierarchical clustering analysis demonstrated that the volatile profiles of middle berries were different from those of large and small berries. Middle berries had the greatest abundance of aroma compounds, followed by small and large berries. Especially, C6/C9 compounds, norisoprenoids, terpenoids showed markedly different concentrations among differently sized Merlot berries and C6/C9 compounds, terpenoids among differently sized Cabernet Gernischt berries. Middle berries of both grape varieties may possess the greatest intensity of fresh-green, fruity and floral aromas due to the high odour activity values (OAVs) of decanal, hexanal, (E)-2-hexenal, (E)-β-damascenone and β-ionone in middle sizes of Merlot berries and the high OAVs of (E)-2-hexenal and (E)-β-damascenone in middle sizes of Cabernet Gernischt berries. This knowledge could be important for winemakers to conduct targeted berry sorting, thereby improving the aromatic quality of grapes.

WRKY transcription factors play important roles in plant development and responses to various stresses in plants. However, little is known about the evolution of the WRKY genes in the desert poplar species Populus euphratica , which is highly tolerant of salt stress. In this study, we identified 107 PeWRKY genes from the P. euphratica genome and examined their evolutionary relationships with the WRKY genes of the salt-sensitive congener Populus trichocarpa. Ten PeWRKY genes are specific to P. euphratica , and five of these showed altered expression under salt stress. Furthermore, we found that two pairs of orthologs between the two species showed evidence of positive evolution, with dN/dS ratios >1 (nonsynonymous/synonymous substitutions), and both of them altered their expression in response to salinity stress. These findings suggested that both the development of new genes and positive evolution in some orthologs of the WRKY gene family may have played an important role in the acquisition of high salt tolerance by P. euphratica.