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Abstract Aims/Introduction Tanshinone IIA (TIIA) is one of the main components of the root of the red‐rooted Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying TIIA‐mediated protective effects in diabetic nephropathy (DN) are still unclear. Materials and Methods High glucose (HG)‐induced mouse podocyte cell line (MPC5) cells were used as the in vitro model of DN and treated with TIIA. Cell viability, proliferation and apoptosis were detected using 3‐(4, 5‐dimethylthiazolyl‐2)‐2, 5‐diphenyltetrazolium bromide, 5‐ethynyl‐2′‐deoxyuridine and flow cytometry assays. The protein levels were assessed using western blot assay. The levels of inflammatory factors were deleted by enzyme‐linked immunoassay. Fe+ level, reactive oxygen species, malondialdehyde and glutathione products were detected using special assay kits. After ENCORI prediction, the interaction between embryonic lethal abnormal visual‐like protein 1 (ELAVL1) and acyl‐coenzyme A synthetase long‐chain family member 4 (ACSL4) was verified using co‐immunoprecipitation assay and dual‐luciferase reporter assays. ACSL4 messenger ribonucleic acid expression was measured using real‐time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Results TIIA repressed HG‐induced MPC5 cell apoptosis, inflammatory response and ferroptosis. ACSL4 upregulation relieved the repression of TIIA on HG‐mediated MPC5 cell injury and ferroptosis. ELAVL1 is bound with ACSL4 to positively regulate the stability of ACSL4 messenger ribonucleic acid. TIIA hindered HG‐triggered MPC5 cell injury and ferroptosis by regulating the ELAVL1–ACSL4 pathway. TIIA blocked DN progression in in vivo research. Conclusion TIIA treatment restrained HG‐caused MPC5 cell injury and ferroptosis partly through targeting the ELAVL1–ACSL4 axis, providing a promising therapeutic target for DN treatment.

As the main by-product of rice processing, rice bran is rich in many nutriments, such as oil, protein, and bioactive substances. The protein content in rice bran accounts for about 15%~17% of rice bran, which is divided into albumin, globulin, gliadin and glutenin with the amino acid composition close to the pattern recommended by FAO/WHO. It is a high-quality plant protein source with low allergenicity and high bio-efficacy. The acquisition of rice bran protein can increase the added value of rice and has broad application prospects in the fields of food and medicine. Therefore, this paper reviewes the extraction methods, functional properties and functional complexes of rice bran protein, and the application status of rice bran protein and its complexes in the fields of bioactive peptides, infant food, food additives, nutrition delivery system are also introduced. Finally, the challenge of future research on rice bran protein is proposed. This review provides certain ideas and references for the industrial production and high-value utilization of rice bran protein.

Abstract Purpose To explore the mediating effect of hope in the relationships between social support and self-esteem with psychological resilience among patients with stroke survivors in early rehabilitation. Methods A cross-sectional study design was adopted. Data from a cross-sectional survey of 210 patients undergoing early stroke rehabilitation were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The variables of interest were measured using the Connor Davidson Resilience Scale, the Social Support Rating Scale, the Herth Hope Index, and the Self-Esteem Scale. This article reports according to the STROBE checklist. Results A positive relationship was found between social support and psychological resilience (β 1 = 0.548), which was mediated by hope (β 2 = 0.114), and social support had significant direct effect on resilience (β 3 = 0.434). A positive relationship was also found between self-esteem and psychological resilience (β 4 = 0.380), which was mediated by hope (β 5 = 0.200), and self-esteem had significant direct effect on resilience (β 6 = 0.179). Conclusion According to the results of this study, some strategies can be incorporated into the rehabilitation process to enhance psychological resilience, such as cultivating individual personality characteristics and improving patients’ social relationships. In the future, we need to explore methods for improving psychological resilience among patients with stroke in combination with their risk factors to improve their quality of life and reduce the incidence of post-stroke depression.

ABSTRACTChimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells have demonstrated outstanding therapeutic success in hematological malignancies. Yet, their efficacy against solid tumors remains constrained due to inadequate infiltration of cytotoxic T and CAR-T cells in the tumor microenvironment (TME), a factor correlated with poor prognosis in patients with solid tumors. To overcome this limitation, we engineered CAR-T cells to secrete CXCL10 and IL15 (10 × 15 CAR-T), which sustain T cell viability and enhance their recruitment, thereby amplifying the long-term cytotoxic capacity of CAR-T cells in vitro. In a xenograft model employing NUGC4-T21 cells, mice receiving 10 × 15 CAR-T cells showed superior tumor reduction and extended survival rates compared to those treated with second-generation CAR-T cells. Histopathological evaluations indicated a pronounced increase in cytotoxic T cell accumulation in the TME post 10 × 15 CAR-T cell treatment. Therefore, the synergistic secretion of CXCL10 and IL15 in these CAR-T cells enhances T cell recruitment and adaptability within tumor tissues, improving tumor control. This approach may offer a promising strategy for advancing CAR-T therapies in the treatment of solid tumors.

Lycoris is a perennial bulbous flower belonging to the Amaryllidaceae family, which is commonly known as surprise lily, hurricane lily, or spider lily due to its distinctive flowering characteristics. They bloom from summer to early fall when the flower stalks emerge from the ground without foliage, giving rise to name like “surprise lilies” (Knox 2006). Among the species, Lycoris radiata stands as a representative with its spider-like appearance, featuring six tepals arranged radially around a central reproductive structure. The petals display a diverse array of colors, including red, yellow, white, pink, and multicolor variations across different species and cultivars (Ji and Meerow 2000). In addition, the strap-like or linear-shaped leaves of Lycoris also add ornamental value, emerging before or after flowering and providing visual interest during winter and spring when the plants are not in bloom. Therefore, its surprising blooms, abundant colors, and unique growth habits make it valuable for gardens and cut flowers. According to the latest published data, there are more than 30 species in the genus, predominantly native to East Asia (Zhang et al. 2022b), with ∼80% of them naturally distributed in China. So, Lycoris boasts a rich cultivation history in Chinese gardens. Furthermore, ongoing research focuses on breeding new Lycoris cultivars, with unique traits. For instance, L. longituba cultivar Yi Xian Chun Tao exhibits pink-purple flowers, distinguishing from white L. longituba (Zhang et al. 2022a), and L. straminea cultivar E Huang Xiao Ran stands out with a larger plant and flower size with vivid red stripes on the petals, surpassing the color intensity of L. straminea (Wang et al. 2023). These new cultivars contribute to horticultural diversity and hold higher economic value for landscape and cut flower application.

IntroductionPeripheral inflammatory responses are suggested to play a major role in the pathophysiology of Parkinson’s disease (PD). The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), a new recognized biomarker, can reflect peripheral inflammation in PD. However, the association between the NLR and dopaminergic degeneration in PD remains unclear.MethodsIn this retrospective study, 101 enrolled PD patients were categorized into early-stage and advanced-stage PD based on the Hoehn and Yahr (HY) scale. We evaluated the clinical characteristics, peripheral immune profile, and 11C-CFT striatal dopamine transporter (DAT) binding levels. Linear regression analyses were employed to assess the associations between NLR and striatal DAT levels at different stages in PD patients.ResultsCovariate-controlled regression analysis revealed that higher NLR was significantly associated with lower DAT levels in the caudate (β = −0.27, p = 0.003) and the putamen (β = −0.27, p = 0.011). Moreover, in the early-stage PD subgroup, a similar association was observed (caudate: β = −0.37, p = 0.013; putamen: β = −0.45, p = 0.005). The lymphocytes count was correlated positively with the striatal DAT levels in the Spearman correlation analysis whether in total patients (caudate: ρ = 0.25, p = 0.013; putamen: ρ = 0.22, p = 0.026) or in the early-stage subgroup (caudate: ρ = 0.31, p = 0.023, putamen: ρ = 0.34, p = 0.011).ConclusionDopaminergic degeneration is associated with peripheral inflammation in PD. The NLR, a widely used inflammatory marker, may have the potential to reflect the degree of dopaminergic degeneration in individuals with early-stage PD.

With the continuous depletion of conventional oil and gas reservoir resources, the beginning of exploration and development of unconventional oil and gas reservoir resources has led to the rapid development of microseismic monitoring technology. Addressing the challenges of low signal-to-noise ratio and inaccurate localization in microseismic data, we propose a new neural network MA_W-Net based on the U-Net network with the following improvements: (1) The foundational U-Net model was refined by evolving the single-channel decoder into a two-channel decoder, aimed at enhancing microseismic event localization and noise suppression capabilities. (2) The integration of attention mechanisms such as the convolutional block attention module (CBAM), coordinate attention (CA), and squeeze-and-excitation (SE) into the encoder to bolster feature extraction. We use synthetic data for evaluating the proposed method. Comparing with the normal U-net network, our accuracy in seismic recordings with a signal-to-noise ratio of −15 is improved from 78 percent to 93.5 percent, and the average error is improved from 2.60 m to 0.76 m. The results show that our method can accurately localize microseismic events and denoising processes from microseismic records with a low signal-to-noise ratio.

Due to the limitations of seismic exploration instruments and the impact of the high frequencies absorption by the earth layers during subsurface propagation of seismic waves, recorded seismic data usually lack high and low frequency information that is needed to accurately image geological structures. Traditional methods face challenges such as limitations of model assumptions and poor adaptability to complex geological conditions. Therefore, this paper proposes a deep learning method that introduces the attention mechanism and Bi-directional gated recurrent unit (BiGRU) into the Transformer neural network. This approach can simultaneously capture both global and local characteristics of time series data, establish mappings between different frequency bands, and achieve information compensation and frequency extension. The results show that the BiGRU-Extended Transformer network is capable of compensating and extending the synthetic seismic data sets with the limited frequency band. It has certain generalization capabilities and stability and can effectively handle various problems in the data reconstruction process, which is better than traditional methods.

Heat shock transcription factors (HSFs) are an essential plant-specific transcription factor family that regulates the developmental and growth stages of plants, their signal transduction, and their response to different abiotic and biotic stresses. The HSF gene family has been characterized and systematically observed in various species; however, research on its association with Lycoris radiata is limited. This study identified 22 HSF genes (LrHSFs) in the transcriptome-sequencing data of L. radiata and categorized them into three classes including HSFA, HSFB, and HSFC, comprising 10, 8, and 4 genes, respectively. This research comprises basic bioinformatics analyses, such as protein sequence length, molecular weight, and the identification of its conserved motifs. According to the subcellular localization assessment, most LrHSFs were present in the nucleus. Furthermore, the LrHSF gene expression in various tissues, flower developmental stages, two hormones stress, and under four different abiotic stresses were characterized. The data indicated that LrHSF genes, especially LrHSF5, were essentially involved in L. radiata development and its response to different abiotic and hormone stresses. The gene–gene interaction network analysis revealed the presence of synergistic effects between various LrHSF genes’ responses against abiotic stresses. In conclusion, these results provided crucial data for further functional analyses of LrHSF genes, which could help successful molecular breeding in L. radiata.

The p21 activated kinase 4 (PAK4) is serine/threonine protein kinase that is critical for cancer progression. Guided by X-ray crystallography and structure-based optimization, we report a novel subseries of C-3-substituted 6-ethynyl-1H-indole derivatives that display high potential and specificity towards group II PAKs. Among these inhibitors, compound 55 exhibited excellent inhibitory activity and kinase selectivity, displayed superior anti-migratory and anti-invasive properties against the lung cancer cell line A549 and the melanoma cell line B16. Compound 55 exhibited potent in vivo antitumor metastatic efficacy, with over 80% and 90% inhibition of lung metastasis in A549 or B16-BL6 lung metastasis models, respectively. Further mechanistic studies demonstrated that compound 55 mitigated TGF-β1-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT).

Ecosystem conversion processes in different regions of China have different impacts on carbon and water cycle changes. Water use efficiency (WUE) is a key factor in coupling ecosystem carbon and water cycles, and it is important to quantify the effects of ecosystem conversional processes on the WUE in different regions of China to improve our understanding of the effects of ecological restoration projects and ecosystem conversional processes on carbon and water cycles in different regions. In this study, we proposed a dual–type extraction algorithm for ecosystem conversion processes (DTEA–ECP) to study the impact of ecosystem conversion processes on the WUE in different regions of China from 2001 to 2020. Our results showed that in the 2001–2020 period, the area of barren ecosystem conversion to grassland ecosystem increased at the fastest rate (4.29*103 km2 y-1). In the snow climate zone with dry winters and warm summers, projects returning cropland to forest were beneficial for improving WUE. In the northwestern part of the semiarid climate zone, returning cropland to grassland was beneficial for increasing the WUE of the ecosystem, while in northeastern China, the change in WUE after the conversion of grassland ecosystem to cropland ecosystem was not significant. WUE decreased after the conversion of forest ecosystems to grassland ecosystems, while WUE increased after the conversion of grassland ecosystems to forest ecosystems. This study identified where it was most suitable to plant each vegetation type and can help with the implementation of ecological projects such as afforestation, returning farmland to forest and grass, grassland protection and wind and sand management. The results provide information support for the in-depth development of national greening and low-carbon land restoration, improve vegetation carbon sink capacity, enhance carbon emission reduction and carbon sequestration, and help to achieve the goal of peak carbon and carbon neutrality.

The acquisition of high-accuracy reflectance in mid-infrared channels is of great significance for the on-orbit cross-calibration of other bands using the mid-infrared band. However, due to the phenomenon that some sensors have a wide range of wavelengths covered by adjacent channels in the mid-infrared band, the traditional method of estimating the mid-infrared reflectivity assumes that the sea surface reflectivity in different mid-infrared bands is equal, which will lead to a large error during calculation. To solve this problem, this study proposes a nonlinear split-window algorithm involving ocean sun glint data to retrieve reflectivity of FY-3D/MERSI-2 channels 20. The results show that the variation range of sea surface reflectivity of channel 20 in the glint area is 10~25%, the mean value of the reflectivity difference obtained by the nonlinear split-window algorithm is 0.27%, and the RMSE is 0.0066. Among the main influencing factors, the atmospheric conditions have the greatest impact, and the effects of the uncertainties in the water vapor content and aerosol optical thickness on the calculation results are 1.16% and 0.34%, respectively. The initial value limits of the mid-infrared sea surface reflectivity also contribute approximately 0.84%, and their contribution to the uncertainty represents one of the main components. This work shows that the nonlinear split-window algorithm can calculate the infrared sea surface reflectivity with high accuracy and can be used as a reference for in-orbit cross-calibration between different bands.

The APETALA2/ethylene-responsive transcription factor (AP2/ERF) family has been extensively investigated because of its significant involvement in plant development, growth, fruit ripening, metabolism, and plant stress responses. To date, there has been little investigation into how the AP2/ERF genes influence flower formation and anthocyanin biosynthesis in Lycoris. Herein, 80 putative LrAP2/ERF transcription factors (TFs) with complete open reading frames (ORFs) were retrieved from the Lycoris transcriptome sequence data, which could be divided into five subfamilies dependent on their complete protein sequences. Furthermore, our findings demonstrated that genes belonging to the same subfamily had structural similarities and conserved motifs. LrAP2/ERF genes were analyzed for playing an important role in plant growth, water deprivation, and flower formation by means of gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis. The expression pattern of the LrAP2/ERF genes differed across tissues and might be important for Lycoris growth and flower development. In response to methyl jasmonate (MeJA) exposure and drought stress, the expression of each LrAP2/ERF gene varied across tissues and time. Moreover, a total of 20 anthocyanin components were characterized using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-MS/MS) analysis, and pelargonidin-3-O-glucoside-5-O-arabinoside was identified as the major anthocyanin aglycone responsible for the coloration of the red petals in Lycoris. In addition, we mapped the relationships between genes and metabolites and found that LrAP2/ERF16 is strongly linked to pelargonidin accumulation in Lycoris petals. These findings provide the basic conceptual groundwork for future research into the molecular underpinnings and regulation mechanisms of AP2/ERF TFs in anthocyanin accumulation and Lycoris floral development.

As an essential dynamic behavior, the synchronization of inertial Cohen–Grossberg neural networks (ICGNNs) has received considerable attention due to its successful applications in neural cryptography, public channel cryptography, security communications, and image encryption. In this article, the α-synchronization of a class of non-autonomous unbounded delayed inertial Cohen–Gossberg neural networks with delayed impulses is investigated. Firstly, several non-autonomous impulsive differential inequalities are established, where unbounded delays, delayed impulses, and time-variable coefficients are incorporated. Subsequently, based on the proposed impulsive differential inequalities and Lyapunov function approach, the feedback controllers are designed, and some criteria for α-synchronization are provided. Finally, the validity of the presented theoretical findings is demonstrated by two specific examples. It is shown that delayed impulses can be viewed as perturbations or stabilizing sources for non-autonomous ICGNNs.

Leaf disc transformation is one of the traditional methods that are now widely used in chrysanthemum with highly economical and ornamental value in world flower production, but it depends on plant genotypes and is time consuming and complicated. In addition, the transformation success rate of this method is low, generally ranging from 0.1% to 6.25%. Therefore, a highly efficient transformation system is needed. In this study, we are the first to establish a high-efficient chrysanthemum Agrobacterium-mediated transformation system via vacuum infiltration. Chrysanthemum stem internode explants were used as research material and CmLEC1 was used as a reporter gene. After approximately 3 months of culture and selection, the positive transgenic plants were obtained. Additionally, the positive probability was about 42%. The transformation efficiency was up to 37.7%, and if the escapes were removed, it was 16%. Furthermore, stable expression of CmLEC1 in transgenic 'Yuhualuoying' was confirmed by qRT-PCR analysis. These results suggest that this genetic transformation system via vacuum infiltration of chrysanthemum stem internode is highly efficient and convenient, and much better than traditional leaf disc transformation, and it will play an important role in chrysanthemum transformation and functional genetics research.

Structural defects in conjugated copolymers are severely detrimental to the optoelectronic properties. Here the authors show an efficient room temperature polycondensation protocol which implements aryl disulfide C-S activation to produce defect-minimized semiconducting conjugated copolymers.

Measured fractional vegetation cover (FVC) on the ground is very important for validation of the remote sensing products and algorithms. However, because of the influence of some factors such as the angle of illumination and vegetation density, the existence of vegetation shadows limits the accuracy of FVC estimation. This article proposes a deep learning method to reduce the FVC estimation error based on high dynamic range (HDR) images with vegetation shadows (HDR REC-DL method). The HDR REC-DL method can accurately extract FVC from HDR images with complex texture information on vegetation shadows. This method is based on the U-Net convolutional network structure for semantic segmentation of images containing vegetation shadows, and the segmentation results are less affected by vegetation types. Results from the HDR REC-DL method were highly similar to the vegetation segmentation results from visual interpretation. Values of the kappa coefficient, F1 score (F1), recall, and mean intersection over union of the HDR REC-DL method were 0.926, 0.942, 0.924, 0.916 for sunny weather and 0.903, 0.974, 0.983, and 0.895 for cloudy weather, respectively. Compared with the vegetation segmentation accuracy of the shadow-resistant algorithm, the HDR REC-DL method increases the kappa coefficient, F1, and mIOU by 21%, 16%, and 29% for sunny weather, and by 11.1%, 3.6%, and 10.3% for cloudy weather, respectively. The HDR REC-DL method provides a novel method for accurately estimating FVC from images containing vegetation shadows.

Land surface temperature (LST) data in the thermal infrared (TIR) band measured by the moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument are critical for studying surface urban heat islands (SUHIs); however, these acquired TIR LST data are contaminated by clouds, so it is crucial to develop a method to generate cloud-free LST products. In this article, employing Tianjin as the research area, we combined the weather research and forecasting model with a random forest and a spatial optimization algorithm to propose a cloud-free MODIS-like model (WRFFM). The model can reconstruct cloud-free MODIS-like LSTs and SUHIs are studied. The spatial patterns of the WRFFM LSTs and the MODIS LSTs are consistent; the correlation coefficients in July and December range from 0.8 to 0.91 and 0.8 to 0.93, respectively, and the root mean square errors range from 0.5 to 3.8 K and 0.4 to 1.8 K, respectively, indicating that the modeled results are accurate. We use these WRFFM LSTs to study SUHIs and evaluate the deviations between the MODIS SUHIs and WRFFM SUHIs. When the proportion of clear-sky pixels is below 30%, the deviation is above 3 K, and when the proportion of clear-sky pixels is above 80%, the deviation is below 0.6 K. The results indicate that the developed model can be applied to improve the study of SUHIs and that the number of clear-sky pixels for a city is an important factor that affects the bias relative to the actual SUHI .

Organic thermoelectric (OTE) materials offer a direct way to harvest electricity from heat resources. Although OTE paints can be coated on irregular heat sources via various solution‐processing techniques, most candidates are only soluble in toxic organic solvents and require complex preparation method, limiting their wide industrial applications. Herein, an environment‐friendly waterborne colloid based on a selenium‐substituted diketopyrrolopyrrole derivative (PDPPSe‐12) is utilized using a miniemulsion process to enable water‐dispersive OTE paints. The doped films not only exhibit prominent electrical conductivity and high Seebeck coefficient, but also show unexpected low thermal conductivity, yielding a maximum power factor and figure of merit value of up to 74.77 ± 1.76 μW m−1 K−2 and 0.14, respectively. More importantly, their application potential in a realistic thermoelectric generator (TEG) on a paper substrate by painting is demonstrated, which possesses an output power of 14.70 nW under a temperature difference of 19 K. For the first time, these results reveal that the fabrication of waterborne OTE paints can decrease the thermal conductivity and its integrated organic TEGs exhibit preferable performance. These results offer valuable insights for designing high‐performance OTE paints toward multiple‐energy supplier systems in an environmentally friendly way.

As one of the biggest plant specific transcription factor (TF) families, basic helix–loop–helix (bHLH) protein, plays significant roles in plant growth, development, and abiotic stress responses. However, there has been minimal research about the effects of methyl jasmonate (MeJA) treatment on the bHLH gene family in Lycoris radiata (L’Her.) Herb. In this study, based on transcriptome sequencing data, 50 putative L. radiata bHLH (LrbHLH) genes with complete open reading frames (ORFs), which were divided into 20 bHLH subfamilies, were identified. The protein motif analyses showed that a total of 10 conserved motifs were found in LrbHLH proteins and motif 1 and motif 2 were the most highly conserved motifs. Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis of LrbHLH genes revealed their involvement in regulation of plant growth, jasmonic acid (JA) mediated signaling pathway, photoperiodism, and flowering. Furthermore, subcellular localization revealed that most LrbHLHs were located in the nucleus. Expression pattern analysis of LrbHLH genes in different tissues and at flower developmental stages suggested that their expression differed across lineages and might be important for plant growth and organ development in Lycoris. In addition, all LrbHLH genes exhibited specific spatial and temporal expression patterns under MeJA treatment. Moreover, protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analysis and yeast two-hybrid assay showed that numerous LrbHLHs could interact with jasmonate ZIM (zinc-finger inflorescence meristem) domain (JAZ) proteins. This research provides a theoretical basis for further investigation of LrbHLHs to find their functions and insights for their regulatory mechanisms involved in JA signaling pathway.

Abstract Organic thermoelectric (OTE) materials have been considered to be promising candidates for large area and low‐cost wearable devices owing to their tailorable molecular structure, intrinsic flexibility, and prominent solution processability. More importantly, OTE materials offer direct energy conversion from the human body, solid‐state cooling at low electric consumption, and diversified functions. Herein, we summarize recent developments of OTE materials and devices for smart applications. We first review the fundamentals of OTE materials from the viewpoint of thermoelectric performance, mechanical properties and bionic functions. Second, we describe OTE devices in flexible generators, photothermoelectric detectors, self‐powered sensors, and ultra‐thin cooling elements. Finally, we present the challenges and perspectives on OTE materials as well as devices in wearable electronics and fascinating applications in the Internet of Things.

Abstract Background MYB transcription factors, comprising one of the largest transcription factor families in plants, play many roles in secondary metabolism, especially in anthocyanin biosynthesis. However, the functions of the PdeMYB transcription factor in colored-leaf poplar remain elusive. Results In the present study, genome-wide characterization of the PdeMYB genes in colored-leaf poplar (Populus deltoids) was conducted. A total of 302 PdeMYB transcription factors were identified, including 183 R2R3-MYB, five R1R2R3-MYB, one 4R-MYB, and 113 1R-MYB transcription factor genes. Genomic localization and paralogs of PdeMYB genes mapped 289 genes on 19 chromosomes, with collinearity relationships among genes. The conserved domain, gene structure, and evolutionary relationships of the PdeMYB genes were also established and analyzed. The expression levels of PdeMYB genes were obtained from previous data in green leaf poplar (L2025) and colored leaf poplar (QHP) as well as our own qRT-PCR analysis data in green leaf poplar (L2025) and colored leaf poplar (CHP), which provide valuable clues for further functional characterization of PdeMYB genes. Conclusions The above results provide not only comprehensive insights into the structure and functions of PdeMYB genes but also provide candidate genes for the future improvement of leaf colorization in Populus deltoids.

Unreasonable storage of phosphate ore is becoming an important pathway causing phosphate pollution in the surrounding aquatic environment. However, there is little research on the influence of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in water on the fate of phosphate ore. Here, we collected phosphate ores from two phosphate mines along the coast of Tanglang River and studied the effects of DOM concentrations and pH on the release of soluble active phosphorus (SRP) and fluoride ion (F−) from phosphate ores using humic acid (HA) as the representative of DOM. Based on the analysis of ZP, FTIR, XPS, and SEM, the influence mechanism of HA was revealed. The results showed that HA efficiently promoted the release of SRP and F− from phosphate ore. With decreasing pH, the P release increased in both water and HA solutions in general. The beneficial influence of HA on the release of SRP and F− from phosphate ore was ascribed to the introduction of oxygen-containing functional groups by HA, which altered the surface properties and enhanced the dispersion stability of phosphate ore. These findings provided new insights into the dispersion behavior of phosphate ore, which is helpful in promoting the pollution control and management strategy of phosphate ore.

Taxus is a rare and endangered woody plant worldwide with important economic and ecological values. However, the weak environmental adaptability of Taxus species, in particular the unstable photosynthetic activity in different seasons, always affects its normal growth and development and limits its conservation and exploitation. To improve the survival of Taxus trees in cultivated areas, the seasonal dynamics of chlorophyll fluorescence (CF) and key physiological parameters were comprehensively investigated in T. media and T. mairei. The results demonstrated that the photosynthetic activity of both Taxus species was sensitive to local summer and winter environmental conditions, with the heterogeneity of fluorescence signatures intuitively presented on the needle surface by CF-Imaging detection, while images of maximum quantum efficiency of PSII photochemistry (Fv/Fm) demonstrated values below 0.7 in the blue–green sectors in winter. The distribution of light energy was regulated by the photosynthetic apparatus in both Taxus species to maintain a stable actual quantum yield of PSII photochemistry (φPSII), which was around 0.4–0.5. Based on a redundancy discriminant analysis, the interpretation rate of light intensity and air temperature ranked as the top two in both Taxus species, which were considered the main environmental factors affecting the photosynthetic performance of Taxus by disturbing the electron transport chain. In the winter, T. mairei exhibited weaker electron transport activity than T. media, thus caused lower photochemistry and more severe photosynthetic damages. Interestingly, both Taxus species demonstrated consistent response patterns, including diverse energy dissipation strategies and enhancement of osmoregulatory substances and antioxidative activities, thus maintaining stable photosynthetic functions in response to environmental changes.

Lycoris is an important plant with both medicinal and ornamental values. However, it does not have an efficient genetic transformation system, which makes it difficult to study gene function of the genus. Virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) is an effective technique for studying gene functions in plants. In this study, we develop an efficient virus-induced gene-silencing (VIGS) system using the leaf tip needle injection method. The widely used TRV vector is constructed, and the Cloroplastos Alterados 1 (CLA1) and Phytoene Desaturase (PDS) genes are selected as visual indicators in the VIGS system. As a result, it is observed that leaves infected with TRV-LcCLA1 and TRV-LcPDS both show a yellowing phenotype (loss of green), and the chlorosis range of TRV-LcCLA1 was larger and deeper than that of TRV-LcPDS. qRT-PCR results show that the expression levels of LcCLA1 and LcPDS are significantly reduced, and the silencing efficiency of LcCLA1 is higher than that of LcPDS. These results indicate that the VIGS system of L. chinensis was preliminarily established, and LcCLA1 is more suitable as a gene-silencing indicator. For the monocotyledonous plant leaves with a waxy surface, the leaf tip injection method greatly improves the infiltration efficiency. The newly established VIGS system will contribute to gene functional research in Lycoris species.

This paper investigates the exponential stability of a class of neutral inertial neural networks with multi-proportional delays and leakage delays. By utilizing the Lyapunov stability theory, the approach of parametric variation, and the differential inequality technique, some criteria are acquired that can guarantee that all solutions of the addressed system converge exponentially to the equilibrium point. In particular, the neutral term, multi-proportional delays, and leakage delays are incorporated simultaneously, resulting in a more general model, and the findings are novel and refine the previous works. Finally, one example is provided to indicate that the dynamic behavior is consistent with the theoretical analysis.

Abstract Background Intracranial hemangiopericytoma is a rare disease and surgery is the mainstay treatment. Although postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy is often used, there are no reports comparing different radiotherapy techniques. The purpose of this study is to analyze the impact of post-operative radiotherapy and different radiotherapy technique on the results in patients with intracranial hemangiopericytoma (HPC). Methods We retrospectively reviewed 66 intracranial HPC patients treated between 1999 and 2019 including 29 with surgery followed by radiotherapy (11 with intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and 18 with stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS)) and 37 with surgery alone. Chi-square test was used to compare the clinical characteristic between the groups. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to analyze overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS). Multivariate Cox proportional hazards models were used to examine prognostic factors of survival. We also underwent a matched-pair analysis by using the propensity score method. Results The crude local control rates were 58.6% in the surgery plus post-operative radiotherapy group (PORT) and 67.6% in the surgery alone group (p = 0.453). In the subgroup analysis of the PORT patients, local controls were 72.7% in the IMRT group and 50% in the SRS group (p = 0.228). The median OS in the PORT and surgery groups were 122 months and 98 months, respectively (p = 0.169). The median RFS was 96 months in the PORT group and 72 months in the surgery alone group (p = 0.714). Regarding radiotherapy technique, the median OS and RFS of the SRS group were not significantly different from those in the IMRT group (p = 0.256, 0.960). The median RFS were 112 and 72 months for pathology grade II and III patients, respectively (p = 0.001). Propensity score matching did not change the observed results. Conclusion In this retrospective analysis, PORT did not improve the local control rates nor the survivals. The local control rates after IMRT and SRS were similar even though the IMRT technique had a much higher biological dose compared with the SRS technique.

As a sedimentary mineral, most sandstone type uranium deposits are formed in petroliferous basins. Therefore, we can fully tap the residual economic value of historical logging and 3D seismic data measured for oil and gas to search for sandstone type uranium deposits. However, a large amount of acoustic logging data are missing in the target stratum of the uranium reservoir in that it is not the main stratum of oil and gas. A reconstructed method of acoustic logging data based on clustering analysis and with the low-frequency compensation of deterministic inversion is proposed to solve this problem. Secondly, we can use these logging data with seismic data to obtain the 3D inversion data volume representing the sand body of the uranium reservoir based on seismic lithological inversion. Then, we can also delimit the 3D spatial range of sandstone type uranium deposits in petroliferous basins based on the calibration of uranium anomaly and sub-body detection. Finally, a 3D field data example is given to test and analyze the effectiveness of the above research schemes.

Lycoris radiata, belonging to the Amaryllidaceae family, is a well-known Chinese traditional medicinal plant and susceptible to many stresses. WRKY proteins are one of the largest families of transcription factors (TFs) in plants and play significant functions in regulating physiological metabolisms and abiotic stress responses. The WRKY TF family has been identified and investigated in many medicinal plants, but its members and functions are not identified in L. radiata. In this study, a total of 31 L. radiata WRKY (LrWRKY) genes were identified based on the transcriptome-sequencing data. Next, the LrWRKYs were divided into three major clades (Group I–III) based on the WRKY domains. A motif analysis showed the members within same group shared a similar motif component, indicating a conservational function. Furthermore, subcellular localization analysis exhibited that most LrWRKYs were localized in the nucleus. The expression pattern of the LrWRKY genes differed across tissues and might be important for Lycoris growth and flower development. There were large differences among the LrWRKYs based on the transcriptional levels under drought stress and MeJA treatments. Moreover, a total of 18 anthocyanin components were characterized using an ultra-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-MS/MS) analysis and pelargonidin-3-O-glucoside-5-O-arabinoside as well as cyanidin-3-O-sambubioside were identified as the major anthocyanin aglycones responsible for the coloration of the red petals in L. radiata. We further established a gene-to-metabolite correlation network and identified LrWRKY3 and LrWRKY27 significant association with the accumulation of pelargonidin-3-O-glucoside-5-O-arabinoside in the Lycoris red petals. These results provide an important theoretical basis for further exploring the molecular basis and regulatory mechanism of WRKY TFs in anthocyanin biosynthesis and in response to drought stress and MeJA treatment.

Lycoris is used as a garden flower due to the colorful and its special flowers. Floral coloration of Lycoris is a vital trait that is mainly regulated via the anthocyanin biosynthetic pathway. In this study, we performed a comparative transcriptome analysis of Lycoris radiata petals at four different flower development stages. A total of 38,798 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified by RNA sequencing, and the correlation between the expression level of the DEGs and the anthocyanin content was explored. The identified DEGs are significantly categorized into ‘flavonoid biosynthesis,’ ‘phenylpropanoid biosynthesis,’ ‘Tropane, piperidine and pyridine alkaloid biosynthesis,’ ‘terpenoid backbone biosynthesis’ and ‘plant hormone signal transduction’ by Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis. The candidate genes involved in anthocyanin accumulation in L. radiata petals during flower development stages were also identified, which included 56 structural genes (especially LrDFR1 and LrFLS) as well as 27 key transcription factor DEGs (such as C3H, GATA, MYB, and NAC). In addition, a key structural gene namely LrDFR1 of anthocyanin biosynthesis pathway was identified as a hub gene in anthocyanin metabolism network. During flower development stages, the expression level of LrDFR1 was positively correlated with the anthocyanin content. Subcellular localization revealed that LrDFR1 is majorly localized in the nucleus, cytoplasm and cell membrane. Overexpression of LrDFR1 increased the anthocyanin accumulation in tobacco leaves and Lycoris petals, suggesting that LrDFR1 acts as a positively regulator of anthocyanin biosynthesis. Our results provide new insights for elucidating the function of anthocyanins in L. radiata petal coloring during flower development.

In this study, we explored the capability of coda wave interferometry (CWI) for monitoring CO2 storage by estimating the seismic velocity changes caused by CO2 injection. Given that the CWI method is highly efficient, the primary aim of this study was to provide a quick detection tool for the long-term monitoring of CO2 storage safety. In particular, we looked at monitoring with a cross-well geometry. We also expected that CWI could help to reduce the inversion errors of existing methods. Time-lapse upgoing waves and downgoing waves from two-component datasets were utilized to efficiently monitor the area between the wells and provide a quick indication of possible CO2 leakage. The resulting mean velocity changes versus the depth indicated the depth where velocity changes occurred. Combining the upgoing and downgoing wavefields provided a more specific indication of the depth range for changes. The calculated velocity changes were determined using the time shift between the time-lapse wavefields caused by CO2 injection/leakage. Hence, the resulting velocity changes were closely related to the ratio of propagation path length through the CO2 injection/leakage layer over the length of the entire travel path. The results indicated that the noise level and repeatability of the time-lapse datasets significantly influenced the results generated using CWI. Therefore, denoising and time-lapse processing were very important for improving the detectability of any change. Applying CWI to time-lapse cross-well surveys can be an effective tool for monitoring CO2 in the subsurface at a relatively low computational cost. As a highly efficient monitoring method, it is sensitive to changes in the seismic response caused by velocity changes in the subsurface and provides additional constraints on the inversion results from conventional travel time tomography and full waveform inversion.

Herein, combining photocatalysis and Fenton oxidation, a photo-assisted Fenton system was conducted using Fe-doped Bi4O5Br2 as a highly efficient photocatalyst to realize the complete degradation of Tetracycline antibiotics under visible light. It has been observed that the optimized photocatalyst 5%Fe-doped Bi4O5Br2 exhibits a degradation efficiency of 100% for Tetracycline with H2O2 after 3 h visible-light irradiation, while a degradation percentage of 59.8% over the same photocatalyst and 46.6% over pure Bi4O5Br2 were obtained without the addition of H2O2 (non-Fenton process). It is unambiguous that a boost photo-assisted Fenton system for the degradation of Tetracycline has been established. Based on structural analysis, it demonstrated that the Fe atoms in place of the Bi sites may result in the distortion of the local structure, which induced the occurrence of the spontaneous polarization and thus enhanced the built-in electric field. The charge separation efficiency is enhanced, and the recombination of electrons and holes is inhabited so that more charges are generated to reach the surface of the photocatalyst and therefore improve the photocatalytic degradation efficiency. Moreover, more Fe (II) sites formed on the 5%Fe-Bi4O5Br2 photocatalyst and facilitated the activation of H2O2 to form oxidative species, which greatly enhanced the degradation efficiency of Tetracycline.

Kosteletzkya pentacarpos is a promising plant being developed as a salt-tolerant biofuel crop that also the ability to fix heavy metals. Here, high-throughput sequencing technology was used to sequence and assemble the chloroplast genome of K. pentacarpos. The full length of the chloroplast genome is 161,777 bp, comprising a large single-copy region of 90,019 bp, a small single-copy region of 18,978 bp, and a pair of inverted repeats of 26,390 bp. A total of 113 genes were annotated, including 79 protein-coding, 30 transfer RNA, and 4 ribosomal RNA genes. Phylogenetic analysis based on whole chloroplast genome sequences showed that K. pentacarpos has a close relationship with Abelmoschus in Malvaceae. This study increases the available genomic information on K. pentacarpos, and provides a basis for the rational exploitation and utilization of germplasm resources.

The transition from vegetative to reproductive growth is important for controlling the flowering of Lycoris radiata. However, the genetic control of this complex developmental process remains unclear. In this study, 18 shoot apical meristem (SAM) samples were collected from early-, mid- and late-flowering populations during floral bud differentiation. The histological analysis of paraffin sections showed that the floral bud differentiation could be divided into six stages; the differentiation time of the early group was earlier than that of the middle and late groups, and the late group was the latest. In different populations, some important differential genes affecting the flowering time were identified by transcriptome profiles of floral bud differentiation samples. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was performed to enrich the gene co-expression modules of diverse flowering time populations (FT) and floral bud differentiation stages (ST). In the MEyellow module, five core hub genes were identified, including CO14, GI, SPL8, SPL9, and SPL15. The correlation network of hub genes showed that they interact with SPLs, AP2, hormone response factors (auxin, gibberellin, ethylene, and abscisic acid), and several transcription factors (MADS-box transcription factor, bHLH, MYB, and NAC3). It suggests the important role of these genes and the complex molecular mechanism of floral bud differentiation and flowering time in L. radiata. These results can preliminarily explain the molecular mechanism of floral bud differentiation and provide new candidate genes for the flowering regulation of Lycoris.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a type of noncoding RNA participating in the post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression that regulates plant responses to salt stress. Small RNA sequencing was performed in this study to discover the miRNAs responding to salt stress in Taxodium hybrid ‘Zhongshanshan 405’, which is tolerant to salinity stress. A total of 52 miRNAs were found to be differentially expressed. The target genes were enriched with gene ontology (GO), including protein phosphorylation, cellular response to stimulus, signal transduction, ATP and ADP binding, showing that miRNAs may play key roles in regulating the tolerance to salt stress in T. hybrid ‘Zhongshanshan 405’. Notably, a G-type lectin S-receptor-like serine/threonine-protein kinase (GsSRK) regulated by novel_77 and novel_2 miRNAs and a mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase (MAPKKK) regulated by novel_41 miRNA were discovered under both short- and long-term salt treatments and can be selected for future research. This result provides new insights into the regulatory functions of miRNAs in the salt response of T. hybrid ‘Zhongshanshan 405’.

Seismic reservoir characterization plays an essential role in the study of integrated reservoirs, with applications from prospect identification to detailed reservoir delineation [...]

Hibiscus coccineus is famous for its wide geographical distribution and the showy flowers of scarlet rose mallow. It belongs to the Malvaceae family and has greatly ornamental and ecological value. In this study, high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics technology were used to assemble the complete chloroplast genome sequence, which will provide more genomic information for studying the genetic diversity and phylogenetic relationship. The full length of chloroplast genome is 160,280 bp, composed of a large single-copy (LSC) region of 89,121 bp, a small single-copy (SSC) region of 18,673 bp, and two inverted repeats (IRs) of 26,243 bp. A total of 113 genes were annotated, including 79 protein-coding genes, 30 tRNA, and four rRNA genes. Phylogenetic tree analysis revealed that the Hibiscus coccineus is closest to Hibiscus mutabilis in the Hibiscus L.

To unlock the potential of biological semiconductors for printed flexible electronics, experimental evidence that reveals the material’s charge transport mechanism is required. Here, the authors report the charge transport mechanism in hydrogen-bonded DNA topoisomerase inhibitors.

Herein, we describe an environmentally friendly strategy to synthesize Ag nanoparticles on Nanodiamond (ND) by utilizing natural adhering and reduction properties of tea polyphenols (TPs). Firstly, the surface of ND was modified by TPs through their natural adhering ability. Then, the modified TPs functioned as reducing agents for reducing Ag precursor in situ. The synthesis process, structure and its physicochemical properties of the nanohybrid were tracked and characterized by UV-Vis, FTIR, TGA, HRTEM, XRD and XPS. It has been shown that Ag nanoparticles with uniform size and distribution were anchored successfully on the surface of ND. The ND supported Ag nanoparticles displayed highly water dispersibility due to the hydrophilicity of TPs, as is very important in heterogeneous catalysis. The catalytic performance of this nanohybrid was evaluated comprehensively by catalyzing 4-nitrophenol reduction by sodium borohydride, which is often used as a model reaction, showing excellent catalytic activity and recycling stability.

Abstract Background Repetitive DNA motifs – not coding genetic information and repeated millions to hundreds of times – make up the majority of many genomes. Here, we identify the nature, abundance and organization of all the repetitive DNA families in oats (Avena sativa, 2n = 6x = 42, AACCDD), a recognized health-food, and its wild relatives. Results Whole-genome sequencing followed by k-mer and RepeatExplorer graph-based clustering analyses enabled assessment of repetitive DNA composition in common oat and its wild relatives’ genomes. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH)-based karyotypes are developed to understand chromosome and repetitive sequence evolution of common oat. We show that some 200 repeated DNA motifs make up 70% of the Avena genome, with less than 20 families making up 20% of the total. Retroelements represent the major component, with Ty3/Gypsy elements representing more than 40% of all the DNA, nearly three times more abundant than Ty1/Copia elements. DNA transposons are about 5% of the total, while tandemly repeated, satellite DNA sequences fit into 55 families and represent about 2% of the genome. The Avena species are monophyletic, but both bioinformatic comparisons of repeats in the different genomes, and in situ hybridization to metaphase chromosomes from the hexaploid species, shows that some repeat families are specific to individual genomes, or the A and D genomes together. Notably, there are terminal regions of many chromosomes showing different repeat families from the rest of the chromosome, suggesting presence of translocations between the genomes. Conclusions The relatively small number of repeat families shows there are evolutionary constraints on their nature and amplification, with mechanisms leading to homogenization, while repeat characterization is useful in providing genome markers and to assist with future assemblies of this large genome (c. 4100 Mb in the diploid). The frequency of inter-genomic translocations suggests optimum strategies to exploit genetic variation from diploid oats for improvement of the hexaploid may differ from those used widely in bread wheat.

Lycoris is a summer bulbous flower that commonly needs to go through a long period of vegetative growth for 3 to 5 years before flowering. Plant flowering is regulated by a complex genetic network. Compared with most perennial flowers, knowledge on the molecular mechanism responsible for floral transition in bulbous flowers is lacking, and only a few genes that regulate flowering have been identified with few reports on the floral transition in Lycoris. In this study, we identified many differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and transcription factors (TFs) by RNA-Seq in L. chinensis bulbs of different ages, including one- to four-year-old nonflowering bulbs and four-year-old flowering bulbs. Some DEGs were enriched in Gene Ontology (GO) terms between the three- and four-year-old bulbs, and there most genes were enriched in terms of metabolic process and catalytic activity. In the four-year old bulbs, most of the DEGs that may be involved in flowering were classified under the GO term biological process, which was a totally different result from the vegetative bulbs. Some DEGs between flowering and nonflowering bulbs were enriched in plant hormone signal transduction, including the hormones auxin, cytokinin, abscisic acid, and ethylene, but no DEGs were enriched in the gibberellin pathway. Auxin is the main endogenous phytohormone involved in bulb growth and development, but cytokinin, abscisic acid, and ethylene were shown to increase in flowering bulbs. In addition, energy-metabolism-related genes maintain a high expression level in large bulbs, and some positive regulators (SPL, COL, and AP1) and early flowering genes were also shown to be highly expressed in the meristems of flowering bulbs. It suggested that sugar molecules may be the energy source that regulates the signal transduction of flowering by connecting with phytohormone signaling in Lycoris. A total of 1911 TFs were identified and classified into 89 categories, where the top six families with the largest gene numbers were C2H2, NAC, AP2/ERF-ERF, C3H, MYB-related, and WRKY. Most DEGs were in the AP2/ERF-ERF family, and most of them were downregulated in 4-year-old flowering bulbs. A number of families were reported to be involved in plant flowering, including NAC, AP2/ERF, MYB, WRKY, bZIP, MADS, and NF-Y. These results can act as a genetic resource to aid in the explanation of the genetic mechanism responsible for the flowering of Lycoris and other bulbous flowers.