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Subtropical evergreen broad‐leaved forest (EBLF) is the predominant vegetation type in eastern China. However, the majority of the region it covers in eastern China was an arid area during the Paleogene. The temporal history and essential factors involved in the evolution of subtropical EBLFs in eastern China remain enigmatic. Here we report on the niche evolution of Quercus section Cyclobalanopsis, which appeared in south China and Japan during the Eocene and became a dominant component of subtropical EBLFs since the Miocene in eastern Asia, using integrative analysis of occurrences, climate data and a dated phylogeny of 35 species in Cyclobalanopsis. Species within clades Cyclobalanoides, Lamellosa, and Helferiana mainly exist in the Himalaya–Hengduan region, adapting to a plateau climate, while species within the other clades mainly live in eastern China under the control of the East Asian monsoon. Reconstructed history showed that significant divergence of climatic tolerance in Cyclobalanopsis began around 19 million years ago (Ma) in the early Miocene. Simultaneously, disparities in precipitation of wettest/warmest quarter and annual precipitation were markedly enhanced in Cyclobalanopsis, especially in the recent eastern clades. During the Miocene, the marked radiation of Cyclobalanopsis and many other dominant taxa of subtropical EBLFs strongly suggest the rapid formation and expansion of subtropical EBLFs in eastern China. Our research highlights that the intensification of the East Asian monsoon and subsequent occupation of new niches by the ancient clades already present in the south may have jointly promoted the formation of subtropical EBLFs in eastern China since the early Miocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ferns that evolved from 400 million years ago show various functional traits and ecological strategies in extant species, over 80% of which belong to the youngest order Polypodiales. How the functional traits and strategies of ferns have changed during their evolutionary history remains unexplored. Here, we measured functional traits that are sensitive to environmental light and water availability in 345 fern species across fern phylogeny, and reconstructed their evolutionary histories. We found that ferns, mainly Polypodiales, have developed diversified functional traits in response to forest environments. Terrestrial species, especially Thelypteridaceae and Athyriaceae in eupolypods II, since the late Jurassic period, have shown decreased leaf mass per area (LMA) and area‐based leaf nitrogen (Narea), but increased mass‐based leaf nitrogen (Nmass) compared with early‐derived polypods. Epiphytic species, mainly those in Polypodiaceae, have shown reductions in Nmass and individual leaf area (Area) since the late Cretaceous period. The adaption of functional traits of Polypodiales to forest environment may have played a crucial role in fern radiation since the late Jurassic period. Integrative analysis of functional traits, especially numerical ones, may shed new light on plant evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hypoxia is a common pathological process caused by insufficient oxygen. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been proven to participate in this pathology. Hypoxia is reported to significantly reduce the secretion of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase 2 (TIMP2) and TIMP2 induces pheochromocytoma‐12 (PC12) cell cycle arrest. Thus, our study aimed to explore the mechanism by which lncRNA maternally expressed gene 3 (MEG3) was implicated in hypoxia‐induced PC12 cell injury through TIMP2 promoter methylation. To elucidate the potential biological significance of MEG3 and the regulatory mechanism between MEG3 and TIMP2, a hypoxia‐induced PC12 cell injury model was generated. The hypoxia‐exposed cells were subjected to a series of overexpression plasmids and short hairpin RNAs, followed by the measurement of levels of MEG3, TIMP2, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), reactive oxygen species (ROS), Bcl‐2‐associated X protein, B‐cell lymphoma‐2, and caspase‐3, as well as the changes in MMP, cell proliferation, apoptosis, and cell cycle progression. On the basis of the findings, MEG3 was upregulated in hypoxia‐injured PC12 cells. MEG3 recruited methylation proteins DNMT3a, DNMT3b, and MBD1 and accelerated TIMP2 promoter methylation, which in turn inhibited its expression. Moreover, PC12 cells following MEG3 silencing and TIMP2 overexpression exhibited significantly decreased levels of LDH, MDA, and ROS along with cell apoptosis, yet increased SOD and MMP levels, as well as cell cycle entry to the S phase and cell proliferation. In conclusion, MEG3 silencing suppresses hypoxia‐induced PC12 cell injury by inhibiting TIMP2 promoter methylation. This study may provide novel therapeutic targets for hypoxia‐induced injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PURPOSE: The aim of this short-term study was to compare the clinical efficacy of 2 different methods to treat acute periodontal abscesses. METHODS: After patient selection, 100 cases of acute periodontal abscess were randomly divided into two groups. The experimental group was treated by supra -- and subgingival scaling, while the control group was treated by incision and drainage. A clinical examination was carried out to record the following variables: subjective clinical variables including pain, edema, redness and swelling; objective clinical variables including gingival index(GI), bleeding index(BI), probing depth(PD),suppuration, lymphadenopathy and tooth mobility. The data was analyzed with SPSS 19.0 software package. RESULES: Subjective clinical variables demonstrated statistically significant improvements with both methods from the first day after treatment and lasted for at least 30 days (P<0.05), but the results of experimental group showed much better than the control group 1 day and 7 days after treatment. 30 days after treatment, there was no significant difference between the two groups in pain and swelling improvement (P>0.05), but the experimental group showed more improvement in edema and redness than the control group (P<0.05).On improving objective variables, the experimental group showed significant improvement in GI,BI,PD and suppuration 1 day after treatment(P<0.05).After 7 days, all objective clinical variables in the experimental group improved significantly (P<0.05); in the control group, there were significant improvements in GI, suppuration, lymphadenopathy and tooth mobility (P< 0.05) ,but the four variables of the experimental group showed more improvement than the control group(P<0.05).After 30 days, all objective clinical variables improved significantly in both groups as compared to baseline, but in the experimental group, improvements were more significant regarding to GI,BI,PD, suppuration and tooth mobility(P<0.05). CONCLUSION: The method of supra -- and subgingival scaling was rapid and effective in treatment of acute periodontal abscesses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this short-term study was to compare the clinical efficacy of 2 different methods to treat acute periodontal abscesses., Methods: After patient selection, 100 cases of acute periodontal abscess were randomly divided into two groups. The experimental group was treated by supra- and subgingival scaling, while the control group was treated by incision and drainage. A clinical examination was carried out to record the following variables: subjective clinical variables including pain, edema, redness and swelling; objective clinical variables including gingival index(GI), bleeding index(BI), probing depth(PD),suppuration, lymphadenopathy and tooth mobility. The data was analyzed with SPSS 19.0 software package. RESULES: Subjective clinical variables demonstrated statistically significant improvements with both methods from the first day after treatment and lasted for at least 30 days(P<0.05), but the results of experimental group showed much better than the control group 1 day and 7 days after treatment. 30 days after treatment, there was no significant difference between the two groups in pain and swelling improvement(P>0.05), but the experimental group showed more improvement in edema and redness than the control group(P<0.05).On improving objective variables, the experimental group showed significant improvement in GI,BI,PD and suppuration 1 day after treatment(P<0.05).After 7 days, all objective clinical variables in the experimental group improved significantly(P<0.05) in the control group, there were significant improvements in GI,suppuration,lymphadenopathy and tooth mobility(P<0.05) but the four variables of the experimental group showed more improvement than the control group(P<0.05).After 30 days, all objective clinical variables improved significantly in both groups as compared to baseline, but in the experimental group, improvements were more significant regarding to GI,BI,PD,suppuration and tooth mobility(P<0.05)., Conclusion: The method of supra- and subgingival scaling was rapid and effective in treatment of acute periodontal abscesses.

Objective: To demonstrate the effects of recombinant human insulin-like growth factor-I (rhIGF-I) and/or recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (rhBMP-2) on proliferation, differentiation and calcification of MC 3T3-E1 cells and NIH 3T3 cells., Methods: Mouse osteoblast-like cell line MC 3T3-E1 and mouse fibroblast cell line NIH 3T3 were treated with different dosages of rhIGF-I or rhBMP-2 and rhIGF-I plus rhBMP-2. Cell proliferation was measured by methylthiazol tetrazolium (MTT)method and flow cytometry. Cell differentiation was examined by using alkaline phosphatase(ALP)measurement kit. Radioimmunoassay was applied to detect levels of osteocalcin (OC) secreted by cultured cells. Von kossa staining method was used to study the calcification effects., Results: MC 3T3-E1 cells treated with 1-50 ng/ml rhIGF-I and NIH 3T3 cells treated with 5-75 ng/ml rhIGF-I showed marked effects of promoting proliferation (P<0.01), increasing the percentages of S-phase cells, decreasing the percentages of G1-phase cells and increasing activities of cellular ALP and percentages of calcification area (P<0.05). 10-100 ng/ml rhBMP-2 was also able to promote proliferation (P<0.01), increase the percentages of S-phase cells, decrease the percentages of G1-phase cells and enhancing cellular ALP activities and percentages of calcification area for both the two cells (P>0.05)., Conclusion: rhIGF-I and rhBMP-2 have synergistical effects on promoting cell proliferation, early cell differentiation and calcification depending on the used dosages, but no significant effects on promoting advanced cell differentiation.