DOF transcription factors in developing peanut (<i>Arachis hypogaea</i>) seeds

DNA binding with one finger (DOF) transcription factors play important roles in storage material accumulation and morphogenesis of developing seeds. Oil and protein contents varied in different cultivars in important oil crop peanut. DOF proteins have not been studied in this crop. In this paper, we analyzed all the DOF genes expressed in developing seeds from a cDNA library with 20,000 transcripts, cloned and compared similar genes of GW391729 from eight peanut cultivars, and analyzed similar genes expressed in root and leave with control and inoculated with Ralstonia solanacearum. The results indicate that total eight types of DOF genes were expressed in developing seeds of cultivar 063103. Most of DOF transcription factors expressed involved in developmental process in a complicated way. Among them, GW391729 is possible related to the seed number in fruit, and also is possible related to leafspot resistance. Detailed function of these DOF proteins need to be further studied.

Comparative gene expression analysis in stems of <i>Dolichos purpureus</i>and <i>Arabidopsis thaliana</i>

The outermost layer epidermis of a plant stem plays an important role in protection and environment-sensing. The mechanisms of sensing and response to the environment through the stem epidermis remain unclear. Here we report enriched expression of genes involved in stress resistance and signal transduction functions in the stem epidermis of both D. purpureus and A. thaliana by cDNA cloning and QPCR in D. purpureus and by analysis using dataset from a genome-wide comparison with cDNAs differentially expressed between the epidermis and inner parts of top and base stem in A. thaliana. Among 188 cDNAs from the stem epidermis of D. purpureus, 13% and 17% were related to signal transduction and defense respectively. Most of them were up-regulated more in the stem epidermis than the inner stem, as well as in A. thaliana. Also, the distribution of the numbers and specificities of up-regulated genes related to signal transduction and regulatory networks in the epidermis and inner stem revealed the possibility of positional differences in regulation. The results revealed the importance of the epidermis in signal transduction and plant defence.

Analysis of the Phenomena of Diamond Synthesis by Seeding with Diamond

Synthesizing diamond single crystal by diamond seed particles which were electroplated with nickel film as catalyst under high pressure and high temperature （HPHT） was described. The microstructure of nickel film after synthesis and morphology of grown diamond were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction （XRD） and scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, respectively. The phase structure in nickel film were graphite, NiC, Ni, and diamond structure hadn＇t been found. A lot of recrystallized graphite pits appear in interface between the inner surface of nickel film and the surface diamond. It is shown that the new-grown diamond was developed epitaxially on the crystal planes of seeds. Also, the new-grown diamond grew by two-dimensional nucleation and by a layer growth mechanism. The growth process of crystal was microaggregate→step→expansion→new crystal layers, and the flat growth interface transformed into a cellular interface at the same time.

The cGAS-STING pathway:a therapeutic target in chromosomally unstable cancers

In a recent study published in Nature,Hong et al.revealed that the cyclic GMP-AMP synthase(cGAS)-stimulator of interferon genes(STING)innate immune pathway is critically required for the IL-6-dependent survival of chromosomally unstable cancer cells,1 implying that chronic inflammation can be therapeutically targeted to kill cancers displaying chromosomal instability(CIN).

Role of pyroptosis in inflammation and cancer

Pyroptosis is a form of programmed cell death mediated by gasdermin and is a product of continuous cell expansion until the cytomembrane ruptures,resulting in the release of cellular contents that can activate strong inflammatory and immune responses.Pyroptosis,an innate immune response,can be triggered by the activation of inflammasomes by various influencing factors.Activation of these inflammasomes can induce the maturation of caspase-1 or caspase-4/5/11,both of which cleave gasdermin D to release its N-terminal domain,which can bind membrane lipids and perforate the cell membrane.Here,we review the latest advancements in research on the mechanisms of pyroptosis,newly discovered influencing factors,antitumoral properties,and applications in various diseases.Moreover,this review also provides updates on potential targeted therapies for inflammation and cancers,methods for clinical prevention,and finally challenges and future directions in the field.

Repurposing carrimycin as an antiviral agent against human coronaviruses,including the currently pandemic SARS-CoV-2

COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection severely threatens global health and economic development.No effective antiviral drug is currently available to treat COVID-19 and any other human coronavirus infections.We report herein that a macrolide antibiotic,carrimycin,potently inhibited the cytopathic effects(CPE)and reduced the levels of viral protein and RNA in multiple cell types infected by human coronavirus 229 E,OC43,and SARS-CoV-2.Time-of-addition and pseudotype virus infection studies indicated that carrimycin inhibited one or multiple post-entry replication events of human coronavirus infection.In support of this notion,metabolic labelling studies showed that carrimycin significantly inhibited the synthesis of viral RNA.Our studies thus strongly suggest that carrimycin is an antiviral agent against a broad-spectrum of human coronaviruses and its therapeutic efficacy to COVID-19 is currently under clinical investigation.

Ferroptosis in cancer and cancer immunotherapy

The hallmark of tumorigenesis is the successful circumvention of cell death regulation for achieving unlimited replication and immortality.Ferroptosis is a newly identified type of cell death dependent on lipid peroxidation which differs from classical programmed cell death in terms of morphology,physiology and biochemistry.The broad spectrum of injury and tumor tolerance are the main reasons for radiotherapy and chemotherapy failure.The effective rate of tumor immunotherapy as a new treatment method is less than 30%.Ferroptosis can be seen in radiotherapy,chemotherapy,and tumor immunotherapy;therefore,fer-roptosis activation may be a potential strategy to overcome the drug resistance mechanism of traditional cancer treatments.In this review,the characteristics and causes of cell death by lipid peroxidation in ferroptosis are briefly described.In addition,the three metabolic regulations of ferroptosis and its crosstalk with classical signaling pathways are summarized.Collectively,these findings sug-gest the vital role of ferroptosis in immunotherapy based on the interaction of ferroptosis with tumor immunotherapy,chemotherapy and radiotherapy,thus,indicating the remarkable potential of ferroptosis in cancer treatment.

Chinese herbal medicine compound Yi-Zhi-Hao pellet inhibits replication of influenza virus infection through activation of heme oxygenase-1

As a leading cause of respiratory disease, influenza A virus(IAV) presents a pandemic threat in annual seasonal outbreaks. Given the limitation of existing anti-influenza therapies, there remains to be a requirement for new drugs. Compound Yi-Zhi-Hao pellet(CYZH) is a famous traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) used in the clinic, whose formula has been recorded in Complication of National Standard for Traditional Chinese Medicine to treat common cold. In this study, we found that CYZH exhibited a broad-spectrum anti-influenza activity and inhibited the expression of viral RNA and proteins in vitro. Mechanistically, CYZH had no inhibitory activities against viral protein hemagglutinin and IAV RNA-dependent RNA polymerase. Instead, it induced activation of erythroid 2-related factor 2(Nrf2) and nuclear factor kappa B(NF-κB), which subsequently upregulated heme oxygenase-1(HO-1) expression.Also, CYZH protected cells from oxidative damage induced by reactive oxygen series. In conclusions,CYZH inhibits IAV replication in vitro, at least partly by activating expression of the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway.

The way of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine development:success and challenges

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS-CoV-2)is the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19).To halt the pandemic,multiple SARS-CoV-2 vaccines have been developed and several have been allowed for emergency use and rollout worldwide.With novel SARS-CoV-2 variants emerging and circulating widely,whether the original vaccines that were designed based on the wild-type SARS-CoV-2 were effective against these variants has been a contentious discussion.Moreover,some studies revealed the long-term changes of immune responses post SARS-CoV-2 infection or vaccination and the factors that might impact the vaccine-induced immunity.Thus,in this review,we have summarized the influence of mutational hotspots on the vaccine efficacy and characteristics of variants of interest and concern.We have also discussed the reasons that might result in discrepancies in the efficacy of different vaccines estimated in different trials.Furthermore,we provided an overview of the duration of immune responses after natural infection or vaccination and shed light on the factors that may affect the immunity induced by the vaccines,such as special disease conditions,sex,and pre-existing immunity,with the aim of aiding in combating COVID-19 and distributing SARS-CoV-2 vaccines under the prevalence of diverse SARS-CoV-2 variants.