Metagenomic Analysis of Mangshan Pit Viper (Protobothrops mangshanensis) Gut Microbiota Reveals Differences among Wild and Captive Individuals Linked to Hibernating Behaviors

Gut microbiota play important roles in the immunity,digestion,and energy meta bolism of their reptile hosts.Mangshan pit viper(Protobothrops mangshanensis)is a critically endangered snake species that is a Class I national protected species in China.Little is known regarding the relationship between P.mangshanensis and their gut microbial communities.In this study,the gut microbiota of wild P.mangshanensis individuals,artificially hiberna ting captive individuals,and non-hibernating captive individuals were compared across nine samples.Comparative shotgun metagenomic analysis was used to investigate the taxonomic composition,diversity,and function of P.mangshanensis gut microbial communities and assess whether their gut microbiomes were affected by their living environments and captivity conditions.The dominant phyla within P.mangshanensis gut microbial communities were Proteobacteria(65.55%),Bacteroidetes(15.97%),and Firmicutes(8.11%).Enriched functional pathways within the gut microbiota included meta bolism(54.9%),environmental information processing(9.67%),and genetic information processing(9.37%).Wild snake gut communities exhibited higher microbial diversity than the other two groups.The gut microbiomes of wild and hibernating captive snakes may be more reflective of healthy intestinal homeostasis than that in nonhibernating snakes.Specifically,non-hibernating snakes exhibited increased levelsof potentially pathogenic populations and functional specialization within gut microbial communities.Thus,different livingenvironments and captivitymethodsmay correspond to major shifts in microbiota composition,diversity,and function within P.mangshanensis.This study provides important insights to help guide the conservation of P.mangshanensis,while also carrying broad implications for our understanding of the effects of living environments and non-hibernating captivity conditions on the gut microbiota of snakes.

Ring finger protein 157 is a prognostic biomarker and is associated with immune infiltrates in human breast cancer

Background: The protein encoded by ring finger protein 157 (RNF157) is known to function as an E3 ubiquitinligase. However, whether the level of RNF157 expression in breast cancer correlates with prognosis and immune cellinfiltration among breast cancer patients remains to be further explored. Methods: In this study, publicly availabledatasets were used for evaluating RNF157 expression in different tumors compared with normal samples. Severalindependent datasets were screened for investigating the relationship between RNF157 and breast cancer survival,different mutation profiles, and tumor immune cell infiltration. We conducted a pathway enrichment analysis toidentify signaling pathways associated with RNF157. Results: Analysis of public and online databases revealed thatRNF157 expression markedly decreased in breast cancer tissue samples compared to non-carcinoma counterparts.Consistently, immunohistochemistry assays also demonstrated this RNF157 down-regulation in breast cancer samples.RNF157 up-regulation could predict the improved survival of breast cancer cases. Further, different RNF157expression level groups exhibited different mutational profiles. Pathway enrichment profiling of RNF157-related genessuggested its possible involvement in regulating breast cancer via the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)pathway. RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) data and genomic enrichment analysis showed that RNF157 downregulatedseveral genes positively associated with the MAPK signaling pathway. We also explored RNF157 expression andimmune cell infiltration in breast cancer and found that RNF157 mRNA levels were negatively related to non-Timmune cell infiltration. Conclusion: According to our work, RNF157 may be a promising diagnostic biomarker andtherapeutic target for breast cancer.

Chirality-dependent concentration boundaries of single-wall carbon nanotubes for photoluminescence characterization and applications

Increasing the concentration of single-wall carbon nanotubes(SWCNTs)is an effective method for enhancing their luminescence intensity.However,an increase in the concentration of SWCNTs would inevitably increase their reabsorption effect,degrading their luminescence efficiency.Herein,we systematically investigated variations in the photoluminescence(PL)intensity of(6,5)single-chirality SWCNTs while increasing their concentration.The results show that the PL intensity first increased to a maximum and then decreased with increasing concentration.Numerical analysis indicates that the concentration boundary corresponding to the maximum PL intensity was strongly dependent on the ratio of the optical absorbances of the SWCNTs at their excitation and emission wavelengths.According to this,statistical analysis by experimentally measuring the optical absorption spectra of 18 kinds of single-chirality SWCNTs shows that the concentration boundaries of SWCNTs were dependent upon their Types and diameters.The concentration boundary of Type I SWCNTs was higher than that of Type II SWCNTs,and the concentration boundaries of both Types increased with increasing diameter.These results provide important guidance for spectral characterization and applications in bioimaging and photoelectronic devices.

Highly selective growth of(6,5)single-walled carbon nanotubes from sigma phase alloy catalyst

The chirality structure of a single-walled carbon nanotube(SWNT)strongly depends on the composition of catalyst used in the chemical vapor deposition process.In this study,we develop a porous magnesia supported manganese-rhenium(MnRe/MgO)catalyst for chirality-selective synthesis of SWNTs.Detailed characterizations reveal that(6,5)tubes with a selectivity higher than 70%are grown from the Re-rich MnRe/MgO catalyst.By comparing the SWNT growth results with those of monometallic Mn or Re,the formation of sigma phase,an intermetallic compound occurring in transition-metal alloy systems,is revealed to be crucial for the dominant synthesis of(6,5)SWNTs.This work not only extends the application of sigma phase alloy for catalytic synthesis of SWNTs,but also sheds lights on the growth of SWNTs with a high chirality selectivity.

Prognostic impact of gene copy number instability and tumor mutation burden in patients with resectable gastric cancer

Dear Editor,Gastric cancer(GC)is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide,especially in China and other East Asian countries[1,2].Although considerable achievements have been made in its treatment[3]and predictive biomarkers[4]in past decades,the prognosis of GC remains poor[5].Therefore,more effective prognostic markers are needed to improve the prognosis prediction of GCs.Small panels based on next-generation sequencing,such as FoundationOne CDx and MSK-IMPACT,are widely used for selecting appropriate treatment approaches(such as targeted therapies,immunotherapies,and chemotherapies)with the advantages of a higher sequencing depth and more cost-effectiveness than whole-exome sequencing(WES).Previous studies have demonstrated that molecular characteristics based on the designed cancer-related gene panel were consistent with those determined by WES and could be prognostic markers for various cancer types[6-8].As such,we analyzed the molecular features with the designed panel to investigate probable prognostic biomarkers for Chinese patients with GC.

Diameter-dependent photoelectric performances of semiconducting carbon nanotubes/perovskite heterojunctions

The heterojunction of single-wall carbon nanotubes(SWCNTs)and perovskite quantum dots(QDs)shows excellent photodetection performances due to the combination of the advantages of high carrier mobility of SWCNTs and high absorption coefficient of perovskite QDs.However,the band structure of a SWCNT is determined by its atomic arrangement structure.How the structure of SWCNTs affects the photoelectric performance of the composite film remains elusive.Here,we systematically explored the diameter effect of SWCNTs with different bandgaps on the photodetection performances of SWCNTs/perovskite QDs heterojunction films by integrating semiconducting SWCNTs(s-SWCNTs)with different diameters with CsPbBr3 QDs.The results show that with an increase in diameter of s-SWCNTs,the heterojunction exhibits increasing responsivity(R),detectivity(D*),and faster response time.The great improvement in the optoelectronic performances of devices should be attributed to the higher carrier mobility of larger-diameter SWCNT films and the increasing built-in electric field at the heterojunction interfaces between larger-diameter SWCNTs and CsPbBr3 QDs,which enhances the separation of the photogenerated excitons and the transport of the resulted carriers in SWCNT films.

Al-driven analysis establishes the single base substitution signatures as personalized prognostic predictors for five-year survival of gastric cancer

Al-driven genetic engineering,as a burgeoning diagnostic tool,can offer predictive information on the five-year survival rate(FYSR)in the setup of a prognostic therapeutic schedule.This approach provides the individuality and accuracy of prognosis for FYSR of gastric cancer(GC).Unlike traditional neoplasm staging criteria,our technique ensures accuracy and individuality without relying on statistical data and empirical study.