Identification and Expression Analysis of Abscisic Acid Signal Transduction Genes in Hemp Seeds

Abscisic acid(ABA)is involved in regulating diverse biological processes,but its signal transduction genes and roles in hemp seed germination are not well known.Here,the ABA signaling pathway members,PYL,PP2C and SnRK2 gene families,were identified from the hemp reference genome,including 7 CsPYL(pyrab-actin resistance1-like,ABA receptor),8 CsPP2CA(group A protein phosphatase 2c),and 7 CsSnRK2(sucrose nonfermenting1-related protein kinase 2).The content of ABA in hemp seeds in germination stage is lower than that in non-germination stage.Exogenous ABA(1 or 10μM)treatment had a significant regulatory effect on the selected PYL,PP2C,SnRK2 gene families.CsAHG3 and CsHAI1 were most significantly affected by exogenous ABA treatment.Yeast two-hybrid experiments were performed to reveal that CsPYL5,CsSnRK2.2,and CsSnRK2.3 could interact with CsPP2CA7 and demonstrate that this interaction was ABA-independent.Our results indicated that CsPYL5,CsSnRK2.2,CsSnRK2.3 and CsPP2CA7 might involve in the ABA signaling transduction pathway of hemp seeds during the hemp seed germination stages.This study suggested that novel genetic views can be brought into investigation of ABA signaling pathway in hemp seeds and lay the foundation for further exploration of the mechanism of hemp seed germination.

Aromatization and isomerization of methylcyclohexane over Ni catalysts supported on different supports

In this work, nickel metal supported on different supports(SiO_2, Al_2O_3, ZSM-5) were prepared by spraying nickel nitrate on the supports and calcined at 873 K. Then, they were characterized by XRD, XRF, N_2 adsorption–desorption, NH_3-TPD, MCH-TPD, H_2-TPR, and pyridine-FTIR,and tested as catalysts for the dehydrogenation aromatization and isomerization of methylcyclohexane(MCH) under the conditions of S-Zorb catalytic adsorption desulfurization(T ? 673 K, P ? 1.5 MPa, WHSV ? 5 h^(-1)). The H2-TPR results showed that the interaction of NiO with support decreased in the order of NiO/ZSM-5-Fe < NiO/ZSM-5 < NiO/Al_2O_3< NiO/SiO2. The decrease of the interaction appeared to facilitate the reduction of Ni and therefore to promote the dehydrogenation aromatization of MCH.It was found that a direct correlation existed between the gasoline components yields, cracking activity and the total number of different supports acid sites measured by NH_3-TPD tests. Higher total acidity of ZSM-5 resulted in gasoline loss because of higher cracking activity of MCH. The number of total acid sites of NiO/ZSM-5-Fe decreased and the medium strong Br€onsted acid sites necessary for MCH isomerization increased after the modification of ZSM-5 by iron metal. So, NiO/ZSM-5-Fe exhibited enhanced MCH conversion, aromatic and isomerization yields when compared to NiO/ZSM-5 and other Ni-based catalysts. This study shows that NiO/ZSM-5-Fe catalyst may be possible to be integrated into the S-Zorb system achieving the recovery of the octane number of gasoline.

The Effect of Crop Rotation on Soil Nematode Community Composition in a Greenhouse

[Objective] The aim was to identify changes in a nematode community in response to crop rotation and to determine the appropriate catch crop for a greenhouse. [Method] The experiment was carried out in a typical 6-year-old greenhouse,in which cucumber crops were cultivated twice each year(in spring and autumn),and catch crops were planted in summer. The total number of nematodes was counted and nematode community indices were calculated after collecting soil samples in different stages. [Result] Total nematode abundance was decreased in the soils of catch crop in contrast with former crops(cucumber crops). The abundance of the nematode community was reduced in the treatment of crop rotation compared to the soils of catch crop. In addition, the number of nematode taxa was significantly reduced by the treatment of crown daisy compared to the treatments of following crops. Crop rotation regulated the functional composition of the nematode community by increasing the omnivores-predators functional group and decreasing the relative abundance of root herbivores. [Conclusion] These results indicate that crop rotation affects the nematode community in abundance, diversity and functional composition of the nematode community and crown daisy can be served as the most appropriate catch crop in the greenhouse.

The Description of Pancreatic Cancer Death in Inner Mongolia 2008-2014

Objective: The study aimed to assess the characteristics of pancreatic cancer deaths and the relationship between socio-demographic status and mortality risk of pancreatic cancer in Inner Mongolia. Method: We obtained our data for 2008-2014 from the Death Registry System of Inner Mongolia. We calculated the mortality rate, potential years of life lost (PYLL) and average years of life lost (AYLL) for men and women. We collected socio-demographic characteristics including education level, ethnicity, region, and occupation. Logistic regression models were employed to analyze risk factors of pancreatic cancer. Results: The average mortality rate of pancreatic cancer was 4.42/100,000 in Inner Mongolia during 2008 to 2014. Mortality rate in men was higher in all age groups compared with those in women. The highest mortality rate was 1.3 times than the lowest mortality rate for men and 1.6 times for women during seven years. Average AYLL in women were more than 3.4 years compared with that in men. PYLLR in women was fluctuated from 0.41 to 0.63 per thousand during 2008 to 2014. In eastern region, no occupation and high education level had a higher risk of pancreatic cancer. Conclusion: In Inner Mongolia, the mortality rate associated with pancreatic cancer was higher in men compared with in women. More than 65 years old groups had high death risk for pancreatic cancer. Average years of life lost for women were significantly higher than that for men. We should pay more attention to the older men.

Rhizospheric microbial communities are driven by Panax ginseng at different growth stages and biocontrol bacteria alleviates replanting mortality

The cultivation of Panax plants is hindered by replanting problems, which may be caused by plantdriven changes in the soil microbial community. Inoculation with microbial antagonists may efficiently alleviate replanting issues. Through high-throughput sequencing, this study revealed that bacterial diversity decreased,whereas fungal diversity increased, in the rhizosphere soils of adult ginseng plants at the root growth stage under different ages. Few microbial community, such as Luteolibacter, Cytophagaceae, Luteibacter, Sphingomonas,Sphingomonadaceae, and Zygomycota, were observed; the relative abundance of microorganisms, namely,Brevundimonas, Enterobacteriaceae, Pandoraea, Cantharellales, Dendryphion, Fusarium, and Chytridiomycota,increased in the soils of adult ginseng plants compared with those in the soils of 2-year-old seedlings. Bacillus subtilis 50-1, a microbial antagonist against the pathogenic Fusarium oxysporum, was isolated through a dual culture technique. These bacteria acted with a biocontrol efficacy of 67.8%. The ginseng death rate and Fusarium abundance decreased by 63.3% and 46.1%, respectively, after inoculation with B. subtilis 50-1. Data revealed that microecological degradation could result from ginseng-driven changes in rhizospheric microbial communities;these changes are associated with the different ages and developmental stages of ginseng plants. Biocontrol using microbial antagonists alleviated the replanting problem.

Integrated metabolomic and transcriptomic analyses revealed the distribution of saponins in Panax notoginseng

Panax notoginseng is famous for its important therapeutic effects. Saponins are bioactive compounds found in different parts and developmental stages of P. notoginseng plants. Thus, it is urgently to study saponins distribution in different parts and growth ages of P. notoginseng plants. In this study,potential biomarkers were found, and their chemical characteristic differences were revealed through metabolomic analysis. High-performance liquid chromatography data indicated the higher content of saponins(i.e., Rg1, Re, Rd, and Rb1) in the underground parts than that in the aerial parts. 20(S)-Protopanaxadiol saponins were mainly distributed in the aerial parts. Additionally, the total saponin content in the 3-year-old P. notoginseng plant(188.0 mg/g) was 1.4-fold higher than that in 2-year-old plant(130.5 mg/g). The transcriptomic analysis indicated the tissue-specific transcription expression of genes, namely, PnFPS, PnSS, PnSE1, PnSE2, and PnDS, which encoded critical synthases in saponin biosyntheses. These genes showed similar expression patterns among the parts of P. notoginseng plants.The expression levels of these genes in the flowers and leaves were 5.2 fold higher than that in the roots and fibrils. These results suggested that saponins might be actively synthesized in the aerial parts and transformed to the underground parts. This study provides insights into the chemical and genetic characteristics of P. notoginseng to facilitate the synthesis of its secondary metabolites and a scientific basis for appropriate collection and rational use of this plant.