Survey and Analysis of Vegetable Germplasm Resources in Hubei Province

Based on the general survey of crop germplasm resources in Hubei Province,the third survey and collection of crop germplasm resources was conducted in 199 villages of 19 counties( cities/districts) of Hubei Province during 2015-2017. A total of 1 072 accessions of vegetables were collected. The taxonomy,distribution,agronomic traits and preservation of the vegetable germplasm resources,as well as the main vegetable resources and characteristic resources in the 19 counties( cities/districts) were analyzed. The results showed that the local vegetable landraces cover 26 families. Hong'an County,Zhongxiang City,Gucheng County,Nanzhang County and Yuan'an County have more vegetable landraces than other counties( cities/districts). The local landraces are characterized by good quality,strong resistance and tolerance to barrenness,but most of them are distributed in remote areas with low purity,low yield and serious threat of degradation. The local vegetable landraces are mostly preserved by some well-educated elder farmers. The vegetable cultivars of Cruciferae,Solanaceae,Cucurbitaceae,Liliaceae and Leguminosae account for 71. 46% of the total vegetable resources. The characteristic vegetable resources such as pearl flower( Staghylea bumalda DC.),scallion( Allium paepalanthoides) and elephant-foot yam( Amorphophallus spp.) are scattered in the mountainous areas of Hubei Province. This study can provide reference for the protection and utilization of local resources of vegetables in Hubei Province.

iTRAQ proteomics reveals the regulatory response to Xanthomonas campestris pv.vesicatoria in resistant vs.susceptible pepper genotypes

Bacterial spot(BS)is a severe bacterial disease induced by Xanthomonas campestris pv.vesicatoria(Xcv),a pathogen that causes serious damage to pepper growth and yield.It is therefore important to study the mechanisms of pepper resistance to Xcv and to breed and promote Xcvresistant pepper varieties.However,studies of the responses to Xcv infection in peppers at the protein level are limited.Here,we examined Xcv-induced proteomic changes in leaves of the BS susceptible bell pepper ECW and the resistant bell pepper VI037601 using the isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation(iTRAQ)-based protein labeling technology.A total of 6,120 distinct proteins were identified,and there were 1,289 significantly differentially accumulated proteins(DAPs)in ECW and VI037601 leaves after Xcv inoculation.Among these,339(250up-and 89 down-regulated)and 479(300 up-and 179 down-regulated)DAPs were specifically identified in ECW and VI037601,respectively,with 459(364 up-and 95 down-regulated)similarly expressed DAPs being shared by ECW and VI037601.Based on bioinformatics analysis,many defense-associated proteins were identified as up-regulated in ECW and VI037601,especially the proteins involved in plant-pathogen interaction,phenylpropanoid biosynthesis,protein processing in the endoplasmic reticulum,and MAPK signaling pathway-plant.Moreover,we evaluated transcript levels of six differentially expressed genes from the iTRAQ results by q RT-PCR.The analysis revealed transcriptional changes that were consistent with the changes at the protein level.This study will provide a valuable resource for understanding the molecular basis of pepper resistance to Xcv infection and for improving the disease resistance of pepper cultivars.

Current Situation of Introduction and Use of African Crop Germplasm Resources and Recommendations

Africa is the origin center of many crops. It is rich in original ecological resources,especially special resources which are excellent materials for breeding research. With acceleration of commercial seeds in agriculture of African countries,some original ecological resources are disappearing. Through experience of introduction of African varieties in recent years,it analyzed current situation of introduction and use of African crop germplasm resources. Finally,it came up with recommendations for rescuing and taking full advantage of excellent African resources,solving difficult problem restricting crop breeding,enriching China's crop germplasm bank,and improving China's and African crop breeding level and innovation ability.

Regulation of the macrophage-related inflammatory microenvironment for atherosclerosis treatment and angiogenesis via anti-cytokine agents

Macrophages-mediated atherosclerosis(AS)is an inflammatory disease and the most common cause of ischemia.With the progress of basic and clinical research,anti-cytokine therapy has garnered considerable attention of the research community for the regulation of the inflammatory microenvironment for AS treatment.Despite of their promising potential,primary clinical trials have revealed that anti-cytokine drugs exhibit poor selectivity and thus affect other parts of the immune system,especially during long-term management.To circumvent these limitations,herein we exploited mesoporous silica nanoparticles(MSNs)with a pore size of 15.5 nm as carriers for the anti-interleukin-1β(anti-IL-1β)delivery to be the anti-cytokine agents.In vitro mechanistic studies indicated that the MSNs@anti-IL-1βcan regulate the macrophage-related inflammatory microenvironment,promote the viability of vascular endothelial cells(vECs),and reduce proliferation and phenotypic switching of vascular smooth muscle cells(vSMCs).In vivo evaluation further revealed that the MSNs@anti-IL-1βwere preferentially accumulated in macrophages,impeding the AS progress by maintaining the endothelium integrity and inhibiting the vSMCs proliferation.Besides,MSNs@antiIL-1βinduced neovascularization and improved hindlimb ischemia regeneration.Taken together,these MSNs affording the sustained release of anti-cytokine agents may have broad implications for the clinical management of the AS,including the reduction of the AS progression and alleviation of the ischemia.