Single-cell RNA sequencing analysis of the retina under acute high intraocular pressure

High intraocular pressure causes retinal ganglion cell injury in primary and secondary glaucoma diseases,yet the molecular landscape characteristics of retinal cells under high intraocular pressure remain unknown.Rat models of acute hypertension ocular pressure were established by injection of cross-linked hyaluronic acid hydrogel(Healaflow■).Single-cell RNA sequencing was then used to describe the cellular composition and molecular profile of the retina following high intraocular pressure.Our results identified a total of 12 cell types,namely retinal pigment epithelial cells,rod-photoreceptor cells,bipolar cells,Müller cells,microglia,cone-photoreceptor cells,retinal ganglion cells,endothelial cells,retinal progenitor cells,oligodendrocytes,pericytes,and fibroblasts.The single-cell RNA sequencing analysis of the retina under acute high intraocular pressure revealed obvious changes in the proportions of various retinal cells,with ganglion cells decreased by 23%.Hematoxylin and eosin staining and TUNEL staining confirmed the damage to retinal ganglion cells under high intraocular pressure.We extracted data from retinal ganglion cells and analyzed the retinal ganglion cell cluster with the most distinct expression.We found upregulation of the B3gat2 gene,which is associated with neuronal migration and adhesion,and downregulation of the Tsc22d gene,which participates in inhibition of inflammation.This study is the first to reveal molecular changes and intercellular interactions in the retina under high intraocular pressure.These data contribute to understanding of the molecular mechanism of retinal injury induced by high intraocular pressure and will benefit the development of novel therapies.

Response of soil respiration to a severe drought in Chinese Eucalyptus plantations

Extreme droughts can adversely affect the dynamics of soil respiration in tree plantations. We used a severe drought in southwestern China as a case study to estimate the effects of drought on temporal variations in soil respiration in a plantation of Eucalyptus globulus. We documented a clear seasonal pattern in soil respiration with the highest values (100.9 mg C-CO2 m(-2) h(-1)) recorded in June and the lowest values (28.7 mg C-CO2 m(-2) h(-1)) in January. The variation in soil respiration was closely associated with the dynamics of soil water driven by the drought. Soil respiration was nearly twice as great in the wet seasons as in the dry seasons. Soil water content accounted for 83-91% of variation in soil respiration, while a combined soil water and soil temperature model explained 90-99% of the variation in soil respiration. Soil water had pronounced effects on soil respiration at the moisture threshold of 6-10%. Soil water was strongly related to changes in soil parameters (i.e., bulk density, pH, soil organic carbon, and available nitrogen). These strongly influenced seasonal variation in soil respiration. We found that soil respiration was strongly suppressed by severe drought. Drought resulted in a shortage of soil water which reduced formation of soil organic carbon, impacted soil acid-base properties and soil texture, and affected soil nutrient availability.

Urban land-use impacts on composition and spatiotemporal variations in abundance and biomass of earthworm community

Soil fauna can sensitively respond to alterations in soil environment induced by land-use changes.However,little is known about the impact of urban land-use changes on earthworm communities.In this study,three land-use types(i.e.,forest,nursery and abandoned lands)were chosen to identify differences in diversity,abundance and biomass of earthworm community in Kunming City.Urban land-use had a pronounced difference in species composition,evenness and diversity of earthworm communities.Forest land had the highest density,biomass and diversity of the earthworm communities.Total abundance was dominated by endogeic species in nursery land(70%)and abandoned land(80%),whereas in the forest land,the earthworm community comprised epigeic,endogeic and anecic species.Temporal changes in earthworm density and biomass were also significantly affected by land-use change.Total density and biomass of earthworms in the forest and nursery lands were highest in September,but highest in the abandoned land in October.The influence of soil physicochemical properties on the earthworm density and biomass also varied with land-use types.Soil temperature significantly affected earthworm density and biomass in the three land-use types.Soil pH was positively correlated with earthworm biomass in the forest land,but negatively associated with earthworm density in the abandoned land.Soil organic matter was positively correlated only with density and biomass of earthworms in the nursery and abandoned lands.Our results suggest that the species composition,abundance and biomass of earthworm communities can be determined by the modification of soil properties associated with urban land-use type.

Effects of soil fauna on leaf litter decomposition under different land uses in eastern coast of China

Soil fauna decompose litter, whereas land use changes may significantly alter the composition and structure of soil fauna assemblages. However, little is known of the effects of land-use on the contribution of soil fauna to litter decomposition. We studied the impacts of soil fauna on the decomposition of litter from poplar trees under three different land uses （i.e. poplar-crop integrated system, poplar plantation, and cropland）, from December 2013 to December 2014, in a coastal area of Northern Jiangsu Province. We collected litter samples in litterbags with three mesh sizes （5, 1 and 0. 01 mm, respectively） to quantify the contribution of various soil fauna to the decomposition of poplar leaf litter. Litter decomposition rates differed significantly by land use and were highest in the cropland, intermediate in the poplar-crop integrated system, and lowest in the poplar plantation. Soil fauna in the poplar-crop integrated system was characterized by the highest numbers of taxa and individuals, and highest Margalef＇s diversity, which suggested that agro-forestry ecosystems may support a greater quantity, distribution, and biodiversity of soil fauna than can single-species agriculture or plantation forestry. The individuals and groups of soil fauna in the macro-mesh litterbags were higher than in the meso-mesh litterbags underthe same land use types. The average contribution rate of meso- and micro-fauna to litter decomposition was 18.46%, which was higher than the contribution rate of macro-fauna （3.31%）. The percentage of remaining litter mass was inversely related to the density of the soil fauna （P 〈 0.05） in poplar plantations; however, was unrelated in the poplar-crop integrated system and cropland. This may have been the result of anthropogenic interference in poplar-crop integrated systems and croplands. Our study suggested that when land-use change alters vegetation types, it can affect species composition and the structure of soil fauna assemblages, which, in turn, affects litter decomposition.

Termination of Recurrent Atrial Fibrillation by Superior Vena Cava Isolation: A Case Report

Background:Paroxysmal atrial fibrillation can be triggered by non-pulmonary vein foci,such as the superior vena cava.Here,we report the case of a patient with a 6-year history of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation who received cryoballoon ablation in 2012 but relapsed in 2014.He then received cardiac radiofrequency ablation,which successfully isolated the left pulmonary vein and superior vena cava,but the arrhythmia recently relapsed again.The tachycardia was finally successfully terminated by ablation on the free wall without recurrence during a 2-year following up.Conclusion:Superior vena cava isolation may not require ablation isolation with a full circle way and can be accomplished by ablating several connection points between the superior vena cava and the right atrium.

Activation of hypothalamic gono-like neurons in female rats during estrus

In mammals, gonadal function is controlled by the activity of hypothalamic gonadotropin-releasing hormone neurons, which control the secretion of adenohypophyseal and gonadal hormones. However, there are a number of unanswered questions in relation to gonadal function. It is currently unknown how erotogenic stimulation of the genitals influences the subpopulation of hypothalamic medial preoptic area neurons, antidromically identified as projecting to the median eminence at different periods of the estrous cycle. Additionally, the distinctiveness of hypothalamic medial preoptic area neurons, with respect to methods of feedback control by exogenous hormones, is also unknown. In this study, spontaneous discharges from individual neurons encountered within the medial preoptic area, gono-like neurons, were recorded extracellularly using glass microelectrodes. To confirm the cellular and histochemical properties of the recording units, antidromic stimulation was performed using a side-by-side bipolar stimulating electrode placed into the median eminence, alongside microiontophoretic injections of the conventional tracer, horseradish peroxidase. In addition, further immunohistochemical analyses were performed. Results showed that elevated gono-neuron activity was accompanied by increased background activity and greater responses to erotogenic stimuli during estrus. Application of clitoral traction stimulation resulted in increased activation of the gono-like neurons. This neuronal activity was noticeably inhibited by β-estradiol administration. Immunohistochemical analyses revealed the presence of gonadotropin-releasing hormone-reactive protein in hypothalamic cells in which electrophysiological recordings were taken. Thus, medial preoptic area neurons represent the subset of hypothalamic gonadotropin-releasing hormone neurons described from brain slices in vitro, and might serve as a useful physiological model to form the basis of future in vivo studies.

Design, performance and application of a line-imaging velocity interferometer system for any reflector coupled with a streaked optical pyrometer system at the Shenguang-Ⅱ upgrade laser facility

The velocity interferometer system for any reflector(VISAR) coupled with a streaked optical pyrometer(SOP) system is used as a diagnostic tool in inertial confinement fusion(ICF) experiments involving equations of state and shock timing.To validate the process of adiabatically compressing the fuel shell through precise tuning of shocks in experimental campaigns for the double-cone ignition(DCI) scheme of ICF, a compact line-imaging VISAR with an SOP system is designed and implemented at the Shenguang-II upgrade laser facility. The temporal and spatial resolutions of the system are better than 30 ps and 7 μm, respectively. An illumination lens is used to adjust the lighting spot size matching with the target size. A polarization beam splitter and λ/4 waveplate are used to increase the transmission efficiency of our system. The VISAR and SOP work at 660 and 450 nm, respectively, to differentiate the signals from the scattered lights of the drive lasers. The VISAR can measure the shock velocity. At the same time, the SOP system can give the shock timing and relative strength. This system has been used in different DCI campaigns, where the generation and propagation processes of multi-shock are carefully diagnosed.

High-Q collective Mie resonances in monocrystalline silicon nanoantenna arrays for the visible light

Dielectric optical antennas have emerged as a promising nanophotonic architecture for manipulating the propagation and localization of light.However,the optically induced Mie resonances in an isolated nanoantenna are normally with broad spectra and poor𝑄-factors,limiting their performances in sensing,lasing,and nonlinear optics.Here,we dramatically enhance the𝑄-factors of Mie resonances in silicon(Si)nanoparticles across the optical band by arranging the nanoparticles in a periodic lattice.We select monocrystalline Si with negligible material losses and develop a unique method to fabricate nanoparticle arrays on a quartz substrate.By extinction dispersion measurements and electromagnetic analysis,we can identify three types of collective Mie resonances with𝑄-factors∼500 in the same nanocylinder arrays,including surface lattice resonances,bound states in the continuum,and quasi-guided modes.Our work paves the way for fundamental research in strong light-matter interactions and the design of highly efficient light-emitting metasurfaces.

NetGO 3.0:Protein Language Model Improves Large-scale Functional Annotations

As one of the state-of-the-art automated function prediction(AFP)methods,NetGO 2.0 integrates multi-source information to improve the performance.However,it mainly utilizes the proteins with experimentally supported functional annotations without leveraging valuable information from a vast number of unannotated proteins.Recently,protein language models have been proposed to learn informative representations[e.g.,Evolutionary Scale Modeling(ESM)-1b embedding] from protein sequences based on self-supervision.Here,we represented each protein by ESM-1b and used logistic regression(LR)to train a new model,LR-ESM,for AFP.The experimental results showed that LR-ESM achieved comparable performance with the best-performing component of NetGO 2.0.Therefore,by incorporating LR-ESM into NetGO 2.0,we developed NetGO 3.0 to improve the performance of AFP extensively.

CO_2 Emissions Embodied in China's Foreign Trade:An Investigation from the Perspective of Global Vertical Specialization

In light of the growth in vertically specialized in global trade, the present paper uses input output tables from the World Input-Output Database to construct an environmental multi regional input-output model to calculate the CO2 emissions embodied in China＇s international trade during 1995-2009. The advantage of this model lies in its incorporation of the re exported CO2 emissions component embodied in trade and its ability to differentiate domestic sourced CO2 emissions from foreign-sourced CO2 emissions in trade. The results show that carbon emissions embodied in both China＇s exports and imports increased significantly during 1995-2009. One important reason for this is that the re-exported carbon emissions embodied in China＇s imported intermediate inputs increased substantially during this period. Our research reveals that accelerating the transformation of trade pattern and upgrading processing trade should be emphasized in the formulation of policy to prompt CO 2 emissions abatement in China.

Longitudinal single-cell RNA-seq of hESCs-derived retinal organoids

Human retina development involves multiple well-studied signaling pathways that promote the genesis of a wide arrange of different cell types in a complex architectural structure.Human embryonic stem cells(hESCs)-derived retinal organoids could recapitulate the human retinal development.We performed single-cell RNA-seq of retinal organoids from 5 time points(D36,D66,D96,D126,D186)and identified 9 distinct populations of cells.In addition,we analyzed the molecular characteristics of each main population and followed them from genesis to maturity by pseudotime analysis and characterized the cell-cell interactions between different cell types.Interestingly,we identified insulin receptor(INSR)as a specifically expressed receptor involved in the genesis of photoreceptors,and pleiothropin(PTN)-protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor type Z1(PTPRZ1)as a mediator of a previously unknown interaction between Müller and retinal progenitor cells.Taken together,these findings provide a rich transcriptome-based lineage map for studying human retinal development and modeling developmental disorders in retinal organoids.

Transition metal-doped heteropoly catalysts for the selective oxidation of methacrolein to methacrylic acid

Heteropoly compounds with the general formula Cs1Mo.5X＋H3-o.5xP1.2MOllVO4o （M = Fe, Co, Ni, Cu or Zn） and CslCuyH3_2yP1.2MO11VO40 （y = 0.1, 0.3 or 0.7） were synthesized and then used as catalysts for the selective oxidation of methacrolein to methacrylic acid. The effects of the transition metals on the structure and activity of the catalysts were investigated. FTIR spectra showed that the transition metal-doped catalysts main- tained the Keggin structure of the undoped catalysts. X-ray diffraction results indicated that before calcination, the catalysts doped with Fe and Cu had cubic secondary structures, while the catalysts doped with Co, Ni or Zn had both triclinic and cubic phases and the Co-doped catalyst had the highest content of the triclinic form. Thermal treatment can decrease the content of the triclinic phase. NH3 temperature-programmed desorption and H2 tem- perature-programmed reduction results showed that the transition metals changed the acid and redox properties of the catalysts. The addition of Fe or Cu had positive effects on the activities of the catalyst which is due to the improvement of the electron transfer between the Fe or Cu and the Mo. The effects of the copper content on structure and catalytic activity were also investigated. The CSlCUo.3H2P1.2MO11VO40 catalyst had the best performance for the selective oxidation of methacrolein to methacrylic acid.