Study of the inflammatory activating process in the early stage of Fusobacterium nucleatum infected PDLSCs

Fusobacterium nucleatum(F.nucleatum)is an early pathogenic colonizer in periodontitis,but the host response to infection with this pathogen remains unclear.In this study,we built an F.nucleatum infectious model with human periodontal ligament stem cells(PDLSCs)and showed that F.nucleatum could inhibit proliferation,and facilitate apoptosis,ferroptosis,and inflammatory cytokine production in a dose-dependent manner.The F.nucleatum adhesin Fad A acted as a proinflammatory virulence factor and increased the expression of interleukin(IL)-1β,IL-6 and IL-8.Further study showed that Fad A could bind with PEBP1 to activate the Raf1-MAPK and IKK-NF-κB signaling pathways.Time-course RNA-sequencing analyses showed the cascade of gene activation process in PDLSCs with increasing durations of F.nucleatum infection.NFκB1 and NFκB2 upregulated after 3 h of F.nucleatum-infection,and the inflammatory-related genes in the NF-κB signaling pathway were serially elevated with time.Using computational drug repositioning analysis,we predicted and validated that two potential drugs(piperlongumine and fisetin)could attenuate the negative effects of F.nucleatum-infection.Collectively,this study unveils the potential pathogenic mechanisms of F.nucleatum and the host inflammatory response at the early stage of F.nucleatum infection.

Advertisement Call Variability in the Black-spined Toad Bufo melanostictus (Anura: Bufonidae) during the Breeding Season in Lishui, Zhejiang, China

Advertisement calls play an important role in influencing female mate choice and are regarded as one of the key characters responsible for reproductive isolation and speciation events in frogs and toads. The black-spined toad, Bufo melanostictus, is one of the most common amphibians in Southeast Asia and is frequently observed in human habitations throughout its distributional range. The advertisement calls of the toad have not been well described. Here, we report the advertisement calls of this species from Lishui, Zhejiang, China during its breeding season. The advertisement calls of B. melanostictus are composed of single notes with a single harmonic frequency emitted sporadically. The call parameters recorded in this study were highly variable across recording times and with different body sizes. Dominant frequency was negatively correlated with body size. Comparing the calls of the B. melanostictus population from Lishui with the populations from five other localities(Bangkok, Thailand; Coorg, India; Burma, Myanmar; Bali, Indonesia; Halimun-Salak National Park, Indonesia), we found that call structure was similar among five different populations with no harmonics, while the Halimun-Salak National Park population contained two clear harmonics. Dominant frequency was similar between Bali(1.56 kHz) and Coorg(1.6 kHz) populations, while it was highly variable among other populations. Besides call duration, call interval and pulse/call rate may also be significantly different among the comparing populations. Pooling the available data, we observed some similarities and differences in call parameters among the six populations.

Age-related Variation in Snake Venom: Evidence from Two Snakes (Naja atra and Deinagkistrodon acutus) in Southeastern China

In this study we explored electrophoretic profiles, enzymatic activities and immunoreactivity of neonate and adult venoms from two snakes （Naja atra and Deinagkistrodon acutus） coexisting in southeastern China. Age-related variation in electrophoretic profiles was found in both species and proteolytic and fibrinogenolytic activity was higher in neonate than adult venoms. Neonate D. acutus venom had higher 5＇ nucleotidase, PLA2, hyaluronidase and gelatinolytie activity, but lower esterolytic activity, than adult venom. Neonate and adult D. acutus venoms showed identical phosphomonoesterase, LAO and fibrinolytic activities. Neonate N. atra venom had higher phosphomonoesterase and LAO activity, but lower 5＇ nucleotidase, PLA2, hyaluronidase and Ache activities than adult venom. Neonate and adult N. atra venoms showed similar gelatinolytic activity. Further, age-dependent immunoreactivity was found in both species, and cross-reactions between homologous venoms and antiserums were closely related to venom composition. We speculate that age-related variation in venom characteristics is possibly driven by evolutionary forces associated with ontogenetic shifts in dietary habits, competition and predation pressure.

Assessment Method of Offshore Wind Resource Based on Multi-dimenssiional Indexes System

Traditional assessment indexes could not fully describe offshore wind resources,for the meteorological properties of offshore are more complex than onshore.As a result,the uncertainty of offshore wind power projects would be increased and final economic benefits would be affected.Therefore,a study on offshore wind resource assessment is carried out,including three processes of“studying data sources,conducting multidimensional indexes system and proposing an offshore wind resource assessment method based on analytic hierarchy process(AHP).First,measured wind data and two kinds of reanalysis data are used to analyze the characteristics and reliability of data sources.Second,indexes such as effective wind speed occurrence,affluent level occurrence,coefficient of variation,neutral state occurrence have been proposed to depict availability,richness,and stability of offshore wind resources,respectively.Combined with existing parameters(wind power density,dominant wind direction occurrence,water depth,distance to coast),a multidimensional indexes system has been built and on this basis,an offshore wind energy potential assessment method has been proposed.Furthermore,the proposed method is verified by the annual energy production of five offshore wind turbines and practical operating data of four offshore wind farms in China.This study also compares the ranking results of the AHP model to two multi-criteria decision making(MCDM)models including weighted aggregated sum product assessment(WASPAS)and multi-attribute ideal real comparative analysis(MAIRCA).Results show the proposed method gains well in practical engineering applications,where the economic score values have been considered based on the offshore reasonable utilization hours of the whole life cycle in China.

SARS-CoV-2 ORF10 suppresses the antiviral innate immune response by degrading MAVS through mitophagy

The global coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS-CoV-2)has caused severe morbidity and mortality in humans.It is urgent to understand the function of viral genes.However,the function of open reading frame 10(ORF10),which is uniquely expressed by SARS-CoV-2,remains unclear.In this study,we showed that overexpression of ORF10 markedly suppressed the expression of type I interferon(IFN-I)genes and IFN-stimulated genes.Then,mitochondrial antiviral signaling protein(MAVS)was identified as the target via which ORF10 suppresses the IFN-I signaling pathway,and MAVS was found to be degraded through the ORF10-induced autophagy pathway.Furthermore,overexpression of ORF10 promoted the accumulation of LC3 in mitochondria and induced mitophagy.Mechanistically,ORF10 was translocated to mitochondria by interacting with the mitophagy receptor Nip3-like protein X(NIX)and induced mitophagy through its interaction with both NIX and LC3B.Moreover,knockdown of NIX expression blocked mitophagy activation,MAVS degradation,and IFN-I signaling pathway inhibition by ORF10.Consistent with our observations,in the context of SARS-CoV-2 infection,ORF10 inhibited MAVS expression and facilitated viral replication.In brief,our results reveal a novel mechanism by which SARS-CoV-2 inhibits the innate immune response;that is,ORF10 induces mitophagy-mediated MAVS degradation by binding to NIX.

The Contribution of Vocal Music Education in Colleges and Universities to Cultural Inheritance and Innovation

The importance of education and cultural inheritance is becoming increasingly prominent.Through literature review and empirical research,combining quantitative data and qualitative analysis,this paper assesses the teaching methods,curriculum,and student interest and participation in vocal music education in colleges and universities.The study found that vocal music education played a positive role in increasing students’participation in cultural activities,enhancing their identification with traditional music and improving their skills,despite problems such as inadequate teaching systems and homogenized curricula.In particular,the participation rate of students in cultural activities before and after the educational changes increased significantly from 31–54.7%to 62.4–83.6%,indicating that vocal music education can effectively stimulate students’enthusiasm for cultural participation.In addition,the strengthening of the teaching staff and innovations in teaching methods,such as the application of multimedia and virtual reality technologies,provide students with richer learning experiences and personalized learning paths.