Mitigating growth-stress tradeoffs via elevated TOR signaling in rice

Rice production accounts for approximately half of the freshwater resources utilized in agriculture,result-ing in greenhouse gas emissions such as methane(CH4)from flooded paddy fields.To address this chal-lenge,environmentally friendly and cost-effective water-saving techniques have become widely adopted in rice cultivation.However,the implementation of water-saving treatments(WsTs)in paddy-field rice has been associated with a substantial yield loss of up to 50%as well as a reduction in nitrogen use efficiency(NUE).In this study,we discovered that the target of rapamycin(TOR)signaling pathway is compromised in rice under WsT.Polysome profiling-coupled transcriptome sequencing(polysome-seq)analysis unveiled a substantial reduction in global translation in response to WST associated with the downregulation of TOR activity.Molecular,biochemical,and genetic analyses revealed new insights into the impact of the positive TOR-S6K-RPS6 and negative TOR-MAF1 modules on translation repression under WST.Intriguingly,ammonium exhibited a greater ability to alleviate growth constraints under WsT by enhancing TOR signaling,which simultaneously promoted uptake and utilization of ammonium and nitrogen allocation.We further demonstrated that TOR modulates the ammonium transporter AMT1;1 as well as the amino acid permease APP1 and dipeptide transporter NPF7.3 at the translational level through the 5'untranslated region.Collectively,these findings reveal that enhancing TOR signaling could mitigate rice yield penalty due to WST by regulating the processes involved in protein synthesis and NUE.Our study will contribute to the breeding of new rice varieties with increased water and fertilizer utilization efficiency.

A novel Tb^(3+) and Eu^(3+) co-doped dual-emitting phosphate K_(3)SrBi(P_(2)O_(7))_(2) phosphor for application in FIR thermometers

Rare earth co-doped phosphor for fluorescence intensity ratio(FIR) thermometer has gained increasing attention in recent years. Herein, the novel Tb^(3+)and Eu^(3+)co-doped K_(3)SrBi(P_(2)O_(7))_(2)(KSBP) phosphate phosphors were reported. The crystal structure of the title phosphor was determined using Rietveld refinement and proved to have a three-dimensional structure. The time-resolved spectroscopy reveals that there is almost no energy transfer between Tb^(3+)and Eu^(3+). More importantly, Tb^(3+)and Eu^(3+)emissions show different thermal quenching behaviors, which claims the potential of this material for application in optical thermometer. The FIR of the typical KSBP:0.02Tb^(3+),0.04Eu^(3+)sample demonstrates a polynomial relationship as a function of temperature and the absolute and relative sensitivity are0.025 K^(-1) and 0.59%/K, respectively. In general, our study reports a novel and potential KSBP:Tb^(3+),Eu^(3+)phosphate phosphor that is promising for use in high-sensitive FIR thermometers.

The development of local ambient air quality standards: A case study of Hainan Province, China

The ambient air quality standard(AAQS)is a vital policy instrument for protecting the environment and human health.Hainan Province is at the forefront of China's efforts to protect its ecological environment,with an official goal to achieve world-leading air quality by 2035.However,neither the national AAQS nor the World Health Organization guideline offers sufficient guidance for improving air quality in Hainan because Hainan has well met the former while the latter is excessively stringent.Consequently,the establishment of Hainan's local AAQS becomes imperative.Nonetheless,research regarding the development of local AAQS is scarce,especially in comparatively more polluted countries such as China.The relatively high background values and significant interannual fluctuations in air pollutant concentrations in Hainan present challenges in the development of local AAQS.Our research proposes a world-class local AAQS of Hainan Province by reviewing the AAQS in major countries or regions worldwide,analyzing the influence of different statistical forms,and carefully evaluating the attainability of the standard.In the proposed AAQS,the annual mean concentration limit for PM2.5,the annual 95th percentile of daily maximum 8-h mean(MDA8)concentration limit for O_(3),and the peak season concentration limit for O_(3) are set at 10,120,and 85μg/m^(3),respectively.Our study indicates that,with effective control policies,Hainan is projected to achieve compliance with the new standard by 2035.The implementation of the local AAQS is estimated to avoid 1,526(1,253–1,789)and 259(132–501)premature deaths attributable to longterm exposure to PM2.5 and O_(3) in Hainan in 2035,respectively.

RNA barcode segments for SARS-CoV-2 identification from HCoVs and SARSr-CoV-2 lineages

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS-CoV-2),the pathogen responsible for coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19),continues to evolve,giving rise to more variants and global reinfections.Previous research has demonstrated that barcode segments can effectively and cost-efficiently identify specific species within closely related populations.In this study,we designed and tested RNA barcode segments based on genetic evolutionary relationships to facilitate the efficient and accurate identification of SARS-CoV-2 from extensive virus samples,including human coronaviruses(HCoVs)and SARSr-CoV-2 lineages.Nucleotide sequences sourced from NCBI and GISAID were meticulously selected and curated to construct training sets,encompassing 1733 complete genome sequences of HCoVs and SARSr-CoV-2 lineages.Through genetic-level species testing,we validated the accuracy and reliability of the barcode segments for identifying SARS-CoV-2.Subsequently,75 main and subordinate species-specific barcode segments for SARS-CoV-2,located in ORF1ab,S,E,ORF7a,and N coding sequences,were intercepted and screened based on single-nucleotide polymorphism sites and weighted scores.Post-testing,these segments exhibited high recall rates(nearly 100%),specificity(almost 30%at the nucleotide level),and precision(100%)performance on identification.They were eventually visualized using one and two-dimensional combined barcodes and deposited in an online database(http://virusbarcodedatabase.top/).The successful integration of barcoding technology in SARS-CoV-2 identification provides valuable insights for future studies involving complete genome sequence polymorphism analysis.Moreover,this cost-effective and efficient identification approach also provides valuable reference for future research endeavors related to virus surveillance.

嗜水气单胞菌hfq2基因对生物被膜形成的影响

Hfq蛋白是一种进化上保守的sRNA分子伴侣蛋白,在转录后水平调控RNA翻译,涉及细菌重要生理功能的调节.嗜水气单胞菌ATCC 7966基因组中含有两个hfq基因拷贝(AHA_0924与AHA_3797),目前对AHA_3797(简称hfq2)基因功能的研究比较少.本研究首先利用同源重组技术敲除该基因,发现hfq2缺失后形成生物膜的能力显著降低(P<0.001),进一步通过SWATH(sequential window acquisition of all theoretical spectra)定量蛋白质组学技术比较野生型与Δhfq2在生物膜状态下的蛋白表达差异,共鉴定出1538个蛋白,其中131个蛋白表达上调, 140个蛋白表达下调.生物信息学分析表明,生物被膜状态下Δhfq2导致细菌铁离子转运相关蛋白表达上调,趋化作用相关蛋白则大幅度下调.进一步利用Western Blotting对部分差异蛋白的表达进行了验证.最后通过铁离子螯合剂添加试验证实, Hfq2蛋白可以通过影响铁离子动态平衡过程来影响细菌生物被膜的形成.了解Hfq2蛋白在细菌生物被膜形成过程的调控机理,对病原菌的防治以及新型抑菌策略的研发具有重要的科学意义.