A novel semi-dominant allele of the transmembrane NAC transcription factor ZmNTL2 reduces the size of multiple maize organs

Maize plant architecture influences planting density and,in turn,grain yield.Most of the plant architecture-related traits can be described as organ size.We describe a miniature maize mutant,Tiny plant 4(Tip4),which exhibits reduced size of multiple organs and exhibits a semi-dominant monofactorial inheritance characteristic.Positional cloning confirmed that a 4-bp deletion in the NAC TF with transmembrane motif 1-Like(NTL)gene ZmNTL2,denoted as ZmNTL2^(Δ),confers the Tip4 mutation.qRT-PCR showed that ZmNTL2 was expressed in all tested tissues.ZmNTL2 functions as a transcriptional activator and is located in both the nucleus and biomembranes.The mutation does not affect the mRNA abundance of ZmNTL2 locus,but it does result in the loss of transmembrane domain and confines the ZmNTL2^(Δ)protein to the nucleus.Knocking out ZmNTL2 has no effect on maize organ size development,indicating that the 4-bp deletion might be a gain-of-function mutation in organ size regulation.Combining transcriptome sequencing with cytokinin and auxin content determination suggests that the decreased organ size may be possibly mediated by changes in hormone homeostasis.

Synthesis,gas adsorption and reliable pore size estimation of zeolitic imidazolate framework-7 using CO_2 and water adsorption

Reliable estimation of the pore size distribution(PSD) in porous materials such as metal–organic frameworks(MOFs) and zeolitic imidazolate frameworks(ZIFs) is crucial for accurately assessing adsorption capacity and corresponding selectivity. In this study, the so-called zeolitic imidazolate framework-7(ZIF-7) is successfully synthesized via relatively fast and convenient microwave technique. The morphology and structure of the obtained MOF were characterized by XRD, SEM and N_2 and CO_2adsorption/desorption isotherms at 77 K and0 °C respectively. Then, to determine the PSD of the fabricated MOF, carbon dioxide isotherms are experimentally measured at various temperatures up to atmospheric pressure. Afterward, the experimental CO_2 isotherms data are utilized in two recently proposed in-house algorithms of SHN1 and SHN2 to extract the true PSD of manufactured ZIF-7. The obtained results revealed that median pore diameter of the fabricated ZIF-7 is estimated around 0.404 nm and 0.370 nm by using CO_2 isotherms at 273 K and 298 K respectively. These values are in good agreement with the real pore diameter of 0.42 nm. Moreover, experimental data of water adsorption isotherms over four different MOFs, borrowed from literature, are employed to illustrate further effectiveness of the above algorithms on successful determination of the corresponding pore size distributions. All predicted PSDs are proved to be in good agreement with those obtained from independent methods such as topology and morphology studies.

Biology of Hippo signaling pathway:Skeletal muscle development and beyond

Global demand for farm animals and their meat products i.e.,pork,chicken and other livestock meat,is steadily incresing.With the ongoing life science research and the rapid development of biotechnology,it is a great opportunity to develop advanced molecular breeding markers to efficiently improve animal meat production traits.Hippo is an important study subject because of its crucial role in the regulation of organ size.In recent years,with the increase of research on Hippo signaling pathway,the integrative application of multi-omics technologies such as genomics,transcriptomics,proteomics,and metabolomics can help promote the in-depth involvement of Hippo signaling pathway in skeletal muscle development research.The Hippo signaling pathway plays a key role in many biological events,including cell division,cell migration,cell proliferation,cell differentiation,cell apoptosis,as well as cell adhesion,cell polarity,homeostasis,maintenance of the face of mechanical overload,etc.Its influence on the development of skeletal muscle has important research value for enhancing the efficiency of animal husbandry production.In this study,we traced the origin of the Hippo pathway,comprehensively sorted out all the functional factors found in the pathway,deeply analyzed the molecular mechanism of its function,and classified it from a novel perspective based on its main functional domain and mode of action.Our aim is to systematically explore its regulatory role throughout skeletal muscle development.We specifically focus on the Hippo signaling pathway in embryonic stem cell development,muscle satellite cell fate determination,myogenesis,skeletal muscle meat production and organ size regulation,muscle hypertrophy and atrophy,muscle fiber formation and its transformation between different types,and cardiomyocytes.The roles in proliferation and regeneration are methodically summarized and analyzed comprehensively.The summary and prospect of the Hippo signaling pathway within this article will provide ideas for further improving meat production and muscle deposition and developing new molecular breeding technologies for livestock and poultry,which will be helpful for the development of animal molecular breeding.

Pulmonary Toxicity of a Formulated Preparation of Fenvalerate in Rats Subchronically Exposed by Nose Only Inhalation for 90 Days

Objective The pulmonary toxicity of a commercially available formulated preparation of Fenvalerate (Fen), a synthetic pyrethroid has been studied in rats following subchronic nose only inhalation exposure route. Method Adult male rats were exposed to Fen for 4h/day, 5 days a week for 90 days by using Flow Past Dynamic Nose only Inhalation Chamber. Results Fen exposed rats showed a significant increase in enzymatic activities of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), acid phosphatase (ACP), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and γ-glutamyl transferase (γ-GT) which are considered as biochemical indicators of pulmonary damage. The concomitant histopathological examination of Fen exposed rats' lung revealed inflammatory changes viz., influx of mononuclear cells admixed with a few giant cells in alveolar lumen, hypetrophied bronchiolar and alveolar epithelial lining cells and presence of edematous fluid in alveolar lumen alongwith congested parenchymatous blood vessels. Conclusion These results for the first time indicate the pulmonary toxic effects of a commonly used formulated Fen preparation by using rat model and nose only inhalation as the route of exposure.

Effect of adrenalectomy on rat epididymidis

AIM: To investigate the effect of adrenalectomy (ADX) on the epididymidis of Sprague-Dawley rats. METHODS: The histological, biochemical (cholesterol protein, zinc, copper, alkaline and acid phosphatase aryl sulphatase, lactic dehydrogenase and leucine amino peptidase) and hormonal (FSH, LH and testosterone) changes of caput and cauda epididymis in ADX rats were observed. RESULTS: Organ wet weight, histological studies and morphometric measurements indicated a cellular degeneration in caput and cauda epididymis of ADX rats. Serum testosterone level was significantly lower in ADX than in sham-operated rats, while the serum FSH and LH were below the detection limit of 1 mIU/mL. The enzymatic activity was higher in ADX than in sham-operated rats. Epididymal zinc level increased whereas copper level decreased in ADX rats compared to the sham-operated. CONCLUSION: Adrenalectomy leads to degeneration of caput and cauda epididymidis epithelial cells as a result of decreased supply of testosterone.

The trxG protein ULT1 regulates Arabidopsis organ size by interacting with TCP14/15 to antagonize the LIM peptidase DA1 for H3K4me3 on target genes

Plant organ size is an important agronomic trait that makes a significant contribution to plant yield.Despite its central importance,the genetic and molecular mechanisms underlying organ size control remain to be fully clarified.Here,we report that the trithorax group protein ULTRAPETALA1(ULT1)interacts with the TEOSINTE BRANCHED1/CYCLOIDEA/PCF14/15(TCP14/15)transcription factors by antagonizing the LIN-11,ISL-1,and MEC-3(LIM)peptidase DA1,thereby regulating organ size in Arabidopsis.Loss of ULT1 function significantly increases rosette leaf,petal,silique,and seed size,whereas overexpression of ULT1 results in reduced organ size.ULT1 associates with TCP14 and TCP15 to co-regulate cell size by affecting cellular endoreduplication.Transcriptome analysis revealed that ULT1 and TCP14/15 regulate common target genes involved in endoreduplication and leaf development.ULT1 can be recruited by TCP14/15 to promote lysine 4 of histone H3 trimethylation at target genes,activating their expression to determinefinal cell size.Furthermore,we found that ULT1 influences the interaction of DA1 and TCP14/15 and antagonizes the effect of DA1 on TCP14/15 degradation.Collectively,ourfindings reveal a novel epigenetic mechanism underlying the regulation of organ size in Arabidopsis.

Mechanism of Huatan Sanjie Fang in improving goiter in Graves'disease mice based on the Hippo signaling pathway

Objective:To explore the mechanism of Huatan Sanjie Fang(HTSJ)in regulating goiter in Graves'disease(GD)mice by detecting key factors of the Hippo signaling pathway.Methods:A mouse model of GD was established by injecting Ad-TSHR289 adenovirus into the bilateral quadriceps femoris of female mice.Successful mouse models were then randomly divided into a model group,methimazole(MMI)group,and HTSJ group,and fed with deionized water,MMI(4.5 mg/kg per day),and HTSJ(35.10 g/kg per day),respectively,for 10 weeks.Histopathological changes of the thyroid gland were subsequently observed by hematoxylin-eosin staining.Radioimmunoassay was used to detect serum total thyroxine(T4)and thyrotrophin-receptor antibody(TRAb)levels.The relative expression of mRNA of Mst1,YAP,and TAZ were detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction,while the protein expression of Mst1,YAP,TAZ,pMst1,and pYAP were detected by western blot.Results:After 10 weeks of drug intervention,goiter and other pathological changes in the HTSJ group significantly improved compared with the model group,and the levels of serum T4 and TRAb significantly decreased(P=.002,P<.001,respectively).Decreased mRNA expression of Mst1,YAP,and TAZ,the key factors of the Hippo signaling transduction pathway,was also observed(P=.002,P=.022,P<.001,respectively).In contrast,protein expression of Mst1(P=.046),pMst1(P=.026),and p YAP(P=.004)increased,while protein expression of YAP and TAZ decreased(P=.041,P<.001,respectively).Conclusion:HTSJ can effectively improve goiter in GD mice through the Hippo signaling pathway.

Expression of a rice OsARGOS gene in Arabidopsis promotes cell division and expansion and increases organ size

The ARGOS gene in Arabidopsis plays a key role in controlling plant organ size. To determine the function of it＇s ortholog in rice, a putative ARGOS orthologous gene from rice tissues was isolated and designated as OsARGOS. This gene has only one copy in the rice genome. OsARGOS transcripts were detected in most of rice tissues, particularly in the young tissues, and its expression was induced in rice seedlings by the application of either auxin or cytokinin. Arabidopsis plants expressing OsARGOS led to larger organs, such as leaves and siliques, compared with wild-type plants. Interestingly, the root growth was also enhanced in these transgenic Arabidopsis plants. Therefore, the biomass of the transgenic plants was significantly increased. Further analysis revealed that, different from the ARGOS and ARGOS-LIKE genes in Arabidopsis, the OsARGOS gene enlarged organ by an increase in both cell number and cell size. In addition, the transcript levels of several organ size-associated genes regulating either cell division or cell growth were upregulated in the transgenic Arabidopsis plants. We also transferred the OsARGOS gene to rice, but the transgenic plants did not show any changes in organ size compared with the control plants. It is likely that the function of OsARGOS in organ size control depends on other size regulators in rice. The expression of OsARGOS in Arabidopsis may activate the signaling pathways that control cell proliferation and cell expansion during the course of plant growth and development. Since the expression of OsARGOS causes organ enlargement, the potential application of this gene through genetic engineering may significantly improve the production of biomass in agricultural practice.

Efficacy and Safety of Medium-to-long-term Use of Tolterodine Extended Release with or without Tamsulosin in Patients with Benign Prostate Hyperplasia and Larger Prostate Size： A Double-blind, Placebo-controlled, Randomized Clinical Trial

Background： The medium-to-long-term use of antimuscarinics alone or in combination with an α-blocker in men with an enlarged prostate is still controversial. This double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of medium-to-long-term use of tolterodine extended release （ER） with or without tamsulosin in patients with benign prostate hyperplasia （BPH） and larger prostate size. Methods： Totally, 152 patients （age ≥50 years） with BPH, International Prostate Symptom Score （IPSS） ≥12, quality-of-life （QoL） score ≥3, and total prostate volume ≥25 ml were enrolled in this study. The patients were randomized into four groups （n = 38 in each） to receive tolterodine ER placebo plus tamsulosin placebo, 0.2 mg tamsulosin plus tolterodine ER placebo, 4 mg tolterodine ER plus tamsulosin placebo, or tolterodine ER plus tamsulosin once daily for 24 weeks. IPSS （total, storage, and voiding subscales）, QoL, maximum urinary flow rate （Qmax）, and postvoid residual volume （PVR） were collected at baseline, and at weeks 4, 12, and 24. Results： Compared with placebo, tolterodine ER plus tamsulosin significantly improved total IPSS （？7.15, ？12.20, and ？14.66 vs. ？3.51, ？5.78, and ？7.23）, storage IPSS （？3.56, ？5.63, and ？6.66 vs. ？1.52, ？1.21, and ？2.43）, voiding IPSS （？2.88, ？5.10, and ？6.48 vs. ？1.52, ？3.03, and ？2.97）, QoL （？1.21, ？2.40, and ？3.21 vs. ？0.39, ？1.41, and ？1.60）, Qmax （2.21, 7.97, and 9.72 ml/s vs. 2.15, 2.44, and 2.73 ml/s）, and PVR （？17.88, ？26.97, and ？27.89 ml vs. ？12.03, ？11.16, and ？16.73 ml） at weeks 4, 12, and 24, respectively; the differences were all statistically significant （P 〈 0.05）. Adverse events （AEs） were not increased with treatment progression. Tolterodine ER alone did not improve total IPSS （？4.61, ？6.79, and ？5.70）, voiding IPSS （？0.64, ？1.83, and ？1.45）, QoL （？0.69, ？1.21, and ？1.41）, or Qmax（？0.79, 2.83, and 1.11 ml/s）, compared with placebo （all P 〉 0.05）. However, a gradual increase in PVR （10.03, 10.41, and 12.89 ml） and more urinary AEs suggestive of urinary retention （11/38 vs. 4/38） were observed. Conclusion： Medium-to-long-term use of tolterodine ER plus tamsulosin should be recommended in patients with BPH and an enlarged prostate volume.

Overexpression of a New Putative Membrane Protein Gene AtMRB1 Results in Organ Size Enlargement in Arabidopsis

Arabidopsis AtMRB1 is predicted to encode a novel protein of 432 amino acid residues in length, with four putative transmembrane domains. In the present study, characterization of AtMRB1 is conducted. Green fluorescent protein （GFP） fusion protein assay showed that AtMRB1 was located in the plasma membrane. Transgenic lines overexpressing AtMRB1 driven by a CaMV 35S promoter were generated. Statistic analysis showed that, during the seedling stage, the organ sizes of the transgenic lines including hypocotyl length, root length and root weight were significantly larger than those of the wild type plants under both light and dark conditions. In the adult plant stage, the AtMRB1 overexpressor plants were found to have larger organ sizes in terms of leaf length and width, and increased number of cauline leaves and branches when bolting. Further observation indicated that the larger leaf size phenotype was due to a larger number of mesophyll cells, the size of which was not altered. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis showed that the transcription of ANT, ROT3 and GRF5 were upregulated in the AtMRBl.overexpressor plants. These data suggest that AtMRB1 is possibly a positive regulator of organ size development in Arabidopsis, mainly through cell number control.

Overexpression of the nuclear protein gene AtDUF4 increases organ size in Arabidopsis thaliana and Brassica napus

Organ size is an important trait of many crops that is influenced by internal and environmental signals and controlled by a combina- tion of factors during organogenesis （I（rizek, 2009）. The final size of plant organs is determined by two successive but overlapping pro- cesses： cell division, which increases cell number, and cell expan- sion, which determines final cell size （Anastasiou and Lenhard, 2007）. Some genes have been identified to control organ size by regulating cell division and for cell expansion in plants.

Growth suppressor lingerer regulates bantam microRNA to restrict organ size

The evolutionarily conserved Hippo signaling pathway plays an important role in organ size control by regulating cell proliferation and apoptosis.Here,we identify Lingerer(Lig)as a growth suppressor using RNAi modifying screen in Drosophila melanogaster.Loss of lig increases organ size and upregulates bantam(ban)and the expression of the Hippo pathway target genes,while overexpression of lig results in diminished ban expression and organ size reduction.We demonstrate that Lig C-terminal exhibits dominant-negative function on growth and ban expression,and thus plays an important role in organ size control and ban regulation.In addition,we provide evidence that both Yki and Mad are essential for Lig-induced ban expression.We also show that Lig regulates the expression of the Hippo pathway target genes partially via Yorkie.Moreover,we find that Lig physically interacts with and requires Salvador to restrict cell growth.Taken together,we demonstrate that Lig functions as a critical growth suppressor to control organ size via ban and Hippo signaling.

Hippo signaling:A hub of growth control,tumor suppression and pluripotency maintenance

The molecular mechanisms of organ size control and regulation remain one of the major unsolved mysteries of development biology. Almost a decade ago, the discovery of the Hippo signaling pathway in Drosophila shed some light on this puzzling issue. The Hippo signaling pathway is highly conserved in both invertebrates and vertebrates, and plays critical roles in animal development. It controls organ size and growth by inhibiting cell proliferation and by promoting apoptosis. Malfunction of the Hippo signaling pathway leads to cancer development and tumorigenesis. Although the core of the signaling pathway is well understood, the upstream inputs and downstream transcriptional regulation are still obscure to us. In this review, we summarize the current understanding of the mechanism and the function of the Hippo signaling pathway and compare its differences between flies and mammals. We underline the crosstalk between the Hippo signaling pathway and other signaling pathways, and the possible roles of the Hippo pathway in stem cell proliferation and self-renewal.

Chromosome-scale genomes provide new insights into subspecies divergence and evolutionary characteristics of the giant panda

Extant giant pandas are divided into Sichuan and Qinling subspecies.The giant panda has many speciesspecific characteristics,including comparatively small organs for body size,small genitalia of male individuals,and low reproduction.Here,we report the most contiguous,high-quality chromosomelevel genomes of two extant giant panda subspecies to date,with the first genome assembly of the Qinling subspecies.Compared with the previously assembled giant panda genomes based on short reads,our two assembled genomes increased contiguity over 200-fold at the contig level.Additional sequencing of 25 individuals dated the divergence of the Sichuan and Qinling subspecies into two distinct clusters from 10,000 to 12,000 years ago.Comparative genomic analyses identified the loss of regulatory elements in the dachshund family transcription factor 2(DACH2)gene and specific changes in the synaptotagmin 6(SYT6)gene,which may be responsible for the reduced fertility of the giant panda.Positive selection analysis between the two subspecies indicated that the reproduction-associated IQ motif containing D(IQCD)gene may at least partly explain the different reproduction rates of the two subspecies.Furthermore,several genes in the Hippo pathway exhibited signs of rapid evolution with giant panda-specific variants and divergent regulatory elements,which may contribute to the reduced inner organ sizes of the giant panda.

Study on the effects of organic matter characteristics on the residual aluminum and flocs in coagulation processes

Characteristics of organic matter may affect the residual aluminum after the coagulation process. This study reported the results of a survey for one drinking water treatment plant and measured the concentration of residual aluminum species with different molecular weights.Survey results indicated that humic acid or organic matter whose molecular weight was smaller than 1500 Da had significant effects on residual aluminum. All the treatment processes were ineffective in removing dissolved organic matter whose molecular weight was smaller than1500 Da. These results also indicated that the addition of sand or polyacrylamide in the coagulation process could greatly decrease the concentration of humic acid, and the concentration of residual aluminum also decreased. These results revealed that for all water samples after filtration, the majority of total residual aluminum existed in the form of total dissolved aluminum, accounting for 70%–90%. The concentration of residual aluminum produced in bovine serum albumin solutions indicated that when the DOC was larger than4.0 mg/L, there were still significant differences when the solution p H value varied from 4.0 to 9.0.

Characterization of natural organic matter in water for optimizing water treatment and minimizing disinfection by-product formation

Introduction Natural organic matter（NOM）present in source water has significant impact on water treatment processes and on the quality of drinking water.NOM is a complex mixture of diverse groups of organic compounds,humic and fulvic acids,proteins,peptides,carbohydrates,and heterogeneous materials

Arabidopsis SMALL ORGAN_4, a homolog of yeast NOP_(53), regulates cell proliferation rate during organ growth

Cel proliferation is a fundamental event essential for plant organogenesis and contributes greatly to the final organ size. Although the control of cel proliferation in plants has been extensively studied, how the plant sets the cel number required for a single organ is largely elusive. Here, we describe the Arabidopsis SMALL ORGAN 4 (SMO4) that functions in the regulation of cell proliferation rate and thus final organ size. The smo4 mutant exhibits a reduced size of organs due to the decreased cell number, and further analysis reveals that such phenotype results from a retardation of the cell cycle progression during organ development. SMO4 encodes a homolog of NUCLEOLAR PROTEIN 53 (NOP53) in Saccharomy-ces cerevisiae and is expressed primarily in tissues undergoing cel proliferation. Nevertheless, further complementation tests&nbsp;show that SMO4 could not rescue the lethal defect of NOP53 mutant of S. cerevisiae. These results define SMO4 as an important regulator of cell proliferation during organ growth and suggest that SMO4 might have been evolutionarily divergent from NOP53.