New Polyketides from the Antarctic Fungus Pseudogymnoascus sp. HSX2#-11

The species Pseudogymnoascus is known as a psychrophilic pathogenic fungus with a ubiquitous distribution in Antarctica. Meanwhile, the study of its secondary metabolites is infrequent. Systematic research of the metabolites of the fungus Pseudogymnoascus sp. HSX2#-11, guided by the method of molecular networking, led to the isolation of one novel polyketide, pseudophenone A (1), along with six known analogs (2–7). The structure of the new compound was elucidated by extensive spectroscopic investigation and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Pseudophenone A (1) is a dimer of diphenyl ketone and diphenyl ether, and there is only one analog of 1 to the best of our knowledge. Compounds 1 and 2 exhibited antibacterial activities against a panel of strains. This is the first time to use molecular networking to study the metabolic profiles of Antarctica fungi.     

Interaction effects between the agglomerative externalities affecting the survival of small startups

The purpose of this study is to identify the relationship between the survival of firms and the influence of agglomeration economies on firm location using a mixed effect Cox model considering random effects, given the industrial conditions of South Korea. Each agglomerative externality had a negative effect on the survival proportion of small startups except the related variety of the tertiary sector. However, the interaction effects between each externality and the location potential and among agglomerative externalities mostly played a complementary role to the survivability of startups; however certain effects reduced the survivability, and the effects were differentiated for each industrial sector. This study provides an advanced understanding of small firm performance after entry into the market in developing and developed nations.     

工业级棉短绒清理回收工艺的改进

为降低棉短绒中的杂质含量，提高棉短绒的质量及收率，对棉短绒清理回收的生产工艺进行了改进，创新连续化多级除杂装备和短绒精细化分离工艺。棉籽清理除杂工艺中，增加了圆筛、棒条机，并且调整了风力清籽机组配置；短绒分离工艺中，增加了五联筛和新型棒条机。改进后的工艺能够提升对毛棉籽的除杂效果，彻底清理剥绒得到的棉短绒中的碎棉仁、棉壳及棉秆等杂质。此外，该工艺还能回收棉短绒下脚料，满足大型生产线的生产要求。     

EPS364, a Novel Deep-Sea Bacterial Exopolysaccharide,Inhibits Liver Cancer Cell Growth and Adhesion

The prognosis of liver cancer was inferior among tumors. New medicine treatments are urgently needed. In this study, a novel exopolysaccharide EPS364 was purified from Vibrio alginolyticus 364, which was isolated from a deep-sea cold seep of the South China Sea. Further research showed that EPS364 consisted of mannose, glucosamine, gluconic acid, galactosamine and arabinose with a molar ratio of 5:9:3.4:0.5:0.8. The relative molecular weight of EPS364 was 14.8 kDa. Our results further revealed that EPS364 was a β-linked and phosphorylated polysaccharide. Notably, EPS364 exhibited a significant antitumor activity, with inducing apoptosis, dissipation of the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in Huh7.5 liver cancer cells. Proteomic and quantitative real-time PCR analyses indicated that EPS364 inhibited cancer cell growth and adhesion via targeting the FGF19-FGFR4 signaling pathway. These findings suggest that EPS364 is a promising antitumor agent for pharmacotherapy.     

紫花槭秋季叶色表达转录组初步分析

为了丰富紫花槭转录组数据,进一步开展紫花槭秋季叶片呈色机制研究.本研究以紫花槭秋季转色期三个阶段(前期,中期,后期)叶片为材料,采用高通量测序技术进行转录组初步分析.转录组数据共获得50501条Unigene,有35316条Unigene在数据库中得到注释,其中NR数据库中注释到的Unigene数量最多,共35024条,占69.4％.在注释到的物种中,紫花槭比对的Unigene与甜橙(Citrus sinensis)相似度最高,共有4290条,占12.25％.紫花槭转录组中的Unigene根据GO功能可分为生物学过程、细胞组分和分子功能3大类,共有25375条,其中生物学过程的基因最多,主要聚集于代谢过程和细胞过程等.基于Unigene库的基因结构分析,其中SSR分析共获得12711个SSR标记,占Unigene总数的36％.SSR位点共包含150种重复基元,单碱基重复所占比例最高(7184个,61.86％),四碱基重复、五碱基重复和六碱基重复所占比例较低.Unigene库中共有328239个SNP位点,发生频率为1/190 bp,SNP位点分为转换和颠换两种类型的碱基替换方式,其中碱基转换位点213787个(65.13％),碱基颠换位点114452个(34.87％),碱基转换类型发生频率高于颠换类型.6种单碱基变异中,2种转换类型A/G、C/T的发生频率分别为33.03％和32.10％;4种颠换类型中A/T发生频率最高,为11.52％;C/G发生频率最低,为5.79％.紫花槭转录组秋季叶色表达的转录组分析,可为紫花槭叶色基因调控、定向分子育种和培育彩叶新品种提供研究提供基础的数据信息.     

Conductive 3D structure nanofibrous scaffolds for spinal cord regeneration

The complex nature of spinal cord injuries has provided much inspiration for the design of novel biomaterials and scaffolds which are capable of stimulating neural tissue repair strategies. Recently, conductive polymers have gained much attention for improving the nerve regeneration. In our previous study, a three-dimensional (3D) structure with reliable performance was achieved for electrospun scaffolds. The main purpose in the current study is formation of electrical excitable 3D scaffolds by appending polyaniline (PANI) to biocompatible polymers. In this paper, an attempt was made to develop conductive nanofibrous scaffolds, which can simultaneously present both electrical and topographical cues to cells. By using a proper 3D structure, two kinds of conductive scaffolds are compared with a non-conductive scaffold. The 3D nanofibrous core-sheath scaffolds, which are conductive, were prepared with nanorough sheath and aligned core. Two different sheath polymers, including poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) PLGA and PLGA/PANI, with identical PCL/PANI cores were fabricated. Nanofibers of PCL and PLGA blends with PANI have fiber diameters of 234±60.8 nm and 770±166.6 nm, and conductivity of 3.17×10^-5 S/cm and 4.29×10^-5 S/cm, respectively. The cell proliferation evaluation of nerve cells on these two conductive scaffolds and previous non-conductive scaffolds (PLGA) indicate that the first conductive scaffold (PCL/ PANI-PLGA) could be more effective for nerve tissue regeneration. Locomotor scores of grafted animals by developed scaffolds showed significant performance of non-conductive 3D scaffolds. Moreover, the animal studies indicated the ability of two new types of conductive scaffolds as spinal cord regeneration candidates.     

狗头枣GSTU基因的克隆及其序列分析

为探索红枣GSTU类基因在红枣抗逆中的分子作用机制,本研究以狗头枣枣树叶片的DNA为模板,根据枣GSTU基因的序列(HM345954.1)设计引物,采用PCR方法获得GSTU基因序列,并利用生物信息学手段对其所对应蛋白的结构域、功能域、理化特性、跨膜区、二级结构及亚细胞定位等进行分析。结果表明:克隆到的DNA序列全长838 bp,具有2个外显子和1个内含子,内含子在292~460 bp碱基处,该序列与GenBank中枣的GSTU核苷酸序列和氨基酸序列的同源性分别为99.85%和100%,表明成功的克隆了狗头枣的GSTU基因。该序列编码222个氨基酸,分子量为25.268 kD,理论等电点(pI)为6.10;亲水性的平均数为-0.242,表明该蛋白是亲水性蛋白。二级结构主要以α-螺旋为主,其次是无规则卷曲,不存在信号肽,表明该蛋白可能为非分泌性蛋白,该蛋白可能位于内质网(膜)和质膜上。本研究获得的狗头枣GSTU基因在基因结构上含有1个内含子,在核酸序列及氨基酸序列上与GenBank中枣的GSTU基因同源性高,并对其理化性质、结构等进行了预测与分析,为进一步研究红枣抗逆分子机制提供理论基础,同时为红枣品种的选育提供理论支持。     

Development of a core set of KASP markers for assaying genetic diversity in Brassica rapa subsp. chinensis Makino

Single‐nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are rapid, economical and reliable genotyping tools. Non‐heading Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa L. subsp. chinensis Makino) is now an economically important vegetable crop worldwide. In this study, 1,167 SNPs were evaluated for 7polymorphism among 70 representative non‐heading Chinese cabbage inbred lines using a Kompetitive Allele Specific PCR (KASP) genotyping assay. On the basis of identified polymorphisms and the results of a principal component analysis, we selected 50 core SNPs that were balanced sufficiently to provide adequate information for genetic identification. The core SNPs were used for construction of a neighbour‐joining dendrogram that separated the 70 inbred lines into four main groups and several subgroups corresponding to Caixin, Heiyebaicai, Huangxinwu, Naibaicai, Taitsai, Pak‐choi, and Wutatsai. This categorization was superior to that achieved using a dataset of 479 polymorphic SNPs. To confirm the utility of the core SNP markers in genetic identification, we tested their stability and resolution using 162 commercial hybrid cultivars. The SNPs, which represent a cost‐effective, accurate marker set for germplasm analysis and cultivar identification, are suitable for molecular marker‐assisted breeding in non‐heading Chinese cabbage.     

Effect of nitrogen root zone fertilization on rice yield,uptake and utilization of macronutrient in lower reaches of Yangtze River,China

Improper application of nitrogen (N) has led to high N losses and low N use efficiency in the lower reaches of Yangtze River in China. An effective method to solve such problems is the deep fertilized N in root zone (RZF). Limited information is available on the effect of RZF on the uptake of macronutrients (N, P and K) and rice yield. Field experiments, conducted from 2014 to 2015, compared the farmer fertilizer practice (FFP, with 225 kg ha^?1 of N, split into three doses) and RZF using the same rate but placing N 5 cm away from rice roots in holes 10 cm deep (RZF10) or 5 cm deep (RZF5) as a single application. The highest mean yield (10.0 t ha^?1) was obtained in RZF10, which was 19.5% more than that in FFP. Root zone fertilization of urea (whether 10 cm deep or 5 cm deep) resulted in greater accumulation of N, P and K in stem, leaf sheaths, leaf blades and grains compared to that in FFP in sandy and in loam soils. The uptake of N, P and K was the highest in RZF10 (average at 176.7, 66.2 and 179.1 kg ha^?1, respectively), higher than that in FFP by 45.0, 17.0 and 22.6%, respectively. N apparent recovery efficiency was markedly higher in RZF10 (53.1%) than in FFP (27.5%). RZF10 significantly increased the N, P, K uptake compared with FFP under different N rates in both sandy and loam soils. These results suggest that the N, P and K input amount should be re-determined under RZF.