Whole-genome sequence of a novel Chinese cyprinid herpesvirus 3 isolate reveals the existence of a distinct European genotype in East Asia

Cyprinid herpesvirus 3 (CyHV3), also known as koi herpesvirus (KHV), can be subdivided primarily into European and Asian genotypes, which are represented by CyHV3-U or CyHV3-I and CyHV3-J, respectively. In this study, the whole genome sequence of a novel Chinese CyHV3 isolate (GZ11) was determined and annotated. CyHV3-GZ11 genome was found to contain 295,119 nucleotides with 52.9% G/C content, which is highly similar to those of published CyHV3-U, CyHV3-I, and CyHV3-J strains. With reference to CyHV3-U, CyHV3-I, and CyHV3-J, CyHV3-GZ11 was also classified into 164 open reading frames (ORF), which include eight repeated ORFs. On the basis of the 12 alloherpeviruses core genes, results from phylogenetic analysis showed that CyHV3-GZ11 had closer evolutionary relationships with CyHV3-U and CyHV3-I than with CyHV3/KHV-J, which were also supported by genome wide-based single nucleotide substitution analysis and the use of a series of developed molecular markers. This study was the first to reveal the presence of a distinct European CyHV3 genotype in East and Southeast Asia at a whole genome level, which will evoke new insights on exploring the origin, evolution, and epidemiology of the virus.     

Lactation-related mammary gland pathologies—A neglected emergency in the bitch

Mastitis is a common reproductive disorder in bitches, reaching a prevalence of 0.71%. Mastitis has a wide range of forms, from asymptomatic to severe gangrenous mastitis that can lead to septic shock and death of the bitch and nurslings. However, most of the time it is overlooked, undiagnosed or mistreated. The present systematic review was performed to revise and summarize the existing knowledge related to this disorder, including diagnosis, treatment and prevention.     

miR-106b-5p靶向KLF4调控山羊肌内前体脂肪细胞分化

旨在明确miR-106b-5p对山羊肌内前体脂肪细胞分化的影响，并确定这种作用是通过靶向KLF4来实现的。本研究利用实时荧光定量PCR （quantitative real-time PCR，qRT-PCR）技术检测miR-106b-5p在山羊肌内前体脂肪细胞分化过程中的表达模式，通过脂质体转染技术将miR-106b-5p mimic和miR-106b-5p inhibitor转入体外培养的山羊肌内前体脂肪细胞，油红O染色法从形态学验证miR-106b-5p对脂肪细胞中脂滴积聚的影响，qRT-PCR检测预测的靶标基因KLF4和脂肪分化标志基因的表达情况，利用双荧光素酶报告系统鉴定miR-106b-5p与KLF4的靶标关系。qRT-PCR结果显示，miR-106b-5p在山羊肌内前体脂肪细胞诱导分化第3天时表达量最高。在山羊肌内脂肪细胞中干扰miR-106b-5p后油红O染色显示脂滴聚积减少，过表达miR-106b-5p后脂滴聚积增加。在山羊肌内前体脂肪细胞中转染miR-106b-5p inhibitor后PPARγ表达量显著降低（P<0.05），而KLF4表达量极显著升高（P<0.01）；转染miR-106b-5p mimic后LPL和PPARγ表达量极显著升高（P<0.01）。荧光素酶活性试验结果显示，过表达miR-106b-5p可显著抑制KLF4荧光活性。miR-106b-5p通过靶向并负调节KLF4的表达促进山羊肌内脂肪细胞分化。     

Cytokine profiles in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from patients with cystic echinococcosis

IntroductionCystic echinococcosis (CE) is a chronic zoonotic disease caused by the larval stage of Echinococcus granulosus (E. granulosus), which affects domestic and wild carnivores as the definitive host and ungulates as intermediate hosts. In intermediate hosts, both Th1 and Th2 cells are involved in the immune responses to an echinoccocal infection. This study aimed to investigate production of IL-4, IL-10, and IFN-γ cytokines in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of CE patients before and after surgical treatment.MethodsTo evaluate cytokine production in response to E. granulosus antigens, we investigated IL-4, IL-10, and IFN-γ production in PBMCs of 20 CE patients in response to hydatid cyst fluid antigen (HCF-Ag) before and after surgical treatment using ELISA.ResultsThe mean IL-4 production from HCF-Ag stimulated PBMCs was significantly decreased (p < 0.05), while IFN-γ was significantly increased in HCF-Ag stimulated PBMCs in patients after surgery (p = 0.005).Furthermore, our results showed that there is no significant difference between IL-10 production in patients before and after treatment (p = 0.562).ConclusionsOur data Indicated production of IL-4 in cultured PBMCs of CE patients stimulated with HCF-Ag was decreased significantly. While, production of IFN-γ was increased significantly in responses to HCF Ag after surgery. We concluded that the evaluation of IL-4 and IFN-γ in HCF-Ag stimulated PBMCs of CE patients should be considered as a useful marker in the follow up of patients with cystic echinococcosis.     

Effects of the severity and timing of basal leaf removal on the amino acids profiles of Sauvignon Blanc grapes and wines

The effects of the severity and timing of leaf removal(LR) on the amino acids of Sauvignon Blanc grapes and wines were studied during the 2017 growing season. High-performance liquid chromatography(HPLC) was used to analyze the amino acids profiles of grape berries and wines. The basal leaves were removed at three time points(40, 56 and 72 days after flowering, named LR40, LR56 and LR72, respectively) at two severity levels(one at which the first, third, and fifth basal leaves of each shoot were removed(50% level); and another at which the first six basal leaves were removed(100% level)). The results showed that leaf removal had little impact on total soluble solids(°Brix), titratable acidity, pH or berry weight. The LR72-50% treated grapes had higher berry weight, titratable acidity and °Brix than those of the other treatments. The highest concentrations of total amino acids and of total amino acids except proline were detected in LR72-50% treated grapes(2 952.58 and 2 764.36 mg L~(-1), respectively); the lowest were detected in LR72-100% treated grapes(2 172.82 and 2 038.71 mg L~(-1), respectively). LR72-50% treatment significantly promoted the synthesis of aspartic acid, serine, arginine, alanine, aminobutyric acid and proline at both severity levels for grapes, the concentrations of all of these amino acids were increased relative to the control concentrations. The LR72-50%, LR40-100% and LR72-100% treated wines had higher total amino acids concentrations and higher concentrations of some individual amino acids, such as arginine, alanine and serine, than did the control wines. Of all the amino acids studied, glycine, tyrosine, cysteine, methionine and lysine were not significantly influenced by the timing or severity basal defoliation in grapes and wines. The present study reveals the effects of the timing and severity of leaf removal on the amino acids profiles of grapes and wines.     

Reduction in cadmium accumulation in japonica rice grains by CRISPR/Cas9-mediated editing of OsNRAMP5

Cadmium (Cd) intake is harmful to human health and Cd contamination in rice grains represents a severe threat to those consuming rice as a staple food. Knockout of Cd transporters is a promising strategy to reduce Cd accumulation in rice grains. OsNRAMP5 is the major transporter for Cd and manganese (Mn) uptake in rice. Nevertheless, it is uncertain whether knockout of OsNRAMP5 is applicable to produce low Cd rice without affecting plant growth and grain yield. In this study, we adopted CRISPR/Cas9-based gene editing technology to knock out OsNRAMP5 in two japonica varieties. We generated three independent transgene-free osnramp5 mutants and investigated the effect of osnramp5 mutations on Cd accumulation and plant growth. Hydroponic experiments showed that plant growth and chlorophyll content were significantly reduced in osnramp5 mutants at low Mn conditions, and this defective growth in the mutants could be fully rescued by supply of high levels of Mn. Cd and Mn accumulation in both roots and shoots was markedly reduced in the mutants compared to that in wild-type plants. In paddy field experiments, although Cd in flag leaves and grains was greatly reduced in osnramp5 mutants, some agronomic traits including plant height, seed setting rate, and grain number per panicle were affected in the mutants, which ultimately caused a mild reduction in grain yield. The reduced plant growth in the mutants can be attributed to a marked decrease in Mn accumulation. Our results reveal that the manipulation of OsNRAMP5 should be treated with caution: When assessing the applicability of osnramp5 mutants, soil pH and soil water content in paddy fields need to be taken into consideration, since they might affect the levels of available Mn in the soil and consequently determine the effect of the mutation on grain yield.     

Inlfuence of FSH Treatment on Expression of CDC25A,TSSK3 and P53in Vitro Cultured Sertoli Cells of Calf

CDC25A, TSSK3 and P53 expressionsin vitro in cultured sertoli cells after FSH treatment were studied in order to provide some data for further researches of spermatogenesis. Different concentrations of...     

Fusarium solani Upregulated Sesquiterpene Synthase Expression,Sesquiterpene Production and Allelopathic Activity in Piper betle L.

Activators of sesquiterpene synthase (STS) gene expression and sesquiterpene production in Piper betle L. were examined using quantitative real time PCR and gas chromatography mass spectrometry methods, and the allelopathic activity of untreated and Fusarium solani-treated betel extracts was tested on seed germination and on the shoot and root growth of Thai rice variety PSL2 (Oryza sativa cv. Phitsanulok 2) and three dominant paddy weeds (Eclipta prostrata, Echinochloa crus-galli and Chloris barbata). The results demonstrated that F. solani dramatically upregulated STS expression and productions of β-cubebene, β-caryophyllene and germacrene D sesquiterpene when compared with the untreated control, and that betel extracts had a greater inhibitory effect on weeds than on rice. The effects were more clearly detected on seed germination and root growth than on shoot growth, and they were found to be dose-dependent. It is also noted that F. solani-treated extract had stronger effects than the untreated extract. The species most sensitive to the allelopathic effects was C. barbata, germination of which was completely inhibited even at a dose of 0.1 mg/mL untreated extract. With regards to rice, although betel extract at 1.0 mg/mL showed no inhibition on germination, it affected the elongation of rice roots, in addition to those of the tested weeds. The obtained data suggested that F. solani has potential as an activator of sesquiterpene allelochemical production via STS expression, the latter leading to the treated betel extract having a stronger phytotoxic effect. These results were beneficial in the promotion of natural herbicide production using biotechnology.     

利用CRISPR/Cas9和λ-Red级联技术构建产肠毒素大肠杆菌LT敲除菌株

本研究旨在利用CRISPR/Cas9和λ-Red级联的技术对产肠毒素大肠杆菌（enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli，ETEC）K88的热不稳定性肠毒素（heat-labile toxin，LT）基因进行无痕敲除并获得K88 LT^-缺陷菌株。通过序列比对获取LT两端同源序列，并构建包含LT边界、氯霉素筛选标记、sgRNA和LT同源臂的供体片段；将供体片段转化至ETEC K88，同时分别利用λ-Red同源重组系统和CRISPR/Cas9基因编辑系统，对LT基因进行敲除；通过PCR验证获得了K88 LT^-缺陷菌株，并通过试验测定了敲除菌株的溶血能力和生长曲线。结果显示，λ-Red同源重组系统可成功地将LT基因替换为相应的供体片段，CRISPR/Cas9基因编辑系统可高效地对筛选标记进行删除，最终通过λ-Red和CRISPR/Cas9结合的基因编辑系统可成功对ETEC K88的LT基因进行无痕敲除。体外试验结果表明，K88 LT^-缺陷菌株的溶血能力丧失，并且生长速度比野生型菌株减缓，LT可能和ETEC K88的致病能力和生长性能有关。表明λ-Red和CRISPR/Cas9级联的基因敲除方法可用于LT毒素基因及其他一些大肠杆菌基因的敲除。K88 LT^-缺陷菌株的构建为下一步研究LT毒素的致病机制奠定基础。