Receptor tyrosine kinase genes respond transcriptionally to sublethal doses of five insecticides by a mode-of-action independent way in Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say)

Ji-Feng Shi,Tao-Tao Zhu,Wen-Chao Guo,Guo-Qing Li 한국응용곤충학회 2016 Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology Vol.19 No.4

Sublethal effects of insecticides on insects have beenwidely documented. However, the underlining mechanisms remain largely unclear. Insecticides may be as ligands and disruptors to affect the expression and function of tyrosine kinase receptors (RTKs). Based on the transcriptomeand the genomic data of Leptinotarsa decemlineata, 15 novel RTK members were identified and annotated in the present paper. These RTKs showed distinct 1:1 orthology relationships with Tribolium castaneum ones, suggesting functional conservation of RTKs in insects. The expression responses of the 16 RTKs to sublethal exposure to two juvenile hormone analogs (methoprene and pyriproxyfen) and three γ-aminobutyric acid receptor blockers (fipronil, butene-fipronil and endosulfan) were determined. Each of the 5 insecticides changed the expression levels of a specific subsetof RTKgenes, demonstrating that RTK genes respond transcriptionally to insecticides by a mode-of-action independent way. Our results raise the possibilities that insecticides may exert their sublethal effects through affecting the expression of RTK genes.

Transcription changes of a putative trehalose-6-phosphate synthase gene in response to hormone stimulation in Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say)

Ji-Feng Shi,Qing-Yu Xu,Wen-Chao Guo,Guo-Qing Li 한국응용곤충학회 2016 Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology Vol.19 No.3

Trehalosemetabolism is critical for production of ATP, provision of carbon source, and facilitation of carbohydrate absorption. Trehalose-6-phosphate synthase (TPS) is a rate-limiting enzyme in trehalose biosynthesis. In the present paper, a TPS gene (LdTPS)was cloned inLeptinotarsa decemlineata. At young larval instars, the expression levels of LdTPS were high just before and right after ecdysis, and were low at the mid instar stages. In the fourthinstar larvae, two peaks occurred at 24 h after ecdysis and at the wandering stage. In vitro midgut culture and an in vivo bioassay revealed that 20E stimulated LdTPS transcription. Conversely, a reduction of 20E by RNA interference (RNAi) of a prothoracicotropic hormone receptor gene LdTorso and an ecdysteroidogenesis gene LdSHD repressed LdTPS expression. Moreover, disruption of 20E signaling by knockdown of LdEcR, LdE75 and LdFTZ-F1 reduced LdTPS transcript levels. Similarly, in vitro culture and an in vivo bioassay showed that exogenous JH or JH analog methoprene and pyriproxyfen activated LdTPS expression. An increase in endogenous JH by RNAi of an allatostatin gene LdAS-C enhanced the transcription. In contrast, a decrease in JH by silencing of a JH biosynthesis gene LdJHAMT downregulated LdTPS expression. Moreover, knockdown of LdILP2 repressed LdTPS transcription. Therefore, LdTPS transcription is tuned by 20E, JH and ILP signaling pathways in L. decemlineata.

RV-23, a Melittin-Related Peptide with Cell-Selective Antibacterial Activity and High Hemocompatibility

( Shi Kun Zhang ),( Qian Ma ),( Su Bo Li ),( Hong Wei Gao ),( Ying Xia Tan ),( Feng Gong ),( Shou Ping Ji ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2016 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.26 No.6

RV-23 is a melittin-related antibacterial peptide (MRP) with lower cytotoxicity than either melittin or AR-23, another MRP. The aim of this study was to explore the mechanism of RV- 23`s antibacterial selectivity and its hemocompatibility. The results showed that all the peptides exhibited lytic activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, with RV-23 showing the highest potency. Moreover, RV-23 had lower cytotoxicity than melittin or AR-23 at their minimal inhibitory concentration. In addition, CD experiments showed that melittin, RV-23, and AR-23 all had a typical α-helical structure, and RV-23 had the lowest α-helix content. The structural information showed that RV-23 has the lowest hydrophobicity and highest hydrophobic moment. Because hydrophobicity and α-helix content are believed to correlate with hemolysis, the results indicate that the selective lytic activity against bacteria of RV-23 may be due to its low hydrophobicity and α-helicity, which lead to low cytotoxicity without affecting antibacterial activity. Furthermore, RV-23 did not affect the structure and function of blood components such as red blood cells, platelets, albumin, and the blood coagulation system. In conclusion, RV-23 is a cell-selective antibacterial peptide with high hemocompatibility due to its unique structure.

Design Methodology for Optimal Phase-Shift Modulation of Non-Inverting Buck-Boost Converters

Shi, Bingqing,Zhao, Zhengming,Li, Kai,Feng, Gaohui,Ji, Shiqi,Zhou, Jiayue The Korean Institute of Power Electronics 2019 JOURNAL OF POWER ELECTRONICS Vol.19 No.5

The non-inverting buck-boost converter (NIBB) is a step-up and step-down DC-DC converter suitable for wide-input-voltage-range applications. However, when the input voltage is close to the output voltage, the NIBB needs to operate in the buck-boost mode, causing a significant efficiency reduction since all four switches operates in the PWM mode. Considering both the current stress limitation and the efficiency optimization, a novel design methodology for the optimal phase-shift modulation of a NIBB in the buck-boost mode is proposed in this paper. Since the four switches in the NIBB form two bridges, the shifted phase between the two bridges can serve as an extra degree of freedom for performance optimization. With general phase-shift modulation, the analytic current expressions for every duty ratio, shifted phase and input voltage are derived. Then with the two key factors in the NIBB, the converter efficiency and the switch current stress, taken into account, an objective function with constraints is derived. By optimizing the derived objective function over the full input voltage range, an offline design methodology for the optimal modulation scheme is proposed for efficiency optimization on the premise of current stress limitation. Finally, the designed optimal modulation scheme is implemented on a DSPs and the design methodology is verified with experimental results on a 300V-1.5kW NIBB prototype.

Synthesis, Crystal Structure and Quantum Chemistry of a Novel Schiff Base N-(2,4-Dinitro-phenyl)-N'-(1-phenyl-ethylidene)-hydrazine

Ji, Ning-Ning,Shi, Zhi-Qiang,Zhao, Ren-Gao,Zheng, Ze-Bao,Li, Zhi-Feng Korean Chemical Society 2010 Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society Vol.31 No.4

A novel Schiff base N-(2,4-dinitro-phenyl)-N'-(1-phenyl-ethylidene)-hydrazine has been synthesized and structurally characterized by X-ray single crystal diffraction, elemental analysis, IR spectra and UV-vis spectrum. The crystal belongs to monoclinic with space group P21/n. The molecules are connected via intermolecular O-$H{\cdots}O$ hydrogen bonds into 1D infinite chains. The crystal structure is consolidated by the intramolecular N-$H{\cdots}O$ hydrogen bonds. weak intermolecular C-$H{\cdots}O$ hydrogen bonds link the molecules into intriguing 3D framework. Furthermore, Density functional theory (DFT) calculations of the structure, stabilities, orbital energies, composition characteristics of some frontier molecular orbitals and Mulliken charge distributions of the title compound were performed by means of Gaussian 03W package and taking B3LYP/6-31G(d) basis set. The time-dependent DFT calculations have been employed to calculate the electronic spectrum of the title compound, and the UV-vis spectra has been discussed on this basis. The results show that DFT method at B3LYP/6-31G(d) level can well reproduce the structure of the title compound.

Effects of Home Nursing Intervention on the Quality of Life of Patients with Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma after Radiotherapy and Chemotherapy

Shi, Ru-Chun,Meng, Ai-Feng,Zhou, Weng-Lin,Yu, Xiao-Yan,Huang, Xin-En,Ji, Ai-Jun,Chen, Lei Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2015 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.16 No.16

Background: The effects of home nursing intervention on the quality of life in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) after radiotherapy and chemotherapy are unclear. According to the characteristics of nursing home patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma, we should continuously improve the nursing plan and improve the quality of life of patients at home. Materials and Methods: We selected 180 patients at home with NPC after radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The patients were randomly divided into experimental and control groups (90 patients each). The experimental group featured intervention with an NPC home nursing plan, while the control group was given routine discharge and outpatient review. Nursing intervention for patients was mainly achieved by regular telephone follow-up and home visits. We use the quality of life scale (QOL-C30), anxiety scale (SAS) and depression scale (SDS) to evaluate these patients before intervention, and during follow-up at 1 month and 3 months after the intervention. Results: Overall health and quality of life were significantly different between the groups (p<0.05), Emotional function score was significantly higher after intervention (p<0.05), as were cognitive function and social function scores after 3 months of intervention (p<0.05). Scores of fatigue, nausea and vomiting, pain, appetite and constipation were also significantly different between the two groups (p<0.05). Rates of anxiety and depression after 3 months of intervention were 11.1%, 22.2% and 34.4%, 53.3%, the differences being significant (p<0.05). Conclusions: NPC home nursing plan could effectively improve overall quality of life, cognitive function, social function (after 3 months) of patients, but improvement regarding body function is not suggested. Fatigue, nausea and vomiting, pain, appetite, constipation were clearly improved. We should further pursue a personalized, comprehensive measurements for nursing interventions and try to improve the quality of life of NPC patients at home.

K-Charmonium Dissociation Cross Sections and Charmonium Dissociation Rates in Hadronic Matter

Feng-Rong Liu,Shi-Tao Ji,Xiao-Ming Xu 한국물리학회 2016 THE JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN PHYSICAL SOCIETY Vol.69 No.4

K-charmonium dissociation reactions in hadronic matter are studied in the Born approximation, in the quark-interchange mechanism, and with a temperature-dependent quark potential. We obtain the temperature dependence of the unpolarized cross sections for the reactions KJ/ ! ¯D D+ s , ¯D D+ s , ¯DD+ s , and ¯DD+ s ; K 0 ! ¯DD+ s , ¯DD+ s , ¯DD+ s , and ¯DD+ s ; Kc ! ¯DD+ s , ¯DD+ s , ¯D D+ s , and ¯D D+ s . We use the cross sections for charmonium dissociation in collisions with pions, mesons, kaons, vector kaons, and mesons to calculate the dissociation rates of charmonium with five types of mesons. Because of the temperature dependence of the meson masses, dissociation cross sections, and meson distribution functions, the charmonium dissociation rates generally increase with increasing temperature and decrease with increasing charmonium momentum from 2.2 GeV/c. We find that the first derivative of the dissociation rate with respect to the charmonium momentum is zero when the charmonium is at rest. While the + 0 and the + c dissociation reactions can be neglected, the J/ , 0, and c dissociations are caused by collisions with pions, mesons, kaons, vector kaons, and mesons.

Pyramiding of 2 QTLs, gw8 and gw9, underlying grain weight using nearly isogenic lines (NILs) in rice

Feng-Xue Jin,Xiao-Bo Xie,Shi-Dong Ji,Hong-Guang Ju,Jung-Pil Suh,Hung-Goo Hwang,Sang-Nag Ahn 한국작물학회 2008 한국작물학회 학술발표대회 논문집 Vol.2008 No.10

Grain weight (GW) or grain size is the most important target not only as a major component of grain yield, but also associated with the cooking quality in rice breeding program. In a previous study, two loci for grain weight, gw8 and gw9, have been fine map to about 306.4kb and 37.4kb, respectively, in backcross populations derived from a cross between the Korean japonica cultivar Hwaseongbyeo and Oryza rufipigon (IRGC 105491). Both O.rufipogon alleles increased GW in the Hwaseongbyeo background despite the fact that O. rufipogon was the small-seeded parent. To test the effect of pyramiding the QTLs for grain weight, an F2 population consisted of 226 individuals was developed derived from the cross between the two QTLs (gw8 and gw9), and used MAS to select nearly isgenic lines for two QTLs and a pyramiding line. Molecular genotyping of F2 population revealed the existence of interaction between gw8 and gw9. Moreover, the interaction was also confirmed by phenotypic analysis of four QTL-NILs. The results suggest that epistasis interaction is important genetic basis in determining yield traits in rice.

Pyramiding of 2 QTLs, gw8 and gw9, underlying grain weight using nearly isogenic Lines (NILs) in rice

Feng Xue Jin,Xiao Bo Xie,Shi Dong Ji,Hong Guang Ju,Jung Pil Suh,Hung Goo Hwang,Sang Nag Ahn 한국육종학회 2008 한국육종학회 학술발표회 발표요지 Vol.40 No.1

Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms of the GnRHR Gene Associated with Reproductive Traits of Japanese Flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus)

He, Feng,Wen, Hai-Shen,Li, Ji-Fang,Yu, Da-Hui,Ma, Rui-Qin,Shi, Dan,Mu, Wei-Jie,Zhang, Yuan-Qing,Hu, Jian,Liu, Miao,Han, Wei-Guo,Zhang, Jia-Nan,Wang, Qing-Qing,Yuan, Yu-Ren,Liu, Qun Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2011 Animal Bioscience Vol.24 No.4

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor (GnRHR) gene is expressed at the anterior pituitary gland and plays a key role in gonad development. This study aimed to investigate molecular genetic characteristics of the GnRHR gene and elucidate the effects of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of GnRHR gene on sex steroid level in Japanese flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus). We used polymerase chain reaction single-strand conformation polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) and sequencing of the GnRHR gene in 75 individuals. We identified three SNPs in the GnRHR gene: P1 locus (C759A and C830T) in the coding region of exon2 which were both linked together and P2 locus (G984T) in the coding region of exon3, which added a new transcript factor (ADR1) and a new methylation site (CG). Only C830T of P1 leads to amino acid changes Thr266Ile. Statistical analysis showed that P1 was significantly associated with $17{\beta}$-estradiol ($E_2$) level (p<0.01) and gonadosomatic index (GSI) (p<0.05). Individuals with genotype BB of P1 had significantly higher serum $E_2$ levels (p<0.01) and GSI (p<0.05) than those of genotype AA or AB. Another SNP, P2, synonymous mutation, was significantly associated with GSI (p<0.05). Individuals with genotype AB of P2 had significantly higher GSI (p<0.05) than that of genotype AA. In addition, there was a significant association between one diplotype based on three SNPs and reproductive traits. The genetic effects for both serum $E_2$ level and GSI of diplotype D4 were super diplotypes (p<0.05). These results suggest that the SNPs in Japanese Flounder GnRHR are associated with $E_2$ level and GSI.