Evolutionary dynamics of transposable elements during silkworm domestication

Min‑Jin Han,Hong‑En Xu,Xiao‑Min Xiong,Hua‑Hao Zhang 한국유전학회 2018 Genes & Genomics Vol.40 No.10

Although there are some documented examples on population dynamics of transposable elements (TEs) in model organisms, the evolutionary dynamics of TEs in domesticated species has not been systematically investigated. The objective of this study is to understand population dynamics of TEs during silkworm domestication. In this work, using transposondisplay we examined the polymorphism of seven TE families [they represent about 59% of silkworm (Bombyx mori) total TE content] in four domesticated silkworm populations and one wild silkworm population. Maximum likelihood (ML) was used to estimate selection pressure. Population differentiation and structure were performed by using AMOVA analysis and program DISTRUCT, respectively. The results of transposon-display showed that significant differentiation occurred between the domesticated silkworm and wild silkworm. These TEs have experienced expansions and fixation in the domesticated silkworm but not in wild silkworm. Furthermore, the ML results indicated that purifying selection of TEs in the domesticated silkworm were significantly weaker than that in the wild silkworm. Interestingly, an adaptation insertion induced by BmMITE-2 was found, and this insertion can reduce the polymorphism of the flanking regions of its neighboring COQ7 gene. Our results suggested that TEs expanded and were fixed in the domesticated silkworm might result from demographic effects and artificial selection during domestication. We concluded that the data presented in this study have general implication in animal and crop improvements as well as in domestication of new species.

Ginsenoside Ro, an oleanolic saponin of Panax ginseng, exerts antiinflammatory effect by direct inhibiting toll like receptor 4 signaling pathway

Hong-Lin Xu,Guang-Hong Chen,Yu-Ting Wu,Ling-Peng Xie,Zhang-Bin Tan,Bin Liu,Hui-Jie Fan,Hong-Mei Chen,Gui-Qiong Huang,Min Liu,Ying-Chun Zhou 고려인삼학회 2022 Journal of Ginseng Research Vol.46 No.1

Background: Panax ginseng Meyer (P. ginseng), a herb distributed in Korea, China and Japan, exerts benefits on diverse inflammatory conditions. However, the underlying mechanism and active ingredients remains largely unclear. Herein, we aimed to explore the active ingredients of P. ginseng against inflammation and elucidate underlying mechanisms. Methods: Inflammation model was constructed by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in C57BL/6 mice and RAW264.7 macrophages. Molecular docking, molecular dynamics, surface plasmon resonance imaging (SPRi) and immunofluorescence were utilized to predict active component. Results: P. ginseng significantly inhibited LPS-induced lung injury and the expression of proinflammatory factors, including TNF-a, IL-6 and IL-1b. Additionally, P. ginseng blocked fluorescence-labeled LPS (LPS488) binding to the membranes of RAW264.7 macrophages, the phosphorylation of nuclear factor-kB (NF-kB) and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs). Furthermore, molecular docking demonstrated that ginsenoside Ro (GRo) docked into the LPS binding site of toll like receptor 4 (TLR4)/myeloid differentiation factor 2 (MD2) complex. Molecular dynamic simulations showed that the MD2-GRo binding conformation was stable. SPRi demonstrated an excellent interaction between TLR4/MD2 complex and GRo (KD value of 1.16 × 10<SUP>-9</SUP> M). GRo significantly inhibited LPS488 binding to cell membranes. Further studies showed that GRo markedly suppressed LPS-triggered lung injury, the transcription and secretion levels of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-1β. Moreover, the phosphorylation of NF-kB and MAPKs as well as the p65 subunit nuclear translocation were inhibited by GRo dose-dependently. Conclusion: Our results suggest that GRo exerts anti-inflammation actions by direct inhibition of TLR4 signaling pathway.

Clinical Efficacy and Prognosis Factors for Advanced Hepatoblastoma in Children: A 6-year Retrospective Study

Zhang, Yi,Zhang, Wei-Ling,Huang, Dong-Sheng,Hong, Liang,Wang, Yi-Zhuo,Zhu, Xia,Hu, Hui-Min,Zhang, Pin-Wei,Yi, You,Han, Tao Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.8

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effect of multimodality treatment of advanced paediatric hepatoblastoma (HB) and the factors affecting prognosis. Methods: A total of 35 children underwent multimodality treatments consisting of chemotherapy, surgery, interventional therapy, and autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation. The patients were followed up every month. Results: Serum AFP levels in 33 out of 35 patients in this study were significantly increased (P = 0.0002). According to the statistical scatter plot, the values of serum AFP on the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentages were 1,210, 1,210 and 28,318 ng/dl, respectively. Of the 35 cases, 21 were stage IV. 18 cases were treated with systemic chemotherapy before surgery, and 3 cases with locally interventional chemotherapy before surgery. Statistical analysis showed that the preferred interventional treatment affected prognosis, and that there was a statistically significant difference (P = 0.024). Some 33 patients completed the follow-up, of which 17 were in complete remission (CR), 5 were in partial remission (PR), 1 became disease progressive (DP), and 10 died. The remission and overall survival rates were 66.7% (22/33) and 69.7% (23/33), respectively. Patients with the mixed HB phenotypes had worse prognoses than the epithelial phenotype (P < 0.001), and patients in stage IV had a lower survival rate than those in stage III (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Multimodality treatment can effectively improve remission rate and prolong the survival of children with advanced HB. In addition, alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), a tumor marker of liver malignant tumors, HB pathological classification, and staging are highly useful in predicting prognosis.

Corrigendum to "Ginsenoside Ro, an oleanolic saponin of Panax ginseng, exerts anti-inflammatory effect by direct inhibiting toll like receptor 4 signaling pathway" [J Ginseng Res 46 (2022) 156-166]

Xu, Hong-Lin,Chen, Guang-Hong,Wu, Yu-Ting,Xie, Ling-Peng,Tan, Zhang-Bin,Liu, Bin,Fan, Hui-Jie,Chen, Hong-Mei,Huang, Gui-Qiong,Liu, Min,Zhou, Ying-Chun The Korean Society of Ginseng 2022 Journal of Ginseng Research Vol.46 No.2

Identification and evolutionary history of the DD41D transposons in insects

Xiao-Gu Zhang,Hua-Hao Zhang,Yi-Hong Shen,Xiao-Min Xiong,Min-Jin Han 한국유전학회 2016 Genes & Genomics Vol.38 No.2

The rosa monophyletic group of transposons is a group of transposable element with characteristics of encoding a DD41D motif in the catalytic domain. However, biology and evolutionary history of this monophyletic group are still poorly understood. In this study, we report the first description for the presence of a rosa transposon in the silkworm Bombyx mori. Further analyses confirmed that this element in the silkworm genome had recently amplified and might still be capable of transposition. In addition, we present evidence, based on searches of publicly available insect genomes, that a new clade of the rosa monophyletic group was identified. Interestingly, analysis of their three dimensional structures suggested that these proteins showed highly similar protein structures with that of the Mos1 transposase. These results provided useful insights into the functionality of these transposases and their structural and functional deviations from other transposases in the Tc1/mariner superfamily. Meanwhile, sequence and phylogenetic analysis confirmed that DD41D and maT elements might represent another independent large group of the Tc1/mariner superfamily. Importantly, the result of the comparison of terminal inverted repeats (TIRs) validated that DD41D and maT elements almost had identical consensus terminal sequences (50-CAGGGTGNS NCA-30), implying they might have similar cleavage sites or patterns during the process of their transposition. In a word, this study will enrich and expand our knowledge of the Tc1/mariner superfamily.

EFFECTIVE SYNTHESIS AND APPLICATION OF ZAO NANOPARTICLES WITH GOOD DISPERSION

LIN-LIN ZHANG,HONG-ZHEN XIE,MIN ZHANG,JIN-KU LIU,XIAO-HONG YANG 성균관대학교(자연과학캠퍼스) 성균나노과학기술원 2012 NANO Vol.7 No.3

The well dispersed ZAO nanoparticle with 25?30 nm in diameter was prepared by an ultrasonictemplate method. The morphologies, structures, and photoelectricity of the ZAO nanoparticles were analyzed by TEM, XRD, UV-Vis, etc. The thermochemistry behaviors of the precursor were studied by TG-DSC. The composite ¯lm with semipermeable structure made from ZAO nanoparticles and collodion can be explored ¯rstly. The photocatalytic properties of the ZAO nanoparticles and composite ¯lm were investigated. The composite ¯lm can be applied in the sewage treatment ¯eld.

Sputum Metabolomic Profiling Reveals Metabolic Pathways and Signatures Associated With Inflammatory Phenotypes in Patients With Asthma

Liu Ying,Zhang Xin,Zhang Li,Oliver Brian G,Wang Hong Guang,Liu Zhi Peng,Chen Zhi Hong,Wood Lisa,Hsu Alan Chen-Yu,Xie Min,McDonald Vanessa,Wan Hua Jing,Luo Feng Ming,Liu Dan,Li Wei Min,Wang Gang 대한천식알레르기학회 2022 Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Research Vol.14 No.4

Purpose: The molecular links between metabolism and inflammation that drive different inflammatory phenotypes in asthma are poorly understood. We aimed to identify the metabolic signatures and underlying molecular pathways of different inflammatory asthma phenotypes. Methods: In the discovery set (n = 119), untargeted ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS) was applied to characterize the induced sputum metabolic profiles of asthmatic patients with different inflammatory phenotypes using orthogonal partial least-squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA), and pathway topology enrichment analysis. In the validation set (n = 114), differential metabolites were selected to perform targeted quantification. Correlations between targeted metabolites and clinical indices in asthmatic patients were analyzed. Logistic and negative binomial regression models were established to assess the association between metabolites and severe asthma exacerbations. Results: Seventy-seven differential metabolites were identified in the discovery set. Pathway topology analysis uncovered that histidine metabolism, glycerophospholipid metabolism, nicotinate and nicotinamide metabolism, linoleic acid metabolism as well as phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis were involved in the pathogenesis of different asthma phenotypes. In the validation set, 24 targeted quantification metabolites were significantly expressed between asthma inflammatory phenotypes. Finally, adenosine 5′-monophosphate (adjusted relative risk [adj RR] = 1.000; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.000–1.000; P = 0.050), allantoin (adj RR = 1.000; 95% CI = 1.000–1.000; P = 0.043) and nicotinamide (adj RR = 1.001; 95% CI = 1.000–1.002; P = 0.021) were demonstrated to predict severe asthma exacerbation rates. Conclusions: Different inflammatory asthma phenotypes have specific metabolic profiles in induced sputum. The potential metabolic signatures may identify therapeutic targets in different inflammatory asthma phenotypes.

Identification and Evaluation of Cytotoxicity of Peptide Liposome Incorporated Citron Extracts in an in Vitro System

Zhang, Xiaowei,Yoon, Hee Jeong,Kang, Min Gyeong,Kim, Gyeong Jin,Shin, Sun Young,Baek, Sang Hong,Lee, Jung Gyu,Bai, Jingjing,Lee, Sang Yoon,Choi, Mi Jung,Hong, Kwonho,Bae, Hojae MDPI 2018 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES Vol.19 No.2

<P>Citrons have been widely used for medicinal purposes for a long time, but the application of citron in the food industry is still restricted. The extensive advantages of nanotechnology in the food industry have greatly broadened the application of foods. In this study, by employing nanotechnology, we prepared citron-extract nanoparticle with an average size of 174.11 ± 3.89 nm, containing protein peptide and/or liposome. In order to evaluate the toxicity of nanoparticles and to ensure food safety, biological cytotoxicity at the cell and genomic levels was also identified to examine the toxicity of citron extracts by using an in vitro system. Our results demonstrated that the cytotoxicity of citron<SUB>liposome</SUB> was dependent on cell type in high concentrations (1 and 5 mg/mL), selectively against primary human cardiac progenitor cells (hCPCs), and human endothelial progenitor cells (hEPCs) in MTT and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) assays. Interestingly, for the NIH-3T3 and H9C2 cell lines, cell cytotoxicity was observed with slight genotoxicity, especially from citron<SUB>peptide</SUB> extract for both cell lines. Taken together, our study provides cytotoxicity data on nanoengineered citron extracts according to different cell type as is crucial for further applications.</P>

Clinical Character of Pediatric Head and Neck Rhabdomysarcomas: A 7-Year Retrospective Study

Zhang, Wei-Ling,Zhang, Yi,Huang, Dong-Sheng,Guo, Fang,Han, Tao,Hong, Liang,Hu, Hui-Min,Zhi, Tian Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.7

Objective: The rhabdomysarcoma (RMS) is most common soft tissue carcinoma in children, mostly found in the head and neck with high degree of malignancy. The current study aimed to summarize clinical data and evaluate treatment outcome of cases in a single hospital. Methods: Forty-one (24 male, 17 female) children with newly diagnosed RMS in Beijing Tong Ren Hospital were enrolled between November, 2004 and May, 2011. The. Students' t and Chi tests were then performed on retrospectively reviewed clinical data, followed by survival analysis based on the Kaplan Meier method using SPSS 17.0 software. Results: Of all cases, 32 were treated by common chemotherapy, and 3 cases with stage III RMS received high-dose chemotherapy and auto-peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (APBSCT). Side-effects in the former were: I grade for 62.5% (20/32), II grade for 28.1% (9/32), III grade account for 9.275% (3/32). Side-effects of 3 cases with APBSCT: 2 were I grade, 1 was III grade. The median follow-up time of 41 RMS cases was 41 months. Four cases were lost to follow-up, 7 cases recurred, and 5 cases died of cerebral metastasis, witha total survival rate was 86.5% (32/37). CR rate was 67.6% (25/37), PR was 18.9% (7/37). Conclusion: Multidiscipline treatment including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, surgery and auto-PBSCT is highly recommended for pediatric patients with head and neck RMS.

Changes of Potential NPK Input by Chemical Fertilizers and Livestock Manure from 1990 to 2011 in Korea

Hong Bae Yun,Ye Jin Lee,Myung Sook Kim,Jwa Kyung Sung,Yong Seon Zhang,Sang Min Lee,Suk Chul Kim(김석철),Yong bok Lee 한국토양비료학회 2013 한국토양비료학회지 Vol.46 No.6

The livestock manure is a good source of major plant nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium and micronutrient that plants require. As aspect of establishment of nutrient management policy in nation scale, the use of livestock manure for agricultural purpose is a key factor for improving national nutrient balance. In this study, we evaluated the tendency of livestock manure production and amount of chemical fertilizer used in Korea from 1990 to 2011. The number of pig and chicken has been increased about two times in 2011 compared with 1990 and therefore livestock manure continually increased with the lapse of year, but cattle and dairy was not changed significantly. The chemical fertilizer consumption of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium per hectare arable land was decreased by 54.6, 66.0 and 63.2% in 2011 compared with 1990, respectively. In contrast, the potential input of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium to arable land through livestock manure was increased by 220, 210 and 210% during this period, respectively. Therefore we need a reasonable strategy for nutrient management such as combination of both manure and chemical fertilizers in near future.