Contact toxicity and transcriptomic analysis of terpinen-4-ol exposure in Tribolium castaneum

Shan-shan Gao,Yong-lei Zhang,Kun-peng Zhang,Wang Xing-yun,Qing-bo Tang,Yuan-chen Zhang 한국응용곤충학회 2022 Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology Vol.25 No.3

The terpene, terpinen-4-ol (T4ol), exhibits contact toxicity in Tribolium castaneum. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying this toxicity have not been elucidated. This study examined changes in the expression of four classic enzymes after exposure of T. castaneum to T4ol. Acetylcholinesterase and glutathione S-transferase activities were markedly inhibited after exposure to T4ol, while that of the detoxifying enzyme cytochrome oxidase P450 increased markedly. Carboxylesterase activity did not show significant changes. Furthermore, RNA sequencing revealed 260 differentially expressed genes (DEG) between the T4ol-treated and control samples, and qRT-PCR was used to validate the RNA-Seq data. The Gene Ontology analysis classified the DEGs into 36 functional groups, including the immune system processes, response to stimulus, and developmental processes. T4ol altered the response to stimulus and the immune system process of beetles by inducing the expression of the genes Stabilin-1, Attacin 1, and Defensin 1. Furthermore, the DEGs receptor tyrosine kinase Torso-like protein (RTKTsl), Frizzled 4 (Fz4), Protein Wnt-5b, Ecdysone-induced protein 78C (E78), Zinc finger protein GLIS1 (ZFPGLIS1) were classified as participating in beetle development, and Fz4 and Protein Wnt-5b also mapped to the Wnt signaling pathway. This indicated that pathways associated with development are inhibited after exposure to T4ol. T4ol also induced CYP9Z6/GSTs7 overexpression, and RNAi targeting these genes significantly increased larvae mortality on T4ol exposure, supporting the participation of CYP9Z6/GSTs7 in the response to T4ol in T. castaneum. The results of this study will facilitate understanding of the toxic mechanisms of T4ol and provide a basis for controlling the pests of stored products.

Antifibrotic Effect of Curcumin in TGF-β1-Induced Myofibroblasts from Human Oral Mucosa

Zhang, Shan-Shan,Gong, Zhao-Jian,Li, Wen-Hui,Wang, Xiao,Ling, Tian-You Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.1

Background: Myofibroblasts play an important role in the development of oral submucous fibrosis (OSF). In the current study, we investigate the effect of curcumin on growth and apoptosis of myofibroblasts derived from human oral mucosa. Methods: Myofibroblasts were generated by incubating fibroblasts, obtained from human oral mucosa, with transforming growth factor-${\beta}1$ (TGF-${\beta}1$). MTT, PI staining, and FACS assays were used to investigate curcumin's effect on proliferation and cell cycle of fibroblasts and myofibroblasts. Annexin V/PI binding and FACS assays were used to examine apoptosis of myofibroblasts, Western blotting to determine the levels of Bcl-2 and Bax, and enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay was employed to examine the levels of collagen type I and III in the supernatants of myofibroblasts. Results: Curcumin inhibits proliferation of fibroblasts and myofibroblasts; it also disturbs the cell cycle, induces apoptosis and decreases the generation of collagen type I and III in myofibroblasts, which are more sensitive to its effects than fibroblasts. Curcumin induces apoptosis in myofibroblasts by down-regulating the Bcl-2/ Bax ratio. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate the antifibrotic effect of curcumin in vitro. It may therefore be a candidate for the treatment of OSF.

A sigma class glutathione S-transferase gene regulated by the CncC pathway is required for phytochemical tolerance in the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum

Gao Shan-shan,Li Dong-yu,Huo Zhuang-kun,Zhang Yong-lei,Cao Yi-zhuo,Tan Yue-yao,Guo Xin-long,Zhang Jia-hao,Zhang Kun-peng,Li Rui-min 한국응용곤충학회 2022 Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology Vol.25 No.4

Insect glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) play a crucial role in the detoxification of exogenous compounds, especially insecticides and plant allelochemicals. A sigma class GST gene, TcGSTS7, mediates the response to eugenol in Tribolium castaneum. However, the mechanism underlying this effect remains largely unknown. In this study, TcGSTS7, which exhibits a structural motif and domain organization characteristic of GSTs, was cloned from the T. castaneum genome. Spatiotemporal expression analysis revealed that TcGSTS7 was most highly expressed at the late larva stage and was mainly expressed in the fat body and epidermis of larvae and adults, suggesting that TcGSTS7 may play a potential role in the protection against toxic xenobiotics in T. castaneum. Furthermore, the expression of TcGSTS7 was significantly induced after exposure to eugenol, while RNA inter ference (RNAi) targeting TcGSTS7 enhanced the sensitivity of the beetle to eugenol, indicating that TcGSTS7 is involved in the tolerance of T. castaneum to this insecticide. Interestingly, the depletion of TcCncC, which encodes a transcription factor of the CncC pathway that has been associated with the regulation of detoxification-related genes in insects, led to a reduction in the TcGSTS7 transcript level following exposure to eugenol, which suggests that TcGSTS7 acts downstream of the CncC pathway. Combined, these results indicated that TcGSTS7 partici pates in the tolerance of T. castaneum to phytochemicals in a CncC pathway-dependent manner. These findings have implications for the development of novel drugs for use in pest control.

RPSA Gene Mutants Associated with Risk of Colorectal Cancer among the Chinese Population

Zhang, Shan-Chun,Jin, Wen,Liu, Hui,Jin, Ming-Juan,Chen, Ze-Xin,Ding, Zhe-Yuan,Zheng, Shuang-Shuang,Wang, Li-Juan,Yu, Yun-Xian,Chen, Kun Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.12

The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in ribosomal protein SA (RPSA) gene with colorectal cancer (CRC). A case-control study including 388 controls and 387 patients with CRC was conducted in a Chinese population. Information about socio-demography and living behavior factors was collected by a structured questionnaire. Three SNPs (rs2133579, rs2269349, rs7641291) in RPSA gene were genotyped by Illumina SnapShot method. Multiple logistic regression models were used for assessing the joint effects between tea consumption and SNPs on CRC. The subjects with rs2269349 CC genotype had a decreased risk for CRC (OR=0.60; 95%CI = 0.37-0.99), compared with TT/CT genotype after adjustment for covariates. A similar association of rs2269349 with rectal cancer was observed (OR=0.49; 95%CI=0.24-1.00). Further analyses indicated that this SNP could modify the protective effect of tea drinking on CRC. Among the subjects with rs2269349 TT/CT or rs2133579 AA/GA, there was a marginal significantly lower risk of CRC (OR and 95%CI: 0.63 and 0.39-1.01 for rs2269349; 0.64 and 0.40-1.02 for rs2133579) in tea-drinking subjects in comparison to non-tea-drinking subjects. Mutants in the RPSA gene might be associated with genetic susceptibility to CRC and influence the protective effect of tea consumption in the Chinese population.

The treatment effect of novel hGHRH homodimer to male infertility hamster

Zhang, Xu-Dong,Guo, Xiao-Yuan,Tang, Jing-Xuan,Yue, Lin-Na,Zhang, Juan-Hui,Liu, Tao,Dong, Yu-Xia,Tang, Song-Shan The Korean Society of Pharmacology 2018 The Korean Journal of Physiology & Pharmacology Vol.22 No.6

Extra-hypothalamic growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) plays an important role in reproduction. To study the treatment effect of Grin (a novel hGHRH homodimer), the infertility models of 85 male Chinese hamsters were established by intraperitoneally injecting 20 mg/kg of cyclophosphamide once in a week for 5 weeks and the treatment with Grin or human menopausal gonadotropin (hMG) as positive control was evaluated by performing a 3-week mating experiment. 2-8 mg/kg of Grin and 200 U/kg of hMG showed similar effect and different pathological characteristics. Compared to the single cyclophosphamide group (0%), the pregnancy rates (H-, M-, L-Grin 26.7, 30.8, 31.3%, and hMG 31.3%) showed significant difference, but there was no difference between the hMG and Grin groups. The single cyclophosphamide group presented loose tubules with pathologic vacuoles and significant TUNEL positive cells. Grin induced less weight of body or testis, compactly aligned tubules with little intra-lumens, whereas hMG caused more weight of body or testis, enlarging tubules with annular clearance. Grin presented a dose-dependent manner or cell differentiation-dependentincrease in testicular GHRH receptor, and did not impact the levels of blood and testicular GH, testosterone. Grin promotes fertility by proliferating and differentiating primitive cells through up-regulating testicular GHRH receptor without triggering GH secretion, which might solve the etiology of oligoasthenozoospermia.

Effect of Pitting Corrosion on the Stress Intensity Factor Magnitude and Distribution

Shan-Hua Xu,Haijiang Zhang,Biao Nie,Zhexun Zhang 한국강구조학회 2021 International Journal of Steel Structures Vol.21 No.4

The fracture and fatigue performance of corroded steel components show signifi cant degradation in both the crack initiation and propagation stage. This study is aimed to research the fracture behavior degradation mechanism of corroded steel members through investigating the eff ects of pits on stress intensity factor magnitude and distribution. The numerical simulation method was adopted, and a series of specimens with diff erent sizes and shapes of corrosion pits were modeled. It was found that the pitting-degradation models would show a more intense displacement and stress fi eld. A greater value of stress intensity factor SIF could be observed in model interior when the specimens were attacked by corrosion pits. The SIF distribution characteristic along thickness direction was aff ected by ratios of pit depth to radius. According to SIF numerical results, the premature fracture and shorter fatigue life induced by corrosion pits could be attributed to the higher SIF value compared with non-corrosion one.

Semi-continuous and Continuous Cultivation of Microalgae-sludge for Artificial Digested Food Wastes Leachate Treatment

Shan Zhang,Hyeon Jeong Hwang,Sun-Jin Hwang 한국폐기물자원순환학회 2015 한국폐기물자원순환학회 학술대회 Vol.2015 No.05

This study investigated the semi-continuous and continuous cultivation of microalgae-sludge for artificial digested food wastes leachate treatment, and the effect of hydraulic retention times(HRT) on microalgae growth and nutrient removal. In this study, two reactors were examined the HRTs from 4 to 1 day, the Chlorella vulgaris cell density of semi-continuous and continuous cultivation reached a maximum value at HRT 3 day, then decreasing HRT to 2 day and 1 day the Chlorella vulgaris cell density was decreased. The maximum Chlorella vulgaris cell density in semi-continuous cultivation was 1.4 times higher than continuous cultivation. The maximum NH4-N, PO4-P removal efficiency was 100%, 75.7% with HRT of 3 day in semi-continuous cultivation, while 96.5%, 65.7% with HRT of 4 day in continuous cultivation. These results indicate that semi-continuous cultivation is more suitable than continuous cultivation. And the effect of increased light intensity from 100 μmol/m²/s to 400 μmol/m²/s was also evaluated, as the result, increased light intensity improved Chlorella vulgaris cell growth and nutrient removal.

Diagnostic value of Thyroglobulin Measurement with Fine-needle Aspiration Biopsy for Lymph Node Metastases in Patients with a History of Differentiated Thyroid Cancer

Zhang, Hai-Shan,Wang, Ren-Jie,Fu, Qing-Feng,Gao, Shi,Sun, Bu-Tong,Sun, Hui,Ma, Qing-Jie Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.24

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic value of FNA-Tg for detecting lymph node metastases in patients with a history of differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC). Materials and Methods: A total of 58 patients with DTC diagnosis and evidence of single or multiple suspicious cervical lymph nodes were assessed. All underwent total or near-total thyroidectomy with (35 cases) or without (23 cases) radioiodine (RAI) ablation, followed by thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) suppression therapy. A total of 68 lymph nodes were examined by ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration (US-FNA) for both cytological examination and FNA-Tg measurement. Serum Tg and anti-thyroglobulin antibody (TgAb) levels were also measured. Diagnostic performance including sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of FNAC and FNA-Tg were calculated and compared. The Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was used to estimate the relationship between FNA-Tg and serum TgAb. Results: The FNA-Tg levels were significantly higher with DTC metastatic lymph nodes (median 927.7 ng/mL, interquartile range 602.9 ng/mL) than non-metastatic lymph nodes (median 0.1 ng/mL, interquartile range 0.4 ng/mL) (p<0.01). Considering 1.0 ng/mL as a threshold value for FNA-Tg, the sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, PPV and NPV of FNA-Tg were 95.7%, 95.5%, 95.6%, 97.8% and 91.3%, respectively. The sensitivity and accuracy of the combination of FNAC and FNA-Tg were significantly higher than that of FNAC alone (p<0.05). The diagnostic performance of FNA-Tg was not significantly different between cases with or without RAI ablation, and the serum TgAb levels did not interfere with FNA-Tg measurements. Conclusions: Measurement of FNA-Tg is useful. The combination of FNAC and FNA-Tg is more sensitive and accurate for detecting lymph node metastases in patients with a history of DTC than FNAC alone. Serum TgAbs appear to be irrelevant for measurement of FNA-Tg.

Tuning the Mechanical Properties of Silkworm Silk Fibres by Thermally Induced Modification of Crystalline Nanostructure

Shan Du,Weitao Zhou,Xing Jin,Yimin Zhang,Xiangxiang Chen,Jin Zhang,Jingliang Li,Xungai Wang 한국섬유공학회 2021 Fibers and polymers Vol.22 No.2

Antheraea pernyi and Bombyx mori silk fibres, the most important and the subjects of several studies, have attractedwidespread attention due to their exceptional mechanical properties and promising applications. However, the determinantsbehind the variations of mechanical property between these two fibres still remains unknown. In this paper, the nanocrystallinestructures of these two silk fibres were tuned by thermal treatment in order to understand how the structure affects themechanical properties of fibres. It has been found that, along with an increase in temperature for thermal treatment, theincrease in the intramolecular β-sheet leads to progressive increase in longitudinal modulus and radial hardness, whilst thereduction in crystallinity results in great reduction in breaking tensile strength. The yield strength is proportional to theaverage crystallite size which increases along with the annealing temperature. Compared to B. mori, A. pernyi silk fibres havemore obvious temperature-dependant structural changes. These findings explain how size effects can be exploited to createbioinspired materials with tuneable mechanical properties.

Comparative Proteomic Analysis of Changes in the Bovine Whey Proteome during the Transition from Colostrum to Milk

Zhang, Le-Ying,Wang, Jia-Qi,Yang, Yong-Xin,Bu, Deng-Pan,Li, Shan-Shan,Zhou, Ling-Yun Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2011 Animal Bioscience Vol.24 No.2

Bovine whey protein expression patterns of colostrum are much different from that of milk. Moreover, bovine colostrum is an important source of protective, nutritional and developmental factors for the newborn. However, to our knowledge, no research has been performed to date using a comparative proteomic method on the changes in the bovine whey proteome during the transition from colostrum to milk. This study therefore separated whey protein of days 1, 3, 7 and 21 after calving using two dimension electrophoresis. Differentially expressed proteins at different collection times were identified using high-performance liquid chromatography in tandem with mass spectrometry (LC/MS) and validated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in order to understand the developmental changes in the bovine whey proteome during the transition from colostrum to milk. The expression patterns of whey protein of days 1 and 3 post-partum were similar except that immunoglobulin G was down-regulated on day 3, and four proteins were found to be down-regulated on days 7 and 21 compared with day 1 after delivering, including immunoglobulin G, immunoglobulin M, albumin, and lactotransferrin, which are involved in immunity and molecule transport. The results of this study confirm the comparative proteomic method has the advantage over other methods such as ELISA and immunoassays in that it can simultaneously detect more differentially expressed proteins. In addition, the difference in composition of milk indicates a need for adjustment of the colostrum feeding regimen to ensure a protective immunological status for newborn calves.