Novel Insights into Autophagy and Prostate Cancer: A Comprehensive Review

Autophagy is a complex process involved in several cell activities, including tissue growth, differentiation, metabolic modulation, and cancer development. In prostate cancer, autophagy has a pivotal role in the regulation of apoptosis and disease progression. Several molecular pathways are involved, including PI3K/AKT/mTOR. However, depending on the cellular context, autophagy may play either a detrimental or a protective role in prostate cancer. For this purpose, current evidence has investigated how autophagy interacts within these complex interactions. In this article, we discuss novel findings about autophagic machinery in order to better understand the therapeutic response and the chemotherapy resistance of prostate cancer. Autophagic-modulation drugs have been employed in clinical trials to regulate autophagy, aiming to improve the response to chemotherapy or to anti-cancer treatments. Furthermore, the genetic signature of autophagy has been found to have a potential means to stratify prostate cancer aggressiveness. Unfortunately, stronger evidence is needed to better understand this field, and the application of these findings in clinical practice still remains poorly feasible.     

Candidate Genes and Pathways in Rice Co-Responding to Drought and Salt Identified by gcHap Network

Drought and salinity stresses are significant abiotic factors that limit rice yield. Exploring the co-response mechanism to drought and salt stress will be conducive to future rice breeding. A total of 1748 drought and salt co-responsive genes were screened, most of which are enriched in plant hormone signal transduction, protein processing in the endoplasmic reticulum, and the MAPK signaling pathways. We performed gene-coding sequence haplotype (gcHap) network analysis on nine important genes out of the total amount, which showed significant differences between the Xian/indica and Geng/japonica population. These genes were combined with related pathways, resulting in an interesting mechanistic draft called the ‘gcHap-network pathway’. Meanwhile, we collected a lot of drought and salt breeding varieties, especially the introgression lines (ILs) with HHZ as the parent, which contained the above-mentioned nine genes. This might imply that these ILs have the potential to improve the tolerance to drought and salt. In this paper, we focus on the relationship of drought and salt co-response gene gcHaps and their related pathways using a novel angle. The haplotype network will be helpful to explore the desired haplotypes that can be implemented in haplotype-based breeding programs.     

A Glutathione Peroxidase Gene from Litopenaeus vannamei Is Involved in Oxidative Stress Responses and Pathogen Infection Resistance

In shrimp, several glutathione peroxidase (GPX) genes have been cloned and functionally studied. Increasing evidence suggests the genes’ involvement in white spot syndrome virus (WSSV)- or Vibrio alginolyticus-infection resistance. In the present study, a novel GXP gene (LvGPX3) was cloned in Litopenaeus vannamei. Promoter of LvGPX3 was activated by NF-E2-related factor 2. Further study showed that LvGPX3 expression was evidently accelerated by oxidative stress or WSSV or V. alginolyticus infection. Consistently, downregulated expression of LvGPX3 increased the cumulative mortality of WSSV- or V. alginolyticus-infected shrimp. Similar results occurred in shrimp suffering from oxidative stress. Moreover, LvGPX3 was important for enhancing Antimicrobial peptide (AMP) gene expression in S2 cells with lipopolysaccharide treatment. Further, knockdown of LvGPX3 expression significantly suppressed expression of AMPs, such as Penaeidins 2a, Penaeidins 3a and anti-lipopolysaccharide factor 1 in shrimp. AMPs have been proven to be engaged in shrimp WSSV- or V. alginolyticus-infection resistance; it was inferred that LvGPX3 might enhance shrimp immune response under immune challenges, such as increasing expression of AMPs. The regulation mechanism remains to be further studied.     

Premature Termination Codon in 5′ Region of Desmoplakin and Plakoglobin Genes May Escape Nonsense-Mediated Decay through the Reinitiation of Translation

Arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy is a heritable heart disease associated with desmosomal mutations, especially premature termination codon (PTC) variants. It is known that PTC triggers the nonsense-mediated decay (NMD) mechanism. It is also accepted that PTC in the last exon escapes NMD; however, the mechanisms involving NMD escaping in 5′-PTC, such as reinitiation of translation, are less known. The main objective of the present study is to evaluate the likelihood that desmosomal genes carrying 5′-PTC will trigger reinitiation. HL1 cell lines were edited by CRISPR/Cas9 to generate isogenic clones carrying 5′-PTC for each of the five desmosomal genes. The genomic context of the ATG in-frame in the 5′ region of desmosomal genes was evaluated by in silico predictions. The expression levels of the edited genes were assessed by Western blot and real-time PCR. Our results indicate that the 5′-PTC in PKP2, DSG2 and DSC2 acts as a null allele with no expression, whereas in the DSP and JUP gene, N-truncated protein is expressed. In concordance with this, the genomic context of the 5′-region of DSP and JUP presents an ATG in-frame with an optimal context for the reinitiation of translation. Thus, 5′-PTC triggers NMD in the PKP2, DSG2* and DSC2 genes, whereas it may escape NMD through the reinitiation of the translation in DSP and JUP genes, with no major effects on ACM-related gene expression.     

Characterization of Paraquat-Induced miRNA Profiling Response in hNPCs Undergoing Proliferation

Aberration during the development of the central nervous system (CNS) due to environmental factors underlies a variety of adverse developmental outcomes. Paraquat (PQ) is a widely studied neurotoxicant that perturbs the normal structure/function of adult CNS. Yet, the impacts of PQ exposure on the developing CNS remain unclear. miRNAs represent a class of small non-coding RNA molecules involved in the regulation of neural development. Thus in the present study, we analyzed the impacts of PQ on the miRNome of human neural progenitor cells (hNPCs) during proliferation by using the Exiqon miRCURY™ LNA Array. A total of 66 miRNAs were identified as differentially expressed in proliferating hNPCs upon PQ treatment. miRTarBase prediction identified 1465 mRNAs, including several genes (e.g., nestin, sox1, ngn1) previously proved to be associated with the neural proliferation and differentiation, as target genes of PQ-induced differentially expressed miRNAs. The database for annotation, visualization and integrated discovery (DAVID) bioinformatics analysis showed that target genes were enriched in regulation of cell proliferation and differentiation, cell cycle and apoptosis as well as tumor protein 53 (p53), Wnt, Notch and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) signaling pathways (p < 0.001). These findings were confirmed by real-time RT-PCR. Based on our results we conclude that PQ-induced impacts on the miRNA profiling of hNPCs undergoing proliferation may underlie the developmental neurotoxicity of PQ.     

四川泡菜发酵原料-灯笼辣椒附生乳酸菌的抗生素耐药性评估与耐药基因分析

以四川泡菜蔬菜原料——新鲜灯笼辣椒为对象,分析其表面附生乳酸菌Enterococcus mundtii（5 株）、Enterococcus faecalis（2 株）、Enterococcus hirae（5 株）、Lactococcus lactis（7 株）、Leuconostocmesenteroides（2 株）、Leuconostoc holzapfelii（3 株）和Weissella cibaria（79 株）对青霉素（penicillin,PEN）、红霉素（erythromycin,ERY）、四环素（tetracycline,TET）、链霉素（streptomycin,STR）和氯霉素（chloramphenicol,CHL）的抗生素耐药性和耐药基因分布,为制定合理的食品安全防控措施提供科学依据。研究表明：所有分离菌株均无PEN和ERY耐药性,其他种属部分菌株对TET、STR和CHL表现出单一、二重或三重耐药性。除E. hirae、E. faecalis和L. holzapfelii部分菌株对STR表现出单一耐药性外,所有L. mesenteroide菌株只表现出了STR单一耐药性;STR和TET、STR和CHL二重耐药菌株在E. faecalis、E. hirae、L. lactis和W. cibaria分离菌株中都有发现,但是STR、TET、CHL三重耐药菌株仅在W. cibaria中发现。聚合酶链式反应检测发现：除基因norA、sepA、tet(A)、tet(O)和aac(6’)-aph(2’)未被检出外,其他耐药菌株都有相应1 个或多个耐药基因被检出。多重耐药外排泵基因efrA、tolC、norC、sugE和mdfA较核糖体蛋白质保护和酶修饰基因检出率高,分别达到了49%、41%、48%、41%和47%。虽然辣椒表面附生乳酸菌的抗生素耐药基因在四川泡菜发酵过程中的扩散行为需要进一步研究,但根据食品加工过程安全规范标准,也应关注其表面附生的乳酸菌抗生素耐药性存在的潜在食品安全问题。     

金黄色葡萄球菌食品分离株肠毒素基因分布及分型研究

目的 对2006-2009年上海市Staphylococcus aureus(S.aureus)食品分离株进行肠毒素基因检测和基因分型研究,以了解肠毒素基因的分布规律及S.aureus的流行特点.方法 利用PCR方法检测食品中金黄色葡萄球菌肠毒素基因,包括5种传统肠毒素基因(SEA-SEE)和4种新型肠毒素基因(SEG-SEJ);利用脉冲场凝胶电泳法对49株食品分离株进行基因分型.结果 本研究发现49株食品分离株中有19株含有肠毒素基因,16株含有传统肠毒素SEA和SEC,且SEC占93.8％,并检测到新型肠毒素SEG、SEI、SEJ和SEH.PFGE法基因分型显示5株菌不能被分型,其余44株可分为28个基因型,表现为基因型的多样性,且分离自不同时间的菌株具有相同的带型.结论 应加强食品中S.aureus的监测分析,为其引起的食物中毒的预防和控制提供科学依据.     

酿酒酵母的基因改良

酿酒酵母的发酵性能直接影响到酒的质量与生产成本。利用基因工程改良酿酒酵母可提高其生产性能。基因改良酿酒酵母的研究和应用有：①增加酿酒酵母发酵性能的基因改良，如：构建含α-乙酰乳酸脱羧酶基因的低双乙酰工程酵母；含乙醇乙酰酶基因的高生香工程酵母；含糖化酶、葡聚糖酶等基因的高发酵度工程酵母；高絮凝性工程酵母和嗜杀酵母。②增强或缺失酵母自身基因的菌种改良，如构建高级醇低生成量的工程酵母和构建双乙酰低生成量的工程酵母。     

花生miRNA与其靶基因的生物信息学预测

本研究利用生物信息学方法预测花生中的miRNA及其靶基因。将miRBase注册的已知植物miRNA与花生EST和GSS数据库进行比对搜索,筛选得到13条miRNA,进一步预测得到20个靶基因。分析结果显示大多数靶基因属于转录因子,调控植物的生长发育等多种生物过程。     

Expression Patterns of Sugar Transporter Genes in the Allocation of Assimilates and Abiotic Stress in Lily

During the growth cycle of lilies, assimilates undergo a process of accumulation, consumption and reaccumulation in bulbs and are transported and allocated between aboveground and underground organs and tissues. The sink–source relationship changes with the allocation of assimilates, affecting the vegetative growth and morphological establishment of lilies. In this study, the carbohydrate contents in different tissues of five critical stages during lily development were measured to observe the assimilates allocation. The results showed bulbs acted as the main source to provide energy before the budding stage (S3); after the flowering stage (S4), bulbs began to accumulate assimilates as a sink organ again. During the period when the plant height was 30cm with leaf-spread (S2), leaves mainly accumulated assimilates from bulbs through the symplastic pathway, while when leaves were fully expanded, it transformed to export carbohydrates. At the S4 stage, flowers became a new active sink with assimilates influx. To further understand the allocation of assimilates, 16 genes related to sugar transport and metabolism (ST genes) were identified and categorized into different subfamilies based on the phylogenetic analysis, and their protein physicochemical properties were also predicted. Tissue-specific analysis showed that most of the genes were highly expressed in stems and petals, and it was mainly the MST (monosaccharide transporter) genes that were obviously expressed in petals during the S4 stage, suggesting that they may be associated with the accumulation of carbohydrates in flowers and thus affect flower development process. LoSWEET14 (the Sugar will eventually be exported transporters) was significantly correlated with starch in scales and with soluble sugar in leaves. Sugar transporters LoHXT6 and LoSUT1 were significantly correlated with soluble sugar and sucrose in leaves, suggesting that these genes may play key roles in the accumulation and transportation of assimilates in lilies. In addition, we analyzed the expression patterns of ST genes under different abiotic stresses, and the results showed that all genes were significantly upregulated. This study lays a solid foundation for further research on molecular mechanism of sink–source change and response to abiotic stresses in lilies.