No abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is among the leading causes of cancer-related death in China. Deregulation of microRNA (miRNA) contributes to HCC development by influencing cell growth, apoptosis, migration or invasion. It has been proved that miR-940 plays important roles in various cancers. Here we investigated the role of miR-940 in HCC. We found that miR-940 was remarkably decreased in HCC tissues and cell lines. Importantly, lower miR-940 expression in HCC tissues significantly correlated with the reduced patient’s survival rate. Overexpression of miR-940 inhibited HCC cell line growth and induced cell apoptosis, and vice versa. Estrogen-related receptor gamma (ESRRG) was targeted by miR-940, and suppression of ESRRG inhibited HCC cell lines growth and induced cell apoptosis. In conclusion, we found that a lower level of miR-940 in HCC promoted cellular proliferation via ESRRG, which may lead to the short survival period of HCC patients.

Nitric oxide (NO) orchestrates a plethora of incongruent plant immune responses, including the reprograming of global gene expression. However, the cognate molecular mechanisms remain largely unknown. Here we show a zinc finger transcription factor (ZF-TF), SRG1, is a central target of NO bioactivity during plant immunity, where it functions as a positive regulator. NO accumulation promotes SRG1 expression and subsequently SRG1 occupies a repeated canonical sequence within target promoters. An EAR domain enables SRG1 to recruit the corepressor TOPLESS, suppressing target gene expression. Sustained NO synthesis drives SRG1 S-nitrosylation predominantly at Cys87, relieving both SRG1 DNA binding and transcriptional repression activity. Accordingly, mutation of Cys87 compromises NO-mediated control of SRG1-dependent transcriptional suppression. Thus, the SRG1-SNO formation may contribute to a negative feedback loop that attenuates the plant immune response. SRG1 Cys87 is evolutionary conserved and thus may be a target for redox regulation of ZF-TF function across phylogenetic kingdoms.

The chemical forms in which isoflavones appear in food or supplements seem to play an important role in their absorption efficiency. However, the influence of the chemical form of isoflavones on their plasma disposition has never been reported, although the metabolites of isoflavones circulating in the blood may have biological activity themselves. The purpose of the study was to investigate the pharmacokinetic profiles of genistein (GEN) and its phase II metabolites in the plasma and urine of healthy young women after multiple doses of pure aglycone and glucoside forms of GEN. Genistein-7-glucuronide (G-7-G), 4'-glucuronide (G-4'-G), 7-sulfate (G-7-S), 4'-sulfate (G-4'-S), 4',7-diglucuronide (G-4',7-diG), and 7-glucuronide-4'-sulfate (G-7-G-4'-S) besides unconjugated GEN were observed in human plasma after ingestion of GEN and its glucoside. Among these metabolites, G-4',7-diG and G-7-G-4'-S were the major ones, comprising both about 30% of the total amount of GEN in plasma. Compared with the aglycone, the amount of total GEN in vivo and those of G-4',7-diG and G-7-G-4'-S were increased after the glucoside intake. No difference was observed in urinary excretion between the aglycone and the glucoside. Overall, the absorption and plasma disposition of GEN were affected by the glucoside form.

Chlorophyll-containing oxygenic photoautotrophs have been well known to play a fundamental role in the development of biological soil crusts (BSCs) by harvesting solar radiations and providing fixed carbon to the BSCs ecosystems. Although the same functions can be theoretically fulfilled by the widespread bacteriochlorophyll-harboring aerobic anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria (AAnPB), whether AAnPB play a role in the formation of BSCs and how important they are to this process remain largely unknown. To address these questions, we set up a microcosm system with surface sands of the Hopq desert in northern China and observed the significant effects of near-infrared illumination on the development of BSCs. Compared to near-infrared or red light alone, the combined use of near-infrared and red lights for illumination greatly increased the thickness of BSCs, their organic matter contents and the microalgae abundance by 24.0, 103.7, and 1447.6%, respectively. These changes were attributed to the increasing abundance of AAnPB that can absorb near-infrared radiations. Our data suggest that AAnPB is a long-overlooked driver in promoting the development of BSCs in drylands.