No abstract

Dendrobium officinale Kimura et Migo is a traditional Chinese orchid herb that has both ornamental value and a broad range of therapeutic effects. Here, we report the first de novo assembled 1.35 Gb genome sequences for D. officinale by combining the second-generation Illumina Hiseq 2000 and third-generation PacBio sequencing technologies. We found that orchids have a complete inflorescence gene set and have some specific inflorescence genes. We observed gene expansion in gene families related to fungus symbiosis and drought resistance. We analyzed biosynthesis pathways of medicinal components of D. officinale and found extensive duplication of SPS and SuSy genes, which are related to polysaccharide generation, and that the pathway of D. officinale alkaloid synthesis could be extended to generate 16-epivellosimine. The D. officinale genome assembly demonstrates a new approach to deciphering large complex genomes and, as an important orchid species and a traditional Chinese medicine, the D. officinale genome will facilitate future research on the evolution of orchid plants, as well as the study of medicinal components and potential genetic breeding of the dendrobe.

We previously found that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from human-induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) exerted immunomodulatory effects on Th2-mediated allergic rhinitis in vitro. However, their contribution to the asthma and allergic rhinitis in animal models remains unclear. In this study, we developed a mouse model of ovalbumin (OVA)-induced allergic inflammation in both the upper and lower airways and evaluated the effects of the systemic administration of human iPSC-MSCs and bone marrow-derived MSCs (BM-MSCs) on allergic inflammation. Our results showed that treatments with both the iPSC-MSCs and BM-MSCs before the challenge phase protected the animals from the majority of allergy-specific pathological changes. This protection included an inhibition of inflammatory cell infiltration and mucus production in the lung, a reduction in eosinophil infiltration in the nose, and a decrease in inflammatory cell infiltration in both the bronchoalveolar and nasal lavage fluids. In addition, treatment with iPSC-MSCs or BM-MSCs before the challenge phase resulted in reduced serum levels of Th2 immunoglobulins (e.g., IgE) and decreased levels of Th2 cytokines including interleukin (IL)-4, IL-5, or IL-13 in the bronchoalveolar and/or nasal lavage fluids. Similar therapeutic effects were observed when the animals were pretreated with human iPSC-MSCs before the sensitization phase. These data suggest that iPSC-MSCs may be used as an alternative strategy to adult MSCs in the treatment of asthma and allergic rhinitis. Stem Cells 2012;30:2692–2699

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a global health problem that causes major illnesses and disabilities worldwide. Epidemiologic studies have demonstrated that the prevalence of AR has increased progressively over the last few decades in more developed countries and currently affects up to 40% of the population worldwide. Likewise, a rising trend of AR has also been observed over the last 2–3 decades in developing countries including China, with the prevalence of AR varying widely in these countries. A survey of self-reported AR over a 6-year period in the general Chinese adult population reported that the standardized prevalence of adult AR increased from 11.1% in 2005 to 17.6% in 2011. An increasing number of original articles and imporclinical trials on the epidemiology, pathophysiologic mechanisms, diagnosis, management and comorbidities of AR in Chinese subjects have been published in international peer-reviewed journals over the past 2 decades, and substantially added to our understanding of this disease as a global problem. Although guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of AR in Chinese subjects have also been published, they have not been translated into English and therefore not generally accessible for reference to non-Chinese speaking international medical communities. Moreover, methods for the diagnosis and treatment of AR in China have not been standardized entirely and some patients are still treated according to regional preferences. Thus, the present guidelines have been developed by the Chinese Society of Allergy to be accessible to both national and international medical communities involved in the management of AR patients. These guidelines have been prepared in line with existing international guidelines to provide evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis and management of AR in China.