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Benth., one of the earliest commercialized plants in the Gesneriaceae family, is renowned for its rich corolla patterns and vibrant colors. Studying the genetic characteristics of corolla pattern traits in will significantly improve breeding efficiency, facilitate the development of more varieties with diverse floral patterns, and provide guidance for the transformation and innovative utilization of Chinese Gesneriaceae resources. A comprehensive statistical classification was conducted on 259 accessions from different regions and 1,444 F hybrids derived from complete diallel crosses of 38 distinctive traits. Further selfing identification was performed on F progeny, and combining ability and heritability analyses were carried out based on trait classification to determine the genetic characteristics of these traits. The main popular traits of include distinctive petal lobe patterns, unique corolla tubes, throat patterns, and semi-double flowers. Popular petal lobe patterns include Pockmarks, stripes, rainbows, white edges, mottling, and staining. Long-tubed corollas are predominantly labiate, while short-tubed corollas are mainly campanulate. In addition to striped throats, colored throats are also distinctive traits of . Selfing progeny analysis revealed that petal patterns such as \"Pockmarks\" and \"stripes,\" as well as long corolla tubes, exhibit stable inheritance across successive generations. Complete diallel crosses of F and F progeny showed that all distinctive traits followed paternal inheritance, with paternal traits appearing more frequently than maternal traits in F /F progeny. The highest probability of producing semi-double flowers was observed in single-petal × double-petal crosses. Among the distinctive traits, the general combining ability (GCA) effects were highest for rainbow rings, Pockmarks, and stripes, which are easier to stabilize and fix in early generations. Broad-sense heritability (H²B) and narrow-sense heritability (H²N) were highest for Pockmarks, rainbow rings, staining, and long tubes, suggesting that trait selection should be conducted in early hybrid generations during breeding. The genetic characteristics of corolla traits in are complex and diverse. Breeding plans should be tailored based on the genetic properties of these traits to shorten the breeding cycle.

ObjectivePatients with renal failure suffer from symptoms caused by uraemic toxins, possibly of gut microbial origin, as deduced from studies in animals. The aim of the study is to characterise relationships between the intestinal microbiome composition, uraemic toxins and renal failure symptoms in human end-stage renal disease (ESRD).DesignCharacterisation of gut microbiome, serum and faecal metabolome and human phenotypes in a cohort of 223 patients with ESRD and 69 healthy controls. Multidimensional data integration to reveal links between these datasets and the use of chronic kidney disease (CKD) rodent models to test the effects of intestinal microbiome on toxin accumulation and disease severity.ResultsA group of microbial species enriched in ESRD correlates tightly to patient clinical variables and encode functions involved in toxin and secondary bile acids synthesis; the relative abundance of the microbial functions correlates with the serum or faecal concentrations of these metabolites. Microbiota from patients transplanted to renal injured germ-free mice or antibiotic-treated rats induce higher production of serum uraemic toxins and aggravated renal fibrosis and oxidative stress more than microbiota from controls. Two of the species, Eggerthella lenta and Fusobacterium nucleatum, increase uraemic toxins production and promote renal disease development in a CKD rat model. A probiotic Bifidobacterium animalis decreases abundance of these species, reduces levels of toxins and the severity of the disease in rats.ConclusionAberrant gut microbiota in patients with ESRD sculpts a detrimental metabolome aggravating clinical outcomes, suggesting that the gut microbiota will be a promising target for diminishing uraemic toxicity in those patients.Trial registration numberThis study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03010696).

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a relapsing and remitting inflammatory disease. Probiotics have a potential beneficial effect on the prevention of UC onset and relapse in clinical trials. Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (L. rhamnosus GG) have shown clinical benefits on UC patients, however, the precise mechanisms are unknown. The aim of this study is to explore the effect of extracellular vesicles released from L. rhamnosus GG (LGG-EVs) on dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis and propose the underlying mechanism of LGG-EVs for protecting against colitis. The results showed that LGG-EVs could prevent colonic tissue damage and shortening of the colon (p < 0.01), and ameliorate intestinal inflammation by inhibiting TLR4-NF-κB-NLRP3 axis activation. Consistently, the pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-2) were suppressed effectively upon LGG-EVs treatment (p < 0.05). The 16S rRNA sequencing showed that LGG-EVs administration could reshape the gut microbiota in DSS-induced colitis mice, which further alters the metabolism pathways of gut microbiota. These findings propose a novel perspective of L. rhamnosus GG in attenuating inflammation mediated by extracellular vesicles and offer consideration for developing oral gavage of LGG-EVs for colitis therapies.

The viable but nonculturable (VBNC) state is a survival strategy adopted by many pathogens when exposed to harsh environmental stresses. In this study, we investigated for the first time that whether high pressure CO2 (HPCD), one of the nonthermal pasteurization techniques, can induce Escherichia coli O157:H7 into the VBNC state. By measuring plate counts, viable cell counts and total cell counts, E. coli O157:H7 in 0.85% NaCl solution (pH 7.0) was able to enter the VBNC state by HPCD treatment at 5 MPa and four temperatures (25°C, 31°C, 34°C and 37°C). Meanwhile, with the improvement of treatment temperature, the time required for E. coli O157:H7 to enter VBNC state would shorten. Enzymatic activities in these VBNC cells were lower than those in the exponential-phase cells by using API ZYM kit, which were also reduced with increasing the treatment temperature, but the mechanical resistance of the VBNC cells to sonication was enhanced. These results further confirmed VBNC state was a self-protection mechanism for some bacteria, which minimized cellular energetic requirements and increased the cell resistance. When incubated in tryptic soy broth at 37°C, the VBNC cells induced by HPCD treatment at 25°C, 31°C and 34°C achieved resuscitation, but their resuscitation capabilities decreased with increasing the treatment temperature. Furthermore, electron microscopy revealed changes in the morphology and interior structure of the VBNC cells and the resuscitated cells. These results demonstrated that HPCD could induce E. coli O157:H7 into the VBNC state. Therefore, it is necessary to detect if there exist VBNC microorganisms in HPCD-treated products by molecular-based methods for food safety.

The glutamate decarboxylase (GAD) system catalyzed the conversion of L-glutamate to gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in a proton-consuming reaction, which played a critical role to maintain intracellular pH homeostasis. However, the genetic organization and functional roles of GAD system in Lactiplantibacillus plantarum remain incompletely understood. In this study, L. plantarum ZR79, a GABA-producing strain, was successfully screened from 120 L. plantarum strains based on gas production and pH increase after 48-h fermentation. Comparative genomic analysis revealed that only L. plantarum ZR79 harbors two glutamate decarboxylases encoded by gadA and gadB , respectively. Insertional inactivation of the gadB gene abolished the ability to synthesize GABA, suggesting that the gadB gene plays a critical role in GABA biosynthesis in L. plantarum ZR79. The complete genome sequencing analysis combined with RT-PCR revealed that the gadB gene was located on the plasmid pZR79, which was co-transcribed with gadR and gadC . Plasmid stability assays revealed that pZR79 was stably maintained in ZR79 over 200 generations. Furthermore, acid stress survival assays confirmed that gadB -mediated GABA production contributes to the acid tolerance of L. plantarum ZR79. This study provides the first evidence of a plasmid-encoded gadRCB operon in L. plantarum , offering new insights into the strain-specific genetic basis of GABA biosynthesis and its physiological role in acid stress resistance. Key points • L. plantarum ZR79 harbors two distinct glutamate decarboxylase-encoding genes, gadA and gadB, with the gadB gene cluster located on its plasmid pZR79. • Insertional inactivation of the gadB gene abolished the ability of L. plantarum ZR79 to synthesize GABA. • The gadB gene increased the survival ability in L. plantarum ZR79 under acidic conditions.

Shigella spp. and enteroinvasive Escherichia coli (EIEC) are widely distributed and can cause serious food-borne diseases for humans such as dysentery. Therefore, an efficient detection platform is needed to detect Shigella and EIEC quickly and sensitively. In this study, a method called recombinase polymerase amplification combined with lateral flow dipstick (RPA-LFD) was developed for rapid detection of Shigella and EIEC. RPA primers and LFD detection probes were designed for their shared virulence gene ipaH . Primers and probes were screened, and the primer concentration, and reaction time and temperature were optimized. According to the optimization results, the RPA reaction should be performed at 39°C, and when combined with LFD, it takes less than 25 min for detection with the naked eye. The developed RPA-LFD method specifically targets gene ipaH and has no cross-reactivity with other common food-borne pathogens. In addition, the minimum detection limit of RPA-LFD is 1.29×10 2 copies/μL. The detection of food sample showed that the RPA-LFD method was also verified for the detection of actual samples.

Boron-doped helical carbon nanotubes (B-HCNTs) were obtained by annealing HCNTs under the boric oxide presence. The morphology and structure of HCNTs remained unchanged even after annealing and B-doping. HCNTs displayed excellent electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorption, judging by the corresponding optimal reflection loss and the absorption bandwidth values equal to − 47.86 dB and 3.20 GHz, respectively. Quick and straightforward synthesis process, excellent chemical stability and low density make our B-HCNTs promising as lightweight and efficient microwave absorbers.

Understanding the spatiotemporal dynamics, interactions, and drivers of ecosystem services (ESs) is critical for ecological conservation and sustainable management in fragile sandy ecosystems. This study assessed five key ESs (water conservation, vegetation carbon sequestration, biodiversity, soil conservation, sand fixation) in the Hunshandake Sandy Land during 2000–2020, using Spearman correlation, geographically weighted regression, self-organizing maps (SOMs), and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to quantify trade-offs/synergies, identify ES bundles (ESBs), and clarify natural/social drivers. Results showed that all ESs fluctuated temporally with distinct spatial heterogeneity (higher in wetter, vegetated east; lower in arid, wind-erosion-prone west). Synergies dominated most ES pairs (e.g., WC-VS, WC-SC), with VS-BD showing a trade-off, WC-SF/VS-SC synergies strengthened, and WC-BD shifted from synergy to trade-off. SOMs identified six ESBs with consistent spatial patterns across decades. SEM revealed precipitation enhanced WC, evapotranspiration reduced SF/BD, temperature promoted SC but suppressed VS, elevation strongly benefited SC, NDVI was the primary driver of VS, and GDP had a slight negative effect. These findings provide insights for targeted ecological management in the study area and sustainable ES promotion in global fragile sandy landscapes.

Boron-doped helical carbon nanotubes (B-HCNTs) were synthesized by annealing HCNTs under the boric acid presence. Successful B incorporation into the HCNT matrix was confirmed by the extensive characterization performed by field emission scanning, transmission electron microscopies, X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, as well as X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. B doping did not damage the HCNT structures. However, B presence and content affected B-HCNT electrochemical performance, which was tested by cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatically, and by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The B-HCNTs demonstrated excellent energy storage performance, cycling stability, and specific capacitance equal to 212.6 F g −1 at 1 A g −1 . Thus, HCTN capacity was increased significantly after B doping.

This study investigated allergy immunotherapy potential of Lactobacillus paracasei L9 to prevent or mitigate the particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) enhanced pre-existing asthma in mice. Firstly, we used a mouse model of asthma (a 21-day ovalbumin (OVA) sensitization and challenge model) followed by PM2.5 exposure twice on the same day of the last challenge. PM2.5 was collected from the urban area of Beijing and underwent analysis for metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon contents. The results showed that PM2.5 exposure enhanced airway hyper-responsiveness (AHR) and lead to a mixed Th2/ IL-17 response in asthmatic mice. Secondly, the PM2.5 exposed asthmatic mice were orally administered with L9 (4×107, 4×109 CFU/mouse, day) from the day of first sensitization to the endpoint, for 20 days, to investigate the potential mitigative effect of L9 on asthma. The results showed that L9 ameliorated PM2.5 exposure enhanced AHR with an approximate 50% decrease in total airway resistance response to methacholine (48 mg/ml). L9 also prevented the exacerbated eosinophil and neutrophil infiltration in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), and decreased the serum level of total IgE and OVA-specific IgG1 by 0.44-fold and 0.3-fold, respectively. Additionally, cytokine production showed that L9 significantly decreased T-helper cell type 2 (Th2)-related cytokines (IL-4, -5, -13) and elevated levels of Th1 related IFN-γ in BALF. L9 also reduced the level of IL-17A and increased the level of TGF-β. Taken together, these results indicate that L9 may exert the anti-allergic benefit, possibly through rebalancing Th1/Th2 immune response and modulating IL-17 pro-inflammatory immune response. Thus, L9 is a promising candidate for preventing PM exposure enhanced pre-existing asthma.