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Anthracnose is the most devastating disease affecting persimmon (Diospyros kaki Thunb.) cultivars in China, and is caused by the pathogen recently identified as Colletotrichum horii. In this study, the symptoms of anthracnose in persimmon fruits and trees in China, and the morphological characteristics of C. horii, were observed and recorded. Thirty simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers for C. horii were developed from the whole genome of the closely related species C. gloeosporioides, which is available from the GenBank database. After screening 30 combinations of primer pairs, six SSR markers were selected to amplify the genomic DNA of 23 isolates, to assess the degree of polymorphism and the reproducibility of the SSR markers. A total of 164 discernible bands were obtained when visualizing the amplicons by electrophoresis, 156 of which showed polymorphism. A dendrogram was constructed with FreeTree software (ver. 0.9.1.50) and the similarity coefficients ranged from 0.58–0.98. The result indicated there was genetic diversity in the C. horii population in China. There was an obvious correlation between the cluster groups and the sites from which the samples were isolated. The results of this study will facilitate a more detailed understanding of the population structure of C. horii in China.

An astroglial cell line was established from the brain of half smooth tongue sole （Cynoglossus semilaevis） and was designated as CSAC. CSAC shows the morphological homogeneity of epithelial cells. The cell identity was tested by the presence of glial fibrillary acidic protein （GFAP）, which was revealed by RT-PCR and immunofluorescence. The cell line was optimally maintained at 24 ℃ in minimum essential medium supplemented with HEPES, antibiotics, 20% fetal bovine serum, 2- Mercaptoethanol （2-Me） and basic fibroblast growth factor. Chromosome analysis revealed that the CSAC cells maintained a normal diploid chromosome number （2n=42）. The fluorescent signals were observed in CSAC after the cells were transfected with green fluorescent protein （GFP） reporter plasmids. The CSAC cell line may serve as a valuable tool for studies on the potential functions of fish astroglial cells.

This paper investigates the axial gravitational perturbations originating from spherically symmetric black holes in f ( R ) gravity, along with the optical appearance of such a black hole. The aim is to search for evidence of the existence of these black holes in astrophysical observations and thereby test the correctness of the f ( R ) theory. In literature Kalita and Mukhopadhyay (Eur Phys J C 79:877, 2019), the spherically symmetric black hole metric in f ( R ) gravity is obtained. By comparing it with the metric for spherically symmetric black holes in general relativity, we find that the modification of gravity due to f ( R ) can be described in this black hole spacetime using a parameter C f . Next, we study axial gravitational perturbations in this spacetime and successfully derive a decoupled axial perturbation equation. We also discuss the impact of f ( R ) gravity on the quasi-normal mode frequencies. Additionally, we have also investigated the optical appearance of the black hole. We discuss the impact of the parameter C f on the observable characteristics of the accretion disk. In principle, both of these effects can be observed using gravitational wave detectors and astronomical telescopes.

There is increasing evidence that deep sequencing-based T cell repertoire can sever as a biomarker of immune response in cancer patients; however, the characteristics of T cell repertoire including diversity and similarity, as well as its prognostic significance in patients with cervical cancer (CC) remain unknown. In this study, we applied a high throughput T cell receptor (TCR) sequencing method to characterize the T cell repertoires of peripheral blood samples from 25 CC patients, 30 cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) patients and 20 healthy women for understanding the immune alterations during the cervix carcinogenesis. In addition, we also explored the signatures of TCR repertoires in the cervical tumor tissues and paired sentinel lymph nodes from 16 CC patients and their potential value in predicting the prognosis of patients. Our results revealed that the diversity of circulating TCR repertoire gradually decreased during the cervix carcinogenesis and progression, but the circulating TCR repertoires in CC patients were more similar to CIN patients than healthy women. Interestingly, several clonotypes uniquely detected in CC patients tended to share similar CDR3 motifs, which differed from those observed in CIN patients. In addition, the TCR repertoire diversity in sentinel lymphatic nodes from CC patients was higher than in tumor tissues. More importantly, less clonotypes in TCR repertoire of sentinel lymphatic node was associated with the poor prognosis of the patients. Overall, our findings suggested that TCR repertoire might be a potential indicator of immune monitoring and a biomarker for predicting the prognosis of CC patients. Although functional studies of T cell populations are clearly required, this study have expanded our understanding of T cell immunity during the development of CC and provided an experimental basis for further studies on its pathogenesis and immunotherapy.

Background Genetic knowledge of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in Chinese women is quite limited. This study aimed to identify the risk factors and mechanism of GDM at the genetic level in a Chinese population. Methods We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) based on single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array genotyping (ASA-CHIA Bead chip, Illumina) and a case-cohort study design. Variants including SNPs, copy number variants (CNVs), and insertions-deletions (InDels) were called from genotyping data. A total of 2232 pregnant women were enrolled in their first/second trimester between February 2018 and December 2020 from Anqing Municipal Hospital in Anhui Province, China. The GWAS included 193 GDM patients and 819 subjects without a diabetes diagnosis, and risk ratios (RRs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated by a regression-based method conditional on the population structure. The calling and quality control of genotyping data were performed following published guidelines. CNVs were merged into CNV regions (CNVR) to simplify analyses. To interpret the GWAS results, gene mapping and overexpression analyses (ORAs) were further performed to prioritize the candidate genes and related biological mechanisms. Results We identified 14 CNVRs (false discovery rate corrected P values < 0.05) and two suggestively significant SNPs (P value < 0.00001) associated with GDM, and a total of 19 candidate genes were mapped. Ten genes were significantly enriched in gene sets related to lipase (triglyceride lipase and lipoprotein lipase) activity (LIPF, LIPK, LIPN, and LIPJ genes), oxidoreductase activity (TPH1 and TPH2 genes), and cellular components beta-catenin destruction complex (APC and GSK3B genes), Wnt signalosome (APC and GSK3B genes), and lateral element in the Gene Ontology resource (BRCA1 and SYCP2 genes) by two ORA methods (adjusted P values < 0.05). Conclusions Genes related to lipolysis, redox reaction, and proliferation of islet β-cells are associated with GDM in Chinese women. Energy metabolism, particularly lipolysis, may play an important role in GDM aetiology and pathology, which needs further molecular studies to verify.

Oncogene‐derived metabolic reprogramming is important for anabolic growth of cancer cells, which is now considered to be not simply rely on glycolysis. Pentose phosphate pathway and tricarboxylic acid cycle also play pivotal roles in helping cancer cells to meet their anabolic and energy demands. The present work focused on gankyrin, a relatively specific oncogene in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and its impact on glycolysis and mitochondrial homeostasis. Metabolomics, RNA‐seq analysis, and subsequent conjoint analysis illustrated that gankyrin regulated the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP), tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, and mitochondrial function and homeostasis, which play pivotal roles in tumor development. Mechanistically, gankyrin was found to modulate HCC metabolic reprogramming via TIGAR. Gankyrin positively regulated the transcription of TIGAR through Nrf2, which bound to the antioxidant response elements (AREs) in the promoter of TIGAR. Interestingly, TIGAR feedback regulated the transcription of Nrf2 and subsequently gankyrin by promoting nuclear importation of PGC1α. The loop between gankyrin, Nrf2, and TIGAR accelerated glucose metabolism toward the PPP and TCA cycle, which provided vital building blocks, such as NADPH, ATP, and ribose of tumor and further facilitated the progression of HCC. Gankyrin positively regulated the transcription of TIGAR through Nrf2, which bound to the antioxidant response elements (AREs) in the promoter of TIGAR. Interestingly, TIGAR feedback regulated the transcription of Nrf2 and subsequently gankyrin by promoting nuclear importation of PGC1a. The loop between gankyrin, Nrf2, and TIGAR accelerated glucose metabolism toward the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) and tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, which provided vital building blocks, such as NADPH, ATP, and ribose of tumor and further facilitated tumorigenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

The optical appearance of the numerically black hole solutions within the higher derivative gravity illuminated by an accretion disk context is discussed. We obtain solutions for non-Schwarzschild black holes with r 0 = 1 , r 0 = 2 , and r 0 = 3 . Further analysis of spacetime trajectories reveals properties similar to Schwarzschild black holes, while the r 0 = 2 black hole exhibits significant differences. The results reveal the presence of a repulsive potential barrier for the black hole, allowing only particles with energies exceeding a certain threshold to approach it, providing a unique gravitational scenario for non-Schwarzschild black holes. Additionally, the optical images are derived through numerical simulations by discussing the trajectories of photons in the black hole spacetime. The distribution of radiation flux and the effects of gravitational redshift and Doppler shift on the observed radiation flux are considered. Interestingly, previous analyses of the optical appearance of black holes were conducted within the framework of analytic solutions, whereas the analysis of numerical black hole solutions first appears in our analysis.

Urban expansion is a phenomenon of urban space increase, and an important measuring index of the process of urbanization. Taking Shanghai as an example, the changes of urban average height and built-up area were studied to represent city＇s vertical and horizontal increases respectively, and statistical methods were used to analyze the driving forces of urban expansion. The research drew following conclusions： 1） The urban expansion process of Shanghai from 1985 to 2006 had a clear periodic feature, and could be divided into three stages： vertical expansion in dominance, coordinated vertical and horizontal expansion, and horizontal expansion in dominance. 2） The average height and quantity of buildings in core city were significantly bigger than those in suburbs, but the changing speed of the latter was faster. And 3） urbanization process was the major driving force for the city＇s horizontal expansion, while industrial structure improvement was the key driving factor for the vertical expansion. Those two driving forces were simultaneously affected by city＇s political factors.

The optical characteristics of three types of black holes (BHs) surrounded by a thin accretion disk are discussed, namely the Schwarzschild BH, Bardeen BH, and Hayward BH. We calculate the deflection angle of light as it traverses the vicinity of each BH using numerical integration and semi-analytical methods, revealing that both approaches can effectively elucidate the deflection of light around the BH. We investigate the optical appearance of the accretion disk and its corresponding observational images at various viewing angles, discovering that the luminosity in the region near the BH on the inner side of the accretion disk is higher than that on the outer side owing to higher material density in closer proximity to the BH. We observe a significant accumulation of brightness on the left side of the accretion disk, attributed to the motion of matter and geometric effects. Our findings emphasize the significant influence of the observation inclination angle on the observed outcomes. An increase in the observation inclination angle results in the separation of higher-order images. With the improvement in EHT observation accuracy, we believe that the feature of a minimal distance between the innermost region of the direct image of the Hayward BH and the outermost region of the secondary image can be used as an indicator for identifying Hayward BHs.

The T-cell immune responses in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients have been extensively investigated recently for designing adoptive immunotherapy or immune checkpoint blockade therapy. However, the distribution characteristics of T cells associated with NPC pathogenesis are largely unknown. We performed deep sequencing for TCR repertoire profiling on matched tumor/adjacent normal tissue from 15 NPC patients and peripheral blood from 39 NPC patients, 39 patients with other nasopharyngeal diseases, and 33 healthy controls. We found that a lower diversity of TCR repertoire in tumors than paired tissues or a low similarity between the paired tissues was associated with a poor prognosis in NPC. A more diverse TCR repertoire was identified in the peripheral blood of NPC patients relative to the controls; this was related to a significant decrease in the proportion of high-frequency TCR clones in NPC. Higher diversity in peripheral blood of NPC patients was associated with a worse prognosis. Due to the peculiarity of the Vβ gene usage patterns in the peripheral blood of NPC patients, 15 Vβ genes were selected to distinguish NPC patients from controls by the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator analysis. We identified 11 clonotypes shared by tumors and peripheral blood samples from different NPC patients, defined as “NPC-associated” that might have value in adoptive immunotherapy. In conclusion, we here report the systematic and overall characteristics of the TCR repertoire in tumors, adjacent normal tissues, and peripheral blood of NPC patients. The data obtained may be relevant to future clinical studies in the setting of immunotherapy for NPC patients.