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supporting long-term independent weight management should be a focus of future research.Intraspecific interactions among predators can change the game between a predator and its prey. Individuals of different size or sex can differ in their responses to conspecific competitors. We studied intraspecific interactions among pairs of little egrets (Egretta garzetta) while foraging on responsive prey (comet goldfish, Carassius auratus). Testing little egrets in an artificial patchy environment both singly and while engaged in social forging in pairs (male & female) at two prey densities, allowed us to explore individual differences in foraging success. We found sexual dimorphism with males being bigger and more aggressive than females. However, female foraging success was positively affected by the time they spent foraging with a conspecific male, suggesting they might be able to mitigate male aggressiveness with an indirect positive interaction. Despite the presence of direct interactions between individuals in the pair, egret foraging success was not affected by such interactions, nor by prey density. Our results demonstrate the importance of sex and an individual's ability to adjust its social behaviour based on the behaviour of others in this predator-prey foraging game.ClpXP in Escherichia coli is a proteasome degrading protein substrates. It consists of one hexamer of ATPase (ClpX) and two heptamers of peptidase (ClpP). The ClpX binds ATP and translocates the substrate protein into the ClpP chamber by binding and hydrolysis of ATP. At single molecular level, ClpX harnesses cycles of power stroke (dwell and burst) to unfold the substrates, then releases the ADP and Pi. Based on the construction and function of ClpXP, especially the recent progress on how ClpX unfold protein substrates, in this mini-review, a currently proposed single ClpX molecular model system detected by optical tweezers, and its prospective for the elucidation of the mechanism of force generation of ClpX in its power stroke and the subunit interaction with each other, were discussed in detail.The Narcissus pseudonarcissus cv. Carlton contains Amaryllidaceae alkaloids namely galanthamine, lycorine, homolycorine, narciclasine, which are noted for their pharmaceutical properties such as for the treatment of early to mid-stage Alzheimer's diseases, cancer, tumor etc. Alkaloid biosynthesis using plant in vitro systems has been considered as a tool for drug discovery and the pathways are starting to be understood but still far from complete. Therefore, the study was emphasized to observe the relative expressions of putative genes involved in the biosynthetic pathway leading to the Amaryllidaceae alkaloids in field grown bulbs and developing cell culture systems in Narcissus. MS media fortified with growth regulators were used for the development of tissue culture from Carlton twin-scale explants. MS medium with high auxin, 20 mg/l NAA was the best medium for callus growth and maintenance while media with low auxin, 4 mg/l NAA and MS basal media gave the maximum bulblets. Field tissues showed a higher amount of galanthamine content; i.e. basal plate (1050-1310 µg Gal/g FW) and bulb (980-1150 µg Gal/g FW) than the culture derived samples; callus (1.0-7.0 µg Gal/g FW) and bulblets (12-215 µg Gal/g FW) on a fresh weight (FW) basis. selleck inhibitor GC-MS chromatograms of samples under study also showed the presence of other important alkaloids i.e. lycorine, homolycorine, lycorenine, haemanthamine, crinamine, lycoramine and tazettine. RNA extracted from in vitro callus, bulblets and field grown bulb, basal plate were used for PCR to detect the relative expression of putative genes; P450, PAL, TYDC and NpO4OMT normalized to actin. The selected transcripts for P450s and TYDC were expressed in both field and in vitro tissues. Higher expressions of PAL were observed in calli than field samples. The expression of NpN4OMT was notably higher in field samples than in vitro tissues. Therefore, in vitro tissues could be a good source for the reproducible and easy extraction of alkaloids from plants.Sox9 gene, a crucial member of the Sox gene family, is present in various organisms and involved in many physiological processes, especially in sex determination and gonad development. In this study, we reported a sox9 gene (designated as Spsox9) from Scylla paramamosain through analyzing published gonad transcriptome data. Meanwhile, the accuracy was validated by PCR technology, and the 3' sequences were cloned with 3' RACE technology. The full-length cDNA of Spsox9 is 2843 bp, consisting of a 243 bp 5' UTR, an 1124 bp 3' UTR, and a 1476 bp ORF encoding 491 amino acids. Furthermore, to better understand its conservation among crustacean species, the sox9 gene ortholog was identified in several other crustaceans species with their published transcriptome data, respectively. All of the Sox9 proteins identified in the current study had the common feature of Sox proteins (HMG domain) and were highly conserved among analyzed crustacean species. In all examined tissues, the Spsox9 was mainly expressed in the gonad (testis and ovary), eyestalk, and cerebral ganglion. During embryo development, Spsox9 was highly expressed in 5 pairs of appendages, 7 pairs of appendages, and eye-pigment formation stage. During ovary development, the expression level of Spsox9 remained stable in the first 4 stages (O1-O4) and decreased in the tertiary vitellogenesis (O5) stage. During testis development, the expression level of Spsox9 was highest in the spermatid stage (T2) and was significantly different from that in the spermatocyte stage (T1) and mature sperm stage (T3) (p less then 0.05). In addition, Spsox9 exhibited a sex-biased expression pattern in T1 and O1. These present results indicated that the Spsox9 gene might play crucial roles in the gonad and embryo development of mud crab.Studies have shown that basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF2) is a neurotrophic factor associated with depression. Electroacupuncture (EA) has been shown to be an effective treatment for depression. In the current study, we observed the effects of EA on hippocampal FGF2 and astrocytes, and further investigated the mechanism underlying antidepressant effect of EA. The chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) method were selected to induce depressive-like behaviors of rats. Paroxetine is a commonly used antidepressant and was used as a positive control drug in this experiment. The male adult Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were randomized to four experimental groups (normal control group, CUMS group, EA group and paroxetine group, n = 10/group). EA intervention was administered once daily for 14 days at acupuncture points Baihui (GV20) and Yintang (GV29). Rats in the paroxetine group received daily paroxetine administered intragastrical. Behavioral test, immunohistochemistry (IHC), western blot (WB) and quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) were conducted to evaluate the intervene effect and the changes of FGF2 and astrocyte marker (glial fibrillary acidic protein, GFAP). The results showed that EA and paroxetine could improve depression-like behavior in CUMS rats, and up-regulated the expression level of FGF2 in the hippocampus, increased GFAP protein expression and the mean optical density of GFAP-immunoreactive astrocyte (GFAP-ir astrocyte). Our findings have identified that EA could ameliorate depressive-like behaviors possibly by regulating the expression of FGF2 in the hippocampus, and the mechanism might be related to the effect of FGF2 on astrocytes.Retinal detachment refers to the separation of the retinal neuroepithelium and pigment epithelium, usually involving the death of photoreceptor cells. Severe detachment may lead to permanent visual impairment if not treated properly and promptly. According to the underlying causes, retinal detachment falls into one of three categories exudative retinal detachment, traction detachment, and rhegmatogenous retinal detachment. Like many other diseases, it is difficult to study the pathophysiology of retinal detachment directly in humans, because the human retinal tissues are precious, scarce and non-regenerative; thus, establishing experimental models that better mimic the disease is necessary. In this review, we summarize the existing models of the three categories of retinal detachment both in vivo and in vitro, along with an overview of their examination methods and the major strengths and weaknesses of each model.In the past decade, there was an increasing interest in the therapeutic potential targeting ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channels for an effective treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD). KATP channels are widely expressed in the central nervous system and were reported to mediate the degeneration and death of nigral dopamine neurons in the pathogenesis of PD. This review aims to address the pivotal roles of KATP channels played in the mechanisms underlying PD pathogenesis, and provide possible directions for further research from different perspectives, such as the vulnerability of dopamine neurons in the substantia nigra, neurotransmitter releasing, iron metabolism in the brain, α-synuclein secretion and mitochondrial dysfunction, which are off critical importance in the investigation of KATP channels-targeted precise therapeutic interventions for PD.Brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) promotes maturation of dopaminergic (DAergic) neurons in the midbrain and positively regulates their maintenance and outgrowth. Therefore, understanding the mechanisms regulating the BDNF signaling pathway in DAergic neurons may help discover potential therapeutic strategies for neuropsychological disorders associated with dysregulation of DAergic neurotransmission. Because estrogen-related receptor gamma (ERRγ) is highly expressed in both the fetal nervous system and adult brains during DAergic neuronal differentiation, and it is involved in regulating the DAergic neuronal phenotype, we asked in this study whether ERRγ ligand regulates BDNF signaling and subsequent DAergic neuronal phenotype. Based on the X-ray crystal structures of the ligand binding domain of ERRγ, we designed and synthesized the ERRγ agonist, (E)-4-hydroxy-N'-(4-(phenylethynyl)benzylidene)benzohydrazide (HPB2) (Kd value, 8.35 μmol/L). HPB2 increased BDNF mRNA and protein levels, and enhanced the exphenotype in neuronal cells. Our results might provide new insights into the mechanism underlying the regulation of BDNF expression, leading to novel therapeutic strategies for neuropsychological disorders associated with DAergic dysregulation.Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), mainly including acetate, propionate, and butyrate, are metabolites produced during the bacterial fermentation of dietary fiber in the intestinal tract. They are believed to be essential factors affecting host health. Most in vitro and ex vivo studies have shown that SCFAs affect the regulation of inflammation, carcinogenesis, intestinal barrier function, and oxidative stress, but convincing evidence in humans is still lacking. Two major SCFA signaling mechanisms have been identified promotion of histone acetylation and activation of G-protein-coupled receptors. In this review, we introduce the production and metabolic characteristics of SCFAs, summarize the potential effects of SCFAs on the four aspects mentioned above and the possible mechanisms. SCFAs have been reported to exert a wide spectrum of positive effects and have a high potential for therapeutic use in human-related diseases.