Summary Background The ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a global public health concern due to relatively easy person-to-person transmission and the current lack of effective antiviral therapy. However, the exact molecular mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis remain largely unknown. Methods Genome-wide screening was used to establish intraviral and viral-host interactomes. Quantitative proteomics was used to investigate the peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) proteome signature in COVID-19. Findings We elucidated 286 host proteins targeted by SARS-CoV-2 and >350 host proteins that are significantly perturbed in COVID-19-derived PBMCs. This signature in severe COVID-19 PBMCs reveals a significant upregulation of cellular proteins related to neutrophil activation and blood coagulation, as well as a downregulation of proteins mediating T cell receptor signaling. From the interactome, we further identified that non-structural protein 10 interacts with NF-κB-repressing factor (NKRF) to facilitate interleukin-8 (IL-8) induction, which potentially contributes to IL-8-mediated chemotaxis of neutrophils and the overexuberant host inflammatory response observed in COVID-19 patients. Conclusions Our study not only presents a systematic examination of SARS-CoV-2-induced perturbation of host targets and cellular networks but it also reveals insights into the mechanisms by which SARS-CoV-2 triggers cytokine storms, representing a powerful resource in the pursuit of therapeutic interventions. Funding National Key Research and Development Project of China, National Natural Science Foundation of China, National Science and Technology Major Project, Program for Professor of Special Appointment (Eastern Scholar) at Shanghai Institutions of Higher Learning, Shanghai Science and Technology Commission, Shanghai Municipal Health Commission, Shanghai Municipal Key Clinical Specialty, Innovative Research Team of High-level Local Universities in Shanghai, Interdisciplinary Program of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, SII Challenge Fund for COVID-19 Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) Large Research Infrastructure of Maintenance and Remolding Project, and Chinese Academy of Sciences Key Technology Talent Program.

OBJECTIVEWe have previously shown that serum insulin levels decrease threefold and blood glucose levels remain normal in mice fed a leucine-deficient diet, suggesting increased insulin sensitivity. The goal of the current study is to investigate this possibility and elucidate the underlying cellular mechanisms.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSChanges in metabolic parameters and expression of genes and proteins involved in regulation of insulin sensitivity were analyzed in mice, human HepG2 cells, and mouse primary hepatocytes under leucine deprivation.RESULTSWe show that leucine deprivation improves hepatic insulin sensitivity by sequentially activating general control nonderepressible (GCN)2 and decreasing mammalian target of rapamycin/S6K1 signaling. In addition, we show that activation of AMP-activated protein kinase also contributes to leucine deprivation–increased hepatic insulin sensitivity. Finally, we show that leucine deprivation improves insulin sensitivity under insulin-resistant conditions.CONCLUSIONSThis study describes mechanisms underlying increased hepatic insulin sensitivity under leucine deprivation. Furthermore, we demonstrate a novel function for GCN2 in the regulation of insulin sensitivity. These observations provide a rationale for short-term dietary restriction of leucine for the treatment of insulin resistance and associated metabolic diseases.

5Funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the Pathosystems Resource Integration Center (PATRIC) is a genomics-centric relational database and bioinformatics resource designed to assist scientists in infectious-disease research. Specifically, PATRIC provides scientists with (i) a comprehensive bacterial genomics database, (ii) a plethora of associated data relevant to genomic analysis, and (iii) an extensive suite of computational tools and platforms for bioinformatics analysis. While the primary aim of PATRIC is to advance the knowledge underlying the biology of human pathogens, all publicly available genome-scale data for bacteria are compiled and continually updated, thereby enabling comparative analyses to reveal the basis for differences between infectious free-living and commensal species. Herein we summarize the major features available at PATRIC, dividing the resources into two major categories: (i) organisms, genomes, and comparative genomics and (ii) recurrent integration of community-derived associated data. Additionally, we present two experimental designs typical of bacterial genomics research and report on the execution of both projects using only PATRIC data and tools. These applications encompass a broad range of the data and analysis tools available, illustrating practical uses of PATRIC for the biologist. Finally, a summary of PATRIC's outreach activities, collaborative endeavors, and future research directions is provided.

OBJECTIVEWhite adipose tissue (WAT) and brown adipose tissue (BAT) play distinct roles in adaptation to changes in nutrient availability, with WAT serving as an energy store and BAT regulating thermogenesis. We previously showed that mice maintained on a leucine-deficient diet unexpectedly experienced a dramatic reduction in abdominal fat mass. The cellular mechanisms responsible for this loss, however, are unclear. The goal of current study is to investigate possible mechanisms.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSMale C57BL/6J mice were fed either control, leucine-deficient, or pair-fed diets for 7 days. Changes in metabolic parameters and expression of genes and proteins related to lipid metabolism were analyzed in WAT and BAT.RESULTSWe found that leucine deprivation for 7 days increases oxygen consumption, suggesting increased energy expenditure. We also observed increases in lipolysis and expression of β-oxidation genes and decreases in expression of lipogenic genes and activity of fatty acid synthase in WAT, consistent with increased use and decreased synthesis of fatty acids, respectively. Furthermore, we observed that leucine deprivation increases expression of uncoupling protein (UCP)-1 in BAT, suggesting increased thermogenesis.CONCLUSIONSWe show for the first time that elimination of dietary leucine produces significant metabolic changes in WAT and BAT. The effect of leucine deprivation on UCP1 expression is a novel and unexpected observation and suggests that the observed increase in energy expenditure may reflect an increase in thermogenesis in BAT. Further investigation will be required to determine the relative contribution of UCP1 upregulation and thermogenesis in BAT to leucine deprivation-stimulated fat loss.

In this study, we systematically investigate the mechanism of single-layer MnO2 nanosheets suppressing fluorescence of 7-hydroxycoumarin and, based on this, demonstrate a new fluorescent method for in vivo sensing of ascorbic acid (AA) in rat brain. The mechanism for the fluorescence suppression is attributed to a combination of inner filter effect (IFE) and static quenching effect (SQE), which is different from those reported for the traditional two-dimensional nanosheets, and Förster resonant energy transfer (FRET) mechanism reported for MnO2 nanosheets. The combination of IFE and SQE leads to an exponential decay in fluorescence intensity of 7-hydroxycoumarin with increasing concentration of MnO2 nanosheets in solution. Such a property allows optimization of the concentration of MnO2 nanosheets in such a way that the addition of reductive analyte (e.g., AA) will to the greatest extent restore the MnO2 nanosheets-suppressed fluorescence of 7-hydroxycoumarin through the redox reaction between AA and MnO2 nanosheets. On the basis of this feature, we demonstrate a fluorescent method for in vivo sensing of AA in the cerebral systems with an improved sensitivity. Compared with the turn-on fluorescent method through first decreasing the fluorescence to the lowest level by adding concentrated MnO2 nanosheets, the method demonstrated here possesses a higher sensitivity, lower limit of detection, and wider linear range. Upon the use of ascorbate oxidase to achieve the selectivity for AA, the turn-on fluorescence method demonstrated here can be used for in vivo sensing of AA in a simple but reliable way.

No abstract

Interleukin-7 receptor (IL-7R) is genetically associated with susceptibility to multiple sclerosis. Here we describe that IL-7 is essential for survival and expansion of pathogenic T helper type 17 (T(H)17) cells in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). IL-7 directly expanded effector T(H)17 cells in EAE and human T(H)17 cells from subjects with multiple sclerosis, whereas it was not required for T(H)17 differentiation. IL-7R antagonism rendered differentiated T(H)17 cells susceptible to apoptosis through the inhibition of Janus kinase-signal transducer and activator of transcription-5 (JAK-STAT5) pathway and altered expression of the prosurvival protein Bcl-2 and the proapoptotic protein Bax, leading to decreased severity of EAE. In contrast, T(H)1 and regulatory T (T(reg)) cells were less susceptible to or not affected by IL-7R antagonism in vivo. The selectivity was attributable to minimal expression of IL-7Ralpha in T(reg) cells and correlated with a high level of Socs1 (encoding suppressor of cytokine signaling-1) expression in T(H)1 cells. The study reveals a unique, previously undescribed role of IL-7-IL-7R in T(H)17 cell survival and expansion and has implications in the treatment of autoimmune disease.

BackgroundThe formation and development of bulblets are crucial to the Lilium genus since these processes are closely related to carbohydrate metabolism, especially to starch and sucrose metabolism. However, little is known about the transcriptional regulation of both processes. To gain insight into carbohydrate-related genes involved in bulblet formation and development, we conducted comparative transcriptome profiling of Lilium davidii var. unicolor bulblets at 0 d, 15 d (bulblets emerged) and 35 d (bulblets formed a basic shape with three or four scales) after scale propagation.ResultsAnalysis of the transcriptome revealed that a total of 52,901 unigenes with an average sequence size of 630 bp were generated. Based on Clusters of Orthologous Groups (COG) analysis, 8% of the sequences were attributed to carbohydrate transport and metabolism. The results of KEGG pathway enrichment analysis showed that starch and sucrose metabolism constituted the predominant pathway among the three library pairs. The starch content in mother scales and bulblets decreased and increased, respectively, with almost the same trend as sucrose content. Gene expression analysis of the key enzymes in starch and sucrose metabolism suggested that sucrose synthase (SuSy) and invertase (INV), mainly hydrolyzing sucrose, presented higher gene expression in mother scales and bulblets at stages of bulblet appearance and enlargement, while sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS) showed higher expression in bulblets at morphogenesis. The enzymes involved in the starch synthetic direction such as ADPG pyrophosphorylase (AGPase), soluble starch synthase (SSS), starch branching enzyme (SBE) and granule-bound starch synthase (GBSS) showed a decreasing trend in mother scales and higher gene expression in bulblets at bulblet appearance and enlargement stages while the enzyme in the cleavage direction, starch de-branching enzyme (SDBE), showed higher gene expression in mother scales than in bulblets.ConclusionsAn extensive transcriptome analysis of three bulblet development stages contributes considerable novel information to our understanding of carbohydrate metabolism-related genes in Lilium at the transcriptional level, and demonstrates the fundamentality of carbohydrate metabolism in bulblet emergence and development at the molecular level. This could facilitate further investigation into the molecular mechanisms underlying these processes in lily and other related species.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12870-014-0358-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.