The Bmal1 gene plays a key role in controlling circadian rhythms. To better understand how the Bmal1 gene affects tumour growth and the response to anti-cancer drugs, we examined the effect of knockdown of Bmal1 by RNAi both in vitro and in vivo. Down-regulation of Bmal1 gene expression accelerated cell proliferation in vitro and promoted tumour growth in mice. Suppressing Bmal1 expression in murine colon cancer cells (C26) and fibroblast cells (L929) decreased apoptosis induced by Etoposid, reduced the distribution of cells in the G2/M phases treated by Docetaxel and decreased DNA damage induced by Cisplatin. Loss of Bmal1 reduced the expression of per1, per2, per3, wee1 and p53. The expression of p21 and c-myc was also altered in certain cell lines. However, Bmal1 deficiency increased the protein levels of cdc2, cyclin B1, cyclin D1 and cyclin E. Wee1 and cyclin A expression was minimally altered. Thus, the circadian clock gene Bmal1 plays a role in regulating tumour cell apoptosis, cell-cycle progression and DNA damage response and in homoeostasis regulation. Down-regulation of Bmal1 accelerates the development of tumours and may influence the response to anti-cancer drugs.

BackgroundAlthough feeding behavior and food habit are ecologically and economically important properties, little is known about formation and evolution of herbivory. Grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) is an ecologically appealing model of vertebrate herbivore, widely cultivated in the world as edible fish or as biological control agents for aquatic weeds. Grass carp exhibits food habit transition from carnivory to herbivory during development. However, currently little is known about the genes regulating the unique food habit transition and the formation of herbivory, and how they could achieve higher growth rates on plant materials, which have a relatively poor nutritional quality.ResultsWe showed that grass carp fed with duckweed (modeling fish after food habit transition) had significantly higher relative length of gut than fish before food habit transition or those fed with chironomid larvae (fish without transition). Using transcriptome sequencing, we identified 10,184 differentially expressed genes between grass carp before and after transition in brain, liver and gut. By eliminating genes potentially involved in development (via comparing fish with or without food habit transition), we identified changes in expression of genes involved in cell proliferation and differentiation, appetite control, circadian rhythm, and digestion and metabolism between fish before and after food habit transition. Up-regulation of GHRb, Egfr, Fgf, Fgfbp1, Insra, Irs2, Jak, STAT, PKC, PI3K expression in fish fed with duckweed, consistent with faster gut growth, could promote the food habit transition. Grass carp after food habit transition had increased appetite signal in brain. Altered expressions of Per, Cry, Clock, Bmal2, Pdp, Dec and Fbxl3 might reset circadian phase of fish after food habit transition. Expression of genes involved in digestion and metabolism were significantly different between fish before and after the transition.ConclusionsWe suggest that the food habit transition from carnivory to herbivory in grass carp might be due to enhanced gut growth, increased appetite, resetting of circadian phase and enhanced digestion and metabolism. We also found extensive alternative splicing and novel transcript accompanying food habit transition. These differences together might account for the food habit transition and the formation of herbivory in grass carp.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12864-015-1217-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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With the dye and medicinal plant Isatis indigotica (2n = 14) as pollen parent, intertribal sexual hybrids with Brassica napus (2n = 38, AACC) were obtained and characterized. Among a lot of F1 plants produced, only five hybrids (H1-H5) were distinguished morphologically from female B. napus parents by showing low fertility and some characters of I. indigotica, and also by having different chromosome numbers. H1-H4 had similar but variable chromosome numbers in their somatic and meiotic cells (2n = 25-30), and H5 had 2n = 19, the same number as the haploid of B. napus. GISH analysis of the cells from H1 and H5 detected one I. indigotica chromosome and one or two chromosome terminal fragments. New B. napus types with phenotypic and genomic alterations were produced by H1 after pollination by B. napus and selfing for several generations, and by H5 after selfing. A progeny plant (2n = 20) was derived from H1 after pollination by I. indigotica twice and had a phenotype similar to a certain type of B. rapa, showing that hybrid H1 likely retained all chromosomes of the A genome and lost some of the C genome in parental B. napus. The reasons for the formation of the partial hybrids with unexpected chromosomal complements and for the chromosome elimination are discussed.

Drought is a severe abiotic stress that affects global crop production. A drought model was created for 'Toyonoka' Fragaria × ananassa, and the effects of drought stress on contents of proline, sugars, and antioxidant enzyme activities were investigated. Strawberry transplants with identical growth were chosen for the experiments and the randomized design included four replications (10 plants per block). The experimental sets differed in the moisture level of the culture medium relative to the range of moisture content as follows: control, 70-85%; mild drought stress, 50-60%; moderate drought stress, 40-50%; and severe drought stress, 30-40%. Drought stress was imposed by limiting irrigation. Plants were sampled and physiological parameters were measured on 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 days after the commencement of drought stress. The water potential of strawberry leaves decreased in the plants under mild, moderate, and severe stress during the course of the water stress treatment and exhibited a significant difference from the control. Strawberry leaves subjected to drought stress had higher accumulation of proline, sugars, and malondialdehyde, and higher activities of superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, and catalase than leaves of control plants. Malondialdehyde levels increased in parallel with the severity and duration of drought stress. By contrast, antioxidant enzyme activity displayed dynamic responses to drought stress, first increasing and subsequently decreasing as the severity and duration of drought stress increased. These results suggest that strawberry plants respond to drought stress by altering the activities of antioxidant enzymes and the levels of osmotically active metabolites. These biochemical response changes may confer adaptation to drought stress and improve the capacity of plants to withstand water-deficit conditions.

Complete or partial chromosome elimination and diploidization with genomic rearrangements were considered to lead to the formation of partial hybrids in this cross.

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The new secoiridoid sulfonates 1–3 were isolated from the 50% EtOH/H2O extract of the sulfiting‐processed Lonicera japonica Flos (LJF) by semi‐prep. HPLC, and their structures were identified on the basis of mass spectrometry and NMR spectroscopy. HPLC and LC‐DAD‐MS/MS analyses of the different samples of LJF obtained by various process techniques suggested that the sulfur fumigation led to the decrease of secologanic acid (4) and the formation of secologanic acid‐derived sulfonate 1 and its derivatives 2, 2a, and 3 in the crude materials, which revealed that sulfur fumigation, the traditional process technique, could alter the phytochemical profiles of some Chinese herbal medicines.