Summary In early seedlings, the primary root adapts rapidly to environmental changes through the modulation of endogenous hormone levels. The phytohormone ethylene inhibits primary root elongation, but the underlying molecular mechanism of how ethylene‐reduced root growth is modulated in environmental changes remains poorly understood. Here, we show that a novel rice (Oryza sativa) DOF transcription factor OsDOF15 positively regulates primary root elongation by regulating cell proliferation in the root meristem, via restricting ethylene biosynthesis. Loss‐of‐function of OsDOF15 impaired primary root elongation and cell proliferation in the root meristem, whereas OsDOF15 overexpression enhanced these processes, indicating that OsDOF15 is a key regulator of primary root elongation. This regulation involves the direct interaction of OsDOF15 with the promoter of OsACS1, resulting in the repression of ethylene biosynthesis. The control of ethylene biosynthesis by OsDOF15 in turn regulates cell proliferation in the root meristem. OsDOF15 transcription is repressed by salt stress, and OsDOF15‐mediated ethylene biosynthesis plays a role in inhibition of primary root elongation by salt stress. Thus, our data reveal how the ethylene‐inhibited primary root elongation is finely controlled by OsDOF15 in response to environmental signal, a novel mechanism of plants responding to salt stress and transmitting the information to ethylene biosynthesis to restrict root elongation.

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Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is known to be a risk factor for atherosclerosis (AS), derived from a series of chronic inflammatory reactions caused by hypoxia. However, the association between chronic inflammation and high blood pressure caused by hypoxia remains to be fully elucidated. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy on inflammatory cytokines and AS. A total of 100 patients with OSAS and 50 healthy control subjects were enrolled. Fresh venous blood samples were collected prior to and following a 3‑months period of CPAP treatment. The inflammatory factors, interleukin (IL)‑18 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‑α, C‑reactive protein (CRP), intercellular cell adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM‑1), vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM‑1), E‑selectin and P‑selectin, were detected using standard enzyme‑linked immunosorbent assay kits. Intima‑media thickness (IMT), brachial‑ankle pulse wave velocity (Ba‑PWV), apnea‑hypopnea index (AHI) and transcutaneous oxygen saturation (SpO2) were also detected to compare differences prior to and following treatment. The results showed that, compared with the pre‑treatment data, the expression levels of IL‑8, TNF‑α, CRP, ICAM‑1, VCAM‑1, E‑selectin and P‑selectin were significantly decreased following treatment (P<0.05). The AHI, IMT, blood pressure and Ba‑PWV values were significantly decreased (P<0.05), and the SpO2 was increased (P<0.05). Taken together, by comparing the pre‑ and post‑intervention data, it was confirmed that inflammatory factors were involved in the process of AS in patients with OSAS. Following CPAP treatment, blood pressure and primary indicators in the patients improved.

BARF1, encoded by Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), has been hypothesized to function as an oncogene, which was expressed in gastric carcinoma cells. Additionally, it has been reported that the anti-apoptotic function is closely associated with the expression of the B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) protein. In addition, the signaling pathway has been reported to be involved in numerous diseases, including the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascade. In order to study the specific mechanism of anti-apoptotic function, BARF1-stably-expressing immortalized normal human embryo gastric epithelial cell line GES1 (GES-BARF1), and well-, moderately- and poorly-differentiated gastric carcinoma cell lines, MKN28 (which has been reported to be contaminated with the moderately-differentiated MKN74 gastric carcinoma cell line), SGC7901 and BGC823 (MKN-BARF1, SGC-BARF1 and BGC-BARF1, respectively) (GCC-BARF1) were constructed, with transfection of cells with the empty vector pSG5 acting as controls. Western blot analysis was performed to analyze the protein expression and the phosphorylation levels. Compared with the controls, it was found that the protein expression levels of c-Jun, Bcl-2 and B-cell lymphoma-extra large (Bcl-xL), as well as the phosphorylation levels of c-Jun, c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) 1/2/3, p38 and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) 1/2 proteins were upregulated in 3 GCC-BARF1 but not significantly changed in GES-BARF1. The expression levels of the c-Jun, Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL proteins, and levels of c-Jun protein phosphorylation were significantly decreased in SGC-BARF1 cells subsequent to treatment with SP600125, SB203580, and U0126, which were the specific inhibitors of JNK1/2/3, p38 and ERK1/2 respectively. In addition, there was a gradual increase in the protein expression and phosphorylation levels between normal gastric epithelial cells, and well-differentiated, moderately-differentiated and poorly-differentiated gastric carcinoma cells, but this was not statistically significant. Therefore, the present study hypothesized that JNK1/2/3-, p38- and ERK1/2-MAPK/c-Jun cascade signaling pathways may contribute to the upregulation of the expression of the anti-apoptotic proteins Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL induced by BARF1 in gastric carcinoma cells. This mechanism may mainly work in the progressive phase of the development in EBV-associated gastric carcinoma.

The electroactive β-phase in Poly (vinylidene fluoride, PVDF) is the most desirable conformation due to its highest pyro- and piezoelectric properties, which make it feasible to be used as flexible sensors, wearable electronics, and energy harvesters etc. In this study, we successfully developed a method to obtain high-content β-phase PVDF films and nanofiber meshes by mechanical stretching and electric spinning. The phase transition process and pyro- and piezoelectric effects of stretched films and nanofiber meshes were characterized by monitoring the polarized light microscopy (PLM) images, outputting currents and open-circuit voltages respectively, which were proved to be closely related to stretching ratio (λ) and concentrations. This study could expand a new route for the easy fabrication and wide application of PVDF films or fibers in wearable electronics, sensors, and energy harvesting devices.

The therapeutic potential of curcumin (Cur) is hampered by its poor aqueous solubility and low bioavailability. The aim of this study was to determine whether Cur nanoemulsions enhance the efficacy of Cur against prostate cancer cells and increase the oral absorption of Cur. Cur nanoemulsions were developed using the self-microemulsifying method and characterized by their morphology, droplet size and zeta potential. The results showed that the cytotoxicity and cell uptake were considerably increased with Cur nanoemulsions compared to free Cur. Cur nanoemulsions exhibited a significantly prolonged biological activity and demonstrated better therapeutic efficacy than free Cur, as assessed by apoptosis and cell cycle studies. In situ single-pass perfusion studies demonstrated higher effective permeability coefficient and absorption rate constant for Cur nanoemulsions than for free Cur. Our study suggested that Cur nanoemulsions can be used as an effective drug delivery system to enhance the anticancer effect and oral bioavailability of Cur.

BackgroundThe Questionnaire on Pain caused by Spasticity (QPS) is a modular patient- and observer-reported outcome measure of spasticity-related pain (SRP) in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Originally developed for an English-speaking population, we conducted a psychometric validation of a recently developed Chinese language version of the QPS.MethodsThis was a prospective, observational study involving 137 children/adolescents with CP and upper and/or lower limb spasticity and their parents at three sites in China. Six QPS modules were used, three each for upper and lower limb SRP assessment: a patient self-report module; an interviewer-administered module used by site staff based on the cognitive, communicative, and motor abilities of a patient; and a parent/caregiver module administered for all children as an observer-reported outcome to complement the patient-reported outcome. If no assessment by the patient was possible because of age or cognitive impairments, only the parent/caregiver module was completed. Two visits with a 3-week interval provided data to evaluate and establish administrative ease of use, scoring of the QPS (factor analyses, Rasch analyses), reliability (Cronbach’s α, intraclass correlation coefficient), validity (correlations with quality of life [PedsQL™], motor impairment [Gross Motor Function Classification System, Gross Motor Function Measure-66, Manual Ability Classification System], and spasticity [Ashworth Scale, Modified Tardieu Scale]).ResultsFor most children, clinic staff reported no difficulties associated with general QPS use or deciding which module to use. Children (and parents) who reported more demanding activities also reported higher levels of associated SRP (or observed SRP behavior). Activity-related SRP items were combined for a total QPS score. Cronbach’s α was low for child self-report, but was acceptable for interviewer-administered and parent reports on SRP. Test–retest reliability was high for all modules. Moderate–strong associations were frequently seen between QPS and quality of life, and were particularly strong in the child self-report group. Relatively weak associations were observed between QPS and motor impairment and spasticity.ConclusionsThis first study was successful in providing initial evidence for the psychometric properties. Clinic staff were able to administer the QPS modules easily, and both children and parents were able to complete the designated QPS appropriately.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12955-017-0804-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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