Article
Biology
Scott R. Allen, Rebeccah K. Stewart, Michael Rogers, Ivan Jimenez Ruiz, Erez Cohen, Alain Laederach, Christopher M. Counter, Jessica K. Sawyer, Donald T. Fox
Summary: Codon usage bias plays a critical role in protein production and tissue-specific gene expression. This study investigates the impact of codon usage on tissue-specific mRNA and protein expression using codon-modified reporters in Drosophila melanogaster. The results reveal distinct tissue responses to codon usage bias, with the testis and brain being capable of expressing rare codon-enriched reporters. The findings also demonstrate conserved enrichment for rare codon usage in the endogenously expressed genes of both Drosophila and human testis, highlighting the importance of codon bias in tissue biology.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Cuiping Yang, Zehao Peng, Lu Yang, Bowen Du, Chuanzhuang Guo, Songsen Sui, Jianbin Wang, Junlin Li, Junqing Wang, Nan Li
Summary: In this study, high L-lysine-producing strains were screened by constructing the artificial rare codon AAA in C. glutamicum. Fermentation results showed that the mutant strains with higher fluorescence intensities had an increase of up to 9.7% in L-lysine production, and the highest screening positive rate was 69%. Therefore, the application of artificially constructed rare codons provides an efficient, accurate, and simple method for screening other amino acid-producing microorganisms.
FRONTIERS IN BIOENGINEERING AND BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Michal Perach, Zohar Zafrir, Tamir Tuller, Oded Lewinson
Summary: Due to genetic code redundancy, most amino acids are encoded by multiple synonymous codons, which are used unevenly in different organisms. Slow codons play important roles in regulating protein folding and function.
Article
Immunology
Pankaj Gurjar, Noushad Karuvantevida, Igor Vladimirovich Rzhepakovsky, Azmat Ali Khan, Rekha Khandia
Summary: The study identified specific molecular patterns in the structural genes of the SARS-CoV-2 delta variant, including an abundance of T nucleotides, underrepresentation of certain dinucleotides, and specific codon usage preferences. The virus uses these patterns to reduce translation rate and facilitate correct protein folding. This information can be utilized to design an attenuated vaccine candidate against the SARS-CoV-2 delta variant.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Hui Liu, Cuiping Yang, Lu Yang, Ruiming Wang, Piwu Li, Bowen Du, Nan Li, Junqing Wang
Summary: In this study, a high-yielding lysine mutant was isolated using fluorescence-based screening and mutagenesis. A rare codon-rich screening marker was established by fusing a lysine codon-rich protein with a green fluorescent protein. The mutant strains with strong fluorescence were sorted using flow cytometry. The high-yielding lysine strains showed increased lysine yields compared with wild-type strains, indicating the effectiveness of the screening strategy.
FERMENTATION-BASEL
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yuxue Liu, Zhuoya Li, Xiaojia Guo, Xueying Wang, Zongbao K. Zhao
Summary: A growth-based selection platform was developed to identify oxidoreductase mutants with nonnatural cofactor dependency. The platform successfully identified NCD synthetase and NCD-dependent malic enzyme, demonstrating its feasibility for directed evolution and expanding the chemical space of redox cofactors.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Biology
Annette R. Rowe, Farshid Salimijazi, Leah Trutschel, Joshua Sackett, Oluwakemi Adesina, Isao Anzai, Liat H. Kugelmass, Michael H. Baym, Buz Barstow
Summary: Extracellular electron transfer (EET) enables microbial electron uptake for the synthesis of complex organic molecules, but there are significant gaps in understanding the mechanism and genetics of electron uptake.
COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Lyman Ngiam, Mark A. Schembri, Karen Weynberg, Jianhua Guo
Summary: Antibiotic resistance is a global health challenge, and phage therapy, as an alternative treatment to antibiotics, can be more effective by targeting commensal Escherichia coli as hosts to isolate phage with greater therapeutic potential.
ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Xinfang Song, Mingyu Dong, Min Liu
Summary: The article introduces a new metabolic pathway design tool called PyMiner, which can effectively simplify metabolic networks, improve search efficiency, and demonstrate excellent performance.
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Stefano Camborda, Jan-Niklas Weder, Nadine Toepfer
Summary: CobraMod is a Python package for pathway-centric modification and extension of genome-scale metabolic networks. It integrates data from different metabolic pathway databases and user-curated information, and provides high quality metabolic reconstructions.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Clinton A. L. McFeely, Kara K. Dods, Shivam S. Patel, Matthew C. T. Hartman
Summary: Breaking codon degeneracy and introducing non-canonical amino acids offer numerous opportunities in synthetic biology. However, reliance on synthetic tRNAs lacking post-transcriptional modifications has limited the expansion of the genetic code. By developing a new fluorous method for tRNA capture, researchers have demonstrated the superiority of wild-type tRNA over synthetic counterparts in an in vitro translation system. Wild-type tRNAs are therefore enabling reagents for maximizing the reassignment potential of the genetic code.
NUCLEIC ACIDS RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Erika A. DeBenedictis, Gavriela D. Carver, Christina Z. Chung, Dieter Soll, Ahmed H. Badran
Summary: The authors demonstrate the discovery and evolution of quadruplet-decoding tRNAs, enabling four independent decoding events in a single protein in living cells. By developing a new evolution strategy, they significantly improve the translation efficiency of quadruplet codons and showcase the multiplexed decoding of up to four unique quadruplet codons in a protein.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Mark C. Jenkins, Carolyn Parker, Celia O'Brien, Philip Campos, Matt Tucker, Katarzyna Miska
Summary: The objective of this study was to compare the expression levels of recombinant proteins from three Eimeria genes in Escherichia coli before and after codon optimization. Codon optimization alone did not necessarily lead to higher expression levels, as the outcomes varied with some proteins showing higher, lower, or no change in yield. The codon usage analysis revealed that Eimeria, like other organisms, uses both rare and frequently used codons in its protein-coding sequences, but there was no correlation between codon usage and protein structure.
JOURNAL OF MICROBIOLOGICAL METHODS
(2023)
Article
Virology
Hasan Arsin, Andrius Jasilionis, Hakon Dahle, Ruth-Anne Sandaa, Runar Stokke, Eva Nordberg Karlsson, Ida Helene Steen
Summary: Marine viral sequence space is vast, offering potential for discovering new enzymes for research and biotechnology. Functional annotation and soluble heterologous protein production bottlenecks hinder downstream characterization of viral genes. Codon adjustment strategies have not been thoroughly explored for viral genes, but both codon optimization and codon harmonization show promise for successful heterologous expression in E. coli.
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Raga Krishnakumar, Anne M. Ruffing
Summary: OperonSEQer is a set of machine learning algorithms that accurately and flexibly predicts operons in prokaryotes by analyzing transcriptomics data. By addressing technical variability and providing the flexibility to determine the stringency of operon evaluation, this tool improves accuracy and adaptability.
PLOS COMPUTATIONAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence
Xianguo Wu, Zongbao Feng, Yang Liu, Yawei Qin, Tingyou Yang, Junchao Duan
Summary: A risk assessment method for vault deformation in small clear distance tunnels is proposed using a pair-copula Bayesian network (PCBN) model. An index system for risk assessment is established based on factors affecting vault settlement. The PCBN model effectively addresses the complexity and correlation within the risk system. The model is applied to analyze the risk status of dome settlement in the Donghu Tuanshan tunnel, and it is determined to be safe. The method provides real-time and effective safety risk assessment and decision support for shield construction.
APPLIED SOFT COMPUTING
(2023)
Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Fu-Rong Li, Jian Liao, Bin Zhu, Xia Li, Zhiyuan Cheng, Cheng Jin, Chunbao Mo, Xianbo Wu, Qian Li, Fengchao Liang
Summary: This study found that long-term exposure to air pollution is associated with an increased risk of NAFLD and cirrhosis among the UK population.
LIVER INTERNATIONAL
(2023)
Article
Critical Care Medicine
Jiazhen Zheng, Rui Zhou, Yingchai Zhang, Kelei Su, Haowen Chen, Furong Li, Daniel Nyarko Hukportie, Fangbing Niu, Kai -Hang Yiu, Xianbo Wu
Summary: Preserved ratio impaired spirometry (PRISm) findings are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular events, but transitioning from PRISm to normal lung function can reduce this risk.
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Qingmei Cui, Zhongying Liu, Jianxin Li, Fangchao Liu, Xiaoge Niu, Chong Shen, Dongsheng Hu, Keyong Huang, Shufeng Chen, Yingxin Zhao, Fanghong Lu, Xiaoqing Liu, Jie Cao, Laiyuan Wang, Hongxia Ma, Ling Yu, Xianping Wu, Ying Li, Huan Zhang, Xingbo Mo, Liancheng Zhao, Zhibin Hu, Hongbing Shen, Jianfeng Huang, Xiangfeng Lu, Dongfeng Gu
Summary: This study aims to examine whether adherence to ideal cardiovascular health (CVH) can mitigate the genetic risk of coronary artery disease (CAD) in non-European populations. The results showed that individuals with a favourable CVH profile demonstrated similar relative effects across Polygenic Risk Score (PRS) categories, reducing the CAD relative risk by a similar magnitude. Individuals with high PRS achieved the greatest benefit from favourable CVH, mitigating the risk to the average level of the population. Attaining favourable CVH should be encouraged for all individuals, especially those with high genetic susceptibility.
Article
Peripheral Vascular Disease
Xuanming Hong, Ke Miao, Weihua Cao, Jun Lv, Canqing Yu, Tao Huang, Dianjianyi Sun, Chunxiao Liao, Yuanjie Pang, Zengchang Pang, Min Yu, Hua Wang, Xianping Wu, Yu Liu, Wenjing Gao, Liming Li
Summary: This study identified CpG sites associated with systolic and diastolic blood pressure and examined the temporal relationship between DNA methylation and blood pressure. The findings suggest the significance of DNA methylation in the development of hypertension.
Article
Cell Biology
Xiaolin Xu, Xianli Wu, Gengyu Yue, Qimin An, Jun Lou, Xiaoxu Yang, Zhe Jin, Jianhong Ding, Yanxia Hu, Qian Du, Jingyu Xu, Rui Xie
Summary: This article summarizes the activation mechanisms of inflammasomes and their relationship with diseases, and provides an overview of the effects of intracellular and extracellular ion activities and ion channels on inflammasome activation.
MOLECULAR AND CELLULAR BIOCHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Jing-Hao Zhao, Yan-Yan Huang, He Wang, Xue-Mei Yang, Yan Li, Mei Pu, Shi-Xin Zhou, Ji-Wei Zhang, Zhi-Xue Zhao, Guo-Bang Li, Beenish Hassan, Xiao-Hong Hu, Xuewei Chen, Shunyuan Xiao, Xian-Jun Wu, Jing Fan, Wen-Ming Wang
Summary: Arabidopsis increases its resistance to powdery mildew by altering the distribution of RPW8.2 and triggering transcriptional self-amplification.
Editorial Material
Energy & Fuels
Chunyu Zhang, Xueqian Fu, Xianping Wu
FRONTIERS IN ENERGY RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Xianguo Wu, Xinyi Li, Yawei Qin, Wen Xu, Yang Liu
Summary: In this study, an intelligent optimization method integrating the BIM-DB and PSO-RF-NSGA-III methods was established for the energy saving design and optimization of near-zero-energy-consumption buildings (NZEBs). The method was applied to explore multiobjective optimization problems in four typical climate regions in China. The results showed that the PSO-RF algorithm efficiently predicted building energy consumption, carbon emissions, and thermal comfort. After optimization, the energy consumption levels in the four regions were reduced by 39.72%, 32.22%, 26.94%, and 35.37%, respectively, and other goals were also optimized. The optimized building design parameters met the standards for NZEBs, with varying influencing factors and measures across different regions.
Article
Mathematics, Applied
Xian Wu, Kaihua Xi, Aijie Cheng, Hai Xiang Lin, Jan H. H. van Schuppen
Summary: We aim to enhance the ability of coupled phase oscillators to maintain synchronization under stochastic disturbances by proposing an optimization method. We model the disturbances as Gaussian noise and measure synchronization stability using mean first hitting time. The optimization method increases the mean first hitting time and identifies vulnerable edges in the system, increasing synchronization stability.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Xiaotian Bao, Xianxin Wu, Yuxuan Ke, Keming Wu, Chuanxiu Jiang, Bo Wu, Jing Li, Shuai Yue, Shuai Zhang, Jianwei Shi, Wenna Du, Yangguang Zhong, Huatian Hu, Peng Bai, Yiyang Gong, Qing Zhang, Wenkai Zhang, Xinfeng Liu
Summary: A giant enhancement of up to 34000 for out-of-plane (OP) exciton emission in indium selenide (InSe) is achieved via a designed plasmonic nanocavity consisting of a silver nanocube over a gold film. The large enhancement is attributed to the induced OP local electric field (Ez) within the nanocavity, which facilitates effective OP exciton-plasmon interaction. The nanoantenna effect resulting from the interaction also improves the directivity of spontaneous radiation, providing a potential avenue for designing on-chip photonic devices with an OP dipole orientation.
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Shuai Zhang, Zhuoya Zhu, Wenna Du, Xianxin Wu, Sanjib Ghosh, Qing Zhang, Qihua Xiong, Xinfeng Liu
Summary: Exciton polariton condensation in an annular potential landscape can be controlled by an external field, resulting in rotational polariton flow with different orbit indexes. By using ring-shaped pumping in a planar perovskite microcavity, linear coupled counter-rotating polariton states and a vortex pairs-petal state have been demonstrated. The diameter of the pumping ring and the detuning energy can control the azimuthal indices and flowing velocity of the polaritons.
Article
Psychiatry
Zelin Yuan, Huamin Liu, Xiaochun Zhang, Yong He, Shanyuan Gu, Dan Mo, Shaoli Wang, Zhiwei Huang, Keyi Wu, Rui Zhou, Qi Zhong, Yining Huang, Bifei Cao, Haowen Chen, Xianbo Wu
Summary: Previous studies have found that high uric acid (UA) is associated with enhanced patient function. This study aims to clarify the relationship between UA and cognitive impairment in patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) and explore whether UA could be used as a potential biological marker of cognition in SCZ during maintenance period. The results showed that UA is positively associated with cognitive function, and high UA is associated with enhanced cognition in patients with low anticholinergic cognitive burden (ACB).
FRONTIERS IN PSYCHIATRY
(2023)
Article
Food Science & Technology
Monica Whent, Jhongyan Huang, Holly Childs, Margaret Slavin, Dawn Harrison, Janet Novotny, Liangli Yu, Pamela Pehrsson, Xianli Wu
Summary: The effects of postharvest handling and cooking on carotenoids in sweet corn were investigated. Both free and bound forms of carotenoids were analyzed, and it was found that postharvest handling and cooking either did not change or reduced the free carotenoids but increased the total bound carotenoids.
ACS FOOD SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Xianhua Wu, Yi Zhang, Xuehao Feng
Summary: As the division of work within the world economic system becomes increasingly complex, the impact of disturbing events on the economic system is expanding. Japan's proposal to discharge nuclear wastewater into the Pacific Ocean will cause damage to marine fisheries, thereby seriously affecting fisheries and other industries in Japan and other countries and regions around the world. This paper uses the Inoperability Input-Output Model (IIM) and MultiRegion Input-Output Model (MRIO) to simulate the economic consequences of nuclear wastewater discharge in Japan and calculate the economic changes of each industry and country (region).
MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN
(2023)