Amaranthus spp. are a group of strongly invasive and vigorous plants, and heavy metal phytoremediation using alien invasive Amaranthus spp. has been a popular research topic. In this study, the bioconcentration factor (BCF) and translocation factor (TF) of Amaranthus spp. were evaluated, focusing on the accumulation potential of cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) by plants from three different zinc mining areas, namely Huayuan (HYX), Yueyang (LYX), and Liuyang (LYX). The HYX area has the most severe Cd contamination, while the LYX area has the most apparent Pb contamination. The results showed that Amaranthus spp. had a strong Cd and Pb enrichment capacity in low-polluted areas. To elucidate the underlying mechanisms, we used high-throughput sequencing of 16S rRNA and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions to analyze rhizosphere bacterial and fungal communities in three areas. The results showed significant differences in the structure, function, and composition of microbial communities and complex interactions between plants and their microbes. The correlation analysis revealed that some key microorganisms (e.g., Amycolatopsis, Bryobacterium, Sphingomonas, Flavobacterium, Agaricus, Nigrospora, Humicola) could regulate several soil factors such as soil pH, organic matter (OM), available nitrogen (AN), and available phosphorus (AP) to affect the heavy metal enrichment capacity of plants. Notably, some enzymes (e.g., P-type ATPases, Cysteine synthase, Catalase, Acid phosphatase) and genes (e.g., ZIP gene family, and ArsR, MerR, Fur, NikR transcription regulators) have been found to be involved in promoting Cd and Pb accumulation in Amaranthus spp. This study can provide new ideas for managing heavy metal-contaminated soils and new ways for the ecological resource utilization of invasive plants in phytoremediation.

To reduce the consumption of oxidant and catalyst in Fenton-like reaction and to realize the reuse of catalyst, yeast supported iron nanoparticles (nZVI@SC_M) was synthesized by tobacco leaf extract and applied in the heterogeneous Fenton-like degradation of aqueous methylene blue (MB) at ambient conditions. The performance of the composite was exploited in terms of catalytic activity and factors influencing MB degradation. The surface changes of nZVI@SC_M before and after reaction were characterized by XPS, SEM, FT-IR and XRD. Iron leaching, primary reactive oxidizing species, and the storage stability and reusability of catalyst were also investigated. Typically, 99.7% removal of 50 mg/L MB, with a TOC removal of 97.2%, could be achieved within 10 h by 0.1 g/L nZVI@SC_M coupled with 1.0 mM H₂O₂. The MB degradation is in good agreement with the pseudo-first-order model, and hydroxyl radicals in the bulk solution is the main reactive oxidizing species responsible for MB degradation. Based on the identified intermediates by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry, the possible MB degradation mechanism in the nZVI@SC_M/H₂O₂ system is discussed. The developed high-performance nZVI@SC_M catalyst strategy can provide a new route in enhancing the Fenton-like degradation of organic contaminants with less consumption of catalyst and oxidant.

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the joints associated with systemic comorbidities. Sinomenium acutum is regarded as an effective traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) for the treatment of RA. Materials and Methods: Based on network pharmacology and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, 33 RA-related differentially-expressed genes (DEGs) targeting active compounds of Sinomenium acutum were initially screened in our investigation. Results: Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto encyclopaedia of genes and genome (KEGG) analyses found the important involvement of these DEGs in osteoclast differentiation, and finally 5 core DEGs, including NCF4, NFKB1, CYBA, IL-1β and NCF1 were determined through protein–protein interaction (PPI) network. We also identified the related active component of Sinomenium acutum include Stigmasterol. Finally, in order to experimentally verify these results, a rat model of collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) was established, and subsequently treated with Stigmasterol solution. Conclusion: Similar to the healing effect of Indomethacin, Stigmasterol was observed to reduce the levels of inflammatory factors (IL-6 and IL-1β) and osteoclast differentiation-related factors (RANKL, ACP5 and Cathepsin K), which can also reduce the arthritis index score and alleviate the degree of pathological injury of rat ankle joints. The predictions and experimental data uncover the involvement of Stigmasterol, an active component of Sinomenium acutum, in regulation of osteoclast differentiation, exerting great medicinal potential in the treatment of RA. Graphical Abstract:

In this study, the fecundity of Pomacea canaliculata was studied by collecting egg masses from Guangdong and Hunan using field egg collection and indoor propagation. Through high-throughput RNA sequencing (RNA-seq), we analyzed the ovarian tissue of the snails in Guangdong (G_O) and those in Hunan (H_O) using comparative analysis of transcription. Moreover, we used bioinformatics methods to screen the key pathways and genes that affect the fecundity of snails from the two locations. Results. The results showed that the absolute fecundity and weight-relative fecundity of Pomacea canaliculata in Guangdong were significantly higher than those in Hunan. We found 1,546 differential genes through differential gene screening (528 genes upregulated in snails from Guangdong and 1018 in snails from Hunan). The ribosomal signaling pathway and rpl23a, uba52 are critical pathways and essential genes that affect the fecundity of snails. Conclusions. The 27 differential genes in the ribosome signaling pathway, collected from H_O, were all downregulated. As a result, ovarian tissue protein synthesis is impaired, which is an important mechanism that affects snails ability to reproduce.

Cold acclimation is a complex biological process leading to the development of freezing tolerance in plants. In this study, we demonstrated that cold-induced expression of protease inhibitor FmASP in a Citrus-relative species kumquat [Fortunella margarita (Lour.) Swingle] contributes to its freezing tolerance by minimizing protein degradation. Firstly, we found that only cold-acclimated kumquat plants, despite extensive leaf cellular damage during freezing, were able to resume their normal growth upon stress relief. To dissect the impact of cold acclimation on this anti-freezing performance, we conducted protein abundance assays and quantitative proteomic analysis of kumquat leaves subjected to cold acclimation (4°C), freezing treatment (−10°C) and post-freezing recovery (25°C). FmASP (Against Serine Protease) and several non-specific proteases were identified as differentially expressed proteins induced by cold acclimation and associated with stable protein abundance throughout the course of low-temperature treatment. FmASP was further characterized as a robust inhibitor of multiple proteases. In addition, heterogeneous expression of FmASP in Arabidopsis confirmed its positive role in freezing tolerance. Finally, we proposed a working model of FmASP and illustrated how this extracellular-localized protease inhibitor protects proteins from degradation, thereby maintaining essential cellular function for post-freezing recovery. These findings revealed the important role of protease inhibition in freezing response and provide insights on how this role may help develop new strategies to enhance plant freezing tolerance.