Genetic transformation is a fundamental tool in molecular biology research of medicinal plants. Tailoring transgenic technologies to each distinct medicinal plant would necessitate a substantial investment of time and effort. Here, we present a simple hairy root transformation method that does not require sterile conditions, utilizing Agrobacterium rhizogenes strain K599 and the visible RUBY reporter system. Transgenic hairy roots were obtained for six tested medicinal plant species, roots or rhizomes of which have recognized medicinal value, spanning four botanical families and six genera (Platycodon grandiflorus, Atractylodes macrocephala, Scutellaria baicalensis, Codonopsis pilosula, Astragalus membranaceus, and Glycyrrhiza uralensis). Furthermore, two previously identified Glycyrrhiza uralensis UGTs that convert liquiritigenin into liquiritin in heterologous systems were studied in planta using the method. Our results indicate that overexpression of GuUGT1 but not GuUGT10 and Cas9-mediated knockout of GuUGT1 profoundly influenced the accumulation of liquiritin and isoliquiritin in licorice roots. Therefore, the method described here represents a simple, rapid and widely applicable hairy root transformation method that enables fast gene functional study in medicinal plants.

OBJECTIVE: In Pakistan, traditional medicines are an important component of the medical system, with numerous varieties and great demands. However, due to the scattered resources and the lack of systematic collection and collation, adulteration of traditional Pakistani medicine (TPM) is common, which severely affects the safety of their medicinal use and the import and export trades. Therefore, it is urgent to systematically organize and unify the management of TPM and establish a set of standards and operable methods for the identification of TPM. METHODS: We collected and organized the information on 128 TPMs with regard to their medicinal parts, efficacy, usage, and genetic material, based on Pakistan Hamdard Pharmacopoeia of Eastern Medicine: Pharmaceutical Codex. The genetic information of TPM is summarized from national center for biotechnology information (NCBI) and global pharmacopoeia genome database (GPGD). Furthermore, we utilized bioinformatics technology to supplement the chloroplast genome (cp-genome) data of 12 TPMs. To build the web server, we used the Linux + Apache + MySQL + PHP (LAMP) system and constructed the webpage on a PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor (PHP) model view controller (MVC) framework. RESULTS: We constructed a new genomic database, the traditional Pakistani medicine genomic database (TPMGD). This database comprises five entries, namely homepage, medicinal species, species identification, basic local alignment search tool (BLAST), and download. Currently, TPMGD contains basic profiles of 128 TPMs and genetic information of 102 TPMs, including 140 cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) sequences and 119 mitochondrial genome sequences from Bombyx mori, 1 396 internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) sequences and 1 074 intergenic region (psbA-trnH) sequences specific to 92 and 83 plant species, respectively. Additionally, TPMGD includes 199 cp-genome sequences of 82 TPMs. CONCLUSION TPMGD is a multifunctional database that integrates species description, functional information inquiry, genetic information storage, molecular identification of TPM, etc. The database not only provides convenience for TPM information queries but also establishes the scientific basis for the medication safety, species identification, and resource protection of TPM.

ObjectiveThe type 2C protein phosphatases （PP2C） are involved in numerous plant signal transduction pathways. They mainly participate in plant stress response and regulate second metabolites biosynthesis via negatively regulating MAPK signaling pathway. Herein，we were to identify and analyze PP2C （CsPP2C） gene family from hemp genome，in hope of providing comprehensive insights for studying CsPP2C function during the development of hemp. MethodMolecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis （MAGA）-X was used to construct phylogenetic tree. Expert Protein Analysis System （ExPASy），WoLF PSORT，Multiple EM for Motif Elicitation （MEME），Batch Conserved Domain Search （Batch-CD-Search），PlantCare，and TBtools were used，respectively，to predict CsPP2C physicochemical properties，subcellular localization，conserved motifs，protein structure，cis-element in promoter and collinearity with Arabidopsis PP2C. Cannabis sativa transcriptome and Real-time polymerase chain reaction（Real-time PCR） were used to analyze and verify gene expressions，respectively. ResultFifty-two CsPP2C with conserved domains were identified from the entire genome of hemp，encoding proteins ranging from 244 to 1 089 aa in length and with molecular weights ranging from 26.76 to 122.53 kDa. Those genes were mainly distributed in the nucleus，cytoplasm and chloroplast. The 47 CsPP2C were divided into 10 subfamilies，and the remaining 5 were not clustered. Seven pairs of homologous genes between hemp and Arabidopsis thaliana were identified according to collinear analysis. The light-responsive elements and abscisic acid elements are most abundant in the prediction. The gene expression heat map showed varied expression pattern of CsPP2C in different tissues. Real-time PCR results of three CsPP2C were consistent with transcriptome data. Moreover，alternative splicing analysis showed that some CsPP2C had alternative-splicing genes during evolution. ConclusionWe predicted and analyzed CsPP2C gene family in genomic scale and showed that CsPP2C are involved in many biological processes，whereby provides foundation for CsPP2C functional study.

Objective To investigate the clinical diagnostic value of serum procalcitonin(PCT),D-dimer (DD),C-reactive protein(CRP)in acute-on-chronic liver failure(ACLF). Methods 124 ACLF patients, 63 chronic hepatitis B patients,32 chronic hepatitis C patients,24 chronic hepatitis E patients and 60 healthy controls from the second affiliated hospital of Nanchang University were enrolled in this study.PCT was detected by a sandwish immunodetection method. D-dimer was detected by Latex Turbidimetry. CRP was detected by rate nephenometry. The detection results were used for analyzing the clinical diagnostic value of ACLF with infection. Results(1)The level of PCT,DD and CRP in ACLF group were significantly higher than non-ACLF group and healthy controls(P<0.05).The levels of PCT,DD and CRP in the infection group were significantly higher than non-infection group(P<0.05).(2)The positive rates of PCT,DD and CRP in the infection group were 93.24%, 78.38%,89.19%,which were significantly higher than the non-infection group and healthy controls respectively (P < 0.05).(3)The sensitivity(93.24%)and specificity(90.00%)of PCT were the highest among all indexes. (4)The area under the ROC curve of PCT,DD,CRP were 0.892,0.715,0.755,respectively.PCT had the highest diagnostic value. Conclusion The levels of serum PCT,DD and CRP have a significant clinical value for the early diagnosis of ACLF with infection.

Objective To investigate the expression of Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF)and its receptors mRNAs in ovary tissues of letrozole-induced polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)in rats.Methods The SD rats were divided into two groups (moder group and control group),20 rats in each group.The rat models of PCOS were established by letrozole.Serum sex hormone levels were determined by radioimmunoassay.The histologic changes in ovaries were observed by Hematoxylin-eosin stai-ning,and the expression of BDNF and its receptors gene in ovary tissues was detected by Real-time PCR.Results Although the se-rum testosterone,follicle-stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone levels in model group were markedly increased more than those in the control group (P < 0.01 ),estradiol and progesterone in model group showed a considerable reduction (P < 0.05 ). When compared with the control group,model group rats showed increased ovarian volume and high incidence of subcapsular ovari-an cysts together with decreased number of corpora lutea.The expression of BDNF and p75 mRNAs was significantly higher in model group than that in the control group(P <0.05),but the expression of TrkB mRNA reduced(P <0.05).Conclusion BDNF/TrkB/p75 expressed in ovarian tissues may play a specific role on follicular developmental disorders in letrozole-induced PCOS rats.