1.Cluster characteristics of physical activities among children inside and outside kindergartens and its relationship with athletic abilities
Chinese Journal of School Health 2023;44(10):1560-1563
Objective:
Based on physical activity (PA) and sedentary behavior (SB) variables on weekdays and weekends, the study aims to cluster the physical activities inside and outside kindergartens and to explore the cluster characteristics of different children using physical fitness indicators, so as to provide new strategies and methods for early childhood education and health.
Methods:
From March to June 2019, 291 children aged 3-6 years from 6 kindergartens in Nanchang were recruited by a stratified cluster random sampling method. The ActiGraph GT3X-BT triaxial accelerometer was used to measure and analyze the PA and SB levels inside and outside the kindergarten. A twostep clustering algorithm model was employed for cluster analysis. Physical fitness were measured and evaluated according to the "National Physical Fitness Measurement Standard Manual (Preschool Section)". Differences in physical fitness among different clusters of children were compared, and the cluster characteristics of different children were analyzed.
Results:
The clustering algorithm model indicated that based on six indicators, including PA and SB inside the kindergarten on weekdays, and PA and SB outside the kindergarten on both weekdays and weekends, children could be divided into three categories:active inside (high PA, low SB inside), active outside (high PA outside), and inactive (low PA, high SB both inside and outside). The average silhouette coefficient of the model was 0.3, indicating good clustering results. Both the active inside and active outside children showed significantly higher PA inside on weekdays, PA outside on weekdays and weekends, daily low intensity physical activity (LPA) and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) than the inactive children ( F=157.91, 80.79 , 95.86, 95.52, 124.74, P <0.05). After adjusting for gender and age, the physical fitness scores of both active outside ( 19.03 ±0.47) and active inside (19.11±0.40) were significantly higher than those of the inactive children (17.94±0.31). Additionally, active inside children (3.91±0.14) also showed significantly better performance in continuous double-leg jumps, compared to inactive children (3.45±0.11) ( P <0.05).
Conclusion
Children active inside and those active outside perform well in PA. Future research should focus on the proportion of structured and unstructured PA time to enhance the overall physical fitness of children.
2.Molecular cloning and functional identification of a cDNA encoding 4-hydroxy-3-methylbut-2-enyl diphosphate reductase from.
Qiqing CHENG ; ; Yuru TONG ; Zihao WANG ; Ping SU ; Wei GAO ; Luqi HUANG
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2017;7(2):208-214
The 4-hydroxy-3-methylbut-2-enyl diphosphate reductase (HDR) is the last step key enzyme of the methylerythritol phosphate (MEP) pathway, synthesizing isopentenyl diphosphate and its allyl isomer dimethylallyl diphosphate, which is important for regulation of isoprenoid biosynthesis. Here the full-length cDNA of, designated(GenBank Accession No. KJ933412.1), was isolated fromfor the first time. TwHDR has an open reading frame (ORF) of 1386 bp encoding 461 amino acids. TwHDR exhibits high homology with HDRs of other plants, with an N-terminal conserved domain and three conserved cysteine residues.cDNA was cloned into an expression vector and transformed into anmutant. Since loss-of-functionmutant is lethal, the result showed that transformation ofcDNA rescued themutant. This complementation assay suggests that thecDNA encodes a functional HDR enzyme. The expression ofwas induced by methyl-jasmonate (MJ) insuspension cells. The expression ofreached the highest level after 1 h of MJ treatment. These results indicate that we have identified a functional TwHDR enzyme, which may play a pivotal role in the biosynthesis of diterpenoid triptolide in.
3.Analysis of the efficacy of negative pressure suction and topical testosterone cream in the treatment of simple micropenis in school-aged obese children
Zihao AN ; Cuiping SONG ; Haiyang ZHANG ; Wang RAO ; Ru JIA ; Hui LIU ; Dan SU ; Jianguo WEN
Journal of Modern Urology 2023;28(4):323-328
【Objective】 To investigate the efficacy of negative pressure suction and topical testosterone cream in the treatment of simple micropenis in school-aged obese children and the effects on blood lipids and serum sex hormones. 【Methods】 A total of 79 children aged 7 to 14 (10.50±1.62) years treated and followed up during Nov.2020 and Jul.2022 were involved. The patients were randomly enrolled in the negative pressure suction group (n=39) and the topical testosterone cream group (n=40). The negative pressure suction group was treated with negative pressure suction for 30 min/time, 1 time/day, for 30 d. The topical testosterone cream group was treated with topical testosterone cream applied to the scrotum of the penis 2 times/day for 30d. The transverse and longitudinal diameter of the glans, penile flaccidity, retraction length, serum sex hormones and blood lipids were measured before and after treatment. 【Results】 In both groups, penile flaccidity, retracted length and transverse and longitudinal diameter of the glans were significantly greater at 30 days of treatment and 2 months of follow-up than those before treatment (P<0.01). The increase in penile flaccidity, retraction length and transverse and longitudinal diameter of glans at 30 days of treatment and 2 months of follow-up were greater in the topical testosterone cream group than in the negative pressure suction group (P<0.01). There were no significant differences in the blood lipids and sex hormones in the negative pressure suction group before treatment and at 30 days of treatment and 2 months of follow-up (P>0.025). In the topical testosterone cream group, at 30 days of treatment, there were significant differences in serum total cholesterol (CHOL), apolipoprotein B (Apo B), apolipoprotein A1 (Apo A1), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), sex hormone binding protein (SBG), estradiol (E2) and testosterone (TES) compared to those before treatment; at 2 months of follow-up, the differences in Apo A1, HDL, TES and DHS were still significant (P<0.025). 【Conclusion】 Both topical testosterone cream and negative pressure suction have significant efficacy in the treatment of micropenis in school-aged obese children, while topical testosterone cream has some side effects and retraction may occur after treatment. Negative pressure suction is safe and easy to operate, without side effects and retraction, and can be promoted for the treatment of micropenis in obese children.
4.BMP7 expression in mammalian cortical radial glial cells increases the length of the neurogenic period.
Zhenmeiyu LI ; Guoping LIU ; Lin YANG ; Mengge SUN ; Zhuangzhi ZHANG ; Zhejun XU ; Yanjing GAO ; Xin JIANG ; Zihao SU ; Xiaosu LI ; Zhengang YANG
Protein & Cell 2024;15(1):21-35
The seat of human intelligence is the human cerebral cortex, which is responsible for our exceptional cognitive abilities. Identifying principles that lead to the development of the large-sized human cerebral cortex will shed light on what makes the human brain and species so special. The remarkable increase in the number of human cortical pyramidal neurons and the size of the human cerebral cortex is mainly because human cortical radial glial cells, primary neural stem cells in the cortex, generate cortical pyramidal neurons for more than 130 days, whereas the same process takes only about 7 days in mice. The molecular mechanisms underlying this difference are largely unknown. Here, we found that bone morphogenic protein 7 (BMP7) is expressed by increasing the number of cortical radial glial cells during mammalian evolution (mouse, ferret, monkey, and human). BMP7 expression in cortical radial glial cells promotes neurogenesis, inhibits gliogenesis, and thereby increases the length of the neurogenic period, whereas Sonic Hedgehog (SHH) signaling promotes cortical gliogenesis. We demonstrate that BMP7 signaling and SHH signaling mutually inhibit each other through regulation of GLI3 repressor formation. We propose that BMP7 drives the evolutionary expansion of the mammalian cortex by increasing the length of the neurogenic period.
Animals
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Mice
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Humans
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Ependymoglial Cells/metabolism*
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Hedgehog Proteins/metabolism*
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Ferrets/metabolism*
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Cerebral Cortex
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Neurogenesis
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Mammals/metabolism*
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Neuroglia/metabolism*
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Bone Morphogenetic Protein 7/metabolism*
5. Decoding Cortical Glial Cell Development
Xiaosu LI ; Guoping LIU ; Lin YANG ; Zhenmeiyu LI ; Zhuangzhi ZHANG ; Zhejun XU ; Yuqun CAI ; Heng DU ; Zihao SU ; Ziwu WANG ; Yangyang DUAN ; Haotian CHEN ; Zicong SHANG ; Yan YOU ; Qi ZHANG ; Miao HE ; Zhengang YANG ; Bin CHEN
Neuroscience Bulletin 2021;37(4):440-460
Mouse cortical radial glial cells (RGCs) are primary neural stem cells that give rise to cortical oligodendrocytes, astrocytes, and olfactory bulb (OB) GABAergic interneurons in late embryogenesis. There are fundamental gaps in understanding how these diverse cell subtypes are generated. Here, by combining single-cell RNA-Seq with intersectional lineage analyses, we show that beginning at around E16.5, neocortical RGCs start to generate ASCL1
6.GLUL stabilizes N-Cadherin by antagonizing β-Catenin to inhibit the progresses of gastric cancer.
Qiwei JIANG ; Yong LI ; Songwang CAI ; Xingyuan SHI ; Yang YANG ; Zihao XING ; Zhenjie HE ; Shengte WANG ; Yubin SU ; Meiwan CHEN ; Zhesheng CHEN ; Zhi SHI
Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B 2024;14(2):698-711
Glutamate-ammonia ligase (GLUL, also known as glutamine synthetase) is a crucial enzyme that catalyzes ammonium and glutamate into glutamine in the ATP-dependent condensation. Although GLUL plays a critical role in multiple cancers, the expression and function of GLUL in gastric cancer remain unclear. In the present study, we have found that the expression level of GLUL was significantly lower in gastric cancer tissues compared with adjacent normal tissues, and correlated with N stage and TNM stage, and low GLUL expression predicted poor survival for gastric cancer patients. Knockdown of GLUL promoted the growth, migration, invasion and metastasis of gastric cancer cells in vitro and in vivo, and vice versa, which was independent of its enzyme activity. Mechanistically, GLUL competed with β-Catenin to bind to N-Cadherin, increased the stability of N-Cadherin and decreased the stability of β-Catenin by alerting their ubiquitination. Furthermore, there were lower N-Cadherin and higher β-Catenin expression levels in gastric cancer tissues compared with adjacent normal tissues. GLUL protein expression was correlated with that of N-Cadherin, and could be the independent prognostic factor in gastric cancer. Our findings reveal that GLUL stabilizes N-Cadherin by antagonizing β-Catenin to inhibit the progress of gastric cancer.