Novel PNLDC1 mutations underlie nonobstructive azoospermia in humans and mice.

PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) are small regulatory RNAs (21-35 nucleotides) exclusively expressed in germ cells, where they play a critical role in transposable element repression and post-meiotic gene regulation. The poly(A)-specific RNase-like domain-containing 1 (PNLDC1) protein is essential for piRNA maturation, specifically in 3'-end trimming. Disruption of PNLDC1 has been implicated in nonobstructive azoospermia (NOA) and male infertility.

Drought limits microplastic effects on soil greenhouse gas emissions by reducing microbial diversity.

Extreme droughts and microplastics (MPs) accumulation in agricultural soils threaten ecosystem sustainability. We examined the impact of MPs and drought stress on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, along with the transformation patterns of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and sulfur (S) functional genes, and microbial communities in agricultural soils. This study aims to explore how the interaction between different types of MPs and drought stress modulates soil properties, microbial dynamics, enzymatic activities, and ultimately influences soil GHG emissions.

A novel mutation in CFAP58 leads to MMAF in humans and mice by disrupting CP assembly.

Multiple morphological abnormalities of the sperm flagella (MMAF) is a severe form of male infertility, linked to defective spermiogenesis. Several flagella-associated proteins have been identified as crucial for the proper organization of the sperm flagellar axoneme. We identify a novel homozygous mutation in the CFAP58 gene (c.

Cultural Competence Among Nurse Educators in Nursing Colleges of Pakistan.

Background: Cultural competence (CC) is regarded as an essential requirement in providing relevant, effective, and culturally sensitive health care to a more diverse population. Thus, nurse educators' cultural competence is critical in shaping nursing students' ability to offer culturally competent care. Hence, this study aimed to measure the level of cultural competence among nurse educators in Islamabad, Pakistan.

Metabolomic alterations reveal toxic mechanisms of single and combined 6PPD and arsenic exposure on mung bean (Vigna radiata).

N-(1,3-dimethylbutyl)-N'-phenyl-p-phenylenediamine (6PPD), a typical antioxidant present in rubber products, is detected at significant concentrations across multiple environmental compartments. However, there is no existing knowledge on the single and combined effect of 6PPD and arsenic (As) on terrestrial plants. This study examined the effects of 6PPD (1, 5, 10 and 20 µg L⁻¹) and its combination with arsenic (500 µg L⁻¹ As + 6PPD) on physio-biochemical characteristics and metabolomics of mung beans (Vigna radiata) after 21 days of exposure.

A novel frameshift variant in AXDND1 may cause multiple morphological abnormalities of the sperm flagella in a consanguineous Pakistani family.

The syndrome of multiple morphological abnormalities of the sperm flagella (MMAF) is one of the most serious kinds of sperm defects, leading to asthenoteratozoospermia and male infertility. In this study, we use whole-exome sequencing to identify genetic factors that account for male infertility in a patient born from a consanguineous Pakistani couple. A homozygous frameshift mutation (c.

Exploring syphilis transmission dynamics with congenital infection and disability compartments.

This study proposes a novel sex-structured syphilis transmission model that incorporates key biological features such as congenital infection and disability due to long-term complications. While previous works have explored syphilis dynamics using fractional calculus, we extend this framework by introducing two additional compartments: congenitally infected newborns ( ) and individuals with syphilis-induced disabilities ( ), allowing for a more realistic representation of vertical transmission and chronic disease outcomes. The model is formulated using the Atangana-Baleanu-Caputo (ABC) fractional derivative to capture memory effects and non-local dynamics often observed in infectious disease spread.

Tire Rubber Antioxidant 6PPD and 6PPD-quinone Disrupt the Energy Supply and Lipid Metabolism of Earthworms.

With the increase in traffic due to urbanization, tire wear particles (TWPs) derived compounds persistently accumulate in the soil environment. This study addresses critical knowledge gaps regarding the ecotoxicological effects of TWP-derived contaminants, -(1,3-dimethylbutyl)-'-phenyl--phenylenediamine (6PPD) and its precursor, 6PPD-quinone (6PPD-Q), on soil-dwelling organisms. The findings demonstrated that 6PPD-Q accumulated at a higher concentration (6.

Effectiveness of vaccination (Sinopharm) among Covid-19 positive patients in a tertiary care hospital.

The SARS-CoV-2, has caused a pandemic of acute respiratory disease, 'coronavirus disease 2019' (Covid-19), posed a major threat to health and the international economy during past few years. It is believed that vaccine can stop the rapid spread of the disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the Sinopharm vaccine in terms of mortality and severity of the disease among Covid-19 positive patients.

Unveiling spatial distribution of flavonoids and polysaccharides in four-year-old Polygonatum cyrtonema Hua rhizome via MALDI-MSI.

Polygonatum cyrtonema Hua has been attracting attention of Asian countries as a traditional herbal medicine. Unveiling the spatial distribution accumulation of key metabolites is of great worth for investigating its nutritional and medicinal values. However, their spatial distribution information during different growth period (four-year-old) in rhizome has not been extensively explored, due to the lack of efficient analytical techniques.

Foliar exposure to microplastics disrupts lettuce metabolism and negatively interferes with symbiotic microbial communities.

Plant leaves are considered an important sink for atmospheric microplastics (MPs) because they serve as a vital interface between the atmosphere and terrestrial ecosystems. However, there is still a dearth of information regarding how plant-symbiotic microbe-soil systems are affected by foliar exposure to MPs. In this study, MPs (polystyrene (PS), polyethylene (PE), and polypropylene (PP)) were sprayed over soil-cultivated lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.

Deficiency in DNAH12 causes male infertility by impairing DNAH1 and DNALI1 recruitment in humans and mice.

Asthenoteratozoospermia, a prevalent cause of male infertility, lacks a well-defined etiology. DNAH12 is a special dynein featured by the absence of a microtubule-binding domain, however, its functions in spermatogenesis remain largely unknown. Through comprehensive genetic analyses involving whole-exome sequencing and subsequent Sanger sequencing on infertile patients and fertile controls from six distinct families, we unveiled six biallelic mutations in that co-segregate recessively with male infertility in the studied families.

Novel biallelic ADCY10 variants cause asthenozoospermia with excessive residual cytoplasm and hydronephrosis in humans.

Research Question: Could the novel mutations in ADCY10 cause asthenozoospermia and absorptive hypercalciuria in humans, and the potential pathogenesis?

Design: Whole-exome sequencing and Sanger sequencing were conducted to identify potential pathogenic variants in two unrelated Pakistani families. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction was utilized to assess the mutation effect on mRNA levels in the patients. Transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy were performed to examine the sperm flagellar ultrastructure.

Effects of compound immobilized bacteria on remediation and bacterial community of PAHs-contaminated soil.

Immobilized microorganism technology is expected to enhance microbial activity and stability and is considered an effective technique for removing soil polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). However, there are limited high-efficiency and stable bacterial preparations available. In this study, alkali-modified biochar (Na@CBC700) was used as the adsorption carrier, sodium alginate (SA) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) as embedding agents, and CaCl as the cross-linking agent to prepare immobilized Acinetobacter (CoIMB) through a composite immobilization method.

Environmental occurrence, fate, human exposure, and human health risks of p-phenylenediamines and their quinones.

P-phenylenediamine antioxidants (PPDs) are widely used in the rubber industry and their release and transformation in the environment has become one of the current environmental research hotspots. PPDs are readily oxidized in the environment to form quinone transformation products (PPD-Qs), some of which (e.g.

Impact of Pristine and Aged Tire Wear Particles on and Rhizospheric Microbial Communities: Insights from a Long-Term Exposure Study.

Tire wear particles (TWPs), generated from tire abrasion, contribute significantly to environmental contamination. The toxicity of TWPs to organisms has raised significant concerns, yet their effects on terrestrial plants remain unclear. Here, we investigated the long-term impact of pristine and naturally aged TWPs on water spinach () and its rhizospheric soil.

Phytotoxicity of 6PPD and its uptake by Myriophyllum verticillatum: Oxidative stress and metabolic processes.

N-(1,3-dimethylbutyl)-N'-phenyl-p-phenylenediamine (6PPD), a widely utilized antioxidant in automobile tires and rubber goods, is frequently detected in aquatic ecosystems and poses a potential threat to aquatic organisms. However, research on the impact of 6PPD on aquatic plants is still scarce. Here, we investigated the bioaccumulation of 6PPD in Myriophyllum verticillatum (M.

Cloning and Functional Analysis of a Zeaxanthin Epoxidase Gene in .

The xanthophyll cycle is a photoprotective mechanism in plants and algae, which protects the photosynthetic system from excess light damage under abiotic stress. Zeaxanthin is considered to play a pivotal role in this process. In this study, the relative content of xanthophylls was determined using HPLC-MS/MS in exposed to different salinities.

Preparation and Vasodilation Mechanism of Angiotensin-I-Converting Enzyme Inhibitory Peptide from Protein.

, a type of green algae that can be consumed, was utilized in the production of an angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory peptide. The protein from the algae was isolated and subsequently hydrolyzed using a neutral protease. The resulting hydrolysate underwent several processes including Sephadex-G100 filtration chromatography, ultrafiltration, HPLC-Q-TOF-MS analysis, ADMET screening, UV spectrum detection test, molecular docking, and molecular dynamic simulation.

A novel homozygous splicing mutation in AK7 causes multiple morphological abnormalities of sperm flagella in patients from consanguineous Pakistani families.

Multiple morphological abnormalities of the flagella (MMAF) represent a severe form of sperm defects leading to asthenozoospermia and male infertility. In this study, we identified a novel homozygous splicing mutation (c.871-4 ACA>A) in the adenylate kinase 7 (AK7) gene by whole-exome sequencing in infertile individuals.

Earthworms Enhance Crop Resistance to Insects Under Microplastic Stress by Mobilizing Physical and Chemical Defenses.

To assess the ecological risk of microplastics (MPs) in agricultural systems, it is critical to simultaneously focus on MP-mediated single-organism response and different trophic-level organism interaction. Herein, we placed earthworms in soils contaminated with different concentrations (0.02% and 0.

A homozygous ARMC3 splicing variant causes asthenozoospermia and flagellar disorganization in a consanguineous family.

Male infertility due to asthenozoospermia is quite frequent, but its etiology is poorly understood. We recruited two infertile brothers, born to first-cousin parents from Pakistan, displaying idiopathic asthenozoospermia with mild stuttering disorder but no ciliary-related symptoms. Whole-exome sequencing identified a splicing variant (c.

Environmental concentrations of 6PPD and 6PPD-Q cause oxidative damage and alter metabolism in Eichhornia crassipes.

N-(1,3-dimethylbutyl)-N '-phenyl-p-phenylenediamine (6PPD) and N-(1,3-dimethylbutyl)-N'-phenyl-p-phenylenediamine-quinone (6PPD-Q) are ubiquitous in the environment and can cause toxicity to aquatic animals. However, research on the toxicological effects of 6PPD and 6PPD-Q on aquatic plants remains limited. The present study investigated the physiological, biochemical, and metabolic responses of the floating aquatic plant Eichhornia crassipes (E.