Bone-related diseases (e.g., osteoporosis) represent a significant health challenge, prompting research for effective therapeutic agents, particularly from natural sources. The edible mushroom, Mycoleptodonoides aitchisonii has attracted interest due to its wide range of biological activities. Cytotoxicity assays revealed no significant toxicity of the M. aitchisonii water extract (MAWE) up to 50 μg/mL. MAWE significantly promoted dose-dependent osteoblast differentiation with ALP activity and mineralization increase by 109.17 % and 23 %, respectively, compared with the differentiation-only group. Moreover, MAWE significantly upregulated osteoblast-related gene expressions, including that of type I collagen (COL1A), osterix (Osx), and osteopontin (OPN). Furthermore, MAWE treatment significantly increased AMPK phosphorylation. This effect was further confirmed by demonstrating that the AMPK inhibitor compound C suppressed AMPK phosphorylation, and subsequent MAWE treatment restored it. In summary, these results demonstrate that MAWE possesses potent osteoblast differentiation-promoting efficacy, primarily through AMPK signaling pathway activation.

To identify viruses and compare their abundance levels in the venom glands of hymenopteran species, we conducted venom gland-specific transcriptome assemblies and analyses of 22 Aculeate bees and wasps and identified the RNA genomes of picornaviruses. Additionally, we investigated the expression patterns of viruses in the venom glands over time following capture. Honeybee-infecting viruses, including black queen cell virus (BQCV), deformed wing virus (DWV), and Israeli acute paralysis virus (IAPV), were highly expressed in the venom glands of Apis mellifera and social wasps. This finding suggests that the venoms of bees and wasps likely contain these viruses, which can be transmitted horizontally between species through their stinger usage. A. mellifera exhibited an increasing pattern of abundance levels for BQCV, DWV, IAPV, and Triatovirus, while the social wasp Vespa crabro showed increasing abundance levels of IAPV and Triatovirus over different capture periods. This suggests that the venom glands of honeybees and wasps may provide suitable conditions for active viral replication and may be an organ for virus accumulation and transmission. Some viral sequences clearly reflected the phylogeny of Aculeate species, implying host-specific virus evolution. On the other hand, other viruses exhibited unique evolutionary patterns of phylogeny, possibly caused by specific ecological interactions. Our study provides insights into the composition and evolutionary properties of viral genes in the venom glands of certain Aculeate bees and wasps, as well as the potential horizontal transmission of these viruses among bee and wasp species.

The clearwing moth, Synanthedon bicingulata (Staudinger, 1887), is a pest that infests various species of cherry trees. However, genetic information regarding the genus Synanthedon including S. bicingulata, is limited. In this study, we sequenced a complete mitochondrial genome (mitogenome) of the species. The 16,255 bp of S. bicingulata mitogenome differs from the typical gene arrangement formed in Lepidoptera: trnQ-trnS2-trnM-trnI arrangement between the A+T-rich region and the ND2 junction. Moreover, the genome has untranslated repetitive sequences in the intergenic space between lrRNA and trnV, as well as the CGA start codon in COI and the TTG start codon in ATP8. Similar observations are noted in species belonging to the tribe Synanthedonini within the genus Synanthedon.

벚나무류 수목은 생활권 수목(도시공원, 가로수 등)으로 전국에서 가장 많이 식재되고 있으며 전라 남도 또한 벚나무류 수목이 가로수 중 가장 많은 비율을 차지하고 있다. 복숭아유리나방은 농업환경 외에도 생활권 녹지공간에서도 벚나무류 수목을 가해하여 피해를 발생시키고 있는 것으로 보고되고 있으나, 생활권 수목과 산림에서의 관련 연구는 그 필요성에 비해 미흡한 상황이다. 본 연구는 전라남 도 내 생활권 수목을 기주로 하여 발생하는 복숭아유리나방의 발생소장을 조사하여 생활권 녹지공간 을 관리하는 기초자치단체들의 효용성 있는 방제 전략 수립에 기여하고자 한다. 복숭아유리나방의 발생 확인을 위해 육안 확인이 용이한 피해흔을 세 가지로 분류하였으며, 성페로몬 루어와 트랩으로 복숭아유리나방 성체를 유인･채집하였다. 그 결과, 4월 중순 첫 우화를 확인하였으며, 5월 중순과 8월 중순에 2번의 우화 최성기를 확인하여 이때의 유효적산온도를 조사하였다. 또한, 채집된 개체들 의 종 확인 및 유전적 다양성 확인을 위해 mitochondrial 내 cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) 유전자 염기 서열의 분석을 수행하였다.

Although the effect of elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) on Phalaenopsis plant flowering, biomass, and photosynthesis has received intensive study, whether elevated CO2 affects plant requirements and sensitivity to potassium sulfate (SOP) during the reproductive growth stage remains unclear. To evaluate the combined effect of CO2 and SOP provision on crassulacean acid metabolism orchids, we cultivated Phalaenopsis Queen Beer ‘Mantefon’ under ambient and elevated CO2 treatments (≈ 400 or ≈ 720 μmol×mol-1, respectively) and four levels of SOP supply for 20 weeks after treatments (WAT): potassium and sulfate levels by 10.41 and 1.96 mmol·L-1 (SOP1), 5.98 and 0.90 mmol·L-1 (SOP2), 12.80 and 1.96 mmol·L-1 (SOP3), and 14.83 and 3.16 mmol·L-1 (SOP4), respectively. The number of floral buds and flowers decreased in the plants grown under elevated CO2 than in those grown under ambient CO2, regardless of the SOP level; however, the reduced production of floral buds and flowers did not affect the dry mass of shoot, root, and spike at 20 WAT. There were significant interactive effects of CO2 and SOP on root biomass accumulation and net CO2 uptake. The stimulation of biomass partitioning on the root, as a sink source, observed due to the uptake of elevated CO2 was improved under increased SOP supply. Under ambient CO2, the leaf critical SOP level was SOP1 for root and spike biomass accumulation. Plants grown under elevated CO2 were more sensitive to SOP treatments, with higher essential leaf levels of SOP.