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Tao Xu

Publications and source records attributed to Tao Xu.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2026

Human m6A demethylase FTO modulates the flowering time of tomato plants under low-temperature stress.

N6-methyladenosine (m6A) RNA modification plays an important role in plant development and environmental stress responses. However, whether m6A demethylation modulates flowering under low-temperature (LT) stress in tomatoes remains unclear. Here, we investigated whether ectopic expression of FTO, a well-characterized human m6A demethylase, influences flowering and post-transcriptional behaviour in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) under LT conditions. Flowering of transgenic tomato plants expressing FTO was analyzed under LT and normal conditions (NC), and the impacts of FTO on transcripts-specific m6A level, mRNA stability and splicing efficiency of flowering-related genes were evaluated using RT-qPCR, LC-MS/MS, m6A-IP-qPCR, and RNA decay and splicing analyses. FTO-expressing plants exhibited accelerated flowering specifically under LT, whereas no significant differences were observed under normal growth conditions. This phenotype was accompanied by increased expression of positive floral regulators (SlMC, SlFCA, and SlJ2) and decreased expression of negative regulators (SlSVP, SlSP, and SlTMF) under LT conditions. Notably, these expression changes were associated with altered mRNA stability, with positive regulators showing increased stability and negative regulators showing reduced stability under LT conditions. m6A-IP-qPCR analysis indicated reduced m6A enrichment in these selected transcripts in FTO-expressing plants. In addition to effects on mRNA stability, FTO expression was associated with changes in the splicing efficiency of SlMC transcripts. Collectively, our findings indicate that human FTO functions as an mRNA m6A demethylase in tomatoes and is associated with altered RNA regulatory processes under LT conditions. These findings suggest that m6A-mediated post-transcriptional regulation contributes to stress-induced flowering plasticity under LT conditions, rather than direct activation of canonical flowering pathways.

Abiotic stress↗
PubMed2026

Esketamine vs. sufentanil for quality of recovery after outpatient gynecological surgery: a randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Perioperative administration of esketamine has been reported to improve early quality of recovery (QoR). However, data on its effects in outpatient surgery are limited. This study aimed to assess the impact of esketamine on QoR in patients undergoing outpatient gynecological procedures. METHODS: In this investigator-initiated, double-blind, randomized clinical trial, patients aged 18-65&#x2009;years scheduled for outpatient gynecological surgery under sedation were allocated to receive esketamine (0.2&#x2009;mg/kg) or sufentanil (0.1&#x2009;&#x3bc;g/kg) combined with propofol (1.5-3&#x2009;mg/kg). The primary outcome was quality of recovery on postoperative day (POD) 1. Secondary outcomes included quality of recovery on POD2, sedation success rate, length of post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) stay, injection pain, postoperative pain, nausea and vomiting, fatigue, patient and clinician satisfaction, sleep quality, and anxiety and depression. RESULTS: A total of 126 patients were randomized, with 63 assigned to the esketamine group and 63 to the sufentanil group. Of these, 125 patients were included in the final analysis (62 in the esketamine group and 63 in the sufentanil group), as one patient lacked follow-up data. The mean (SD) QoR-15 score on POD1 was 137.9 (14.5) in the esketamine group and 137.8 (10.7) in the sufentanil group, with no significant difference between groups (absolute difference, 0.2; 95% CI, -4.2 to 4.6; p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.93). For secondary outcomes, the esketamine group had a longer PACU stay (median, 28.0 vs. 23.0&#x2009;min; p&#x2009;<&#x2009;0.001), a lower incidence of severe injection pain (22.6% vs. 50.8%; p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.002), a higher proportion of patients with pain scores &#x2265; 4 at 30&#x2009;min postoperatively (30.6% vs. 6.3%; p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.001), and higher fatigue scores (median, 3.0 vs. 2.0; p&#x2009;=&#x2009;0.01). Other secondary outcomes did not differ significantly between groups. CONCLUSION: Among patients undergoing sedation for outpatient gynecological procedures, esketamine did not significantly improve quality of recovery on POD1 compared to sufentanil. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, ChiCTR2500098466.

Humans↗
PubMed2026

40 Hz light flickering alleviates chronic pain via adenosine signaling in the retina-amygdala pathway.

Chronic pain affects over 20% of the global population, yet frontline treatments remain limited in efficacy and are often hampered by serious side effects. In search of novel and effective neuromodulation alternatives, we discovered that 40&#x2009;Hz flickering light effectively alleviates inflammatory and neuropathic pain in mice. We identified the retina-central amygdala (CeA) pathway as a critical conduit for the analgesic effects of 40&#x2009;Hz flickering light. Using circuit-specific manipulations, we demonstrated that activation of the retina-CeA pathway is both sufficient to mimic and necessary to mediate the analgesic outcomes of 40&#x2009;Hz light stimulation. In terms of mechanism, we found that 40&#x2009;Hz light flickering significantly increases extracellular adenosine levels in the CeA. Local pharmacological blockade of equilibrative nucleoside transporters prevented this adenosine increase and abolished the analgesic effects of 40&#x2009;Hz light flickering, whereas focal adenosine infusion phenocopied the light-induced analgesia. Both interventions required A2A receptor signaling to suppress nociceptive responses. Furthermore, we found that hyperalgesia could be destabilized in the CeA and reversed by 40&#x2009;Hz light stimulation or adenosine infusion, mirroring memory reconsolidation processes and implicating the CeA as a key locus for pain memory erasure. Collectively, our findings demonstrate the multifaceted therapeutic benefits of 40&#x2009;Hz light flickering as a novel non-invasive approach for pain management and reveal a distinct retina-CeA circuit and adenosine signaling mechanism for control of chronic pain and pain memory.

Animals↗
PubMed2025

Mutations in the transcriptional regulator MAB_2885 confer tedizolid and linezolid resistance through the MmpS-MmpL efflux pump MAB_2302-MAB_2303 in Mycobacterium abscessus.

Mycobacterium abscessus (MAB) is a clinically significant multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogen, particularly implicated in pulmonary infections among cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. Tedizolid (TZD), an oxazolidinone-class antibacterial drug, has been recommended as an alternative treatment for MAB-infected patients who are intolerant to or whose isolate is resistant to first-line drugs including linezolid (LZD). To investigate the TZD resistance mechanisms in MAB, we isolated 23 TZD-resistant MAB mutants and performed whole-genome sequencing (WGS) to identify resistance-associated genes. Frequent mutations were identified in MAB_2885, encoding a putative TetR transcriptional regulator, and MAB_2303, encoding a putative mycobacterial membrane protein large (MmpL). Drug susceptibility testing confirmed that MAB_2885 mutations contribute to both TZD and LZD resistance in MAB. RNA-seq analysis revealed that restoring wild-type MAB_2885 in mutants downregulated the MAB_2302-MAB_2303. Electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) showed the MAB_2885 protein binds to its target sequence upstream of MAB_2302-MAB_2303, further confirming their regulatory relationship. The W91R mutation in the MAB_2885 protein was found to impair its DNA-binding activity compared to the wild-type. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) analysis confirmed that MAB_2302-MAB_2303 functions as a TZD efflux pump. Additionally, overexpression of MAB_2885 in M. abscessus subsp. bolletii and M. abscessus subsp. massiliense also increased their TZD susceptibility and downregulated their respective MmpS-MmpL orthologs. Overall, our study demonstrates that mutations in MAB_ 2885 contribute to TZD and LZD resistance by disrupting the negative regulation of the downstream MAB_2302-MAB_2303, which functions as a direct efflux pump for TZD. These findings provide new insights into oxazolidinone resistance mechanisms in MAB and identify potential biomarkers for detecting drug resistance.

Mycobacterium abscessus↗
PubMed2025

Genomic subtypes of non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer: guiding immunotherapy decision-making for patients exposed to aristolochic acid.

BACKGROUND: The limited genomic data on non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) hampers our understanding of its carcinogenesis and development. Specifically, Aristolochic acid (AA), a potent human carcinogenic compound from aristolochia plants and commonly found in Chinese herbal medicine, has been extensively documented as being closely associated with the onset and progression of bladder cancer. However, the field of AA-induced NMIBC remains largely unexplored in terms of its genomic and molecular characteristics, as well as clinical therapeutic strategies. METHODS: To bridge this knowledge gap, we conducted a comprehensive study using a cohort of 81 NMIBC samples. We performed whole-exome sequencing (WES) and RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) to obtain detailed genomic and transcriptomic data. We subjected these datasets to genomic analysis and subtype analysis to gain valuable insights into NMIBC. RESULTS: By temporally dissecting mutations in NMIBC specimens, we identified a comprehensive mutational landscape of NMIBC and the associations of these mutations with recurrence-free survival. Additionally, we discerned four genomic subtypes of NMIBC: AA-like, FGFR3/HRAS, FGFR3 & chr9Del, and genome instability (GI). The AA-like subtype presented a high frequency of gene mutations along with a pronounced AA mutagenesis signature of SBS22 (Fisher test: P-value 3.5e-4, OR 25.25) even after temporal dissection. The FGFR3/HRAS subtype exhibited FGFR3 or HRAS mutations with few copy number alterations (CNAs). The FGFR3 & chr9Del subtype was characterized by the co-occurrence of chr9p and chr9q deletions as well as FGFR3 mutations, while the GI subtype showed a high frequency of CNAs. Notably, the AA-like and GI subtypes demonstrated better outcomes after immunotherapy, whereas the FGFR3/HRAS subtype showed poorer outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings provide novel perspectives on the genomics of NMIBC, unveiling four prominent genomic subtypes, each showing different outcomes following immunotherapy. TRIAL REGISTRATION: No. 2019PHB268-01 (retrospectively registered on February 14, 2020).

Humans↗
PubMed2025

Evolutionary Process Underlying Receptor Gene Expansion and Cellular Divergence of Olfactory Sensory Neurons in Honeybees.

Olfaction is crucial for animals' survival and adaptation. Unlike the strict singular expression of odorant receptor (OR) genes in vertebrate olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs), insects exhibit complex OR gene expression patterns. In honeybees (Apis mellifera), a significant expansion of OR genes implies a selection preference for the olfactory demands of social insects. However, the mechanisms underlying receptor expression specificity and their contribution to OSN divergence remain unclear. In this study, we used single-nucleus multiomics profiling to investigate the transcriptional regulation of OR genes and the cellular identity of OSNs in A. mellifera. We identified three distinct OR expression patterns, singular OR expression, co-expression of multiple OR genes with a single active promoter, and co-expression of multiple OR genes with multiple active promoters. Notably, &#x223c;50% of OSNs co-expressed multiple OR genes, driven by polycistronic transcription of tandemly duplicated OR genes via a single active promoter. In these OSNs, their identity was determined by the first transcribed receptor. The divergent activation of the promoter for duplicated OR genes ensures the coordinated increased divergence of OSN population. By integrating multiomics data with genomic architecture, we illustrate how fundamental genetic mechanisms drive OR gene expansion and influence flanking regulatory elements, ultimately contributing to the cellular divergence of OSNs. Our findings highlight the interplay between gene duplication and regulatory evolution in shaping OSN diversity, providing new insights into the evolution and adaptation of olfaction in social insects. This study also sheds light on how genetic innovations contribute to the evolution of complex traits.

Animals↗