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Purpose: To summarize the clinical and biochemical characteristics of patients with ceftriaxone-induced liver injury and guide the selection of safe medication. Methods: Retrieved domestic and foreign databases from inception to October 2023, collected case data conforming to ceftriaxone-induced liver injury, and statistically analyzed the data. Results: A total of 617 articles were retrieved, and 16 articles with 33 cases (10 children, 23 adults) were included. Males represented 60% (18/30), with a male-to-female ratio of 1.5:1. The age of onset ranged from 2 days to 96 years, with 15 of 23 adults (65%) over 55 years old. The time from ceftriaxone use to liver injury fluctuated between 0.5 and 47 days. Only 9 patients (27.3%, 9/33) had clinical symptoms, and the clinical classification was dominated by cholestatic injury (46.2%, 12/26). There was a significant difference in the clinical classification of ceftriaxone-induced liver injury between children and adults (P = 0.0126), with hepatocellular injury predominating in children and cholestatic injury predominating in adults. The severity of liver injury was mainly mild (66.7%, 12/18). Peak values of alanine aminotransferase ranging from 228.5 to 8098 U/L, aspartate aminotransferase ranging from 86.7 to 21575 U/L, alkaline phosphatase ranging from 143 to 2434 U/L, and total bilirubin ranging from 3.35 to 66.1 mg/dL. There was a significant difference in peak values of alkaline phosphatase between children and adults (P = 0.027), with a higher peak value of alkaline phosphatase in adults (1039 ± 716.4 U/L vs. 257 ± 134.9 U/L). Patients with normal imaging examinations accounted for the majority (61.5%, 7/13). The prognosis of 32 patients (97%, 32/33) was good, and one child with sickle cell anemia who developed immune hemolysis, progressive renal failure, and acute liver injury after using ceftriaxone died in the end. Conclusion: Ceftriaxone-induced liver injury can occur at any age, with a higher risk in the elderly, and age may be related to the clinical classification. Although the clinical manifestations are not specific, close monitoring of liver biochemical indicators during the use can detect liver injury early. Most cases have a good prognosis, but for people with concomitant sickle cell anemia, it is necessary to be vigilant about the occurrence of severe hemolytic anemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to evaluate the potential of capping protein (actin filament) muscle Z-line subunit β (CAPZB) messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) levels as a biomarker for distinguishing low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions of the cervix (LSIL) from high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions of the cervix (HSIL). We collected a total of 166 cervical exfoliated cells and divided them into five groups based on histopathological results. Each sample was divided into two portions, one for fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) detection and the other for bisulfite sequencing polymerase chain reaction (BSP) detection. We found that FISH detection of CAPZB mRNA mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) and BSP detection of CAPZB deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) percentage of methylation rate (PMR) performed as biomarkers for distinguishing HSIL from LSIL, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), sensitivity, specificity and cut-off value of 0.893, 81.25%, 80.39% and 0.616, 0.794, 64.06%, 81.37% and 0.454, respectively. Furthermore, FISH detection of CAPZB mRNA exhibited a greater AUC (0.893) for the detection of HSIL than the CAPZB DNA methylation method (0.794), indicating the CAPZB mRNA levels can be used as a biomarker for assessing cervical lesions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an isolate-free graph G, a subset S of vertices is a semitotal dominating set of G if it is a dominating set of G and every vertex in S is within distance 2 of another vertex of S. The semitotal domination number of G, denoted by γ t 2 (G) , is the minimum cardinality of a semitotal dominating set in G. Zhu et al. (Gr Combin 33, 1119–1130, 2017) proved that if G ∉ { K 4 , N 2 } is a connected claw-free cubic graph of order n, then γ t 2 (G) ≤ n 3 , which is sharp. They proposed the problem of characterizing the extremal graphs. We completely solve this problem. There are ten classes of graphs, three of which are infinite families of graphs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heat stress reduces the number of Sertoli cells, which is closely related to an imbalanced redox status. Glutamate functions to maintain the equilibrium of redox homeostasis. However, the role of glutamate in heat treated Sertoli cells remains unclear. Herein, Sertoli cells from 3-week-old piglets were treated at 44 °C for 30 min (heat stress). Glutamate levels increased significantly following heat stress treatment, followed by a gradual decrease during recovery, while glutathione (GSH) showed a gradual increase. The addition of exogenous glutamate (700 μM) to Sertoli cells before heat stress significantly reduced the heat stress-induced apoptosis rate, mediated by enhanced levels of antioxidant substances (superoxide dismutase (SOD), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), and GSH) and reduced levels of oxidative substances (reactive oxygen species (ROS) and malondialdehyde (MDA)). Glutamate addition to Sertoli cells before heat stress upregulated the levels of glutamate-cysteine ligase, modifier subunit (Gclm), glutathione synthetase (Gss), thioredoxin (Trx1) and B-cell leukemia/lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2), and the ratio of phosphorylated Akt (protein kinase B)/total Akt. However, it decreased the levels of Bcl2-associated X protein (Bax) and cleaved-caspase 3. Addition of the inhibitor of glutaminase (Gls1), Bptes (Bis-2-(5-phenylacetamido-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)ethyl sulfide, 30 μM)to Sertoli cells before heat stress reversed these effects. These results inferred that glutamate rescued heat stress-induced apoptosis in Sertoli cells by enhancing activity of antioxidant enzymes and activating the Trx1-Akt pathway. Thus, glutamate supplementation might represent a novel strategy to alleviate the negative effect of heat stress. • Heat treatment could cause apoptosis and oxidate stress of boar SCs. • Exogenous glutamate reduced apoptosis by enhancing the levels of antioxidant substances. • Glutamate improves oxidation resistance by regulating the expression of Gclm/Gss to increase GSH. • Protective effects of glutamate are mediated through the Trx1-Akt pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The grasses are one of the most diverse plant families on Earth. However, their classification and evolutionary history are obscured by their pollen stenopalynous (similar) morphology. A combination of high‐resolution imaging of pollen surface ornamentation and computational analysis has previously been proposed as a promising tool to classify grass taxonomic boundaries. In this study, we test this hypothesis by studying Poaceae pollen across the phylogeny from plants collected in northern South America and also from published literature across the globe. We assessed if morphotypes that we establish using descriptive terminology are supported by computational analysis, if they vary along six (a)biotic variables and vary across the phylogeny. Based on this analysis, we constructed a reference framework for pollen surface ornamentation morphotypes. Our results showed that there is a wide variation of grass pollen surface ornamentation. We identified nine new and confirmed six known morphotypes, establishing a data set for 223 species (243 individual plant specimens) that represent 11 subfamilies. Computational analysis showed that our morphotypes are well‐supported by two quantitative features of pollen sculptural elements (size and density). The specific data set and mapping of the phylogeny confirmed that pollen morphological sculpture is unrelated to (a)biotic variables and is diverse across the phylogeny. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clouds play important roles in weather, climate, and the global water cycle. The Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP) onboard the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO) spacecraft has measured global vertical profiles of clouds and aerosols in the Earth's atmosphere since June 2006. CALIOP provides vertically resolved information on cloud occurrence, thermodynamic phase, and properties. We describe version 1.0 of a monthly gridded ice cloud product derived from over 12 years of global, near-continuous CALIOP measurements. The primary contents are monthly vertically resolved histograms of ice cloud extinction coefficient and ice water content (IWC) retrievals. The CALIOP Level 3 Ice Cloud product is built from the CALIOP Version 4.20 Level 2 5 km Cloud Profile product that, relative to previous versions, features substantial improvements due to more accurate lidar backscatter calibration, better extinction coefficient retrievals, and a temperature-sensitive parameterization of IWC. The gridded ice cloud data are reported as histograms, which provides data users with the flexibility to compare CALIOP's retrieved ice cloud properties with those from other instruments with different measurement sensitivities or retrieval capabilities. It is also convenient to aggregate monthly histograms for seasonal, annual, or decadal trend and climate analyses. This CALIOP gridded ice cloud product provides a unique characterization of the global and regional vertical distributions of optically thin ice clouds and deep convection cloud tops, and it should provide significant value for cloud research and model evaluation. A DOI has been issued for the product: 10.5067/CALIOP/CALIPSO/L3_ICE_CLOUD-STANDARD-V1-00. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reliability performance, especially the lower confidence limit of reliability, plays an important role in reliability assessment, and it is also of concern to researchers and engineers. In this article, a novel estimate of the lower confidence limit of the reliability for two-parameter Weibull distribution is proposed based on the generalized fiducial inference. The corresponding adaptive Metropolis-Hastings within Gibbs algorithm is provided to analyze the generalized fiducial lower confidence limit. The proposed lower confidence limit of the reliability is compared with that from frequentist method. In addition, this novel procedure is generalized to the series system and the parallel system which consists of identical Weibull components. Simulation results show that the proposed generalized fiducial lower confidence limit is more applicable than the frequentist method, especially for the case of small sample size. Finally, the MOS transistor lifetime data is used to illustrate the new procedure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given a graph G with vertex set V , a subset S of V is called a dominating set of G if every vertex is either in S or is adjacent to a vertex in S. There are a lot of variants for dominating sets, such as connected dominating sets, total dominating sets, total restricted dominating sets, secure (connected, total) dominating sets, etc. Geometric intersection graphs are graphs for which there is a bijection b between the vertices and a set P of geometric objects (for example, disks, rectangles, etc.) such that there is an edge between two vertices v and w if and only if the objects b (v) and b (w) intersect. In this paper, we offer a survey about complexity and algorithmic results on variant domination problems in geometric intersection graphs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chinese herbal medicines (CHMs) derived from nature have received increasing attention and become more popular. Due to their diverse production processes, complex ingredients, and different storage conditions, it is highly desirable to develop simple, rapid, efficient and trace detection methods to ensure the drug quality. Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy has the advantages of being time-saving, non-destructive, usable in aqueous environments, and highly compatible with various biomolecular samples, providing a promising analytical method for CHM. In this review, we outline the major advances in the application of SERS to the identification of raw materials, detection of bioactive constituents, characterization of adulterants, and detection of contaminants. This clearly shows that SERS has strong potential in the quality control of CHM, which greatly promotes the modernization of CHM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

White matter lesions (WMLs), characterized by focal demyelination or myelination disorders, are commonly present in cerebral small vessel disease and various neurological diseases. Multiple etiologies lead to WMLs. However, there is no specific therapy or effective drugs for relieving WMLs. Natural products and their derivatives originate from bacterial, fungal, plant, and marine animal sources, many of which have multiple therapeutic targets. Compared to single target compounds, natural products and their derivatives are promising to be developed as better drugs to attenuate WMLs. Thus, this review attempts to summarize the status of natural products and their derivatives (2010–to date) alleviating cerebral white matter lesions for the discovery of new drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mammalian spermatogenesis is a highly complicated and intricately organized process involving spermatogonia propagation (mitosis) and meiotic differentiation into mature sperm cells (spermiogenesis). In pigs, spermatogonia development and the role of somatic cells in spermatogenesis were previously investigated in detail. However, the characterization of key molecules fundamental to pig spermiogenesis remains less explored. Here we compared spermatogenesis between humans and pigs, focusing on spermiogenesis, by integrative testicular single‐cell RNA sequencing (scRNA‐seq) analysis. Human and pig testicular cells were clustered into 26 different groups, with cell‐type‐specific markers and signalling pathways. For spermiogenesis, pseudo‐time analysis classified the lineage differentiation routes for round, elongated spermatids and spermatozoa. Moreover, markers and molecular pathways specific to each type of spermatids were examined for humans and pigs, respectively. Furthermore, high‐dimensional weighted gene co‐expression network analysis (hdWGCNA) identified gene modules specific for each type of human and pig spermatids. Hub genes (pig: SNRPD2.1 related to alternative splicing; human: CATSPERZ, Ca[2+] ion channel) potentially involved in spermiogenesis were also revealed. Taken together, our integrative analysis found that human and pig spermiogeneses involve specific genes and molecular pathways and provided resources and insights for further functional investigation on spermatid maturation and male reproductive ability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Well-defined probes based on rare earth complexes were prepared by using europium oxide (Eu2O3), gadolinium oxide (Gd2O3), 2-thenoyl trifluoroacetone (TTA), and 1,10-phenanthroline monohydrochloride monohydricrate (phen) as raw materials. Fluorescence spectroscopy was used to determine that 1:1 is the optimal ratio of Eu3+ and Gd3+. So a Eu0.5Gd0.5(TTA)3phen/PMMA temperature sensitive paint was prepared composed of rare earth complexes Eu0.5Gd0.5(TTA)3phen as probe molecules and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) as the matrix. The as-prepared Eu0.5Gd0.5(TTA)3phen/PMMA exhibits a strong emission at 617 nm and has fine temperature quenching properties in the range of 20 °C–90 °C. Furthermore, the rate of change of luminescence and temperature sensitivity are enhanced due to doping of Gd3+, illustrating a synergistic effect between Gd3+ and Eu3+. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four patients with localized plaque psoriasis had used various systemic drugs along with topical cream. However, their skin lesions recurred, and the disease was refractory. After 2 weeks of discontinuation of oral and external medication, they were given three consecutive irradiation treatments with intense pulsed light once every 2 weeks for a 6-week period. After treating for 6 weeks, the erythema colors of the patients were evidently darkened, the scales were evidently reduced, and the skin lesions were significantly thinner or even flattened. The treatment was satisfactory, without occurrence of severe adverse reactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phytochemical investigation of the stem bark of Xeromphis nilotica led to the isolation of two new triterpenoid saponins; 3-O-β-D-glucopyranosyl (1→3)-β-D-glucopyranosyl-olean-12-ene-23,27-diol (1) and 3-O-{β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→3)-O-[β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→3)]-β-D-glucopyranosyl}-oleanolic acid (2). Their structures were elucidated through extensive chromatographic separations and spectroscopic methods [1D, 2D NMR and HR-ESI-MS]. Sugar moieties were identified through TLC after acid hydrolysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transdifferentiation from cardiac fibroblasts to myofibroblasts is an important event in the initiation of cardiac fibrosis. However, the underlying mechanism is not fully understood. Circ-sh3rf3 (circular RNA SH3 domain containing Ring Finger 3) is a novel circular RNA which was induced in hypertrophied ventricles by isoproterenol hydrochloride, and our work has established that it is a potential regulator in cardiac hypertrophy, but whether circ-sh3rf3 plays a role in cardiac fibrosis remains unclear, especially in the conversion of cardiac fibroblasts into myofibroblasts. Here, we found that circ-sh3rf3 was down-regulated in isoproterenol-treated rat cardiac fibroblasts and cardiomyocytes as well as during fibroblast differentiation into myofibroblasts. We further confirmed that circ-sh3rf3 could interact with GATA-4 proteins and reduce the expression of GATA-4, which in turn abolishes GATA-4 repression of miR-29a expression and thus up-regulates miR-29a expression, thereby inhibiting fibroblast–myofibroblast differentiation and myocardial fibrosis. Our work has established a novel Circ-sh3rf3/GATA-4/miR-29a regulatory cascade in fibroblast–myofibroblast differentiation and myocardial fibrosis, which provides a new therapeutic target for myocardial fibrosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Four patients with localized plaque psoriasis had used various systemic drugs along with topical cream. However, their skin lesions recurred, and the disease was refractory. After 2 weeks of discontinuation of oral and external medication, they were given three consecutive irradiation treatments with intense pulsed light once every 2 weeks for a 6-week period. After treating for 6 weeks, the erythema colors of the patients were evidently darkened, the scales were evidently reduced, and the skin lesions were significantly thinner or even flattened. The treatment was satisfactory, without occurrence of severe adverse reactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heat shock protein 90 (HSP90), as a molecular chaperone, regulates hundreds of protein clients under both physiological and stress conditions in eukaryotic cells. However, the functional role of HSP90 in mammalian male reproduction remains largely unknown. Here, we aimed to investigate the function and effect of HSP90AA1 on the basic and reproductive function of pig immature Sertoli cells (iSCs). We first confirmed that the transfection of pBI-CMV3-HSP90AA1 vector into porcine iSCs for 24 h significantly increased mRNA and protein levels of HSP90AA. Moreover, HSP90AA1 over-expression significantly increased cell viability and the PLK2 mRNA abundance, promoted lactate production via elevating the LDHA activity, and inhibited the secretion of anti -Mullerian hormone and estradiol. In comparison, HSP90AA inhibition by allylamino-17-demethoxygeldanamycin (17-AAG) (2 μM) treatment of pig iSCs for 36 h had a totally contrasting effect, i.e. significantly reduced cell viability, promoted cell apoptosis via modulating expression of genes related to cell cycle and apoptosis (CCNB1 , CCN1 , PLK2 , PTMA , YBX3 and CASP3), suppressed lactate production via dropping LDHA activity, but increased the secretion of anti -Mullerian hormone and estradiol. Taken together, our findings demonstrated that HSP90AA1 could regulate positively cell viability and lactate production, but negatively the secretion of reproductive hormones (anti -Mullerian hormone and estradiol). However, the detailed molecular mechanism of HSP90AA1 remains to be investigated. • HSP90AA1 over-expression in porcine iSCs promoted cell viability via increasing the PLK2 expression. • HSP90AA1 over-expression in porcine iSCs elevated lactate production, but suppressed the secretion of AMH and estradiol. • Inhibition of HSP90AA1 by 17-AAG treatment of porcine iSCs reduced cell viability and promoted cell apoptosis. • HSP90AA1 inhibition suppressed lactate production, but boosted the secretion of AMH and estradiol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The problem of seasonal drought has intensified in recent years. Unfortunately, dry seasons can lead to poor water quality due to nitrogen (N) accumulation, which, in turn, may result in the gradual decline or even disappearance of submerged plants. This outdoor study was conducted to determine the morphological, biomass responses and C/N metabolism of Vallisneria spinulosa to the high N content and low water level. We used two N contents (i.e., low and high) and three simulated water levels (i.e., gradual water level increase from 60 cm to 150 cm over four periods (C), low water level of 60 cm maintained for three periods followed by an abrupt increase to 150 cm in the fourth period (CE) and low water levels of 60 ± 30 cm maintained for three periods followed by an abrupt increase to 150 cm in the fourth period (E)). For the low N content, low water levels for CE and E treatments caused increased ramet number and biomass of V. spinulosa. However, for the high N content, the low water levels did not cause such big changes in V. spinulosa. High N contents demonstrated a remarkably negative influence on the biomass of each organ (included leaf, stolon, root and tuber) of V. spinulosa and flowering ramet number. For C water level, the high N content caused an increase in free-amino acid (FAA) content in stolons and leaves, and no difference in soluble carbohydrate (SC) content. For E water level, there was no significant increase in FAA content of V. spinulosa under high N treatment; furthermore, there was no significant change in SC content under high N treatment except for leaves. In conclusion, low water levels exacerbated the damage to V. spinulosa caused by high nitrogen level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Post-stroke depression (PSD) can aggravate the mortality and recurrence rate in stroke patients. The relationship between family functioning and PSD at different phases after a first-ever stroke is unclear. The purpose of this longitudinal study was to investigate the patterns and relationship of family functioning and PSD at acute hospitalization and 6 months post-discharge in first-ever stroke survivors. Methods: This is a longitudinal study conducted in Guangzhou, China. Family functioning and depression were measured by the Short Form Family Assessment Device (SF-FAD) and Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) at baseline and 6 months post-discharge. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to explore the relationship between family functioning and PSD. Results: The prevalence of PSD at acute hospitalization and 6 months post-discharge was 32.9% and 20.0%, respectively. SDS scores decreased significantly from baseline to 6 months post-discharge, while SF-FAD scores did not change significantly during this period. The Pearson correlation coefficient showed that SF-FAD scores were positively associated with SDS scores at the two time points (r1 = 0.341, r2 = 0.510, P < 0.05). Multiple linear regression analyses indicated that SF-FAD scores could predict PSD at baseline (unstandardized coefficient: 7.010, P < 0.05) and 6 months post-discharge (unstandardized coefficient: 9.672, P < 0.001). Conclusion: This study found that first-ever stroke survivors had good family functioning at baseline and 6 months post-discharge. The findings in this study verified that poor family functioning is positively associated with PSD at different phases post-stroke. Good family functioning is an important protective factor against PSD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conceiving the coupling strategy of photothermal catalysis, in which a CeO2 based photocatalyst facilitates the conversion of CH4 into hydrocarbon species with light irradiation and hydrocarbon species act for the subsequent CVD growth, high quality graphene has been successfully synthesized at 700 °C by photocatalysis triggered CH4-CVD over a Cu substrate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microglia play a crucial role in the activation of immune defense mechanism as the resident macrophages in the central nervous system (CNS). Microglia can eliminate damaged neurons, plaques, and other infectious agents. Triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cell-2 (TREM-2) speculates to be beneficial in preventing inflammation-induced bystander damage of neurons. However, the precise molecular mechanisms underlying the regulation of TREM-2 on neurons are not clarified. We cultured PC12 cells with conditioned medium which was the supernatant of LPS-treated BV2 cells and six groups of PC12 cells (control group, LPS group, TREM-2 WT + LPS group, TREM-2 over-expression + LPS group, siRNA control + LPS group, and siRNA TREM-2 + LPS group) were investigated. The mRNA levels of inflammatory mediators: Nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and Arginase-1(Arg-1) were quantified by using RT-PCR. Assessment of apoptosis in PC12 cells mediated by BV2 microglia was analyzed using TUNEL assays. The result showed that LPS stimulation significantly enhanced inducible iNOS (M1) production in BV2 cells (P < 0.01), and increased PC12 cells apoptosis (P < 0.01), while reduced the production of Arg-1 (M2) in BV2 cells (P < 0.01). These effects were attenuated by TREM-2 over-expression, but enhanced by TREM-2 silencing. It indicated that TREM-2 inhibited LPS-mediated neuronal apoptosis by down-regulating iNOS and up-regulating the expression of Arg-1 in BV2 microglia. Therefore, our findings may provide new insights in the regulation of TREM-2 on neuronal apoptosis via BV2 microglial M1/M2 modulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Clinical data with respect to the impact of meconium on the prognosis of neonatal bacterial meningitis are scarce. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to determine whether meconium-stained amniotic fluid (MSAF) represents a risk factor for poor prognosis of neonatal bacterial meningitis in a confirmed case population.Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of 256 neonates diagnosed with bacterial meningitis hospitalized at one of three hospitals in Shantou, China, between October 2013 and September 2018. Clinical manifestation, laboratory test results and treatment were compared between the two groups, with outcomes dichotomized into 'good' or 'poor' prognosis. Multivariate analysis and follow-up logistic regression analysis were used to identify predictive factors of a poor outcome.Results: Of the 256 neonates with BM, 95 (37.1%) had a good prognosis at discharge and 161 (62.9%) had a poor prognosis. In the poor prognosis group, 131/161 (79.4%) neonates had a permanent neurological sequelae and 19 (11.8%) had ≥2 sequelae. Of note, 11 neonates died. The rate of poor prognosis of BM was significantly higher among neonates with than without MSAF (26.1% vs. 12.6%, respectively; p < 0.05). A logistic multivariate analysis to evaluate the prognostic effect of MSAF to BM showed that neonatal with MSAF is more likely to have a worse prognosis of BM [unadjusted odds ratio (OR), 2.44, 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.24-5.10; adjusted OR, 2.31; 95% CI, 1.09-5.17].Conclusion: MSAF is significantly associated with poor prognosis of neonatal bacterial meningitis. Therefore, in case of MSAF, more attention should be paid to neonatal bacterial meningitis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the experiment was to study the effects of Forsythia suspensa leaves microecological preparation on growth performance, antioxidant capacity, immune function and intestinal microbes of broilers. A total of 300 one-day old white broilers were randomly divided into five groups, three replicates in each group, with 20 chickens in each replicate. Blank control group (fed with basic diet), antibiotic group (fed with basic diet+100 mg/kg lincomycin), and Forsythia suspensaleaves microecological preparation group I, group II and group III (fed with basic diet + 1 000, 2 000 and 4 000 mg/kg Forsythia suspensa leaves microecological preparation). The trial period was 42 d. The results showed that at the age of 1~42 d, compared with blank control group, the average daily weight gain of antibiotic group, Forsythia suspensa leaf microecological preparation group II and group III significantly increased ( P<0.05), and the feed weight ratio significantly decreased (P<0.05). Compared with blank control group, the activity of SOD and GSH-Px in the serum of group III of Forsythia suspensa leaves microecological preparation was significantly increased (P<0.05), the content of MDA in serum of group II and group III was significantly decreased (P<0.05). Compared with blank control group, the thymus index and spleen index of Forsythia suspensa leaves microecological preparation group II and group III were significantly higher (P<0.05), the bursal index of Fabricius in antibiotic group and group III significantly increased (P<0.05). Compared with blank control group, the content of IgA in serum of Forsythia suspensa leaf microecological preparation group II and group III was significantly increased (P<0.05), the content of IgG in serum of antibiotic group and Forsythia suspensa leaf microecological preparation group III was significantly increased (P<0.05), the content of IgM in serum of antibiotic group was significantly increased (P<0.05), the content of TNF-α and IL-6 in serum of group III was significantly decreased (P<0.05). The content of IL-6 in antibiotic group decreased significantly (P<0.05), the content of anti-inflammatory factor IL-10 in serum of antibiotic group and group III increased significantly (P<0.05). Compared with blank control group, the number of lactic acid bacteria in the intestinal tract of the antibiotic group decreased significantly (P<0.05), the number of Escherichia coli in intestinal tract of Forsythia suspensa leaves microecological preparation group II and group III decreased significantly (P<0.05), while the number of lactic acid bacteria increased significantly (P<0.05). The number of Salmonella in intestinal tract of group III significantly decreased (P<0.05). The study indicates that the diet supplemented with 2 000 and 4 000 mg/kg Forsythia suspensa leaf microecological preparation could improve the growth performance of broilers, enhance the antioxidant capacity and immune function of the body, and improve intestinal flora. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Direct β-arylation of thiophene derivatives with bromide as directing group is disclosed. The reaction is conducted with PdCl2 /(p -tolyl)3 P as catalyst, silver carbonate as additive, and aryl iodide as coupling partner, affording brominated biaryl compounds as product. Control experiments indicated that the presence of bromide group enhances the reactivity of the C–H bond, enabling β-arylation. Furthermore, the C–Br bond can be easily converted into many useful functional groups through a wide range of methodologies. The mechanistic study suggests that silver salt plays a key role in the C–H bond-activation step. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antibiotic resistance genes are usually tightly controlled by transcription factors and RNA regulatory elements including sRNAs, riboswitches, and attenuators, and their expression is activated to respond to antibiotic exposure. In previous work, we revealed that the rppA gene is regulated by attenuator LRR and two mistranslation products in Bacillus thuringiensis BMB171. However, its function and promoter regulation is still not precise. In this study, we demonstrated that the encoding product of the rppA gene acts as an ARE1 ABC-F protein and confers resistance to antibiotics virginiamycin M1 and lincomycin when overexpressed. Besides the reported attenuator LRR, the expression of the rppA gene is controlled by the sigma factor SigA and a global transcription factor CcpA. Consequently, its promoter activity is mainly maintained at the stationary phase of cell growth and inhibited in the presence of glucose. Our study revealed the function and regulation of the rppA gene in detail. Key points: • The RppA protein acts as an ARE1 ABC-F protein • The rppA gene confers resistance to antibiotics virginiamycin M1 and lincomycin when overexpressed • The expression of the rppA gene is regulated by the sigma factor SigA and the pleiotropic regulator CcpA [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore the relationship between physical activity and prosocial behavior in college students, and to examine whether self-perception and gender may play mediating and moderating roles, respectively, in that relationship. Methods: The International Physical Activity Questionnaire-long form, Prosocial Tendencies Measure, and Self-perception Scale were used to survey 647 college students in Yangzhou, China. Internal consistency testing, one-way analyses of variance (ANOVAs) across physical activity levels, exploratory factor analysis, correlation testing, mediation effect testing (independent variable, physical activity; mediating variable, self-perception; dependent variable, prosocial behavior), bootstrap testing and moderated mediation testing were conducted. Results: Physical activity level was not found to be a direct predictor prosocial behavior in college students. Self-perception was found to play a mediating role between physical activity and prosocial behavior. Conclusion: Physical activity is not directly predictive college students' prosocial behavior tendencies, but it is indirectly predictive through self-perception. This study explores the relationship between the three variables and the path of the relationship, deepening the research related to the relationship between physical activity and prosocial behavior, providing ideas for fostering prosocial behavior in Chinese universities, as well as providing a theoretical basis for possible future empirical research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Somatic Sertoli cells constitute the microenvironment and produce essential substances, to support male germ cell development and maturation in testis. We previously found that ascorbic acid treatment of porcine immature Sertoli cells enhances its proliferation and secretion of reproductive hormones and metabolites, and reprograms the global transcriptome. Proteomics is a powerful tool to systematically profile the underlying protein changes. Here, by employing the TMT-based quantitative proteomics method, we identified 96 and 64 significantly up- and down-regulated proteins in porcine immature Sertoli cells treated by ascorbic acid, respectively. Gene enrichment (GO and KEGG) and protein-protein interaction analyses revealed important molecular pathways (dioxygenase activity, sterol biosynthetic process, PI3K-Akt, negative regulation of peptide hormone secretion, extracellular matrix etc.). Further validation of three proteins, HMGCS1 (cholesterol synthesis), P4HA1 (glycolysis) and KDM5A (demethylation of histone 3 at lysine 4), confirmed their significant differential abundance, respectively. Taken together, our findings show that ascorbic acid can alter multiple important protein molecules and related signaling pathways, which could explain partially phenotypic changes (proliferation, apoptosis, nucleic acid methylation, lactate and reproductive hormone secretion) of porcine immature Sertoli cells as induced by ascorbic acid. • Ascorbic acid could induce 96 and 64 significantly up- and down-regulated proteins in porcine immature Sertoli cells. • Enrichment found important signaling pathways, such as extracellular matrix component, steroid biosynthesis and PI3K-Akt. • HMGCS1, P4HA1 and KDM5A involved in important signaling pathways were validated using immunofluorescence and western blots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lead (Pb) is one of the most widespread and highly toxic heavy metals in the environment. The design and synthesis of adsorbent materials for the selective and efficient removal of Pb2+ from aqueous solution has received much attention. Herein, the ligand 4,4′-azoxydibenzoic acid with the O− group was elaborately selected to construct a novel Pr-based MOF for Pb2+ removal. The as-prepared MOF adsorbents with high stability exhibited ultra-high selectivity for Pb2+, even in the presence of various highly concentrated competitive ions (with the ratios from 1 : 5 to 1 : 50). Also, a high uptake capacity (560.26 mg g−1) can be achieved for the MOF material, due to the availability of sufficient adsorption sites. The strong electrostatic attraction and coordination interaction between the numerous active O− sites on MOF adsorbents and Pb2+ can account for the good adsorption performance for Pb2+, which was systematically verified by zeta potential, FT-IR and XPS studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blue-light activated long afterglow luminescence phosphors have attracted much attention because of their potential application in many fields. Herein, the influence of trap depth and the quantity of electrons captured by the traps on the long afterglow luminescence properties were systematically revealed through a comparative analysis of the long afterglow luminescence performance of the series of Y 3 Al 5-x Ga x O 12 (YAGG):Ce3+, Cr3+ (x = 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5) phosphors. To achieve long afterglow luminescence, it requires that the traps can effectively capture electrons, and possess an appropriate trap depth. Additionally, it is discovered that the quantity of electrons captured by the traps is the main factor affecting the duration of long afterglow luminescence. The more electrons are captured, the longer the afterglow lasts. The quantity of trapped electrons is inversely proportional to the energy differences between CB M -Ce 5d and trap depth. The sample exhibits the high quantity of trapped electrons attributable to its small energy differences which allows electrons to be directly captured by traps through the tunneling effect. On this basis, the effects of crystal field splitting (ε cfs), centroid shift (ε c), and the degree of dodecahedral distortion (D (YO)) on trap depth (E T) were discussed to manipulate the trap depth, demonstrating there is a significant positive correlation between ε c -ε cfs (2(1-10D(YO))) and E T values for the garnet structure A 3 B 2 C 3 O 12 , when the ion doped at the A-position remains constant and the ions at the B and C positions vary. Notably, A larger D (YO) value corresponds to a deeper trap depth. This study provides a new perspective toward the development and design of long afterglow materials with superior afterglow emission. • The effect of trap depth and the quantity of trapped electrons in mechanism processes of persistent luminescence properties were systematically demonstrated. • The quantity of trapped electrons is inversely proportional to the energy differences between CB M -Ce 5d and trap depth. • A mathematical model is developed to reveal the effects of crystal field splitting (ε cfs), centroid shift (ε c), and the degree of dodecahedral distortion (D (YO)) on trap depth (E T) to manipulate the trap depth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• VOs were divided into herbaceous VOs, gramineous VOs, vine VOs, and woody VOs. • The detection technologies of VOs in recent years were preliminarily integrated. • Nondestructive rapid detection technology is an important analysis method for VOs. • Lipidomics technology has broad application prospects in the field of VOs. Lipids are widespread in nature and play a pivotal role as a source of energy and nutrition for the human body. Vegetable oils (VOs) constitute a significant category in the food industry, containing various lipid components that have garnered attention for being natural, environmentally friendly and health-promoting. The review presented the classification of raw materials (RMs) from oil crops and quality analysis techniques of VOs, with the aim of improving comprehension and facilitating in-depth research of VOs. Brief descriptions were provided for four categories of VOs, and quality analysis techniques for both RMs and VOs were generalized. Furthermore, this study discussed the applications of lipidomics technology in component analysis, processing and utilization, quality determination, as well as nutritional function assessment of VOs. Through reviewing RMs and quality analysis techniques of VOs, this study aims to encourage further refinement and development in the processing and utilization of VOs, offering valuable references for theoretical and applied research in food chemistry and food science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spontaneous miscarriage is a common pregnancy complication. Multiple etiologies have been proposed such as genetic aberrations, endocrinology disorder, and immunologic derangement; however, the relevance of circulating lipidomes to the specific condition remains unclear. In the present study, lipidomics profiling was examined on serum of women with spontaneous miscarriage after in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer (IVF-ET). Screening and analysis of differential lipid levels were conducted using a machine learning approach to verify the stability and validity of potential serum biomarkers. Seven lipid species presented significant differences between the abortion and term birth patients, including three types of sphingomyelins (SMs), two types of diglycerides (DGs), one phosphatidylcholine (PC), and one lysophosphatidylethanolamine (LPE). All the SMs presented with a fold change of > 1, while both the PC and LPE had a fold change of < 1. The DG containing two saturated fatty acyl chains was decreased, but that containing two unsaturated fatty acyl chains was increased in the miscarriage group compared to the control group. This study reveals the relevance of lipid profiles to spontaneous abortion after IVF-ET, providing potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets for the specific clinical scenario. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring lead‐free candidates and improving efficiency and stability remain the obstacle of hybrid organic‐inorganic perovskite‐based devices commercialization. Traditional trial‐and‐error methods seriously restrict the discovery especially for large search space, complex crystal structure and multi‐objective properties. Here, the authors propose a multi‐step and multi‐stage screening scheme to accelerate the discovery of hybrid organic‐inorganic perovskites A2BB′X6 from a large number of candidates through combining machine learning with high‐throughput calculations for pursuing excellent efficiency and thermal stability in solar cells. Followed by a series of screenings, the structure‐property relationships mapping A2BB′X6 properties are built and the predictions are close to reported experimental results. Successfully, four experimental‐feasibly candidates with good stability, high Debye temperature and suitable band gap are screened out and further verified by density‐functional theory calculations, in which the predicted efficiency for three lead‐free candidates ((CH3NH3)2AgGaBr6, (CH3NH3)2AgInBr6 and (C2NH6)2AgInBr6) achieves 20.6%, 19.9% and 27.6% due to ultrabroadband absorption region ranging from UVC to IRC with excitonic radiative combination rates as low as 10 ps, large or intermediate polarons form with properties similar to CH3NH3PbI3 and the calculated thermal conductivities are 5.04, 4.39 and 5.16 Wm−1K−1, respectively, with Debye temperatures larger than 500 K, beneficial for suppression of both nonradiative combination and heat‐induced degradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) was employed for the quantification of sulfide anion (S2−) in aqueous samples. Silver nanoparticles modified with trithiocyanuric acid were used as the SERS enhancing substrate. To address the problem of poor reproducibility of SERS signal caused by the uncontrollable variations in physical properties of enhancing substrate, the performance of several calibration models for quantitative analysis of the SERS measurements of S2− samples were evaluated and compared. The calibration models studied were univariate ratiometric model based on the intensity ratio between the characteristic SERS peaks of trithiocyanuric acid, PLS models built on the raw and preprocessed SERS measurements, and the generalized ratiometric indicator based multiplicative effects model (MEMGRI). Experimental results showed that among the calibration models considered in this contribution, only MEMGRI model achieved accurate and precise concentration predictions for S2− in the spiked environmental water samples with recovery rates varying within the range of 94% to 106%. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that the combination of SERS technique with MEMGRI model may be a competitive alternative for quantitative analysis of environmental samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring lead‐free candidates and improving efficiency and stability remain the obstacle of hybrid organic‐inorganic perovskite‐based devices commercialization. Traditional trial‐and‐error methods seriously restrict the discovery especially for large search space, complex crystal structure and multi‐objective properties. Here, the authors propose a multi‐step and multi‐stage screening scheme to accelerate the discovery of hybrid organic‐inorganic perovskites A2BB′X6 from a large number of candidates through combining machine learning with high‐throughput calculations for pursuing excellent efficiency and thermal stability in solar cells. Followed by a series of screenings, the structure‐property relationships mapping A2BB′X6 properties are built and the predictions are close to reported experimental results. Successfully, four experimental‐feasibly candidates with good stability, high Debye temperature and suitable band gap are screened out and further verified by density‐functional theory calculations, in which the predicted efficiency for three lead‐free candidates ((CH3NH3)2AgGaBr6, (CH3NH3)2AgInBr6 and (C2NH6)2AgInBr6) achieves 20.6%, 19.9% and 27.6% due to ultrabroadband absorption region ranging from UVC to IRC with excitonic radiative combination rates as low as 10 ps, large or intermediate polarons form with properties similar to CH3NH3PbI3 and the calculated thermal conductivities are 5.04, 4.39 and 5.16 Wm−1K−1, respectively, with Debye temperatures larger than 500 K, beneficial for suppression of both nonradiative combination and heat‐induced degradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring lead‐free candidates and improving efficiency and stability remain the obstacle of hybrid organic‐inorganic perovskite‐based devices commercialization. Traditional trial‐and‐error methods seriously restrict the discovery especially for large search space, complex crystal structure and multi‐objective properties. Here, the authors propose a multi‐step and multi‐stage screening scheme to accelerate the discovery of hybrid organic‐inorganic perovskites A2BB′X6 from a large number of candidates through combining machine learning with high‐throughput calculations for pursuing excellent efficiency and thermal stability in solar cells. Followed by a series of screenings, the structure‐property relationships mapping A2BB′X6 properties are built and the predictions are close to reported experimental results. Successfully, four experimental‐feasibly candidates with good stability, high Debye temperature and suitable band gap are screened out and further verified by density‐functional theory calculations, in which the predicted efficiency for three lead‐free candidates ((CH3NH3)2AgGaBr6, (CH3NH3)2AgInBr6 and (C2NH6)2AgInBr6) achieves 20.6%, 19.9% and 27.6% due to ultrabroadband absorption region ranging from UVC to IRC with excitonic radiative combination rates as low as 10 ps, large or intermediate polarons form with properties similar to CH3NH3PbI3 and the calculated thermal conductivities are 5.04, 4.39 and 5.16 Wm−1K−1, respectively, with Debye temperatures larger than 500 K, beneficial for suppression of both nonradiative combination and heat‐induced degradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Long non‐coding RNAs (lncRNAs) function through multiple tiers of molecular circuits and are vital to gamete maturation and early embryo development. However, in pig early embryos, identification and expression dynamics of lncRNAs remain less studied. Here, we systematically analysed the expression dynamics of lncRNAs based on our previously published single‐cell RNA‐seq data from pig mature oocytes (GSE160334), and single blastomeres biopsied from pig in vitro fertilized (IVF) and early parthenogenetically activated (PA) embryos (1‐ to 8‐cell stages; GSE164812). With the progression of embryo development, the total number of expressed lncRNAs gradually decreased and showed great variation at each developmental stage for both IVF and PA groups. Consecutive stage pairwise comparison of MII oocytes, 1‐cell zygotes, 2‐cell, 4‐cell and 8‐cell IVF embryos identified 151, 245, 1119 and 188 differentially expressed (DE) lncRNAs, including 119, 80, 867, 77 up‐regulated and 32, 165, 252, 111 down‐regulated, while 289, 437, 895 and 495 DE lncRNAs (141, 89, 768, 97 up‐regulated and 148, 348, 127, 398 down‐regulated) were identified in PA embryos at the same stages. The DE lncRNAs identified within IVF embryos were much different from that identified within PA embryos, showing embryo type‐specific manner. Further cross‐comparison between PA and IVF embryos identified 184, 656, 2502 and 266 DE lncRNAs for the 1‐ to 8‐cell embryo stages, respectively. Further GO and KEGG enrichment analysis of DE mRNAs targeted by DELs indicated that different signalling pathways were involved in maternal‐only and bi‐parental embryo development. Collectively, comparative profiling of lncRNA expression dynamics between pig IVF and PA embryos provides a valuable resource, to investigate further regulatory mechanisms of lncRNAs associated with ZGA and maternal RNA decay during early embryo development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 52-year-old woman presented with erythema, papules, pain, and itching on the buttocks and trunk that had persisted for 1 week. Twenty-two days before admission, the patient received three intramuscular injections of vitamin K1 in the gluteal muscles. Two weeks after the last intramuscular injection edematous hard erythema developed bilaterally on the gluteal muscles, accompanied by itching, pain, and a burning sensation. Afterward, the erythema and papules gradually spread to the trunk, with notable itching. Dermatological examination revealed a large area of well-defined edematous hard erythema, and blisters around the injection sites on both hips. The skin temperature was high, with mild tenderness. Dense distributions of edematous erythema and papules were observed on the trunk, some of which were fused into pieces. The patient received a diagnosis of a skin reaction induced by intramuscular injections of vitamin K1. Therefore, she was administered glycyrrhizin, calcium, vitamin C, antihistamines, topical polysulfonic mucopolysaccharide cream, and glucocorticoid cream, and the lesions subsided after 2 weeks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: With the rapid development of synthetic biology in recent years, particular attention has been paid to RNA devices, especially riboswitches, because of their significant and diverse regulatory roles in prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. Due to the limited performance and context‐dependence of riboswitches, only a few of them (such as theophylline, tetracycline and ciprofloxacin riboswitches) have been utilized as regulatory tools in biotechnology. In the present study, we demonstrated that a ribosome‐dependent ribo‐regulator, LRR, discovered in our previous work, exhibits an attractive regulatory performance. Specifically, it offers a 60‐fold change in expression in the presence of retapamulin and a low level of leaky expression of about 1–2% without antibiotics. Moreover, LRR can be combined with different promoters and performs well in Bacillus thuringiensis, B. cereus, B. amyloliquefaciens, and B. subtilis. Additionally, LRR also functions in the Gram‐negative bacterium Escherichia coli. Furthermore, we demonstrate its ability to control melanin metabolism in B. thuringiensis BMB171. Our results show that LRR can be applied to regulate gene expression, construct genetic circuits and tune metabolic pathways, and has great potential for many applications in synthetic biology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sertoli cells, important constituents of the somatic niche, supports the growth and development of spermatogonia. Heat stress (HS), among multiple intrinsic and external factors, can induce physiological and biochemical changes in Sertoli cells. However, the underlying molecular mechanism remains largely unclear. Here, we showed that acute heat stress (43 °C, 0.5 h) could reduce cell viability, promote apoptosis, and increase the lactate production of porcine immature Sertoli cells (iSCs) cultured in vitro. Then, transcriptome sequencing identified 126 immediately and 3372 prolonged responded differentially expressed genes (DEGs) after acute heat stress (43 °C, 0.5 h) (HS0.5), and 36 h recovery culture following heat stress (HS0.5-R36), respectively. Enrichment analyses found different signaling pathways: immediate changes including cell response to heat, regulation of cellular response to stress, heat shock protein binding, chaperon-mediated protein folding, and sterol biosynthetic process, but prolonged changes mainly involving cell cycle, regulation of apoptotic process/cell proliferation, reproductive process, P53, PI3K-Akt and Glycolysis/Gluconeogenesis. Furthermore, transcriptional patterns of 9 DEGs (Dnajb1, Traf6, Insig1, Gadd45g, Hdac6, Fkbp4, Serpine1, Pfkp and Galm), and 6 heat shock proteins (HSPs) (Hspa6, Hspb1, Hspd1, HSP90aa1, HSP90ab1 and Hsph1) were validated, as well as the protein pattern of HSP90AA1 via immunostaining and western blot. Taken together, heat stress could initiate immediate changes of heat shock-related genes, and reprogram transcriptome and signaling pathways affecting the viability, apoptosis and metabolite production of pig iSCs. • Acute heat stress (HS) on porcine iSCs could reduce cell viability, promote apoptosis and increase lactate production. • HS could initiate immediate changes of heat shock-related genes. • Prolonged response to HS involved pathways of cell cycle, apoptosis, reproductive process and Glycolysis/Gluconeogenesis. • Validation experiment confirmed the consistent expression pattern of selected DE mRNAs and HSPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heavy metal pollution not only decreases crop yield and quality, but also affects human health via the food chain. Ubiquitination‐dependent protein degradation is involved in plant growth, development, and environmental interaction, but the functions of ubiquitin‐ligase (E3) genes are largely unknown in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.). Here, we functionally characterized a RING E3 ligase gene, SlRING1, which positively regulates cadmium (Cd) tolerance in tomato plants. An in vitro ubiquitination experiment shows that SlRING1 has E3 ubiquitin ligase activity. The determination of the subcellular localization reveals that SlRING1 is localized at both the plasma membrane and the nucleus. Overexpression of SlRING1 in tomato increased the chlorophyll content, the net photosynthetic rate, and the maximal photochemical efficiency of photosystem II (Fv/Fm), but reduced the levels of reactive oxygen species and relative electrolyte leakage under Cd stress. Moreover, SlRING1 overexpression increased the transcript levels of CATALASE (CAT), DEHYDROASCORBATE REDUCTASE (DHAR), MONODEHYDROASCORBATE REDUCTASE (MDHAR), GLUTATHIONE (GSH1), and PHYTOCHELATIN SYNTHASE (PCS), which contribute to the antioxidant and detoxification system. Crucially, SlRING1 overexpression also reduced the concentrations of Cd in both shoots and roots. Thus, SlRING1‐overexpression‐induced enhanced tolerance to Cd is ascribed to reduced Cd accumulation and alleviated oxidative stress. Our findings suggest that SlRING1 is a positive regulator of Cd tolerance, which can be a potential breeding target for improving heavy metal tolerance in horticultural crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To explore the main active components and effects of cell cycle regulation mechanism of Astragali radix (AR) and Angelicae sinensis radix (ASR) on oxidative damage in vascular endothelial cells, a model of oxidative damage in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) induced by oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) treatment was developed. Based on the "knock-out/knock-in" model of the target component, cell viability, intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) leakage were assessed by Cell Counting Kit-8 assay, fluorescent probe 2,7-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate (DCFH-DA), and colorimetric assay, respectively, to evaluate the protective effect of the active components of AR and ASR (astragaloside IV (AS IV), astragaloside I (AS I), formononetin (FRM), calycosin (CAL), calycosin-7-O-β-D glucoside (CLG), and ferulic acid (FRA)) against oxidative damage. The cell cycle and expression of genes encoding cyclins and cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) were observed using flow cytometry and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. The results showed that the combination of active components (ACC) significantly inhibited the decrease in cell viability as well as the increase in ROS and LDH release in HUVECs induced by ox-LDL treatment. AS IV and FRM promoted the proliferation of HUVECs but the proliferation index was decreased in the AS I and FRA groups; this inhibitory effect was counteracted by the ACC. The ACC reduced and increased the proportion of positive cells in G1 and S phases, respectively, followed by the upregulation of cyclin A (CCNA), cyclin E (CCNE), and CDK2 mRNA expression and downregulation of cyclin B (CCNB), cyclin D1 (CCND1), CDK1, CDK4, and CDK6 mRNA expression, which significantly mitigated inhibition of HUVECs proliferation induced by ox-LDL treatment. Taken together, AS IV, AS I, FRM, CAL, CLG, and FRA were the primary pharmacodynamic substances of AR and ASR that alleviated oxidative injury in HUVECs. ACC mitigated the upregulation of intracellular ROS levels and LDH release induced by ox-LDL treatment, which promoted the cell cycle procession of HUVECs by regulating the expression of genes encoding cyclins and CDKs and thus preventing oxidative damage in HUVECs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) is still attracting public attention because of its outbreak in various cities in China. Predicting future outbreaks or epidemics disease based on past incidence data can help health departments take targeted measures to prevent diseases in advance. In this study, we propose a multistep prediction strategy based on extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) for HFRS as an extension of the one-step prediction model. Moreover, the fitting and prediction accuracy of the XGBoost model will be compared with the autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model by different evaluation indicators.Methods: We collected HFRS incidence data from 2004 to 2018 of mainland China. The data from 2004 to 2017 were divided into training sets to establish the seasonal ARIMA model and XGBoost model, while the 2018 data were used to test the prediction performance. In the multistep XGBoost forecasting model, one-hot encoding was used to handle seasonal features. Furthermore, a series of evaluation indices were performed to evaluate the accuracy of the multistep forecast XGBoost model.Results: There were 200,237 HFRS cases in China from 2004 to 2018. A long-term downward trend and bimodal seasonality were identified in the original time series. According to the minimum corrected akaike information criterion (CAIC) value, the optimal ARIMA (3, 1, 0) × (1, 1, 0)12 model is selected. The index ME, RMSE, MAE, MPE, MAPE, and MASE indices of the XGBoost model were higher than those of the ARIMA model in the fitting part, whereas the RMSE of the XGBoost model was lower. The prediction performance evaluation indicators (MAE, MPE, MAPE, RMSE and MASE) of the one-step prediction and multistep prediction XGBoost model were all notably lower than those of the ARIMA model.Conclusions: The multistep XGBoost prediction model showed a much better prediction accuracy and model stability than the multistep ARIMA prediction model. The XGBoost model performed better in predicting complicated and nonlinear data like HFRS. Additionally, Multistep prediction models are more practical than one-step prediction models in forecasting infectious diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To establish optimal gestational weight gain (GWG) in Chinese pregnant women by Chinese-specific BMI categories and compare the new recommendations with the Institute of Medicine (IOM) 2009 guidelines.Design: Multicentre, prospective cohort study. Unconditional logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the OR, 95 % CI and the predicted probabilities of adverse pregnancy outcomes. The optimal GWG range was defined as the range that did not exceed a 1 % increase from the lowest predicted probability in each pre-pregnancy BMI group.Setting: From nine cities in mainland China.Participants: A total of 3731 women with singleton pregnancy were recruited from April 2013 to December 2014.Results: The optimal GWG (ranges) by Chinese-specific BMI was 15·0 (12·8-17·1), 14·2 (12·1-16·4) and 12·6 (10·4-14·9) kg for underweight, normal weight and overweight pregnant women, respectively. Inappropriate GWG was associated with several adverse pregnancy outcomes. Compared with women gaining weight within our proposed recommendations, women with excessive GWG had higher risk for macrosomia, large for gestational age and caesarean section, whereas those with inadequate GWG had higher risk for low birth weight, small for gestational age and preterm delivery. The comparison between our proposed recommendations and IOM 2009 guidelines showed that our recommendations were comparable with the IOM 2009 guidelines and could well predict the risk of several adverse pregnancy outcomes.Conclusions: Inappropriate GWG was associated with higher risk of several adverse pregnancy outcomes. Optimal GWG recommendations proposed in the present study could be applied to Chinese pregnant women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diabetic hearts are vulnerable to myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury (IRI), but are insensitive to sevoflurane postconditioning (SPC), activating peroxiredoxins that confer cardioprotection. Previous studies have demonstrated that hydrogen sulfide (H2S) can suppress oxidative stress of diabetic rats through increasing the expression of silent information regulator factor 2‐related enzyme 1 (SIRT1), but whether cardioprotection by SPC can be restored afterward remains unclear. Diabetic rat was subjected to IRI (30 min of ischemia followed by 120 min reperfusion). Postconditioning treatment with sevoflurane was administered for 15 min upon the onset of reperfusion. The diabetic rats were treated with GYY4137 (H2S donor) 5 days before the experiment. Myocardial infarct size, mitochondrial structure and function, ATP content, activities of complex I‐IV, marker of oxidative stress, SIRT1, nuclear factor E2‐related factor 2 (Nrf2), heme oxygenase‐1 (HO‐1), and NADPH Oxidase‐2 (Nox‐2) protein expression were detected after reperfusion, and cardiac function was evaluated by echocardiography at 24 h after reperfusion. After H2S activated SIRT1 in the impaired myocardium of diabetic rats, SPC significantly upregulated the expression of Nrf2 and its downstream mediator HO‐1, thus reduced the expression of Nox‐2. In addition, H2S remarkably increased cytoplasmic and nuclear SIRT1 which was further enhanced by SPC. Furthermore, H2S combined with SPC reduced the production of reactive oxygen species, increased the content of ATP, and maintained mitochondrial enzyme activity. Finally, myocardial infarct size and myocardium damage were decreased, and cardiac function was improved. Taken together, our study proved that H2S could restore SPC‐induced cardioprotection in diabetic rats by enhancing and promoting SIRT1/Nrf2 signaling pathway mediated mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The tp0548 gene, hypothesized to encode for an outer-membrane protein, was originally used in the enhanced Centers for Disease Control and Prevention typing for molecular typing of Treponema pallidum. It plays an important role in the molecular epidemiology of Treponema because it is not only an important locus of multiple typing approaches but also suitable for strain typing of multiple Treponema subspecies.Methods: A 27-year-old Chinese man attended the Institute of Dermatology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Sexually Transmitted Disease Clinic in Nanjing, China, because of a genital ulcer and inguinal lymphadenopathy for 1 week. Workup consisted of microbiological and hematological investigations, and sequences analysis. The aims of this study were to describe a novel tp0548 sequence type "Qn" of this syphilis strain and to review all previously reported novel tp0548 genotypes.Results: We identified a novel tp0548 gene type in a genital ulcer in a patient with primary syphilis in Nanjing, China. Using sequence alignment, we further found that this novel sequence was closely similar to "Q." Following the nomenclature used in the enhanced Centers for Disease Control and Prevention typing methodology, the letters "Qn" was assigned to the new sequence type.Conclusion: The novel tp0548 sequence type of T. pallidum not only expands the database up to 27 different sequence types but also indicates the substantial genetic diversity of the tp0548 gene sequence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was initially identified in China and currently worldwide dispersed, resulting in the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Notably, COVID-19 is characterized by systemic inflammation. However, the potential mechanisms of the "cytokine storm" of COVID-19 are still limited. In this study, fourteen peripheral blood samples from COVID-19 patients (n = 10) and healthy donors (n = 4) were collected to perform the whole-transcriptome sequencing. Lung tissues of COVID-19 patients (70%) presenting with ground-glass opacity. Also, the leukocytes and lymphocytes were significantly decreased in COVID-19 compared with the control group (p < 0.05). In total, 25,482 differentially expressed messenger RNAs (DE mRNA), 23 differentially expressed microRNAs (DE miRNA), and 410 differentially expressed long noncoding RNAs (DE lncRNAs) were identified in the COVID-19 samples compared to the healthy controls. Gene Ontology (GO) analysis showed that the upregulated DE mRNAs were mainly involved in antigen processing and presentation of endogenous antigen, positive regulation of T cell mediated cytotoxicity, and positive regulation of gamma-delta T cell activation. The downregulated DE mRNAs were mainly concentrated in the glycogen biosynthetic process. We also established the protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks of up/downregulated DE mRNAs and identified 4 modules. Functional enrichment analyses indicated that these module targets were associated with positive regulation of cytokine production, cytokine-mediated signaling pathway, leukocyte differentiation, and migration. A total of 6 hub genes were selected in the PPI module networks including AKT1, TNFRSF1B, FCGR2A, CXCL8, STAT3, and TLR2. Moreover, a competing endogenous RNA network showed the interactions between lncRNAs, mRNAs, and miRNAs. Our results highlight the potential pathogenesis of excessive cytokine production such as MSTRG.119845.30/hsa-miR-20a-5p/TNFRSF1B, MSTRG.119845.30/hsa-miR-29b-2-5p/FCGR2A, and MSTRG.106112.2/hsa-miR-6501-5p/STAT3 axis, which may also play an important role in the development of ground-glass opacity in COVID-19 patients. This study gives new insights into inflammation regulatory mechanisms of coding and noncoding RNAs in COVID-19, which may provide novel diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic avenues for COVID-19 patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The faithful execution of molecular programme underlying oocyte maturation and meiosis is vital to generate competent haploid gametes for efficient mammalian reproduction. However, the organization and principle of molecular circuits and modules for oocyte meiosis remain obscure. Here, we employed the recently developed single‐cell RNA‐seq technique to profile the transcriptomes of germinal vesicle (GV) and metaphase II (MII) oocytes, aiming to discover the dynamic changes of mRNAs and long non‐coding RNAs (lncRNAs) during oocyte in vitro meiotic maturation. During the transition from GV to MII, total number of detected RNAs (mRNAs and lncRNAs) in oocytes decreased. Moreover, 1,807 (602 up‐ and 1,205 down‐regulated) mRNAs and 313 (177 up‐ and 136 down‐regulated) lncRNAs were significantly differentially expressed (DE), i.e., more mRNAs down‐regulated, but more lncRNAs up‐regulated. During maturation of pig oocytes, mitochondrial mRNAs were actively transcribed, eight of which (ND6, ND5, CYTB, ND1, ND2, COX1, COX2 and COX3) were significantly up‐regulated. Both DE mRNAs and targets of DE lncRNAs were enriched in multiple biological and signal pathways potentially associated with oocyte meiosis. Highly abundantly expressed mRNAs (including DNMT1, UHRF2, PCNA, ARMC1, BTG4, ASNS and SEP11) and lncRNAs were also discovered. Weighted gene co‐expression network analysis (WGCNA) revealed 20 hub mRNAs in three modules to be important for oocyte meiosis and maturation. Taken together, our findings provide insights and resources for further functional investigation of mRNAs/lncRNAs in in vitro meiotic maturation of pig oocytes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Designing porous materials with low density and high specific surface area is one of the strategies to obtain excellent wave absorbing properties. In this study, the carbon-coated porous X-shaped Fe 3 O 4 composites used as microwave absorption materials were prepared by heat treatment of FeOOH@Polydopamine (PDA) core-shell precursors. It revealed that the X-shaped Fe 3 O 4 core showed improved magnetic loss in GHz band due to its special shape anisotropy and large specific surface area. In addition, the modification of carbon enabled the Fe 3 O 4 absorbers to have stronger polarization and higher electrical conductivity. The composites exhibited great freedom in performance tunability, allowing for strong absorption (RL<−40 dB) at different frequencies. For composites with thick carbon shell, the reflection loss reached the optimal value of − 64.92 dB at 15.04 GHz at the thickness of 1.75 mm, and the effective bandwidth was up to 4.64 GHz (13.04–17.68 GHz). The impressive performance of the as-prepared Fe 3 O 4 @C core-shell composites was mainly attributed to the complementary behaviors of strong dielectric loss and magnetic loss. [Display omitted] • The porous X-shaped Fe 3 O 4 @C with different carbon contents have been fabricated by pyrolysis of the precursor FeOOH@PDA. • The electromagnetic wave absorption performance can be regulated effectively by modulating the carbon content. • The carbon layer can protect the core from oxidation and enhance dielectric relaxation and conductivity of the material. • The porous X-shaped Fe 3 O 4 core has improved magnetic loss in GHz band due to its special shape anisotropy. • The impressive performance of Fe 3 O 4 @C composites are attributed to the strong dielectric loss and magnetic loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]