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Depression is a seriously disabling psychiatric disorder with a significant burden of disease. Metabolic abnormalities have been widely reported in depressed patients and animal models. However, there are few systematic efforts that integrate meaningful biological insights from these studies. Herein, available metabolic knowledge in the context of depression was integrated to provide a systematic and panoramic view of metabolic characterization. After screening more than 10 000 citations from five electronic literature databases and five metabolomics databases, we manually curated 5675 metabolite entries from 464 studies, including human, rat, mouse and non-human primate, to develop a new metabolite-disease association database, called MENDA (http://menda.cqmu.edu.cn:8080/index.php). The standardized data extraction process was used for data collection, a multi-faceted annotation scheme was developed, and a user-friendly search engine and web interface were integrated for database access. To facilitate data analysis and interpretation based on MENDA, we also proposed a systematic analytical framework, including data integration and biological function analysis. Case studies were provided that identified the consistently altered metabolites using the vote-counting method, and that captured the underlying molecular mechanism using pathway and network analyses. Collectively, we provided a comprehensive curation of metabolic characterization in depression. Our model of a specific psychiatry disorder may be replicated to study other complex diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Widespread contamination of agricultural soil with Cd and As has resulted in substantial transfer and accumulation of these toxicants in rice grains. In the present study, we investigated the effects of chicken manure application on Cd and As concentrations and As speciation in the rice grains grown under different water conditions by pot experiment. Under aerobic condition, the application of chicken manure increased soil pH and soil Eh during most of the growth period of rice. Consequently, the application of chicken manure has little effect on total Cd, slightly decreased total As and inorganic As of rice grains when applied at rate of 2.0%. Under intermittent irrigation condition, the application of chicken manure increased soil pH and decreased soil Eh during most of the growth period of rice. Thus, chicken manure decreased total Cd, As, and inorganic As of rice grains. Besides, there was increased reduction of Cd and As with increase in the amount of chicken manure applied. Under flooded condition, the application of chicken manure increased soil pH before heading but decreased soil pH after heading. The application of chicken manure dramatically decreased total and inorganic As in rice grains, and slightly decreased Cd of rice grains. There was increased reduction of total As concentration with the increase in the amount of chicken manure applied. Meanwhile, the inorganic As concentration was the lowest when the concentration of chicken manure was 1.0%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Vascular endothelial (VE)-cadherin-mediated adherens junction is critical to maintain endothelial integrity. Besides its role of homophilic intercellular adhesion, VE-cadherin also has a role of outside-in signaling with functional consequences for vascular physiology. However, the nature of these signals remains not completely understood. Materials and methods: Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were used in cell culture experiments. Confluent HUVECs were treated with VE-cadherin function-blocking antibodies BV9 (50 μg/ml) or IgG control. Antibody array was used to screen for cytokine/chemokine in supernatant. For VE-cadherin knockdown, siRNA transfection was used. ELISA, Western blot, and qRT-PCR were used to confirm the expression of screened cytokine/chemokine. To explore the possible mechanisms, Scr phosphorylation was detected and Scr inhibitor PP2 (1 μM) was used. To investigate in vivo relevance of the findings, BV9 and the indicated neutralizing antibodies were injected into mice and then lung vascular leak and inflammation were examined by Evans blue assay and lung tissue H&E, respectively. Results: Using a non-biased, high-throughout human cytokine/chemokine antibody array, we first found that disruption of VE-cadherin-mediated adhesion by function-blocking antibody BV9 triggered the release of migration inhibitory factor (MIF). This VE-cadherin-mediated release of MIF further confirmed by ELISA with both VE-cadherin blocking antibody and siRNA technique was due to enhanced expression of MIF mRNA, which was mediated by Src kinase activation. In addition, in vivo lung vascular leak induced by VE-cadherin function-blocking antibody was partly alleviated by neutralizing MIF. Conclusions: VE-cadherin regulates MIF synthesis and release via Src kinase. Our data provide additional evidence to the concept that VE-cadherin transfers intracellular signals to coordinate the state of cell–cell adhesion with gene expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Landfill leachate is generally transferred to in situ facilities for advanced treatment by using a pipe system. Because of its harmful and complex compounds, leachate may react with pipe materials, leading to corrosion and scaling. This experimental study uses typical PVC pipe material and investigates its anti-corrosion performance by placing the material samples into different aged leachates. By evaluating the changes in different experimental parameters, including calcium, magnesium, and chloride ion concentration, oxidation-reduction potential, dissolved oxygen, and pH, combined with a characterization of the material properties, we infer the main causes of pipe scaling-corrosion. Results show that the scaling is more intense in the younger leachate, and the concentration of calcium ions is the dominant influencing factor. The scaling might be resulted from joint actions of chemical precipitation and microbial metabolic activities. It is expected the study to provide useful insights into taking effective actions on anti-clogging, and enhance pipes design by selection of appropriate materials for future modification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Endothelial cells play an important role in health and a variety of diseases. Recent evidences show that endothelial cells rely on glycolysis rather than on oxidative phosphorylation to generate energy to support cellular functions such as angiogenesis. However, the effect of endothelial glycolysis on vascular inflammation remains little known. Here, we investigate the role of key glycolytic enzyme PFKFB3 in tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α)-induced endothelial proinflammatory responses. siRNAs were used to knockdown the expression of PFKFB3. In some experiments, PFKFB3 inhibitors were also used. TNF-α at 20 ng/ml was added to confluent endothelial cells for different time period of stimulation. PFKFB3 expression was examined by RT-PCR and western blotting. Cytokine antibody panel membranes were employed to detect different cytokines/chemokines in culture supernatant of endothelial cells. The determination of monocyte adhesion to endothelial cells after TNF-α treatment was conducted using THP-1 cells. The monocyte attraction was performed using Transwell filters. For further mechanisms, NF-κB-p65 localization was examined by immunofluorescence. Expression of total IκB, phospho-IκB, phospho-NF-κB-p65, and Ikkβ was detected by western blotting. DNA-binding activity of NF-κB was assessed using electrophoretic mobility shift assay. We found that TNF-α increased endothelial PFKFB3 expression. Knockdown of PFKFB3 almost blocked all TNF-α-induced release of the proinflammatory cytokines/chemokines (MCP-1, IL-8, CXCL1, GMCSF, RANTES, TNF-α) and ICAM-1. PFKFB3 knockdown also significantly inhibited TNF-α-induced monocyte adhesion and transmigration. Furthermore, inhibition of PFKFB3 inhibited TNF-α-induced Ikkβ phosphorylation, IκBα phosphorylation and degradation, NF-κB-p65 phosphorylation, nuclear translocation, and DNA-binding activity. Thus, our results demonstrate that glycolytic enzyme PFKFB3 plays a critical role in TNF-α-induced endothelial inflammation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Natural sepiolite (SP) has proven effective on the in-situ immobilization remediation of Cd-contaminated soils. But the practical remediation effect may largely influenced by water management and the application of organic manure. The effects of chicken manure (CM) on SP-amended soils were investigated under normal and saturated water conditions using a pot experiment with Brassica campestris L.Materials and methods: Cd-contaminated paddy soils were amended with CM, SP, and CM + SP with no amendment as control. The amount of sepiolite was 0.5% (w/w, the same below) either in SP or CM + SP amended soils, while the amount of CM was 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0% in CM and CM + SP-amended soils. The plant metal contents, fresh weight, and soluble sugar content of plant edible parts were measured on harvest. Soil Cd was extracted by diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) and HCl to estimate the mobility of heavy metal. Soil pH and dissolved organic matter (DOM) of rhizosphere soil were determined. The electronegative charges of soils were also measured using the zeta potential.Results and discussion: The application of CM and increasing soil moisture on SP-amended soil increased plant growth to a greater extent than the application of SP alone. The application of CM along with the increase of soil moisture decreased Cd uptake and translocation in plants grown on SP-amended soil compared to the application of SP alone. Cd content of edible plant parts reached a minimum of 0.24 mg kg−1 with the application of 2.0% CM on SP-amended soils under water-saturated conditions, which was approximately 50% lower than the Cd concentration found when applying SP alone.Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that the application of sepiolite on Cd contaminated soil can effectively reduce Cd uptake by B. campestris L., and the addition of CM combined with effective water management also appears to further reduce Cd absorption and accumulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The in-situ immobilization effect of sepiolite and biochar on the compound pollution of cadmium (Cd) and atrazine in acid red soil of south China was studied. Results showed that in a certain concentration range, sepiolite and biochar can improve the germination rate, ensure normal growth and increase biomass of pakchoi, reduce the content of Cd in edible parts of pakchoi in different degrees and meet international standards, and restrain absorption of atrazine in pakchoi completely. Sepiolite was more effective than biochar for the immobilization of Cd, while biochar was more effective than sepiolite for the immobilization of atrazine. Combined application of sepiolite and biochar in soil contaminated by Cd and atrazine was better than individual applications of sepiolite or biochar. The remediation method applied in this research can effectively repair the acid red soil with combined pollution of Cd and atrazine in south China, while also providing ideas for in-situ remediation of farmland soil with combined pollution of pesticides and metals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Selenium (Se) alleviates cadmium (Cd) accumulation in several plants. Nevertheless, it is still unclear why it has such effect. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the effects of Se on soil Cd bioavailability, and Cd accumulation in flooded rice plants, and to determine the mechanisms underlying these effects. Concentration of Cd and Se in different rice tissues was determined along Cd and Se concentrations in the soil solution and soil Cd fractions. Results showed that exogenous selenite and selenate treatments significantly increased rice grain Se by 4.25- and 2.39-fold and decreased Cd by 36.5% and 25.3% relative to control treatment, respectively. The addition of Se to Cd-contaminated soil significantly decreased total Cd concentration in the soil solution by 11.2-13.0%, increased soil pH by 0.06-0.32 units, and enhanced soil Cd immobilization in relation to control. Exogenous Se also reduced diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid-Cd, exchangeable, and residual Cd but increased the levels of Cd bound to carbonate and iron and manganese oxides. Thus, amending Cd-contaminated soil with Se may help decrease Cd content as well as increase Se levels in rice grain, as Se may mitigate Cd accumulation in rice plants by increasing soil pH, reducing Cd bioavailability, and inhibiting Cd translocation from roots to shoots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mono-2-ethylhexyl phthalic acid (MEHP) is the most toxic metabolite of plasticizer di-2-ethylhexyl phthalic acid (DEHP), and there is limited information available on the effects of MEHP on neurotoxicity. This study aims to examine the neurotoxicity of MEHP and preliminarily explore its potential molecular mechanisms. We found that MEHP impeded the growth of zebrafish embryos and the neurodevelopmental-related gene expression at environmentally relevant concentrations. MEHP exposure also induces oxidative stress response and brain cell apoptosis accompanied by a decrease in acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in zebrafish larvae. RNA-Seq and bioinformatics analysis showed that MEHP treatment altered the nervous system, neurogenic diseases, and visual perception pathways. The locomotor activity in dark-to-light cycles and phototaxis test confirmed the abnormal neural behavior of zebrafish larvae. Besides, the immune system has produced a large number of differentially expressed genes related to neural regulation. Inflammatory factor IL1β and IL-17 signaling pathways highly respond to MEHP, indicating that inflammation caused by immune system imbalance is a potential mechanism of MEHP-induced neurotoxicity. This study expands the understanding of the toxicity and molecular mechanisms of MEHP, providing a new perspective for in-depth neurotoxicity exploration of similar compounds. [Display omitted] • MEHP shows neurotoxicity to zebrafish at environmentally relevant concentrations. • MEHP has more serious neurotoxicity in zebrafish than DEHP at the same concentration. • MEHP induces brain cell apoptosis, the decrease of AChE activity, and neurobehavior change. • Inflammation caused by immune system disorders may mediate the neurotoxicity of MEHP. • MEHP has potential impacts on the visual nervous system of zebrafish. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A group of methods were developed for the determination of etofenprox, kresoxim-methyl, cyprodinil, azoxystrobin, and pyrimethanil residues in animal-derived food (milk, egg, pig liver, pig fat, pork, and chicken) by using QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe)-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). With acetonitrile as the extraction solvent, the samples were pretreated with the improved QuEChERS method including extraction, salting-out, and purification processes. Then, all the sample extracts were analyzed with GC/MS in selected-ion monitoring (SIM) mode and quantified by the external standard method using the matrix-matched standard method. Under electron ionization conditions, the analysis was carried out with a DB-5 MS capillary column (30 m × 0.25 mm, 0.25 μm) at a flow rate of 2.0 mL min−1. 163, 116, 224, 344, and 198 were selected as quantitative ion of etofenprox, kresoxim-methyl, cyprodinil, azoxystrobin, and pyrimethanil, respectively. Under the optimal conditions, the calibration curves showed good linearity in the range of 0.0002-5.0 mg L−1 for the five pesticides mentioned above, with correlation coefficients (R2) were more than 0.99. The average recoveries of the five pesticides spiked at three levels were 72.46-104.88%, with the RSDs (n = 5) of 0.70-11.26%. The LODs (S/N > 3) of five pesticides were 0.0002-0.02 mg L−1; the LOQs were 0.0002-0.01 mg kg−1 in milk, egg, pig liver, pig fat, pork, and chicken samples. Such methods showed the advantages of simplicity, rapidness, and sensitivity, and could meet the requirements for the determination of five pesticides residues in various animal derived foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We detected the mcr-1 gene in 21 (14.8%) Salmonella isolates from pigs at slaughter; 19 were serovar Typhimurium sequence type 34. The gene was located on IncHI2-like plasmids that also harbored IncF replicons and lacked a conjugative transfer region. These findings highlight the need to prevent further spread of colistin resistance in animals and humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Di-2-Ethylhexyl Phthalate (DEHP) is often used as an additive in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) to give plastics flexibility, which makes DEHP widely used in food packaging, daily necessities, medical equipment, and other products. However, due to the unstable combination of DEHP and polymer, it will migrate to the environment in the materials and eventually contact the human body. It has been recorded that low-dose DEHP will increase neurotoxicity in the nervous system, and the human health effects of DEHP have been paid attention to because of the extensive exposure to DEHP and its high absorption during brain development. In this study, we review the evidence that DEHP exposure is associated with neurodevelopmental abnormalities and neurological diseases based on human epidemiological and animal behavioral studies. Besides, we also summarized the oxidative damage, apoptosis, and signal transduction disorder related to neurobehavioral abnormalities and nerve injury, and described the potential mechanisms of neurotoxicity caused by DEHP. Overall, we found exposure to DEHP during the critical developmental period will increase the risk of neurobehavioral abnormalities, depression, and autism spectrum disorders. This effect is sex-specific and will continue to adulthood and even have an intergenerational effect. However, the research results on the sex-dependence of DEHP neurotoxicity are inconsistent, and there is a lack of systematic mechanisms research as theoretical support. Future investigations need to be carried out in a large-scale population and model organisms to produce more consistent and convincing results. And we emphasize the importance of mechanism research, which can enhance the understanding of the environmental and human health risks of DEHP exposure. [Display omitted] • DEHP is more likely to cause neurotoxicity to humans and animals in early life. • The neurotoxicity of DEHP has sex-specific, long-term, and transgenerational effects. • Oxidative stress and apoptosis are the main mechanisms to cause DEHP neurotoxicity. • DEHP can cause nerve cell abnormal enzyme activity and ion channel imbalance. • Nerve cell damage is one of the important reasons for DEHP neurotoxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]