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To study the effect and mechanism of Schistosoma japonicum soluble egg antigen (SEA) on protecting against type 1 diabetes, 4-week-old female BALB/c and NOD mice were divided randomly into four groups: BALB/c control, BALB/c treated with SEA, NOD control, and NOD treated with SEA. Treated mice were injected intraperitoneally with 50 μg of SEA twice a week for 6 weeks, and control mice received the same volume of phosphate-buffered saline. Blood glucose in all mice was determined weekly from 8 weeks of age. Flow cytometry was used to detect the percentages of regulatory T cells of splenocytes in each group. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays were used to detect the levels of interferon-γ, interleukin (IL)-2, IL-4, and IL-5 in splenic cell culture supernatants. Compared with those of the NOD group, the blood glucose level and percentage incidence of diabetes in NOD mice treated with SEA decreased significantly. This indicated that SEA treatment prevented spontaneous type 1 diabetes. After SEA administration, the frequency of splenic regulatory T cells increased significantly, and the secretion of IL-4 and IL-5 by splenic cells increased. These results demonstrated that SEA can prevent type 1 diabetes by enhancing regulatory T cells and the T helper 2 cell immune response in NOD mice.

We appreciate the thoughtful comments of H-J. Yang and co-workers in their correspondence addressing the predictors of mortality for patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Their comments are very helpful to improve the expression and increase the quality of our paper [1]., Author response to the correspondence regarding “Predictors of mortality for patients with COVID-19 pneumonia caused by SARS-CoV-2: a prospective cohort study” https://bit.ly/31X8cal

Background: The epidemic outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 infective pneumonia still remains a clinical challenge in China A full understanding of the clinical characteri

The aim of this study was to identify factors associated with the death of patients with COVID-19 pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2.All clinical and laboratory parameters were collected prospectively from a cohort of patients with COVID-19 pneumonia who were hospitalised to Wuhan Pulmonary Hospital (Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China) between 25 December 2019 and 7 February 2020. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression was performed to investigate the relationship between each variable and the risk of death of COVID-19 pneumonia patients.In total, 179 patients with COVID-19 pneumonia (97 male and 82 female) were included in the present prospective study, of whom 21 died. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that age ≥65 years (OR 3.765, 95% CI 1.146‒17.394; p=0.023), pre-existing concurrent cardiovascular or cerebrovascular diseases (OR 2.464, 95% CI 0.755‒8.044; p=0.007), CD3+CD8+ T-cells ≤75 cells·μL−1 (OR 3.982, 95% CI 1.132‒14.006; p−1 (OR 4.077, 95% CI 1.166‒14.253; p+CD8+ T-cells ≤75 cells·μL−1 and cardiac troponin I ≥0.05 ng·mL−1 remained as predictors for high mortality from COVID-19 pneumonia.We identified four risk factors: age ≥65 years, pre-existing concurrent cardiovascular or cerebrovascular diseases, CD3+CD8+ T-cells ≤75 cells·μL−1 and cardiac troponin I ≥0.05 ng·mL−1. The latter two factors, especially, were predictors for mortality of COVID-19 pneumonia patients.

Background: Postoperative sore throat is one of the most common complications associated with endotracheal intubation. It has been reported that intra-cuff application of lidocaine could reduce its incidence and severity. In the present study, we would like to investigate the safety and efficacy of intra-cuff use of tetracaine, one of the most commonly used topical anesthetic, on prevention of postoperative sore throat.Methods: Female patients (age from 18-60) undergoing gynecological surgery under general anesthesia were included. Assigned randomly, the patients received one of the following cuff inflation media: air, 0.9% saline, 2% lidocaine or 1% tetracaine (N=25 in each group). The cuff was inflated with minimal occlusive volume technique. Intra-cuff pressure was measured with a manometer. The primary outcome was the severity of postoperative sore throat, assessed by visual analogue scale (VAS) at 6 hours after extubation. The secondary outcomes included the incidences of complications during emergence of anesthesia and extubation, such as tube intolerance, coughing, restlessness, hoarseness, and laryngospasm, as well as the VAS scores for sore throat at 24 and 48 hours after extubation. The safety and efficacy were further tested by pathological examination of tracheal mucosa after 4-hour intubation in animal study and measurement of diffused anesthetic via the cuff wall in in vitro study, respectively. Results: There was no difference in volume of inflation medium, or intra-cuff pressure between groups. Tetracaine significantly reduced the severity of postoperative sore throat during the 48-hour postoperative observation period, compared with lidocaine (P

A strong anodic electrochemiluminescence of dissolved oxygen with 2-(dibutylamino) ethanol is observed and investigated in aqueous solution for the first time. Benefiting from its strong anodic electrochemiluminescence emission, an oxygen-responsive electrochemiluminescence system is developed to detect glucose oxidase.

The antiinflammatory effects of the copper-aspirin complex (Cu-Asp) were more potent than that of Asp in rats or mice with fewer classic adverse effects. The aim of this study was to determine the cause by evaluating Cu-Asp selective inhibition on cyclooxygenases (COX). COX-1 inhibition was evaluated based on 6-keto-prostaglandin F(1alpha) (6-keto-PGF(1alpha)) in an endothelial cell model, and COX-2 inhibition was based on prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) in a macrophage model. Radioimmunoassay (RIA) was applied to determine 6-keto-PGF(1alpha) in resting human umbilical vein endothelial cell line (ECV304), and PGE(2) in activated macrophages. The results showed that the inhibition of 6-keto-PGF(1alpha) yield by Cu-Asp (3 to 0.01 mM) was markedly weaker than that by aspirin (Asp); while the inhibition of PGE(2) yield by Cu-Asp (10 to 0.1 mM) was significantly stronger than that by Asp. Based on the inhibition on 6-keto-PGF(1alpha) and PGE(2), the medium inhibitory concentration (IC(50)) of Cu-Asp on COX-1 and on COX-2 was 1.03+/-0.15 mM, and 0.32+/-0.04 mM, respectively. The selective inhibition index on COX-2, IC(50) (COX-1)/IC(50) (COX-2), of Cu-Asp was 3.33+/-0.89, while that of Asp was 0.42+/-0.12. The results suggest that, unlike Asp, Cu-Asp is a relatively selective inhibitor of COX-2 in the present models; the selectivity of Cu-Asp is about seven-fold greater than that of Asp.

Laponite/graphene composite (Lap/G) was prepared by directly exfoliating graphite with Laponite under mechanical grinding. The morphologies and intrinsic physical properties of Lap/G were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry, and differential pulse voltammetry were used to investigate the electrochemical behavior of Lap/G-modified electrodes. The resulting Lap/G composite exhibited good electroconductivity combined with electrocatalytic activity towards oxidation of small biomolecules such as dopamine. Furthermore, the resulting Lap/G-modified glassy carbon electrodes were applied for simultaneous determination of ascorbic acid, dopamine, and uric acid.

A simple method for the detection of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) was developed based on glutathione-stabilized gold nanoclusters (GSH-AuNCs) and poly(diallyldimethylammonium)chloride (PDDA) enhanced fluorescent system. Fluorescent Au NCs were synthesized by a one-step approach employing GSH as reducing/protecting reagent. The electrostatic group repulsions between GSH-Au NCs and PDDA resulted in strong fluorescence enhancement from the GSH-Au NCs. Moreover, the addition of SDS was able to cause a significant fluorescence recovery due to the strong affinity of PDDA and SDS. Thus the SDS can be detected. Under optimized conditions, the linear response to detect SDS ranges from 0.2 to 12 µg mL(-1) with a detection limit of 0.02 µg mL(-1).

This work presents the enhanced electrochemiluminescence (ECL) of a newly prepared nanosilver-carbon nanodot (Ag-C-dot) composite and its application for the sensitive detection of sulfide (S(2-)) ions. The Ag-C-dot composite was easily prepared by adding silver nitrate into C-dot colloids through an alkaline reduction. The obtained Ag-C-dots were characterized by UV-vis spectra, fluorescence spectra and transmission electron microscopy. The electrochemical and ECL behaviors of the Ag-C-dot composite were investigated by cyclic voltammetry. Moreover, a simple label-free method to detect S(2-) ions with a high selectivity and sensitivity has been developed based on the ECL of the Ag-C-dot composite in aqueous media. The sensing mechanism could be due to the strong and specific interaction between the S(2-) ions and the Ag atoms/ions on the surface of the Ag-C-dot composite, which dramatically affects the resulting ECL of the Ag-C-dot composite. The linear response to detect S(2-) ions ranges from 0.05 to 100 μM with a detection limit of 0.027 μM (~1 ppb). This work indicates that the Ag-C-dot nanocomposite possesses potential applications for environment sensing.

Based on the principle of fluorescence quenching, by the interaction between S2− ions and the Ag atoms/ions on the surface of the core–shell Au@Ag NCs, we propose a simple label-free method for the detection of S2− ions with high selectivity and sensitivity by using fluorescent core–shell Au@Ag NCs in aqueous media.