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Objective. Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) are able to cross the blood-brain barrier, penetrate through the cell membrane, and accumulate in the cell nucleus, which purposefully allows their use in the health sciences as imaging probes and drug carriers in the cancer therapy. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of low doses of SWCNTs on the expression of microRNAs associated with the cell proliferation and the brain development in zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos.

BackgroundAs the most common chronic disease, hypertension is an important high-risk factor for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases and vascular events. Previous studies have found that acupuncture has the effect of lowering blood pressure, but there is currently a lack of real-world research evidence for acupuncture to lower blood pressure.ObjectiveTo evaluate the blood pressure control effect of Huoxue Sanfeng acupuncture on hospitalized patients with cerebral infarction and hypertension in the real world.MethodsPatients with cerebral infarction and hypertension meeting the inclusion and exclusion criteria in the acupuncture ward of First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine from January 2014 to April 2020 were selected. There were 10 781 patiens who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. According to whether the Huoxue Sanfeng acupuncture method was applied during hospitalization, the patients were divided into basic treatment group (n=10 424) and Huoxue Sanfeng group (n=357) . The propensity score matching (PSM) was used to obtain a new sample with balanced covariates between groups, and the linear mixed effects model was used to compare the average daily blood pressure and morning blood pressure of the two groups in the new sample, which was used to evaluate the effect of Huoxue Sanfeng acupuncture in controlling blood pressure.ResultsThere was no statistically significant difference in gender, age, coronary heart disease, diabetes, atrial fibrillation, the levels of HCY, TC, TG, LDL, and Cr levels before matching (P>0.05) , while the levels of HDL and Ur in basic treatment group were higher than those in the Huoxue Sanfeng group (P0.05) . The results of the linear mixed effect model showed that the average systolic blood pressure in the Huoxue Sanfeng group was lower than the basic treatment group (P=0.002) ; the average level of diastolic blood pressure in the Huoxue Sanfenggroup and the basic treatment group was not statistically significant difference (P=0.083) ; there was no interaction between treatment methods and hospital admission time (P=0.532, P=0.775) . The results of the mixed effect model showed that after the intervention of different treatments, the systolic blood pressure in theHuoxue Sanfenggroup was lower than the basic treatment group in the morning (P=0.012) ; the morning diastolic blood pressure of the Huoxue Sanfenggroup and the basic treatment group was not statistically significant difference (P=0.539) ; there was no interaction between the treatment method and hospital admission time (P=0.974, P=0.985) .ConclusionHuoxue Sanfeng acupuncture can further control the daily average systolic blood pressure and early morning systolic blood pressure in hospitalized patients with cerebral infarction and hypertension.

Objective. The aim of the present investigation was to study the expression of genes encoding homeobox proteins ZEB2 (zinc finger E-box binding homeobox 2), TGIF1 (TGFB induced factor homeobox 1), SPAG4 (sperm associated antigen 4), LHX1 (LIM homeobox 1), LHX2, LHX6, NKX3-1 (NK3 homeobox 1), and PRRX1 (paired related homeobox 1) in U87 glioma cells in response to glucose deprivation in control glioma cells and cells with knockdown of ERN1 (endoplasmic reticulum to nucleus signaling 1), the major pathway of the endoplasmic reticulum stress signaling, for evaluation of it possible significance in the control of glioma growth through ERN1 signaling and chemoresistance.

Background: Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection is a common cause of acute hepatitis worldwide and causes approximately 30% case fatality rate among pregnant women. Pregnancy serum (PS), which contains a high concentration of estradiol, facilitates HEV replication in vitro through the suppression of the PI3K–AKT–mTOR and cAMPK–PKA–CREB signaling pathways. However, the proteomics of the complex host responses to HEV infection, especially how PS facilitates viral replication, remains unclear. Methods: In this study, the differences in the proteomics of HEV-infected HepG2 cells supplemented with fetal bovine serum (FBS) from those of HEV-infected HepG2 cells supplemented with serum from women in their third trimester of pregnancy were quantified by using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification technology. Results: A total of 1511 proteins were identified, among which 548 were defined as differentially expressed proteins (DEPs). HEV-infected cells supplemented with PS exhibited the most significant changes at the protein level. A total of 328 DEPs, including 66 up-regulated and 262 down-regulated proteins, were identified in HEV-infected cells supplemented with FBS, whereas 264 DEPs, including 201 up-regulated and 63 down-regulated proteins, were found in HEV-infected cells supplemented with PS. Subsequently, Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analyses revealed that in HEV-infected cells, PS supplementation adjusted more host genes and signaling pathways than FBS supplementation. The DEPs involved in virus–host interaction participated in complex interactions, especially a large number of immune-related protein emerged in HEV-infected cells supplemented with PS. Three significant or interesting proteins, including filamin-A, thioredoxin, and cytochrome c, in HEV-infected cells were functionally verified. Conclusions: The results of this study provide new and comprehensive insight for exploring virus–host interactions and will benefit future studies on the pathogenesis of HEV in pregnant women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glioma is a tumor in the brain and spinal cord originating in the glial cells that surround the nerve cells. Among several microRNAs reported, miRNA‐363 is associated with human glioma. Based on miRNA‐363 levels, the development and progression of glioma can be monitored. The current study used an interdigitated electrode sensor to monitor microRNA‐363 levels, which indeed reflects the severity of glioma. The interdigitated electrode was generated using a photolithography technique followed by surface chemical modification carried out to insert miRNA‐363 complementary oligo as the probe complexed with gold nanoparticles. The proposed sensor works based on the dipole moment between two electrodes, and when molecular immobilization or interaction occurs, the response by the signal output changes. The changes in the target microRNA‐363 sequence were standardized to identify glioma. The limit of detection of miRNA‐363 was 10 fM with an R2 value of 0.996 on the linear coefficient regression ranges between 1 fM and 100 pM. Furthermore, unrelated sequences failed to increase the response of the current with the complementary probe, indicating specific miRNA‐363 detection on the interdigitated electrode. This study demonstrates the platform to be used for determining the presence of microRNA‐363 in glioma and as the basis for other biomarker analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Young Prunus persica fruits (YPF) contain substances that are distinct from those found in the mature fruits. Response surface methodology was used to explore the influences of extraction conditions including ultrasonic time (X1), ethanol proportion (X2), liquid-to-solid ratio (X3) and temperature (X4) on UV-absorbing components from YPF. To purify the extract, the adsorption/desorption properties of 280 nm-absorbing components on AB-8 resin were investigated. A total of 11 metabolites (amino acids, glycosylated amino acids and phenolics) were identified in the UV-absorbing fraction of YPF (YPF-F) based on LC-MS/MS assays. In a study of in vivo anti-inflammatory activity, YPF-F significantly decreased the number of inflammatory cells that migrated to the lateral line location in CuSO4-induced transgenic fluorescent zebrafish. YPF should be utilized as a high value resource of functional foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nano-titanium nitride (Nano-TiN) has strong resistance to wear and corrosion, good biocompatibility, and an attractive metallic luster. Nano-TiN is widely used in medical devices, such as orthopedic implants, syringe needles, coronary stents, and long-term dental implants, and also in imitation gold jewelry. Despite its widespread use, there are few reports describing safety evaluations of Nano-TiN. Here, we exposed healthy zebrafish embryos to different concentrations of Nano-TiN solution for five days, starting at about four hours post fertilization, and found that Nano-TiN caused dose- and time-dependent developmental toxicity. With increasing Nano-TiN concentration and length of exposure, mortality, and deformities gradually increased; body length shortened and hatching rate and motility were significantly reduced. We also found that exposure to Nano-TiN affected development of the heart, liver, nerves, and other organs, and led to elevated levels of reactive oxygen species and reduced antioxidant capacity. Exposure to Nano-TiN resulted in downregulation of expression of antioxidant genes, such as nrf2, gclc, gclm, ho-1, and nqo1. Our results showed that exposure to Nano-TiN caused developmental and organ toxicity in zebrafish embryos and that the toxic effects may be mediated through oxidative stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]