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Abstract Background Astaxanthin (ASX) has been documented to exert beneficial influence on various processes in fish. Largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) serves as a common model for studying glucose-induced liver disease, making it imperative to investigate the regulatory mechanisms underlying its liver health. Methods Largemouth bass were fed with a control diet (CON), a high carbohydrate diet (HC), or a HC diet supplemented astaxanthin (HCA) for 8-weeks, followed by the glucose tolerance test (GTT). Primary hepatocytes were treated with low glucose and high glucose combined with different concentrations of astaxanthin for 48 h. The histopathology, enzymology, transcriptomics, molecular biology and cell biology were combined to investigate the mechanism of liver injury. Results This study provides evidence for the protective effects of ASX against growth performance reduction and hepatic liver injure in largemouth bass fed HC diet. In GTT, HCA diet exhibited an improvement in glucose tolerance following glucose loading. Although HCA diet did not restore the expression of insulin resistance-related genes in livers at different time during the GTT, the addition of ASX in the long-term HC diet did improve the insulin resistance pathway by regulating the PTP1B/PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. Hepatic transcriptome analyses showed that ASX plays an essential role in the modulation of glucose homeostasis in response to treated with HC diet. In in vitro study, ASX treatment resulted in an exaltation in cell viability and a reduction in the rate of cell apoptosis and reactive oxygen species (ROS). Additionally, astaxanthin was observed to improve apoptosis induced by high-glucose via p38MAPK/bcl-2/caspase-3 signaling pathway. Conclusions Astaxanthin exhibited a protective effect against apoptosis by regulating p38MAPK/bcl-2/caspase-3 pathway, and ameliorated insulin resistance by activating the PTP1B/PI3K/Akt pathway. This study elucidated the mechanism of astaxanthin in the liver injury of largemouth bass from a new perspective and provided a new target for the treatment of insulin resistance. Graphical Abstract

This study evaluated the effect of black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae oil (BO) produced by a novel technique, subcritical butane extraction, on the flesh quality, lipid nutrients and muscle growth of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) fillet, and investigated the alleviating mechanisms of dietary astaxanthin (AST) supplementation. Two hundred and forty fish (215.16 ± 2.30 g) were distributed to three groups with four replicates. Fish were fed three experimental diets for 8 weeks: the control diet (CD diet), total fish oil of the CD diet was replaced with BO to formulate the BO100 diet, and then 1 g/kg AST was supplemented with the BO100 diet to formulate the AST diet. Results showed that the final body weight and the sarcomere length of fillet were significantly increased and the protein phosphorylation levels of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) and p70 S6 kinase were enhanced in the BO100 group compared to the CD group (P

The ovary is an important reproductive and endocrine organ for the continuation of the species and the homeostasis of the body's internal environment. Arsenic exposure is a global public health problem. However, the damage to the ovaries caused by exposure to arsenic-contaminated drinking water from neonatal mice period remains unclear. Here, we showed that arsenic exposure resulted in reduced granulosa cell proliferation, diminished ovarian reserve, decreased oogenesis, and endocrine disruption in mice. Mechanistically, arsenic exposure decreased the protein level of METTL3 in granulosa cells. The m6A modification levels of mitophagy regulated gene BNIP3 in 3’UTR region was decreased in arsenic exposed granulosa cells. Meanwhile, YTHDF2, which decays mRNA, bound to the 3′UTR region of BNIP3 was also decreased in arsenic exposed ovarian granulosa cells. Thus, BNIP3 mRNA becames more stable, and mitophagy was increased. The excessive mitophagy in granulosa cells led to endocrine disruption, follicular atresia and diminished ovarian reserve. In summary, our study reveals that METTL3-dependent m6A modification regulates granulosa cell mitophagy and follicular atresia by targeting BNIP3 which are induced by arsenic exposure.

The research investigated the nutritional physiology effect of ginseng saponins on Litopenaeus vannamei (L. vannamei) under low-fishmeal diets. In total, five experimental groups were arranged, with 21% fishmeal (high-fishmeal) serving as the positive control (PC), 11% fishmeal (low-fishmeal) serving as the negative control (NC), and 11% fishmeal serving as the addition in all three other groups. Similarly, ginseng saponins (GSP, purity of 2%) were added in the order of 0.1%, 0.3%, and 0.5% (GSP0.1, GSP0.3, and GSP0.5), with an 8-week growth cycle. Both GSP0.1 and GSP0.3 showed significantly higher growth performance (final body weight, FBW; weight gain rate, WGR; specific growth rate, SGR) than the NC group, but significantly lower growth performance than the PC group (P0.05). Whereas, in terms of the relative expression levels of the corresponding genes, in shrimp of the GSP0.3 group, the relative expression of antioxidant-related genes sod, cat, and gsh-px were significantly higher than that of the PC group (P

BackgroundNeutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) cause delayed wound closed up in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), but the specific regulatory mechanism of NETs-related genes (NETs-RGs) in T2DM is unclear.MethodsWe acquired GSE21321 and GSE15932 datasets from gene expression omnibus (GEO) database. First, differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between T2DM and control samples of GSE21321 dataset were sifted out by differential expression analysis. NETs scores were calculated for all samples in GSE21321 dataset, and key module genes associated with NETs scores were screened by constructing co-expression network. Then, DEGs and key module genes were intersected to yield intersection genes, and candidate genes were identified by constructing a protein protein interaction (PPI) network. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression analysis was implemented on candidate genes to screen out diagnostic genes, and they were subjected to single sample gene set enrichment analysis (ssGSEA). Finally, immune characteristic analysis was carried out, and we constructed the gene-drug and transcription factor (TF)-miRNA-mRNA networks. Besides, we validated the expression of diagnostic genes by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR).ResultsIn total, 23 candidate genes were gained by PPI analysis. The 5 diagnostic genes, namely, inter-trypsin inhibitor heavy chain 3 (ITIH3), fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1), neuron cell adhesion molecule (NRCAM), advanced glycosylation end-product-specific receptor (AGER), and calcium voltage-gated channel subunit alpha1 C (CACNA1C), were identified via LASSO analysis, and they were involved in carboxylic acid transport, axonogenesis, etc. M2 Macrophage, Monocyte, Natural killer (NK) cell, and Myeloid dendritic cells (DC) were remarkably different between T2DM and control samples. Diagnostic genes had the strongest and the most significant positive correlation with B cells. The gene-drug network included CACNA1C-Isradipine, CACNA1C-Benidipine and other relationship pairs. Totally 76 nodes and 44 edges constituted the TF-miRNA-mRNA network, including signal transducer and activator of transcription 1(STAT1) -hsa-miR-3170-AGER, CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF)-hsa-miR-455-5p-CACNA1C, etc. Moreover, qRT-PCR suggested that the expression trends of FGF1 and AGER were in keeping with the results of bioinformatic analysis. FGF1 and AGER were markedly regulated downwards in the T2DM group.ConclusionThrough bioinformatic analysis, we identified NETs-related diagnostic genes (ITIH3, FGF1, NRCAM, AGER, CACNA1C) in T2DM, and explored their mechanism of action from different aspects, providing new ideas for the studies related to diagnosis and treatment of T2DM.

Abstract An efficient method for the synthesis of a self‐supporting carbon framework (denoted Gra‐GC‐MoSe2) is proposed with a triple‐gradient structure—in sodiophilic sites, pore volume, and electrical conductivity—which facilitates the highly efficient regulation of Na deposition. In situ and ex situ measurements, together with theoretical calculations, reveal that the gradient distribution of Se heteroatoms in MoSe2, and its derivatives tailor the sodiophilicity, while the gradient distribution of porous nanostructures homogenizes the Na+ diffusion. Therefore, Na deposition occurs from the bottom to the top of the Gra‐GC‐MoSe2 framework without dendrite formation. In addition, the gradient in electrical conductivity ensures the stripping process does not lead to dead Na. As a result, a Gra‐GC‐MoSe2 modified Na anode (Na@Gra‐GC‐MoSe2) shows impressive cycling stability with a high average Coulombic efficiency in an asymmetric cell. In symmetric cells, it also exhibits a long cycling life of 2000 h with a low polarization voltage and works stably even under a large capacity of 10 mAh cm−2. Moreover, a Na@Gra‐GC‐MoSe2|| Na3V2(PO4)3 full cell delivers a high energy density with an excellent cycling performance.

The development of skeletal muscle in pigs might determine the quality of pork. In recent years, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been found to play an important role in skeletal muscle growth and development. In this study, we investigated the whole transcriptome of the longissimus dorsi muscle (LDM) of Jinfen White pigs at three developmental stages (1, 90, and 180 days) and performed a comprehensive analysis of lncRNAs, mRNAs, and micro-RNAs (miRNAs), aiming to find the key regulators and interaction networks in Jinfen White pigs. A total of 2638 differentially expressed mRNAs (DE mRNAs) and 982 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DE lncRNAs) were identified. Compared with JFW_1d, there were 497 up-regulated and 698 down-regulated DE mRNAs and 212 up-regulated and 286 down-regulated DE lncRNAs in JFW_90d, respectively. In JFW_180d, there were 613 up-regulated and 895 down-regulated DE mRNAs and 184 up-regulated and 131 down-regulated DE lncRNAs compared with JFW_1d. There were 615 up-regulated and 477 down-regulated DE mRNAs and 254 up-regulated and 355 down-regulated DE lncRNAs in JFW_180d compared with JFW_90d. Compared with mRNA, lncRNA has fewer exons, fewer ORFs, and a shorter length. We performed GO and KEGG pathway functional enrichment analysis for DE mRNAs and the potential target genes of DE lncRNAs. As a result, several pathways are involved in muscle growth and development, such as the PI3K-Akt, MAPK, hedgehog, and hippo signaling pathways. These are among the pathways through which mRNA and lncRNAs function. As part of this study, bioinformatic screening was used to identify miRNAs and DE lncRNAs that could act as ceRNAs. Finally, we constructed an lncRNA–miRNA–mRNA regulation network containing 26 mRNAs, 7 miRNAs, and 17 lncRNAs; qRT-PCR was used to verify the key genes in these networks. Among these, XLOC_022984/miR-127/ENAH and XLOC_016847/miR-486/NRF1 may function as key ceRNA networks. In this study, we obtained transcriptomic profiles from the LDM of Jinfen White pigs at three developmental stages and screened out lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA regulatory networks that may provide crucial information for the further exploration of the molecular mechanisms during skeletal muscle development.

Abstract We demonstrate a novel flat-field, dual-optic imaging EUV—soft X-ray spectrometer and monochromator that attains an unprecedented throughput efficiency exceeding 60% by design, along with a superb spectral resolution of λ/Δλ > 200 accomplished without employing variable line spacing gratings. Exploiting the benefits of the conical diffraction geometry, the optical system is globally optimized in multidimensional parameter space to guarantee optimal imaging performance over a broad spectral range while maintaining circular and elliptical polarization states at the first, second, and third diffraction orders. Moreover, our analysis indicates minimal temporal dispersion, with pulse broadening confined within 80 fs tail-to-tail and an FWHM value of 29 fs, which enables ultrafast spectroscopic and pump-probe studies with femtosecond accuracy. Furthermore, the spectrometer can be effortlessly transformed into a monochromator spanning the EUV—soft X-ray spectral region using a single grating with an aberration-free spatial profile. Such capability allows coherent diffractive imaging applications to be conducted with highly monochromatic light in a broad spectral range and extended to the soft X-ray region with minimal photon loss, thus facilitating state-of-the-art imaging of intricate nano- and bio-systems, with a significantly enhanced spatiotemporal resolution, down to the nanometer–femtosecond level.

In many fields, such as medicine and the computer industry, databases are vital in the process of information sharing. However, databases face the risk of being stolen or misused, leading to security threats such as copyright disputes and privacy breaches. Reversible watermarking techniques ensure the ownership of shared relational databases, protect the rights of data owners and enable the recovery of original data. However, most of the methods modify the original data to a large extent and cannot achieve a good balance between protection against malicious attacks and data recovery. In this paper, we proposed a robust and reversible database watermarking technique using a hash function to group digital relational databases, setting the data distortion and watermarking capacity of the band weight function, adjusting the weight of the function to determine the watermarking capacity and the level of data distortion, using firefly algorithms (FA) and simulated annealing algorithms (SA) to improve the efficiency of the search for the location of the watermark embedded and, finally, using the differential expansion of the way to embed the watermark. The experimental results prove that the method maintains the data quality and has good robustness against malicious attacks.

Aquatic animals have benefited from Bacillus subtilis-based probiotics over the past few decades. This study evaluated the effects of B. subtilis DSM 32315 probiotics as a feed additive on growth, immune response and resistance to acute ammonia challenge in Nile tilapia. Specifically, four supplemental levels (0%, 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.3%) of B. subtilis probiotics were tested under two dietary protein levels (32% and 28%). Five replicate tanks were randomly allotted to each dietary treatment, with each tank containing 30 Nile tilapia. After 8 weeks of feeding, Nile tilapia in each tank were exposed to 43.61 mg/L of total ammonia nitrogen for 48 h. The results revealed that reducing protein levels from 32% to 28% did not affect growth performance or antioxidant capacity. However, the low protein diet tended to induce an inflammatory effect shown by increased expressions of TGF-β and IFN-γ genes (P

High-order harmonic generation (HHG) using femtosecond lasers is an efficient and cost-effective method for producing attosecond and femtosecond light in the extreme ultraviolet and soft x-ray regions. This technique generates high-brightness harmonic beams with stable spectra, intensity, and wavefronts, making it a valuable tool for applications such as nanoimaging, material metrology, and studies of ultrafast dynamics. Accurate wavefront measurement of HHG beams is essential for analyzing complex incident fields, understanding atomic responses, and enhancing applications such as attosecond-driven ultrafast processes. However, quantifying the wavefronts of each harmonic component remains a challenge. Here, we present a multicolor wavefront sensing for HHG beams using the Talbot effect, validated theoretically and experimentally. Our method reconstructs individual high-order harmonic wavefronts with a spectral resolution of 4.8 eV, capturing multiple harmonic wavelengths in a single scan along the propagation direction, without the need for additional spectrometers or complex calibrations. This approach surpasses conventional Talbot effect wavefront sensing, which typically relies on quasimonochromatic waves or wavelength-averaging. Additionally, we introduce a high-accuracy centroid detection strategy that reduces tracking errors to the thousandths of a pixel while maintaining high computational efficiency, paving the way for broader applications in imaging and metrology.

As social robots may be used by a single user or multiple users different social scenarios are becoming more important for defining human-robot relationships. Therefore, this study explored human-robot relationships between robots and users in different interaction modes to improve user interaction experience. Specifically, education and companion were selected as the most common areas in the use of social robots. The interaction modes used include single-user interaction and multi-user interaction. The three human-robot relationships were adopted. The robot competence scale, human-robot trust scale, and acceptance of robot scale were used to evaluate subjects’ views on robots. The results demonstrate that in the two scenarios, people were more inclined to maintain a more familiar and closer relationship with the social robot when the robot interacted with a single user. When multiple persons interact in an education scenario, setting the robot to Acquaintance relationships is recommended to improve its competence and people’s trust in the robot. Similarly, in multi-person interaction, Acquaintance relationships would be more accepted and trusted by people in a companion scenario. Based on these results, robot sensors can be added to further optimize human-robot interaction sensing systems. By identifying the number of users in the interaction environment, robots can automatically employ the best human-robot relationship for interaction. Optimizing human-robot interaction sensing systems can also improve robot performance perceived in the interaction to meet different users’ needs and achieve more natural human-robot interaction experiences.

Abstract Numerous organic electrolytes additives have been reported to improve Zn anode performance in aqueous Zn metal batteries (AZMBs). However, the modification mechanism needs to be further revealed in consideration of different environments for electrolytes and electrodes during the charge‐discharge process. Herein, sulfur‐containing zwitter‐molecule (methionine, Met) is used as an additive for ZnSO4 electrolytes. In electrolytes, Met reduces the H2O coordination number and facilitates the desolvation process by virtue of functional groups (─COOH, ─NH2, C─S─C), accelerating Zn2+ transference kinetics and decreasing the amount of active water. On electrodes, Met prefers to adsorb on Zn (002) plane and further transforms into a zincophilic protective layer containing C─SOx─C through an in situ electrochemical oxidization, suppressing H2 evolution/corrosion reactions and guiding dendrite‐free Zn deposition. By using Met‐containing ZnSO4 electrolytes, the Zn//Zn cells show superior cycling performance under 30 mA cm−2/30 mA h cm−2. Moreover, the full cells Zn//NH4V4O10 full cells using the modified electrolytes exhibit good performance at temperatures from −8 to 60 °C. Notably, a high energy density of 105.30 W h kg−1 can be delivered using a low N/P ratio of 1.2, showing a promising prospect of Met electrolytes additives for practical use.

Fishmeal is an important protein source in aquafeed. However, due to the limited natural resources, fishmeal is in short supply, resulting in a price surge for fishmeal. Here, we reported a kind of Chinese medicine residue, endothelium corneum gigeriae galli residue (ECGGR), as a fishmeal substitute in the diets of Trachinotus ovatus. Six isonitrogenous and isolipidic diets were formulated, substituting fishmeal at 0%, 6.25%, 12.5%, 18.75%, 25%, and 31.25%. There was no significant difference in the growth performance when the fishmeal substitution level was no more than 25%. The smallest FCR was obtained at the 18.75% substitution level. Furthermore, substituting ECGGR for fishmeal had no effect on whole-body and muscle proximate compositions, except when the replacement level exceeded 25%, which led to a decrease in whole-body moisture and an increase in whole-body crude protein. The contents of Gly, Cys, Ile, Tyr, Pro, and EAAs/TAAs were altered as the substitution level varied. However, dietary replacement of fishmeal with ECGGR did not degrade muscle protein quality, according to a nutritional evaluation of muscle essential amino acid composition. In terms of hepatic antioxidant capacity, neither the overall antioxidant status nor the expression of genes in the Nrf2-ARE pathway was altered by dietary ECGGR. Moreover, the expressions of p65, TNF-α, and IL-8 in the intestine were upregulated at the 31.25% substitution level. Also, more goblet cells were observed in the intestine at substitution levels of 25% and 31.25%. In conclusion, ECGGR can substitute for fishmeal at the optimal level of 18.75% without adversely affecting the growth performance, protein quality, or hepatic and intestinal health of golden pompano.

The present study investigated the effects of Astragalus membranaceus extract (AME) on growth performance, immune response, and energy metabolism of juvenile largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides). Seven diets containing 0%, 0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3%, 0.4%, 0.5%, and 0.6% AME (Con, AME0.1, AME0.2, AME0.3, AME0.4, AME0.5, and AME0.6 groups) were formulated and fed to M. salmoides for 8 weeks. Final body weight (FBW), feed intake (FI), weight gain (WG), and specific growth rate (SGR) were all significantly higher in AME0.4 group than in Con group (P

Abstract Background As a diverse and abundant class of endogenous RNAs, circular RNAs (circRNAs) participate in various biological processes including cell proliferation and apoptosis. Nevertheless, few researchers have investigated the role of circRNAs in muscle development in cultivated pigs. Results In this study, we used RNA-seq to construct circRNA expression profiles in skeletal muscle of Jinfen White pigs at the age of 1, 90, and 180 days. Among the 16,990 identified circRNAs, 584 circRNAs were differentially expressed. Moreover, the enrichment analysis of DE circRNA host genes showed that they were mainly involved in muscle contraction, muscle organ development and muscle system processes, as well as AMPK and cAMP-related signal pathways. We also constructed a circRNA–miRNA–mRNA co-expression network to find key circRNAs which many involved in the regulation of porcine skeletal muscle development through the competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) mechanism. It is noteworthy that circ_0018595/miR-1343/PGM1 axis may play a regulatory role in the development of porcine skeletal muscle. Conclusions This study identified the circRNAs and present the circRNA expression profile in the development of pigs, revealed that DE circRNA host genes participate in different cell fates and enriched the porcine ceRNA network. Thus, this work will become a valuable resource for further in-depth study of the regulatory mechanism of circRNA in the development of porcine skeletal muscle.

To objectively quantify the level of visual interference induced by lasers, we developed a biomimetic optical system designed to emulate human vision. This system is based on an optical model of the eye and synthetic imaging principles, allowing it to generate biomimetic optical images that closely mimic human visual perception. Upon exposure to a 532 nm laser, biomimetic optical images were captured under various ambient lighting conditions. By employing a contrast threshold model for human visual target detection and grayscale hierarchy analysis, we devised an evaluation model to quantify the levels of laser-induced visual interference. The bionic images obtained from our experiments, in conjunction with the constructed model, enabled us to assess the degree of laser-induced visual interference. Our results indicate that this system can effectively substitute the human eye when testing laser imaging effects, with the generated bionic images achieving up to 90% concordance with human vision. The proposed evaluation model facilitates the quantitative analysis of laser-induced visual impairment. This apparatus and evaluation model hold significant promise for the precise quantification of laser-induced visual interference levels.

With a mixed stationary phase of 5Å molecular sieve/alumina, extracts of various kinds of source rocks are separated by column and sub-fractions dominated by hopanoid compounds were successfully obtained. The sub-fractions are suitable for the direct analysis on GC-IRMS to obtain compound specific isotopic values of hopanes. Comparison is carried out on isotopic signatures of specific hopanes in a lacustrine oil shale (Permian Lucaogou shale, Junggar Basin, NW China) and another Permian marine shale (NW of Sichuan Basin). Results show that the Permian Lucaogou shale had the δ13C values of hopanes distributed between -40.7‰ and -62.7‰, and decrease with the increasing of carbon number. The δ13C values of hopanes in marine shale of Sichuan Basin are apparently heavier, distribute between -20.5‰ and -45.4‰, and they appeared to be firstly decreased and then increased as carbon number increases. In both of the shales analyzed, the variation range of carbon isotopes of hopanes can be more than ±20‰ (±24.9‰ for the Sichuan Basin shale), which indicates multiple contribution to these compounds. The isotopic signatures of hopanes may be constrained by paleoenvironment, sources as well as maturation, however, compound specific isotope of hopanes is still a useful indicator for oil-source correlation.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a low-fish-meal diet supplemented with coenzyme Q10 on the growth, antioxidant capacity, immunity, intestinal health and hypoxic resistance of Litopenaeus vannamei. L.vannamei with an initial weight of 0.66 g were fed with the experimental diets for 56 days. Diets D1 (20% FM level) and D2–D7 (15% FM level), supplemented with 0%, 0.002%, 0.004%, 0.006%, 0.008% and 0.01% coenzyme Q10 were formulated. In terms of growth performance, the weight gain and specific growth rate in the D2 diet were significantly lower than those in the D1 diet (p < 0.05). The final body weight, weight gain and specific growth rate in the D2–D7 diets had an upward trend, and the condition factor in the D2–D7 diets was lower than those in the D1 diet (p < 0.05). There were no significant differences in the crude protein and crude lipid levels in the whole body among all diet treatments (p > 0.05). In terms of hepatopancreas antioxidant parameters, the D5 and D6 diets significantly promoted the total antioxidant capacity and total superoxide dismutase activity, and significantly decreased the malondialdehyde content (p < 0.05). The expression levels of cat, mnsod and gpx in shrimp fed with the D5 and D6 diets were significantly higher than those of shrimp fed with the D2 diet (p < 0.05). In addition, the mRNA level of ProPO was increased in the D4 and D5 diets, and LZM expression was increased in the D6 diet compared with the D1 diet (p < 0.05). The villus height of shrimp fed with diets supplemented with coenzyme Q10 was significantly increased (p < 0.05), and the intestinal thickness and submucosal thickness of shrimp fed with the D6 diet were the highest (p < 0.05). After acute hypoxia stress, lethal dose 50 time in the D3–D7 diets was significantly increased compared with the D1 and D2 diets (p < 0.05), and the highest value was found in the D4 diet (p < 0.05). After stress, the expression levels of TLR pathway-related genes (Toll, Myd88, Pelle, TRAF6 and Dorsal) in the D4 and D6 diets were significantly increased compared with the D2 diet. In general, Litopenaeus vannamei fed with the D6 diet achieved the best growth, antioxidant capacity, immunity, and intestinal morphology among all low FM diets and D4–D6 diets improved hypoxic resistance.

Abstract Background HIV/AIDS has transformed into a chronic controllable but not yet curable infectious disease as other chronic diseases to some extent. The additional of so called fourth 90% that included the improved health-related quality of life (HRQoL) for people living with HIV (PLWHIV) required solutions beyond antiretroviral therapy and viral load suppression. This study will explore the role of personality, social economic and prevention strategy effection on HRQoL among people living with HIV/AIDS. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among PLWHIV aged more than 16 years old in the 10 municipalities in Yunnan Province, China from October 2019 to May 2020, enrolling total 1997 participants. Individual-level HRQoL data were measured by 12-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-12) and EuroQol Five Dimensions Questionnaire (EQ-5D-5L). We assembled municipal-level data about social economic from Yunnan Statistical Yearbook in 2020 and strategy practice information from the self-evaluation system. We used the principal component analysis to build the social economic and strategy effect on each area respectively and one-way ANOVA was used to perform univariate analysis to identify the predictors with significant differences. Finally we used multi-level model (MLM) to explore the personality, social economic and strategy effects in health-related quality of life among PLWHIV. Results The global score for quality of life measured using EQ-5D-5L had an estimated mean score (standard deviation, SD) of 0.901 ± 0.146. The HRQoL score measured using PCS-12 had an estimated mean score (SD) of 46.62 ± 8.55. The mean MCS-12 score (SD) was estimated to be 47.80 ± 9.71. The area-level predictors explained a proportion of 13.6–17.2% for the between-area variation of the HRQoL scores, regardless of the total HRQoL, physical component and mental component. The impacts of stigma (P

The purpose of this study is to assess the feasibility of astaxanthin-rich Oedocladium carolinianum as an immunostimulant in the diet for Trachinotus ovatus. Three experimental diets containing 0% (OC0), 1% (OC1), and 5% (OC5) O. carolinianum powder were formulated for 6-week feeding trials. The results indicated that the OC5 diet boosted the growth performance through decreasing the feed conversion ratio and increasing digestive enzyme activities and intestinal villus length. Meanwhile, fish fed with the OC5 diet promoted antioxidant ability via stimulating the Nrf2-ARE signal pathway and enhancing antioxidant enzyme activities. Furthermore, the OC5 diet exerted hepatoprotective effects by suppressing the lipid deposition and inflammation response and enhancing the transport capacity of cholesterol. Besides, the OC5 diet improved the non-specific immunity by activating the lysozyme and complement system and increasing the nitric oxide content and total nitric oxide synthase activity. Dietary O. carolinianum supplementation promoted the deposition of astaxanthin in the whole body. Therefore, a diet supplemented with 5% O. carolinianum is recommended to boost the growth, antioxidant capacity, immune response, and flesh quality of T. ovatus.

Since their development, social robots have been a popular topic of research, with numerous studies evaluating their functionality or task performance. In recent years, social robots have begun to be regarded as social actors at work, and their social attributes have been explored. Therefore, this study focused on four occupational fields (shopping reception, home companion, education, and security) where robots are widely used, exploring the influence of robot gestures on their perceived personality traits and comparing the gesture design guidelines required in specific occupational fields. The study was conducted in two stages. In the first stage, an interactive script was developed; moreover, observation was employed to derive gestures related to the discourse on the fields of interest. The second stage involved robot experimentation based on human–robot interaction through video. Results show that metaphoric gestures appeared less frequently than did deictic, iconic, or beat gestures. Robots’ perceived personality traits were categorized into sociality, competence, and status. Introducing all types of gestures helped enhance perceived sociality. The addition of deictic, and iconic gestures significantly improved perceived competence and perceived status. Regarding the shopping reception robot, after the inclusion of basic deictic and iconic gestures, sufficient beats gestures should be implemented to create a friendly and outgoing demeanor, thereby promoting user acceptance. In the home companion, education, and security contexts, the addition of beat gestures did not affect the overall acceptance level; the designs should instead be focused on the integration of the other gesture types.

In recent years, the dramatically high lipid level has been used in fish feeds, resulting in low survival rates of fish and huge economic losses. Based on these issues, a six-week feeding experiment was conducted to investigate whether diet supplements with L-carnitine can be used to relieve detrimental impacts on growth performance, hepatic lipid accumulation, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and non-specific immune status, as well as intestinal morphology of Trachinotus ovatus, fed on a high-fat diet. Three isonitrogenous diets were formulated to either include or exclude high-fat and L-carnitine (lipid positive (LP): 130 g kg−1 lipid, lipid negative (LN): 210 g kg−1 lipid, lipid negative with L-carnitine (LNC): 210 g kg−1 lipid with 0.6 g kg−1 L-carnitine). Results indicated that the growth performance and mid-intestine villi length of T. ovatus in the LN group were significantly lower than that of the LP group (p 0.05) and significantly higher levels in the LNC group (p 0.05). In conclusion, L-carnitine can relieve the detrimental impact on growth performance of T. ovatus exposed to a high-fat diet treatment by reducing hepatic lipid accumulation and improving intestinal morphology, anti-inflammatory and non-specific immune status, but could not mitigate oxidative pressure.

The Zn-ion micro-supercapacitor (ZMSC) is a promising candidate for developing miniaturized and integrated energy storage devices. To achieve high-performance functional groups with simple processing to composite with rod-like active PANI fibers, we prepared exfoliated graphene (EG) with an appropriate amount of O-containing functional groups. The appropriate O content simultaneously facilitated self-assembly of the EG and PANI fibers and maintained the electric conductivity of the composite, producing a free-standing EG/PANI film without additional conductive additives or current collectors. As an interdigital electrode for the ZMSC, the EG/PANI film showed ultrahigh capacitance of 1.8 F cm−2 at 2.6 mA cm−2 (361.3 F g−1 at 0.5 A g−1) and landmark energy density of 755.8 μWh cm−2 at 2.3 mW cm−2 (148.2 Wh kg−1 at 451.7 W kg−1). The facile preparation of the high-performance EG/PANI electrode provides a potential path for practical applications with ZMSCs.

The phenomenon of phase transition is an important property of the satisfiability (SAT) problem. It not only determines the difficulty of solving the problem, but also plays an important role in designing fast solving algorithms. The structural entropy is an effective method to measure the complexity of graph structure. It maps the proposition formula to the graph structure, and then gives the structural entropy of it. A new method of 3-SAT phase transition measurement based on structural entropy is proposed. Through numerical experiments on the random 3-SAT instance set, the results show that the satisfiability of the random 3-SAT problem has phase transition with the change of structural entropy. At the same time, it is very difficult to solve the problem in the region near the phase transition point.

Abstract Elastomers offer attractive advantages over classical solid‐state electrolytes in terms of ensuring stable interfacial contact and maintaining fatigue durability, but the low ionic conductivity obstructs their practical applications in long‐life lithium metal batteries. In this work, rubber‐derived lithium‐conducting elastomer has been developed via sulfur vulcanization of nitrile butadiene rubber with a polymerizable ionic liquid to provide both high resilience and dramatically improved ionic conductivity. Owing to the chemically crosslinked network between rubber chains and ionic liquid fragments generated during vulcanization, the elastic lithium‐conductor achieves high resilience of 0.92 MJ m−3, superior cyclic durability of 1000 cycles at 50% strain, and high room‐temperature ionic conductivity of 2.7 × 10−4 S cm−1. Consequently, the corresponding solid‐state lithium/LiFePO4 battery exhibits a high capacity of ≈146 mAh g−1 with a high capacity retention of 94.3% for up to 300 cycles.

With the environmental deterioration and the rise in demand for sustainability, the lack of freshwater resources has emerged as a global concern. To address this issue, the desalination of water using solar evaporation is centered on as a promising approach. In this study, we designed a light and photothermal liquefied-chitin-based polyurethane foam to achieve efficient water evaporation benefiting from their powerful solar spectral absorption, low thermal conductivity, quick transportation of water, hierarchically porous structures, and anti-biofouling natures. Moreover, because of the introduction of nano-silver, the newly developed foam exhibits considerable antibacterial ability and improved photothermal performance. Notably, the low thermal conductivity of the foam can reduce the loss of absorbed solar heat, whereas its large porous structure provides a smooth water transport channel. More importantly, with the assistance of heat, polyacrylamide hydrogels adhering along with the pores rapidly absorb and desorb water molecules, promoting the evaporation of water and improving solar energy conversion efficiency. Ultimately, under irradiation by one sunlight, the proposed material demonstrated a water evaporation rate and solar photothermal conversion efficiency of 2.44 kg m−2 h−1 and 153.2%, respectively.

Filamentous microalga Klebsormidium sp. has huge potential to become a natural and healthy additive in aquatic feed since it contains various bioactive nutrients, such as linoleic acid (LA), carotenoids, and chlorophylls. Therefore, an eight-week feeding experiment was performed to evaluate the effects of dietary Klebsormidium sp. on the growth performance, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory status, metabolism, and mid-intestine morphology of Litopenaeus vannamei. Two isonitrogenous and isolipid diets supplemented with and without 5% Klebsormidium sp. were prepared. Results showed that L. vannamei fed with Klebsormidium sp. had better growth performance and feed utilization by optimizing mid-intestine morphology and improving the carbohydrate metabolism. In addition, Klebsormidium sp. also enhanced the antioxidant capacity of L. vannamei by downregulating antioxidant parameters (hepatopancreas T-SOD, hepatopancreas GSH-PX, hemolymph T-SOD, hemolymph MDA) and RNA expression levels of antioxidant genes (gsh-px and cat). Furthermore, the supplementations of dietary Klebsormidium sp. significantly improved hepatopancreas health by downregulating RNA expression levels of pro-inflammatory related genes (relish and rho). Therefore, a dose of 5% Klebsormidium sp. is recommended for the daily diet of L. vannamei to improve the growth performance, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory status, metabolism, and mid-intestine morphology of shrimp.

Haematococcus pluvialis can be used as a green additive in aquafeeds due to it contains rich astaxanthin and polyunsaturated fatty acid. In the present study, a newly strain of H. pluvialis GXU-A23 with high concentration of astaxanthin was firstly isolated by a newly culture strategy in our laboratory. In addition, H. pluvialis GXU-A23 was applied in the Litopenaeus vannamei feed for determining whether it has positive effects on the growth performance, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory status, metabolic capacity and mid-intestine morphology of juvenile L. vannamei. Shrimp with 0.63 g approximately initial body weight were fed diets supplemented with/without 50 g/kg H. pluvialis GXU-A23. After 8 weeks feeding intervention, significantly higher growth performance of L. vannamei was obtained in the H. pluvialis GXU-A23 treatment group compared to the control group (p < 0.05). At the same time, L. vannamei fed with H. pluvialis GXU-A23 acquired significantly better antioxidant and anti-inflammatory status than the control group (p < 0.05). In addition, higher RNA expression level of hepatopancreas digestive enzyme, hepatopancreas lipid and glucose metabolic enzymes as well as better mid-intestine morphology were found in the H. pluvialis GXU-A23 treatment group than the control group (p < 0.05). These results indicated that 50 g/kg H. pluvialis GXU-A23 was suitable for the L. vannamei feed, which could improve the growth performance, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory status, metabolic capacity and mid-intestine morphology of juvenile L. vannamei.

A 6-week feeding trial was carried out to investigate whether dietary L-carnitine supplementation could alleviate the adverse effects of high-fat diet on the growth, antioxidation and lipid metabolism of Trachinotus ovatus. Four isonitrogenous experimental diets were formulated supplementing with or without L-carnitine (low fat diet (D1): 13% lipid; high fat diet (D2): 20% lipid; D3: 20% lipid with 0.02% L-carnitine; D4: 20% lipid with 0.06% L-carnitine). The final body weight, weight gain rate, specific growth ratio and feed intake in fish fed with D2 diet were significantly lower than that of fish fed with D1, D3 and D4 diets (P < 0.05). The weight gain rate and specific growth ratio of D2 diet were as low as 167.21% and 2.41% initial body weight/d, respectively. However, experimental diets were unable to change the feed conversion ratio and survival rate of fish (P > 0.05). The lowest value of crude protein and the highest value of crude lipid of whole-body were found in fish fed with D2 diet (P < 0.05), which were 31.35% and 17.41% wet weight respectively. Meantime, the level of crude lipid of whole-body in fish fed with D3 and D4 diets was significantly higher than that of fish fed with D2 diet (P < 0.05). Besides, there were significantly higher levels of triglyceride and total cholesterol in the D2 diet when compared to the other diets (P < 0.05). Additionally, the superoxide dismutase activity, malondialdehyde content and the mRNA levels of manganese superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase of the liver in fish fed with D2 diet were significantly higher than those fed with D1, D3 and D4 diets (P < 0.05). The mRNA levels of carnitine palmitoyl transferase 1 and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors-alpha of the liver in fish fed with D2 diet were significantly higher than those fed with D1, D3 and D4 diets (P < 0.05). In conclusion, L-carnitine supplementation in high-fat diet improved the growth performance and health of T. ovatus by promoting lipid hydrolysis, improving cholesterol transport and antioxidant capacity. Therefore, we recommended the 0.02% addition level of L-carnitine for T. ovatus diet.

A 56-day culture experiment followed by an acute low salinity challenge was conducted to evaluate the effects of Rhodobacter sphaeroides protein (RSP) substitution of fishmeal and Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) supplementation on growth performance, intestinal microbiota and compressive capacity of Litopenaeus vannamei (L. vannamei). Four experimental diets were formulated: FM diet (20% fishmeal), RSP diet (20% RSP instead of 20% fishmeal), CoQ10 diet (20% fishmeal supplemented with CoQ10 at 0.08 g kg–1), RSP + CoQ10 diet (20% RSP supplemented with CoQ10 at 0.08 g kg–1). The obtained results were denoted that L. vannamei fed CoQ10 diet could improve growth performance (weigh gain and specific growth rate), condition factor and crude lipid, and decrease hepatosomatic index, but no differences were found in survival rates. High throughput sequencing on intestinal microbiota indicated that intestinal microbiota of L. vannamei consisted mainly of Proteobacteria and Firmicutes. The species richness of the RSP diet was remarkably higher than that of the other diets. Moreover, the presence of RSP and CoQ10 may improve intestinal homeostasis by inhibiting the propagation of Vibrio. Compared to FM diet and RSP diet, supplementation of CoQ10 significantly improved the compressive capacity of L. vannamei against the acute low salinity challenge, as indicated by higher survival rates as well as higher activities of T-AOC and higher transcript levels of SOD, HSP70, and Relish gene. Our findings demonstrated that RSP could serve as a novel FM and CoQ10 could serve as a prospective feed additive to help L. vannamei to overcome environmental stresses.

Abstract Background For most patients, pancreatic adenocarcinoma responds poorly to treatment, and novel therapeutic approaches are needed. Standard-of-care paclitaxel (PTX), combined with birinapant (BRP), a bivalent mimetic of the apoptosis antagonist SMAC (second mitochondria-derived activator of caspases), exerts synergistic killing of PANC-1 human pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells. Methods To investigate potential mechanisms underlying this synergistic pharmacodynamic interaction, data capturing PANC-1 cell growth, apoptosis kinetics, and cell cycle distribution were integrated with high-quality IonStar-generated proteomic data capturing changes in the relative abundance of more than 3300 proteins as the cells responded to the two drugs, alone and combined. Results PTX alone (15 nM) elicited dose-dependent G2/M-phase arrest and cellular polyploidy. Combined BRP/PTX (150/15 nM) reduced G2/M by 35% and polyploid cells by 45%, and increased apoptosis by 20%. Whereas BRP or PTX alone produced no change in the pro-apoptotic protein pJNK, and a slight increase in the anti-apoptotic protein Bcl2, the drug combination increased pJNK and decreased Bcl2 significantly compared to the vehicle control. A multi-scale, mechanism-based mathematical model was developed to investigate integrated birinapant/paclitaxel effects on temporal profiles of key proteins involved in kinetics of cell growth, death, and cell cycle distribution. Conclusions The model, consistent with the observed reduction in the Bcl2/BAX ratio, suggests that BRP-induced apoptosis of mitotically-arrested cells is a major contributor to the synergy between BRP and PTX. Coupling proteomic and cellular response profiles with multi-scale pharmacodynamic modeling provides a quantitative mechanistic framework for evaluating pharmacodynamically-based drug-drug interactions in combination chemotherapy, and could potentially guide the development of promising drug regimens.

The diet formulation for trout has changed dramatically over the last decade due to changes in the ingredient markets and advances in feed processing technology. The protein requirements of Oncorhynchus mykiss were established at the end of the last century, and it is unclear whether these requirements are applicable to modern dietary formulations. Therefore, an eight-week feeding trial was performed to measure the protein requirements of O. mykiss by evaluating growth, body composition, antioxidation property, innate immune response and liver morphology. The five experimental diets were prepared to contain the same levels of crude lipid (120 g/kg) and graded levels of crude protein (356.3, 383.9, 411.5, 439.2 and 466.8 g/kg). The results suggested that the growth, feed utilization and whole-body crude protein levels were significantly increased when fish were fed diets containing 439.2 and 466.8 g/kg crude protein. Meanwhile, low dietary protein levels (356.3 and 383.9 g/kg) significantly down-regulated the mRNA levels of insulin-like growth factor I, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, complement 3 and lysozyme, and also up-regulated the insulin-like growth factor binding protein 1 as well as proinflammatory cytokine expression in the liver, including interleukin 1β, interleukin 8 and tumor necrosis factor-α. Moreover, low dietary protein levels (356.3 and 383.9 g/kg) damaged liver structure, suppressed total antioxidative capacity and increased the malondialdehyde content in liver. In conclusion, high dietary protein (439.2 and 466.8 g/kg) promoted fish growth, while low dietary protein (356.3 and 383.9 g/kg) damaged liver structure, induced oxidative stress and inflammatory responses and weakened non-specific immunity. The protein requirement of O. mykiss reared in the convection-water cages is no less than 439.2 g/kg for optimal growth, antioxidant and immune properties.

An 8-week feeding experiment was conducted to investigate whether diet supplementation of lutein could result in similar growth performance, antioxidant capacity, and immunity of Litopenaeus vannamei when compared to dietary astaxanthin. Juvenile L. vannamei (initial body weight: 0.64 ± 0.04 g) were fed with one of five isonitrogen and isolipids diets with/without lutein or astaxanthin [control group (C); the lutein (L) groups contained 0, 62.5, 75, 87.5 ppm lutein, respectively, the astaxanthin (A) group contained 50 ppm astaxanthin]. Results showed that dietary supplementation of lutein ranging from 62.5 to 75 ppm resulted in similar growth performance (WGR, SGR, FCR, and SR) of L. vannamei compared with the A group (P > 0.05). Apart from that, no statistical difference was observed in antioxidant parameters (hemolymph T-AOC, hemolymph MDA, and RNA expression level of GSH-PX, CAT), anti-inflammatory ability (Relish, Rho, and HSP70) and apoptosis-related gene expression (Caspase3) among lutein treatments ranging from 62.5 to 87.5 ppm and the A group (P > 0.05). These results indicate that a dose of 62.5–75 ppm of lutein was suitable in the diet of L. vannamei for substituting dietary astaxanthin.

The coloring efficiency and physiological function of astaxanthin in fish vary with its regions. The aim of this study was to compare the retention rates of dietary astaxanthin from different sources and its effects on growth, pigmentation, and physiological function in Oncorhynchus mykiss. Fish were fed astaxanthin-supplemented diets (LP: 0.1% Lucantin® Pink CWD; CP: 0.1% Carophyll® Pink; EP: 0.1% Essention® Pink; PR: 1% Phaffia rhodozyma; HP: 1% Haematococcus pluvialis), or a diet without astaxanthin supplementation, for 56 days. Dietary astaxanthin enhanced pigmentation as well as the growth of the fish. The intestinal morphology of fish was improved, and the crude protein content of dorsal muscle significantly increased in fish fed with astaxanthin. Moreover, astaxanthin led to a decrease in total cholesterol levels and alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase activity in plasma. Fish fed on the CP diet also produced the highest level of umami amino acids (aspartic acid and glutamic acid). Regarding antioxidant capacity, astaxanthin increased Nrf2/HO-1 signaling and antioxidant enzyme activity. Innate immune responses, including lysozyme and complement systems, were also stimulated by astaxanthin. Lucantin® Pink CWD had the highest stability in feed and achieved the best pigmentation, Essention® Pink performed best in growth promotion and Carophyll® Pink resulted in the best flesh quality. H. pluvialis was the astaxanthin source for achieving the best antioxidant properties and immunity of O. mykiss.

The influence of matching between robots’ social cues on users’ social perceptions should be investigated systematically to better fit robots to their occupational roles. In this study, an experiment with 69 older and middle-aged participants was conducted to explore the effects of the voice and lighting color of a home healthcare robot on users’ social perception, which was measured by the Robotic Social Attributes Scale (RoSAS). The results indicated that voice and lighting color significantly affected social perceptions of the healthcare robot. Specifically, the adopted robot received high warmth ratings when it had an adult female voice or a child voice, whereas it received high competence ratings when it had an adult male voice. The robot received a high warmth rating and a high competence rating when warm and cool lighting were used, respectively, as visual feedback. Furthermore, a mismatch in the robot’s voice and lighting color was discovered to evoke feelings of discomfort. The findings of this study can be used as a reference to design robots with acceptable social perception and to expand the roles of social robots in the future.

Barranca yajiagengensis, a novel filamentous microalga, can accumulate lutein under high-light and low-nitrogen conditions. It is well known that lutein has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and immune-modulating properties. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of including lutein-rich B. yajiagengensis powder in the diet of Trachinotus ovatus on the growth performance, antioxidant capacity, immunity, liver, and intestinal morphology. For this aim, three experimental diets containing 0% (BY0), 1% (BY1), and 5% (BY5) B. yajiagengensis powder were formulated for six-week feeding trials. The results indicated that growth performance, feed utilization, and intestinal morphology were not affected by different diet treatments. Fish fed with the BY5 diet promoted antioxidant ability by activating the Nrf2-ARE signal pathway and enhancing antioxidant enzymes activities. Furthermore, the BY5 diet improved non-specific immunity and antibacterial ability by activating lysozymes and the complement system and increasing the nitric oxide (NO) content and total nitric oxide synthase activity. Dietary B. yajiagengensis supplementation improved the liver morphology and exerted hepatoprotective effects. Therefore, as a natural source of lutein, B. yajiagengensis has the potential as a safe and non-toxic immunostimulant for T. ovatus. A diet supplemented with 5% B. yajiagengensis is recommended to improve the growth, antioxidant capacity, immune response, and liver health of T. ovatus.

Protein is the most expensive nutrient in aquafeed. Cottonseed meal can be used as an important source of plant protein in aquafeed because of its low price and high yield. Concentrated dephenolized cottonseed protein (CDCP) is a promising alternative source of fish meal obtained by processing cottonseed meal to remove gossypol. In this study, an 8-week feeding experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of replacing fishmeal by CDCP on growth performance, intestinal histomorphology, body composition, hematological and antioxidant parameters of Oncorhynchus mykiss. Six isonitrogenous (43 %) and isolipid (14 %) experimental diets were formulated to replace 0% (D1), 10 % (D2), 20 % (D3), 30 % (D4), 40 % (D5), 50 % (D6) of fish meal by a corresponding amount of CDCP. The results indicated that the replacement of 10 %–50 % fish meal by CDCP had no adverse effect on the growth, feed utilization and survival rate of O. mykiss. The whole-body and muscle composition and hematological parameters of O. mykiss have not changed due to the replacement of 10 %–50 % of fish meal by CDCP. No significant pathological changes in the mid-gut was observed among all experimental groups. The length of villus was not affected by the substitution of fish meal with CDCP. There was no significant difference on the activity of SOD and T-AOC in fish fed with different diets. However, the MDA contents of fish fed the D1- D3 diets were significantly higher than that of fish fed the D4-D6 diets. In conclusion, there was no adverse effect on growth performance, intestinal histomorphology, body composition, hematological and antioxidant parameters of O. mykiss by replacing 10 %–50 % fish meal with concentrated dephenolized cottonseed protein. The antioxidant capacity of O. mykiss was improved by replacing 30 %–50 % fish meal with CDCP. CDCP is a suitable protein source for O. mykiss.

Nrf2 is an important component of Nrf2-ARE signaling pathway. However, information about Nrf2 in golden pompano (Trachinotus ovatus) is quiet limited. Thus, the full length of Nrf2 was cloned from T. ovatus in this study. The full-length cDNA sequence was 2376 bp in length and comprised of a 1848 bp ORF preceded by 123 bp 5′UTR, and followed by a 405 bp UTR. The putative amino acid sequence of the Nrf2 contained 615 residues, consisting of a conservative basic region leucin zipper. The N terminal portion of Nrf2 is rich in glutamic and aspartic acids and functioned as an acidic type of activation domain. The C terminus of the protein contained a region with heptad repeats of leucines. The phylogenetic tree showed that Seriola dumerili and T. ovatus were clustered as a branch, and combined with Mastacembelus armatus, Oreochromis niloticus and Takifugu rubripes. This branch of 5 species clustered with other branch of Oncorhynchus mykiss and Salmo salar. Nrf2 gene was predominantly expressed in liver and gut. The relative expression of Nrf2 in liver was significantly higher than that in brain, kidney, spleen and heart. After air-exposure, the expression level of HIF-1 alpha, keap1, Nrf2, HO-1, SOD and GSH-PX were significantly higher in air-exposure group than that in control group. This present study showed that Nrf2 plays a pivotal role in oxidative stress caused by air-exposure in T. ovatus, providing information about response to oxidative stress on the basis of the Nrf2-ARE pathway in T. ovatus.

The present study was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary lipid levels on lipid metabolism, growth performance, antioxidant ability and intestinal morphology of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) under cage culture with flowing water. O. mykiss (average initial body weight 17.64 ± 0.05 g) were fed with six diets (L1, L2, L3, L4, L5 and L6) containing six levels of lipid (10.03 %, 12.97 %, 17.22 %, 20.16 %, 23.19 %, 26.06 %) for 8 weeks. Result showed that weight gain (WG), specific growth rate (SGR) and feed intake (FI) of fish were increased with increasing of dietary lipid levels (P < 0.05). Fish fed D6 diet had higher viscerosomatic index (VSI) and mesenteric fat index (MFI) compared with fish fed other diets. The moisture and crude protein contents in whole body and muscle decreased with increasing of dietary lipid levels, but crude lipid content showed the opposite trend. The hepatic superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity was increased with increasing of dietary lipid levels (P < 0.05), while no significant differences were found in hepatic malondialdehyde (MDA) content (P> 0.05). Correspondingly, the mRNA relative expression of SOD in liver was increased with increasing of dietary lipid levels (P < 0.05). Fish fed the diet (L6) containing 26.06 % lipid level showed the optimal intestinal morphology not only in villus amount and height but also in muscular layer thickness. The lipid metabolism related genes expression such as fatty acid synthetase (FAS), lipoprotein lipase (LPL), were significantly affected by dietary lipid levels (P < 0.05). The mRNA relative expression of FAS was increased from L1 to L4 and then decreased with the increasing of dietary lipid levels. The mRNA expression of LPL in fish fed with L5 and L6 diets were significantly higher than other treatments. These results indicated that the suitable lipid requirement of rainbow trout under cage culture with flowing water was not less than 26.06 %.

The present study investigated the potential mechanisms of astaxanthin in the regulation of gastrointestinal immunity and retinal mitochondrial function of golden pompano (Trachinotus ovatus). Triplicate groups of juvenile T. ovatus (mean initial weight: 6.03 ± 0.01 g) were fed one of six diets (D1, D2, D3, D4, D5, and D6) for 8 weeks, with each diet containing various concentrations of astaxanthin (0, 0.0005, 0.001, 0.005, 0.01, or 0.1%, respectively). Growth performance of fish fed the D2–D5 diets was higher than that of fish fed the D1 diet; however, growth performance and survival of fish deteriorated sharply in fish fed the D6 diet. Gut villus in fish fed the D2–D5 diets were significantly longer and wider than that of fish fed the D6 diet. Feeding with D2–D5 diets led to increased abundance of Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Oceanobacillus, Lactococcus, Halomonas, Lactobacillus, and Psychrobacter while abundance of Vibrio and Bacterium decreased. Additionally, feeding with the D6 diet resulted in a sharp decline in Pseudomonas and Lactobacillus abundance and a sharp increase in Vibrio abundance. A low dissolved oxygen environment (DO, 1.08 mg/L) was conducted for 10 h after the rearing trial. No fish mortality was observed for any of the diet treatments. Lysozyme (LZY) activity in fish fed the D6 diet decreased sharply and was significantly lower than that in other groups. ROS production also decreased sharply in fish fed the D6 diet. Moreover, the conjunctiva and sclera in the fish fed the D6 diet were indistinguishable. Suitable dietary astaxanthin supplementation levels (0.005–0.1%) exerting a neuroprotective effect from low dissolved oxygen environments is due to up-regulated expression of anti-apoptotic factors, such as phosphorylated Bcl-2-associated death promoter (pBAD), phosphorylated glycogen synthase kinase-3β (pGSK-3β), Bcl-2 extra large (Bcl-xL), and down-regulated expression of Bcl-2-associated X protein (Bax) pro-apoptotic factor in retinas. Furthermore, suitable dietary astaxanthin levels (0.0005–0.01%) suppressed up-regulation of critical mitochondrial components, such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1α (PGC-1α), mitochondrial transcription factor A (TFAM), and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), while excessive astaxanthin supplementation produces the opposite effect. In brief, high-dose astaxanthin arouses and aggravates low dissolved oxygen-induced inflammation, oxidative stress, intestinal disorder, retinal apoptosis, and retinal mitochondrial dysfunction in T. ovatus. Second-degree polynomial regression of WG indicated that the optimum dietary astaxanthin for juvenile T. ovatus is 0.049%.

Keap1 is an important component of Nrf2-Keap1 signaling pathways. However, information about Keap1 in T. ovatus is quiet limit. Thus, the full length of Keap1 was cloned from T. ovatus in this study. The full-length cDNA sequence was 3373 bp in length and comprised of a 1878 bp ORF preceded by 1205bp 5′-UTR, and followed a 290 bp 3′- UTR. The putative amino acid sequence of the Keap1 contains 625 residues. The Keap1 amino acid sequence contained a BTB domain, an IVR domain and a DGR domain. The phylogenetic tree showed that Seriola dumerili had the highest identity with T. ovatus in Keap1 amino acid. The results show that Keap1 gene was predominantly expressed in liver, kidney, spleen and gill, significantly higher than that of other tissues. The relative expression of Keap1 in foregut and heart were moderately expressed. After feeding with oxidized fish oil for 8 weeks, the head kidney expression levels of Keap1, Nrf2, HO-1, SOD and CAT in T. ovatus were significantly higher than those in control group. Administration of LPS for 72 h in T. ovatus activated the Nrf2-Keap1 pathways and upregulated the expression level of HO-1, GSH-PX, SOD and CAT. In conclusion, Keap1 is evolutionarily and functionally conserved in T. ovatus. Keap1 expression level was significantly higher in oxidative stress caused by oxidized fish oil and LPS administration, suggesting that Keap1 plays a pivotal role in Nrf2-Keap1 pathway of T. ovatus.

An 8-week feeding trial was conducted to evaluate the effects of xylooligosaccharde (XOS) on growth, immunity and disease resistance of juvenile grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella). Fish (3.05 ± 0.01 g) were fed with diets containing XOS at levels of 0, 0.05 %, 0.1 %, 0.2 %, 0.4 % and 0.6 %. Results showed that the plasma triglyceride content was significantly lower in fish fed dietary 0.05 % and 0.1 % XOS compared to the control group (P

This study mainly evaluated the low dietary fish-meal (FM) on growth performance, immune competence and metabolomics response of juvenile Pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei reared at low salinity (7‰). Five experimental diets with graded levels (25, 20, 15, 10, and 5%) of FM were formulated. Weight gain, feed utilization and survival were decreased with the decreasing FM levels. When dietary FM decreased, glucose, cholesterol, total bile acids, and triglyceride in hemolymph decreased. Fatty acid synthesis was promoted and fatty acid lipolysis was reduced in hepatopancreas of shrimp fed low dietary FM. Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress related genes expression in hepatopancreas were down-regulated and in intestine were upregulated by low dietary FM. Inhibitor kappa B kinaseβ expression in intestine increased with the dietary FM levels, while mRNA levels of dorsal in hepatopancreas showed the opposite tendency. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stain and transmission electron microscope analysis of intestinal samples indicated that low FM diets induced intestinal morphological damage, ER swollen and chromatin condensation. UPLC-Q/TOF-MS analysis indicated that degree of unsaturation of the fatty acid chains of phospholipids in hemolymph decreased with the decreasing dietary FM levels. Lysophospholipids and bile acids metabolism were disturbed by high levels of FM sparing in diet. These results indicated when dietary FM contents decreased, ER stress of shrimp was induced. The decreased unsaturated degree of phospholipids, decreased contents of lysophospholipids, altered lipid metabolism and ER stress may responsible for the impaired growth performance and health of shrimp fed a low FM diet.

The impacts of dietary mannan oligosaccharide (MOS) and Bacillus lincheniformis (B. lincheniformis) on growth performance, immune responses, intestinal health and ammonia resistance of Litopenaeus vannamei were explored. Four resultant diets (control diet (CON), 0.2 % MOS (MOS), 0.1 % B. lincheniformis (BL), 0.2 % MOS plus 0.1 % BL (SYN)) were produced to feed shrimps for 8 weeks. Results showed that significantly higher weight gain (WG), specific growth rate (SGR), protein efficiency ratio (PER) and protein productive value (PPV) were found in shrimp fed the SYN diet (P < 0.05). The villus number (VN) and villus height (VH) of shrimps fed the SYN diet were significantly higher than those of shrimps fed the CON diet (P

To explore the impacts of dietary hydrolyzed yeast (Rhodotorula mucilaginosa) and Bacillus licheniformis (B. licheniformis) on the growth, intestinal histology, innate immune response and ammonia resistance of Litopenaeus vannamei, four experimental diets (basal diet (Control); 0.5 % hydrolyzed yeast (HY); 0.1 % B. lincheniformis (BL) and 0.5 % hydrolyzed yeast + 0.1 % B. licheniformis (SYN)) were fed shrimps for 8 weeks. Results showed no significant differences on growth and body composition among all treatments, while a significantly higher feed efficiency (FE) in shrimp fed BL diet and a significantly higher protein efficiency ratio (PER) in shrimp fed BL and SYN diets were found compared to those in shrimp fed the Control diet (P

The aim of the present experiment was to evaluate the effects of Schizochytrium limacinum supplementation on the immune response, gut microbiota, and health of Penaeus monodon fed a low fish-meal (FM) diet. A diet containing 25% FM was used as a control (Diet A), and three other diets were formulated to contain 15% FM and supplemented with 0, 0.75, and 1.5% S. limacinum (Diet B, C, and D, respectively). The experiment was carried out in quadruplicates (30 shrimp per replicate, average weight 1.01 ± 0.01 g), and the shrimps were fed the test diets to apparent satiation three times daily for 8 weeks. Shrimp fed diet B and D showed lower weight gain than those fed diet A. Supplementation of 0.75% S. limacinum enhanced expression of antioxidative genes (superoxide dismutase and catalase) and immune-response-related genes in hepatopancreas but could not affect the gene expression of immune deficiency in hepatopancreas and Tube in the intestine. A low FM diet induced endoplasmic reticulum swelling of the intestinal epithelial cells, which was alleviated by S. limacinum supplementation. Ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time of flight mass spectrometry was employed to analyze the changes of hemolymph metabolomics, 49 significantly different metabolites were identified, and lysoPCs, deoxyinosine, inosine, and highly unsaturated fatty acids were lower in fish fed with low FM diets. Intestinal microbial diversity was lower in shrimp fed Diet B than those fed the control diet. Dietary supplementation of 0.75% S. limacinum increased intestinal microbial diversity of shrimp and decreased the ratio of pathogenic bacterium (Thalassotalea and Tenacibaculum). These results indicated that supplementing S. limacinum into a low FM diet improves the growth performance, immune response, and intestinal health of P. monodon. The optimum inclusion level of seems to be 0.75% of diet.

Biotherapeutic drugs against tumor necrosis factor (TNF) are effective treatments for moderate to severe inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Here, we evaluated CNTO 5048, an antimurine TNF surrogate monoclonal antibody (mAb), in a CD45RBhigh adoptive T cell transfer mouse colitis model, which allows examination of the early immunological events associated with gut inflammation and the therapeutic effects. The study was designed to quantitatively understand the effects of IBD on CNTO 5048 disposition, the ability of CNTO 5048 to neutralize pathogenic TNF at the colon under disease conditions, and the impact of dosing regimen on CNTO 5048 treatment effect. CNTO 5048 and TNF concentrations in both mice serum and colon homogenate were also measured. Free TNF concentrations in colon, but not in serum, were shown to correlate well with the colon pharmacodynamic readout, such as the summed histopathology score and neutrophil score. A minimal physiologically based pharmacokinetic (mPBPK) model was developed to characterize CNTO 5048 PK and disposition, as well as colon soluble TNF target engagement (TE). The mPBPK/TE model reasonably captured the observed data and provided a quantitative understanding of an anti-TNF mAb on its colon TNF suppression and therapeutic effect in a physiologically relevant IBD animal model. These results also provided insights into the potential benefits of using induction doses for the treatment of IBD patients.

Abstract The objective of this research was to study the effect of astaxanthin (AST) on growth performance and antioxidant capacity in golden pompano (Trachinotus ovatus) both in vivo and in vitro. In the in vivo study, two diets were formulated with or without astaxanthin supplementation (D1 and D2; 0 and 200 mg/kg) to feed fish for 6 weeks. In the in vitro study, cells from hepatopancreas of golden pompano were isolated and four treatments with or without astaxanthin and H2O2 supplementation were applied (control group: without both astaxanthin and H2O2 treated; H2O2 group: just with H2O2 treated; H2O2 + AST group: with both astaxanthin and H2O2 treated; AST group: just with AST treated). Results of the in vivo study showed that weight gain (WG) and special growth rate (SGR) significantly increased with astaxanthin supplemented (P