Molecular mechanism of Serratia marcescens Bizio infection in Reticulitermes chinensis Snyder based on full-length SMRT transcriptome sequencing

Reticulitermes chinensis Snyder is an important pest in forestry and construction and is widely distributed in China. We found that Serratia marcescens Bizio strain SM1 has insecticidal activity to R. chinensis, but the pathogenic mechanism of SM1 to R. chinensis is not clear. Therefore, full-length transcriptome sequencing was performed on R. chinensis infected with SM1 and the control group. A total of 230 differentially expressed genes were identified by comparing SM1 infection group and the control group, among which 103 were downregulated and 127 were upregulated. We found downregulated genes in nine metabolic pathway categories, among which carbohydrate metabolism had the most downregulated genes, followed by energy metabolism and amino acid metabolism. We also found that some downregulated genes were related to pattern recognition receptors, cellular immunity, and humoral immunity, indicating that R. chinensis immunity was negatively affected by SM1 infection. In addition, some genes in signal transduction and genetic information processing pathways were downregulated. In this study, high-throughput full-length transcriptome analysis was used to analyse the pathogenic mechanism of SM1 to R. chinensis. The results of this study provide useful information for exploring the relationship between SM1 and R. chinensis, and provide theoretical support for the future application of SM1 and the prevention and treatment of R. chinensis.

Cloning of three epsilon-class glutathione S-transferase genes from Micromelalopha troglodyta (Graeser) (Lepidoptera: Notodontidae) and their response to tannic acid

Micromelalopha troglodyta (Graeser) is an important pest of poplar in China, and glutathione S-transferase (GST) is an important detoxifying enzyme in M. troglodyta. In this paper, three full-length GST genes from M. troglodyta were cloned and identified. These GST genes all belonged to the epsilon class (MtGSTe1, MtGSTe2, and MtGSTe3). Furthermore, the expression of these three MtGSTe genes in different tissues, including midguts and fat bodies, and the MtGSTe expression in association with different concentrations of tannic acid, including 0.001, 0.01, 0.1, 1, and 10 mg ml-1, were analysed in detail. The results showed that the expression levels of MtGSTe1, MtGSTe2, and MtGSTe3 were all the highest in the fourth instar larvae; the expression levels of MtGSTe1 and MtGSTe3 were the highest in fat bodies, while the expression level of MtGSTe2 was the highest in midguts. Furthermore, the expression of MtGSTe mRNA was induced by tannic acid in M. troglodyta. These studies were helpful to clarify the interaction between plant secondary substances and herbivorous insects at a deep level and provided a theoretical foundation for controlling M. troglodyta.

Combined chemotherapy of zoledronic acid and pamidronate in the treatment of bone metastases from nonsmall cell lung cancer and the effects on pain stress and bone metabolic indices

OBJECTIVE

We conducted this paper to decipher the efficacy of the combined chemotherapy of zoledronic acid and pamidronate in treating bone metastases from nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and the effects on pain stress and bone metabolic indices.

METHODS

Patients with bone metastases from NSCLC were allocated into Group A and Group B. Patients in the Group A were administrated with pamidronate combined chemotherapy and patients in the Group B were administrated with zoledronic acid combined chemotherapy. The efficacy, pain symptom scores, quality of life scores, serum inflammatory factor, serum bone metabolic indices, serum pain stress indicators, and the occurrence of adverse effects were compared in patients of the two groups.

RESULTS

The total effective rate of treatment was higher in the Group B than in the Group A. After treatment, reduced Numerical Rating Scale scores and elevated Karnofsky Performance Score score, reduced serum levels of N-terminal mid-fragment of osteocalcin, N-terminal propeptide of type I procollagen, bone-specific alkaline phosphatase, and type I collagen hydroxyl terminal peptide β special sequence, reduced serum levels of C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, tumor necrosis factor-α, and interleukin-6, as well as decreased levels of bradykinin, substance P, neuropeptide Y, and β-endorphin were found in the Group B versus the Group A. No notable difference was witnessed in the rate of adverse reactions between the Group A and the Group B.

CONCLUSION

Zoledronic acid combined with chemotherapy can effectively treat bone metastases of NSCLC and improve pain stress and bone metabolic status, which has value that can be promoted and applied in clinical treatment.

Characteristic microbiome and synergistic mechanism by engineering agent MAB-1 to evaluate oil-contaminated soil biodegradation in different layer soil

Bioremediation is a sustainable and pollution-free technology for crude oil-contaminated soil. However, most studies are limited to the remediation of shallow crude oil-contaminated soil, while ignoring the deeper soil. Here, a high-efficiency composite microbial agent MAB-1 was provided containing Bacillus (naphthalene and pyrene), Acinetobacter (cyclohexane), and Microbacterium (xylene) to be synergism degradation of crude oil components combined with other treatments. According to the crude oil degradation rate, the up-layer (63.64%), middle-layer (50.84%), and underlying-layer (54.21%) crude oil-contaminated soil are suitable for bioaugmentation (BA), biostimulation (BS), and biostimulation+bioventing (BS+BV), respectively. Combined with GC-MS and carbon number distribution analysis, under the optimal biotreatment, the degradation rates of 2-ring and 3-ring PAHs in layers soil were about 70% and 45%, respectively, and the medium and long-chain alkanes were reduced during the remediation. More importantly, the relative abundance of bacteria associated with crude oil degradation increased in each layer after the optimal treatment, such as Microbacterium (2.10-14%), Bacillus (2.56-12.1%), and Acinetobacter (0.95-12.15%) in the up-layer soil; Rhodococcus (1.5-6.9%) in the middle-layer soil; and Pseudomonas (3-5.4%) and Rhodococcus (1.3-13.2%) in the underlying-layer soil. Our evaluation results demonstrated that crude oil removal can be accelerated by adopting appropriate bioremediation approach for different depths of soil, providing a new perspective for the remediation of actual crude oil-contaminated sites.

Gene and Photothermal Combination Therapy: Principle, Materials, and Amplified Anticancer Intervention

Gene therapy (GT) and photothermal therapy (PTT) have emerged as promising alternatives to chemotherapy and radiotherapy for cancer treatment, offering noninvasiveness and reduced side effects. However, their efficacy as standalone treatments is limited. GT exhibits slow response rates, while PTT is confined to local tumor ablation. The convergence of GT and PTT, known as GT-PTT, facilitated by photothermal gene nanocarriers, has attracted considerable attention across various disciplines. In this integrated approach, GT reciprocates PTT by sensitizing cellular response to heat, while PTT benefits GT by improving gene translocation, unpacking, and expression. Consequently, this integration presents a unique opportunity for cancer therapy with rapid response and improved effectiveness. Extensive efforts over the past few years have been dedicated to the development of GT-PTT, resulting in notable achievements and rapid progress from the laboratory to potential clinical applications. This comprehensive review outlines recent advances in GT-PTT, including synergistic mechanisms, material systems, imaging-guided therapy, and anticancer applications. It also explores the challenges and future prospects in this nascent field. By presenting innovative ideas and insights into the implementation of GT-PTT for enhanced cancer therapy, this review aims to inspire further progress in this promising area of research.

Ultrasensitive and selective detection of sulfamethazine in milk via a Janus-labeled Au nanoparticle-based surface-enhanced Raman scattering-immunochromatographic assay

Sulfamethazine (SM2) is an antibacterial drug，which has been extensively used in human and veterinary medicine, long-term consumption of which may lead to the accumulation of sulfonamides in the body. Detection of sulfonamides often uses microbiological approaches, mass spectrometry and chromatography, which are expensive and time-consuming. Surface-enhanced Raman scattering-based immunochromatographic assay (SERS-ICA) has been recently applied in the detection. Herein, a Janus-labeled Au nanoparticle with subnanosized SiO2-monoclonal antibody and SERS reporter (DTNB) modified simultaneously (mAbAuNpDTNB) has been developed in a SERS-based lateral flow immunosensor, which can be used for rapid, quantitative and ultrasensitive detection of sulfamethazine residue in milk. The mAbAuNpDTNB exhibits a specific array on a paper stripe, which not only identifies sulfamethazine but also straightforwardly exposes the Raman reporter between the AuNps via self-assembly. The detection sensitivity of SERS-ICA for sulfamethazine reached 0.1 pg/mL, which was far below the previously published value by ELISA and the maximum residue limit set by the European Union. The entire SERS-ICA detection for sulfamethazine was completed within 15 min. Furthermore, high accuracy for this assay was exhibited in the spiking experiment with a recovery percentage of 88.1%-112.7%. The results demonstrated that this SERS-ICA can potentially be applied in point-of-care testing as an ultrasensitive and quantitative to semi-quantitative analytical method.

The causal effect of cytokine cycling levels on osteoarthritis: a bidirectional Mendelian randomized study

Objective

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most prevalent joint disease globally, serving as a primary cause of pain and disability. However, the pathological processes underlying OA remain incompletely understood. Several studies have noted an association between cytokines and OA, yet the causal link between them remains ambiguous. This study aims to identify cytokines potentially causally related to OA using Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis, informing early clinical diagnosis and treatment decisions.

Methods

We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) on 12 OA traits involving 177,517 cases and 649,173 controls from 9 international cohorts. For discovery MR analysis, we used 103 cytokines from two European populations as instrumental variables (IVs). Concurrently, another European population OA GWAS database (36,185 cases and 135,185 controls) was used to replicate MR analysis, employing the inverse variance weighted (IVW) method as the primary analytic approach. Additional methods tested included MR Egger, Weighted median, and Weighted mode. We merged the MR findings through meta-analysis. Heterogeneity testing, level pleiotropy testing (MR Egger intercept test and MRPRESSO), and sensitivity analysis via Leave One Out (LOO) were conducted to verify result robustness. Lastly, reverse MR analysis was performed.

Results

The meta-analysis merger revealed a correlation between CX3CL1 cycle levels and increased OA risk (OR=1.070, 95% CI: 1.040-1.110; P<0.010). We also observed associations between MCP4 (OR=0.930, 95% CI: 0.890-0.970; P<0.010) and CCL25 (OR=0.930, 95% CI: 0.890-0.970; P<0.010) with reduced OA risk. The sensitivity analysis results corroborate the robustness of these findings.

Conclusion

Our MR analysis indicates a potential causal relationship between CX3CL1, MCP4, CCL25, and OA risk changes. Further research is warranted to explore the influence of cytokines on OA development.

Lipid parameters, adipose tissue distribution and prognosis prediction in chronic kidney Disease patients

BACKGROUND

Lipid management in clinic is critical to the prevention and treatment of Chronic kidney disease (CKD), while the manifestations of lipid indicators vary in types and have flexible association with CKD prognosis.

PURPOSE

Explore the associations between the widely used indicators of lipid metabolism and their distribution in clinic and CKD prognosis; provide a reference for lipid management and inform treatment decisions for patients with non-dialysis CKD stage 3-5.

METHODS

This is a retrospective cohort study utilizing the Self-Management Program for Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease Cohort (SMP-CKD) database of 794 individuals with CKD stages 3-5. It covers demographic data, clinical diagnosis and medical history collection, laboratory results, circulating lipid profiles and lipid distribution assessments. Primary endpoint was defined as a composite outcome(the initiation of chronic dialysis or renal transplantation, sustained decline of 40% or more in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), doubled of serum creatinine (SCr) from the baseline, eGFR less than 5 mL/min/1.73m2, or all-cause mortality). Exposure variables were circulating lipid profiles and lipid distribution measurements. Association were assessed using Relative risks (RRs) (95% confidence intervals (CIs)) computed by multivariate Poisson models combined with least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression according to categories of lipid manifestations. The best model was selected via akaike information criterion (AIC), area under curve (AUC), receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) and net reclassification index (NRI). Subgroup analysis and sensitivity analysis were performed to assess the interaction effects and robustness..

RESULTS

255 individuals reached the composite outcome. Median follow-up duration was 2.03 [1.06, 3.19] years. Median age was 58.8 [48.7, 67.2] years with a median eGFR of 33.7 [17.6, 47.8] ml/min/1.73 m2. Five dataset were built after multiple imputation and five category-based Possion models were constructed for each dataset. Model 5 across five datasets had the best fitness with smallest AIC and largest AUC. The pooled results of Model 5 showed that total cholesterol (TC) (RR (95%CI) (per mmol/L) :1.143[1.023,1.278], P = 0.018) and percentage of body fat (PBF) (RR (95%CI) (per percentage):0.976[0.961,0.992], P = 0.003) were significant factors of composite outcome. The results indicated that comprehensive consideration of lipid metabolism and fat distribution is more critical in the prediction of CKD prognosis..

CONCLUSION

Comprehensive consideration of lipid manifestations is optimal in predicting the prognosis of individuals with non-dialysis CKD stages 3-5.

Identifying vital sign trajectories to predict 28-day mortality of critically ill elderly patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome

BACKGROUND

The mortality rate of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) increases with age (≥ 65 years old) in critically ill patients, and it is necessary to prevent mortality in elderly patients with ARDS in the intensive care unit (ICU). Among the potential risk factors, dynamic subphenotypes of respiratory rate (RR), heart rate (HR), and respiratory rate-oxygenation (ROX) and their associations with 28-day mortality have not been clearly explored.

METHODS

Based on the eICU Collaborative Research Database (eICU-CRD), this study used a group-based trajectory model to identify longitudinal subphenotypes of RR, HR, and ROX during the first 72 h of ICU stays. A logistic model was used to evaluate the associations of trajectories with 28-day mortality considering the group with the lowest rate of mortality as a reference. Restricted cubic spline was used to quantify linear and nonlinear effects of static RR-related factors during the first 72 h of ICU stays on 28-day mortality. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to assess the prediction models with the Delong test.

RESULTS

A total of 938 critically ill elderly patients with ARDS were involved with five and 5 trajectories of RR and HR, respectively. A total of 204 patients fit 4 ROX trajectories. In the subphenotypes of RR, when compared with group 4, the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of group 3 were 2.74 (1.48-5.07) (P = 0.001). Regarding the HR subphenotypes, in comparison to group 1, the ORs and 95% CIs were 2.20 (1.19-4.08) (P = 0.012) for group 2, 2.70 (1.40-5.23) (P = 0.003) for group 3, 2.16 (1.04-4.49) (P = 0.040) for group 5. Low last ROX had a higher mortality risk (P linear = 0.023, P nonlinear = 0.010). Trajectories of RR and HR improved the predictive ability for 28-day mortality (AUC increased by 2.5%, P = 0.020).

CONCLUSIONS

For RR and HR, longitudinal subphenotypes are risk factors for 28-day mortality and have additional predictive enrichment, whereas the last ROX during the first 72 h of ICU stays is associated with 28-day mortality. These findings indicate that maintaining the health dynamic subphenotypes of RR and HR in the ICU and elevating static ROX after initial critical care may have potentially beneficial effects on prognosis in critically ill elderly patients with ARDS.

A pilot study of newborn screening for X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy based on liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method for detection of C26:0-lysophosphatidylcholine in dried blood spots: Results from 43,653 newborns in a southern Chinese population

BACKGROUND

X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (X-ALD) is a rare X-linked disease caused by mutations of the ABCD1 gene. C26:0-lysophosphatidylcholine (C26:0-LPC) has been proved to be an accurate biomarker for X-ALD. This study aims to propose an effective method for screening of X-ALD and to evaluate the performance of the newborn screening (NBS) assay for X-ALD in Guangzhou.

METHODS

C26:0-LPC in dried blood spots (DBS) was extracted by methanol solution containing isotope-labelled internal standard (C26:0-d4-LPC) and analyzed using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The sensitivity of the method was assessed in eight male X-ALD patients, two female carriers and 583 healthy controls. The method was conducted on 43,653 newborns. Next generation sequencing was performed on screen-positive samples. Plasma analysis of very long-chain fatty acids and genetic counselling were performed by way of follow-up.

RESULTS

Elevated C26:0-LPC were 100% sensitive for screening of X-ALD. Of 43,653 newborns, 32 (18 males, 14 females) screened positive. Of these, 14 (43.7%) were identified ABCD1 variants, including seven hemizygous males and seven heterozygous females, and two (6.3%) were diagnosed with other peroxisomal disorders.

CONCLUSION

The LC-MS/MS method for screening of X-ALD can identify males, heterozygous females and other peroxisomal disorders. The incidence of X-ALD in Guangzhou is not low.

Risk factors for venous ulceration in patients with varicose veins of lower extremities

The aim of this case-control study was to explore the potential risk factors for venous ulceration in patients with varicose veins of lower extremities and to establish a simplified diagnostic score model. Seventy subjects with varicose veins of lower extremities and venous ulceration were compared with 1164 controls with varicose veins of lower extremities and no history of venous ulceration. Stepwise multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify the risk factors for venous ulceration. The steps in developing the diagnostic score model were based on the Framingham Heart study. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) was calculated to assess the diagnostic ability of the diagnostic score model. Multivariate analysis showed that men, overweight, obesity, longer duration varicose veins, deep venous valve insufficiency, low lymphocyte counts, and high fibrinogen content were independently associated with an increased risk of venous ulceration. The AUC for the diagnostic score model was 0.75, which indicated good discriminatory ability. Special attention should be paid to the high-risk group of patients with lower extremity varicose veins. The diagnostic score model might be a useful screening tool for clinicians, policy makers, and patients.

Efficacy of adalimumab combined with Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F in the treatment of patient with rheumatoid arthritis: A multicenter, open-label, randomized-controlled trial

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of adalimumab (ADA) combined with Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F (TwHF) in the treatment of methotrexate (MTX)-inadequate response patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

METHODS

In this multicenter, open-label, randomized controlled clinical trial, 64 RA patients with inadequate response to MTX were 1:1 randomly assigned into treatment or control groups. The treatment group was treated with ADA in combination with TwHF, and the control group was treated with ADA in combination with MTX for 24 weeks. The primary endpoint was the percentage of patients having low disease activity (2.6 ≤ DAS28-ESR < 3.2) and remission rates (DAS28-ESR < 2.6) at week 24.

RESULTS

In total, 53 of the 64 patients (82.8%) completed this 24-week clinical trial. By intent-to-treat (ITT) analysis, a comparable outcome was observed between the two groups. The percentage of patients achieving low disease activity in the treatment group and control group were 43.8% and 46.9% (95% CI, 21.28 to 27.48, p = .802). Percentage of patients achieving low disease activity rates were respectively 28.1% and 31.3% in the treatment group and control group (95% CI, 19.18 to 25.58, p = .784). In per-protocol (PP) analysis, the results were consistent with the ITT model. The incidence of adverse events was comparable between the two groups.

CONCLUSIONS

There were no significant differences in efficacy and safety between ADA combined with TwHF versus ADA combined with MTX in the treatment of RA. TwHF might be an alternative treatment for RA patients who are intolerant to MTX.

Qualitative research on the cognition of breastfeeding knowledge in primiparas during pregnancy

BACKGROUND

In view of the lack of attention and predictability in postpartum breastfeeding in primiparas, health education on breastfeeding during pregnancy should be carried out to publicize the benefits of breastfeeding.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate how well the primiparas during pregnancy are known of breastfeeding knowledge, and to provide a basis for developing health education measures for them.

METHODS

With the adoption of the objective sampling method and the principle of saturation, 10 primiparas in the obstetrics outpatient department of the Hunan Provincial People's Hospital were selected as the study participants. Semi-structured in-depth interviews combined with the observation method were used for data collection. The interview data were analyzed and the theme was refined by Colaizzi's seven-step method.

RESULTS

The results of the four themes of the cognition of breastfeeding knowledge among primiparas were as follows: Lack of knowledge and curiosity about breastfeeding in some women, lack of access to correct breastfeeding knowledge, insufficient support from family members for postpartum breastfeeding, and lack of approach to solve problems during breastfeeding among primiparas.

CONCLUSION

Due to the current problems of the cognition of breastfeeding knowledge in primiparas, it was imperative to build a health education model suitable for primiparas to improve this knowledge.

Variety-driven rhizosphere microbiome bestows differential salt tolerance to alfalfa for coping with salinity stress

Soil salinization is a global environmental issue and a significant abiotic stress that threatens crop production. Root-associated rhizosphere microbiota play a pivotal role in enhancing plant tolerance to abiotic stresses. However, limited information is available concerning the specific variations in rhizosphere microbiota driven by different plant genotypes (varieties) in response to varying levels of salinity stress. In this study, we compared the growth performance of three alfalfa varieties with varying salt tolerance levels in soils with different degrees of salinization. High-throughput 16S rRNA and ITS sequencing were employed to analyze the rhizosphere microbial communities. Undoubtedly, the increasing salinity significantly inhibited alfalfa growth and reduced rhizosphere microbial diversity. However, intriguingly, salt-tolerant varieties exhibited relatively lower susceptibility to salinity, maintaining more stable rhizosphere bacterial community structure, whereas the reverse was observed for salt-sensitive varieties. Bacillus emerged as the dominant species in alfalfa's adaptation to salinity stress, constituting 21.20% of the shared bacterial genera among the three varieties. The higher abundance of Bacillus, Ensifer, and Pseudomonas in the rhizosphere of salt-tolerant alfalfa varieties is crucial in determining their elevated salt tolerance. As salinity levels increased, salt-sensitive varieties gradually accumulated a substantial population of pathogenic fungi, such as Fusarium and Rhizoctonia. Furthermore, rhizosphere bacteria of salt-tolerant varieties exhibited increased activity in various metabolic pathways, including biosynthesis of secondary metabolites, carbon metabolism, and biosynthesis of amino acids. It is suggested that salt-tolerant alfalfa varieties can provide more carbon sources to the rhizosphere, enriching more effective plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) such as Pseudomonas to mitigate salinity stress. In conclusion, our results highlight the variety-mediated enrichment of rhizosphere microbiota in response to salinity stress, confirming that the high-abundance enrichment of specific dominant rhizosphere microbes and their vital roles play a significant role in conferring high salt adaptability to these varieties.

Identification of Mudanjiang Phlebovirus in the Daxing'anling Region of China

Mudanjiang phlebovirus (MJPV) is a newly discovered phlebovirus, initially detected from Ixodes persulcatus ticks in China in 2022. In this study, by next-generation sequencing (NGS) on a wide variety of ticks and wild small animals in China, we detected MJPV from I. persulcatus and Meriones meridianus. Additionally, we conducted RT-PCR and sequencing on 1815 adult ticks and 805 wild small mammals collected from eight provinces in China between 2017 and 2021. MJPV RNA-positive results were found in 0.22% (4/1815) of tick samples, as well as in 0.12% (1/805) of rodent samples. All positive detections were obtained from Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia. Sequencing analysis revealed nucleotide similarities ranging from 98.23% to 99.11%, as well as amino acid similarities ranging from 99.12% to100%, between the current MJPV strain and previously reported strains of MJPV. Phylogenetic tree analysis demonstrated that the previously reported MJPV strain along with our two variants clustered together with other tick-borne phenuiviruses, indicating their close relationship within this viral group. This study represents the first detection of MJPV infection in wild rodents, expanding the known host range for this virus in the endemic regions.

Characterizations of the multi-kingdom gut microbiota in Chinese patients with gouty arthritis

OBJECTIVE

The gut microbial composition has been linked to metabolic and autoimmune diseases, including arthritis. However, there is a dearth of knowledge on the gut bacteriome, mycobiome, and virome in patients with gouty arthritis (GA).

METHODS

We conducted a comprehensive analysis of the multi-kingdom gut microbiome of 26 GA patients and 28 healthy controls, using whole-metagenome shotgun sequencing of their stool samples.

RESULTS

Profound alterations were observed in the gut bacteriome, mycobiome, and virome of GA patients. We identified 1,117 differentially abundant bacterial species, 23 fungal species, and 4,115 viral operational taxonomic units (vOTUs). GA-enriched bacteria included Escherichia coli_D GENOME144544, Bifidobacterium infantis GENOME095938, Blautia_A wexlerae GENOME096067, and Klebsiella pneumoniae GENOME147598, while control-enriched bacteria comprised Faecalibacterium prausnitzii_G GENOME147678, Agathobacter rectalis GENOME143712, and Bacteroides_A plebeius_A GENOME239725. GA-enriched fungi included opportunistic pathogens like Cryptococcus neoformans GCA_011057565, Candida parapsilosis GCA_000182765, and Malassezia spp., while control-enriched fungi featured several Hortaea werneckii subclades and Aspergillus fumigatus GCA_000002655. GA-enriched vOTUs mainly attributed to Siphoviridae, Myoviridae, Podoviridae, and Microviridae, whereas control-enriched vOTUs spanned 13 families, including Siphoviridae, Myoviridae, Podoviridae, Quimbyviridae, Phycodnaviridae, and crAss-like. A co-abundance network revealed intricate interactions among these multi-kingdom signatures, signifying their collective influence on the disease. Furthermore, these microbial signatures demonstrated the potential to effectively discriminate between patients and controls, highlighting their diagnostic utility.

CONCLUSIONS

This study yields crucial insights into the characteristics of the GA microbiota that may inform future mechanistic and therapeutic investigations.

Nursing care of patients with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma treated with B-cell mature antigen-targeted universal chimeric antigen receptor T cells

To investigate the efficacy of a nursing approach using B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)-targeted universal chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (BCMA-UCART) immunotherapy in the treatment of 8 patients with relapsed refractory multiple myeloma (MM). In this study, 16 patients with relapsed and refractory MM who were treated with BCMA-targeted UCART in our department from May 2020 to November 2022 were selected, and were divided into a control group and an experimental group of 8 cases each according to the difference in the nursing methods, and the control group adopted the conventional universal nursing program. The experimental group used the nursing protocol that cooperated with the immunotherapy of this study, and the main points of nursing care included timely assessment of organ functional status, safe and accurate infusion of BCMA-UCART, identification and management of hyperthermia, hypotension, arrhythmia and central nervous system adverse reactions caused by cytokine release after BCMA-UCART infusion, as well as management of fluid imbalance, maintenance of stable blood pressure, and cooperation with physicians to effectively control of inflammatory factors. In addition, patients were provided with psychological and dietary support. The duration of hospitalization was compared between the two groups after the intervention. The discharge time of the experimental group was significantly shorter than that of the control group (P he.05), and the experimental group effectively controlled cytokine release syndrome, immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome and acute graft-versus-host disease. The nursing program with BCMA-UCART immunotherapy is effective in intervening MM patients and promotes their early recovery and discharge from the hospital.

Magnetic properties and critical behaviors of the nodal-line semimetal candidate ErIn3

The AuCu3-type intermetallic compoundsReIn3(Re= a rare earth ion) with type-IV magnetic space groups are predicted to show topologically nontrivial electronic states. Here, we grow ErIn3single crystals, and study their magnetic properties and critical behaviors by means of the magnetic susceptibility, and magnetization isotherm measurements. Combining a detailed analysis of the magnetic susceptibility and isothermal magnetization, we find that this compound harbors a complicated magnetic phase diagram, and its magnetic moment arrangement appears not to simply follow the fashion as observed in the isostructural counterpart GdIn3(it adopts a conventional type-Cmagnetic structure that belongs to type-IV magnetic space groups). A careful study of the magnetic properties around the antiferromagnetic (AFM)-paramagnetic transition yields the critical exponentsβ= 0.309 (0.297),γ= 1.117 (1.038), andδ= 4.617 (4.454), indicating that the tricritical mean field model or the three-dimensional Ising model works for ErIn3's magnetic behaviors and the presence of a long-range AFM interaction therein. Besides, the exchange interaction distanceJ(r) ∼r-4.665as well confirms a long-range magnetic coupling in ErIn3. Our results offer the clues that the magnetic structure varies from one member ofReIn3family to another, and to confirm their electronic features in the AFM phases further experimental and theoretical studies are still desired.

Chimeric virus-like particles of human norovirus constructed by structure-guided epitope grafting elicit cross-reactive immunity against both GI.1 and GII.4 genotypes

IMPORTANCE

Human norovirus (HuNoV) is highly infectious and can result in severe illnesses in the elderly and children. So far, there is no effective antiviral drug to treat HuNoV infection, and thus, the development of HuNoV vaccines is urgent. However, NoV evolves rapidly, and currently, at least 10 genogroups with numerous genotypes have been found. The genetic diversity of NoV and the lack of cross-protection between different genotypes pose challenges to the development of broadly protective vaccines. In this study, guided by structural alignment between GI.1 and GII.4 HuNoV VP1 proteins, several chimeric-type virus-like particles (VLPs) were designed through surface-exposed loop grafting. Mouse immunization studies show that two of the designed chimeric VLPs induced cross-immunity against both GI.1 and GII.4 HuNoVs. To our knowledge, this is the first designed chimeric VLPs that can induce cross-immune activities across different genogroups of HuNoV, which provides valuable strategies for the development of cross-reactive HuNoV vaccines.

Proteomic analysis of lysine 2-hydroxyisobutyryl in SLE reveals protein modification alteration in complement and coagulation cascades and platelet activation Pathways

BACKGROUND

Post-translational modifications (PTMs) are considered to be an important factor in the pathogenesis of Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Lysine 2-hydroxyisobutyryl (Khib), as an emerging post-translational modification of proteins, is involved in some important biological metabolic activities. However, there are poor studies on its correlation with diseases, especially SLE.

OBJECTIVE

We performed quantitative, comparative, and bioinformatic analysis of Khib proteins in Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of SLE patients and PBMCs of healthy controls. Searching for pathways related to SLE disease progression and exploring the role of Khib in SLE.

METHODS

Khib levels in SLE patients and healthy controls were compared based on liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, then proteomic analysis was conducted.

RESULTS

Compared with healthy controls, Khib in SLE patients was up-regulated at 865 sites of 416 proteins and down-regulated at 630 sites of 349 proteins. The site abundance, distribution and function of Khib protein were investigated further. Bioinformatics analysis showed that Complement and coagulation cascades and Platelet activation in immune-related pathways were significantly enriched, suggesting that differentially modified proteins among them may affect SLE.

CONCLUSION

Khib in PBMCs of SLE patients was significantly up- or down-regulated compared with healthy controls. Khib modification of key proteins in the Complement and coagulation cascades and Platelet activation pathways affects platelet activation and aggregation, coagulation functions in SLE patients. This result provides a new direction for the possible significance of Khib in the pathogenesis of SLE patients.

Ultrafast Detection of Monoamine Oxidase A in Live Cells and Clinical Glioma Tissues Using an Affinity Binding-Based Two-Photon Fluorogenic Probe

Abnormal expression of monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A) has been implicated in the development of human glioma, making MAO-A a promising target for therapy. Therefore, a rapid determination of MAO-A is critical for diagnosis. Through in silico screening of two-photon fluorophores, we discovered that a derivative of N,N-dimethyl-naphthalenamine (pre-mito) can effectively fit into the entrance of the MAO-A cavity. Substitutions on the N-pyridine not only further explore the MAO-A cavity, but also enable mitochondrial targeting ability. The aminopropyl substituted molecule, CD1, showed the fastest MAO-A detection (within 20 s), high MAO-A affinity and selectivity. It was also used for in situ imaging of MAO-A in living cells, enabling a comparison of the MAO-A content in human glioma and paracancerous tissues. Our results demonstrate that optimizing the affinity binding-based fluorogenic probes significantly improves their detection rate, providing a general approach for rapid detection probe design and optimization.

Efficacy and Safety of High-Dose Vitamin C Combined with Total Neoadjuvant Chemoradiotherapy in Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer (HCCSC R02 Study)

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

Forpatients with locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC), the standard treatment is fluoropyrimidine (FU) -based neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (NCRT) combined with curative surgery. The CAO/ARO/AIO-04 trial and FORWARC trial reported that the addition of oxaliplatin to FU -based NCRT contributed to improve pathologic complete response (pCR), nevertheless, increased the acute therapeutic toxicity. Some studies showed that vitamin C (VitC) had potential benefits on anti-tumor therapy and anti-inflammatory response. Therefore, we conducted this HCCSC R02 study to explore the efficacy and safety of adding a high-dose intravenous VitC to mFOLFOX6/XELOX -based NCRT in LARC.

MATERIALS/METHODS

HCCSCR02 study was designed as a prospective, single-center phase II trial, which including pts aged 18-75 years with stage II/III rectal adenocarcinoma, distance from anus ≤12cm. The enrollment criteria included: staged with MRI as cT3/cT4 or cN1/2, or mesorectal fascia involvement (MRF+), or difficult to preserve the anus. Patients with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase enzyme(G6PD) deficiency were excluded. Pelvic intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) was given in 45-50.4Gy/25-28 fractions. Concurrently, two cycles of chemotherapy (mFOLFOX6 or XELOX) were administered during IMRT, as well as intravenous VitC (24g) delivered daily after the end of each radiation therapy. Additional 2-3 cycles of mFOLFOX6 / XELOX were adopted between the completion of radiotherapy and surgery. The primary endpoint was pCR rate. The secondary endpoints included radiation-related toxicities, overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS). This study is still recruiting.

RESULTS

From May 15, 2021 to Feb 8, 2023, 19 pts were recruited and finished all the scheduled NCRT, of which the proportion of cT4, cT3, cN2, cN1 were 31.6%, 63.2%, 52.6%, 36.8%, respectively. In addition, 10 pts (52.6%) were diagnosed as MRF+ initially, and 8 pts (42.1%) had a lower primary tumor(≤5cm) who were considered difficult for anal preservation before NCRT. All subjects enrolled were confirmed to be proficient mismatch repair (pMMR). As a result, 18 pts underwent a total mesorectal excision (TME) all with R0-resection, and 8 pts were evaluated as pCR (44.4%, 8/18, confidence interval: 0.246-0.663), 11 as major pathological response rate (MPR) (61.6%, 11/18), respectively. The anus preservation rate in patients with lower diseases was 87.5% (7/8). One case accepted a watch-and-wait strategy because of clinical complete response (cCR). Overall, grade 3 toxicities were observed in 4 pts, including 3 leucopenia (15.8%, 3/19), 2 neutropenia (10.5%, 2/19) and 1 diarrhea (5.3%, 1/19). No grade 4 adverse event was observed.

CONCLUSION

The addition of high-dose VitC to the mFOLFOX6/XELOX-based NCRT in LARC showed a promising pCR, well tolerance, particularly low rate of diarrhea, thus warrants further investigation.

CLINICAL TRIAL INFORMATION

NCT04801511.

Anisotropic magnetoresistance and electronic features of the candidate topological compound praseodymium monobismuthide

PrBi, a sister member of the rare-earth monopnictide family, is an excellent candidate for studying extreme magnetoresistance and nontrivial topological electronic states. In this study, we perform angular magnetoresistance measurements as well as bulk and surface band structure calculations on this compound. PrBi's magnetoresistance is revealed to be significantly angle-dependent and shows a fourfold symmetry as always observed in the nonmagnetic isostructural counterparts, including LaSb, LaBi, and LuBi. Its angular magnetoresistance can be reproduced well using the semiclassical two-band model. The deduced parameters suggest that PrBi hosts an elongated electron pocket with a mobility anisotropy of ∼3.13 and is slightly uncompensated in its carrier concentration. Our bulk and surface band structure calculations confirm the anisotropic electronic features. Moreover, we reveal that a nodal-line-shaped surface state appears at the X̄ point, and is associated with the quadratic dispersion along the -X̄ direction, and the linear type-I Dirac dispersion along the X̄-M̄ direction. Owing to the type-I Dirac dispersion feature, PrBi could serve as a promising material platform for studying many unexpected physical properties, such as the highly anisotropic transport and valley polarization of electrons.

Multicomponent prediction of 2-year mortality and amputation in patients with diabetic foot using a random survival forest model: Uric acid, alanine transaminase, urine protein and platelet as important predictors

The current methods for the prediction of mortality and amputation for inpatients with diabetic foot (DF) use only conventional, simple variables, which limits their performance. Here, we used a random survival forest (RSF) model and multicomponent variables to improve the prediction of mortality and amputation for these patients. We performed a retrospective cohort study of 175 inpatients with DF who were recruited between 2014 and 2021. Thirty-one predictors in six categories were considered as potential covariates. Seventy percent (n = 122) of the participants were randomly selected to constitute a training set, and 30% (n = 53) were assigned to a testing set. The RSF model was used to screen appropriate variables for their value as predictors of 2-year all-cause mortality and amputation, and a multicomponent prediction model was established. Model performance was evaluated using the area under the curve (AUC) and the Hosmer-Lemeshow test. The AUCs were compared using the Delong test. Seventeen variables were selected to predict mortality and 23 were selected to predict amputation. Uric acid and alanine transaminase were the top two most useful variables for the prediction of mortality, whereas urine protein and platelet were the top variables for the prediction of amputation. The AUCs were 0.913 and 0.851 for the prediction of mortality for the training and testing sets, respectively; and the equivalent AUCs were 0.963 and 0.893 for the prediction of amputation. There were no significant differences between the AUCs for the training and testing sets for both the mortality and amputation models. These models showed a good degree of fit. Thus, the RSF model can predict mortality and amputation in inpatients with DF. This multicomponent prediction model could help clinicians consider predictors of different dimensions to effectively prevent DF from clinical outcomes .

Controllable fabrication of vanadium selenium nanosheets for a high-performance Na-ion battery anode

Vanadium selenium has gained attention as a potential anode for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) due to the tunable crystal structure, effective channels for Na+ diffusion, and high theoretical specific capacity. However, the pursuit of vanadium selenium remains an enormous challenge. Herein, we demonstrated that V2Se9 nanosheets could be fabricated facilely and efficiently via a one-pot synthesis method with the careful selection of the solvent/surfactant. The V2Se9 anode have demonstrated excellent electrochemical performance for SIBs. An intercalation and conversion mechanism of Na-storage in V2Se9 were clarified by ex situ X-ray diffraction. This work develops an effective strategy to fabricate transition metal chalcogenides for high-performance sodium storage.