Biodiversity and yield trade-offs for organic farming

Organic farming supports higher biodiversity than conventional farming, but at the cost of lower yields. We conducted a meta-analysis quantifying the trade-off between biodiversity and yield, comparing conventional and organic farming. We developed a compatibility index to assess whether biodiversity gains from organic farming exceed yield losses, and a substitution index to assess whether organic farming would increase biodiversity in an area if maintaining total production under organic farming would require cultivating more land at the expense of nature. Overall, organic farming had 23% gain in biodiversity with a similar cost of yield decline. Biodiversity gain is negatively correlated to yield loss for microbes and plants, but no correlation was found for other taxa. The biodiversity and yield trade-off varies under different contexts of organic farming. The overall compatibility index value was close to zero, with negative values for cereal crops, positive for non-cereal crops, and varies across taxa. Our results indicate that, on average, the proportion of biodiversity gain is similar to the proportion of yield loss for paired field studies. For some taxa in non-cereal crops, switching to organic farming can lead to a biodiversity gain without yield loss. We calculated the overall value of substitution index and further discussed the application of this index to evaluate when the biodiversity of less intensified farming system is advantageous.

[Clinical application of expanded internal mammary artery perforator flap combined with vascular supercharge in reconstruction of faciocervical scar]

Objective: To summarize the clinical experience of expanded internal mammary artery perforator (IMAP) flap combined with vascular supercharge in reconstruction of faciocervical scar. Methods: The retrospective observational study was conducted. From September 2012 to May 2021, 23 patients with postburn or posttraumatic faciocervical scars who met the inclusion criteria were admitted to Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital of Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, including 18 males and 5 females, aged from 11 to 58 years, all of whom were reconstructed with expanded IMAP flaps. At the first stage, one or two skin and soft tissue expander (s) with appropriate rated capacity were implanted in the anterior chest area according to the location and size of the scars. The IMAP, thoracic branch of supraclavicular artery, and lateral thoracic artery were preserved during the operation. The skin and soft tissue expanders were inflated with normal saline after the operation. The flaps were transferred during the second stage. The dominant IMAP was determined preoperatively using color Doppler ultrasound (CDU) blood flow detector. The faciocervical scars were removed, forming wounds with areas of 9 cm×7 cm-28 cm×12 cm, and the perforators of superficial temporal artery and vein or facial artery and vein were preserved during the operation. The flaps were designed according to the area and size of the wounds after scar resection with the dominant IMAP as the pedicle. Single-pedicle IMAP flaps were used to repair small and medium-sized wounds. For larger defects, the blood perfusion areas of vessels in the anterior chest were evaluated by indocyanine green angiography (ICGA). In situations where the IMAP was insufficient to nourish the entire flap, double-pedicle flaps were designed by using the thoracic branch of supraclavicular artery or lateral thoracic artery for supercharging. Pedicled or free flap transfer was selected according to the distance between the donor areas and recipient areas. After transplantation of flaps, ICGA was conducted again to evaluate blood perfusion of the flaps. The donor sites of flaps were all closed by suturing directly. Statistics were recorded, including the number, rated capacity, normal saline injection volume, and expansion period of skin and soft tissue expanders, the location of the dominant IMAP, the total number of the flaps used, the number of flaps with different types of vascular pedicles, the flap area, the flap survival after the second stage surgery, the occurrence of common complications in the donor and recipient areas, and the condition of follow-up. Results: Totally 25 skin and soft tissue expanders were used in this group of patients, with rated capacity of 200-500 mL, normal saline injection volume of 855-2 055 mL, and expansion period of 4-16 months. The dominant IMAP was detected in the second intercostal space (20 sides) or the third intercostal space (5 sides) before surgery. A total of 25 expanded flaps were excised, including 2 pedicled IMAP flaps, 11 free IMAP flaps, 4 pedicled thoracic branch of supraclavicular artery+free IMAP flaps, and 8 free IMAP+lateral thoracic artery flaps, with flap areas of 10 cm×8 cm-30 cm×14 cm. After the second stage surgery, tip necrosis of flaps in three patients occurred, which healed after routine dressing changes; one patient developed arterial embolism and local torsion on the vascular pedicle at the anastomosis of IMAP and facial artery, and the blood supply recovered after thrombectomy and vascular re-anastomosis. Fourteen patients underwent flap thinning surgery in 1 month to 6 months after the second stage surgery. The follow-up for 4 months to 9 years showed that all patients had improved appearances of flaps and functions of face and neck and linear scar in the donor sites of flaps, and one female patient had obvious nipple displacement and bilateral breast asymmetry. Conclusions: The expanded IMAP flap is matched in color and texture with that of the face and neck, and its incision causes little damage to the chest donor sites. When combined with vascular supercharge, a double-pedicle flap can be designed flexibly to further enhance the blood supply and expand the flap incision area, which is a good choice for reconstruction of large faciocervical scar.

[Molluscicidal effect of 25% wettable powder of pyriclobenzuron sulphate in hilly schistosomiasis-endemic regions]

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the molluscicidal effect of 25% wettable powder of pyriclobenzuron sulphate (WPPS) against Oncomelania snails in hilly schistosomiasis-endemic regions and test its toxicity to fish.

METHODS

In October 2020, a snail-infested setting which had been cleared was selected in Nanjian County, Yunnan Province and divided into several blocks, and the natural snail mortality was estimated. 25% WPPS was prepared into solutions at concentrations of 1 and 2 g/L, and 25% wettable powder of niclosamide ethanolamine salt (WPNES) was prepared into solutions at a concentration of 2 g/L. The different concentrations of drugs were sprayed evenly, and the same amount of water was used as blank control. Snails were surveyed using the systematic sampling method 1, 3 and 7 days post-treatment, and snail survival was observed. A fish pond was selected in Nanjian County, and 2 kg 25% WPPS was evenly sprayed on the water surface to allow the effective concentration of 20 g/L. Fish mortality was estimated 8, 24, 48 and 72 h post-treatment.

RESULTS

One-day treatment with 1 and 2 g/L WPPS and 2 g/L WPNES resulted in 97.99%, 97.99% and 94.11% adjusted snail mortality rates (χ² = 3.509 and 3.509, both P values > 0.05), and the adjusted snail mortality was all 100% 3 d post-treatment with 1 and 2 g/L WPPS and 2 g/L WPNES, while 7-day treatment with 1 and 2 g/L WPPS and 2 g/L WPNES resulted in 91.75%, 86.57% and 57.76% adjusted snail mortality rates (χ² = 14.893 and 42.284, both P values < 0.05). Treatment with 2 g/L WPPS for 72 h resulted in a 0.67% cumulative mortality rate of fish.

CONCLUSIONS

25% WPPS is effective for snail control and highly safe for fish, which is feasible for use in hilly schistosomiasis-endemic regions.

[Diagnostic value of FCGR1B gene transcription level in active tuberculosis]

Objective: To investigate the diagnostic potential of Fc fragment of IgG receptor 1b gene (FCGR1B) transcription level in active tuberculosis. Methods: From February to September of 2018, we collected peripheral blood from patients with active tuberculosis, latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI), cured patients with tuberculosis, healthy people and patients with pneumonia in the Eighth Medical Center of PLA General Hospital. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were isolated for total RNA extraction and cDNA synthesis. The expression of FCGR1B mRNA in PBMCs was detected by quantitative real-time PCR (QPCR). Nonparametric test was used to compare the differential expression of FCGR1B mRNA between patients with active tuberculosis and control groups, and the relationships between FCGR1B mRNA expression and patient's illness condition and inflammatory indexes were analyzed by Correlation analysis. The potential of FCGR1B mRNA as a diagnostic marker for active tuberculosis was evaluated by receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis. Results: The expression of FCGR1B mRNA in PBMCs from patients with active tuberculosis was significantly increased when compared with non-tuberculosis controls, including individuals with LTBI, healthy people, cured patients with tuberculosis and patients with pneumonia (u=2 081, P<0.001). The expression of FCGR1B mRNA was higher in patients with tuberculosis who had more bacteria(H=12.35, P=0.015), and was correlated with the C-reactive protein (CRP) (r=0.30, P=0.008). ROC analysis showed that FCGR1B mRNA could distinguish active tuberculosis from non-tuberculosis with area under curve (AUC) of 0.849. The sensitivity and specificity were 71.43% and 84.17% respectively. The AUC of FCGR1B mRNA in distinguishing extra-pulmonary tuberculosis from controls was 0.906. The sensitivity and specificity were 84.62% and 91.89%, respectively. Conclusion: FCGR1B mRNA is a potential molecular marker for diagnosis of active tuberculosis.

[Progress in immunologic and genetic research of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with lung cancer]

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and lung cancer are two of the respiratory diseases with the highest mortality, which have posed huge threat to human health and brought great burden to society and family. The mechanism of COPD with lung cancer is very complicated. In order to clarify the linkage between these two diseases, this review summarized the present researches of COPD and lung cancer from the aspects of immunology and genetics. The immunologic aspect focused on innate immune of neutrophil and macrophage, adaptive immune of B cell, T cell and oxidative stress. The genetic aspect focused on susceptibility gene and microRNA. Through the thorough elaboration of these researches, we hope to provide useful insights into the further research of mechanism, diagnosis and targeted therapy of COPD with lung cancer.

[Epidemiological characteristics of imported COVID-19 cases in Beijing]

Objective: To analyze the epidemiological characteristics of imported COVID-19 cases and the effect of vaccination on virus load and disease severity of the cases in Beijing. Methods: The data of the imported COVID-19 cases in Beijing were collected from the National Notifiable Infectious Disease Reporting System of China Information for Disease Control and Prevention and Epidemiology investigation. The data were processed and analyzed by Excel 2010 and SPSS 22.0. Results: From June 1 to September 30, 2021, a total of 171 imported COVID-19 cases were reported in Beijing, of which 66.67% (114/171) were asymptomatic. The cases were mainly from the Philippines, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the Russian Federation, accounting for 67.84% (116/171). The male to female ratio of the cases was 2∶1 (114∶57). The median age M (Q₁, Q₃) of the cases was 28 (23, 36) years. The cases of Chinese accounted for 80.12% (137/171). The sequencing of the whole genome of the virus in 47 imported COVID-19 cases showed that the proportion of Delta variant was 76.60% (36/47). The COVID-19 vaccination coverage rate in the cases was 60.82% (104/171), but the full vaccination coverage rate was 53.80% (92/171). In the imported COVID-19 cases, 13.53% (23/170) were screened to be SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid positive on the day when they arrived in Beijing, and all the cases were positive for 2019-nCoV nucleic acid within 28 days. The severity of the disease was higher in the unvaccinated group than in the partially vaccinated group and fully vaccinated group (P<0.001). In the unvaccinated group, there were 1 severe case and 1 critical case. The median Ct values M (Q₁, Q₃) of N gene and ORFlab gene in unvaccinated group were 32.51 (23.23, 36.06) and 32.78 (24.00, 36.38), respectively. There was no significant difference in the median of double-gene Ct value between the partially vaccinated group and the fully vaccinated group. Conclusions: During the study period, most of the imported COVID-19 cases in Beijing were asymptomatic. No matter vaccinated or not, the viral loads in the COVID-19 cases were similar, but the vaccination could reduce the severity of the disease.

Field study on the characteristics of scales in damaged multi-material water supply pipelines: Insights into heavy metal and biological stability

Microbial corrosion and heavy metal accumulation in metal water supply pipelines aggravate scale formation and may result in pipeline leakage or bursting events. To better understand the corrosion and corrosion products in the damaged pipes, deposits excavated from three damaged pipes after 22-26 year service periods were analyzed. Using a combination of advanced micro-mineral techniques and 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing, the micromorphology, chemical composition, and bacterial community were investigated systematically. Unlined pipe wall scales ruptured while lined pipes leaked due to joint scales. Dendrogram correlation results demonstrated that V/As, Al/Pb, and Cr/Mn clusters exhibited co-adsorption and co-precipitation characteristics. FTIR and XRD analysis detected the presence of γ-FeOOH, α-FeOOH in loose scales, and Fe₃O₄ in rigid scales. Scales were colonized by various corrosion bacteria, with sulfate reducing bacteria and ammonia producing bacteria being dominant in the scales of anticorrosive and non-corrosive pipe, respectively. Tl, Ca, Al, and Pb exhibited an extremely positive correlation with Rhodocyclaceae, Ferritrophicum, Thermodesulfovibrionia, and Clostridiaceae. Al and V presented a potential Hazard Quotient risk to consumers, while Cd was potentially bioavailable in all inner scales. Overall, this study provides valuable information for the effective management and avoidance of corrosion-induced pipeline damage and heavy metal release.

An optogenetic approach for regulating human parathyroid hormone secretion

Parathyroid hormone (PTH) plays crucial role in maintaining calcium and phosphorus homeostasis. In the progression of secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT), expression of calcium-sensing receptors (CaSR) in the parathyroid gland decreases, which leads to persistent hypersecretion of PTH. How to precisely manipulate PTH secretion in parathyroid tissue and underlying molecular mechanism is not clear. Here, we establish an optogenetic approach that bypasses CaSR to inhibit PTH secretion in human hyperplastic parathyroid cells. We found that optogenetic stimulation elevates intracellular calcium, inhibits both PTH synthesis and secretion in human parathyroid cells. Long-term pulsatile PTH secretion induced by light stimulation prevented hyperplastic parathyroid tissue-induced bone loss by influencing the bone remodeling in mice. The effects are mediated by light stimulation of opsin expressing parathyroid cells and other type of cells in parathyroid tissue. Our study provides a strategy to regulate release of PTH and associated bone loss of SHPT through an optogenetic approach.

Parathyroid hormone (PTH) plays a role in maintaining calcium and phosphorus homeostasis, and in secondary hyperparathyroidism excess PTH secretion contributes to bone loss. Here the authors report an optogenetic approach to inhibit PTH secretion in human hyperplastic parathyroid cells, and prevented hyperplastic parathyroid tissue-induced bone loss in mice.

Large full-thickness wounded skin regeneration using 3D-printed elastic scaffold with minimal functional unit of skin

Traditional tissue engineering skin are composed of living cells and natural or synthetic scaffold. Besize the time delay and the risk of contamination involved with cell culture, the lack of autologous cell source and the persistence of allogeneic cells in heterologous grafts have limited its application. This study shows a novel tissue engineering functional skin by carrying minimal functional unit of skin (MFUS) in 3D-printed polylactide-co-caprolactone (PLCL) scaffold and collagen gel (PLCL + Col + MFUS). MFUS is full-layer micro skin harvested from rat autologous tail skin. 3D-printed PLCL elastic scaffold has the similar mechanical properties with rat skin which provides a suitable environment for MFUS growing and enhances the skin wound healing. Four large full-thickness skin defects with 30 mm diameter of each wound are created in rat dorsal skin, and treated either with tissue engineering functional skin (PLCL + Col + MFUS), or with 3D-printed PLCL scaffold and collagen gel (PLCL + Col), or with micro skin islands only (Micro skin), or without treatment (Normal healing). The wound treated with PLCL + Col + MFUS heales much faster than the other three groups as evidenced by the fibroblasts migration from fascia to the gap between the MFUS dermis layer, and functional skin with hair follicles and sebaceous gland has been regenerated. The PLCL + Col treated wound heals faster than normal healing wound, but no skin appendages formed in PLCL + Col-treated wound. The wound treated with micro skin islands heals slower than the wounds treated either with tissue engineering skin (PLCL + Col + MFUS) or with PLCL + Col gel. Our results provide a new strategy to use autologous MFUS instead "seed cells" as the bio-resource of engineering skin for large full-thickness skin wound healing.

Chitosan/Gelatin Composite Nonwoven Fabric Scaffold Seeding Minimal Function Unit of Skin for Functional Skin Regeneration

The construction of intact functional skin is a challenging field in tissue engineering. Traditional skin tissue engineering, using "seed cells" as a bioactive source for scaffolding materials maybe not efficient enough. Here a new strategy is shown for constructing functional tissue-engineered skin with Minimal Functional Unit of Skin (MFUS) as the source of bioactivity. Chitosan/gelatin non-woven fabric is used as the scaffold. MFUS is derived from autologous skin with full-thickness skin microstructure and complete functional skin unit harvesting. A mathematical model is used to calculate the MFUS Minimal Harvest Diameter and Angle (MHDA). Chitosan/gelatin non-woven fabric (CS+GEL) is porous and absorbable, with an elastic modulus meeting the requirement of skin engineering. It supports layered and 3D growth of MFUS. The degradation rate of chitosan, including filament diameter and density is evaluated in vivo. MFUS-engineered skin could reduce the density of local nerve fibers in the early stage, potentially reducing pain during wound healing, as well as could limit excessive fibroblast cell migration in the later stage, potentially reducing scar formation. This study proposes a new strategy for the clinical treatment of large full-thickness skin defects by constructing intact functional at minimal cost.

Overexpression of SmSCR1 Promotes Tanshinone Accumulation and Hairy Root Growth in Salvia miltiorrhiza

Lipid-soluble tanshinone is one of the main bioactive substances in the medicinal plant Salvia miltiorrhiza, and its medicinal demand is growing rapidly. Yeast extract (YE) modulates the tanshinone biosynthesis, but the underlying regulatory network remains obscure. In this study, a YE-responsive transcriptional factor Scarecrow1 (SCR1) was identified in S. miltiorrhiza from the YE-induced transcriptome dataset. SmSCR1 is located in the nucleus. Overexpression of SmSCR1 in S. miltiorrhiza roots resulted in a significantly higher accumulation of tanshinone than the control, with the highest 1.49-fold increase. We also detected upregulation of tanshinone biosynthetic genes, SmSCR1 and SmHMGR1, and distinct alteration of growth and development of the hairy roots in the overexpression lines compared to the control. An inverse phenotype was observed in SmSCR1-SRDX suppression expression lines. We found that SmSCR1 can bind to the promoter of SmCPS1 to induce its expression. This study provides new insight into the regulatory mechanism on the growth and development of hairy roots, tanshinone accumulation, and the metabolic engineering of bioactive compounds in S. miltiorrhiza.

COVID-19 prevention measures reduce dengue spread in Yunnan Province, China, but do not reduce established outbreak

The COVID-19 pandemic and measures against it provided a unique opportunity to understand the transmission of other infectious diseases and to evaluate the efficacy of COVID-19 prevention measures on them. Here we show a dengue epidemic in Yunnan, China, during the pandemic of COVID-19 was dramatically reduced compared to non-pandemic years and, importantly, spread was confined to only one city, Ruili. Three key features characterized this dengue outbreak: (i) the urban-to-suburban spread was efficiently blocked; (ii) the scale of epidemic in urban region was less affected; (iii) co-circulation of multiple strains was attenuated. These results suggested that countermeasures taken during COVID-19 pandemic are efficient to prevent dengue transmission between cities and from urban to suburban, as well to reduce the co-circulation of multiple serotypes or genotypes. Nevertheless, as revealed by the spatial analysis, once the dengue outbreak was established, its distribution was very stable and resistant to measures against COVID-19, implying the possibility to develop a precise prediction method.

[Performance of loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay for detection of Schistosoma japonicum infection in Oncomelania snails in schistosomiasis transmission-interrupted regions]

OBJECTIVE

To compare the effectiveness of loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay and microscopic examinations for detection of Schistosoma japonicum infections in Oncomelania hupensis in transmission-interrupted regions, so as to provide insights into the optimization of snail surveillance tools in these regions.

METHODS

Four hilly schistosomiasis-endemic villages where transmission interruption was achieved were selected in Heqing County of Yunnan Province as the study villages, including Xinzhuang and Gule villages in hilly regions and Lianyi and Yitou villages in dam regions. Snail survey was performed by means of systematic sampling combined with environmental sampling in July 2018. All captured snails were identified for S. japonicum infections using microscopy. In addition, 10 to 20 snails were randomly sampled from each snail habitat following microscopy, numbered according to environments and subjected to LAMP assay. The positive rate of settings with S. japonicum-infected snails was compared among villages.

RESULTS

A total of 7 949 living snails were captured from 83 snail habitats in 4 villages, and no S. japonicum infection was detected in snails. There were 226 mixed samples containing 1 786 snails subjected to LAMP assay, and positive LAMP assay was found in 3 mixed samples from 3 snail habitats in 2 dam villages. The positive rates of settings with S. japonicum-infected snails were comparable between Lianyi Village (one setting) and Yitou Village (2 set tings) (5.89% vs. 14.29%, P = 0.344). However, the overall positive rate of settings with S. japonicum-infected snails was significantly higher in dam villages (9.67%, 3/31) than in hilly villages (0) (P = 0.048).

CONCLUSIONS

LAMP assay is more sensitive to detect S. japonicum infections in O. hupensis than conventional microcopy method, which may serve as a supplementary method for detection of S. japonicum infections in O. hupensis in high-risk snail habitats in hilly transmission-interrupted regions.

[Lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma: a clinicopathological and prognostic analysis of 27 cases]

Objective: To study the clinical manifestations, pathologic features, diagnosis and differential diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma/Waldenström's macroglobulinemia (LPL/WM). Methods: Twenty-seven cases of LPL from January 2016 to December 2020 at Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital were collected. The clinical data, histomorphology, immunophenotype, MYD88 L265P mutation, treatment and prognosis were analyzed retrospectively. Results: There were 19 males and 8 female patients, with median age of 63 years. The most common initial symptoms were fatigue related to anemia. Bone marrow was involved in all cases, lymphadenopathy was seen in 11 cases and splenomegaly in 10 cases. Monoclonal IgM type protein was detected in 25 cases, meeting the diagnostic criteria of WM. Microscopically, bone marrow and lymph nodes were infiltrated by small lymphocytes, plasmacytoid lymphocytes or plasma cells. The cells expressed pan B-cell markers and showed immunoglobulin light chain restriction. There was no expression of CD5, and low expression of CD23 and CD10; Ki-67 index was usually low. The positive rate of MYD88 L265P mutation was 73.9% (17/23). Most of the patients were treated with rituximab combined with alkylating agents, nucleoside analogues or immunomodulators, and the few patients with relapse or progression were treated with Ibutinib. During the 3-168 months' follow-up period, recurrence or progression were seen in nine cases. Thrombocytopenia, elevated β2-microglobulin and high-risk group were associated with recurrence or progression of the disease (P<0.05). The overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of the high-risk patients were significantly lower than those of the low-medium risk patients (P<0.05). Conclusions: LPL/WM is an exclusive diagnosis; the detection of MYD88 L265P mutation has high diagnostic value, but it is not specific. These cases should be assessed comprehensively for their clinical manifestation, serum IgM protein level and immunophenotype. The overall prognosis of LPL/WM is good, but there are still a small number of high-risk patients with rapid progress, and so the symptomatic patients should be diagnosed accurately and treated in a timely manner.

Establishment and validation of a prognostic model for hepatitis B virus‑related acute-on-chronic liver failure patients with bacterial infection

BACKGROUND

Bacterial infection is one of the most frequent complications in acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF), which leads to high mortality. However, a specific prognostic model for ACLF patients with bacterial infection has not been well established.

AIM

To establish and validate a nomogram for predicting 30-day mortality of hepatitis B virus-related ACLF (HBV-ACLF) patients with bacterial infection.

METHODS

A total of 513 ACLF patients for HBV reactivation were enrolled in the prospective cohort, and 224 patients with bacterial infection were for derivation. Independent predictors were identified using multivariate logistic model and then assembled into a nomogram to predict 30-day mortality. The performance of the nomogram was assessed based on its calibration, discrimination and clinical utility in a retrospective cohort of 192 HBV-ACLF patients with bacterial infection.

RESULTS

Age, total bilirubin, lactate dehydrogenase, international normalized ratio and soluble interleukin-2 receptor were shown to be independent risk factors for 30-day mortality of HBV-ACLF patients with bacterial infection and the nomogram was constructed. The nomogram showed a good calibration and discrimination in the derivation cohort, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of 0.883. Application of the nomogram in the validation cohort also showed a good calibration and discrimination, with the AUC of 0.852. Decision curve analysis confirmed the clinical utility of the nomogram.

CONCLUSION

The nomogram was established and validated for predicting 30-day mortality of HBV-ACLF patients with bacterial infection, which may facilitate optimal therapeutic strategies to improve the prognosis of these patients.

Development of bacterial biosensor for sensitive and selective detection of acetaldehyde

Acetaldehyde is a human carcinogen and widely existed in alcoholic beverages and polluted air. In this study, a simple, fast, convenient and sensitive acetaldehyde biosensor was developed based on an acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (AldDH) bacteria surface display system. The whole-cell catalyst facilitated the dehydrogenation of acetaldehyde, while coenzyme NAD⁺ was reduced and the resultant NADH can be detected spectrometrically at 340 nm. The correct location of AldDH on the bacteria surface was confirmed by the subcellular fraction and immunofluorescence analysis. By comparing the fusion protein expression level and whole-cell activity, the proper display system for anchoring AldDH on the cell surface was obtained. The results of kinetics analysis towards both surface-displayed AldDH and intracellular expressed AldDH demonstrated that the mass-transport resistance was dramatically alleviated by cell-surface display strategy. Under optimal conditions, AldDH-surface display strain with the highest whole-cell activity (3.41 ± 0.3 mU/OD₆₀₀) was applied to spectrophotometry acetaldehyde detection system. An excellent linear relationship between the increases of absorbance at 340 nm and acetaldehyde concentration over the range from 1 μM to 300 μM was reached. The proposed approach offered adequate sensitivity for the detection of acetaldehyde at 0.33 μM. Most importantly, the developed biosensor showed the narrowest substrate specificity towards acetaldehyde, which has been employed for quick determination of acetaldehyde in real samples with good accuracy. The total detection time was within 20 min. The method reported here provided a simple, rapid, and low-cost strategy for the sensitive and selective measurement of acetaldehyde. Therefore, genetically engineered cells may find broad application in biosensors and biocatalysts.

Pseudogene RPL32P3 regulates the blood-tumor barrier permeability via the YBX2/HNF4G axis

The existence of the blood–tumor barrier (BTB) severely hinders the transport of anti-tumor drugs to brain tumor tissues. Selectively opening BTB is of great significance to improve the chemotherapy effect of glioma. Pseudogenes have been recognized as important regulators in various biologic processes. In this study, we identified that ribosomal protein L32 pseudogene 3 (RPL32P3) was highly expressed in glioma-exposed endothelial cells (GECs). Knockdown of RPL32P3 decreased the expression of tight junction-related proteins (TJPs) and increased BTB permeability. Subsequent analysis of the underlying mechanism indicated that RPL32P3 recruited lysine methyltransferase 2 A (KMT2A) to the Y-box binding protein 2 (YBX2) promoter region and mediated H3K4me3 to promote YBX2 transcription. Highly expressed YBX2 bound and stabilized hepatocyte nuclear factor 4 gamma (HNF4G) mRNA. Highly expressed HNF4G directly bound to the promoters of TJPs ZO-1, occludin and claudin-5 to promote their transcriptional activities and regulated BTB permeability. The simultaneous knockdown of RPL32P3, YBX2, and HNF4G combined with doxorubicin (DOX) increased the apoptosis of glioma cells. In conclusion, the current study indicated that RPL32P3 knockdown increased BTB permeability through the YBX2/HNF4G pathway. These findings may provide new targets for the comprehensive treatment of glioma.

Fully Reduced HMGB1-Containing Peptide-Based Polyurethane Scaffold with Minimal Functional Unit of Skin (MFUS) Enhances Large and Deep Wounded Skin Healing

A novel peptide-based polymer is developed by lysine-diisocyanate (LDI), glycerol (Gly), and fully reduced HMGB1 (frHMGB1). This frHMGB1-LDI-Gly polymer either forms sponge-like foam (scaffold) or a hydrogel or a film under different reaction conditions. It degrades into nontoxic lysine, glycerol, and frHMGB1. The hydrogel glues tissues together and the glued tissues have strong mechanical properties. The film and scaffold provide the suitable environment for enhancing cell proliferation by releasing frHMGB1. The scaffold carries 1 mm diameter of full-thickness rat skin-island as a minimal functional unit of skin (MFUS) to treat large full thickness skin wounds, and the hydrogel glues the MFUS and scaffold with skin edges together (MFUS+Scaffold group). The scaffold treated wounds (Scaffold group) heal much faster than the wounds either treated with MFUS (MFUS group) or without treatment (Wound group). The MFUS+Scaffold treated wound regenerates more functional full-thickness skin with more hair follicles and sweat glands, higher CD146 and α-smooth muscle actin levels, more blood vessels and collagen productions, and less scar tissues when compared to the other three groups. The results demonstrate that the combination of frHMGB1-LDI-Gly polymer with MFUS provides a new tissue engineering approach for large full-thickness skin wound healing.

Elevational Diversity Patterns of Green Lacewings (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) Uncovered With DNA Barcoding in a Biodiversity Hotspot of Southwest China

Elevational diversity patterns can reflect the responses of biodiversity to climate change spatially. We investigate the species diversity patterns of green lacewings (an important predatory group of insects) along the gradient of elevation from the Shaluli Mountains (Mts. Shaluli), which belong to the Hengduan Mountains in southwestern China, one of the important hotspots of global biodiversity. We combined multiple approaches, including Automatic Barcode Gap Discovery (ABGD), Assemble Species by Automatic Partitioning analysis (ASAP), General Mixed Yule Coalescent (GMYC), Poisson tree processes (bPTP), multi-rate Poisson tree processes (mPTP), to delimit the green lacewings species based on the standard barcoding region of cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI). The α-diversity and β-diversity patterns of green lacewings from the Mts. Shaluli along the gradient of elevation were analyzed, with further exploration on how the temperature effect elevational-diversity pattern on broad-scale (county scale) elevational gradients. The DNA barcoding reference library consisted of 40 green lacewing species from the Mts. Shaluli. The α-diversity of green lacewings decreased with the increasing elevation. The temperature was found to have a significant effect on the abundance and Shannon-Wiener diversity index but not on the species richness. Nestedness replaced turnover as the main component of Sørensen’s dissimilarity with the increasing elevation, and greater nestedness occurred at low temperature areas. The combination of a reliable DNA barcoding database could improve the accuracy and efficiency to investigate the species diversity patterns of green lacewings. Temperature, resource, and resultant interspecific competitions may have important roles in explaining the species diversity patterns of green lacewings from the Mts. Shaluli. Priority of conservation should be given to the species at low elevation, middle elevation, and relatively high temperature regions under the background of global climate warming.

HOXC6/8/10/13 predict poor prognosis and associate with immune infiltrations in glioblastoma

BACKGROUND

Glioblastoma (GBM), characterized by deregulated cell proliferation and immune cells infiltration, is a common and lethal tumor of the central nervous system. Recently, the infiltration of immune cells has attracted attention as a potential novel GBM immunotherapy option. Homeobox C cluster (HOXC) is an evolutionarily conserved family of transcriptional factors that are involved in embryogenesis and tumorigenesis. Nevertheless, the correlations of HOXCs with the prognosis and immune infiltration of GBM remain blurred.

METHODS

The RNA-seq data with corresponding clinical characteristics were downloaded from TCGA and GTEx databases. The correlations between HOXCs and clinical characteristics were calculated using univariable and multivariate Cox regression. R language with ggplot2, survminer, survival, GSVA, and pROC packages were employed to analyze the data and present the plots. MethSurv, UALCAN and cBioPortal were employed to evaluate the DNA methylation and mutation status of HOXCs in GBM. We also verified the expression and prognosis of HOXCs by qPCR and immunohistochemistry in a cohort of 36 patients.

RESULTS

We identified that HOXC6/8/10/13 were crucial biomarkers for diagnosis and prognostic judgement in GBM. Gene set variation analysis revealed that levels of expression of HOXCs were associated with the infiltration of various immune cells. The qPCR and immunohistochemistry data validated the prognostic values of HOXC6/8/10/13 in GBM. Finally, Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analysis showed that HOXCs might be involved in DNA-binding transcription activator activity and the apelin signaling pathway.

CONCLUSION

This research highlights that HOXC6/8/10/13 are involved in the immune infiltrates, also provide potential clinical utility as therapeutic targets in GBM.

[Analysis of occurrence and treatment of perioperative complete atrioventricular block by transcatheter aortic valve implantation]

Objective: To retrospectively analyze the occurrence and treatment of perioperative complete atrioventricular block (CAVB) by transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). Methods: A total of 65 patients who underwent TAVI via femoral artery in the Heart Center of Henan People's Hospital from October 2017 to May 2021 were enrolled. Perioperative data of patients were recorded. The patients were divided into two groups according to whether complete atrioventricular block was occurred during TAVI: complete atrioventricular block group (Group CAVB) and non-complete atrioventricular block group (Group NCAVB). Multivariate logistic regression model was used to analyze the risk factors of complete atrioventricular block during transcatheter aortic valve implantation. The incidence of perioperative complications were recorded. Results: The patients age was (69.1±7.3) years old. and there were 35 males and 30 femals. There were 15 patients in group CAVB with complete atrioventricular block and 50 patients in group NCAVB. Multivariate analysis showed that preoperative right bundle branch block [OR (95%CI) vs 3.325 (2.132-13.061), P=0.005] and severe aortic valve calcification [OR (95%CI) vs 1.271 (1.052-3.326), P=0.030] were independent correlative factors for CAVB during TAVI perioperative period. The implantation rate of permanent pacemaker in group CAVB was 73.3% (11 cases), which was higher than 6.0% (3 cases) in group NCAVB (P<0.001). Conclusions: It indicated that preoperative right bundle branch block and severe aortic valve calcification are correlative factors for complete atrioventricular block for TAVI. The implantation rate of permanent pacemaker in complete atrioventricular block group increased significantly.