[The molecular mechanisms underpinning auditory neuropathy]

Auditory neuropathy (AN) is a hearing disorder where cochlear inner hair cell and/or the auditory nerve function is disrupted while outer hair cell function is normal. It can affect people of all ages, from infancy to adulthood. People with auditory neuropathy may have normal hearing threshold, or hearing loss ranging from mild to severe; they always have poor speech-perception abilities. It is a heterogeneous disorder which can have either congenital or acquired causes. AN may result from specific loss of cochlear inner hair cells, disordered release of neurotransmitters by inner hair cell ribbon synapses, deafferentation accompanying loss of auditory nerve fibers, neural dys-synchrony or conduction block as a result of demyelination of nerve fibers and auditory nerve hypoplasia. Although the definition of AN includes the central part, its incidence is low, and the etiology and pathology are not clear. The present review aimed to provide an overview of the genetic conditions associated with AN and highlight the neural and synaptic mechanism of AN. Possible strategy for treatments of AN was also discussed.

[Comparison of the etiological constitution of two and three or more recurrent miscarriage]

Objective: To compare the etiological constitution of recurrent miscarriage (RM) between patients with consecutive two and three or more miscarriages through combining the routine examination results and embryonic karyotype. Methods: Patients with a history of two or more consecutive clinical miscarriages (≤12 weeks of gestation) consulting in the RM clinic of the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University from March 2011 to January 2016 were collected. Six hundred and ninety-six with detailed history recorded, routine clinical examinations of RM and at least once embryonic karyotype were ultimately enrolled in this study. Their etiological constitution of RM were analyzed in groups of consecutive two and three or more miscarriage. The etiologies of RM in analysis consisted of women age, body mass index (BMI) , chromosome abnormalities of couples, uterine abnormalities, endocrinology abnormalities and antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) . Results: (1) Among 696 patients, the abnormal embryonic karyotypes was 60.6% (422/696) and routine RM etiologies was 32.2% (224/696) , leaving the ratio of unexplained RM was only 29.0% (202/696). (2) A total of 717 embryo karyotype were found in 696 patients, included21 cases with twice embryo karyotype results the percentage of normal embryo was 39.7% (285/717) , while abnormal ones was 60.3% (432/717). Among the types of abnormal karyotype, the most common ones (>10%) were trisomy 16 (19.2%, 83/432) , monosome X (11.3%, 49/432) and trisomy 22 (10.9%, 47/432). (3) Among the 696 RM patients, the number of two and three or more miscarriages were respectively 446 (64.1%, 446/696) and 250 (35.9%, 250/696). Comparing groups of three or more miscarriages with two miscarriages, there were significant differencein older age as well as uterine adhesion (P<0.05). But no difference was found in body mass index (BMI) , the rates of chromosome abnormalities of couples, uterine abnormalities except uterine adhesion, endocrinology abnormalities and APS (all P>0.05) between two groups. Conclusions: The abnormal embryonic karyotype is the most common cause of first-trimester RM. The etiological constitution of two and three or more recurrent miscarriages is accordant, suggesting that routine clinical examination and the embryonic karyotype should be started following two consecutive clinical early miscarriages.

[Hospitalization burden of hand, foot and mouth disease in Anhua county of Hunan province, 2013-2016]

Objective: To estimate the serotype and age-specific hospitalization burden associated with hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) in Anhua county of Hunan province, between October 2013 and September 2016. Methods: We collected hospitalization records of HFMD patients from 6 virological surveillance hospitals, and reimbursement records through new rural cooperative medical system from 23 township health centers to estimate the age-specific hospitalization burden of HFMD in Anhua. Combined with the results of virological surveillance, the serotype-specific hospitalization burden of HFMD in Anhua, was estimated. Results: During the three years, it was estimated that 3 541 clinical diagnosed HFMD cases, including 3 146 laboratory-confirmed HFMD cases, were hospitalized in Anhua, but only one was diaguosed as being severe. The estimated average hospitalization rate was 723/100 000(95%CI: 699/100 000-747/100 000) for clinical diagnosed HFMD and 642/100 000 (95%CI: 620/100 000-665/100 000) for laboratory-confirmed HFMD between October 2013 and September 2016. The cases caused by Cox A16 (208/100 000) and Cox A6 (202/100 000) had higher hospitalization rates compared with the cases caused by EV71 (130/100 000), Cox A10 (38/100 000) and other enterovirus (64/100 000), and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.001). HFMD-associated hospitalization rates peaked in children aged 1 year (3 845/100 000), and then decreased with age. Compared with the hospitalized HFMD caused by EV71 and Cox A16, Cox A6-associated hospitalizations mainly occurred in younger age groups (P<0.001). Conclusion: Our study revealed a substantial hospitalization burden associated with mild HFMD caused by EV71, Cox A16, Cox A6 and Cox A10, especially in young children, in Anhua.

The effector of Hippo signaling, Taz, is required for formation of the micropyle and fertilization in zebrafish

The mechanisms that ensure fertilization of egg by a sperm are not fully understood. In all teleosts, a channel called the 'micropyle' is the only route of entry for sperm to enter and fertilize the egg. The micropyle forms by penetration of the vitelline envelope by a single specialized follicle cell, the micropylar cell. The mechanisms underlying micropylar cell specification and micropyle formation are poorly understood. Here, we show that an effector of the Hippo signaling pathway, the Transcriptional co-activator with a PDZ-binding domain (Taz), plays crucial roles in micropyle formation and fertilization in zebrafish (Danio rerio). Genome editing mutants affecting taz can grow to adults. However, eggs from homozygous taz females are not fertilized even though oocytes in mutant females are histologically normal with intact animal-vegetal polarity, complete meiosis and proper ovulation. We find that taz mutant eggs have no micropyle. Taz protein is specifically enriched in mid-oogenesis in the micropylar cell located at the animal pole of wild type oocyte, where it might regulate the cytoskeleton. Taz protein and micropylar cells are not detected in taz mutant ovaries. Our work identifies a novel role for the Hippo/Taz pathway in micropylar cell specification in zebrafish, and uncovers the molecular basis of micropyle formation in teleosts.

Nonequilibrium Pair Breaking in Ba(Fe_{1-x}Co_{x})_{2}As_{2} Superconductors: Evidence for Formation of a Photoinduced Excitonic State

Ultrafast terahertz (THz) pump-probe spectroscopy reveals an unusual out-of-equilibrium Cooper pair nonlinear dynamics and a nonequilibrium state driven by femtosecond (fs) photoexcitation of superconductivity (SC) in iron pnictides. Following fast SC quench via hot-phonon scattering, a second, abnormally slow (many hundreds of picoseconds), SC quench regime is observed prior to any recovery. Importantly, a nonlinear pump fluence dependence is identified for this remarkably long prebottleneck dynamics that are sensitive to both doping and temperature. Using quantum kinetic modeling we argue that the buildup of excitonic interpocket correlation between electron-hole (e-h) quasiparticles (QP) quenches SC after fs photoexcitation leading to a long-lived, many-QP excitonic state.

Improved Tol2-mediated enhancer trap identifies weakly expressed genes during liver and β cell development and regeneration in zebrafish

The liver and pancreas are two major digestive organs, and among the different cell types in them, hepatocytes and the insulin-producing β cells have roles in both health and diseases. Accordingly, clinicians and researchers are very interested in the mechanisms underlying the development and regeneration of liver and pancreatic β cells. Gene and enhancer traps such as the Tol2 transposon-based system are useful for identifying genes potentially involved in developmental processes in the zebrafish model. Here, we developed a strategy that combines a Tol2-mediated enhancer trap and the Cre/loxP system by using loxP-flanked reporters driven by β cell- or hepatocyte-specific promoters and the upstream activating sequence (UAS)-driving Cre. Two double-transgenic reporter lines, Tg(ins:loxP-CFPNTR-loxP-DsRed; 10×UAS:Cre, cryaa:Venus) and Tg(fabp10:loxP-CFPNTR-loxP-DsRed; 10×UAS:Cre, cryaa:Venus), were established to label pancreatic β cells and hepatocytes, respectively. These two double-transgenic lines were each crossed with the Tol2-enhancer trap founder lines to screen for and identify genes expressed in the β cell and hepatocytes during development. This trap system coupled with application of nitroreductase (NTR)/metronidazole (Mtz)-mediated cell ablation could identify genes expressed during regeneration. Of note, pilot enhancer traps captured transiently and weakly expressed genes such as rab3da and ensab with higher efficiencies than traditional enhancer trap systems. In conclusion, through permanent genetic labeling by Cre/loxP, this improved Tol2-mediated enhancer trap system provides a promising method to identify transiently or weakly expressed, but potentially important, genes during development and regeneration.

[Research on the correlation between mechanical signaling molecules of hypertrophic scar and post injury time in burn patients in scar remodeling stage]

Objective: To analyze the correlation between integrin β₁, focal adhesion kinase (FAK), extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) of hypertrophic scar (HS) and post injury time in burn patients in scar remodeling stage. Methods: Thirty-four patients with 34 HS specimens admitted to Department of Burns and Plastic Surgery of Chengdu No.2 Hospital and Institute of Burn Research of the First Affiliated Hospital of Army Medical University (originally the Third Military Medical University) from May 2013 to April 2016 were recruited by convenient sampling method, and normal skin specimens were obtained from donor sites of another 6 patients from the above-mentioned departments who had scar resection and skin grafting for this cross-sectional and observational study. Vancouver Scar Scale (VSS) was used to assess the height, vascularity, pigmentation, and pliability of scars. Diasonograph was used to assess scar thickness. Immunohistochemical method was used to observe the expressions of integrin β₁, FAK, and ERK1/2 in dermis and epidermis of scar and normal skin. Correlations between the post injury time and the scar thickness, the post injury time and the expressions of integrin β₁, FAK, and ERK1/2 in epidermis of scar, the post injury time and the expressions of integrin β₁, FAK, and ERK1/2 in dermis of scar, the expressions of integrin β₁, FAK, and ERK1/2 in dermis and those in epidermis of scar were analyzed by Pearson correlation analysis. Locally estimated scatterplot smoothing curve fitting line was used to demonstrate the non-linear regression relationship between the expressions of integrin β₁, FAK, and ERK1/2 in dermis and those in epidermis of scar, the scar thickness and the post injury time. Results: (1) The total VSS score of scars of patients was (8.3±2.3) points, with height scored (2.2±0.7) points, vascularity scored (2.0±0.8) points, pigmentation scored (2.3±0.7) points, and pliability scored (1.9±0.7) points. The thickness of scar was (2.8±1.1) mm. (2) The expressions of integrin β₁, FAK, and ERK1/2 in dermis and epidermis of scar were more than those in normal skin. (3) There was significantly positive correlation between the scar thickness and the post injury time (r=0.39, P<0.05). There was significantly positive correlation between the expression of integrin β₁ in epidermis of scar and the post injury time (r=0.33, P<0.05). There were no significantly correlations between the expressions of FAK and ERK1/2 in epidermis of scar and the post injury time (r=-0.03, -0.04, P>0.05). There was significantly negative correlation between the expression of FAK in dermis of scar and the post injury time (r=-0.34, P<0.05). There were no significantly correlations between the expressions of integrin β₁ and ERK1/2 in dermis of scar and the post injury time (r=0.07, -0.23, P>0.05). There were significantly positive correlation between the expressions of integrin β₁, FAK, and ERK1/2 in dermis and those in epidermis of scar (r=0.70, 0.60, 0.64, P<0.01). (4) The expressions of integrin β₁, FAK, and ERK1/2 in dermis and epidermis of scar were changed from downtrend in 1 to 2 months post injury to uptrend in 2 to 3 months post injury, which reached the peak around 3 to 4 months post injury. Hereafter the expressions of mechanical signaling molecules in epidermis of scar were gradually declined, while the expressions of mechanical signaling molecules in dermis of scar were at a quite high level within half a year post injury. Scar thickness was steadily increased after 1 month post injury. Conclusions: In scar remodeling stage of burn patients, the HS thickness increases continuously along with the increasing post injury time in the early stage of scar formation. The vulnerability of integrin β₁, FAK, and ERK1/2 of HS to external mechanical stimuli increases gradually within 4 months post injury.

[Analysis on characteristics of hearing loss in occupational noise-exposed workers in automotive manufacturing industry]

Objective: To investigate the characteristics of hearing loss in occupational noise-exposed workers in automotive manufacturing industry. Methods: According to Technical Specifications for Occupational Health Surveillance (GBZ188-2014) , 530 noise-exposed workers were examined for health and pure tone audiometry during January to June, 2017, and the data were collected for analysis. Poisson regression analysis was used to analysis the relationship between work age and hearing loss. Results: After correction of age and gender, pure-tone threshold of 500, 1 000, 2 000, 3 000, 4 000, 6 000 of the noise-exposed workers in the <3 year-exposure group were 20.15±3.60, 18.80±3.43, 18.54±3.38, 19.10±4.03, 20.32±6.79, 23.48±8.92 dB (A) ; the values in the 3-10 year-exposure group were 20.96±5.38, 19.25±4.76, 19.22±5.29, 20.17±7.50, 21.36±8.88, 25.39±11.60 dB (A) ; the values in the >10 year-exposure group were 20.18±3.67, 18.34±3.60, 18.36±4.25, 18.49±4.41, 20.32±9.24, 22.50±9.57 dB (A) . Poisson regression analysis showed that the relative risk (RR) of hearing loss of the noise-exposed workers compared with the noise-free workers was 4.38 (P<0.05) . Conclusion: The noise-exposed workers in automotive manufacturing industry revealed hearing loss, which was associated with their actual working age of noise exposure.

[The application of ARIMA in forecasting the cases of rabies in China different human groups]

Objective: To understand the situation of rabies in China different human groups. Seasonal ARIMA model is established to make forecasts and to provide suggestions for human rabies controlling in China. Methods: Build a model with data during 2004-2013, and validate the model by data of 2014. Then predict the cases of rabies from 2015-2017. Results: The long term trend is decreasing year by year, while seasonal effect is found that number of the third and fourth quarter are higher than others. The seasonal ARIMA model was built, whose residual are white noise. The RMAE in forecasting of peasants, students and scattered children are 19.10%、49.93% and 68.01%. Conclusion: The decreasing of rabies cases in China with time shows that the measures for control are effective. October for peasants, September for students, August for scattered children are critical period in future for rabies' control. Seasonal ARIMA model is a feasible model in forecasting the cases of rabies in China different groups in some way, error will be reduced by modeling separately for different wave sequence and combining with other models like ARIMA-GARCH.

Chinese expert consensus on diagnosis and management of acquired respiratory-digestive tract fistulas

Acquired respiratory‐digestive tract fistulas occur with abnormal communication between the airways and digestive tract, causing the interflow of gas and liquid. Despite advances in surgical methods and the development of multimodal therapy in recent years, patients with acquired respiratory‐digestive tract fistulas continue to exhibit unfavorable clinical outcomes. Therefore, in order to guide clinical practice in China, the Respiratory and Cancer Intervention Alliance of the Beijing Health Promotion Association organized a group of experienced experts in the field to develop this consensus document. Based on a study of clinical application and expert experience in the diagnosis and management of acquired respiratory‐digestive tract fistulas at home and abroad, an Expert Consensus was developed. The panelists recruited comprised experts in pulmonology, oncology, thoracic surgery, interventional radiology, and gastroenterology. PubMed, Chinese Biology Abstract, Chinese Academic Journal, and Wanfang databases were used to identify relevant articles. The guidelines address etiology, classification, pathogenesis, diagnosis and management of acquired respiratory‐digestive tract fistulas. The statements on treatment focus on the indications for different procedures, technical aspects, and preprocedural, post‐procedural and complication management. The proposed guidelines for the diagnosis and management of acquired respiratory‐digestive tract fistulas are the first to be published by Chinese experts. These guidelines provide an in‐depth review of the current evidence and standard of diagnosis and management.

Forensic Analysis on 52 Medical Malpractice Cases of Cardiac Death

OBJECTIVES

To synthetically analyse the medical malpractice cases of cardiac death in forensic identification, and to explore the generality and characteristic of cause of death, medical malpractice and assessment of participation degree.

METHODS

Totally 52 medical malpractice cases of cardiac death examined in the Xiaoshan Branch Office, Hangzhou Minghao Forensic Judical Appraisal Institute, from January 2015 to April 2018 were collected. The general information of cases, medical institutions and situations of hospital stay, cause of death, medical malpractice and assessment of participation degree were retrospectively analysed.

RESULTS

In 52 cases, the male to female ratio was 2.25:1, and most subjects aged >50-60. Cardiac death caused by hypertensive heart disease or coronary heart disease was most common （67.3%）, followed by viral myocarditis and cardiomyopathy （13.5%）. There were 24 cases involved surgery, and the survival time after surgery was from 1 h to 118 d with a 7 d medium value. There were 63 medical institutes involved in these medical malpractices. Medical malpractice presented in most hospitals more or less, and the participation degree was >20%-30%.

CONCLUSIONS

Forensic appraisal contributes to determine causes of death, which not only provides scientific evidence for medical malpractice identification, but also improves diagnosis and treatment levels of medical institutions.

How does social development influence life expectancy? A geographically weighted regression analysis in China

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to examine how social development influenced life expectancy from a spatio-temporal perspective.

STUDY DESIGN

Data were taken from the China Statistical Yearbooks for 2001 and 2011, which presented results from 2000 to 2010, respectively.

METHODS

A geographically weighted regression method was performed. A total of 31 provinces were treated as units of our analysis, and four social development dimensions were extracted by exploratory factor analysis.

RESULTS

Generally speaking, healthcare and education development could significantly improve life expectancy. Between 2000 and 2010, the positive effects of social harmony and eco-environment development were gradually increasing. Spatially speaking, the enhancing effect of healthcare development on life expectancy generally declined from south to north China; the improving effect of education development generally declined from southwest China to northeast and northwest China. The geographical distributions of the effects of eco-environment and social harmony development on life expectancy were different between 2000 and 2010; the former declined from the eastern coast to west China in 2000 and declined from northwest to south China in 2010, while the latter first declined from north to southwest China in 2000 and then declined from southwest to northeast China in 2010.

CONCLUSIONS

Because the effects of various social development dimensions on life expectancy vary with time and space, it is necessary to improve certain aspects of social development in specific areas and social stages to efficiently improve life expectancy and population health.

The Fate of In Situ Lens Regeneration is Determined by Capsulorhexis Size

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

Lens regeneration is an optimal strategy for cataract patients to regain visual acuity with accommodation. We recently designed a novel, minimally invasive capsulorhexis surgical method for cataract removal that achieved functional lens regeneration in human infants. However, small anterior capsulorhexis requires advanced surgical expertise. To examine whether the quality of the regenerated lens can be maintained with enlarged anterior capsulorhexis, we investigated the shape and transparency of the regenerated lenses with different anterior capsulorhexis diameters (ACDs).

METHODS

Thirty-six 4-week-old New Zealand albino rabbits were randomly divided into three groups which underwent lens extraction with different ACDs (Group A: 2.0±0.5 mm, Group B: 4.0±0.5 mm, Group C: 6.0±0.5 mm). The anterior capsule opening area (ACOA) was quantified, and the morphology, weight, and histological characteristics of the regenerated lenses were examined.

RESULTS

Lens regeneration was observed in all three groups. In Group A, the regenerated lenses were relatively complete and transparent. In Groups B and C, the regenerated lenses were doughnut-shaped and opaque. The speed of lens regeneration in Group A was significantly faster than that in Groups B and C. The ACOA in Group A healed quickly and completely approximately 2 weeks after surgery. However, in Groups B and C, ACOA did not heal completely until 12 weeks after surgery. Histological examination showed that in Group A, most of the lens epithelial cells differentiated into well-organized lens fibers. However, in Groups B and C, the regenerated lens fibers were disorganized.

CONCLUSION

Capsulorhexis size is a critical determinant of integrity and transparency in lens regeneration.

Terahertz-light quantum tuning of a metastable emergent phase hidden by superconductivity

'Sudden' quantum quench and prethermalization have become a cross-cutting theme for discovering emergent states of matter^1-4. Yet this remains challenging in electron matter^5-9, especially superconductors^10-14. The grand question of what is hidden underneath superconductivity (SC) ¹⁵ appears universal, but poorly understood. Here we reveal a long-lived gapless quantum phase of prethermalized quasiparticles (QPs) after a single-cycle terahertz (THz) quench of a Nb₃Sn SC gap. Its conductivity spectra is characterized by a sharp coherent peak and a vanishing scattering rate that decreases almost linearly towards zero frequency, which is most pronounced around the full depletion of the condensate and absent for a high-frequency pump. Above a critical pump threshold, such a QP phase with coherent transport and memory persists as an unusual prethermalization plateau, without relaxation to normal and SC thermal states for an order of magnitude longer than the QP recombination and thermalization times. Switching to this metastable 'quantum QP fluid' signals non-thermal quench of coupled SC and charge-density-wave (CDW)-like orders and hints quantum control beneath the SC.

Yap1/Taz are essential for the liver development in zebrafish

Hippo pathway regulates cell proliferation and differentiation. Yes-associated protein (Yap) and transcriptional coactivator with PDZ-binding motif (Taz) are effectors of Hippo pathway. The function of Yap/Taz in embryonic liver development has yet to be reported. Here yap1 and taz were found expressed in liver and other digestive organs in zebrafish embryos, and knockout of yap1 or taz did not lead to visible defects during embryogenesis. Interestingly, Taz was significantly increased in yap1 mutants, which may account for their normal development, albeit losing Yap1. However, yap1^-/-; taz^+/- embryos exhibited smaller digestive organs, and more than half of them showed bilateral livers and pancreas and non-looped intestines. Further analysis revealed that the disrupted gene function in yap1^-/-; taz^+/- embryos did not disturb liver bud formation, but instead impaired cell proliferation in liver and movement of the neighboring lateral plate mesoderm (LPM). Overexpression of wild type yap1 or taz could rescue the defective liver phenotypes in yap1^-/-; taz^+/- embryos, indicating that Yap1 cooperate with Taz to regulate the liver development. In addition, Yap1 was found to function in a Tead-dependent manner in the liver development. Our results suggest that Yap1/Taz regulate LPM movement and promote cell proliferation to ensure proper liver development in zebrafish.

The caudal dorsal artery generates hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells via the endothelial-to-hematopoietic transition in zebrafish

Zebrafish hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) originate from the hemogenic endothelium of the ventral wall of the dorsal aorta (DA) through the endothelial-to-hematopoietic transition (EHT) from approximately 30 to 60 hours post fertilization (hpf). However, whether other artery sites can generate HSPCs de novo remains unclear. In this study, using live imaging and lineage tracing, we found that the caudal dorsal artery (CDA) in the caudal hematopoietic tissue directly gave rise to HSPCs through EHT. This process initiated from approximately 60 hpf and terminated at approximately 156 hpf. Compared with that in the DA, fewer EHT events were observed in the CDA. The EHT events in the DA and CDA were similarly regulated by Runx1 but differentially influenced by blood flow (i.e., the EHT frequency in CDA was affected to a lesser extent when circulation was compromised in the tnnt2a-/- mutant). Therefore, the whole artery, including both DA and CDA, was endowed with the ability to produce HSPCs during a much longer time period. Coincidently, the lineage tracing results indicated that adult hematopoietic cells originated from the embryonic endothelium, and those produced later preferentially colonized the adult thymus. Collectively, our study revealed that the CDA serves as an additional source of hematopoiesis, and it shows similar but not identical properties with the DA.

The CCCH-type zinc finger transcription factor Zc3h8 represses NF-κB-mediated inflammation in digestive organs in zebrafish

Degenerative diseases of organs lead to their impaired function. The cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying organ degeneration are therefore of great research and clinical interest but are currently incompletely characterized. Here, using a forward-genetic screen for genes regulating liver development and function in zebrafish, we identified a cq5 mutant that exhibited a liver-degeneration phenotype at 5 days postfertilization, the developmental stage at which a functional liver develops. Positional cloning revealed that the liver degeneration was caused by a single point mutation in the gene zc3h8 (zinc finger CCCH-type containing 8), changing a highly conserved histidine to glutamine at position 353 of the Zc3h8 protein. The zc3h8 mutation-induced liver degeneration in the mutant was accompanied by reduced proliferation, increased apoptosis, and macrophage phagocytosis of hepatocytes. Transcriptional profile analyses revealed up-regulation and activation of both proinflammatory cytokines and the NF-κB signaling pathway in the zc3h8 mutant. Suppression of NF-κB signaling activity efficiently rescued the proinflammatory cytokine response, as well as the inflammation-mediated liver degeneration phenotype of the mutant. Of note, the zc3h8 mutation-induced degeneration of several other organs, including the gut and exocrine pancreas, indicating that Zc3h8 is a general repressor of inflammation in zebrafish. Collectively, our findings demonstrate that Zc3h8 maintains organ homeostasis by inhibiting the NF-κB-mediated inflammatory response in zebrafish and that Zc3h8 dysfunction causes degeneration of multiple organs, including the liver, gut, and pancreas.