A swine-specific CpG motif enriched plasmid (pUC18-CpG) was constructed in this study. Its immunostimulant property was tested in vitro via lymphocyte transformation assay using swine peripheral ...blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). The recombinant plasmid showed higher Stimulation Index (SI) compared to the positive control (LPS). In a following animal experiment, pUC18-CpG was co-administered with a commercial swine FMD killed vaccine. Animals in the pUC18-CpG adjuvanted groups showed much higher antibody titers during the vaccination period.
Objective To investigate the role of FOXM1, beta-catenin and TCF4 in esophageal cancer (EC) and their relationship to VM (Vasculogenic Mimicry). Methods CCK-8 were performed to examine EC cell ...proliferation in FOXM1 silenced cells. EC cell migration and invasion were investigated through wound healing and Transwell assays, respectively. The formation of pipe like structures were assessed in 3D cultures. The expression of Foxm1, beta-catenin, Tcf4 and E-cadherin were investigated through western blot, RT-qPCR and immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining. The relationship between FOXM1 expression, clinic-pathological features, and overall survival (OS) were further analyzed. Results A loss of FOXM1 expression correlated with the OS of ESCC patients. FOXM1 silencing led to a loss of cell growth and suppressed cell migration and invasion in ESCC cells. VM structures were identified in ESCC tissues and human EC cell lines. Mechanistically, FOXM1 was found to promote tumorigenesis through the regulation of beta-catenin, Tcf4, and E-cadherin in EC cells, leading to the formation of VM structures. Conclusions These findings highlight FoxM1 as a novel therapeutic target in ESCC. Keywords: Esophageal cancer, FOXM1, beta-Catenin, Tcf4, VM, Proliferation, Invasion, Migration
Pressure overload-induced cardiac hypertrophy occurs in response to chronic blood pressure increase, and dysfunction of Ca
1.2 calcium channel involves in cardiac hypertrophic processes by perturbing ...intracellular calcium concentration (Ca
) and calcium-dependent signaling. As a carbohydrate-binding protein, galectin-1 (Gal-1) is found to bind with Ca
1.2 channel, which regulates vascular Ca
1.2 channel functions and blood pressure. However, the potential roles of Gal-1 in cardiac Ca
1.2 channel (Ca
1.2
) and cardiomyocyte hypertrophy remain elusive. By whole-cell patch clamp, we find Gal-1 decreases the I
with or without isoproterenol (ISO) application by reducing the channel membrane expression in neonatal rat ventricular myocytes (NRVMs). Moreover, Gal-1 could inhibit the current densities of Ca
1.2
by an alternative exon 9*-dependent manner in heterologously expressed HEK293 cells. Of significance, overexpression of Gal-1 diminishes ISO or KCl-induced Ca
elevation and attenuates ISO-induced hypertrophy in NRVMs. Mechanistically, Gal-1 decreases the ISO or Bay K8644-induced phosphorylation of intracellular calcium-dependent signaling proteins δCaMKII and HDAC4, and inhibits ISO-triggered translocation of HDAC4 in NRVMs. Pathologically, we observe that the expressions of Gal-1 and Ca
1.2
channels are synchronously increased in rat hypertrophic cardiomyocytes and hearts. Taken together, our study indicates that Gal-1 reduces the channel membrane expression to inhibit the currents of Ca
1.2
in a splice-variant specific manner, which diminishes Ca
elevation, and attenuates cardiomyocyte hypertrophy by inhibiting the phosphorylation of δCaMKII and HDAC4. Furthermore, our work suggests that dysregulated Gal-1 and Ca
1.2 alternative exon 9* might be attributed to the pathological processes of cardiac hypertrophy, and provides a potential anti-hypertrophic target in the heart.
Two-dimensional (2D) materials have attracted attention for quantum information science due to their ability to host single-photon emitters (SPEs). Although the properties of atomically thin ...materials are highly sensitive to surface modification, chemical functionalization remains unexplored in the design and control of 2D material SPEs. Here, we report a chemomechanical approach to modify SPEs in monolayer WSe
through the synergistic combination of localized mechanical strain and noncovalent surface functionalization with aryl diazonium chemistry. Following the deposition of an aryl oligomer adlayer, the spectrally complex defect-related emission of strained monolayer WSe
is simplified into spectrally isolated SPEs with high single-photon purity. Density functional theory calculations reveal energetic alignment between WSe
defect states and adsorbed aryl oligomer energy levels, thus providing insight into the observed chemomechanically modified quantum emission. By revealing conditions under which chemical functionalization tunes SPEs, this work broadens the parameter space for controlling quantum emission in 2D materials.
Sleep duration was associated with large artery atherosclerosis, but its association with atherosclerosis in lower extremity arteries was not well studied. Together with sleep, physical activity ...constitutes main component of our daily life and influences sleep. Here, we aimed to examine the independent and joint associations of sleep duration and physical activity with peripheral artery disease (PAD) in Chinese adults.
In Tianning cohort, night-time sleep duration and physical activity were assessed by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire, respectively, for 5130 participants (51.0±15.6 years, 58.7% female). PAD was defined as ankle-brachial index (ABI) <0.9. General linear, and logistic regression models were used to assess the associations of sleep duration and physical activity with PAD. The biological interaction between sleep duration and physical activity on PAD was examined using additive model.
Compared to participants sleeping 6-8.9 h, those sleeping ≥9 h had a 0.02 lower ABI (β=-0.02,
=0.007) and 38% higher odds of PAD (OR=1.38,
=0.035). Compared to physically active participants sleeping 6-8.9 h, among ≥9 h group, physically inactive individuals had significantly increased odds of PAD (OR=2.40,
<0.001), whereas physically active individuals did not (OR=1.15,
=0.472). On additive scale, attributable proportion due to interaction (0.40, 95% CI: 0.07, 0.73) indicated a significant interaction between sleep duration and physical activity on PAD.
Being physically active may attenuate the detrimental association between prolonged sleep duration and PAD. Moreover, we found a significant interaction between prolonged sleep duration and physical inactivity in the prevalence of PAD.
Background
Cicatricial alopecia encompasses a diverse group of disorders characterized by the permanent destruction of hair follicles and irreversible hair loss. Follicular unit transplantation was ...developed in 1994. However, large-scale clinical trials are necessary to study follicular unit transplantation for treating Chinese cicatricial alopecia patients.
Objective
To investigate the efficacy of follicular unit transplantation in the treatment of cicatricial alopecia in Chinese patients.
Methods
Patients with cicatricial alopecia were enrolled. The designated recipient area, follicular unit density of the donor site, transplanted density and operative time were recorded. Postoperative follow-up was conducted within six to 24 months; the density of hair in the recipient area was calculated using a Folliscope (Hansderma Co, USA). Patients' self-reported satisfaction and long-term complications were recorded.
Results
Thirty-seven patients were enrolled. Cicatricial alopecia was caused by burns (n=8), trauma (n=21) and plastic surgery (cleft lip and palate repair n=8). Burn patients had a significantly larger bald area than the other patients (P<0.01). The operative time was significantly correlated with recipient area. The longest operation was 14.5 h; the largest transplanted area was 96 cm2. At follow-up, the surviving follicular unit density/transplanted follicular unit density rate was 64.29% to 95.00% (mean 78.96%); the surviving/transplanted (S/T) area was 100% for 30 patients, 90% to 100% for five patients and <90% for two patients. The lowest S/T area was 82.81%. The S/T index was significantly and inversely correlated with operative time. Regarding long-term complications, two patients had postoperative epidermoid cysts that healed with local treatment.
Conclusion
Follicular unit transplantation is an effective method for treating cicatricial alopecia. It is relatively safe and yields satisfactory postoperative results. Extending the results of the present study to Chinese clinical practice is warranted.
To investigate a new method and its effect on the procedure of dilating the ejaculatory duct and flushing the seminal vesicle with an F9 seminal vesicle scope in patients with chronic and recurrent ...seminal vesiculitis.
Twenty-six patients with a diagnosis based to signs, laboratory detection, digital rectal examination, and transrectal ultrasonography were involved in present study. The patients underwent a surgical procedure of dilating the ejaculatory duct and flushing the seminal vesicles with an F9 seminal vesicle endoscope. All patients were followed for 3 months to 1 year after treatment.
There were significant reductions in symptoms, signs, white blood cell and red blood cell counts on microscopic examination, seminal vesicles size, improvement of inner walls echo in transrectal ultrasonography, and semen culture positive rate. Moreover, all patients showed improvement.
The present study provides a new transurethral seminal tract endoscopic technique with seminal vesicle scope through the normal anatomic tract to treat patients with chronic seminal vesiculitis. It proved to be easily conducted with minimized complications. Further investigations are needed to confirm our results.
Neural tube defects (NTDs) are one of the most common types of birth defects, affecting approximately 1 of every 1000 pregnancies in the United States and an estimated 300 000 newborns worldwide each ...year. The metabolic signature of pregnant women with NTDs in offspring has not previously been characterized. In this paper, we report a profiling study that characterized the serum metabolome of 101 pregnant women affected with NTDs in offspring in comparison with 143 pregnant women with normal pregnancy outcomes in Lvliang prefecture, the area with the highest birth prevalence of NTDs in China. A serum metabonomic study was also conducted to identify significantly altered metabolites associated with di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP)-induced teratogenesis in mice. The metabolic signature of NTD in pregnant women is characterized by the impaired mitochondrial respiration, neurotransmitter γ-aminobutyric acid, and methionine cycle. Of interest, consistent findings from DBP-induced teratogenesis in mice demonstrated increased succinate and decreased fumarate, suggesting an inhibited succinic dehydrogenase implicated in the defective mitochondria. The characteristic disruption of maternal metabolism offers important insights into metabolic mechanisms underlying human NTDs as well as potential preventive strategies.
High-capacity Li2 S cathode (1166 mAh g-1 ) is regarded as a promising candidate for the next-generation lithium ion batteries. However, its high potential barrier upon the initial activation process ...leads to a low utilization of Li2 S. In this work, a Li2 S/graphite full cell with the zero activation potential barrier is achieved through an in situ electrochemical conversion of Li2 S8 catholyte into the amorphous Li2 S. Theoretical calculations indicate that the zero activation potential for amorphous Li2 S can be ascribed to its lower Li extraction energy than that of the crystalline Li2 S. The constructed Li2 S/graphite full cell delivers a high discharge capacity of 1006 mAh g-1 , indicating a high utilization of the amorphous Li2 S as a cathode. Moreover, a long cycle life with 500 cycles for this Li2 S/graphite full cell is realized. This in situ electrochemical conversion strategy designed here is inspired for developing high energy Li2 S-based full cells in future.
Soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill) is an important component of the human diet and animal feed, but soybean production is limited by abiotic stresses especially salinity. We recently found that ...rhizobia inoculation enhances soybean tolerance to salt stress, but the underlying mechanisms are unaddressed. Here, we used quantitative phosphoproteomic and metabonomic approaches to identify changes in phosphoproteins and metabolites in soybean roots treated with rhizobia inoculation and salt. Results revealed differential regulation of 800 phosphopeptides, at least 32 of these phosphoproteins or their homologous were reported be involved in flavonoid synthesis or trafficking, and 27 out of 32 are transcription factors. We surveyed the functional impacts of all these 27 transcription factors by expressing their phospho-mimetic/ablative mutants in the roots of composite soybean plants and found that phosphorylation of GmMYB183 could affect the salt tolerance of the transgenic roots. Using data mining, ChIP and EMSA, we found that GmMYB183 binds to the promoter of the soybean GmCYP81E11 gene encoding for a Cytochrome P450 monooxygenase which contributes to the accumulation of ononin, a monohydroxy B-ring flavonoid that negatively regulates soybean tolerance to salinity. Phosphorylation of GmMYB183 was inhibited by rhizobia inoculation; overexpression of GmMYB183 enhanced the expression of GmCYP81E11 and rendered salt sensitivity to the transgenic roots; plants deficient in GmMYB183 function are more tolerant to salt stress as compared with wild-type soybean plants, these results correlate with the transcriptional induction of GmCYP81E11 by GmMYB183 and the subsequent accumulation of ononin. Our findings provide molecular insights into how rhizobia enhance salt tolerance of soybean plants.
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