COVID-19 brought masking, a practice that was largely confined to certain technical occupational settings in the US, into the heart of a national controversy. As with prior emerging infectious ...diseases (such as HIV, SARS, and Ebola), US public health experts and governmental agencies positioned themselves as authoritative producers of emerging scientific knowledge, including best practices for public masking. US epidemiological outcomes, however, have sorely lagged behind many other countries. The US leads the world in confirmed cases of and deaths from COVID-19, undermining presumed hierarchies in global health authority today. In this essay, I compare US and Taiwanese masking policies, delineating how social relations of care in the US become sites of political conflict within a hierarchical global ecology of scientific knowledge and medical supplies. Drawing upon my experience as an MD/PhD in anthropology trainee studying emerging infectious diseases and as a Taiwanese American immigrant, I explore conflicts over mask acquisition and usage across borders and time, illuminating global inequities of scientific knowledge production and pandemic containment and underscoring racialised disavowals that persist in US public health. These racialised disavowals illustrate the structural limits that circumscribe possibilities of containment during an uncontained pandemic.
Endothelial cells injury and pro-inflammation cytokines release are the initial steps of hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy)-associated vascular inflammation. Pyroptosis is a newly identified ...pro-inflammation form of programmed cell death, causing cell lysis and IL-1β release, and characterized by the caspases-induced cleavage of its effector molecule gasdermins (GSDMs). However, the effect of homocysteine (Hcy) on endothelial cells pyroptosis and the underlying mechanisms have not been fully defined. We have previously reported that Hcy induces vascular endothelial inflammation accompanied by the increase of high mobility group box-1 protein (HMGB1) and lysosomal cysteine protease cathepsin V in endothelial cells, and other studies have shown that HMGB1 or cathepsins are involved in activation of NLRP3 inflammasome and caspase-1. Here, we investigated the role of HMGB1 and cathepsin V in the process of Hcy-induced pyroptosis. We observed an increase in plasma IL-1β levels in HHcy patients and mice models, cathepsin V inhibitor reduced the plasma IL-1β levels and cleavage of GSDMD full-length into GSDMD N-terminal in the thoracic aorta of hyperhomocysteinemia mice. Using cultured HUVECs, we observed that Hcy promoted GSDMD N-terminal expression, silencing GSDMD or HMGB1 rescued Hcy-induced pyroptosis. HMGB1 also increased GSDMD N-terminal expression, and silencing cathepsin V reversed HMGB1-induced pyroptosis. HMGB1 could increase lysosome permeability, and silencing cathepsin V attenuated HMGB1-induced activation of caspase-1. In conclusion, this study has delineated a novel mechanism that HMGB1 mediated Hcy-induced endothelial cells pyroptosis partly via cathepsin V-dependent pathway.
•Hcy induced GSDMD-mediated endothelial cells pyroptosis.•HMGB1 mediated Hcy-induced pyroptosis.•Cathepsin V was involved in Hcy or HMGB1-induced pyroptosis.
Liver is a pivotal organ for sepsis-induced injury and approximately 40 % of liver injury results from sepsis. During hepatic injury, monocyte-to-macrophage differentiation is a key event because it ...results in the regulation of immune response. Asialoglycoprotein receptor 1 (ASGR1) is enriched in classical monocyte of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). We aimed to explore the effect of ASGR1 on monocyte-to-macrophage differentiation and the modulation of sepsis-induced liver injury.
ASGR1-knockdown/overexpression THP-1 cells and mice bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs) induced by PMA and 30 % L929-cell conditioned medium were utilized to test the impact of ASGR1 on monocyte-to-macrophage differentiation and molecular mechanism respectively. Expression of differentiation specific factors were assessed via flow cytometry and real-time quantitative PCR. RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) analysis revealed the effect of ASGR1 on monocyte-to-macrophage differentiation. Further, differentiation specific factors ATF5 and NF-κB pathways were examined via Western blot. The interaction between ASGR1 and ATF5 was further examined by co-IP. Finally, LPS-induced ASGR1-knockdown mice sepsis was used to investigate the effect of ASGR1 on monocyte-to-macrophage differentiation, liver injury and survival.
ASGR1 promoted monocyte-to-macrophage differentiation via up-regulating CD68, F4/80 and CD86. Additionally, inhibited-ASGR1 decreased ATF5 expression by suppressing phosphorylation of NF-κB and IKBa in vitro and in vivo. ASGR1-knockdown mice suppressed Ly6Chi inflammatory monocytes in PBMCs, and restrained CD45+CD11bhiF4/80+Ly6Clo monocyte-derived macrophages and CD45+CD11b+F4/80+Ly6C+ inflammatory macrophages in livers. It also suppressed the level of IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α and alleviated liver injury and improved survival after sepsis.
ASGR1 is a negative regulator for sepsis-induced liver injury and survival.
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•ASGR1 promotes liver injury in sepsis.•ASGR1 mediates monocyte to macrophage differentiation.•Monocyte-to-macrophage differentiation mediated liver injury in sepsis.•Inactivation ATF5 inhibits monocyte to macrophage differentiation.•ASGR1 induces liver injury in sepsis and survival rate via NF-κB/ATF5 pathway.
Multiple organ perfusion is impaired in sepsis. Clinical studies suggest that persistent perfusion disturbances are prognostic of fatal outcome in sepsis. Pyroptosis occurs upon activation of ...caspases and their subsequent cleavage of gasdermin D (Gsdmd), resulting in Gsdmd-N (activated NH
-terminal fragment of Gsdmd) that form membrane pores to induce cell death in sepsis. In addition, Gsdmd
mice are protected from a lethal dose of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). However, how Gsdmd-mediated pyroptosis occurs in endothelial cells and leads to impaired perfusion remain unexplored in endotoxemia. We used transgenic mice with ablation of Gsdmd and determined that mice lacking Gsdmd exhibited reduced breakdown of endothelial barrier, improved organ perfusion, as well as increased survival in endotoxemia. Phospholipase Cγ1 (PLCγ1) contributed to Gsdmd-mediated endothelial pyroptosis in a calcium-dependent fashion, without affecting Gsdmd-N production. Cytosolic calcium signaling promoted Gsdmd-N translocation to the plasma membrane, enhancing endothelial pyroptosis induced by LPS. We used adeno-associated virus (AAV9) vectors carrying a short hairpin RNA (shRNA) against murine PLCγ1 mRNA under control of the tie1 core promoter (AAV-tie1-sh-PLCγ1) to uniquely downregulate PLCγ1 expression in the endothelial cells. Here, we showed that unique inhibition of endothelial PLCγ1 attenuated breakdown of endothelial barrier, reduced vascular leakage, and improved perfusion disturbances. Moreover, unique downregulate endothelial PLCγ1 expression markedly decreased mortality of mice in endotoxemia. Thus, we establish that endothelial injury as an important trigger of fatal outcome in endotoxemia. Additionally, these findings suggest that interfering with Gsdmd and PLCγ1-calcium pathway may represent a new treatment strategy for critically ill patients sustaining endotoxemia.
Our study newly reveals that Phospholipase Cγ1 (PLCγ1) contributes to gasdermin D (Gsdmd)-mediated endothelial pyroptosis in a calcium-dependent fashion. Cytosolic calcium signaling promotes activated NH
-terminal fragment of Gsdmd (Gsdmd-N) to translocate to the plasma membrane, enhancing endothelial pyroptosis induced by cytoplasmic LPS. Genetic or pharmacologic inhibition of endothelial PLCγ1 attenuated breakdown of endothelial barrier, reduced vascular leakage, improve perfusion disturbances, and decrease mortality of mice in endotoxemia.
Vascular precursor cells with angiogenic potentials are important for tissue repair, which is impaired in diabetes mellitus. MicroRNAs are recently discovered key regulators of gene expression, but ...their role in vascular precursor cell-mediated angiogenesis in diabetes mellitus is unknown. We tested the hypothesis that the microRNA miR-27b rescues impaired bone marrow-derived angiogenic cell (BMAC) function in vitro and in vivo in type 2 diabetic mice.
BMACs from adult male type 2 diabetic db/db and from normal littermate db/+ mice were used. miR-27b expression was decreased in db/db BMACs. miR-27b mimic improved db/db BMAC function, including proliferation, adhesion, tube formation, and delayed apoptosis, but it did not affect migration. Elevated thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1) protein in db/db BMACs was suppressed on miR-27b mimic transfection. Inhibition of miR-27b in db/+ BMACs reduced angiogenesis, which was reversed by TSP-1 small interfering RNA (siRNA). miR-27b suppressed the pro-oxidant protein p66(shc) and mitochondrial oxidative stress, contributing to its protection of BMAC function. miR-27b also suppressed semaphorin 6A to improve BMAC function in diabetes mellitus. Luciferase binding assay suggested that miR-27b directly targeted TSP-1, TSP-2, p66(shc), and semaphorin 6A. miR-27b improved topical cell therapy of diabetic BMACs on diabetic skin wound closure, with a concomitant augmentation of wound perfusion and capillary formation. Normal BMAC therapy with miR-27b inhibition demonstrated reduced efficacy in wound closure, perfusion, and capillary formation. Local miR-27b delivery partly improved wound healing in diabetic mice.
miR-27b rescues impaired BMAC angiogenesis via TSP-1 suppression, semaphorin 6A expression, and p66shc-dependent mitochondrial oxidative stress and improves BMAC therapy in wound healing in type 2 diabetic mice.
Impaired angiogenesis and its induced refractory wound lesions are common complications of diabetes. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) has been reported to have proangiogenic effects. We hypothesize that H2S ...improves diabetic wound healing by restoring endothelial progenitor cell (EPC) function in type 2 diabetes. db/db Mice were treated with sodium hydrosulfide (NaHS), 4-hydro-xythiobenzamide group (HTB), or saline for 18 days. db/+ Mice were treated with dl-propargylglycine (PAG) or saline for 18 days. Plasma H2S levels were significantly decreased in db/db mice and restored in the NaHS and HTB mice compared with the diabetic control group. Wound-closure rates were significantly faster in the NaHS and HTB groups than in the db/db group, in which the PAG group had slower wound-closure rates. Wound skin capillary densities were enhanced in the NaHS and HTB groups. EPC functions were significantly preserved in the NaHS and HTB groups but were decreased in the PAG group. Meanwhile, EPC functions of the db/+ mice were significantly reduced after in vitro PAG treatment or cystathionine-γ-lyase (CSE) silencing; EPC functions of db/db mice were significantly improved after in vitro NaHS treatment. The expressions of Ang-1 in wound skin tissue and in EPCs were upregulated in the NaHS and HTB groups compared with db/db controls, but were downregulated by in vivo PAG and in vitro siCSE treatment compared with normal controls. Diabetic EPC tube formation capacity was significantly inhibited by Ang-1 small interfering RNA before NaHS treatment compared with db/db EPCs treated with NaHS only. Taken together, these results show that H2S improves wound healing by restoration of EPC functions and activation of Ang-1 in type 2 diabetic mice.
Macrophages are widely recognized in modulating the foreign body response, and the manner in which they do so largely depends on their activation state, often referred to as their polarization. This ...preliminary study demonstrates that surface immobilized α‐1 acid glycoprotein (AGP), as well as collagen VI (Col6) in conjunction with AGP, can direct macrophages towards the M2 polarization state in vitro and modify the foreign body response in vivo. AGP and Col6 are immobilized onto poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (pHEMA) surfaces using carbonyl diimidazole chemistry. Mouse bone marrow derived macrophages are cultured on modified surfaces with or without lipopolysaccharide stimulation. Surface modified pHEMA discs are implanted subcutaneously into mice to observe differences in the foreign body response. After stimulation with lipopolysaccharide, macrophages cultured on AGP or Col6 modified surfaces showed a reduction in TNF‐α expression compared to controls. Arg1 expression was also increased in macrophages cultured on modified surfaces. Explanted tissues showed that the foreign body capsule around implants with AGP or AGP and Col6 modification had reduced thickness, while also being more highly vascularized. These data demonstrate that α‐1 acid glycoprotein and collagen VI could potentially be used for the surface modification of medical devices to influence macrophage polarization leading to a reduced and modulated foreign body response.
A tumor targeted mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSN)-based drug delivery system (DDS) was developed for inhalation treatment of lung cancer. The system was capable of effectively delivering inside ...cancer cells anticancer drugs (doxorubicin and cisplatin) combined with two types of siRNA targeted to MRP1 and BCL2 mRNA for suppression of pump and nonpump cellular resistance in non-small cell lung carcinoma, respectively. Targeting of MSN to cancer cells was achieved by the conjugation of LHRH peptide on the surface of MSN via poly(ethylene glycol) spacer. The delivered anticancer drugs and siRNA preserved their specific activity leading to the cell death induction and inhibition of targeted mRNA. Suppression of cellular resistance by siRNA effectively delivered inside cancer cells and substantially enhanced the cytotoxicity of anticancer drugs. Local delivery of MSN by inhalation led to the preferential accumulation of nanoparticles in the mouse lungs, prevented the escape of MSN into the systemic circulation, and limited their accumulation in other organs. The experimental data confirm that the developed DDS satisfies the major prerequisites for effective treatment of non-small cell lung carcinoma. Therefore, the proposed cancer-targeted MSN-based system for complex delivery of drugs and siRNA has high potential in the effective treatment of lung cancer.
In chemoinformatics and bioinformatics fields, one of the main computational challenges in various predictive modeling is to find a suitable way to effectively represent the molecules under ...investigation, such as small molecules, proteins and even complex interactions. To solve this problem, we developed a freely available R/Bioconductor package, called Compound-Protein Interaction with R (Rcpi), for complex molecular representation from drugs, proteins and more complex interactions, including protein-protein and compound-protein interactions. Rcpi could calculate a large number of structural and physicochemical features of proteins and peptides from amino acid sequences, molecular descriptors of small molecules from their topology and protein-protein interaction and compound-protein interaction descriptors. In addition to main functionalities, Rcpi could also provide a number of useful auxiliary utilities to facilitate the user's need. With the descriptors calculated by this package, the users could conveniently apply various statistical machine learning methods in R to solve various biological and drug research questions in computational biology and drug discovery.
Rcpi is freely available from the Bioconductor site (http://bioconductor.org/packages/release/bioc/html/Rcpi.html).
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