Gut microbiota plays important roles in the host health. The host and symbiotic gut microbiota coproduce a large number of metabolites during the metabolism of food and xenobiotics. The analysis of ...fecal metabolites can provide a noninvasive manner to study the outcome of the host-gut microbiota interaction. Herein, we reported the comprehensive profiling of fecal metabolome of mice by an integrated chemical isotope labeling combined with liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (CIL-LC-MS) analysis. The metabolites are categorized into several submetabolomes based on the functional moieties (i.e., carboxyl, carbonyl, amine, and thiol) and then analysis of the individual submetabolome was performed. The combined data from the submetabolome form the metabolome with relatively high coverage. To this end, we synthesized stable isotope labeling reagents to label metabolites with different groups, including carboxyl, carbonyl, amine, and thiol groups. We detected 2302 potential metabolites, among which, 1388 could be positively or putatively identified in feces of mice. We then further confirmed 308 metabolites based on our established library of chemically labeled standards and tandem mass spectrometry analysis. With the identified metabolites in feces of mice, we established mice fecal metabolome database, which can be used to readily identify metabolites from feces of mice. Furthermore, we discovered 211 fecal metabolites exhibited significant difference between Alzheimer’s disease (AD) model mice and wild type (WT) mice, which suggests the close correlation between the fecal metabolites and AD pathology and provides new potential biomarkers for the diagnosis of AD.
The plant root is an important storage organ that stores indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) from the apical meristem, as well as nitrogen, which is obtained from the external environment. IAA and nitrogen ...act as signaling molecules that promote root growth to obtain further resources. Fluctuations in the distribution of nitrogen in the soil environment induce plants to develop a set of strategies that effectively improve nitrogen use efficiency. Auxin integrates the information regarding the nitrate status inside and outside the plant body to reasonably distribute resources and sustainably construct the plant root system. In this review, we focus on the main factors involved in the process of nitrate- and auxin-mediated regulation of root structure to better understand how the root system integrates the internal and external information and how this information is utilized to modify the root system architecture.
Immunotherapy is now a mainstay in cancer treatments. Programmed cell death 1 (PD-1)/programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapies have opened up a new venue of ...advanced cancer immunotherapy. However, hyperprogressive disease (HPD) induced by PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors caused a significant decrease in the overall survival (OS) of the patients, which compromise the efficacy of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors. Therefore, HPD has become an urgent issue to be addressed in the clinical uses of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors. The mechanisms of HPD remain unclear, and possible predictive factors of HPD are not well understood. In this review, we summarized the potential mechanisms of HPD and coping strategies that can effectively reduce the occurrence and development of HPD.
The review provides an updated overview of HPD. The potential mechanisms and coping strategies are mainly discussed. Display omitted
Schistosomes are the causative agents of schistosomiasis, one of the most prevalent and serious of the parasitic diseases that currently infects ∼200 million people worldwide. Schistosome ...excretory/secretory (ES) proteins have been shown to play important roles in modulating mammalian host immune systems. In our current study, we performed a global proteomics identification of the ES proteins from adult worms of Schistosoma japonicum, one of the three major schistosome species. Our results unambiguously identified 101 proteins, including 53 putatively secreted proteins. By quantitative analysis, we revealed fatty acid-binding protein as a major constituent of the in vitro ES proteome. Strikingly the heat shock proteins HSP70s, HSP90, and HSP97 constituted the largest protein family in the ES proteome, implying a central role for these proteins in immunomodulation in the host-parasite relationship. Other important S. japonicum ES proteins included actins, 14-3-3, aminopeptidase, enolase, and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase, some of which have been considered as viable vaccine candidates and therapeutic targets. A comparison with previous studies suggests that 48.5% of S. japonicum ES proteins are common to other parasite ES products, indicating that the molecular mechanisms involved in evading the host immune response may be conserved across different parasites. Interestingly seven host proteins, including antimicrobial protein CAP18, immunoglobulins, and a complement component, were identified among in vitro S. japonicum ES products likely originating from the schistosome tegument or gut, indicating that host innate and acquired immune systems could defend against schistosome invasion. Our present study represents the first attempt at profiling S. japonicum ES proteins, provides an insight into host-parasite interactions, and establishes a resource for the development of diagnostic agents and vaccines for the control of schistosomiasis.
Duck circovirus (DuCV) is the smallest known virus in waterfowl that infects both domestic and wild duck. Infected ducks often show stunted growth and immunosuppression, which increases the rate of ...secondary infection with other pathogens. In this study, 270 liver tissue samples were collected to screen the presence of DuCV in Guangdong province, China, and the complete genome sequences were recovered and systematically analyzed. Genetic analyses revealed that sequences determined in this study shared 81.6% to 100.0% genome-wide pairwise identity with previously identified DuCV genomes. Phylogenetic analyses showed that 2 DuCV genotypes with a high infection rate were co-circulating in duck population in Guangdong province, and extensive recombination events have occurred during the evolution of DuCV. Our results expand upon the knowledge regarding the genetic diversity and evolution of DuCV, and also indicate that extensive genetically divergent DuCV are co-circulating in the duck populations in Guangdong, southern China.
In the application of Wireless sensor networks(WSNs),effective estimation for link quality is a basic issue in guarantying reliable data transmission and upper network protocol performance.A link ...quality estimation mechanism is proposed,which is based on Support vector machine(SVM) with multi-class classification.Under the analysis of the wireless link characteristics,two physical parameters of communication,Receive signal strength indicator(RSSI) and Link quality indicator(LQI),are chosen as estimation parameters.The link quality is divided into five levels according to Packet reception rate(PRR).A link quality estimation model based on SVM with decision tree is established.The model is built on kernel functions of radial basis and polynomial respectively,in which RSSI,LQI are the input parameters.The experimental results show that the model is reasonable.Compared with the recent published link quality estimation models,our model can estimate the current link quality accurately with a relative small number of probe packets,so that it costs less energy consumption than the one caused by sending a large number of probe packets.So this model which is high efficiency and energy saving can prolong the network life.
An urgent problem in nursing care is the rising threat of cutaneous wound infections caused by harmful bacteria. In this study, we fabricated a series of cellulose acetate-hyaluronic acid (CA/HA) ...electrospun fibers loaded with berberine (BBR) using the electrospinning method to determine their antimicrobial performance and potential in
skin wound dressing applications. The BBR-loaded CA/HA electrospun fibers (CA/HA/BBR) were analyzed using scanning electron and Fourier transform infrared microscopies; moreover, their mechanical properties were examined. The analyses demonstrated an average fiber diameter of 502 ± 50 nm; the tensile strength, Young's modulus, and break elongation of CA/HA electrospun fibers were approximately 3.23 ± 0.08 MPa, 17.5 ± 0.03 MPa, and 28.4%, respectively, whereas these values for CA/HA/BBR electrospun fibers were 238 ± 39 nm and 2.99 ± 0.05 MPa, 12.3 ± 0.04 MPa, and 47.8%, respectively. Antimicrobial evaluation of the CA/HA/BBR electrospun fibers demonstrated that the dressings made from these fibers exhibited greater antimicrobial efficacy (>95%) against
and
when compared to that made from CA/HA (>80%) electrospun fibers.
experiments showed that BBR loaded CA/HA electrospun fiber scaffolds have highly enhanced cell viability (>99) and proliferation of L929 fibroblastic cells after 7 days of incubation. In addition,
evaluations in rats showed that the as-fabricated CA/HA/BBR bandage decreased wound size; moreover, it had accelerated healing ability (>95%) and collagen development with increasing treatment duration. These results showed that the addition of BBR enhanced the bioactivity of the dressing without damaging its physical characteristics. Thus, nanostructured dressing made of CA/HA/BBR electrospun fibers has excellent potency for tissue repair in nursing care.
Bats, rodents, and shrews are the most important animal sources of human infectious diseases. However, the evolution and transmission of viruses among them remain largely unexplored. Through the ...meta-transcriptomic sequencing of internal organ and fecal samples from 2,443 wild bats, rodents, and shrews sampled from four Chinese habitats, we identified 669 viruses, including 534 novel viruses, thereby greatly expanding the mammalian virome. Our analysis revealed high levels of phylogenetic diversity, identified cross-species virus transmission events, elucidated virus origins, and identified cases of invertebrate viruses in mammalian hosts. Host order and sample size were the most important factors impacting virome composition and patterns of virus spillover. Shrews harbored a high richness of viruses, including many invertebrate-associated viruses with multi-organ distributions, whereas rodents carried viruses with a greater capacity for host jumping. These data highlight the remarkable diversity of mammalian viruses in local habitats and their ability to emerge in new hosts.
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•A large number of novel viruses were identified in wild small mammals from China•Some were of evolutionary significance or had the ability to jump species boundaries•Shrews carried the most viruses in total and in a single animal species•Rodents harbored most viruses with the potential be transmitted to new host species
A large study of the mammalian virome identifies differences across rodents, bats, and shrews, revealing insights into host range, transmission, and potential pathogens with the ability to jump across species.
Ginkgo biloba L. is a well-known and highly regarded resource in Chinese traditional medicine due to its effectiveness and safety. Ginkgo Folium, the leaf of Ginkgo biloba L., contains biologically ...active constituents with diverse pharmacological activities. Recent studies have shown promising antitumor effects of the bioactive constituents found in Ginkgo Folium against various types of cancer cells, highlighting its potential as a natural source of antitumor agents. Further research is needed to elucidate the underlying mechanisms and optimize its therapeutic potential.
To provide a detailed understanding of the pharmacological activities of Ginkgo Folium and its potential therapeutic benefits for cancer patients.
In this study, we conducted a thorough and systematic search of multiple online databases, including PubMed, Web of Science, Medline, using relevant keywords such as "Ginkgo Folium," "flavonoids," "terpenoids," "Ginkgo Folium extracts," and "antitumor" to cover a broad range of studies that could inform our review. Additionally, we followed a rigorous selection process to ensure that the studies included in our review met the predetermined inclusion criteria.
The active constituents of Ginkgo Folium primarily consist of flavonoids and terpenoids, with quercetin, kaempferol, isorhamnetin, ginkgolides, and bilobalide being the major compounds. These active constituents exert their antitumor effects through crucial biological events such as apoptosis, cell cycle arrest, autophagy, and inhibition of invasion and metastasis via modulating diverse signaling pathways. During the process of apoptosis, active constituents primarily exert their effects by modulating the caspase-8 mediated death receptor pathway and caspase-9 mediated mitochondrial pathway via regulating specific signaling pathways. Furthermore, by modulating multiple signaling pathways, active constituents effectively induce G1, G0/G1, G2, and G2/M phase arrest. Among these, the pathways associated with G2/M phase arrest are particularly extensive, with the cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) being most involved. Moreover, active constituents primarily mediate autophagy by modulating certain inflammatory factors and stressors, facilitating the fusion stage between autophagosomes and lysosomes. Additionally, through the modulation of specific chemokines and matrix metalloproteinases, active constituents effectively inhibit the processes of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and angiogenesis, exerting a significant impact on cellular invasion and migration. Synergistic effects are observed among the active constituents, particularly quercetin and kaempferol.
Active components derived from Ginkgo Folium demonstrate a comprehensive antitumor effect across various levels and pathways, presenting compelling evidence for their potential in new drug development. However, in order to facilitate their broad and adaptable clinical application, further extensive experimental investigations are required to thoroughly explore their efficacy, safety, and underlying mechanisms of action.