Effects of Microplastic (MP) Exposure at Environmentally Relevant Doses on the Structure, Function, and Transcriptome of the Kidney in Mice.

As a common emerging environmental pollutant, microplastics (MPs) have been detected in a variety of environmental media and human bodies. The potential toxic effects and mechanisms of MPs need to be revealed urgently. MPs can be deposited in the kidney, and exposure to high doses of MPs can cause nephrotoxicity in experimental animals. In this study, we investigated the effects of exposure to polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs) at environmentally relevant doses (0.1 and 1 mg/L) on kidney structure, function, and transcriptome in mice. We found that mice exposed to PS-MPs in drinking water for eight weeks had no change in body weight or kidney coefficient. PS-MPs administration decreased the levels of blood urea nitrogen (BUN) in mice, while serum creatinine (CRE) and uric acid (UA) concentrations were unaffected. Through using periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) and Masson staining, we discovered that the glomerular tuft area increased in the PS-MP-treated mice, while the degree of renal fibrosis remained unchanged. Furthermore, renal cortex transcriptomic analysis identified 388 and 303 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the 0.1 and 1 mg/L dose groups, respectively. The DEGs were highly enriched in mitochondrial-related terms and pathways of thermogenesis and oxidative phosphorylation. Moreover, protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analysis revealed that cytochrome b-c1 complex subunit 10 (UQCR11) and cytochrome c oxidase subunit 3 (MT-CO3) were important node proteins. These findings suggest that environmental exposure to MPs can cause abnormalities in renal structure and filtration function and that long-term exposure to MPs may be a risk factor for renal disease.

Which strain of the avian coronavirus vaccine will become the prevalent one in China next?

Infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) is a vital pathogen in poultry farms, which can induce respiratory, nephropathogenic, oviduct, proventriculus, and intestinal diseases. Based on the phylogenetic classification of the full-length S1 gene, IBV isolates have been categorized into nine genotypes comprising 38 lineages. GI (GI-1, GI-2, GI-3, GI-4, GI-5, GI-6, GI-7, GI-13, GI-16, GI-18, GI-19, GI-22, GI-28, and GI-29), GVI-1 and GVII-1 have been reported in China in the past 60 years. In this review, a brief history of IBV in China is described, and the current epidemic strains and licensed IBV vaccine strains, as well as IBV prevention and control strategies, are highlighted. In addition, this article presents unique viewpoints and recommendations for a more effective management of IBV. The recombinant Newcastle Disease virus (NDV) vector vaccine expressed S gene of IBV QX-like and 4/91 strains may be the dominant vaccine strains against NDV and IBV.

Protective Effects of Sophorae tonkinensis Gagnep. (Fabaceae) Radix et Rhizoma Water Extract on Carbon Tetrachloride-Induced Acute Liver Injury.

Sophorae tonkinensis Radix et Rhizoma (STR) is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine. STR can reduce aminotransferase activity; however, the specific mechanism remains unclear. Here, we explored the potential therapeutic effects and hepatoprotective mechanism of STR on liver damage in mice. The chemical characteristics of the extract were characterized using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry fingerprinting, and its antioxidant capacity was verified using free radical scavenging tests. Forty-eight Kunming mice were randomly assigned into six groups. The model was made after the corresponding drug was given. The results showed that the STR water extract pretreatment significantly reduced serum aminotransferase and related liver function indicators compared with that in the model group. Furthermore, the STR water extract pretreatment significantly inhibited the apoptosis of liver cells, the level of liver high-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1), and inflammatory factors in hepatic tissue compared with that in the model group, and significantly downregulated the levels of toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), Myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MyD88), and nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) compared with those in the model group. Overall, the STR water extract exerted a significant protective effect on CCL4-induced acute liver injury in this study, and the accurate active ingredients of the STR water extract will be explored in the near future.

Lipidomics and transcriptomics insight into impacts of microplastics exposure on hepatic lipid metabolism in mice.

Microplastics (MPs), the emerging environmental pollutants, have attracted global attention due to the potential public health challenge and ecological security risk. Recent studies suggested liver as a vulnerable organ to MPs exposure, evidenced by abnormal hepatic lipid metabolism upon MPs intake in multiple animal species. However, the specific changes of lipid metabolism in mammalian livers, as well as the underlying mechanisms, remain to be elucidated. In the present study, C57BL/6 mice were randomly assigned to normal drinking water or drinking water containing 100 µg L-1 or 1000 µg L-1 polystyrene (PS) MPs for 8 weeks. MPs exposure exerted no significant effect on body weight, serum triglyceride or total cholesteryl esters. However, mice showed impaired glucose tolerance and hepatic lipid deposition in response to high-dose MPs administration. Further lipidomic analysis showed significant alteration in hepatic lipid species particularly with free fatty acids (FFAs) and triacylglycerols (TAGs) in mice exposed to MPs. Meanwhile, the liver transcriptional profile indicated MPs exposure-induced differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were enriched in pathways of lipid metabolism and unfolded protein response. Furthermore, most altered lipid species were significantly correlated with DEGs enriched in lipid metabolic signaling. These findings provide lipidomic and transcriptional signatures of liver in response to MPs exposure, which will shed light on further understanding of the metabolic toxicity of MPs.

Terahertz spectroscopic detection of antifatigue illegal additives in health care product matrices.

Tadalafil is an illegal additive in antifatigue supplements. It is often misused in various plant dietary supplements (BDS), resulting in serious health risks. In this paper, terahertz spectroscopy combined with chemometrics is used to quantitatively analyze the content of tadalafil in nutritional and health products. The absorption coefficient spectrum of tadalafil in the range of 0.1-2.5 THz was obtained, and an obvious characteristic absorption peak appeared at 1.7 THz. To verify the accuracy of this characteristic absorption peak theoretically, tadalafil was simulated by density functional theory, and the calculated terahertz vibration spectrum matched well with the experimental spectrum. Then, the pure fatigue-based nutraceutical matrix and pure tadalafil were mixed in different proportions, and the terahertz absorption coefficient spectra of the mixtures were obtained. Finally, a quantitative analysis model of the tadalafil mixture was developed based on the support vector regression (SVR) algorithm, and the SVR model was optimized using particle swarm optimization (PSO) and genetic algorithm (GA), respectively. Compared with the SVR model, both PSO-SVR and GA-SVR enabled some improvement in their prediction accuracy, but the PSO-SVR model ran faster at 4.85 s, whereas the GA-SVR model had a higher prediction accuracy with a prediction set correlation coefficient (R P) of 0.9996 and a root mean square error (RMSEP) of 0.011. In summary, this study used terahertz time-domain spectroscopy for the identification and quantification of tadalafil in health product matrices. This study provides a new solution for the nondestructive detection of illegally added tadalafil in antifatigue health products, which is pivotal to the quality control of the health product industry.

Portulaca oleracea L. organic acid extract inhibits persistent methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in vitro and in vivo.

Staphylococcus aureus continues to be one of the most important pathogens capable of causing a wide range of infections in different sites of the body in humans and livestock. With the emergence of methicillin-resistant strains and the introduction of strict laws on antibiotic usage in animals, antibiotic replacement therapy has become increasingly popular. Previous studies have shown that Portulaca oleracea L. extract exerts a certain degree of bacteriostatic effect, although the active ingredients are unknown. In the present study, the antibacterial activity of the organic acid of P. oleracea (OAPO) against S. aureus was examined using a series of experiments, including the minimum inhibitory concentration, growth curve, and bacteriostasis curve. In vitro antibacterial mechanisms were evaluated based on the integrity and permeability of the cell wall and membrane, scanning electron microscopy, and soluble protein content. A mouse skin wound recovery model was used to verify the antibacterial effects of OAPO on S. aureus in vivo. The results showed that OAPO not only improved skin wound recovery but also decreased the bacterial load in skin wounds. Moreover, the number of inflammatory cells and cytokines decreased in the OAPO-treated groups. In summary, this study reports a botanical extract that can inhibit S. aureus in vitro and in vivo, indicating the potential use of OAPO to prevent and control S. aureus infection in the near future.

Morphology and Optical Properties of RF Sputtering Deposited Indium Nitride Layers Under Different N2/Ar Ratio.

InN thin films were prepared using reactive radio frequency sputtering on (111) Si substrates under different N2/Ar ratio. The surface morphology and optical properties of InN thin films were characterized by X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscope, energy dispersive spectrometer, and UV-visible-NIR spectrophotometer at room temperature. It was found that the growth rate and surface RMS roughness of InN layers all significantly decreased with the increasing of N2 content in the sputtering gas. All the InN films were wurtzite structure with the proportion of N2 increasing from 40% to 100% in the mixture gas. The highly c-axis orientation InN films could only be obtained in the composition ratios of N2 higher than 90%. The atomic percentage of N is much higher than that of In at high N2 content films, which mainly due to the chemical reaction on the surface of Si substrate. The apparent optical band gap energy is estimated at 1.83 eV. However, the InN absorption band tail is strongly influenced by the sputtering due to a change in the species of the plasma.

A novel Ag3AsO4 visible-light-responsive photocatalyst: facile synthesis and exceptional photocatalytic performance.

A novel Ag3AsO4 photocatalyst has been prepared via a facile precipitation method. It exhibited higher activity than Ag3PO4 or AgI in degradation of rhodamine B or methyl orange. The excellent activity of Ag3AsO4 is attributed to its more separated photogenerated carriers and high absorption capacity of visible light.