A comparative study of microbial community and functions of type 2 diabetes mellitus patients with obesity and healthy people.

The gut microbiota is crucial in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, the metabolism of T2DM patients is not well-understood. We aimed to identify the differences on composition and function of gut microbiota between T2DM patients with obesity and healthy people. In this study, 6 T2DM patients with obesity and 6 healthy volunteers were recruited, and metagenomic approach and bioinformatics analysis methods were used to understand the composition of the gut microbiota and the metabolic network. We found a decrease in the abundance of Firmicutes, Oribacterium, and Paenibacillus; this may be attributed to a possible mechanism and biological basis of T2DM; moreover, we identified three critical bacterial taxa, Bacteroides plebeius, Phascolarctobacterium sp. CAG207, and the order Acidaminococcales that can potentially be used for T2DM treatment. We also revealed the composition of the microbiota through functional annotation based on multiple databases and found that carbohydrate metabolism contributed greatly to the pathogenesis of T2DM. This study helps in elucidating the different metabolic roles of microbes in T2DM patients with obesity.

Benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP) triggers the malignancy of acute myeloid leukemia cells via upregulation of PDK4.

Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) is a cancer of hematopoietic stem cells with a rapid progression. Recent studies indicated that endocrine disruptor chemicals (EDCs) are potential risk factors for AML progression. Our present data showed that an industrial endocrine disrupting chemical, Benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP), can promote the proliferation of AML cells and decrease their sensitivity to daunorubicin (DNR) and cytarabine (Ara-C) treatments. Further, BBP can increase the glucose consumption, lactate generation, and ATP levels of AML cells. Among the measured glycolysis-related genes, BBP can increase the expression of pyruvate dehydrogenase lipoamide kinase isozyme 4 (PDK4), a mitochondrial protein that regulates the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) cycle. The inhibitor of PDK4 or its specific siRNA can attenuate BBP-induced cell proliferation and ATP generation, which suggested the essential roles of PDK4 in BBP-induced glycolysis and proliferation. Further, BBP can increase the mRNA stability of PDK4, while had no effect on its transcription and protein stability. miR-15b-5p can bind with the 3'UTR of PDK4 to decrease its mRNA stability, while BBP can decrease the expression of miR-15b-5p in AML cells. Collectively, our data showed that BBP can trigger the malignancy of AML cells via regulation of miR-15b-5p/PDK4 signals.

Reverse transcription - loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay for the rapid detection of pathogenic Listeria monocytogenes in meat products.

This study reports the use of reverse transcription - loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) to detect Listeria monocytogenes in meat. The assay was designed to target the iap gene of L. monocytogenes, to which four primers, recognizing six distinct iap sites, were designed. We optimized the RT-LAMP conditions and established the following optimal systems: 60 min, 63 °C, 2.0 mmol/L MgSO4, 1.0 mol/L betaine, 2.0 mmol/L dNTPs, 320 U/mL Bst DNA polymerase, 0.4 µmol/L outer primers, and 0.8 µmol/L inner primers. The RT-LAMP amplification products were identified by a visible white Mg2P2O7 precipitate or electrophoresis on a 2% agarose gel. RT-LAMP has a sensitivity of 7.3 × 101 CFU/mL, which is 2-fold higher than that of LAMP. When commercially available raw meat samples (including beef, pork, mutton, and rabbit) were analyzed simultaneously with RT-LAMP and the Chinese National Standard GB 4789.30-2016, their abilities to detect L. monocytogenes were the same. Samples containing L. monocytogenes killed by 15 psi at 121 °C for 15 min were used to confirm the specificity of RT-LAMP for live microorganisms. Thus, we used RT-LAMP to efficiently detect L. monocytogenes in meat products.

Clinical and electrographic characteristics of seizures in LGI1-antibody encephalitis.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to analyze the clinical and electrographic characteristics of seizures in LGI1-antibody encephalitis. METHODS: The methods utilized in this study were prospective analysis of the clinical manifestations, types of seizures, electroencephalogram (EEG), adjuvant examination, treatment and prognosis of 19 cases of LGI1-antibody encephalitis diagnosed from January 2017 to February 2018 in First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, and reviewed related literatures. RESULTS: The 15/19 (79%) patients were male, and the average onset age was 58 years (23-82). The following cases were observed: 17 (89%) with epilepsy seizures, 14 (73%) with mental disorders, and 13 (68%) with cognitive impairment. Types of epilepsy were including focal aware seizures, focal-impaired awareness seizures, focal to bilateral tonic-clonic seizures, and status epilepticus. The motor events were most commonly clonus or automatisms, and the sensory events were frequently body shuddering. The 13 patients had faciobrachial dystonic seizures (FBDS); the median frequency was 48 per day (range 5-180). In some video-EEGs, multifocal ictal epileptiform discharges from frontal, temporal, and apical regions, and interictal slow wave activity were observed in patients. Normal EEG appeared in all patients during FBDS. Five patients had hyponatremia, and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) results of 5 cases were abnormal. All patients were treated with antiepileptic drugs and immunotherapy, and their clinical symptoms were improved. During the follow-up period, 13 patients recovered basically, and 6 patients relapsed. One patient died of status epilepticus after relapse. CONCLUSIONS: Faciobrachial dystonic seizure and various types of epileptic seizures are characteristic manifestations of LGI1-antibody encephalitis, which can assist in early diagnosis. Once this has been diagnosed, antiepileptic drugs and immunotherapy should be given as soon as possible to the patient.

A new furan derivative from an endophytic Aspergillus flavus of Cephalotaxus fortunei.

A new furan derivative named 5-acetoxymethylfuran-3-carboxylic acid (2), together with a known furan compound, 5-hydroxymethylfuran-3-carboxylic acid (1), were isolated from the fermentation of Aspergillus flavus, endophytic fungi in Cephalotaxus fortunei. The structures of 1 and 2 were elucidated by NMR, IR, UV and MS data, as well as compared with literature data. The compounds 1 and 2 exhibited potent antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus with MIC values of 31.3 and 15.6 µg/mL, respectively. The compound 2 showed moderate antioxidant activity.

A new pyrone derivative from an endophytic Aspergillus tubingensis of Lycium ruthenicum.

A new pyrone named 6-isovaleryl-4-methoxy-pyran-2-one (1), along with three known pyrone compounds, rubrofusarin B (2), asperpyrones A (3) and campyrone A (4), was isolated from fermentation of Aspergillus tubingensis in Lycium ruthenicum. Their structures were confirmed by spectroscopic techniques, such as IR, NMR and HRESI-MS. Compound 2 indicated strong inhibitory activity against Escherichia coli, with MIC value of 1.95 µg/mL.

[Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D3 Level in Peripheral Blood of Patients with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma and Its Clinical Significance].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the correlation between the level of serum 25-hydroxyvi-tamin D3 and the development and prognosis of NHL in order to provide the theoretical basic for the diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of NHL. METHODS: The serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D's level of 84 NHL patients and 60 healthy persons was detected by using enzyme-linked immunsorbent assay. RESULTS: The level of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 in NHL group was significantly lower than that in normal control group and the difference between NHL patients and normal controls was statistically significant. The stage and cell source of NHL patients showed little effect on the level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3. There were significant differences of the level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 in different group and sites of origin as well as in presence or absence of bone marrow infiltration. CONCLUSIONS: The level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 can be considered as tumor burden index of NHL and can be used to evaluate the prognosis of NHL.