Occupational Category and Professional Title Influencing the Knowledge, Attitudes and Practice (KAP) of Quality Training: A Cross-Sectional Survey From a Tertiary General Hospital.

Quality improvement is an international priority, and quality education and training are important parts of hospital quality management. The aim of this study was to understand the knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) and its influencing factors related to quality training in medical staff. A questionnaire survey was conducted by convenience sampling to assess the KAP of quality training in Taizhou Enze Medical Center. Principal component analysis was used to extract factors from the questionnaire. Descriptive statistics (frequency, median, mean), Kendall grade correlation analysis, and Mann-Whitney U tests were used to analyze the data. A total of 205 staff members participated in the questionnaire survey. For the 5 factors of the KAP scale, the highest score was factor F4, recognition and support for quality training (mean = 90.55, median = 100), followed by factor F3, perceived benefits (mean = 84.46, median = 85.65). Relatively lower scores were found for factor F2, quality knowledge learning and mastery (mean = 63.09, median = 63.89), and F5, quality management practices and sharing (mean = 82.07, median = 75.00). There was a correlation between the 5 factors. The scores of F2 (quality knowledge learning and mastery) for staff with senior professional titles were higher than those for staff with intermediate professional titles or below. The score of F3 (perceived benefits of quality training) in medical technicians and nurses was higher than in doctors and administrative personnel. Our findings showed that the respondents' attitude toward quality training was positive, but their knowledge mastery and practice behaviors should be further improved. Occupational category and professional title were the influencing factors of the quality training KAP. Therefore, hospital should conduct quality management training at a wider scope according to the competency requirements of different groups, and further optimize the improvement and innovation system.

Genetically Encoded Lizard Color Divergence for Camouflage and Thermoregulation.

Local adaptation is critical in speciation and evolution, yet comprehensive studies on proximate and ultimate causes of local adaptation are generally scarce. Here, we integrated field ecological experiments, genome sequencing, and genetic verification to demonstrate both driving forces and molecular mechanisms governing local adaptation of body coloration in a lizard from the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. We found dark lizards from the cold meadow population had lower spectrum reflectance but higher melanin contents than light counterparts from the warm dune population. Additionally, the colorations of both dark and light lizards facilitated the camouflage and thermoregulation in their respective microhabitat simultaneously. More importantly, by genome resequencing analysis, we detected a novel mutation in Tyrp1 that underpinned this color adaptation. The allele frequencies at the site of SNP 459# in the gene of Tyrp1 are 22.22% G/C and 77.78% C/C in dark lizards and 100% G/G in light lizards. Model-predicted structure and catalytic activity showed that this mutation increased structure flexibility and catalytic activity in enzyme TYRP1, and thereby facilitated the generation of eumelanin in dark lizards. The function of the mutation in Tyrp1 was further verified by more melanin contents and darker coloration detected in the zebrafish injected with the genotype of Tyrp1 from dark lizards. Therefore, our study demonstrates that a novel mutation of a major melanin-generating gene underpins skin color variation co-selected by camouflage and thermoregulation in a lizard. The resulting strong selection may reinforce adaptive genetic divergence and enable the persistence of adjacent populations with distinct body coloration.

Conformationally Restricted Analogues of α-Galactosylceramide as Adjuvant in COVID-19 Subunit Vaccine.

iNKT cells are a type of T lymphocyte that recognizes glycolipid antigens presented by CD1d protein. αGC is an agonistic glycolipid that activates iNKT cells and triggers immune modulatory cytokine responses, making it a promising vaccine adjuvant. To find more potent immunostimulating glycolipids, we prepared 4,6-O-galactosyl conformationally restricted analogues of αGC. Mice vaccinated with the SARS-CoV-2 RBD-Fc vaccine adjuvanted with these newly developed glycolipids produced robust anti-RBD antibody responses, comparable to those achieved with αGC. Importantly, we also found that omitting αGC, α-C-GalCer (Th1-type agonist), or C20:2 (Th2-type agonist) from the booster vaccine had negligible impact on antibody and cellular responses, potentially reducing the frequency of adjuvant use required to maintain potent immune responses.

Oxidative stress mediates the impact of heatwaves on survival, growth and immune status in a lizard.

Climate change often includes increases in the occurrence of extreme environmental events. Among these, heatwaves affect the pace of life and performance of wildlife, particularly ectothermic animals, owing to their low thermoregulatory abilities. However, the underlying mechanisms by which this occurs remain unclear. Evidence shows that heatwaves alter the redox balance of ectotherms, and oxidative stress is a major mediator of life-history trade-offs. Therefore, oxidative stress may mediate the effect of extreme thermal conditions on the life histories of ectotherms. To test this hypothesis, a 2 × 2 experiment was conducted to manipulate the redox balance (through a mitochondrial uncoupler that alleviates oxidative stress) of the desert toad-headed agama (Phrynocephalus przewalskii) exposed to heatwave conditions. We recorded lizard growth and survival rates and quantified their redox and immune statuses. In control lizards (unmanipulated redox balance), heatwave conditions decreased growth and survival and induced oxidative damage and immune responses. By contrast, lizards with alleviated oxidative stress showed close-to-normal growth, survival, and immune status when challenged with heatwaves. These results provide mechanistic insight into the role of oxidative stress in mediating the effects of extreme temperatures on ectothermic vertebrates, which may have major eco-evolutionary implications.

Flavobacterium lacisediminis sp. nov., a bacterium isolated from lake sediment.

A taxonomic identification using polyphasic approach was performed on strain TH16-21T, which was isolated from the interfacial sediment of Taihu Lake, PR China. Strain TH16-21T was Gram-stain-negative, aerobic, rod-shaped and catalase-positive. Phylogenetic analysis based on the 16S rRNA gene and genomic sequences indicated that strain TH16-21T was classified within the genus of Flavobacterium. The 16S rRNA gene sequence of strain TH16-21T showed the highest similarity to Flavobacterium cheniae NJ-26T (98.9 %). The average nucleotide identity and digital DNA-DNA hybridization values between strain TH16-21T and F. cheniae NJ-26T were 91.2 and 45.9 %, respectively. The respiratory quinone was menaquinone 6. The major cellular fatty acids (>10 %) comprised iso-C15 : 0, iso-C16 : 0, iso-C15 : 1 G and iso-C16 : 0 3-OH. The genomic DNA G+C content was 32.2 mol%. Phosphatidylethanolamine, six amino lipids and three phospholipids were the main polar lipids. Based on the phenotypic features and phylogenetic position, a novel species with the name Flavobacterium lacisediminis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is TH16-21T (=MCCC 1K04592T=KACC 22896T).

Risk factors for skin injuries in cancer patients with peripherally inserted central catheter: A prospective multicenter cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The risk factors for skin injuries remain poorly understood in cancer patients with peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC). We herein aimed at exploring the effect of clinical factors on the risk of PICC-related skin injuries. METHODS: We included 1245 cancer patients with PICC from 16 hospitals in Suzhou, China. The study outcome was in-hospital skin injuries, including contact dermatitis, skin (epidermal) stripping, tension injury, allergic dermatitis, skin tear, maceration, folliculitis, and pressure injury. RESULTS: During hospitalization, 274 patients (22.0%) developed skin injuries after prolonged use of an indwelling catheter. Univariable logistic regression analysis identified several risk factors for PICC-related skin injuries; multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that the following factors independently and significantly (p < 0.05) associated with the risk of PICC-related skin injuries: body mass index (BMI, >25 kg/m2 versus <18.5 kg/m2: odds ratio (OR), 1.79; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.03-3.11), skin condition (humid vs normal: OR, 2.96; 95% CI, 1.62-5.43), skin indentation (OR, 4.67; 95% CI, 3.31-6.58), allergic history (OR, 2.11; 95% CI, 1.21-3.66), history of dermatitis (OR, 3.05; 95% CI, 1.00-9.28), history of eczema (OR, 3.36; 95% CI, 1.20-9.43), catheter insertion site (under elbow vs. upper arm: OR, 3.32; 95% CI, 1.12-9.90), and PICC maintenance interval (4-5 days vs ⩽3 days: OR, 0.06; 95% CI, 0.01-0.50; 5-7 days vs ⩽3 days: OR, 0.07; 95% CI, 0.02-0.31; 7-9 days vs ⩽3 days: OR, 0.10; 95% CI, 0.02-0.57). CONCLUSIONS: BMI, skin condition, skin indentation, allergic history, history of dermatitis, history of eczema, catheter insertion site, and PICC maintenance interval were independent risk factors for PICC-related skin injuries in cancer patients. This knowledge will guide future studies with formulating optimal treatment strategies for improving the skin health of cancer patients with PICC.

The eggshell-matrix protein gene OC-17 is functionally lost in the viviparous Chinese crocodile lizard.

Thickness reduction or loss of the calcareous eggshell is one of major phenotypic changes in the transition from oviparity to viviparity. Whether the reduction of eggshells in viviparous squamates is associated with specific gene losses is unknown. Taking advantage of a newly generated high-quality genome of the viviparous Chinese crocodile lizard (Shinisaurus crocodilurus), we found that ovocleidin-17 gene (OC-17), which encodes an eggshell matrix protein that is essential for calcium deposition in eggshells, is not intact in the crocodile lizard genome. Only OC-17 transcript fragments were found in the oviduct transcriptome, and no OC-17 peptides were identified in the eggshell proteome of crocodile lizards. In contrast, OC-17 was present in the eggshells of the oviparous Mongolia racerunner (Eremias argus). Although the loss of OC-17 is not common in viviparous species, viviparous squamates show fewer intact eggshell-specific proteins than oviparous squamates. Our study implies that functional loss of eggshell-matrix protein genes may be involved in the reduction of eggshells during the transition from oviparity to viviparity in the crocodile lizard.

A New iNKT-Cell Agonist-Adjuvanted SARS-CoV-2 Subunit Vaccine Elicits Robust Neutralizing Antibody Responses.

Adjuvants are essential components of vaccines. Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells are a distinct subset of T cells that function to bridge the innate and adaptive immunities and are capable of mediating strong and rapid responses to a range of diseases, including cancer and infectious disease. An increasing amount of evidence suggests that iNKT cells can help fight viral infection. In particular, iNKT-secreting IL-4 is a key mediator of humoral immunity and has a positive correlation with the levels of neutralizing antibodies. As iNKT cell agonists, αGC glycolipid (α-galactosylceramide, or KRN7000) and its analogues as vaccine adjuvants have begun to provide vaccinologists with a new toolset. Herein we found that a new iNKT-cell agonist αGC-CPOEt elicited a strong cytokine response with increased IL-4 production. Remarkably, after three immunizations, SARS-CoV-2 RBD-Fc adjuvanted by αGC-CPOEt evoked robust neutralizing antibody responses that were about 5.5-fold more than those induced by αGC/RBD-Fc and 25-fold greater than those induced by unadjuvanted RBD-Fc. These findings imply that αGC-CPOEt could be investigated further as a new COVID-19 vaccine adjuvant to prevent current and future infectious disease outbreaks.

HIF-1α in Osteoarthritis: From Pathogenesis to Therapeutic Implications.

Osteoarthritis is a common age-related joint degenerative disease. Pain, swelling, brief morning stiffness, and functional limitations are its main characteristics. There are still no well-established strategies to cure osteoarthritis. Therefore, better clarification of mechanisms associated with the onset and progression of osteoarthritis is critical to provide a theoretical basis for the establishment of novel preventive and therapeutic strategies. Chondrocytes exist in a hypoxic environment, and HIF-1α plays a vital role in regulating hypoxic response. HIF-1α responds to cellular oxygenation decreases in tissue regulating survival and growth arrest of chondrocytes. The activation of HIF-1α could regulate autophagy and apoptosis of chondrocytes, decrease inflammatory cytokine synthesis, and regulate the chondrocyte extracellular matrix environment. Moreover, it could maintain the chondrogenic phenotype that regulates glycolysis and the mitochondrial function of osteoarthritis, resulting in a denser collagen matrix that delays cartilage degradation. Thus, HIF-1α is likely to be a crucial therapeutic target for osteoarthritis via regulating chondrocyte inflammation and metabolism. In this review, we summarize the mechanism of hypoxia in the pathogenic mechanisms of osteoarthritis, and focus on a series of therapeutic treatments targeting HIF-1α for osteoarthritis. Further clarification of the regulatory mechanisms of HIF-1α in osteoarthritis may provide more useful clues to developing novel osteoarthritis treatment strategies.

First report of maize yellow mosaic virus (MaYMV) naturally infecting wheat in China.

Maize yellow mosaic virus (MaYMV), a new species in the genus Polerovirus (family Solemoviridae), was reported in maize for the first time in China in 2016 (Chen et al., 2016). Later, MaYMV was found in other gramineous species including sugarcane (Saccharum spp.), itch grass (Rottboellia cochinchinensis), millet (Panicum miliaceum) and sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) in several countries in Asia, Africa, and South America (Yahaya et al. 2017; Lim et al. 2018; Sun et al. 2019; Nithya et al. 2021). Here, we report its presence in cultivated wheat (Triticum aestivum), detected using high-throughput sequencing (HTS). In 2021 in Henan Province, China, wheat plants with virus-like symptoms such as yellowing, stunting, and vein clearing were collected from fields in Luoyang (three plants, cv. Luohan 6), Nanyang (two plants, cv. Xinong 979), and Anyang (one plant, cv. Bainong 207). RNA was extracted from symptomatic leaves of each plant sample using TRIzol reagent (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA, USA). From each sample, 1 µg of RNA was mixed into a single pool to construct an rRNA-depleted RNA-seq library using a TruSeq RNA Sample Prep Kit for sequencing on the HiSeq X-Ten platform as 150-bp paired-end reads. A total of 88,892,804 clean reads were obtained after removing adaptor sequences and low-quality reads. Reads were mapped against the wheat genome database (IWGSC RefSeq v2.1) using the hisat2 v2.0.5 program. Remaining sequences were de novo assembled into contigs with Trinity program. Contigs from barley yellow dwarf virus PAV (BYDV-PAV), and BYDV-GAV were identified using a Blast search of the NCBI nr/nt database, all previously reported in wheat in China. Interestingly, four contigs with high similarity (>95%, at the nucleotide level) to MaYMV were also identified. Using the sequence of MaYMV isolate Yunnan 9 (KU291105) as reference, a total of 1,260 reads from HTS mapped to the virus genome with a coverage of 75.5% (average coverage: 33.5×). For verifying the presence of MaYMV in the source samples, MaYMV-specific primers MV-fw/MV-rev were designed to amplify the 513-bp fragment of the RdRp gene by a reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using the original total RNA. RT-PCR assay revealed that only 1 of the 6 samples tested positive for MaYMV, while the remaining plants were positive for other viruses (BYDV-PAV and BYDV-GAV that produce similar symptoms; viral-specific primers as previously described [Liu et al., 2020]). A subsequent survey of 17 winter wheat fields in 2021 confirmed that 6 of 286 wheat samples with virus symptoms were infected with MaYMV; 4 positives were from Linfen, Shanxi Province and 1 each from Yuanyang and Anyang, Henan Province. The full genome of wheat-infecting MaYMV isolate Anyang1 was then sequenced using RT-PCR with Sanger sequencing technology; the genomic sequence (5,642 nt) was deposited in GenBank as accession OK331995. BLASTn search showed that the complete genome sequence of this virus is 99.0%, 98.9% and 98.7% identical to isolate SC1 (MK652148), Guizhou1 (KU291107) and Yunnan 11 (KU248489), respectively. Also, the MaYMV isolate Anyang1 obtained in this study clustered with other MaYMV isolates in a phylogenetic analysis based on MaYMV full genomes. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of MaYMV in wheat worldwide. The presence of MaYMV in wheat is important because winter wheat could serve as an overwintering reservoir of MaYMV and perpetuate the virus in wheat-maize rotation systems in northern China.

Ileal hemorrhagic infarction after carotid artery stenting: A case report and review of the literature.

BACKGROUND: Ileal hemorrhagic infarction after carotid artery stenting (CAS) is a fatal complication. The prognosis of ileal hemorrhagic infarction after CAS is very poor if not treated in a timely manner. We describe a rare case of ileal hemorrhagic infarction due to acute embolism of the mesenteric artery after CAS. CASE SUMMARY: A 67-year-old man with acute ischemic stroke underwent CAS via the right femoral artery approach 21 d after intensive medical treatment. On the first day after surgery, the patient had abdominal distension and abdominal pain. Abdominal enhanced computed tomography revealed intestinal obstruction, severe stenosis of the superior mesenteric artery, and poor distal angiography. An exploratory laparotomy was performed, and pathological examination showed hemorrhagic ileal infarction. It was subsequently found that the patient had intestinal flatulence. With the guidance of an ultrasound scan, the patient underwent abdominal puncture, drainage, and catheterization. After 58 d of treatment, the patient was discharged from hospital with a National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score of 2 points, and a Modified Rankin Scale score of 1 point. At the 6-mo follow-up, the patient had an excellent functional outcome without stroke or mesenteric ischemia. Furthermore, computed tomography angiography showed that the carotid stent was patent. CONCLUSION: Ileal hemorrhagic infarction is a fatal complication after CAS, usually caused by mesenteric artery embolism. Thus, more attention should be paid to the complications of embolism in the vascular system as well as the nervous system after CAS, and the complications should be identified and treated as early as possible.

Efficacy of Solitaire AB stent-release angioplasty in acute middle cerebral artery atherosclerosis obliterative cerebral infarction.

BACKGROUND: In both national and international studies, the safety and effectiveness of treatment with the Solitaire stent in patients with ischemic stroke caused by acute large vessel occlusion were good, and the disability rate was significantly reduced. However, there are currently only a few reports on the differences in endovascular treatment for different etiological classifications, especially in the anterior cranial circulation, aorta atherosclerotic stenosis, and acute thrombosis. AIM: To investigate the efficacy of Solitaire AB stent-release angioplasty in patients with acute middle cerebral artery atherosclerosis obliterative cerebral infarction. METHODS: Twenty-five patients with acute middle cerebral atherosclerosis obliterative cerebral infarction were retrospectively enrolled in this study from January 2017 to December 2019. The Solitaire AB stent was used to improve anterior blood flow to maintain modified cerebral infarction thrombolysis [modified thrombolysis in cerebral infarction (mTICI)] at the 2b/3 level or above, the stent was then unfolded and released. RESULTS: All 25 patients underwent successful surgery, with an average recanalization time of 23 min. One patient died of cerebral hemorrhage and cerebral herniation after the operation. The National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores immediately after surgery (7.5 ± 5.6), at 24 h (5.5 ± 5.6) and at 1 wk (3.6 ± 6.7) compared with the preoperative NIHSS score (15.9 ± 4.4), were significantly different (P < 0.01). One case of restenosis was observed 3 mo after surgery (the stenosis rate was 50% without clinical symptoms), the modified Rankin scale scores were 0 points in 14 cases (56%), 1 point in 4 cases (16%), 2 points in 2 cases (8%), 3 points in 3 cases (12%), 4 points in 1 case (4%), and 6 points in 1 case (4%). CONCLUSION: In acute middle cerebral artery atherosclerosis obliterative cerebral infarction, when the Solitaire AB stent is unfolded and the forward blood flow is maintained at mTICI level 2b/3 or higher, stent release may be a safe and effective treatment method; however, long-term observation and a larger sample size are required to verify these findings.

Potent Neutralizing Antibodies Elicited by RBD-Fc-Based COVID-19 Vaccine Candidate Adjuvanted by the Th2-Skewing iNKT Cell Agonist.

The development of a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine is of paramount importance to terminate the current pandemic. An adjuvant is crucial for improving the efficacy of the subunit COVID19 vaccine. α-Galactosylceramide (αGC) is a classical iNKT cell agonist which causes the rapid production of Th1- and Th2-associated cytokines; we, therefore, expect that the Th1- or Th2-skewing analogues of αGC can better enhance the immunogenicity of the receptor-binding domain in the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 fused with the Fc region of human IgG (RBD-Fc). Herein, we developed a universal synthetic route to the Th1-biasing (α-C-GC) and Th2-biasing (OCH and C20:2) analogues. Immunization of mice demonstrated that αGC-adjuvanted RBD-Fc elicited a more potent humoral response than that observed with Alum and enabled the sparing of antigens. Remarkably, at a low dose of the RBD-Fc protein (2 µg), the Th2-biasing agonist C20:2 induced a significantly higher titer of the neutralizing antibody than that of Alum.

Synthesis and Evaluation of Liposomal Anti-GM3 Cancer Vaccine Candidates Covalently and Noncovalently Adjuvanted by αGalCer.

GM3, a typical tumor-associated carbohydrate antigen, is considered as an important target for cancer vaccine development, but its low immunogenicity limits its application. αGalCer, an iNKT cell agonist, has been employed as an adjuvant via a unique immune mode. Herein, we prepared and investigated two types of antitumor vaccine candidates: (a) self-adjuvanting vaccine GM3-αGalCer by conjugating GM3 with αGalCer and (b) noncovalent vaccine GM3-lipid/αGalCer, in which GM3 is linked with lipid anchor and coassembled with αGalCer. This demonstrated that ßGalCer is an exceptionally optimized lipid anchor, which enables the noncovalent vaccine candidate GM3-ßGalCer/αGalCer to evoke a comparable antibody level to GM3-αGalCer. However, the antibodies induced by GM3-αGalCer are better at recognition B16F10 cancer cells and more effectively activate the complement system. Our study highlights the importance of vaccine constructs utilizing covalent or noncovalent assembly between αGalCer with carbohydrate antigens and choosing an appropriate lipid anchor for use in noncovalent vaccine formulation.

Hydrogen-rich saline ameliorates hippocampal neuron apoptosis through up-regulating the expression of cystathionine ß-synthase (CBS) after cerebral ischemia- reperfusion in rats.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the potential role of hydrogen in rats after cerebral ischemic/reperfusion (I/R) injury. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The experimental samples were composed of sham group, model group of rats that received middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) for 2 hr followed by reperfusion for 24 hr, and the hydrogen saline group treated by hydro¬gen-rich saline (1 ml/kg) after MCAO. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S), S100-ßprotein (S100-ß), and neuron-specific enolase (NSE) levels were measured; the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), reactive oxygen species (ROS), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were detected; the histologic structure and apoptotic cells of hippocampus were observed; the expressions of cystathionine ß-synthase (CBS), nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), and hemeoxygenase-1 (HO-1) were measured. Statistical analyses were performed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Fisher's least significant difference (LSD) test. RESULTS: Our results showed that hydrogen up-regulated H2S levels via promoting the expression of CBS in the hippocampus, and its treatment alleviated oxidative stress via activating the expression of Nrf2 and HO-1, and then cell apoptosis reduced, furthermore, brain function improved by down-regulating the levels of S100-ßand NSE. CONCLUSION: This study showed that hydrogen-rich saline ameliorates cell injury through up-regulating the expression of CBS in the hippocampus after cerebral ischemia reperfusion (I/R) in rats, this provides new experimental evidence for the treatment of stroke with hydrogen saline.

Endosulfan induces endothelial inflammation and dysfunction via IRE1α/NF-κB signaling pathway.

Cardiovascular diseases are related to vascular endothelial cell injury; our previous studies showed that endosulfan could cause hypercoagulation of blood by inducing endothelial cell injury. To clarify the mechanism of it, we treated human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) with 0, 1, 5, and 10 µg/mL endosulfan, while in the inhibition groups, reactive oxygen species (ROS) inhibitor N-acetylcysteine (NAC, 3 mmol) and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress inhibitor (STF-083010, 10 µmol) were incubated prior to endosulfan. The results showed that endosulfan could induce inflammatory response and dysfunction by increasing the release of inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), and adhesion molecules such as vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1) and endothelin-1 (ET-1), and inducing ROS production in HUVECs. We also found that endosulfan could cause ER damage, remarkably increase the expressions of inositol-requiring enzyme 1α (IRE1α), phosphorylated IRE1α (p-IRE1α), GRP78, XBP1, nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB), and phosphorylated NF-κB (p-NF-κB) in HUVECs. The presence of NAC antagonized the ROS production, expressions of IRE1α and p-IRE1α; however, STF-083010 could decrease the expression levels of GRP78, XBP1, NF-κB, and p-NF-κB and attenuate IL-1ß, IL-6, TNF-α, VCAM-1, and ET-1 release induced by endosulfan. These results demonstrated that endosulfan-induced endothelial inflammation and dysfunction through the IRE1α/NF-κB signaling pathway may be triggered by oxidative stress. The study provided experimental basis for the correlation between environmental pollutants (endosulfan) and cardiovascular diseases.

Gemmobacter caeruleus sp. nov., a novel species originating from lake sediment.

An aerobic, Gram-stain-negative, non-spore-forming and rod-shaped bacterial strain, designated N8T, was isolated from the interfacial sediment of Taihu Lake in PR China. The strain formed white to blue colonies on R2A agar. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain N8T represented a member of the genus Gemmobacter and was most closely related to Gemmobacter aquaticus A1-9T (97.97 %). The average nucleotide identity and digital DNA-DNAhybridization values between strain N8T and G. aquaticus A1-9T based on their whole genomes were 78.8 and 21.7 %, respectively. Q-10 was the main predominant ubiquinone. The major fatty acids were summed feature 8 (C18 : 1ω7c and/or C18 : 1ω6c), C18 : 0 and C16 : 0. The G+C content of the genomic DNA was 66.1 mol%. The polar lipids comprised phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylcholine, one unidentified phospholipid, two unidentified glycolipids and two unidentified lipids. Based on its physiological, biochemical and chemotaxonomic characteristics, strain N8T represents a novel species of the genus Gemmobacter, for which the name Gemmobacter caeruleus sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is N8T=(KACC 21307T=MCCC 1K04036T).

Peptide-free Synthetic Nicotine Vaccine Candidates with α-Galactosylceramide as Adjuvant.

Peptides are generally needed as T-helper epitopes in nicotine vaccines to induce effective antibody responses, but the highly polymorphic property of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules may limit opportunities of B cell to receive CD4+ T-cell help. Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells recognize lipid antigens presented by the nonpolymorphic CD1d molecule that is conserved in mammals to a great extent. iNKT cells also display some similar functions to conventional CD4+ T-helper cells, especially they license dendritic cells stimulate antibody isotype switching by B cells. Herein, α-galactosylceramide (αGalCer), a classical iNKT cell agonist, serves as an adjuvant in synthetic nicotine vaccine candidates absent of peptide or protein. Our study reveals that αGalCer displays better adjuvant activity than Pam3CSK4 (a commonly used lipopeptide TLR agonist). Remarkably, the covalent linker between the nicotine hapten and αGalCer is not critical. Self-assembly of the lipid-tailed nicotine and αGalCer into the liposome represents a structurally simple but immunologically effective way to develop nicotine vaccines. This is the first time to introduce the iNKT cell agonist as an adjuvant to an antidrug vaccine. This discovery may contribute to improving the efficacy of clinical candidate nicotine vaccines in the future.

Altererythrobacter amylolyticus sp. nov., isolated from lake sediment.

An aerobic, motile, Gram-stain-negative bacterium, designated strain NS1T, was isolated from interfacial sediment from Taihu Lake, China. The strain formed yellow colonies on R2A medium. Cells were ovoid to rod-shaped and non-spore-forming. Growth occurred at 15-40 °C (optimum, 28 °C), at pH 5.0-10.5 (optimum, 6.5-7.5) and in the presence of 0-1 % (w/v) NaCl (optimum, 0 %). Phylogenetic trees based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain NS1T represented a member of the genus Altererythrobacter and had the highest sequence similarity to Altererythrobacter troitsensis CCTCC AB 2015180T (97.1 %). The average nucleotide identity value between strain NS1T and the closest related strain based on their genomes was 78.6 %. The predominant ubiquinone was Q-10. The major fatty acids were summed feature 8 (C18 : 1ω7c and/or C18 : 1ω6c), summed feature 3 (C16 : 1ω7c and/or C16 : 1ω6c) and C16 : 0. The polar lipids comprised diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylcholine, an unidentified phospholipid, an unidentified glycolipid and six unidentified lipids. The genomic DNA G+C content was 66.6 mol%. On the basis of phenotypic and genotypic characteristics, strain NS1T represents a novel species of the genus Altererythrobacter, for which the name Altererythrobacter amylolyticus sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is NS1T (=CGMCC 1.13679T=NBRC 113553T).