Phosphocholine-induced energy source shift alleviates mitochondrial dysfunction in lung cells caused by geospecific PM2.5 components.

Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is globally recognized for its adverse implications on human health. Yet, remain limited the individual contribution of particular PM2.5 components to its toxicity, especially considering regional disparities. Moreover, prevention solutions for PM2.5-associated health effects are scarce. In the present study, we comprehensively characterized and compared the primary PM2.5 constituents and their altered metabolites from two locations: Taiyuan and Guangzhou. Analysis of year-long PM2.5 samples revealed 84 major components, encompassing organic carbon, elemental carbon, ions, metals, and organic chemicals. PM2.5 from Taiyuan exhibited higher contamination, associated health risks, dithiothreitol activity, and cytotoxicities than Guangzhou's counterpart. Applying metabolomics, BEAS-2B lung cells exposed to PM2.5 from both cities were screened for significant alterations. A correlation analysis revealed the metabolites altered by PM2.5 and the critical toxic PM2.5 components in both regions. Among the PM2.5-down-regulated metabolites, phosphocholine emerged as a promising intervention for PM2.5 cytotoxicities. Its supplementation effectively attenuated PM2.5-induced energy metabolism disorder and cell death via activating fatty acid oxidation and inhibiting Phospho1 expression. The highlighted toxic chemicals displayed combined toxicities, potentially counteracted by phosphocholine. Our study offered a promising functional metabolite to alleviate PM2.5-induced cellular disorder and provided insights into the geo-based variability in toxic PM2.5 components.

Integrated Analysis of Gut Microbiome and Adipose Transcriptome Reveals Beneficial Effects of Resistant Dextrin from Wheat Starch on Insulin Resistance in Kunming Mice.

Systemic chronic inflammation is recognized as a significant contributor to the development of obesity-related insulin resistance. Previous studies have revealed the physiological benefits of resistant dextrin (RD), including obesity reduction, lower fasting glucose levels, and anti-inflammation. The present study investigated the effects of RD intervention on insulin resistance (IR) in Kunming mice, expounding the mechanisms through the gut microbiome and transcriptome of white adipose. In this eight-week study, we investigated changes in tissue weight, glucose-lipid metabolism levels, serum inflammation levels, and lesions of epididymal white adipose tissue (eWAT) evaluated via Hematoxylin and Eosin (H&E) staining. Moreover, we analyzed the gut microbiota composition and transcriptome of eWAT to assess the potential protective effects of RD intervention. Compared with a high-fat, high-sugar diet (HFHSD) group, the RD intervention significantly enhanced glucose homeostasis (e.g., AUC-OGTT, HOMA-IR, p < 0.001), and reduced lipid metabolism (e.g., TG, LDL-C, p < 0.001) and serum inflammation levels (e.g., IL-1ß, IL-6, p < 0.001). The RD intervention also led to changes in the gut microbiota composition, with an increase in the abundance of probiotics (e.g., Parabacteroides, Faecalibaculum, and Muribaculum, p < 0.05) and a decrease in harmful bacteria (Colidextribacter, p < 0.05). Moreover, the RD intervention had a noticeable effect on the gene transcription profile of eWAT, and KEGG enrichment analysis revealed that differential genes were enriched in PI3K/AKT, AMPK, in glucose-lipid metabolism, and in the regulation of lipolysis in adipocytes signaling pathways. The findings demonstrated that RD not only ameliorated IR, but also remodeled the gut microbiota and modified the transcriptome profile of eWAT.

Equipment-free, gold nanoparticle based semiquantitative assay of SARS-CoV-2-S1RBD IgG from fingertip blood: A practical strategy for on-site measurement of COVID-19 antibodies.

COVID-19 remains as a major threat to human society. A reliable, sensitive, rapid, and low requirement assay for serum neutralizing antibodies is needed as a pandemic management tool for estimation of revaccination time and implementation of "immune passport". Using gold nanoparticle (AuNR) as an immunosensor, we have established a semi-quantitative, instrument-free assay for measuring antibody level against SRAS-CoV-2 spike1 (S1) receptor binding domain (RBD) from fingertip blood samples. The testing results by the developed method correlated well with those obtained from conventional ELISA assay, indicating reliable quantitation could be achieved without use of plate reader. A declined of immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody associated with vaccination time was observed, which agreed well with the data from other reports. The developed method provides a potentially complementary strategy for on-site measurement of COVID-19 antibodies.

[Determination of nine pesticide residues in honey using high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry].

A method is proposed for the simultaneous determination of nine benzimidazole and neonicotinoid pesticides present in honey by employing automatic solid-phase extraction with high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). A honey sample was dissolved in a phosphate buffer (pH=7.8) followed by ultrasonic extraction. The extracts were then purified through solid-phase extraction (SPE) with hydrophilic-lipophilic balance (HLB) cartridges. Finally, nitrogen was blown on the obtained mixture, and the mixture was subsequently filtered for conducting HPLC-MS/MS analysis. Nine compounds were detected under the multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode, and the corresponding quantification was performed by employing the method of internal standards. The nine detected pesticides demonstrated good linearity in the range of 0.002-0.05 mg/L, with the correlation coefficient values (r2) being higher than 0.99. The limits of detection (LODs) (S/N=3) and limits of quantification (LOQs) (S/N=10) were found to be in the ranges of 0.1-1.0 µg/kg and 0.3-2.0 µg/kg, respectively. Furthermore, the results indicated that the recoveries of the nine detected pesticides range from 78.2%-101.2% at three spiked levels of 5.0, 10.0, and 20.0 µg/kg with a relative standard deviation (RSD) range of 1.3%-14.3% (n=6). Hence, the proposed method is rapid and can be employed for accurate determination of pesticide residues in large quantities of honey samples.

The Canadian HIV and aging cohort study - determinants of increased risk of cardio-vascular diseases in HIV-infected individuals: rationale and study protocol.

BACKGROUND: With potent antiretroviral drugs, HIV infection is becoming a chronic disease. Emergence of comorbidities, particularly cardiovascular disease (CVD) has become a leading concern for patients living with the infection. We hypothesized that the chronic and persistent inflammation and immune activation associated with HIV disease leads to accelerated aging, characterized by CVD. This will translate into higher incidence rates of CVD in HIV infected participants, when compared to HIV negative participants, after adjustment for traditional CVD risk factors. When characterized further using cardiovascular imaging, biomarkers, immunological and genetic profiles, CVD associated with HIV will show different characteristics compared to CVD in HIV-negative individuals. METHODS/DESIGN: The Canadian HIV and Aging cohort is a prospective, controlled cohort study funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. It will recruit patients living with HIV who are aged 40 years or older or have lived with HIV for 15 years or more. A control population, frequency matched for age, sex, and smoking status, will be recruited from the general population. Patients will attend study visits at baseline, year 1, 2, 5 and 8. At each study visit, data on complete medical and pharmaceutical history will be captured, along with anthropometric measures, a complete physical examination, routine blood tests and electrocardiogram. Consenting participants will also contribute blood samples to a research biobank. The primary outcome is incidence of a composite of: myocardial infarction, coronary revascularization, stroke, hospitalization for angina or congestive heart failure, revascularization or amputation for peripheral artery disease, or cardiovascular death. Preplanned secondary outcomes are all-cause mortality, incidence of the metabolic syndrome, incidence of type 2 diabetes, incidence of renal failure, incidence of abnormal bone mineral density and body fat distribution. Patients participating to the cohort will be eligible to be enrolled in four pre-planned sub-studies of cardiovascular imaging, glucose metabolism, immunological and genetic risk profile. DISCUSSION: The Canadian HIV and Aging Cohort will provide insights on pathophysiological pathways leading to premature CVD for patients living with HIV.

Gene-chip analysis of the effect of tripeptide tyroservatide (YSV) on gene-expression in human hepatocarcinoma BEL-7402 tumors transplanted to nude mice.

Tyroservatide (YSV) is a bioactive tripeptide of tyrosyl-seryl-valine. In this study, we studied the effects of YSV on human hepatocarcinoma BEL-7402 tumors transplanted in BALB/c (nu/nu) nude mice, and gene expression in the tumor cells with gene-chip analysis. Results show that YSV significantly inhibits the growth of transplanted human hepatocarcinoma BEL-7402 in nude mice (n = 12) compared with the control group (P < 0.05); with an inhibition rate of 55% at 320 microg/kg/d. Seven hundred eighty-one genes were different between the YSV group and the control group. Fifty-two genes changed in expression level by onefold or more including 37 downregulated genes and 15 upregulated genes. Probably, YSV exhibits a significant antitumor activity by inhibiting the expression of tumor cells histone genes, then damaging tumor cell chromosome and killing tumor cells.

Expression of PTEN, p27, p21 and AKT mRNA and protein in human BEL-7402 hepatocarcinoma cells in transplanted tumors of nude mice treated with the tripeptide tyroservatide (YSV).

The tripeptide, tyroservatide (YSV), has been previously shown to have antitumor effects through unknown mechanism. In the current study, we examined whether YSV modulates the protumorigenic PI3K pathway in human BEL-7402 hepatocarcinoma cells. BEL-7402 hepatocarcinoma was transplanted into the subcutaneous tissues of nude mice, and YSV, at varying doses, was administered. RT-PCR and Western blot were used to analyze the expression of PTEN, AKT, p21 and p27. YSV at doses of 80 microg/kg/day, 160 microg/kg/day and 320 microg/kg/day markedly inhibited the growth of human BEL-7402 hepatocarcinoma (p < 0.05). YSV increased mRNA and protein expression of the tumor-suppressor genes, PTEN, p21 and p27, and inhibited the mRNA and protein expression of the oncogene AKT. Furthermore, YSV administration was associated with dephosphorylation of both PTEN (which activates PTEN) and AKT (which inhibits AKT). These results are consistent with the possibility that YSV mediates inhibition of tumor growth through inhibition of the PI3K pathway and suggests that YSV should be explored for use as an antitumor agent for hepatocarcinoma.