Prevalence and molecular characterization of Cryptosporidium spp. in dairy cattle in Central Inner Mongolia, Northern China.

BACKGROUND: Cryptosporidium is a gastrointestinal protozoan that widely exists in nature, it is an established zoonotic pathogen. Infected cattle are considered to be associated with cryptosporidiosis outbreaks in humans. In the present study, we aimed to assess the prevalence and species distribution of Cryptosporidium in dairy cattle in Central Inner Mongolia. METHODS: We focused on the small subunit ribosomal RNA gene (SSU rRNA) of Cryptosporidium and 60-kDa glycoprotein gene (gp60) of Cryptosporidium parvum. We collected 505 dairy cattle manure samples from 6 sampling sites in Inner Mongolia in 2021; the samples were divided into 4 groups based on age. DNA extraction, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), sequence analysis, and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) using SspI and MboII restriction endonucleases were performed. RFLP analysis was performed to determine the prevalence and species distribution of Cryptosporidium. RESULTS: SSU rRNA PCR revealed that the overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection was 29.90% (151/505), with a prevalence of 37.67% (55/146) and 26.74% (96/359) in diarrheal and nondiarrheal samples, respectively; these differences were significant. The overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection at the 6 sampling sites ranged from 0 to 47.06% and that among the 4 age groups ranged from 18.50 to 43.81%. SSU rRNA sequence analysis and RFLP analysis revealed the presence of 4 Cryptosporidium species, namely, C. bovis (44.37%), C. andersoni (35.10%), C. ryanae (21.85%), and C. parvum (11.92%), along with a mixed infection involving two or three Cryptosporidium species. Cryptosporidium bovis or C. andersoni was the most common cause of infection in the four age groups. The subtype of C. parvum was successfully identified as IIdA via gp60 analysis; all isolates were identified as the subtype IIdA19G1. CONCLUSIONS: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of dairy cattle infected with four Cryptosporidium species in Inner Mongolia, China, along with a mixed infection involving two or three Cryptosporidium species, with C. bovis and C. andersoni as the dominant species. Moreover, this is the first study to identify C. parvum subtype IIdA19G1 in cattle in Inner Mongolia. Our study findings provide detailed information on molecular epidemiological investigation of bovine cryptosporidiosis in Inner Mongolia, suggesting that dairy cattle in this region are at risk of transmitting cryptosporidiosis to humans.

Prevalence and molecular characterization of Giardia duodenalis in dairy cattle in Central Inner Mongolia, Northern China.

Giardia duodenalis is a gastrointestinal protozoan ubiquitous in nature. It is a confirmed zoonotic pathogen, and cattle are considered a source of giardiasis outbreaks in humans. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence and multilocus genotype (MLG) of G. duodenalis in dairy cattle in Central Inner Mongolia. This study was based on the small subunit ribosomal RNA (SSU rRNA), glutamate dehydrogenase (gdh), triosephosphate isomerase (tpi), and beta-giardin (bg) genes of G. duodenalis. DNA extraction, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and sequence analysis were performed on 505 dairy cattle fecal samples collected in 2021 from six sampling sites and four age groups in Central Inner Mongolia to determine the prevalence and MLG distribution of G. duodenalis. The PCR results of SSU rRNA revealed that the overall prevalence of G. duodenalis was 29.5% (149/505) and that the overall prevalence of the diarrhea and nondiarrhea samples was 31.5% (46/146) and 28.5% (103/359), respectively; the difference was not significant (p > 0.05). SSU rRNA sequence analysis revealed that G. duodenalis assemblage E (91.1%, 133/146) was primarily detected and that assemblage A (8.9%, 13/146) was detected in 13 samples. The G. duodenalis-positive samples were PCR amplified and sequenced for gdh, tpi, and bg, from which 38, 47, and 70 amplified sequences were obtained, respectively. A combination of G. duodenalis assemblages A and E were detected in seven samples. Multilocus genotyping yielded 25 different assemblage E MLGs, which formed six subgroups. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report regarding G. duodenalis infection in dairy cattle in Inner Mongolia, China. This study revealed that Inner Mongolian cattle pose a risk of giardiasis transmission to humans and that the distribution of local cattle G. duodenalis assemblage E MLGs is diverse. The findings of this study can bridge the knowledge gap in the molecular epidemiological investigation of giardiasis in Central Inner Mongolia.

Comparative analysis of microbial communities in different growth stages of Dermacentor nuttalli.

Ticks were identified as arthropods that are pathogenic vectors. Dermacentor nuttalli is one of the dominant tick species in Inner Mongolia, and it carries and transmits a wide range of pathogenic microorganisms. However, at present, only the detection of D. nuttalli adult ticks and D. nuttalli different developmental stages carrying one specific pathogen, or the next-generation sequencing of D. nuttalli adult ticks were available. In this study, we investigated the microbial community structures of D. nuttalli in different growth stages under laboratory artificial feeding conditions. Total DNA was extracted from seven growth stages (female adult ticks, eggs, larval ticks, engorged larval ticks, nymphal ticks, engorged nymphal ticks, and second-generation adult ticks) obtained from laboratory artificial feeding of engorged D. nuttalli female ticks in Inner Mongolia. Then, the 16S rDNA V3-V4 hypervariable region was amplified to construct an Illumina PE250 library. Finally, 16S rRNA sequencing was performed on Illumina Novaseq 6000 platform. The sequencing data were analyzed using molecular biology software and platforms. The Illumina PE250 sequencing results showed that the egg stage had the highest diversity and number of species (28.74%, 98/341), while the engorged nymph stage had the lowest diversity and number of species (9.72%, 21/216). A total of 387 genera of 22 phyla were annotated in D. nuttalli, with 9 phyla and 57 genera found throughout all 7 growth stages. The dominant phylum was Proteobacteria; the dominant genera were Arsenophonus and Rickettsia; and the genera with the highest relative abundance in the 7 growth stages were Pseudomonas, Paenalcaligenes, Arsenophonus, Arsenophonus, Pseudomonas, Arsenophonus, and Rickettsia, respectively. Among the 23 exact species annotated, Brucella melitensis exhibits pathogeny that poses a serious threat to humans and animals. In this study, the microbial community composition at different growth stages of D. nuttalli was comprehensively analyzed for the first time.

Overexpression of the X-linked ribosomal protein S4 predicts poor prognosis in patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma.

X-linked ribosomal protein S4 (RPS4X) has previously been reported to be associated with cisplatin resistance and clinical outcome in bladder and ovarian cancer. However, the value of RPS4X as a diagnostic and prognostic marker in intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) has not yet been investigated. The present study evaluated the expression pattern, and diagnostic and prognostic value of RPS4X in patients with ICC. Retrospective analysis was performed for a total of 201 patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, and 8 patients with inflammation of the bile duct. Immunohistochemistry was performed using tissue microarrays to characterize the expression profile of RPS4X. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, the Kaplan-Meier estimator and Cox regression analysis were applied to evaluate the potential diagnostic and prognostic value of RPS4X in ICC. RPS4X was significantly upregulated in ICC tissues compared with the inflamed bile duct tissues. When differentiating ICC from normal controls, ROC analysis of RPS4X gave an area under the curve value of 0.9030 (sensitivity, 82.59%; specificity, 100%). RPS4X expression was significantly positively correlated with serum alkaline phosphatase levels. Survival analysis demonstrated that RPS4X expression levels were an independent prognostic factor for overall survival. Therefore, RPS4X expression levels may serve as a novel diagnostic and prognostic marker in ICC.

Coaxial metal nano-/microcables with isolating sheath: synthetic methodology and their application as interconnects.

Synthesis of coaxial nano-/microcables has been an intensive research subject due to their heterogeneous structures, tuneable properties, and important applications in nano-/micrometer-scale electronic and optoelectronic devices. Research on the fabrication of nanocables via solution strategies has made great progress in the past few years. In this Research News article, rapidly emerging new solution strategies such as hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) and synergistic soft-hard templates (SSHTs) are highlighted. Unique and flexible coaxial nano-/microcables synthesized by those methods have obvious advantages such as long-term stability and their electrical transport properties, compared with bare counterparts, suggesting that they are potential candidates as interconnects in the future.

Necklace-like Cu@cross-linked poly(vinyl alcohol) core-shell microcables by hydrothermal process.

Unique necklace-like Cu@cross-linked poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) microcables have been discovered by a one-pot hydrothermal process. A new growth mechanism for such novel structures has been proposed.

Cellulose acetate-directed growth of bamboo-raft-like single-crystalline selenium superstructures: high-yield synthesis, characterization, and formation mechanism.

High-yield synthesis of bamboo-raft-like single-crystalline selenium superstructures has been realized for the first time via a facile solvothermal approach by reducing SeO2 with ethylene alcohol in the presence of cellulose acetate. The formation of a raftlike superstructure with various forms is strongly dependent on the temperature, amount of cellulose acetate, reaction time, and even preheating treatment. The suitable amount of cellulose acetate is essential for the formation of elegant and uniform raft Se. The morphology, microstructure, optical properties, and chemical compositions of bamboo-raft-like selenium were characterized using various techniques (X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution (HR) TEM, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, UV-vis spectroscopy, FTIR spectroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy). A possible growth mechanism has been proposed. Such special superstructures could provide a useful precursor for potential applications.