Plastic food? Energy compensation of zebrafish (Danio rerio) after long-term exposure to polylactic acid biomicroplastics.

The extensive use of bio-based plastics has led to their widespread distribution in the environment. However, their long-term ecological impact on aquatic animals is not well understood. In this study, adult zebrafish (Danio rerio) were exposed to 1000 items·L-1 of either polylactic acid (PLA) or polyethylene terephthalate (PET) microplastics (MPs), for 90 days. PLA is a typical bio-based plastic, while PET is a typical petroleum-derived plastic. The abundances of PLA and PET MPs in fish intestines were 981 ± 66 and 671 ± 151 items per fish, respectively, indicating a greater amount of PLA MP residues than PET MPs. However, the inhibitory effect of PET on fish weight was 1.8 times higher than that of PLA, suggesting energy compensation in PLA-treated zebrafish. Proliferation of Lactobacillus was observed in the fish intestines of the PLA group, indicating increased utilization capacity of intestinal flora for lactic acid production during PLA degradation. Metabolomics showed that the tricarboxylic acid pathway was up-regulated in the PLA group compared with that in the PET group, providing evidence of energy compensation. However, more ingested PLA MPs caused more significant histological damage to fish intestines than PET MPs. Therefore, the ecological risks of bio-based plastics still require attention.

Effects of respiratory flora regulation on microbial environment and IL-10/STAT3 signaling pathway in the bronchiolitis obliterans after lung transplantation.

Our purpose of this study was to explore the application effect of respiratory flora regulation in bronchiolitis obliterans after lung transplantation, and its regulatory effect on the microbial environment of the lesion and the IL-10/STAT3 signaling pathway. 25 clean-grade C57BL/6 male mice and 5 BALB/c male mice were selected for orthotopic tracheal transplantation and postoperative respiratory flora regulation in a hospital animal room from Jan 2019 to Dec 2021. Next, the changes in the microbial environment and the IL-10/STAT3 signaling pathway before and after respiratory flora regulation were compared, so as to evaluate the regulatory effect of this method. The Simpson index did not show a significant difference before and after respiratory flora regulation intervention (P>0.05). However, the Chao1, ACE, Shannon, and Actinobacteria dominant indices were higher after the intervention. There were significant changes in the abundance of Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Acidobacteria, Firmicutes, Propionibacterium, Corynebacterium, Staphylococcus, and Streptococcus after the intervention (P<0.05). Additionally, IL-10 and STAT3 levels were higher after the intervention and showed significant differences (P<0.05) compared to before. Regulating the respiratory tract flora can improve the microbial environment of bronchiolitis obliterans post-lung transplantation. This helps balance the respiratory flora, increase IL-10 and STAT3 levels, and aid in the recovery of inflammatory responses.

Association of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) with lung cancer: meta-analysis.

Objective: Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a virus that is ubiquitous in humans. To investigate the association between EBV infection and lung cancer risk to reveal whether it is involved in the development and development of lung cancer. Although there has been discussion of EBV and lung cancer in the past. Through this study, we hope to deepen our understanding of the causes of lung cancer and provide new clues and targets for the prevention, early diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer. This study is also beneficial to the development of medical science and public health. First of all, the research results are expected to be incorporated into lung cancer prevention and treatment strategies and policies, so as to provide better treatment decisions for lung cancer patients and improve the survival rate and quality of life of patients. At the same time, communicating the research results to the public can help raise awareness of lung cancer risk factors. By encouraging healthy lifestyles and screening measures, the public can reduce their risk of lung cancer. In addition, this study also provides an important foundation for subsequent academic research and scientific exploration. It provides valuable information and inspiration for in-depth understanding of lung cancer and other related fields. Overall, this study makes an important contribution to both medical science and public health. Method: By September 26, 2022, an online database was used to conduct a literature search in English. Random effects models were employed to estimate the prevalence of EBV with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Additionally, the pooled odds ratio (OR) and 95%CI were calculated from case-control studies to determine the association between EBV and lung cancer. Results: In this study of 886 patients with lung cancer, the overall prevalence of EBV infection was found to be 44.36% (95%CI: 4.08-16.9). Fourteen studies were included in the analysis, all of which used a case-control design and involved comparisons of tumors with adjacent or non-adjacent normal and non-cancerous controls. There was a significant difference in the prevalence of EBV infection in lung cancer tissues between China and other regions, with an odds ratio (OR) of 9.36 (95% confidence interval: 4.00-21.94, P<0.001, I²=73.5%). This suggests that the association between EBV infection and lung cancer cases is stronger in China than in other regions. Additionally, the prevalence of EBV infection varied across different pathological types of lung cancer, with rates of 81.08% for pulmonary lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma (LELC),this a rare subtype of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).34.78% for non-small cell lung cancer, and 21.17% for small cell lung cancer. The statistical analysis indicated that EBV infection was most significantly associated with cancer risk in LELC, while non-small cell lung cancer was more strongly associated with EBV than small cell lung cancer. Conclusion: The study found that EBV infection increases the risk of lung cancer by more than four times, and this risk is associated with the pathological type, lymphatic infiltration, and degree of differentiation of the lung cancer, particularly in the rare subtype of pulmonary lymphoepithelioma in non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC). Additionally, there are racial and regional differences in the correlation between EBV-infected lung cancer, with the Asian population showing greater susceptibility. The study used normal or abnormal tissue adjacent to the tumor as a control, which is considered a more accurate method for determining the relationship between EBV infection and lung cancer.

A single-nucleotide resolution capillary gel electrophoresis workflow for poly(A) tail characterization in the development of mRNA therapeutics and vaccines.

The 3' poly(A) tail is an important component of messenger RNA (mRNA). The length of the poly(A) tail has direct impact on the stability and translation efficiency of the mRNA molecule and is therefore considered to be a critical quality attribute (CQA) of mRNA-based therapeutics and vaccines. Various analytical methods have been developed to monitor this CQA. Methods like ion-pair reversed-phase liquid chromatography (IPRP-LC) can be used to quantify the percentage of mRNA with poly(A) tail but fail to provide further information on the actual length of poly(A). High-resolution methods such as liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC-MS) or next generation sequencing (NGS) can separate poly(A) tail length by one nucleotide (n/n + 1 resolution) but are complicated to implement for release testing of manufactured mRNA. In this study, a workflow utilizing capillary gel electrophoresis (CGE) for characterizing the poly(A) tail length of mRNA was developed. The CGE method demonstrated resolution comparable with the LC-MS method. With UV detection and the addition of poly(A) length markers, this method can provide poly(A) tail length information and can also provide quantitation of each poly(A) length, making it a suitable release method to monitor the CQA of poly(A) tail length.

Elevated temperature decreases cardiovascular toxicity of nanoplastics but adds to their lethality: A case study during zebrafish (Danio rerio) development.

To highlight the key role of global warming on the toxicity of contaminants, the cardiovascular toxicity of nanoparticles (NPs) was estimated in developing zebrafish (Danio rerio) at different exposure temperatures, and the toxicity mechanisms were explored via multi-omic analyses. Polystyrene NPs (50 nm) at 0.1 mg·L-1 entered zebrafish embryos at 24 h post-fertilization and caused cardiovascular toxicity in the developing zebrafish at 27 ℃. This was explained by the down-regulation of the branched-chain amino acid and insulin signaling pathways owing to induced oxidative stress. Elevated exposure temperatures promoted the accumulation of NPs in developing zebrafish, increased the levels of oxidative stress and enhanced the oxidative phosphorylation rate in mitochondria, thus resulting in an additive effect on the mortality of zebrafish larvae. Notably, elevated exposure temperatures reduced the cardiovascular toxicity of NPs, as the effective concentration of NPs for inhibiting embryonic heartbeat rate increased from 0.1 mg·L-1 at 27 ℃ to 1.0 mg·L-1 at 30 ℃. Experiments of transgenic zebrafish Tg(myl7:GFP) and multi-omic analyses revealed that elevated temperatures enhanced the myocardial contractility of larvae, thus reducing the cardiovascular toxicity of NPs. However, the health risks of enhanced myocardial contraction caused by NP exposure at elevated temperatures requires further consideration.

Effects of temperature on the toxicity of waterborne nanoparticles under global warming: Facts and mechanisms.

Global climate change is predicted to increase the average temperature of aquatic environments. Temperature changes modulate the toxicity of emerging chemical contaminants, such as nanoparticles (NPs). However, current hazard assessments of waterborne NPs seldom consider the influence of temperature. In this review, we gathered and analyzed the effects of temperature on the toxicity of waterborne NPs in different organisms. There was a general decrease in bioavailability with increasing temperature in algae and plants due to NPs aggregation, thus, reducing their toxicities. However, the agglomerated large particles caused by the increase in temperature induce a shading effect and inhibit algal photosynthesis. The toxicity of NPs in microorganisms and aquatic animals increases with increasing temperature. This may be due to the significant influence of high temperature on the uptake and excretion of chemicals across membranes, which increase the production of reactive oxygen species and enhance oxidative damage to organisms. High temperature also affect the formation and composition of a protein corona on NPs, altering their toxicity. Our results provide new insights into the toxicity of NPs in the context of global warming, and highlight the deficiencies of current research on NPs.

[Construction and quality evaluation of strawberry seedling index model]. / 草莓种苗壮苗指数模型的构建与质量评价.

With the development of strawberry cultivated area in China, the demands for high-quality strawberry seedlings are increasing year by year. The research on the evaluation index of strawberry seedlings is needed to ensure the quality of the seedlings. This study aimed to establish an optimal index model of strawberry seedlings to improve the accuracy of seedlings evaluation. In this study, 320 seedlings of 'Benihoppe' strawberry seedlings growing for 40 days were taken as the materials. Based on the determination of 16 individual indicators including the growth of aboveground and underground parts, fresh weight, and dry weight, we firstly conducted the membership function corresponding to single indicator. Then the comprehensive evaluation index of strawberry seedlings was calculated using weighted fuzzy evaluation method. Furthermore, the key indicators out of the 16 indicators which were filtered out by means of the principal component analysis method were combined into different index models of strawberry seedlings. The correlation analysis between the comprehensive evaluation index and seedling index models was done and finally the optimal seedling index model was selected and verified. The results showed that there were significant differences in 16 indices of 320 randomly selected strawberry seedlings. The comprehensive evaluation index of strawberry seedlings was in the range of 0.165-0.817, indicating that the comprehensive evaluation index could totally reflect the quality of seedlings and could be used as the evaluation basis. The 16 individual indices of strawberry seedlings were classified into three principal components, including aboveground related indicators, underground related indicators, and the pigment indicators. The cumulative contribution rate of three principal components was 79.7%. Twenty-seven seedlings index models were combined by randomly selecting three indices with a large contribution value from each principal component. Five strawberry seedlings index mo-dels were selected from 27 models due to the highest correlation with the comprehensive evaluation index. Among them, the model "aboveground dry weight×root surface area×chlorophyll a" was identified as the optimal one to evaluate the quality of strawberry seedlings, due to the highest correlation with the comprehensive evaluation index. The correlation coefficient of between strong seedling index and comprehensive evaluation index in three strawberry variety 'Benihoppe', 'Kantoseika' and 'Sweet Charlie' were 0.879, 0.924, and 0.975, respectively. According to the comprehensive evaluation index, the quality of strawberry seedlings were classified into three grades: grade Ⅰ (comprehensive evaluation index ≥0.5, seedling index ≥4.0) with high-quality seedlings; grade Ⅱ (comprehensive evaluation index 0.3-0.5, seedling index 0.5-4.0) with qualified seedlings; grade Ⅲ (comprehensive evaluation index ≤0.3, seedling index ≤0.5) with weak seedlings. The results provided a theoretical basis and scientific method for the evaluation of the health status of strawberry seedlings or other fruits and vegetable seedlings.