IFN-α affects Th17/Treg cell balance through c-Maf and associated with the progression of EBV- SLE.

OBJECTIVES: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a multi-organ autoimmune disease, of which the pathogens is remains obscure. Viral infection, particularly Epstein Barr viru (EBV) infection, has been considered a common pathogenic factor. This study suggests that c-Maf may be an important target in T cell differentiation during SLE progression, providing a potentially new perspective on the role of viral infection in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases. METHODS: Cytokines of EBV-infected SLE patients were measured by ELISA and assessed in conjunction with their clinical data. IFN-α, c-Maf, and the differentiation of Th17/Treg cells in SLE patients and MRL/LPR mice were analyzed using FCM, WB, RT-PCR, etc. Following the infection of cells and mice with EBV or viral mimic poly (dA:dT), the changes of the aforementioned indicators were investigated. The relationship among IFN-α, STAT3, c-Maf and Th17 cells was determined by si-RNA technique. RESULTS: Many SLE patients are found to be complicated by viral infections; Further, studies have demonstrated that viral infection, especially EBV, is involved in SLE development. This study showed that viral infections might promote IFN-α secretion, inhibit c-Maf expression by activating STAT3, increase Th17 cell differentiation, and lead to the immune imbalance of Th17/Treg cells, thus playing a role in the onset and progression of SLE. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that EBV infections may contribute to SLE development by activating STAT3 through IFN-α, inhibiting c-Maf, and causing Th17/Treg immune imbalance. Our work provided a new insight into the pathogenesis and treatment of SLE.

TLQP-21 facilitates diabetic wound healing by inducing angiogenesis through alleviating high glucose-induced injuries on endothelial progenitor cells.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a metabolic disease with multiple complications, including diabetic cutaneous wounds, which lacks effective treating strategies and severely influences the patients' life. Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) are reported to participate in maintaining the normal function of blood vessels, which plays a critical role in diabetic wound healing. TLQP-21 is a VGF-derived peptide with promising therapeutic functions on DM. Herein, the protective effects of TLQP-21 on diabetic cutaneous wound and the underlying mechanism will be investigated. Cutaneous wound model was established in T2DM mice, followed by administering 120 nmol/kg and 240 nmol/kg TLQP-21 once a day for 12 days. Decreased wound closure, reduced number of capillaries and EPCs, declined tube formation function of EPCs, and inactivated PI3K/AKT/eNOS signaling in EPCs were observed in T2DM mice, which were sharply alleviated by TLQP-21. Normal EPCs were extracted from mice and stimulated by high glucose (HG), followed by incubated with TLQP-21 in the presence or absence of LY294002, an inhibitor of PI3K. The declined cell viability, increased apoptotic rate, reduced number of migrated cells, declined migration distance, repressed tube formation function, and inactivated PI3K/AKT/eNOS signaling observed in HG-treated EPCs were markedly reversed by TLQP-21, which were dramatically abolished by the co-culture of LY294002. Collectively, TLQP-21 facilitated diabetic wound healing by inducing angiogenesis through alleviating HG-induced injuries on EPCs.

When and for whom organizational identification is more effective in eliciting safety voice: an empirical study from the construction industry perspective.

Safety voice (SV) is a form of voice in which employees express opinions or concerns about organizational safety. It plays an important role in preventing accidents and promoting safety performance. The purpose of this study is to reveal the emotional factors and boundary conditions behind employee engagement in SV, especially in the construction context. This study, therefore, investigated how organizational identification (OID) drove construction project participants' SV using a three-way interaction model of perceived insider status (PIS) as an individual difference and safety climate (SC) as an organizational contextual difference. The proposed model was tested using a sample of 357 participants in different construction projects. The results showed that OID was positively correlated with SV. The interaction effect of OID and PIS on SV depended on SC, with PIS enhancing the identification-voice relationship at a low level of SC and weakening it at a high level of SC.

Formation Mechanism and Dynamic Evolution Laws About Unsafe Behavior of New Generation of Construction Workers Based on China's Construction Industry: Application of Grounded Theory and System Dynamics.

Construction workers' unsafe behavior is a major cause of safety accidents and injuries, therefore, a profound understanding of the formation process and evolution laws about construction workers' unsafe behavior is conducive to taking measures to prevent incidents. At present, the new generation of construction workers (NGCWs) born after 1980 are gradually becoming the main force at construction sites in China. Given that generational differences of construction workers can cause the discrepancies in their thoughts and attitudes when engaging in safety-related activities, this study aims to investigate the formation mechanism and dynamic evolution laws about NGCWs' unsafe behavior based on the context of China's construction industry. From the perspective of behavior motivation, in-depth semi-structured interviews with 18 NGCWs and 7 grassroots managers were conducted, and data analysis followed a three-step coding process based on grounded theory. Through continuous comparison, abstraction and analysis, the stimulus-organism-response theory was introduced and expanded to construct a three-stage formation mechanism model. On this basis, the causal diagram and stock flow diagram were developed based on system dynamics principles to reflect the dynamic feedback relationships of the factors in the static formation mechanism model, and simulation was carried out using Vensim PLE software. The results show that three types of internal needs and three types of external incentives stimulate corresponding motivations for NGCWs' unsafe behavior. Two types of individual factors, five types of situational factors and behavior result play an influencing role in the decision-making process of externalizing motivation into behavior. Under the synergistic effect of multiple factors, the level of unsafe behavior displays a downward trend, and the rate of decrease is slow first and then fast. Furthermore, among individual factors and situational factors, safety awareness and safety management system have the most significant effect on the level of unsafe behavior, while situational factors play a more obvious role. The findings can provide theoretical support and practical references to China's construction companies and government departments for the purpose of improving NGCWs' unsafe behavior.

Effectiveness and safety of ear acupuncture for ankylosing spondylitis: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a type of autoimmune disease commonly characterized by joint pain and stiffness. This disease progression can exhibit common deformities and other activities with limited symptoms and significantly impacts people's work and life. Ear acupuncture as a traditional Chinese therapy, showing several advantages (e.g., safety, economy, and less side effects), has been extensively used to treat AS. However, its curative effect is supported by limited evidence. Accordingly, the present study aims to comprehensively assess the reliability of ear acupuncture in AS treatment. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The study will conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis. Seven databases, including the Embase, Cochrane Library, PubMed, SinoMed, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chongqing VIP Database for Chinese Technical Periodicals, and Wanfang Data, will be searched using predefined search terms to identify relevant studies. The primary outcomes will be the clinical efficiency, the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index, and the visual analog scale. Eligible studies should report at least 1 of these primary outcomes. Eligible studies designed as randomized controlled trials will be included for meta-analysis, while other related clinical studies will be reviewed. The methodological quality of the included studies will be assessed with a previously established checklist. The Cochrane Collaboration's bias risk tool will be used for assessing the bias of included randomized controlled trials. Stata 17.0 software is used for meta-analysis. RESULTS: The protocol will be used to assess the efficacy and safety of ear acupuncture in AS treatment. CONCLUSION: This review reliably evidences whether ear is a reliable method for the intervention of AS.

Factors affecting prefabricated construction promotion in China: A structural equation modeling approach.

Prefabricated construction (PC) has attracted wide spread attention as a model of sustainable development for the construction industry of the future. Although the PC has many advantages, it is still at an initial stage in China. Based on the current conditions in China, this study focuses on the interrelationships of factors affecting PC promotion. Firstly, through a comprehensive review of relevant literatures and expert recommendations, 5 factors were identified: policy factor, technical factor, management factor, market factor and cost factor. Next, the data were collected through a questionnaire survey, and the questionnaire data were processed using SPSS 24.0 and AMOS 22.0. The overall relationships of each factor were quantitatively analyzed with Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The results show that the policy factor plays a dominant role, while the management factor and market factors are also significant. This study also provides decision makers with relevant information about the factors involved, which will be helpful in devising appropriate strategies for the wider adoption of PC.