Small-Molecule RAF265 as an Antiviral Therapy Acts against PEDV Infection.

Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV), a member of the family Coronaviridae, causes acute diarrhea, vomiting, dehydration, and high mortality in newborn piglets, and has caused significant economic losses in the pig industry. There are currently no specific drugs available to treat PEDV. Viruses depend exclusively on the cellular machinery to ensure an efficient replication cycle. In the present study, we found that small-molecule RAF265, an anticancer drug that has been shown to be a potent inhibitor of RAF, reduced viral loads of PEDV by 4 orders of magnitude in Vero cells, and protected piglets from virus challenge. RAF265 reduced PEDV production by mediating cytoskeleton arrangement and targeting the host cell's translation machinery. Treatment with RAF265 inhibited viral entry of PEDV S-glycoprotein pseudotyped viral vector particle (PEDV-pp), at half maximal effective concentrations (EC50) of 79.1 nM. RAF265 also presented potent inhibitory activity against viral infection by SARS-CoV-2-pp and SARS-CoV-pp. The present work may provide a starting point for further progress toward the development of antiviral strategies effective against coronavirus PEDV.

The Protective Effects of Lactoferrin on Aflatoxin M1-Induced Compromised Intestinal Integrity.

Aflatoxin M1 (AFM1), the only toxin with maximum residue levels in milk, has adverse effects on the intestinal barrier, resulting in intestinal inflammatory disease. Lactoferrin (LF), one of the important bioactive proteins in milk, performs multiple biological functions, but knowledge of the protective effects of LF on the compromised intestinal barrier induced by AFM1 has not been investigated. In the present study, results using Balb/C mice and differentiated Caco-2 cells showed that LF intervention decreased AFM1-induced increased intestinal permeability, improved the protein expression of claudin-3, occludin and ZO-1, and repaired the injured intestinal barrier. The transcriptome and proteome were used to clarify the underlying mechanisms. It was found that LF reduced the intestinal barrier dysfunction caused by AFM1 and was associated with intestinal cell survival related pathways, such as cell cycle, apoptosis and MAPK signaling pathway and intestinal integrity related pathways including endocytosis, tight junction, adherens junction and gap junction. The cross-omics analysis suggested that insulin receptor (INSR), cytoplasmic FMR1 interacting protein 2 (CYFIP2), dedicator of cytokinesis 1 (DOCK1) and ribonucleotide reductase regulatory subunit M2 (RRM2) were the potential key regulators as LF repaired the compromised intestinal barrier. These findings indicated that LF may be an alternative treatment for the compromised intestinal barrier induced by AFM1.

Analysis and Risk Assessment of Seven Toxic Element Residues in Raw Bovine Milk in China.

The object of this study is to analyze the levels of seven toxic elements residues in raw bovine milk in China and assess the potential health risk of those residues. The 178 raw bovine milk samples were collected from eight main milk-producing provinces and from three types of milk stations in China, and were analyzed for arsenic (As), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), mercury (Hg), aluminum (Al), and nickel (Ni) using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Al, Pb, Hg, Ni, Cr, and As were detected in 47.8, 29.2, 28.1, 23.6, 12.4, and 9.0% of total milk samples, respectively, and Cd were not detected in all samples. The raw bovine milk samples with high levels of toxic elements were found in industrial areas, such as Heilongjiang and Shanxi. Nemerow pollution index analysis showed that the levels were lower in the samples from the processing plants than that from the large-scale farms and small farm cooperatives. The margin of exposure (MOE) values suggest that the levels of As, Pb, Hg, Cr, Al, and Ni in the raw milk samples are not causing a health risk for Chinese consumers, including adults and children. Nevertheless, the risk of Pb for infant and young children was more serious than adult.