Optical/electrochemical methods for detecting mitochondrial energy metabolism.

This review highlights the biological importance of mitochondrial energy metabolism and the applications of multiple optical/electrochemical approaches to determine energy metabolites. Mitochondria, the main sites of oxidative phosphorylation and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) biosynthesis, provide the majority of energy required by aerobic cells for maintaining their physiological activity. They also participate in cell growth, differentiation, information transmission, and apoptosis. Multiple mitochondrial diseases, caused by internal or external factors, including oxidative stress, intense fluctuations of the ionic concentration, abnormal oxidative phosphorylation, changes in electron transport chain complex enzymes and mutations in mitochondrial DNA, can occur during mitochondrial energy metabolism. Therefore, developing accurate, sensitive, and specific methods for the in vivo and in vitro detection of mitochondrial energy metabolites is of great importance. In this review, we summarise the mitochondrial structure, functions, and crucial energy metabolic signalling pathways. The mechanism and applications of different optical/electrochemical methods are thoroughly reviewed. Finally, future research directions and challenges are proposed.

Transcriptome profile and unique genetic evolution of positively selected genes in yak lungs.

The yak (Bos grunniens), which is a unique bovine breed that is distributed mainly in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, is considered a good model for studying plateau adaptability in mammals. The lungs are important functional organs that enable animals to adapt to their external environment. However, the genetic mechanism underlying the adaptability of yak lungs to harsh plateau environments remains unknown. To explore the unique evolutionary process and genetic mechanism of yak adaptation to plateau environments, we performed transcriptome sequencing of yak and cattle (Bos taurus) lungs using RNA-Seq technology and a subsequent comparison analysis to identify the positively selected genes in the yak. After deep sequencing, a normal transcriptome profile of yak lung that containing a total of 16,815 expressed genes was obtained, and the characteristics of yak lungs transcriptome was described by functional analysis. Furthermore, Ka/Ks comparison statistics result showed that 39 strong positively selected genes are identified from yak lungs. Further GO and KEGG analysis was conducted for the functional annotation of these genes. The results of this study provide valuable data for further explorations of the unique evolutionary process of high-altitude hypoxia adaptation in yaks in the Tibetan Plateau and the genetic mechanism at the molecular level.

Prevalence and Spectrum of TBX5 Mutation in Patients with Lone Atrial Fibrillation.

Atrial fibrillation (AF), the most common type of cardiac rhythm disturbance encountered in clinical practice, is associated with substantially increased morbidity and mortality. Aggregating evidence demonstrates that abnormal cardiovascular development is involved in the pathogenesis of AF. A recent study has revealed that the TBX5 gene, which encodes a T-box transcription factor key to cardiovascular development, was associated with AF and atypical Holt-Oram syndrome. However, the prevalence and spectrum of TBX5 mutation in patients with lone AF remain unclear. In this study, the coding regions and splicing junction sites of TBX5 were sequenced in 192 unrelated patients with lone AF and 300 unrelated ethnically-matched healthy individuals used as controls. The causative potential of the identified TBX5 variation was evaluated by MutationTaster and PolyPhen-2. The functional effect of the mutant TBX5 was assayed by using a dual-luciferase reporter assay system. As a result, a novel heterozygous TBX5 mutation, p.H170D, was identified in a patient, with a mutational prevalence of approximately 0.52%. This mutation, which was absent in the 300 control individuals, altered the amino acid completely conserved evolutionarily across species, and was predicted to be disease-causing. Functional deciphers showed that the mutant TBX5 was associated with significantly reduced transcriptional activity when compared with its wild-type counterpart. Furthermore, the mutation significantly decreased the synergistic activation between TBX5 and NKX2-5 or GATA4. The findings expand the mutational spectrum of TBX5 linked to AF and provide new evidence that dysfunctional TBX5 may contribute to lone AF.

[Effect of Stx2-encoding phage on the motility and gene expression involved in moving of Escherichia coli lysogen].

OBJECTIVE: The effect of flhDC, fliA, fliD and fliE genes involved in moving of Escherichia coli (E. coli) on the motility of lysogened strain by Stx2-encoding phage phiMin27 was explored by gene knockout and phage lysogenic conversion. METHODS: Using the lambda Red recombinase system, the mutant strains of E. coli MG1655 named MG1655 deltaflhDC, MG1655 deltafliA, MG1655 deltafliD and MG1655 deltafliE were constructed. Then the corresponding complemented strains by ligating amplified targeted genes into the low copy vector pUC18 at the BamHI and Hind III sites and transforming these plasmids into mutant strains were acquired. By lysogenic infection of Stx2-encoding phage phiMin27, the lysogens for mutants named MG1655 deltaflhDCphiMin27, MG1655 deltafliAdeltaMin27, MG1655 deltafliDphiMin27 and MG1655 deltafliEphiMin27 were achieved. Subsequently, the motility of wild strain, the mutants, the complemented strains and the lysogens were detected. The changes of expression of the other genes involved in motility between wild strain and the lysogens before and after flhDC deletion by qRT-PCR were analyzed. RESULTS: Lysogenic infection of Stx2-encoding phage phiMin27 could promote the expression of fliA and fliD gene and enhance the motility of MG1655. For flhDC deletion, higher expression of fliA and fliD gene of MG1655 appeared, but the motility had no change. However, lysogen for MG1655 deltaflhDC lost the swimming motility. By gene transcriptional level detection, the expression of fliA and fliD gene of MG1655 deltaflhDCphiMin27 was down-regulated significantly compared with MG1655 deltaflhDC, and no marked variation was observed for fliE gene. The single deletion of fliA, fliD and fliE gene had no effect on the motility of E. coli MG1655 and lysogened strain by Stx2-encoding phage phiMin27. CONCLUSION: The results show that fliA and fliD gene together participated the regulation for flagella motility and flhDC gene could affect the motility of the lysogened strain by phage. It provides the theoretical basis for further research on the mutual regulation between phage lysogenization and host genes.

Silver sulfide anchored bismuth molybdate p-n heterojunction nano-coating with excellent photo-thermal self-healing performance.

In this research, a self-healing nano-coating with excellent photo-thermal response to near-infrared (NIR) laser is prepared. This coating incorporates silver sulfide anchored bismuth molybdate (Ag2S@Bi2MoO6) into a shape memory epoxy resin to achieve for a good photo-thermal conversion capability. The Ag2S@Bi2MoO6 p-n heterojunction could photo-generate more electron-holes pairs under the NIR laser irradiation. Also, it shows a wider absorption range of visible light, leading to effectively absorb the light energy, generate enough heat to induce the shape memory recovery in the coating, and seal the scratch. The results indicate that the temperature of EP-1 % Ag2S@Bi2MoO6 coating has reached about 88 °C, while good self-healing and anti-corrosion properties with a self-healing rate of 88.41 % have been achieved. Furthermore, calculations based on Density Functional Theory and Finite Element Method pointed out that the formation of p-n heterojunction effectively has enhanced the photo-thermal effect. This research opens a new way for developing self-healing coatings with an ultra-fast response time and high self-healing efficiency.

Algae blooms with resistance in fresh water: Potential interplay between Microcystis and antibiotic resistance genes.

Microcystis, a type of cyanobacteria known for producing microcystins (MCs), is experiencing a global increase in blooms. They have been recently recognized as potential contributors to the widespread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). By reviewing approximately 150 pieces of recent studies, a hypothesis has been formulated suggesting that significant fluctuations in MCs concentrations and microbial community structure during Microcystis blooms could influence the dynamics of waterborne ARGs. Among all MCs, microcystin-LR (MC-LR) is the most widely distributed worldwide, notably abundant in reservoirs during summer. MCs inhibit protein phosphatases or increase reactive oxygen species (ROS), inducing oxidative stresses, enhancing membrane permeability, and causing DNA damage. This further enhances selective pressures and horizontal gene transfer (HGT) chances of ARGs. The mechanisms by which Microcystis regulates ARG dissemination have been systematically organized for the first time, focusing on the secretion of MCs and the alterations of bacterial community structure. However, several knowledge gaps remain, particularly concerning how MCs interfere with the electron transport chain and how Microcystis facilitates HGT of ARGs. Concurrently, the predominance of Microcystis forming the algal microbial aggregates is considered a hotspot for preserving and transferring ARGs. Yet, Microcystis can deplete the nutrients from other taxa within these aggregates, thereby reducing the density of ARG-carrying bacteria. Therefore, further studies are needed to explore the 'symbiotic - competitive' relationships between Microcystis and ARG-hosting bacteria under varied nutrient conditions. Addressing these knowledge gaps is crucial to understand the impacts of the algal aggregates on dynamics of waterborne antibiotic resistome, and underscores the need for effective control of Microcystis to curb the spread of antibiotic resistance. Constructed wetlands and photocatalysis represent advantageous strategies for halting the spread of ARGs from the perspective of Microcystis blooms, as they can effectively control Microcystis and MCs while maintaining the stability of aquatic ecosystem.

[Prediction of liberation cutting intensity effect on the growth of Korean pine in secondary forest based on double dummy variable model]. / åŸºäºŽåŒå“‘å˜é‡æ¨¡åž‹é¢„æµ‹é€å ‰æŠšè‚²å¼ºåº¦å¯¹æ¬¡ç”Ÿæž—å† çº¢æ¾ç”Ÿé•¿çš„å½±å“.

"Planting conifer and reserving broadleaved tree" is an effective way to restore broad-leaved pine forest of temperate zone in Northeast China. Liberation cutting can promote the growth of Korean pine (Pinus koraiensis) under forest crown and accelerate the succession. However, how liberation cutting intensity affects the growth of Korean pine in secondary forest is still unclear. Taking the "Planting conifer and reserving broadleaved tree" Korean pine forest in Changbai Mountain as the object, we constructed a growth model of diameter at breast height (DBH) and tree height of Korean pine with double dummy variables (liberation cutting intensity and tree classification) to predict the growth of Korean pine plantation under different liberation cutting intensities, i.e. control (no liberation cutting), light-intensity liberation cutting (retaining upper canopy closure 0.6), medium-intensity liberation cutting (0.4), heavy-intensity liberation cutting (0.2) and clear cutting (cutting all upper broadleaf trees) stands. We analyzed the effects of liberation cutting intensities on DBH, tree height, and the ratio of tree height to DBH. The results showed that among six theoretical growth equations, the Gompertz model on the DBH (R2=0.46) and tree height (R2=0.81) was optimal basic model. The R2 of the DBH model was increased to 0.65 and 0.89, respectively, after the single dummy variable and the double dummy variable were introduced into the basic model, while the R2 of the tree height model was increased to 0.84 and 0.94. Therefore, the double dummy variable model was the most suitable for predicting the growth of Korean pine. The growth of DBH of pressed tree increased with the increases of liberation cutting intensity (increase by 145.8%-933.3%) during the whole simulation period (0-80 a). Average and dominant trees showed the same pattern at 42 and 60 a. In the early and middle stages of liberation cutting (20 and 42 a), clear cutting and heavy-intensity liberation cutting had similar effects on the height growth of dominant trees (64.8%-68.5%), average trees (100.0%-144.2%), and pressed trees (138.5%-183.9%). The effects of medium-intensity liberation cutting and light-intensity liberation cutting on the height growth were similar (24.3%-35.1%, 56.0%-92.3%, 84.6%-103.2%). While in the middle and late period (42 and 80 a), height growth of three grade trees increased with the increases of liberation cutting intensity. Under each liberation cutting intensity, the ratio of height to DBH of the dominant, average, and pressed trees increased successively, ranging from 0.50-0.95, 0.64-1.23, and 0.73-4.33, respectively. Only the pressed tree decreased with the increases of liberation cutting intensity at 0-80 a. Therefore, about 40 years after the implementation of liberation cutting, the promoting effect of different liberation cutting intensities on DBH growth was significantly weakened, the promoting effect on tree height growth was significantly enhanced, and the ratio of tree height to diameter began to increase. In order to alleviate forest competition, second liberation cutting should be carried out for light-intensity liberation cutting and medium-intensity liberation cutting stands to further release the growth potential of Korean pine, and thinning management should be carried out in clear cutting and heavy-intensity liberation cutting stands.

The involvement of the mitochondrial membrane in drug delivery.

Treatment effectiveness and biosafety are critical for disease therapy. Bio-membrane modification facilitates the homologous targeting of drugs in vivo by exploiting unique antibodies or antigens, thereby enhancing therapeutic efficacy while ensuring biosafety. To further enhance the precision of disease treatment, future research should shift focus from targeted cellular delivery to targeted subcellular delivery. As the cellular powerhouses, mitochondria play an indispensable role in cell growth and regulation and are closely involved in many diseases (e.g., cancer, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative diseases). The double-layer membrane wrapped on the surface of mitochondria not only maintains the stability of their internal environment but also plays a crucial role in fundamental biological processes, such as energy generation, metabolite transport, and information communication. A growing body of evidence suggests that various diseases are tightly related to mitochondrial imbalance. Moreover, mitochondria-targeted strategies hold great potential to decrease therapeutic threshold dosage, minimize side effects, and promote the development of precision medicine. Herein, we introduce the structure and function of mitochondrial membranes, summarize and discuss the important role of mitochondrial membrane-targeting materials in disease diagnosis/treatment, and expound the advantages of mitochondrial membrane-assisted drug delivery for disease diagnosis, treatment, and biosafety. This review helps readers understand mitochondria-targeted therapies and promotes the application of mitochondrial membranes in drug delivery. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: Bio-membrane modification facilitates the homologous targeting of drugs in vivo by exploiting unique antibodies or antigens, thereby enhancing therapeutic efficacy while ensuring biosafety. Compared to cell-targeted treatment, targeting of mitochondria for drug delivery offers higher efficiency and improved biosafety and will promote the development of precision medicine. As a natural material, the mitochondrial membrane exhibits excellent biocompatibility and can serve as a carrier for mitochondria-targeted delivery. This review provides an overview of the structure and function of mitochondrial membranes and explores the potential benefits of utilizing mitochondrial membrane-assisted drug delivery for disease treatment and biosafety. The aim of this review is to enhance readers' comprehension of mitochondrial targeted therapy and to advance the utilization of mitochondrial membrane in drug delivery.

Pangenome and multi-tissue gene atlas provide new insights into the domestication and highland adaptation of yaks.

BACKGROUND: The genetic diversity of yak, a key domestic animal on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP), is a vital resource for domestication and breeding efforts. This study presents the first yak pangenome obtained through the de novo assembly of 16 yak genomes. RESULTS: We discovered 290 Mb of nonreference sequences and 504 new genes. Our pangenome-wide presence and absence variation (PAV) analysis revealed 5,120 PAV-related genes, highlighting a wide range of variety-specific genes and genes with varying frequencies across yak populations. Principal component analysis (PCA) based on binary gene PAV data classified yaks into three new groups: wild, domestic, and Jinchuan. Moreover, we proposed a 'two-haplotype genomic hybridization model' for understanding the hybridization patterns among breeds by integrating gene frequency, heterozygosity, and gene PAV data. A gene PAV-GWAS identified a novel gene (BosGru3G009179) that may be associated with the multirib trait in Jinchuan yaks. Furthermore, an integrated transcriptome and pangenome analysis highlighted the significant differences in the expression of core genes and the mutational burden of differentially expressed genes between yaks from high and low altitudes. Transcriptome analysis across multiple species revealed that yaks have the most unique differentially expressed mRNAs and lncRNAs (between high- and low-altitude regions), especially in the heart and lungs, when comparing high- and low-altitude adaptations. CONCLUSIONS: The yak pangenome offers a comprehensive resource and new insights for functional genomic studies, supporting future biological research and breeding strategies.

Screening of Deoxynivalenol Cyclic Heptapeptide Mimotope Antigen.

In this study, phage clones that can bind to DON were selected from the phage cyclohepta peptide library by screening through the principle of solid-phase affinity, and mimotope were synthesized to replace the DON toxin standard to establish a green low toxicity detection system. The author conducted four rounds of screening in the phage cyclic heptapeptide library with DON-10a1a monoclonal antibody as the target molecule. Then 38 phage clones were selected and validated, and the results showed that 35 of them could bind to the DON-10a1a monoclonal antibody and were inhibited by DON toxin. Finally, the DNA was extracted and sequenced to obtain 6 different DNA sequences, which were named D1-D6 respectively. The peptides synthesized according to the corresponding amino acid sequences can replace DON toxin to establish a series of green and low toxicity assays.

From air to airway: Dynamics and risk of inhalable bacteria in municipal solid waste treatment systems.

Municipal solid waste treatment (MSWT) system emits a cocktail of microorganisms that jeopardize environmental and public health. However, the dynamics and risks of airborne microbiota associated with MSWT are poorly understood. Here, we analyzed the bacterial community of inhalable air particulates (PM10, n = 71) and the potentially exposed on-site workers' throat swabs (n = 30) along with waste treatment chain in Shanghai, the largest city of China. Overall, the airborne bacteria varied largely in composition and abundance during the treatment (P < 0.05), especially in winter. Compared to the air conditions, MSWT-sources that contributed to 15 ∼ 70% of airborne bacteria more heavily influenced the PM10-laden bacterial communities (PLS-SEM, ß = 0.40, P < 0.05). Moreover, our year-span analysis found PM10 as an important media spreading pathogens (104 ∼ 108 copies/day) into on-site workers. The machine-learning identified Lactobacillus and Streptococcus as pharynx-niched featured biomarker in summer and Rhodococcus and Capnocytophaga in winter (RandomForest, ntree = 500, mtry = 10, cross = 10, OOB = 0%), which closely related to their airborne counterparts (Procrustes test, P < 0.05), suggesting that MSWT a dynamic hotspot of airborne bacteria with the pronounced inhalable risks to the neighboring communities.

Catalytic Modification of Porous Two-Dimensional Ni-MOFs on Portable Electrochemical Paper-Based Sensors for Glucose and Hydrogen Peroxide Detection.

Rapid and accurate detection of changes in glucose (Glu) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) concentrations is essential for the predictive diagnosis of diseases. Electrochemical biosensors exhibiting high sensitivity, reliable selectivity, and rapid response provide an advantageous and promising solution. A porous two-dimensional conductive metal-organic framework (cMOF), Ni-HHTP (HHTP = 2,3,6,7,10,11-hexahydroxytriphenylene), was prepared by using a one-pot method. Subsequently, it was employed to construct enzyme-free paper-based electrochemical sensors by applying mass-producing screen-printing and inkjet-printing techniques. These sensors effectively determined Glu and H2O2 concentrations, achieving low limits of detection of 1.30 µM and 2.13 µM, and high sensitivities of 5573.21 µA µM-1 cm-2 and 179.85 µA µM-1 cm-2, respectively. More importantly, the Ni-HHTP-based electrochemical sensors showed an ability to analyze real biological samples by successfully distinguishing human serum from artificial sweat samples. This work provides a new perspective for the use of cMOFs in the field of enzyme-free electrochemical sensing, highlighting their potential for future applications in the design and development of new multifunctional and high-performance flexible electronic sensors.

Characterization and determination of holin protein of Streptococcus suis bacteriophage SMP in heterologous host.

BACKGROUND: Holins are a group of phage-encoded membrane proteins that control access of phage-encoded endolysins to the peptidoglycan, and thereby trigger the lysis process at a precise time point as the 'lysis clock'. SMP is an isolated and characterized Streptococcus suis lytic phage. The aims of this study were to determine the holin gene, HolSMP, in the genome of SMP, and characterized the function of holin, HolSMP, in phage infection. RESULTS: HolSMP was predicted to encode a small membrane protein with three hydrophobic transmembrane helices. During SMP infections, HolSMP was transcribed as a late gene and HolSMP accumulated harmlessly in the cell membrane before host cell lysis. Expression of HolSMP in Escherichia coli induced an increase in cytoplasmic membrane permeability, an inhibition of host cell growth and significant cell lysis in the presence of LySMP, the endolysin of phage SMP. HolSMP was prematurely triggered by the addition of energy poison to the medium. HolSMP complemented the defective λ S allele in a non-suppressing Escherichia coli strain to produce phage plaques. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that HolSMP is the holin protein of phage SMP and a two-step lysis system exists in SMP.

Optical flexible biosensors: From detection principles to biomedical applications.

Optical flexible biosensors are novel sensors fabricated on flexible or ductile materials that are used for the detection of analytes. Compared to traditional sensors, these biosensors offer greater flexibility, which allows them to adapt to different working environments, to meet the deformation requirements of humans. Flexible devices can not only detect alterations in analytes in vitro, but can also realize real-time and non-invasive monitoring of the variation of physical conditions or metabolites in vivo. Flexible devices are earning increasing attention from researchers and clinicians. In the present review, we summarize and introduce the detection principles, key analytes, and applications of optical flexible biosensors in the diagnosis/treatment of diseases as well as health detection. Moreover, the remaining challenges of flexible devices and their perspectives have also been addressed. We hope that this review will pave ways for the development of more feasible and multifunctional flexible devices.

Overview of the structure, side effects, and activity assays of l-asparaginase as a therapy drug of acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

l-Asparaginase (l-ASNase is the abbreviation, l-asparagine aminohydrolase, E.C.3.5.1.1) is an enzyme that is clinically employed as an antitumor agent for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Although l-ASNase is known to deplete l-asparagine (l-Asn), causing cytotoxicity in leukemia cells, the specific molecular signaling pathways are not well defined. Because of the deficiencies in the production and administration of current formulations, the l-ASNase agent in clinical use is still associated with serious side effects, so controlling its dose and activity monitoring during therapy is crucial for improving the treatment success rate. Accordingly, it is urgent to summarize and develop effective analytical methods to detect l-ASNase activity in treatment. However, current reports on these detection methods are fragmented and also have not been systematically summarized and classified, thereby not only delaying the investigations of specific molecular mechanisms, but also hindering the development of novel detection methods. Herein, in this review, we provided a detailed summary of the l-ASNase structures, antitumor mechanism and side effects, and current detection approaches, such as fluorescence assays, colorimetric assays, spectroscopic assays and some other assays. All of them possess unique advantages and disadvantages, so it has been difficult to establish clear criteria for clinical application. We hope that this review will be of some value in promoting the development of l-ASNase activity detection methods.

Soil Fungal Community Composition and Diversity of Culturable Endophytic Fungi from Plant Roots in the Reclaimed Area of the Eastern Coast of China.

As an important resource for screening microbial strains capable of conferring stress tolerance in plants, the fungal community associated with the plants grown in stressful environments has received great attention. In this study, high-throughput sequencing was employed to study the rhizosphere fungal community in the reclaimed area (i.e., sites F, H, and T) of the eastern coast of China. Moreover, endophytic fungi from the root of six plant species colonizing the investigated sites were isolated and identified. The differences in soil physicochemical parameters, fungal diversity, and community structure were detected among the sampling sites and between the seasons. Ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi (e.g., genera Tuber and Geopora) were dominant at site F, which was characterized by high soil total carbon (SC) and total nitrogen (SN) contents and low soil electrical conductivity (EC) value. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi, including genera Glomus, Rhizophagus, and Entrophospora were dominant at sites H (winter), H (summer), and T (summer), respectively. The positive relationship between the EC value and the abundance of genus Glomus indicated the ability of this AM fungus to protect plants against the salt stress. Endophytic fungi at sites F (Aspergillus and Tetracladium), H (Nigrospora), and T (Nigrospora, Coniochaeta and Zopfiella) were recognized as the biomarkers or keystone taxa, among which only genus Aspergillus was isolated from the plant roots. The aforementioned AM fungi and endophytic fungi could contribute to the promotion of plant growth in the newly reclaimed land.

Application of a bacteriophage lysin to disrupt biofilms formed by the animal pathogen Streptococcus suis.

Bacterial biofilms are crucial to the pathogenesis of many important infections and are difficult to eradicate. Streptococcus suis is an important pathogen of pigs, and here the biofilm-forming ability of 32 strains of this species was determined. Significant biofilms were completely formed by 10 of the strains after 60 h of incubation, with exopolysaccharide production in the biofilm significantly higher than that in the corresponding planktonic cultures. S. suis strain SS2-4 formed a dense biofilm, as revealed by scanning electron microscopy, and in this state exhibited increased resistance to a number of antibiotics (ampicillin, amoxicillin, ciprofloxacin, kanamycin, and rifampin) compared to that of planktonic cultures. A bacteriophage lysin, designated LySMP, was used to attack biofilms alone and in combination with antibiotics and bacteriophage. The results demonstrated that the biofilms formed by S. suis, especially strains SS2-4 and SS2-H, could be dispersed by LySMP and with >80% removal compared to a biofilm reduction by treatment with either antibiotics or bacteriophage alone of less than 20%; in addition to disruption of the biofilm structure, the S. suis cells themselves were inactivated by LySMP. The efficacy of LySMP was not dose dependent, and in combination with antibiotics, it acted synergistically to maximize dispersal of the S. suis biofilm and inactivate the released cells. These data suggest that bacteriophage lysin could form part of an effective strategy to treat S. suis infections and represents a new class of antibiofilm agents.

Molecular characterization of a porcine astrovirus strain in China.

Pigs are increasingly recognized to harbor a wide range of viruses that apparently establish long-term persistence in these animals. They serve as reservoirs for a number of human zoonotic diseases. In this study, a porcine astrovirus (PAstV) strain, designated as PAstV JWH-1, is identified from a diarrheal pig in China, and it is partially characterized genetically. Sequence analysis shows that the PAstV JWH-1 strain contains divergent nucleotide sequences in both the open reading frame (ORF)1b/ORF2 consensus and the 3'-UTR regions (s2m motif), which are usually highly conserved among members of the family Astroviridae. Phylogenetic analysis indicates that the JWH-1 strain clusters closely with newly identified strains PAstV 12-4 and 14-4 and forms a group of mamastroviruses with the proposed novel deer astrovirus. Further recombination analysis shows that two possible interspecies recombination events between porcine and deer astroviruses occurred in the genome of the JWH-1 strain. This study further confirms that multiple lineages are present among PAstVs, and each lineage likely represents an independent origin. Additionally, the possibility of interspecies transmission among PAstVs is also suggested.

Isolation and characterization of the first Chinese porcine sapelovirus strain.

Investigations were carried out to identify the causative agent of acute diarrhea, respiratory distress, and polioencephalomyelitis of pigs on a swine farm in Shanghai, China. Samples from the affected animals were tested for viruses and bacteria that are known to cause similar symptoms in swine, and only porcine sapelovirus (PSV; designated as csh strain) was isolated. The presence of PSV was further confirmed by the specific cytopathic effects observed in susceptible cells and by the results of PCR and electron microscopy. Nucleotide sequencing and phylogenetic analysis showed that this isolate is PSV. When inoculated into healthy pigs, PSV.csh caused the same symptoms as observed in the affected herd. Therefore, PSV.csh is the causative agent of this disease. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of PSV infecting piglets in China.

Serological evidence of West Nile virus in dogs and cats in China.

We evaluated West Nile virus (WNV) seroprevalence in dogs and cats in Shanghai, China. Seventeen of the 367 dogs (4.6%) and 46 of the 309 cats (14.9%) tested positive for WNV antibodies. A higher WNV seroprevalence was found with outdoor and rural pets than with indoor and urban pets. However, WNV seroprevalence between the sexes were not significantly different. The results indicate that WNV-positive serum antibodies are present in dogs and cats in China, and pets, especially strays, could be served as effective sentinels for WNV surveillance.