Origin of the Cr3+ concentration-dependent broadband near-infrared emission in Sc2Si2O7.

The challenge of developing phosphors with tailored near-infrared (NIR) emission ranges to meet the diverse demands of various applications is a paramount concern in the contemporary realm of NIR phosphor research. A strong dependence of NIR emission on Cr3+ concentration has been demonstrated in Sc2-xSi2O7:xCr3+, which exhibits an NIR emission band at 840 nm for low Cr3+ doping concentrations (x = 0.001-0.01) and an anomalous NIR emission band at 1300 nm for high Cr3+ doping concentrations (x = 0.01-0.10). Careful investigation of the crystal structure, excitation and emission spectra, and luminescence decay curves indicates that the two NIR emissions can be attributed to the isolated Cr3+ ions and the Cr3+-Cr3+ pairs, respectively. The strong interaction of exchange-coupled Cr3+-Cr3+ pairs is supported by temperature-dependent emission spectra, luminescence decay curves and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements. This work provides a new insight into the study of Cr3+-Cr3+ pairs for broadband NIR emission.

Thermal stability and quantum efficiency improvement of Cr3+-activated garnet phosphors via regulating A/B sites for near-infrared LED applications.

The discovery of phosphors with highly efficient broadband near-infrared emission is urgent for constructing NIR sources for various applications. Herein, we synthesized a series of near-infrared emitting garnet-type (A3B2C3O12) Lu2-xCaAl3.99Cr0.01SiO12:xGd/La and Lu2CaAl3.99-yCr0.01SiO12:ySc/Ga phosphors and systematically investigated the effect of A/B-site substitution on the crystal structure and luminescence properties. Structural and optical analyses revealed that the A/B-site substitution weakened the crystal field strength, further enhancing the broadband emission of the allowed 4T2 → 4A2transition and diminishing the narrow-peak emission of the forbidden 2E → 4A2 transition. As expected, NIR phosphors, exemplified by Lu1.7CaAl3.99Cr0.01SiO12:0.3Gd and Lu2CaAl3.49Cr0.01SiO12:0.5Sc, showed outstanding thermal stabilities at 423 K (150 °C) registering values of 103.02% and 94.91%, with high quantum efficiencies of 80.48% and 85.01%, respectively. In addition, pc-LEDs with broadband NIR output and good optoelectronic properties have been realized, demonstrating the great potential of broadband NIR pc-LEDs for applications. This work not only provides a series of high-efficiency phosphors for NIR pc-LED applications, but also provides a systematic idea and an efficient method to improve the luminescence performance of garnet-type phosphors.

Frontiers in the Etiology and Treatment of Preterm Premature Rupture of Membrane: From Molecular Mechanisms to Innovative Therapeutic Strategies.

Preterm premature rupture of membranes (pPROM) poses a significant threat to fetal viability and increases the risk for newborn morbidities. The perinatal period of preterm infants affected by pPROM is often characterized by higher rates of mortality and morbidity, with associated risks of cerebral palsy, developmental delays, compromised immune function, respiratory diseases, and sensory impairments. pPROM is believed to result from a variety of causes, including but not limited to microbially induced infections, stretching of fetal membranes, oxidative stress, inflammatory responses, and age-related changes in the fetal-placental interface. Maternal stress, nutritional deficiencies, and medically induced procedures such as fetoscopy are also considered potential contributing factors to pPROM. This comprehensive review explores the potential etiologies leading to pPROM, delves into the intricate molecular mechanisms through which these etiologies cause membrane ruptures, and provides a concise overview of diagnostic and treatment approaches for pPROM. Based on available therapeutic options, this review proposes and explores the possibilities of utilizing a novel composite hydrogel composed of amniotic membrane particles for repairing ruptured fetal membranes, thereby holding promise for its clinical application.

Quantifying rigidity for thermally stable Cr3+ phosphors.

Near-infrared (NIR) phosphors with high thermal stability are significant for NIR light-emitting diodes (LEDs). For a decade, Debye temperature has been a successful indicator of structural rigidity and thermal stability for phosphors, but some exceptions exist due to its dependence on atomic mass. Inspired by the Debye temperature model that relates the elastic properties of solids, our density functional theory calculations revealed that the Vickers hardness of Cr3+-doped NIR phosphors was negatively correlated with Stokes shifts (Pearson's R = -0.81) and positively correlated with thermal stabilities (Pearson's R = 0.85) within a set of 13 distinct material types. Highlighting the predictive power of Vickers hardness, two new NIR phosphors were investigated: KMg(PO3)3:Cr3+ showed low thermal stability, correlating with its lower Vickers hardness, in contrast to the high thermal stability and correspondingly higher Vickers hardness of La2MgSnO6:Cr3+. Vickers hardness can be used to screen potential hosts for Cr3+-doped NIR phosphors with high thermal stabilities, due to the advantages of the predictable feature by density functional theory calculation and low independence on atomic mass.

Influence of framework disordering on the luminescence performance of Cr3+-doped near-infrared phosphors: a case study of A3B6O14-type hosts.

The luminescence efficiency and thermal stability are enduring topics in the realm of phosphors. It is acknowledged that the structural transformation from disorder to order results in increased lattice rigidity, consequently inducing heightened efficiency and enhanced thermal stability. In this case study of the structural evolution of Ca3Ga2Ge4O14:Cr3+, NaCa2GaGe5O14:Cr3+ and Na2CaGe6O14:Cr3+ near-infrared (NIR) phosphors, a significant paradox is revealed: the incongruent relationship between the fluctuating degrees of disorder and the simultaneous improvements in efficiency and thermal stability. By drawing on insights gained from structural analysis, optical investigations, and theoretical calculations, a notable revelation surfaces: the primary factor affecting rigidity and optical performance is not the disordering of the entire lattice, but rather the disordering of the framework itself. The findings elucidate the principle of framework-order engineering for crafting high-performance NIR phosphors.

Improved Thermal and Chemical Stability of Oxynitride Phosphor from Facile Chemical Synthesis for Vehicle Cornering Lights.

Orange Eu2+ -doped phosphors are essential for light-emitting diodes for cornering lights to prevent fatal road accidents at night, but such phosphors require features of high thermal, chemical stability and facile synthesis. This study reports a series of yellow-orange-red emitting SrAl2 Si3 ON6 :Eu2+ oxynitride phosphors, derived from the SrAlSi4 N7 nitride iso-structure by replacing Si4+ -N3- with Al3+ -O2- . The introduction of a certain amount of oxygen enabled the facile synthesis under atmospheric pressure using the air-stable raw materials SrCO3 , Eu2 O3 , AlN and Si3 N4 . SrAl2 Si3 ON6 has a smaller band gap and lower structure rigidity than SrAlSi4 N7 (5.19 eV vs 5.50 eV, Debye temperature 719 K vs 760 K), but exhibits higher thermal stability with 100 % of room temperature intensity remaining at 150 °C compared to 85 % for SrAlSi4 N7 . Electron paramagnetic resonance, thermoluminescence and density functional theory revealed that the oxygen vacancy electron traps compensated the thermal loss. Additionally, no decrease in emission intensity was found after either being heated at 500 °C for 2 hours or being immersed in water for 20 days, implying both of the thermal and chemical stability of SrAl2 Si3 ON6 :Eu2+ phosphors. The strategy of oxynitride-introduction from nitride promotes the development of low-cost thermally and chemically stable luminescent materials.

Tetrahedrally coordinated rigid crystal structure enables partial self-reduction of mixed-valence europium for optical thermometric application.

Mixed-valence europium-activated phosphors are receiving attention in many fields, such as lighting, anti-counterfeiting, optical recording, encryption, and temperature sensing. However, it remains difficult to construct mixed-valence europium-activated compounds due to the reductive and oxidative synthesis conditions required to obtain Eu2+ and Eu3+ ions, respectively. Herein, mixed-valence Eu2+/Eu3+ was realized in the CaBPO5 built by rigidly connected BO4 and PO4 tetrahedrons by partial Eu3+ → Eu2+ self-reduction in the air atmosphere. Commendably, the CaBPO5:Eu2+/Eu3+ phosphor exhibits excellent ratiometric temperature sensing performance with the maximum absolute and relative sensitivity being as high as 0.184 K-1 and 3.444% K-1 with good signal discriminability, due to the high and low, respectively, temperature-dependence of Eu2+ and Eu3+ emissions. The rapid dropping intensity of Eu2+ in CaBPO5 with increasing temperature was due to the small energy gap (∼0.48 eV) between the Eu2+-5d state and the conduction band. Our work not only provides a novel thermometer candidate but also enlightens researchers to a method of effectively designing new mixed-valence metal-ion activated luminescent thermometers via selective tetrahedrally coordinated rigid crystal structure.

Near-UV excited multifunctional near-infrared phosphors for anti-counterfeiting and ratiometric thermometer applications.

Considerable efforts have been devoted to the development of visible light-emitting phosphors for anti-counterfeiting application, but the design of multifunctional near-infrared materials with suitable luminescent properties was lacking. Based on the crystal field theory, a near ultraviolet excitable and near-infrared emitting Ca2Sn2(1-x)Al2(1-x)O9:2xCr3+,2xSi4+ phosphor was designed. On the one hand, the Ca2Sn2(1-x)Al2(1-x)O9:2xCr3+,2xSi4+ phosphor showed great potential for applications including anti-counterfeiting and secret signals under a 405 nm near UV laser. The integrated intensity at 150 °C was 75.9%, implying high thermal stability when irradiated with a high power light source. On the other hand, an unexpected red emission component originating from the Cr3+-Cr3+ dimer was observed and was confirmed by fast luminescence decay and electron spin resonance signals. The different thermal stabilities of Cr3+ near-infrared and Cr3+-Cr3+ red emissions opened up a new opportunity for luminescence ratiometric thermometers.

Disorder-Order Conversion-Induced Enhancement of Thermal Stability of Pyroxene Near-Infrared Phosphors for Light-Emitting Diodes.

The minimization of thermal quenching, which leads to luminescence loss at high temperatures, is one of the most important issues for near-infrared phosphors. In the present work, we investigated the properties of near-infrared Ca(Sc,Mg)(Al, Si)O6 : Cr3+ phosphors with a pyroxene-type structure under blue light excitation. The CaScAlSiO6 : Cr3+ end member of Ca(Sc,Mg)(Al,Si)O6 : Cr3+ phosphor led to broadband emission at a full-width half maximum of 215 nm, whereas the CaMgSi2 O6 : Cr3+ end member exhibited high thermal stability at 150 °C, with an intensity of 88.4 % of that at room temperature. The structural analysis and density functional theory calculations revealed the absence of soft conformations and local space confinement contributed to the high structural rigidity and weakened the thermal quenching effect.

Erythropoiesis signature and ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis are enriched in systematic juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

Systemic Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (sJIA) is a distinctive subtype of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA). The pathogenesis of sJIA is still unclear with the limited treatment options. Although previous bioinformatics analyses have identified some genetic factors underlying sJIA, these studies were mostly single centre with a small sample size and the results were often inconsistent. Herein, we combined two data sets of GSE20307 and GSE21521 and select the matrix of patients diagnosed as sJIA in it for further analysis. The GSE20307 and GSE21521 matrixes downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) were analysed using online tools GEO2R, Venny, Metascape, STRING and Cytoscape to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs), enrichment pathways, protein-protein interaction (PPI), main module and hub genes between sJIA individuals and healthy controls. A total of 289 overlapping genes (consisting of 41 downregulated genes and 248 upregulated genes) were identified. Hub genes were primarily related to erythropoiesis. And the KEGG (Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes) analysis of overlapping DEGs were mainly involved in malaria and non-small cell lung cancer. Besides, DEGs in main module were involved in ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis. Our study suggests that the erythropoiesis signature indeed exists in sJIA similar to previous reports. And ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis is important in sJIA.

Monitoring ecosystem services in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area based on multi-temporal deep learning.

Assessment of ecosystem service supply and demand, as well as the budgets of ecosystem service supply and demand, is the basis of scientific urban planning. In the 20 years between the proposal and formation of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), the natural ecosystem has been degraded and the ecological balance has been destroyed. In this paper, in order to assess the changes in ecosystem services in the GBA, a deep learning method composed of deep change vector analysis and the ResUnet model is proposed to achieve land use/land cover (LULC) mapping for 2000 and 2020. An index-based non-monetary evaluation method is then employed to quantify the value of the ecosystem services, and the spatial and temporal characteristics of the ecosystem service changes are analyzed. The results reveal that: (1) the proposed deep learning approach that combines deep change vector analysis (CVA) and model fine-tuning is able to achieve rapid and efficient LULC mapping in a large-scale area with multi-temporal image sequences. The overall accuracy of LULC mapping is 86.06% for 2000 and 86.67% for 2020. (2) The impervious surface area of all the cities in the GBA has increased significantly between 2000 and 2020, with an overall increase of 11.95%. (3) The mismatch between supply and demand for ecosystem services in the GBA has intensified, especially for provisioning, regulation, and cultural services. (4) The spatial distribution of the ecosystem service budget changes in the GBA shows aggregation characteristics and spatially positive correlation. These findings will provide important insights for promoting the coordinated development of the regional ecosystems and social economy in the GBA.

A simple and efficient approach toward deep-red to near-infrared-emitting iridium(iii) complexes for organic light-emitting diodes with external quantum efficiencies of over 10.

While the external quantum efficiency (EQE) of iridium(iii) (Ir(iii)) phosphor based near-infrared organic light-emitting diodes (NIR OLEDs) has been limited to 5.7% to date, there is no significant EQE improvement for these types of OLEDs due to the lack of efficient Ir(iii) emitters. Here, a convenient approach within three synthetic steps is developed to afford two novel and efficient deep-red to near-infrared (DR-NIR) emitting phosphors (CNIr and TCNIr), in which a cyano group is added into a commercial red emitter named Ir(piq)2(acac) to significantly stabilize the lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals of the newly designed Ir(iii) complexes. They emit strong DR-NIR phosphorescence emissions at a wavelength of around 700 nm, with relatively high absolute quantum efficiencies of around 45% for their doped films. DR-NIR OLEDs made using CNIr and TCNIr exhibit high-efficiencies, affording peak EQEs of 10.62% and 9.59% with emission peak wavelengths of 690 and 706 nm, respectively. All these devices represent the most efficient Ir(iii)-based DR-NIR OLEDs with a similar color gamut. The simplified synthesis procedure of the DR-NIR-emitting phosphors in conjunction with their excellent performance in OLEDs confirms our efficient strategy to achieve the DR-NIR-emitting Ir(iii) phosphors.

Mirt2 functions in synergy with miR-377 to participate in inflammatory pathophysiology of Sjögren's syndrome.

Background: The interaction of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs)-microRNAs (miRs) exerts crucial functions in mediating inflammatory reaction. It is still unclear whether myocardial infarction associated transcript 2 (Mirt2)-miR-377 mediates the inflammatory pathogenesis in Sjögren's syndrome (SS). Methods: The inflammatory lesion model was established by stimulating salivary gland epithelial cells (SGECs) by interferon gamma (IFN-γ). Mirt2- and/or miR-377-transfected SGECs, as well as their negative controls, were applied to investigate the biological functions in inflammation. Cell viability and apoptosis were examined using commercial kits. Western blot was applied to quantify protein level, and enzyme-linked immuno sorbent assay (ELISA) was used to value the secretion of cytokines. Results: The up-regulation of Mirt2 was observed in IFN-γ-treated SGECs. Mirt2 overexpression restored the expression of miR-377 which was repressed by IFN-γ. However, miR-377 silence abolished the protective effect on cell viability, inhibitory effect on apoptosis and prohibitive role in pro-inflammatory factors. Mirt2 diminished the phosphorylated expression of crucial regulators while miR-377 silence restored the phosphorylation in IFN-γ-treated SGECs. Conclusion: Mirt2 was elevated in IFN-γ-treated SGECs and then up-regulated miR-377 in response to inflammatory lesions. Mechanically, in synergy with miR-377 Mirt2 blocked IFN-γ-evoked activation of NF-κB and JAK/STAT signalling pathway.

[Establishment of human B lymphocyte strain overexpressing Epstein-Barr virus latent membrane protein 1 (LMP1)].

Objective To establish a human B lymphoma cell line which can stably express Epstein-Barr virus latent membrane protein 1 (LMP1). Methods The LMP1 coding gene with EcoRI and BamHI restriction sites was amplified, cloned into pcDNA3.1-EF1a-mcs-3FLAG-CMV-EGFP plasmid, and positive monoclonal competent cells were picked for PCR and sequencing. The recombinant plasmid was transfected into Ramos cells by electroporation, and the cell line stably expressing LMP1 was picked by G418. The expression of LMP1 in Ramos cells was detected by PCR, Western blot analysis and green fluorescent protein Tag. Results PCR and sequencing confirmed that the LMP1 recombinant plasmid was successfully constructed and a stably transfected Ramos cell line was established. Western blot analysis confirmed that LMP1 protein was successfully expressed in this cell line. Conclusion The Ramos cells stably expressing LMP1 have been successfully established.

Ce4+-Based Compounds Capable of Photoluminescence by Charge Transfer Excitation under Near-Ultraviolet-Visible Light.

Ce4+-based charge transfer phosphor is not common and has been reported mainly in Sr2CeO4 with an excitation band peaking at ∼290 nm, mismatching with the near-ultraviolet light emitting diodes. Herein, we report a new series of Ce4+-based compounds Sr4.4Ce2.6REZnO12 (RE = Y, La, and Eu) capable of photoluminescence induced by O2--Ce4+ charge transfer excitation under near-ultraviolet-visible light. The crystal structure of Sr4.4Ce2.6EuZnO12 was determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction. The RE = La and Y samples were confirmed to be iso-structure compounds of the RE = Eu sample by powder X-ray diffraction. By introducing highly covalent Zn2+-O2- bonds into the framework, the Ce4+-O2- bonds are lengthened due to the effect of the Ce4+-O2--Zn2+ stretch. The lengthened Ce4+-O2- bond weakens the repulsion of the electrons between Ce4+ and O2-, thereby lowering the charge transfer energy to the visible light region. Incorporation of Eu3+ into the present compounds realized red emission under near-ultraviolet-visible excitation by the O2--Ce4+ charge transfer followed by energy transfer to Eu3+.

Anomalous Orange Light-Emitting (Sr,Ba)2SiO4:Eu(2+) Phosphors for Warm White LEDs.

Phosphors with sufficient red emission component are necessary for warm white light-emitting diodes. In this work on (Sr,Ba)2(1-x)Eu2xSiO4 phosphors, (Sr,Ba)1.5Eu0.5SiO4 achieved 75% of an internal quantum efficiency under excitation by blue light. Surprisingly, the (Sr,Ba)1.5Eu0.5SiO4 exhibited orange emission, against the well-known traditional green-yellow emission of (Sr,Ba)2SiO4:Eu(2+). Moreover, the concentration quenching of Eu(2+) in (Sr,Ba)2SiO4 was abnormally unobvious. With the help of calculations based on the density functional theory, it was discovered that the distinct local environment of luminescence centers rather than usual explanation such as self-absorption or intensified crystal field splitting, is responsible to the interesting red shifts in excitation and emission spectra. The refinement analysis based on X-ray diffraction revealed that the unequal distribution of Eu(2+) to two crystallographic sites caused low concentration of Eu(2+) at the 9-coordination site, inhibiting the concentration quenching. The (Sr,Ba)1.5Eu0.5SiO4 phosphor has warmer emission than the commercial Y3Al5O12:Ce(3+). This study also promotes research on the effect of site occupancy and the local environment of luminescence centers.

Adult Common Variable Immunodeficiency.

BACKGROUND: Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) is characterized by hypogammaglobulinemia, defective antibody production and recurrent upper and lower respiratory tract infections. The diagnosis in adult patients is often thought to be rare, and thus misdiagnosis often occurs. A limited number of cases of adult-onset CVID have been reported in China, and the features of the syndrome remain unclear. The objective of this study was to describe the main characteristics of CVID, and evaluate the treatment of adult patients who present with CVID. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a retrospective analysis of 8 patients with CVID from different departments in 1 center in China. Patients were diagnosed according to the diagnostic criteria of the European Society for Immunodeficiency Diseases. Demographics, clinical and immunological data from each patient were collected and a statistical analysis was undertaken. RESULTS: The mean age at diagnosis was 43 ± 13.7 years, whereas the mean duration of diagnostic delay was 10.5 years. The median total serum levels of immunoglobulin (Ig) G, IgA and IgM at diagnosis were 2.5 ± 0.59, 0.23 ± 0.05 and 0.17 ± 0.05g/L, respectively. A total of 7 patients also had a low CD4(+)/CD8(+) ratio. All patients presented with recurrent respiratory infections. Regular infusions of intravenous immunoglobulin every 3 weeks substantially reduced pneumonic episodes. CONCLUSIONS: Diagnosis is often delayed in adult CVID. Pulmonary infections and diseases were the most frequent presentations at onset of the disease. Regular intravenous immunoglobulin infusions were beneficial in controlling recurrent infections.

Studies of terbium bridge: saturation phenomenon, significance of sensitizer and mechanisms of energy transfer, and luminescence quenching.

Terbium chain in the form of S → (Tb(3+))n → A (S = Ce(3+) or Eu(2+), A = Eu(3+)), as a promising energy transfer (ET) approach, has been proposed to enhance Eu(3+) emission for solid-state lighting. However, the viewpoint of ET from S to A via the terbium chain (Tb(3+)-Tb(3+)-Tb(3+)-...) is very doubtful. Here, hosts of Ba3Ln(PO4)3, LnPO4, LnBO3, and Na2Ln2B2O7 doped with Ce(3+) → (Tb(3+))n → Eu(3+) or (Tb(3+))n → Eu(3+) are synthesized to prove the universality of S → (Tb(3+))n → A in inorganic hosts and to study the unsolved issues. Saturation distance of Tb(3+)-Eu(3+), estimated with the empirical data of different hosts, is proposed to be a criterion for determining whether a spectral chromaticity coordinate keeps constant. A branch model is put forward to replace the chain model to explain the role of (Tb(3+))n in ET from Ce(3+) to Eu(3+) and the necessity of high content of Tb(3+); the term "terbium bridge" is used to replace "terbium chain", and the value of n is determined to be two or three. The intensity quenching of Eu(3+) emission is attributed to the surface defects ascribed to the smaller particles and larger specific surface area rather than the concentration quenching of Tb(3+). Based on the saturation distance and the mechanism of luminescence quenching, the necessary concentration of Tb(3+) for (Tb(3+))n can be estimated as long as the cell parameters are already known and the luminescent efficiency of Eu(3+) can be further improved by optimizing the synthesis method to decrease the quantity of surface defects.

A novel narrow-line red emitting Na2Y2B2O7:Ce(3+),Tb(3+),Eu(3+) phosphor with high efficiency activated by terbium chain for near-UV white LEDs.

The application of white LEDs is hindered by the low efficiency of commercial red phosphors. Here, a novel narrow-line red phosphor is produced by a terbium chain in the form of Ce(3+)-(Tb(3+))n-Eu(3+) in the Na2Y2B2O7 host and is characterized with X-ray diffraction, photoluminescence (PL), PL excitation (PLE), and fluorescence lifetime, and the energy transfer (ET) processes between rare-earth ions in the host are discussed. The formation of terbium chain with a quite low content of Tb(3+) in Na2Y2B2O7 is realized by the ET processes of Ce(3+)-Tb(3+) and Tb(3+)-Eu(3+), and a new concept of saturation distance is put forward as an explanation for the first time. An energy level diagram is proposed to explain the ET processes in the phosphor of Na2Y2B2O7:Ce(3+),Tb(3+),Eu(3+). The emitting colour of the phosphor can be tuned from blue to green or yellow and finally to the orange-red region with increasing the content of Tb(3+). The quantum efficiency of the phosphor with an optimized ratio of rare-earth ions, Na2Y2B2O7:0.5% Ce(3+),60% Tb(3+),0.5% Eu(3+), is up to 77% under the excitation of 365 nm, which indicates that the as-synthesized phosphor is applicable to near-UV white LEDs.

Aquareovirus protein VP6 colocalizes with NS80 protein in infected and transfected cells.

BACKGROUND: Aquareovirus particle is comprised of central core and outer capsid, which is built by seven structural proteins (VP1-VP7). The protein VP6 has been identified to be a clamp protein of stabilizing inner core frame VP3, and bridging outer shell protein VP5. However, the biological properties of VP6 in viral life cycle remain unknown. RESULTS: The recombinant VP6 (rVP6) of aquareovirus was expressed in E. coli, and the polyclonal antibody against VP6 was generated by using purified rVP6 in this study. Following the preparation of VP6 antibody, the VP6 component in aquareovirus infected cells and purified viral particles was detected by Immunoblotting (IB) assay. Furthermore, using Immunofluorescence (IF) microscopy, singly transfected VP6 protein was observed to exhibit a diffuse distribution mainly in the cytoplasm, while it appeared inclusion phenotype in infected cells. Meanwhile, inclusion structures were also identified when VP6 was coexpressed with nonstructural protein NS80 in cotransfected cells. CONCLUSIONS: VP6 can be recruited by NS80 to its inclusions in both infected and transfected cells. The colocalization of VP6 and NS80 is corresponding to their homologous proteins σ2 and µNS in MRV. Our results suggest that VP6 may play a significant role in viral replication and particle assembly.