Mechanism of the Anti-Influenza Functions of Guizhi Granules Based on Network Pharmacology, Molecular Docking, and in Vitro Experiments.

Guizhi granules mainly treat colds and improve overall health. They are widely used in clinical practice, but their protective effect and anti-inflammatory mechanism against influenza are unclear. In this study, the therapeutic effect of Guizhi granules on influenza was verified in vitro. The active compounds, targets, and cellular pathways of Guizhi granules against influenza were predicted using network pharmacology. The protein-protein interaction and component-target networks identified 5 core targets (JUN, TNF-α, RELA, AKT1, and MAPK1) and components (dihydrocapsaicin, kumatakenin, calycosin, licochalcone A, and berberine). GO and KEGG enrichment analyses revealed the anti-influenza pathways of Guizhi granules as antiviral and anti-inflammatory pathways. Molecular docking further verified that the core targets and components have good or strong binding activity. Therefore, the active ingredients, targets, and molecular mechanisms of Guizhi granules involved in influenza treatment were elucidated.

Incidence, clinical features and risk factors of tacrolimus induced idiosyncratic liver injury in renal transplant recipients: A nested case-control study.

Rare data reported tacrolimus-induced liver injury (tac-DILI) in real world. We performed a nested case-control analysis of 1,010 renal transplant recipients. Recipients with tac-DILI were randomly matched at a ratio of 1:4 by the year of admission to the remaining recipients without tac-DILI to explore risk factors. The incidence of tac-DILI was 8.9% (95% CI = 7.2-10.7%). The most common type was cholestatic pattern (6.7%, 95% CI = 5.2-8.3%), followed by hepatocellular (1.6%, 95% CI = 0.8-2.4%) and mixed patterns (0.6%, 95% CI = 0.1-1.1%). 98.9% of recipients with tac-DILI have mild severity. The latency period were 42.0 (range, 21.5-99.8 days), 14.0 (range, 9.0-80.3 days), 16.0 (range, 11.5-24.5 days), and 49.0 days (range, 28.0-105.6 days) for total, hepatocellular, mixed, and cholestatic patterns, respectively. Baseline ALP level (OR = 1.015, 95% CI = 1.006-1.025, p = 0.002), age (OR = 0.971, 95% CI = 0.949-0.994, p = 0.006), and body weight (OR = 0.960, 95% CI = 0.940-0.982, p < 0.001) were independent risk factors. In conclusion, cholestatic pattern represents the most frequent type of tac-DILI. Young age, low body weight and abnormal baseline ALP level were risk factors.

Infectious Disease Diagnosis and Pathogen Identification Platform Based on Multiplex Recombinase Polymerase Amplification-Assisted CRISPR-Cas12a System.

Controlling and mitigating infectious diseases caused by multiple pathogens or pathogens with several subtypes require multiplex nucleic acid detection platforms that can detect several target genes rapidly, specifically, sensitively, and simultaneously. Here, we develop a detection platform, termed Multiplex Assay of RPA and Collateral Effect of Cas12a-based System (MARPLES), based on multiplex nucleic acid amplification and Cas12a ssDNase activation to diagnose these diseases and identify their pathogens. We use the clinical specimens of hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) and influenza A to evaluate the feasibility of MARPLES in diagnosing the disease and identifying the pathogen, respectively, and find that MARPLES can accurately diagnose the HFMD associated with enterovirus 71, coxsackievirus A16 (CVA16), CVA6, or CVA10 and identify the exact types of H1N1 and H3N2 in an hour, showing high sensitivity and specificity and 100% predictive agreement with qRT-PCR. Collectively, our findings demonstrate that MARPLES is a promising multiplex nucleic acid detection platform for disease diagnosis and pathogen identification.

Emerging Roles and Mechanism of m6A Methylation in Cardiometabolic Diseases.

Cardiometabolic diseases (CMDs) are currently the leading cause of death and disability worldwide, and their underlying regulatory mechanisms remain largely unknown. N6-methyladenosine (m6A) methylation, the most common and abundant epigenetic modification of eukaryotic mRNA, is regulated by m6A methyltransferase, demethylase, and the m6A binding protein, which affect the transcription, cleavage, translation, and degradation of target mRNA. m6A methylation plays a vital role in the physiological and pathological processes of CMDs. In this review, we summarize the role played by m6A methylation in CMDs, including obesity, hypertension, pulmonary hypertension, ischemic heart disease, myocardial hypertrophy, heart failure, and atherosclerosis. We also describe mechanisms that potentially involve the participation of m6A methylation, such as those driving calcium homeostasis, circadian rhythm, lipid metabolism, autophagy, macrophage response, and inflammation. m6A methylation and its regulators are expected to be targets for the treatment of CMDs.

Intermittent Fasting Improves High-Fat Diet-Induced Obesity Cardiomyopathy via Alleviating Lipid Deposition and Apoptosis and Decreasing m6A Methylation in the Heart.

Intermittent fasting (IF) plays an essential role in improving lipid metabolism disorders caused by metabolic cardiomyopathy. Growing evidence revealed that N6-methyladenosine (m6A) RNA methylation is related to obesity and lipid metabolic. Our study aimed to assess the beneficial effects of IF on lipid deposition, apoptosis, and m6A methylation in high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity cardiomyopathy. Male C57BL/6J mice were fed a normal diet (ND) or HFD ad libitum for 13 weeks, after which time a subgroup of HFD mice were subjected to IF for 24 h and fed HFD in the other day for 8 weeks. We found that IF intervention significantly improved cardiac functional and structural impairment and serum lipid metabolic disorder induced by HFD. Furthermore, IF intervention decreased the mRNA levels of the fatty acid uptake genes of FABP1, FATP1, and CD36 and the fatty acid synthesis genes of SREBF1, FAS, and ACCα and increased the mRNA levels of the fatty acid catabolism genes of ATGL, HSL, LAL, and LPL in cardiac tissueof HFD-induced obese mice. TUNEL-positive cells, Bax/Bcl-2 ratio, and Cleaved Caspase-3 protein expression in HFD-induced obese mice hearts was down-regulated by IF intervention. In addition, IF intervention decreased the m6A methylation levels and METTL3 expression and increased FTO expression in HFD-induced obesity cardiomyopathy. In conclusion, our findings demonstrate that IF attenuated cardiac lipid deposition and apoptosis, as well as improved cardiac functional and structural impairment in HFD-induced obesity cardiomyopathy, by a mechanism associated with decreased m6A RNA methylation levels.

Effects of Moderate-Intensity Continuous Training and High-Intensity Interval Training on Testicular Oxidative Stress, Apoptosis and m6A Methylation in Obese Male Mice.

Exercise is an effective way to improve reproductive function in obese males. Oxidative stress and apoptosis are important pathological factors of obesity-related male infertility. Accumulating studies have demonstrated that N6-methyladenosine (m6A) methylation is associated with obesity and testicular reproductive function. Our study aimed to investigate and compare the effect of 8 weeks of moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT) and high-intensity interval training (HIIT) on testicular oxidative stress, apoptosis and m6A methylation in obese male mice. Male C57BL/6 mice were randomly allocated into the four groups: normal diet (ND) group, high-fat diet (HFD) group, high-fat diet with moderate-intensity continuous training (HFD-MICT) group and high-fat diet with high-intensity interval training (HFD-HIIT) group. Mice in the HFD-MICT and HFD-HIIT groups were subjected to 8 weeks of MICT or HIIT treadmill protocols after 12 weeks of HFD feeding. We found that MICT and HIIT increased the protein expression of Nrf2, HO-1 and NQO-1 in the testes of obese mice, and HIIT increased it more than MICT. The Bax/Bcl-2 ratio, Cleaved Caspase-3 protein expression and TUNEL-positive cells were consistently up-regulated in the testes of obese mice, but MICT and HIIT restrained these HFD-induced effects. In addition, HFDs increased m6A levels and the gene expression of METTL3, YTHDF2 and FTO in the testes, but these effects were reversed by MICT and HIIT. However, HIIT was more effective than MICT in reducing m6A methylation in the testes of obese mice. These results demonstrate that both MICT and HIIT protected against HFD-induced oxidative stress, apoptosis and m6A methylation in testicular tissues; as a result, testicular morphological and functional impairment improved. In particular, HIIT was more beneficial than MICT in increasing the mRNA expression of steroidogenic enzymes and testicular antioxidant capacity and decreasing m6A methylation in the testes of HFD-fed mice.

Revalidation and redescription of Brachymystax tsinlingensis Li, 1966 (Salmoniformes: Salmonidae) from China.

Brachymystax tsinlingensis Li, 1966 is revalidated and redescribed. It can be distinguished from all congeners by the following combination of characteristics: no spots on operculum; gill rakers 15-20; lateral-line scales 98-116; pyloric caeca 60-71. Unique morphological characters and genetic divergence of this species are discussed. This species has a limited distribution in several streams of the middle part of the Qinling Mountains in China. Methods for management and protection of B. tsinlingensis need to be re-evaluated.