Impact on sulfadiazine bio-accessibility in soils through organic diffusive gradients in thin films (o-DGT): Differentiation based on microplastic polymers, aging, and soil properties.

Due to the similar sources of swage irrigation, organic fertilizer, and sludge application, microplastics (MPs) and antibiotics coexist inevitably in the agriculture soils. However, the impacts of MPs with different polymer types and aging status on the bio-accessibility of co-existing antibiotics in soils remained unclear. Therefore, we using the diffusive gradients films for organic compounds devices (o-DGT) to evaluated the distribution of sulfadiazine (SDZ) in both paddy soil and saline soil amended with 0.5 % (w/w) MPs. Four polymer types (polyethylene: PE, polypropylene: PP, polyamide: PA, and polyethylene terephthalate: PET) and two aging statuses (aged PE and aged PP) of MPs were used in this study. Results showed that soil properties significantly influence the partition of SDZ in soil and soil solution, and SDZ gained a lower degradation rate but higher mobility in saline soil. MPs pose different impacts on partition of SDZ between paddy soil and saline soil. Notably, PP reduced the labile solid phase-solution phase partition coefficient (Kdl) by 17.7 % in paddy soil, while PE, PP, and aPE increased the Kdl value by 2.00, 1.62, and 2.81 times in saline soil. Besides, in saline soil, all the MPs reduced the SDZ concentration in the soil solution, while significantly increased the SDZ in o-DGT phase. Conversely, MPs did not impact the SDZ's o-DGT concentration in paddy soil. Additionally, MPs increased the R value of SDZ in two soils, especially in saline soil. It suggested that MPs could potentially enhance the resupply of SDZ from soil to plants, particularly under saline conditions. Furthermore, aged MPs had a more pronounced effect on these indicators compared to virgin MPs in saline soil. Therefore, MPs in soil poses a potential risk for biota's uptake of SDZ, particularly in fragile environment. Moreover, the risk intensifies with aged MPs.

High spatiotemporal mapping of cortical blood flow velocity with an enhanced accuracy.

Cerebral blood flow velocity is one of the most essential parameters related to brain functions and diseases. However, most existing mapping methods suffer from either inaccuracy or lengthy sampling time. In this study, we propose a particle-size-related calibration method to improve the measurement accuracy and a random-access strategy to suppress the sampling time. Based on the proposed methods, we study the long-term progress of cortical vasculopathy and abnormal blood flow caused by glioma, short-term variations of blood flow velocity under different anesthetic depths, and cortex-wide connectivity of the rapid fluctuation of blood flow velocities during seizure onset. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed calibration method and the random-access strategy can improve both the qualitative and quantitative performance of velocimetry techniques and are also beneficial for understanding brain functions and diseases from the perspective of cerebral blood flow.

High resolution intravital photoacoustic microscopy reveals VEGF-induced bone regeneration in mouse tibia.

Osteogenesis and angiogenesis are essential for bone homeostasis and repair. Newly formed vessels convey osteogenic progenitors during bone regeneration. However, the lack of continuous and label-free visualization of the bone microvasculature has resulted in little understanding of the neovascular dynamics. Here, we take advantage of optical-resolution photoacoustic microscopy (ORPAM) for label-free, intravital, long-term observation of the bone vascular dynamics, including angiogenesis, remodeling and quantified angiogenic effect of locally-applied vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the murine tibial defect model. We employed ex vivo confocal microscopy and micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) imaging to verify the positive role of VEGF treatment. VEGF treatment increased the concentration of total hemoglobin, vascular branching, and vascular density, which correlated with more osteoprogenitors and increased bone formation within the defect. These data demonstrated ORPAM as a useful imaging tool that detected functional capillaries to understand hemodynamics, and revealed the effectiveness of locally delivered therapeutic agents with sufficient sensitivity, contributing to the understanding of spatiotemporal regulatory mechanisms on blood vessels during bone regeneration.

Immunological risk factors for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in patients with psoriatic arthritis: New predictive nomograms and natural killer cells.

Objective: To search for the immunological risk factors of Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) combined with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), development and assessment of predictive nomograms for NAFLD risk in patients with PsA, and to further explore the correlation between risk factors and dyslipidemia. Methds: A total of 127 patients with PsA (46 with NAFLD and 81 without NAFLD) were included in this retrospective study. The clinical and serological parameters of the patients were collected. The percentage and the absolute number of lymphocytes and CD4+T cells were determined by Flow cytometry. Univariate and multivariate binary logistic regression analysis was used to screen independent risk factors of PsA complicated with NAFLD in the model population, and a nomogram prediction model was developed and assessed. Results: (1) Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis of the modeling population showed that the percentage of peripheral blood T helper 1 cells (Th1%) (OR=1.12, P=0.001), body mass index (BMI) (OR=1.22, P=0.005) and triglycerides (TG) (OR=4.78, P=0.003) were independent risk factors for NAFLD in patients with PsA, which were incorporated and established a nomogram prediction model. The model has good discrimination and calibration, and also has certain clinical application value. (2) The number of peripheral blood NK cells in PsA patients was significantly positively correlated with serum triglyceride (TG) (r=0.489, P<0.001), cholesterol (CHOL) (r=0.314, P=0.003) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) (r=0.362, P=0.001) levels. Conclusions: Our study shows that the novel NAFLD nomogram could assess the risk of NAFLD in PsA patients with good efficiency. In addition, peripheral blood NK cell levels may be associated with dyslipidemia in patients with PsA.

Application value of blood metagenomic next-generation sequencing in patients with connective tissue diseases.

Objective: This study aimed to analyze the application value of blood metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) in patients with connective tissue diseases (CTDs) to provide a reference for infection diagnosis and guidance for treatment. Methods: A total of 126 CTD patients with suspected infections who were hospitalized in the Department of Rheumatology, the Second Hospital of Shanxi Medical University from January 2020 to December 2021 were enrolled in this study. We retrospectively reviewed the results of mNGS and conventional diagnostic tests (CDTs). Results: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and polymyositis/dermatomyositis (DM/PM) had the highest incidence of infections. The positive pathogen detection rates of mNGS were higher than those of CDT. The virus infections are the most common type in CTD patients with single or mixed infection, especially Human gammaherpesvirus 4 (EBV), Human betaherpesvirus 5 (CMV), and Human alphaherpesvirus 1. The incidence of prokaryote and eukaryote infections is secondary to viruses. Bloodstream infections of rare pathogens such as Pneumocystis jirovecii should be of concern. Meanwhile, the most common mixed infection was bacterial-virus coinfection. Conclusion: mNGS has incremental application value in patients with CTD suspected of co-infection. It has a high sensitivity, and a wide detection range for microorganisms in CTD patients. Furthermore, the high incidence of opportunistic virus infections in CTD patients should be of sufficient concern.

Altered Distribution of Circulating T Follicular Helper-Like Cell Subsets in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients.

Objective: Recent studies on follicular regulatory T (Tfr) and follicular helper T (Tfh) cells suggest that they may participate in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Here, we examine Tfr-like and Tfh-like cells and their subsets in RA and assess the correlations between these subsets with B cells and cytokines related to the pathogenesis of RA and their clinical significance. Methods: The study population consisted of 18 healthy controls and 47 RA patients (17 new onset, 57.00 ± 11.73 years; 30 treated RA patients, 57.56 ± 1.97 years). Disease activity scores in 28 joints were calculated. The positive rates of rheumatoid factor (RF) and anticyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies (anti-CCP) were 82.9 and 89.4%, respectively. Cell subsets were analyzed using flow cytometry, and serum cytokine levels were measured using cytometric bead array. Results: Tfh-like and PD-1+ Tfh-like cells were elevated, and the distribution of Tfh-like cell subsets was altered with increased Tfh17-like and Tfh1/17-like cells in RA patients. The receiver operating characteristics curves for Tfh-like, Tfh17-like, Tfh1/17-like, and PD-1+ Tfh-like cells indicate improved RA diagnostic potential. RA patients had decreased regulatory T (Treg), Tfr-like, and memory Tfr-like (mTfr-like) cells and increased Tfh-like/Treg, Tfh-like/Tfr-like, and Tfh-like/mTfr-like cell ratios. Tfh-like cells and their subsets, including Tfh1-like, Tfh2-like, Tfh1/17-like, and PD-1+ Tfh-like cells, were positively correlated with B cells. Tfh-like/Treg, Tfh-like/Tfr-like, and Tfh-like/mTfr-like cell ratios were positively correlated with B cells in new-onset RA. Interleukin (IL)-2, IL-4, IL-17, interferon-γ, and tumor necrosis factor-α were positively correlated with Tfr-like and mTfr-like cells. IL-2 and IL-10 were positively correlated with Tfh-like and Tfh2-like cells. IL-4 was positively correlated with Tfh-like cells. Conclusions: Tfh-like and PD-1+ Tfh-like cells are increased, whereas Treg, Tfr-like, and mTfr-like cells are decreased in RA, leading to an imbalance in Tfh-like/Treg, Tfh-like/Tfr-like, and Tfh-like/mTfr-like cell ratios. Tfh-like cells and a portion of their subsets as well as Tfh-like/Treg, Tfh-like/Tfr-like, and Tfh-like/mTfr-like cell ratios are closely related to B cells. Dysfunction of cell subsets leads to abnormal levels of cytokines involved in the pathogenesis of RA. The altered distributions of Tfh-like cell subsets, especially Tfh1/17-like cells, represent potential therapeutic targets for treatment of RA.