COVID-19 in Hemodialysis Patients: A Report of 5 Cases.

In December 2019, an outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) due to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) began in China and spread rapidly worldwide. It is unknown whether hemodialysis patients represent a distinct group of patients with certain characteristics that may make them susceptible to infection or severe disease. In this case report, we describe the clinical and epidemiologic features of COVID-19 infection in 201 maintenance hemodialysis patients in Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, including 5 maintenance hemodialysis patients who contracted COVID-19 infection. Of the 5 patients with COVID-19 infection, one had a definite history of contact with an infected person. The age range of the patients was 47 to 67 years. Diarrhea (80%), fever (60%), and fatigue (60%) were the most common symptoms. Lymphopenia occurred in all patients. Computed tomography of the chest showed ground glass opacity in the lungs of all patients. Up to February 13, 2020, none of the patients had developed severe complications (acute respiratory distress syndrome, shock, or multiple organ dysfunction) or died.

Periostin deficiency reduces PD-1+ tumor-associated macrophage infiltration and enhances anti-PD-1 efficacy in colorectal cancer.

Periostin, a multifunctional extracellular protein, plays an important role in inflammatory disorders and tumorigenesis. Our previous work has demonstrated that periostin deficiency inhibits colorectal cancer (CRC) progression. Here, we aim to clarify the role of periostin in the immune microenvironment of CRC. We find that periostin deficiency significantly decreases the infiltration of programmed death receptor 1 (PD-1)+ tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) in CRC tissues. Periostin promotes the expression of PD-1 on TAMs by integrin-ILK-nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) signaling, and PD-1+ TAMs produce interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interferon γ (IFN-γ) to induce the expression of PD-L1 on colorectal tumor cells. Moreover, combined inhibition of periostin and PD-1 significantly suppresses CRC progression compared with the inhibition of periostin or PD-1 alone. In summary, our results suggest that periostin deficiency reduces the infiltration of PD-1+ TAMs and enhances the efficacy of anti-PD-1 treatment in CRC.

Targeting chemokines for acute lymphoblastic leukemia therapy.

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a hematological malignancy characterized by the malignant clonal expansion of lymphoid hematopoietic precursors. It is regulated by various signaling molecules such as cytokines and adhesion molecules in its microenvironment. Chemokines are chemotactic cytokines that regulate migration, positioning and interactions of cells. Many chemokine axes such as CXCL12/CXCR4 and CCL25/CCR9 have been proved to play important roles in leukemia microenvironment and further affect ALL outcomes. In this review, we summarize the chemokines that are involved in ALL progression and elaborate on their roles and mechanisms in leukemia cell proliferation, infiltration, drug resistance and disease relapse. We also discuss the potential of targeting chemokine axes for ALL treatments, since many related inhibitors have shown promising efficacy in preclinical trials, and some of them have entered clinical trials.

Immune dysregulation and system pathology in COVID-19.

The coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) caused by the novel coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2 has caused a global public health crisis. As of 7 January 2021, 87,640,402 confirmed cases and 1,891,692 mortalities have been reported worldwide. Studies focusing on the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of COVID-19 patients have suggested a dysregulated immune response characterized by lymphopenia and cytokine storm in these patients. The exaggerated immune response induced by the cytokine storm causes septic shock, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and/or multiple organs failure, which increases the fatality rate of patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Herein, we review the recent research progress on epidemiology, clinical features, and system pathology in COVID-19. Moreover, we summarized the recent therapeutic strategies, which are either approved, under clinical trial, and/or under investigation by the local or global health authorities. We assume that treatments should focus on the use of antiviral drugs in combination with immunomodulators as well as treatment of the underlying comorbidities.

Recent Progress on Circular RNA Research in Acute Myeloid Leukemia.

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a myeloid malignancy characterized by the proliferation of abnormal and immature myeloid blasts in the bone marrow. Circular RNA (circRNA) is a novel class of long non-coding RNA with a stable circular conformation that regulates various biological processes. The aberrant expression of circRNA and its impact on AML progression has been reported by a number of studies. Despite recent advances in circRNA research, our understanding of the leukemogenic mechanism of circRNA remains very limited, and translating the current circRNA-related research into clinical practice is challenging. This review provides an update on the functional roles of and research progress on circRNAs in AML with an emphasis on mechanistic insights. The challenges and opportunities associated with circRNA-based diagonostic and therapeutic development in AML are also outlined.

Isolation and Abiotic Stress Resistance Analyses of a Catalase Gene from Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.

As an indicator of the antioxidant capability of plants, catalase can detoxify reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated by environmental stresses. Sweet potato is one of the top six most important crops in the world. However, its catalases remain largely unknown. In this study, a catalase encoding gene, IbCAT2 (accession number: KY615708), was identified and cloned from sweet potato cv. Xushu 18. It contained a 1479 nucleotides' open reading frame (ORF). S-R-L, Q-K-L, and a putative calmodulin binding domain were located at the C-terminus of IbCAT2, which suggests that IbCAT2 could be a peroxisomal catalase. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) based quantitative analyses showed that IbCAT2 was mainly expressed in young leaves and expanding tuberous roots under normal conditions. When exposed to 10% PEG6000 or 200 mmol/L NaCl solutions, IbCAT2 was upregulated rapidly in the first 11 days and then downregulated, although different tissues showed different degree of change. Overexpression of IbCAT2 conferred salt and drought tolerance in Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The positive response of IbCAT2 to abiotic stresses suggested that IbCAT2 might play an important role in stress responses.