TAS-Seq is a robust and sensitive amplification method for bead-based scRNA-seq.

Single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) is valuable for analyzing cellular heterogeneity. Cell composition accuracy is critical for analyzing cell-cell interaction networks from scRNA-seq data. However, droplet- and plate-based scRNA-seq techniques have cell sampling bias that could affect the cell composition of scRNA-seq datasets. Here we developed terminator-assisted solid-phase cDNA amplification and sequencing (TAS-Seq) for scRNA-seq based on a terminator, terminal transferase, and nanowell/bead-based scRNA-seq platform. TAS-Seq showed high tolerance to variations in the terminal transferase reaction, which complicate the handling of existing terminal transferase-based scRNA-seq methods. In murine and human lung samples, TAS-Seq yielded scRNA-seq data that were highly correlated with flow-cytometric data, showing higher gene-detection sensitivity and more robust detection of important cell-cell interactions and expression of growth factors/interleukins in cell subsets than 10X Chromium v2 and Smart-seq2. Expanding TAS-Seq application will improve understanding and atlas construction of lung biology at the single-cell level.

Persimmon-derived tannin ameliorates the pathogenesis of ulcerative colitis in a murine model through inhibition of the inflammatory response and alteration of microbiota.

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) induced by dysregulation of the immune response in the intestinal mucosa. Although the underlying mechanisms of UC development are not fully understood, disruption of gut microbiota, "dysbiosis", is thought to lead to the development of IBD. Persimmon (Ebenaceae Diospyros kaki Thunb.)-derived tannin, which is a condensed polymeric tannin consisting of catechin groups, has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial activities. In this study, we assessed the effect of persimmon-derived tannin on a murine model of UC established by dextran sulfate sodium-induced colitis in female mice. Dietary supplementation of tannin significantly decreased disease activity and colon inflammation. A hydrolysate of tannin directly suppressed expression of inflammatory genes in macrophages in vitro. In faecal microbiota, the relative abundance of Bacteroides was increased significantly by tannin supplementation. Alpha-diversity indices in colitis-induced mice were significantly higher in the tannin diet group compared with the control diet group. Additionally, expansion of Enterobacteriaceae and Enterococcus, which is associated with disease progression of IBD, was remarkably suppressed in the tannin diet group. These results suggest that persimmon-derived tannin ameliorates colon inflammation in UC through alteration of the microbiota composition and immune response, which may be a promising candidate for IBD therapy.

Maternal supplementation with Bifidobacterium breve M-16V prevents their offspring from allergic airway inflammation accelerated by the prenatal exposure to an air pollutant aerosol.

Bifidobacterium breve M-16V is a probiotic bacterial strain with efficacy in infants achieved by suppressing T-helper type (Th) 2 immune responses and modulating the systemic Th1/Th2 balance. Exposure to air pollution during pregnancy increases asthma susceptibility in offspring. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the maternal intake of B. breve M-16V on susceptibility to asthma accelerated by prenatal exposure to air pollution. The intake of B. breve M-16V in residual oil fly ash (ROFA)-exposed pregnant mice resulted in fewer eosinophils in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid of neonatal mice and reduced allergic lung inflammation. The expressions of Th2 cytokines including IL-5 and IL-13 were decreased in neonatal mice from ROFA-exposed mothers fed B. breve M-16V. The analysis of fecal microbiota from neonatal mice revealed that the intake of B. breve M-16V by mothers changed the composition of fecal microbiota in neonatal mice, which resulted in a decreased population of Firmicutes. Moreover, several bacterial strains of fecal microbiota from neonatal mice had a strong correlation with Th2 cytokines and histological score. These results suggest that the maternal intake of M-16V might have beneficial effects in neonates by preventing and/or alleviating allergic reactions accelerated by prenatal exposure to air pollution.

Epidemiological survey from 2009 to 2012 of psoriatic patients in Japanese Society for Psoriasis Research.

Since 1982, the Japanese Society for Psoriasis Research has conducted annual epidemiological surveys of patients with psoriasis. Kawada et al. have reported data for 1982-2001 and Takahashi et al. have reported data for 2002-2008. The present study evaluated 9290 psoriatic cases according to age and sex (2009-2012). The male : female ratio was 2.08:1 (6281 male patients [67.6%] to 3009 female patients [32.4%]). The most prevalent type was psoriasis vulgaris (85.6% of all cases), which was followed by psoriasis arthropathica (6.0%), psoriasis guttate acuta (3.2%), Zumbusch-type generalized pustular psoriasis (1.8%) and psoriasis erythroderma (1.5%). Psoriasis vulgaris was the most prevalent type for all ages, while psoriasis arthropathica and psoriasis guttate acuta were most prevalent among patients aged less than 65 years. The present survey detected an increased number of cases with comorbid diabetes and/or arthritis symptoms compared with the previous surveys. We found that treatments frequently involved topical corticosteroids (89.7% of cases) and vitamin D3 ointments (78.0% of cases), with a notable increase in the use of vitamin D3 ointments. Systemic treatments were used in 33.3% of cases, including cyclosporin (33.6%), etretinate (19.5%), methotrexate (8.6%), infliximab (11.4%), adalimumab (10.9%) and ustekinumab (6.2%). Phototherapy was used in 30.9% of cases. Although psoralen plus ultraviolet A therapy was the predominant phototherapy during previous studies, the present survey revealed that narrowband ultraviolet B therapy was used in 84.5% of phototherapy-treated cases. Thus, the present survey revealed major changes in treatment trends.

Antioxidant potential in non-extractable fractions of dried persimmon (Diospyros kaki Thunb.).

Dried fruits of persimmon (Diospyros kaki Thunb.) are a traditional food in Japan and contain large quantities of tannins. In this study, we investigated the in vitro and in vivo antioxidant potentials of non-extractable fractions from dried persimmons. Hydrolysed non-extractable fractions showed the highest antioxidant activities in vitro. In subsequent experiments, the plasma oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) values in rats supplemented with a 5% non-extractable fraction were approximately 1.5times higher than those in control rats after 1week in vivo. Furthermore, using an in vitro model of the gastrointestinal tract, the ORAC values of the non-extractable fraction were significantly increased with colonic fermentation in the large bowel stage. These data indicate that non-extractable fractions may possess significant antioxidant potential in vitro and in vivo.

[Effects of prenatal yoga: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials].

OBJECTIVES: While several studies on the preventive and therapeutic effects of prenatal yoga (maternity yoga) have been reported in recent years, there has been no systematic review on the effects of prenatal yoga based on randomized controlled trials (RCT). The purpose of this study, therefore, was to systematically review the literature to clarify the effects of prenatal yoga in RCT focusing on the contents of the intervention, the intervention means, and the frequency of practice. METHODS: The literature search was performed using the electronic database, PubMed. The inclusion criteria were RCT, pregnant women, and yoga intervention. RESULTS: In total, 54 citations were found; of these, eight studies (10 reports) were included in the final analysis. In four studies on healthy pregnant women, significant improvement in pain and pleasure at delivery, duration of delivery, perceived stress levels during pregnancy, anxiety levels, depression, pregnancy-related experiences, quality of life, and interpersonal relationships were compared to those in the control group. In two studies on depressed pregnant women, one reported that depression, anxiety levels, anger levels, leg pain, and back pain significantly improved with yoga, while the other found no differences from the control group. In one study of high-risk pregnant women with morbidity factors such as obesity or advanced age, yoga resulted in significantly fewer cases of pregnancy-induced hypertension, gestational diabetes, and intrauterine growth restriction, as well as a decrease in perceived stress levels. In one study on pregnant women with pelvic pain, the median pain score was lower in the yoga group. Regarding the contents of the intervention, while the two studies for depressed pregnant women only included physical postures, the remaining six studies also included breathing technique and meditation. Interventions were performed using lectures by instructors alone or together with self-teaching. The frequency of the intervention varied within each study. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that prenatal yoga may help reduce pelvic pain. It may also improve mental condition (stress, depression, anxiety, etc.), physical condition (pain and pleasure at the delivery, etc.), and perinatal outcomes (obstetrical complications, delivery time, etc.). However, further studies are needed. The contents of the intervention, the intervention means, and the frequency varied with each study. Thus, it is necessary to further examine the content of effective interventions, intervention means, and frequency that suit participant's characteristics and each outcome. Further research in this field, particularly randomized controlled trials, is merited.

Endocrine disruptors (environmental estrogens) enhance autoantibody production by B1 cells.

Accumulating data suggest that endocrine disruptors affect not only the reproductive system, but also the immune system. We demonstrate here that endocrine disruptors including diethylstilbestrol (DES) and bisphenol-A (BPA) enhance autoantibody production by B1 cells both in vitro and in vivo. BWF1 mice, a murine model for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), implanted with Silastic tubes containing DES after orchidectomy developed murine lupus characterized by immunoglobulin G (IgG) anti-DNA antibody production and IgG deposition in the glomeruli in the kidney as well as those implanted with 17beta-estradiol (E2). Plaque-forming cells (PFC) producing autoantibodies specific for bromelain-treated red blood cells were significantly increased in mice implanted with DES and BPA. IgM antibody production by B1 cells in vitro was also enhanced in the presence of endocrine disruptors including DES and BPA. Estrogen receptor (ER) expression was upregulated in B1 cells in aged BWF1 mice that developed lupus nephritis. These results suggest that endocrine disruptors are involved in autoantibody production by B1 cells and may be an etiologic factor in the development of autoimmune diseases.

A homolog of mammalian PRL-releasing peptide (fish arginyl-phenylalanyl-amide peptide) is a major hypothalamic peptide of PRL release in teleost fish.

Two PRL-releasing peptides (PrRP20 and PrRP31) were recently identified from mammalian hypothalamus by an orphan receptor strategy, and a C-terminal RF (arginyl-phenylalamyl-) amide peptide (RFa), structurally related to mammalian PrRP, was also identified from the brain of the Japanese crucian carp (C-RFa) by an intestine-contracting assay. However, to date there have been no reported studies that have examined the PRL-releasing effects of RFa in fish. In the present study we determined the cDNA, primary structure, and function of a homolog of the mammalian PrRP20 in the chum salmon, Oncorhynchus keta. An RFa cDNA encoding a preprohormone of 155 amino acids was cloned from the hypothalamus of chum salmon by 3'- and 5'-rapid amplification of cDNA ends. A native RFa was purified from an acid extract of salmon hypothalami by a Sep-Pak C(18) cartridge, affinity chromatography using anti-synthetic C-RFa, and reverse phase HPLC on an ODS-120T column. The salmon RFa proved to be identical with C-RFa on the basis of elution position on reverse phase HPLC. Immunocytochemical staining in rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, revealed that C-RFa-immunoreactive cell bodies were located in the posterior part of hypothalamus and C-RFa-immunoreactive fibers were abundant from the hypothalamus to the ventral telencephalon. A small number of immunoreactive fibers were projected to the pituitary and terminated close to the PRL cells in the rostral pars distalis and to the somatolactin (SL) cells in the pars intermedia. The hypophysiotropic effects of the fish homolog were determined on the release of PRL, SL, and GH from the pituitary of the rainbow trout. Plasma PRL and SL levels were increased at 3 and 9 h, respectively, after ip injection of the synthetic C-RFa into the rainbow trout at doses of 50 and 500 ng/g body weight. In contrast, plasma GH levels were decreased after 1 h at 500 ng/g body weight. Perifusion of the trout pituitaries with synthetic C-RFa at concentrations of 10 pM to 100 nM demonstrated maximum PRL release at 100 pM and maximum SL release at 10 and 100 nM. However, GH release was not affected. These data are the first to demonstrate that a homolog of mammalian PrRP (fish RFa) is a major hypothalamic peptide of PRL release in teleost fish.