Effects of Zinc Source and Level on the Intestinal Immunity of Xueshan Chickens under Heat Stress.

Heat stress can cause intestinal inflammation, impaired barrier integrity, and decreased immunity in poultry. While zinc is known to mitigate the adverse effects of heat stress, how the dietary supplementation of different sources and levels of it can improve the heat stress capacity of Chinese landraces remains unclear. This study investigated Xueshan chickens, which are an important local breed in China. The effects of different levels of ZnS and Zn-Prot M on their intestinal immune function under heat stress were compared. We found that different levels of ZnS and Zn-Prot M could effectively reduce the secretion level of IL-6 in the serum, and 60 mg/kg was optimal. Compared with ZnS, Zn-Prot M significantly increased duodenal villus height and VH/CD ratio, thus Zn-Prot M was more effective than ZnS. Both ZnS and Zn-Prot M significantly down-regulated TNF-α, IL-1ß, and MyD88 in 102-day-old duodenum, and IL-1ß, IL-6, and NFKBIA in jejunum and ileum at 74, 88, and 102 days old, with 60 mg/kg Zn-Prot M determined as optimal. In conclusion, our study demonstrates that Zn-Prot M is superior to ZnS in improving intestinal immunity in Xueshan chickens, and 60 mg/kg is the optimal addition dose.

Bone mineral density is associated with composite dietary antioxidant index among US adults: results from NHANES.

This cross-sectional study investigated the relationship between composite dietary antioxidant index (CDAI) and individual dietary antioxidant intakes, including vitamins A, C, and E, zinc, selenium, and carotenoids, and bone mineral density (BMD) in the US population aged 20 years older. We found a positive correlation between CDAI and femoral BMD. Moreover, higher intakes of vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, zinc, and carotenoids were associated with higher femoral BMD. INTRODUCTION: While individual dietary antioxidants have shown beneficial effects on bone metabolism, the diverse and potentially interacting nature of dietary components may limit the accuracy of evaluating their impact on bone health. Thus, this study aims to investigate the association between CDAI and BMD. Additionally, we explore the relationship between the intake of individual components of the CDAI and BMD. METHODS: The CDAI is a novel index evaluating total dietary antioxidant intake, considering vitamins A, C, and E, zinc, selenium, and carotenoids. A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using data from participants aged ≥ 20 in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2005-2010, 2013-2014, and 2017-2018). We utilized multivariate linear regression models to examine the relationship between CDAI, individual dietary antioxidants, including vitamins A, C, and E, zinc, selenium, carotenoids, and femoral BMD. RESULTS: The final analysis included 10,584 participants with a mean age of 50.73 ± 16.65 years. After multivariate adjustment, the second to fourth quartiles of CDAI (- 2.00-0.04, 0.04-2.54, and 2.54-70.78) exhibited higher femoral BMD compared to the first quartile of CADI (- 7.34 to - 2.00). Multiple regression analysis revealed that higher intakes of vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, zinc, and carotenoids were associated with higher femoral BMD. CONCLUSIONS: CDAI serves as a comprehensive tool for evaluating the overall antioxidant capacity of antioxidants in diets. Additionally, our study shows a positive correlation between CDAI and BMD, which indicates that the combined intake of dietary antioxidants may help reduce the risk of osteoporosis in adults.

Integrative analysis of TNFRSF6B as a potential therapeutic target for pancreatic cancer.

BACKGROUND: Pancreatic cancer is one of the most lethal malignant tumors worldwide with poor outcomes. Previous studies have shown that tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member 6b (TNFRSF6B) plays an important role in cancer progression and immunosuppression. However, the mechanisms by which TNFRSF6B influence pancreatic cancer, and the regulatory networks involved remain to be further studied. METHODS: This study analyzed the mRNA information and clinical data of patients from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and the ONCOMINE databases. The gene co-expression data regarding TNFRSF6B was obtained from the c-BioPortal and used to explore the functional network of TNFRSF6B in pancreatic cancer, as well as its function in tumor immunity. Short hairpin (sh) RNA knock-down experiments were performed to examine the functional roles of TNFRSF6B in pancreatic cancer cell lines. RESULTS: The expression of TNFRSF6B was elevated in pancreatic cancer tissues compared to normal pancreatic tissues, and its high expression was associated with poor prognosis of patients with pancreatic cancer. TNFRSF6B was found to be widely involved in cell cycle processes, apoptosis, apoptosis signaling pathways, immune responses, and responses to interferon. Knock-down of TNFRSF6B expression inhibited pancreatic cancer cell proliferation and invasion in vitro. Moreover, carcinoembryonic antigen-related cell adhesion molecule 1 (CEACAM1) was found to be co-expressed with TNFRSF6B, and there was a positive correlation between these molecules in pancreatic cancer cells. CONCLUSIONS: This report suggested that TNFRSF6B has a critical role in the progression and metastasis of pancreatic cancer. These findings provide novel insights into the role of TNFRSF6B in the functional network of pancreatic cancer, and suggest that TNFRSF6B may be a potential therapeutic target.