Biological Functions and Potential Therapeutic Significance of O-GlcNAcylation in Hepatic Cellular Stress and Liver Diseases.

O-linked-ß-D-N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) glycosylation (O-GlcNAcylation), which is dynamically regulated by O-GlcNAc transferase (OGT) and O-GlcNAcase (OGA), is a post-translational modification involved in multiple cellular processes. O-GlcNAcylation of proteins can regulate their biological functions via crosstalk with other post-translational modifications, such as phosphorylation, ubiquitination, acetylation, and methylation. Liver diseases are a major cause of death worldwide; yet, key pathological features of the disease, such as inflammation, fibrosis, steatosis, and tumorigenesis, are not fully understood. The dysregulation of O-GlcNAcylation has been shown to be involved in some severe hepatic cellular stress, viral hepatitis, liver fibrosis, nonalcoholic fatty acid liver disease (NAFLD), malignant progression, and drug resistance of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) through multiple molecular signaling pathways. Here, we summarize the emerging link between O-GlcNAcylation and hepatic pathological processes and provide information about the development of therapeutic strategies for liver diseases.

TRIM44 Promotes Rabies Virus Replication by Autophagy-Dependent Mechanism.

Tripartite motif (TRIM) proteins are a multifunctional E3 ubiquitin ligase family that participates in various cellular processes. Recent studies have shown that TRIM proteins play important roles in regulating host-virus interactions through specific pathways, but their involvement in response to rabies virus (RABV) infection remains poorly understood. Here, we identified that several TRIM proteins are upregulated in mouse neuroblastoma cells (NA) after infection with the rabies virus using RNA-seq sequencing. Among them, TRIM44 was found to regulate RABV replication. This is supported by the observations that downregulation of TRIM44 inhibits RABV replication, while overexpression of TRIM44 promotes RABV replication. Mechanistically, TRIM44-induced RABV replication is brought about by activating autophagy, as inhibition of autophagy with 3-MA attenuates TRIM44-induced RABV replication. Additionally, we found that inhibition of autophagy with rapamycin reverses the TRIM44-knockdown-induced decrease in LC3B expression and autophagosome formation as well as RABV replication. The results suggest that TRIM44 promotes RABV replication by an autophagy-dependent mechanism. Our work identifies TRIM44 as a key host factor for RABV replication, and targeting TRIM44 expression may represent an effective therapeutic strategy.

A Comprehensive View on the Protein Functions of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus.

Porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) virus (PEDV) is one of the main pathogens causing diarrhea in piglets and fattening pigs. The clinical signs of PED are vomiting, acute diarrhea, dehydration, and mortality resulting in significant economic losses and becoming a major challenge in the pig industry. PEDV possesses various crucial structural and functional proteins, which play important roles in viral structure, infection, replication, assembly, and release, as well as in escaping host innate immunity. Over the past few years, there has been progress in the study of PEDV pathogenesis, revealing the crucial role of the interaction between PEDV viral proteins and host cytokines in PEDV infection. At present, the main control measure against PEDV is vaccine immunization of sows, but the protective effect for emerging virus strains is still insufficient, and there is no ideal safe and efficient vaccine. Although scientists have persistently delved their research into the intricate structure and functionalities of the PEDV genome and viral proteins for years, the pathogenic mechanism of PEDV remains incompletely elucidated. Here, we focus on reviewing the research progress of PEDV structural and nonstructural proteins to facilitate the understanding of biological processes such as PEDV infection and pathogenesis.

Edaravone for patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The effectiveness and long-term efficacy of edaravone, a recommended treatment for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), has not been examined in real-world settings. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness and long-term efficacy of edaravone. METHODS: The OVID Medline, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), and Web of Science databases were searched for articles published between January 1, 2000, and May 1, 2023. Two investigators independently screened the retrieved articles for randomized controlled trials (RCTs), cohort studies, or single-arm trials that evaluated the effect of edaravone on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The risk of bias was evaluated using the revised Cochrane Risk-of-Bias (RoB 2.0) tool for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and the Risk-of-Bias In Non-randomized Studies of Interventions (ROBINS-I) tool for observational studies. The primary outcome was the ALSFRS-R score assessed at month 6, with secondary outcomes including the ALSFRS-R scores evaluated at months 9, 12, and 18, forced vital capacity (FVC), and adverse events. The certainty of evidence was assessed using the GRADE approach. RESULTS: The analysis included 16 studies with a total of 4828 participants. Among these, four were randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and 12 were observational studies. Of the RCTs, four were rated as having a low risk of bias, while six of the observational studies were rated as having a low risk of bias. Edaravone was associated with slightly slower progression in the reduction of ALSFRS-R score at month 6 compared to placebo (mean difference 1.01, 95%CI -0.87 to 3.09, p = 0.293), as shown by evidence from RCTs. However, observational studies did not show any benefit of adding edaravone to routine practice (mean difference 1.85, 95%CI -2.05 to 5.75, p = 0.352). The change from baseline in ALSFRS-R score was -2.1, -4.04, -7.5, -6.82, and -7.9 at months 3, 6, 9, 12, and 18, respectively. The GRADE assessment indicated moderate certainty for evidence from RCTs, while evidence from observational studies had very low certainty. CONCLUSION: Due to the limited number of studies and confounding issues in observational studies, further examination of the added benefits of edaravone to routine practice is necessary through RCTs, particularly regarding its long-term efficacy.

Autophagy and Apoptosis in Rabies Virus Replication.

Rabies virus (RABV) is a single-stranded negative-sense RNA virus belonging to the Rhabdoviridae family and Lyssavirus genus, which is highly neurotropic and can infect almost all warm-blooded animals, including humans. Autophagy and apoptosis are two evolutionarily conserved and genetically regulated processes that maintain cellular and organismal homeostasis, respectively. Autophagy recycles unnecessary or dysfunctional intracellular organelles and molecules in a cell, whereas apoptosis eliminates damaged or unwanted cells in an organism. Studies have shown that RABV can induce both autophagy and apoptosis in target cells. To advance our understanding of pathogenesis of rabies, this paper reviews the molecular mechanisms of autophagy and apoptosis induced by RABV and the effects of the two cellular events on RABV replication.

ATG7/GAPLINC/IRF3 axis plays a critical role in regulating pathogenesis of influenza A virus.

Autophagy-related protein 7 (ATG7) is an essential autophagy effector enzyme. Although it is well known that autophagy plays crucial roles in the infections with various viruses including influenza A virus (IAV), function and underlying mechanism of ATG7 in infection and pathogenesis of IAV remain poorly understood. Here, in vitro studies showed that ATG7 had profound effects on replication of IAV. Depletion of ATG7 markedly attenuated the replication of IAV, whereas overexpression of ATG7 facilitated the viral replication. ATG7 conditional knockout mice were further employed and exhibited significantly resistant to viral infections, as evidenced by a lower degree of tissue injury, slower body weight loss, and better survival, than the wild type animals challenged with either IAV (RNA virus) or pseudorabies virus (DNA virus). Interestingly, we found that ATG7 promoted the replication of IAV in autophagy-dependent and -independent manners, as inhibition of autophagy failed to completely block the upregulation of IAV replication by ATG7. To determine the autophagy-independent mechanism, transcriptome analysis was utilized and demonstrated that ATG7 restrained the production of interferons (IFNs). Loss of ATG7 obviously enhanced the expression of type I and III IFNs in ATG7-depleted cells and mice, whereas overexpression of ATG7 impaired the interferon response to IAV infection. Consistently, our experiments demonstrated that ATG7 significantly suppressed IRF3 activation during the IAV infection. Furthermore, we identified long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) GAPLINC as a critical regulator involved in the promotion of IAV replication by ATG7. Importantly, both inactivation of IRF3 and inhibition of IFN response caused by ATG7 were mediated through control over GAPLINC expression, suggesting that GAPLINC contributes to the suppression of antiviral immunity by ATG7. Together, these results uncover an autophagy-independent mechanism by which ATG7 suppresses host innate immunity and establish a critical role for ATG7/GAPLINC/IRF3 axis in regulating IAV infection and pathogenesis.

TRIM28 promotes porcine epidemic diarrhea virus replication by mitophagy-mediated inhibition of the JAK-STAT1 pathway.

Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) infection causes immunosuppression and clinical symptoms such as vomiting, watery diarrhea, dehydration, and even death in piglets. TRIM28, an E3 ubiquitin ligase, is involved in the regulation of autophagy. However, the role of TRIM28 in PEDV infection is unknown. This study aimed to determine whether TRIM28 acts as a host factor for PEDV immune escape. We found that depletion of TRIM28 inhibited PEDV replication, whereas overexpression of TRIM28 promoted the viral replication in host cells. Furthermore, knockdown of TRIM28 reversed PEDV-induced downregulation of the JAK/STAT1 pathway. Treatment with the mitophagic activator carbonyl cyanide 3-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP) attenuated the activating effect of TRIM28 depletion on the expression of the STAT1 pathway-related proteins. Treatment with CCCP also reduced the nuclear translocation of pSTAT1. Moreover, TRIM28, via its RING domain, interacted with PEDV N. Overexpression of TRIM28 induced mitophagy, which could be enhanced by co-expression with PEDV N. The results indicate that PEDV infection upregulates the expression of TRIM28, which induces mitophagy, leading to inhibition of the JAK-STAT1 pathway. This research unveils a new mechanism by which PEDV can hijack host cellular TRIM28 to promote its own replication.

TRIM25 Suppresses Rabies Virus Fixed HEP-Flury Strain Production by Activating RIG-1-Mediated Type I Interferons.

Rabies remains a great threat to public health worldwide. So far, the mechanism of rabies virus (RABV) infection is not fully understood, and there is no effective treatment for rabies. Identifying more host restriction factors of RABV will spur the development of novel therapeutic interventions against rabies. Accumulating studies suggest that tripartite motif-containing (TRIM) proteins have great effects on virus replication. TRIMs control the antiviral responses through either direct interaction with viral proteins or indirect regulation of innate immune signaling molecules in the host. The role of TRIM25 in rabies virus (RABV) infection is poorly understood. Using next-generation sequencing, we found that TRIM25 is upregulated during HEP-Flury infection. Knockdown of TRIM25 enhances HEP-Flury production, while overexpression of TRIM25 suppresses HEP-Flury replication. Knockdown of interferon α and interferon ß weakens the anti-RABV response induced by TRIM25 overexpression, and potentiates RABV production. Furthermore, we found that TRIM25 regulates type-I interferon response by targeting retinoic acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I) during HEP-Flury infection. Knockdown of RIG-I weakens the anti-HEP-Flury response induced by TRIM25 overexpression, indicating that TRIM25 regulates RABV production via the RIG-I-IFN axis. In addition, we observed that TRIM25 does not directly interact with HEP-Flury structural proteins, suggesting that TRIM25 regulates HEP-Flury production indirectly. Taken together, our work identifies TRIM25 as a new host factor involved in HEP-Flury infection, which may be a potential target for the development of antiviral drugs against RABV.

STAT3 regulates antiviral immunity by suppressing excessive interferon signaling.

This study identifies interleukin-6 (IL-6)-independent phosphorylation of STAT3 Y705 at the early stage of infection with several viruses, including influenza A virus (IAV). Such activation of STAT3 is dependent on the retinoic acid-induced gene I/mitochondrial antiviral-signaling protein/spleen tyrosine kinase (RIG-I/MAVS/Syk) axis and critical for antiviral immunity. We generate STAT3Y705F/+ knockin mice that display a remarkably suppressed antiviral response to IAV infection, as evidenced by impaired expression of several antiviral genes, severe lung tissue injury, and poor survival compared with wild-type animals. Mechanistically, STAT3 Y705 phosphorylation restrains IAV pathogenesis by repressing excessive production of interferons (IFNs). Blocking phosphorylation significantly augments the expression of type I and III IFNs, potentiating the virulence of IAV in mice. Importantly, knockout of IFNAR1 or IFNLR1 in STAT3Y705F/+ mice protects the animals from lung injury and reduces viral load. The results indicate that activation of STAT3 by Y705 phosphorylation is vital for establishment of effective antiviral immunity by suppressing excessive IFN signaling induced by viral infection.

TRIM21 Promotes Rabies Virus Production by Degrading IRF7 through Ubiquitination.

Rabies, a highly fatal zoonotic disease, is a significant global public health threat. Currently, the pathogenic mechanism of rabies has not been fully elucidated, and no effective treatment for rabies is available. Increasing evidence shows that the tripartite-motif protein (TRIM) family of proteins participates in the host's regulation of viral replication. Studies have demonstrated the upregulated expression of tripartite-motif protein 21 (TRIM21) in the brain tissue of mice infected with the rabies virus. Related studies have shown that TRIM21 knockdown inhibits RABV replication, while overexpression of TRIM21 exerted the opposite effect. Knockdown of interferon-alpha and interferon-beta modulates the inhibition of RABV replication caused by TRIM21 knockdown and promotes the replication of the virus. Furthermore, our previous study revealed that TRIM21 regulates the secretion of type I interferon during RABV infection by targeting interferon regulatory factor 7 (IRF7). IRF7 knockdown reduced the inhibition of RABV replication caused by the knockdown of TRIM21 and promoted viral replication. TRIM21 regulates RABV replication via the IRF7-IFN axis. Our study identified TRIM21 as a novel host factor required by RABV for replication. Thus, TRIM21 is a potential target for rabies treatment or management.

The PI3K-Akt-mTOR and Associated Signaling Pathways as Molecular Drivers of Immune-Mediated Inflammatory Skin Diseases: Update on Therapeutic Strategy Using Natural and Synthetic Compounds.

The dysregulated phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K)-Akt-mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway has been implicated in various immune-mediated inflammatory and hyperproliferative dermatoses such as acne, atopic dermatitis, alopecia, psoriasis, wounds, and vitiligo, and is associated with poor treatment outcomes. Improved comprehension of the consequences of the dysregulated PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway in patients with inflammatory dermatoses has resulted in the development of novel therapeutic approaches. Nonetheless, more studies are necessary to validate the regulatory role of this pathway and to create more effective preventive and treatment methods for a wide range of inflammatory skin diseases. Several studies have revealed that certain natural products and synthetic compounds can obstruct the expression/activity of PI3K/Akt/mTOR, underscoring their potential in managing common and persistent skin inflammatory disorders. This review summarizes recent advances in understanding the role of the activated PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway and associated components in immune-mediated inflammatory dermatoses and discusses the potential of bioactive natural products, synthetic scaffolds, and biologic agents in their prevention and treatment. However, further research is necessary to validate the regulatory role of this pathway and develop more effective therapies for inflammatory skin disorders.

Mitochondrial Hydrogen Peroxide Activates PTEN and Inactivates Akt Leading to Autophagy Inhibition-Dependent Cell Death in Neuronal Models of Parkinson's Disease.

Defective autophagy relates to the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD), a typical neurodegenerative disease. Our recent study has demonstrated that PD toxins (6-OHDA, MPP+, or rotenone) induce neuronal apoptosis by impeding the AMPK/Akt-mTOR signaling. Here, we show that treatment with 6-OHDA, MPP+, or rotenone triggered decreases of ATG5/LC3-II and autophagosome formation with a concomitant increase of p62 in PC12, SH-SY5Y cells, and primary neurons, suggesting inhibition of autophagy. Interestingly, overexpression of wild-type ATG5 attenuated the inhibitory effect of PD toxins on autophagy, reducing neuronal apoptosis. The effects of PD toxins on autophagy and apoptosis were found to be associated with activation of PTEN and inactivation of Akt. Overexpression of dominant negative PTEN, constitutively active Akt and/or pretreatment with rapamycin rescued the cells from PD toxins-induced downregulation of ATG5/LC3-II and upregulation of p62, as well as consequential autophagosome diminishment and apoptosis in the cells. The effects of PD toxins on autophagy and apoptosis linked to excessive intracellular and mitochondrial hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) production, as evidenced by using a H2O2-scavenging enzyme catalase, a mitochondrial superoxide indicator MitoSOX and a mitochondria-selective superoxide scavenger Mito-TEMPO. Furthermore, we observed that treatment with PD toxins reduced the protein level of Parkin in the cells. Knockdown of Parkin alleviated the effects of PD toxins on H2O2 production, PTEN/Akt activity, autophagy, and apoptosis in the cells, whereas overexpression of wild-type Parkin exacerbated these effects of PD toxins, implying the involvement of Parkin in the PD toxins-induced oxidative stress. Taken together, the results indicate that PD toxins can elicit mitochondrial H2O2, which can activate PTEN and inactivate Akt leading to autophagy inhibition-dependent neuronal apoptosis, and Parkin plays a critical role in this process. Our findings suggest that co-manipulation of the PTEN/Akt/autophagy signaling by antioxidants may be exploited for the prevention of neuronal loss in PD.

Loss of tumor suppressor menin expression in high grade cholangiocarcinomas.

BACKGROUND: MEN1, which codes for the protein menin, is a tumor suppressor in neuroendocrine tissue. In cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) cell lines the overexpression of menin decreased proliferation, angiogenesis, migration, and invasion in vitro and in xenografts, but its expression in CCA tumor tissue samples is not established. OBJECTIVE: Determine whether the expression of menin correlates with disease progression in patient samples of CCA in a tissue microarray (TMA) by immunohistochemical (IHC) staining. RESULTS: IHC analysis of 97 biopsies revealed that low-grade tumors (Grade I) exhibited intense, diffuse, finely granular nuclear menin immunoreactivity with a pronounced linear perinuclear pattern (mean IHC score = 2.00), whereas high-grade tumors (Grade III) mostly lacked such staining (mean IHC score = 0.35). Collectively, there was a significant inverse association between tumor grade and menin staining (P = 0.0005). We also found a significant association between fibrosis status and menin staining, in that, 81.2% (56/69) of patients without fibrosis had no menin staining, whereas 92.9% (26/28) patients with fibrosis exhibited menin staining (P < 0.0001). No association was found between fibrosis status and grade. Overall, menin expression is inversely associated with tumor grade and positively associated with fibrosis status.

MIR155HG Plays a Bivalent Role in Regulating Innate Antiviral Immunity by Encoding Long Noncoding RNA-155 and microRNA-155-5p.

MIR155HG encodes a precursor RNA of microRNA-155 (miRNA-155). We previously identified this RNA also as a long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) that we call lncRNA-155. To define the functions of miRNA-155 and lncRNA-155, we generated miRNA-155 knockout (KO) mice lacking only 19 bp of the miRNA-155 core sequence without affecting the expression of lncRNA-155. Surprisingly, compared with the miRNA-155KO mice, previously generated lncRNA-155KO mice were more susceptible to both influenza virus (RNA virus) and pseudorabies virus (DNA virus) infection, as characterized by lower survival rate, higher body weight loss, and higher viral load. We found that miRNA-155-5p enhanced antiviral responses by positively regulating activation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1), but the STAT1 activity differed greatly in the animals (lncRNA-155KO < miRNA-155KO < wild type). In line with this, expression levels of several critical interferon-stimulated genes (ISGs) were also significantly different (lncRNA-155KO < miRNA-155KO < wild type). We found that lncRNA-155 augmented interferon beta (IFN-ß) production during the viral infection, but miRNA-155 had no significant effect on the virus-induced IFN-ß expression. Furthermore, we observed that lncRNA-155 loss in mice resulted in dramatic inhibition of virus-induced activation of interferon regulatory factor 3 compared to both miRNA-155KO and wild-type (WT) animals. Moreover, lncRNA-155 still significantly suppressed the viral infection even though the miRNA-155 derived from lncRNA-155 was deleted or blocked. These results reveal that lncRNA-155 and miRNA-155 regulate antiviral responses through distinct mechanisms, indicating a bivalent role for MIR155HG in innate immunity. IMPORTANCE Here, we found that lncRNA-155KO mice lacking most of the lncRNA-155 sequences along with pre-miRNA-155, were more susceptible to influenza virus or pseudorabies virus infection than miRNA-155KO mice lacking only 19 bp of the miRNA-155 core sequence without affecting the expression of lncRNA-155, as evidenced by faster body weight loss, poorer survival, and higher viral load, suggesting an additional role of lncRNA-155 in regulating viral pathogenesis besides via processing miRNA-155. Congruously, miRNA-155-deleted lncRNA-155 significantly attenuated the viral infection. Mechanistically, we demonstrated miRNA-155-5p potentiated antiviral responses by promoting STAT1 activation but could not directly regulate the IFN-ß expression. In contrast, lncRNA-155 enhanced virus-induced IFN-ß production by regulating the activation of interferon regulatory factor 3. This finding reveals a bivalent role of MIR155HG in regulating antiviral responses through encoding lncRNA-155 and miRNA-155-5p and provides new insights into complicated mechanisms underlying interaction between virus and host innate immunity.

Activation of ventral tegmental area dopaminergic neurons ameliorates anxiety-like behaviors in single prolonged stress-induced PTSD model rats.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating psychiatric condition that arises after extremely traumatic events, with clinically significant and lasting impacts on both physical and psychological health. The present study examined the role of ventral tegmental area (VTA) dopaminergic signaling in anxiety-like behaviors and the underlying mechanisms in PTSD model rats. Chemogenetic technology was employed to specifically activate VTA dopamine (DA) neurons in rats subjected to single prolonged stress (SPS), and open field and elevated plus maze tests were applied to evaluate the anxiety-like manifestations. Subsequently, in vivo extracellular electrophysiological analyses were used to examine alterations in the firing characteristics of VTA DA neurons. Chemogenetic activation enhanced the firing and burst rates of VTA DA neurons in SPS-induced PTSD model rats and concomitantly mitigated the anxiety-like behavioral phenotypes. Collectively, these findings reveal a direct association between PTSD-relevant anxiety behaviors and VTA dopaminergic activity, and further suggest that interventions designed to enhance VTA dopaminergic activity may be a potential strategy for PTSD treatment.

Neuroprotection of resveratrol against cadmium-poisoning acts through dual inhibition of mTORC1/2 signaling.

Resveratrol is a natural polyphenol with neuroprotective function. The underlying mechanism is not well understood. Our previous studies have identified that resveratrol antagonizes cadmium (Cd) neurotoxicity via targeting PP2A/PP5-mediated Erk1/2 and JNK pathways. Here we show that resveratrol protected against Cd-poisoning also by blocking Cd-induced activation of mTORC1 and mTORC2 pathways in PC12 cells and murine primary neurons. Co-treatment with inhibitors of mTORC1 (rapamycin), mTORC1/2 (PP242), Erk1/2 (U0126) and/or JNK (SP600125), knockdown of mTOR, or disruption of mTORC1 and/or mTORC2 by silencing raptor, rictor or raptor/rictor, respectively, markedly potentiated the inhibitory effects of resveratrol on Cd-induced phosphorylation of S6K1/4E-BP1 (mTORC1 substrates), Akt (mTORC2 substrate), Erk1/2 and/or JNK/c-Jun, cleavage of caspase-3 and cell death in PC12 cells and/or primary neurons. Knockdown of S6K1 or 4E-BP1, or ectopic expression of constitutively hypophosphorylated 4E-BP1 (4E-BP1-5A) reinforced the resveratrol's inhibition on Cd-evoked cell death, whereas ectopic expression of constitutively active S6K1 or knockdown of 4E-BP1 attenuated the resveratrol's inhibition on Cd-induced cell death. Co-treatment with Akt inhibitor or overexpression of dominant negative Akt (dn-Akt) strengthened the resveratrol's suppression on Cd-induced ROS, Erk1/2 activation and apoptosis, whereas overexpression of constitutively active Akt (myr-Akt) conferred high resistance to the resveratrol's inhibitory effects in the neuronal cells. Taken together, the results indicate that resveratrol attenuates Cd-induced neuronal apoptosis partly through inhibition of mTORC1/2 pathways. Our studies highlight that resveratrol can be exploited for the prevention of Cd toxicity related to neurodegenerative diseases.

Resveratrol induces autophagy impeding BAFF-stimulated B-cell proliferation and survival by inhibiting the Akt/mTOR pathway.

Therapeutically targeting B cells has received great attention in the treatment of B-cell malignancies and autoimmune diseases. The B-cell activating factor (BAFF) is critical to the survival of normal and neoplastic B cells, and excess production of BAFF contributes to autoimmune diseases. Resveratrol, a natural polyphenolic compound, has a positive effect on the treatment of autoimmune diseases. However, how resveratrol affects BAFF-stimulated B-cell proliferation and survival is poorly understood. Here, we show that resveratrol increased autophagosome formation and ATG5/LC3-II levels and decreased p62 level, promoting autophagic flux/autophagy and thereby suppressing the basal or human soluble BAFF (hsBAFF)-stimulated proliferation and survival of normal and B-lymphoid (Raji) cells. This is supported by the findings that inhibition of autophagy with 3-methyladenine (3-MA, an inhibitor of Vps34) or ATG5 shRNA attenuates resveratrol-induced autophagy and -reduced proliferation/viability in B-cells. Inhibition of mTOR with rapamycin or knockdown of mTOR potentiated resveratrol-induced autophagy and inhibition of hsBAFF-stimulated B-cell proliferation/viability, while overexpression of wild-type mTOR conferred resistance to the actions of resveratrol. Similarly, inhibition of Akt with Akt inhibitor X or ectopic expression of dominant negative Akt reinforced resveratrol-induced autophagy and inhibition of hsBAFF-stimulated B-cell proliferation/viability, whereas expression of constitutively active Akt conferred resistance to the actions of resveratrol. Taken together, these results indicate that resveratrol induces autophagy impeding BAFF-stimulated proliferation and survival via blocking the Akt/mTOR signaling pathway in normal and neoplastic B cells. Our findings highlight that resveratrol has a great potential for prevention and treatment of excessive BAFF-elicited aggressive B-cell disorders and autoimmune diseases.

Arecoline Induces an Excitatory Response in Ventral Tegmental Area Dopaminergic Neurons in Anesthetized Rats.

Arecoline is the principle psychoactive alkaloid in areca nuts. Areca nuts are chewable seeds of Areca catechu L., which are epidemic plants that grow in tropical and subtropical countries and cause dependency after long-term use. However, the mechanisms underlying such dependency remain largely unclear, and therefore, no effective interventions for its cessation have been developed. The present study aimed to examine the effects of arecoline on neurons of the ventral tegmental area (VTA). After rats were anesthetized and craniotomized, electrophysiological electrodes were lowered into the VTA to obtain extracellular recordings. The mean firing rate of dopaminergic and GABAergic neurons were then calculated and analyzed before and after arecoline treatment. The burst characteristics of the dopaminergic neurons were also analyzed. The results showed that arecoline evoked a significant enhancement of the firing rate of dopaminergic neurons, but not GABAergic neurons. Moreover, arecoline evoked remarkable burst firings in the dopaminergic neurons, including an increase in the burst rate, elongation in the burst duration, and an enhancement in the number of spikes per burst. Collectively, the findings revealed that arecoline significantly excited VTA dopaminergic neurons, which may be a mechanism underlying areca nut dependency and a potential target for areca nut cessation therapy.

Acupuncture in addition to usual care for patients with irritable bowel syndrome: a component network meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: The efficacy of acupuncture alone in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is controversial, but the benefit of acupuncture added to usual care has rarely been studied. We aimed to examine the benefit of acupuncture added to usual care through network meta-analysis (NMA). METHODS: PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) were searched from their inception to 1 July 2021, without any language restriction. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) testing the effect of acupuncture alone or acupuncture combined with usual care for IBS were included. The primary outcome was improvement of global IBS symptoms. Standard NMA was performed to compare differential combinations of acupuncture (including manual acupuncture (MA) and electroacupuncture (EA)), and component network meta-analysis (CNMA) was subsequently performed to determine whether acupuncture provided additional benefits to usual care. The effect size of an intervention was measured using relative ratio (RR). RESULTS: We included 25 RCTs (n = 3041 participants) after screening 582 retrieved articles. Five RCTs were classified as low risk of bias. The results of standard NMA showed that MA combined with usual care ranked the most effective (sham acupuncture as common comparator; RR = 1.96 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.23 to 3.12)). The results of CNMA showed that MA was the most effective component (RR = 1.38 (95% CI, 1.12 to 1.70)) when added to usual care. CONCLUSION: Acupuncture provided additional benefits to usual care, and it might be considered as adjunctive therapy for patients who respond inadequately to usual care.