Endoplasmic reticulum stress-induced NLRP3 inflammasome activation as a novel mechanism of polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs)-induced pulmonary inflammation in chickens. / å† è´¨ç½‘åº”æ¿€è¯±å¯¼çš„NLRP3炎性体激活是聚苯乙烯微塑料（PS-MPs）诱导的鸡肺部炎症的新机制.

Microplastics (MPs) have attracted growing attention worldwide as an increasingly prevalent environmental pollutant. In addition, chicken meat is currently the most widely consumed kind of poultry in the global market. Consumer demand for chicken is on the rise both at home and abroad. As a result, the safety of chicken raising has also received significant attention. The lungs play an essential role in the physiological activities of chickens, and they are also the most vulnerable organs. Lung injury is difficult to repair after the accumulation of contaminants, and the mortality rate is high, which brings huge economic losses to farmers. The research on the toxicity of MPs has mainly focused on the marine ecosystem, while the mechanisms of toxicity and lung damage in chickens have been poorly studied. Thus, this study explored the effects of exposure to polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs) at various concentrations for 42 d on chicken lungs. PS-MPs could cause lung pathologies and ultrastructural abnormalities, such as endoplasmic reticulum (ER) swelling, inflammatory cell infiltration, chromatin agglutination, and plasma membrane rupture. Simultaneously, PS-MPs increased the expression of genes related to the heat shock protein family (Hsp60, Hsp70, and Hsp90), ER stress signaling (activating transcription factor 6 (ATF6), ATF4, protein kinase RNA-like ER kinase (PERK), and eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 subunit α (eIF2α)), pyroptosis-related genes (NOD-|, LRR- and pyrin domain-containing protein 3 (NLRP3), apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a caspase recruitment domain (ASC), interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß), cysteinyl aspartate-specific proteinase 1 (Caspase1), and gasdermin-D (GSDMD)), and the inflammatory signaling pathway (nuclear factor-|κB (NF-|κB), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2)). The above results showed that PS-MP exposure could result in lung stress, ER stress, pyroptosis, and inflammation in broilers. Our findings provide new scientific clues for further research on the mechanisms of physical health and toxicology regarding MPs.

The miR-17∼92 miRNAs promote plasma cell differentiation by suppressing SOCS3-mediated NIK degradation.

The miR-17∼92 family microRNAs (miRNAs) play a key role in germinal center (GC) reaction through promoting T follicular helper (TFH) cell differentiation. It remains unclear whether they also have intrinsic functions in B cell differentiation and function. Here we show that mice with B cell-specific deletion of the miR-17∼92 family exhibit impaired GC reaction, plasma cell differentiation, and antibody production in response to protein antigen immunization and chronic viral infection. Employing CRISPR-mediated functional screening, we identify Socs3 as a key functional target of miR-17∼92 in regulating plasma cell differentiation. Mechanistically, SOCS3, whose expression is elevated in miR-17∼92 family-deficient B cells, interacts with NIK and promotes its ubiquitination and degradation, thereby impairing NF-κB signaling and plasma cell differentiation. This moderate increase in SOCS3 expression has little effect on IL-21-STAT3 signaling. Our study demonstrates differential sensitivity of two key signaling pathways to alterations in the protein level of an miRNA target gene.

[Correlation between chemical constituents and ecological factors of Astragalus membranaceus var. mongholicus].

Principal component analysis (PCA) and correlation analysis (CA) were applied to analyze the correlation of the main chemical components in Astragalus membranaceus var. mongholicus and ecological factors. The results showed that the contents of astragaloside, campanulin, ononin, kaempferol and astragalus polysaccharides (APS) of A. membranaceus var. mongholicus produced. in Shanxi were significantly higher than in Inner Mongolia and Gansu. The main climatic factors for affecting the contents of chemical ingredients in A. membranaceus var. mongholicus were annual average relative humidity, sunshine hours and average July temperature. Calcium was the main factor in the soil affecting the chemical ingredient contents, and calcium was negatively correlated with the contents of calycosin glycosides, kaempferol, ononin, quercetin and APS in A. membranaceus var. mongholicus within a certain range.

Integrated analysis for identifying radix astragali and its adulterants based on DNA barcoding.

Radix Astragali is a popular herb used in traditional Chinese medicine for its proimmune and antidiabetic properties. However, methods are needed to help distinguish Radix Astragali from its varied adulterants. DNA barcoding is a widely applicable molecular method used to identify medicinal plants. Yet, its use has been hampered by genetic distance, base variation, and limitations of the bio-NJ tree. Herein, we report the validation of an integrated analysis method for plant species identification using DNA barcoding that focuses on genetic distance, identification efficiency, inter- and intraspecific variation, and barcoding gap. We collected 478 sequences from six candidate DNA barcodes (ITS2, ITS, psbA-trnH, rbcL, matK, and COI) from 29 species of Radix Astragali and adulterants. The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequence was demonstrated as the optimal barcode for identifying Radix Astragali and its adulterants. This new analysis method is helpful in identifying Radix Astragali and expedites the utilization and data mining of DNA barcoding.