Multiplexed Single-Cell Leukocyte Enzymatic Secretion Profiling from Whole Blood Reveals Patient-Specific Immune Signature.

Enzymatic secretion of immune cells (leukocytes) plays a dominant role in host immune responses to a myriad of biological triggers, including infections, cancers, and cardiovascular diseases. Current tools to probe these leukocytes inadequately profile these vital biomarkers; the need for sample preprocessing steps of cell lysis, labeling, washing, and pipetting inevitably triggers the cells, changes its basal state, and dilutes the individual cell secretion in bulk assays. Using a fully integrated system for multiplexed profiling of native immune single-cell enzyme secretion from 50 µL of undiluted blood, we eliminate sample handling. With a total analysis time of 60 min, the integrated platform performs six tasks of leukocyte extraction, cell washing, fluorescent enzyme substrate mixing, single-cell droplet making, droplet incubation, and real-time readout for leukocyte secretion profiling of neutrophil elastase, granzyme B, and metalloproteinase. We calibrated the device, optimized the protocols, and tested the leukocyte secretion of acute heart failure (AHF) patients at admission and predischarge. This paper highlights the presence of single-cell enzymatic immune phenotypes independent of CD marker labeling, which could potentially elucidate the innate immune response states. We found that patients recovering from AHF showed a corresponding reduction in immune-cell enzymatic secretion levels and donor-specific enzymatic signatures were observed, which suggests patient-to-patient heterogeneous immune response. This platform presents opportunities to elucidate the complexities of the immune response from a single drop of blood and bridge the current technological, biological, and medical gap in understanding immune response and biological triggers.

Theoretical modelling of single-mode lasing in microcavity lasers via optical interference injection.

The effective manipulation of mode oscillation and competition is of fundamental importance for controlling light emission in semiconductor lasers. Here we develop a rate equation model which considers the spatially modulated gain and spontaneous emission, which are inherently governed by the ripple of the vacuum electromagnetic field in a Fabry-Pérot (FP) microcavity. By manipulating the interplay between the spatial oscillation of the vacuum field and external optical injection via dual-beam laser interference, single longitudinal mode operation is observed in a FP-type microcavity with a side mode suppression ratio exceeding 40 dB. An exploration of this extended rate equation model bridges the gap between the classical model of multimode competition in semiconductor lasers and a quantum-optics understanding of radiative processes in microcavities.

Digital Sort-Enabled Counting Allows Absolute Electrical Quantification of Target Nucleic Acid.

Quantitative nucleic acid amplification tests are of great importance for diagnostics, but current approaches require complex and costly optical setups that limit their nonlaboratory applications. Herein we describe the implementation of a microfluidics platform that can perform binary DNA-amplification-activated droplet sorting. The digital sort-enabled counting (DISCO) platform enables label-free absolute quantification of the nucleic acid. This is achieved by provoking a pH change in droplets through a loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) reaction, followed by using sorting by interfacial tension (SIFT) to direct positive and negative droplets to different outlets. With the use of on-chip electrodes at both outlets, we demonstrate that the digital electrical counting of target DNA and RNA can be realized. DISCO is a promising approach for realizing sensitive nucleic acid quantification in point-of-care settings.

Unveiling the role of PYGB in pancreatic cancer: a novel diagnostic biomarker and gene therapy target.

PURPOSE: Pancreatic cancer (PC) is a highly malignant tumor that poses a severe threat to human health. Brain glycogen phosphorylase (PYGB) breaks down glycogen and provides an energy source for tumor cells. Although PYGB has been reported in several tumors, its role in PC remains unclear. METHODS: We constructed a risk diagnostic model of PC-related genes by WGCNA and LASSO regression and found PYGB, an essential gene in PC. Then, we explored the pro-carcinogenic role of PYGB in PC by in vivo and in vitro experiments. RESULTS: We found that PYGB, SCL2A1, and SLC16A3 had a significant effect on the diagnosis and prognosis of PC, but PYGB had the most significant effect on the prognosis. Pan-cancer analysis showed that PYGB was highly expressed in most of the tumors but had the highest correlation with PC. In TCGA and GEO databases, we found that PYGB was highly expressed in PC tissues and correlated with PC's prognostic and pathological features. Through in vivo and in vitro experiments, we found that high expression of PYGB promoted the proliferation, invasion, and metastasis of PC cells. Through enrichment analysis, we found that PYGB is associated with several key cell biological processes and signaling pathways. In experiments, we validated that the MAPK/ERK pathway is involved in the pro-tumorigenic mechanism of PYGB in PC. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that PYGB promotes PC cell proliferation, invasion, and metastasis, leading to poor patient prognosis. PYGB gene may be a novel diagnostic biomarker and gene therapy target for PC.

C-Reactive Protein-Albumin Ratio (CAR): A More Promising Inflammation-Based Prognostic Marker for Patients Undergoing Curative Hepatectomy for Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Background: Systemic inflammatory response is a hallmark of cancer and plays a significant role in the development and progression of various malignant tumors. This research aimed to estimate the prognostic function of the C-reactive protein-albumin ratio (CAR) in patients undergoing hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and compare it with other inflammation-based prognostic scores, including the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio, platelet-lymphocyte ratio, monocyte-lymphocyte ratio, systemic immune inflammation index, prognostic index, Glasgow prognostic score, and modified Glasgow prognostic score. Methods: Retrospective analysis was conducted on data from 1039 HCC cases who underwent curative liver resection. The prognostic performance of CAR was compared with other scores using the area under the time-dependent receiver operating characteristic (t-ROC) curve. Multivariable Cox regression analyses were performed to confirm independent predictors for disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS). Results: The area under the t-ROC curve for CAR in the evaluation of DFS and OS was significantly greater than that of other scores and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP). Patients were stratified based on the optimal cut-off value of CAR, and the data revealed that both DFS and OS were remarkably worse in the high-CAR set compared to the low-CAR set. Multivariable Cox analysis demonstrated that CAR was an independent prognostic parameters for assessing DFS and OS. Regardless of AFP levels, all patients were subsequently divided into significantly different subgroups of DFS and OS based on CAR risk stratification. Similar results were observed when applying CAR risk stratification to other scoring systems. CAR also showed good clinical applicability in patients with different clinical features. Conclusion: CAR is a more effective inflammation-based prognostic marker than other scores and AFP in predicting DFS as well as OS among patients with HCC after curative hepatectomy.

The Role of Single-Cell Technology in the Study and Control of Infectious Diseases.

The advent of single-cell research in the recent decade has allowed biological studies at an unprecedented resolution and scale. In particular, single-cell analysis techniques such as Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) and Fluorescence-Activated Cell Sorting (FACS) have helped show substantial links between cellular heterogeneity and infectious disease progression. The extensive characterization of genomic and phenotypic biomarkers, in addition to host-pathogen interactions at the single-cell level, has resulted in the discovery of previously unknown infection mechanisms as well as potential treatment options. In this article, we review the various single-cell technologies and their applications in the ongoing fight against infectious diseases, as well as discuss the potential opportunities for future development.

The study of neuroprotective effect of ferulic acid based on cell metabolomics.

Ferulic acid (FA), a naturally derived phenolic compound, has antioxidant and antidepressant-like effects. It is still a challenge to study its mechanism due to the complexity of the pathophysiology of depression. In this study, ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF-MS) was used to perform metabolomics studies based on biochemical changes in differentiated rat pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells treated with corticosterone-induced neurological damage after FA treatment. A total of 31 metabolites were identified as potential biomarkers for corticosterone-induced PC12 cells injury. Among them, 24 metabolites were regulated after FA treatment. Pathway analysis revealed that these metabolites were mainly involved in the amino acid metabolism, energy metabolism and glycerophospholipid metabolism. In addition, based on the results of metabolomics, three cell signaling pathways related to glutamate were discovered. To further study the interactions between FA and major targets in three signaling pathways, a molecular docking method was employed. The results showed that FA had the strongest binding power with protein kinase B (AKT). Furthermore, the result of mRNA changes analyzed by quantitative real time RT-PCR indicated that AKT and protein kinase A (PKA) in the signaling pathway were up regulated after treatment with FA compared with model group. This study shows that strategies based on cell metabolomics associated with molecular docking and molecular biology is a helpful tool to elucidate the neuroprotective mechanism of FA.

Methods for the detection and determination of nitrite and nitrate: A review.

Various techniques for the determination of nitrite and/or nitrate developed during the past 15 years were reviewed in this article. 169 references were covered. The detection principles and analytical parameters such as matrix, detection limits and detection range of each method were tabulated. The advantages and disadvantages of various methods were evaluated. In comparison to other methods, spectrofluorimetric methods have become more attractive due to its facility availability, high sensitivity and selectivity, low limits of detection and low-cost.

Transplantation of mesenchymal stem cells exerts anti-apoptotic effects in adult rats after spinal cord ischemia-reperfusion injury.

It is unknown whether transplantation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSCs) can repair spinal cord ischemia-reperfusion injury (SCII) in a rat model through an anti-apoptotic effect. Adult rats were divided into untreated or sham-operated controls, untreated models of SCII (uSCII) and BM-MSC-transplanted models of SCII (tSCII; labeled with CM-Dill transplanted at 1 h and 24 h after reperfusion). According to evaluation of hind-limb motor function, the motor functions of tSCII rats were significantly better than those of uSCII rats by the seventh day. H&E and TUNEL staining showed that the spinal cords of uSCII rats contained damaged neural cells with nuclear pyknosis and congestion of blood vessels, with a high percentage of apoptotic neural cells, while the spinal cords of tSCII rats were nearly normal with significantly fewer apoptotic neural cells. Immunohistochemistry and double immunofluorescence staining revealed that in tSCII rats CASP3 and neurofilament-H (NF-H) levels were 14.57% and 174% those of uSCII rats, respectively, and in tSCII rats the ratio of BAX to BCL2 was reduced by nearly 50%. The differentiation of transplanted CM-Dil-labeled BM-MSCs into neurons and astrocytes was observed in the spinal cords of the tSCII rats under laser scanning confocal microscopy. These results showed that transplantation of BM-MSCs improved functional recovery after SCII via anti-apoptosis.

Spontaneous differentiation of porcine neural progenitors in vitro.

The pig is the non-primate species that is immunologically closest to humans, and has been considered as an alternative source to human allografts for transplantation. In fact, there has been recent interest in identifying and culturing porcine neural progenitor cells (PNPCs) in vitro, but the long-term culturing has not yet been characterized. Here, we reported the spontaneous differentiation of PNPCs into neuronal and glial cells. For in vitro cultures, the primary cells of the subventricular zone of the forebrain striatum were cultured in the presence of epidermal growth factor and basic fibroblast growth factor to allow the growth of spherical masses that exhibit sustained growth and self-renewal capacity. After growth factor removal, the neurospheres with 10 and 130 days of culture spontaneously differentiated into Tuj1-positive neurons and GFAP-positive astrocytes as seen by double immunocytofluorescence. Molecular characterization using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction showed that neurospheres expressed nestin, neuron-specific enolase, and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP). In addition, after cultured in the differentiation medium for 3 months, the growth of neurosphere became slow and displayed cystic structures with the same morphology as that of embryonic bodies derived from embryonic stem cells. It is concluded that PNPCs have the ability to provide an expandable source of neural cells that can develop into neuronal and glial subtypes.

[Analysis of parotid sialography and intervention in 78 cases of chronic pyogenic parotitis].

OBJECTIVE: To study the value of parotid sialography and intervention in the diagnosis and treatment of chronic pyogenic parotitis. METHODS: Undertake the technique of parotid sialography with 48% Lipiodol ultra-fluide (France) under X-ray upon 78 patients who were given systemic anti-infections and supporting treatments only with non-obvious-results, and classify all the cases into chronic obstructive (21 cases) and nonobstructive parotitis (57 cases) according to the results of sialography through microcatheter, then go on with bacterial culture and drug sensitivity test. Filling treatments were carried out on obstructive parotitis cases through the duct with mixed liquor consisting of 2% lidocanine, 1% methylviolet. In the same way, alpha-chymotrypsin, amikacin, lidocaine was used in nonobstructive cases. RESULTS: The cure rate of chronic obstructive parotitis was 80.95%, the cure rate of chronic nonobstructive parotitis was 87.72%. CONCLUSION: The method of parotid sialography and intervention in the diagnosis and treatment of chronic pyogenic parotitis is an effective way to treat chronic pyogenic parotitis.