Genetics of Acquired Cytokine Storm Syndromes : Secondary HLH Genetics.

Secondary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (sHLH) has historically been defined as a cytokine storm syndrome (CSS) occurring in the setting of triggers leading to strong and dysregulated immunological activation, without known genetic predilection. However, recent studies have suggested that existing underlying genetic factors may synergize with particular diseases and/or environmental triggers (including infection, autoimmune/autoinflammatory disorder, certain biologic therapies, or malignant transformation), leading to sHLH. With the recent advances in genetic testing technology, more patients are examined for genetic variations in primary HLH (pHLH)-associated genes, including through whole exome and whole genome sequencing. This expanding genetic and genomic evidence has revealed HLH as a more complex phenomenon, resulting from specific immune challenges in patients with a susceptible genetic background. Rather than a simple, binary definition of pHLH and sHLH, HLH represents a spectrum of diseases, from a severe complication of common infections (EBV, influenza) to early onset familial diseases that can only be cured by transplantation.

Microbial imbalance in Chinese children with diarrhea or constipation.

Diarrhea and constipation are common health concerns in children. Numerous studies have identified strong association between gut microbiota and digestive-related diseases. But little is known about the gut microbiota that simultaneously affects both diarrhea and constipation or their potential regulatory mechanisms. Stool samples from 618 children (66 diarrhea, 138 constipation, 414 healthy controls) aged 0-3 years were collected to investigate gut microbiota changes using 16S rRNA sequencing. Compared with healthy, children with diarrhea exhibited a significant decrease in microbial diversity, while those with constipation showed a marked increase (p < 0.05). Significantly, our results firstly Ruminococcus increased in constipation (p = 0.03) and decreased in diarrhea (p < 0.01) compared to healthy controls. Pathway analysis revealed that Ruminococcus highly involved in the regulation of five common pathways (membrane transport, nervous system, energy metabolism, signal transduction and endocrine system pathways) between diarrhea and constipation, suggesting a potential shared regulatory mechanism. Our finding firstly reveals one core microorganisms that may affect the steady balance of the gut in children with diarrhea or constipation, providing an important reference for potential diagnosis and treatment of constipation and diarrhea.

Bacterial nanocellulose membrane with opposite surface charges for large-scale and large-area osmotic energy harvesting and ion transport.

How to optimize ion-exchange membrane materials has been the key for researchers recently working on the use of reverse electrodialysis to harvest osmotic energy. Based on the considerations of improving membrane performance and conversion to large-area industrial production, this work first proposes an easy-industrialized strategy to treat bacterial cellulose membranes by hot pressing and hot pressing with etherification modification, and then to obtain anion-selective and cation-selective membrane pairs (PBC-M and NBC-M) with opposite charges. The PBC-M obtained by multi-step treatment has excellent hydrophobicity, good surface charge density, and more favorable nanochannel size for the functioning of double layer. The maximum output power density of 44.1 mW m-2 was obtained in artificial river water and seawater simulated salinity gradient power generation. Applied to a larger test area, the power output of the system where a single membrane is located can reach 2.2 × 10-3 mW, which is ahead of similar experimental products. The two membranes prepared can also be used in combination, which provides a new idea for full cell design. It's important to open up a new route for optimizing nanofluidic channel design, regulating ion flux transport, and advancing the large-scale industrialization of biomass nanofluidic membrane RED system.