Change of the vaginal microbiome with oral contraceptive therapy in women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a 6-month longitudinal cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The association between the vaginal microbiome and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is reported, but the longitudinal changes in the vaginal microbiome that accompany oral contraceptive therapy have not been described. METHODS: This cohort study included 50 PCOS patients who wanted to make their menstrual periods more regular and accepted only oral contraceptive therapy and lifestyle coaching, then they were successfully followed up for 6 months. Venous blood was collected, and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), total testosterone (T), anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), and estradiol (E2) were assayed at baseline and at months 3 and 6. Vaginal swabs were collected at baseline and at months 3 and 6. 16S rRNA genes were sequenced to identify the microbiota structure. Latent class trajectory models were used to explore the trajectory of the changes in Lactobacillus abundance. RESULTS: At 3 months, all patients reported regular periods, and the improvement lasted until 6 months. The body mass index and waist-to-hip ratio decreased with treatment (P < 0.01), and the AMH and T levels showed downward trends. We did not find a statistically significant relationship between hormone levels at the previous time point and the vaginal microbiota at subsequent time points (P > 0.05). The relative abundance of Lactobacillus increased with treatment, and trajectory analysis revealed five classes of Lactobacillus changes. Class 1, stable high level, accounted for 26%; class 2, decrease followed by increase, accounted for 18%; class 3, stable low level, accounted for 10%; class 4, increase, accounted for 20%; class 5, increase followed by decrease, accounted for 26%. Logistic models showed that compared to class 1, a higher baseline T level was associated with a reduced risk of class 2 change (odds ratio (OR) = 0.03, 95% confidence interval (CI):0.01-0.52) and class 4 change (OR = 0.10, 95% CI:0.01-0.93). CONCLUSIONS: The abundance of Lactobacilli increased with PCOS treatment; however, the trajectory was inconsistent for each individual. Evidence of the effects of female hormone levels on the vaginal microbiome is insufficient.

Characterization and genome analysis of phage vB_KpnS_SXFY507 against Klebsiella pneumoniae and efficacy assessment in Galleria mellonella larvae.

Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae is one of the primary bacterial pathogens that pose a significant threat to global public health because of the lack of available therapeutic options. Phage therapy shows promise as a potential alternative to current antimicrobial chemotherapies. In this study, we isolated a new Siphoviridae phage vB_KpnS_SXFY507 against KPC-producing K. pneumoniae from hospital sewage. It had a short latent period of 20 min and a large burst size of 246 phages/cell. The host range of phage vB_KpnS_SXFY507 was relatively broad. It has a wide range of pH tolerance and high thermal stability. The genome of phage vB_KpnS_SXFY507 was 53,122 bp in length with a G + C content of 49.1%. A total of 81 open-reading frames (ORFs) and no virulence or antibiotic resistance related genes were involved in the phage vB_KpnS_SXFY507 genome. Phage vB_KpnS_SXFY507 showed significant antibacterial activity in vitro. The survival rate of Galleria mellonella larvae inoculated with K. pneumoniae SXFY507 was 20%. The survival rate of K. pneumonia-infected G. mellonella larvae was increased from 20 to 60% within 72 h upon treatment with phage vB_KpnS_SXFY507. In conclusion, these findings indicate that phage vB_KpnS_SXFY507 has the potential to be used as an antimicrobial agent for the control of K. pneumoniae.

A Poly(carbazole-alt-triazole) with Thiabendazole Side Groups as an "On-Off-On" Fluorescent Probe for Detection of Cu(II) Ion and Cysteine.

A novel conjugated polymer PCZBTA-TBZ containing thiabendazole as recognition unit was synthesized via Suzuki coupling reaction, and its structural characterization, spectroscopic analysis and photophysical properties were investigated. In the metal ion response study, the addition of Cu2+ led to the occurrence of the photoinduced electron transfer (PET) mechanism, which significantly quenched the fluorescence of the polymer PCZBTA-TBZ with a quenching effect of 98%. Furthermore, I- can significantly quench the fluorescence of the polymer, but other anions have no such effect. According to the density functional theory calculation, compared with other polycarbazoles or other alternative copolymers containing carbazole, with alternating carbazole and triazole enhances the electron mobility and reduces the energy band gap of the polymer. Due to the strong coordination ability between Cu2+ and Cys, the adding Cys competes the Cu2+ in the [PCZBTA-TBZ-Cu2+] complex, blocking the occurrence of PET, and the fluorescence intensity of PCZBTA-TBZ is restored. The addition of other amino acids caused almost no change. The polymer is expected to be used for dual fluorescence detection of specific metal ions and Cys.

An F-box protein from wheat, TaFBA-2A, negatively regulates JA biosynthesis and confers improved salt tolerance and increased JA responsiveness to transgenic rice plants.

Soil salinity is a serious problem encountered by agriculture worldwide, which will lead to many harmful effects on plant growth, development, and even crop yield. F-box protein is the core subunit of the Skp1-Cullin-F-box (SCF) complex E3 ligase and plays crucial roles in regulating the growth, development, biotic & abiotic stresses, as well as hormone signaling pathway in plants. In this study, an FBA type F-box gene TaFBA-2A was isolated from wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). This study showed that TaFBA-2A could interact with TaSKP1, and TaOPR2, the crucial enzyme involving in jasmonic acid (JA) biosynthesis. TaFBA-2A negatively regulates JA biosynthesis, probably by mediating the degradation of TaOPR2 via the ubiquitin-26S proteasome pathway. Ectopic expression of TaFBA-2A improved the salt tolerance and increased the JA responsiveness of the transgenic rice lines. In addition, some agronomic traits closely related to crop yield were significantly enhanced in the rice lines ectopic expressing TaFBA-2A. The data obtained in this study shed light on the function and mechanisms of TaFBA-2A in JA biosynthesis and the responses to salt stress and JA treatment; this study also suggested that TaFBA-2A has the potential in improving the salt tolerance and crop yield of transgenic rice plants.

Characterization and genome analysis of novel Klebsiella phage BUCT556A with lytic activity against carbapenemase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae.

Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) have spread globally and led to the limited choice of antimicrobial treatment of K. pneumoniae-induced infections. Bacteriophages are considered as an effective strategy against bacterial infections. In this study, we isolated a novel Klebsiella phage BUCT556A with lytic activity against KPC-producing K. pneumoniae, which was a multi-drug resistant isolate. Phage BUCT556A had a symmetrical head and a long, non-contractile tail, belonging to the family Siphoviridae, order Caudoviridae. Phage BUCT556A had a relatively narrow host range, and a medium burst size of 91 PFU/cell. It was stable at broad temperature/pH range, and exhibited good tolerance to chloroform. The genome of phage BUCT556A was a 49, 376-bp linear double-stranded DNA molecule with average G + C content of 50.2%, and contained 75 open reading frames. There was no tRNA, antibiotic resistance, toxin, virulence related genes or lysogen-formation gene clusters detected in the genome of phage BUCT556A. Phylogenetic analyses based on the major capsid protein Mcp suggested that this phage had a close relationship with Klebsiella phage KLPN1. Together, through phenotypic combined with genomic DNA sequencing and analyses, our study suggests that phage BUCT556A has the potential to be used as a bacterial treatment tool for multidrug-resistant strains K. pneumoniae.

Strongly emitting and long-lived silver indium sulfide quantum dots for bioimaging: Insight into co-ligand effect on enhanced photoluminescence.

Nanoscale ternary chalcogenides have attracted increasing research interest due to their merits of tunable properties and diverse applications in energy and biomedical fields. In this article, silver indium sulfide quantum dots supported by glutathione and polyethyleneimine as dual-ligands have been synthesized through an environmentally friendly and reproducible aqueous method. An emission quantum yield up to 37.2% has been achieved by glutathione as co-ligand bearing electron-rich groups, much higher than that of polyethyleneimine coated quantum dots (4.97%). Both spectroscopic and structural characterizations demonstrate that the photoluminescence enhancement is attributed to change of surface properties by glutathione as co-ligand. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) results and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) reveal that glutathione covers the QDs with a higher density on the nanocrystal surface than other co-ligands. Therefore, it can effectively passivate the surface trap centers, thus decreasing the non-radiative emission. Moreover, the resultant silver indium sulfide quantum dots present surprisingly long lifetime of 3.69 µs, excellent fluorescent stability and low cytotoxicity, which enables them to be ideal candidate for real-time bioimaging.

Calculations of Electronic Excitation Energies and Excess Electric Dipole Moments of Solvated p-Nitroaniline with the EOM-CCSD-PCM Method.

We present computational evidence utilizing vertical electronic excitation energies and the corresponding excess dipole moments of solvated p-nitroaniline ( pNA). The properties of interest are calculated by employing the equation of motion coupled cluster together with single and double excitations (EOM-CCSD). Solvent effects are included through the polarizable continuum model (PCM) with the state-specific (SS) formalism and the perturbation theory energy and density (PTED) approach. We examine the ground state equilibrium geometry of pNA in different environments to yield the symmetry of the stable conformer of solvated pNA is C s but is also C2 v. By employing the calculated vertical excitation energies overestimate experiment, our calculations confirm the consistency of the calculated excess dipole moments with comparable documented results. Lastly, specific to this study, dissimilar environmental models, such as the linear response (LR), and variants of the corrected linear response (cLR and cLR0) formalisms in the context of the EOM-CCSD-PCM-PTED, are assessed against those from the SS formalism.

[Investigation of reproductive organs of male children and juvenile of the Meng and the Han nationality in Chifeng area].

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the development and the health of reproductive organs of male children and juvenile between the Meng and the Han nationality in the Meng nationality area. METHODS: Male juvenile(4-18 years old) of the Meng nationality (n = 2,315) and the Han nationality (n = 2,832) were divided into four age groups. Height, weight, length and perimeter of penis, volume of left and right testis and reproductive organs illness were examined. RESULTS: In 13-18 years group, the developmental speed of reproductive organs was faster in Mongolia male juvenile than that in the Han nationality (P < 0.02). After 13 years old, the developmental speed of reproductive organs of male living in town is faster than that in the country (P < 0.05). Illness of male reproductive organs was common such as hernia, varicocle etc. CONCLUSIONS: There was difference of developmental status and the prevalence rate of reproductive organs of male children and juvenile between the Meng and the Han nationality.