Clinical analysis of hyperbaric oxygen combined with subdural drilling and drainage in the management of subdural effusion type IV with intracranial infection in infant patients.

Background: To explore the therapeutic effect of hyperbaric oxygen combined with subdural drilling and drainage (SDD) on subdural effusion type IV with intracranial infection in infant patients. Methods: This retrospective controlled study included 328 infant patients with subdural effusion type 4 with intracranial infection between January 2005 and January 2023. 178 patients were treated by hyperbaric oxygen combined with SDD (group A). 142 cases were treated with SDD (group B). 97 infants were only received hyperbaric oxygen (group C). Clinical outcomes, the control time of intracranial infection, complications, and the degree of brain re-expansion after 6 months of treatment were compared among the three groups. According to the comprehensive evaluation of treatment effectiveness and imaging results, it is divided into four levels: cured, significantly effective, improved, and ineffective. Results: No patient died during follow-up. The three groups were similar regarding age, sex, the general information, and clinical symptoms (p > 0.05). All intracranial infections in the children were effectively controlled. There was no difference in infection control time between group A and group B, and there was no statistical significance. However, the control time of intracranial infection between the two groups was different from that of group C, which was statistically significant. Compared with group B and group C, the degree of brain re-expansion in group A has obvious advantages and significant differences. The effective rates of the three groups were 83.7%, 58.5%, and 56.7%, respectively. There were 28 cases of subcutaneous hydrops in group A and 22 cases of subcutaneous hydrops in group B after operation, and no other serious complications. Conclusion: The SDD is safe and effective for infant patients with intracranial infections through fluid replacement and intrathecal antibacterial. Hyperbaric oxygen is effective as an adjuvant therapy to promote brain re-expansion.

The uniaxial zero thermal expansion and zero linear compressibility in distorted Prussian blue analogue RbCuCo(CN)6.

The uniaxial zero thermal expansion (ZTE) in distorted Prussian blue analogue (PBA) RbCuCo(CN)6 is reproduced by employing first-principles calculations, which agrees well with the experimental data. Also, the zero linear compressibility (ZLC) behavior in RbCuCo(CN)6 can be found. The special Jahn-Teller distortion introduced by Cu2+ in RbCuCo(CN)6 is noticed by investigating the change of the local structure with temperature and hydrostatic pressure. The lattice thermal conductivity (LTC) and phonon group velocity of RbCuCo(CN)6 are studied, where the LTC and phonon group velocity are significantly anisotropic. Especially, RbCuCo(CN)6 exhibits a quite low LTC, and its c-axis shows a characteristic of glasslike LTC at low temperatures. Our work facilitates a deep understanding of the coexistence mechanisms of uniaxial ZTE and ZLC properties in RbCuCo(CN)6.

Establishment of ultrasensitive immunoassay strip based on colloidal gold-McAb probe for detecting cyproheptadine hydrochloride and six phenothiazines in feed.

An ultrasensitive and broad-specific monoclonal antibody recognising cyproheptadine hydrochloride and six phenothiazines was produced. The 50% inhibition concentration against cyproheptadine hydrochloride was 0.036 ng/mL, and the cross-reactivities for six phenothiazines were from 6.33% to 63.16%. Based on the developed monoclonal antibody, an immunochromatographic strip was established, with the visual detection limits (cut-off values) of seven drugs ranging from 5 to 100 ng/g in feedstuffs. With the strip reader, the 50% inhibition concentration of the developed immunochromatographic strip for seven drugs ranged from 0.570 to 7.750 ng/g. The intra-assay recoveries were from 79.8% to 103.4% with the highest coefficient of variation of 11.3%. The inter-assay recoveries were from 79.0% to 96.6% with the highest coefficient of variation of 12.7%. In summary, the proposed immunochromatographic strip was considered suitable for simultaneously monitoring cyproheptadine hydrochloride and phenothiazines in feedstuffs.

Establishment and characterization of a novel indirect ELISA method based on ASFV antigenic epitope-associated recombinant protein.

African Swine Fever (ASF) is an acute and highly lethal disease in pigs caused by African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV). Viral proteins have been commonly used as antigenic targets for the development of ASF diagnostic methods. However, the prokaryotic expression of viral proteins has deficiencies such as instability, insolubility, and high cost in eukaryotic situations. This study screened and verified ASFV-encoded p72, p54, and p30 protein antigenic epitopes. Subsequently, a novel antigenic epitope-associated recombinant protein was designed based on an ideal structural protein and expressed in Escherichia coli (E. coli). Western blot analysis indicated that the recombinant protein could specifically react with the monoclonal antibody (mAb) of p72 and polyclonal antibodies of p54 and p30, respectively. Next, an ASF indirect ELISA (iELISA) method was established based on the recombinant protein, which has no specific reaction with sera of other important pig viral diseases. Meanwhile, it shows a sensitivity to detecting dilutions of ASF-positive reference serum up to 1:6400. The clinical sample detection results showed a high coincidence rate of 98 % with a commercial competition ELISA kit. In conclusion, we established a novel specific, and sensitive ASF serologic detection method that opens new avenues for ASF serodiagnostic method development.

Development of a Gold Nanoparticle-Based Immunochromatographic Strip for Rapid Detection of Porcine Circovirus Type 2.

Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) is an important swine infectious pathogen that seriously threatens the global swine industry. PCV2 Cap protein is the only structural and the main immunogenic protein constituting the viral capsid. In this study, a gold nanoparticle-based immunochromatographic strip with high sensitivity and specificity was developed which could be used for rapid detection of PCV2 virions or Cap protein in research. The visual detection limit of the strip was 103.18 50% tissue culture infective does (TCID50)/mL for PCV2, and 2.03 µg/mL for PCV2 Cap protein. No cross-reactivity was observed with the PCV1 and PCV3 Cap proteins and other common swine pathogens such as porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus, classical swine fever virus, pseudorabies virus, porcine epidemic diarrhea virus, porcine parvovirus, and swine influenza virus. The repeatability of the strip was good. The stability of the strip was perfect for 12 months in a dry state at room temperature. Visual results could be obtained within 5 min by simply inserting the strip into the diluted sample. The strip is a time-saving, labor-saving, and reliable tool for testing of PCV2 virions or Cap protein in research. The idea of this study might open a new perspective for the application of the strip. IMPORTANCE Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) Cap protein is the only structural and the main immunogenic protein constituting the viral capsid. Although many methods can be used to identify PCV2 or PCV2 Cap protein in vaccine research, they usually require high workload and time. The developed strip can specifically detect PCV2 virions or Cap protein, and visual qualitative results can be obtained within 5 min by simply diluting the sample and inserting the strip into the sample. The final value of the strip is providing a simple and time-saving method for real-time monitoring of PCV2 antigen in vaccine research with reliable results, such as the different stages of PCV2 Cap protein expression and purification, as well as the different stages of PCV2 reproduction and purification.

History of pediatric TBI hospitalization and current child-parent relationship quality in China.

BACKGROUND: Long-term child-parent relationship quality following hospitalization for pediatric traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains poorly understood. OBJECTIVE: We tested whether current child-parent conflict and closeness were related to the children's history of TBI-related experiences and contemporary child/family characteristics. METHODS: The sample included 202 Chinese children (Boys: 60.4%) with a history of hospitalization for TBI. On average, the children were 11.2 years old (SD = 1.59) and sustained TBI at 8.5 years old (SD = 1.6). TBI-related data were obtained from hospital medical records. Parents provided data on child-parent closeness, child-parent conflict, and parental efficacy 2-4 years (M = 2.7, SD = 0.7) after discharge. RESULTS: Forty-nine children (24.3%) had mild TBI, 139 (68.8%) had moderate TBI, and 14 (6.9%) had severe TBI. Surgical intervention occurred among 128 (63.4%) of the 202 children. Contemporaneous child and family characteristics explained 19% of the variance, history of surgery, length of hospitalization, and recovery status explained another 7%, and the interaction between length of hospitalization and parental efficacy explained another 4% in child-parent conflict. Contemporaneous child and family characteristics explained 29% of the variance, and TBI-related variables explained another 2% in child-parent closeness. CONCLUSION: Post-TBI child-parent relationship was more associated with child/family characteristics than with TBI variables. Practitioners and families should be aware of the long-term challenges to child-parent relationship following hospitalization for pediatric TBI.

A multifunctional metal-organic framework nanosystem disrupts redox homeostasis for synergistic therapy.

Synergistic therapies of photodynamic therapy (PDT) and chemodynamic therapy (CDT) via metal-organic frameworks (MOF) for cancer treatment have recently attracted a lot of attentions because of the limitations of insufficient reactive oxygen species (ROS) in single-modality approaches. However, few studies explored on the use of increased ROS synergized with chemotherapy (CT) to address the issue of inadequate anti-tumor efficacy in single-modality regimens. Here, the desired cascade nanoplatforms (noted as MOF(Cu)@Dox-PL NPs) were fabricated by a solvothermal method using tetrakis (4-carboxyphenyl) porphyrin (TCPP) and zirconyl(di)chloride octahydrate (ZrOCl2·8H2O) as raw material, followed by Cu2+ introduced into the porphyrin ring and doxorubicin (DOX) loaded into the nanoframework. In addition, the nanoparticles (NPs) were electrostatically and hydrophobically coated with phospholipid (PL) to improve the biocompatibility of the nanosystems. Singlet oxygen (1O2) was created by the MOF(Cu)@Dox-PL NPs to disturb intracellular redox equilibrium. The acidic microenvironment in cancer cells may cause the prior release of DOX, which encourages the production of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). And the doped Cu2+ could deplete overexpressed reduced glutathione (GSH) to produce hydroxyl radicals (·OH) by catalyzing H2O2, further causing redox dyshomeostasis. In vivo experiments revealed that MOF(Cu)@Dox-PL nanosystem possessed good biosafety and a compelling therapeutic effect in 4T1 tumor-bearing mice. As a novel nanosystem, MOF(Cu)@Dox-PL NPs showed great potential in synergistic therapy based on redox dyshomeostasis for improving anti-tumor efficacy with high specificity.

Prussian Blue-Derived Nanoplatform for In Situ Amplified Photothermal/Chemodynamic/Starvation Therapy.

Chemodynamic therapy (CDT) is an emerging tumor treatment; however, it is hindered by insufficient endogenous hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and high glutathione (GSH) concentrations in the tumor microenvironment (TME). Furthermore, CDT has limited therapeutic efficacy as a monotherapy. To overcome these limitations, in this study, a nanoplatform is designed and constructed from Cu-doped mesoporous Prussian blue (CMPB)-encapsulated glucose oxidase (GOx) with a coating of hyaluronic acid (HA) modified with a nitric oxide donor (HN). In the proposed GOx@CMPB-HN nanoparticles, the dopant Cu2+ ions are crucial to combining and mutually promoting multiple therapeutic approaches, namely, CDT, photothermal therapy (PTT), and starvation therapy. The dopant Cu2+ ions in CMPB protect against reactive oxygen species to deplete the intracellular GSH in the TME. Additionally, the byproduct Cu+ ions act as a substrate for a Fenton-like reaction that activates CDT. Moreover, H2O2, which is another important substrate, is produced in large quantities through intracellular glucose depletion caused by the nanoparticle-loaded GOx, and the gluconic acid produced in this reaction further enhances the TME acidity and creates a better catalytic environment for CDT. In addition, Cu2+ doping greatly improves the mesoporous Prussian blue (MPB) photothermal conversion performance, and the resultant increase in temperature accelerates CDT catalysis. Finally, the HN coating enables the nanoparticles to actively target CD44 receptors in cancer cells and also enhances vascular permeability. Therefore, this coating has multiple effects, such as facilitating enhanced permeability and retention and deep laser penetration. In vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrate that the proposed GOx@CMPB-HN nanoplatform significantly inhibits tumor growth with the help of in situ enhanced synergistic therapies based on the properties of the TME. The developed nanoplatform has the potential to be applied to cancer treatment and introduces new avenues for tumor treatment research.

Highly sensitive immunochromatographic assay for simultaneous determination of azaperone and azaperol in pork.

In this study, a sensitive immunochromatographic assay (ICA) was developed for simultaneously detecting azaperone (AZN) and its metabolite azaperol (AZL) based on the high-affinity monoclonal antibody (mAb). Herein, the hapten AZL-SA was synthesized by succinic anhydride method, and then the conjugates AZL-SA-OVA and AZL-SA-KLH were prepared by EDC/NHS method. Subsequently, mAb was produced for targets monitoring through two detection modes. In direct ICA (using gold nanoparticles labeled specific antibodies), the visual LOD of AZN was 80 ng/g. For indirect ICA (using gold nanoparticles labeled anti-species antibodies), the visual and instrumental LODs of AZN were 8 and 0.14 ng/g, and AZL were 8 and 0.12 ng/g, respectively. The results indicated that the visual detection limit (LOD) of indirect format was tenfold lower than that of direct format. The established analytical method obtains the results within 15 min and provides a sensitive and simple tool for on-site detection of AZN and AZL.

Effects of modified external ventricular drainage vs. an Ommaya reservoir in the management of hydrocephalus with intracranial infection in pediatric patients.

Background: Hydrocephalus with intracranial infection (HII) may cause pathological changes in brain tissue structure and irreversible damage to the nervous system. However, intracranial infection is a contraindication to ventriculo-peritoneal (VP) shunt surgery, and the prognosis is improved by early infection control and intracranial pressure reduction. This study evaluated the safety and efficacy of the Ommaya reservoir vs. modified external ventricular drainage (M-EVD) in the management of HII in pediatric patients. Methods: This retrospective controlled study included 45 pediatric patients with HII treated with an Ommaya reservoir (n = 24) or M-EVD (n = 21) between January 2018 and December 2022. Clinical outcomes, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) test results, complications, and outcomes were compared between the Ommaya reservoir and M-EVD groups. Results: No patient died during the follow-up period. The two groups were similar regarding age, sex, admission temperature, weight, preoperative serum protein and albumin concentrations, CSF analysis (white blood cell count, glucose concentration, and protein content), and clinical symptoms (P > 0.05). Both groups had significant changes in the CSF test results postoperatively compared with preoperatively (P < 0.05). In the M-EVD group, the median days for 13 children to remove the external drainage tube and receive VP shunt was 19 days. The longest drainage tube retention time was 61 days, and there was no intracranial infection or serious complication related to the drainage tube. After the placement of the Ommaya, the median time required for CSF to return to normal was 21 days, and a total of 15 patients underwent VP shunt surgery. Conclusion: The Ommaya reservoir and M-EVD are safe and effective for pediatric patients with HII. Both methods reduce the intracranial pressure and alleviate the symptoms of hydrocephalus, although there are differences between the two methods.

Serological survey of SARS-CoV-2 in companion animals in China.

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) can be transmitted from human to companion animals. The national wide serological surveillance against SARS-CoV-2 was conducted among pet animals, mainly in cats and dogs, 1 year after the first outbreak of COVID-19 in China. All sera were tested for SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies using an indirect enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) based on the receptor binding domain (RBD) of spike protein. This late survey takes advantage of the short duration of the serological response in these animals to track recent episode of transmission. A total of 20,592 blood samples were obtained from 25 provinces across 7 geographical regions. The overall seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infections in cats was 0.015% (2/13397; 95% confidence intervals (CI): 0.0, 0.1). The virus infections in cats were only detected in Central (Hubei, 0.375%) and Eastern China (Zhejiang, 0.087%) with a seroprevalence estimated at 0.090 and 0.020%, respectively. In dogs, the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infections was 0.014% (1/7159; 95% CI: 0.0, 0.1) in the entire nation, seropositive samples were limited to Beijing (0.070%) of Northern China with a prevalence of 0.054%. No seropositive cases were discovered in other geographic regions, nor in other companion animals analyzed in this study. These data reveal the circulation of SARS-CoV-2 in companion animals, although transmission of the virus to domestic cats and dogs is low in China, continuous monitoring is helpful for the better understand of the virus transmission status and the effect on animals.

Increased resting-state alpha coherence and impaired inhibition control in young smokers.

Exposure to nicotine is the first cause of entirely preventable death killing, which is commonly initiated in adolescence. Previous studies revealed the changes of electroencephalography (EEG) and inhibition control in smokers. However, little is known about the specific link between alpha coherence during the resting state and inhibition control ability in young smokers. The present study aimed to investigate inter-hemispherical and frontal-parietal alpha coherence changes and assessed the relationships between alpha coherence and inhibition control in young smokers. We collected resting-state EEG data from 23 young smokers and 24 healthy controls. Inhibition control ability was assessed by a Go/NoGo task. Compared to healthy controls, young smokers exhibited increased inter-hemispherical and frontal-parietal alpha coherence. Furthermore, young smokers committed more NoGo errors in the Go/NogGo task. It is noteworthy that alpha coherence at the frontal electrode sites was positively correlated with NoGo errors in healthy controls, whereas inverse correlations were observed in young smokers. Our findings suggested that alterations of alpha coherence may provide support to the earlier nicotine-dependence-related research findings, which may help us to understand the neuropathology of inhibitory control in young smokers.

Altered resting-state electroencephalography microstate characteristics in young male smokers.

The development of nicotine addiction was associated with the abnormalities of intrinsic functional networks during the resting state in young adult smokers. As a whole-brain imaging approach, EEG microstate analysis treated multichannel EEG recordings as a series of quasi-steady microscopic states which were related to the resting-state networks (RSNs) found by fMRI. The aim of this study was to examine whether the resting-state EEG microstate analysis may provide novel insights into the abnormal temporal properties of intrinsic brain activities in young smokers. We used 64-channel resting-state EEG datasets to investigate alterations in microstate characteristics between twenty-five young smokers and 25 age- and gender-matched non-smoking controls. Four classic EEG microstates (microstate A, B, C, and D) were obtained, and the four temporal parameters of each microstate were extracted, i.e., duration, occurrence, coverage, and transition probabilities. Compared with non-smoking controls, young smokers showed decreased occurrence of microstate C and increased duration of microstate D. Furthermore, both the duration and coverage of microstate D were significantly negatively correlated with Fagerstrom Test of Nicotine Dependence (FTND) in young smoker group. The complex changes in the microstate time-domain parameters might correspond to the abnormalities of RSNs in analyses of FC measured with fMRI in the previous studies and indicate the altered specific brain functions in young smokers. Microstate D could be potentially represented as a selective biomarker for predicting the dependence degree of adolescent smokers on cigarettes. These results suggested that EEG microstate analysis might detect the deviant functions of large-scale cortical activities in young smokers and provide a new perspective for the study of brain networks of adolescent smokers.

Relationship between platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio and Coronary Artery Lesion in non-diabetic patients with coronary heart disease.

This study was conducted to investigate the relationship between platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio and coronary artery lesion in non-diabetic patients with coronary heart disease. This observational research was done at Changyi people's Hospital, China, from January 2017 to August 2020. A total of 237 non-diabetic cases with suspected coronary heart disease were selected as subjects. Patients with negative coronary angiography were labelled as non-coronary heart disease patients (control group), patients with coronary heart disease confirmed on angiography comprised the coronary heart disease group. The results showed that smoking and hypertension history in the two groups were different (p=0.031 and 0.001). Platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio value and Gensini score in coronary heart disease group were higher as against the control group (both p<0.001). Platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio was an independent risk factor for coronary heart disease (p<0.001) using logistic regression analysis. A significant positive correlation between platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio and Gensini score in coronary heart disease patients (r=0.510, p<0.001) was determined by Spearman analysis. In conclusion, platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio can be acquired simply and quickly from blood routine examination, and its level is related to coronary artery lesion. Platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio may provide certain reference value in judging coronary artery lesion in non-diabetic patients with coronary heart disease.

Interleukin-17A influences the vulnerability rather than the size of established atherosclerotic plaques in apolipoprotein E-deficient mice.

Interleukin (IL)-17A plays a role in the development of atherosclerotic plaques; however, the mechanism remains unclear. In this study, apolipoprotein E-deficient (ApoE-/-) mice were fed a high-fat diet to induce atherosclerosis, followed by the treatment with exogenous recombinant IL-17A or the neutralizing antibody to confirm the impact of IL-17A on the established atherosclerotic plaques. We found that both the stimulation of IL-17A and blockage of endogenous IL-17 via antibody did not affect the size of the established plaques. However, IL-17A significantly increased the vulnerability of plaques characterized by the accumulation of lipids and T cells with a concurrent decrease in the number of smooth muscle cells. In addition, the blockage by IL-17 neutralizing antibody attenuated plaque vulnerability. Furthermore, we found that although IL-17A did not affect the efferocytosis of macrophages to apoptotic cells, it promoted the apoptosis of macrophages in the presence of oxidized low-density lipoprotein in vitro. Also, IL-17A upregulated chemokines MCP-1 and CXCL-10 expression in the plaques. Our data indicated that IL-17A controlled both SMC and macrophage accumulation and the apoptosis within the plaque, which may further weaken the aorta wall. This study suggests that IL-17A may be a potential therapeutic target for cardiovascular diseases.

Efficacy and safety of traditional Chinese medicine nasal irrigation on chronic rhinosinusitis recovery after endoscopic sinus surgery: A protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Continuous comprehensive treatment is still needed after endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) for chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) to promote the recovery of sinus mucosal morphology and function. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) nasal irrigation is a promising external treatment of TCM, but at present, the application of TCM nasal irrigation after ESS for CRS has not been recommended by the guidelines. Therefore, this article aims to develop a systematic overview and meta-analysis protocol to assess the effectiveness and safety of Chinese herbal nasal rinse for CRS recovery after ESS. METHODS: Seven databases shall be retrieved from their inception until December 2021. Eligible randomized controlled trials will be covered in the study. The outcome indicators of the survey will consist of efficacy, visual analogue scale score, Lund-Kennedy score for nasal endoscopy, Lund-Mackay score for sinus computed tomography and other secondary outcome indicators. The selection of literature, extraction of data, and methodological quality evaluation of literature shall be conducted by two researchers separately. If there is any dispute, it can be discussed and solved by a third researcher. Review Manager 5.3 software will be applied to data analysis. RESULTS: The article will make a detailed research programme to explore the efficacy and safety of TCM nasal irrigation on CRS recovery after ESS. CONCLUSION: This protocol is suitable for evaluating the effectiveness and safety of TCM nasal rinse for CRS recovery after ESS, and can provide corresponding evidence-based medical evidence. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: Open Science Framework Registration DOI: 10.17605/OSF.IO/ZV73Q.

Nanocellulose with unique character converted directly from plants without intensive mechanical disintegration.

TEMPO oxidized nano-fibrillated cellulose (TONFC) has been used in different applications including biomedical, packing materials, paints and cosmetics because of its higher transparency, mechanical properties and better biocompatibility. However, pulping is always required to remove lignin and hemicellulose, and high-energy homogenization is required to defibrillate cellulose bundle into filament. Therefore, it is desirable to find a novel way to get TONFC with high carboxyl content without intensive mechanical disintegration. In this work, nanocellulose (TOHOLO) with higher carboxyl groups (2.2 ± 0.2 mmol/g) and smaller size (length = 400-685 nm and diameter = 5.9 nm) was prepared by a two-step strategy without intensive mechanical homogenization. In addition to the advantages in terms of diameter and carboxyl groups, TOHOLO showed better transparency and re-dispersibility as well as higher mechanical properties (122.8 MPa) compared to previous reports. Furthermore, for high carboxyl group and dispersibility, the TOHOLO can be used as a reinforcing filler to fabricate nanocomposites. The reinforced PVA fibers show a tensile strength of 484.4 MPa, which is about 170 % higher than comparison samples (PVA/TOCN-M, 291.9 MPa).

An Improved Immunochromatographic Strip Based on Plant-Derived E2 for Detection of Antibodies against Classical Swine Fever Virus.

Vaccination is an effective method to control the spread of classical swine fever virus (CSFV), which is a major cause of economic losses to the swine industry. Although serological detection assays are commonly used to assess immune status, current methods for monitoring of antibodies (Abs) are time-consuming, expensive, and require cell culture and virus manipulation. To address these problems, the E2 protein of CSFV was expressed in transgenic rice seeds as a labeled antigen for the development of an immunochromatographic test strip (ICTS) for rapid, precise, and cost-effective detection of Abs. The ICTS has a reasonable sensitivity of 1:128,000 for detection of serum Abs against CSFV and no cross-reactivity with Abs of other porcine viruses. The similarity of the results between the proposed ICTS and a commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was 94.1% (128/136) for detection of serum Abs from immunized animals and 92.3% (72/78) for detection of maternally derived Abs. The proposed assay was successfully used to monitor Abs against E2 of both pigs and rabbits immunized with a live attenuated vaccine or an E2 subunit vaccine. The results confirmed that the ICTS can be applied to detect Ab levels in animals with different immunological backgrounds. The ICTS based on plant-derived E2 is a relatively inexpensive, rapid, and accurate assay for detection of Abs against CSFV and avoids the risk of contamination by animal products. IMPORTANCE The E2 protein of classical swine fever virus (CSFV) was expressed in transgenic rice endosperms as a diagnostic antigen for use with a rapid colloidal gold assay for the detection of antibodies (Abs) against CSFV. This improved test was used to monitor Abs against the E2 protein in both pigs and rabbits immunized with a live attenuated vaccine or E2 subunit vaccine. The assay successfully detected Ab levels in serum samples from piglets with different immunological backgrounds. In contrast to current E2 protein-based diagnostic methods using Escherichia coli or insect cells as expression systems, plant-derived E2 avoids the limitations of low immunogenicity of eukaryotic expression systems and potential contamination of fetal bovine serum with bovine viral diarrhea virus in cell culture.

[Expression of NDV HN protein in rice and development of a semi-quantitative rapid method for detection of antibodies].

The aim of this study was to develop a semi-quantitative immunochromatographic method for rapid detection of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) antibodies by expressing HN protein in rice endosperm bioreactor. The recombinant plasmid pUC57-HN was digested by MlyⅠ and XhoⅠ to retrieve the HN gene, while the intermediate vector pMP3 containing promoter, signal peptide and terminator was digested by NaeⅠ and XhoⅠ. The HN gene and the linearized pMP3 were purified and ligated to form a recombinant plasmid pMP3-HN1. Subsequently, pMP3-HN1 and plant vector pCAMBIA1300 were digested by EcoRⅠ and Hind Ⅲ, and the HN1 gene was cloned into pCAMBIA1300. The recombinant plasmid pCAMBIA1300-HN1 was introduced into Agrobacterium tumefaciens EHA105 by electrotransformation, and the pCAMBIA1300-HN1 was transferred into rice callus by agrobacterium-mediated method. After dark culture, callus screening, differentiation, rooting and transplanting, transgenic rice seeds were obtained 4 months later. PCR identified that the HN gene has been inserted into the rice genome. SDS-PAGE and Western blotting indicated that the HN protein was successfully expressed in the positive rice endosperm. The purity of the HN protein was more than 90% by SP cation exchange chromatography and gel filtration chromatography. According to the national standards for the diagnostic techniques of Newcastle disease HI test (HI≥4log2, positive antibody reaction), a colloidal gold labeled purified HN protein was used to prepare a semi-quantitative test strip by double-antibody sandwich method for rapid detection of NDV antibody. The results showed that the test strip did not cross-react with positive sera against other viruses, and the sensitivity of the test strip reached 1:102 400 for standard positive sera of Newcastle disease. Testing of a total of 308 clinical sera showed that the compliance rate of the test strip with HI test was 97.08%, and the Kappa value was 0.942. In conclusion, high purity recombinant HN protein was obtained from rice endosperm, and a simple, rapid, highly sensitive and highly specific semi-quantitative immunochromatographic strip was developed. The test strip could be used for immune evaluation of the Newcastle disease vaccine.

The Combination of Two-Dimensional Nanomaterials with Metal Oxide Nanoparticles for Gas Sensors: A Review.

Metal oxide nanoparticles have been widely utilized for the fabrication of functional gas sensors to determine various flammable, explosive, toxic, and harmful gases due to their advantages of low cost, fast response, and high sensitivity. However, metal oxide-based gas sensors reveal the shortcomings of high operating temperature, high power requirement, and low selectivity, which limited their rapid development in the fabrication of high-performance gas sensors. The combination of metal oxides with two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials to construct a heterostructure can hybridize the advantages of each other and overcome their respective shortcomings, thereby improving the sensing performance of the fabricated gas sensors. In this review, we present recent advances in the fabrication of metal oxide-, 2D nanomaterials-, as well as 2D material/metal oxide composite-based gas sensors with highly sensitive and selective functions. To achieve this aim, we firstly introduce the working principles of various gas sensors, and then discuss the factors that could affect the sensitivity of gas sensors. After that, a lot of cases on the fabrication of gas sensors by using metal oxides, 2D materials, and 2D material/metal oxide composites are demonstrated. Finally, we summarize the current development and discuss potential research directions in this promising topic. We believe in this work is helpful for the readers in multidiscipline research fields like materials science, nanotechnology, chemical engineering, environmental science, and other related aspects.