Effect of pyrolysis temperature on the binding characteristics of DOM derived from livestock manure biochar with Cu(II).

Biochar-derived dissolved organic matter (BDOM) has the potential to influence the environmental application of biochar and the behavior of heavy metals. In this study, the binding properties of BDOM derived from livestock manure biochar at different pyrolysis temperatures with Cu(II) were investigated based on a multi-analytical approach. The results showed that the DOC concentration, aromatics, and humification degree of BDOM were higher in the process of low pyrolysis of biochar. The pyrolysis temperature changed the composition of BDOM functional groups, which affected the binding mechanism of BDOM-Cu(II). Briefly, humic-like and protein-like substances dominated BDOM-Cu(II) binding at low and high pyrolysis temperatures, respectively. The higher binding capacity for Cu(II) was exhibited by BDOM derived from the lower pyrolysis temperature, due to the carboxyl as the main binding site in humic acid had high content and binding ability at low-temperature. The amide in proteins only participated in the BDOM-Cu(II) binding at high pyrolysis temperature, and polysaccharides also played an important role in the binding process. Moreover, the biochar underwent the secondary reaction at certain high temperatures, which led to condensation reaction of the aromatic structure and the conversion of large molecules into small molecules, affecting the BDOM-Cu(II) binding sites.

The protective effects of BMSA1 and BMSA5-1-1 proteins against Babesia microti infection.

The intracellular parasite Babesia microti is among the most significant species causing human babesiosis and is an emerging threat to human health worldwide. Unravelling the pathogenic molecular mechanisms of babesiosis is crucial in developing new diagnostic and preventive methods. This study assessed how priming with B. microti surface antigen 1 (BHSA 1) and seroreactive antigen 5-1-1 (BHSA 5-1-1) mediate protection against B. microti infection. The results showed that 500 µg/ml rBMSA1 and rBMSA5-1-1 partially inhibited the invasion of B. microti in vitro by 42.0 ± 3.0%, and 48.0 ± 2.1%, respectively. Blood smears revealed that peak infection at 7 days post-infection (dpi) was 19.6%, 24.7%, and 46.7% in the rBMSA1, rBmSA5-1-1, compared to the control groups (healthy mice infected with B. microti only), respectively. Routine blood tests showed higher white blood cell, red blood cell counts, and haemoglobin levels in the 2 groups (BMSA1 and BMSA5 5-1-1) than in the infection control group at 0-28 dpi. Moreover, the 2 groups had higher serum interferon-γ, tumor necrosis factor-α and Interleukin-17A levels, and lower IL-10 levels than the infection control group throughout the study. These 2 potential vaccine candidate proteins partially inhibit in vitro and in vivo B. microti infection and enhance host immunological response against B. microti infection.

Assessing the association between the circulating levels of inflammatory cytokines and the risk of tuberculosis: A bidirectional two-sample mendelian randomization study.

BACKGROUND: Numerous observational studies have previously reported an association between inflammatory cytokines and tuberculosis (TB). However, the causal relationship between these factors remains unclear. Consequently, we conducted two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses to ascertain the causal link between levels of inflammatory cytokines and the risk of TB. METHODS: Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) robustly associated with the cytokines, located in or close to their coding gene. SNP was obtained from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of 8293 individuals of Finnish. TB data was obtained from the UK Biobank, which included 46,293 individuals of European ancestry (comprising 2277 TB cases and 46,056 controls). Two-sample, bi-directional MR analyses using inverse-variance weighted (IVW) method as the primary analysis. Followed by comprehensive sensitivity analyses to validate the robustness of results. RESULT: The study showed that the causal relationship between circulating levels of interleukin (IL)-7 and risk of TB (odds ratio [OR] = 1.001, 95% confidence intervals [CIs]: 1.000, 1.003. p = 0.047). No causal associations were observed between other influencing factors and the occurrence of TB. Furthermore, the analysis revealed that TB infection exhibited negative causal associations with macrophage inflammatory protein 1 alpha ([MIP-1α], OR = 0.007, 95% CI: 0.000, 0.192. p = 0.004), IL-2 (OR = 0.014, 95% CI: 0.010, 0.427. p = 0.014), interleukin-2 receptor alpha chain([IL-2rα], OR = 0.019, 95% CI: 0.001, 0.525. p = 0.019) and basic fibroblast growth factor ([bFGF], OR = 0.066, 95% CI: 0.006, 0.700. p = 0.024). CONCLUSION: The study has illuminated the causal link between inflammatory cytokines and TB, thereby enhancing our comprehension of the potential mechanisms underlying TB pathogenesis. This discovery offers promising avenues for the identification of novel therapeutic targets in TB treatment. These insights may ultimately pave the way for more effective treatment approaches, thereby improving patient outcomes.

Impact factors of Blastocystis hominis infection in persons living with human immunodeficiency virus: a large-scale, multi-center observational study from China.

BACKGROUND: Blastocystis hominis (Bh) is zoonotic parasitic pathogen with a high prevalent globally, causing opportunistic infections and diarrhea disease. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection disrupts the immune system by depleting CD4+ T lymphocyte (CD4+ T) cell counts, thereby increasing Bh infection risk among persons living with HIV (PLWH). However, the precise association between Bh infection risk and HIV-related biological markers and treatment processes remains poorly understood. Hence, the purpose of the study was to explore the association between Bh infection risk and CD4+ T cell counts, HIV viral load (VL), and duration of interruption in antiviral therapy among PLWH. METHODS: A large-scale multi-center cross-sectional study was conducted in China from June 2020 to December 2022. The genetic presence of Bh in fecal samples was detected by real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction, the CD4+ T cell counts in venous blood was measured using flowcytometry, and the HIV VL in serum was quantified using fluorescence-based instruments. Restricted cubic spline (RCS) was applied to assess the non-linear association between Bh infection risk and CD4+ T cell counts, HIV VL, and duration of interruption in highly active antiretroviral therapy (HARRT). RESULTS: A total of 1245 PLWH were enrolled in the study, the average age of PLWH was 43 years [interquartile range (IQR): 33, 52], with 452 (36.3%) being female, 50.4% (n = 628) had no immunosuppression (CD4+ T cell counts > 500 cells/µl), and 78.1% (n = 972) achieved full virological suppression (HIV VL < 50 copies/ml). Approximately 10.5% (n = 131) of PLWH had interruption. The prevalence of Bh was found to be 4.9% [95% confidence interval (CI): 3.8-6.4%] among PLWH. Significant nonlinear associations were observed between the Bh infection risk and CD4+ T cell counts (Pfor nonlinearity < 0.001, L-shaped), HIV VL (Pfor nonlinearity < 0.001, inverted U-shaped), and duration of interruption in HARRT (Pfor nonlinearity < 0.001, inverted U-shaped). CONCLUSIONS: The study revealed that VL was a better predictor of Bh infection than CD4+ T cell counts. It is crucial to consider the simultaneous surveillance of HIV VL and CD4+ T cell counts in PLWH in the regions with high level of socioeconomic development. The integrated approach can offer more comprehensive and accurate understanding in the aspects of Bh infection and other opportunistic infections, the efficacy of therapeutic drugs, and the assessment of preventive and control strategies.

Risk factors for surgical site infection in patients with gastric cancer: A meta-analysis.

Surgical Site Infection (SSI) is one of the common postoperative complications after gastric cancer surgery. Previous studies have explored the risk factors (such as age, diabetes, anaemia and ASA score) for SSI in patients with gastric cancer. However, there are large differences in the research results, and the correlation coefficients of different research results are quite different. We aim to investigate the risk factors of surgical site infection in patients with gastric cancer. We queried four English databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and the Cochrane Library) and four Chinese databases (China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese Biological Medicine Database, Wanfang Database and Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP Database)) to identify published literature related to risk factors for surgical site infection in patients with gastric cancer. Rev Man 5.4 and Stata 15.0 were used in this meta-analysis. A total of 15 articles (n = 6206) were included in this analysis. The following risk factors were found to be significantly associated with surgical site infection in gastric cancer: male (OR = 1.28, 95% CI [1.06, 1.55]), age >60 (OR = 2.75, 95% CI [1.65, 4.57]), smoking (OR = 1.99, 95% CI [1.46, 2.73]), diabetes (OR = 2.03, 95% CI [1.59, 2.61]), anaemia (OR = 4.72, 95% CI [1.66, 13.40]), preoperative obstruction (OR = 3.07, 95% CI [1.80, 5.23]), TNM ≥ III (OR = 2.05, 95% CI [1.56, 2.70]), hypoproteinemia (OR = 3.05, 95% CI [2.08, 4.49]), operation time ≥3 h (OR = 8.33, 95% CI [3.81, 18.20]), laparotomy (OR = 2.18, 95% CI [1.61, 2.94]) and blood transfusion (OR = 1.44, 95% CI [1.01, 2.06]). This meta-analysis showed that male, age >60, smoking, diabetes, anaemia, preoperative obstruction, TNM ≥ III, hypoproteinemia, operation time ≥3 h, open surgery and blood transfusion were the risk factors for SSI in patients with gastric cancer.

Optimal control strategies of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron supported by invasive and dynamic models.

BACKGROUND: There is a raising concern of a higher infectious Omicron BA.2 variant and the latest BA.4, BA.5 variant, made it more difficult in the mitigation process against COVID-19 pandemic. Our study aimed to find optimal control strategies by transmission of dynamic model from novel invasion theory. METHODS: Based on the public data sources from January 31 to May 31, 2022, in four cities (Nanjing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Suzhou) of China. We segmented the theoretical curves into five phases based on the concept of biological invasion. Then, a spatial autocorrelation analysis was carried out by detecting the clustering of the studied areas. After that, we choose a mathematical model of COVID-19 based on system dynamics methodology to simulate numerous intervention measures scenarios. Finally, we have used publicly available migration data to calculate spillover risk. RESULTS: Epidemics in Shanghai and Shenzhen has gone through the entire invasion phases, whereas Nanjing and Suzhou were all ended in the establishment phase. The results indicated that Rt value and public health and social measures (PHSM)-index of the epidemics were a negative correlation in all cities, except Shenzhen. The intervention has come into effect in different phases of invasion in all studied cities. Until the May 31, most of the spillover risk in Shanghai remained above the spillover risk threshold (18.81-303.84) and the actual number of the spillovers (0.94-74.98) was also increasing along with the time. Shenzhen reported Omicron cases that was only above the spillover risk threshold (17.92) at the phase of outbreak, consistent with an actual partial spillover. In Nanjing and Suzhou, the actual number of reported cases did not exceed the spillover alert value. CONCLUSIONS: Biological invasion is positioned to contribute substantively to understanding the drivers and mechanisms of the COVID-19 spread and outbreaks. After evaluating the spillover risk of cities at each invasion phase, we found the dynamic zero-COVID strategy implemented in four cities successfully curb the disease epidemic peak of the Omicron variant, which was highly correlated to the way to perform public health and social measures in the early phases right after the invasion of the virus.

Roles of microplastic-derived dissolved organic matter on the photodegradation of organic micropollutants.

Microplastic-derived dissolved organic matter (MP-DOM) is ubiquitous in water environment and exhibits photosensitivity. However, little is known about the effects of MP-DOM on the photodegradation of organic micropollutants in natural water. In this study, we investigated the effect of MP-DOM derived from two typical plastics, i.e., polystyrene (PS), and polyethylene (PE), on the photodegradation of a typical organic micropollutants sulfamethoxazole (SMX) in a simulative natural water system. MP-DOM exerted a significant inhibition on the SMX photodegradation, mainly attributed to the direct photolysis inhibition of SMX caused by the inner filter effect and the complexation effect. Despite the enhanced reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation with the increase of their steady-state concentration by 41.1 - 160.7 %, PS-DOM exhibited high oxidation resistance, causing an inhibition on the photodegradation of SMX probably through transferring electrons to the SMX intermediates. This study helps to deepen the understanding of microplastic photochemical behavior in natural water.

Enhanced phosphatidylserine exposure and erythropoiesis in Babesia microti-infected mice.

Introduction: Babesia microti (B. microti) is the dominant species responsible for human babesiosis, which is associated with severe hemolytic anemia and splenomegaly because it infects mammalian erythrocytes. The actual prevalence of B. microti is thought to have been substantially underestimated. Methods: In this study, Bagg's albino/c (BALB/c) mice were intraperitoneally injected with B. microti-infected erythrocytes, and parasitemia was subsequently measured by calculating the proportion of infected erythrocytes. The ultrastructure of infected erythrocytes was observed using scanning and transmission electron microscopes. Quantifying phosphatidylserine (PS) exposure, oxidative stress, intracellular Ca2+, and erythropoiesis of erythrocytes were done using flow cytometry. The physiological indicators were analyzed using a Mindray BC-5000 Vet automatic hematology analyzer. Results: Of note, 40.7 ± 5.9% of erythrocytes changed their structure and shrunk in the B. microti-infected group. The percentage of annexin V-positive erythrocytes and the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the erythrocytes were higher in the B. microti-infected group than in the control group at 10 dpi. Significant splenomegaly and severe anemia were also observed following B. microti infection. The parasitemia level in the B. microti-infected splenectomized group was higher than that of the B. microti-infected sham group. The population of early erythroblasts increased, and the late erythroblasts decreased in both the bone marrow and spleen tissues of the B. microti-infected group at 10 dpi. Discussion: PS exposure and elevated ROS activities were hallmarks of eryptosis in the B. microti-infected group. This study revealed for the first time that B. microti could also induce eryptosis. At the higher parasitemia phase, the occurrence of severe anemia and significant changes in the abundance of erythroblasts in B. microti-infected mice group were established. The spleen plays a critical protective role in controlling B. microti infection and preventing anemia. B. microti infection could cause a massive loss of late erythroblasts and induce erythropoiesis.

A COVID-19 Outbreak Emerging in a Food Processing Company - Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, China, January-February 2021.

What is already known about this topic? The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic in China had been effectively controlled for several months, but as the ambient temperature dropped, large gathering-initiated epidemics occurred in northern China, including Hebei, Liaoning, and Jilin provinces. What is added by this report? A sudden epidemic emerged in Wangkui County, Suihua City, Heilongjiang Province, on January 9, 2021. An asymptomatically-infected resident of Harbin City returned from Suihua and triggered a large-scale outbreak in the Zhengda Food Processing Company in Harbin, Heilongjiang. The epidemic was associated with widespread community transmission inside and outside the company, eventually leading to 260 persons being infected (87.8% of 296 patients in Harbin). What are the implications for public health practice? This study demonstrates the importance of screening for infections in the COVID-19 prevention and control system, shares experiences identifying and managing asymptomatic infections, and recommends food processing enterprises like the Zhengda Company to improve preventative measures. Our evidence-based epidemiological analyses provide methods for finding high-risk settings and evaluating epidemic situations when many asymptomatic patients are identified in a short period of time.

Soaring Asymptomatic Infected Individuals Bring About Barriers and Difficulties for Interruption of COVID-19 Prevalence in China.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has become a global pandemic, which has caused unprecedented damage to human health and life. The present study aimed to carry out and discover asymptomatic infected individuals in Shenzhen, China. The data will provide the control measures to stop COVID-19 prevalence. Methods: The study was a retrospective review of medical records from 462 confirmed patients with COVID-19 and 45 asymptomatic infected individuals in Shenzhen from January 19 to April 30, 2020; this is a retrospective, observational multicenter study. Results: A total of 462 confirmed cases were diagnosed in Shenzhen from January 19 to April 30, 2020. The cohort included 423 domestic cases (91.56%, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 88.67-93.76) and 39 (8.44%, 95% CI: 6.24-11.33) imported cases from other countries. Moreover, a total of 45 asymptomatic infections were found, encompassing 31 (68.89%, 95% CI: 54.34-80.47) local infections and 14 (31.11%, 95% CI: 19.53-45.66) individuals imported from other countries. The proportion of asymptomatic infected persons in Shenzhen is continuously increasing (Z = 13.19, p < 0.0001). The total number of local asymptomatic infections was more than that in other provinces (χ2 = 118.83, p < 0.0001). The proportion of asymptomatic infected individuals among cases imported from other countries was higher than the domestic cases (χ2 = 22.51, p < 0.0001, odds ratio = 4.90, 95% CI: 2.40-9.98). Conclusions: The proportion of asymptomatic infection is increasing. Hence, development and application of the diagnosis method with high sensitivity and specificity play a critical role in reducing COVID-19 global epidemics.

Genetic Characterization and Detection of Angiostrongylus cantonensis by Molecular Approaches.

Angiostrongylus cantonensis constitutes a major etiologic agent of eosinophilic meningoencephalitis. The detection methods for angiostrongyliasis mainly depend on morphology or immunology. A firmer diagnosis could be reached by directly detecting the parasite in the cerebrospinal fluid or through laboratory assays that are specific for Angiostrongylus-induced antibodies or the parasite's DNA. A. cantonensis detection could be carried out by larva release from the tissue upon pepsin digestion. However, the procedure requires live mollusks, which might complicate the analysis of large amounts of samples. Since morphological assays are limited, multiple molecular techniques have been put forward for detecting A. cantonensis, including PCR amplification of targets followed by fragment length or DNA sequence analysis. This allows rapid and accurate identification of A. cantonensis for efficient infection management and epidemiological purposes. In this study, we reviewed the current methods, concepts, and applications of molecular approaches to better understand the genetic characterization, molecular detection methods, and practical application of molecular detection in A. cantonensis.

Repetitive injury and absence of monocytes promote astrocyte self-renewal and neurological recovery.

Unlike microglia and NG2 glia, astrocytes are incapable of migrating to sites of injury in the posttraumatic cerebral cortex, instead relying on proliferation to replenish their numbers and distribution in the affected region. However, neither the spectrum of their proliferative repertoire nor their postinjury distribution has been examined in vivo. Using a combination of different thymidine analogs and clonal analysis in a model of repetitive traumatic brain injury, we show for the first time that astrocytes that are quiescent following an initial injury can be coerced to proliferate after a repeated insult in the cerebral cortex grey matter. Interestingly, this process is promoted by invasion of monocytes to the injury site, as their genetic ablation (using CCR2-/- mice) increased the number of repetitively dividing astrocytes at the expense of newly proliferating astrocytes in repeatedly injured parenchyma. These differences profoundly affected both the distribution of astrocytes and recovery period for posttraumatic behavior deficits suggesting key roles of astrocyte self-renewal in brain repair after injury.

Prevalence and risk factors of Fascioliasis in China.

Fascioliasis has emerged as a significant public health problem among ruminants and humans. Human fascioliasis is a neglected food-borne parasitic disease, which has emerged or reemerged in more than 60 countries worldwide. In China, the first case of human fascioliasis was reported in 1921 in Fujian Province. The first major outbreak of this parasitic disease in 29 patients occurred in 2012 in Yunnan Province. Nonetheless, the prevalence of fascioliasis in China is probably underestimated due to the poor sensitivity of diagnostic tests, limited epidemiological data, and a poor understanding of the impact of subclinical illness. This study aimed to review the prevalence and risk factors of fascioliasis in China so as to improve the prevention and control of this disease.

Comprehensive analysis of miRNA profiles reveals the role of Schistosoma japonicum miRNAs at different developmental stages.

Schistosomiasis is an important zoonotic disease affecting up to 40 kinds of animals and 250 million people. It has been reported that the miRNAs play a role in the metabolism, differentiation, development and reproduction in many organisms. However, the roles of miRNAs regulating the development, maturation and production in schistosome in both females and males remains unclear. Here we present the dynamic transcriptome analysis of all 79 known Schistosoma japonicum miRNAs from pairing to production, including 14 days post-infection (dpi), 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28 dpi female and male, by small RNA sequencing. The miRNA expression profiles showed time-related characteristics in male and female from paring to production, which could be clustered into three patterns, characterized by pairing stage highly expressed (cluster 1), maturating stage highly expressed (cluster 2), and egg producing stage highly expressed (cluster 3). The enrichment of miRNA cluster targeted genes in female and male were distinctly different. Network analysis of miRNAs and their target regulation showed that cluster 1 had 15 miRNAs involved in the regulation of interaction, communication, immune response in female-male and parasite-host. The other 11 miRNAs were involved in gender differentiation and the meiotic cell cycle process. In cluster 2, 11 miRNAs were involved in development and sexual maturation. In cluster 3, 45 miRNAs possibly regulate metabolism and synthesis of the substance for egg production. Analysis of the miRNA regulation network would contribute to understanding the molecular mechanism in S. japonicum development and egg production.

A novel recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) assay for the rapid isothermal detection of Neospora caninum in aborted bovine fetuses.

The development of a method to rapidly diagnose Neospora caninum infection is highly desirable. Recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA), combined with lateral flow (LF) strips, is a novel approach to rapidly amplify and visualize DNA. We have developed a prototype LF-RPA assay, using primers and a probe that targeted a specific sequence in the N. caninum NC-5 gene. The N. caninum-specific LF-RPA assay was first tested on purified DNA from oocysts and amplified N. caninum DNA to detectable levels in 10 min, at a constant temperature and without the need for an expensive thermocycler. The designed RPA primers and probe displayed 100% specificity for detecting N. caninum without any cross-reaction with DNA from nine related protozoan spp. (eg Toxoplasma gondii, Sarcocystis gigantean, Sarcocystis zuoi, Hammondia hammondi, Hammondia heydorni, Eimeria cylindrica, Plasmodium falciparum, Theileria annulata and Babesia bigemina). Although, LF-RPA assay detected amounts as low as 50 fg of N. caninum DNA, it was nearly 5-fold less sensitive than previously published qPCR and nested PCR assays. We tested the diagnostic performance of the LF-RPA assay for the detection of N. caninum DNA in aborted bovine fetal tissue samples, and compared the results with those obtained from nested PCR. Out of the 75 samples examined, 18 (24%) and 17 (22.6%) tested positive using LF-RPA and nested PCR, respectively. Our results indicate that LF-RPA is a suitable assay for the rapid and reliable detection of N. caninum.

Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense infection in a Chinese traveler returning from the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania.

BACKGROUND: Human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) is one of the most complex parasitic diseases known to humankind. It usually occurs in endemic areas in Africa, but is occasionally detected in returning travelers and migrants in non-endemic countries. CASE PRESENTATION: In August 2017, a case of HAT was diagnosed in China in a traveler returning from the Masai Mara area in Kenya and the Serengeti area in Tanzania. The traveler visited Africa from 23 July to 5 August, 2017. Upon return to China, she developed a fever (on 8 August), and Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense infection was confirmed by laboratory tests (on 14 August) including observation of parasites in blood films and by polymerase chain reaction. She was treated with pentamidine followed by suramin, and recovered 1 month later. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first imported rhodesiense HAT case reported in China. This case alerts clinical and public health workers to be aware of HAT in travelers, and expatriates and migrants who have visited at-risk areas in Africa.

Human African Trypanosomiasis in Emigrant Returning to China from Gabon, 2017.

Human African trypanosomiasis is endemic to parts of sub-Saharan Africa and should be considered in the differential diagnosis of patients who have visited or lived in Africa. We report a 2017 case of stage 2 Trypanosoma brucei gambiense disease in an emigrant who returned to China from Gabon.