Metagenomics analysis reveals effects of salinity fluctuation on diversity and ecological functions of high and low nucleic acid content bacteria.

Salinity is a critical environmental factor in marine ecosystems and has complex and wide-ranging biological effects. However, the effects of changing salinity on diversity and ecological functions of high nucleic acid (HNA) and low nucleic acid (LNA) bacteria are not well understood. In this study, we used 16S rRNA sequencing and metagenomic sequencing analysis to reveal the response of HNA and LNA bacterial communities and their ecological functions to salinity, which was decreased from 26 ‰ to 16 ‰. The results showed that salinity changes had significant effects on the community composition of HNA and LNA bacteria. Among LNA bacteria, 14 classes showed a significant correlation between relative abundance and salinity. Salinity changes can lead to the transfer of some bacteria from HNA bacteria to LNA bacteria. In the network topology relationship, the complexity of the network between HNA and LNA bacterial communities gradually decreased with decreased salinity. The abundance of some carbon and nitrogen cycling genes in HNA and LNA bacteria varied with salinity. Overall, this study demonstrates the effects of salinity on diversity and ecological functions and suggests the importance of salinity in regulating HNA and LNA bacterial communities and functions.

Enhanced remediation of chlorpyrifos-contaminated soil by immobilized strain Bacillus H27.

Chlorpyrifos is a pesticide widely used in agricultural production with a relatively long residual half-life in soil. Addressing the problem of residual chlorpyrifos is of universal concern. In this study, rice hull biochar was used as an immobilized carrier to prepare the immobilized strain H27 for the remediation of chlorpyrifos-contamination soil. Soil microorganisms after remediation were investigated by ecotoxicological methods. The immobilized strain H27 had the highest removal rate of chlorpyrifos when 10% bacterial solution was added to the liquid medium containing 0.075-0.109 mm diameter biochar cultured for 22 hr. This study on the removal of chlorpyrifos by immobilized strain H27 showed that the initial concentration of chlorpyrifos in solution was 25 mg/L, and the removal rate reached 97.4% after 7 days of culture. In the soil, the removal rate of the immobilized bacteria group increased throughout the experiment, which was significantly higher than that of the free bacteria and biochar treatment groups. The Biolog-ECO test, T-RFLP and RT-RCR were used to study the effects of the soil microbial community and nitrogen cycling functional genes during chlorpyrifos degradation. It was found that ICP group had the highest diversity index among the four treatment groups. The microflora of segment containing 114 bp was the dominant bacterial community, and the dominant microflora of the immobilized bacteria group was more evenly distributed. The influence of each treatment group on ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) was greater than on ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA). This study offers a sound scientific basis for the practical application of immobilized bacteria to reduce residual soil pesticides.

Endoscopic ultrasonography-related diagnostic accuracy and clinical significance on small rectal neuroendocrine neoplasms.

This research aimed to examine the diagnostic accuracy and clinical significance of endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) in the context of small rectal neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs). A total of 108 patients with rectal subepithelial lesions (SELs) with a diameter of < 20 mm were included in the analysis. The diagnosis and depth assessment of EUS was compared to the histology findings. The prevalence of NENs in rectal SELs was 78.7% (85/108). The sensitivity of EUS in detecting rectal NENs was 98.9% (84/85), while the specificity was 52.2% (12/23). Overall, the diagnostic accuracy of EUS in identifying rectal NENs was 88.9% (96/108). The overall accuracy rate for EUS in assessing the depth of invasion in rectal NENs was 92.9% (78/84). Therefore, EUS demonstrates reasonable diagnostic accuracy in detecting small rectal NENs, with good sensitivity but inferior specificity. EUS may also assist physicians in assessing the depth of invasion in small rectal NENs before endoscopic excision.

Amelioration of obesity and inflammation by polysaccharide from unripe fruits of raspberry via gut microbiota regulation.

Raspberry, a traditional medicine food homology species, has important benefits in patients with metabolic syndrome. However, the mechanism of raspberry polysaccharides (RP) on obesity remains unclear. In our study, we showed that RP intervention is negatively associated with body weight gain, hyperlipidemia, inflammation, and fat accumulation in obese mice. RP ameliorated HFD-induced gut microbiota dysbiosis, produced short-chain fatty acids, maintained intestinal barrier integrity, and prevented metabolic endotoxemia, manifested by decreased host lipopolysaccharide level, and increased colon expression of tight junction proteins. These effects might be related with driven by a SCFAs-producing bacterium and downregulation of TLR4/NF-κB signaling transduction. Notably, the abundance of Ruminococcaceae_UCG - 014, Lactobacillus taiwanensis, Bifidobacterium pseudolongum, and Turicibacter are markedly correlated with enhanced intestinal barrier function induced by RP treatment. Thus, we believe that RP could be as a potential health supplement or prebiotic for obesity therapy.

Erratum: Thioredoxin 1 supports colorectal cancer cell survival and promotes migration and invasion under glucose deprivation through interaction with G6PD: Erratum.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.7150/ijbs.71809.].

Characteristics of biological manganese oxides produced by manganese-oxidizing bacteria H38 and its removal mechanism of oxytetracycline.

Oxytetracycline (OTC) is widely used in clinical medicine and animal husbandry. Residual OTC can affect the normal life activities of microorganisms, animals, and plants and affect human health. Microbial remediation has become a research hotspot in the environmental field. Manganese oxidizing bacteria (MnOB) exist in nature, and the biological manganese oxides (BMO) produced by them have the characteristics of high efficiency, low cost, and environmental friendliness. However, the effect and mechanism of BMO in removing OTC are still unclear. In this study, Bacillus thuringiensis strain H38 of MnOB was obtained, and the conditions for its BMO production were optimized. The optimal conditions were determined as follows: optimal temperature = 35 °C, optimal pH = 7.5, optimal Mn(Ⅱ) initial concentration = 10 mmol/L. The results show that BMO are irregular or massive, mainly containing MnCO3, Mn2O3, and MnO2, with rich functional groups and chemical bonds. They have the characteristics of small particle size and large specific surface area. OTC (2.5 mg/L) was removed when the BMO dosage was 75 µmol/L and the solution pH was 5.0. The removal ratio was close to 100 % after 12 h of culture at 35 °C and 150 r/min. BMO can adsorb and catalyze the oxidation of OTC and can produce ·O2-, ·OH, 1O2, and Mn(Ⅲ) intermediate. Fifteen products and degradation pathways were identified, and the toxicity of most intermediates is reduced compared to OTC. The removal mechanism was preliminarily clarified. The results of this study are convenient for the practical application of BMO in OTC pollution in water and for solving the harm caused by antibiotic pollution.

The interplay between stigma and sleep quality in breast cancer: A cross-sectional network analysis.

PURPOSE: Stigma, a subjective internal shame, arises from the association of cancer with death. Sleep quality can be considered a product of stigma. However, the extent of overlap or difference between the two remains unclear. METHODS: In total, 512 survivors with breast cancer were recruited from the "Be Resilient to Breast Cancer" project between May and August 2023. This study estimated the stigma, sleep quality, and their relationship by conducting a cross-sectional network analysis. The social impact scale and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scale were employed in this study. RESULTS: The core symptom for stigma from the network analysis was alienation by people (Strength = 1.213, Betweenness = 13, Closeness = 0.00211). The core symptom for sleep quality were the sleep quality (Str = 1.114, Bet = 17, Clo = 0.01586). Regarding the combination network, results showed that self-isolation and daytime dysfunction were the bridge nodes and that daytime dysfunction was positively associated with feeling less capable than before (according to self) (r = 0.15). CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrates the core symptoms in different symptomatic networks, which can be targeted for treatment personalization and aid in the improvement of sleep quality and stigma in breast cancer patients.

Caspase-3 and gasdermin E mediate macrophage pyroptosis in periodontitis.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease linked to pyroptosis, an inflammatory cell death process. Macrophages are essential for maintaining microenvironment homeostasis, which is crucial for periodontal health. This study explores the mechanisms underlying the relationship between macrophage pyroptosis and periodontitis. METHODS: Expression of the pyroptosis marker gasdermin E (GSDME) and the macrophage surface marker CD68 was examined by immunofluorescence double staining in healthy and periodontitis gingival tissues. In an in vitro pyroptosis model, RAW264.7 cells were irritated using Porphyromonas gingivalis-lipopolysaccharide (P. gingivalis-LPS) after treatment with either a nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) agonist or inhibitor. The mRNA and protein levels of NF-κB, caspase-3, GSDME, and interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß) were evaluated through qRT-PCR, western blotting, and ELISA techniques. RESULTS: GSDME and CD68 were heavily elevated in inflamed gingival tissues compared to healthy tissues and co-localized in the same region. Furthermore, exposure to P. gingivalis-LPS resulted in a significant upregulation of NF-κB, caspase-3, GSDME, and IL-1ß at both the mRNA and protein levels in RAW264.7 cells. NF-κB agonist or inhibitor pretreatment enhanced or inhibited these effects. CONCLUSIONS: GSDME-mediated macrophage pyroptosis is implicated in periodontitis. Based on in vitro experiments, P. gingivalis-LPS causes pyroptosis in RAW264.7 cells through the caspase-3/GSDME pathway. Furthermore, NF-κB regulates this pyroptotic pathway.

A bidirectional Mendelian randomisation study of the association between rheumatoid arthritis and frailty.

OBJECTIVES: Observational studies have linked rheumatoid arthritis and frailty, but confounding factors and reverse causality make it unclear if there is a causal relationship. The current study used bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomisation (MR) to assess the bidirectional causation between rheumatoid arthritis and frailty. METHODS: The primary analysis used the latest GWAS data for rheumatoid arthritis and frailty index in pure Europeans from large genome-wide association studies. Validation analysis was done to verify the accuracy of the results. The appropriate instrumental variables (IVs) were selected based on the three MR assumptions. The MR methods used were MR-Egger, weighted median (WM), and inverse variance weighted (IVW). The effects of horizontal pleiotropy were examined using the MR-Egger intercept and the MR-PRESSO method. To avoid single SNP bias, a leave-one-out analysis was performed. RESULTS: Genetic predictions suggested that there is a significant association between rheumatoid arthritis and the increased prevalence of frailty (IVW OR=1.01; 95% CI=[1.01-1.02], p=2.47 E-06). It has been verified in validation analysis that rheumatoid arthritis is also associated with frailty (IVW OR=1.03, 95% CI=[1.02-1.04], p=3.30E-17). Notably, genetic predictions suggested that frailty may be associated with the onset or development of rheumatoid arthritis (IVW ß=1.25, SE=0.44, 95% CI=[0.39-2.12], p=4.58E-03). CONCLUSIONS: The present study provides evidence supporting the fact that rheumatoid arthritis can increase the prevalence of frailty. Frailty may be a risk factor for rheumatoid arthritis, and whether frailty is involved in triggering the onset or progression of rheumatoid arthritis needs further study.

Dynamic Subcluster-Aware Network for Few-Shot Skin Disease Classification.

This article addresses the problem of few-shot skin disease classification by introducing a novel approach called the subcluster-aware network (SCAN) that enhances accuracy in diagnosing rare skin diseases. The key insight motivating the design of SCAN is the observation that skin disease images within a class often exhibit multiple subclusters, characterized by distinct variations in appearance. To improve the performance of few-shot learning (FSL), we focus on learning a high-quality feature encoder that captures the unique subclustered representations within each disease class, enabling better characterization of feature distributions. Specifically, SCAN follows a dual-branch framework, where the first branch learns classwise features to distinguish different skin diseases, and the second branch aims to learn features, which can effectively partition each class into several groups so as to preserve the subclustered structure within each class. To achieve the objective of the second branch, we present a cluster loss to learn image similarities via unsupervised clustering. To ensure that the samples in each subcluster are from the same class, we further design a purity loss to refine the unsupervised clustering results. We evaluate the proposed approach on two public datasets for few-shot skin disease classification. The experimental results validate that our framework outperforms the state-of-the-art methods by around 2%-5% in terms of sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and F1-score on the SD-198 and Derm7pt datasets.

Levomilnacipran Improves Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Dysregulation of Synaptic Plasticity and Depression-Like Behaviors via Activating BDNF/TrkB Mediated PI3K/Akt/mTOR Signaling Pathway.

Depression is a common psychological disease with high morbidity and mortality. Recently, the involvement of synaptic plasticity in the pathogenesis of depression has shed light on the direction of developing novel antidepressants. Levomilnacipran is a newly approved medication for the treatment of adult major depressive disorder. However, the detailed mechanisms underlying its antidepressant-like effects have yet to be illuminated. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of levomilnacipran in regulating synaptic plasticity and explore the possible molecular mechanisms of its antidepressant effects using a rat model of depression induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The results demonstrated that levomilnacipran (30 mg/kg, i.p.) significantly ameliorated depression-like behaviors in rats, alleviated the dysregulation of synaptic plasticity, and suppressed neuroinflammation within hippocampus induced by LPS-treatment. Levomilnacipran increased the expression of postsynaptic dense 95 (PSD-95) and synaptophysin (Syn) and reversed the imbalance between pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines within hippocampus of depressed rats. Additionally, levomilnacipran elevated expression level of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), accompanied by increased tyrosine kinase B (TrkB), phosphorylated phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), phosphorylated protein kinase B (p-Akt), and phosphorylated mammalian target of rapamycin (p-mTOR). Taken together, these results suggest that levomilnacipran may exert antidepressant effects via upregulating BDNF/TrkB mediated PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway to improve synaptic plasticity. These findings reveal potential mechanisms for the antidepressant effects of levomilnacipran and offer new insights into the treatments for depression.

Hypoxic acclimatization training improves the resistance to motion sickness.

Objective: Vestibular provocation is one of the main causes of flight illusions, and its occurrence is closely related to the susceptibility of motion sickness (MS). However, existing training programs have limited effect in improving the resistance to motion sickness. In this study, we investigated the effects of hypoxia acclimatization training (HAT) on the resistance to motion sickness. Methods: Healthy military college students were identified as subjects according to the criteria. MS model was induced by a rotary chair. Experimental groups included control, HAT, 3D roller training (3DRT), and combined training. Results: The Graybiel scores were decreased in the HAT group and the 3DRT group and further decreased in the combined training group in MS induced by the rotary chair. Participants had a significant increase in blood pressure after the rotary chair test and a significant increase in the heart rate during the rotary chair test, but these changes disappeared in all three training groups. Additionally, LFn was increased, HFn was decreased, and LF/HF was increased accordingly during the rotary chair test in the control group, but the changes of these three parameters were completely opposite in the three training groups during the rotary chair test. Compared with the control group, the decreasing changes in pupillary contraction velocity (PCV) and pupillary minimum diameter (PMD) of the three training groups were smaller. In particular, the binocular PCV changes were further attenuated in the combined training group. Conclusion: Our research provides a possible candidate solution for training military pilots in the resistance to motion sickness.

Association between stigma and sleep quality in patients with breast cancer: A latent profile and mediation analysis.

PURPOSE: This study aims to identify the heterogeneity in the stigma experienced by patients with breast cancer and examine the mediation effect of resilience on the relation between stigma and sleep quality. METHOD: A total of 396 patients with breast cancer were enrolled from Be Resilient to Breast Cancer (BRBC) program between January and April 2023. Participants completed the Social Impact Scale, the 10-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index Scale. Latent profile analysis (LPA) and mediation analysis were conducted to analyze the data. RESULTS: LPA categorized stigma into three subgroups, namely low-stigma (21.9%), moderate-stigma (64.9%), and high-stigma (13.2%). Mediation analysis revealed a fully mediated effect in the comparison between low-stigma and moderate-stigma groups (standard error [SE] = 0.13, 95%CI = 0.06,0.56), whereas a partially mediated effect was observed in the comparison between low-stigma and high-stigma groups (SE = 0.18, 95%CI = 0.39,1.10). CONCLUSIONS: Stigma is a significant factor to sleep quality in breast cancer and resilience could act as a robust buffer against stigma resulting in improved sleep quality. Resilience-based interventions might be helpful in this population.

[A comprehensive review on photon-counting computed tomography: Principles, technical hurdles and analysis of clinical applications].

In recent years, photon-counting computed tomography (PCD-CT) based on photon-counting detectors (PCDs) has become increasingly utilized in clinical practice. Compared with conventional CT, PCD-CT has the potential to achieve micron-level spatial resolution, lower radiation dose, negligible electronic noise, multi-energy imaging, and material identification, etc. This advancement facilitates the promotion of ultra-low dose scans in clinical scenarios, potentially detecting minimal and hidden lesions, thus significantly improving image quality. However, the current state of the art is limited and issues such as charge sharing, pulse pileup, K-escape and count rate drift remain unresolved. These issues could lead to a decrease in image resolution and energy resolution, while an increasing in image noise and ring artifact and so on. This article systematically reviewed the physical principles of PCD-CT, and outlined the structural differences between PCDs and energy integration detectors (EIDs), and the current challenges in the development of PCD-CT. In addition, the advantages and disadvantages of three detector materials were analysed. Then, the clinical benefits of PCD-CT were presented through the clinical application of PCD-CT in the three diseases with the highest mortality rate in China (cardiovascular disease, tumour and respiratory disease). The overall aim of the article is to comprehensively assist medical professionals in understanding the technological innovations and current technical limitations of PCD-CT, while highlighting the urgent problems that PCD-CT needs to address in the coming years.

Levomilnacipran ameliorates lipopolysaccharide-induced depression-like behaviors and suppressed the TLR4/Ras signaling pathway.

Levomilnacipran, a serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor, has been reported to have anti-depressive effects. However, the detailed mechanisms underlying these effects are still unclear. This study aimed to investigate the antidepressant mechanisms of levomilnacipran to discover new perspectives on the treatment of depression in male rats. Intraperitoneal injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was used to induce depressive behaviors in rats. Activation of microglia and apoptosis of neurons verified by immunofluorescence. Inflammatory related proteins and neurotrophic related proteins were verified by immunoblotting. The mRNA expression of apoptosis markers was verified by real-time quantitative PCR. Finally, electron microscopy analysis was used to observe the ultrastructural pathology of neuron. Here, we found that the anti-depression and anti-anxiety effects of levomilnacipran in the LPS-induced rat model of depression was resulted from the suppression of neuroinflammation and neuronal apoptosis within prefrontal cortex of rats. Furthermore, we found that levomilnacipran could decrease the number of microglia and suppress its activation in prefrontal cortex of rats. This effect may be mediated by suppressing the TLR4/NF-κB and Ras/p38 signaling pathways. In addition, levomilnacipran plays a neuroprotective role by increasing the expression of neurotrophic factors. Taken together, these results suggest that levomilnacipran exerts antidepressant effects by attenuating neuroinflammation to inhibit the damage in central nervous system and plays a neuroprotective role to improve depressive behaviors. These findings suggest that suppression of neuroinflammation in prefrontal cortex could ameliorate depressive behavioral disorder of rats induced by LPS, which provided a new perspective for the treatment of depression.

Alpha-2-Macroglobulin (A2M) and Dopamine Receptor D2 (DRD2) expression analysis and Influence of Separation from Parents in Childhood on the Suicide and Self-injury Behavior and Psychological Adjustment in Adolescence.

To explore the influence of separation from parents in childhood on suicide and self-injury behavior and psychological adjustment in adolescence. A total of 880 subjects were selected, including 197 students who were separated from their parents in childhood and 683 students who were not separated from their parents in childhood. The scores of psychological resilience, self-compassion, forgiveness and suicide and self-injury were investigated and analyzed. Logistic regression analysis was made on the relationship between suicide and self-injury behavior and psychological adjustment in adolescence. The scores of psychological resilience, self-compassion, forgiveness and suicide and self-injury were statistically significant between children who were separated from their parents and those who were not separated. The students who were not separated had better psychological adjustment abilities and a lower rate of suicide and self-injury (P<0.05). There was a positive correlation between separation from parents in childhood and suicide and self-injury behavior and psychological adjustment in adolescence (P<0.05). The separation from parents in childhood is closely related to psychological resilience, forgiveness, self-compassion, and suicide-related psychological behavior and self-injury behavior in adolescence. Suicide and self-injury behavior can be reduced by reducing separation from parents in childhood and improving self-psychological adjustment ability in adolescence. During the past years, genetics, heritability, and genes' contribution to depression disorders have been well established. Alpha-2-Macroglobulin (A2M) and Dopamine Receptor D2 (DRD2) genes are very effective in behavioral and mood disorders. The results of this study showed the expression of these genes in different organs, especially in connection with the cerebrospinal system, so investigating the mechanism of their effect is very effective and promising, and it is hoped that they will be used in other research.

A Digital-Analog Bimodal Memristor Based on CsPbBr3 for Tactile Sensory Neuromorphic Computing.

Memristor with digital and analog bipolar bimodal resistive switching offers a promising opportunity for the information-processing component. However, it still remains a huge challenge that the memristor enables bimodal digital and analog types and fabrication of artificial sensory neural network system. Here, a proposed CsPbBr3 -based memristor demonstrates a high ON/OFF ratio (>103 ), long retention (>104 s), stable endurance (100 cycles), and multilevel resistance memory, which acts as an artificial synapse to realize fundamental biological synaptic functions and neuromorphic computing based on controllable resistance modulation. Moreover, a 5 × 5 spinosum-structured piezoresistive sensor array (sensitivity of 22.4 kPa-1 , durability of 1.5 × 104 cycles, and fast response time of 2.43 ms) is constructed as a tactile sensory receptor to transform mechanical stimuli into electrical signals, which can be further processed by the CsPbBr3 -based memristor with synaptic plasticity. More importantly, this artificial sensory neural network system combined the artificial synapse with 5 × 5 tactile sensing array based on piezoresistive sensors can recognize the handwritten patterns of different letters with high accuracy of 94.44% under assistance of supervised learning. Consequently, the digital-analog bimodal memristor would demonstrate potential application in human-machine interaction, prosthetics, and artificial intelligence.

Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus aerosol infection in C57/BL6 mice.

Although secondary cases have become infected with the SFTSV after being in the same space without direct contact with the index case, it has not been experimentally determined if the SFTSV can be transmitted through aerosols. Here, this study aimed to verify if the SFTSV could be transmitted by aerosols. Firstly, we demonstrated that the SFTSV can infect BEAS-2B cells, and SFTSV genomes can be isolate from mild patient's sputum, which provided a foundation for the existence of SFTSV aerosol transmission. Then, we evaluated total antibody production in serum and viral load in tissue of mice infected with SFTSV by aerosols. The results showed that the presence of antibodies is related to the dose of virus infection and the SFTSV preferentially replicates in the lungs of mice following an aerosol exposure. Our study will help update the prevention and treatment guidelines for SFTSV and prevent the spread of the SFTSV in hospitals.

Selective laser welding in liquid: A strategy for preparation of high-antibacterial activity nanozyme against Staphylococcus aureus.

Nanozyme was considered as one of the most promising substitutes for antibiotics, due to the selective catalysis for pathogens. In this work, a high-antibacterial activity SOD-like nanozyme based on hybrid Ag/CeO2 nanocomposite was facilely prepared by using an innovative approach of selective laser welding in liquid. This prepared nanozyme displayed a high antimicrobial effect against Staphylococcus aureus under visible light illumination, the sterilization rate as high as 82.4%, which was 2.93 and 2.99 times higher than those of pure Ag and pure CeO2, respectively. The enhanced antibacterial activity was attributed to the anchoring of Ag nanospheres on the surface of CeO2 nanosheets, which induced the reduction of CeO2 bandgap and boosted the visible light harvesting. Therefore, the charge carriers can be effectively stimulated to produce abundant reactive oxygen species on the Ag/CeO2 nanocomposite via a SOD-like route. This work demonstrated a facile strategy for the preparation of high-antibacterial activity nanozyme, giving it great potential for scalable application in the biomedical and pharmaceutical industry.