Moniezia benedeni infection increases IgE+ cells in sheep (Ovis aries) small intestine.

The concentration of immunoglobulin (Ig) E is the lowest among serum Igs, but it can induces type I hypersensitivity and plays an important role in anti-parasitic infection. The present study aimed to explore the residence characteristics of IgE+ cells in the sheep small intestine and the impact of Moniezia benedeni infection on them. The recombinant plasmids pET-28a-IgE were constructed and induced and expressed in Escherichia coli. BL21 (DE3). The rabbit anti-sheep IgE polyclonal antibody was prepared using the obtained recombinant protein as antigen. Finally, the levels of IgE+ cells in the small intestine of healthy (Control group) and naturally M. benedeni-infected (Infected group) sheep were detected analyzed. The results showed that the rabbit anti-sheep IgE polyclonal antibody with good immunogenicity (titer = 1: 128000) could specifically bind to the heavy chain of natural sheep IgE. In the Control group, the IgE+ cells were mainly distributed in lamina propria of the small intestine, and the densities were significantly decreased from duodenum to ileum (P<0.05), with respective values of (4.28 cells / 104 µm2, 1.80 cells / 104 µm2, and 1.44 cells / 104 µm2 in duodenum, jejunum, and ileum. In the Infected group, IgE+ cells density were 6.26 cells / 104 µm2, 3.01 cells / 104 µm2, and 2.09 cells / 104 µm2 in duodenum, jejunum and ileum respectively, which were significantly higher in all segments compared to the Control group (P<0.05), increasing by 46.26%, 67.22% and 45.14%, respectively. In addition, compared with the Control group, the IgE protein levels were significantly increased in all intestinal segments of the Infected group (P<0.01), however, there was no significant differences among the different intestinal segments within the same group (P>0.05). The results demonstrated that M. benedeni infection could significantly increase the content of IgE and the distribution density of its secreting cells in sheep small intestine. The intestinal mucosal immune system of sheep presented obvious specificity against M. benedeni infection. This lays a good foundation for further exploring molecular mechanisms of the intestinal mucosal immune system monitoring and responding to M. benedeni infection.

Screening of polysaccharides from the differently processed products of Angelica sinensis with the best liver protection effect on chicken and the intervention mechanism study based on tandem mass tag proteomics and multiple reaction monitoring approach.

The incidence of colibacillosis in poultry is on the rise, significantly affecting the chicken industry. Ceftiofur sodium (CS) is frequently employed to treat this disease, resulting in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) buildup. Processing plays a vital role in traditional Chinese veterinary medicine. The potential intervention in liver injury by polysaccharides from the differently processed products of Angelica sinensis (PDPPAS) induced by combined CS and LPS remains unclear. This study aims to investigate the protective effect of PDPPAS on chicken liver injury caused by CS combined with LPS buildup and further identify the polysaccharides with the highest hepatoprotective activity in chickens. Furthermore, the study elucidates polysaccharides' intervention mechanism using tandem mass tag (TMT) proteomics and multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) methods. A total of 190 1-day-old layer chickens were randomly assigned into 12 groups, of which 14 chickens were in the control group and 16 in other groups, for a 10-day trial. The screening results showed that charred A. sinensis polysaccharide (CASP) had the most effective and the best hepatoprotective effect at 48 h. TMT proteomics and MRM validation results demonstrated that the intervention mechanism of the CASP high-dose (CASPH) intervention group was closely related to the protein expressions of FCER2, TBXAS1, CD34, AGXT, GCAT, COX7A2L, and CYP2AC1. Conclusively, the intervention mechanism of CASPH had multitarget, multicenter regulatory features.

Mechanisms predictive of Tibetan Medicine Sophora moorcroftiana alkaloids for treatment of lung cancer based on the network pharmacology and molecular docking.

BACKGROUND: Leguminous Sophora moorcroftiana (SM) is a genuine medicinal material in Tibet. Many research results have reveal the Sophora moorcroftiana alkaloids (SMA), as the main active substance, have a wide range of effects, such as antibacterial, antitumor and antiparasitic effects. However, there are few reports on the inhibition of lung cancer (LC) and its inhibitory mechanism, and the pharmacological mechanism of SMA is still unclear, Therefore, exploring its mechanism of action is of great significance. METHODS: The SMA active components were obtained from the literature database. Whereas the corresponding targets were screened from the PubChem and PharmMapper database, UniProt database were conducted the correction and transformation of UniProt ID on the obtained targets. The GeneCards and OMIM databases identified targets associated with LC. Venny tools obtained the intersection targets of SMA and LC. R language and Cytoscape software constructed the visual of SMA - intersection targets - LC disease network. The intersection targets protein-protein interaction (PPI) network were built by the STRING database. The functions and pathways of the common targets of SMA and LC were enriched by gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG). Subsequently, molecular docking And A549 cells vitro experiment were performed to further validate our finding. RESULTS: We obtained six kinds of alkaloids in SM, 635 potential targets for these compounds, and 1,303 genes related to LC. SMA and LC intersection targets was 33, including ALB, CCND1, ESR1, NOTCH1 and AR. GO enrichment indicated that biological process of SMA was mainly involved in the positive regulation of transcription and nitric oxide biosynthetic process, and DNA-templated, etc. Biological functions were mainly involved in transcription factor binding and enzyme binding, etc. Cell components were mainly involved in protein complexes, extracellular exosome, cytoplasm and nuclear chromatin, etc., Which may be associated with its anti-LC effects. KEGG enrichment analysis showed that main pathways involved in the anti-LC effects of SMA, including pathway in cancer, non small-cell lung cancer, p53, PI3K-Akt and FOXO signaling pathways. Molecular docking analyses revealed that the six active compounds had a good binding activity with the main therapeutic targets 2W96, 2CCH and 1O96. Experiments in vitro proved that SMA inhibited the proliferation of LC A549 cells. CONCLUSIONS: Results of the present study, we have successfully revealed the SMA compounds had a multi-target and multi-channel regulatory mechanism in treatment LC, These findings provided a solid theoretical reference of SMA in the clinical treatment of LC.

Multiomics analysis reveals that microbiota regulate fat and muscle synthesis in chickens.

Intestinal microbiota regulates the host metabolism, including fat metabolism and muscle development in mammals; however, studies on the interactions between the gut microbiome and in chickens with respect to fat metabolism and muscle development are still rare. We established a germ-free (GF) chicken model to determine the transcriptomes and metabolomes of GF and specific-pathogen-free (SPF) chickens. Transcriptome analysis showed 1,282 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in GF and SPF chickens. The expression levels of some genes related to muscle formation were very high in SPF chickens but low in GF chickens, suggesting that GF chickens had poorer muscle development ability. In contrast, the expression levels of some fat synthesis-related genes were very low in SPF chickens but high in GF chickens, suggesting that GF chickens had a more potent fat-synthesizing ability. Metabolome analysis revealed 62 differentially expressed metabolites (DEMs) in GF and SPF chickens, of which 35 were upregulated and 27 were downregulated. Furthermore, the Pearson correlation coefficient (PCC) was calculated, and an interaction network was constructed to visualize the crosstalk between the genes, metabolites, and gut microbiota in GF and SPF chickens. The top 10 gut microbiota were positively correlated with lipid metabolism including13(S)-HpODE and 9(S)-HpOTrE, and genes related to muscle development, while were negatively correlated with genes related to fat synthesis. In conclusion, this study indicated that chicken intestinal microbiota regulate host metabolism, inhibit fat synthesis, and may promote muscle development.

Exploration of the Potential Mechanism of Yujin Powder treating Dampness-heat Diarrhea by Integrating UPLC-MS/MS and Network Pharmacology Prediction.

BACKGROUND: Yujin powder (YJP) is a classic prescription for treating dampness-heat diarrhea (DHD) in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), but the main functional active ingredients and the exact mechanisms have not been systematically studied. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to preliminarily explore the potential mechanisms of YJP for treating DHD by integrating UPLC-MS/MS and network pharmacology methods. METHODS: Ultra performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) technology was used to determine the ingredients of YJP. And then, the targets of these components were predicted and screened from TCMSP, SwissTargetPrediction databases. The disease targets related to DHD were obtained by using the databases of GeneCards, OMIM, DisGeNET, TTD, and DrugBank. The protein-protein interaction networks (PPI) of YJP-DHD were constructed using the STRING database and Origin 2022 software to identify the cross-targets by screening the core-acting targets and a network diagram by Cytoscape 3.8.2 software was also constructed. Metascape database was used for performing GO and KEGG enrichment anlysis on the core genes. Finally, molecular docking was used to verify the results with AutoDock 4.2.6, AutoDock Tools 1.5.6, PyMOL 2.4.0, and Open Babel 2.3.2 software. RESULTS: 597 components in YJP were detected, and 153 active components were obtained through database screening, among them the key active ingredients include coptisine, berberine, baicalein, etc. There were 362 targets treating DHD, among them the core targets included TNF, IL-6, ALB, etc. The enriched KEGG pathways mainly involve PI3K-Akt, TNF, MAPK, etc. Molecular docking results showed that coptisine, berberine, baicalein, etc., had a strong affinity with TNF, IL-6, and MAPK14. Therefore, TNF, IL-6, MAPK14, ALB, etc., are the key targets of the active ingredients of YJP coptisine, baicalein, and berberine, etc. They have the potential to regulate PI3K-Akt, MAPK, and TNF signalling pathways. The component-target-disease network diagram revealed that YJP treated DHD through the effects of anti-inflammation, anti-diarrhea, immunoregulation, and improving intestinal mucosal injury. CONCLUSION: It is demonstrated that YJP treats DHD mainly through the main active ingredients coptisine, berberine, baicalein, etc. comprehensively exerting the effects of anti-inflammation, anti-diarrhea, immunoregulation, and improving intestinal mucosal injury, which will provide evidence for further in-depth studying the mechanism of YJP treating DHD.

Bilateral transfer of motor performance as a function of motor imagery training: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: The objective of this review was to evaluate the efficacy of mental imagery training (MIT) in promoting bilateral transfer (BT) of motor performance for healthy subjects. Data sources: We searched 6 online-databases (Jul-Dec 2022) using terms: "mental practice," "motor imagery training," "motor imagery practice," "mental training," "movement imagery," "cognitive training," "bilateral transfer," "interlimb transfer," "cross education," "motor learning," "strength," "force" and "motor performance." Study selection and data extraction: We selected randomized-controlled studies that examined the effect of MIT on BT. Two reviewers independently determined if each study met the inclusion criteria for the review. Disagreements were resolved through discussion and, if necessary, by a third reviewer. A total of 9 articles out of 728 initially identified studies were chosen for the meta-analysis. Data synthesis: The meta-analysis included 14 studies for the comparison between MIT and no-exercise control (CTR) and 15 studies for the comparison between MIT and physical training (PT). Results: MIT showed significant benefit in inducing BT compared to CTR (ES = 0.78, 95% CI = 0.57-0.98). The effect of MIT on BT was similar to that of PT (ES = -0.02, 95% CI = -0.15-0.17). Subgroup analyses showed that internal MIT (IMIT) was more effective (ES = 2.17, 95% CI = 1.57-2.76) than external MIT (EMIT) (ES = 0.95, 95% CI = 0.74-1.17), and mixed-task (ES = 1.68, 95% CI = 1.26-2.11) was more effective than mirror-task (ES = 0.46, 95% CI = 0.14-0.78) and normal-task (ES = 0.56, 95% CI = 0.23-0.90). No significant difference was found between transfer from dominant limb (DL) to non-dominant limb (NDL) (ES = 0.67, 95% CI = 0.37-0.97) and NDL to DL (ES = 0.87, 95% CI = 0.59-1.15). Conclusion: This review concludes that MIT can serve as a valuable alternative or supplement to PT in facilitating BT effects. Notably, IMIT is preferable to EMIT, and interventions incorporating tasks that have access to both intrinsic and extrinsic coordinates (mixed-task) are preferred over those that involve only one of the two coordinates (mirror-task or normal-task). These findings have implications for rehabilitation of patients such as stroke survivors.

[Research progress of ferroptosis in hypoxia-associated brain injury].

Cerebral hypoxia often brings irreversible damage to the central nervous system, which seriously endangers human health. It is of great significance to further explore the mechanism of hypoxia-associated brain injury. As a programmed cell death, ferroptosis mainly manifests as cell death caused by excessive accumulation of iron-dependent lipid peroxides. It is associated with abnormal glutathione metabolism, lipid peroxidation and iron metabolism, and is involved in the occurrence and development of various diseases. Studies have found that ferroptosis plays an important role in hypoxia-associated brain injury. This review summarizes the mechanism of ferroptosis, and describes its research progress in cerebral ischemia reperfusion injury, neonatal hypoxic-ischemic brain damage, obstructive sleep apnea-induced brain injury and high-altitude hypoxic brain injury.

Boris knockout eliminates AOM/DSS-induced in situ colorectal cancer by suppressing DNA damage repair and inflammation.

The Brother of Regulator of Imprinted Sites (BORIS, gene symbol CTCFL) has previously been shown to promote colorectal cancer cell proliferation, inhibit cancer cell apoptosis, and resist chemotherapy. However, it is unknown whether Boris plays a role in the progression of in situ colorectal cancer. Here Boris knockout (KO) mice were constructed. The function loss of the cloned Boris mutation that was retained in KO mice was verified by testing its activities in colorectal cell lines compared with the Boris wild-type gene. Boris knockout reduced the incidence and severity of azoxymethane/dextran sulfate-sodium (AOM/DSS)-induced colon cancer. The importance of Boris is emphasized in the progression of in situ colorectal cancer. Boris knockout significantly promoted the phosphorylation of γH2AX and the DNA damage in colorectal cancer tissues and suppressed Wnt and MAPK pathways that are responsible for the callback of DNA damage repair. This indicates the strong inhibition of colorectal cancer in Boris KO mice. By considering that the DSS-promoted inflammation contributes to tumorigenesis, Boris KO mice were also studied in DSS-induced colitis. Our data showed that Boris knockout alleviated DSS-induced colitis and that Boris knockdown inhibited the NF-κB signaling pathway in RAW264.7 cells. Therefore Boris knockout eliminates colorectal cancer generation by inhibiting DNA damage repair in cancer cells and relieving inflammation in macrophages. Our findings demonstrate the importance of Boris in the development of in situ colorectal cancer and provide evidence for the feasibility of colorectal cancer therapy on Boris.

Arrhythmia Classification Algorithm Based on a Two-Dimensional Image and Modified EfficientNet.

The classification and identification of arrhythmias using electrocardiogram (ECG) signals are of great practical significance in the early prevention and diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases. In this study, we propose an arrhythmia classification algorithm based on two-dimensional (2D) images and modified EfficientNet. First, we developed a method for converting original one-dimensional (1D) ECG signals into 2D image signals. In contrast with the existing classification method that uses only the time-domain features of a 1D ECG signal, the classification of 2D images can consider the spatiotemporal characteristics of the signal. Then, to better assign feature weights, we introduced an attention feature fusion module (AFF) into the EfficientNet network to replace the addition operation in the mobile inverted bottleneck convolution (MBConv) structure of the network. We selected EfficientNet for modification because, compared with most convolutional neural networks (CNNs), EfficientNet does not require manual adjustment of parameters, which improves the accuracy and speed of the network. Finally, we combined the 2D images and the improved EfficientNet network and tested its performance as an arrhythmia classification method. Our experimental results show that the network training of the proposed method requires less equipment and training time, and this method can effectively distinguish eight types of heartbeats in the MIT-BIH arrhythmia database, with a classification accuracy of 99.54%. Thus, the model has a good classification effect.

[Evaluation of Mercury Pollution in Soil of Different Land Use Types in Coal-fired Industrial Area].

The geo-accumulation index, potential ecological risk index, health risk model, and geographical detector were used to evaluate the soil mercury (Hg) concentrations and assess the health risks for various land use types to reveal the characteristics and spatial variability of soil Hg pollution under different land uses in the coal-fired industrial area of the Loess Plateau. The study area included seven counties in the western part of Xinzhou City, Shanxi province. The results showed that the average ω(Hg) in the agricultural land, grass land, wood land, and residential land were 0.48, 0.34, 0.58, and 0.52 mg·kg-1, respectively, which were 16.00, 11.33, 19.33, and 17.33 times higher than the background value, respectively. The variation coefficients were ranked as residential land>agricultural land>grass land>wood land. The evaluation results of the geo-accumulation index and potential ecological risk index indicated a high ecological risk of Hg pollution in the entire study area with extreme pollution points in certain aeras. The health risk assessment results indicated no non-carcinogenic health risks for children and adults in the study area from Hg. Additionally, the geographical detection results revealed that the spatial variability in Hg was mainly impacted by industrial and agricultural activities in agricultural land, by soil organic matter and pH value in grass land, by soil salinity in wood land, and by soil salinity and organic matter in residential land. The spatial distribution pattern of Hg concentrations peaked in both the northern and southern edges, with a decreasing trend towards the middle and the majorly polluted areas being caused by human activities such as coal mining and industrial production.

Moniezia benedeni Infection Restrain IgA+, IgG+, and IgM+ Cells Residence in Sheep (Ovis aries) Small Intestine.

Secreted immunoglobulin A (SIgA), IgG, and IgM play a crucial role in forming the intestinal mucosal immune barrier, and parasites could disturb the host's immune response by releasing various immunomodulatory molecules. Moniezia benedeni is an important pathogen parasitizing in the sheep small intestine. It is aimed to explore the residence characteristics of IgA+, IgG+, and IgM+ cells in the sheep small intestine, and the influence of Moniezia benedeni infection on them. Control group (n = 6) and infected group (n = 6) were selected, respectively, and the three subtype cells residing in the small intestine were systematically observed and analyzed. The results showed that in the Control group, the three types of positive cells were all distributed diffusely, and the total densities in jejunum, duodenum and ileum was gradually declined in turn. Notably, the change trend of IgA+ and IgG+ cells densities were both congruent with the total densities, and the differences among them were significant, respectively (P < 0.05); the IgM+ cells density was the highest in duodenum, followed by jejunum and ileum, there was no significant difference between duodenum and jejunum (P > 0.05), but both significantly higher than in ileum (P < 0.05). In the Infected group, their total densities in duodenum, jejunum and ileum were gradually declined in turn. Notably, the IgA+ and IgM+ cells densities change trend was the same as the total densities, and the differences among them were significant, respectively (P < 0.05). The IgG+ cells density in duodenum was the highest, followed by ileum and jejunum and there was significantly difference among them (P < 0.05). The comparison results between Control and Infected groups showed that from the duodenum, jejunum to ileum, IgA+, IgG+, and IgM+ cells were all reduced significantly, respectively. The results suggest that the three types of positive cells were resided heterogeneously in the small intestinal mucosa, that is, significant region-specificity; Moniezia benedeni infection could not change their diffuse distribution characteristics, but strikingly, reduce their resident densities, and the forming mucosal immune barrier were significantly inhibited. It provided powerful evidence for studying on the molecular mechanism of Moniezia benedeni evasion from immune surveillance by strongly inhibiting the host's mucosal immune barrier.

Moniezia benedeni infection enhances neuromedin U (NMU) expression in sheep (Ovis aries) small intestine.

BACKGROUND: Neuromedin U (NMU) plays an important role in activating the group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) and initiating the host's anti-parasitic immune responses. It is aimed to explore the distribution characteristics of NMU in the sheep small intestine and the influence of Moniezia benedeni infection on them. In the present study, the pET-28a-NMU recombinant plasmids were constructed, and Escherichia coli. BL21 (DE3) were induced to express the recombinant protein. And then, the rabbit anti-sheep NMU polyclonal antibody was prepared and immunofluorescence staining was performed with it. The expression levels of NMU in the intestine of normal and Moniezia benedeni-infected sheep were detected by ELISA. RESULTS: The results showed that the molecular weight of the obtained NMU recombinant protein was consistent with the expected molecular (13 kDa) and it was expressed in the form of inclusion body. The titer and specificity of obtained rabbit anti-sheep NMU polyclonal antibody were good. The results of immunofluorescence analysis showed that the nerve fibers which specifically expressed NMU mainly extended from the ganglion in the submucosal to lamina propria (LP) in the sheep small intestine, and the expression level was relatively high; especially on the nerve fibers of LP around the intestinal glands. The expression levels were gradually increased from the duodenum to the ileum, and the levels in the jejunum and ileum were significantly higher than that in the duodenum (P < 0.05). In addition, scattered NMU positive cells were distributed in the epithelium of the jejunal crypts. Moniezia benedeni infection increased the expression of NMU in each intestinal segment, especially in the jejunum and ileum there were significant increase (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: It was suggested that Moniezia benedeni infection could be detected by the high expression of NMU in sheep enteric nervous, and which laid the foundation for further studies on whether NMU exerts anti-parasitic immunity by activating ILC2s. In addition, NMU was expressed in some intestinal gland epitheliums, which also provided a basis for studying its roles in regulation of the immune homeostasis. The present study laid the foundation for further revealing the molecular mechanism of sheep's neural-immune interaction network perceiving the colacobiosis of parasites.

Magnesium Modified ß-Tricalcium Phosphate Induces Cell Osteogenic Differentiation In Vitro and Bone Regeneration In Vivo.

In vitro, in vivo, and clinical studies have shown how the physicochemical and biological properties of ß-tricalcium phosphate (ß-TCP) work in bone regeneration. This study aimed to improve the properties of ß-TCP by achieving optimum surface and bulk ß-TCP chemical/physical properties through the hydrothermal addition of magnesium (Mg) and to later establish the biocompatibility of ß-TCP/Mg for bone grafting and tissue engineering treatments. Multiple in vitro and in vivo analyses were used to complete ß-TCP/Mg physicochemical and biological characterization. The addition of MgO brought about a modest rise in the number of ß-TCP surface particles, indicating improvements in alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity on day 21 (p < 0.05) and in the WST-1assay on all days (p < 0.05), with a corresponding increase in the upregulation of ALP and bone sialoprotein. SEM analyses stated that the surfaces of the ß-TCP particles were not altered after the addition of Mg. Micro-CT and histomorphometric analysis from rabbit calvaria critical defects resulted in ß-TCP/Mg managing to reform more new bone than the control defects and ß-TCP control at 2, 6, and 8 weeks (* p ≤ 0.05, ** p ≤ 0.01, *** p ≤ 0.001, and **** p ≤ 0.0001). The hydrothermal addition of MgO to the ß-TCP surfaces ameliorated its biocompatibility without altering its surface roughness resulting from the elemental composition while enhancing cell viability and proliferation, inducing more bone regeneration by osteoconduction in vivo and osteoblastic differentiation in vitro.

A new method providing complementary explanation of the blood-enriching function and mechanism of unprocessed Angelica sinensis and its four kinds of processed products based on tissue-integrated metabolomics and confirmatory analysis.

Angelica sinensis (AS) is a common Traditional Chinese Medicine used for tonifying blood in China. Unprocessed AS and its four kinds of processed products (ASs) are used to treat blood deficiency syndrome in the country. The different blood-tonifying mechanisms of ASs remain unclear. In this work, a novel method integrating metabolomics and hematological and biochemical parameters was established to provide a complementary explanation of blood supplementation mechanism of ASs. Our results revealed that different ASs exhibited various blood supplementation effect, and that AS parched with alcohol demonstrated the best blood supplementation effect. Eight metabolites from liver tissue and 12 metabolites from spleen tissue were considered to be potential biomarkers. These biomarkers were involved in four metabolic pathways. Correlation analysis results showed that l-aspartic acid and l-alanine (spleen tissue), linoleic acid, and l-cystathionine (liver tissue) exhibited a high positive or negative correlation with the aforesaid biochemical indicators. The blood-supplementation effect mechanism of ASs were related to four metabolic pathways. l-Aspartic acid and l-alanine (spleen tissue), linoleic acid, and l-cystathionine (liver tissue) were the four key metabolites associated with the blood supplementation effect of ASs. This study gives a complementary explanation of the blood supplementation effect and mechanism of action of ASs.

Elderly may benefit more from motor imagery training in gaining muscle strength than young adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: The current review was aimed to determine the effectiveness of mental imagery training (MIT) on the enhancement of maximum voluntary muscle contraction (MVC) force for healthy young and old adults. Data sources: Six electronic databases were searched from July 2021 to March 2022. Search terms included: "motor imagery training," "motor imagery practice," "mental practice," "mental training," "movement imagery," "cognitive training," "strength," "force," "muscle strength," "performance," "enhancement," "improvement," "development," and "healthy adults." Study selection and data extraction: Randomized controlled trials of MIT in enhancing muscle strength with healthy adults were selected. The decision on whether a study met the inclusion criteria of the review was made by two reviewers independently. Any disagreements between the two reviewers were first resolved by discussion between the two reviewers. If consensus could not be reached, then it would be arbitrated by a third reviewer. Data synthesis: Twenty-five studies including both internal MIT and external MIT were included in meta-analysis for determining the efficacy of MIT on enhancing muscle strength and 22 internal MIT were used for subgroup analysis for examining dose-response relationship of MIT on MVC. Results: MIT demonstrated significant benefit on enhancing muscle strength when compared with no exercise, Effect Size (ES), 1.10, 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.89-1.30, favoring MIT, but was inferior to physical training (PT), ES, 0.38, 95% CI, 0.15-0.62, favoring PT. Subgroup analysis demonstrated that MIT was more effective for older adults (ES, 2.17, 95% CI, 1.57-2.76) than young adults (ES, 0.95, 95% CI, 0.74-1.17), p = 0.0002, and for small finger muscles (ES, 1.64, 95% CI, 1.06-2.22) than large upper extremity muscles (ES, 0.86, 95% CI, 0.56-1.16), p = 0.02. No significant difference was found in the comparison of small finger muscles and large lower extremity muscles, p = 0.19 although the ES of the former (ES, 1.64, 95% CI, 1.06-2.22) was greater than that of the later (ES, 1.20, 95%, 0.88-1.52). Conclusion: This review demonstrates that MIT has better estimated effects on enhancing MVC force compared to no exercise, but is inferior to PT. The combination of MIT and PT is equivalent to PT alone in enhancing muscle strength. The subgroup group analysis further suggests that older adults and small finger muscles may benefit more from MIT than young adults and larger muscles.

A Semiconductive Nature of Bis(dithiolato)nickelate Radical Salt Exhibiting Broadband Photoconduction.

The fractional oxidation state [M(dmit)2] (dmit2- = 2-thioxo-1, 3-dithiole-4, 5-dithiolate) salts have long attracted attention in the molecular metal area owing to high conductivity and even superconductivity. In this study, we achieved a mixed-valence salt (1) of [Ni(dmit)2]0.5- with monovalent 1,3-N,N-dimethyl-imidazolium (DiMIm+) by a solvent evaporation approach under ambient conditions. The mixed valence of [Ni(dmit)2]0.5- has been characterized by an analysis of the IR spectrum and crystal structure. In the crystal structure of 1, two [Ni(dmit)2]0.5- anions overlap in an eclipsed mode to form a [Ni(dmit)2]21- dimer, featuring a radical bearing an S = 1/2 spin; the dimeric radicals stack into a column along the b axis, and the adjacent columns connect together via the lateral-to-lateral S···S contacts along the a axis, and through the head-to-head S···S contacts along the [101] direction. Salt 1 shows the magnetic behavior of an S = 1/2 Heisenberg antiferromagnetic uniform linear chain with J/kB = -47.5(4) K and a semiconducting feature with σ = 2.52 × 10-3 S cm-1 at 293 K, 2.32 × 10-2 S cm-1 at 373 K, and Ea = 0.22 eV, as well as broadband photoconductivity under irradiation of green and white lights. This study suggests the possibility of designing new photoconductors based on the mixed-valence [Ni(dmit)2]0.5- salt.

Oral Microbiota Changes in Elderly Patients, an Indicator of Alzheimer's Disease.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease that usually affects older individuals. Owing to the higher incidence of root caries and missing teeth in elderly individuals, the bacteria involved in these dental concerns might potentially deteriorate their cognitive function. Altered microbiota in the oral cavity may induce neuroinflammation through migration from the oral cavity to the brain. However, the correlation between the composition of the oral microbiota and neurodegenerative disease remains unclear. In this study, we evaluated sequence to determine the relative abundance and diversity of bacterial taxa in the dental plaque of elderly patients with AD and controls. Oral samples; the DMFT index; and other clinical examination data were collected from 17 patients with AD and 18 normal elderly individuals as the control group. Patients with AD had significantly more missing teeth and higher dental plaque weight but lower microbial diversity than controls. Significantly increased numbers of Lactobacillales, Streptococcaceae, and Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes and a significantly decreased number of Fusobacterium were observed in patients with AD. In conclusion, using the PacBio single-molecule real-time (SMRT) sequencing platform to survey the microbiota dysbiosis biomarkers in the oral cavity of elderly individuals could serve as a tool to identify patients with AD.

Bacterial community analysis on the different mucosal immune inductive sites of gastrointestinal tract in Bactrian camels.

The microbial communities colonize the mucosal immune inductive sites could be captured by hosts, which could initiate the mucosal immune responses. The aggregated lymphoid nodule area (ALNA) and the ileal Payer's patches (PPs) in Bactrian camels are both the mucosal immune inductive sites of the gastrointestinal tract. Here, the bacteria community associated with the ALNA and ileal PPs were analyzed using of 16S rDNA-Illumina Miseq sequencing. The mutual dominant bacterial phyla at the two sites were the Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, Verrucomicrobia and Proteobacteria, and the mutual dominant genus in both sits was Prevotella. The abundances of the Fibrobacter, Campylobacter and RFP12 were all higher in ALNA than in ileal PPs. While, the abundances of the 5-7N15, Clostridium, and Escherichia were all higher in ileal PPs than in ALNA. The results suggested that the host's intestinal microenvironment is selective for the symbiotic bacteria colonizing the corresponding sites, on the contrary, the symbiotic bacteria could impact on the physiological functions of this local site. In ALNA and ileal PPs of Bactrian camel, the bacteria which colonized different immune inductive sites have the potential to stimulate different immune responses, which is the result of the mutual selection and adaptation between microbial communities and their host.

Glow Discharge Plasma Treatment on Zirconia Surface to Enhance Osteoblastic-Like Cell Differentiation and Antimicrobial Effects.

Peri-implantitis is the pathological condition of connective tissue inflammation and the progressive loss of supporting bone around dental implants. One of the primary causes of peri mucositis evolving into peri-implantitis is bacterial infection, including infection from Porphyromonas gingivalis. Enhancing the surface smoothness of implants helps to prevent P. gingivalis adhesion to the implant's surface. Interaction analyses between bacteria and the surface roughness of zirconia (Zr) discs subjected to a glow discharge plasma (GDP) treatment compared with non-plasma-treated autoclaved control Zr discs were done. Examinations of the material prosperities revealed that the GDP-treated Zr group had a smoother surface for a better wettability. The GDP-treated Zr discs improved the proliferation of the osteoblast-like cells MG-63, and the osteoblastic differentiation was assessed through alkaline phosphatase detection and marker gene bone sialoprotein (Bsp) and osteocalcin (OC) induction. Scanning electron microscopy demonstrated a relatively low P. gingivalis adhesion on GDP-treated Zr disks, as well as lower colonization of P. gingivalis compared with the control. Our findings confirmed that the GDP treatment of Zr discs resulted in a significant reduction of P. gingivalis adhesion and growth, demonstrating a positive correlation between surface roughness and bacteria adhesion. Therefore, the GDP treatment of Zr dental implants can provide a method for reducing the risk of peri-implantitis.