Effects of Thyroid Powder on Tadpole (Lithobates catesbeiana) Metamorphosis and Growth: The Role of Lipid Metabolism and Gut Microbiota.

A low metamorphosis rate of amphibian larvae, commonly known as tadpoles, limits the farming production of bullfrogs (Lithobates catesbeiana). This study aimed to examine the effects of processed thyroid powder as a feed additive on tadpole metamorphosis, lipid metabolism, and gut microbiota. Five groups of tadpoles were fed with diets containing 0 g/kg (TH0), 1.5 g/kg (TH1.5), 3 g/kg (TH3), 4.5 g/kg (TH4.5), and 6 g/kg (TH6) thyroid powder for 70 days. The results showed that TH increased the average weight of tadpoles during metamorphosis, with the TH6 group having the highest values. The TH4.5 group had the highest metamorphosis rate (p < 0.05). Biochemical tests and Oil Red O staining showed that the lipid (triglyceride) content in the liver decreased after TH supplementation, especially at doses higher than 1.5 g/kg. RT-qPCR revealed that TH at doses higher than 4.5 g/kg significantly up-regulated the transcriptional expression of the pparα, accb, fas, fadd6, acadl, and lcat genes, which are related to lipid metabolism (p < 0.05). These results showed that TH seems to simultaneously promote the synthesis and decomposition of lipid and fatty acids, but ultimately show a decrease in lipids. As for the gut microbiota, it is noteworthy that Verrucomicrobia increased significantly in the TH4.5 and TH6 groups, and the Akkermansia (classified as Verrucomicrobia) was the corresponding genus, which is related to lipid metabolism. Specifically, the metabolic pathways of the gut microbiota were mainly enriched in metabolic-related functions (such as lipid metabolism), and there were significant differences in metabolic and immune pathways between the TH4.5 and TH0 groups (p < 0.05). In summary, TH may enhance lipid metabolism by modulating the gut microbiota (especially Akkermansia), thereby promoting the growth of tadpoles. Consequently, a supplementation of 4.5 g/kg or 6 g/kg of TH is recommended for promoting the metamorphosis and growth of tadpoles.

Industrial-era decline in Arctic methanesulfonic acid is offset by increased biogenic sulfate aerosol.

Marine phytoplankton are primary producers in ocean ecosystems and emit dimethyl sulfide (DMS) into the atmosphere. DMS emissions are the largest biological source of atmospheric sulfur and are one of the largest uncertainties in global climate modeling. DMS is oxidized to methanesulfonic acid (MSA), sulfur dioxide, and hydroperoxymethyl thioformate, all of which can be oxidized to sulfate. Ice core records of MSA are used to investigate past DMS emissions but rely on the implicit assumption that the relative yield of oxidation products from DMS remains constant. However, this assumption is uncertain because there are no long-term records that compare MSA to other DMS oxidation products. Here, we share the first long-term record of both MSA and DMS-derived biogenic sulfate concentration in Greenland ice core samples from 1200 to 2006 CE. While MSA declines on average by 0.2 µg S kg-1 over the industrial era, biogenic sulfate from DMS increases by 0.8 µg S kg-1. This increasing biogenic sulfate contradicts previous assertions of declining North Atlantic primary productivity inferred from decreasing MSA concentrations in Greenland ice cores over the industrial era. The changing ratio of MSA to biogenic sulfate suggests that trends in MSA could be caused by time-varying atmospheric chemistry and that MSA concentrations alone should not be used to infer past primary productivity.

Development and validation of a simple-to-use nomogram for predicting the delayed radiographic recovery in children with mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia complicated with atelectasis.

This study aimed to develop and validate a simple-to-use nomogram for predicting the delayed radiographic recovery in children with mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia (MPP) complicated with atelectasis. A retrospective study of 306 children with MPP complicated with atelectasis was performed at the Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from February 2017 to March 2020.The patients were divided into recovery group and delayed recovery group based on chest CT scan 1 month after discharge. A least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression model was used to identify the optimal predictors, and the predictive nomogram was plotted by multivariable logistic regression. The nomogram was assessed by calibration, discrimination, and clinical utility. LASSO regression analysis identified that lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), duration of illness prior to bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL), systemic glucocorticoid use and extrapulmonary complications were the optimal predictors for delayed radiographic recovery. The nomogram was plotted by the four predictors. The area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve of the nomogram was 0.840 (95% CI = 784 ∼ 0.896) in the training set and 0.833 (95% CI = 0.8737 ∼ 0.930) in the testing set. The calibration curve demonstrated that the nomogram was well-fitted, and decision curve analysis (DCA) showed that the nomogram was clinically beneficial. This study developed and validated a simple-to-use nomogram for predicting delayed radiographic recovery in children with MPP complicated with atelectasis. This might be generally applied in clinical practice.

Etiology and clinical features of children with bronchiectasis in China: A 10-year multicenter retrospective study.

INTRODUCTION: The current study aims to investigate the etiology spectrum and the clinical characteristics of bronchiectasis in Chinese children. METHODS: The study is designed as a multicenter retrospective study. 193 cases were enrolled in 13 centers in China between 2008 and 2017. The inclusive cases must meet the clinical as well as the HRCT criteria. Only if both two radiologists confirmed the diagnosis, the case could be enrolled. The cases that could not provide clinical and imageology data were excluded. The data were entered into the specialized system and then analyzed. RESULTS: One hundred sixty-nine cases (87%) were found to have the underlying etiology. Post-infective (46%), primary immunodeficiency (14%), and PCD (13%) were the common causes. All cases came from 28 provinces in Mainland China. The median age of symptom onset was 5.8 (2.0, 8.9) years. The median age of diagnosis was 8.4 (4.5, 11.6) years. The main symptoms were cough, sputum expectoration, and fever during the exacerbation. Nineteen percent of patients suffered from limited exercise tolerance. Clubbing was found in 17% of cases. Nearly 30% of patients presented growth limitations. On the HRCT findings, 126 cases had diffused bronchiectasis, and bilateral involvement was found in 94 cases. The lower lobes and right middle lobes were most commonly involved. Approximately 30% of cultures of sputum and bronchoalveolar lavage were positive. CONCLUSION: A majority of cases could be found the underlying etiology. Post-infective, primary immunodeficiency, and PCD were the most common causes. Some clinical figures might indicate a specific etiology.

Phase I trial of human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells for treatment of severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia.

Severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a chronic lung disorder that primarily affects premature babies with extremely low birth weight and involves in multiple organ system; no effective pharmacotherapy for this disease exists, and mortality remains high. Based on the evidence from previous preclinical studies and phase I clinical trials, this study aims to test the safety of intravenous application of a single dose of human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSCs) in patients with severe BPD. The Mesenchymal Stem cells for Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia Treatment (MSBDT) trial is a single center, open-label, dose-escalation phase I clinical trial. Severe BPD patients were enrolled in Children Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China. The first six patients were treated with low-dose hUC-MSCs (1 × 106 cells/kg) and the next seven patients were treated with high-dose hUC-MSCs (5 × 106 cells/kg). This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT03558334. No prespecified infusion-associated adverse events, immediate complication, respiratory or cardiovascular compromise were observed during infusion and 24 h after infusion. No significant changes in safety laboratory values were observed. One death event occurred in the low-dose group on study day 10, and one death event occurred in the high-dose group on study day 24, while, after review in detail, the two cases are not believed to be infusion-associated events. In conclusion, intravenous application of a single dose of hUC-MSCs was tolerated in thirteen patients with severe BPD.

Vitamin A-regulated ciliated cells promote airway epithelium repair in an asthma mouse model.

BACKGROUND: Asthma is a chronic inflammatory airway disease that causes damage to and exfoliation of the airway epithelium. The continuous damage to the airway epithelium in asthma cannot be repaired quickly and generates irreversible damage, repeated attacks, and aggravation. Vitamin A (VA) has multifarious biological functions that include maintaining membrane stability and integrity of the structure and function of epithelial cells. Our research explored the role of VA in repairing the airway epithelium and provided a novel treatment strategy for asthma. METHODS: A mouse asthma model was established by house dust mite (HDM) and treated with VA by gavage. Human bronchial epithelial (16HBE) cells were treated with HDM and all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) in vitro. We analyzed the mRNA and protein expression of characteristic markers, such as acetyl-α-tubulin (Ac-TUB) and FOXJ1 in ciliated cells and MUC5AC in secretory cells, mucus secretion, airway inflammation, the morphology of cilia, and the integrity of the airway epithelium. RESULTS: Findings showed destruction of airway epithelial integrity, damaged cilia, high mucus secretion, increased MUC5AC expression, and decreased Ac-TUB and FOXJ1 expression in asthmatic mice. The VA intervention reversed the effect on Ac-TUB and FOXJ1 and promoted ciliated cells to repair the damage and maintain airway epithelial integrity. In 16HBE cells, we could confirm that ATRA promoted the expression of Ac-TUB and FOXJ1. CONCLUSION: These results demonstrated that VA-regulated ciliated cells to repair the damaged airway epithelium caused by asthma and maintain airway epithelial integrity. VA intervention is a potential adjunct to conventional treatment for asthma.

Expanded catalogue of metagenome-assembled genomes reveals resistome characteristics and athletic performance-associated microbes in horse.

BACKGROUND: As a domesticated species vital to humans, horses are raised worldwide as a source of mechanical energy for sports, leisure, food production, and transportation. The gut microbiota plays an important role in the health, diseases, athletic performance, and behaviour of horses. RESULTS: Here, using approximately 2.2 Tb of metagenomic sequencing data from gut samples from 242 horses, including 110 samples from the caecum and 132 samples from the rectum (faeces), we assembled 4142 microbial metagenome-assembled genomes (MAG), 4015 (96.93%) of which appear to correspond to new species. From long-read data, we successfully assembled 13 circular whole-chromosome bacterial genomes representing novel species. The MAG contained over 313,568 predicted carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZy), over 59.77% of which had low similarity match in CAZy public databases. High abundance and diversity of antibiotic resistance genes (ARG) were identified in the MAG, likely showing the wide use of antibiotics in the management of horse. The abundances of at least 36 MAG (e.g. MAG belonging to Lachnospiraceae, Oscillospiraceae, and Ruminococcus) were higher in racehorses than in nonracehorses. These MAG enriched in racehorses contained every gene in a major pathway for producing acetate and butyrate by fibre fermentation, presenting potential for greater amount of short-chain fatty acids available to fuel athletic performance. CONCLUSION: Overall, we assembled 4142 MAG from short- and long-read sequence data in the horse gut. Our dataset represents an exhaustive microbial genome catalogue for the horse gut microbiome and provides a valuable resource for discovery of performance-enhancing microbes and studies of horse gut microbiome. Video Abstract.

Vitamin A–regulated ciliated cells promote airway epithelium repair in an asthma mouse model

Background: Asthma is a chronic inflammatory airway disease that causes damage to and exfoliation of the airway epithelium. The continuous damage to the airway epithelium in asthma cannot be repaired quickly and generates irreversible damage, repeated attacks, and aggravation. Vitamin A (VA) has multifarious biological functions that include maintaining membrane stability and integrity of the structure and function of epithelial cells. Our research explored the role of VA in repairing the airway epithelium and provided a novel treatment strategy for asthma. Methods: A mouse asthma model was established by house dust mite (HDM) and treated with VA by gavage. Human bronchial epithelial (16HBE) cells were treated with HDM and all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) in vitro. We analyzed the mRNA and protein expression of characteristic markers, such as acetyl-α-tubulin (Ac-TUB) and FOXJ1 in ciliated cells and MUC5AC in secretory cells, mucus secretion, airway inflammation, the morphology of cilia, and the integrity of the airway epithelium. Results: Findings showed destruction of airway epithelial integrity, damaged cilia, high mucus secretion, increased MUC5AC expression, and decreased Ac-TUB and FOXJ1 expression in asthmatic mice. The VA intervention reversed the effect on Ac-TUB and FOXJ1 and promoted ciliated cells to repair the damage and maintain airway epithelial integrity. In 16HBE cells, we could confirm that ATRA promoted the expression of Ac-TUB and FOXJ1. Conclusion: These results demonstrated that VA-regulated ciliated cells to repair the damaged airway epithelium caused by asthma and maintain airway epithelial integrity. VA intervention is a potential adjunct to conventional treatment for asthma (AU)

Analysis of the eighth intron polymorphism of NR6A1 gene in sheep and its correlation with lumbar spine number.

For revealing molecular markers related to the traits of multiple lumbar vertebrae in sheep, we analyze the relationship between NR6A1 gene polymorphism and lumbar vertebrae number traits in Xinjiang Kazakh sheep. Lumbar muscle tissues were collected from 6-lumbar spine (L6) Kazak sheep and 7-lumbar spine (L7) Kazak sheep and the intron-8 of NR6A1 gene was amplified by PCR. The SNP locus was detected by the PCR-SSCP method. One-Way ANOVA and an Independent Chi-square Test is adopted to analyze the genotype association with lumbar spine number variation. There were two SNP loci in the intron-8 of the NR6A1 gene: IVS8-188 and IVS8-281. One-Way ANOVA and Independent Chi-square Test indicated a significant association between IVS8-281 and lumbar spine number. The SNP locus of NR6A1 gene intron 8 (IVS8-281G > A) could play a certain role in the variation of lumbar spine number in Xinjiang Kazakh sheep and demonstrates potential to accelerate the sheep breeding of selection process.

A prediction model for the efficacy of continuous positive airway pressure on bronchiolitis.

Objectives: Prediction of the efficacy of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) on bronchiolitis is necessary for timely treatment. This study aims to establish a nomogram for efficacy of CPAP on bronchiolitis, and compares accuracy with Pediatric Risk of Mortality III (PRISM III), Brighton Pediatric Early Warning Score (Brighton PEWS) and Pediatric Critical Illness Score (PCIS). Methods: From February 2014 to December 2020, data on children diagnosed with bronchiolitis and treated with CPAP in Chongqing was collected. The nomogram was evaluated by using multivariate logistic regression analysis. We compared the predictive value of model with PRISM III, PEWS and PCIS. Results: A total of 510 children were included. The nomogram prediction model including fever, APTT, white blood cells, serum potassium concentration, lactic acid, immunodeficiency, atelectasis, lung consolidation, congenital airway dysplasia and congenital heart disease was established. The AUC of the nomogram was 0.919 in the training set and 0.947 in the validating set. The model fitted well, as evidenced by the calibration curve and Hosmer-Lemeshow goodness-of-fit test. We discovered that the nomogram significantly performed better than PRISM III, PCIS and PEWS. Conclusions: A nomogram including ten factors for predicting the efficacy of CPAP on bronchiolitis was established. It had higher performance than the PRISM III, PCIS, and PEWS in terms of clinical benefits.

Taurine inhibits hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidative stress, inflammatory response and apoptosis in liver of Monopterus albus.

Fish are extremely vulnerable to environmental stimulation and produce oxidative stress. Among them, hydrogen peroxide is an oxidative stress source that cannot be ignored in fish, which can cause physical disorders, inflammation and even death. Taurine was revealed to reduce oxidative damage and inflammation caused by toxic substances, but whether it can reduce toxicity of rice field eel caused by H2O2 has not been determined. Thus, the intervention effects of taurine on H2O2-induced oxidative stress, inflammation, apoptosis, and autophagy in rice field eel. The results showed that oxidative injury in the liver was determined after H2O2 injection, as indicated by enhanced serum AST and ALT activities, inhibited the antioxidant function (increased MDA and ROS contents, decreased antioxidant enzymes, inhibited nrf2 transcription level), and induced inflammatory response (upregulated il-1ß, il-6, il-8, and il-12ß gene expression, downregulated tgf-ß1 gene expression, activated the transcription level of nf-κb, tlr-3, and tlr-7). In addition, bax, caspase3, beclin1, and Lc3B gene expression were significantly upregulated after H2O2 injection, while bcl2 and p62 gene expression were downregulated, leading to the occurrence of apoptosis and autophagy. In contrast, adding 0.2 and 0.5% taurine to feed significantly alleviated this damage, as indicated by the recovery of the aforementioned bioindicators, and the effect of 0.5% taurine addition is better than 0.2%. Overall, these results suggested that taurine can relieve the liver toxicity induced by H2O2, which enriched the toxic mechanism of H2O2 on fish and provided evidence for the protective effect of taurine on liver.

Human Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells Express C-Type Lectin Receptors and Attach and Respond to Aspergillus fumigatus.

Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) have been implicated as having a role in antifungal immunity, but mechanisms of their interaction with fungi and the resulting cellular responses are not well understood. In this study, we identify the direct and indirect biological response of human pDCs to the fungal pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus and characterize the expression and regulation of antifungal receptors on the pDC surface. Results indicate pDCs do not phagocytose Aspergillus conidia, but instead bind hyphal surfaces and undergo activation and maturation via the upregulation of costimulatory and maturation markers. Measuring the expression of C-type lectin receptors dectin-1, dectin-2, dectin-3, and mannose receptor on human pDCs revealed intermediate expression of each receptor compared with monocytes. The specific dectin-1 agonist curdlan induced pDC activation and maturation in a cell-intrinsic and cell-extrinsic manner. The indirect activation of pDCs by curdlan was much stronger than direct stimulation and was mediated through cytokine production by other PBMCs. Overall, our data indicate pDCs express various C-type lectin receptors, recognize and respond to Aspergillus hyphal Ag, and serve as immune enhancers or modulators in the overarching fungal immune response.

Clinical and genetic features of primary ciliary dyskinesia in a cohort of consecutive clinically suspect children in western China.

BACKGROUND: Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is a rare, inherited disorder of the motile cilia that exhibits genetic and clinical heterogeneity among different populations. PCD diagnosis remains challenging owing to the heterogeneity of associated clinical features and lack of a gold standard diagnostic test. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to analyze the clinical and genetic characteristics of a group of children with clinically suspected PCD in one region of China, with the goal of providing a more robust knowledge base regarding the genetic stratification underlying this disease in Chinese populations. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the data from 38 patients with clinically suspected PCD who had undergone next-generation sequencing (NGS) between November 2016 and March 2021 in the respiratory department of a tertiary Children's hospital in Western China. The genetic features of the confirmed cases were summarized by reviewing data associated with other cohorts of Chinese children. RESULTS: Overall, 16 patients were ultimately diagnosed with PCD with a median age of 8.5 years. All patients presented with a chronic wet cough, 93.75% exhibited chronic or recurrent sinusitis/rhinitis, 43.75% experienced recurrent wheezing, 56.25% reported respiratory symptoms present since infancy, 31.25% had a history of neonatal respiratory distress (NRD), and 25% exhibited otitis media. Only 18.75% of these patients exhibited laterality defects. High frequencies of DNAH11 mutations were detected by integrating data from PCD patient cohorts in China. CONCLUSION: The high frequency of DNAH11 mutations may limit the utility of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) as a first-line approach to diagnosing PCD in China in the absence of other indicators.

A database of animal metagenomes.

With the rapid development of high-throughput sequencing technology, the amount of metagenomic data (including both 16S and whole-genome sequencing data) in public repositories is increasing exponentially. However, owing to the large and decentralized nature of the data, it is still difficult for users to mine, compare, and analyze the data. The animal metagenome database (AnimalMetagenome DB) integrates metagenomic sequencing data with host information, making it easier for users to find data of interest. The AnimalMetagenome DB is designed to contain all public metagenomic data from animals, and the data are divided into domestic and wild animal categories. Users can browse, search, and download animal metagenomic data of interest based on different attributes of the metadata such as animal species, sample site, study purpose, and DNA extraction method. The AnimalMetagenome DB version 1.0 includes metadata for 82,097 metagenomes from 4 domestic animals (pigs, bovines, horses, and sheep) and 540 wild animals. These metagenomes cover 15 years of experiments, 73 countries, 1,044 studies, 63,214 amplicon sequencing data, and 10,672 whole genome sequencing data. All data in the database are hosted and available in figshare https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.19728619 .

Interactions between intestinal morphology, digestion, inflammatory responses, and gut microbiota of juvenile channel catfish elicited by dietary enzymatic rice protein.

The reduction of fishmeal in aquafeeds has been the concern of researchers. Replacing fishmeal with plant proteins affects intestinal function and inflammation, but the interaction between the intestinal responses and gut microbiota remains unclear. In this study, juvenile channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) was fed with four diets in which enzymatic rice protein (RP) replaced fishmeal at levels of 0 (FM), 2.5% (RP2.5), 5.0% (RP5.0), and 7.5% (RP7.5) for 8 weeks to solve the problem mentioned above. Quantification of intestinal morphology showed that 2.5% or 5.0% RP significantly increased villus length and goblet cell number, accompanied by higher activities of intestinal trypsin, alkaline phosphatase (AKP), and Na+/K+-ATPase (NKA) in RP2.5 group (P < 0.05). In contrast, 7.5% RP slightly damaged the intestinal mucosa and significantly reduced the activities of amylase, AKP, and NKA, as well as decreased serum complement 4 (C4) and immunoglobulin M (IgM). Noteworthy, RT-qPCR showed that 2.5% RP significantly down-regulated intestinal mRNA expression level of il8, while up-regulated mif, tlr4, tlr7, tgfß3, and cldn2. In contrast, 7.5% RP up-regulated the mRNA expression levels of il1ß, il8, and mif, while down-regulated cldn3d. Analysis of gut microbiota showed that 2.5% RP increased the relative abundance of Bacteroidetes and significantly activated potential functions of gut microbiota involved in carbohydrate metabolism. The 7.5% RP increased the diversity of the gut microbiota, accompanied by a significant increase in the relative abundance of conditionally pathogenic bacteria such as Vibrio, Serratia, and Aeromonas (classified as Proteobacteria). Notably, Vibrio was the biomarker species with the greatest difference between the FM and RP7.5 groups (genus level). Correlation analysis indicated that Vibrio may affect immunity through the C4 pathway and further lead to gut inflammation and digestive impairment. Taken above, these results indicated that RP could affect intestinal morphology, digestion, and inflammation, and interact with the composition and potential function of gut microbiota. The low RP supplement (2.5%) improved intestinal morphology and digestion, while high supplement (7.5%) disrupted gut microbiota homeostasis, resulting in damage to intestinal mucosa and inflammatory response.

Clinical Analysis of Primary Tracheobronchial Tumors in Children and Evaluation of the Predicting Models for Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the clinical characteristics and prognosis of primary tracheobronchial tumors (PTTs) in children, and to explore the most common tumor identification methods. METHODS: The medical records of children with PTTs who were hospitalized at the Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from January 1995 to January 2020 were reviewed retrospectively. The clinical features, imaging, treatments, and outcomes of these patients were statistically analyzed. Machine learning techniques such as Gaussian naïve Bayes, support vector machine (SVM) and decision tree models were used to identify mucoepidermoid carcinoma (ME). RESULTS: A total of 16 children were hospitalized with PTTs during the study period. This included 5 (31.3%) children with ME, 3 (18.8%) children with inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors (IMT), 2 children (12.5%) with sarcomas, 2 (12.5%) children with papillomatosis and 1 child (6.3%) each with carcinoid carcinoma, adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC), hemangioma, and schwannoma, respectively. ME was the most common tumor type and amongst the 3 ME recognition methods, the SVM model showed the best performance. The main clinical symptoms of PPTs were cough (81.3%), breathlessness (50%), wheezing (43.8%), progressive dyspnea (37.5%), hemoptysis (37.5%), and fever (25%). Of the 16 patients, 7 were treated with surgery, 8 underwent bronchoscopic tumor resection, and 1 child died. Of the 11 other children, 3 experienced recurrence, and the last 8 remained disease-free. No deaths were observed during the follow-up period. CONCLUSION: PTT are very rare in children and the highest percentage of cases is due to ME. The SVM model was highly accurate in identifying ME. Chest CT and bronchoscopy can effectively diagnose PTTs. Surgery and bronchoscopic intervention can both achieve good clinical results and the prognosis of the 11 children that were followed up was good.

[Clinical and microbiological characteristics of children with drowning-associated aspiration pneumonia]. / æººæ°´åŽå¸å ¥æ€§è‚ºç‚Žæ‚£å„¿çš„ä¸´åºŠç‰¹å¾åŠç— åŽŸåˆ†æž.

OBJECTIVES: To study the clinical and microbiological characteristics of children with drowning-associated aspiration pneumonia, so as to provide a reference for empirical selection of antibacterial agents. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on the medical data of 185 children with drowning-associated aspiration pneumonia who were admitted to Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from January 2010 to October 2020. According to the drowning environment, these children were divided into four groups: fecal group (n=44), freshwater group (n=69), swimming pool group (n=41), and contaminant water group (n=31). The clinical characteristics and pathogen detection results were reviewed and compared among the four groups. RESULTS: The 185 children had an age of 4 months to 17 years (median 34 months). Sputum cultures were performed on 157 children, and 103 were tested positive (65.6%), with 87 strains of Gram-negative bacteria (68.5%), 37 strains of Gram-positive bacteria (29.1%), and 3 strains of fungi (2.4%). Gram-negative bacteria were the main pathogen in the fecal group and the contaminant water group, accounting for 88.2% (30/34) and 78.3% (18/23), respectively. The freshwater group had a significantly higher detection rate of Gram-positive bacteria than the fecal group (P<0.008), and the swimming pool group had an equal detection rate of Gram-negative bacteria and Gram-positive bacteria. CONCLUSIONS: For pulmonary bacterial infection in children with drowning in feces or contaminant water, antibiotics against Gram-negative bacteria may be applied empirically, while for children with drowning in a swimming pool or freshwater, broad-spectrum antibiotics may be used as initial treatment, and subsequently the application of antibiotics may be adjusted according to the results of the drug sensitivity test.

Sanguinarine attenuates hydrogen peroxide-induced toxicity in liver of Monopterus albus: Role of oxidative stress, inflammation and apoptosis.

In aquatic animals, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), which is a source of oxidative stress, can cause physiological dysfunction, inflammation, and death. Sanguinarine (SAN) is a plant extract known to improve antioxidant and immune capacity. However, the roles of SAN in H2O2-induced liver tissue toxicity is unclear. The effects on hepatic oxidative damage, inflammatory response, and apoptosis were investigated by feeding rice field eel with 0, 375, and 750 µg/kg of SAN for eight weeks and then intraperitoneally injected with H2O2. The results showed that after 24 h of H2O2 injection, the activities of ALT and AST in serum were significantly increased, oxidative damage and inflammatory response occurred in the liver, and apoptosis was induced, which indicated that H2O2 induced liver damage in rice field eel. However, dietary supplemented with 375 or 750 µg/kg SAN significantly decreased the activities of ALT and AST in serum, and significantly increased the antioxidant function (decreased ROS, MDA, and antioxidant enzymes levels, downregulated antioxidant-related gene expression, and inhibited the transcription level of nrf2). The addition of SAN at 375 or 750 µg/kg ameliorated H2O2-induced inflammatory response of liver (upregulated tgf-ß1 mRNA expression, downregulated il-1ß, il-6, il-8, and il-12ß mRNA expression, and inhibited the transcription levels of tlr-3 tlr-7, and nf-κb). In addition, dietary supplemented with 375 or 750 µg/kg SAN alleviated the apoptosis of liver induced by H2O2 (downregulated bax mRNA expression, upregulated caspase3 mRNA expression, and reduced the number of apoptotic cells by TUNEL staining). Overall, these results suggested that SAN could alleviate the liver injury in rice field eel induced by H2O2, mainly by improving antioxidant capacity, alleviating inflammatory response and inhibiting apoptosis, and the effect of 750 µg/kg SAN addition is better than 375 µg/kg.

ADDAGMA: A database for domestic animal gut microbiome atlas.

Animal gut microbiomes play important roles in the health, diseases, and production of animal hosts. The volume of animal gut metagenomic data, including both 16S amplicon and metagenomic sequencing data, has been increasing exponentially in recent years, making it increasingly difficult for researchers to query, retrieve, and reanalyze experimental data and explore new hypotheses. We designed a database called the domestic animal gut microbiome atlas (ADDAGMA) to house all publicly available, high-throughput sequencing data for the gut microbiome in domestic animals. ADDAGMA enhances the availability and accessibility of the rapidly growing body of metagenomic data. We annotated microbial and metadata from four domestic animals (cattle, horse, pig, and chicken) from 356 published papers to construct a comprehensive database that is equipped with browse and search functions, enabling users to make customized, complicated, biologically relevant queries. Users can quickly and accurately obtain experimental information on sample types, conditions, and sequencing platforms, and experimental results including microbial relative abundances, microbial taxon-associated host phenotype, and P-values for gut microbes of interest. The current version of ADDAGMA includes 290,422 quantification events (changes in abundance) for 3215 microbial taxa associated with 48 phenotypes. ADDAGMA presently covers gut microbiota sequencing data from pig, cattle, horse, and chicken, but will be expanded to include other domestic animals. ADDAGMA is freely available at (http://addagma.omicsbio.info/).

Reassessing the role of tracheobronchomalacia in persistent wheezing.

BACKGROUND: Tracheobronchomalacia (TBM) is often manifested as wheezing. Reassessing the role of TBM in persistent wheezing in children is essential. METHODS: We selected children who were diagnosed with TBM by bronchoscopy and who underwent bronchoscopic reexamination for persistent wheezing or chronic cough between January 2009 and July 2019. The clinical and bronchoscopy data were collected and retrospectively reviewed. For statistical analysis, we used the Kaplan-Meier method, Kruskal-Wallis test, and Fisher exact test. RESULTS: A total of 79 patients (57 males and 22 females) were included. The median age of the first TBM diagnosis was 7 (interquartile [IQR] 4-11) months. The median age of the first wheezing episode was 4 (IQR 3-7) months. During the time interval between the two bronchoscopies, malacia lesions resolved in 50 patients (63.3%), improvement was seen in 14 patients (17.7%), no change was observed in 11 patients (13.9%), and the condition was aggravated in 4 patients (5.1%). The malacia lesions in 37 patients resolved before 2 years of age. Among the 50 resolved patients, 22 patients (44.0%) reported wheezing three times or more between bronchoscopy evaluations, and 13 of these 22 patients (59.1%) with atopy or family history of allergic diseases were ultimately diagnosed with bronchial asthma. CONCLUSIONS: In children with persistent wheezing, the role of TBM should be reassessed, especially in those with atopy or family history of allergic diseases, and bronchial asthma should be considered early.