Clinical features and prognostic factors of nasopharyngeal carcinoma with brain metastases.

BACKGROUND: Brain metastasis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma is a rare occurrence, and the characteristics of patients in this subgroup remain poorly defined. This study aims to delineate the clinical features, treatment modalities, prognostic factors, and survival of nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients with brain metastasis. METHODOLOGY: A retrospective analysis was conducted on patients diagnosed with nasopharyngeal carcinoma who developed brain metastasis and were treated at the Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center between July 2000 and July 2023. Clinical data from patients were collected and used to assess their survival after brain metastases and prognostic factors. RESULTS: Among 82,434 nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients, 40 (0.06 %) developed Brain metastasis with a median follow-up of 5.1 years. The predominant histological subtype was non-keratinizing squamous cell carcinoma (85 %). The median post-BM survival was 25 months. The age, the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG), and the procedural treatment of BM were prognostic factors. Notably, patients receiving local treatments had significantly prolonged post-BM survival compared to those receiving systemic therapy alone (median, 47.00 vs. 11.00 months; p = 0.011). CONCLUSIONS: This is the largest cohort of brain metastasis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma to date. Local therapeutic measures after brain metastasis can significantly enhance the prognosis of these patients, particularly when radiotherapy is applied.

Trends in pain undertreatment among lung cancer patients at the EOL: Analysis of urban city medical insurance data in China.

BACKGROUND: Cancer-related pain is one of the common priority symptoms in advanced lung cancer patients at the end-of-life (EOL). Alleviating pain is undoubtedly a critical component of palliative care in lung cancer. Our study was initiated to examined trends in opioid prescription-level outcomes as potential indicators of undertreated pain in China. METHODS: This study used data on 1330 patients diagnosed with lung cancer of urban city medical insurance in China who died between 2014 and 2017. Opioid prescription-level outcomes were determined by annual trends of the proportion of patients filling an opioid prescription, the total dose of opioids filled by decedents, and morphine milligram equivalents per day (MMED) at the EOL (defined as the 60 days before death). We further analyzed monthly changes in the number of opioid prescriptions filled, MMED, and mean daily dose of opioids per prescription (MDDP) of the last 60 days of life by year at death and age, respectively. RESULTS: A total of 959 patients with exact dates of death were included, with 432 cases (45.06%; 95% CI: 44.36%-45.77%) receiving at least one opioid prescription at the EOL. The declining trends were shown in the proportion of patients filling any opioid prescription, the total dose of opioids filled by decedents and MMED, with an annual decrease of 0.341% (p = 0.01), 104.23 mg (p = 0.011) and 2.84 mg (p = 0.014), respectively. Within the 31-60 days to the 0-30 days of life, the MMED declined 6.08 mg (95% CI: -7.14 to -5.03; p = 0.000351), while the number of opioid prescriptions rose 0.66 (95% CI: 0.160-1.16; p = 0.025). Like the MMED, the MDDP fell 4.11 mg (95% CI: -5.86 to -2.37; p = 0.005) within the last month before death compared to the previous month. CONCLUSION: Terminal lung cancer populations in urban China have experienced reduced access to opioids at the EOL. The clinicians did not prescribe a satisfactory dose of opioids per prescription, while the patients suffered increasing pain in the last 30 days of life. Sufficient opioid analgesic administration should be advocated for lung cancer patients during the EOL period.

Electroacupuncture promotes the repair of the damaged spinal cord in mice by mediating neurocan-perineuronal net.

AIMS: This study aimed to investigate the effect of perineuronal net (PNN) and neurocan (NCAN) on spinal inhibitory parvalbumin interneuron (PV-IN), and the mechanism of electroacupuncture (EA) in promoting spinal cord injury (SCI) repair through neurocan in PNN. METHODS: A mouse model of SCI was established. Sham-operated mice or SCI model mice were treated with chondroitin sulfate ABC (ChABC) enzyme or control vehicle for 2 weeks (i.e., sham+veh group, sham+ChABC group, SCI+veh group, and SCI+ChABC group, respectively), and then spinal cord tissues were taken from the T10 lesion epicenter for RNA sequencing (RNA-seq). MSigDB Hallmark and C5 databases for functional analysis, analysis strategies such as differential expression gene analysis (DEG), Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG), gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA), and protein-protein interaction (PPI). According to the results of RNA-seq analysis, the expression of NCAN was knocked down or overexpressed by virus intervention, or/and EA intervention. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR), immunofluorescence, western blot, electrophysiological, and behavioral tests were performed. RESULTS: After the successful establishment of SCI model, the motor dysfunction of lower limbs, and the expression of PNN core glycan protein at the epicenter of SCI were reduced. RNA-seq and PCR showed that PNN core proteoglycans except NCAN showed the same expression trend in normal and injured spinal cord treated with ChABC. KEGG and GSEA showed that PNN is mainly associated with inhibitory GABA neuronal function in injured spinal cord tissue, and PPI showed that NCAN in PNN can be associated with inhibitory neuronal function through parvalbumin (PV). Calcium imaging showed that local parvalbumin interneuron (PV-IN) activity decreased after PNN destruction, whether due to ChABC treatment or surgical bruising of the spinal cord. Overexpression of neurocan in injured spinal cord can enhance local PV-IN activity. PCR and western blot suggested that overexpression or knockdown of neurocan could up-regulate or down-regulate the expression of GAD. At the same time, the activity of PV-IN in the primary motor cortex (M1) and the primary sensory cortex of lower (S1HL) extremity changed synchronously. In addition, overexpression of neurocan improved the electrical activity of the lower limb and promoted functional repair of the paralyzed hind limb. EA intervention reversed the down-regulation of neurocan, enhanced the expression of PNN in the lesioned area, M1 and S1HL. CONCLUSION: Neurocan in PNN can regulate the activity of PV-IN, and EA can promote functional recovery of mice with SCI by upregulating neurocan expression in PNN.

Case report: Leptomeningeal metastasis of advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated with chemoimmunotherapy.

Leptomeningeal metastasis (LM) of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is rare and associated with a poor prognosis. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have been the standard first-line treatment for metastatic NPC, but their effect on meningeal metastasis of NPC needs further investigation. A 38-year-old man complained of bilateral neck masses and sought medical care. He was diagnosed with nasopharyngeal undifferentiated non-keratinizing carcinoma with bilateral cervical lymph node metastasis and multiple bone metastasis, stage cT4N2M1 IVb. Then, the patient received first-line anti-PD-1 antibody tislelizumab combined with gemcitabine and cisplatin and achieved partial response. After seven cycles of first-line chemoimmunotherapy, the patient subsequently developed neurological symptoms, including unsteady walking, slurred speech, coughing on drinking, and unconsciousness. MRI showed leptomeningeal linear enhancement, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis indicated Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection and squamous cell carcinoma cytology, suggesting the diagnosis of leptomeningeal metastasis. After the definite diagnosis of LM, the patient's condition deteriorated rapidly, leading to his death from brain herniation. We reported the first case of advanced NPC with pathologically confirmed leptomeningeal metastasis after receiving first-line chemoimmunotherapy. Considering the poor prognosis of LM, it is suggested to perform MRI and CSF examination when patients have neurological symptoms. Although immunotherapy significantly improved survival outcomes of advanced NPC patients, it seemed not effective in the setting of LM. The effect of other treatment options, such as radiation therapy and intrathecal therapy, requires further verification.

STK11/LKB1-Deficient Phenotype Rather Than Mutation Diminishes Immunotherapy Efficacy and Represents STING/Type I Interferon/CD8+ T-Cell Dysfunction in NSCLC.

INTRODUCTION: Conflicting findings have been reported regarding the association between STK11/LKB1 mutations and immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICB) efficacy in NSCLC. It has been reported that tumors could exhibit impaired STK11/LKB1 function even without STK11 mutations. We hypothesized that STK11 phenotype rather than mutation may better stratify ICB outcomes. METHODS: Selected functional STK11 events and LKB1 protein data were leveraged to establish a transcriptomics-based classifier of STK11 phenotype (STK11-deficient [-def] or -proficient [-prof]). We analyzed in-house and Genentech/Roche's data of three randomized trials of programmed cell death protein-1 or programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) inhibition in NSCLC (ORIENT-11, n = 171; OAK, n = 699; POPLAR, n = 192) and The Cancer Genome Atlas-NSCLC cohort. RESULTS: Tissue STK11 mutation did not affect ICB outcomes. However, the survival benefit of ICB versus chemotherapy were lost or reversed in STK11-def tumors (hazard ratios for death, 95% confidence interval: OAK [0.97, 0.69-1.35]; POPLAR [1.61, 0.88-2.97]; ORIENT-11 [1.07, 0.50-2.29]), while remaining in STK11-prof tumors (hazard ratios for death, 95% confidence interval: OAK [0.81, 0.66-0.99]; POPLAR [0.66, 0.46-0.95]; ORIENT-11 [0.59, 0.37-0.92]). In tumors differentially classified by phenotype and mutation status, STK11-wild-type/def tumors had significantly worse ICB outcomes than STK11-mutated (STK11-MUT)/prof tumors (p < 0.05). The deleterious impact of STK11 deficiency was independent of STK11/KRAS/KEAP1 status or PD-L1 expression. The STING/interferon-I signaling, which was previously shown to be suppressed in STK11-MUT models, was perturbed in patients with STK11-def tumors rather than those with STK11-MUT tumors. Surprisingly, whereas high CD8+ T-cell infiltration was significantly associated with prolonged survival with ICB in STK11-prof tumors (p < 0.05 for 3 trials), it predicted an opposite trend toward worse ICB outcomes in STK11-def tumors across three trials. This suggested an association between STK11 deficiency and CD8+ T-cell dysfunction, which might not be reversed by programmed cell death protein 1 or PD-L1 blockade. CONCLUSIONS: STK11 phenotype rather than mutation status can accurately identify patients with ICB-refractory NSCLC and reflect immune suppression. It can help refine stratification algorithms for future clinical research and also provide a reliable resource aiding basic and translational studies in identifying therapeutic targets.

Precisely Controlling Csr sRNA Levels by MshH Enhances Vibrio cholerae Colonization in Adult Mice.

Vibrio cholerae is the causative agent of cholera. Effective intestinal colonization is a key step for V. cholerae pathogenicity and transmission. In this study, we found that deleting mshH, a homolog of the Escherichia coli CsrD protein, caused a V. cholerae colonization defect in the intestine of adult mice. By analyzing the RNA levels of CsrB, CsrC, and CsrD, we found that deleting mshH increased the levels of CsrB and CsrD but decreased the level of CsrC. However, deleting CsrB and -D not only recovered the mshH deletion mutant colonization defect but also recovered CsrC to wild-type levels. These results indicated that controlling the RNA levels of CsrB, -C, and -D is crucial for V. cholerae colonization of adult mice. We further demonstrated that the RNA levels of CsrB and CsrD were mainly controlled by MshH-dependent degradation, yet the level of CsrC was mainly determined by the CsrA-dependent stabilization. Our data show that V. cholerae differentially controls CsrB, -C, and -D abundance through the MshH-CsrB/C/D-CsrA regulatory pathway to finely regulate the activity of CsrA targets such as ToxR, so as to better survive in adult mouse intestine. IMPORTANCE The ability of V. cholerae to colonize the intestine is a key factor for its fitness and transmissibility between hosts. Here, we investigated the mechanism of V. cholerae colonization of adult mammal intestine and found that precisely controlling the CsrB, -C, and -D contents by MshH and CsrA plays an essential role for V. cholerae colonization in the adult mouse intestine. These data expand our knowledge on the mechanism of V. cholerae controlling the RNA level of CsrB, -C, and -D and highlight the importance that the different strategies used by V. cholerae to regulate the RNA level of CsrB, -C, and -D confer the bacterium with a survival advantage.

Overexpression of PsAMT1.2 in poplar enhances nitrogen utilization and resistance to drought stress.

Ammonium is an important form of inorganic nitrogen, which is essential for plant growth and development, and the uptake of ammonium is mediated by different members of ammonium transporters (AMTs). It is reported that PsAMT1.2 is specially expressed in the root of poplar, and the overexpression of PsAMT1.2 could improve plant growth and the salt tolerance of poplar. However, the role of AMTs in plant drought and low nitrogen (LN) resistance remains unclear. To understand the role of PsAMT1.2 in drought and LN tolerance, the response of PsAMT1.2-overexpression poplar to polyethylene glycol (PEG)-simulated drought stress (5% PEG) under LN (0.001 mM NH4NO3) and moderate nitrogen (0.5 mM NH4NO3) conditions was investigated. The PsAMT1.2-overexpression poplar showed better growth with increased stem increment, net photosynthetic rate, chlorophyll content, root length, root area, average root diameter and root volume under drought and/or LN stress compared with the wild type (WT). Meanwhile, the content of malondialdehyde significantly decreased, and the activities of superoxide dismutase and catalase significantly increased in the roots and leaves of PsAMT1.2-overexpression poplar compared with WT. The content of NH4+ and NO2- in the roots and leaves of PsAMT1.2-overexpression poplar was increased, and nitrogen metabolism-related genes, such as GS1.3, GS2, Fd-GOGAT and NADH-GOGAT, were significantly upregulated in the roots and/or leaves of PsAMT1.2-overexpression poplar compared with WT under drought and LN stress. The result of this study would be helpful for understanding the function of PsAMT1.2 in plant drought and LN tolerance and also provides a new insight into improving the drought and LN tolerance of Populus at the molecular level.

Exploring the Core Bacteria and Functional Traits in Pecan (Carya illinoinensis) Rhizosphere.

Pecan (Carya illinoinensis) and Chinese hickory (Carya cathayensis) are important commercially cultivated nut trees. They are phylogenetically closely related plants; however, they exhibit significantly different phenotypes in response to abiotic stress and development. The rhizosphere selects core microorganisms from bulk soil, playing a pivotal role in the plant's resistance to abiotic stress and growth. In this study, we used metagenomic sequencing to compare the selection capabilities of seedling pecan and seedling hickory at taxonomic and functional levels in bulk soil and the rhizosphere. We observed that pecan has a stronger capacity to enrich rhizosphere plant-beneficial microbe bacteria (e.g., Rhizobium, Novosphingobium, Variovorax, Sphingobium, and Sphingomonas) and their associated functional traits than hickory. We also noted that the ABC transporters (e.g., monosaccharide transporter) and bacterial secretion systems (e.g., type IV secretion system) are the core functional traits of pecan rhizosphere bacteria. Rhizobium and Novosphingobium are the main contributors to the core functional traits. These results suggest that monosaccharides may help Rhizobium to efficiently enrich this niche. Novosphingobium may use a type IV secretion system to interact with other bacteria and thereby influence the assembly of pecan rhizosphere microbiomes. Our data provide valuable information to guide core microbial isolation and expand our knowledge of the assembly mechanisms of plant rhizosphere microbes. IMPORTANCE The rhizosphere microbiome has been identified as a fundamental factor in maintaining plant health, helping plants to fight the deleterious effects of diseases and abiotic stresses. However, to date, studies on the nut tree microbiome have been scarce. Here, we observed a significant "rhizosphere effect" on the seedling pecan. We furthermore demonstrated the core rhizosphere microbiome and function in the seedling pecan. Moreover, we deduced possible factors that help the core bacteria, such as Rhizobium, to efficiently enrich the pecan rhizosphere and the importance of the type IV system for the assembly of pecan rhizosphere bacterial communities. Our findings provide information for understanding the mechanism of the rhizosphere microbial community enrichment process.

Identification and validation of synapse-related hub genes after spinal cord injury by bioinformatics analysis.

BACKGROUND: Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a neurological disease with high morbidity and mortality. Previous studies have shown that abnormally expressed synapse-related genes are closely related to the occurrence and development of SCI. However, little is known about the interaction of these aberrantly expressed genes and the molecular mechanisms that play a role in the injury response. Therefore, deeply exploring the correlation between synapse-related genes and functional recovery after spinal cord injury and the molecular regulation mechanism is of great significance. METHODS: First, we selected the function GSE45006 dataset to construct three clinically meaningful gene modules by hierarchical clustering analysis in 4 normal samples and 20 SCI samples. Subsequently, we performed functional and pathway enrichment analyses of key modules. RESULTS: The results showed that related module genes were significantly enriched in synaptic structures and functions, such as the regulation of synaptic membranes and membrane potential. A protein-protein interaction network (PPI) was constructed to identify 10 hub genes of SCI, and the results showed that Snap25, Cplx1, Stxbp1, Syt1, Rims1, Rab3a, Syn2, Syn1, Cask, Lin7b were most associated with SCI. Finally, these hub genes were further verified by quantitative real-time fluorescence polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) in the spinal cord tissues of the blank group and SCI rats, and it was found that the expression of these hub genes was significantly decreased in the spinal cord injury compared with the blank group (P ≤ 0.05). CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the structure and function of synapses play an important role after spinal cord injury. Our study helps to understand the underlying pathogenesis of SCI patients further and identify new targets for SCI treatment.

Nano-selenium enhances sugarcane resistance to Xanthomonas albilineans infection and improvement of juice quality.

Selenium is an important trace element that is beneficial to human health and can enhance plant resistance and crop quality. The occurrence of up-to-date nanotechnology greatly promotes the beneficial efficiency of this trace element on crops. The discovery of nano-Se increased the crop quality and reduced plant disease in different plant. In this study, we reduced sugarcane leaf scald disease incidence by exogenously spraying different concentrations (5 mg/L and 10 mg/L) of nano-Se. Additional studies revealed that spraying of nano-Se reduced reactive oxygen species (ROS) and H2O2 accumulation, and increased antioxidant enzyme activities in sugarcane. The nano-selenium treatments also increased the content of jasmonic acid (JA) and the expression of JA pathway genes. Furthermore, we also found that use nano-Se treatment in an appropriate way can enhance the quality of cane juice. The brix of the cane juice of the selenium-enriched treatment was significantly higher than that of the control group, which was 10.98% and 20.81% higher than that of the CK group, respectively. Meanwhile, the content of certain beneficial amino acids was increased, with the highest being 3.9 times higher than the control. Taken together, our findings inferred that nano-Se could act as a potential eco-fungicide to protect sugarcane from can be used as a potential ecological bactericide to protect sugarcane from Xanthomonas albilineans infections, and improve sugarcane quality. The results arising from this study not only introduces an ecological method to control X. albilineans, but also provides a deep insight into this trace elements for improving juice quality.

Classification of Tumor Immune Microenvironment According to Programmed Death-Ligand 1 Expression and Immune Infiltration Predicts Response to Immunotherapy Plus Chemotherapy in Advanced Patients With NSCLC.

INTRODUCTION: According to mechanisms of adaptive immune resistance, tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) is classified into four types: (1) programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1)-negative and tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL)-negative (type I); (2) PD-L1-positive and TIL-positive (type II); (3) PD-L1-negative and TIL-positive (type III); and (4) PD-L1-positive and TIL-negative (type IV). However, the relationship between the TIME classification model and immunotherapy efficacy has not been validated by any large-scale randomized controlled clinical trial among patients with advanced NSCLC. METHODS: On the basis of RNA-sequencing and immunohistochemistry data from the ORIENT-11 study, we optimized the TIME classification model and evaluated its predictive value for the efficacy of immunotherapy plus chemotherapy. RESULTS: PD-L1 mRNA expression and immune score calculated by the ESTIMATE method were the strongest predictors for the efficacy of immunotherapy plus chemotherapy. Therefore, they were determined as the optimized definition of the TIME classification system. When compared between combination therapy and chemotherapy alone, only the type II subpopulation with high immune score and high PD-L1 mRNA expression was significantly associated with improved progression-free survival (PFS) (hazard ratio = 0.12, 95% confidence interval: 0.06-0.25, p < 0.001) and overall survival (hazard ratio = 0.27, 95% confidence interval: 0.13-0.55, p < 0.001). In the combination group, the type II subpopulation had a much longer survival time, not even reaching the median PFS or overall survival, but the other three subpopulations were susceptible to having similar PFS. In the chemotherapy group, there was no marked association between survival outcomes and TIME subtypes. CONCLUSIONS: Only patients with both high PD-L1 expression and high immune infiltration could benefit from chemotherapy plus immunotherapy in first-line treatment of advanced NSCLC. For patients lacking either PD-L1 expression or immune infiltration, chemotherapy alone might be a better treatment option to avoid unnecessary toxicities and financial burdens.

EA participates in pain transition through regulating KCC2 expression by BDNF-TrkB in the spinal cord dorsal horn of male rats.

The pathogenesis of chronic pain is complex and poorly treated, seriously affecting the quality of life of patients. Electroacupuncture (EA) relieves pain by preventing the transition of acute pain into chronic pain, but its mechanism of action is still unclear. Here, we aimed to investigate whether EA can inhibit pain transition by increasing KCC2 expression via BDNF-TrkB. We used hyperalgesic priming (HP) model to investigate the potential central mechanisms of EA intervention on pain transition. HP model male rats showed significant and persistent mechanically abnormal pain. Brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) expression and Tropomyosin receptor kinase B (TrkB) phosphorylation were upregulated in the affected spinal cord dorsal horn (SCDH) of HP model rats, accompanied by K+-Cl-- Cotransporter-2 (KCC2) expression was down-regulated. EA significantly increased the mechanical pain threshold in HP model male rats and decreased BDNF and p-TrkB overexpression and upregulated KCC2 expression. Blockade of BDNF with BDNF neutralizing antibody attenuated mechanical abnormal pain in HP rats. Finally, administration of exogenous BDNF by pharmacological methods reversed the EA-induced resistance to abnormal pain. In all, these results suggest that BDNF-TrkB contributes to mechanical abnormal pain in HP model rats and that EA ameliorates mechanical abnormal pain through upregulation of KCC2 by BDNF-TrkB in SCDH. Our study further supports EA as an effective treatment to prevent the transition of acute pain into chronic pain.

Prognostic analysis of pT1-T2aN0M0 cervical adenocarcinoma based on random survival forest analysis and the generation of a predictive nomogram.

Background: The efficacy of adjuvant radiotherapy for postoperative patients with early-stage cervical adenocarcinoma who are lymph node-negative is still inconclusive. Establishing a nomogram to predict the prognosis of such patients could facilitate clinical decision-making. Methods: We recruited 4636 eligible patients with pT1-T2aN0M0 cervical adenocarcinoma between 2004 and 2016 from the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database. Random survival forest (RSF) and conditional survival forest (CSF) model was used to assess the prognostic importance of each clinical characteristic variable. We identified independent prognostic factors associated with overall survival (OS) by univariate and multivariate Cox regression risk methods and then constructed a nomogram. We stratified patients based on nomogram risk scores and evaluated the survival benefit of different adjuvant therapies. To reduce confounding bias, we also used propensity score matching (PSM) to match the cohorts before performing survival analyses. Results: The RSF and CSF model identified several important variables that are associated with prognosis, including grade, age, radiotherapy and tumor size. Patients were randomly divided into training and validation groups at a ratio of 7:3. Multivariate cox analysis revealed that age, grade, tumor size, race, radiotherapy and histology were independent prognostic factors for overall survival. Using these variables, we then constructed a predictive nomogram. The C-index value for evaluating the prognostic nomogram fluctuated between 0.75 and 0.91. Patients were divided into three subgroups based on risk scores, and Kaplan-Meier (K-M) survival analysis revealed that in the low-risk group, postoperative chemotherapy alone was associated with a significantly worse OS than surgery alone. Following PSM, survival analysis showed that compared with surgery alone, radiotherapy was associated with a worse OS in the training group although there was no significant difference in the validation group. Conclusions: For patients with pT1-T2aN0M0 cervical adenocarcinoma, adjuvant treatments such as postoperative radiotherapy or chemotherapy, compared with surgery alone, are of no benefit with regards to patient survival. Our prognostic nomogram exhibits high accuracy for predicting the survival of patients with early-stage postoperative cervical adenocarcinoma.

Involvement of kynurenine pathway between inflammation and glutamate in the underlying etiopathology of CUMS-induced depression mouse model.

Inflammation and glutamate (GLU) are widely thought to participate in the pathogenesis of depression, and current evidence suggests that the development of depression is associated with the activation of the kynurenine pathway (KP). However, the exact mechanism of KP among the inflammation, GLU and depression remain poorly understood. In this study, we examined the involvement of KP, inflammation and GLU in depressive phenotype induced by chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) in C57B/6 J mice. Our results showed that CUMS caused depressive like-behavior in the sucrose preference test, tail suspension test and forced swimming test. From a molecular perspective, CUMS upregulated the peripheral and central inflammatory response and activated indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), the rate-limiting enzyme of KP, which converts tryptophan (TRP) into kynurenine (KYN). KYN is a precursor for QA in microglia, which could activate the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR), increasing the GLU release, mirrored by increased IDO activity, quinolinic acid and GLU levels in the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex and serum. However, intervention with IDO inhibitor 1-methyl-DL-tryptophan (50 mg/kg/s.c.) and 1-methyl-L-tryptophan (15 mg/kg/i.p.) reversed the depressive-like behaviors and adjusted central and peripheral KP's metabolisms levels as well as GLU content, but the inflammation levels were not completely affected. These results provide certain evidence that KP may be a vital pathway mediated by IDO linking inflammation and glutamate, contributing to depression.

Integrated bioinformatics analysis identifies the effects of Sema3A/NRP1 signaling in oligodendrocytes after spinal cord injury in rats.

Objective: To investigate the effect of Sema3A/NRP1 signaling in oligodendrocytes (OLs) after spinal cord injury. Methods: Three analysis strategies, namely differential expression gene analysis, Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment, and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis, were applied. The protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed using the STRING website to explore the correlation between Sema3A/NRP1 and oligodendrocytes. Then, the T10 spinal cord segment of rats was injured by the Allen method to establish a spinal cord injury (SCI) model. Real-time quantitative PCR, Western blotting, Nissl staining and immunofluorescence staining were used to detect the effect of Sema3A/NRP1 signaling on oligodendrocytes in vivo. Results: After the SCI model was established, significantly fewer oligodendrocytes were observed. At the same time, R software was used to analyze the expression of related genes, and NRP1 expression was increased. PCR also demonstrated similar results, and NRP1 ligand Sema3A was also upregulated. KEGG and GO functional enrichment analysis indicated that the SCI model was mainly related to cytokine interaction, cell proliferation, differentiation and maturation. Interestingly, we found that NRP1 was involved in semaphorin-plexin signaling pathway neuronal projection guidance and axon guidance, mediating cell growth and migration. Moreover, Sema3A/NRP1 signaling was closely associated with platelet-derived growth factor receptor α (PDGFRα) in the PPI network. When Sema3A/NRP1 signaling was specifically blocked at early stages, PDGFRα expression was effectively inhibited, and the expression of OLs was promoted. Furthermore, inhibition of Sema3A/NRP1 signaling increased the Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan (BBB) score of lower limb motor function in SCI rats and promoted the survival of motor neurons in the ventral horn of the injured spinal cord. Conclusion: Our data suggest that Sema3A/NRP1 signaling may regulate the development of OPCs and OLs after SCI, thereby affecting functional recovery.

Detecting Wolbachia Strain wAlbB in Aedes albopictus Cell Lines.

As a maternally harbored endosymbiont, Wolbachia infects large proportions of insect populations. Studies have recently reported the successful regulation of RNA virus transmission using Wolbachia-transfected mosquitoes. Key strategies to control viruses include the manipulation of host reproduction via cytoplasmic incompatibility and the inhibition of viral transcripts via immune priming and competition for host-derived resources. However, the underlying mechanisms of the responses of Wolbachia-transfected mosquitoes to viral infection are poorly understood. This paper presents a protocol for the in vitro identification of Wolbachia infection at the nucleic acid and protein levels in Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) Aa23 cells to enhance the understanding of the interactions between Wolbachia and its insect vectors. Through the combined use of polymerase chain reaction (PCR), quantitative PCR, western blot, and immunological analytical methods, a standard morphologic protocol has been described for the detection of Wolbachia-infected cells that is more accurate than the use of a single method. This approach may also be applied to the detection of Wolbachia infection in other insect taxa.

Electroacupuncture Inhibits NLRP3 Activation by Regulating CMPK2 After Spinal Cord Injury.

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the expression of cytosine monophosphate kinase 2 (CMPK2) and activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome in rats with spinal cord injury (SCI) and to characterize the effects of electroacupuncture on CMPK2-associated regulation of the NLRP3 inflammasome. Methods: An SCI model was established in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats. The expression levels of NLRP3 and CMPK2 were measured at different time points following induction of SCI. The rats were randomly divided into a sham group (Sham), a model group (Model), an electroacupuncture group (EA), an adeno-associated virus (AAV) CMPK2 group, and an AAV NC group. Electroacupuncture was performed at jiaji points on both sides of T9 and T11 for 20 min each day for 3 consecutive days. In the AAV CMPK2 and AAV NC groups, the viruses were injected into the T9 spinal cord via a microneedle using a microscope and a stereotactic syringe. The Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan (BBB) score was used to evaluate the motor function of rats in each group. Histopathological changes in spinal cord tissue were detected using H&E staining, and the expression levels of NLRP3, CMPK2, ASC, caspase-1, IL-18, and IL-1ß were quantified using Western blotting (WB), immunofluorescence (IF), and RT-PCR. Results: The expression levels of NLRP3 and CMPK2 in the spinal cords of the model group were significantly increased at day 1 compared with those in the sham group (p < 0.05). The expression levels of NLRP3 and CMPK2 decreased gradually over time and remained low at 14 days post-SCI. We successfully constructed AAV CMPK2 and showed that CMPK2 was significantly knocked down following 2 dilutions. Finally, treatment with EA or AAV CMPK2 resulted in significantly increased BBB scores compared to those in the model group and the AAV NC group (p < 0.05). The histomorphology of the spinal cord in the EA and AAV CMPK2 groups was significantly different than that in the model and AAV NC groups. WB, IF, and PCR analyses showed that the expression levels of CMPK2, NLRP3, ASC, caspase-1, IL-18, and IL-1ß were significantly lower in the EA and AAV CMPK2 groups compared with those in the model and AAV NC groups (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Our study showed that CMPK2 regulated NLRP3 expression in rats with SCI. Activation of NLRP3 is a critical mechanism of inflammasome activation and the inflammatory response following SCI. Electroacupuncture downregulated the expression of CMPK2 and inhibited activation of NLRP3, which could improve motor function in rats with SCI.

ToxT Regulon Is Nonessential for Vibrio cholerae Colonization in Adult Mice.

Vibrio cholerae is the causative agent of cholera, a life-threatening diarrheal disease in humans. The ability of V. cholerae to colonize the intestine of different animals is a key factor for its fitness and transmissibility between hosts. Many virulence factors, including the ToxT regulon, have been identified to be the major components allowing V. cholerae to colonize the small intestine of suckling mice; however, the mechanism of V. cholerae colonization in the adult mammalian intestine is unclear. In this study, using the streptomycin-treated adult mouse animal model, we characterized the role of the ToxT regulon in V. cholerae colonization in adult mammalian intestine. We first found that the activity of TcpP regulating ToxT regulon expression was attenuated by intestinal reactive oxygen species (ROS). We then found that V. cholerae containing a deletion of the ToxT regulon showed a competition advantage in colonizing adult mice; however, a mutant containing a constitutively active ToxT regulon showed a significant defect in colonizing adult mice. Constitutively producing the virulence factors in the ToxT regulon causes a V. cholerae competition defect in nutrient-limiting conditions. The results of this study demonstrate that modulating the activity of the ToxT regulon through ROS sensed by TcpP is critical for V. cholerae to enhance its colonization in the intestine of adult mice. IMPORTANCE Vibrio cholerae can inhabit both marine and freshwater ecosystems and can also enter and proliferate in the intestine of different animals which consume contaminated food or water. To successfully colonize the intestines of different hosts, V. cholerae coordinates its gene expression in response to different environments. Here, we describe how V. cholerae modulates the activity of the ToxT regulon by TcpP sensing ROS signals in the intestine of adult mice to better survive in this environment. We found that the constitutively active ToxT regulon causes V. cholerae growth retardation and colonization defect in adult mice. Our work highlights the distinctive role that regulating the activity of the ToxT regulon plays for V. cholerae to achieve full survival fitness in the adult mammalian intestine.

Telomere shortening impairs alveolar regeneration.

OBJECTIVES: Short telomeres in alveolar type 2 (AT2) cells have been associated with many lung diseases. The study aimed to investigate the regeneration capacity of AT2 cells with short telomeres by knocking out Tert in mice (G4 Tert-/- ) from the whole to the cellular level. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The lung injury model of mice was established by left pneumonectomy (PNX). The proliferation and differentiation of AT2 cells were observed by immunofluorescence staining in vivo and in vitro. The difference of the gene expression between control and G4 Tert-/- group during the regeneration of AT2 cells was compared by RNA sequencing. The expression of tubulin polymerization promoting protein 3 (TPPP3) was reduced by adeno-associated virus delivery. RESULTS: The alveolar regeneration in G4 Tert-/- mice was impaired after PNX-induced lung injury. The regulation of cytoskeleton remodelling was defective in G4 Tert-/- AT2 cells. The expression of TPPP3 was gradually increased during AT2 cell differentiation. The expression level of TPPP3 was reduced in G4 Tert-/- AT2 cells. Reducing TPPP3 expression in AT2 cells limits the microtubule remodelling and differentiation of AT2 cells. CONCLUSION: Short telomeres in AT2 cells result in the reduced expression level of TPPP3, leading to impaired regeneration capacity of AT2 cells.

Micropatterned conductive elastomer patch based on poly (glycerol sebacate)-graphene for cardiac tissue repair.

Preparing a micropatterned elastomer film with characteristics that can simulate the mechanical properties, anisotropy, and electroactivity of natural myocardial tissues is crucial in cardiac tissue engineering after myocardial infarction (MI). Therefore, in this study, we developed several elastomeric films with a surface micropattern based on poly (glycerol sebacate) (PGS) and graphene (Gr). These films have sufficient mechanical strength (0.6 ± 0.1-3.2 ± 0.08 MPa) to withstand heartbeats, and the micropatterned structure also satisfies the natural myocardium anisotropy in the transverse and vertical. Moreover, Gr makes these films conductive (up to 5.80 × 10-7S m-1), which is necessary for the conduction of electrical signals between cardiomyocytes and the cardiac tissue. Furthermore, they have good cytocompatibility and can promote cell proliferation in H9c2 rat cardiomyocyte cell lines.In vivotest results indicate that these films have good biocompatibility. Notably, a film with 1 wt% Gr content (PGS-Gr1) significantly affects the recovery of myocardial function in rats after MI. This film effectively decreased the infarct size and degree of myocardial fibrosis and reduced collagen deposition. Echocardiographic evaluation showed that after treatment with this film, the left ventricular internal dimension (LVID) in systole and LVID in diastole of rats exhibited a significant downward trend, whereas the fractional shortening and ejection fraction were significantly increased compared with the control group. These data indicate that this electroactive micropatterned anisotropic elastomer film can be applied in cardiac tissue engineering.