Anti-diabetic effect of anthocyanin cyanidin-3-O-glucoside: data from insulin resistant hepatocyte and diabetic mouse.

BACKGROUND: Anthocyanins are a group of natural products widely found in plants. They have been found to alleviate the disorders of glucose metabolism in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), while the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. METHODS: HepG2 and L02 cells were incubated with 0.2 mM PA and 30 mM glucose for 24 h to induce IR, and cells treated with 5 mM glucose were used as the control. C57BL/6 J male mice and db/db male mice were fed with a chow diet and gavaged with pure water or cyanidin-3-O-glucoside (C3G) solution (150 mg/kg/day) for 6 weeks. RESULTS: In this study, the anthocyanin C3G, extracted from red bayberry, was found to alleviate disorders of glucose metabolism, which resulted in increased insulin sensitivity in hepatocytes, and achieved by enhancing the glucose consumption as well as glycogen synthesis in insulin resistance (IR) hepatpcytes. Subsequently, the expression of key proteins involved in IR was detected by western blotting analysis. Protein tyrosine phosphatase-1B (PTP1B), a negative regulator of insulin signaling, could reduce cellular sensitivity to insulin by inhibiting the phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate-2 (IRS-2). Results of this study showed that C3G inhibited the increase in PTP1B after high glucose and palmitic acid treatment. And this inhibition was accompanied by increased phosphorylation of IRS proteins. Furthermore, the effect of C3G on improving IR in vivo was validated by using a diabetic db/db mouse model. CONCLUSION: These findings demonstrated that C3G could alleviate IR in vitro and in vivo to increase insulin sensitivity, which may offer a new insight for regulating glucose metabolism during T2DM by using the natural dietary bioactive components. C3G promotes the phosphorylation of IRS-2 proteins by suppressing the expression of PTP1B, and then enhances the sensitivity of hepatocyte to insulin.

Exploring the Effects of Cyanidin-3-O-Glucoside on Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Insights into Gut Microbiome Modulation and Potential Antidiabetic Benefits.

Berries and their functional components have been put forward as an alternative to pharmacological treatments of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and more attention has been paid to the gut microbiome in the pathophysiology of T2DM. Thus, we tried to examine the metabolic impact of red bayberry-derived cyanidin-3-O-glucoside (C3G) and investigate whether the antidiabetic effects of C3G were associated with the gut microbiome. As a result, C3G administration was found to reduce blood glucose levels of diabetic db/db mice, accompanied by increased levels of glucagon-like peptide (GLP-1) and insulin. Moreover, 16S rRNA analysis showed that the dominant microbiota modulated by C3G were pivotal in the glucose metabolism. Furthermore, the modulation of C3G on metabolic activities of gut bacteria leads to an increase in intestinal levels of key metabolites, particularly short-chain fatty acids. This contribution helps in promoting the secretion of GLP-1, which in turn increases insulin release with the purpose of reducing blood glucose levels. Overall, these findings may offer new thoughts concerning C3G against metabolic disorders in T2DM.

lncRNA-disease association prediction based on the weight matrix and projection score.

With the development of medical science, long noncoding RNA (lncRNA), originally considered as a noise gene, has been found to participate in a variety of biological activities. Several recent studies have shown the involvement of lncRNA in various human diseases, such as gastric cancer, prostate cancer, lung cancer, and so forth. However, obtaining lncRNA-disease relationship only through biological experiments not only costs manpower and material resources but also gains little. Therefore, developing effective computational models for predicting lncRNA-disease association relationship is extremely important. This study aimed to propose an lncRNA-disease association prediction model based on the weight matrix and projection score (LDAP-WMPS). The model used the relatively perfect lncRNA-miRNA relationship data and miRNA-disease relationship data to predict the lncRNA-disease relationship. The integrated lncRNA similarity matrix and the integrated disease similarity matrix were established by fusing various methods to calculate the similarity between lncRNA and disease. This study improved the existing weight algorithm, applied it to the lncRNA-miRNA-disease triple network, and thus proposed a new lncRNA-disease weight matrix calculation method. Combined with the improved projection algorithm, the lncRNA-miRNA relationship and miRNA-disease relationship were used to predict the lncRNA-disease relationship. The simulation results showed that under the Leave-One-Out-Cross-Validation framework, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of LDAP-WMPS could reach 0.8822, which was better than the latest result. Taking adenocarcinoma and colorectal cancer as examples, the LDAP-WMPS model was found to effectively infer the lncRNA-disease relationship. The simulation results showed good prediction performance of the LDAP-WMPS model, which was an important supplement to the research of lncRNA-disease association prediction without lncRNA-disease relationship data.

Safety and efficacy of minimally invasive McKeown esophagectomy in 1023 consecutive esophageal cancer patients: a single-center experience.

OBJECTIVE: By analyzing the perioperative, postoperative complications and long-term overall survival time, we summarized the 8-year experience of minimally invasive McKeown esophagectomy for esophageal cancer in a single medical center. METHODS: This retrospective follow-up study included 1023 consecutive patients with esophageal cancer who underwent MIE-McKeown between Mar 2013 and Oct 2020. Relevant variables were collected and evaluated. Overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) were analyzed by Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: For 1023 esophageal cancer undergoing MIE-McKeown, the main intraoperative complications were bleeding (3.0%, 31/1023) and tracheal injury (1.7%, 17/1023). There was no death occurred during operation. The conversion rate of thoracoscopy to thoracotomy was 2.2% (22/1023), and laparoscopy to laparotomy was 0.3% (3/1023). The postoperative morbidity of complications was 36.2% (370/1023), of which anastomotic leakage 7.7% (79/1023), pulmonary complication 13.4% (137/1023), chylothorax 2.3% (24/1023), and recurrent laryngeal nerve injury 8.8% (90/1023). The radical resection rate (R0) was 96.0% (982/1023), 30-day mortality was 0.3% (3/1023). For 1000 cases with squamous cell carcinoma, the estimated 3-year and 5-year overall survival was 37.2% and 17.8% respectively. In addition, neoadjuvant chemotherapy offered 3-year disease-free survival rate advantage in advanced stage patients (for stage IV: 7.2% vs. 1.8%). CONCLUSIONS: This retrospective single center study demonstrates that MIE-McKeown procedure is feasible and safe with low perioperative and postoperative complications' morbidity, and acceptable long-term oncologic results.

[Characteristics of Microbial Utilization for Crop Residue-Derived C in Paddy and Upland Soils].

Two typical subtropical agricultural soils, a flooded paddy soil and its adjacent upland, were collected and then incubated with or without 13C-labeled crop residue (maize straw) for 40 days. During the incubation, the mineralization rate of the crop residue was monitored, and the 13C incorporated into fungal and bacterial phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) was quantified. At the early stage (0.25-1 days), the mineralization rate of crop residue was faster in paddy soil than that in upland soil, whereas the opposite trend was observed from 2 to 20 days. At the late stage (21-40 days), the mineralization rate was similar in both soils. At the end of incubation, 11% of the total crop residue was mineralized in paddy soil, which was about half of that in upland soil (20%). Although paddy soil had a higher amount of microbial biomass (indicated by total PLFA), the total amounts of 13C-PLFA were comparable in both soils, and the enrichment ratio (proportion of 13C to total C in PLFA) was lower in paddy soil than that in upland soil. This indicated that the microbial community in paddy soil was less active in the uptake of crop residue C than that in upland soil. During the incubation, the residue-derived 13C was mainly distributed in bacterial PLFA (up to 86% of total 13C-PLFA, including 59% in gram-positive and 27% in gram-negative bacteria) in paddy soil, and up to 75% of total 13C-PLFA distributed in fungal PLFAs was in upland soil. Thus, bacteria dominated the utilization of crop residue in paddy soil versus fungi in upland soil. Compared with that in upland soil, the microbial activity was suppressed in the anaerobic condition caused by flooding in paddy soil, with a stronger inhibition of fungi than bacteria. Considering the discrepancies of life strategies and necromass turnover between bacteria and fungi, the different dominant microbial groups in the utilization of crop residue in water-logged and well-drained conditions could lead to the distinct accumulation and stabilization of microbial-derived organic matter in paddy and upland soils.

Confirming the TMEM232 gene associated with atopic dermatitis through targeted capture sequencing.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common and complex skin disorder, and the 5q22.1 region had been reported to be associated with AD. To confirm the susceptibility gene for AD in the 5q22.1 region by haplotype and targeted capture sequencing. The haplotypes were reconstructed with the genotyping data of four SNPs and six deletions from 3624 Chinese Hans AD patients and 5076 controls. The targeted capture sequencing spanning 5q22.1 region was performed in the selected samples. The gene level enrichment analysis was done using loss of function variants. A total of 62 haplotypes were found, and the H15 haplotype had the strongest association with AD (P = 3.92 × 10-10, OR 0.17, 95% CI 0.09-0.32). However, no co-segregation mutation sites were found in the sequencing analysis within the 16 selected samples, while the enrichment analysis indicated that TMEM232 was significantly associated with AD (P = 7.33 × 10-5, OR 0.33, 95% CI 0.19-0.58). This study confirms previous findings that the TMEM232 gene is associated with AD by haplotype analysis and targeted capture sequencing.

A Common Variant at 11q23.3 Is Associated with Susceptibility to Atopic Dermatitis in the Han Chinese Population.

Background: Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified many genetic variants that are risk factors for numerous immune-mediated diseases. In particular, different immune-mediated diseases have been found to share the same susceptibility loci. Therefore, exploring the genetic overlap between atopic dermatitis (AD) and other immune-mediated diseases in more detail may help identify additional shared susceptibility loci among common immune-mediated diseases. Recent evidence suggests that the 11q23.3 locus is a susceptibility locus shared among multiple immune-mediated diseases. Objective: This study was designed to investigated whether SNPs at the chromosome 11q23.3 locus are associated with AD in the Han Chinese population. Methods: In total, 16 SNPs within the 11q23.3 locus were genotyped using TaqMan assays for 1,012 AD cases and 1,362 controls. From these SNPs, we selected rs638893 with an association values of p < 5 × 10-2 for AD for further analysis in an independent replication study using the Sequenom MassARRAY system to genotype an additional (consisting of 1,288 cases and 1,380 controls). The combined analyses were performed in two stages using a meta-analytical method. Results: We identified a common variant at 11q23.3 (rs638893), that was significantly associated (p = 1.58 × 10-3, OR = 1.22) with AD. The genotype-based association analysis revealed that the recessive model provided the best fit for rs638893. Conclusion: Our study identified a variant on chromosome 11q23.3 that likely confers susceptibility to AD, thereby advancing our understanding of the genetic basis of this disease.

Internet Use, Life Satisfaction, and Subjective Well-Being Among the Elderly: Evidence From 2017 China General Social Survey.

Purpose: The research objectives of this study are to test the scientific propositions of whether Internet use promotes life satisfaction among the elderly, whether there is variability in the effect of Internet use on the well-being of the elderly, and through what channels Internet use affects the elderly's life satisfaction. Method: Using data from the 2017 Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS), this paper employed linear regression, ordered logit model, and the propensity score matching (PSM) approach to investigate the association of Internet use with life satisfaction among the elderly in China. Results: The results show that Internet use was significantly and negatively associated with the life satisfaction of the Chinese elderly. Further analysis on group heterogeneity demonstrates that the negative association was more prominent among the participants who were males, at a lower age, had lower income and education, non-agricultural registered, and relatively healthy. Finally, the mediating effect indicates that Internet use may affect life satisfaction among the elderly through the channel of reducing their perceptions of social justice. Conclusions: In order to avoid the negative effects of using the Internet, the following policy suggestions are put forward: Improve the elderly's attitudes toward Internet use; pay attention to the sense of fairness of the elderly to improve life satisfaction; guide the elderly to reduce the time of using the Internet.

miR-520b Inhibits IGF-1R to Increase Doxorubicin Sensitivity and Promote Cell Apoptosis in Breast Cancer.

Doxorubicin (DOX) is currently one of the most widely used and effective drugs for the treatment of breast cancer, but drug resistance in breast cancer often leads to poor efficacy. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are involved in the development and progression of various tumors and increasing number of studies have confirmed that abnormal miR-520b expression is closely associated breast cancer. We analyzed the clinical features, including miR-520b, of 30 patients with breast cancer. Further, we analyzed the interaction between miR-520b and insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF-1R) in breast cancer cell. miR-520b expression was significantly increased in chemotherapy-sensitive patients and was positively correlated with the chemotherapeutic efficacy in breast cancer. Cell proliferation assay confirmed that miR-520b promotes DOX-induced breast cancer cell apoptosis by regulating the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Moreover, bioinformatics method and dual luciferase reporter assay demonstrated that miR-520b negatively regulates IGF-1R, and IGF-1R overexpression and enhanced activity are closely associated with tumor development, progression, metastasis, and chemotherapy resistance. Similarly, cell proliferation assay showed that IGF-1R is negatively correlated with the efficacy of DOX chemotherapy and affects cell apoptosis mediated by the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. On the contrary, miR-520b can downregulate the expression of IGF-1R. miR-520b increases DOX sensitivity and promotes cell apoptosis in breast cancer by inhibiting IGF-1R expression by the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.

Effects of Dapagliflozin on Cardiovascular Events, Death, and Safety Outcomes in Patients with Heart Failure: A Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Several clinical trials of dapagliflozin in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) at elevated cardiovascular risk have observed reduced hospitalization for heart failure (HHF). Several studies have also suggested cardiovascular benefits for patients with HF regardless of whether or not they have T2DM. OBJECTIVE: This meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the therapeutic effects of dapagliflozin in patients with HF. METHODS: The PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science databases were systematically searched from database inception to 15 February 2020. Clinical studies of dapagliflozin use in patients with HF were included. Data on HHF, all-cause mortality, cardiovascular death, major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), systolic blood pressure, body weight, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), and adverse events were collected for analysis. RESULTS: Four randomized controlled trials involving 6738 patients with HF were included in this meta-analysis. Patients receiving dapagliflozin showed a significantly lower incidence of HHF [risk ratio (RR) 0.72; P < 0.00001], all-cause mortality (RR 0.83; P = 0.004), cardiovascular death (RR 0.86; P = 0.03), and MACE (RR 0.88; P = 0.03). Moreover, patients receiving dapagliflozin also showed significant improvements in systolic blood pressure and body weight. However, no statistical difference was observed in HbA1c. In addition, hypoglycemia, volume depletion, and renal impairment was not more frequent with dapagliflozin than with placebo. CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis suggests that dapagliflozin could be a therapeutic strategy for patients with HF regardless of the presence or absence of T2DM.

Validation of Susceptibility Loci for Vitiligo Identified by GWAS in the Chinese Han Population.

Forty-nine susceptible loci have been reported to be significantly associated with vitiligo by genome-wide association studies (GWASs) in European-derived whites. To date, some of these reported susceptibility loci have not yet been validated in the Chinese Han population. The purpose of this study was to examine whether the 16 reported susceptible loci in European-derived whites were associated with vitiligo in the Chinese Han population. Imputation was performed using our previous GWAS dataset by IMPUTE v2.2.2. The 16 imputed top single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with suggestive signals, together with the reported SNPs, were genotyped in a total of 2581 patients and 2579 controls by the Sequenom MassARRAY system. PLINK 2.0 software was used to perform association analysis. The dbSNP database, HaploReg, and eQTL data were adopted to annotate the biological function of the SNPs. Finally, four SNPs from three loci were significantly associated with vitiligo, including rs3747517 (P = 1.29 × 10-3, OR = 0.87) in 2q24.2, rs4807000 (P = 7.78 × 10-24, OR = 0.66) and rs6510827 (P = 3.65 × 10-5, OR = 1.19) in 19p13.3, and rs4822024 (P = 6.37 × 10-10, OR = 0.67) in 22q13.2. According to the dbSNP database, rs3747517 is a missense variant of IFIH1, rs4807000 and rs6510827 are located in TICAM1, and rs4822024 is located 6 kb upstream of TEF. Further bioinformatics analysis by HaploReg and eQTL found that rs4807000, rs6510827, and rs4822024 are involved in regulating gene expression. Our study revealed the strong association of 2q24.2 (rs3747517), 19p13.3 (rs4807000, rs6510827), and 22q13.2 (rs4822024) with the risk of vitiligo in the Chinese Han population, which implicates common factors for vitiligo across different ethnicities, and helps expand the understanding of the genetic basis of this disease.

Whole Transcriptome Analysis Identifies the Taxonomic Status of a New Chinese Native Cattle Breed and Reveals Genes Related to Body Size.

Wandong (WD) cattle has recently been identified as a new Chinese native cattle breed by the National Commission for Livestock and Poultry Genetic Resources. The population size of this breed is less than 10,000. WD cattle and Dabieshan (DB) cattle are sympatric but are raised in different ecological environments, on mountains and plains, respectively, and the body sizes of these two breeds are markedly different. Blood samples were obtained from 8 adult female WD cattle and 7 adult female DB cattle (24 months old). The total RNA was extracted from leukocyte cells, and sequencing experiments were conducted on the Illumina HiSeqTM 4000 platform. After the removal of one outlier sample from the WD cattle breed as determined by principal component analysis (PCA), phylogenetic and population structure analyses indicated that WD and DB cattle formed a distinct Central China cattle group and showed evidence of hybridization between Bos. taurus and Bos. indicus. The immune-regulator CD48 (P = 1.3E-6) was associated with breed-specific traits according to loss-of-function variant enrichment analysis. In addition, 113 differentially expressed genes were identified between the two breeds, many of which are associated with the regulation of body growth, which is the major difference between the two breeds. This study showed that WD cattle belong to the group of hybrids between Bos. Taurus and Bos. indicus, and one novel gene associated with breed traits and multiple differentially expressed genes between these two closely related breeds was identified. The results provide insights into the genetic mechanisms that underlie economically important traits, such as body size, in cattle.

Feeding intensity and molecular prey identification of the common long-armed octopus, Octopus minor (Mollusca: Octopodidae) in the wild.

The common long-armed octopus, Octopus minor, is an important component of systems and supports the local fisheries in the coastal areas of northern China. For the fishery management and artificial breeding, especially for the management of exclusive conservation reserves, its role in the ecosystem requires assessment. Therefore, the feeding intensity of O. minor was studied from April to July 2014 when females reaching ovary maturation, and prey composition was identified from stomach contents using a DNA barcoding method. Of the 172 sampled octopuses, 66 had stomach contents that were nearly digested into pulp. On the whole, the feeding intensity of octopus remained more or less the same during the first three months and significantly decreased in July. The changes of feeding intensity were different between females and males; in females, the intensity of feeding decreased from April to July; in case of males, however, the feeding activity increased from April to June and decreased thereafter. The feeding intensity of the females was extremely greater than that of the males. O. minor was a generalist predator and based on homology searches and phylogenetic analysis, a total of 10 different taxa were identified in the stomach contents. In terms of percent composition by frequency of occurrences (%N), fishes accounted for the most of the octopuses diet (50%), followed by cephalopod (25%), crustaceans (21.7%), annelid (1.7%) and nematode (1.7%). The families of Gobiidae and Octopodidae appeared in all months and Protunidae appeared in three months. The results confirmed that Gobiidae family (45.8%, by frequency of occurrences) was an important source of food during the time when females reaching ovarian maturation. From April to July, the observed cannibalism showed an increasing trend. Controlling and reducing fishing production of Gobiidae fishes in conservation area are recommended from April to June when female octopuses are actively feeding.

[Straw Returning Plus Nitrogen Fertilizer Affects the Soil Microbial Community and Organic Carbon Mineralization in Karst Farmland].

The use of straw returning plus nitrogen fertilizer on farmland is one of the important agronomic practices for adjusting soil organic carbon (SOC) transformations. To explore the mechanisms of straw and nitrogen fertilizer application on straw and SOC mineralization in long-term fertilized soils, an incubation experiment with the 13C isotope tracing technique was conducted, which involved three long-term fertilized models in typical karst soils (no fertilization, inorganic fertilization, and a combination of inorganic fertilization and straw). To study the mechanisms of 13C-labeled straw and SOC mineralization, four treatments were designed as follows:no straw and nitrogen (control), and straw combined with three levels of nitrogen fertilizer (0, 214.0, and 571.0 mg·kg-1 soil). The results showed that cumulative mineralization amounts of straw-derived organic carbon in long-term fertilized soils were markedly higher than those in non-fertilized soil. Straw-derived organic carbon mineralization was significantly affected by nitrogen fertilizer levels. The positive priming effects (PE) in long-term fertilized soils were much lower than those in non-fertilized soil. The PE was decreased at the low nitrogen fertilizer level but increased at the high nitrogen fertilizer level. The principal component analysis (PCA) of phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) indicated that the soil microbial community structure was greatly affected by the long-term fertilization models and combined straw and nitrogen fertilizer application. Moreover, the content of PLFAs in soil microorganisms, namely, bacteria and fungi, were remarkably increased by the straw plus nitrogen fertilizer (values increased by 40.3%-53.0%, 41.1%-62.6%, and 60.5%-148.6% compared with control), but levels were not significantly affected by nitrogen fertilizer levels alone. The ratios between PLFAs of soil gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria (G+/G-) decreased and were stable at around 0.8. The structure equation models (SEM) demonstrated that the combination of straw and nitrogen affected the soil gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria structure and increased the soil DOC content, which promoted the decomposition of straw and affected the mineralization of SOC. These results indicate that straw returning plus low nitrogen fertilizer can improve the SOC sequestration capacity in karst farmland.

[Clinical study of Jiawei Xiaoyao Powder(JWXYP) on preventing delirium in elderly patients with hip fracture after operation].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of soothing liver, relieving depression, invigorating spleen and reinforcing blood on reducing delirium in elderly patients with hip fracture. METHODS: From December 2014 to June 2018, 180 elderly patients with hip fracture admitted were divided into treatment group and placebo group according to the order of admission:90 patients in treatment group were treated with Jiawei Xiaoyao Powder(JWXYP), including 32 males and 58 females, with an average age of(72.12±4.92), involving 67 cases of femoral trochanter fractures and 23 cases of femoral neck fractures; 35 cases underwent dynamic hip screw fixation, 31 cases underwent intramedullary fixation and 24 cases underwent artificial hip replacement. In the placebo group, 90 patients were treated with placebo, including 37 males and 53 females, with an average age of(72.91±5.43) years old, involving 69 cases of femoral trochanteric fractures and 21 cases of femoral neck fractures, including 37 cases underwent dynamic hip screw fixation, 30 cases underwent intramedullary fixation and 23 cases underwent artificial hip replacement. The age, sex, injury site, intraoperative bleeding volume, postoperative drainage, operation time, anesthesia time, post-operative pain score, post-operative hemoglobin, post-operative CRP, delirium severity(DRS) score and delirium occurrence were observed and compared between the two groups. RESULTS: All patients were followed up until delirium returned to normal, postoperative delirium was found in 12 cases (13.33%) in the treatment group and in 39 cases(43.33%) in the placebo group, the treatment group was significantly better than the placebo group. The monitoring indexes of the two groups were compared:post-operative pain score(P=0.002), post-operative hemoglobin(P=0.012), post-operative CRP(P=0.042). CONCLUSIONS: JWXYP can relieve liver depression, invigorate spleen and invigorate blood circulation, reduce pain, inflammatory stimulation and supplement blood volume after operation, and significantly reduce the incidence of delirium after operation.

Improvement in post-partum uterine involution in rats treated with Apios americana.

OBJECTIVE: Apios americana, a plant used as a staple ingredient of native American diets, has various properties, including anti-cancer, anti-hyperglycemic, hypotensive, and anti-inflammatory activity. In Japan, Apios is used as a post-natal medication. After parturition, women undergo a period of recovery as they return to pre-pregnancy conditions. However, few health products that aid post-partum recovery are on the market. We explored whether Apios can accelerate the post-partum recovery process, in particular the involution of the uterus. METHODS: Female rats kept in individual cages were mated with two male rats, with the exception of the control group (female rats without mating, on basal diet; n=6). After delivery, rats were divided into five groups based on their diet: basal diet (model; n=6); basal diet+oral intake at 5.4 g/kg of Chanfukang granules (a Chinese patent medicine preparation for post-partum lochia) (positive; n=6); basal diet containing 10% Apios powder (low; n=6); basal diet containing 20% Apios powder (medium; n=6); basal diet containing 40% Apios powder (high; n=6). Five days later, uteri and spleens were weighed. Uterus and spleen indices for each rat were calculated by dividing visceral weight by the total weight. Hormone and cytokine concentrations were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Histological analysis of uteri was completed using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining. Expression of matrix metalloproteinases and inhibitors in uteri was measured by western blotting. RESULTS: Our results showed that Apios treatment reduced the post-partum uterus index and regulated the hormone concentrations. Moreover, we found that the process of uterine involution was accelerated, based on morphological changes in the uterus. In addition, our results indicated that Apios alleviated the inflammatory response induced by the involution process. Transforming growth factor ß was also found to be regulated by Apios. There were significant downregulation of matrix metalloproteinases and upregulation of their inhibitors by Apios, which suggested that Apios increased the rate of the collagen clearance process. CONCLUSIONS: These results, based on experimental observations at the molecular and protein levels, verified our hypothesis that Apios can improve uterine involution, and demonstrated the potential application of Apios in post-partum care.

GWAS Follow-up Study Discovers a Novel Genetic Signal on 10q21.2 for Atopic Dermatitis in Chinese Han Population.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common inflammatory skin disease with high heritability. Two susceptibility loci have been confirmed in our previous AD genome-wide association study (GWAS). To look for additional genetic factors in Chinese Han ethnicity, we performed a large-scale GWAS follow-up study. Forty-nine top single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that had never been reported previously were genotyped using Sequenom Massarray system in an independent cohort, which consist of northern Chinese (1634 cases and 1263 controls) and southern Chinese (2985 cases and 9526 controls). Association analyses were performed using PLINK 2 software. Three SNPs in northern and ten SNPs in southern were found exhibiting association evidence with AD (P < 0.05). Finally, SNP rs224108 on 10q21.2 showed high significance for AD in joint analysis of GWAS and replication study (P meta = 4.55 × 10-9, OR = 1.21), and was confirmed as an independent genetic marker by Linkage disequilibrium calculation and conditional logistic regression analysis. Bioinformatics analysis strongly suggested that rs224108 may have the potential to alter the target gene expression through non-coding epigenetic regulation effects. Meanwhile, SNP rs11150780 on 17q25.3 was also found suggestive association with AD (P meta = 7.64 × 10-7, OR = 1.18). Our findings confirmed a novel susceptibility signal on 10q21.2 for AD in Chinese Han population and advanced the understanding of the genetic contribution to AD.

Systematic study of the quality and safety of chilled pork from wet markets, supermarkets, and online markets in China.

BACKGROUND: With increasing media coverage of food safety incidents, such as that of clenbuterol residues in pork, food safety has become a major public health concern in China. Rapidly developing online markets attract increasing numbers of Chinese consumers to purchase food on the Internet. However, the quality and safety of food sold online are uncertain and are less reported on. OBJECTIVE: This research aimed to systematically study the quality and safety of chilled pork from wet markets, supermarkets, and online markets in China. RESULTS: The chilled pork samples from online markets were fresher than those from wet markets and supermarkets based on the surface redness (a* value). Chilled pork contained high levels of nutritional elements, especially the magnesium and phosphorus levels in samples from online markets. The levels of heavy metal element residues and veterinary drug residues in all chilled pork samples were within the standards limits. In addition, huge differences existed in the quality and freshness of the chilled pork samples from online markets according to principal component analysis (PCA). CONCLUSIONS: Most chilled pork sold in Chinese markets was qualified and safe. It is necessary to establish an effective online market supervision system for chilled pork.

miR-520b Promotes Breast Cancer Stemness Through Hippo/YAP Signaling Pathway.

INTRODUCTION: The breast cancer stem cells contribute to the initiation, progression, recurrence, metastasis as well as resistance of breast cancer. However, the mechanisms underlying the maintenance of breast cancer stemness have not been fully understood. MATERIALS AND METHODS: TCGA and GEO data were used for measuring miR-520b expression in breast cancer tissues. Kaplan-meier analysis was used for determining the relationship between miR-520b expression level and the prognosis of patients. Genetic manipulation was performed by lentivirus system and miR-520b inhibitor was used for knockdown of miR-520b. qRT-PCR and Western blot were employed to determine the mRNA and protein levels, respectively. The stemness and EMT (Epithelial to mesenchymal transition) were assessed by sphere-formation and transwell assay as well as the expression of the related markers. The target genes of miR-520b were identified using the online database starBase V3.0. RESULTS: miR-520b is upregulated in cancer tissues of breast cancer patients and predicts poor prognosis. Upregulation of miR-520b was found in breast cancer stem cells. Ectopic expression of miR-520b promotes the stemness of the breast cancer cells, conversely, depletion of miR-520b attenuates the stemness of these cells. miR-520b positively regulates Hippo/YAP signaling pathway and overexpression of LAST2 abolished the effect of miR-520b on the stemness of breast cancer cells. CONCLUSION: miR-520b promotes the stemness of breast cancer patients by activating Hippo/YAP signaling via targeting LATS2.

Cytogenetic studies in three octopods, Octopusminor, Amphioctopusfangsiao, and Cistopuschinensis from the coast of China.

To provide markers to identify chromosomes in the genome of octopods, chromosomes of three octopus species were subjected to NOR/C-banding. In addition, we examined their genome size (C value) to submit it to the Animal Genome Size Database. Silver staining revealed that the number of Ag-nucleoli was 2 (Octopusminor (Sasaki, 1920)), 2 (Amphioctopusfangsiao (d'Orbigny, 1839)) and 1 (Cistopuschinensis Zheng et al., 2012), respectively, and the number of Ag-nucleoli visible was the same as that of Ag-NORs on metaphase plates in the same species. In all analyzed metaphases, Ag-NORs were mainly located terminally on the long arms of chromosomes 3 (3rd) of O.minor and on the short arms of chromosomes 4 (4th) of A.fangsiao, whereas only one of the chromosomes 23 (23rd) was found Ag-NORs of C.chinensis. C-bands were localized predominantly in the centromeric regions of chromosomes in the three species, while other conspicuous stable C-bands were observed in terminal regions, including the Ag-NORs. That means these three chromosome pairs (3rd, 4th and 23rd) could be considered species-specific cytogenetic markers. The mean C values of O.minor, A.fangsiao and C.chinensis were 7.81±0.39 pg (0.070 pg per unit length), 8.31±0.18 pg (0.068 pg per unit length) and 5.29±0.10 pg (0.038 pg per unit length), respectively, and results showed that C values of the three species were not proportional to the relative length of the chromosomes. These cytogenetic characteristics will provide more theoretical foundation for further researches on chromosome evolution in octopods.