The Involvement of the Ventral Tegmental Area in the Electroacupuncture Alleviation of Anxiety-Like Behaviors Induced by Chronic Restraint Stress in Mice.

Emotional stress is a significant environmental risk factor for various mental health disabilities, such as anxiety. Electroacupuncture (EA) has been demonstrated to have pronounced anxiolytic effects. However, the neural mechanisms underlying these effects and their contribution to behavioral deficits remain poorly understood. Here, we addressed these issues using a classical mouse anxiety model induced by chronic restraint stress (CRS).Anxiety-like behaviors were evaluated with the open field test and elevated plus maze. Neuronal activation in various brain regions was marked using c-Fos, followed by calculations of interregional correlation to characterize a network that became functionally active following EA at the HT7 acupoint (EA-HT7). We selected the hub regions and further investigated their functions and connections in regulating anxiety-like behaviors by using a combination of chemogenetic manipulations and behavioral testing. CRS exposure induced anxiety-like behaviors. Interestingly, EA-HT7 mitigated these behavioral abnormalities. The c-Fos expression in 30 brain areas revealed a vital brain network for acupuncture responsiveness in naïve mice. Neural activity in the NAcSh (nucleus accumbens shell), BNST (bed nucleus of the stria terminalis), VMH (Ventromedial Hypothalamus), ARC (arcuate nucleus), dDG (dorsal dentate gyrus), and VTA (ventral tegmental area) was significantly altered following acupuncture. Notably, both c-Fos immunostaining and brain functional connectivity analysis revealed the significant activation of VTA following EA-HT7. Interestingly, blocking the VTA eliminated the anxiolytic effects of EA-HT7, whereas chemogenetic activation of the VTA replicated the therapeutic effects of EA-HT7. EA-HT7 has demonstrated benefits in treating anxiety and enhances brain functional connectivity. The VTA is functionally associated with the anxiolytic effects of EA-HT7.

Violet Antimony Phosphorus with Enhanced Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution.

Violet phosphorus (VP), a recently confirmed layered elemental structure, is demonstrated to have unique photoelectric, mechanical, and photocatalytic properties. Element substitution plays a significant role in modifying the physical/chemical properties of semiconducting materials. Herein, antimony is adopted to substitute some phosphorus atoms in VP crystals to tune their physical and chemical properties, resulting in a significantly enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen evolution performance. The antimony-substituted violet phosphorus single crystal (VP-Sb) is synthesized and characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction (CSD-2214937). The bandgap of VP-Sb has been found to be lowered from that of VP by UV/vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and density-functional theory (DFT) calculation, enhancing the optical absorption during photocatalytic reaction. The conducting band minimum of VP-Sb is found to be upshifted from that of VP from measurements and calculation, enhancing its hydrogen reduction activity. The valance band maximum is found to be lowered to weaken its oxidation activity. The edge of VP-Sb is calculated to have an excellent H* adsorption-desorption performance and superior H2 generation kinetics. The H2 evolution rate of VP-Sb is demonstrated to be significantly enhanced to be 1473 µmol h-1 g-1 , about five times of that of pristine VP (299 µmol h-1 g-1 ) under the same experimental conditions.

MERS-CoV infection causes brain damage in human DPP4-transgenic mice through complement-mediated inflammation.

The highly pathogenic Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is a severe respiratory virus. Recent reports indicate additional central nervous system (CNS) involvement. In this study, human DPP4 transgenic mice were infected with MERS-CoV, and viral antigens were first detected in the midbrain-hindbrain 4 days post-infection, suggesting the virus may enter the brainstem via peripheral nerves. Neurons and astrocytes throughout the brain were infected, followed by damage of the blood brain barrier (BBB), as well as microglial activation and inflammatory cell infiltration, which may be caused by complement activation based on the observation of deposition of complement activation product C3 and high expression of C3a receptor (C3aR) and C5a receptor (C5aR1) in neurons and glial cells. It may be concluded that these effects were mediated by complement activation in the brain, because of their reduction resulted from the treatment with mouse C5aR1-specific mAb. Such mAb significantly reduced nucleoprotein expression, suppressed microglial activation and decreased activation of caspase-3 in neurons and p38 phosphorylation in the brain. Collectively, these results suggest that MERS-CoV infection of CNS triggers complement activation, leading to inflammation-mediated damage of brain tissue, and regulating of complement activation could be a promising intervention and adjunctive treatment for CNS injury by MERS-CoV and other coronaviruses.

A Novel Nanobody Targeting Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) Receptor-Binding Domain Has Potent Cross-Neutralizing Activity and Protective Efficacy against MERS-CoV.

The newly emerged Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) continues to infect humans and camels, calling for efficient, cost-effective, and broad-spectrum strategies to control its spread. Nanobodies (Nbs) are single-domain antibodies derived from camelids and sharks and are potentially cost-effective antivirals with small size and great expression yield. In this study, we developed a novel neutralizing Nb (NbMS10) and its human-Fc-fused version (NbMS10-Fc), both of which target the MERS-CoV spike protein receptor-binding domain (RBD). We further tested their receptor-binding affinity, recognizing epitopes, cross-neutralizing activity, half-life, and efficacy against MERS-CoV infection. Both Nbs can be expressed in yeasts with high yield, bind to MERS-CoV RBD with high affinity, and block the binding of MERS-CoV RBD to the MERS-CoV receptor. The binding site of the Nbs on the RBD was mapped to be around residue Asp539, which is part of a conserved conformational epitope at the receptor-binding interface. NbMS10 and NbMS10-Fc maintained strong cross-neutralizing activity against divergent MERS-CoV strains isolated from humans and camels. Particularly, NbMS10-Fc had significantly extended half-life in vivo; a single-dose treatment of NbMS10-Fc exhibited high prophylactic and therapeutic efficacy by completely protecting humanized mice from lethal MERS-CoV challenge. Overall, this study proves the feasibility of producing cost-effective, potent, and broad-spectrum Nbs against MERS-CoV and has produced Nbs with great potentials as anti-MERS-CoV therapeutics.IMPORTANCE Therapeutic development is critical for preventing and treating continual MERS-CoV infections in humans and camels. Because of their small size, nanobodies (Nbs) have advantages as antiviral therapeutics (e.g., high expression yield and robustness for storage and transportation) and also potential limitations (e.g., low antigen-binding affinity and fast renal clearance). Here, we have developed novel Nbs that specifically target the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of MERS-CoV spike protein. They bind to a conserved site on MERS-CoV RBD with high affinity, blocking RBD's binding to MERS-CoV receptor. Through engineering a C-terminal human Fc tag, the in vivo half-life of the Nbs is significantly extended. Moreover, the Nbs can potently cross-neutralize the infections of diverse MERS-CoV strains isolated from humans and camels. The Fc-tagged Nb also completely protects humanized mice from lethal MERS-CoV challenge. Taken together, our study has discovered novel Nbs that hold promise as potent, cost-effective, and broad-spectrum anti-MERS-CoV therapeutic agents.

Multiscale reconfiguration induced highly saturated poling in lead-free piezoceramics for giant energy conversion.

The development of high-performance lead-free K0.5Na0.5NbO3-based piezoceramics for replacing commercial lead-containing counterparts is crucial for achieving environmentally sustainable society. Although the proposed new phase boundaries (NPB) can effectively improve the piezoelectricity of KNN-based ceramics, the difficulty of achieving saturated poling and the underlying multiscale structures resolution of their complex microstructures are urgent issues. Here, we employ a medium entropy strategy to design NPB and utilize texture engineering to induce crystal orientation. The developed K0.5Na0.5NbO3-based ceramics enjoys both prominent piezoelectric performance and satisfactory Curie temperature, thus exhibiting an ultrahigh energy harvesting performance as well as excellent transducer performance, which is highly competitive in both lead-free and lead-based piezoceramics. Comprehensive structural analysis have ascertained that the field-induced efficient multiscale polarization configurations irreversible transitions greatly encourages high saturated poling. This study demonstrates a strategy for designing high-performance piezoceramics and establishes a close correlation between the piezoelectricty and the underlying multiscale structures.

Effect of Food (Low and High Fat) on Pharmacokinetics of FCN-159, a Selective MEK Inhibitor, in Healthy Chinese Males.

INTRODUCTION: FCN-159 is a novel, oral, potent, selective MEK1/2 inhibitor in clinical development for the treatment of NRAS-mutant advanced melanoma and neurofibromatosis type 1. We investigated the effect of food on the pharmacokinetics (PK), safety, and tolerability of FCN-159. METHODS: In this single-center, open-label, phase 1 study with a three-period, three-sequence, crossover design, healthy Chinese male subjects (n = 24) were randomized (1:1:1) to receive a single, oral 8 mg dose of FCN-159 in the fasted state (overnight, > 10 h), and with a low-fat and a high-fat meal, separated by a 10-day washout. PK parameters including time to maximum plasma concentration (Cmax) and area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) were compared using geometric least-squares mean ratios (GLSMR), with the fasted state as the reference. A 90% CI for the GLSMR within 80-125% indicated no significant food effect. RESULTS: A low-fat meal (n = 23) did not affect the PK profile of FCN-159: G LSMR for AUC from time 0 to t (AUC0-t), 106.9% (90% CI 99.9-114.4%); AUC from time 0 to infinity (AUC0-∞), 106.8% (90% CI 100.0-114.0%); Cmax, 96.4% (90% CI 83.9-110.8%). A high-fat meal (n = 24) did not affect exposure to FCN-159 (GLSMR for AUC0-t, 99.4%; 90% CI 99.0-106.3%; AUC0-∞, 99.5 5%; 90% CI 93.2-106.1%), but modestly reduced Cmax by 15% (GLSMR 84.9%; 90% CI 74.0-97.3%). Both the low-fat and high-fat meals slightly prolonged the median time to Cmax by 0.5 h (90% CI 0.5-1.0 h). FCN-159 was generally well tolerated, with a lower incidence of treatment-emergent adverse events following administration in the fasted state than with a low-fat or high-fat meal (20.8%, 39.1%, and 37.5%, respectively). CONCLUSION: Food did not affect the PK profile of FCN-159 to a clinically meaningful extent compared with administration in the fasted state.

Dynamic model of respiratory infectious disease transmission by population mobility based on city network.

In modern societies, newly emerging infectious diseases spread rapidly between regions owing to frequent contact between people, causing considerable social and economic impacts. In this study, first, a scale-free city network was established, and then the shortest path between any two nodes was determined. Second, the movement path of tourists was designed based on the shortest path. Subsequently, every infected person's information, such as the city, infection time, onset and hospitalization, was confirmed based on their movement path. Third, the features of the transmission path and time distribution of the epidemic were characterized after summarizing the information. Finally, the reliability of the model was verified. The number of citizens and tourists in every city remained stable during this time. The results indicated that a larger basic reproduction number (R 0) and population outflow rate signify a faster growth rate of infected people in each city in the network. Compared with small and medium-sized cities, the epidemic spread faster in central cities. Population mobility was the decisive factor causing the spread of the epidemic to other areas. Therefore, the rapid spread of epidemics can be prevented by swiftly reducing the flow of people between cities.

Generation and Characterization of a Nanobody Against SARS-CoV.

The sudden emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) has caused global panic in 2003, and the risk of SARS-CoV outbreak still exists. However, no specific antiviral drug or vaccine is available; thus, the development of therapeutic antibodies against SARS-CoV is needed. In this study, a nanobody phage-displayed library was constructed from peripheral blood mononuclear cells of alpacas immunized with the recombinant receptor-binding domain (RBD) of SARS-CoV. Four positive clones were selected after four rounds of bio-panning and subjected to recombinant expression in E. coli. Further biological identification demonstrated that one of the nanobodies, S14, showed high affinity to SARS-CoV RBD and potent neutralization activity at the picomole level against SARS-CoV pseudovirus. A competitive inhibition assay showed that S14 blocked the binding of SARS-CoV RBD to either soluble or cell-expressed angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). In summary, we developed a novel nanobody targeting SARS-CoV RBD, which might be useful for the development of therapeutics against SARS.

Adaptation of SARS-CoV-2 in BALB/c mice for testing vaccine efficacy.

The ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has prioritized the development of small-animal models for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). We adapted a clinical isolate of SARS-CoV-2 by serial passaging in the respiratory tract of aged BALB/c mice. The resulting mouse-adapted strain at passage 6 (called MASCp6) showed increased infectivity in mouse lung and led to interstitial pneumonia and inflammatory responses in both young and aged mice after intranasal inoculation. Deep sequencing revealed a panel of adaptive mutations potentially associated with the increased virulence. In particular, the N501Y mutation is located at the receptor binding domain (RBD) of the spike protein. The protective efficacy of a recombinant RBD vaccine candidate was validated by using this model. Thus, this mouse-adapted strain and associated challenge model should be of value in evaluating vaccines and antivirals against SARS-CoV-2.

Enhanced Ability of Oligomeric Nanobodies Targeting MERS Coronavirus Receptor-Binding Domain.

Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) coronavirus (MERS-CoV), an infectious coronavirus first reported in 2012, has a mortality rate greater than 35%. Therapeutic antibodies are key tools for preventing and treating MERS-CoV infection, but to date no such agents have been approved for treatment of this virus. Nanobodies (Nbs) are camelid heavy chain variable domains with properties distinct from those of conventional antibodies and antibody fragments. We generated two oligomeric Nbs by linking two or three monomeric Nbs (Mono-Nbs) targeting the MERS-CoV receptor-binding domain (RBD), and compared their RBD-binding affinity, RBD⁻receptor binding inhibition, stability, and neutralizing and cross-neutralizing activity against MERS-CoV. Relative to Mono-Nb, dimeric Nb (Di-Nb) and trimeric Nb (Tri-Nb) had significantly greater ability to bind MERS-CoV RBD proteins with or without mutations in the RBD, thereby potently blocking RBD⁻MERS-CoV receptor binding. The engineered oligomeric Nbs were very stable under extreme conditions, including low or high pH, protease (pepsin), chaotropic denaturant (urea), and high temperature. Importantly, Di-Nb and Tri-Nb exerted significantly elevated broad-spectrum neutralizing activity against at least 19 human and camel MERS-CoV strains isolated in different countries and years. Overall, the engineered Nbs could be developed into effective therapeutic agents for prevention and treatment of MERS-CoV infection.

Complement Receptor C5aR1 Inhibition Reduces Pyroptosis in hDPP4-Transgenic Mice Infected with MERS-CoV.

Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is a highly pathogenic virus with a crude mortality rate of ~35%. Previously, we established a human DPP4 transgenic (hDPP4-Tg) mouse model in which we studied complement overactivation-induced immunopathogenesis. Here, to better understand the pathogenesis of MERS-CoV, we studied the role of pyroptosis in THP-1 cells and hDPP4 Tg mice with MERS-CoV infection. We found that MERS-CoV infection induced pyroptosis and over-activation of complement in human macrophages. The hDPP4-Tg mice infected with MERS-CoV overexpressed caspase-1 in the spleen and showed high IL-1ß levels in serum, suggesting that pyroptosis occurred after infection. However, when the C5a-C5aR1 axis was blocked by an anti-C5aR1 antibody (Ab), expression of caspase-1 and IL-1ß fell. These data indicate that MERS-CoV infection induces overactivation of complement, which may contribute to pyroptosis and inflammation. Pyroptosis and inflammation were suppressed by inhibiting C5aR1. These results will further our understanding of the pathogenesis of MERS-CoV infection.

[Construction and identification of nanobody phage display library targeting Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus].

Objective To construct a phage display library of specific nano-antibodies against the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) and apply it to the screening of neutralizing nano-antibodies. Methods MERS-CoV receptor-binding domain (RBD) recombinant protein was used to immunize alpaca. After the last immunization, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were isolated from the whole blood and total RNA was extracted. The VHH gene was amplified by PCR and used to construct recombinant phages. TG1 Escherichia coli was transformed by these recombinant phages. A phage display library of specific nano-antibodies against the MERS-CoV were obtained and used to screen and characterize the nano-antibodies. Results The volume of this library of nano-antibodies was 1.31×108 and its abundance rate was 5.65×1010/mL. The ratio of VHH insertion in the constructed library reached 96%. There was a rich diversity of nano-antibodies in this library. Nano-antibodies with neutralizing activity were identified and expressed from this library. Conclusion We successfully constructed a library of phages which could be effectively applied to the screening of nano-antibodies against MERS-CoV virus.