Physiological functions of RIG-I-like receptors.

RIG-I-like receptors (RLRs) are crucial for pathogen detection and triggering immune responses and have immense physiological importance. In this review, we first summarize the interferon system and innate immunity, which constitute primary and secondary responses. Next, the molecular structure of RLRs and the mechanism of sensing non-self RNA are described. Usually, self RNA is refractory to the RLR; however, there are underlying host mechanisms that prevent immune reactions. Studies have revealed that the regulatory mechanisms of RLRs involve covalent molecular modifications, association with regulatory factors, and subcellular localization. Viruses have evolved to acquire antagonistic RLR functions to escape the host immune reactions. Finally, the pathologies caused by the malfunction of RLR signaling are described.

Consistency Analysis of the UF-1500 and UF-5000 Automated Urine Particle Analyzers.

BACKGROUND: The aim was to evaluate the consistency of the results between the UF-1500 and UF-5000, fully automated urine particle analyzers. METHODS: A total of 554 randomly selected inpatient and outpatient urine samples were collected for analysis using the UF-1500, the UF-5000, and by manual microscopic examination. The coincidence rate, intraday repeatability, and interday reproducibility were evaluated on the UF-1500 and UF-5000. To analyze the review flags from the UF-1500, the UF-1500 results were compared to manual microscopy as the gold standard. RESULTS: The repeatability of red blood cells (RBCs), white blood cells (WBCs), epithelial cells (ECs), casts, and bacteria using the UF-1500 and UF-5000 is expressed as the relative standard deviations of the intraday and inter-day measurements. For the UF-1500, the relative standard deviation values ranged from 5.9% to 12.6% and 4.9% to 17.2% for the low and 1.6% to 9.3% and 2.3% to 16.9% for the high samples, respectively. The correlation co-efficient for RBCs, WBCs, ECs, SECs, casts, crystals, and bacteria for the UF-1500 were 0.981, 0.993, 0.968, 0.963, 0.821, 0.783, and 0.992, respectively. Review samples from the UF-1500 were confirmed by microscopic examination. Review flags for all 554 samples included 3 samples with "DEBRIS High" and 23 samples with "RBCs/YLC Abnormal classification". CONCLUSIONS: The identification of various urine components by both instruments meets laboratory requirements. These two instruments with different performances have specific characteristics and should be used based upon the needs of each laboratory.

Surface-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Mass Spectrometry with a Two-Dimensional Au Nanoparticle Array for Soft Ionization.

Surface-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (SALDI-MS) is a valuable technique for detecting small molecules in environmental and medicinal studies. We investigated dot-like and 2D-array gold nanoparticle-based SALDI-MS substrates that excite surface plasmons and enhance the desorption/ionization of sample molecules via charge transfer between the substrate and sample molecules. We aimed to optimize the nondissociative detection of sample molecules by efficiently transferring energy while suppressing excess internal energy. SALDI-MS measurements using crystal violet (CV) molecules revealed ion intensity and spectral pattern differences between the dot-like and 2D-array substrates. SALDI-MS measurements using dot-like substrates suggested two desorption/ionization processes: internal energy supply and charge transfer between the substrate and sample molecules. However, SALDI-MS measurements using 2D-array substrates suggested that the internal energy supply was suppressed. As a result, the dot-like substrate provided higher desorption/ionization efficiency but increased fragmentation, whereas the 2D-array substrate was suitable for highly sensitive and nondissociative SALDI-MS measurements. This study contributes to the optimization of SALDI-MS measurements and advances our understanding of energy transfer and sample molecule dissociation.

Endovascular Therapy for Vascular Graft Infection After Multiple Bypass Surgeries for Aorto-Iliac Occlusive Disease.

BACKGROUND: Vascular graft infection is a very complex disease. Although complete excision of the infected grafts with extra-anatomic bypass or in situ reconstruction is a general treatment strategy, some concerns including reinfection in the new graft remain. CASE REPORT: An 88 year-old man presented to the hospital with abdominal swelling and bleeding. The patient had undergone revascularization for aorto-iliac occlusive disease twice in the past. The first procedure had been performed 15 years previously, with right ilio-femoral bypass grafting for right iliac artery occlusion and stent implantation for left iliac artery stenosis. The second procedure had been performed 10 years previously, with aorta-to-left femoral and left-to-right femoro-femoral bypass grafting because the terminal aorta, the first ilio-femoral bypass graft, and the stent of the left iliac artery had been occluded. The patient was diagnosed with vascular graft infection, and endovascular therapy was selected as the revascularization method prior to graft excision. It was successfully performed using various devices and techniques, followed by graft excision without critical limb ischemia. CONCLUSION: This case demonstrates that endovascular therapy prior to graft excision can be an alternative revascularization method for vascular graft infection after bypass surgery for aorto-iliac occlusive disease.

Characterizing user demographics in posts related to breast, lung and colon cancer on Japanese twitter (X).

Various cancer-related information is spreading on social media. Our study aimed to examine the account types associated with cancer-related tweets (currently known as posts) on Twitter (currently known as X) in Japan, specifically focusing on breast, lung, and colon cancer. Using the Twitter application programming interface, we collected tweets containing keywords of the three cancers type in August-September 2022. The accounts were categorized into seven types: Survivor, Patient's family, Healthcare provider, Public organization, Private organization, News, and Other according to account name and texts. We analyzed the sources of the top 50 most liked and retweeted tweets. Out of 7753 identified tweets, breast cancer represented the majority (62.8%), followed by lung cancer (20.8%) and colon cancer (16.3%). Tweets came from 4976 accounts. Account types varied depending on the cancer type, with breast cancer topics more frequently from Survivor (16.0%) and lung cancer from Patient's family (16.3%). Healthcare provider and Public organization had minimal representation across three cancer types. The trends in the top 50 tweets mirrored the distribution of accounts for each cancer type. Breast cancer-related tweets had the highest frequency. There were few from public organizations. These findings emphasize the need to consider the characteristics of cancer-related information sources when sharing and gathering information on social media.

Aberrant RNA sensing in regulatory T cells causes systemic autoimmunity.

Chronic and aberrant nucleic acid sensing causes type I IFN-driven autoimmune diseases, designated type I interferonopathies. We found a significant reduction of regulatory T cells (Tregs) in patients with type I interferonopathies caused by mutations in ADAR1 or IFIH1 (encoding MDA5). We analyzed the underlying mechanisms using murine models and found that Treg-specific deletion of Adar1 caused peripheral Treg loss and scurfy-like lethal autoimmune disorders. Similarly, knock-in mice with Treg-specific expression of an MDA5 gain-of-function mutant caused apoptosis of peripheral Tregs and severe autoimmunity. Moreover, the impact of ADAR1 deficiency on Tregs is multifaceted, involving both MDA5 and PKR sensing. Together, our results highlight the dysregulation of Treg homeostasis by intrinsic aberrant RNA sensing as a potential determinant for type I interferonopathies.