Anti-cancer effects of baicalein on cervical carcinoma cells through down-regulation of the ERK/p38/MAPK pathway.

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of baicalein on apoptosis of HeLa human cervical cancer (CC) cells and to elucidate the underlying mechanism. HeLa cells were treated with 20, 50, 100, or 200 µmol/L baicalein for 24, 36, and 48 hours, and CCK-8 assays were used to detect cell viability, and flow cytometry was performed to assess apoptosis rate. Reverse-transcription quantitative PCR was used to measure ERK1/2, p38, and JNK mRNA levels in HeLa cells, and western blotting was performed to measure ERK1/2, p38, and JNK protein levels. The CCK-8 assay showed that the OD value of HeLa cells gradually decreased with increasing baicalein concentrations (P < 0.01) and treatment time (P < 0.01). These results indicated a negative time- and dose-dependent effect of baicalein on HeLa cells. Baicalein treatment of HeLa cells significantly increased apoptosis rate (P < 0.01). In HeLa cells treated with 50 or 200 µmol/L baicalein for 24 h, expression levels of ERK1/2 and p38 mRNA were significantly reduced, whereas that of JNK mRNA was increased (P < 0.01). The levels of phosphorylated ERK1/2 and p38 were significantly reduced, and the level of JNK protein was increased (P < 0.01). Taken together, baicalein appeared to exert anti-cancer effects on HeLa cells through induction of apoptosis and regulation of the ERK/p38/mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway.

Gamma radiation and thermal-induced effects on the spectral performance of BACs in Bi/Er codoped aluminosilicate fibers.

The results of γ-radiation (2-72 kGy) and thermal-induced effects on BACs in Bi/Er codoped aluminosilicate fibers (BEDF) have been presented first in this paper. We observed that the radiation effect on on-off gain and optical absorption associated with BAC-Al and BAC-Si was insignificant, while the effect on luminescence was considerable. However, the effect on luminescence is caused by the radiation-induced darkening, which is likely linked to thermal bleachable Al-OHC point defects generated by γ-radiation. We carried out the thermal experiment and observed thermal bleaching of the γ-irradiated fiber at a low temperature of 300 °C. The observations indicate that, while γ-radiation could introduce significant background loss, BAC-Al and BAC-Si are fairly radiation resistant. This is the first time that BACs show good radiation resistance in irradiated BEDFs.

Effect of maternal canthaxanthin and 25-hydroxycholecalciferol supplementation on the performance of ducklings under two different vitamin regimens.

This study investigated the effects of maternal canthaxanthin (CX, 6 mg/kg) and 25-hydroxycholecalciferol (25-OH-D3 , 0.069 mg/kg) supplementation on the performance of Cherry Valley ducklings under two different vitamin regimens. A total of 780 duck breeder females and 156 males were randomly allotted to two diets with or without the addition of the mixture of CX and 25-OH-D3 (CX+25-OH-D3 ) for 32 weeks. Ducklings (males and females separately) hatched from eggs laid at 24 weeks of the duck breeder trial were fed with a NRC vitamin regimen, and ducklings (males and females separately) hatched from eggs laid at 32 weeks of the duck breeder trial were fed with a HIGH vitamin regimen (had higher levels of all vitamins except biotin than NRC vitamin regimen), for 14 days. The results showed that, maternal CX+25-OH-D3 supplementation increased the shank pigmentation for 7-days post hatch in ducklings under a NRC vitamin regimen, and for 14-days post hatch in ducklings under a HIGH vitamin regimen. Growth performance, antioxidant status and serum phosphorus of ducklings under a NRC vitamin regimen were increased by maternal CX+25-OH-D3 supplementation; however, these positive effects were not observed in ducklings under a HIGH vitamin regimen. Males revealed increased growth performance in ducklings under both NRC and HIGH vitamin regimens. Sexual differences in shank pigmentation, antioxidant status, tibia strength and serum phosphorus were not consistent as they were dependent on maternal CX+25-OH-D3 status or dietary vitamin regimens. Data suggest that maternal CX+25-OH-D3 supplementation is important for starter ducklings under a NRC vitamin regimen, but not HIGH vitamin regimen.

Experimental Ten-Photon Entanglement.

We report the first experimental demonstration of quantum entanglement among ten spatially separated single photons. A near-optimal entangled photon-pair source was developed with simultaneously a source brightness of ∼12 MHz/W, a collection efficiency of ∼70%, and an indistinguishability of ∼91% between independent photons, which was used for a step-by-step engineering of multiphoton entanglement. Under a pump power of 0.57 W, the ten-photon count rate was increased by about 2 orders of magnitude compared to previous experiments, while maintaining a state fidelity sufficiently high for proving the genuine ten-particle entanglement. Our work created a state-of-the-art platform for multiphoton experiments, and enabled technologies for challenging optical quantum information tasks, such as the realization of Shor's error correction code and high-efficiency scattershot boson sampling.

Effects of dietary DL-2-hydroxy-4(methylthio)butanoic acid supplementation on growth performance, indices of ascites syndrome, and antioxidant capacity of broilers reared at low ambient temperature.

This study examined the effects of dietary DL-2-hydroxy-4(methylthio)butanoic acid (DL-HMTBA) supplementation on growth performance, antioxidant capacity, and ascites syndrome (AS) in broilers reared at low ambient temperature (LAT) from 7 to 28 days of age. Eight hundred 7-day-old broilers were randomly assigned to two ambient temperatures (LAT and normal ambient temperature [NAT]), four supplemental DL-HMTBA levels (0.17, 0.34, 0.51, and 0.68 %) of the basal diet in a 2 × 4 factorial arrangement (ten replicate pens; ten birds/pen). LAT and NAT indicate temperatures of 12-14 and 24-26 °C in two chambers, respectively, and broilers were reared at these temperatures from 7 to 28 days of age. LAT significantly decreased body weight gain (P < 0.001), serum glutathione (GSH) content (day 14, P = 0.02; day 28, P = 0.045), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity, and total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) at 21 days (P = 0.001, 0.015) and 28 days (P = 0.017, 0.010) and increased feed conversion ratio (FCR) (P < 0.001), serum malondialdehyde (day 21, P = 0.000) and protein carbonyl Level (day 14, P = 0.003; day 21, P = 0.035). As for incidence of AS, there were significant effects of LAT on red blood cell (RBC) count (P < 0.05), hematocrit (HCT) (P < 0.05), and the right to total ventricular weight ratio (RV/TV) at 21 days (P = 0.012) and 28 days (P = 0.046). Supplementation of DL-HMTBA markedly decreased RV/TV at day 28 (P = 0.021), RBC (day 21, P = 0.008), HCT (day 21, P < 0.001), mean cell hemoglobin (day 14, P = 0.035; day 21, P = 0.003), and serum protein carbonyl level (day 21, P = 0.009), while significantly increased serum GSH content (day 14, P = 0.022; day 28, P = 0.001), SOD and GSH-Px activities at 21 days of age (P < 0.001 and P = 0.037). The optimal supplemental DL-HMTBA levels in basal diet of broilers aged from 7 to 28 days under low or normal temperatures were similar, so the authors recommended supplemental of DL-HMTBA level was 0.46 %.

The effects of maternal dietary vitamin premixes, canthaxanthin, and 25-hydroxycholecalciferol on the performance of progeny ducklings.

This trial studied the effects of maternal dietary vitamin premixes, and the mixture of canthaxanthin (CX) and 25-hydroxycholecalciferol (25-OH-D3) on the performance of progeny ducklings. Four maternal diets were used under a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement with 2 kinds of vitamin premixes (Regular and High; High premix had higher levels of all vitamins except K3 than the Regular premix), and with or without the addition of the mixture of CX (6 mg/kg) and 25-OH-D3 (0.069 mg/kg). Cherry Valley duck breeders (38-wk-old) were fed with corn-wheat flour-soybean meal-based diets for 8 wk, and then eggs were collected and hatched. Healthy ducklings (equal number of female and male) from each maternal group were randomly selected and received the same commercial starter (1 to 14 d) and grower (15 to 35 d) pellet diet for 35 d. Maternal High vitamin premix increased shank pigmentation (1 d, P = 0.001), BW (1 d, P < 0.001 and 14 d, P = 0.006), BW gain (1 to 14 d, P = 0.008), G:F ratio (1 to 14 d, P = 0.007), superoxide dismutase (SOD; 1 d liver, P = 0.027 and 14 d serum, P = 0.031), and total antioxidant capacity (1 d liver, P < 0.001); and decreased protein carbonyl (14 d serum, P = 0.011) of ducklings. The mixture of CX and 25-OH-D3 increased yolk pigmentation (P < 0.001); increased shank pigmentation (1 d, P < 0.001 and 14 d, P < 0.001), BW (1 d, P < 0.001), feed intake (15-35 d, P = 0.014), SOD (1 d liver, P = 0.032), and tibia ash (14 d, P = 0.010) of ducklings; and decreased malondialdehyde (P < 0.001) and protein carbonyl (P = 0.044) of yolks, and malondialdehyde (14 d serum, P < 0.001) of ducklings. In conclusion, either maternal High vitamin premix or maternal supplementation of the CX and 25-OH-D3 mixture improves growth performance and antioxidant status of ducklings.

Effect of dietary vanadium and vitamin C on egg quality and antioxidant status in laying hens.

This study assessed the effect of dietary vanadium (V) and vitamin C (VC) on production performance, egg quality and antioxidant status in laying hens. A total of 360 laying hens (31-week-old) were randomly allotted into a 3 × 3 factorial arrangement treatments (four replicates and 10 chicks per replicate) with three levels of dietary V (0, 5 and 10 mg/kg) and three levels of vitamin C (0, 50 and 100 mg/kg) for 12 weeks. The effect of V and VC did not alter egg production, egg weight, average daily feed intake and feed conversion ratio during 1-12 week. Albumen height and Haugh unit value were linearly decreased (p < 0.001) by addition of V, whereas the effect of 100 mg/kg VC was observed to counteract (p < 0.05) this effect in V-containing treatments during 1-12 week. Hens fed V-containing diet laid lighter (linear effect, p < 0.05) coloured eggs (higher lightness value, lower redness and yellowness value), and the VC exerted no influence on it during 1-12 week. The serum superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activities, ability to inhibit hydroxyl radical, were significantly decreased, and the malondialdehyde (MDA) and V contents were increased (p < 0.05) by effect of V during 4, 8 and 12 week. The effect of VC alone and the interactive effect between VC and V were shown to increase serum (p < 0.05) SOD activity in 4 week and decrease MAD levels in 12 week. The result indicate that V decreased the egg quality and caused the oxidative stress at level of 5 mg/kg and 10 mg/kg, and the addition of 100 mg/kg vitamin C can alleviate its egg quality reduction effect and can mitigate the oxidative stress to some extent.

Antiviral effect of hepatitis B virus S/C gene loci antisense locked nucleic acid on transgenic mice in vivo.

We investigated the effects of hepatitis B virus (HBV) S/C double gene loci antisense locked nucleic acid on replication and expression of HBV in hepatitis transgenic mice. HBV mice (N = 30) were randomly divided into five groups of six mice: 5% glucose solution control, empty liposome control, single-target S, single-target C, and dual-target SC groups. An antisense locked nucleic acid fragment was injected into the mice. Serum HBsAg, serum HBV DNA, HBV C-mRNA expression in liver tissue, HbsAg and HbcAg expression in hepatocytes, serum albumin, alanine transaminase (ALT), urea nitrogen, and creatinine were detected. Liver and kidney sections were examined for the effects of antisense locked nucleic acid. The expression of HBsAg was markedly inhibited; the inhibition rates of the S, C, and SC target groups were 36.63, 31.50, and 54.87%, respectively; the replication of HBV DNA was also inhibited: 23.97, 21.13, and 35.83%, respectively. After injection at 1, 3, and 5 days, the corresponding rates for HBsAg inhibition were 14.40, 25.61, and 31.33%, and for HBV DNA inhibition they were 11.04, 19.24, and 24.13%. Compared with the control group, the differences in serum albumin, ALT, urea nitrogen, and creatinine in each group were not statistically significant, and the number of HbsAg- and HBcAg-positive cells in the mouse liver was significantly reduced. The liver and kidney tissues were normal. The gene therapy had significant inhibitory effects on the replication and expression of HBV in transgenic mice, and double-gene targeting was better than single-gene targeting.

Blocking the expression of the hepatitis B virus S gene in hepatocellular carcinoma cell lines with an anti-gene locked nucleic acid in vitro.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of inhibition of the hepatitis B virus (HBV) S gene by polypurine region locked nucleic acid on viral replication in cells. We designed and synthesized a locked nucleic acid, phosphorothioate oligonucleotides, unmodified oligonucleotides, and unrelated control sequence for the hepatitis B virus S gene polypurine region. HepG2.2.15 cells were transfected by cationic liposome, and fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction technology (PCR) and time-resolved fluoroimmunoassay technology was utilized to monitor the content of HBV DNA, HbsAg, and HBeAg at 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 days post-transfection. The effects on cell metabolism were detected by four methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium assay. The locked nucleic acid had an obvious effect on HBV DNA replication and HBsAg and HBeAg expression in a dose and time dependent man-ner. The inhibition rates were 52.14, 57.48, and 29.63% after 6 days, respectively. The locked nucleic acid had no significant effect on cell metabolism. The HBV S gene polypurine region locked nucleic acid could effectively inhibit the replication of HBV in vitro, and could provide an effective target for the treatment of HBV and a theoretical and experimental basis for anti-gene therapy.

The response of meat ducks from 15 to 35 d of age to gossypol from cottonseed meal.

The objective of this study was to investigate the responses of meat ducks of 15 to 35 d of age to free gossypol (FG) from cottonseed meal (CSM) and to establish the maximum limits of dietary FG concentration based on growth performance, blood parameters, and tissue residues of gossypol. Nine hundred 15-d-old ducks were randomly allocated to 5 treatments with 10 cages/treatment and 18 ducks/cage on the basis of BW. Five isonitrogenous and isocaloric experimental diets were formulated on a digestible amino acid basis to produce diets in which 0% (without FG), 25% (36 mg FG/kg), 50% (75 mg FG/kg), 75% (111 mg FG/kg), and 100% (153 mg FG/kg) of protein from soybean meal were replaced by that from CSM. Increasing dietary FG content, BW, and ADG decreased (linearly, P<0.05, except for ADG of days 29 to 35), and F/G linearly increased (P<0.05). At 35 d, blood hemoglobin, mean corpuscular hemoglobin, and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration linearly decreased (P<0.05), while serum total protein, albumin, and globulin content linearly decreased (P<0.05), and the residue of gossypol in liver, kidney, heart, breast, and leg muscle linearly increased (P<0.001) with increases in dietary FG concentration. Ducks fed 36 mg FG/kg (5.83% CSM of diet) diet had a normal histological structure of liver, and muscle (breast and leg) had no residue of gossypol. The maximum limit of dietary FG concentration was estimated to range from a low of 36 mg/kg to maximize serum globulin concentration to a high of 124 mg/kg to minimize feed intake for 22 to 28 d on the basis of a quadratic broken-line model.

Effects of low ambient temperatures and dietary vitamin C supplement on growth performance, blood parameters, and antioxidant capacity of 21-day-old broilers.

The study was conducted to determine the effects of low ambient temperature (LAT) and a vitamin C (VC) dietary supplement on the growth performance, blood parameters, and antioxidant capacity of 21-d-old broilers. A total of 400 one-day-old male Cobb broilers were assigned to 1 of 4 treatments as follows: 1) LAT and a basal diet; 2) LAT and a basal diet supplemented with 1,000 mg of VC/kg (LAT + VC); 3) normal ambient temperature (NAT) and a basal diet; 4) NAT and a basal diet supplemented with 1,000 mg of VC/kg (NAT + VC). All birds were fed to 21 d of age. Broilers in groups 1 and 2 were raised at 24 to 26°C during 1 to 7 d, and at 9 to 11°C during 8 to 21 d, whereas groups 3 and 4 were raised at 29 to 31°C during 1 to 7 d and at 24 to 26°C during 8 to 21 d. The LAT increased the feed conversion ratio during the whole experimental period (P < 0.01), whereas it increased heart index at 21 d (P < 0.05) and hematocrit and hemoglobin level at 14 d (P < 0.05). Supplementing the diet with VC increased hematocrit, hemoglobin, and red blood cell count at 21 d (P < 0.05). At 21 d, LAT conditions decreased total antioxidant capacity in the serum, liver, and lungs (P < 0.05), and it also increased the levels of VC in the serum and liver, the amount of protein carbonylation in liver and lungs, and the malondialdehyde level in the lungs (P < 0.05). The addition of VC tended to increase the total antioxidant capacity level in serum (P < 0.1). Low ambient temperature resulted in oxidative stress for broilers that were fed from 1 to 21 d of age, whereas no significant effect was found on the antioxidant activity by dietary VC supplementation.

Effects of dietary gossypol concentration on growth performance, blood profiles, and hepatic histopathology in meat ducks.

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of gossypol from cottonseed meal (CSM) on growth performance, blood biochemical profiles, and liver histopathology of ducks. A total of 900 1-d-old ducks were randomly allocated to 5 treatments with 12 pens/treatment and 15 ducks/pen. The 5 experimental diets were formulated in such a way that 0% (a corn-soybean meal basal diet, diet 1), 25% (diet 2), 50% (diet 3), 75% (diet 4), and 100% (diet 5) of protein from soybean meal were replaced with that from CSM. All diets were formulated on a digestible amino acid basis. The experiment included 2 phases, the starter phase (1 to 3 wk) where the test diets contained graded levels of CSM and the growth phase (4 to 5 wk) where birds were fed a corn-soybean basal diet to examine the recovery of ducks after CSM withdrawal. Dietary CSM and gossypol linearly (P < 0.01) and quadratically (P < 0.01) decreased ADG and ADFI during d 1 to 14. The threshold of daily total gossypol (TG) and free gossypol (FG) intake based on ADG on d 1 to 7 and d 7 to 14 were 32.20 and 2.64 mg/d, and 92.12 and 9.62 mg/d, respectively. Serum alanine aminotransferase increased (P < 0.05) linearly with increasing level of gossypol in the diets (d 7), whereas aspartate aminotransferase increased (P < 0.05) linearly and quadratically (d 14). Serum albumin concentration decreased (P < 0.05) quadratically with increasing dietary CSM concentrations on d 21. The degree of damage to the liver increased markedly with increasing dietary CSM and gossypol content and the length of CSM and gossypol intake. On d 35, there was no difference on BW and blood profiles of ducks among all treatments. These results suggest that meat ducks' dietary TG and FG concentration should be lower than 928.9 and 77.2 mg/kg, respectively, during d 1 to 21 of age and that a 2-wk withdrawal of diets containing gossypol should be considered.

[Analysis of clinical presentation and genetic characteristics of malignant infantile osteopetrosis].

Objective: To investigate the clinical presentation and genetic characteristics of malignant infantile osteopetrosis. Methods: This was a retrospective case study. Thirty-seven children with malignant infantile osteopetrosis admitted into Beijing Children's Hospital from January 2013 to September 2022 were enrolled in this study. According to the gene mutations, the patients were divided into the CLCN7 group and the TCIRG1 group. Clinical characteristics, laboratory tests, and prognosis were compared between two groups. Wilcoxon test or Fisher exact test were used in inter-group comparison. The survival rate was estimated with the Kaplan-Meier method and the Log-Rank test was used to compare the difference in survival between groups. Results: Among the 37 cases, there were 22 males and 15 females. The age of diagnosis was 0.5 (0.2, 1.0) year. There were 13 patients (35%) and 24 patients (65%) with mutations in CLCN7 and TCIRGI gene respectively. Patients in the CLCN7 group had an older age of diagnosis than those in the TCIRGI group (1.2 (0.4, 3.6) vs. 0.4 (0.2, 0.6) years, Z=-2.60, P=0.008). The levels of serum phosphorus (1.7 (1.3, 1.8) vs. 1.1 (0.8, 1.6) mmol/L, Z=-2.59, P=0.010), creatine kinase isoenzyme (CK-MB) (457 (143, 610) vs. 56 (37, 82) U/L, Z=-3.38, P=0.001) and the level of neutrophils (14.0 (9.9, 18.1) vs. 9.2 (6.7, 11.1) ×109/L, Z=-2.07, P=0.039) at diagnosis were higher in the CLCN7 group than that in the TCIRG1 group. However, the level of D-dimer in the CLCN7 group was lower than that in the TCIRGI group (2.7 (1.0, 3.1) vs. 6.3 (2.5, 9.7) µg/L, Z=2.83, P=0.005). After hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, there was no significant difference in 5-year overall survival rate between the two groups (92.3%±7.4% vs. 83.3%±7.6%, χ²=0.56, P=0.456). Conclusions: TCIRGI gene mutations are more common in children with osteopetrosis. Children with TCIRGI gene mutations have younger age, lower levels of phosphorus, CK-MB, and neutrophils and higher level of D-dimer at the onset. After hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, patients with CLCN7 or TCIRGI gene mutations have similar prognosis.

A new and improved acetabular cup digital templating method and its clinical application.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Preoperative acetabular cup templating has an important auxiliary effect on hip surgery. The traditional acetabular cup templating method requires the measuring person to have some experience in total hip replacement (THA) surgery since the measurement results vary from person to person with differences between different measuring persons. To obtain stable templating results, we designed a new acetabular cup templating method and tested the inter-person measuring differences and measurement accuracy of this method. Meanwhile, the clinical application of this method was preliminarily explored. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The pattern of this new method was manual labeling of imaging characteristic points and then programmed automatic measurements. The measurement process was performed entirely by orthopedic graduate students without any experience in hip replacement surgery. The inter-person measuring difference was evaluated by comparing the templating results of three measuring persons. The accuracy of the templating was evaluated by comparing the templating results with the actual size of the prosthesis in the surgery. The correlation between the position of the acetabular cup and the templating error was analyzed to explore the clinical significance of the templating results. This study was a retrospective study which included templating in a total of 406 cases for total hip replacement with cementless cup prosthesis. Digital measurements were performed using the Matlab software from MathWorks. The statistical comparison was performed using Kendall's W test. RESULTS: The results of the three measuring persons were completely identical in 61.8% (251/406) of cases, and the variation in 38.2% (155/406) of cases did not exceed one size of the acetabular cup. The Kendall's W coefficient was 0.977, and p < 0.01. The measurement accuracy is not as good as the traditional method in exactly accurate measurement and ±1 cup size, but it is similar to the traditional method in the ±2 cup sizes. The correlation between the templating error and the position evaluation of the implanted acetabular cups reveals: (1) larger the templating error, larger the proportion of the acetabular cups with poor position; (2) the proportion of acetabular cup with poor position slowly increased when the templating error was from 0 to 1 size, and the proportion rapidly increased when the templating error was from 1 to 2 size. CONCLUSION: All the patients with clear teardrop bottom and lateral superior edge of acetabulum were able to use our method to predict the size of the acetabular cup. The method has the following advantages: (1) it does not require the measuring person to have any previous experience of the THA surgery, which reduces the labor cost of the templating; (2) the differences between the measuring persons is small, the measurement result can be repeated; (3) it can predict the probability of acetabular cup with poor positioning according to the templating error, and thereby reminding the surgeon to recheck and correct the position of the acetabular cup in time during the surgery.

Relationships between resilience and quality of life in parents of children with cancer.

CLINICALTRIALS.GOV ID: NCT03631485.

Role of the insulin-like growth factor system in epiphyseal cartilage on the development of Langshan and Arbor Acres chickens, Gallus domesticus.

We measured the mRNA transcript expression patterns for members of the insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system during embryonic and postnatal development in epiphyseal cartilage from Langshan (LS) and Arbor Acres (AA) chickens. Insulin-like growth factor binding protein (IGFBP)-2 expression was positively correlated with IGF-I from embryonic day (E) 14 to postnatal d (P) 0 and with IGF-II from E14 to P14 but negatively correlated with IGF-I from P0 to P42 and IGF-II from P14 to P42. Expression of IGFBP-5 correlated positively with IGF-I from E14 to P0 but negatively from P0 to P28. The results suggest that these genes are regulated in a coordinated fashion during development. A negative correlation was found between IGFBP-7 and IGF-II during P0 to P42. A positive correlation was found between IGFBP-3 (E14 to E18, P14 to P42) and IGF-IR and between IGFBP-3 (E14 to P0, P14 to P42) and IGF-I. The endocrine factors can be integrated with nutrition to regulate animal growth. In our study, AA chickens were fed a nutrient-rich AA diet, and LS chickens were fed either an AA diet or a less-rich diet. The LS and AA chickens fed the same AA diet showed no differences in IGF-I, IGF-I receptor, IGFBP-2, IGFBP-5, IGFBP-7, and IGFBP-3 but did still show differences in IGF-II. Our data indicate that these select genes may show linked expression during certain periods of development and that differences in gene expression respond differently to nutrient intake in LS and AA chickens.

Effect of Dietary Non-phytate Phosphorus Levels on the Diversity and Structure of Cecal Microbiota in Meat Duck from 1 to 21 d of age.

The study was conducted to distinguish the effect of dietary non-phytate phosphorus (NPP) levels on the community diversity and structure of the cecal microbiota in meat duck based on 16S rDNA high-throughput sequencing. In total, 525 1-d-old ducklings were fed diets (105 ducklings, 7 pens of 15 ducklings, on each diet) containing five levels of NPP (0.22, 0.34, 0.40, 0.46, and 0.58%) for 21 days. The results showed that dietary NPP levels linearly and quadratically increased (P < 0.05) 21 d body weight, 1 to 21 d feed intake and NPP intake, and contrarily, linearly decreased (P < 0.05) ß-diversity of cecal microbial population in ducks. ß-diversity analyses showed that microbiota clustering based on dietary NPP levels occured, with 0.22% NPP groups distinctly different from the 0.46% and 0.58% NPP group samples. Moreover, dietary NPP levels could change the relative abundance of the phylum Proteobacteria (linear, P < 0.05), genera Eubacterium coprostanoligenes (quadratic, P < 0.05), Ruminococcaceae UCG-014 (quadratic, P < 0.05) and Subdoligrannulum (linear, P < 0.05), and Lachnospiraceae family (quadratic, P < 0.05) in cecal microbiota of ducks. Increasing the dietary NPP level influenced the cecal microbiota and positively affected the growth of meat ducks.

Oral administration of short chain fatty acids could attenuate fat deposition of pigs.

Short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) are the main products of indigestible carbohydrates that are fermented by microbiota in the hindgut. This study was designed to investigate the effects of oral SCFAs administration on the lipid metabolism of weaned pigs. A total of 21 barrows were randomly allocated into three groups, including control group (orally infused with 200 mL physiological saline per day), low dose SCFAs group (orally infused with 200 mL SCFAs containing acetic acid 20.04 mM, propionic acid 7.71 mM and butyric acid 4.89 mM per day), and high dose SCFAs group (orally infused with 200 mL SCFAs containing acetic acid 40.08 mM, propionic acid 15.42 mM and butyric acid 9.78 mM per day). The results showed that the average daily feed intake of SCFAs groups were lower than that of control group (P<0.05). Oral administration of SCFAs decreased the concentrations of triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein-cholesterol and insulin (P<0.05), and increased the leptin concentration in serum (P<0.05). The total fat, as well as TC and TG levels in liver, was decreased by oral SCFAs administration (P<0.05). In addition, SCFAs down-regulated the mRNA expressions of fatty acid synthase (FAS) and sterol regulatory element binding protein 1c (P<0.05), and enhanced the mRNA expression of carnitine palmitoyltransferase-1α (CPT-1α) in liver (P<0.05). SCFAs also decreased FAS, acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) and peroxisome proliferator activated receptor σ mRNA expressions in longissimus dorsi (P<0.05). And in abdominal fat, SCFAs reduced FAS and ACC mRNA expressions (P<0.05), and increased CPT-1α mRNA expression (P<0.05). These results suggested that oral administration of SCFAs could attenuate fat deposition in weaned pigs via reducing lipogenesis and enhancing lipolysis of different tissues.

Black patients sustain vision loss while White and South Asian patients gain vision following delamination or segmentation surgery for tractional complications associated with proliferative diabetic retinopathy.

PurposeThis retrospective comparative case series aims to determine whether patient ethnicity (White versus South Asian versus Black) is related to the outcome of surgical treatment for traction complications of severe proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR).SettingMoorfields Eye Hospital London, UK.MethodsAll patients who underwent vitrectomy with, delamination and/or segmentation for PDR over a 5-year period (2009-2014) were reviewed retrospectively. Patients were divided into White, South Asian or Black groups, and their age, gender, HbA1C and type of diabetes were recorded. A total of 484 patients (253 White, 117 South Asian, 114 Black) were included. Twenty-one patients were excluded due to inadequate documentation.OutcomesLogMAR Visual acuity (converted from Snellen) (VA), was recorded pre-operatively and ~6 months post surgery (range 5-8 months). Surgical outcome was classified according to the type and duration of tamponade required post-operatively.ResultsPre-operative VA and HbA1C values were similar across all three ethnic groups (P=0.64 and 0.569, respectively). Change in VA (mean±SD) was 0.41±0.78, 0.14±0.76 and -0.26±0.57 in White, South Asian and Black patient groups respectively (P<0.001). Multiple regression analysis showed that post-op VA was significantly related to race and pre-op VA only (both P<0.001). The Black patient group were more likely to require silicone oil tamponade (P<0.001) and long-term retention of silicone oil (P<0.001) than the White and South Asian patient groups.ConclusionsThis study demonstrates that Black patients on average lose vision following delamination surgery for traction complications of PDR while White and South Asian patients gain vision. The same group is also at higher risk of retaining silicone more than 6 months after surgery. This difference remains even when corrected for glycaemic control. The higher risk of visual loss and long-term retention of silicone oil in black patients requires further investigation. If these results are confirmed, surgeons should consider their patients' ethnicity before proceeding with surgical treatment of diabetic tractional detachment.

MicroRNA-499-5p regulates porcine myofiber specification by controlling Sox6 expression.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small non-coding RNAs that negatively regulate gene expression of target messenger RNAs (mRNAs) and miRNAs have been proven to play vital roles in skeletal muscle development. The miRNA-499-5p has been reported to be negatively related with the expression of Sox6, a critical transcription factor for the maintenance of fast-twitch skeletal muscle. In this study, we amplified a length of 2012-bp mRNA that contains a 1512-bp porcine Sox6 (pSox6) 3'UTR from skeletal muscle of a Duroc×Landrace×Yorkshire pig. By luciferase reporter assay we verified that pSox6 is a target of miR-499-5p. In extensor digitorum longus and Soleus muscles of pigs, the expression levels of miR-499-5p and pSox6 mRNA were also inversely correlated. Besides, overexpression of miR-499-5p in porcine satellite cells promoted the expression of MyHC I and MyHC IIa mRNA, along with a reduction of pSox6 mRNA. Taken together, these results indicate that miR-499-5p may facilitate the oxidative myofibers formation by downregulating pSox6 expression.