Acute hypoxic stress: Effect on blood parameters, antioxidant enzymes, and expression of HIF-1alpha and GLUT-1 genes in largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides)

Dissolved oxygen (DO) plays a crucial role in survival, growth, and normal physiological functions of aquatic organisms. Nevertheless, the mechanisms involved in hypoxic stress and adaptation have not been fully elucidated in Largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides). To reveal the effect of acute hypoxia on Largemouth bass, we simulated acute hypoxia (DO: 1.2 ± 0.2 mg/L) in the laboratory and analyzed physiological parameters (RBCs, Hb, SOD, CAT, NA⁺/K⁺-ATPase, GPx, and MDA) and gene expression (HIF-1alpha and GLUT-1) in Largemouth bass exposed to various durations of acute hypoxia (0, 1, 2, 4, 8, 12, and 24 h). Our results indicated that acute hypoxic exposure significantly increased RBCs but decreased Hb. In addition, antioxidant enzyme activity was enhanced significantly in the liver and muscles at the initial stage of acute hypoxic exposure, but decreased significantly in gills during the entire process of hypoxic exposure. Furthermore, the expression levels of HIF-1alpha and GLUT-1 mRNA were significantly up-regulated in Largemouth bass under acute hypoxic exposure. In conclusion, our study provides a valuable basis for further elucidation of hypoxic adaptation and facilitates husbandry for an economically valuable species.

Genetic variation and genetic structure of five Chinese indigenous pig populations in Jiangsu Province revealed by sequencing data

In this study, we investigated the genetic variants, including SNPs and indels (short insertions or deletions, less than 50 bp in length), in the genomes and genetic structures of five pig populations (in the northern Taihu Lake region, Jiangsu Province) using the genotyping by genome reducing and sequencing (GGRS) approach. A total of 581 million good reads with an average depth of 11× and an average coverage of 2.16% were used to call variants. In general, 202 106 SNPs and 34 415 indels were obtained, of which 2690 SNPs and 224 indels were capable of inducing protein‐coding changes. The genes containing these variants were extracted for functional annotation. The results of gene enrichment analysis revealed that the SNPs under investigation may be associated with reproduction, disease resistance, meat quality and adipose tissue traits, whereas the indels were associated mainly with adipose tissue and disease. Analysis of the genetic structure showed that each population displayed comparable, large differentiations from the others, indicating their uniqueness. In conclusion, the results of our study provide the first genomic overview of the genetic variants and population structures of five Chinese indigenous pig populations.

[Effect of modification of titanium surfaces to graft poly(ethylene glycol)methacrylate-arginine-glycine-aspartic polymer brushes on bacterial adhesion and osteoblast cell attachment]

OBJECTIVE

To study the effect of poly(ethylene glycol)methacrylate(PEG)-arginine-glycine-aspartic(RGD)polymer brushes graft on bacterial adhesion and MC3T3 osteoblast cell attachment on titanium, and to investigate if the modification of titanium will enable the implant to be anti-fouling and promot osteointegration.

METHODS

PEG was tethered on titanium surface modified with 2-bromoisobutyryl bromide(denoted as Ti-Br)to form Ti-PEG brushes. Functionalization of the Ti-PEG surface with RGD was performed to form Ti-PEG-RGD brushes. The chemical composition of modified titanium surfaces was characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS). Changes in surface hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity were characterized by static water contact angle measurements. Streptococcus mutans(Sm), Actinomyces naeslundii(An)and osteoblast cell were cultured on pure titanium(Ti), Ti-PEG, Ti-PEG-RGD surfaces respectively. There were ten samples in each group. The bacterial adhesion ability and cell attachment were confirmed by fluorescence microscopy and scanning electron microscopy(SEM).

RESULTS

The static water contact angle of Ti, Ti-Br, Ti-PEG, Ti-PEG-RGD was less than 10°, 80°, 45°, 55° respectively. XPS confirmed that PEG-RGD brushes were successfully tethered on titanium surfaces. Anti-bacterial test showed that on the pure-Ti, there were large amount of bacteria from both groups, however, in the Ti-PEG, Ti-PEG-RGD surfaces, both kind of bacteria were rare and distributed diffusely. Cell culture test showed that on the Ti-PEG-RGD surfaces, the number of cells was significantly more than that on the Ti and the Ti-PEG surfaces.

CONCLUSIONS

PEG can inhibit both kind of bacteria adhesion and osteoblast cell attachment, and PEG-RGD brushes can not only inhibit bacterial adhesion but also promote osteoblast cell attachment.

Asymmetrical reproductive interference between two sibling species of tea looper: Ectropis grisescens and Ectropis obliqua

Ectropis grisescens Warren and Ectropis obliqua (Prout) are two morphologically similar sibling species with overlapping ranges. In this study, manipulative laboratory experiments were conducted to examine the possibility of reproductive interference in sympatric populations of E. grisescens and E. obliqua and the potential consequences of the mating interaction. Our results showed that the presence of males or females of different species could incur mating interference and significant reduction of F 1 offspring. The reduction was not significant relevant to the initial relative abundance of E. grisescens and E. obliqua. Detailed observations of mating opportunity showed that female mating frequencies of both species were not significantly affected by the absolute species density, but the mating success of E. obliqua females with conspecific males depended on species ratio. In addition, adding males to the other species resulted in lower number of offspring suggesting that the males' behaviour might be linked with mating interference. Males of both E. grisescens and E. obliqua could interfere the intraspecific mating of the other species, but the impact of the mating interference differed. These combined data indicated that asymmetric reproductive interference existed in E. grisescens and E. obliqua under laboratory conditions, and the offspring of the mixed species were significantly reduced. The long term outcome of this effect is yet to be determined since additional reproductive factors such as oviposition rate and progeny survival to adulthood may reduce the probability of demographic displacement of one species by the other in overlapping niches.

Characterization and functional analysis of porcine estrogen-related receptors and their alternative splicing variants

Estrogen-related receptors (ESRR) are orphan nuclear hormone receptors with unidentified ligands; they play important roles in tissue regulation and development and maintenance of pluripotent cell identity. The splicer variant, genomic organization, and physiological roles of ESRR have been elucidated in the human and the mouse. However, in livestock, they remain elusive. In this study, we cloned porcine ESRR family members , , and . Two alternative splicing variants, and , and a novel were identified. To determine the domain function, we constructed vectors with sequential deletions of the ESRRB coding sequence. The functional analysis showed that the C domain of ESRR plays a core role in promoting the activation of estrogen response elements that are found in all kinds of ESRR-targeting genes, whereas the E domain is not essential for transcription regulation of ESRR unless a specific and identified ligand is applied.

Bidirectional pumped high power Raman fiber laser

This paper presents a 3.89 kW 1123 nm Raman all-fiber laser with an overall optical-to-optical efficiency of 70.9%. The system consists of a single-wavelength (1070nm) seed and one-stage bidirectional 976 nm non-wavelength-stabilized laser diodes (LDs) pumped Yb-doped fiber amplifier. The unique part of this system is the application of non-wavelength-stabilized LDs in high power bidirectional pumping configuration fiber amplifier via refractive index valley fiber combiners. This approach not only increases the pump power, but also shortens the length of fiber by avoiding the usage of multi-stage amplifier. Through both theoretical research and experiment, the bidirectional pumping configuration presented in this paper proves to be able to convert 976 nm pump laser to 1070 nm laser via Yb³⁺ transfer, which is then converted into 1123 nm Raman laser via the first-order Raman effect without the appearance of any higher-order Raman laser.

Upregulated sirtuin 1 by miRNA-34a is required for smooth muscle cell differentiation from pluripotent stem cells

microRNA-34a (miR-34a) and sirtuin 1 (SirT1) have been extensively studied in tumour biology and longevity/aging, but little is known about their functional roles in smooth muscle cell (SMC) differentiation from pluripotent stem cells. Using well-established SMC differentiation models, we have demonstrated that miR-34a has an important role in SMC differentiation from murine and human embryonic stem cells. Surprisingly, deacetylase sirtuin 1 (SirT1), one of the top predicted targets, was positively regulated by miR-34a during SMC differentiation. Mechanistically, we demonstrated that miR-34a promoted differentiating stem cells' arrest at G0/G1 phase and observed a significantly decreased incorporation of miR-34a and SirT1 RNA into Ago2-RISC complex upon SMC differentiation. Importantly, we have identified SirT1 as a transcriptional activator in the regulation of SMC gene programme. Finally, our data showed that SirT1 modulated the enrichment of H3K9 tri-methylation around the SMC gene-promoter regions. Taken together, our data reveal a specific regulatory pathway that miR-34a positively regulates its target gene SirT1 in a cellular context-dependent and sequence-specific manner and suggest a functional role for this pathway in SMC differentiation from stem cells in vitro and in vivo.

Engagement of Toll-like receptor 2 enhances interleukin (IL)-17(+) autoreactive T cell responses via p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase signalling in dendritic cells

Functional analysis of single Toll-like receptors (TLRs) in vivo is necessary to understand how they shape the ocular inflammation involved in uveitis. In this study we explored the role and mechanisms of TLR-2 agonists on the autoreactive T helper type 17 (Th17) response in experimental autoimmune uveitis (EAU). Treatment by peptidoglycan (PGN), a specific TLR-2 agonist, remarkably increased mRNA levels of Th17-lineage genes interleukin (IL)-17A, IL-21 and RAR-related orphan receptor (ROR)γt and promoted antigen-specific Th17 response in EAU mice. A mixture of PGN and interphotoreceptor retinoid-binding protein peptide (IRBP161-180 ) could effectively induce EAU in the absence of complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA). PGN treatment also enhanced the pathogenic activities of activated antigen-specific Th17 cells in vivo. PGN significantly increased the production of IL-1β, IL-6 and IL-23 of dendritic cells (DCs) and enhanced their ability to promote IL-17(+) uveitogenic T cells. Enhanced immunostimulatory activities of PGN-DCs depend upon p38 activation. Inhibition of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) activity dramatically decreased IL-17 gene expression and antigen-specific Th17 responses stimulated by PGN-DCs. Our findings suggest that PGN treatment dramatically promotes the IL-17(+) uveitogenic T cell responses via enhancing the immunostimulatory activities of DCs. This effect may be mediated, at least in part, by activation of the p38 signalling pathway in DCs.

Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of two vitamin K1 formulations in rats

PURPOSE

Severe allergic reactions associated with the commercially available formulation of vitamin K1 injection (VKI) could be a result of polysorbate that was added to solubilize vitamin K1 (VK1). Hence, we sought to develop vitamin K1 lipid emulsion (VKLE) devoid of polysorbate, in order to reduce the clinical risk of severe allergic reactions. This study aims to evaluate the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of VKLE in comparison to VKI in rats.

METHODS

Plasma concentration-time profiles of VK1 were investigated in rats after dosing VKLE or VKI at the range of 1-4 mg/kg. Tissue distribution of VKLE and VKI were investigated in rats at the dose of 2 mg/kg. The pharmacodynamics of VKLE and VKI were also studied by comparing their effects on coagulation factors (II/VII/IX/X) and prothrombin time in hypoprothrombinemic rats.

RESULTS

VKI demonstrated over-proportional increase in AUC at the dosage range of 1.0-4.0 mg/kg, whereas VKLE demonstrated a linear kinetics trend in general. Compared to VKI, VKLE could selectively deliver VK1 to the liver, spleen and heart. VKLE and VKI produced comparable maximal responses, in terms of coagulation factors and prothrombin time.

CONCLUSIONS

VKLE and VKI demonstrated different pharmacokinetics but comparable pharmacodynamics in rats.

Application of the perineal ostomy in severe organophosphate poisoned patients after catharsis

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the efficacy of the one-piece ostomy bags for severe organophosphate poisoned patients after catharsis.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Sixty cases of severe organophosphate poisoned patients who were given rhubarb catharsis after thorough nasal lavage were divided into two groups. The observation group used the one-piece ostomy bags whilst the control group used the disposable changing mats. The perineal skin changes, average daily hours of care, and cost of care rates were compared between the two groups.

RESULTS

The rates of perineal skin changes were lower in the observation group than the control group (p < 0.05). The average daily hours of nursing and the cost of care were lower in the observation group than in the control group (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

The application of one-piece perineal paste ostomy bag in poisoned patients after the catharsis can prevent the risk of nursing by protecting and promoting the care quality, reducing the nursing workload and improving their work efficiency. It can enhance the nurses' self-esteem, reduce patients' expenses and provide an objective basis for assessing the treatments.

Comparison of the exposure of glycyrrhizin and its metabolites and the pseudoaldosteronism after intravenous administration of alpha- and beta-glycyrrhizin in rat

Glycyrrhizin, the major bioactive component in licorice root extract, exists as 2 isomers, α and β-glycyrrhizin, and is associated with causing pseudoaldosteronism due to its principal metabolites, glycyrrhetinic acid and 3-monoglucuronyl-glycyrrhetinic acid. The aim of this study was to compare (a) the pharmacokinetics of glycyrrhizin and its metabolites in rat after the first and last intravenous doses of either α- or β-glycyrrhizin administered once a day over 6 days, (b) kidney levels of the metabolites at 24 h after the last dose and (c) the urinary cortisol:cortisone ratio (as a biomarker of pseudoaldosteronism) in total urine collected for 24 h after the last dose.After the first dose, the clearance of glycyrrhizin in rats given α-isomer was significantly higher than in those given β-isomer and the AUC0-24 h values of glycyrrhizin and the metabolites were all significantly higher in β group than in α group. After the last dose, the AUC0-24 h values of glycyrrhizin and its metabolites were again significantly higher in rats given β-isomer than those given α-isomer and were all higher than the corresponding values after the first dose. Moreover, only kidney levels of glycyrrhetinic acid were detected in β group. The urinary cortisol:cortisone ratio was higher in rats given β-isomer and the correlation coefficients of the ratios with the AUC0-24 h values of 2 metabolites were 0.81 and 0.89 respectively.The results of the present study indicate that α-glycyrrhizin is a safer drug than β- glycyrrhizin probably due to a lower systemic exposure to the 2 metabolites.