β2-Adrenergic Receptor Enhances the Alternatively Activated Macrophages and Promotes Biliary Injuries Caused by Helminth Infection

Weighted single-step genome-wide association study and functional enrichment analyses for gastrointestinal nematode resistance traits in Santa Ines sheep

This study aimed to identify genomic regions, pathways, and putative candidate genes associated with resistance to gastrointestinal nematode in Santa Ines sheep. The phenotypic information comprised 5529 records from 1703 naturally infected animals. After genomic data quality control, 37,511 SNPs from 589 animals were available. The weighted single-step approach for genome-wide association study was performed to estimate the SNP effects and variances accounted by 10-SNP sliding windows. Confirming the polygenic nature of the studied traits, 20, 22, 21, and 19 genomic windows that explained more than 0.5% of the additive genetic variance were identified for fecal egg counts (FEC), Famacha© (FAM), packed cell volume (PCV), and total plasma protein (TPP), respectively. A total of 81, 122, 106, and 101 protein-coding genes were found in windows associated with FEC, FAM, PCV, and TPP, respectively. Several protein-coding genes related to the immune system and inflammatory response functions were identified within those genomic regions, such as ADCY9, ADRB2, BRAF, CADM1, CCL20, CD70, CREBBP, FNBP1, HTR4, IL16, IL22, IL26, MAPK8, NDFIP1, NLRC3, PAK5, PLCB1, PLCB4, ROCK1, TEK, TNFRSF12A, and VAV1. Functional enrichment analysis by DAVID tool also revealed many significant (P < 0.05) pathways and Gene Ontology terms that could be related to resistance to gastrointestinal nematode in Santa Ines sheep, such as chemokine signaling pathway (oas04062), cAMP signaling pathway (oas04024), cGMP-PKG signaling pathway (Oas04022), platelet activation (Oas04611), Rap1 signaling pathway (oas04015), and oxidoreductase activity, acting on paired donors, with incorporation or reduction of molecular oxygen (GO:0016705). These results contribute to improving the knowledge of the genetic architecture of resistance to gastrointestinal nematode in Santa Ines sheep.

Histamine H1 receptor antagonist attenuates catecholamine surge and organ injury after severe burns

Severe burns induce a catecholamine surge, causing severe damage to the organism and raising the possibility of multisystem organ failure. Few strategies are generally acceptable to reduce catecholamine surge and organ injury post-burn. We have previously shown that histamine can amplify the catecholamine surge. In addition, promethazine, a first-generation histamine H1 receptor antagonist, alleviates catecholamine surge and organ injury after severe burns in rats. However, evidence is lacking on whether promethazine benefits patients after severe burns. Currently, sedation and analgesia (such as midazolam and fentanyl) are commonly required for patients after severe burns. It remains unclear if patients after severe burns derive clinical benefit from histamine H1 receptor antagonists combined with sedation and analgesia. This study investigates the therapeutic effect of promethazine on patients after severe burns. Moreover, we test the therapeutic effect of cetirizine, a second-generation histamine H1 receptor antagonist, combined with sedation and analgesia in rats after severe burns. We find that promethazine-pethidine treatment shows a tendency for a lower level of total bilirubin than midazolam-fentanyl in patients 7-day after severe burn. Our study confirms that cetirizine combined with midazolam and fentanyl reduces catecholamine surge and liver and lung damage after severe burns in rats; the effects are better than midazolam and fentanyl treatment. In summary, for the first time, we suggest that histamine H1 receptor antagonist has the potential clinical value of reducing liver injury in patients after severe burns. In addition, we reveal that cetirizine combined with midazolam and fentanyl may be an ideal strategy for treating severe burns.

Interleukin-33 deficiency prevents biliary injuries and repairments caused by Clonorchis sinensis via restraining type 2 cytokines

Background

Clonorchiasis caused by Clonorchis sinensis is a zoonotic parasitic disease characterized by cholangitis, biliary proliferation, biliary fibrosis, and even cholangiocarcinoma. Our previous study showed that the expression of interleukin (IL)-33 is increased in both humans and mice infected by C. sinensis, suggesting that IL-33 is potentially involved in the pathogenesis of clonorchiasis. However, the roles and potential mechanism of IL-33 underlying remain unknown.

Methods

Wild-type (WT) and IL-33 knockout (KO) mice (BALB/c female mice) were orally infected with 45 metacercariae of C. sinensis for 8 weeks. Biliary injuries and fibrosis were extensively evaluated. Hepatic type II cytokines (IL-4, IL-13, and IL-10) were detected by ELISA.

Results

For wild-type mice, we found that the mice infected with C. sinensis showed severe biliary injuries and fibrosis compared with the normal mice that were free from worm infection. In addition, the levels of type II cytokines such as IL-4, IL-13, and IL-10 in infected wild-type mice were significantly higher than in the control mice without infection (P < 0.05). However, IL-33 deficiency (IL-33 KO) prevents the augmentation of biliary injuries and fibrosis caused by C. sinensis infection. Furthermore, the increased levels of these type II cytokines induced by worm infection were also reversed in IL-33 KO mice.

Conclusion

Our present study demonstrates that IL-33 contributes to the pathogenesis of C. sinensis-induced biliary injuries and repair, which can potentially orchestrate type 2 responses. These findings highlight the pathophysiological role of IL-33 in the progression of clonorchiasis.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13071-022-05490-6.

Molecular Mechanisms of Clonorchis sinensis-Host Interactions and Implications for Vaccine Development

Infections caused by Clonorchis sinensis remain a significant public health challenge for both humans and animals, causing pyogenic cholangitis, cholelithiasis, cholecystitis, biliary fibrosis, and even cholangiocarcinoma. However, the strategies used by the parasite and the immunological mechanisms used by the host have not yet been fully understood. With the advances in technologies and the accumulated knowledge of host-parasite interactions, many vaccine candidates against liver flukes have been investigated using different strategies. In this review, we explore and analyze in-depth the immunological mechanisms involved in the pathogenicity of C. sinensis. We highlight the different mechanisms by which the parasite interacts with its host to induce immune responses. All together, these data will allow us to have a better understanding of molecular mechansism of host-parasite interactions, which may shed lights on the development of an effective vaccine against C. sinensis.