Cadaverine and putrescine exposure influence carbon and nitrogen cycling genes in water and sediment of the Yellow River

The response patterns of microbial functional genes involved in biogeochemical cycles to cadaver decay is a central topic of recent environmental sciences. However, the response mechanisms and pathways of the functional genes associated with the carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycling to cadaveric substances such as cadaverine and putrescine remain unclear. This study explored the variation of functional genes associated with C fixation, C degradation and N cycling and their influencing factors under cadaverine, putrescine and mixed treatments. Our results showed only putrescine significantly increased the alpha diversity of C fixation genes, while reducing the alpha diversity of N cycling genes in sediment. For the C cycling, the mixed treatment significantly decreased the total abundance of reductive acetyl-CoA pathway genes (i.e., acsB and acsE) and lig gene linked to lignin degradation in water, while only significantly increasing the hydroxypropionate-hydroxybutylate cycle (i.e., accA) gene abundance in sediment. For the N cycling, mixed treatment significantly decreased the abundance of the nitrification (i.e., amoB), denitrification (i.e., nirS3) genes in water and the assimilation pathway gene (i.e., gdhA) in sediment. Environmental factors (i.e., total carbon and total nitrogen) were all negatively associated with the genes of C and N cycling. Therefore, cadaverine and putrescine exposure may inhibit the pathway in C fixation and N cycling, while promoting C degradation. These findings can offer some new insight for the management of amine pollution caused by animal cadavers.

[Effect of LAG3 deficiency on natural killer cell function and hepatic fibrosis in mice infected with Echinococcus multilocularis]

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the effect of LAG-3 deficiency (LAG3-/-) on natural killer (NK) cell function and hepatic fibrosis in mice infected with Echinococcus multilocularis.

METHODS

C57BL/6 mice, each weighing (20 ± 2) g, were divided into the LAG3-/- and wild type (WT) groups, and each mouse in both groups was inoculated with 3 000 E. multilocularis protoscoleces via the hepatic portal vein. Mouse liver and spleen specimens were collected 12 weeks post-infection, sectioned and stained with sirius red, and the hepatic lesions and fibrosis were observed. Mouse hepatic and splenic lymphocytes were isolated, and flow cytometry was performed to detect the proportions of hepatic and splenic NK cells, the expression of CD44, CD25 and CD69 molecules on NK cell surface, and the secretion of interferon γ (IFN-γ), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), interleukin (IL)-4, IL-10 and IL-17A.

RESULTS

Sirius red staining showed widening of inflammatory cell bands and hyperplasia of fibrotic connective tissues around mouse hepatic lesions, as well as increased deposition of collagen fibers in the LAG3-/-group relative to the WT group. Flow cytometry revealed lower proportions of mouse hepatic (6.29% ± 1.06% vs. 11.91% ± 1.85%, P < 0.000 1) and splenic NK cells (4.44% ± 1.22% vs. 5.85% ± 1.10%, P > 0.05) in the LAG3-/- group than in the WT group, and the mean fluorescence intensity of CD44 was higher on the surface of mouse hepatic NK cells in the LAG3-/- group than in the WT group (t = -3.234, P < 0.01), while no significant differences were found in the mean fluorescence intensity of CD25 or CD69 on the surface of mouse hepaticNK cells between the LAG3-/- and WT groups (both P values > 0.05). There were significant differences between the LAG3-/- and WT groups in terms of the percentages of IFN-γ (t = -0.723, P > 0.05), TNF-α (t = -0.659, P > 0.05), IL-4 (t = -0.263, P > 0.05), IL-10 (t = -0.455, P > 0.05) or IL-17A secreted by mouse hepatic NK cells (t = 0.091, P > 0.05), and the percentage of IFN-γ secreted by mouse splenic NK cells was higher in the LAG3-/- group than in the WT group (58.40% ± 1.64% vs. 50.40% ± 4.13%; t = -4.042, P < 0.01); however, there were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of the proportions of TNF-α (t = -1.902, P > 0.05), IL-4 (t = -1.333, P > 0.05), IL-10 (t = -1.356, P > 0.05) or IL-17A secreted by mouse splenic NK cells (t = 0.529, P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

During the course of E. multilocularis infections, LAG3-/- promotes high-level secretion of IFN-γ by splenic NK cells, which may participate in the reversal the immune function of NK cells, resulting in aggravation of hepatic fibrosis.

Floating-Point Approximation Enabling Cost-Effective and High-Precision Digital Implementation of FitzHugh-Nagumo Neural Networks

The study of neuron interactions and hardware implementations are crucial research directions in neuroscience, particularly in developing large-scale biological neural networks. The FitzHugh-Nagumo (FHN) model is a popular neuron model with highly biological plausibility, but its complexity makes it difficult to apply at scale. This paper presents a cost-saving and improved precision approximation algorithm for the digital implementation of the FHN model. By converting the computational data into floating-point numbers, the original multiplication calculations are replaced by adding the floating-point exponent part and fitting the mantissa part with piecewise linear. In the hardware implementation, shifters and adders are used, greatly reducing resource overhead. Implementing FHN neurons by this approximation calculations on FPGA reduces the normalized root mean square error (RMSE) to 3.5% of the state-of-the-art (SOTA) while maintaining a performance overhead ratio improvement of 1.09 times. Compared to implementations based on approximate multipliers, the proposed method achieves a 20% reduction in error at the cost of a 2.8% increase in overhead.This model gained additional biological properties compared to LIF while reducing the deployment scale by only 9%. Furthermore, the hardware implementation of nine coupled circular networks with eight nodes and directional diffusion was carried out to demonstrate the algorithm's effectiveness on neural networks. The error decreased to 60% compared to the single neuron of the SOTA. This hardware-friendly algorithm allows for the low-cost implementation of high-precision hardware simulation, providing a novel perspective for studying large-scale, biologically plausible neural networks.

Changes in menopausal symptoms comparing oral estradiol versus transdermal estradiol

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of oral and transdermal estradiol in alleviating menopausal symptoms.

METHOD

A total of 257 recently menopausal women were randomized into two groups. The t-E2 group received transdermal estradiol (2.5 g per day) (n = 128) and the o-E2V group received oral estradiol valerate (2 mg per day) (n = 129) for 24 weeks; both groups received micronized progesterone (200 mg per day). The primary outcome measure is the change in the modified Kupperman Menopausal Index (KMI) after 24 weeks of treatment. Menopausal symptoms were recorded at screening and at 4, 12 and 24 weeks using both the KMI and the Menopause Rating Scale (MRS).

RESULTS

Significant amelioration was observed by KMI and MRS scores for both groups after treatment (p < 0.001). The mean KMI scores showed no difference between the two groups. The mean MRS scores were similar between the two groups at baseline and after 4 weeks of treatment. The results showed statistical differences after 12 weeks and 24 weeks of treatment (p = 0.005 and p = 0.011). Both the after-treatment scores minus the baseline scores of KMI and MRS and the incidence of adverse effects showed no difference between the two groups.

CONCLUSIONS

This study shows that both transdermal and oral estradiol are effective in relieving menopausal symptoms, with little difference in treatment efficacy and safety.

CLINICAL TRIAL NUMBER

ChiCTR2300073146.

The efficacy and safety of novel antiepileptic drugs in treatment of epilepsy of patients with brain tumors

Objective

This meta-analysis aimed to assess the effectiveness and safety of novel antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) in treating epilepsy in patients with brain tumors (BTRE).

Methods

A search was conducted on PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library from inception to February 2023, with English language restriction.

Results

In this meta-analysis, 18 clinical trials involving 755 BTRE patients were included to assess the efficacy and safety of novel AEDs in BTRE treatment. At the last follow-up, a ≥50% reduction in seizure frequency was experienced by 72% of patients (random-effects model, 95% CI = 0.64-0.78) using novel AEDs. At the last follow-up, seizure freedom was experienced by 34% of patients (random-effects model, 95% CI = 0.28-0.41) using novel AEDs. The pooled incidence of AEs was found to be 19% (95% CI: 13%-26%), with a withdrawal rate due to adverse effects of only 3%. Comparable efficacy and incidence of adverse effects were observed between lacosamide and perampanel.

Conclusion

This meta-analysis suggests that novel antiepileptic drugs are deemed effective for seizure control in brain tumor patients, particularly when used as adjunctive therapy. Although lacosamide and perampanel received more focus in studies, no significant difference was observed in the efficacy and adverse reactions of these two drugs in seizure control. Further randomized controlled trials are deemed necessary to validate our findings.

Similarity of Chinese and Pakistani oral microbiome

Oral microbiota is vital for human health and can be affected by various factors (i.e. diets, ethnicity). However, few studies have compared oral microbiota of individuals from different nationalities in the same environment. Here, we explored the assembly and interaction of oral microbial communities of Chinese and Pakistanis in one university. Firmicutes and Proteobacteria were the predominant microorganisms in the oral cavity of Chinese and Pakistanis. Streptococcus and Neisseria were the dominant genera of China, while Streptococcus and Haemophilus were the dominant genera of Pakistanis. In addition, the oral community membership and structure were not influenced by season, Chinese/Pakistani student and gender, reflecting the stability of the human oral microbiome. The beta diversity of oral microbiomes between Chinese and Pakistanis significantly differed in winter, but not in spring. The alpha diversity of Chinese students and Pakistani students was similar. Moreover, oral microbial community of both Chinese and Pakistani students was mainly driven by stochastic processes. The microbial network of Chinese was more complexity and stability than that of Pakistanis. Our study uncovers the characteristics of human oral microbiota, which is of great significance for oral and human health.

UHPLC-MS/MS Assay for Quantification of Legubicin, a Novel Doxorubicin-Based Legumain-Activated Prodrug, and Its Application to Pharmacokinetic and Tissue Distribution Studies

Legubicin, a novel prodrug based on doxorubicin, has both albumin-binding and legumain-activating properties. The aim of this study was to develop and validate a UHPLC-MS/MS method for investigating the in vivo pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution profiles of legubicin in rats and tumor-bearing mice following intravenous administration, and to compare this prodrug with the positive control drug doxorubicin. The study employed a UHLC-MS/MS method to determine the levels of albumin-bound of legubicin and two metabolites (free Leu-DOX and DOX) in plasma, tumor, and tissue samples. This method was validated for good selectivity, high sensitivity, excellent extraction recovery, and short run time. The results showed that legubicin was present in the circulation in vivo mainly in a protein-bound form with larger AUC values and lower clearance and distribution, and essentially released small amounts of doxorubicin. Compared to administration of equimolar doses of doxorubicin, legubicin showed increased exposure of the active drug in the tumor and decreased the level of the active drug in the heart and kidney. This study provides valuable information on the pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution of legubicin, implicating its potential as a novel and effective drug candidate for anti-cancer therapies.

E93 gene in the swimming crab, Portunus trituberculatus: Responsiveness to 20-hydroxyecdysone and methyl farnesoate and role on regulating ecdysteroid synthesis

Ecdysone-induced protein 93 (E93) is a metamorphic determinant involved in crosstalk between 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E) and juvenile hormone (JH) during the insect molting process. The present study identified the E93 gene from the swimming crab, P. trituberculatus, and found it was widely distributed in adult tissues. PtE93 mRNA levels in Y-organ and epidermis fluctuated during the molt cycle, suggesting its involvement in juvenile molting. In vitro and in vivo treatments with 20E led to an induction of PtE93 expression in Y-organ and epidermis, while we found the opposite effect for methyl farnesoate (MF) treatments, a crustacean equivalent of insect JH. We also observed that two genes for ecdysteroid biosynthesis, Spook (Spo) and Shadow (Sad), were suppressed by 20E and induced by MF, showing a negative correlation between PtE93 and ecdysteroid biosynthesis. PtE93 RNA interference (RNAi) induced Spo and Sad expression levels, elevated ecdysteroid content in culture medium, and relieved the 20E inhibitory effect on ecdysteroid synthesis, indicating an inhibitory role of PtE93 on ecdysteroid synthesis. Overall, our results suggest that E93 may be involved in the crosstalk between 20E and MF during crustacean molting, and its presence in Y-organ is closely related to ecdysteroid synthesis.

Bibliometric analysis of papers on antibiotic resistance genes in aquatic environments on a global scale from 2012 to 2022: Evidence from universality, development and harmfulness

Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), emerging pollutants, are widely distributed in aquatic environments, and are tightly linked to human health. However, the research progress and trends in recent years on ARGs of aquatic environments are still unclear. This paper made a comprehensive understanding of the research advance, study trends and key topics of 1592 ARGs articles from 2012 to 2022 by bibliometrics. Publications on ARGs increased rapidly from 2012 to 2022, and scholars paid closer attention to the field of Environmental Sciences & Ecology. The most influential country and institution was mainly China and Chinese Academy of Sciences, respectively. The most articles (14.64 %) were published in the journal Science of the total environment. China and USA had the most cooperation, and USA was more inclined to international cooperation. PCR-based methods for water ARG research were the most widely used, followed by metagenomics. The most studied ARG types were sulfonamides, tetracyclines. Moreover, ARGs from wastewater and rivers were popularly concerned. Current topics mainly included pollution investigation, characteristics, transmission, reduction and risk identification of ARGs. Additionally, future research directions were proposed. Generally, by bibliometrics, this paper reviews the research hotspots and future directions of ARGs on a global scale, and summarizes the more important categories of ARGs, the pollution degree of ARGs in the relevant water environment and the research methods, which can provide a more comprehensive information for the future breakthrough of resistance mechanism, prevention and control standard formulation of ARGs.

Identification of transient receptor potential channel genes from the swimming crab, Portunus Trituberculatus, and their expression profiles under acute temperature stress

BACKGROUND

Temperature is an important environment factor that is critical to the survival and growth of crustaceans. However, the mechanisms by which crustaceans detect changes in temperature are still unclear. The transient receptor potential (TRP) channels are non-selective cation channels well known for properties in temperature sensation. However, comprehensive understandings on TRP channels as well as their temperature sensing functions are still lacking in crustaceans.

RESULTS

In this study, a total of 26 TRP genes were identified in the swimming crab, Portunus trituberculatus, which can be classified into TRPA, TRPC, TRPP, TRPM, TRPML, TRPN and TRPV. Tissue expression analysis revealed a wide distribution of these TRP genes in P. trituberculatus, and antennules, neural tissues, and ovaries were the most commonly expressed tissues. To investigate the responsiveness of TRP genes to the temperature change, 18 TRPs were selected to detect their expression after high and low temperature stress. The results showed that 12 TRPs showed induced gene expression in both high and low temperature groups, while 3 were down-regulated in the low temperature group, and 3 showed no change in expression in either group.

CONCLUSIONS

This study characterized the TRP family genes in P. trituberculatus, and explored their involvement in response to temperature stress. Our results will enhance overall understanding of crustacean TRP channels and their possible functions.

[Research and progress in etiology, prevention and treatment strategies of secondary caries]

Secondary caries is one of the main reasons that affect the service life of the restoration. Compared with primary caries, secondary caries have some particularities in etiology, disease progression, clinical manifestation, clinical diagnosis, treatment and prevention. Starting from the above aspects, combined with the latest basic and clinical research on secondary caries, this paper summarizes and analyzes its pathogenesis and prevention strategies, which will lay a certain foundation for in-depth understanding of secondary caries and promoting its clinical prevention and treatment.

Gut diazotrophs in lagomorphs are associated with season but not altitude and host phylogeny

Invertebrates such as termites feeding on nutrient-poor substrate receive essential nitrogen by biological nitrogen fixation of gut diazotrophs. However, the diversity and composition of gut diazotrophs of vertebrates such as Plateau pikas living in nutrient-poor Qinghai-Tibet Plateau remain unknown. To fill this knowledge gap, we studied gut diazotrophs of Plateau pikas (Ochotona curzoniae) and its related species, Daurian pikas (Ochotona daurica), Hares (Lepus europaeus) and Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) by high-throughput amplicon sequencing methods. We analyzed whether the gut diazotrophs of Plateau pikas are affected by season, altitude, and species, and explored the relationship between gut diazotrophs and whole gut microbiomes. Our study showed that Firmicutes, Spirochaetes, and Euryarchaeota were the dominant gut diazotrophs of Plateau pikas. The beta diversity of gut diazotrophs of Plateau pikas was significantly different from the other three lagomorphs, but the alpha diversity did not show a significant difference among the four lagomorphs. The gut diazotrophs of Plateau pikas were the most similarly to that of Rabbits, followed by Daurian pikas and Hares, which was inconsistent with gut microbiomes or animal phylogeny. The dominant gut diazotrophs of the four lagomorphs may reflect their living environment and dietary habits. Season significantly affected the alpha diversity and abundance of dominant gut diazotrophs. Altitude had no significant effect on the gut diazotrophs of Plateau pikas. In addition, the congruence between gut microbiomes and gut diazotrophs was low. Our results proved that the gut of Plateau pikas was rich in gut diazotrophs, which is of great significance for the study of ecology and evolution of lagomorphs.

A prospective study of drug-drug interaction between antiepileptic drugs and meropenem in patients in a tertiary hospital in China from January 2020 to March 2023

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to determine the minimum interaction between different antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) and meropenem (MEPM) for clinical treatment.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

The data of 91 patients enrolled in the neurology department from January 2020 to March 2023 for clinical trials were measured and observed. Self-controlled studies were conducted to monitor the trough concentrations of valproic acid (VPA), carbamazepine (CBZ) and levotiracetam (LEV) before and after MEPM usage. Relevant indicators of liver and kidney function were also monitored.

RESULTS

The serum VPA trough concentrations were 36.25±8.22 μg/ml at 24±12 h and 34.99±11.17 μg/ml at 96±12 h after MEPM use; the difference was significant (p<0.05). Decreased CBZ trough concentrations were also identified after MEPM usage (96±12 h), whereas LEV trough concentrations were not affected. An increased liver injury rate (χ2 =8.744, p<0.05) and a decreased kidney injury rate (χ2 =5.393, p<0.05) were found in the VPA group only.

CONCLUSIONS

The interaction between VPA and MEPM decreased serum VPA concentrations, increased liver injury rates, and decreased kidney injury rates. In addition, the co-administration of MEPM and CBZ reduced serum CBZ concentrations. Clinicians should be aware of this potential interaction and closely monitor the relevant biochemical indices and number of seizures.

Fate of high-risk antibiotic resistance genes in large-scale aquaculture sediments: Geographical differentiation and corresponding drivers

Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), emerging environmental contaminants, have become challenges of public health security. However, the distribution and drivers of ARGs, especially high-risk ARGs, in large-scale aquaculture sediments remain unknown. Here, we collected sediment samples from 40 crayfish ponds in seven main crayfish culture provinces in China and then investigated the distribution and risk of ARGs based on high-throughput sequencing and quantitative PCR techniques. Our results suggested that aquaculture sediment was potential reservoir of ARGs and the abundance of aadA-02 was the highest. High-risk ARG (floR) was also prevalent in the sediment and was the most abundant in Jiangsu Province, where opportunistic pathogens were also enriched. The abundance of floR was positively correlated with different environmental factors, such as total phosphorus in water and total carbon in sediment. In addition, Mycobacterium sp., opportunistic pathogenic bacteria, might be potential host for floR. Furthermore, the potential propagation pathway of ARGs was from sediment to crayfish gut, and Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria might be the main bacterial groups responsible for the proliferation of ARGs. Generally, our results illustrate that pond sediment may be an ARG reservoir of aquatic animals. Meanwhile, our study helps develop valuable strategies for accessing risks and managing ARGs.

Metagenomics reveals the self-recovery and risk of antibiotic resistomes during carcass decomposition of wild mammals

Animal carcass decomposition may bring serious harm to the environment, including pathogenic viruses, toxic gases and metabolites, and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). However, how wild mammal corpses decomposition influence and change ARGs in the environment has less explored. Through metagenomics, 16S rRNA gene sequencing, and physicochemical analysis, this study explored the succession patterns, influencing factors, and assembly process of ARGs and mobile genetic elements (MGEs) in gravesoil during long-term corpse decomposition of wild mammals. Our results indicate that the ARG and MGE communities related to wildlife corpses exhibited a pattern of differentiation first and then convergence. Different from the farmed animals, the decomposition of wild animals first reduced the diversity of ARGs and MGEs, and then recovered to a level similar to that of the control group (untreated soil). ARGs and MGEs of the gravesoil are mainly affected by deterministic processes in different stages. MGEs and bacterial community are the two most important factors affecting ARGs in gravesoil. It is worth noting that the decomposition of wild animal carcasses enriched different high-risk ARGs at different stages (bacA, mecA and floR), which have co-occurrence patterns with opportunistic pathogens (Comamonas and Acinetobacter), thereby posing a great threat to public health. These results are of great significance for wildlife corpse management and environmental and ecological safety.

Achieving High Core Neuron Density in a Neuromorphic Chip Through Trade-off Among Area, Power Consumption, and Data Access Bandwidth

As a crucial component of neuromorphic chips, on-chip memory usually occupies most of the on-chip resources and limits the improvement of neuron density. The alternative of using off-chip memory may result in additional power consumption or even a bottleneck for off-chip data access. This article proposes an on- and off-chip co-design approach and a figure of merit (FOM) to achieve a trade-off between chip area, power consumption, and data access bandwidth. By evaluating the FOM of each design scheme, the scheme with the highest FOM (1.085× better than the baseline) is adopted to design a neuromorphic chip. Deep multiplexing and weight-sharing technologies are used to reduce on-chip resource overhead and data access pressure. A hybrid memory design method is proposed to optimize on- and off-chip memory distribution, which reduces on-chip storage pressure and total power consumption by 92.88% and 27.86%, respectively, while avoiding the explosion of off-chip access bandwidth. The co-designed neuromorphic chip with ten cores fabricated under standard 55 nm CMOS technology has an area of 4.4 mm 2 and a core neuron density of 4.92 K/mm 2, an improvement of 3.39  ∼ 30.56× compared with previous works. After deploying a full-connected and a convolution-based spiking neural network (SNN) for ECG signal recognition, the neuromorphic chip achieves 92% and 95% accuracy, respectively. This work provides a new path for developing high-density and large-scale neuromorphic chips.

Purtscher-like retinopathy in systemic lupus erythematosus: clinical features, risk factors and prognosis

BACKGROUND

Purtscher-like retinopathy (PLR) is a rare ocular manifestation in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) with poor prognosis, but its clear risk factors and treatment consensus are still lacking.

AIM

To investigate the clinical features, risk factors and prognosis of PLR in SLE patients.

DESIGN AND METHODS

A retrospective analysis was conducted on SLE patients with PLR admitted at Peking Union Medical College Hospital from 2013 to 2022. Clinical data, including demographic characteristics, lupus-related features, laboratory findings and ophthalmologic examinations, were collected and analyzed. The prognosis was evaluated based on best-corrected visual acuity and ophthalmologic outcomes.

RESULTS

Seventeen SLE patients (32 eyes) diagnosed with PLR were included, along with a random selection of 100 SLE patients without retinopathy and 100 with retinal microvasculopathy as controls. Patients with PLR had a significantly younger age, a higher proportion of hemolytic anemia, a shorter duration of SLE, a higher SLE disease activity index-2000 (SLEDAI-2K) score, higher erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) values and lower hemoglobin (HGB) values than the group without retinopathy (P < 0.05). They also had a significantly higher SLEDAI-2K score, higher ESR values and higher white blood cell values (P < 0.05) than the Microvasculopathy group. The majority of eyes (22/26, 84.62%) achieved stabilization at the last follow-up, with different therapeutic strategies, while a few (4/26, 15.38%) experienced complications or progression.

CONCLUSION

This is the largest reported case series of PLR in SLE, which was associated with higher disease activity and poor visual prognosis. It was also associated with younger age, shorter SLE duration, concomitant hemolytic anemia, lower HGB and higher ESR value. Early recognition and prompt treatment are crucial for improving visual outcomes.

Childhood-Onset Lupus Nephritis in the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance Registry: Short-Term Kidney Status and Variation in Care

OBJECTIVE

The goal was to characterize short-term kidney status and describe variation in early care utilization in a multicenter cohort of patients with childhood-onset systemic lupus erythematosus (cSLE) and nephritis.

METHODS

We analyzed previously collected prospective data from North American patients with cSLE with kidney biopsy-proven nephritis enrolled in the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA) Registry from March 2017 through December 2019. We determined the proportion of patients with abnormal kidney status at the most recent registry visit and applied generalized linear mixed models to identify associated factors. We also calculated frequency of medication use, both during induction and ever recorded.

RESULTS

We identified 222 patients with kidney biopsy-proven nephritis, with 64% class III/IV nephritis on initial biopsy. At the most recent registry visit at median (interquartile range) of 17 (8-29) months from initial kidney biopsy, 58 of 106 patients (55%) with available data had abnormal kidney status. This finding was associated with male sex (odds ratio [OR] 3.88, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.21-12.46) and age at cSLE diagnosis (OR 1.23, 95% CI 1.01-1.49). Patients with class IV nephritis were more likely than class III to receive cyclophosphamide and rituximab during induction. There was substantial variation in mycophenolate, cyclophosphamide, and rituximab ever use patterns across rheumatology centers.

CONCLUSION

In this cohort with predominately class III/IV nephritis, male sex and older age at cSLE diagnosis were associated with abnormal short-term kidney status. We also observed substantial variation in contemporary medication use for pediatric lupus nephritis between pediatric rheumatology centers. Additional studies are needed to better understand the impact of this variation on long-term kidney outcomes.

[Anatomical and histological investigation of the area anterior to the anorectum passing through the levator hiatus]

Objective: To document the anatomical structure of the area anterior to the anorectum passing through the levator hiatus between the levator ani slings bilaterally. Methods: Three male hemipelvises were examined at the Laboratory of Clinical Applied Anatomy, Fujian Medical University. (1) The anatomical assessment was performed in three ways; namely, by abdominal followed by perineal dissection, by examining serial cross-sections, and by examining median sagittal sections. (2) The series was stained with hematoxylin and eosin to enable identification of nerves, vessels, and smooth and striated muscles. Results: (1) It was found that the rectourethralis muscle is closest to the deep transverse perineal muscle where the longitudinal muscle of the rectum extends into the posteroinferior area of the membranous urethra. The communicating branches of the neurovascular bundle (NVB) were identified at the posterior edge of the rectourethralis muscle on both sides. The rectum was found to be fixed to the membranous urethra through the rectourethral muscle, contributing to the anorectal angle of the anterior rectal wall. (2) Serial cross-sections from the anal to the oral side were examined. At the level of the external anal sphincter, the longitudinal muscle of the rectum was found to extend caudally and divide into two muscle bundles on the oral side of the external anal sphincter. One of these muscle bundles angled dorsally and caudally, forming the conjoined longitudinal muscle, which was found to insert into the intersphincteric space (between the internal and external anal sphincters). The other muscle bundle angled ventrally and caudally, filling the gap between the external anal sphincter and the bulbocavernosus muscle, forming the perineal body. At the level of the superficial transverse perineal muscle, this small muscle bundle headed laterally and intertwined with the longitudinal muscle in the region of the perineal body. At the level of the rectourethralis and deep transverse perineal muscle, the external urethral sphincter was found to occupy an almost completely circular space along the membranous part of the urethra. The dorsal part of the external urethral sphincter was found to be thin at the point of attachment of the rectourethralis muscle, the ventral part of the longitudinal muscle of the rectum. We identified a venous plexus from the NVB located close to the oral and ventral side of the deep transverse perineal muscle. Many vascular branches from the NVB were found to be penetrating the longitudinal muscle and the ventral part of rectourethralis muscle at the level of the apex of the prostate. The rectourethral muscle was wrapped ventrally around the membranous urethra and apex of the prostate. The boundary between the longitudinal muscle and prostate gradually became more distinct, being located at the anterior end of the transabdominal dissection plane. (3) Histological examination showed that the dorsal part of the external urethral sphincter (striated muscle) is thin adjacent to the striated muscle fibers from the deep transverse perineal muscle and the NVB dorsally and close by. The rectourethral muscle was found to fill the space created by the internal anal sphincter, deep transverse perineal muscle, and both levator ani muscles. Many tortuous vessels and tiny nerve fibers from the NVB were identified penetrating the muscle fibers of the deep transverse perineal and rectourethral muscles. The structure of the superficial transverse perineal muscle was typical of striated muscle. These findings were reconstructed three-dimensionally. Conclusions: In intersphincteric resection or abdominoperineal resection for very low rectal cancer, the anterior dissection plane behind Denonvilliers' fascia disappears at the level of the apex of the prostate. The prostate and both NVBs should be used as landmarks during transanal dissection of the non-surgical plane. The rectourethralis muscle should be divided near the rectum side unless tumor involvement is suspected. The superficial and deep transverse perineal muscles, as well as their supplied vessels and nerve fibers from the NVB. In addition, the cutting direction should be adjusted according to the anorectal angle to minimize urethral injury.

[Effects of in vivo targeted carboxylesterase 1f gene knockdown on the Kupffer cells polarization activity in mice with acute liver failure]

Objective: To investigate the effect of targeted carboxylesterase 1f (Ces1f) gene knockdown on the polarization activity of Kupffer cells (KC) induced by lipopolysaccharide/D-galactosamine (LPS/D-GalN) in mice with acute liver failure. Methods: The complex siRNA-EndoPorter formed by combining the small RNA (siRNA) carrying the Ces1f-targeting interference sequence and the polypeptide transport carrier (Endoporter) was wrapped in β-1, 3-D glucan shell to form complex particles (GeRPs). Thirty male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into a normal control group, a model group (LPS/D-GalN), a pretreatment group (GeRPs), a pretreatment model group (GeRPs+LPS/D-GalN), and an empty vector group (EndoPorter). Real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR and western blot were used to detect Ces1f mRNA and protein expression levels in the liver tissues of each mouse group. Real-time PCR was used to detect the expression levels of KC M1 polarization phenotypic differentiation cluster 86(CD86) mRNA and KC M2 polarization phenotypic differentiation cluster 163 (CD163) mRNA in each group. Immunofluorescence double staining technique was used to detect the expression of Ces1f protein and M1/M2 polarization phenotype CD86/CD163 protein in KC. Hematoxylin-eosin staining was used to observe the pathological damage to liver tissue. A one-way analysis of variance was used to compare the means among multiple groups, or an independent sample nonparametric rank sum test was used when the variances were uneven. Results: The relative expression levels of Ces1f mRNA/protein in liver tissue of the normal control group, model group, pretreatment group, and pretreatment model group were 1.00 ± 0.00, 0.80 ± 0.03/0.80 ± 0.14, 0.56 ± 0.08/0.52 ± 0.13, and 0.26 ± 0.05/0.29 ± 0.13, respectively, and the differences among the groups were statistically significant (F = 9.171/3.957, 20.740/9.315, 34.530/13.830, P < 0.01). The percentages of Ces1f-positive Kupffer cells in the normal control group, model group, pretreatment group, and pretreatment model group were 91.42%, ± 3.79%, 73.85% ± 7.03%, 48.70% ± 5.30%, and 25.68% ± 4.55%, respectively, and the differences between the groups were statistically significant (F = 6.333, 15.400, 23.700, P < 0.01). The relative expression levels of CD86 mRNA in the normal control group, model group, and pretreatment model group were 1.00 ± 0.00, 2.01 ± 0.04, and 4.17 ± 0.14, respectively, and the differences between the groups were statistically significant (F = 33.800, 106.500, P < 0.01). The relative expression levels of CD163 mRNA in the normal control group, the model group, and the pretreatment model group were 1.00 ± 0.00, 0.85 ± 0.01, and 0.65 ± 0.01, respectively, and the differences between the groups were statistically significant (F = 23.360, 55.350, P < 0.01). The percentages of (F4/80(+)CD86(+)) and (F4/80(+)CD163(+)) in the normal control group and model group and pretreatment model group were 10.67% ± 0.91% and 12.60% ± 1.67%, 20.02% ± 1.29% and 8.04% ± 0.76%, and 43.67% ± 2.71% and 5.43% ± 0.47%, respectively, and the differences among the groups were statistically significant (F = 11.130/8.379, 39.250/13.190, P < 0.01). The liver injury scores of the normal control group, the model group, and the pretreatment model group were 0.22 ± 0.08, 1.32 ± 0.36, and 2.17 ± 0.26, respectively, and the differences among the groups were statistically significant (F = 12.520 and 22.190, P < 0.01). Conclusion: Ces1f may be a hepatic inflammatory inhibitory molecule, and its inhibitory effect production may come from the molecule's maintenance of KC polarization phenotypic homeostasis.

[The diagnostic and evaluation value of plasma interleukin 9 in the mucosal healing in patients with inflammatory bowel disease treated with biological agents]

Objective: To investigate the diagnostic and evaluation value of plasma interleukin 9 (IL9) in the mucosal healing (MH) in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) treated with biological agents. Methods: Cohort study. IBD patients (137 cases) treated in the Affiliated Suzhou Hospital to Nanjing Medical University (Suzhou Municipal Hospital) from September 2019 to January 2022 were prospective selected. Each patient was treated with biological agents [Infliximab (IFX, 56 cases), Adalimumab (ADA, 20 cases), Ustekinumab (UST, 18 cases), Vedolizumab (VDZ, 43 cases)]. According to different therapeutic drugs, the IFX, ADA, UST, and VDZ group were divided. Clinical symptoms, inflammatory indicators and imaging examinations etc. were evaluated every 8 weeks, and the degree of MH was evaluated by endoscopy at the 54th week. The expression of plasma IL9 was detected by ELISA after initial enrollment (W 0) and 8 weeks of biological treatment (W 8). Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) was used to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of IL9 for MH. Select the cut off value for the optimal ROC threshold based on the highest value of the Youden index. Spearman's rank correlation was used to analyze the correlation between IL9 and Simple Endoscopic Score for CD (SES-CD) and Mayo Endoscopic Score (MES), so as to evaluate the predictive value of IL9 for MH in IBD patients treated with biologic agents. Results: Among the 137 patients, there were 97 Crohn's disease (CD) patients, 53 males and 44 females, aged (31.6±10.3) years (18-60 years). There were 40 ulcerative colitis (UC) patients, 22 males and 18 females, aged (37.5±14.7) years (18-67 years). Among the CD patients, 42 cases (43.3%) achieved MH on endoscopy at the 54th week, and 60 patients (61.9%) achieved clinical remission. Among the UC patients, 22 cases (55.0%) achieved MH and 30 cases (75.0%) achieved clinical remission. At W 0, the relative expression of IL9 in patients in IBD patients who achieved MH after 54 weeks of biological treatment was lower than that in the non-MH patients [x¯±s, (127.42±34.43) vs (146.82±45.64) ng/L, (113.01±44.88) vs (146.12±48.66) ng/L, respectively, both P<0.05]. At W 8, the relative expression of IL9 in the MH group was lower than that in the non-MH patients (both P<0.05). The relative expression of IL9 in the MH patients after IFX treatment was lower than that in the non-MH group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference among the other groups between MH and non-MH patients (all P>0.05). IL9 at W 8 showed high value in predicting MH in IBD [CD patients: area under curve (AUC)=0.716(95%CI: 0.616-0.817, P<0.001), sensitivity and specificity were 80.77%(95%CI:67.64%-88.45%) and 48.89%(95%CI: 35.53%-64.47%), respectively; UC patients: AUC=0.821, sensitivity and specificity were 77.78% and 72.73%, respectively]. At W 8, the cut off values for CD and UC patients were IL9>80.77 ng/L and IL9>77.78 ng/L, respectively. IL9 was positively correlated with endoscopic MH score parameters [M(Q₁,Q₃),SES-CD: 3.0(8.5, 18.5); MES: 2.0(1.0, 3.0)] (r=0.55, 0.72, respectively, both P<0.001) at W8. Conclusion: The plasma IL-9 at the week 8 after biological agents treatment can be used to diagnose and evaluate the MH of patients with IBD.

Mammalian carcass decay increases carbon storage and temporal turnover of carbon-fixing microbes in alpine meadow soil

Corpse decomposition is of great significance to the carbon cycle of natural ecosystem. Carbon fixation is a carbon conversion process that converts carbon dioxide into organic carbon, which greatly contributes to carbon emission reduction. However, the effects of wild animal carcass decay on carbon-fixing microbes in grassland soil environment are still unknown. In this research, thirty wild mammal (Ochotona curzoniae) corpses were placed on alpine meadow soil to study the carbon storage and carbon-fixing microbiota succession for a 94-day decomposition using next-generation sequencing. Our results revealed that 1) the concentration of total carbon increased approximately 2.24-11.22% in the corpse group. 2) Several carbon-fixing bacterial species (Calothrix parietina, Ancylobacter rudongensis, Rhodopseudomonas palustris) may predict the concentration of total carbon. 3) Animal cadaver degradation caused the differentiation of carbon-fixing microbiota structures during succession and made the medium-stage networks of carbon-fixing microbes more complicated. 4) The temporal turnover rate in the experimental groups was higher than that in the control groups, indicating a quick change of gravesoil carbon-fixing microbiota. 5) The deterministic process dominates the assembly mechanism of experimental groups (ranging from 53.42% to 94.94%), which reflects that the carbon-fixing microbial community in gravesoil can be regulated. Under global climate change, this study provides a new perspective for understanding the effects of wild animal carcass decay on soil carbon storage and carbon-fixing microbes.

Copper and temperature shaped abundant and rare community assembly respectively in the Yellow River

Untangling assembly and microbial interaction of abundant and rare microbiota in aquatic ecosystem is pivotal for understanding how community assembly respond to environmental variables and co-occurrence patterns. Here, we explored the assembly mechanisms, their drivers, and species co-occurrence of abundant and rare microbiomes in the Yellow River using 16S rRNA gene sequencing in Lanzhou, China. Here, abundant community was ubiquitous across all sites, whereas rare community was uneven distributed. The richness and community dissimilarity of rare taxa were significantly greater than those of abundant ones. Stochastic processes structured the rare community assembly in spring and winter, while deterministic processes shaped the abundant and rare community assembly in other seasons and all sites. Copper and water temperature mediated the balance between deterministic and stochastic processes of abundant and rare community, respectively. A few abundant taxa with closer relationships frequently occupied central positions and had a great effect on other co-occurrences in the network, while the majority of keystone microbiota were rare microbiome and played a considerable part in maintaining the network structure. Our study provides some ecological proposals for water quality management and ecological stability of the Yellow River. KEY POINTS: • Deterministic process dominated abundant and rare community assembly. • Cu and TW mediated the balance of abundant and rare community assembly respectively. • Abundant taxa had a greater effect on other co-occurrences in the network.

Metagenomics reveals elevated temperature causes nitrogen accumulation mainly by inhibiting nitrate reduction process in polluted water

Determining the response of functional genes and microbiota involved in the nitrogen (N) cycle to warming in the face of global climate change is a hotpot topic. However, whether and how elevated temperature affects the N-cycle genes in polluted water remains unclear. Based on metagenomics, we investigated the responses of the whole N-cycling genes and their microbial communities to the temperature gradients (23, 26, 29, 32, and 35 °C) using animal cadavers as an N-pollution model. We found that the abundance of gene families involved in glutamate metabolism, assimilatory nitrate reduction to nitrite (ANRN), and denitrification pathways decreased with temperature. Moreover, warming reduced the diversity of N-cycling microbial communities. Ecological network analysis indicated that elevated temperature intensified the mutual competition of N-cycle genes. The partial least squares path model (PLS-PM) showed that warming directly suppressed most N-cycle pathways, especially glutamate metabolism, denitrification, and ANRN pathways. Corpse decay also indirectly inhibited N-cycling via regulating N content and microbial communities. Our results highlight warming leads to N accumulation by inhibiting the ANRN and denitrification pathways, which may jeopardize ecological environment security. Our study is expected to provide valuable insights into the complex N-cycle process and N-pollution in warmer aquatic ecosystems.

Braille recognition by E-skin system based on binary memristive neural network

Braille system is widely used worldwide for communication by visually impaired people. However, there are still some visually impaired people who are unable to learn Braille system due to various factors, such as the age (too young or too old), brain damage, etc. A wearable and low-cost Braille recognition system may substantially help these people recognize Braille or assist them in Braille learning. In this work, we fabricated polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-based flexible pressure sensors to construct an electronic skin (E-skin) for the application of Braille recognition. The E-skin mimics human touch sensing function for collecting Braille information. Braille recognition is realized with a neural network based on memristors. We utilize a binary neural network algorithm with only two bias layers and three fully connected layers. Such neural network design remarkably reduces the calculation burden and, thus, the system cost. Experiments show that the system can achieve a recognition accuracy of up to 91.25%. This work demonstrates the possibility of realizing a wearable and low-cost Braille recognition system and a Braille learning-assistance system.

Insight into the dynamics of drinking water resistome in China

Antibiotic resistance (AR) is a serious environmental hazard of the current age. Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) are the fundamental entities that spread AR in the environment. ARGs are likely to be transferred from the non-pathogenic to pathogenic microbes that might ultimately be responsible for the AR in humans and other organisms. Drinking water (DW) is the primary interaction route between ARGs and humans. Being the highest producer and consumer of antibiotics China poses a potential threat to developing superbugs and ARGs dissemination. Herein, we comprehensively seek to review the ARGs from dominant DW sources in China. Furthermore, the origin and influencing factors of the ARGs to the DW in China have been evaluated. Commonly used methods, both classical and modern, are being compiled. In addition, the risk posed and mitigation strategies of DW ARGs in China have been outlined. Overall, we believe this review would contribute to the assessment of ARGs in DW of China and their dissemination to humans and other animals and ultimately help the policymakers and scientists in the field to counteract this problem on an emergency basis.

Putative Role of CFSH in the Eyestalk-AG-Testicular Endocrine Axis of the Swimming Crab Portunus trituberculatus

It has been shown in recent studies that the crustacean female sex hormone (CFSH) plays a crucial role in the development of secondary sexual characteristics in Decapoda crustaceans. However, research on the function of CFSH in the eyestalk-AG-testicular endocrine axis has been inadequate. We cloned and identified a homolog of CFSH, PtCFSH, in this study. RT-PCR showed that PtCFSH was mainly expressed in the eyestalk. A long-term injection of dsPtCFSH and recombinant PtCFSH (rPtCFSH) in vivo showed opposite effects on spermatogenesis-related gene expression and histological features in the testis of P. trituberculatus, and was accompanied by changes in AG morphological characteristics and PtIAG expression. In addition, the phosphorylated-MAPK levels and the expression of several IIS pathway genes in the testis was changed accordingly in two treatments, suggesting that PtCFSH may regulate the testicular development via IAG. The hypothesis was further validated by a mixed injection of both dsPtCFSH and dsPtIAG in vivo. The following in vitro studies confirmed the negatively effects of PtCFSH on AG, and revealed that the PtCFSH can also act directly on the testis. Treatment with rPtCFSH reduced the cAMP and cGMP levels as well as the nitric oxide synthetase activity. These findings provide vital clues to the mechanisms of CFSH action in both the eyestalk-AG-testis endocrinal axis and its direct effects on the testis.

Multi-omics methods reveal that putrescine and cadaverine cause different degrees of enrichment of high-risk resistomes and opportunistic pathogens in the water and sediment of the Yellow River

Contamination of antibiotic resistomes due to animal carcass decay has become a serious environmental concern. However, the relationship between main metabolite compounds of corpse decomposition (i.e., putrescine and cadaverine) and antibiotic resistomes remains unclear. To tackle this issue, the response of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and microbiome in aquatic environment to excess putrescine, cadaverine and a mixture of both based on laboratory simulation experiment was investigated by high-throughput quantitative PCR and amplicon sequencing methods. Our results showed putrescine and cadaverine led to the increasing of TC (total carbon) and TN (total nitrogen) both in water and sediment. Under the exposure of putrescine and cadaverine, the total abundance of mobile genetic elements (MGEs) and most ARGs in water was higher than in sediment. In particular, putrescine and cadaverine caused significantly different decreases in alpha diversity of microbial community in water and sediment compared with the control group. Microbial community structures both in water and sediment were also significantly affected by cadaverine and putrescine. Furthermore, putrescine and cadaverine led to different degrees of increases of high-risk ARGs (like mecA) and opportunistic pathogens (like Delftia) in sediment, promoting the prevalence of antibiotic resistant bacteria. In conclusion, our findings revealed the influences of main metabolites of carcass decay on microbiome and resistomes, providing references for risk assessment and pollution management.

Metagenomics reveals the response of antibiotic resistance genes to elevated temperature in the Yellow River

Climate warming may aggravate the threat of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) to environmental and human health. However, whether temperature can predict ARGs and influence their assembly processes remains unknown. Here, we used metagenomic sequencing to explore how gradually elevated water temperature (23 °C, 26 °C, 29 °C, 32 °C, 35 °C) influences ARG and mobile genetic element (MGE) profiles in the Yellow River. In total, 30 ARG types including 679 subtypes were detected in our water samples. Gradually increased temperature remarkably reduced ARG diversity but increased ARG abundance. Approximately 37 % of ARGs and 42 % of MGEs were predicted by temperature, while most others were not sensitive to temperature. For each 1 °C increase in temperature, the ARG abundance rose by 2133 TPM (Transcripts Per kilobase of exon model per Million mapped reads) abundance, and multidrug, tetracycline and peptide resistance genes had the fastest increases. Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria were the primary ARG hosts, with 558 and 226 ARG subtypes, respectively. Although ARG profiles were mainly governed by stochastic process, elevated temperature increased the deterministic process of ARGs in the Yellow River. The abundance of five high-risk ARGs (tetM, mecA, bacA, vatE and tetW) significantly increased with elevated water temperature, and these ARGs co-occurred with several opportunistic pathogens (Delftia, Legionella and Pseudomonas), implying that antibiotic resistance risk may increase under climate warming. Our study explored the possibility of predicting resistomes and their health risks through temperature, providing a novel approach to predict and control ARGs in water environments under climate warming.

[Saliva microbiota and metabolite in individuals with caries or periodontitis]

Objective: To detect and analyze the characteristics of oral microbiota in species composition, function and metabolism among caries, periodontitis and oral healthy individuals, hunting for the microbiome-derived biomarkers with specificity and sensitivity to estimate the occurrence of these two diseases. Methods: Saliva samples were collected from 10 patients with high caries risk [decayed-missing-filled teeth (DMFT)≥6, HC group] in Department of Endodontics, 10 patients with periodontitis of grade Ⅱ A-Ⅲ C (PG group) in Department of Periodontology and 10 oral healthy individuals (HH group) from School of Stomatology, The Fourth Military Medical University during from March 2022 to June 2022. A baseline examination was conducted on all participants, including their oral conditions of caries and periodontal health. Metagenomic sequencing (Illumina PE150 platform) and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry were used to detect microorganisms and their metabolites in the samples respectively. The sequencing data were analyzed to obtain the information of microbial taxonomic composition, functional genes and metabolites in each group of samples. The basic oral conditions and saliva samples of subjects in each group were evaluated and collected by the same professional endodontist. Results: There were no significant difference in baseline characteristics such as age and sex among the subjects in each group (P>0.05). DMFT in HC group (9.0±1.7) was significantly higher than that in HH group (0) and PG group (0) (F=243.00, P<0.001). Sequencing data analysis showed that the taxonomic compositions of salivary microbiota in each group were mainly Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria and Fusobacteria at the phylum level, and Streptococcus, Neisseria, Rothia, Prevotella at the genus level. Differential analysis showed that, compared with the HH group, HC group and PG group had significant differences in taxonomic composition (P<0.05), and the most significant among them was Prevotella. At the species level, Prevotella pallens was the most significant change in HC group, and Porphyromonas gingivalis in PG group. Metabolite analysis showed that there were significant differences in metabolites between HC group and PG group. The results showed that, compared with the HH group, the most significant metabolite change was 3-hydroxy-1, 5-diphenylpentan-1-one in HC group (P=0.001) and N1 acetylspermine in PG group (P=0.002) respectively. Compared with the PG group, the metabolite of HC group with the most significant difference is D-glucosamine 6-phosphate (P=0.006). The metabolism gene function analysis showed that, the enrichment of carbohydrate metabolism related genes was highest in HC group, followed with HH group, and it was lowest in PG group. In addition, compared with the HH group, the abundance of functional genes related to glucose metabolism, such as ABC transporter and phosphotransferase system, were significantly decreased in PG group (P<0.05), but significantly increased in HC group (P<0.05). Conclusions: There is a significant correlation between the alternation of carbohydrate metabolism of salivary microbiota with the occurrence of caries and periodontitis. In the future, Prevotella pallens and 3-hydroxy-1, 5-diphenylpentan-1-one may be the potential biomarkers of caries; while Porphyromonas gingivalis and N1 acetylspermine work in the predictions of periodontitis.

An Area- and Energy-Efficient Spiking Neural Network With Spike-Time-Dependent Plasticity Realized With SRAM Processing-in-Memory Macro and On-Chip Unsupervised Learning

In this article, we present a spiking neural network (SNN) based on both SRAM processing-in-memory (PIM) macro and on-chip unsupervised learning with Spike-Time-Dependent Plasticity (STDP). Co-design of algorithm and hardware for hardware-friendly SNN and efficient STDP-based learning methodology is used to improve area and energy efficiency. The proposed macro utilizes charge sharing of capacitors to perform fully parallel Reconfigurable Multi-bit PIM Multiply-Accumulate (RMPMA) operations. A thermometer-coded Programmable High-precision PIM Threshold Generator (PHPTG) is designed to achieve low differential non-linearity (DNL) and high linearity. In the macro, each column of PIM cells and a comparator act as a neuron to accumulate membrane potential and fire spikes. A simplified Winner Takes All (WTA) mechanism is used in the proposed hardware-friendly architecture. By combining the hardware-friendly STDP algorithm as well as the parallel Word Lines (WLs) and Processing Bit Lines (PBLs), we realize unsupervised learning and recognize the Modified National Institute of Standards and Technology (MNIST) dataset. The chip for the hardware implementation was fabricated with a 55 nm CMOS process. The measurement shows that the chip achieves a learning efficiency of 0.47 nJ/pixel, with a learning energy efficiency of 70.38 TOPS/W. This work paves a pathway for the on-chip learning algorithm in PIM with lower power consumption and fewer hardware resources.

Distribution and influencing factors of antibiotic resistance genes of crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) intestine in main crayfish breeding provinces in China

The propagation of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) has become a global public health concern. However, the distribution and influencing factors of ARGs, especially high-risk ARGs, in the gut of aquaculture animals remain unclear. Here, we employed 16S rRNA gene sequencing and high-throughput quantitative PCR techniques to determine crayfish gut microbiota and ARGs collected from 40 culture ponds in major crayfish farming provinces of China. We detected 74 ARGs in crayfish gut. Among them, the beta-lactamase and tetracycline resistance genes were dominant. The total ARG abundance was the highest in Hubei Province. High-risk ARGs were also found in crayfish gut, and ermB had the highest abundance and distributed in Anhui, Hubei, Henan and Jiangxi Province. In addition, opportunistic pathogens (Streptococcus, Aeromonas and Acinetobacter) might be potential hosts for ARGs, including high-risk ARGs. Finally, habitat, environmental factors (NO₃-N, pH and temperature), microbial alpha diversity and mobile genetic elements (MGEs) showed significant influence on ARGs profiles. Generally, our results illustrate that ARGs are prevalent in crayfish gut and may pose potential risk to human health, which will help develop targeted strategies for the risk management and assessment of ARGs in the aquaculture.

Metagenomics reveals that temperature predicts a small proportion of antibiotic resistomes and mobile genetic elements in polluted water

Climate warming multiplies the threat of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) to public health, but whether temperature may predict antibiotic resistomes in water environment remain unknown. Here, by metagenomic sequencing, we investigated the changes of resistome at five different temperature gradients (23, 26, 29, 32, and 35 °C) in polluted water by animal cadaver. Thirty ARG types including 668 subtypes were observed in our samples. Temperature significantly influenced ARG profiles and showed a negative correlation with ARG diversity. The ARG assembly process was dominated by a deterministic process (63.32%-95.08%) but showed a peak pattern with temperature. Notably, temperature may predict approximately 21% of ARGs and 36% of mobile genetic elements (MGEs), while most other ARGs or MGEs were insensitive to temperature. Three types (carbapenem, dicyclomycin, and diaminopyrimidine antibiotic) and 63 subtypes of ARGs that positively correlated with temperature were identified in the polluted water. Notably, we screened 21 subtypes of high-risk ARGs (bacA, mdtA, tetM, etc.) and 22 opportunistic pathogens (Aeromonas, Clostridium, Bacteroides, etc.) and found their positive co-occurrence with temperature, implying these potential biological or genetic pollutants may probably go up under global warming. Our study reveals the predictability of temperature on antibiotic resistance genes, providing a suitable approach to track the fate and spread of ARGs in water environment under climate warming.

Intraarticular steroids as DMARD-sparing agents for juvenile idiopathic arthritis flares: Analysis of the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance Registry

BACKGROUND

Children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) who achieve a drug free remission often experience a flare of their disease requiring either intraarticular steroids (IAS) or systemic treatment with disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs). IAS offer an opportunity to recapture disease control and avoid exposure to side effects from systemic immunosuppression. We examined a cohort of patients treated with IAS after drug free remission and report the probability of restarting systemic treatment within 12 months.

METHODS

We analyzed a cohort of patients from the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA) Registry who received IAS for a flare after a period of drug free remission. Historical factors and clinical characteristics and of the patients including data obtained at the time of treatment were analyzed.

RESULTS

We identified 46 patients who met the inclusion criteria. Of those with follow up data available 49% had restarted systemic treatment 6 months after IAS injection and 70% had restarted systemic treatment at 12 months. The proportion of patients with prior use of a biologic DMARD was the only factor that differed between patients who restarted systemic treatment those who did not, both at 6 months (79% vs 35%, p < 0.01) and 12 months (81% vs 33%, p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

While IAS are an option for all patients who flare after drug free remission, it may not prevent the need to restart systemic treatment. Prior use of a biologic DMARD may predict lack of success for IAS. Those who previously received methotrexate only, on the other hand, are excellent candidates for IAS.

Corpse decomposition of freshwater economic fish leads to similar resistomes and the enrichment of high-risk antibiotic resistance genes in different water types

Animal carcass decay produces many poisonous metabolites and chemical pollutants, which pose potential ecological risks to the aquatic environment and human health. However, the effects of animal cadaver decomposition on high-risk antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and potential pathogens in different water types are still unknown. In this study, fifteen freshwater economic fish (Carassius auratus) corpses were put into three types of water (i.e., pond water, tap water, and domestic sewage) for a 100-day decomposition. Next generation sequencing and HT-qPCR were used to illustrate how corpse decomposition affected microbial communities and ARG profiles. Our results revealed that fish corpse degradation caused similar resistomes and microbiome in different water types. MLSB (Macrolide-Lincosamide-Streptogramin B), β-lactamase, sulfonamide, tetracycline resistance genes and transposase genes in the experimental groups were increased. Among them, tetracycline resistance genes were enriched by 224 to 136,218-fold during the process of corpse degradation. Furthermore, high-risk ARGs (ermB, floR and dfrA1), which resist to MLSB, multidrug and sulfonamide respectively, were significantly enriched in the cadaver groups and had co-occurrence patterns with opportunistic pathogens, such as Bacteroidetes, which was more than 37 times in carcass groups than that in control groups. The study is able to draw a general conclusion that cadaver decomposition of freshwater economic fish deteriorates the aquatic environment by affecting high-risk ARGs and pathogenic microorganisms regardless of water types, which poses potential threats to human health. Therefore, timely management and treatment of animal carcasses is of great significance to the protection of water environment.

Microbiota and mobile genetic elements influence antibiotic resistance genes in dust from dense urban public places

Many contaminants were carried by dust, a common environment media that is easy to contact with human beings, and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) as an emergency pollutant also harbor in dust and pose serious threats to human health especially those carried by opportunistic pathogens because inactivation of antibiotics caused by ARGs may enhance pathogenicity. Considering there is a gap of investigation of dust ARGs, 16 S rRNA gene sequences and high-throughput quantitative PCR were employed to obtain information of microbial communities and accumulated ARGs in dust from different urban places, including the malls, hospitals, schools and parks, to investigate the distribution and influencing factors of ARGs and discover the potential hosts of ARGs in dust. Here, 9 types of ARGs such as sulfonamide, tetracycline, and beta-lactamase and 71 subtypes of ARGs like sul1, tetM-01, and drfA1 were detected in dust. ARGs had varying distribution in different public places and seasons in dust. The abundances of total ARGs, MLSB and tetracycline genes were higher in spring than summer. The diversity of ARGs was highest in malls, follow by hospitals, schools, and parks. Additionally, multi-drug resistance genes in dust were more abundant in hospitals than in schools and parks. The microbes were distinguished as the most important driving factors for ARGs in dust, followed by the mobile genetic elements (MGEs) and different places, while dust physicochemical parameters only exert a negligible impact. Notably, several opportunistic pathogens like the Streptococcus, Vibrio, and Pseudomonas were inferred as potential hosts of high-risk ARGs such as mecA, tetM-02, and tetO-01 in dust because of strongly positive co-occurrence. These results imply that dust is likely an important reservoir of ARGs. We should realize that ARGs may be harbored in some opportunistic pathogens occur in dust and endanger human health because of dust contacting to human easily.

Ultralight type I transvaginal mesh: an alternative for recurrent severe posterior vaginal prolapse

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to analyze the medium-term outcomes of ultralight type I mesh for postmenopausal women with recurrent severe posterior vaginal prolapse (PVP).

METHODS

All participants underwent transvaginal ultralight type I mesh repair between April 2016 and April 2021 and were followed until May 2022. Pelvic Organ Prolapse Quantification System (POP-Q) staging, mesh-related complications, Patient Global Impression of Improvement (PGI-I) scale and quality of life questionnaire responses were evaluated. The primary outcome was composite surgical success rate at the last follow-up, composite success being defined as no vaginal bulge symptoms, no POP-Q point at or beyond the hymen and no re-treatment for POP. Secondary outcomes included anatomic outcomes (POP-Q score), symptomatic relief and complications.

RESULTS

The median follow-up was 37.3 months. At the last follow-up, the composite success rate was 75%, and POP-Q scores for the vault and posterior wall and quality of life questionnaire scores were significantly improved (p < 0.01). The subjective satisfaction (PGI-I ≤ 2) rate was 83.3%. There were no mesh-related complications.

CONCLUSIONS

Ultralight mesh can achieve good clinical outcomes and substantially improve the quality of life of patients with severe recurrent PVP in the medium term, and may thus be a viable alternative for treating this condition.

[A 5-year retrospective study of computer aided design and computer aided manufacturing ceramic endocrowns in endodontically treated posterior teeth]

Objective: To evaluate the clinical outcomes of computer aided design and computer aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) ceramic endocrowns in endodontically treated posterior teeth after five years by a retrospective study. Methods: Patients who received CAD/CAM ceramic endocrowns after endodontically treatment in Department of Endodontics, School of Stomatology, The Fourth Military Medical University between January 2016 and June 2017 were invited for this clinical study. Clinical performance was evaluated in the aspect of color match, anatomic form,marginal adaptation, restoration integrity and secondary caries. Survival rate of the restorations was calculated by the use of Kaplan-Meier method. Log-rank test was applied as well for the sake of analyzing the effect of tooth position, sex and materials to the survival rate of the restorations. Results: Seventy-four patients, 25 men and 49 women with age of (38.8±10.2) years, participated in this study for a total of 101 CAD/CAM ceramic endocrowns after observation period of (62.8±12.0) months. There were 8 failed cases among 101 restorations, 5 were loss of retention, 2 were ceramic fracture and 1 was secondary caries respectively. In particular, 93% (89/96) restorations got score A on anatomic form and 95% (91/96) restorations got score A on marginal adaptation, while 38% (36/96) restorations showed the good color match compared with the abutment teeth. The estimated cumulative survival rate of CAD/CAM ceramic endocrowns in endodontically treated posterior teeth after 5 years was 93.0% (95%CI: 87.9%-98.1%). The single-factor Log-rank analysis demonstrated that there was no statistically significant difference in the survival rate of CAD/CAM ceramic endocrowns among men and women, premolars and molars, position in the dental arch, or different materials (χ²<0.01, P=0.957; χ²=0.64, P=0.422; χ²=0.69, P=0.407; χ²=0.88, P=0.349). Conclusions: Based on this clinical study, the clinical performance of CAD/CAM ceramic endocrowns in endodontically treated posterior teeth after five years is reliable, which could be a general option to restore nonvital teeth.

Impacts of menopause hormone therapy on mood disorders among postmenopausal women

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to explore the modulatory effects of menopause hormone therapy (MHT) on mood disorders among postmenopausal women.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted to recruit postmenopausal women, including patients (arranged MHT for over 3 years as the medication group) and non-MHT controls. All participants were asked to respond to the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Screener (GAD-7) questionnaires to assess their depression and anxiety status.

RESULTS

A total of 230 cases from the two groups were determined based on propensity score matching analysis by matching the menopausal age and menopausal durations. We found that MHT served as a favorable modulator in the depression status of postmenopausal women. Among the four factors of the CES-D questionnaire, our data indicated that the differences between the two groups fell primarily into two aspects: depressive emotion, and somatic symptoms or retarded activities. MHT was mainly involved in improving the depression of overweight women. However, no substantial effects of MHT were observed on the regulation of anxiety.

CONCLUSION

Postmenopausal women, especially the overweight population, who have experienced MHT exhibited an improved depressive status but not their anxiety condition.

The source, fate and prospect of antibiotic resistance genes in soil: A review

Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), environmental pollutants of emerging concern, have posed a potential threat to the public health. Soil is one of the huge reservoirs and propagation hotspot of ARGs. To alleviate the potential risk of ARGs, it is necessary to figure out the source and fate of ARGs in the soil. This paper mainly reviewed recent studies on the association of ARGs with the microbiome and the transmission mechanism of ARGs in soil. The compositions and abundance of ARGs can be changed by modulating microbiome, soil physicochemical properties, such as pH and moisture. The relationships of ARGs with antibiotics, heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and pesticides were discussed in this review. Among the various factors mentioned above, microbial community structure, mobile genetic elements, pH and heavy metals have a relatively more important impact on ARGs profiles. Moreover, human health could be impacted by soil ARGs through plants and animals. Understanding the dynamic changes of ARGs with influencing factors promotes us to develop strategies for mitigating the occurrence and dissemination of ARGs to reduce health risks.

[Prevalence and trend analysis of severe multiple disabling birth defects in Chongqing City from 2007 to 2020]

Objective: To explore the prevalence and change trend of severe multiple disabling birth defects in Chongqing City from 2007 to 2020, and to provide a basis for comprehensive prevention and control measures of severe multiple disabling birth defects. Methods: Based on hospital monitoring data, 1 103 children with severe multiple disabling birth defects monitored by all birth defects monitoring institutions in Chongqing City from January 2007 to December 2020 were included in the study. They were grouped by year, perinatal gender, maternal permanent residence (urban/rural), maternal age, different regions and other categories. Chi-square test was used to analyze the differences in the incidence of severe multiple disabling birth defects in different categories, and linear trend test was used to analyze the change trend. Results: From 2007 to 2020, a total of 1 022 314 perinatal births and 1 103 severe multiple disabling birth defects were monitored in Chongqing City, with an incidence of 10.79/10 000, including 11.47/10 000 in urban areas and 9.48/10 000 in rural areas, with an incidence higher in urban areas than in rural areas(χ²=8.424,P=0.004). Male was 10.47/10 000, female was 10.97/10 000, there was no significant difference between male and female(χ²=0.606,P=0.436). The incidence of maternal in different age groups was u-shaped, and there was statistical difference in incidence among different age groups (χ²=59.465, P<0.001). The incidence of maternal in<20 years old and ≥35 years old was higher, and in 25-29 years old was lower. The incidence rate was 17.96/10 000 in 2007 and 7.18/10 000 in 2020, which decreased by 60.02% in 2007-2020. The incidence of neural tube defect, chromosome syndrome, limb shortening and abdominal wall defect decreased by 78.12%, 77.38%, 80.55% and 91.30%, respectively. Severe Congenital heart disease rose by 456.16%. From 2007 to 2020, the overall incidence of the disease showed a decreasing trend (χ²_trend =117.046, P<0.001), except for the rise of severe congenital heart disease, (χ²_trend=8.744, P=0.003), the other four types of diseases were on the decline (neural tube defects χ²_trend =48.618, P<0.001; chromosome syndrome χ²_trend=50.999, P<0.001; limb shortening χ²_trend=73.464, P<0.001; abdominal wall defect χ²_trend=79.863, P<0.001). Conclusion: From 2007 to 2020, the incidence of severe disabling birth defects in Chongqing City showed a downward trend, and there were regional and age differences. The incidence of severe congenital heart disease is on the rise.

Killing two birds with one stone: miR-126 involvement in both cancer and atherosclerosis

OBJECTIVE

Both cancer and atherosclerosis are the main causes of morbidity and mortality in the world, and some patients even suffer from both of them. Several studies have shown an association between the pathogenesis of cancer and atherosclerosis. It has been reported that miR-126 may participate in the pathological process of cancer and atherosclerosis. Therefore, we aimed to summarize the role of miR-126 in cancer and atherosclerosis respectively, as well as a possible association between them.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In this paper, "miR-126" and "microRNA-126" are used as the first group of keywords, "atheromatosis" and "atherosclerosis" are used as the second group of keywords, and "tumor" and "cancer" are used as the third group of keywords. In PubMed, the authors selected one of the first group and the second group of keywords to search the literature related to miR-126 and cancer, and one of the first group and the third group of keywords was selected to search the literature on miR-126 and atherosclerosis. All collected articles are from 2021 and before. Irrelevant, withdrawn and review articles were excluded, and the included literature was mainly in the recent five years.

RESULTS

After collection and summary, miR-126 is found involved in cell apoptosis, proliferation, angiogenesis, inflammation, and other processes in both cancer and atherosclerosis by negatively targeting PI3K, VEGF, VCAM-1, EGFL7, CXCL12-CXCR4 axis, and LRP6. Moreover, we briefly review the prospects of miR-126 as a biomarker for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and atherosclerosis in clinical applications.

CONCLUSIONS

It has been demonstrated that miR-126 can influence cancer and atherosclerosis by affecting the same or different target genes. Therefore, it facilitates our understanding of the common prevention and treatment strategies of cancer and atherosclerosis by regulating the miR-126-target genes network.