The intestinal fungus Aspergillus tubingensis promotes polycystic ovary syndrome through a secondary metabolite.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) affects 6%-10% of women of reproductive age and is known to be associated with disruptions in the gut bacteria. However, the role of the gut mycobiota in PCOS pathology remains unclear. Using culture-dependent and internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2)-sequencing methods, we discovered an enrichment of the gut-colonizable fungus Aspergillus tubingensis in 226 individuals, with or without PCOS, from 3 different geographical areas within China.

RSV Vaccine with Nanoparticle-Based Poly-Sorbitol Transporter (PST) Adjuvant Improves Respiratory Protection Against RSV Through Inducing Both Systemic and Mucosal Humoral Immunity.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) causes symptoms similar to a mild cold for adults, but in case of infants, it causes bronchitis and/or pneumonia, and in some cases, mortality. Mucosal immunity within the respiratory tract includes tissue-resident memory T (T) cells and tissue-resident memory B (B) cells, which provides rapid and efficient protection against RSV re-infection. Therefore, vaccine strategies should aim to generate mucosal immune responses.

Differential Regulatory Effects of Probiotics on Bone Metabolism by the Status of Bone Health and Delivery Route.

Probiotics are known to have favorable effects on human health. Nevertheless, probiotics are not always beneficial and can cause unintended adverse effects such as bacteremia and/or inflammation in immunocompromised patients. In the present study, we investigated the effects of probiotics on the regulation of bone metabolism under different health conditions and delivery routes.

Effects of Acute Stress on Metabolic Interactions Related to the Tricarboxylic Acid (TCA) Cycle in the Left Hippocampus of Mice.

Background/objectives: The acute stress response affects brain metabolites closely linked to the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. This response involves time-dependent changes in hormones and neurotransmitters, which contribute to resilience and the ability to adapt to acute stress while maintaining homeostasis. This physiological mechanism of metabolic dynamics, combined with time-series analysis, has prompted the development of new methods to observe the relationship between TCA cycle-related brain metabolites.

Muramyl dipeptide potentiates lipoteichoic acid-induced nitric oxide production via TLR2/NOD2/PAFR signaling pathways.

Lipoteichoic acid (LTA) and peptidoglycan (PGN) are considered as key virulence factors of , which is a representative sepsis-causing Gram-positive pathogen. However, cooperative effect of LTA and PGN on nitric oxide (NO) production is still unclear despite the pivotal roles of NO in initiation and progression of sepsis. We here evaluated the cooperative effects of LTA (SaLTA) and muramyl dipeptide (MDP), the minimal structure of PGN, on NO production in both a mouse macrophage-like cell line, RAW 264.