Clinical efficacy of plasma exchange in systemic lupus erythematosus during pregnancy.

Objective: To investigate the clinical efficacy of plasma exchange (PE) with or without prednisone and hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) during pregnancy.

Methods: The clinical characteristics of 14 pregnant women with SLE admitted to our hospital were retrospectively analyzed, including 7 only treated with prednisone and HCQ (non-PE group) as well as 7 combined PE (PE group). The delivery situations of 14 patients were recorded.

A Radiosensitivity Prediction Model Developed Based on Weighted Correlation Network Analysis of Hypoxia Genes for Lower-Grade Glioma.

Background And Purpose: Hypoxia is one of the basic characteristics of the physical microenvironment of solid tumors. The relationship between radiotherapy and hypoxia is complex. However, there is no radiosensitivity prediction model based on hypoxia genes.

Decreased Absolute Number of Circulating Regulatory T Cells in Patients With Takayasu's Arteritis.

Background: Takayasu's arteritis (TA) is a type of primary large vessel vasculitis. Th1, Th17, and Tfh cells have been reported to be associated with TA relapse. However, the relationship between regulatory T cells (Tregs) and TA remains unclear.

Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment of and in Public Drinking Water in China.

We aimed to assess the risks of and infections associated with drinking water for local residents, based on a quantitative microbial risk assessment, in three densely populated regions of China. In total, 45 source water samples and 45 treated water samples were collected from June to December 2014. Five -positive samples and 5 -positive samples were found.

Anti-echinococcal effect of verapamil involving the regulation of the calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II response in vitro and in a murine infection model.

Background: Echinococcosis, which is caused by the larvae of cestodes of the genus Echinococcus, is a parasitic zoonosis that poses a serious threat to the health of humans and animals globally. Albendazole is the drug of choice for the treatment of echinococcosis, but it is difficult to meet clinical goals with this chemotherapy due to its low cure rate and associated side effects after its long-term use. Hence, novel anti-parasitic targets and effective treatment alternatives are urgently needed.

Contributions and achievements on schistosomiasis control and elimination in China by NIPD-CTDR.

Being a zoonotic parasitic disease, schistosomiasis was widely spread in 12 provinces of Southern China in the 1950s, severly harming human health and hindering economic development. The National Institute of Parasitic Diseases at the Chinese Center for Diseases Control and Prevention, and Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research (NIPD-CTDR), as the only professional institution focussing on parasitic diseases at the national level, has played an important role in schistosomiasis control in the country. In this article, we look back at the changes of schistosomiasis endemicity and the contribution of NIPD-CTDR to the national schistosomiasis control programme.

Mapping the epitopes of Schistosoma japonicum esophageal gland proteins for incorporation into vaccine constructs.

Background: The development of a schistosome vaccine has proved challenging but we have suggested that characterisation of the self-cure mechanism in rhesus macaques might provide a route to an effective product. The schistosome esophagus is a complex structure where blood processing is initiated by secretions from anterior and posterior glands, achieved by a mixture of ~40 unique proteins. The mechanism of self-cure in macaques involves cessation of feeding, after which worms slowly starve to death.

[Human thelaziasis callipaeda in Tongren area of Guizhou Province: a case report].

This paper reports a case of human thelaziasis callipaeda in Tongren area of Guizhou Province.

[Histone ubiquitylation and its roles in DNA damage response].

Ubiquitylation is an essential type of protein post-translational modifications (PTMs) in eukaryotes, which mediates various biological processes by regulating the subcellular localization, activity, and stability of proteins. Histones, as the main protein ingredients of chromatin, are closely coupled with DNA activities such as replication, transcription and repair, and therefore are the hotspots of PTMs. After DNA damage, histone ubiquitylations are involved in DNA damage response (DDR) by regulating nucleosome structure, activating cell cycle checkpoints, remodeling the nucleosome, and the recruitment and assembly of repair factors.

Pro-Angiogenic Activity of Monocytic-Type Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells from Balb/C Mice Infected with Echinococcus Granulosus and the Regulatory Role of miRNAs.

Background/aims: This study aims to predict the pro-angiogenic functions of monocytic-type myeloid-derived suppressor cells (M-MDSCs) derived from mice infected with Echinococcus granulosus.

Methods: M-MDSCs were collected from Balb/c mice infected with E. granulosus and normal mice (control) and cultured in vitro.

The excretory-secretory products of Echinococcus granulosus protoscoleces stimulated IL-10 production in B cells via TLR-2 signaling.

Background: Excretory-secretory products released by Echinococcus granulosus protoscoleces (EgPSC-ESPs) are well-known to regulate T cell responses. However, their direct influence on the differentiation of B cell subsets remains largely elusive. This study investigated the effects of EgPSC-ESPs on the differentiation of IL-10-producing B cells (B10), and explored the possible role of Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR-2) signaling in this process.

[Sequential analysis of genome of ].

Objective: To investigate the molecular characteristics of genome sequence of .

Methods: The obtained genome assembling data were annotated by using a combination of ab initio gene by softwares, GeneMark and GeneID, and the homology of the experimentally confirmed genes was predicted by software GeMoMa. The results were integrated by software EVM to predict all genes of genome.

[ pro - angiogenic activity of hydatid cysts from experimentally infected mice].

Objective: To preliminarily study the pro-angiogenic activity of hydatid cysts against human umbilical vein endothelial cells and the transcriptional level of potential pro-angiogenic factors.

Methods: The hydatid cysts and protoscolex derived from experimentally infected mice were collected and cultured , then the human umbilical vein endothelial cells were stimulated by the supernatant and cyst fluid respectively, and the angiogenesis was observed and analyzed through a microscope and the angiogenesis mode of the software NIH Image J. Meanwhile, the mouse homologous proteins of matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) and high mobility group box B1 (HMGB1) were identified in genome through sequence alignment, and their transcriptional levels in the cyst wall and protoscolex were analyzed.

Microexon gene transcriptional profiles and evolution provide insights into blood processing by the Schistosoma japonicum esophagus.

Background: Adult schistosomes have a well-developed alimentary tract comprising an oral sucker around the mouth, a short esophagus and a blind ending gut. The esophagus is not simply a muscular tube for conducting blood from the mouth to gut but is divided into compartments, surrounded by anterior and posterior glands, where processing of ingested blood is initiated. Self-cure of rhesus macaques from a Schistosoma japonicum infection appears to operate by blocking the secretory functions of these glands so that the worms cease feeding and slowly starve to death.

The excretory-secretory products of Echinococcus granulosus protoscoleces directly regulate the differentiation of B10, B17 and Th17 cells.

Background: Excretory-secretory products (ESPs) released by helminths are well-known to regulate T cell responses in the host. However, their direct influence in the differentiation of naïve T cells, and especially B cells, remains largely unknown. This study investigated the effects of Echinococcus granulosus protoscoleces ESPs (EgPSC-ESPs) on the differentiation of IL-10-producing B cells (B10), IL-17A-producing B cells (B17) and Th17 cells.

Redefining the invertebrate RNA virosphere.

Current knowledge of RNA virus biodiversity is both biased and fragmentary, reflecting a focus on culturable or disease-causing agents. Here we profile the transcriptomes of over 220 invertebrate species sampled across nine animal phyla and report the discovery of 1,445 RNA viruses, including some that are sufficiently divergent to comprise new families. The identified viruses fill major gaps in the RNA virus phylogeny and reveal an evolutionary history that is characterized by both host switching and co-divergence.

[Changes of Phenotype and Phagocytosis of Peritoneal Macrophages in Mice Infected with the Larval-stage of Echinococcus granulosus].

Objective: To investigate the phenotype and phagocytosis changes of the peritoneal macrophages (Mφ) in mice infected with the larval-stage Echinococcus granulosus, and explore the role of Mφ in the responses to parasite infection.

Methods: Twenty-four female BALB/c mice (age of 6-8 weeks) were randomly assigned into control group and infection group (n=12 in each group). The mice in the infection group were intraperitoneally injected with 2 000 protoscoleces, while the control mice were injected with equal volume of PBS.