The lethal K18-hACE2 knock-in mouse model mimicking the severe pneumonia of COVID-19 is practicable for antiviral development.

Animal models of COVID-19 facilitate the development of vaccines and antivirals against SARS-CoV-2. The efficacy of antivirals or vaccines may differ in different animal models with varied degrees of disease. Here, we introduce a mouse model expressing human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2).

Coinfection with influenza A virus enhances SARS-CoV-2 infectivity.

The upcoming flu season in the Northern Hemisphere merging with the current COVID-19 pandemic raises a potentially severe threat to public health. Through experimental coinfection with influenza A virus (IAV) and either pseudotyped or live SARS-CoV-2 virus, we found that IAV preinfection significantly promoted the infectivity of SARS-CoV-2 in a broad range of cell types. Remarkably, in vivo, increased SARS-CoV-2 viral load and more severe lung damage were observed in mice coinfected with IAV.

Obesity-Induced Regulator of Calcineurin 1 Overexpression Leads to β-Cell Failure Through Mitophagy Pathway Inhibition.

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is associated with pancreatic β-cell dysfunction, manifested by reduced glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS). The regulator of calcineurin 1 (RCAN1) in islets is an endogenous inhibitor of calcium-activated protein phosphatase. Previous studies have indicated that global RCAN1 overexpression under high nutrient stress is involved in insulin resistance in T2D.

Calcitriol enhances pyrazinamide treatment of murine tuberculosis.

Background: Tuberculosis is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in humans worldwide. There is an urgent need for new and effective drugs to treat tuberculosis and shorten the duration of tuberculosis therapy. 1, 25-dihydroxy vitamin D3 (1,25 (OH)2D3) has been reported to have a synergistic effect with pyrazinamide (PZA) in killing tubercle bacilli in vitro.

UPLC-Q-TOF/MS-based untargeted metabolomics coupled with chemometrics approach for Tieguanyin tea with seasonal and year variations.

The taste and aroma quality of Tieguanyin tea fluctuate seasonally and yearly. However, the compounds responsible for the seasonal and year variations of metabolic pattern and its sensory quality are far from clear. 60 Tieguanyin tea samples harvested in different years and seasons were analyzed by ultraperformance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF/MS) and chemometrics.

Synthesis and Fluorescence Properties of Eu(3+), Tb(3+) Complexes with Schiff Base Derivatives.

Novel Schiff base ligands derived from N'-benzylidene-benzohydrazide (substituted by -H, -CH3, -OCH3, -Cl) and 2-chloro-N-phenylacetamide were synthesized. The solid complexes of rare earth (Eu, Tb) nitrate with these Schiff base ligands were synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, EDTA titrimetric analysis, thermal analysis, infrared spectra and UV-Vis spectra analysis. The fluorescence properties of rare earth (Eu, Tb) complexes in solid were studied.

Shunting branch of portal vein and stent position predict survival after transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt.

Aim: To evaluate the effect of the shunting branch of the portal vein (PV) (left or right) and the initial stent position (optimal or suboptimal) of a transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS).

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 307 consecutive cirrhotic patients who underwent TIPS placement for variceal bleeding from March 2001 to July 2010 at our center. The left PV was used in 221 patients and the right PV in the remaining 86 patients.

Multifocus color image fusion based on quaternion curvelet transform.

Multifocus color image fusion is an active research area in image processing, and many fusion algorithms have been developed. However, the existing techniques can hardly deal with the problem of image blur. This study present a novel fusion approach that integrates the quaternion with traditional curvelet transform to overcome the above disadvantage.

TLR3 activation efficiency by high or low molecular mass poly I:C.

Toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) plays a critical role in initiating type I IFN-mediated innate immunity against viral infections. TLR3 recognizes various forms of double stranded (ds) RNA, including viral dsRNA and a synthetic mimic of dsRNA, poly I:C, which has been used extensively as a TLR3 ligand to induce antiviral immunity. The activation efficiency of TLR3 by poly I:C is influenced by various factors, including size of the ligands, delivery methods and cell types.

M. tuberculosis H37Rv infection of Chinese rhesus macaques.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis is the most common communicable infectious disease worldwide and the top killer of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected people. Because of common dual HIV and M. tuberculosis infections, the emergence of multidrug-resistant M.

[Effects of water stress on protein expression and physiological properties of different genotype wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) sprouts].

With drought-resistant wheat (Triticum aestivum) cultivar Changwu 134 and drought-sensitive cultivar Zhengyin 1 as test materials, and by using -1.2 MPa PEG 6000 to treat their seeds, this paper studied the protein expression and physiological properties of the sprouts under different soil moisture conditions. SDS-PAGE analysis showed that water stress induced the production of two new proteins with molecular weights of 39.