Genomic Variations in Probiotic P-8 in the Human and Rat Gut.

The effects of probiotics on host gastrointestinal health have become an area of particular interest in the field of probiotic research. However, the impact of the host intestinal environment on genomic changes in probiotic organisms remains largely unknown. To investigate, P-8, a well-studied probiotic bacterium, was consumed by healthy human volunteers and rats.

Fluorescence Lifetime-Resolved Ion-Selective Nanospheres for Simultaneous Imaging of Calcium Ion in Mitochondria and Lysosomes.

In this paper, novel calcium-selective nanospheres incorporating Pluronic F127 and (4-carboxybutyl) triphenylphosphonium bromide (TPP) as shell layers were designed to monitor the level of free calcium ion in mitochondria and lysosomes at living cells simultaneously. TPP as a target for mitochondria drove the nanospheres to bind intracellular mitochondria, while the lipophilic F127 layer resulted in the partial accumulation of nanospheres in lysosomes. This dual feature of the shell layer led to the colocation of nanospheres in both mitochondria and lysosomes.

Association of hemodynamics during caesarean section, outcomes after caesarean section and hormone changes with different anesthesia in pregnant women with severe pulmonary arterial hypertension.

In the present study we aimed to analyze the effects of different anesthesia methods on the hemodynamics of caesarean section, outcomes after caesarean section and hormone changes in pregnancy complicated with severe pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). A total of 75 pregnancy complicated with severe PAH that were treated in Jining First People's Hospital from January 2016 to January 2017 were selected. Three groups were set according to the anesthesia methods, including the subarachnoid combined epidural anesthesia group (group I, n=25), the epidural anesthesia group (group II, n=25) and the general anesthesia group (group III, n=25).

Comparative genome analysis of reveals a potential for degrading lignocellulosic biomass.

Genomes of 24 sequenced strains were characterized to identity shared and unique genes of lignocellulolytic enzymes and predict potential to degrade lignocellulose. All 24 strains had genes that encoded lignocellulolytic enzymes, with potential to degrade cellulose and hemicelluloses. Several lignocellulosic genes related to cellulose degradation were universally present, including one GH5 (endo-1,4-β-glucanase), one GH30 (glucan endo-1,6-β-glucosidase), two GH4 (6-phospho-β-glucosidase, 6-phospho-α-glucosidase), one GH1 (6-phospho-β-galactosidase), one GH16 (β-glucanase) and three GH32 (two sucrose-6-phosphate hydrolase and levanase).

Changes in characteristics, risk factors, and in-hospital mortality among patients with acute myocardial infarction in the capital of China over 40 years.

Background: Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) has sharply increased and become a major cause of hospitalization and mortality in China over the past few decades, with the rapid economic development and substantial life-style changes.

Methods: We compared the characteristics, risk factors, and in-hospital outcomes among 1314 patients with AMI from Beijing Collaborative Group data in 1972 and 1973, and 2200 patients in Beijing from China AMI registry in 2013 and 2014.

Results: The proportions of patients with <30 and >70 years old in 2010s were significantly higher than those in 1970s (1970s vs 2010s: 0.

Impaired Cognitive Control of Emotional Conflict in Trait Anxiety: A Preliminary Study Based on Clinical and Non-Clinical Individuals.

Background: It has been observed that trait anxiety easily leads to conflict maladaptation under conflict circumstances. However, it remains unclear whether the precise neural mechanisms underlying the effects of high trait anxiety (HTA) on cognitive control are consistent in high trait anxious individuals, with and without anxiety disorders.

Methods: The present study recruited 29 healthy volunteers with low trait anxiety (LTA), 37 healthy volunteers with HTA, and 23 patients with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).

A Survival Model in Locally Advanced and Metastatic Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma.

The prognostic role of serum LDH, CA19-9, CRP and ALB in PDAC patients are controversial. In contrast to single factor, there is much less information about the prognostic value of the combination of the four factors in locally advanced and metastatic PDAC patients. It's essential to set up a survival model with the combination of tumor metabolism, tumor biomarker, systemic inflammation and nutritional status to eliminate the prognostic inaccuracy in single biomarker.

Pregnancy outcomes of PCOS overweight/obese patients after controlled ovarian stimulation with the GnRH antagonist protocol and frozen embryo transfer.

Background: Overweight/obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) are at increased risk of subfertility and complications of pregnancy, compared with normal-weight women. To implement controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH), the improved efficacy of the gonadotrophin-releasing hormone antagonist (GnRH-ant) protocol has been demonstrated, as well as frozen embryo transfer (FET).

Objective: This retrospective study evaluated the pregnancy outcomes after combined GnRH-ant protocol and FET in overweight/obese women with PCOS, with reference to that of normal-weight women with PCOS.

Occurrence of composite cardiac endpoints with change in resting heart rate among Chinese patients with coronary artery disease: Chinese cohort from the real-world BISO-CAD study.

Objective: We evaluated change in resting heart rate (RHR) and its impact on prognosis in Chinese coronary artery disease (CAD) patients treated with bisoprolol, and also assessed drug safety and tolerability.

Methods: This phase IV, single arm observational study was a sub-study of the BISO-CAD study conducted across 20 hospitals in China between October 2011 and July 2015 with follow-up at 6, 12 and 18 months after baseline. The primary endpoint was occurrence of composite cardiac events.

Pilot Study of Model-Based Dosage Individualization of Ganciclovir in Neonates and Young Infants with Congenital Cytomegalovirus Infection.

Newborns with congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection are at high risk for developing permanent sequelae. Intravenous ganciclovir therapy is frequently used for the treatment of congenital CMV infection. A target area under the concentration-time curve from 0 to 24 h (AUC) of 40 to 50 μg · h/ml is recommended.

Clusterin (apolipoprotein J) facilitates NF-κB and Bax degradation and prevents I/R injury in heart transplantation.

Background And Aim: Ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury is an unavoidable event occurring during heart transplantation and is a key factor in graft failure and long-term survival rate of recipients. Therefore, there is an urgent need for the development of new therapies to prevent I/R injury. Clusterin is a hetero-dimeric glycoprotein with an antiapoptotic function.

Influence of land cover on riverine dissolved organic carbon concentrations and export in the Three Rivers Headwater Region of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau.

The Qinghai-Tibetan plateau (QTP) stores a large amount of soil organic carbon and is the headwater region for several large rivers in Asia. Therefore, it is important to understand the influence of environmental factors on river water quality and the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) export in this region. We examined the water physico-chemical characteristics, DOC concentrations and export rates of 7 rivers under typical land cover types in the Three Rivers Headwater Region during August 2016.

Distinctive profiles of tumor-infiltrating immune cells and association with intensity of infiltration in colorectal cancer.

Tumor-infiltrating immune cells are heterogeneous and consist of characteristic compartments, including T helper (Th)1 and regulatory T (Treg) cells that exhibit distinctive biological functions. The present study investigated the profile of infiltrating immune cells from surgically removed tumor tissues from patients with colorectal cancer. The characteristic transcription factors of Th1 and Th2 cells, Treg cells, Th17 cells and T follicular helper (Tfh) cells were analyzed.

Paeoniflorin ameliorates collagen-induced arthritis via suppressing nuclear factor-κB signalling pathway in osteoclast differentiation.

Paeoniflorin (PF), extracted from the root of Paeonia lactiflora Pall, exhibits anti-inflammatory properties in several autoimmune diseases. Osteoclast, the only somatic cell with bone resorbing capacity, was the direct cause of bone destruction in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and its mouse model, collagen-induced arthritis (CIA). The objective of this study was to estimate the effect of PF on CIA mice, and explore the mechanism of PF in bone destruction.

Penetration of Cefotaxime into Cerebrospinal Fluid in Neonates and Young Infants.

Cefotaxime is the first-line treatment for meningitis in neonates and young infants. However, limited data on cefotaxime cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) concentrations in neonates and young infants were available. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the penetration of cefotaxime into CSF in neonates and young infants.

Intraglandular transplantation of adipose-derived stem cells combined with platelet-rich fibrin extract for the treatment of irradiation-induced salivary gland damage.

The aim of the present study was to determine the effect of adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADSCs) combined with heterologous platelet-rich fibrin extract (PRFe) on irradiation-induced salivary gland (SG) damage. ADSCs were isolated from C3H mice, whereas PRFe was obtained from New Zealand rabbits. Twelve weeks post irradiation, the ADSCs or PRFe or their combination were transplanted into the submandibular glands of C3H mice with irradiation-induced damage.

Complete genome sequence of 157 isolated from with pathogenic bacteria inhibiting and lignocellulolytic enzymes production by SSF.

157 was isolated from the bark of , and exhibited antagonistic activity against a broad spectrum of pathogenic bacteria and fungi. Moreover, 157 also showed various lignocellulolytic activities including cellulase, xylanase, α-amylase, and pectinase, which had the ability of using the agro-industrial waste (soybean meal, wheat bran, sugarcane bagasse, wheat straw, rice husk, maize flour and maize straw) under solid-state fermentation and obtained several industrially valuable enzymes. Soybean meal appeared to be the most efficient substrate for the single fermentation of 157.

Transcription factor Phf19 positively regulates germinal center reactions that underlies its role in rheumatoid arthritis.

The Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) component PHD Finger Protein 19 () gene has been identified to be associated with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) risk. Here we show that Phf19 is highly expressed in murine germinal centers (GCs) and RA patients. To investigate the function of Phf19 in lymphocytes, we generated RAG1-deficient mice reconstituted with Phf19 or control-vector transduced bone marrow (BM) cells.

Bacterial diversity and community structure in Chongqing radish paocai brines revealed using PacBio single-molecule real-time sequencing technology.

Background: Traditional Chongqing radish paocai fermented with aged brine is considered to have the most intense flavor and authentic taste. Eight 'Yanzhi' (red, RRPB group) and 'Chunbulao' (white, WRPB) radish paocai brine samples were collected from Chongqing peasant households, and the diversity and community structures of bacteria present in these brines were determined using PacBio single-molecule real-time sequencing of their full-length 16S rRNA genes.

Results: In total, 30 phyla, 218 genera, and 306 species were identified from the RRPB group, with 20 phyla, 261 genera, and 420 species present in the WRPB group.

Determination of EPAC2 function using EPAC2 null Min6 sublines generated through CRISPR-Cas9 technology.

Min6 cells, a mouse β cell line derived from transgenic mouse expressing the large T-antigen of SV40 in pancreatic beta cells, are commonly utilized as an in vitro cellular model for investigating targets involved in insulin secretion. Epac2, an exchange protein that can be directly activated by cyclic AMP (cAMP), is critical for pharmacologic stimuli-induced insulin secretion and has been hypothesized to be a direct target of sulfonylurea. Previous loss of function studies only specifically knocked out EPAC2 isoform A, leaving the other two isoforms intact.

Sucrose Nonfermenting-Related Kinase Regulates Both Adipose Inflammation and Energy Homeostasis in Mice and Humans.

Sucrose nonfermenting-related kinase (SNRK) is a member of the AMPK-related kinase family, and its physiological role in adipose energy homeostasis and inflammation remains unknown. We previously reported that SNRK is ubiquitously and abundantly expressed in both white adipose tissue (WAT) and brown adipose tissue (BAT), but SNRK expression diminishes in adipose tissue in obesity. In this study we report novel experimental findings from both animal models and human genetics.

Cholesterol Oxidase/Triton X-100 Parked Microelectrodes for the Detection of Cholesterol in Plasma Membrane at Single Cells.

The classic electrochemical analysis of plasma membrane cholesterol at single cells utilizes a cholesterol oxidase modified microelectrode that oxidizes local cholesterol efflux from the plasma membrane to generate hydrogen peroxide for the electrochemical quantification. In this letter, a mixture of cholesterol oxidase and Triton X-100 was filled in the microcapillary that could park at the Pt layer coated tip due to slow hydrodynamic flow. During the contact of the tip with the cellular membrane, Triton X-100 at the tip permeabilized the contacted membrane to release cholesterol for the reaction with cholesterol oxidase.

Targeting the CXCR4/CXCL12 axis with the peptide antagonist E5 to inhibit breast tumor progression.

Emerging evidence has demonstrated that stromal cell-derived factor 1 (SDF-1) and its cognate receptor CXCR4 have critical roles in tumorigenesis, angiogenesis and metastasis. In this study, we demonstrated the significant inhibitory effects of a novel chemically synthetic peptide (E5) on the CXCR4/CXCL12 axis in breast cancer both and . E5 was capable of specifically binding to the murine breast cancer cell line 4T1, remarkably inhibiting CXCL12- or stromal cell (MS-5)-induced migration, and adhesion and sensitizing 4T1 cells to multiple chemotherapeutic drugs.