Interleukin-1 beta signals through the ERK signalling pathway to modulate human placental trophoblast migration and invasion in the first trimester of pregnancy.

Introduction: Interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) can promote cell migration, invasion and metastasis in various cancer cells. The mechanism of its role in human trophoblast has not been fully investigated. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the expression level of IL-1β in first trimester decidua and placenta and its potential role in regulation of extravillous trophoblast cell (EVT) invasion and migration.

Commoning genomic solidarity to improve global health equality.

This article underlines two key asynchronies between prevailing governing logic and expanding practices in somatic human genome editing that are hindering an effective and orderly translation of the new technology into public good. The first is a "genomic sovereignty" framing adopted by a number of non-Western countries that may exacerbate data biases in global research and that directs policy attention away from the necessary structural changes required to achieve non-discriminatory and equitable genomic healthcare. The other is a global deficiency in attending to "science at large": the challenge of regulating new assemblages of societal interests that advocate controversial or experimental research, often outside of conventional institutions and aided by "policy shopping.

To Procrastinate or Not to Procrastinate: A Retrospective Study of the Optimal Timing of Containing the Global Spread of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

As global public health is under threat by the 2019-nCoV and a potential new wave of large-scale epidemic outbreak and spread is looming, an imminent question to ask is what the optimal strategy of epidemic prevention and control (P&C) measures would be, especially in terms of the timing of enforcing aggressive policy response so as to maximize health efficacy and to contain pandemic spread. Based on the current global pandemic statistic data, here we developed a logistic probability function configured SEIR model to analyse the COVID-19 outbreak and estimate its transmission pattern under different "anticipate- or delay-to-activate" policy response scenarios in containing the pandemic. We found that the potential positive effects of stringent pandemic P&C measures would be almost canceled out in case of significantly delayed action, whereas a partially procrastinatory wait-and-see control policy may still be able to contribute to containing the degree of epidemic spread although its effectiveness may be significantly compromised compared to a scenario of early intervention coupled with stringent P&C measures.

Angiopoietin 2 stimulates trophoblast invasion via a mechanism associated with JNK signaling.

Extravillous trophoblast cell (EVT) invasion is tightly controlled, and its dysregulation can lead to altered spiral artery remodeling and contribute to a number of different pregnancy complications. Angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2) is expressed by trophoblast cells and various cells in the decidua, and trophoblast cells express its receptor, Tie2. Ang-2 has been shown to play roles in tumor progression and metastasis but it is not known if it also regulates EVT invasion.

Vitamin D Promotes Trophoblast Cell Induced Separation of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells in Vascular Remodeling Induction of G-CSF.

Vitamin D deficiency is associated with complications of pregnancy such as pre-eclampsia, fetal growth restriction, and miscarriage, all of which are also associated with incomplete spiral artery (SpA) remodeling. We have previously shown that both uterine natural killer (uNK) cells and extravillous trophoblast cells (EVT) are required for successful SpA remodeling, but whether their activity in this process is modulated by vitamin D is not known. In the current study, we use a previously described chorionic plate artery (CPA) model of vascular remodeling to determine the effects of 1,25(OH)D treated uNK cell, placental explant (PEx), and uNK/PEx conditioned medium (CM) on vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) disorganization and phenotypic switching.

Iron stores at birth in a full-term normal birth weight birth cohort with a low level of inflammation.

Iron stores at birth are essential to meet iron needs during the first 4-6 months of life. The present study aimed to investigate iron stores in normal birth weight, healthy, term neonates. Umbilical cord blood samples were collected from apparently normal singleton vaginal deliveries (n=854).

Serum 25 hydroxyvitamin D status in 6-month-old infants in Guangzhou, China: A paired longitudinal follow up study.

To assess the vitamin D status in healthy 6-month-old infants, as well as vitamin D supplementation and feeding patterns in Guangzhou, China, serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) concentrations of 202 infants were measured at birth (cord blood) and at 6 months of age in Guangzhou, China. Questionnaires acquiring demographic characteristics, maternal and infantile vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy and first 6 months after birth, and feeding patterns during the first 6 months were completed by participating mothers. Physical examinations and blood sampling were carried out among infants at 6 months of age.

T-cadherin inhibits invasion and migration of endometrial stromal cells in endometriosis.

Study Question: What is the expression level of T-cadherin in endometriosis, and does T-cadherin play a role in regulating invasion and migration of endometrial stromal cells?

Summary Answer: T-cadherin expression was reduced in ectopic endometriotic lesions compared to eutopic endometrium, and T-cadherin overexpression inhibited the invasion and migration of endometrial stromal cells.

What Is Known Already: Endometriosis is a disease that involves active cell invasion and migration. T-cadherin can inhibit cell invasion, migration and proliferation in various cancer cells, but its role in endometriosis has not been investigated.

Cord serum vitamin D in a South China birth cohort.

Background And Objectives: Vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy has been associated with many adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes. Low serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) levels (<30 nmol/L) increases the risk of nutritional rickets. This study aimed to investigate the concentration of cord serum 25OHD in a birth cohort in Guangzhou, China and determine whether maternal lifestyle factors had any effect on these levels.

How to Be Modern? The Social Negotiation of 'Good Food' in Contemporary China.

Developing safe and sustainable food production for its population has been central to China's 'Modernisation Project'. Yet recent fieldwork in three Chinese cities suggests that there are two conflicting views on what a 'modern' agriculture should look like. For the government, modernisation implies a rational calculation of scale and a mirroring of global trends.

Lost in translation? Accountability and governance of clinical stem cell research in China.

Despite China's regulatory initiatives to promote its research accountability, it still needs to prove itself as a trusted player in life science research. In addition, in contrast to its huge investment, China is losing the race in delivering quality application of stem cells. The trial implementation of the 2015 ministerial regulations seemed to offer hope in ending this dual 'lost-in-translation'.

Baseline Assessment of 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Assay Performance: A Vitamin D Standardization Program (VDSP) Interlaboratory Comparison Study.

The Vitamin D Standardization Program (VDSP) coordinated an interlaboratory study to assess the comparability of measurements of total 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] in human serum, which is the primary marker of vitamin D status. A set of 50 individual donor samples were analyzed by 15 different laboratories representing national nutrition surveys, assay manufacturers, and clinical and/or research laboratories to provide results for total 25(OH)D using both immunoassays (IAs) and LC tandem MS (MS/MS). The results were evaluated relative to bias compared with the target values assigned based on a combination of measurements at Ghent University (Belgium) and the U.

Baseline Assessment of 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Reference Material and Proficiency Testing/External Quality Assurance Material Commutability: A Vitamin D Standardization Program Study.

The Vitamin D Standardization Program (VDSP) coordinated a study in 2012 to assess the commutability of reference materials and proficiency testing/external quality assurance materials for total 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] in human serum, the primary indicator of vitamin D status. A set of 50 single-donor serum samples as well as 17 reference and proficiency testing/external quality assessment materials were analyzed by participating laboratories that used either immunoassay or LC-MS methods for total 25(OH)D. The commutability test materials included National Institute of Standards and Technology Standard Reference Material 972a Vitamin D Metabolites in Human Serum as well as materials from the College of American Pathologists and the Vitamin D External Quality Assessment Scheme.

Vitamin D status is associated with uteroplacental dysfunction indicated by pre-eclampsia and small-for-gestational-age birth in a large prospective pregnancy cohort in Ireland with low vitamin D status.

Background: Associations between vitamin D and pregnancy outcomes have been inconsistent.

Objectives: We described the distribution of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 [25(OH)D3], 3-epi-25(OH)D3, and 25(OH)D2 in early pregnancy and investigated associations with pre-eclampsia and small-for-gestational-age (SGA) birth, which are indicative of uteroplacental dysfunction.

Design: The SCOPE (Screening for Pregnancy Endpoints) Ireland prospective pregnancy cohort study included 1768 well-characterized low-risk, nulliparous women resident at 52°N.

The 'credibility paradox' in China's science communication: Views from scientific practitioners.

In contrast to increasing debates on China's rising status as a global scientific power, issues of China's science communication remain under-explored. Based on 21 in-depth interviews in three cities, this article examines Chinese scientists' accounts of the entangled web of influence which conditions the process of how scientific knowledge achieves (or fails to achieve) its civic authority. A main finding of this study is a 'credibility paradox' as a result of the over-politicisation of science and science communication in China.

Impact of pregnancy on vitamin D status: a longitudinal study.

Nutritional requirements for vitamin D during pregnancy have been inadequately described, and there are conflicting data on the impact of gestation on vitamin D status. In the present study, we conducted a longitudinal analysis of total and free (unbound) serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), vitamin D-binding protein (DBP) and albumin concentrations in a random sample of thirty women from the Screening for Pregnancy Endpoints Ireland pregnancy cohort study at 15, 20, 24, 28, 32, 36 and 40 weeks of gestation and at 2 months postpartum. Concentrations of serum 25(OH)D, DBP and albumin were determined, and free 25(OH)D was calculated from the concentrations of total 25(OH)D, DBP and albumin.

Dietary calcium does not interact with vitamin D₃ in terms of determining the response and catabolism of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D during winter in older adults.

Background: Interactions between calcium and vitamin D may have implications for the regulation of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] and its catabolism and, consequently, the vitamin D dietary requirement.

Objective: We investigated whether different calcium intakes influenced serum 25(OH)D and indexes of vitamin D activation and catabolism during winter and in the context of both adequate and inadequate vitamin D intakes.

Design: A 15-wk winter-based, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind vitamin D₃ intervention (20 μg/d) study was carried out in free-living men and women aged ≥50 y (n = 125) who were stratified according to calcium intakes [moderate-low (<700 mg/d) or high (>1000 mg/d) intake].

The art of trans-boundary governance: the case of synthetic biology.

Synthetic biology raises few, if any, social concerns that are distinctively new. Similar to many other convergent technologies, synthetic biology's interface across various scientific communities and interests groups presents an incessant challenge to political and conceptual boundaries. However, the scale and intensity of these interfaces seem to necessitate a reflection over how corresponding governance capacities can be developed.

The dual reality of the Chinese knowledge economy.

This paper draws on stem cell research and financial derivatives as two case studies to analyse the role of scientific knowledge and technology in the development of the Chinese knowledge economy. The findings suggest that, despite China's recent commitments in acquiring international expertise, there is a decoupling between knowledge acquisitions and applications in the institutionalisation of knowledge within these sectors. Scientific-based knowledge and professional know-how are on the one hand perceived as prime drivers of China's development, yet they on the other hand remain subordinate to existing administrative infrastructures.

Scientific institutions and effective governance: a case study of Chinese stem cell research.

In terms of stem cell research, China appears both as a "powerhouse" armed with state-of-the-art facilities, internationally trained personnel and permissive regulation and as a "bit player," with its capability for conducting high quality research still in question. The gap between China's assiduous endeavors and the observed outcome is due to a number of factors. Based on interviews with 48 key stakeholders active in Chinese stem cell research, this article examines how the structure of scientific institutions has affected effective governance in China.

Is the cosmopolitanization of science emerging in China?

China is one among many other countries that have recognised the necessity in aligning national scientific progress with that of global development. As China is striding along the path of scientific development with determination and initial success, a key concern confronted by international scientific community is how China, a rising scientific power, will transform existing global scientific atlas. Based on a project carried out in six Chinese cities between 2006 to 2009, this paper mainly employs Ulrich Beck's cosmopolitan theory in examining China's life sciences' development in the last decade to investigate how Chinese stakeholders have developed a (cosmopolitan) sensibility to rival ways of scientific reasoning, and in what way, Chinese stakeholders have contributed to the cosmopolitanization of science.

The Cosmopolitanization of Science: Experience from Chinese Stem Cell Scientists.

It is commonly perceived that the 'globalization of science' may result in a 'Westernization of science'. In this paper, however, I use the case of stem cell science in China to demonstrate that developing countries are sometimes able to effectively shape the norms of global/local scientific exchange. Based on interviews with 38 stem cell scientists in six Chinese cities in early 2008, this paper elucidates Chinese scientists' outlook towards cross-border collaborations and the effects that the internationalization of science has had on everyday laboratory operations.

The organization of scientists and its relation to scientific productivity: Perceptions of Chinese stem cell researchers.

Chinese government funding of R&D ranks third in the world. Yet China ranks only 17th in terms of scientific productivity per unit of investment. The author recently conducted fieldwork on the team structure of 22 Chinese stem cell research groups.