Prokaryotes have evolved diverse defense strategies against viral infection, such as foreign nucleic acid degradation by CRISPR-Cas systems and DNA/RNA synthesis inhibition via nucleotide pool depletion. Here, we report an antiviral mechanism of type III CRISPR-Cas-regulated ATP depletion, where ATP is converted into ITP by CRISPR-Cas-associated adenosine deaminase (CAAD) upon activation by either cA or cA, followed by hydrolysis into IMP by Nudix hydrolase, ultimately resulting in cell growth arrest. The cryo-electron microscopy structures of CAAD in its apo and activated forms, together with biochemical evidence, revealed how cA/cA binds to the CARF domain and abrogates CAAD autoinhibition, inducing substantial conformational changes that reshape the structure of CAAD and induce its deaminase activity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The degree of cervical extension required during percutaneous balloon compression (PBC) of the Gasserian ganglion for trigeminal neuralgia (TN) varies among patients, but the traditional operating tables often fail to fulfil each patient's individual requirements.
Objective: This study aimed to compare the clinical efficacy of an extended operating table to that of a traditional operating table in C-arm-guided PBC of the Gasserian ganglion for TN.
Study Design: This is a consecutively prospective comparative study.
Background: In the information age of health care, nurses often face information overload, leading to negative emotions, e.g., anxiety that may impede the adoption of evidence-based practice and clinical decision-making process.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe effect of obesity on diabetic retinopathy (DR) has been under scrutiny in recent years. The weight-adjusted waist index (WWI) has been reported to better assess the degree of centripetal obesity in humans, with a higher WWI indicating a higher amount of body fat. The present study is the first to investigate the relationship between WWI and DR and to assess the difference in the predictive ability of WWI and other obesity indices for DR.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Some evidence suggests that fruit and alcohol consumption may be related to cognitive impairment.
Methods: This study conducted a cross-sectional study on the "correlation between eating habits and cognitive function of the middle-aged and elderly population in China." The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between fruit consumption, drinking habits and cognitive impairment in Chinese people over 50 years old.
As a terrestrial ecosystem, alpine grasslands feature diverse vegetation types and play key roles in regulating water resources and carbon storage, thus shaping global climate. The dynamics of soil nutrients in this ecosystem, responding to regional climate change, directly impact primary productivity. This review comprehensively explored the effects of climate change on soil nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and their balance in the alpine meadows, highlighting the significant roles these nutrients played in plant growth and species diversity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChronic inflammation is epidemiologically linked to the pathogenesis of gastrointestinal diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and colorectal cancer (CRC). However, our understanding of the molecular mechanisms controlling gut inflammation remains insufficient, hindering the development of targeted therapies for IBD and CRC. In this study, we uncovered as a negative regulator of gut inflammation, operating through the modulation of epithelial cell metabolism.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenomics Proteomics Bioinformatics
May 2024
DNA sequencers have become increasingly important research and diagnostic tools over the past 20 years. In this study, we developed a single-molecule desktop sequencer, GenoCare 1600 (GenoCare), which utilizes amplification-free library preparation and two-color sequencing-by-synthesis chemistry, making it more user-friendly compared with previous single-molecule sequencing platforms for clinical use. Using the GenoCare platform, we sequenced an Escherichia coli standard sample and achieved a consensus accuracy exceeding 99.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground & Aims: It has been revealed good nutritional status and no physical frailty, which are modifiable lifestyle factors, are linked to less cognitive decline and a lower risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD). We aimed to investigate the associations between nutritional status and physical frailty and plasma AD biomarkers, especially the Tau-associated biomarkers in older cognitively unimpaired (CU) adults with higher β-amyloid (Aβ) burden.
Methods: The nutritional status and physical frailty were assessed via Mini-Nutritional Assessment Short-Form (MNA-SF) and Fried frailty index.
Front Bioeng Biotechnol
May 2024
In this study, we explored the growing use of metal-organic framework (MOF)-based Nanozymes in biomedical research, with a specific emphasis on their applications in stroke therapy. We have discussed the complex nature of stroke pathophysiology, highlighting the crucial role of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and acknowledging the limitations of natural enzymes in addressing these challenges. We have also discussed the role of nanozymes, particularly those based on MOFs, their structural similarities to natural enzymes, and their potential to improve reactivity in various biomedical applications.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Accurate classification techniques are essential for the early diagnosis and treatment of patients with diabetic retinopathy (DR). However, the limited amount of annotated DR data poses a challenge for existing deep-learning models. This article proposes a difficulty-aware and task-augmentation method based on meta-learning (DaTa-ML) model for few-shot DR classification with fundus images.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEctomycorrhizal fungi (EMF) can form symbiotic relationships with plants, aiding in plant growth by providing access to nutrients and defense against phytopathogenic fungi. In this context, factors such as plant assemblages and soil properties can impact the interaction between EMF and phytopathogenic fungi in forest soil. However, there is little understanding of how these fungal interactions evolve as forests move through succession stages.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSenecavirus A (SVA) is a newly emerging picornavirus associated with swine vesicular lesions and neonatal mortality, threatening the global pig industry. Despite sustained efforts, the molecular mechanisms of SVA pathogenesis have not yet been fully elucidated. Here, we demonstrate for the first time that SVA infection can induce complete mitophagy in host cells, which depends on SVA replication.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFShort prokaryotic Ago accounts for most prokaryotic Argonaute proteins (pAgos) and is involved in defending bacteria against invading nucleic acids. Short pAgo associated with TIR-APAZ (SPARTA) has been shown to oligomerize and deplete NAD upon guide-mediated target DNA recognition. However, the molecular basis of SPARTA inhibition and activation remains unknown.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Biol Macromol
December 2023
The precise coupling of tRNAs with their cognate amino acids, known as tRNA aminoacylation, is a stringently regulated process that governs translation fidelity. To ensure fidelity, organisms deploy multiple layers of editing mechanisms to correct mischarged tRNAs. Prior investigations have unveiled the propensity of eukaryotic AlaRS to erroneously attach alanine onto tRNA and tRNA featuring the G4:U69 base pair.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFront Endocrinol (Lausanne)
August 2023
Purpose: The aim of this study was to explore the connection between hemoglobin levels and diabetic retinopathy (DR).
Methods: Cross-sectional research used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2005-2008. A multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to investigate the association between DR and hemoglobin levels.
Vitamin D supplementation is reported to have anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects during cerebral ischemia-reperfusion injury (CIRI), but the protective mechanism has not been fully elucidated. In this study, rats were given prior administrations of 1,25-vitamin D3 (1,25-VitD3) for a week and subjected to 2 hours of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) followed by 24 hours of reperfusion. Supplementation with 1,25-VitD3 significantly reduced neurological deficit scores and cerebral infarction areas, and increased surviving neurons.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe type V-K CRISPR-associated transposons (CASTs) allow RNA-guided DNA integration and have great potential as a programmable site-specific gene insertion tool. Although all core components have been independently characterized structurally, the mechanism of how the transposase TnsB associates with AAA+ ATPase TnsC and catalyzes donor DNA cleavage and integration remains ambiguous. In this study, we demonstrate that TniQ-dCas9 fusion can direct site-specific transposition by TnsB/TnsC in ShCAST.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWith the gradual development of and improvement in earthquake early warning systems (EEWS), more accurate real-time seismic intensity measurements (IMs) methods are needed to assess the impact range of earthquake intensities. Although traditional point source warning systems have made some progress in terms of predicting earthquake source parameters, they are still inadequate at assessing the accuracy of IMs predictions. In this paper, we aim to explore the current state of the field by reviewing real-time seismic IMs methods.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPrevious studies on social contract reasoning of male substance abusers only examined individuals who are using drugs, and most of them compared social contract and nonsocial contract reasoning, and paid less attention to the characteristics of social contract reasoning of substance abusers during withdrawal. In addition, there is little research on the difference between the standard social contract rules and the switched social contract rules. To further explore this issue, experiment 1 examined the differences between 110 male substance abusers' conditional reasoning for descriptive and social contract rules; Experiment 2 examined the differences between 110 other male substance abusers' conditional reasoning for standard and switched social contracts.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAims: To quantitatively analyze and compare the differences in retinal neurovascular units (NVUs) between healthy individuals and patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) by optical coherence tomography (OCT) and optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) techniques and to determine the value of this technique for the early diagnosis of retinal neurovascular damage in patients with diabetes mellitus without retinopathy (NDR).
Methods: This observational case‒control study was conducted from July 1, 2022, to November 30, 2022, at the outpatient ophthalmology clinic of the Affiliated Hospital of Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. All subjects underwent baseline data entry and mean thickness of the peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (pRNFL), the thickness of each retinal layer in the macula 3 × 3 mm, and vascular density (VD) examination.