What Was George Forrest's Plant Collection Journey like in China?

Since the 16th century, Western countries have conducted extensive plant collections in Asia, particularly in China, driven by the need to collect botanical resources and foster academic development. These activities have not only significantly enriched the Western botanical specimen collections but have also had a profound impact on the development of related disciplines such as botany, ecology, and horticulture. During this process, a large number of renowned plant hunters emerged, whose discoveries and contributions are still remembered today.

Mitochondrial ROS-dependent CD4PD-1T cells are pathological expansion in patients with primary immune thrombocytopenia.

Objective: Aberrant-activated T cells, especially CD4T cells, play a crucial part in the pathogenetic progress of immune thrombocytopenia (ITP). PD-1-mediated signals play a negative part in the activation of CD4T cells. However, knowledge is limited on the pathogenic characteristics and function of CD4PD-1T cells in ITP.

FcγRIIIA activation-mediated up-regulation of glycolysis alters MDSCs modulation in CD4 T cell subsets of Sjögren syndrome.

Our and other researchers' previous studies found that myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) were increased, and these MDSCs, supposed to play immunosuppressive roles, showed significant pro-inflammatory effects in Sjögren's syndrome (SS). However, the key factors and potential mechanisms leading MDSCs to be inflammatory remain unclear. In this study, we found that MDSCs from SS patients were positively correlated with the percentages of Th17 cells, disease activity and serum autoantibodies, and showed higher levels of Fc gamma receptor (FcγR) IIIA and glycolysis.

Proposal and Efficacy of a Nurse-Led Pain Management Model for Neurointensive Care Based on the Precede-Proceed Model.

Objective: This study's objective is to establish a nurse-led pain management model for neurointensive care based on the Precede-Proceed model to provide a theoretical basis for clinical pain management in neurointensive care ICU nurses were randomly divided into a control group (giving conventional routine pain care) and an experimental group (managed pain based on the Precede-Proceed model). The nurses from the experimental group were trained in the Precede-Proceed-based management. The nurses then treated a total of 410 critically ill patients, and the patients were randomly divided into a control and an intervention group (205 cases/nursing group), and the data were prospectively recorded.

Iguratimod Restrains Circulating Follicular Helper T Cell Function by Inhibiting Glucose Metabolism Hif1α-HK2 Axis in Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Iguratimod (IGU) is a novel disease modified anti-rheumatic drug, which has been found to act directly on B cells for inhibiting the production of antibodies in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. Follicular helper T (Tfh) cells, a key T cell subsets in supporting B cell differentiation and antibody production, have been shown to play critical roles in RA. However, whether IGU can inhibit RA Tfh cells which further restrains B cell function remains unclear.

Increased oxidative stress contributes to impaired peripheral CD56CD57 NK cells from patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

Background: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is characterized by loss of immune tolerance and imbalance of immune cell subsets. Natural killer (NK) cells contribute to regulate both the innate and adaptive immune response. In this study, we aimed to detect alterations of peripheral NK cells and explore intrinsic mechanisms involving in NK cell abnormality in SLE.

Role of arachidonic acid lipoxygenase pathway in Asthma.

The arachidonic acid (AA) metabolism pathways play a key role in immunological response and inflammation diseases, such as asthma, etc. AA in cell membranes can be metabolized by lipoxygenases (LOXs) to a screen of bioactive substances that include leukotrienes (LTs), lipoxins (LXs), and eicosatetraenoic acids (ETEs), which are considered closely related to the pathophysiology of respiratory allergic disease. Studies also verified that drugs regulating AA LOXs pathway have better rehabilitative intervention for asthma.

ROS/TGF-β signal mediated accumulation of SOX4 in OA-FLS promotes cell senescence.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is an age-related disease, which is mainly treated with oral, topical, and/or intra-articular options to relieve symptoms and lack of specific treatment measures. Fibroblasts (FLS) are crucial cells in joint inflammation and destruction. Cellular senescence plays an important role during OA pathogenesis and senescent cells exhibit cell-cycle arrest and senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP).

Altered peripheral B lymphocyte homeostasis and functions mediated by IL-27 via activating the mammalian target of rapamycin signaling pathway in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

B cell dysfunction and inflammatory cytokine over-production participate in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Here we compared peripheral B cell homeostasis and immune functions between RA patients and healthy controls (HC) and explored vital signaling pathways involved in altered RA B cells. We found that RA patients showed significantly decreased frequencies of peripheral CD19 CD27 CD24 regulatory B (Breg) cells but increased frequencies of CD19 CD27 CD38 plasmablasts and CD19 CD138 plasma cells, and higher levels of serum immunoglobulin (Ig)M and IgG.

Leptin promotes glycolytic metabolism to induce dendritic cells activation via STAT3-HK2 pathway.

Leptin is over-secreted in many autoimmune diseases, which can promote dendritic cells (DCs) maturation and up-regulate the expression of inflammatory cytokines, but the underlying mechanisms are not fully elucidated. Considering the major role of leptin in maintaining energy balance and the significant role of glycolysis in DCs activation, our study aims to investigate whether leptin promotes the activation of DCs via glycolysis and its underlying mechanisms. We demonstrated that leptin promoted the activation of DCs, including up-regulating the expression of co-stimulatory molecules and inflammatory cytokines, enhancing the proliferation and T helper 17 (Th17) cell ratio in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) co-cultured with leptin-stimulated DCs.

Endoplasmic reticulum stress perpetuated toll-like receptor signalling-mediated inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis via X-box-binding protein-1.

Objectives: Multiple physiological and pathological conditions interfere with the function of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). However, much remains unknown regarding the impact of ER stress on toll-like receptors (TLRs) -induced inflammatory responses in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The aim of this study was to reveal the effects of ER stress and its regulator, X-box-binding protein-1 (XBP-1), on the inflammatory response of RA synovial fibroblasts (RASF) to different TLRs ligands.

Efficacy and safety of percutaneous tube drainage in lung abscess: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

: Lung abscess is an infectious lung disease. The main objective of this review was to assess the efficacy and safety of percutaneous tube drainage (PTD) in patients with lung abscess by systematic review and meta-analysis of published data. : We searched all literature published between 1 January 2010, and 6 August 2019, in the PubMed, Cochrane Central Library, EMBASE, Wanfang, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure, and Chinese Biomedical Literature databases for relevant reports.

Selection and characterization of DNA aptamers for constructing colorimetric biosensor for detection of PBP2a.

Rapid and accurate diagnosis of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is vital for patient treatment, control of infection and monitoring epidemiology. Penicillin binding proteins (PBP2a), as an important marker protein of MRSA, has been proposed as the screening test target for tolerant bacteria of MRSA. However, current technologies based on PBP2a activity or PBP2a immunoassays were suboptimal specificity and sensitivity.

ER-stressed MSC displayed more effective immunomodulation in RA CD4CXCR5ICOS follicular helper-like T cells through higher PGE2 binding with EP2/EP4.

To analyze the further immunomodulatory effects of endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-stressed umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells MSCs (UC-MSCs) on rheumatoid arthritis (RA) CD4CXCR5ICOS T (follicular helper-like T, Tfh) cells. MSCs were isolated from umbilical cord and surface markers were identified by flow cytometry. CD4 T cells were purified from RA patients' peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) using immunomagnetic beads.

Heat shock protein 60 stimulates the migration of vascular smooth muscle cells via Toll-like receptor 4 and ERK MAPK activation.

Accumulating evidence indicates that heat shock protein (HSP) 60 is strongly associated with the pathology of atherosclerosis (AS). However, the precise mechanisms by which HSP60 promotes atherosclerosis remain unclear. In the present study, we found that HSP60 mRNA and protein expression levels in the thoracic aorta are enhanced not only in a mouse model of AS but also in high-fat diet (HFD) mice.

First evidence of protein G-binding protein in the most primitive vertebrate: serum lectin from lamprey (Lampetra japonica).

The intelectins, a recently identified subgroup of extracellular animal lectins, are glycan-binding receptors that recognize glycan epitopes on foreign pathogens in host systems. Here, we have described NPGBP (novel protein G-binding protein), a novel serum lectin found in the lamprey, Lampetra japonica. RT-PCR yielded a 1005 bp cDNA sequence from the lamprey liver encoding a 334 amino acid secretory protein with homology to mammalian and aquatic organism intelectins.

Low concentrations of the recombinant toxin protein rLj-RGD3 suppress TNF-α-induced human renal carcinoma cell invasion.

A hallmark of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) invasion is the degradation of the extracellular matrix (ECM) by the local production of gelatinase enzymes. Matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9)-induced cancer cell invasion is one of the pivotal steps in cancer metastasis. It has been reported that tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), a regulator of MMP-9, can induce invasion in human renal carcinoma cells.

Characterization, phylogenetic analysis and cDNA cloning of natterin-like gene from the blood of lamprey, Lampetra japonica.

Lamprey as a "living fossil" of immunological origin and "rich treasure" of biological pharmaceutical development has caused attention of scholars. The cDNA library construction and EST sequencing of blood had been done previously in our lab, and bioinformatics analysis provided a gene fragment which is highly homologous with natterin family, named natterin-like. To elucidate the characterization and phylogeny of natterin-like genes in early evolution, we cloned the full-length cDNA of natterin-like gene from the blood of Lampetra japonica.

Effects of the recombinant toxin protein rLj-RGD3 in multidrug-resistant human breast carcinoma cells.

We have previously reported that Lj-RGD3, a novel RGD-toxin protein, was isolated from the buccal gland of Lampetra japonica. The recombinant protein rLj-RGD3 has anti-invasive and anti-adhesive activity in tumor cells (HeLa cells) and endothelial cells (ECV304 cells) in vitro, and inhibits αvβ3, αvβ5, and β1 integrin-mediated adhesion. In this study, we investigated the bioactivity of rLj-RGD3 in the drug-resistant MCF-7/Adr breast carcinoma cell line and drug-sensitive parental line MCF-7, and found that rLj-RGD3 inhibited the growth of both cell lines.