Proteotranscriptomic analyses of the midgut and Malpighian tubules after a sublethal concentration of Cry1Ab exposure on Spodoptera litura.

Background: Cry1Ab has emerged as a bio-insecticide to control Spodoptera litura (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). However, the sublethal effects of Cry1Ab on the physiological changes and molecular level of S. litura have not been well documented.

Mapping Chinese annual gross primary productivity with eddy covariance measurements and machine learning.

Annual gross primary productivity (AGPP) is the basis for grain production and terrestrial carbon sequestration. Mapping regional AGPP from site measurements provides methodological support for analysing AGPP spatiotemporal variations thereby ensures regional food security and mitigates climate change. Based on 641 site-year eddy covariance measuring AGPP from China, we built an AGPP mapping scheme based on its formation and selected the optimal mapping way, which was conducted through analysing the predicting performances of divergent mapping tools, variable combinations, and mapping approaches in predicting observed AGPP variations.

Berberine alleviates visceral hypersensitivity in rats by altering gut microbiome and suppressing spinal microglial activation.

Accumulating evidence shows that agents targeting gut dysbiosis are effective for improving symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). However, the potential mechanisms remain unclear. In this study we investigated the effects of berberine on the microbiota-gut-brain axis in two rat models of visceral hypersensitivity, i.

Clinical characteristics and outcomes of hospitalised patients with COVID-19 treated in Hubei (epicentre) and outside Hubei (non-epicentre): a nationwide analysis of China.

Background: During the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), consistent and considerable differences in disease severity and mortality rate of patients treated in Hubei province compared to those in other parts of China have been observed. We sought to compare the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients being treated inside and outside Hubei province, and explore the factors underlying these differences.

Methods: Collaborating with the National Health Commission, we established a retrospective cohort to study hospitalised COVID-19 cases in China.

Increase in CO levels by upregulating late sodium current is proarrhythmic in the heart.

Background: Increased CO levels in the general circulation and/or in the myocardium are common under pathologic conditions.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that an increase in CO levels, and not just the subsequent extra- or intracellular acidosis, would augment late sodium current (I) and contribute to arrhythmogenesis in hearts with reduced repolarization reserve.

Methods: Monophasic action potential durations at 90% completion of repolarization (MAPD) from isolated rabbit hearts, I, and extra- (pH) and intracellular pH (pH) values from cardiomyocytes using the whole-cell patch-clamp techniques and 2',7'-bis-(2-carboxyethyl)-5-(and-6)-carboxyfluorescein, acetoxymethyl ester (BCECF-AM), respectively, were measured.

Disruption of endothelial barrier function is linked with hyposecretion and lymphocytic infiltration in salivary glands of Sjögren's syndrome.

Sjögren's syndrome (SS) is an inflammatory autoimmune disease that causes hyposecretion in salivary glands. Endothelial tight junctions (TJs) play crucial roles in salivation and barrier function of blood vessels. However, whether the alteration of endothelial TJs were involved in pathogenesis of SS was still unknown.

Heteromerization of μ-opioid receptor and cholecystokinin B receptor through the third transmembrane domain of the μ-opioid receptor contributes to the anti-opioid effects of cholecystokinin octapeptide.

Activation of the cholecystokinin type B receptor (CCKBR) by cholecystokinin octapeptide (CCK-8) inhibits opioid analgesia. Chronic opiate treatment leads to an increase in the CCK-8 concentration and thus enhances the antagonism of CCK-8 against opioid analgesia; the underlying molecular mechanisms remain of great interest. In the present study, we validated the colocalization of the μ-opioid receptor (MOR) and CCKBR in pain signal transmission-related spinal cord dorsal horn and dorsal root ganglion neurons of rats.

Angiopoietin1 inhibits mast cell activation and protects against anaphylaxis.

Since morbidity and mortality rates of anaphylaxis diseases have been increasing year by year, how to prevent and manage these diseases effectively has become an important issue. Mast cells play a central regulatory role in allergic diseases. Angiopoietin1 (Ang-1) exhibits anti-inflammatory properties by inhibiting vascular permeability, leukocyte migration and cytokine production.

A minority subpopulation of CD133(+) /EGFRvIII(+) /EGFR(-) cells acquires stemness and contributes to gefitinib resistance.

Aims: To study the contribution of epidermal growth factor receptor variant III (EGFRvIII) to glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) stemness and gefitinib resistance.

Methods: CD133(+) and CD133(-) cells were separated from EGFRvIII(+) clinical specimens of three patients with newly diagnosed GBM. Then, RT-PCR was performed to evaluate EGFRvIII and EGFR expression in CD133(+) and CD133(-) cells.

Lidamycin induces neural differentiation of mouse embryonic carcinoma cells through down-regulation of transcription factor Oct4.

Lidamycin is a potential anti-cancer drug, which is widely used in a variety of human cancer types. It has been reported that lidamycin inhibited mouse embryonic carcinoma (EC) cells growth through down-regulation of embryonic stem (ES) cell-like genes. In this study, whether 0.

Physiology and cell biology of acupuncture observed in calcium signaling activated by acoustic shear wave.

This article presents a novel model of acupuncture physiology based on cellular calcium activation by an acoustic shear wave (ASW) generated by the mechanical movement of the needle. An acupuncture needle was driven by a piezoelectric transducer at 100 Hz or below, and the ASW in human calf was imaged by magnetic resonance elastography. At the cell level, the ASW activated intracellular Ca(2+) transients and oscillations in fibroblasts and endothelial, ventricular myocytes and neuronal PC-12 cells along with frequency-amplitude tuning and memory capabilities.

Inhibition of mouse embryonic carcinoma cell growth by lidamycin through down-regulation of embryonic stem cell-like genes Oct4, Sox2 and Myc.

Lidamycin (LDM, also known as C-1027) as an anti-cancer agent inhibits growth in a variety of cancer cells by inducing apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. In this study we demonstrated that inhibition of mouse embryonic carcinoma (EC) cell growth using LDM at low concentrations can be attributed to a loss of the cell's self-renewal capability but not to apoptosis or cell death, which can be correlated to the down-regulation of embryonic stem (ES) cell-like genes Oct4, Sox2 and c-Myc. MTT assays showed that LDM inhibited the growth of mouse P19 EC cells in a time- and dose-dependent manner.

[Preparation of the polyclonal antibody against KIAA0649 and its cellular localization].

Objective: To prepare and characterize the polyclonal antibody against KIAA0649 and identify the localization and the functional motif of KIAA0649.

Methods: Three polypeptides were synthesized based on the bioinformatics analysis of KIAA0649 protein. New Zealand rabbits were immunized with the mixture of the three KIAA0649 peptides coupled with keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH).

Isolation and characterization of epithelial progenitor cells from human fetal liver.

Aim: Hepatic progenitor cells can serve as an alternative source of hepatocytes for the treatment of liver diseases.

Methods: We isolated and expanded the epithelial progenitor cells (EPC) from the human fetal liver and investigated the differentiation of EPC into hepatic cells by fluorescence-activated cell sorter (FACS), real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), immunofluorescence assay, western blotting, and periodic acid-Schiff staining.

Results: Isolated EPC possessed highly proliferative ability and subpassaged for more than 25 passages.

Real-time detection of alpha1A-AR movement stimulated by phenylephrine in single living cells.

Aim: To investigate the movement of alpha(1A)-adrenergic receptors(alpha(1A)-AR) stimulated by agonist, phenylephrine (PE), and the dynamics of receptor movement in real time in single living cells with millisecond resolution.

Methods: We labeled alpha(1A)-AR using the monoclonal, anti-FLAG (a kind of tag) antibody and Cy3-conjugated goat anti-mouse IgG and recorded the trajectory of their transport process in living HEK293A cells stimulated by agonist, PE, and then analyzed their dynamic properties.

Results: The specific detection of alpha(1A)-AR on the surface of living HEK293A-alpha(1A) cells was achieved.

AGEs mediated expression and secretion of TNF alpha in rat retinal microglia.

Diabetic retinopathy induces an inflammatory response in the retina characterized by an increase in inflammatory cytokines and the activation of microglia. The degree of microglia activation may influence the extent of retina injury following retinal metabolic stress. We have previously shown that DR rats have elevated levels of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) in their blood.

Internalization and distribution of three alpha1-adrenoceptor subtypes in HEK293A cells before and after agonist stimulation.

Aim: To examine the subcellular distribution of the 3 alpha1-adrenoceptor (alpha1-AR) subtypes and their internalization and trafficking upon agonist stimulation in human embryonic kidney 293A cells.

Methods: Confocal real-time imaging, enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and whole cell [3H]-prazosin binding assay were applied to detect the distribution and localization of the 3 alpha1-AR subtypes.

Results: alpha1A-AR was found both on the cell surface and in the cytoplasm; alpha1BAR, however, was predominantly detected on the cell surface, while alpha1D-AR was detected mainly in the intracellular compartments.

The transport of alpha(1A)-adrenergic receptor with 33-nm step size in live cells.

We used the technique of single particle tracking (SPT) with high tempo-spatial resolution to efficiently explore the route and mechanism for the transport of alpha(1A)-adrenergic receptor (alpha(1A)-AR) in real time in living cells. We found that the initial transport of alpha(1A)-AR in cells depended on actin filaments with the velocity of 0.2 microm/s and exhibited discrete 33-nm steps.

Up-regulation of the expression of cocaine and amphetamine-regulated transcript peptide by electroacupuncture in the arcuate nucleus of diet-induced obese rats.

It was reported that acupuncture or electro-acupuncture (EA) is effective in reducing the body weight for obese patients, although the mechanisms remain obscure. In a previous study, we have found that rats fed with high-fat (HIF) diet developed diet-induced obesity (DIO) with a concomitant decrease in the hypothalamic content of the cocaine and amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART) peptide, a peptide with anorexiogenic effect. To assess the central effect of EA on DIO rat, we revealed that EA up-regulated the expression of CART peptide in the arcuate nucleus (ARC) of the DIO rats.

Triptolide protects dopaminergic neurons from inflammation-mediated damage induced by lipopolysaccharide intranigral injection.

Converging lines of evidence suggest that neuroinflammatory processes may account for the progressive death of dopaminergic neurons in Parkinson's disease (PD). Therefore, anti-inflammatory strategies have attracted much interest for their potential to prevent further deterioration of PD. Our previous study showed that triptolide, a traditional Chinese herbal compound with anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive properties, protected dopaminergic neurons from lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced damage in primary embryonic midbrain cell cultures.

Ganoderma total sterol (GS) and GS1 protect rat cerebral cortical neurons from hypoxia/reoxygenation injury.

The effect of Ganoderma total sterol (GS) and its main components(GS(1)) on rat cortical neuronal cultures exposed to hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) was studied in vitro. GS (0.01,0.

[Influence of acetylcholine on cytoplasma Ca2+ signals and gap junctional intercellular communication of rat hippocampus cells].

Objective: To investigate the influence of acetylcholine (Ach) on gap junctional intercellular communication in rat hippocampus.

Methods: Ach was applied to primary co-cultured hippocampus neurons and glial cells. Laser scanning confocal microscopy was used to monitor the change of Ca(2+) in the cytoplasma.

Infusion of epidermal growth factor and basic fibroblast growth factor into the striatum of parkinsonian rats leads to in vitro proliferation and differentiation of adult neural progenitor cells.

This study investigated the proliferation and differentiation of adult neural progenitor cells (aNPCs) derived from the striatum and substantia nigra (SN) of parkinsonian rats. We found that aNPCs isolated from the two areas of parkinsonian rats readily formed nestin-enriched neurospheres in vitro and exhibited an ability to differentiate into either neurons or astrocytes. Injection of epidermal growth factor (EGF) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) into the striatum of parkinsonian rats prior to the harvesting striatal aNPCs significantly increased the neurosphere formation rate and multiple differentiation capacity of these aNPCs when cultured in vitro.