Supplementation of p40, a Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG-derived protein, in early life promotes epidermal growth factor receptor-dependent intestinal development and long-term health outcomes.

The beneficial effects of the gut microbiota on growth in early life are well known. However, knowledge about the mechanisms underlying regulating intestinal development by the microbiota is limited. p40, a Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG-derived protein, transactivates epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in intestinal epithelial cells for protecting the intestinal epithelium against injury and inflammation.

Surgical removal of submacular perfluorocarbon liquid with a 38-gauge flexible cannula combined with internal limiting membrane peeling and intravitreal air tamponade: a case series.

Background: To report a case series in which a modified technique was used to remove retained submacular perfluorocarbon liquid (PFCL) secondary to vitreoretinal surgery for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment.

Case Presentation: Four patients who had undergone pars plana vitrectomy for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment were further treated with surgical intervention because of retained submacular PFCL. With a three-port pars plana approach, after the internal limiting membrane peeling with indocyanine green staining, a 38-gauge flexible cannula was used to aspirate the submacular perfluorocarbon bubble, followed by fluid-air exchange and air injection into vitreous cavity.

High-performance reoxygenation from PLGA-PEG/PFOB emulsions: a feedback relationship between ROS and HIF-1α.

Background: Hypoxemia is one of the most common pathological processes in various clinical diseases.

Methods: A novel emulsion of poly(lactide-co-glycolide)-poly(ethylene glycol)/perfluorooctyl bromide has been developed to improve arterial hypoxemia through pulmonary drug delivery. Hypoxia-reoxygenation experiment was used to investigate the ability of the emulsion to supply oxygen and the saline lavage acute lung injury model was established to evaluate oxygen supply of the emulsion.

Flt3 Regulation in the Mononuclear Phagocyte System Promotes Ocular Neovascularization.

Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 (Flt3), a tyrosine kinase receptor expressed in CD34+ hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells, is important for both normal myeloid and lymphoid differentiation. It has been implicated in mice and humans for potential multilineage differentiation. We found that mice deficient in Flt3 or mice that received an Flt3 inhibitor (AC220) showed significantly reduced areas of ischemia-induced retinal neovascularization (RNV) and laser-induced choroidal NV (CNV) ( < 0.

Symmetry mismatch-driven perpendicular magnetic anisotropy for perovskite/brownmillerite heterostructures.

Grouping different transition metal oxides together by interface engineering is an important route toward emergent phenomenon. While most of the previous works focused on the interface effects in perovskite/perovskite heterostructures, here we reported on a symmetry mismatch-driven spin reorientation toward perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in perovskite/brownmillerite heterostructures, which is scarcely seen in tensile perovskite/perovskite heterostructures. We show that alternately stacking perovskite LaSrMnO and brownmillerite LaCoO causes a strong interface reconstruction due to symmetry discontinuity at interface: neighboring MnO octahedra and CoO tetrahedra at the perovskite/brownmillerite interface cooperatively relax in a manner that is unavailable for perovskite/perovskite interface, leading to distinct orbital reconstructions and thus the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy.

Significant role of microRNA‑219‑5p in diabetic retinopathy and its mechanism of action.

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the leading cause of blindness and visual impairment. The role of microRNA (miRNA) in DR remains largely unknown. The present study aimed to investigate the role of miR‑219‑5p in the progression of DR.

How Mouse-tracking Can Advance Social Cognitive Theory.

Mouse-tracking - measuring computer-mouse movements made by participants while they choose between response options - is an emerging tool that offers an accessible, data-rich, and real-time window into how people categorize and make decisions. In the present article we review recent research in social cognition that uses mouse-tracking to test models and advance theory. In particular, mouse-tracking allows examination of nuanced predictions about both the nature of conflict (e.

[Effect of ceftriaxone on the intestinal epithelium and microbiota in neonatal mice].

Objective: To investigate the effect of ceftriaxone on the intestinal epithelium and microbiota in mice in the early-life stage, as well as the recovery of the intestinal epithelium and reconstruction of intestinal microbiota in adult mice.

Methods: A total of 36 BALB/C neonatal mice were randomly divided into control group and experimental group, with 18 mice in each group. The mice in the experimental group were given ceftriaxone 100 mg/kg every day by gavage within 21 days after birth.

HLA-DQB1*03 and DRB1*07 alleles increase the risk of cervical cancer among Uighur and Han women in Xinjiang, China.

Aim: To explore the association between the determinant factors including HLA-DQB1*03, DRB1-*07, -*13 and high-risk HPV infection, the cervical squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC) pathogenesis among Chinese Uighur and Han population.

Materials & Methods: HLA alleles were genotyped by PCR sequence-specific primers.

Results: HPV16 infection rate was significantly higher among the Uighurs and Hans with CSCC as compared with healthy controls, respectively.

Inhibition of integrin α5β1 ameliorates VEGF-induced retinal neovascularization and leakage by suppressing NLRP3 inflammasome signaling in a mouse model.

Purpose: To assess the effect of inhibiting integrin α5β1 by ATN-161 on vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-induced neovascularization (NV) and leakage causing retinal detachment in adult Tet/opsin/VEGF transgenic mice, and characterize the underlying mechanism of its function.

Method: Retinas from adult Tet/opsin/VEGF transgenic mice and human retinal endothelial cells (HRECs) exposed to VEGF (treated with ATN-161 or PBS) were used to carry out immunofluorescence, RT-PCR and western blot to examine expression levels of integrin α5β1 and the NACHT, LRR, and PYD domains-containing protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome. Retinal frozen section analysis was used to assess NV and leakage causing retinal detachment.

Endocan Blockade Suppresses Experimental Ocular Neovascularization in Mice.

Purpose: Ocular neovascularization (NV) is a pathologic process characterized by the proliferation and infiltration of various types of cells such as RPE, glial, and endothelial cells, which interact with proangiogenic factors and inflammatory cytokines. Endocan is known to be enriched in retinal endothelial tip cells under hypoxia, but the effect of endocan on ocular NV progression is largely unknown. In this study, we investigated the role of endocan in the ocular NV pathologic process and the possible mechanisms involved.

Possible correlation between gut microbiota and immunity among healthy middle-aged and elderly people in southwest China.

Background: The present study was conducted to investigate the possible association between gut microbes and immunity among healthy middle-aged and elderly individuals in southwest China. A total of 148 healthy adults aged ≥ 50 years were divided into two age groups: middle-aged group (50-59 years; n = 67, 54.13 ± 3.

Graphene Size-Dependent Multifunctional Properties of Unidirectional Graphene Aerogel/Epoxy Nanocomposites.

Unidirectional graphene aerogels (UGAs) with tunable densities, degrees of alignment, and electrical conductivities are prepared by varying the average size of precursor graphene oxide (GO) sheets between 1.1 and 1596 μm. UGAs prepared using ultralarge GO (UL-UGA) outperform those made from small GO in these properties.

Peroxiredoxin 1, restraining cell migration and invasion, is involved in hepatocellular carcinoma recurrence.

Objective: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a high-burden disease. Peroxiredoxin 1 (PRDX1) is a member of the peroxiredoxin family of antioxidant enzymes. The aim of this study was to assess the value of PRDX1 for predicting HCC recurrence after curative resection and to explore the role of PRDX1 in HCC cell migration and invasion.

Hydrogen sulfide supplement attenuates the apoptosis of retinal ganglion cells in experimental glaucoma.

Glaucoma is a group of neurodegenerative eye diseases characterized by progressive impairment of visual function due to loss of retinal ganglion cells (RGC). As hydrogen sulfide (HS) was reported to play a role in the process of glaucomatous neuropathy and improve RGC survival in experimental glaucoma, the authors aimed to investigate the anti-apoptosis effect of HS supplement in a rat glaucoma model, and further tried to explore the involved factors in the neuroprotection. A chronic ocular hypertension (COH) rat model induced by intracameral injection of cross-linking hydrogel was employed to simulate glaucoma and 288 rats were subjected to experimental procedures in the present study.

Sliced graphene foam films for dual-functional wearable strain sensors and switches.

The demand for wearable sensors is growing in many emerging fields, such as health monitoring, human-machine interfaces, robotics and personalized medicine. Here, we report the integration of skin-mountable, flexible, stretchable, dual-functional sensors and switches together with silicon-based electronics to create a novel healthcare system. We employ a facile approach to design highly stretchable graphene foam (GF)/PDMS composite films with tunable sensitivities and switching capabilities by simply controlling the thickness of GF.

ZEB1 stimulates breast cancer growth by up-regulating hTERT expression.

Dysfunctional cell proliferation and death are the foundation of the malignant biological characteristics of cancers. In this study, we discovered that ZEB1 was positively correlated with hTERT in breast invasive ductal carcinoma samples at both the mRNA and protein levels. Further, our in vitro study in breast cancer cell lines confirmed that ZEB1 regulates hTERT expression at the mRNA and protein levels; thus, hTERT promotes or inhibits telomerase activity, and telomere length is either protected or reduced.

The diagnostic use of choroidal thickness analysis and its correlation with visual field indices in glaucoma using spectral domain optical coherence tomography.

Purpose: To evaluate the quantitative characteristics of choroidal thickness in primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG), normal tension glaucoma (NTG) and in normal eyes using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). To evaluate the diagnostic ability of choroidal thickness in glaucoma and to determine the correlation between choroidal thickness and visual field parameters in glaucoma.

Methods: A total of 116 subjects including 40 POAG, 30 NTG and 46 healthy subjects were enrolled in this study.

The relationship between methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase C677T polymorphism and diabetic retinopathy: A meta-analysis in multiethnic groups.

Background: Many studies have analyzed the association between methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) C677T polymorphism and diabetic retinopathy (DR), however, the results remained inconclusive. We therefore aim to address this association by performing a meta-analysis in multiethnic groups.

Methods: Related studies were identified from PubMed and Chinese databases up to October 2016.

Conjugated Polymers Containing BODIPY and Fluorene Units for Sensitive Detection of CN Ions: Site-Selective Synthesis, Photo-Physical and Electrochemical Properties.

Conjugated polymers containing distinct molecular units are expected to be very interesting because of their unique properties endowed by these units and the formed conjugated polymers. Herein, four new conjugated copolymers based on fluorene and 4,4'-difluoro-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza--indacene (BODIPY) have been designed and synthesized via Sonogashira polymerization. The fluorene unit was attached to the 3,5- or 2,6-positions of BODIPY by ethynylenes or -diacetylenebenzene.

Constitutive role of the Fanconi anemia D2 gene in the replication stress response.

In response to DNA cross-linking damage, the Fanconi anemia (FA) core complex activates the FA pathway by monoubiquitinating Fanconi anemia complementation group D2 (FANCD2) for the initiation of the nucleolytic processing of the DNA cross-links and stabilization of stalled replication forks. Given that all the classic FA proteins coordinately monoubiquitinate FANCD2, it is unclear why losses of individual classic FA genes yield varying cellular sensitivities to cross-linking damage. To address this question, we generated cellular knock-out models of FA core complex components and FANCD2 and found that FANCD2-null mutants display higher levels of spontaneous chromosomal damage and hypersensitivity to replication-blocking lesions than Fanconi anemia complementation group L (FANCL)-null mutants, suggesting that FANCD2 provides a basal level of DNA protection countering endogenous lesions in the absence of monoubiquitination.

High infiltration of CD68-tumor associated macrophages, predict poor prognosis in Kazakh esophageal cancer patients.

Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), the most important immune cells in tumor microenvironment, were reported to play a key role in cancer progression, but the correlation of TAMs and Kazakh esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) was still not clear, so we sought to identify the function of TAMs in Kazakh ESCC clinicopathological and prognostic evaluation. CD68 as the TAMs marker, and immunohistochemistry (IHC) was used to quantify IHC staining was also used to evaluate the expression of MMP-9 in Kazakh ESCCs. The density of CD68-TAMs in ESCCs tumor nest and stromal, were significantly higher than those of CANs (P<0.

Yogurt supplemented with probiotics can protect the healthy elderly from respiratory infections: A randomized controlled open-label trial.

Purpose: To evaluate whether yogurt supplemented with a probiotic strain could protect middle-aged and elderly people from acute upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) using a randomized, blank-controlled, parallel-group design.

Patients And Methods: Two hundred and five volunteers aged ≥45 years were randomly divided into two groups. The subjects in the intervention group were orally administered 300 mL/d of yogurt supplemented with a probiotic strain, N1115 (N1115), 3.

Identification of different macrophage subpopulations with distinct activities in a mouse model of oxygen-induced retinopathy.

The aim of the present study was to characterize the phenotypic shift, quantity and role changes in different subgroups of retinal macrophages in a mouse model of oxygen-induced retinopathy (OIR). The mRNA expression levels of macrophage M1 and M2 subgroup marker genes and polarization-associated genes were analyzed by RT-qPCR. The number of M1 and M2 macrophages in our mouse model of OIR was analyzed by flow cytometry at different time points during the progression of OIR.

Elevated Activating Transcription Factor 4 and Glucose-Regulated 78 Kda Protein Levels Correlate with Inflammatory Cytokines in the Aqueous Humor and Vitreous of Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy.

Purpose: To determine concentrations of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-related factors activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4) and glucose-regulated 78 kDa protein (GRP78) in vitreous and aqueous humor (AqH) of patients with proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) and the correlation of ATF4, GRP78 and inflammatory cytokines interleukin-6(IL-6) and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1).

Materials And Methods: AqH and vitreous samples were collected from eyes of patients with PDR and idiopathic macular hole (IMH) which needed vitrectomy. Protein Levels of ATF4, GRP78, and IL-6, MCP-1 in samples were evaluated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).