Age-associated differences in mucosal and systemic host responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Age is among the strongest risk factors for severe outcomes from SARS-CoV-2 infection. Here we describe upper respiratory tract (URT) and peripheral blood transcriptomes of 202 participants (age range of 1 week to 83 years), including 137 non-hospitalized individuals with mild SARS-CoV-2 infection and 65 healthy individuals. Among healthy children and adolescents, younger age is associated with higher URT expression of innate and adaptive immune pathways.

Therapeutic Actions of Hepatocyte Extracellular Vesicles in a Murine Model of Diet-Induced Steatohepatitis with Fibrosis.

Introduction: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) is a leading cause of liver failure globally and is characterized by hepatic steatosis and inflammation, which may progress to fibrosis, the severity of which is highly predictive of patient demise and death. In view of the lack of treatment options for MASH, we investigated the therapeutic properties of extracellular vesicles (EVs) from normal human hepatocytes, which we have previously been shown to alleviate toxin-mediated hepatic fibrosis in mice.

Methods: C57BI/6J mice were fed a choline-deficient amino acid-defined high (60%) fat (CDAA-HF) diet for up to 12 weeks while receiving i.

Control of meat spoilage with ozone nano-bubbles: Insights from laboratory model systems and commercial scale treatments.

Ozone nanobubbles represent an environmentally friendly sanitation agent. In this study, we compared the bactericidal effect of ozone nanobubbles on pork muscle and adipose tissue to peracetic acid treatments. Pork samples were surface-inoculated with a cocktail of common meat-spoilage-associated microorganisms composed of Brochothrix thermosphacta, Latilactobacillus sakei, Leuconostoc gelidum, Carnobacterium maltaromaticum, Hafnia paralvei and Yersinia rohdei at a viable cell count of 10 CFU/cm or 10 CFU/cm.

Infants display reduced NK cell responses in RSV and increased inflammatory responses in SARS-CoV-2 infections.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the leading cause of lower respiratory tract infection hospitalizations in infants and poses a significantly higher risk of respiratory failure than SARS-CoV-2. The mechanisms underlying these differences remain unclear. We analyzed blood samples from infants (median age 2.

High-throughput analysis of microbiomes in a meat processing facility: are food processing facilities an establishment niche for persisting bacterial communities?

Background: Microbial spoilage in meat impedes the development of sustainable food systems. However, our understanding of the origin of spoilage microbes is limited. Here, we describe a detailed longitudinal study that assesses the microbial dynamics in a meat processing facility using high-throughput culture-dependent and culture-independent approaches to reveal the diversity, dispersal, persistence, and biofilm formation of spoilage-associated microbes.

Qifu yixin prescription ameliorates cardiac fibrosis by activating soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC) in heart failure.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Qifu yixin prescription (QYP), an effective traditional Chinese medicine formula, has been utilized in the clinical treatment of cardiovascular diseases for over two decades and has been granted a national invention patent in China. It has demonstrated the ability to improve clinical symptoms in patients with heart failure. However, its precise effects and underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear.

Research progress of main components from Epimedii Folium (Yinyanghuo) in the treatment of male reproductive dysfunction and application & development status of Epimedii Folium.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Epimedii Folium (Yinyanghuo) is a commonly used Chinese herb that plays a significant role in a lot of herbal formulae used to treat sexual dysfunction. Recently, an increasing amount of research on Epimedii Folium related to male reproductive dysfunction has been reported, and the exploration and application of Epimedium are also expanding rapidly. Flavonoids make up the vast majority of the chemical composition of Epimedii Folium, with small amounts of icarsides series, alkaloids, polysaccharide, volatile oils and other natural compounds.

Does strain-level persistence of lactobacilli in long-term back-slopped sourdoughs inform on domestication of food-fermenting lactic acid bacteria?

Sourdoughs are maintained by back-slopping over long time periods. To determine strain-level persistence of bacteria, we characterized four sourdoughs from bakeries over a period of 3.3, 11.

Molecular Structures of Poly(methyl methacrylate) at Different Buried Interfaces Revealed by Sum Frequency Generation Vibrational Spectroscopy.

Silica or calcium fluoride (CaF) substrate-supported poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) thin films as insulating layers are commonly used in photoelectric/photovoltaic devices to improve the efficiency or stability of these devices. However, a comparative investigation of molecular structures at buried PMMA/silica and PMMA/CaF interfaces under thermal stimuli remains unexplored. In this study, we qualitatively and quantitatively revealed different molecular orderings and orientations of PMMA at two interfaces before and after annealing using sum frequency generation (SFG) vibrational spectroscopy.

The transcription factor ZNF248 promotes colorectal cancer metastasis by binding to ZEB1.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common malignant tumors globally, with metastasis emerging as the leading cause of mortality in CRC patients. Transcription factors play pivotal roles in the metastatic process. Using bioinformatics tools, we analyzed the TCGA-COAD and GES146587 datasets and identified ZNF248 participating in tumor progression.

Downscaling soil moisture in regions with high soil heterogeneity: the solution based on ensemble learning with sequential and parallel learner.

Soil moisture plays an important role in the water and heat exchanges between the land surface and atmosphere, and it has great importance for agricultural production, ecological planning, and water resources management. Although microwave remote sensing has been widely used in large-scale soil moisture monitoring, the accuracy of the downscaled retrieval results cannot be guaranteed for regions with high vegetation coverage and high soil heterogeneity. To address these challenges, this study built soil moisture indice set based on MODIS and elevation data by calculating the Pearson correlation coefficient (R) and Maximum Information Coefficient (MIC), then constructed decision tree models (Gradient Boosting Decision Tree and Random Forest) about the indice set and low-resolution Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) by using two ensemble learning methods (Bagging and Boosting).

Research trends between intestinal microbiome and colorectal cancer: A bibliometric analysis.

This was the first bibliometric analysis between intestinal microbiome and colorectal cancer, analyzing the current status and future trends. The annual publication output would be constantly increasing in the future. Future research hotspots would focus on the new drugs development, pathogenesis research and targeted therapy.

Effects of Lake Erie dredged material on microbiomes in a farm soil of northwestern Ohio.

Dredged materials are often considered as candidates for replenishing lost topsoils in the watersheds of rivers and lakes. This study aimed to investigate the impacts of Lake Erie dredged material on the microbial community in a farm soil of northwestern Ohio. Dredged material from the Toledo Harbor, OH was mixed with a local farm soil at ratios of 0:100, 10:90, 20:80, and 100:0 for soybean growth in a greenhouse for 123 days and was subject to 16S rRNA gene sequencing.

Heart failure potentially affects the cortical structure of the brain.

Background: Heart failure (HF) has been reported to affect cerebral cortex structure, but the underlying cause has not been determined. This study used Mendelian randomization (MR) to reveal the causal relationship between HF and structural changes in the cerebral cortex.

Methods: HF was defined as the exposure variable, and cerebral cortex structure was defined as the outcome variable.

The Efficacy of Machine Learning Models for Predicting the Prognosis of Heart Failure: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Introduction: Heart failure (HF) is a major global public health concern. The application of machine learning (ML) to identify individuals at high risk and enable early intervention is a promising approach for improving HF prognosis. We aim to systematically evaluate the performance and value of ML models for predicting HF prognosis.

Probing Interfacial Aging of Model Adhesion Joints under a Hygrothermal Environment at a Molecular Level.

Generally, for adhesive joints, the polar water molecules in humid environments can have a critical effect on the interfacial structures and structural evolution adjacent to the solid substrates. Regarding this, it is still a big challenge to detect and understand the interfacial hygrothermal aging process at the molecular level in real time and in situ. In this study, to trace the interfacial hygrothermal aging process of a classical epoxy formula containing diglycidyl ether of biphenyl A (DGEBA) and 2,2'-(ethylenedioxy) diethylamine (EDDA) with sapphire and fused silica in a typical hygrothermal environment (85 °C and 85% RH), sum frequency generation (SFG) vibrational spectroscopy was used to probe the molecular-level interfacial structural change over the time.

A unicentric center, multicenter, and mixed-type Castleman disease: Three case reports and a review of the literature.

Rationale: Due to the lack of specificity symptoms and site of onset of castleman disease (CD), it is difficult to diagnose and poses unique challenges for both patients and clinicians, leading to confusion in diagnosis and delays in treatment. To enhance understanding, we present 3 cases of CD treated at our hospital, including a single-center, multicenter, and mixed-type CD.

Patient Concerns: Case 1: A 53-year-old female patient was admitted with a chief complaint of "abdominal pain and fever for 10 days.

Qifu Yixin Formula Improves Heart Failure by Enhancing β-Arrestin2 Mediated the SUMOylation of SERCA2a.

Purpose: This study aimed to elucidate the protective mechanism of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Qifu Yixin formula (QFYXF) to improve heart failure (HF) by promoting β-arrestin2 (β-arr2)-mediated SERCA2a SUMOylation.

Materials And Methods: The transverse aortic constriction (TAC)-induced HF mice were treated with QFYXF or carvedilol for 8 weeks. β-arr2-KO mice and their littermate wild-type (WT) mice were used as controls.

Efficacy of prophylactic negative pressure wound therapy after open ventral hernia repair: a systematic review meta-analysis.

Introduction: The susceptibility to surgical site occurrence (SSO) is high following ventral hernia repair (VHR) surgery. SSO severely increases the physical and mental burden on patients. The main purpose of this review was to analyze the efficacy of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) after open VHR(OVHR) and explore benefits to patients.