Differential Neuronal Activation of Nociceptive Pathways in Neuropathic Pain After Spinal Cord Injury.

Neuropathic pain, a prevalent complication following spinal cord injury (SCI), severely impairs the life quality of patients. No ideal treatment exists due to incomplete knowledge on underlying neural processes. To explore the SCI-induced effect on nociceptive circuits, the protein expression of c-Fos was analyzed as an indicator of neuronal activation in a rat contusion model exhibiting below-level pain.

A review of state-of-the-art resolution improvement techniques in SPECT imaging.

Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), a technique capable of capturing functional and molecular information, has been widely adopted in theranostics applications across various fields, including cardiology, neurology, and oncology. The spatial resolution of SPECT imaging is relatively poor, which poses a significant limitation, especially the visualization of small lesions. The main factors affecting the limited spatial resolution of SPECT include projection sampling techniques, hardware and software.

Integrated transcriptomics and metabolomics provide insights into the biosynthesis of militarine in the cell suspension culture system of Bletilla striata.

Militarine is a monomer molecule with abundant and distinctive biological properties, also the lead member of secondary metabolites in Bletilla striata, while its biosynthesis mechanism is still unknown. To improve the production efficiency of militarine, sodium acetate and salicylic acid (SA) were introduced as elicitors into the suspension-cultured callus of B. striata.

Ultrasound evaluation of gastric emptying for two different quantities of milk in elementary school-aged children.

Unlabelled: Current guidelines recommend 6-h milk fasting in periprocedural settings; however, recent evidence suggests potential overconservativeness and supports more liberal pediatric fasting protocols. This study assessed the gastric emptying of two different milk quantities in elementary school-age children using gastric ultrasonography. This prospective crossover trial involved 30 healthy children who fasted overnight on two separate occasions within one month, consuming either 5 or 10 mL/kg of milk.

Winter forage crops influence soil properties through establishing different arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi communities in paddy field.

Winter planting is promising for improving the utilization rate of fallow paddy fields in southern China by establishing arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) communities. However, the effects of different winter forage crops on AMF community construction remain unknown. The AMF community establishment of different winter planting forage crops were conducted in oat, rye, Chinese milk vetch, and ryegrass, with winter fallow as a control.

DSCI: a database of synthetic biology components for innate immunity and cell engineering decision-making processes.

Although significant progress of clinical strategy has been made in gene editing and cell engineering in immunotherapy, it is now apparent that design and modification in terms of complex signaling pathways and motifs on medical synthetic biology are still full of challenges. Innate immunity, the first line of host defense against pathogens, is critical for anti-pathogens immune response as well as regulating durable and protective T cell-mediated anti-tumor responses. Here, we introduce DSCI (Database of Synthetic Biology Components for Innate Immunity, https://dsci.

Decoding the genetic blueprint: regulation of key agricultural traits in sorghum.

Sorghum, the fifth most important crop globally, thrives in challenging environments such as arid, saline-alkaline, and infertile regions. This remarkable crop, one of the earliest crops domesticated by humans, offers high biomass and stress-specific properties that render it suitable for a variety of uses including food, feed, bioenergy, and biomaterials. What's truly exciting is the extensive phenotypic variation in sorghum, particularly in traits related to growth, development, and stress resistance.

A human antibody derived from original SARS-CoV-2 infection effectively neutralizes omicron.

SARS-CoV-2 (Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) Variants of Concern (VOCs), such as the Omicron sub-variants, present significant challenges in pandemic control due to their capacity to escape antibodies and breach vaccine protections. Discovering antibodies that can tolerate mutations in VOCs and understanding their underlying mechanisms is crucial for developing therapeutics for COVID-19 patients, particularly those for whom other therapies may be unsuitable. Here, we report the neutralization of the Omicron variant by FD20, a broadly active human monoclonal antibody.

Treatment of café-au-lait macules with picosecond and nanosecond 1064-nm nd: YAG laser: a retrospective study.

To investigate the efficacy and safety of picosecond (PS) and nanosecond (NS) 1064-nm neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd: YAG) laser in treating Café-au-lait macules (CALMs). We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of patients with CALMs, who were treated with PS or NS 1064-nm lasers from January 2020 to January 2022. The efficacy was determined based on the before and after pictures by two independent investigators.

Genetic evidence for functions of Chloroplast CA in Pyropia yezoensis: decreased CCM but increased starch accumulation.

In response to the changing intertidal environment, intertidal macroalgae have evolved complicated Ci utilization mechanisms. However, our knowledge regarding the CO concentrating mechanism (CCM) of macroalgae is limited. Carbonic anhydrase (CA), a key component of CCM, plays essential roles in many physiological reactions in various organisms.

From trade-off to synergy: how nutrient status modulates plant resistance to herbivorous insects?

The principle of the "growth-defense trade-off" governs how plants adjust their growth and defensive strategies in response to external factors, impacting interactions among plants, herbivorous insects, and their natural enemies. Mineral nutrients are crucial in modulating plant growth and development through their bottom-up effects. Emerging evidence has revealed complex regulatory networks that link mineral nutrients to plant defense responses, influencing the delicate balance between growth and defense against herbivores.

FOXP3 as a prognostic marker and therapeutic target in immunogenic cell death modulation for clear cell renal cell carcinoma.

Background: Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) remains a challenging cancer type due to its resistance to standard treatments. Immunogenic cell death (ICD) has the potential to activate anti-tumor immunity, presenting a promising avenue for ccRCC therapies.

Methods: We analyzed data from GSE29609, TCGA-KIRC, and GSE159115 to identify ICD-related prognostic genes in ccRCC.

Exploring the challenges of RNAi-based strategies for crop protection.

RNA silencing (or RNA interference, RNAi) initiated by double-stranded RNAs is a conserved mechanism for regulating gene expression in eukaryotes. RNAi-based crop protection strategies, including host-induced gene silencing (HIGS), spray-induced gene silencing (SIGS) and microbe-induced gene silencing (MIGS), have been successfully used against various pests and pathogens. Here, we highlight the challenges surrounding dsRNA design, large-scale production of dsRNA and dsRNA delivery systems.

Mining microbial and metabolic dark matter in extreme environments: a roadmap for harnessing the power of multi-omics data.

Extreme environments such as hyperarid, hypersaline, hyperthermal environments, and the deep sea harbor diverse microbial communities, which are specially adapted to extreme conditions and are known as extremophiles. These extremophilic organisms have developed unique survival strategies, making them ideal models for studying microbial diversity, evolution, and adaptation to adversity. They also play critical roles in biogeochemical cycles.

Exploring the plant lipidome: techniques, challenges, and prospects.

Plant lipids are a diverse group of biomolecules that play essential roles in plant architecture, physiology, and signaling. To advance our understanding of plant biology and facilitate innovations in plant-based product development, we must have precise methods for the comprehensive analysis of plant lipids. Here, we present a comprehensive overview of current research investigating plant lipids, including their structures, metabolism, and functions.

The inhibitory effect of Hypericum japonicum on H9N2 avian influenza virus.

The H9N2 subtype of avian influenza virus (AIV) causes severe immunosuppression and high mortality in view of its frequent co-infection with other pathogens, resulting in significant economic losses in the poultry industry. Current vaccines provide suboptimal immune protection against H9N2 AIV owing to antigenic variations, highlighting the urgent need for safe and effective antiviral drugs for the prevention and treatment of this virus. This study aimed to investigate the inhibitory effects of Hypericum japonicum extract on H9N2 AIV.

A theoretical study on the mechanism and rate constants of luteolin and selenium dioxide.

Context: This study investigates the reaction mechanism of luteolin with selenium dioxide in ethanol. Through a detailed search for transition states and thermodynamic energy calculations, it was found that the reaction proceeds via two possible pathways, leading to the formation of products P1 and P2, respectively. A common feature of both pathways is that the first elementary step results in the formation of the intermediate INT1.

Unraveling the role of autophagy regulation in Crohn's disease: from genetic mechanisms to potential therapeutics.

Autophagy serves as the primary intracellular degradation mechanism in which damaged organelles and self-cytoplasmic proteins are transported to the lysosome for degradation. Crohn's disease, an idiopathic chronic inflammatory disorder of the gastrointestinal tract, manifests in diverse regions of the digestive system. Recent research suggests that autophagy modulation may be a new avenue for treating Crohn's disease, and several promising small-molecule modulators of autophagy have been reported as therapeutic options.

Cloning and functional characterization of sesquiterpene synthase genes from Inonotus obliquus using a Saccharomyces cerevisiae expression system.

Inonotus obliquus (Chaga mushroom) is a large medicinal and edible fungus that contains a wealth of bioactive terpenoids. However, the detection of certain low-abundance sesquiterpenoids remains a challenge due to limitations in extraction and analytical techniques. Furthermore, the synthase genes responsible for the biosynthesis of the identified terpenoids have not yet been clearly elucidated.

Differences in radiographic and clinical outcomes of different oblique lumbar interbody fusions for lumbar degenerative diseases: a systematic review and Bayesian network meta-analysis.

To systematically evaluate the differences in the clinical efficacy of lumbar degenerative disorders (LDDs) treatment between oblique lumbar interbody fusion with percutaneous pedicle screw fixation (OLIF-PF), OLIF stand-alone (OLIF-SA), and OLIF with anterolateral screw fixation (OLIF-AF). A systematic search was conducted on both English and Chinese databases, wherein the literature was screened based on title, abstract, and full text. Literature that met the inclusion criteria was assessed for quality and relevant information was extracted.

Strategies to increase the robustness of microbial cell factories.

Engineering microbial cell factories have achieved much progress in producing fuels, natural products and bulk chemicals. However, in industrial fermentation, microbial cells often face various predictable and stochastic disturbances resulting from intermediate metabolites or end product toxicity, metabolic burden and harsh environment. These perturbances can potentially decrease productivity and titer.

Effects of water ammonia nitrogen on hemolymph and intestinal microbiota of Litopenaeus vannamei.

Ammonia stress was detrimental to shrimp, but how water ammonia nitrogen (ammonia-N) influences the shrimp's health remains unclear. Thus, this study was designed to investigate the effects of water ammonia-N on hemolymph ammonia-N concentration, hepatopancreas structure, and the intestinal microbiota of Litopenaeus vannamei with four experiments. We found that the concentration of ammonia-N in shrimp hemolymph was significantly higher than that in pond water, indicating that water ammonia-N stimulates the accumulation of hemolymph ammonia-N.

Regulation of autophagy by protein lipidation.

Autophagy is a conserved catabolic recycling pathway that can eliminate cytosolic materials to maintain homeostasis and organelle functions. Many studies over the past few decades have demonstrated that abnormal autophagy is associated with a variety of diseases. Protein lipidation plays an important role in the regulation of autophagy by affecting protein trafficking, localization, stability, interactions and signal transduction.

Partially hydrolyzed guar gum alleviates neurological deficits and gastrointestinal dysfunction in mice with traumatic brain injury.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI)-associated neuroinflammation and neurotoxicity can induce gastrointestinal dysfunction through the brain-gut axis. Partially hydrolyzed guar gum (PHGG) was demonstrated to exert beneficial health effects by altering gut microbiota and short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) production. Our study aimed to explore the effects of PHGG on gastrointestinal dysfunction in TBI mouse models.