Accuracy of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry for direct bacterial identification from culture-positive urine samples.

Background: Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most frequent reasons for antimicrobial therapy. In typical clinical setting, 18-48 h is needed to identify pathogens by urine culture. A rapid method for pathogenic UTI diagnosis by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has been developed in recent years.

Rapid, quantitative, and high-sensitivity detection of anti-phospholipase A2 receptor antibodies using a novel CdSe/ZnS-based fluorescence immunosorbent assay.

Autoantibodies against M-type phospholipase A2 receptor (PLA2R) serve as specific biomarkers for idiopathic membranous nephropathy (IMN), and its quantification helps monitor disease activity. In this study, we describe a rapid and highly sensitive quantum dots-based immunochromatography assay (QD-ICA) for quantifying PLA2R autoantibodies. Serum samples from 135 biopsy-confirmed patients with nephrotic syndrome were analyzed for PLA2R autoantibodies using the novel QD-ICA as well as commercialized enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

Ephrin-A2 promotes prostate cancer metastasis by enhancing angiogenesis and promoting EMT.

Background: Ephrin-A2, a member of the Eph receptor subgroup, is used in diagnosing and determining the prognosis of prostate cancer. However, the role of ephrin-A2 in prostate cancer is remains elusive.

Methods: We established stable clones overexpressing or silencing ephrin-A2 from prostate cancer cells.

SERS-Based Immunoassay Enhanced with Silver Probe for Selective Separation and Detection of Alzheimer's Disease Biomarkers.

Purpose: Developing a sensitive SERS-based method to quantitatively detect serum biomarkers (Aβ1-42 and P-Tau-181) for the early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD).

Methods: In this study, a novel SERS-based sandwich immunoassay, which consists of tannin-capped silver nanoparticles and magnetic graphene oxide (FeO@GOs), was developed. We firstly applied this method for the detection of protein standards in buffer solution, obtaining the regression equation.

Rapid Detection Method for Pathogenic Captured by Magnetic Nanoparticles and Identified Using SERS via AgNPs.

Purpose: Candidemia infection is common in the clinic and has a high mortality rate. , and are very important and common pathogenic species. is difficult to isolate from clinical samples and culture, and immunological detection cannot distinguish these related strains.

Clinical findings in a group of COVID-19 patients: a single-center retrospective study.

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is spreading rapidly across countries and has infected tens of millions of people all over the world. So far, the pandemic is ongoing globally, and the situation is still worsening.

Methods: In this retrospective, single-center cohort analysis, we included 25 adult inpatients with laboratory confirmed COVID-19 disease from the affiliated hospital of Xuzhou Medical University (Xuzhou, China).

A narrative review of relationship between gut microbiota and neuropsychiatric disorders: mechanisms and clinical application of probiotics and prebiotics.

The gut microbiota is a kind of fixed-value bacteria in the human intestine, characterized by a large quantity, a wide variety and interdependence with each other and with the host. The gut microbiota is considered to be an important link in maintaining health and pathogenic mechanism of many diseases. The gut microbiota affects the central nervous system under the action of the microbe-gut-brain axis through nerve, immune, endocrine and metabolic pathways.

Teasaponin Ameliorates Murine Colitis by Regulating Gut Microbiota and Suppressing the Immune System Response.

Dietary intervention is an exciting topic in current research of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The effect of teasaponin (TS) on IBD has not been fully elucidated. Here, we aim to investigate the intestinal anti-inflammatory activity of TS in a dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced colitis mouse model and identify potential mechanisms.

A comprehensive, longitudinal analysis of humoral responses specific to four recombinant antigens of SARS-CoV-2 in severe and non-severe COVID-19 patients.

There is an urgent need for effective treatment and preventive vaccine to contain this devastating global pandemic, which requires a comprehensive understanding of humoral responses specific to SARS-CoV-2 during the disease progression and convalescent phase of COVID-19 patients. We continuously monitored the serum IgM and IgG responses specific to four SARS-CoV-2 related antigens, including the nucleoprotein (NP), receptor binding domain (RBD), S1 protein, and ectodomain (ECD) of the spike protein among non-severe and severe COVID-19 patients for seven weeks since disease onset. Most patients generated humoral responses against NP and spike protein-related antigens but with their distinct kinetics profiles.

Comparative genome analysis of 12 Shigella sonnei strains: virulence, resistance, and their interactions.

Shigellosis is a highly infectious disease that is mainly transmitted via fecal-oral contact of the bacteria Shigella. Four species have been identified in Shigella genus, among which Shigella flexneri is used to be the most prevalent species globally and commonly isolated from developing countries. However, it is being replaced by Shigella sonnei that is currently the main causative agent for dysentery pandemic in many emerging industrialized countries such as Asia and the Middle East.

Development and evaluation of a rapid CRISPR-based diagnostic for COVID-19.

The recent outbreak of human infections caused by SARS-CoV-2, the third zoonotic coronavirus has raised great public health concern globally. Rapid and accurate diagnosis of this novel pathogen posts great challenges not only clinically but also technologically. Metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) and reverse-transcription PCR (RT-PCR) have been the most commonly used molecular methodologies.

Characterization of the lung microbiome and exploration of potential bacterial biomarkers for lung cancer.

Background: Emerging evidence has suggested that dysbiosis of the lung microbiota may be associated with the development of lung diseases. However, the interplay between the lung microbiome and lung cancer remains unclear. The aim of the present study was to evaluate and compare differences in taxonomic and derived functional profiles in the lung microbiota between lung cancer and benign pulmonary diseases.

Laboratory diagnosis of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19).

The outbreak of Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has threatened health worldwide. As of the end of 2020, there were nearly 10 million confirmed cases and nearly 5 million deaths associated with COVID-19. Rapid and early laboratory diagnosis of COVID-19 is the main focus of treatment and control.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry combined with UF-5000i urine flow cytometry to directly identify pathogens in clinical urine specimens within 1 hour.

Background: Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most common hospital-associated infectious. The traditional laboratory diagnosis method for UTI requires at least 24 hours, and it cannot provide the etiology basis for the clinic in time. The aim of our study is to develop a new method for pathogenic diagnosis of UTI by combining matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) and UF-5000i from urine samples directly within 1 hour.

Comparative analysis of laboratory indexes of severe and non-severe patients infected with COVID-19.

Background: The pandemic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has threaten the global health. The characteristics of laboratory findings of coronavirus are of great significance for clinical diagnosis and treatment. We found indicators that may most effectively predict a non-severe COVID-19 patient develop into a severe patient.

Plasma Exosomal Long Noncoding RNA lnc-SLC2A12-10:1 as a Novel Diagnostic Biomarker for Gastric Cancer.

Purpose: Exosomes participate in cellular communications by transmitting active molecules, including long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) and are regarded as suitable candidates for disease diagnosis. This study aimed to identify gastric cancer (GC)-specific exosomal lncRNA and investigate the potential diagnostic value of plasma exosomal lncRNA in GC.

Patients And Methods: Exosomes from the culture media (CM) of four GC cells (GCCs) and human gastric epithelial cells were isolated.

Teasaponin suppresses filamentation by reducing the level of intracellular cAMP.

Background: Candidiasis has long been a threat to human health, but cytotoxicity and resistance always block the usefulness of antifungal agents. The ability to switch between yeast and hypha is one of the most discussed virulence trait attributes of the human pathogenic fungus . The morphological transition provides a novel target for developing antifungal drugs.

Different longitudinal patterns of nucleic acid and serology testing results based on disease severity of COVID-19 patients.

Effective strategy to mitigate the ongoing pandemic of 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) require a comprehensive understanding of humoral responses against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the emerging virus causing COVID-19. The dynamic profile of viral replication and shedding along with viral antigen specific antibody responses among COVID-19 patients started to be reported but there is no consensus on their patterns. Here, we conducted a serial investigation on 21 individuals infected with SARS-CoV-2 in two medical centres from Jiangsu Province, including 11 non-severe COVID-19 patients, and 5 severe COVID-19 patients and 5 asymptomatic carriers based on nucleic acid test and clinical symptoms.

piRNAs Regulated by Mitochondria Variation Linked With Reproduction and Aging in .

In , the binding of Piwi protein to a non-coding RNA form, called piRNA, has been found to be important to both reproductive and aging processes. As the biosynthesis of piRNA is modulated by mitochondrial function, it is likely that the interaction between mitochondrial function and piRNA expression plays an unknown, yet important, role in reproductive and aging processes because both processes are known to be affected by declines in mitochondrial quality and activity. While the relationship between reproduction and longevity is not characterized in full, the optimality theory of aging and the disposable soma theory suggest that a trade-off between energy and resources is needed for reproductive and aging maintenance.

Human infection caused by Streptococcus suis serotype 2 in China: report of two cases and epidemic distribution based on sequence type.

Background: Streptococcus suis is a zoonotic pathogen that causes serious systemic infections in pigs and occupation-related infections in humans who contact with pigs or pork products. In China, it has caused two outbreaks of human infection and surveillance for S.suis has been ongoing since last time.

The whole transcriptome regulation as a function of mitochondrial polymorphisms and aging in .

Recently, mitochondrial-nuclear interaction in aging has been widely studied. However, the nuclear genome controlled by natural mitochondrial variations that influence aging has not been comprehensively understood so far. We hypothesized that mitochondrial polymorphisms could play critical roles in the aging process, probably by regulation of the whole-transcriptome expression.

Mini Review: Recent Advances in the Cell-Based Therapies for Cardiac Regeneration.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality globally, and traditional pharmaceutical and surgical interventions delay the progression of CVDs. Recently, stem cell therapy has emerged as a promising candidate for treating and preventing heart failure. Increasing efforts have been devoted towards the exploration and identification of potential cell types to repair the injured heart, such as skeletal myoblasts, embryonic, induced pluripotent, bone marrowderived, mesenchymal, and resident cardiac stem cells.

The impact of dietary fiber and probiotics in infectious diseases.

Although antibiotics are commonly used to treat infectious diseases, emergence of antibiotic resistant strains highlights the necessity for developing novel alternative approaches. Meanwhile, clinically, antibiotics can destroy the gut microbes balance, which is not conducive to the recovery of infectious disorders. As a result, recent studies have begun to explore potential prevention and treatment methods for infectious diseases, starting with more readily available dietary fiber and probiotics.