Risks of maternal prepregnancy overweight/obesity,excessive gestational weight gain,and bottle-feeding in infancy rapid weight gain: evidence from a cohort study in China

Rapid weight gain(RWG) in infants is associated with numerous health problems, and its risk factors are still unclear. We assessed 98,097 maternal-infant pairs from a population-based cohort study and followed up with them until the infants were6 months old. We assessed the associations between maternal prepregnancy weight status; gestational weight gain; feeding pattern; and infants' RWG at 0–1, 0–3, 1–3, and 3–6 months using multivariate unconditional logistic regression models, with controlled confounders. We found that maternal prepregnancy weight status, gestational weight gain, and feeding pattern at the1 st, 3 rd, and 6 th months had significant impacts on the infants' RWG at each time period(P0.05). Infants with overweight/obese mothers had a higher risk of RWG after birth, whereas those of mothers who experienced excessive gestational weight gain had higher risks of RWG from birth than the other groups(P0.01). Infants who were formula-fed had a higher risk of RWG than breastfed infants at the same time point(P0.01). In conclusion, maternal prepregnancy obesity, excessive gestational weight gain, and formula-feeding were risk factors for infants' RWG during the first 6 months of life.     

Melanopsin-expressing retinal ganglion cell loss and behavioral analysis in the Thy1-CFP-DBA/2J mouse model of glaucoma

In this study,the role of melanopsin-expressing retinal ganglion cells(mRGCs) in the glaucoma-induced depressive behavioral response pattern was investigated.The CFP-D2 transgenic glaucoma animal model from five age groups was used in this study.Immunohistochemical labeling,quantitative analysis of mRGC morphology,open field test(OFT),and statistical analysis were used.In comparison with C57 BL/6 mice,the age-matched CFP-D2 mice had significantly elevated intraocular pressure(IOP).We observed parallel morphological changes in the retina,including a reduction in the density of cyan fluorescent protein(CFP) expressing cells(cells mm 2 at 2 months of age,1309±26;14 months,878±30,P<0.001),mRGCs(2 months,48±3;14 months,19±4,P<0.001),Brn3b-expressing RGCs(2 months,1283±80;14 months,950±31,P<0.001),Brn-3b expressing mRGCs(5 months,50.17%±5.5%;14 months,12.61%±3.8%,P<0.001),and reduction in the dendritic field size of mRGCs(mm2 at 2 months,0.077±0.015;14 months,0.065±0.015,P<0.05).CFP-D2 mice had hyperactive locomotor activity patterns based on OFT findings of the total distance traveled,number of entries into the center,and time spent in the center of the testing apparatus.The glaucoma induced hyperactive response pattern could be associated with dysfunctional mRGCs,most likely Brn-3b-positive mRGCs in CFP-D2 mice.     

Single-cell transcriptional profile of ACE2 in healthy and failing human hearts

正Dear Editor,The coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19) pandemic, which is caused by SARS-Co V-2, has gained serious attention from medical practitioners around the world in the past few months. Approximately 20% of critically ill COVID-19 patients were reported to have suffered myocardial injury. The specific mechanism of this pathology requires further investigation(Yang et al., 2020).     

Zika virus and neural developmental defects: building a case for a cause

正Zika virus(ZIKV),a little-known flavivirus until a few months ago,is currently at the forefront of public health concerns worldwide because of its suspected role in causing microcephaly and other developmental defects in fetuses of infected mothers.On February 1,2016,the World Health Organization declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern(PHEIC)for ZIKV.Discovered more than     

Active EB virus infection in adults: a case series of 8 patients in a single institution and a review of related literature

Adult patients with chronic active EB virus infection (CAEBV) are few; however the disease runs an aggressive course. The goal of this study was to investigate the clinical characteristics, treatment as well as prognosis of CAEBV in adults. The clinical data of eight adult patients with CAEBV of were analyzed retrospectively. There were five male and three female patients with a median age of 47 (25-67) years old. The main clinical manifestations were fever, lymphadenopathy, splenomegaly, liver damage, abnormal coagulation and cytopenia. Peripheral blood EB virus DNA titers were significantly higher in all patients (4.14×10⁴—4.60×10⁵copy/mL). Most patients received treatment with glucocorticoids, cyclosporine and chemotherapy containing etoposide (as recommended in the HLH-2004 program or the scheme of ECOP). One patient progressed to aggressive natural killer (NK) cell leukemia in 5 months after diagnosis. Another patient without fever or cytopenia is still living now, after receiving hormone therapy. The remaining 6 cases died with a median survival of 15 months. In conclusion, CAEBV in adults is a rare but serious disease, often with multiple system damage, from which the prognosis is very poor. Further research is necessary to improve the understanding of this disease.     

INSTRUCTIONS TO CONTRIBUTORS

Acta Zootaxonomica Sinica is a scientific journal in Chinese and English for the publication of original papers in zoological taxonomy. Acta Zootaxonomica Sinica is listed in "Abstract Journal", "Entomology Abstracts", "Zoological Record" and other abstracting journals. The main emphasis of the journal is the publication of original research papers, on zootaxonomy,zoogeography, morphology, systematics, animal evolution, discussion of zoological district, development summarizing and the application of new technology and methods in zoological taxonomy.We welcome papers in English from overseas authors. The publication cycle is about 6-9 months.     

Injectable collagen scaffold promotes swine myocardial infarction recovery by long-term local retention of transplanted human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells

Stem cell therapy is an attractive approach for recovery from myocardial infarction(MI) but faces the challenges of rapid diffusion and poor survival after transplantation. Here we developed an injectable collagen scaffold to promote the long-term retention of transplanted cells in chronic MI. Forty-five minipigs underwent left anterior descending artery(LAD) ligation and were equally divided into three groups 2 months later(collagen scaffold loading with human umbilical mesenchymal stem cell(hUMSC) group, hUMSC group, and placebo group(only phosphate-buffered saline(PBS) injection)). Immunofluorescence staining indicated that the retention of transplanted cells was promoted by the collagen scaffold. Echocardiography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging(CMR) showed much higher left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF) and lower infarct size percentage in the collagen/hUMSC group than in the hUMSC and placebo groups at 12 months after treatment. There were also higher densities of vWf-, α-sma-, and cTnT-positive cells in the infarct border zone in the collagen/cell group, as revealed by immunohistochemical analysis, suggesting better angiogenesis and more cardiomyocyte survival after MI. Thus, the injectable collagen scaffold was safe and effective on a large animal myocardial model, which is beneficial for constructing a favorable microenvironment for applying stem cells in clinical MI.     

Early candidate biomarkers found from urine of glioblastoma multiforme rat before changes in MRI

正Dear Editor,Gliomas are the most frequent primary tumors of the central nervous system,accounting for more than 60%of all brain tumors(Wang and Bettegowda,2015).Among them,glioblastoma multiforme(GBM)is the most common aggressive glioma,and the average survival rate remains low(Chen et al.,2015).The standard combination of surgery and radiotherapy or chemotherapy can only extend the progressionfree survival time for 12–18 months,with a high risk of recurrence(Li et al.,2008).In addition,the incidence of GBM     

Predicative value of urinary protein biomarkers on delayed renal involvement in children with Henoch-Schönlein purpura

<正>Dear Editor,Henoch-Sch?nlein purpura(HSP) is one of the most common vasculitides in children with the incidence of 10–30 cases per 100,000 per year(Chen and Mao, 2015) and its prognosis primarily depends on the extent of renal involvement. However, the onset of renal involvement may be delayed for weeks or months after the appearance of acute symptoms in HSP patients and easily be omitted(Mao et al.,2014). The increased urine protein biomarkers were remarkable indicators of early renal damage or early renal     

The sensitization of glioma cells to cisplatin and tamoxifen by the use of catechin

Telomerase expression strongly correlates with the grade of malignancy in glioma with inhibition illustrating a definite increase in chemosensitivity. This study was designed to investigate the effects of a green tea derivative, epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG); together with either cisplatin or tamoxifen in glioma, and to investigate whether these effects are mediated through telomerase suppression. EGCG showed a significant cytotoxic effect on 1321N1 cells after 24 h and on U87-MG cells after 72 h (P < 0.001) without significantly affecting the normal astrocytes. Treatment with EGCG inhibited telomerase expression significantly (P < 0.01) and enhanced the effect of cisplatin and tamoxifen in both 1321N1 (P < 0.01) and U87-MG (P < 0.001) cells. EGCG, as a natural product has enormous potential to be an anti-cancer agent capable of enhancing tumour cell sensitivity to therapy.     

鹅不食草提取物对人鼻咽癌细胞CNE-1增殖抑制和凋亡诱导作用

考察鹅不食草提取物对人高分化鼻咽癌细胞CNE-1增殖的抑制作用,初步探讨其抗鼻咽癌分子机制。95%乙醇提取鹅不食草全草,噻唑蓝(MTT)法观察不同浓度提取物在不同时间对人高分化鼻咽癌细胞CNE-1增殖的抑制作用,Hoechst 33258荧光染色观察CNE-1凋亡情况及形态学变化,Western Blot检测CNE-1细胞内抗凋亡蛋白Bcl-2和促凋亡蛋白Bax的表达。结果表明:鹅不食草醇提物能显著抑制CNE-1增殖(P<0.01),并呈现明显的时间-剂量依赖性,其中诱导48和72 h的IC50分别为30.0和25.0μg/mL。阳性对照药顺铂的IC50为0.79μg/mL。Hoechst 33258荧光染色观察发现给药组CNE-1细胞出现不同程度细胞核变圆变亮,核染色质浓缩,产生核小体等明显的凋亡特征。Bcl-2蛋白相对表达量随醇提物浓度的增大而下降,Bax蛋白相对表达量随醇提物浓度的增大而上升,二者与对照组相比均有显著性差异(P<0.01)。鹅不食草醇提物对体外人高分化鼻咽癌细胞CNE-1具有明显的增殖抑制和凋亡诱导作用,其分子作用机制可能与Bcl-2蛋白表达下调、Bax蛋白表达上调有关。     

A Truncated Form of p23 Down-regulates Telomerase Activity via Disruption of Hsp90 Function

The Hsp90-associated protein p23 modulates Hsp90 activity during the final stages of the chaperone pathway to facilitate maturation of client proteins. Previous reports indicate that p23 cleavage induced by caspases during cell death triggers destabilization of client proteins. However, the specific role of truncated p23 (Δp23) in this process and the underlying mechanisms remain to be determined. One such client protein, hTERT, is a telomerase catalytic subunit regulated by several chaperone proteins, including Hsp90 and p23. In the present study, we examined the effects of p23 cleavage on hTERT stability and telomerase activity. Our data showed that overexpression of Δp23 resulted in a decrease in hTERT levels, and a down-regulation in telomerase activity. Serine phosphorylation of Hsp90 was significantly reduced in cells expressing high levels of Δp23 compared with those expressing full-length p23. Mutation analyses revealed that two serine residues (Ser-231 and Ser-263) in Hsp90 are important for activation of telomerase, and down-regulation of telomerase activity by Δp23 was associated with inhibition of cell growth and sensitization of cells to cisplatin. Our data aid in determining the mechanism underlying the regulation of telomerase activity by the chaperone complex during caspase-dependent cell death.