CD8+ T cells and IFN-γ mediate the time-dependent accumulation of infected red blood cells in deep organs during experimental cerebral malaria

Background

Infection with Plasmodium berghei ANKA (PbA) in susceptible mice induces a syndrome called experimental cerebral malaria (ECM) with severe pathologies occurring in various mouse organs. Immune mediators such as T cells or cytokines have been implicated in the pathogenesis of ECM. Red blood cells infected with PbA parasites have been shown to accumulate in the brain and other tissues during infection. This accumulation is thought to be involved in PbA–induced pathologies, which mechanisms are poorly understood.

Methods and Findings

Using transgenic PbA parasites expressing the luciferase protein, we have assessed by real-time in vivo imaging the dynamic and temporal contribution of different immune factors in infected red blood cell (IRBC) accumulation and distribution in different organs during PbA infection. Using deficient mice or depleting antibodies, we observed that CD8⁺ T cells and IFN-γ drive the rapid increase in total parasite biomass and accumulation of IRBC in the brain and in different organs 6–12 days post-infection, at a time when mice develop ECM. Other cells types like CD4⁺ T cells, monocytes or neutrophils or cytokines such as IL-12 and TNF-α did not influence the early increase of total parasite biomass and IRBC accumulation in different organs.

Conclusions

CD8⁺ T cells and IFN-γ are the major immune mediators controlling the time-dependent accumulation of P. berghei-infected red blood cells in tissues.     

csd alleles in the red dwarf honey bee (Apis florea,Hymenoptera: Apidae) show exceptionally high nucleotide diversity

Abstract The single locus complementary sex determination (sl‐csd) gene is the primary gene determining the gender of honey bees (Apis spp.). While the csd gene has been well studied in the Western honey bee (Apis mellifera), and comparable data exist in both the Eastern honey bee (Apis cerana) and the giant honey bee (Apis dorsata), no studies have been conducted in the red dwarf honey bee, Apis florea. In this study we cloned the genomic region 3 of the A. florea csd gene from 60 workers, and identified 12 csd alleles. Analysis showed that similar to A. mellifera, region 3 of the csd gene contains a RS domain at the N terminal, a proline‐rich domain at the C terminal, and a hypervariable region in the middle. However, the A. florea csd gene possessed a much higher level of nucleotide diversity, compared to A. mellifera, A. cerana and Apis dorsata. We also show that similar to the other three Apis species, in A. florea, nonsynonymous mutations in the csd gene are selectively favored in young alleles.     

Icaritin shows potent anti-leukemia activity on chronic myeloid leukemia in vitro and in vivo by regulating MAPK/ERK/JNK and JAK2/STAT3 /AKT signalings

Purpose

To explore the effects of Icaritin on chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) cells and underlying mechanisms.

Method

CML cells were incubated with various concentration of Icaritin for 48 hours, the cell proliferation was analyzed by MTT and the apoptosis was assessed with Annexin V and Hoechst 33258 staining. Cell hemoglobinization was determined. Western blotting was used to evaluate the expressions of MAPK/ERK/JNK signal pathway and Jak-2/Phorpho-Stat3/Phorsph-Akt network-related protein. NOD-SCID nude mice were applied to demonstrate the anti-leukemia effect of Icaritin in vivo.

Results

Icaritin potently inhibited proliferation of K562 cells (IC50 was 8 µM) and primary CML cells (IC50 was 13.4 µM for CML-CP and 18 µM for CML-BC), induced CML cells apoptosis and promoted the erythroid differentiation of K562 cells with time-dependent manner. Furthermore, Icaritin was able to suppress the growth of primary CD34+ leukemia cells (CML) and Imatinib-resistant cells, and to induce apoptosis. In mouse leukemia model, Icaritin could prolong lifespan of NOD-SCID nude mice inoculated with K562 cells as effective as Imatinib without suppression of bone marrow. Icaritin could up-regulate phospho-JNK or phospho-C-Jun and down-regulate phospho-ERK, phospho-P-38, Jak-2, phospho-Stat3 and phospho-Akt expression with dose- or time-dependent manner. Icaritin had no influence both on c-Abl and phospho-c-Abl protein expression and mRNA levels of Bcr/Abl.

Conclusion

Icaritin from Chinese herb medicine may be a potential anti-CML agent with low adverse effect. The mechanism of anti-leukemia for Icaritin is involved in the regulation of Bcr/Abl downstream signaling. Icaritin may be useful for an alternative therapeutic choice of Imatinib-resistant forms of CML.     

影响祁连山区域地貌-水文系统各地理要素的主成分分析

祁连山区域地貌复杂,从而引起水文系统以及生态系统的复杂性。水文系统是引起生态系统复杂的重要原因之一。对影响祁连山区域地貌——水文系统的9个重要地理要素：即流域盆地的总高度、流域的海拔高度、流域周长、河道总长度、河道总数、平均分叉率、河谷最大坡度(度)、河源数以及流域面积进行了综合分析,将其归为3类,即流域盆地的规模,流域侵蚀状况和流域河系形态。在此基础上,认为若要在以后对影响祁连山区域地貌——水文系统地理要素进行分析时,可以直接选取流域面积,流域盆地出口的海拔高度和河道分叉率作为3类地理要素的代表,进行区域地貌——水文系统分析,从而能够降低分析问题的疑难程度与复杂性。     

Life expectancy of oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) infected by Ganoderma boninense in coastal soils,Malaysia: a case study

Ganoderma boninense basal stem rot poses a serious threat to the oil palm industry. The effects of external disease symptoms and coastal soils (Briah – Typic Endoaquepts, Jawa – Typic Sulfaquepts, and Selangor – Typic Humaquepts) on the life expectancy of the infected palms, from disease detection to death, were studied. Six-monthly censuses on disease classes for each palm were recorded between 2004 and 2012. Survival curves of disease symptoms and soil types were compared using Kaplan–Meier and log-rank methods, respectively. Ganoderma-infected palms in acid-sulphate (AS) and potential AS soils recorded lower life expectancy. Survival duration of infected palms with foliar symptoms was 12-months shorter. External factors, such as soil type may influence the survival of infected palms and soil types may pre-dispose oil palm to higher risk of Ganoderma infection. More effective Ganoderma management for palms planted on Coastal soils (with and without AS layer) have been proposed.     

人参辐照贮藏保鲜技术研究

人参辐照贮藏保鲜技术,为人参加工业开辟了新途径,鲜人参经清洗、抗坏血酸预处理、造型装入0．07－0．1mm的聚乙烯－尼龙复合膜袋,抽真空充氮气封口,采用0．3－0．6KGY剂量处理,辐照保鲜人参的药效成份损失少,易提取,不霉变虫蛀,人参主要成从皂甙辐照组与对照组无显著差异,毒性试验辐照组与对照组无明显差异,在常温条件下贮藏12个月,保鲜率达98％以上。     

Effects of BmCPV Infection on Silkworm Bombyx mori Intestinal Bacteria

The gut microbiota has a crucial role in the growth, development and environmental adaptation in the host insect. The objective of our work was to investigate the microbiota of the healthy silkworm Bombyx mori gut and changes after the infection of B. mori cypovirus (BmCPV). Intestinal contents of the infected and healthy larvae of B. mori of fifth instar were collected at 24, 72 and 144 h post infection with BmCPV. The gut bacteria were analyzed by pyrosequencing of the 16S rRNA gene. 147(135) and 113(103) genera were found in the gut content of the healthy control female (male) larvae and BmCPV-infected female (male) larvae, respectively. In general, the microbial communities in the gut content of healthy larvae were dominated by Enterococcus, Delftia, Pelomonas, Ralstonia and Staphylococcus, however the abundance change of each genus was depended on the developmental stage and gender. Microbial diversity reached minimum at 144 h of fifth instar larvae. The abundance of Enterococcus in the females was substantially lower and the abundance of Delftia, Aurantimonas and Staphylococcus was substantially higher compared to the males. Bacterial diversity in the intestinal contents decreased after post infection with BmCPV, whereas the abundance of both Enterococcus and Staphylococcus which belongs to Gram-positive were increased. Therefore, our findings suggested that observed changes in relative abundance was related to the immune response of silkworm to BmCPV infection. Relevance analysis of plenty of the predominant genera showed the abundance of the Enterococcus genus was in negative correlation with the abundance of the most predominant genera. These results provided insight into the relationship between the gut microbiota and development of the BmCPV-infected silkworm.     

玫瑰花红色素及其稳定性研究

以玫瑰花色素作为新型天然食用色素的可行性进行了初步研究。对光、温度、ｐＨ值、氧化介质、还原介质、蔗糖、咸味（ＮａＣｌ）、铝制品（ＦｅＣｌ３）、铜制品（ＣｕＣｌ２）、锡制品（ＳｎＣｌ２）等对色素的稳定性影响,进行了初步探讨。结果表明,该色素对光、热耐受性好;适用ｐＨ值范围宽;耐氧化性较差,耐还原性较好;Ｆｅ＾３＋和Ｓｎ＾２＋对其吸光值有明显影响,Ｃｕ＾２＋、Ａｌ＾３＋、食盐和蔗糖则影响甚微。     

Protein flexibility prediction by an all-atom mean-field statistical theory

We extended a mean-field model to proteins with all atomic detail. The all-atom mean-field model was used to calculate the dynamic and thermodynamic properties of a three-helix bundle fragment of Staphylococcal protein A (Protein Data Bank [PDB] ID 1BDD) and alpha-spectrin SH3 domain protein (PDB ID 1SHG). We show that a model with all-atomic detail provides a significantly more accurate prediction of flexibility of residues in proteins than does a coarse-grained residue-level model. The accuracy of flexibility prediction is further confirmed by application of the method to 18 additional proteins with the largest size of 224 residues.