The elimination of fox rabies from Europe: determinants of success and lessons for the future

Despite perceived challenges to controlling an infectious disease in wildlife, oral rabies vaccination (ORV) of foxes has proved a remarkably successful tool and a prime example of a sophisticated strategy to eliminate disease from wildlife reservoirs. During the past three decades, the implementation of ORV programmes in 24 countries has led to the elimination of fox-mediated rabies from vast areas of Western and Central Europe. In this study, we evaluated the efficiency of 22 European ORV programmes between 1978 and 2010. During this period an area of almost 1.9 million km² was targeted at least once with vaccine baits, with control taking between 5 and 26 years depending upon the country. We examined factors influencing effort required both to control and eliminate fox rabies as well as cost-related issues of these programmes. The proportion of land area ever affected by rabies and an index capturing the size and overlap of successive ORV campaigns were identified as factors having statistically significant effects on the number of campaigns required to both control and eliminate rabies. Repeat comprehensive campaigns that are wholly overlapping much more rapidly eliminate infection and are less costly in the long term. Disproportionally greater effort is required in the final phase of an ORV programme, with a median of 11 additional campaigns required to eliminate disease once incidence has been reduced by 90 per cent. If successive ORV campaigns span the entire affected area, rabies will be eliminated more rapidly than if campaigns are implemented in a less comprehensive manner, therefore reducing ORV expenditure in the longer term. These findings should help improve the planning and implementation of ORV programmes, and facilitate future decision-making by veterinary authorities and policy-makers.     

木霉对草酸耐受和消除作用的初步分析

【目的】草酸(Oxalic acid,OA)是灰霉菌(Botrytis cinerea)等植物致病菌的致病因子,一些木霉(Trichoderma spp.)生防菌可消除草酸并降低植物发病率,但其消除草酸防治病害的途径和机制尚未研究透彻。【方法】首先从42株木霉菌株中筛选出一株在30 mmol/L草酸胁迫下耐受性最强的哈茨木霉T.harzianum LTR-2,通过形态学方法观察和原位分析了不同浓度草酸胁迫下LTR-2的发育特征变化,并测定了草酸消除水平、滤液p H和菌丝干重,分析了LTR-2在草酸为唯一碳源的生长情况。通过Real-time PCR分析了OXDC基因LTR_4445在草酸处理下的表达水平。【结果】在PDA固体培养基中,25°C半光照条件下培养5 d,在草酸浓度为50-80 mmol/L时,LTR-2可存活,但无正常菌落形态;在30-50 mmol/L浓度下,LTR-2先萌发厚垣孢子,而后再次萌发菌丝形成菌落;在30 mmol/L浓度下,LTR-2发育正常,仅生长速度减缓。25°C、160 r/min振荡培养5 d,LTR-2可消除草酸。在20 mmol/L浓度时,草酸消除率最高,为66.50%;10 mmol/L浓度中的消除率次之,为55.06%。草酸浓度50 mmol/L时,消除能力下降为6.75%-38.94%。相应地,培养液p H被不同程度地提高,在10、20 mmol/L草酸浓度下提高的幅度更大。当草酸浓度20 mmol/L时,木霉的菌丝干重有不同程度的提高。将草酸作为唯一碳源进行液体培养5 d时,在10、20 mmol/L浓度下,LTR-2可形成肉眼可见的绿色菌丝球,但高于50 mmol/L条件下无法生长。草酸处理下,LTR_4445表达水平上调。【结论】通过分析LTR-2在草酸胁迫条件下的形态特征变化及消除草酸的特性,暗示在木霉消除草酸作用中除了已知的草酸降解代谢途径,还存在响应草酸胁迫模式的转变、将草酸作为前体转化为营养物质的途径等其他消除途径。     

Cyanobacterial bioactive metabolites—A review of their chemistry and biology

Cyanobacterial blooms occur when algal densities exceed baseline population concentrations. Cyanobacteria can produce a large number of secondary metabolites. Odorous metabolites affect the smell and flavor of aquatic animals, whereas bioactive metabolites cause a range of lethal and sub-lethal effects in plants, invertebrates, and vertebrates, including humans. Herein, the bioactivity, chemistry, origin, and biosynthesis of these cyanobacterial secondary metabolites were reviewed. With recent revision of cyanobacterial taxonomy by Anagnostidis and Komárek as part of the Süβwasserflora von Mitteleuropa volumes 19(1–3), names of many cyanobacteria that produce bioactive compounds have changed, thereby confusing readers. The original and new nomenclature are included in this review to clarify the origins of cyanobacterial bioactive compounds.Due to structural similarity, the 157 known bioactive classes produced by cyanobacteria have been condensed to 55 classes. This review will provide a basis for more formal procedures to adopt a logical naming system. This review is needed for efficient management of water resources to understand, identify, and manage cyanobacterial harmful algal bloom impacts.     

Population biology of a selfish sex ratio distorting element in a booklouse (Psocodea: Liposcelis)

Arthropods harbour a variety of selfish genetic elements that manipulate reproduction to be preferentially transmitted to future generations. A major ongoing question is to understand how these elements persist in nature. In this study, we examine the population dynamics of an unusual selfish sex ratio distorter in a recently discovered species of booklouse, Liposcelis sp. (Psocodea: Liposcelididae) to gain a better understanding of some of the factors that may affect the persistence of this element. Females that carry the selfish genetic element only ever produce daughters, although they are obligately sexual. These females also only transmit the maternal half of their genome. We performed a replicated population cage experiment, varying the initial frequency of females that harbour the selfish element, and following female frequencies for 20 months. The selfish genetic element persisted in all cages, often reaching very high (and thus severely female‐biased) frequencies. Surprisingly, we also found that females that carry the selfish genetic element had much lower fitness than their nondistorter counterparts, with lower lifetime fecundity, slower development and a shorter egg‐laying period. We suggest that differential fitness plays a role in the maintenance of the selfish genetic element in this species. We believe that the genetic system in this species, paternal genome elimination, which allows maternal control of offspring sex ratio, may also be important in the persistence of the selfish genetic element, highlighting the need to consider species with diverse ecologies and genetic systems when investigating the effects of sex ratio manipulators on host populations.     

Effects of tau phosphorylation on proteasome activity

Dysfunction of proteasome contributes to the accumulation of the abnormally hyperphosphorylated tau in Alzheimer's disease. However, whether tau hyperphosphorylation and accumulation affect the activity of proteasome is elusive. Here we found that a moderate tau phosphorylation activated the trypsin-like activity of proteasome, whereas further phosphorylation of tau inhibited the activity of the protease in HEK293 cells stably expressing tau441. Furthermore, tau hyperphosphorylation could partially reverse lactacystin-induced inhibition of proteasome. These results suggest that phosphorylation of tau plays a dual role in modulating the activity of proteasome.     

Cdkn2a示踪小鼠:研究创伤性骨关节炎软骨退变细胞衰老的新模型

骨关节炎(osteoarthritis,OA)是临床上最为常见的老年性运动系统疾病之一。研究表明,衰老是OA发生发展的重要影响因素之一,但其具体作用及机制尚未完全清楚。本研究通过CRISPR/Cas9技术,建立了Cdkn2a-e(Luc-2A-tdTomato-2A-CreERT2-WPRE-pA)1定点敲入的杂合子小鼠模型,可在小鼠活体内追踪衰老经典标记物Cdkn2a(p16, p16INK4a)的表达情况,结合前交叉韧带横断术(ACLT)诱导OA小鼠模型,将OA病理进程中的衰老变化在体外直观呈现,明确衰老与OA之间的关系。本研究选取10 ～ 12周龄Cdkn2a小鼠,随机分为非手术对照组、假手术组和ACLT组,通过ACLT手术在小鼠中构建OA的模型,术后4周收取动物进行活体荧光成像检测显示,ACLT组术后4周的小鼠膝关节局部Cdkn2a荧光表达升高(P＜0.05),小鼠膝关节组织切片的番红O固绿染色显示,4周时ACLT组膝关节软骨出现退变(P＜0.05),对小鼠膝关节组织进行Cdkn2a免疫组织化学染色,相较其他2个组,ACLT组的小鼠膝关节组织软骨表面Cdkn2a染色更深。研究结果显示,通过手术诱导的OA模型在局部具有衰老的表现,这进一步验证了衰老和OA的关系。同时,该Cdkn2a示踪小鼠模型能够在活体小鼠内体现衰老的进展。结合影像学检查,可以实时观察衰老和OA发生、进展的关系,为衰老与OA疾病机制的研究提供了良好的模型,也为今后进行靶向衰老进行OA的治疗提供了很好的研究工具。     

小分子药物BNTA通过上调Insig1缓解高胆固醇引起的骨关节炎

骨关节炎(osteoarthritis,OA)是运动系统常见的退行性疾病,具有高发病率和高致残率。骨关节炎的发病机制目前尚不明确,既往研究认为骨关节炎发病主要与创伤因素相关,而近期研究表明,以胆固醇代谢异常为主的代谢性因素同样与骨关节炎密切相关,骨关节炎的治疗以早期对症治疗和晚期手术治疗为主,尚无针对病因的特效药物。既往研究中发现,有一种具有软骨保护作用的小分子药物BNTA,其在创伤引起的骨关节炎中具有较好的疗效,但其对高胆固醇引起的骨关节炎的作用尚不明确。本研究为探究BNTA对高胆固醇引起的骨关节炎的治疗作用及其机制,采用高胆固醇饮食构建了大鼠骨关节炎模型,取膝关节石蜡切片进行组织学评估,使用油红O染色评估大鼠软骨细胞内的脂质积聚情况,使用RT-qPCR、免疫荧光和免疫组化评估软骨细胞合成代谢、分解代谢及胆固醇代谢相关基因和蛋白质的表达。结果显示,BNTA可缓解高胆固醇大鼠骨关节炎模型中的病理表现,改善OARSI评分。在大鼠软骨细胞中,BNTA可促进合成代谢相关基因col2、sox9、acan的表达,抑制分解代谢相关基因mmp13、adamts5的表达,可改善高胆固醇引起的大鼠软骨细胞脂质积聚。在大鼠软骨细胞和高胆固醇大鼠骨关节炎模型中BNTA均可上调Insig1表达。本研究证实,高胆固醇可在体内和体外实验中加重骨关节炎,可引起大鼠软骨细胞脂质积聚增加。在体内和体外实验中BNTA均能缓解高胆固醇引起的骨关节炎表型,改善软骨细胞内的异常脂质积聚,其作用可能为通过上调Insig1抑制细胞内的胆固醇生物合成,从而缓解脂质异常积聚。     

Effect of microfragmented adipose tissue on osteoarthritic synovial macrophage factors

Cell-based therapies using adipose-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (ADMSCs) have shown promising results for the treatment of osteoarthritis (OA). In fact, ADMSCs are now indicated as one of the most powerful cell sources through their immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory activities. Recently, an innovative one-step closed device was developed to obtain microfragmented adipose tissue (MF) to avoid the need for good manufacturing practices for ADMSCs expansion while maintaining their regenerative potential. The aim of this study was to assess the mechanisms of action of MF and ADMSCs from MF (MF-ADMSCs) on an inflammatory cell model of OA synoviocytes. We found that MF produced low levels of inflammatory factors such as interleukin 6 (IL-6), CC-chemokine ligand 5/receptor-activated normal T-cell expressed and secreted (CCL5/RANTES), CC-chemokine ligand 2/monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (CCL2/MCP-1), and CC-chemokine ligand 3/macrophage inflammatory protein-1α (CCL3/MIP-1α), and a higher level only of CXC-chemokine ligand 8/interleukin 8 compared with MF-ADMSCs. Matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9) degradative factor but released a lower level of its inhibitor tissue inhibitor of the metalloproteinase (TIMP-1). MF in coculture with synoviocytes significantly induced both the metabolic activity and the release of IL-6. In contrast, MF, not MF-ADMSCs, partially decreased CCL5/RANTES. Moreover, MF reduced the release of both macrophage-specific chemokines (CCL2/MCP-1 and CCL3/MIP-1α) and degradative marker MMP-9. Interestingly, MF increased TIMP-1 (the MMP-9 inhibitor) and down-modulated toll-like receptor (TLR4) receptor and key molecules of NFκB pathways. These data evidenced different effects of MF versus MF-ADMSCs on inflamed synoviocytes. MF reduced typical macrophages markers and its potentiality by switching off macrophages activity was strictly dependent on TLR4 and NFκB signaling.     

Shared KEGG pathways of icariin-targeted genes and osteoarthritis

The beneficial effects of icariin in the management of many diseases, such as chronic renal failure and heart failure, are well known. Icariin has also been shown to ameliorate osteoarthritis (OA) symptoms; however, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, a bioinformatics analysis was performed to investigate the KEGG pathways of icariin-targeted genes involved in OA. Our study suggests that icariin plays a role in OA by regulating inflammatory cytokine production, insulin resistance, and cell survival through modulation of the NF-κB, MAPK, and Akt signaling pathways. Importantly, IKBKB, NFKBIA, MAPK8, MAPK9, and MAPK10 may be the hub genes affected by icariin when providing its beneficial effects on OA. In addition, we found that icariin decreases proinflammatory factors and inhibits chondrocyte apoptosis through suppression of the NF-κB pathway. Our study highlights a set of KEGG pathways that could explain the molecular mechanism of icariin's action on OA, suggesting that icariin could be considered as a promising therapeutic option for OA.