Evaluation of the efficacy and safety of hydroxychloroquine in comparison with chloroquine in moderate and severe patients with COVID-19

Science China Life Sciences -     

Effect of mesenchymal stromal cells encapsulated within polyethylene glycol-collagen hydrogels formed in situ on alkali-burned corneas in an ex vivo organ culture model

Background aimsCorneal inflammation after alkali burns often results in vision loss due to corneal opacification and neovascularization. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and their secreted factors (secretome) have been studied for their anti-inflammatory and anti-angiogenic properties with encouraging results. However, topical instillation of MSCs or their secretome is often accompanied by issues related to delivery or rapid washout. Polyethylene glycol (PEG) and collagen are well-known biomaterials used extensively in scaffolds for tissue engineering. To effectively suppress alkaline burn-induced corneal injury, the authors proposed encapsulating MSCs within collagen gels cross-linked with multi-functional PEG-succinimidyl esters as a means to deliver the secretome of immobilized MSCs.MethodsHuman MSCs were added to a neutralized collagen solution and mixed with a solution of four-arm PEG-N-hydroxysuccinimide. An ex vivo organ culture was conducted using rabbit corneas injured by alkali burn. MSCs were encapsulated within PEG-collagen hydrogels and injected onto the wounded cornea immediately following alkali burn and washing. Photographs of the ocular surface were taken over a period of 7 days after the alkali burn and processed for immunohistochemical evaluation. Samples were split into three groups: injury without treatment, MSCs alone, and MSCs encapsulated within PEG-collagen hydrogels.ResultsAll corneas in ex vivo organ culture lost their transparency immediately after alkali burn, and only the groups treated with MSCs and MSCs encapsulated within PEG-collagen hydrogels recovered some transparency after 7 days. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed increased expression of vimentin in the anterior corneal stroma of the group without treatment indicative of fibrotic healing, whereas less stromal vimentin was detected in the group containing MSCs encapsulated within the PEG-collagen hydrogels.ConclusionsPEG-collagen hydrogels enable the encapsulation of viable MSCs capable of releasing secreted factors onto the ocular surface. Encapsulating MSCs within PEG-collagen hydrogels may be a promising method for delivering their therapeutic benefits in cases of ocular inflammatory diseases, such as alkali burn injuries.     

Long noncoding RNA ATB promotes ovarian cancer tumorigenesis by mediating histone H3 lysine 27 trimethylation through binding to EZH2

Ovarian cancer (OC) remains one of the most lethal gynecological malignancies. The unfavourable prognosis is mainly due to the lack of early-stage diagnosis, drug resistance and recurrence. Therefore, it needs to investigate the mechanism of OC tumorigenesis and identify effective biomarkers for the clinical diagnosis. It is reported that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play important roles during the tumorigenesis of OC. Therefore, the present study aimed to study the role and clinical significance of LncRNAs ATB (lnc-ATB) in the development and progression of OC. In our research, lnc-ATB expression in OC tissues was elevated compared with adjacent normal tissues and high expression of lnc-ATB was associated with poor outcomes of OC patients. The silencing of lnc-ATB blocked cell proliferation, invasion and migration in SKOV3 and A2780 cells. RNA immunoprecipitation and RNA pull-down results showed that lnc-ATB positively regulated the expression of EZH2 via directly interacting with EZH2. Besides, the overexpression of EZH2 partly rescued lnc-ATB silencing-inducing inhibition of cell proliferation, invasion and migration. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assay results demonstrated that the silencing of lnc-ATB reduced the occupancy of caudal-related homeobox protein 1, Forkhead box C1, Large tumour suppressor kinase 2, cadherin-1 and disabled homolog 2 interacting protein promoters on EZH2 and H3K27me3. These data revealed the oncogenic of lnc-ATB and provided a novel biomarker for OC diagnosis. Furthermore, these findings indicated the mechanism of lnc-ATB functioning in the progression of OC, which provided a new target for OC therapy.     

ARL4C might serve as a prognostic factor and a novel therapeutic target for gastric cancer: bioinformatics analyses and biological experiments

The ADP-ribosylation factor-like proteins (ARLs) have been proved to regulate the malignant phenotypes of several cancers. However, the exact role of ARLs in gastric cancer (GC) remains elusive. In this study, we systematically investigate the expression status, interactive relations, potential pathways, genetic variations and clinical values of ARLs in GC. We find that ARLs are significantly dysregulated in GC and involved in various cancer-related pathways. Subsequently, machine learning models identify ARL4C as one of the two most significant clinical indicators among ARLs for GC. Furthermore, ARL4C silencing remarkably inhibits the growth and metastasis of GC cells both in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, enrichment analysis indicates that ARL4C is highly correlated with TGF-β1 signalling. Correspondingly, TGF-β1 treatment dramatically increases ARL4C expression and ARL4C knockdown inhibits the phosphorylation level of Smads, downstream factors of TGF-β1. Meanwhile, the coexpression of ARL4C and TGF-β1 worsens the prognosis of GC patients. Our work comprehensively demonstrates the crucial role of ARLs in the carcinogenesis of GC and the specific mechanisms underlying the GC-promoting effects of TGF-β1. More importantly, we uncover the great promise of ARL4C-targeted therapy in improving the efficacy of TGF-β1 inhibitors for GC patients.     

Characteristics of Refractive-Index Sensor in Graphene-Modified Long-Range Surface Exciton-Polaritons

The organic non-crystalline medium of 5,6-dichloro-2-[[5,6-dichloro-1-ethyl-3-(4-sulfobutyl)-benzimidazol-2-ylidene]-propenyl]-1-ethyl-3-(4-sulfobutyl)-benzimidazolium hydroxide (TDBC) is emerging as possible alternative plasmonic material for noble metal in visible region. In this paper, a novel long-range surface exciton-polariton (LRSEP) sensor based on TDBC film covered with graphene is reported. To enhance the imaging sensitivity, the thickness of TDBC film and the number of graphene layers are optimized. The result shows that the optimized imaging sensitivity is enhanced to 3243 RIU⁻¹ when n_s = 1.34. Compared with the traditional noble metal film-based sensor, the proposed LRSEP sensor demonstrates that the imaging sensitivity has been greatly improved. This is the first study of the TDBC film-based LRSEP sensor, which we hope to support the potential development of chemical sensing and bio-sensing.

     

安可信银离子免洗手消毒液的效果及安全性

目的评价一种以乙醇和银离子为主要成分的免洗手消毒液(安可信)的效果及其安全性。方法采用悬液定量杀菌试验、消毒剂对手消毒现场试验、急性经口毒性试验和小鼠骨髓嗜多染红细胞微核试验等方法,研究该免洗手消毒液杀菌效果以及安全性。结果银离子浓度为41.6 mg/kg、乙醇含量为54.4%(w/w)的该免洗手消毒液作用1 min,对大肠埃希菌、金黄色葡萄球菌和铜绿假单胞菌平均杀灭对数值>3.00;对白假丝酵母菌的平均杀灭对数值>4.00。该免洗手消毒液原液经37 ℃恒温培养箱保存3个月后,样品乙醇含量下降率为0.37%,银离子含量无下降。该免洗手消毒液对小鼠急性经口毒性LD₅₀>5 000 mg/kg,对新西兰家兔皮肤无刺激性,小鼠骨髓嗜多染红细胞微核试验结果为阴性。结论安可信银离子免洗手消毒液对细菌和真菌具有较好消毒作用;对人体无皮肤刺激;各项指标均符合国家要求。     

传染性单核细胞增多症患者外周血T细胞亚群检测及临床意义

目的检测传染性单核细胞增多症(IM)患者及非本病的发热患者外周血T淋巴细胞亚群,探讨EB病毒感染导致的传染性单核细胞增多症的免疫反应机制及与非本病发热患者的鉴别诊断价值,同时通过检测患者血液中的EBV-DNA载量加以确证。方法选取确诊为传染性单核细胞增多症的患者30例(IM组),非传染性单核细胞增多症的发热患者30例(对照组)。应用流式细胞技术检测患者外周血中淋巴细胞亚群,同时应用荧光定量PCR技术检测血清EBV-DNA载量,采用卡方检验及Mann-Whitney检验进行组间差异分析。结果 IM组与对照组患者T淋巴细胞亚群相比,CD8~+T淋巴细胞所占比例显著升高(Z=1.776,P0.001),CD4~+T淋巴细胞所占比例降低(F=4.008,P0.050),同时CD4~+/CD8~+比例明显下降(Z=6.653,P0.001)。IM组EBV-DNA病毒载量显著高于对照组,差异具有统计学意义(P0.050)。结论传染性单核细胞增多症患者外周血T淋巴细胞亚群主要以CD4~+T淋巴细胞及CD8~+T淋巴细胞的变化为主,T淋巴细胞亚群结合血清EBV-DNA病毒载量的联合检测对IM及非本病的发热患者具有鉴别诊断价值。     

大连地区分泌型与非分泌型母亲母乳菌群结构的差异

目的探讨大连地区分泌型和非分泌型母亲哺乳期间母乳菌群的主要差异。方法于大连市妇幼保健院纳入42名志愿者产妇,收集其产后第6天的母乳样本。提取母乳样本DNA,并对包含rs601338和rs1047781单核酸位点多态性(SNP)的片段用聚合酶链式反应(polymerase chain reaction,PCR)检测并加以测序,以检测受试母亲岩藻糖基转移酶2基因(FUT2)的类型。采用16S rRNA高通量测序法对不同母乳样本中微生物的多样性进行分析,并且对不同母乳样本中的微生物丰度及类型展开探讨。结果母亲分泌型分布情况分析:42名志愿者中,36名母亲是分泌型,6名母亲是非分泌型。母乳菌群多样性分析:分泌型与非分泌型组母亲母乳菌群比较,发现反映组内差异的Alpha多样性指数(包括Ace、Chao1以及Shannon等)在2组间差异无统计学意义;通过使用主坐标分析,发现分泌型组和非分泌型组的距离相对较远,母乳菌群组内菌群结构类似,组间差异性较显著,说明母乳中的蛋白核心岩藻糖基化水平可明显改变母乳中菌群结构。乳汁菌群物种构成分析:从门水平分析,变形菌门与厚壁菌门为主要优势菌;从属水平分析,2组母乳菌群中的双歧杆菌属丰度差异较显著。相关性分析:分泌型母乳的菌群中相关基因的表达更强,说明分泌型母乳对菌群基因的表达有促进作用。结论母乳菌群构成在一定程度上受到母体FUT2基因类型,即母亲分泌型和非分泌型的影响。     

兰州兴隆山土壤微生物的分布及其相关特性分析

目的以兰州兴隆山不同区域的土壤微生物为研究对象,分析比较土壤微生物数量与土壤酶活性之间的相关性。方法利用不同方法测定土壤理化性质、微生物数量以及土壤相关酶活特性;采用三区划线法进行土壤微生物的分离与纯化,通过16S rDNA和ITS方法进行优势菌株鉴定。结果兰州兴隆山土壤中微生物菌群数量由多到少依次为细菌、放线菌、真菌。通过分离纯化后,对其中的2株优势菌进行了鉴定,初步推断X2为萎缩芽胞杆菌属(Bacillus atrophaeus)细菌,Z2为栎生青霉属(Penicillium glandicola)真菌。从酶活特性可知,阳面的土壤过氧化氢酶活性比阴面高;随着海拔高度的增加,过氧化氢酶活性呈现增加趋势;阳面的土壤脱氢酶活性总体比阴面高,并且随着海拔梯度的升高,土壤脱氢酶活性也在不断升高。从相关性分析可知,不同海拔土样间微生物数量与酶活性之间表现出明显的相关性。结论兰州兴隆山土壤微生物数量丰富,且细菌数量居多;不同阴、阳面土壤微生物的层次分布以及活性也各有不同。以上研究可为兰州兴隆山土壤生态系统演替等提供参考依据,并为土壤生态环境的治理做铺垫。     

短波紫外线照射对‘金都’火龙果采后保鲜的影响

以‘金都’火龙果(Hylocereus polyrhizus ‘Jindu’)果实为试材,采用波长254 nm紫外杀菌灯为辐射源,给予不同剂量短波紫外线(Ultraviolet-C,UV-C)照射处理,探讨低剂量UV-C对火龙果采后保鲜的影响及作用机理。结果表明,不同剂量UV-C照射处理能有效抑制‘金都’火龙果果实腐烂和电导率上升,降低果实TSS含量,其中1.0 kJ·m–2紫外线辐照效果最好。1.0 kJ·m–2 UV-C处理能极显著提高贮藏期火龙果的SOD和CAT活性,显著提高贮藏早中期的几丁质酶活性和PPO活性,β-1,3葡聚糖酶活性在贮藏后期也显著高于对照,但降低了火龙果贮藏中期(第6天)的POD活性。此外,1.0 kJ·m–2 UV-C处理显著提高火龙果贮藏期H2O2含量(除第6天外),对果实的失水率无影响。采后火龙果应用适当剂量UV-C照射可提高抗病性,延长贮藏保鲜期。