Objective To investigating the microbial communities and physicochemical properties of soil and distribution of Oncomelania hupensis snails in marshlands along the Yangtze River basin at different types of land use, and to examine the effects of soil microorganisms and physicochemical properties on snail distribution, so as to provide insights into snail control and schistosomiasis prevention in marshland along the Yangtze River basin. Methods Marshlands with four types of land use were selected along the Yangtze River basin on April 2021, including poplar forest-crops integrated planting, reed areas, agricultural cultivation lands and ditches. The distribution of snails and physicochemical properties of soil were investigated in marshlands with different types of land use, and the V3 to V4 regions of the bacterial 16S ribosomal RNA (16S rRNA) gene, fungal internal transcribed spacer-1 (ITS1) gene and algal ribulose-bisphosphate carboxylase (rbcL) gene in soils were subjected to high-throughput sequencing. The occurrence of frames with living snails and density of living snails were compared in marshland with different types of land use. The associations of soil microorganisms and physicochemical properties with the density of living snails were examined using Pearson correlation analysis, and the contributions of soil microorganisms and physicochemical properties to the density of living snails were evaluated using variance partitioning analysis. Results In marshlands with four types of land use, the greatest occurrence of frames with living snails [(4.94 ± 2.14)%] and density of living snails [(0.070 ± 0.026) snails/0.1 m²] were seen in ditches, and the lowest were found in [(1.23 ± 1.23)%] agricultural cultivation lands [(0.016 ± 0.019) snails/0.1 m²]. A total of 2 phyla, 5 classes, 8 orders, 9 families and 11 genera of algae were detected in soils at four types of land use, with Chlorophyta as the dominant phylum and Pseudoneochloris as the dominant genus. A total of 44 phyla, 134 classes, 281 orders, 338 families and 516 genera of bacteria were detected in soils at four types of land use, with Proteobacteria and Acidobacteriota as the dominant phyla and uncultured Acidobacterium, MND1, Mitrospira, Haliangium and Sphingomonas as dominant genera. A total of 11 phyla, 41 classes, 108 orders, 223 families and 408 genera of fungi were detected in soils at four types of land use, with phyla Ascomycota, Basidiomycota and Mortierellomycota presenting high relative abundances and genera Cladorrhinum, Mortierella and Humicola presenting high relative abundances. Pearson correlation analysis revealed that the density of living snails correlated negatively with the relative abundance of Proteobacteria (r = −0.965, P < 0.05) and soil electronic conductivity (r = −0.962, P < 0.05) and positively with soil moisture (r = 0.951, P < 0.05). Variance partitioning analysis demonstrated that the physicochemical properties and microorganisms of soil contributed 69% and 10% to the density of living snails, respectively. Conclusion The diversity of microbial communities varies in soils at different types of land use in marshland along the Yangtze River basin, and the physicochemical properties and microorganisms of soils may affect the distribution of O. hupensis snails.

Background::Hyperglycemia frequently induces apoptosis in endothelial cells and ultimately contributes to microvascular dysfunction in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). Previous research reported that the expression of integrins as well as their ligands was elevated in the diseased vessels of DM patients. However, the association between integrins and hyperglycemia-induced cell death is still unclear. This research was designed to investigate the role played by integrin subunit β5 (ITGB5) in hyperglycemia-induced endothelial cell apoptosis.Methods::We used leptin receptor knockout (Lepr-KO) ( db/ db) mice as spontaneous diabetes animal model. Selective deletion of ITGB5 in endothelial cell was achieved by injecting vascular targeted adeno-associated virus via tail vein. Besides, we also applied small interfering RNA in vitro to study the mechanism of ITGB5 in regulating high glucose-induced cell apoptosis. Results::ITGB5 and its ligand, fibronectin, were both upregulated after exposure to high glucose in vivo and in vitro. ITGB5 knockdown alleviated hyperglycemia-induced vascular endothelial cell apoptosis and microvascular rarefaction in vivo. In vitro analysis revealed that knockdown of either ITGB5 or fibronectin ameliorated high glucose-induced apoptosis in human umbilical vascular endothelial cells (HUVECs). In addition, knockdown of ITGB5 inhibited fibronectin-induced HUVEC apoptosis, which indicated that the fibronectin-ITGB5 interaction participated in high glucose-induced endothelial cell apoptosis. By using RNA-sequencing technology and bioinformatic analysis, we identified Forkhead Box Protein O1 (FoxO1) as an important downstream target regulated by ITGB5. Moreover, we demonstrated that the excessive macroautophagy induced by high glucose can contribute to HUVEC apoptosis, which was regulated by the ITGB5-FoxO1 axis. Conclusion::The study revealed that high glucose-induced endothelial cell apoptosis was positively regulated by ITGB5, which suggested that ITGB5 could potentially be used to predict and treat DM-related vascular complications.

Objective:To analyze the accuracy of lung ultrasound and chest X-ray in the diagnosis of neonatal pulmonary disease.Methods:We prospectively collected newborns that needed chest X-ray examination to diagnose pulmonary disease from twelve neonatal intensive care units across the country between June 2019 and April 2020.Each newborn was examined by lung ultrasound within two hours after chest X-ray examination.All chest X-ray and lung ultrasound images were independently read by a radiologist and a sonographer.When there was a disagreement, a panel of two experienced physicians made a final diagnosis based on the clinical history, chest X-ray and lung ultrasound images.Results:A total of 1 100 newborns were enrolled in our study.The diagnostic agreement between chest X-ray and lung ultrasound(Cohen′s kappa coefficient=0.347) was fair.Lung ultrasound(area under the curve=0.778; 95% CI 0.753-0.803) performed significantly better than chest X-ray(area under the curve=0.513; 95% CI 0.483-0.543) in the diagnosis of transient tachypnea of the newborn( P<0.001). The accuracy of lung ultrasound in diagnosing neonatal respiratory distress syndrome, meconium aspiration syndrome, pneumonia and neonatal pulmonary atelectasis was similar to that of chest X-ray. Conclusion:Lung ultrasound, as a low-cost, simple and radiation-free auxiliary examination method, has a diagnostic accuracy close to or even better than that of chest X-ray, which may replace chest X-ray in the diagnosis of some neonatal lung diseases.It should be noted that both chest X-ray and lung ultrasound can only be used as auxiliary means for the diagnosis of lung diseases, and it is necessary to combine imaging with the clinical history and presentation.

Objective To explore the clinical features and risk factors of poor prognosis in neonatal necrotizing enterocolitis(NEC).Methods A retrospective study was carried out in the infants with NEC admitted to 6 cooperative hospitals in Guangdong Province between January 2005 and December 2014.The clinical features and risk factors of poor prognosis in preterm and full-term infants diagnosed NEC,early onset and late onset NEC were analyzed.Results A total of 449 cases who met the criteria were admitted during the study time.The mortality was 23.6％ (106/449 cases),of which the preterm group was 24.6％ (58/238 cases) while the full-term group was 22.7％ (48/211 cases),the early onset group was 22.1％ (45/204 cases) while the late onset group was 24.3％ (57/235 cases).The median number of NEC onset in preterm group was 11 d after birth while the number of the full-term group was 6 d.Full-term infants who diagnosed NEC were more likely to manifest themselves as abdominal distension (52.1％ vs.42.0％,x2 =4.597,P =0.032),vomiting(36.5％ vs.17.2％,x2 =21.428,P =0.000) and bloody stool(30.3％ vs.21.4％,x2 =4.653,P =0.031);but in the onset of NEC,preterm infants more likely to have feeding intolerance (21.0％ vs.12.8％,x2=5.309,P =0.021).The early onset group of full-term NEC was much common in twins or multiplets(9.4％ vs.1.1％,x2 =6.226,P =0.013),which rate of surgical therapy was much higher (41.0％ vs.27.0％,P =0.036) and the breast-feeding rate before NEC was lower than the late onset group(14.5％ vs.32.6％,x2 =9.500,P =0.002),the differences were statistically significant.The gestational age and birth weight were bigger in the early onset group of preterm NEC[(33.8 ±2.5) weeks vs.(32.2 ±2.8) weeks,t =4.261,P =0.000;(2.1 ±0.5) kg vs.(1.7 ± 0.5) kg,t =4.735,P =0.000)],but length of stay was shorter than the late onset group (18.0 d vs.26.5 d,P =0.000).Logistic regression analysis showed that the risk factors of poor prognosis of full-term NEC were shock,peritonitis and sepsis;while risk factors of poor prognosis of preterm NEC were small for gestational age infant,pulmonary hemorrhage,shock,intestinal perforation and sepsis;the risk factors of poor prognosis of the early onset group of full-term NEC was shock;while those of the late onset group were shock and peritonitis;the risk factors of poor prognosis in the early onset group of preterm NEC were shock and sepsis,while those in the late onset group were pulmonary hemorrhage,shock,intestinal perforation and sepsis.Conclusions Compared to the preterm NEC,the onset time of full-term NEC was earlier and the clinical manifestations were more typical.Early identification and management of shock,peritonitis,intestinal perforation,sepsis and pulmonary hemorrhage can reduce the risk of poor prognosis of neonate NEC.

Objective: To establish a new model of hepatic steatosis cells by optimizing the original ethanol or high fat, the present study proposed an in vitro hepatocyte steatosis model for the study of fatty liver. Methods: Oil red O staining was used to observe the effects of fetal bovine serum, oleic acid and ethanol on lipid accumulation in human liver cell line L02 in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. RT-PCR was used to detect the mRNA expression levels of PPAR-γ and AP-2, and the suitable conditions for the establishment of hepatocyte steatosis model were screened out. A t-test was used for comparison between the two groups, and one-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used in more than three groups. Results: Oil red O staining showed the number of reddish-orange lipid droplets in L02 cells gradually increased with the increase of fetal bovine serum, oleic acid and ethanol in a concentration - and time-dependent manner. Compared with 0.00% oleic acid and 2% ethanol, the count value of red particle was 100.00% ± 17.63% at the beginning and after 24 h, 0.003% oleic acid and 2% ethanol jointly acted in L02 cells. After incubation for 48 hours with 2% ethanol and serum-free DMEM medium, the accumulation of lipid droplets was the highest with a count value of 802.38%+71.06%(t = 42.36, P < 0.001). RT-PCR analysis showed the lipid accumulation induced by this method was positively correlated with the mRNA expression of PPAR-γ and AP-2. Conclusion L02 cells were successfully exposed to high fat and ethanol, and the hepatocyte steatosis model was established and optimized, suggesting that the occurrence of hepatic cell steatosis was related to the up-regulation of PPAR-γ and AP-2.

Objective To more intuitively understand the quality control for laboratory animals and further achie-ving a more scientific and reasonable management of laboratory animals, the infection index as evaluation criteria was intro-duced. Then the best way to calculate infection index was explored in order to more scientifically reflect the infection status of laboratory animals. Methods Infection index, also called the degree of infection, is a qualitative indicator of monito-ring laboratory animal quality. After arranging, analyzing, processing and gathering the data from laboratory animal quality monitoring, the index reflects synthetically the pathogen infection status or trend of a particularly investigated experimental animal population or the development of certain experimental animals. Results In general, the pathogen infection index of mice was slightly decreased, while the pathogen infection index of rats roughly increased year by year. In comparing infec-tion index by different pathogens, the parasite infection index of mice was found to be higher than bacteria and virus infec-tion indexes, while the bacteria infection index of rats was higher than parasite infection index and virus ones. Conclusions The infection index model intuitively reflects the quality control status of laboratory animals. The analysis also reveals that the parasite monitoring of the mice and the bacteria detection of rat needs to be reinforcement. In addition, the index of infection reveals that the pathogen infection of mice is well under control, while that of rats tends to be more serious year by year.

Objective To study the photodynamic therapy (PDT) mediated by a novel porphyrin-typed photosensitizer on human hepatic carcinoma HepG2 cell and the mechanisms.Methods Experiments were derided into four groups:control group,PDT group,photosensitizer group and photosensitizer+PDT group.The photostability of novel photosensitizer upon repetitive illumination was evaluated by bleaching method,and cell survival rate was determined by MTT assay.Cellular uptake of novel photosensitizer was measured with luminescence spectrometer,and cellular localization ofphotosensitizer was observed by laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM).Furthermore,apoptotic cell was detected with Hoechst 333342 staining.Results Novel photosensitizer was stable after repetitive light irradiation,and PDT or photosensitizer alone showed no dark cytotoxicity toward HepG2 cell (P＞0.05),but intense killing was observed in photosensitizer+PDT group (P＜0.05).The IC50 is 1.21 μmol/L.Cellular uptake of novel photosensitizer was concentration-dependent and the highest uptake is at concentration of 12.5 μmol/L.Novel photosensitizer localizes in lysosomes of HepG2 cell,and the death mode of HepG2 cell was mainly apoptosis.Conclusions Novel photosensitizer exerts profound cytotoxic effects on HepG2 cell mainly through the initiation of secondary cell apoptosis by lysosome destruction.

The recombinant adenovirus Toll like receptor 4 (TLR4) shRNA vector (pGSadeno-TLR4) was constructed and transfected into human aortic vascular smooth muscle cells (HA-VSMC).After HA-VSMC were treated with palmitate or different signaling pathway inhibitors,the mRNA and protein levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6)and NF-κB activity were tested with real-time PCR and ELISA,respectively.The results showed that palmitate increased mRNA and protein levels of IL-6 in HA-VSMC in a dose-dependent manner.The expression of IL-6 mRNA reached peak after treatment with 400 μmol/L of palmitate for 6 h,being 10.43 fold of control (P＜0.01).Treatment with 400 pmol/L of palmitate for 24 h maximally upregulated the protein level of IL-6,which was 2.18 fold of control (P＜0.01).NF-κB inhibitor parthenolide markedly inhibited palmitate-stimulated increased in IL-6 mRNA level by 65％ and protein level by 59％ (both P＜0.01).Protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitor chlerythrine suppressed palmitateinduced IL-6 mRNA expression by 24％ and IL-6 protein level by 28％.By contrast,extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase inhibitor PD98059 and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase inhibitor wortmannin had no effect on the induction of IL-6 by palmitate.Blockade of TLR4 with pGSadeno-TLR4 significantly suppressed palmitate-induced IL-6 mRNA expression by 72％ and IL-6 protein expression by 75％ (both P＜0.01),along with decrease of NF-κB p65 activity decreased by 62％.These results suggest that TLR4/NF-κB and PKC pathways mediate palmitate-induced IL-6 expression in HA-VSMC.

Laminin(LN) and hyaluronie acid (HA) are extracellular matrix in liver. The effects of LN and HA on human fetal liver cells proliferation and collagen synthesis were observed and serum levels of LN and HA were assayed m patients with liver diseases by an enzyme immunoassay method. Both LN and HA had a significant effect on the inhibition of cell proliferation and collagen production. However, serum levels of LN and HA were significantly increased in liver cirrhosis comparing with healthy controls and with patients with non-liver diseases. The results suggest that LN and HA may play a role in the feed-back inhibition mechanism in liver fibrogencsis, and assay of LN and HA in serum may be useful to the diagnosis of liver fibrosis.