GPR126, also known as ADGRG6, is one of the most deeply studied aGPCRs. Initially, GPR126 was thought to be a receptor associated with muscle development and was primarily expressed in the muscular and skeletal systems. With the deepening of research, it was found that GPR126 is expressed in multiple mammalian tissues and organs, and is involved in many biological processes such as embryonic development, nervous system development, and extracellular matrix interactions. Compared with other aGPCRs proteins, GPR126 has a longer N-terminal domain, which can bind to ligands one-to-one and one-to-many. Its N-terminus contains five domains, a CUB (complement C1r/C1s, Uegf, Bmp1) domain, a PTX (Pentraxin) domain, a SEA (Sperm protein, Enterokinase, and Agrin) domain, a hormone binding (HormR) domain, and a conserved GAIN domain. The GAIN domain has a self-shearing function, which is essential for the maturation, stability, transport and function of aGPCRs. Different SEA domains constitute different GPR126 isomers, which can regulate the activation and closure of downstream signaling pathways through conformational changes. GPR126 has a typical aGPCRs seven-transmembrane helical structure, which can be coupled to Gs and Gi, causing cAMP to up- or down-regulation, mediating transmembrane signaling and participating in the regulation of cell proliferation, differentiation and migration. GPR126 is activated in a tethered-stalk peptide agonism or orthosteric agonism, which is mainly manifested by self-proteolysis or conformational changes in the GAIN domain, which mediates the rapid activation or closure of downstream pathways by tethered agonists. In addition to the tethered short stem peptide activation mode, GPR126 also has another allosteric agonism or tunable agonism mode, which is specifically expressed as the GAIN domain does not have self-shearing function in the physiological state, NTF and CTF always maintain the binding state, and the NTF binds to the ligand to cause conformational changes of the receptor, which somehow transmits signals to the GAIN domain in a spatial structure. The GAIN domain can cause the 7TM domain to produce an activated or inhibited signal for signal transduction, For example, type IV collagen interacts with the CUB and PTX domains of GPR126 to activate GPR126 downstream signal transduction. GPR126 has homology of 51.6%-86.9% among different species, with 10 conserved regions between different species, which can be traced back to the oldest metazoans as well as unicellular animals.In terms of diseases, GPR126 dysfunction involves the pathological process of bone, myelin, embryo and other related diseases, and is also closely related to the occurrence and development of malignant tumors such as breast cancer and colon cancer. However, the biological function of GPR126 in various diseases and its potential as a therapeutic target still needs further research. This paper focuses on the structure, interspecies differences and conservatism, signal transduction and biological functions of GPR126, which provides ideas and references for future research on GPR126.

Objective To compare the effects of 20 mg qd and 10 mg bidadministration of iprrazole enteric-coated tablets on the control of gastric acid in healthy subjects.Methods A randomized,single-center,parallel controlled trial was designed to include 8 healthy subjects.Randomly divided into 2 groups,20 mg qd administration group:20 mg enteric-coated tablets of iprrazole in the morning;10 mg bid administration group:10 mg enteric-coated tablets of iprrazole in the morning and 10 mg in the evening.The pH values in the stomach of the subjects before and 24 h after administration were monitored by pH meter.The plasma concentration of iprazole after administration was determined by HPLC-MS/MS.The main pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated by Phoenix WinNonlin(V8.0)software.Results The PK parameters of iprrazole enteric-coated tablets and reference preparations in fasting group were as follows:The Cmax of 20 mg qd group and 10 mg bid group were(595.75±131.15)and(283.50±96.98)ng·mL-1;AUC0-t were(5 531.94±784.35)and(4 686.67±898.23)h·ng·mL-1;AUC0-∞ were(6 003.19±538.59)and(7 361.48±1 816.77)h·ng·mL-1,respectively.The mean time percentage of gastric pH＞3 after 20 mg qd and 10 mg bid were 82.64％and 61.92％,and the median gastric pH within 24 h were 6.25±1.49 and 3.53±2.05,respectively.The mean gastric pH values within 24 h were 5.71±1.36 and 4.23±1.45,respectively.The correlation analysis of pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamics showed that there was no significant correlation between the peak concentration of drug in plasma and the inhibitory effect of acid.Conclusion Compared with the 20 mg qd group and the 10 mg bid group,the acid inhibition effect is better,the administration times are less,and the safety of the two administration regimes is good.

Tumors represent one of the primary threats to human life, with the dissemination of malignant tumors being a leading cause of mortality among cancer patients. Early diagnosis of tumors can reliably predict their progression, significantly reducing mortality rates. Tumor markers, including circulating tumor cells, exosomes, proteins, circulating tumor DNA, miRNAs and so on, generated during the tumor development process, have emerged as effective approach for early tumor diagnosis. Several methods are currently employed to detect tumor markers, such as polymerase chain reaction, Northern blotting, next-generation sequencing, flow cytometry, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. However, these methods often suffer from time-consuming process, high costs, low sensitivity, and the requirement for specialized personnel. Therefore, a new rapid, sensitive, and specific tumor detection method is urgently needed.The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein (Cas) system, originating from the adaptive immune system of bacteria, has found extensive applications in gene editing and nucleic acid detection. Based on the structure and function of Cas proteins, the CRISPR/Cas system can be classified into two classes and six types. Class I systems consist of multiple Cas protein complexes, including types I, III, and IV, while Class II systems comprise single, multi-domain Cas proteins mediated by RNA, including types II (Cas9), V (Cas12), and VI (Cas13). Class II systems have been widely employed in the fields of biotechnology and nucleic acid diagnostics due to their efficient target binding and programmable RNA specificity. Currently, fluorescence method is the most common signal output technique in CRISPR/Cas-based biosensors. However, this method often requires the integration of signal amplification technologies to enhance sensitivity and involves expensive and complex fluorescence detectors. To enhance the detection performance of CRISPR/Cas-based biosensors, the integration of CRISPR/Cas with some alternative techniques can be considered. The CRISPR/Cas integrated electrochemical sensor (E-CRISPR) possesses advantages such as miniaturization, high sensitivity, high specificity, and fast response speed.E-CRISPR can convert the reactions between biomolecules and detecting components into electrical signals, rendering the detection signals more easily readable and reducing the impact of background values. Therefore,E-CRISPR enhances the accuracy of detection results. E-CRISPR has been applied in various fields, including medical and health, environmental monitoring, and food safety. Furthermore, E-CRISPR holds tremendous potential for advancing the detection levels of tumor markers.Among all types of Cas enzymes, the three most widely applied are Cas9, Cas12, and Cas13, along with their respective subtypes. In this work, we provided a brief overview of the principles and characteristics of Class II CRISPR/Cas single-effector proteins. This paper focused on the various detection technologies based on E-CRISPR technique, including electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, voltammetry, photoelectrochemistry, and electrochemiluminescence. We also emphasized the applications of E-CRISPR in the field of tumor diagnosis, which mainly encompasses the detection of three typical tumor markers (ctDNA, miRNA, and proteins). Finally, we discussed the advantages and limitations of E-CRISPR, current challenges, and future development prospects. In summary, althoughE-CRISPR platform has made significant strides in tumor detection, certain challenges still need to be overcome for their widespread clinical application. Continuous optimization of the E-CRISPR platform holds the promise of achieving more accurate tumor subtyping diagnoses in clinical settings, which would be of significant importance for early patient diagnosis and prognosis assessment.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic degenerative joint disease and the most common type of arthritis. It involves almost any joint and can lead to chronic pain and disability. In the late 19th century, Roentgen discovered X-rays, and then began to use radiotherapy to treat tumors. In the 1980s, Luckey thought that low-level radiation (LDRT) might be beneficial to biology, and it was gradually applied to the treatment of some diseases. This paper introduces the epidemiology, risk factors, clinical manifestations and treatment methods of OA, points out that the cartilage injury and the important effect of synovial inflammation in the pathogenesis of OA, namely when the homeostasis of articular cartilage are destroyed, synthetic metabolism and catabolism imbalances, cartilage cells damaged their breakdown products consumed by synovial cells. Synovial cells and synovial macrophages secrete proinflammatory cytokines, metalloproteinases and proteolytic enzymes, leading to cartilage matrix degradation and chondrocyte damage, which aggravates synovial inflammation and cartilage damage, forming a vicious cycle. The possible mechanism and clinical research progress of LDRT in alleviating OA are discussed. LDRT can regulate inflammatory response, inhibit the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, and promote the production of anti-inflammatory cytokines, thereby achieving anti-inflammatory effect. Studies have shown that after irradiation, the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) was decreased, the release of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the production of superoxide were inhibited, the anti-inflammatory phenotype of macrophages was differentiated from M1 to M2, the inflammatory CD8⁺ T cells were transformed into CD4⁺ T cells, and the number of dendritic cells (DC) was significantly reduced. LDRT inhibit the production of proinflammatory factors in leukocytes, reduce their recruitment and adhesion, and down-regulate the expression levels of cell adhesion molecules such as selectin, intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM) and vascular endothelial cell adhesion molecule (VCAM). LDRT can regulate endothelial cells, stimulate endothelial cells to produce a large amount of TGF-β1, reduce the adhesion of endothelial cells to peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), and contribute to the anti-inflammatory effect of LDRT. It also exerted anti-inflammatory effects by regulating mitochondrial growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF15). After low-level radiation, the MMP-13 (matrix metalloproteinases-13) and the ADAMTS5 (recombinant a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin-5) decreased, the Col2a1 (collagen type 2) increased in chondrocytes. In the existing clinical studies, most patients can achieve relief of joint pain and recovery of joint mobility after irradiation, and the patients have good feedback on the efficacy. The adverse reactions (acute reactions and carcinogenic risks) caused by LDRT in the treatment of OA are also discussed. During the treatment of OA, a few patients have symptoms such as redness, dryness or itching at the joint skin, and the symptoms are mild and do not require further treatment. Patients are thus able to tolerate more frequent and longer doses of radiotherapy. In general, LDRT itself has the advantages of non-invasive, less adverse reactions, and shows the effect of pain relief and movement improvement in the treatment of OA. Therefore, LDRT has a broad application prospect in the treatment of OA.

Objective To investigate the effect of Mex3c gene knockout on embryonic neural tube development and its possible mechanisms.Methods The NCBI database was used to analyze the expression of Mex3c gene in various tissues of mice.Fluorescence in situ hybridization(FISH)was employed to detect the expression of Mex3c in neural tubes of Mex3c+/+mice at different developmental stages(E12.5 d,E14.5 d).Sexual mature mice were mated at a ratio of Mex3c+/-male to female(1:1)in the same cage.Embryos were collected and genotyped using PCR.They were divided into 3 groups based on their genotype:wild-type group(Mex3c+/+,WT group),homozygous knockout group(Mex3c-/-,KO group),and heterozygous knockout group(Mex3c+/-).HE staining was employed to observe the development of neural tubes in the 3 groups of embryos.Immunofluorescence staining and Western blotting were performed to detect the proliferation and apoptosis of embryonic neural stem cells in the WT and KO groups.Transmission electron microscopy was used to observe the ultrastructure of the neural tubes and mitochondria in the WT and KO groups.RNA was extracted from the neural tubes of WT and KO groups for RNA-seq sequencing.The R.3.6.3 software was used to perform KEGG signaling pathway enrichment analysis on differentially expressed genes.RT-qPCR was used to validate the sequencing results.Results The NCBI database analysis and FISH detection results showed that the Mex3c gene was mainly expressed in the central nervous system of embryos.HE staining results showed that there was no significant difference in the development of embryonic neural tubes between KO group,WT group,and heterozygous knockout group at E12.5 d and E13.5 d.However,at E14.5 d,the embryonic neural tube development in KO group was delayed and the phenotype was significantly abnormal compared with those in WT group.Therefore,the embryonic neural tube tissues of KO group and WT group at E14.5 d were selected for subsequent experiments.The immunofluorescence staining results showed that the PCNA positive cell rate in KO group was significantly lower than that in WT group(P<0.001).The Western blotting results showed that the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio in KO group was higher than that in WT group(P<0.01).Transmission electron microscopy observation showed that compared with WT group,the synaptic gap in KO group disappeared,the mitochondrial of the embryonic neural tube in KO group were swollen,the mitochondrial cristae were disrupted,and the structure was significantly abnormal.The results of RNA-seq analysis showed that a total of 377 differentially expressed genes were obtained,including 101 up-regulated genes and 276 down-regulated genes.KEGG signaling pathway enrichment analysis revealed that the main signaling pathways of differentially expressed genes were enriched in the neuroactive ligand receptor interaction signaling pathways.The RT-qPCR validation results showed that the mRNA expression levels of Avpr1a,Drd1,Htr7,Sstr1,Oxtr and Gabra5 in this signaling pathway were down-regulated(P<0.05 or P<0.01),which was consistent with the RNA-seq results.Conclusion Mex3c plays an important role in the development of neural tubes in mouse embryos,which may participate in regulating the proliferation and apoptosis of neural stem cells through neural active ligand receptor interaction signaling pathways,thereby affecting the development of neural tubes.

Objective To investigate the clinical characteristics and prognosis of pneumococcal meningitis(PM),and drug sensitivity of Streptococcus pneumoniae(SP)isolates in Chinese children.Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on clinical information,laboratory data,and microbiological data of 160 hospitalized children under 15 years old with PM from January 2019 to December 2020 in 33 tertiary hospitals across the country.Results Among the 160 children with PM,there were 103 males and 57 females.The age ranged from 15 days to 15 years,with 109 cases(68.1% )aged 3 months to under 3 years.SP strains were isolated from 95 cases(59.4% )in cerebrospinal fluid cultures and from 57 cases(35.6% )in blood cultures.The positive rates of SP detection by cerebrospinal fluid metagenomic next-generation sequencing and cerebrospinal fluid SP antigen testing were 40% (35/87)and 27% (21/78),respectively.Fifty-five cases(34.4% )had one or more risk factors for purulent meningitis,113 cases(70.6% )had one or more extra-cranial infectious foci,and 18 cases(11.3% )had underlying diseases.The most common clinical symptoms were fever(147 cases,91.9% ),followed by lethargy(98 cases,61.3% )and vomiting(61 cases,38.1% ).Sixty-nine cases(43.1% )experienced intracranial complications during hospitalization,with subdural effusion and/or empyema being the most common complication[43 cases(26.9% )],followed by hydrocephalus in 24 cases(15.0% ),brain abscess in 23 cases(14.4% ),and cerebral hemorrhage in 8 cases(5.0% ).Subdural effusion and/or empyema and hydrocephalus mainly occurred in children under 1 year old,with rates of 91% (39/43)and 83% (20/24),respectively.SP strains exhibited complete sensitivity to vancomycin(100% ,75/75),linezolid(100% ,56/56),and meropenem(100% ,6/6).High sensitivity rates were also observed for levofloxacin(81% ,22/27),moxifloxacin(82% ,14/17),rifampicin(96% ,25/26),and chloramphenicol(91% ,21/23).However,low sensitivity rates were found for penicillin(16% ,11/68)and clindamycin(6% ,1/17),and SP strains were completely resistant to erythromycin(100% ,31/31).The rates of discharge with cure and improvement were 22.5% (36/160)and 66.2% (106/160),respectively,while 18 cases(11.3% )had adverse outcomes.Conclusions Pediatric PM is more common in children aged 3 months to under 3 years.Intracranial complications are more frequently observed in children under 1 year old.Fever is the most common clinical manifestation of PM,and subdural effusion/emphysema and hydrocephalus are the most frequent complications.Non-culture detection methods for cerebrospinal fluid can improve pathogen detection rates.Adverse outcomes can be noted in more than 10% of PM cases.SP strains are high sensitivity to vancomycin,linezolid,meropenem,levofloxacin,moxifloxacin,rifampicin,and chloramphenicol.[Chinese Journal of Contemporary Pediatrics,2024,26(2):131-138]

Objective:To observe the clinical efficacy and action mechanism of Jujing Decoction(JJD)in the treatment of as-thenoteratozoospermia(ATZ)by comparing JJD with combined administration of the antioxidant stress drug and sperm energy metabo-lism agent.Methods:According to the inclusion criteria,we enrolled 67 male patients with ATZ in this randomized controlled clini-cal study and treated them by oral administration of JJD(the JJD group,n=34)or natural vitamin E combined with L-carnitine solu-tion(the positive control group,n=33),both for 12 weeks.We collected the semen parameters,sperm DNA fragmentation index(DFI),sperm mitochondrial membrane potential(MMP),seminal plasma reactive oxygen species(ROS)and superoxide dismutase(SOD)levels from the patients,observed the ultrastructure of sperm mitochondria under the transmission electron microscope(TEM)before and after treatment,and analyzed the clinical efficacy and action mechanism of JJD by comparing the data obtained between the two groups.Results:Treatment and follow-up were completed in 60 of the cases,30 in the JJD and 30 in the positive control group.The total rate of clinical effectiveness was significantly higher in the JJD than in the positive control group(76.8％vs 43.3％,P＜0.05).Compared with the baseline,the percentages of progressively motile sperm(PMS)and morphologically normal sperm(MNS),DFI and MMP were significantly improved(P＜0.05),the level of seminal plasma ROS decreased(P＞0.05),and that of SOD re-markably increased(P＜0.05)after treatment with JJD;PMS,MNS,DFI and MMP were also improved(P＞0.05),seminal plas-ma ROS decreased(P＞0.05)and SOD increased(P＜0.05)in the positive controls after medication.In comparison with the posi-tive controls,the patients treated with JJD showed even more significant improvement in PMS([29.37±14.56]％vs[42.68±15.86]％,P＜0.05),MNS([1.84±1.32]％vs[3.66±1.72％]％,P＜0.05),DFI([32.66±5.23]％vs[16.61±4.20]％,P＜0.05)and MMP([46.47±9.48]％vs[61.79±8.61]％,P＜0.05),ROS([7.08±0.51]vs[5.06±0.52]μmol/L,P＞0.05),and SOD([100.65±10.59]vs[139.05±14.71]U/ml,P＜0.05).TEM revealed significantly improved ultrastructure of sperm mitochondria after treatment with JJD.No serious adverse reactions were observed in either group dur-ing follow-up.Conclusion:JJD,superior to natural vitamin E and L-carnitine oral solution,can safely and effectively increase the percentages of PMS and MNS,MMP and the level of seminal plasma SOD,reduce sperm DFI and seminal plasma ROS,and improve the ultrastructure of sperm mitochondria in patients with ATZ.The underlying mechanism of action may be related to its ability of im-proving the structure and function of sperm mitochondria via antioxidant stress.

Body mass index (BMI) has been increasing globally in recent decades. Previous studies reported that BMI was associated with sex hormone levels, but the results were generated via linear regression or logistic regression, which would lose part of information. Quantile regression analysis can maximize the use of variable information. Our study compared the associations among different regression models. The participants were recruited from the Center of Reproductive Medicine, The First Hospital of Jilin University (Changchun, China) between June 2018 and June 2019. We used linear, logistic, and quantile regression models to calculate the associations between sex hormone levels and BMI. In total, 448 men were included in this study. The average BMI was 25.7 (standard deviation [s.d.]: 3.7) kg m^-2; 29.7% (n = 133) of the participants were normal weight, 45.3% (n = 203) of the participants were overweight, and 23.4% (n = 105) of the participants were obese. The levels of testosterone and estradiol significantly differed among BMI groups (all P < 0.05). In linear regression and logistic regression, BMI was associated with testosterone and estradiol levels (both P < 0.05). In quantile regression, BMI was negatively associated with testosterone levels in all quantiles after adjustment for age (all P < 0.05). BMI was positively associated with estradiol levels in most quantiles (≤80^th) after adjustment for age (all P < 0.05). Our study suggested that BMI was one of the influencing factors of testosterone and estradiol. Of note, the quantile regression showed that BMI was associated with estradiol only up to the 80^th percentile of estradiol.
Male ; Humans ; Body Mass Index ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Gonadal Steroid Hormones ; Regression Analysis ; Estradiol ; Testosterone

OBJECTIVE The abnormal amyloid-β(Aβ)and oxidative stress assiociated with the progression of Alzheimer disease(AD).Quercetin has been reported to possess antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties in neurodegenerative disorders.In this present study,we designed to characterize the mechanisms by which quer-cetin exerts neuroprotective effects in murine neuroblas-toma N2a cells stably expressing human Swedish mutant amyloid precursor protein(N2a/APP).METHODS N2a/APP cells were treated with quercetin at concentrations of 10,20 and 50 μ mol·L-1 for 24 h.Cell viability was examined with CCK-8 assays.The protein levels of ERK1/2 and Akt were detected by Western blotting.Intra-cellular reactive oxygen species(ROS)was detected by a fluorescent probe 2,7-dichlorofluorescein diacetate(DCFH-DA).The mitochondrial membrane potential(Δψ m)in N2a/APP cells was detected by using JC-1 staining method.Immunofluorescence was used to detect the generation of 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine(8-OHdG)and 4-hydroxynonenal(4-HNE).RESULTS Quercetin attenuated the enhancement of p-ERK1/2,reductions of p-Akt,and decreased levels of APP expression.More-over,quercetin alleviated loss of mitochondria membrane potential(MMP)since it attenuates these oxidative stress,as reflected in the levels of ROS,4-HNE and 8-OHdG,was elevated in N2a/APP cells and these effects were again ameliorated by quercetin.CONCLUSION Neuroprotection by quercetin in N2a/APP cells involves normalizing the impaired mitochondrial function and reducing oxidative stress via inactivation of the ERK1/2 and activation of the Akt pathways.

OBJECTIVE: Late 2019 witnessed the outbreak and widespread transmission of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a new, highly contagious disease caused by novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Consequently, considerable attention has been paid to the development of new diagnostic tools for the early detection of SARS-CoV-2. METHODS: In this study, a new poly-N-isopropylacrylamide microgel-based electrochemical sensor was explored to detect the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein (S protein) in human saliva. The microgel was composed of a copolymer of N-isopropylacrylamide and acrylic acid, and gold nanoparticles were encapsulated within the microgel through facile and economical fabrication. The electrochemical performance of the sensor was evaluated through differential pulse voltammetry. RESULTS: Under optimal experimental conditions, the linear range of the sensor was 10 ^-13-10 ^-9 mg/mL, whereas the detection limit was 9.55 fg/mL. Furthermore, the S protein was instilled in artificial saliva as the infected human saliva model, and the sensing platform showed satisfactory detection capability. CONCLUSION The sensing platform exhibited excellent specificity and sensitivity in detecting spike protein, indicating its potential application for the time-saving and inexpensive detection of SARS-CoV-2.
Humans ; Microgels ; Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus ; COVID-19/diagnosis* ; Gold ; Metal Nanoparticles ; SARS-CoV-2