ObjectiveTo obtain high-quality chloroplast genome information on Stemona tuberosa and clarify its structure， sequence features， and phylogenetic status. MethodThe Illumina NovaSeq 6000 and PacBio RS Ⅱ platforms were used for library construction and sequencing of S. tuberosa， respectively. The data from both sequencing platforms were combined and subjected to bioinformatics analysis for genome assembly and base correction， resulting in a high-quality chloroplast genome. Subsequently， sequence features， repetitive sequences， gene diversity， and phylogeny were analyzed. ResultThe chloroplast genome size of S. tuberosa was determined to be 154 379 bp. The structure of the chloroplast genome followed the typical quadripartite circular form， consisting of a pair of inverted repeat regions （IRs） with a length of 27 074 bp， a small single-copy region （SSC） of 17 924 bp， and a large single-copy region （LSC） of 82 307 bp. The average GC content was 37.86%. A total of 121 genes were annotated， including 30 tRNA genes， four rRNA genes， and 87 protein-coding genes. Among them， six tRNA genes and 12 protein-coding genes contained introns. In the chloroplast genome of S. tuberosa， 49 long repetitive sequences and 59 single-nucleotide simple sequence repeats （SSRs） were identified. Comparative analysis of chloroplast genomes among four Stemona species revealed high diversity in the ycf1 and ndhF genes. The phylogenetic tree constructed based on the chloroplast genome showed consistent classification with the current taxonomic status of S. tuberosa. ConclusionThe high-quality chloroplast genome of S. tuberosa was successfully assembled， providing valuable information on the structure and sequence features of chloroplast genomes in four Stemona species， including S. tuberosa. These findings lay a foundation for the identification， evolution， and phylogenetic studies of medicinal plants in the genus Stemona.

The global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has had a catastrophic impact on human life and economic life. Due to the combination of multiple underlying diseases and low vaccination rates, dialysis patients are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection and are likely to have more severe illness and even death. Moreover, dialysis patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection may initially present as asymptomatic or with mild symptoms, which makes it very difficult to identify severe patients at an early stage. Here, the epidemiology, clinical characteristics, risk factors for prognosis, vaccination and therapeutic strategies of dialysis patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection were summarized and analyzed, and it is hoped to provide a reference for the diagnosis and treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection in this special group of patients.

Felids are the unique definitive host of Toxoplasma gondii. The intestine of felid is the only site for initiating Toxoplasma gondii sexual reproduction. T. gondii excretes millions of infectious oocysts from the intestine, which are the primary source of infection. There are many difficulties in developing vaccines and drugs to control oocyst excretion due to the lack of an appropriate experimental model. Here, we established an in vitro feline intestinal epithelial cell (IEC) infection system and an efficient animal model of T. gondii Chinese 1 genotype, Wh6 strain (TgCtwh6). The Kunming mice brain tissues containing TgCtwh6 cysts were harvested 42-day post-infection. The bradyzoites were co-cultured with cat IECs in vitro at a ratio of 1:10. Five 3-month-old domestic cats were orally inoculated with 600 cysts each. The oocysts were detected by daily observation of cat feces by microscopy and polymerase chain reaction. We found that the parasite adhered and invaded cat IECs in vitro, transformed into tachyzoites, and then divided to form rose-like structures. These parasites eventually destroyed host cells, escaped, and finished the asexual reproduction process. Schizonts associated with sexual reproduction have not been observed during development in vitro cultured cells. However, schizonts were detected in all infected cat intestinal epithelial cells, and oocysts were presented in all cat feces. Our study provides a feasible cell model and an efficient infection system for the following studies of T. gondii sexual reproduction, and also lays a foundation to develop drugs and vaccines for blocking excretion and transmission of oocysts.

ObjectiveTo identify the molecular biology of various species of Tibetan Codonopsis plants based on internal transcribed spacer（ITS）2 and psbA-trnH sequence barcode technology. MethodThe genomic DNA of 28 Tibetan Codonopsis plant samples from four species （Codonopsis canescens，C. foetens subsp. nervosa，C. pilosula， and C. thalictrifolia var. mollis） were extracted，and the ITS2 and psbA-trnH sequences were amplified and sequenced. The related sequences of 81 Tibetan Codonopsis plant samples belonging to 15 species were downloaded from GenBank， and MEGA 6.0 was used for sequence comparison and mutation site analysis. The GC content and genetic distance within and between species were calculated. Additionally， phylogenetic trees were constructed by maximum likelihood （ML） method， neighbor-joining （NJ） method，and unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic means （UPGMA） . ResultAccording to the mutation site，C. canescens， C. pilosula，C. pilosula subsp. tangshen， C. pilosula var. modesta，C. bhutanica，C. clematidea，C. lanceolata，C. subglobosa and C. foetens were distinguished. In the phylogenetic trees，the optimal clustering effects for ITS2 and psbA-trnH sequences were obtained using the ML method and the UPGMA method， respectively， and 12 species were effectively clustered. ConclusionITS2 and psbA-trnH sequences have a high identification rate for species of single origin，but there are still some limitations in identifying variants and original variants. This study provides basis for the identification of affinity relationship and clinical safety of Tibetan Codonopsis plants.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is of unknown cause and is not yet curable. Scientific diet has positive implication for disease treatment, control, and remission. However, IBD patients commonly have dietary restriction behavior, there is lack of specific assessment tools for dietary restriction in IBD, and dietary restriction hazards are numerous and the influencing factors are complex. This article reviewed the progress of research on dietary restriction behavior and its influencing factors in patients with IBD.

Objective To investigate the heterogeneity of the left ventricular reference value in echocardiography mesurements by Meta analysis. Methods A literature retrieval in PubMed,Embase, Medline and other databases from January 2005 to September 2017 related to left ventricular normal reference value in healthy adults was performed. Cohrane′s Q test was used to test the heterogeneity,and I2 was used as a statistic for the description of heterogeneity. Subgroup analysis,sensitivity analysis and Meta regression were used to analyze the sources of heterogeneity. Results The Meta analysis enrolled 9 studies including 5 933 normal cases. The heterogeneity test showed that the left ventricular normal reference value of echocardiography was highly heterogeneous among the studies. In subgroup analysis, some measurements′ heterogeneity were significantly reduced. Meta regression analysis showed that the contribution of racial specificity to heterogeneity was relatively high in some measurements. Conclusions The heterogeneity of left ventricle is mainly related to racial specificity,but it cannot fully explain the heterogeneity between studies. Further studies are needed to demonstrate the involved factors of heterogeneity of left ventricular normal reference values.

Objective To establish the primary cat intestinal epithelial cells(IECs)culture methods and construct the cD-NA library for the following yeast two-hybrid experiment,so as to screen the virulence interaction factors among the final host. Methods The primary cat IECs were cultured by the tissue cultivation and combined digestion with collagenase XI and dispase I separately. Then the cat IECs cultured was identified with the morphological observation and cyto-keratin detection ,by using goat anti-cyto-keratin monoclonal antibodies. The mRNA of cat IECs was isolated and used as the template to synthesize the first strand cDNA by SMARTTM technology,and then the double-strand cDNAs were acquired by LD-PCR,which were subsequently cloned into the plasmid PGADT7-Rec to construct yeast two-hybrid cDNA library in the yeast strain Y187 by homologous recom-bination. Matchmaker?Insert Check PCR was used to detect the size distribution of cDNA fragments after the capacity calcula-tion of the cDNA library. Results The comparison of the two cultivation methods indicated that the combined digestion of colla-genase XI and dispase I was more effective than the tissue cultivation. The cat IECs system of continuous culture was established and the cat IECs with high purity were harvested for constructing the yeast two-hybrid cDNA library. The library contained 1.1× 106 independent clones. The titer was 2.8 × 109 cfu/ml. The size of inserted fragments was among 0.5-2.0 kb. Conclusion The yeast two-hybrid cDNA library of cat IECs meets the requirements of further screen research,and this study lays the foundation of screening the Toxoplasma gondii virulence interaction factors among the cDNA libraries of its final hosts.

[Objective] Based on the resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the abnormal features of the functional connectivity of resting brain neural network in the patients with primary insomnia,by using voxel-wise whole-brain finctional networks analysis of degree centrality (DC) for imaging evidence of neural mechanisms underlying primary insomnia.[Methods] The resting state fMRI were performed in 59 PI patients and 47 age,education,and sex-matched normal healthy subjects.Analysis of DC map changes between the two patient groups and the control group were performed by two sample t test.(threshold at P ＜ 0.05).[Results] Compared with the control group,the patients with PI showed significantly reduced DC value in bilateral medial frontal gyrus (MFG),bilateral anterior cingulate gyrus (ACG),and right insula;and increased DC value in right middle temporal gyrus (MTG),and left cuneus,(CUN),P ＜ 0.05.[Conclusion]Changes of DC value occurred in some region of brain in the P[patient groups when compared with the control group.It was indicated that DC,as a novel resting-state fMRI parameter in the voxel-wise whole-brain functional networks,might be an appealing alternative approach for further study on pathologic and neuropsychological states of PI.

Objective The aim of this study is to understand the impairment and compensation mechanism of brain function in untreated primary insomnia (PI) patients.The approach of fractional amplitude of low frequency fluctuation (fALFF) is used to analyze raw data between the PI patients and the normal control group in resting state using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).Methods Fifty-nine PI patients,admitted to our hospital from November 2015 to November 2016,and 47 age-,education-,and gender-matched normal healthy subjects were chosen in our study.Pittsburg sleep quality index (PSQI),insomnia severity index (ISI) were employed to evaluate the sleep quality.Self-rating anxiety scale (SAS) and self-rating depression scale (SDS) were employed to evaluate the emotion.Resting state fMRI and fALFF analyses were used to compare the functional regional activities.The correlations of fALFF data with PSQI,SAS and SDS scores were analyzed.Results In PI patients,2 had mild to moderate insomnia,41 had moderate insomnia,and 16 had serious insomnia.ISI scores in the normal healthy subjects were less than 7.The PSQI,SAS,SDS and ISI scores in the PI patients were significantly higher than those in the normal healthy subjects (P＜0.05).As compared with the control group,the PI group had significantly increased fALFF value in the right hippocampus (HIP),right parahippocampa gyms,right amygdala,and bilateral thalamus.The fALFF value was positively correlated PSQI,SASandSDSscores (r=0.582,P=0.000;r=0.617,P=0.000;r=0.653,P=0.000).Conclusion Some brain regions in the PI patients are abnormal in the resting state,which can reflex functional regional activities of PI patients.

Objective To explore the biological function of rhoptry protein 38(ROP38)of Toxoplasma gondii,and to iden?tify the reactogenicity of the recombinant protein(rROP38). Methods The ROP38 was amplified by RT?PCR from T. gondii RH strain,and was cloned into prokaryotic expression vector pET?28a(+). The recombinant plasmid was transformed into E. co?li BL21(DE3)competent cells. Then the rROP38 was analyzed by SDS?PAGE and identified by Western blot. Results SDS?PAGE showed that rROP38 was efficient expression with a molecular weight of about 43 kD. Western blot showed that rROP38 reacted with antibody of His tag or human positive antibody,which indicated that ROP38 had good reactogenicity and could be a serological diagnostic antigen. Conclusion The study successfully obtains the rROP38 of T. gondii with good reactogenicity.