The evaluation of the bioavailability of pollutants in soil is crucial to accurately assess the pollution risk, and whole-cell biosensor is one of the important tools for such evaluation. This study aimed to develop a novel whole-cell biosensor for the detection of methyl parathion in soil using. First, a whole-cell biosensor was constructed by the screened methyl parathion hydrolase mpd gene, the existing specific induction element pobR, and the pUC19 plasmid skeleton. Then, the detection method of methyl parathion in soil extracts was established using 96-well microtiter plate as carrier and five whole-cell biosensors as indicator. The method was applied in the detection of methyl parathion in tested and field soil extracts. Taking E. coli DH5α/pMP-AmilCP with the best detection performance as an example, this biosensor had a detection limit of 6.21-6.66 µg/L and a linear range of 10-10 000 µg/L for methyl parathion in four soil extracts. E. coli DH5α/pMP-RFP and E. coli DH5α/pMP-AmilCP methods have good detection performance for the analysis of methyl parathion in soil extract samples. This biosensor method can help to quickly assess the bioavailability of methyl parathion in soil, and thus help to understand the risk of soil pollution caused by organophosphorus pesticide methyl parathion.
Methyl Parathion/analysis* ; Pesticides/analysis* ; Organophosphorus Compounds ; Escherichia coli/genetics* ; Soil ; Farms ; Biosensing Techniques

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the density, distribution and insecticide resistance of Aedes albopictus in Ningbo City in 2021, so as to provide insights into formulation of dengue fever control strategies. METHODS: Four administrative villages were randomly selected from each county (district) in Ningbo City from April to November, 2021, to investigate the indoor population density of Aedes larvae, and the Breteau index (BI) was calculated. The population density of adult mosquitoes was investigated in residential areas, parks/bamboo forests, waste tire stacking sites/waste stations/construction sites in each county (district). On June 2021, larvae of the natural strain A. albopictus were collected from epidemic sites of dengue fever in Ningbo City in 2018, and raised in laboratory. Then, larvae and female mosquitoes without blood feeding were selected for insecticide resistance bioassays, while insecticide-sensitive strains of A. albopictus served as controls. The resistance of A. albopictus larvae to deltamethrin, beta-cypermethrin, propoxur, temephos and dichlorvos using the impregnation method, and the medium lethal concentration (LC₅₀) and resistance ratio (RR) were calculated. The resistance of adult A. albopictus to beta-cypermethrin, permethrin, deltamethrin, propoxur and malathion was determined using the tube bioassay, and the mosquito mortality was calculated. RESULTS: A total of 10 072 small water containers from 9 935 households were investigated in Ningbo City in 2021, and there were 1 276 containers with Aedes larvae detected, with an average BI of 12.89. Totally 1 422 mosquito nets were allocated and 954 female A. albopictus were captured, with an average net trapping index of 1.34 mosquitoes/(net·hour). Both larval and adult A. albopictus mosquitoes were found from April to November, and the density of larval A. albopictus peaked in September (BI = 21.21), while the density of adult A. albopictus peaked in August, with a net trapping index of 2.38 mosquitoes/(net·hour). The LC₅₀ values of delta-methrin, beta-cypermethrin, propoxur, temephos and dichlorvos were 0.017 4, 0.000 9, 0.364 1, 0.038 1 mg/L and 0.001 6 mg/L against larvae of natural strains of A. albopicchus, with RRs of 49.66, 25.53, 9.65, 2.24 and 6.06, and the mortality rates of adult mosquitoes were 66.00% (66/100), 69.39% (68/98), 25.00% (25/100), 98.97% (96/97) and 100.00% (98/98) 24 hours post-treatment with 0.08% beta-cypermethrin, 0.03% deltamethrin, 0.4% permethrin, 0.05% propoxur, and 0.5% malathion for 24 h, respectively. CONCLUSIONS A. albopictus is widely distributed in Ningbo City, with a high population density and presents high-level resistance to common pyrethroid insecticides. The population density and insecticide resistance of A. albopictus requires to be reinforced.
Animals ; Female ; Malathion ; Temefos ; Aedes ; Propoxur ; Permethrin ; Dichlorvos ; Mosquito Vectors ; Larva ; Dengue/prevention & control*

PURPOSE: Accumulating evidence suggests that microRNA-145 (miR-145) plays an important role in osteoarthritis (OA), which is a chronic progressive joint disease. Long noncoding RNA metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1) promotes metastasis in cancers and functions as a sponge for miR-145. However, the role of MALAT1/miR-145 in OA pathogenesis has not yet been elucidated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The expression of MALAT1 and miR-145 was examined by quantitative real-time PCR; the interaction between miR-145, MALAT1 and a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs (ADAMTS) 5 was verified by luciferase reporter assay. Correlations among MALAT1, miR-145, and ADAMTS5 were analyzed by Spearman rank analysis. Chondrocytes viability and cartilage extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation were investigated with cell viability assay and Western blotting analyzing expression of ADAMTS5, collagen type 2 alpha 1 (COL2A1), aggrecan (ACAN), and cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP). RESULTS: MALAT1 was upregulated, and miR-145 was downregulated in OA samples and IL-1β-induced chondrocytes. Mechanically, miR-145 could directly bind to MALAT1 and ADAMTS5. Moreover, miR-145 expression was negatively correlated with MALAT1 and ADAMTS5 expression in OA patients, whereas MALAT1 and ADAMTS5 expression was positively correlated. Functionally, overexpression of MALAT1 inhibited chondrocyte viability and promoted cartilage ECM degradation in IL-1β-induced chondrocytes. In support thereof, MALAT1 silencing and miR-145 upregulation exerted the opposite effect in IL-1β-induced chondrocytes. Moreover, the effect of MALAT1 was counteracted by miR-145 upregulation, and ADAMTS5 restoration could abate miR-145 effects. CONCLUSION: An MALAT1/miR-145 axis contributes to ECM degradation in IL-1β-induced chondrocytes through targeting ADAMTS5, suggesting that MALAT1/miR-145/ADAMTS5 signaling may underlie human OA pathogenesis.
Adenocarcinoma ; Aggrecans ; Blotting, Western ; Cartilage Oligomeric Matrix Protein ; Cartilage ; Cell Survival ; Chondrocytes ; Collagen ; Extracellular Matrix ; Humans ; Joint Diseases ; Luciferases ; Lung ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Osteoarthritis ; Porifera ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; RNA, Long Noncoding ; Temefos ; Thrombospondins ; Up-Regulation

Cancer is a complex multifaceted illness that affects different patients in discrete ways. For a number of cancers the use of chemotherapy has become standard practice. Chemotherapy is a use of cytostatic drugs to cure cancer. Cytostatic agents not only affect cancer cells but also affect the growth of normal cells; leading to side effects. Because of this, radiotherapy gained importance in treating cancer. Slaughtering of cancerous cells by radiotherapy depends on the radiosensitivity of the tumor cells. Efforts to improve the therapeutic ratio have resulted in the development of compounds that increase the radiosensitivity of tumor cells or protect the normal cells from the effects of radiation. Amifostine is the only chemical radioprotector approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), but due to its side effect and toxicity, use of this compound was also failed. Hence the use of herbal radioprotectors bearing pharmacological properties is concentrated due to their low toxicity and efficacy. Notably, in silico methods can expedite drug discovery process, to lessen the compounds with unfavorable pharmacological properties at an early stage of drug development. Hence a detailed perspective of these properties, in accordance with their prediction and measurement, are pivotal for a successful identification of radioprotectors by drug discovery process.
Amifostine ; Computer Simulation ; Cytostatic Agents ; Drug Discovery ; Drug Therapy ; Humans ; Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship ; Radiation Tolerance ; Radiotherapy ; United States Food and Drug Administration

Over the past three decades, human pancreatic islet isolation and transplantation techniques have developed as a routine clinical procedure for selected patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus. However, due to the donor shortage and required chronic systemic immunosuppression, the widespread application of islet transplantation is limited. To overcome these limitations, providing a physical barrier to transplanted islet cells with encapsulating biomaterial has emerged as a promising approach to enhance engraftment and promote islet survival post-transplantation. Alginate has been considered to be a reliable biomaterial, as it enhances islet survival and does not hamper hormone secretion. Alginate-catechol (Al-CA) hydrogel was reported to provide high mechanical strength and chemical stability without deformation over a wide range of pH values. In this study, we, demonstrated, for the first time in the literature, that encapsulation of murine pancreatic islet cells with Al-CA hydrogel does not induce cytotoxicity ex vivo for an extended period; however, it does markedly abate glucose-stimulated insulin secretion. Catechol should not be considered as a constituent for alginate gelation for encapsulating islet cells in the application of islet transplantation.
Architectural Accessibility ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 ; Humans ; Hydrogel ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Immunosuppression ; Insulin* ; Islets of Langerhans Transplantation ; Islets of Langerhans* ; Temefos ; Tissue Donors

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical efficacy of an optimized prolate ablation procedure for correcting residual refractive errors following laser surgery. METHODS: We analyzed 24 eyes of 15 patients who underwent an optimized prolate ablation procedure for the correction of residual refractive errors following laser in situ keratomileusis, laser-assisted subepithelial keratectomy, or photorefractive keratectomy surgeries. Preoperative ophthalmic examinations were performed, and uncorrected distance visual acuity, corrected distance visual acuity, manifest refraction values (sphere, cylinder, and spherical equivalent), point spread function, modulation transfer function, corneal asphericity (Q value), ocular aberrations, and corneal haze measurements were obtained postoperatively at 1, 3, and 6 months. RESULTS: Uncorrected distance visual acuity improved and refractive errors decreased significantly at 1, 3, and 6 months postoperatively. Total coma aberration increased at 3 and 6 months postoperatively, while changes in all other aberrations were not statistically significant. Similarly, no significant changes in point spread function were detected, but modulation transfer function increased significantly at the postoperative time points measured. CONCLUSIONS: The optimized prolate ablation procedure was effective in terms of improving visual acuity and objective visual performance for the correction of persistent refractive errors following laser surgery.
Coma ; Humans ; Keratectomy, Subepithelial, Laser-Assisted ; Keratomileusis, Laser In Situ ; Laser Therapy* ; Phosmet* ; Photorefractive Keratectomy ; Refractive Errors* ; Refractive Surgical Procedures ; Treatment Outcome ; Visual Acuity

BACKGROUND: Workers in pesticide manufacturing industries are constantly exposed to pesticides. Genetic biomonitoring provides an early identification of potential cancer and genetic diseases in exposed populations. The objectives of this biomonitoring study were to assess DNA damage through comet assay in blood samples collected from industry workers and compare these results with those of classical analytical techniques used for complete blood count analysis. METHODS: Samples from controls (n = 20) and exposed workers (n = 38) from an industrial area in Multan, Pakistan, were subjected to various tests. Malathion residues in blood samples were measured by gas chromatography. RESULTS: The exposed workers who were employed in the pesticide manufacturing industry for a longer period (i.e., 13-25 years) had significantly higher DNA tail length (7.04 μm) than the controls (0.94 μm). Workers in the exposed group also had higher white blood cell and red blood cell counts, and lower levels of mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), MCH concentration, and mean corpuscular volume in comparison with normal levels for these parameters. Malathion was not detected in the control group. However, in the exposed group, 72% of whole blood samples had malathion with a mean value of 0.14 mg/L (range 0.01-0.31 mg/L). CONCLUSION: We found a strong correlation (R2 = 0.91) between DNA damage in terms of tail length and malathion concentration in blood. Intensive efforts and trainings are thus required to build awareness about safety practices and to change industrial workers' attitude to prevent harmful environmental and anthropogenic effects.
Blood Cell Count ; Chromatography, Gas ; Comet Assay ; DNA ; DNA Damage ; Environmental Monitoring* ; Erythrocyte Count ; Erythrocyte Indices ; Hematologic Tests ; Leukocytes ; Malathion ; Occupations* ; Pakistan ; Pesticides* ; Tail

OBJECTIVES: Radioiodine (RI) therapy is known to subject cellular components of salivary glands (SG) to oxidative stress leading to SG dysfunction. However, the protective effects of antioxidants on RI-induced SG damage have not been well investigated. The authors investigated the morphometric and functional effects of epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) administered prior to RI therapy and compared this with the effects of amifostine (a well-known antioxidant) in a murine model of RI sialadenitis. METHODS: Four-week-old female C57BL/6 mice (n=48) were divided into four groups; a normal control group, a RI-treated group (0.01 mCi/g mouse, orally), an EGCG and RI-treated group, and an amifostine and RI-treated group. Animals in these groups were divided into 3 subgroups and euthanized at 15, 30, and 90 days post-RI treatment. Salivary flow rates and lag times were measured, and morphologic and histologic examinations and TUNEL (terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase biotin-dUDP nick end labeling) assays were performed. Changes in salivary (99m)Tc pertechnetate uptake and excretion were followed by single-photon emission computed tomography. RESULTS: Salivary flow rates and lag times to salivation in the EGCG or amifostine groups were better than in the RI-treated group. Histologic examinations of SGs in the EGCG or amifostine group showed more mucin-rich parenchyma and less periductal fibrosis than in the RI-treated group. Fewer apoptotic cells were observed in acini, ducts, and among endothelial cells in the EGCG or amifostine group than in the RI group. In addition, patterns of (99m)Tc pertechnetate excretion were quite different in the EGCG or amifostine group than in the RI group. CONCLUSION: EGCG supplementation before RI therapy could protect from RI-induced SG damage in a manner comparable to amifostine, and thus, offers a possible means of preventing SG damage by RI.
Amifostine ; Animals ; Antioxidants ; DNA Nucleotidylexotransferase ; Endothelial Cells ; Female ; Fibrosis ; Humans ; In Situ Nick-End Labeling ; Mice ; Models, Animal ; Oxidative Stress ; Salivary Glands* ; Salivation ; Sialadenitis ; Sodium Pertechnetate Tc 99m ; Thyroid Neoplasms ; Tomography, Emission-Computed ; Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon

Since May 20, 2015, when the first case of Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) in South Korea was confirmed, the cluster case in South Korea has grown to become the largest observed case following Saudi Arabia within the span of one month. Akin to what was observed in the Middle East, confirmed cases were infected through nosocomial transmission where the cluster is largely limited to patients, healthcare workers, and visitors to patients in healthcare facilities with confirmed cases. A major difference from the outbreaks in the Arabian Peninsula has been the large number of tertiary transmission cases in South Korea, which had reached forty cases by June 12. This observation may suggest that despite the lack of genetic mutation of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in South Korea, the virus may be behaving differently from that of the Middle East. The higher infectiousness of 'super-spreaders' in South Korea also suggests that this assertion should be under further investigation. Suggestions of inadequate triage in emergency rooms, particularly at Samsung Medical Center which accounts for the most nosocomial infection with 60 cases, have been made by several organizations as the basis for this rapid spread. This, however, does not account for the fact that triage was impossible to implement, since the presence of MERS-CoV in South Korea was unknown during the index patient's stay at the healthcare facilities. This paper aims to identify the key factors in the amplified spread of MERS-CoV in South Korea. The first is the initial failure to confirm diagnosis promptly and to isolate the index case after confirmation of MERS in hospital and the lack of detail in tracking potential exposures in the community of the index case before isolation. The second is the early inadequate measures the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention took in categorizing close contacts. Due to inconsistencies in defining what constitutes close contact, a number of cases were neglected from quarantine and were not subjected to investigation. Finally, confirmed or potential MERS patients were admitted for treatment and observation at medical facilities without adequate disease control measures or rooms, such as ventilated single rooms or airborne precaution rooms. Due to the rigid position that MERS-CoV cannot be transmitted via airborne means, infection control measures has so far neglected evidence that smaller droplets (aerosol) containing the virus can act similar to airborne agents, which may account for the widespread and rapid transmission in a emergency room and a patient's room in hospital. Although the South Korean government expects newly confirmed cases to abate in the coming few weeks, without stringent implementation of clearly defined guidelines to control further transmissions, the cessation of the current trend may continue for an extended period. Additionally, due to the high infection rate of super-spreaders in South Korea, efforts to screen for potential super-spreaders and a thorough investigation of those confirmed to be super-spreaders should be done to quickly identify source of infection, to potentially lower the number of secondary, tertiary transmissions and prevent possible quaternary transmissions.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.) ; Communicable Diseases ; Coronavirus* ; Cross Infection ; Delivery of Health Care ; Diagnosis ; Disease Outbreaks ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Epidemiology ; Humans ; Infection Control ; Korea ; Middle East* ; Public Health* ; Quarantine ; Saudi Arabia ; Temefos ; Triage ; Visitors to Patients

OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of malathion on the testicular spermatogenic function of male rats and its working mechanism.

METHODSForty specific pathogen-free male Wistar rats were randomly and equally divided into four groups: three exposure groups and a control group. Malathion was administered orally to male rats in the exposure groups at 33.75, 54, and 108 mg/kg (1/32 LD₅₀, 1/20 LD₅₀, and 1/10 LD₅₀) for 60 days. Rats in the control group received an equal volume of water. The body weights of rats were measured after exposure. The organ weights and coefficients of the testes and epididymes were determined as soon as rats were sacrificed. The sperm motility, counts, and malformation rates were measured in the left epididymis. Histopathological changes, cell apoptosis, and the expression levels of Bcl-2/Bax in the testes of rats were observed using HE staining, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUPT-biotin nick end labeling, and immunohistochemistry SABC method.

RESULTSThe body weights and the testis weights in the exposure groups were significantly lower than those in the control group (P < 0.01). The exposure groups had significantly lower sperm motility and significantly higher sperm malformation rates than the control group (P < 0.01). The sperm counts were significantly lower in the exposure groups than in the control group (P<0.01). The sperm counts and motility were negatively correlated with exposure dose (r = -0.81, P < 0.01; r = -0.51, P < 0.01), while the sperm malformation rate was positively correlated with exposure dose (r = 0.85, P 0.01). The exposure groups had significantly higher spermatogenic cell apoptosis rates than the control group (P<0.01). The expression level of Bax was significantly higher in the exposure groups than in the control group (P<0.01), while the expression level of Bcl-2 was significantly lower in the exposure groups than in the control group (P < 0.01). Histopathological examination of the testes showed degenerative changes in the seminiferous tubules at various doses along with the increase in malathion exposure dose.

CONCLUSIONMalathion affects the testicular spermatogenic function of male rats and its working mechanism may involve cell apoptosis induced by down-regulation of Bcl-2 and up-regulation of Bax.

Animals ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Down-Regulation ; Epididymis ; Malathion ; toxicity ; Male ; Organ Size ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 ; metabolism ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Sperm Motility ; Spermatogenesis ; drug effects ; Spermatozoa ; Testis ; drug effects ; Up-Regulation ; bcl-2-Associated X Protein ; metabolism