Prevalence, bio-serotype, antibiotic susceptibility and genotype of Yersinia enterocolitica and other Yersinia species isolated from retail and processed meats in Shaanxi Province, China

This study characterized Yersinia enterocolitica and other Yersinia spp. isolated from retail and processed meats sampled in Yangling, Shaanxi Province, China (2018–2019). The detection rate of Yersinia -positive samples was 14.30% (86/600). Yersinia was commonly prevalent in beefs (32.00%), frozen meats (25.00%), packaged meats (21.65%), and meats from supermarkets (17.23%). Y. enterocolitica was identified as the most prevalent species (50.00%, 62/124), followed by Y. frederiksenii (24.19%), Y. intermedia (16.94%), and Y. kristensenii (8.87%). Most Y. enterocolitica isolates were of bio-serotype 1A/nt (67.74%). Sixty-three isolates (50.81%) carried yst B and two isolates (1.61%) carried rfb C. Yersinia isolates were commonly resistant to ampicillin (91.94%), cefazolin (71.77%), amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (56.45%), cefoxitin (28.23%), and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (1.61%). Sixty-six isolates (53.23%) were resistant to three or more antibiotics. Pulse field gel electrophoresis analysis revealed that the genetic homology of Yersinia isolates between pork, beef, and chicken was low, as was that of biotype 1A isolates. The results indicate that Y. enterocolitica and other Yersinia spp. (especially bio-serotype 1A/nt, ampicillin-resistant, and yst B-carrying strains) are prevalent in retail and processed meats in the study area, which provides valuable baseline data for food safety and public health safeguarding. • Yersinia spp. with different characteristics were prevalent in retail meat. • Yersinia enterocolitica was the most commonly detected species. • Yersinia enterocolitica biotype 1A isolates carried gene yst B and resisted multiple antibiotics. • The genetic relationship of Yersinia isolates between pork, beef, and chicken was diverse. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of LWT - Food Science & Technology is the property of Academic Press Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Mapping Paddy Rice Distribution and Cropping Intensity in China from 2014 to 2019 with Landsat Images, Effective Flood Signals, and Google Earth Engine

Paddy rice cropping systems play a vital role in food security, water use, gas emission estimates, and grain yield prediction. Due to alterations in the labor structure and the high cost of paddy rice planting, the paddy rice cropping systems (single or double paddy rice) have drastically changed in China in recent years;many double-cropping paddy rice fields have been converted to single-cropping paddy rice or other crops, especially in southern China. Few maps detect single and double paddy rice and cropping intensity for paddy rice (CIPR) in China with a 30 m resolution. The Landsat-based and effective flooding signal-based phenology (EFSP) method, which distinguishes CIPR with the frequency of the effective flooding signal (EFe), was proposed and tested in China. The cloud/ice/shadow was excluded by bit arithmetic, generating a good observation map, and several non-paddy rice masks were established to improve the classification accuracy. Threshold values for single and double paddy rice were calculated through the mapped data and agricultural census data. Image processing (more than 684,000 scenes) and algorithm implementation were accomplished by a cloud computing approach with the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform. The resultant maps of paddy rice from 2014 to 2019 were evaluated with data from statistical yearbooks and high-resolution images, with producer (user) accuracy and kappa coefficients ranging from 0.92 to 0.96 (0.76–0.87) and 0.67–0.80, respectively. Additionally, the determination coefficients for mapped and statistical data were higher than 0.88 from 2014 to 2019. Maps derived from EFSP illustrate that the single and double paddy rice systems are mainly concentrated in the Cfa (warm, fully humid, and hot summer, 49% vs. 56%) climate zone in China and show a slightly decreasing trend. The trend of double paddy rice is more pronounced than that of single paddy rice due to the high cost and shortages of rural household labor. However, single paddy rice fields expanded in Dwa (cold, dry winter, and hot summer, 11%) and Dwb (cold, dry winter, and warm summer, 9%) climate zones. The regional cropping intensity for paddy rice coincides with the paddy rice planting area but shows a significant decrease in south China, especially in Hunan Province, from 2014 to 2019. The results demonstrate that EFSP can effectively support the mapping of single and double paddy rice fields and CIPR in China, and the combinations of Landsat 7 and 8 provide enough good observations for EFSP to monitor paddy rice agriculture. [ FROM AUTHOR];Copyright of Remote Sensing is the property of MDPI and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

The Diffusion Mechanism of Megaproject Citizenship Behavior: The Role of Institutional Isomorphism

Megaproject citizenship behavior (MCB) has been confirmed to a play vital role on megaproject performance. Although current research has argued that institution elements have had an impact on MCB diffusion, limited studies have empirically investigated the distinct effectiveness of various institution elements on driving MCB’s widespread diffusion in construction megaprojects. Based on institution theory, this study proposes a theoretical model comprising institutional elements (i.e., normative and mimetic isomorphism), owner’s support, relationship-based trust, and their effect or impact on MCB’s diffusion. Based on 171 industrial questionnaires collected from managers of contractors and designers in megaprojects. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to validate the established model. The results indicated that both normative and mimetic isomorphism have positive effects on facilitating MCB diffusion, and owner’s support has shown partial mediation in promoting MCB diffusion through normative isomorphism, as well as full mediation in the promoting of MCB diffusion through mimetic isomorphism. Meanwhile, relationship-based trust exerts a positive moderating effect on the relationship between mimetic isomorphism and MCB. This study extends current literature on driving MCB diffusion from the perspective of institutional theory, contributing by providing four implications for megaprojects managers to “buy in” more extensive MCB.

SUMOylation restrains ACE2 degradation through TOLLIP-mediated selective autophagy to facilitate the host susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection (preprint)

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the causative agent of the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Alongside investigations into the virology of SARS-CoV-2, understanding the host–virus dependencies are vital for the identification and rational design of effective antiviral therapy. Here, we report the dominant SARS-CoV-2 entry receptor, ACE2, conjugates with small ubiquitin-like modifier 3 (SUMO3) through a proteome-wide protein interaction analysis. We further demonstrate that E3 SUMO ligase PIAS4 prompts the SUMOylation and stabilization of ACE2, whereas deSUMOylation enzyme SENP3 reverses this process. Conjugation of SUMO3 with ACE2 at lysine (K) 187 hampers the K48-linked ubiquitination of ACE2, thus suppressing its subsequent cargo receptor TOLLIP-dependent autophagic degradation. Pharmacological intervention of ACE2 SUMOylation blocks the entry of SARS-CoV-2 and viral infection-triggered immune responses. Collectively, our findings suggest selective autophagic degradation of ACE2 orchestrated by SUMOylation and ubiquitination can be targeted to future antiviral therapy of SARS-CoV-2.

The physical and mental health for the medical staff caring for patients with COVID-19 in Wuhan Huoshenshan Hospital: A structural equation modeling (preprint)

Background: Early in the epidemic of corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19), Chinese government had recruited a portion of military healthcare workers to support the designated hospital (Wuhan Huoshenshan Hospital) to relieve the front-line workload in Wuhan, China. It was reported that the majority of the front-line medical staff (FLMS) suffered from adverse effects, but their physical and psychological health status and its relationship were still unknown. Hence, a structural equation modeling (SEM) was conducted to establish and test the latent relationship among variables.Methods: This is a cross-sectional study. Totally 115 convenience samples of military medical staff from Xinqiao Hospital in Chongqing were enrolled during February 17th to February 29th, 2020. The medical staff assisting in Huoshenshan Hospital were selected as experimental group(n=55), the other medical staff were control group(n=60). Self-reported sleep status, fatigue status, resilience status and anxiety status were examined.Results: During COVID-19, the medical staff underwent some impairments of physical and psychological health. The anxiety score of experimental group was (42.84±9.44), the fatigue score was (52.85±9.33), and the resilience score was (67.58±11.75). And the score of anxiety, fatigue, resilience of control group were (46.27±9.94), (49.33±11.20), (65.42±14.54) respectively. For experimental group, we found the different working duration and different attitude to work in Wuhan both had significant differences in fatigue scores (P<0.05); As for resilience scores and anxiety scores, only different current perceived health status of participants showed a statistically significant difference (P<0.05). The SEM results indicated the direct path from resilience to fatigue (β=-0.129, P=0.032) and anxiety (β=-0.026, P=0.043) were both significant, it revealed that resilience were negatively associated with the level of fatigue and anxiety, and the indirect path showed fatigue had a significant mediating effect between resilience and anxiety (β=-0.146, P=0.039) of the Huoshenshan Hospital medical staff.Conclusion: During an explosive pandemic, motivating the effect of individual’s internal resilience and making use of proper external interventions is a promising way to protect the physical and mental health of the front-line medical staff.

FEP-based screening prompts drug repositioning against COVID-19 (preprint)

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has become a global crisis. There is no therapeutic treatment specific for COVID-19. It is highly desirable to identify potential antiviral agents against SARS-CoV-2 from existing drugs available for other diseases and, thus, repurpose them for treatment of COVID-19. In general, a drug repurposing effort for treatment of a new disease, such as COVID-19, usually starts from a virtual screening of existing drugs, followed by experimental validation, but the actual hit rate is generally rather low with traditional computational methods. Here we report a new virtual screening approach with accelerated free energy perturbation-based absolute binding free energy (FEP-ABFE) predictions and its use in identifying drugs targeting SARS-CoV-2 main protease (Mpro). The accurate FEP-ABFE predictions were based on the use of a new restraint energy distribution (RED) function designed to accelerate the FEP-ABFE calculations and make the practical FEP-ABFE-based virtual screening of the existing drug library possible for the first time. As a result, out of twenty-five drugs predicted, fifteen were confirmed as potent inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 Mpro. The most potent one is dipyridamole (Ki=0.04 M) which has showed promising therapeutic effects in subsequently conducted clinical studies for treatment of patients with COVID-19. Additionally, hydroxychloroquine (Ki=0.36 M) and chloroquine (Ki=0.56 M) were also found to potently inhibit SARS-CoV-2 Mpro for the first time. We anticipate that the FEP-ABFE prediction-based virtual screening approach will be useful in many other drug repurposing or discovery efforts. Significance StatementDrug repurposing effort for treatment of a new disease, such as COVID-19, usually starts from a virtual screening of existing drugs, followed by experimental validation, but the actual hit rate is generally rather low with traditional computational methods. It has been demonstrated that a new virtual screening approach with accelerated free energy perturbation-based absolute binding free energy (FEP-ABFE) predictions can reach an unprecedently high hit rate, leading to successful identification of 16 potent inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 main protease (Mpro) from computationally selected 25 drugs under a threshold of Ki = 4 M. The outcomes of this study are valuable for not only drug repurposing to treat COVID-19, but also demonstrating the promising potential of the FEP-ABFE prediction-based virtual screening approach.

Therapeutic effects of dipyridamole on COVID-19 patients with coagulation dysfunction (preprint)

The human coronavirus HCoV-19 infection can cause acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), hypercoagulability, hypertension, extrapulmonary multiorgan dysfunction. Effective antiviral and anti-coagulation agents with safe clinical profiles are urgently needed to improve the overall prognosis. We screened an FDA approved drug library and found that an anticoagulant agent dipyridamole (DIP) suppressed HCoV-19 replication at an EC50 of 100 nM in vitro. It also elicited potent type I interferon responses and ameliorated lung pathology in a viral pneumonia model. In analysis of twelve HCoV-19 infected patients with prophylactic anti-coagulation therapy, we found that DIP supplementation was associated with significantly increased platelet and lymphocyte counts and decreased D-dimer levels in comparison to control patients. Two weeks after initiation of DIP treatment, 3 of the 6 severe cases (60%) and all 4 of the mild cases (100%) were discharged from the hospital. One critically ill patient with extremely high levels of D-dimer and lymphopenia at the time of receiving DIP passed away. All other patients were in clinical remission. In summary, HCoV-19 infected patients could potentially benefit from DIP adjunctive therapy by reducing viral replication, suppressing hypercoagulability and enhancing immune recovery. Larger scale clinical trials of DIP are needed to validate these therapeutic effects.

ACE2 expression by colonic epithelial cells is associated with viral infection, immunity and energy metabolism (preprint)

Respiratory disease caused by the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) pneumonia first emerged in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, in December 2019 and spread rapidly to other provinces and other countries. Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is the receptor for SARS-CoV and has been suggested to be also the receptor for 2019-nCoV. Paradoxically, ACE2 expression in the lung protects mice from SARS-CoV spike protein induced lung injury by attenuating the renin-angiotensin system. In the intestine, ACE2 also suppresses intestinal inflammation by maintaining amino acid homeostasis, antimicrobial peptide expression and ecology of the gut microbiome. Upon analysis of single cell-RNA sequencing data from control subjects and those with colitis or inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), we found that ACE2 expression in the colonocytes was positively associated with genes regulating viral infection, innate and cellular immunity, but was negatively associated with viral transcription, protein translation, humoral immunity, phagocytosis and complement activation. In summary, we suggest that ACE2 may play dual roles in mediating the susceptibility and immunity of 2019-nCoV infection.