Deterioration characteristics of cement-improved loess under dry-wet and freeze-thaw cycles.

The effects of cement dosage, compaction coefficient, molding method (vertical vibration method and static pressure method), and dry-wet and freeze-thaw cycles on the mechanical strength of cement-improved loess (CIL) were studied to reveal its strength degradation law under dry-wet and freeze-thaw cycles. Results show that when using the vertical vibration molding method, the strength degradation effect of CIL can be improved by increasing the cement dosage and compaction coefficient; however, it is not obvious. Under the action of dry-wet cycle, damages, such as voids and cracks of CIL, develop continuously. Further, the strength deteriorates continuously and does not decrease after more than 15 dry-wet cycles. Therefore, the dry-wet cycle degradation system is selected by considering the most unfavorable conditions. In the process of freeze-thaw alternation, the pores and fissures of CIL develop and evolve continuously and the strength deteriorates continuously under the joint influence of water and low temperature. The strength tends to become stable after more than 12 freeze-thaw cycles. According to the safety principle, the deterioration coefficient of the freeze-thaw cycles is 0.3.

Interactome Analysis of NS1 Protein Encoded by Influenza A H7N9 Virus Reveals an Inhibitory Role of NS1 in Host mRNA Maturation.

Influenza A virus infections can result in severe respiratory diseases. The H7N9 subtype of avian influenza A virus has been transmitted to humans and caused severe disease and death. Nonstructural protein 1 (NS1) of influenza A virus is a virulence determinant during viral infection. To elucidate the functions of the NS1 encoded by influenza A H7N9 virus (H7N9 NS1), interaction partners of H7N9 NS1 in human cells were identified with immunoprecipitation followed by SDS-PAGE coupled with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GeLC-MS/MS). We identified 36 cellular proteins as the interacting partners of the H7N9 NS1, and they are involved in RNA processing, mRNA splicing via spliceosome, and the mRNA surveillance pathway. Two of the interacting partners, cleavage and polyadenylation specificity factor subunit 2 (CPSF2) and CPSF7, were confirmed to interact with H7N9 NS1 using coimmunoprecipitation and immunoblotting based on the previous finding that the two proteins are involved in pre-mRNA polyadenylation machinery. Furthermore, we illustrate that overexpression of H7N9 NS1, as well as infection by the influenza A H7N9 virus, interfered with pre-mRNA polyadenylation in host cells. This study comprehensively profiled the interactome of H7N9 NS1 in host cells, and the results demonstrate a novel endotype for H7N9 NS1 in inhibiting host mRNA maturation.

Interactome Analysis of the NS1 Protein Encoded by Influenza A H1N1 Virus Reveals a Positive Regulatory Role of Host Protein PRP19 in Viral Replication.

Influenza A virus, which can cause severe respiratory illnesses in infected individuals, is responsible for worldwide human pandemics. The NS1 protein encoded by this virus plays a crucial role in regulating the host antiviral response through various mechanisms. In addition, it has been reported that NS1 can modulate cellular pre-mRNA splicing events. To investigate the biological processes potentially affected by the NS1 protein in host cells, NS1-associated protein complexes in human cells were identified using coimmunoprecipitation combined with GeLC-MS/MS. By employing software to build biological process and protein-protein interaction networks, NS1-interacting cellular proteins were found to be related to RNA splicing/processing, cell cycle, and protein folding/targeting cellular processes. By monitoring spliced and unspliced RNAs of a reporter plasmid, we further validated that NS1 can interfere with cellular pre-mRNA splicing. One of the identified proteins, pre-mRNA-processing factor 19 (PRP19), was confirmed to interact with the NS1 protein in influenza A virus-infected cells. Importantly, depletion of PRP19 in host cells reduced replication of influenza A virus. In summary, the interactome of influenza A virus NS1 in host cells was comprehensively profiled, and our findings reveal a novel regulatory role for PRP19 in viral replication.

Role of N Terminus-Truncated NS1 Proteins of Influenza A Virus in Inhibiting IRF3 Activation.

UNLABELLED: The NS1 protein encoded by influenza A virus antagonizes the interferon response through various mechanisms, including blocking cellular mRNA maturation by binding the cellular CPSF30 3' end processing factor and/or suppressing the activation of interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3). In the present study, we identified two truncated NS1 proteins that are translated from internal AUGs at positions 235 and 241 of the NS1 open reading frame. We analyzed the cellular localization and function of the N-truncated NS1 proteins encoded by two influenza A virus strains, Udorn/72/H3N2 (Ud) and Puerto Rico/8/34/H1N1 (PR8). The NS1 protein of PR8, but not Ud, inhibits the activation of IRF3, whereas the NS1 protein of Ud, but not PR8, binds CPSF30. The truncated PR8 NS1 proteins are localized in the cytoplasm, whereas the full-length PR8 NS1 protein is localized in the nucleus. The infection of cells with a PR8 virus expressing an NS1 protein containing mutations of the two in-frame AUGs results in both the absence of truncated NS1 proteins and the reduced inhibition of activation of IRF3 and beta interferon (IFN-ß) transcription. The expression of the truncated PR8 NS1 protein by itself enhances the inhibition of the activation of IRF3 and IFN-ß transcription in Ud virus-infected cells. These results demonstrate that truncated PR8 NS1 proteins contribute to the inhibition of activation of this innate immune response. In contrast, the N-truncated NS1 proteins of the Ud strain, like the full-length NS1 protein, are localized in the nucleus, and mutation of the two in-frame AUGs has no effect on the activation of IRF3 and IFN-ß transcription. IMPORTANCE: Influenza A virus causes pandemics and annual epidemics in the human population. The viral NS1 protein plays a critical role in suppressing type I interferon expression. In the present study, we identified two novel truncated NS1 proteins that are translated from the second and third in-frame AUG codons in the NS1 open reading frame. The N-terminally truncated NS1 encoded by the H1N1 PR8 strain of influenza virus that suppresses IRF3 activation is localized primarily in the cytoplasm. We demonstrate that this truncated NS1 protein by itself enhances this suppression, demonstrating that some strains of influenza A virus express truncated forms of the NS1 protein that function in the inhibition of cytoplasmic antiviral events.

Effects of multimicronutrient supplementation during pregnancy on postnatal growth of children under 5 years of age: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND: The beneficial effect of antenatal multiple micronutrients supplementation on infant birth outcomes has been proposed by previous meta-analyses. However, their benefits on postnatal health of children have not been summarized. A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials was conducted to evaluate the effect of maternal multimicronutrient supplementation on postnatal growth of children under 5 years of age. METHODS: We searched both published and ongoing trials through the PubMed, EMBASE, CENTRAL (OVID platform), Web of Science, BIOSIS Previews, Chinese Science Citation Database, Scopus, ProQuest, ClinicalTrials.gov, Chinese Biomedical Database, and WANFANG database for randomized controlled trials. Reference lists of included studies and relevant reviews were also reviewed for eligible studies. Standard mean difference (SMD) was employed as the index for continuous variables by using fixed effects models. Trend analysis by visual inspection was applied to evaluate the change of mean difference of weight and height between the groups over time. RESULTS: Nine trials (12 titles) from nine different countries were retrieved for analysis. Pooled results showed that antenatal multimicronutrient supplementation increased child head circumference (SMD = 0.08, 95% CI: 0.00-0.15) compared with supplementation with two micronutrient or less. No evidence was found for the benefits of antenatal multimicronutrient supplementation on weight (P = 0.11), height (P = 0.66), weight-for-age z scores (WAZ) (P = 0.34), height-for-age z scores (HAZ) (P = 0.81) and weight-for-height z scores (WHZ) (P = 0.22). A positive effect was found on chest circumference based on two included studies. CONCLUSIONS: Antenatal multimicronutrient supplementation has a significant positive effect on head circumference of children under 5 years. No impact of the supplementation was found on weight, height, WAZ, HAZ and WHZ.