Stomach as the target organ of Rickettsia heilongjiangensis infection in C57BL/6 mice identified by click chemistry.

Spotted fever group rickettsiae (SFGR) are obligate intracellular bacteria that cause spotted fever. The limitations of gene manipulation pose great challenges to studying the infection mechanisms of Rickettsia. By combining bioorthogonal metabolism and click chemistry, we developed a method to label R. heilongjiangensis via azide moieties and achieved rapid pathogen localization without complex procedures. Moreover, we constructed a C57BL/6 mice infection model by simulating tick bites and discovered that the stomach is the target organ of R. heilongjiangensis infection through in vivo imaging systems, which explained the occurrence of gastrointestinal symptoms following R. heilongjiangensis infection in some cases. This study offers a unique perspective for subsequent investigations into the pathogenic mechanisms of SFGR and identifies a potential target organ for R. heilongjiangensis.

The nicotine demethylase CYP82E4 is essential for the formation of red dapples on flue-cured leaves of cherry-red tobacco.

Common flue-cured tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) primarily accumulates nicotine, and its flue-cured leaves exhibit a lemon appearance. In contrast, a spontaneous cherry-red variant (CR60) primarily accumulates nornicotine, accompanied by distinctive red dapples on the cured leaves. In this study, suppression of conversion of nicotine to nornicotine by genome editing resulted in decreased nornicotine and N-acyl nornicotines (NacNNs), and the subsequent disappearance of red dapples in CR60. Conversely, overexpression of CYP82E4 increased nornicotine and NacNNs accumulation, inducing a red dapple phenotype in common tobacco. Notably, nicotine conversion triggered significant alterations in leaf total sugars, alkaloids, and nitrogens. Metabolome analyses using 1352 identified compounds indicated nicotine conversion dramatically affected the entire metabolic network and induced unique metabolic responses across diverse genetic backgrounds. Further WGCNA analysis revealed that nicotine conversion caused substantial contents variation of alkaloids, flavonoids and amino acids and derivatives in cured leaves. Overall, this research provides valuable insights into the mechanisms underlying red dapple formation in cherry-red tobacco, elucidating profound influence of nicotine conversion on entire metabolic network.

OTUB1 regulates ferroptosis to inhibit myoblast differentiation into myotubes by deubiquitinating P62.

As the largest organ in the human body, skeletal muscle is essential for breathing support, movement initiation, and maintenance homeostasis. It has been shown that programmed cell death (PCD), which includes autophagy, apoptosis, and necrosis, is essential for the development of skeletal muscle. A novel form of PCD called ferroptosis is still poorly understood in relation to skeletal muscle. In this study, we observed that the activation of ferroptosis significantly impeded the differentiation of C2C12 myoblasts into myotubes and concurrently suppressed the expression of OTUB1, a crucial deubiquitinating enzyme. OTUB1-silenced C2C12 mouse myoblasts were used to investigate the function of OTUB1 in ferroptosis. The results show that OTUB1 knockdown in vitro significantly increased C2C12 ferroptosis and inhibited myogenesis. Interestingly, the induction of ferroptosis resulting from OTUB1 knockdown was concomitant with the activation of autophagy. Furthermore, OTUB1 interacted with the P62 protein and stabilized its expression by deubiquitinating it, thereby inhibiting autophagy-dependent ferroptosis and promoting myogenesis. All of these findings demonstrate the critical role that OTUB1 plays in controlling ferroptosis, and we suggest that focusing on the OTUB1-P62 axis may be a useful tactic in the treatment and prevention of disorders involving the skeletal muscle.

Metabolic remodeling by RNA polymerase gene mutations is associated with reduced ß-lactam susceptibility in oxacillin-susceptible MRSA.

The emergence of oxacillin-susceptible methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (OS-MRSA) has imposed further challenges to the clinical management of MRSA infections. When exposed to ß-lactam antibiotics, these strains can easily acquire reduced ß-lactam susceptibility through chromosomal mutations, including those in RNA polymerase (RNAP) genes such as rpoBC, which may then lead to treatment failure. Despite the increasing prevalence of such strains and the apparent challenges they pose for diagnosis and treatment, there is limited information available on the actual mechanisms underlying such chromosomal mutation-related transitions to reduced ß-lactam susceptibility, as it does not directly associate with the expression of mecA. This study investigated the cellular physiology and metabolism of six missense mutants with reduced oxacillin susceptibility, each carrying respective mutations on RpoBH929P, RpoBQ645H, RpoCG950R, RpoCG498D, RpiAA64E, and FruBA211E, using capillary electrophoresis-mass spectrometry-based metabolomics analysis. Our results showed that rpoBC mutations caused RNAP transcription dysfunction, leading to an intracellular accumulation of ribonucleotides. These mutations also led to the accumulation of UDP-Glc/Gal and UDP-GlcNAc, which are precursors of UTP-associated peptidoglycan and wall teichoic acid. Excessive amounts of building blocks then contributed to the cell wall thickening of mutant strains, as observed in transmission electron microscopy, and ultimately resulted in decreased susceptibility to ß-lactam in OS-MRSA. IMPORTANCE: The emergence of oxacillin-susceptible methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (OS-MRSA) strains has created new challenges for treating MRSA infections. These strains can become resistant to ß-lactam antibiotics through chromosomal mutations, including those in the RNA polymerase (RNAP) genes such as rpoBC, leading to treatment failure. This study investigated the mechanisms underlying reduced ß-lactam susceptibility in four rpoBC mutants of OS-MRSA. The results showed that rpoBC mutations caused RNAP transcription dysfunction, leading to an intracellular accumulation of ribonucleotides and precursors of peptidoglycan as well as wall teichoic acid. This, in turn, caused thickening of the cell wall and ultimately resulted in decreased susceptibility to ß-lactam in OS-MRSA. These findings provide insights into the mechanisms of antibiotic resistance in OS-MRSA and highlight the importance of continued research in developing effective treatments to combat antibiotic resistance.

Clinical characteristics, viral dynamics, and antibody response of monkeypox virus infections among men with and without HIV infection in Guangzhou, China.

Background: Monkeypox virus (MPXV) is spreading globally and nearly half of the infected people were human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positive. Therefore, an in-depth understanding of the effects of HIV infection on the outcomes of MPXV infection is urgently needed. This study aimed to explore the clinical features, viral dynamics, and antibody response to MPXV infections in men who had sex with men (MSM) with and without HIV co-infection. Design or methods: MPXV-infected patients diagnosed by PCR were recruited in this study and were divided into MPXV and MPXV + HIV groups based on whether they were co-infected with HIV. Clinical data and samples were collected during of the hospital stay and follow up interviews. The symptoms and signs, laboratory examinations, viral shedding in various body fluids or swabs, antibody dynamics were tracked and compared between the two groups. Results: A total of 41 MPXV patients were recruited through June 2023 to September 2023 in Guangzhou. The MPXV group and MPXV + HIV group comprised 20 and 21 MSM, respectively. Patients in the two groups exhibited similar clinical characteristics except for pruritus and eschar, both were significantly fewer in MPXV + HIV group than in MPXV only group. Among the 355 clinical samples collected, MPXV DNA was detected in 100% of scabs, 97.4% of skin swabs, and 92.3% of exudate swabs from lesions, while the positive rate was 87.5% from oropharyngeal swabs, 59% from saliva, 51.3% from anal swabs, 50% from feces, 30.6% from urine samples, 37.5% of semen, and 28.2% from sera. Dynamics analysis revealed that viral DNA was undetectable in most patients 20 days after symptom onset. IgM and IgG antibodies to MPXV were detected in all patients with 3-5 days earlier in the MPXV group than in the MPXV + HIV group. Conclusion: This cohort analysis based on a large outbreak among MSM in Guangzhou indicated no obvious differences in clinical symptoms, viral DNA data, but antibody responses were 3-5 days later in mpox patients with HIV infection.

High-Sensitive Uncooled Mid-Wave Infrared Detector Based on TiS3 Nanoribbon.

High-sensitive uncooled mid-wave infrared (MWIR) photodetection with fast speed is highly desired for biomedical imaging, optical communication, and night vision technology. Low-dimensional materials with low dark current and broadband photoresponse hold great promise for use in MWIR detection. Here, this study reports a high-performance MWIR photodetector based on a titanium trisulfide (TiS3) nanoribbon. This device demonstrates an ultra-broadband photoresponse ranging from the visible spectrum to the MWIR spectrum (405-4275 nm). In the MWIR spectral range, the photodetector achieves competitive high photoresponsivity (R) of 21.1 A W-1, and an impressive specific detectivity (D*) of 5.9 × 1010 cmHz1/2 W-1 in ambient air. Remarkably, the photoresponse speed in the MWIR with τr = 1.3 ms and τd = 1.5 ms is realized which is much faster than the thermal time constant of 15 ms. These findings pave the way for highly sensitive, room-temperature MWIR photodetectors with exceptionally fast response speed.

Engineering a two-dimensional metal-carbon nanozyme-based portable paper-based colorimetric chip for onsite and visual analysis of pyrophosphate.

Sensitive and accurate analysis of pyrophosphate (PPi) is of great importance for preventing health hazard in environment. Nevertheless, most of sensors focus on sensitivity and selectivity, but practicality is also a significant quota. How to reconciling sensitivity, selectivity and practicability in one single sensor is desirable but remains challenging. Here, we created a novel metal-carbon nanozyme V2O5@C with two-dimensional (2D) morphology and high yet exclusive peroxidase (POD)-like activity via a glucose and NH4NO4-co-directed avenue, and further showed its application in constructing a portable and disposable paper-based analytical chip (PA-chip) for rapid, visual and onsite analysis of PPi. PPi etched V2O5 to prevent the decomposition of H2O2 into ·OH, resulting in weakened POD-like activity. In comparison with PPi deficiency, colorless TMB couldn't be oxidized into oxidized TMB with a dropped absorption at 652 nm. Therefore, obviously shallowed blue color on PA-chip surface was recorded, and demonstrated a negative relationship with PPi dosage, enabling rapid and visual detection of PPi with a limit of detection of 2.6 nM. This study demonstrated the burgeoning applications of nanozymes with POD-like activity in construction of PA-chips for PPi and will quicken the advancement of practical sensors, guaranteeing environmental safety.

Ruthenium-based single atom catalysts: synthesis and application in the electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction.

Electrocatalytic water splitting is a promising production method for green hydrogen; however, its practical application is limited by the lack of robust catalysts for the cathode hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Recently, the use of Ru in electrocatalytic HER has become a research hotspot because Ru has a metal-hydrogen bond strength similar to that of Pt - known for its excellent HER activity - but has a lower cost than Pt. Numerous modification strategies are available to further improve the HER activity of metal Ru such as vulcanisation, phosphating and atomisation. The atomisation strategy has attracted much attention owing to its extremely high Ru atomic utilisation efficiency and tunable electronic structures. However, isolated studies could not effectively address the bottlenecks. Therefore, to promote the effective exploration of Ru-based single-atom catalysts and clarify the research status in this field, studies on related topics (e.g. Ru single-atom catalysts, Ru dual-atom catalysts, composite catalysts containing single-atom Ru and Ru nanoparticles) have been systematically and briefly summarised herein. Finally, the research challenges and prospects of Ru-based single-atom catalysts in the HER field have been discussed, which may provide valuable insights for further research.

Triplinones A-H: Anti-Inflammatory Arylalkenyl α,ß-Unsaturated-δ-Lactones Isolated from the Leaves of Australian Rainforest Plant Cryptocarya triplinervis (Lauraceae).

Our ongoing exploration of Australian rainforest plants for the biodiscovery of anti-inflammatory agents led to the isolation and structural elucidation of eight new arylalkenyl α,ß-unsaturated-δ-lactones, triplinones A-H (1-8), from the leaves of the Australian rainforest plant Cryptocarya triplinervis B. Hyland (Lauraceae). The chemical structures of these compounds were established by NMR spectroscopic data analysis, while their relative and absolute configurations were established using a combination of Mosher ester analysis utilizing both Riguera's and Kishi's methods, ECD experiments, and X-ray crystallography analysis. Compounds 1-8 exhibited good inhibitory activities toward nitric oxide (NO) production in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and interferon (IFN)-γ induced RAW 264.7 macrophages, in particular compounds 1-3 and 5, with IC50 values of 7.3 ± 0.5, 6.0 ± 0.3, 5.6 ± 0.3, and 5.4 ± 2.5 µM, respectively.

Monitoring training load and perceived recovery indicators during the preseason and in-season phases in professional female basketball players.

BACKGROUND: During the basketball season, it is essential to carefully plan training and recovery activities to optimize players' performance. This study monitored training load and perceived recovery indicators in professional female basketball players across the preseason and in-season phases. METHODS: Seventeen professional female basketball players (age: 19.6±3.1 years; height: 180.2±5.9 cm; playing position: 8 backcourt, 9 frontcourt) were monitored for eleven consecutive weeks. Each morning, players reported their perceived recovery using a 10-point Total Quality of Recovery (TQR) Scale. After each training session or game, players reported their perceived exertion using the CR-10 Scale, which was multiplied by the duration of the training or game to obtain the session load. Weekly load, monotony, strain, TQRAM (morning recovery) and TQRfw (recovery at the start of the following week) were calculated. Linear mixed models were performed to assess the effects of season phase (preseason; in-season), playing position (backcourt; frontcourt) and group (senior; under) on load and recovery variables. RESULTS: Weekly load, monotony and strain were higher in the preseason than the in-season phase (all P<0.001, ES: moderate-large). Strain was higher in senior players compared to under (P=0.045, ES: small). Regarding recovery variables, no effects were found for TQRAM, while TQRfw was higher in the preseason than in-season (P<0.001, ES: moderate) phase. CONCLUSIONS: Professional female basketball players experience lower internal loads but poorer perceived recovery during the in-season phase. Practitioners should carefully consider the stress of competition and the cumulative fatigue from high preseason loads during the transition from the preseason to the regular season.

Prognostic prediction and comparison of three staging programs for patients with advanced (T2-T4) esophageal squamous carcinoma after radical resection.

Purpose: Lymph node-based staging protocols are frequently employed to evaluate the prognosis of esophageal cancer, yet their accuracy remains contentious. The present study was conducted to assess the prognostic significance of three lymph node staging systems, namely N stage, lymph node rate (LNR), and log odds of positive lymph nodes (LODDS), in patients diagnosed with advanced (T2-T4) esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Methods: This cohort comprised 319 eligible patients, with an additional 409 individuals retrieved from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database, forming the validation cohort. Differences in overall survival (OS) of patients between groups were assessed using the log-rank test. Prognostic independent risk variables were identified, and lymph nodes (LN) prognostic models were built using multivariate Cox regression analysis. Besides, the predictive accuracy of each model was evaluated utilizing the (-2) log-likelihood ratio (-2LLR), the likelihood ratio χ2 score (LRχ2), the Akaike information criterion (AIC), and Harrell's concordance index (C-index). To further evaluate the potential superiority of the model, a nomogram was constructed for comparison with the conventional Tumor Node Metastasis (TNM) staging approach. Results: Independent prognostic factors for advanced ESCC include the N stage, LNR, and LODDS. Herein, LODDS presented higher values for C-index and LRχ2, and lower values for AIC and -2LLR in OS compared to the others. Consequently, a nomogram was constructed based on LODDS. Calibration curves exhibited strong agreement, and assessment through C-index, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, and clinical decision curve analysis (DCA) demonstrated promising clinical applicability. Conclusion: LODDS emerges as a promising future prognostic indicator. After surgery, the proposed model holds the potential to provide valuable treatment recommendations for patients with advanced ESCC.

Association of bioimpedance analysis parameters trajectories with clinical outcomes in neurocritical patients.

Background and objective: Neurocritical patients often experience uncontrolled high catabolic metabolism state during the acuta phase of the disease. The complex interactions of neuroendocrine, inflammation, and immune system lead to massive protein breakdown and changes in body composition. Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) evaluates the content and proportions of body components based on the principles of bioelectricity. Its parameters reflect the overall health status of the body and the integrity of cellular structure and function, playing an important role in assessing the disease status and predicting prognosis of such patients. This study explored the association of BIA parameters trajectories with clinical outcomes in neurocritical patients. Methods: This study prospectively collected BIA parameters of 127 neurocritical patients in the Department of Neurology admitted to the NICU for the first 1-7 days. All these patients were adults (≥18 years old) experiencing their first onset of illness and were in the acute phase of the disease. The group-based trajectory modeling (GBTM), which aims to identify individuals following similar developmental trajectories, was used to identify potential subgroups of individuals based on BIA parameters. The short-term prognosis of patients in each trajectory group with variations in phase angle (PA) and extracellular water/total body water (ECW/TBW) over time was differentially analyzed, and the logistic regression model was used to analyze the relationship between potential trajectory groups of PA and ECW/TBW and the short-term prognosis of neurocritical patients. The outcome was Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) score at discharge. Results: Four PA trajectories and four ECW/TBW trajectories were detected respectively in neurocritical patients. Among them, compared with the other latent subgroups, the "Low PA rapidly decreasing subgroup" and the "High ECW/TBW slowly rising subgroup" had higher incidences of adverse outcomes at discharge (GOS:1-3), in-hospital mortality, and length of neurology intensive care unit stay (all P < 0.05). After correcting for potential confounders, compared with the "Low PA rapidly decreasing subgroup", the risk of adverse outcome (GOS:1-3) was lower in the other three PA trajectories, with OR values of 0.0003, 0.0004, and 0.003 respectively (all P < 0.05). Compared with the "High ECW/TBW slowly rising subgroup", the risk of adverse outcome (GOS:1-3) was lower in the other three ECW/TBW trajectories, with OR values of 0.013, 0.035 and 0.038 respectively (all P < 0.05). Conclusion: Latent PA trajectories and latent ECW/TBW trajectories during 1-7 days after admission were associated with the clinical outcomes of neurocritical patients. The risk of adverse outcomes was highest in the "Low PA rapidly decreasing subgroup" and the "High ECW/TBW slowly rising subgroup". These results reflected the overall health status and nutritional condition of neurocritical patients at the onset of the disease, and demonstrated the dynamic change process in body composition caused by the inflammatory response during the acute phase of the disease. This provided a reference basis for the observation and prognostic evaluation of such patients.

Bromodomain Protein Inhibition Protects ß-Cells from Cytokine-Induced Death and Dysfunction via Antagonism of NF-κB Pathway.

Cytokine-induced ß-cell apoptosis is a major pathogenic mechanism in type 1 diabetes (T1D). Despite significant advances in understanding its underlying mechanisms, few drugs have been translated to protect ß-cells in T1D. Epigenetic modulators such as bromodomain-containing BET (bromo- and extra-terminal) proteins are important regulators of immune responses. Pre-clinical studies have demonstrated a protective effect of BET inhibitors in an NOD (non-obese diabetes) mouse model of T1D. However, the effect of BET protein inhibition on ß-cell function in response to cytokines is unknown. Here, we demonstrate that I-BET, a BET protein inhibitor, protected ß-cells from cytokine-induced dysfunction and death. In vivo administration of I-BET to mice exposed to low-dose STZ (streptozotocin), a model of T1D, significantly reduced ß-cell apoptosis, suggesting a cytoprotective function. Mechanistically, I-BET treatment inhibited cytokine-induced NF-kB signaling and enhanced FOXO1-mediated anti-oxidant response in ß-cells. RNA-Seq analysis revealed that I-BET treatment also suppressed pathways involved in apoptosis while maintaining the expression of genes critical for ß-cell function, such as Pdx1 and Ins1. Taken together, this study demonstrates that I-BET is effective in protecting ß-cells from cytokine-induced dysfunction and apoptosis, and targeting BET proteins could have potential therapeutic value in preserving ß-cell functional mass in T1D.

N6-methyladenosine modification of circMARK2 enhances cytoplasmic export and stabilizes LIN28B, contributing to the progression of Wilms tumor.

BACKGROUND: The potential involvement of circular RNAs (circRNAs) and N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification in the progression of Wilms tumor (WT) has not been fully elucidated. This study investigates the regulatory mechanisms and clinical significance of m6A-modified circMARK2 and its role in WT progression. METHODS: We identified dysregulated circRNAs through deep sequencing and validated their expression by qRT-PCR in WT tissues. The biological functions of circMARK2 were assessed using clone formation, transwell migration, and orthotopic animal models. To dissect the underlying mechanisms, we employed RNA immunoprecipitation, RNA pull-down, dual-luciferase reporter assays, Western blotting, and immunofluorescence and immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS: CircMARK2, upregulated in WT tissues, was found to be m6A-modified and promoted cytoplasmic export. It facilitated WT progression by stabilizing LIN28B mRNA through the circMARK2/IGF2BP2 interaction. In vitro and in vivo studies demonstrated that circMARK2 enhances the malignant behavior of WT cells. Clinically, higher circMARK2 levels in tumor tissues of WT patients were linked to increased tumor aggressiveness and reduced survival rates. CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides the first comprehensive evidence that m6A-modified circMARK2 contributes to WT progression by enhancing LIN28B mRNA stability, promoting cellular aggressiveness. CircMARK2 emerges as a potential biomarker for prognosis and a promising target for therapeutic intervention in WT, underscoring the clinical relevance of m6A modification in pediatric renal cancer.

Potential and application of abortive transcripts as a novel molecular marker of cancers.

Abortive transcript (AT) is a 2-19 nt long non-coding RNA that is produced in the abortive initiation stage. Abortive initiation was found to be closely related to RNA polymerase through in vitro experiments. Therefore, the distribution of AT length and the scale of abortive initiation are correlated to the promoter, discriminator, and transcription initiation sequence, and can be affected by transcription elongation factors. AT plays an important role in the occurrence and development of various diseases. Here we summarize the discovery of AT, the factors responsible for AT formation, the detection methods and biological functions of AT, to provide new clues for finding potential targets in the early diagnosis and treatment of cancers.

Selective Conversion of Glycerol to Lactic Acid in Water via Acceptorless Dehydrogenation Catalyzed by a Water-Soluble Metal-Ligand Bifunctional Iridium Catalyst.

An efficient method for the selective conversion of glycerol, the major byproduct of the biodiesel manufacturing process, to lactic acid in water via acceptorless dehydrogenation has been developed. In the presence of a water-soluble [Cp*Ir(6,6'-(OH)2-2,2'-bpy)(H2O)][OTf]2 (0.1 mol %) and KOH (1.1 equiv), the reaction proceeded at 120 °C for 24 h to afford the desired product in >99% yield with >99% selectivity. It was confirmed that OH functional groups in the ligand were crucial for the activity of the iridium complex. Furthermore, density functional theory calculations and mechanistic experiments were also undertaken.

Long-term associations of PM1 versus PM2.5 and PM10 with asthma and asthma-related respiratory symptoms in the middle-aged and elderly population.

Background: Few studies have compared the associations between long-term exposures to particulate matters (aerodynamic diameter ≤1, ≤2.5 and ≤10 µm: PM1, PM2.5 and PM10, respectively) and asthma and asthma-related respiratory symptoms. The objective of the present study was to compare the strength of the aforementioned associations in middle-aged and elderly adults. Methods: We calculated the mean 722-day personal exposure estimates of PM1, PM2.5 and PM10 at 1 km×1 km spatial resolution between 2013 and 2019 at individual levels from China High Air Pollutants (CHAP) datasets. Using logistic regression models, we presented the associations as odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals, for each interquartile range (IQR) increase in PM1/PM2.5/PM10 concentration. Asthma denoted a self-reported history of physician-diagnosed asthma or wheezing in the preceding 12 months. Results: We included 7371 participants in COPD surveillance from Guangdong, China. Each IQR increase in PM1, PM2.5 and PM10 was associated with a greater odds (OR (95% CI)) of asthma (PM1: 1.22 (1.02-1.45); PM2.5: 1.24 (1.04-1.48); PM10: 1.30 (1.07-1.57)), wheeze (PM1: 1.27 (1.11-1.44); PM2.5: 1.30 (1.14-1.48); PM10: 1.34 (1.17-1.55)), persistent cough (PM1: 1.33 (1.06-1.66); PM2.5: 1.36 (1.09-1.71); PM10: 1.31 (1.02-1.68)) and dyspnoea (PM1: 2.10 (1.84-2.41); PM2.5: 2.17 (1.90-2.48); PM10: 2.29 (1.96-2.66)). Sensitivity analysis results were robust after excluding individuals with a family history of allergy. Associations of PM1, PM2.5 and PM10 with asthma and asthma-related respiratory symptoms were slightly stronger in males. Conclusion: Long-term exposure to PM is associated with increased risks of asthma and asthma-related respiratory symptoms.

Silver sulfide nanoparticles eliminate the stimulative effects of earthworms on nutrient uptake by soybeans in high organic matter soils.

A significant knowledge gap exists regarding the impact of soil organic matter on the bioavailability of Ag2S-NPs (environmentally relevant forms of Ag-NPs) in soil-earthworm-plant systems. This study used two soils with varying organic matter content, both with and without earthworms, to investigate the bioavailability of Ag2S-NPs. The findings revealed an 80 % increase in Ag bioaccessibility to soybeans in soils with high organic matter content compared to soils with low organic matter. Additionally, the presence of earthworms significantly increased Cl concentrations from 24.3-62.2 mg L-1 to 80.1-147.2 mg L-1, triggering the elevated bioavailability of Ag. Interestingly, Ag2S-NPs eliminated the stimulative effects of earthworms on plant nutrient uptake. In the presence of earthworms, the high organic matter soil amended with Ag2S-NPs exhibited lower concentrations of essential elements (Ca, Cu, Fe, K, and P) in plant tissues compared to soils without earthworms. Our study presents evidence of the transformation of Ag2S-NPs into Ag-NPs across various soil solutions, resulting in the formation of Ag nanoparticle complexes. Particularly noteworthy is the significant reduction in particle sizes in soils incubated with earthworms and high organic matter content, from 85.0 nm to 40.2 nm. Notably, in the rhizosphere soil, a decrease in the relative abundance of nutrient cycling-related phyla was observed, with reductions of 18.5 % for Proteobacteria and 30.0 % for Actinobacteriota. These findings offer valuable insights into the biological and biochemical consequences of Ag2S-NP exposure on earthworm-mediated plant nutrient acquisition.