Endogenous Hormone Levels and Transcriptomic Analysis Reveal the Mechanisms of Bulbil Initiation in Pinellia ternata.

Pinellia ternata is a medicinal plant that has important pharmacological value, and the bulbils serve as the primary reproductive organ; however, the mechanisms underlying bulbil initiation remain unclear. Here, we characterized bulbil development via histological, transcriptomic, and targeted metabolomic analyses to unearth the intricate relationship between hormones, genes, and bulbil development. The results show that the bulbils initiate growth from the leaf axillary meristem (AM). In this stage, jasmonic acid (JA), abscisic acid (ABA), isopentenyl adenosine (IPA), and salicylic acid (SA) were highly enriched, while indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), zeatin, methyl jasmonate (MeJA), and 5-dexoxystrigol (5-DS) were notably decreased. Through OPLS-DA analysis, SA has emerged as the most crucial factor in initiating and positively regulating bulbil formation. Furthermore, a strong association between IPA and SA was observed during bulbil initiation. The transcriptional changes in IPT (Isopentenyltransferase), CRE1 (Cytokinin Response 1), A-ARR (Type-A Arabidopsis Response Regulator), B-ARR (Type-B Arabidopsis Response Regulator), AUX1 (Auxin Resistant 1), ARF (Auxin Response Factor), AUX/IAA (Auxin/Indole-3-acetic acid), GH3 (Gretchen Hagen 3), SAUR (Small Auxin Up RNA), GA2ox (Gibberellin 2-oxidase), GA20ox (Gibberellin 20-oxidase), AOS (Allene oxide synthase), AOC (Allene oxide cyclase), OPR (Oxophytodienoate Reductase), JMT (JA carboxy l Methyltransferase), COI1 (Coronatine Insensitive 1), JAZ (Jasmonate ZIM-domain), MYC2 (Myelocytomatosis 2), D27 (DWARF27), SMAX (Suppressor of MAX2), PAL (Phenylalanine Ammonia-Lyase), ICS (Isochorismate Synthase), NPR1 (Non-expressor of Pathogenesis-related Genes1), TGA (TGACG Sequence-specific Binding), PR-1 (Pathogenesis-related), MCSU (Molybdenium Cofactor Sulfurase), PP2C (Protein Phosphatase 2C), and SnRK (Sucrose Non-fermenting-related Protein Kinase 2) were highly correlated with hormone concentrations, indicating that bulbil initiation is coordinately controlled by multiple phytohormones. Notably, eight TFs (transcription factors) that regulate AM initiation have been identified as pivotal regulators of bulbil formation. Among these, WUS (WUSCHEL), CLV (CLAVATA), ATH1 (Arabidopsis Thaliana Homeobox Gene 1), and RAX (Regulator of Axillary meristems) have been observed to exhibit elevated expression levels. Conversely, LEAFY demonstrated contrasting expression patterns. The intricate expression profiles of these TFs are closely associated with the upregulated expression of KNOX(KNOTTED-like homeobox), suggesting a intricate regulatory network underlying the complex process of bulbil initiation. This study offers a profound understanding of the bulbil initiation process and could potentially aid in refining molecular breeding techniques specific to P. ternata.

Transcriptome and metabolome analysis reveals the effect of flavonoids on flower color variation in Dendrobium nobile Lindl.

Introduction: Dendrobium nobile L. is a rare orchid plant with high medicinal and ornamentalvalue, and extremely few genetic species resources are remaining in nature. In the normal purple flower population, a type of population material with a white flower variation phenotype has been discovered, and through pigment component determination, flavonoids were preliminarily found to be the main reason for the variation. Methods: This study mainly explored the different genes and metabolites at different flowering stages and analysed the flower color variation mechanism through transcriptome- and flavonoid-targeted metabolomics. The experimental materials consisted of two different flower color phenotypes, purple flower (PF) and white flower (WF), observed during three different periods. Results and discussion: The results identified 1382, 2421 and 989 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the white flower variety compared with the purple flower variety at S1 (bud stage), S2 (chromogenic stage) and S3 (flowering stage), respectively. Among these, 27 genes enriched in the ko00941, ko00942, ko00943 and ko00944 pathways were screened as potential functional genes affecting flavonoid synthesis and flower color. Further analysis revealed that 15 genes are potential functional genes that lead to flavonoid changes and flower color variations. The metabolomics results at S3 found 129 differentially accumulated metabolites (DAMs), which included 8 anthocyanin metabolites, all of which (with the exception of delphinidin-3-o-(2'''-o-malonyl) sophoroside-5-o-glucoside) were found at lower amounts in the WF variety compared with the PF variety, indicating that a decrease in the anthocyanin content was the main reason for the inability to form purple flowers. Therefore, the changes in 19 flavone and 62 flavonol metabolites were considered the main reasons for the formation of white flowers. In this study, valuable materials responsible for flower color variation in D. nobile were identified and further analyzed the main pathways and potential genes affecting changes in flavonoids and the flower color. This study provides a material basis and theoretical support for the hybridization and molecular-assisted breeding of D. nobile.

The Nutrition Knowledge Level and Influencing Factors among Chinese Women Aged 18-49 Years in 2021: Data from a Nationally Representative Survey.

Women aged 18-49 years are women of childbearing age. Their nutrition knowledge (NK) is not only related to their physical health but also affects the diet quality of the entire family and the health status of the next generation. Studies that assess the NK level of women of childbearing age using representative data in China are lacking. This study aimed to evaluate the NK level of Chinese women aged 18-49 years and explore influencing factors at both the individual and provincial levels. Data were from the Chinese Nutrition and Health Knowledge Survey 2021. A total of 38,065 females aged 18-49 years were included in the analysis. A face-to-face validated standard questionnaire was used to collect NK from respondents. The full score of the questionnaire was 100. Respondents who scored higher than 75 were considered to have NK. The Rao-Scott chi-square test was used to compare the differences in the NK awareness rate between or among the subgroups. A multilevel logistic regression model was used to explore influencing factors at the individual and provincial levels. All analyses accounted for complex sample design including clustering, stratification, and sample weights. The mean score of NK among Chinese women aged 18-49 years was 65.1 ± 11.8, and the awareness rate was 20.9% (95% CI: 19.6-22.3%). Among the five dimensions, the awareness rate of food safety was the highest (74.0%, 95% CI: 72.8-75.3%), and the dietary recommendation was the lowest (16.4%, 95% CI: 15.3-17.5%). The two-level logistic regression model analysis revealed that at the individual level, age, education level, occupation, chronic disease status and residence were the main influencing factors of the NK level. At the provincial level, the region and the female illiteracy rate were associated with the NK level. Dependent children ratio, per capita income, and health expenditure were not significantly associated with the NK level. The model accounted for 58.8% of the variance in the NK level. The NK level of Chinese women aged 18-49 years was low. Knowledge of dietary recommendations was weakest. Both individual and provincial-level factors were associated with the NK level. There is an urgent need to strengthen nutrition education actions for enhancing the NK of reproductive-age women effectively to improve their dietary behaviors.

Evaluation of the effectiveness of healthy school canteen intervention on nutritional literacy and dietary behavior among primary school students / 中国学校卫生

Objective@#To explore the effectiveness of healthy school canteen intervention on nutritional literacy, food consumption, as well as attitude towards school canteen.@*Methods@#A primary school in Taizhou City was selected as the intervention school, and another comparable primary school was selected as the control one. A total of 320 students (163 in the intervention group and 157 in the control group) received a comprehensive intervention based on the construction of a healthy school canteen in the school,incluling healthy dining environment,food impravement,chef training,nutrition and health education, while the control group did not receive any intervention. Questionnaires survey was administered to both groups before and after the intervention.@*Results@#Before the intervention, no significant differences were found in the total scores of skills and nutrition literacy, frequency of food intake, behaviors and attitudes related to canteen construction between the two groups( P >0.05). Daily intake of vegetables, dairy products, fish/poultry/eggs/lean meat increased by 19.63, 15.95 and 19.63 percentage point respectively ( χ 2=15.25，9.14，13.93， P <0.01). The proportion of students reporting have read related intervention materials in the intervention group(95.71%) was higher than the control group(84.71%) ( χ 2= 11.04, P < 0.01 ). The students in favor of low salt, low oil and low sugar dishes in the intervention group (74.85%) was higher than in the control group(48.41%) ( χ 2=23.73, P <0.01).@*Conclusion@#Based on the comprehensive intervention of nutrition and health canteens can improve students nutrition literacy and dietary structure. It is recommended to adopt the form of "home school linkage" to carry out the construction of large sample, multi regional and long term nutrition and health canteens.

[Expert consistency evaluation on nutrition and health knowledge questionnaire items for Chinese adults].

OBJECTIVE: To establish nutrition knowledge questionnaire items for Chinese adults by Delphi consensus study. METHODS: The framework system and preliminary items of nutrition knowledge questionnaire were established through literature review and experts consultation, considering the nutrition status and problems of Chinese people. Delphi method was used to conduct consensus analysis with 11 experts in related field involved to determine the nutrition knowledge questionnaire items. RESULTS: The active coefficients of consultation in two rounds were both 100%(11/11), and the authority coefficients of experts were 0.900. The average scores of all items were(4.67±0.28) and(4.80±0.21), the variation coefficients were 0.06 and 0.04, and the Kendall harmony coefficients were 0.261(χ~2=39.645, P=0.004) and 0.324(χ~2=43.122, P=0.001), respectively. After the second round of consultation, all selected items met the inclusion criteria. Finally, 20-item nutrition knowledge questionnaire were determined, including five dimensions of dietary recommendations, food characteristics, nutrition and health, food choices and food safety. CONCLUSION: The Delphi consensus of nutrition knowledge questionnaire items for Chinese adults were basically achieved.

[Dietary recommendation-related knowledge level of Chinese adults in 2021].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the knowledge level and related factors related to dietary recommendations for Chinese residents aged 18-64 years in 2021. METHODS: A multi-stage cluster random sampling was used to select 302 survey sites across the country, there were 102 398 people surveyed, with 98 567 valid questionnaires, 49.4% male and 41.9% urban, and an average age of(38.5±12.2) years. A standardized questionnaire certified by experts and evaluated for reliability and validity was used to conduct the face-to-face survey. The questionnaire was scored out of 100 points; dietary recommendation-related knowledge was scored out of 30 points, and a score of 22.5 points or above was judged as acquiring relevant knowledge. Descriptive statistics were used to report the values of relevant knowledge level of respondents with different characteristics, and univariate and multi-variate Logistic regression models were used to analyze the factors influencing relevant knowledge level. RESULTS: The average score of dietary recommendation-related knowledge was(17.9±4.2), and the knowledge awareness rate was 14.7%. The five knowledge points with the lowest correct rates were the recommended intakes of soybeans and products(21.1%), added sugars(22.6%), milk(25.5%), food groups(27.6%), and cooking oils(31.4%) and the recommended intakes of fruits and salt were also less correct(56.9% and 58.5%). Multi-variate analysis revealed that the knowledge of dietary recommendations was lower among residents in rural(OR=0.945, 95%CI 0.944-0.945), central(OR=0.863, 95%CI 0.863-0.864) and western(OR=0.983, 95%CI 0.982-0.983) areas, those with chronic diseases(OR=0.784, 95%CI 0.783-0.784) and those who did not know about chronic diseases(OR=0.694, 95%CI 0.694-0.694) compared to the counterparts; female(OR=1.090, 95%CI 1.090-1.091) had a higher knowledge rate compared to male. The awareness rate of residents increased with the level of education, and the trend was statistically significant(P<0.001). CONCLUSION: The level of knowledge related to dietary recommendations for the adult population in China in 2021 is low, especially for the recommended intake of dairy, soybeans and products, and cooking oils, and the knowledge level of men, rural, central and western, and less educated populations is even lower.

[Age distribution of nutrition and health knowledge among Chinese adults in 2021].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the age distribution of nutrition and health knowledge level of Chinese residents aged 18-64. METHODS: A total of 102 398 residents aged 18-64 were selected from 302 survey sites in China by multi-stage cluster random sampling method, a total of 98 567 respondents were included in the study. Both mean and rate were calculated by complex sampling weighting. RESULTS: The nutrition and health knowledge score of residents aged 18-24, 25-34, 35-44, 45-54 and 55-64 years old in China were(65.1±11.4) points, (64.6±11.7) points, (64.7±12.0) points, (62.2±12.8) points and(59.5±13.3) points. The nutrition and health knowledge awareness rates were 20.3%, 19.1%, 20.3%, 16.9% and 12.1%, respectively(P<0.001). A decreasing trend in all dimensions and overall nutrition and health knowledge with increasing age was found(ß<0, P_(trend)<0.001). This trend was also reflected across gender or regions. While the trend of nutrition and health knowledge level with age varies with different literacy levels. Differences in knowledge points with positive response rates <30% by age groups. CONCLUSION: The level of nutrition and health knowledge among Chinese adult residents of all ages is relatively low in 2021, but the knowledge shortcomings are different.

[Access channels on nutrition and health knowledge of Chinese adults in 2021].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the access channels on nutritional health knowledge of Chinese residents aged 18-64 years in 2021. METHODS: A multi-stage cluster random sampling was used to select 302 survey sites across the country, there were 102 398 people surveyed, with 98 424 valid questionnaires, 49.4% male and 42.0% urban, with an average age of(38.5±12.2) years old. A standardized questionnaire certified by experts and evaluated for reliability and validity was used to conduct the face-to-face survey. Descriptive statistics were used to report the access channels on nutrition and health knowledge of respondents, and the proportion of access channels of respondents with different characteristics was compared by chi-square test. RESULTS: The access channels on nutrition and health knowledge of Chinese residents aged 18-64 in 2021 were, in descending order, WeChat/Microblog/Tik Tok/Kuaishou and other software(77.0%), TV/radio(55.7%), family/relatives/friends(41.8%), books/newspapers/journals/magazines(32.5%), website search(30.7%), promotional lectures(29.3%) and other(1.9%). A high proportion of people who access nutrition and health knowledge through software, website searches and books/newspapers were mostly from the lower age groups, higher education groups, urban and eastern regions. People with a high proportion of access through TV/radio, family/relatives/friends and promotional lectures were mostly from the higher age groups, lower education groups, rural and western areas(P<0.001). Women are more likely than men to obtain nutrition and health information from all channels except website search. The higher the level of education, the higher the level of concern for nutrition and health knowledge(P<0.001). CONCLUSION: In 2021, the top access channel for Chinese residents aged 18-64 to obtain nutrition and health knowledge is WeChat/Microblog/Tik Tok/Kuaishou and other software. There are differences in access channels for different groups of people.

[Geographical distribution differences of nutrition and health knowledge among Chinese adults in 2021].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the geographical distribution of nutrition and health knowledge among 18-64 years old adults in China. METHODS: A total of 102 398 residents aged 18-64 from 302 survey sites were selected by multi-stage cluster random sampling method, a total of 98 567 respondents were included in the study. Both mean and rate were calculated by complex sampling weighting. RESULTS: The nutrition and health knowledge score in eastern region(65.5±12.0) was higher than that in central(62.4±11.9) and western(61.4±12.9), and the score in northern region(63.9±11.8) was higher than that in southern(63.1±12.8). In the seven geographical regions, the highest score was in north(65.8±11.4), and the lowest score was in northwest(61.6±12.2). The awareness rate of nutrition and health in eastern region(22.4%) was higher than that in central(14.7%) and western(14.9%), the highest awareness rate among the seven geographic regions was in east(23.2%), followed by north(22.5%) and the lowest was in northwest(13.2%). There were also differences in nutritional health knowledge levels of residents in different regions in the five dimensions(P<0.001). Northwest China had the lowest awareness of food characteristics and nutrition and disease dimensions, South China had the lowest awareness of dietary recommendations and food choices dimensions, and Southwest China had the lowest awareness of food safety dimensions. CONCLUSION: The level of nutrition and health knowledge of Chinese adults have large geographical differences.

Visualization deep learning model for automatic arrhythmias classification.

Objective.With the improvement of living standards, heart disease has become one of the common diseases that threaten human health. Electrocardiography (ECG) is an effective way of diagnosing cardiovascular diseases. With the rapid growth of ECG examinations and the shortage of cardiologists, accurate and automatic arrhythmias classification has become a research hotspot. The main purpose of this paper is to improve accuracy in detecting abnormal ECG patterns.Approach.A hybrid 1D Resnet-GRU method, consisting of the Resnet and gated recurrent unit (GRU) modules, is proposed to implement classification of arrhythmias from 12-lead ECG recordings. In addition, the focal Loss function is used to solve the problem of unbalanced datasets. Based on the proposed 1D Resnet-GRU model, we use class-discriminative visualization to improve interpretability and transparency as an additional step. In this paper, the Grad-CAM++ mechanism has been employed to the trained network model and generate thermal images superimposed on raw signals to explore underlying explanations of various ECG segments.Main results.The experimental results show that the proposed method can achieve a high score of 0.821 (F1-score) in classifying 9 kinds of arrythmias, and Grad-CAM++ not only provides insight into the predictive power of the model, but is also consistent with the diagnostic approach of the arrhythmia classification.Significance.The proposed method can effectively select and integrate ECG features to achieve the goal of end-to-end arrhythmia classification by using 12-lead ECG signals, which can serve a promising and useful way for automatic arrhythmia classification, and can provide an explainable deep leaning model for clinical diagnosis.

Characterization, antioxidant, antineoplastic and immune activities of selenium modified Sagittaria sagittifolia L. polysaccharides.

This study proposed an optimal way to supplement organic selenium, boost polysaccharides solubility, antioxidant, anticancer, immune responses. A purified polysaccharide fraction of Sagittaria sagittifolia L. (PSSP) was successfully modified with selenium (Se-PSSP), and its characteristics, antioxidant, antineoplastic and immune activities were studied. The structure and the monosaccharide composition were determined by means of UV-visible spectrometry, FT-IR spectra, NMR spectra, X-ray diffraction spectroscopy (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and atomic force microscope (AFM). The results showed that both PSSP and Se-PSSP contained a pyranoid polysaccharide linked by α-glycosidic bonds in the main chain. In addition, PSSP and Se-PSSP were amorphous morphology without three-helix conformation. PSSP (47.12 kDa) was mainly composed of glucose, mannose and xylose with molar percentages of 55.82%, 14.86% and 14.35%, respectively. Se-PSSP (16.82 kDa) is mainly composed of glucose, xylose and galactose with molar percentages of 26.49%, 18.76% and 18.14%, respectively. Compared with PSSP, Se-PSSP showed stronger water-solubility, antioxidant activity, cytotoxicity and immunomodulatory activity than that of PSSP. These results suggested that Se-PSSP is a promising novel Se-supplement and may be served as an excellent potential antioxidant, antineoplastic, and immunomodulatory agents in the field of functional foods and medicine industry.

Interleukin-35: An emerging player in the progression of liver diseases.

Interleukin-35(IL-35), a newly identified immunosuppressive cytokine, has recently been shown to play a significant role in the progression of various autoimmune diseases and malignant tumors. The liver is the largest organ in the body and is generally regarded as an important lymphoid organ by an increasing number of immunologists. A number of reports have demonstrated that IL-35 plays essential roles in maintaining the immune homeostasis of the liver microenvironment. This review summarizes the existing studies of IL-35 in liver diseases, including viral hepatitis, immune liver injury, liver cirrhosis and carcinoma. We aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of the vital roles of IL-35 in hepatic damage and explore new alternative therapeutic targets for these diseases.

Effects of preoperative anti-tumour necrosis factor alpha infusion timing on postoperative surgical site infection in inflammatory bowel disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Anti-tumour necrosis factor alpha agents (anti-TNF-α) have been widely used in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). However, few published meta-analyses have focused on timing of the last infusion before surgery. We evaluated the relationship between preoperative anti-TNF-α timing and postoperative surgical site infection to provide additional evidence for surgeons to choose appropriate dates for surgery. Methods: We searched from inception until January 2019 for studies that documented postoperative complications of adults with IBD who underwent preoperative anti-TNF-α treatment. Primary outcomes of included studies were the odds ratios of preoperative anti-TNF-α time frames (4, 8 and 12 weeks). In addition, surgical site infection and its subtypes (anastomotic leakage, abscesses and wound infection) were analysed. Results: Twenty-seven publications were included. No significant difference between anti-TNF-α and control cohorts was observed for most postoperative surgical site infections (or its subtypes) when the preoperative anti-TNF-α infusion time window was within 4, 8 or 12 weeks. Additionally, no significant difference in postoperative complications was observed between preoperative anti-TNF-α windows of within four weeks and more than four weeks. Conclusions: In terms of surgical site infection and its subtypes, anti-TNF-α may be safe for ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease patients who receive their last infusion of anti-TNF-α more than four weeks before surgery. We also found no evidence that anti-TNF-α was a risk factor when administered within four weeks, with the exception of subgroup results from a single study. Stratified by time window, use of anti-TNF-α until surgery has the potential to become a more considered strategy in clinical practice.

Optical generation and control of spatial Riemann waves.

We extend the concept of Riemann waves (RWs) to the spatial domain and demonstrate for the first time, to the best of our knowledge, Riemann beams with a propagation scenario allowing controllable shock formation in a nonlinear optical system. Similar to their standard counterparts, "shifted" RWs are characterized by a local propagation speed proportional to their local amplitude. Their steepening dynamics can be judiciously controlled by means of an additional phase term. In particular, RWs are generated by properly tailoring the initial phase of an optical beam propagating through a thermal solution of an m-cresol/nylon mixture that exhibits a giant self-defocusing nonlinearity. The experimental results show a controllable steepening and shock wave behavior, in good agreement with the prediction from the simple inviscid Burgers equation.

Observation of microscale nonparaxial optical bottle beams.

We predict and experimentally observe three-dimensional microscale nonparaxial optical bottle beams based on the generation of a caustic surface under revolution. Such bottle beams exhibit high contrast between the surrounding surface and the effectively void interior. Via caustic engineering, we can precisely control the functional form of the high-intensity surface to achieve microscale bottle beams with longitudinal and transverse dimensions of the same order of magnitude. Although, in general, the phase profile at the input plane can be computed numerically, we find closed-form expressions for bottle beams with various types of surfaces both in the real and in the Fourier space.

[Estimation of Topsoil Carbon Sequestration Potential of Cropland Through Different Methods: A Case Study in Zhuanglang County, Gansu Province].

By analyzing the sampled data and the SOC data of the second national soil survey by the mid 80s and the national cultivated land quality evaluation in 2006 in Zhuanglang County, the article studied the cropland topsoil organic carbon sequestration potential estimation using several different methods. The results showed that: (1) There was no significant difference among different estimation methods about cropland carbon sequestration potential in the same region. Taking cropland carbon sequestration potential in Zhuanglang County for example, the theoretical values estimated by maximum value method and classification grading method were 1. 13 Mt and 1.09 Mt, respectively. (2) The real values estimated by classification grading method, saturation method, weighting method were 0.37 Mt, 0.32 Mt, 0.28 Mt, respectively, which were about 1/3 of the theoretical value. (3) The SOC density increments to reach the real level of carbon sequestration potential estimated by classification grading method, saturation method and weighting method were 6.76 t · hm⁻², 5.21 t · hm⁻², 4.56 t · hm⁻² respectively. According to the topsoil carbon sequestration rate of cropland in Zhuanglang county in the recent 30 a, it would need about 24-34 a to achieve the real level. (4) At the county scale, the weighted method was superior to the saturation value method, and the saturation value method was better than the classification grading method in the actual carbon sequestration potential estimation. The classification grading method was better than the maximum value method in the ideal carbon sequestration potential estimation.

Electroacupuncture attenuates spinal nerve ligation-induced microglial activation mediated by p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether analgesic effect of electroacupuncture (EA) is affected by p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK) on microglia. METHODS: There were two experiments. The experiment 1: 40 male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into the normal, surgery, EA and sham EA groups, and the L5 spinal nerve ligation (SNL) on the right side was used to establish neuropathic pain model. EA was applied to bilateral Zusanli (ST36) and Kunlun (BL60) at 24, 48 and 72 h after SNL for 30 min, once per day. The paw withdrawal thresholds (PWTs) were measured before surgery (as base) and at 24, 25, 49 and 73 h after surgery. Phospho-p38 MAPK (p-p38 MAPK), oxycocin-42 (OX-42, marker of microglia), and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP, marker of astrocyte) in bilateral spinal cord dorsal horn (SCDH) were detected by immunofluorescence, respectively. The experiment 2: 40 male SD rats were cannulated for SNL-induced neuropathic pain, and then were randomly divided into the dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), EA plus DMSO, 4-(4-fluorophenyl)-2-(4-methylsulfonylpheny)-5-(4-pyridyl)-1H-imidazole (SB203580) and EA plus SB203580 groups. SB203580 (30 nmol/L) was administered 5 min prior to EA treatment. The PWTs and OX-42 in bilateral SCDH were measured as mentioned above. RESULTS: SNL-induced neuropathic pain reduced PWTs and increased the expression of p-p38 MAPK and OX-42 in bilateral lumbar SCDH of rats (P<0.01). Spinal p-p38 MAPK was only co-localized with OX-42 in our study. EA treatment significantly alleviated SNL-mediated mechanical hyperalgesia, and suppressed the expression of p-p38 MAPK and OX-42 in lumbar SCDH (P<0.05 or P<0.01). Intrathecal injection of low dose SB203580 had no influence on PWTs (P>0.05), but significantly inhibited the expression of OX-42 positive cells in bilateral SCDH (P<0.01 or P<0.05). EA plus SB203580 synergistically increased PWTs, and reduced the expression of bilateral spinal OX-42 (P<0.01 or P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The central mechanism of EA-induced anti-hyperalgesia may be partially associated with the reduced expression of p-p38 MAPK, and subsequently reducing the activation of OX-42 in neuropathic pain. Therefore, EA may be a new complementary and alternative therapy for neuropathic pain.

Inhibition of spinal microglia and astrocytes contributes to the anti-allodynic effect of electroacupuncture in neuropathic pain induced by spinal nerve ligation.

OBJECTIVE: Besides neurons, activated microglia and astrocytes in the spinal cord dorsal horn (SCDH) contribute to the pathogenesis of chronic pain. Electroacupuncture (EA) has been used widely to treat various chronic pain diseases, however, the underlying mechanisms of EA are still not fully understood. METHODS: Male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into four groups, including an untreated healthy Control group (n=14), a True-spinal nerve ligation (SNL) group that underwent SNL and remained untreated (n=25), a True-SNL+EA group that underwent SNL followed by EA treatment (n=25), and a Sham-SNL group that underwent sham surgery and remained untreated (n=15). SNL was performed unilaterally at L5 and EA was applied to ST36 and BL60 bilaterally once per day. Paw withdrawal thresholds (PWTs) were measured ipsilaterally at baseline and 1, 3, 7, and 14 days after ligation. Activation of microglia and astrocytes in the SCDH were examined bilaterally by immunofluorescence staining, and concentrations of interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß) and interleukin (IL-6) were measured in the ipsilateral SCDH by ELISA. RESULTS: SNL significantly decreased PWTs and activated glial cells in the superficial laminae of the ipsilateral SCDH. In rats with SNL, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) immunoreactivity peaked at 7 days and was maintained until 14 days post-ligation, while anti-integrin alphaM (OX-42) immunoreactivity peaked at 3 days and declined gradually. EA significantly alleviated SNL-induced mechanical allodynia. Furthermore, EA reduced microglial activation (OX-42 positive ratios) in the lumbar SCDH at 3 days post-ligation and suppressed astrocyte activation (GFAP positive ratios) at all time points observed. CONCLUSIONS: EA stimulation alleviates SNL-induced neuropathic pain, at least in part through inhibition of spinal glial activation. Moreover, inhibition of spinal microglia and astrocyte activation may contribute to the immediate effects and maintenance of EA analgesia, respectively.

Attenuation of allograft rejection by intragraft inhibition of class II transcativator in high responder rat liver transplantation.

Major histocompatibility complex-II (MHC-II) plays an important role in graft rejection and class II transactivator (CIITA) is the key regulator for MHC-II expression. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of intragraft inhibition of CIITA in attenuating liver transplant rejection. Three plasmids containing small hairpin RNA (shRNA) against rat CIITA (pCIITA-shRNA) and one control plasmid of pHK-shRNA were constructed. In vitro dendritic cell (DC) transfection and liver transfection via portal vein in donor rats (n = 8) by shRNA plasmids were performed to confirm the inhibitory effect of pCIITA-shRNA on CIITA expression. It showed that expressions of CIITA and MHC-II were significantly inhibited by pCIITA-shRNA in both DC in vitro and liver of donor rats in vivo (p < 0.05 vs. control pHK-shRNA treatment). pCIITA1-shRNA was proved to be the best inhibitor among three pCIITA-shRNAs and then used in high-responder rat liver transplantation model (DA donors-to-Lewis recipients). Transplant groups (n = 16/group) include untreated recipients transplanted with donor liver graft pretreated with either saline, or pHK-shRNA, or pCIITA1-shRNA. Cyclosporine-treated (10 mg/kg, im, day 0-7) recipients transplanted with unmodified liver grafts were used as no rejection control. The results showed that the recipient rats survived significantly longer in pCIITA1-shRNA-treated group with markedly attenuated liver graft rejection (p < 0.05 vs. saline and pHK-shRNA-treated groups). Furthermore, significantly decreased intragraft expressions of CIITA, MHC-II, IL-2, and IFN-γ were found in pCIITA1-shRNA-treated group (p < 0.05 vs. saline and pHK-shRNA-treated groups). This study suggests that intragraft inhibition of CIITA could be a novel strategy for attenuating graft rejection in liver transplantation.

A method of switching the signal in an MRI phantom based on trace ion currents.

A method for electrically changing the hydrogen nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) signal intensity in a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) phantom is presented. The method is based on creating local magnetic field inhomogeneities from impurity ion currents in a polar hydrocarbon. The effect is demonstrated using the propylene carbonate on an NMR spectrometer and an MRI scanner. This effect is largest when the electric field is applied perpendicular to the static magnetic field in magnetic resonance, and is linear with applied voltage. The applicability of a switchable signal in an MRI phantom is demonstrated with a spin-echo, echo planar imaging sequence where the MRI signal is changed between blocks of 10 images in a series of 200 images. This technique may find applications in inter and intra platform fMRI quality control.