Cross-tissue immune cell analysis reveals tissue-specific features in humans.

Despite their crucial role in health and disease, our knowledge of immune cells within human tissues remains limited. We surveyed the immune compartment of 16 tissues from 12 adult donors by single-cell RNA sequencing and VDJ sequencing generating a dataset of ~360,000 cells. To systematically resolve immune cell heterogeneity across tissues, we developed CellTypist, a machine learning tool for rapid and precise cell type annotation. Using this approach, combined with detailed curation, we determined the tissue distribution of finely phenotyped immune cell types, revealing hitherto unappreciated tissue-specific features and clonal architecture of T and B cells. Our multitissue approach lays the foundation for identifying highly resolved immune cell types by leveraging a common reference dataset, tissue-integrated expression analysis, and antigen receptor sequencing.

Comparison of Carcass Characteristics, Meat Quality, and Blood Parameters of Slow and Fast Grown Female Broiler Chickens Raised in Organic or Conventional Production System.

The objective of the study was to compare the carcass characteristics, meat quality, and blood parameters of slow and fast grown female broiler chickens fed in organic or conventional production system. The two genotypes tested were medium slow-growing chickens (SG, Hubbard Red JA) and commercial fast-growing chickens (FG, Ross 308). Both genotypes (each represented by 400 chickens) were divided into two sub-groups fed either organic (O) or conventional (C) systems. Chickens of each genotype and system were raised in a semi environmentally controlled poultry house until 21 d of age and were assigned to 5 pens of 40 chickens each. Then, O system chickens were transferred into an open-side poultry house with an outdoor run. At 81 d of age, 10 female chickens from each genotype and from each production system (n = 40) were randomly chosen to provide material for analysis, and were weighed and brought to the slaughterhouse to assess carcass characteristics and meat quality. The blood parameters were determined by using 5 female chickens from each genotype and from each production system (n = 20). FG had the higher live weight, along with carcass, breast, and thigh-drumstick weights compared to SG (p<0.05). FG had the higher breast yield, whereas SG had the higher thigh-drumstick yield (p<0.05). The O system resulted in a higher amount of abdominal fat (p<0.05). In addition, the O system values were higher for dry matter, crude ash, crude protein, and pH(15) values in breast meat, and for crude ash, crude protein, and pH(15) values in drumstick meat (p<0.05). In addition, total saturated fatty acids, total mono-unsaturated fatty acids, and total omega 3 were significantly higher in the O system than in the C system. Thus, the O system showed a positive advantage compared to the C system regarding female chicken meat quality, primarily within the ash, protein, and total omega 3 fatty acid profiles. In conclusion, the present study indicated that the main factor affecting the carcass characteristics of female chickens was genotype, whereas the organic system contributed to enhanced meat quality. These findings provide a better understanding of the relative roles of genotype and production systems in female broiler characteristics, and might aid producers in designing their facilities to optimize yield and quality while maintaining acceptable animal welfare standards.

Micro-encapsulation of ozonated red pepper seed oil with antimicrobial activity and application to nonwoven fabric.

UNLABELLED: In recent years, functional fabrics possessing antimicrobial activity have drawn significant interest because antibiotic resistance is becoming widespread among pathogenic micro-organisms. The aim of this study was to produce microcapsules incorporating ozonated red pepper seed oil (ORPSO) with antimicrobial properties and apply them to nonwoven fabrics to prepare functional textiles. Red pepper seed oil (RPSO) was ozonated and micro-encapsulated via a complex coacervation method using gelatin (GE) and gum arabic (GA) as wall materials. While micro-encapsulation yield and oil loading decreased with increases in the amount of surfactant, the mean particle size increased. The antimicrobial activity of the oil was tested via the disc diffusion method. The microcapsules were also tested using the agar well method. While RPSO had no effect on the test micro-organisms, the ORPSO and microcapsules containing ORPSO were found to be active against the test micro-organisms. The microcapsules were then applied to nonwoven fabric using the padding method to produce a disposable functional textile. The microcapsule-impregnated functional fabrics provided a 5 log decrease in 1 h. It is therefore possible to functionalize nonwoven fabrics to have antimicrobial activity against antibiotic-resistant micro-organisms, using microcapsules containing ORPSO. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: This is the first report on the antimicrobial action of RPSO after ozonation process. These findings suggest that ozonated red pepper seed oil (ORPSO) may be a useful and effective antimicrobial agent against the micro-organisms with antibiotic resistance. Therefore, as a natural product, RPSO represents a sustainable alternative to the use of synthetic antimicrobial agents. To our knowledge, this is also the first time that ORPSO has been micro-encapsulated for the preparation of functional textile material with significant antimicrobial activity.

Distribution of HLA antigens in breast cancer.

Investigation of various tumor-specific markers has a critical role in early diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. The aim of the this study is to investigate the Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) alleles, the molecules that play an important role in immunity and tumor response of the body, and its relationship with breast cancer. In this prospective clinical study, after obtaining approval from the ethics committee of Istanbul University Experimental Medical Research Institute, 22 female patients who have been hospitalized in Istanbul University Cerrahpasa Faculty of Medicine the Department of General Surgery with a diagnosis of breast cancer were selected. In the control group, there were 22 healthy women who had no relationship and were donor candidates for renal transplantation. After collecting blood in 5 ml tubes with EDTA, HLA A, B and DR groups were measured with SSP method using the GenoVision Olerup SSP (Olerup SSP, Stockholm, Sweden) kit in Istanbul University Cerrahpasa Faculty of Medicine Blood Center Tissue Type Determination Laboratory. In patient and control group, totally 53 alleles; 17 alleles of HLA-A gene, 22 alleles of B gene, 14 alleles of DR gene were detected. A statistically significant relationship was determined between HLA-B55:01 and HLA-DRb1*18:01 alleles and the development of breast cancer (p<0.05). HLA-B13:01 antigen is determined only in the control group. It was concluded that HLA-B13:01 antigen, determined only in the control group, may be protective for breast cancer and HLA-B55:01 and HLA-DRb1*18:01 antigens, determined only in the patient group, may be a risk factor for breast cancer (Tab. 5, Ref. 22).

[Nosocomial Stenotrophomonas maltophilia infections in a university hospital]. / Bir universite hastanesinde nozokomiyal stenotrophomonas maltophilia enfeksiyonlari.

Stenotrophomonas maltophilia is a nosocomial pathogen of increasing importance. In our study, 190 S. maltophilia strains isolated from 153 hospitalized patients between January 2000-April 2004, at Farabi Hospital at Medical School of Karadeniz Technical University, were prospectively evaluated. Of these patients 67.9% were clinically compatible with nosocomial infection, and 32% were considered as colonization. It was observed that rate of infection had a tendency to increase one year of age and above 50 years of age. Nosocomial infection and/ or colonization with S. maltophilia was detected in 19.7 +/- 15.2 (1-89) days after hospitalization. The clinical manifestations were bacteremia (36.5%), pneumoniae (28.8%), urinary system infection (12.5%), surgical site infection (11.5%) and peritonitis (6.7%). The bacteremia episodes were associated with central venous catheter in 37.3% (19/51), ventilator associated pneumonia in 11.7% (6/51), urinary system infection in 7.8% (4/51), peritonitis in 3.9% (2/51), and surgical site infection in 1.9% (1/51) of cases. Nineteen patients (37.3%) had no apparent primary source of infection. Higher APACHE II score, longer duration of hospitalization and prior extended-spectrum antibiotic therapy were observed in most of the patients. Antibiotic susceptibility testing revealed that, the most effective antibiotics against the isolates were trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (94%), ticarcillin/clavulanate (79%) and ciprofloxacin (53.5%). Crude mortality rate in the patients with S. maltophilia infections was found to be 25%. In addition, it was observed that proper antibiotic treatment had protective role against mortality (14.6% vs 63.6%; OR = 0.1, Cl95 0.12-0.42, P = 0.000). It can be concluded that to prevent infections due to S. maltophilia , effective infection control programmes and rational antibiotic use policies should be established promptly.

Plant-cell bioreactors with simultaneous electropermeabilization and electrophoresis.

Experimental investigations on using low-level electric currents and voltages to extract, transport, and collect intracellular secondary metabolites from plant cells while maintaining their viabilities were conducted focusing on the production of: (1) ionic betalains, mainly negatively-charged betanin, from Beta vulgaris cells, and (2) ionic alkaloids, particularly positively-charged ajmalicine and yohimbine, from Catharanthus roseus cells. Three versions of tubular membrane reactors in which electropermeabilization of cell membranes and electrophoresis and diffusion of ionic products take place simultaneously, with or without convective flow, to achieve desirable extraction were developed. Concentrations of secondary metabolites produced from these plant-cell reactors under steady and oscillatory electrical forcings were recorded and the viabilities of treated cells examined. Oscillatory application of electrical field appears to produce more products while retaining higher cell viability.