Serum urate is associated with an increased risk of inflammatory bowel disease: A bidirectional Mendelian randomization study.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have indicated bidirectional associations between urate levels and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD). However, it remains unclear whether the observations are causal because of confounding factors. AIM: To investigate the causal associations between urate levels and IBD using bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR). METHODS: Independent genetic variants for urate levels and IBD were selected as instrumental variables from published genome-wide association studies (GWASs). Summary statistics for instrument-outcome associations were retrieved from three separate databases for IBD (the UK Biobank, the FinnGen database and a large GWAS meta-analysis) and one for urate levels (a large GWAS meta-analysis). MR analyses included the inverse-variance-weighted method, weighted-median estimator, MR-Egger and sensitivity analyses (MR-PRESSO). A meta-analysis was also conducted to merge the data from separate outcome databases using a fixed-effects model. RESULTS: Genetically higher serum urate levels were strongly associated with an increased risk of UC [odds ratio (OR): 1.95, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.86-2.05] after outlier correction, and the ORs (95%CIs) for IBD and CD were 0.94 (95%CI: 0.86-1.03) and 0.91 (95%CI: 0.80-1.04), respectively. Animal studies have confirmed the positive association between urate levels and UC. Moreover, genetically predicted IBD was inversely related to urate levels (OR: 0.97, 95%CI: 0.94-0.99). However, no association was observed between genetically influenced UC or CD and urate levels. CONCLUSION: Urate levels might be risk factors for UC, whereas genetically predicted IBD was inversely associated with urate levels. These findings provide essential new insight for treating and preventing IBD.

Regulation of Carbohydrate Metabolism by Trehalose-6-Phosphate Synthase 3 in the Brown Planthopper, Nilaparvata lugens.

Nilaparvata lugens (Stål) (Hemiptera: Delphacidae) is one of the pests that harm rice. In this paper, a new trehalose-6-phosphate synthase gene, TPS3, was identified by transcriptome sequencing and gene cloning. To explore its role in the energy metabolism of N. lugens we examined the carbohydrate contents at different stages of development, the tissue expression of TPS, and some physiological and biochemical indicators by injecting dsTPS3 and dsTPSs (a proportional mixture of dsTPS1, dsTPS2, and dsTPS3). The glucose content at the fifth instar was significantly higher than that in the fourth instar and the adult stages. The trehalose and glycogen contents before molting were higher than those after molting. TPS1, TPS2, and TPS3 were expressed in the head, leg, wing bud, and cuticle, with the highest expression in the wing bud. In addition, compared with the control group, the glucose content increased significantly at 48 h after RNA interference, and the trehalose content decreased significantly after 72 h. qRT-PCR showed that the expression level of UGPase decreased significantly at 48 h after injection, whereas GS expression increased significantly at 48 h after injecting dsTPS3. After dsTPS injection, the expression levels of PPGM2, UGPase, GP, and GS increased significantly at 72 h. After interfering with the expression of TPS3 gene alone, UGPase expression decreased significantly at 48 h, and GS expression increased significantly at 72 h. Finally, combined with the digital gene expression and pathway analysis, 1439 and 1346 genes were upregulated, and 2127 and 1927 genes were downregulated in the dsTPS3 and dsTPSs groups, respectively. The function of most differential genes was concentrated in sugar metabolism, lipid metabolism, and amino acid metabolism. The results indicated that TPS3 plays a key role in the energy metabolism of N. lugens and confirmed that TPS3 is a feasible target gene for RNA interference in N. lugens. Simultaneously, they provide a theoretical basis for the development and utilization of TPS3 to control pests.

Hafnium-Doped Mesoporous Silica as Efficient Lewis Acidic Catalyst for Friedel-Crafts Alkylation Reactions.

The development of an efficient solid catalyst for Friedel-Crafts (FC) reactions is of great importance to organic synthetic chemistry. Herein, we reported the hafnium-doped mesoporous silica catalyst Hf/SBA-15 and its first use for Friedel-Crafts alkylation reactions. Catalysts with different Si/Hf ratios were prepared and characterized, among which Hf/SBA-15(20) (Si/Hf = 20:1) was the most active catalyst, offering up to 99.1% benzylated product under mild reaction conditions. The influences of reaction conditions on the product were systematically investigated and compared. Pyridine-IR characterization of the catalyst showed that Lewis acid formed the primary active sites for the Friedel-Crafts alkylation reaction. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) characterization revealed that the electron shift from the Hf center to the silica framework resulted in a more active Lewis metal center for FC reactions. Moreover, the catalyst was successfully applied to the alkylation reaction with different alcohols and aromatic compounds. Finally, the Hf/SBA-15(20) catalyst also showed good recyclability in the recycling runs, demonstrating its high potential of being used for large scale FC reactions in the industry.

Patient-specific three-dimensional printed heart models benefit preoperative planning for complex congenital heart disease.

BACKGROUND: Preoperative planning for children with congenital heart diseases remains crucial and challenging. This study aimed to investigate the roles of three-dimensional printed patient-specific heart models in the presurgical planning for complex congenital heart disease. METHODS: From May 2017 to January 2018, 15 children diagnosed with complex congenital heart disease were included in this study. Heart models were printed based on computed tomography (CT) imaging reconstruction by a 3D printer with photosensitive resin using the stereolithography apparatus technology. Surgery options were first evaluated by a sophisticated cardiac surgery group using CT images only, and then surgical plans were also set up based on heart models. RESULTS: Fifteen 3D printed heart models were successfully generated. According to the decisions based on CT, 13 cases were consistent with real options, while the other 2 were not. According to 3D printed heart models, all the 15 cases were consistent with real options. Unfortunately, one child diagnosed with complete transposition of great arteries combined with interruption of aortic arch (type A) died 5 days after operation due to postoperative low cardiac output syndrome. The cardiologists, especially the younger ones, considered that these 3D printed heart models with tangible, physical and comprehensive illustrations were beneficial for preoperative planning of complex congenital heart diseases. CONCLUSION: 3D printed heart models are beneficial and promising in preoperative planning for complex congenital heart diseases, and are able to help conform or even improve the surgery options.

[Progress on Hypoxic-ischemic Brain Damage Associated with CCR2 and CCL2].

Hypoxic-ischemic brain damage (HIBD) is referred to a common type of cerebral damage, which is caused by injury, leading to shallow bleeding in the cortex with intact cerebral pia mater. In recent years, studies show that a various kinds of immune cells and immune cellular factors are involved in the occurrence of HIBD. CC chemokine receptor 2 (CCR2) is a representative of CC chemokine receptor, and is widely distributed in cerebral neuron, astrocyte, and microglial cells, and is the main chemo-tactic factor receptor in brain tissue. CC chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2) is a kind of basophilic protein and the ligand of CCR2, and plays an important role in inflammation. In order to provide evidence for correlational studies in HIBD, this review will introduce the biological characteristics of CCR2 and CCL2, and illustrate the relationship between the immunoreactivity and HIBD.

Progress on Correlation between the Expression of CDK5 and Brain Injury Time / 法医学杂志

Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (CDK5) is a member of cyclin-dependent kinase family, which does not directly regulate cell cycle. Through phosphorylation of target protein, CDK5 plays an irreplaceable role in the development, reparation and degeneration of neurons. Brain injury refers to the organic injury of brain tissue caused by external force hit on the head. Owing to the stress and repair system activated by our body itself after injury, various proteins and enzymes of the brain tissues are changed quantitatively, which can be used as indicators for estimating the time of injury. This review summarizes the progress on the distribution, the activity mechanism and the physiological effects of CDK5 after brain injury and its corresponding potential served as a marker for brain injury determination.