Double Effects of Oxidative Aging on Carbon Nanotube-Asphalt Nanocomposite Interfaces: Enhancement and Deterioration.

Understanding the mechanisms of oxidative aging effects on the carbon nanotube (CNT)-asphalt nanocomposite interface has long been a challenge, as there are two opposing effects: enhancement and deterioration. In this study, a multiscale coupling method is proposed to analyze the dual effect of oxidative aging on the CNT-asphalt nanocomposite. The method is based on density functional theory (DFT) and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, supported by microscopic interface observation and macroscopic property testing with a focus on the composite interface. The results show that oxidative aging has a resetting effect on benzene ring stacking at the interface and enhances the binding energy of CNT-asphalt. Meanwhile, oxidative aging enhanced the interfacial charge transfer, but no chemical reaction occurred between CNT-aged asphalt. This is also verified by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). Enhancement and degeneration effects of oxidative aging occur via distinct mechanisms. Oxidative aging enhanced the interfacial shear barrier by approximately 5% and the energy barrier by 44.87%, which increased the high-temperature deformation resistance of the CNT-asphalt nanocomposites. However, molecular oxidation was not responsible for the decline in the fatigue resistance. According to scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) results, oxidative aging elevates the content of polar molecules, leading to an increase in the solid properties of asphalt and a 39.6% decrease in surface adhesion. This disrupts the three-dimensional network of the CNT and ultimately leads to a reduction in crack resistance. This study clarifies the mechanism underlying the dual effect of oxidative aging and provides fundamental support for understanding asphalt aging behavior and the interfacial behavior of composites.

Deterioration Effects of Oxidative Aging on Graphene-Asphalt Nanocomposite Interfaces: Multiscale Modeling.

The purpose of this study is to explore the mechanism of interfacial degradation of graphene-asphalt nanocomposites by oxidative aging and to explain the principle of reduced cracking resistance. In this study, density functional theory (DFT), molecular dynamics (MD) simulation, atomic force microscopy (AFM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and linear amplitude scanning test (LAS) were used to quantify the effect of oxidative aging on the interfacial degradation of graphene-asphalt nanocomposites with different scales, and the coupling mechanism between scales was systematically analyzed. The results show that interfacial degradation is a complex multiscale coupling behavior. Oxidative aging reduced the fatigue life (Nf) of graphene-asphalt nanocomposites by 8.6% due to a 63.9% reduction in shear barriers and a 14.2% reduction in energy barriers at the molecular interface. Furthermore, oxidative aging enhanced the intermolecular interactions and compatibility of the graphene-asphalt molecules. The interfacial interaction of aged graphene-asphalt nanocomposites is mainly van der Waals force. Graphene-aged aromatics and graphene-aged saturates were the most compatible interfaces, and there was typical benzene ring stacking between graphene and aged aromatic 2. Aged aromatics and aged saturates are the main promoters of interfacial strength and stress transfer, while aged asphaltenes and aged resins sometimes play a weakening role, as verified by the AFM. In addition, DFT calculations show that there is no chemical reaction between graphene and aged asphalt molecules, which is consistent with the FTIR results. This study provides a theoretical basis for the development of targeted antiaging and anticracking technologies for asphalt-based materials.

Study of the Microscopic Mechanism of Natural Rubber (Cis-1, 4-Polyisoprene, NR)/Polyethylene (PE) Modified Asphalt from the Perspective of Simulation.

This paper aims to study the interaction mechanism of waste tire/plastic modified asphalt from the microscopic perspective of molecules. Based on BIOVIA Materials Studio, a classic four-component asphalt model consisting of asphaltene (C149H177N3O2S2), resin (C59H85NOS), aromatic (C46H50S), and saturate (C22H46) was constructed. Waste tires are represented by natural rubber (NR), which uses cis-1, 4-polyisoprene as a repeating unit. In contrast, waste plastics are characterized by polyethylene (PE), whose optimum degree of polymerization is determined by the difference in solubility parameters. Then, the above molecular models are changed to a stable equilibrium state through the molecular dynamics process. Finally, the interaction process is analyzed and inferred using the indexes of radial distribution function, diffusion coefficient, and concentration distribution; further, the interaction mechanism is revealed. The results show that the optimal degree of polymerization of PE is 12, so the solubility parameter between PE and NR-modified asphalt is the lowest at 0.14 (J/cm3) 1/2. These models are in agreement with the characteristics of amorphous materials with the structures ordered in the short-range and long-range disordered. For NR-modified asphalt, the saturate moves fastest, and its diffusion coefficient reaches 0.0201, followed by that of the aromatic (0.0039). However, the molecule of NR ranks the slowest in the NR-modified asphalt. After the addition of PE, the diffusion coefficient of resin increased most significantly from 0.0020 to 0.0127. NR, PE, and asphaltene have a particular attraction with the lightweight components, thus changing to a more stable spatial structure. Therefore, using NR and PE-modified asphalt can change the interaction between asphalt molecules to form a more stable system. This method not only reduces the large waste disposal task but also provides a reference for the application of polymer materials in modified asphalt.

Thoracoscopic Segmentectomy for Right Upper Lobe With Unique Anatomic Variation.

Combined variation of bronchus and pulmonary vein is rare. We report the case of a 32-year-old man with lung adenocarcinoma in whom three-dimensional computed tomography bronchography and angiography displayed a unique anatomic variation in the right upper lobe. The posterior subsegmental bronchi originated from the apical segmental bronchus and the anterior segmental bronchus, respectively; the apical subsegmental vein shared a trunk with the posterior subsegmental vein. Based on this discovery, combined pulmonary segmentectomy was performed accurately.

Mining of risk perception dimensions of Chinese tourists' outbound tourism based on word vector method.

Introduction: Safety is the lifeline of tourism development. The article's goal is to examin how Chinese tourists perceive risk when travelling aboard. Methods: In order to create the initial corpus, this study first uses "outbound tourism"as the key word to crawl the question and answer (hereinafter referred to as "Q & A") data from 4 Chinese online travel operator platforms, then preprocesses the "Q & A" data in Python. Secondly, after being extracted, the feature words are converted into the word vector model using the word vector method based on neural network language model. Finally, the word vectors are clustered and classified. Results: It is found that there are six dimensions of risk perception of Chinese tourists' outbound tourism, namely traffic risk, planning risk, service risk, communication risk, financial risk and functional risk. Discussion: Important and practical information for government and tourism enterprises is provided to accurately grasp the risk perception of Chinese tourists' outbound tourism and continuously improve the supply of tourism risk information.

A Quasi-Experimental Study on the Effectiveness of Compulsory and Voluntary Treatment Settings for 1,299 Drug Abusers in Hunan, China.

Background: Although the type and structure of substance abuse treatment have changed, the overall approaches of drug rehabilitation in China has remained largely unchanged. Evidence of effectiveness for compulsory drug rehabilitation centers (CRCs) and voluntary drug rehabilitation centers (VRCs) remains mixed. The main objective of our study is to reveal the outcomes of CRCs and VRCs and examine the factors associated with relapse in these two centers. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we recruited a total of 1,299 drug abusers in Hunan Province, 709 from CRCs and 590 from VRC, respectively. We used Pearson chi-squared test and t-test to examine the differences in demographics and drug-related characteristics. Binary logic regression was used to examine the relationship between important factors and relapse in CRCs and VRC. Results: Patients from CRCs and VRC significantly differed in age, sex, types of drug used, medical illness, education, occupation, mental illness, and marital status. After drug rehabilitation, both groups both had improved in occupation, family support, and social function (p < 0.05). In addition, employment and family support were significantly associated with a decreased risk of relapse (p < 0.05). Conclusion: This study revealed that compulsory rehabilitation is as effective as voluntary rehabilitation in (1) getting jobs and increasing monthly income, (2) having a good relationship with family, and (3) becoming more satisfied with their spared time. The components of these two settings were very different and may imply the necessity of these two approaches in China. In addition, employment and family support may prevent relapse.

Analysis of the Storage Stability Property of Carbon Nanotube/Recycled Polyethylene-Modified Asphalt Using Molecular Dynamics Simulations.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) can improve the storage properties of modified asphalt by enhancing the interfacial adhesion of recycled polyethylene (RPE) and base asphalt. In this study, the interaction of CNT/RPE asphalt was investigated using molecular dynamics simulation. The base asphalt was examined using a 12-component molecular model and verified by assessing the following properties: its four-component content, elemental contents, radial distribution function (RDF) and glass transition temperature. Then, the adhesion properties at the interface of the CNT/RPE-modified asphalt molecules were studied by measuring binding energy. The molecular structural stability of CNTs at the interface between RPE and asphalt molecules was analyzed through the relative concentration distribution. The motion of molecules in the modified asphalt was studied in terms of the mean square displacement (MSD) and diffusion coefficient. The results showed that CNTs improved the binding energy between RPE and base asphalt. CNTs not only weakened the repulsion of RPE with asphaltenes and resins, but also promoted the interaction of RPE with light components, which facilitated the compatibility of RPE with the base asphalt. The change in the interaction affected the molecular motion, and the molecular diffusion coefficient in the CNT/RPE-modified asphalt system was significantly smaller than that of RPE-modified asphalt. Moreover, the distribution of the asphaltene component was promoted by CNTs, resulting in the enhancement of the storage stability of RPE-modified asphalt. The property indexes indicated that the storage stability was significantly improved by CNTs, and better viscoelastic properties were also observed. Our research provides a foundation for the application of RPE in pavement engineering.

Multiscale mechanisms of asphalt performance enhancement by crumbed waste tire rubber: insight from molecular dynamics simulation.

The recycling of waste tires is a major environmental problem facing mankind, and the addition of crumbed waste tire rubber (CWTB) to the base asphalt is an extremely promising recycling method. However, the modification mechanism of CWTB to asphalt is not well understood, which restricts the development of CWTB modified asphalt. In this study, the mechanism of CWTB modification of asphalt was explored by dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), fluorescence microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and molecular dynamic (MD) simulations. After verifying the asphalt reasonableness using glass transition temperature, CWTB modified asphalt was simulated and experimented. The results showed that CWTB enhanced the high temperature performance of the base asphalt. The microscopic mechanism by which this phenomenon occurs is that CWTB has the largest binding energy with the aromatics (1150-1350 kcal/mol), followed by the saturates (740-830 kcal/mol), followed by the resins (90-330 kcal/mol), and the smallest binding energy with the asphaltenes (100-140 kcal/mol), which causes CWTB to absorb the light components of the asphalt (aromatics and saturates). In addition, the introduction of CWTB reduces the diffusion coefficient of asphalt. In this process, CWTB will gradually swell, which causes CWTB to bind more and more tightly with the base asphalt, and eventually the good high temperature performance of CWTB is transferred to the base asphalt. The macroscopic manifestation of this process is that the rutting factor of CWTB-modified asphalt is significantly higher than that of virgin asphalt. This study can provide basic theoretical support for the application of CWTB-modified asphalt.

VATS right posterior segmentectomy with anomalous bronchi and pulmonary vessels: a case report and literature review.

BACKGROUND: Anatomic variation may increase the difficulty and risk of anatomic segmentectomy. The preoperative three-dimensional computed tomography bronchography and angiography (3D-CTBA) can provide a detailed model of the segmental structure, and contribute to precise and safe segmentectomy. CASE PRESENTATION: This is a case of anomalous bronchi and pulmonary vessels in the right upper posterior segment (RS2). Under the guidance of 3D-CTBA, anatomic RS2 segmentectomy was performed accurately and safely. The postoperative condition was uneventful. CONCLUSIONS: This rare case highlights the importance of 3D-CTBA to guild accurate segmentectomy with anatomic variation.

Upgrading the Quality of Recycled Aggregates from Construction and Demolition Waste by Using a Novel Brick Separation and Surface Treatment Method.

Mixed recycled aggregates (MRA) from construction and demolition waste (CDW) with high-purity and environmental performance are required for highway construction application in base layer and precast concrete curbs. The main problematic constituents that reduce the quality level of the recycled aggregates applications are brick components, flaky particles, and attached mortar, which make up a large proportion of CDW in some countries. This paper studies the potential of brick separation technology based on shape characteristics in order to increase the recycled concrete aggregates (RCA) purity for MRA quality improvement. MRA after purification was also processed with surface treatment experiment by rotating in a cylinder to improve the shape characteristics and to remove the attached mortar. The purity, strength property, densities, water absorption ratio, shape index, and mortar removal ratio of MRA were studied before and after the use of the brick separation and surface treatment proposed in this study. Finally, the recycled aggregates upgradation solution was adopted in a stationary recycling plant designed for a length of 113 km highway construction. The properties of CDW mixed concrete for precast curbs manufacturing were conducted. The results indicate that problematic fractions (brick components, particle shape, and surface weakness) in the MRA were significantly reduced by using brick separation and surface treatment solution. Above all, it is very important that the proposed brick separation method was verified to be practically adopted in CDW recycling plant for highway base layer construction and concrete curbs manufacturing at a low cost.

FAM134B promotes adipogenesis by increasing vesicular activity in porcine and 3T3-L1 adipocytes.

Family with sequence similarity 134, Member B (FAM134B), is a cis-Golgi transmembrane protein that is known to be necessary for the long-term survival of nociceptive and autonomic ganglion neurons. Recent work has shown that FAM134B plays a pivotal role in autophagy-mediated turnover of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membranes, tumor inhibition and lipid homeostasis. In this study, we provide mechanistic links between FAM134B and ARF-related protein 1 (ARFRP1) and further show that FAM134B resides in the Golgi apparatus. Here, we found that FAM134B increased lipid accumulation in adipocytes. Transport vehicle number and ADP-ribosylation factor (ARF) family gene expression were also increased by FAM134B overexpression, suggesting that vesicular transport activity enhanced lipid accumulation. ARF-related protein 1 (ARFRP1) is a GTPase that promotes protein trafficking. We show that FAM134B regulates the expression of ARFRP1, and the knockdown of ARFRP1 abolishes enhancement on lipid accumulation caused by FAM134B. In addition, FAM134B upregulates the PAT family protein (PAT), which associates with the lipid droplets (LDs) surface and promotes lipolysis by recruiting adipocyte triglyceride lipase (ATGL). These findings indicate that FAM134B promotes lipid accumulation and adipogenic differentiation by increasing vesicle transport activity in the Golgi apparatus and inhibiting the lipolysis of LDs.

Retrospective study on video-assisted vs. open mediastinal lymphadenectomy for non-small cell lung cancer: a propensity-matched analysis.

BACKGROUND: This retrospective study is designed to compare the surgical outcomes of mediastinal lymph node (MLN) dissection between the two groups of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients underwent lung cancer surgery through video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) or thoracotomy, as well as classify the differences and identify the safer method between two groups. METHODS: A total of 497 patients underwent pulmonary lobectomy and systemic MLN dissection were enrolled in this study. They were divided into VATS group (n=242) and traditional thoracotomy (TT) group (n=255). The VATS group received three-port VATS, while the thoracotomy group underwent posterior-lateral or muscle sparing thoracotomy. The range of MLN dissection included groups 2R, 4R, 7, 8, 9 in right-sided lung cancer surgery and groups 4L, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 in left-sided. The two groups were matched at a ratio of 1:1 using the propensity score matching (PSM) method. RESULTS: Out of 497 patients, 376 cases were matched for PSM, with 188 cases in each group. Baseline date did not get any significant difference between two groups. The average group number of MLN dissection in VATS group and TT group was 4.14 and 3.97, respectively. While the average amount of dissected lymph nodes in both groups were 16.63 and 17.32, respectively. Compare with the lymph node numbers among all the groups in TT group, only the number of group 7 though left approach (7L) in VATS group was statically significant. Besides, the operation time and postoperative length of hospital stay in VATS group were superior to those in TT group (P<0.05). No significant difference had been found in intraoperative blood loss, accessory surgical injury and postoperative complication between two groups. CONCLUSION: Compared with thoracotomy, systemic MLN dissection and pulmonary lobectomy via VATS has quicker recovery, less postoperative complication and length of hospital stay with similar surgical outcomes. Moreover, our findings also suggest thoracotomy has an advantage on the dissection of MLN in group 7L.

MiR-1260b promotes the migration and invasion in non-small cell lung cancer via targeting PTPRK.

OBJECTIVE: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for 80-85% of lung cancer cases which cause most of cancer-related deaths globally. As our previous study discovered miR-1260b can be regarded as a specific signature for metastasis in NSCLC patients. However, the molecular mechanisms of miR-1260b underlying NSCLC progression and metastasis remain dismal. METHODS: The expression of miR-1260b in NSCLC tissues and cell lines were examined by real-time PCR, the effects of miR-1260b on cell migration, invasion and proliferation were evaluated in vitro. Furthermore, luciferase reporter assay was performed to identify the targets of miR-1260b, and the association between miR-1260b and its target gene was determined by real-time PCR and western blot assay. RESULTS: The results showed that miR-1260b was significantly upregulated in NSCLC cell lines. The inhibition of miR-1260b expression decreased the migratory and invasive rates in A549 cells while miR-1260b overexpression had the opposite effect. Furthermore, PTPRK was identified as a direct target of miR-1260b, and PTPRK expression was inversely correlated with miR-1260b in NSCLC cell lines and clinical tissues. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggested that miR-1260b may play an important role in NSCLC metastasis progression and could serve as a putative target for diagnosis and treatment of NSCLC.

Astrocyte elevated gene-1 is overexpressed in non-small-cell lung cancer and associated with increased tumour angiogenesis.

OBJECTIVES: Astrocyte elevated gene-1 (AEG-1) functions to mediate angiogenesis, and its upregulation is responsible for tumour angiogenesis during cancer development. This study analysed AEG-1 expression in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) for association with NSCLC clinicopathological features and tumour angiogenesis. METHODS: The expression of AEG-1, vascular endothelial growth factor and intratumoural microvessel density (assessed using the expression of CD105) was detected by immunohistochemistry in 88 paired tumour tissue and adjacent normal tissue specimens obtained from NSCLC patients. The Kaplan-Meier curves were used for survival analysis through an online tool (http://kmplot.com/analysis/). RESULTS: AEG-1 was overexpressed in 61.3% of NSCLC tissues vs 6.8% (6/88) of normal tissues (P < 0.001). AEG-1 expression in NSCLC was significantly associated with advanced pTNM stage (P = 0.021), tumour dedifferentiation (P = 0.034), vascular invasion (P = 0.035), lymph node metastasis (P < 0.001) and poor overall survival (P = 0.024). Moreover, the expression of AEG-1 in NSCLC was associated with tumour angiogenesis; that is, vascular endothelial growth factor overexpression (P < 0.001) and intratumoural microvessel density (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that AEG-1 expression is associated with NSCLC development, angiogenesis, progression and poor prognosis, indicating that the adjuvant therapy with antiangiogenic agent be adopted for the early postoperative period before the start of conventional chemotherapy in patients with AEG-1 overexpressed NSCLC.

PAM, OLA, and LNA are Differentially Taken Up and Trafficked Via Different Metabolic Pathways in Porcine Adipocytes.

Dietary fatty acids have different effects on fat deposition in pigs. To clarify the underlying mechanisms of this difference, we compared the metabolism of palmitic (PAM, saturated), oleic (OLA, monounsaturated) and linoleic acid (LNA, polyunsaturated) in porcine adipocytes treated with 100 µM PAM, OLA or LNA. We observed that the adipocytes incubated with LNA accumulated more lipids compared with those treated with PAM and OLA. We then probed the metabolism of these fatty acids in porcine adipocytes by using isotope-labelled fatty acids. The results showed that 42% of the [1-14C] LNA, 34% of the [1-14C] PAM and 28% of the [1-14C] OLA were recovered in the cellular lipids. The gene expression analyses showed that LNA significantly increased the expression of adipogenesis- and oxidation-related genes including PPARγ, C/EBPα, ap2 and NRF1. In addition, the cells incubated with LNA showed a decreased Ser112 phosphorylation in PPARγ compared to those incubated with PAM and OLA. Furthermore, when PPARγ Ser112 phosphorylation was inhibited, no significant difference in the triacylglycerol contents in the adipocytes was observed. These results showed the dietary fatty acids had different metabolism pathways in porcine adipocytes, and LNA significantly promoted lipid accumulation, probably by regulating PPARγ phosphorylation in adipocytes.

AEG-1 mRNA expression in non-small cell lung cancer is associated with increased tumor angiogenesis.

Astrocyte-elevated gene-1 (AEG-1) is implicated in the oncogenesis and angiogenesis of various types of human malignant disease. However, the angiogenesis roles of AEG-1 in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remain to be further elucidated. In the present study, the expression level of AEG-1 mRNA in seven human lung cell lines and 89 paired tissue samples (tumor tissues (TTs) and pair-matched normal adjacent tissues (PMNATs)) from NSCLC patients was detected by real-time PCR. Staining of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and intratumoral microvessel density (iMVD, labeled by CD105) were assessed by immunohistochemistry. Furthermore, cell migration and invasion were evaluated by wound healing assay and transwell assays. AEG-1 mRNA level was significantly higher in human lung cancer cells and TTs than that in human normal bronchial epithelial cell line 16HBE and PMNATs, respectively (P<0.001). Higher AEG-1 mRNA level in patients with NSCLC was correlated with clinical stages (P=0.028), differentiation (P=0.042), and lymph node metastasis (P=0.004). Moreover, Upregulated AEG-1 mRNA expression level was associated with higher tumor angiogenesis, reflected by the increase of VEGF expression and iMVD counting (P=0.021, P<0.001). However, 95D cell line transfected with AEG-1 siRNA oligos (siAEG-1) exhibited no significant decrease of cell invasion or migration capacities when compared with the control cells (P>0.05).These results suggested that AEG-1 may play important roles at the transcription level in malignant transformation and tumor angiogenesis in NSCLC, and anti-AEG-1 mRNA expression may be a novel potential strategy for anti-angiogenic therapy of NSCLC.

Depot-specific differences in fat mass expansion in WT and ob/ob mice.

The study was designed to investigate the cellular mechanisms underlying the differential fat expansion in different fat depots in wild type (WT) and ob/ob (OB) mice. At 6 weeks old, no differences in fat mass were found between SAT and VAT in WT mice, while O-SAT showed significantly higher weight than that of O-VAT. The average adipocyte size of SAT (~ 4133.47 µm2) was smaller than that of VAT (~ 7438.91 µm2) in OB mice. O-SAT preadipocytes gained higher triglyceride contents and higher levels of PPARγ and C/EBPα than did O-VAT preadipocytes upon in vitro differentiation. W-SAT and W-VAT displayed no significant differences in fatty acid uptake, while 1.36 fold significantly higher fatty acid uptake was found in O-SAT compared to O-VAT. Approximately 52% of the radioactivity recovered in cellular lipids was found in TAG in O-SAT, which was significantly higher than the other three adipocyte types. Significantly more radiolabelled oleic acid was ß-oxidized to CO2 in adipocytes from O-VAT than that from O-SAT. ATP production was significantly lower in W-SAT compared with W-VAT, whereas no significantly ATP level was observed between O-SAT and O-VAT. Expression of UCP-1 in SAT from either WT or OB mice was significantly higher than the counterpart of VAT, which demonstrated higher uncoupled respiration and lower oxidative phosphorylation in SAT. Together, a combined increase in adipogenesis and FA uptake, and decreases in ß-oxidation and ATP production, contributed to greater expansion of SAT compared to VAT in obese mice.

High therapeutic efficacy of Cathelicidin-WA against postweaning diarrhea via inhibiting inflammation and enhancing epithelial barrier in the intestine.

Diarrhea is a leading cause of death among young mammals, especially during weaning. Here, we investigated the effects of Cathelicidin-WA (CWA) on diarrhea, intestinal morphology, inflammatory responses, epithelial barrier and microbiota in the intestine of young mammals during weaning. Piglets with clinical diarrhea were selected and treated with saline (control), CWA or enrofloxacin (Enro) for 4 days. Both CWA and Enro effectively attenuated diarrhea. Compared with the control, CWA decreased IL-6, IL-8 and IL-22 levels and reduced neutrophil infiltration into the jejunum. CWA inhibited inflammation by down-regulating the TLR4-, MyD88- and NF-κB-dependent pathways. Additionally, CWA improved intestinal morphology by increasing villus and microvillus heights and enhancing intestinal barrier function by increasing tight junction (TJ) protein expression and augmenting wound-healing ability in intestinal epithelial cells. CWA also improved microbiota composition and increased short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) levels in feces. By contrast, Enro not only disrupted the intestinal barrier but also negatively affected microbiota composition and SCFA levels in the intestine. In conclusion, CWA effectively attenuated inflammation, enhanced intestinal barrier function, and improved microbiota composition in the intestines of weaned piglets. These results suggest that CWA could be an effective and safe therapy for diarrhea or other intestinal diseases in young mammals.

Long non-coding RNA PVT1 as a novel biomarker for diagnosis and prognosis of non-small cell lung cancer.

Accumulating evidence has indicated that long non-coding RNA PVT1 is upregulated in various human cancers. However, it remains unclear whether PVT1 is involved in the development and progression of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The present study was designed to investigate the expression, biological role, and clinical significance of PVT1 in NSCLC. Our results indicated that PVT1 expression was significantly increased in NSCLC tissues and cell lines, and its upregulation was associated with advanced T-stage and tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stage and regional lymph node metastasis. PVT1 expression levels were robust in differentiating NSCLC tissues from controls. Kaplan-Meier curve and Cox regression analysis showed that high expression of PVT1 was associated with poor overall survival and disease-free survival in NSCLC patients. The results of 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) and colony formation assays indicated that knockdown of PVT1 remarkably inhibited NSCLC cell proliferation, whereas overexpression of PVT1 significantly promoted cellular proliferation. In addition, PVT1 knockdown increased the number of cells in the G0/G1 phase and reduced the number of cells in the S phase, while overexpression of PVT1 could promote cell cycle progression. Furthermore, our findings also revealed that the messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein expression of P15 and P21 was significantly upregulated in NSCLC cells transfected with PVT1 small interfering RNA (siRNA) and downregulated in cells transfected with pcDNA3.1-PVT1. In conclusion, our study demonstrated that PVT1 might serve as a promising biomarker for diagnosis and prognosis of NSCLC, and it could promote the proliferation of NSCLC cells by downregulating p15 and p21 expression.

Cathelicidin-BF suppresses intestinal inflammation by inhibiting the nuclear factor-κB signaling pathway and enhancing the phagocytosis of immune cells via STAT-1 in weanling piglets.

The severity of intestinal inflammation in mammals can be profoundly impacted by weaning stress. Cathelicidins protect intestinal homeostasis by not only directly killing bacteria but also immune regulators. Here, we investigated the effects of cathelicidin-BF (C-BF) derived from the snake venoms of Bungarus fasciatus on weaning stress and intestinal inflammation and examined the mechanisms by which C-BF modulates intestinal immune responses in weanling piglets. We found that C-BF treatment significantly increased performance and reduced the diarrheal index in weanling piglets. Serum IL-6, IL-22 and TNF-α production was decreased by C-BF treatment. We demonstrated that C-BF inhibited the expression of the inflammatory cytokines TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-8 but increased the expression of the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 in the intestine. We also demonstrated that C-BF suppressed inflammation by down-regulating the nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling pathway in the intestine and in LPS-induced macrophages in vitro. However, C-BF significantly induced the phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT-1) to enhance the phagocytosis of macrophages when inflammation was suppressed. In summary, our study demonstrated that C-BF suppressed intestinal inflammation by down-regulating the NF-κB signaling pathway and enhancing the phagocytosis of immune cells by activating STAT-1 during weaning.