National situation, trends, and predictions of disease burden of atopic dermatitis in Chinese children and adolescents.

Background: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is an important global health problem affecting children and adolescents and detailed national information of disease burden in China is lacking. We aimed to evaluate the national disease burden of AD in Chinese children and adolescent, to provide the temporal trends over the past 30 years and to predict the burden for the next 10 years. Methods: The data of AD in China, including incidence, prevalence, and DALY, and population data were obtained from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 (GBD study 2019), which were estimated using the DisMod-MR 2.1. We analyzed the three measures by age and sex; the age groups were <5 years, 5-9 years, 10-14 years, and 15-19 years. The joinpoint regression analyses was conducted to assess the temporal trends from 1990 to 2019. The Bayesian age-period cohort (BAPC) model was used to predict measures from 2020 to 2030. Results: In 2019, the highest incidence case and rate were observed in <5 years group; for prevalence and disability adjusted life year (DALY), the groups of <5 years and 5-9 years showed similar higher levels and the groups of 10-14 years and 15-19 years had similar relatively lower levels. Overall, the male-to-female ratios were >1 in <5 years group and <1 in 10-14 and 15-19 age groups. The trend analyses found an overall trend of decrease in cases of the three measures; in recent about 3 years, slight increase trends were shown in cases and rates of the three measures in <5 years group. The prediction analyses found a slight decreasing trend for cases of these measures and a slight increasing trend for rates of these measures in the <5 years group in the next 10 years; the 5-9 years group was predicted to increase slightly in rates of the three measures. Conclusion: In conclusion, the groups of <5 years and 5-9 years are two important populations that need targeted measures to reduce disease burden of AD in China. Regarding sex disparity, we should pay more attention to males in <5 years group and to females in 10-19 years group.

Effect of treatments on skin microbiota in patients with atopic dermatitis: a protocol for systematic review.

INTRODUCTION: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin disease and skin microbiota dysbiosis shows an important role in the pathogenesis of AD. Effects of treatment on skin microbiota for patients with AD have been evaluated in recent years; however, the results remained controversial across studies. This systematic review will summarise studies evaluating the effect of treatments on skin microbiota among patients with AD. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We will search PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, ClinicalTrials.gov and Chinese Clinical Trial Registry in November 2021; other data sources will also be considered, including searching specific authors and screening references cited in the enrolled articles. Interventional studies, which enrolled patients with AD receiving treatments and reported treatment-related skin microbiota changes, will be included. Our primary outcomes include skin microbiota diversity and treatment-related differential microbes; the secondary outcomes include microbiota functions and microbial interactions. Risk of bias assessment will be performed using Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomised trials, risk of bias in non-randomised studies of interventions and methodological index for non-randomised studies. Two researchers will independently perform study selection, data extraction and risk of bias assessment, with disagreements resolved by group discussions. Subgroup analyses will be performed according to different types of treatment for AD. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethics approval is not required for this systematic review. Findings will be disseminated via peer-reviewed publication or conference proceedings. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42021246566.

A Spatial-Temporal Recurrent Neural Network for Video Saliency Prediction.

In this paper, a recurrent neural network is designed for video saliency prediction considering spatial-temporal features. In our work, video frames are routed through the static network for spatial features and the dynamic network for temporal features. For the spatial-temporal feature integration, a novel select and re-weight fusion model is proposed which can learn and adjust the fusion weights based on the spatial and temporal features in different scenes automatically. Finally, an attention-aware convolutional long short term memory (ConvLSTM) network is developed to predict salient regions based on the features extracted from consecutive frames and generate the ultimate saliency map for each video frame. The proposed method is compared with state-of-the-art saliency models on five public video saliency benchmark datasets. The experimental results demonstrate that our model can achieve advanced performance on video saliency prediction.

CRM197-Coupled Der p 2 Peptides Suppress Allergic Airway Inflammation in a Der p 2-Induced Asthma Mouse Model.

Allergic diseases affect more than 25% of the global population. Der p 2 is the major allergen of the house dust mite (HDM) Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus. Allergen-specific immunotherapy is the only treatment to change the course of allergic diseases. In this study, two synthesized Der p 2 peptides coupled to cross-reacting material 197 (CRM197) showed reduced IgE reactivity and allergenic activity. CRM197-coupled Der p 2 peptides induced rDer p 2-specific IgG1 antibodies in mice, which could inhibit HDM-allergic patients' IgE binding to rDer p 2. The immunity effects of CRM197-coupled Der p 2 peptides were studied in an rDer p 2-induced asthma mouse model. CRM197-coupled Der p 2 peptides can suppress asthmatic airway inflammation in this model. Analysis of IL-4, IL-5, and IFN-γ levels in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid revealed that the suppression was associated with a shift from a Th2 to a Th1 response. Thus, CRM197-bound Der p 2 peptides exhibited less allergenic activity than the rDer p 2 allergen, which preserved immunogenicity and may be candidates for mite allergy vaccines.

Preparation of North American type II PRRSV infectious clone expressing green fluorescent protein.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) is still one of the most important infectious diseases threatening the swine industry. To construct North American type II PRRSV infectious clone containing green fluorescent protein (GFP) gene, we amplify gfp gene, flanked by PRRSV Nsp2 gene fragments upstream and downstream, using overlap PCR method from pcDNA-EF1-GFP plasmid and FL12 plasmid containing PRRSV infectious genome as the templates. The Nsp2 fragment-flanked gfp gene was inserted into Nsp2 gene of the FL12 plasmid by Spe I and Xho I sites to generate PRRSV infectious recombinant plasmid (FL12-GFP) containing gfp gene. The recombinant PRRSV expressing GFP (PRRSV-GFP) was rescued in baby hamster kidney-21 (BHK-21) cells by transfecting PRRSV mRNA synthesized in vitro and amplified in Marc-145 cells. The PRRSV-GFP infectivity and replication capacity were identified. Results showed that, by adopting overlap PCR strategy, the gfp gene was successfully inserted into and fused with PRRSV Nsp2 gene in the PRRSV infectious clone plasmid FL-12 to generate FL12-GFP plasmid. The recombinant PRRSV-GFP was generated through transfecting PRRSV mRNA in BHK-2 cells. Like its parental virus, the recombinant PRRSV-GFP maintains its infectivity to Marc-145 cells and porcine alveolar macrophages (PAMs). This study provides essential conditions for further investigation on PRRSV.

[Effects of coat and sowing depth on seed germination and early seedling growth of Quercus wutaishanica].

Under shade environment in glasshouse, the effects of seed coat and sowing depth (0, 2, 5, 10 or 15 cm) on seed germination and early seedling growth of Quercus wutaishanica were studied. Seed coat had obvious inhibiting effects on the germination of Q. wutaishanica seeds. The germination percentage of uncoated seeds increased significantly, averagely by 19.4% at different sowing depths. The germination index and vigor index were increased significantly and the germination was speeded in the peeling treatment. The germination percentages of uncoated and coated seeds were the highest at the sowing depth of 2 cm with 78.9% and 62.2%, respectively. The germination index and vigor index were the highest at the sowing depth of 2 cm, while the coefficient of rate of germination were the highest at the sowing depth of 5 cm. Leaf area per seedling and dry mass of seedlings increased significantly in the peeling treatment compared with those in the unpeeling treatment, but specific root length decreased significantly. The shoot height in the peeling and unpeeling treatments were the highest at the sowing depth of 5 cm with 13.8 and 14.2 cm, respectively. With the increasing of sowing depth, the basal stem diameter of seedlings increased, but tap-root length, number of lateral root and maximum of lateral root all decreased. Sowing depth had little influence on dry mass of seedlings.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus activates inflammasomes of porcine alveolar macrophages via its small envelope protein E.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) infection results in extensive tissue inflammation and damage, which are believed to be responsible for increased susceptibility to secondary infection and even for death. However, its pathogenic mechanisms are not fully understood. To explore the mechanism underlying the PRRSV-induced tissue inflammation and damage, we investigated whether PRRSV activates porcine alveolar macrophage (PAM) inflammasomes which mediate por-IL-1ß maturation/release and subsequently induce tissue inflammation and injury. Our results showed that PRRSV and its small envelope protein E significantly increased IL-1ß release from LPS-primed PAMs; however, only PRRSV not protein E significantly increased IL-1ß release from no-LPS-primed PAMs, which indicates PRRSV can activate inflammasomes of PAMs by its encoded protein E. These results provide a molecular basis for the pathogenic mechanism of PRRSV on inducing extensive tissue inflammation and damage, and suggest that the inflammasome may provide a potential therapeutic target for PRRS prevention and treatment.

[Recombinant porcine lung surfactant protein A inhibits porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus infection into host cells in vitro].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the antiviral activity of porcine lung surfactant protein A (SP-A) to porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) in vitro. METHODS: The SP-A gene was amplified by PCR from the plasmid containing porcine SP-A gene, and subcloned into pcDNA3. 1A-CD5 vector containing the human CD5 signal peptide to generate SP-A eukaryotic expression vector pcDNA-CD5-SPA/MH. The recombinant expression vector was transfected into HEK293T cells mediated with calcium phosphate. The expressed recombinant SP-A was identified by Western blot and purified from culture medium by Ni-NTA-Agarose beads. The binding activity of SP-A with PRRSV was identified by ELISA. The antiviral activity of SP-A to PRRSV was analyzed by viral titer reduction assays on MARC-145 cells and porcine alveolar macrophages (PAM). RESULTS: The results showed that the eukaryotic expression vector of SP-A gene could mediate SP-A expression in HEK293T cells, the expressed SP-A could bind PRRSV in a dose dependent manner. The PRRSV incubated in advance with SP-A showed the lower infective activity compared with no-SP-A-incubated PRRSV on both MARC-145 cells and porcine alveolar macrophages. The SP-A-treated PRRSV titers in MARC-145 cells and PAM cells were significantly lower than that of SP-A-untreated PRRSV at 72 h post-infection. CONCLUSION: Recombinant porcine SP-A significantly inhibit the infection of PRRSV to the host cells in vitro, which indicates that recombinant SP-A possesses anti-PRRSV activity.

[Non-structural protein NS1 of canine parvovirus induces the apoptosis of cells].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of canine parvovirus (CPV) non-structural protein-1 (NS1) on the cell apoptosis induced by CPV and preliminarily explore the mechanism of CPV-induced apoptosis. METHODS: First, the NS1 gene was amplified by PCR from CPV genomic DNA and subcloned into pcDNA3. 1A vector to generate NS1 eukaryotic expression vector pcDNA-NS1. To verify whether pcDNA-NS1 vector can mediate NS1 expression in eukaryotic cells, the human embryo kideny (HEK) 293FT cells were used to transiently express the recombinant NS1. The effects of NS1 on CPV-induced apoptosis were investigated by infecting the F81 host cells with CPV and transfecting the cells with NS1 vector. The apoptosis of the cells was detected by AnnexinV/PI double staining for phosphatidylserine externalization on membrane and by luminescence method for caspase-3/7 activities. RESULTS: The results show that the sequence of NS1 gene amplified was consistent with the GenBank. The NS1 expression vector was shown to be correct and could mediate NS1 expression in eukaryotic cells. The phosphatidylserine on outside of membrane was detected and the caspase-3/7 activities were increased in both CPV-infected cells and NS1-transfected cells. These results indicate that both CPV and NS1 protein can induce the apoptosis of the cells. CONCLUSION: CPV-induced apoptosis was closely related to its non-structural protein NS1.

[Effects of canine IL-2 and IL-7 genes on enhancing immunogenicity of canine parvovirus VP2 gene vaccine in mice].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of canine interleukin-2 (cIL-2) and cIL-7 genes on enhancing the immunogenicity of canine parvovirus (CPV) VP2 DNA vaccine. METHODS: The bicistronic vectors of cIL-2 and cIL-7 genes were constructed using the eukaryotic expression vector containing internal ribosome entry site (IRES). The cIL-2/ cIL-7 dicistronic vector plus previously constructed vectors, including CPV VP2 DNA vaccine vector, cIL-2 vector and cIL-7 vector, were used to co-immunize mice with different combinations, consisting of VP2 alone, VP2 + cIL-2, VP2 + cIL-7 and VP2 + cIL-2/cIL-7. The VP2-specific antibody levels in immunized mice were measured by ELISA at different time post-immunization. The proliferation indices and interferon-gamma expression were measured by lymphocyte proliferation assay and ELISA, respectively. RESULTS: The cIL-2/cIL-7 bicistronic vector was correct and could mediate cIL-2 and cIL-7 gene expression in eukaryotic cells. Immunization results revealed that the antibody titers and the neutralizing antibody levels of the mice co-immunized with VP2 + cIL-7/cIL-2 vectors were significantly higher than that with either VP2 + cIL-2 vectors or VP2 + cIL-7 vectors (P < 0.05). The lymphocyte proliferation indices of VP2 + cIL-7/cIL-2 vector-immunized mice were also higher than that of other two groups although not statistically significant. However, the IFN-gamma expression levels of VP2 + cIL-7/cIL-2 vector-immunized mice were significantly higher than other immunized mice (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The cIL-2 and cIL-7 genes showed the significant synergic effects on enhancing the immunogenecity of CPV VP2 DNA vaccine.

[Adenovirus-mediated canine interferon-gamma expression and its antiviral activity against canine parvovirus].

OBJECTIVE: To construct recombinant adenovirus containing canine interferon-gamma (cIFN-gamma) gene and to investigate its antiviral activity against canine parvovirus in Madin-Darby canine kidney cells (MDCK). [Methods] The cIFN-gamma gene was inserted into adenovirus shuttle plasmid to construct pShuttle3-cIFN-gamma expression vector, from which the cIFN-gamma expression cassette was transferred into the adenovirus genomic plasmid pAdeno-X by specific restriction sites to generate recombinant adenovirus genomic plasmid pAd-cIFN-gamma. The pAd-cIFN-gamma plasmid was linearized by digestion and transfected into human embryonic kidney (HEK) 293T cells to generate the replication-defective cIFN-gamma recombinant adenovirus (Ad-cIFN-gamma). To analyze its anti-canine parvovirus activity, the MDCK cells were pre-infected by Ad-cIFN-gamma recombinant adenovirus, and then infected by canine parvovirus. The antiviral activity of the Ad-cIFN-gamma recombinant adenovirus against parvovirus was analyzed. RESULTS: The recombinant adenovirus containing cIFN-gamma gene was constructed by the ligation method. The recombinant adenovirus could mediates recombinant cIFN-gamma secretory expression in MDCK cells. The Ad-cIFN-gamma recombinant adenovirus could significantly inhibit canine parvovirus replication in MDCK cells pre-infected with the recombinant adenovirus. These results indicate that the Ad-cIFN-gamma recombinant adenovirus has the potent antiviral activity against canine parvovirus. CONCLUSION: The Ad-cIFN-gamma recombinant adenovirus was successfully constructed by the ligation method and possessed a powerful antiviral activity against canine parvovirus.