IL11 stimulates IL33 expression and proinflammatory fibroblast activation across tissues

Interleukin 11 (IL11) is upregulated in inflammatory conditions, where it is mostly believed to have anti-inflammatory activity. However, recent studies suggest instead that IL11 promotes inflammation by activating fibroblasts. Here, we assessed whether IL11 is pro- or anti-inflammatory in fibroblasts. Primary cultures of human kidney, lung or skin fibroblasts were stimulated with IL11 that resulted in the transient phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and the sustained activation of extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases (ERK). RNA sequencing over a time course of IL11 stimulation revealed a robust but short-lived transcriptional response that was enriched for gene set hallmarks of inflammation and characterized by the upregulation of SERPINB2, TNFRSF18, Interleukin 33 (IL33), CCL20, IL1RL1, CXCL3/5/8, ICAM1 and IL11 itself. IL33 was the most upregulated signaling factor (38-fold, p = 9.8 × 10-5), and IL1RL1, its cognate receptor, was similarly increased (18-fold, p = 1.1 × 10-34). In proteomic studies, IL11 triggered a proinflammatory secretome with the notable upregulation of IL8, IL6, MCP1, CCL20 and CXCL1/5/6, which are important chemotaxins for neutrophils, monocytes, and lymphocytes. IL11 induced IL33 expression across fibroblast types, and the inhibition of STAT3 but not of MEK/ERK prevented this. These data establish IL11 as pro-inflammatory with specific importance for priming the IL33 alarmin response in inflammatory fibroblasts across tissues

Chemical Pressure and Physical Pressure in BaFe_2(As_{1-x}P_{x})_2

Measurements of the superconducting transition temperature, T_c, under hydrostatic pressure via bulk AC susceptibility were carried out on several concentrations of phosphorous substitution in BaFe_2(As_{1-x}P_x)_2. The pressure dependence of unsubstituted BaFe_2As_2, phosphorous concentration dependence of BaFe_2(As_{1-x}P_x)_2, as well as the pressure dependence of BaFe_2(As_{1-x}P_x)_2 all point towards an identical maximum T_c of 31 K. This demonstrates that phosphorous substitution and physical pressure result in similar superconducting phase diagrams, and that phosphorous substitution does not induce substantial impurity scattering.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, to be published in Journal of the Physical Society of Japa

Correlated multiplexity and connectivity of multiplex random networks

Nodes in a complex networked system often engage in more than one type of interactions among them; they form a multiplex network with multiple types of links. In real-world complex systems, a node's degree for one type of links and that for the other are not randomly distributed but correlated, which we term correlated multiplexity. In this paper we study a simple model of multiplex random networks and demonstrate that the correlated multiplexity can drastically affect the properties of giant component in the network. Specifically, when the degrees of a node for different interactions in a duplex Erdos-Renyi network are maximally correlated, the network contains the giant component for any nonzero link densities. In contrast, when the degrees of a node are maximally anti-correlated, the emergence of giant component is significantly delayed, yet the entire network becomes connected into a single component at a finite link density. We also discuss the mixing patterns and the cases with imperfect correlated multiplexity.Comment: Revised version, 12 pages, 6 figure

Anti-fouling double-skinned forward osmosis membrane with zwitterionic brush for oily wastewater treatment

Despite its attractive features for energy saving separation, the performance of forward osmosis (FO) has been restricted by internal concentration polarization and fast fouling propensity that occur in the membrane sublayer. These problems have significantly affected the membrane performance when treating highly contaminated oily wastewater. In this study, a novel double-skinned FO membrane with excellent anti-fouling properties has been developed for emulsified oil-water treatment. The double-skinned FO membrane comprises a fully porous sublayer sandwiched between a highly dense polyamide (PA) layer for salt rejection and a fairly loose dense bottom zwitterionic layer for emulsified oil particle removal. The top dense PA layer was synthesized via interfacial polymerization meanwhile the bottom layer was made up of a zwitterionic polyelectrolyte brush-(poly(3-(N-2-methacryloxyethyl-N,N-dimethyl) ammonatopropanesultone), abbreviated as PMAPS layer. The resultant double-skinned membrane exhibited a high water flux of 13.7 ± 0.3 L/m2.h and reverse salt transport of 1.6 ± 0.2 g/m2.h under FO mode using 2 M NaCl as the draw solution and emulsified oily solution as the feed. The double-skinned membrane outperforms the single-skinned membrane with much lower fouling propensity for emulsified oil-water separation

Impacts of hydrophilic nanofillers on separation performance of thin film nanocomposite reverse osmosis membrane

The membrane technology is still considered a costly method to produce potable water. In view of this, RO membrane with enhanced water permeability without trade-off in salt rejection is desirable as it could further reduce the cost for water desalination. In this study, thin film nanocomposite (TFN) membranes containing 0.05 or 0.10 w/v% hydrophilic nanofillers in polyamide layer were synthesized via interfacial polymerization of piperazine and trimesoyl chloride monomers. The resultant TFN membranes were characterized and compared with a control thin film composite (TFC) membrane. Results from the filtration experiments showed that TFN membranes exhibited higher water permeability, salt rejection and fouling resistance compared to that of the TFC membrane. Excessive amount of nanofillers incorporated in the membrane PA layer however negatively affected the cross-linking in the polymer matrix, thus deteriorating the membrane salt rejection. TFN membrane containing 0.05 w/v% of nanofillers showed better performances than the TFC membrane, recording a pure water flux of 11.2 L/m2∙he membsalt rejection of 95.4%, 97.3% and 97.5% against NaCl, Na2SO4 and MgSO4, respectively

A genome-wide RNAi screen identifies factors required for distinct stages of C-elegans piRNA biogenesis

In animals, piRNAs and their associated Piwi proteins guard germ cell genomes against mobile genetic elements via an RNAi-like mechanism. In Caenorhabditis elegans, 21U-RNAs comprise the piRNA class, and these collaborate with 22G RNAs via unclear mechanisms to discriminate self from nonself and selectively and heritably silence the latter. Recent work indicates that 21U-RNAs are post-transcriptional processing products of individual transcription units that produce similar to 26-nucleotide capped precursors. However, nothing is known of how the expression of precursors is controlled or how primary transcripts give rise to mature small RNAs. We conducted a genome-wide RNAi screen to identify components of the 21U biogenesis machinery. Screening by direct, quantitative PCR (qPCR)-based measurements of mature 21U-RNA levels, we identified 22 genes important for 21U-RNA production, termed TOFUs (Twenty-One-u Fouled Ups). We also identified seven genes that normally repress 21U production. By measuring mature 21U-RNA and precursor levels for the seven strongest hits from the screen, we assigned factors to discrete stages of 21U-RNA production. Our work identifies for the first time factors separately required for the transcription of 21U precursors and the processing of these precursors into mature 21U-RNAs, thereby providing a resource for studying the biogenesis of this important small RNA class