Correlation between resistance of eggplant and defense-related enzymes and biochemical substances of leaves

14 eggplant cultivars were inoculated by Verticillium dahliae to screen their resistance against verticillium wilt. The resistances were shown as the disease incidence and disease index, and eggplant cultivars were classified into resistant type (R), moderate resistant type (MR), tolerant type (T), moderate susceptible (MS) and susceptible type (S), according to the final disease index. To find out the correlated physiological and biochemical indexes for evaluating the resistance of eggplant to verticillium wilt, the activities of defense-related enzymes, and the contents of some biochemical substances of leaves were investigated. The results show that the activities of polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL) were significantly positively correlated with resistance (P <0.01) and the resistance was significantly positively correlated with the activity of peroxidase (POD) and the content of total chlorophyll (P<0.05), but significantly negatively correlated with the relative electric conductivity and the content of malondialdehyde (MDA) (P<0.05). The correlations between resistance and catalase (CAT) activity, the contents of sucrose, soluble protein and proline, were not detected.Keywords: Verticillium wilt, eggplant, disease resistance, defense-related enzyme, biochemical substanc

Untargeted metabolomics in Anectocillus roxburghii with habitat heterogeneity and the key abiotic factors affecting its active ingredients

IntroductionAnoectochilus roxburghii is a rare, endangered herb with diverse pharmacological properties. Understanding the main metabolite types and characteristics of wild A. roxburghii is important for efficiently utilizing resources and examining quality according to origin.MethodsSamples were collected from the main production areas across five regions in Fujian Province, China. An untargeted metabolomics analysis was performed on the entire plants to explore their metabolic profiles. We utilized UPLC-MS/MS to specifically quantify eight targeted flavonoids in these samples. Subsequently, correlation analysis was conducted to investigate the relationships between the flavonoids content and both the biological characteristics and geographical features.ResultsA comprehensive analysis identified a total of 3,170 differential metabolites, with terpenoids and flavonoids being the most prevalent classes. A region-specific metabolite analysis revealed that the Yongchun (YC) region showed the highest diversity of unique metabolites, including tangeretin and oleanolic acid. Conversely, the Youxi (YX) region was found to have the smallest number of unique metabolites, with only one distinct compound identified. Further investigation through KEGG pathway enrichment analysis highlighted a significant enrichment in pathways related to flavonoid biosynthesis. Further examination of the flavonoid category showed that flavonols were the most differentially abundant. We quantified eight specific flavonoids, finding that, on average, the YX region exhibited higher levels of these compounds. Correlation analysis highlighted a significant association between flavonoids and habitat, especially temperature and humidity.DiscussionUntargeted metabolomics via LC-MS was suitable for identifying region-specific metabolites and their influence via habitat heterogeneity. The results of this study serve as a new theoretical reference for unique markers exclusively present in a specific sample group

PMMA/PDMS valves and pumps for disposable microfluidics

Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) is gaining in popularity in microfluidic devices because of its low cost, excellent optical transparency, attractive mechanical/chemical properties, and simple fabrication procedures. It has been used to fabricate micromixers, PCR reactors, CE and many other microdevices. Here we present the design, fabrication, characterization and application of pneumatic microvalves and micropumps based on PMMA. Valves and pumps are fabricated by sandwiching a PDMS membrane between PMMA fluidic channel and manifold wafers. Valve closing or opening can be controlled by adjusting the pressure in a displacement chamber on the pneumatic layer via a computer regulated solenoid. The valve provides up to 15.4 mu L s(-1) at 60 kPa fluid pressure and seals reliably against forward fluid pressure as high as 60 kPa. A PMMA diaphragm pump can be assembled by simply connecting three valves in series. By varying valve volume or opening time, pumping rates ranging from nL to mL per second can be accurately achieved. The PMMA based valves and pumps were further tested in a disposable automatic nucleic acid extraction microchip to extract DNA from human whole blood. The DNA extraction efficiency was about 25% and the 260 nm/280 nm UV absorption ratio for extracted DNA was 1.72. Because of its advantages of inexpensive, facile fabrication, robust and easy integration, the PMMA valve and pump will find their wide application for fluidic manipulation in portable and disposable microfluidic devices.NSFC [20805038, 20620130427]; MOE [200803841013]; 973 Program of China [2007CB935603, 2010CB732402]; XMU ; NIH [P01 CA077664

Diagnosis and segmentation effect of the ME-NBI-based deep learning model on gastric neoplasms in patients with suspected superficial lesions - a multicenter study

BackgroundEndoscopically visible gastric neoplastic lesions (GNLs), including early gastric cancer and intraepithelial neoplasia, should be accurately diagnosed and promptly treated. However, a high rate of missed diagnosis of GNLs contributes to the potential risk of the progression of gastric cancer. The aim of this study was to develop a deep learning-based computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) system for the diagnosis and segmentation of GNLs under magnifying endoscopy with narrow-band imaging (ME-NBI) in patients with suspected superficial lesions.MethodsME-NBI images of patients with GNLs in two centers were retrospectively analysed. Two convolutional neural network (CNN) modules were developed and trained on these images. CNN1 was trained to diagnose GNLs, and CNN2 was trained for segmentation. An additional internal test set and an external test set from another center were used to evaluate the diagnosis and segmentation performance.ResultsCNN1 showed a diagnostic performance with an accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of 90.8%, 92.5%, 89.0%, 89.4% and 92.2%, respectively, and an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.928 in the internal test set. With CNN1 assistance, all endoscopists had a higher accuracy than for an independent diagnosis. The average intersection over union (IOU) between CNN2 and the ground truth was 0.5837, with a precision, recall and the Dice coefficient of 0.776, 0.983 and 0.867, respectively.ConclusionsThis CAD system can be used as an auxiliary tool to diagnose and segment GNLs, assisting endoscopists in more accurately diagnosing GNLs and delineating their extent to improve the positive rate of lesion biopsy and ensure the integrity of endoscopic resection

Macrophages Help NK Cells to Attack Tumor Cells by Stimulatory NKG2D Ligand but Protect Themselves from NK Killing by Inhibitory Ligand Qa-1

Natural killer (NK) cells and their crosstalk with other immune cells are important for innate immunity against tumor. To explore the role of the interaction between NK cells and macrophages in the regulation of anti-tumor activities of NK cells, we here demonstrate that poly I:C-treated macrophages increased NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity against target tumor cells in NKG2D-dependent manner. In addition, IL-15, IL-18, and IFN-β secreted by poly I:C-treated macrophages are also involved in NKG2D expression and NK cell activation. Interestingly, the increase in expression of NKG2D ligands on macrophages induced a highly NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity against tumor cells, but not against macrophages themselves. Notably, a high expression level of Qa-1, a NKG2A ligand, on macrophages may contribute to such protection of macrophages from NK cell-mediated killing. Furthermore, Qa-1 or NKG2A knockdown and Qa-1 antibody blockade caused the macrophages to be sensitive to NK cytolysis. These results suggested that macrophages may activate NK cells to attack tumor by NKG2D recognition whereas macrophages protect themselves from NK lysis via preferential expression of Qa-1

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Correction to: Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Effects of paclitaxel and gefitinib on the proliferation and cell cycle of human lung adenocarcinoma cell SPC-A1

Background and objective Previous clinical trials showed that there was no clinical benefit in the treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer when chemotherapy combined with gefitinib. The present study aims to assess the sequential administration of paclitaxel and gefitinib on the cell proliferation of lung adenocarcinoma cell SPC-A1 and to explore its mechanism by observing their effects on the cell cycle. Methods The expression of EGFR mRNA and EGFR protein were examined by RT-PCR and western blotting respectively. MTT was used to measure the cell proliferation of SPC-A1 cells. Cell cycle was detected by flow cytometry. Results Both EGFR mRNA and EGFR protein were overexpressed in SPC-A1 cells. From 1×10-14 M to 1×10-6 M, both paclitaxel and gefitinib inhibited the cell proliferation of SPC-A1 cells in a dose-dependent and time-dependent manner in vitro. The effects of paclitaxel in combination with gefitinib on cell proliferation depended on the sequence. No significant additive effects on cell proliferation was found when they were used simultaneously or gefitinib was added before paclitaxel. However, sequential administration of gefitinib following paclitaxel can remarkably enhanced the effect of paclitaxel on the cell proliferation of SPC-A1 cells. Cell cycle studies showed that paclitaxel and gefitinib induced G2/M and G0/G1 arrest respectively. The G0/G1 arrest was observed when paclitaxel and gefitinib was used simultaneously or gefitinib was added before paclitaxel. In contrast, sequential administration of gefitinib following paclitaxel induced G2/M arrest. Conclusion Both paclitaxel and gefitinib inhibits the cell proliferation of SPC-A1 cells. The additive effects on cell proliferation are sequential-dependent. The concomitant and the sequential treatment of gefitinib followed by paclitaxel exert no significant additive effects on the cell proliferation and resulted in the accumulation of cells in G0/G1 phase, which may decrease the effectiveness of paclitaxel in subsequent cycles. The additive effected on the cell proliferation are observed only when gefitinib is sequentially administrated following paclitaxel, which results in the G2/M arrest. The increase in G2/M phase suggests that cell cycle effects might not explain the observed additive effects