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[Display omitted] • The LPS-induced tree shrews exhibited severe shortness of breath, resulting in hypoxemia. • The induced group of animals exhibited 72 ∼ 120 h endpoints, and none of them recover. • Diffuse alveolar damage was observed in the lungs of the tree shrew, which is the histological hallmark for the acute phase of ARDS. • 3D reconstruction of the lung CT images was used to accurately measure the extent and distribution of the whole lung injury in LPS-induced tree shrews. Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a leading cause of respiratory failure, with substantial attributable morbidity and mortality. The small animal models that are currently used for ARDS do not fully manifest all of the pathological hallmarks of human patients, which hampers both the studies of disease mechanism and drug development. To examine whether the phenotypic changes of primate-like tree shrews in response to a one-hit lipopolysaccharides (LPS) injury resemble human ARDS features. LPS was administered to tree shrews through intratracheal instillation; then, the animals underwent CT or PET/CT imaging to examine the changes in the structure and function of the whole lung. The lung histology was analyzed by H&E staining and immunohistochemical staining of inflammatory cells. Results demonstrated that tree shrews exhibited an average survival time of 3–5 days after LPS insult, as well as an obvious symptom of dyspnea before death. The ratios of PaO 2 to FiO 2 (P/F ratio) were close to those of moderate ARDS in humans. CT imaging showed that the scope of the lung injury in tree shrews after LPS treatment were extensive. PET/CT imaging with 18F-FDG displayed an obvious inflammatory infiltration. Histological analysis detected the formation of a hyaline membrane, which is usually present in human ARDS. This study established a lung injury model with a primate-like small animal model and confirmed that they have similar features to human ARDS, which might provide a valuable tool for translational research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on a study that analyzes the cause of mortalities in the families of Macroscelididae and Tupaiidae at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park located in Washington, D.C. It emphasizes on the identification of prevalent diseases and trends across demographics of each families. tHe study reveals taht the main reason for mortality in elephant shrews were gastrointestinal disease and respiratory disease whereas trauma was the major cause of mortality in tree shrews. It mentions that the incidences of Cryptococcosis was also reported in elephant shrews.

In the present study, liquid chromatography-mass spectrometer (LC-MS) was used to perform untargeted metabolomics analysis of white adipose tissue (WAT) and brown adipose tissue (BAT) in Tupaia belangeri during cold acclimation. Differences in biochemical composition between WAT and BAT were compared. Clarifying how the two adipose tissues respond to the lower temperature in terms of metabolomics, which elucidate the metabolic process and energy homeostasis regulation mechanism in T. belangeri. The results showed that there were 34, 59 and 20 differential metabolites in the WAT, BAT and WAT compared with BAT, respectively. WAT and BAT had significant differences in various metabolic pathways such as sugar metabolism, amino acid metabolism, lipid metabolism, and nucleotide metabolism, which were closely related to the different biological roles of the two tissues. Increasing the concentrations of intermediate products of tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, pyruvic acid, and phosphoenolpyruvic acid (PEP) in WAT and increasing the metabolites in TCA cycle, glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism pathways in BAT, likely to increase the thermogenic capacity in T. belangeri in response to cold stress. There were more differential metabolic pathways in BAT during cold acclimation than that of in WAT. Moreover, compared to WAT, BAT responds to cold stress by adjusting the concentration of nucleotide metabolites. [Display omitted] • Metabolomics of WAT and BAT were analyzed in T. belangeri under cold exposure. • WAT and BAT had significant differences in various metabolic pathways. • More metabolic pathways in BAT were found than that of in WAT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]