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Background: Fibrosis is a significant pathological feature of chronic skeletal muscle injury, profoundly affecting muscle regeneration. Fibro-adipogenic progenitors (FAPs) have the ability to differentiate into myofibroblasts, acting as a primary source of extracellular matrix (ECM). the process by which FAPs differentiate into myofibroblasts during chronic skeletal muscle injury remains inadequately explored. Method: mouse model with sciatic nerve denervated was constructed and miRNA expression profiles between the mouse model and uninjured mouse were analyzed. qRT/PCR and immunofluorescence elucidated the effect of miR-27b-3p on fibrosis in vivo and in vitro. Dual-luciferase reporter identified the target gene of miR-27b-3p, and finally knocked down or overexpressed the target gene and phosphorylation inhibition of Smad verified the influence of downstream molecules on the abundance of miR-27b-3p and fibrogenic differentiation of FAPs. Result: FAPs derived from a mouse model with sciatic nerves denervated exhibited a progressively worsening fibrotic phenotype over time. Introducing agomiR-27b-3p effectively suppressed fibrosis both in vitro and in vivo. MiR-27b-3p targeted Transforming Growth Factor Beta Receptor 1 (TGF-βR1) and the abundance of miR-27b-3p was negatively regulated by TGF-βR1/Smad. Conclusion: miR-27b-3p targeting the TGF-βR1/Smad pathway is a novel mechanism for regulating fibrogenic differentiation of FAPs. Increasing abundance of miR-27b-3p, suppressing expression of TGF-βR1 and inhibiting phosphorylation of smad3 presented potential strategies for treating fibrosis in chronic skeletal muscle injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering the destructive effect of excess residues of nitrite (NO2–) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) in food, herein, we introduce a unique synthetic strategy to design and construct high-performance sensing heterostructure materials [spindle-like Fe3O4/NiO@N-doped carbon (Fe3O4/NiO@N–C)] using Fe-based metal–organic frameworks as self-sacrifice template and further evaluate its quantitative capabilities for NO2– and H2O2 determination. Notably, the well-designed three-dimensional hierarchical hollow Fe3O4/NiO@N–C nanocomposites integrate the significant merits of hollow heterointerface structure and suitable electrocatalytic properties of different nanomaterials, which prompt the exposure of electroactive sites, the acceleration of electron/ion transfer rate, as well as the prolongation of structural robustness when unitized as electrocatalysts for NO2– oxidation and H2O2 reduction. Accordingly, it achieved remarkable sensitivity (1040.3 ± 0.0078 and 615.7 μA mM–1 cm–2 ± 0.0056) and low limit of detection (LOD) (21 and 129 nM) at desirable working potential (0.85 and −0.45 V); meanwhile, their selectivity, durability, and repeatability are also deserved to be declaimed. More importantly, this realizes successful recovery analysis in pickled mustard with high reliability and excellent applicability. Such significative research could provide instructive advice for the reasonable design of other heterostructured metal oxide and further highlight their untapped potential in food analysis, as well as human health and ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore therapeutic efficacy and mechanism of puerarin (PUE) in treating of ulcerative colitis (UC). Methods: Network pharmacology and molecular docking technique were used to screen and analyze targets of PUE in regulating UC. C57BL/6 mice were given free access to 2.5%DSS aqueous solution for 7 days, and influence of PUE on changes in body weight and disease activity index (DAI) score were subsequently observed. Histopathological alterations of colon tissue were observed by HE staining, changes of goblet cell population in colon tissue were evaluated through Alcian blue staining; expressions of inflammatory factors in colon tissue were detected by qRT-PCR and ELISA. Effect of PUE on MODE-K cell viability and apoptosis were assessed by CCK-8 and flow cytometry. Results: A total of 38 common targets of PUE in modulating UC, such as AKT1, TNF, STAT3, CASP3, HIF1A and etc, mainly involving TNF, IL-17 and PI3K-Akt signaling pathway. In vivo experiments confirmed that PUE ameliorated degree of colon shortening, body weight and DAI scores and reduced inflammatory cell infiltration in mice. Besides, expressions of inflammatory factors in colon, such as TNF-α and IL-1β, were inhibited by PUE. Furthermore, in vitro experiments validated that PUE relieved DSS-induced apoptosis of epithelial cells. Conclusion: PUE alleviates occurrence and development of DSS-induced UC in mice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

CX3CL1, also named fractalkine or neurotactin, is the only known member of the CX3C chemokine family that can chemoattract several immune cells. CX3CL1 exists in both membrane-anchored and soluble forms, with each mediating distinct biological activities. CX3CL1 signals are transmitted through its unique receptor, CX3CR1, primarily expressed in the microglia of the central nervous system (CNS). In the CNS, CX3CL1 acts as a regulator of microglia activation in response to brain disorders or inflammation. Recently, there has been a growing interest in the role of CX3CL1 in regulating cell adhesion, chemotaxis, and host immune response in viral infection. Here, we provide a comprehensive review of the changes and function of CX3CL1 in various viral infections, such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), SARS-CoV-2, influenza virus, and cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection, to highlight the emerging roles of CX3CL1 in viral infection and associated diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the production of small-seed peanut cultivars in South China, landraces with high plants and bred cultivars with dwarf plants were both planted. Thus a differential fertilization strategy had to be figured out according to their nitrogen requirements. In this study, the main landrace with high plants Anhua Xiaozi and improved dwarf cultivar Xianghei Xiaoguo were used as materials. Four compound fertilization rates were set including 0, 450, 600, and 750 kg/hm², representing soil background (CK), low (F30), medium (F40), and high (F50) fertilizer levels. Nitrogen content, accumulation, and distribution were recorded at 4 growth stages. Results showed that, in high landrace Anhua Xiaozi, N content were in the order of pod> leaf> root> stem, while those of dwarf cultivar Xianghei Xiaoguo were in leaf> pod> root> stem. N content in leaves and roots of Anhua Xiaozi was less than dwarf cultivar Xianghei Xiaoguo. The opposite trend was found in stems and pods. The influence degree of increasing fertilizer on N content was in the order of stem> leaf> root> pod, which was beneficial to N assimilation and absorption in vegetative organs. N accumulation in different organs of the 2 materials was leaf> pod> stem> root. Except the seedling stage, N accumulations of the whole plant, leaf and stem in other stages were larger in Anhua Xiaozi stem. N accumulations were both higher in Anhua Xiaozi pods and roots, but only in roots during seedling and podding stages. Fertilization was beneficial to N accumulation in early stages. N distribution rate of both varieties was the highest in leaves, and then in pods and stems. N distribution rate in higher variety were larger in aboveground parts, while the underground parts was the opposite. It indicated that N absorbed by dwarf variety was more conducive to transport to pods. N production efficiency was higher in dwarf Xianghei Xiaoguo. N production efficiency and N partial factor productivity of F40 and F30 treatments were both high, indicated that excessive fertilization decreased N use efficiency. In conclusion, lower response of N accumulation to fertilizer increase was found in dwarf cultivar Xianghei Xiaoguo, with less total accumulation but more distribution in pods. Therefore, in barren and acidic red soil regions in South China, peanut plant architecture should be considered during fertilizer determination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peanut is a leguminous crop with an indeterminate growth habit that will continuously flower during the entire reproductive development stage. Flowering redundancy adversely affects the yield and quality of peanut. In this study, eight flowering and five yield-related traits were collected and comprehensively evaluated from a diverse germplasm panel consisting of 232 peanut accessions, aiming to provide a theoretical basis for improving the flowering habit and yield for future peanut breeding efforts. As a result, large phenotypic diversity was observed in 13 traits. Most of the traits suggested high heritability, except high effective flowering duration (HEFD), days to 100% flower cessation (DTC100), and yield per plant (YPP). Days to 90% flower cessation (DTC90), days to DTC100, flowering duration (FD), and low effective flowering duration (LEFD) showed significant negative correlations with 100-seed weight, 100-pod weight, YPP, average weight per pod, and shelling percentage. Principal component analysis (PCA) suggested that flowering redundancy traits as well as yield-related traits contributed more to the first three PCs when compared to other traits. This study addresses the lack of peanut flowering phenotypic and genetic diversity and lays the foundation for in-depth research on redundancy-related genes in peanut flowering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We evaluated cellular immune responses induced by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccines in an immunized population based on HLA-E-restricted CD8+ T cell epitope identification. HLA-E-restricted SARS-CoV-2 CD8+ T cell nonamer peptides were predicted with software. An HLA-E-transfected K562 cell binding assay was used to screen for high-affinity peptides. IFN-γ enzyme-linked immunospot assays were used to identify HLA-E-restricted epitopes. An HLA-E/epitope tetramer was employed to detect the frequencies of epitope-specific CD8+ T cells. Four CD8+ T cell epitopes on the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 restricted by both HLA-E*0101 and E*0103 were identified. HLA-E-restricted epitope-specific IFN-γ-secreting CD8+ T cell responses could be detected in individuals vaccinated with SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. Importantly, the frequencies of epitope-specific CD8+ T cells in Ad5-nCoV vaccinated individuals were higher than in individuals vaccinated with recombinant protein or inactivated vaccines. Moreover, the frequencies of epitope-specific CD8+ T cells could be maintained for at least 120 days after only one dose of Ad5-nCoV vaccine, while the frequencies of epitope-specific CD8+ T cells decreased in individuals after two doses of Ad5-nCoV vaccine. These findings may contribute to a more comprehensive evaluation of the protective effects of vaccines for SARS-CoV-2; meanwhile, they may provide information to characterize HLA-E-restricted CD8+ T cell immunity against SARS-CoV-2 infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Calcification roasting-acid leaching is a clean, efficient, and environmentally friendly process, but in the roasting process, the local temperature is often too high, the heat release is not timely, and the heat transfer is blocked. Furthermore, the material is easy to sinter, which affects the final vanadium extraction effect. In this paper, a small amount of CeO 2 was introduced in the roasting process of vanadium slag to promote the calcified roasting. The results showed that the vanadium leaching rate reached 93.17% with the addition of 0.1 wt % CeO 2 at a roasting temperature of 750 °C, which was higher than that obtained without CeO 2 addition (90.00%). The results of XPS, XRD, and SEM-EDS analyses confirmed that adding CeO 2 to the roasted clinker significantly increased the proportion of pentavalent vanadium to the total vanadium by up to 28.64%. O 2 -TPD analysis revealed an enhanced chemisorbed oxygen with the CeO 2 -assisted roasting, indicated the activation of oxygen by CeO 2 , and resulted in an enhanced oxidation of vanadium. The work in this paper establishes an alternative route for catalytic oxidation-enhanced vanadium slag roasting, which can improve the utilization of vanadium slag at relatively lower temperatures under the action of CeO 2 and is of positive significance in solving the problems of sintering and energy consumption in the roasting process., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2024 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

Natural killer (NK) cells directly lysis the virus-infected cells through rapidly releasing cytotoxic mediators and cytokines. The balance between inhibitory and activated receptors on the surface of NK cells, as well as the corresponding ligands expressed on target cells are involved in the regulation of the cytotoxic function of NK cells. NKG2A is one of the highly anticipated inhibitory receptors expressed on NK cells, which can inhibit the cytotoxicity of NK cells to autologous normal tissue cells through interacting with the ligand HLA-E. The studies have shown that HLA-E is overexpressed on virus-infected cells and forms a complex with peptides derived from viral proteins. The interaction of HLA-E and NKG2A can regulate the functions of NK cells, participateing the pathogenesis process of virus infectious diseases. This review outlines the characteristics of the molecular interaction between NKG2A and HLA-E, as well as the mechanisms of NKG2A-HLA-E axis in regulating NK cell responses.