Search

Purpose: Chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) is a highly heterogeneous disease with varied clinical features and treatment effects. This study aimed to investigate the additive effect of blood and tissue eosinophilia on patients with CRSwNP. Methods: Based on the blood eosinophil (Beos) count and tissue eosinophil (Teos) count, we divided 144 CRSwNP patients into four groups, analysed their clinical features and histopathologic changes, and investigated their postoperative control. Results: Patients in the Beos+Teos+ (blood eosinophil count > 0.3 × 109/L, tissue eosinophil count > 10/HPF) group had a higher incidence of allergic rhinitis (AR) and asthma. Lund‐Mackay (LM) scores, hyposmia visual analogue scale (VAS) scores and Global Osteitis Scoring Scale (GOSS) scores were higher in the Beos+Teos+ group than those in the other groups. Tissue remodelling, such as connective tissue oedema and basement membrane thickening was more severe in the Beos+Teos+ group compared with other groups. There were more uncontrolled patients after surgery in Beos+Teos+, Beos+Teos− (blood eosinophil count > 0.3 × 109/L, tissue eosinophil count ≤ 10/HPF)and Beos−Teos+ (blood eosinophil count ≤ 0.3 × 109/L, tissue eosinophil count > 10/HPF)groups compared with the Beos−Teos− group. Conclusions: Eosinophilic inflammation both in blood and tissue was accompanied by more severe clinical features and tissue remodelling. Eosinophilia in blood or tissue indicated poorer disease control after surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peptidoglycan recognition proteins (PGRPs) are one of the receptors in insects' immune pathways, essential for insects to recognize the exogenous pathogens in order to activate the Toll and immune deficiency (IMD) pathway. In the silkworm Bombyx mori, previous studies focused on the short PGRPs and less is known about the long PGRPs. In this study, a long PGRP in silkworm BmPGRP‐L4 was cloned and its expression and function were analysed. The results showed that BmPGRP‐L4 contains a transmembrane region, a conserved PGRP domain, and an amidase‐2 domain. The expression profile demonstrated that BmPGRP‐L4 existed in diverse tissues including epidermis, fat body, midgut, and silk glands, with remarkably high expression in the midgut in the 5th instar. Oral infection with Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus significantly induced BmPGRP‐L4 in the midgut and epidermis, as well as in the fat body and silk glands. Peptidoglycan also induced the expression of BmPGRP‐L4 in midgut tissue ex vivo and BmN4 cells in vitro. RNAi of BmPGRP‐L4 was effective in the midgut and epidermis, while the efficiency in the fat body was transient. RNAi‐mediated knock‐down of BmPGRP‐L4 reduced the weight and growth of the silkworm, possibly due to its participation in the immune response and the regulation of the microbiota in the midgut lumen of the silkworm larvae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biomolecular condensates are cellular structures composed of membraneless assemblies comprising proteins or nucleic acids. The formation of these condensates requires components to change from a state of solubility separation from the surrounding environment by undergoing phase transition and condensation. Over the past decade, it has become widely appreciated that biomolecular condensates are ubiquitous in eukaryotic cells and play a vital role in physiological and pathological processes. These condensates may provide promising targets for the clinic research. Recently, a series of pathological and physiological processes have been found associated with the dysfunction of condensates, and a range of targets and methods have been demonstrated to modulate the formation of these condensates. A more extensive description of biomolecular condensates is urgently needed for the development of novel therapies. In this review, we summarized the current understanding of biomolecular condensates and the molecular mechanisms of their formation. Moreover, we reviewed the functions of condensates and therapeutic targets for diseases. We further highlighted the available regulatory targets and methods, discussed the significance and challenges of targeting these condensates. Reviewing the latest developments in biomolecular condensate research could be essential in translating our current knowledge on the use of condensates for clinical therapeutic strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inhibitor of growth family member 4 (ING4) is one of the ING family genes, serves as a repressor of angiogenesis or tumour growth and suppresses loss of contact inhibition. Oncostatin M (OSM) is a multifunctional cytokine that belongs to the interleukin (IL)‐6 subfamily with several biological activities. However, the role of recombinant adenoviruses co‐expressing ING4 and OSM (Ad‐ING4‐OSM) in anti‐tumour activity of laryngeal cancer has not yet been identified. Recombinant Ad‐ING4‐OSM was used to evaluate their combined effect on enhanced anti‐tumour activity in Hep‐2 cells of laryngeal cancer in vivo. Moreover, in vitro function assays of co‐expression of Ad‐ING4‐OSM were performed to explore impact of co‐expression of Ad‐ING4‐OSM on biological phenotype of laryngeal cancer cell line, that is Hep‐2 cells. In vitro, Ad‐ING4‐OSM significantly inhibited the growth, enhanced apoptosis, altered cell cycle with G1 and G2/M phase arrest, and upregulated the expression of P21, P27, P53 and downregulated survivin in laryngeal cancer Hep‐2 cells. Furthermore, in vivo functional experiments of co‐expressing of Ad‐ING4‐OSM demonstrated that solid tumours in the nude mouse model were significantly suppressed, and the co‐expressing Ad‐ING4‐OSM showed a significant upregulation expression of P21, P53, Bax and Caspase‐3 and a downregulation of Cox‐2, Bcl‐2 and CD34. This study for the first time demonstrated the clinical value and the role of co‐expressing Ad‐ING4‐OSM in biological function of laryngeal cancer. This work suggested that co‐expressing Ad‐ING4‐OSM might serve as a potential therapeutic target for laryngeal cancer patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent evidences show that acylglycerol kinase (AGK) expression is related to the occurrence and development of various human cancers. However, its roles in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) progression are still unclear. This work aims to explore the roles of AGK in NPC cell stemness. It was shown that AGK expression was higher in NPC tissues compared to the adjacent tissues. Online dataset analysis revealed that AGK expression was negatively correlated with the overall survival of NPC patients. Gain and loss of functional experiments demonstrated that AGK positively regulated the stemness of NPC cells, as evident by the change of the tumor sphere‐formation ability, ALDH1 activity and expression of stemness critical regulators. KEGG analysis were performed to determine the potential pathways of AGK involved in NPC cell stemness and showed that the PI3K/Akt pathway exhibited the most correlation with AGK expression. Further mechanistic studies confirmed that AGK promoted the stemness of NPC cells through activating the PI3K/Akt pathway, and thus enhancing β‐catenin accumulation in nucleus. This study demonstrates a novel AGK/PI3K/Akt/β‐catenin axis involving in NPC cell stemness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Trichogramma dendrolimi Matsumura is an important egg parasitoid that can be used in the biological control of lepidopteran pests. The effects of storage temperature, developmental stage and storage duration on development and survival were investigated to determine the optimum storage conditions for rearing T. dendrolimi in vitro. RESULTS: The three investigated factors significantly impacted all the biological parameters except for parental G1 and offspring G2 sex ratios. The responses of in vitro reared T. dendrolimi to low temperatures differed depending on developmental stage and storage duration. Comparison of life table parameters under different storage treatments with the control group indicated that storing prepupae at 13 °C for 2, 3 or 4 weeks positively impacted the growth capacity of the parasitoid. CONCLUSION: In vitro reared T. dendrolimi can be reared following cold storage. The quality of the parasitoid was strongly affected by cold storage, likely due to the negative effects of storage on the artificial medium. Storage of the prepupal stage at 13 °C for 4 weeks is optimum for in vitro reared T. dendrolimi. Trichogramma reared in vitro were able to parasitize natural eggs after storage and, thus, have potential for use as biological control agents in the field. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry This study investigated the effects of cold storage and optimum storage conditions of in vitro reared Trichogramma dendrolimi, an economically important biological control agent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

2,4‐Dihydro‐3H‐1,2,4‐triazol‐3‐ones are a class of biologically important heterocycles. A novel and simple synthesis of such structures is developed. The method is through a base‐promoted Boulton‐Katritzky‐type rearrangement of 1‐(isoxazol‐3‐yl)ureas and is highly efficient for the formation of 2,4‐dihydro‐3H‐1,2,4‐triazol‐3‐ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports on findings regarding the mechanism of chlorination process. In this experiment, propanoic acid was chlorinated to α-chloropropanoic acid in a lab-scale glass tube reactor operating at 130°C. Propanoic anhydride and concentrated sulfuric acid were, respectively, used as the catalyst and the promoter. This experiment adopted the DFT method to calculate the activation energy of routes for the synthesis α-chloropropanoic acid, β-chloropropanoic acid, α,α-dichloropropanoic acid, and α,β-dichloropropanoic acid. The results showed that the main route of α-chloropropanoic acid was formed through an ionic mechanism when propanoic anhydride was used as the catalytic agent. Activation energy of 1-propen-1-ol,1-chloro, which was formed from 1-prop-anol,1-chloro-, was the highest in the process of ionic mechanism. In addition, α,α-dichloropropanoic acid was formed via a consecutive ionic chlorination path from α-chloropropanoic acid. β-Chloropropanoic acid was produced from propanoic acid through a chlorination radical mechanism. α,β-Dichloropropanoic acid was formed via a consecutive radical chlorination path. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Approximately 80% of hereditary deafness is recessive, in which case most mutation carriers were unaware of their carrier status. Though parental attitudes toward genetic testing and prenatal diagnosis are overall positive in those with deaf children, there is little information about that in the general population. To this end, we designed a self-completed questionnaire and distributed it in two colleges in Shanghai, China. A total of 975 completed surveys were returned in print or online forms. Our results showed that 98.7% of the respondents without family history of early onset deafness did not know or underestimated their likelihood to carry a recessive mutation in common deafness genes. After brief written information was given using GJB2, the most common recessive deafness gene as the example, 67.7% of the respondents expressed interest in knowing if they are carriers of GJB2 mutations through genetic testing. In hypothetical circumstance of carrying a recessive GJB2 mutation, 86.9% would suggest their partners to also take the test. In case that both were carriers, 88.7% would consider prenatal diagnosis and 80.7% would consider terminating an affected pregnancy. On the basis of these results, it was concluded that despite the poor awareness to the risk of recessive hereditary deafness, the majority of the educated population in urban China likely hold a positive view toward carrier screening and prenatal diagnosis of recessive deafness genes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

RNA interference (RNAi) refers to the process of exogenous double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) silencing the complementary endogenous messenger RNA. RNAi has been widely used in entomological research for functional genomics in a variety of insects and its potential for RNAi-based pest control has been increasingly emphasized mainly because of its high specificity. This review focuses on the approaches of introducing dsRNA into insect cells or insect bodies to induce effective RNAi. The three most common delivery methods, namely, microinjection, ingestion, and soaking, are illustrated in details and their advantages and limitations are summarized for purpose of feasible RNAi research. In this review, we also briefly introduce the two possible dsRNA uptake machineries, other dsRNA delivery methods and the history of RNAi in entomology. Factors that influence the specificity and efficiency of RNAi such as transfection reagents, selection of dsRNA region, length, and stability of dsRNA in RNAi research are discussed for further studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]