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Abstract Poultry meat, an essential source of animal protein, requires stringent safety and quality measures to address public health concerns and growing international attention. This review examines both direct and indirect factors that compromise poultry meat quality in intensive farming systems. It highlights the integration of rapid and micro-testing with traditional methods to assess meat safety. The paper advocates for adopting probiotics, prebiotics, and plant extracts to improve poultry meat quality.

Dipterocarpus retusus Blume is an endangered species on the IUCN Red List. In this study, we reported the complete chloroplast (cp) genome of D. retusus (GenBank accession number: OP271853). The cp genome was 154,303 bp long, with a large single-copy (LSC) region of 85,586 bp and a small single-copy (SSC) region of 20,273 bp separated by a pair of inverted repeats (IRs) of 24,222 bp. It encodes 128 genes, including 84 protein-coding genes, 36 tRNA genes, and eight ribosomal RNA genes. We also reconstructed the cp genome phylogeny of Dipterocarpus, which indicated D. retusus was closely related with the sympatric species D. gracilis. This study may contribute valuable information to the phylogenetic relationships within the genus Dipterocarpus.

Importance: Post-stroke sialorrhea (PSS) refers to excessive saliva flowing out the lip border after a stroke. PSS negatively affects patient self-image and social communication and may lead to depression. Limited evidence supports the link between excessive salivation and PSS. No large-scale, strictly controlled randomized controlled trials have shown the effectiveness of acupuncture in treating PSS patients.Objective: We aim to compare the effects of intraoral and sham acupuncture in PSS patients and explore relationships among salivation and drooling severity and frequency and swallowing function in stroke patients.Design: Clinical study protocol, SPIRIT compliant.Setting: Prospective, single-center, randomized, and sham-controlled trial.Population: We will recruit 106 PSS patients to receive 4-week intraoral or sham acupuncture. Additionally, 53 stroke patients without PSS will undergo a conventional 4-week treatment program to compare salivation between PSS and non-PSS patients.Exposures: Intraoral or sham acupuncture.Main Outcomes and Measures: The main evaluation index will be the 3-minute saliva weight (3MSW), comparing changes in 3MSW from baseline to weeks 4 and 8. Secondary assessment indices will include the “Drooling Severity and Frequency Scale” and “Functional Oral Intake Scale.” Results : : The results from this study will be published in peer-reviewed journals.Conclusion : : Comparing effects of intraoral and sham acupuncture in PSS patients, this study may contribute important evidence for future PSS treatment and provide valuable insights into whether salivation issues in stroke patients are attributed to heightened salivary secretion or dysphagia.

Abstract Background Limited evidence exists regarding the link between platelet count and 30-day in-hospital mortality in acute respiratory failure (ARF) patients. Thus, this study aims to investigate this association among ICU patients experiencing acute respiratory failure. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort study across multiple centers, utilizing data from the US eICU-CRD v2.0 database covering 22,262 patients with ARF in the ICU from 2014 to 2015. Our aim was to investigate the correlation between platelet count and 30-day in-hospital mortality using binary logistic regression, subgroup analyses, and smooth curve fitting. Results The 30-day in-hospital mortality rate was 19.73% (4393 out of 22,262), with a median platelet count of 213 × 109/L. After adjusting for covariates, our analysis revealed an inverse association between platelet count and 30-day in-hospital mortality (OR = 0.99, 95% CI 0.99, 0.99). Subgroup analyses supported the robustness of these findings. Furthermore, a nonlinear relationship was identified between platelet count and 30-day in-hospital mortality, with the inflection point at 120 × 109/L. Below the inflection point, the effect size (OR) was 0.89 (0.87, 0.91), indicating a significant association. However, beyond this point, the relationship was not statistically significant. Conclusion This study establishes a clear negative association between platelet count and 30-day in-hospital mortality among ICU patients with ARF. Furthermore, we have identified a nonlinear relationship with saturation effects, indicating that among ICU patients with acute respiratory failure, the lowest 30-day in-hospital mortality rate occurs when the baseline platelet count is approximately 120 × 109/L.

Abstract Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) is a condition characterized by complete or incomplete motor and sensory impairment, as well as dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system, caused by factors such as trauma, tumors, or inflammation. Current treatment methods primarily include traditional approaches like spinal canal decompression and internal fixation surgery, steroid pulse therapy, as well as newer techniques such as stem cell transplantation and brain-spinal cord interfaces. However, the above methods have limited efficacy in promoting axonal and neuronal regeneration. The challenge in medical research today lies in promoting spinal cord neuron regeneration and regulating the disrupted microenvironment of the spinal cord. Studies have shown that gas molecular therapy is increasingly used in medical research, with gasotransmitters such as hydrogen sulfide, nitric oxide, carbon monoxide, oxygen, and hydrogen exhibiting neuroprotective effects in central nervous system diseases. The gas molecular protect against neuronal death and reshape the microenvironment of spinal cord injuries by regulating oxidative, inflammatory and apoptotic processes. At present, gas therapy mainly relies on inhalation for systemic administration, which cannot effectively enrich and release gas in the spinal cord injury area, making it difficult to achieve the expected effects. With the rapid development of nanotechnology, the use of nanocarriers to achieve targeted enrichment and precise control release of gas at Sites of injury has become one of the emerging research directions in SCI. It has shown promising therapeutic effects in preclinical studies and is expected to bring new hope and opportunities for the treatment of SCI. In this review, we will briefly outline the therapeutic effects and research progress of gasotransmitters and nanogas in the treatment of SCI. Graphical Abstract

Chinese soft-shelled turtle (Pelodiscus sinensis) is an important aquaculture species in China. However, with the continuous development of P. sinensis cultures, problems related to germplasm degradation and population mixing have become increasingly prominent. This has seriously affected the protection and utilization of germplasm resources by P. sinensis. To broaden the understanding of the germplasm resources of P. sinensis and improve the efficiency of germplasm identification, Super-GBS sequencing technology was used to conduct population genetic analysis of P. sinensis samples from six different populations distributed in five provinces. As a result, 1464,488 SNPs were identified. Genetic structure analysis revealed that the six P. sinensis populations could be divided into three sub-populations. The genetic differentiation coefficient of the DT and CY populations was very low (Fst=0.0088), indicating that differentiation had not yet occurred. Additionally, 15 KASP core markers for the identification of P. sinensis populations were developed using KASP typing technique for the first time. Genetic information can lay a foundation for the protection and utilization of germplasm resources by P. sinensis, and the fingerprinting database developed in this study provides a practical tool for authenticating P. sinensis.

In industrial detection scenarios, achieving high accuracy typically relies on extensive labeled datasets, which are costly and time-consuming. This has motivated a shift towards semi-supervised learning (SSL), which leverages labeled and unlabeled data to improve learning efficiency and reduce annotation costs. This work proposes the unsupervised spectral clustering labeling (USCL) method to optimize SSL for industrial challenges like defect variability, rarity, and complex distributions. Integral to USCL, we employ the multi-task fusion self-supervised learning (MTSL) method to extract robust feature representations through multiple self-supervised tasks. Additionally, we introduce the Enhanced Spectral Clustering (ESC) method and a dynamic selecting function (DSF). ESC effectively integrates both local and global similarity matrices, improving clustering accuracy. The DSF maximally selects the most valuable instances for labeling, significantly enhancing the representativeness and diversity of the labeled data. USCL consistently improves various SSL methods compared to traditional instance selection methods. For example, it boosts Efficient Teacher by 5%, 6.6%, and 7.8% in mean Average Precision(mAP) on the Automotive Sealing Rings Defect Dataset, the Metallic Surface Defect Dataset, and the Printed Circuit Boards (PCB) Defect Dataset with 10% labeled data. Our work sets a new benchmark for SSL in industrial settings.

The biogeochemical processes of sulfur and heavy metals in the environment are closely related to each other. We investigated the influence of sulfur addition on hyperaccumulator Sedum alfredii Hance growth, cadmium (Cd) accumulation, soil Cd bioavailability, soil bacterial communities and plant transcriptome responses. The results showed that an appropriate rate of sulfur addition (1.0 or 2.5 g/kg) enhanced the growth of Sedum alfredii Hance plants as well as their accumulation of Cd. A high rate of sulfur addition (5.0 or 10.0 g/kg) causes toxicity to Sedum alfredii Hance plants. The application of an appropriate amount of sulfur to the soil increased the abundance of sulfur-oxidizing bacteria such as Sulfuriferula and Thiobacillus; acid-fast bacillus such as Alicyclobacillus; and cadmium-tolerant bacteria such as Bacillus and Rhodanobacter. This led to a decrease in pH and an increase in bioavailable Cd in the soil. RNA sequencing revealed that the addition of sulfur to soils led to the up regulation of most of the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) involved in “photosynthesis” and “photosynthesis, light reaction” in Sedum alfredii Hance leaves. Moreover, the “plant hormone signal transduction” pathway was significantly enriched with sulfur addition. Sulfur assimilation in Sedum alfredii Hance plants may promote photosynthesis and hormone synthesis, leading to Cd tolerance in these plants. Our study revealed that sulfur fertilization enhanced the efficiency of Cd phytoremediation in Sedum alfredii Hance plants.

Facilitating the separation of photogenerated charges is a crucial process in photocatalytic degradation of pollutants. In this study, Bi2O3/In2O3 composites were prepared using a co-precipitation method and subsequently calcined at 400 ℃ for 1 h. The Mott-Schottky curves confirmed a p(Bi2O3)-n(In2O3) heterojunction was yielded. Due to the significant difference in Fermi levels between Bi2O3 and In2O3, an internal electric field was established at the interface, with field lines directed from In2O3 to Bi2O3. Under illumination, the excited electrons accumulated in the conduction band (CB) of In2O3, while holes gathered in the valence band (VB) of Bi2O3, promoting charge separation and enhancing quantum efficiency. The composite material exhibited the highest photocatalytic activity when the atomic percentage of Bi to In was 1:1, with the first-order reaction rate constant of BI-1 increasing to 0.0149 min−1, which is 4.3 and 4.4 multiples higher than that of pure In2O3 and pure Bi2O3. Recycling experiments demonstrated that the photocatalytic composite possesses good reusability and structural stability.

Owning to the factors of external mechanical loads and high heat flux deposition, various degrees of strain or stress are inevitably introduced into the structural materials of nuclear fusion reactors. The uniaxial compression effects on the geometries, electronic structures, mechanical properties, and stabilities of Fe128Hen and Fe127VacHen were studied by first-principles calculations in this work. The results show that the lattice suffers from a noticeable inclination or disorder as the strain reaches 15%. The maximum stress of the stress–strain curves implied that the mechanical characteristics decay considerably as the number of He atoms increases, but the presence of a vacancy mitigated this effect. Compressive strain decreases the stability of Fe atom in the perfect pure Fe system, but it slightly elevates the monovacancy formation energy from Fe128He3 onward. According to the binding energy of He-He, compressive strain enhanced the aggregation of He. The migration barriers of an interstitial He atom exhibit anisotropy under uniaxial compressive strain, which was explained by the variations of the surrounding architectures.

Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), as a relatively rapid and effective minimally invasive treatment for coronary heart disease (CHD), can effectively relieve coronary artery stenosis and restore myocardial perfusion. However, the occurrence of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) is a significant challenge for post PCI care. To better understand risk/benefit indicators and provide post PCI MACE prediction, 408 patients with CHD who had undergone PCI treatment from 2018 to 2021 in Tianjin Chest hospital were retrospectively studied for their clinical characteristics in relation with the MACE occurrence during a 12-month follow-up. In the study, 194 patients had MACE and 214 patients remained MACE-free. Using uni- and multivariate regression analyses, we have shown that smoking history, elevated serum C-reactive protein levels (hs-CRP), and high haemoglobin levels A1c (HbA1c) are all independent risk factors for MACE after PCI. Furthermore, we have discovered that the serum level of IL-38, one of the latest members identified in the IL-1 cytokine family, is another predictive factor and is reversely related to the occurrence of MACE. The serum level of IL-38 alone is capable of predicting non-MACE occurrence in subcategorized patients with abnormal levels of hs-CRP and/or HbA1c.

Abstract Background Myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury (MIRI) is an important complication of reperfusion therapy, and has a lack of effective prevention and treatment methods. Oleuropein (OP) is a natural strong antioxidant with many protective effects on cardiovascular diseases, but its protective effect on MIRI has not yet been studied in depth. Methods Tert-Butyl hydroperoxide (tBHP) was used to establish an in vitro oxidative stress model. Cell viability was detected by 3-(4,5)-dimethylthiahiazo (-z-y1)-3,5-di-phenytetrazoliumromide (MTT) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH). Flow cytometry and fluorescence assays were performed for evaluating the ROS levels and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP). Immunofluorescence analysis detected the NRF2 nuclear translocation and autophagy indicators. Further, Western blotting and quantitative real-time PCR were performed to evaluate the expression levels of proteins and mRNAs. Molecular docking, CETSA, and molecular interaction analysis explored the binding between OP and TLR4. The protective effects of OP in vivo were determined using a preclinical MIRI rat model. Results OP protected against tBHP-treated injury, reduced ROS levels and reversed the damaged MMP. Mechanistically, OP activated NRF2-related antioxidant pathways, inhibited autophagy and attenuated the TLR4/MAPK signaling pathway in tBHP-treated H9C2 cells with a high binding affinity to TLR4 (K D = 37.5 µM). The TLR4 inhibitor TAK242 showed a similar effect as OP. In vivo, OP could alleviate cardiac ischemia/reperfusion injury and it ameliorated adverse cardiac remodeling. Consistent with in vitro studies, OP inhibited TLR4/MAPK and autophagy pathway and activated NRF2-dependent antioxidant pathways in vivo. Conclusion This study shows that OP binds to TLR4 to regulate oxidative stress and autophagy for protecting damaged cardiomyocytes, supporting that OP can be a potential therapeutic agent for MIRI.

Abstract This review presents a comprehensive exploration of the pivotal role played by the Linker of Nucleoskeleton and Cytoskeleton (LINC) complex, with a particular focus on Nesprin proteins, in cellular mechanics and the pathogenesis of muscular diseases. Distinguishing itself from prior works, the analysis delves deeply into the intricate interplay of the LINC complex, emphasizing its indispensable contribution to maintaining cellular structural integrity, especially in mechanically sensitive tissues such as cardiac and striated muscles. Additionally, the significant association between mutations in Nesprin proteins and the onset of Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM) and Emery-Dreifuss Muscular Dystrophy (EDMD) is highlighted, underscoring their pivotal role in disease pathogenesis. Through a comprehensive examination of DCM and EDMD cases, the review elucidates the disruptions in the LINC complex, nuclear morphology alterations, and muscular developmental disorders, thus emphasizing the essential function of an intact LINC complex in preserving muscle physiological functions. Moreover, the review provides novel insights into the implications of Nesprin mutations for cellular dynamics in the pathogenesis of muscular diseases, particularly in maintaining cardiac structural and functional integrity. Furthermore, advanced therapeutic strategies, including rectifying Nesprin gene mutations, controlling Nesprin protein expression, enhancing LINC complex functionality, and augmenting cardiac muscle cell function are proposed. By shedding light on the intricate molecular mechanisms underlying nuclear-cytoskeletal interactions, the review lays the groundwork for future research and therapeutic interventions aimed at addressing genetic muscle disorders.

Abstract Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a common nosocomial pathogen, relies on siderophores to acquire iron, crucial for its survival in various environments and during host infections. However, understanding the molecular mechanisms of siderophore regulation remains incomplete. In this study, we found that the BfmRS two-component system, previously associated with biofilm formation and quorum sensing, is essential for siderophore regulation under high osmolality stress. Activated BfmR directly bound to the promoter regions of pvd, fpv, and femARI gene clusters, thereby activating their transcription and promoting siderophore production. Subsequent proteomic and phenotypic analyses confirmed that deletion of BfmRS reduces siderophore-related proteins and impairs bacterial survival in iron-deficient conditions. Furthermore, phylogenetic analysis demonstrated the high conservation of the BfmRS system across Pseudomonas species, functional evidences also indicated that BfmR homologues from Pseudomonas putida KT2440 and Pseudomonas sp. MRSN12121 could bind to the promoter regions of key siderophore genes and osmolality-mediated increases in siderophore production were observed. This work illuminates a novel signaling pathway for siderophore regulation and enhances our understanding of siderophore-mediated bacterial interactions and community establishment.

Abstract The shotgun proteomic analysis is currently the most promising single-cell protein sequencing technology, however its identification level of ~1000 proteins per cell is still insufficient for practical applications. Here, we develop a pick-up single-cell proteomic analysis (PiSPA) workflow to achieve a deep identification capable of quantifying up to 3000 protein groups in a mammalian cell using the label-free quantitative method. The PiSPA workflow is specially established for single-cell samples mainly based on a nanoliter-scale microfluidic liquid handling robot, capable of achieving single-cell capture, pretreatment and injection under the pick-up operation strategy. Using this customized workflow with remarkable improvement in protein identification, 2449–3500, 2278–3257 and 1621–2904 protein groups are quantified in single A549 cells (n = 37), HeLa cells (n = 44) and U2OS cells (n = 27) under the DIA (MBR) mode, respectively. Benefiting from the flexible cell picking-up ability, we study HeLa cell migration at the single cell proteome level, demonstrating the potential in practical biological research from single-cell insight.

Abstract Candidalysin, a cytolytic peptide toxin secreted by the human fungal pathogen Candida albicans, is critical for fungal pathogenesis. Yet, its intracellular targets have not been extensively mapped. Here, we performed a high-throughput enhanced yeast two-hybrid (HT-eY2H) screen to map the interactome of all eight Ece1 peptides with their direct human protein targets and identified a list of potential interacting proteins, some of which were shared between the peptides. CCNH, a regulatory subunit of the CDK-activating kinase (CAK) complex involved in DNA damage repair, was identified as one of the host targets of candidalysin. Mechanistic studies revealed that candidalysin triggers a significantly increased double-strand DNA breaks (DSBs), as evidenced by the formation of γ-H2AX foci and colocalization of CCNH and γ-H2AX. Importantly, candidalysin binds directly to CCNH to activate CAK to inhibit DNA damage repair pathway. Loss of CCNH alleviates DSBs formation under candidalysin treatment. Depletion of candidalysin-encoding gene fails to induce DSBs and stimulates CCNH upregulation in a murine model of oropharyngeal candidiasis. Collectively, our study reveals that a secreted fungal toxin acts to hijack the canonical DNA damage repair pathway by targeting CCNH and to promote fungal infection.