Despite the importance of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) as a priority nosocomial pathogen, the genome sequences of Malaysian MRSA isolates are currently limited to a small pool of samples. Here, we present the genome sequence analyses of 88 clinical MRSA isolates obtained from the main tertiary hospital in Terengganu, Malaysia in 2016-2020, to obtain in-depth insights into their characteristics. The EMRSA-15 (ST22-SCCmec IV) clone of the clonal complex 22 (CC22) lineage was predominant with a total of 61 (69.3%) isolates. Earlier reports from other Malaysian hospitals indicated the predominance of the ST239 clone, but only two (2.3%) isolates were identified in this study. Two Indian-origin clones, the Bengal Bay clone ST772-SCCmec V (n = 2) and ST672 (n = 10) were also detected, with most of the ST672 isolates obtained in 2020 (n = 7). Two new STs were found, with one isolate each, and were designated ST7879 and ST7883. From the core genome phylogenetic tree, the HSNZ MRSA isolates could be grouped into seven clades. Antimicrobial phenotype-genotype concordance was high (> 95%), indicating the accuracy of WGS in predicting most resistances. Majority of the MRSA isolates were found to harbor more than 10 virulence genes, demonstrating their pathogenic nature.
The infectious bursal disease (IBD) is an acute immunosuppressive viral disease that significantly affects the economics of the poultry industry. The IBD virus (IBDV) was known to infect B lymphocytes and activate macrophage and T lymphocytes, but there are limited studies on the impact of IBDV infection on chicken intraepithelial lymphocyte natural killer (IEL-NK) cells. This study employed an mRNA sequencing approach to investigate the early regulation of gene expression patterns in chicken IEL-NK cells after infection with very virulent IBDV strain UPM0081. A total of 12,141 genes were expressed in uninfected chicken IEL-NK cells, and most of the genes with high expression were involved in the metabolic pathway, whereas most of the low expressed genes were involved in the cytokine-cytokine receptor pathway. A total of 1,266 genes were differentially expressed (DE) at 3 day-post-infection (dpi), and these DE genes were involved in inflammation, antiviral response and interferon stimulation. The innate immune response was activated as several genes involved in inflammation, antiviral response and recruitment of NK cells to the infected area were up-regulated. This is the first study to examine the whole transcriptome profile of chicken NK cells towards IBDV infection and provides better insight into the early immune response of chicken NK cells.
Due to the limitations in the range of antibodies recognising avian viruses, quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR) is still the most widely used method to evaluate the expression of immunologically related genes in avian viruses. The objective of this study was to identify suitable reference genes for mRNA expression analysis in chicken intraepithelial lymphocyte natural killer (IEL-NK) cells after infection with very-virulent infectious bursal disease virus (vvIBDV). Fifteen potential reference genes were selected based on the references available. The coefficient of variation percentage (CV%) and average count of these 15 genes were determined by NanoString technology for control and infected samples. The M and V values for shortlisted reference genes (ACTB, GAPDH, HMBS, HPRT1, SDHA, TUBB1 and YWHAZ) were calculated using geNorm and NormFinder. GAPDH, YWHAZ and HMBS were the most stably expressed genes. The expression levels of three innate immune response related target genes, CASP8, IL22 and TLR3, agreed in the NanoString and RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) results using one or two reference genes for normalisation (not HMBS). In conclusion, GAPDH and YWHAZ could be used as reference genes for the normalisation of chicken IEL-NK cell gene responses to infection with vvIBDV.
Eupatorin has been reported with in vitro cytotoxic effect on several human cancer cells. However, reports on the mode of action and detail mechanism of eupatorin in vitro in breast cancer disease are limited. Hence, eupatorin's effect on the human breast carcinoma cell line MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 was investigated. MTT assay showed that eupatorin had cytotoxic effects on MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells but was non-toxic to the normal cells of MCF-10a in a time-dose dependent manner. At 24 h, the eupatorin showed mild cytotoxicity on both MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells with IC50 values higher than 20 μg/mL. After 48 h, eupatorin at 5 μg/mL inhibited the proliferation of MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells by 50% while the IC50 of MCF-10a was significantly (p
Chlorella can produce an unusually wide range of metabolites under various nutrient availability, carbon source, and light availability. Glucose, an essential molecule for the growth of microorganisms, also contributes significantly to the metabolism of various metabolic compounds produced by Chlorella. In addition, manipulation of light intensity also induces the formation of secondary metabolites such as pigments, and carotenoids in Chlorella. This study will focus on the effect of glucose addition, and moderate light on the regulation of carotenoid, lipid, starch, and other key metabolic pathways in Chlorella sorokiniana. To gain knowledge about this, we performed transcriptome profiling on C. sorokiniana strain NIES-2168 in response to moderate light stress supplemented with glucose under mixotrophic conditions. A total of 60,982,352 raw paired-end (PE) reads 100 bp in length was obtained from both normal, and mixotrophic samples of C. sorokiniana. After pre-processing, 93.63% high-quality PE reads were obtained, and 18,310 predicted full-length transcripts were assembled. Differential gene expression showed that a total of 937, and 1124 genes were upregulated, and downregulated in mixotrophic samples, respectively. Transcriptome analysis revealed that the mixotrophic condition caused upregulation of genes involved in carotenoids production (specifically lutein biosynthesis), fatty acid biosynthesis, TAG accumulation, and the majority of the carbon fixation pathways. Conversely, starch biosynthesis, sucrose biosynthesis, and isoprenoid biosynthesis were downregulated. Novel insights into the pathways that link the enhanced production of valuable metabolites (such as carotenoids in C. sorokiniana) grown under mixotrophic conditions is presented.
Climatic condition is triggering human health emergencies and earth's surface changes. Anthropogenic activities, such as built-up expansion, transportation development, industrial works, and some extreme phases, are the main reason for climate change and global warming. Air pollutants are increased gradually due to anthropogenic activities and triggering the earth's health. Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), Carbon Monoxide (CO), and Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) are truthfully important for air quality measurement because those air pollutants are more harmful to the environment and human's health. Earth observational Sentinel-5P is applied for monitoring the air pollutant and chemical conditions in the atmosphere from 2018 to 2021. The cloud computing-based Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform is applied for monitoring those air pollutants and chemical components in the atmosphere. The NO2 variation indicates high during the time because of the anthropogenic activities. Carbon Monoxide (CO) is also located high between two 1-month different maps. The 2020 and 2021 results indicate AQI change is high where 2018 and 2019 indicates low AQI throughout the year. The Kolkata have seven AQI monitoring station where high nitrogen dioxide recorded 102 (2018), 48 (2019), 26 (2020) and 98 (2021), where Delhi AQI stations recorded 99 (2018), 49 (2019), 37 (2020), and 107 (2021). Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, and Chennai recorded huge fluctuations of air pollutants during the study periods, where ~ 50-60% NO2 was recorded as high in the recent time. The AOD was noticed high in Uttar Pradesh in 2020. These results indicate that air pollutant investigation is much necessary for future planning and management otherwise; our planet earth is mostly affected by the anthropogenic and climatic conditions where maybe life does not exist.
Most of existing image encryption schemes are proposed in the spatial domain which easily destroys the correlation between pixels. This paper proposes an image encryption scheme by employing discrete cosine transform (DCT), quantum logistic map and substitution-permutation network (SPN). The DCT is used to transform the images in the frequency domain. Meanwhile, the SPN is used to provide the security properties of confusion and diffusion. The SPN provides fast encryption as compared to the asymmetric based image encryption since operations with low computational complexity are used (e.g., exclusive-or and permutation). Different statistical experiments and security analysis are performed against six grayscale and color images to justify the effectiveness and security of the proposed image encryption scheme.
Carbon nanomaterials exhibit novel characteristics including enhanced thermal, electrical, mechanical, and biological properties. Nanodiamonds; first discovered in meteorites are found to be biocompatible, non-toxic and have distinct optical properties. Here we show that nanodiamonds with the size of <5 nm are formed directly from ethanol via 1025 nm femtosecond laser irradiation. The absorption of laser energy by ethanol increased non-linearly above 100 μJ accompanied by a white light continuum arises from fs laser filamentation. At laser energy higher than 300 μJ, emission spectra of C, O and H in the plasma were detected, indicating the dissociation of C2H5OH. Nucleation of the carbon species in the confined plasma within the laser filaments leads to the formation of nanodiamonds. The energy dependence and the roles of the nonlinear phenomenon to the formation of homogeneous nanodiamonds are discussed. This work brings new possibility for bottom-up nanomaterials synthesis based on nano and ultrafast laser physics.
Approximate 70% of cobra venom is composed of cytotoxin (CTX), which is responsible for the dermonecrotic symptoms of cobra envenomation. However, CTX is generally low in immunogenicity, and the antivenom is ineffective in attenuating its in vivo toxicity. Furthermore, little is known about its epitope properties for empirical antivenom therapy. This study aimed to determine the epitope sequences of CTX using the immunoinformatic analyses and epitope-omics profiling. A conserved CTX was used in this study to determine its T-cell and B-cell epitope sequences using immunoinformatic tools and molecular docking simulation with different Human Leukocyte Antigens (HLAs). The potential T-cell and B-cell epitopes were 'KLVPLFY,' 'CPAGKNLCY,' 'MFMVSTPTK,' and 'DVCPKNSLL.' Molecular docking simulations disclosed that the HLA-B62 supertype exhibited the greatest binding affinity towards cobra venom cytotoxin. The namely L7, G18, K19, N20, M25, K33, V43, C44, K46, N47, and S48 of CTX exhibited prominent intermolecular interactions with HLA-B62. The multi-enzymatic-limited-digestion/liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (MELD/LC-MS) also revealed three potential epitope sequences as 'LVPLFYK,' 'MFMVS,' and 'TVPVKR'. From different epitope mapping approaches, we concluded four potential epitope sites of CTX as 'KLVPLFYK', 'AGKNL', 'MFMVSTPKVPV' and 'DVCPKNSLL'. Site-directed mutagenesis of these epitopes confirmed their locations at the functional loops of CTX. These epitope sequences are crucial to CTX's structural folding and cytotoxicity. The results concluded the epitopes that resided within the functional loops constituted potential targets to fabricate synthetic epitopes for CTX-targeted antivenom production.
Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a highly metastatic cancer that is consistently associated with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection. In this study, we identify for the first time a role for monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) in NPC. MAOA is a mitochondrial enzyme that catalyzes oxidative deamination of neurotransmitters and dietary amines. Depending on the cancer type, MAOA can either have a tumour-promoting or tumour-suppressive role. We show that MAOA is down-regulated in primary NPC tissues and its down-regulation enhances the migration of NPC cells. In addition, we found that EBV infection can down-regulate MAOA expression in both pre-malignant and malignant nasopharyngeal epithelial (NPE) cells. We further demonstrate that MAOA is down-regulated as a result of IL-6/IL-6R/STAT3 signalling and epigenetic mechanisms, effects that might be attributed to EBV infection in NPE cells. Taken together, our data point to a central role for EBV in mediating the tumour suppressive effects of MAOA and that loss of MAOA could be an important step in the pathogenesis of NPC.
Hydnum is a fungal genus proposed by Linnaeus in the early time of modern taxonomy. It contains several ectomycorrhizal species which are commonly consumed worldwide. However, Hydnum is one of the most understudied fungal genera, especially from a molecular phylogenetic view. In this study, we extensively gathered specimens of Hydnum from Asia, Europe, America and Australasia, and analyzed them by using sequences of four gene fragments (ITS, nrLSU, tef1α and rpb1). Our phylogenetic analyses recognized at least 31 phylogenetic species within Hydnum, 15 of which were reported for the first time. Most Australasian species were recognized as strongly divergent old relics, but recent migration between Australasia and the Northern Hemisphere was also detected. Within the Northern Hemisphere, frequent historical biota exchanges between the Old World and the New World via both the North Atlantic Land Bridge and the Bering Land Bridge could be elucidated. Our study also revealed that most Hydnum species found in subalpine areas of the Hengduan Mountains in southwestern China occur in northeastern/northern China and Europe, indicating that the composition of the mycobiota in the Hengduan Mountains reigion is more complicated than what we have known before.
Chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG) is a common gastrointestinal disease which has been considered as precancerous lesions of gastric carcinoma. Previously, electro-acupuncture stimulation has been shown to be effective in ameliorating symptoms of CAG. However the underlying mechanism of this beneficial treatment is yet to be established. In the present study, an integrated histopathological examination along with molecular biological assay, as well as 1H NMR analysis of multiple biological samples (urine, serum, stomach, cortex and medulla) were employed to systematically assess the pathology of CAG and therapeutic effect of electro-acupuncture stimulation at Sibai (ST 2), Liangmen (ST 21), and Zusanli (ST 36) acupoints located in the stomach meridian using a rat model of CAG. The current results showed that CAG caused comprehensive metabolic alterations including the TCA cycle, glycolysis, membrane metabolism and catabolism, gut microbiota-related metabolism. On the other hand, electro-acupuncture treatment was found able to normalize a number of CAG-induced metabolomics changes by alleviating membrane catabolism, restoring function of neurotransmitter in brain and partially reverse the CAG-induced perturbation in gut microbiota metabolism. These findings provided new insights into the biochemistry of CAG and mechanism of the therapeutic effect of electro-acupuncture stimulations.
Pulse electromagnetic fields (PEMFs) have been shown to recruit calcium-signaling cascades common to chondrogenesis. Here we document the effects of specified PEMF parameters over mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) chondrogenic differentiation. MSCs undergoing chondrogenesis are preferentially responsive to an electromagnetic efficacy window defined by field amplitude, duration and frequency of exposure. Contrary to conventional practice of administering prolonged and repetitive exposures to PEMFs, optimal chondrogenic outcome is achieved in response to brief (10 minutes), low intensity (2 mT) exposure to 6 ms bursts of magnetic pulses, at 15 Hz, administered only once at the onset of chondrogenic induction. By contrast, repeated exposures diminished chondrogenic outcome and could be attributed to calcium entry after the initial induction. Transient receptor potential (TRP) channels appear to mediate these aspects of PEMF stimulation, serving as a conduit for extracellular calcium. Preventing calcium entry during the repeated PEMF exposure with the co-administration of EGTA or TRP channel antagonists precluded the inhibition of differentiation. This study highlights the intricacies of calcium homeostasis during early chondrogenesis and the constraints that are placed on PEMF-based therapeutic strategies aimed at promoting MSC chondrogenesis. The demonstrated efficacy of our optimized PEMF regimens has clear clinical implications for future regenerative strategies for cartilage.
The phenomenon of "quiet quitting" has gained significant attention globally through various platforms, raising concerns about the impact of workplace stress on individuals' personal lives and sparking social movements and investigations. As the number of Generation Z individuals is projected to surpass millennials by 2050, understanding and addressing the quiet quitting behaviour of this generation becomes crucial, considering their negative experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic and their preference for a work-life balance, which has led to a rejection of intense competition and a desire for a more relaxed lifestyle. Thus, this study investigated the factors (work conditions, job security, perceived career development opportunities, affective organizational commitment, and perceived organizational support on job burnout and employee well-being) determining the quiet quitting intention among Chinese Gen Z employees. It used an online survey to obtain cross-sectional data from 683 respondents, which were then tested using partial least squares structural equation modelling. The results showed that work conditions, job security, perceived career progression opportunities, affective organizational commitment, and perceived organizational support had a significant positive effect on employee well-being and that job burnout had a major negative effect. Furthermore, employee well-being had a significant negative impact on China's Gen Z employees' quit quiting decision and job burnout had a significant positive influence on China's Gen Z employees' quit quiting decision. The findings provide valuable insights for organizations and practitioners, enabling them to address these factors and effectively reduce quiet quitting intentions. Moreover, this study aligns with the Social Exchange Theory (SET), which explains how the interactions between employees and their organizations influence expectations and outcomes. By considering the SET framework, organizations can understand the motivations behind employees' behaviours and make informed decisions to foster a positive work environment and enhance employee well-being.
The influence of local conditions and remote climate modes on the interannual variability of oil palm fresh fruit bunches (FFB) total yields in Malaysia and two major regions (Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah/Sarawak) is explored. On a country scale, the state of sea-surface temperatures (SST) in the tropical Pacific Ocean during the previous boreal winter is found to influence the regional climate. When El Niño occurs in the Pacific Ocean, rainfall in Malaysia reduces but air temperature increases, generating a high level of water stress for palm trees. As a result, the yearly production of FFB becomes lower than that of a normal year since the water stress during the boreal spring has an important impact on the total annual yields of FFB. Conversely, La Niña sets favorable conditions for palm trees to produce more FFB by reducing chances of water stress risk. The region of the Leeuwin current also seems to play a secondary role through the Ningaloo Niño/ Niña in the interannual variability of FFB yields. Based on these findings, a linear model is constructed and its ability to reproduce the interannual signal is assessed. This model has shown some skills in predicting the total FFB yield.
This study investigates the capacity of the nano-indentation method in the mechanical characterization of a heterogeneous dental restorative nanocomposite using experimental and computational approaches. In this respect, Filtek Z350 XT was selected as a nano-particle reinforced polymer nanocomposite with a specific range of the particle size (50 nm to 4 µm), within the range of indenter contact area of the nano-indentation experiment. A Sufficient number of nano-indentation tests were performed in various locations of the nanocomposite to extract the hardness and elastic modulus properties. A hybrid computational-experimental approach was developed to examine the extracted properties by linking the internal behaviour and the global response of the nanocomposite. In the computational part, several representative models of the nanocomposite were created in a finite element environment to simulate the mechanism of elastic-plastic deformation of the nanocomposite under Berkovich indenter. Dispersed values of hardness and elastic modulus were obtained through the experiment with 26.8 and 48.5 percent average errors, respectively, in comparison to the nanocomposite properties, respectively. A disordered shape was predicted for plastic deformation of the equilateral indentation mark, representing the interaction of the particles and matrix, which caused the experiment results reflect the local behaviour of the nanocomposite instead of the real material properties.
The purpose is to analyze and compare postoperative recovery and complication incidence between a periareolar incision combined with Suspension-type Mastoscopic Axillary Lymph Node Dissection (SMALND) and traditional inflated Mastoscopic Axillary Lymph Node Dissection (MALND). This was a randomized trial conducted from June 1, 2020, to April 30, 2022, in the Department of Second Breast Surgery, Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University, and the Department of Thyroid and Breast Surgery, Zibo Central Hospital, in accordance with the criteria of inclusion and exclusion. Overall, 126 patients diagnosed and treated for early-stage breast cancer were selected to undergo periareolar-incision breast-conserving surgery. Those patients who underwent periareolar-incision surgery combined with SMALND formed the observation group (SMALND Group), while those who underwent periareolar-incision surgery combined with traditional inflation became MALND Group. In the two groups, paired data "t" was used to examine, analyze, and compare the postoperative daily drainage volume and drain removal time, while paired data "χ2" was used to examine, analyze, and compare the incidences of postoperative upper limb edema and paresthesia. There were 64 cases in the SMALND Group and 62 cases in the MALND Group. Between the two clusters, no differences were found in age, clinical staging, BMI, and breast cancer classification (P > 0.05). The intraoperative surgery time of the SMALND Group was 43.37 ± 6.27 min while that of the MALND Group was longer: 45.72 ± 4.25 min (P
In electronic applications, good dielectric permittivity material has huge potential in the capacitive energy storage devices. Herein, in the present work the dielectric study of SrLaLiTe1-xMnxO6 (x = 0.02, 0.04, 0.06, 0.08, and 0.10) double perovskites has been studied and discussed. These compounds were prepared through solid-state reaction method. All of the prepared compounds were confirmed to crystallized in monoclinic structure of P21/n space symmetry with better crystallization when dopant concentrations increased until x = 0.08. The formation of Li-O-Te/Mn bonds in octahedral structures in all compounds were confirmed in this study. The existence of peaks at specific wavenumbers indicated vibrations of B-site cations' bonds. When dopant amounts were increased from x = 0.02 to x = 0.08, there was an increasing trend of grains sizes formation in the compounds. The discussions on effects of grain sizes towards dielectric properties were included in this paper. Other important results and discussions comprised of the significant effects of dopant on the optical band gap (Eopt) and absorption frequencies of the compounds. The decreasing trend of Eopt towards semiconductor range indicated the compounds' promising potentials for optoelectronic device application.
Nowadays, with the advantages of nanotechnology and solar radiation, the research of Solar Water Pump (SWP) production has become a trend. In this article, Prandtl-Eyring hybrid nanofluid (P-EHNF) is chosen as a working fluid in the SWP model for the production of SWP in a parabolic trough surface collector (PTSC) is investigated for the case of numerous viscous dissipation, heat radiations, heat source, and the entropy generation analysis. By using a well-established numerical scheme the group of equations in terms of energy and momentum have been handled that is called the Keller-box method. The velocity, temperature, and shear stress are briefly explained and displayed in tables and figures. Nusselt number and surface drag coefficient are also being taken into reflection for illustrating the numerical results. The first finding is the improvement in SWP production is generated by amplification in thermal radiation and thermal conductivity variables. A single nanofluid and hybrid nanofluid is very crucial to provide us the efficient heat energy sources. Further, the thermal efficiency of MoS2-Cu/EO than Cu-EO is between 3.3 and 4.4% The second finding is the addition of entropy is due to the increasing level of radiative flow, nanoparticles size, and Prandtl-Eyring variable.