METHODS: To understand the research status of schistosomiasis and toxoplasmosis in China, academic articles published in Chinese journals from 1980 to 2021 were retrieved from China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) and Wanfang databases. The Bibliographic Items Co-occurrence Matrix Builder (BICOMB) software was used to extract and analyze the keyword frequencies. The 'K/A ratio' as the frequency of a keyword that occurred in all the articles within a certain time stage was calculated to compare the popularity of the same keyword in different time stages. Keyword co-occurrence network maps were constructed by VOSviewer software.

RESULTS: A total of 18,508 articles in the research field of Schistosoma and 13,289 articles in the field of Toxoplasma gondii were included. Results in both fields showed some similarities: the annual number of articles presented an increasing trend before entering the 21st century and decreased rapidly in recent years. Two opposite changing trends of keyword frequency could be observed in the K/A ratio analysis: the K/A ratios of 'Surveillance' and 'Infection' continuously increased over time, while those of 'Schistosoma mansoni' and 'Mesenteric lymph nodes' decreased. The diversification of keyword co-occurrence networks could be observed in the co-occurrence network maps.

RESULTS: In this study, we examined the effects of mutations on the sodium channel gating properties and pyrethroid sensitivity in Xenopus oocytes. We found mutations A1007G, A1007G + F1534C and A1007G + V1016G + F1534C shifted the voltage dependence of activation in the depolarizing direction. Mutations A1007G + F1534C and A1007G + V1016G + F1534C shifted the voltage dependence of inactivation in the depolarizing direction. Both mutations A1007G and F1534C reduced the channel sensitivity to two Type I pyrethroids, permethrin and bifenthrin, and synergistic effects were observed between mutations A1007G and F1534C. However, none of the mutations, A1007G, F1534C and A1007G + F1534C affected the channel sensitivity to two Type II pyrethroids, deltamethrin and cypermethrin. Furthermore, triple mutations A1007G + V1016G + F1534C significantly reduced the channel sensitivity to both Type I and Type II pyrethroids.

RESULTS: We show that miR-15a is increased in the plasma of diabetic patients, correlating with disease severity. miR-15 plays an important role in insulin production in pancreatic β-cells. By culturing rat pancreatic β-cells (INS-1) cells in high-glucose media, we identified a source of increased miR-15a in the blood as exosomes secreted by pancreatic β-cells. We postulate that miR-15a, produced in pancreatic β-cells, can enter the bloodstream and contribute to retinal injury. miR-15a overexpression in Müller cells can be induced by exposing Müller cells to exosomes derived from INS-1 cells under high-glucose conditions and results in oxidative stress by targeting Akt3, which leads to apoptotic cell death. The in vivo relevance of these findings is supported by results from high-fat diet and pancreatic β-cell-specific miR-15a-/- mice.

INNOVATION: This study highlights an important and underappreciated mechanism of remote cell-cell communication (exosomal transfer of miRNA) and its influence on the development of T2D complications.