Project description:Few studies have assessed the patterns of parasite populations of rodents over a longitudinal gradient in Chile. In this work, the gastrointestinal helminthic fauna of invasive rodents in Chile was examined to assess the association between their presence/absence and abundance with latitude, host sex, and host body condition, and to assess the coexistence and correlation of the abundance between parasite species. Rodents were obtained from 20 localities between 33 and 43°S. Helminths were extracted from the gastrointestinal tract and identified morphologically. Overall, 13 helminth taxa were obtained. The most frequently identified parasite species was Heterakis spumosa, and the most abundant was Syphacia muris, while Physaloptera sp. was the most widely distributed. No locality presented with a coexistence that was different from that expected by chance, while the abundance of five helminthic species correlated with the abundance of another in at least one locality, most likely due to co-infection rather than interaction. Host sex was associated with parasite presence or abundance, and female sex-biased parasitism was notably observed in all cases. Body condition and latitude presented either a positive or negative association with the presence or abundance of parasites depending on the species. It is notable that the likely native Physaloptera sp. is widely distributed among invasive rodents. Further, gravid females were found, suggesting spillback of this species to the native fauna. The low frequency and abundance of highly zoonotic hymenolepid species suggest that rodents are of low concern regarding gastrointestinal zoonotic helminths.
Project description:The anti-diabetes activity of Rhizoma Coptidis was documented in the book âNotes of Elite Physiciansâ written by Hongjing Tao 1500 years ago. Berberine (BBR) is the major isoquinoline alkaloid constituent of the Chinese herb Rhizoma Coptidis, which has the beneficial characteristic of regulating glucose and lipid metabolism and has been extensively used in the treatment of obesity, diabetes and hypercholesterolemia. However, the effect of berberine on specific diabetes treatment targets is unknown. This study was conducted to elucidate the genome-wide gene expression profile in Zucker Diabetic Fatty Rats liver tissues in response to Berberine treatment.
Project description:Objective: This study aims to investigate the diversity of fibroblasts present in diabetic ulcers and their impact on the wound healing process, as well as to evaluate the effectiveness of Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) therapy in the management of diabetic ulcers. Methodology: The single-cell dataset GSE165816 from the GEO database was utilized to analyze DFU-healer and DFU-nonhealer samples in order to evaluate variations in fibroblasts. Functional characteristics of fibroblasts were investigated through analyses of cell communication, transcription factors, and pseudotime analysis. Additionally, a diabetic ulcer rat model was established to compare the therapeutic effects of PRP, followed by histological and transcriptomic sequencing analyses. Result: Single-cell sequencing analysis identified a greater abundance of fibroblasts in the group of diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) patients who exhibited healing. The findings from biological informatics analysis emphasized the critical role of fibroblasts in the wound healing process. Treatment with PRP notably enhanced wound healing in diabetic ulcers in rats, and transcriptomic analysis indicated that gene expression levels post-PRP treatment resembled those of the non-diabetic ulcer group, with a strong association to fibroblasts. Conclusion: Fibroblasts are essential in the process of healing diabetic ulcers, as certain transcription factors have the potential to facilitate wound closure. PRP therapy has been shown to enhance the healing process in diabetic ulcer rat models, possibly through the modulation of gene expression and the promotion of extracellular matrix arrangement. This research offers novel insights and potential therapeutic approaches for managing diabetic ulcers.
Project description:The Norway rat has important impacts on our life. They are amongst the most used research subjects, resulting in ground-breaking advances. At the same time, wild rats live in close association with us, leading to various adverse interactions. In face of this relevance, it is surprising how little is known about their natural behaviour. While recent laboratory studies revealed their complex social skills, little is known about their social behaviour in the wild. An integration of these different scientific approaches is crucial to understand their social life, which will enable us to design more valid research paradigms, develop more effective management strategies, and to provide better welfare standards. Hence, I first summarise the literature on their natural social behaviour. Second, I provide an overview of recent developments concerning their social cognition. Third, I illustrate why an integration of these areas would be beneficial to optimise our interactions with them.
Project description:BackgroundMurine kobuviruses (MuKV) are newly recognized picornaviruses first detected in murine rodents in the USA in 2011. Little information on MuKV epidemiology in murine rodents is available. Therefore, we conducted a survey of the prevalence and genomic characteristics of rat kobuvirus in Guangdong, China.ResultsFecal samples from 223 rats (Rattus norvegicus) were collected from Guangdong and kobuviruses were detected in 12.6% (28) of samples. Phylogenetic analysis based on partial 3D and complete VP1 sequence regions showed that rat kobuvirus obtained in this study were genetically closely related to those of rat/mouse kobuvirus reported in other geographical areas. Two near full-length rat kobuvirus genomes (MM33, GZ85) were acquired and phylogenetic analysis of these revealed that they shared very high nucleotide/amino acids identity with one another (95.4%/99.4%) and a sewage-derived sequence (86.9%/93.5% and 87.5%/93.7%, respectively). Comparison with original Aichivirus A strains, such human kobuvirus, revealed amino acid identity values of approximately 80%.ConclusionOur findings indicate that rat kobuvirus have distinctive genetic characteristics from other Aichivirus A viruses. Additionally, rat kobuvirus may spread via sewage.