Inter‐serotype reassortment among epizootic haemorrhagic disease viruses in the United States

First described in 1955 in New Jersey, epizootic haemorrhagic disease (EHD) causes a severe clinical disease in wild and domestic ruminants worldwide. Epizootic haemorrhagic disease outbreaks occur in deer populations each year from summer to late autumn. The etiological agent is EHD virus (EHDV) which is a double‐stranded segmented icosahedral RNA virus. EHD virus utilizes point mutations and reassortment strategies to maintain viral fitness during infection. In 2018, EHDV serotype 2 was predominantly detected in deer in Illinois. Whole genome sequencing was conducted for two 2018 EHDV2 isolates (IL41747 and IL42218) and the sequence analyses indicated that IL42218 was a reassortant between different serotypes whereas IL41747 was a genetically stable strain. Our data suggest that multiple strains contribute to outbreaks each year.     

理气中药组方对糖尿病大鼠胃排空延迟的作用

目的:观察理气中药经验组方对糖尿病大鼠胃排空延迟的干预作用。方法:雌雄各半成年SD大鼠110只,随机分为正常组(A组)、糖尿病中药组(B组)、糖尿病胃复安组(C组)、糖尿病组(D组)。A组、D组1次/d按10 mL/只予0.9%生理盐水灌胃,B组1次/d按8 mL/只予中药煎剂灌胃,C组1次/d按0.5 mg/只予胃复安片灌胃。喂养12周后,行13C胃排空实验及甲基橙水溶液胃排空实验,观察各组大鼠胃排空情况。结果:糖尿病大鼠胃排空较正常大鼠明显延迟(P0.01),糖尿病大鼠胃排空延迟模型制作成功。糖尿病中药组和糖尿病胃复安组大鼠胃排空较糖尿病组快(P0.01);糖尿病中药组大鼠胃排空较糖尿病胃复安组大鼠快(P0.05)。结论:常规喂养12周后糖尿病大鼠出现胃排空延迟。理气中药陈皮、枳实、木香、香附组方煎剂和胃复安均能促进糖尿病大鼠胃排空,理气中药组方煎剂的效果优于胃复安。     

Novel vaccination strategies and approaches against human tuberculosis

Tuberculosis (TB) remains one of a major health problem worldwide. Tuberculosis vaccine research has made an extraordinary progress over the past few years. However, there is still no replacement for the Bacillus Calmette‐Guérin vaccine, the only TB vaccine licensed for human use. Therefore, the discovery and development of new TB vaccines remains a priority. This article discusses current strategies used to diversify TB vaccines and includes discussion of the status of efforts to improve protection against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M tb) infection or TB disease by developing new and safe TB vaccines. This article also highlights the current research efforts in immune‐enhancing approaches to improve vaccination efficacy. The development of more effective TB vaccines might have significant impact on global TB control.     

Detection of recombinant and endogenous mouse melatonin receptors by monoclonal antibodies targeting the C‐terminal domain

Melatonin receptors play important roles in the regulation of circadian and seasonal rhythms, sleep, retinal functions, the immune system, depression, and type 2 diabetes development. Melatonin receptors are approved drug targets for insomnia, non‐24‐hour sleep‐wake disorders, and major depressive disorders. In mammals, two melatonin receptors (MTRs) exist, MT₁ and MT₂, belonging to the G protein‐coupled receptor (GPCR) superfamily. Similar to most other GPCRs, reliable antibodies recognizing melatonin receptors proved to be difficult to obtain. Here, we describe the development of the first monoclonal antibodies (mABs) for mouse MT₁ and MT₂. Purified antibodies were extensively characterized for specific reactivity with mouse, rat, and human MT₁ and MT₂ by Western blot, immunoprecipitation, immunofluorescence, and proximity ligation assay. Several mABs were specific for either mouse MT₁ or MT₂. None of the mABs cross‐reacted with rat MTRs, and some were able to react with human MTRs. The specificity of the selected mABs was validated by immunofluorescence microscopy in three established locations (retina, suprachiasmatic nuclei, pituitary gland) for MTR expression in mice using MTR‐KO mice as control. MT₂ expression was not detected in mouse insulinoma MIN6 cells or pancreatic beta‐cells. Collectively, we report the first monoclonal antibodies recognizing recombinant and native mouse melatonin receptors that will be valuable tools for future studies.