Background The emerging infectious disease, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), poses a serious threat in China and worldwide. Challenged by this serious situation, China has taken many measures to contain its transmission. This study aims to systematically review and record these special and effective practices, in hope of benefiting for fighting against the ongoing worldwide pandemic. Methods The measures taken by the governments was tracked and sorted on a daily basis from the websites of governmental authorities (e.g. National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China). And the measures were reviewed and summarized by categorizations, figures and tables, showing an ever-changing process of combating with an emerging infectious disease. The population shift levels, daily local new diagnosed cases, daily mortality and daily local new cured cases were used for measuring the effect of the measures. Results The practices could be categorized into active case surveillance, rapid case diagnosis and management, strict follow-up and quarantine of persons with close contacts, and issuance of guidance to help the public understand and adhere to control measures, plus prompt and effective high-level policy decision, complete activation of the public health system, and full involvement of the society. Along with the measures, the population shift levels, daily local new diagnosed cases, and mortality were decreased, and the daily local new cured cases were increased in China. Conclusions China’s practices are effective in controlling transmission of SARS-CoV-2. Considering newly occurred situations (e.g. imported cases, work resumption), the control measures may be adjusted.

Probiotics effectively treat experimental colitis by increasing CD4+CD25+Foxp3+T cell and regulating the balance of Th1 and Th2 cytokines in the colonic mucosa.

HighlightsAFM measured the equivalent diameters of LDL (∼22.7 nm) and HDL (∼14.4 nm) in PBS.AFM detected the mean Young’s moduli of LDL (∼0.39 GPa) and HDL (∼0.47 GPa) in PBS.AFM detected the mean adhesive forces of LDL (∼0.19 nN) and HDL (∼0.15 nN) in PBS.AFM detected much larger sizes of Young’s moduli and adhesive forces of LDL/HDL in air.

HighlightsProtein- but not lipid-stabilizing fixatives induce cell blebbing of spread cells.Asymmetric distribution of fixation-induced blebs coincides with that of PIP2.Fixation less readily induces blebbing on spread cells with elevated PIP2 levels.Fixation more readily induces blebbing on spread cells with lower PIP2 levels.Disruption of lipid rafts enhances fixation-induced blebbing of spread cells.

Due to its powerful ability to deplete cholesterol from the plasma membrane of cells, methyl-β-cyclodextrin (MβCD) has been widely used as a putative research tool in cell biology. Recently, recruiting MβCD as an effective drug (e.g., antitumor drugs) has been developed. However, it remains unclear whether MβCD, when it enters the blood circulation as a drug, influences the functions of the endothelium, e.g., the adhesion of leukocytes to the endothelium. In this study, we found that MβCD can impair the adhesion of monocytes to the monolayer of endothelial cells by lowering the cell-surface adhesive force and expression of adhesion molecules and caveolae-related molecules on/in endothelial cells, and reorganizing the actin cytoskeleton of endothelial cells. The data imply that MβCD, when recruited as a drug, potentially helps to inhibit inflammation or initiation/progression of atherosclerosis since its important early step is the adhesion of circulating leukocytes (e.g., monocytes) to the endothelium.Key words methyl-β-cyclodextrin; monocyte; endothelial cell; adhesion molecule; caveola; actin cytoskeleton Beta-cyclodextrin (β-CD) is a cyclic oligosaccharide consisting of seven α-(1,4)-linked glucopyranose subunits. Due to its relatively low water solubility (approximately 2% weight by weight), 1) various derivatives of β-CD have been developed to significantly improve the water solubility, among which methyl-β-cyclodextrin (MβCD) is the one studied most intensively. MβCD is well known as a putative powerful cholesterol-depleting agent and commonly used to deplete plasma membrane cholesterol from cultured mammalian cells. 2-4)MβCD-cholesterol complexes also can efficiently replenish cells with cholesterol as cholesterol donors. 3,4) Moreover, due to the structure of a lipophilic internal cavity surrounded by hydrophilic outer surface, MβCD was applied as a drug delivery system. 5) Recently, it was found that MβCD per se potentially has antitumor effects and has the possibility of being an effective antitumor drug.6-11) However, it remains uncertain whether MβCD, as an anticancer drug, influences the functions of the endothelium, e.g. the adhesion of circulating leukocytes (e.g. monocytes) onto the endothelium which is an important step during inflammation or initiation/progression of atherosclerosis.In this study, the effect of MβCD on the adhesion of monocytes onto the monolayer of endothelial cells was first evaluated. Then, the effects of MβCD on cell-surface adhesive force properties, expression/distribution of adhesion molecules and caveolae-related molecules, and actin cytoskeleton of endothelial cells were investigated to elucidate the potential underlying mechanisms. MATERIALS AND METHODSCell Culture Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were purchased from Xiangya Central Experiment Laboratory (Hunan, China) and cultured in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM) (Gibco, U.S.A.) supplemented with 10% (w/v) fetal calf serum (Hyclone, South Logan, UT, U.S.A), 100 U/mL penicillin, and 100 µg/m...

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract