In this study, we confirmed the autophagy induced by porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) in permissive cells and investigated the role of autophagy in the replication of PRRSV. We first demonstrated that PRRSV infection significantly results in the increased double-membrane vesicles, the accumulation of LC3 fluorescence puncta, and the raised ratio of LC3-II/β-actin, in MARC-145 cells. Then we discovered that induction of autophagy by rapamycin significantly enhances the viral titers of PRRSV, while inhibition of autophagy by 3-MA and silencing of LC3 gene by siRNA reduces the yield of PRRSV. The results showed functional autolysosomes can be formed after PRRSV infection and the autophagosome-lysosome-fusion inhibitor decreases the virus titers. We also examined the induction of autophagy by PRRSV infection in pulmonary alveolar macrophages. These findings indicate that autophagy induced by PRRSV infection plays a role in sustaining the replication of PRRSV in host cells.

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Five fluorescent labels were synthesized and used in the preparation of polystyrene fluorescent microspheres by the dispersion copolymerization and absorption method. Spectral properties of copolymerization fluorescent microspheres in tetrahydrofuran indicated these individual characteristics of labels should be maintained in the fluorescent microspheres. The differences of the fluorescent spectra between five fluorescent microspheres and their corresponding parent labels in ethanol have been investigated. These fluorescent microspheres were characterized by environmental scanning electron microscopy, laser scanning confocal microscopy and fluorescence spectrophotometry. They exhibited good dispersion and stable and high fluorescence intensity. Furthermore, copolymerization fluorescent microspheres were functionalized with amino groups. This means that a method for the preparation of copolymerization fluorescent microspheres was developed as a platform for the generation of functional fluorescent microspheres for diverse applications.

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BackgroundIt is important to explore effective treatment for liver cancer. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a novel technique to treat liver cancer, but its clinical application is obstructed by limited depth of visible light penetration into tissue. The near-infrared (NIR) photosensitizer is a potential solution to the limitations of PDT for deep tumor tissue treatment.PurposeWe aimed to investigate 808 nm NIR light-excited UCNPs@mSiO2-Ce6-GPC3 nanocomposites for PDT in liver cancer.MethodsIn our study, 808 nm NIR light-excited upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) were simultaneously loaded with the photosensitizer chlorin e6 (Ce6) and the antibody glypican-3 (GPC3), which is overexpressed in hepatocellular carcinoma cells. The multitasking UCNPs@mSiO2-Ce6-GPC3 nanoparticles under 808 nm laser irradiation with enhanced depth of penetration would enable the effective targeting of PDT.ResultsWe found that the UCNPs@mSiO2-Ce6-GPC3 nanoparticles had good biocompatibility, low toxicity, excellent cell imaging in HepG2 cancer cells and high anti-tumor effect in vitro and in vivo.ConclusionWe believe that the utilization of 808 nm NIR excited UCNPs@mSiO2-Ce6-GPC3 nanoparticles for PDT is a safe and potential therapeutic option for liver cancer.

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