Investigation of the epidemiology,pathogenicity and immunogenicity of Bordetella bronchiseptica isolated from cats and dogs in China from 2021 to 2023

Bordetella bronchiseptica(Bb)is recognized as a leading cause of respiratory diseases in dogs and cats.However,epidemiological data on Bb in dogs and cats in China are still limited,and there is no commercially available vaccine.Live vaccines containing Bb that are widely used abroad are generally efective but can establish latency and potentially reactivate to cause illness in some immunodefcient vaccinated recipients,raising safety concerns.In this study,34 canine-derived and two feline-derived Bb strains were isolated from 1809 canine and 113 feline nasopharyngeal swab samples collected from eight provinces in China from 2021 to 2023.The PCR results showed that the percentage of positive Bb was 22.94%(441/1922),and more than 90%of the Bb isolates had four virulence factor-encoding genes(VFGs),namely,fhaB,prn,betA and dnt.All the isolated strains displayed a multidrug-resistant phenotype.The virulence of 10 Bb strains isolated from dogs with respiratory symptoms was tested in mice,and we found that eight isolates were highly virulent.Furthermore,the eight Bb isolates with high virulence were inactivated and intramuscularly injected into mice,and three Bb strains(WH1218,WH1203 and WH1224)with the best protective efcacy were selected.Dogs immunized with these three strains exhibited strong protection against challenge with the Bb feld strain WH1218.Ultimately,the WH1218 strain with the greatest protection in dogs was selected as the vaccine candidate.Dogs and cats that received a vaccine containing 109 CFU of the inactivated WH1218 strain showed complete protection against challenge with the Bb feld strain WH1218.This study revealed that Bb is an important pathogen that causes respiratory diseases in domestic dogs and cats in China,and all the isolates exhibited multidrug resistance.The present work contributes to the current understanding of the prevalence,antimicrobial resistance,and virulence genes of Bb in domestic dogs and cats.Additionally,our results suggest that the WH1218 strain is a promising candidate safe and efcacious inactivated Bb vaccine.

The Global Stratotype Section and Point （GSSP） for the boundary between the Capitanian and Wuchiapingian Stage （Permian）

The Global Stratotype Section and Point （GSSP） for the boundary between the Capitanian and Wuchiapingian stages, also the boundary between the Guadalupian and Lopingian Series is defined at the First Appearance Datum （FAD） of the conodont Clarkina postbitteri postbitteri at the base of Bed 6k in the Penglaitan Section along the Hongshui River in Guangxi Province, South China. This point is within a chronomorphocline from Clarkina postbitteri hongshuiensis to C. dukouensis and nearly coincides with the Middle-Upper Absaroka Megasequence boundary and as such is documented within a continuously deposited carbonate lowstand succession with deep-water facies of the Maokou Formation below and deep-water facies of the Heshan Formation above. Furthermore, this point also coincides with a major extinction of various Permian fossils including corals, fusulinaceans, ammonoids and brachiopods. The proximity to an apparently global major sequence boundary and extinction event will serve as a means of correlation of this GSSP into other regions in which the defining taxon is not present because of profound provincialism during the Middle and Upper Permian. Carbon isotopic trends and magnetostratigraphic signatures are also provided to help correlate this GSSP into other regions, including those with continental facies successions. The Tieqiao Section near the county town of Laibin is also described as a supplementary reference section.

中国、韩国、日本传统医学简介与比较

传统医学在中国、韩国、日本均比较受欢迎。通过查阅政府网站、相关研究报告,总结比较三个国家传统医学在政策、教育方面的异同。结果表明,中韩两国的传统医学体系较为相似,而日本传统医学体系与两者差异较大。在教育方面,中韩两国都是双系统教学体系,传统医学与现代医学共同教学。平均每个传统医学专业学生要接受6年的教育才能有资格行医。针刺、艾灸、拔罐等均是纳入医保的医疗手法。然而,在日本,常规西医占主流地位,只有一些主流传统医学治疗方法才被纳入医保。三个国家传统医学的异同都是基于各国多年文化背景与相关政策的影响,了解其异同有利于相互学习、共同进步。

Late Permian magnetostratigraphy and its global correlation

A calibration among magnetic polarity sequence, biostratigraphy zonation and isotopicage reveals that the boundary between the Carboniferous-Permian reversed Polarity Superzone and Permian-Triassic Mixed Polarity Superzone occurs at the top of the wordian Stage of the Guadalupian Series and is dated as 265 Ma. The Late Permian magnetic polarity sequence integrates four polarity zones, corresponding to the Upper Guadalupian Series, the wuchiapingian Stage, and the Lower and the Upper Changhsingian Stage of the Lopingian Series. This reference magnetostratigraphy polarity sequence may serve as a useful guide to the chronostratigraphic correlation of Late Permian strata across major biogeographic and facies barriers.

A self-adaptive correction method for perspective distortions of image

Frequently, the shooting angles available to photograph an object are limited, and the resultant images contain perspective distortions. These distortions make more difficult to perform subsequent tasks like feature extraction and information identification. This paper suggested a perspective correction method that extracts automatically distortion features through edge detection. Results showed that this method is powerful in correcting images with perspective distortions. The corrected image has virtually little information missing, clear features and high recovery rate.

Reversal of B-cell hyperactivation and functional impairment is associated with HBsAg seroconversion in chronic hepatitis B patients

B cells play an important role in the clearance of hepatitis B virus （HBV） and protection against reinfection. However, the functional characteristics of these cells that are associated with the outcome of chronic HBV infection remain unknown. We comprehensively investigated the frequency, phenotype, and function of peripheral B-cell subsets from CHB patients in different phases： immune tolerance （IT）, immune activation （IA）, immune clearance （IC）, responders with HBsAg seroconversion （resolved patients, RP）, and healthy controls （HC）. IA patients displayed lower percentages of peripheral blood memory B cells compared with the other groups. Overall polyclonal activation of B cells, indicated by higher levels of activation markers and secretion of IgG and IgM, was observed in IA patients. This B-cell hyperactivation could be induced by increased IFN-a and soluble CD40 ligands in IA patients. Notably, the expression of the co-stimulator molecule CD80 and serum HBsAb and the frequency of HBsAg-specific B cells were significantly decreased in IT, IA, and IC patients compared with HC subjects. More importantly, the B-cell hyperactivation, co-stimulatory molecule downregulation and HBsAg-specific B-cell impairment were reversed in RP patients. The reversal of B-cell hyperactivation and functional impairment is associated with HBsAg seroconversion in chronic hepatitis B patients.