Psychological Impact of the 2022 Round COVID-19 Pandemic on China's College Students

In response to the new round of COVID-19 outbreaks since March 2022,universities with high outbreak rates around the country have taken quarantine measures to contain the epidemic.Evidence from previous coronavirus outbreaks has shown that people under quarantine are at risk for mental health disorders.To better understand the impacts of this round of COVID-19 quarantine on domestic college students and their responses,we conducted a systematic survey to assess the stress and anxiety,and to evaluate effective measurements in this population.We searched relevant documents and literature,and designed a questionnaire from six aspects,including psychological status,epidemic situation,study,daily life,sports,and interpersonal communication,with 51 items in total.We sent the questionnaire on the Wenjuanxing Web platform,from April 2 to 8,2022.We evaluated the mental status according to parts of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7(GAD-7)and Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21(DASS-21),and investigated the influencing risk factors and countermeasures.Statistical analysis was performed by using the Chi-square test and multi-variable logistic regression.In total,508 college respondents were recruited in our survey,and the pooled prevalence of mild anxiety(GAD score≥5,or DASS-21 anxiety score≥8)or stress(DASS-21 pressure score≥14)caused by the new round of COVID-19 pandemic quarantine was 19.69%(100/508).The prevalence of the anxiety or stress in college students with COVID-19 quarantine between different genders,regions,and majors was not significantly different.Independent risk factors for the mild anxiety or stress of undergraduates by COVID-19 quarantine included learning efficiency or duration[OR=1.36,95%CI(1.14—1.62),P=0.001],based on the combined analysis of Chi-square test analysis with multi-variable logistic regression analysis.Interestingly,the mental well-beings before COVID-19 epidemic quarantine[OR=0.22,95%CI(0.130.36),P<0.0001],more low-intensity exercise[OR=0.36,95%CI(0.150.87),P=0.02,high-intensity exercise as reference],and good sleep quality[OR=0.14,95%CI(0.07-0.30),P<0.0001:OR=0.42,95%CI(0.300.59),P<0.0001]are protective factors for alleviating the quarantine-caused anxiety or stress in Chinese college students for this round of COVID-19 epidemic quarantine.During the round of COVID-19 epidemic quarantine in 2022,a small number of college students have mild anxiety,affected by decreased learning efficiency or duration,which could be mitigated with low-intensity exercise and good sleep quality.

Altered gut microbiota composition in children and their caregivers infected with the SARS‑CoV‑2 Omicron variant

Background Gut microbiota alterations have been implicated in the pathogenesis of coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19).This study aimed to explore gut microbiota changes in a prospective cohort of COVID-19 children and their asymptomatic caregivers infected with the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2(SARS-CoV-2)Omicron variant.Methods A total of 186 participants,including 59 COVID-19 children,50 asymptomatic adult caregivers,52 healthy children(HC),and 25 healthy adults(HA),were recruited between 15 April and 31 May 2022.The gut microbiota composition was determined by 16S rRNA gene sequencing in fecal samples collected from the participants.Gut microbiota functional profling was performed by using Phylogenetic Investigation of Communities by Reconstruction of Unobserved States(PICRUSt)software.Results The gut microbiota analysis of beta diversity revealed that the fecal microbial community of COVID-19 children remained far distantly related to HC.The relative abundances of the phyla Actinobacteria and Firmicutes were decreased,whereas Bacteroidetes,Proteobacteria,and Verrucomicrobiota were increased in COVID-19 children.Feces from COVID-19 children exhibited notably lower abundances of the genera Blautia,Bifdobacterium,Fusicatenibacter,Streptococcus,and Romboutsia and higher abundances of the genera Prevotella,Lachnoclostridium,Escherichia-Shigella,and Bacteroides than those from HC.The enterotype distributions of COVID-19 children were characterized by a high prevalence of enterotype Bacteroides.Similar changes in gut microbiota compositions were observed in asymptomatic caregivers.Furthermore,the microbial metabolic activities of KEGG(Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes)and COG(cluster of orthologous groups of proteins)pathways were perturbed in feces from subjects infected with the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant.Conclusion Our data reveal altered gut microbiota compositions in both COVID-19 children and their asymptomatic caregivers infected with the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant,which further implicates the critical role of gut microbiota in COVID-19 pathogenesis.

Activating transcription factor 4 protects mice against sepsis-induced intestinal injury by regulating gut-resident macrophages differentiation

Background: Gut-resident macrophages (gMacs) supplemented by monocytes-to-gMacs differentiation play a critical role in maintaining intestinal homeostasis. Activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4) is involved in immune cell differentiation. We therefore set out to investigate the role of ATF4-regulated monocytes-to-gMacs differentiation in sepsis-induced intestinal injury.Methods: Sepsis was induced in C57BL/6 wild type (WT) mice andAtf4-knockdown (Atf4+/-) mice by cecal ligation and puncture or administration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Colon, peripheral blood mononuclear cells, sera, lung, liver, and mesenteric lymph nodes were collected for flow cytometry, hematoxylin and eosin staining, immunohistochemistry, quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, respectively.Results: CD64, CD11b, Ly6C, major histocompatibility complex-II (MHC-II), CX3CR1, Ly6G, and SSC were identified as optimal primary markers for detecting the process of monocytes-to-gMacs differentiation in the colon of WT mice. Monocytes-to-gMacs differentiation was impaired in the colon during sepsis and was associated with decreased expression of ATF4 in P1 (Ly6Chi monocytes), the precursor cells of gMacs.Atf4 knockdown exacerbated the impairment of monocytes-to-gMacs differentiation in response to LPS, resulting in a significant reduction of gMacs in the colon. Furthermore, compared with WT mice,Atf4+/- mice exhibited higher pathology scores, increased expression of inflammatory factor genes (TNF-α, IL-1β), suppressed expression of CD31 and vascular endothelial-cadherin in the colon, and increased translocation of intestinal bacteria to lymph nodes and lungs following exposure to LPS. However, the aggravation of sepsis-induced intestinal injury resulting fromAtf4 knockdown was not caused by the enhanced inflammatory effect of Ly6Chi monocytes and gMacs.Conclusion: ATF4, as a novel regulator of monocytes-to-gMacs differentiation, plays a critical role in protecting mice against sepsis-induced intestinal injury, suggesting that ATF4 might be a potential therapeutic target for sepsis treatment.

Super enhancers:Pathogenic roles and potential therapeutic targets for acute myeloid leukemia(AML)

Acute myeloid leukemia(AML)is a malignant hematological tumor with disordered oncogenes/tumor suppressor genes and limited treatments.The potent anti-cancer effects of bromodomain and extra-terminal domain(BET)inhibitors,targeting the key component of super enhancers,in early clinical trials on AML patients,implies the critical role of super enhancers in AML.Here,we review the concept and characteristic of super enhancer,and then summarize the current researches about super enhancers in AML pathogenesis,diagnosis and classification,followed by illustrate the potential super enhancer-related targets and drugs,and propose the future directions of super enhancers in AML.This information provides integrated insight into the roles of super enhancers in this disease.