The invertebrate lysozyme (i-lyz or destabilase) is present in shrimp. This protein may have a function as a peptidoglycan-breaking enzyme and as a peptidase. Shrimp is commonly infected with Vibrio sp., a Gram-negative bacteria, and it is known that the c-lyz (similar to chicken lysozyme) is active against these bacteria. To further understand the regulation of lysozymes, we determined the gene sequence and modeled the protein structure of i-lyz. In addition, the expression of i-lyz and c-lyz in response to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was studied. The shrimp i-lyz gene is interrupted by two introns with canonical splice junctions. The expression of the shrimp i-lyz was transiently down-regulated after LPS injection followed by induction after 6 h in hepatopancreas. In contrast, c-lyz was up-regulated in hepatopancreas 4 h post-injection and slightly down-regulated in gills. The L. vannamei i-lyz does not contain the catalytic residues for muramidase (glycohydrolase) neither isopeptidase activities; however, it is known that the antibacterial activity does not solely rely on the enzymatic activity of the protein. The study of invertebrate lysozyme will increase our understanding of the regulatory process of the defense mechanisms.

Novel core-shell nanocomposites, consisting of magnetic carbon nanotubes (MCNTs) core surrounded by a thin polydopamine (PDA) imprinting shell for specific recognition of lysozyme (Lyz), were fabricated for the first time. The obtained products were characterized and the results showed that the PDA layer was successfully attached onto the surface of MCNTs and the corresponding thickness of imprinting layer was just about 10nm which could enable the template access the recognition cavities easily. The polymerization conditions and adsorption performance of the resultant nanomaterials were investigated in detail. The results indicated that the obtained imprinted polymers showed fast kinetic and high affinity towards Lyz and could be used to specifically separate Lyz from real egg white. In addition, the prepared materials had excellent stability and no obvious deterioration after five adsorption-regeneration cycles. Easy preparation, rapid separation, high binding capacity, and satisfactory selectivity for the template protein make this polymer attractive in biotechnology and biosensors.

Background & aims: Several proteins of the innate immune system are known to be deregulated with insulin resistance. We here aimed to investigate the relationship among circulating lysozyme (both plasma concentration and activity) and obesity-associated metabolic disturbances.

Methods: Plasma lysozyme concentration was determined cross-sectionally in a discovery (Cohort 1, n = 137) and in a replication cohort (Cohort 2, n = 181), in which plasma lysozyme activity was also analyzed. Plasma lysozyme was also evaluated longitudinally in participants from the replication cohort (n = 93). Leukocyte lysozyme expression (LYZ mRNA) were also investigated in an independent cohort (Cohort 3, n = 76), and adipose tissue (AT) LYZ mRNA (n = 25) and plasma peptidoglycan levels (n = 61) in subcohorts from discovery cohort.

Results: Translocation of peptidoglycan (as inferred from its increased circulating levels) was linked to plasma lysozyme, hyperinsulinemia and dyslipidemia in obese subjects. In both discovery and replication cohorts, plasma lysozyme levels and activity were significantly increased in obesity in direct association with obesity-associated metabolic disturbances and inflammatory parameters, being circulating lysozyme negatively correlated with fasting glucose, HbA1c and insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) in obese subjects. Of note, total cholesterol (p < 0.0001) and LDL cholesterol (p = 0.003) contributed independently to age-, gender- and BMI adjusted plasma lysozyme activity. Longitudinally, changes in HbA1c levels and serum LDL cholesterol were negatively associated with circulating lysozyme antimicrobial activity. On the contrary, the change in glucose infusion rate during the clamp (insulin sensitivity) was positively associated with lysozyme concentration.

Conclusions: Increased plasma lysozyme levels and activity are found in obese subjects. The longitudinal findings suggest that plasma lysozyme might be protective on the development of obesity-associated metabolic disturbances.

Keywords: Fasting glucose; HbA1c; Lysozyme; Obesity; Peptidoglycan.

Avian leukemia subgroup J (ALV-J) is one of the most detrimental neoplastic diseases in poultry production. However, the differences between somatic cells and immune cells post-infection remain poorly understood. The aim of our study was to detect the different responses in chicken to infection with ALV-J in different cell lines. In this study, we detected transcriptome expression changes during infection with ALV-J in chicken embryo fibroblast (CEF) and HD11 cell lines. RNA-Seq was used to determine the expression levels of mRNA transcripts from the two cell types after infection with ALV-J at 1, 4, and 7 dpi, and gene ontology analyses were used to cluster differentially expressed genes into pathways. Quantitative real-time PCR confirmed the expression of 336 and 269 differentially expressed genes in CEF and HD11 lines, respectively, involved in innate immunity (OASL, CCL4), adaptive immunity (LYZ, CD72), apoptosis and autophagy (WISP2, COMP), inflammation (JSC, IL8), and tumorgenesis (PCNA, GPX3). The notable signal transduction pathways included the PPARs signaling pathway and ECM-receptor interactions in CEF, and the Toll-like receptor, NOD-like receptor, and RIG-I-like receptor signaling pathways in HD11. To our knowledge, this is the first study to use high-throughput sequencing methods to investigate viral infection in different cell types. The results of the present study form a foundation for developing potential biological markers for viral infection.

Here, we developed the lysozyme imprinted bacterial cellulose (Lyz-MIP/BC) nanofibers via the surface imprinting strategy that was designed to recognize lysozyme. This study includes the molecular imprinting method onto the surface of bacterial cellulose nanofibers in the presence of lysozyme by metal ion coordination, as well as further characterizations methods FTIR, SEM and contact angle measurements. The maximum lysozyme adsorption capacity of Lyz-MIP/BC nanofibers was found to be 71 mg/g. The Lyz-MIP/BC nanofibers showed high selectivity for lysozyme towards bovine serum albumin and cytochrome c. Overall, the Lyz-MIP/BC nanofibers hold great potential for lysozyme recognition due to the high binding capacity, significant selectivity and excellent reusability.

In this study, we evaluated the adsorption of proteins to 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl oxidized cellulose nanofibers (TOCNs) and their structures on the TOCN surface. TOCNs derived from bleached pulp are as thin as 4 nm and have a very high specific surface area and a high density of surface carboxyl groups. The adsorption of two model proteins (lysozyme (Lyz) and bovine serum albumin (BSA)), which is driven by electrostatic attraction between the positively charged proteins and the negatively charged TOCN surface bearing ionized carboxyl groups, is demonstrated to occur only at pH values below their isoelectric points. Notably, pristine BSA and Lyz retain their native structures after adsorption onto TOCN, which is ascribed to the very low width of TOCN, and consequently the low area of contact between the protein and cellulose fiber. Thus, this work paves the way to the fabrication of TOCN-based biomaterials with the retention of the structure of the adsorbed proteins.

The interplay of albumin (BSA) and lysozyme (LYZ) adsorbed simultaneously on titanium was analyzed by gel electrophoresis and BCA assay. It was found that BSA and lysozyme adsorb cooperatively. Additionally, the isoelectric point of the respective protein influences the adsorption. Also, the enzymatic activity of lysozyme and amylase (AMY) in mixtures with BSA was considered with respect to a possible influence of protein-protein interaction on enzyme activity. Indeed, an increase of lysozyme activity in the presence of BSA could be observed. In contrast, BSA does not influence the activity of amylase.

A gene coding for lysozyme from the insect Manduca sexta (Ms-lyz) was expressed in Escherichia coli. The protein was produced as an insoluble cytoplasmic inclusion body which was denatured in 8 M: guanidine-HCl, renatured and purified by affinity and ion-exchange chromatography. The N-terminal sequence and the activity of the recombinant protein against Micrococcus luteus confirmed that correct expression had occurred. When Ms-lyz activity was compared to hen egg white lysozyme, the insect lysozyme was active at lower temperatures. These results demonstrate the feasibility of producing a disulfide-bonded lysozyme enzyme in bacteria and suggest that the insect Ms-lyz is an interesting system for further development of an antibacterial functional at low temperatures.

High mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) was recently shown to be an important extracellular mediator of severe vascular inflammatory disease, sepsis. Lysozyme (LYZ) has been shown to bind to bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and have a potential for playing a role in the therapy of inflammatory diseases. However, the effect of LYZ on HMGB1-induced septic response has not been investigated. Moreover, PEGylation effects on the antiseptic activity of LYZ are not known. Here, we show, for the first time, the anti-septic effects of PEGylated LYZ (PEG-LYZ) in HMGB1-mediated inflammatory responses in vitro and in vivo. Among four mono-PEGylated LYZs with different PEGylation sites (N-terminus, Lys(13), Lys(33), and Lys(97)), N-terminally PEGylated LYZ showed the highest activity. Subsequently, among three N-terminally PEGylated LYZs prepared with aldehyde-activated PEGs of 5, 10, and 20 kDa, 5 kDa-PEG-conjugated LYZ (P5-K(1)-LYZ) showed the highest antiseptic activity. The data showed that P5-K(1)-LYZ post-treatment effectively suppressed LPS-mediated release of HMGB1. P5-K(1)-LYZ also inhibited HMGB1-mediated hyperpermeability in human endothelial cells. Furthermore, P5-K(1)-LYZ reduced the cecal ligation and puncture (CLP)-induced release of HMGB1 and septic mortality. Collectively, these results suggest P5-K(1)-LYZ as a candidate therapeutic agent for the treatment of vascular inflammatory diseases via inhibition of the HMGB1 signaling pathway.

A protein imprinting approach for the synthesis of core-shell structure nanoparticles with a magnetic core and molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) shell was developed using a simple distillation-precipitation polymerization method. In this work, Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles were first synthesized through a solvothermal method and then were conveniently surface-modified with 3-(methacryloyloxy)propyltrimethoxylsilane as anchor molecules to donate vinyl groups. Next a high-density MIP shell was coated onto the surface of the magnetic nanoparticles by the copolymerization of functional monomer acrylamide (AAm), cross-linking agent N,N'-methylenebisacrylamide (MBA), the initiator azodiisobutyronitrile (AIBN), and protein in acetonitrile heated at reflux. The morphology, adsorption, and recognition properties of the magnetic molecularly imprinted nanoparticles were investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM), and rebinding experiments. The resulting MIP showed a high adsorption capacity (104.8 mg g(-1)) and specific recognition (imprinting factor=7.6) to lysozyme (Lyz). The as-prepared Fe3O4@Lyz-MIP nanoparticles with a mean diameter of 320 nm were coated with an MIP shell that was 20 nm thick, which enabled Fe3O4@Lyz-MIP to easily reach adsorption equilibrium. The high magnetization saturation (40.35 emu g(-1)) endows the materials with the convenience of magnetic separation under an external magnetic field and allows them to be subsequently reused. Furthermore, Fe3O4@Lyz-MIP could selectively extract a target protein from real egg-white samples under an external magnetic field.

A novel kind of lysozyme (Lys) surface imprinted core-shell particles was synthesized by reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) strategy. With controllable polymer shell chain length, such particles showed obviously improved selectivity for protein recognition. After the RAFT initial agent and template protein was absorbed on silica particles, the prepolymerization solution, with methacrylic acid and 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate as the monomers, and N,N'-methylenebis(acrylamide) as the cross-linker, was mixed with the silica particles, and the polymerization was performed at 40 °C in aqueous phase through the oxidation-reduction initiation. Ater polymerization, with the template protein removal and destroying dithioester groups with hexylamine, the surface Lyz imprinted particles were obtained with controllable polymer chain length. The binding capacity of the Lys imprinted particles could reach 5.6 mg protein/g material, with the imprinting factor (IF) as 3.7, whereas the IF of the control material prepared without RAFT strategy was only 1.6. The absorption equilibrium could be achieved within 60 min. Moreover, Lys could be selectively recognized by the imprinted particles from both a four-proteins mixture and egg white sample. All these results demonstrated that these particles prepared by RAFT strategy are promising to achieve the protein recognition with high selectivity.

The present study evaluated the immunotoxicological effects of the herbicide atrazine (ATZ) at sub-lethal concentrations and the potential ameliorative influence of Spirulina platensis (SP) over a sub-chronic exposure period on Cyprinus carpio L., also known as common carp. Common carp was sampled after a 40-days exposure to ATZ (428 μg/L) and SP (1%), individually or in combination to assess the non-specific immune response, changes in mRNA expression of immune-related genes [lysozyme (LYZ), immunoglobulin M (IgM), and complement component 3 (C3)] in the spleen, and inflammatory cytokines (interleukins IL-1ß and IL-10) in the head kidney using real-time PCR. Additionally, disease resistance to Aeromonas sobria was evaluated. The results revealed that ATZ exposure caused a significant decline in most of the hematological variables, lymphocyte viability, and lysozyme and bactericidal activity. Moreover, ATZ increased the susceptibility to disease, reflected by a significantly lower post-challenge survival rate of the carp. ATZ may induce dysregulated expression of immune-related genes leading to downregulation of mRNA levels of IgM and LYZ in the spleen. However, expression of C3 remained unaffected. Of the cytokine-related genes examined, IL-1B was up-regulated in the head kidney. In contrast, the expression of IL-10 gene was down-regulated in the ATZ-exposed group. The SP supplementation resulted in a significant improvement in most indices; however, these values did not match with that of the controls. These results may conclude that ATZ affects both innate and adaptive immune responses through the negative transcriptional effect on genes involved in immunity and also due to the inflammation of the immune organs. In addition, dietary supplements with SP could be useful for modulation of the immunity in response to ATZ exposure, thereby presenting a promising feed additive for carps in aquaculture.

Insect-associated microbes can contribute to the physiological and ecological functions of insects. Despite a few examples in beetles and piercing-sucking insects, the varied mechanisms of how insect-associated bacteria mediate plant-insect interactions are still not fully understood. The polyphagous herbivore Helicoverpa zea is a major agricultural pest that harbors certain microbes in their digestive systems. Enterobacter ludwigii is one of the gut-associated bacteria identified from field-collected caterpillars, and it has been shown to indirectly induce defenses in the dicot plant tomato by triggering the biosynthesis of salivary elicitors, but there are no clear mechanisms to show how gut microbes alter these salivary cues and how a different host plant responds to these inducible elicitors. Here, we conducted a series of assays to determine whether infection with E. ludwigii affects H. zea larval growth, immunity, and salivary responses and thus influences induced defenses of maize to herbivory. Inoculating lab-reared caterpillars with E. ludwigii, did not significantly affect the growth of caterpillars, but two immunity-related genes glucose oxidase (GOX) and lysozyme (LYZ) were more highly expressed in both salivary glands and midguts compared with MgCl2 solution-treated caterpillars. Oral elicitors were evaluated for their role in triggering maize-specific defense responses. Our results show that saliva and its main component protein glucose oxidase (GOX) from E. ludwigii-inoculated caterpillars played a role in inducing maize anti-herbivore responses. These findings provide a novel concept that introducing bacteria to an herbivore may be an important approach to pest control through alteration of insect immune responses and thus indirect induction of plant resistance.

The effect of the electrical charge on the intestinal absorption of a protein was studied in normal adult rats. Chicken egg lysozyme (Lyz), a basic protein with a molecular weight of 14,300, was selected and several techniques for chemical modification were applied. Then the intestinal absorption of Lyz derivatives was evaluated by measuring the radioactivity in plasma and tissues, after the administration of an (111)In-labeled derivative to an in situ closed loop of the jejunum. After the administration of (111)In-Lyz, the level of radioactivity in plasma was comparable with the lytic activity of Lyz, supporting the fact that the radioactivity represents intact Lyz. (111)In-cationized Lyz showed a 2-3 times higher level of radioactivity in plasma, whereas the radioactivity of (111)In-anionized Lyz was much lower. The absorption rate of (111)In-Lyz derivatives calculated by a deconvolution method was correlated for the strength of their positive net charge. A similar relationship was observed using superoxide dismutase. These findings indicate that the intestinal absorption of a protein is, at least partially, determined by its electrical charge.

Poly(ethylene glycols) (PEGs) with protein-reactive end-groups are widely utilized in bioconjugation reactions. Herein, we describe the use of ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) to synthesize unsaturated protein-reactive PEG analogs. These ROMP PEGs (rPEGs) contained terminal aldehyde functionality and ranged in molecular weight from 6 to 20 kDa. The polymers were readily conjugated to free amines on the protein hen egg-white lysozyme (Lyz). Biocompatibility of the unsaturated PEGs was assessed in vitro, revealing the polymers to be nontoxic up to concentrations of at least 1 mg/mL in human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs). The resulting unsaturated rPEG-lysozyme conjugates underwent metathesis-based depolymerization, resulting in decreased molecular weight of the conjugate.

Beads-embedded novel composite cryogel was synthesized to purify lysozyme (Lyz) from chicken egg white. The poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate-N-methacryloyl-L-phenylalanine) (PHEMAPA) beads of smaller than 5 µm size were synthesized by suspension polymerization and then embedded into a poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA)-based cryogel column. The PHEMAPA bead-embedded cryogel (BEC) column was characterized by swelling tests, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), surface area measurements by the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) method, elemental analysis, and flow dynamics. The specific surface area of the PHEMAPA BEC was found as 41.2 m(2) /g using BET measurements. Lyz-binding experiments were performed using aqueous solutions in different conditions such as initial Lyz concentration, pH, flow rate, temperature, and NaCl concentration of an aqueous medium. The PHEMAPA BEC column could be used after 10 adsorption-desorption studies without any significant loss in adsorption capacity of Lyz. The PHEMAPA BEC column was used to purify Lyz from chicken egg white, and gel electrophoresis was used to estimate the purity of Lyz. The chromatographic application of the PHEMAPA BEC column was also performed using fast protein liquid chromatography.

In order to preliminarily explore the joint involvement of different immune-related factors during the same immune process in Apostichopus japonicus, the transcriptional expression of Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (Cu/Zn-SOD), catalase (CAT), c-type lysozyme (c-LYZ), i-type lysozyme (i-LYZ), cathepsin D, melanotransferrin (MTF), Toll, c-type lectin (c-LCT) and complement 3 (C3) during the development from fertilized eggs to juveniles and after challenging the juveniles with Vibrio splendidus, Pseudoalteromonas nigrifaciens, Shewanella baltica and Bacillus cereus, respectively, was measured using the method of quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR), and then the correlations among different immune-related factors were analyzed. The results showed that the selected immune-related factors were expressed at all of the determined developmental stages and significantly up-regulated at doliolaria stage, suggesting the selected factors are indispensable immune components and the immune system might be broadly activated at doliolaria stage in A. japonicus. After challenged with four pathogenic bacteria, Cu/Zn-SOD, CAT, i-LYZ, cathepsin D, MTF, Toll, C3 were all significantly down-regulated at 4 h, indicating that some components of A. japonicus immune system might be inhibited at the beginning of pathogenic bacteria invasion. The immune-responsive analysis also showed that the significant regulation in Toll after challenged with four tested bacteria, that in MTF after challenged with S. baltica and that in C3 after challenged with P. nigrifaciens were all minus, suggesting Toll, MTF and C3 are probably the primary targets of pathogenic bacteria attack. Furthermore, the correlation analysis indicated that, all of the selected immune-related factors except cathepsin D might be in the same immune regulatory network during A. japonicus development, while all of the selected immune-related factors except c-LYZ might be in the same responsive regulatory network after challenged with four pathogenic bacteria. Altogether, A. japonicus immune system exhibited high complexity in regulation during organism development and after bacterial challenges.

The present study investigated the daily dynamics of humoral immune defenses and the temporal influence in the sensitivity of these responses to a bacterial endotoxin in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). The first experiment subjected the fish to two photoperiod conditions, 12L:12D (LD) and 0L:24D (DD), for 20 days to characterize the rhythms of humoral immunity. Serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP), lysozyme (LYZ), peroxidase (PER) and protease (PRO) exhibited significant rhythmicity under LD but not in DD. No significant rhythms were observed in esterase (ESA) and anti-protease (ANTI) in both photoperiod conditions. Fish reared under LD were subsequently subjected to DD while the group previously under DD was exposed to LD, and this carried on for 3 days before another set of samples was collected. Results revealed that the rhythms of LYZ, PER and PRO but not ALP persisted when photoperiod was changed from LD to DD. Nonetheless, immune parameters remained arrhythmic in the group subjected from DD to LD. Cluster analysis of the humoral immune responses under various light conditions revealed that each photic environment had distinct daily immunological profile. In the second experiment, fish were injected with bacterial endotoxin lipopolysaccharide (LPS) either at ZT3 (day) or at ZT15 (night) to evaluate the temporal sensitivity of humoral immunity to a pathogen-associated molecular pattern. The results demonstrated that responses to LPS were gated by the time of day. LPS significantly modulated serum ALP and ANTI activities but only when the endotoxin was administered at ZT3. Serum LYZ and PER were stimulated at both injection times but with differing response profiles. Modulated LYZ activity was persistent when injected at ZT3 but transient when LPS was applied at ZT15. The magnitude of LPS-induced PER activity was higher when the endotoxin was delivered at ZT3 versus ZT15. It was further shown that plasma cortisol was significantly elevated but only when LPS was administered at ZT3. On the other hand, plasma melatonin was significantly affected by LPS injection but only when exposed at ZT15. Taken together, this study shows that several key components of humoral immunity in tilapia exhibit circadian rhythms and adapt to photoperiodic changes. Further, results of the bacterial endotoxin challenge suggest that responsiveness of serum humoral factors to a biological insult is likely mediated by the time of day, highlighting the importance of circadian rhythm in the immunological functions of fish.

The present study investigates the effects of the dietary microbial lysozyme (ML) as an immunostimulant, on the growth performance, some immune parameters and digestive enzyme of Pacific white shrimp, Penaeus vannamei. Six hundred shrimps were obtained and randomly allocated into four groups as follows with three replicates. The shrimps were fed diets supplemented with 0 (control), 0.5, 1, and 2 g kg^-1 ML for 4 months. The results indicated that dietary supplementation of ML significantly improved final weight, weight gain, average daily weight gain rate (ADG), feed conversion rate (FCR), and feed efficiency rate (FER) compared to the control (P ˂ 0.05). However, weight gain specific growth rate (SGR) and survival rate were not significantly affected by dietary ML (P ˃ 0.05). Dietary ML had a progressive effects on some immune parameters status including total antioxidant capacity (TAOC), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), lysozyme (LYZ), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), phenoloxidase (PO) and acid phosphatase (ACP) activity as well as differential haemocyte count (DHC) and total haemocyte count (THC), in shrimps treated with the lysozyme than untreated shrimps (P ˂ 0.05). However, feeding with ML had no significant effect on plasma malondialdehyde (MDA) level (P ˃ 0.05). Furthermore, intestinal digestive enzymes (lipase, protease, and amylase) in shrimp fed with dietary ML were significantly (P ˂ 0.05) higher than those fed with non-supplemented control basal diet. Thus, the results indicate that oral administration of ML can be recommended for shrimp feed to improve immune response as well digestive enzymes activity modulation.

This study aimed to figure out the effects of berberine on growth performance, immunity, oxidative stress and hepatocyte apoptosis of blunt snout bream (Megalobrama amblycephala) fed with high-fat diet. 320 fish (80.00 ± 0.90 g) were divided randomly into four trial groups (each with four replicates) and fed with 4 diets (normal diet, normal diet with 50 mg/kg berberine, high-fat diet, high-fat diet with 50 mg/kg berberine), respectively. At the end of the feeding trial, ammonia stress test was carried out for 5 days. The result showed the growth performance, immune parameters including plasm acid phosphatase (ACP) activities, lysozyme (LYZ) activities and alternative complement C3 and C4 contents were suppressed in fish fed with high-fat diets but improved in berberine diets compared with control (normal diet). Hepatopancreas oxidative status, the malondialdehyde (MDA), protein carbonyl (PC) and lipid peroxide (LPO) were increased significantly (P < 0.05) when fish were fed with high-fat diets. Berberine could slow the progression of the oxidative stress induced by high-fat through increasing superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities and total sulfydryl (T-SH) levels of fish. And the hepatocyte apoptosis in the high-fat group could also be alleviated by berberine. After the ammonia stress test, the accumulative mortality was extremely (P < 0.05) low in fish fed high-fat diet with berberine compared to other groups. It was concluded berberine as a functional feed additive significantly inhibited the progression of oxidative stress, reduced the apoptosis and enhanced the immunity of fish fed with high-fat diet.

Chitosan nanoparticles (CNPs) were synthesized by ionic gelation method and its immunomodulatory properties were investigated in zebrafish larvae. Average particle size and zeta potential were 181.2 nm and +37.2 mv, respectively. Initially, toxicity profile was tested in zebrafish embryo at 96 h post fertilization (hpf) stage using medium molecular weight chitosan (MMW-C) and CNPs. At 5 μg/mL, the hatching rate was almost similar in both treatments, however, the survival rate was lower in MMW-C compared to CNPs exposure, suggesting that toxicity effect of CNPs in hatched larvae was minimal at 5 μg/mL compared to MMW-C. Quantitative real time PCR results showed that in CNPs exposed larvae at 5 days post fertilization (5 dpf) stage, immune related (il-1β, tnf-α, il-6, il-10, cxcl-18b, ccl34a.4, cxcl-8a, lyz-c, defβl-1, irf-1a, irf-3, MxA) and stress response (hsp-70) genes were induced. In contrast, basal or down regulated expression of antioxidant genes (gstp-1, cat, sod-1, prdx-4, txndr-1) were observed. Moreover, zebrafish larvae (at 5 dpf stage) exposed to CNPs (5 μg/mL) showed higher survival rate at 72 h post infection stage against pathogenic Aeromonas hydrophila challenge compared to controls. These results suggest that although CNPs can have toxic effects to the larvae at higher doses, CNPs exposure at 5 μg/mL could enhance the immune responses and develop the disease resistance against A. hydrophila, which could be attributed to its strong immune modulatory properties.

The response of the defense components lysozyme (LYZ), metallothionein (MT), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) to combined exposure to heavy metals and bacteria was assessed at transcriptional level in the surf clam Mactra veneriformis. First, the full-length LYZ cDNA containing 808 nucleotides and encoding 194 deduced amino acids was identified from the clam. Multiple alignments revealed that MvLYZ had a high identity with invertebrate-type LYZs from other mollusks. Next, clams were exposed to Vibrio parahaemolyticus and a mixture of cadmium and mercury, alone or in combination, for 7 days. Cumulative mortality of clams and mRNA expressions of the three defense components were analyzed. The highest cumulative mortality took place in the combined treatment on day 7. The expression of the three genes was up-regulated in response to treatments compared to the control with different response times and transcriptional levels; the response to combined exposure occurred earlier than to single exposure. Among the experimental groups, MvLYZ expression and MvSOD expression peaked in the combined treatment on day 3, whereas MvMT expression peaked in heavy metals treatment on day 5. Furthermore, interactive effects of heavy metals and Vibrio on transcriptional response changed over the exposure time. Therefore, transcriptional regulation of the three genes under combined exposure was more complex than under single exposure.

The present study was investigated the dietary administration of cassic acid (CA) on growth, innate immunity, transcription profiles of estrogen and follicle-stimulating hormones as well as lysozyme enzyme determined in Clarias gariepinus against Edwardsiella tarda. The weight gain (WG), protein efficacy ratio (PER), and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were significantly improved in infected fish fed dietary administration with CA at 5 and 10 mg kg^-1 diets. The survival is higher (96.7% and 98.3%) in the infected groups fed at 5 and 10 mg kg^-1 CA diets. The red (RBC) and white (WBC) blood cells, hemoglobin (Hb), and packed cell volume (PCV) was found significantly high in the infected fish feeding at 5 and 10 mg kg^-1 CA diets. Total protein and albumin were significantly increased with 5 and 10 mg kg^-1 CA diets among weeks 1-4 while the globulin and albumin: globulin ratio increased of these diet only after week 2. The phagocytic and respiratory burst activities were enhanced statistically the infected fish fed at 10 mg kg^-1 CA diet group whereas the production of superoxide anion (SOA) and nitric oxide (NO) were significantly increased at 5 and 10 mg kg^-1 CA diets. The lymphocyte proliferation and myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity were significantly high the infected fish when fed at 5 and 10 mg kg^-1 CA diets after 2nd week whereas the alternate complement activity (ACP), generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and lysozyme activity (Lyz) were observed at 5 and 10 mg kg^-1 CA diets among weeks 1-4. The accumulative mortality was 10% in infected fish fed at 1 and 5 mg kg^-1 CA diets whereas 15% mortality found with 10 mg kg^-1 CA diet. The highest levels of estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) mRNA expression found in gonad while the highest levels of follicle stimulating hormone-beta subunit (FSH-β) mRNA expression found in testis of the infected fish given at 5 and 10 mg kg^-1 CA diets. The up-regulation of chick-type lysozyme (c-Lyz) mRNA was observed at 5 and 10 mg kg^-1 CA diets after 2nd week while goose-type lysozyme (g-Lyz) mRNA was up-regulation amongst weeks 1-4 of these diets. The present study suggested that E. tarda challenged fish after feeding with 5 and 10 mg kg^-1 CA diets did not affect growth and hemato-biochemical parameter, but it enhanced nonspecific immune system and improving ERα, FSH-β, c-Lyz, and g-Lyz mRNA expression in C. gariepinus against E. tarda.