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The impulse thruster exhibits the advantages of the simplistic structure and rapid response speed. It is often used for the attitude adjustment and orbit control of the aircraft and space vehicle. In order to study the internal ballistic variation law and the flow characteristics of the gunpowder gas, the interior working process of the L-type impulse thruster was investigated by the numerical simulation and experimental verification. First, an internal ballistic test was designed and conducted, and the change process of the thrust and pressure over time was measured, and the feasibility and rationality of the impulse thruster design were verified. Second, a three-dimensional internal ballistic model of the L-type impulse thruster including the ignition process was established. With the help of the dynamic mesh technology and secondary development capability of the user-defined function in the software Fluent, the coupling process of the propellant combustion and internal flow field change of the gunpowder gas was realized. The calculated results were in good agreement with the test data. Finally, the distribution of the pressure and velocity in the flow field was analyzed in detail, and the variation law of the thrust characteristics with the nozzle length and the expansion ratio was studied, which could provide the essential data for further optimization design research. The outcomes from this paper can offer technical means for advancing studies on the internal ballistic changing law of the L-type impulse thruster. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An abnormality of structures and functions in the hippocampus may have a key role in the pathophysiology of major depressive disorder (MDD). However, it is unclear whether structure factors of the hippocampus effectively impact antidepressant responses by hippocampal functional activity in MDD patients. We collected longitudinal data from 36 MDD patients before and after a 3-month course of antidepressant pharmacotherapy. Additionally, we obtained baseline data from 43 healthy controls matched for sex and age. Using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI), we estimated the dynamic functional connectivity (dFC) of the hippocampal subregions using a sliding-window method. The gray matter volume was calculated using voxel-based morphometry (VBM). The results indicated that patients with MDD exhibited significantly lower dFC of the left rostral hippocampus (rHipp.L) with the right precentral gyrus, left superior temporal gyrus and left postcentral gyrus compared to healthy controls at baseline. In MDD patients, the dFC of the rHipp.L with right precentral gyrus at baseline was correlated with both the rHipp.L volume and HAMD remission rate, and also mediated the effects of the rHipp.L volume on antidepressant performance. Our findings suggested that the interaction between hippocampal structure and functional activity might affect antidepressant performance, which provided a novel insight into the hippocampus-related neurobiological mechanism of MDD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Large-particle porous propellant has good surface-enhancing combustion performance and may improve the muzzle velocity of combustion propulsion system effectively. The proposed particle element method is further refined to investigate particle motion characteristics and flow field distribution in a large-particle charge combustion system with moving boundary. The particle element parameter aggregation is established to describe particle parameter distribution in the system, and the motion is controlled by particle motion equations during combustion and propulsion, so that the particle element is stretched and coupled with the gas phase. The particle element method accurately describes the distribution of the particle movement process and the evolution of the flow field in the chamber, and the numerical simulation results are in good agreement with the AGARD code. In particular, the overall efficiency of the entire calculating procedure is improved by 21.7%. The research results will effectively solve the flow field problem in the large-particle charge combustion system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Major depressive disorder (MDD) has been shown to involve widespread changes in low‐level sensorimotor and higher‐level cognitive functions. Recent research found that a primary‐to‐transmodal gradient could capture a cortical hierarchical organization ranging from perception and action to cognition in healthy subjects, but a prominent gradient dysfunction in MDD patients. However, whether and how this cortical gradient is linked to subcortical impairments and whether it is reflected in the microscale neurotransmitter systems and cell type‐specific transcriptional signatures remain largely unknown. Data were acquired from 323 MDD patients and 328 sex‐ and age‐matched healthy controls derived from the REST‐meta‐MDD project, and the human brain neurotransmitter systems density maps and gene expression data were drawn from two publicly available datasets. We investigated alterations of the primary‐to‐transmodal gradient in MDD patients and their correlations with clinical symptoms of depression and anxiety, as well as their paralleled subcortical impairments. The correlations between MDD‐related gradient alterations and densities of the neurotransmitter systems and gene expression information were assessed, respectively. The results demonstrated that MDD patients had a compressed primary‐to‐transmodal gradient accompanied by paralleled alterations in subcortical regions including the caudate, amygdala, and thalamus. The case–control gradient differences were spatially correlated with the densities of the neurotransmitter systems including the serotonin and dopamine receptors, and meanwhile with gene expression enriched in astrocytes, excitatory and inhibitory neuronal cells. These findings mapped the paralleled subcortical impairments in cortical hierarchical organization and also helped us understand the possible molecular and cellular substrates of the co‐occurrence of high‐level cognitive impairments with low‐level sensorimotor abnormalities in MDD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To study the form function and combustion characteristics of partially‐cut stick propellants, this paper derived and established the form function of this complex geometry propellant and analyzed the influence of cutting parameters on the form function. The analysis showed that partially‐cut stick propellants retain the high progressive combustion of multi‐aperture granular propellant, which is proportional to the distance between the notch and inversely proportional to the width of the notch. Based on this, partially‐cut stick propellants with different notches were prepared, and closed vessel tests were conducted. The experimental results showed that the notch had a significant effect on the combustion characteristics of the propellant. When there were notches, the wider the notch, the faster the pressure rise. The pressure in the closed vessel for stick propellants without notches rose the fastest. The burning rate of non‐notched or narrow‐notched fluctuated, while the burning rate of wide‐notched was stable. The dynamic vivacity data showed that the wider the notch, the more stable the change of the burning surface, and the combustion characteristic was closer to the granular propellant. Based on the analysis of form function and combustion characteristics, it is recommended that the notch width be 1 mm and the distance between notches on the same side should be the length of a granular propellant for the double‐base homogeneous 19‐perforated propellant studied in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the antipigmentation and antioxidant activity of Sanchi flower extract (SFE). The study explores the potential of SFE as a cosmetic ingredient to inhibit melanin production both in B16-F0 cells and in a three-dimensional skin model. It observed intracellular tyrosinae activity and cellular glutathione peroxidase activity after treatment with SFE, as well as total antioxidant capacity in HaCaT cells irradiated with ultraviolet B radiation.

Different charge structures have different interior ballistic performance. Existing research is based on experimental measurements or the lumped parameter method to obtain limited ballistic characteristics, which indirectly impacts the analysis of the parameters' distribution, requiring a complex modeling solution process. Besides this, the ignition performance of different charge structures needs to be further explored. The disadvantages of previous studies have limited the feasibility of further optimization of the composite charge structure. In this paper, we apply a two-dimensional two-phase flow method based on the Eulerian–Lagrangian model to study the performance of different composite charge structures. First, we establish the mathematical model of different particle types based on interior ballistics, which is directly related to the research foundation of subsequent ballistic performance. Next, we investigate the multi-scale reaction flow of complex charge structures by the two-phase flow method and obtain the distribution of parameters in the chamber. Finally, we conduct a study with different particle charge parameters to explore the sensitivity of ballistic characteristics to structural parameters. The results show that the tubular propellant has good ignition performance in different charge structures, and the ignition consistency can be improved by charging tubular propellant in the center of the chamber. However, more tubular propellants are ineffective at significantly improving ignition performance, and result in a decrease in combustion chamber pressure. These results may be promising for the optimization of various charge structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives] The paper was to determine the extraction and refining process of polysaccharide from Tricholoma matsutake, and to verify its whitening effect. [Methods] With T. matsutake as the research object, the effects of eluent concentration, loading amount and diameter-to-height ratio on the refining process of T. matsutake polysaccharide were explored by orthogonal test, to optimize the dynamic elution conditions of T. matsutake polysaccharide. The survival rate of mouse melanoma cells (B16), inhibition of melanin synthesis and inhibition of tyrosinase activity of crude extract Al and refined extracts A2-A4 were tested to verify the whitening effect of T. matsutake. [Results] The best extraction and refining process for T. matsutake polysaccharide was: eluent 40% ethanol (volume fraction), loading amount 30 mg/g (polysaccharide-resin), diameter-to-height ratio 1:8. Under this condition, the extraction rate of T. matsutake can reach up to 33% (A3). The whitening efficacy test showed that crude extract Al and refined extracts A2-A4 had good whitening effects, and the whitening effects were A33:A4 >A1 > A2. [Conclusions] The study provides a reference for the application of T. matsutake polysaccharide in cosmetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to describe the movement characteristics of large-particle high-density charge and the development process of flow field and flame spreading in the chamber, a new modified and simplified particle element model was established based on Eulerian-Lagrangian approach, and the gas governing equations are discretized with the fifth-order WENO scheme. The experiment was carried out on the visualized experiment platform, and the relevant data were recorded by the data acquisition instrument and high-speed photography system. The results show that the numerical simulation results are in good agreement with the experiment, and the particle element model describes the process of particle motion accurately, which indicated that the problem of flow characteristics in the period of ignition and flame spreading in high-density charge solved effectively by the model. In the initial period of the ignition, the particles in the high-density charging bed moved slowly, and the law of the particles almost the same. The pressure in the middle chamber fluctuates obviously when the particles start to move. The gap in high-density charge would lead to throttling of the discontinuity surface, resulting in pressure fluctuation at the interface and the discontinuity surface of gas-phase velocity. The effects of different ignition and charging conditions on flame spreading performance are investigated and this study lays important practical significance to the application of the model on problem solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Long-term ultraviolet (UV) irradiation stimulates melanogenesis by direct effects on melanocytes and by indirect effects on keratinocytes releasing melanogenic factors. Hyperpigmentation is a major cosmetic concern. Thus, melanin synthesis inhibitors are popularly used as brightening agents in cosmetics. It has been reported that Sanchi flower extract (SFE) exerts various biological effects including hypotensive, hemostatic, and anti-aging activities. The authors explored the potential of SFE as a cosmetic ingredient. On the one hand, it could significantly inhibit melanin production both in B16-F0 cells and in the three-dimensional skin model. In addition, intracellular tyrosinase activity decreased after treatment with SFE. On the other hand, it upregulated cellular glutathione peroxidase activity and total antioxidant capacity in HaCaT cells irradiated with UVB radiation in contrast to the model group. These results indicated that SFE showed obvious antipigmentation potency and alleviated oxidative stress caused by UVB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Immunotherapy of cancer has made tremendous progress in recent years, as demonstrated by the remarkable clinical responses obtained from adoptive cell transfer (ACT) of patient-derived tumor infiltrating lymphocytes, chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-modified T cells (CAR-T) and T cell receptor (TCR)-engineered T cells (TCR-T). TCR-T uses specific TCRS optimized for tumor engagement and can recognize epitopes derived from both cell-surface and intracellular targets, including tumor-associated antigens, cancer germline antigens, viral oncoproteins, and tumor-specific neoantigens (neoAgs) that are largely sequestered in the cytoplasm and nucleus of tumor cells. Moreover, as TCRS are naturally developed for sensitive antigen detection, they are able to recognize epitopes at far lower concentrations than required for CAR-T activation. Therefore, TCR-T holds great promise for the treatment of human cancers. In this focused review, we summarize basic, translational, and clinical insights into the challenges and opportunities of TCR-T. We review emerging strategies used in current ACT, point out limitations, and propose possible solutions. We highlight the importance of targeting tumor-specific neoAgs and outline a strategy of combining neoAg vaccines, checkpoint blockade therapy, and adoptive transfer of neoAg-specific TCR-T to produce a truly tumor-specific therapy, which is able to penetrate into solid tumors and resist the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. We believe such a combination approach should lead to a significant improvement in cancer immunotherapies, especially for solid tumors, and may provide a general strategy for the eradication of multiple cancers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An increasing number of resting-state functional magnetic resonance neuroimaging (R-fMRI) studies have used functional connections as discriminative features for machine learning to identify patients with brain diseases. However, it remains unclear which functional connections could serve as highly discriminative features to realize the classification of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The aim of this study was to find ASD-related functional connectivity patterns and examine whether these patterns had the potential to provide neuroimaging-based information to clinically assist with the diagnosis of ASD by means of machine learning. We investigated the whole-brain interregional functional connections derived from R-fMRI. Data were acquired from 48 boys with ASD and 50 typically developing age-matched controls at NYU Langone Medical Center from the publicly available Autism Brain Imaging Data Exchange I (ABIDE I) dataset; the ASD-related functional connections identified by the Boruta algorithm were used as the features of support vector machine (SVM) to distinguish patients with ASD from typically developing controls (TDC); a permutation test was performed to assess the classification performance. Approximately, 92.9% of participants were correctly classified by a combined SVM and leave-one-out cross-validation (LOOCV) approach, wherein 95.8% of patients with ASD were correctly identified. The default mode network (DMN) exhibited a relatively high network degree and discriminative power. Eight important brain regions showed a high discriminative power, including the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (vlPFC). Significant correlations were found between the classification scores of several functional connections and ASD symptoms (p < 0.05). This study highlights the important role of DMN in ASD identification. Interregional functional connections might provide useful information for the clinical diagnosis of ASD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deficits in emotion regulation are the main clinical features, common risk factors, and treatment-related targets for major depressive disorder (MDD). The neural bases of emotion regulation are moving beyond specific functions and emphasizing instead the integrative functions of spatially distributed brain areas that work together as large-scale brain networks, but it is still unclear whether the dynamic interactions among these emotion networks would be the target of clinical intervention for MDD. Data were collected from 70 MDD patients and 43 sex- and age-matched healthy controls. The dynamic functional connectivity (dFC) between emotion regions was estimated via a sliding-window method based on resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (R-fMRI). A k-means clustering method was applied to classify all time windows across all participants into several dFC states reflecting recurring functional interaction patterns among emotion regions over time. The results showed that four dFC states were identified in the emotion networks. Their alterations of state-related occurrence proportion were found in MDD and subsequently normalized following 12-week antidepressant treatment. Baseline strong dFC could predict the reduction rate of Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) scores. These findings highlighted the state-dependent reconfiguration of emotion regulation networks in MDD patients owing to antidepressant treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The low rates of treatment response still exist in the pharmacological therapy of major depressive disorder (MDD). Exploring an optimal neurological predictor of symptom improvement caused by pharmacotherapy is urgently needed for improving response to treatment. The amygdala is closely related to the pathological mechanism of MDD and is expected to be a predictor of the treatment. However, previous studies ignored the heterogeneousness and lateralization of amygdala. Therefore, this study mainly aimed to explore whether the right amygdala subregion function at baseline can predict symptom improvement after 12-week pharmacotherapy in MDD patients. We performed granger causality analysis (GCA) to identify abnormal effective connectivity (EC) of right amygdala subregions in MDD and compared the EC strength before and after 12-week pharmacological therapy. The results show that the abnormal EC mainly concentrated on the frontolimbic circuitry and default mode network (DMN). With relief of the clinical symptom, these abnormal ECs also change toward normalization. In addition, the EC strength of right amygdala subregions at baseline showed significant predictive ability for symptom improvement using a regularized least-squares regression predict model. These findings indicated that the EC of right amygdala subregions may be functionally related in symptom improvement of MDD. It may aid us to understand the neurological mechanism of pharmacotherapy and can be used as a promising predictor for symptom improvement in MDD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: In recent years, machine learning techniques have received increasing attention as a promising approach to differentiating patients from healthy subjects. Therefore, some resting-state functional magnetic resonance neuroimaging (R-fMRI) studies have used interregional functional connections as discriminative features. The aim of this study was to investigate ADHD-related spatially distributed discriminative features derived from whole-brain resting-state functional connectivity patterns using machine learning. Patients and Methods: We measured the interregional functional connections of the R-fMRI data from 40 ADHD patients and 28 matched typically developing controls. Machine learning was used to discriminate ADHD patients from controls. Classification performance was assessed by permutation tests. Results: The results from the model with the highest classification accuracy showed that 85.3% of participants were correctly identified using leave-one-out cross-validation (LOOV) with support vector machine (SVM). The majority of the most discriminative functional connections were located within or between the cerebellum, default mode network (DMN) and frontoparietal regions. Approximately half of the most discriminative connections were associated with the cerebellum. The cerebellum, right superior orbitofrontal cortex, left olfactory cortex, left gyrus rectus, right superior temporal pole, right calcarine gyrus and bilateral inferior occipital cortex showed the highest discriminative power in classification. Regarding the brain–behaviour relationships, some functional connections between the cerebellum and DMN regions were significantly correlated with behavioural symptoms in ADHD (P < 0.05). Conclusion: This study indicated that whole-brain resting-state functional connections might provide potential neuroimaging-based information for clinically assisting the diagnosis of ADHD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Entropy analysis of resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (R-fMRI) has recently been adopted to characterize brain temporal dynamics in some neuropsychological or psychiatric diseases. Thalamus-related dysfunction might be a potential trait marker of major depressive disorder (MDD), but the abnormal changes in the thalamus based on R-fMRI are still unclear from the perspective of brain temporal dynamics. The aim of this study was to identify local entropy changes and subregional connectivity patterns of the thalamus in MDD patients. Patients and methods: We measured the sample entropy of the R-fMRI data from 46 MDD patients and 32 matched healthy controls. We employed the Louvain method for the module detection algorithm to automatically identify a functional parcellation of the thalamus and then examined the whole-brain subregional connectivity patterns. Results: The results indicated that the MDD patients had decreased entropy in the bilateral thalami compared with healthy controls. Increased functional connectivity between the thalamic subregions and the medial part of the superior frontal gyrus (mSFG) was found in MDD patients. Conclusion: This study showed new evidence about sample entropy changes in MDD patients. The functional connectivity alterations that were widely distributed across almost all the thalamic subregions with the mSFG in MDD suggest a general involvement independent of the location and function of the subregions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Aims: Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is a leading cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) worldwide, and the importance of tubular injury has been highlighted in recent years. However, the underlying mechanisms and effective therapeutic targets are still unclear. In this study, we investigated mtDNA, mitochondrial dynamics, function and metabolic pathways to determine if mitochondrial damage plays a critical role in the development of tubular injury in DKD patients. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out among healthy controls (HCs, n = 65), diabetes patients without kidney disease (DCs, n = 48) and DKD patients (n = 60). Serum, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and kidney biopsy specimens were obtained from participants. Metabolomics was employed to investigate cellular metabolism. Results: DKD patients had decreased mtDNA copy numbers and increased mtDNA damage compared to DCs. Mitochondrial fragmentation was specifically presented in tubules, but not in podocytes of DKD patients. The accumulation of damaged mtDNA and fragmented mitochondria resulted in increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, activation of apoptosis and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm) in tubules and PBMCs. Furthermore, glycolysis and tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle was perturbed, and increased dihydroxyacetone phosphate (DHAP) and decreased succinyl-CoA synthetase (SCS) respectively in these two metabolic pathways were identified as potential biomarkers for tubular injury in DKD. Conclusion: Our study indicates that mitochondrial damage could be the hallmark of tubular injury in DKD patients, and this would provide a novel and attractive therapeutic target to improve this disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hsa-MicroRNA-124a-3p (hsa-miR-124-3p) is involved in tumor progression in certain malignant tumors. However, its function and clinical implication in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have not yet been illustrated. In this study, we explored the expression and prognostic value of hsa-miR-124-3p in patients with HCC. Hsa-miR-124-3p expression in HCC was analyzed in silico, which was subsequently confirmed by quantitative PCR in 155 HCC biopsy samples. Overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival in HCC patients was evaluated by Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, and univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazard models were used. The in silico results demonstrated that hsa-miR-124-3p was reduced in cell lines and tissues of HCC, and hsa-miR-124-3p expression was lower in HCC tumor samples than in normal liver tissues. Moreover, a decrease in hsa-miR-124-3p expression was closely correlated with tumor diameter (≥ 5 cm) and number of lesions (multiple). Lower hsa-miR-124-3p expression was shown to be correlated with a shorter OS and poor prognosis in HCC. Our findings demonstrate that hsa-miR-124-3p might be a potential target for the diagnosis and prognosis of HCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research into cognitive emotion regulation (ER) extends our understanding of human cognition, which is capable of processing objective information and is crucial in maintaining subjective/internal homeostasis. Among various ER strategies, the alleviation of negative emotion via reappraisal is of particular importance for adaptation and psychological well-being. Although still debated, previous neuroimaging studies tend to infer that the reappraisal ER is mediated by the capability of working memory (WM), which has not been examined empirically. This meta-analytical study of published neuroimaging literature used activation likelihood estimation (ALE) to compare the neural circuits that regulate negative emotion (reappraisal tasks; 46 studies/1254 subjects) and execute WM (2-back tasks; 50 studies/1312 subjects), with special emphasis on the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Taking the canonical WM network as a reference, ALE results revealed that the dorsal midline PFC was partly shared by both ER and WM, whereas ER-specific PFC structures were delineated in the inferior, middle, and superior frontal cortices, as well as in the posterior brain regions. The peak coordinates of ER in the middle frontal cortex were dorsal to those of WM by 15.1 mm (left) and 21.6 mm (right). The results support specialized emotion-related neural substrates in the PFC, negating the assumption that reappraisal ER and WM rely on the same neural resources. The holistic picture of "emotional brain" may need to incorporate the emotion-related PFC circuit, together with subcortical and limbic emotion centers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medial orbitofrontal cortex (mOFC) abnormalities have been observed in various anxiety disorders. However, the relationship between mOFC activity and anxiety among the healthy population has not been fully examined. Here, we conducted a resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (R-fMRI) study with 56 healthy male adults from the Nathan Kline Institute/Rockland Sample (NKI-RS) to examine the relationship between the fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (fALFF) signals and trait anxiety across the whole brain. A Louvain method for module detection based on graph theory was further employed in the automated functional subdivision to explore subregional correlates of trait anxiety. The results showed that trait anxiety was related to fALFF in the mOFC. Additionally, the resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) between the right subregions of the mOFC and the precuneus was correlated with trait anxiety. These findings provided evidence about the involvement of the mOFC in anxiety processing among the healthy population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Hepatic fibrosis is a reversible pathological process. Inflammatory responses are the prevailing reactions during hepatic fibrosis. Decoy receptor 3 (DcR3) has been reported to have an anti-inflammatory effect. Objectives. The aim of the study was to investigate the preventive effects of DcR3 on hepatic fibrosis. Material and methods. Hepatic fibrosis was induced in rats by administering intraperitoneally (ip.) 1% dimethylnitrosamine (DMN). DcR3 plasmid was delivered into rats by intravenous injection. After 4 weeks, the expression of DcR3, TNF-like molecule 1A (TL1A) and α-SMA of the liver tissue were checked. The levels of inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-1β were detected using western blotting and quantitative real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Masson's trichrome staining for histopathological changes of the liver tissue was observed. Finally, the activity of NF-κB in the liver was examined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results. A higher expression of DcR3 was observed in rats treated with DcR3 (p < 0.05). Histological results showed that DcR3 significantly attenuated pathology in hepatic fibrosis rats. Consistently, mRNA and protein levels of α-SMA, TL1A, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β were repressed in the liver tissue after treatment with DcR3 (p < 0.05). Moreover, DcR3 also inhibited the activation of NF-κB in the liver tissue (p < 0.05). Conclusions. This study demonstrated that DcR3 attenuated liver injury and inflammatory responses in rats with hepatic fibrosis. We suggest DcR3 may be a prophylactic and promising therapeutic agent in the treatment of hepatic fibrosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The default‐mode network (DMN) has been reported to comprise a set of inter‐connected transmodal cortical areas, including the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), medial prefrontal cortex, posterior inferior parietal lobule, lateral temporal region and others. However, the subcortical constituents of the DMN are still not clear. This study aimed to examine whether the correlation maps derived from subcortical structures may also account for neural pattern of the DMN. Structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and resting‐state functional MRI scans of 36 subjects were selected from the Rockland sample (Nathan Kline Institute). The hippocampus and thalamus were chosen as subcortical regions of interest (ROIs). Each ROI was partitioned into composite modules which in turn provided simplified and representative dynamics of blood‐oxygen‐level‐dependent (BOLD) signals. PCC‐seeded and ROI‐based correlation maps were compared by conjunction analyses and paired t‐tests (corrected P < 0.05). Our results unveiled that the hippocampus‐, thalamus‐ and PCC‐centred correlation patterns actually overlapped to a substantial degree. Integrating the signals in the thalamus and hippocampus altogether fully explained the PCC‐seeded DMN. Supplementary analyses based on the BOLD dynamics in several subcortical nuclei (caudate, putamen and globus pallidus) were dissimilar to the DMN. The DMN derived from the ROI/seed‐based approach may represent combined limbic and region‐specific informatics (and their closely interacting neural substrates). The possible causes for previous methods of task‐induced deactivation and seed‐based correlation that failed to depict the holistic limbic picture are discussed. The neocortical manifestation of DMN may reflect the limbic information in the transmodal brain regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The effects of intravascular ultrasound (IVUS)-guided drug-eluting stent (DES) implantation in patients with complex coronary artery lesions remains to be controversial. This study sought to evaluate the outcomes of IVUS guidance in these patients. Methods: The EMBASE, Medline, and other internet sources were searched for relevant articles. The primary endpoint was major adverse cardiac events (MACE), including all-cause mortality, myocardial infarction (MI), and target-vessel revascularization (TVR). The incidence of definite/probable stent thrombosis (ST) was analyzed as the safety endpoint. Results: Fifteen clinical trials involving 8.084 patients were analyzed. MACE risk was significantly decreased following IVUS-guided DES implantation compared with coronary angiography (CAG) guidance (odds ratio [OR] 0.63, 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 0.53-0.73, p<0.001), which might mainly result from the lower all-cause mortality risk (OR 0.52, 95% CI: 0.40-0.67, p<0.001), MI (OR 0.70, 95% CI: 0.56-0.86, p=0.001), and TVR (OR 0.53, 95% CI: 0.40-0.70, p<0.001). The subgroup analyses indicated better outcomes of IVUS guidance in DES implantation for these patients with left main disease or bifurcation lesions. Conclusion: IVUS guidance in DES implantation is associated with a significant reduction in MACE risk in patients with complex lesions, particularly those with left main disease or bifurcation lesions. More large and powerful randomized trials are still warranted to guide stenting decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate the effects of porous gradient composites with hydroxyapatite/zirconia and autologous iliac in repair of lumbar vertebra body defects in dogs. Methods: (I) New porous gradient hydroxyapatite/zirconia composites were prepared using foam immersion, gradient compound and high temperature sintering; (2) A total of 18 adult beagle dogs, aged five to eight months and weighted 10-13 kg, were randomly assigned into two subgroups, which were implanted with new porous gradient hydroxyapatite/ zirconia composites (subgroup A in 12) or autologous iliac bone (subgroup B in 6); (3) The post-operative data were analyzed and compared between the subgroups to repair the vertebral body defect by roentgenoscopy, morphology and biomechanics. Results: The porosity of new porous gradient hydroxyapatite/zirconia composites is at 25 poles per inch, and the size of pores is at between 150 and 300 μm. The post-operative roentgenoscopy displayed that new-bone formation is increased gradually, and the interface between composites and host-bone becomes became blur, and the new-bone around the composites were integrated into host-bone at 24 weeks postoperatively in subgroup A. As to subgroup B, the resorption and restructure were found at six weeks after the surgery, and the graft-bone and host-bone have been integrated completely without obvious boundary at 24 weeks postoperatively. Histomorphologic study showed that the amount of bone within pores of the porous gradient hydroxyapatite/zirconia composites increased continuously with a prolonged implantation time, and that partial composites were degradated and replaced by new-bone trabeculae. There was no significant difference between subgroups (P>0.05) in the ultimate compressive strengths. Conclusion: New porous gradient hydroxyapatite/zirconia composites can promote the repair of bony defect, and induce bone tissue to ingrow into the pores, which may be applied widely to the treatment of bony defect in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The effects of intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) usage in patients with acute myocardial infarction remain controversial. This study sought to evaluate the outcomes of IABP usage in these patients. Methods: Medline, EMBASE, and other internet sources were searched for relevant clinical trials. The primary efficacy endpoints (in-hospital, midterm, and long-term mortality) and secondary endpoints (reinfarction, recurrent ischemia, and new heart failure in the hospital) as well as safety endpoints (severe bleeding requiring blood transfusion and stroke in-hospital) were subsequently analyzed. Results: Thirty-three clinical trials involving 18,889 patients were identified. The risk of longterm mortality in patients suffering from acute myocardial infarction was significantly decreased following IABP use (odds ratio [OR] 0.66, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.48-0.91, P=0.010). Both in-hospital and midterm mortality did not differ significantly between the IABP use group and no IABP use group (in-hospital: OR 0.87, 95% CI: 0.59-1.28, P=0.479; midterm: OR 1.12, 95% CI: 0.53-2.38, P=0.768). IABP insertion was not associated with the risk reduction of reinfarction, recurrent ischemia, or new heart failure. However, IABP use increased the risk of severe bleeding requiring blood transfusion (OR 2.05, 95% CI: 1.29-3.25, P=0.002) and stroke (OR 1.71, 95% CI: 1.04-2.82, P=0.035). In the thrombolytic therapy and cardiogenic shock subgroups, reduced mortality rates following IABP use were observed. Conclusion: IABP insertion is associated with feasible benefits with respect to long-term survival rates in patients suffering from acute myocardial infarction, particularly those suffering from cardiogenic shock and receiving thrombolytic therapy, but at the cost of higher incidence of severe bleeding and stroke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent evidence suggests that histone modifications play a role in the behavioral effects of cocaine in rodent models. Histone arginine is knownto be methylated by protein arginineN-methyltransferases (PRMTs). Evidence shows thatPRMT1contributes to90%of cellular PRMT activity, which regulates histone H4 arginine 3 asymmetric dimethylation (H4R3me2a). Though histone arginine methylation represents a chemical modification that is relatively stable compared with other histone alterations, it is less well studied in the setting of addiction. Here, we demonstrate that repeated noncontingent cocaine injections increase PRMT1 activity in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) of C57BL/6 mice. We, subsequently, identify a selective inhibitor of PRMT1, SKLB-639, and show that systemic injections of the drug decrease cocaine-induced conditioned place preference to levels observed with genetic knockdown of PRMT1. NAc-specific downregulation of PRMT1 leads to hypomethylation of H4R3me2a, and hypoacetylation of histone H3 lysine 9 and 14. We also found that H4R3me2ais upregulated inNAcafter repeated cocaine administration, and thatH4R3me2aupregulation in turn controls the expression of Cdk5 and CaMKII. Additionally, the suppression ofPRMT1in NAc with lentiviral-short hairpinPMRT1decreases levels of CaMKII and Cdk5 in the cocaine-treated group, demonstrating that PRMT1 affects the ability of cocaine to induce CaMKII and Cdk5 in NAc. Notably, increased H4R3me2a by repeated cocaine injections is relatively long-lived, as increased expression was observed for up to 7 d after the last cocaine injection. These results show the role of PRMT1 in the behavioral effects of cocaine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Nicotine is rapidly absorbed from cigarette smoke and therefore induces a number of chronic illnesses with the widespread use of tobacco products. Studies have shown a few cerebral metabolites modified by nicotine; however, endogenous metabolic profiling in brain has not been well explored. Results H NMR-based on metabonomics was applied to investigate the endogenous metabolic profiling of brain hippocampus, nucleus acumens (NAc), prefrontal cortex (PFC) and striatum. We found that nicotine significantly increased CPP in mice, and some specific cerebral metabolites differentially changed in nicotine-treated mice. These modified metabolites included glutamate, acetylcholine, tryptamine, glucose, lactate, creatine, 3- hydroxybutyrate and nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide (NAD), which was closely associated with neurotransmitter and energy source. Additionally, glutathione and taurine in hippocampus and striatum, phosphocholine in PFC and glycerol in NAc were significantly modified by nicotine, implying the dysregulation of anti-oxidative stress response and membrane metabolism. Conclusions Nicotine induces significant metabonomic alterations in brain, which are involved in neurotransmitter disturbance, energy metabolism dysregulation, anti-oxidation and membrane function disruptions, as well as amino acid metabolism imbalance. These findings provide a new insight into rewarding effects of nicotine and the underlying mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cancer testis antigen Preferentially Expressed Antigen of Melanoma (PRAME) is overexpressed in many solid tumours and haematological malignancies whilst showing minimal expression in normal tissues and is therefore a promising target for immunotherapy. HLA-A0201-restricted peptide epitopes from PRAME have previously been identified as potential immunogens to drive antigen-specific autologous CTL responses, capable of lysing PRAME expressing tumour cells. CTL lines, from 13 normal donors and 10 melanoma patients, all of whom were HLA-A0201 positive, were generated against the PRAME peptide epitope PRA. Specific killing activity against PRA peptide-pulsed targets was weak compared with CTL lines directed against known immunodominant peptides. Moreover, limiting dilution cloning from selected PRAME-specific CTL lines resulted in the generation of a clone of only low to intermediate avidity. Addition of the demethylating agent 5-aza-2′-Deoxycytidine (DAC) increased PRAME expression in 7 out of 11 malignant cell lines including several B lineage leukaemia lines and also increased class I expression. Pre-treatment of target cells was associated with increased sensitivity to antigen-specific killing by the low avidity CTL. When CTL, as well as of the target cells, were treated, the antigen-specific killing was further augmented. Interestingly, one HLA-A0201-negative DAC-treated line (RAJI) showed increased sensitivity to killing by clones despite a failure of expression of PRAME or HLA-A0201. Together these data point to a general increased augmentation of cancer immunogenocity by DAC involving both antigen-specific and non-specific mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Fine needle aspirates from Burkitt''s lymphoma and other tumours transferred directly into ThinPrep® PreservCyt® (Cytyc UK Ltd, Crawley, UK) buffered alcohol fixative retain their cellular and viral antigens and nucleic acids for many months at ambient temperatures. Despite the presence of blood and debris, cells dried onto slides from droplets and post-fixed in formalin, or sections of paraffin-embedded cell blocks from formalin post-fixed pellets, prove adequate for morphology, immunocytochemistry, in-situ hybridization and molecular biological analyses. Where there is lack of expertise in making thin smears or hospitals lack pathology laboratories and services, PreservCyt® provides an excellent medium for transport elsewhere for diagnosis and research. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

On the basis of qualitative identification on blended products of Shengma and cotton, Shengma and wool fibers, their quantitative identification methods were carried out with microscope observation and dissolution methods. In the quantitative identification on blended products of Shengma and cotton fibers ,the formic acid-zinc chloride was chose as the dissolvent and the test process condition was optimized. The dissolvent can dissolve Shengma fibers but retain cotton, so that the percentage content of dry weight of both the fibers can be calculated, and in the quantitative identification on blended products of Shengma and wool fibers, the alkaline sodium hypochiorite was chose as dissolvent, and it can dissolve wool but retain Shengma, thus the percentage content of dry weight of both the fibers can be calculated. The test results showed that the methods used had high accuracy and were simple and feasible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transfer of T cell receptor (TCR) genes allows to endow T cells with a new antigen specificity. For clinical applications of TCR-redirected T cells, efficient functional expression of the transgenic TCR is a key prerequisite. Here, we compared the influence of the transgene cassette on the expression and function of the murine TCR P14 (recognizing a LCMV gp33 epitope) and the human TCR WT-1 (recognizing an epitope of the tumor-associated antigen WT-1). We constructed different vectors, in which TCRα- and β-chain genes were either (a) linked by an internal ribosomal entry site (IRES), (b) combined by a 2A peptide, or (c) introduced into two individual retroviral constructs. While in a TCR-deficient T cell line TCR P14 was expressed equally well by all constructs, we found that IRES- but not 2A-employing TCR expression is hampered in a TCR-bearing cell line and in primary murine T cells where the transgenic TCR has to compete with endogenous TCR chains. Similarly, 2A-linked TCR WT-1 genes yielded highest expression and function as measured by tetramer binding and peptide-specific IFN-γ secretion. Differences in expression were independent of copy number integration as shown by real-time PCR. Thus, linking TCRα- and β-chain genes by a 2A peptide is superior to an IRES for TCR expression and T cell function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By using an Ar+ion laser, a tunable Rh 6 G dye laser (linewidth 0.5 cm?1) pumped by the second harmonic of a YAG:Nd laser and a Coherent 899-21 dye laser as light sources and using a monochromator, a phase-locking amplifier and a computer as the data detecting system, we detect the optical properties of Eu3+-doped Y2SiO5crystal. Persistent spectral hole burning (PSHB) are observed in the Eu3+ions spectral lines (5D0?7F0transition) in the crystal at the temperature of 16 K. For 15 mW dye laser burning the crystal for 0.1 s spectral holes with hole width about 80 MHz both at 579.62 nm and at 579.82 nm are detected and the holes can remain for a long time, more than 10 h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In terms of the quantitative causal principle, this paper obtains a general variational principle, gives unified expressions of the general, Hamilton, Voss, Hölder, Maupertuis–Lagrange variational principles of integral style, the invariant quantities of the general, Voss, Hölder, Maupertuis–Lagrange variational principles are given, finally the Noether conservation charges of the general, Voss, Hölder, Maupertuis–Lagrange variational principles are deduced, and the intrinsic relations among the invariant quantities and the Noether conservation charges of all the integral variational principles are achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The noncollinear optical parametric amplification in BBO crystal is theoretically investigated. The phase matching angle, gain bandwidth, optimal noncollinear angle and conversion efficiency for both type-1 and type-II BBO are simulated. The numerical simulation results are important to the practical optical parametric amplification experiments with BBO crystal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fluorescence properties of Eu3+ :Y2Si05 have been investigated. Transitions between 5D and 7Fwere were studied with transmission spectra, fluorescence spectra, photoluminescence excitation (or absorption) spectra and site selective fluorescence spectra. The X-ray powder diffraction pattern of Eu3+ :Y2Si05 shows that the crystal belong to monoclinic, and lattice’s constants a, b, c and β are obtained by a simulation with the measured diffraction angles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported an error in affiliation 5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Proteogenomic characterization and integrative and comparative genomic analysis provide a functional context to annotate genomic abnormalities with prognostic value. Methods: Here, we analyzed the proteomes and performed whole exome and transcriptome sequencing and single nucleotide polymorphism array profiling for 2 sets of triplet samples comprised of normal colorectal tissue, primary CRC tissue, and synchronous matched liver metastatic tissue. Results: We identified 112 CNV-mRNA-protein correlated molecules, including up-regulated COL1A2 and BGN associated with prognosis, and four strongest hot spots (chromosomes X, 7, 16 and 1) driving global mRNA abundance variation in CRC liver metastasis. Two sites (DMRTB1R202H and PARP4V458I) were revealed to frequent mutate only in the liver metastatic cohort and displayed dysregulated protein abundance. Moreover, we confirmed that the mutated peptide number has potential prognosis value and somatic variants displayed increased protein abundance, including high MYH9 and CCT6A expression, with clinical significance. Conclusions: Our proteogenomic characterization and integrative and comparative genomic analysis provides a new paradigm for understanding human colon and rectal cancer liver metastasis. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials, NCT02917707. Registered 28 September 2016, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02917707. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]