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Polycarbonate/acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (PC/ABS) blends are widely used as engineering plastic alloys; however, they have a low fire safety level. To improve the flame-retardant property of PC/ABS, a zirconium-based metal-organic framework material (UiO-66) was synthesized with zirconium chloride and terephthalic acid and used as a flame-retardant cooperative agent. Its flame-retardant performance and mode of action in the PC/ABS blends were carefully investigated. The results showed that UiO-66 had good thermal stability and delayed the pyrolysis of the materials, thus significantly enhancing the efficiency of intumescent flame retardants. By compounding 7.0 wt% hexaphenyloxy-cyclotri-phosphazene (HPCTP) with 3.0 wt% UiO-66, the PC/ABS blends reached a limiting oxygen index value of 27.0% and V0 rating in the UL-94 test, showing significantly improved resistance to combustion dripping. In addition, UiO-66 enhanced the smoke and heat suppression characteristics of the intumescent flame-retardant materials. Finally, the flame-retardant mode of action in the blends was indicative of UiO-66 having a cooperative effect on the flame-retardant performance of PC/ABS/HPCTP materials. This work provides good ideas for further development of the flame-retardant ABS/PC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of intravitreal injections of 0.5 mg conbercept in patients with choroidal neovascularization secondary to pathological myopia (pmCNV). Methods: The 177 pmCNV patients were randomly assigned in a 3:1 ratio to receive conbercept or sham injection, respectively. The conbercept group receive conbercept intravitreal injections administered on a pro re nata (PRN) basis after 3 monthly loading doses. The sham group received three consecutive monthly sham injections and then one conbercept injection followed by PRN conbercept intravitreal injections. Results: At month 3, the mean BCVA for the two groups were improved by 12.0 letters (conbercept group, from 54.05 letters to 66.05 letters) and 0.6 letters (sham group, from 49.77 letters to 50.33 letters), respectively (p < 0.001). The mean central retinal thickness (CRT) at month 3 in the two groups decreased 62.0 μm (conbercept group, from 348.90 μm to 286.18 μm) and 4.4 μm (sham group, from 347.86 μm to 343.47 μm) (p < 0.001). At month 9, the mean BCVA improved by 13.3 letters in the conbercept group and 11.3 letters in the sham group. The mean CRT decreased 73.6 μm in the conbercept group and 55.9 μm in the sham group (p < 0.001). The most common ocular adverse events were associated with intravitreal injections, such as conjunctival haemorrhage and increased intraocular pressure. Conclusion: Intravitreal injections of 0.5 mg conbercept provided improvement in visual and anatomical outcomes in pmCNV patients with low rates of ocular and nonocular safety events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The comprehensive treatment mode of combining concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) with adjuvant chemotherapy (AC) is a commonly used mainstream model in the clinical practice of locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC). However, the necessity for AC after CCRT lacks sufficient evidence-based medical support. This study constructs a predictive model for the survival time dependence of CCRT ± AC for LACC based on the 2018 International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) staging with internal validation, the prognosis was assessed with intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and concurrent cisplatin, and provides guidance for future stratified treatment. Materials and Methods: The retrospective analysis included 482 patients with LACC who CCRT from January 2016 to January 2023. Patients who used the 2009 FIGO staging were all standardized for the 2018 FIGO staging. The 482 patients with LACC were divided into a training set ( n = 290) and a validation set ( n = 192) at a ratio of 6:4. COX multivariate regression model and LASSO regression were used to screen for independent prognostic factors affecting progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), and a nomogram clinical prediction model was constructed based on these factors. Evaluate the effectiveness of the model through the receiver operating characteristic curve, calibration curve, decision curve, risk heat map, and survival curves for risk stratification. Results: The PFS and OS independent prognostic risk factors affecting the 2018 FIGO staging of LACC during CCRT were validated to be similar to the 2009 FIGO staging prediction model reported in previous literature. In the training cohort, area under the curve (AUC) values at 1, 3, and 5 years were 0.941, 0.882, and 0.885 for PFS, and 0.946, 0.946, and 0.969 for OS, respectively. When applied to a test cohort, the model also showed accurate prediction result (AUC at 1, 3, and 5 years were 0.869, 0.891, and 0.899 for PFS, and 0.891, 0.941 and 0.878 for OS, respectively). Subgroup analysis suggests that patients with LACC, adenocarcinoma, stage IVA, pelvic lymph node metastasis, pretreatment hemoglobin ≤100 g/l and residual tumor diameter >2 cm, who received CCRT in the 2018 FIGO stage, may benefit more from adjuvant chemtherapy. Conclusions: Based on the 2018 FIGO staging, a nomogram prediction model for PFS and OS in patients with LACC undergoing CCRT was developed. The model, established by combining weighted clinical and pathological factors, can provide more personalized treatment predictions in clinical practice. For patients with high-risk factors such as residual tumor diameter > 2 cm after CCRT for LACC, AC may bring benefits.