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Highlights • The level of PD-L1 expression can predict efficacy of EGFR-TKI. • Higher PD-L1 expression had high incidence of primary resistance to EGFR TKI. • Higher PD-L1 expression had shorter progression-free survival. Abstract Objectives The main objective was to investigate the relationship between Programmed cell Death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression levels and the frequency of primary resistance to Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR)-Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor (TKI) in treatment naïve advanced EGFR -mutant lung adenocarcinoma patients. Materials and methods From 2012–2017, we enrolled advanced EGFR -mutant lung adenocarcinoma patients who displayed primary resistance to EGFR-TKI therapy, along with patients with disease control, and patients experiencing either stable disease or partial response to EGFR-TKI treatment. Results Sixty-six patients were enrolled as the primary resistance group, while 57 patients were included as the disease control group. Fifteen-five (22.7%) patients had a PD-L1 Tumor Proportion Score (TPS) ≧50% in the primary resistance group, with only one patient (1.8%) having that score in the disease control group (P＜0.001). Twenty (30.3%) patients had a PD-L1 ≧25% in the primary resistance group, with 2 (3.5%) patients having that level in the disease control group (P＜0.001). Thirty (45.5%) patients had a PD-L1 ≧1% in the primary resistance group, with 7 (12.3%) patients at that level in the disease control group (P = 0.001). Patients with a PD-L1≧1% displayed a higher incidence of primary resistance to EGFR-TKIs than those with a PD-L1＜1% (Odds Ratio (OR), 5.95; 95% Confidence Interval (CI), 2.35–15.05; P＜0.001). The phenomenon existed still when the cutoff value was changed to both 25% (OR, 11.96; 95% CI, 2.65–53.87; P = 0.001) and 50% (OR, 16.47; 95% CI, 2.10–129.16; P = 0.008). The estimated median Progression-free Survival (PFS) rate was 7.3 months in patients with a PD-L1＜1%, 2.1 months in patients with a PD-L1≧1%, 1.8 months in patients with a PD-L1≧25%, and 1.6 months in patients with a PD-L1≧50%. Conclusions Treatment for advanced EGFR -mutant lung adenocarcinoma patients displaying a higher PD-L1 expression level experienced a higher frequency of primary resistance to EGFR-TKIs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The removal of indium ions from aqueous solution was carried out by electrocoagulation in batch mode using an iron electrode. Various operating parameters that could potentially affect the removal efficiency were investigated, including the current density, pH variation, supporting electrolyte, initial concentration, and temperature. The optimum current density, supporting electrolyte concentration, and temperature were found to be 6.4mA/cm2, 0.003N NaCl, and 298K, respectively. When the pH values lower than 6.1, the removal efficiencies of indium ions via electrocoagulation were up to 5 times greater than those by adding sodium hydroxide. The indium ion removal efficiency decreased with an increase in the initial concentration. Results for the indium ion removal kinetics at various current densities show that the kinetic rates conformed to the pseudo-second-order kinetic model with good correlation. The experimental data were also tested against different adsorption isotherm models for describing the electrocoagulation process. The adsorption of indium ions preferably fitting the Langmuir adsorption isotherm suggests monolayer coverage of adsorbed molecules. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on human society. The isolation of SARS-CoV-2 from patients' feces on human cell line raised concerns of possible transmission through human feces including exposure to aerosols generated by toilet flushing and through the indoor drainage system. Currently, routes of transmission, other than the close contact droplet transmission, are still not well understood. A quantitative microbial risk assessment was conducted to estimate the health risks associated with two aerosol exposure scenarios: 1) toilet flushing, and 2) faulty connection of a floor drain with the building's main sewer pipe. SARS-CoV-2 data were collected from the emerging literature. The infectivity of the virus in feces was estimated based on a range of assumption between viral genome equivalence and infectious unit. The human exposure dose was calculated using Monte Carlo simulation of viral concentrations in aerosols under each scenario and human breathing rates. The probability of COVID-19 illness was generated using the dose-response model for SARS-CoV-1, a close relative of SARS-CoV-2, that was responsible for the SARS outbreak in 2003. The results indicate the median risks of developing COVID-19 for a single day exposure is 1.11 × 10−10 and 3.52 × 10−11 for toilet flushing and faulty drain scenario, respectively. The worst case scenario predicted the high end of COVID-19 risk for the toilet flushing scenario was 5.78 × 10−4 (at 95th percentile). The infectious viral loads in human feces are the most sensitive input parameter and contribute significantly to model uncertainty. Unlabelled Image • QMRA was performed to estimate SARS-CoV-2 transmission risk from human feces. • We investigated toilet flushing and faulty in-door plumbing as exposure scenarios. • The estimated risks were lower than the report of Amoy Gardens scenario. • Infectious SARS-CoV-2 concentration in human feces is an important uncertainty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work describes the impact of indium content of the structural properties and sensing characteristics of ZnIn x O y sensing films for extended-gate field-effect transistor (EGFET) sensors. The synthesis of the ZnIn x O y sensing films was made by a solution processing technique directly deposited on flexible polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) through a simple spin-coating method. The synthesized ZnIn x O y films at three different indium concentrations (10%, 20% and 30% moles) were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and atomic force microscopy to examine their chemical features, film structures and surface morphologies, respectively. Experiments were performed to explore the pH sensitivity, drift rate, and hysteresis voltage in the ZnIn x O y EGFET sensors. Compare with these conditions, a higher pH sensitivity of 61.76 mV/pH, a lower drift rate of 1.08 mV/h, and a smaller hysteresis voltage of ∼1 mV were obtained in the ZnIn x O y EGFET sensor fabricated at the 20% condition. Moreover, after 500 bending cycles, the ZnIn x O y EGFET sensor fabricated at the 20% condition showed good mechanical flexibility. The ZnIn x O y EGFET sensor also demonstrated a high selective response towards H+. This result indicates that the ZnIn x O y sensing film with a rougher surface and a higher Zn–O–In content to generate lower crystal deformities, imperfections and oxygen vacancies. • Impact of In content of structural and sensing characteristics of chemical solution processed ZnIn x O y sensing films on flexible PEN. • ZnIn x O y EGFET sensor treated at 20% condition exhibited the best sensing performance. • ZnIn x O y EGFET sensor showed good mechanical flexibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Supercritical carbon dioxide extraction, which is a feasible “green” alternative, was applied in this study as a sample pretreatment step for the removal of gallium (III) ions from acidic aqueous solution. The effect of various process parameters, including various chelating agents, extraction pressure and temperature, dimensionless CO2 volume, the concentration of the chelating agent, and the pH of the solution, governing the efficiency and throughput of the procedure were systematically investigated. The performance of the various chelating agents from different studies indicated that the extraction efficiency of supercritical CO2 was in the order: thiopyridine (PySH)>thenoyltrifluoroacetone (TTAH)>acetylacetone (AcAcH). The optimal extraction pressure and temperature for the supercritical CO2 extraction of gallium (III) with chelating agent PySH were found to be 70°C and 3000psi, respectively. The optimum concentration of the chelating agent was found to be 50ppm. A value of 7.5 was selected as the optimum dimensionless CO2 volume. The optimum pH of the solution for supercritical CO2 extraction should fall in the range of 2.0–3.0. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]