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Purpose: To identify high‐risk histopathologic and molecular features of local recurrence, nodal metastasis, distant metastasis (DM) and disease‐specific death (DSD) in conjunctival melanoma (CoM). Methods: Ninety patients with pathologically diagnosed CoM between 2008 and 2023 were enrolled. Immunohistochemistry staining of BRAFV600E, NRASQ61R, CD117, PD‐1 and PD‐L1 was performed in 65 and 45 patients, respectively. Cox regression and Kaplan–Meier survival analysis were conducted to identify risk factors for local recurrence, nodal metastasis, DM and DSD. Results: Pathologically, ulceration (hazard ratio [HR]: 3.170; 95% CI: 1.312–7.659; p = 0.01) and regression (HR: 3.196; 95% CI: 1.094–9.335; p = 0.034) were risk factors for DM. Tumour thickness ≥ 4 mm (HR: 4.889; 95% CI: 1.846–12.946; p = 0.001) and regression (HR: 4.011; 95% CI: 1.464–10.991; p = 0.007) were risk factors for DSD. For patients with tumour thickness < 4 mm, the presence of ulceration indicated a higher risk of nodal metastasis (log‐rank p = 0.0011), DM (log‐rank p = 0.00051) and DSD (log‐rank p = 0.02). Patients with regression (+)/tumour‐infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) (+) had a higher risk for DM (log‐rank p = 0.011) and DSD (log‐rank p = 0.0032). Molecularly, the positive rate of BRAFV600E, NRASQ61R, CD117, PD‐1 and PD‐L1 was 40.00% (26/65), 43.08% (28/65), 70.77% (46/65), 46.67% (21/45) and 28.89% (13/45), respectively. Positive BRAFV600E was identified as an independent risk factor for DM (HR: 2.533; 95% CI: 1.046–6.136, p = 0.039). The expression level of BRAFV600E was positively correlated with vascular invasion (p = 0.01), as well as the expression levels of PD‐1 (p = 0.038) and PD‐L1 (p = 0.049). Conclusions: Tumour thickness ≥ 4 mm, ulceration, the coexistence of regression and TILs, and positive BRAFV600E were risk factors for poor prognosis of CoM patients. Besides, expression level of BRAFV600E was positively correlated with the expression levels of PD‐1 and PD‐L1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rationale: Hypercholesterolemia is an important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and death. This study performed pseudo‐targeted lipidomics to identify differentially expressed plasma lipids in hypercholesterolemia, to provide a scientific basis for the diagnosis and pathogenesis of hypercholesterolemia. Methods: Pseudo‐targeted lipidomic analyses of plasma lipids from 20 patients with hypercholesterolemia and 20 normal control subjects were performed using liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry. Differentially expressed lipids were identified by principal component analysis and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis. Receiver operating characteristic curves were used to identify differentially expressed lipids with high diagnostic value. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway database was used to identify enriched metabolic pathways. Results: We identified 13 differentially expressed lipids in hypercholesterolemia using variable importance of projection > 1 and p < 0.05 as threshold parameters. The levels of eight sphingomyelins and cholesterol sulfate were higher and those of three triacylglycerols and lysophosphatidylcholine were reduced in hypercholesterolemia. Seven differentially expressed plasma lipids showed high diagnostic value for hypercholesterolemia. Functional enrichment analyses showed that pathways related to necroptosis, sphingolipid signaling, sphingolipid metabolism, and steroid hormone biosynthesis were enriched. Conclusions: This pseudo‐targeted lipidomics study demonstrated that multiple sphingomyelins and cholesterol sulfate were differentially expressed in the plasma of patients with hypercholesterolemia. We also identified seven plasma lipids, including six sphingomyelins and cholesterol sulfate, with high diagnostic value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reported a micro flow cytometer capable of high‐throughput characterization of single‐cell electrical and structural features based on constrictional microchannels and deep neural networks. When single cells traveled through microchannels with constricted cross‐sectional areas, they effectively blocked concentrated electric field lines, producing large impedance variations. Meanwhile, the traveling cells were confined within the cross‐sectional areas of the constrictional microchannels, enabling the capture of high‐quality images without losing focuses. Then single‐cell features from impedance profiles and optical images were extracted from customized recurrent and convolution networks (RNN and CNN), which were further fused for cell‐type classification based on support vector machines (SVM). As a demonstration, two leukemia cell lines (e.g., HL60 vs. Jurkat) were analyzed, producing high‐classification accuracies of 99.3% based on electrical features extracted from Long Short‐Term Memory (LSTM) of RNN, 96.7% based on structural features extracted from Resnet18 of CNN and 100.0% based on combined features enabled by SVM. The microfluidic flow cytometry developed in this study may provide a new perspective for the field of single‐cell analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) was identified in 2019, it has caused more than 664 million confirmed cases and more than 6.7 million deaths globally by January 20, 2023. So far, the novel coronavirus has undergone mutations from the original, Alpha, Delta, and Omicron strains. Omicron was first detected in South Africa in November 2021 and has since spread rapidly to more than 100 countries around the world, leading the World Health Organization (WHO) to classify it as a "variant of concern" for COVID‐19. Due to its stronger infectivity, faster transmission, and higher reinfection rate, it is more likely to cause immune evasion and infection breakthrough in the vaccinated population. Omicron has replaced Delta strain as the main epidemic strain imported from overseas and in China. People with immunodeficiency are more susceptible to the novel coronavirus due to abnormal immune function, and viral infections tend to be more lasting and severe. In addition, due to the existence of underlying diseases, most people with immunodeficiency have been taking immunosuppressants and other related drugs for a long time, and there are different degrees of interaction between novel coronavirus treatment drugs and original drugs, which brings great challenges to the diagnosis and treatment of people with immunodeficiency after infection with novel coronavirus. According to the Novel Coronavirus Infection Diagnosis and Treatment Protocol (Trial 10th Edition) issued by the National Health Commission, which emphasizes "strengthening the protection of key groups," people with immune deficiency belong to the high‐risk groups of severe or critical disease. Based on the evidence of evidence‐based medicine and after many discussions by experts from multiple disciplines (Department of Respiratory and Critical Care, Department of Organ Transplantation, Department of Rheumatology, Department of Hematology, Department of Infection, Department of Critical Care Medicine, etc.), 13 recommendations are summarized to provide theoretical and practical reference for the diagnosis and treatment strategy of this special population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An area‐ and energy‐efficient encoding method and encoder architecture are proposed for the quasi‐cyclic low‐density parity check (LDPC) in near‐earth applications recommended by the Consultant Committee for Space Data Systems. The proposed encoding method reduces the computational complexity using a switch network before bit XOR operations in vector–matrix multiplication. A fully parallel LDPC encoder is implemented on the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company 90 nm complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology, achieving a throughput of 10.06 Tbps with the lower area and energy utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The five‐part differential of leukocytes plays key roles in the diagnosis of a variety of diseases and is realized by optical examinations of single cells, which is prone to various artifacts due to chemical treatments. The classification of leukocytes based on electrical impedances without cell treatments has not been demonstrated because of limitations in approaches of impedance acquisition and data processing. In this study, based on treatment‐free single‐cell impedance profiles collected from impedance flow cytometry leveraging constriction microchannels, two types of neural pattern recognition were conducted for comparisons with the purpose of realizing the five‐part differential of leukocytes. In the first approach, 30 features from impedance profiles were defined manually and extracted automatically, and then a feedforward neural network was conducted, producing a classification accuracy of 84.9% in the five‐part leukocyte differential. In the second approach, a customized recurrent neural network was developed to process impedance profiles directly and based on deep learning, a classification accuracy of 97.5% in the five‐part leukocyte differential was reported. These results validated the feasibility of the five‐part leukocyte differential based on label‐free impedance profiles of single cells and thus provide a new perspective of differentiating white blood cells based on impedance flow cytometry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Bleeding is a severe complication of patients supported with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). This study aimed to analyze the occurrence, risk factors, and clinical outcomes of patients on ECMO with bleeding complications. Methods: ECMO cases reported to the multicenter ECMO registry database of the Chinese Society of Extracorporeal Life Support (CSECLS) from January 2017 to December 2020 were enrolled. General information, ECMO indications, application, complications, and patient outcomes were collected and analyzed. Results: A total of 6541 ECMO patients from 112 centers were enrolled. Overall, 1185 patients (18.1%) presented with one of the following bleeding complications, including 82 cases (1.3%) with severe bleeding during ECMO catheterization, 462 cases (7.1%) with bleeding at the ECMO cannulation site, 200 cases (3.5%) with bleeding at the surgical site, 180 cases (2.8%) with cerebral hemorrhage, 99 cases (1.5%) with pulmonary hemorrhage, 200 cases (3.5%) with gastrointestinal hemorrhage, 82 cases (1.3%) with ECMO withdrawal, and 118 (1.8%) deaths due to severe bleeding. Extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ECPR) patients had the highest incidence of bleeding complications (22.4%), followed by those on circulatory support (18.7%) and respiratory support (15.4%) (p < 0.001). Multivariate analysis showed that pediatric patients (odds ratio [OR] 1.509, p < 0.001), patients receiving renal replacement therapy (OR 1.932, p < 0.001), and patients receiving central ECMO cannulation (OR 3.023, p < 0.001) were independent risk factors for all bleeding complications, while peripheral cannulation (OR 0.712, p < 0.001) was an independent protective factor. Patients with any bleeding complication had significantly higher in‐hospital mortality than patients without (61.9% vs. 46.3%, p < 0.001). Conclusion: Up to 18.1% of ECMO patients in the CSECLS registry experienced bleeding complications, which was associated with higher in‐hospital mortality, especially in patients who received ECPR, patients on circulatory support, and pediatric patients, which should arouse the attention of clinicians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Combining DSC/TG–QMS analysis and dilatometry experiments at constant heating rates, the sintering behaviors of the Ti(C,N)‐based cermets with carbon additives were studied. It is found that the additives of diamond or graphite could promote the interactions among raw powders during solid‐state sintering. The outgassing behavior and endothermic effect were enhanced, thereby resulting in the increasing densification activation energy. The negative activation energy during the liquid phase sintering indicates that the dissolution–precipitation process occurs easily and provides a rapid densification path. The dissolution–precipitation process for cermets with.6‐wt% graphite or.6‐wt% diamond additive became more efficient than for cermets without additional carbon additive. The white‐core/gray‐rim grains were clustered together in the cermets with.6‐wt% graphite additive, whereas they were distributed evenly in the cermets with.6‐wt% diamond additive. Moreover, the average sizes of ceramic grains in the cermets without additional carbon additive, and with.6‐wt% graphite or.6‐wt% diamond additives, were.453, and.517, or.525 μm, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: In 2017, a subset of cellular variants of myofibroma and myopericytoma with a smooth muscle‐like immunophenotype and harbouring recurrent SRF::RELA gene fusions was reported. Although the anatomical distribution was found to be quite broad, no tumours with these gene fusions in the female reproductive system have been illustrated to date. Methods and results: Herein, we report the histological and immunophenotypical features of three uterine tumours with SRF::RELA gene fusions. Microscopically, all three tumours were composed of cellular oval to spindle cells arranged in intersecting fascicles with variable amounts of collagen and a rich capillary network. Mitotic figures were scant. Regarding immunohistochemistry, diffuse staining for desmin, oestrogen receptor and progesterone receptor was observed in all three cases. The first case exhibited focal staining for h‐caldesmon, whereas the latter two cases had diffuse staining. Furthermore, SRF::RELA rearrangement was observed in all three cases by using next‐generation sequencing (NGS). Follow‐up, ranging from 11 to 15 months, was available for these three patients, all of whom were well without evidence of disease. Conclusions: In conclusion, we reported a special group of uterine neoplasms with myogenic differentiation harbouring SRF::RELA rearrangement. Although the follow‐up time was limited, morphological characteristics and other studies with follow‐up data supported that this type of uterine neoplasm appeared to behave in a benign manner. Further studies with longer follow‐up are needed to clarify the biological nature of this particular type of uterine tumour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Histone deacetylases (HDACs) are involved in many processes including tumor cell growth and proliferation and regulation of gene expression. To clarify the role of class IIa HDACs in the metastasis of colon adenocarcinoma, we used the class IIa HDAC inhibitor TMP269 and found that it effectively inhibited the migration ability of colon adenocarcinoma cells. Next, we silenced the member of class IIa HDACs and confirmed that the migratory ability of colon adenocarcinoma cells was significantly inhibited by silencing HDAC5 or HDAC7. HDAC5 plays a variety of roles in human cancers. Here, we examined the role of HDAC5 in colon adenocarcinoma. The results indicated that HDAC5 was highly expressed in tumor tissues and negatively correlated with the expression of miR‐148a‐3p. Moreover, the expression of HDAC5 was correlated with tumor progression. HDAC5 markedly increased the invasion and migration of cancer cells in vitro, an effect that could be inhibited by overexpression of miR‐148a‐3p. Following an intraperitoneal injection of colon adenocarcinoma cells in athymic nude mice, HDAC5 promoted tumor implant. Together, these findings showed that HDAC5 overexpression in colon adenocarcinoma is consistent with tumor progression and tumor cell migration and the impact of HDAC5 overexpression is reduced by miR‐148a‐3p. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: High‐resolution synchrotron radiation X‐ray phase contrast microtomography (PC‐μCT) images often suffer from severe ring artifacts, which are mainly caused by undesirable responses of detector elements. In the medical imaging field, the existence of ring artifacts can lead to degraded visual quality and can directly affect diagnosis accuracy. Thus, removing or at least effectively reducing ring artifacts is indispensable. Method: The existing ring artifacts removal algorithms mainly focus on two‐dimensional (matrix‐based) priors, and these algorithms fail to consider correlations hidden in sequential computed tomography (CT) images. This paper proposed a novel three‐dimensional (tensor‐based) ring artifacts removal algorithm for synchrotron radiation X‐ray PC‐μCT images. In the sinogram domain, ring artifacts manifest as vertical stripe artifacts. From an image decomposition perspective, a degraded sinogram can be decomposed into a stripe artifacts component and an underlying clean sinogram component. The proposed algorithm is designed to detect and remove stripe artifacts from a degraded sinogram by fully identifying the characteristics of the two components. Specifically, for the stripe artifacts component, tensor Tucker decomposition is used to describe its low‐rank character. For the underlying clean sinogram component, spatial–sequential total variation regularization is adopted to enhance the piecewise smoothness. Moreover, the Frobenius norm term is further used to model Gaussian noise. An efficient augmented Lagrange multiplier method is designed to solve the proposed optimization model. Results: The proposed method is evaluated utilizing both simulations and real data containing different ring artifacts patterns. In the simulations, the human chest CT images are used for evaluating the proposed method. We compare the peak signal‐to‐noise ratio (PSNR), structural similarity (SSIM), and mean absolute error (MAE) results of our algorithm with the Naghia's method, the RRRTV method, the wavelet–FFT method, and the SDRSD‐GIF method. The proposed method was also evaluated on real data from rat liver samples and rat tooth samples. Our proposed method outperforms the competing methods in terms of both qualitative and quantitative evaluation results. Additionally, the 3D visualization results were presented to make the ring artifacts removal effect more intuitive. Conclusion: The experimental results on simulations and real data clearly demonstrated that the proposed algorithm can significantly improve the quality of PC‐μCT images compared with the existing popular algorithms, and it has great potential to promote the application of high‐resolution imaging for visualizing biological tissues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clear and complete microstructural imaging of the root canal isthmus is an important part of pathological investigations in research and clinical practice. X‐ray micro‐computed tomography (μCT) is a widely used non‐destructive imaging technique, which allows for distortion‐free three‐dimensional (3D) visualisation. While absorption μCT typically has poor contrast resolution for observing the root canal isthmus, especially for weak‐absorbing tissues, propagation‐based X‐ray phase‐contrast imaging (PBI) is a powerful imaging method, which in its combination with μCT (PB‐PCμCT) enables high‐resolution and high‐contrast microstructural imaging of the weak‐absorbing tissues in samples. To investigate the feasibility and ability of PB‐PCμCT in microstructural imaging of the root canal isthmus, conventional absorption μCT and PB‐PCμCT experiments were performed. The two‐dimensional (2D) and 3D comparison results demonstrated that, compared to absorption μCT, PB‐PCμCT has the ability to image the root canal isthmus more clearly and completely, and thus, it has great potential to serve as a valuable tool for biomedical and preclinical studies on the root canal isthmus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patterned hybrid superwetting surfaces that function in drop‐film‐wise condensation mode have great potential applications in heat transfer devices, water desalination, etc., due to the high performance of condensate transport. However, design and combination strategy for pattern optimization are still not clear. In this work, superhydrophobic surfaces with wedge‐shaped superhydrophilic patterns are created for enhanced condensation. Dependence of geometry, size, and combination of the patterns on droplet transporting and heat transfer coefficient is investigated. Results imply that superhydrophobic surface with array of single‐wedge‐shaped superhydrophilic patterns shows 30% improvement of heat transfer coefficient when compared with superhydrophobic surface, due to rapid condensate transferring from drop‐wise to film‐wise region, condensate converging and departing from the film‐wise region. Additionally, when compared with the surface with array of cluster‐wedge‐shaped superhydrophilic patterns, the surface with array of single‐wedge‐shaped superhydrophilic patterns have higher condensation efficiency because of the larger total circumference, which donate greater condensate transferring capacity. Moreover, single‐wedge‐shaped superhydrophilic patterns with large size show higher heat transfer coefficient than the patterns with small size due to lower saturated vapor pressure. This new fundamental insight can be used to develop new hybrid superwetting surfaces intended on engineering applications, such as water production and heat transfer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The aim of this study was to identify the risk factors and prognosis of patients with cancer‐associated myositis (CAM). Method: Four hundred and eighty‐seven patients with dermatomyositis (DM), clinical amyopathic dermatomyositis (CADM) and polymyositis (PM) from 3 clinical centers were enrolled retrospectively in this study. Clinical and laboratory data of CAM and non‐CAM patients were compared. Logistic regression analysis was used to identify risk factors of CAM. Results: Out of the 487 patients with DM/CADM/PM, 7.0% (34/487) of patients were classified as CAM. Older age (53.91 ± 13.32 vs. 48.76 ± 14.34 years), heliotrope rash (61.8% vs. 41.9%), shawl sign (41.2% vs. 22.1%), V sign (58.8% vs. 38.6%) were observed significantly more commonly in patients with CAM than those without CAM (all P <.05). Fever (17.7% vs. 37.8%), arthralgia/arthritis (23.5% vs. 45.7%), interstitial lung disease (ILD, 38.2% vs 68.9%) were significantly less common in the CAM group than the non‐CAM group. Age at onset (odds ratio [OR] 1.036, 95% CI 1.001‐1.072, P =.042), shawl sign (OR 2.748, 95% CI 1.107‐6.822, P =.029), anti‐transition initiation factor (TIF)‐1γ antibody (OR 4.012, 95% CI 1.268‐12.687, P =.018) were identified as the initial risk factors for the onset of CAM, and ILD was identified as a protective factor for CAM (OR 0.292, 95% CI 0.115‐0.739, P =.009). All‐cause mortality was significantly higher in CAM patients compared with non‐CAM patients (P =.001). Conclusion: The mortality of patients with CAM was higher than DM/CADM/PM patients without cancer. Malignancy should be screened in DM/CADM/PM patients especially with risk factors, including older age, shawl sign, anti‐TIF‐1γ antibody, and lack of ILD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To inform seroepidemiological studies, we characterized the IgG‐ responses in COVID‐19 patients against the two major SARS‐CoV‐2 viral proteins, spike (S) and nucleocapsid (N). We tested 70 COVID‐19 sera collected up to 85 days post‐symptom onset and 230 non‐COVID‐19 sera, including 27 SARS sera from 2003. Although the average SARS‐CoV‐2 S and N‐IgG titers were comparable, N‐responses were more variable among individuals. S‐ and N‐assay specificity tested with non‐COVID‐19 sera were comparable at 97.5% and 97.0%, respectively. Therefore, S will make a better target due to its lower cross‐reactive potential and its' more consistent frequency of detection compared to N. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Severe COVID‐19 patients typically test positive for SARS‐CoV‐2 RNA for extended periods of time, even after recovery from severe disease. Due to the timeframe involved, these patients may have developed humoral immunity to SARS‐CoV‐2 while still testing positive for viral RNA in swabs. Data are lacking on exposure risks in these situations. Here, we studied SARS‐CoV‐2 environmental contamination in an ICU and an isolation ward caring for such COVID‐19 patients. Methods: We collected air and surface samples in a hospital caring for critical and severe COVID‐19 cases from common areas and areas proximal to patients. Results: Of the 218 ICU samples, an air sample contained SARS‐CoV‐2 RNA. Of the 182 isolation ward samples, nine contained SARS‐CoV‐2 RNA. These were collected from a facemask, the floor, mobile phones, and the air in the patient room and bathroom. Serum antibodies against SARS‐CoV‐2 were detected in these patients at the beginning of the study. Conclusions: While there is a perception of increased risk in the ICU, our study demonstrates that isolation wards may pose greater risks to healthcare workers and exposure risks remain with clinically improved patients, weeks after their initial diagnoses. As these patients had serum antibodies, further studies may be warranted to study the utility of serum antibodies as a surrogate of viral clearance in allowing people to return to work. We recommend continued vigilance even with patients who appear to have recovered from COVID‐19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have investigated the prognostic value of two novel interim 18F‐fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG‐PET) parameters in patients undergoing chemoradiation (CRT) for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC): one tumor parameter (maximal standardized uptake ratio rSUR) and one normal tissue parameter (change of FDG uptake within irradiated nontumor‐affected esophagus ∆SUVNTO). PET data of 134 European and Chinese patients were analyzed. Parameter establishment was based on 36 patients undergoing preoperative CRT plus surgery, validation was performed in 98 patients receiving definitive CRT. Patients received PET imaging prior and during fourth week of CRT. Clinical parameters, baseline PET parameters, and interim PET parameters (rSUR and ∆SUVNTO) were analyzed and compared to event‐free survival (EFS), overall survival (OS), loco‐regional control (LRC) and freedom from distant metastases (FFDM). Combining rSUR and ∆SUVNTO revealed a strong prognostic impact on EFS, OS, LRC and FFDM in patients undergoing preoperative CRT. In the definitive CRT cohort, univariate analysis with respect to EFS revealed several staging plus both previously established interim PET parameters as significant prognostic factors. Multivariate analyses revealed only rSUR and ∆SUVNTO as independent prognostic factors (p = 0.003, p = 0.008). Combination of these parameters with the cutoff established in preoperative CRT revealed excellent discrimination of patients with a long or short EFS (73% vs. 17% at 2 years, respectively) and significantly discriminated all other endpoints (OS, p < 0.001; LRC, p < 0.001; FFDM, p = 0.02), even in subgroups. Combined use of interim FDG‐PET derived parameters ∆SUVNTO and rSUR seems to have predictive potential, allowing to select responders for definitive CRT and omission of surgery. What's new? In advanced esophageal cancer, preoperative chemoradiation (pCRT) improves survival compared to surgery alone, but it's not clear whether this strategy produces better outcomes than definitive chemoradiation (dCRT). Positron emission tomography scanning can potentially predict the response to CRT using various parameters. In this study, the authors evaluated the prognostic value of two parameters of FDG‐PET. They looked at 134 patients receiving either pCRT plus surgery or dCRT. Screening with these parameters, they found, could successfully identify those patients that would respond best to definitive chemoradiation, and potentially avoid surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND Zero‐valent iron (ZVI) is an environmentally friendly and cost‐efficient material for the removal of contaminants. However, its application is challenged by problems such as surface passivation and pH increase in the reaction media. As a potential solution for this problem, pyrite, a waste of the mining industry, was used together with ZVI for reductive removal of azo dyes. RESULTS: In comparison with ZVI alone, the ZVI/pyrite mixture showed dramatically enhanced efficiency and reusability for dye removal, although pyrite itself can hardly remove dyes. The reaction rate constant kobs for the removal of Orange II at the initial pH (pH0) of 7.0 was enhanced 9.4‐ to 28.0‐fold by using the mixture at a pyrite/ZVI mass ratio ranging from 1 to 4, respectively. The mechanism studies indicate that pyrite not only helped produce more iron(II) by facilitating iron corrosion and the iron(II)/iron(III) cycle in the mixed system, but also activated the ZVI surface by in situ sulfidation. The high reactivity of the adsorbed iron(II) in the mixed system significantly contributed to dye removal, especially at the alkalescent pH. CONCLUSION: Pyrite accelerated the reductive removal of dyes by ZVI, through inhibiting its surface passivation and suppressing the pH increase in the reaction media. Therefore, this research proposes a facile method for enhancing the reactivity and applicability of ZVI in environmental remediation. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Perturbation of the cellular redox state by stress conditions is sensed by redox‐sensitive proteins so that the cell can physiologically respond to stressors. However, the mechanisms linking sensing to response remain poorly understood in plants. Here we report that the transcription factor bZIP68 underwent in vivo oxidation in Arabidopsis cells under oxidative stress which is dependent on its redox‐sensitive Cys320 residue. bZIP68 is primarily localized to the nucleus under normal growth conditions in Arabidopsis seedlings. Oxidative stress reduces its accumulation in the nucleus and increases its cytosolic localization. Chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by sequencing (ChIP‐seq) revealed that bZIP68 primarily binds to promoter regions containing the core G‐box (CACGTG) or G‐box‐like motif of the genes involved in abiotic and biotic stress responses, photosynthesis, biosynthetic processes, and transcriptional regulation. The bzip68 mutant displayed slower growth under normal conditions but enhanced tolerance to oxidative stress. The results from the ChIP‐seq and phenotypic and transcriptome comparison between the bzip68 mutant and wildtype indicate that bZIP68 normally suppresses expression of stress tolerance genes and promotes expression of growth‐related genes, whereas its inactivation enhances stress tolerance but suppresses growth. bZIP68 might balance stress tolerance with growth through the extent of its oxidative inactivation according to the environment. Significance Statement: In response to oxidative stress, the Arabidopsis bZIP68 transcription factor undergoes reversible oxidation and its inactivation enhances expression of stress response genes. bZIP68 might play a role in sensing oxidative stress to balance stress tolerance with growth through its redox switch. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Introduction: Prone position ventilation (PPV) has been shown to improve oxygenation and decrease pulmonary vascular resistance and mortality in patients with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Whether these benefits of PPV occur similarly in acute exacerbations of interstitial lung disease (ILD) is not clear. We retrospectively explored the use of PPV in acute exacerbation with ILD versus those with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (severe ARDS). Methods: Retrospective study of the application of PPV in 17 patients with acute exacerbations of ILD and in 19 patients with severe ARDS. Pre‐ and post‐PPV hemodynamic parameters, respiratory mechanics, prognostic indicators, complications and mortality rates at 28, 60 and 90 days were compared. Results: There was no difference in baseline characteristics between the two groups except for higher driving pressure and more diastolic dysfunction in ILD group than severe ARDS group Compared with pre‐PPV, cardiac index and driving pressure remained unchanged post‐PPV in both groups. PPV increased PaO2/FiO2 [118.7 (92.0, 147.8) pre‐PPV vs 132.0 (93.5, 172.0) post‐PPV; P < 0.05] and central venous oxygenation in patients with ILD. In patients with severe ARDS, PPV significantly increased PaO2/FiO2 [109.23 (89,135) pre‐ PPV vs 126.13 (100.93, 170) post‐PPV; P < 0.05] and intrathorax blood volume index. However, mortality rates at 28, 60 and 90 days remained high in both groups (76.4%, 88.2% and 88.2% vs 36.8%, 57.9% and 57.9% in ILD and severe ARDS, respectively; P < 0.05). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that PPV may improve oxygenation and partially improve hemodynamic parameters during acute exacerbations of ILD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemotherapeutic drugs currently used in clinical settings have high toxicity, low specificity, and short half-lives. Herein, polypyrrole-based anticancer drug nanocapsules were prepared by tailoring the size of the nanoparticles with a template method, controlling drug release by means of an aromatic imine, increasing nanoparticle stability through PEGylation, and improving tumor-cell selectivity by folate mediation. The nanoparticles were characterized by TEM and dynamic light scattering. α-Folate receptor expression levelsof tumor cells and normal cells were investigated by western blot and quantitative polymerase chain reaction analyses. Flow cytometry and fluorescence imaging were used to verify the cell uptake of the different-sized nanoparticles. From the different-sized polypyrrole nanoparticles, the optimally functionalized nanoparticles of 180 nm hydrodynamic diameter were chosen and further usedfor in vitroandin vivotests. The nanoparticles showed excellent biocompatibility and the drug-loaded nanoparticles exhibited effective inhibition of tumor cell growth in vitro. Moreover, the drug-loaded nanoparticles showed substantially enhanced accumulation in tumor regions and effectively inhibitedin vivotumor growth. Furthermore, the nanoparticles showed reduced doxorubicin-induced toxicity andno significant side effects in normal organs of tumor-bearing mice, as measured by body-weight shifts and evaluationof drug distribution. Overall, the functionalized nanoparticles are promising nanocarriers for tumor-targeting drug delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well known that inappropriate exposure to exogenous hormones during fetal or neonatal life, such as testosterone (T) and estradiol (E2), leads to adverse reproductive outcomes. In our previous study, the reproductive dysfunction of male rats was characterized by an E2 increase and T decrease after in utero and lactation exposures to n-butylparaben ( n-BP). In this study, we investigated the synthesis and metabolism pathways of steroid hormones, hormone receptors and the epigenetic modification of male offspring on postnatal day (PND) 21 and PND90 to explore the possible mechanisms of endocrine and reproductive disorders. The expression of steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR), cytochrome cholesterol side-chain cleavage enzyme (P450scc), estrogen sulfotransferase (SULT1E1) and androgen receptor (AR) in the testes was significantly decreased at the transcript and protein levels; in addition, aromatase (CYP19) and estrogen receptor α (ERα) expression was significantly increased and the methylation rate of the ERα promoter was significantly decreased. These results suggest that increased CYP19 expression and decreased SULT1E1 expression are responsible for the E2 increase. This effect promotes the expression of ERα, which plays a pivotal role in regulating reproductive and endocrine disorders of male rats exposed to n-BP. Furthermore, the epigenetic hypomethylation of ERα is involved in this regulation processes. Our study is the first to report on the possible mechanism of male rat reproductive disorders induced by the xenoestrogenic chemical n-BP. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To enhance the heat storage efficiency of microencapsuled phase-change materials (MicroPCMs), different mass fractions of expanded graphite (EG), graphene nanoplatelets, (GNs), and nanocopper were added to a MicroPCM of paraffin/melamine resin as heat transfer promoters. The thermal conductivities of the MicroPCM/nanocopper, MicroPCM/GN and MicroPCM/EG composites were measured by using heat flux methods and compared to that of MicroPCM. The melting temperatures and latent heat capacities of the MicroPCM and composite were tested. Furthermore, the heat transfer effect on the heat storage with different mass fractions of additives and different flow rates of heat transfer fluid were investigated. The addition of EG proved to be an effective method to increase the thermal conductivity and heat storage efficiency of MicroPCM without greatly reducing its latent heat storage capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alveolar epithelial type II ( AEII) cells are a key structure and defender in the lung but also are the targets in many lung diseases, including acute respiratory distress syndrome, ventilator-induced lung injury, and pulmonary fibrosis. We sought to establish an optimized method for high yielding and long maintenance of characteristics of primary human AEII cells to facilitate the investigation of the mechanisms of lung diseases at the cellular and molecular levels. Adult human peripheral normal lung tissues of oncologic patients undergoing lung resection were collected. The AEII cells were isolated and identified by the expression of pro-surfactant protein ( SP)C, epithelial sodium channel ( α ENaC) and cytokeratin ( CK)-8, the lamellar bodies specific for AEII cells, and confirmed by the histology using electron microscopy. The phenotype of AEII cells was characterized by the expression of surfactant proteins ( SP-A, SP-B, SP-C, SP-D), CK-8, KL-6, α ENaC, and aquaporin ( AQP)-3, which was maintained over 20 days. The biological activity of the primary human AEII cells producing SP-C, cytokines, and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 was vigorous in response to stimulation with tumor necrosis factor- α. We have modified previous methods and optimized a method for isolation of high purity and long maintenance of the human AEII cell phenotype in primary culture. This method provides an important tool for studies aiming at elucidating the molecular mechanisms of lung diseases exclusively in AEII cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND Nitrobenzene ( NB) is a persistent environmental pollutant difficult to degrade. The aim of this study was to accelerate the reduction of NB by immobilization of nanoscale zero-valent iron ( NZVI) on an organobentonite ( CTMA-Bent). RESULTS Batch experiments indicated that NB was almost completely reduced by the immobilized iron sample ( NZVI/ CTMA-Bent), with aniline as the dominant reduction product. While only 60% of NB was reduced by the bare NZVI, and aniline accounted for only half of the NB reduced. Kinetic studies confirmed that the reaction of NB with NZVI was accelerated through CTMA-Bent adsorption. XPS investigations suggested that the improved recycling of the NZVI/ CTMA-Bent composite is related to less ferric (hydr)oxides formed during the reaction. CONCLUSION Immobilization of NZVI on the organobentonite CTMA-Bent proved to be an effective method for quick and complete conversion of NB to biodegradable aniline. This novel method to remove recalcitrant organic pollutants may promote the industrial application of NZVI technique in environmental remediation. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Co-infection with hepatitis delta virus (HDV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) has been shown to be associated with a more severe form of acute and chronic hepatitis. Cloning and expression of recombinant HDV antigen (rHDAg) in Escherichiacoli are described. Using purified rHDAg, a cost-effective indirect anti-HDV enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit was developed. Direct comparison of 15 known HDV-positive sera and 15 HDV-negative sera showed concordance agreement between the new assay kit and the Abbott Murex Anti-Delta (total) kit. In addition, 1,486 hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) positive blood samples collected from various areas of China were tested using this indirect anti-HDV ELISA. It was found that 1.2% (95% CI: 0.7-1.9%) of the samples were anti-HDAg positive. It is suggested that the prevalence of HDV and HBV co-infection in China is relatively low. J. Med. Virol. 84:445-449, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study which investigates the water sorption behavior of bentonite composite gels or carboxylmethylcellulose and their performance on controlled release of herbicide metolachlor. The study uses Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy to determine composite gels' formation. Results show the low water sorption capacity of composite gels as well as the water sorption process' less effect on herbicide release from the gels.

Complicated ecosystems and the high non-linearity of evolution has made biology more adaptable to a variety of environments. The relationship between life and environment demands a dynamic definition of niche and its measurement. In this paper we propose a model of niche with dynamic character based on the “broad band” effect in type-2 fuzzy sets. The niche in this definition is an interval in each ecological dimension which is dynamic in character and depends on the actual environment. We also give formulas for niche width and niche overlap. We compute the niche width and overlap for plants and animals and then compare these results with previous results. The results for niche width in this paper reflect the diversity of resources used by species or communities. The results for niche overlap demonstrate overlap under different environmental conditions. The results are, moreover, intervals, which could provide more information. The model in this paper could therefore be used to describe the state of every resource comprehensively, reflecting the interaction between species and environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hybrid Superwetting Surfaces for Enhanced Condensation: Design of Hybrid Superwetting Surfaces with Self-Driven Droplet Transport Feature for Enhanced Condensation (Adv. Keywords: drop-wise condensation; patterned surfaces; superwetting surfaces; wettability EN drop-wise condensation patterned surfaces superwetting surfaces wettability 1 1 1 07/12/21 20210701 NES 210701 Hybrid superwetting surfaces with wedge-shaped superhydrophilic patterns that can transport droplets spontaneously are designed and fabricated to enhance drop-wise condensation, as demonstrated by Xiaolong Yang, Di Zhu, and co-workers in article number 2100284. The pattern design is optimized based on dynamic behavior of droplet transporting and condensing performance, which has great potential applications in developing new heat transfer devices, water desalination facilities, etc. GLO:JZVP/01jul21:admi202170076-gra-0001.jpg PHOTO (COLOR): . gl. [Extracted from the article]

ABSTRACT Introduction Materials and Methods Results Conclusions The fasting blood glucose test is widely used for diabetes screening. However, it may fail to detect early‐stage diabetes characterized by elevated postprandial glucose levels. Hence, we developed and internally validated a nomogram to predict the diabetes risk in older adults with normal fasting glucose levels.This study enrolled 2,235 older adults, dividing them into a Training Set (n = 1,564) and a Validation Set (n = 671) based on a 7:3 ratio. We employed the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression to identify predictors for constructing the nomogram. Calibration and discrimination were employed to assess the nomogram's performance, while its clinical utility was evaluated through decision curve analysis.Nine key variables were identified as significant factors: age, gender, body mass index, fasting blood glucose, triglycerides, alanine aminotransferase, the ratio of alanine aminotransferase to aspartate aminotransferase, blood urea nitrogen, and hemoglobin. The nomogram demonstrated good discrimination, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.824 in the Training Set and 0.809 in the Validation Set. Calibration curves for both sets confirmed the model's accuracy in estimating the actual diabetes risk. Decision curve analysis highlighted the model's clinical utility.We provided a dynamic nomogram for identifying older adults at risk of diabetes, potentially enhancing the efficiency of diabetes screening in primary healthcare units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investigates and give comparisons of the contribution of macropores flow relative to flow through the soil matrix. Methodology used in study; Construction of the macropores; Occurrence of significant preferential flow; Demonstration of the importance of macropore continuity in macropore flow when flux increases.