Search

Jiachen Yu,1,* Yingchun Zhang,1,* Rong Ran,2,* Zixiao Kong,3 Duoyi Zhao,1 Wei Zhao,1 Yingxin Yang,4 Lianbo Gao,5 Zhiyu Zhang1 1Department of Orthopedics, the Fourth Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, China Medical University, Shen Yang, 110032, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Anesthesia, the Fourth Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, China Medical University, Shen Yang, 110032, People’s Republic of China; 3China Medical University, Shen Yang, 110032, People’s Republic of China; 4General Hospital of Northern Theater Command, China Medical University, Shen Yang, 110032, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Neurology, the Fourth Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, China Medical University, Shen Yang, 110032, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Zhiyu Zhang; Lianbo Gao, The Fourth Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, No. 4 Chongshan Road, Huanggu District, Shenyang, Liaoning, People’s Republic of China, Email zyzhang@cmu.edu.cn; lbgao@cmu.edu.cnAbstract: The development of therapeutic drugs and methods has been greatly facilitated by the emergence of tumor models. However, due to their inherent complexity, establishing a model that can fully replicate the tumor tissue situation remains extremely challenging. With the development of tissue engineering, the advancement of bioprinting technology has facilitated the upgrading of tumor models. This article focuses on the latest advancements in bioprinting, specifically highlighting the construction of 3D tumor models, and underscores the integration of these two technologies. Furthermore, it discusses the challenges and future directions of related techniques, while also emphasizing the effective recreation of the tumor microenvironment through the emergence of 3D tumor models that resemble in vitro organs, thereby accelerating the development of new anticancer therapies.Keywords: bioprinting, bioink, organoids, tumor spheroids, tumor chips

In this work, we give an elementary proof of the transformation formula for the Dedekind eta function under the action of the modular group PSL (2;Z). We start by giving a proof of the transformation formula η(τ) under the transformation τ →-1/τ, using the Jacobi triple product identity and the Poisson summation formula. After we establish some identities for the Dedekind sum, the transformation formula for η(τ) under the transformation induced by a general element of the modular group PSL (2;Z) is derived by induction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ziyan Kong,1,2,* Xuemei Liu,3,* Chenxi Li,1,* Siyun Cheng,1 Fei Xu,3 Bing Gu1,4 1Medical Technology School, Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Laboratory Medicine, The First People’s Hospital of Lianyungang, Lianyungang, Jiangsu Province, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Laboratory Medicine, Children’s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Laboratory Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Fei XuDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Children’s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210009, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail 350826448@qq.comBing GuDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou 221006, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail gb20031129@163.comPurpose: The continuous emergence of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) has become a serious public health problem globally, especially for children, but data on CRKP infection in pediatric patients are limited. This study aimed to identify epidemiological and molecular patterns of CRKP among pediatric patients in Jiangsu province, China.Patients and Methods: CRKP were consecutively collected from the Children’s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University in China from July 2018 to May 2019. Then, CRKP strains were performed for further study: antimicrobial susceptibility testing, drug-resistance determinants screening and homology analysis.Results: We collected 94 CRKP from 94 children. Overall, blaKPC-2 (79.8%) was the predominant carbapenemase gene, followed by blaNDM-1(14.9%), blaIMP-4 (5.3%) and blaNDM-5(4.3%). Notably, two isolates coharbored blaKPC-2 and blaIMP-4, and two isolates coharbored blaKPC-2 and blaNDM-5. MLST analysis revealed that 14 distinct sequence types (STs) were identified, of which ST11 was the most common sequence type identified. Moreover, two novel STs, ST4854 and ST4855, were detected in this study. PFGE revealed that a predominant cluster consisting of KPC-2-producing CRKP ST11 clone isolates was identified and was distributed mainly in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) and cardiac intensive care unit (CCU). Moreover, this is the first report to identify the dissemination of ST716 CRKP coproducing KPC-2 and IMP-4 clones.Conclusion: Clonal dissemination of KPC-2-producing CRKP ST11 was observed in multiple departments. Moreover, two novel STs (ST4854 and ST4855) were identified, which indicates an increased diversity of CRKP strains. To our knowledge, this is the first report that identified the dissemination of Klebsiella pneumoniae coproducing KPC-2 and IMP-4 clones among children, which represents a significant health risk to pediatric patients. Active surveillance and effective control measures are urgently needed to prevent further transmission of these strains among children.Keywords: Klebsiella pneumoniae, carbapenemase, KPC-2, ST11, clonal dissemination, children

Jun Luo1 ,* Dan Wang2 ,* Xuechao Wan,2 Yangguang Xu,2 Yali Lu,2 Zhe Kong,2 Dujian Li,1 Wei Gu,1 Chenji Wang,2 Yao Li,2 Chaoneng Ji,2 Shaohua Gu,2 Yaoting Xu1 1Department of Urology, Shanghai Fourth People’s Hospital Affiliated to Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 2Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Industrial Microorganisms, School of Life Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Shaohua Gu; Yaoting Xu Email shaohuagu@fudan.edu.cn; ytxu64@vip.163.comIntroduction: Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most commonly diagnosed cancer and the third leading cause of cancer-related death in males in the United States. Despite the initial efficacy of androgen deprivation therapy in prostate cancer (PCa) patients, most patients progress to castration-resistant prostate cancer. However, the mechanisms underlying the androgen-independent progression of PCa remain largely unknown.Methods: In this study, we established a PCa cell line (LNCaP-AI) by maintaining LNCaP cells under androgen-depleted conditions. To explore the cellular and molecular mechanisms of androgen-independent growth of PCa, we analyzed the gene expression patterns in androgen-independent prostate cancer (AIPC) compared with that in androgen-dependent prostate cancer (ADPC). KEGG pathway analysis revealed that Wnt signaling pathways were activated after androgen deprivation therapy (ADT). In vitro experiments showed that the inhibition of Wnt pathway reduced AIPC cell growth by inhibiting cell cycle progression and promoting apoptosis. Furthermore, WNT5A, LEF1 were identified as direct targets of AR by chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay and public ChIP-seq datasets analysis.Results: In the present study, we found a regulatory mechanism through which crosstalk between androgen receptor (AR) and Wnt signals promoted androgen-independent conversion of PCa. The Wnt pathway was inhibited by androgen in androgen-dependent prostate cancer cells, but this blocking effect was not elicited in androgen-independent prostate cancer (AIPC) cells. Moreover, Wnt pathway genes WNT5A and LEF1 were directly downregulated by AR. In vitro experiments showed that inhibition of the Wnt pathways repressed AIPC cell growth by inhibiting cell cycle progression and promoting apoptosis. We found that WNT5A and LEF1 were downregulated in low-grade PCa but upregulated in metastatic PCa.Conclusion: In summary, we revealed that crosstalk between AR and Wnt signaling pathways promotes androgen-independent growth of PCa, which may provide novel therapeutic opportunities for castration-resistant prostate cancer.Keywords: Wnt pathway, prostate cancer, androgen receptor, androgen deprivation therapy

Ziyan Kong,1,* Rui Cai,1,* Chen Cheng,1 Chuanling Zhang,2 Haiquan Kang,3 Ping Ma,3 Bing Gu1,3 1Medical Technology School, Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Laboratory Medicine, XuZhou Children’s Hospital, Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Laboratory Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Bing GuDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou 221006, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +8615862163560Email gb20031129@163.comPurpose: Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) have emerged worldwide and also being a major threat to children and neonate. In this study, we describe a nosocomial outbreak of NDM-5-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae in neonatal unit of a teaching hospital in China from September 2015 to September 2016.Patients and methods: We collected 12 carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae outbreak strains from 12 newborns and characterized these isolates for their antimicrobial susceptibility, clone relationships, and multi-locus sequence types using vitek-2 compact system, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and multi-locus sequence typing (MLST). Resistant genes were detected by using PCR and sequencing. Plasmid conjugation experiment was carried out to determine the transferability of carbapenem resistance. PCR-based replicon typing (PBRT), S1 nuclease-PFGE, and southern blotting were conducted for plasmid profiling.Results: All 12 K. pneumoniae isolates were resistant to carbapenems and carried blaNDM-5, blaTEM-1 and blaSHV-11. Furthermore, PFGE analysis showed that NDM-5-producing K. pneumoniae were clonally related and MLST assigned them to sequence type 337. Conjugative assays showed that plasmids harboring blaNDM-5 gene were self-transmissible. Plasmid analysis suggested that all blaNDM-5 gene located on a ∼45 kb IncX3 type plasmid.Conclusion: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of a clone outbreak of blaNDM-5-carrying K. pneumoniae isolates from neonates. There is an urgent need for effective infection control measures to prevent blaNDM-5 variants from becoming epidemic in the neonates in the future.Keywords: Klebsiella pneumoniae, carbapenemases, blaNDM-5, ST337, neonate, IncX3

A novel vertical C-shaped-channel nanosheet field-effect-transistor (VCNFET) featured with precise control of channel-thickness and gate-length, and a unique integration flow of Dual Side Process (DSP) are proposed in this work. The VCNFETs were fabricated by high quality Si/SiGe epitaxy, atomic layer etching with nanometer-scale process control and self-aligned high-k metal gate (HKMG). The integration flow is compatible with mainstream CMOS technology. Thanks to the precise control of channel thickness and doping profiles, perfect SS of 61 mV/dec, small DIBL of 8 mV/V, and remarkably large $\text{I}_{\text {on}}/\text {I}_{\text {off}}$ ratio of ${6.28}\times {10}^{{9}}$ were achieved. The device performance and it’s optimization were also investigated with the reduction of the external resistance and numerical simulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

C19H20N2O5Pb, triclinic, P1 (No. 2), a = 7.488(2) Å, b = 11.543(2) Å, c = 11.742(2) Å, α = 83.50(3)°, β = 82.54(3)°, γ = 81.94(3)°, V = 991.7 Å3, Z = 2, Rgt(F) = 0.046, wRref(F2) = 0.128, T = 293 K.

A new type of vertical nanowire (NW)/ nanosheet (NS) field-effect transistors (FETs), termed vertical sandwich gate-all-around (GAA) FETs (VSAFETs), is presented in this work. Moreover, an integration flow that is compatible with processes used in the mainstream industry is proposed for the VSAFETs. Si/SiGe epitaxy, isotropic quasi-atomic-layer etching (qALE), and gate replacement were used to fabricate pVSAFETs for the first time. Vertical GAA FETs with self-aligned high-k metal gates and a small effective-gate-length variation were obtained. Isotropic qALE, including Si-selective etching of SiGe, was developed to control the diameter/thickness of the NW/NS channels. NWs with a diameter of 10 nm and NSs with a thickness of 20 nm were successfully fabricated, and good device characteristics were obtained. Finally, the device performance was investigated and is discussed in this work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) originating from nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase (NOX) play vital roles in regulating autophagy. However, the relationship between autophagy and NOX in common wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is still unknown. In order to clarify the mechanism of autophagy in wheat, ROS content, NOX activity, and autophagy levels in root tip cells under condition of N or C deficiency were measured. The results showed that the N and C deficiency increased the production of superoxide anions (O2 -.) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) via the NOX activation, leading to an increase in the number of autophagic bodies, in comparison to the control group. This showed that autophagy constitutively existed in the root tip cells of wheat seedlings. Interestingly, imidazole, a NOX inhibitor, inhibited the H2O2 and O2 -· content and reduced the accumulation of autophagic bodies under N deficiency. Hydrogen peroxide and O2 --· derived from NOX possibly regulated autophagy in wheat root tip cells. In order to further verify whether ROS regulated autophagy, exogenous ROS or a reductant was applied to the roots of wheat seedlings under N deficiency. The results showed that exogenous O2 --· and H2O2 both induced the accumulation of autophagic bodies in the vacuoles of root tip cells. On the contrary, glutathione and ascorbic acid significantly decreased the accumulation of autophagic bodies. Therefore, this study confirmed that H2O2 and O2 --· derived from NOX could regulate autophagy in root tip cells of wheat seedlings under stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: With gradual increase of cancer incidence and mortality rates, the regulatory mechanism of cancer has become a hotspot. It has been known that the expression of TP53 is closely associated with the occurrence of cancer. The microRNA (miR-NA)-mediated regulation of the expression of numerous proto-oncogenes has been reported. This study aimed to identify miRNAs that regulate the expression of TP53 gene. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The sequence of TP53 gene was downloaded from NCBI and analyzed with TargetScan software to predict potential miRNAs that regulate TP53 expression. miR-122 was selected as the most potential miRNA for regulating TP53. miR-122 mimics and inhibitor were synthesized and transfected into Hela cells. The expression of TP53 mRNA was measured by qRT-PCR. The cell proliferation, migration, and invasion ability were assessed by CCK-8, scratch wounding, and transwell invasion assay, respectively. RESULTS: Cells transfected with miR-122 mimics exhibited significantly lower TP53 expression (p < 0.05), but significantly increased cell proliferation and migration compared with blank control group (p < 0.05). Notably, cells in miR-122 mimics and control groups had similar invasion ability (p > 0.05). However, cells in miR-122 inhibitor group exhibited significantly higher TP53 expression (p < 0.05), but significantly reduced cell proliferation and invasion ability. The migration ability of cells in miR-122 inhibitor group was similar to cells in control group (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The selected miR-122 effectively inhibited the expression of TP53 gene in Hela cells, and enhanced their proliferation, migration, and invasion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering the distribution staff's satisfaction and fuzzy characteristics of customers' time window, the paper makes fuzzy description and measurement of staff satisfaction from such three aspects as salary and welfare, working strength and harmonious cooperation. Taking the minimum total logistics distribution cost and maximum distribution staff satisfaction as the objective functions, the study constructs the logistics distribution vehicle scheduling model considering the staff satisfaction and fuzzy time window. The plant growth algorithm is designed to solve the logistics distribution vehicle scheduling model. The simulation results show that the proposed the model succeeds in improving the customer satisfaction and the distribution efficiency, and that the optimization algorithm is feasible and effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of grape seed procyanidin extract (GSPE) on cell proliferation and apoptosis in human bladder cancer BIU87 cells and to investigate its molecular mechanism in vitro. MATERIALS AND METHODS: BIU87 cells were treated with different concentrations of GSPE for 24h in vitro while an untreated group was taken as control. MTT [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol- 2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] assay, Hoechst 33258 staining, flow cytometry, RT-PCR and Western blot were used to detect the anti-proliferation and apoptotic induction effects of GSPE on BIU87 cells. RESULTS: It was found that GSPE inhibited the cell growth through cell cycle arrest at G1 phase and induced cell apoptosis in BIU87 cells in a dose-dependent manner. Semi-quantitated RT-PCR and Western blot analysis indicated that GSPE increased caspase-3 (p<0.01), but decreased the expression of cyclinD1, CDK4 and survivin (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: GSPE inhibits cell proliferation by inducing cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in BIU87 cells, and the effect may be related with its down-regulation of cyclinD1, CDK4 and survivin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Melioidosis is an infectious disease caused by Burkholderia pseudomallei . Melioidosis is of public health importance in endemic areas, particularly in tropical and sub-tropical areas. We describe a case of melioidosis contracted by a man with diabetes from Papua New Guinea that was evaluated using multi-locus sequence typing and whole genome sequencing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

THE PROPAGATION OF ELASTIC WAVES IN COMPOSITES with randomly distributed parallel cylindrical nanofibers is studied. The non-classical boundary conditions on the surface of nanofibers are derived by using the surface elasticity theory. The scattering waves from an individual nanofiber are obtained by the plane-wave ex- pansion method. These scattering waves from all nanofibers are summed up to ob- tain the multiple-scattering waves. The effective propagation constants (speed and attenuation) of coherent waves and the associated effective dynamical moduli of composites are evaluated numerically. Based on these numerical results, the influ- ences of the surface effects on the effective dynamical properties of composites are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of acute exercise stress on the nuclear factor-erythroid2 p45-related factor 2 (Nrf2)/antioxidant response element (ARE) transactivation, Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (Keap1) cytosolic protein and Nrf2 nucleoprotein expressions, Nrf2 target genes mRNA expressions, and glutathione redox (GSH/GSSG) ratio level; with a particular focus on the changes in Keap1-Nrf2-ARE pathway activation following different durations of exercise. Wild-type mice (C57BL/6J, two months old) were separated into one-hour and six-hour treadmill running groups, as well as a non-exercise control group (n= 10 in each group). Measurements of Nrf2/ARE transactivation, Nrf2 nucleoprotein expressions, Keap1 cytosolic protein expression, Nrf2 target genes’ mRNA expressions (superoxide dismutase-1 [SOD1], superoxide dismutase-2 [SOD2], γ-glutamyl cysteine ligase-modulatory [GCLm], γ-glutamyl cysteine ligase-catalytic [GCLc], glutathione reductase [GR], glutathione peroxidase-1 [Gpx1], catalase [CAT], and hemoxygenase-1 [Ho-1]), and GSH/GSSG ratio were carried out immediately after exercise. The results showed significant increases in Keap1-Nrf2-ARE pathway activation and the mRNA expressions of six measured enzymes in skeletal muscle after six hours of exercise; while in the one-hour exercise group, there was no change in Keap1-Nrf2-ARE pathway activation and only two enzymes’ mRNA expressions were increased. It is suggested that the changes in Keap1-Nrf2-ARE pathway activation and its target genes’ mRNA expressions were dependent on the exercise duration, with longer duration associated with higher responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A single‐stage AC–DC voltage regulator is proposed to enhance the power efficiency while at the same time reducing the design complicity of the entire system. Unlike the traditional two‐stage AC–DC regulator, a pulse‐width modulation control algorithm is integrated to switch the working mode of an active rectifier between a charging mode and a zero mode to maintain the output voltage at 5 V. This in turn efficiently eliminates the need for a DC–DC converter following the rectifier. Besides, a coupled full‐bridge active rectifier with high speed comparator dramatically reduces the power loss of the circuit. Experiment results using a 0.35 µm technology and a PCB circuit demonstrate the advantages of the proposed design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of home processing (washing, peeling, coring and juicing) on residue levels of chlorpyrifos, β-cypermethrin, tebuconazole, acetamiprid and carbendazim in apple segments was investigated. The pesticide residues were determined by UPLC-MS/MS and GC with a flame photometric (FPD) and electron capture detection (ECD). The results indicated that the pesticide residue levels in the apple peel and core were higher compared with in the apple flesh. After peeled and cored apple was processed into apple juice and pomace, chlorpyrifos, β-cypermethrin and tebuconazole were concentrated in the apple pomace. However, residues of acetamiprid and carbendazim were exceptions. The apple pomace was free of acetamiprid, which was mainly present in the apple juice. After washing the mean loss of chlorpyrifos, β-cypermethrin, tebuconazole, acetamiprid and carbendazim from apples under recommended dosage and twofold higher dosage were 17–21%, 6.7–7.1%, 13–32%, 42–67% and 47–50%, respectively. The pesticide residues were significantly reduced in the edible part of the apple except for β-cypermethrin during peeling and coring process. The removal effect of apple juicing was found to be the most pronounced on β-cypermethrin residue, which was reduced in the range of 81–84%, and the reductions of chlorpyrifos, tebuconazole, acetamiprid and carbendazim upon apple juicing were in the range of 15–36%. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a short-term resistance training program on serum leptin concentrations in obese adolescents. Eighteen Chinese obese adolescents participated in the supervised weight management program. Resistance training was conducted three times a week on alternate days for 6 weeks. Body composition [body fat mass (FM) and body lean mass (LM)] determined by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, muscle strength and leptin, insulin and glucose were measured before and after training. Subjects demonstrated significantly improved strength of leg, chest and bicep under conditions of stability in weight, FM and LM. There were positive correlations between leptin and body mass index, FM, %FM, waist girth and hip girth, and negative correlations between leptin and %LM at the resting state before and after 6 weeks of resistance training. No significant relationship was found between leptin concentration and the parameters of muscular strength or concentrations of insulin and glucose. Compared to pre-training values, serum leptin levels were not significantly altered, while relative leptin (leptin/FM) decreased significantly after the short-term resistance training. These results indicate that short-term resistance training enhances muscle strength but does not alter leptin levels in obese adolescents with weight and FM stability. The results also suggest that 6 weeks of resistance training decreases the requirement of leptin per unit of FM and improves leptin sensitivity in obese adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An automated circuit analysis tool called SPICESoft, the main objective of which is to help designers in sensitivity computation and circuit analysis is presented. Three main features of SPICESoft are described, namely Sensitivity Analysis, Circuit Performance Analysis, and Inverse Circuit Performance Analysis. A new methodology called Binary Differential Expansion used for data interpolation is also described in this paper. The relationship between device and process parameters is covered. The simulation results obtained using the proposed automated tool are compared with those of conventional computation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents information on an area-efficient Metal Oxide Semiconductors (CMOS) low current comparator circuit. When minimum area consumption is of prime concern, the modified circuit is realised to provide additional options to circuit designers, as different circuits can be used to cater for varying operating environments and conditions. Silicon area is a crucial design parameter as it has a direct impact on the cost of the chip and the packing density. The area advantage is exploited without sacrificing power and speed performance. The proposed small-area low current comparator can be utilized in applications using a current-mode approach such as analogue-to-digital (A/D) converters, arithmetic-intensive circuitry and VLSI neural network.