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The reduced density of cardiac autonomic nerves plays an important role in malignant arrhythmia after myocardial infarction (MI). Previous studies have shown that there is an interaction between the brain and the heart, and fastigial nucleus electrostimulation (FNS) promotes central nerve regeneration. Whether and how it can promote cardiac nerve regeneration after MI and the underlying mechanisms remain unknown. This study investigated whether FNS promotes cardiac nerve regeneration and reduces malignant arrhythmia inducibility in a post-infarction rat model. Ninety-eight Wistar rats were randomly assigned to Sham control, MI (left anterior descending coronary artery ligation without FNS), FNS (MI plus FNS), and FNL (fastigial nucleus lesion plus FNS plus MI) groups. The frequency of malignant arrhythmia was significantly lower in the FNS group than in the MI and FNL groups. The density of cardiac autonomic nerves was less in the MI group than in the Sham group, which was promoted by FNS. The nerve growth factor (NGF) mRNA expression was downregulated in the MI group compared to the Sham group, which was significantly enhanced by FNS. The expression levels of norepinephrine (NE) and acetylcholine (ACh) were higher and lower respectively in the MI and FNL groups than in the Sham group. After FNS, NE concentration was reduced and Ach level was elevated compared to the MI group. These data suggested that FNS promoted the regeneration of cardiac autonomic nerves and reduced the incidence of malignant arrhythmias in MI rat model. The mechanisms might involve up-regulation of NGF mRNA expression, decrease of NE release and increase of ACh release.

Background It is critical to monitor the optic disc’s vessel density using Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) and evaluate its determinants. In the current study, we investigate the superficial vessel density (VD) of the papillary microvasculature and its determinants in healthy subjects of Southern China. Methods This was a prospective, cross-sectional study. Superficial VD in healthy individuals’ optic disc region was measured by OCTA. The factors associated with ocular and systemic parameters were analyzed using a generalized estimation equation (GEE) model. Results A total of 510 eyes of 260 healthy subjects were analyzed in the study. The total VD in the optic disc area was 17.21 ± 2.15 mm− 1 (95% CI, 17.02–17.40 mm− 1). The VD in the inner ring and the outer ring of the optic disc were significantly higher compared with the central ring, while the VD of the superior quadrant and inferior quadrant was significantly higher compared with the temporal and nasal quadrant. After adjusting for the ocular factors and systemic factors, AL (β = − 0.4917, P = 0.0003), disc area (β = − 0.3748, P = 0.0143), CMT (β = − 0.0183, P = 0.0003) and SSI (β = 1.0588, P Conclusion The mean total VD in the optic disc area was 17.21 ± 2.15 mm− 1 in healthy subjects, and the superior and inferior VD was significantly higher than the temporal and nasal VD. AL, disc area, CMT, and SSI may affect the total VD in the optic disc area and should be considered in clinical practice.

Background The relationships between the rs1800976, rs4149313 and rs2230806 polymorphisms in ATP binding cassette protein A1 and severity of coronary artery disease (CAD) remain unclear. Methods Four hundred and forty-two patients with CAD and 217 CAD-free subjects were enrolled in this study. The rs1800976, rs4149313 and rs2230806 polymorphisms were genotyped by PCR-RFLP. Severity of CAD was evaluated by Gensini score system, number of stenotic coronary vessels and extent of coronary stenosis. Results C allele of the rs1800976 polymorphism, G allele of the rs4149313 polymorphism and A allele of the rs2230806 polymorphism were found to be risk alleles for CAD (p Conclusions The rs1800976 polymorphism is significantly associated with the occurrence and severity of CAD, which is possibly mediated by hs-CRP and CysC.

Background: Emerging evidence shows that m.5178C>A variant is associated with a lower risk of coronary artery disease (CAD). However, the specific mechanisms remain elusive. Since dyslipidemia is one of the most critical risk factors for CAD and accounts for at least 50% of the population-attributable risk, it is tempting to speculate that the reduced CAD risk caused by the m.5178C>A variant may stem from an improved lipid profile. In order to verify this hypothesis, we conducted the present study to clarify the association of m.5178C>A variant with lipid levels. Methods: By searching ten databases for studies published before 30 June 2021. Thirteen East Asian populations (7587 individuals) were included for the analysis. Results: The present study showed that m.5178C>A variant was associated with higher high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) [standardized mean difference (SMD) = 0.12, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.06–0.17, PA variant with higher HDL-C levels were observed in Japanese (SMD = 0.09, 95% CI = 0.01–0.17, P=0.03) and Chinese populations (SMD = 0.13, 95% CI = 0.07–0.20, PA variant with lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels were only observed in Japanese populations (SMD = −0.11, 95% CI = −0.22 to 0.00, P=0.04). Conclusions: The m.5178C>A variant was associated with higher HDL-C and lower LDL-C levels in Japanese populations, which may contribute to decreased CAD risk and longevity of Japanese.

Background: The studies of miRNAs are vibrant and remain at the forefront in the cardiovascular system. Emerging studies indicate that the genetic polymorphisms of the miRNA gene may affect lipid metabolism; this study aims to clarify the specific correlations between the rs2910164 and rs3746444 polymorphisms and lipid levels.Methods and Results: A comprehensive search of literature was performed from December 31, 2020, to May 31, 2021, by searching of the PubMed and the Cochrane databases. The standardized mean difference (SMD) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to evaluate the differences in lipid levels between the genotypes. rs2910164, a functional polymorphism in the miRNA-146a gene, was associated with increased triglycerides (TG) (SMD = 0.35, 95% CI = 0.15–0.54, p < 0.001), total cholesterol (TC) (SMD = 0.43, 95% CI = 0.16–0.70, p < 0.001), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) (SMD = 0.37, 95% CI = 0.11–0.63, p = 0.01) as well as decreased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (SMD = −0.27, 95% CI = −0.47−0.07, p = 0.01) levels. rs3746444, a functional polymorphism in the miRNA-499a gene, was only correlated with decreased TG (SMD = −0.09, 95% CI = −0.17−0.01, P = 0.03) levels.Conclusions: The miRNA-146a rs2910164 polymorphism is significantly associated with atherogenic dyslipidemia.

Overcoming the gastrointestinal (GI) barriers is a formidable challenge in the oral delivery of active macromolecules such as peptide- and protein- based drugs. In the past four decades, a plethora of formulation strategies ranging from permeation enhancers, nanosized carriers, and chemical modifications of the drug’s structure has been investigated to increase the oral absorption of these macromolecular compounds. However, only limited successes have been achieved so far, with the bioavailability of marketed oral peptide drugs remaining generally very low. Recently, a few approaches that are based on physical interactions, such as magnetic, acoustic, and mechanical forces, have been explored in order to control and improve the drug permeability across the GI mucosa. Although in the early stages, some of these methods have shown great potential both in terms of improved bioavailability and spatiotemporal delivery of drugs. Here, we offer a concise, yet critical overview of these rather unconventional technologies with a particular focus on their potential and possible challenges for further clinical translation., Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews, 175, ISSN:0169-409X, ISSN:1872-8294

The first-line treatment options for high-risk prostate cancer (PCa) are definitive external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) with or without androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) and radical prostatectomy (RP) with or without adjuvant therapies. However, few randomized trials have compared the survival outcomes of these two treatments. To systematically evaluate the survival outcomes of high-risk PCa patients treated with EBRT- or RP-based therapy, a comprehensive and up-to-date meta-analysis was performed. A systematic online search was conducted for randomized or observational studies that investigated biochemical relapse-free survival (bRFS), cancer-specific survival (CSS), and/or overall survival (OS), in relation to the use of RP or EBRT in patients with high-risk PCa. The summary hazard ratios (HRs) were estimated under the random effects models. We identified heterogeneity between studies using Q tests and measured it using I2 statistics. We evaluated publication bias using funnel plots and Egger's regression asymmetry tests. Seventeen studies (including one randomized controlled trial [RCT]) of low risk of bias were selected and up to 9504 patients were pooled. When comparing EBRT-based treatment with RP-based treatment, the pooled HRs for bRFS, CSS, and OS were 0.40 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.24–0.67), 1.36 (95% CI: 0.94–1.97), and 1.39 (95% CI: 1.18–1.62), respectively. Better OS for RP-based treatment and better bRFS for EBRT-based treatment have been identified, and there was no significant difference in CSS between the two treatments. RP-based treatment is recommended for high-risk PCa patients who value long-term survival, and EBRT-based treatment might be a promising alternative for elderly patients.

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of salvianolate in elderly patients with unstable angina pectoris (UAP). A prospective double-blind randomized placebo-controlled multicenter trial in elderly patients with UAP from 13 third-grade class-A hospitals in China was performed. A total of 318 patients were randomly allocated in a 1:1 ratio to an experimental group (160 patients) and a control group (158 patients). The experimental group was treated with salvianolate for 14 days on the basis of conventional medicine, and the control group was given a placebo for 14 days with the same criteria. Follow-up was lasted 28 days in both groups. The primary endpoint was biweekly frequency of angina pectoris attacks. The secondary endpoints included biweekly dosage of nitroglycerin, the Seattle Angina Questionnaire, angina pectoris severity and duration, myocardial injury markers, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), as well as major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs). Safety was assessed according to adverse events and serious adverse events. Baseline characteristics were similar between treatment groups. Compared with those in the control group, the frequency of biweekly angina attacks (2.92 vs . 4.08, P=0.025), the biweekly dosage of nitroglycerin, as well as the severity and duration of angina attacks (P

In this paper, one-step fabrication of fusiform hierarchical micro/nanostructures on copper surface by femtosecond laser is proposed. According to the preferential valley ablation, Marangoni effect based on melt hydrodynamics and the coupling of the incident light and surface plasmon polaritons, the formation mechanism of the fusiform hierarchical micro/nanostructures is explained. And the effect of laser parameters including the defocusing distance, laser power, and scanning speed on the surface morphology is investigated. Also, the quantitative analysis of the fusiform tapers is carried out. It is demonstrated that the three-dimensional size of the fusiform hierarchical micro/nanostructures could be controlled by adjusting laser parameters. In addition, the potential applications of the fusiform hierarchical micro/nanostructures in microliter droplet directional transportation and light absorption are explored.

Background Circulating nitric oxide (NO) and lipid levels are closely associated with coronary artery disease (CAD). It is unclear whether the rs1799983 polymorphism in endothelial nitric oxide synthase (NOS3) gene is associated with plasma levels of NO and lipids. This systematic review and meta-analysis (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) aimed to clarify the relationships between the rs1799983 polymorphism and plasma levels of NO and lipids. Methods Sixteen studies (2702 subjects) and 59 studies (14 148 subjects) were identified for the association analyses for NO and lipids, respectively. Mean difference (MD) and 95% CI were used to estimate the effects of the rs1799983 polymorphism on plasma NO and lipid levels. The primary outcome variable was NO, and the secondary outcomes included triglycerides, total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). Results Carriers of the T allele had lower levels of NO (MD −0.27 μmol/L, 95% CI −0.42 to −0.12 μmol/L, p Conclusion The association between the NOS3 rs1799983 polymorphism and CAD may be partly mediated by abnormal NO and lipid levels caused by the T allele.

We have demonstrated a high-sensitivity strain sensor based on a novel photonic crystal fiber (PCF) interferometer by means of splicing two sections of thin core fibers (TCF) with a piece of PCF between two single mode fibers (SMFs). The proposed MZI has exhibited an excellent fringe visibility as high as 21 dB in air. Particularly, the measurement range was up to 4 me and a strain sensitivity of −1.89 pm/µe was achieved. It was found that the strain sensitivity of the MZI was weekly dependent on the PCF length. The measured sensitivities of the MZI with 25 mm, 30 mm and 35 mm PCF at ∼1590 nm were −1.83 pm/µe, −1.85 pm/µe and −1.77 pm/µe, respectively. Moreover, the temperature characteristics of the sensor were also investigated. Additionally, the sensor has advantages of simplicity of fabrication, low cost, compact size as well as large strain measurement range.

Background: Previous studies have shown that heart failure is associated with hemostatic abnormalities and hypercoagulable state. Plasma D-dimer levels reflect both fibrin formation and degradation, and elevated D-dimer levels have been associated with poor prognosis in patients with heart failure. However, little is known about their roles in elderly patients with end-stage HF. In present study, we aimed to explore the clinical significance and determinants of plasma D-dimer in elderly patients with end-stage heart failure. Methods: A total of 177 patients with heart failure at Beijing Geriatric Hospital from November 1, 2015 to December 30, 2018 were enrolled. All hospitalized patients were obtained D-dimer levels within the first 24 h following admission after obtaining informed consent. Primary endpoint was all-cause mortality. Results: A total of 60 patients had elevated D-dimer levels. Blood urea nitrogen (β=1.106, 95% CI: 1.029-1.190, p = 0.006), NYHA functional class (β=2.179, 95% CI: 1.170-4.056, p = 0.014) and white blood cell counts (β = 1.188, 95% CI: 1.040-1.358, p = 0.011) were independent risk factors for elevated D-dimer in elderly patients with end-stage heart failure. Albumin (β=0.803, 95% CI: 0.728-0.885, P ＜ 0.001) was negative risk factor for elevated D-dimer in elderly patients with end-stage heart failure. Elevated D-dimer level was independently associated with increased risk of long-term all-cause mortality (P = 0.048). Conclusions: For elderly patients with end-stage heart failure, D-dimer levels were associated with white blood cell counts, blood urea nitrogen, albumin and NYHA functional class and elevated D-dimer level was independently associated with poor long-term outcome.

BACKGROUND Experimental evidence has indicated the benefits of statins for the treatment of postoperative delirium. Previously, clinical trials did not reach definite conclusions on the effects of statins on delirium. Some clinical trials have indicated that statins reduce postoperative delirium and improve outcomes, while some studies have reported negative results. AIM To evaluate whether perioperative rosuvastatin treatment reduces the incidence of delirium and improves clinical outcomes. METHODS This randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled trial was conducted in a single center in Jiangsu, China. This study enrolled patients aged greater than 60 years who received general anesthesia during elective operations and provided informed consent. A computer-generated randomization sequence (in a 1:1 ratio) was used to randomly assign patients to receive either rosuvastatin (40 mg/d) or placebo. Participants, care providers, and investigators were all masked to group assignments. The primary endpoint was the incidence of delirium, which was assessed twice daily with the Confusion Assessment Method during the first 7 postoperative days. Analyses were performed on intention-to-treat and safety populations. RESULTS Between January 1, 2017 and January 1, 2020, 3512 patients were assessed. A total of 821 patients were randomly assigned to receive either placebo (n = 411) or rosuvastatin (n = 410). The incidence of postoperative delirium was significantly lower in the rosuvastatin group [23 (5.6%) of 410 patients] than in the placebo group {42 (13.5%) of 411 patients [odds ratios (OR) = 0.522, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.308-0.885; P < 0.05]}. No significant difference in 30-d all-cause mortality (6.1% vs 8.7%, OR = 0.67, 95%CI: 0.39-1.2, P = 0.147) was observed between the two groups. Rosuvastatin decreased the hospitalization time (13.8 ± 2.5 vs 14.2 ± 2.8, P = 0.03) and hospitalization expenses (9.3 ± 2.5 vs 9.8 ± 2.9, P = 0.007). No significant differences in abnormal liver enzymes (9.0% vs 7.1%, OR = 1.307, 95%CI: 0.787-2.169, P = 0.30) or rhabdomyolysis (0.73% vs 0.24%, OR = 3.020, 95%CI: 0.31-29.2, P = 0.37) were observed between the two groups. CONCLUSION The current study suggests that perioperative rosuvastatin treatment reduces the incidence of delirium after an elective operation under general anesthesia. However, the evidence does not reveal that rosuvastatin improves clinical outcomes. The therapy is safe. Further investigation is necessary to fully understand the potential usefulness of rosuvastatin in elderly patients.

Background: Experimental evidence has indicated the benefits of statins for the treatment of postoperative delirium. Previously clinical trials had no definite conclusions of statins on delirium. Some clinical trials indicated statins can reduce postoperative delirium and improve outcome, while some studies showed negative results. Therefore, the present study tries to evaluate whether perioperative rosuvastatin treatment could reduce the incidence of delirium and improve clinical outcomes. Methods: This was a randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled trial in a single-center in Jiangsu, China. This study enrolled patients aged more than 60 years old who present selective general anesthesia operation, with informed consent. A computer-generated randomization sequence (in a 1:1 ratio) was used to randomly assign patients to receive either rosuvastatin (40 mg/day) or placebos. Participants, care providers, and investigators were all masked to group assignment. The primary endpoint was the incidence of delirium, assessed twice daily with the Confusion Assessment Method during the first 7 postoperative days. Analyses were performed by intention-to-treat and safety populations. Results: Between Jan 1, 2017, and Jan 1, 2020, 3512 patients were assessed. A total of 821 were randomly assigned to receive either a placebo (n=411) or rosuvastatin (n=410). The incidence of postoperative delirium was significantly lower in the rosuvastatin group (23 [5.6%] of 410 patients) than the placebo group (42 [13.5%] of 411 patients (OR=0.522, 95% CI 0.308-0.885; pConclusion: The current study suggests that perioperative rosuvastatin treatment can reduce the incidence of delirium after elective general anesthesia operation. However, no evidence was found that rosuvastatin can improve clinical outcomes. The therapy was safe. Further investigation is necessary to fully understand the potential usefulness of dexmedetomidine in older patients. Trial registration: chictr.org.cn, ChiCTR-IPR-17011984(Registered date: 13/07/2017). The manuscript adheres to CONSORT guidelines.

Central airway obstruction is a life-threatening disorder causing a high physical and psychological burden to patients. Standard-of-care airway stents are silicone tubes, which provide immediate relief but are prone to migration. Thus, they require additional surgeries to be removed, which may cause tissue damage. Customized bioresorbable airway stents produced by 3D printing would be highly needed in the management of this disorder. However, biocompatible and biodegradable materials for 3D printing of elastic medical implants are still lacking. Here, we report dual-polymer photoinks for digital light 3D printing of customized and bioresorbable airway stents. These stents exhibit tunable elastomeric properties with suitable biodegradability. In vivo study in healthy rabbits confirmed biocompatibility and showed that the stents stayed in place for 7 weeks after which they became radiographically invisible. This work opens promising perspectives for the rapid manufacturing of the customized medical devices for which high precision, elasticity, and degradability are sought., Science Advances, 7 (6), ISSN:2375-2548

Vat photopolymerization 3D printing provides newopportunities for the fabrication of tissue scaffolds and medicaldevices. However, it usually requires the use of organic solvents ordiluents to dissolve the solid photoinitators, making this processenvironmentally unfriendly, and not optimal for biomedicalapplications. Here, we report biodegradable liquid polymericphotoinitiators for solvent-free 3D printing of biodegradable polymericmaterials by digital light processing. These photoinitiators enablesystematic investigation of structure-property relationship of 3Dprinting polymeric materials without the interference from the reactivediluents and offer new perspectives for the solvent-free 3D additivemanufacturing of bioresorbable medical implants as well as otherfunctional devices.

Central airway obstruction is a life-threatening disorder causing a high physical and psychological burden to patients due to severe breathlessness and impaired quality of life. Standard-of-care airway stents are silicone tubes, which cause immediate relief, but are prone to migration, especially in growing patients, and require additional surgeries to be removed, which may cause further tissue damage. Customized airway stents with tailorable bioresorbability that can be produced in a reasonable time frame would be highly needed in the management of this disorder. Here, we report poly(D,L-lactide-co-ε-caprolactone) methacrylate blends-based biomedical inks and their use for the rapid fabrication of customized and bioresorbable airway stents. The 3D printed materials are cytocompatible and exhibit silicone-like mechanical properties with suitable biodegradability. In vivo studies in healthy rabbits confirmed biocompatibility and showed that the stents stayed in place for 7 weeks after which they became radiographically invisible. The developed biomedical inks open promising perspectives for the rapid manufacturing of the customized medical devices for which high precision, tuneable elasticity and predictable degradation are sought-after.

Infection with human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) can cause severe complications in immunocompromised individuals and congenitally infected children. Characterizing heterogeneous viral populations and their evolution by high-throughput sequencing of clinical specimens requires the accurate assembly of individual strains or sequence variants and suitable variant calling methods. However, the performance of most methods has not been assessed for populations composed of low divergent viral strains with large genomes, such as HCMV. In an extensive benchmarking study, we evaluated 15 assemblers and six variant callers on ten lab-generated benchmark data sets created with two different library preparation protocols, to identify best practices and challenges for analyzing such data.Most assemblers, especially metaSPAdes and IVA, performed well across a range of metrics in recovering abundant strains. However, only one, Savage, recovered low abundant strains and in a highly fragmented manner. Two variant callers, LoFreq and VarScan2, excelled across all strain abundances. Both shared a large fraction of false positive (FP) variant calls, which were strongly enriched in T to G changes in a “G.G” context. The magnitude of this context-dependent systematic error is linked to the experimental protocol. We provide all benchmarking data, results and the entire benchmarking workflow named QuasiModo, Quasispecies Metric determination on omics, under the GNU General Public License v3.0 (https://github.com/hzi-bifo/Quasimodo), to enable full reproducibility and further benchmarking on these and other data.

Background Recently, some studies claim that adipokines may modulate plasma lipids. More interestingly, the ADRB3 Trp64Arg polymorphism may regulate adipokines and play an essential role in lipids metabolism. This study aims to clarify the associations of ADRB3 Trp64Arg polymorphism with plasma adipokines and lipid levels. Methods Twenty-two studies (5527 subjects) and 121 studies (54,059 subjects) were respectively identified for the association analyses of adipokines and lipids. Standardized mean difference (SMD) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to estimate the strength of the Trp64Arg variant in adipokines and plasma lipids. All results were recalculated after eliminating the studies with heterogeneity. Results The carriers of the C allele (Arg at 64th position was encoded by the C allele) had higher levels of leptin and lower levels of adiponectin than the non-carriers. The carriers of the C allele had higher levels of triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), and lower levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) than the non-carriers. Subgroup analysis certified an ethnicity (Asians), disease status (obesity), and gender (females) specific association. Sensitivity analysis indicated that the analysis results were robust and stable. Meta-regression indicated that obesity was related to adiponectin. Conclusions The C allele carriers of Trp64Arg polymorphism had a slight but significant influence on lipid levels, and the remarkable effects specific existed in obese Asian women. The associations of Trp64Arg polymorphism with dyslipidemia may partly be mediated by the effect of this polymorphism on adipokines. The association of Trp64Arg polymorphism with obesity may partly be mediated by the effect of this polymorphism on adipokines. The C allele carriers had abnormal levels of adipokines and lipids, and it indicated that the Trp64Arg polymorphism might represent a genetic risk factor for coronary artery disease (CAD).

A simple and efficient technique for fabricating parabolic cylindrical microlens arrays (CMLAs) on the surface of fused silica by shaped femtosecond (fs) laser direct-writing is demonstrated. By means of spatially shaping of a Gaussian fs laser beam to a Bessel distribution, an inversed cylindrical shape laser intensity profile is formed in a specific cross-sectional plane among the shaped optical field. Applying it to experiments, large area close-packed parabolic CMLAs with line-width of 37.5 μm and array size of about 5 × 5 mm are produced. The cross-sectional outline of obtained lenslets has a satisfied parabolic profile and the numerical aperture (NA) of lenslets is more than 0.35. Furthermore, the focusing performance of the fabricated CMLA is also tested in this work and it has been demonstrated that the focusing power of the CMLA with a parabolic profile is better than that with a semi-circular one.

Efficient continuous clean-up of large-scale oil spills is a global challenge. Herein, we present a simple method for fabrication of a gradient-wettability hydrophilic tilted mesh for fast spilled oil crossflow collection. After one-step femtosecond laser irradiation, the gradient-wettability mesh is tightly assembled and consists of four different pore size meshes, which possesses nanoripple structures. Meanwhile, the gradient-wettability mesh has a higher oil collection rate than single wettability meshes. This femtosecond-laser-induced gradient-wettability mesh design will have practical applications for efficient crossflow collection of large-area oil spills.

During the eleventh and seventeenth century, gradual development of China’s ancient printing industry were made in fields of printing technology, quantity and quality of publications, and market expansion. The author attempts to conduct a macroscopic investigation of the time-space conversion of China’s traditional printing centres during this period of history with adopting the method of comparative analysis of successive time-space sections. By taking a number of time coordinates as specific time-space nodes, and making horizontal and vertical comparisons, we can roughly sort out the important development process of the history of printing and publishing in ancient China.

A highly sensitive torsion sensor based on long period fiber grating (LPFG) fabricated by 800 nm femtosecond laser pulses is proposed and demonstrated. LPFG with an attenuation depth of ∼14 dB is achieved within the wavelength range of 1425–1575 nm. The experiment results show that the LP 02 and LP 03 resonant wavelengths experience red-shift when the twist direction is clockwise while they occur blue-shift in the twist counterclockwise direction as the twist rate increases. However, the LP 04 resonant wavelength is always shifted toward shorter wavelength independently of the twist directions and higher twist sensitivity is observed. In addition, the loss peak amplitude of LPFG shows a tendency to decrease with the twist rate increases whether the LPFG is twisted clockwise or counterclockwise. Meanwhile, the resonant wavelength occurs splitting phenomenon in the case of higher twist rate as well as the high order resonant wavelength performs more significantly. Additionally, the sensor shows a twist sensitivity as high as 118.7 pm/(rad/m) in the range of −105 to −52.5 rad/m and that of 181.7 pm/(rad/m) in the range of 52.5–105 rad/m.

Glass products with high joint strength are highly demanded in the field of microelectromechanical system (MEMS). While the quality requirement of MEMS is getting higher and higher, much attention has been paid to further improving the welding strength of the glass. Herein, a femtosecond laser welding method assisted by silver nanofilm for quartz glass is proposed. To optimize the welding results, the influence of the laser power on the location of the heat-affected zone is studied. The effect of coated silver nanofilm at the interface of two glass substrates on femtosecond laser absorptivity is conducted. Also, the welding spot size under different irradiation periods is investigated. In addition, the welding strength with and without the silver nanofilm is measured and compared. It is demonstrated that the welding strength was increased nearly 20% on average by our proposed method compared with direct femtosecond laser welding. In addition, even at the lower laser power than the welding threshold, the welding process could be realized by the proposed method.

In the present work, multi-level resistive switching (RS) in W/Co:TiO 2 /FTO structures induced by a multi-mixed mechanism was studied. It was found that the devices could be reproducibly programmed into three non-volatile resistance states. And the directly switching between any resistance states was realized. This increases the operation speed and lowers the complexity of controlling circuit of multi-level non-volatile memory.

Light transmission through slits array in a thin dielectric core layer sandwiched between two metallic cladding (MIM) is investigated using the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method. The dispersion relation of surface plasmon polariton (SPP) in the MIM structure is analyzed. The results show that SPP modes on the core layer act as a resonator-coupler, which helps to couple the resonance energy in the upper slit arrays to that in the lower slit arrays, and there is an enhanced transmission peak under appropriate resonance conditions. Coupling process is verified by the field profiles of the SPP modes calculated by FDTD method. Different MIM structures are designed to control the light transmission.

Lamb wave inspection is a promising structural health monitoring method for carbon fiber reinforced plastic laminates. The optimal design of the excitation waveform based on Lamb wave pulse compression is an effective way to improve the inspection resolution in elastic plates. However, due to the viscoelastic property of the composite materials, the material damping effect will influence the amplitude response of the output signals; thus, the current design strategy is no longer applicable. The purpose of this paper is to develop an excitation waveform design strategy based on pulse compression to meet the demands of high-resolution Lamb wave inspection in composite materials. Different parameters that affect the design of excitation such as material damping effect, amplitude response, relative frequency bandwidth, and the selection of excitation waveform are considered synthetically. In addition, an excitation waveform design strategy based on the corrected amplitude response is also established to eliminate the effect of material damping and thus achieve better detection resolution. Finally, an experiment was carried out on a quasi-isotropic composite plate. The experimental results validate the robustness of the amplitude response correction method and the effectiveness of the excitation waveform design strategy.

Background Several meta-analyses have demonstrated that the rs662 polymorphism in Paraoxonase 1 gene (PON1) gene is associated with coronary heart disease (CHD). However, it is still uncertain whether this polymorphism is associated with the plasma levels of oxidized low-density lipoprotein (Ox-LDL) and lipids. This meta-analysis is aimed to clarify the relationships between the rs662 polymorphism and plasma levels of Ox-LDL and lipids. Methods By searching in PubMed, Google Scholar, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Wanfang, VIP and CNKI databases, 5 studies (1369 subjects) and 85 studies (46,740 subjects) were respectively identified for Ox-LDL association analysis and lipid association analysis. Standardized mean difference (SMD) was used to estimate the effects of the rs662 polymorphism on plasma Ox-LDL and lipid levels. Results The carriers of the variant R allele had higher levels of Ox-LDL (SMD = 0.23, 95% CI = 0.10–0.36, P

We present a case of fatal poisoning from accidental ingestion of Gelsemium elegans (G. elegans), a rarely toxic plant. A 41-year-old man was found dead, at his home, 6 h after drinking homemade herbal liqueur during lunch. Autopsy and routine toxicological analyses identified neither significant pathological findings nor routine poisons. However, a local botanist revealed that the homemade herbal liqueur contained G. elegans, a poisonous plant specific to Asia. To ascertain whether the decedent had ingested G. elegans, we performed liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) and found two alkaloids (gelsemine and koumine) in his blood, gastric contents, as well as the suspected herbal liqueur. The cause of death was therefore confirmed to be G. elegans poisoning. Case reports of fatal poisoning due to ingestion of G. elegans are quite rare in English. Therefore, the present case broadens the scope on the possibility of death due to ingestion of G. elegans for forensic pathologists and toxicologists.

In this paper, we present an effective tandem neural network with back-propagation optimization strategy for simultaneous inverse design of the continuous and discrete optical parameters, such as the thickness of dielectric layers, the number of periods and materials types. In order to update the discrete parameters in the back-propagation, we use an inverse design network combined with a new constraint function to optimize these two types of parameters together. The forward network model which is trained firstly and is responsible for giving an approximate range of the parameters. The inverse design network then finds the exact parameters in this range by employing back-propagation. Our optimization strategy could find several sets of design parameters that well match the target spectrum, which is an effective method to tackle the problem of non-uniqueness in the inverse design. Furthermore, we demonstrate the inverse design of photonic crystal structure with a specific band gap and center frequency based on a small training dataset.

In this study, an effective method is proposed for controlling a titanium foil surface’s wettability. A microholes array series is fabricated on the surface of titanium foil by a femtosecond laser under different laser energy and pulse number. The changes of the titanium surface’s morphology are characterized. When placed in a darkroom with high-temperature treatment and immersed in alcohol under UV irradiation, respectively, the femtosecond laser treated surfaces display switchable wettability. It is demonstrated that the changing between Ti−OH and Ti−O prompts the transformation between superhydrophilic and superhydrophobic. Compared with existing reports, the switchable wetting cycle is shortened to 1.5 h. The functional surfaces with switchable wettability have potential applications in oil–water separation and water mist collection.

Two types of robust Mach–Zehnder interferometer (MZI) sensors based on microcavity in a single mode optical fibers (SMFs) are proposed, which are fabricated by femtosecond laser inscription and chemical etching. The SMFs are modified by an improved point-by-point inscription method (called a transversal-scanning method) or a line-by-line scanning inscription method, which lead to form a rectangular-shaped or a V-shaped MZI after etching. The MZIs show high refractive index (RI) sensitivity above $10^{\mathrm { {5}}}$ nm/RIU with good linearity. Especially, the rectangular-shaped MZI exhibits a ultra-high RI sensitivity of −17503.73 nm/RIU with a linearity of 0.999 in the range of 1.3371–1.3407. The results of which are coincident with theoretical calculation. In addition, the MZI structures have good mechanical strength and temperature sensitivities in water are also studied.

With the alignment of the fiber core systems containing dual-CCDs and high-precision electric displacement platform, twisted long period fiber gratings (T-LPFGs) were fabricated in two different twisted SMF-28 fibers by femtosecond laser. The torsion characteristics of the T-LPFGs were experimentally and theoretical investigated and demonstrated in this study. The achieved torsion sensitivity is 117.4 pm/(rad/m) in the torsion range −105–0 rad/m with a linearity of 0.9995. Experimental results show that compared with the ordinary long period fiber gratings, the resonance wavelength of the gratings presents an opposite symmetrical shift depending on the twisting direction after the applied torsion is removed. In addition, high sensitivity could be obtained, which is very suitable for the applications in the torsion sensor. These results are important for the design of new torsion sensors based on T-LPFGs fabricated by femtosecond laser.

Most ultrasonic guided wave methods focus on tone burst excitation to reduce the effect of dispersion so as to facilitate signal interpretation. However, the resolution of the output cannot attain a very high value because time duration of the excitation waveform cannot be very small. To overcome this limitation, a pulse compression technique is introduced to Lamb wave propagation to achieve a $\delta$ -like correlation so as to obtain a high resolution for inspection. Ideal $\delta $ -like correlation is impossible as only a finite frequency bandwidth can propagate. The primary purpose of this paper is to design a proper excitation waveform for Lamb wave pulse compression, which shortens the correlation as close as possible to a $\delta $ function. To achieve this purpose, the performance of some typical signals is discussed in pulse compression, which include linear chirp (L-Chirp) signal, nonlinear chirp (NL-Chirp) signal, Barker code (BC), and Golay complementary code (GCC). In addition, how the excitation frequency range influences inspection resolution is investigated. A strategy for the frequency range determination is established subsequently. Finally, an experiment is carried out on an aluminum plate where these typical signals are used as excitations at different frequency ranges. The quantitative comparisons of the pulse compression responses validate the theoretical findings. By utilizing the experimental data, the improvement of pulse compression in resolution compared with tone burst excitation is also validated, and the robustness of the waveform design method to inaccuracies in the dispersion compensation is discussed as well.

Background: Intestinal ischemia-reperfusion (II/R) can lead to indirect lung injury. Previous studies have shown that p38 kinase may be involved in acute lung injury (ALI). However, the exact role of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and possible mechanisms in lungs are unknown and no specific treatment exists for II/R-induced ALI. The purpose of this study was to investigate the protective role of p38 MAPK inhibition in the regulation of the inflammatory response to ALI induced by II/R in rats.Methods: II/R was induced by occlusion of the superior mesenteric artery (SMA) and coeliac artery (CA) for 40 minutes and subsequent reperfusion for 0, 8, 16, 24 hours. SB239063, a specific inhibitor of p38 MAPK, was injected (10 mg/kg) intraperitoneally 60 minutes before the operation. The severity of ALI was measured by histology analysis (hematoxylin-eosin [HE] staining and ALI scoring) and lung edema (lung wet/dry weight ratio). Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), western blot (WB), and immunofluorescent staining were employed to assess expression and location of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and p38 MAPK, respectively.Results: ALI including lung edema, alveolar collapse, hemorrhage, exudation and infiltration of inflammatory cells in the lungs was induced by II/R and expression levels of IL-6 and p38 MAPK protein in the lung tissues were significantly increased at 8 and 16 hours after reperfusion, respectively compared with that in the sham group. SB239063 administration significantly down-regulated p38 MAPK and IL-6 concentration in the lung specimens, therefore, protected effectively lung tissues from injury after II/R.Conclusions: These findings indicated that p38 MAPK inhibition may downregulate the expression of IL-6 to protect lung from ALI induced by II/R, which could be used as a potential target for the prevention or treatment of ALI caused by II/R. Citation: Liu-Lin Xiong, Yun-Xia Zuo, Chao-Zhi Luo, Jie Yu, Qing-Jie Xia, Fei-Fei Xu, et al. p38 MAPK inhibitor administration provides protection against acute lung injury in rats with intestinal ischemia reperfusion via downregulating interlukin-6 expression. J Anesth Perioper Med 2016; 3: 27-34. doi: 10.24015/JAPM.2016.0004This is an open-access article, published by Evidence Based Communications (EBC). This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium or format for any lawful purpose. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

A novel structure of photodetector with a higher optoelectronic response is fabricated based on MoS2/Au NPs/WS2 heterostructure in this work. Here, contact of Au nanoparticle (Au NPs) with MoS2 and WS2 can form n-type barrier layers that suppress the dark current of the device. On the other hand, the optical field intensity near the Au NPs is increased due to the local surface plasmon resonance of Au NPs which promotes the absorption of light by MoS2 and WS2 and then increases the photocurrent without changing the dark current of the device. By comparing the performance of the MoS2/WS2 heterojunction photodetector, we found that the photoelectric properties (such as Responsivity, External Quantum Efficiency, and ON/OFF ratio) of the MoS2/Au NPs/WS2 photodetector are almost ten times higher or more. This method of integrating Au NPs in heterojunction provides a solution for heterojunction optoelectronic devices with poor responsivity, paving the way for the performance improvement of highly freely matched two-dimensional material heterojunction photodetectors.

In this study, we propose an effective method for the fabrication of annulus micro-/nanostructures by a femtosecond laser doughnut beam. Compared with the traditional Bessel annulus beam shaping system, this method greatly compresses the light propagation path. It is theoretically and experimentally demonstrated that the obtained axial section of the peak envelope in the processing area is two waists of the isosceles triangle. By moving the relative position of the sample, annulus microstructures with different diameters on copper sheet could be fabricated. In addition, laser induced periodic surface structures with controllable direction are fabricated by this optical system.

The convex grid-patterned microstructures were fabricated on a silicon substrate by using femtosecond laser assisted with chemical etching in this study. Along the femtosecond laser scanning traces, the isosceles trapezoidal microstructures were generated. According to Raman spectra and elemental distribution, the formation of the convex microstructures is investigated. Also, the effect of experimental parameters including laser power, scanning speed, etching duration and etching temperature on the microstructures’ three-dimensional size is discussed in detail. In addition, the hydrophobic property of a surface with large-area convex grid-patterned microstructures was explored.

The radioprotective effect of herb epimedium (or yin yang huo) extract (5 g/kg, oral administration daily for 4 weeks) on neurogenesis and cognition after acute radiation exposure with 5.5 Gy was evaluated in Balb/c mice by behavioral tests and immunohistochemical study. The results indicated that epimedium extract could improve animal weight loss, locomotor activity and spatial learning and memory which are similar to pre-irradiation intraperitoneal injection (100 mg/kg) of amifostine phosphate, a well- known radioprotective drug. Immunohistochemical study showed that epimedium extract prevented the loss of proliferation cells, newly generated neurons, and interneurons in the hilus, in particular, the subgranular zone of the dentate gyrus. It suggests that herb epimedium may be a promising radio-neuro-protective drug to prevent radiation-induced neuropsychological disorders.

Bacterial vaginosis is a serious issue for women in their reproductive years. Although it can usually be cured by antibiotics, the recurrence rate is very high, and some women do not respond to antibiotic therapy. The reasons for that are not known. Therefore, we undertook a study to detect the activity of the complete microbiota in the vaginal fluid of women who responded to antibiotic therapy and compared it to the activity of the microbiota in women who did not respond. We found that one of the most important pathogens in bacterial vaginosis, Gardnerella vaginalis, has activated genes that can repair the DNA damage caused by the antibiotic in those women that do not respond to therapy. Suppressing these genes might be a possibility to improve the antibiotic therapy of bacterial vaginosis., Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a prevalent multifactorial disease of women in their reproductive years characterized by a shift from the Lactobacillus species-dominated microbial community toward a taxonomically diverse anaerobic community. For unknown reasons, some women do not respond to therapy. In our recent clinical study, among 37 women diagnosed with BV, 31 were successfully treated with metronidazole, while 6 still had BV after treatment. To discover possible reasons for the lack of response in those patients, we performed a metatranscriptome analysis of their vaginal microbiota, comparing them to the patients who responded. Seven of 8 clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)-associated (Cas) genes of Gardnerella vaginalis were highly upregulated in nonresponding patients. Cas genes, in addition to protecting against phages, might be involved in DNA repair, thus mitigating the bactericidal effect of DNA-damaging agents such as metronidazole. In the second part of our study, we analyzed the vaginal metatranscriptomes of four patients over 3 months and showed high in vivo expression of genes for pore-forming toxins in L. iners and of genes encoding enzymes for the production of hydrogen peroxide and d-lactate in L. crispatus. IMPORTANCE Bacterial vaginosis is a serious issue for women in their reproductive years. Although it can usually be cured by antibiotics, the recurrence rate is very high, and some women do not respond to antibiotic therapy. The reasons for that are not known. Therefore, we undertook a study to detect the activity of the complete microbiota in the vaginal fluid of women who responded to antibiotic therapy and compared it to the activity of the microbiota in women who did not respond. We found that one of the most important pathogens in bacterial vaginosis, Gardnerella vaginalis, has activated genes that can repair the DNA damage caused by the antibiotic in those women that do not respond to therapy. Suppressing these genes might be a possibility to improve the antibiotic therapy of bacterial vaginosis.

Background Dyslipidaemia is a major risk factor for coronary heart disease (CHD). Danhong and Huangqi injections, two traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions, have been widely studied regarding their lipid-lowering properties. However, the results were inconsistent and inconclusive. Thus, we conducted this meta-analysis of clinical controlled trials to clarify the lipid-lowering effects of Danhong and Huangqi injections. Methods The databases including PubMed, Google Scholar, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Wanfang Database, CNKI and VIP were searched. The following information was obtained from each study: first author, age, gender, ethnicity, health condition, treatment dose, treatment duration, sample size, mean and standard deviation or standard error of lipid variables before and after treatment. The changes in lipid levels from pre- to post-treatment were calculated and compared between the control groups and the treatment groups in this meta-analysis. Results Forty-four studies (5021 subjects) and 7 studies (542 subjects) were respectively identified for Danhong and Huangqi injections. Compared with the control groups, Danhong injection yielded a significant reduction in triglycerides (TG) [standardized mean difference (SMD) = − 0.76, 95% confidence interval (CI) = (− 0.91, − 0.61), P

We have proposed a high sensitive photonic crystal fiber (PCF) strain sensor based on the Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI). The sensing head is formed by all-fiber in-line single mode-multimode-photonic-crystal-single mode fiber (SMPS) structure, using only the splicing method. Such a strain sensor exhibited a high sensitivity of −2.21 pm/με within a large measurement range of up to 5000 με and a large fringe visibility of up to 24 dB. Moreover, it was found that the strain sensitivity was weekly dependent of the length of PCF or MMF. In addition, the sensor exhibited the advantages of simplicity of fabrication, high sensitivity and larger fringe visibility.

Sound radiation of thin plates is a common problem in engineering. Hashimoto proposed the discrete calculation method (DCM) to deal with the problem. The calculation of the radiation impedance of the rectangular element is more cumbersome than that of the circular one, so the discrete rectangular radiation element is approximated by the circular one. However, error is also introduced. The formula developed by Sha has been employed to get self- and mutual-radiation impedances of rectangular radiation element. Numerical study was performed to verify error introduced by the approximation Hashimoto adopted. Experimental researches on sound radiation of a 2mm-thick and a 4mm-thick magnesium alloy plates were also carried out to evaluate the errors introduced by the approximation. The experimental results indicate that the circular approximation Hashimoto adopted overestimates the sound radiation efficiency. The maximum error levels of the radiation efficiencies of the 2mm-thick and 4mm-thick magnesium alloy plates are up to 0.15 and 0.12, respectively. The effect of element aspect ratio on the sound radiation efficiency is also remarkable.

Berberine (BBR), an alkaloid component isolated from Chinese medicinal herb Huang Lian, has aroused broad interests for its antitumor effect in recent years. The signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), plays critical roles in malignant transformation and progression and was found to be constitutively activated in a variety of human cancers. In this study, we show that BBR inhibited cell proliferation, induced apoptosis, and suppressed tumor spheroid formation of lung cancer cell lines. These effects were correlated with BBR-mediated suppression of both phosphorylated and total levels of STAT3 protein. Furthermore, BBR promoted STAT3 degradation by enhancing ubiquitination. Importantly, we demonstrated that BBR was able to inhibit doxorubicin (DOX)-mediated STAT3 activation and sensitize lung cancer cells to the cytotoxic effect of DOX treatment. Given that BBR is widely used in clinic with low toxicity, our results are potentially important for the development of a novel combinatorial therapy with BBR and DOX in the treatment of lung cancer.

Resonant effect is found in femtosecond laser ablating Pr–Nd glass. When processed with resonant wavelength of 807 nm, resonant ablation efficiency (RAE) with a single pulse can be improved by 45.22%. Furthermore, RAE closely relates to laser intensity. For resonant ablation, RAE is increased significantly when laser intensity 0.556×1014??W/cm2 at which tunnel ionization dominates. Besides, it is also found that the ablation depth increases along with the wavelength rise when multiphoton ionization dominates, while the change rule is inversed when tunnel ionization dominates.

The temperature sensing performance of long period fiber gratings (LPFGs) written by femtosecond laser pulses coated with platinum nanoparticles (PtNPs) is proposed and demonstrated. It is found that the PtNPs increase the wavelength sensitivity of the LPFG significantly compared with the bare LPFG. The temperature sensitivities of the bare LPFG for three dips, corresponding to 1438, 1485, and 1585 nm, are 74.04, 77.23, and 86.26 pm/°C, respectively, when the temperature changes from 10°C to 500°C, whereas the corresponding sensitivities of PtNP coated LPFGs are up to 90.58, 93.51, and 103.43 pm/°C, respectively. Moreover, the PtNP coated LPFG has shown better wavelength repeatability. A small wavelength hysteresis of ∼0.5 nm is observed when the temperature is less than 300°C.

Here, an approach for synthesizing large-area and high-quality MoS2 flakes was developed. In addition, we made up the MoS2 photoelectric detector and studied the photocurrent response of the detector. We firstly used the ceramic pieces to control MoO3 evaporation for obtaining large-area MoS2. Our CVD reaction is hydrogen free, very simple operation, high repetition rate and cost saving. The obtained MoS2 flakes exhibited large-area with lengths up to 400–500 micrometers. Through analyzing optical microscopy(OM), Raman and atomic force microscopy(AFM), we confirm the MoS2 thin film is bilayer. And the photoelectric characteristic experiment shows that the photoelectric detector has sensitive photoelectric response with the fine stability.