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Abstract In a recently published paper in Cardiovascular Diabetology, Sinha et al. (Association of fasting glucose with lifetime risk of incident heart failure: the Lifetime Risk Pooling Project. Cardiovasc Diabetol. 2021;20(1):66) reported that prediabetes (defined as a fasting plasma glucose concentration of 100–125 mg/dL) was associated with a higher lifetime risk of heart failure in middle-aged White adults and Black women, with the association attenuating in older Black women. This study provides important evidence that the risk of heart failure is increased in people with a fasting plasma glucose concentration as low as 100 mg/dL, supporting the definition of prediabetes according to the American Diabetes Association guideline. The study also strongly supports the notion that prediabetes should be regarded not only as a high-risk state for the development of diabetes but also as a risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity.

Objectives This study aimed to investigate the factors affecting the quantity of DNA and RNA extractable from human formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissues stored for different lengths of time. Methods We randomly selected 20 FFPE specimens harvested from hysteromyoma patients with uterine fibroids during 2010, 2015, and 2017 at the Department of Pathology, Jiading District Central Hospital Affiliated Shanghai University of Medicine and Health Sciences. DNA and RNA extractions were performed using a DNA/RNA FFPE kit. DNA and RNA concentrations and their OD 260 /OD 280 ratios were determined by a NanoDrop 2000 spectrophotometer. The human β-globin gene and aldehyde dehydrogenase-2 (ALDH 2 ) gene were amplified from nucleic acids using a LightCycler 480 Real-Time PCR System, and PCR amplification products were electrophoresed on 1% agarose gels. Results Specimens that were stored for longer showed more degradation and a reduced concentration of DNA and RNA after nucleic acid extraction. However, there was no significant difference in DNA or RNA purity. β-globin and ALDH 2 genes could be amplified from more than 99% of specimens. Conclusion We found that FFPE tissues stored for longer had a reduced quantity of extractable DNA and RNA. However, these tissues could be used for the analysis of some small target genes.

Objectives The purpose of this paper was to synthesize 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole Schiff base derivative and to evaluate its antitumor activity. Methods 2,4,6-Tris (4-formylphenoxy)-1,3,5-triazine was synthesized by nucleophilic substitution with reaction of p -hydroxybenzaldehyde with cyanuric chloride. Then, the intermediate was reacted with 1,2,4-triazole to form 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole Schiff base derivative by reduction and ammonification of aldehydes. The 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole Schiff base derivative was characterized by infrared spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance, and elemental analyses. Finally, the anticancer effect of 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole Schiff base derivative was evaluated by MTT [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] assay on a lung adenocarcinoma cell line (A549) and a human hepatoma cell line (Bel7402). Results The product synthesized in this study was confirmed to be 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole Schiff base derivative, and it significantly suppressed the proliferation of cancer cell lines in a dose-dependent manner. Conclusions We successfully prepared 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole Schiff base derivative and verified its antitumor activity.

Serum creatinine measurement demonstrates a poor specificity and sensitivity for the early diagnosis of acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients with cirrhosis. The existing model for end‐stage liver disease (MELD) score reveals multiple pitfalls in critically ill patients with cirrhosis and acute kidney injury (CAKI). The aim of this study was to re‐evaluate the role of creatinine values in the existing MELD score and to develop a novel score for CAKI, named the “acute kidney injury–model for end‐stage liver disease score” (AKI‐MELD score). We extracted 651 CAKI from the Multiparameter Intelligent Monitoring in Intensive Care database. A time‐dependent Cox regression analysis was performed for developing remodeled MELD scores (Reweight‐MELD score, Del‐Cr‐MELD score, and AKI‐MELD score). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve provided the discriminative power of scoring models related to outcome. The hazard ratio of creatinine was 1.104 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.945‐1.290; P = 0.211). Reweight‐MELD score and Del‐Cr‐MELD score (decreasing the weight of creatinine) were superior to the original MELD score (all P < 0.001). The new AKI‐MELD score consists of bilirubin, the international normalized ratio, and the ratio of creatinine in 48 hours to creatinine at admission. It had competitive discriminative ability for predicting mortality (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, 0.720 [95% CI, 0.653‐0.762] at 30 days, 0.688 [95% CI, 0.630‐0.742] at 90 days, and 0.671 [95% CI, 0.612‐0.725] at 1 year). Further, AKI‐MELD score had significantly higher predictive ability in comparison with MELD score, MELD‐Na score, and Updated MELD score (all P < 0.001). Conclusion: The predictive value of creatinine for CAKI should be re‐evaluated. AKI‐MELD score is a potentially reliable tool to determine the prognosis for mortality of CAKI. (Hepatology Communications 2017;1:748–756)

This paper presents numerical simulations of dam-break flow over a movable bed. Two different mathematical models were compared: a fully coupled formulation of shallow water equations with erosion and deposition terms (a depth-averaged concentration flux model), and shallow water equations with a fully coupled Exner equation (a bed load flux model). Both models were discretized using the cell-centered finite volume method, and a second-order Godunov-type scheme was used to solve the equations. The numerical flux was calculated using a Harten, Lax, and van Leer approximate Riemann solver with the contact wave restored (HLLC). A novel slope source term treatment that considers the density change was introduced to the depth-averaged concentration flux model to obtain higher-order accuracy. A source term that accounts for the sediment flux was added to the bed load flux model to reflect the influence of sediment movement on the momentum of the water. In a one-dimensional test case, a sensitivity study on different model parameters was carried out. For the depth-averaged concentration flux model, Manning's coefficient and sediment porosity values showed an almost linear relationship with the bottom change, and for the bed load flux model, the sediment porosity was identified as the most sensitive parameter. The capabilities and limitations of both model concepts are demonstrated in a benchmark experimental test case dealing with dam-break flow over variable bed topography.

In urban flood modeling, so-called porosity shallow water equations (PSWEs), which conceptually account for unresolved structures, e.g., buildings, are a promising approach to addressing high CPU times associated with state-of-the-art explicit numerical methods. The PSWE can be formulated with a single porosity term, referred to as the single porosity shallow water model (SP model), which accounts for both the reduced storage in the cell and the reduced conveyance, or with two porosity terms: one accounting for the reduced storage in the cell and another accounting for the reduced conveyance. The latter form is referred to as an integral or anisotropic porosity shallow water model (AP model). The aim of this study was to analyze the differences in wave propagation speeds of the SP model and the AP model and the implications of numerical model results. First, augmented Roe-type solutions were used to assess the influence of the source terms appearing in both models. It is shown that different source terms have different influences on the stability of the models. Second, four computational test cases were presented and the numerical models were compared. It is observed in the eigenvalue-based analysis as well as in the computational test cases that the models converge if the conveyance porosity in the AP model is close to the storage porosity. If the porosity values differ significantly, the AP model yields different wave propagation speeds and numerical fluxes from those of the BP model. In this study, the ratio between the conveyance and storage porosities was determined to be the most significant parameter.

Cardiac coronary angiography is a major technique that assists physicians during interventional heart surgery. Under X-ray irradiation, the physician injects a contrast agent through a catheter and determines the coronary arteries’ state in real time. However, to obtain a more accurate state of the coronary arteries, physicians need to increase the frequency and intensity of X-ray exposure, which will inevitably increase the potential for harm to both the patient and the surgeon. In the work reported here, we use advanced deep learning algorithms to find a method of frame interpolation for coronary angiography videos that reduces the frequency of X-ray exposure by reducing the frame rate of the coronary angiography video, thereby reducing X-ray-induced damage to physicians. We established a new coronary angiography image group dataset containing 95,039 groups of images extracted from 31 videos. Each group includes three consecutive images, which are used to train the video interpolation network model. We apply six popular frame interpolation methods to this dataset to confirm that the video frame interpolation technology can reduce the video frame rate and reduce exposure of physicians to X-rays.

Background/Aim: Acute exogenous lipoid pneumonia (AELP) is a rare disorder caused by intake of lipid formulations and is often underdiagnosed. Meanwhile, the mechanism of AELP is still underlying. MCC950, was previously found to significantly suppress the release of inflammatory cytokines IL-18 and IL-1β. However, the effect of MCC950 on AELP induced by sewing machine oil has not been reported. Materials and Methods: The NLRP3, NF-ĸB p65, caspase-1 and IL-1β expression in lung tissues were compared between a rat model of AELP and control rats using western blotting and real-time quantitative assay. Moreover, haematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining was performed to elucidate the mechanisms by which MCC950 ameliorates sewing machine oil-induced AELP in vivo. Results: MCC950 reduced the expression of NF-ĸB p65 in the lung samples of the treatment group and further down-regulated the NLRP3 and caspase-1 levels while inhibited the production of IL-1β. Besides, decreases in inflammatory cell infiltration in the lung were shown using H&E staining. Conclusion: MCC950 ameliorates sewing machine oil-induced acute exogenous lipoid pneumonia in rats through inhibition of the NF-ĸĸB/NLRP3 inflammasome pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose an effective highest occupied d‐orbital modulation strategy engendered by breaking the coordination symmetry of sites in the atomically precise Cu nanocluster (NC) to switch the product of CO2 electroreduction from HCOOH/CO to higher‐valued hydrocarbons. An atomically well‐defined Cu6 NC with symmetry‐broken Cu−S2N1 active sites (named Cu6(MBD)6, MBD=2‐mercaptobenzimidazole) was designed and synthesized by a judicious choice of ligand containing both S and N coordination atoms. Different from the previously reported high HCOOH selectivity of Cu NCs with Cu−S3 sites, the Cu6(MBD)6 with Cu−S2N1 coordination structure shows a high Faradaic efficiency toward hydrocarbons of 65.5 % at −1.4 V versus the reversible hydrogen electrode (including 42.5 % CH4 and 23 % C2H4), with the hydrocarbons partial current density of −183.4 mA cm−2. Theoretical calculations reveal that the symmetry‐broken Cu−S2N1 sites can rearrange the Cu 3d orbitals with dx2-y2 ${d_{x^2 - y^2 } }$ as the highest occupied d‐orbital, thus favoring the generation of key intermediate *COOH instead of *OCHO to favor *CO formation, followed by hydrogenation and/or C−C coupling to produce hydrocarbons. This is the first attempt to regulate the coordination mode of Cu atom in Cu NCs for hydrocarbons generation, and provides new inspiration for designing atomically precise NCs for efficient CO2RR towards highly‐valued products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past decades, zinc oxide semiconductor and its derivatives have been extensively developed because of its optoelectronic properties. Since ZnO is an intrinsic n-type semiconductor, how to synthesize high-quality p-type ZnO semiconductors and investigate their optoelectronic properties and local chemical structures are important and necessary. In this article, two studies of synthesizing both undoped and phosphorus-doped ZnO nanostructures by hydrothermal method and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique are presented. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and laboratory X-ray diffraction (XRD) are used to track the surface morphology and the crystalline structure of both undoped and phosphorus doped ZnO nanostructures, respectively. X-ray absorption near edge structures (XANES), X-ray emission spectroscopy (XES) and X-ray excited optical luminescence (XEOL) are also used to determine the local chemical information of both undoped and phosphorus-doped ZnO nano/microstructures such as local symmetry and optical properties. It is found that the phosphorus is successfully doped into the surface of ZnO and substituted the Zn. The phosphorus-doped ZnO products have better crystallinity and less oxygen vacancies on the surface. These two are correlated as one leads to the other. The XEOL results suggest that the average bandgap for undoped and phosphorus doped ZnO is the same, 3.24 eV. The second derivative of the absorption-emission spectra yields the fundamental bandgap for undoped ZnO and phosphorus-doped ZnO is 3.25 eV. The implication of this observation is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]