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Polylactic acid (PLA) is a thermoplastic polyester that has received widespread attention for its environmentally friendly origin and excellent performance, and its potential to address the current problems of severe white pollution and scarcity of petroleum resources. This article focuses on the synthesis, modification, degradation and application of PLA. The main focus is on the modification of PLA with different environmentally friendly materials (natural organic materials, biodegradable polymers, inorganic minerals) in blends for defects such as the brittleness of PLA. In addition, the applications of PLA composites in the fields of construction, medical, packaging and oil and water separation are also introduced, which hopefully will provide some help to the promotion of PLA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Systemic inflammation and handgrip weakness have been used to predict mortality in many cancers. The purpose of current study was to evaluate the association of co‐occurrence of inflammation indicators and handgrip weakness with overall survival (OS) of lung cancer (LC) patients with good performance status. Methods: The cutoff points for handgrip strength (HGS) and the four inflammation indicators were calculated using Maxstat. The time‐dependent receiver operating characteristic curve and C‐index were used to select optimal inflammation indicator for predicting OS of LC patients. The Cox proportional hazard regression model was used to calculate the hazard ratio (HR) of mortality. Kaplan–Meier curves were constructed to evaluate the association of indicators and the OS of LC patients. Results: Among the 1951 patients, the mean ± standard deviation (SD) age was 60.6 ± 9.9 years, and 1300 (66.6%) patients were male. In patients with good performance status (PS), handgrip weakness (HR, 1.49; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 1.30–1.70, p < 0.001) and low advanced lung cancer inflammation index (ALI) (HR, 2.05; 95%CI, 1.79–2.34, p < 0.001), high systemic immune‐inflammation index (SII) (HR, 1.91; 95%CI, 1.66–2.19, p < 0.001), high platelet: lymphocyte ratio (PLR) (HR, 1.60; 95%CI, 1.40–1.82, p < 0.001), or high neutrophil: lymphocyte ratio (NLR) (HR, 2.01; 95%CI, 1.76–2.30, p < 0.001) were associated with increased mortality risk of LC patients. ALI had better C‐index (0.624) and time‐AUC in the prediction of OS in LC patients with good PS than other three combinations. The co‐occurrence of handgrip weakness and low ALI more than doubled the risk of death in LC with good PS (HR, 2.44; 95% CI, 2.06–2.89, p < 0.001). Conclusion: In LC patients who have good PS, patients with combined handgrip weakness and low ALI have the worst prognosis. The Trial Registration Number: ChiCTR1800020329. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Maddox suggested that there were four convergence subtypes, each driven by a different stimulus. The purpose of this study was to assess the neural correlates for accommodative convergence, proximal convergence (convergence stimulus provided), disparity convergence and voluntary convergence (no specific convergence stimulus provided) using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Methods: Ten subjects (mean age = 24.4 years) with normal binocular vision participated. The blood oxygenation level‐dependent (BOLD) signals of the brain from fMRI scans were measured when subjects made vergence eye movements while: (1) alternately viewing letters monocularly where one eye viewed through a −2.00 D lens, (2) alternately viewing Difference of Gaussian targets monocularly at distance and near, (3) viewing random dot stereograms with increasing disparity and (4) voluntarily converging the eyes with binocular viewing. Results: The accommodative convergence paradigm resulted in activation on the right side in the right fusiform cortex and the right middle occipital cortex. The proximal convergence stimulus mainly activated areas in the right occipital lobe. The disparity stimulus activated areas in the left occipital cortex and the left frontal cortex. Finally, the voluntary convergence paradigm resulted in activation primarily in the occipital lobe and mostly bilaterally. Conclusion: The accommodative, proximal, disparity and voluntary convergence paradigms resulted in activation in unique areas in the brain with functional MRI. Activation was found in more areas in the proximal and voluntary conditions compared with the accommodative and disparity conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study aimed to explore the relationship between the modified advanced lung cancer inflammation index (mALI) and the survival of overweight or obese patients with lung cancer (LC). Methods: The mALI was defined as the appendix skeletal muscle index multiplied by the serum albumin level/neutrophil‐to‐lymphocyte ratio. The cutoff values for males and females were assessed separately. Survival curves were estimated using the Kaplan‐Meier method, and statistical differences were determined using the log‐rank test. Univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards models were used for the survival analysis. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was used to compare the prognostic value of mALI with other nutrition assessment indicators. Results: The mALI cut‐offs for males and females were 8.59 and 8.26, respectively. Malnutrition, high systemic inflammation, and advanced stage for overweight or obese LC patients were found to be correlated with a low mALI. The median survival of patients with a low mALI was significantly lower than patients with a high mALI by approximately 25 months. In addition, the mALI can be used as an effective supplement to the traditional pathological stage. Multivariable analysis found that mALI was an independent prognostic factor of overall survival (hazard ratio = 0.531; 95% CI, 0.402–0.700; P < 0.001). The prognostic predictive performance of mALI was superior to that of other nutrition assessment indicators. Conclusions: The mALI was an independent risk factor for the prognosis of overweight or obese LC patients, and a useful supplement to the pathological stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]