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Chenyu Zhang,1 Yi Dai,1 Junji Zhang,1 Xiaoyan Li,1 Shuangzheng Jia,2 Jinghua Shi,1,&ast; Jinhua Leng1,&ast; 1Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Peking Union Medical College, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, National Clinical Research Center for Obstetric & Gynecologic Diseases, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Gynecologic Oncology, National Cancer Center / National Clinical Research Center for Cancer / Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Jinghua Shi; Jinhua Leng, Tel +86 151-0101-6294 ; +86 137-0129-8616, Email elisa_1984@163.com; lengjenny@vip.sina.comObjective: This study aimed to explore the distribution of nerve fibers in abdominal wall endometriosis (AWE) and discern their association with pain.Methods: A retrospective case–control study was conducted. The cases comprised 30 patients diagnosed with AWE, while the control group consisted of 17 patients who had undergone laparotomy without any history of endometriosis. We analyzed clinical characteristics and examined the innervation patterns in samples using stains for S-100, neuron-specific enolase (NSE), protein gene product 9.5 (PGP9.5), neurofilament (NF), and substance P (SP) antibodies.Results: There was a notable increase in the density of S-100, NSE and PGP9.5 immunoreactive nerve fibers and a higher proportion of SP positivity in AWE lesions compared to standard abdominal wall scars (p < 0.05). However, there were no significant differences in the density or proportion of NF-immunoreactive nerve fibers between the cases and the controls. Moreover, no statistically significant correlation was observed between the density of S-100, NSE, PGP9.5, NF, or SP-positive nerve fibers and pain scores.Conclusion: This study demonstrated an increased immunoreactive nerve fiber density located in AWE lesions compared to normal abdominal wall scars. Further high-quality studies are needed to investigate the mechanisms responsible for pain in women with endometriosis.Keywords: abdominal wall endometriosis, pain, nerve fibers, immunohistochemistry

Xuejiao Yu,1 Sheng Li,2 Qinxian Guo,3 Jianhang Leng,3 Yu Ding3 1Department of Clinical Laboratory, Quzhou People’s Hospital, the Quzhou Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Quzhou, Zhejiang Province, 324000, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Otolaryngology, Quzhou People’s Hospital, the Quzhou Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Quzhou, Zhejiang Province, 324000, People’s Republic of China; 3Central Laboratory, Hangzhou First People’s Hospital, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, 310006, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Xuejiao Yu, Department of Clinical Laboratory, Quzhou People’s Hospital, the Quzhou Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Quzhou, People’s Republic of China, Email ajkc5701@163.com Yu Ding, Central Laboratory, Hangzhou First People’s Hospital, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, 310006, People’s Republic of China, Email dingyu_zj@126.comPurpose: This study aimed to examine the frequencies of mt-tRNAGlu variants in 180 pediatric patients with non-syndromic hearing loss (NSHL) and 100 controls.Methods: Sanger sequencing was performed to screen for mt-tRNAGlu variants. These mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) pathogenic mutations were further assessed using phylogenetic conservation and haplogroup analyses. We also traced the origins of the family history of probands carrying potential pathogenic mtDNA mutations. Mitochondrial functions including mtDNA content, ATP and reactive oxygen species (ROS) were examined in cells derived from patients carrying the mt-tRNAGlu A14692G and CO1/tRNASer(UCN) G7444A variants and controls.Results: We identified four possible pathogenic variants: m.T14709C, m.A14683G, m.A14692G and m.A14693G, which were found in NSHL patients but not in controls. Genetic counseling suggested that one child with the m.A14692G variant had a family history of NSHL. Sequence analysis of mtDNA suggested the presence of the CO1/tRNASer(UCN) G7444A and mt-tRNAGlu A14692G variants. Molecular analysis suggested that, compared with the controls, patients with these variants exhibited much lower mtDNA copy numbers, ATP production, whereas ROS levels increased (p< 0.05 for all), suggesting that the m.A14692G and m.G7444A variants led to mitochondrial dysfunction.Conclusion: mt-tRNAGlu variants are important risk factors for NSHL.Plain Language Summary: The main aim of our study was to explore the association between the mt-tRNAGlu variants and hearing loss. We found that m.T14709C, m.A14683G, m.A14692G and m.A14693G variants were associated with hearing impairments, these variants localized at extremely conserved nucleotides of mt-tRNAGlu and may result a failure in tRNA metabolism, furthermore, patients with mt-tRNAGlu variants exhibited much lower levels of mtDNA copy number, ATP as compared with controls, whereas ROS increased. As a result, mt-tRNAGlu variants may serve as biomarkers for mitochondrial deafness, and screening for tRNAGlu variants is recommended for early detection and diagnosis of mitochondrial deafness.Keywords: deafness, mitochondrial tRNAGlu variants, pediatrics, tRNA metabolism

Palizhati Muhetaer, Jie Leng, Ping Hu Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Ping Hu, Email huping@ruc.edu.cnObjective: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a complex mental disorder to treat. However, there are some deficiencies in research performed to date about the psychological and behavioral factors that may trigger obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCS). Based on the Psychopathology of Self-Control Theory which states that deficits in self-control underpin psychiatric symptoms, this study investigated the factors influencing OCS among college students.Methods: A total of 5599 non-clinical Chinese college students were recruited to complete the Chinese version of the Self-Control Scale, Aitken Procrastination Inventory, and Symptom Checklist-90. Pearson’s correlation analyses and the bootstrap method were performed to test our hypothesis.Results: The following results were obtained: (a) There were significant correlations among self-control, procrastination, anxiety, and OCS. (b) When controlling for the effects of age and sex, self-control remained a significant negative predictor of OCS. (c) The mediating roles of procrastination and anxiety, and the chain mediating role of procrastination and anxiety were the three predicted pathways linking self-control and OCS.Conclusion: This study highlights the significance of self-control deficiencies in OCS. It provides new insights into the psychological and behavioral factors that increase the risk of OCS with important practical implications for early intervention in OCD.Keywords: obsessive-compulsive symptoms, self-control, procrastination, anxiety, chain mediating effect

Xuzichun Wang, Jiaqi Leng, Xiangxin Cong, Zhiguang Fan School of Education, Jilin International Studies University, Changchun, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Zhiguang Fan, School of Education, Jilin International Studies University, Jingyue Street 3658, Changchun, Jilin, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 1594-831-4623, Fax +86 431-84924101, Email fanyqm@126.comBackground and Aim: It is particularly obvious that vocational and technical education (VTE) has been stigmatized for a long time in the field of secondary vocational education. The severe stigma that secondary vocational students suffer from may negatively affect junior high school students’ choice to attend secondary vocational schools and become such students. This study aims to develop the junior high school students to Secondary Vocational Students Stigma Scale (SVSSS) and to test its reliability and validity.Methods: The initial questionnaire was formed following an open-ended questionnaire and expert review based on the conceptual model of stigma as a theoretical framework. A total of 316 junior high school students (sample 1) were administered with the resulting data subjected to item analysis and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). And a total of 416 junior high school students (sample 2) were administered with the data applied for validity, reliability, and cross-group invariance test.Results: It was revealed in the EFA that the SVSSS consists of 20 items in total, including three dimensions, namely negative labeling, social isolation, and devaluation and discrimination. Favorable structural validity of the questionnaire was demonstrated in confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) (x2/df=2.907, RMSEA=0.068, RFI=0.925, CFI=0.956, NFI=0.934, IFI=0.956, PNFI=0.816, PCFI=0.835). The aggregate scores of the SVSSS, exhibiting cross-gender invariance, were significantly negatively associated with willingness to choose secondary vocational education and positively correlated with academic performance. Cronbach’s α coefficient of the SVSSS and each dimension ranged from 0.815 to 0.963, with split-half reliability from 0.777 to 0.969.Conclusion: Featuring favorable reliability and validity, the SVSSS was found to be an effective tool for the measurement of the secondary vocational education stigma among junior high school students, with its measurement invariance across genders.Keywords: junior high school students, secondary vocational students, stigma, reliability, validity

Yinghua Xia,1,2 Gui Yu,2,3 Feixiang Min,1,2 Hui Xiang,2 Jinqing Huang,4,5 Jingxing Leng2 1Medical College of Nanchang University, Nanchang, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Neurosurgery, Jiangxi Provincial People’s Hospital, Nanchang, People’s Republic of China; 3The First Clinical Medical College of Gannan Medical University, Ganzhou, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Neurosurgery, Ganzhou People’s Hospital, Ganzhou, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Neurosurgery, the Affiliated Ganzhou Hospital of Nanchang University, Ganzhou, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Hui Xiang, Jiangxi Provincial People’s Hospital, No. 266, Fenghe North Avenue, Honggutan District, Nanchang City, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-13803514563, Email xianghui1991@163.com Jinqing Huang, Ganzhou People’s Hospital, No. 16, Meiguan Avenue, Zhanggong District, Ganzhou City, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-18160779765, Email hjq1002@163.comAbstract: Trigeminal neuralgia is a condition confined to the trigeminal nerve, causing one or more branches of facial nerve pain. Surgical treatment options for trigeminal neuralgia include microvascular decompression(MVD), percutaneous balloon compression (PBC), radiofrequency thermocoagulation(RF), percutaneous retrogasserian glycerol rhizotomy(PRGR), gamma knife, etc. Of these treatments, PBC is increasingly being used by clinicians for trigeminal neuralgia. PBC is a simple surgical operation performed to treat trigeminal neuralgia. Owing to its advantages, PBC is favored by many clinicians. In this study, we aimed to emphasize the need to analyze the shape of the balloon, position, compression time, and pressure, as these factors can affect the efficacy of PBC. The relief of pain by balloon compression is related to the shape of the balloon on X-ray, which is the key to the operation. Owing to continued progress and advances in current imaging technologies, clinicians revealed that the precise positioning of the foramen ovale is no longer an intraoperative problem. Instead, the anatomy of Meckel’s cave and the shape of the balloon must be the focus to achieve the best treatment effect. For clinicians, PBC is simple and is associated with a short operation time. PBC also has other advantages, such as low cost and immediate postoperative pain relief. The recurrence rate of pain post-PBC is low, despite the occurrence of facial numbness post-op. However, this side effect is reversible and does not affect daily life of the patient. In fact, the patient can be discharged 1– 2 days after surgery. Overall, PBC can be considered as one of the preferred surgical methods for the treatment of primary trigeminal neuralgia. In this paper, we explain the main points of PBC operation in detail in terms of Meckel’s cave, surgical procedure, complications, discussion of the focus and new progress, etc.Keywords: trigeminal neuralgia, balloon compression, Meckel’s cave, trigeminocardiac reflex

Shuang Zhang,1,2 Nan Li,1 Weiqin Li,1 Leishen Wang,1 Enqing Liu,1 Tao Zhang,1 Wei Dong,1 Jiujing Chen,2 Junhong Leng1 1Tianjin Women’s and Children’s Health Center, Tianjin, People’s Republic of China; 2NHC Key Laboratory of Hormones and Development, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Metabolic Diseases, Chu Hsien-I Memorial Hospital & Tianjin Institute of Endocrinology, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Junhong Leng, Email ljhlzqljhlzq@163.comObjective: We aim to investigate the influence of weight gain during pregnancy on the risk of offspring adiposity before five years old.Methods: We retrospectively collected health information from the Tianjin mother-child cohort. Offspring outcome was BMI Z-score and prevalence of childhood adiposity from 0.5– 5 years old. Gestational weight gain was analyzed using continuous and categorical variables evaluated by the IOM guidelines. Multivariate analysis adjusted maternal age, prepregnancy BMI, maternal height, smoking, cesarean section, gestational age at birth, birth weight, birth length, and mode of infant feeding during 0– 6 months.Results: Gestational weight gain contributed to offspring’s BMI Z-score from 1– 5 years old, and the effect was most obvious in the first half of pregnancy (multivariate analysis, at 1, 2, 2.5, 3, 4, and 5 years of age: β 0.011, 95% CI 0.008– 0.014; β 0.017, 95% CI 0.015– 0.020; β 0.005, 95%CI 0.002-0.008; β 0.018, 95% CI 0.015– 0.021; β 0.014, 95% CI 0.009– 0.020; β 0.013, 95% CI 0.005– 0.021). Excessive weight gain was associated with a higher prevalence of offspring adiposity before five years, even if prepregnancy BMI is normal. Multivariate regression analysis further confirmed that excessive weight gain during the first half of pregnancy significantly increased the risk of childhood obesity at aged one and three (AOR 1.083, 95% CI 1.003– 1.169; AOR 1.158, 95% CI 1.036– 1.293).Conclusion: Offspring have a higher risk of preschool adiposity when gestational weight gain was excessive during the first half of pregnancy.Keywords: gestational weight gain, the first half of pregnancy, childhood obesity, retrospective cohort study

Lu Yang,1 Shuangxin Zhang,1 Jiaqi Leng,2 Zhiguang Fan,2 Yi Luo1 1Department of Nursing, Changchun University of Chinese Medicine, Changchun City, Jilin Province, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Education, Jilin International Studies University, Changchun City, Jilin Province, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Zhiguang Fan, Department of Education, Jilin International Studies University, Jingyue Street 3658, Changchun City, Jilin Province, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 1 594-831-4623, Fax +86 431-84924101, Email fanyqm@126.comIntroduction: Occupational stigma toward nurses exerts a negative impact on the physical and mental health and work performance of nurses. However, hitherto, there has been no quantitative instrument designed to assess occupational stigma toward nurses.Objective: The present study aimed to develop the Nurse Occupational Stigma Scale (NOSS) and test its reliability and validity in the Chinese context.Methods: The items of the scale were formed through the open-ended interview and literature review. A questionnaire survey was administered among 765 patients using NOSS and the Caring Behaviors Inventory (CBI-24).Results: In the initial questionnaire, a total of 21 items were developed, and 5 items were dropped for cross-loadings. The formal scale consists of 16 items divided into three dimensions of negative label, nurse-patient relationship, and devaluation and discrimination. The results of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) indicated that the three-factor model fitted well (χ2/df=2.635, RMSEA=0.064, RFI=0.926, CFI=0.962, NFI=0.941, IFI=0.953). The total scores of the NOSS and the scores of all dimensions were significantly negatively correlated with the scores of the CBI-24. The internal consistency coefficients of the scale and all dimensions were between 0.827– 0.920, and the split-half reliability coefficients were between 0.826– 0.942. The NOSS had the measurement invariance across gender.Conclusion: With its good reliability and validity, the NOSS can be an appropriate instrument for researchers to conduct studies about nurse occupational stigma.Keywords: nurse, occupational stigma, reliability, validity

Jiaqi Leng, Min Tao, Jiamiao Huai, Zhiguang Fan School of Education, Jilin International Studies University, Changchun City, Jilin Province, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Zhiguang Fan, School of Education, Jilin International Studies University, 3658 Jingyue Street, Changchun City, Jilin Province 130117, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 431-84924101, Fax +86 1 594-831-4623, Email fanyqm@126.comIntroduction: The Brief Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BBIS) can be used in large scale rapid assessments and improves data quality while reducing subject response burden. It has been verified to have good reliability and cross-cultural consistency in multiple countries. However, there are no tests of impulsivity for the Chinese married population.Aim: To investigate the applicability of the BBIS among the Chinese married population.Methods: The BBIS was administered to 664 married middle-aged adults (sample 1) for item analysis and exploratory factor analysis (EFA), and to 758 married middle-aged adults (sample 2) for confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). At the same time, the trait anger scale (TAS), the quality marriage index (QMI) and the emotion reactivity scale (ERS) are selected as the calibration standards to test the correlation validity of the calibration standards.Results: BBIS includes 8 items, which are composed of two dimensions of poor self-control and behavioral impulsivity; the two dimensions explained 68.10% of the total variance. CFA demonstrated that the fit index of the two-factor structure of the scale was good (χ2/df=2.315, RMSEA=0.042, RFI=0.971, CFI=0.989, NFI=0.982, IFI=0.990). The internal consistency reliability of each dimension and total scores were 0.824, 0.826 and 0.787, respectively. Total BBIS scores were significantly positively correlated with trait anger and emotional reactivity, and showed a significant negative correlation with marital quality. The Chinese version of BBIS had measurement equivalence between men and women.Conclusion: The BBIS has good reliability and validity in the Chinese married population, and the measurement results can be compared across groups between different genders, which can be used as a suitable tool for impulse related research.Keywords: Brief Barratt Impulsiveness Scale, reliability, validity, Chinese

Peng Gou, Xinran Cheng, Jie Leng, Na Su Department of Children Genetics and Endocrinology and Metabolism, Chengdu Women and Children Center Hospital, Chengdu, Sichuan, 610074, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Xinran Cheng Department of Children Genetics and Endocrinology and Metabolism, Chengdu Women and Children Center Hospital, No. 1617, Riyue Avenue, Qingyang District, Chengdu, Sichuan, 610074, People’s Republic of China Tel +86 28 6186 6142 Fax +86 28 6186 6197 Email cheng_xr23@outlook.comObjective: This study aimed to evaluate the clinical efficacy of recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) in the treatment of children with idiopathic short stature (ISS) and growth hormone deficiency (GHD) and to explore the related factors affecting treatment efficacy.Methods: The current research reflects a real-world study. A total of 79 patients with ISS and 95 patients with GHD (both groups pre-puberty) who had been treated with rhGH for more than one year from January 2010 to September 2019 were included in this study. The patients were divided into two groups, ie, an ISS and a GHD group, respectively. The growth indexes, such as chronological age (CA), bone age (BA), height standard deviation score (HtSDS), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) SDS, and body mass index were recorded and compared between the two groups before and after treatment. The treatment efficacy was evaluated according to changes in HtSDS before and after treatment, and the influencing factors of clinical efficacy were analyzed using a multivariate regression model.Results: At the start of treatment, the differences in CA, BA, height, weight, sexual development stage, HtSDS, mid-parental height SDS, and IGF-1 SDS between the two groups were not statistically significant (P > 0.05). However, the initial dose of rhGH in the GHD group was significantly lower than in the ISS group (P < 0.001). Following rhGH treatment, the differences in CA, BA, BA/CA ratio, and IGF-1 SDS measured at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months between the ISS and GHD groups were not statistically significant, while the difference in HtSDS measured at 6 months was statistically significant. With the extension of rhGH treatment time, the annual growth rate (GV) gradually decreased, and the difference between HtSDS and the baseline gradually increased; however, the differences between the ISS and GHD groups were not statistically significant. The most important factor affecting the treatment efficacy for patients with ISS was age at the start of treatment; the most important factors affecting the treatment efficacy for patients with GHD were age and IGF-1 SDS.Conclusion: Recombinant human growth hormone treatment can significantly improve the height of patients with ISS and GHD. There was no significant difference in growth rate between patients with ISS and those with GHD at relatively high doses. The common factor affecting the treatment efficacy of the two groups was the age at the start of treatment. During treatment, monitored data indicated that rhGH treatment of GHD and ISS thyroid function showed a clinical phenomenon in the form of increased free triiodothyronine, rather than hypothyroidism, which was rarely reported in existing studies.Keywords: growth hormone deficiency, idiopathic short stature, recombinant human growth hormone, efficacy evaluation, multivariate analysis

Ping Zheng, 1 Shuangzheng Jia, 1 Dalong Guo, 2 Sikai Chen, 1 Wen Zhang, 1 Aoshuang Cheng, 1 Weijie Xie, 3 Guibo Sun, 3 Jinhua Leng, 1 Jinghe Lang 1 1Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 2Air Force Medical Center, PLA, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 3Institute of Medicinal Plant Development, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100193, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Jinghe Lang Email langjh@hotmail.comJinhua Leng Email lengjenny@vip.sina.comBackground: Pain sensitization processing in the central nervous system may be related to endometriosis-associated pain in patients. The purpose of this study was to understand the alterations in the abnormal pain response in central brain areas and explore the central sensitization mechanism of endometriosis-associated pain.Methods: An endometriosis model was established in 40 Sprague-Dawley rats, and the rats underwent pain model assessment through behavioral tests. Twenty Sprague-Dawley rats underwent a sham operation as the control group. Thirteen pain rats and 8 control rats received Rs-fMRI examination to explore the brain functional activity areas, and the regional homogeneity (ReHo) method was used to analyze relevant functional signals among the whole brain. The states of neurons and expression of TRPV1 and NMDRA located in the abnormal ReHo signal brain regions were observed using Nissl staining, qRT-PCR and immunohistochemistry.Results: The rats were divided into a pain group and a control group based on the different syndromes and behavioral assessments. We detected significant enhancement of ReHo signals in the anterior cingulate cortex, hippocampus, and thalamus and a reduction in the ReHo values in the basomedial amygdaloid nucleus (BM) and primary motor cortex (M1) in the pain rat group via Rs-fMRI examination. The number of Nissl bodies and apoptotic neurons was increased; moreover, the volume of neurons increased compensatorily in the cingulate cortex, thalamus and hippocampus in the pain group. TRPV1 and NMDRA were overexpressed in apoptotic neurons in the higher ReHo value brain regions in the endometriosis pain group.Conclusion: These findings suggest that in rats with endometriosis-associated pain, ReHo signal enhancement was observed in the cingulate cortex, thalamus and hippocampus, which may be due to the increase in the number of apoptotic neurons or the compensatory increase in the volume of overactive neurons.Keywords: endometriosis-associated pain, rat model, behavioral assessment, central sensitization, Rs-fMRI, regional homogeneity, TRPV1, NMDRA

Ping Zheng*, Wen Zhang*, Jinhua Leng, Jinghe LangDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Science and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workAbstract: Endometriosis-associated pain afflicts an enormous number of women who suffer from endometriosis. There is an urgent need to explore the pathogenesis of endometriosis-associated pain to identify targets for treatment of hyperalgesia. A search was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and the Cochrane Library using the search terms “endometriosis” AND (“pain” OR “hyperalgesia” OR “nociception” OR “allodynia”) AND “central sensitization”. The search was limited to articles published in English from 01/01/2008 to the present. Among the search results, 15 articles were eligible for systematic review, including 6 reviews, 6 human studies (one in the form of a conference abstract only), and 3 animal studies. The articles were classified into 4 lists to describe the mechanism of endometriosis-associated pain and synthesize different aspects of research on it. In conclusion, there is a need to explore the mechanism of endometriosis-associated pain in terms of innervation, vascularization, local inflammation, cross-correlated visceral sensitization, and central sensitization to identify the target molecules and signaling pathways of key genes and relevant biomarkers through new techniques, all with the goal of developing a more comprehensive treatment strategy for endometriosis than is currently available.Keywords: endometriosis-associated pain, neurogenic inflammation, mechanism, central sensitization

Variations in mitochondrial genome have been found to be associated with hearing loss. Of these, the mitochondrial 12S rRNA and tRNASer(UCN) are the hot-spots for pathogenic variants associated with deafness. To understand the putative role of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variants in hearing loss, we recently screened the variants in mitochondrial genomes in patients with deafness from the Hangzhou area of Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China (PRC). In this study, we describe a maternally-inherited Han Chinese family with high penetrance of hearing loss, notably, the penetrance of hearing loss in this family were 80.0 and 40.0%, when the aminoglycoside was included or excluded. Three matrilineal relatives in this pedigree exhibited different levels of hearing loss with different age at onset. In addition, sequence analysis of the complete mitochondrial genome showed the presence of the well-known C1494T pathogenic variant in the 12S rRNA gene and the G7444A pathogenic variant in the COI/ tRNASer(UCN). The C1494T anomaly had been reported to be a pathogenic mutation associated with aminoglycoside-induced and nonsyndromic hearing loss (AINHL), while the G7444A was considered as a secondary mutation associated with deafness. However, the lack of functional variants in GJB2 and TRMU genes suggested that nuclear modified genes may not play important roles in deafness expression. Thus, the combination of G7444A and C1494T pathogenic variants in the mitochondrial genome may account for the high penetrance of hearing loss in this Chinese family.

A porous filter is fabricated directly inside a microfluidic circuit using a photoreticulable hydrogel. The filter could be used for separation of cells from blood, removal of particles or solutes, such as proteins, in microdialysis and microfiltering. The filter is realized by in situ polymerization approach: a liquid hydrogel is injected in a microfluidic circuit channel where the filter is formed in a specific location by polymerization of UV light, focused by an optical microscope.

We report a pilot study with a wide-field laser Doppler detection scheme used to perform laser Doppler anemometry and imaging of particle-seeded microflow. The optical field carrying the local scatterers (particles) dynamic state, as a consequence of momentum transfer at each scattering event, is analyzed in the temporal frequencies domain. The setup is based on heterodyne digital holography, which is used to map the scattered field in the object plane at a tunable frequency with a multipixel detector. We show that wide-field heterodyne laser Doppler imaging can be used for quantitative microflow diagnosis; in the presented study, maps of the first-order moment of the Doppler frequency shift are used as a quantitative and directional estimator of the Doppler signature of particles velocity.

The optimal absorption of flexural energy by the critical coupling of a locally resonant grating embedded in a thin plate is reported in this work for the reflection and transmission problems. The grating is made of a 1D-periodic array of local resonators. A viscoelastic coating is also placed on top of each resonator to control the intrinsic losses of the system. The scattering matrices for the propagative waves of both problems are obtained by means of the Layered Multiple Scattering Theory and validated by the Finite Element Method. In this work, we find that the perfect absorption can be obtained in the reflection problem and the maximal absorption in the transmission problem is limited to 50% by tuning the losses only. These results agree with the theoretical predictions since the eigenvalues reduce to the reflection coefficient in the reflection problem and only one of the two eigenvalues of the scattering matrix is critically coupled in the transmission problem. These results highlight the adaptability of the critical coupling method to optimize the absorption of locally resonant materials for flexural waves in 2D transmission and reflection problems, and pave the way to the design of resonators for efficient flexural wave absorption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cellular HIV-1 reservoirs that persist despite antiretroviral treatment are incompletely defined. We show that during suppressive antiretroviral therapy, CD4(+) T memory stem cells (TSCM cells) harbor high per-cell levels of HIV-1 DNA and make increasing c

Serous surface papillary borderline ovarian tumor (SSPBOT) is a distinct subtype of serous borderline ovarian tumor characterized by solid tissue deposition confined to the ovarian surface. Because SSPBOT is rare, there are few published reports on the ultrasonographic features of this condition. In this retrospective study, we investigated 12 cases of SSPBOT. Ultrasound imaging of SSPBOT showed grossly normal ovaries that were encased partially or wholly by tumor deposits that were confined to the surface, with clear demarcation between normal ovarian tissue and surrounding tumors. Color Doppler imaging demonstrated the 'fireworks sign' in all cases of SSPBOT, corresponding to an intratumoral vascular bundle originating from the ovarian vessels and supplying hierarchical branching blood flow to the surrounding tumor. No patient with ovarian high‐grade serous carcinoma showed these morphological and Doppler features. In our series, the fireworks sign appeared to be a characteristic feature of SSPBOT that could facilitate correct identification of this tumor. © 2023 International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carcinoma cells selected for their ability to migrate in vitro showed enhanced invasive properties in vivo. Associated with this induction of migration was the anchorage-dependent phosphorylation of p130CAS (Crk-associated substrate), leading to its coupling to the adaptor protein c-CrkII (Crk). In fact, expression of CAS or its adaptor protein partner Crk was sufficient to promote cell migration, and this depended on CAS tyrosine phosphorylation facilitating an SH2-mediated complex with Crk. Cytokine-stimulated cell migration was blocked by CAS lacking the Crk binding site or Crk containing a mutant SH2 domain. This migration response was characterized by CAS/Crk localization to membrane ruffles and blocked by the dominant-negative GTPase, Rac, but not Ras. Thus, CAS/Crk assembly serves as a "molecular switch" for the induction of cell migration and appears to contribute to the invasive property of tumors.