Search

The crystallization dynamic parameters of calcium sulphate were determined in the course of the precipitation conversion process of calcium in lixivium. The crystallization dynamic equations of calcium sulphate were achieved by multiple linear regression. The study results indicate that CaSO4 · 2 H2O crystal nucleation-growth kinetics equation in nitric acid leaching liquid of yellow phosphorus slag at room temperature is expressed by B0 = 2.904 · 1011 · G0.83 · MT 0.167.

Qiang Wang,* Pinduan Bi,* Ding Luo, Pingli Cao, Weihong Chen, Bin Yang Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, Kunming, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Bin Yang, Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, No. 295, Xichang Road, Wuhua District, Kunming, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 013987642890, Email yangbin@kmmu.edu.cnBackground: Gallstone disease (GS) is an important risk factor for Gallbladder cancer (GBC). However, the mechanisms of the progression of GS to GBC remain unclear. Long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), modulates DNA/RNA/proteins at epigenetic, pre-transcriptional, transcriptional and posttranscriptional levels, and plays a potential therapeutic role in various diseases. This study aims to identify lncRNAs that have a potential impact on GS-promoted GBC progression.Methods and Results: Six GBC patients without GS, six normal gallbladder tissues, nine gallstones and nine GBC patients with GS were admitted to our hospital. The next-generation RNA-sequencing was performed to analyze differentially expressed (DE) lncRNA and messenger RNA (mRNA) in four groups. Then overlapping and specific molecular signatures were analyzed. We identified 29 co-DEGs and 500 co-DElncRNAs related to gallstone or GBC. The intersection and concatenation of co-DEGs and co-DElncRNA functionally involved in focal adhesion, Transcriptional misregulation in cancers, Protein digestion and absorption, and ECM-receptor interaction signaling pathways may contribute to the development of gallbladder cancer. Further exploration is necessary for early diagnosis and the potential treatment of GBC. FXYD2, MPZL1 and PAH were observed in both co-DEGs and co-DElncRNA and validated by qRT-PCR.Conclusion: Our data identified a series of DEGs and DElncRNAs, which were involved in the progression of GBC and GS-related metabolism pathways. Compared to GBC, the GS profile was more similar to para-tumor tissues in transcriptome level and lower risk of cancer. Further exploration is necessary from GBC patients with different periods of follow-up gallstone.Keywords: gallstone, gallbladder cancer, long non-coding RNA, next-generation sequencing analysis, computational biology

Xiaoqing Wei,1,* Junying Zhang,2,* Youwen Mei,3 Eqiong Li,4 Qianling Dai,1 Xiaoli Yang,1 Dan Luo,5 Biao Li,6 Ping Hua,7 Jian Cai,7 Hua Lai,8 Dongfeng Qi,9 Sha Lai,10 Mi Qin,11 Yonghong Lin4 1Department of Cervical Disease and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Treatment, Chengdu Women’s and Children’s Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, People’s Republic of China; 2Clinical Laboratory Department, Chengdu Women’s and Children’s Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Reproduction and Infertility, Chengdu Women’s and Children’s Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Gynecology, Chengdu Women’s and Children’s Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Obstetrics, Chengdu Women’s and Children’s Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, People’s Republic of China; 6Department of Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Chengdu Women’ and Children’s Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, People’s Republic of China; 7Department of Pathology, Chengdu Women’s and Children’s Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, People’s Republic of China; 8Department of Radiation and Interventional Therapy, Chengdu Women’s and Children’s Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, People’s Republic of China; 9Department of Ultrasonics, Chengdu Women’s and Children’s Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, People’s Republic of China; 10Dermatology Department, Chengdu Women’s and Children’s Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, People’s Republic of China; 11Department of Pediatric Surgery, Chengdu Women’s and Children’s Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Yonghong Lin; Xiaoqing Wei, Email linyhcd2011@163.com; xqcherry@163.comObjective: We report a case of Carmi Syndrome in a neonate.Aim: To share our lessons in diagnosis of the case of Carmi Syndrome.Case Report: Carmi Syndrome is an extremely rare autosomal recessive genetic disorder characterized the coexistence of pyloric atresia and junctional epidermolysis bullosa, and with aplasia cutis congenita in approximately 28% patients. In this case, a full-term male neonate was born to a G4P2+1L1 multipara through cesarean section delivery in hospital in a non-consanguineous marriage with 4000mL of II°meconium-stained amniotic fluid. He was found extensive skin loss over lower legs and other parts, with scattered blisters and bilateral microtia. Plain abdominal X-ray revealed a large gastric air bubble with no gas distally. The mother had an intrauterine fetal loss previously for reasons unknown. The dermatologist diagnosed the newborn with Bart Syndrome, while the pediatric surgeon diagnosed congenital pyloric atresia(CPA). The parents refused further treatment and the neonate passed away about 30 hours after birth.Outcome: The neonate passed away about 30 hours after birth.Conclusion: Lessons from this case:①.Rule out Carmi Syndrome in patients with PA, and differentiate Bart syndrome and Carmi Syndrome in patients with abnormal skin manifestations. ②. For rare and/or severe diseases, multidisciplinary teams(MDTs) should be establish. ③. Genetic counseling and prenatal diagnosis are necessary prior to subsequent childbearings. ④.Termination of pregnancy might be contemplated if certain indicators are revealed.Keywords: Carmi syndrome, bart syndrome, epidermolysis bullosa, EB, junctional epidermolysis bullosa, JEB, congenital pyloric atresia, CPA, aplasia cutis congenita, ACC, congenital localized absence of skin, CLAS, pyloric atresia, PA, epidermolysis bullosa with pyloric atresia, EB-PA, multidisciplinary teams, MDT

Xin Chen,1– 3,&ast; Xing Zhong,1,4,&ast; Dan Luo,1– 3,&ast; Yuhua Lei,1– 3 Rui Huang1– 3 1Cardiovascular Disease Center, The Central Hospital of Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Enshi, Hubei Province, People’s Republic of China; 2Hubei Selenium and Human Health Institute, The Central Hospital of Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Enshii, Hubei Province, People’s Republic of China; 3Hubei Provincial Key Laboratory of Selenium Resources and Bio applications, Enshii, Hubei Province, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Medicine, Hubei Minzu University, Enshi, Hubei Province, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Yuhua Lei; Rui Huang, Email yuhualei0319@163.com; henry0923@whu.edu.cnBackground: Heart failure (HF) is a chronic disease with a poor prognosis, making it extremely important to assess the prognosis of patients with HF for accurate treatment. Secreted modular calcium-binding protein 2 (SMOC2) is a cysteine-rich acidic secreted protein that plays a pathophysiological role in many diseases, including regulation of vascular growth factor activity. It has previously been found that SMOC2 plays an essential role in cardiac fibrosis in our previous preclinical study, but whether it can be used as a clinical marker in heart failure patients remains unclear. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the correlation between plasma levels of SMOC2 and the prognosis for individuals with HF.Methods: HF patients diagnosed with ischemic cardiomyopathy were enrolled from January to December 2021. Baseline plasma levels of SMOC2 were measured after demographic and clinical features were collected. Linear and nonlinear multivariate Cox regression models were used to determine the association between plasma SMOC2 and patient outcomes during follow-up. All analysis was performed using SPSS, EmpowerStats, and R software.Results: The study included 188 patients, and the average follow-up time was 489.5± 88.3 days. The plasma SMOC2 concentrations were positively correlated with N-terminal pro-B-type Natriuretic Peptide (NT-proBNP), left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVEDd), and length of hospital stay and were negatively correlated with left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) at baseline. A total of 53 patients (28.2%) were rehospitalized due to cardiac deterioration, 14 (7.4%) died, and 37 (19.7%) developed malignant arrhythmias. A fully adjusted multivariate COX regression model showed that SMOC2 is associated with readmission (HR = 1.02, 95% CI:1.012– 1.655). A significant increase in rehospitalization risk was observed in group Q2 (HR =1.064, 95% CI: 1.037, 3.662, p=0.005) and group Q3 (HR =1.085, 95% CI:1.086, 3.792, p=0.009) in comparison with group Q1. The p for trend also shows a linear correlation across the three models (P < 0.001). SMOC2 was associated with the severity of HF in patients, but not with all-cause deaths and arrhythmias during follow-up.Conclusion: Plasma SMOC2 is associated with the severity of HF and readmission rate, and is a good predictor of the risk of readmission in patients.Keywords: SMOC2, heart failure, ischemic cardiomyopathy, readmission rate, myocardial fibrosis

Jiao Chen, Danmei Luo, Chengxia Sun, Xiaolan Sun, Changmao Dai, Xiaohong Hu, Liangqing Wu, Haiyan Lei, Fang Ding, Wei Chen, Xueping Li Geriatric Department, Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, Sichuan, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Xueping Li, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 37, Shier Bridge Road, Chengdu, Sichuan, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-18380251086, Email 3173907@qq.comPurpose: Building and validating a clinical prediction model for novel coronavirus (COVID-19) re-positive cases in malnourished older adults.Patients and Methods: Malnourished older adults from January to May 2023 were retrospectively collected from the Department of Geriatrics of the Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. They were divided into a “non-re-positive” group and a “re-positive” group based on the number of COVID-19 infections, and into a training set and a validation set at a 7:3 ratio. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression analysis was used to identify predictive factors for COVID-19 re-positivity in malnourished older adults, and a nomogram was constructed. Independent influencing factors were screened by multivariate logistic regression. The model’s goodness-of-fit, discrimination, calibration, and clinical impact were assessed by Hosmer-Lemeshow test, area under the curve (AUC), calibration curve, decision curve analysis (DCA), and clinical impact curve analysis (CIC), respectively.Results: We included 347 cases, 243 in the training set, and 104 in the validation set. We screened 10 variables as factors influencing the outcome. By multivariate logistic regression analysis, preliminary identified protective factors, risk factors, and independent influencing factors that affect the re-positive outcome. We constructed a clinical prediction model for COVID-19 re-positivity in malnourished older adults. The Hosmer-Lemeshow test yielded χ2 =5.916, P =0.657; the AUC was 0.881; when the threshold probability was > 8%, using this model to predict whether malnourished older adults were re-positive for COVID-19 was more beneficial than implementing intervention programs for all patients; when the threshold was > 80%, the positive estimated value was closer to the actual number of cases.Conclusion: This model can help identify the risk of COVID-19 re-positivity in malnourished older adults early, facilitate early clinical decision-making and intervention, and have important implications for improving patient outcomes. We also expect more large-scale, multicenter studies to further validate, refine, and update this model.Keywords: malnutrition, COVID-19, re-positive, clinical prediction model

Dan Luo,1,2,&ast; Bo-Yi Yang,3,&ast; Kai Qin,4 Chong-Yu Shi,3 Nian-Sa Wei,4 Hai Li,1 Yi-Xiang Qin,1 Gang Liu,1 Xiao-Ling Qin,1 Shi-Yi Chen,1 Xiao-Jing Guo,1 Li Gan,1 Ruo-Lan Xu,1 Bai-Qing Dong,1 Jing Li5 1Department of Biostatistics, School of Public Health and Management of Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China; 2Guangxi Key Laboratory of Translational Medicine for Treating High-Incidence Infectious Diseases with Integrative Medicine, Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China; 3The First Affiliated Hospital, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China; 4The Second Affiliated Hospital, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China; 5Deparment of Physiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Bai-Qing Dong, Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, 13 Wuhe Road, Nanning, Guangxi, 530200, People’s Republic of China, Tel/Fax +86-771-4928360, Email 764937318@qq.com Jing Li, Guangxi Medical University, 22 Shuangyong Road, Nanning, Guangxi, 530021, People’s Republic of China, Tel/Fax +86-771-5358212, Email lijing@gxmu.edu.cnPurpose: Distinguishing latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) from active tuberculosis (ATB) is important to control the prevalence of tuberculosis; however, there is currently no effective method. The aim of this study was to discover specific metabolites through fecal untargeted metabolomics to discriminate ATB, individuals with LTBI, and healthy controls (HC) and to probe the metabolic perturbation associated with the progression of tuberculosis.Patients and Methods: Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was performed to comprehensively detect compounds in fecal samples from HC, LTBI, and ATB patients. Differential metabolites between the two groups were screened, and their underlying biological functions were explored. Candidate metabolites were selected and enrolled in LASSO regression analysis to construct diagnostic signatures for discriminating between HC, LTBI, and ATB. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was applied to evaluate diagnostic value. A nomogram was constructed to predict the risk of progression of LTBI.Results: A total of 35 metabolites were found to exist differentially in HC, LTBI, and ATB, and eight biomarkers were selected. Three diagnostic signatures based on the eight biomarkers were constructed to distinguish between HC, LTBI, and ATB, demonstrating excellent discrimination performance in ROC analysis. A nomogram was successfully constructed to evaluate the risk of progression of LTBI to ATB. Moreover, 3,4-dimethylbenzoic acid has been shown to distinguish ATB patients with different responses to etiological tests.Conclusion: This study constructed diagnostic signatures based on fecal metabolic biomarkers that effectively discriminated HC, LTBI, and ATB, and established a predictive model to evaluate the risk of progression of LTBI to ATB. The results provide scientific evidence for establishing an accurate, sensitive, and noninvasive differential diagnosis scheme for tuberculosis.Keywords: feces, latent tuberculosis infection, active tuberculosis, biomarkers, progression, metabolomics

Kui Liu,1,&ast; Mengdie Zhang,2,&ast; Dan Luo,3 Yan Zheng,4 Zhenye Shen,4 Bin Chen,1 Jianmin Jiang1,5 1Department of Tuberculosis Control and Prevention, Zhejiang Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Social Medicine of School of Public Health, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Public Health, Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Tuberculosis Control and Prevention, Fenghua Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China; 5Key Laboratory of Vaccine, Prevention and Control of Infectious Disease of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Bin Chen; Jianmin Jiang, Email Bchen@cdc.zj.cn; Jmjiang@cdc.zj.cnBackground: Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) is a serious infectious disease, and the factors and pathways that influence final treatment outcomes are unclear. Here, we aimed to assess the factors that influence treatment outcomes in patients with PTB using a structural equation model.Methods: Participants completed a questionnaire covering demographics, understanding of PTB, psychological status, and history of medical treatment. Exploratory factor analysis and reliability testing were performed, and a structural equation model was constructed using the SPSS and Amos software.Results: A total of 251 participants were enrolled. Symptoms of depression were observed in 94.4% of participants, whereas 6% showed mild or greater anxiety. Through factor rotation, four common factors were extracted with a total variation of 66.15%. The structural equation model indicated that regular tuberculosis-related follow-up behaviour had a direct and positive effect on the final treatment outcome, with a path coefficient value of 0.20; the level of PTB understanding had a direct positive effect on the testing behaviour for PTB, with a path coefficient of 0.26; patients’ psychological characteristics had a direct negative impact on regular testing behaviour, with a path coefficient of − 0.13. The psychological characteristics and level of disease understanding of patients exerted indirect effects on the treatment outcome by affecting the way patients approached tuberculosis detection behaviour.Conclusion: Interventions aimed at improving the treatment outcomes of patients with PTB should mainly focus on financial support and improvements in psychological status in addition to a greater understanding and knowledge of PTB. Furthermore, patients should be encouraged to undergo regular PTB testing during the follow up period, as this mediates the effect of other factors on treatment outcomes and also helps in achieving favourable treatment outcomes.Keywords: pulmonary tuberculosis, structural equation model, treatment outcome, depression

Dabin Liang,1,2,&ast; Zexuan Song,3,&ast; Xiaoyan Liang,1,2,&ast; Huifang Qin,1,2 Liwen Huang,1,2 Jing Ye,1,2 Rushu Lan,4 Dan Luo,5 Yanlin Zhao,3 Mei Lin1,2 1Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China; 2Guangxi Key Laboratory of Major Infectious Disease Prevention and Control and Biosafety Emergency Response, Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China; 3National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Clinical Laboratory, Jiangbin Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China; 5School of Public Health and Management, Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Yanlin Zhao, National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, No. 155 Chang Bai Road, Changping District, Beijing, 102206, People’s Republic of China, Email zhaoyl@chinacdc.cn Mei Lin, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Nanning, 530023, People’s Republic of China, Email gxlinmei@126.comBackground: Tuberculosis (TB), caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), is a major public health issue in China. Nevertheless, the prevalence and drug resistance characteristics of isolates vary in different regions and provinces. In this study, we investigated the population structure, transmission dynamics and drug-resistant profiles of Mtb in Guangxi, located on the border of China.Methods: From February 2016 to April 2017, 462 clinical M. tuberculosis isolates were selected from 5 locations in Guangxi. Drug-susceptibility testing was performed using 6 common anti-tuberculosis drugs. The genotypic drug resistance and transmission dynamics were analyzed by the whole genome sequence.Results: Our data showed that the Mtb in Guangxi has high genetic diversity including Lineage 1 to Lineage 4, and mostly belong to Lineage 2 and Lineage 4. Novelty, 9.6% of Lineage 2 isolates were proto-Beijing genotype (L2.1), which is rare in China. About 12.6% of isolates were phylogenetically clustered and formed into 28 transmission clusters. We observed that the isolates with the high resistant rate of isoniazid (INH, 21.2%), followed by rifampicin (RIF, 13.2%), and 6.7%, 12.1%, 6.7% and 1.9% isolates were resistant to ethambutol (EMB), streptomycin (SM), ofloxacin (OFL) and kanamycin (KAN), respectively. Among these, 6.5% and 3.3% of isolates belong to MDR-TB and Pre-XDR, respectively, with a high drug-resistant burden. Genetic analysis identified the most frequently encountered mutations of INH, RIF, EMB, SM, OFL and KAN were katG_Ser315Thr (62.2%), rpoB_Ser450Leu (42.6%), embB_Met306Vol (45.2%), rpsL_Lys43Arg (53.6%), gyrA_Asp94Gly (29.0%) and rrs_A1401G (66.7%), respectively. Additionally, we discovered that isolates from border cities are more likely to be drug-resistant than isolates from non-border cities.Conclusion: Our findings provide a deep analysis of the genomic population characteristics and drug-resistant of M. tuberculosis in Guangxi, which could contribute to developing effective TB prevention and control strategies.Keywords: tuberculosis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, drug-resistance, genetic diversity, whole genome sequencing

Jiafa Wu,1 Dongping Luo,2 Jiayun Xu2 1School of Food and Bioengineering, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang, People’s Republic of China; 2The First Affiliated Hospital, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Jiafa Wu, School of Food and Bioengineering, Henan University of Science and Technology, Kaiyuan Avenue 263, Luoyang, People’s Republic of China, Email wujiafa@haust.edu.cn Jiayun Xu, The First Affiliated Hospital, Henan University of Science and Technology, Guanlin Avenue 636, Luoyang, People’s Republic of China, Email xujy_haust@163.comBackground: Breast cancer is a highly malignant tumor that affects a large number of women worldwide. Sesamol, a natural compound, has been shown to exhibit inhibitory effects on various tumors, including breast cancer. However, the underlying mechanism of its action has not been fully explored. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect of sesamol on the transcriptome of MCF-7 breast cancer cells, in order to better understand its potential as an anti-cancer agent.Methods: The transcriptome profiles of MCF-7 breast cancer cells treated with sesamol were analyzed using Illumina deep-sequencing. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the control and sesamol-treated groups were identified, and GO and KEGG pathway analyses of these DEGs were conducted using ClueGO. Protein–protein interaction (PPI) network of DEGs was mapped on STRING database and visualized by Cytoscape software. Hub genes in the network were screened by Cytohubba plugin of Cytoscape. Prognostic values of hub genes were analyses by the online Kaplan–Meier plotter and validated by qRT-PCR in MCF-7 cells.Results: The results of the study showed that sesamol treatment had a significant effect on the transcriptome of MCF-7 cells, with a total of 351 DEGs identified. Functional enrichment analyses of DEGs revealed their involvement in extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling, fatty acid metabolism and monocyte chemotaxis. The protein–protein interaction (PPI) network analysis of DEGs resulted in the identification of 10 hub genes, namely IGF2, MMP1, MSLN, CXCL10, WT1, ITGAL, PLD1, MME, TWIST1, and FOXA2. Survival analysis showed that MMP1 and ITGAL were significantly associated with overall survival (OS) and recovery-free survival (RFS) in breast cancer patients.Conclusion: Sesamol may play important roles in extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling, fatty acid metabolism and cell cycle of MCF-7.Keywords: breast cancer cells, sesamol, transcriptome, differentially expressed genes, GO and KEGG pathway analyses

Yamei Cui,&ast; Ying Yang,&ast; Wenqiang Tao, Wei Peng, Deqiang Luo, Ning Zhao, Shuangyan Li, Kejian Qian, Fen Liu Department of Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Fen Liu, Department of Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, No. 17 Yongwaizheng Street, Dong Lake District, Nanchang, 330000, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 0791 88692533, Email liufen9934@163.comBackground: Uncontrolled inflammation is a typical feature of sepsis-related lung injury. The key event in the progression of lung injury is Caspase-1-dependent alveolar macrophage (AM) pyroptosis. Similarly, neutrophils are stimulated to release neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) to participate in the innate immune response. This study aims to illustrate the specific mechanisms by which NETs activate AM at the post-translational level and maintain lung inflammation.Methods: We established a septic lung injury model by caecal ligation and puncture. We found elevated NETs and interleukin-1b (IL-1β) levels in the lung tissues of septic mice. Western blot and immunofluorescence analyses was utilized to determine whether NETs promote AM pyroptosis and whether degrading NETs or targeting the NLRP3 inflammasome had protective effects on AM pyroptosis and lung injury. Flow cytometric and co-immunoprecipitation analyses verified intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and the binding of NLRP3 and ubiquitin (UB) molecules, respectively.Results: Increased NETs production and IL-1β release in septic mice were correlated with the degree of lung injury. NETs upregulated the level of NLRP3, followed by NLRP3 inflammasome assembly and caspase-1 activation, leading to AM pyroptosis executed by the activated fragment of full-length gasdermin D (FH-GSDMD). However, the opposite effect was observed in the context of NETs degradation. Furthermore, NETs markedly elicited an increase in ROS, which facilitated the activation of NLRP3 deubiquitination and the subsequent pyroptosis pathway in AM. Removal of ROS could promote the binding of NLRP3 and ubiquitin, inhibit NLRP3 binding to apoptosis-associated spotted proteins (ASC) and further alleviate the inflammatory changes in the lungs.Conclusion: In summary, these findings indicate that NETs prime ROS generation, which promotes NLRP3 inflammasome activation at the post-translational level to mediate AM pyroptosis and sustain lung injury in septic mice.Keywords: sepsis, neutrophil extracellular traps, macrophage pyroptosis, NLRP3 inflammasomes, ubiquitination, oxidative stress

Controlling defects and energy-band alignments are of paramount importance to the development of high-performance perovskite-based photodiodes. Yet, concurrent improvements in interfacial contacts and defect reduction simply by tailoring bottom contacts have not been investigated. An effective strategy is reported that can simultaneously improve energy-band alignments and structural defects by introducing low-dimensional contact (LDC) layers at the bottom interface. It is found that LDC-based perovskites considerably suppress undesirable structural defects induced by microstrains, resulting in reduced nonradiative recombination centers and improved carrier lifetimes. Additionally, the resulting LDC-based interface structures help block minority carrier injection from the electrodes by forming built-in electric fields. As a consequence, LDC-based perovskite photodiodes showed improved light detection capabilities. The result opens an avenue to yield highly efficient photodiodes.

Jiafa Wu,1 Dongping Luo,2 Shengnan Li3 1School of Food and Bioengineering, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang, People’s Republic of China; 2The First Affiliated Hospital, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang, People’s Republic of China; 3School of Medicine, Henan Polytechnic University, Jiaozuo, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Jiafa Wu, School of Food and Bioengineering, Henan University of Science and Technology, Kaiyuan Avenue 263, Luoyang, People’s Republic of China, Email wujiafa@haust.edu.cnBackground: Breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs) are associated with tumor initiation, invasion, metastasis and drug resistance. It is known that many proteins and signaling pathways are involved in the regulation of BCSCs, however, much more efforts are needed to understand BCSCs comprehensively. Tumor-infiltrating immune cells are important in cancer treatment efficacy and patient prognosis. We tried to identify potential suppressor of BCSCs and analyze its correlation with various immune cells infiltration by bioinformatic and experimental methods.Methods: Expression level and methylation state of OVOL2 were analyzed by tools from bc-GenExMiner v4.8 and UALCAN databases. The Kaplan–Meier plotter was applied to evaluate the prognostic values of OVOL2. Gene expression datasets (GSE7515, GSE15192) were selected to analyze differentially expressed genes (DEGs) related to BCSCs. GO and KEGG pathway analyses of DEGs were conducted. MCODE app plugin of Cytoscape was used to screen modules in PPI network of downregulated DEGs. Correlation of OVOL2 expression with infiltrating immune cells was evaluated by TIMER 2.0. Experiments were conducted to verify whether OVOL2 could inhibit stemness traits of breast cancer cell MDA-MB-231.Results: The expression level of OVOL2 in basal/TNBC was significantly lower than that of other subtypes. Survival analyses indicated that high expression of OVOL2 was associated with favorable prognosis. GO and KEGG pathway analyses for upregulated and downregulated DEGs were conducted. The top three clusters of downregulated DEGs showed that tight junction and chemokines may play important roles in BCSCs. OVOL2 is one module of clusters. OVOL2 expression is correlated with various immune cells infiltration. Experiments showed that OVOL2 suppresses CD44+/CD24− ratio and mammospheres formation of MDA-MB-231.Conclusion: OVOL2 may play an important role in the regulation of breast cancer stemness and immune cell infiltration, and is likely to be a target for the treatment of breast cancer.Keywords: OVOL2, gene ontology, KEGG pathway, BCSCs, immune cell infiltration

Sustainable development in the building sector requires the integration of energy efficiency and renewable energy utilization in buildings. In recent years, the concept of net zero energy buildings (NZEBs) has become a potential plausible solution to improve efficiency and reduce energy consumption in buildings. To achieve an NZEB goal, building systems and design strategies must be integrated and optimized based on local climatic conditions. This paper provides a comprehensive review of NZEBs and their current development in hot and humid regions. Through investigating 34 NZEB cases around the world, this study summarized NZEB key design strategies, technology choices and energy performance. The study found that passive design and technologies such as daylighting and natural ventilation are often adopted for NZEBs in hot and humid climates, together with other energy efficient and renewable energy technologies. Most NZEB cases demonstrated site annual energy consumption intensity less than 100 kW-hours (kWh) per square meter of floor space, and some buildings even achieved “net-positive energy” (that is, they generate more energy locally than they consume). However, the analysis also shows that not all NZEBs are energy efficient buildings, and buildings with ample renewable energy adoption can still achieve NZEB status even with high energy use intensity. This paper provides in-depth case-study-driven analysis to evaluate NZEB energy performance and summarize best practices for high performance NZEBs. This review provides critical technical information as well as policy recommendations for net zero energy building development in hot and humid climates.

The prompt and delayed γ -ray spectra of 187Tl was studied via the 142Nd(50Cr, 3p2n)187Tl fusion-evaporation reaction at a beam energy of 255 MeV. An enhanced level scheme of 187Tl was established. The collective bands with one-quasiparticle configurations from the 2 f 7 / 2 , 1 h 9 / 2 , 1 h 11 / 2 and 1 i 13 / 2 orbitals and high-lying structures with possible three-quasiparticle configurations are investigated in terms of the tilted axis cranking covariant density functional theory. At low excitation energy, the rotational bands with one-quasiparticle configurations reflect coexistence of three shapes: prolate, triaxial, and oblate. The possible shapes of two microsecond isomers at high excitation energy are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wantai Dang,1,&ast; Xiaohui Xu,2,&ast; Danling Luo,2 Hui Luo,2 Jin Hu,2 Jingguo Zhou,1 Jian Liu,2 Lanlan You2 1Department of Rheumatism and Immunity, Clinical Medical College and The First Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College, Chengdu, Sichuan, 610500, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Ultrasound, Clinical Medical College and The First Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College, Chengdu, Sichuan, 610500, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Lanlan You Email 17027279@qq.comObjective: To explore the effects of different blood uric acid levels in gout patients on the two-dimensional image of the kidney and the risk factors for gout-related kidney damage for providing clinical evidence to enable early prevention and treatment of gout-related kidney damage.Methods: We obtained information of 227 patients with primary gout and estimated the association between two-dimensional kidney images and clinical indicators using binary logistic regression.Results: Our study showed that different uric acid levels, age, disease course, cystatin C (CysC) level, and γ-glutamyl transpeptidase level were correlated with echo of the renal medulla (P < 0.05). CysC level was correlated with the renal cortex thickness and kidney stones in different uric acid-level groups (P < 0.05). Disease course, aspartate transaminase (AST) level, creatinine (CREA) level, and tophi were risk factors for renal cortex thinning in gout patients (P = 0.045, 0.026, 0.004, 0.006, respectively). The disease course, platelet (PLT) count, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL-C) level were risk factors for kidney stone formation in gout patients (P = 0.037, 0.022, 0.023, respectively), while CysC level and C-reactive protein (CRP) level were risk factors for increased renal medulla echo in these patients (P = 0.022, 0.028, respectively).Conclusion: Our study revealed disease course, AST level, CREA level, tophi, PLT count, HDL-C level, CysC level and CRP level may be important predictors of renal image changes.Keywords: gout, two-dimensional ultrasound, renal medulla, renal cortex, kidney stones

Ni Zeng,1,2 Liwen Ma,3 Yuxin Cheng,1 Qingyue Xia,1 Yueyue Li,1 Yihe Chen,1 Zhiyu Lu,1 Qian Lu,1 Feng Jiang,4 Dan Luo1 1Department of Dermatology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, 210000, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Dermatology, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi, 563000, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Dermatology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital Clinical College of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, 210000, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Neonatology, Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, 200011, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Dan LuoDepartment of Dermatology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, No. 300, Guangzhou Road, Nanjing, 210000, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail daniluo2005@163.comFeng JiangDepartment of Neonatology, Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University, No. 419, Fangxie Road, Shanghai, 200011, People’s Republic of ChinaEmail dxyjiang@163.comObjective: In this research, we studied the genes associated with ferroptosis to develop a prognostic model and find out an association with tumor immune microenvironment in skin cutaneous melanoma (SKCM) patients.Methods: To find SKCM-related ferroptosis genes, we used Cox regression and LASSO approach on 60 genes related to ferroptosis and SKCM-related RNA-seq. Following that, a ferroptosis-related gene signature was created. Time-dependent ROC curve and Kaplan–Meier analysis were calculated to determine its capability of prediction. Besides, several assessments were used to evaluate overall survival (OS), accompanied by the creation of a nomogram for the clinicopathologic factors and the ferroptosis-related gene signature we established. We also investigated the relationship between ferroptosis-related gene signature with three immune checkpoints and immune cell infiltration.Results: Our prognostic model included two genes (ALOX5, CHAC1). In both TCGA and GEO cohorts, OS was lower in high-risk category. Using our gene signature, we can reliably predict OS. Additionally, our gene signature can predict immune cell infiltration and SKCM immunotherapy response.Conclusion: Our gene signature has shown to be a reliable predictor of OS, reflect the immune microenvironment, and predict the effectiveness of immunotherapy for SKCM patients.Keywords: skin cutaneous melanoma, SKCM, ferroptosis, immune microenvironment, immune checkpoint

Peijing Li,1,2,&ast; Qun Zhang,3,&ast; Donghua Luo,4– 6 Feng Jiang,1,2 Qifeng Jin,1,2 Yonghong Hua,1,2 Ting Jin,1,2 Xiaozhong Chen1,2 1Department of Radiation Oncology, Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Zhejiang Cancer Hospital), Hangzhou, 310000, People’s Republic of China; 2Institute of Cancer and Basic Medicine (IBMC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, 310000, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Radiation Oncology, First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510060, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma, Sun Yat-Sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, 510060, People’s Republic of China; 5State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Guangzhou, 510060, People’s Republic of China; 6Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangzhou, 510060, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Xiaozhong Chen; Ting JinDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Cancer Hospital of University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Zhejiang Cancer Hospital), Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310022 Email chenxiaozhong2016@163.com; jinting22222@163.comPurpose: Patients with T3-4N0M0 nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) are a unique subgroup of locoregional advanced NPC, which generally have a better prognosis than others and are often excluded in most randomized controlled clinical trials focusing on locoregional advanced NPC. The management of this population is still controversial. This study aims to evaluate the outcomes of T3-4N0M0 NPC patients treated with sequential induction chemotherapy and concurrent chemoradiotherapy (IC+CCRT) or chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) alone.Patients and Methods: We included 362 patients diagnosed with T3-4N0M0 NPC from two hospitals between December 2005 and December 2014. All patients were received IC + CCRT (n=146) or CCRT (n=216). Locoregional failure-free survival (LRFFS), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS) were retrospectively estimated.Results: The median follow-up was 95 (range: 11– 168) months. Univariable analyses have shown that 5-year LRFFS, DFS and OS in the IC+CCRT group and the CCRT group were 87.4% vs 93.4% (P = 0.035), 80.4% vs 87.0% (P = 0.047) and 86.3% vs 93.0% (P = 0.040). Multivariate analyses demonstrated that only the T stage was the independent prognostic factor for LRFFS, DFS, and OS in the entire group analysis. Subgroup analysis revealed that patients with T3 tumors who received IC+CCRT had significantly lower LRFFS, DFS, and OS than those treated with CCRT. For T4 patients, the outcomes had no significant difference between the two groups.Conclusion: This retrospective study showed that T3N0M0 patients who received CCRT had better prognosis than those treated with IC+CCRT. In terms of T4N0M0 disease, treatment outcomes are similar in both treatment groups. However, these results require further confirmation of large sample size, prospectively, randomized controlled trials.Keywords: nasopharyngeal carcinoma, chemotherapy, intensity-modulated radiation therapy

Hong Zhou,1 Dan Luo,2 Dan Chen,2 Xi Tan,1 Xichen Bai,1 Zhi Liu,1 Xiangliang Yang,1,2 Wei Liu1,2 1College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, Hubei, People’s Republic of China; 2National Engineering Research Center for Nanomedicine, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430075, Hubei, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Wei LiuCollege of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 1037 Luoyu Road, Wuhan, 430075, Hubei, People’s Republic of ChinaTel/Fax +86 27 8779 2147Email wliu@hust.edu.cnAbstract: Nanocarrier technology has been effectively applied to the development of drug delivery systems to overcome the limitations of traditional preparation. Its application has been extended to various pharmaceutical fields from injection preparation to oral preparation and external preparation, and now it has appeared in the field of cosmetics for beauty applications. The widespread influence of nanocarrier in the cosmetics industry is due to the fact that nanocarrier can effectively promote the percutaneous penetration and significantly increase skin retention of active components in functional cosmetics. Meanwhile, nanocarrier can effectively improve the water dispersion of insoluble active cosmetic ingredients, enhance the stability of efficacy components and achieve the codelivery of diverse cosmetics active ingredients. In this review, we summarized the current progress of nanocarrier technology in the functional cosmetics, including the types and the routes of dermal/transdermal drug delivery nanocarriers used in the functional cosmetics, the mechanism of nanocarriers promoting the percutaneous penetration of active cosmetic ingredients, the application and efficacy evaluation of different active cosmetic ingredients in nanocarriers and discussing the potential risks to human. This will provide a useful reference for the further development of nanocarriers in the field of functional cosmetics.Keywords: nanocarrier technology, functional cosmetics, active cosmetic ingredients, skin penetration and positioning, efficacy evaluation, codelivery nanocarriers

Dandan Luo,1 Meilian Peng,2 Xizhen Wei,1 Diling Pan,3 Huifeng Xue,4 Yuying Xu,1 Binhua Dong2 1Department of Obstetrics, Fujian Maternity and Child Health Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, Fujian, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Gynecology, Laboratory of Gynecologic Oncology, Fujian Maternity and Child Health Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, Fujian, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Pathology, Fujian Maternity and Child Health Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, Fujian, People’s Republic of China; 4Fujian Provincial Cervical Disease Diagnosis and Treatment Health Center, Fujian Maternity and Child Health Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, Fujian, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Binhua DongDepartment of Gynecology, Laboratory of Gynecologic Oncology, Fujian Maternity and Child Health Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, 18 Daoshan Road, Fuzhou, Fujian, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86-591-87558732Fax +86-591- 87551247Email dbh18-jy@126.comYuying XuDepartment of Obstetrics, Fujian Maternity and Child Health Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, 18 Daoshan Road, Fuzhou, Fujian, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86-591-87279515Fax +86-591-87551247Email yyxu703@163.comPurpose: The status of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in pregnant and non-pregnant women in China remains unclear. This study aimed to compare the prevalence and genotype distributions of HPV between pregnant and non-pregnant women in China.Patients and Methods: A case-control study was conducted of pregnant women during the second trimester and age-matched non-pregnant women attending the Fujian Maternity and Child Health Hospital between January 1, 2017 and December 31, 2018. Participants underwent cervical cytology testing and HPV genotyping. The genotyping test was able to identify 14 high-risk HPV (HR-HPV), four possible HR-HPV, and five low-risk HPV (LR-HPV) types. Further colposcopy and a cervical biopsy were performed if indicated. The primary outcomes were HPV prevalence and genotype distribution.Results: In total, 1077 pregnant and 1077 non-pregnant women were enrolled. Compared with non-pregnant women, pregnant women had a higher prevalence of HPV (24.2% vs 14.8%), HR-HPV (20.2% vs 11.7%), and LR-HPV (8% vs 4.5%) infection. In pregnant women, the most prevalent HPV genotypes were HPV-52 (6.0%), -16 (3.5%), -58 (2.6%), -53 (2.5%), and -51 (2.5%), while in non-pregnant women the most prevalent genotypes were HPV-52 (3.6%), -81 (1.9%), -51 (1.8%), -68 (1.4%), and -16 (1.3%). In women aged ≥ 35 years, HR-HPV (P=0.002) and LR-HPV (P=0.001) prevalence were significantly higher in pregnant women. However, in women aged < 35 years, only HR-HPV prevalence was higher in pregnant women. Pregnant and non-pregnant women with HPV-16 and HPV-58 infection had a high prevalence of high-grade squamous intra-epithelial lesions (HSIL) (HPV-16: P< 0.001 and P=0.005, HPV-58: P=0.043 and P=0.005); but with other HR-HPV genotypes, only non-pregnant women had an increased HSIL prevalence.Conclusion: In China, the HPV prevalence is higher in pregnant women than that in non-pregnant women and is also age- and genotype-dependent. HPV-infected pregnant women aged ≥ 35 years and those with HPV-16 should be closely monitored to enable rapid clinical intervention.Keywords: human papillomavirus, genotype, squamous intraepithelial lesions, cervical cytology, China, pregnant