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Electrochemical CO 2 reduction in acidic electrolytes is a promising strategy to achieve high utilization efficiency of CO 2 . Although alkali cations in acidic electrolytes play a vital role in suppressing hydrogen evolution and promoting CO 2 reduction, they also cause precipitation of bicarbonate on the gas diffusion electrode (GDE), flooding of electrolyte through the GDE, and drift of the electrolyte pH. In this work, we realize the electroreduction of CO 2 in a metal cation-free acidic electrolyte by covering the catalyst with cross-linked poly-diallyldimethylammonium chloride. This polyelectrolyte provides a high density of cationic sites immobilized on the surface of the catalyst, which suppresses the mass transport of H + and modulates the interfacial field strength. By adopting this strategy, the Faradaic efficiency (FE) of CO reaches 95 ± 3% with the Ag catalyst and the FE of formic acid reaches 76 ± 3% with the In catalyst in a 1.0 pH electrolyte in a flow cell. More importantly, with the metal cation-free acidic electrolyte the amount of electrolyte flooding through the GDE is decreased to 2.5 ± 0.6% of that with alkali cation-containing acidic electrolyte, and the FE of CO maintains above 80% over 36 h of operation at -200 mA·cm -2 ., (© 2023. Springer Nature Limited.)

This study aims to clarify the relationship and mechanism between expression of autophagy-related protein P62 and prognosis of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) involving chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) exposure. HCC patients who underwent resection were divided into three groups: HBV(+)/AFB1(+) (n = 26), HBV(+)/AFB1(-) (n = 68), and HBV(-)/AFB1(-) (n = 14). The groups were compared in terms of mRNA and protein levels of P62, disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS) and the expression of NRF2, Nqo1, and AKR7A3 in P62 high-expression and low-expression group. HBV(+)/AFB1(+) group has lower DFS and OS, and higher P62 expression than in the other two groups. P62 expression generally correlated with elevated NRF2 and Nqo1 expression, and reduced AKR7A3 expression. Patients expressing high levels of P62 showed significantly lower DFS and OS rates than patients expressing low levels. HCC involving HBV infection and AFB1 exposure is associated with relatively high risk of tumor recurrence, and this poor prognosis may relate to high P62 expression. High P62 expression activates the NRF2 pathway, promotes tumor recurrence. The downregulation of AKR7A3 also reduced liver detoxification of aflatoxin B1., (© 2017 The Authors. Cancer Medicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

To clarify the relationship between aldo-keto reductase family 1 member B10 (AKR1B10) expression and early hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) recurrence, this study detected AKR1B10 expression in tumor and adjacent non-tumor tissues from 110 patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related HCC underwent liver resection and analyzed its correlations with clinicopathological characteristics and prognosis of these patients. Detected by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, AKR1B10 mRNA expression showed significantly higher in HCC tissues than in adjacent non-tumor tissues, with a low level in normal liver tissues. Similar results was confirmed at the protein level using immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. High AKR1B10 expression was negatively correlated with serum alpha-fetoprotein level and positively correlated with HBV-DNA level. Patients with high AKR1B10 expression had significantly higher disease-free survival than those with low expression within 2 years after liver resection. Multivariate analysis also confirmed high AKR1B10 expression to be a predictor of low risk of early HCC recurrence. In addition, high AKR1B10 expression was found to be a favorable factor of overall survival. These results suggest that AKR1B10 is involved in HBV-related hepatocarcinogenesis, but its high expression could predict low risk of early tumor recurrence in patients with HBV-related HCC after liver resection., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interests.

Objective: To compare the efficacy of hepatic resection (HR) in patients with Barcelona Clinical Liver Cancer (BCLC) Stage B hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and examine how that efficacy has changed over time in a large medical center. Methods: A consecutive sample of 918 patients with preserved liver function and large and/or multinodular HCC who were treated by initial HR were divided into three groups: those with a single tumor ≥5 cm in diameter ( n =582), 2-3 tumors with a maximum diameter>3 cm ( n =223), or>3 tumors of any diameter ( n =113). Hospital mortality and overall survival (OS) in each group were compared for the years 2001-2007 and 2008-2013. Results: Patients with >3 tumors showed the highest incidence of hospital mortality of all groups ( P <0.05). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that OS varied across the three groups as follows: single tumor>2-3 tumors >3+ tumors (all P <0.05). OS rate at 5 years ranged from 24% to 41% in all three groups for the period 2001-2007, and from 35% to 46% for the period 2008-2013. OS was significantly higher during the more recent 6-year period in the entire patient population, those with single tumor, and those with 3+ tumors (all P <0.05). However, in patients with 2-3 tumors, OS was only slightly higher during the more recent 6-year period ( P =0.084). Conclusions: Prognosis of three types of HCC was different. Patients with >3 tumors show the highest hospital mortality and lowest OS after HR. OS has been improving for all three types of HCC at our medical center as a consequence of improvements in surgical technique and perioperative management.

Aim: To evaluate the efficacy of transcatheter arterial chemoembolisation (TACE) compared with surgical intervention and sorafenib for treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with tumor thrombus extending to the main portal vein., Methods: From 2009 to 2013, a total of 418 HCC patients with tumor thrombus extending to the main portal vein were enrolled in this study and divided into four groups. These groups underwent different treatments as follows: TACE (n = 307), surgical intervention (n = 54), sorafenib (n = 15) and palliative treatment (n = 42). Overall survival rates were determined by Kaplan-Meier method, and differences between the groups were identified through log-rank analysis. Cox's proportional hazard model was used to identify the risk factors for survival., Results: The mean survival periods for patients in the TACE, surgical intervention, sorafenib and palliative treatment groups were 10.39, 4.13, 5.54 and 2.82 mo, respectively. For the TACE group, the 3-, 6-, 12- and 24-mo survival rates were 94.1%, 85.9%, 51.5% and 0.0%, respectively. The corresponding rates were 60.3%, 22.2%, 0.0% and 0.0% for the surgical intervention group and 50.9%, 29.5%, 0.0% and 0.0% for the sorafenib group. Evidently, the results in the TACE group were significantly higher than those in the other groups (P < 0.0001). Furthermore, no significant difference among survival rates was observed between TACE with/without sorafenib (10.22 mo vs 10.52 mo, P = 0.615). No significant difference in survival rates was also found among the surgical intervention, sorafenib and palliative treatment groups (P > 0.05). These values significantly increased after TACE with/without sorafenib compared with other treatments (P < 0.05)., Conclusion: For HCC patients with tumor thrombus extending to the main portal vein, TACE can yield a higher survival rate than surgical intervention or sorafenib treatment.

Official guidelines group together all cases of solitary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) without macroscopic vascular invasion, regardless of tumor size. Here, we examined whether this is justified based on overall survival (OS) after hepatic resection (HR). Patients with newly diagnosed solitary HCC treated by initial HR from January 2004 to October 2013 were classified into six groups based on tumor size (in 2-cm increments). Combining adjacent categories with similar OS led to three groups: ≤5 cm (n = 426), >5 and ≤8 cm (n = 229), and >8 cm (n = 202). Among all patients, median survival time was 62 months, and OS was 95 % at 1 year, 73 % at 3 years, and 54 % at 5 years. Patients in the ≤5 cm group showed significantly higher OS (P < 0.001) and lower tumor recurrence (P = 0.004) than those in the >5 and ≤8 cm group, who in turn showed significantly higher OS (P = 0.003) and lower tumor recurrence (P = 0.021) than those in the >8 cm group. Our results suggest that patients with solitary HCC should be subclassified based on tumor size for more accurate prognosis. We propose defining solitary HCC tumors >5 and ≤8 cm as "large" and tumors >8 cm as "huge".

This study aims to clarify the prognostic value of the preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after potentially curative hepatic resection (HR). The prognostic value of the NLR for HCC patients has not been definitely reviewed by large studies, especially for those with different Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) stages.A consecutive sample of 963 HCC patients who underwent potentially curative HR was classified as having low or high NLR using a cut-off value of 2.81. Overall survival (OS) and tumor recurrence were compared for patients with low or high NLR across the total population, as well as in subgroups of patients in BCLC stages 0/A, B, or C. Clinicopathological parameters, including NLR, were evaluated to identify risk factors of OS and tumor recurrence after potentially curative hepatic resection. Multivariate analyses were performed using the Cox proportional hazards model or subdistribution hazard regression model.Multivariate analyses showed that NLR (>2.81), tumor number (>3), incomplete capsule, serum albumin (≤35 g/L), alanine transaminase activity (>40 U/L), and macrovascular invasion were risk factors for low OS, whereas NLR (>2.81), tumor size (>5 cm), alpha fetal protein concentration (>400 ng/L), and macrovascular invasion were risk factors for low tumor recurrence. NLR > 2.81 was significantly associated with poor OS and tumor recurrence in the total patient population (both P < 0.001), as well as in the subgroups of patients in BCLC stages 0/A or B (all P < 0.05). Moreover, those with high NLR were associated with low OS (P = 0.027), and also with slightly higher tumor recurrence than those with low NLR for the subgroups in BCLC stage B (P = 0.058). Neither association, however, was observed among patients with BCLC stage C disease.NLR may be an independent predictor of low OS and tumor recurrence after potentially curative HR in HCC patients in BCLC stages 0/A or B.

To compare the efficacy of simo decoction (SMD) combined with acupuncture at the tsusanli acupoint or chewing gum alone for treating postoperative ileus in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after hepatectomy.In postoperative ileus, a frequent complication following hepatectomy, bowel function recovery is delayed, which increases length of hospital stay. Studies suggest that chewing gum may reduce postoperative ileus; SMD and acupuncture at the tsusanli acupoint have long been used in China to promote bowel movement.Patients with primary HCC undergoing hepatectomy between January 2015 and August 2015 were randomized to receive SMD and acupuncture (n = 55) or chewing gum (n = 53) or no intervention (n = 54) starting on postoperative day 1 and continuing for 6 consecutive days or until flatus. Primary endpoints were occurrence of postoperative ileus and length of hospital stay; secondary endpoints were surgical complications.Groups treated with SMD and acupuncture or with chewing gum experienced significantly shorter time to first peristalsis, flatus, and defecation than the no-intervention group (all P < 0.05). Hospital stay was significantly shorter in the combined SMD and acupuncture group (mean 14.0 d, SD 4.9) than in the no-intervention group (mean 16.5 d, SD 6.8; P = 0.014), while length of stay was similar between the chewing gum group (mean 14.7, SD 6.2) and the no-intervention group (P = 0.147). Incidence of grades I and II complications was slightly lower in both intervention groups than in the no-intervention group.The combination of SMD and acupuncture may reduce incidence of postoperative ileus and shorten hospital stay in HCC patients after hepatectomy. Chewing gum may also reduce incidence of ileus but does not appear to affect hospital stay. (Clinicaltrials.gov registration number: NCT02438436.).

Thrips tabaci Lindeman (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) is one of the most important pests of asparagus in China. In this study the effects of five constant temperatures (15, 20, 25, 30 and 35 °C) on the growth, survivorship and reproduction of Proprioseiopsis asetus (Chant) (Acari: Phytoseiidae) fed on T. tabaci was examined under laboratory conditions. Development time of immatures decreased with increasing temperature. The lower egg-to-adult developmental threshold (T 0) and thermal constant (K) of P. asetus were estimated at 15.2 °C and 75.8 degree days by means of a linear model. Fertilized females fed on T. tabaci produced offspring of both sexes, whereas the offspring sex ratio [♀/(♀ + ♂)] of P. asetus at 20-35 °C was female-biased (0.68-0.78) and not significantly influenced by temperature. Survivorship during immature development was significantly influenced by temperature, and was especially low at 15 °C. Pre- and post-oviposition periods of fertilized females shortened with the increase in temperature. The longest oviposition period was 20.4 days, at 25 °C, whereas at 15 °C the mites did not reproduce. Maximum average life time fecundity and mean daily fecundity was recorded at 25 and 35 °C, respectively; the intrinsic rate of increase ranged from 0.05 (20 °C) to 0.17 (35 °C). The results indicate the capability of P. asetus to develop and reproduce at a broad range of temperatures, especially above 25 °C, which can be used for better management of T. tabaci in asparagus.

Predation and predatory behavior of Blattisocius dolichus on Radopholus similis were tested both in experimental arenas and on potted plants. Predation occurred in all active stages of B. dolichus. Blattisocius dolichus preferred live R. similis when offered together with Caneorhabditis elegans and dead R. similis in a choice test. Consumption rate was affected by temperature, prey density and duration of starvation. Maximum consumption rates were observed at 25 °C, for both adult males and females after being starved for 96 and 72 h, respectively. Consumption rate increased with increasing prey density until satiation was reached, when the predator-prey ratio was 1:250 for both male and female predators. Anthurium andraeanum seedlings, artificially infested with R. similis (1,000 per pot), were used to evaluate the biological control efficiency of B. dolichus. The nematode density decreased by 66 % 10 days after a release of 500 mites per pot.