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Objective To explore the clinical manifestations, histopathological characteristics, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of simultaneous unilateral primary tumors of different pathological types in the parotid gland. Methods A case of simultaneous unilateral primary parotid gland tumors, i.e., adenolymphoma and basal cell adenoma, was reviewed and analyzed in combination with the literature. Results The patient discovered a lump in the right parotid gland area one month prior to presentation, and a tumor was palpated in the shallow lobe of the right parotid gland before surgery. According to MR images, the initial diagnoses were tumors of the shallow and deep lobes of the right parotid gland. The tumors of the deep and shallow lobes were excised with part of the gland, and the facial nerves were dissected under general anesthesia. Postoperative pathology revealed an adenolymphoma in the shallow lobe of the right parotid gland and a basal cell adenoma with cystic transformation in the deep lobe. The surgical effect was good, with no complications, and there was no recurrence after 1 year of follow-up. A review of the relevant literature showed that multiple primary tumors of the parotid gland can manifest as the simultaneous presence of two or more types of tumors on both sides or on one side, and the disease is mainly treated with surgery. Conclusion Multiple unilateral primary parotid gland tumors are rare. Imaging examinations need to be combined with clinical evaluations to prevent missed diagnoses. Surgery is the first treatment option, and patients with benign tumors have a good prognosis.

CD8+ T cell responses restricted by MHC-E, a nonclassical MHC molecule, have been associated with protection in an SIV/rhesus macaque model. The biological relevance of HLA-E-restricted CD8+ T cell responses in HIV infection, however, remains unknown. In this study, CD8+ T cells responding to HIV-1 Gag peptides presented by HLA-E were analyzed. Using in vitro assays, we observed HLA-E-restricted T cell responses to what we believe to be a newly identified subdominant Gag-KL9 as well as a well-described immunodominant Gag-KF11 epitope in T cell lines derived from chronically HIV-infected patients and also primed from healthy donors. Blocking of the HLA-E/KF11 binding by the B7 signal peptide resulted in decreased CD8+ T cell responses. KF11 presented via HLA-E in HIV-infected cells was recognized by antigen-specific CD8+ T cells. Importantly, bulk CD8+ T cells obtained from HIV-infected individuals recognized infected cells via HLA-E presentation. Ex vivo analyses at the epitope level showed a higher responder frequency of HLA-E-restricted responses to KF11 compared with KL9. Taken together, our findings of HLA-E-restricted HIV-specific immune responses offer intriguing and possibly paradigm-shifting insights into factors that contribute to the immunodominance of CD8+ T cell responses in HIV infection.

In this paper, we experimentally illustrate the effectiveness of neural networks (NNs) as non-linear equalisers for multilevel pulse amplitude modulation (PAM-M) transmission over an optical wireless communication (OWC) link. In our study, we compare the bit-error-rate (BER) performances of two decision feedback equalisers (DFEs)—a multilayer-perceptron-based DFE (MLPDFE), which is the NN equaliser, and a transversal DFE (TRDFE)—under two degrees of non-linear distortion using an eye-safe 850 nm single-mode vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (SM-VCSEL). Our results consistently show that the MLPDFE delivers superior performance in comparison to the TRDFE, particularly in scenarios involving high non-linear distortion and PAM constellations with eight or more levels. At a forward error correction (FEC) threshold BER of 0.0038, we achieve bit rates of ~28 Gbps, ~29 Gbps, ~22.5 Gbps, and ~5 Gbps using PAM schemes with 2, 4, 8, and 16 levels, respectively, with the MLPDFE. Comparably, the TRDFE yields bit rates of ~28 Gbps and ~29 Gbps with PAM-2 and PAM-4, respectively. Higher PAM levels with the TRDFE result in BERs greater than 0.0038 for bit rates above 2 Gbps. These results highlight the effectiveness of the MLPDFE in optimising the performance of SM-VCSEL-based OWC systems across different modulation schemes and non-linear distortion levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective The purpose of this study was to explore the application value of digital surgery in the reconstruction of mandibular composite defects with a chimeric deep circumflex iliac artery perforator flap (DCIAPF). Methods Six patients with complex defects within half of the mandible underwent reconstruction using DCIAPF from January 2019 to January 2020 in Shenzhen People’s Hospital. Doppler was used to locate the deep iliac circumflex artery, the range of mandibular osteotomy was designed, and DCIAPF was used to repair the mandibular composite under the guidance of the guide plate during the operation. Twelve months postoperatively, the facial shape, jaw height, and occlusal relationship were evaluated.Results DCIAPF was harvested successfully in 6 patients, and the heights of all alveolar ridges and occlusal function of patients were significantly restored, without pain or snapping in the temporomandibular joint area. Conclusion The blood supply of DCIAPF is rich, and soft-bone tissue is sufficient for the reconstruction of mandibular composite defects. Combined with digital surgery, the accuracy and safety are improved

Broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs) are thought to be a critical component of a protective HIV vaccine. However, designing vaccines immunogens able to elicit bnAbs has proven unsuccessful to date. Understanding the correlates and immunological mechanisms leading to the development of bnAb responses during natural HIV infection is thus critical to the design of a protective vaccine. The IAVI Protocol C program investigates a large longitudinal cohort of primary HIV-1 infection in Eastern and South Africa. Development of neutralization was evaluated in 439 donors using a 6 cross-clade pseudo-virus panel predictive of neutralization breadth on larger panels. About 15% of individuals developed bnAb responses, essentially between year 2 and year 4 of infection. Statistical analyses revealed no influence of gender, age or geographical origin on the development of neutralization breadth. However, cross-clade neutralization strongly correlated with high viral load as well as with low CD4 T cell counts, subtype-C infection and HLA-A*03(-) genotype. A correlation with high overall plasma IgG levels and anti-Env IgG binding titers was also found. The latter appeared not associated with higher affinity, suggesting a greater diversity of the anti-Env responses in broad neutralizers. Broadly neutralizing activity targeting glycan-dependent epitopes, largely the N332-glycan epitope region, was detected in nearly half of the broad neutralizers while CD4bs and gp41-MPER bnAb responses were only detected in very few individuals. Together the findings suggest that both viral and host factors are critical for the development of bnAbs and that the HIV Env N332-glycan supersite may be a favorable target for vaccine design.

Objective To explore the clinical manifestations, histopathological features, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of Rosai-Dorfman′s disease (RDD) in the maxillofacial region and to review the relevant literature in order to improve the understanding, diagnosis and treatment of oral and maxillofacial RDD. Methods The clinical manifestations, histopathological features, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of a patient with RDD in the maxillofacial region admitted to Shenzhen People′s Hospital were analyzed, and the literature was reviewed for analysis. Results The clinical manifestations were palpable masses of 3.5 cm × 2.0 cm × 1.0 cm in the right cheek and 3.0 cm × 2.0 cm × 1.0 cm in the right submaxillary area, with clear boundaries, good mobility, medium and hard textures, respectively, no tenderness, smooth surfaces, and no obvious nodules. On contrast-enhanced and plain CT scans of the maxilla and neck, a diffuse soft tissue shadow was seen in the right maxillofacial region with an unclear boundary and uniform density, and the contrast-enhanced scan also showed moderate and uniform enhancement. The primary diagnosis was right maxillofacial lesions. The tumor was resected surgically. The pathological report was right buccal and right submaxillary extranodal RDD. Under light microscopy, nodular lesions in the fibrous fat tissue were found, which were composed of light and deep staining areas. The light staining areas consisted of patchy, polygonal cells with large volumes and rich cytoplasm, in which lymphocytes and neutrophils could be seen stretching into the movement; the deep staining areas were composed of lymphocytes and plasma cells. IHC: S-100 (+), CD68 (+), CD163 (+), CD1a (-), CD21FDC (+), langerin (-), IgG (+), IgG4 (+). No recurrence was found 11 months after the operation. RDD is a rare, benign and self-limited tissue and cell disease and consists of multiple lesions in the maxillofacial region. Its imaging features are similar to those of lymphoma. Its pathological features are large volumes, rich cytoplasm and phagocytosis of lymphocytes and plasma cells. Generally, RDD only needs to be observed, and individuals with symptoms or the involvement of important organs need to be treated; the first choice for the extranodal type is drug treatment, with radiotherapy administered if the central nervous system is involved. Surgery is recommended if involvement of important organs and compression of the trachea are observed; chemotherapy should be used for diffuse RDD. Most patients with RDD experienced relapse or remission of the disease; a few patients died because of the involvement of important organs or complications. Conclusion The clinical manifestations of maxillofacial RDD vary and lack specific imaging features, and pathological immunohistochemistry is the gold standard for diagnosis. The etiology is not completely clear, the treatment methods are varied, and the prognosis is related to the involved range of the disease.

Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] is often deficient (