Ion-Doping-Site-Variation-Induced Composite Cathode Adjustment: A Case Study of Layer-Tunnel Na0.6MnO2 with Mg2+ Doping at Na/Mn Site.

Composite cathodes have attracted great attention due to the integrated advantages of each pure structure. Also, the component ratio deserves a careful modulation to further improve the corresponding electrochemical performance. Mn-based layer-tunnel hybrid composite became a focus in sodium-ion batteries due to the superiority in terms of high performance, low cost, and nontoxicity. In the previous reports, the structure modulation was carried out via changing the synthesis condition, varying the transition-metal-element ratio, and different ion doping. Also, it is still challenging to explore a more feasible method to simplify the adjustment process. Herein, we introduced Mg2+ into Na sites or transition-metal sites in Na0.6MnO2 and first discovered the doping-site-variation-induced structural adjustment phenomenon. Specifically, Mg doping in transition-metal sites could be beneficial for the growth of the P2-type structure, while layer/tunnel component ratio decreased when locating Mg2+ in Na sites. The P2-O2 phase transformations could be effectively suppressed by locating Mg2+ in both sites in high-voltage regions and thus improve the cycling performance. The designed material, Na0.6Mn0.99Mg0.01O2, could attain a decent capacity of 100 mA h g-1 at 1000 mA g-1 and a satisfied retention of 76.6% after 500 cycles. Additionally, ex situ X-ray diffraction analysis experiments verify the excellent structural stability of Mg-substituted samples during charge-discharge processes. Moreover, the Na0.6Mn0.99Mg0.01O2 also displays superior sodium-ion full-cell properties when merged with hard carbon anode. Thus, this research may indicate a proper novel thread for designing high-performance composite electrodes.

[Analysis of CDSS Experimental Indexes in 333 Cases of Newly Diagnosed Acute Leukemia].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the 5 experimental indexes of CDSS in the patients with acute leukemia (AL) so as to provide the laboratorial basis for the early diagnosis and treatment of the secondary DIC in AL. METHODS: Three hundred and thirty three patients with AL were divided into 7 groups, such as AML-M1-M5, other AML and ALL. The experimental indexes and CDSS scores of all AL groups were compared and analyzed in pairs, meanwhile 100 healthy persons were taken in the control group. Clinical events such as early death in all cases were also analyzed. RESULTS: The highest positive rate of Platelet was 59.76%, among the 5 experimental indexes, followed by D-D (30.93%), and the lowest APTT with only 2.70%. Compared with the control group, the differences of remaining indexes were statistically significant (P＜0.01), except APTT in group AML-M3 and FIB in the other AML groups. The score of laboratory index was (1.50±1.51) in all AL patients, and the positive rate of overt DIC ( score≥4) was 14.11% ( 47 cases). The highest score of CDSS was (3.34 ±1.71) in group AML-M3. The difference in the incidence of early death and cerebral (pulmonary) hemorrhage in DIC patients were statistically significant (P＜0.05 and P＜0.01). CONCLUSION: The application of quantitative integral method of experimental indexes in CDSS is objective and feasible, which is of great significance for early diagnosis and early treatment of acute leukemia complicated with DIC.

Will Chinese external therapy with compound Tripterygium wilfordii hook F gel safely control disease activity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: design of a double-blinded randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Chinese external therapy (CET) is a topical application with mainly Chinese herb medicine therapy with thousands of years of historical implications and is a clinical routine that is commonly used for relieving joint-related symptoms in patients with arthritis in Chinese hospitals. However, there is a paucity of modern medical evidence to support its effectiveness and safety. Thus, we propose to implement a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trial in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) using, as the experimental intervention, topical application of a hospital-compounded gel preparation of Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F (TwHF). METHODS: This study will be an 8-week double-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial conducted at Guang'anmen Hospital in Beijing, China, and 168 patients with moderately active RA will be randomly assigned with a 1:1 ratio to apply a topical gel preparation containing TwHF or placebo. The primary outcome variable will be the proportion of subjects, by study group, to achieve a 20% improvement in the American College of Rheumatology criteria (ACR20) by week 8. Secondary outcome measures to be assessed at weeks 4 or 8 will include: measurement of ACR20 response rate at week 4, ACR50 response rate, the changes in DAS28 score, and joint synovitis classification assessment monitored by musculoskeletal ultrasound. Safety evaluations conducted at weeks 4, 8 and 12 will be based on spontaneous complaints by the study subjects, but special emphasis will be focused on cutaneous allergy and alterations of menstruation in premenopausal female participants. Statistical analyses will be performed using the intention to treat analysis data set. DISCUSSION: This proposed clinical trail is designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of CET based on a single topically-applied agent in a relatively large patient population with RA. This study protocol gives a detailed description of the usage and dosage of the topical compound TwHF gel and the methodology of this study. In addition, it is hoped that the outcomes of this study will be viewed as supporting the generalizability of CET in the setting of inflammatory rheumatic diseases. The results of this study are expected to have important public health implications for Asian RA patients that currently utilize CET as a complimentary treatment. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Clinical trial gov Identifier: NCT02818361 . Registrated on Jun. 15, 2016.

The Optimal Root Length for Vetiveria zizanioides When Transplanted to Cd Polluted Soil.

In order to facilitate transportation and accelerate growth, roots of Vetiveria zizanioides must be pruned before transplanting. The present research is aimed to investigate the best root length for vetiver grown in cadmium (Cd) polluted soil. The results indicated that 6 cm root-length plant (RLP) was the best candidate in phytoremediation of Cd-contaminated soil for its stronger tolerance and better growth promoting activities.

Monoclonal antibodies against nucleophosmin mutants: potentials for the detection of acute myeloid leukemia.

Nucleophosmin (NPM1) gene mutations resulting in cytoplasmic delocalization of Nucleophosmin (NPMc+) are the most common genetic alteration in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Here, we attempted to prepare monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against NPM1 mutation A (NPM-mA) and investigated the mAbs' clinical utility in immunohistochemical detection of NPMc+AML. The pET-32a-NPM-mA vector with the whole open reading frame of the NPM-mA gene was constructed. E.coli BL21 transformed with the vector were induced to express the NPM-mA recombinant protein. BALB/c mice were immunized with the recombinant NPM-mA. Positive clones were selected by indirect ELISA and the mAbs were obtained. Immunohistochemistry was performed to detect the NPMc+ in bone marrow smears from 10 AML patients with NPM-mA. The results showed that the pET-32a-NPM-mA vector was successfully constructed and the NPM-mA recombinant protein was used to immunize the mice. Two positive clones (2G3 and 3F9) were selected. The mAbs against NPM-mA were raised, but did cross-react with wild type NPM1. The mAbs can be used to detect the cytoplasmic dislocation of NPM1 in all AMLs carrying NPM-mA. Our results show that anti-NPM-mA mAbs were produced. Though they would cross-react with wild type NPM1, the mAbs may still have potential in the detection of NPMc+AMLs.

Knockdown of NPM1 by RNA interference inhibits cells proliferation and induces apoptosis in leukemic cell line.

Nucleophosmin (NPM1) is an abundant and ubiquitously expressed phosphoprotein that is known to influence solid tumors progression. However, little is known about the role of NPM1 in leukemia. Here, we knocked down the NPM1 expression by RNA interference to investigate the role of NPM1 in leukemic cells proliferation and apoptosis. The interference vector pNPM1-shRNA was constructed and transfected into the human leukemic K562 cell line. The expression levels of NPM1 mRNA and protein were detected by quantitative real-time PCR and Western blot, respectively. Cells proliferation potential in vitro was assessed by methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) and colony formation assays. Flow cytometry was used to detect the distribution of cell cycle. Cellular apoptosis was reflected by the relative activities of caspase-3 and caspase-8. The results showed that the expression levels of NPM1 mRNA and protein in K562 cells were significantly reduced after pNPM1-shRNA transfection. The cells growth was significantly inhibited in a time-dependent manner and the number of colonies was significantly reduced in the pNPM1-shRNA transfected cells. Meanwhile, the percentage of cells in G1 phase in the K562/pNPM1-shRNA cells was significantly increased. In addition, there were higher relative activities of caspase-3/8 in the pNPM1-shRNA transfected cells. These results indicate that down-regulation of NPM1 expression inhibits leukemic cells proliferation, blocks cell cycle progression and induces cellular apoptosis. It may implicate a potential target for leukemia gene therapy.

Nucleophosmin gene mutations promote NIH3T3 cell migration and invasion through CXCR4 and MMPs.

Nucleophosmin (NPM1) plays key roles in ribosome biogenesis, centrosome duplication, and maintenance of genomic integrity. NPM1 mutations have been recently identified as the most frequent genetic alteration in acute myeloid leukemia and are related to leukemogenesis. NPM1 mutations are involved in the regulation of cell proliferation, cell cycle, and apoptosis. However, the oncogenic potential of NPM1 mutations is not fully understood. Here, we investigated the change of cell migration and invasion in vitro and the role of NPM1 mutations in this process. In our study, NIH3T3 cells were transfected with plasmids encoding NPM1 mutation A (NPM1 mA), and the cell chemotactic response in vitro was evaluated by cell migration and invasion assays. In addition, the expression levels of MMP-2, MMP-9 and CXCR4 were assayed by quantitative real-time PCR and western blotting. Our findings suggested that the migration and invasion of NIH3T3 cells were significantly enhanced after transfection with NPM1 mA (p<0.01). Furthermore, there was greater expression of MMP-9 and CXCR4 (p<0.01), but a lower expression of MMP-2 in the NPM1 mA group. These results demonstrate that NPM1 mutations may promote cell migration and invasion in vitro, and MMP-9 and CXCR4 may be involved in the regulation of cell invasion. Thus, this study sheds new light on the effect of NPM1 mutations on leukemogenesis.

Increased integrity of circulating cell-free DNA in plasma of patients with acute leukemia.

BACKGROUND: Increased cell-free DNA (cf-DNA) and the integrity of cf-DNA in plasma of patients with cancer has been described. We investigated the clinical utility of cf-DNA in the detection and monitoring of progression of leukemia. METHODS: Plasma samples from 60 patients with acute leukemia were analyzed in comparison to plasma from 30 healthy controls. Plasma DNA was determined by quantitative PCR (qPCR) by amplifying the ß-actin gene (ACTB). The DNA integrity index was calculated as the ratio of qPCR results (ACTB384/106). Paired diagnostic/complete remission (CR)/relapse samples from eight of 60 patients were analyzed, and the minimum residual disease (MRD) situations were monitored. RESULTS: DNA concentrations (median: 8.80 ng/mL, p=0.004) and DNA integrity (median: 0.51, p<0.001) in cancer patients were significantly higher. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis showed that the area under the ROC curve of DNA and DNA integrity were 0.79 and 0.88, respectively. DNA integrity at CR had a distinct reduction and then an increase at relapse. DNA integrity in CR cases was higher than that observed in healthy controls. CONCLUSIONS: Our preliminary data suggest that plasma DNA integrity is increased in acute leukemia and may be a potential biomarker for monitoring MRD. However, more work is needed.

Fluorouracil selectively enriches stem-like leukemic cells in a leukemic cell line.

Recent studies have reported that cancer stem cells (CSCs) could be isolated from solid cancer cell lines, in which the purity of CSCs was higher than that from tumor tissues. Separation of CSCs from leukemic cell lines was rarely reported. In this study, CD34(+)CD38(-)stem-like cell subsets in human KG-1a leukemic cell line were enriched by cytotoxic agent 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). After 4 days incubation of KG-1a cell line with 5-FU (50 microg/ml), the CD34(+)CD38(-) subpopulation of cell lines was enriched more than 10 times. The enriched cells had proliferate potential in vitro, low level of RNA transcription and Hoechst 33342 dye efflux ability, accompanied by high expression of ATP-binding cassette transporter protein ABCG2. Our findings suggest that treatment with 5-FU offers an easy method to isolate leukemic stem-like subpopulation. It can facilitate studies of leukemic stem cell biology and the development of new therapeutic strategies.

A prospective study comparing endoscopic subcutaneous mastectomy plus immediate reconstruction with implants and breast conserving surgery for breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: Breast conserving surgery (BCS) has been the standard surgical procedure for the treatment of early breast cancer. Endoscopic subcutaneous mastectomy (ESM) plus immediate reconstruction with implants is an emerging procedure. The objective of this prospective study was to evaluate the clinical outcomes of these two surgical procedures in our clinical setting. METHODS: From March 2004 to October 2007, 43 patients with breast cancer underwent ESM plus axillary lymph node dissection and immediate reconstruction with implants, while 54 patients underwent BCS. The clinical and pathological characteristics, surgical safety, and therapeutic effects were compared between the two groups. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in the age, clinical stage, histopathologic type of tumor, operative blood loss, postoperative drainage time, and postoperative complications between the two groups (P > 0.05). The postoperative complications were partial necrosis of the nipple and superficial skin flap in the ESM patients, and hydrops in the axilla and residual cavity in the BCS patients. There was no significant difference in the rate of satisfactory postoperative cosmetic outcomes between the ESM (88.4%, 38/43) and BCS (92.6%, 50/54) patients (P > 0.05). During follow-up of 6 months to 4 years, all patients treated with ESM were disease-free, but 3 patients who underwent BCS had metastasis or recurrence -one of these patients died of multiple organ metastasis. CONCLUSIONS: After considering the wide indications for use, high surgical safety, and favorable cosmetic outcomes, we conclude that ESM plus axillary lymph node dissection and immediate reconstruction with implants - the new surgery of choice for breast cancer - warrants serious consideration as the prospective next standard surgical procedure.

[Study on purification process of depsides in Salvia miltiorrhiza with macroporous resin].

OBJECTIVE: To study the technological parameters of the purification process of Depsides in Salvia miltiorrhiza with macroporous resin. METHOD: The adsorptive characteristics and eluting parameters of the process were studied by taking the content of depsides as index. RESULT: 85 mL of extractive of depsides (1.25 g x mL(-1)) was purified with a column of macroreticular resin ( Phi30 mm,127 mL) and washed with 4 BV of distilled water, the eluted with 4 BV of 80% ethanol (1% ammonia). CONCLUSION: This process of applying macroporous resin to adsorb and purify depsides in S. miltiorrhiza is feasible.

[Effect of the sustained release excipients on the release rate of ginsenoside Rg1 and ginsenoside Rb1 in sustained-release tablet of Panax notoginsenosides].

OBJECTIVE: To study the influence of the sustained release excipient on the release rate of ginsenoside Rg1 and ginsenoside Rb1 in sustained-release tablet of Panax Notoginsenosides. METHOD: The release rate of ginsenoside Rg1 and ginsenoside Rb1 in different matrix tablets with different excipient (HPMC, EC), different viscosity of EC (RT-50, RT-100), different ratio of EC in matrix tablet were detected. RESULT: All above different factors influence the release rate of ginsenoside Rg1 and ginsenoside Rb1 and brought them different release curve. CONCLUSION: Emphasis should be laid on the different release characteristic of different active compounds in active fraction.