Super tough and high adhesive eutectic ionogels enabled by high-density hydrogen bond network.

Ionogels have attracted tremendous interest for flexible electronics due to their excellent deformability, conductivity, and environmental stability. However, most ionogels suffer from low strength and poor toughness, which limit their practical applications. This article presents a strategy for fabricating ionogels with high toughness by constructing high-density hydrogen bonds within their microstructure. The ionogels exhibit a maximum fracture strength of 11.44 MPa, and can sustain a fracture strain of 506%. They also demonstrate a fracture energy of 27.29 MJ m-3 and offer a wide range of mechanical property adjustments (fracture stress from 0.3 to 11.44 MPa, fracture strain from 506% to 1050%). Strain sensors assembled with ionogels demonstrate exceptional sensing performance and enable motion detection of human joints. This study provides a new approach for achieving strong and tough ionogel design used for high-performance flexible electronic applications.

Ameliorative Effects of Flavonoids from Platycodon grandiflorus Aerial Parts on Alloxan-Induced Pancreatic Islet Damage in Zebrafish.

Platycodon grandiflorus (balloon flower), used as a food reserve as well as in traditional herbal medicine, is known for its multiple beneficial effects. In particular, this plant is widely used as a vegetable in Republic of Korea. We examined the ameliorative effects of P. grandiflorus on alloxan-induced pancreatic islet damage in zebrafish. The aerial part treatment led to a significant recovery in pancreatic islet size and glucose uptake. The efficacy of the aerial part was more potent than that of the root. Eight flavonoids (1-8) were isolated from the aerial part. Structures of two new flavone glycosides, designated dorajiside I (1) and II (2), were elucidated to be luteolin 7-O-α-L-rhamno-pyranosyl (1 → 2)-(6-O-acetyl)-ß-D-glucopyranoside and apigenin 7-O-α-L-rhamnopyranosyl (1 → 2)-(6-O-acetyl)-ß-D-glucopyranoside, respectively, by spectroscopic analysis. Compounds 1, 3, 4 and 6-8 yielded the recovery of injured pancreatic islets in zebrafish. Among them, compound 7 blocked KATP channels in pancreatic ß-cells. Furthermore, compounds 3, 4, 6 and 7 showed significant changes with respect to the mRNA expression of GCK, GCKR, GLIS3 and CDKN2B compared to alloxan-induced zebrafish. In conclusion, the aerial part of P. grandiflorus and its constituents conferred a regenerative effect on injured pancreatic islets.

One-Pot Biosynthesis of 2-Keto-4-hydroxybutyrate from Cheap C1 Compounds Using Rationally Designed Pyruvate Aldolase and Methanol Dehydrogenase.

One-carbon chemicals (C 1s) are potential building blocks as they are cheap, sustainable, and abiotic components. Methanol-derived formaldehyde can be another versatile building block for the production of 2-keto-4-hydroxyacid derivatives that can be used for amino acids, hydroxy carboxylic acids, and chiral aldehydes. To produce 2-keto-4-hydroxybutyrate from C 1s in an environment-friendly way, we characterized an aldolase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 (PaADL), which showed much higher catalytic activity in condensing formaldehyde and pyruvate than the reported aldolases. By applying a structure-based rational approach, we found a variant (PaADLV121A/L241A) that exhibited better catalytic activities than the wild-type enzyme. Next, we constructed a one-pot cascade biocatalyst system by combining PaADL and a methanol dehydrogenase (MDH) and, for the first time, effectively produced 2-keto-4-hydroxybutyrate as the main product from pyruvate and methanol via an enzymatic reaction. This simple process applied here will help design a green process for the production of 2-keto-4-hydroxyacid derivatives.

Effects of TSA, NaB, Aza in Lactuca sativa L. protoplasts and effect of TSA in Nicotiana benthamiana protoplasts on cell division and callus formation.

Whole-plant regeneration via plant tissue culture is a complex process regulated by several genetic and environmental conditions in plant cell cultures. Recently, epigenetic regulation has been reported to play an important role in plant cell differentiation and establishment of pluripotency. Herein, we tested the effects of chemicals, which interfere with epigenetic regulation, on the plant regeneration from mesophyll protoplasts of lettuce. The used chemicals were histone deacetylase inhibitors trichostatin A (TSA) and sodium butyrate (NaB), and the DNA methyltransferase inhibitor azacytidine (Aza). All three chemicals increased cell division, micro-callus formation and callus proliferation in lettuce protoplasts. Cell division increased by more than 20% with an optimal treatment of the three chemicals. In addition, substantial increase in the callus proliferation rates was observed. In addition, TSA enhances cell division and adventitious shoot formation in the protoplast culture of Nicotiana benthamiana. The regenerated tobacco plants from TSA-treated protoplasts did not show morphological changes similar to the control. TSA increased histone H3 acetylation levels and affected the expression of CDK, CYCD3-1, and WUS in tobacco protoplasts. Thus, we investigated the effect of TSA, NaB, and Aza on Lactuca sativa L. protoplasts and the effect of TSA on cell division and callus formation in Nicotiana benthamiana protoplasts, which facilitates plant regeneration from mesophyll protoplasts. Furthermore, these chemicals can be directly applied as media additives for efficient plant regeneration and crop improvement in various plant species.

Risk of Myocarditis and Pericarditis Following Coronavirus Disease 2019 Messenger RNA Vaccination - A Nationwide Study

BackgroundAn extended interval between the two primary doses may reduce the risk of myocarditis/pericarditis after COVID-19 mRNA vaccination. Taiwan has implemented a two-dose regimen with a 12-week interval for adolescents. Here we present nationwide data of mRNA COVID-19 vaccination-associated myocarditis and pericarditis in Taiwan. MethodsData on adverse events of myocarditis/pericarditis were from the Taiwan Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System between March 22, 2021, and February 9, 2022. The rates according to sex, age, and vaccine type were calculated. We investigated the reporting rates among young individuals under different two-dose intervals and among those who received two doses of different vaccines. ResultsAmong 204 cases who met the case definition of myocarditis/pericarditis, 75 cases occurred after the first dose and 129 after the second. The reporting rate of myocarditis/pericarditis after COVID-19 vaccination varied across sex and age groups and was highest after the second dose in males aged 12-17 years (126.79 cases per million vaccinees) for the BNT162b2 vaccine and in males aged 18-24 years (93.84 cases per million vaccinees) for the mRNA-1273 vaccine. The data did not suggest an association between longer between-dose interval and lower rate of myocarditis/pericarditis among males and females aged 18-24 or 25-29 years who received two doses of the BNT162b2 or mRNA-1273 vaccine. Rates of myocarditis/pericarditis in males and females aged 18-49 years after receiving ChAdOx1-S - mRNA-1273 vaccination was significantly higher than after ChAdOx1-S - ChAdOx1-S vaccination. ConclusionsMyocarditis and pericarditis are rare following mRNA vaccination, with higher risk occurring in young males after the second dose.

In Vitro One-Pot 3-Hydroxypropanal Production from Cheap C1 and C2 Compounds.

One- or two-carbon (C1 or C2) compounds have been considered attractive substrates because they are inexpensive and abundant. Methanol and ethanol are representative C1 and C2 compounds, which can be used as bio-renewable platform feedstocks for the biotechnological production of value-added natural chemicals. Methanol-derived formaldehyde and ethanol-derived acetaldehyde can be converted to 3-hydroxypropanal (3-HPA) via aldol condensation. 3-HPA is used in food preservation and as a precursor for 3-hydroxypropionic acid and 1,3-propanediol that are starting materials for manufacturing biocompatible plastic and polytrimethylene terephthalate. In this study, 3-HPA was biosynthesized from formaldehyde and acetaldehyde using deoxyribose-5-phosphate aldolase from Thermotoga maritima (DERATma) and cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli for 3-HPA production. Under optimum conditions, DERATma produced 7 mM 3-HPA from 25 mM substrate (formaldehyde and acetaldehyde) for 60 min with 520 mg/L/h productivity. To demonstrate the one-pot 3-HPA production from methanol and ethanol, we used methanol dehydrogenase from Lysinibacillus xylanilyticus (MDHLx) and DERATma. One-pot 3-HPA production via aldol condensation of formaldehyde and acetaldehyde from methanol and ethanol, respectively, was investigated under optimized reaction conditions. This is the first report on 3-HPA production from inexpensive alcohol substrates (methanol and ethanol) by cascade reaction using DERATma and MDHLx.

Preparation of phase change material filled hybrid 2D/3D graphene structure with ultra-high thermal effusivity for effective thermal management.

Graphene-based energy storage and renewable material has increasingly attracted research interest, due to its high thermal conductivity and light weight. Researchers fill phase change material (PCM) into three-dimensional graphene foam, to obtain a composite with high energy storage capability and moderate thermal conductivity. However, this kind of composite's heat transfer mode is single and cannot maximize the advantages of graphene. Herein, a stearic acid filled graphene-foam composite (GFSAC) connected with graphene paper (GP) through gravity-assisted wetting attaching process is demonstrated in this paper.•GP is obtained by thermal reduction of graphene oxide (GO) paper. Its in-plane thermal conductivity can reach up to 938 Wm-1 K-1. By controlling the preparation process of GO paper, the in-plane thermal conductivity of GP can be adjusted.•GFSAC is consisted of GF and SA, GFSAC with different heat transfer properties can be prepared by adjusting the degree of reduction of GF.•A novel gravity-assisted wetting attaching process has been developed to prepare GP/GFSAC/GP composite, which can effectively reduce the thermal resistance between GP and GFSAC. The effective thermal effusivity of the final GP/GFSAC/GP composite reaches 18.45 J cm-3/2 m-1/2 s-1/2 K-1/2, showing an excellent thermal management capability.

TSA Promotes CRISPR/Cas9 Editing Efficiency and Expression of Cell Division-Related Genes from Plant Protoplasts.

Trichostatin A (TSA) is a representative histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor that modulates epigenetic gene expression by regulation of chromatin remodeling in cells. To investigate whether the regulation of chromatin de-condensation by TSA can affect the increase in the efficiency of Cas9 protein-gRNA ribonucleoprotein (RNP) indel formation from plant cells, genome editing efficiency using lettuce and tobacco protoplasts was examined after several concentrations of TSA treatments (0, 0.1, 1 and 10 µM). RNP delivery from protoplasts was conducted by conventional polyethylene glycol (PEG) transfection protocols. Interestingly, the indel frequency of the SOC1 gene from TSA treatments was about 3.3 to 3.8 times higher than DMSO treatment in lettuce protoplasts. The TSA-mediated increase of indel frequency of the SOC1 gene in lettuce protoplasts occurred in a concentration-dependent manner, although there was not much difference. Similar to lettuce, TSA also increased the indel frequency by 1.5 to 1.8 times in a concentration-dependent manner during PDS genome editing using tobacco protoplasts. The MNase test clearly showed that chromatin accessibility with TSA treatments was higher than that of DMSO treatment. Additionally, TSA treatment significantly increased the level of histone H3 and H4 acetylation from lettuce protoplasts. The qRT-PCR analysis showed that expression of cell division-related genes (LsCYCD1-1, LsCYCD3-2, LsCYCD6-1, and LsCYCU4-1) was increased by TSA treatment. These findings could contribute to increasing the efficiency of CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing. Furthermore, this could be applied for the development of useful genome-edited crops using the CRISPR/Cas9 system with plant protoplasts.

Biosensor-Based Directed Evolution of Methanol Dehydrogenase from Lysinibacillus xylanilyticus.

Methanol dehydrogenase (Mdh), is a crucial enzyme for utilizing methane and methanol as carbon and energy sources in methylotrophy and synthetic methylotrophy. Engineering of Mdh, especially NAD-dependent Mdh, has thus been actively investigated to enhance methanol conversion. However, its poor catalytic activity and low methanol affinity limit its wider application. In this study, we applied a transcriptional factor-based biosensor for the direct evolution of Mdh from Lysinibacillus xylanilyticus (Lxmdh), which has a relatively high turnover rate and low KM value compared to other wild-type NAD-dependent Mdhs. A random mutant library of Lxmdh was constructed in Escherichia coli and was screened using formaldehyde-detectable biosensors by incubation with low methanol concentrations. Positive clones showing higher fluorescence were selected by fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) system, and their catalytic activities toward methanol were evaluated. The successfully isolated mutants E396V, K318N, and K46E showed high activity, particularly at very low methanol concentrations. In kinetic analysis, mutant E396V, K318N, and K46E had superior methanol conversion efficiency, with 79-, 23-, and 3-fold improvements compared to the wild-type, respectively. These mutant enzymes could thus be useful for engineering synthetic methylotrophy and for enhancing methanol conversion to various useful products.

Investigation of protective exposure risk events in nurses against corona virus disease 2019 in Wuhan / 北京大学学报(医学版)

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the current situation of virus exposure risk incidents of nurses against corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Wuhan, and to provide reference evidence for nursing managers to protect nursing staff who were working in the isolation ward.@*METHODS@#In the study, 308 nursing staff against COVID-19 working in the isolation ward in Wuhan were conveniently selected to participate in the investigation. The designed questionnaires including 7 kinds of protective exposure risk events were made by the team of researchers on the basis of literature review and interview with the nurses in Wuhan. All the participants recalled their working experience in the status of dressing in personal protective equipment and filled in the questionnaires online by WeChat according to the same instruction.@*RESULTS@#The questionnaires were filled in validly by a total of 304 nursing staff, of whom 88.8% received emergency training on the prevention and dealing measurement of exposure risk events. The incidence of shoe cover contamination, falling off or torn was relatively high, about 53.6%. Due to the protection of gloves, the incidence of hand or skin contamination was relatively low, about 14.1%. The most nervousness of protective exposure risk event for nurses was N95 mask contamination, falling off or shifting, with a score of 8.2±2.3, showing a higher psychiatric burden. Single factor analysis found that the number of days in Wuhan was different, the number of the types of protective risk events occurred was different (χ2=14.562, P=0.024), orderly multivariate Logistic regression found that men were the independent protective factor for the number of the types of protective exposure risk events that occurred (P=0.019).@*CONCLUSION@#Protective exposure risk events may occur in the work of nursing staff working in the isolation ward in Wuhan. It is necessary to guide nurses to prevent the occurrence of protective exposure risk events and effectively deal with them, so as to prevent virus exposure and reduce psycholo-gical burden.

Ultrathin flexible graphene films with high thermal conductivity and excellent EMI shielding performance using large-sized graphene oxide flakes.

As the demand for wearable and foldable electronic devices increases rapidly, ultrathin and flexible thermal conducting films with exceptional electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding effectiveness (SE) are greatly needed. Large-sized graphene oxide flakes and thermal treatment were employed to fabricate lightweight, flexible and highly conductive graphene films. Compared to graphene films made of smaller-sized flakes, the graphene film made of large-sized flakes possesses less defects and more conjugated domains, leading to higher electrical and higher thermal conductivities, as well as higher EMI SE. By compressing four-layer porous graphene films together, a 14 µm-thick graphene film (LG-4) was obtained, possessing EMI SE of 73.7 dB and the specific SE divided by thickness (SSE/t) of 25 680 dB cm2 g-1. The ultrahigh EMI shielding property of the LG-4 film originates from the excellent electrical conductivity (6740 S cm-1), as well as multi-layer structure composed of graphene laminates and insulated air pores. Moreover, the LG-4 film shows excellent flexibility and high thermal conductivity (803.1 W m-1 K-1), indicating that the film is a promising candidate for lightweight, flexible thermal conducting film with exceptional EMI shielding performance.

The prognostic significance of dynamic monitoring of minimal residual disease (MRD) status in patients with newly-diagnosed multiple myeloma / 中华血液学杂志

Objective: To evaluate the prognostic value of kinetic changes in minimal residual disease (MRD) status, as well as its relationship with risk stratification, therapeutic response and treatment in patients with newly-diagnosed multiple myeloma (MM) . Methods: A total of 135 patients with newly-diagnosed MM were screened, and 105 patients who achieved VGPR or more as the best responses were included into this study. The MRD status was determined by multiparameter flow cytometry (MFC) at multiple intervals after two cycles of treatment until clinical relapse, death, or last follow-up. The statistical methods included Kaplan-Meier analysis, Cox regression, etc. Results: ①In all 135 patients, 57.8% (78/135) patients achieved MRD negativity (MRD(-)) after treatment. In 105 patients who achieved VGPR and thus included in this study, the MRD(-) rate was 72.4% (76/105) , with a median interval of 3 months from starting treatment to achievement of MRD(-) status. ②The 2-year PFS rate of patients with MRD(-) status was significantly higher than that of MRD(+) status (62.2% vs 41.3%, P=0.001) , while MRD persistence (MRD(+)) was an independent factor for poor prognosis (multivariate analysis for PFS: P=0.044, HR=3.039, 95%CI 1.029-8.974) . ③Loss of MRD(-) status (i.e., MRD reappearance) showed inferior outcomes compared with MRD sustained negative ones, the PFS was 18 months versus not reach (P<0.001) and the OS was not reach for both (P=0.002) . ④The 2-year PFS and OS rates of patients with duration of MRD(-)status≥12 months were significantly higher than those of the control group (PFS: 77.7% vs 36.7%, P<0.001; OS: 96.4% vs 57.9%, P<0.001 respectively) . Duration of MRD(-) status was associated with a marked reduction in risk of relapse or death (univariate analysis for PFS: P<0.001, HR=0.865, 95%CI 0.815-0.918; for OS: P=0.001, HR=0.850, 95%CI 0.741-0.915 respectively) . ⑤Moreover, even in patients carrying high-risk cytogenetic abnormalities (CA) or ineligible for ASCT, MRD negativity remained its prognostic value to predict PFS (high-risk CA medianPFS: not reach vs 19 months, P=0.006; ineligible for ASCT medianPFS: not reach vs 25 months, P=0.052 respectively) . ⑥Last, treatment with the bortezomib-based regimens contributed to prolonged MRD(-) duration (median MRD(-) duratio: 25 months vs 10 months, P=0.034) . Conclusion: Our findings supported MRD(+) status as an independent poor prognostic factor in MM patients, which implicated that duration of MRD(-) status also played a significant role in evaluation of prognosis, while loss of MRD(-)status might serve as an early biomarker for relapse. Therefore, monitoring of MRD kinetics might more precisely predict prognosis, as well as guide treatment decision, especially for when to start retreatment in relapsed patients.

The failure patterns and related factors of nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated by intensity modulated radiation therapy in Xiangxi area / 中国医师杂志

Objective To analyze the failure patterns and related factors of intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) in Xiangxi.Methods 107 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma without distant metastasis were selected from December 2012 to June 2015 in the first affiliated hospital of Jishou University.Locoreginal recurrence-fee survival rate (LRFS),distant metastasis-free survival rate (DMFS) and progression-free survival (FPS) rate were collected.The survival rate was analyzed by Kaplan-Meier method,univariate analysis was analyzed by Logrank method,and multivariate analysis was analyzed by Cox regression.Results Tumor progression occurred in 40 cases of 107 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma.Among them,14 cases(13.1％) had local recurrence and 33 cases (30.8％) had distant metastasis.Univariate analysis showed that there was significant difference in LRFS between different ages and T staging (P ＜ 0.05).There was significant difference in DMFS and PFS between different gender,ages,diabete history,smoking history,T staging,N stage,clinical stage and treatment mode (P ＜ 0.05).Multivariate analysis showed that age and T staging were independent prognostic factors for LRFS.Age,T staging and N staging were independent prognostic factors for DMFS.Age,diabetes,T staging,and N staging were independent prognostic factors for PFS (P ＜0.05).Conclusions Distant metastasis is still the main model of treatment failure of NPC.Age,T staging and N staging before treatment are the significant prognostic factors.

Analysis of Pharmacokinetic Behavior of Five Components in Qingkailing (Lyophilized) for Injection in Normal Rats and Cerebral Ischemia Rats by UPLC-MS/MS / 中国实验方剂学杂志

Objective: To establish a UPLC-MS/MS analysis method for determination of baicalin, geniposide, chlorogenic acid, cholic acid and hyodeoxycholic acid in Qingkailing (lyophilized) for injection in rat plasma, and to investigate the pharmacokinetic behavior of this preparation in normal and cerebral ischemic rats. Method: Rats were randomly divided into normal group and cerebral ischemia model group. The rat model of cerebral ischemia was established by suture embolization. The rats were given by intraperitoneal injection, and normal saline was used as the solvent. Blood samples were taken at the corresponding time points. After treatment, UPLC-MS/MS was used to determine the blood concentration of five components. The main detection conditions were mobile phase of 0.1%formic acid aqueous solution-acetonitrile for gradient elution (0-0.25 min, 90%A; 0.25-1 min, 90%-75%A; 1-2 min, 75%-50%A; 2-2.6 min, 50%-45%A; 2.6-2.65 min, 45%-90%A; 2.65-4.0 min, 90%A), the flow rate of 0.4 mL·min-1, the column temperature at 40℃, electrospray ionization under negative ion mode. The pharmacokinetic parameters were fitted and the bioavailability was calculated, the differences of treatment process of five components from Qingkailing (lyophilized) for injection in normal and cerebral ischemic rats were analyzed. Result: Compared with the normal group, the area under the curve (AUC0-t) of geniposide in rats from cerebral ischemia model group decreased significantly after intraperitoneal injection of Qingkailing (lyophilized) for injection (PTmax) of chlorogenic acid in rats from cerebral ischemia model group was significantly earlier than that in the normal group (PConclusion: Qingkailing (lyophilized) for injection has a certain difference in the treatment process between normal and cerebral ischemic rats, which has certain guiding significance for the clinical treatment of cerebral ischemic diseases with this preparation.

The failure patterns and related factors of nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated by intensity modulated radiation therapy in Xiangxi area / 中国医师杂志

Objective@#To analyze the failure patterns and related factors of intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) in Xiangxi.@*Methods@#107 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma without distant metastasis were selected from December 2012 to June 2015 in the first affiliated hospital of Jishou University. Locoreginal recurrence-fee survival rate (LRFS), distant metastasis-free survival rate (DMFS) and progression-free survival (FPS) rate were collected. The survival rate was analyzed by Kaplan-Meier method, univariate analysis was analyzed by Logrank method, and multivariate analysis was analyzed by Cox regression.@*Results@#Tumor progression occurred in 40 cases of 107 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Among them, 14 cases(13.1%) had local recurrence and 33 cases (30.8%) had distant metastasis. Univariate analysis showed that there was significant difference in LRFS between different ages and T staging (P<0.05). There was significant difference in DMFS and PFS between different gender, ages, diabete history, smoking history, T staging, N stage, clinical stage and treatment mode (P<0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that age and T staging were independent prognostic factors for LRFS. Age, T staging and N staging were independent prognostic factors for DMFS. Age, diabetes, T staging, and N staging were independent prognostic factors for PFS (P<0.05).@*Conclusions@#Distant metastasis is still the main model of treatment failure of NPC. Age, T staging and N staging before treatment are the significant prognostic factors.

Effect of 1q21 amplification on bortezomib therapeutic response and prognosis of newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients / 中华血液学杂志

Objective: To investigate the effect of 1q21 amplification (1q) on the therapeutic response and prognosis of bortezomib(Btz) in the treatment of newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (MM) patients. Methods: A total of 180 newly diagnosed MM were included for analyses of clinical characteristics, cytogenetics, objective response rate (ORR), progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), retrospectively. Gene expression profiling (GEP) was analyzed using publicly available R2 platform. Results: ① In 180 patients, 1q was found in 51.1% cases. Of them, 174 patients had complete follow-up data, including 88 cases with 1q and 86 without 1q (non-1q). ②Incidence of 1q was positively associated with percentage of IGH rearrangement (72.2%, P=0.017) and 1p deletion (1p) (27.8%, P=0.040). ③ The median PFS was 15.0 and 20.3 months for the 1q group and non-1q group, and the median OS was 29.4 and 44.0 months, respectively. Both PFS and OS of 1q group was significantly shorter than those of the non-1q group (P=0.029 and 0.038, respectively). Multivariate analysis further revealed that 1q was an independent prognostic factor for both PFS (HR=1.910, 95% CI 1.105-3.303, P=0.020) and OS (HR=2.353, 95% CI 1.090-5.078, P=0.029). ④ In 91 evaluable cases with 1q, very good partial remission (VGPR) rate was higher after treatment with Btz than those without Btz (62.1% vs 40.0%, P=0.032). Of note, the patients with 1q who received auto-HSCT after induction with Btz had significantly longer PFS than those without auto-HSCT (19 months vs 13 months, P=0.048). ⑤GEP analysis revealed that 1q21 amplification predominantly up-regulated expression of >50% genes within 1q21 region, and also altered expression of 28% genes in chromosome 1 and 10% genes in whole genome, particularly related to DNA repair and cell cycle. Conclusions: 1q is an independent adverse prognostic factor in patients with newly diagnosed MM. It is often associated with 1p deletion and IGH rearrangement. Patients with 1q respond well to Btz-based regimen, but they fail to gain long-term benefit from this treatment itself. However, auto-HSCT following Btz induction might improve survival of patients with 1q, suggesting a potential strategy to treat this high-risk subset of MM. GEP analysis warrants further attention in understanding the mechanisms underlying the high-risk of 1q.

3D Bridged Carbon Nanoring/Graphene Hybrid Paper as a High-Performance Lateral Heat Spreader.

Graphene paper (GP) has attracted great attention as a heat dissipation material due to its unique thermal transfer property exceeding the limit of graphite. However, the relatively poor thermal transfer properties in the normal direction of GP restricts its wider applications in thermal management. In this work, a 3D bridged carbon nanoring (CNR)/graphene hybrid paper is constructed by the intercalation of polymer carbon source and metal catalyst particles, and the subsequent in situ growth of CNRs in the confined intergallery spaces between graphene sheets through thermal annealing. Further investigation demonstrates that the CNRs are covalently bonded to the graphene sheets and highly improve the thermal transport in the normal direction of the CNR/graphene hybrid paper. This full-carbon architecture shows excellent heat dissipation ability and is much more efficient in removing hot spots than the reduced GP without CNR bridges. This highly thermally conductive CNR/graphene hybrid paper can be easily integrated into next generation commercial high-power electronics and stretchable/foldable devices as high-performance lateral heat spreader materials. This full-carbon architecture also has a great potential in acting as electrodes in supercapacitors or hydrogen storage devices due to the high surface area.

Combined Effect of Irradiation and Ageing Condition on Physicochemical and Microbial Quality of Hanwoo Eye of Round.

The combined effects of electron-beam irradiation and ageing of beef were examined. The irradiated samples at dose of 0 or 2 kGy were kept and analyzed for the microbial growth, shear values, meat color, and nucleotide-related flavor compounds at different ageing temperatures (2, 10, or 25℃) for 8 d. The irradiation effect on inactivation of foodborne pathogens was also investigated. The population of Listeria monocytogenes and E. coli O157:H7 inoculated in beef samples decreased in proportion to the irradiation dose, showing D10 values of 0.66 and 0.65 kGy respectively. The irradiated beef eye of round had lower number of total aerobic bacteria (TAB) than non-irradiated one during the storage, but the TAB increased with higher ageing temperature (p<0.05). Especially, TAB increased sharply in non-irradiated samples aged at 25℃ after 4 d (p<0.05). With increasing ageing temperature and ageing time, shear force values decreased (p<0.05). The color a* values of the irradiated beef were lower than those of the non-irradiated throughout the ageing period (p<0.05). As ageing time and temperature increased, the amounts of inosine monophosphate decreased and the hypoxanthine increased (p<0.05). Relatively high ageing temperature could be used at irradiated beef eye of round to shorten the ageing time.

Quality Comparison of Pork Loin and Belly from Three-way Crossbred Pigs during Postmortem Storage.

This study was performed to determine the meat quality characteristics of pork loin and belly from 3 different three-way crossbred pigs: Yorkshire × Landrace × Duroc (YLD), Yorkshire × Chester White × Yorkshire (YCY), and Yorkshire × Berkshire × Duroc (YBD). Each of the twenty crossed pigs were randomly selected with their live weights at the range of 110-120 kg. After being slaughtered and cooled at 0℃ for 24 h in a chilling room, the parts of loin and belly on the left side of the cooled carcasses were cut and prepared for analysis. The intramuscular fat contents of the loins from YLD were higher than those of the other crossbreds (p<0.05), and the YCY bellies had the highest moisture contents (p<0.05). Water holding capacity (WHC) of the loins from YCY were higher than the other crossbreds (p<0.05). Shear force values of the YBD loins were higher than the others (p<0.05). The TBARS values of YCY loins were significantly lower than the others at 0 d, but the difference disappeared after 14 d of storage. Sensory scores of YLD were ranked higher than the YCY or YBD in both the loins and bellies (p<0.05). The relatively high sensory values of YLD crossbred pork could be explained by the better WHC, the low shear forces, and the higher fat contents. The results indicated that the meat qualities could be altered by three-way crossbreeding.

Comparison of Physicochemical and Functional Traits of Hanwoo Steer Beef by the Quality Grade.

The physicochemical and functional traits for loin muscles of Hanwoo steers were compared by quality grade (QG). A total of 500 Hanwoo steers were slaughtered, their carcasses were categorized into four groups (QG 1++, 1+, 1, and 2), and the longissimus dorsi muscles were analyzed. QG 1++ group had the highest fat and lowest moisture content (p<0.05). QG 1++ showed higher L* and b* color values, higher cooking loss, and lower shear force values, compared with the other groups (p<0.05). The flavor, tenderness, juiciness, and preference scores by sensory evaluation were highly ranked for premium QG groups (1++ and 1+). Regarding the micro compounds, QG 1 and QG 2 had greater amounts of inosine monophosphate, and QG 2 had greater amounts of anserine, carnosine, and creatine, than QG 1++ (p<0.05). QG 1++ and 1+ had higher percentages of oleic acid (C18:1) than QG 2 (p<0.05). Within premium QG 1++ and 1+, the results of the nucleotides, free amino acids, dipeptides, and fatty acids did not show any distinctive differences. Hanwoo beef as determined by the current grading system was not significantly different in terms of functional components; the only significant difference was in intramuscular fat content.