Enhancing heterogeneous Fenton-like catalysis through pyrrolidine modification of Fe2O3-CuO composites with oxygen-vacancy defects.

Enhancing the generation of reactive hydroxyl radicals (•OH) is crucial for overcoming the limitations of the low reactivity of heterogeneous Fenton Fe-based catalysts. Researchers have explored various methods to modify catalyst structures to enhance reactivity, yet often at the expense of stability. Herein, suitable carbon and nitrogen-codoped Fe2O3-CuO composites were synthesized via pyrolysis method, demonstrating high Fenton reaction activity and remarkable stability. Experimental findings and density functional theory calculations (DFT) revealed that the presence of oxygen vacancies on the catalyst surface facilitated an increase in exposed FeNC active sites, promoting electron transfer and the accelerating the rate of •OH generation. Moreover, carbon and nitrogen, particularly in the form of pyrrole nitrogen bonded to Fe imparted exceptional stability to the FeNC active sites, mitigating their dissolution. Additionally, the Fe-based catalysts exhibited strong magnetism, enabling easy separation from the reaction solution while maintaining a high degradation efficiency for various organic pollutants, even in the presence of multiple anions. Furthermore, a comprehensive mechanism for methylene blue (MB) degradation was identified, enhancing the potential practical applications of these catalysts.

CircFgfr2 promotes osteogenic differentiation of rat dental follicle cells by targeting the miR-133a-3p/DLX3 signaling pathway.

Dental follicle cells (DFCs) promote bone regeneration in vivo and in vitro. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) play crucial roles in bone development and regeneration. Our previous study demonstrated the upregulation of circFgfr2 expression during the osteogenic differentiation of DFCs. However, the molecular mechanisms and functional roles of circFgfr2 in DFCs osteogenesis remain unclear. In this study, we aimed to investigate the subcellular localization of circFgfr2 in DFCs using fluorescence in situ hybridization. In vitro investigations demonstrated that circFgfr2 overexpression promoted osteogenic differentiation, as evidenced by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. By integrating the outcomes of bioinformatics analyses, dual luciferase reporter experiments, and chromatin isolation by RNA purification, we identified circFgfr2 as a sponge for miR-133a-3p, a key regulator of osteogenic differentiation. Moreover, miR-133a-3p suppressed osteogenic differentiation by targeting DLX3 and RUNX2 in DFCs. We validated that circFgfr2 promoted the osteogenic differentiation of DFCs through the miR-133a-3p/DLX3 axis. To further investigate the therapeutic potential of circFgfr2 in bone regeneration, we conducted in vivo experiments and histological analyses. Overall, these results confirmed the crucial role of circFgfr2 in promoting osteogenesis. In summary, our findings demonstrated that the circFgfr2/miR-133a-3p/DLX3 pathway acts as a cascade, thereby identifying circFgfr2 as a promising molecular target for bone tissue engineering.

Insights on the Roles of Nitrogen Configuration in Enhancing the Performance of Electrocatalytic Methanol Oxidation over Pt Nanoparticles.

Stabilization of the Pt in N-doped carbon materials is an effective method to improve the performance of electrocatalytic methanol oxidation reaction (MOR). Nevertheless, the roles of different N configurations (pyridinic N, pyrrolic N, and graphitic N) toward the electrochemical performance of Pt-based catalysts remain unclear. Herein, Density Functional Theory calculations are adopted to elucidate the synergistic promotion of MOR by different N-configurations with Pt nanoparticles (NPs). Guided by the theoretical study, a series of MOR electrocatalysts with different ratios of pyridinic N and pyrrolic N (denoted as Pt/N-CNT-X (500, 600, 700, 800, and 900)) are designed and synthesized. Surprisingly, the electrocatalytic activity of Pt/N-CNT-600 with a suitable ratio of pyrrolic-N and pyridinic-N for MOR reaches 2394.7 mA mg-1 Pt and 5515.8 mA mg-1 Pt in acidic and alkaline media, respectively, which are superior to the Pt/CNTs, commercial Pt/C, and the ever-reported Pt-based electrocatalysts. The strong metal-support interaction induced by the N-doping is the crucial reason for the superior electrocatalytic performance. More importantly, the ability of pyrrolic-N and pyridinic-N in promoting the adsorption and oxidation of CH3 OH and the oxidation of CO* is substantiated for the first time in methanol oxidation. This work provides new insights on the design of efficient electrocatalysts for MOR.

Topographic Cues of a PLGA Scaffold Promote Odontogenic Differentiation of Dental Pulp Stem Cells through the YAP/ß-Catenin Signaling Axis.

PURPOSE: The underlying mechanism of how topographic cues of artificial scaffolds regulate cell function remains poorly understood. Yes-associated protein (YAP) and ß-catenin signaling have both been reported to play important roles in mechano-transduction and dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) differentiation. We investigated the effects of YAP and ß-catenin in spontaneous odontogenic differentiation of DPSCs induced by topographic cues of a poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) membrane. METHODS: The topographic cues and function of a fabricated PLGA scaffold were explored via scanning electron microscopy (SEM), alizarin red staining (ARS), reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and pulp capping. Immunohistochemistry (IF), RT-PCR, and western blotting (WB) were used to observe the activation of YAP and ß-catenin when DPSCs were cultured on the scaffolds. Further, YAP was inhibited or overexpressed on either side of the PLGA membrane, and YAP, ß-catenin, and odontogenic marker expression were analyzed using IF, ARS, and WB. RESULTS: The closed side of the PLGA scaffold promoted spontaneous odontogenic differentiation and nuclear translocation of YAP and ß-catenin in vitro and in vivo compared to the open side. The YAP antagonist verteporfin inhibited ß-catenin expression, nuclear translocation, and odontogenic differentiation on the closed side, but the effects were rescued by LiCl. YAP overexpressing DPSCs on the open side activated ß-catenin signaling and promoted odontogenic differentiation. CONCLUSION: The topographic cue of our PLGA scaffold promotes odontogenic differentiation of DPSCs and pulp tissue through the YAP/ß-catenin signaling axis.

Carbon-Supported PdCu Alloy as Extraordinary Electrocatalysts for Methanol Electrooxidation in Alkaline Direct Methanol Fuel Cells.

Palladium (Pd) nanostructures are highly active non-platinum anodic electrocatalysts in alkaline direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs), and their electrocatalytic performance relies highly on their morphology and composition. This study reports the preparation, characterizations, and electrocatalytic properties of palladium-copper alloys loaded on the carbon support. XC-72 was used as a support, and hydrazine hydrate served as a reducing agent. PdxCuy/XC-72 nanoalloy catalysts were prepared in a one-step chemical reduction process with different ratios of Pd and Cu. A range of analytical techniques was used to characterize the microstructure and electronic properties of the catalysts, including transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffractometry (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and inductively coupled plasma emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). Benefiting from excellent electronic structure, Pd3Cu2/XC-72 achieves higher mass activity enhancement and improves durability for MOR. Considering the simple synthesis, excellent activity, and long-term stability, PdxCuy/XC-72 anodic electrocatalysts will be highly promising in alkaline DMFCs.

Synthesis and Applications of TiO2 -based Nanostructures as Photocatalytic Materials.

TiO2 photocatalysis, as an energy-saving, high-efficiency and green technology, has a wide range of applications in sewage treatment, cancer treatment, hydrogen production, photocatalytic CO2 reduction and photocatalytic sensors. However, the large band width (Eg =3.2 eV) of TiO2 material hinders its practical application, which in turn leads to low visible-light utilization and low quantum yield. Therefore, the preparation of TiO2 with high quantum yield and fast response to visible light has become a key topic in current photocatalyst research. This review discusses different photocatalytic applications, current synthetic techniques for the elaboration of nanostructures of several TiO2 -based materials and recent advances in enhancing visible photocatalytic activity.

Low-temperature N-anchored ordered Pt3Co intermetallic nanoparticles as electrocatalysts for methanol oxidation reaction.

To enhance nanocatalyst performance and durability for the methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) in a direct methanol fuel cell, small-sized (2.1 nm) and structurally ordered Pt3Co intermetallic nanoparticles are uniformly anchored onto nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes (N-CNTs) via a low-temperature N-anchoring method, and the N-doping abilities of different N-containing reagents are compared. After investigating the microstructure of Pt3Co/N-CNTs and evaluating their catalytic activity for the MOR, the results show that N-doping facilitates the uniform loading of Pt3Co NPs and plays a crucial role in improving the electrocatalytic activity of Pt3Co NPs supported on CNTs. Pt3Co/N-CNT-M with melamine as the N dopant exhibits the highest MOR activity and stability among all N-CNT-supported Pt3Co NPs and Pt/N-CNT-M. Density functional theory calculations suggest that the doping of N enhances the binding energy of CNTs to Pt3Co NPs, and the MOR mechanism shows that the introduction of Co is the reason for the enhancement of MOR reaction kinetics. The excellent electrochemical performance of Pt3Co/N-CNT-M is mainly attributed to the synergistic effect of N and Pt3Co intermetallic nanoparticles. The combination of ordered alloy nanoparticles and high-performance carrier N-CNT-M described herein exhibits great potential for fuel cells and may provide an unequivocal direction for the optimization of catalyst performance.

Synergistic luminescent thermometer using co-doped Ca2GdSbO6:Mn4+/(Eu3+ or Sm3+) phosphors.

Luminescent thermometers provide a non-contact method of probing temperature with high sensitivity and response speed at the nanoscale. Synergistic photoluminescence from different activators can realize high sensitivity for luminescent thermometers by finely selecting ions with specific crystallographic sites. Herein, the more temperature-sensitive Mn4+ and the less-sensitive Eu3+ (or Sm3+) activators are co-doped into a Ca2GdSbO6 matrix to form an effective thermometer, where Mn4+ and Eu3+ (or Sm3+) ions occupy the Sb5+ and Gd3+ sites, respectively. The co-doping of Eu3+ ions or Sm3+ ions leads to lattice expansion of Ca2GdSbO6 matrix and a tuned narrow emission from deep-red to orangish-red. According to the ratio of luminescence intensity, the maximal Sa and Sr values are 0.19 K-0 (347 K) and 1.38% K-( (420 K) for Ca2GdSbO6:Mn4+/Eu3+ probe and 0.26 K-p (363 K) and 1.55% K-( (430 K) for Ca2GdSbO6:Mn4+/Sm3+ probe thermometers, respectively. In addition, thermometers based on Mn4+ emission lifetimes can provide the highest relative sensitivity of 1.47% K-s at 425 K. Thus, the highly-temperature-sensitive Ca2GdSbO6:Mn4+/(Eu3+ or Sm3+) phosphor is a promising candidate for practical luminescence thermometers.

Multiobjective Evaluation of Amine-Based Absorbents for SO2 Capture Process Using the pK a Mathematical Model.

The screening of high-efficiency and low-energy consumption absorbents is critical for capturing SO2. In this study, absorbents with better performance are screened based on mechanism, model, calculation, verification, and analysis methods. The acidity coefficient (pK a) values of ethylenediamine (EDA), piperazine (PZ), 1-(2-hydroxyethyl)piperazine (HEP), 1,4-bis(2-hydroxyethyl)piperazine (DIHEP), and 1-(2-hydroxyethyl)-4-(2-hydroxypropyl)piperazine (HEHPP) are calculated by quantum chemical methods. A mathematical model of the SO2 cyclic absorption capacity per amine (αc) in the amine-based SO2 capture process is built based on the electroneutrality of the solution. Another model of desorption reaction heat (Q des) is also built based on the van't Hoff equation. Correspondingly, αc and Q des of the above five diamines are calculated and verified with the experimental data. The results show that αc of the diamine changes with the increase in the pK a value, and the increase in the pK a value directly leads to changes in Q des. The order of αc of the above five diamines is EDA > PZ > HEHPP > HEP > DIHEP, and the order of Q des is EDA > PZ > HEHPP > DIHEP > HEP. The multiobjective analysis between αc and Q des suggests that it is not advisable to simply pursue a higher αc while ignoring Q des. The compound quaternary system absorbent has a wider range of αc than the single ternary absorbent, which is the direction of absorbent development. This study is expected to strengthen absorbent screening for the amine-based SO2 capture process from flue gas.

Novel Short Process for p-Xylene Production Based on the Selectivity Intensification of Toluene Methylation with Methanol.

Toluene methylation using methanol offers a high potential molecular engineering process to produce p-xylene (PX) based on shape-selective catalysts. To further improve the process economics, a novel short process was proposed by reducing the high-energy consumption separation of xylene isomers in existing processes since the PX selectivity of the xylene isomers can be enhanced more than the industrial product quality of 99.7%. The PX selectivity intensification was achieved as a result of decreased contact time by considering factors such as the feed ratio, diluents, temperature, and pressure in a toluene methylation reactor. This proposed short process indicated that the reactor effluent could be purified only through the two conventional distillation towers by removing the methanol recovery and separation of xylene isomers. The raw material utilization, energy consumption, and economic data were also analyzed for the six contrastive cases. The short process using catalyst Si-Mg-P-La/ZSM-5 exhibited the highest effective utilization rates of 96.27 and 95.50% for toluene and methanol, respectively. The short process also showed a good economic value in terms of capital investment and operating costs due to the multistage reactor without benzene byproducts. Thus, the obtained total annual cost (TAC) value of 13 848.1 k$·year-1 was 68.9 and 87.9% of the two existing processes.

Local Structure Modulation-Induced Highly Efficient Red-Emitting Ba2Gd1-xYxNbO6:Mn4+ Phosphors for Warm WLEDs.

Modulating the crystal field environment around the emitting ions is an effective strategy to improve the luminescence performance of the practical effective phosphor materials. Here, smaller Y3+ ions are introduced into substituting the Gd3+ sites in Ba2GdNbO6:Mn4+ phosphor to modify the optical properties, including the enhanced luminescence intensity, redshift, and longer lifetime of the Mn4+ ions. The substitution of smaller Y3+ ions leads to lattice contraction and then strengthens pressure on the local structure, enhances lattice rigidity, and suppresses nonradiative transition. Moreover, the prototype phosphor-converted light-emitting diode (LED) demonstrates a continuous change photoelectric performance with a correlated color temperature of 4883-7876 K and a color rendering index of 64.1-83.2, suggesting that it can be one of the most prospective fluorescent materials applied as a warm red component for white LEDss. Thus, the smaller ion partial substitution can provide a concise approach to modulate the crystal field environment around the emitting ions for excellent luminescence properties of phosphors toward the modern artificial light.

Study on the reaction strategy of directional alkylation fulfilled by controlling the adsorption pose of benzene and methanol in space with Ru/HZSM-5.

BACKGROUND: The alkylation of benzene with methanol is an important synthetic method that is widely used in various chemical production processes. However, obtaining a high selectivity for xylene and annihilating the MTO side reaction remain challenges. RESULTS: In this work, a Ru/HZSM-5 catalyst was prepared using ZSM-5 as the precursor by a chemical precipitation method. Both XRD and TEM confirmed that Ru nanoparticles were evenly dispersed on the surface of the ZSM-5. The catalytic performance of benzene alkylation with methanol on the Ru/HZSM-5 catalyst was investigated. The results showed that the Ru/HZSM-5 catalyst could completely annihilate the MTO side reaction with a high conversion efficiency of benzene and selectivity for xylene, which resulted from the large gap between the transgression energy value of Ru and the ionization potential value of benzene, and the acidity of the catalyst changed greatly. CONCLUSION: These findings may offer not only a new and efficient multifunctional catalyst for benzene alkylation but also fundamental insight into the catalytic mechanism of the Ru/HZSM-5 catalyst.

Sphingopyxis microcysteis sp. nov., a novel bioactive exopolysaccharides-bearing Sphingomonadaceae isolated from the Microcystis phycosphere.

During the study into the microbial biodiversity and bioactivity of the Microcystis phycosphere, a new yellow-pigmented, non-motile, rod-shaped bacterium containing polyhydroxybutyrate granules designated as strain Z10-6T was isolated from highly-toxic Microcystis aeruginosa Kützing M.TN-2. The new isolate produces active bioflocculating exopolysaccharides. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated strain Z10-6T belongs to the genus Sphingopyxis with highest similarity to Sphingopyxis solisilvae R366T (98.86%), and the similarity to other Sphingopyxis members was less than 98.65%. However, both low values obtained by phylogenomic calculation of average nucleotide identity (ANI, 85.5%) and digital DNA-DNA hybridization (dDDH, 29.8%) separated the new species from its closest relative. The main polar lipids were sphingoglycolipid, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, diphosphatidylglycerol, one unidentified glycolipid and one unidentified aminophospholipid. The predominant fatty acids were summed feature 8, C17:1ω6c, summed feature 3, C16:0, C18:1ω7c 11-methyl and C14:0 2-OH. The respiratory quinone was ubiqunone-10, with spermidine as the major polyamine. The genomic DNA G + C content was 64.8 mol%. Several biosynthesis pathways encoding for potential new bacterial bioactive metabolites were found in the genome of strain Z10-6T. The polyphasic analyses clearly distinguished strain Z10-6T from its closest phylogenetic neighbors. Thus, it represents a novel species of the genus Sphingopyxis, for which the name Sphingopyxis microcysteis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is Z10-6T (= CCTCC AB2017276T = KCTC 62492T).

Network Pharmacology Identifies the Mechanisms of Sang-Xing-Zhi-Ke-Fang against Pharyngitis.

BACKGROUND: Sang-Xing-Zhi-Ke-Fang (SXZKF) demonstrates good therapeutic effect against pharyngitis. Nevertheless, the pharmacological mechanism underlying its effectiveness is still unclear. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the underlying mechanisms of SXZKF against pharyngitis using network pharmacology method. METHODS: Bioactive ingredients of SXZKF were collected and screened using published literature and two public databases. Using four public databases, the overlapping genes between these bioactive compound-related and pharyngitis-related genes were identified by Venn diagram. Protein-protein interaction (PPI) was obtained using "Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes (STRING)" database. "Database for Annotation, Visualization, and Integrated Discovery ver. 6.8 (DAVID 6.8)" was used to perform Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis to explore the molecular mechanisms of SXZKF against pharyngitis. Finally, Cytoscape 3.7.2 software was used to construct and visualize the networks. RESULT: A total of 102 bioactive compounds were identified. Among them, 886 compounds-related and 6258 pharyngitis-related genes were identified, including 387 overlapping genes. Sixty-three core targets were obtained, including ALB, PPARγ, MAPK3, EGF, and PTGS2. Signaling pathways closely related to mechanisms of SXZKF for pharyngitis were identified, including serotonergic synapse, VEGF signaling pathway, Fc epsilon RI signaling pathway, Ras signaling pathway, MAPK signaling pathway, and influenza A. CONCLUSION: This is the first identification of in-depth study of SXZKF against pharyngitis using network pharmacology. This new evidence could be informative in providing new support on the clinical effects of SXZKF on pharyngitis and for the development of personalized medicine for pharyngitis.

Synthesis of a three-dimensional cross-linked Ni-V2O5 nanomaterial in an ionic liquid for lithium-ion batteries.

A three-dimensional cross-linked Ni-V2O5 nanomaterial with a particle size of 250-300 nm was successfully prepared in a 1-butyl-3-methylimidazole bromide ionic liquid (IL). The formation of this structure may follow the rule of dissolution-recrystallization and the ionic liquid, as both a dissolution and structure-directing agent, plays an important role in the formation of the material. After calcination of the precursor, the active material (Ni-V2O5-IL) was used as an anode for lithium-ion batteries. The designed anode exhibited excellent electrochemical performance with 765 mA h g-1 at a current density of 0.3 A g-1 after 300 cycles, which is much higher than that of a NiVO-W material prepared via a hydrothermal method (305 mA h g-1). These results show the remarkable superiority of this novel electrode material synthesized in an ionic liquid.

Clinicopathological Significance of MTA 1 Expression in Patients with Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: A Meta-Analysis

Background: Metastasis associated gene 1(MTA1) is one of the most deregulated molecules in human cancer and leads to cancer progression and metastasis. We performed a meta-analysis to determine the correlations between MTA1 expression and the clinicopathological characteristics of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Methods: We searched PubMed, Springer, Science Direct, Google Scholar and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) for relevant articles. For statistical analyses, we used R3.1.1 software. The fixed or random effects model was employed based on the results of the statistical test for homogeneity. Results: Seven studies involving 660 NSCLC patients were included. The proportion of MTA1 overexpression with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) was 0.53(95%CI: 0.43-0.62) in NSCLC patients; 0.47(95%CI: 0.40-0.55) in age <60 years and 0.52(95%CI: 0.34-0.70) in age ≥60 years; 0.5(95%CI: 0.41- 0.62) in males and 0.51(95%CI: 0.39-0.62) in females; 0.59(95%CI: 0.48-0.69) in squamous cell carcinoma (SC) and 0.57(95%CI: 0.46-0.67) in adenocarcinoma (AC); 0.39(95%CI: 0.23-0.56) in well-differentiated tumors, 0.44(95%CI: 0.37-0.51) in moderately differentiated tumors and 0.55(95%CI: 0.37-0.51) in poorly differentiated tumors; 0.48(95%CI: 0.36-0.60) in clinical grade (III-IV) NSCLC and 0.75 (95%CI: 0.69-0.81) in clinical grade (I-II) NSCLC; 0.58(95%CI: 0.45-0.71) in T Stage (T1/T2) NSCLC; 0.68(95%CI: 0.49-0.82) in NSCLC patients with lymph node positivity and 0.51(95%CI: 0.43-0.58) in NSCLC patients with lymph node negativity. Conclusions: These results indicated that MTA1 might be a valuable biomarker in the diagnosis of NSCLC. MTA1 overexpression was significantly associated with age ≥60 years, gender, histopathological type, clinical grade (I-II), T stage (T1/T2) and lymph node positivity in NSCLC patients.

Ultrawideband optical cancellation of RF interference with phase change.

This work proposes a novel approach to perform optical cancellation of RF interference with any constant phase change, based on polarization-modulator-based microwave photonic phase shifters. Preliminary results validate the proposed scheme and achieve a 30-dB cancellation depth over 9.5 GHz. The frequency independent microwave photonic phase shifters also allow for wide frequency range tunability towards 30 GHz, and recovery of a signal from a wideband interferer. The experimental results are limited by the imperfection of the electrical components. The proposed cancellation scheme might not only be applicable for WLANs based on standards such as IEEE 802.11ad and 802.11aj, but also provide a straight forward solution to the multipath effect.

Human rotavirus strain Wa downregulates NHE1 and NHE6 expressions in rotavirus-infected Caco-2 cells.

Rotavirus (RV) is the most common cause of severe gastroenteritis and fatal dehydration in human infants and neonates of different species. However, the pathogenesis of rotavirus-induced diarrhea is poorly understood. Secretory diarrhea caused by rotavirus may lead to a combination of excessive secretion of fluid and electrolytes into the intestinal lumen. Fluid absorption in the small intestine is driven by Na+-coupled transport mechanisms at the luminal membrane, including Na+/H+ exchanger (NHE). Here, we performed qRT-PCR to detect the transcription of NHEs. Western blotting was employed for protein detection. Furthermore, immunocytochemistry was used to validate the NHE's protein expression. Finally, intracellular Ca2+ concentration was detected by confocal laser scanning microscopy. The results demonstrated that the NHE6 mRNA and protein expressed in the human colon adenocarcinoma cell line (Caco-2). Furthermore, RV-Wa induced decreased expression of the NHE1 and NHE6 in Caco-2 cell in a time-dependent manner. In addition, intracellular Ca2+ concentration in RV-Wa-infected Caco-2 cells was higher than that in the mock-infected cells. Furthermore, RV-Wa also can downregulate the expression of calmodulin (CaM) and calmodulin kinase II (CaMKII) in Caco-2 cells. These findings provides important insights into the mechanisms of rotavirus-induced diarrhea. Further studies on the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms that downregulate NHEs in RV-induced diarrhea are required.

Effects of transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation on the imbalance of Th1, Th2, Th17 and Treg cells following thoracotomy of patients with lung cancer.

An imbalance in the various T lymphocytes, including T-helper (Th)1, Th2 and Th17 cells, and regulatory T (Treg) cells, has been associated with immune dysfunction, and may occur following thoracotomy of patients with lung cancer. The use of transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation (TAES) has previously been demonstrated to exert immunoregulatory effects; therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate whether TAES was able to attenuate postoperative immune suppression in patients with lung cancer. Thoracic surgical patients with lung cancer (n=27) underwent TAES (frequency, 2/100 Hz; intensity, 4-12 mA) at the bilateral large intestine 4, pericardium 6, small intestine 3 and San Jiao 6 acupuncture points for 30 min, prior to incision, and at 20, 44, 68, 92 and 116 h following thoracotomy. The number of Th1, Th2, Th17 and Treg cells, and the protein and mRNA expression levels of related cytokines were measured by flow cytometry, ELISA and polymerase chain reaction, respectively. The balance of Th1, Th2, Th17 and Treg cells in the peripheral blood of patients with lung cancer was disrupted following thoracotomy. TAES administration increased the percentage of Th1 and Th17 cells, the protein expression levels of interleukin (IL)-2 and interferon-γ, the mRNA expression levels of T-bet and RAR-related orphan receptor-γt, and decreased the percentage of Th2 cells, IL-10 protein expression levels, and GATA binding protein 3 mRNA expression levels. The results of the present study demonstrated that TAES was able to partially attenuate the postoperative immune depression of patients with lung cancer, by regulating the balance of Th1, Th2, Th17 and Treg cells, and the expression levels of related cytokines and transcription factors; therefore, TAES may be considered to be a promising strategy for treating postoperative immune dysfunction in patients with lung cancer.

[Morphological observation on gastric mucosa membrane of patients with gastric ulcer treated with combined use of Qifang Weitong Powder and omeprazole].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the histological changes of gastric mucosa in patients with active gastric ulcer before and after treatment by Qifang Weitong Powder combined with omeprazole (QWP-Op). METHODS: Sixty patients were equally randomized into the treated group and the control group. They were all treated in the 1st week by the Helicobacter pylori eradication triad regimen. From the 2nd to 6th week, the study group re-ceived QWP-Op therapy, and the control group was given Omeprazole alone.Biopsy specimens were obtained around ulcer area before and after treatment for histological observation on changes of gastric mucosa membrane. RESULTS: The improvement of mucosal thickness and glandular morphology was better in the treated group than that in the control group (P <0.05). CONCLUSION: QWP-Op therapy can improve the histological quality of ulcer healing and restore the morphological structure of gastric mucosa in patients with active gastric ulcer.