Long noncoding RNA PCAT6 regulates cell growth and metastasis via Wnt/ß-catenin pathway and is a prognosis marker in cervical cancer.

OBJECTIVE: Previously, long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been reported to have critical regulatory roles in the progression of human cancers. LncRNA prostate cancer-associated transcript 6 (PCAT6) has been reported to act as an oncogene in several tumors. However, its expression and function in cervical cancer (CC) have not been investigated. In this study, we aim to reveal the functions of PCAT6 and the underlying mechanisms in CC. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We evaluated the expression levels of PCAT6 in CC tissues and cell lines using real-time PCR. The clinical data were interpreted by chi-square test, Kaplan-Meier survival analyses, univariate analysis, and multivariate analysis. The effect of PCAT6 on CC proliferation and metastasis was investigated by CCK-8 assay, EdU incorporation assay and transwell assay. The cell apoptosis was detected by apoptosis flow detection. RT-PCR and Western blotting were used to detect the expression levels of ß-catenin, cyclin D1 and c-myc. RESULTS: We found that PCAT6 expression was significantly up-regulated in human CC tissues and cell lines compared with their normal counterparts, and its high levels were associated with advanced FIGO stage, depth of cervical invasion and positively lymph node metastasis. Survival assays indicated that high PCAT6 expression had a negative influence on overall survival and disease-free survival. Moreover, multivariate analysis identified high PCAT6 expression as an unfavorable prognostic biomarker for CC patients. Functionally, knockdown of PCAT6 significantly suppressed CC cells proliferation, migration and invasion, and promoted apoptosis. Mechanistic investigation showed PCAT6 activates Wnt/ß-catenin signaling in CC cell lines by promoting the expression of ß-catenin, cyclin D1 and c-myc. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicated that PCAT6 played oncogenic roles and can be used as a therapeutic target for treating human CC.

Case report: visceral leishmaniasis diagnosed by biopsy of an axillary lymph node: case report and literature review.

A 56-year-old man presented with fevers up to 40°C and acute pain in the left upper quadrant. Full blood count was normal and biochemical tests revealed increased serum globulin. Abdominal ultrasound revealed hepatomegaly and splenomegaly with multiple enlarged lymph nodes in the neck, axilla, and inguinal regions. The bone marrow smear was negative. Splenectomy was performed and the pathology revealed splenic ischemic infarcts. Biopsy of one of the axillary lymph nodes revealed macrophages filled with leishmanias. The patient tested positive by the rk39 dipstick test. He was treated with sodium stibogluconate and showed full recovery.

Multicenter, double-blind, randomized clinical trial of parenterally administered Cefoselis versus Cefepime for the treatment of acute bacterial infections.

AIM: This study aims to evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of intravenous Cefoselis injection for the treatment of acute moderate and severe bacterial infections. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A multicenter, double-blind, randomized clinical trial was carried out using Cefepime as control. Patients received 1.0 g of either Cefoselis or Cefepime for moderate infections or 2.0 g for severe infections at an interval of 12 hours for 7 to 14 days. A total of 276 patients (138 with Cefoselis, 138 with Cefepime) with respiratory or urinary tract infections were enrolled in the study. Up to 137 and 124 patients receiving Cefoselis and 132 and 125 patients receiving Cefepime were eligible for the ITT (intent to treat) and PP (per protocol) analyses, respectively. RESULTS: At the end of the treatment, the cure rates and effective rates were 59.68% (74/124) and 93.55% (116/124) with Cefoselis, and 56.00% (74/124) and 90.40% (116/124) with Cefepime. The bacterial eradication rates of the two groups were 90.32% and 93.85%, respectively. No statistical differences were observed on the above-mentioned parameters between the two groups (all p > 0.05). Adverse events, mainly mild aminotransferase elevation and mild leukopenia, were observed in 11.59% (16/138) and 13.77% (19/138) of patients with Cefoselis and Cefepime, respectively (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Cefoselis is an effective and safe choice against acute moderate and severe respiratory infections and UTI (urinary tract infection).

Diode-pumped 1988-nm Tm:YAP laser mode-locked by intracavity second-harmonic generation in periodically poled LiNbO3.

We report a diode-pumped intracavity second-harmonic generation mode-locked solid-state Tm:YAP laser operating at 1988 nm using a periodically poled congruent LiNbO3 as the nonlinear crystal. The threshold of continuous wave mode locking is 11.6 W. The maximum output power is 1.67 W, while the shortest pulse obtained is 4.7 ps at a repetition rate of 97.09 MHz.

High-performance cavity-phase matching by pump reflection.

Since cavity-phase matching has been experimentally realized, the efficiency is limited to 20%. In this Letter, we successfully achieved a conversion efficiency as high as 41% with a slope efficiency of 48.5% using cavity-phase matching, by reflecting the pump beam at the end surface of the KTiOPO(4) crystal. The high performance of the device makes it a promising candidate to substitute for quasi-phase-matching material.

Effective process to achieve enhanced electrochromic performances based on poly(4,4',4″-tris[4-(2-bithienyl)pheny]amine)/ZnO nanorod composites.

Poly(4,4',4″-tris[4-(2-bithienyl)pheny]amine) (PTBTPA) was electrochemically synthesized on a ZnO-coated ITO electrode to form a PTBTPA/ZnO nanocomposite electrode. The composite film exhibited a noticeable electrochromism, with reversible color changes from orange in the reduced state (0 V), olive green in the middle state (0.9 V) to dark gray in the oxidized state (1.2 V). Furthermore, the composite film showed a fast switching time of 0.92 s and a high optical contrast of 65% at 1100 nm, and retained 97% of its original electroactivity after 500 cycles, while PTBTPA film had switching time of 1.63 s and an optical contrast of 52% at 1100 nm, and retained 75% of its original electroactivity. The results demonstrated that the electrochromic performances were significantly enhanced through incorporating PTBTPA with ZnO nanorods. ZnO nanorods were introduced to modify the structure of the electrode: on one hand, to offer a directional attraction for the counterions, and on the other hand, to enhance the adhesion between the polymer and the ITO electrode. Accordingly, a conducting polymer/inorganic nanocomposite system could improve the polymer's electrochromic performance, especially in terms of the switching speed and long-term stability of the electrochromic materials.

Efficiency-enhanced optical parametric down conversion for mid-infrared generation on a tandem periodically poled MgO-doped stoichiometric lithium tantalate chip.

We report an efficiency-enhanced mid-infrared generation via optical parametric down conversion. A tandem periodically-poled MgO-doped stoichiometric lithium tantalate crystal is used to realize on-chip generation and amplification of mid-infrared radiation inside an optical parametric oscillator cavity. We achieved 21.2% conversion efficiency (24% slope efficiency), which is among the highest efficiencies for the pump-to-mid-infrared conversion, with 1064 nm Nd class laser pump. The maximum average output power at 3.87 µm reached 635 mW with a 3.0 W pump.

Generation of a twin beam at the cesium line and telecom wavelength by cavity phase matching.

Cavity phase matching has been recently demonstrated as a phase-matching method for efficient nonlinear frequency conversion in a microcavity. Here we extend it to the Type I configuration using a sub-coherent-length optical parametric oscillator consisting of an MgO-doped lithium niobate crystal sheet. It generates a tunable single-longitudinal-mode twin beam, which covers the cesium D2 line of 852.1 nm and the extended band of optical communication. This microcavity is capable of peak output power of 58 kW with a maximum conversion efficiency of 18.5%. Broad applications in the areas of light-atom interaction, spectroscopy, optical telecommunication, and quantum optics can be expected.

Diode-pumped passively mode-locked Nd:YVO4 laser at 1342 nm with periodically poled LiNbO3.

In this Letter, we demonstrate a nonlinear-mirror (NLM) mode-locked diode-pumped solid-state Nd:YVO4 laser operating at 1342 nm, in which the NLM comprises a periodically poled LiNbO3 crystal and a dichroic mirror. The self-starting threshold for cw mode locking is 1.5 W, which is significantly lower than that of saturable absorber mode locking. An average power of 1.52 W at 1342 nm is obtained under diode pump power of 10 W at 808 nm, with the slope efficiency being up to 16.8%. The pulse width and the repetition rate of the mode-locked laser output are about 9.5 ps and 101 MHz, respectively.

Cavity phase matching via an optical parametric oscillator consisting of a dielectric nonlinear crystal sheet.

We experimentally demonstrate cavity phase matching for the first time using a sheet optical parametric oscillator which is made of an x-cut KTiOPO(4) crystal sheet. This microcavity presents 220 kW peak power capability for near-frequency-degenerate parametric outputs with up to 23.8% slope efficiency. It also features unique spectral characteristics such as single-longitudinal-mode and narrow linewidth. These attractive properties predict broad applications of such a mini-device, such as terahertz generation, photonic integration, spectroscopy, and quantum information, etc.

Polarization-free second-order nonlinear frequency conversion using the optical superlattice.

We propose a universal and practical scheme to realize polarization-free second-order nonlinear frequency-conversion processes, including sum-frequency generation, difference-frequency generation, and optical parametric amplification. This scheme is based on the optical superlattice with a noncritical phase-matching condition, which is suitable for optical integration. A chirped dual-period structure is proposed to ensure the efficiency and stability of the conversions.

Chirped-quasi-periodic structure for quasi-phase-matching.

We propose in this paper a chirped-quasi-periodic structure using the projection method. This type of new structure combines the advantages of chirped and quasi-periodic structures, and can be used for both multiple quasi-phase-matching and multiple bandwidths control. Numerical simulation of second-harmonic generation performance is in good agreement with the Fourier spectrum of the structure.

Single-pass sum-frequency-generation of 589-nm yellow light based on dual-wavelength Nd:YAG laser with periodically-poled LiTaO(3) crystal.

We demonstrate a compact all-solid-state yellow laser source based on Q-switched dual-wavelength Nd:YAG laser and periodically-poled LiTaO(3) crystal. 589-nm yellow light was generated by single-pass sum-frequency generation of the fundamental IR waves at 1064 and 1319 nm. The maximum output power of yellow light was 506 mW and the corresponding conversion efficiency was approximately 5.5% [W(-1)cm(-1)].

Poling quality evaluation of optical superlattice using 2D Fourier transform method.

In this article we develop a method to evaluate the poling quality of optical superlattice (OSL) based on two-dimensional (2D) Fourier transform. To demonstrate this method, -Z or +Z face etched OSL samples with desired patterns are fabricated by standard electric field poling technique. By analyzing the processed micrograph of the etched surfaces, the magnitude of the reciprocal vectors of the OSL are calculated directly and rapidly. Second harmonic generation (SHG) experiment is performed to validate the evaluation result.

Compact high-power red-green-blue laser light source generation from a single lithium tantalate with cascaded domain modulation.

1W quasi-white-light source has been generated from a single lithium tantalate with cascaded domain modulation. The quasi-white-light is combined by proper proportion of the red, green and blue laser light. The red and the blue result from a compact self-sum frequency optical parametric oscillation when pumped by a single green laser. The efficiency of quasi-white-light from the green pump reaches 27%. This compact design can be employed not only as a stable and powerful RGB light source but also an effective blue laser generator.

Simultaneous optical parametric oscillation and intracavity second-harmonic generation based on a hexagonally poled lithium tantalate.

Simultaneous optical parametric oscillation and intracavity second-harmonic generation based on a hexagonally poled lithium tantalate is reported. Both the optical parametric oscillation and the cascaded noncollinear second-order harmonic generation processes reach a high efficiency. A variety of possible self-doubling optical parametric oscillation processes indicate this hexagonally poled lithium tantalate has potential applications as a compact multi-wavelength light source.

Experimental realization of broadband parametric generation in a quasi-periodically poled LiTaO3.

We have achieved broadband parametric generation by using a quasi-periodically poled LiTaO(3) crystal as frequency converter. Tuning wavelength rang from 0.609 microm to 5.208 microm, which covered three quasi-phase-matching processes, was obtained by means of changing the pump wavelength from 0.530 microm to 1.184 microm. The experiment results are in good agreement with theory. The maximum conversion efficiency is 62% with a 10 Hz-5 ns pump source, at the average pump power of 0.5 mW. Our results exhibit a possible application of quasi-periodic superlattice in laser technology.

Effect of the growth mode on the two- to three-dimensional transition of InAs grown on vicinal GaAs(001) substrates.

Some differences were observed between conventional molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE) and mobility enhanced epitaxy (MEE) of InAs on a vicinal GaAs(001) substrate in the variation of the number density N of the InAs islands, with additional InAs coverage (θ-θ(c)) after the critical InAs coverage θ(c) during the two- to three-dimensional (2D-3D) transition. For MBE the variation was consistent with the power law N(θ)∼(θ-θ(c))(α); while for MEE, the linear relation [Formula: see text] was observed. The difference is discussed in terms of the randomness in the nucleation of the InAs islands.

Accumulation of ofloxacin and tosufloxacin in fluoroquinolone-resistant E coli.

AIM: To make sure whether there is a difference in mechanism existed in the resistant E coli strains accumulated hydrophilic fluoroquinolone ofloxacin and hydrophobic fluoroquinoline tosufloxacin. METHODS: Fluoroquinolone accumulation in bacteria and effect of active efflux were measured by fluorescence method. Analysis of outer membrane proteins was made by SDS-PAGE. E coli strains included JF701 and JF703 that are OmpC- or OmpF-deficient mutants of E coli K-12 respectively, and the susceptible strain Ecs and its in-vitro selected resistant strains R2, R256, and clinical resistant isolates R5, R6. RESULTS: Ecs accumulated ofloxacin almost at the same concentration as JF701, but JF703 did about 1/2 of that lower than JF701. However, four resistant strains accumulated ofloxacin about 5 to 7-fold lower than those susceptible strains. On the other hand, there was no significant difference for the accumulation of tosufloxacin between fluoroquinolone-resistant and -susceptible strains. After addition of proton ionophore DNP for 5 min and 10 min, the accumulation of tosufloxacin slowly decreased in E coli strains, whereas the accumulation of ofloxacin was increased, especially in the resistant strains. A good relevance exists between the accumulation increment of ofloxacin and its MIC for each E coli strain after addition of DNP for 5 min and 10 min (r=0.9623 and 0.8006 respectively). Furthermore, both OmpF and OmpC in Ecs, OmpF-deficiency in R2, R256 and OmpC-deficiency in R5, R6 were observed. CONCLUSION: The accumulation of ofloxacin other than tosufloxacin could be reduced by OmpF-deficiency and active efflux, and the latter may be an important factor in the development of resistance to hydrophilic fluoroquinolone in E coli.