Engineering of molecularly imprinted cavity within 3D covalent organic frameworks: An innovation for enhanced extraction and removal of microcystins.

The scarcity of selective adsorbents for efficient extraction and removal of microcystins (MCs) from complex samples greatly limits the precise detection and effective control of MCs. Three-dimensional covalent organic frameworks (3D COFs), characterized by their large specific surface areas and highly ordered rigid structure, are promising candidates, but suffer from lack of specific recognition. Herein, we design to engineer molecularly imprinted cavities within 3D COFs via molecularly imprinted technology, creating a novel adsorbent with exceptional selectivity, kinetics and capacity for the efficient extraction and removal of MCs. As proof-of-concept, a new CC bond-containing 3D COF, designated JNU-7, is designed and prepared for copolymerization with methacrylic acid, the pseudo template L-arginine and ethylene dimethacrylate to yield the JNU-7 based molecularly imprinted polymer (JNU-7-MIP). The JNU-7-MIP exhibits a great adsorption capacity (156 mg g-1) for L-arginine. Subsequently, the JNU-7-MIP based solid-phase extraction coupled with high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry achieves low detection limit of 0.008 ng mL-1, wide linear range of 0.025-100 ng mL-1, high enrichment factor of 186, rapid extraction of 10 min, and good recoveries of 92.4%-106.5% for MC-LR. Moreover, the JNU-7-MIP can rapidly remove the MC-LR from 1 mg L-1 to levels (0.26-0.35 µg L-1) lower than the WHO recommended limit for drinking water (1 µg L-1). This work reveals the considerable potential of 3D COF based MIPs as promising adsorbents for the extraction and removal of contaminants in complex real samples.

Recent advances in membrane technologies applied in oil-water separation.

Effective treatment of oily wastewater, which is toxic and harmful and causes serious environmental pollution and health risks, has become an important research field. Membrane separation technology has emerged as a key area of investigation in oil-water separation research due to its high separation efficiency, low costs, and user-friendly operation. This review aims to report on the advances in the research of various types of separation membranes around emulsion permeance, separation efficiency, antifouling efficiency, and stimulus responsiveness. Meanwhile, the challenges encountered in oil-water separation membranes are examined, and potential research avenues are identified.

Size-Dependent Deformation and Competition H-Bond Site-Induced Individual Fluorescence Response of a Single-Crystal Three-Dimensional Covalent Organic Framework.

Understanding the individual fluorescence response mechanism of covalent organic frameworks (COFs) at a single-crystal level is of great significance for the rational design of COF-based microsensors but unreachable because all previous COF-based sensors are performed with average fluorescence response behavior of various sized polycrystalline COFs. Herein, we design to explore the fluorescence response of a monodisperse single-crystal COF and further reveal the individual heterogeneity of the response mechanism. Three-dimensional single-crystal COF-301 (SCOF-301) with an intramolecular H-bond-induced excited-state intramolecular proton-transfer effect is selected as a proof-of-concept SCOF. With ethanol, benzene, and ammonia as model analytes, three different deformation and competition H-bond site-induced fluorescence response mechanisms related to crystal size are revealed. Small single particles of SCOF-301 (SSCOF-301) exhibit a more flexible structure, leading to the dominant role of deformation in the fluorescence response of small-sized SSCOF-301. The decreasing flexibility of SSCOF-301 with the increase of crystal size results in involvement of competition of the H-bond site to the fluorescence response besides deformation. Further increase of the crystal size makes the large-sized SSCOF-301 difficult to deform; thus, the competition of the H-bond site dominates the fluorescence response. This work provides a deep understanding of the individual fluorescence response mechanism of COFs to guide the design of a functional COF sensor with suitable size and mechanism for different structural analytes.

Contrast-enhanced ultrasound evaluation of renal perfusion before angioplasty and its predictive value for hypertension.

BACKGROUND: Atherosclerotic renal artery stenosis (ARAS) is a common disease in the elderly population. OBJECTIVE: The aim was to develop a contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS)-based model for predicting post-angioplasty improvement in hypertension in patients with severe ARAS. METHODS: Thirty-five patients with severe ARAS (⩾ 70%) were included in this study, and 42 renal arteries received percutaneous transluminal renal arterial stenting. An optimal integral formula was developed from pre-interventional color-coded duplex sonography (CCDS) and CEUS parameters using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. A model for predicting short-term hypertension improvement was established using the integral formula and clinical risk factors. Bootstrapping was used for internal validation. RESULTS: Two integral formulas, LASSO.CCDS and LASSO.CEUS, were established. ROC curves of the two integral formulas showed that LASSO.CEUS was the better formula for predicting hypertension improvement (AUC 0.816, specificity 78.6%). Univariate and multivariate regression analyses showed that duration of hypertension (OR 0.841, P= 0.027), diabetes (OR = 0.019, P= 0.010), and LASSO.CEUS (OR 7.641, P= 0.052) were predictors of short-term hypertension improvement after interventional therapy. Using LASSO.CEUS combined with clinical risk factors, the following prediction model was established: logit (short-term improvement in hypertension) = 1.879-0.173 × hypertension duration - 3.961 × diabetes + 2.034 × LASSO.CEUS (AUC 0.939). CONCLUSIONS: The model established using CEUS parameters and clinical risk factors could predict hypertension improvement after interventional therapy, but further research and verification are needed.

Efficacy and safety of cryoablation combined with lenvatinib and anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody in treatment of unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma / 临床肝胆病杂志

ObjectiveTo investigate whether anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody can improve the efficacy and safety of cryoablation combined with lenvatinib in the treatment of unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC）. MethodsA retrospective analysis was performed for 232 patients with unresectable HCC who were treated at The Fifth Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital from January 2018 to December 2022， among whom 128 received cryoablation combined with lenvatinib （double combination） and 104 received cryoablation combined with lenvatinib and anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody （triple combination）. Propensity score matching was performed at a ratio of 1∶1， and finally there were 86 patients in each group. The two groups were evaluated in terms of objective response rate （ORR）， disease control rate （DCR）， overall survival （OS）， progression-free survival （PFS）， and adverse events （AEs）. The independent-samples t test was used for comparison of normally distributed continuous data between two groups， and the Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparison of non-normally distributed continuous data between two groups； the chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between two groups. Survival curves were plotted， and the Kaplan-Meier method was used to calculate the survival rate of patients in both groups， while the log-rank test was used for comparison between the two groups. The Cox regression model was used to calculate hazard ratio （HR） and 95% confidence interval （CI） and perform the univariate and multivariate analyses of influencing factors for prognosis. ResultsThe median follow-up time was 28 months， and there were 33 deaths （38.0%） in the triple combination group and 40 deaths （46.0%） in the double combination group. Compared with the double combination group， the triple combination group had significantly higher ORR （35.6% vs 14.5%， P=0.008） and DCR （86.1% vs 64.1%， P=0.003）. OS and PFS in the triple combination group were significantly higher than those in the double combination group （P=0.045 and 0.026）. The univariate and multivariate Cox proportional-hazards regression model analyses showed that treatment regimen （HR=0.60， P=0.038） and alpha-fetoprotein level （HR=2.37， P=0.001） were independent risk factors for OS， and treatment regimen （HR=0.65， P=0.025）， diabetes mellitus （HR=1.94， P=0.005）， whether or not to have received local treatment （HR=0.63， P=0.014）， and distant metastasis （HR=0.58， P=0.009） were independent risk factors for PFS. There was no significant difference in the incidence rate of AEs between the two groups （P>0.05）. ConclusionFor patients with unresectable HCC， the triple combination of cryoablation， lenvatinib， and anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody significantly improves the treatment outcome and survival of patients compared with the double combination of cryoablation and lenvatinib， without increasing AEs， which provides a clinical basis for optimizing the treatment regimen for unresectable HCC.

Pure Covalent-Organic Framework Membrane as a Label-Free Biomimetic Nanochannel for Sensitive and Selective Sensing of Chiral Flavor Substances.

Chiral flavor substances play an important role in the human perception of different tastes. Here, we report a pure covalent-organic framework (COF) membrane nanochannel in combination with a chiral gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) selector for sensing chiral flavor substances. The pure COF membrane with a proper pore size is selected as the nanochannel, while l-cysteine-modified AuNPs (l-Cys-AuNPs) are used as the chiral selector. l-Cys-AuNPs show stronger binding to the S-enantiomer than the R-enantiomer, causing current reduction to different degrees for the R- and S-enantiomer to achieve chiral sensing due to the synergistic effect of the size exclusion of the COF nanochannel and the chiral selectivity of l-Cys-AuNPs. The developed COF membrane nanochannel sensing platform not only allows an easy balance of the permeability and selectivity, which is difficult to achieve in traditional polymer membrane nanochannel sensors, but also exhibits better chiral performance than commercial artificial anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) nanochannel sensors. The developed nanochannel sensor is successfully applied for sensing flavor enantiomers such as limonene, propanediol, methylbutyric acid, and butanol with the enantiomer excess values of 55.2% (propanediol) and 72.4% (limonene) and the low detection limits of 36 (limonene) and 71 (propanediol) ng L-1. This study provides a new idea for the construction of nanochannel platforms based on the COF for sensitive and selective chiral sensing.

Single-cell data analysis of malignant epithelial cell heterogeneity in lung adenocarcinoma for patient classification and prognosis prediction.

Lung cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer-related death. Most advanced lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients have poor survival because of drug resistance and relapse. Neglecting intratumoral heterogeneity might be one of the reasons for treatment insensitivity, while single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) technologies can provide transcriptome information at the single-cell level. Herein, we combined scRNA-seq and bulk RNA-seq data of LUAD and identified a novel cluster of malignant epithelial cells - KRT81+ malignant epithelial cells - associated with worse prognoses. Further analysis revealed that the hypoxia and EMT pathways of these cells were activated to predispose them to differentiate into metastatic lung adenocarcinoma cells. Finally, we also studied the role of these tumor cells in the immune microenvironment and their role in the classification and prognosis prediction of lung adenocarcinoma patients.

Irreversible fluorine covalent organic framework based probe nanoelectrospray ionization mass spectrometry for direct and rapid determination of perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids.

Probe nanoelectrospray ionization mass spectrometry (PESI-MS) is practically desirable for rapid and ultra-sensitive analysis of trace contaminants in environment, but limited with the stable and selective probe coating. Herein, we show the design and preparation of irreversible fluorine-based covalent organic framework (TFPPA-F4) covalently bonded probe to couple with ESI-MS (TFPPA-F4-PESI-MS) for direct and rapid determination of perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCAs) in environmental water. Chemical bonding coating of irreversible crystalline TFPPA-F4 not only improved stability of the probe, but also offered accessible multiple interactions including hydrophobic, hydrogen bonding and F-F interactions to promote the kinetics and selectivity for PFCAs. The proposed TFPPA-F4-PESI-MS realized rapid determination of PFCAs (about 4 min) with low limits of detection of 0.06-0.88 ng L-1 and wide linear range of 1-5000 ng L-1 (R2 of 0.9982-0.9998). Recoveries for the spiked lake and pond water were 85.9-111.1 %. TFPPA-F4 based probe can maintain the extraction performance after 100 times of extraction. This work shows the great potential of the irreversible covalent organic framework based PESI-MS in rapid and ultra-sensitive determination of contaminants in environmental samples.

Effect of Rolling Process and Aging on the Microstructure and Properties of Cu-1.0Cr-0.1Zr Alloy.

In order to study the effect of the rolling process and aging on the microstructure evolution and mechanical and tribological properties of the material, room-temperature rolling (RTR), cryogenic rolling (CR), and deep cryogenic treatment after rolling (RTR + DCT) experiments were carried out on a Cu-1.0Cr-0.1Zr alloy by a large plastic deformation process. Alloy plates were aged at 550 °C for 60 min. Different rolling processes and aging treatments have different effects on the microstructure and properties of alloy plates. The alloy plate is rolled and deformed, and the grains change from equiaxed to layered. Compared with RTR and RTR + DCT treatment, CR can promote the precipitation of the Cr phase and the degree of grain fragmentation is greater. After aging treatment, the Cu-Zr mesophase compounds in the microstructure increased, the alloys treated with CR and RTR + DCT appeared to be partially recrystallized, and the number of twins in the CR alloy plate was significantly more than that of RTR + DCT. The ultimate tensile strength of the alloy plate reached 553 MPa and the hardness reached 170 HV after cryogenic rolling with 90% deformation, which indicates that CR treatment can further improve the physical properties of the alloy plate. After aging at 550 °C for 60 min, the RTR 90% + DCT alloy plate has a tensile strength of 498 MPa and an elongation of 47.9%, which is three times that of the as-rolled alloy plate. From the research on the tribological properties of alloy plates, we learned that the main wear mechanisms in the wear forms of CR and RTR + DCT alloy plates are adhesive wear and abrasive wear. Adhesive wear is dominant in the early stage, while abrasive wear is the dominant mechanism in the later stage of wear. The friction coefficient of the CR 90% alloy plate in the TD direction is close to 0.55, and the wear rate is 2.9 × 10-4 mm3/Nm, indicating that the CR treatment further improves the wear resistance of the alloy plates.

Mechanism of Transcription Factor SP1 Regulates Expression of Tripartite Motif-containing Protein 7 in Hepatocellular Carcinoma / 中国生物化学与分子生物学报

Tripartite motif containing protein 7 (TRIM7), as a member of the E3 ubiquitin ligase TRIM family, plays an important regulatory role in immune regulation, metabolism and other physiological processes. The aberrant expression of TRIM7 is closely related to the development and progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and it shows a complex regulatory role. However, the regulatory mechanism for the expression of TRIM7 in HCC remains unknown. In this study, multiple online databases were used to analyze the expression of TRIM7 in HCC and data indicated that TRIM7 expression was upregulated in HCC and correlated to poor prognosis. Subsequently, the transcription factor binding sites in the TRIM7 promoter region were analyzed using UCSC and JASPAR databases, and the results showed that TRIM7 promoter contains four SP1 binding sites. In this work, we demonstrated that SP1 could directly bind to its binding sites in TRIM7 promoter and positively regulate the transcriptional activity driven by the TRIM7 promoter using dual luciferase reporter experiments and the ChIP-PCR method. Moreover, our results also showed SP1 overexpression upregulated the expression of TRIM7 at both mRNA and protein levels (P<0. 01),and SP1 inhibitor, mithramycin A, could reverse the activated effect of SP1 on TRIM7 expression (P<0. 01). In conclusion, this study preliminarily reveals the regulatory mechanism of TRIM7 upregulation in HCC, which provides an important theoretical basis for further study of the gene function, early diagnosis and targeted therapy.

Prognostic value of the number and anatomical distribution of tumor deposits in patients with gastric cancer without lymph node metastasis / 中华普通外科杂志

Objective:To explore the prognostic value of tumor deposits (TD) by number and anatomical distribution in gastric cancer (GC) patients without lymph node metastasis.Methods:From Aug 2012 to Aug 2018 all 91 GC patients undergoing radical gastrectomy and without nodal metastasis at Yijishan Hospital of Wannan Medical College were enrolled in this study. Patients were divided into L1, L2, and L3 groups according to the number of TD and into Q1 and Q2 groups according to the anatomical regions of the TD.Results:The 3-year overall survival (OS) rates of groups L1, L2, and L3 were 58.9%, 52.1%, and 31.5%, respectively ( χ2=9.769, P=0.008). The 3-year OS rates of groups Q1 and Q2 were 58.9% and 7.1% ( χ2=46.310, P<0.001). The number of TD, their distribution, neural invasion, vascular invasion, tumor size, and pT stage were all related to prognosis by univariate analysis (all P<0.05). Tumor size>4 cm ( HR=2.460, 95% CI:1.307-4.629, P=0.005), distribution of TD (non-perigastric)( HR=3.959, 95% CI:2.077-7.545, P<0.001), neural invasion ( HR=4.299,95% CI:1.953-9.461, P<0.001), and pT 4 stage ( HR=2.283, 95% CI:1.250-4.171, P=0.007) were independent risk factors for prognosis by multivariate analysis. Conclusion:The distribution of TD (non-perigastric) is an independent risk factor for poor prognosis in gastric cancer patients after radical gastrectomy and with negative lymph node metastasis.

Application of the fetal adrenal volume evaluated by three-dimensional ultrasound in fetuses with intrauterine growth restriction and its correlation with adverse perinatal outcomes / 中华超声影像学杂志

Objective:To evaluate the fetal adrenal gland volume (AGV) and corrected adrenal gland volume (cAGV) in intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) fetuses and observe their associations with the adverse perinatal outcomes.Methods:From February 2021 to August 2022, 32 IUGR fetuses who underwent fetal ultrasound examination in the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University were prospectively selected as the IUGR group, and 32 normal fetuses matched for gestational age during the same period were selected as the control group. Three-dimensional ultrasound was used to obtain fetal adrenal volume images, and the virtual organ computer-aided analysis (VOCAL) was used to measure AGV, then the cAGV was calculated. The values of AGV and cAGV were appropriately compared between the IUGR and the control groups. The pregnancy outcomes were noted. Multiple logistic regression analysis was employed to evaluate the relationship between the cAGV and adverse perinatal outcomes in IUGR fetus, with maternal age and the CPR included as covariates to control for confounding factors.Results:A total of 32 fetuses with IUGR and 32 controls were involved in this prospective study. There was no significant difference in the AGV between these two groups ( P=0.417). The cAGV of the IUGR fetus was substantially larger than that of the normal fetus ( P=0.034). In the multivariate logistic regression analysis, after adjusting for maternal age and fetal CPR, the fetal cAGV was noticeably associated with the fetal distress (adjusted OR=0.005, 95% CI=0.000-0.587, P=0.029) and the total adverse perinatal outcomes (adjusted OR=0.014, 95% CI=0.000-0.475, P=0.018). Conclusions:The value of cAGV is increased in the IUGR fetuses and associated with adverse perinatal outcomes. The evaluation of fetal AGV could be beneficial to monitoring and managing IUGR fetuses.

Predictive value of early lactate/albumin ratio in the prognosis of sepsis / 中华危重病急救医学

Objective:To investigate the prognostic value of early serum lactate, albumin, and lactate/albumin ratio (L/A) on the 28-day prognosis of adult patients with sepsis.Methods:A retrospective cohort study was conducted among adult patients with sepsis admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University from January to December in 2020. Gender, age, comorbidities, lactate within 24 hours of admission, albumin, L/A, interleukin-6 (IL-6), procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP) and 28-day prognosis were recorded. The receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve) was drawn to analyze the predictive value of lactate, albumin and L/A for 28-day mortality in patients with sepsis. Subgroup analysis of patients was performed according to the best cut-off value, Kaplan-Meier survival curves were drawn, and the 28-day cumulative survival of patients with sepsis was analyzed.Results:A total of 274 patients with sepsis were included, and 122 patients died at 28 days, with a 28-day mortality of 44.53%. Compared with the survival group, the age, the proportion of pulmonary infection, the proportion of shock, lactate, L/A and IL-6 in the death group were significantly increased, and albumin was significantly decreased [age (years): 65 (51, 79) vs. 57 (48, 73), pulmonary infection: 75.4% vs. 53.3%, shock: 37.7% vs. 15.1%, lactate (mmol/L): 4.76 (2.95, 9.23) vs. 2.21 (1.44, 3.19), L/A: 0.18 (0.10, 0.35) vs. 0.08 (0.05, 0.11), IL-6 (ng/L): 337.00 (97.73, 2 318.50) vs. 55.88 (25.26, 150.65), albumin (g/L): 27.68 (21.02, 33.03) vs. 29.62 (25.25, 34.23), all P < 0.05]. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI) of lactate, albumin, and L/A were 0.794 (95% CI was 0.741-0.840), 0.589 (95% CI was 0.528-0.647), 0.807 (95% CI was 0.755-0.852) for predicting 28-day mortality in sepsis patients. The optimal diagnostic cut-off value of lactate was 4.07 mmol/L, the sensitivity was 57.38%, the specificity was 92.76%. The optimal diagnostic cut-off value of albumin was 22.28 g/L, the sensitivity was 31.15%, the specificity was 92.76%. The optimal diagnostic cut-off of L/A was 0.16, the sensitivity was 54.92%, and the specificity was 95.39%. Subgroup analysis showed that the 28-day mortality of sepsis patients in the L/A > 0.16 group was significantly higher than that in the L/A ≤ 0.16 group [90.5% (67/74) vs. 27.5% (55/200), P < 0.001]. The 28-day mortality of sepsis patients in the albumin ≤ 22.28 g/L group was significantly higher than that in the albumin > 22.28 g/L group [77.6% (38/49) vs. 37.3% (84/225), P < 0.001]. The 28-day mortality in the group with lactate > 4.07 mmol/L was significantly higher than that in the group with lactate ≤ 4.07 mmol/L [86.4% (70/81) vs. 26.9% (52/193), P < 0.001]. The three were consistent with the analysis results of Kaplan-Meier survival curve. Conclusion:The early serum lactate, albumin, and L/A were all valuable in predicting the 28-day prognosis of patients with sepsis, and L/A was better than lactate and albumin.

Cloning and Expression Patterns of Coumarate-3-hydroxylase Gene from Angelica sinensis and Its Correlation with Content of Ferulic Acid / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ObjectiveTo clone coumarate-3-hydroxylase gene （C3H） from Angelica sinensis， and analyze the correlation between its bioinformatics， expression patterns and content of ferulic acid， and to explore the functions of ASC3H. MethodReal-time polymerase chain reaction （Real-time PCR） was used to clone the full-length cDNA of ASC3H based on the transcriptome dataset of A. sinensis， and the bioinformatics analysis of the gene sequence was carried out. Real-time PCR and high performance liquid chromatography （HPLC） were used to determine relative expression of ASC3H and content of ferulic acid in different root tissues of A. sinensis （periderm， cortex and stele）. ResultThe open reading frame （ORF） of ASC3H （GenBank accession number： MN2550298） was 1 530 bp， encoding 509 amino acids， with a theoretical molecular weight of 57.86 kDa and an isoelectric point of 8.36. It was a hydrophilic protein that was located in the chloroplast with multiple phosphorylation sites and a transmembrane region， and contained a conserved domain CGYDWPKGYGPIINVW_P450 （383-399 aa） in cytochrome P450. Multiple amino acid sequence alignment analysis showed that ASC3H had high similarity with C3H from other plants， especially Ammi majus in Umbelliferae. The Real-time PCR revealed that ASC3H had different expressions in periderm， cortex and stele tissues of A. sinensis roots. It was found from HPLC that the cortex tissues had the highest content of ferulic acid， and the stele tissues had the lowest. ConclusionASC3H was successfully cloned from A. sinensis， and its sequence characteristics were understood more clearly， suggesting that ASC3H might be involved in the ferulic acid biosynthesis pathway of A. sinensis. This paper provided a basis for further studying the functions of the gene and exploring the biosynthesis and regulation mechanism of ferulic acid in A. sinensis， while laying the foundation for the genetic improvement of A. sinensis．

A circRNA-miRNA-mRNA network analysis underlying pathogenesis of human heart failure / 老年心脏病学杂志（英文版）

BACKGROUND@#The molecular mechanisms of heart failure (HF) are still poorly understood. Circular RNA (circRNA) has been discovered in the heart in increasing numbers of studies. The goal of this research is to learn more about the potential roles of circRNAs in HF.@*METHODS & RESULTS@#We used RNA sequencing data to identify the characteristics of circRNAs expressed in the heart and discovered that the majority of circRNAs screened were less than 2000 nt. Additionally, chromosomes One and Y had the most and least number of circRNAs, respectively. After excluding duplicate host genes and intergenic circRNAs, a total of 238 differentially expressed circRNAs (DECs) and 203 host genes were discovered. However, only four of the 203 host genes of DECs were examined in HF differentially expressed genes. Another study used Gene Oncology analysis of DECs host genes to elucidate the underlying pathogenesis of HF, and it found that binding and catalytic activity accounted for a large portion of DECs. Immune system, metabolism, and signal transduction pathways were significantly enriched. Furthermore, 1052 potentially regulated miRNAs from the top 40 DECs were collected to build a circRNA-miRNA network, and it was discovered that 470 miRNAs can be regulated by multiple circRNAs, while others are regulated by a single circRNA. In addition, a comparison of the top 10 mRNAs in HF and their targeted miRNAs revealed that DDX3Y and UTY were regulated by the most and least circRNA, respectively.@*CONCLUSION@#These findings demonstrated circRNAs have species and tissue specific expression patterns; while circRNA expression is independent on host genes, the same types of genes in DECs and DEGs worked in HF. Our findings would contribute to a better understanding of the critical roles of circRNAs and lay the groundwork for future studies of HF molecular functions.

Integrating Ordered Two-Dimensional Covalent Organic Frameworks to Solid-State Nanofluidic Channels for Ultrafast and Sensitive Detection of Mercury.

Grafting specific recognition moieties onto solid-state nanofluidic channels is a promising way for selective and sensitive sensing of analytes. However, the time-consuming interaction between recognition moieties and analytes is the main hindrance to the application of nanofluidic channel-based sensors in rapid detection. Here, we show the integration of ordered two-dimensional covalent organic frameworks (2D COFs) to solid-state nanofluidic channels to achieve rapid, selective, and sensitive detection of contaminants. As a proof of concept, a thiourea-linked 2D COF (JNU-3) as the recognition unit is covalently bonded on the stable artificial anodic aluminum oxide nanochannels (AAO) to fabricate a JNU-3@AAO-based nanofluidic sensor. The rapid and selective interaction of Hg(II) with the highly ordered channels of JNU-3 allows the JNU-3@AAO-based nanofluidic sensor to realize ultrafast and precise determination of Hg(II) (90 s) with a low limit of detection (3.28 fg mL-1), wide linear range (0.01-100 pg mL-1), and good precision (relative standard deviation of 3.8% for 11 replicate determination of 10 pg mL-1). The developed method was successfully applied to the determination of mercury in a certified reference material A072301c (rice powder), real water, and rice samples with recoveries of 90.4-99.8%. This work reveals the great potential of 2D COFs-modified solid-state nanofluidic channels as a sensor for the rapid and precise detection of contaminants in complicated samples.

miR-489-3p promotes malignant progression of non-small cell lung cancer through the inactivation of Wnt/ß-catenin signaling pathway via regulating USP48.

BACKGROUND: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the most prevalent form of lung cancer globally, with average age of cancer patients becoming younger gradually. It is of significance to gain a comprehensive understanding of molecular mechanism underlying NSCLC. METHODS: Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and western blot were applied to measure RNA and protein levels separately. Functional assays and western blot were performed to determine the effects of miR-489-3p and USP48 on cell growth, migration and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in NSCLC. TOP/FOP flash luciferase reporter assay was carried out to detect the activity of Wnt pathway. Besides, qPCR, RNA pulldown and luciferase reporter assays were conducted to probe into the target gene of miR-489-3p. Immunoprecipitation-western blot (IP-western blot) analysis was implemented to assess the effect of USP48 on the ubiquitination of ß-catenin. RESULTS: miR-489-3p hampers NSCLC cell proliferation, migration and EMT in vitro and NSCLC tumorigenesis and metastasis in vivo. Additionally, miR-489-3p inactivates Wnt/ß-catenin signaling pathway and regulates USP48 to inhibit the ubiquitination of ß-catenin. Moreover, USP48 propels the development of NSCLC cells. CONCLUSIONS: The current study demonstrated that miR-489-3p promotes the malignant progression of NSCLC cells via targeting USP48, which might offer a new perspective into NSCLC treatment.

Engineering linkage as functional moiety into irreversible thiourea-linked covalent organic framework for ultrafast adsorption of Hg(II).

Development of novel functionalized covalent organic frameworks (COFs) as adsorbent for removal of mercury from environment is of great significance, but the conventional strategies for functionalizing COFs always sacrifice porous properties and suppress the exposure of functional sites, which goes against the rapid adsorption of Hg(II). Here, we show the rational design and preparation of the first thiourea-linked COFs via engineering the COFs linkage as functional moiety for ultrafast and selective adsorption of Hg(II). Two thiourea-linked COFs JNU-3 and JNU-4 were prepared via tautomerism reaction of 1,3,5-triformylphloroglucinol with 1,4-phenylenebis(thiourea) and 1,4-biphenylenebis(thiourea), respectively. The thiourea serves as not only linkage to connect the building block into irreversible crystalline structure, but also functional moiety to give no occupation of the COF pore and full exposure to Hg(II) with strong affinity, offering the JNU-3 and JNU-4 large adsorption capacity (960 and 561 mg g-1, respectively) and ultrafast kinetics (equilibrium time of 10 s) for Hg(II). The proposed strategy for the design of functional COFs with inherent linkage as functional moiety largely promotes the performance of COFs for diverse applications.

Clinical validation of the use of prototype software for automatic cartilage segmentation to quantify knee cartilage in volunteers.

BACKGROUND: The cartilage segmentation algorithms make it possible to accurately evaluate the morphology and degeneration of cartilage. There are some factors (location of cartilage subregions, hydrarthrosis and cartilage degeneration) that may influence the accuracy of segmentation. It is valuable to evaluate and compare the accuracy and clinical value of volume and mean T2* values generated directly from automatic knee cartilage segmentation with those from manually corrected results using prototype software. METHOD: Thirty-two volunteers were recruited, all of whom underwent right knee magnetic resonance imaging examinations. Morphological images were obtained using a three-dimensional (3D) high-resolution Double-Echo in Steady-State (DESS) sequence, and biochemical images were obtained using a two-dimensional T2* mapping sequence. Cartilage score criteria ranged from 0 to 2 and were obtained using the Whole-Organ Magnetic Resonance Imaging Score (WORMS). The femoral, patellar, and tibial cartilages were automatically segmented and divided into subregions using the post-processing prototype software. Afterwards, all the subregions were carefully checked and manual corrections were done where needed. The dice coefficient correlations for each subregion by the automatic segmentation were calculated. RESULTS: Cartilage volume after applying the manual correction was significantly lower than automatic segmentation (P < 0.05). The percentages of the cartilage volume change for each subregion after manual correction were all smaller than 5%. In all the subregions, the mean T2* relaxation time within manual corrected subregions was significantly lower than in regions after automatic segmentation (P < 0.05). The average time for the automatic segmentation of the whole knee was around 6 min, while the average time for manual correction of the whole knee was around 27 min. CONCLUSIONS: Automatic segmentation of cartilage volume has a high dice coefficient correlation and it can provide accurate quantitative information about cartilage efficiently without individual bias. Advances in knowledge: Magnetic resonance imaging is the most promising method to detect structural changes in cartilage tissue. Unfortunately, due to the structure and morphology of the cartilages obtaining accurate segmentations can be problematic. There are some factors (location of cartilage subregions, hydrarthrosis and cartilage degeneration) that may influence segmentation accuracy. We therefore assessed the factors that influence segmentations error.