Sonoelastography for Testicular Tumor Identification: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Diagnostic Test Accuracy.

The objective of this review was to summarize the applications of sonoelastography in testicular tumor identification and inquire about their test performances. Two authors independently searched English journal articles and full conference papers from CINAHL, Embase, IEEE Xplore®, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science from inception and organized them into a PIRO (patient, index test, reference test, outcome) framework. Eleven studies (n = 11) were eligible for data synthesis, nine of which (n = 9) utilized strain elastography and two (n = 2) employed shear-wave elastography. Meta-analyses were performed on the distinction between neoplasm (tumor) and non-neoplasm (non-tumor) from four study arms and between malignancy and benignity from seven study arms. The pooled sensitivity of classifying malignancy and benignity was 86.0% (95%CI, 79.7% to 90.6%). There was substantial heterogeneity in the classification of neoplasm and non-neoplasm and in the specificity of classifying malignancy and benignity, which could not be addressed by the subgroup analysis of sonoelastography techniques. Heterogeneity might be associated with the high risk of bias and applicability concern, including a wide spectrum of testicular pathologies and verification bias in the reference tests. Key technical obstacles in the index test were manual compression in strain elastography, qualitative observation of non-standardized color codes, and locating the Regions of Interest (ROI), in addition to decisions in feature extractions. Future research may focus on multiparametric sonoelastography using deep learning models and ensemble learning. A decision model on the benefits-risks of surgical exploration (reference test) could also be developed to direct the test-and-treat strategy for testicular tumors.

The characteristics and metabolic potentials of the soil bacterial community of two typical military demolition ranges in China.

The response mechanism of soil microbiota in military polluted sites can effectively indicate the biotoxicity of ammunition. In this study, two military demolition ranges polluted soils of grenades and bullet were collected. According to high-throughput sequencing, after grenade explosion, the dominant bacteria in Site 1 (S1) are Proteobacteria (97.29 %) and Actinobacteria (1.05 %). The dominant bacterium in Site 2 (S2) is Proteobacteria (32.95 %), followed by Actinobacteria (31.17 %). After the military exercise, the soil bacterial diversity index declined significantly, and the bacterial communities interacted more closely. The indigenous bacteria in S1 were influenced more compared to those in S2. According to the environmental factor analysis, the bacteria composition can easily be influenced by heavy metals and organic pollutants, including Cu, Pb, Cr and Trinitrotoluene (TNT). About 269 metabolic pathways annotated in the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) database were detected in bacterial communities, including nutrition metabolism (C, 4.09 %; N, 1.14 %; S, 0.82 %), external pollutant metabolism (2.52 %) and heavy metal detoxication (2.12 %), respectively. The explosion of ammunition changes the basic metabolism of indigenous bacteria, and heavy metal stress inhibits the TNT degradation ability of bacterial communities. The pollution degree and community structure influence the metal detoxication strategy at the contaminated sites together. Heavy metal ions in S1 are mainly discharged through membrane transporters, while heavy metal ions in S2 are mainly degraded through lipid metabolism and biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. The results obtained in this study can provide deep insight into the response mechanism of the soil bacterial community in military demolition ranges with composite pollutions of heavy metals and organic substances. CAPSULE: Heavy metal stress changed the composition, interaction and metabolism of indigenous communities in military demolition ranges, especially the TNT degradation process.

Degradation of lomefloxacin by MoS2/MIL-53(Fe, Cu) catalyst in heterogeneous electro-Fenton process.

A novel heterogeneous catalyst named MoS2/MIL-53(Fe, Cu) (MMFC) was prepared by hydrothermal method and applied in a heterogeneous electro-Fenton (hetero-EF) system for lomefloxacin (LOM) degradation in this work. Under the optimal conditions of current density 3 mA/cm2, catalyst dosage 0.100 g/L, and initial pH 6, 93.5% LOM (2 mg/L) removal efficiency was achieved in the MMFC hetero-EF system within 60 min, indicating an obvious improvement compared with the MIL-53(Fe, Cu) hetero-EF system. The good catalytic activity was attributed to more effective active sites of the catalyst and the conversion of Fe(II)/Fe(III) and Cu(I)/Cu(II) promoted by Mo(IV) in MoS2, which could be inferred by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) characterizations. The reusability and stability of MMFC were explored based on five cyclic experiments, and the average degradation efficiency reached 73.9%. Furthermore, the hetero-EF system could achieve the total removal of moxifloxacin and tetracycline within 6 min and 40 min, respectively. Quenching experiments revealed that the hydroxyl radicals (·OH) were the main reactive radicals while superoxide radicals (·O2-) and singlet oxygen (1O2) played a certain part in LOM degradation. Finally, the possible mechanism of the hetero-EF process and LOM degradation pathways were proposed, including substitution, elimination, and cleavage of ring structures. Accounting for good catalytic performance, low preparation cost, and satisfactory versatility, the MMFC exhibited good potential to work as a hetero-EF catalyst for wastewater treatment.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Domain Ontology: Current Status and Rethinking for the Future Development.

The past twenty years have seen the increasingly important role of ontology in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). However, the development of TCM ontology faces many challenges. Since the epistemologies dramatically differ between TCM and contemporary biomedicine, it is hard to apply the existing top-level ontology mechanically. "Data silos" are widely present in the currently available terminology standards, term sets, and ontologies. The formal representation of ontology needs to be further improved in TCM. Therefore, we propose a unified basic semantic framework of TCM based on in-depth theoretical research on the existing top-level ontology and a re-study of important concepts in TCM. Under such a framework, ontologies in TCM sub-domains should be built collaboratively and be represented formally in a common format. Besides, extensive cooperation should be encouraged by establishing ontology research communities to promote ontology peer review and reuse.

[Exploration of the construction of semantic framework of meridians and acupoints based on top-level ontology].

Based on the top-level ontology and the existing ontology methodology, the related concepts of meridians and acupoints were discriminated, defined and classified; the relationship of core concepts were established, e.g. meridians, acupoints and zangfu. It was attempted to build an ontological semantic framework of meridians and acupoints. Through the investigation on the classification mode of the top-level ontology, it is proposed that the meridians and acupoints, as the unique concepts of traditional Chinese medicine, exist in the form of "emptiness" and belong to "immaterial entity". Meridians refer to the three-dimensional channels in the human body, and acupoints are divided into ontological acupoints and body surface ones. Ontological acupoints are regarded as a three-dimensional structure within the human body, whereas, body surface ones are the optimal sites for acupuncture needle insertion on the body surface, meaning, the zero-dimensional point on the body surface. The main relationships between meridians and acupoints include is-a, exterior-interior, located-in, correspondent-to, mapping, etc. The exploration of the semantic framework of meridians and acupoints is conductive to understanding the connotation of meridians, acupoints and their relationship.

Influence of Long-Period-Stacking Ordered Structure on the Damping Capacities and Mechanical Properties of Mg-Zn-Y-Mn As-Cast Alloys.

Magnesium alloys are concerned for its mechanical properties and high damping performance. The influence of Mn toward the internal organization morphology of long-period stacking ordered (LPSO) second phase and the consistent damping performance in Mg-4.9Zn-8.9Y-xMn have been studies in this work. It has shown that the addition of Mn tends to diffuse to the LPSO interface and causes the LPSO phase to expand in the arc direction. The circular structure of LPSO can optimize the damping property of the alloy better than the structure with strong orientation, especially at the strain of 10-3 and 250 °C. With more additions of Mn, damping would have a reduction due to the dispersed fine LPSO phases and α-Mn particles. When the Mn content is higher than 1.02%, the grain is refined, and mechanical properties have been significantly improved. Mg-4.9%Zn-8.9%Y-1.33%Mn shows the best mechanical property.

Bacillus Calmette Guérin (BCG) activates lymphocyte to promote autophagy and apoptosis of gastric cancer MGC-803 cell.

Bacillus Calmette Guérin (BCG) has a potential anti-tumor effect on gastric cancer. However, the mechanism is still unclear. In this study, we investigated the effect of BCG on gastric cancer cell line MGC-803 and studied the potential cooperation of BCG and lymphocyte in determining the final fate of cancer cells. After treatment with BCG, the cell viability was significantly inhibited in a dosage-dependent manner. Flow cytometry assay showed the apoptosis rates were significantly increased by BCG. Using western blot assay, results showed that BCG increased cleaved-caspase-3, LC-3BII and Atg-3. After cocultured with BCG and lymphocyte, the apoptosis rates, the levels of cleaved-caspase-3, and the protein levels of LC-3BII and Atg-3 were significantly increased compared with BCG or lymphocytes alone groups. ELISA detection found that BCG induced secretion of interferon gamma (IFNg) from lymphocytes. BCG with IFNg also increased levels of cleaved-caspase-3, LC-3BII and Atg-3. Taken together, BCG promotes lymphocyte immunocompetence to induce cell apoptosis and autophagy in MGC-803 cells, might through inducing release of IFNg from peripheral blood lymphocytes.

Chinese Herbal Medicine for the Treatment of Depression: Applications, Efficacies and Mechanisms.

Depression is a common psychiatric disorder and a leading cause of disability worldwide. Traditional Chinese medicine is one of the commonly used complementary and alternative medicine therapies for depression. Clinical trials have been carried out to assess the efficacy and safety of Chinese herbal medicine currently. The exploration of herbal mechanisms of action used for the treatment of depression has also received great attention. This study is performed to summarize the frequently used formulae, patent drugs and single herbs in treating depression, review the literatures of clinical trials in treating depressive disorders, and to list the possible mechanisms involved during the treatment. Besides, we will analyze the limitations of present studies and the obstacles in the modernization of traditional Chinese medicine.

Chinese Herbal Medicine for Postpartum Depression: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Background. Postpartum depression (PPD) does great harm to women following childbirth. The aim of this study was to conduct a systematic review of the literature to assess the efficacy and safety of CHM for the treatment of PPD. Methods. Published or ongoing registered trials were searched for from the inception of the various databases to December 31, 2015. Data extraction and methodology assessment were conducted independently by two researchers. RevMan 5.3 software was used to analyze the data. Results. Forty-seven registered clinical trials (RCTs) were identified and reviewed. The results showed CHM alone or in combination with routine treatments could reduce HAMD score, EPDS score, incidence of adverse events, TESS, and SERS. CHM combined with routine treatment was more effective in increasing serum estradiol levels and reducing progesterone levels than routine treatment alone. Meanwhile, pooled data revealed that MRLQS combined with routine treatments or MRLQS plus MSHS combined with routine treatments were more effective than other therapeutic methods in TCM. MRLQS plus MSHS alone was found to be an effective alternative when compared to routine treatments. Conclusions. This review suggested that CHM was safe and effective in the treatment of PPD. However, this could not be proven conclusively. To ensure evidence-based clinical practice, more rigorously designed trials are warranted.

Wendan decoction (温胆汤) for treatment of schizophrenia: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the beneficial and adverse effects of Wendan Decoction (温胆汤, WDD) for the treatment of schizophrenia. METHODS: Five electronic databases were searched until May 2014, including the Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure, the Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, the Chinese Scientist Journal Database, PubMed, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials in the Cochrane Library. The randomized controlled trials (RCTs) testing WDD against placebo, antipsychotic drugs, or WDD combined with antipsychotic drugs against antipsychotic drugs alone were included. Study selection, data extraction, quality assessment, and data analyses were conducted according to the Cochrane standards. RESULTS: Thirteen RCTs (involving 1,174 patients) were included and the methodological quality was evaluated as generally low. The pooled results showed that WDD combined with antipsychotic drugs were more effective in clinical comprehensive effect, Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) scores and Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale scores compared with antipsychotic drugs alone. However, WDD had less effectiveness compared with antipsychotics in clinical comprehensive effect; and WDD was not different from antipsychotic drugs for PANSS scores. The side effects were significantly reduced in the intervention group compared with the control group. CONCLUSIONS: WDD appears to be effective on improving symptoms in patients with schizophrenia. However, due to poor methodological quality in the majority of the included trials, the potential benefit from WDD needs to be confirmed in rigorous trials and the design and reporting of trials should follow the international standards.