Synergistic Etching and Hydrogen Bonding-Induced Self-Assembly of MXene/MOF Hybrid Aerogel for Flexible Room-Temperature Gas Sensing.

Limited by insufficient active sites and restricted mechanical strength, designing reliable and wearable gas sensors with high activity and ductility remains a challenge for detecting hazardous gases. In this work, a thermally induced and solvent-assisted oxyanion etching strategy was implemented for selective pore opening in a rigid microporous Cu-based metal-organic framework (referred to as CuM). A conductive CuM/MXene aerogel was then self-assembled through cooperative hydrogen bonding interactions between the carbonyl oxygen atom in PVP grafted on the surface of defect-rich Cu-BTC and the surface functional hydroxyl group on MXene. A flexible NO2 sensing performance using the CuM/MXene aerogel hybridized sodium alginate hydrogel is finally achieved, demonstrating extraordinary sensitivity (S = 52.47 toward 50 ppm of NO2), good selectivity, and rapid response/recovery time (0.9/4.5 s) at room temperature. Compared with commercial sensors, the relative error is less than 7.7%, thereby exhibiting significant potential for application in monitoring toxic and harmful gases. This work not only provides insights for guiding rational synthesis of ideal structure models from MOF composites but also inspires the development of high-performance flexible gas sensors for potential multiscenario applications.

Overexpression of MD1 ameliorates pathological myocardial remodeling in diabetic cardiomyopathy by TLR4/STAT3 signaling pathway.

Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is characterized by oxidative damage and inflammatory responses. Myeloid differentiation protein 1 (MD1) exhibits antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. However, the specific role of MD1 in DCM has yet to be elucidated. This study aims to investigate the role of MD1 in DCM and to elucidate the underlying mechanisms. We utilized a gain-of-function approach to explore the involvement of MD1 in DCM. Diabetes was induced in MD1-transgenic (MD1-TG) mice and their wild-type (WT) counterparts via streptozotocin (STZ) injection. Additionally, a diabetes cell model was established using H9c2 cells exposed to high glucose levels. We conducted comprehensive evaluations, including pathological analyses, echocardiography, electrocardiography, and molecular assessments, to elucidate the underlying mechanisms of MD1 in DCM. Notably, MD1 expression was reduced in the hearts of STZ-induced diabetic mice. Overexpression of MD1 significantly improved cardiac function and markedly inhibited ventricular pathological hypertrophy and fibrosis in these mice. Furthermore, MD1 overexpression resulted in a substantial decrease in myocardial reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation, mitigating myocardial oxidative stress and reducing the levels of inflammation-related markers such as IL-1ß, IL-6, and TNF-α. Mechanistically, MD1 overexpression inhibited the activation of the TLR4/STAT3 signaling pathway, as demonstrated in both in vivo and in vitro experiments. The overexpression of MD1 significantly impeded pathological cardiac remodeling and improved cardiac function in STZ-induced diabetic mice. This effect was primarily attributed to a reduction in ROS accumulation and mitigation of myocardial oxidative stress and inflammation, facilitated by the inhibition of the TLR4/STAT3 signaling pathway.

Feature elimination and stacking framework for accurate heart disease detection in IoT healthcare systems using clinical data.

Introduction: Heart disease remains a complex and critical health issue, necessitating accurate and timely detection methods. Methods: In this research, we present an advanced machine learning system designed for efficient and precise diagnosis of cardiac disease. Our approach integrates the power of Random Forest and Ada Boost classifiers, along with incorporating data pre-processing techniques such as standard scaling and Recursive Feature Elimination (RFE) for feature selection. By leveraging the ensemble learning technique of stacking, we enhance the model's predictive performance by combining the strengths of multiple classifiers. Results: The evaluation metrics results demonstrate the superior accuracy and obtained the higher performance in terms of accuracy, 99.25%. The effectiveness of our proposed system compared to baseline models. Discussion: Furthermore, the utilization of this system within IoT-enabled healthcare systems shows promising potential for improving heart disease diagnosis and ultimately enhancing patient outcomes.

Facile fabrication of sulfonated porous yeast carbon microspheres through a hydrothermal method and their application for the removal of cationic dye.

Water pollution containing dyes become increasingly serious environmental problem with the acceleration of urbanization and industrialization process. Renewable adsorbents for cationic dye wastewater treatment are becoming an obstacle because of the difficulty of desorbing the dye from the adsorbent surface after adsorption. To overcome this dilemma, herein, we report a hydrothermal method to fabricate sulfonic acid modified yeast carbon microspheres (SA/YCM). Different characterization techniques like scanning electron microscopy, FTIR spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction have been used to test the SA/YCM. Decorated with sulfonic acid group, the modified yeast carbon microspheres possess excellent ability of adsorbing positively charged materials. The removal rate of Methyl blue (MB) by renewable adsorbent SA/YCM can reach 85.3% when the concentration is 500 mg/L. The SA/YCM regenerated by HCl showed excellent regeneration adsorption capacity (78.1%) after five cycles of adsorption-desorption regeneration experiment. Adsorption isotherm and kinetic behaviors of SA/YCM for methylene blue dyes removal were studied and fitted to different existing models. Owing to the numerous sulfonic acid groups on the surface, the SA/YCM showed prominent reusability after regeneration under acidic conditions, which could withstand repeated adsorption-desorption cycles as well as multiple practical applications.

The radiomics-clinical nomogram for predicting the response to initial superselective arterial embolization in renal angiomyolipoma, a preliminary study.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to explore a radiomics-clinical model for predicting the response to initial superselective arterial embolization (SAE) in renal angiomyolipoma (RAML). Materials and methods: A total of 78 patients with RAML were retrospectively enrolled. Clinical data were recorded and evaluated. Radiomic features were extracted from preoperative contrast-enhanced CT (CECT). Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) and intra- and inter-class correlation coefficients (ICCs) were used in feature selection. Logistic regression analysis was performed to develop the radiomics, clinical, and combined models where the fivefold cross-validation method was used. The predictive performance and calibration were evaluated by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and calibration curve. Decision curve analysis (DCA) was used to measure clinical usefulness. Results: The tumor shrinkage rate was 29.7% in total, and both fat and angiomyogenic components were significantly reduced. In the radiomics model, 12 significant features were selected. In the clinical model, maximum diameter (p = 0.001), angiomyogenic tissue ratio (p = 0.032), aneurysms (p = 0.048), and post-SAE time (p = 0.002) were significantly associated with greater volume reduction after SAE. Because of the severe linear dependence between radiomics signature and some clinical parameters, the combined model eventually included Rad-score, aneurysm, and post-SAE time. The radiomics-clinical model showed better discrimination (mean AUC = 0.83) than the radiomics model (mean AUC = 0.60) and the clinical model (mean AUC = 0.82). Calibration curve and DCA showed the goodness of fit and clinical usefulness of the radiomics-clinical model. Conclusions: The radiomics-clinical model incorporating radiomics features and clinical parameters can potentially predict the positive response to initial SAE in RAML and provide support for clinical treatment decisions.

Biallelic variants in RBM42 cause a multisystem disorder with neurological, facial, cardiac, and musculoskeletal involvement

Here, we report a previously unrecognized syndromic neurodevelopmental disorder associated with biallelic loss-of-function variants in the RBM42 gene. The patient is a 2-year-old female with severe central nervous system (CNS) abnormalities, hypotonia, hearing loss, congenital heart defects, and dysmorphic facial features. Familial whole-exome sequencing (WES) reveals that the patient has two compound heterozygous variants, c.304C>T (p.R102*) and c.1312G>A (p.A438T), in the RBM42 gene which encodes an integral component of splicing complex in the RNA-binding motif protein family. The p.A438T variant is in the RRM domain which impairs RBM42 protein stability in vivo. Additionally, p.A438T disrupts the interaction of RBM42 with hnRNP K, which is the causative gene for Au-Kline syndrome with overlapping disease characteristics seen in the index patient. The human R102* or A438T mutant protein failed to fully rescue the growth defects of RBM42 ortholog knockout ΔFgRbp1 in Fusarium while it was rescued by the wild-type (WT) human RBM42. A mouse model carrying Rbm42 compound heterozygous variants, c.280C>T (p.Q94*) and c.1306_1308delinsACA (p.A436T), demonstrated gross fetal developmental defects and most of the double mutant animals died by E13.5. RNA-seq data confirmed that Rbm42 was involved in neurological and myocardial functions with an essential role in alternative splicing (AS). Overall, we present clinical, genetic, and functional data to demonstrate that defects in RBM42 constitute the underlying etiology of a new neurodevelopmental disease which links the dysregulation of global AS to abnormal embryonic development.

Effects of higher femoral tunnels on clinical outcomes, MRI, and second-look findings in double-bundle anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with a minimal 5-year follow-up / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

BACKGROUND@#To perform anatomical anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR), tunnels should be placed relatively higher in the femoral anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) footprint based on the findings of direct and indirect femoral insertion. But the clinical results of higher femoral tunnels (HFT) in double-bundle ACLR (DB-ACLR) remain unclear. The purpose was to investigate the clinical results of HFT and lower femoral tunnels (LFT) in DB-ACLR.@*METHODS@#From September 2014 to February 2016, 83 patients who underwent DB-ACLR and met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were divided into HFT-ACLR (group 1, n = 37) and LFT-ACLR (group 2, n = 46) according to the position of femoral tunnels. Preoperatively and at the final follow-up, clinical scores were evaluated with International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC), Tegner activity, and Lysholm score. The stability of the knee was evaluated with KT-2000, Lachman test, and pivot-shift test. Cartilage degeneration grades of the International Cartilage Repair Society (ICRS) were evaluated on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Graft tension, continuity, and synovialization were evaluated by second-look arthroscopy. Return-to-sports was assessed at the final follow-up.@*RESULTS@#Significantly better improvement were found for KT-2000, Lachman test, and pivot-shift test postoperatively in group 1 ( P >0.05). Posterolateral bundles (PL) showed significantly better results in second-look arthroscopy regarding graft tension, continuity, and synovialization ( P <0.05), but not in anteromedial bundles in group 1. At the final follow-up, cartilage worsening was observed in groups 1 and 2, but it did not reach a stastistically significant difference ( P >0.05). No statistically significant differences were found in IKDC subjective score, Tegner activity, and Lysholm score between the two groups. Higher return-to-sports rate was found in group 1 with 86.8% (32/37) vs. 65.2% (30/46) in group 2 ( P = 0.027).@*CONCLUSION@#The HFT-ACLR group showed better stability results, better PL, and higher return-to-sports rate compared to the LFT-ACLR group.

AZD1775 and anti-PD-1 antibody synergistically sensitize hepatoma to radiotherapy / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

BACKGROUND@#Radiation (IR)-induced DNA damage triggers cell cycle arrest and has a suppressive effect on the tumor microenvironment (TME). Wee1, a cell cycle regulator, can eliminate G2/M arrest by phosphorylating cyclin-dependent kinase 1 (CDK1). Meanwhile, programed death-1/programed death ligand-1 (PD-1/PDL-1) blockade is closely related to TME. This study aims to investigate the effects and mechanisms of Wee1 inhibitor AZD1775 and anti-PD-1 antibody (anti-PD-1 Ab) on radiosensitization of hepatoma.@*METHODS@#The anti-tumor activity of AZD1775 and IR was determined by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-y1)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay on human and mouse hepatoma cells HepG2, Hepa1-6, and H22. The anti-hepatoma mechanism of AZD1775 and IR revealed by flow cytometry and Western blot in vitro . A hepatoma subcutaneous xenograft mice model was constructed on Balb/c mice, which were divided into control group, IR group, AZD1775 group, IR + AZD1775 group, IR + anti-PD-1 Ab group, and the IR + AZD1775 + anti-PD-1 Ab group. Cytotoxic CD8 + T cells in TME were analyzed by flow cytometry.@*RESULTS@#Combining IR with AZD1775 synergistically reduced the viability of hepatoma cells in vitro . AZD1775 exhibited antitumor effects by decreasing CDK1 phosphorylation to reverse the IR-induced G2/M arrest and increasing IR-induced DNA damage. AZD1775 treatment also reduced the proportion of PD-1 + /CD8 + T cells in the spleen of hepatoma subcutaneous xenograft mice. Further studies revealed that AZD1775 and anti-PD-1 Ab could enhance the radiosensitivity of hepatoma by enhancing the levels of interferon γ (IFNγ) + or Ki67 + CD8 T cells and decreasing the levels of CD8 + Tregs cells in the tumor and spleen of the hepatoma mice model, indicating that the improvement of TME was manifested by increasing the cytotoxic factor IFNγ expression, enhancing CD8 + T cells proliferation, and weakening CD8 + T cells depletion.@*CONCLUSIONS@#This work suggests that AZD1775 and anti-PD-1 Ab synergistically sensitize hepatoma to radiotherapy by enhancing IR-induced DNA damage and improving cytotoxic CD8 + T cells in TME.

Multisensory Conflict Impairs Cortico-Muscular Network Connectivity and Postural Stability: Insights from Partial Directed Coherence Analysis / 神经科学通报·英文版

Sensory conflict impacts postural control, yet its effect on cortico-muscular interaction remains underexplored. We aimed to investigate sensory conflict's influence on the cortico-muscular network and postural stability. We used a rotating platform and virtual reality to present subjects with congruent and incongruent sensory input, recorded EEG (electroencephalogram) and EMG (electromyogram) data, and constructed a directed connectivity network. The results suggest that, compared to sensory congruence, during sensory conflict: (1) connectivity among the sensorimotor, visual, and posterior parietal cortex generally decreases, (2) cortical control over the muscles is weakened, (3) feedback from muscles to the cortex is strengthened, and (4) the range of body sway increases and its complexity decreases. These results underline the intricate effects of sensory conflict on cortico-muscular networks. During the sensory conflict, the brain adaptively decreases the integration of conflicting information. Without this integrated information, cortical control over muscles may be lessened, whereas the muscle feedback may be enhanced in compensation.

Synthesis and antibacterial activity evaluation of octapeptin derivatives / 药学学报

Octapeptin has strong antibacterial activity against Gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Acinetobacter baumannii, while it also has activity against some Gram-positive bacteria. This study used natural octapeptin A3 and B3 as lead compounds for structural modification. Twenty-one peptide derivatives (including A3 and B3) containing eight amino acid residues were prepared by solid-phase synthesis, and evaluated for antibacterial activity and renal cytotoxicity. Among them, three compounds 6, 7 and 17 exhibited broad-spectrum antibacterial activity and significantly enhanced the activity for Gram-positive bacteria while maintaining the activity of Gram-negative bacteria. Several compounds improved the activity for Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Compound 7 was active against all test strains and had relatively low renal cytotoxicity. The results provide a basis for the further development of novel polypeptide antibiotics.

SRF-rearranged cellular perivascular myoid tumor: a clinicopathological analysis of two cases / 中华病理学杂志

Objective: To investigate the clinicopathological features, immunophenotype, diagnosis and differential diagnosis of SRF-rearranged cellular perivascular myoid tumor. Methods: Two cases of SRF-rearranged cellular perivascular myoid tumor diagnosed in the Department of Pathology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center from October 2021 to March 2022 were collected. Immunohistochemical staining, fluorescence in-situ hybridization (FISH) and next-generation sequencing (NGS) were performed, and the literature was reviewed. Results: Case 1, a 3-month-old boy presented with a painless tumor of the scalp, measuring about 2 cm in diameter. Case 2, a 3-year-old girl complained with a painless tumor of the knee, measuring approximately 1.5 cm in diameter. Microscopically, the tumor had a clear boundary and showed multinodular growth. The tumor was mainly composed of spindle cells arranged in long intersecting fascicles associated with thin, slit-like or branching ectatic vessels, focally forming hemangiopericytoma-like appearance. The tumor cells were abundant, but there was no obvious atypia. Mitotic figures (3-4/10 HPF) were noted. H-caldesmon and SMA were positive in both cases. Case 1 showed diffuse and strong positivity for Desmin, and focally for CKpan. Ki-67 proliferation index was 20% and 30%, respectively. FISH displayed NCOA2 gene translocation in case 1 and the RELA gene translocation in case 2. NGS detected the SRF-NCOA2 gene fusion in case 1 and the SRF-RELA gene fusion in case 2. Both patients underwent local excisions. During the follow-up of 5-14 months, case 1 had no local recurrence, while case 2 developed local recurrence 1 year post operatively. Conclusions: SRF-rearranged cellular perivascular myoid tumor is a novel variant of perivascular cell tumor, which tends to occur in children and adolescents. The tumor forms a broad morphologic spectrum ranging from a pericytic pattern to a myoid pattern, and include hybrid tumors with a mixture of pericytic and myoid patterns. Due to its diffuse hypercellularity and increased mitotic figures and smooth muscle-like immunophenotype, the tumor is easy to be misdiagnosed as myogenic sarcomas. The tumor usually pursues a benign clinical course and rare cases may locally recur.

Multi-parameter cardiac magnetic resonance imaging detects anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity in rabbits model.

Background: Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) quantitative T1 and T2 mapping offers a non-invasive means to evaluate early cardiotoxicity changes. This study aimed to pinpoint the earliest CMR indicators of myocardial injury in Anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity (AIC) and to elucidate the connections between these CMR indicators and associated pathological indicators. Methods: A total of 34 rabbits were administered doxorubicin at a dosage of 1 mg/kg/weekly. The study incorporated six 3T CMR scan time points: baseline, and at intervals of four, six, eight, twelve, and sixteen weeks. Cine, T1 and T2 mapping sequences assessed the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), native T1, extracellular volume fraction (ECV), and T2 values. Following each time point, three rabbits were sacrificed for histological analysis involving Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E), Masson, TUNEL, and microvascular density (MVD) stains. Spearman correlations and linear mixed model analysis served in the statistical analysis. Results: Diverse degrees of alternation were recorded in LVEF, native T1, T2, and ECV over time. LVEF declined to 49.0 ± 2.6 % at 12 weeks from the baseline of 53.4 ± 3.2 %, p < 0.001. Native T1 values increase from the baseline (1396.5 ± 79.2 ms) until 8 weeks (1498.8 ± 95.4 ms, p < 0.001). T2 values increased from the baseline (36.6 ± 3.3 ms) within 4 weeks of initiation (37.5 ± 3.4, p = 0.02) and remained elevated through 16 weeks (42.8 ± 0.3, p < 0.01). ECV was elevated at 8 weeks (33.9 ± 3.8 %, p = 0.005) compared to the baseline (30.2 ± 2.5 %). By week 12, myocardial edema and increased CVF were apparent (p = 0.04 and = 0.001, respectively). The area under ROC curve for positive CMR presence and the gold standards were 0.87 (T2-ROC, 4 weeks) and 0.92 (LVEF&BNP-ROC, 12 weeks). Conclusion: T1 and T2 mapping are effective tools for cardiotoxicity detection and monitoring. The prolongation of T2 value emerged as the most consistent and early-onset indicator.

Active compounds of Caodoukou () inhibit the migration, invasion and metastasis of human pancreatic cancer cells by targeting phosphoinosmde-3-kinase/ protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin pathway.

OBJECTIVE: To detect the effects of active compounds of Caodoukou () (ACAK) on the proliferation, migration and invasion of pancreatic cancer, and explain the possible molecular mechanism of ACAK interacting with these processes. METHODS: Cell counting kit-8 method, cell scratch repair experiment, Transwell migration and invasion experiment, immunohistochemistry, western blot assay and real-time polymerase chain reaction experiment were used to evaluate the effect of ACAK on the proliferation, migration and invasion of pancreatic cancer cells. The levels of active molecules involved in the phosphoinosmde-3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt/the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signal transduction were detected by Western blot assay. In addition, the function of ACAK was evaluated by xenotransplantation tumor model in nude mice. RESULTS: The inhibitory effect of ACAK on the proliferation of pancreatic cancer cells showed certain time-dose dependence. The results of scratch repair test, Transwell test, Western blotting and real time polymerase chain reaction assay showed that ACAK could inhibit the migration and invasion of pancreatic cancer cells . In addition, the regulatory effect of ACAK on epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is partly attributed to PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway. The experimental results showed that ACAK regulated the development of pancreatic cancer. CONCLUSIONS: ACAK can partly inhibit the activity of EMT and matrix metallopeptidases by down-regulating the downstream proteins of PI3K/Akt/mTOR signal pathway, thus inhibiting the ability of migration and invasion of pancreatic cancer.

Perspective on pH adjustment in hydrometallurgical recycling of valuable metals from waste.

pH adjustment was considered a simple step in the hydrometallurgy process, but its complicated operation was ignored in the past. In some industrial applications, the leachate pH was slowly adjusted by a diluted alkaline solution, with the defects of doubling the leachate volume and causing droplet hydrolysis/coagulation. Up to date, promising routes have been developed for rapid pH adjustment, especially in sealed high-temperature/pressure vessels. New routes emerged in some redox/decomposition reactions of nitrate/urea and organics. Such reactions did not start and/or were slow at room temperature but started spontaneously at high temperatures to generate/consume free H+. This induced pH adjustment in a rapid and homogeneous way.

Research Progress and Discussion on Modified Cement-Based Borehole Sealing Materials for Mining.

As the concept of green mining develops, organic sealing materials are losing popularity in mining, yet the development of inorganic sealing materials for mining has become a research focus. The most common inorganic sealing materials are Portland cement (PC) and sulfate aluminate cement (SAC), but they fail to meet the performance requirements for sealing gas boreholes in complex coal seams due to their limitations. Thus, their performance needs to be modified. This study aims to explore and grasp the current development of inorganic modified cement-based materials from the perspective of improving the performance of cement-based materials of PC and SAC. First, the characteristics of the main hydration products of PC and SAC as well as the effects of these characteristics on their properties were analyzed. Next, the effects of additives such as admixtures, coagulant regulators, and nanomaterials on their properties including hydration properties, coagulation time, and strength were analyzed. Finally, the modification methods and mechanisms were discussed. It is proposed that the optimization of modification effects by various additives is of great practical significance for the development and application of modified PC and SAC in sealing gas boreholes in engineering practice.

HDAC5-mediated PRAME regulates the proliferation, migration, invasion, and EMT of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma via the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway.

Laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) is an aggressive and lethal malignant neoplasm with extremely poor prognoses. Accumulating evidence has indicated that preferentially expressed antigen in melanoma (PRAME) is correlated with several kinds of cancers. However, there is little direct evidence to substantiate the biological function of PRAME in LSCC. The purpose of the current study is to explore the oncogenic role of PRAME in LSCC. PRAME expression was analyzed in 57 pairs of LSCC tumor tissue samples through quantitative real-time PCR, and the correlation between PRAME and clinicopathological features was analyzed. The result indicated that PRAME was overexpressed in the LSCC patients and correlated with the TNM staging and lymphatic metastasis. The biological functions and molecular mechanism of PRAME in LSCC progression were investigated through in vitro and in vivo assays. Functional studies confirmed that PRAME facilitated the proliferation, invasion, migration, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition of LSCC cells, and PRAME also promoted tumor growth in vivo. HDAC5 was identified as an upstream regulator that can affect the expression of PRAME. Moreover, PRAME played the role at least partially by activating PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathways. The above findings elucidate that PRAME may be a valuable oncogene target, contributing to the diagnosis and therapy of LSCC.

Natural marsh-pasture/sugarcane field transitions greatly reduced lignin-derived pyrolysis products of soil organic matter.

Cultivation of marshes (Ma) to arable like pasture (Pa) and sugarcane (Sa) usually causes soil organic carbon (SOC) pool depletion within a short time. However, there are some uncertainties about which molecular composition of soil organic matter (SOM) is sensitive to land use change (LUC). In the present work, molecular components of SOM were investigated and compared to better understand the impacts of LUC on the carbon cycle from Ma to Pa or Sa in Louisiana and Florida. Pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) analysis indicated that LUC greatly altered the molecular composition of SOM. More lignin, polysaccharide, and phonetic compounds were founded from Ma, and more nitrogen-containing compounds were identified from Sa. Lignin and phenolic compounds had unexpectedly the most decrease from native marsh-sugarcane/pasture transitions, showing the same trend as SOC. This meant that lignin and phenol were not as stable as expected when undergoing LUC. LUC significantly yield more molecular moieties and then resulted in higher complexities and diversities of molecular components in Pa or Sa than those in Ma. Principal component analysis implied higher contributions of old carbon to SOM in Ma, and fresh biomass input contributed more SOM in Sa. Our results implied that human activities such as LUC could not only alter carbon fluxes but also simultaneously change molecular mechanisms that drive the carbon cycle.

Correlations of β-catenin expression with clinical efficacy of tyrosine kinase inhibitors and prognosis of advanced lung adenocarcinoma patients with epidermal growth factor receptor mutations / 肿瘤研究与临床

Objective:To investigate the correlations of β-catenin expression with the efficacy of tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) and prognosis of patients with advanced lung adenocarcinoma harboring epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations.Methods:The clinical data of 125 patients with stage Ⅲ B-Ⅳ lung adenocarcinoma who were treated with first-line EGFR-TKI treatment in the 901st Hospital of Joint Logistic Support Force of Chinese PLA from January 2016 to December 2019 were collected. The expression of β-catenin protein was detected by immunohistochemistry, and subtypes of EGFR mutations were detected by amplification refractory mutation system (ARMS). Correlations of β-catenin expression with clinicopathological features, efficacy of EGFR-TKI and prognosis were analyzed. Twenty-eight pairs of specimens were selected before EGFR-TKI treatment and after resistance to EGFR-TKI to observe the changes of β-catenin expression. Results:Among 125 advanced lung adenocarcinoma patients with EGFR mutations, there were 60 cases of EGFR 19 del, 55 cases of L858R mutation and 10 cases of rare sensitive mutation; 79 cases (63.2%) had reduced membranous expression of β-catenin, 66 cases (52.8%) had ectopic expression in cytoplasm and 28 cases (22.4%) had ectopic expression in nucleus. The positive rates of Napsin A protein in the groups with different abnormal expression patterns of β-catenin were lower than those in the corresponding normal expression groups (all P < 0.001). Patients with International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) grade Ⅲ showed more frequent translocation in cytoplasma and nucleus of β-catenin than patients with IASLC gradeⅠ-Ⅱ (ectopic expression in cytoplasm: χ2 = 3.99, P = 0.046,ectopic expression in nucleus: χ2 = 11.07, P = 0.001). The objective remission rate (ORR) in patients with reduced membranous expression of β-catenin and ectopic expression in nucleus was lower than that in patients with normal membranous expression ( χ2 = 4.66, P = 0.031) and negative ectopic expression in nucleus ( χ2 = 10.22, P = 0.001), and the disease control rate (DCR) in patients with ectopic expression in nucleus was lower than that in the corresponding normal expression group ( χ2 = 10.95, P = 0.001). Patients with ectopic expression of β-catenin in nucleus and cytoplasma had worse progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) than the corresponding cytoplasmic and nuclear ectopic expression negative groups (both P < 0.05). Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that nuclear β-catenin ectopic expression was an independent risk factor for both PFS and OS (PFS: HR = 2.088, 95% CI 1.331-3.274, P = 0.001; OS: HR = 3.656, 95% CI 1.795-7.444, P<0.001). β-catenin membranous expression was reduced in 11 of 28 tissue samples that underwent secondary biopsy compared with pre-treatment ( P = 0.049). Conclusions:β-catenin expression in advanced lung adenocarcinoma with EGFR-sensitive mutations can be used as a molecular marker to predict the efficacy of EGFR-TKI and prognosis of patients.

Diagnostic value of a combined serology-based model for minimal hepatic encephalopathy in patients with compensated cirrhosis / 中华检验医学杂志

Objective:To investigate the diagnostic accuracy of serological indicators and evaluate the diagnostic value of a new established combined serological model on identifying the minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) in patients with compensated cirrhosis.Methods:This prospective multicenter study enrolled 263 compensated cirrhotic patients from 23 hospitals in 15 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities of China between October 2021 and August 2022. Clinical data and laboratory test results were collected, and the model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) score was calculated. Ammonia level was corrected to the upper limit of normal (AMM-ULN) by the baseline blood ammonia measurements/upper limit of the normal reference value. MHE was diagnosed by combined abnormal number connection test-A and abnormal digit symbol test as suggested by Guidelines on the management of hepatic encephalopathy in cirrhosis. The patients were randomly divided (7∶3) into training set ( n=185) and validation set ( n=78) based on caret package of R language. Logistic regression was used to establish a combined model of MHE diagnosis. The diagnostic performance was evaluated by the area under the curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristic curve, Hosmer-Lemeshow test and calibration curve. The internal verification was carried out by the Bootstrap method ( n=200). AUC comparisons were achieved using the Delong test. Results:In the training set, prevalence of MHE was 37.8% (70/185). There were statistically significant differences in AMM-ULN, albumin, platelet, alkaline phosphatase, international normalized ratio, MELD score and education between non-MHE group and MHE group (all P<0.05). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that AMM-ULN [odds ratio ( OR)=1.78, 95% confidence interval ( CI) 1.05-3.14, P=0.038] and MELD score ( OR=1.11, 95% CI 1.04-1.20, P=0.002) were independent risk factors for MHE, and the AUC for predicting MHE were 0.663, 0.625, respectively. Compared with the use of blood AMM-ULN and MELD score alone, the AUC of the combined model of AMM-ULN, MELD score and education exhibited better predictive performance in determining the presence of MHE was 0.755, the specificity and sensitivity was 85.2% and 55.7%, respectively. Hosmer-Lemeshow test and calibration curve showed that the model had good calibration ( P=0.733). The AUC for internal validation of the combined model for diagnosing MHE was 0.752. In the validation set, the AUC of the combined model for diagnosing MHE was 0.794, and Hosmer-Lemeshow test showed good calibration ( P=0.841). Conclusion:Use of the combined model including AMM-ULN, MELD score and education could improve the predictive efficiency of MHE among patients with compensated cirrhosis.

Multimodal imaging features of perifoveal exudative vascular anomalous complex / 中华眼底病杂志

Objective:To observe the multimodal imaging features and explore the treatment of parafoveal exudative vascular anomaly complex (PEVAC).Methods:A retrospective study. Six patients (6 eyes) with PEVAC diagnosed in Tianjin Eye Hospital were included in this study from July 2018 to December 2021. All patients were female with monocular disease. The age was (61.1±9.3) years. All patients showed a sudden painless decline in monocular vision with metamorphopsia. All patients underwent best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), color fundus photography, fundus fluorescein angiography (FFA), optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography (OCTA). Indocyanine green angiography (ICGA) was performed in 4 eyes. In 6 eyes, 3 eyes were treated with intravitreal injection of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor drug; 5 eyes were treated with micropulse laser photocoagulation and/or local thermal laser photocoagulation; 1 eye was treated with photodynamic therapy. Five patients were followed up for (9.2±7.4) months, and 1 patient was lost. At follow-up, the same equipment and methods were used as at the initial diagnosis. The clinical manifestations, multimodal image features and treatment response were observed.Results:Baseline BCVA of affected eyes were ranged from 0.1 to 0.5. PEVAC was isolated in 6 eyes, and the fundus showed isolated hemangioma-like leision, accompanied by small bleeding and hard exudation. There were 2 isolated hemangiomatous lesions adjacent to each other in 2 eyes. In the early stage of FFA, punctate high fluorescence lesions near the macular fovea were seen, and the leakage was enhanced in the late stage. There was no leakage in the early stage of ICGA, or slight leakage with late scouring. OCT showed an oval lesion with high reflection wall and uneven low reflection. The central macular thickness (CMT) was (431±76) μm. OCTA showed blood flow signals in PEVAC, 2 eyes in the superficial capillary plexus (SCP), and it was also observed in the deep capillary plexus (DCP), but the intensity of blood flow signal was slightly weaker than that in the SCP. The blood flow signal was visible only in DCP in 2 eyes. SCP and DCP showed similar intensity of blood flow signals in 2 eyes. After treatment, the bleeding was absorbed basically in 4 eyes, the hard exudation partially subsided, the CMT decreased, the intercortical cystic cavity of the fovea nerve decreased, the hemangiomatous lesions narrowed, and BCVA increased. In 1 eye, the macular sac was reduced and partially absorbed by hard exudation, which was later relapsed due to blood pressure fluctuation.Conclusions:The majority of PEVAC patients had monocular onset. The fundus is characterized by solitary or structure with strong reflex walls, with or without retinal cysts, hard exudates, and subretinal fluid, and visible blood flow signals inside.