Ultrasound-Based Multi-Planar Bilateral Comparisons as a Diagnostic and Treatment-Definition Method for Unilateral Peripheral Nerve Entrapment.

OBJECTIVE: The primary goal was to determine the performance of the cross-section area swelling rate (CSASR) for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes based on the reference standard of electrodiagnosis examination (EDX) in this diagnostic test study. METHODS: First, patients with symptoms like unilateral carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), cubital tunnel syndrome (CuTS), and radial nerve compression (RNC) underwent EDX and ultrasound examination. Second, patients with positive ultrasound were calculated for the CSASR of diseased nerve. Based on previously established CSASR criteria, each patient was categorized as having or not having peripheral nerve entrapment, and for those meeting diagnostic criteria, non-surgical or surgical treatment was recommended. Then, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and accuracy rate (ACC) of ultrasound diagnosis and therapeutic decision-making were calculated based on the reference standard of EDX that had been historically used in the practice. RESULTS: The total sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV, and ACC of ultrasound diagnosis are respectively 93.4, 85.2, 94.7, 82.1, and 91.3%. Which of therapeutic decision-making by ultrasound are, respectively, 83.3, 52.2, 78.4, 60.0, and 73.2%. CONCLUSION: The sensitivity and Youden's index of CSASR diagnostic threshold for CuTS is higher than other ultrasound methods. The CSASR diagnostic threshold for CuTS has a potential diagnostic role, but the current date is still not enough to support the potential diagnostic role for CTS or RNS. There is insufficient evidence to suggest that CSASR for CuTS can be used in isolation for diagnosis. Additional research is needed to confirm the diagnostic role of CSASR. The current results suggest that this ultrasound examination method is not suitable for therapeutic decision-making.

Application of a nerve stereoscopic reconstruction technique based on ultrasonic images in the diagnosis of neuralgic amyotrophy.

Objective: To propose a nerve stereoscopic reconstruction technique based on ultrasound imaging for site diagnosis, intuitive reflection of disease severity, and classification of neuralgic amyotrophy (NA). Methods: We enrolled 44 patients with NA who underwent high-frequency ultrasonography examination. Multiple sites on the normal side and the affected side were scanned to calculate the ratio of the cross-section area (CSA) of the affected side to the normal side at each location measured, i.e., the cross-section area swelling ratio (CSASR). The CSASR of 44 patients and 30 normal controls was analyzed to determine their threshold value for the diagnosis of NA. Then, ultrasound images of the cross-section were used to reconstruct the stereoscopic model of the nerve on the affected side and the normal side. Using the CSASR values in each measurement location, a CSASR stereoscopic model was developed. Results: The threshold value of CSASR for ultrasound diagnosis of NA was 1.55. The average diseased segments per patient was 2.49 ± 1.97, with an average overall length of 10.03 ± 7.95 cm. Nerve stereoscopic reconstruction could be conducted for swelling, torsion, incomplete constriction, and complete constriction. Conclusion: The ultrasound image reconstruction method proposed in this study can accurately determine the site, range, and type of neuropathies in patients with NA, and simultaneously provide complete and accurate data information and intuitive morphological information.

Response surface methodology to optimize self-flocculation harvesting of microalgae Desmodesmus sp.CHX1.

This study aims to optimize the self-flocculation ability of microalgae Desmodesmus sp. CHX1 by the response surface methodology (RSM). Key parameters (i.e. pH, temperature and flocculation time) that significantly affected the Desmodesmus sp.CHX1 flocculation were determined. Results show that the flocculation efficiency of Desmodesmus sp.CHX1 increased in response to the prolonged settling time, particularly within the first 6 h, given the secretion of extracellular polymers. The RSM result suggested that both temperature and time exerted more significant effects on flocculation efficiency than solution pH. In specific, the maximum flocculation efficiency could reach 94.0% under the optimal conditions with the temperature, time and pH of 12.37°C, 6.96 h and 7.98, respectively. Validation experiments further indicated the reliability of the optimal parameter conditions.

Effect of nano-TiO2 on humic acid utilization from piggery biogas slurry by microalgae.

Resource recovery from piggery biogas slurry has become an inevitable demand for sustainable development of pig industry. Microalgae show great potential in recovering nitrogen and phosphorus from piggery slurry, but struggle to utilize organic pollutants, as most of them are inert components (e.g., humic acids, HAs). In this study, nano-TiO2 was used to enhance the utilization of HAs by microalgae from piggery biogas slurry. Results showed that the optimal conditions for microalgal growth and HAs removal by the microalgae-TiO2 coupling system were TiO2 dosage of 0.30 g/L, microalgal inoculation concentration of 0.40 g/L, light intensity of 360 µmol photon/(m2·s) and temperature of 30 °C, with the microalgal chlorophyll concentration of 6.51 mg/L and HAs removal efficiency of 50.14%. Analysis of HAs composition variations in the piggery biogas slurry indicated that the decrease of HAs was caused by their decomposition into small molecules under the photocatalytic reactions of TiO2.

Association of Total Dietary Intake of Sugars with Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) Concentrations: Evidence from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), 2003-2010.

BACKGROUND: There is increasing evidence that dietary intake of sugars may be a risk factor for prostate cancer (PCa) and elevate the concentration of serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA). However, there is limited evidence of the correlation between total dietary intake of sugars and serum PSA concentrations for adult American males. Herein, we evaluated the association between total dietary intake of sugars and serum PSA concentrations in men without a malignant tumor diagnosis in the United States (US) National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) database. Material and Methods. In this secondary data analysis, a total of 6,403 men aged ≥40 years and without malignant tumor history were included from 2003 to 2010. The independent variable of this study was the total dietary intake of sugars, and the dependent variable was serum PSA concentrations. Covariates included dietary, comorbidity, physical examination, and demographic data. RESULTS: The average age of participants included in this study was 58.1 years (±13.6). After adjusting for the dietary, comorbidity, physical examination, and demographic data, we observed that a dietary intake increase of one gram of total dietary intake of sugars was associated with an increase of serum PSA concentrations by 0.003 ng/mL (after log2 transformed, 95% CI: 0.001 to 0.005) with a P value for trend less than 0.05. Sensitivity analysis using the generalized additive model (GAM) supported the linear association between total dietary intake of sugars and serum PSA concentrations. CONCLUSION: The total dietary intake of sugars is independently and positively associated with serum PSA concentrations in adult American males who are without a personal history of malignant tumors.

Simultaneous introgression of three POLLED mutations into a synthetic breed of Chinese cattle.

The polled phenotype of cattle is increasingly becoming favourable mainly because of the enhanced emphasis on animal welfare, for which the causative mutations have been reported during the past years. The Shuxuan cattle are a new synthetic breed by crossing the indigenous cattle with both Simmental and Holstein semen in Sichuan of Southwest China, in which about 15% of polled individuals have newly emerged. Because official record about POLLED genotypes for the historically imported sires is unavailable, we therefore genotyped the proposed POLLED variants of P202ID, P80kbID and P219ID among 48 polled and 16 horned Shuxuan cattle. It was first revealed that all three candidate mutations have been simultaneously introgressed into Shuxuan cattle, whereas the P202ID mutation is dominant. Furthermore, one polled animal still remains to carry none of the three candidate mutations, which suggests that further mutation(s) would also exist. Additionally, we sequenced mitochondrial DNA and found that Shuxuan cattle are composed of two matrilineal origins of Bos taurus (65.6%) and B. indicus (34.4%); and there is no origin-biased distribution of polled phenotype. In conclusion, our study first supports the recently reported novel candidate mutation of P219ID and detects simultaneous presences of all three known POLLED mutations within a cattle breed.

PopSc: Computing Toolkit for Basic Statistics of Molecular Population Genetics Simultaneously Implemented in Web-Based Calculator, Python and R.

Although various computer tools have been elaborately developed to calculate a series of statistics in molecular population genetics for both small- and large-scale DNA data, there is no efficient and easy-to-use toolkit available yet for exclusively focusing on the steps of mathematical calculation. Here, we present PopSc, a bioinformatic toolkit for calculating 45 basic statistics in molecular population genetics, which could be categorized into three classes, including (i) genetic diversity of DNA sequences, (ii) statistical tests for neutral evolution, and (iii) measures of genetic differentiation among populations. In contrast to the existing computer tools, PopSc was designed to directly accept the intermediate metadata, such as allele frequencies, rather than the raw DNA sequences or genotyping results. PopSc is first implemented as the web-based calculator with user-friendly interface, which greatly facilitates the teaching of population genetics in class and also promotes the convenient and straightforward calculation of statistics in research. Additionally, we also provide the Python library and R package of PopSc, which can be flexibly integrated into other advanced bioinformatic packages of population genetics analysis.

Analysis of chlorophenols in environmental water using polydopamine-coated magnetic graphene as an extraction material coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography.

In this work, polydopamine-coated magnetic graphene nanocomposites were synthesized by a simple solvothermal reaction and self-polymerization of dopamine, and the as-made nanocomposites were successfully applied as an effective adsorbent for the preconcentration of the four chlorophenols in environmental water samples before high-performance liquid chromatography. The polydopamine-coated magnetic graphene nanocomposites have several advantages such as a high surface area, fast separation ability, super-hydrophilicity, and high peak intensities for aromatic analytes. Various parameters, including eluting solvent and volume, the amounts of absorbents, extraction time and elution time were optimized. Validation experiments showed that the optimized method had good linearity (r(2) > 0.9990), satisfactory precision (RSD < 6.7%) and high recovery (90-105%). The limits of detection were 0.013-0.020 µg/L and the limits of quantification ranged from 0.043 to 0.070 µg/L. The results indicated that the proposed method had advantages of convenience, good sensitivity, and high efficiency. The method has been applied successfully to analyze chlorophenols in real water samples.

[RECONSTRUCTION OF IRREGULAR DEFECTS OF HAND USING LATERAL ARM FREE PERFORATOR FLAP BY PERSONALIZED DESIGN].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effectiveness of lateral arm free perforator flap by personalized design in repairing irregular defects of the hand. METHODS: Twelve patients with irregular defects of the hand were repaired with lateral arm free perforator flaps by personalized design between January 2010 and January 2015. There were 7 males and 5 females with a mean age of 35 years (range, 18-52 years). The causes included crush injury in 5 cases, thermal injury in 3 cases, traffic accident injury in 2 cases, and friction injury in 2 cases. The time between injury and admission was 1.0-4.5 hours (mean, 3.1 hours). In 3 patients with skin and soft tissue defect of approximate square, the flap of less than 6 cm in width was designed and was segmented into foliated flaps to repair wound; the bilobed flaps were used in 5 cases of hand penetrating wounds; the bilobed flaps or trifoliate flaps were used in 4 cases of multiple finger skin soft tissue defects. The total area of the defects ranged from 6.0 cm x 5.0 cm to 9.0 cm x 8.0 cm, and the area of flap ranged from 10.0 cm x 3.5 cm to 12.0 cm x 6.0 cm. All the wounds at donor site were closed directly. RESULTS: All the flaps survived, wounds and incisions at donor sites healed by first intention. The patients were followed up 6-15 months (mean, 10 months). Bulky flaps were observed in 2 cases of female patients, and flap thinning was performed at 3 months after operation. The hand function recovered satisfactorily, and the sensation was 51-53 at 6 months after operation. According to the functional assessment criteria of upper limb formulated by the Hand Surgery Branch of Chinese Medical Association, the results were excellent in 2 cases, good in 7 cases, fair in 2 cases, and poor in 1 case. The linear scars was observed at the donor site. CONCLUSION: The lateral arm free perforator flap has constant vessels anatomy, and there are many perforators in the intermuscular septum. The lateral arm free perforator flap by personalized design can repair irregular defects of the hand.

Analysis of phthalate acid esters in environmental water by magnetic graphene solid phase extraction coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

In this work, magnetic graphene composites were synthesized via a simple hydrothermal reaction. The as-prepared composites were successfully applied as an effective adsorbent for the preconcentration of seven phthalate acid esters (PAEs) in environmental water samples prior to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. The magnetic graphene composites had a unique structure in which magnetite particles were deposited on graphene sheets. This unique structure not only provided strong magnetic responsiveness for the separation but also prevented the self-aggregation of graphene. The magnetic graphene composites had several advantages, such as large surface area, fast separation ability, and high peak intensity for aromatic analytes; these properties are attributed to the distinct structure of magnetic graphene composites, which comprises p-conjugated networks with a highly exposed surface. Various parameters, including eluting solvent and volume, absorbent amount, extraction time and elution time, were optimized. Validation experiments showed that the optimized method presented good linearity (r>0.997), satisfactory precision (RSD<8.5%), and high recovery (88-110%). The limits of detection were from 0.010µg/L to 0.056µg/L, and the limits of quantification were from 0.035µg/L to 0.19µg/L. The proposed method had these advantages of simplicity, good sensitivity, and high efficiency. Finally, the proposed was successfully applied to the analysis of PAEs in real water samples.

Rapid analysis of aldehydes by simultaneous microextraction and derivatization followed by GC-MS.

Ultrasound-assisted dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (UDLLME) and simultaneous derivatization followed by GC-MS was developed for the analysis of four aldehydes including acetaldehyde (ACE), propionaldehyde (PRO), butyraldehyde (BUT) and valeraldehyde (VAL) in water samples. In the proposed method, the aldehydes were derivatized with O-2,3,4,5,6-(pentafluorobenzyl)hydroxylamine (PFBHA) and extracted by UDLLME in aqueous solution simultaneously; finally, the derivatives were analyzed by GC-MS. The experimental parameters were investigated and the method validations were studied. The optimal conditions were: aqueous sample of 5 mL, PFBHA of 50 µL, 1.0 mL ethanol (disperser solvent) containing 20 µL chlorobenzene (extraction solvent), ultrasound time of 2 min and centrifuging time of 3 min at 6000 rpm. The proposed method provided satisfactory precision (RSD 1.8-10.2%), wide linear range (0.8-160 µg/L), good linearity (R(2) 0.9983-0.9993), good relative recovery (85-105%) and low limit of detection (0.16-0.23 µg/L). The proposed method was successfully applied for the analysis of aldehydes in water samples. The experimental results showed that the proposed method was a very simple, rapid, low-cost, sensitive and efficient analytical method for the determination of trace amount of aldehydes in water samples.