Mechanism and efficiency research of P- and N-codoped graphene for enhanced paracetamol electrocatalytic degradation.

Electrocatalytic oxidation is an effective technology for treatment of refractory organic pollutants, and its performance strongly depends on anode materials. Among all anode materials, graphene (GN) owns the advantages of high stability and lack of secondary pollution. The catalytic performance of GN can be further improved through heteroatom doping. Here, P/N-codoped graphene (PN-GN) materials were optimized and used as an anode material for 4-acetamidophenol (APAP) electrocatalytic degradation. Result indicated that PN-GN had lower internal resistance, larger specific surface area, and higher electrochemical activity than single-doped graphene materials. The catalytic activity of GN was greatly improved by P/N codoping. When PN-GN (P8.4%-N7.6%-500 °C) was used as catalyst (current of 20 mA, initial pH of 7, reaction time of 60 min), the degradation efficiency of APAP reached 98.2% ± 1.8%, which was 17.9% ± 3.6% higher than P-codoped graphene (P-GN), 14.7% ± 4.6% higher than N-codoped graphene (N-GN), and 54.0% ± 5.2% higher than GN. After 180 min of reaction, the degradation efficiency of total organic carbon (TOC) was 78.5%. The reaction conditions were optimized and the degradation pathway of APAP was estimated to elucidate the catalytic mechanism. The main active substances generated in the system were identified as active chlorine and O2•-.

[Effects of low-dose dexmedetomidine combined with hydromorphone in postoperative analgesia and on the serum IL-6 and CRP levels of prostate cancer patients].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effects of low-dose dexmedetomidine (DM) combined with hydromorphone (HM) in postoperative analgesia and on levels of serum interleukin-6 (IL-6) and C-reactive protein (CRP) in PCa patients. METHODS: Using the random number table, we divided 102 PCa patients undergoing radical prostatectomy from January 2019 to November 2020 into a trial group (n = 51) and a control group (n = 51), the former given HM and the latter low-dose DM + HM for postoperative analgesia. We recorded the postoperative resuscitation time, extubation time and pain, perioperative cognitive function, IL-6 and CRP levels, and drug-related adverse reactions of the patients, and compared them between the two groups. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference in postoperative resuscitation time and extubation time between the two groups of patients (P > 0.05). The frequency of patient-controlled epidural analgesia (PCEA) compressions was lower in the trial than in the control group within 24 hours after surgery (P < 0.05). The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) scores were higher in both of the groups at 24 hours than at 4, 12, and 48 hours after surgery (P < 0.05), at 12 hours than at 4 and 48 hours (P < 0.05) and at 4 hours than at 48 hours (P < 0.05), but lower in the trial than in the control group at 4, 12 and 24 hours postoperatively (P < 0.05). No statistically significant difference was observed in the scores of the Mini Mental State Evaluation Scale between the two groups of patients (P > 0.05). The levels of IL-6 and CRP were higher in both of the groups at 24 hours after than before and at 4, 12 and 48 hours after surgery (P < 0.05), at 48 hours after than before and at 4 and 12 hours after surgery (P < 0.05), at 12 hours after than before and at 4 hours after surgery (P <0.05), and at 4 hours after than before surgery (P < 0.05), but lower in the trial than in the control group at 4, 12, 24 and 48 hours postoperatively (P < 0.05). There was no statistically significant difference in the total incidence rate of adverse reactions between the two groups (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Low-dose dexmedetomidine combined with hydromorphone is a safe and effective option for postoperative analgesia in PCa patients, and it can inhibit the expression of inflammatory factors.

Sulfur doped-graphene for enhanced acetaminophen degradation via electro-catalytic activation: Efficiency and mechanism.

Although graphene exhibited excellent performance, its capability of electrochemical catalytic oxidation would significantly improve by modification via sulfur (S)-doping. However, due to the complicated doping species of heteroatoms, the detailed mechanism was still remained open for discussion. Thus, this first-attempt study tended to decipher such mechanism behind the direct and indirect oxidation by analyzing S species in S-graphene. The density functional theory (DFT) was adopted for reactive center calculation and confirmation of secondary active species, to discuss the degradation pathway. As the experimental and calculation results, the thiophene structure S was more favorable for electron acceptation in direct oxidation. Chloride reactive species, as the most effective secondary functionalities (rather than •OH), were favorably generated on the edge doped S position than thiophene structured S in defects, to further trigger the indirect oxidation. However, the extensive contents of reactive functionalities could act as trap for self-annihilation of chloride reactive species, resulting in poor electrocatalytic degradation of the pollutants. This study deepened the understanding of heteroatoms doping for electrochemical catalytic oxidation.

Diagnostic Performance of 68Gallium Labelled Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging for Staging the Prostate Cancer with Intermediate or High Risk Prior to Radical Prostatectomy: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: To compare the diagnostic efficiency of 68Gallium labelled prostate-specific membrane antigen positron emission tomography (68Ga-PSMA PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for staging the lymph node metastases (LNMs) in the prostate cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A broad search of scientific databases including PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Database, and Chinese Biomedicine Literature Database (updated prior to November 1st, 2018) was conducted systematically by two reviewers. In this paper, we evaluated the methodological quality of each included article independently and performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to reveal the summary of the diagnostic performance of 68Ga-PSMA PET and MRI in properly identifying LNMs of intermediate- and/or high-risk prostate cancer. RESULTS: Thirteen eligible articles comprising 1,597 patients were included. For LNMs detection, the pooled sensitivity and specificity of 68Ga-PSMA PET were 0.65 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.49-0.79) and 0.94 (95% CI: 0.88-0.97), respectively, while the corresponding values of MRI were 0.41 (95% CI: 0.26-0.57) and 0.92 (95% CI: 0.86-0.95). The area under the symmetric receiver-operating characteristic (SROC) curve for 68Ga-PSMA PET and MRI were 0.92 and 0.83, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In intermediate- or high-risk pre-treatment prostate cancer, 68Ga-PSMA PET had a higher sensitivity and a slightly different specificity in probing the LNMs when comparing with MRI. Moreover, the area under the SROC curve indicated that 68Ga-PSMA PET was a more effective weapon for predicting the LNMs prior to radical surgery.

[Degradation of RBk5 with Peroxymonosulfate Efficiently Activated by N-Doped Graphene].

The large loss of catalysts and secondary pollution problems are bottlenecks for the utilization of persulfate advanced oxidation processes. Thus, a modified Hummers method combined with a hydrothermal method was used to prepare N-doped graphene as a catalyst for peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation. The produced sulfate radical (SO4-·) and hydroxyl radical (·OH) were able to degrade RBk5. N-doped graphene was characterized by Fourier transform infrared, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The influences of vital parameters (i. e., initial pH, catalyst dosage, and PMS dosage) on RBk5 removal were investigated systematically to examine the catalytic performance. The results showed that the N element doping can effectively improve the catalytic activity of graphene, and the activity is greatly affected by the N doping ratio. The initial pH of the wastewater had no significant effect on the degradation efficiency. Under the condition of 1.5 g·L-1 catalyst dosage and 0.3 g·L-1 PMS dosage, the removal rate of RBk5 dye reached 99% after 25 min of reaction. The reaction process accorded with first-order reaction kinetics. Radical quenching experiments were done and indicated that the degradation of RBk5 in N-doped graphene/PMS systems was a surface reaction, and SO4-· and ·OH were identified as the main radical species. The catalyst exhibited excellent stability over five successive degradation cycles.

The relationship between human papillomavirus and penile cancer over the past decade: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection appears to play an important role in the development of penile cancer (PeCa), but their relationship remains unclear. Therefore, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to elucidate their relationship. We systematically searched Embase, PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science for case-control studies and cross-sectional studies using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) or paraffin-embedded (PE) PeCa tissues to detect HPV (published between January 1, 2007, and December 29, 2017; no language restrictions). Twenty-two studies were identified, and 1664 cases were available for analysis. The combined HPV infectious risk of PeCa is 51.0% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 43.0%-60.0%). The three most common subtypes of HPV were HPV16 (28.5%), HPV18 (2.3%), and HPV6 (2.3%). The virus was relevantly associated with basaloid (85.5%, 95% CI: 77.2%-93.8%) and warty (50.0%, 95% CI: 35.2%-64.8%) carcinomas. The invasiveness of PeCa was not associated with HPV (χ[2] = 0.181, df = 1, P < 0.671). HPV infection in PeCa tended to be moderately differentiated (54.4%, 95% CI: 47.7%-61.1%). This study found that almost half of PeCa patients are associated with HPV. The most commonly associated genotype is HPV16, but several other genotypes were also detected. In addition to types 6 and 11, other single low-risk HPV infections have been found to contribute to PeCa to a lesser degree. HPV-positive tumors tend to exhibit warty and/or basaloid features, corresponding to a moderate histological grade. The role of HPV in PeCa should be revisited to provide evidence for the development of PeCa in the presence of HPV infection.

Catalytic performance and mechanism of graphene electrode doped with S and N heteroatoms for N-(4-hydroxyphenyl)ethanamide electrochemical degradation.

As operation performance of electro-oxidation is strongly influenced by feature of anode materials, apparently oriented preparation of electrode materials to maximize stable degradation efficiency would be top-priority consideration for system optimization. Recently, heteroatoms hybrid graphene is well known as one of major matrices popularly constructed onto anode modification due to its excellent electronic properties and long-term operation stability. The novelty focused on the first proposed competitive interactions between N and S species on graphene edges for improving operation efficiency. Due to the complicated characteristics of heteroatoms hybrid graphene, the mechanism of synergistic or antagonistic interactions of different heteroatoms was still open to be explored. To clarify the functions of S and N heteroatoms on graphene electrode, N and S co-doped graphene were prepared by hydrothermal method. Analyses upon characterization of materials, dominant radical species reacted through reaction, density functional theory (DFT) calculation, N-(4-hydroxyphenyl)ethanamide degradation pathway and the influence of heteroatom species on the efficiency/path of electrocatalytic oxidation and proposed mechanism were determined. The findings indicated that S doped graphene had more promising electrocatalytic activity than N, and that the co-existence of S and N converted the N species from pyrrolic N (the N species with the highest activity) into graphitic N (the N species with the least activity). Apparently, the activity of S was also repressed. With S and N co-doping, active sites for direct electrocatalytic oxidation was possibly properly placed at carbon atoms with S or hydroxyl group. Moreover, the S species and hydroxyl groups are more favorable for indirect electrocatalytic oxidation via HO• and active chlorine species generation. The analysis in-depth with the proposed mechanism was suggested as guideline for optimal design of functional electrodes.

[Correlation of human papillomavirus (HPV) and HPV vaccines with male reproductive health].

HPV is a very common virus worldwide spread by direct contact and involved in male reproductive health-related diseases such as infertility, condyloma acuminatum, and penile cancer. The development of HPV vaccines has contributed to the effective prevention of various subtypes of HPV and protection of males from HPV infection, especially the partners of HPV-positive females, the men who have sex with men, and those with a psychological fear of HPV infection. Therefore, HPV vaccines play an important role in the protection of males.

Exposure to silica nanoparticles causes reversible damage of the spermatogenic process in mice.

Environmental exposure to nanomaterials is inevitable, as nanomaterials have become part of our daily life now. In this study, we firstly investigated the effects of silica nanoparticles on the spermatogenic process according to their time course in male mice. 48 male mice were randomly divided into control group and silica nanoparticle group with 24 mice per group, with three evaluation time points (15, 35 and 60 days after the first dose) per group. Mice were exposed to the vehicle control and silica nanoparticles at a dosage of 20 mg/kg every 3 days, five times over a 13-day period, and were sacrificed at 15, 35 and 60 days after the first dose. The results showed that silica nanoparticles caused damage to the mitochondrial cristae and decreased the levels of ATP, resulting in oxidative stress in the testis by days 15 and 35; however, the damage was repaired by day 60. DNA damage and the decreases in the quantity and quality of epididymal sperm were found by days 15 and 35; but these changes were recovered by day 60. In contrast, the acrosome integrity and fertility in epididymal sperm, the numbers of spermatogonia and sperm in the testes, and the levels of three major sex hormones were not significantly affected throughout the 60-day period. The results suggest that nanoparticles can cause reversible damage to the sperms in the epididymis without affecting fertility, they are more sensitive than both spermatogonia and spermatocytes to silica nanoparticle toxicity. Considering the spermatogenesis time course, silica nanoparticles primarily influence the maturation process of sperm in the epididymis by causing oxidative stress and damage to the mitochondrial structure, resulting in energy metabolism dysfunction.