Search

Background: Keloid is a fibroproliferative disease with unsatisfactory therapeutic effects and a high recurrence rate. exosomes produced by adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADSC-Exos) have attracted significant interest due to their ability to treat fibrosis. However, the molecular mechanisms of ADSC-Exos in keloids remain inconclusive., Objective: Our study revealed the relationship between ferroptosis and fibrosis in keloids. Subsequently, this study aimed to explore further the anti-fibrotic effect of ADSC-Exos on keloids through ferroptosis and the potential underlying mechanisms., Methods: To investigate the impact of ferroptosis on keloid fibrosis, Erastin and ferrostatin-1 (fer-1) were utilized to treat keloid fibroblast. Keloid keloids treated with Erastin and fer-1 were cocultured with ADSC-Exos to validate the impact of ferroptosis on the effect of ADSC-Exos on keloid anti-ferrotic protein, peroxidase 4 (GPX4) and anti-fibrotic effects in vivo and in vitro by Western blot, as well as variations in iron metabolite expression, malondialdehyde (MDA), liposomal peroxidation (LPO) and glutathione (GSH) were analyzed. The effect of solute carrier family 7-member 11 (SLC7A11) silencing on ADSC-Exo-treated keloid fibroblast was investigated., Results: Iron metabolite dysregulation was validated in keloids. Fibrosis progression is enhanced by Erastin-induced ferroptosis. The anti-fibrotic effects of ADSC-Exos and fer-1 are related to their ability to prevent iron metabolism. ADSC-Exos effectively suppressed keloid fibrosis progression and increased GSH and GPX4 gene expression. Additionally, the use of Erastin limits the effect of ADSC-Exos in keloids. Furthermore, the effect of ADSC-Exos on keloids was associated with SLC7A11-GPX4 signaling pathway., Conclusion: We demonstrated a new potential mechanism by which anti-ferroptosis inhibits the progression of keloid fibrosis and identified an ADSC-Exo-based keloid therapeutic strategy. Resisting the occurrence of ferroptosis and the existence of the SLC7A11-GPX4 signaling pathway might serve as a target for ADSC-Exos., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Tian, Li, Cheng, Chen, Xu, Yuan, Diao and Hao.)

The Penicillium genus exhibits a broad global distribution and holds substantial economic value in sectors including agriculture, industry, and medicine. Particularly in agriculture, Penicillium species significantly impact plants, causing diseases and contamination that adversely affect crop yields and quality. Timely detection of Penicillium species is crucial for controlling disease and preventing mycotoxins from entering the food chain. To tackle this issue, we implement a novel species identification approach called Analysis of whole GEnome (AGE). Here, we initially applied bioinformatics analysis to construct specific target sequence libraries from the whole genomes of seven Penicillium species with significant economic impact: P. canescens , P. citrinum , P. oxalicum , P. polonicum , P. paneum , P. rubens , and P. roqueforti . We successfully identified seven Penicillium species using the target we screened combined with Sanger sequencing and CRISPR-Cas12a technologies. Notably, based on CRISPR-Cas12a technology, AGE can achieve rapid and accurate identification of genomic DNA samples at a concentration as low as 0.01 ng/µL within 30 min. This method features high sensitivity and portability, making it suitable for on-site detection. This robust molecular approach provides precise fungal species identification with broad implications for agricultural control, industrial production, clinical diagnostics, and food safety.

High exhaust temperature is an intrinsic nature of natural gas engines which underlies power de-rating and thermal aging of after-treatment system; therefore, this study integrates an organic Rankine cycle (ORC) system between engine and it's three-way catalyst (TWC) to address these challenges. ORC facilitates power output enhancement through exhaust energy recovery and alleviates thermal aging by reducing exhaust temperature. To estimate the effectiveness of this hypothesized system, a simulation-based investigation is performed. First, simulation models, including engine, TWC, and vehicle dynamic models, are built and validated by experimental data. According to the temperature characteristics of different TWCs, three scenarios, representing old, current, and prospective TWC technology, are formulated to estimate the ORC performance under Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Cycle. Results show that ORC system can substantially alleviate the thermal damage caused by high exhaust temperature and extend TWC lifespan. It is estimated that over 98.5 % of thermal damage can be decreased by proper ORC setting, and the average TWC lifespan extension can be at least 55.4, making a reduced noble metal usage and cost of TWC. Meanwhile, with the decrease of the working temperature of TWC, ORC can recover exhaust energy under more road conditions, further improving the net power and shortening the payback period of extra ORC hardware costs. A reduction in the working temperature of TWC from 770.5 K to 618 K yields a 109 % enhancement in maximum power, coupled with a 62.30 % reduction in the payback period. These findings fully reflect the advantage of ORC-TWC coupling and indicate that ORC is supposed to be used more for the TWC with a low working temperature to maximize economic effectiveness. This study provides a novel pathway for thermal aging alleviation of TWC and a valuable reference for prospective studies on matching ORC with TWC under road conditions., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors.)

Background: Macrophage-mediated inflammatory response in the early post-grafting period restricts fat graft retention. Pyroptosis is a novel type of programmed cell death that extensively participates in inflammatory pathologies., Objectives: This study sought to determine whether macrophage pyroptosis was activated during the inflammatory phase after fat grafting and to investigate the efficacy of a pyroptosis inhibitor, disulfiram (DSF), in fat graft retention., Methods: We established a C57BL/6 mice fat grafting model and then analyzed macrophage pyroptosis. DSF (50 mg/kg, every other day) was intraperitoneally injected starting 1 hour before fat grafting and continued for 14 days. An in vitro co-culture system was established in which mouse RAW264.7 macrophages were co-cultured with apoptotic adipocytes to further validate the findings of the in vivo studies and to explore the underlying mechanisms., Results: Here we reported that macrophage pyroptosis was activated in both fat grafts and in vitro co-culture models. DSF was found to be a potent pyroptosis inhibitor, promoting M2 macrophage polarization. In addition, DSF was demonstrated to enhance vascularization and graft retention., Conclusions: Our results suggested that pyroptosis plays a crucial role in the inflammatory cascade within fat grafts. DSF, being a clinically available drug, could be translated into a clinically effective drug for improving fat graft survival by inhibiting macrophage pyroptosis, therefore inducing M2 macrophage polarization and promoting neovascularization., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Aesthetic Society.)

Introduction: Stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1) is a newly discovered small molecule adipocytokine, and research has shown that it is closely related to the occurrence and development of obesity. However, there are currently few research reports on SDF-1 in childhood obesity and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and this study aims to explore the relationship between SDF-1 and obesity related indicators in obese children., Methods: Serum SDF-1 concentrations were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Clinical and biochemical data were collected, such as body mass index (BMI), waist and hip circumference, blood pressure, liver enzymes, cholesterol, and fasting insulin. Children with NAFLD or not were evaluated through Color Doppler Ultrasound., Results: Serum SDF-1 concentrations were significantly higher in obese subjects than in non-obese subjects (P < 0.05), and were elevated in the NAFLD obese subjects than in the non-NAFLD obese subjects (P < 0.05). SDF-1 was positively correlated with BMI, waist-to-hip ratio, systolic blood pressure, body fat percentage (BFP), basal metabolic rate (BMR), alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), glutyltranspeptidase (GT), and homoeostasis model of HOMA-IR, independent of their uric acid (UA), total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), gender and age. BFP and BMR were associated with the serum SDF-1 concentrations in multivariable linear regression analysis., Conclusion: These results suggest that SDF-1 levels are elevated in obese children and are associated with NAFLD, indicating that SDF-1 may play a role in the development of childhood obesity and metabolic disorders., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Menispermaceae species, as early-diverging eudicots, can synthesize valuable benzylisoquinoline alkaloids (BIAs) like bisbenzylisoquinoline alkaloids (bisBIAs) and sinomenines with a wide range of structural diversity. However, the evolutionary mechanisms responsible for their chemo-diversity are not well understood. Here, a chromosome-level genome assembly of Menispermum dauricum is presented and demonstrated the occurrence of two whole genome duplication (WGD) events that are shared by Ranunculales and specific to Menispermum, providing a model for understanding chromosomal evolution in early-diverging eudicots. The biosynthetic pathway for diverse BIAs in M. dauricum is reconstructed by analyzing the transcriptome and metabolome. Additionally, five catalytic enzymes - one norcoclaurine synthase (NCS) and four cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (CYP450s) - from M. dauricum are responsible for the formation of the skeleton, hydroxylated modification, and C-O/C-C phenol coupling of BIAs. Notably, a novel leaf-specific MdCYP80G10 enzyme that catalyzes C2'-C4a phenol coupling of (S)-reticuline into sinoacutine, the enantiomer of morphinan compounds, with predictable stereospecificity is discovered. Moreover, it is found that Menispermum-specific CYP80 gene expansion, as well as tissue-specific expression, has driven BIA diversity in Menispermaceae as compared to other Ranunculales species. This study sheds light on WGD occurrences in early-diverging eudicots and the evolution of diverse BIA biosynthesis., (© 2024 The Authors. Advanced Science published by Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Vehicle emissions have a serious impact on urban air quality and public health, so environmental authorities around the world have introduced increasingly stringent emission regulations to reduce vehicle exhaust emissions. Nowadays, PEMS (Portable Emission Measurement System) is the most widely used method to measure on-road NOx (Nitrogen Oxides) and PN (Particle Number) emissions from HDDVs (Heavy-Duty Diesel Vehicles). However, the use of PEMS requires a lot of workforce and resources, making it both costly and time-consuming. This study proposes a neural network based on a combination of GA (Genetic Algorithm) and GRU (Gated Recurrent Unit), which uses CC (Pearson Correlation Coefficient) to determine and simplify OBD (On-board Diagnosis) data. The GA-GRU model is trained under three real driving conditions of HDDVs, divided by vehicle driving parameters, and then embedded as a soft sensor in the OBD system to monitor real-time emissions of NOx and PN within the OBD system. This research addresses the existing research gap in the development of soft sensors specifically designed for NOx and PN emission monitoring. In this study, it is demonstrated that the described soft sensor has excellent R 2 values and outperforms other conventional models. This research highlights the ability of the proposed soft sensor to eliminate outliers accurately and promptly while consistently tracking predictions throughout the vehicle's lifetime. This method is a groundbreaking update to the vehicle's OBD system, permanently adding monitoring data to the vehicle's OBD, thus fundamentally improving the vehicle's self-monitoring capabilities., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Fungal identification is a cornerstone of fungal research, yet traditional molecular methods struggle with rapid and accurate onsite identification, especially for closely related species. To tackle this challenge, we introduce a universal identification method called Analysis of whole GEnome (AGE). AGE includes two key steps: bioinformatics analysis and experimental practice. Bioinformatics analysis screens candidate target sequences named Targets within the genome of the fungal species and determines specific Targets by comparing them with the genomes of other species. Then, experimental practice using sequencing or non-sequencing technologies would confirm the results of bioinformatics analysis. Accordingly, AGE obtained more than 1,000,000 qualified Targets for each of the 13 fungal species within the phyla Ascomycota and Basidiomycota. Next, the sequencing and genome editing system validated the ultra-specific performance of the specific Targets; especially noteworthy is the first-time demonstration of the identification potential of sequences from unannotated genomic regions. Furthermore, by combining rapid isothermal amplification and phosphorothioate-modified primers with the option of an instrument-free visual fluorescence method, AGE can achieve qualitative species identification within 30 min using a single-tube test. More importantly, AGE holds significant potential for identifying closely related species and differentiating traditional Chinese medicines from their adulterants, especially in the precise detection of contaminants. In summary, AGE opens the door for the development of whole-genome-based fungal species identification while also providing guidance for its application in plant and animal kingdoms., Competing Interests: The authors disclose an International Patent Application (PCT/CN2022/083950) relating to the aspects of this work has been filed under Patent Cooperation Treaty., (Copyright © 2024 Qi, Hao, Xin, Gan, Lou, Xu and Song.)

Survival crises stalk many animals, especially endangered and rare animals. Accurate species identification plays a pivotal role in animal resource conservation. In this study, we developed an animal species identification method called Analysis of whole-GEnome (AGE), which identifies species by finding species-specific sequences through bioinformatics analysis of the whole genome and subsequently recognizing these sequences using experimental technologies. To clearly demonstrate the AGE method, Cervus nippon , a well-known endangered species, and a closely related species, Cervus elaphus , were set as model species, without and with published genomes, respectively. By analyzing the whole genomes of C. nippon and C. elaphus , which were obtained through next-generation sequencing and online databases, we built specific sequence databases containing 7,670,140 and 570,981 sequences, respectively. Then, the species specificities of the sequences were confirmed experimentally using Sanger sequencing and the CRISPR-Cas12a system. Moreover, for 11 fresh animal samples and 35 commercially available products, our results were in complete agreement with those of other authoritative identification methods, demonstrating AGE's precision and potential application. Notably, AGE found a mixture in the 35 commercially available products and successfully identified it. This study broadens the horizons of species identification using the whole genome and sheds light on the potential of AGE for conserving animal resources.

The challenge of discriminating closely related species persists, notably within clinical diagnostic laboratories for invasive aspergillosis (IA)-related species and food contamination microorganisms with toxin-producing potential. We employed Analysis of the whole-GEnome (AGE) to address the challenges of closely related species within the genus Aspergillus and developed a rapid detection method. First, reliable whole genome data for 77 Aspergillus species were downloaded from the database, and through bioinformatic analysis, specific targets for each species were identified. Subsequently, sequencing was employed to validate these specific targets. Additionally, we developed an on-site detection method targeting a specific target using a genome editing system. Our results indicate that AGE has successfully achieved reliable identification of all IA-related species ( Aspergillus fumigatus, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus nidulans, Aspergillus flavus , and Aspergillus terreus ) and three well-known species ( A. flavus, Aspergillus parasiticus , and Aspergillus oryzae ) within the Aspergillus section. Flavi and AGE have provided species-level-specific targets for 77 species within the genus Aspergillus . Based on these reference targets, the sequencing results targeting specific targets substantiate the efficacy of distinguishing the focal species from its closely related species. Notably, the amalgamation of room-temperature amplification and genome editing techniques demonstrates the capacity for rapid and accurate identification of genomic DNA samples at a concentration as low as 0.1 ng/μl within a concise 30-min timeframe. Importantly, this methodology circumvents the reliance on large specialized instrumentation by presenting a singular tube operational modality and allowing for visualized result assessment. These advancements aptly meet the exigencies of on-site detection requirements for the specified species, facilitating prompt diagnosis and food quality monitoring. Moreover, as an identification method based on species-specific genomic sequences, AGE shows promising potential as an effective tool for epidemiological research and species classification., Competing Interests: The authors disclose an International Patent Application (PCT/CN2022/083950) relating to the aspects of this work has been filed under Patent Cooperation Treaty., (Copyright © 2024 Qi, Hao, Gan, Xin, Lou, Xu and Song.)

In this Letter, we design and experimentally demonstrate compact mode converters with a lightning-like and arrow-like polygonal subwavelength grating (SWG) structure on a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) platform, which can convert the TE 0 mode to the TE 1 and TE 2 modes, respectively. The footprints of the proposed TE 0-1 and TE 0-2 mode converters are only 4.44 × 1.3 and 5.89 × 1.8 µm 2 , respectively. The experimental results show the mode converters have a low insertion loss (<1 dB) and a broad bandwidth (>50 nm). The measured cross talks of the TE 0-1 and TE 0-2 mode converters are -7.2 dB and -10.3 dB, respectively. In addition, the proposed mode converters with the SWG structure have the advantage in fabrication, since only a one-step full-etching process is required.

Introduction: Childhood obesity is a global health problem that is associated with various metabolic complications, such as insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia, and cardiovascular diseases. The mechanisms underlying the development of insulin resistance in childhood obesity are not fully understood. Nephroblastoma overexpressed gene (NOV), also known as CCN3, is a member of the CCN family of matricellular proteins that modulate cell proliferation, differentiation, adhesion, migration, and survival. Previous studies have shown that NOV/CCN3 is involved in glucose metabolism and insulin signaling in various tissues and cell types. However, the role of NOV/CCN3 in childhood obesity and insulin resistance remains unclear., Methods: In this study, we aimed to investigate the association between plasma NOV/CCN3 levels and insulin resistance in 58 obese and 43 non-obese children aged 6-12 years. We measured plasma NOV/CCN3 levels by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and assessed insulin resistance by homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). We also collected clinical and biochemical data, such as body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), blood pressure (BP), fasting glucose (FG), fasting insulin (FI), lipid profile, and inflammatory markers., Results: We found that plasma NOV/CCN3 levels were significantly higher in obese children than in non-obese children (p &lt; 0.001) and positively correlated with BMI (r = 0.42, p &lt; 0.001), WC (r = 0.38, p &lt; 0.001), BP (r = 0.35, p &lt; 0.001), FG (r = 0.31, p &lt; 0.001), FI (r = 0.45, p &lt; 0.001), HOMA-IR (r = 0.48, p &lt; 0.001), triglycerides (r = 0.28, p &lt; 0.001), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (r = 0.26, p &lt; 0.001), and C-reactive protein (CRP) (r = 0.32, p &lt; 0.001). Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that plasma NOV/CCN3 levels were independently associated with HOMA-IR after adjusting for age, sex, BMI, WC, BP, FG, FI, lipid profile, and CRP (β = 0.36, p &lt; 0.001)., Conclusion: These results suggest that plasma NOV/CCN3 levels are elevated in childhood obesity and are associated with insulin resistance, indicating that NOV/CCN3 may play a role in the pathogenesis of metabolic disorders in obese children., (© 2024 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Background: Striae Distensae (SD) is a common dermatological lesion. The mechanism of formation is unclear, the prevailing theory is mechanical pulling of the skin and hormonal changes. Traditional SD treatment methods include topical drugs, photoelectric therapy, stripping and others, but each has limitations. Stromal vascular fraction gel (SVF-gel) is a filler physically prepared from granular fat, enriched with adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) and extracellular matrix (ECM). A good effect in the treatment of neck lines, wounds, acne, and other aspects. SD formation and treatment goals are comparable to those of neck lines. In this study, SVF-gel filling will be used to treat mature SD, and its effectiveness and safety will be discussed in detail., Methods: From December 2019 to June 2022, recruit patients who want to treat SD caused by obesity or pregnancy among those who have "autologous fat aspiration" to change their body shape. Preoperatively, the area to be treated for SD was marked, autologous fat aspiration was performed, and the aspirated fat was prepared as SVF-gel and filled into the preoperatively marked SD. All patients had preoperative and postoperative follow-up with planar photographs and VISIA skin analyzer photographs to assess surgical results and safety from subjective and objective perspectives., Results: A total of 36 patients were enrolled, with 31 of them successfully followed up on. The mean Global Aesthetic Improvement Scale (GAIS) score six months after surgery was 1.87 ± 0.03. At six months postoperatively, the overall patient satisfaction rate was 90%. The depth, area, and color of SD improved six months after surgery, and no serious complications occurred in any of the patients., Conclusions: SVF-gel is a safe and effective method of improving mature SD and can be used as a clinical treatment option., (© 2024 The Authors. Skin Research and Technology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Background: Facial rejuvenation is becoming more and more popular, particularly among middle-aged persons. There are currently many techniques for improving the aforementioned situations, but each has its drawbacks. Our study aimed to discuss the treatment effect of a composited technique for reversing both lower eyelid and midface aging., Methods: The patient's face was designed and measured before surgery. During surgery, a traditional lower blepharoplasty incision was made. The layer between the orbital septum and the orbicularis oculi muscle was separated to approximately 4-5 mm below the infraorbital, then the orbital septum and orbicularis retaining ligament were found to be released. A self-made suspension curving needle subconsciously passed through the brim of the superficial cheek fat pad via the "U-type" path and raised them to the proper location. Then sutured them to the infraorbital rim periosteum, as well as the suborbicularis oculi fat (SOOF) and the orbital septum fat. Secured the outside canthus to keep the lower lid position stable., Results: From February 2020 to November 2022, 106 patients underwent the new surgical procedure and were successfully followed up for 20 ± 6.5 months postoperatively. The mean GAIS score was 2.42 ± 0.78, patient satisfaction rate was 95%. All of the Barton grades were decreased. The nasal base level suspension points were elevated to a level of 5 ± 2 mm. 3D measurement data revealed significant improvements., Conclusions: The composited technique is a safe and effective way to reverse the aging of the lower eyelid and midface., (© 2023 The Authors. Skin Research and Technology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

NOx emissions from diesel vehicles generally deteriorate with increased durability mileage owing to the wear and deterioration of engines and after-treatment systems. Three China-VI heavy-duty diesel vehicles (HDDVs) were selected for four-phase long-term real driving emission (RDE) tests using the portable emission measurement system (PEMS). After 200,000 km of on-road driving, the maximum NOx emission factor of the test vehicles (387.06 mg/kWh) was found to be significantly lower than the NOx limit of 690 mg/kWh. Under all driving conditions, the NOx conversion efficiency of selected catalytic reduction (SCR) decreased almost linearly as the durability mileage increased. Importantly, the deterioration rate of the NOx conversion efficiency in low-temperature intervals was discernibly higher than that in high-temperature intervals. The NOx conversion efficiency at 200 °C dropped by 16.67-19.82% with higher durability mileage; however, the highest values at 275-400 °C only decreased by 4.11%. Interestingly, the SCR catalyst at 250 °C showed strong NOx conversion efficiency and durability (maximum decline of 2.11%). Overall, the poor de-NOx performance of SCR catalysts at low temperatures significantly challenges the long-term effective control of NOx emissions from HDDVs. Thus, improving the NOx conversion efficiency and durability at low-temperature intervals is the top priority for SCR catalyst optimization; NOx emissions from HDDVs at low velocities and loads should also be monitored by environmental authorities. The linear fitting coefficient for the NOx emission factors of the four-phase RDE tests was 0.90-0.92, indicating that NOx emissions deteriorated linearly with an increase in mileage. Based on the linear fitting results, the NOx emission control of the test vehicles during 700,000 km of on-road driving was highly likely to be qualified. These results can be used by environmental authorities to supervise the NOx emission conformity of in-use HDDVs after validation using other types of vehicles., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Three-dimensional shear wave elastography (3D-SWE) is a promising method in distinguishing benign and malignant thyroid nodules. By combining with conventional method, it may further improve the diagnostic value. The study aimed to assess the diagnostic value of American College of Radiology (ACR) thyroid imaging reporting and data system (TI-RADS) combined with 3D-SWE in ACR TI-RADS 4 and 5 thyroid nodules., Methods: All nodules were examined by conventional ultrasonography, ACR TI-RADS classification, and 3D-SWE examination. Conventional ultrasonography was used to observe the location, size, shape, margin, echogenicity, taller-than-wide sign, microcalcification, and blood flow of thyroid nodules, and then ACR TI-RADS classification was performed. The Young's modulus values (3D-C-Emax, 3D-C-Emean, and elastography standard deviation [3D-C-Esd]) were measured on the reconstructed coronal plane images. According to the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, the best diagnostic efficiency among 3D-C-Emax, 3D-C-Emean, and 3D-C-Esd was selected and the cut-off threshold was calculated. According to the surgical pathology, they were divided into benign group and malignant group. And appropriate statistical methods such as t -test and Mann-Whitney U test were used to compare the difference between the two groups. On this basis, 3D-SWE combined with conventional ACR TI-RADS was reclassified as combined ACR TI-RADS to determine benign or malignant thyroid nodules., Results: Of the 112 thyroid nodules, 62 were malignant and 50 were benign. The optimal cut-off value of three-dimensional maximum Young's modulus in coronal plane (3D-C-Emax) was 51.5 kPa and the area under the curve (AUC) was 0.798. The AUC, sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of conventional ACR TI-RADS were 0.828, 83.9%, 66.0%, and 75.9%, respectively. The AUC, sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of combined ACR TI-RADS were 0.845, 90.3%, 66.0%, and 79.5%, respectively. The difference between the two AUC values was statistically significant., Conclusions: Combined ACR TI-RADS has higher diagnostic efficiency than conventional ACR TI-RADS. The sensitivity and accuracy of combined ACR TI-RADS showed significant improvements. It can be used as an effective method in the diagnosis of thyroid nodules., (Copyright © 2023 The Chinese Medical Association, produced by Wolters Kluwer, Inc. under the CC-BY-NC-ND license.)

Background: Botulinum toxin-A (BTX-A) is used in the treatment of nasolabial folds (NLFs). However, lighting and clinician subjectivity play a major role in evaluating the efficacy of this treatment., Objectives: By applying 3-dimensional (3D) technology, this study aimed to quantitatively evaluate the effects of BTX-A injection on muscular (M) and muscle-fat pad mixed-type (MF) NLFs., Methods: BTX-A was injected into bilateral marked points on the NLFs, where the levator labii alaeque nasi, zygomaticus minor, and zygomaticus major pull the skin to form the NLF (2 U at each injection site). Pretreatment and posttreatment 3D facial images were captured with static and laughing expressions. The curvature, width, depth, and lateral fat volume of the NLFs were measured to compare the therapeutic efficacy for type M and MF NLFs., Results: Thirty-nine patients with type M and 37 with type MF NLFs completed the follow-up data. In these patients, the curvature, width, and depth of the NLF showed a significant reduction at 1 month and gradually recovered at 3 and 6 months after treatment, with more significant improvement when laughing than when static. Variations compared to the pretreatment values of type MF were greater than those of type M at each time point. The lateral fat volume of the type MF NLF was significantly reduced (P < .05)., Conclusions: 3D technology can quantitatively evaluate the effects BTX-A injection for treating type M and type MF NLFs. BTX-A is more effective on type MF than on type M NLFs., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Aesthetic Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

The research developed an improved intelligent enhancement learning algorithm based on AdaBoost, that can be applied for lung cancer breath detection by the electronic nose (eNose). First, collected the breath signals from volunteers by eNose, including healthy individuals and people who had lung cancer. Additionally, the signals' features were extracted and optimized. Then, multi sub-classifiers were obtained, and their coefficients were derived from the training error. To improve generalization performance, K-fold cross-validation was used when constructing each sub-classifier. The prediction results of a sub-classifier on the test set were then achieved by the voting method. Thus, an improved AdaBoost classifier would be built through heterogeneous integration. The results shows that the average precision of the improved algorithm classifier for distinguishing between people with lung cancer and healthy individuals could reach 98.47%, with 98.33% sensitivity and 97% specificity. And in 100 independent and randomized tests, the coefficient of variation of the classifier's performance hardly exceeded 4%. Compared with other integrated algorithms, the generalization and stability of the improved algorithm classifier are more superior. It is clear that the improved AdaBoost algorithm may help screen out lung cancer more comprehensively. Additionally, it will significantly advance the use of eNose in the early identification of lung cancer., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2023 The Authors.)

Background: As a derivative of adipose tissues, stromal vascular fraction gel has been widely utilized in facial soft tissue filling, but it still does not achieve the expected effect in forehead filling. The reason may be related to the corrugator muscles movements., Objectives: The authors aimed to evaluate the effect of botulinum toxin-A (BTX-A) on the retention rate of stromal vascular fraction gel by limiting the corrugator muscles movements and to provide a theoretical basis that short-term inhibition of movement in the affected area could improve the effects of the fat graft., Methods: From January 2019 to June 2021, patients with stromal vascular fraction gel facial filling (including frontal and temporal parts) were selected. According to whether or not BTX-A treatment was received, patients were divided into injected and the noninjected groups. A questionnaire and the Global Aesthetic Improvement Scale (GAIS) were administered to evaluate 2-dimensional photos. The retention rate and curvature were calculated with 3-dimensional images utilizing Artec Studio 13 Professional and MATLAB software., Results: The graft retention, forehead curvature, and GAIS scores were all higher in the injected group than the noninjected group (P < .01). On the questionnaire, the injected group also showed more satisfaction with the treatment effect and were more willing to recommend the treatment to their friends., Conclusions: BTX-A injection can improve the retention rate of prefrontal stromal vascular fraction gel filling, with higher patient satisfaction and better postoperative effects., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Aesthetic Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

The traveling-wave like Fabry-Perot (F-P) resonators based on transverse-mode-conversion have been extensively studied as on-chip filters. However, the incomplete transverse mode conversion will lead to the coupling between two degenerated resonant modes, which brings additional loss and may further induce the resonance splitting. In this paper, we take the transverse-mode-conversion based resonator with anti-symmetric nanobeam Bragg reflector as an example and study the resonant mode coupling in both the direct-coupled and side-coupled resonators. The coupled mode equations are used to model the incomplete transverse mode conversion of Bragg reflector. The resonant mode coupling can be effectively suppressed by carefully designing the phase shifter length and adding the tapered holes. The insertion loss of less than -1 dB can be achieved in the simulation using the two methods. This work is believed to benefit the design of mode-conversion based resonators with low insertion loss and non-splitting line shape.

Background and Aims: The triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index has been demonstrated as an independent marker of ischemic stroke. Whether TyG index predicts short-term outcomes in patients with ischemic stroke remains uncertain. The aim of the study was to investigate the early prognosis value of TyG index in ischemic stroke patients., Methods and Results: A total of 3216 acute ischemic stroke patients from 22 hospitals were included in this analysis. The TyG index was calculated as ln (fasting triglyceride [mg/dL] × fasting glucose [mg/dL]/2). Logistic regression model was performed to estimate the relationship between TyG index and unfavorable functional outcome of death or disability (modified Rankin Scale score of 4-6) at discharge. Risk reclassification with TyG index to predict unfavorable functional outcome was analyzed. During hospitalization, 748 patients (23.3%) experienced poor functional outcome and 105 patients (3.3%) died from all causes. The multivariable adjusted odds ratios for the highest versus lowest quartile of TyG index was 1.62 (95% CI 1.15-2.29) for unfavorable functional outcome at discharge. The addition of TyG index to the conventional model improved the risk reclassification (net reclassification improvement 10.37%; integrated discrimination improvement 0.27%; both p < 0.05) for poor functional outcome. Moreover, TyG index was associated with an odds ratio (95% CI) of 1.26 (1.02-1.55) for an ordinal shift in mRS score and 2.49 (1.21-5.12) for in-hospital mortality., Conclusions: Higher TyG index was associated with higher risk of unfavorable functional outcome at discharge and in-hospital mortality, implicating the significant short-term prognostic effect of TyG index in patients with ischemic stroke., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors have nothing to disclose., (Copyright © 2022 The Italian Diabetes Society, the Italian Society for the Study of Atherosclerosis, the Italian Society of Human Nutrition and the Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Federico II University. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Plant specialization and pollination network structure play important roles in community assembly. Floral traits can mediate plant-pollinator interactions and thus have important impacts on nestedness and modularity of pollination network. When such traits are phylogenetically conserved, therefore, phylogeny and traits should predict network structure to similar degrees. Moreover, conserved network structures were also found attributed to pollination syndrome or pollination system. However, we still know little about the relation between pollination syndrome and pollination network, especially under a phylogenetic framework. Herein, we established a phylogenetic framework including five floral traits (flower density, floral size, floral shape, floral symmetry, and floral color) and five species-level metrics (species strength, weighted closeness, specialization d ', nestedness contribution, and modularity contribution) to test how floral traits could directly or indirectly influence species' specialization and network structure in central China. Phylogenetic signals were found in all floral traits except flower density. Structural equation model and phylogenetic structural equation model results showed that both floral size and floral density affected plant specialization and its contribution to network modularity indirectly. However, compared with phylogenetic independent flower density, phylogenetic conserved floral size had much more complexed influences, having a direct influence both on species' specialization and on modularity contribution. In this nested and modular network, abundant species with larger flowers tend to be more central and had larger values of z . Floral shape, symmetry, and color could act as co-flowering filters in pollination sharing and help to shape network modularity. Our results emphasize that phylogenetically conserved traits partially represent pollination syndrome and are important drivers for modular structure of local pollination network. This study may improve the understanding how the evolutionary history and ecological process drive local network structure and dynamics., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Xiang, Jiang, Lan, Huang, Hao, Liu and Xia.)

Objective: To explore changes in the alpha rhythm wavelength of background electroencephalography in Alzheimer's disease patients with different degrees of dementia in a resting state; examine their correlation with the degree of cognitive impairment; determine whether the alpha rhythm wavelength can distinguish mild Alzheimer's disease patients, moderately severe Alzheimer's disease patients, and healthy controls at the individual level; and identify a cut-off value to differentiate Alzheimer's disease patients from healthy controls., Methods: Quantitative electroencephalography signals of 42 patients with mild Alzheimer's disease, 42 patients with moderately severe Alzheimer's disease, and 40 healthy controls during rest state with eyes closed were analyzed using wavelet transform. Electroencephalography signals were decomposed into different scales, and their segments were superimposed according to the same length (wavelength and amplitude) and phase alignment. Phase averaging was performed to obtain average phase waveforms of the desired scales of each lead. The alpha-band wavelengths corresponding to the ninth scale of the background rhythm of different leads were compared between groups., Results: The average wavelength of the alpha rhythm phase of the whole-brain electroencephalography signals in Alzheimer's disease patients was prolonged and positively correlated with the severity of cognitive dysfunction (P < 0.01). The ninth-scale phase average wavelength of each lead had high diagnostic efficacy for Alzheimer's disease, and the diagnostic efficacy of lead P3 (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve = 0.873) was the highest., Conclusion: The average wavelength of the electroencephalography alpha rhythm phase may be used as a quantitative feature for the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease, and the slowing of the alpha rhythm may be an important neuro-electrophysiological index for disease evaluation., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

Background: The design lines for midfacial filling shift upward with a patient's position changes from upright to supine during operation. This will cause the actual filled part to deviate from the target area., Objectives: This authors aimed to evaluate the effect of positional changes on midfacial landmarks and find the optimal body position for midface filling., Methods: The process involved the grading and evaluation stages. The midfacial laxity of each sample in the evaluation stage was graded into minimal, moderate, and severe by the system established in the grading stage. Measured through the 3-dimensional images in each grade, the vertical distances from landmarks C, D, and E (representing the region of the tear trough, infraorbital area, and nasolabial fat pad, respectively) to the horizontal line of the inner canthus and depth of nasolabial fold at an angle of 90° were separately compared with those from the other angles (60°, 45°, 30°, and 0°) of the operating table., Results: In the minimal midfacial laxity group, all 3 landmarks significantly moved upward when the angle decreased to 30°. However, landmark E of the moderate and severe and landmark D of the severe midfacial laxity groups both significantly moved upward when the angle decreased to 45°. The depth of the nasolabial fold at a 45° angle was significantly less than that at a 90° angle in the moderate and severe groups., Conclusions: In midface filling, a patient's body position should be optimally selected according to the midfacial laxity and filling area., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Aesthetic Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Autologous fat grafting is becoming increasingly common worldly. However, the long-term retention of fat grafting is still unpredictable due to the inevitable fibrosis arising during tissue repair. Fibrosis may be regulated by T-cell immune responses that are influenced by adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs). Therefore, we hypothesized that overly abundant ASCs might promote fibrosis by promoting T-cell immune responses to adipose tissue. We performed 0.3 ml fat grafts with 10 4 /ml, 10 6 /ml and 10 8 /ml ASCs and control group in C57 BL/6 mice in vivo . We observed retention, fibrosis, T-cell immunity, and macrophage infiltration over 12 weeks. Besides, CD4+ T-helper 1 (Th1) cells and T-helper 2 (Th2) cells were co-cultured with ASCs or ASCs conditioned media (ASCs-CM) in vitro . We detected the ratio of Th2%/Th1%. Results showed that the retention rate was higher in 10 4 group, while even lower in 10 8 group with significantly increased inflammation and fibrosis than control group at week 12 in vivo . There was no significance between control group and 10 6 group. Also, 10 8 group increased the infiltration of M2 macrophages, CD4+ T-cells and Th2/Th1 ratio. In vitro , the ratio of Th2%/Th1% induced by ASCs-transwell group was higher than ASCs-CM group and showed concentration-dependent. Accordingly, high concentrations of ASCs in adipose tissue can promote Th1-Th2 shifting, and excessive Th2 cells might promote the persistence of M2 macrophages and increase the level of fibrosis which lead to a decrease in the long-term retention of fat grafts. Also, we found ASCs promoted Th1-Th2 shifting in vitro ., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2022 The Author(s).)

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of concentrated growth factor (CGF) injections in patients with androgenic alopecia., Methods: Venous blood of 60 patients (aged 18-55 years old with a mean age of 38 years) with androgenic alopecia who were treated from September 2017 to September 2019 were collected to prepare CGF. 0.1 ml CGF was injected into the alopecia area with an interval of 30-35 days for a total of 6 times. The evaluation was performed before treatment and at 1, 3, and 6 months after the first injection and 3 and 6 months after the last injection., Results: Among the 60 patients, 58 cases received 6 treatments completely, 52 cases showed significant improvement, 8 cases improved, and no ineffective or worsening cases were found. Among the 58 patients, hair density, hair follicle density, and hair diameter increased significantly. Furthermore, the hair status of all patients was improved to varying degrees during the 6-month follow-up from the digital photographs. No complications such as redness, swelling, infection, and ulceration were found in the injection area, and the patient satisfaction was 93% (56/60)., Conclusion: Concentrated growth factor treatment can significantly improve the symptoms of hair loss and increase hair diameter in patients with androgenic alopecia. It is effective, safe, and worth popularizing., (© 2022 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Background: The association between coronary slow flow (CSF) and coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) remains unclear. The objective of this study was to evaluate the correlation between the corrected thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) frame count (CTFC) and the index of microcirculatory resistance (IMR)., Methods: We consecutively enrolled patients with CSF from January 2017 to March 2018. Concurrently, we randomly selected control participants with normal flow arteries at a ratio of 3:1. Two cardiologists performed the measurements of CTFC. Coronary angiography-derived IMR (caIMR) was used to assess CMD. The caIMR was analyzed by an independent agency, with CMD being defined as caIMR >40 U., Results: A total of 111 patients with CSF and 39 patients without CSF were enrolled in this retrospective study. Compared with the non-CSF group, the CSF group had a greater proportion of males (65.8% vs. 23.1%; P<0.001) and a lower prevalence of hypertension (47.7% vs. 67.7%; P=0.042). Additionally, the CSF group had higher CTFC, coronary angiography-derived fractional flow reserve (caFFR), and caIMR regardless of left anterior descending artery (LAD), left circumflex artery (LCX), and right coronary artery (RCA) (all P values <0.001). A strong correlation between CTFC and caIMR was observed for all arteries (all P values <0.001). In the univariate analysis, male sex [hazard ratio (HR) =2.63, 95% CI: 1.30-5.31], E/e' (HR =0.88, 95% CI: 0.78-0.99), CTFC (HR =1.12, 95% CI: 1.09-1.16), and caFFR (HR =1.81, 95% CI: 1.50-2.17) were significantly correlated with CMD. After adjusting for covariates, male sex (HR =2.72, 95% CI: 1.22-6.06), CTFC (HR =1.10, 95% CI: 1.07-1.14), and caFFR (HR =1.22, 95% CI: 1.00-1.50) were independent predictors for CMD. Additionally, the best cutoff value of CTFC of all arteries for predicting CMD was 38 frames, with an area under the curve of 0.873, a sensitivity of 92.8%, and a specificity of 63.8% (P<0.001). Moreover, the best cutoff value of CTFC of LAD, LCX, and RCA to identify CMD was 35 frames, 52 frames, and 50 frames, respectively (all P values <0.001)., Conclusions: CTFC correlated well with caIMR and had a strong predictive power to identify CMD., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interest: All authors have completed the ICMJE uniform disclosure form (available at https://qims.amegroups.com/article/view/10.21037/qims-22-224/coif). The authors report that this research was funded by the Science Foundation of Gusu School (No. GSKY20220102), the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Provincial (No. BK2012648 to HW), and the General Scientific Research Project of Jiangsu Provincial Health Commission (No. M2020083), with further support being provided by Suzhou RainMed Medical Technology Co., Ltd. The authors have no other conflicts of interest to declare., (2022 Quantitative Imaging in Medicine and Surgery. All rights reserved.)

The light-duty moving average window (MAW) method, used for China 6 real driving emission (RDE) calculation, is quite complex with various boundaries. Previous research noticed that the MAW might underestimate the calculation results, while the reasons for this underestimation haven't been studied systematically. With 29 vehicles tested in 10 cities and different boundaries applied for calculation, this study quantitively analyzed the problem, causes, and impacts of the light-duty MAW method. The instantaneous utilization factor (IUF) is proposed for reason analysis. The current MAW method could weaken the supervision of real driving tests as more than 75% of the tests underestimated MAW results, with the largest underestimation being around 100%. The data exclusion could lead to biased MAW results. But without the exclusion, the MAW result couldn't always get an increase due to the IUF and window weighting factor variation. With the extended factors removed, the MAW result bias is significantly reduced. The MAW will lead to a lower IUF of the data at the start/end of the tests, and when the cold-start data is considered, this low utilization must be noticed. The effect from the data exclusion, extended factors, and the window characteristics are closely coupled and they should be taken into consideration simultaneously to consummate the calculation method. The current drift-check progress couldn't effectively monitor the portable emission measurement system (PEMS), especially during the tests. The MAW result might lead to unreasonable emission limits and the emission inventory. Relevant policy based on these results might be implausible., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Capsular contracture is a serious complication that occurs after augmentation mammaplasty. The authors previously identified that carboxymethyl chitin had an inhibitory effect on capsule formation. This study was performed to elucidate the possible molecular mechanisms through which carboxymethyl chitin inhibits the formation of a capsule around silicone implants., Methods: In this study, the authors cultured human dermal fibroblasts and treated them with carboxymethyl chitin in vitro. The difference in proliferation between treated and untreated cells was analyzed through the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay. Protein levels of transforming growth factor beta-1 and alpha smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) were examined by Western blot analysis. Expression levels of type I and type III collagen were checked by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. In vivo, silicone implants were placed under the pectoralis muscle in 12 female rabbits. The thickness of the capsule was measured by histologic analysis, and the effect of carboxymethyl chitin on α-SMA, collagen type I and III expression levels was evaluated by real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, Western blot, and immunofluorescence analysis., Results: In the in vitro study, we confirmed that carboxymethyl chitin inhibited the proliferation of fibroblasts. The protein expression levels of collagen type I, transforming growth factor beta-1, and α-SMA were inhibited by carboxymethyl chitin treatment. In vivo, carboxymethyl chitin treatment reduced capsular thickness and the expression of α-SMA and collagen types I and III in capsules around silicone implants., Conclusion: The authors' results showed that carboxymethyl chitin could influence capsule formation around silicone implants by inhibiting the fibroblast activity, interrupting fibroblast-to-myofibroblast differentiation, and decreasing collagen synthesis., Clinical Relevance Statement: Carboxymethyl chitin influence capsule formation around silicone implants. Although more clinical studies are needed to verify the effect of carboxymethyl chitin on capsular contracture, the authors believe that it will play an effective role in the clinical application of reducing the occurrence of capsular contracture., (Copyright © 2022 by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.)

Background: Botulinum toxin-A (BTX-A) injection of regional platysma has been utilized in the lower-part elevation and mandibular contour sculpture. However, the relative research, especially in quantitative assessment appears very spare. Our aim is to investigate the efficacy of three-dimensional (3D) technology as a method for regional platysma injection with BTX-A., Materials and Methods: From October 2019 to September 2020, patients with mild or moderate degrees of facial sagging on the lower face were recruited to regional platysma BTX-A injection, and 3D scanning and measurement technology was used to evaluate the difference of curved distances and angels. Patients' improvement was assessed by the global aesthetic improvement scale (GAIS)., Results: A total of 57 patients underwent regional platysma BTX-A injection and 32 patients were followed up successfully. Compared with Pre-operative, postoperative facial reference curves distance and cervico-mental angles had statistical differences (p &lt; 0.05). GAIS suggested that the 3D imaging measurement technology could improve satisfaction., Conclusion: 3D technology can evaluate the improvement of the lower face with BTX-A. It provides effective measurement methods and raises satisfaction., Level of Evidence Iv: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 ., (© 2022. Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature and International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.)

Whole genomes of plants should be ideal databases for their species identification, but unfortunately there was no such method before this exploration. Here we report a plant species identification method based on the whole Genome Analysis and Genome Editing (GAGE). GAGE searches for target sequences from the whole genome of the subject plant and specifically detects them by employing a CRISPR/Cas12a system. Similar to how Mendel chose Pisum sativum (pea), we selected Crocus sativus (saffron) to establish GAGE, in which we constructed a library containing all candidate target sequences. Taking a target sequence in the ITS2 region as an example, we confirmed the feasibility, specificity, and sensitivity of GAGE. Consequently, we succeeded in not only using GAGE to identify Cr. sativus and its adulterants, but also executing GAGE in the plants from different classes including angiosperms, gymnosperms, ferns, and lycophytes. This sensitive and rapid method is the first plant species identification method based on the whole genome and provides new insights into the application of the whole genome in species identification., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and plant rhizosphere microbes reportedly enhance plant tolerance to abiotic stresses and promote plant growth in contaminated soils. The co-contamination of soil by heavy metals (e.g., Cd) and rare earth elements (e.g., La) represents a severe environmental problem. Although the influence of AMF in the phytoremediation of contaminated soils is well documented, the underlying interactive mechanisms between AMF and rhizosphere microbes are still unclear. We conducted a greenhouse pot experiment to evaluate the effects of AMF (Claroideoglomus etunicatum) on maize growth, nutrient and metal uptake, rhizosphere microbial community, and functional genes in soils with separate and combined applications of Cd and La. The purpose of this experiment was to explore the mechanism of AMF affecting plant growth and metal uptake via interactions with rhizosphere microbes. We found that C. etunicatum (i) significantly enhanced plant nutritional level and biomass and decreased metal concentration in the co-contaminated soil; (ii) significantly altered the structure of maize rhizosphere bacterial and fungal communities; (iii) strongly enriched the abundance of carbohydrate metabolism genes, ammonia and nitrate production genes, IAA (indole-3-acetic acid) and ACC deaminase (1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate) genes, and slightly altered the abundance of P-related functional genes; (iv) regulated the abundance of microbial quorum sensing system and metal membrane transporter genes, thereby improving the stability and adaptability of the rhizosphere microbial community. This study provides evidence of AMF improving plant growth and resistance to Cd and La stresses by regulating plant rhizosphere microbial communities and aids our understanding of the underlying mechanisms., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Acne is a chronic facial disease caused by Propionibacterium acnes, which proliferates within sebum-blocked skin follicles and increases inflammatory cytokine production. Several therapeutic drugs and products have been proposed to treat acne, yet no single treatment that ensures long-term treatment efficacy for all patients is available. Here, we explored the use of facial autologous fat transplant of adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) to dramatically reduce acne lesions., Methods: THP-1 cells were treated with active P. acnes for 24 h at different multiplicities of infection, and alterations in inflammatory factors were detected. To study the effect of THP-1 on inflammasome-related proteins, we first co-cultured ADSCs with THP-1 cells treated with P. acnes and evaluated the levels of these proteins in the supernatant. Further, an acne mouse model injected with ADSCs was used to assess inflammatory changes., Results: Propionibacterium acnes-mediated stimulation of THP-1 cells had a direct correlation with the expression of active caspase-1 and interleukin (IL)-1β in an infection-dependent manner. ADSCs significantly reduced the production of IL-1β induced by P. acnes stimulation through the reactive oxygen species (ROS)/Nod-like receptor family pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3)/caspase-1 pathway. The results showed that ADSCs inhibit the skin inflammation induced by P. acnes by blocking the NLRP3 inflammasome via reducing the secretion of IL-1β in vivo., Conclusions: Our findings suggest that ADSCs can alter IL-1β secretion by restricting the production of mitochondria ROS, thereby inhibiting the NLRP3/caspase-1 pathway in P. acnes-induced inflammatory responses. This study indicates that anti-acne therapy can potentially be developed by targeting the NLRP3 inflammasome., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Diesel vehicle emissions generally deteriorate with vehicle mileage due to the wear and deterioration of vehicle parts. Most of the experimental studies on vehicle emission durability were carried out based on the standard operation cycles of engine or vehicle, few research investigated vehicle emission deterioration characteristics under real driving conditions. In this research, the real driving emission (RDE) test method was used to investigate and evaluate the emission deterioration characteristics of two China-V diesel vehicles equipped with DOC and SCR systems. The experimental results show the emissions of CO and NOx from the N2 and N3 diesel vehicles increase with the vehicle mileage, showing the tendency of emission deterioration. The calculated deterioration factors of N2 and N3 diesel vehicle CO and NOx emissions are greater than the recommended values in China standard HJ 438-2008, which means experimental study on the vehicle emissions durability is necessary. The vehicle emissions deterioration depends on real driving conditions and the vehicle usage over vehicle lifetime., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: The most optimal strategy for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) between drug-eluting stents (DES) and drug-coated balloons (DEB) is still unknown. This meta-analysis aims to compare the short-term outcomes of both methods in patients with STEMI., Methods: We searched PubMed, Web of Science, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library Databases for eligible studies with publication data from 2015 to Jan 2022. Four trials with 360 patients were included. The study was conducted by following the guidelines of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statements., Results: There were no significant differences in major adverse cardiac events between DCB and DES during 6 to 12 months of follow-up (RR 1.38, 95% CI: 0.65 to 2.93; p = 0.41). Similar risks of myocardial infarction (RR 0.48, 95% CI: 0.11 to 2.11, p = 0.33), all causes of death (RR 1.55, 95% CI: 0.32 to 7.62, p = 0.59), and target lesion revascularization (RR 1.29, 95% CI: 0.55 to 3.04, p = 0.55) were observed. The pooled results indicated that DCB was comparable to DES in terms of late lumen loss with a mean difference (MD) of -0.06 mm with significant heterogeneity (95% CI: -0.25 to 0.13, p = 0.54, I 2 = 85%). Subsequent subgroup analysis based on the study design revealed that late lumen loss was significantly lower in the drug-coated balloon group in randomized controlled trials (MD -0.16, 95% CI: -0.26 to -0.05, p = 0.003)., Conclusions: Drug-coated balloons were associated with similar risks of MACE compared with drug-eluting stents in the setting of STEMI. However, a larger randomized controlled trial is required to confirm these observations., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright: © 2022 The Author(s). Published by IMR Press.)

Distant species producing the same secondary metabolites is an interesting and common phenomenon in nature. A classic example of this is scutellarein whose derivatives have been used clinically for more than 30 years. Scutellarein occurs in significant amounts in species of two different orders, Scutellaria baicalensis and Erigeron breviscapus, which diverged more than 100 million years ago. Here, according to the genome-wide selection and functional identification of 39 CYP450 genes from various angiosperms, we confirmed that only seven Scutellaria-specific CYP82D genes and one Erigeron CYP706X gene could perform the catalytic activity of flavone 6-hydroxylase (F6H), suggesting that the convergent evolution of scutellarein production in these two distant species was caused by two independently evolved CYP450 families. We also identified seven Scutellaria-specific CYP82D genes encoding flavone 8-hydroxylase (F8H). The evolutionary patterns of CYP82 and CYP706 families via kingdom-wide comparative genomics highlighted the evolutionary diversity of CYP82D and the specificity of CYP706X in angiosperms. Multi-collinearity and phylogenetic analysis of CYP82D in Scutellaria confirmed that the function of F6H evolved from F8H. Furthermore, the SbaiCYP82D1 A319D , EbreCYP706X R130A , EbreCYP706X F312D and EbreCYP706X A318D mutants can significantly decrease the catalytic activity of F6H, revealing the contribution of crucial F6H amino acids to the scutellarein biosynthesis of distant species. This study provides important insights into the multi-origin evolution of the same secondary metabolite biosynthesis in the plant kingdom., (© 2021 Society for Experimental Biology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Objective: Immediate reconstruction (IR) is a safe and effective surgical treatment for patients with breast cancer. We aimed to assess the prognosis, aesthetic outcomes, and patient satisfaction of IR compared with breast conservation surgery (BCS) and total mastectomy (TM)., Methods: This retrospective matched-cohort study was conducted between May 2005 and December 2014. We established two cohorts according to the tumor (T) size of breast cancer. In the T≤3cm group, cases (IR) and controls (BCS or TM) were matched for age, pathological tumor size, and pathologic nodal status in a 1:1:1 ratio. In the T>3cm group, cases (IR) and controls (TM) were matched with the same factors and ratio. The primary outcome was the 5-year disease-free survival (DFS). The secondary outcome was patient satisfaction and quality of life., Results: A total of 12,678 breast cancer patients were assessed for eligibility, of which 587 were included (T≤3 cm group: 155 IR vs 155 BCS vs 155 TM; T>3cm group: 61 IR vs 61 TM). In the T≤3 cm cohort, patients who underwent IR had no difference compared with those who underwent BCS or TM regarding the 5-year DFS (P=0.539); however, an improved aesthetic satisfaction, psychosocial, and sexual well-being were achieved in the IR group (P<0.001). In the T>3 cm cohort, the IR group had a worse median 5-year DFS (P=0.044), especially for Her2+ or triple-negative breast carcinoma (TNBC) subtypes compared with the TM group., Conclusions: IR improves aesthetic satisfaction, psychosocial, and sexual well-being for breast cancer patients with T≤3 cm. For patients with T > 3 cm invasive breast cancer, TM is superior to IR as it predicts a better 5-year DFS., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

The emergence of a clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/CRISPR-associated proteins (CRISPR/Cas) system has had a revolutionary impact on plant biology. However, this system and further developed base editing are limited by their inherent imperfection. Prime editing, a just arrival technology based on CRISPR/Cas, can directly and precisely edit a specified DNA site without double strand breaks and donor DNA by integrating an engineered reverse transcriptase (RT) with a catalytically impaired Cas9 endonuclease and introducing genetic information into prime editing guide RNA (pegRNA). In addition, it has a wider range of editing types than base editing and can install all types of editing theoretically. Prime editing was originally developed in mammalian cells and has recently been applied to plants. Here, we describe the origin of prime editing and compare it with traditional CRISPR/Cas9 and base editing; then, we exemplify it in plants, including strategies and methods. Accordingly, we generate the overall procedures of prime editing to provide instructions for its application. Furthermore, we summarize its improvements in the approach, such as optimizing the length of a primer binding site and RT template, as well as pursuing an optimal nicking site in the unedited sequence. Finally, we discuss the potential impact on domestication and improvement of agricultural crops, sustainable utilization of medicinal plants, cultivation of varieties of horticultural plants, and revelation of the genetic code, in order to offer a reference for the further study and development of prime editing., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

We successfully synthesized {BiW 8 }, a 10-nuclear heteroatom cluster modified {BiW 8 O 30 }. At 24 h post-incubation, the IC 50 values of {BiW 8 } against HUVEC, MG63, RD, Hep3B, HepG2, and MCF7 cells were 895.8, 127.3, 344.3, 455.0, 781.3, and 206.3 μM, respectively. The IC 50 value of {BiW 8 } on the MG63 cells was more than 2-fold lower than that of the other raw materials. Through morphological and functional features, we demonstrated pyroptosis as a newly identified mechanism of cell death induced by {BiW 8 }. {BiW 8 } increased 2-fold reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels in MG63 cells at 24 h post-incubation. Compared with 0 h, the glutathione (GSH) content decreased by 59, 65, 75, 94, and 97 % at 6, 12, 24, 36 and 48 h post-incubation, respectively. Furthermore, multiple antitumor mechanisms of {BiW 8 } were identified via transcriptome analysis and chemical simulation, including activation of pyroptosis, suppression of GSH generation, depletion of GSH, and inhibition of DNA repair., (© 2021 The Authors. Angewandte Chemie International Edition published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Background: Desire for improved aesthetic contour of the lower third of the face has resulted in an increase in chin augmentation. Although many fillers, including hyaluronic acid (HA), autologous fat and stromal vascular fraction gel (SVF-gel), have been used to improve facial morphology, chin augmentation requires fillers that provide greater support., Methods: The elastic and viscous moduli of SVF-gel and Coleman fat were assessed in vitro by rheological testing, whereas their elasticity were evaluated in vivo by ultrasonic elastography. Results in vitro were compared with those of highly elastic HA (HE-HA) and highly viscous HA (HV-HA), whereas results in vivo were compared with HE-HA. Changes in chin volume, SVF-gel retention rate and absorptivity for at least 12 months were measured by 3D white light scanning. Questionnaires were administered to assess patient satisfaction., Results: The elastic and viscous modulus of SVF-gel was, respectively, slightly lower than HE-HA and HV-HA but higher than the other two in vitro, with the elasticity of the three layers of SVF-gel lower than HE-HA but slightly higher than normal control in vivo. The average retention rate was 62.34±3.34% at 12 months. The absorptivity of 90% of the samples was <3% from 6 to 12 months, which was considered stable. Patients expressed satisfaction with their results., Conclusion: SVF-gel has ideal rheologic characteristics in vitro, which has slightly higher elasticity than normal fat tissue of chin in vivo, and could keep well retention rate for chin augmentation in clinic., Level of Evidence Iv: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 ., (© 2021. Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature and International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.)

Background: Fat grafting is a popular operative approach for rejuvenation. Some patients requiring facial fat grafting also have acne. Fat grafting may improve acne in some patients., Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess whether fat grafting can improve acne and to analyze the mechanism of action by which such improvement occurs., Methods: Preoperative and postoperative digital photographs were examined retrospectively in 229 patients who underwent fat grafting to compare the numbers of inflammatory acne lesions. In addition, 18 patients with acne who were treated by injection of subdermal stromal vascular fraction gel (SVF-gel) were examined prospectively. The numbers of inflammatory acne lesions before and after treatment were measured, and changes in the levels of CD4+ T-cell infiltration were determined from immunohistochemical staining., Results: Of the 229 retrospectively evaluated patients who underwent fat grafting, 22 had acne and had complete follow-up data; in these patients, the numbers of acne lesions were significantly lower after than before treatment. The 18 patients who received subdermal SVF-gel injection showed evident improvements in inflammatory lesions after more than 1 year of follow-up. CD4+ T-cell infiltration was significantly decreased at week 4., Conclusions: Facial fat grafting can improve inflammatory acne lesions, perhaps because adipose-derived stem cells, which are plentiful in SVF-gel, reduce CD4+ T-cell-mediated inflammation responses., (© 2021 The Aesthetic Society. Reprints and permission: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Cognitive dysfunction often accompanies diabetes. Both hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia cause cognitive dysfunctions. However, the underlying pathophysiology remains unclear. Recent evidence show that ferroptosis primarily triggers nerve cell death, Alzheimer's disease (AD), Huntington's disease (HD), and Parkinson's disease (PD). The present study aimed to investigate whether ferroptosis is a vital pathogenic pathway in diabetes-induced cognitive dysfunction. Type 1 diabetic rat model was created by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ). Significant cognitive dysfunction was observed in the diabetic rats as evidenced by increase in latency period to find a hidden platform and decreased cumulative time spent in the target quadrant (TQ) in the Morris water maze test. We detected the amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) of the BOLD (Blood Oxygenation Level-Dependent) signal using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI). Consequently, we found that the ALFF values, as well as the T2 relaxation time of the bilateral hippocampus, were reduced in Type 1 diabetic rats. We detected Fe 2+ level and lipid peroxidation products (malondialdehyde (MDA) and 4-Hydroxynonenal (4-HNE)) in the hippocampus. Mitochondria and neuron injury in the STZ-induced diabetic rats were determined using a Transmission Electron Microscope and Nissl body staining. Iron overload and ferroptosis were detected in the hippocampus. Furthermore, mRNA microarray analysis revealed 201 dysregulated mRNAs in STZ-induced type 1 diabetes (T1D). Pathway enrichment analyses indicated that differentially expressed mRNAs associated-coding genes were associated with ferroptosis. Among ferroptosis signaling pathway genes, Slc40a1 gene (ferroportin) was downregulated. We show that ferroptosis is associated with diabetic cognitive dysfunction and Slc40a1 mediates ferroptosis in T1D., (Copyright © 2021 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Rhizosphere microbes are essential partners for plant stress tolerance. Recent studies indicate that arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can facilitate the revegetation of soils contaminated by heavy metals though interacting with rhizosphere microbiome. However, it is unclear how AMF affect rhizosphere microbiome to improve the growth of plant under rare earth elements (REEs) stress. AMF (Claroideoglomus etunicatum) was inoculated to maize grown in soils spiked with Lanthanum (0 mg kg -1 , La0; 10 mg kg -1 , La10; 100 mg kg -1 , La100; 500 mg kg -1 , La500). Plant biomass, nutrient uptake, REE uptake and rhizosphere bacterial and fungal community were evaluated. The results indicated that La100 and La500 decreased significantly root colonization rates and nutrition uptake (K, P, Ca and Mg content). La500 decreased significantly α-diversity indexes of bacterial and fungal community. AMF enhanced significantly the shoot and root fresh and dry weight of maize in all La treatments (except for the root fresh and dry weight of La0 and La10 treatment). For La100 and La500 treatments, AMF increased significantly nutrition uptake (K, P, Ca and Mg content) in shoot of maize by 27.40-441.77%. For La500 treatment, AMF decreased significantly shoot La concentration by 51.53% in maize, but increased significantly root La concentration by 30.45%. In addition, AMF decreased bacterial and fungal Shannon index in La0 treatment, but increased bacterial Shannon index in La500 treatment. Both AMF and La500 affected significantly the bacterial and fungal community composition, and AMF led to more influence than La. AMF promoted the enrichment of bacteria, including Planomicrobium, Lysobacter, Saccharothrix, Agrococcus, Microbacterium, Streptomyces, Penicillium and other unclassified genus, and fungi (Penicillium) in La500, which showed the function for promoting plant growth and tolerance of heavy metal. The study revealed that AMF can regulate the rhizosphere bacterial and fungal composition and foster certain beneficial microbes to enhance the tolerance of maize under La stress. Phytoremediation assisted by AMF is an attractive approach to ameliorate REEs-contaminated soils., (Copyright © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

At present, remote sensing (RS) is applied in detecting vehicle exhaust emissions, and usually the RS emission results in a definite vehicle specific power (VSP) range are used to evaluate vehicle emissions and identify high-emitting vehicles. When the VSP exceeds this range, the corresponding vehicle emission RS data will not be used to assess vehicle emissions. This method is equivalent to setting only one VSP Bin qualified for vehicle emission evaluation, and generally only one threshold limit is given for each emission pollutant without considering the fluctuation characteristics of vehicle emissions with VSP. Therefore, it is easy to cause misjudgment in identifying high-emitting vehicles and is not conducive to scientific management of vehicle emissions. In addition, the vehicle emissions outside the selected VSP Bin are more serious and should be included in the scope of supervision. This research proposed the methods of vehicle classifications and VSP Binning in order to categorize the driving conditions of each kind of vehicles, and a big data approach was proposed to analyze the vehicle emission RS data in each VSP Bin for vehicle emission evaluation.

Background: The tear trough deformity is a sign of eye aging. Filling is an ideal choice for the tear trough accompanied by infraorbital hollows., Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of stromal vascular fraction gel (SVF-gel) as a filler for the tear trough deformity which is combined with infraorbital hollows., Materials and Methods: From July 2017 to June 2018, 33 patients underwent autologous fat aspiration and were followed up successfully. Stromal vascular fraction gel was used to correct patients with bilateral Barton I/II; tear trough deformity and infraorbital hollows. Improvement was evaluated by measuring skin-periosteal depth, 3D volume, global aesthetic improvement scale (GAIS), and patient self-assessment., Results: Skin-periosteal depth improved significantly (p < .001). The volumetric increment of the tear trough and infraorbital regions increased 2.132 ± 0.671 mL, and the retention rate was excellent (72.87 ± 10.23%). The GAIS showed a high score (2.5 ± 0.5 points), with patient self-assessment showing satisfactory results for all 7 questions on the questionnaire., Conclusion: The high retention rate of SVF-gel suggests that it can provide an effective solution to tear trough deformity accompanied by infraorbital hollows.

Lonicera japonica is a widespread member of the Caprifoliaceae (honeysuckle) family utilized in traditional medical practices. This twining vine honeysuckle also is a much-sought ornamental, in part due to its dynamic flower coloration, which changes from white to gold during development. The molecular mechanism underlying dynamic flower coloration in L. japonica was elucidated by integrating whole genome sequencing, transcriptomic analysis and biochemical assays. Here, we report a chromosome-level genome assembly of L. japonica, comprising nine pseudochromosomes with a total size of 843.2 Mb. We also provide evidence for a whole-genome duplication event in the lineage leading to L. japonica, which occurred after its divergence from Dipsacales and Asterales. Moreover, gene expression analysis not only revealed correlated expression of the relevant biosynthetic genes with carotenoid accumulation, but also suggested a role for carotenoid degradation in L. japonica's dynamic flower coloration. The variation of flower color is consistent with not only the observed carotenoid accumulation pattern, but also with the release of volatile apocarotenoids that presumably serve as pollinator attractants. Beyond novel insights into the evolution and dynamics of flower coloration, the high-quality L. japonica genome sequence also provides a foundation for molecular breeding to improve desired characteristics., (© 2020 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2020 New Phytologist Trust.)

Cognitive function declines during the aging process, meanwhile, gut microbiota of the elderly changed significantly. Although previous studies have reported the effect of gut microbiota on learning and memory, all the reports were based on various artificial interventions to change the gut microbiota without involvement of aging biological characteristics. Here, we investigated the effect of aged gut microbiota on cognitive function by using fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) from aged to young rats. Results showed that FMT impaired cognitive behavior in young recipient rats; decreased the regional homogeneity in medial prefrontal cortex and hippocampus; changed synaptic structures and decreased dendritic spines; reduced expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor NR1 subunit, and synaptophysin; increased expression of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and receptor for AGEs (RAGE). All these behavioral, brain structural and functional alterations induced by FMT reflected cognitive decline. In addition, FMT increased levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines and oxidative stress in young rats, indicating that inflammation and oxidative stress may underlie gut-related cognitive decline in aging. This study provides direct evidence for the contribution of gut microbiota to the cognitive decline during normal aging and suggests that restoring microbiota homeostasis in the elderly may improve cognitive function.

Diesel particle filter (DPF) has been widely acknowledged as the most effective way to mitigate particulate matter emitted from diesel engines. Over time, ash mainly derived from lubricating oil will deposit in DPF, showing negative influence to engine performance, fuel economy, service life of DPF, and so on. Recently, the investigation about DPF backpressure characteristics and DPF regeneration process considering ash has gained attention. As a porous material, ash will play a key role in the DPF permeability. Thus, the pore morphology and fractal dimension of ash derived from three kinds of lube are addressed in this work. The results show that the changing tendency of the micropore specific surface and pore volume is consistent with the ash content in lubricant oil, which is owing to the chemical interaction of Ca and S contained in the oil during the complex DPF regeneration. There is no significant changing tendency of the mesopore and macropore properties because of the heterogeneity and complexity of ash. According to the fractal analyses, the Avnir equation shows excellent predictive accuracy for the pore surface fractal dimension of ash, which reflects that the ash pore surfaces are irregular.