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Objective To analyze the computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings of immunoglobulin G4 (IgG4)-related autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP), to improve the understanding of the imaging features of this disease, and to reduce imaging misdiagnosis. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed on the clinical data of 47 patients with IgG4-related AIP, among whom 33 underwent plain CT scan and contrast-enhanced CT scan, 24 underwent plain MRI scan, contrast-enhanced MRI scan, and magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) examination, and 10 underwent combined CT and MRI examination to observe the morphology, changes in density/signal, contrast enhancement characteristics of the diseased pancreas, the peripancreatic and pancreatic duct changes, and the manifestations out of the pancreas. Results The CT and MRI scans showed that among the 47 patients, 27 had a “sausage-like”, diffusely enlarged pancreas and 20 had a focally enlarged pancreas. The plain CT scan showed a uniform and slightly low density; the contrast-enhanced CT scan of the lesion showed an inhomogeneous patchy enhancement in arterial phase, and a uniformly delayed progressive enhancement in portal vein phase and delayed phase. The MRI scan of the lesion showed inhomogeneous and slight hypointensity on T1WI-FS and slight hyperintensity on T2WI, the contrast-enhanced MRI scan showed an inhomogeneous mild enhancement in the early stage and a uniformly delayed progressive enhancement on delayed scan. The CT and MRI scans showed that 28 patients had capsule-like edges around the panc-reas, namely “capsule sign”, with a mild to moderate delayed enhancement on contrast-enhanced images. The MRCP showed that 10 patients had segmental stenosis of the main pancreatic duct and localized mild dilatation of the upstream pancreatic duct. The CT and MRI scans showed that 30 patients had changes in the bile duct system, with wall thickening, stenosis, and delayed enrichment of the pancreatic segment of common bile duct. The MRCP showed “beak-like” changes, and dilatation of upstream intrahepatic and extrahepatic bile ducts to varying degrees. Conclusion The CT and MRI findings of IgG4-related AIP have certain characteristics. The combination of imaging findings and relevant laboratory tests can help improve the diagnosis of this disease.

In this study, the antihypertensive peptide WQVLPNAVPAK was selected for the synthesis of the gene encoding the hexameric peptide angiotensin I-converting enzyme inhibitory peptide (ACEIP) based on the codon preference of Escherichia coli. The synthetic gene was cloned into the expression vector pET30a to construct recombinant plasmid pET30a-ACEIP. The recombinant plasmid was identified by double digestion with restriction endonucleases NdeI and HindIII and polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and transformed into competent E. coli BL21 (DE3) cells to construct the expression system E. coli BL21(DE3)/pET30a-ACEIP, which was induced with isopropyl-β-D-thiogalactopyranoside (IPTG) at a final concentration of 0.8 mmol/L. A clear band of 8.7 kDa was seen on Tricine-sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The hexameric peptide ACEIP was purified by Ni2+ affinity chromatography and the expression of the fusion protein was 61.30 mg/L. The expression of ACEIP was 57.84 mg/L. The half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of the hexameric peptide was 6.39 mg/mL after trypsin digestion, whose ACE inhibitory activity was higher than that of the monomeric peptide WQVLPNAVPAK (IC50 of 12.34 mg/mL).

Objective To investigate the value of T1 value before and after Gd-EOB-DTPA-enhanced MRI in evaluating the pathological grade of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods A retrospective analysis was performed for the plain scan and Gd-EOB-DTPA-enhanced MRI images of 75 HCC patients (75 lesions in total) who were admitted to The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University from March 2019 to June 2020. According to Edmondson-Steiner grading, lesions were divided into low-grade group (grade Ⅰ-Ⅱ) and high-grade group (grade Ⅲ-Ⅳ). The T1 mapping technique was used to measure pre-enhanced T1 value (T1pre) and hepatobiliary-specific T1 value (T1-HBP), and the reduction in T1 value (△T1) and the reduction rate of T1 value (△T1%) were calculated. T1pre, T1-HBP, △T1, and △T1% were compared between the lesions with different pathological grades, and the correlation between each quantitative index and pathological grade was analyzed. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and the area under the ROC curve (AUC) were used to analyze the efficiency of each statistically significant index. Results There were significant differences in T1pre, T1-HBP, and △T1% between the low-grade group and the high-grade group (t=-3.725-2.551,P0.05). Correlation analysis showed that T1pre and T1-HBP were positively correlated with the pathological grade of HCC (r=0.293,0.472,P

Objective To provide a scientific basis for improving the prevention and control strategies of dengue fever by analyzing the epidemiological characteristics and influencing factors of reported cases in Hainan Province from 2008 to 2023. Methods Descriptive epidemiological methods were used to analyze the temporal, spatial, and demographic distribution characteristics and influencing factors of reported dengue fever cases in Hainan Province from 2008 to 2023. Spearman correlation analysis was used to explore the correlation between local cases and imported cases. ArcGIS 10.8 and R 4.3.0 were used for graphic production, and SaTScan 10.1.3 software was used for spatiotemporal scanning analysis. Results From 2008 to 2023, a total of 810 cases of dengue fever were reported in Hainan Province, including 164 imported cases and 646 local cases. The 646 local cases reported from June to December, showed a significant seasonal pattern, with September to October being the peak months. The cases were mainly distributed in Haikou City (41.18%) and Ledong County (39.32%). There were two large-scale outbreaks of dengue fever in 2019 and 2023, with 302 and 328 local cases reported respectively (accounting for 97.52% of the total local cases). The male-to-female ratio of local cases was 1.57:1, and cases in the age group of 25 to under 65 accounted for 69.50% of the total. The top three occupations of local cases were housework and unemployment (17.65%), migrant workers (17.34%), and business services (13.78%). From 2008 to 2023, a total of 164 imported cases were reported, with cases reported every month. The peak months were from June to November, accounting for 82.32% of the total imported cases. A total of 66 domestically imported cases were reported, originating from Guangdong Province, Yunnan Province, and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region; 98 cases were overseas imports, mainly from Thailand and Cambodia. The male-to-female ratio of imported cases was 1.65:1, and cases in the age group of 25 to under 55 accounted for 68.29% of the total. The top three occupations of imported cases were business service (33.54%), housework and unemployment (10.37%), and farmers (9.76%). From 2008 to 2013, the years when domestic imported cases were reported in Hainan Province were 2014, 2018, 2019, and 2023, coinciding with the years local cases were reported from 2008 to 2013. There was a positive correlation between local cases and domestic imported cases (r=0.892, P<0.001), while no statistically significant correlation was found with overseas imported cases. Spatiotemporal scanning analysis detected 5 clusters, concentrated in September to October in the years 2019 and 2023. Conclusions Dengue fever is prevalent in Hainan Province, mainly caused by imported cases leading to local outbreaks without forming local epidemics. It exhibits significant seasonal characteristics. Imported cases mainly originate from Cambodia, Thailand, and other Southeast Asian countries, as well as domestically from Guangdong Province, Yunnan Province, and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Local cases are mainly distributed in coastal cities and counties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heterocyclic amines are toxic compounds formed in the process of thermal processing and flavor formation of protein-rich foods. These toxic compounds have adverse effects on the human health and may be mutagenic and carcinogenic. With the development of science and technology and people's attention to food safety, heterocyclic amines in meat products have attracted more and more attention. This article mainly describes the formation, influencing factors, hazards, detection method and control of heterocyclic amines in meat products, and prospects for future research directions.

BackgroundLaBr3(Ce) crystal is a new type of inorganic scintillator with excellent properties and is an excellent material for making scintillator detectors. LaBr3(Ce) detector has been widely used in nuclear logging, environmental monitoring, nuclear medicine, and other fields. Detection efficiency of the detector is an important index for the design and development of the detector.PurposeThis study aims to explore the factors affecting the detection efficiency of a LaBr3(Ce) detector by simulation.MethodsFirst of all, the detection model of the LaBr3(Ce) detector was established by using Geant4 toolkits. Then, factors affecting the detection efficiency of the detector, such as the shape and size of crystal cross section, position and the energy of the radioactive source, were studied in details.ResultsThe results show that the detection efficiency is related to the shape and size of crystal cross-section. The detection efficiency of rectangular section is lower than that of circular and square section; the larger the crystal radial size and the shorter the crystal length, the higher the detection efficiency. The detection efficiency of the LaBr3(Ce) detector is related to the energy of the ray: the higher the energy, the lower the detection efficiency. At the same time, the smaller the distance between the source and the detector, the higher the scintillation detection efficiency.ConclusionThe analysis of the influencing factors of detector detection efficiency has a certain reference value and guiding significance for the research and design of LaBr3(Ce) detectors.

The bismuth oxide/polyacrylonitrile (Bi2O3/PAN) composite nanofiber film was prepared by electrospinning technology to explore the preparation process of the film and its X-ray protection performance. During the preparation process, we took polyethylene glycol (PEG) as dispersant and PAN as polymer, then dispersed Bi2O3 into the polymer solution. The effect of Bi2O3 content on the morphology, mechanical properties and X-ray protection of the film were investigated. The results indicate that the nanofiber film with light weight (0.21 g/cm³ density), uniform particle dispersion and good fiber morphology can be obtained by electrostatic spinning and drying at 60 °C for 2 h, at the mass percentage of Bi2O3 and PAN of 160%. The nanofiber film has good X-ray protection effect, with X-ray attenuation efficiency above 50% during the tube voltage rising from 20 kV to 120 kV, and the mass attenuation coefficient reaching 62.16 cm²/g under the voltage of 20 kV. It has great significance for the development of X-ray protection materials with lead-free, lightweight and high shielding efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To investigate and evaluate the change and efficacy of Active -wing Appliance in patients with lingual tipping deep overbite of Angle class II division 2 malocclusion. Methods Twenty patients with lingual tipping deep overbite of Angle class II division 2 malocclusions were selected for our study. Among the twenty patients, fifteen are girls and five are boys, whose age are from 16.0 to 23.0 years old with average of 18.8 years old. The patients were treated with Active -wing technique and all of them were non-extracted. Cephalometric films were taken before and after treatment to assess the effect of treatment. Eleven angular and thirteen linear measurements were taken. Paired t test was performed to analyze and evaluate the effects before and after treatment. Results Active-wing Appliance have advantage of easy operating with short treatment cycle for treatment of deep overbite of Angle class II division 2 malocclusion. It only takes 11 months in average for the treatment. After treatment, mandibular plane angle were increased (23.00°±6.76° vs 21.59°± 5.32°), overbite were decreased [ (1.02±0.81) mm vs (5.67±1.22) mm] to reach normal level; incisors were labial incline significantly with increased protrusion and inclination; Post treatment parameter improvement also include: U1-NA distance in- creased (4.67±1.21 ) mm vs (1.24±1.37) mm; U1-NA angle increased (24.40°±6.36° vs 11.70°±6.87°); lower incisors were significantly intruded[ (37.16±1.81) mm vs (38.90±1.84) mm]; L6-MP were extruded [(31.68±2.87) mm vs (30.38±3.45) mm]; The cuspid and molar relationships were changed from Class II to Class I occlusion. Conclusion The Active--wing Appliance can quickly open overbite and correct incisor lingual tipping for Angle class II division 2 with lingual tipping deep overbite. It is easy to operate and has been improved as efficient and shortened treatment. Meanwhile, it also saves arch wire. The Active-wing Appliance is especially powerful for lingual tipping deep overbite. However, the deficiency in torque control of premolars might be noticed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The isophorone diiocyanate ( IPDI) and polycaprolactone ( PCL ) are used to prepare waterborne polyurethane (WPU) by copolytnerization method and blending method, during which modified by γ-isocyanatopropyltriethoxysilane(IPTS). Effects of IPTS content on the thermal and mechanical properties of WPU were investigated by IR, differential scanning calorimetry(DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), The experiment results show that the addition quantity of IPTS was lower than 3. 0 g/100 g, all can improve the waterproof ability, heat resistant, hardness and impact resistance of WPU,whether in the blending method or copolytnerization method, but the properties of WPU by the copolymerization method were better. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) plays a crucial role in the diagnosis of ischemic stroke. Accurate segmentation of the infarct is of great significance for selecting intervention treatment methods and evaluating the prognosis of patients. To address the issue of poor segmentation accuracy of existing methods for multiscale stroke lesions, a novel encoder-decoder architecture network based on depthwise separable convolution is proposed. Firstly, this network replaces the convolutional layer modules of the U-Net with redesigned depthwise separable convolution modules. Secondly, an modified Atrous spatial pyramid pooling (MASPP) is introduced to enlarge the receptive field and enhance the extraction of multiscale features. Thirdly, an attention gate (AG) structure is incorporated at the skip connections of the network to further enhance the segmentation accuracy of multiscale targets. Finally, Experimental evaluations are conducted using the ischemic stroke lesion segmentation 2022 challenge (ISLES2022) dataset. The proposed algorithm in this paper achieves Dice similarity coefficient (DSC), Hausdorff distance (HD), sensitivity (SEN), and precision (PRE) scores of 0.816 5, 3.668 1, 0.889 2, and 0.894 6, respectively, outperforming other mainstream segmentation algorithms. The experimental results demonstrate that the method in this paper effectively improves the segmentation of infarct lesions, and is expected to provide a reliable support for clinical diagnosis and treatment.

Pomelo peel, as a by-product of pomelo consumption, is rich in various fiber and functional compounds. The utilization of the valuable components found in pomelo peel may mitigate environmental concerns. In this study, pomelo peel rich in lignin and oxygen-containing functional groups was used to prepare pomelo peel biochar (PPB) via temperature-programmed pyrolysis at different temperatures (800 ℃ and 1000 ℃). Their structures were investigated by N 2 adsorption-desorption isotherms and BJH pore size distribution. The results showed that PPB1000 (pomelo peel biochar prepared at 1000 ℃) had a higher specific surface area (749.9 m 2 /g), larger pore volume (0.42 cm 3 /g), more concentrated pore size distribution (2-3 nm), and better adsorption performance than commercial activated carbon. PPB1000 exhibited excellent capability to capture benzenes (BTEX, including benzene (B), toluene (T), ethylbenzene (E), and xylene (X)) through hydrogen bonds, π-π , and electrostatic interactions. Additionally, their honeycomb porous structure could provide additional adsorption sites and material transport paths. PPB1000 was coated on iron wire using the sol-gel method to prepare chemically and mechanically stable solid phase microextraction (SPME) fibers. By combining PPB1000-based SPME analysis with gas chromatography-flame ionization detection (GC-FID), an effective method was developed for the extraction and determination of BTEX. The optimized method had low LODs (0.004-0.032 μg/L), wide linear range (1-100 μg/L), and good linear relationship (determination coefficients, r 2 ≥0.9919). The RSDs of the intra-batch ( n =6) and inter-batch ( n =5) precisions were 1.04%-6.56% and 1.03%-12.42%, respectively. The method validation results showed that PPB1000 had good stability. Compared with the commercial reagent polydimethylsiloxane (7 μm), PPB1000 had a higher extraction efficiency. When applied to the analysis of BTEX in natural water samples, trace levels of ethylbenzene (4.80 μg/L), o -xylene (3. 00 μg/L), and m -xylene and p -xylene (2.46 μg/L) were detected. Recovery tests were performed to validate the reliability of the method, and recoveries were between 75.7% and 117.6%. This effective pretreatment process combined with GC-FID could realize the rapid detection of BTEX and is promising for the analysis of BTEX in complex matrixes in the future.

Triterpenoid saponins are widely used in medicine, health cares, cosmetics, food additives and agriculture because of their unique chemical properties and rich pharmacological activities. UDP-dependent glycosyltransferases (UGTs) are the key enzymes involved in triterpenoid saponin biosynthesis, and play important roles in the diversity of triterpenoid saponin structures and pharmacological activities. This review summarized the UGTs involved in plant triterpenoid saponin biosynthesis based on the sources of UGTs and the types of receptors. Moreover, the application of UGTs in heterologous biosynthesis of triterpenoid saponins based on synthetic biology was also discussed.

Medicinal natural products derived from plants are usually of low content and difficult to extract and isolate. Moreover, these compounds are structurally complex, making it difficult to obtain them by environmental unfriendly chemical synthesis. Biosynthesis of medicinal natural products through synthetic biology is a novel, environment-friendly and sustainable approach. Taking terpenoids (ginsenosides, paclitaxel, artemisinin, tanshinones), alkaloids (vincristine and morphine), and flavonoids (breviscapine) as examples, this review summarizes the advances of the biosynthetic pathways and synthetic biology strategies of plant-derived medicinal natural products. Moreover, we introduce the key technologies and methods of synthetic biology used in the research of medicinal natural products, and provide future prospects in this area.

Cadinanes are a class of bicyclic sesquiterpenes with complex stereochemistry and broad pharmacological activities, such as antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and hypoglycemic activities. To date, structurally diverse and bioactive cadinane sesquiterpenes have been isolated and identified from a variety of plants and microorganisms. Moreover, deeper understandings on cadinane sesquiterpene synthases have been made. This article categorized the 124 new cadinanes which were published in the literatures in the past four years (2017-2020) into five structural types, and presented their pharmacological activities. We also illustrated the elucidation of the biosynthetic pathways for typical cadinanes, summarized the research progress on cadinane sesquiterpene synthases. Finally, current challenges and future prospects were proposed and discussed.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common type of dementia and a neurodegenerative disease with progressive cognitive dysfunction as the main feature. How to identify the early changes of cognitive dysfunction and give appropriate treatments is of great significance to delay the onset of dementia. Some other researches have shown that AD is associated with abnormal changes of brain networks. To study human brain functional connectivity characteristics in AD, 16 channels electroencephalogram (EEG) were recorded under resting and eyes-closed condition in 15 AD patients and 15 subjects in the control group. The synchronization likelihood of the full-band and alpha-band (8-13 Hz) data were evaluated, which resulted in the synchronization likelihood coefficient matrices. Considering a threshold T, the matrices were converted into binary graphs. Then the graphs of two groups were measured by topological parameters including the clustering coefficient and global efficiency. The results showed that the global efficiency of the network in full-band EEG was significantly smaller in AD group for the values of T = 0.06 and T = 0.07, but there was no statistically significant difference in the clustering coefficients between the two groups for the values of T (0.05-0.07). However, the clustering coefficient and global efficiency were significantly lower in AD patients at alpha-band for the same threshold range than those of subjects in the control group. It suggests that there may be decreases of the brain connectivity strength in AD patients at alpha-band of the resting-state EEG. This study provides a support for quantifying functional brain state of AD from the brain network perspective.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between passing rate of otoacoustic emission (OAE) and pure tone thresholds., Method: OAE including both transient evoked otoacoustic emission (TEOAE) and distortion products otoacoustic emission (DPOAE) as well as pure tone thresholds were measured in subjects with normal hearing and sensory hearing loss. The passing rates of OAE were calculated in subjects with different age groups and different pure tone thresholds., Result: TEOAE can identify hearing loss at frequencies of 2 kHz and below. For TEOAE and 2 kHz DPOAE, passing rate has no difference between different age groups. For 4 kHz DPOAE, the passing rate in age over 50 years group is lower than other groups. The passing rate decreased as the pure tone threshold increased. When TEOAE and DPOAE suggest " pass", 70%, 81%, 79% subjects had pure tone threshold lower than 25 dB HL and 94%, 96%, 93% lower than 40 dB HL respectively. When they suggest "refer", 93%, 84%, 87% subjects had pure tone threshold higher than 25 dB HL and 71%, 58%, 68% higher than 40 dB HL respectively., Conclusion: TEOAE is sensitive to hearing loss at middle and low frequencies but not at high frequencies. Measuring both TEOAE and DPOAE might provide more information of hearing loss at 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 and 4.0 kHz. It is worth noting that even OAE suggest "pass" or "refer", because there is still exist the possibility of hearing loss.

Objective: To analyze the expression of Maspin and Ki67 in EN-NK/TCL and the significance., Method: The expressions of Maspin and Ki67 were detected by immunohistochemistry in 34 cases of EN-NK/TCL and 11 cases of chronic sinusitis., Result: Maspin was low expressed in EN-NK/TCL, Ki67 was highly expressed in EN-NK/TCL. Negative correlation was found between the expression of Maspin and Ki67 in EN-NK/TCL., Conclusion: The combined examination of Maspin and Ki67 has important significance in the diagnosis in EN-NK/ TCL.

An amphiphilic LDL adsorbent was synthesized with dietary fiber as the carrier, laurylamine as hydrophobic group and 3-Chloro-2-hydroxylpropysodium sulfonate as sulphonation reagent. The effects of reaction time, reaction temperature and amount of 3-Chloro-2-hydroxylpropysodium sulfonate on SO4(2-) content were studied, and the required preparations were made. The condition for adsorption was obtained by investigating the influence of adsorbent amount and adsorption time. The results show that the adsorption percentages for the removal of total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) are 49.6%, 60.0% and 18.2%, respectively. This amphiphilic adsorbent possesses a better selectivity in removing cholesterol.

Objective: To study the anticonvulsive action of scorpion alcoholic extraction (SAE) on phenytoin-resistant convulsive rats made by direct cortical electrical stimulation in order to investigate the mechanism of antagonizing drug-resistance of SAE., Method: Using the method of implanting microelectrodes in the cortical motor area of the brains of rats where the brain tissue was stimulated frequently by electricity through microelectrodes until igniting and then PHT (0.154 g x kg(-1) x d(-1)) ig for 7 days, We established phenytoin-resistant convulsive rat model. Total 6 groups were set up in the experiment: Normal control group, convulsion model control group (CMCG), phenytoin-resistant convulsion control group (PRCG), verapamil positive control group (VPCG, 0.0385 g x kg(-1)), scorpion alcohol extraction (SAE1, 6.5 g x kg(-1)) and scorpion alcohol extraction (SAE2, 13.0 g x kg(-1)). After ig both doses of SAE (6.5, 13.0 g x kg(-1)), the effects of SAE on the changes of convulsion threshold of phenytoin-resistant convulsive rats were observed. The method of RT-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to detect the changes of mdrl gene expression and the method of immunohistochemistry (SABC) was adopted to determine the changes of P-gp expression., Result: Both doses of SAE and verapamil (Ver) ig all raised the convulsant threshold of phenytoin-resistant rats (480.38 +/- 18.48) microA, there were statistical differences (P < 0.05) compared to themselves before drugs-treated. PHT was administrated, and mdrl mRNA and P-gp expression in PRCG was much higher than that in CMCG, with significantly statistical difference (P < 0.01); ig both doses of SAE and Ver all decreased mdrl mRNA and P-gp expression compared to PRCG respectively (P < 0.01)., Conclusion: SAE and Ver ig all produce antagonizing action on phenytoin-resistant convulsive rat model. The machanism is related with inhabiting the mdrl mRNA expression and further decreasing the product P-gp.