Search

This objective of this study was to use empirical data to assess cross-sectional variation singular and changes over time in community efficacy for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) management (COEN) and to examine individual factors associated with changes in COEN. This was a longitudinal observational study. Participants with hypertension and diabetes were randomly selected from 12 communities from three cities in eastern China, and a baseline survey and a 1-year follow-up were conducted. The COEN scale has five dimensions: community physical environment (CPE), behavioral risk factors (BRF), mental health and social relationships (MHSR), community health management (CHM), and community organisations and activities (COA). Mixed-effects models were used to investigate the change in COEN over time and the association between individual factors and changes in COEN. COEN scores showed significant variation singular among the 12 communities (P < 0.001) at the baseline. In the mixed-effects model, CPE (β coefficient: 1.62, P < 0.001), BRF (0.90, P < 0.001), MHSR (0.86, P < 0.001), CHM (0.46, P < 0.001), and total scores (β = 3.57, P < 0.001) increased significantly over time. The changes in COEN were associated with individual characteristics (e.g., older, men, more educated). Cross-sectional variations and changes over time in COEN demonstrated the utility of a sensitive instrument. Factors such as age, gender, marriage, education level, and employment may affect the financial and social resources assignment for NCD management. Our findings suggest that further high-quality studies are needed to better evaluate the effect of community empowerment on the prevention and control of NCDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Extracellular vesicles released by mesenchymal stem cells (MSC-EVs) can be applied to alleviate intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD) by curbing apoptosis of nucleus pulposus cells (NPCs). The current study aims to evaluate the effect of MSC-EVs on NPC apoptosis and IVDD and the related regulatory mechanisms involving microRNA (miR)-217.Method: Expression of miR-217 was examined in tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α)-induced NPCs and MSC-EVs, followed by identification in the relationship between miR-217, enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) and forkhead box O-3 (FOXO3). After isolation of EVs from MSCs and subsequent co-culture with NPCs, we assessed effects of miR-217 on NPC viability, autophagy, senescence and apoptosis along with extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation. Further in vivo experiments were conducted in rat models of IVDD to substantiate the effect of miR-217 on IVDD.Results: Poor miR-217 expression was found in TNF-α-induced NPCs, while high miR-217 expression was identified in MSC-EVs (P < 0.05). MSC-EVs transferred miR-217 to NPCs and increased its expression, thus attenuating NPC apoptosis and ECM degradation (elevated collagen II and aggrecan but reduced MMP13 and ADAMTS5) (P < 0.05). miR-217 targeted EZH2, and EZH2 bound to the FOXO3 promoter and consequently downregulated its expression. FOXO3 restrained NPC apoptosis and ECM degradation by stimulating cell autophagy (P < 0.05). Furthermore, in vivo experimental results confirmed the suppressive role of miR-217 shuttled by MSC-EVs in IVDD.Conclusion: Overall, the delivery of miR-217 may be a novel mechanism underlying the effect of MSC-EVs on NPC apoptosis and ECM degradation following IVDD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recurrent or metastatic malignant salivary gland tumors (R/M MSGTs) of the head and neck portend a poor prognosis, and therapeutic options are currently limited. Surufatinib is a potent, small-molecule tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) that selectively targets VEGF receptors (VEGFR) 1, 2, and 3, FGFR 1, and CSF-1R. Recent studies have demonstrated encouraging efficacy of small molecule antiangiogenic inhibitors in head and neck cancer. This study was therefore conducted to investigate the antitumor activity and safety of surufatinib in R/M MSGT patients. Patients aged 18-75 years with incurable and progressive R/M MSGTs received surufatinib at a dose of 300 mg once daily until intolerance or disease progression occurred. Based on a Simon's two-stage minimax design, 13 patients would be enrolled in stage 1; if 1 or more responses were observed, the trial would proceed to stage 2 in which an additional 14 patients would be enrolled, for a total sample size of 32 patients. The primary endpoint was objective response rate (ORR) as assessed by RECIST 1.1 criteria, and secondary endpoints included disease control rate (DCR), progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and safety. This study was prospectively registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04910854). From May 2019 to March 2023, 12 patients were enrolled and received at least one dose of treatment. The median age was 45.5 years (range 27-60), 83.3% were female, and 41.7% had an ECOG performance status of 2. The most common histological tumor types were adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC, 41.7%) and mucoepidermoid carcinoma (MEC, 41.7%). The most frequent metastatic sites were the lungs (83.3%). 5 patients (41.7%) had previous chemotherapy, and 4 (33.3%) had previous antiangiogenic therapy. 6 patients (50.0%) had two or more prior lines of treatment before enrollment. As of the September 2023 data cutoff, 2 patients achieved a partial response (PR), 9 had stable disease (SD), yielding a confirmed objective response rate (ORR) of 16.7% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.1-48.4%), and a disease control rate (DCR) of 91.7% (95% CI: 61.5-99.8%). The median progression-free survival (PFS) was 8.57 months (95% CI 4.76-11.33), with 3-month and 6-month PFS rates of 83.3% (95% CI: 51.6-97.9%) and 41.7% (95% CI 15.2-72.3%), respectively. Median overall survival (OS) was immature. Most treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) were grade 1-2, including hyperuricemia (58.3%), hypertension (41.7%). The most common grade ≥3 AEs were hypertension (25.0%), proteinuria (25.0%), and nephrotic syndrome (8.3%). There were no treatment-related deaths. This trial demonstrated that surufatinib showed promising antitumor activity in patients with R/M MSGTs. The safety profile observed in this study aligned with prior clinical studies, requiring continued monitoring and management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To reveal the prognostic value of the postoperative and dynamic albumin-to-alkaline phosphatase ratio (AAPR) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients undergoing trans-catheter chemoembolisation (TACE). In total, 545 HCC patients undergoing initial TACE were enrolled into the study. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was plotted to determine the best cut-off for AAPR. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were used to confirm the independent prognostic effect of AAPR on overall survival (OS). The predictive performance of AAPR was assessed by ROC curves, concordance index (C-index), and Akaike information criterion (AIC), and was compared to existing liver function assessment systems. The optimal cut-off value for the AAPR was 0.26. Elevated AAPR (>0.26) was associated with a low risk of death after adjustment whether before (HR: 0.53; 95% CI: 0.4–0.69) or after (HR: 0.64; 95% CI: 0.43–0.95) TACE treatment. The combined pre- and postoperative AAPR showed much better performance in ROC curve (1-, 3-, and 5-year AUCs: 0.69, 0.71, 0.69), C-index (0.65; 95% CI: 0.59–0.72) and AIC analyses than pre-AAPR and post-AAPR alone or liver function assessment systems. This study demonstrated both preoperative and postoperative AAPR were independent prognostic factors for HCC patients undergoing TACE. In addition, the combined pre- and post-AAPR showed better predictive performance than pre-AAPR and post-AAPR alone or liver function assessment systems. • Postoperative AAPR were prognostic factors for HCC patients undergoing TACE. • A combined indicator including preoperative and postoperative AAPR was proposed. • The combined AAPR showed better prognostic ability than liver function systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We present a Six-Point positioning algorithms which can automatically update tool coordinate system. • We choose two kinds of measurement paths for testing the wall thickness values of the blades. • Our method can automatically determine suitable adjustment parameters for distorted wave shapes. • Our method demonstrates excellent precision, accuracy, and stable. It can greatly improve the measurement efficiency. Compared with inner solid structures, the inner hollow structures of turbine blades show excellent mechanical properties and better physical properties, e.g., excellent heat dissipation and diversion effects, and light weight. Its complex inner structures cannot be detected accurately by traditional testing methods. Among all non-destructive testing (NDT) methods, ultrasonic testing method has certain advantages in measurement accuracy and efficiency for measuring wall thickness values. The accuracy of measurement results is provided by four criteria: precision, accuracy, stability, and efficiency. However, ultrasonic testing method still faces new challenges that are barely explored, e.g., inner structures have unique characteristics of complex geometrical features, the measurement process need to meet high-precision positioning and quickly detecting requirements. In this paper, in order to improve the detection accuracy and efficiency, an industrial robot is used to substitute the existing detection methods: once a new blade is clamped by terminal mechanism, a new calibration method adopted the six-point positioning scheme was provided to solve the problem of rapid and accurate updating tool coordinate system. The support vector machine (SVM) system was used to output regression results of the adjustment parameters based on the geometric features of distorted wave shapes. Two kinds of measurement paths were used to measure the wall thickness values for accurate measurement. The experimental results show the superiority and effectiveness of our method in terms of measuring stability, accuracy and testing efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To meet the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 6.1, China has undertaken significant initiatives to address the uneven distribution of water resources and to enhance water quality. Since 2000, China has invested heavily in the water infrastructure of numerous reservoirs, with a total storage capacity increase of 4.704 × 10 11 m 3 (an increase of 90.8%). These reservoirs have significantly enhanced the available freshwater resources for drinking water. Concurrently, efforts to improve water quality in lakes and reservoirs, facilitated by nationwide water quality monitoring, have been successful. As a result, an increasing lakes and reservoirs are designated as centralized drinking water sources (CDWSs) in China. Among the 3,441 CDWSs across all provinces, 40.8% are sourced from lakes and reservoirs, 32.6% from rivers, and 26.6% from groundwater in 2023. Notably, from 2016 to 2023, the percentage of lakes and reservoirs categorized as CDWSs has increased consistently across all 29 provinces. This progress has enabled 561.4 million urban residents to access improved drinking water sources in 2022, compared to 303.4 million in 2004. Our findings underscore the pivotal role of water infrastructure construction and water quality improvement jointly promoting lakes and reservoirs as vital drinking water sources. Nevertheless, the nationwide occurrence of algal blooms has surged by 113.7% from the 2000s to the 2010s , which is a considerable challenge to drinking water safety. Fortunately, algal blooms have been markedly alleviated in past four years. However, it is still crucial to acknowledge that lakes and reservoirs face the challenges of algal blooms, and associated toxic microcystin and odor compounds., (Copyright © 2024 Science China Press. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)