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Polyacrylonitrile pre-oxidized fiber（PANOF）is an emerging flame retardant material with low cost and high performance，showing a promising application potential as thermal protection materials in the aerospace field.Pretreated PANOF（t-PANOF）was obtained by the process of oil removing with acetone and surface modification using silane coupling agent KH570 in turn.Scanning electron microscopy（SEM），Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy（FT-IR）and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy（XPS）were employed to figure out the changes of morphology and chemical structure of the fibers before and after pretreatment and their interfacial properties with silicone rubber（SR）.Effects of t-PANOF on the mechanical and thermal performances of SR were further investigated. With the presence of ceramic forming agent（CFA），the ablation responsive behaviors of CFA/t-PANOF/SR ternary composites were researched as well.The results show that the level of interfacial adhesion between fibers and rubber is significantly enhanced contributed from the pretreatment of PANOF，and the tensile strength of the composites is improved accordingly.However，with the increasing content of t-PANOF，the comprehensive mechanical properties of t-PANOF/SR composites show the trend that increase first and then decrease，indicating that the optimal dosage of the fibers is 5 to 10 phr.t-PANOF skeleton helps to not only enhance the dimensional stability of SR in high temperature and oxygen-rich environment，but also improve the ablation performance of CFA/t-PANOF/SR composites.The antioxidation ceramic layer with fiber skeleton as the main structure is formed on the surface of CFA/t-PANOF/SR composites under the high temperature aerobic gas with the heat flux density of 2 MW/m2，the corresponding linear and mass ablation rate are only 0.02 mm/s and 0.02 g/s respectively，which is expected to be utilized as an ablation material to satisfy the demands of the new generation of aerospace vehicles.

Cyclin‐dependent kinase 9 (CDK9), a catalytic subunit of the positive transcription elongation factor b (P‐TEFb) complex, is a global transcriptional elongation factor associated with cell proliferation. CDK9 activity is regulated by certain histone acetyltransferases, such as p300, GCN5 and P/CAF. However, the impact of males absent on the first (MOF) (also known as KAT8 or MYST1) on CDK9 activity has not been reported. Therefore, the present study aimed to elucidate the regulatory role of MOF on CDK9. We present evidence from systematic biochemical assays and molecular biology approaches arguing that MOF interacts with and acetylates CDK9 at the lysine 35 (i.e. K35) site, and that this acetyl‐group can be removed by histone deacetylase HDAC1. Notably, MOF‐mediated acetylation of CDK9 at K35 promotes the formation of the P‐TEFb complex through stabilizing CDK9 protein and enhancing its association with cyclin T1, which further increases RNA polymerase II serine 2 residues levels and global transcription. Our study reveals for the first time that MOF promotes global transcription by acetylating CDK9, providing a new strategy for exploring the comprehensive mechanism of the MOF–CDK9 axis in cellular processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction. Rosacea is a common chronic inflammatory skin disease of the central facial skin with unknown origin, significantly impacting quality of patient's life and causing various psychosocial problems. Erythematotelangiectatic rosacea (ETR) is characterized by paroxysmal flushing that occurs repeatedly and is easily resistant to therapeutic drugs. While microinjection of type A botulinum toxin (BTX) can treat ETR, there is no consensus on the injection dose, and strong evidence to verify its efficacy and safety is lacking. This randomized, double‐blind, split‐face clinical study aimed to investigate the efficacy, safety, and optimal dose of two different single‐point injection doses (0.5 U and 1 U) of BTX in the treatment of rosacea. Methods. Twenty‐six patients with ETR were randomly assigned to receive different single‐point injections of BTX (0.5 U and 1 U, respectively) every 1 cm on one half of the face. The Clinical Erythema Score (CEA), VISIA red area absolute value, Global Aesthetic Improvement Scale Score (GAIS), and recurrence at 12‐week follow‐up were evaluated at baseline, 2,4, 8, and 12 weeks after injection. Additionally, the Dermatological Quality of Life Index (DLQI) questionnaire survey and adverse reactions were also recorded. Results. All twenty‐six patients completed the follow‐up visits and were included in the analysis. Compared to the 0.5 UBTX‐treated side, the CEA score showed significantly improvement in erythema and flushing at 2, 4, and 8 weeks after injection on the 1 U BTX‐treated side (P < 0.05). The mean absolute value of the red area of VISIA was ‐19.12 ± 51.91 on 1 U BTX‐treated side and 2.5 ± 42.08, on 0.5 UBTX‐treated side at 4 weeks after treatment, showing significant improvement on the 1 U side (P < 0.05). GAIS and DLQI were also significantly improved from Week 4 to Week 12 and Week 2 to Week 12, respectively (P < 0.05). There was no recurrence of symptoms with either 0.5 U or 1 U injection by 12 weeks. Apart from one patient who experienced facial tightness and three patients who had temporary aggravation of erythema, all of which resolved without treatment, 22 patients did not report any side effects except for injection pain during the procedure. Conclusions. BTX‐A can significantly improves symptoms and quality of life in patients with refractory rosacea with few side effects. A single‐point injection of 1 U was more effective. This trial is registered with NCT06282679. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The use rate of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) among adolescents is continuously rising globally, posing new challenges to public health and negatively impacting adolescent health. This study employs bibliometric methods to systematically present the current state and evolving trends in global research on adolescent e-cigarette use. Methods: This study uses CiteSpace to conduct a bibliometric analysis of articles related to adolescent e-cigarette use from the Web of Science (WoS) Core Collection database. Firstly, performance analysis and collaboration network analysis were utilized to clarify the basic publication status, main knowledge producers, and knowledge collaboration networks in adolescent e-cigarette use research. Secondly, a co-citation network analysis was performed to visually analyze the disciplinary characteristics and 'hot topics' in this field. Finally, keyword burst detection and clustering techniques were employed to further explain the development trends and frontiers of research on adolescent e-cigarette use. Results: A total of 2063 research articles and review articles were included in this study. Research on adolescent e-cigarette use has significantly increased from 2002 to 2024. The United States, the United Kingdom and Canada are the main contributors, with their institutions and researchers playing key roles in the international collaborative network. Current research increasingly adopts interdisciplinary approaches. Keyword co-occurrence and burst identified current research 'hotspots' including vaping, substance use, public policy, prevention, advertising, and cessation. Co-citation cluster analysis revealed promising research areas such as attractiveness, environment and health, accessibility and smoking behavior, and mental health. Conclusions: Through data mining and visualization techniques, this study provides a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of published work on e-cigarettes and adolescence. The results of this work offer references for researchers in future investigations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-cholesterol diet (HCD) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) are related to stroke. However, little is known about the combined effects of stroke, especially for females. This study investigated the brain injuries in Apolipoprotein E−/− (ApoE−/−) female mice exposed to HCD plus PM2.5 for 6 months. The protein levels of the genes related to stroke and the blood–brain barrier (BBB) in different groups of mice were measured. The molecular regulation mechanisms were explored. The results showed that HCD and PM2.5 co-exposure altered brain–body weight ratio, behavior, brain pathology, and inflammatory markers in mice relative to exposure to HCD or PM2.5 alone. Co-exposure significantly changed the expressions of HIF-1α and the key genes in its signaling pathway in the brains of mice compared to the single exposure. It suggests that the HIF-1α pathway exerts an important regulatory role in brain injury and behavioral abnormality in female mice after 6-month exposure to HCD plus PM2.5, which are potential mechanisms for HCD and PM2.5-triggering stroke in female individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adjusting decision-making under uncertain and dynamic situations is the hallmark of intelligence. It requires a system capable of converting feedback information to renew the internal value. The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) involves in error and reward events that prompt switching or maintenance of current decision strategies. However, it is unclear whether and how the changes of stimulus-action mapping during behavioral adaptation are encoded, nor how such computation drives decision adaptation. Here, we tracked ACC activity in male mice performing go/no-go auditory discrimination tasks with manipulated stimulus-reward contingencies. Individual ACC neurons integrate the outcome information to the value representation in the next-run trials. Dynamic recruitment of them determines the learning rate of error-guided value iteration and decision adaptation, forming a non-linear feedback-driven updating system to secure the appropriate decision switch. Optogenetically suppressing ACC significantly slowed down feedback-driven decision switching without interfering with the execution of the established strategy. The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is involved in decision strategies. Here the authors show that individual ACC neurons can be dynamically recruited to encode outcome information and promptly update internal value representations, thereby forming a non-linear feedback-driven updating system that ensures robust and agile decision adaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phosphorus is an element essential to sustaining life, and its compounds are widely involved in the biogeochemical cycles on Earth. Although a handful of phosphorus-bearing species, e.g. PO, have thus far been detected in diatomic form in circumstellar envelopes, their formation processes are still poorly understood. In this study, we examine the structure and spectroscopy of the [Si, O, P] system. Based on high-level ab initio electronic structure calculations with the MRCI + Q and CCSD(T) methods, four isomers could be formed and the most stable form predicted to be bent at all theoretical levels. The doublet and quartet potential energy surfaces (PESs) of P(2D)/P(4S) + SiO(1Σ) reactions are explored, and the spectroscopic parameters of the key isomers involved in the reaction are calculated. The present study highlights the possibility of PO formation via photodissociation of bent-SiOP. The results are expected to aid in the spectroscopic detection of these triatomic phosphorous-bearing species and provide insights into similar reactions of isoelectronic systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is a common pollutant, and its health risk has attracted much attention. Studies have shown that PM2.5 exposure is associated with liver disease. The composition of PM2.5 is complex, and its hepatotoxic effects and lipid metabolism process are not well understood. In this study, we detected the concentrations of PM2.5 and its components (metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAHs)) in the winter in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, China, from 2017 to 2020 and then assessed the health risks. We also investigated the effects of different components (whole particles (WP), water-soluble particles (WSP), organic particles (OP)) of PM2.5 on the cytotoxicity and lipid metabolism in human liver cell line (HepG2) after 24 h of treatment. The changes in cytotoxicity indexes (LDH, IL-6, reactive oxygen species (ROS)) and lipids (triglyceride (TG), free fatty acid (FFA)) were measured after 24 h. The mRNA expression of lipid metabolism-related factors (SREBP1, CD36, MTTP) was determined by real-time quantitative RT-qPCR. Finally, the correlation between metals and PAHs with higher PM2.5 content in 4 years and biomarkers was analyzed. The results showed that: (1) The PM2.5 pollution was severe in Taiyuan during winter in 2017 and the subsequent four years. The calculation results of the metal enrichment factor (EF) value and PAHs characteristic ratio of PM2.5 showed that PM2.5 pollution sources differed in different years. (2) Exposure to metals and PAHs in PM2.5 did not cause a non-carcinogenic risk. Metals had no cancer risk, while PAHs inhaled in PM2.5 in 2017 and 2018 had a potential cancer risk. The atmospheric PM2.5 pollution in Taiyuan has had a downward trend, but the PAHs in the PM2.5 of 2017–18, when the pollution is relatively serious, have a potential carcinogenic risk. (3) WP, OP and WSP inhibited cell survival rate from 2017 to 2020, and OP had higher cytotoxicity at the same concentration. (4) WP, OP and WSP increased the levels of LDH, IL-6, TNF-α, ROS, MDA, TG and FFA, and inhibited SOD activity in a dose-effect relationship. The organic components in PM2.5 are more toxic to HepG2 cells and affect the expression of lipid metabolism-related factors at the transcriptional level. (5) The mRNA expressions of factors related to lipid synthesis, uptake, oxidation and output were up-regulated after treatment with PM2.5 and its components, suggesting a lipid metabolism disorder. (6) The biomarkers were associated with certain metals (Zn, Pb, Cu and Cr) and PAHs in PM2.5. These suggested that PM2.5- and PM2.5-bound organic matter caused HepG2 cytotoxicity and affected lipid metabolism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractPhenolic acids are natural compounds with potential therapeutic effects against various diseases. However, their incorporation into food and pharmaceutical products is limited by challenges such as instability, low solubility, and reduced bioavailability. This systematic review summarizes recent advances in phenolic acid encapsulation using food-grade carrier systems, focusing on proteins, lipids, and polysaccharides. Encapsulation efficiency, release behavior, and bioavailability are examined, as well as the potential health benefits of encapsulated phenolic acids in food products. Strategies to address limitations of current encapsulation systems are also proposed. Encapsulation has emerged as a promising method to enhance the stability and bioavailability of phenolic acids in food products, and various encapsulation technologies have been developed for this purpose. The use of proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates as carriers in food-grade encapsulation systems remains a common approach, but it is associated with certain limitations. Future research on phenolic acid encapsulation should focus on developing environmentally friendly, organic solvent-free, low-energy, scalable, and stable encapsulation systems, as well as co-encapsulation methods that combine multiple phenolic acids or phenolic acids with other bioactive substances to produce synergistic effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Importance: Previous studies showed that 42% to 50% of patients with locally advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) achieved complete remission (CR) after combined locoregional therapy (LRT) plus immunotherapy (IO). However, data on predictors of CR and long-term clinical outcomes without surgery and after discontinuation of IO are lacking., Objective: To assess the long-term clinical outcomes among patients with unresectable HCC who achieved CR after LRT-IO and were placed on a watch-and-wait protocol., Design, Setting, and Participants: This cohort study included patients with unresectable HCC who achieved CR after LRT-IO in 2 prospective studies between January 2018 and December 2022. The time of data cutoff was June 2023. Radiologic CR was defined per modified Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors. All patients underwent close surveillance after CR without surgical interventions, and IO was discontinued., Exposure: All patients had received stereotactic body radiotherapy followed by anti-programmed cell death protein 1 or anti-programmed death ligand 1 therapy. Forty-nine patients had received a dose of transarterial chemoembolization before stereotactic body radiotherapy., Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was the 3-year overall survival (OS) rate. Secondary outcomes included the 3-year time-to-progression rate, 3-year local control rate, and relapse pattern. Factors associated with CR were analyzed using multivariate analyses., Results: A total of 63 patients were enrolled (58 male [92.1%]; median age, 69 years [range, 18-90 years]); 38 patients (60.3%) had macrovascular invasion, and the median tumor diameter was 10 cm (range, 3.8-31.1 cm). The median follow-up time was 34.7 months (95% CI, 6.5-64.6 months). Twenty-nine patients (46.0%) achieved CR. The patients achieving CR had a significantly better 3-year OS rate than patients not achieving CR (75.5% [95% CI, 58.2%-98.3%] vs 28.1% [95% CI, 7.4%-29.4%]; P < .001). Among the 29 patients with CR, the 3-year time-to-progression rate was 58.7% (95% CI, 38.7%-79.1%) and the 3-year local control rate was 90.5% (95% CI, 78.2%-100%). Ten patients (34.5%) developed recurrence; among them, 6 (60.0%) with solitary intrahepatic disease relapse underwent curative surgical treatment. The absence of tumor vascular invasion (odds ratio, 0.30; 95% CI, 0.10-0.89) and the sum of the largest lesion diameters of 8 cm or less (odds ratio, 0.26; 95% CI, 0.07-0.98) were associated with CR., Conclusions and Relevance: This cohort study of LRT-IO with long-term follow-up data found a durable response in patients with locally advanced unresectable HCC. Long-term survival was attainable in patients with radiologic CR. Further randomized clinical trials are warranted.

The gut microbiome plays important roles in metabolic and immune system related to the health of host. This study applied non-invasive sampling and 16S rDNA high-throughput sequencing to study the gut microbiota structure of red pandas ( Ailurus fulgens ) for the first time under different geographical latitudes in captivity. The results showed that the two predominant phyla Firmicutes (59.30%) and Proteobacteria (38.58%) constituted 97.88% of the total microbiota in all the fecal samples from north group (red pandas from Tianjin Zoo and Jinan Zoo) and south group (red pandas from Nanjing Hongshan Forest Zoo). The relative abundance of Cyanobacteria in north group was significantly higher than that in south group. At the genus level, Escherichia-Shigella (24.82%) and Clostridium&#95;sensu&#95;stricto&#95;1 (23.00%) were common dominant genera. The relative abundance of norank&#95;f&#95;&#95;norank&#95;o&#95;&#95;Chloroplast, Terrisporobacter and Anaeroplasma from south group was significantly higher than that of north group. Alpha and Beta analysis consistently showed significant differences between north group and south group, however, the main functions of intestinal microbiota were basically the same, which play an important role in metabolic pathways, biosynthesis of secondary metabolites, microbial metabolism in different environments, and amino acid biosynthesis. The variations in gut microbiota between the northern and southern populations of the same species, both kept in captivity, which are primarily driven by significant differences in climate and diet. These findings provide a deeper understanding of the gut microbiota in red pandas and have important implications for their conservation, particularly in optimizing diet and environmental conditions in captivity., 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 Chen, Chen, Zhang, Wu and Zhao.)