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Grasping how climate change will affect the tropical region's leaf potassium, calcium, and magnesium content is pivotal for enhancing our comprehension of plant stoichiometry. Currently, there is limited research on leaf potassium, calcium, and magnesium in tropical plants, which is particularly evident with the increasing importance of tropical rainforest biodiversity studies. This study investigated the impact of geographical and climatic factors on the leaf potassium, calcium, and magnesium content in 346 plants (including woody plants, herbs, and vines) on Hainan Island. The findings demonstrated that the average leaf potassium, calcium, and magnesium contents were 5.77, 11.86, and 2.92 mg·g−1, respectively, which were less than that in the Chinese flora. Mean annual precipitation (MAP) has a promoting effect on leaf potassium content (p < 0.05), suggesting that artificial potassium fertilization is needed due to the increasing MAP. Leaf potassium and magnesium content were positively correlated with latitude (p < 0.05) and longitude (p < 0.01); and there was a negative correlation between leaf calcium content and latitude (p < 0.05), showing that geographical factors have a significant impact on the potassium, calcium, and magnesium content of plant leaves. Additionally, the variables regulating leaf potassium, calcium, and magnesium varied across woody plants, herbs, and vines. Therefore, it is necessary to make corresponding adjustments according to local conditions and the plant functional types during nutrient management. In conclusion, this study sheds light on their potential responses to global changes and is instrumental in informing the management of these nutrients in tropical rainforest plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Treatment response and prognosis estimation in advanced pulmonary adenocarcinoma are challenged by the significant heterogeneity of the disease. The current Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST) criteria, despite providing a basis for solid tumor response evaluation, do not fully encompass this heterogeneity. To better represent these nuances, we introduce the intertumoral heterogeneity response score (THRscore), a measure built upon and expanding the RECIST criteria. This retrospective study included patients with 3–10 measurable advanced lung adenocarcinoma lesions who underwent first‐line chemotherapy or targeted therapy. The THRscore, derived from the coefficient of variation in size for each measurable tumor before and 4–6 weeks posttreatment, unveiled a correlation with patient outcomes. Specifically, a high THRscore was associated with shorter progression‐free survival, lower tumor response rate, and a higher tumor mutation burden. These associations were further validated in an external cohort, confirming THRscore's effectiveness in stratifying patients based on progression risk and treatment response, and enhancing the utility of RECIST in capturing complex tumor behaviors in lung adenocarcinoma. These findings affirm the promise of THRscore as an enhanced tool for tumor response assessment in advanced lung adenocarcinoma, extending the RECIST criteria's utility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, double‐network or multiple‐network hydrogel constructed by physical methods has been considered a green method to improve the comprehensive properties of biomass hydrogel. Herein, a novel physically cross‐linked hydrogel with multiple network of gellan gum/chitosan/calcium ion (GG–CS–Ca) was constructed by self‐assembly to accomplish the synergistic improvement of mechanical strength and uranium adsorption property compared to adsorbents GG–Ca and carboxymethyl konjac glucomannan/GG–Al originated from gellan gum previously prepared. Moreover, the driving mechanism of self‐assembly of GG–CS–Ca was deduced by 13C solid state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (13C‐SSNMR), rheological analysis, and phase transition analysis. The results indicated electrostatic interaction was dominant during the self‐assembly of GG–CS–Ca. The self‐assembly mechanism was also illustrated by investigating the x‐ray photoelectron spectrometer (XPS) combined with the analysis of the phase transition process. Comprehensively, the self‐assembly constructed GG–CS–Ca hydrogel network contained three kinds of network including the GG–CS network constructed by electrostatic action of protonated CS with negative charged GG, the GG–Ca network constructed by ionic cross‐linking of COO− in GG and Ca2+, and the GG network formed after the phase transformation of GG hot sol by cooling. It explored a new method for constructing biomass‐based physical hydrogels with both favorable mechanical strength and uranium adsorption capacity in uranium removal. Highlights: A novel physically cross‐linked hydrogel (GG–CS–Ca) with multiple network was constructed by self‐assembly.The GG–CS–Ca hydrogel accomplished the synergistic improvement of mechanical strength and uranium adsorption properties.The self‐assembly mechanism of constructing the GG–CS–Ca hydrogel network contained three aspects.The electrostatic interaction was the dominant action during the self‐assembly of GG–CS–Ca. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pathological cardiac hypertrophy is a key contributor to heart failure, and the molecular mechanisms underlying honokiol (HNK)‐mediated cardioprotection against this condition remain worth further exploring. This study aims to investigate the effect of HNK on angiotensin II (Ang II)‐induced myocardial hypertrophy and elucidate the underlying mechanisms. Sprague–Dawley rats were exposed to Ang II infusion, followed by HNK or vehicle treatment for 4 weeks. Our results showed that HNK treatment protected against Ang II‐induced myocardial hypertrophy, fibrosis and dysfunction in vivo and inhibited Ang II‐induced hypertrophy in neonatal rat ventricular myocytes in vitro. Mechanistically, HNK suppressed the Ang II‐induced Nur77 expression at the transcriptional level and promoted ubiquitination‐mediated degradation of Nur77, leading to dissociation of the Nur77–LKB1 complex. This facilitated the translocation of LKB1 into the cytoplasm and activated the LKB1‐AMPK pathway. Our findings suggest that HNK attenuates pathological remodelling and cardiac dysfunction induced by Ang II by promoting dissociation of the Nur77–LKB1 complex and subsequent activation of AMPK signalling. This study uncovers a novel role of HNK on the LKB1‐AMPK pathway to protect against cardiac hypertrophy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid development of the Internet had a profound influence on the spatial distribution of economic output activities. On the basis of theoretical analysis, this study takes China's regions as research samples and construct a spatial econometric model to empirically analyze the impact of Internet development on regional productivity. The analysis reveals that the distribution of regional productivity in China had significant spatial correlation; regional productivity had positive spatial externalities; Internet development had significant promotion effects and positive spatial spillover effects to regional productivity, but the effects are heterogeneous in different subregions. The subregion analysis shows that the optimization effect of the Internet on regional productivity exhibits heterogeneity in different subregions. The threshold effect analysis reveals the increasing marginal effect of Internet development on regional productivity, and economic development and human capital supply are important factors restricting this marginal effect. Altogether, this study provides useful references on the positive effects of the Internet on regional productivity in the spatial dimension, and suggests that the policy makers can optimize the spatial distribution of regional productivity by promoting Internet access in various regions and narrowing the digital divide among regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Left ventricular remodelling subsequent to myocardial infarction (MI) constitutes a pivotal underlying cause of heart failure. Intervention with the nontoxic endogenous aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) agonist 2‐(1′H‐indole‐3′‐carbonyl)‐thiazole‐4‐carboxylic acid methyl ester (ITE) in the acute phase of MI has been shown to ameliorate cardiac function, but its role in the chronic phase remains obscured. This study explores the beneficial role of ITE in delaying the progression of heart failure in the chronic phase of MI. Methods and results: MI rats established by ligating the left anterior descending coronary artery were treated with the indicated concentration of the AHR agonist ITE or vehicle alone. Echocardiography was performed to determine cardiac structure and function; myocardial morphology and fibrosis were observed by haematoxylin and eosin and Masson's trichrome staining; serum biochemical indices, BNP, and inflammatory cytokine levels were detected by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay; F4/80+iNOS+M1 macrophages and F4/80+CD206+M2 macrophages were detected by immunofluorescence; the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase‐mediated dUTP nick end labelling assay was used to detect the apoptosis of cardiomyocytes; ultrastructural changes in myocardial tissue were observed by transmission electron microscopy; and Cyp1a1, Akt, P‐Akt, p70S6K, P‐p70S6K, Bcl‐2, Bax, caspase‐3, and cleaved caspase‐3 protein levels were determined via Western blotting. We found that therapy with the AHR agonist ITE rescued cardiac remodelling and dysfunction in rats with MI and attenuated myocardial fibrosis, inflammation, and mitochondrial damage. Further studies confirmed that ITE dose‐dependently improved myocardial cell apoptosis after MI, as demonstrated by reduced levels of the apoptosis‐related proteins cleaved caspase‐3 and Bax but increased expression levels of Bcl‐2. These effects were attributed to ITE‐induced activation of AHR receptors, leading to the down‐regulation of Akt and p70S6K phosphorylation. Conclusions: The AHR agonist ITE alleviates cardiomyocyte apoptosis through the Akt/p70S6K signalling pathway, thereby rescuing left ventricular adverse remodelling and cardiac dysfunction after MI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ferroptosis as a novel programmed cell death that involves metabolic dysfunction due to iron‐dependent excessive lipid peroxidation has been implicated in atherosclerosis (AS) development characterized by disrupted lipid metabolism, but the atherogenic role of ferroptosis in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs), which are principal components of atherosclerotic plaque fibrous cap, remains unclear. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of ferroptosis on AS induced by lipid overload, and the effects of that on VSMCs ferroptosis. We found intraperitoneal injection of Fer‐1, a ferroptosis inhibitor, ameliorated obviously high‐fat diet‐induced high plasma levels of triglycerides, total cholesterol, low‐density lipoprotein, glucose and atherosclerotic lesions in ApoE−/− mice. Moreover, in vivo and in vitro, Fer‐1 reduced the iron accumulation of atherosclerotic lesions through affecting the expression of TFR1, FTH, and FTL in VSMCs. Interestingly, Fer‐1 did augment nuclear factor E2‐related factor 2/ferroptosis suppressor protein 1 to enhance endogenous resistance to lipid peroxidation, but not classic p53/SCL7A11/GPX4. Those observations indicated inhibition of VSMCs ferroptosis can improve AS lesions independent of p53/SLC7A11/GPX4, which preliminarily revealed the potential mechanism of ferroptosis in aortic VSMCs on AS and provided new therapeutic strategies and targets for AS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

First‐line chemotherapy for advanced/metastatic human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)‐negative gastric/gastroesophageal junction cancer (GC/GEJC) has poor median overall survival (OS; <1 year). We report efficacy and safety results from Chinese patients in the phase III global CheckMate 649 study of nivolumab plus chemotherapy vs chemotherapy for the first‐line treatment of GC/GEJC/esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC). Chinese patients with previously untreated advanced or metastatic GC/GEJC/EAC were randomized to receive nivolumab (360 mg Q3W or 240 mg Q2W) plus chemotherapy (XELOX [capecitabine and oxaliplatin] Q3W or FOLFOX [oxaliplatin, leucovorin and 5‐fluorouracil] Q2W), nivolumab plus ipilimumab (not reported) or chemotherapy alone. OS, blinded independent central review‐assessed progression‐free survival (PFS), objective response rate (ORR), duration of response (DOR) and safety are reported. Of 1581 patients enrolled and randomized, 208 were Chinese. In these patients, nivolumab plus chemotherapy resulted in clinically meaningful improvement in median OS (14.3 vs 10.2 months; HR 0.61 [95% CI: 0.44‐0.85]), median PFS (8.3 vs 5.6 months; HR 0.57 [95% CI: 0.40‐0.80]), ORR (66% vs 45%) and median DOR (12.2 vs 5.6 months) vs chemotherapy, respectively. The safety profile was acceptable, with no new safety signals observed. Consistent with results from the global primary analysis of CheckMate 649, nivolumab plus chemotherapy demonstrated a clinically meaningful improvement in OS and PFS and higher response rate vs chemotherapy and an acceptable safety profile in Chinese patients. Nivolumab plus chemotherapy represents a new standard first‐line treatment for Chinese patients with non‐HER2‐positive advanced GC/GEJC/EAC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Messenger RNA m6A modification is shown to regulate local translation in axons. However, how the m6A codes in axonal mRNAs are read and decoded by the m6A reader proteins is still unknown. Here, it is found that the m6A readers YTHDF1 and YTHDF2 are both expressed in cerebellar granule cells (GCs) and their axons. Knockdown (KD) of YTHDF1 or YTHDF2 significantly increases GC axon growth rates in vitro. By integrating anti‐YTHDF1&2 RIP‐Seq with the quantitative proteomic analysis or RNA‐seq after KD of YTHDF1 or YTHDF2, a group of transcripts which may mediate the regulation of GC axon growth by YTHDFs is identified. Among them, Dvl1 and Wnt5a, encoding the key components of Wnt pathway, are further found to be locally translated in axons, which are controlled by YTHDF1 and YTHDF2, respectively. Specific ablation of Ythdf1 or Ythdf2 in GCs increases parallel fiber growth, promotes synapse formation in cerebellum in vivo, and improves motor coordination ability. Together, this study identifies a mechanism by which the m6A readers YTHDF1 and YTHDF2 work synergistically on the Wnt5a pathway through regulating local translation in GC axons to control cerebellar parallel fiber development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In clinical medicine, the pain feeling is a significant indicator for the medical condition of patients. Of late, automatic pain assessment methods have received more and more interests. Many researchers proposed corresponding methods and achieved impressive results. However, they always ignore the locality and individual differences of painful expression. Therefore, a locality and identity aware network (LIAN) for pain assessment is presented here. Concretely, for the locality characteristic, a locality aware module consisting of a two‐branch structure, feature and attention branches, is presented. The former learns pain features by a deep network, while the latter guides the pain features to focus on the discriminational regions of pain. As for the individual differences, an identity aware module with a multi‐task method is proposed to represent identity‐related information to achieve identity‐invariant pain assessment. Extensive experiments on public databases show the superiority of LIAN in pain assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider the following two coupled nonlinear Schrödinger system: −Δu+u=f1(x,u)+λ(x)v,x∈ℝ2,−Δv+v=f2(x,v)+λ(x)u,x∈ℝ2,where the coupling parameter satisfies 0 < λ(x) ≤ λ0 < 1 and the reactions f1, f2 have critical exponential growth in the sense of Trudinger–Moser inequality. Using non‐Nehari manifold method together with the Lions's concentration compactness and the Trudinger‐Moser inequality, we show that the above system has a Nehari‐type ground state solution and a nontrivial solution. Our results improve and extend the previous results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diagnostic tests are frequently reliant upon the interpretation of images by skilled raters. In many clinical settings, however, the variability observed between experts' ratings plays a detrimental role in the degree of confidence in these interpretations, leading to uncertainty in the diagnostic process. For example, in breast cancer testing, radiologists interpret mammographic images, while breast biopsy results are examined by pathologists. Each of these procedures involves elements of subjectivity. We propose here a flexible two‐stage Bayesian latent variable model to investigate how the skills of individual raters impact the diagnostic accuracy of image‐related testing in large‐scale medical testing studies. A strength of the proposed model is that the true disease status of a patient within a reasonable time frame may or may not be known. In these studies, many raters each contribute classifications on a large sample of patients using a defined ordinal grading scale, leading to a complex correlation structure between ratings. Our modeling approach considers the different sources of variability contributed by experts and patients while accounting for correlations present between ratings and patients, in contrast to currently available methods. We propose a novel measure of a rater's ability (magnifier) that, in contrast to conventional measures of sensitivity and specificity, is robust to the underlying prevalence of disease in the population, providing an alternative measure of diagnostic accuracy across patient populations. Extensive simulation studies demonstrate lower bias in estimation of parameters and measures of accuracy, and illustrate outperformance of the proposed model when compared with existing models. Receiver operator characteristic curves are derived to assess the diagnostic accuracy of individual experts and their overall performance. Our proposed modeling approach is applied to a large breast imaging study for known disease status and a uterine cancer dataset for unknown disease status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with the following Klein‐Gordon‐Maxwell system: −Δu+V(x)u−(2ω+ϕ)ϕu=f(u),x∈ℝ2,Δϕ=(ω+ϕ)u2,x∈ℝ2,where ω > 0 is a constant, u,ϕ:ℝ2→ℝ, V∈C(ℝ2,ℝ) and f∈C(ℝ,ℝ) obeys exponential critical growth in the sense of the Trudinger‐Moser inequality. We give some new sufficient conditions on f, specifically related to exponential growth, to obtain the existence of nontrivial solutions. Furthermore, we prove a nonexistence result with a Pohozaev‐type argument which also provides important information to get the above existence results. In particular, some new analytical approaches and estimates are used to overcome the difficulty arising from the critical growth of Trudinger‐Moser type. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A visible‐light‐catalyzed radical N‐acylation of amines with carboxylic acids was achieved by means of eosin Y as the photocatalyst under aqueous medium without any transition‐metal‐based catalytic systems. The new method takes advantages of visible‐light photocatalysis to generate the amides under mild conditions. A variety of amides have been synthesized in good to excellent yields. Moreover, the strategy was successfully applied in the preparation of paracetamol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Government support plays a crucial role in enhancing regional innovation capabilities and creating distinctive innovation clusters. Using the innovation competitiveness indicators of the 31 provinces in China, this paper examines the provincial government collaboration and innovation competitiveness values through Super‐SBM data envelopment analysis and analytic hierarchy process. Then, the particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm is employed to relate government collaboration to innovation competition and cooperation among provinces in hope of exploring the developmental trends of innovation cluster optimization. Research findings show that only 25.8% of the provincial government support proves effective for regional innovation, and the competitiveness values of the provinces are generally low and need to be improved. By incorporating the role of government support into the innovation competition and cooperation among provinces, there has been a tendency of innovation activities clustering in innovative regions and three major clusters have formed. The trend of clustering will continue to evolve outwards so that the overall innovation level of China would be enhanced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Concomitant presence of renal tubular acidosis (RTA) and autoimmune diseases is indicative of the potential role of immune factors in the pathogenesis of RTA. Our study aimed to detect the serum antibodies to renal tubular epithelial cells in RTA patients. Methods: We enrolled 11 RTA patients, eight primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) patients and eight healthy controls (HC). Serum biochemical test, urinary regular test, and 24 hours urinary protein quantification were measured using a fully automated analyzer. Immunofluorescence assay was performed to detect the antibodies to subunit B1 and subunit B2 of v‐H+‐ATPases (adenosine triphosphatases) in the serum of the participants. Results: Clinically, RTA patients showed hyperchloremia, acidosis and paradoxical alkaline urine. We detected the serum antibodies to renal tubular epithelial cells and there were 6/11 positive in RTA patients, much higher than that in the pSS group (0/8) and the HC group (0/8). Subsequently, we demonstrated that in normal renal tissue, the B1 subunit of v‐H+‐ATPase specifically expressed in intercalated cells, while the B2 subunit continuously expressed along the lumen of renal tubular epithelial cells. Moreover, the antibody to subunit B1/B2 of v‐H+‐ATPase was positive in the sera of 6 RTA patients (54%), while it was negative in both the pSS and HC group. Conclusions: We detected the presence of serum autoantibodies to subunit B1 and subunit B2 of v‐H+‐ATPase in RTA patients. Our findings may provide novel mechanism insights into the pathogenesis of RTA and the potential diagnostic utility of antibodies to v‐H+‐ATPase in the classification of RTA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Hydrothermal carbonization has become a proficient technique to synthesize carbon materials from biomass owing to its availability and environmental friendliness. Chrome‐tanned leather, a biomass waste that contains numerous functional groups, is a potential adsorbent for separation of heavy metal ions. In the present work, a phenolic‐functionalized hollow sponge‐like adsorbent (HSLW) was synthesized from leather waste via hydrothermal carbonization in the presence of tannin. This study aims to develop a novel adsorbent for uranium separation from salt lake. RESULTS: The adsorbent was characterized by several techniques and the adsorption behavior of the adsorbent towards uranium was investigated. The maximum adsorption capacity of the absorbent reached 200.10 mg g−1 at 328.15 K. The adsorption process fitted well with the linear Freundlich isotherm model and pseudo‐second‐order model. The thermodynamic parameters indicated that the adsorption process was spontaneous, feasible and endothermic in nature. Selective adsorption in competitive multi‐ion solution and simulated high‐salinity system showed that the adsorbent had not only strong affinity but also high selectivity towards uranium. CONCLUSION: HSLW could become a promising adsorbent for practical and efficient selective separation and recovery of uranium from salt lakes. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ustilaginoidea (U.) virens grows on rice grains and leads to significant rice yield losses in most of the major rice producing areas. Meanwhile, ustiloxins produced by U. virens are a serious hazard to human health and ecological safety of farmlands. The other key point is that ustiloxins have been regarded as a novel resource with their potential in the treatment of cancers. There is no better way to extract ustiloxins than from pure culture of the high ustilotoxin‐producing strains. U. virens has become a key research organism. However, due to the presence of some interference components, it is a certain difficulty in the successful isolation of the strain from the false smut balls. We present here a detailed study based on the separation, screening and identification of high ustiloxins‐producing strains of U. virens. Through this study, we got a satisfactory success rate of separation and provided a good solution to the problem of separation. At the same time, this study provides quality resources for researchers interested in ustiloxins as anticancer agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many disease diagnoses involve subjective judgments by qualified raters. For example, through the inspection of a mammogram, MRI, or ultrasound image, the clinician himself becomes part of the measuring instrument. To reduce diagnostic errors and improve the quality of diagnoses, it is necessary to assess raters' diagnostic skills and to improve their skills over time. This paper focuses on a subjective binary classification process, proposing a hierarchical model linking data on rater opinions with patient true disease-development outcomes. The model allows for the quantification of the effects of rater diagnostic skills (bias and magnifier) and patient latent disease severity on the rating results. A Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) algorithm is developed to estimate these parameters. Linking to patient true disease outcomes, the rater-specific sensitivity and specificity can be estimated using MCMC samples. Cost theory is used to identify poor- and strong-performing raters and to guide adjustment of rater bias and diagnostic magnifier to improve the rating performance. Furthermore, diagnostic magnifier is shown as a key parameter to present a rater's diagnostic ability because a rater with a larger diagnostic magnifier has a uniformly better receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve when varying the value of diagnostic bias. A simulation study is conducted to evaluate the proposed methods, and the methods are illustrated with a mammography example. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study which developed a mind-based life review program (MBLRP) to improve the psychological wellbeing of cancer patients and assessed the program's feasibility. Topics discussed include basis of developing the MBLRP, characteristics of the participants in the study, and life experiences and reflections of the participants on the program.

ABSTRACT Osteopetrosis (OMIM: 611497), literally 'stone bone,' is a group of inherited bone disorders characterized by increased skeletal mass due to defective osteoclast function. A patient who reported a history of frequent fractures, weakness and fatigue was admitted to our hospital in 2011. The patient presented with the typical features of osteopetrosis: fractures after minor trauma, early tooth loss, anemia, hepatosplenomegaly, and a generalized increase in bone mineral density (BMD). Aside from his father's complaint of excessive tooth loss, his mother, two sisters, son, and daughter were healthy. Blood samples of the family members were drawn for genetic analyses. The entire coding region and adjacent splice sites of the pleckstrin homology domain-containing family M (with RUN domain) member 1 ( PLEKHM1) gene were sequenced. One mutation, a heterozygous deletion mutation in exon 11 (c.3051_3052delCA), was identified in the patient but not in his relatives. The mutation leads to a translation product with a highly impaired Rubicon homology domain. Co-immunoprecipitation and immunofluorescence analyses using HEK293 cells showed that overexpression of a PLEKHM1 CA-deletion mutant resulted in a dramatic decrease in the interaction between PLEKHM1 and the small GTPase Rab7 compared to wild-type PLEKHM1. The normal processes of endocytosis and autophagy were disturbed in cells expressing the mutant (transfected HEK293 and U937 cells), as indicated by epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) degradation and an altered LC3-I/II ratio, respectively, which may lead to a defect in osteoclast function. A four-year follow-up study of the patient showed that the PLEKHM1-dependent osteopetrosis was relatively malignant, with significant symptoms of pancytopenia and hepatosplenomegaly. © 2016 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new indirect inhibitive immunoassay using surface plasmon resonance (SPR) coupled with molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) was developed and applied for the analysis of trace clenbuterol (CL). A MIP coating using phenylephrine as the dummy template was synthesized in a flexible quartz capillary (30 cm×0.25 mm i.d.) by in situ polymerization technique, which then was used as the online solid phase extraction (SPE) tube before SPR detection. The thickness of the coating was 198 nm on average, illustrated by scanning electron microscope (SEM) image. The mechanism for adsorption of CL on dummy template MIP was found to be a Freundlich isotherm and pseudo-second-order model. The immunoassay was conducted on BIAcore 3000 biosensor automatically without pre-treatment. The calibration curve was generated by linear fit in the range of 0.1-10 ng L-1 and 10-100 ng L-1. The detection limit was 0.1 ng L-1, which is super sensitive. This method was directly applied for the analysis of real-world samples without pretreatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT A novel adsorbent for Hg(II), mercapto-functionalized alkali lignin (AL-SH) was synthesized by Friedel-Crafts alkylation reaction and nucleophilic substitution reactions. The adsorbent was characterized by the techniques of Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), elementary analysis and thermogravimetric analysis, and N2 adsorption techniques. The effect of various parameters on Hg(II) adsorption process such as initial pH, contact time, ionic strength, initial Hg(II) concentration, temperature, and adsorbent dosage were investigated in detail through batch static experiments. The results indicated that the adsorption process of Hg(II) on AL-SH was mainly dependent on the pH and the optimal pH value was at pH ranging from 4.0 to 6.0. The adsorption process was found to follow pseudosecond-order kinetics and the main process was chemical adsorption, which equilibrated at 8 h. The adsorption isotherm was better described by Langmuir and Temkin isotherm equations compared to Freundlich isotherm equation and the maximum adsorption capacity obtained was 101.2 mg g−1 (pH = 4.0, 20°C, initial Hg(II) concentration was 200 mg L−1). The thermodynamic parameters of [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Background To analyze the sonographic (US) features of renal oncocytoma and correlate them with histopathologic findings. Methods The medical records of 12 patients with a histologic diagnosis of renal oncocytomas were reviewed. The location, size, shape, margin, echogenicity, homogeneity, and blood flow distribution of the lesions were analyzed, and the US features were compared with histopathologic findings. Results Oncocytomas appeared as solid, solitary, well-marginated, unencapsulated, fairly homogeneous renal cortical masses (n = 10), with regular shape, relatively isoechoic (n = 5) or slightly hyperechoic (n = 7) to the adjacent renal parenchyma, and an exophytic growth pattern was exhibited in most cases (n = 9). Two larger masses (≥9 cm) demonstrated a central stellate scar and a characteristic of spoke-wheel vascular pattern. The tumors with a low percentage of stroma (<20%) were associated with an echotexture isoechoic to renal parenchyma, whereas oncocytomas with a higher percentage of stroma (>20%) were slightly hyperechoic. Conclusions Although the US features are not pathognomonic, their presence should alert to the possible diagnosis of renal oncocytoma. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Ultrasound 42:129-133, 2014 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT In this article, we report on electrostatically self-assembled thin films prepared by the alternative immersion of quartz-coated and indium tin oxide coated glass substrates in aqueous solutions of a copolymer of poly(4-styrenesulfonic acid- co-maleic acid) (PSSMA) and a hemicyanine of ( E)−1,1′-(propane-1,3-diyl)bis{4-[4-(dimethylamino)styryl]pyridinium} bromide (H3Br2). The films were studied by means of ultraviolet-visible absorption and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies, scanning electron microscopy, and photoelectrochemical measurements. When irradiated with white light, the PSSMA/H3 monolayer film gave a stable cathodic photocurrent. The effects of the applied bias voltages, layer numbers of the (PSSMA/H3) n films (where n stands for the number of bilayer films on both sides of the substrates), light intensities, pH value, and electron acceptor on the photocurrent generation of the (PSSMA/H3) n film were examined. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014, 131, 39871. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)/quaternized lignin composite absorbent (PVA/QL) was synthesized from modified lignin and PVA, crosslinked by glutaraldehyde. As-prepared absorbent was characterized by IR, DSC, SEM BET, and DMA. Effects of shaking time, absorbent dose, initial pH, and temperature on NO3− removal from aqueous solution by the absorbent were comprehensively investigated. The results show that the PVA/QL absorbent comprises quaternary ammonium groups in the form of ether bond. The composite absorbent exhibits remarkable network structure with large numbers of connected holes. The mechanical strength of the absorbent is enhanced by combining of PVA with modified lignin and crosslinkage of glutaraldehyde. The effect of pH on adsorption of NO3− is apparent and appropriate pH is 2.0. The adsorption process is endothermic, and determined to be consistent with the Langmuir isotherm. Furthermore, it is found that the quaternary ammonium structure and network structure in the surface of PVA/QL are the key factors to remove nitrate. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Clathrin is a trimeric protein involved in receptor-mediated-endocytosis, but can function as a non-trimer outside of endocytosis. We have discovered that the subcellular distribution of a clathrin cysteine mutant we previously studied is altered and a proportion is also localized to nuclear spaces. MALS shows C1573A hub is a mixture of trimer-like and detrimerized molecules. The X-ray structure of the trimerization domain reveals that without light chains, a helix harboring cysteine-1573 is reoriented. We propose clathrin has a detrimerization switch, which suggests clathrin topology can be altered naturally for new functions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: HIP1 crystal structures solved in our laboratory revealed abnormalities in the coiled-coil region, suggesting intrinsic plasticity. To test this, specific amino acids in the coiled-coil were mutated. The apparent thermal stability of HIP1 was altered when Thr528 and Glu531 were replaced by leucine, and was enhanced when Lys510 was also mutated. In cells, HIP1 mutant expression produced aggregation. MTS and flow cytometry indicate a correlation between aggregated HIP1 and enhanced cell death. These data support the idea that flexibility of the HIP1 coiled-coil domain is important for normal function and may lead to new insights into Huntington’s disease. Structured summary of protein interactions: HIP1 physically interacts with 23QHtt by anti tag coimmunoprecipitation (View interaction.) [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Interval-censored data occur naturally in many fields and the main feature is that the failure time of interest is not observed exactly, but is known to fall within some interval. In this paper, we propose a semiparametric probit model for analyzing case 2 interval-censored data as an alternative to the existing semiparametric models in the literature. Specifically, we propose to approximate the unknown nonparametric nondecreasing function in the probit model with a linear combination of monotone splines, leading to only a finite number of parameters to estimate. Both the maximum likelihood and the Bayesian estimation methods are proposed. For each method, regression parameters and the baseline survival function are estimated jointly. The proposed methods make no assumptions about the observation process and can be applicable to any interval-censored data with easy implementation. The methods are evaluated by simulation studies and are illustrated by two real-life interval-censored data applications. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Micro‐x‐ray fluorescence (μ‐XRF) is a commonly used elemental analysis technique for glass physical evidence in forensic cases, which can detect major and trace elements in samples and potentially identify glass fragments according to the differences in elemental composition. However, when a sample is irradiated with polychromatic x‐rays, bremsstrahlung scattering from the source radiation provides noise in the fluorescence spectrum and affects the detection results. To improve the signal‐to‐noise ratio of the fluorescence spectrum, a Mμ‐XRF spectrometer constructed under the low‐power Mo target x‐ray tube condition was used to analyze ten kinds of common glass fragments. The application of laboratory Mμ‐XRF analysis in single‐point detection of tiny glass materials was studied. Experimental results show that the detection limit of Sr element was 51 μg/L, and the spectrometer can distinguish different types of small glass fragments according to the fluorescence spectrum information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Raw and modified albite catalysts, including Pb/Albite and Fe/Albite catalysts, have been investigated for methane conversion to C2 hydrocarbons under non‐oxidative conditions. Introduction of Pb to albite improved the activity and selectivity to non‐coke products. Based on characterization, it was found that Pb entered into the alkali and alkaline‐earth metal sites of albite, while partial Fe doped in the tetrahedron sites and the other loaded on the surface of albite. At the reaction temperature of 1073 K, methane gas hourly space velocity (GHSV) of 2 L·gcat–1·h–1, catalyst dosage of 0.25 g (300 mesh), the methane conversion catalyzed by raw albite in the fixed‐bed micro reactor exhibited a methane conversion of 3.32%. Notably, introducing a Pb content of 3.4 wt% into albite greatly enhanced the conversion of methane up to 8.19%, and the selectivity of C2 hydrocarbons reached 99% without any coke under the same reaction conditions. While Fe‐doping could weakly heighten the methane conversion to 3.97%, and coke was formed. Thus, a comparison of Pb/Albite and Fe/Albite catalysts demonstrates that the catalytic activity of albite is mainly decided by alkali and alkaline‐earth metal sites, and lead‐modification can effectively improve the catalytic activity of albite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Perivascular epithelioid cell tumor of the lung, also known as clear cell 'sugar' tumor, is a rare benign tumor arising from perivascular epithelioid cells. Herein, we present a case of spindle cell subtype of pulmonary perivascular epithelioid cell tumor with prominent calcification and malignant potential in a 49-year-old woman. Histologically, the striking feature of this lesion was attributed to the presence of spindle cells arranged in a diffuse pattern, which is a pitfall for diagnosis. However, some of the lesion contained polygonal tumor cells with clear abundant cytoplasm surrounded by thin-walled vascular spaces. The size of the tumor and its Ki-67 index suggested malignant potential, and calcification was another rare characteristic. Immunostaining indicated that the tumor cells were positive not only for HMB-45 and Melan A, but also for CD34 and CD1a. This tumor should be distinguished from tumors with rich spindle cells such as sarcoma, clear cell carcinoma, or metastatic tumors. The patient in this case was alive with no tumor recurrence or metastasis six months after lobectomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]