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Abstract Background The Taiwanese government implemented stringent preventative health measures to curb the spread of COVID-19. However, these measures negatively affected the physical activity behaviors and psychological distress of individuals. In this study, we investigated the effects of Taiwan’s COVID-19 alert–based restrictions on the physical activity behaviors and psychological distress of community-dwelling older adults. Methods In this longitudinal study, 500 community-dwelling older adults were randomly sampled from a health promotion center in Taiwan. Telephone interviews were conducted between May 11, 2021, and August 17, 2021, which coincided with the Level 3 alert period when group physical activities were prohibited. Telephone interviews were again conducted between June 20, 2022, and July 4, 2022, after the alert level was reduced to Level 2 but group physical activities were prohibited period. Through the telephone interviews, data regarding the participants’ physical activity behaviors (type and amount) and 5-item Brief Symptom Rating Scale (BSRS-5) scores were collected. Moreover, data regarding physical activity behaviors were collected from the records of our previous health promotion programs, which were conducted before the national alert period. The obtained data were analyzed. Results The alert levels influenced physical activity behaviors. Because of strict regulations, physical activity amount decreased during the Level 3 alert period and did not recover rapidly during the Level 2 alert period. Instead of engaging in group exercises (e.g., calisthenics and qigong), the older adults chose to exercise alone (e.g., strolling, brisk walking, and biking). Our findings indicate that the COVID-19 alert level has a significant influence on the amount of physical activity for participants (p

The capillary rising is one of the most common phenomena in fine-grained soils. However, research is limited for capillary actions in cementitiously treated engineered soils. In this study, a soil column test was performed for the free capillary rising in compacted loess and modified loess samples. Moisture content of compacted soil samples was measured and analyzed to determine capillary height and rising rate. Results indicated that there was a considerable capillary rising in loess and lime-modified loess, while the capillary rising in cement-treated loess was significantly restrained. Current models are not appropriate for the rate and height predictions of capillary rising in cementitiously treated loess, especially in early ages. Therefore, a logarithmic form correlation was suggested and validated. In addition, salt migration effect and microscopic properties of soils after capillary rising were evaluated. Overall, the paper presented an experimental study and prediction on the capillary rising behavior of treated and recompacted engineered loess. Key words: modified loess, capillary rising model, soluble salt concentration, SEM L'ascension capillaire est l'un des phenomenes les plus courants dans les sols a grains fins. Cependant, la recherche est limitee quant a l'action capillaire dans les sols modifies au ciment. Dans cette etude, un essai sur colonne de sol a ete effectue pour evaluer l'ascension capillaire libre dans des echantillons de loess compacte et de loess modifie. La teneur en eau des echantillons de sol compacte a ete mesuree et analysee pour determiner la hauteur capillaire et le taux d'ascension capillaire. Les resultats ont indique qu'il y avait une ascension capillaire considerable du loess et du loess modifie a la chaux, tandis que l'ascension capillaire du loess traite au ciment etait sensiblement moderee. Les modeles actuels ne sont pas appropries en matiere de predictions du taux et de la hauteur de l'ascension capillaire dans les loess traites au ciment, en particulier aux jeunes ages. Par consequent, une correlation logarithmique a ete suggeree et validee. De plus, l'effet de migration du sel et les proprietes microscopiques des sols apres l'ascension capillaire ont ete evalues. Dans l'ensemble, l'article a presente une etude experimentale et une prediction du comportement de l'ascension capillaire du loess traite et recompacte. [Traduit par la Redaction] Mots-cles : loess modifie, modele d'ascension capillaire, concentration en sel soluble, microscopie electronique a balayage, Introduction Capillary water rising is a frequently found phenomenon in fine-grained soil structures, induced by the shallow groundwater levels. In particular, the poor gradation and high surface evaporation commonly lead [...]

Abstract In this cross-sectional study, we assessed the physical fitness levels of active community-dwelling older adults. Moreover, we investigated the correlation of their (stratified by age and sex) fitness levels with handgrip strength (HGS). Comprehensive physical fitness tests, including sarcopenia screening, were conducted with a total of 2,130 older adults residing in a rural area of Taiwan. The 5th, 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th, 90th, and 95th percentiles of age- and sex-specific physical fitness levels were determined. Furthermore, we identified the key parameters for assessing the physical fitness of older adults and performed stepwise multiple linear regression analysis. Both men and women exhibited age-related decreases in all aspects of functional fitness, a trend indicating that older adults in Taiwan may lose their independence in the future. Furthermore, the regression analysis revealed that HGS was positively correlated with sex, body mass index, and the results of 30-s arm curl and back scratch tests but negatively correlated with age and the result of 8-foot up-and-go test. Our reference values for physical fitness may help assess the fitness levels of active community-dwelling older adults and design community-based health programs to prevent the early loss of independence in community-dwelling older adults in Taiwan.

Geosynthetic materials have been widely used to enhance engineering practice in buildings, bridges, and pavements. As a kind of popular stabilization product, geogrid can be used for pavement reinforcement by serving as an additional tensile element. It has been demonstrated by many laboratory studies and numerical simulations that the reinforcement could significantly extend the fatigue life and improve the rutting resistance in flexible pavement. Meanwhile, geotextiles can provide soil separation, filtration and drainage; therefore, mitigating the freeze-thaw disturbances in the subgrade underneath the pavement structure. To study the application of geosynthetics in pavement structures in a more comprehensive aspect, a full-scale study was performed. A fibreglass geogrid which is specifically designed to reinforce the asphalt layer; as well as a geogrid composite material made of bi-axial geogrid bonded to a continuous filament non-woven geotextile, were installed in two field test sections. The geogrid was installed in the middle of the binder course within the asphalt layer, while the geogrid composite was placed at the interface of the base layer and subgrade in another section. The stiffness of the pavement was tested on each layer of the pavement structure during construction. As one of the major criteria to evaluate the pavement condition in North America, the International Roughness Index (IRI) was assessed to investigate the performances of geosynthetic-reinforced pavement during construction on asphalt binder course and surface course.

Abstract Background As the community-dwelling population ages in Taiwan, concerns regarding long-term care have grown more urgent. Physical fitness plays a key role in enabling community-dwelling older adults to independently complete daily tasks and avoid falling accidents. However, the effect of physical fitness on falls and other fitness-related factors remains poorly understood. Methods In this retrospective cross-sectional study, 2130 community-dwelling older adults were recruited from a rural region of Taiwan. Each of these participants completed a demographics interview and frailty questionnaire and reported their history of falls. We evaluated each participant’s height and body weight measurements, calf circumference, bone mass density, and results on the grip strength, single-leg standing, chair sit-and-reach, 8-ft up-and-go, 30-second chair stand, 2-minute step, 30-second arm curl, 6-m walk, and back scratch tests to determine their overall physical fitness, which consisted of their body composition, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility, and cardiopulmonary fitness. Results The prevalence of falls in the preceding year among the older adults surveyed was 20.8%, and the resultant hospitalization rate was 10.9%. The older adults who were more physically active in the past week, had regular exercise habits, lived with family, and had no history of hospitalization due to falls, exhibited greater performance on the physical fitness tests. Three time fallers exhibited lower levels of overall physical fitness than did those who had not fallen. The nonfallers outperformed the fallers in grip strength (participants who had not fallen and those who had fallen once, twice, or three times in the preceding year: 24.66 ± 0.19 vs. 23.66 ± 0.35 vs. 20.62 ± 0.71 vs. 22.20 ± 0.90 kg) and single-leg standing duration (19.38 ± 0.39 vs. 16.33 ± 0.78 vs. 13.95 ± 1.67 vs. 12.34 ± 1.82 seconds). Conclusions Exercise habits, living status, hospitalization due to falls, and amount of exercise were all associated with physical fitness in community-dwelling older adults. The results of all of the assessments indicated that the participants who had fallen three times exhibited lower levels of physical fitness than did those who had not fallen in the previous year. Physical measurements, including grip strength and single-leg standing duration, are associated with an individual’s risk of falling, which indicates that they should be considered in the development of geriatric physical fitness and fall-prevention programs.

Based on the development status of thermal barrier coatings, SPS (suspension plasma spraying), SPPS (solution precursor plasma spraying) and PS-PVD (plasma spraying-physical vapor deposition) technologies and the structural performance characteristics of the thermal coatings prepared by the above methods were summarized. Meanwhile, the development of single-layer, multi-layer and gradient coatings of plasma sprayed thermal barrier coatings was reviewed, and the effects of structural changes of ceramic materials system of La2Zr2O7, Gd2Zr2O7 and La2Ce2O7 on the properties of coating were emphatically summarized. Furthermore, the development prospects of multilayer structure of thermal barrier coatings were prospected.

Compact and uniform coatings were fabricated on LY12 aluminum alloy surface by adjusting process parameters and oxygen flow after micro-arc oxidation (MAO) treatment. The thickness, morphology, phase compositions and corrosion resistance were examined by SEM, XRD and electrochemical test system. The mechanism of MAO with oxygen was discussed, and the effect of oxygen flow on the coating compactness was analyzed. The results indicate that with the increase of time, voltage and concentration of electrolyte, the coating thickness changes regularly. The effect of oxygen on sintering can promote the growth of compact coatings, and the thickness of compact coatings first increases and then decreases with O2 rising. Under the conditions of 105g/L KF, 85g/L KOH, 12g/L NaAlO2, 110V for the voltage, 15min for treatment time and 0.010L/s for oxygen flow, a 30μm-thick compact coating can be formed on LY12 aluminum alloy. The corrosion potential of the coating increases to -0.11V, and the current density reduces to 2.1×10-6A/cm2, which is reduced by two orders of magnitude compared with the matrix and the corrosion resistance of the LY12 aluminum alloy significantly improves.

Laser junction temperature (Tj) is an essential parameter that directly affects the light power and lifetime of semiconductor lasers. Here, we investigate the effect of Tj on an InAs/GaAs quantum dot (QD) laser grown on a Si(001) substrate. Under 1% low pulsed current (1 µs pulse width and 100 µs period), the pure temperature-induced mode shift rate is 0.084 nm/°C. By increasing the duty cycle and measuring the corresponding mode wavelength shift, the laser's Tj under the continuous-wave (Tj-CW) mode is predicted to be from 31.1 to 81.6 °C when the injection current increases from 100 to 550 mA. Next, the average thermal resistance is 36.2 °C/W. Moreover, the non-negligible increase in Tj-CW is analyzed to significantly reduce the mean-time-to-failure of Si-based QD laser, especially for cases under high CW injection currents. These results provide an accurate reference for the thermal analysis of silicon-based QD lasers and point the way to high performance on-chip light sources by improving the laser heat accumulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Permanent deformation, or rutting, is one of several critical distresses in flexible pavements. This paper introduced a novel experimental method, a penetration test, for asphalt mixtures to quantify the effects of glass fibre geogrids embedded in asphalt under repeated loading. It was found that the evolution of permanent deformation (εp) and its strain rate have three clearly identifiable stages. It was also observed that the presence of the geogrid increased the flow number and the number of cycles to failure significantly compared to control samples. Some of the current εp fitting models were found to be valid for deformation prediction under penetration. In addition, a new simple FN calculation method was also proposed based on strain rate and it showed consistent results. In particular, geogrid type "Grid10", which has smaller aperture size (12.7 mm) had slightly better reinforcement performance regarding the rutting resistance due to its larger contact area. Overall, the test and data analysis method presented in this study could be an important reference for future investigations on geosynthetic-reinforced pavement materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geosynthetic materials (i.e., geogrids, geotextiles and other geocomposites) act as an interlayer system and are widely used in construction applications. In pavement structures, geosynthetic layers provide potential benefits such as reinforcement, reflective cracking mitigation, increased fatigue life, and improved drainage and filtering. However, few studies have addressed the installation and construction practices of geosynthetics in pavements. Furthermore, the study of geosynthetics and their contribution during construction are limited. In this paper, a full-scale field study was conducted and three trial sections were constructed; two types of geosynthetics, a fibreglass geogrid and a geogrid composite, were installed in the asphalt binder course and at the interface between the subgrade and base layer, respectively, to be compared with a control section without geosynthetic reinforcement. Trial sections were instrumented to monitor the pressure applied on the subgrade, the strain in the base lift of the asphalt binder course, the temperature, and the moisture within the pavement structure during construction. In addition, post-construction field testing was performed to measure the stiffness of the pavements after construction. The results indicated that geosynthetic-reinforced pavements can maintain pavement resilience during construction and significantly mitigate the disturbances caused by construction activities. The geogrid embedded in the asphalt layer was demonstrated to reduce the pressure at the subgrade caused by paving equipment by 70% compared with the control section, while simultaneously reducing the longitudinal and transverse strain at the bottom of the asphalt layer by 54% and 99%. Observations from the geogrid composite test section also demonstrate the potential to minimize the impacts of future freeze–thaw at the subgrade due to the improved drainage and indirect insulation effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Single‐frequency semiconductor lasers represent a critical role in optical communications, light detection and ranging systems, photonics integrated circuits, etc. Here, combining atom‐like quantum dot (QD) materials and advanced lateral gratings, a high‐power, ultra‐low‐noise 1.3 µm InAs/GaAs QD distributed feedback laser is demonstrated. Stable single‐longitudinal‐mode output power of 100 mW from 25 ℃ to 85 ℃ is achieved with a maximum side mode suppression ratio of 62.6 dB, and the variations of threshold current and slope efficiency over the temperature range are slight, indicting a high temperature stability. A record‐narrow intrinsic linewidth of 1.62 kHz is achieved at 55 ℃ with a white noise level of merely 515 Hz2 Hz–1, and a minimum averaged relative intensity noise of only –166 dB/Hz between 0.1 GHz and 20 GHz is obtained at 25 ℃. Furthermore, a strong tolerance to external optical feedback (〉 –14 dB) is demonstrated in the range from 25 ℃ to 85 ℃, with a maximum value of –8 dB at 85 ℃. This high‐quality single‐frequency laser fabricated with simplified processes and compact size paves the way for its future large‐scale applications such as high‐capacity optical communication, high‐precision optical detection, high‐speed optical interconnections, etc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Freeze-thaw action is considered to be one of the most destructive actions that can induce significant damage in stabilized subgrades in seasonally frozen loess areas. Laboratory tests including frost heave--thaw shrinkage and microstructure change during freeze-thaw cycles were conducted to evaluate the volume change rate of loess stabilized with cement, lime, and fly ash under the impact of cyclic freeze-thaw conditions. The loess specimens collapsed after eight freeze-thaw cycles (192 h), but most stabilized loess specimens had no visible damage after all freeze-thaw cycles were completed. All of the stabilized loess samples underwent a much smaller volume change than the loess alone after the freeze-thaw cycles. Although surface porosity and equivalent diameter of stabilized loess samples increased, the stabilized loess can retain its microstructure during freezethaw cycles when the cement content was less than 6%. To ensure freeze-thaw resistance of stabilized loess subgrades, the mix proportions of the three additives was recommended to be 4 to 5% cement, 6% lime, and 10% fly ash. Key words: stabilized loess, freeze-thaw cycle, frost heaving, thaw shrinkage, microstructure, cement, lime, fly ash. On considere l'action du gel et du degel comme etant une des actions les plus destructives pouvant causer des dommages importants des sols de fondation stabilises dans les zones de loess ayant subi un gel saisonnier. Les essais en laboratoire comprennent le soulevement par le gel et le retrait du au degel alors qu'on a mene des changements de microstructure au cours des cycles de gel-degel afin d'evaluer le taux de changement du volume du loess stabilise au moyen du ciment, de la chaux et de la cendre volante sous l'effet des conditions de gel-degel. Les specimens de loess se sont effondres apres huit cycles de gel-degel (192 h), mais la plupart des specimens de loess stabilise n'avaient aucun dommage visible apres que tous les cycles de gel-degel furent completes. Tous les echantillons de loess stabilise ont subi un changement de volume bien moindre que le loess seul apres les cycles de gel-degel. Bien que la porosite de surface et le diametre equivalent des echantillons de loess stabilise aient augmente, le loess stabilise peut garder sa microstructure pendant les cycles de gel-degel lorsque le contenu en ciment etait moins de 6 %. Afin d'assurer la resistance au gel-degel des sols de fondation de loess, on a recommande que les proportions des melanges des trois adjuvants soient de 4 a 5 % ciment, de 6 % chaux et de 10 % de cendre volante. [Traduit par la Redaction] Mots-cles: loess stabilize, cycle de gel-degel, soulevement par le gel, retrait du au degel, microstructure, ciment, chaux, cendre volante., Introduction Loess is a collapsible soil covering approximately 10% of the Earth's surface, it appears in vast areas from Western Europe to China (Qian et al. 1985), across North America, [...]

Rock is constantly subjected to stress and thermal conditions. Thermal-induced micro-cracks will be generated as a result of different thermal expansion gradations between different minerals. This characteristic was investigated in this paper by studying the micro-properties of Sudbury norite via CT scanning and the image processing method. A novel filtering method, maximum–minimum shadow filtering (MMSF), was developed in this study to highlight the thermal-induced micro-cracks in Sudbury Igneous Complex (SIC) norite after different temperature treatments. Based on quantitative analysis, the areal percentages of biotite, felspar, quartz, and small amounts of metal minerals were determined. It was also found that small-scale micro-cracks were first observed in the middle of biotite grains at a temperature of 400 °C. The cracks further propagated and extended with the temperature increase. In addition, the orientations of cracks either remained at the same distribution or became more evenly distributed with the rising temperature. A linear relationship was found between the average porosity of SIC norite and the temperature. Moreover, the anisotropic properties between vertical and horizontal directions of norite were also noticeable. Overall, the paper presented a quantitative study on the effects of thermal treatment and the anisotropic properties of SIC norite. Methodology and findings from this paper will be a significant reference for future studies regarding the thermal impacts on norite and similar rocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Osteosarcoma is a common primary malignant bone tumor susceptible to distant metastasis. The clinical outcome for patients remains poor due to the resistance to chemotherapy and lacking effective therapeutic targets. Recepteur d'origine nantais (RON), a transmembrane protein of the c-MET proto-oncogene family, has been reported to contribute to the malignant progression and bone metastasis in several tumors. The present study aimed to explore the prognostic significance of RON in primary high-grade osteosarcoma.Methods: Immunohistochemistry (IHC) and western blotting (WB) were used to investigate the protein expression of RON in 80 surgically resected specimens (50 high-grade osteosarcoma specimens and 30 non-neoplastic bone tissues) and 6 cell lines. The χ2 test or independent-sample Student's t-test was used to assess the significance of RON difference between osteosarcoma and non-neoplastic bone tissues. The χ2 test and Fisher's exact test were used to analyze the association of RON with the clinicopathological features of osteosarcoma patients. Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazards model were used to assess the significance of RON for the survival of osteosarcoma patients.Results: The results of IHC and WB observed significant overexpression of RON in osteosarcoma specimens (P < 0.001) and osteosarcoma cell lines. Moreover, immunohistochemical high expression of RON was associated with a poor response to chemotherapy (P = 0.032) as well as worse progression-free (P = 0.003) and overall (P < 0.001) survival of osteosarcoma patients. Multivariate analysis revealed that high expression of RON was independently associated with reduced progression-free (P = 0.027, HR = 2.31) and overall survival (P = 0.004, HR = 5.06) time of osteosarcoma patients.Conclusions: The present study demonstrated that high expression of RON held independent value for unfavorable survival in primary high-grade osteosarcoma. Its potential role as a therapeutic target for osteosarcoma treatment deserves further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Because the reliability of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in treating poststroke cognitive impairment has not been convincingly demonstrated, we systematically examined the effectiveness of this regimen with 2 protocols. Methods: We randomly allocated 41 patients with poststroke cognitive impairment to receive 5 Hz rTMS (n = 11), intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS; n = 15) or sham stimulation (n = 15). Each group received 10 stimulation sessions over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. We performed the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) and the Beck Depression Inventory at baseline and after the intervention. Results: The 5 Hz rTMS group showed significantly greater improvement than the sham group in RBANS total score (p = 0.006), attention (p = 0.001) and delayed memory (p < 0.001). The iTBS group showed significantly greater improvement than the sham group in RBANS total score (p = 0.005) and delayed memory (p = 0.007). The 5 Hz rTMS group exhibited a superior modulating effect in attention compared to the iTBS group (p = 0.016). Patients without comorbid hypertension (p = 0.008) were predisposed to favourable therapeutic outcomes. Limitations: Although we included only patients with left hemispheric stroke, heterogeneity associated with cortical and subcortical implications existed. We did not investigate the remote effects of rTMS. Conclusion: Our results demonstrated that both 5 Hz rTMS and iTBS were effective for poststroke cognitive impairment in terms of global cognition, attention and memory function; the domain of attention was susceptible to 5 Hz modulation. Treatment with 5 Hz rTMS may slow cognitive decline, representing both a pivotal process in poststroke cognitive impairment and an aspect of neuroplasticity that contributes to disease-modifying strategies. Clinical trial registration: NCT02006615; clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02006615. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Osteosarcoma is a malignant bone tumor with extremely high invasion, metastasis and mortality. The prognosis of patients with osteosarcoma remains poor. The ErbB receptor family was found to be overexpressed in human cancers and associated with poor prognosis. However, the role of ErbB receptor family in osteosarcoma has not been fully understood. The present study aimed to investigate the clinicopathological and prognostic significances of ErbB receptors in primary osteosarcoma. Western blot (WB), reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) were used to detect the protein and gene expression of ErbB receptors in 60 primary osteosarcoma specimens and 30 non-neoplastic bone tissues. WB and RT-qPCR analyses showed that the protein and mRNA expression levels of EGFR, ErbB3 and ErbB4 in osteosarcoma specimens were significantly higher than those in non-neoplastic bone tissues. Seventeen (28.33%), 15 (25.00%) and 15 (25.00%) osteosarcoma specimens presented with amplification of EGFR, ErbB3 and ErbB4 gene, respectively, which were significantly higher compared with non-neoplastic bone tissues. The amplification of ErbB3 and ErbB4 in osteosarcoma was associated with advanced surgical stage. The amplification of EGFR, ErbB3, ErbB4 and the co-amplification of EGFR-ErbB3, EGFR-ErbB4, ErbB3-ErbB4 was linked with poor response to chemotherapy and distant metastasis. The amplification of EGFR, ErbB3 and ErbB4, as well as their co-amplification demonstrated independent prognostic values for reduced survival time of osteosarcoma patients and may serve as potential therapeutic targets for osteosarcoma patients in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary malignant bone tumor. Numerous studies have strongly implicated the ectopic expression of microRNAs (miRNAs/miRs), including miR-885-5p, which is aberrantly expressed in several cancer types, in multiple cancer-related processes. However, the role of miR-885-5p in OS remains unknown. In the present study, it was found that the expression of miR-885-5p was markedly upregulated in OS cell lines and clinical tissues. Moreover, high expression of miR-885-5p was significantly associated with the development of OS. The human OS MG-63 cell line was transfected with recombinant lentivirus to regulate miR-885-5p expression. Overexpressed miR-885-5p significantly promoted the proliferation and migration of MG-63 cells in vitro, while downregulating miR-885-5p expression reversed these effects. Furthermore, bioinformatic analysis was used to predict the potential target genes of miR-885-5p, and cell division cycle protein 73 homolog (CDC73) was identified as a novel and direct target of miR-885-5p. This interaction was further confirmed using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction, western blotting and luciferase activity assays. These findings suggest that miR-885-5p serves a critical role in facilitating OS proliferation and migration, and can regulate CDC73 expression in OS cells and tissues. Thus, miR-885-5p could be a promising novel therapeutic biomarker for OS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The prognosis of patients with metastatic osteosarcoma is poor and has shown no significant improvement in nearly 20 years. The human epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor (HER) family is frequently overexpressed in the majority of human carcinomas, and is involved in promoting the proliferation and survival of cancer cells. However, the role of EGFR and HER-2 expression in osteosarcoma survival remains controversial and no previous study has simultaneously investigated the association of the expression of all the four HER family members with the prognostic significance of osteosarcoma. Therefore, the present study investigated the expression levels of the complete members of the HER family in osteosarcoma specimens, as well as their associations with the clinicopathological parameters, progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) time of patients with osteosarcoma. The expression of HER family members was detected in osteosarcoma tumor specimens from 60 patients using immunohistochemistry. The association of the expression of HER receptors in osteosarcoma with clinicopathological parameters was analyzed using Χ2 test and Fishers exact test. Survival analyses were evaluated by Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazards regression model. Overall, 18 (30%), 13 (22%), 23 (38%) and 19 (32%) patients presented with high expression of EGFR, HER-2, HER-3 and HER-4, respectively, and the co-expression of 2, 3 and all 4 members of the HER family was observed. High expression of EGFR and HER-4 was associated with distant metastasis. High HER-3 expression was significantly associated with an advanced Enneking stage and distant metastasis. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that the expression of EGFR, HER-3, HER-4, EGFR/HER-3, EGFR/HER-4 and HER-3/HER-4 was an independent predictor of poor PFS and OS time in osteosarcoma patients with stage I-IIB disease. In patients with stage IIB osteosarcoma, the expression of HER-4 and EGFR/HER-4 demonstrated a more significant effect on PFS and OS time. In conclusion, therapies targeting EGFR, HER-3 and HER-4 may provide promising strategies for primary osteosarcoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PURPOSE: To investigate the influence of pamidronate on cementoclast and osteoclast differentiation factor (ODF) expression during orthodontic tooth movement in rats. METHODS: 24 female, 6-week-old SPF Wistar rats were selected and the animal models for orthodontic tooth movement were established. Each rat's maxillary was divided into experimental side and control side. Pamidronate (50 µL) was injected into the sub-periosteum area adjacent to the left upper first molar (experimental side) every 3 days during the experiment, while 0.9% NS (50 µL) was injected into the corresponding area of the control side. The rats were executed in batch on the 3rd, 7th and 14th day respectively during the orthodontic treatment for detecting the amount of cementoclast and the expression of ODF in the periodontal tissues. AD statistical analysis was performed using PASW Statistics 18 software package. RESULTS: The amount of cementoclasts was significantly less in the experimental side than that in the control' side on the 7th and 14th days (P< 0.05). The expression of ODF was significantly less in the experimental side than that in the control side on the 7th and 14th days (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Local injection of pamidronate can reduce the number of cementoclast and the expression of ODF. Supported by Shandong Provincial Science and Technology Development Project (2009GG20002042) and Science and Technology Project of Zibo Science and Technology Bureau (2010GG01070). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Osteosarcoma is the most common primary malignant bone tumor, particularly among children and adolescents, and the prognosis of osteosarcoma patients remains poor. The NADPH oxidase 2 (NOX2) has been found over-expressed in several human cancers, and closely associated with poor prognosis. Meanwhile the role of NOX2 in osteosarcoma patients has not been reported. This study aimed to investigate the clinicopathological and prognostic significance of NOX2 in osteosarcoma patients.Methods: Immunohistochemistry (IHC), western blot (WB) and reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) were used to detect the expression of NOX2 in 55 primary osteosarcoma specimens and in 20 non-neoplastic bone tissue specimens. The correlations between NOX2 expression and clinicopathological parameters were analysed by using the χ2 test or Fisher's exact test. Disease free survival and overall survival of osteosarcoma patients were assessed by using the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional hazards model.Results: NOX2 was over-expressed significantly in osteosarcoma compared with that in non-neoplastic bone tissue, and correlated with progression free survival (P < 0.001) and overall survival (P < 0.001). The over-expression of NOX2 was associated with tumor size (P < 0.001), tumor location (P < 0.001). The Cox analysed shown that the over-expression of NOX2 was predicted to be worse PFS (hazard ratio (HR) = 4.10, P = 0.004) and OS (hazard ratio (HR) = 3.50, P = 0.010) time in osteosarcoma patients.Conclusions: The results of our study suggest that the over-expression of NOX2 is related to adverse clinical outcome, and can be viewed as an independent prognostic marker in osteosarcoma. Further research is required to verify the predictive value of NOX2 in osteosarcoma patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]