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In the context of diabetes mellitus, various pathological changes cause tissue ischemia and hypoxia, which can lead to the compensatory formation of neovascularization. However, disorders of the internal environment and dysfunctions of various cells contribute to the dysfunction of neovascularization. Although the problems of tissue ischemia and hypoxia have been partially solved, neovascularization also causes many negative effects. In the process of small blood vessel renewal, pericytes are extremely important for maintaining the normal growth and maturation of neovascularization. Previously, our understanding of pericytes was very limited, and the function of pericytes was not yet clear. Recently, multiple new functions of pericytes have been identified, affecting various processes in angiogenesis and relating to various diseases. Therefore, the importance of pericytes has gradually become apparent. This article presents the latest research progress on the role of pericytes in diabetic angiogenesis, characterizes pericytes, summarizes various potential therapeutic targets, and highlights research directions for the future treatment of various diabetes-related diseases.

A study of the seasonality and overall quantity and quality of Chinese patenting, including international comparisons, suggests that government planning and annual targets encouraged gaming of the system, which increased patent counts but negatively affected patent quality.

PURPOSE To investigate the influence of lateral window sinus augmentation on sinus physiology, including sinus membrane thickness and the outcome of antral pseudocysts. MATERIALS AND METHODS This retrospective study was performed by reviewing all lateral window sinus augmentation procedures, which were done between the years 2013 and 2015. Each enrolled patient had CBCT images preoperatively (T0), immediately postoperatively (T1), and 6 months postoperatively (T2). The sinus membrane thickness, pseudocyst dimensions, and intraoperative perforation were evaluated. Patient-related factors such as age and sex that could influence the mucosal properties were also analyzed. RESULTS Based on established inclusion criteria, 306 patients with 320 sinuses were included in this study. The overall mean thickness of the sinus membrane (T0) was 1.30 ± 1.08 mm, and membrane thickening (> 2 mm) was observed in 22.19% of the sinuses. Preexisting pseudocysts were identified in 24 sinuses (7.50%), most of which remained unchanged or disappeared after 6 months. The intraoperative membrane perforation rate was lowest (1.96%) when the membrane thickness was 1.0 to 1.5 mm, and the perforation rate was increased in patients with thickened (> 2 mm) or thinned (≤ 1 mm) membrane. Membranes swelled immediately after operation (T1 vs T0, P < .01) and gradually recovered at 6 months. No significant change in membrane thickness was shown after the sinus augmentation procedure in the perforation group and pseudocyst group. The mean thickness of the sinus membrane at T0 and T1 was significantly higher for male subjects (P < .01). CONCLUSION Lateral window sinus augmentation has little or no impact on sinus membrane thickness and antral pseudocysts after a 6-month healing period, except for a transient mild membrane swelling. Thickened and thinned membrane were risk factors for intraoperative perforation. Small-sized perforation and pseudocysts might not contraindicate sinus augmentation from the standpoint of the surgical impact on the sinus membrane.

The main objective is to evaluate clinical efficacy and safety of using calcipotriol–betamethasone compounding agent for psoriasis treatment through a systematic review and meta-analysis. We searched MEDLINE, Embase, The Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), China Biomedical Literature Database (CBM), and WanFang Data from inception till July 31, 2020. Efficacy was evaluated based on primary outcome indicators including skin lesion improvement and overall adverse reaction rate. Secondary outcome indicators included degree of life quality improvement, clinical effectiveness rate, and specific adverse reaction rates. RevMan5.3 was used to perform the meta-analysis. 22 studies finally met our inclusion criteria for the meta-analysis. The results indicated that for short-term treatment, a sequential therapy that uses calcipotriol betamethasone compounding agent and calcipotriol improves PASI score (MD = −0.94, 95% CI − 1.38 ~ − 0.49, P

Angiogenesis, as a process occurring under the regulation of a variety of factors, is one of the important ways of vascular development. It coexists in a variety of pathological and physiological processes. Now a large number of studies have proved that tumor growth, metastasis, and various vascular complications of diabetes are closely related to angiogenesis, and an increasing number of studies have shown that there are many common factors between the two. But angiogenesis is the opposite of the two: it is enhanced in tumors and suppressed in diabetes. Therefore, this review discusses the causes of the phenomenon from the expression of various factors affecting angiogenesis in these two diseases and their effects on angiogenesis in the relevant microenvironment, as well as the application status of these factors or cells as therapeutic targets in the treatment of these two diseases.

Coal minerals and tetraethoxysilane were used to prepare SiC by microwave heating. Different C:SiO2 ratios of raw mixed powders were selected to investigate changes in the heating behavior and photoluminescence property. The prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) Raman Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray fluorescence spectrophotometer. It was found that distinct heating behavior appeared for different C:SiO2 ratios, including the time taken to reach ~600 °C, performance of the thermal runaway, and heating rate. The changes in the complicated heating behaviors are determined by different microwave coupling, microwave plasma, and E-field intensification effects within samples with different C:SiO2 ratios. When the molar ration of carbon and silicon is 5:1, the intensity of light emission reaches maximum.

Purpose: Sestrin2, a metabolic regulator with antioxidant activity, might have some certain predictability for the occurrence and severity of pre-eclampsia (PE). The purpose of this work was to explore the levels of serum Sestrin2 and PlGF in pregnant women with PE and their correlation with the severity index of the disease.Methods:This was a retrospective case-control study of pregnant women with PE who planned to give birth in our hospital from 05/2017 to 05/2019. Pearson correlation was used to analyze Sestrin2 and PlGF levels with PE severity. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to evaluate the predictive value of Sestrin2 and PlGF for PE.Results: There were 52 women in the control group, 46 in the mild PE group, and 36 in the severe PE group. As the severity of PE increased, the median levels of Sestrin2 increased (8.1, 9.8, and 11.8 ng/ml), and the levels of PlGF decreased (156, 117, and 67 pg/ml) in the three groups of women (all P

Objective Serious bacterial infection (SBI) remains an important cause of morbidity and mortality in preterm infants. The objective of this study was to evaluate the dynamically increased value of the red cell distribution width (RDW) in the diagnosis of SBI. Methods This retrospective study enrolled 334 preterm infants with birth weight less than 1500 g. The initial RDW and the maximum value of RDW during hospitalization were extracted from the MIMIC-III database (version 1.4). Infants were categorized into four groups according to baseline RDW value and ΔRDW (ΔRDW = RDW at maximum- RDW at baseline). Logistic regression analysis was used to assess the risk of developing SBI in each group. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to evaluate the diagnostic value of RDW at baseline alone, ΔRDW alone, and in combination. Results Infants with increased RDW at baseline (> 17%) and ΔRDW > 2% exhibited the highest risk of developing SBI, whereas the patients with normal RDW level at baseline (≤ 17%) and ΔRDW≤2% (the reference group) had the lowest risk. This association remained unaltered even after adjustment in multivariable models. Basing on ROC curve analysis, the area under the curve predicted by the combination of RDW at baseline and ΔRDW for SBI was 0.81 (95% CI, 0.76–0.87). Sensitivity and specificity were 78.16 and 72.47% respectively. Conclusions We observed that combination of elevated RDW at baseline and dynamic increases during hospitalization is significantly associated with SBI. Therefore, that combination could be a promising independent diagnostic indicator of SBI in newborns.

Pathological cardiac remodeling is a leading cause of mortality in patients with diabetes. Given the glucose and lipid metabolism disorders (GLDs) in patients with diabetes, it is urgent to conduct a comprehensive study of the myocardial damage under GLDs and find key mechanisms. Apolipoprotein E knockout (ApoE-/-) mice, low-density lipoprotein receptor heterozygote (Ldlr+/-) Syrian golden hamsters, or H9C2 cells were used to construct GLDs models. GLDs significantly promoted cardiomyocyte fibrosis, apoptosis, and hypertrophy in vivo and in vitro, but inhibition of galectin-3 (Gal-3) could significantly reverse this process. Then, the signal transmission pathways were determined. It was found that GLDs considerably inhibited the phosphorylation of Akt at Thr308/Ser473, whereas the silencing of Gal-3 could reverse the inhibition of Akt activity through phosphoinositide 3-kinase-AktThr308 (PI3K-AktThr308) and AMP-activated protein kinase-mammalian target of rapamycin complex 2-AktSer473 (AMPK-mTOR2-AktSer473) pathways. Finally, the PI3K, mTOR, AMPK inhibitor, and Akt activator were used to investigate the role of pathways in regulating cardiac remodeling. Phospho-AktThr308 could mediate myocardial fibrosis, whereas myocardial apoptosis and hypertrophy were regulated by both phospho-AktThr308 and phospho-AktSer473. In conclusion, Gal-3 was an important regulatory factor in GLDs-induced cardiac remodeling, and Gal-3 could suppress the phosphorylation of Akt at different sites in mediating cardiomyocyte fibrosis, apoptosis, and hypertrophy.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Studies on the pathogenesis of diabetic cardiac remodeling are highly desired. Glucose and lipid metabolism are both disordered in diabetes. Glucose and lipid metabolism disturbances promote myocardial fibrosis, apoptosis, and hypertrophy through galectin-3. Galectin-3 promotes cardiac remodeling by inhibiting phosphorylation of AktThr308 or AktSer473. The present study finds that glucose and lipid metabolism disorders are important causes for myocardial damage and provides novel ideas for the prevention and treatment of diabetic cardiac remodeling.

Piezoelectric responsive molecular ferroelectrics have become a research hotspot due to their advantages of simple fabrication, environmental friendliness, light weight and good mechanical flexibility. Here we proposed a new kind of multipole rare earth molecular ferroelectric, ((nBu)4N)3[Ce(NO3)4(SCN)2]((CH3CH2CH2CH2)4N = tetrabutylammonium) (1). Compound 1 undergoes a high temperature ferroelectric phase transition at 408 K. It is worth noting that compound 1 has a narrow band gap of 2.61 eV, flexible switchable SHG effect, moderate spontaneous polarization Ps = 3.6 μC cm−2, and piezoelectric constant = 3 pC N−1. The results show that these findings provide ideas for exploring multifunctional rare earth molecular ferroelectrics with a piezoelectric effect.

Background and aims To investigate the role of Sortilin and matrix vesicles (MVs) in Ne-Carboxymethyl-lysine (CML)-induced diabetic atherosclerotic calcification (AC). Methods At human level, the correlation between Sortilin and CD9 (marker proteins of MVs) in serum MVs and CML in serum was explored by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) detection and Pearson correlation analysis. After a diabetic apoE-/- mouse model was constructed, the calcification of aorta and the expressions of related proteins under CML and MVs injection were observed by calcification staining, immunofluorescence staining, and Western blot. MVs levels released by smooth muscle cells (SMCs) under different treatments was detected by nanometer tracking analysis (NTA). After treating SMCs with MVs and Anti-Sortilin, cell calcification was observed by Alizarin red staining. Results Serological analysis of patients showed that the concentrations of Sortilin and CD9 in serum MVs were positively correlated with the concentration of CML in serum. Animal experiments showed that CML could promote the progression of diabetic AC and the high expression of Sortilin in plaques. Diabetic apoE-/- mouse tail vein injection of CML-induced SMCs-derived MVs obviously aggravated AC. Cell experiment results showed that a high concentration of CML significantly promoted the release of MVs from SMCs. MVs from this source could markedly worsen cell calcification, while the administration of GW4869 (a widely used extracellular vesicles biogenesis inhibitor) significantly reduced cell calcification. Finally, treatment of high concentrations of CML could also promote the recruitment of Sortilin to MVs, and administration of Anti-Sortilin could markedly reduce cell calcification caused by MVs. Conclusion We proved that CML not only affects the release of MVs from SMCs but also affects the recruitment of Sortilin to MVs, thereby promoting diabetic AC. This discovery may provide a new strategy for targeted prevention of vascular calcification in diabetes.

Objective The fibrinogen to albumin ratio (FAR) is an important parameter that reflects the coagulation state, systemic inflammation, and nutritional status of a patient and plays an essential role in tumor progression. Here, we evaluate the prognostic significance of FAR in gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) patients that underwent radical surgery. Methods We retrospectively analyzed the data of 227 GIST patients that underwent radical surgery in Beijing Hospital from October 2004 to July 2018. We drew a curve of receiver operating characteristics to confirm the optimal critical values for hemoglobin (Hb), prognostic nutrition index (PNI), and FAR. Cox regression analysis and the Kaplan-Meier method were used to assess the prognostic factors. Results The FAR optimal critical value for postoperative recurrence-free survival (RFS) was 0.09. Many significant factors, including approach, the location and size of the tumor, mitotic index, risk classification, Hb levels, PNI, and recurrence, affect FAR. Multivariate analysis indicated that for patients with GISTs who underwent surgery, the tumor location (hazard ratio [HR]=3.393, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.539-7.479, P=0.002), mitotic index (HR=4.788, 95% CI: 1.836-12.486, P=0.001), tumor rupture (HR=10.954, 95% CI: 2.170-55.296, P=0.004), and FAR (HR=3.093, 95% CI: 1.303-7.339, P=0.010) were independent factors affecting RFS. Moreover, the FAR remained of prognostic significance for GIST stratified by subgroup analysis. Conclusion Preoperative FAR is a reliable marker for evaluating the prognosis of GIST, the prognostic ability of FAR is significantly better than Hb and PNI.

Evidence-based forecasting and estimation indicate that Arctic shipping will grow in volume and diversify over the coming years, and associated challenges need to be met without compromising too much either the growing demand for shipping or the sustainability of the Arctic environment. Various initiatives have been put forward by the shipping industry, States and international regulatory bodies to reduce the negative impact of the use of marine fuels on the marine environment in the Arctic. This article examines the current regulatory regime concerning use of marine fuels in the Arctic; discusses how to apply legal principles and approaches to close regulatory gaps and harmonise existing efforts to prevent, reduce and control marine pollution from fuel use; and analyses the underlining architecture for designing a regulatory regime, from a technical perspective, for the use of marine fuels by Arctic shipping.

To investigate the clinicopathological and molecular features of colorectal cancer (CRC) with synchronous adenoma and to describe features of synchronous adenomas in CRC patients.Single-centre retrospective cohort of 180 patients were included. The clinicopathological and endoscopic data were collected. The expression mismatch repair (MMR) proteins were detected by immunohistochemistry. The determination of microsatellite instability (MSI) was performed by multiple fluorescence PCR, and the mutations of genes were detected by real-time PCR.Among all cases, 49 were diagnosed as CRC with synchronous adenoma, and 131 were diagnosed as solitary CRC. Some of the differences between the groups are: higher incidence was found in male (71.4 vs. 52.6%,Gender, a habit of drinking and other neoplastic diseases are risk factors for the development of a synchronous adenoma. With a low rate of BRAF mutations, the responses to monoclonal antibody and prognosis of patients with synchronous adenomas may be better than that of solitary CRC.

Fund families are centrally managed, and can directly control resource allocations between funds. We quantify multiple manageable fund family attributes, and examine their combined effects upon returns and investor flows. We focus upon five attributes that are exclusively manageable by fund families: marginal fee economies of scale, star fund offerings, mixed high and low risk product offerings, within-family manager scope, and manager outsourcing. We find sensitivity differences during the financial crisis and non-crisis time periods. Management of these exclusive attributes significantly improve a fund family’s returns and investor flows, benefiting fund families and their investors during both normal and financial crisis periods. We find that investors reward fund families with greater performance sensitive inflows and weaker performance sensitive outflows, indicating that investors identify greater utility in centrally managed fund families.

Higher body mass index (BMI) in late-life has recently been considered as a possible protective factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD), which yet remains conflicting. To test this hypothesis, we have evaluated the cross-sectional and longitudinal associations of BMI categories with CSF biomarkers, brain β-amyloid (Aβ) load, brain structure, and cognition and have assessed the effect of late-life BMI on AD risk in a large sample (n = 1,212) of non-demented elderly from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) database. At baseline, higher late-life BMI categories were associated with higher levels of CSF Aβ42 (p=0.037), lower levels of CSF total-tau (t-tau, p=0.026) and CSF t-tau/Aβ42 (p=0.008), lower load of Aβ in the right hippocampus (p=0.030), as well as larger volumes of hippocampus (p

The intervertebral disc (IVD) is the largest avascular organ of the body. It is composed of three parts: the nucleus pulposus (NP), the annulus fibrosus (AF) and the cartilaginous endplate (CEP). The central NP is surrounded by the AF and sandwiched by the two CEPs ever since its formation. This unique structure isolates the NP from the immune system of the host. Additionally, molecular factors expressed in IVD have been shown inhibitive effect on immune cells and cytokines infiltration. Therefore, the IVD has been identified as an immune privilege organ. The steady state of immune privilege is fundamental to the homeostasis of the IVD. The AF and the CEP, along with the immunosuppressive molecular factors are defined as the blood-NP barrier (BNB), which establishes a strong barrier to isolate the NP from the host immune system. When the BNB is damaged, the auto-immune response of the NP occurs with various downstream cascade reactions. This effect plays an important role in the whole process of IVD degeneration and related complications, such as herniation, sciatica and spontaneous herniated NP regression. Taken together, an enhanced understanding of the immune privilege of the IVD could provide new targets for the treatment of symptomatic IVD disease. However, the underlying mechanism above is still not fully clarified. Accordingly, the current study will extensively review and discuss studies regarding the immune privilege of the IVD.

The development of luminescent probes in biological windows has emerged as an exciting field by virtue of nanoscale spatial resolution and low tissue scattering and absorption. However, current luminescent nanothermometers in the biological windows still suffer from limited relative temperature sensitivity (Sr). Herein, one ultrasensitive ratiometric nanothermometer in the first biological window is designed based on NaYb(MoO4)2:Tm3+ nanosheets sensitized by Yb3+–MoO42− dimers. Due to the cooperation of phonon-assisted energy transfer and thermally coupled population, the 691 nm emission of Tm3+ ions realizes enhancement to 48-fold at 573 K, while the 651 nm emission of Tm3+ ions first increases slightly and then quenches severely because of the competition between phonon-assisted thermal enhancing and thermal quenching. These high-contrast thermal-dependent characteristics create a new Sr record of 6.5% K−1 at 313 K in the biological windows with high repeatability (better than 98.3%) and low temperature uncertainty (0.16 K). After tuning the luminescence process by Yb3+–MoO42− dimers, the power-dependent thermometric signals are determined by constructing calibration curves. Further the temperature detection of biological tissues confirms the feasibility of the proposed nanothermometer.

Vascular calcification is a key character of advanced plaque in diabetic atherosclerosis. Microcalcification induces plaque rupture, whereas macrocalcification contributes to plaque stability. However, there is still no clear explanation for the formation and transition of these two types of calcification. Based on existing work and the latest international progress, this article provides a brief review of four aspects: calcification transition in plaque; matrix vesicle-mediated calcification transition in plaque; regulation mechanism of matrix vesicle-mediated calcification transition in diabetic plaque; and proposal of a new hypothesis, which may offer a new perspective on the study of the mechanism of calcification transition in plaque.

Luminescence intensity ratio (LIR) nanothermometers are ideally suited for noninvasive temperature detection of microelectronic devices and living cells, and the painstaking pursuit of new nanothermometers with higher absolute temperature sensitivity (Sa) or relative temperature sensitivity (Sr) has dominated recent research. However, whether higher Sa and Sr values can intrinsically improve the performance of LIR nanothermometers and what factors essentially determine their accuracy have rarely been considered; these considerations are instructive for their design and application while reducing time and costs. Here, we clarify that the accuracy of lanthanide-based LIR nanothermometers is essentially determined by Sr and the relative error of the luminescence intensity (σI/I) but not Sa based on lanthanide-doped NaYF4, YPO4, YVO4, CaF2, YF3, Y2O3, BaTiO3, LaAlO3 and Y3Al5O12 temperature sensors, meaning that our previous pursuit of higher Sa does not contribute to the accuracy of lanthanide-based LIR nanothermometers. Further research reveals that σI/I is primarily influenced by energy level splitting, which can deteriorate the temperature uncertainty. For actual temperature detection of biological tissues, in addition to the above intrinsic factors, we shed light on the effects of probe self-heating, excitation power density, emission intensity and penetration depth on temperature readouts via a polyethyleneimine-modified NaYF4:Er3+/Yb3+@NaYF4-PEI aqueous solution, implying that we will continue to optimize nanothermometers and calibrate readouts according to the local environment. This work unifies the metrics of lanthanide-based LIR nanothermometers, corrects the previous misunderstanding of Sa to mitigate invalid work, and provides careful guidance for their development.

Background Capecitabine is a prodrug that is enzymatically converted to its active form, fluorouracil (also called 5-fluorouracil), which is commonly used as adjuvant chemotherapy in colorectal cancer patients. Severe gastrointestinal bleeding induced by capecitabine is rare. Here, we are presenting the first case report of surgery specimen assisted diagnosis of this uncommon condition. Case presentation A 63-year-old Chinese male with a history of colon adenocarcinoma and right hemicolectomy presented with severe lower gastrointestinal bleeding 2 days after finishing capecitabine administration during the first cycle of XELOX adjuvant chemotherapy. Because of the negative findings of active bleeding points by digital subtraction angiography (DSA) or colonoscopy, emergency laparotomy and partial enterectomy were performed. The bloody diarrhea had resolved after surgery and a terminal ileitis was diagnosed after pathological examination of the surgical specimen. Conclusions Terminal ileitis induced by capecitabine is likely to be underreported. It should be considered more often as a cause of severe gastrointestinal bleeding during or after treatment with capecitabine agents. Emergency surgery may achieve satisfactory outcomes if endoscopic hemostasis is ineffective. Highlights of this case 1. Gastrointestinal bleeding following capecitabine treatment in colorectal cancer patients might be life-threatening. 2. Terminal ileitis induced by capecitabine should always be considered in the differential diagnosis of severe gastrointestinal bleeding. 3. Awareness of the risk factors such as deficiency of dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase, advanced age, or right colectomy may aid in reducing capecitabine-related morbidity. 4. When severe bleeding occurs, emergency surgery may achieve satisfactory outcomes if medical and endoscopic interventions are ineffective.

The visual-inertial simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) is a feasible indoor positioning system that combines the visual SLAM with inertial navigation. There are accumulated drift errors in inertial navigation due to the state propagation and the bias of the inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensor. The visual-inertial SLAM can correct the drift errors via loop detection and local pose optimization. However, if the trajectory is not a closed loop, the drift error might not be significantly reduced. This paper presents a novel pedestrian dead reckoning (PDR)-aided visual-inertial SLAM, taking advantage of the enhanced vanishing point (VP) observation. The VP is integrated into the visual-inertial SLAM as an external observation without drift error to correct the system drift error. Additionally, the estimated trajectory’s scale is affected by the IMU measurement errors in visual-inertial SLAM. Pedestrian dead reckoning (PDR) velocity is employed to constrain the double integration result of acceleration measurement from the IMU. Furthermore, to enhance the proposed system’s robustness and the positioning accuracy, the local optimization based on the sliding window and the global optimization based on the segmentation window are proposed. A series of experiments are conducted using the public ADVIO dataset and a self-collected dataset to compare the proposed system with the visual-inertial SLAM. Finally, the results demonstrate that the proposed optimization method can effectively correct the accumulated drift error in the proposed visual-inertial SLAM system.

Purpose To analyze clinical toxicity and quality-of-life (QOL) outcomes among patients with stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) after stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) as a function of radiation dose and volume parameters. Methods and Materials In this institutional review board–approved study, 55 patients with stage I NSCLC who received SBRT (12 Gy × 4) and completed QOL forms were analyzed. Clinical symptoms and QOL outcomes were measured at baseline and at 3, 6, 12, 18, 24, and 36 months after SBRT. Clinical toxicity was graded using the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events, version 4.0. Quality of life was followed using the validated Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Lung-Trial Outcome Index (FACT-L-TOI) instrument. Dosimetric parameters including the mean lung radiation dose and the volume of normal lung receiving greater than 5, 10, 13, or 20 Gy (V5, V10, V13, and V20) were measured from the radiation treatment plan. Student t tests and Pearson correlation analyses were used to examine the relationships between radiation lung metrics and clinically meaningful changes in QOL and/or clinical toxic effects. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to estimate rates of local control (LC), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS). Results With a median follow-up of 24 months, the 3-year LC, DFS, and OS were 93%, 65%, and 84%, respectively, with a 5.5% rate of grade-3 toxic effects and no grade 4 or 5 toxic effects. Clinically meaningful declines in patient-reported QOL (FACT-L-TOI, lung cancer subscale, physical well-being, and/or functional well-being) posttreatment significantly correlated with increased dosimetric parameters such as V10, V13, and V20. Conclusion Although lung SBRT was associated with excellent LC and minimal clinical toxic effects for early-stage NSCLC, clinically meaningful declines in QOL were significantly correlated with increasing lung dose and volume parameters.

Aims: This study aimed to investigate the association between waist circumference and the prevalence of (pre) hypertension.Methods: Cross-sectional data from the 2007–2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were analyzed. The historical trend of abdominal obesity was assessed by the Cochran–Armitage trend test. After preprocessed by the multiple imputation strategy, we used generalized additive models to assess the association of waist circumference with systolic/diastolic blood pressure and performed correlation analysis by the Spearman correlation coefficient. Moreover, we used multivariable logistic regression (non-adjusted, minimally adjusted, and fully adjusted models), restricted cubic spline, and sensitivity analysis to investigate the association between waist circumference and (pre) hypertension.Results: A total of 27,894 participants were included in this study. In the fully adjusted model, waist circumference was positively associated with (pre) hypertension with odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) of 1.28 (1.18–1.40) in the young group and 1.23 (1.15–1.33) in the old group. Restricted cubic spline showed a higher prevalence of (pre) hypertension with the increase of waist circumference. In the subgroup analysis, waist circumference showed a robust trend across all BMI categories with odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) of 3.33 (1.29–8.85), 1.35 (1.17–1.57), 1.27 (1.13–1.41), and 1.09 (1.01–1.17) in underweight, normal weight, overweight, and obese individuals, respectively.Conclusion: This study highlighted waist circumference as a significant biomarker to evaluate the risk of (pre) hypertension. Our results supported the measure of waist circumference regardless of BMI when evaluating the cardiometabolic risk related to fat distribution.

Vascular calcification is the transformation of arterial wall mesenchymal cells, particularly smooth muscle cells (SMCs), into osteoblast phenotypes by various pathological factors. Additionally, vascular transformation mediates the abnormal deposition of calcium salts in the vascular wall, such as intimal and media calcification. Various pathological types have been described, such as calcification and valve calcification. The incidence of vascular calcification in patients with diabetes is much higher than that in nondiabetic patients, representing a critical cause of cardiovascular events in patients with diabetes. Because basic research on the clinical transformation of vascular calcification has yet to be conducted, this study systematically expounds on the risk factors for vascular calcification, vascular bed differences, sex differences, ethnic differences, diagnosis, severity assessments, and treatments to facilitate the identification of a new entry point for basic research and subsequent clinical transformation regarding vascular calcification and corresponding clinical evaluation strategies.

Background: Lymph node (LN) metastasis is considered one of the most important risk factors affecting the prognosis of distal cholangiocarcinoma (DCC). This study aimed to demonstrate the superiority of log odds of positive lymph nodes (LODDS) compared with other LN stages, and to establish a novel prognostic nomogram to predict the cancer-specific survival (CSS) of DCC.Methods: From the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database, the data of 676 patients after DCC radical operation were screened, and patients were randomly divided into training (n = 474) and validation sets (n = 474). The prognostic evaluation performance of the LODDS and American Joint Commission on Cancer (AJCC) N stage and lymph node ratio (LNR) were compared using the Akaike information criteria, receiver operating characteristic area under the curve (AUC), and C-index. Multivariate Cox analysis was used to screen independent risk factors, and a LODDS-based nomogram prognostic staging model was established. The nomogram's precision was verified by C-index, calibration curves, and AUC, and the results were compared with those of the AJCC TNM staging system.Results:Compared with the other two stages of LN metastasis, LODDS was most effective in predicting CSS in patients with DCC. Multivariate analysis proved that LODDS, histologic grade, SEER historic stage, and tumor size were independent risk factors for DCC. The C-index of the nomogram, based on the above factors, in the validation set was 0.663. The 1-, 3-, and 5-y AUCs were 0.735, 0.679, and 0.745, respectively. Its good performance was also verified by calibration curves. In addition, the C-index and Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that the nomogram performed better than the AJCC TNM staging system.Conclusion:For postoperative patients with DCC, the LODDS stage yielded better prognostic efficiency than the AJCC N and LNR stages. Compared with the AJCC TNM staging system, the nomogram, based on the LODDS, demonstrated superior performance.

This paper aims to build a high-precision, fast and stable binocular vision tracking system. The proposed binocular vision tracking algorithm can localize a visual marker consisting of at least three X-shaped corners in real time with six degrees of freedom (DoFs). A fast triangle screening algorithm is proposed to improve the calculation efficiency of the template matching process by 61.52%. A Kalman filtering method based on motion state estimation is also proposed to stabilize the 3D tracking of visual markers, which can significantly reduce the fluctuation of tracking and realize smooth tracking with accurate localization. Finally, the localization accuracy of the binocular vision system was evaluated using a commercial laser tracker, and the experimental results showed that the localization accuracy could reach 0.16 mm.

Background: atherosclerosis is a multifaceted disease characterized by the formation and accumulation of plaques that fix to the arteries and causes some cardiovascular disease and vascular embolism. A range of diagnostic techniques, including selective coronary angiography, stress tests, CT, and nuclear scans allow assessment of cardiovascular disease risk and treatment targets. However, there is not a very simple blood biochemical index or biological target for the diagnosis of atherosclerosis at present. So it would be interesting to find a blood biochemical marker for atherosclerosis.Methods: Three datasets from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database were analyzed to obtain differentially expressed genes (DEG) and the results were integrated using Robustrankaggreg algorithm. The genes considered more important by Robustrankaggreg algorithm were put into their own data set and the data set system with cell classification information for verification.Results: 21 possible genes were screened out. Interestingly, we found a good correlation between RPS4Y1, EIF1AY and XIST. In addition, we know the general expression of these genes in different cell types and whole blood cellsConclusions: In this study, we identified BTNL8 and BLNK as having good clinical significance. These results will contribute to the study of the underlying genes involved in the progression of atherosclerosis and provide insights for the discovery of new diagnostic and evaluation methods.

Background To investigate the efficacy and safety of apatinib alone or apatinib plus paclitaxel/docetaxel versus paclitaxel/docetaxel in the treatment of advanced non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) through pooling of open published data. Methods The electronic databases of Medline (1960–2021.5), Cochrane central register of controlled trials (CENTRAL), EMBASE(1980–2021.5) and Wan fang (1986–2021.5) were systematically searched by two reviewers to identify the relevant clinical trials related to the above subject. The objective response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR) and drug relevant adverse reactions were pooled and demonstrated by risk ratio (RR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI). The statistical heterogeneity across studies was assessed by I‐square test. The publication bias was evaluated by Egger's line regression test and demonstrated by Begg's funnel plot. Results Eleven prospective studies were included in the meta‐analysis. The pooled results indicated that the ORR (RR = 1.62, 95% CI: 1.32–2.00, p 0.05) except for hypertension (RR = 3.60, 95% CI: 1.26–10.31, p, All the included 11 clinical trials evaluated the ORR between apatinib alone or apatinib plus paclitaxel/docetaxel versus paclitaxel/docetaxel in treatment NSCLC. And there was no statistical heterogeneity across the 11 studies (I2=0.0%, P=0.931). Therefore, the ORR was pooled in fixed effect model with RR=1.62 (95%CI:1.32‐2.00, P

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are major causes of mortality and morbidity in the modern society. The rupture of atherosclerotic plaque can induce thrombus formation, which is the main cause of acute cardiovascular events. Recently, many studies have demonstrated that there are some relationships between microbiota and atherosclerosis. In this review, we will focus on the effect of the microbiota and the microbe-derived metabolites, including trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO), short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), and lipopolysaccharide (LPS), on the stability of atherosclerotic plaque. Finally, we will conclude with some therapies based on the microbiota and its metabolites.

Zhen Sun1,2 &ast;, Zhenhua Lu1 &ast;, Rui Li,1,2 Weiwei Shao,1,2 Yangyang Zheng,1,2 Xiaolei Shi,1 Yao Li,1 Jinghai Song1,2 1Department of General Surgery, Department of Hepato-Bilio-Pancreatic Surgery, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, 100730, People’s Republic of China; 2Graduate School of Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100730, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Jinghai Song Email jhaisong2003@163.comBackground: The aim of this study was to screen and identify immunoautophagy-related genes (IARGs) in HCC patients and clarify their potential prognostic value in HCC patients.Methods: Immune-related genes and autophagy-related gene were downloaded from public databases. Cox regression analysis was used to selected several immunoautophagy-related genes to establish a prognostic model, and patients were divided into high- and low-risk groups based on median risk score. We analyzed the overall survival and clinicopathological characteristics between two groups. Meanwhile, internal validation dataset and external ICGC dataset were used to verify robustness of the model. Associations between six immune cells infiltrates and risk score were analyzed.Results: A prognostic model was established based on CANX and HDAC1. The prognoses of the high-risk group were worse than low-risk group in both TCGA and ICGC datasets. Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that risk score was an independent prognostic factor for HCC patients. Results showed that the risk score in young group was higher than elderly group. Patients with poorly differentiated tumor may have high risk score and poor survival. The score was positively correlated with immune cells.Conclusion: Our study shows that immunoautophagy-related genes have potential prognostic value for patients with HCC and may provide new information and direction for targeted therapy.Keywords: hepatocellular carcinoma, immune-related genes, autophagy-related gene, overall survival

BackgroundCurrently, three chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell products axicabtagene ciloleucel, tisagenlecleucel, and lisocabtagene maraleucel have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of large B cell lymphoma, which provide a novel and promising choice for patients with relapsed or refractory to traditional anti-tumor treatments. Thus, it is pertinent to describe the efficacy and safety profile of the three products available by summarizing the current evidence.MethodsTwo reviewers independently searched the Embase, PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library, to identify studies related to the use of the three CAR-T cell products for treating hematologic malignancies published up to October 5, 2020. We pooled the overall response rate, complete response rate, cytokine release syndrome, and immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome of three products, and then performed subgroup analysis based on the type of product and type of tumor.ResultsThirty-three studies involving 2,172 patients were included in the analysis. All three products showed promising results in patients with different pathological subtypes and clinical characteristics that included those who did not meet the eligibility criteria of licensing trials, with overall response rates of nearly 70% or above and complete response rates of more than 50%. However, high rates of severe immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome in patients undergoing axicabtagene ciloleucel treatment and life-threatening cytokine release syndrome in patients with leukemia undergoing tisagenlecleucel treatment required special attention in practice (31%; 95% CI: 0.27–0.35 and 55%; 95% CI: 0.45–0.64, respectively). Moreover, lisocabtagene maraleucel that showed a favorable efficacy and safety in the licensing trial lacked corresponding real-world data.ConclusionBoth axicabtagene ciloleucel and tisagenlecleucel showed considerable efficacy in practice, but need special attention with respect to life-threatening toxicity that can occur in certain situations. Lisocabtagene maraleucel demonstrated excellent efficacy and safety profiles in the licensing trial, but lacked corresponding real-world data. Additional data on the three products are needed in rare histological subtypes to benefit a broader patient population.

BackgroundThe efficacy and safety of chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR-T) cell therapy in the treatment of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma has already been demonstrated. However, patients with a history of/active secondary central nervous system (CNS) lymphoma were excluded from the licensing trials conducted on two widely used CAR-T cell products, Axicabtagene ciloleucel (Axi-cel) and Tisagenlecleucel (Tisa-cel). Hence, the objective of the present review was to assess whether secondary CNS lymphoma patients would derive a benefit from Axi-cel or Tisa-cel therapy, while maintaining controllable safety.MethodTwo reviewers searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane library independently in order to identify all records associated with Axi-cel and Tisa-cel published prior to February 15, 2021. Studies that included secondary CNS lymphoma patients treated with Axi-cel and Tisa-cel and reported or could be inferred efficacy and safety endpoints of secondary CNS lymphoma patients were included. A tool designed specifically to evaluate the risk of bias in case series and reports and the ROBINS-I tool applied for cohort studies were used.ResultsTen studies involving forty-four patients were included. Of these, seven were case reports or series. The other three reports were cohort studies involving twenty-five patients. Current evidence indicates that secondary CNS lymphoma patients could achieve long-term remission following Axi-cel and Tisa-cel treatment. Compared with the non-CNS cohort, however, progression-free survival and overall survival tended to be shorter. This was possibly due to the relatively small size of the CNS cohort. The incidence and grades of adverse effects in secondary CNS lymphoma patients resembled those in the non-CNS cohort. No incidences of CAR-T cell-related deaths were reported. Nevertheless, the small sample size introduced a high risk of bias and prevented the identification of specific patients who could benefit more from CAR-T cell therapy.ConclusionSecondary CNS lymphoma patients could seem to benefit from both Axi-cel and Tisa-cel treatment, with controllable risks. Thus, CAR-T cell therapy has potential as a candidate treatment for lymphoma patients with CNS involvement. Further prospective studies with larger samples and longer follow-up periods are warranted and recommended.

Until now, the emissions of most biological phosphors were located at a single biological window. By utilizing energy transfer of Yb3+ → Ln3+ → Cr3+, we have successfully developed a phosphor emitting in the first, second and third biological windows simultaneously. The luminescences have good thermal stability because of forming the thermal cycle among Ho3+ and Cr3+. And temperature measurement can be realized in NIR-3.

The fabrication of a multifunctional sensor together with a widening temperature-sensing range is an essential challenge in optical thermometers especially for trivalent lanthanide-doped materials. Herein, we design a wide range, highly sensitive, and multifunctional thermometer by exploiting the emission spectrum of Eu3+ ions, and further detailed discussion has been made on the new temperature-sensing mechanism. The sensor can be operated between 358 and 548 K with a maximum relative sensitivity ( Sr) of 0.93% K-1 at 358 K, which is higher than that of most temperature-sensing materials. A paramount superiority is that the calibration parameter can be directly calculated from the single Eu3+ emission spectrum, avoiding the demand of other calibrations, which realizes the coexistence of a simple structure and high precision. Furthermore, other up-conversion thermometers based on Er3+/Ho3+/Yb3+ co-doped Ba2TiGe2O8 (BTG) phosphors as well as the down-conversion thermometer based on Eu3+-doped Ba2TiGe2O8 (BTG:Eu3+) phosphor have been synthesized for comparison, and the results show that the novel thermometer (BTG:Eu3+) has a much higher sensitivity than that of the traditional thermometers (BTG:Er3+/Ho3+/Yb3+). In addition, the versatility of the phosphor (BTG:Eu3+) is simultaneously reflected in its applications to red phosphor for white-light emitting diodes (W-LEDs) and plant growth lamps. All of the results suggest that BTG:Eu3+ could be a good candidate with its highly sensitive Sr value for optical thermometry and as a safety sign in high-temperature environments.

Purpose Video see-through augmented reality (VST-AR) navigation for laparoscopic partial nephrectomy (LPN) can enhance intraoperative perception of surgeons by visualizing surgical targets and critical structures of the kidney tissue. Image registration is the main challenge in the procedure. Existing registration methods in laparoscopic navigation systems suffer from limitations such as manual alignment, invasive external marker fixation, relying on external tracking devices with bulky tracking sensors and lack of deformation compensation. To address these issues, we present a markerless automatic deformable registration framework for LPN VST-AR navigation. Dense stereo matching and 3D reconstruction, automatic segmentation and surface stitching are combined to obtain a larger dense intraoperative point cloud of the renal surface. A coarse-to-fine deformable registration is performed to achieve a precise automatic registration between the intraoperative point cloud and the preoperative model using the iterative closest point algorithm followed by the coherent point drift algorithm. Kidney phantom experiments and in vivo experiments were performed to evaluate the accuracy and effectiveness of our approach. The average segmentation accuracy rate of the automatic segmentation was 94.9%. The mean target registration error of the phantom experiments was found to be 1.28 ± 0.68 mm (root mean square error). In vivo experiments showed that tumor location was identified successfully by superimposing the tumor model on the laparoscopic view. Experimental results have demonstrated that the proposed framework could accurately overlay comprehensive preoperative models on deformable soft organs automatically in a manner of VST-AR without using extra intraoperative imaging modalities and external tracking devices, as well as its potential clinical use.

This article provides the results of an experimental study on the seismic behaviour of the steel-reinforced ultra-high-strength concrete frame. A two-bay and three-story one-fourth scale steel-rein...

Draf III frontal sinus surgery is confirmed as an effective surgical treatment for refractory sinusitis and frontal sinus tumors, etc. Although it has been reported to improve symptoms and reduce the recurrence rate of polyps significantly, the study of airflow characteristics in frontal sinus after Draf III is still rare, especially compared with normal person. This study was designed to describe the airflow characteristics of frontal sinus after Draf III procedure and differences compared with normal subject. One patient with refractory sinusitis received Draf III procedure15 months ago, and one normal person were selected retrospectively. The two subjects reported no discomfort and no abnormalities in their paranasal sinus within computed tomography scans. Computational fluid dynamics and numerical simulation calculation was performed with the finite volume method. The quantitative indexes of airflow in the frontal sinus of Draf III and normal subjects were achieved. Areas of relatively high-pressure and high wall shear stress located in a posterior part of frontal sinus ostium in both models. Inside frontal sinus, pressure and velocity of flow between Draf III and normal models were statistically significant differences ( p < 0.01) after analyzed by Mann-Whitney U test. But airflow pattern of each section in frontal sinus was basically the same. Draf III sinus surgery is able to achieve nasal airflow patterns similar to those of normal person. Although values of airflow pressure and velocity were different from normal person, patients could have no subjective discomfort after surgery. “Frontal T” structure is a key anatomical site interacted with airflow to be an important cause of postoperative edema after Draf III procedure.

It is important to distinguish ALK positive lung cancer from ALK negative lung cancer and to monitor the efficacy of targeted drugs. This paper applies a microscopic hyperspectral imaging technique to identify ALK positive lung cancer cells and evaluate the therapeutic effect. The hyperspectral images of five groups of lung tissues are captured by the home-made microscopic hyperspectral imaging system. A preprocessing algorithm is proposed to reduce obvious banding noise and noise particles from original data. Then a segmentation algorithm, which assembles Supported Vector Machine (SVM) and Majority analysis together with the Clumping processing, is presented. The ALK positive and negative lung cancers can be distinguished by both the fluctuation of spectral curves and the relative proportion between cytoplasm and cell nucleus. In addition, the treatment efficacy can be surveyed in the same way. The experimental results show that the relative proportion of cytoplasm in Group ALK-neg is 77.3%, while that in Group ALK-pos is 40.6%. It is obvious that there exist differences in contents and spectra between Group ALK-neg and Group ALK-pos. Moreover, the experimental results of quantitative analysis and spectral curves analysis show that ALK positive lung cancer cells treated with the low concentration of targeted drugs will be developed towards the ALK negative lung cancer. This paper shows the potential of using hyperspectral images to detect the ALK positive lung cancer cells and evaluate the therapeutic effect of targeted drugs.

Brain extraction is a process of removing non-brain tissue in the brain magnetic resonance (MR) images and serves as a first step towards more delicate brain segmentation. Although many brain extraction methods have been proposed in the literature, most of them are either laborious or time consuming, and lack of instant visualization. This leads to a time lag between image acquisition and comprehensive visualization. Especially for intraoperative image based neurosurgery navigation, the time lag from image acquisition to brain visualization should be reduced as much as possible. In this paper, we propose an end-to-end fast brain extraction and visualization framework. The input is a T1-weighted MR volume and the output is comprehensive brain visualization. An improved brain extraction tool (BET) algorithm is proposed to evolve a 3D active mesh model to fit the brain surface in the 3D image. Then the brain mask is generated per slice using a polygon fill algorithm. At last, a ray-casting volume rendering algorithm is used to visualize the brain surface with the help of the generated mask. All the operations are performed using the modern OpenGL pipelines running on a graphics processing unit (GPU). Experiments were performed on two publicly available datasets and one clinical dataset to compare our method with five state-of-the-art methods including the original BET in terms of segmentation accuracy and time cost. Our method achieved mean Dice coefficients of 96.8%, 97.1%, 98.5% and mean time cost of 361 ms, 341 ms, 502 ms on the three datasets, outperforming all the other methods.

Immune-checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), a unique antibody-based therapeutic strategy, have revolutionized the treatment landscape of solid and hematological cancers. Despite the proven benefits of ICIs, the cardiotoxicity from unspecific immune activation (uncommon but potentially fatal) is a continuing concern. Accumulating preclinical research has demonstrated that ICIs initiate inflammation in the myocardium, while clinically significant cardiotoxicity were reported in few patients receiving ICI therapy, probably due to the low incidence and unspecific symptoms. The subtle signs and symptoms (e.g., chest pain, dizziness, and dyspnea) were likely attributed to cancer and/or non-cardiac events by previous studies, thus limiting the understanding of the incidence, outcomes, risk factors, and management of ICI-related cardiotoxicity. The heterogeneous clinical presentation and complex diagnostic procedure further make it challenging to accurately identify ICI-related cardiac events in clinical trials. Therefore, ICI-related cardiotoxicity, whose incidence is probably underestimated, has not been well recognized. In this article, we provide an overview of potential mechanisms underlying ICI-related cardiotoxicity and review accumulating clinical evidence of ICI-related cardiotoxicity, with a focus on myocarditis. Moreover, we discuss possible strategies to manage ICI-related cardiotoxicity and highlight the importance of developing cardio-oncology.

The incompatibility of the cost and performance is a restrictive factor for the further development of RFID. In this paper, combining the latest development of digital metamaterial and RFID technology, a UHF RFID transmitter with spatial ASK modulation is proposed to reduce the complexity and the cost of radio frequency communication system equipment. The 1-bit digital metamaterial units based on polarization-insensitive Jerusalem cross structure form the 10×10 coding matrix. The proposed UHF RFID transmitter based on digital metamaterial inno-vatively realizes the spatial ASK modulation from −60° to 60° in azimuth plane. Finally, a preliminary communication system is built to test the performance of transmitter. The test result shows that the modulation depth of the spatial UHF RFID transmitter are all above 75%. The transmitter based on spatial ASK modulation provide a potential ability to solve the problem of missing tags in RFID system.

BackgroundRecent studies have shown that the systemic inflammation and nutritional indicators are prognostic for a variety of malignancies. However, only limited data have so far demonstrated their usefulness in gastrointestinal mesenchymal tumors (GIST).MethodsWe retrospectively analyzed the data of GIST patients who underwent radical surgery in Beijing hospital from October 2004 to July 2018. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) was used to compare several commonly used inflammatory and nutritional indicators. The indicators with largest AUC were further analysis. Optimal cut-off values of those indicators in predicting recurrence-free survival (RFS) were determined. Kaplan-Meier curve and the time-dependent receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve were used to assess the prognostic values. We then used univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses to identify prognostic factors that were associated with RFS.ResultsIn total, 160 patients who underwent surgery for GIST were included in the study. The median survival time was 34.5 months, with 1-, 3-, and 5-year RFS rates of 96.1%, 84.7%, and 80.8%, respectively. The inflammatory and nutritional indicators with largest AUC were Systemic immunoinflammatory Index (SII) and Geriatric Nutrition Risk Index (GNRI), reached 0.650 and 0.713, respectively. The optimal cutoff of GNRI and SII were 98.3, and 820.0, respectively. Univariate analysis showed that GNRI, SII, KI67, surgery method, tumor location, tumor size, and mitotic index were all significant prognostic indicators of RFS. After multivariate Cox analysis, independent prognostic factors for RFS in GIST included tumor location, mitotic index, tumor size, and GNRI (HR=2.802,95% CI: 1.045 to 7.515, p = 0.041). Besides, SII also tended to be associated with RFS (HR = 2.970, 95% CI: 0.946 to 9.326, p = 0.062).ConclusionsHigh GNRI is an independent prognostic factor for RFS in GIST, while SII can be considered as a prognostic factor. GNRI and SII can be used as tools to evaluate the prognosis of patients before surgery, helping doctors to better treat high-risk patients.

Tumor hypoxia severely limits the therapeutic effects of photodynamic therapy (PDT). Although many methods for oxygen generation exist, substantial safety concerns, spatiotenporal uncontrollability, limited efficacy and complicated procedures have compromised their practical application. Here, we demonstrate the feasibility of a biocompatiable all-in-one organic semiconductor to provide a photoxidation catalysis mechanism of action to combat these challenges. A one-step and facile method is developed to produce gram-level C5N2 nanoparticles (NPs)-based organic semiconductor. Under 650 nm laser irradiation, the semiconductor split water to generate O2 and simultaneously produced singlet oxygen (1O2), revealing that the photocatalyst for O2 evolution and the photosensitizer (PS) for 1O2 generation could be synchronously achieved in one organic semiconductor. Furthermore, the inherent nucleus targeting capacity endows it with direct and efficient DNA photocleavage. These findings pave the way for developing organic semiconductor-based cancer therapeutic agents.

Objective: The aim of this study was to explore the clinical features, pathological characteristics, and the prognosis of children with microscopic polyangiitis (MPA).Methods: Ten children with MPA that were hospitalized in our hospital were included in this study. The children's pre-diagnosis status, clinical manifestations, renal pathology, treatment, and prognosis data were analyzed retrospectively.Results: All 10 cases included female patients with a median age of 8.9 years old at the time of diagnosis. MPO-ANCA antibody was positive in all cases, combined with a positive anti-GBM antibody in two cases. Nine cases had primary AAV and one had antithyroid drug (ATD)-associated MPA (secondary to methimazole). Renal involvement was found in all 10 patients, lung impairment was present in eight cases, and anemia was present in nine patients. Renal biopsies were performed in all 10 patients. Segmental focal or global glomerular necrosis was observed in 70% of the patients (7/10). The treatment mainly included steroid use combined with Cyclophosphamide and Mycophenolate. The follow-up s of the patients revealed normal renal function in eight patients and progression to end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in two patients.Conclusions: Female predisposition and positive MPO-ANCA antibody were prominent in children with MPA. The patients' kidneys and lungs were the most frequently involved organs. Corticosteroid combined with immunosuppressive therapy was recommended for the treatment of MPA. Early diagnosis, prompt aggressive treatment, and regular follow-ups are also very important factors associated with a good prognosis.