Search

Pathological retinal angiogenesis is not only the hallmark of retinopathies, but also a major cause of blindness. Guanylate binding protein 2 (GBP2) has been reported to be associated with retinal diseases such as diabetic retinopathy and hypoxic retinopathy. However, GBP2-mediated pathological retinal angiogenesis remains largely unknown. The present study aimed to investigate the role of GBP2 in pathological retinal angiogenesis and its underlying molecular mechanism. In this study, we established oxygen-induced retinopathy (OIR) mice model for in vivo study and hypoxia-induced angiogenesis in ARPE-19 cells for in vitro study. We demonstrated that GBP2 expression was markedly downregulated in the retina of mice with OIR and ARPE-19 cells treated with hypoxia, which was associated with pathological retinal angiogenesis. The regulatory mechanism of GBP2 in ARPE-19 cells was studied by GBP2 silencing and overexpression. The regulatory mechanism of GBP2 in the retina was investigated by overexpressing GBP2 in the retina of OIR mice. Mechanistically, GBP2 downregulated the expression and secretion of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGFA) in ARPE-19 cells and retina of OIR mice. Interestingly, overexpression of GBP2 significantly inhibited neovascularization in OIR mice, conditioned medium of GBP2 overexpressing ARPE-19 cells inhibited angiogenesis in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Furthermore, we confirmed that GBP2 downregulated VEGFA expression and angiogenesis by inhibiting the AKT/mTOR signaling pathway. Taken together, we concluded that GBP2 inhibited pathological retinal angiogenesis via the AKT/mTOR/VEGFA axis, thereby suggesting that GBP2 may be a therapeutic target for pathological retinal angiogenesis., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that there are no competing interests regarding the contents of this article., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the main site of protein synthesis, transport, and modification. Its abnormal status has now emerged as an established cause of many pathological processes, such as tumors and autoimmune diseases. Recent studies also demonstrated that the defective functions of ER may lead to pigmentary diseases. Vitiligo is a depigmenting ailment skin disorder whose pathogenesis is now found to be associated with ER. However, the detailed mechanism is still unclear. In this review, we try to link the association between ER with its inter- and intra-organellar interactions in vitiligo pathogenesis and focus on the function, mechanism, and clinical potential of ER with vitiligo. Expand ER is found in melanocytes of vitiligo and ER stress (ERS) might be a bridge between oxidative stress and innate and adaptive immunity. Meanwhile, the tight association between ER and mitochondria or melanosomes in organelles levels, as well as genes and cytokines, is the new paradigm in the pathogenesis of vitiligo. This undoubtedly adds a new aspect to the understanding of vitiligo, facilitating the design of targeted therapies for vitiligo., Competing Interests: The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work., (© 2024 Xie et al.)

With the development of animal husbandry, the shortage of animal feedstuffs has become serious. Dietary fiber plays a crucial role in regulating animal health and production performance. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of three kinds of corn straw-saccharification fibers (CSSF) such as high-fiber and low-saccharification (HFLS), medium-fiber and medium-saccharification (MFMS), low-fiber and high-saccharification (LFHS) CSSF on the reproductive performance of sows. Thirty-two primiparous Yorkshire sows were randomly assigned to 4 groups, 8 sows for each group. Group A was the basal diet as the control group; groups B - D were added with 6% HFLSCSSF, 6% MFMSCSSF and 6% LFHSCSSF to replace some parts of corn meal and wheat bran in the basal diet, respectively. The experimental period was from day 85 of gestation to the end of lactation (day 25 post-farrowing). The results showed that 6% LFHSCSSF addition significantly increased number of total born (alive) piglets, litter weight at birth ( p  < 0.05), whereas three kinds of CSSF significantly decreased backfat thickness of sows during gestation ( p  < 0.001), compared with the control group. Furthermore, CSSF improved the digestibility of crude protein, ether extract and fiber for sows. In addition, the levels of total cholesterol, total triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol in serum of sows were decreased by different kinds of CSSF. Further analysis revealed that CSSF regulated lipid metabolism through adjusting the serum metabolites such as 4-pyridoxic acid, phosphatidyl cholines and L-tyrosine. In summary, CSSF addition to the diets of sows during late gestation and lactation regulated lipid metabolism and improved reproductive performance of sows. This study provided a theoretical basis for the application of corn straw in sow diets., Competing Interests: QZ and XD were employed by Henan Delin Biological Product Co. Ltd. FL was employed by Henan Puai Feed Co. Ltd. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Liu, Liu, Shi, Wang, Chang, Xu, Wang, Jin, Li, Yin, Zhu, Dang and Lu.)

Hypertrophic scar (HS) is characterized by an abnormal fibroblast-myofibroblast transformation; non-apoptosis of fibroblasts; and redundant expression of TGF-β1, VEGF, α-SMA, and collagen I/III. An HS affects patients' physical and psychological quality of life, leading to joint dysfunction and skin cancer. However, there is currently no satisfactory drug to treat this disorder. In this study, we constructed methylprednisolone sodium succinate (MPSS) encapsulated ZIF-90 (MPSS@ZIF-90) for the effective treatment of an HS. The encapsulation of MPSS in ZIF-90 can achieve the controllable drug release of MPSS and prolong its effective treatment time. MPSS@ZIF-90 enhanced the apoptosis of human hypertrophic scar fibroblasts and downregulated the overexpression of TGF-β1, VEGF, α-SMA, and collagen I/III both in vitro and in vivo . The instant injection of MPSS@ZIF-90 effectively intervened with the formation of the HS after 28 days. On the contrary, MPSS@ZIF-90 greatly reduced the HS with two injections and 14 days of treatment after the HS was formed. This work provides evidence of effective intervention in the formation of an HS and the therapeutic effectiveness of MPSS@ZIF-90 with short treatment periods in vivo . It suggests that MPSS@ZIF-90 can be used as a biomedical option in the treatment of skin wounds and may reveal the potential molecular basis for promising future antifibrotic agents against scarring.

Single-crystal semiconductor-based photocatalysts exposing unique crystallographic facets show promising applications in energy and environmental technologies; however, crystal facet engineering through solid-state synthesis for photocatalytic overall water splitting is still challenging. Herein, we develop a novel crystal facet engineering strategy through solid-state recrystallization to synthesize uniform SrTiO 3 single crystals exposing tailored {111} facets. The presynthesized low-crystalline SrTiO 3 precursors enable the formation of well-defined single crystals through kinetically improved crystal structure transformation during solid-state recrystallization process. By employing subtle Al 3+ ions as surface morphology modulators, the crystal surface orientation can be precisely tuned to a controlled percentage of {111} facets. The photocatalytic overall water splitting activity increases with the exposure percentage of {111} facets. Owing to the outstanding crystallinity and favorable anisotropic surface structure, the SrTiO 3 single crystals with 36.6% of {111} facets lead to a 3-fold enhancement of photocatalytic hydrogen evolution rates up to 1.55 mmol·h -1 in a stoichiometric ratio of 2:1 than thermodynamically stable SrTiO 3 enclosed with isotropic {100} facets.

The practical applications of solar-driven water splitting pivot on significant advances that enable scalable production of robust photoactive films. Here, we propose a proof-of-concept for fabricating robust photoactive films by a particle-implanting technique (PiP) which embeds semiconductor photoabsorbers in the liquid metal. The strong semiconductor/metal interaction enables resulting films efficient collection of photogenerated charges and superior photoactivity. A photoanode of liquid-metal embraced BiVO 4 can stably operate over 120 h and retain ~ 70% of activity when scaled from 1 to 64 cm 2 . Furthermore, a Z-scheme photocatalyst film of liquid-metal embraced BiVO 4 and Rh-doped SrTiO 3 particles can drive overall water splitting under visible light, delivering an activity 2.9 times higher than that of the control film with gold support and a 110 h stability. These results demonstrate the advantages of the PiP technique in constructing robust and efficient photoactive films for artificial photosynthesis., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Stem cells offer new therapeutic avenues for the repair and replacement of damaged tissues and organs owing to their self-renewal and multipotent differentiation capabilities. In this paper, we conduct a systematic review of the characteristics of various types of stem cells and offer insights into their potential applications in both cellular and cell-free therapies. In addition, we provide a comprehensive summary of the technical routes of stem cell therapy and discuss in detail current challenges, including safety issues and differentiation control. Although some issues remain, stem cell therapy demonstrates excellent potential in the field of regenerative medicine and provides novel tactics and methodologies for managing a wider spectrum of illnesses and traumas., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Wang, Deng, Wang, Li, Song, Lin, Xu and He.)

Background: Extramammary Paget's disease (EMPD) is a rare cutaneous malignancy, commonly affecting the external genitalia and perianal area of the elderly with unclear pathogenesis. Metabolomics provides a novel perspective for uncovering the metabolic mechanisms of a verity of cancers., Materials and Methods: Here, we explored the metabolome of EMPD using an untargeted strategy. In order to further investigate the potential relationship between metabolites and gene expression, we re-analyzed the gene expression microarray data (GSE117285) using differential expression analysis and functional enrichment analyses., Results: Results showed that a total of 896 metabolites were identified and 87 metabolites including 37 upregulated and 50 downregulated significantly in EMPD were sought out. In the following feature selection analyses, four metabolites, namely, cyclopentyl fentanyl-d5, LPI 17:0, guanosine-3',5'-cyclic monophosphate, kynurenine (KYN, high in EMPD) were identified by both random forest and support vector machine analyses. We then identified 1,079 dysfunctional genes: 646 upregulated and 433 downregulated in EMPD. Specifically, the tryptophan-degrading enzyme including indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase-1 ( IDO1 ) and tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase ( TDO2 ) were also increased. Generally, cancers exhibit a high expression of IDO1 and TDO2 to catabolize tryptophan, generating abundant KYN. Moreover, we also noticed the abnormal activation of sustaining proliferative signaling in EMPD., Conclusion: In conclusion, this study was the first to reveal the metabolome profile of EMPD. Our results demonstrate that IDO1 / TDO2 -initialized KYN metabolic pathway may play a vital role in the development and progression of EMPD, which may serve as a potential therapeutic target for treating EMPD., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Jiang, Xu, Yan, Wu, Xi, Lai, Zhang and Liu.)

Deoxynivalenol (DON) is a mycotoxin frequently occurring in human and animal food worldwide, which raises increasing public health concerns. In the present study, we used human keratinocytes (HaCaT cells) as an in vitro model to explore the cytotoxic effect of DON. The results showed that the cells exhibited varying degrees of damage, including decreased cell number and viability, cell shrinkage and floating, when treated with 0.125, 0.25, and 0.5 μg/mL DON for 6, 12, and 24 h, respectively. Furthermore, exposure to DON for 24 h significantly increased the lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release and intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), and prominently decreased the superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activity. Additionally, DON exposure induced mitochondrial damage and cell apoptosis through reducing mitochondrial membrane potential. Then, we performed RNA-sequencing to investigate the molecular changes in HaCaT cells after DON exposure. The RNA-sequencing results revealed that DON exposure altered the gene expression involved in apoptosis, MAPK signaling pathway, and PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. Moreover, DON exposure significantly decreased the mRNA and protein expression of Bcl-2, and increased the mRNA and protein expression of Bax, Caspase 3 and COX-2, the protein expression of PI3K, and the phosphorylation levels of Akt, ERK, p38, and JNK. Taken together, these findings suggest that DON exposure could induce cell damage, oxidative stress, and apoptosis in HaCaT cells through the activation of PI3K/Akt and MAPK pathways., (© 2023 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Objective: To analyze the current family resilience levels of Chinese patients with gynecologic cancer and explore the mediating role of couple illness communication between illness perception and family resilience to facilitate patient adaptation to cancer., Methods: A total of 310 patients with gynecologic cancer were selected from the gynecology ward of a tertiary care hospital in Jinan, Shandong Province, China. All participants provided their demographic and clinical information and completed the Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire (BIPQ), Couples' Illness Communication Scale (CICS), and Family Hardiness Index (FHI). The mediating effect of couple illness communication was analyzed using SPSS26.0 and Amos21.0., Results: The family resilience score of patients with gynecologic cancer was moderate (55.78 ± 8.65). Illness perception was negatively correlated with couple illness communication(p < 0.05) and family resilience(p < 0.01), while couple illness communication was positively correlated with family resilience (p < 0.01). Couple illness communication mediated the relationship between illness perception and family resilience [β = - 0.071; 95% confidence interval: (- 0.127)-(- 0.013)]., Conclusions: The family resilience of patients with gynecologic cancer must be further improved. Since couple illness communication mediates the relationship between illness perception and family resilience in this population, it is important to improve patients' illness perceptions and couple illness communication to enhance their family resilience., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Deoxynivalenol (DON) is one of the most prevalent mycotoxin contaminants, which posing a serious health threat to animals and humans. Previous studies have found that individually supplemented probiotic or glycyrrhinic acid (GA) could degrade DON and alleviate DON-induced cytotoxicity. The present study investigated the effect of combining GA with Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S. cerevisiae) and Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis) using orthogonal design on alleviating IPEC-J2 cell damage induced by DON. The results showed that the optimal counts of S. cerevisiae and E. faecalis significantly promoted cell viability. The optimal combination for increasing cell viability was 400 µg/mL GA, 1 × 10 6  CFU/mL S. cerevisiae and 1 × 10 6  CFU/mL E. faecalis to make GAP, which not only significantly alleviated the DON toxicity but also achieved the highest degradation rate of DON (34.7%). Moreover, DON exposure significantly increased IL-8, Caspase3 and NF-κB contents, and upregulated the mRNA expressions of Bax, Caspase 3, NF-κB and the protein expressions of Bax, TNF-α and COX-2. However, GAP addition significantly reduced aforementioned genes and proteins. Furthermore, GAP addition significantly increased the mRNA expressions of Claudin-1, Occludin, GLUT2 and ASCT2, and the protein expressions of ZO-1, Claudin-1 and PePT1. It was inferred that the combination of GA, S. cerevisiae, and E. faecalis had the synergistic effect on enhancing cell viability and DON degradation, which could protect cells from DON-induced damage by reducing DON cytotoxicity, alleviating cell apoptosis and inflammation via inhibiting NF-κB signaling pathway, improving intestinal barrier function, and regulating nutrient absorption and transport. These findings suggest that GAP may have potential as a dietary supplement for livestock or humans exposed to DON-contaminated food or feed., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Sensorineural hearing loss is typically caused by damage to the cochlear hair cells (HCs) due to external stimuli or because of one's genetic factors and the inability to convert sound mechanical energy into nerve impulses. Adult mammalian cochlear HCs cannot regenerate spontaneously; therefore, this type of deafness is usually considered irreversible. Studies on the developmental mechanisms of HC differentiation have revealed that nonsensory cells in the cochlea acquire the ability to differentiate into HCs after the overexpression of specific genes, such as Atoh1 , which makes HC regeneration possible. Gene therapy, through in vitro selection and editing of target genes, transforms exogenous gene fragments into target cells and alters the expression of genes in target cells to activate the corresponding differentiation developmental program in target cells. This review summarizes the genes that have been associated with the growth and development of cochlear HCs in recent years and provides an overview of gene therapy approaches in the field of HC regeneration. It concludes with a discussion of the limitations of the current therapeutic approaches to facilitate the early implementation of this therapy in a clinical setting., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The reviewer YZ declared a shared parent affiliation with the authors JW, HW, HH, SL, YZ, YW, XX, and SW at the time of review., (Copyright © 2023 Wang, Zheng, Wang, He, Li, Zhang, Wang, Xu and Wang.)

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore the couple communication process for gynecologic cancer (GC) patients and their spouses. Particular attention was given to examining the relationship between couple communication quality and family resilience for GC dyads., Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 354 dyads were recruited from a gynecology ward of a public hospital in China. The patients and their spouses completed the Couples' Communication Quality Scale and the Family Hardiness Index. This study used the actor-partner interdependence model (APIM) to examine the effect of couple communication quality on family resilience in distinguishable GC dyads., Results: Both GC patients and their spouses reported a moderate level of couple communication quality and family resilience, but spouses reported better couple communication and family resilience than patients. With the exception of perceived response, for which only a patient actor effect was observed, the factors of couple communication quality had significant actor effects on family resilience for both patients and spouses. Additionally, four significant partner effects were found: spouse self-disclosure, stress coping, and productive action positively predicted patients' family resilience, while patient normalcy crafting positively predicted spouses' family resilience., Conclusion: This study not only highlights the need for couple-based communication strategies for developing family resilience but also identifies differences in the experiences of patients and their partners, which provides a direction for future intervention research. Through the development of interventions at a dyadic level, spouses can be encouraged to actively engage in communication, which may promote mutual family resilience in a larger sense., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

BiVO 4 as a promising semiconductor candidate of the photoanode for solar driven water oxidation always suffers from poor charge carrier transport property and photo-induced self-corrosion. Herein, by intentionally taking advantage of the photo-induced self-corrosion process, a controllable photochemical etching method is developed to rationally construct a photoanode of BiVO 4 /BiO x asymmetric heterojunction from faceted BiVO 4 crystal arrays. Compared with the BiVO 4 photoanode, the resulting BiVO 4 /BiO x photoanode gains over three times enhancement in short-circuit photocurrent density (≈3.2 mA cm -2 ) and ≈75 mV negative shift of photocurrent onset potential. This is due to the formation of the strong interacted homologous heterojunction, which promotes photo-carrier separation and enlarges photovoltage across the interface. Remarkably, the photocurrent density can remain at ≈2.0 mA cm -2 even after 12 h consecutive operation, while only ≈0.1 mA cm -2 is left for the control photoanode of BiVO 4 . Moreover, the Faraday efficiency for water splitting is determined to be nearly 100% for the BiVO 4 /BiO x photoanode. The controllable photochemical etching process may shed light on the construction of homologous heterojunction on other photoelectrode materials that have similar properties to BiVO 4 ., (© 2023 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

This report describes a technique to develop a three-dimensional printed assembled sleeveless guide system to aid the fiber-post removal in a safe and efficient way. The surface and volume data of the dentition containing the targeted tooth were acquired with optical scanners and cone-beam computed tomography. The virtual path of the fiber-post removal was determined and integrated with a guide prototype with a cylindrical passage. The prototype data was split into two separate parts, combined with the matched pin and jack structures to facilitate the assembly. A guide tube was generated based on the axis of the cylindrical passage, split into three units, and combined with the previously processed data with connectors to form the finalized guide system. The adaptor for the head of handpiece was designed to facilitate the guidance. All the finalized data were printed with titanium alloy. The fiber-post of the upper right central incisor was successfully removed with the aid of this assembled sleeveless guide system that guides the handpiece rather than the rotary instrument., (© 2022 by the American College of Prosthodontists.)

Background: Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F provided the source of the first diterpenoid triepoxide lactone, Triptolide, identified as the primary constituent causing the anticancer activity. So far, it has not been reported whether triptolide has a therapeutic effect on cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC)., Objective: This study investigates the triptolide's therapeutic impact on cSCC both in vitro and in vivo and investigates the triptolide's potential involvement in signaling pathways., Methods: The CCK-8 assays, wound healing assays, and colony formation assays were used to assess the effects of triptolide on the proliferation and migration of cSCC cells. The alteration in gene expression following triptolide treatment was shown by RNA sequencing. Flow cytometry was then applied to evaluate cell apoptosis. Western blot was used to find the associated proteins' expressions. The effectiveness of triptolide was then evaluated in vivo using a xenograft model, and histological staining was employed to determine the visceral toxicity., Results: Triptolide greatly reduces the migratory and proliferative capacity of cSCC cells. Triptolide dramatically decreased cell viability and migration in the A431 and SCL-1 cells compared to the control group, according to the CCK8 assay, wound healing assay, and colony formation assay. Flow cytometry demonstrated that treatment with 10- 40 nM triptolide increased apoptosis in a concentration-dependent manner, with a statistically significant difference. Furthermore, mice given triptolide had smaller tumor sizes than those in the control group. Triptolide treatment drastically altered the expression of autophagic and apoptotic proteins. The considerable reduction in the proteins Akt and mTOR levels further illustrated the critical function of triptolide in cSCC., Conclusion: Triptolide caused cSCC cells to engage in autophagy and apoptosis by inhibiting the Akt/mTOR signaling pathways. Triptolide may be a possible antitumor agent for the treatment of cSCC., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

Objectives: The removal of fiber post is often a challenging task. A 3D printed assembled sleeveless system that guides the head of the handpiece instead of the drill was developed to address this issue. This study aimed to evaluate the accuracy of this novel guide system using an in vitro approach., Methods: A standard maxillary typodont was digitized. The right first molar, the right central incisor, the left first premolar, and the left second molar in the digitized dentition were virtually crown-amputated. Four cylinders (diameter: 6 mm, height: 12 mm) were positioned along the directions of the main roots of these teeth to establish the virtual test model. Ten copies of the test model were printed using light-polymerizing resin. Four assembled sleeveless guide systems targeting the cylindrical axes were designed and printed using titanium alloy. One senior prosthodontist performed the drilling task targeting each cylindrical axis aided by the guide system or freehand (20 teeth each). The drilled models were scanned. The coordinates of the centers of all perforations and circular bases on the coronal and apical surfaces were obtained. The linear and angular deviations between the actual drilling path and the cylindrical axis for each tooth were calculated and analyzed., Results: The guided group exhibited significantly smaller linear and angular deviations than the freehand group (coronal linear deviation: 0.19 ± 0.09 mm vs. 0.35 ± 0.18 mm, p = 0.0012; apical linear deviation: 0.54 ± 0.19 mm vs. 1.71 ± 0.51 mm, p < 0.001; angular deviation: 2.67 ± 1.07° vs. 8.48 ± 2.86°, p < 0.001)., Conclusion: The accuracy of the 3D printed assembled sleeveless guide system used for fiber post removal is superior to that of the freehand method within the limits of an in vitro design., Clinical Significance: For the removal of fiber posts, the present 3D printed sleeveless guide system can provide better accuracy that the conventional freehand method. This may justify the diffusion of the guided technique for fiber post removal., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: To analyze the level of family resilience in Chinese gynecological cancer survivors and determine whether perceived spousal support plays a mediating role in the relationship between dyadic communication quality and family resilience, enhance the confidence of families in coping with the disease together, and thus promote psychosocial adaptation to cancer., Methods: A total of 348 gynecologic cancer survivors were selected from a gynecologic ward in a public hospital in Shandong Province, China. All participants completed the Sociodemographic and Clinical Characteristics Questionnaire, Couples' Communication Quality Scale (CCQS), Perceived Social Support Scale (PSSS), and Family Hardiness Index (FHI). The mediating effect of perceived spousal support was estimated using the bootstrap method via IBM SPSS AMOS 21.0., Results: The mean FHI score was 53.03 ± 9.34 points, showing moderate levels of family resilience. Family resilience was shown to be significantly positively associated with both perceived spousal support and dyadic communication quality (both p < 0.01). Furthermore, perceived spousal support was shown to partially mediate the relationship between communication quality and family resilience (β = 0.141; 95% confidence interval: 0.063-0.243)., Conclusion: The level of family resilience in survivors of gynecologic cancer needs to be further improved, and perceived spousal support partially mediates the relationship between dyadic communication quality and family resilience within this population. Therefore, dyadic communication quality and subjective perceived spousal support should be enhanced for gynecologic cancer survivors to increase their family resilience., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Deoxynivalenol (DON) is a widespread mycotoxin that affects the intestinal health of animals and humans. In the present study, we performed RNA-sequencing and 16S rRNA sequencing in piglets after DON and glycyrrhizic acid and compound probiotics (GAP) supplementation to determine the changes in intestinal transcriptome and microbiota. Transcriptome results indicated that DON exposure altered intestinal gene expression involved in nutrient transport and metabolism. Genes related to lipid metabolism, such as PLIN1, PLIN4, ADIPOQ, and FABP4 in the intestine, were significantly decreased by DON exposure, while their expressions were significantly increased after GAP supplementation. KEGG enrichment analysis showed that GAP supplementation promoted intestinal digestion and absorption of proteins, fats, vitamins, and other nutrients. Results of gut microbiota composition showed that GAP supplementation significantly improved the diversity of gut microbiota. DON exposure significantly increased Proteobacteria , Actinobacteria , and Bacillus abundances and decreased Firmicutes , Lactobacillus , and Streptococcus abundances; however, dietary supplementation with GAP observably recovered their abundances to normal. In addition, predictive functions by PICRUSt analysis showed that DON exposure decreased lipid metabolism, whereas GAP supplementation increased immune system. This result demonstrated that dietary exposure to DON altered the intestinal gene expressions related to nutrient metabolism and induced disturbances of intestinal microbiota, while supplementing GAP to DON-contaminated diets could improve intestinal health for piglets.

Mulberry (genus Morus ) is an economically important woody plant with an altered ploidy level. The variable number of Morus species recognized by different studies indicates that the genus is in need of revision. In this study, the chloroplast (CP) genomes of 123 Morus varieties were de novo assembled and systematically analyzed. The 123 varieties represented six Morus species, namely, Morus alba , Morus nigra , Morus notabilis , Morus rubra , Morus celtidifolia , and Morus serrata . The Morus CP genome was found to be 158,969~159,548 bp in size with 125 genes, including 81 protein coding, 36 tRNA, and 8 rRNA genes. The 87 out of 123 mulberry accessions were assigned to 14 diverse groups with identical CP genome, which indicated that they are maternally inherited and share 14 common ancestors. Then 50 diverse CP genomes occurred in 123 mulberry accessions for further study. The CP genomes of the Morus genus with a quadripartite structure have two inverted repeat (IR) regions (25,654~25,702 bp) dividing the circular genome into a large single-copy (LSC) region (87,873~88,243 bp) and small single-copy (SSC) region (19,740~19,994 bp). Analysis of the phylogenetic tree constructed using the complete CP genome sequences of Morus revealed a monophyletic genus and that M. alba consisted of two clades, M. alba var. alba and M. alba var. multicaulis . The Japanese cultivated germplasms were derived from M. alba var. multicaulis . We propose that the Morus genus be classified into six species, M. nigra , M. notabilis , M. serrata , M. celtidifolia , M. rubra , and M. alba with two subspecies, M. alba var. alba and M. alba var. multicaulis . Our findings provide a valuable resource for the classification, domestication, and breeding improvement of mulberry., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Zeng, Chen, Wang, Xu, Li, Xiang and He.)

Ferroelectric materials hold great promise in the field of photocatalytic water splitting due to their spontaneous polarization that sets up an inherent internal field for the spatial separation of photogenerated charges. The ferroelectric polarization, however, is generally accompanied by some intrinsic defects, particularly oxygen vacancies, whose impact upon photocatalysis is far from being fully understood and modulated. Here, we have studied the role of oxygen vacancies over the photocatalytic behavior of single-domain PbTiO 3 through a combination of theoretical and experimental viewpoints. Our results indicate that the oxygen vacancies in the negatively polarized facet (001) are active sites for water oxidation into O 2 , while the defect-free sites prefer H 2 O 2 as the oxidation product. The apparent quantum yield at 435 nm for photocatalytic overall water splitting with PbTiO 3 /Rh/Cr 2 O 3 is determined to be 0.025%, which is remarkable for single undoped metal oxide-based photocatalysts. Furthermore, the strong correlation among oxygen vacancies, polarization strength, and photocatalytic activity is properly reflected by charge separation conditions in the single-domain PbTiO 3 . This work clarifies the crucial role of oxygen vacancies during photocatalytic reactions of PbTiO 3 , which provides a useful guide to the design of efficient ferroelectric photocatalysts and their water redox reaction pathways.

Hearing loss is a common disease due to sensory loss caused by the diseases in the inner ear. The development of delivery systems for inner ear disease therapy is important to achieve high efficiency and reduce side effects. Currently, traditional drug delivery systems exhibit the potential to be used for inner ear disease therapy, but there are still some drawbacks. As nanotechnology is developing these years, one of the solutions is to develop nanoparticle-based delivery systems for inner ear disease therapy. Various nanoparticles, such as soft material and inorganic-based nanoparticles, have been designed, tested, and showed controlled delivery of drugs, improved targeting property to specific cells, and reduced systemic side effects. In this review, we summarized recent progress in nanocarriers for inner ear disease therapy. This review provides useful information on developing promising nanocarriers for the efficient treatment of inner ear diseases and for further clinical applications for inner ear disease therapy., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Xu, Zheng, He, Lin, Li, Zhang, Song, Zhou and Chen.)

LaTaON 2 porous single crystals (PSCs), integrating structural coherence and porous microstructures, will warrant promising photocatalytic performance. The absence of grain boundaries in PSCs ensures rapid photocarrier transportation from bulk to the surface, thereby mitigating photocarriers' recombination. Porous microstructures not only provide ample reachable surface to host photochemical reactions but also reinforce photon-matter interactions by additional photon reflection/scattering. Here, we have synthesized LaTaON 2 PSCs via a topotactic route and show significantly improved photocatalytic performance. Efficient water oxidation into O 2 has been realized by LaTaON 2 PSCs with an apparent quantum efficiency as high as 5.7% at 420 ± 20 nm. Stable overall water splitting into stoichiometric H 2 and O 2 has also been achieved in a Z-scheme setup using LaTaON 2 PSCs as the O 2 evolution photocatalyst. These results not only prove that PSCs facilitate photocarrier migrations, which in turn deliver exceptional photocatalytic performance, but also imply that PSCs are useful to reinvigorate conventional semiconductor photocatalysts toward efficient solar energy conversions.

Stable and efficient photoelectrochemical water splitting has been achieved using a BaTaO2N photoanode decorated with CoO microflowers. The CoO microflowers effectively collect holes from BaTaO2N which kinetically protects BaTaO2N against photocorrosion. A Faraday efficiency of almost unity (99.2%) has been recorded for O2 evolution reactions. The tips of the CoO microflowers are the most active sites for water oxidation reactions.

Pt and RhO x cocatalysts are selectively deposited at inner and outer surface of ZnTiO 3- x N y hollow nanospheres, respectively. The resulting photocatalytic systems exhibit promising activity for photocatalytic overall water splitting with stoichiometric H 2 /O 2 ratio under simulated solar insolation. Selective deposition of Pt and RhO x cocatalysts at different surfaces not only mitigates back reactions of the products but also induces strong potential gradient within nanospheres that promotes efficient dissociation and fast migration of photocarriers to the surface., (© 2021 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

It is a critical period of fighting against new coronavirus（SARS-CoV-2） disease now，since its outbreak on December 2019 in Wuhan.Even though the front line staffs are thought heroes，the ENT doctors and nurses are also indispensable power in defending the disease.The number of outpatients of ENT is huge.The early stage of SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia（COVID-19） may present pharyngalgia or cough without fever.Thus，the ENT doctors have high risks of being consulted by early stage COVID-19 patients.This paper means to talk about the contributions of ENT doctors and nurses in defending against SARS-CoV-2 virus，as well as the mental status of them., Competing Interests: The authors of this article and the planning committee members and staff have no relevant financial relationships with commercial interests to disclose., (Copyright© by the Editorial Department of Journal of Clinical Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery.)

Separation of photo-generated electron-hole pairs plays a crucial role in determining the practical performance of semiconductor photocatalysts. Here we have successfully fabricated two dimensional g-C 3 N 4 /Ba 5 Ta 4 O 15 nanosheet heterostructures through an in situ urea degradation method. The so-formed nanosheet heterostructures demonstrate superior photocatalytic activities in H 2 evolution reactions over individual component. Further analysis using photoelectrochemical measurements suggests efficient charge separations at the interfaces of these heterostructures which contribute to a prolonged lifetime of photo-generated charges as well as the much enhanced photocatalytic activities. The in situ fabrication method adopted in this work ensures a firm anchorage of g-C 3 N 4 onto Ba 5 Ta 4 O 15 nanosheets and a face-to-face contact between these two semiconductors. Such a peculiar microstructure is critical to the high photocatalytic activity and apparently outweighs the conventional ones that involve only physical mixtures of two semiconductors and a point-to-point contact.

Tantalum nitride (Ta 3 N 5 ) has been considered as a promising candidate for photocatalytic water splitting because of its strong visible-light absorbance as far as 600 nm. However, its catalytic activity is often hampered by various intrinsic/extrinsic defects. Here, we prepared a series of Zr-doped mesoporous tantalum nitride (Ta 3 N 5 ) via a template-free method and carried out a detailed investigation of the role of Zr doping upon the photocatalytic performance. Various physicochemical properties including crystal structure, optical absorption, and so on were systematically explored. Our results show that doping Zr into Ta 3 N 5 induces an enhancement of oxygen content and a suppression of absorption band around 720 nm, indicating an increase of O N • defects and a decrease of V N ••• defects in the structure. Introduction of Zr significantly boosts the photocatalytic oxygen production of Ta 3 N 5 . The optimized photocatalytic oxygen production rate approaches 105 μmol h -1 under visible light illumination (λ ≥ 420 nm), corresponding to an apparent quantum efficiency as high as 3.2%. Photoelectrochemical analysis and DFT calculation reveal that the superior photocatalytic activity of Zr-doped Ta 3 N 5 originates from a high level of O N • defects' concentration, which contributes to a high electron mobility, and a low level of V N ••• defects' concentration, which often act as charge recombination centers.

Strong visible light absorption and high charge mobility are desirable properties for an efficient photocatalyst, yet they are hard to be realized simultaneously in a single semiconductor compound. In this work, we demonstrate that these properties coexist in homologous compounds Zn n In 2 O 3+n (n = 4, 5, and 7) with a peculiar layered structure that combines optical active segment and electrical conductive segment together. Their enhanced visible light absorption originates from tetrahedrally or trigonal-bipyramidally coordinated In atoms in Zn(In)O 4(5) layers which enable p-d hybridization between In 4d and O 2p orbitals so that valence band minimum (VBM) is uplifted with a reduced band gap. Theoretical calculations reveal their anisotropic features in charge transport and functionality of different constituent segments, i.e., Zn(In)O 4(5) layers and InO 6 layers as being for charge generation and charge collection, respectively. Efficient photocatalytic hydrogen evolution was observed in these compounds under full range (λ ≥ 250 nm) and visible light irradiation (λ ≥ 420 nm). High apparent quantum efficiency ∼2.79% was achieved for Zn 4 In 2 O 7 under full range irradiation, which is almost 5-fold higher than their parent oxides ZnO and In 2 O 3 . Such superior photocatalytic activities of these homologous compounds can be understood as layer-by-layer packing of charge generation/collection functional groups that ensures efficient photocatalytic reactions.

Objective: To explore the expression of purinergic p2X4 receptor (P2X4R) in trigeminal ganglion of rats after occlusal interference. Investigation of peripheral receptor mechanism of occlusal interference-induced masticatory muscle pain will aid the development of drug intervention against this condition., Methods: Experimental occlusal interference was established by application of 0.4 mm metal crown to the upper right first molar of male Sprague-Dawley rats. Real-time PCR assay was used to investigate P2X4R mRNA level in trigeminal ganglion in rats with occlusal interference for 3, 7, 10 and 14 days and in control rats without occlusal interference (n=5 in each). Retrograde labelling combining immunofluorescence was performed to evaluate the percentage of P2X4R-positive cells in masseter afferent neurons (n=5 in each group). Graded concentrations of P2XR antagonist TNP-ATP (0.1, 10, 125, 250, 500 μmol/L) or saline (n=5 in each group) was administrated in right masseter and the mechanical sensitivity of bilateral masseters was measured before occlusal interference application, before the injection, and 30 min as well as 60 min after the injection., Results: Compared with control rats (P2X4R mRNA: right side: 1.00±0.26, left side: 0.94± 0.21; percentage of P2X4R-positive masseter afferents: right side: [64.3±6.3]%, left side: [67.7±5.8]%), the level of P2X4R mRNA in bilateral trigeminal ganglia (right side: 5.98±3.56; left side: 5.06±2.88) of rats with occlusal interference for 7 days up-regulated (P<0.01) and the percentage of P2X4R-positive masseter afferent neurons(right side: [81.7±1.5]%; left side: [82.9±2.3]%) increased (P<0.05). Local administration of 10, 125, 250, 500 μmol/L TNP-ATP increased the mechanical withdrawal threshold in masseter 30 min after injection, compared with those before injection (P<0.05)., Conclusions: Increased expression of trigeminal P2X4R involves in the development of occlusal interference-induced masseter hyperalgesia.

In neural implants, an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) provides the delicate interface between the analog signals generated by neurological processes and the digital signal processor that is tasked to interpret these signals for instance for epileptic seizure detection or limb control. In this paper, we propose a low-power ADC architecture for neural implants that process extracellular potentials. The proposed architecture uses the spike detector that is readily available on most of these implants in a closed-loop with an ADC. The spike detector determines whether the current input signal is part of a spike or it is part of noise to adaptively determine the instantaneous sampling rate of the ADC. The proposed architecture can reduce the power consumption of a traditional ADC by 62% when sampling extracellular potentials without any significant impact on spike detection accuracy.