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The widespread application of triazole fungicides (TFs) in agricultural practices can result in the considerable accumulation of active compound residues in the soil and a subsequent negative impact on the soil microbiota and crop health. In this study, we isolated three TF-degrading bacterial strains from contaminated agricultural soils and identified them as Klebsiella sp., Pseudomonas sp., and Citrobacter sp. based on analysis of morphological characteristics and 16S rRNA gene sequences. The strains used three common TFs, namely hexaconazole, difenoconazole, and propiconazole, as their only sources of carbon and energy for growth in a liquid mineral salt medium, with high concentrations (~ 500 mg/l) of each TF. In addition to the ability to degrade fungicides, the isolates also exhibited plant growth-promoting characteristics, such as nitrogen fixation, indole acetic acid production, phosphate dissolution, and cellulose degradation. The synergistic combination of three bacterial isolates significantly improved plant growth and development with an increased survival rate (57%), and achieved TF degradation ranging from 85.83 to 96.59% at a concentration of approximately 50 mg/kg of each TF within 45 days in the soil-plant system. Based on these findings, the three strains and their microbial consortium show promise for application in biofertilizers, to improve soil health and facilitate optimal plant growth.

The delivery of drugs to the brain is quite challenging in the treatment of the central nervous system (CNS) diseases due to the blood-brain barrier and the blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier. However, significant developments in nanomaterials employed by nanoparticle drug-delivery systems have substantial potential to cross or bypass these barriers leading to enhanced therapeutic efficacies. Advances in nanoplatform, nanosystems based on lipids, polymers and inorganic materials have been extensively studied and applied in treating Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. In this review, various types of brain drug delivery nanocarriers are classified, summarized, and their potential as drug delivery systems in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases is discussed. Finally, challenges facing the clinical translation of nanoparticles from bench to bedside are highlighted., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

Recent studies have shown that the epigenetic protein histone deacetylase 11 (HDAC11) is highly expressed in the brain and critically modulates neuroimmune functions, making it a potential therapeutic target for neurological disorders. Herein, we report the development of PB94, which is a novel HDAC11 inhibitor. PB94 exhibited potency and selectivity against HDAC11 with IC 50 = 108 nM and >40-fold selectivity over other HDAC isoforms. Pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic evaluation indicated that PB94 possesses promising drug-like properties. Additionally, PB94 was radiolabeled with carbon-11 as [ 11 C]PB94 for positron emission tomography (PET), which revealed significant brain uptake and metabolic properties suitable for drug development in live animals. Furthermore, we demonstrated that neuropathic pain was associated with brain upregulation of HDAC11 and that pharmacological inhibition of HDAC11 by PB94 ameliorated neuropathic pain in a mouse model. Collectively, our findings support further development of PB94 as a selective HDAC11 inhibitor for neurological indications, including pain.

Magnetite nanoparticles (Fe 3 O 4 NPs) are among the most effective Fenton-Like heterogeneous catalysts for degrading environmental contaminants. However, Fe 3 O 4 NPs aggregate easily and have poor dispersion stability because of their magnetic properties, which seriously decrease their catalytic efficiency. In this study, a novel environmentally friendly method for synthesising Fe 3 O 4 @CA was proposed. Fe 3 O 4 NPs were immobilized on the 3D cellulose aerogels (CAs) in order to augment the degradation efficiency of p -nitrophenol (PNP) treatment and make the separation of the catalyst accessible by vacuum filtration method. Besides, CAs were fabricated from a cellulose source extracted from water hyacinth by using different cross-linking agents, such as kymene (KM) and polyvinyl alcohol-glutaraldehyde system (PVA-GA), and other drying methods, including vacuum thermal drying and freeze drying, were evaluated in the synthesis process. As-synthesized samples were analysed by various methods, including Powder X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray analysis and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller. Then, using ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, the difference in the degradability of PNP of the obtained material samples was also investigated to determine their potential applications. Results highlighted that the Fe 3 O 4 -3@CA-KF catalyst with an Fe 3 O 4 loading of 0.40 g/g CA used KM as a cross-linker and the freeze-drying method demonstrated the highest PNP removal efficiency (92.5 %) in all Fe 3 O 4 @CA samples with a H 2 O 2 content of 5 g/L. The degradation kinetics and well-fitted pseudo-first-order model were investigated. Notably, after five successive PNP degradation experiments, this catalyst retained ∼80 % of the ability to degrade PNP, indicating its outstanding reusability. In environmental remediation, this study provides valuable insights into the development of simply separated and high-efficiency catalysts for heterogeneous catalytic reactions., Competing Interests: 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., (© 2023 The Authors.)

In Vietnam, chest radiography (CXR) is used to refer people for GeneXpert (Xpert) testing to diagnose tuberculosis (TB), demonstrating high yield for TB but a wide range of CXR abnormality rates. In a multi-center implementation study, computer-aided detection (CAD) was integrated into facility-based TB case finding to standardize CXR interpretation. CAD integration was guided by a programmatic framework developed for routine implementation. From April through December 2022, 24,945 CXRs from TB-vulnerable populations presenting to district health facilities were evaluated. Physicians interpreted all CXRs in parallel with CAD (qXR 3.0) software, for which the selected TB threshold score was ≥0.60. At three months, there was 47.3% concordance between physician and CAD TB-presumptive CXR results, 7.8% of individuals who received CXRs were referred for Xpert testing, and 858 people diagnosed with Xpert-confirmed TB per 100,000 CXRs. This increased at nine months to 76.1% concordant physician and CAD TB-presumptive CXRs, 9.6% referred for Xpert testing, and 2112 people with Xpert-confirmed TB per 100,000 CXRs. Our programmatic CAD-CXR framework effectively supported physicians in district facilities to improve the quality of referral for diagnostic testing and increase TB detection yield. Concordance between physician and CAD CXR results improved with training and was important to optimize Xpert testing.

Objective: The objective of this study was to clarify the detailed clinical course of recurrent clival chordoma and the outcomes of each treatment modality., Methods: A single-center retrospective analysis was conducted on patients seen for recurrent clival chordoma. The cohort was identified from those who underwent surgery, stereotactic radiosurgery, or proton therapy at the authors' institution between 1990 and 2022., Results: A total of 95 recurrences in 40 patients with a median (interquartile range [IQR]) follow-up of 43 (18-79) months were identified. The median (IQR) age at the time of diagnosis was 48 (36-62) years, and 55% of patients were male. Twenty-three patients were treated with surgery followed by adjuvant radiation before the first recurrence. The median (range) number of recurrences per patient was 2 (1-8), and the median (IQR) time to the first recurrence was 29 (9-51) months. The recurrences were treated with one or more of the following therapies: surgery, radiation, systemic therapy, and laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT). Surgery was performed for 44 recurrences in 25 patients. Radiation was used to treat 42 recurrences in 28 patients. Patients with recurrences treated with surgery plus radiation had the longest progression-free survival (PFS) (median [95% CI] overall survival [OS] 120 [0-245] months, p < 0.01, log-rank test). Patients with recurrences but without prior radiation had longer PFS than those patients with prior radiation. The median (95% CI) OS after the first recurrence was 68 (54-82) months, 5-year OS after the first recurrence was 48%, and 10-year OS was 27%. Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that mortality after the first recurrence was significantly associated with no adjuvant radiation (HR 0.149, 95% CI 0.038-0.59, p = 0.0067), older age at the time of the first recurrence (HR 1.04, 95% CI 1.01-1.08, p = 0.021), and total number of recurrences (p = 0.032). Seven patients received systemic therapy, and the median (95% CI) OS of these patients since initiation of systemic therapy was 31 (11-51) months. Imatinib and/or nivolumab were used in 6 patients (15%). One patient (3%) was treated with LITT for his fourth recurrence., Conclusions: Despite the aggressive nature of recurrent chordoma, 14 of 29 patients (48%) survived for more than 5 years after the initial recurrence using combined therapies. Multiple treatment options may contribute to the long-term survival of patients with this intractable tumor.

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the most prevalent histological type of lung cancer and the leading cause of death globally. Patients with NSCLC have a poor prognosis for various factors, and a late diagnosis is one of them. The DNA methylation of CpG island sequences found in the promoter regions of tumor suppressor genes has recently received attention as a potential biomarker of human cancer. In this study, we report DNA methylation changes of the adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-binding cassette transporter G1 (ABCG1), which belongs to the ATP cassette transporter family in NSCLC patients. Our results demonstrate that ABCG1 is hyper-methylation in NSCLC samples, and these changes are negatively correlated to gene and protein expression. Furthermore, the expression of the ABCG1 gene is significantly associated with the survival time of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients; however, it did not show a correlation to overall survival (OS) of lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC) patients. Notably, we found ABCG1 methylation status at locus cg20214535 is strongly associated with the survival time and consistently observed hyper-methylation in LUAD samples. This novel finding suggests ABCG1 is a potential candidate for targeted therapy in lung cancer via this specific probe. In addition, we illustrate the protein-protein interaction (PPI) of ABCG1 with other proteins and the strong communication of ABCG1 with immune cells., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Opinion Statement: Myxoid liposarcoma (MLPS) is a rare soft tissue sarcoma, with propensity to metastasize to locations such as soft tissue and bone. Thus, whole-body MRI should be a consideration as part of staging for patients with a new diagnosis of MLPS since PET and CT may not identify extrapulmonary disease. Surveillance imaging should be tailored, with consideration of more frequent and longer duration of monitoring for large tumors or tumors with round cell component. This review focuses on studies evaluating imaging in MLPS as well as recent publications on survival and prognostic tools in MLPS., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

The synthesis of fungicides in eco-friendly and cost-effective ways is significantly essential for agriculture. Plant pathogenic fungi cause many ecological and economic issues worldwide, which must be treated with effective fungicides. Here, this study proposes the biosynthesis of fungicides, which combines copper and Cu 2 O nanoparticles (Cu/Cu 2 O) synthesized using durian shell (DS) extract as a reducing agent in aqueous media. Sugar and polyphenol compounds contained in DS, as the main phytochemicals acting in the reduction procedure, were extracted under different temperatures and duration conditions to obtain the highest yields. We confirmed the extraction process performed at 70 °C for 60 min to be the most effective in extracting sugar (6.1 g/L) and polyphenols (22.7 mg/L). We determined the suitable conditions for Cu/Cu 2 O synthesis using a DS extract as a reducing agent for a synthesis time of 90 min, a volume ratio of DR extract/Cu 2+ of 15:35, an initial pH solution of 10, a synthesis temperature of 70 °C, and a CuSO 4 concentration of 10 mM. The characterization results of as-prepared Cu/Cu 2 O NP showed a highly crystalline structure of Cu 2 O and Cu with sizes estimated in the range of 40-25 nm and 25-30 nm, respectively. Through in vitro experiments, the antifungal efficacy of Cu/Cu 2 O against Corynespora cassiicola and Neoscytalidium dimidiatum was investigated by the inhibition zone. The green-synthesized Cu/Cu 2 O nanocomposites, which are potential antifungals against plant pathogens, exhibited excellent antifungal efficacy against both Corynespora cassiicola (MIC = 0.25 g/L, the diameter of the inhibition zone was 22.00 ± 0.52 mm) and Neoscytalidium dimidiatum (MIC = 0.0625 g/L, the diameter of the inhibition zone was 18.00 ± 0.58 mm). Cu/Cu 2 O nanocomosites prepared in this study could be a valuable suggestion for the control of plant pathogenic fungi affecting crop species globally., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2023 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) is the most prevalent lung cancer and one of the leading causes of death. Previous research found a link between LUAD and Aldehyde Dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2), a member of aldehyde dehydrogenase gene (ALDH) superfamily. In this study, we identified additional useful prognostic markers for early LUAD identification and targeting LUAD therapy by analyzing the expression level, epigenetic mechanism, and signaling activities of ALDH2 in LUAD patients. The obtained results demonstrated that ALDH2 gene and protein expression significantly downregulated in LUAD patient samples. Furthermore, The American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) reported that diminished ALDH2 expression was closely linked to worse overall survival (OS) in different stages of LUAD. Considerably, ALDH2 showed aberrant DNA methylation status in LUAD cancer. ALDH2 was found to be downregulated in the proteomic expression profile of several cell biology signaling pathways, particularly stem cell-related pathways. Finally, the relationship of ALDH2 activity with stem cell-related factors and immune system were reported. In conclusion, the downregulation of ALDH2, abnormal DNA methylation, and the consequent deficit of stemness signaling pathways are relevant prognostic and therapeutic markers in LUAD., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2023 The Author(s).)

Oxidative stress, neurodegeneration, neuroinflammation, and vascular leakage are believed to play a key role in the early stage of diabetic retinopathy (ESDR). The aim of this study was to investigate the blockade of cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1R) and activation of cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2R) as putative therapeutics for the treatment of the early toxic events in DR. Diabetic rats [streptozotocin (STZ)-induced] were treated topically (20 μL, 10 mg/mL), once daily for fourteen days (early stage DR model), with SR141716 (CB1R antagonist), AM1710 (CB2R agonist), and the dual treatment SR141716/AM1710. Immunohistochemical-histological, ELISA, and Evans-Blue analyses were performed to assess the neuroprotective and vasculoprotective properties of the pharmacological treatments on diabetes-induced retinal toxicity. Activation of CB2R or blockade of CB1R, as well as the dual treatment, attenuated the nitrative stress induced by diabetes. Both single treatments protected neural elements (e.g., RGC axons) and reduced vascular leakage. AM1710 alone reversed all toxic insults. These findings provide new knowledge regarding the differential efficacies of the cannabinoids, when administered topically, in the treatment of ESDR. Cannabinoid neuroprotection of the diabetic retina in ESDR may prove therapeutic in delaying the development of the advanced stage of the disease.

Evidence suggests the existence of a functional interaction between endogenous cannabinoid (CB) and opioid systems. Thus, targeting CB 1 receptors might be a viable approach to develop new medications for opioid use disorders (OUD). The present studies were undertaken to evaluate the effects of the neutral CB 1 antagonist AM4113 and the CB 1 antagonist/inverse agonist rimonabant in male rats trained to discriminate 0.032 mg/kg fentanyl from saline under a 10-response fixed-ratio (FR-10) schedule of food reinforcement. Results show that the µ-opioid agonists (fentanyl, oxycodone, and morphine) substituted fully and dose-dependently for fentanyl, whereas pretreatment with the µ-opioid antagonist naltrexone antagonized fentanyl's discriminative-stimulus effects. In interaction studies, AM4113 (0.32 or 1.0 mg/kg) was more effective in blocking fentanyl discrimination at 10-fold lower doses that did not modify rates of food-maintained responding, whereas rimonabant (1.0-10 mg/kg) produced some attenuation of fentanyl's discriminative-stimulus effects at the highest dose tested which also significantly decreased response rates. These results extend our recent work showing that AM4113 can effectively block the behavioral effects of heroin without producing rimonabant-like adverse effects. Taken together, these data suggests that CB 1 neutral antagonists effectively block the behavioral effects of structurally distinct morphinan (heroin) and phenylpiperidine-based (fentanyl) opioids and may provide a novel therapeutic option for the treatment of OUD., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interest The authors have no other financial disclosures or potential conflicts of interest to declare., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

In 2016, the World Health Organization (WHO) updated the glioma classification by incorporating molecular biology parameters, including low-grade glioma (LGG). In the new scheme, LGGs have three molecular subtypes: isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH)-mutated 1p/19q-codeleted, IDH-mutated 1p/19q-noncodeleted, and IDH-wild type 1p/19q-noncodeleted entities. This work proposes a model prediction of LGG molecular subtypes using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). MR images were segmented and converted into radiomics features, thereby providing predictive information about the brain tumor classification. With 726 raw features obtained from the feature extraction procedure, we developed a hybrid machine learning-based radiomics by incorporating a genetic algorithm and eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) classifier, to ascertain 12 optimal features for tumor classification. To resolve imbalanced data, the synthetic minority oversampling technique (SMOTE) was applied in our study. The XGBoost algorithm outperformed the other algorithms on the training dataset by an accuracy value of 0.885. We continued evaluating the XGBoost model, then achieved an overall accuracy of 0.6905 for the three-subtype classification of LGGs on an external validation dataset. Our model is among just a few to have resolved the three-subtype LGG classification challenge with high accuracy compared with previous studies performing similar work., (© 2022 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic is raging worldwide; the number of new cases and deaths is increasing daily. This study aims to examine the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) toward COVID-19 among residents of Quang Binh, Vietnam., Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted between the 1st and 10th of March 2022 in Quang Binh with 413 participants through convenience sampling. A self-designed questionnaire was used for data collection, using SPSS (IBM Corp, Armonk, NY) version 26.0 for management and analysis., Results: Among the 413 participants, 80.5% of participants had good knowledge about COVID-19. Kinh people and those with a high level of education have higher odds of having good knowledge. 78.2% of participants had a positive attitude and 78.2% had good practice toward COVID-19. Knowledge-Practice scores and Attitude-Practice scores have a positive correlation. TV (65.4%) and the internet (66.6%) are the most popular channels for information about COVID-19. Common barriers for participants taking COVID-19 prevention measures were "due to the demands of life" (61%) or "due to the specificity of the work" (47.7%)., Conclusions: Residents of Quang Binh have a moderate KAP towards COVID-19. Health education programs are needed to improve knowledge about COVID-19 among Quang Binh residents, with a focus on ethnic minorities and people with low levels of education., Competing Interests: No Conflict of Interest is declared, (Copyright (c) 2022 Thanh-Tung Ho, Galal A Al-Samhari, Jun-Jie Lin, Jing-Jing Luo, Yueming Jiang.)

Hydroxyapatite (HA) derived from salmon bone byproducts is used as a green support for the nanostructured nickel catalysts applied in the methanation of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ). Undoped nickel catalysts and various ceria-doped nickel supported on hydroxyapatite (HA) were prepared by coimpregnation. Characteristics of the as-prepared catalysts were investigated by the various techniques, including X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), hydrogen temperature-programmed reduction (H 2 -TPR), carbon dioxide temperature-programmed desorption (CO 2 -TPD), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). The catalyst activity was assessed throughout CO 2 methanation in the low-temperature range of 225-350 °C with the molar ratio of H 2 /CO 2 = 4/1. The function of HA and ceria provided a high dispersity of nickel particles over the catalyst surface with the size range of 24.5-25.8 nm, leading to improvement in the reduction and CO 2 adsorption capacity of the catalysts as well as enhancing the catalytic efficiency in CO 2 methanation. The 10Ni/HA catalyst reduced at suitable conditions of 400 °C for 2 h showed the highest catalytic performance among the tested catalysts. CO 2 conversion and CH 4 selectivity reached 76.6 and 100% at a reaction temperature of 350 °C, respectively. The results show that the Ni/HA sample doped with 6.0 wt % ceria was the best, with the CO 2 conversion and the CH 4 selectivity reaching 92.5% and 100%, respectively, at a reaction temperature of 325 °C., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2022 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

In this study, green orange peel (GOP) was feasibly evidenced in preparing selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs). Acting as reducing agents, polyphenolic compounds were extracted from GOP at the optimal extraction conditions (at 70 °C for 1.5 h, mass ratio of dried orange peel/distilled water of 5/100). The formation of SeNPs was observed at the wavelength range of 250-300 nm by ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), and their highest yield could be reached at the following conditions: volume ratio of extract/selenious acid solution ( V Ext / V Se ) of 40/10, synthesis duration of 4 h, selenious acid concentration ( C Se ) of 80 mM, and reaction temperature of 120 °C. The highly crystalline structure of SeNPs in the hexagonal phase was characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) with a lattice parameter of 4.3 Å; meanwhile, their spheres with an average crystal size of 18.3 nm were estimated by high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HR-TEM). The rationale of bioreducing agents extracted from green orange peel for the formation of SeNPs was also recognized by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The antibacterial investigation of the SeNP sample was assessed against antibiotic-resistant bacteria, typically methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), by executing the zone of inhibition and the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) tests. The SeNP sample demonstrated excellent antibacterial activity with an average diameter of inhibition zones of 20.0 ± 0.7 mm and an MIC of 4.94 μg/L. A comparison of the physicochemical properties of SeNPs synthesized from GOP extract by the hydrothermal method with SeNP products from other green reducing agents and other methods as well as its antibacterial activity compared with other nanoparticles and some antibiotics was conducted to highlight the superiority of GOP-mediated green-synthesized SeNPs., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2022 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

A green synthesis using extract from Citrus maxima peel was developed to fabricate Au-Ce catalysts for the reduction of p -nitrophenol (PNP). Au nanoparticles with a diameter of 6.6 ± 2.5 nm were deposited onto the surface of CeO 2 nanorods with a length of 33.1 ± 15.0 nm and a diameter of 7.1 ± 2.1 nm. The mesoporous and non-porous capillary structures of these materials were observed. The interaction between Au and CeO 2 increased the specific surface area, pore diameter, and pore volume compared with pure CeO 2 (90 m 2 g -1 , 23.8 Å, and 0.110 cm 3 g -1 versus 72 m 2 g -1 , 23.0 Å, and 0.089 cm 3 g -1 ). The splitting peaks of the surface oxygen and their shifting at lower temperatures compared with CeO 2 nanorods were found thanks to the Au-CeO 2 interaction, suggesting that their reduction occurred more easily. The synthesized Au-Ce catalysts exhibited excellent activity in the reduction of PNP to p -aminophenol. The 0.2Au-Ce catalyst was the most efficient one for PNP reduction, enabling the conversion of PNP in 30 minutes with a catalyst concentration of 20 mg L -1 and a PNP/NaBH 4 molar ratio of 1/200. Moreover, the 0.2Au-Ce catalyst could be reused for at least five consecutive cycles without considerable loss of its activity., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

Glioma is a Center Nervous System (CNS) neoplasm that arises from the glial cells. In a new scheme category of the World Health Organization 2016, lower-grade gliomas (LGGs) are grade II and III gliomas. Following the discovery of suppression of negative immune regulation, immunotherapy is a promising effective treatment method for lower-grade glioma patients. However, the therapy is not effective for all types of LGGs, and tumor mutational burden (TMB) has been shown to be a potential biomarker for the susceptibility and prognosis of immunotherapy in lower-grade glioma patients. Hence, predicting TMB benefits brain cancer patients. In this study, we investigated the correlation between MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)-based radiomic features and TMB in LGG by applying machine learning methods. Six machine learning classifiers were examined on the features extracted from the genetic algorithm. Subsequently, a light gradient boosting machine (LightGBM) succeeded in selecting 11 radiomics signatures for TMB classification. Our LightGBM model resulted in high accuracy of 0.7936, and reached a balance between sensitivity and specificity, achieving 0.76 and 0.8107, respectively. To our knowledge, our study represents the best model for classification of TMB in LGG patients at present.

Thermal degradation kinetics of fructooligosaccharides (FOS) in defatted rice bran were studied at temperatures of 90, 100, and 110 °C. FOS extracted from rice bran and dissolved in buffers at pH values of 5.0, 6.0, and 7.0 were prepared for the thermal treatments. The residual FOS (including 1-kestose (GF2), nystose (GF3), and 1F-fructofuranosylnystose (GF4)) contents were determined using the ultra-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-MS/MS) method. The results showed that the thermal degradation kinetics of GF2, GF3, and GF4 followed a first-order kinetic model. Thermal degradation rate constants ( k values) of GF2, GF3, and GF4 at different temperature and pH values were estimated using the first-order kinetic equation and SAS 9.1. As a result, these k values decreased gradually as the pH of the sample increased from 5.0 to 7.0. The Arrhenius model was applied to describe the heat dependence of the k -values. The activation energy ( E a ) was calculated for each case of GF2, GF3, and GF4 degradation at pH values of 5.0, 6.0, and 7.0. The result showed that rice bran FOS is very thermostable at neutral pH while more labile at acidic pH.

Aerogel cellulose materials were synthesised from Water hyacinth and different crosslinkers, such as kymene and a mixture of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and glutaraldehyde (GA). The effects of using a magnetic stirrer and ultrasonic methods were investigated. The results show that materials prepared using ultrasonic methods have higher porosity and lower density. The thermal conductivity of the synthesised aerogel cellulose could be as low as 0.0281 W m K -1 , showing the good heat insulation performance of this material. Absorption capacity was tested using diesel oil (DO), and the highest capacities of 58.82 and 52.03 g g -1 of DO were found with kymene and PVA + GA as crosslinkers, respectively. The reusability of the materials was tested. After 10 cycles, the DO absorption capacity was 62.8% of the value of the first cycle for the aerogel cellulose sample with kymene as the crosslinker and 72.7% for the sample with PVA + GA as the crosslinking agent., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

Purpose: Cranial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is recommended to identify intracranial lesions in girls with central precocious puberty (CPP). Yet, the use of routine MRI scans in girls with CPP is still debatable, as pathological findings in girls 6 years of age or older with CPP are limited. Therefore, we aimed to identify the prevalence of brain lessons in CPP patients stratified by age group (0-2, 2-6, and 6-8 years)., Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study recruited 257 girls diagnosed with CPP for 6 years (2010-2016). MRI was used to detect brain abnormalities. Levels of luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, and sex hormones in blood samples were measured., Results: Most girls had no brain lesions (82.9%, n=213), and of the minor proportion of girls with CPP that exhibited brain lesions (17.1%, n=44), 32 girls had organic CPP. Pathological findings were detected in 33.3% (2 of 6) of girls aged 0-2 years, 15.6% (5 of 32) of girls aged 2-6 years, and 3.6% (8 of 219) of girls aged 6-8 years. Hypothalamic hamartoma and tumors in the pituitary stalk were the most common pathological findings. The likelihood of brain lesions decreased with age. Girls with organic CPP were more likely to be younger (6.1±2.4 vs. 7.3±1.3 years, p<0.01) than girls with idiopathic CPP., Conclusion: Older girls appeared to have a lower prevalence of organic CPP. Clinicians should cautiously use cranial MRI for girls aged 6-8 years with CPP.

Benchmarking and monitoring of urban design and transport features is crucial to achieving local and international health and sustainability goals. However, most urban indicator frameworks use coarse spatial scales that either only allow between-city comparisons, or require expensive, technical, local spatial analyses for within-city comparisons. This study developed a reusable, open-source urban indicator computational framework using open data to enable consistent local and global comparative analyses. We show this framework by calculating spatial indicators-for 25 diverse cities in 19 countries-of urban design and transport features that support health and sustainability. We link these indicators to cities' policy contexts, and identify populations living above and below critical thresholds for physical activity through walking. Efforts to broaden participation in crowdsourcing data and to calculate globally consistent indicators are essential for planning evidence-informed urban interventions, monitoring policy effects, and learning lessons from peer cities to achieve health, equity, and sustainability goals., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests GB reports grants from The Public Good Projects during the conduct of the study. BG-C reports Senior Principal Research Fellowship (GNT1107672) and grant support (numbers 1061404 and 9100003) from the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) during the conduct of the study. CH reports grant support (numbers 1061404 and 9100003) from the NHMRC. SL reports an experiential fellowship from the College of Social Science and Humanities, Northeastern University during the conduct of this study. JFS reports personal fees from SPARK programmes of Gopher Sport, and serving on the board of directors for Rails to Trails Conservancy, outside the submitted work. JFS also has a copyright on SPARK physical activity programmes with royalties paid by Gopher Sport. EC and JFS report support from the Australian Catholic University during the conduct of this study. DS reports support from Washington University in St Louis, Center for Diabetes Translation Research (number P30DK092950 from the US National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases [NIDDK] and the US National Institutes of Health [NIH]) and from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (cooperative agreement number U48DP006395) during the conduct of this study. MAA reports grants from the US National Cancer Institute at the NIH (R01CA198915) during the conduct of the study. LVB reports grants from Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (grant number 304636/2020-7) during the conduct of the study. All other authors report no competing interests. The content of this article is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not represent the official views of any of the NIDDK, NIH, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or of any of the funding agencies supporting this work., (Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

City planning policies influence urban lifestyles, health, and sustainability. We assessed policy frameworks for city planning for 25 cities across 19 lower-middle-income countries, upper-middle-income countries, and high-income countries to identify whether these policies supported the creation of healthy and sustainable cities. We systematically collected policy data for evidence-informed indicators related to integrated city planning, air pollution, destination accessibility, distribution of employment, demand management, design, density, distance to public transport, and transport infrastructure investment. Content analysis identified strengths, limitations, and gaps in policies, allowing us to draw comparisons between cities. We found that despite common policy rhetoric endorsing healthy and sustainable cities, there was a paucity of measurable policy targets in place to achieve these aspirations. Some policies were inconsistent with public health evidence, which sets up barriers to achieving healthy and sustainable urban environments. There is an urgent need to build capacity for health-enhancing city planning policy and governance, particularly in low-income and middle-income countries., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests BG-C reports Senior Principal Research Fellowship (GNT1107672) and grant (number 1061404) support from National Health and Medical Research Council during the conduct of the study. CH was also supported by National Health and Medical Research Council through the Centre for Research Excellence in Healthy Liveable Communities (grant number 1061404). GB reports grants from the Public Good Projects, during the conduct of the study. JFS reports personal fees from Sports, Play, and Active Recreation for Kids (SPARK) physical activity programmes of Gopher Sport, and travel support from Rails to Trails Conservancy, outside the submitted work. JFS also has a copyright on SPARK physical activity programmes with royalties paid by Gopher Sport. DA was supported by an Impact Acceleration Award from the Economic and Social Research Council and funding from the Global Challenges Research Fund administered by the Department for the Economy, Northern Ireland, UK. SL was supported by the experiential fellowships from the College of Social Science and Humanities, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA. EC and JFS were supported by the Australian Catholic University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia. AAF is supported by a research fellowship from the Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) (#309301/2020-3). TB was supported by a Doctoral Scholarship from Auckland University of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand. AP-R was supported by the Centre for Health and Social Care Research at the University of Vic-Central University of Catalonia, Vic, Spain, and funding was provided by the Barcelona Provincial Council, Barcelona, Spain and City Council of Vic, Vic, Spain. CDGR is supported by the Portugal National Funds through Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Instituto Público, Lisbon, Portugal, under the Research Fellowship (UI/BD/152231/2021). DS was supported by Washington University in St Louis, Center for Diabetes Translation Research, St Louis, MO, USA (P30DK092950 from National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health) and by the Cooperative Agreement Number U48DP006395 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. RFH was supported by the UK Research and Innovation—National Health and Medical Research Council (project reference MR/T038934/1). The content of this article is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not represent the official views of any of the funding agencies supporting this work. Funding sources had no role in writing the manuscript or in the decision to submit for publication. All other authors report no competing interests., (Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

The ability of bacteria to colonize and grow on different surfaces is an essential process for biofilm development. Here, we report the use of synthetic hydrogels with tunable stiffness and porosity to assess physical effects of the substrate on biofilm development. Using time-lapse microscopy to track the growth of expanding Serratia marcescens colonies, we find that biofilm colony growth can increase with increasing substrate stiffness, unlike what is found on traditional agar substrates. Using traction force microscopy-based techniques, we find that biofilms exert transient stresses correlated over length scales much larger than a single bacterium, and that the magnitude of these forces also increases with increasing substrate stiffness. Our results are consistent with a model of biofilm development in which the interplay between osmotic pressure arising from the biofilm and the poroelastic response of the underlying substrate controls biofilm growth and morphology., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the National Academy of Sciences.)

Introduction: Telepharmacy, the application of information and communication technologies in healthcare services, has been adopted in many countries to provide patients with pharmaceutical care. However, it has yet to be widely used in Vietnam. This study was conducted to assess the current status of use and the factors associated with the willingness to use telepharmacy of pharmacists in Vietnam. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from February to July 2021; 414 pharmacists were recruited to fill in an online survey. Results: Overall, 86.7% of participants have used telepharmacy application and 87.2% of them were willing to apply telepharmacy in pharmacy practice. According to our multivariate analysis, the level of readiness was associated with positive attitude (odds ratio [OR] = 4.67; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.26-9.66), and a good behavior (OR = 11.34; 95% CI: 3.84-33.45). Discussion: Developing a telepharmacy system with appropriate features is essential to meet the requirements of pharmacy practice amid the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting Interests: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article., (© The Author(s) 2022.)

A novel polysaccharide structure (PS-T80) was collected from Ophiocordyceps sobolifera biomass and characterized via a combination of chemical and spectral analyses. Employing high-performance gel permeation chromatography (HPGPC), the average molecular weight is proven to be 7.4 × 10 4 Da. Furthermore, a sugar composition analysis of the obtained polysaccharide suggests two main sugars, β-d-glucose and α-d-mannose, at a molar ratio of 2:1, respectively, in the backbone. The structure analysis unveils that PS-T80 is a mannoglucan, possessing the repeating unit of [→3)-β-d-Glcp-(1 → 3)-α-d-Manp-(1 → 3)-β-d-Glcp-(1→] n . Such a configuration could be considered a novel polysaccharide. Impressively, in vitro antioxidant tests revealed that PS-T80 has a promising antioxidant activity. These results demonstrate that the obtained PS is a potential bioactive material for biomedical applications., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2022 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

The ability of cells to sense and respond to the mechanical stiffness of the surrounding matrix is important to support normal cell function, wound healing, and development. Central to the process of durosensing is the cytoskeleton composed of three classes of filaments: F-actin, microtubules, and intermediate filaments (IFs). Vimentin is an IF protein that contributes significantly to cell mechanics and cell traction force, which is required to probe extracellular matrix. The role of vimentin in how cells sense and respond to the mechanical rigidity of extracellular matrix is largely unclear. To investigate the role of vimentin in durosensing, we knocked down the vimentin expression level in 3T3 fibroblasts using shRNA transfection and measured cellular responses as functions of substrate stiffness. We quantified durosensitivity by the rates at which cell area and traction force change with substrate stiffness. Our results show that that vimentin plays a role in durosensing by modulating traction force and knocking out vimentin did not significantly affect durosensitivity. These results indicate that vimentin may be a redundant component of the machinery that cells use to sense substrate stiffness., (© 2021 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Background: In the field of glioma, transcriptome subtypes have been considered as an important diagnostic and prognostic biomarker that may help improve the treatment efficacy. However, existing identification methods of transcriptome subtypes are limited due to the relatively long detection period, the unattainability of tumor specimens via biopsy or surgery, and the fleeting nature of intralesional heterogeneity. In search of a superior model over previous ones, this study evaluated the efficiency of eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost)-based radiomics model to classify transcriptome subtypes in glioblastoma patients., Methods: This retrospective study retrieved patients from TCGA-GBM and IvyGAP cohorts with pathologically diagnosed glioblastoma, and separated them into different transcriptome subtypes groups. GBM patients were then segmented into three different regions of MRI: enhancement of the tumor core (ET), non-enhancing portion of the tumor core (NET), and peritumoral edema (ED). We subsequently used handcrafted radiomics features (n = 704) from multimodality MRI and two-level feature selection techniques (Spearman correlation and F-score tests) in order to find the features that could be relevant., Results: After the feature selection approach, we identified 13 radiomics features that were the most meaningful ones that can be used to reach the optimal results. With these features, our XGBoost model reached the predictive accuracies of 70.9%, 73.3%, 88.4%, and 88.4% for classical, mesenchymal, neural, and proneural subtypes, respectively. Our model performance has been improved in comparison with the other models as well as previous works on the same dataset., Conclusion: The use of XGBoost and two-level feature selection analysis (Spearman correlation and F-score) could be expected as a potential combination for classifying transcriptome subtypes with high performance and might raise public attention for further research on radiomics-based GBM models., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: To compare the clinical characteristics and overall survival (OS) of germline mutation carriers in homologous recombination repair (HRR) genes and noncarriers with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC)., Experimental Design: Germline DNA from 3,078 patients with PDAC enrolled in a prospective registry at Mayo Clinic between 2000 and 2017 was analyzed for mutations in 37 cancer predisposition genes. Characteristics and OS of patients with mutations in eight genes (ATM, BARD1, BRCA1, BRCA2, BRIP1, PALB2, RAD51C, and RAD51D) involved in HRR were compared with patients testing negative for mutations in all 37 genes., Results: The 175 HRR mutation carriers and 2,730 noncarriers in the study had a median duration of follow-up of 9.9 years. HRR mutation carriers were younger (median age at diagnosis: 63 vs. 66 years, P < 0.001) and more likely to have metastatic disease at diagnosis (46% vs. 36%, P = 0.004). In a multivariable model adjusting for sex, age at diagnosis, and tumor staging, patients with germline HRR mutations had a significantly longer OS compared with noncarriers [HR, 0.83; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.70-0.97; P = 0.02]. Further gene-level analysis demonstrated that germline ATM mutation carriers had longer OS compared with patients without germline mutations in any of the 37 genes (HR, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.55-0.94; P = 0.01)., Conclusions: This study demonstrates that germline mutation carrier status in PDAC is associated with longer OS compared with noncarriers. Further research into tumor biology and response to platinum-based chemotherapy in germline mutation carriers with PDAC are needed to better understand the association with longer OS., (©2020 American Association for Cancer Research.)

To accelerate the reduction in tuberculosis (TB) incidence, it is necessary to optimize the use of innovative tools and approaches available within a local context. This study evaluated the use of an existing network of community health workers (CHW) for active case finding, in combination with mobile chest X-ray (CXR) screening events and the expansion of Xpert MTB/RIF testing eligibility, in order to reach people with TB who had been missed by the current system. A controlled intervention study was conducted from January 2018 to March 2019 in five intervention and four control districts of two low to medium TB burden cities in Viet Nam. CHWs screened and referred eligible persons for CXR to TB care facilities or mobile screening events in the community. The initial diagnostic test was Xpert MTB/RIF for persons with parenchymal abnormalities suggestive of TB on CXR or otherwise on smear microscopy. We analyzed the TB care cascade by calculating the yield and number needed to screen (NNS), estimated the impact on TB notifications and conducted a pre-/postintervention comparison of TB notification rates using controlled, interrupted time series (ITS) analyses. We screened 30,336 individuals in both cities to detect and treat 243 individuals with TB, 88.9% of whom completed treatment successfully. All forms of TB notifications rose by +18.3% (95% CI: +15.8%, +20.8%). The ITS detected a significant postintervention step-increase in the intervention area for all-form TB notification rates (IRR(β6) = 1.221 (95% CI: 1.011, 1.475); p = 0.038). The combined use of CHWs for active case findings and mobile CXR screening expanded the access to and uptake of Xpert MTB/RIF testing and resulted in a significant increase in TB notifications. This model could serve as a blueprint for expansion throughout Vietnam. Moreover, the results demonstrate the need to optimize the use of the best available tools and approaches in order to end TB.

Garcinol is a natural product from the Garcinia Indica fruit and is well-known as an antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer agent. However, the understanding of its mechanism of action is still incomplete. It has been reported to be a histone acetyltransferase (HAT) inhibitor. Here, we surprisingly found that garcinol is a potent histone deacetylase 11 (HDAC11) inhibitor (IC 50 ∼ 5 μM in vitro with the HPLC assay and IC 50 ∼ 10 μM in the cellular SHMT2 fatty acylation assay), which is comparable to previously reported HDAC11 inhibitors. Additionally, among all the HDACs tested, garcinol specifically inhibits HDAC11 over other HDACs. HDAC11 is the only class IV HDAC, and there are very few inhibitors available for it. Therefore, this study provides a new HDAC11 inhibitor lead from natural products and may help explain the various biological activities of garcinol.

Our understanding of the transition from physiological to pathological cardiac hypertrophy remains elusive and largely based on reductionist hypotheses. Here, we profiled the translatomes of 15 mouse hearts to provide a molecular blueprint of altered gene networks in early cardiac remodeling. Using co-expression analysis, we showed how sub-networks are orchestrated into functional modules associated with pathological phenotypes. We discovered unappreciated hub genes, many undocumented for their role in cardiac hypertrophy, and genes in the transcriptional network that were rewired in the translational network, and associated with semantically different subsets of enriched functional terms, such as Fam210a , a novel musculoskeletal modulator, or Psmd12 , implicated in protein quality control. Using their correlation structure, we found that transcriptome networks are only partially reproducible at the translatome level, providing further evidence of post-transcriptional control at the level of translation. Our results provide novel insights into the complexity of the organization of in vivo cardiac regulatory networks., (Copyright © 2020 Boileau, Doroudgar, Riechert, Jürgensen, Ho, Katus, Völkers and Dieterich.)

Substantial evidence underscores the clinical efficacy of inhibiting CYP17A1-mediated androgen biosynthesis by abiraterone for treatment of prostate oncology. Previous structural analysis and in vitro assays revealed inconsistencies surrounding the nature and potency of CYP17A1 inhibition by abiraterone. Here, we establish that abiraterone is a slow-, tight-binding inhibitor of CYP17A1, with initial weak binding preceding the subsequent slow isomerization to a high-affinity CYP17A1-abiraterone complex. The in vitro inhibition constant of the final high-affinity CYP17A1-abiraterone complex ( ( K i * = 0.39 nM )yielded a binding free energy of -12.8 kcal/mol that was quantitatively consistent with the in silico prediction of -14.5 kcal/mol. Prolonged suppression of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) concentrations observed in VCaP cells after abiraterone washout corroborated its protracted CYP17A1 engagement. Molecular dynamics simulations illuminated potential structural determinants underlying the rapid reversible binding characterizing the two-step induced-fit model. Given the extended residence time (42 hours) of abiraterone within the CYP17A1 active site, in silico simulations demonstrated sustained target engagement even when most abiraterone has been eliminated systemically. Subsequent pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic (PK-PD) modeling linking time-dependent CYP17A1 occupancy to in vitro steroidogenic dynamics predicted comparable suppression of downstream DHEA-sulfate at both 1000- and 500-mg doses of abiraterone acetate. This enabled mechanistic rationalization of a clinically reported PK-PD disconnect, in which equipotent reduction of downstream plasma DHEA-sulfate levels was achieved despite a lower systemic exposure of abiraterone. Our novel findings provide the impetus for re-evaluating the current dosing paradigm of abiraterone with the aim of preserving PD efficacy while mitigating its dose-dependent adverse effects and financial burden. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: With the advent of novel molecularly targeted anticancer modalities, it is becoming increasingly evident that optimal dose selection must necessarily be predicated on mechanistic characterization of the relationships between target exposure, drug-target interactions, and pharmacodynamic endpoints. Nevertheless, efficacy has always been perceived as being exclusively synonymous with affinity-based measurements of drug-target binding. This work demonstrates how elucidating the slow-, tight-binding inhibition of CYP17A1 by abiraterone via in vitro and in silico analyses was pivotal in establishing the role of kinetic selectivity in mediating time-dependent CYP17A1 engagement and eventually downstream efficacy outcomes., (U.S. Government work not protected by U.S. copyright.)

Purpose: There is a concern that influenza vaccination could increase the incidence of immune-related adverse events (irAEs) in patients with cancer receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors. The aim of our study was to determine the safety of influenza vaccination in this patient population., Patients and Methods: We retrospectively identified patients who received at least 1 dose of pembrolizumab during any influenza season from September 2014 to August 2017 and reviewed medical records for irAEs. The primary endpoint was the incidence of irAEs. We used multivariable logistic regression and cumulative incidence curve with competing risks for comparison., Results: Among 162 patients with cancer included in this study, 70 patients (43.2%) received at least 1 influenza vaccination. The vaccinated group was significantly older ( P = .002) and received more cycles of pembrolizumab ( P = .006). The incidence of any grade irAEs in the vaccinated group trended toward being lower (25.7% v 40.2%; P = .07) compared with the nonvaccinated group. Influenza vaccination was independently associated with fewer irAEs, with an odds ratio of 0.4 (95% CI, 0.2 to 0.9; P = .03) in multivariable analyses. The vaccinated group was less likely to have irAEs compared with the nonvaccinated group (24.7% v 34.4% at 12 months; P = .05), with death as a competing risk. The median irAE-free duration in the vaccinated group was longer than the nonvaccinated group (not reached v 28 months; P = .037)., Conclusion: Influenza vaccination in patients with cancer receiving immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy was not associated with increased irAEs. This supports the safety of influenza vaccination in this patient population.

Introduction: The Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) is regarded as a self-administered screening questionnaire for assessing the presence of any type of sexual dysfunction., Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the Vietnamese translation version of the Female Sexual Function Index (VN-FSFI) in a sample of infertile Vietnamese women., Methods: An existing Vietnamese translated-FSFI version was used as a first-step approach to back-translate into English. Based on the comparison of the original English version and the back-translation script, a modified version of the FSFI was revised. This version was evaluated for "content validity" by a panel of 3 experts and for "face validity" by a pilot study that was based on its results to refine to reach the last Vietnamese FSFI version (VN-FSFI version). A cross-sectional survey to investigate psychometric reliability and validity of the last VN-FSFI version was conducted with 271 infertile Vietnamese women from January 2017 through February 2018, at a hospital located in a central region of Vietnam. Construct validity was evaluated by principal component analysis using varimax rotation and factor analysis. Reliability studies on internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha coefficient, domain inter-correlations, and domain-total correlations) and on test-retest (Intraclass correlation coefficient)., Main Outcome Measure: Construct validity and the reliability of the VN-FSFI version., Results: Based on principal component analysis, a 5-factor model was established, consisting of arousal/orgasm, satisfaction, pain, lubrication, and desire that explained 72.32% of the total variance. The factorial structure supported to 6 retrieved domains that corresponded to the original version. The Cronbach's alpha coefficients were 0.92 for the total scale and 0.72-0.89 for the domains. Domain inter-correlations ranged from 0.36-0.73 and domain-total correlation coefficients ranged from 0.67-0.84. Test-retest correlation coefficients over 2-4 weeks were 0.97 (P < .001) for the total scale and 0.84-0.96 for the domains., Conclusion: With good psychometric properties, which are almost similar to the original English version, this Vietnamese translation version of the Female Sexual Function Index (VN-FSFI version) was proved to be a valid and reliable instrument to measure multidimensional aspects of sexual function in infertile Vietnamese women. Ho TTT, Le MT, Truong QV, et al. Validation of the Vietnamese Translation Version of the Female Sexual Function Index in Infertile Patients. Sex Med 2019;8:57-64., (Copyright © 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Endothelial pro-inflammatory activation plays a pivotal role in atherosclerosis, and many pro-inflammatory and atherogenic signals converge upon mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR). Inhibitors of mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) reduced atherosclerosis in preclinical studies, but side effects including insulin resistance and dyslipidemia limit their clinical use in this context. Therefore, we investigated PRAS40, a cell type-specific endogenous modulator of mTORC1, as alternative target. Indeed, we previously found PRAS40 gene therapy to improve metabolic profile; however, its function in endothelial cells and its role in atherosclerosis remain unknown. Here we show that PRAS40 negatively regulates endothelial mTORC1 and pro-inflammatory signaling. Knockdown of PRAS40 in endothelial cells promoted TNFα-induced mTORC1 signaling, proliferation, upregulation of inflammatory markers and monocyte recruitment. In contrast, PRAS40-overexpression blocked mTORC1 and all measures of pro-inflammatory signaling. These effects were mimicked by pharmacological mTORC1-inhibition with torin1. In an in vivo model of atherogenic remodeling, mice with induced endothelium-specific PRAS40 deficiency showed enhanced endothelial pro-inflammatory activation as well as increased neointimal hyperplasia and atherosclerotic lesion formation. These data indicate that PRAS40 suppresses atherosclerosis via inhibition of endothelial mTORC1-mediated pro-inflammatory signaling. In conjunction with its favourable effects on metabolic homeostasis, this renders PRAS40 a potential target for the treatment of atherosclerosis.

A vast array of plant-based compounds has enriched red biotechnology to serve the human health and food. A peculiar medicinal plant which was an element of traditional Chinese medicine for centuries as a liver and kidney tonic, for life longevity and hair blackening, is Polygonum multiflorum Thunb. (PM) which is popularly known as "He shou wu" or "Fo-ti" and is rich in chemical components like stilbenes, quinones, and flavonoids which have been used as anti-aging, anti-alopecia, anti-cancer, anti-oxidative, anti-bacterial, anti-hyperlipidemia, anti-atherosclerosis, and immunomodulating and hepatoprotective agents in the modern medicine. The health benefits from PM are attained since long through commercial products such as PM root powder, extract, capsules, tincture, shampoo, and body sprays in the market. Currently, the production of these pharmaceuticals and functional foods possessing stilbenes, quinones, and flavonoids is through cell and organ cultures to meet the commercial demand. However, hepatotoxic effects of PM-based products are the stumbling blocks for its long-term usage. The current review encompasses a comprehensive account of bioactive compounds of PM roots, their biological activities as well as efficacy and toxicity issues of PM ingredients and future perspectives.

A lab-scale ensiling study was carried out to investigate the fermentation quality of water hyacinth (WH) supplemented with molasses, rice bran, as an absorbent, and an inoculant in the form of fermented vegetable juice and their combinations. After wilting the water hyacinths for 7 h to a dry matter (DM) content of 240 to 250 g/kg, the following treatments were applied: i) Control (C), WH only; ii) WH with sugarcane molasses at 40 g/kg WH (CM); iii) WH inoculated with fermented vegetable juice at 10 ml/kg WH (CI); iv) CM and CI (CMI) combined; v) WH with 150 g rice bran/kg WH (CA); vi) CA and CI combined (CAI); vii) CA and CM combined (CAM); and viii) CA, CM and CI combined (CAMI). After application of additives, the differently treated forages were mixed and ensiled in triplicates in 1,500-ml polyethylene jars. After ensiling for 3 d, pH values in all treatments, except C and CI, had decreased to approximately 4.0 and remained low till 14 d. After 56 d, pH had increased between 0.4 to 0.9 pH-units compared to those at 14 d. The ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N) concentration ranged from an acceptable level in treatment CM (8 g/kg N) to a high NH3-N value in treatment CMI (16 g/kg N). Lactic acid formation was higher in CI than in all other treatments. Butyric acid contents, which indicate badly fermented silages, were low in all silages (<2 g/kg DM). There were two-way interactions (p-values from <0.001 to 0.045) for almost all fermentation end-products and pH, except for the molasses×inoculant interaction on NH3-N (p = 0.26). Significant 3-way interactions were found on all observed variables except for weight losses of silages. It is concluded that conserving wilted WH as silage for ruminants may be improved by the addition of molasses or rice bran.