Search

Satellite radar backscatter contains unique information on land surface moisture, vegetation features, and surface roughness and has thus been used in a range of Earth science disciplines. However, there is no single global radar data set that has a relatively long wavelength and a decades-long time span. We here provide the first long-term (since 1992), high-resolution (∼8.9 km instead of the commonly used ∼25 km resolution) monthly satellite radar backscatter data set over global land areas, called the long-term, high-resolution scatterometer (LHScat) data set, by fusing signals from the European Remote Sensing satellite (ERS; 1992–2001; C-band; 5.3 GHz), Quick Scatterometer (QSCAT, 1999–2009; Ku-band; 13.4 GHz), and the Advanced SCATterometer (ASCAT; since 2007; C-band; 5.255 GHz). The 6-year data gap between C-band ERS and ASCAT was filled by modelling a substitute C-band signal during 1999–2009 from Ku-band QSCAT signals and climatic information. To this end, we first rescaled the signals from different sensors, pixel by pixel. We then corrected the monthly signal differences between the C-band and the scaled Ku-band signals by modelling the signal differences from climatic variables (i.e. monthly precipitation, skin temperature, and snow depth) using decision tree regression. The quality of the merged radar signal was assessed by computing the Pearson r, root mean square error (RMSE), and relative RMSE (rRMSE) between the C-band and the corrected Ku-band signals in the overlapping years (1999–2001 and 2007–2009). We obtained high Pearson r values and low RMSE values at both the regional (r≥0.92, RMSE ≤ 0.11 dB, and rRMSE ≤ 0.38) and pixel levels (median r across pixels ≥ 0.64, median RMSE ≤ 0.34 dB, and median rRMSE ≤ 0.88), suggesting high accuracy for the data-merging procedure. The merged radar signals were then validated against the European Space Agency (ESA) ERS-2 data, which provide observations for a subset of global pixels until 2011, even after the failure of on-board gyroscopes in 2001. We found highly concordant monthly dynamics between the merged radar signals and the ESA ERS-2 signals, with regional Pearson r values ranging from 0.79 to 0.98. These results showed that our merged radar data have a consistent C-band signal dynamic. The LHScat data set (https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.20407857; Tao et al., 2023) is expected to advance our understanding of the long-term changes in, e.g., global vegetation and soil moisture with a high spatial resolution. The data set will be updated on a regular basis to include the latest images acquired by ASCAT and to include even higher spatial and temporal resolutions.

Zhichao Lin,1,&ast; Wenhai Huang,1,&ast; Yongsheng Yi,1,&ast; Dongbing Li,2,&ast; Zehua Xie,1 Zumei Li,1 Min Ye1 1Department of Thoracic Surgery, Jiangmen Central Hospital, Affiliated Jiangmen Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Jiangmen, 529030, Guangdong, People’s Republic of China; 2MyGene Diagnostics Co., Ltd., Guangzhou, 510000, Guangdong, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Zhichao Lin; Min YeDepartment of Thoracic Surgery, Jiangmen Central Hospital, Affiliated Jiangmen Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, No. 23 Haibang Street, Beijie, Jiangmen, 529030, Guangdong, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86-750-3989432Email 230160549@qq.com; Yeminzhangcuiyuan@126.comBackground: The role of long noncoding RNA (LncRNA) ADAMTS9 antisense RNA 2 (ADAMTS9-AS2) is unclear in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD). The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between ADAMTS9-AS2 and LUAD, based on The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and bioinformatics analysis.Methods: Various statistical methods, Kaplan–Meier method, Cox regression analysis, GSEA, and immune infiltration analysis were used to evaluate the relationship between clinical features and ADAMTS9-AS2 expression, prognostic factors, and the significant involvement of ADAMTS9-AS2 in function.Results: In LUAD patients, low expression of ADAMTS9-AS2 was associated with N stage (P=0.011), gender (P=0.002), number of packs smoked (P=0.024) and smoker (P< 0.001). Low ADAMTS9-AS2 expression predicted a poorer overall survival (OS) (HR: 0.68; 95% CI: 0.51– 0.91; P=0.01). And ADAMTS9-AS2 expression (HR: 0.626; 95% CI: 0.397– 0.986; P=0.043) was independently correlated with OS in LUAD patients. Unwinding of DNA, extrinsic pathway, polo-like kinase-mediated events, cori cycle, MCM pathway, proteasome pathway, lagging strand synthesis and PCNA-dependent long patch base excision repair were differentially enriched in ADAMTS9-AS2 high expression phenotype. ADAMTS9-AS2 expression was correlated with certain immune infiltrating cells.Conclusion: In LUAD patients, ADAMTS9-AS2 expression was significantly associated with poor survival and immune infiltration. ADAMTS9-AS2 may be a promising biomarker of prognosis and response to immunotherapy for LUAD.Keywords: lung adenocarcinoma, ADAMTS9-AS2 antisense RNA 2, prognosis, immune infiltration, biomarker

Prospective studies of encephalitis are rare in regions where encephalitis is prevalent, such as low middle-income Southeast Asian countries. We compared the diagnostic yield of local and advanced tests in cases of pediatric encephalitis in Myanmar.Children with suspected subacute or acute encephalitis at Yangon Children's Hospital, Yangon, Myanmar, were prospectively recruited from 2016-2018. Cohort 1 (n = 65) had locally available diagnostic testing, whereas cohort 2 (n = 38) had advanced tests for autoantibodies (ie, cell-based assays, tissue immunostaining, studies with cultured neurons) and infections (ie, BioFire FilmArray multiplex Meningitis/Encephalitis multiplex PCR panel, metagenomic sequencing, and pan-viral serologic testing [VirScan] of cerebrospinal fluid).A total of 20 cases (13 in cohort 1 and 7 in cohort 2) were found to have illnesses other than encephalitis. Of the 52 remaining cases in cohort 1, 43 (83%) had presumed infectious encephalitis, of which 2 cases (4%) had a confirmed infectious etiology. Nine cases (17%) had presumed autoimmune encephalitis. Of the 31 cases in cohort 2, 23 (74%) had presumed infectious encephalitis, of which one (3%) had confirmed infectious etiology using local tests only, whereas 8 (26%) had presumed autoimmune encephalitis. Advanced tests confirmed an additional 10 (32%) infections, 4 (13%) possible infections, and 5 (16%) cases of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antibody encephalitis.Pediatric encephalitis is prevalent in Myanmar, and advanced technologies increase identification of treatable infectious and autoimmune causes. Developing affordable advanced tests to use globally represents a high clinical and research priority to improve the diagnosis and prognosis of encephalitis. ANN NEUROL 2022.

Contaminant-bearing fine biochar particles (FBPs) may exert significantly different toxicity profiles from their contaminant-free counterparts. While the role of FBPs in promoting contaminant uptake has been recognized, it is unclear whether the binding of contaminants can modify the biochemical reactivity and toxicological profiles of FBPs. Here, we show that binding of benzo[a]pyrene (B(a)P, a model polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon) at environmentally relevant exposure concentrations markedly alters the cytotoxicity of FBPs to macrophages, an important line of innate immune defense against airborne particulate matters (PMs). Specifically, B(a)P-bearing FBPs elicit more severe disruption of the phospholipid membrane, endocytosis, oxidative stress, autophagy, and compromised innate immune defense, as evidenced by blunted proinflammatory effects, compared with B(a)P-free FBPs. Notably, the altered cytotoxicity cannot be attributed to the dissolution of B(a)P from the B(a)P-bearing FBPs, but appears to be related to B(a)P adsorption-induced changes of FBPs bioreactivity toward macrophages. Our findings highlight the significance of environmental chemical transformation in altering the bioreactivity and toxicity of PMs and call for further studies on other types of carbonaceous nanoparticles and additional exposure scenarios.

Zhilan Yao,1,2 Liuping Shu,1,2 Yi Yi,1,2 Lifu Qiao1,2 1Department of Gynecology, Wujin Hospital Affiliated with Jiangsu University, Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, 213100, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Gynecology, The Wujin Clinical College of Xuzhou Medical University, Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, 213100, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Yi Yi; Lifu QiaoDepartment of Gynecology, Wujin Hospital Affiliated with Jiangsu University, No. 2 Yongning North Road, Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, 213100, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86-0519-85336190Email dryiyi_wj@126.com; guanhangej290@163.comAim: Cervical cancer (CC) is the fourth most common cancer among women worldwide. We aimed to explore the role of hsa_circ_000543 played in CC.Methods: The hsa_circ_000543 expressions in CC tissues and cells were measured by qRT-PCR. The correlation of hsa_circ_000543 expression and the clinical features of CC patients were analyzed by SPSS 20.0. The up- or down-regulated plasmids of hsa_circ_000543 were respectively transfected into CC cells. Cell proliferation, apoptosis and colony formation were detected through CCK-8 assay, flow cytometry and cell colony formation assay, respectively. The cell migration and invasion were evaluated by Transwell assay. The underlying molecular mechanism of hsa_circ_000543 was studied by bioinformatic prediction tools and luciferase reporter assay. Rescue experiments were performed to validate the regulation mechanism of hsa_circ_000543/miR-567/ZNF268 axis in CC.Results: Hsa_circ_000543 was over-expressed in CC tissues and cells. The high expression of hsa_circ_000543 indicated poor prognosis of CC patients. Hsa_circ_000543 promoted cell proliferation, colony formation, migration and invasion, as well as inhibited cell apoptosis in CC cells. Hsa_circ_000543 directly targeted miR-567/ZNF268 in CC cell lines. In CC tumor tissues and cells, the hsa_circ_000543 expression was negatively correlated with miR-567 expression and showed a positive correlation with ZNF268 expression. The rescue experiments revealed that hsa_circ_000543 mediated cell proliferation, apoptosis, colony formation, migration and invasion of CC cells via regulating miR-567/ZNF268 axis.Conclusion: Hsa_circ_000543 regulated CC cell activities through binding miR-567 and therefore enhancing ZNF268 expression.Keywords: cervical cancer, circular RNA, hsa_circ_000543, miR-567, ZNF268

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have long been recognized for negatively influencing individual outcomes such that each additional ACE exposure increases the risk for negative health and behavioral outcomes. Little is known, however, about how the more recent accumulation of ACEs occurring in follow-up periods influence global functioning considering the past accumulation of ACEs reported at baseline by justice-involved adolescents. Participants were 851 adolescents who completed the Northwestern Juvenile Project (NJP), a longitudinal survey. OLS regression models were used to examine the influence of follow-up and baseline ACEs on the functional impairment of youth. Results indicate that both follow-up and baseline ACEs were associated with worse functioning over time with baseline ACEs demonstrating a greater effect. This study highlights the importance of assessing accumulations of ACEs over time for adolescents in the juvenile justice system and considering how youth of different characteristics and experiences may differently encounter functional impairment. Implications for offering trauma-informed services to disrupt the effects of adversity on adolescents’ functioning are discussed.

Introduction: Marble rocks, composed of dust containing calcium carbonate and silica particles, predispose to a higher prevalence of occupational lung diseases. This study aimed to assess workplace control measures and lung function impairment among marble stone carvers. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among 120 marble stone carvers in Sa-Kyin Village, Madayar Township in May 2019. Information about existing control measures in the workplace was assessed using a pre-tested structured questionnaire and participants’ lung function using spirometry. Respirable dust measurements in twelve randomly selected workers were performed by personal air sampling pumps. Results: It was found that 9.2% of marble stone carvers used disposable or cloth masks throughout the working time, but no one was found using appropriate devices like respirators. No one reported about regular medical checkup and provision of health education at the workplaces. Spirometry testing showed 55.8% had lung function impairment. Concentrations of respirable dust ranged from 7.19 to 10.13 mg/m3, significantly higher than the recommended Threshold Limit Value (3 mg/m3). In multivariable logistic regression analysis, development of lung function impairment was associated with age [adjusted Odds Ratio (aOR) = 2.84; 95% CI = 1.02,7.91] and use of face mask (aOR = 0.11; 95% CI = 0.01,0.91). Conclusion: The working environment was found dusty, and a significant proportion of workers had lung function impairment. It is essential to adopt proper dust control measures in stone carving workplaces. Preventive measures like medical surveillance and health education program are vital to reduce the burdens from occupational lung diseases.

Acyl-CoA thioesterase 9 (ACOT9) is a critical regulator of cellular utilization of fatty acids by catalysing the hydrolysis of acyl-CoA thioesters to non-esterified fatty acid and coenzyme A (CoA). Recently, ACOT9 was reported to participate in the pathogenesis of non-alcoholic liver disease (NAFLD), which arises from aberrant lipid metabolism and serves as a risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the functions of ACOT9 in carcinogenesis and aberrant lipid metabolism in HCC remain unexplored. Here, we found that ACOT9 expression is significantly elevated in HCC at least partially due to the down-regulation of miR-449c-3p. Upregulation of ACOT9 is closely associated with poor prognosis for patients with HCC. Knockdown of ACOT9 expression in HCC cells significantly decreased cell proliferation, colony formation, migration and invasion, mainly through suppression of G1-to-S cell cycle transition and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). By contrast, forced ACOT9 expression promoted HCC growth and metastasis. In addition, we found that ACOT9 reprogrammed lipid metabolism in HCC cells by increasing de novo lipogenesis. Furthermore, we demonstrated that increased lipogenesis was involved in ACOT9-promoted HCC growth and metastasis. Altogether, we demonstrate that ACOT9 plays a critical oncogenic role in the promotion of tumour growth and metastasis by reprogramming lipid metabolism in HCC, indicating ACOT9 as a potential therapeutic target in treatment of HCC.

Almost all Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films were prepared with the classical Langmuir film balance, developed more than a century ago. To date, the success of the classical Langmuir film balance and the LB transfer technique is primarily restricted to the study of self-assembled monolayers at the air-water surface. It is challenging to study self-assembled monolayers at the oil-water interface, since the Langmuir film balance requires stacked oil and water layers. We hypothesize that a newly developed experimental method, called constrained drop surfactometry (CDS), is capable of preparing and characterizing LB films from the oil-water interface.We have developed a novel droplet-based LB transfer technique capable of preparing LB films from the oil-water interface. In conjunction with atomic force microscopy, we have demonstrated the capacity of the CDS in studying a natural pulmonary surfactant film self-assembled at the perfluorocarbon-water interface, and have compared to the LB films prepared from the air-water surface using the classical Langmuir film balance.Our findings have demonstrated a novel paradigm for studying self-assembled monolayers and for preparing LB films from the oil-water interface. The CDS holds great promise for expanding the applicability of the traditional LB transfer technique from the air-water surface to the oil-water interface.