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Background Accurately predicting the risk level for a lymph node metastasis is critical in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This study aimed to construct a novel nomogram to identify patients with a risk of lymph node metastasis in T1-2 NSCLC based on positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) and clinical characteristics. Methods From January 2011 to November 2017, the records of 318 consecutive patients who had undergone PET/CT examination within 30 days before surgical resection for clinical T1-2 NSCLC were retrospectively reviewed. A nomogram to predict the risk of lymph node metastasis was constructed. The model was confirmed using bootstrap resampling, and an independent validation cohort contained 156 patients from June 2017 to February 2020 at another institution. Results Six factors [age, tumor location, histology, the lymph node maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax), the tumor SUVmax and the carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) value] were identified and entered into the nomogram. The nomogram developed based on the analysis showed robust discrimination, with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.858 in the primary cohort and 0.749 in the validation cohort. The calibration curve for the probability of lymph node metastasis showed excellent concordance between the predicted and actual results. Decision curve analysis suggested that the nomogram was clinically useful. Conclusions We set up and validated a novel and effective nomogram that can predict the risk of lymph node metastasis for individual patients with T1-2 NSCLC. This model may help clinicians to make treatment recommendations for individuals.

Aim: The aim of this study is to investigate the mechanism and interaction of microRNA-181a (miR-181a), toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) in gastric hypersensitivity in diabetic rats. Methods: Diabetes was induced by a single intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ; 65 mg/kg) in female SD rats. Gastric balloon distension technique was used to measure diabetic gastric hypersensitivity. Gastric-specific (T7-T10) dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons were acutely dissociated to measure excitability with patch-clamp techniques. Western blotting was employed to measure the expressions of TLR4, TRAF6 and NF-κB subunit p65 in T7-T10 DRGs. The expressions of microRNAs in T7-T10 DRGs were measured with quantitative real-time PCR and fluorescence in situ hybridization. Dual-luciferase reporter gene assay was used to detect the targeting regulation of microRNAs on TLR4. Results: (1) Diabetic rats were more sensitive to graded gastric balloon distention at 2 and 4 weeks. (2) The expression of TLR4 was significantly up-regulated in T7-T10 DRGs of diabetic rats. Intrathecal injection of CLI-095 (TLR4-selective inhibitor) attenuated diabetic gastric hypersensitivity, and markedly reversed the hyper-excitability of gastric-specific DRG neurons. (3) The expressions of miR-181a and miR-7a were significantly decreased in diabetic rats. MiR-181a could directly regulate the expression of TLR4, while miR-7a couldn’t. (4) Intrathecal injection of miR-181a agomir down-regulated the expression of TLR4, reduced the hyper-excitability of gastric-specific neurons, and alleviated gastric hypersensitivity. (5) p65 and TLR4 were co-expressed in Dil-labeled DRG neurons. (6) Inhibition of p65 attenuated diabetic gastric hypersensitivity and hyper-excitability of gastric-specific DRG neurons. (7) The expression of TRAF6 was significantly up-regulated in diabetic rats. CLI-095 treatment also reduced the expression of TRAF6 and p65. Conclusion: The reduction of microRNA-181a in T7-T10 DRGs might up-regulate TLR4 expression. TLR4 activated NF-κB through MyD88-dependent signaling pathway, increased excitability of gastric-specific DRG neurons, and contributed to diabetic gastric hypersensitivity.

RGB salient object detection (SOD) performs poorly in low-contrast and complex background scenes. Fortunately, the thermal infrared image can capture the heat distribution of scenes as complementary information to the RGB image, so the RGB-T SOD has recently attracted more and more attention. Many researchers have committed to accelerating the development of RGB-T SOD, but some problems still remain to be solved. For example, the defective sample and interfering information contained in the RGB or thermal image hinder the model from learning proper saliency features, meanwhile the low-level features with noisy information result in incomplete salient objects or false positive detection. To solve these problems, we design a cross-modal attention enhancement network (CAE-Net). First, we concretely design a cross-modal fusion (CMF) module to fuse cross-modal features, where the cross-attention unit (CAU) is employed to enhance the two modal features, and channel attention is used to dynamically weigh and fuse the two modal features. Then, we design the joint-modality decoder (JMD) to fuse cross-level features, where the low-level features are purified by higher level features, and multi-scale features are sufficiently integrated. Besides, we add two single-modality decoder (SMD) branches to preserve more modality-specific information. Finally, we employ a multi-stream fusion (MSF) module to fuse three decoders’ features. Comprehensive experiments are conducted on three RGB-T datasets, and the results show that our CAE-Net is comparable to the other methods.

Precise monitoring of internal temperature is vital for thermal homeostasis in mammals. For decades, warm-sensitive neurons (WSNs) within the preoptic area (POA) were thought to sense internal warmth, using this information as feedback to regulate body temperature (T

Anti-IgLON5 disease is a recently defined autoimmune disorder of the nervous system associated with autoantibodies against IgLON5. Given its broad clinical spectrum and extremely complex pathogenesis, as well as difficulties in its early diagnosis and treatment, anti-IgLON5 disease has become the subject of considerable research attention in the field of neuroimmunology. Anti-IgLON5 disease has characteristics of both autoimmunity and neurodegeneration due to the unique activity of the anti-IgLON5 antibody. Neuropathologic examination revealed the presence of a tauopathy preferentially affecting the hypothalamus and brainstem tegmentum, potentially broadening our understanding of tauopathies. In contrast to that seen with other autoimmune encephalitis-related antibodies, basic studies have demonstrated that IgLON5 antibody-induced neuronal damage and degeneration are irreversible, indicative of a potential link between autoimmunity and neurodegeneration in anti-IgLON5 disease. Herein, we comprehensively review and discuss basic and clinical studies relating to anti-IgLON5 disease to better understand this complicated disorder.

Aim: To derive an echocardiography-based prognostic score for a 3-year risk of mortality in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD). Methods: 173 ESRD patients hospitalized in the second affiliated hospital of Soochow University from January 1, 2010, to July 31, 2016, were enrolled and followed up for 3 years. All subjects began to receive HD from recruitment. Baseline clinical and echocardiographic parameters were collected and screened for risk factors using univariate and multivariate analysis. The prognostic value of echocardiographic indexes was determined by concordance indexes and reclassification assay. Restricted cubic spline models (RCS) and forest plots were employed to visualize the association between risk factors and all-cause mortality. A multivariate nomogram including the identified factors was developed to estimate the prognosis. Results: After multivariate adjustment for advanced age, hypertension, diabetes, and decreased hemoglobin (Hb), echocardiographic indexes including left atrial diameter index (LADI), cardiac valvular calcification, and moderate to severe cardiac valve regurgitation were independently associated with the risk of 3-year mortality in HD patients. RCS showed that age, Hb, and LADI were positively associated with the risk of mortality. Adding multiple echocardiographic indexes to a basic model containing age, hypertension, diabetes, and Hb increased the concordance index and improved reclassification. A multivariate Cox model-derived nomogram showed the association between each factor and mortality by the end of follow-up. Conclusions: Echocardiographic indexes showed independent predictive power for mortality in ESRD patients and may constitute a promising prognostic tool in this population.

Touch can positively influence cognition and emotion, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we report that tactile experience enrichment improves memory and alleviates anxiety by remodeling neurons along the dorsoventral axis of the dentate gyrus (DG) in adult mice. Tactile enrichment induces differential activation and structural modification of neurons in the dorsal and ventral DG, and increases the presynaptic input from the lateral entorhinal cortex (LEC), which is reciprocally connected with the primary somatosensory cortex (S1), to tactile experience-activated DG neurons. Chemogenetic activation of tactile experience-tagged dorsal and ventral DG neurons enhances memory and reduces anxiety respectively, whereas inactivation of these neurons or S1-innervated LEC neurons abolishes the beneficial effects of tactile enrichment. Moreover, adulthood tactile enrichment attenuates early-life stress-induced memory deficits and anxiety-related behavior. Our findings demonstrate that enriched tactile experience retunes the pathway from S1 to DG and enhances DG neuronal plasticity to modulate cognition and emotion., Touch can positively modulate cognitive performance and emotional response. Here the authors demonstrate that enriched tactile experience improves memory and reduces anxiety in adult mice by remodelling the pathway from the primary somatosensory cortex to the dentate gyrus.

AIM To evaluate the efficacy and safety of polyethylene glycol loxenatide (PEX168) monotherapy in type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients in China. MATERIALS AND METHODS In a multicentred, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled phase 3a clinical trial, 361 patients with inadequate glycaemic control (HbA1c 7.0%-10.5%, fasting plasma glucose

A new species of the genus Rhodambulyx Mell, 1939, Rhodambulyx xinyuae sp. nov., is described from Simianshan Nature Reserve in Southwest Chongqing, China. This species is similar to R. davidi Mell, 1939 and R. kitchingi Brechlin, 2015 in habitus, but can be distinguished by a different wing pattern, male genitalia structure and DNA barcode sequence. In addition, Rhodambulyx namvui Eitschberger & Nguyen, 2017 is removed from synonymy with R. kitchingi and synonymized instead with R. davidi, although whether it would be better treated as a subspecies of R. davidi requires further investigation.

Somatic symptom disorder (SSD), which occurs in about 5-7 percent of the adult population, involves heightened physical and emotional sensitivity to pain. However, its neural mechanism remains elusive and thus hinders effective clinical intervention. In this study, we employed chronic restraint stress (CRS)-induced hyperalgesia as a mouse model to investigate the neural mechanism underlying SSD and its pharmacological treatment. We found that CRS induced hyperactivity of anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), whereas chemogenetic inhibition of such hyperactivity could prevent CRS-induced hyperalgesia. Systematic application and ACC local infusion of fluoxetine alleviated CRS-induced hyperalgesia. Moreover, we found that fluoxetine exerted its anti-hyperalgesic effects through inhibiting the hyperactivity of ACC and upregulating 5-HT1A receptors. Our study thus uncovers the functional role of 5-HT signaling in modulating pain sensation and provides a neural basis for developing precise clinical intervention for SSD.

Summary The efficacy of generic teriparatide in improving BMD at lumbar spine in patients with osteoporosis was similar to that of alendronate. It provided a new choice for osteoporosis treatment in Chinese population. Introduction To determine whether the efficacy of generic teriparatide is noninferior to alendronate for Chinese postmenopausal women with osteoporosis. Methods Eligible patients were randomly assigned (2:1) in a 48-week, open-label design to receive 20 µg sc daily teriparatide or 70 mg oral weekly alendronate. Primary outcome was percentage change in BMD at the lumbar spine from baseline to 48 weeks and was assessed for non-inferiority. The same outcome was further assessed for superiority as a secondary endpoint. Results Three hundred ninety-one and 196 participants were randomly assigned to the teriparatide or alendronate group, of whom 379 and 194 receiving at least one dose of teriparatide and alendronate treatment were eligible for the efficacy analysis. Teriparatide was non-inferior to alendronate for BMD change at lumbar spine (treatment difference: 0.7%, 95% CI: − 0.3 to 1.7%), which excluded the predefined non-inferiority margin of − 1.5%. However, teriparatide was not statistically superior to alendronate in improving BMD at lumbar spine (P = 0.169). At 48 weeks, changes in BMD at total hip were − 1.0% and 2.2% in teriparatide and alendronate group, respectively (P P = 0.128). Serum P1NP and β-CTX levels significantly increased in the teriparatide group and markedly decreased in alendronate group (all P Conclusions Teriparatide was not inferior to alendronate in increasing BMD at lumbar spine in Chinese postmenopausal women, and they achieved these effects through different mechanisms.

Since the lossless image compression based on hierarchical latent variable models requires proper image pre-processing, we analyze the performance of different pre-processing methods to guide the training of the model for multi‑component medical images.

The mitogenomes of two insular subspecies of Pazala, G. (P.) eurous asakurae and G. (P.) mullah chungianus from Taiwan Island, are reported. Both mitogenomes are circular, 15,228 bp and 15,240 bp i...

The migration sources and pathways of Sogatella furcifera (Horváth) in topologically complex regions like Yunnan, China, and adjacent montane areas have long been a challenging task and a bottleneck in effective pest forecast and control. The present research reinvestigated this issue using a combination of mtDNA and long‐term historical wind field data in an attempt to provide new insights. Genetic analyses showed that the 60 populations of S. furcufera collected across Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan lack genetic structure and geographic isolation, while spatial analysis of haplotype and diversity indices discovered geographic relevance between populations. Migration rate analysis combined with high‐resolution 10‐year wind field analysis detected the following migration sources, pathways, and impacted areas which could explain the outbreak pattern in Yunnan. (a) Dominating stepwise northward migrations originated from northern Indochina, southern Yunnan, and central‐eastern Yunnan, impacting their northern areas. (b) Concurring summer–autumn southward (return) migration originated from nearly all latitude belts of Sichuan and Yunnan mainly impacting central and southern Yunnan. (c) Regular eastward and summer–autumn westward migrations across Yunnan. The northward migration reflects the temporal rhythm of gradual outbreaks from the south to the north in a year, while the return migration may explain the repeated or very severe outbreaks in the impacted areas. To form a better pest forecast and control network, attention must also be paid to the northern part of Yunnan to suppress the impact of return migration in summers and autumns.

Craniopharyngioma is an uncommon intracranial tumor that primarily occurs in the sella turcica. Giant cystic craniopharyngioma is rare in general and extremely rare in adults. We report a rare case of giant cystic craniopharyngioma in the anterior pontine cisterna and suprasellar cisterna. A 27-year-old man presented with double vision, and craniocerebral MRI revealed cystic masses in the anterior pontine cisterna and suprasellar cisterna. The masses were removed surgically and diagnosed as large cystic craniopharyngiomas by pathology and MRI. Giant cystic craniopharyngioma is rare in adults. Through this case report, we hope to increase awareness of this disease among various clinicians, including radiologists.

Background Dexmedetomidine induces a sedative response that is associated with rapid arousal. To elucidate the underlying mechanisms, the authors hypothesized that dexmedetomidine increases the activity of dopaminergic neurons in the ventral tegmental area, and that this action contributes to the unique sedative properties of dexmedetomidine. Methods Only male mice were used. The activity of ventral tegmental area dopamine neurons was measured by a genetically encoded Ca2+ indicator and patch-clamp recording. Dopamine neurotransmitter dynamics in the medial prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens were measured by a genetically encoded dopamine sensor. Ventral tegmental area dopamine neurons were inhibited or activated by a chemogenetic approach, and the depth of sedation was estimated by electroencephalography. Results Ca2+ signals in dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area increased after intraperitoneal injection of dexmedetomidine (40 μg/kg; dexmedetomidine, 16.917 [14.882; 21.748], median [25%; 75%], vs. saline, –0.745 [–1.547; 0.359], normalized data, P = 0.001; n = 6 mice). Dopamine transmission increased in the medial prefrontal cortex after intraperitoneal injection of dexmedetomidine (40 μg/kg; dexmedetomidine, 10.812 [9.713; 15.104], median [25%; 75%], vs. saline, –0.498 [–0.664; –0.355], normalized data, P = 0.001; n = 6 mice) and in the nucleus accumbens (dexmedetomidine, 8.543 [7.135; 11.828], median [25%; 75%], vs. saline, –0.329 [–1.220; –0.047], normalized data, P = 0.001; n = 6 mice). Chemogenetic inhibition or activation of ventral tegmental area dopamine neurons increased or decreased slow waves, respectively, after intraperitoneal injection of dexmedetomidine (40 μg/kg; delta wave: two-way repeated measures ANOVA, F[2, 33] = 8.016, P = 0.002; n = 12 mice; theta wave: two-way repeated measures ANOVA, F[2, 33] = 22.800, P < 0.0001; n = 12 mice). Conclusions Dexmedetomidine activates dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area and increases dopamine concentrations in the related forebrain projection areas. This mechanism may explain rapid arousability upon dexmedetomidine sedation. Editor’s Perspective What We Already Know about This Topic What This Article Tells Us That Is New

The development of multicore hardware has provided many new development opportunities for many application software algorithms. Especially, the algorithm with large calculation volume has gained a lot of room for improvement. Through the research and analysis, this paper has presented a parallel PO-Dijkstra algorithm for multicore platform which has split and parallelized the classical Dijkstra algorithm by the multi-threaded programming tool OpenMP. Experiments have shown that the speed of PO-Dijkstra algorithm has been significantly improved. According to the number of nodes, the completion time can be increased by 20–40%. Based on the improved heterogeneous dual-core simulator, the Dijkstra algorithm in Mi Bench is divided into tasks. For the G.72 encoding process, the number of running cycles using “by function” is 34% less than using “divided by data,” while the power consumption is only 83% of the latter in the same situation. Using “divide by data” will reduce the cost and management difficulty of real-time temperature. Using “divide by function” is a good choice for streaming media data. For the Dijkstra algorithm, the data is data without correlation, so using a simpler partitioning method according to the data partitioning can achieve good results. Through the simulation results and the analysis of the results of real-time power consumption, we conclude that for data such as strong data correlation of streaming media types, using “divide by function” will have better performance results; for data types where data correlation is not very strong, the effect of using “divide by data” is even better.

It has been speculated that brain activities might directly control adaptive immune responses in lymphoid organs, although there is little evidence for this. Here we show that splenic denervation in mice specifically compromises the formation of plasma cells during a T cell-dependent but not T cell-independent immune response. Splenic nerve activity enhances plasma cell production in a manner that requires B-cell responsiveness to acetylcholine mediated by the α9 nicotinic receptor, and T cells that express choline acetyl transferase1,2 probably act as a relay between the noradrenergic nerve and acetylcholine-responding B cells. We show that neurons in the central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA) and the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) that express corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) are connected to the splenic nerve; ablation or pharmacogenetic inhibition of these neurons reduces plasma cell formation, whereas pharmacogenetic activation of these neurons increases plasma cell abundance after immunization. In a newly developed behaviour regimen, mice are made to stand on an elevated platform, leading to activation of CeA and PVN CRH neurons and increased plasma cell formation. In immunized mice, the elevated platform regimen induces an increase in antigen-specific IgG antibodies in a manner that depends on CRH neurons in the CeA and PVN, an intact splenic nerve, and B cell expression of the α9 acetylcholine receptor. By identifying a specific brain–spleen neural connection that autonomically enhances humoral responses and demonstrating immune stimulation by a bodily behaviour, our study reveals brain control of adaptive immunity and suggests the possibility to enhance immunocompetency by behavioural intervention. Neuronal activities in the central amygdala and paraventricular nucleus are transmitted via the splenic nerve to increase plasma cell formation after immunization, and this process can be behaviourally enhanced in mice.

The long-armed scarab (Cheirotonus gestroi) is an endangered large insect in southwestern China and neighboring countries; however, limited information is available regarding its population genetics, hindering conservation efforts. Therefore, we investigated the population genetic structure and evolutionary history of C. gestroi in southwestern China. Twenty-five haplotypes were obtained from 47 specimens across five populations. The Dawei Mountain (DWS) population differed from other populations by a high genetic distance. Population structure analysis generated three distinct clades, corresponding to Hengduan Mountains (HM), Ailao Mountains (AM), and Dawei Mountains (DM), and high-level genetic diversity was found in two HM populations. Collectively, the strong genetic differentiation among populations might be due to limited gene flow, geographical isolation, and habitat fragmentation. Therefore, while developing a conservation strategy, HM, AM, and DM groups should be defined as separate management units. Additionally, the DWS population should be given priority protection due to its uniqueness and low genetic diversity.

Aims Painful diabetic neuropathy (PDN) is a refractory complication of diabetes. The study aimed to investigate the role of α‐lipoic acid (ALA) on the regulation of transient receptor potential vanilloid‐1 (TRPV1) in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons of rats with diabetes. Methods Whole‐cell patch‐clamp recordings were employed to measure neuronal excitability in DiI‐labeled DRG neurons of control and streptozotocin (STZ)‐induced diabetic rats. Western blotting and immunofluorescence assays were used to determine the expression and location of NF‐κBp65 and TRPV1. Results STZ‐induced hindpaw pain hypersensitivity and neuronal excitability in L4‐6 DRG neurons were attenuated by intraperitoneal injection with ALA once a day lasted for one week. TRPV1 expression was enhanced in L4‐6 DRGs of diabetic rats compared with age‐matched control rats, which was also suppressed by ALA treatment. In addition, TRPV1 and p65 colocated in the same DRG neurons. The expression of p65 was upregulated in L4‐6 DRGs of diabetic rats. Inhibition of p65 signaling using recombinant lentiviral vectors designated as LV‐NF‐κBp65 siRNA remarkably suppressed TRPV1 expression. Finally, p65 expression was downregulated by ALA treatment. Conclusion Our findings demonstrated that ALA may alleviate neuropathic pain in diabetes by regulating TRPV1 expression via affecting NF‐κB.

Organisms must make sense of a constant stream of sensory inputs from both internal and external sources which compete for attention by determining which ones are salient. The ability to detect and respond appropriately to potentially salient stimuli in the environment is critical to all organisms. However, the neural circuits that process salience are not fully understood. Here, we identify a population of glutamatergic neurons in the ventral pallidum (VP) that play a unique role in salience processing. Using cell-type-specific fiber photometry, we find that VP glutamatergic neurons are robustly activated by a variety of aversion- and reward-related stimuli, as well as novel social and non-social stimuli. Inhibition of the VP glutamatergic neurons reduces the ability to detect salient stimuli in the environment, such as aversive cue, novel conspecific and novel object. Besides, VP glutamatergic neurons project to both the lateral habenula (LHb) and the ventral tegmental area (VTA). Together, our findings demonstrate that the VP glutamatergic neurons participate in salience processing and therefore provide a new perspective on treating several neuropsychiatric disorders, including dementia and psychosis.

Aerobic respiration is the indispensable physiology of higher organism living on earth, since the required energy for biological activities is supplied mainly by this metabolism. It is well established that mitochondria plays an important role in converting the stable chemical energy stored in foods into the active and utilizable energy supplying to life activities. Upon the process, the energy conversion is carried out by the respiratory electron transport chain, which consists of five distinct and coupled protein complexes (termed complex I−V) embedded in the mitochondria intima. Among them, complex I (NADH-ubiquinone oxidoreductase), III (cytochrome bc 1) and IV (cytochrome c oxidase) are the electron-coupled proton-pumping enzymes. Except for the complex V (i.e., ATP synthase), each complex has several redox cofactors to promote the electron transfer within themselves, and the transfer from complex I and II to complex III is shuttled by membrane-embedded ubiquinones, from complex III to IV by the soluble cytochrome c . When the reductive electron is donated by the initial donors NADH or FADH2 to the final acceptor molecular oxygen O2, a transmembrane proton motive force is formed simultaneously. The latter is the driving force for the ATP synthesis via ATP synthase with a ratio of three protons per ATP. All the aforementioned processes are also known as oxidative phosphorylation, and the arrangement of the electron carriers therein is called as respiratory electron transport chain. In the stepwise electron relay, these carriers undergo the redox changes, giving rise to the respective paramagnetic and diamagnetic spin states. These single-electron relays are prone to the electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (EPR), which is a powerful and noninvasive technique to monitor the unpaired electron in situ . As shown in the overwhelming literatures, EPR technique has been adopted to reveal the electron transfer pathway in different biological activities. Herein, the application of EPR to study the dynamic electron transfer in mitochondria is reviewed briefly. However, this conventional application required rather high concentration of the active center at a level of 1–10 µmol/L. Actually, most of the intermediates of the electron carriers are very active and short-life. In the human body, only a few tissues can accumulate such required concentration of paramagnetic substances, e.g., in blood, heart and liver. For the past decade, a more sensitive single-molecule magnetic resonance technique based on the nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center of diamond has been developing dramatically. In principle, this advanced EPR technique requires the less sample or concentration, even down to the single biomolecule, and provides the time-resolved dynamic information. Lately, the studies of single-biomolecule EPR at room temperature or in aqueous solution have been reported consecutively in single protein (MAD2/mitotic arrest deficient-2) and single DNA (tethered DNA duplexes). Finally, a perspective of single-biomolecule magnetic resonance technique is given for the further study on mitochondrion and relative physiological activities. The single molecule EPR technique is also helpful to unveil the other specific information of biological processes, for example, drug screening, personalized medicine and other major applications.

The TIM family comprises of eight genes in the mouse, three of which are conserved in humans (TIM-1, TIM-3, and TIM-4). Previous studies have revealed the relationships between Tim3+ Tregs and autoimmune disease. There was little study about the expression of Tim1 and Tim4 surface molecules on Tregs. We evaluated the frequency of the Tim1+Tregs and Tim4+Tregs in type 1 diabetes (T1D) in the present study. A total of 28 patients with T1D and 14 gender-, age-, and ethnically matched healthy volunteers were recruited. PBMCs from these individuals were isolated and analyzed by flow cytometry. Splenocytes from mice were also analyzed by flow cytometry. There is no difference in the frequency of Treg cells in peripheral blood isolated from T1D patients. Tim1 on CD4+CD25+ T cells decreased significantly in PBMC of patients with T1D(1.19 ± 0.17% vs 2.78 ± 0.38%, 95% CI:0.87–2.31, P

Bismuth(III) oxidation of 3,5-di-substituted-1,2,4-triazolato anions afforded a paddlewheel 1,2,4-triazolato dibismuth complex [L2(Bi–Bi)L2] (L = η1,η1-3,5-R2tz, R = Ph (3), iPr (4)) with very short Bi(II)–Bi(II) bonds (2.8650(4)−2.8721(3) A). The reaction involved the intermediates of the organobismuth radical [Bi(R2tz)2]˙ and neutral N-1,2,4-triazolyl radical [3,5-R2tz]˙. The dimerization of the former produced the corresponding dibismuth complex while the latter was trapped by using spin trap 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide (DMPO) to give the radical adduct of {(3,5-R2tz)(DMPO)}˙ which was unambiguously evidenced by EPR analysis.