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The characterization of the compounds containing the syn-{OW(mu-S)}2 and {OMo(S)-(mu-S)2} cores, stabilized by thiocyanate is reported. This reaction is applied to synthesize the trinuclear [{S2W (super VI)(mu-S)2}2 W(super IV) =O](super2-), and to explore its ability to act as a bis(bidentate) ligand in the coordination to Cu(super +1) and Ag(super +1).

Research reveals that using transition metal ions, sulfido ligands can be abstracted from tetrathiomolybdate(VI) in the presence of air and nucleophilic thiocyanate ligands and accompanied by reduction of W(sup)VI to W(sup)V, dinuclear antiferromagnetically coupled assemblies of the title compound.

Aims/Introduction: Blockade or reversal the progression of diabetic nephropathy is a clinical challenge. The aim of the present study was to examine whether recombinant human glucagon‐like peptide‐1 (rhGLP‐1) has an effect on alleviating urinary protein and urinary albumin levels in diabetic rats. Materials and Methods: Streptozotocin‐induced diabetes rats were treated with rhGLP‐1 insulin and saline. Using immunostaining, hematoxylin–eosin, electron microscopy and periodic acid–Schiff staining to study the pathology of diabetic nephropathy, and we carried out quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, western blot and immunohistochemistry to identify the differentially expressed proteins. The mechanism was studied through advanced glycation end‐products‐induced tubular epithelial cells. Results: rhGLP‐1 inhibits protein kinase C (PKC)‐β, but increases protein kinase A (PKA), which reduces oxidative stress in glomeruli and in cultured glomerular microvascular endothelial cells. In tubules, rhGLP‐1 increased the expression of two key proteins related to re‐absorption – megalin and cubilin – which was accompanied by downregulation of PKC‐β and upregulation of PKA. On human proximal tubular epithelial cells, rhGLP‐1 enhanced the absorption of albumin, and this was blocked by a PKC activator or PKA inhibitor. Conclusions: These findings suggest that rhGLP‐1 can reverse diabetic nephropathy by protecting both glomeruli and tubules by inhibiting PKC and activating PKA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some heterometallic clusters containing [MS4]2-/Cu+ (M=Mo, W) may have potential applications as nonlinear materials A new study reports the syntheses and characterization of anions of [Et4N]2[(M2Cu2S2O2)3(upsilon6-S2)].CH2Cl2 (M=Mo, W). The structures can be seen as a cage containing a S2(2-) group at its centre, with three Cu atoms binding to each S atom of S2(2-).

Objectives: Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) has been widely used in many fields of dentistry. However, little is known about the accuracy of CBCT for evaluation of periodontal status. The objective of this study was to compare and correlate periodontal assessments among CBCT, clinical attachment loss (CAL) measurement, and periapical (PA)/bitewing (BW) radiography.Methods: Eighty patients (28 males, 52 females; age range, 19-84 years) from the University of Texas School of Dentistry at Houston were evaluated retrospectively. Measurements were taken on the central incisors, canines, and first molars of the right maxilla and left mandible. CAL was extracted from periodontal charts. The radiographic distance from the cementum-enamel junction (CEJ) to the alveolar crest was measured for tooth mesial and distal sites on PA/BW and CBCT images using MiPacs software and Anatomage Invivo software, respectively. One-way ANOVA and Pearson analysis were performed for statistical analyses.Results: The CEJ-crest distances for CBCT, PA/BW, and CAL were 2.56 ± 0.12, 2.04 ± 0.12, and 2.08 ± 0.17 mm (mean ± SD), respectively. CBCT exhibited larger values than the other two methods (p < 0.05). There were highly significant positive correlations among CBCT, PA/BW, and CAL measurements at all examined sites (p < 0.001). The Pearson correlation coefficient was higher for CBCT with CAL relative to PA/BW with CAL, but the difference was not significant (r = 0.64 and r = 0.55, respectively, p > 0.05).Conclusions: This study validates the suitability of CBCT for periodontal assessment. Further studies are necessary to optimize the measurement methodology with CBCT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the calculation of radiative transfer in the middle-shortwave infrared band is important in the field of optical remote sensing, studies in this area of research are rare in China. Both solar reflection and atmospheric emission should be considered when calculating radiative transfer in the middle-shortwave infrared band. This paper presents a new radiative transfer model based on the doubling and adding method. The new model uses approximate calculations of direct solar reflection, multiple scattering, and thermal emissions for a finitely thin atmospheric layer and considers both the solar and thermal sources of radiation. To verify its accuracy, the calculation results produced by the model for four typical scenarios (single layer at night, multi-layer aerosols, double-layer with ice and water clouds, and multi-layer with clouds and aerosols) were compared with those of the DISORT model. With the exception of a few channels, the absolute deviation between the two models was less than 2×10-6 K. For the same calculation, the computation speed of the new model was approximately two to three times faster than that of the DISORT model. Sensitivity studies were performed to evaluate the error resulting from using simplified calculation methods in the new model. The results obtained in this study indicated that atmospheric thermal emission made a significant contribution to the measured radiance in the strong-absorption band (2230-2400 cm-1), whereas solar radiation could be neglected in this region. However, neglecting solar radiation in the window region (2400-2580 cm-1) introduced error on the order of dozens of K. Employing the average-layer temperature method simplified the calculation of thermal radiation but caused a larger error in the strong-absorption band than in the window region. In the doubling and adding method, the calculation error decreased as the value used for minimum optical thickness decreased. Under the condition of satisfying the requirement of calculation precision, we can consider using the layer-average temperature radiation method and selecting a relative larger minimum optical thickness value to improve the calculation efficiency. The new radiative calculation model proposed herein can be used in the simulation, inversion, and assimilation of middle-shortwave infrared measurements by hyper-spectral satellite instruments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An ideal pulp-capping agent needs to have good biocompatibility and promote reparative dentinogenesis. Although the effects of capping agents on healthy pulp are known, limited data regarding their effects on bacterial contaminated pulp are available. This study aimed to evaluate the reaction of contaminated pulps to various capping agents to assist clinicians in making informed decisions. Human dental pulp (HDP) cell cultures were developed from extracted human molars. The cells were exposed to a bacterial cocktail comprising Porphyromonas gingivalis, Prevotella intermedia, and Streptococcus gordonii before being cocultured with capping agents such as mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) Portland cement (PC), and Dycal. HDP cell proliferation was assayed by MTS colorimetric cell proliferation assay, and its differentiation was evaluated by real-time PCR for detecting alkaline phosphatase, dentin sialophosphoprotein, and osteocalcin expressions. MTA and PC had no apparent effect, whereas Dycal inhibited HDP cell proliferation. PC stimulated HDP cell differentiation, particularly when they were exposed to bacteria. MTA and Dycal inhibited differentiation, regardless of bacterial infection. In conclusion, PC was the most favorable agent, followed by MTA, and Dycal was the least favorable agent for supporting the functions of bacterial compromised pulp cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients have a poor prognosis after radio-frequency ablation (RFA), and investigating the risk factors affecting RFA and establishing predictive models are important for improving the prognosis of HCC patients. Methods: Patients with HCC undergoing RFA in Shenzhen People's Hospital between January 2011 and December 2021 were included in this study. Using the screened independent influences on recurrence and survival, predictive models were constructed and validated, and the predictive models were then used to classify patients into different risk categories and assess the prognosis of different categories. Results: Cox regression model indicated that cirrhosis (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.65), alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) ⩾400 ng/mL (HR = 2.03), tumor number (multiple) (HR = 2.11), tumor diameter ⩾20 mm (HR = 2.30), and platelets (PLT) ⩾ 244 (109/L) (HR = 2.37) were independent influences for recurrence of patients after RFA. On the contrary, AFP ⩾400 ng/mL (HR = 2.48), tumor number (multiple) (HR = 2.52), tumor diameter ⩾20 mm (HR = 2.25), PLT ⩾244 (109/L) (HR = 2.36), and hemoglobin (HGB) ⩾120 (g/L) (HR = 0.34) were regarded as independent influences for survival. The concordance index (C-index) of the nomograms for predicting disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) was 0.727 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.770-0.684) and 0.770 (95% CI = 0.821-7.190), respectively. The prognostic performance of the nomograms was significantly better than other staging systems by analysis of the time-dependent C-index and decision curves. Each patient was scored using nomograms and influencing factors, and patients were categorized into low-, intermediate-, and high-risk groups based on their scores. In the Kaplan-Meier survival curve, DFS and OS were significantly better in the low-risk group than in the intermediate- and high-risk groups. Conclusions: The 2 prediction models created in this work can effectively predict the recurrence and survival rates of HCC patients following RFA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The four-wheel independent drive electric vehicle (4WID EV) has some advantages, such as independent control of torque, easy measurement of torque, and multiple drive modes, the most significant of which are four-wheel drive and two-wheel drive modes. However, there is a problem with the switched drive mode, which would have an adverse effect on the precision of vehicle velocity estimation, the vehicle stability and comfort. In order to solve the problem, a control strategy with a switched drive mode is proposed. The control strategy is based on two vehicle velocity estimation algorithms. Between the two vehicle velocity estimation algorithms, the vehicle velocity estimation algorithm based on an unscented Kalman filter is designed in a four-wheel drive mode condition, whereas the vehicle velocity estimation algorithm based on the wheel rotational speed is designed in a two-wheel drive mode condition. Switchover of the two vehicle velocity estimation algorithms would cause a vehicle velocity saltus step, which has an adverse effect on vehicle control, so a vehicle velocity smoothing algorithm is proposed. Simulation results show that the control strategy not only reaches a high vehicle velocity control accuracy, it also improves the vehicle stability as well as the comfort. Furthermore, the results show that the proposed strategy can achieve stabilization with disturbance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a severe complication of diabetes mellitus (DM). Pancreas or islet transplantation has been reported to prevent the development of DN lesions and ameliorate or reverse existing glomerular lesions in animal models. Shortage of pancreas donor is a severe problem. Islets derived from stem cells may offer a potential solution to this problem.Objective: To evaluate the effect of stem cell-derived islet transplantation on DN in a rat model of streptozotocin-induced DM.Methods: Pancreatic progenitor cells were isolated from aborted fetuses of 8 weeks of gestation. And islets were prepared by suspension culture after a differentiation of progenitor cells in medium containing glucagon-like peptide-1 (Glp-1) and nicotinamide. Then islets were transplanted into the liver of diabetic rats via portal vein. Blood glucose, urinary volume, 24 h urinary protein and urinary albumin were measured once biweekly for 16 weeks. Graft survival was evaluated by monitoring human C-peptide level in rat sera and by immunohistochemical staining for human mitochondrial antigen and human C-peptide in liver tissue. The effect of progenitor-derived islets on filtration membrane was examined by electron microscopy and real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Immunohistochemical staining, real-time PCR and western blot were employed for detecting fibronectin, protein kinase C beta (PKCβ), protein kinase A (PKA), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and superoxide dismutase (SOD).Results: Islet-like clusters derived from 8th gestational-week human fetal pancreatic progenitors survived in rat liver. And elevated serum level of human C-peptide was detected. Blood glucose, 24 h urinary protein and urinary albumin were lower in progenitor cell group than those in DN or insulin treatment group. Glomerular basement membrane thickness and fibronectin accumulation decreased significantly while podocytes improved morphologically in progenitor cell group. Furthermore, receptor of advanced glycation end products and PKCβ became down-regulated whereas PKA up-regulated by progenitor cell-derived islets. And iNOS rose while SOD declined.Conclusions: DN may be reversed by transplantation of human fetal pancreatic progenitor cell-derived islets. And fetal pancreatic progenitor cells offer potential resources for cell replacement therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polymerization-induced self-assembly ( PISA) was used to fabricate polymeric nanoparticles via reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer ( RAFT) dispersion polymerization of benzyl methacrylate ( BzMA) using diblock copolymer poly(glycerol monomethacrylate)-block-poly(2-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate) ( PGMMA- PDMAEMA-CTA) as the macro RAFT agent. The dispersion of polymeric nanoparticles with a final concentration of about 210 mg/g (solid content of 21%) was obtained via this efficient method ( PISA). The resultant polymeric nanoparticles consisting of corona-shell-core three layers with weak polyelectrolyte PDMAEMA as the shell were used as sacrificial template to fabricate TiO2 hollow nanoparticles. The negatively charged titanium precursor was absorbed into the PDMAEMA shell via the electrostatic interaction, and hydrolyzed to form polymer/ TiO2 hybrid nanoparticles. Anatase TiO2 hollow nanoparticles were formed after removing the polymeric templates by calcination at 550 °C. The experiments of photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange showed that the resultant anatase TiO2 hollow nanoparticles had high photocatalytic activity and good reusability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]