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Low winter temperatures are a widespread concern for mines in China that use cemented paste backfill (CPB). A low environmental temperature has a significant effect on the CPB temperature, which can affect its hydration rate and early strength. Using paste material from the Jiashi Copper Mine (JCM) in winter, this paper prepared a total of 129 specimens and investigated the effect on these specimens of different amounts of water and cement, the method for adding cement, the dosage of the pumping agent, and the amount of aggregate used. The prepared specimens had a temperature range of 8-12℃ and were cured in a standard curing box with a temperature of 20℃ and humidity of 95%. After curing periods of 3, 7, and 28 d, the paper performed uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) tests on the specimens. The test results show that the UCS values of the 7 d and 28 d specimens are 1.44-fold and 2.4-fold those of the 3 d specimens, respectively. The 7 d UCS evolution accords with a 2℃ hydration progress, which leads to gradual strength development. However, the 28 d UCS evolution accords with a 20℃ hydration progress. This indicates that the temperature of the paste has a slight effect on its long-term strength. Based on the effect of low temperature on the strength of the 7 d paste, the paper proposed the addition of high-temperature water to the paste backfill system. Using a practical paste ratio at the JCM, the paper calculated a theoretical high-temperature water flow of 6-8 m3·h-1. When the water temperature ranges between 70-100℃, the temperature of the paste can be improved from 6℃ to 15-19℃. The paper recommends the use of an industrial water heater for providing the hot water, with a conservative power output of 400 kW. The use of this water heater will yield a cost improvement of 2.9 RMB per cube of filling material.

Our study assessed the non-carcinogenic risks of heavy metals in the sources of drinking water treatment plants located along Huaihe River in Jiangsu Province, China. High-resolution inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy were used to determine the levels of eight metals in the water from 30 treatment plants. Non-carcinogenic risks induced by the metals were assessed using the methods recommended by the Environmental Protection Agency of the United States. Among the metals, Fe had the highest concentration and Pb contributed most to the average hazard index (HI) of 30 TWTPs. Except Pb, each metal had an average concentration below the permissible limit of China and the United States. The induced non-carcinogenic risks showed temporal and spatial variations. This study revealed that the metals in the tap water induced negligible public health risks for local residents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of HLX01, a rituximab biosimilar, as combination therapy with methotrexate in Chinese patients with active rheumatoid arthritis who had inadequate responses to methotrexate., Methods: In this double-blind, placebo-controlled phase 3 trial, biologic-naïve patients with moderate-to-severe active rheumatoid arthritis and inadequate responses to methotrexate were randomized 2:1 to receive 1000 mg HLX01 or placebo intravenously on days 1 and 15. On the first day of weeks 24 and 26, patients in both groups received 1000 mg HLX01 via intravenous infusion. The primary endpoint was the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 20 response rate at week 24. Secondary endpoints including efficacy, safety, immunogenicity, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics were assessed up to week 48., Results: Between 28 May 2018 and 11 September 2020, 275 patients were randomized to the HLX01 group (n = 183) or the placebo group (n = 92). At week 24, the proportion of patients achieving ACR20 response was significantly greater in the HLX01 group compared with the placebo group in the intention-to-treat population (60.7% vs 35.9%; P < 0.001) and per-protocol set (60.3% vs 37.1%; P < 0.001). Most secondary efficacy endpoints favoured HLX01 when assessed at weeks 12, 24, 36 and 48. Incidences of treatment-emergent adverse events were similar between groups. Infusion-related reactions occurred more frequently following the initial two doses of HLX01 than the subsequent doses., Conclusions: HLX01 plus methotrexate improved clinical outcomes compared with placebo in Chinese patients with rheumatoid arthritis who had inadequate responses to methotrexate. This treatment regimen was well tolerated, showing comparable safety profiles to placebo., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov , NCT03522415 . Registered on 11 May 2018., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Objective: The apoptotic signaling pathway is obviously disordered in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Natural IgM (nIgM) is important in clearing apoptotic cells and preventing them from triggering deleterious autoimmunity. B-1 and innate-like B (ILBs) cells are the main nIgM producers. Human CD27 + IgD + B cells (un-switched memory B cells) are considered ILBs. However, their functional properties in SLE remain undefined., Methods: Peripheral blood sample of 50 SLE patients and 50 healthy controls were collected, and twelve SLE patients were assessed in a follow-up study. The amount of CD27 + IgD + B cell in each population was analyzed by flow cytometry. The IgM and IL-10 levels of CD27 + IgD + B cell were assessed by ELISPOT and qRT-PCR, respectively. SPSS 17.0 (SPSS, USA) was employed for data analysis. P < 0.05 indicated statistical significance., Result: The amounts of CD27 + IgD + B cell were significantly decreased in SLE patients than healthy control (P < 0.01). CD27 + IgD + B cell amounts were positively correlated with WBC (r = 0.337, P = 0.017), platelet count (r = 0.396, P = 0.004), and serum C3 levels (r = 0.415, P = 0.003) and negatively correlated with serum creatinine levels (r =  - 0.285, P = 0.045), SLEDAI(r =  - 0.724, P = 0.000), and anti-dsDNA(r =  - 0.477, P = 0.000). The IgM and IL-10 levels of CD27 + IgD + B in active SLE were decreased than healthy control (P < 0.001). Moreover, CD27 + IgD + B cells are increased in SLE cases after treatment than before treatment (P < 0.001)., Conclusion: The amounts of CD27 + IgD + B cell were significantly decreased in SLE patients compared with the healthy population, and CD27 + IgD + B cell was verified to be correlated with clinical and immunological features in SLE patients. CD27 + IgD + B cells had impaired function associated with IgM and IL-10 production in active SLE. Moreover, the amounts of CD27 + IgD + B cells were recovered to the normal level in SLE cases with treatment-related disease remission. Key Points • CD27 + IgD + B cell amounts are significantly decreased in SLE patients than healthy control. • CD27 + IgD + B cells are functionally impaired in producing natural antibody-like IgM and IL-10 in SLE patients. • CD27 + IgD + B cell amounts are correlated with clinical and immunological features in SLE., (© 2022. International League of Associations for Rheumatology (ILAR).)

Objective: To investigate the clinical features, radiologic scores and clinically relevant risk factors prognosis of secondary interstitial lung disease (ILD) in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)., Methods: In this study, 60 SLE patients in Department of Rheumatology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Baotou Medical College and Taizhou First People's Hospital from January 2015 to March 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. All of those 60 patients with SLE underwent lung high resolution computed tomography (HRCT) examination. We used a 1 ∶1 case-control study. There was a matching of age and gender between the two groups. Thirty patients with SLE related ILD (SLE-ILD) were in the case group, and 30 patients with SLE without ILE (SLE non-ILD) were in the control group. The clinical features, pulmonary function test, radiologic characteristic of SLE patients were collected and were used to analyze SLE-ILD., Results: In this study, we reached the following conclusions: First, there were statistically significant differences in chest tightness/shortness of breath, Raynaud's phenomenon, and Velcro rale between SLE-ILD and SLE non-ILD patients (both P < 0.05); Second, hemoglobin (Hb) and albumin (ALB) in the patients of SLE-ILD had a significant decrease compared with the patients of SLE non-ILD. Blood urea nitrogen (BUN), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) increased in SLE-ILD patients compared with SLE non-ILD patients, the difference had statistical significance ( P < 0.05); Third, for SLE-ILD patients, the most common type was non-specific interstitial pneumonia (NSIP), followed by usual interstitial pneumonia and lymphocytic interstitial pneumonia; Fourth, there was no significant difference in clinical-radiology-physiology scores between the different ILD types (P>0.05), similarly, the lung HRCT score and lung function between different ILD types had no significant difference (P>0.05); Fifth, multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that decreased albumin and chest tightness/shortness of breath might be the risk factor for SLE-ILD., Conclusion: There are statistically significant differences between the SLE-ILD group and SLE non-ILD group in terms of chest tightness/shortness of breath, Velcro rale and Raynaud's phenomenon. Decreased albumin and chest tightness/shortness of breath in SLE patients should be alerted to the occurrence of ILD. NSIP is the most common manifestation of SLE-ILD.

Pulmonary fibrosis is an excessive repair response to tissue damage, triggering hyperplasia of fibrotic connective tissues; however, there is no effective treatment in a clinical setting. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the roles of long non‑coding RNA nuclear enriched abundant transcript 1 (NEAT1) and microRNA‑455‑3p (miR‑455‑3p) were investigated in pulmonary fibrosis. In this study, the mRNA expression levels of NEAT1, miR‑455‑3p and SMAD3 in the HPAEpiC alveolar and BEAS‑2B bronchial epithelial cell lines were determined using reverse transcription‑quantitative PCR, while the markers of epithelial‑mesenchymal transformation (EMT) and collagen production were determined using western blot analysis. A wound healing assay was performed to evaluate the migratory ability of the HPAEpiC and BEAS‑2B cell lines. The interactions between NEAT1 and miR‑455‑3p or SMAD3 and miR‑455‑3p were validated using a luciferase reporter gene assay. The results showed that the mRNA expression levels of NEAT1 and SMAD3 were upregulated in the TGF‑β1‑treated HPAEpiC and BEAS‑2B cell lines, while the mRNA expression level of miR‑455‑3p was significantly decreased. In addition, silencing NEAT1 effectively alleviated the migratory ability, EMT and collagen generation of the epithelial cells. Following these experiments, NEAT1 was identified as a sponge for miR‑455‑3p, and SMAD3 was a target gene of miR‑455‑3p. NEAT1 downregulation or miR‑455‑3p mimic inhibited the migratory ability, EMT and collagen production of the epithelial cells; however, the effects were reversed by the overexpression of SMAD3. Furthermore, NEAT1 knockdown reduced the expression level of SMAD3 by increasing the expression level of miR‑455‑3p to further inhibit the migratory ability, EMT and collagen production of epithelial cells.

Background: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent cells characterized by immunomodulatory properties and are therefore considered a promising tool for the treatment of autoimmune diseases. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether transplantation of adipose tissue-derived stem cells (ADSCs) affects the autoimmune pathogenesis in MRL/lpr mice., Methods: Fifteen 12-week-old MRL/lpr mice were randomly divided into three groups: ADSC, cyclophosphamide (CTX), and control groups, with five mice in each group. ADSC and control groups were injected with 1 × 10 6  ADSCs or PBS, respectively, via the tail vein, once a week for 8 weeks. The CTX group was injected with CTX at a dose of 15 mg/kg body weight, once a week for 2 weeks, and this was repeated after 2 weeks rest. Proteinuria, anti-double-stranded DNA (anti-dsDNA) antibody, and serum creatinine levels were then measured. The populations of Th17 and Treg cells in the spleen were detected by flow cytometry. All statistical analyses were performed using least square difference., Results: Eight weeks after treatment, the 24 h proteinuria, anti-dsDNA antibody levels, and serum creatinine were decreased significantly with transplantation of mouse ADSCs. ADSCs markedly reduced the number of TH17 cells, increased Treg cells, and improved renal pathology., Conclusion: Our results indicate that transplantation of ADSCs could significantly inhibit autoimmune progression in MRL/lpr mice and the efficacy of ADSCs was comparable to that of CTX.

Network structures based on Star-of-David catenanes with multiple superior functionalities have been so far elusive, although numerous topologically interesting networks are synthesized. Here, a metal-organic framework featuring fused Star-of-David catenanes is reported. Two triangular metallacycles with opposite handedness are triply intertwined forming a Star-of-David catenane. Each catenane fuses with its six neighbors to generate a porous twofold intercatenated gyroid framework. The compound possesses exceptional stability and exhibits multiple functionalities including highly selective CO 2 capture, high proton conductivity, and coexistence of slow magnetic relaxation and long-range ordering., (© 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

Aim: To investigate the association of PNPLA3 polymorphisms with concurrent chronic hepatitis B (CHB) and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)., Methods: A cohort of Han patients with biopsy-proven CHB, with or without NAFLD (CHB group, n = 51; CHB + NAFLD group, n = 57), and normal controls (normal group, n = 47) were recruited from Northern (Tianjin), Central (Shanghai), and Southern (Zhangzhou) China. Their PNPLA3 polymorphisms were genotyped by gene sequencing. The association between PNPLA3 polymorphisms and susceptibility to NAFLD, and clinical characteristics of NAFLD were evaluated on the basis of physical indices, liver function tests, glycolipid metabolism, and histopathologic scoring. The association of PNPLA3 polymorphisms and hepatitis B virus (HBV) load was determined by the serum level of HBV DNA., Results: After adjusting for age, sex, and body mass index, we found that four linked single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of PNPLA3, including the rs738409 G allele (CHB + NAFLD group vs CHB group: odds ratio [OR] = 2.77, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.18-6.54; P = 0.02), rs3747206 T allele (CHB + NAFLD group vs CHB group: OR = 2.77, 95%CI: 1.18-6.54; P = 0.02), rs4823173 A allele (CHB + NAFLD group vs CHB group: OR = 2.73, 95%CI: 1.16-6.44; P = 0.02), and rs2072906 G allele (CHB + NAFLD group vs CHB group: OR = 3.05, 95%CI: 1.28-7.26; P = 0.01), conferred high risk to NAFLD in CHB patients. In patients with both CHB and NAFLD, these genotypes of PNPLA3 polymorphisms were associated with increased susceptibility to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) (NAFLD activity score ≥ 3; P = 0.01-0.03) and liver fibrosis (> 1 Metavir grading; P = 0.01-0.04). As compared to those with C/C and C/G at rs738409, C/C and C/T at rs3747206, G/G and G/A at rs4823173, and A/A and A/G at rs2072906, patients in the CHB + NAFLD group with G/G at rs738409, T/T at rs3747206, A/A at rs4823173, and G/G at rs2072906 showed significantly lower serum levels of HBV DNA (P < 0.01-0.05)., Conclusion: Four linked SNPs of PNPLA3 (rs738409, rs3747206, rs4823173, and rs2072906) are correlated with susceptibility to NAFLD, NASH, liver fibrosis, and HBV dynamics in CHB patients.

Aim: To evaluate the efficacy of furazolidone-based triple and quadruple therapy in eradicating Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) in a multi-center randomized controlled trial., Methods: A total of 720 H. pylori positive patients with duodenal ulcer disease were enrolled at 10 different hospitals in Jiangxi province in China. The patients were randomly assigned to four treatment groups as follows: patients in Groups 1 and 3 received rabeprazole (10 mg), amoxicillin (1000 mg) and furazolidone (100 mg) twice daily for 7 and 10 d, respectively; patients in Groups 2 and 4 received rabeprazole (10 mg), bismuth (220 mg), amoxicillin (1000 mg) and furazolidone (100 mg) twice daily for 7 and 10 d, respectively. The primary outcome measure was H. pylori eradication rate 4 wk after treatment by intention-to-treat and per protocol analysis, while the secondary outcome measures were symptom and sign changes at the end of treatment and 4 wk after the end of treatment, as well as the proportion of patients who developed adverse events., Results: The demographic data of the four groups were not significantly different. Overall, 666 patients completed the scheme and were re-assessed with the (13)C-urea breath test. The intention-to-treat analysis of the H. pylori eradication rates in Groups 1, 2, 3 and 4 were 74.44%, 82.78%, 78.89% and 86.11%, respectively. The H. pylori eradication rate in Group 4 was significantly higher than that in Group 1. According to the per protocol analysis, the H. pylori eradication rates in Groups 1, 2, 3 and 4 were 81.21%, 89.22%, 85.54% and 92.26%, respectively. The H. pylori eradication rate in Group 4 was significantly higher than that in Group 1. The number of adverse events was 15 (8.3%), 16 (8.9%), 15 (8.3%) and 17 (9.4%) in Groups 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively, including dizziness, vomiting, diarrhea, nausea, skin rash, itchy skin, and malaise. The symptoms were relieved without special treatment in all of the patients., Conclusion: Both 7- and 10-d quadruple furazolidone-based therapies achieve satisfactory H. pylori eradication rates.