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Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease, pathologically characterized by TDP-43 aggregates. Recent evidence has been indicated that phosphorylated TDP-43 (pTDP-43) is present not only in motor neurons but also in muscle tissues. However, it is unclear whether testing pTDP-43 aggregation in muscle tissue would assist in the diagnosis of ALS. We propose three key questions: (i) Is aggregation of pTDP-43 detectable in routine biopsied muscles? (ii) Can detection of pTDP-43 aggregation discriminate between ALS and non-ALS patients? (iii) Can pTDP-43 aggregation be observed in the early stages of ALS? We conducted a diagnostic study comprising 2 groups: an ALS group in which 18 cases underwent muscle biopsy screened from a registered ALS cohort consisting of 802 patients and a non-ALS control group, in which we randomly selected 54 muscle samples from a biospecimen bank of 684 patients. Among the 18 ALS patients, 3 patients carried pathological GGGGCC repeats in the C9ORF72 gene, 2 patients carried SOD1 mutations, and 7 patients were at an early stage with only one body region clinically affected. The pTDP-43 accumulation could be detected in routine biopsied muscles, including biceps brachii, deltoid, tibialis anterior, and quadriceps. Abnormal aggregation of pTDP-43 was present in 94.4% of ALS patients (17/18) compared to 29.6% of non-ALS controls (16/54; p < 0.001). The pTDP-43 aggregates were mainly close to the sarcolemma. Using a semi-quantified pTDP-43 aggregates score, we applied a cut-off value of 3 as a diagnostic biomarker, resulting in a sensitivity of 94.4% and a specificity of 83.3%. Moreover, we observed that accumulation of pTDP-43 occurred in muscle tissues prior to clinical symptoms and electromyographic lesions. Our study provides proof-of-concept for the detection of pTDP-43 accumulation via routine muscle biopsy which may serve as a novel biomarker for diagnosis of ALS., (© 2024 The Authors. Brain Pathology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Society of Neuropathology.)

Background: Hippo-avoidance prophylactic cranial irradiation (HA-PCI) requires a hippocampal avoidance zone expanded from hippocampus to ensure dose fall-off and compensate for setup errors. Most studies recommend a 5-mm margin, while it could be optimized to a 2-mm expansion. Here, we showed the details of optimized HA-PCI for limited-stage small cell lung cancer (LS-SCLC)., Methods: This cohort study reviewed patients with LS-SCLC receiving optimized HA-PCI from August 2014 to June 2020 in the National Cancer Center of China. The hippo-related dose parameters were summarized. The comparison of the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test-Revised (HVLT-R) scores in different time points was conducted. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to calculate the survival rates., Results: A total of 112 patients were included. The average doses of hippocampus and hippocampal avoidance zone were 6.80 Gy (IQR: 6.40-7.44) and 7.63 Gy (IQR: 7.14-8.39). No differences were observed in the two radiation techniques (tomotherapy [TOMO] vs. volumetric-modulated arc therapy [VMAT]). The decline of HVLT-R score remained in a low level and not significant in assessable patients (p = 0.095). With a median follow-up of 52 months (95% CI: 47.2-56.7), the 2-year overall survival and progression-free survival were 74.1% and 50.0%, respectively. Two intracranial recurrence lesions (2.3%) located <2 mm from the hippocampus., Conclusions: Optimized HA-PCI could achieve similar dose limitation by TOMO and VMAT techniques with favorable efficacy and minor toxicity., (© 2024 The Author(s). Thoracic Cancer published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.)

The exploration of artificial metal-peptide assemblies (MPAs) is one of the most exciting fields because of their great potential for simulating the dynamics and functionality of natural proteins. However, unfavorable enthalpy changes make forming discrete complexes with large and adaptable cavities from flexible peptide ligands challenging. Here, we present a strategy integrating metal-cluster building blocks and peptides to create chiral metal-peptide assemblies and get a family of enantiopure [R-/S-Ni 3 L 2 ] n (n = 2, 3, 6) MPAs, including the R-/S-Ni 6 L 4 capsule, the S-Ni 9 L 6 trigonal prism, and the R-/S-Ni 18 L 12 octahedron cage. X-ray crystallography shows MPA formation reactions are highly solvent-condition-dependent, resulting in significant changes in ligand conformation and discrete cavity sizes. Moreover, we demonstrate that a structure transformation from Ni 18 L 12 to Ni 9 L 6 in the presence of benzopyrone molecules depends on the peptide conformational selection in crystallization. This work reveals that a metal-cluster building block approach enables facile bottom-up construction of artificial metal-peptide assemblies., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Recycling of valuable solutes and recovery of organic solvents via organic solvent nanofiltration (OSN) are important for sustainable development. However, the trade-off between solvent permeability and solute rejection hampers the application of OSN membranes. To address this issue, the poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) nanoparticle membrane with hierarchical pores is constructed for OSN via vacuum filtration. The small pores (the free volume of the polymer chain) charge for the solute rejection (high rejection efficiency for low molecule weight solute) and allow solvent passing while the large pores (the void between two PEDOT:PSS nanoparticles) promote the solvent transport. Owing to the lack of connectivity among the large pores, the fabricated PEDOT:PSS nanoparticle membrane enhanced solvent permeance while maintaining a high solute rejection efficiency. The optimized PEDOT:PSS membrane affords a MeOH permeance of 7.2 L m -2 h -1 bar -1 with over 90% rejection of organic dyes, food additives, and photocatalysts. Moreover, the rigidity of PEDOT endows the membrane with distinctive stability under high-pressure conditions. The membrane is used to recycle the valuable catalysts in a methanol solution for 150 h, maintaining good separation performance. Considering its high separation performance and stability, the proposed PEDOT:PSS membrane has great potential for industrial applications., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Background: Sialidosis type 1 (ST-1) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder caused by mutation in the NEU1 gene. However, limited reports on ST-1 patients in the Chinese mainland are available., Methods: This study reported the genetic and clinical characteristics of 10 ST-1 patients from southeastern China. A haplotype analysis was performed using 21 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers of 500 kb flanking the recurrent c.544 A > G in 8 families harboring the mutation. Furthermore, this study summarized and compared previously reported ST-1 patients from Taiwan and mainland China., Results: Five mutations within NEU1 were found, including two novel ones c.557 A > G and c.799 C > T. The c.544 A > G mutation was most frequent and identified in 9 patients, 6 patients were homozygous for c.544 A > G. Haplotype analysis revealed a shared haplotype surrounding c.544 A > G was identified, suggesting a founder effect presenting in southeast Chinese population. Through detailed assessment, 52 ST-1 patients from 45 families from Taiwan and mainland China were included. Homozygous c.544 A > G was the most common genotype and found in 42.2% of the families, followed by the c.544 A > G/c.239 C > T compound genotype, which was observed in 22.2% of the families. ST-1 patients with the homozygous c.544 A > G mutation developed the disease at a later age and had a lower incidence of cherry-red spots significantly., Conclusion: The results contribute to gaps in the clinical and genetic features of ST-1 patients in southeastern mainland China and provide a deeper understanding of this disease to reduce misdiagnosis., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: Retinal microcirculation alterations are early indicators of diabetic microvascular complications. Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) is a noninvasive method to assess these changes. This study analyzes changes in retinal microcirculation in prediabetic patients during short-term increases in blood glucose using OCTA., Aim: To investigate the changes in retinal microcirculation in prediabetic patients experiencing short-term increases in blood glucose levels using OCTA., Methods: Fifty volunteers were divided into three groups: Group 1 [impaired fasting glucose (IFG) or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT)], Group 2 (both IFG and IGT), and a control group. Retinal microcirculation parameters, including vessel density (VD), perfusion density (PD), and foveal avascular zone (FAZ) metrics, were measured using OCTA. Correlations between these parameters and blood glucose levels were analyzed in both the fasting and postprandial states., Results: One hour after glucose intake, the central VD ( P = 0.023), central PD ( P = 0.026), and parafoveal PD ( P < 0.001) were significantly greater in the control group than in the fasting group. In Group 1, parafoveal PD ( P < 0.001) and FAZ circularity ( P = 0.023) also increased one hour after glucose intake. However, no significant changes were observed in the retinal microcirculation parameters of Group 2 before or after glucose intake ( P > 0.05). Compared with the control group, Group 1 had a larger FAZ area ( P = 0.032) and perimeter ( P = 0.018), whereas Group 2 had no significant differences in retinal microcirculation parameters compared with the control group ( P > 0.05). Compared with Group 1, Group 2 had greater central VD ( P = 0.013) and PD ( P = 0.008) and a smaller FAZ area ( P = 0.012) and perimeter ( P = 0.010). One hour after glucose intake, Group 1 had a larger FAZ area ( P = 0.044) and perimeter ( P = 0.038) than did the control group, whereas Group 2 showed no significant differences in retinal microcirculation parameters compared with the control group ( P > 0.05). Group 2 had greater central VD ( P = 0.042) and PD ( P = 0.022) and a smaller FAZ area ( P = 0.015) and perimeter ( P = 0.016) than Group 1. At fasting, central PD was significantly positively correlated with blood glucose levels ( P = 0.044), whereas no significant correlations were found between blood glucose levels and OCTA parameters one hour after glucose intake., Conclusion: A short-term increase in blood glucose has a more pronounced effect on retinal microcirculation in prediabetic patients with either IFG or IGT., Competing Interests: Conflict-of-interest statement: 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., (©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: GPX8, which is found in the endoplasmic reticulum lumen, is a member of the Glutathione Peroxidases (GPXs) family. Its role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is unknown., Methods: Immunohistochemical staining was used to detect the protein levels of GPX8 in HCC tissue microarrays. A short hairpin RNA lentivirus was used to knock down GPX8, and the main signaling pathways were investigated using transcriptome sequencing and a phosphorylated kinase array. The sphere formation assays, cloning-formation assays and cell migration assays were used to evaluate the stemness and migration ability of HCC cells. Identifying the GPX8-interacting proteins was accomplished through immunoprecipitation and protein mass spectrometry., Results: The GPX8 protein levels were downregulated in HCC patients. Low expression of GPX8 protein was related to early recurrence and poor prognosis in HCC patients. GPX8 knockdown could enhance the stemness and migration ability of HCC cells. Consistently, Based on transcriptome analysis, multiple signaling pathways that include the PI3K-AKT and signaling pathways that regulate the pluripotency of stem cells, were activated after GPX8 knockdown. The downregulation of GPX8 could increase the expression of the tumor stemness markers KLF4, OCT4, and CD133. The in vivo downregulation of GPX8 could also promote the subcutaneous tumor-forming and migration ability of HCC cells. MK-2206, which is a small-molecule inhibitor of AKT, could reverse the tumor-promoting effects both in vivo and in vitro. We discovered that GPX8 and the 71-kDa heat shock cognate protein (Hsc70) have a direct interaction. The phosphorylation of AKT encouraged the translocation of Hsc70 into the nucleus and the expression of the PI3K p110 subunit, thereby increasing the downregulation of GPX8., Conclusion: The findings from this study demonstrate the anticancer activity of GPX8 in HCC by inactivating the Hsc70/AKT pathway. The results suggest a possible therapeutic target for HCC., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Electrocatalytic water splitting driven by sustainable energy is a clean and promising water-chemical fuel conversion technology for the production of high-purity green hydrogen. However, the sluggish kinetics of anodic oxygen evolution reaction (OER) pose challenges for large-scale hydrogen production, limiting its efficiency and safety. Recently, the anodic OER has been replaced by a nucleophilic oxidation reaction (NOR) with biomass as the substrate and coupled with a hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), which has attracted great interest. Anode NOR offers faster kinetics, generates high-value products, and reduces energy consumption. By coupling NOR with hydrogen evolution reaction, hydrogen production efficiency can be enhanced while yielding high-value oxidation products or degrading pollutants. Therefore, NOR-coupled HER hydrogen production is another new green electrolytic hydrogen production strategy after electrolytic water hydrogen production, which is of great significance for realizing sustainable energy development and global decarbonization. This review explores the potential of nucleophilic oxidation reactions as an alternative to OER and delves into NOR mechanisms, guiding future research in NOR-coupled hydrogen production. It assesses different NOR-coupled production methods, analyzing reaction pathways and catalyst effects. Furthermore, it evaluates the role of electrolyzers in industrialized NOR-coupled hydrogen production and discusses future prospects and challenges. This comprehensive review aims to advance efficient and economical large-scale hydrogen production., (© 2024 The Author(s). Advanced Materials published by Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Organic solvent nanofiltration (OSN) plays important roles in pharmaceutical ingredients purification and solvent recovery. However, the low organic solvent permeance under cross-flow operation of OSN membrane hampers their industrial applications. Herein, we report the construction of coffee-ring structured membrane featuring high OSN permeance. A water-insoluble crystal monomer that dissolved in EtOH/H 2 O mixed solvent was designed to react with trimesoyl chloride via interfacial polymerization. Owing to the diffusion of EtOH to n-hexane, coffee-ring nanostructure on the support membrane appeared, which served as the template for construction of coffee-ring structured membrane. The optimal nanostructured membrane demonstrated 2.6-fold enhancement in the effective surface area with reduced membrane thickness. Resultantly, the membrane afforded a 2.7-fold enhancement in organic solvent permeance, e.g., ~13 LMH/bar for MeOH, without sacrificing the rejection ability. Moreover, due to the rigid monomer structure, the fabricated membrane shows distinctive running stability in active pharmaceutical ingredients purification and the ability for concentration of medicines., (© 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Background: To provide a preoperative prediction model for lymph node metastasis in pancreatic cancer patients and provide molecular information of key radiomic features., Methods: Two cohorts comprising 151 and 54 pancreatic cancer patients were included in the analysis. Radiomic features from the tumor region of interests were extracted by using PyRadiomics software. We used a framework that incorporated 10 machine learning algorithms and generated 77 combinations to construct radiomics-based models for lymph node metastasis prediction. Weighted gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA) was subsequently performed to determine the relationships between gene expression levels and radiomic features. Molecular pathways enrichment analysis was performed to uncover the underlying molecular features., Results: Patients in the in-house cohort (mean age, 61.3 years ± 9.6 [SD]; 91 men [60%]) were separated into training (n = 105, 70%) and validation (n = 46, 30%) cohorts. A total of 1,239 features were extracted and subjected to machine learning algorithms. The 77 radiomic models showed moderate performance for predicting lymph node metastasis, and the combination of the StepGBM and Enet algorithms had the best performance in the training (AUC = 0.84, 95% CI = 0.77-0.91) and validation (AUC = 0.85, 95% CI = 0.73-0.98) cohorts. We determined that 15 features were core variables for lymph node metastasis. Proliferation-related processes may respond to the main molecular alterations underlying these features., Conclusions: Machine learning-based radiomics could predict the status of lymph node metastasis in pancreatic cancer, which is associated with proliferation-related alterations., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

To investigate the levels of 131I activity in thyroid of workers at the place of radioiodine therapy and their main influential factors in China, 341 workers at 38 hospitals performing radioiodine therapy procedure in five provinces were recruited to be measured in 2021. A hand-held gamma spectrometer with NaI(Tl) probe was plastered to the thyroids and thighs of the subjects during the measurement, and each measurement time was 120 s. The internal exposure dose was calculated, and the committed effective dose was estimated. In 86 (25.22%) of the 341 examined workers, 131I thyroid activity was above minimum detectable activity (MDA, 26.6 Bq). The maximum activity was 4.9 × 103 Bq. The detection results above MDA were at 22 (57.89%) different hospitals. The detectable rate for private hospitals (4.8%) was significantly lower than that for public hospitals (26.6%), P < 0.05. The detectable rate for hospitals in provincial capital cities (15.4%) was significantly lower than in nonprovincial capital cities (41.7%), P < 0.001. The detectable rate for hospitals engaged in 131I therapy for thyroid cancer (31.2%) was significantly higher than only for hyperthyroidism (10.3%), P < 0.001. A total of 32 subjects' committed effective dose might exceed 1 mSv. Results indicated the 131I activity in the thyroid of workers at the place of radioiodine varied considerably in China, and mainly related to ownership, location and therapy program of the hospitals., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Japanese Radiation Research Society and Japanese Society for Radiation Oncology.)

Chemical investigation on the 95% ethanol extract of green walnut husks of Juglans mandshurica Maxim. led to the isolation of two new diarylheptanoid compounds, including Juglanin K ( 1 ) and Myricananin I ( 2 ), together with ten known compounds ( 3-13 ). Their structures were elucidated by extensive analyses of comprehensive spectroscopic methods. The isolated compounds were evaluated for their antibacterial activities against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus . The results showed that compound 2 had moderate antibacterial activity with the MIC values of 0.313 and 0.156 mg/mL, respectively. compounds 1 , 3 - 7 and 13 showed weakly antibacterial activities against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus with the MIC values of 0.625-2.5 mg/mL.

This study leverages the ancient craft of weaving to prepare membranes that can effectively treat oil/water mixtures, specifically challenging nanoemulsions. Drawing inspiration from the core-shell architecture of spider silk, we have engineered fibers, the fundamental building blocks for weaving membranes, that feature a mechanically robust core for tight weaving, coupled with a CO 2 -responsive shell that allows for on-demand wettability adjustments. Tightly weaving these fibers produces membranes with ideal pores, achieving over 99.6% separation efficiency for nanoemulsions with droplets as small as 20 nm. They offer high flux rates, on-demand self-cleaning, and can switch between sieving oil and water nanodroplets through simple CO 2 /N 2 stimulation. Moreover, weaving can produce sufficiently large membranes (4800 cm 2 ) to assemble a module that exhibits long-term stability and performance, surpassing state-of-the-art technologies for nanoemulsion separations, thus making industrial application a practical reality.

Conductive polymers are recognized as ideal candidates for the development of noninvasive and wearable sensors for real-time monitoring of potassium ions (K + ) in sweat to ensure the health of life. However, the low ion-to-electron transduction efficiency and limited active surface area hamper the development of high-performance sensors for low-concentration K + detection in the sweat. Herein, a wearable K + sensor is developed by tailoring the nanostructure of polypyrrole (PPy), serving as an ion-to-electron transduction layer, for accurately and stably tracing the K + fluctuation in human sweat. The PPy nanostructures can be tailored from nanospheres to nanofibers by controlling the supramolecular assembly process during PPy polymerization. Resultantly, the ion-to-electron transduction efficiency (17-fold increase in conductivity) and active surface area (1.3-fold enhancement) are significantly enhanced, accompanied by minimized water layer formation. The optimal PPy nanofibers-based K + sensor achieved a high sensitivity of 62 mV decade -1 , good selectivity, and solid stability. After being integrated with a temperature sensor, the manufactured wearable sensor realized accurate monitoring of K + fluctuation in the human sweat., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

An efficient approach was developed for the synthesis of the well-known BlueCage by pre-bridging two 2,4,6-tris(4-pyridyl)-1,3,5-triazine (TPT) panels with one linker followed by cage formation in a much improved yield and shortened reaction time. Such a stepwise methodology was further applied to synthesize three new pyridinium organic cages, C2 , C3 , and C4 , where the low-symmetry cages C3 and C4 with angled panels demonstrated better recognition properties toward 1,1'-bi-2-naphthol (BINOL) than the high-symmetry analogue C2 featuring parallel platforms.

Objective: To explore the mechanism of paeoniflorin (PF) on osteoarthritis (OA) synovial inflammation from network pharmacology to experimental pharmacology., Methods: Targets of OA were constructed by detecting the database of network database platforms (Therapeutic Target database, DrugBank and GeneCards), and the targets of PF were constructed by PubChem and Herbal Ingredients' Targets database. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis of these co-targeted genes were conducted via Database for Annotation, Visualization, and Integrated Discovery (DAVID) database, and protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks were conducted via the search tool for the retrieval of interacting genes (STRING) database. Cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay was performed to assess the potential toxicity of PF on human OA fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS), quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and Western blot were used to verify the potential mechanism of PF in synovial inflammation., Results: Twenty-six co-targeted genes were identified. GO enrichment results showed that these co-targeted genes were most likely localized in the cytoplasm, and the biological processes mainly involved 'cellular response to hypoxia' 'lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-mediated signaling pathway' and 'positive regulation of gene expression'. KEGG pathway analysis indicated that these co-targeted genes may function through pathways associated with 'hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) signaling pathway' and 'tumor-necrosis factor (TNF) signaling pathway'. The PPI network showed that the top 3 hub genes were TP53, TNF, and CASP3. Molecular docking results showed that PF was well docking with TNF. CCK-8 showed no potential toxicity of 10, 20 and 50 µmol/L PF on human OA FLS. And PF significantly decreased the expression levels of interleukin-1 β, interleukin-6, TNF-α matrix metalloproteinase 13 (MMP13), and a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs 5 (ADAMTS5) and TNF-α in LPS-induced OA FLS., Conclusion: PF exhibited potent anti-inflammatory effect in OA synovial inflammation., (© 2022. The Chinese Journal of Integrated Traditional and Western Medicine Press and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Objectives: In this study, we compared the dynamic changes in body composition during XELOX/SOX chemotherapy in patients with gastric cancer. Furthermore, we investigated the potential impact of these changes on the occurrence of toxic side effects., Methods: Patients with gastric cancer who received adjuvant or first-line XELOX/SOX chemotherapy between January 2020 and June 2023 were enrolled. The Brief Conghua Scale was used to assess energy intake, and nutritional management was carried out with reference to the Chinese Guidelines for Nutritional Therapy of Cancer 2020 . The NRS 2002 Nutritional Risk Screening Scale, PG-SGA scale, bioelectrical impedance analysis, and dynamic changes in lumbar 3 vertebral skeletal muscle index were compared between baseline and post-chemotherapy in the study. The neutropenia was evaluated using the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events V.5.0 , developed by the National Institutes of Health., Results: Dynamic follow-up was completed in 39 cases, with a mean follow-up time of 117.62 ± 43.38 days. The incidence of sarcopenia increased significantly after chemotherapy, escalating from 46.2% to 51.3%. After chemotherapy, the mean L3SMI decreased from 36.00 cm 2 /m 2 to 34.99 cm 2 /m 2 . Furthermore, when compared to pre-chemotherapy values, the body composition indexes body mass index (BMI), SL3, fat mass free index (FFMI), lean body mass (LBM), and body surface area (BSA) were significantly reduced after chemotherapy. Regardless of baseline or post-chemotherapy status, the incidence of grade ≥ 3 neutropenia was significantly higher in the sarcopenia group than in the non-sarcopenia group. Furthermore, when the skeletal muscle index decreased during chemotherapy, the incidence of grade ≥ 3 neutropenia was significantly higher in both the sarcopenia and non-sarcopenia groups compared to baseline. When the incidence of grade ≥ 3 neutropenia in the post-chemotherapy sarcopenia group was compared to baseline status, the increase was significantly higher in the sarcopenia group than in the maintenance/increase group., Conclusions: Skeletal muscle mass decreased progressively during XELOX/SOX chemotherapy in gastric cancer patients, followed by a higher incidence of grade ≥ 3 neutropenia., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Li, Xu, Zhang, Jiang, Mi, Li, Shen, Fu, Qin, Lin, Fu, Yue, Ma and Li.)

The Lithosphere-Asthenosphere Boundary (LAB) beneath oceanic plates is generally imaged as a sharp seismic velocity reduction, suggesting the presence of partial melts. However, the fate of a melt-rich LAB is unclear after these plates descend into the mantle at subduction zones. Recent geophysical studies suggest its persistence with down-going old and cold slabs, but whether or not it is commonly present remains unclear, especially for young and warm slabs such as in the Cascadia subduction zone. Here we provide evidence for its presence at Cascadia in the form of a large (9.8 ± 1.5 % ) decrease in shear-wave velocity over a very small (<3 km) depth interval. Similarly large and sharp seismic velocity reduction at the bottom of both old and young slabs, as well as along the base of oceanic plates before subduction, possibly represents widespread presence of melts. The melt-rich sub-slab LAB may strongly influence subduction dynamics and viscoelastic earthquake cycles., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

This study took Chinese patent medicine for children included in Chinese Pharmacopoeia(2020 edition and the first supplement), Medicine Catalogue for National Basic Medical Insurance, Work Injury Insurance, and Maternity Insurance(2022 edition), and National Essential Medicines List(2018 edition) as the research objects, so as to sort out the distribution situation, characteristics, and the problems of Chinese patent medicine for children(including child-specific medicines, common medicines for children and adults, and discretionary medicines for children). According to statistics and summary, Chinese patent medicine for children is mainly administered orally, and the dosage forms are mostly traditional dosage forms, such as tablets, granules, capsules, and oral liquids, with mostly bitter or sweet taste. Diseases are mainly classified into pulmonary diseases and spleen and stomach diseases, and varieties of medication without Children's medication safety information or &quot;still unclear&quot; account for a relatively large proportion of the medicines. There are relatively few varieties of Chinese patent medicines for children, poor compliance of child-specific medication, lack of refinement of Chinese patent medicines for children dosage, and lack of information about safe use of medication. It is recommended to update and improve the instruction manuals in a timely manner, develop new varieties of Chinese patent medicine for children, and actively carry out post-marketing evaluation and clinical comprehensive evaluation of Chinese patent medicine for children, so as to provide a reference for the supplement and improvement of the instructions, the comprehensive improvement, the formulation of the catalogue, and the research and development of new Chinese patent medicine for children and ensure the use of medicines for children.

Spin-crossover (SCO) coordination cages are at the forefront of research for their potential in crafting next-generation molecular devices. However, due to the scarcity of SCO hosts and their own limited cavities, the interplay between the SCO host and the multiple guests binding has remained elusive. In this contribution, we present a family of pseudo-octahedral coordination cages (M 6 L 4 , M = Zn II , Co II , Fe II , and Ni II ) assembled from a tritopic tridentate ligand L with metal ions. The utilization of Fe II ion leads to the successful creation of the Fe 6 L 4 -type SCO cage. Host-guest studies of these M 6 L 4 cages reveal their capacity to encapsulate four adamantine-based guests. Notably, the spin transition temperature T 1/2 of Fe 6 L 4 is dependent on the multiple guests encapsulated. The inclusion of adamantine yields an unprecedented T 1/2 shift of 54 K, a record shift in guest-mediated SCO coordination cages to date. This drastic shift is ascribed to the synergistic effect of multiple guests coupled with their optimal fit within the host. Through a straightforward thermodynamic cycle, the binding affinities of the high-spin (HS) and low-spin (LS) states are separated from their apparent binding constant. This result indicates that the LS state has a stronger binding affinity for the multiple guests than the HS state. Exploring the SCO thermodynamics of host-guest complexes allows us to examine the optimal fit of multiple guests to the host cavity. This study reveals that the T 1/2 of the SCO host can be manipulated by the encapsulation of multiple guests, and the SCO cage is an ideal candidate for determining the multiple guest fit.

Two new megastigmane glycosides, (6  R ,7 E ,9 R )-3-oxo- α -ionyl-9-O- α -L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1''→4')- β -D-glucopyranoside ( 1 ) and (6  R ,7 E ,9 R )-3-oxo- α -ionyl-9-O- β -D-glucopyranosyl-(1''→6')- β -D-glucopyranoside ( 2 ), together with six known analogues ( 3 - 8 ) were isolated from the leaves of Nicotiana tabacum . The structures of all metabolites were determined by comprehensive analysis of NMR and MS spectroscopic data as well as by comparison with those of previously reported. The in vitro anti-inflammatory activity of all isolates was evaluated using a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced RAW264.7 cell inflammatory model, and the compounds 1 , 3 , 7 , and 8 exhibited inhibition of LPS-induced NO production in RAW264.7 macrophage cells with IC 50 values of 42.3-61.7 μM (positive control, dexamethasone, IC 50  = 21.3 ± 1.2 μM).

Soil nitrogen and phosphorus are two key elements limiting tree growth in subtropical areas. Understanding the regulation of soil microorganisms on nitrogen and phosphorus nutrition is beneficial to reveal maintenance mechanism of soil fertility in plantations. We analyzed the characteristics of soil nitrogen and phosphorus fractions, soil microbial community composition and function, and their relationship across three stands of two-layered Cunninghumia lanceolata + Phoebe bournei with different ages (4, 7 and 11 a) and the pure C. lanceolata plantation. The results showed that the contents of most soil phosphorus fractions increased with increasing two-layered stand age. The increase in active phosphorus fractions with increasing stand age was dominated by the inorganic phosphorus (9.9%-159.0%), while the stable phosphorus was dominated by the organic phosphorus (7.1%-328.4%). The content of soil inorganic and organic nitrogen also increased with increasing two-layered stand age, with NH 4 + -N and acid hydrolyzed ammonium N contents showing the strongest enhancement, by 152.9% and 80.2%, respectively. With the increase of stand age, the composition and functional groups of bacterial and fungal communities were significantly different, and the relative abundance of some dominant microbial genera (such as Acidothermus , Saitozyma and Mortierella ) increased. The relative abundance of phosphorus solubilization and mineralization function genes, nitrogen nitrification function and aerobic ammonia oxidation function genes tended to increase. The functional taxa of fungi explained 48.9% variation of different phosphorus fractions. The conversion of pure plantations to two-layered mixed plantation affected soil phosphorus fractions transformation via changing the functional groups of saprophytes (litter saprophytes and soil saprophytes). Changes in fungal community composition explained 45.0% variation of different nitrogen fractions. Some key genera ( e.g ., Saitozyma and Mortierella ) play a key role in promoting soil nitrogen transformation and accumulation. Therefore, the conversion of pure C. lanceolata plantation to two-layered C. lanceolata + P. bournei plantation was conducive to improving soil nitrogen and phosphorus availability. Bacteria and fungi played important roles in the transformation process of soil nitrogen and phosphorus forms, with greater contribution of soil fungi.

Controlled self-assembly of predetermined multi-nuclear lanthanide organic polyhedra (LOPs) still presents a challenge, primarily due to the unpredictable coordination numbers and labile coordination geometries of lanthanide ions. In this study, through introducing triazole-based chelates to increase the chelating angle of C 2 -symmetric linear ligands and stabilize the coordination geometry of Eu(III) centers, M 4 L 6 -type (M = Eu III , L = ligand) tetrahedra were efficiently synthesized, especially a biphenyl-bridged ligand which is well known to form M 2 L 3 -type helicates. A series of LOPs were formed and characterized by high-resolution electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectroscopy (ESI-TOF-MS) and X-ray crystallography. Moreover, the europium complexes exhibit bright emission (luminescence quantum yield up to 42.4%) and circularly polarized luminescence properties (| g lum | up to 4.5 × 10 -2 ). This study provides a feasible strategy for constructing multi-nuclear luminescent LOPs towards potential applications.

Objective: To report the results of a dose survey conducted across 31 provinces in mainland China from 2017 to 2018 and to analyse the dose level to determine the national diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) for paediatric CT procedures., Methods: At least ten patients for each age group (0- < 1, 1- < 5, 5- < 10, 10- < 15 years) and each procedure (head, chest and abdomen) for each CT scanner were selected from four to eight hospitals in each province. The dose information (CTDI vol and DLP) was collected from the HIS or RIS-PACS systems. The median values in each CT scanner were considered the representative dose values for the paediatric patients in CT scanning. The national DRLs were estimated based on the 75th percentile distribution of the median values., Results: A total of 24,395 patients and 319 CT scanners were investigated across 262 hospitals. For paediatric CT scanning in 4 different age groups, the median (P 50 ) and the 75th percentile (P 75 ) of CTDI vol and DLP for each scanning procedure were calculated and reported. National DRLs were then proposed for each procedure and age group., Conclusion: The dose level of CT scanning for children in mainland China was reported for the first time. The DRLs for paediatric CT in the present study are similar to those in some Asian countries but higher than those in European countries., Clinical Relevance Statement: The paediatric CT is an extensively used tool in diagnosing paediatric disease; however, children are more sensitive to radiation. Establishing the diagnostic reference level of paediatric CT examination is necessary to reduce the dose of CT in children and promote the optimisation of medical exposure., Key Points: • The DRLs for 3 paediatric CT procedures (head, chest and abdomen) and 4 age groups (0- < 1, 1- < 5, 5- < 10, 10- < 15 years) were proposed in mainland China first time. • The examination parameter and dose for children need to be further optimised in China, especially to lower the tube voltage in paediatric CT., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to European Society of Radiology.)

Background: While mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of hepatitis B virus (HBV) remains a significant challenge in China, research investigating the effectiveness of the September 2017 pilot program to eliminate MTCT of HIV, syphilis, and HBV is limited. Baoan district, which has a higher-than-average rate of hepatitis B infection among pregnant women and strong support from the government, was one of six national pilot districts selected for the program. Therefore, this study aims to assess the progress and implementation of the elimination of MTCT of HBV in Baoan district over a period of 5 years., Methods: Data was collected from the national information system for the prevention of MTCT, registration forms, and follow-up forms of pregnant women and their live births from 2018 to 2022. Joinpoint models were used to analyze changing trends over time, calculating annual percentage change (APC) and the corresponding 95% confidence interval (95%CI). Multivariate logistic regression models were used to analyze risk factors for HBV MTCT., Results: From 2018 to 2022, the coverage of HBV screening during pregnancy increased from 98.29 to 99.55% (APC = 0.30, P = 0.012). The coverage of HBV early screening within 13 gestational weeks increased from 40.76 to 86.42% (APC = 18.88, P = 0.033). The prevalence of maternal HBV infection declined by an APC of - 3.50 (95% CI -6.28 ~ - 0.63). The coverage of antiviral therapy among high-risk pregnant women increased from 63.59 to 90.04% (APC = 11.90, P = 0.031). Coverage for timely administration of hepatitis B immunoglobulin, hepatitis B birth dose vaccine, and three-dose hepatitis B vaccination remained consistently above 97.50%. The coverage of post-vaccination serological testing (PVST) in high-risk infants was 56.15% (1352/2408), and the MTCT rate of HBV was 0.18%. Mothers with high-school education or below (OR = 3.76, 95% CI 1.04 ~ 13.60, P = 0.04) and hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) positivity (OR = 18.89, 95% CI 1.98 ~ 18.50, P = 0.01) had increased MTCT risk., Conclusions: The implementation of comprehensive prevention strategies in Baoan district, including screening, treatment, and immunoprophylaxis, has proven effective in maintaining the MTCT of HBV at an extremely low level. However, it remains crucial to raise public awareness, specifically on the importance of improving the coverage of PVST for infants exposed to HBV., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs) have the potential for energy-efficient gas separation by matching the superior mass transfer and anti-plasticization properties of the fillers with processability and scaling up features of the polymers. However, construction of high-performance MMMs has been prohibited due to low filler-loading and the existence of interfacial defects. Here, high MOF-loaded, i.e., 55 wt %, MMMs are developed by a 'dormancy and double-activation' (DDA) strategy. High MOF precursor concentration suppresses crystallization in the membrane casting solution, realizing molecular level mixing of all components. Then, the polymeric matrix was formed with uniform encapsulation of MOF nutrients. Subsequently, double-activation was employed to induce MOF crystallization: the alkali promotes MOFs nucleation to harvest small porous nanocrystals while excessive ligands activate the metal ions to enhance the MOFs conversion. As such, quasi-semi-continuous mass transfer channels can be formed in the MMMs by the connected MOFs nanocrystals to boost the gas permeability. The optimized MMM shows significantly ameliorated CO 2 permeability, i.e., 2841 Barrer, five-fold enhancement compared with pristine polymer membrane, with a good CO 2 /N 2 selectivity of 36. Besides, the nanosized MOFs intensify their interaction with polymer chains, endowing the MMMs with good anti-plasticization behaviour and stability, which advances practical application of MMMs in carbon capture., (© 2023 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Introduction: We analyzed the effect of dexmedetomidine (DEX) as a local anesthetic adjuvant on postoperative delirium (POD) in elderly patients undergoing elective hip surgery., Methods: In this study, 120 patients undergoing hip surgery were enrolled and randomly assigned to two groups: fascia iliaca compartment block with DEX + ropivacaine (the Y group, n = 60) and fascia iliaca compartment block with ropivacaine (the R group, n = 60). The primary outcomes: presence of delirium during the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) period and on the first day (D1), the second day (D2), and the third day (D3) after surgery. The secondary outcomes: preoperative and postoperative C-reactive protein (CRP) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), occurrence of insomnia on the preoperative day, day of operation, D1 and D2; HR values of patients in both groups before iliac fascia block (T1), 30 min after iliac fascia block (T2), at surgical incision (T3), 20 min after incision (T4), when they were transferred out of the operating room (T5) and after leaving the recovery room (T6) at each time point; VAS for T1, PACU, D1, D2; the number of patients requiring remedial analgesics within 24 h after blockade and related complications between the two groups., Results: A total of 97 patients were included in the final analysis, with 11 and 12 patients withdrawing from the R and Y groups, respectively. The overall incidence of POD and its incidence in the PACU and ward were all lesser in the Y group than in the R group (p &lt; 0.05). Additionally, fewer cases required remedial analgesia during the PACU period, and more vasoactive drugs were used for maintaining circulatory system stability in the Y group as compared to the R group (p &lt; 0.05). At the same time, the incidence of intraoperative and postoperative bradycardia in the Y group was higher than that in the R group, accompanied by lower postoperative CRP and ESR (all p &lt; 0.05)., Conclusion: Ultrasound-guided high fascia iliaca compartment block with a combination of ropivacaine and DEX can reduce the incidence of POD, the use of intraoperative opioids and postoperative remedial analgesics, and postoperative inflammation in elderly patients who have undergone hip surgery, indicating that this method could be beneficial in the prevention and treatment of POD., (© 2024 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Background: Adipose stem cell-derived exosomes (ADSC-EXO) and botulinum toxin type A (BTX-A) individually showed a therapeutic effect on skin wound repair., Aims: This study investigated their synergistic effect on promoting skin wound healing in vitro and in vivo and the underlying molecular events., Methods: ADSCs were isolated from Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats to obtain ADSC-EXO by ultrafiltration and ultracentrifugation and were confirmed using nanoparticle tracking analysis and transmission electron microscopy. Human skin fibroblasts (HSF) were cultured and treated with or without ADSC-EXO, BTX-A, or their combination. Changes in cell phenotypes and protein expression were analyzed using different in vitro assays, and a rat skin wound model was used to assess their in vivo effects., Results: The isolated ADSC-EXO from primarily cultured ADSCs had a circular vesicle shape with a 30-180 nm diameter. Treatment of HSF with ADSC-EXO and/or BTX-A significantly accelerated HSF migration in vitro and skin wound healing in a rat model. Moreover, ADSC-EXO plus BTX-A treatment dramatically induced VEGFA expression but reduced COL III and COL I levels in vivo. ADSC-EXO and/or BTX-A treatment significantly upregulated TGF-β3 expression on Day 16 after surgery but downregulated TGF-β1 expression, suggesting that ADSC-EXO plus BTX-A promoted skin wound healing and reduced inflammatory cell infiltration., Conclusions: The ADSC-EXO plus BTX-A treatment demonstrated a synergistic effect on skin wound healing through upregulation of VEGF expression and the TGF-β3/TGF-β1 and COL III/COL I ratio., (© 2023 The Authors. Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Obesity is a common metabolic syndrome that causes a significant burden on individuals and society. Conventional therapies include lifestyle interventions, bariatric surgery, and pharmacological therapies, which are not effective and have a high risk of adverse events. Acupuncture is an effective alternative for obesity, it modulates the hypothalamus, sympathetic activity and parasympathetic activity, obesity-related hormones (leptin, ghrelin, insulin, and CCK), the brain-gut axis, inflammatory status, adipose tissue browning, muscle blood flow, hypoxia, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) to influence metabolism, eating behavior, motivation, cognition, and the reward system. However, hypothalamic regulation by acupuncture should be further demonstrated in human studies using novel techniques, such as functional MRI (fMRI), positron emission tomography (PET), electroencephalogram (EEG), and magnetoencephalography (MEG). Moreover, a longer follow-up phase of clinical trials is required to detect the long-term effects of acupuncture. Also, future studies should investigate the optimal acupuncture therapeutic option for obesity. This review aims to consolidate the recent improvements in the mechanism of acupuncture for obesity as well as discuss the future research prospects and potential of acupuncture for obesity.

Upconversion (UC) is a fascinating anti-Stokes-like optical process with promising applications in diverse fields. However, known UC mechanisms are mainly based on direct energy transfer between metal ions, which constrains the designability and tunability of the structures and properties. Here, we synthesize two types of Ln 8 L 12 -type (Ln for lanthanide ion; L for organic ligand L 1 or L 2 R/S ) lanthanide-organic complexes with assembly induced excited-multimer states. The Yb 8 (L 2 R/S ) 12 assembly exhibits upconverted multimer green fluorescence under 980 nm excitation through a cooperative sensitization process. Furthermore, upconverted red emission from Eu 3+ on the heterometallic (Yb/Eu) 8 L 12 assemblies is also realized via excited-multimer mediated energy relay. Our findings demonstrate a new strategy for designing UC materials, which is crucial for exploiting photofunctions of multicomponent lanthanide-organic complexes.

Objective: We retrospectively analyzed the occurrence of postoperative delirium following hip surgery and the associated risk factors. The aim was to establish a clinical foundation for preventing postoperative delirium after hip surgery., Methods: We retrospectively selected elderly patients who had hip surgery at our hospital between January 2022 and August 2022. We included patients who experienced delirium in the observation group and those who did not encounter delirium in the control group. We then proceeded to compare various indicators among these two groups of patients., Results: We analyzed a total of 97 cases of hip surgery, and among them, 32 cases experienced postoperative delirium, resulting in an incidence rate of 32.9%. Various factors were found to be linked to the development of postoperative delirium, including age, height, gender (male), preoperative erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), postoperative ESR, preoperative lactate levels, pain scores on the first day after surgery, type of surgical procedure, and the occurrence of delirium in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU delirium). Additionally, it was observed that 75% of patients who had PACU delirium also experienced postoperative delirium., Conclusion: Postoperative delirium in patients who have hip surgery had an incidence rate of 32.9%. This phenomenon is linked to various factors that pose a risk, such as the patient age, height, gender, preoperative ESR levels, postoperative ESR levels, preoperative lactate levels, pain scores on the day following surgery, and the specific surgical procedure performed. The likelihood of experiencing delirium increases by 12% for every additional 10 years in patient age. Additionally, the occurrence of delirium in the PACU is a strong indicator of the likelihood of experiencing postoperative delirium., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Liu, Zhang, Liu, Lu, Wu, Gao and Chen.)

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are a class of porous crystalline materials composed of metal centers or clusters assembled with organic ligands. These materials possess excellent properties, such as large surface areas, high porosities, uniform pore sizes, and diverse structures. Thus, MOFs have been widely applied in various fields, including catalysis, adsorption, sensing, sample pretreatment, and chromatographic separation. The applications of MOFs as stationary phases for chromatographic separation and analysis have attracted considerable attention from the research community in recent years. Compared with traditional chromatographic stationary phases, such as mesoporous silica, nanoparticles, and porous layers, MOFs possess flexible and tunable pore sizes and structures, thereby enabling precise control over their intermolecular interactions. Furthermore, the wide range of functional ligands and topologies of MOFs could potentially facilitate the separation and analysis of complex samples. These unique advantages render MOFs highly suitable for constructing novel chromatographic stationary phases.This article focuses primarily on the construction methods of MOFs as chromatographic stationary phases, and provides an overview of the latest research advancements in their applications in several chromatographic separation techniques such as high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), gas chromatography (GC), and capillary electrochromatography (CEC). The existing methods for the preparation and construction of MOFs-based chromatographic stationary phases are classified and evaluated. The construction methods for MOFs as stationary phases for HPLC mainly include filling, precursor-doped polymerization, and post-modification. The construction methods for MOFs as stationary phases for GC predominantly include in situ growth, static coating, and dynamic coating. The stationary phases for CEC can be categorized into packed columns, monolithic columns, and open-tubular columns. Compared with monolithic and packed columns, open-tubular CEC (OT-CEC) offers numerous advantages, including a more flexible and convenient preparation method, enhanced compatibility with various separation media, and higher separation efficiency. Consequently, OT-CEC has emerged as an important method for investigating the preparation of stationary phases for CEC. Several methods such as physical adsorption, covalent attachment, and electrostatic interactions have been developed for the preparation and modification of MOFs-based CEC stationary phases, and extensive studies have been conducted to optimize the performance and applications of MOFs in OT-CEC. However, the existing methods for constructing MOFs-based chromatographic stationary phases present certain limitations. Therefore, the selection of the appropriate MOFs, optimization of their preparation methods, and examination of their performance in different separation modes have become the focus of intensive research.This review also summarizes the different analytical targets (e. g., chiral small molecules, biomacromolecules, and nonchiral molecules) and corresponding separation effects achieved using various MOFs-based chromatographic stationary phases. Finally, future studies focusing on the development of MOFs as chromatographic separation media are discussed. Overall, this review provides a valuable reference for the rational construction and practical applications of advanced MOFs-based chromatographic stationary phases.

Developing efficient adsorbents to capture radioactive iodine produced from nuclear wastes is highly desired. Here we report the facial synthesis of a hexacationic imidazolium organic cage and its iodine adsorption properties. Crucial role of counteranions has been disclosed for iodine capture with this cage, where distinct iodine capture behaviors were observed when different counteranions were used. Mechanistic investigations, especially with the X-ray crystallographic analysis of the iodine-loaded sample, allowed the direct visualization of the iodine binding modes at the molecular level. A network of multiple non-covalent interactions including hydrogen bonds, halogen bonds, anion···π interactions, electrostatic interaction between polyiodides and the hexacationic skeleton of the cage are found responsible for the observed high iodine capture performance. Our results may provide an alternative strategy to design efficient iodine adsorbents., (© 2023. Springer Nature Limited.)

Fleas (Order Siphonaptera) are common blood-feeding ectoparasites, which have important economic significance. Limited mitochondrial genome information has impeded the study of flea biology, population genetics and phylogenetics. The Ctenophthalmus quadratus and Stenischia humilis complete mt genomes are described in this study. The samples were collected from Jianchuan, Yunnan plague foci, China. The mt genomes of C. quadratus and S. humilis were 15,938 bp and 15,617 bp, respectively. The gene arrangement of mt genome was consistent with that of other fleas, which include 22 tRNA genes, 13 protein-coding genes, and two rRNA genes, with a total of 37 genes. The relationship between C. quadratus and S. humilis in fleas was inferred by phylogenetic analysis of mt genome sequence datasets. Phylogenetic analyzes showed that the C. quadratus and S. humilis belonged to different species in the same family, and were closely related to Hystrichopsylla weida qinlingensis in the same family; and revealed that the family Hystrichopsyllidae is paraphyletic, supporting the monophyly of the order Siphonaptera. This study decodes the complete mt genomes of the C. quadratus and S. humilis for the first time. The results demonstrate that the C. quadratus and S. humilis are distinct species, and fleas are monophyletic. Analysis of mt genome provides novel molecular data for further studying the phylogeny and evolution of fleas., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Chen, Liu, Lu, Jiang, Wang, Zhang, Yang and Yang.)

Charge plays a crucial role in the function of molecular and supramolecular systems, but coordination hosts capable of orthogonal charge regulation remain elusive so far. In this study, we report the condition-dependent self-assembly of charge-reversible lanthanide-organic tetra-capped octahedral cages, i.e., [Ln 6 (H 3 L ) 4 ] 6+ and [Ln 6 L 4 ] 6- , from a series of lanthanide ions (Ln 3+ ; Ln = Lu, Yb, Eu) and a tritopic tetradentate acylhydrazone ligand (H 6 L ) featuring multiple deprotonation states and propeller conformations. While direct self-assembly under basic conditions produced a mixture of various Δ x Λ 6- x -[Ln 6 L 4 ] 6- ( x = 0-6) stereoisomers, racemic Δ 6 - and Λ 6 -[Ln 6 L 4 ] 6- could be exclusively obtained from the first self-assembly of Δ 6 - and Λ 6 -[Ln 6 (H 3 L ) 4 ] 6+ under neutral conditions followed by post-assembly deprotonation. Rich isomerism on the tetra-capped octahedral cages arising from the coupling between the metal-centered Δ/Λ chirality and the ligand conformations has been discussed based on X-ray single-crystal structures of the C 3 -symmetric Δ 3 Λ 3 -Ln 6 L 4 and T -symmetric Δ 6 /Λ 6 -Ln 6 L 4 complexes. Host-guest studies confirmed that positively charged rac -Δ 6 /Λ 6 -[Ln 6 (H 3 L ) 4 ] 6+ could bind anionic sulfonates, and negatively charged rac -Δ 6 /Λ 6 -[Ln 6 L 4 ] 6- exhibited strong encapsulation ability toward ammonium guests, where acid/base-triggered guest uptake/release could be realized taking advantage of the charge reversibility of the cage. Moreover, photophysical studies revealed visible-light-sensitized and guest-encapsulation-enhanced NIR emissions on the rac -Δ 6 /Λ 6 -Yb 6 L 4 cage. This work not only enriches the library of functional lanthanide-organic cages but also provides a promising candidate with charge reversibility for the development of smart supramolecular materials.

In Southeast Asia, the prevalence of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is high; however, the molecular mechanism governing the progression of NPC is unclear. The results of the present study revealed upregulation of ring finger protein 219 (RNF219) expression in NPC tissues and cells. Overexpression of RNF219 enhanced NPC cell invasion, migration, and proliferation; whereas knockdown of RNF219 had the opposite effects. Mechanistically, RNF219 activated the nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) pathway, mainly reflected by increased p65 nuclear translocation, and increased NF-κB pathway target gene expression. NF-κB pathway inhibition in cells overexpressing RNF219 resulted in reduced invasion, migration, and proliferation, confirming that progression of NPC was promoted by RNF219-mediated NF-κB pathway activation. In addition, the expression of RNF219 correlated positively with the activity of the NF-κB pathway, verifying that RNF219 regulates the activity of the NF-κB pathway in the clinical setting. Our results identified a novel therapeutic target that could promote the development of novel treatments for NPC., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Background and Purpose: Tumor recurrence after liver transplantation (LT) impedes the curative chance for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. This study aimed to develop a deep pathomics score (DPS) for predicting tumor recurrence after liver transplantation using deep learning., Patients and Methods: Two datasets of 380 HCC patients who underwent LT were enrolled. Residual convolutional neural networks were used to identify six histological structures of HCC. The individual risk score of each structure and DPS were derived by a modified DeepSurv network. Cox regression analysis and Concordance index were used to evaluate the prognostic significance. The cellular exploration of prognostic immune biomarkers was performed by quantitative and spatial proximity analysis according to three panels of 7-color immunofluorescence., Results: The overall classification accuracy of HCC tissue was 97%. At the structural level, immune cells were the most significant tissue category for predicting post-LT recurrence (HR 1.907, 95% CI 1.490-2.440). The C-indices of DPS achieved 0.827 and 0.794 in the training and validation cohorts, respectively. Multivariate analysis for recurrence-free survival (RFS) showed that DPS (HR 4.795, 95% CI 3.017-7.619) was an independent risk factor. Patients in the high-risk subgroup had a shorter RFS, larger tumor diameter and a lower proportion of clear tumor borders. At the cellular level, a higher infiltration of intratumoral NK cells was negatively correlated with recurrence risk., Conclusions: This study established an effective DPS. Immune cells were the most significant histological structure related to HCC recurrence. DPS performed well in post-LT recurrence prediction and the identification of clinicopathological features., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Aim: This study was designed to develop an effective measurement tool for occupational stress among medical staff and to identify the underlying risk factors among clinical nurses in China under depression during and after COVID-19., Methods: In the first stage, an occupational stress scale was developed for medical staff based on qualitative and quantitative methods. The dimensions of the scale were based on childhood stress and seven other parameters of working stress. In the second stage, a provincial survey was conducted among clinical nurses in Hainan. The structure of Medical Staff Occupational Stress Scale was tested in secondary and tertiary hospitals. The socio-demographic information, occupational stress (measured using the developed scale), and current depression symptoms (assessed with the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire) were evaluated. The risk factors for occupational stress-induced depression were tested using multivariate logistic regression., Results: The Medical Staff Occupational Stress Scale consisted of 42 items under eight dimensions with strong reliability and validity. Almost 80% of the clinical nurses reported obvious symptoms of depression. Based on multivariate logistical regression analysis, the significant risk factors for depression in nurses at secondary hospitals and tertiary hospitals were childhood stress, teaching stress, relationship with patient stress, and administration stress., Conclusion: The Medical Staff Occupational Stress Scale utilized in nursing population is based on strong psychometric features. Childhood stress contributes to occupational stress in nurses. The selection of nurses for clinical work may require evaluation of past history for childhood stress to prevent occupational depression. Teaching stress, relationship with patient stress and administration stress play significant roles in the prevention of depression among clinical nurses., Competing Interests: Xiao-kun Liu and Dan-ling Huang are the coordinated first authors. The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work., (© 2023 Liu et al.)

With the increasing demands for novel flexible organic electronic devices, conductive polymers are now becoming the rising star for reaching such targets, which has witnessed significant breakthroughs in the fields of thermoelectric devices, solar cells, sensors, and hydrogels during the past decade due to their outstanding conductivity, solution-processing ability, as well as tailorability. However, the commercialization of those devices still lags markedly behind the corresponding research advances, arising from the not high enough performance and limited manufacturing techniques. The conductivity and micro/nano-structure of conductive polymer films are two critical factors for achieving high-performance microdevices. In this review, the state-of-the-art technologies for developing organic devices by using conductive polymers are comprehensively summarized, which will begin with a description of the commonly used synthesis methods and mechanisms for conductive polymers. Next, the current techniques for the fabrication of conductive polymer films will be proffered and discussed. Subsequently, approaches for tailoring the nanostructures and microstructures of conductive polymer films are summarized and discussed. Then, the applications of micro/nano-fabricated conductive films-based devices in various fields are given and the role of the micro/nano-structures on the device performances is highlighted. Finally, the perspectives on future directions in this exciting field are presented., (© 2023 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Ln 2 L 3 -type supramolecular architectures have received significant attention recently due to their unique magnetism and optical properties. Herein, we report the triple-stranded Ln 2 L 3 -type lanthanide molecular quasi-lanterns, which are fabricated by the deprotonation self-assembly of a linear ligand featuring a β-diketone chelating claw and 2,2'-bipyridine (bpy) moiety with lanthanide ions (Ln = Eu 3+ and Dy 3+ ). The crystal structure analysis indicates that Eu 3+ and Dy 3+ ions are all coordinated by eight oxygen donors but in different coordination geometries. The eight oxygen donors in Eu 2 L 3 and Dy 2 L 3 are arranged in a square antiprism and triangular dodecahedron geometry, respectively. Taking into account the fact that the bpy moiety has a strong coordination affinity for transition metal ions, luminescence sensing toward Cu 2+ ions has been demonstrated with Eu 2 L 3 , bearing a detection of limit as low as 2.84 ppb. The luminescence sensing behavior of Eu 2 L 3 is ascribed to the formation host-guest complex between Eu 2 L 3 and Cu 2+ ions with a 1:2 binding ratio. Dynamic AC susceptibility measurements for Dy 2 L 3 reveal the relaxation of magnetization in it. This work provides a potential way for design and fabrication of lanthanide-based molecular materials with functions endowed by the ligands., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2023 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

Well-defined 3d-4f heterometallic supramolecular architectures have attracted attention because of their applications in the field of luminescence and magnetism. However, covalent metallo-supramolecular discrete complexes, decorated with hetero-metallic vertices, have never been reported because of the difficulties in design and control. Herein, we report a series of covalent metallo-supramolecular discrete complexes with 3d-4f vertices synthesized by hierarchical subcomponent self-assembly of tris(2-aminoethyl)amine, 2,6-diformyl- p -cresol, and lanthanide ions (Ln) with different amines and transition metal ions. The programmable self-assembly process results in the formation of triple-stranded hetero-metallic covalent organic discrete complexes, namely 3a-3c-(Ln, Zn) (Ln = Sm III , Eu III , Dy III , Yb III and Lu III ) and 3a'-(Dy, Co), which are characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analysis, electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (ESI-TOF-MS), and single-crystal X-ray analysis. Photophysical investigations disclose that the organic skeleton of 3a-(Ln, Zn) exhibits an excellent sensitizing ability toward Sm III , Eu III , and Yb III ions, displaying characteristic luminescence emission in both the visible and near-infrared (NIR) regions. AC susceptibility measurements of 3a'-(Dy, Co) reveal the frequency-independent performance under zero dc field, suggesting the absence of slow relaxation of magnetization. This work offers a new approach for the fabrication of discrete metallic covalent architectures with 3d-4f vertices.

Brønsted-base active sites on a Pd 4 L 2 cage facilitates enhanced catalytic efficiency, wide substrate scope and high turnover number (TON) for the one-pot photooxidation/Knoevenagel condensation reaction under mild conditions.

Two-dimensional (2D) membrane-based ion separation technology has been increasingly explored to address the problem of lithium resource shortage, yet it remains a sound challenge to design 2D membranes of high selectivity and permeability for ion separation applications. Zeolitic imidazolate framework functionalized modified layered double hydroxide (ZIF-8@MLDH) composite membranes with high lithium-ion (Li + ) permeability and excellent operational stability were obtained in this work by in situ depositing functional ZIF-8 nanoparticles into the nanopores acting as framework defects in MLDH membranes. The defect-rich framework amplified the permeability of Li + , and the site-selective growth of ZIF-8 in the framework defects bettered its selectivity. Specifically speaking, the ZIF-8@MLDH membranes featured a high permeation rate of Li + up to 1.73 mol m -2  h -1 and a desirable selectivity of Li + /Mg 2+ up to 31.9. Simulations supported that the simultaneously enhanced selectivity and permeability of Li + are attributed to changes in the type of mass transfer channels and the difference in the dehydration capacity of hydrated metal cations when they pass through nanochannels of ZIF-8. This study will inspire the ongoing research of high-performance 2D membranes through the engineering of defects., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

We report the syntheses and host-guest chemistry of two interconvertible coordination cages, Pd 2 L 2 and Pd 1 L 1 , from a dynamic macrocycle ligand (L) and a cis-blocking (tmen)Pd(NO 3 ) 2 (tmen = tetramethylethylenediamine) unit (Pd). The water-soluble macrocyclic L, which can bind various polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) guests in its cis-conformation, was constructed via four pyridinium bonds between two 2,4,6-tri(4-pyridyl)-1,3,5-triazine [TPT] panels and two p -xylene bridges. We selectively formed each cage either by changing the reaction concentration/solvent/temperature or through induced-fit guest encapsulation, while direct assembly of L and Pd resulted in a mixture of Pd 2 L 2 and Pd 1 L 1 in equilibrium. X-ray structures of the free ligand and the host-guest complexes confirmed the induce-fit adaptive changes in the ligand's conformation and the cage's cavity. This work demonstrates a useful strategy for designing multistimuli-responsive supramolecular hosts by coordination self-assembly with macrocyclic ligands featuring rich conformational freedom.

Discrete organopalladium coordination cages have shown great potential in applications ranging from molecular recognition and sensing, drug delivery to enzymatic catalysis. While many of the known organopalladium cages are homoleptic structures with regular polyhedral shapes and symmetric inner cavities, heteroleptic cages with complex architectures and new functions coming from their anisotropic cavities have received an increasing attention recently. In this concept article, we discuss a powerful combinatorial coordination self-assembly strategy toward the construction of a family of organopalladium cages, including both homoleptic and heteroleptic ones, from a given library of ligands. Within such a cage family, the heteroleptic cages often feature systematically fine-tuned structures and emergent properties, distinct from their parent homoleptic counterparts. We hope the concepts and examples provided in this article can offer some rational guidance for the design of new coordination cages toward advanced functions., (© 2023 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

The successful implementation of thin-film composite membranes (TFCM) for challenging solute-solute separations in the pharmaceutical industry requires a fine control over the microstructure (size, distribution, and connectivity of the free-volume elements) and thickness of the selective layer. For example, desalinating antibiotic streams requires highly interconnected free-volume elements of the right size to block antibiotics but allow the passage of salt ions and water. Here, we introduce stevioside, a plant-derived contorted glycoside, as a promising aqueous phase monomer for optimizing the microstructure of TFCM made via interfacial polymerization. The low diffusion rate and moderate reactivity of stevioside, together with its nonplanar and distorted conformation, produced thin selective layers with an ideal microporosity for antibiotic desalination. For example, an optimized 18-nm membrane exhibited an unprecedented combination of high water permeance (81.2 liter m -2 hour -1 bar -1 ), antibiotic desalination efficiency (NaCl/tetracycline separation factor of 11.4), antifouling performance, and chlorine resistance.

Mixed matrix membranes (MMMs), conjugating the advantages of flexible processing-ability of polymers and high-speed mass transfer of porous fillers, are recognized as the next-generation high-performance CO 2 capture membranes for solving the current global climate challenge. However, controlling the crystallization of porous metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and thus the close stacking of MOF nanocrystals in the confined polymer matrix is still undoable, which thus cannot fully utilize the superior transport attribute of MOF channels. In this study, the "confined swelling coupled solvent-controlled crystallization" strategy is employed for well-tailoring the in-situ crystallization of MOF nanocrystals, realizing rapid (<5 min) construction of defect-free freeway channels for CO 2 transportation in MMMs due to the close stacking of MOF nanocrystals. Consequently, the fabricated MMMs exhibit approximately fourfold enhancement in CO 2 permeability, i.e., 2490 Barrer with a CO 2 /N 2 selectivity of 37, distinctive antiplasticization merit, as well as long-term running stability, which is at top-tier level, enabling the large-scale manufacture of high-performance MMMs for gas separation., (© 2023 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a high-mortality pulmonary disorder characterized by an intense inflammatory response and a cytokine storm. As of yet, there is no proven effective therapy for ARDS. Itaconate, an immunomodulatory derivative accumulated during inflammatory macrophage activation, has attracted widespread attention for its potent anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative properties. This study pointed to explore the protective impacts of 4-octyl itaconate (4-OI) on ARDS. The results showed that lung injury was attenuated markedly after 4-OI pre-treatment, as represented by decreased pulmonary edema, inflammatory cell infiltration, and production of inflammatory factors. LPS stimulation induced NLRP3-mediated pyroptosis in vitro and in vivo, as represented by the cleavage of gasdermin D (GSDMD), IL-18 and IL-1β release, and these changes could be prevented by 4-OI pretreatment. Mechanistically, 4-OI eliminated mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (mtROS) and mtDNA escaping to the cytosol through the opening mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) in alveolar macrophages (AMs) under oxidative stress. In addition, 4-OI pretreatment markedly downregulated cyclic GMP-AMP synthase (cGAS), stimulator of interferon genes (STING) expression, and interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3) phosphorylation in vitro and in vivo. Meanwhile, inhibition of STING/IRF3 pathway alleviated NLRP3-mediated pyroptosis induced by LPS in vitro. Taken together, this study indicated that 4-OI ameliorated ARDS by rescuing mitochondrial dysfunction and inhibiting NLRP3-mediated macrophage pyroptosis in a STING/IRF3-dependent manner, which further revealed the potential mechanism of itaconate in preventing inflammatory diseases., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest 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., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier B.V.)