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Objectives: This study aimed to examine (1) the feasibility of the study procedures (i.e. recruitment, retention, attendance, and assessment completion rates), and (2) the effects of horticultural ...

This study aims to evaluate the association between autoimmune thyroiditis and Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss (SSNHL).Hundred and five patients with SSNHL were enrolled. Audiometric tests, serum thyroid autoantibodies (TPOAb, TgAb) were studied. Based on the thyroid autoantibody results, patients were divided into two groups: thyroid autoantibody-positive and negative. The relationship between thyroid autoimmunity and audiological characteristics was analyzed.Twenty-six patients (24.8%) of the SSNHL had thyroid autoantibody elevated. The pure tone average (PTA) of patients with and without thyroid autoantibody is 60 ± 38.51 and 54.99 ± 33.87 dBHL, respectively. The PTA was significantly improved in both groups after treatment (We speculate that a potential association between thyroid autoimmunity and SSNHL. Thyroid autoimmunity may be a pathogenesis factor of SSNHL and associated with more severe hearing loss of high-frequency hearing.

The large-scale triaxial consolidated-drained (CD) and consolidated-undrained (CU) shear tests were carried out to investigate performances of the sericite quartz schist coarse-grained soil on stress-strain, deformation, and strength under four different confining pressure conditions. The test results indicated that the stress-strain curve of sericite quartz schist was nonlinearity, compressive hardening and elastic-plastic. The shear strength envelope curve was better. In the triaxial CD shear test, the sericite quartz schist exhibited weak strain softening under different confining pressures. The sample showed shearing shrinkage at first and later dilatancy under confining pressures of 200, 400, and 600 kPa. When the confining pressure was 800 kPa, the sample showed a trend of shearing shrinkage. In the triaxial CU shear test, the sericite quartz schist exhibited strain hardening, presenting a tendency of shearing shrinkage at first and later dilatancy. It is more reasonable to take account of the cohesion of sericite quartz schist in practical engineering design by linear-regression analysis.

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) possesses various bioactivities. However, the effects of DHA on adipocyte homeostasis remain unclear. Here the effects of DHA (0, 50, 100, 150 µM) on the apoptosis of mature 3T3-L1 adipocytes was investigated in order to elucidate potential mechanisms. It was shown that DHA decreased adipocyte viability, induced apoptosis, and reduced the cellular lipid content. DHA treatment also caused mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) loss and caspase-3 activation, as well as the up-regulation of pro-apoptotic protein Bad and an increase in the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio. Additionally, treatment with DHA down-regulated the levels of CREB, total Akt, p-Akt, total ERK, and p-ERK. Our data confirmed that DHA induced mitochondria-dependent apoptosis in 3T3-L1 adipocytes and that the CREB/Akt and ERK signalling pathways were involved in DHA-triggered apoptosis, which provides new information for the development of anti-obesity strategies.

Background: This study was designed to investigate the value of CEA and CA199 in predicting the treatment response to palliative chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer. Materials and Methods: We studied 189 patients with advanced gastric cancer who received first-line chemotherapy, measured the serum CEA and CA199 levels, used RECIST1.1 as the gold standard and analyzed the value of CEA and CA199 levels changes in predicting the treatment efficacy of chemotherapy. Results: Among the 189 patients, 80 and 94 cases had increases of baseline CEA (≥5 ng/ml) and CA199 levels (≥ 27U/ml), respectively. After two cycles of chemotherapy, 42.9% patients showed partial remission, 33.3% stable disease, and 23.8% progressive disease. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) for CEA and CA199 reduction in predicting effective chemotherapy were 0.828 (95%CI 0.740-0.916) and 0.897 (95%CI 0.832-0.961). The AUCs for CEA and CA199 increase in predicting progression after chemotherapy were 0.923 (95%CI 0.865-0.980) and 0.896 (95%CI 0.834-0.959), respectively. Patients who exhibited a CEA decline ≥24% and a CA199 decline ≥29% had significantly longer PFS (log rank p=0.001, p

As an important metal oxide, titanium dioxide (TiO2), particularly in the anatase phase, has been extensively investigated and utilized in many technological applications due to its excellent physicochemical properties. The surface properties of TiO2 materials, as well as their performance in various applications, are largely determined by the exposed external surfaces, and thus crystal shape engineering is paramount for this type of material. This review summarizes the recent progress in designing and fabricating anatase TiO2 crystals from the perspectives of thermodynamically and kinetically controlled routes. Furthermore, a bio-inspired technique is also highlighted, which would open up a new field for the growth of single crystals with unique morphology. The strength of crystal shape engineering of anatase TiO2 in biomedical applications is also identified, revealing opportunities for continued research and specific areas where significant advancements are needed.

Gastric cancer with brain metastasis is rare. The present study reports a case of gastric cancer with isolated brain metastasis 1 year after gastrectomy. To the best of our knowledge, there have been no prior reports of solitary brain metastasis from gastric cancer with peripheral nervous system symptoms. A distal gastrectomy was performed on a 60-year-old male patient with gastric cancer in November 2012. Postoperative pathological analysis revealed a moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma with tumor invasion into the serosa and metastasis to one dissected lymph node. No abnormalities were found at follow-up examination. However, a tumor representing metastasis to the brain was recognized by a cranial enhanced magnetic resonance imaging examination 1 year after gastrectomy, which was performed when the patient exhibited numbness and thigmesthesia. The patient was administered 30 Gy of stereotactic radiotherapy, delivered in 5 fractions. The patient succumbed to disease 10 months subsequent to undergoing radiotherapy. This case report suggests that gastric cancer may re-present as brain metastasis with peripheral nervous system symptoms.

A new method to measure the amount of aromaticity is presented through the process of Bond Length Equalization (BLE). Degree of Aromaticity (DOA), a two-dimensional intensive quantity including geometric and energetic factors, as a new measurement of aromaticity is proposed. The unique characteristic of DOA and the formation of DOA will be displayed. The calculation of the geometrical optimization, DOA, Nucleus Independent Chemical Shifts (NICS) and Ring Stretching Vibration Raman Spectroscopy Frequency (RSVRSF) for the aromatic ring molecules – GnHnm(G = C, Si, Ge, n = 3, 5–8, m = +1, −1, 0, +1, +2) were calculated using the method of Density Functional Theory (DFT). The correlation between radius angle and molecular energy is absolute quadratic in the process of BLE. As the increasing of the number of ring atoms, the value of DOA decreasing gradually, the aromaticity decreased gradually, which was a same conclusion as NICS and RSVRSF concluded.

The thermal characteristic of the Lithium ion battery pack has a strong influence on the operation and maintenance. The thermal model of the 10kWh Lithium ion battery pack was developed. The temperature and velocity vector field of the running battery pack was studied through simulation by computational fluid dynamics software. The accuracy of the pack thermal model was proved by experiments.

As one of the most familiar and serious danger geological hazard. Slope has caused huge life and property losses of our country and people. So it is necessary to analyze the stable state when facing serious landslide hazards, and giving a reasonable evaluation. Taking Suoertou landslide as an example In this paper, on the basis of investigation and study, general situation of Suoertou landslide is introduced, then the stable state is analyzed, calculated and evaluated, the conclusion is a depend basis for later treatment.

For the purpose of improving the real-time performance of the SIFT algorithm, an image matching algorithm based on SUSAN-SIFT algorithm is proposed in this paper. Use SUSAN algorithm in the detecting feature points part of the SIFT algorithm, avoiding the time-consuming down-sampling and Gaussian convolution of the algorithm, and remove the feature points of the unstable and low-contrast by the methods of interpolated estimate and the principal curvatures, and then use the SIFT algorithm to achieve the parts of describing the feature points and images matching. experimental verification: the SUSAN-SIFT algorithm has more fast calculation speed than SIFT algorithm ensuring the accuracy at the same time.

Compaction piles is one of the conventional methods for foundation treatment in collapsible loess, there are very few research results about soil compaction effect between piles when forming the piles. Firstly, the stress field and displacement field of soil around compaction piles are elastic-plastic analyzed on the basis of the cavity expansion theory; then a series of FLAC 3D numerical simulations were performed to evaluate the treatment effect of the compaction pile composite foundation. The result shows that all bearing capacity has improved, and quicklime compaction pile composite foundation has been increased remarkably. It embodies the correctness of the computation theory. And the feasibility of the compaction piles composite foundation on collapsible loess area is further proved.

Objective To determine the bufalin concentration in rats' plasma by establishing a high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) method, and to evaluate and compare the pharmacokinetic characteristics of bufalin-loaded bovine serum albumin nanoparticles (bufalin-BSA-NP) and bufalin. Methods Thirty Wistar rats were randomly divided into six groups with five rats in each group, and administered with a single dose of 0.6, 0.3 and 0.15 mg/kg of bufalin-BSA-NP or bufalin, respectively. After the administration, blood samples were collected from the orbital venous plexus at designed time points (1, 5, 8, 10, 15, 20, 30, 45, 60, 120, 180, 300 and 480 min). The concentration of bufalin in plasma at different sampling time points was determined by HPLC-MS/MS. The pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated and compared. Results The established HPLC-MS/MS method had high linearity, precision and accuracy. The blood plasma area under curve, the mean retention time and the terminal half life of bufalin-BSA-NP were 1.19 to 1.81, 2.12 to 3.61 and 2.17 to 2.94 times of bufalin, respectively. Conclusion Bufalin-BSA-NP has the function of sustained release thus to prolong the bufalin remaining in blood.

Spermatozoa viability tests based on dual-color flow cytometry after staining with Sybr-14/propidium iodide were performed on 44 men with complete asthenospermia for primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) screening, and seven were identified with PCD by electron microscopy of ultrastructural ciliary defects. Six PCD patients underwent eight intracytoplasmic sperm injection therapy cycles using ejaculated sperm or testicular sperm, obtaining a mean fertilization rate of 46.6%, with three healthy babies born and one in utero at the time of writing.

Objective To investigate the effects of cycloartocarpin A (ACR-2) and artocarpin (ACR-3), monomeric compounds isolated from Fructus Artocarpi Heterophylli, on apoptosis of SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 cell lines. Methods SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 cells were routinely cultured, and divided into experiment group and control group. The SMMC-7721 cells were treated with different concentrations of ACR-2 (3.46 x 10(-3), 13.82 x (-3), 55.30 x 10(-3) mmol/L) and ACR-3 (6.88 x 10(-3), 27.52 x 10(-3), 110.09 x 10(-3) mmol/L), and the SGC-7901 cells were also treated with different concentrations of ACR-2 (8.06 x 10(-3), 32.26 x 10(-3), 129.03 x 10(-3) mmol/L) and ACR-3 (2.87 x 10(-3), 11.47 x 10(-3), 45.87 x 10(-3) mmol/L), with PBS (DMSO Results ACR-2 and ACR-3 could induce apoptosis of SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 cells. Some of SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 cells demonstrated typical apoptosis after being treated with ACR-2 and ACR-3. Hoechst33342/PI staining showed that cells were fraught with overlapping nuclei and nuclear debris or lobule, and the nuclear appeared light blue. TUNEL showed that cells permeated with overlapping nuclei and nuclear debris or lobule, and the nuclear appeared brown. Less apoptotic cells were observed in negative control group, and the nuclear appeared light blue. The apoptosis rates of SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 cells in the ACR-2 and ACR-3 treated groups were significant higher than those in the control group (P Conclusion ACR-2 and ACR-3 can induce apoptosis of SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 cells.

Objective To investigate the effects of three compounds extracted from Tripterygium wilfordii Hook (TW) on angiogenesis in the chick chorioallantoic membrane (CAM). Methods Fifty fresh Hongkong Mahua chicken eggs were divided into five groups: PBS-treated group, TW1-, TW2- and TW3-treated groups and Rg3-treated group. After disinfection, the eggs were incubated for six days in a constant temperature box with the temperature being controlled within 37.8 degrees C, then exposed CAM, laid the filter papers with specimen on the CAM, and the eggs were incubated for another two days. CAM was fixed with the mixture of methyl alcohol and acetone at room temperature for about 15 min, and then cutting the CAM, taking photos and observing the angiogenesis in the CAM. Results There were many CAM vessels in the PBS-treated group and the blood vessel net could be seen clearly. The number of CAM vessels in the TW1-, TW2- and TW3-treated groups (10 microg/egg) was much less than that in the PBS-treated group. Furthermore, the frame of the vessels was not clear, and the color was obscure. Inhibition rates of angiogenesis in the TW1-, TW2- and TW3-treated groups were 80%, 60% and 100% respectively, while the inhibition rate of angiogenesis in the Rg3-treated group (10 microg/egg) was only 10%. Conclusion TW1, TW2 and TW3 can obviously restrain the angiogenesis in CAM and still need further study.

PURPOSE To investigate the antitumor activity and mechanism of chloroquine (CQ) in combination with cisplatin (DDP) in nude mice xenografted with gastric cancer SGC7901 cells. MATERIALS AND METHODS 35 cases of gastric cancer patients with malignant ascites were enrolled and intraperitoneal cisplatin injection was performed. Ascites were collected before and 5 days after perfusion for assessment of autophagy levels in cancer cells. In addition, 24 tumor-bearing mice were randomly divided into control, DDP, CQ and CQ + DDP groups. RESULTS In 54.3% (19/35) of patients the treatment was therapeutically effective (OR), 5 days after peritoneal chemotherapy, 13 patients had the decreased ascites Beclin-1 mRNA levels. In 16 patients who had NR, only 2 cases had decreased Beclin-1 (P=0.001). Compared with the control group, the xenograft growth in nude mice in the DDP group was low, and the inhibition rate was 47.6%. In combination with chloroquine, the inhibition rate increased to 84.7% (P

Management of gastric cancer with malignant ascites is a challenge, and limited data are available. We evaluated factors affecting survival for this condition to determine factors that predict survival outcome and to develop a rational treatment plan. We retrospectively studied 5,542 patients with gastric adenocarcinoma from January 2007 to December 2012. Among them, 347 patients (6.26 %) were associated with malignant ascites. The patients’ overall survival was compared among the different features. Three hundred forty-seven patients (153 females and 194 males; median age, 53 years) were enrolled, including 78 (22.5 %) young patients and 63 (18.1 %) elderly patients. One hundred forty-three (41.2 %) patients presented with malignant ascites at the initial diagnosis of gastric cancer, and 211 (60.8 %) received chemotherapy. After a median follow-up duration of 10.4 months, the median survival after the diagnosis of malignant ascites was 5.2 months (95 % CI, 4.8–5.6 months), and the 1-year survival rate was 16.1 %. An ECOG score greater than 2 (P

We aimed to investigate the mechanism and effects of autophagy on cisplatin (DDP)-induced apoptosis in human gastric cancer cell line SGC7901. After SGC7901 cells were treated with DDP and/or chloroquine, cell proliferation was measured using MTT assay; cell apoptosis was determined by flow cytometry; autophagy and apotosis-related proteins expression were detected by Western blot; and quantitative analysis of autophagy after monodansylcadaverine (MDC) staining was performed using fluorescence microscopy. We found after treatment with 5 mg/L DDP for 24 h, the rates of cell apoptosis were (21.07±2.12)%. Autophagy, characterized by an increase in the number of autophagic vesicles and the level of LC3-II protein was observed in cells treated with DDP. After inhibition of autophagy by chloroquine, the rates of cell apoptosis were increased to (30.16±3.54)%, and the level of Caspase-3 and P53 protein were increased, and Bcl-2 protein was decreased. Therefore, autophagy protects human gastric cancer cell line SGC7901 against DDP-induced apoptosis, inhibition of autophagy can promote apoptosis, and combination therapy with DDP and chloroquine may be a promising therapeutic strategy for gastric cancer.

The traditional indoor location algorithm based on distance-loss model mostly turn received signal strength indicator RSSI into distance, and then through the location-distance algorithm to achieve positioning. These algorithms need fit the wireless signal propagation model parameters A and N through experience or large amounts of data, so they are dependent on experience and are not strong universal algorithms for location of the different environment, also low accuracy. After lots of research and analysis of radio signal propagation model and the traditional indoor location algorithm, a new indoor location algorithm uses BP neural network to fit the distance-loss model is proposed. From a number of distances between reference nodes and blind node, Taylor series expansion algorithm is used to determine the coordinates of the blind node. Finally, the experiment result shows that the new algorithm improves the positioning accuracy and universality, compared with the traditional positioning algorithms.

Yong Hua Su*, Zi Fei Yin*, Hai Liang Xin, Hui Qing Zhang, Jia Yu Sheng, Yan Long Yang, Juan Du, Chang Quan LingDepartment of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Changhai Hospital, The Second Military Medical University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equallyAbstract: Titanate nanofibers containing silver have been demonstrated through the experiments reported herein to have effective antifungal and antiproliferative activities in the presence of UV light. The titanate nanofibers containing silver can be fabricated by means of ion exchange followed by a topochemical process in an environment suitable for reductive reactions. Excellent antibacterial, antifungal, and antiproliferative activities could be demonstrated by both Ag2Ti5O11· xH2O and Ag/titanate (UV light irradiation) due to their unique structures and compositions, which have photocatalytic activities to generate reactive oxygen species and capabilities to continuously release the silver ions. Therefore these materials have the potential to produce a membrane for the treatment of superficial malignant tumor, esophageal cancer, or cervical carcinoma. They may also hold utility if incorporated into a coating on stents in moderate and advanced stage esophageal carcinoma or for endoscopic retrograde biliary drainage. These approaches may significantly reduce infections, inhibit tumor growth, and importantly, improve quality of life and prolong survival time for patients with tumors.Keywords: silver, titanate, photocatalytic, antiproliferative, antimicrobial

To investigate the protective effects and mechanism of IPC on myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury.Effects of IPC on arrhythmia and coronary blood flow and the release of AST, CPK, LDH, SOD and LFO at different time after ischemia/reperfusion injury in rat Langendorff hearts were studied.IPC decreased the release of AST, CPK and LDH and increased myocardial SOD activity and decreased LPO level. IPC also inhibited ischemia/reperfusion arrhythmias and increased coronary blood flow.The results showed that IPC had well protective effects on myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury.

To investigate the effects of cycloartocarpin A (ACR-2) and artocarpin (ACR-3), monomeric compounds isolated from Fructus Artocarpi Heterophylli, on apoptosis of SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 cell lines.SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 cells were routinely cultured, and divided into experiment group and control group. The SMMC-7721 cells were treated with different concentrations of ACR-2 (3.46 x 10(-3), 13.82 x (-3), 55.30 x 10(-3) mmol/L) and ACR-3 (6.88 x 10(-3), 27.52 x 10(-3), 110.09 x 10(-3) mmol/L), and the SGC-7901 cells were also treated with different concentrations of ACR-2 (8.06 x 10(-3), 32.26 x 10(-3), 129.03 x 10(-3) mmol/L) and ACR-3 (2.87 x 10(-3), 11.47 x 10(-3), 45.87 x 10(-3) mmol/L), with PBS (DMSO0.1%) as control treatment. Cell apoptosis was measured by double labeled staining with Hoechst33342/propidium iodide (PI) and TdT-mediated dUTP-biotin nick end labeling (TUNEL) and flow cytometry.ACR-2 and ACR-3 could induce apoptosis of SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 cells. Some of SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 cells demonstrated typical apoptosis after being treated with ACR-2 and ACR-3. Hoechst33342/PI staining showed that cells were fraught with overlapping nuclei and nuclear debris or lobule, and the nuclear appeared light blue. TUNEL showed that cells permeated with overlapping nuclei and nuclear debris or lobule, and the nuclear appeared brown. Less apoptotic cells were observed in negative control group, and the nuclear appeared light blue. The apoptosis rates of SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 cells in the ACR-2 and ACR-3 treated groups were significant higher than those in the control group (P0.05, P0.01).ACR-2 and ACR-3 can induce apoptosis of SMMC-7721 and SGC-7901 cells.

To investigate the clinical improvement of patient's sperm quality after the therapy on chronic prostatitis (CP) with double-balloon and triple-channel transurethral perfusion and drainage catheter.Double-balloon and triple-channel transurethral perfusion and drainage catheter along with millimeter wave physical therapy and intravenous infusion with antibiotics were adopted to treat 58 CP patients. The patient's sperm quality was analyzed pre- and post- therapy by Computer-assisted Sperm Analysis Instrument.The comparison of patient's sperm quality parameters between pre- and post-therapy: percentage of motile sperm (42.66 +/- 17.12)% vs (55.23 +/- 14.79)%, grade a sperm (12.63 +/- 12.50)% vs (29.84 +/- 14.86)%, grade a + b sperm (29.14 +/-15.04)% vs (42.28 +/- 12.67)%, amplitude of the lateral head displacement (ALH) (3.04 +/- 1.55) microm vs (2.69 +/- 1.67) microm. The differences between pre- and post-therapy in above mentioned sperm parameters were all statistically significant (P0.01). While the differences among other sperm parameters were not statistically significant (P0.05).Timely and effective therapy with transurethral perfusion and drainage catheter can improve the patient's sperm quality significantly, but sperm movement function cannot resume completely in a short time.

In the title compound, C18H27ClO11, the glucopyran­oside ring adopts a chair conformation. All the substituents attached to the six-membered ring are in equatorial positions. In the crystal structure, mol­ecules related by translation along the a axis are linked into chains by weak inter­molecular C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds. The chloroethyl unit is disordered over two sites in a ratio of 0.7:0.3.

In the mol­ecule of the title compound, C21H17N3O, the nearly planar benzotriazole ring system is oriented with respect to the planar rings C (benzoyl) and D (terminal phen­yl) at dihedral angles of 58.52 (1) and 77.16 (1)°, respectively. In the crystal structure, inter­molecular C—H⋯N hydrogen bonds link the mol­ecules into centrosymmetric dimers.