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Background Oligomeric α-synuclein (α-syn) can activate microglia to drive the early stages of Parkinson's disease (PD) pathogenesis. Our previous studies have found a significant expression difference between the lncRNA IL6ST-AS and its antisense RNA IL6ST in the cerebrospinal fluid of PD patients. Furthermore, in α-syn-induced HMC3 cells, a decline in IL6ST and its downstream target JAK2/STAT3 were also observed. Accumulating investigations have illustrated that STAT3 regulates the expression of ferroptosis-related genes and further influences the proliferation of cells.Methods The role and mechanisms of IL6ST/JAK2/STAT3 axis in α-syn induced HMC3 cells and PD mouse models were explored by Western blot or immunohistochemistry. Transcriptome sequencing of HMC3 cells exposed to α-syn oligomers and PD mouse models were performed. The STAT3 activator and the STAT3 inhibitor were used to regulate the expression of STAT3. qPCR was used to detect the expression of ferroptosis regulation genes (FRG) in HMC3 cells induced by α-syn or STAT3 inhibitor. ROS, lipid peroxidation and iron levels were measured by flow cytometry.Results We found that α-syn could impair cell activity and stalely inhibit the IL6ST/ STAT3/HIF-1α pathway in α-syn-induced HMC3 cells. Besides, we performed transcriptomic analysis for α-syn-induced HMC3 cells and in α-syn-induced PD mouse models and GSEA indicated an association with ferroptosis. The reduction in P-STAT3 resulted in the lower expression of HIF-1α and the transcriptional activation of ferroptosis positive regulation (FPR) genes. P-STAT3 mediated ferroptotic cell death in α-syn-induced HMC3 cells by modulating lipid peroxidation and iron metabolism levels. An in vivo study revealed that the IL6ST/JAK2/STAT3/HIF-1α pathway was upregulated in PD mouse models.Conclusions STAT3 was an important factor that regulates ferroptosis in α-syn pathology via the JAK2/STAT3/HIF-1α axis. Our research illustrated the relationship of the JAK2/STAT3/HIF-1α axis and ferroptosis in the pathological process of α-syn both in vitro and in vivo, providing new topics of interest regarding the inflammation damage hypothesis and pathogenesis in PD.

Purpose This paper aims to explore the key elements and dynamic formation mechanisms involved in the company identity construction during multicompany identification. Design/methodology/approach This study adopted a longitudinal single case study method, selected a representative company as the study case and analyzed the interactive practice of identity construction between the company and its external stakeholders based on the theory of organizational identity and sensemaking. Findings This study finds that the process of company identity construction for external stakeholders involves six elements. Companies mainly use a highly controlled, equality and interaction model to develop identity for a single stakeholder. Company identity is based on the company’s core identity claims and is formed by gradually integrating and cooperating with the identity claims of different stakeholders. Meeting the self-defining needs of stakeholders is a key driving force behind the evolution of company identity. Practical implications This study offers practical implications for companies to pursue and construct multicompany identity. For different types of external stakeholders, companies can adopt different identity sensemaking models. To build a new company identity, a company needs to do more on the basis of identity insights to break cognitive constraints and build new identity claim. Companies need to integrate new identity claims with the original identity claims. If different identity claims conflict or are difficult to reconcile, it may damage their original identity claims and companies need to evaluate the trade-offs. Originality/value This study expands the concept of company identity construction from the individual perspective to organizational identity and contributes to research in relationship marketing. This study identifies the key elements of company identity construction with multistakeholder participation and contributes to theory building in company identity research. The results of this study reveal the company identity construction mechanism for different external stakeholders and the dynamic formation process of multicompany identity.

The study aimed to investigate the incidence of and risk factors for liver damage in patients with human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) mono-infection receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART).We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of patients who were diagnosed with HIV-1 infection and initiated ART from January to December 2017. Among them, 382 patients with HIV-1 mono-infection and normal baseline liver function were included in the analysis. The incidence of liver damage at each follow-up point, and possible risk factors for liver damage were evaluated via COX regression survival analyses.The overall incidence of liver damage (grade I-IV) was 27.23% (interquartile range [IQR]: 26.38%-28.72%). Grade I liver damage was most common and accounted for 22.13% of cases (IQR: 21.06%-24.04%), while grade II liver damage accounted for 3.40% of cases (IQR: 3.19%-4.26%). COX regression and survival analyses revealed that baseline body mass index (BMI), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) level, CD4Liver damage is common in patients with HIV-1 mono-infection undergoing ART. Patients with risk factors for liver damage should be well-informed before the initiation of ART, and liver function should be closely monitored during ART even in patients with normal liver function before ART.

The aggregation of α-synuclein (α-syn) promotes neuroinflammation and neuronal apoptosis, which eventually contribute to the pathogenesis of Parkinson’s disease (PD). Our microarray analysis and experimental data indicated a significant expression difference of the long noncoding RNA IL6ST-AS and its anti-sense strand, IL6ST, in α-synuclein-induced microglia, compared with unstimulated microglia. IL6ST is a key component of the IL6R/IL6ST complex in the microglial membrane, which recognizes extracellular inflammatory factors, such as IL6. Studies have shown that the binding of IL6 to the IL6R/IL6ST complex could activate the JAK2-STAT3 pathway and promote an excessive immune response in glia cells. Meanwhile, the phosphorylation and activation of STAT3 could increase the transcription of HIF1A, encoding a hypoxia-inducible factor related to cytotoxic damage. Our results indicated that the overexpression of IL6ST-AS induced by exogenous α-synuclein could inhibit the expression of IL6ST and the activation of JAK2-STAT3 pathway in HMC3 cells. In addition, a reduction in STAT3 resulted in the transcription inhibition of HIF1A and the acceleration of oxidative stress injury in SH-SY5Y cells co-cultured with α-synuclein-induced HMC3 cells. Our findings indicate that IL6ST-AS is an important factor that regulates microglia activation and neuronal necrosis in the progression of PD. In the HMC3 and SH-SY5Y cell co-culture system, the overexpression of IL6ST-AS led to microglial dysfunction and neurotoxicology through the IL6ST-AS/STAT3/HIF-1α axis. Our research revealed the relationships among α-synuclein, IL6ST, STAT3, and HIF-1α in the pathological process of PD and provided a new inflammation hypothesis for the pathogenesis of PD.

This study aims to explore how social media usage can be leveraged to help tourists cope with acculturation when traveling aboard. Specifically, based on the findings of content analysis of the case company's chronicle posting on social media and in-depth interviews with its reviewers, we propose a theoretical process model to elucidate the major roles of social media in influencing the tourists' “virtual” acculturation process: an information source for destination selection, a learning center for cultural related skills for sociological adaptation, and a buffer of social support for psychological adjustment. This study contributes to the acculturation literature by extending the concept of “acculturation” to include indirect and intermittent “virtual” intercultural contacts and investigating the roles of social media in the various stages of virtual acculturation process. Additionally, it also enriches social media research in tourism literature as extant studies have mainly focused on social media application in destination branding. The implications of our findings will help tourism managers optimize their social media marketing efforts towards better trip experience with more positive acculturation outcome.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has highlighted the need for rapid and accurate nucleic acid detection at the point of care. Here, we report an amplification-free nucleic acid immunoassay, implemented on a lateral flow strip, for the fluorescence detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) RNA in less than one hour. The assay uses DNA probes that are designed to bind to the conserved open reading frame 1ab (ORF1ab), envelope protein (E) and the nucleocapsid (N) regions of the SARS-CoV-2 genome, and a fluorescent-nanoparticle-labelled monoclonal antibody that binds to double-stranded DNA-RNA hybrids. In a multi-hospital randomized double-blind trial involving 734 samples (593 throat swabs and 141 sputum) provided by 670 individuals, the assay achieved sensitivities of 100% and specificities of 99% for both types of sample (ground truth was determined using quantitative PCR with reverse transcription). The inexpensive amplification-free detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA should facilitate the rapid diagnosis of COVID-19 at the point of care.

The efficacy of cinnamic acid (CA) as an antibrowning agent was evaluated in fresh-cut taro. Different concentrations (0.1 g L−1, 0.2 g L−1 and 0.4 g L−1) of CA treatments reduced the browning index and a* and b* values but maintained L* values, suggesting that CA treatments prevented the browning development of fresh-cut taro during storage. Among the concentrations used, 0.1 g L−1 CA was sufficient to reduce browning. CA treatment (0.1 g L−1) reduced the total flavonoid content and the activity and gene expression of four main enzymes (PAL, C4H, 4CL and CHS) in the flavonoid biosynthesis pathway, suggesting that CA treatment reduced taro browning by suppressing the de novo biosynthesis of flavonoid compounds. Furthermore, CA treatment significantly reduced the lignin content, activity and gene expression of cinnamyl-alcohol dehydrogenase and slightly reduced the firmness of taro slices. Moreover, CA treatment showed strong inhibition of PPO activity in vivo and in vitro, suggesting that CA reduced phenolic oxidation by inhibiting PPO activity. CA-treated taro showed significantly reduced hydrogen peroxide content but enhanced activity and gene expression of catalase and peroxidase. In addition, CA had strong radical scavenging activity, suggesting that the application of CA to fresh-cut taro enhanced antioxidant activity. Overall, CA treatment reduced the surface browning of fresh-cut taro by suppressing the activity of browning-related enzymes and by improving antioxidant activity. The results presented in this study indicate that CA is an effective natural antibrowning agent for fresh-cut taro.

In this paper, model predictive control (MPC) is employed to resolve the energy management problem of a plug-in hybrid electric bus (PHEB). Dynamic programming (DP), as a global optimization method, is inserted at each time step of the MPC, to solve the optimization problem regarding the prediction horizon. A multi-step Markov prediction model is constructed to forecast the near future driving velocities for the MPC. The battery SOC is restrained to fluctuate near a reference trajectory to ensure the global performance of MPC. Three novel restraining methods are proposed and compared in this paper. The resultant fuel economy performance with different SOC constraint methods are evaluated. Simulation results indicate that by restraining the battery SOC adaptively to the control variables gains the best fuel economy performance, and the fuel consumption of MPC is 8.7% less than a ruled based strategy.

Background Malignant tracheoesophageal fistula (MTEF) is a devastating complication of esophageal cancer, lung cancer or other carcinoma with a shorter life-span and poor life quality. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of airway stent insertion on MTEF patients. Methods A total of 63 MTEF patients were included, 12 patients with lung cancer and 46 patients with esophageal cancers. Eight zones were proposed to classify various fistula locations. Airway stents were selected based on the various zones and fistula size. Results Airway stents were successfully inserted in all patients, and both airway and esophageal stents in 8 patients. Most fistula were located in locations II (18/63, 28.6%), III (22/63, 34.9%), then VII (9/63, 14.3%). The stents included 10 (15.9%) I shaped, 8 (12.7%) L shaped and 45 (71.4%) Y shaped. Different stents were placed based on different locations and sizes of fistulas. Overall, mean survival time was 163 days (2–270 days). Most symptoms relieved after stent insertion. Mean Karnofsky score jumped from 43.0 ± before stent placement to 66.7 ± after stent insertion ( P = 0.000). Complete closure was achieved in 45 patients (71.4%), and incomplete closure and leakage were found in 18 patients. Conclusions Airway stent insertion provides an effective approach to improve symptoms and quality of life. The choice of stent based on different fistula location and size may be a reasonable way in clinical practice.

Aims and Background Bronchial mucoepidermoid carcinoma is a rare disease in children, and lobectomy is traditionally considered as a first-line treatment. As the tumor is characterized by intraluminal growth, low malignancy and superficial infiltration of bronchial walls, bronchoscopic interventional therapy may provide an alternative treatment with favorable results. The aim of the study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of bronchoscopic therapies for bronchial mucoepidermoid carcinoma in children. Methods and Study design Clinical manifestations, multiple bronchoscopic interventions and outcomes in 6 children with bronchial mucoepidermoid carcinoma were retrospectively analyzed. Results The median age was 8.7 years (range 4 to 12 years). All the tumors were located in the lobar bronchus and were detected by computerized tomography. Diagnoses of low-grade mucoepidermoid carcinoma were made based on biopsies obtained via bronchoscopy. Five tumors were classified as intraluminal type and successfully eradicated by carbon dioxide cryotherapy and argon plasma coagulation under bronchoscopy. The other tumor in patient 3 was classified as the mixture type and could not be removed by a bronchoscopic, so left upper lobectomy was performed. For each patient, interventional procedures were conducted on the average for 6 times. No recurrence was detected by bronchoscopic inspections or computed tomography scans during follow-ups for 16-72 months. Conclusions Multiple bronchoscopic procedures, as alternative treatments, are effective in removing bronchial mucoepidermoid carcinoma mucoepidermoid carcinoma in children without any major complications.

Bronchial adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) is a rare disease with low malignancy and indolent progression. Airway obstruction caused by ACC can be resolved by endoscopic procedures. The efficacy of different techniques of bronchoscopic interventions for ACC has not been determined.From November 2004 to March 2012, ACC patients, mainly treated with different techniques of bronchoscopic interventions in our hospital, were reviewed.The study included 37 ACC patients. Five patients (13.5%) with intra-luminal type underwent bronchoscopic therapies for a median of three times (range 1-6 times). Thirty-two patients (86.5%) with mixed type underwent bronchoscopic interventions for a median of 14 times (range 4-20 times). The dyspnea index was significantly improved after the first endoscopic procedure. The overall five- and ten-year survival rate was 85.9% and 45.9%, respectively, similar to surgery-dominant treatments.The present study demonstrates that different procedures of bronchoscopic interventions, as main treatments for ACC, are as effective as surgery-dominant treatment. More prospective and multicentric studies are required to confirm these favorable results, which may influence the therapeutic strategy for ACC in the future.

Background The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of acute hypercapnia on surgery outcomes among patients receiving bronchoscopic interventions under general anesthesia. Furthermore, independent predictive factors for surgery complications were analyzed. Method A total of 323 patients with airway stenosis were enrolled in this retrospective study. Each patient underwent interventional rigid bronchoscopy under general anesthesia. Arterial blood gas (ABG) was measured intraoperatively. In light of PaCO2 levels in ABG, patients were divided into three groups: Group C (control) (PaCO2:≤ 60 mmHg), Group M (moderate) (PaCO2:61–100 mmHg), and Group S (severe) (PaCO2: >100 mmHg). Parameters, including PaO2 levels and recovery delays, were compared across three groups. Complications among patients receiving bronchoscopic interventions were evaluated as well. Independent predictive factors for surgery related complications were analyzed by multivariable regression method. Results Significant differences in weight (p=0.04), ASA IV (p=0.008), dyspnea index (p=0.003),COPD (p=0.02), dynamic airway collapse (p=0.002), severe stenosis severity (p=0.02), and stenosis locations among three groups were observed. Mild (PaCO2:~60 mmHg) to moderate (PaCO2:60–100 mmHg) hypercapnia was not associated with delayed recovery, whereas severe hypercapnia (PaCO2:>100 mmHg) was associated with delayed recovery, as well as declined PaO2 (p=0.00) and elevated blood glucose levels (p=0.00). The complications of bronchoscopic interventions included postoperative congestive heart failure (14 cases, 4.3%), tracheorrhagia (8 cases, 2.5%), delayed recovery (19 cases, 5.9%), and transfers to ICU after surgery (10 cases, 3.1%). The multivariable regression analysis showed that procedure duration (p=0.003), lobectomy (p=0.007), dynamic airway collapse (p=0.01), severe bronchial stenosis (p=0.01) and hypercapnia (p=0.02) were independent predictive factors for surgery related complications. Conclusions Acute hypercapnia lower than 100 mmHg was not associated with detrimental consequences, whereas severe hypercapnia (PaCO2: >100 mmHg) was associated with lower levels of PaO2. Hypercapnia was an independent predictive factor for bronchoscopic intervention complication, which may help physicians to optimize the therapeutic choices.

In this paper, the model predictive control (MPC) method is researched for energy management problem of plug-In hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV). Multi-step Markov prediction method is selected for the prediction. Dynamic programming (DP) is chosen to solve the optimization problem within the prediction horizon. Through the comparison of MPC result with the results of dynamic programming strategy and a rule-based strategy, it is certified that the control effect of MPC strategy is much better than the ruled-based strategy and close to the global optimal control under DP strategy.

BACKGROUND Clinical and laboratory data available on patients with Ebola virus disease (EVD) remain extremely limited. We summarized the clinical characteristics of patients with EVD and analyzed the factors related to their death. METHODS Patients admitted for care at the Freetown China-Sierra Leone Friendship Hospital during 1 October-14 November 2014 were enrolled in this study. The clinical data of these patients were retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS Sixty-one patients were confirmed to have EVD; 28 of them (45.9%) were male and 33 (54.1%) were female. Their median age was 28 years (range, 1.17-67 years). The median duration from symptom onset to clinic visit time was 5 days (range, 1-16 days). Among these patients, 42 of them (68.9%) died. Of the confirmed cases, 18.0% did not present with fever. Patients aged >30 years had a higher fatality rate than those

A kind of crystal precursor, (NH4)5[(VO)6(CO3)4(OH)9]·10H2O, less than 12 × 40 μm in dimensions was synthesized by reaction of vanadyl dichloride and ammonium hydrocarbonate in solution. The precursor microcrystals were fined to less than 10 μm with mean size of about 4 μm, by using organic solvents and surfactant in the process of the synthetical technique. Thermolysis of the precursor in a flow of nitrogen gas was investigated by TGA and DTA. The XRD powders patterns for the products from the thermolysis of the precursor show that the VO2 powder obtained at 350, 365, 380 and 410°C for 30 min were a noncrystalline phase, a monoclinic one named as B phase, a mixed phase of the B and the usual monoclinic A phase, and the pure A phase, respectively. SEM micrographs of VO2 powders from the fined precursor demonstrated that the particle sizes of these fine powders were less than 2 μm. DSC curve of the VO2 obtained at 450 °C for 30 min from the fined precursor showed that there was an endothermic phase transition at 71 °C.

In this paper, the model predictive control (MPC) method is researched for energy management problem of a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (HEV). The multi-step Markov prediction method is used to predict the driving condition. Dynamic programming (DP) is used to solve the optimization problem within the prediction horizon. Through the comparison of MPC result with the results of DP strategy and a rule-based strategy, it is certified that the MPC strategy can be implemented to solve the optimization problem for PHEV with good fuel economy.