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Exciton dynamics of perovskite nanoclusters has been investigated for the first time using femtosecond transient absorption (TA) and time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) spectroscopy. The TA results show two photoinduced absorption signals at 420 and 461 nm and a photoinduced bleach (PB) signal at 448 nm. The analysis of the PB recovery kinetic decay and kinetic model uncovered multiple processes contributing to electron-hole recombination. The fast component (∼8 ps) is attributed to vibrational relaxation within the initial excited state, and the medium component (∼60 ps) is attributed to shallow carrier trapping. The slow component is attributed to deep carrier trapping from the initial conduction band edge (∼666 ps) and the shallow trap state (∼40 ps). The TRPL reveals longer time dynamics, with modeled lifetimes of 6.6 and 93 ns attributed to recombination through the deep trap state and direct band edge recombination, respectively. The significant role of exciton trapping processes in the dynamics indicates that these highly confined nanoclusters have defect-rich surfaces.

Exciton-phonon interactions elucidate structure-function relationships that aid in the control of color purity and carrier diffusion, which is necessary for the performance-driven design of solid-state optical emitters. Temperature-dependent steady-state photoluminescence (PL) and time-resolved PL (TRPL) reveal that thermally activated exciton-phonon interactions originate from structural distortions related to vibrations in cubic CsPbBr3 perovskite quantum dots (PQDs) at room temperature. Exciton-phonon interactions cause performance-degrading PL line width broadening and slower electron-hole recombination. Structural distortions in cubic PQDs at room temperature exist as the bending and stretching of the PbBr6 octahedra subunit. The PbBr6 octahedral distortions cause symmetry breaking, resulting in thermally activated longitudinal optical (LO) phonon coupling to the photoexcited electron-hole pair that manifests as inhomogeneous PL line width broadening. At cryogenic temperatures, the line width broadening is minimized due to a decrease in phonon-assisted recombination through shallow traps. A fundamental understanding of these intrinsic exciton-phonon interactions gives insight into the polymorphic nature of the cubic phase and the origins of performance degradation in PQD optical emitters.

Hupo Bian,1 Shaoqi Zhu,2 Yonghua Zhang,3 Qiang Fei,4 Xiuhua Peng,1 Zanhui Jin,1 Tianxiang Zhou,5 Hongxing Zhao1,6 1Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Huzhou Normal University, Huzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Endocrinology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Huzhou Normal University, Huzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Radiology, The Wuxing District People’s Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Radiology, The Linghu People’s Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Urinary Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Huzhou Normal University, Huzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China; 6Huzhou Key Laboratory of Precise Diagnosis and Treatment of Urinary Tumors, Huzhou, Zhejiang, 313000, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Hongxing Zhao, Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Huzhou Normal University, No. 158, Plaza Back Road, Wuxing District, Huzhou City, Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China, Email zhx2113408@126.comObjective: A bibliometric analysis was conducted using VOSviewer and CiteSpace to examine studies published between 2009 and 2023 on the utilization of artificial intelligence (AI) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).Methods: On March 24, 2024, a computer search was conducted on the Web of Science (WOS) core collection dataset published between January 1, 2009, and December 30, 2023, to identify literature related to the application of artificial intelligence in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). VOSviewer was utilized for visual analysis of countries, institutions, authors, co-cited authors, and keywords. CiteSpace was employed to analyze the intermediary centrality of institutions, references, keyword outbreaks, and co-cited literature. Relevant descriptive analysis tables were created using Excel2021 software.Results: This study included a total of 646 papers from WOS. The number of papers remained small and stable from 2009 to 2017 but started increasing significantly annually since 2018. The United States had the highest number of publications among countries/regions while Silverman Edwin K and Harvard Medical School were the most prolific authors and institutions respectively. Lynch DA, Kirby M. and Vestbo J. were among the top three most cited authors overall. Scientific Reports had the largest number of publications while Radiology ranked as one of the top ten influential journals. The Genetic Epidemiology of COPD (COPDGene) Study Design was frequently cited. Through keyword clustering analysis, all keywords were categorized into four groups: epidemiological study of COPD; AI-assisted imaging diagnosis; AI-assisted diagnosis; and AI-assisted treatment and prognosis prediction in the COPD research field. Currently, hot research topics include explainable artificial intelligence framework, chest CT imaging, and lung radiomics.Conclusion: At present, AI is predominantly employed in genetic biology, early diagnosis, risk staging, efficacy evaluation, and prediction modeling of COPD. This study’s results offer novel insights and directions for future research endeavors related to COPD.Keywords: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, artificial intelligence, visual analysis, bibliometric analysis

Haotian Chen, Juan Zhi, Lei Wang, Zibin Jin, Jin Xu, Fei Xing, Chao Wen, Qianyu Wang, Chunmei Chen, Weiou Li, Ermeng Xu, Jie An, Lingxin Wei Department of Anesthesiology, Plastic Surgery Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Lingxin Wei, Department of Anesthesiology, Plastic Surgery Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, 33 Badachu Road, Shijingshan District, Beijing, 100144, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 010 85557917, Email weilx3934@sina.comPurpose: Esketamine have anesthetic and analgesic properties. This study aimed to observe the enhancing effect of subanesthetic doses of esketamine (0.15– 0.3 mg/kg/h) with dexmedetomidine and remifentanil during anesthesia for liposuction surgery.Patients and Methods: A total of 155 subjects were randomized with a 1:1 ratio to Group E (esketamine-dexmedetomidine/remifentanil, n=78) or Group C (saline-dexmedetomidine/remifentanil group, n=77). The primary outcome was satisfaction of patient and surgical team with the procedure. The secondary outcomes were the postoperative Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS) and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) scores, hemodynamic and respiratory changes, drug consumption, adverse event rates, and predictors associated with patient satisfaction.Results: Patient and surgical team satisfaction with the procedure was significantly higher in Group E than in Group C (4.7 ± 0.6 vs 4.2 ± 0.7, P < 0.001; 4.7 ± 0.5 vs 4.4 ± 0.7, P = 0.005). The postoperative AIS (4 [1, 6] vs 5 [2, 9], P = 0.012) and HADS-A (1 [0, 3] vs 2 [0, 6], P = 0.012) scores were significantly lower in Group E than in Group C. Hemodynamic and respiratory parameters were more stable in Group E than in Group C, with the lower opioids consumption of sufentanil (0 [0, 4] vs 5 [2.5, 7.7], P < 0.001) and remifentanil (700 [480, 900] vs 800 [500, 1200], P = 0.023) in Group E compared to Group C. On ordinal logistics regression, postoperative sleep quality (OR, 0.70; 95% CI, 0.62– 0.79), anxiety level (OR, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.62– 0.95) and recovery time in post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) (OR, 0.69; 95% CI, 0.56– 0.98) were identified as significant predictors associated with patient satisfaction.Conclusion: A subanesthetic dose of esketamine (0.15– 0.3 mg/kg/h) as an adjuvant can improves the sedative and analgesic effects of dexmedetomidine and remifentanil during anesthesia for liposuction surgery.Clinical Trial Registration: ChiCTR2400080363.Keywords: esketamine, sedation, analgesia, satisfaction, liposuction

Yi Tang,1,&ast; Zemin Wei,1,&ast; Ning Li,2 Chao Jiang,2 Chen Liang,1 Lulu Sun,2 Lufeng Tian,3 Zhengyu Jin,4 Zhe Wu,2,&ast; Hao Sun4,&ast; 1Department of Endocrinology, Fushun Central Hospital, Fushun, Liaoning Province, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Radiology, Fushun Central Hospital, Fushun, Liaoning Province, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Internal Medicine, Fushun Central Hospital, Fushun, Liaoning Province, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Radiology, State Key Laboratory of Complex Severe and Rare Disease, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Peking Union Medical College and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Hao Sun, No. 1 Shuaifuyuan, Wangfujing Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing, 100730, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-10-69159537, Email sunhao_robert@126.com Zhe Wu, Fushun Central Hospital, Xincheng Road, Shuncheng District, Fushun, Liaoning Province, 113006, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-156-42018778, Email wuzhe0306@163.comPurpose: To examine the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus in non-obese patients with pancreatic fatty infiltration through abdominal computed tomography (CT) quantitation.Patients and Methods: We carried out a retrospective analysis of abdominal CT and inpatient medical records of 238 inpatients from July 2019 to April 2021. The patients were divided into a normal non-obese group (BMI < 25, n = 135) and diabetic non-obese group (BMI < 25, n = 103). Abdominal CT-related parameters included body width; mean CT values of the pancreas, liver, and spleen; difference between pancreas and spleen CT values (P−S); pancreas-to-spleen attenuation ratio (P/S); and liver-to-spleen attenuation ratio (L/S). Logistic regression was used to estimate the risk factors for comorbid diabetes in a non-obese population.Results: The P-values of the pancreas CT value, P−S, P/S, body width, and L/S were all < 0.05 and correlated to comorbid diabetes in non-obese patients. Worsening pancreatic fatty infiltration increased the risk of developing diabetes. Using a P/S of 1.0 as reference, every successive decrease in this ratio by 0.1 increases patient risk by 3.981, 4.452, 6.037, and 12.937 times.Conclusion: The risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus in non-obese patients increases with the degree of pancreatic fatty infiltration as assessed by CT.Keywords: computed tomography, non-obese patients, pancreatic fatty infiltration, type 2 diabetes mellitus

The excited state dynamics of ligand-passivated PbBr2 molecular clusters (MCs) in solution have been investigated for the first time using femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy. The results uncover a transient bleach (TB) feature peaked around 404 nm, matching the ground state electronic absorption band peaked at 404 nm. The TB recovery signal can be fitted with a triple exponential with fast (10 ps), medium (350 ps), and long (1.8 ns) time constants. The medium and long time constants are very similar to those observed in the time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) decay monitored at 412 nm. The TB fast component is attributed to vibrational relaxation in the excited electronic state while the medium component with dominant amplitude is attributed to recombination between the relaxed electron and hole. The small amplitude slow component is assigned to electrons in a relatively long-lived excited electronic state, e.g., triplet state, or shallow trap state due to defects. This study provides new insights into the excited state dynamics of metal halide MCs.

Michael H Storandt,1 Zhaohui Jin,2 Amit Mahipal3 1Department of Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA; 2Department of Medical Oncology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA; 3Department of Medical Oncology, University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USACorrespondence: Amit Mahipal, University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University, 11100 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH, 44106, USA, Tel +1 216-844-3951, Email Amit.mahipal@UHhospitals.orgAbstract: Advanced biliary tract cancers (BTCs) have historically been managed with chemotherapy but, in recent years, this treatment paradigm has begun to shift with the introduction of immune checkpoint inhibitors in addition to standard of care chemotherapy. The tumor microenvironment of BTC may be enriched with regulatory T lymphocytes and immune checkpoint expression in some patients. Durvalumab, an anti-programmed death ligand-1 (PD-L1) antibody, in combination with gemcitabine and cisplatin, has now received United States Food and Drug Administration approval for treatment of advanced BTC. Regulatory approval was based on the Phase III, randomized TOPAZ-1 trial that demonstrated survival benefit with addition of durvalumab to gemcitabine plus cisplatin compared to chemotherapy alone. The combination of chemotherapy and immunotherapy was well tolerated, and a subset of patients were able to achieve a durable response, with a 2-year overall survival rate of 23.6%. However, limitations remain in identifying which patients are most likely to benefit from immune checkpoint inhibition. Future study should aim to identify biomarkers predictive of substantial benefit, as well as the role of immune checkpoint inhibition in combination with targeted therapies and radiotherapy in the management of advanced BTC.Keywords: durvalumab, immunotherapy, cholangiocarcinoma, bile duct cancers

Zhuhua Jin,1,2 Lei Zhu,3 Shuping Zhou,2,4 Chao Lu2,4 1Department of Information Management, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Science and Technology, First People’s Hospital of Huainan, Huainan, Anhui Province, People’s Republic of China; 2School of Economics and Management, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Huainan, 232001, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Neurology, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Science and Technology, First People’s Hospital of Huainan, Huainan, Anhui Province, People’s Republic of China; 4First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Science and Technology, First People’s Hospital of Huainan, Huainan, Anhui Province, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Lei Zhu, Department of Neurology, Department of Neurology, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Science and Technology, First People’s Hospital of Huainan, Huainan, Anhui Province, People’s Republic of China, Email salimai@126.com Chao Lu, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Science and Technology, First People’s Hospital of Huainan, Huainan, Anhui Province, People’s Republic of China, Email 765385306@qq.comBackground: Post-stroke Fatigue (PSF) after Intracerebral Hemorrhage (ICH) is a long-term symptom in stroke survivors. However, the pathogenesis of PSF remains inadequately understood and sufficient evidence-based treatments are lacking. Mobile health (mHealth) technology offers a promising approach to expanding access to high-quality and culturally tailored evidence-based mental care.Aim: This study examined the role of mHealth called iHealth in the management of PSF after ICH.Methods: A total of 225 patients diagnosed with intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) were included in the study and randomly assigned to either the Mobile Health Intervention Group (mHI Group) or the non-Mobile Health Intervention Group (non-mHI). The management involved the utilization of a digital healthcare application named iHealth, which incorporated digital questionnaires, fatigue scale tests, and online videos for the purpose of administering the Patient Fatigue Reporting Measurement Information System (PFRMIS) short form as part of the initial patient assessment following ICH. The study was conducted remotely via video conferencing over a 12-week period in mHI Group, with fatigue assessments being conducted 3 months post-ICH onset in two groups.Results: Following the administration of PSF by iHealth, Univariate Logistic analyses indicated a significant association between fatigue and the type of activity, with patients who were sedentary or did nothing experiencing higher levels of fatigue (β=2.332, p< 0.001; β=2.517, p< 0.001). Multivariate Logistic analyses demonstrated a positive association between the intensity of physical activity and decreased emotional well-being and family support, as well as increased fatigue. (p=0.001, p=0.002, p=0.001). The FSS results demonstrated a significantly reduced incidence of PSF in the MHI group in comparison to non-mHI group following the conclusion of the programme. (13.1% vs 40%, p< 0.001).Conclusion: This study explored the effectiveness of the iHealth app for PSF following ICH, indicating that iHealth is a clinically valuable tool that warrants further dissemination.Keywords: post-stroke fatigue, mobile health intervention, fatigue severity scale, intracerebral hemorrhage, iHealth

Jun’e Ma,1,* Zhenhui Wang,1,* Chuanjin Luo,2 Jin’ou Xi,1 Xiaojing Wang,1 Yan Hu,1 Chengliang Zhu,3 Zhengjiang Jin1 1Department of Clinical Laboratory, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei Province, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430070, People’s Republic of China; 2State Key Laboratory of Virology College of Life Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430060, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Clinical Laboratory, Institute of Translational Medicine, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430060, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Zhengjiang Jin, Department of Clinical Laboratory, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei Province, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430070, People’s Republic of China, Email king199735@126.com Chengliang Zhu, Department of Clinical Laboratory, Institute of Translational Medicine, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430060, People’s Republic of China, Email zhuchengliang@whu.edu.cnPurpose: To understand the epidemiology and clinical features of Ureaplasma urealyticum (UU) infection in hospitalized neonates due to vertical transmission from mother to child.Methods: Respiratory secretions were collected from neonates hospitalized in the neonatology department of the Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei Province from July 2020 to June 2022, and PCR was used to detect UU-DNA in respiratory secretions. The neonates were divided into UU-positive and UU-negative groups, the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of two groups, were statistically analyzed.Results: A total of 7257 hospitalized neonates were included in this study, of whom 561 were UU positive and 6696 were UU negative, with a UU detection rate of 7.73%. The detection rate among female neonates was higher than male neonates, and the highest detection rate was found in the period from 1– 7 days after birth; the detection rate was highest in spring and fall, and the lowest in winter, but the overall difference was not statistically significant (P> 0.05). Compared with the UU-negative group, neonates in the UU-positive group were more likely to be preterm, have a lower birth weight, be delivered vaginally, and have maternal preterm rupture of membranes. In addition, neonates in the UU-positive group were more likely to be co-infected with pathogens and to have complications related to UU infections, which were all statistically significant (P< 0.05).Conclusion: Neonatal UU infections are detected more frequently in female infants, with the highest detection rate occurring in 1– 7 days after birth, and the most prevalent periods for infection being spring and fall. Vaginal delivery and premature rupture of membranes may lead to an increased risk of vertical UU transmission from mother to child, and UU infection is strongly associated with preterm labor, low birth weight, pathogen co-infection, and related complications.Keywords: Ureaplasma urealyticum, neonates, infection, epidemiology, clinical characteristics, co-infection

We have synthesized L-cysteine and oleylamine stabilized CsPbBr3 perovskite quantum dots (PQDs) and coupled them with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). The PQDs and AuNPs, as well as their hybrid nanostructures (HNS), were characterized using UV–visible (UV–vis) and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The UV–vis spectra show absorption bands of the HNS at 503 and 520 nm, attributed mainly to PQDs and AuNPs, respectively. The PQDs show a strong excitonic PL band peaked at 513 nm from PQDs. The HR-TEM results show the formation of hybrid structures between PQDs and AuNPs, which is also supported by the PL quenching of the PQDs by the coupled AuNPs. Ultrafast dynamics of the exciton and charge carriers in the HNS and pristine PQD were studied using femtosecond transient absorption. Multiexponential fitting of the dynamic data revealed the existence of shallow and deep trap states in pristine PQDs and ultrafast electron transfer from PQDs to AuNPs in the HNS. A kinetic model was proposed to account for the key dynamic processes involved and to extract the time for electron transfer from PQDs to AuNPs in the HNS, found to be ∼2 ps. Dynamic processes in pristine PQDs are largely unchanged by HNS formation with AuNPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metal halide perovskites, such as methylammonium lead bromide, have recently attracted considerable attention due to their interesting and useful photoelectric properties. Here, two types of methylammonium lead bromide magic-sized clusters (MSCs), passivated with oleylamine and oleic acid, were synthesized using ligand-assisted reprecipitation (LARP) and heated LARP (HLARP) methods. The optical properties of these MSCs were characterized using UV-vis electronic absorption and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopies. The HLARP synthesis resulted in a two-fold increase in the PL quantum yield of the MSCs to 76%. The stability of the MSCs was tested using time-dependent PL spectroscopy. LARP MSCs in solution degraded completely after 14 days under ambient conditions, while HLARP MSCs lasted for 26 days. To stabilize them, the MSCs were added to a non-coordinating matrix, paraffin. Both MSCs showed significantly improved resistance to water with the addition of paraffin. Solid LARP MSCs lost all luminescence with and without the addition of paraffin by about 3 h. Solid HLARP MSCs without paraffin started to aggregate after 3 h, but paraffin stabilized HLARP MSC films were stable for 8 days. This improved stability in solid state form allowed for accurate, nonaggregated analysis using Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. Raman spectroscopy revealed that the HLARP MSCs show an additional peak at 147 cm-1 compared to LARP MSCs, which is attributed to methylammonium. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy confirm that MSCs have a quasi-crystalline orthorhombic structure.

Qiang Ye,1 Guoping Huang,1 Qin Hu,1 Qin Man,2 Xiaoying Hao,3 Liangyan Liu,4 Qiang Zhong,1 Zhao Jin2 1Department of Clinical Laboratory, West China Second University Hospital, Southern Sichuan Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Zigong, Sichuan, 643000, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Prenatal Diagnosis Center, West China Second University Hospital, Southern Sichuan Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Zigong, Sichuan, 643000, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Ultrasound, West China Second University Hospital, Southern Sichuan Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Zigong, Sichuan, 643000, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Obstetrics, West China Second University Hospital, Southern Sichuan Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Zigong, Sichuan, 643000, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Zhao Jin, Department of Prenatal Diagnosis Center, West China Second University Hospital, Southern Sichuan Women’s and Children’s Hospital, No. 49 Da Huang Tong Road, Da’an District, Zigong, Sichuan, 643000, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-13990094008, Email Jinzhao_work@163.comObjective: This study was to evaluate the performance of noninvasive prenatal testing (NIPT) in detecting fetal chromosome disorders in pregnant women.Methods: From October 1st, 2017, to December 31th, 2022, a total of 15,304 plasma cell free DNA-NIPT samples were collected for fetal chromosome disorders screening. The results of NIPT were validated by confirmatory invasive testing or clinical outcome follow-up. Further, NIPT performance between low-risk and high-risk groups, as well as singleton pregnancy and twin pregnancy groups was compared. Besides, analysis of 111 false-positive cases was performed.Results: Totally, NIPT was performed on 15,086 eligible venous blood samples, of which 179 (1.19%) showed positive NIPT results and 68 were further validated to be true positive samples via confirmatory invasive testing or follow-up of clinical outcomes. For common chromosome aneuploidies, sex chromosome abnormalities (SCA) and other chromosomal aneuploidies, the detection sensitivities of NIPT were all 100%, the specificities were 99.87%, 99.70%, and 99.68% and the positive predictive values (PPVs) were 65.45%, 31.82%, and 10.91%, respectively. No statistically significant variance in detection performance was observed among 2987 high-risk and 12,099 low-risk subjects, as well as singleton and twin pregnancy subjects. The concentration of cell-free fetal DNA of 111 false-positive cases ranged from 5.5% to 33.7%, which was higher than the minimum requirement of NIPT.Conclusion: With stringent protocol, NIPT shows high sensitivity and specificity for detecting fetal chromosome disorders in a large-scale clinical service, helping improving overall pregnancy management.Keywords: noninvasive prenatal testing, fetal chromosome disorders, high risk, twin pregnancy, performance evaluation

Jing Wang,1,&ast; Lisha He,2,&ast; Zhiyan Jin,1,&ast; Guoguang Lu,1 Sufei Yu,1 Lingling Hu,1 Meidan Fang,1 Xiaxia Jin1 1Department of Clinical Laboratory, Taizhou Hospital of Zhejiang Province Affiliated to Wenzhou Medical University, Linhai, Taizhou, Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Ultrasound, Taizhou Hospital of Zhejiang Province Affiliated to Wenzhou Medical University, Linhai, Taizhou, Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Meidan Fang; Xiaxia Jin, Department of Clinical Laboratory, Taizhou Hospital of Zhejiang Province Affiliated to Wenzhou Medical University, Linhai, Taizhou, Zhejiang Province, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 13586102337; +86 15967063239, Email fangmd@enzemed.com; jinxiax@enzemed.comObjective: To explore the early predictors and their predicting value of 28-day mortality in sepsis patients and to investigate the possible causes of death.Methods: 127 sepsis patients were included, including 79 cases in the survival group and 48 cases in the death group. The results of all patients on admission were recorded. After screening the risk factors of 28-day mortality, the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) was used to determine their predictive value for the 28-day mortality rate on admission, and the Kaplan-Meier curve was drawn to compare the 28-day mortality rate between groups. Finally, patients with cytokine and lymphocyte subsets results were included for investigating the possible causes of death through correlation analysis.Results: APACHE II (acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II), SOFA (Sequential Organ Failure Assessment) and red blood cell distribution width (RDW) were the risk factors for 28-day mortality in sepsis patients (OR: 1.130 vs.1.160 vs.1.530, P < 0.05). The area under the curve (AUC), sensitivity and specificity of APACHE II, SOFA and RDW in predicting the mortality rate at 28 days after admission in sepsis patients were 0.763 vs 0.806 vs 0.723, 79.2% vs 68.8% vs 75.0%, 65.8% vs 89.9% vs 68.4%. The combined predicted AUC was 0.873, the sensitivity was 89.6%, and the specificity was 82.3%. The Kaplan-Meier survival curve showed that the 28-day mortality rates of sepsis patients with APACHE II≥ 18.5, SOFA≥ 11.5 and RDW≥ 13.8 were 58.5%, 80.5% and 59.0%, respectively. In the death group, APACHE II was positively correlated with SOFA, IL-2, and IL-10, and RDW was positively correlated with PLT, TNF-α, CD3+ lymphocyte count, and CD8+ lymphocyte count.Conclusion: Sepsis patients with high APACHE II, SOFA and RDW levels at admission have an increased 28-day mortality rate. The elevation of these indicators in dead patients are related to immune dysfunction.Keywords: sepsis, APACHE II, SOFA, red blood cell distribution width, mortality, immune dysfunction

Jiaru Wang,1 Peiyao Jia,2 Dong Zhang,2 Ying Zhao,2,3 Xin Sui,1 Zhengyu Jin,1,&ast; Wei Song1,&ast; 1Department of Radiology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Clinical Laboratory, State Key Laboratory of Complex Severe and Rare Diseases, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Science and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 3Beijing Key Laboratory for Mechanisms Research and Precision Diagnosis of Invasive Fungal Diseases, Beijing, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Wei Song, Department of Radiology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, No. 1 Shuaifuyuan Wangfujing Dongcheng District, Beijing, 100730, People’s Republic of China, Tel/Fax +86 10 69159525, Email cjr.songwei@vip.163.comPurpose: To explore the clinical characteristics, diagnosis, and treatment of family outbreak of psittacosis and to improve the success rate of treatment.Patients and Methods: The clinical characteristics, diagnosis, treatment, and outcome of family outbreak of psittacosis, which consists three patients, diagnosed by clinical analysis and metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) in our hospital were analyzed retrospectively.Results: We report on three instances of clustered atypical pneumonia, which were caused by Chlamydia psittaci during the COVID-19 pandemic. All patients exhibited symptoms of fever and cough, while one patient also experienced gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Laboratory tests indicated no significant increase in leukocytes and neutrophils, but a mild increase in C-reactive protein was observed in all three patients. Chest computed tomography (CT) scans revealed a consolidation shadow in a unilateral lung lobe in all three patients. Both patients were treated with empirical moxifloxacin, yielding unsatisfactory outcomes. mNGS was conducted on sputum samples from one adult patient, revealing the presence of Chlamydia psittaci. Additional doxycycline was prescribed immediately, and then the patients’ temperatures were stabilized, and the lesion in chest CT was absorbed. The pediatric patient exhibited less severe symptoms compared to the adult patients and exhibited a favorable response to azithromycin administration.Conclusion: This study reports a cluster of a family outbreak of atypical pneumonia caused by C. psittaci in China. The occurrence of a family outbreak during the COVID-19 pandemic may be attributed to familial aggregation resulting from the epidemic. The three cases reported in this study did not experience severe complications, which can be attributed to the prompt medical intervention and swift diagnosis. This finding implies the need to enhance patients’ awareness and vigilance towards their health. Additionally, mNGS emerges as a valuable technique for accurately identifying pathogens causing pulmonary infections.Keywords: psittacosis, outbreak, COVID-19, metagenomic next-generation sequencing, pneumonia

Yuchen Li,1,&ast; Yinfeng Gu,1,&ast; Pengyue Yang,1 Yan Wang,1 Xibao Yu,1 Yangqiu Li,1 Zhenyi Jin,1,2 Ling Xu1,3 1Institute of Hematology, School of Medicine, Key Laboratory for Regenerative Medicine of Ministry of Education, Department of Hematology, First Affiliated Hospital, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, People’s Republic of China; 3Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Virology, Institute of Medical Microbiology, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Ling Xu; Zhenyi Jin, Email lingxu114@163.com; jinzhenyijnu@163.comAbstract: Immunotherapy utilizing T cells that attack tumors is a promising strategy for treatment, but immune suppressive T cell subsets, such as regulatory T cell (Treg), and immune checkpoint molecules, including programmed death-1 (PD-1), can suppress the intensity of a T cell immune reaction and thereby impair tumor clearance. Cluster of differentiation 69 (CD69), known as an early leukocyte activation marker, can be used as a measure or early marker of T cell activation. In recent years, the functions of CD69 in the regulation of Treg/Th17 (T helper cell 17) differentiation and in the tissue retention of T cells have attracted considerable interest. These functions are related to the role of CD69 in immune suppression in tumor environments (TME). In this review, we first summarized current perspectives in the biological function of CD69 and demonstrated that CD69 acts as a regulator of T cell activation, differentiation, retention, and exhaustion. Then, we discussed recent advances in understanding of CD69 deficiency and anti-CD69 antibody administration and shed light on the value of targeting on CD69 for cancer immunotherapy and prognosis prediction.Keywords: CD69, T cell, immunotherapy

Jiaojiao Dong,&ast; Zhousheng Jin,&ast; Hongfei Chen, Nana Bao, Fangfang Xia&ast; Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, 325000, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Fangfang Xia, Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, Shangcai Village, Nanbaixiang Town, Ouhai District, Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, 325000, People’s Republic of China, Email Helenxia4271@163.comPurpose: We examined whether the addition of sufentanil to local anesthetics improves the quality of continuous femoral nerve block in patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty (TKA).Patients and Methods: With institutional ethical approval and having obtained written informed consent from each, 35 patients scheduled for elective bilateral TKA with ASA I or II physical status were studied. Bilateral femoral perineural catheters were preoperatively inserted. Both-sided catheters were randomly assigned to receive perineural ropivacaine of 0.2% plus 0.5μg/mL sufentanil deemed as RS group or 0.2% ropivacaine alone deemed as R group at the end of surgery. Visual analogue pain scores (VAS) during activity and at rest of each lower limb were recorded at 6,12,18,24,30,36,42 and 48h after surgery. During the first 48 postoperative hours, the number and reason of patients sleep interruption at night, the number of painful compressions, patient satisfaction and morphine requirements were recorded for each lower limb of patients.Results: Pain scores of RS group on movement were significantly lower than R group, but no difference was noted at rest. When compared to R group, RS group had a lower incidence of sleep interruption at night, fewer painful compressions, higher satisfaction scores and less morphine requirement.Conclusion: The addition of sufentanil to ropivacaine improved analgesia quality of continuous femoral nerve block after arthroplasty. Keywords: continuous femoral nerve block, ultrasound guidance, total knee arthroplasty, analgesia, ropivacaine

Shasha Zhang,1,&ast; Jinchun Li,2,&ast; Li Wan,1 Jing Yu,2 Sumei Chen,2 Zhengjiang Jin3 1Department of Pharmacy, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei Province, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430070, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Neonatology, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei Province, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430070, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Clinical Laboratory, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei Province, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430070, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Zhengjiang Jin, Department of Clinical Laboratory, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei Province, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430070, People’s Republic of China, Email king199735@126.comPurpose: To determine the clinical features, laboratory findings, antibiotic treatment, and outcomes of neonatal listeriosis in a specialized tertiary hospital in Wuhan, China.Patients and Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of patients diagnosed with neonatal listeriosis at Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei Province from January 2015 to December 2022. Listeriosis was indicated by positive culture for Listeria monocytogenes (LM).Results: A total of 11 cases were included in our study. The incidence rate of neonatal listeriosis was 2.06 per 100,000 live births. Seventy-three percent of the cases were born prematurely, caused early onset sepsis. Respiratory distress (100%) was the most common and earliest symptom, followed by fever (64%) and rashes (27%). The levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) and procalcitonin (PCT) were elevated in 100% of the cases. The median time-to-positivity (TTP) of the culture was 15 hours (range 9– 28hours). Of the 11 neonates, 6 were cured, 2 showed improvement, and 3 died, with a mortality rate of 27%. There were statistically significant differences in Apgar score at 5 minutes (p=0.037) and CRP (p=0.025) between the survival group and fatality group. Ampicillin was sensitive to LM isolates and effective for therapy if initiated early.Conclusion: Neonatal listeriosis is a rare but severe infection with a high mortality rate. Early identification and appropriate use of effective antibiotics are particularly critical for achieving positive outcomes. Apgar score and CRP are relevant indices for prognosis. Ampicillin is the first-line therapy and can be empirically administered to neonates suspected of having listeriosis.Keywords: neonatal listeriosis, Listeria monocytogenes, clinical features, antibiotic treatment, Apgar score, C-reactive protein

Metal halide perovskite quantum dots (PQDs) and perovskite magic sized clusters (PMSCs) exhibit interesting size- and composition-dependent optoelectronic properties that are promising for emerging applications including photovoltaic solar cells and light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Much work has focused on developing new synthesis strategies to improve their structural stability and property tunability. In this paper, we review recent progress in the synthesis and characterization of PQDs and PMSCs, with a focus on the impact of different molecular ligands on their surface passivation and interconversion. Moreover, the effect of capping ligands on ion exchange during synthesis and doping is discussed. Finally, we present some perspectives on challenges and opportunities in fundamental studies and potential applications of both PQDs and PMSCs.

Hui Zhang,1 Zhigeng Jin,1 Hao Wang,2 Yutao Guo,1,3 Gregory YH Lip3,4 1Medical School of Chinese PLA, Department of Pulmonary Vessel and Thrombotic Disease, Sixth Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Cardiology, Second Medical Centre, National Clinical Research Centre for Geriatric Diseases, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 3Liverpool Centre for Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Liverpool and Liverpool Heart & Chest Hospital, Liverpool, UK; 4Aalborg Thrombosis Research Unit, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University, Aalborg, DenmarkCorrespondence: Yutao Guo, Department of Pulmonary Vessel and Thrombotic Disease, Six Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, 5 Fucheng Road, Beijing, 100048, People’s Republic of China, Email dor_guoyt@hotmail.comBackground: Guideline-recommended integrated care based on the ABC (Atrial fibrillation Better Care) pathway for “general” patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) improves clinical outcomes, as demonstrated in our prior mobile Atrial Fibrillation Application (mAFA)-II cluster randomized trial. The present study aims to investigate whether mAFA III-supported structured follow-up rehabilitation packages adapted to patient risk profiles and different treatment patterns (eg, for patients receiving drug treatment only, AF ablation, or left atrial appendage occlusion [LAAO]) will improve guideline adherence and reduce the risk of adverse cardiovascular events.Methods and Analysis: In this prospective, observational mAFA III pilot cohort study, patients with AF aged ≥ 18 years will be enrolled using the mAFA III App for self-management. Assuming an annual rate of composite outcome of “ischaemic stroke or systemic embolism, all-cause death and cardiovascular hospitalization” of 29.3% for non-ABC pathway compliance compared with 20.8% for ABC pathway compliance, at least 1475 patients would be needed to detect the outcome of the A, B and C components of the ABC pathway, assuming a withdrawal rate of 20% in the first year. The primary endpoint is adherence to guidelines regarding the A, B and C components of the ABC pathway. Ancillary analyses will be performed to determine the impact of the ABC pathway using smart technologies on the outcomes among the “high-risk” population (eg, ≥ 75 years old, with multimorbidities, with polypharmacy) and the application of artificial intelligence machine-learning AF risk prediction management in assessing AF recurrence. The individualised anticoagulants with AF burden will be monitored by smart devices.Trial Registration Number: ISRCTN13724416.Keywords: atrial fibrillation, rehabilitation, mobile health

Metal-halide perovskites have rapidly emerged as one of the most promising materials of the 21st century, with many exciting properties and great potential for a broad range of applications, from photovoltaics to optoelectronics and photocatalysis. The ease with which metal-halide perovskites can be synthesized in the form of brightly luminescent colloidal nanocrystals, as well as their tunable and intriguing optical and electronic properties, has attracted researchers from different disciplines of science and technology. In the last few years, there has been a significant progress in the shape-controlled synthesis of perovskite nanocrystals and understanding of their properties and applications. In this comprehensive review, researchers having expertise in different fields (chemistry, physics, and device engineering) of metal-halide perovskite nanocrystals have joined together to provide a state of the art overview and future prospects of metal-halide perovskite nanocrystal research.

Huan Zhang,1,2,&ast; Cheng Yu,1,&ast; Yuanling Cheng,1 Zhi Chen,2 Min Chen,2 Wangan He,1 Zhigang Jin,1 Shaoqian Cai,1 Lijuan Yu2 1Department of Cardiology, China Resources & Wisco General Hospital, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China; 2Wuhan University of Science and Technology Medical College, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Shaoqian Cai; Zhigang Jin, Department of Cardiology, China Resources & Wisco General Hospital, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, 430080, People’s Republic of China, Email caishaoqian0716@163.com; 1634046380@qq.comBackground: With the disappointing results associated with the use of cardiac myosin inhibitors in the treatment of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), the development of new therapies in clinical trials for HCM has rapidly increased. We assessed the characteristics of therapeutic intervention in HCM registered on ClinicalTrials.gov and the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP).Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional, descriptive study of clinical trials for therapeutic intervention in HCM registered on ClinicalTrials.gov and ICTRP.Results: This study analyzed 137 registered trials. Regarding study designs of these trials, 77.37% were purpose of treatment, 59.12% were randomized, 50.36% were parallel assignment, 45.26% were performed with masking, 48.18% recruited less than 50 participants, and 27.74% were Phase 2 trials. In total, 67 trials were new drug trials, of which 35 drugs were tested in these trials, and 13 trials involved treatment with mavacamten. Of these 67 clinical drug trials, 44.78% of trials involved the study of amines, and 16.42% involved 1-ring heterocyclic compounds. Regarding the NCI Thesaurus Tree, 23.81% of trials involved myosin inhibitors, 23.81% of trials involved drugs belonging to agents affecting the cardiovascular system, and 20.63% were involved in testing cation channel blockers. The drug-target network showed that myosin-7, potassium voltage-gated channel subfamily h member 2, beta-1 adrenergic receptor, carnitine o-palmitoyltransferase 1, and liver isoform were the most targeted pathways of the clinical trials analyzed in the drug-target network.Conclusion: The number of clinical trials investigating therapeutic interventions for HCM has increased in recent years. Ultimately, recent HCM therapeutic clinical trials generally did not incorporate either randomized controlled trials or masking and were small studies recruiting fewer than 50 participants. Although recent research has focused on targeting myosin-7, the molecular signaling mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of HCM have the potential to elucidate novel target pathways.Keywords: clinical trials, obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, nonobstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, myosin-7, amines, myosin inhibitors

Yang Wang,1,&ast; Zheng Wang,1,&ast; Xiao Wu,1,&ast; Song Zhu,2,&ast; Qiru Guo,1 Zhong Jin,1 Zixian Chen,3 Delai Zhang,2 Wangming Hu,1 Huan Xu,1 Liangqin Shi,1 Lan Yang,1 Yong Wang1 1College of Basic Medicine, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China; 2Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China; 3School of Ethnic Medicine, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Yong Wang, College of Basic Medicine, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, Sichuan, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86 18280350393, Email yongwang1008@hotmail.com; wangyong@cdutcm.edu.cnPurpose: Dysfunction of endothelium is associated with multiple pathological vascular diseases. However, how to regulate reendothelialization after vascular injury is not well defined. This study aims to determine whether and how Paeonol controls reendothelialization following artery injury.Methods: The endothelium of murine carotid artery was denuded by catheter guide wires injury. H&E staining and IF staining were performed to determine whether Paeonol is critical for reendothelialization. BRDU Incorporation Assay, Boyden Chamber Migration Assay, Tube Formation Assay, and Spheroid Sprouting Assay were used to investigate whether Paeonol is involved in regulating proliferation and migration of endothelial cells. The underlying mechanism of how Paeonol regulates reendothelialization was determined by Molecular docking simulation and CO-IP Assay.Results: Paeonol treatment significantly inhibits neointima formation in carotid artery ligation model by promoting proliferation and migration of endothelial cells. Mechanistically, Paeonol enhances c-Myc expression, consequently interacts with VEGFR2 results in activating VEGF signaling pathway, and eventually promotes reendothelialization after vascular injury.Conclusion: Our data demonstrated that Paeonol plays a critical role in regulating vascular reendothelialization, which may be therapeutically used for treatment of pathological vascular diseases.Graphical Abstract: Keywords: Paeonol, c-Myc, VEGFR2, vascular injury, reendothelialization

Recent progress has been made on the synthesis and characterization of metal halide perovskite magic-sized clusters (PMSCs) with ABX 3 composition (A = CH3NH3 + or Cs+, B = Pb2+, and X = Cl-, Br-, or I-). However, their mechanism of growth and structure is still not well understood. In our effort to understand their structure and growth, we discovered that a new species can be formed without the CH3NH3 + component, which we name as molecular clusters (MCs). Specifically, CH3NH3PbBr3 PMSCs, with a characteristic absorption peak at 424 nm, are synthesized using PbBr2 and CH3NH3Br as precursors and butylamine (BTYA) and valeric acid (VA) as ligands, while MCs, with an absorption peak at 402 nm, are synthesized using solely PbBr2 and BTYA, without CH3NH3Br. Interestingly, PMSCs are converted spontaneously overtime into MCs. An isosbestic point in their electronic absorption spectra indicates a direct interplay between the PMSCs and MCs. Therefore, we suggest that the MCs are precursors to the PMSCs. From spectroscopic and extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) results, we propose some tentative structural models for the MCs. The discovery of the MCs is critical to understanding the growth of PMSCs as well as larger perovskite quantum dots (PQDs) or nanocrystals (PNCs).

Neil Daksla,1 Ashley Wang,1 Zhaosheng Jin,1 Abhishek Gupta,1 Sergio D Bergese1,2 1Department of Anesthesiology, Stony Brook University Health Science Center, Stony Brook, NY, 11794-8480, USA; 2Department of Neurosurgery, Stony Brook University Health Science Center, Stony Brook, NY, 11794-8480, USACorrespondence: Sergio D Bergese, Department of Anesthesiology, Stony Brook University School of Medicine, Health Sciences Center, Level 4, Room 060, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA, Tel +1 631 444-2979, Fax +1 631 444-2907, Email sergio.bergese@stonybrookmedicine.eduAbstract: Despite current advances in acute postoperative pain management, prevalence remains high. Inadequate treatment could lead to poor outcomes and even progression to chronic pain. Opioids have traditionally been the mainstay for treatment of moderate to severe acute pain. However, their use has been associated with opioid-related adverse events (ORAEs), such as respiratory depression, sedation, nausea, vomiting, pruritus, and decreased bowel motility. In addition, their liberal use has been implicated in the current opioid epidemic. As a result, there has been renewed interest in multimodal analgesia to target different mechanisms of action in order to achieve a synergistic effect and minimize opioid usage. Oliceridine is a novel mu-opioid receptor agonist that is part of a new class of biased ligands that selectively activate G-protein signaling and downregulate β-arrestin recruitment. Since G-protein signaling has been associated with analgesia while β-arrestin recruitment has been associated with ORAEs, there is potential for a wider therapeutic window. In this review, we will discuss the clinical evidence behind oliceridine and its potential role in acute postoperative pain management. We have systematically searched the PubMed database using the keywords oliceridine, olinvyk, and trv130. All articles identified were reviewed and evaluated, and all clinical trials were included.Keywords: postoperative pain, opioids, multimodal analgesia, opioid-related adverse events, biased agonism

Giacomo Scorsese,1,&ast; Zhaosheng Jin,1,&ast; Seth Greenspan,1 Christopher Seiter,1 Yujie Jiang,1,2 Michael B Huang,3 Jun Lin1 1Department of Anesthesiology, Stony Brook University Health Science Center, Stony Brook, NY, 11794-8480, USA; 2Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195-6540, USA; 3Health Sciences Library, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794-8034, USA&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Giacomo Scorsese, Department of Anesthesiology, Stony Brook University Health Science Center, Stony Brook, NY, USA, Tel +1631637-1457, Fax +1631444-2907, Email Scorseseg@gmail.comIntroduction: Thoracic epidural analgesia (TEA) and thoracic paravertebral blocks (PVB) are well-established techniques for pain management in thoracotomy. Here, we examine the efficacy of various thoracic fascial plane blocks vs TEA and PVB for intraoperative and postoperative analgesia for video assisted thoracoscopy surgery (VATS) with network meta-analysis.Methods: A search for prospective randomized control studies using adult patients undergoing VATS with general anesthesia. The interventions of interest were any regional anesthesia techniques used for postoperative pain control after VATS. Primary outcomes of interest were 24-hour opioid requirement and 24-hour pain scores. A Bayesian network meta-analysis was conducted.Results: We identified 42 studies that fulfilled our inclusion criteria. For patients who underwent VATS, TEA (MD = − 27MME, 95% CI = − 46.2 to − 9MME), ESP (MD = − 20MME, 95% CI – 33 to − 7.9MME), PVB (MD = − 15MME, 95% CI = − 26 to − 4.5MME) demonstrated significant opioid sparing efficacy, as well as reduction in cumulative 24-hour static pain scores. However, exclusion of one study due to high risk of bias revealed that TEA did not significantly reduce opioid consumption, nor did it reduce the incidence of PONV, pulmonary complications, or LOS when compared to ESP, SAP, PVB, ICN, or PECS blocks.Conclusion: Our findings suggest that TEA did not provide superior pain relief compared to ESP, SAP, PVB, ICN, or PECS blocks following VATS. Therefore, we propose ESP as a suitable intervention for the prevention of postoperative pain after VATS.Keywords: fascial plane blocks, thoracic epidurals, post-operative analgesia, postoperative nausea and vomiting, video assisted thoracoscopic surgery

Design of metal-semiconductor interfaces and heterostructures is of strong interest for various catalytic applications including photocatalysis. In this work, a series of hollow Au nanosphere (HGN)-Cu2O core-shell nanostructures with varying core surface rugosities are synthesized and investigated for possible photocatalytic applications. HGN surface rugosity is tuned by pH modification during galvanic exchange, and carboxyl groups are utilized as coordination sites to deposit uniform Cu2O shells onto the gold surfaces. Final core-shell structures are verified by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Information regarding chemical state and electronic band structure is acquired by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS). Ultrafast transient absorption (TA) reveals that charge separation in bumpy HGN (bHGN)-Cu2O may effectively provide longer-lived photoexcited carriers, offering great potential for utilization in advanced photocatalytic processes.