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Abstract Objective Brachytherapy has been indicated as an alternative option for treating cystic craniopharyngiomas (CPs). The potential benefits of brachytherapy for CPs have not yet been clarified. The purpose of this work was to conduct a meta-analysis to analyze the long-term efficacy and adverse reactions profile of brachytherapy for CPs. Materials and methods The relevant databases were searched to collect the clinical trials on brachytherapy in patients with CPs. Included studies were limited to publications in full manuscript form with at least 5-year median follow-up, and adequate reporting of treatment outcomes and adverse reactions data. Stata 12.0 was used for data analysis. Results According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of 6 clinical trials involving 266 patients with CPs were included in this meta-analysis. The minimum average follow-up was 5 years. The results of the meta-analysis showed that 1-year, 2–3 years and 5 years progression free survival rates (PFS) are 75% (95%CI: 66-84%), 62% (95%CI: 52-72%) and 57% (95%CI: 22-92%), respectively. At the last follow-up, less than 16% of patients with visual outcomes worser than baseline in all included studies. While, for endocrine outcomes, less than 32% of patients worser than baseline level. Conclusion In general, based on the above results, brachytherapy should be considered as a good choice for the treatment of CP.

Abstract Background Liver ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury is usually caused by hepatic inflow occlusion during liver surgery, and is frequently observed during war wounds and trauma. Hepatocyte ferroptosis plays a critical role in liver I/R injury, however, it remains unclear whether this process is controlled or regulated by members of the DEAD/DExH-box helicase (DDX/DHX) family. Methods The expression of DDX/DHX family members during liver I/R injury was screened using transcriptome analysis. Hepatocyte-specific Dhx58 knockout mice were constructed, and a partial liver I/R operation was performed. Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) in the liver post I/R suggested enhanced ferroptosis by Dhx58 hep−/− . The mRNAs and proteins associated with DExH-box helicase 58 (DHX58) were screened using RNA immunoprecipitation-sequencing (RIP-seq) and IP-mass spectrometry (IP-MS). Results Excessive production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) decreased the expression of the IFN-stimulated gene Dhx58 in hepatocytes and promoted hepatic ferroptosis, while treatment using IFN-α increased DHX58 expression and prevented ferroptosis during liver I/R injury. Mechanistically, DHX58 with RNA-binding activity constitutively associates with the mRNA of glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4), a central ferroptosis suppressor, and recruits the m6A reader YT521-B homology domain containing 2 (YTHDC2) to promote the translation of Gpx4 mRNA in an m6A-dependent manner, thus enhancing GPX4 protein levels and preventing hepatic ferroptosis. Conclusions This study provides mechanistic evidence that IFN-α stimulates DHX58 to promote the translation of m6A-modified Gpx4 mRNA, suggesting the potential clinical application of IFN-α in the prevention of hepatic ferroptosis during liver I/R injury.

Abstract The first-cured tobacco contains macromolecular substances with negative impacts on tobacco products quality, and must be aged and fermented to mitigate their effects on the tobacco products quality. However, the natural fermentation takes a longer cycle with large coverage area and low economic efficiency. Microbial fermentation is a method to improve tobacco quality. The change of chemical composition of tobacco during the fermentation is often correlated with shapes of tobacco. This study aimed to investigate the effects of tobacco microorganisms on the quality of different shapes of tobacco. Specifically, Bacillus subtilis B1 and Cytobacillus oceanisediminis C4 with high protease, amylase, and cellulase were isolated from the first-cured tobacco, followed by using them for solid-state fermentation of tobacco powder (TP) and tobacco leaves (TL). Results showed that strains B1 and C4 could significantly improve the sensory quality of TP, enabling it to outperform TL in overall texture and skeleton of tobacco products during cigarette smoking. Compared with the control, microbial fermentation could increase reducing sugar; regulate protein, starch, and cellulose, reduce nicotine, improve total aroma substances, and enable the surface of fermented TP and TL to be more loose, wrinkled, and porous. Microbial community analysis indicated that strains B1 and C4 could change the native structure of microbial community in TP and TL. LEfSe analysis revealed that the potential key biomarkers in TP and TL were Bacilli, Pseudonocardia, Pantoea, and Jeotgalicoccus, which may have cooperative effects with other microbial taxa in improving tobacco quality. This study provides a theoretical basis for improving tobacco fermentation process for better cigarettes quality. Graphical Abstract

BackgroundTo derive and validate a novel vault prediction formula to improve the predictability and safety of implantable collamer lens (ICL) implantation.MethodsThirty-five patients (61 eyes) with previous posterior chamber intraocular lens implantation were included. Various parameters, such as horizontal-visible iris diameter (HVID), photopic pupil diameter (PPD), axial length (AL), white-to-white (WTW), anterior chamber width (ACW), angle-to-angle (ATA), crystalline lens rise (CLR), anterior chamber depth (ACD), horizontal sulcus-to-sulcus (HSTS), and ciliary sulcus angle (CSA) were measured. Vault was measured at 3 months after surgery using CASIA2 anterior segment optical coherence tomography. The formula was derived using multiple linear regression analysis and named as WH formula. It was validated in 65 patients (118 eyes) to determine the percentage of the ideal postoperative vault range and to compare the differences between the WH formula and the NK, KS, and STAAR formulas.ResultsFinal ICL size, ATA, CSA, and CLR were included in the prediction formula model (adjusted R2 = 0.67, p

Abstract Background Diagnostic criteria for sarcopenia have not been established in Chinese. This study established criteria based on the L3‐skeletal muscle index (L3‐SMI) and assessed its value for outcomes predicting in cirrhotic Chinese patients. Methods Totally 911 subjects who underwent a CT scan at two centres were enrolled in Cohort 1 (394 male and 417 female subjects, aged 20–80 years). The data of those subjects younger than 60 years (365 male and 296 female subjects) were used to determine the reference intervals of the L3‐SMI and its influencing factors. Cohort 2 consisted of 480 patients (286 male and 184 female patients) from three centres, and their data were used to investigate the prevalence of sarcopenia and evaluate the value of L3‐SMI for predicting the prognosis and complications of cirrhosis. Results Age and sex had the greatest effects on the L3‐SMI (P 14 (RR = 4.310, 95% CI 2.091–8.882, P

Fluorescent non-conjugated polymers without any π-aromatic building blocks are of great significance in biological applications due to low cytotoxicity and good biocompatibility. However, it is still a great challenge to achieve bright and deep-red/near-infrared (NIR) emissions. Herein, we have designed and synthesized a series of deep-red/NIR non-conjugated polymers with aggregation-induced emission based on disulfide-linked poly(amidoamine) (SSPAMAM) dendrimers, which exhibit excellent biodegradation for bioimaging. These SSPAMAM dendrimers (G0.5-G2.0) containing disulfide bonds in their backbone were synthesized in high yield by incorporating cystamine instead of common diacrylamide. Unexpectedly, the SSPAMAM dendrimers prepared exhibited bright and excitation dependent multicolor-tunable emission. More interestingly, G2.0 SSPAMAM showed a deep-red/NIR emission (λem = 625 nm with a shoulder at 800 nm) originated from an extraordinarily rigid and compact conformation via strong intramolecular hydrogen bonds. Meanwhile, these dendrimers displayed excellent biodegradability because of the large number of disulfide linkages in backbone. Due to the excellent specific cytomembrane location, SSPAMAM dendrimers can be used as a potential cell membrane imaging reagent for multi-color (blue, green, and deep-red) imaging. Furthermore, they could also be used in zebrafish for bioimaging. This investigation has expanded the applications of fluorescent non-conjugated polymers to the field of long-wavelength in vivo biological imaging.

The layered characteristics of the material in the thickness direction of the metal laminate make it more prone to uneven plastic extension during the thinning, rolling, flattening, and straightening process, resulting in plate-shaped warpage defects and cause the plate-shaped warpage of the metal laminate. The behavior is significantly different from that of a homogeneous metal plate. In this paper, the classical elastic mechanics method was used to establish an analytical computational mechanical model for the warpage of the metal laminate, and the quantitative relationship between the uneven extension in the thickness direction and the warpage of the plate shape was obtained; the online and offline states of the metal laminate were established, respectively. The finite element numerical simulation model of warpage deformation validated the analytical computational mechanics model; based on this, it revealed the mechanical roots of the shape warping defects of metal laminates and the effect of various factors on the shape warpage defects of metal laminates. The influence law of evolution and the difference in warpage deformation between double-layer and three-layer structure laminates and homogeneous plates, as well as the difference in warpage deformation between copper/carbon steel laminates and stainless steel/carbon steel laminates, were compared. Studies have shown that the warpage height of the metal laminate is proportional to the elongation difference and thickness ratio, and it is inversely proportional to the thickness. The greater the difference between the shear modulus of the base layer and the cladding layer is, the larger the effect of the thickness ratio on the warpage deformation of the metal laminate will be. Based on the numerical model, simulation studies were conducted on the deformation behavior and regularity of the plate shape warping of the laminated plate under the ideal uniform distribution of the initial temperature and the stress relief annealing process, and it was compared with that of the homogeneous plate. Finally, a sample of the warped laminate was taken at an industrial production site, and the initial extension difference was reversed by measuring its bending deformation. The result verifies the accuracy of the analytical computational mechanical model.

Abstract Background The infrared tympanic thermometer (IRTT) is a popular method for temperature screening in children, but it has been debated for the low accuracy and reproducibility compared with other measurements. This study was aimed to identify and quantify studies reporting the diagnostic accuracy of the new generation IRTT in children and to compare the sensitivity and specificity of IRTT under different cutoffs and give the optimal cutoff. Methods Articles were derived from a systematic search in PubMed, Web of Science Core Collection, and Embase, and were assessed for internal validity by the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 (QUADAS-2). The figure of risk of bias was created by Review Manager 5.3 and data were synthesized by MetaDisc 1.4. Results Twelve diagnostic studies, involving 4639 pediatric patients, were included. The cut-offs varied from 37.0 °C to 38.0 °C among these studies. The cut-off 37.8 °C was with the highest sROC AUC (0.97) and Youden Index (0.83) and was deemed to be the optimal cutoff. Conclusion The optimal cutoff for infrared tympanic thermometers is 37.8 °C. New Generation Tympanic Thermometry is with high diagnostic accuracy in pediatric patients and can be an alternative for fever screening in children.

Stereolithography (SL) is a promising 3D printing method for the fabrication of high dielectric constant polymer matrix composites (high-k PMCs) because of its high geometric accuracy and few manufacturing defects. However, the presence of ceramic filler destroys the fluidity and transparency of high-k PMCs, reducing their 3D printability. In this study, we fabricated barium titanate microspheres (BT-S) to facilitate the SL-based 3D printing of high-k PMCs using radio-frequency thermal plasma spheroidization (RF-TPS) technology. Experimental results showed that the prepared BT-S particles have spherical shape, smooth surface, large particle size, improved mechanical strength and higher purity, which lead to the enhancement in the 3D printability of UV curable high-k composites: i) the employment of BT-S significantly reduces the apparent viscosity and yield stress; and ii) the UV curing depth increased by 542% maximum. As a result, high-k composites were successfully printed using digital light processing (DLP) technique under low UV light energy. Moreover, the increase of dielectric constant was experimentally verified, which is explained by electrostatic energy increment according to finite element method (FEM) simulations. This study provided an effective approach (i.e. RF-TPS technology) to enhance the 3D printability of high-k PMCs, and also promoted the usage of SL-based 3D printing in advanced electrical and electronic components

Carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase (CCD), a key enzyme in carotenoid metabolism, cleaves carotenoids to form apo-carotenoids, which play a major role in plant growth and stress responses. CCD genes had not previously been systematically characterized in Brassica napus (rapeseed), an important oil crop worldwide. In this study, we identified 30 BnCCD genes and classified them into nine subgroups based on a phylogenetic analysis. We identified the chromosomal locations, gene structures, and cis-promoter elements of each of these genes and performed a selection pressure analysis to identify residues under selection. Furthermore, we determined the subcellular localization, physicochemical properties, and conserved protein motifs of the encoded proteins. All the CCD proteins contained a retinal pigment epithelial membrane protein (RPE65) domain. qRT-PCR analysis of expression of 20 representative BnCCD genes in 16 tissues of the B. napus cultivar Zhong Shuang 11 ('ZS11') revealed that members of the BnCCD gene family possess a broad range of expression patterns. This work lays the foundation for functional studies of the BnCCD gene family.

Drastic flatness changes in high-strength steel strips during water quenching cause problems for both their subsequent manufacture and final products. In this work, a temperature–microstructure–stress coupled finite element model is established to simulate the quenching process of cold-rolled high-strength steel strips using a UMAT subroutine in ABAQUS. The evolution mechanisms of two main forms of flatness defects, including C warping defect and edge wave defect, are investigated. Our simulations reveal that the temperature gradients of the strips induce their extension differences along transversal/thickness direction and the sequential phase transformation, both of which finally cause the flatness changes. Furthermore, flatness control strategies are proposed according to the integrated effects of the tension and initial temperature differences during quenching. In addition, quenching experiments are implemented to validate the numerical results.

The recovery phase after kidney ischemia/reperfusion (IR) injury is often associated with the suppression of inflammation and the proliferation of tubular epithelial cells (TECs). The duration of this phase is often determined by the suppression of inflammation and the proliferation of TECs. Several lines of evidence suggest that IκB kinase α (IKKα) not only promotes the production of anti-inflammatory factors and/or prevents the production of inflammatory factors, but also induces the accompanying cell differentiation and regeneration, and suppresses inflammation. We therefore hypothesized that IKKα could participate in the kidney repair after IR injury and have used a mouse model of acute kidney injury (AKI) to test this. We found that IKKα mediated the repair of the kidney via infiltrated regulatory T (Treg) cells, which can produce anti-inflammatory cytokine IL10, and that IKKα also increased the proliferation of the surviving TECs and suppressed of inflammation. In addition, the expression of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) in TECs is consistent with the infiltration of IL10-producing Treg cells. We conclude that IKKα is involved in kidney recovery and regeneration through the Treg cells that can produce IL10, which might be a potential therapeutic target that can be used to promote kidney repair after IR injury.

The interfacial bonding process and mechanical properties of AISI (American Iron and Steel Institute) stainless steel/Q235A carbon steel were investigated by deformation bonding, heat preservation, and tensile tests. The results reveal that the deformation temperature has a beneficial effect on the bonding rate, and that the critical temperature for the large-area bonding of stainless steel and carbon steel is approximately 700 °C. However, owing to the short contact time, only a shallow diffusion of approximately 2–3 µm can be achieved. A slight decrease in the interfacial bonding rate after heat preservation is correlated to the difference between the thermal expansion coefficients of the two materials, but the thickness of the diffusion layer shows a significant increase. It was found that the strength of the composites is mostly related to the bonding rate and the strength of the relatively soft material, which can be determined using an explicit equation. Moreover, with the increase in the interfacial bonding rate, the crack source changes from the junction of the unbonded and bonded areas of the interface to the interior of the carbon steel. The failure mode evolves from cleavage brittle fracture to ductile–brittle mixed-mode fracture, and then to ductile fracture.

Gastric cancer including the cardia and non-cardia types is the second frequent cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. A subset of non-cardia gastric cancer genetic susceptibility loci have been addressed among Asian through genome-wide association studies (GWASs). This study was to evaluate the effects of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of long intergenic non-coding RNAs (lincRNAs) on non-cardia gastric cancer susceptibility in Chinese populations. We selected long intergenic noncoding RNAs (lincRNAs) located in non-cardia gastric cancer risk-related loci and identified 10 SNPs located within lincRNA exonic regions. We examined whether genetic polymorphisms in lincRNAs exons are associated with non-cardia gastric cancer risk in 438 non-cardia gastric cancer patients and 727 control subjects in Chinese populations using logistic regression. Functional relevance was further examined by biochemical assays. We found that lincRNA-NR_024015 rs8506AA carrier was significantly associated with risk of non-cardia gastric cancer (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 1.56, 95%CI = 1.03-2.39, compared with the rs8506 AG or GG genotype. Further stratification analysis showed that the risk effect was more pronounced in subgroups of smokers (P = 0.001). Biochemical analysis demonstrated that the G to A base change at rs8506G>A disrupts the binding site for has-miR-526b, thereby influencing the transcriptional activity of lincRNA-NR_024015 and affecting cell proliferation. Our present study established a robust association between the rs8506G>A polymorphism in the lincRNA-NR_024015 exon and the risk of non-cardia gastric cancer.

Among 176 patients who had had severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), SARS-specific antibodies were maintained for an average of 2 years, and significant reduction of immunoglobulin G–positive percentage and titers occurred in the third year. Thus, SARS patients might be susceptible to reinfection >3 years after initial exposure.

A gel based on polyacrylamide, exhibiting delayed crosslinking characteristics, emerges as the preferred solution for mitigating degradation under conditions of high temperature and extended shear in ultralong wellbores. High viscosity/viscoelasticity of the fracturing fluid was required to maintain excellent proppant suspension properties before gelling. Taking into account both the cost and the potential damage to reservoirs, polymers with lower concentrations and molecular weights are generally preferred. In this work, the supramolecular action was integrated into the polymer, resulting in significant increases in the viscosity and viscoelasticity of the synthesized supramolecular polymer system. The double network gel, which is formed by the combination of the supramolecular polymer system and a small quantity of Zr-crosslinker, effectively resists temperature while minimizing permeability damage to the reservoir. The results indicate that the supramolecular polymer system with a molecular weight of (268-380) ×104 g/mol can achieve the same viscosity and viscoelasticity at 0.4 wt% due to the supramolecular interaction between polymers, compared to the 0.6 wt% traditional polymer (hydrolyzed polyacrylamide, molecular weight of 1078 ×104 g/mol). The supramolecular polymer system possessed excellent proppant suspension properties with a 0.55 cm/min sedimentation rate at 0.4 wt%, whereas the 0.6 wt% traditional polymer had a rate of 0.57 cm/min. In comparison to the traditional gel with a Zrcrosslinker concentration of 0.6 wt% and an elastic modulus of 7.77 Pa, the double network gel with a higher elastic modulus (9.00 Pa) could be formed only at 0.1 wt% Zr-crosslinker, which greatly reduced the amount of residue of the fluid after gel-breaking. The viscosity of the double network gel was 66 mPa s after 2 h shearing, whereas the traditional gel only reached 27 mPa s. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]