Search

MuscleX is an integrated, open-source computer software suite for data reduction of X-ray fiber diffraction patterns from striated muscle and other fibrous systems. It is written in Python and runs on Linux, Microsoft Windows or macOS. Most modules can be run either from a graphical user interface or in a `headless mode' from the command line, suitable for incorporation into beamline control systems. Here, we provide an overview of the general structure of the MuscleX software package and describe the specific features of the individual modules as well as examples of applications.

Abstract Background Intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) refers to bleeding within the brain’s ventricular system, and hydrocephalus is a life-threatening complication of IVH characterized by increased cerebrospinal fluid accumulation in the ventricles resulting in elevated intracranial pressure. IVH poses significant challenges for healthcare providers due to the complexity of the underlying pathophysiology and lack of standardized treatment guidelines. Herein, we performed a systematic review of the treatment strategies for hydrocephalus secondary to IVH. Methods This systematic review was prospectively registered with PROSPERO (CRD42023450786). The search was conducted in PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science on July 15, 2023. We included original studies containing valid information on therapy management and outcome of hydrocephalus secondary to primary, spontaneous, and subarachnoid or intracranial hemorrhage following IVH in adults that were published between 2000 and 2023. Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) or modified Ranking Scale (mRS) scores during follow-up were extracted as primary outcomes. The risk of bias was assessed using the Newcastle–Ottawa Scale for Cohort Studies or Cochrane Risk of Bias 2.0 Tool. Results Two hundred and seven patients from nine published papers, including two randomized controlled trials, were included in the analysis. The GOS was used in five studies, while the mRS was used in four. Seven interventions were applied, including craniotomy for removal of hematoma, endoscopic removal of hematoma with/without endoscopic third ventriculostomy (ETV), traditional external ventricular drainage (EVD), and various combinations of EVD, lumbar drainage (LD), and intraventricular fibrinolysis (IVF). Endoscopic removal of hematoma was performed in five of nine studies. Traditional EVD had no obvious benefit compared with new management strategies. Three different combinations of EVD, LD, and IVF demonstrated satisfactory outcomes, although more studies are required to confirm their reliability. Removal of hematoma through craniotomy generated reliable result. Generally, endoscopic removal of hematoma with ETV, removal of hematoma through craniotomy, EVD with IVF, and EVD with early continuous LD were useful. Conclusion EVD is still crucial for the management of IVH and hydrocephalus. Despite a more reliable result from the removal of hematoma through craniotomy, a trend toward endoscopic approach was observed due to a less invasive profile.

ObjectiveDermatofibrosarcoma protuberans (DFSP) is a moderately malignant soft tissue sarcoma with localized infiltrative growth. The extensive surgical scope and high recurrence rate of DFSP brings dysfunctional, aesthetic, psychological and economic problems to patients. The aim of this study is to explore the global publication characteristics, research hotspots and future trends of DFSP over the past 32 years via an intuitive visualized way.MethodsThe Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) database was searched for papers related to DFSP published from 1990 to 2022. Then bibliometric analysis of these publications was performed, including collaborative networks, co-citation analysis of journals and references, and cluster analysis of keywords.ResultsA total of 1588 papers were retrieved between 1990-2022. The United States was the most prolific country, followed by China. The article Imatinib Mesylate in Advanced Dermatofibrosarcoma Protuberans: Pooled Analysis of Two Phase II Clinical Trials, received most citations. Research hotspots and future trends are mainly focused on disease diagnosis, COL1A1-PDGFB fusion gene, drug and surgical treatment, fibrosarcomatous transformation, and immunotherapy.ConclusionThe research on DFSP faces several clinical challenges. This study provides novel insights into future research directions and scientific decisions for DFSP.

IntroductionScalp arteriovenous fistula (AVF) is a rare and intricate vascular anomaly characterized by a direct connection between an artery and a vein, without an intervening capillary system. This anomaly can induce significant local hemodynamic changes and is associated with various complications, such as pain, a pulsatile mass, increasing swelling, and venous hypertension skin ulcerations which may be non-healing. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of interventional embolization treatments for scalp AVF at Shandong Provincial Hospital.MethodsThis retrospective clinical analysis assessed 21 patients who underwent interventional embolization between 2018 and 2024. Patients included were those treated in the vascular surgery department at Shandong Provincial Hospital, who had comprehensive medical records and follow-up data. Treatment methods, outcomes, and complications were thoroughly analyzed through patient medical records.ResultsAmong the patients studied, direct puncture was the most prevalent treatment method, employed in 42.86% (9/21) of cases, followed by various combinations of arterial, venous, and direct approaches. Ethanol, used in 85.71% (18/21) of the cases, demonstrated its broad efficacy and application in clinical settings. Immediate imaging post-treatment confirmed a cure rate of 85.71% (18/21). The main postoperative complications included swelling, with some patients also experiencing nodules, scabbing, or hair loss.ConclusionInterventional embolization has proven to be a safe and effective method for managing scalp AVF, significantly minimizing complications. Future research should focus on further optimizing these treatment methods to enhance efficacy and improve patient quality of life.

Abstract Exposure to PM2.5, a harmful type of air pollution, has been associated with compromised male reproductive health; however, it remains unclear whether such exposure can elicit transgenerational effects on male fertility. Here, we aim to examine the effect of paternal exposure to real-world PM2.5 on the reproductive health of male offspring. We have observed that paternal exposure to real-world PM2.5 can lead to transgenerational primary hypogonadism in a sex-selective manner, and we have also confirmed this phenotype by using an external model. Mechanically, we have identified small RNAs (sRNAs) that play a critical role in mediating these transgenerational effects. Specifically, miR6240 and piR016061, which are present in F0 PM sperm, regulate intergenerational transmission by targeting Lhcgr and Nsd1, respectively. We have also uncovered that piR033435 and piR006695 indirectly regulate F1 PM sperm methylation by binding to the 3′-untranslated region of Tet1 mRNA. The reduced expression of Tet1 resulted in hypermethylation of several testosterone synthesis genes, including Lhcgr and Gnas, impaired Leydig cell function and ultimately led to transgenerational primary hypogonadism. Our findings provide insights into the mechanisms underlying the transgenerational effects of paternal PM2.5 exposure on reproductive health, highlighting the crucial role played by sRNAs in mediating these effects. The findings underscore the significance of paternal pre-conception interventions in alleviating the adverse effects of environmental pollutants on reproductive health.

BackgroundKaposiform hemangioendothelioma (KHE) is a rare vascular tumor with a high risk of mortality. Few studies with large samples of KHE have been reported. KHE may develop into the Kasabach–Merritt phenomenon (KMP), which is characterized by thrombocytopenia and consumptive coagulopathy. The features of severe symptomatic anemia and life-threatening low platelets make the management of KHE associated with KMP challenging.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to examine the clinical characteristics of patients with KHE and discuss the treatment experience for different risk groups of KHE.MethodsThrough a retrospective review of 70 patients diagnosed with KHE between 2017 and 2022 in our center, we classify lesions into three clinicopathological stages based on the tumor involving depth, and divided the severity of KHE into three levels by estimating clinicopathological stages and severity of thrombocytopenia. Treatments of different severity groups were estimated with sufficient data.ResultsIn our cohort, 27% were neonates, and KHE lesion occurred at birth in 84% of patients. There was a slight male predominance (32 girls and 38 boys). Common clinical characteristics included associated coagulation disorder (100%), locally aggressive cutaneous blue–purple mass (89%), thrombocytopenia (78%), and local pain or joint dysfunction (20%). The lower extremities were the dominant location (35%), followed by the trunk (29%), the maxillofacial region and neck (24%), and the upper extremities (10%). Of the total cohort, 78% developed KMP; the median age at which thrombocytopenia occurred was 27.8 days. The median platelet count of patients who were associated with KMP was 24,000/µL in our cohort. Ninety-two percent of patients were given surgery treatment and 89% of these patients were given high-dose methylprednisolone (5-6 mg/kg daily) before surgery. In 55 patients with KMP, 36% were sensitive to high-dose corticosteroid therapy. Patients from the low-risk group (eight cases) underwent operation, all of whom recovered without recurrence after a maximum follow-up of 5 years. Out of 26 patients from the high-risk group, 25 underwent surgery treatment, with 1 case undergoing secondary surgery after recurrence and 1 case taking sirolimus. Out of 36 cases from the extremely high-risk group, 32 underwent surgery (including 2 cases who underwent external carotid artery ligation and catheterization), 3 of whom underwent secondary operation after recurrence, and the remaining 4 cases took medicine. The mean length of having sirolimus was 21 months; two cases stopped taking sirolimus due to severe pneumonia. Two cases died at 1 and 3 months after discharge.ConclusionsOur study describes the largest assessment of high-risk patients with KHE who have undergone an operation to date, with 5 years of follow-up to track recovery, which provides invaluable knowledge for the future treatment of patients with KHE and KMP from different risk groups: Early surgical intervention may be the most definitive treatment option for most patients with KHE; multimodality treatment is the best choice for the extremely high-risk group.

Abstract Background Immature cumulus-oocyte complexes are retrieved to obtain mature oocytes by in vitro maturation (IVM), a laboratory tool in reproductive medicine to obtain mature oocytes. Unfortunately, the efficiency of IVM is not satisfactory. To circumvent this problem, we therefore intended to commence with the composition of ovarian follicular fluid (FF), an important microenvironment influencing oocyte growth. It is well known that FF has a critical role in oocyte development and maturation. However, the components in human FF remain largely unknown, particularly with regard to small molecular peptides. Results In current study, the follicular fluid derived from human mature and immature follicles were harvested. The peptide profiles of FF were further investigated by using combined ultrafiltration and LC–MS/MS. The differential peptides were preliminary determined by performing differentially expressed analysis. Human and mouse oocyte culture were used to verify the influence of differential peptides on oocyte development. Constructing plasmids, cell transfecting, Co-IP, PLA etc. were used to reveal the detail molecular mechanism. The results from differentially expressed peptide as well as cultured human and mouse oocytes analyses showed that highly conserved C3a-peptide, a cleavage product of complement C3a, definitely affected oocytes development. Intriguingly, C3a-peptide possessed a novel function that promoted F-actin aggregation and spindle migration, raised the percentage of oocytes at the MII stage, without increasing the chromosome aneuploidy ratio, especially in poor-quality oocytes. These effects of C3a-peptide were attenuated by C3aR morpholino inhibition, suggesting that C3a-peptide affected oocytes development by collaborating with its classical receptor, C3aR. Specially, we found that C3aR co-localized to the spindle with β-tubulin to recruit F-actin toward the spindle and subcortical region of the oocytes through specific binding to MYO10, a key regulator for actin organization, spindle morphogenesis and positioning in oocytes. Conclusions Our results provide a new perspective for improving IVM culture systems by applying FF components and also provide molecular insights into the physiological function of C3a-peptide, its interaction with C3aR, and their roles in enabling meiotic division of oocytes.

Cutaneomucosal venous malformations (VMCMs) can manifest as sporadic or familial forms, following an autosomal dominant inheritance pattern. This report highlights the case of a 5-year-old girl presenting with a substantial congenital VMCM attributed to a TIE2 mutation, who underwent percutaneous sclerotherapy followed by surgery. The clinical, three-dimensional computed tomographic angiography (3D-CTA), as well as pathological and genetic findings concerning a patient with an extensive VMCM in the left pro-axillary region, are elucidated. The genetic analysis in this patient verified a missense mutation (c.2545T>C) in TIE2, confirming familial VMCMs. The combined strategy integrating percutaneous sclerotherapy and surgical excision is the most efficacious approach for managing large VMCMs and can successfully attain therapeutic goals.

Abstract Background Oocyte maturation arrest results in female infertility and the genetic etiology of this phenotype remains largely unknown. Previous studies have proven that cyclins play a significant role in the cell cycle both in meiosis and mitosis. Cyclin B3 (CCNB3) is one of the members of the cyclin family and its function in human oocyte maturation is poorly understood. Methods 118 infertile patients were recruited and WES was performed for 68 independent females that experienced oocyte maturation arrest. Four mutations in CCNB3 were found and effects of these mutations were validated by Sanger sequencing and in vitro functional analyses. Results We found these mutations altered the location of cyclin B3 which affected the function of cyclin dependent kinase 1 (CDK1) and led to mouse oocyte arrested at germinal vesicle (GV) stage. And then, low CDK1 activity influenced the degradation of cadherin 1 (CDH1) and the accumulation of cell division cycle 20 (CDC20) which are two types of anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) activators and act in different stages of the cell cycle. Finally, APC/C activity was downregulated due to insufficient CDC20 level and resulted in oocyte metaphase I (MI) arrest. Moreover, we also found that the addition of PP1 inhibitor Okadic acid and CDK1 inhibitor Roscovitine at corresponding stages during oocyte in vitro maturation (IVM) significantly improved the maturation rates in CCNB3 mutant cRNAs injected oocytes. The above experiments were performed in mouse oocytes. Conclusion Here, we report five independent patients in which mutations in CCNB3 may be the cause of oocyte maturation arrest. Our findings shed lights on the critical role of CCNB3 in human oocyte maturation.

ABSTRACT: Subacute rumen acidosis can lead to mastitis in dairy cows. Mitochondrial dysfunction is closely related to the inflammatory response. This experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of a high-concentrate diet on mammary gland inflammation and mitochondrial damage in dairy cows. Twelve Holstein dairy cows in mid-lactation were randomly divided into 2 groups and fed a 40% concentrate (low concentrate, LC) diet or a 60% concentrate (high concentrate, HC) diet. Cows were fed individually, and the experiment lasted for 3 wk. After the experiment, mammary gland tissue, blood, and rumen fluid were collected. Compared with the LC diet, the HC diet significantly decreased rumen pH; the pH was

Abstract Luminescence clusters composed of organic ligands and metals have gained significant interests as scintillators owing to their great potential in high X-ray absorption, customizable radioluminescence, and solution processability at low temperatures. However, X-ray luminescence efficiency in clusters is primarily governed by the competition between radiative states from organic ligands and nonradiative cluster-centered charge transfer. Here we report that a class of Cu4I4 cubes exhibit highly emissive radioluminescence in response to X-ray irradiation through functionalizing biphosphine ligands with acridine. Mechanistic studies show that these clusters can efficiently absorb radiation ionization to generate electron-hole pairs and transfer them to ligands during thermalization for efficient radioluminescence through precise control over intramolecular charge transfer. Our experimental results indicate that copper/iodine-to-ligand and intraligand charge transfer states are predominant in radiative processes. We demonstrate that photoluminescence and electroluminescence quantum efficiencies of the clusters reach 95% and 25.6%, with the assistance of external triplet-to-singlet conversion by a thermally activated delayed fluorescence matrix. We further show the utility of the Cu4I4 scintillators in achieving a lowest X-ray detection limit of 77 nGy s−1 and a high X-ray imaging resolution of 12 line pairs per millimeter. Our study offers insights into universal luminescent mechanism and ligand engineering of cluster scintillators.

BackgroundThrombocytopenia is a known prognostic factor in sepsis, yet the relationship between platelet-related genes and sepsis outcomes remains elusive. We developed a machine learning (ML) model based on platelet-related genes to predict poor prognosis in sepsis. The model underwent rigorous evaluation on six diverse platforms, ensuring reliable and versatile findings.MethodsA retrospective analysis of platelet data from 365 sepsis patients confirmed the predictive role of platelet count in prognosis. We employed COX analysis, Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO) and Support Vector Machine (SVM) techniques to identify platelet-related genes from the GSE65682 dataset. Subsequently, these genes were trained and validated on six distinct platforms comprising 719 patients, and compared against the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II (APACHE II) and Sequential Organ-Failure Assessment (SOFA) score.ResultsA PLT count

Coordinated manipulators can construct a series system, such that all the position error of the end-effector is required to remain within the permissible limit. This article proposed a new method to handle the problem of reliability analysis involving in multiple failure modes. The extreme value of the position error is introduced to construct a surrogate model to replace the original failure event, the moment with fraction order instead of the traditional integer is applied to derive the best-fit distribution of the extreme value based on the maximum entropy principle. The innovations mainly include: (1) the high efficient dimension reduction via the surrogate model constructed with the extreme value and (2) a better probability density function is derived through the fractional moment. A series system consists of three manipulators is used as an example to demonstrate the efficiency and accuracy of the proposed method.

BackgroundArterial spin labeling (ASL) is a non-invasive technique for measuring cerebral perfusion. Its accuracy is affected by the arterial transit time. This study aimed to (1) evaluate the accuracy of ASL in measuring the cerebral perfusion of patients who underwent carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and (2) determine a better postlabeling delay (PLD) for pre- and postoperative perfusion imaging between 1.5 and 2.0 s.MethodsA total of 24 patients scheduled for CEA due to severe carotid stenosis were included in this study. All patients underwent ASL with two PLDs (1.5 and 2.0 s) and computed tomography perfusion (CTP) before and after surgery. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) values were measured on the registered CBF images of ASL and CTP. The correlation in measuring perioperative relative CBF (rCBF) and difference ratio of CBF (DRCBF) between ASL with PLD of 1.5 s (ASL1.5) or 2.0 s (ASL2.0) and CTP were also determined.ResultsThere were no significant statistical differences in preoperative rCBF measurements between ASL1.5 and CTP (p = 0.17) and between ASL2.0 and CTP (p = 0.42). Similarly, no significant differences were found in rCBF between ASL1.5 and CTP (p = 0.59) and between ASL2.0 and CTP (p = 0.93) after CEA. The DRCBF measured by CTP was found to be marginally lower than that measured by ASL2.0_1.5 (p = 0.06) and significantly lower than that measured by ASL1.5_1.5 (p = 0.01), ASL2.0_2.0 (p = 0.03), and ASL1.5_2.0 (p = 0.007). There was a strong correlation in measuring perioperative rCBF and DRCBF between ASL and CTP (r = 0.67–0.85, p

BackgroundPrevious studies using meta-analysis to explore the relationship between air pollution exposure and ischemic stroke (IS) mostly focus on particulate matter-related themes, few include gaseous pollutants in the study, and subgroup analyses of factors such as different lag days, seasons, and genders are rarely been reported.ObjectiveTo quantitatively evaluate the relationships between short-term exposures to 6 common air pollutants, including fine particulate matter (PM2.5), inhalable particulate matter (PM10), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and ozone (O3), and the incidence of IS.MethodsA systematic search was conducted to collect literature studying the 6 common air pollutants and IS published up to May 1, 2022 in 6 databases (China Journal Full-text Database, China Biology Medicine Disc, PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Embase). Literature quality evaluation was performed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Stata 16.0 software was used to conduct meta-analysis including heterogeneity test, combined effect size, meta-regression, subgroup analysis, sensitivity analysis, and publication bias test.ResultsA total of 33 articles were qualified for inclusion. The total number of samples included in the literature was 7195631. The meta-analysis results showed that short-term exposures to PM2.5 (OR=1.0082, 95%CI: 1.0049−1.0116), PM10 (OR=1.0017, 95%CI: 1.0008−1.0026), CO (OR=1.0328, 95%CI: 1.0231−1.0426), NO2 (OR=1.0150, 95%CI: 1.0079−1.0222), SO2 (OR=1.0158, 95%CI: 1.0078-1.0238), and O3 (OR=1.0017, 95%CI: 1.0003−1.0032) were associated with an increased risk of IS. PM10 and O3 increased the risk of IS in both lag0 and lag1, while PM2.5, CO, NO2, and SO2 all showed an associated increased risk of IS only in lag0. The results of sensitivity analysis showed stable results for all pollutants studied, and there was no publication bias in the literature on the association of the remaining five pollutants with IS incidence except for the PM2.5-related literature.ConclusionShort-term exposures to PM2.5, PM10, CO, NO2, SO2, and O3 may increase the incidence of IS, with this risk showing the most significant level on the day of IS onset.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the second-most-common cause of cancer death. In recent years, studies have suggested that intestinal microbiota dysregulation is closely related to HCC and can affect the therapeutic efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors. However, there are few data on the relationship between altered gut microbiota composition and its potential association in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. Hence, in this study, we aimed to investigate the gut microbiota profile associated with advanced hepatocarcinoma. In total, 20 patients with advanced hepatocarcinoma and 20 matched healthy participants were recruited. Stool samples were collected for 16S rRNA sequencing to confirm intestinal microbiota dysbiosis. The results showed that the Nseqs index in advanced hepatocarcinoma patients was significantly different compared with that in healthy individuals, while the butyrate-producing bacteria decreased and LPS-producing bacteria increased. Meanwhile, Lactobacillus, Anaerostipes, Fusicatenibacter, Bifidobacterium, and Faecalibacterium were significantly correlated with AFP, ALT, AST, and PIVKA. Our findings characterized the gut microbiota composition of advanced hepatocarcinoma, providing an experimental basis and theoretical support for using microbiota to regulate immunotherapy, achieve potential biomarkers for diagnosis, and improve the effect of clinical treatment for patients with advanced hepatocarcinoma.

Abstract Skin cutaneous melanoma (SKCM) has substantial malignancy and a poor prognosis. The function of ageing-related genes (ARGs) in SKCM is unknown. In this study, a prognostic risk-scoring model for ARG was constructed based on SKCM RNA-seq, mutation, and clinical data in The Cancer Genome Atlas. Our novel prognostic model, which included four ARGs (IRS2, PDGFRA, TFAP2A, and SOD2), could distinguish between low-risk and high-risk groups. Low-risk patients benefited more from immunotherapy and commonly used targeted and chemotherapy drugs than high-risk patients. There were also considerable differences in immunocyte infiltration and tumour microenvironment between the two groups. Furthermore, multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that age, pT_stage, pM_stage, body mass index, tumour mutation burden, and risk score were independent factors influencing the prognosis of patients with SKCM; therefore, we devised a prognosis nomogram. Last, a long non-coding (lncRNA) NEAT1/miR-33a-5p/IRS2 regulatory axis of the competing endogenous RNA network was built to investigate the mechanisms of SKCM metastasis progression. Grouping based on the scoring system could predict the prognosis of SKCM and predict the sensitivity of patients to immunotherapy, targeted therapy, and chemotherapy. This could facilitate the formulation of individualised treatment strategies and help drug research and development. These findings highlight the regulatory axis of the lncRNA NEAT1/miR-33a-5p/IRS2, which may play a role in SKCM metastasis.

Abstract Background A brain arteriovenous malformation (BAVM) is a tangle of abnormal blood vessels connecting the arteries and veins in the brain and is associated with a higher risk for intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). RNA sequencing technology has been recently used to investigate the mechanism of diseases owing to its ability to identify the gene changes on a transcriptome-wide level. This study aims to gain insights into the potential mechanism involved in BAVM rupture. Methods Sixty-five BAVM nidus samples were collected, among which 28 were ruptured and 37 were un-ruptured. Then, next-generation RNA sequencing was performed on all of them to obtain differential expressed genes (DEGs) between the two groups. In addition, bioinformatics analysis was performed to evaluate the involved biological processes and pathways by GO and KEGG analysis. Finally, we performed a univariate Cox regression analysis to obtain the early rupture-prone DEGs. Results A total of 951 genes were differentially expressed between the ruptured and un-ruptured BAVM groups, of which 740 genes were upregulated and 211 genes were downregulated in ruptured BAVMs. Then, bioinformatics analysis showed the biological processes and pathways related to the inflammatory processes and extracellular matrix organization were significantly enriched. Meanwhile, some downregulated genes are involved in cell adhesion and genes participating in response to muscle activity and the terms of nervous system development. Finally, one hundred twenty-five genes, many were involved in inflammation, were correlated with the early rupture of BAVMs. Conclusions The upregulated genes in the ruptured BAVM group were involved in inflammatory processes and extracellular matrix organization. Some of the downregulated genes participated in cell adhesion and myofibril assembly, indicating the role of enhanced inflammation and reduced inflammation vessel strength in BAVMs rupture.

IntroductionCalmodulin-dependent protein kinase β (CaMKKβ) is closely related to Ca2+ concentration. An increase in Ca2+ concentration in the cytoplasm activates CaMKKβ, and activated CaMKKβ affects the activities of AMPK and mTOR and induces autophagy. A high-concentrate diet leads to Ca2+ disorder in mammary gland tissue.ObjectivesTherefore, this study mainly investigated the induction of mammary gland tissue autophagy by a high-concentrate diet and the specific mechanism of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced autophagy in bovine mammary epithelial cells (BMECs).Material and MethodsTwelve mid-lactation Holstein dairy cows were fed with a 40% concentrate diet (LC) and a 60% concentrate diet (HC) for 3 weeks. At the end of the trial, rumen fluid, lacteal vein blood, and mammary gland tissue were collected. The results showed that the HC diet significantly decreased rumen fluid pH, with a pH lower than 5.6 for more than 3 h, indicating successfully induction of subacute rumen acidosis (SARA). The mechanism of LPS-induced autophagy in BMECs was studied in vitro. First, the cells were divided into a Ctrl group and LPS group to study the effects of LPS on the concentration of Ca2+ and autophagy in BMECs. Then, cells were pretreated with an AMPK inhibitor (compound C) or CaMKKβ inhibitor (STO-609) to investigate whether the CaMKKβ–AMPK signaling pathway is involved in LPS-induced BMEC autophagy.ResultsThe HC diet increased the concentration of Ca2+ in mammary gland tissue and pro-inflammatory factors in plasma. The HC diet also significantly increased the expression of CaMKKβ, AMPK, and autophagy-related proteins, resulting in mammary gland tissue injury. In vitro cell experiments showed that LPS increased intracellular Ca2+ concentration and upregulated protein expression of CaMKKβ, AMPK, and autophagy-related proteins. Compound C pretreatment decreased the expression of proteins related to autophagy and inflammation. In addition, STO-609 pretreatment not only reversed LPS-induced BMECs autophagy but also inhibited the protein expression of AMPK, thereby alleviating the inflammatory response in BMECs. These results suggest that inhibition of the Ca2+/CaMKKβ–AMPK signaling pathway reduces LPS-induced autophagy, thereby alleviating inflammatory injury of BMECs.ConclusionTherefore, SARA may increase the expression of CaMKKβ by increasing Ca2+ levels and activate autophagy through the AMPK signaling pathway, thereby inducing inflammatory injury in mammary gland tissue of dairy cows.

Objective: To investigate the differences in serum iron index and iron metabolizing protein expression in plaques in patients with different degrees of carotid artery stenosis and the relationship with plaque traits. Methods: A total of 100 patients eligible for carotid endarterectomy (CEA) from August 2021 to February 2022 were included. Patients completed a computed tomography (CTA) scan for patient grouping and a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for precise quantification of carotid plaque traits within 1 week prior to surgery. Clinical indicators associated with the progression of carotid stenosis to occlusion were analyzed using ordered logistic regression. Twenty carotid plaques were analyzed immunohistochemically to investigate the relationship between plaque traits and the iron metabolism indexes. Results: No significant correlation between high serum ferritin (SF), unsaturated iron binding capacity (UIBC) and progression of carotid stenosis (OR 1.100, 95% CI 0.004–0.165, p = 0.039; OR 1.050, 95% CI 0.005–0.094, p = 0.031). SF and serum transferrin receptor (sTfR) were correlated with normalized wall index (NWI) (R = 0.470, p = 0.036; R = 0.449, p = 0.046), and the results of multiple linear regression suggested that SF and sTfR remained associated with NWI (R = 0.630, R2 = 0.397, Adjusted R2 = 0.326, p = 0.014). In plaques, H-type ferritin (H-FT) was correlated with NWI and lipid-rich necrotic core (LRNC) volume (R = 0.502, p = 0.028; R = 0.468, p = 0.043). Transferrin receptor 1 (TfR1) was correlated with LRNC volume and intraplaque hemorrhage (IPH) volume (R = 0.538, p = 0.017; R = 0.707, p = 0.001). Conclusions: There were statistical differences in the expression of iron metabolism proteins in carotid plaques with different degrees of stenosis. Serum iron metabolism index (SF and sTfR) and expression of iron metabolizing proteins (H-FT and TfR1) in plaques were positively correlated with carotid plaque vulnerability index (NWI, LRNC volume).

Abstract Background Lipofibromatosis is a rare, benign, soft tissue tumor that usually presents in children. Low incidence and lack of specificity in clinical presentation make its diagnosis difficult. Case presentation This is a case report of a patient with a giant lipofibromatosis on the back that resembles an infantile hemangioma, which posed great difficulty in diagnosis due to atypical clinical manifestations. After the postoperative pathological and immunohistochemical examination and fluorescence in situ hybridization, the patient was finally diagnosed with lipofibromatosis. Conclusions The incidence of fibromatosis was low. This case presents an atypical clinical manifestation since the tumor growth was on the back, and this can easily cause misdiagnosis. This case suggests that the diagnosis of lipofibromatosis depends on the pathology and fluorescence in situ hybridization.

As an emerging and active entity in China’s electricity market, electricity selling companies call for a more reliable operational mechanism and new consumption mode to broaden their profit margins. Aiming at distributed power generation-based sales companies and by considering the participation of virtual power plants (VPPs), this paper presents the relevant operating systems in the Chinese power market. Then the paper proposes a new platform for power transactions and optimal dispatch based on a master-slave game optimization model. The model is built so that the main gamer, power sales company, can achieve maximum profit while at the same time the secondary gamer, represented by the VPP attains the lowest internal dispatching cost. The energy of both parties is linked together, and the two parties continuously exchange their own strategies and optimize the operational decisions and scheduling plans iteratively. The results of the investigated case study reveal the benefits to retail electricity companies from adopting the proposed model to aggregate and manage decentralized resources, and optimize decision-making. The platform facilitates the use of controllable loads and distributed energy sources to participate in market transactions on a large scale, and optimize the operational strategies of electric utilities.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has spotlighted the face mask as an intricate object constructed through the uptake of varied and sometimes competing discourses. We investigated how the concept of face mask was discursively deployed during the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. By examining the different discourses surrounding the use of face masks in public domain texts, we comment on important educational opportunities for medical education. Method: We applied critical discourse methodology to look for key phrases related to face masks that can be linked to specific socio-economic and educational practices. We created an archive of 171 English and Mandarin texts spanning the period of February to July 2020 to explore how discourses in Canada related to discourses of mask use in China, where the pandemic was first observed. We analyzed how the uptake of discourses related to masks was rationalized during the first phase of the pandemic and identified practices/processes that were made possible. Results: While the face mask was initially constructed as personal protective equipment, it quickly became a discursive object for rights and freedoms, an icon for personal expression of political views and social identities, and a symbol of stigma that reinforced illness, deviance, anonymity, or fear. Conclusion: Discourses related to face masks have been observed in public and institutional responses to the pandemic in the first wave. Finding from this research reinforce the need for medical schools to incorporate a broader socio-political appreciation of the role of masks in healthcare when training for pandemic responses.

Abstract Purpose To test tough gel adhesives to repair meniscus tears under relevant loading conditions and determine if they have adequate biomechanical properties to repair meniscus tears in a bovine cadaveric study. Methods Cyclic compression tests on 24 dissected bovine knees were performed. The tough gel adhesive was used either as an adhesive patch or as a coating bonded onto commercially available surgical sutures. Forty‐eight menisci were tested in this study; 24 complete radial tears and 24 bucket‐handle tears. After preconditioning, the specimens underwent 100 cycles of compression, (800 N/0.5 Hz) on an Instron© machine and the size of the gaps measured. One third of the menisci were repaired with pristine sutures, one third with adhesive patches, and one third with sutures coated in adhesive gel. The size of the gaps was compared after 100 and 500 cycles of compression. Results The mean gap measured at the tear site without treatment was 6.46 mm (± 1.41 mm) for radial tears and 1.92 mm (± 0.65 mm) for bucket‐handle tears. After treatment and 500 cycles of compression, the mean gap was 1.63 mm (± 1.41 mm) for pristine sutures, 1.50 mm (± 1.16 mm) for adhesive sutures and 2.06 mm (± 1.53 mm) for adhesive gel patches. There was no significant difference between treatments regardless of the type of tear. Also, the gaps for radial tears increased significantly with the number of compression cycles applied (p > 0.001). Conclusion From a biomechanical standpoint, the tough adhesive gel patch is as effective as suturing. In addition, it would allow the repair of non‐suturable tears and thus broaden the indications for meniscus repair. Level of evidence Controlled laboratory study.

BackgroundHigh expression of matrix metalloproteinase-11 (MMP11) is associated with various tumors and immune microenvironments. Conversely, poor response to immunotherapy in epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutant lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) patients is closely related to the characteristics of immune microenvironment.MethodsThe Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA)-LUAD database and our gathered clinical LUAD samples were used to examine the relationship between MMP11 expression and EGFR mutation. Then the correlation between MMP11 and immune response and the difference of immune cell infiltration in different groups were analyzed. Compared the differences in the immune microenvironment between the MMP11-positive and MMP11-negative expression groups using immunohistochemistry (IHC) and multiplex immunohistochemistry.ResultsThe expression of MMP11 in samples with exon 19 deletions, exon 21 L858R or de novo exon 20 T790M mutations was higher than wild type, but there was no difference between the samples with uncommon mutation and the wild-type. The high MMP11 expression group had a higher Tumor Immune Dysfunction and Exclusion (TIDE) score. Pathways associated with enrichment in the extracellular matrix (ECM) were the main biological functions of differential genes between the high and low MMP11 groups. The IHC score of MMP11 in the EGFR-mutant group was higher than in the EGFR-wild group. In TCGA-LUAD, the high MMP11 group had a lower proportion of T cell CD8+ and NK cells activated. In the clinical samples, the infiltration levels of T cell CD8+ and NK cells in the tumor parenchyma of EGFR-mutant LUAD was lower in the MMP11-positive than in the MMP11-negative group. The expression levels of tumor cell PD-L1 were higher in the MMP11-positive expression group than in the MMP11-negative expression group, and the proportion of PD1+CD8+ T cells infiltrated was reduced in the MMP11-positive group compared to the MMP11-negative group.ConclusionsHigh expression of MMP11 was associated with EGFR mutations. Patients with EGFR-mutant LUAD with high expression of MMP11 responded poorly to immunotherapy, and the percentage of T cell CD8+ and NK cells in immune cell infiltration was lower in MMP11. Consequently, MMP11 is related to the immunological microenvironment of EGFR-mutant lung adenocarcinoma, which may be a predictor of possible immunotherapeutic response.

BackgroundAlthough rare, ERBB2 exon 16 skipping mutations (ERBB2ΔEx16) have been implicated in resistance to anti-HER2 and anti-EGFR targeted agents. Our study investigated the prevalence and clinical significance of ERBB2ΔEx16 in Chinese pan-cancer patients.MethodsWe retrospectively screened 40996 patients, spanning 19 cancer types, who had available genomic profiles acquired with DNA-based next-generation sequencing (NGS). We characterized the clinical and molecular features of the ERBB2ΔEx16-positive patients. Furthermore, we also analyzed a pan-cancer dataset from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA; n=8705).ResultsA total of 22 patients were detected with ERBB2ΔEx16, resulting in an overall prevalence rate of 0.054% (22/40996). Of them, 16 patients had lung cancer (LC; 0.05%, 16/30890), five patients had gastric cancer (GC; 0.35%, 5/1448), and one patient had ovarian cancer (0.12%, 1/826). Among the 16 LC patients, ERBB2ΔEx16 was detected in four treatment-naïve EGFR/ALK-negative patients and 12 EGFR-positive patients after the onset of resistance to EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). The treatment-naïve patients harbored no LC-associated oncogenic drivers except ERBB2 amplification, suggesting a potential oncogenic role for ERBB2ΔEx16. Consistently, ERBB2ΔEx16+ patients from TCGA data also carried no known drivers despite various concurrent alterations. In the 12 EGFR TKI-resistant LC patients, relative variant frequencies for ERBB2ΔEx16 were lower than in untreated patients, suggesting ERBB2ΔEx16 as secondary alterations following TKI treatment and thereby implicating ERBB2ΔEx16 in mediating therapeutic resistance.ConclusionsOur study identified an overall ERBB2ΔEx16 prevalence rate of 0.054% and provided insights into the clinical implications of ERBB2ΔEx16 in Chinese pan-cancer patients.

Background: Appropriate monitoring and early recognition of postoperative cognitive improvement (POCI) are essential. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) showed the predictive potential of POCI. Non-linear dynamical analysis is a powerful approach for understanding intraoperative regional cerebral oxygen saturation (rSO2).Objective: We hypothesized that the sample entropy (SampEn) value of intraoperative rSO2 has the potential to predict POCI.Methods: This retrospective cohort study was conducted from June 2019 and December 2020 in a tertiary hospital in Beijing, China. A total of 126 consecutive patients who underwent carotid endarterectomy (CEA) were screened. 57 patients were included in this analysis. The primary outcome was the diagnostic accuracy of rSO2 for the prediction of POCI.Results: 33 patients (57.9%) developed POCI on postoperative day. The SampEn values of rSO2 were significantly higher in the POCI group (p < 0.05). SampEn remained an independent predictor of POCI in multivariate analysis. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) value of SampEn of rSO2 for POCI were 0.706 (95% CI, 0.569–0.843; p = 0.008). Addition of preoperative MoCA assessment and blood pressure-lowering treatment increased the AUC to 0.808 (95% CI, 0.697–0.919; p < 0.001).Conclusions: The SampEn value of rSO2 showed promise as a predictor of POCI. Non-linear analysis could be used as a supplementary method for intraoperative physiological signals.

Background: Iron overload can accelerate the accumulation of lipid oxides and contribute to the progression of atherosclerosis. Ferritin heavy chain (FT-H) exhibits oxidase activity, which inhibits the toxicity of ferrous ions and reduces oxidative damage. We investigated the effect of the intraperitoneal injection of FT-H on the progression of atherosclerosis in APOE-knockout mice (Apo-E(−/−) mice). Methods: All mice were fed on a high-fat diet. After 10 weeks, the mice were divided into an injection group (n = 4) and a control group (n = 4). The injection group was injected intraperitoneally with FT-H (50 mg/kg, once a week), and the control group was treated with PBS buffer (at an equal volume to the injection group, once a week). After 10 weeks of intervention, MRI of the aortas was performed. Then, the animals were sacrificed, and tissues were taken. Hematoxylin–eosin (HE) staining was used for histomorphometry, Masson staining was used to quantify the collagen content in the arteries, Prussian blue staining was used to visualize iron deposition in the arteries, and MRI was used to analyze the structure of the aorta in vivo. Immunohistochemistry was performed to detect the expression of MCP-1, MMP-2, MMP-9, FT-H, FT-L, TfR1, NRF-2 and GPX-4. Results: The serological results showed that the injection group had lower levels of glucose (Glu), triacylglycerol (TG), cholesterol (CHO), low-density lipoprotein-C (LDL-C) and malondialdehyde (MDA) (p = 0.0058, p = 0.0098, p = 0.0019, p = 0.0368 and p = 0.0025, respectively), and their serum ferritin (SF) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels were higher (p = 0.0004 and p < 0.0001). The Masson staining and MRI results showed that the injection group had less collagen deposition (p = 0.0226), a larger arterial lumen area and arterial volume (p = 0.0006 and p = 0.0005), thinner arterial wall thickness (p = 0.0013) and a more stable arterial plaque structure (p < 0.0001). The immunohistochemical results showed reduced expression of FT-H, FT-L, TfR1, MMP-2, MMP-9, MCP-1 and NRF-2 in the injection group (p = 0.0054, p = 0.0242, p = 0.0221, p = 0.0477, p = 0.0131, p = 0.0435 and p = 0.0179). Prussian blue staining showed that the area of iron-positive areas in the aortic plaques of the control group was larger than that of injected group. The expression of GPX-4 was lower in the control group than in the injection group (p = 0.016). Conclusions: The intraperitoneal administration of FT-H to Apo-E(−/−) mice resulted in lower blood glucose and lipid levels; reduced iron and iron metabolism protein deposition in the aorta; reduced indices of their ferroptosis, oxidation and inflammatory aggregation; and reduced collagen deposition in the aorta, which delayed the process of aortic atherosclerosis in mice.

BackgroundImmunotherapy using programmed cell death protein 1/programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-1/PD-L1) inhibitors seems less effective in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with epithelial growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations. Varied responses to PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors have recently been observed in NSCLC patients harboring different types of EGFR mutations. Some EGFR-mutated NSCLC patients may benefit from PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors. At present, PD-L1 expression, tumor mutational burden (TMB), and tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) are biomarkers for predicting the efficacy of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors in NSCLC patients. We retrospectively evaluated PD-L1 expression, TMB, and immune cell infiltration in NSCLC patients with EGFR mutation subtypes.MethodsPD-L1 expression, TMB, and the abundance of immune cell infiltration in NSCLC patients were evaluated in public databases and clinical samples. TMB was detected using the NGS technique, PD-L1 was detected using immunohistochemistry, and the abundance of immune cell infiltration in NSCLC samples was detected using multiple immunohistochemistry.ResultsPD-L1 expression and TMB were lower in EGFR-mutated NSCLCs than in wild-type patients. Differences in the abundance of immune cell infiltration were also observed between EGFR-mutated and wild-type NSCLC. The expression of PD-L1, TMB, and abundance of immune cell infiltration were different in patients harboring different subtypes of EGFR mutations. Patients with uncommon EGFR mutations, especially the G719X mutation, showed higher TMB and expressions of PD-L1 than classical EGFR mutations. M1 macrophages were higher in uncommon EGFR mutations than classical EGFR mutations.ConclusionsThe expression of PD-L1 and TMB in uncommon EGFR-mutated NSCLCs, especially the G719X mutation, were higher than those for classical EGFR-mutated NSCLCs and similar to EGFR wild-type. The abundance of immune cell infiltration in uncommon EGFR-mutated NSCLCs was similar to that in EGFR wild-type. Our findings suggest that uncommon EGFR-mutated NSCLCs may benefit from PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors.

ObjectiveTo analyze the risk factors associated with adverse events after carotid endarterectomy (CEA) in patients with unilateral severe carotid stenosis and contralateral occlusion.MethodsPatients were recruited for CEA between August 2014 and February 2020. CEA was performed under general anesthesia. The carotid clamp time (CCT; long CCT: >20 min) is defined as the period between clamp-on and clamp-off for the stenotic carotid artery. The perioperative factors and postoperative adverse events were recorded. All patients were followed up for 1 year after CEA.ResultsSixty subjects (65.8 ± 7.2 years; 54 males) were included. Patients with adverse events had significantly longer CCT than those without adverse events (60% vs. 40%, P = 0.013). Univariate logistic regression analysis showed that a history of diabetes was significantly associated with adverse events (OR, 0.190; 95% CI, 0.045–0.814; P = 0.025); long CCT was significantly associated with adverse events (OR, 8.500; 95% CI, 1.617–44.682; P = 0.011). After adjusting for confounding factors, including age, sex, BMI, diabetes, PSV, long CCT, non–use of shunt, and history of stroke or TIA, the associations between diabetes and adverse events (OR, 0.113; 95% CI, 0.013–0.959; P = 0.046) were statistically significant; the associations between long CCT and adverse events (OR, 1.301; 95% CI, 1.049–1.613; P = 0.017) were statistically significant.ConclusionsA longer carotid clamp time (>20 min) and a history of diabetes may increase the risk of adverse events in patients with unilateral severe carotid stenosis and contralateral occlusion after CEA. With good preoperative evaluation and intraoperative monitoring, the use of shunts may not be needed intraoperatively in patients with unilateral severe carotid stenosis and contralateral occlusion.

ObjectivesTo investigate the clinical characteristics of cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs) with MAP3K3 somatic mutation.MethodsWe performed a retrospective review of our CCMs database between May 2017 and December 2019. The patients with simplex CCMs identified to harbor a MAP3K3 or CCM gene somatic mutation were included. Clinical characteristics were recorded. Univariate and multivariate logistic analyses were used to assess the risk factors associated with hemorrhage events of CCMs. To explore the underlying mechanism, we transfected MEKK3-I441M-overexpressing and CCM2-knockdown lentiviruses into human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and investigated thrombomodulin (TM) and tight junctions (TJs) protein expression by western blotting and immunofluorescence. Finally, immunohistochemistry was used to validate TM and TJs protein expression in surgical samples.ResultsFifty simplex CCMs patients were included, comprising 38 MAP3K3 mutations and 12 CCM gene mutations. Nine (23.7%) patients with MAP3K3 mutations and 11(91.7%) patients with CCM gene mutations exhibited overt hemorrhage, respectively. Multivariate logistic analyses revealed that MAP3K3 mutation was associated with a lower risk of hemorrhage events. In the vitro experiments, ZO-1 expression was not reduced in MEKK3-I441M-overexpressing HUVECs compared with wild type, whereas it was significantly decreased in CCM2-knockdown HUVECs compared with control. In the MEKK3-I441M-overexpressing HUVECs, TM expression was increased, and the NF-κB pathway was significantly activated. After treatment with an NF-κB signaling inhibitor, TM expression was further upregulated. Meanwhile, TM expression was increased, but the NF-κB pathway was not activated in CCM2-knockdown HUVECs. Accordingly, immunohistochemistry showed that ZO-1 expression in the MAP3K3-mutant samples was significantly higher than that in the CCM-mutant samples. TM expression in the MAP3K3-mutant lesions was significantly lower than that in the CCM-mutant samples.ConclusionSimplex CCMs with MAP3K3 mutation occasionally present with overt hemorrhage, which is associated with the biological function of MAP3K3 mutation.

PurposeTo examine the associations between carotid plaque characteristics and perioperative cerebral blood flow (CBF) by arterial spin labeling (ASL) imaging.Materials and MethodsPatients with unilateral moderate-to-severe carotid stenosis referred for carotid endarterectomy (CEA) were recruited and underwent carotid vessel wall and brain ASL magnetic resonance imaging. The following imaging features were measured: relative CBF (rCBF = CBFindex−hemisphere/CBFcontralateral−hemisphere) in the middle cerebral artery territory; plaque burden and the presence of lipid-rich necrotic core; intraplaque hemorrhage (IPH); calcification; ulcer and fibrous-cap rupture; and the volume and maximum plaque components' area percentages. The associations between plaque characteristics and perioperative CBF were analyzed.ResultsSixty-one patients (mean age, 66.6 ± 7.8 years; 55 males) were included. Univariate linear regression showed that rCBFpre−CEA was associated with stenosis [β, −0.462; 95% confidence interval (CI), from −0.797 to −0.126; p = 0.008], calcification (β, 0.103; 95% CI, 0.005–0.201; p = 0.040), maximum IPH area percentage (β, −0.127; 95% CI, from −0.223 to −0.030; p = 0.012), and ulcer (β, 0.069; 95% CI, 0.025–0.113; p = 0.005); rCBFpost−CEA was associated with the IPH volume (β, −0.060; 95% CI, from −0.107 to −0.014; p = 0.013). After adjusting for the confounding factors, the associations of calcification with rCBFpre−CEA (β, 0.099; 95% CI, from 0.004 to −0.194; p = 0.042) and IPH volume with rCBFpost−CEA (β, −0.060; 95% CI, from −0.109 to −0.011; p = 0.020) remained statistically significant, while those of rCBFpre−CEA with maximum IPH area percentage (β, −0.089; 95% CI, from −0.188 to 0.011; p = 0.080) and ulcer (β, 0.050; 95% CI, from −0.012 to 0.112; p = 0.100) did not remain statistically significant.ConclusionThe compositional characteristics of carotid atherosclerotic plaques, particularly IPH, were associated with perioperative CBF in patients with unilateral moderate-to-severe carotid stenosis undergoing CEA. Our findings indicated that the patients with larger carotid IPH could expect smaller improvement in CBF following CEA.

Abstract Background To evaluate the role of multi-slice spiral computed tomography (MSCT) angiography in the diagnosis of spontaneous isolated visceral artery dissection (SIVAD). Methods Twenty-seven patients with abdominal SIVAD were included in the study. The MSCT scans of the patients were subjected to various post-processing techniques to visualize the visceral artery wall. Clinical features including arterial dissection, thrombosis, dissection length, true/false lumen, and complications were recorded. Results Type I, IIa, and IIb SIVADs were observed in 11, 6, and 10 patients, respectively. Superior mesenteric artery (SMA) dissection was the most common (n = 16), followed by abdominal aortic dissection (n = 6), splenic artery dissection (n = 2), renal artery dissection (n = 2), and splenic artery dissection (n = 1). One patient with SMA dissection suffered small intestine ischemia, 1 with splenic artery dissection had splenic infarction, and 1 patient with left renal artery dissection experienced renal infarction. The false lumen was bigger than the true lumen in 20 patients, with 9 patients having thrombus. The true lumen was bigger than the false lumen in 7 patients. Conclusions MSCT angiography is a valuable technique in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with SIVAD. Patients with abdominal pain suspected due to SIVAD should be examined with MSCT angiography for early detection of SIVAD.

Infantile hemangiomas (IHs) are the most frequent vascular tumors that occur during infancy. Microribonucleic acids (miRNAs) have been demonstrated as critical regulators of gene expression in various diseases. However, the function of miRNAs in IH still remains largely unknown. In the present study, we performed a miRNA microarray analysis of IH and identified 68 differentially expressed miRNAs (DEMs). In addition, miRNA-gene networks and protein-protein interactions were constructed, and the hub miRNAs and genes of IH were screened out. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis were used for biological analysis of DEMs and differentially expressed genes (DEGs). The pathway enrichment analysis of DEMs revealed several tumor-related pathways, including proteoglycans in cancer, signaling pathway regulating pluripotency of stem cells and TGF-beta signaling pathway. DEGs were mainly enriched in biological processes, including intracellular signal transduction, cell adhesion, and cell death. KEGG pathway analysis indicated that DEGs were enriched in tumorigenesis- and angiogenesis-related pathways such as proteoglycans in cancer, MAPK signaling pathway and Rap1 signaling pathway. Collectively, this study first established a comprehensive miRNA-gene network in IH, which should provide novel insights into IH pathogenesis and be beneficial to the understanding of neovascularization-related disorders.

Abstract Background Cerebral arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is a serious life-threatening congenital cerebrovascular disease. Specific anatomical features, such as nidus size, location, and venous drainage, have been validated to affect treatment outcomes. Until recently, molecular biomarkers and corresponding molecular mechanism related to anatomical features and treatment outcomes remain unknown. Methods RNA N6-methyladenosine (m6A) Methyltransferase METTL3 was identified as a differentially expressed gene in groups with different lesion sizes by analyzing the transcriptome sequencing (RNA-seq) data. Tube formation and wound healing assays were performed to investigate the effect of METTL3 on angiogenesis. In addition, Methylated RNA Immunoprecipitation Sequencing technology (MeRIP-seq) was performed to screen downstream targets of METTL3 in endothelial cells and to fully clarify the specific underlying molecular mechanisms affecting the phenotype of cerebral AVM. Results In the current study, we found that the expression level of METTL3 was reduced in the larger pathological tissues of cerebral AVMs. Moreover, knockdown of METTL3 significantly affected angiogenesis of the human endothelial cells. Mechanistically, down-regulation of METTL3 reduced the level of heterodimeric Notch E3 ubiquitin ligase formed by DTX1 and DTX3L, thereby continuously activating the Notch signaling pathway. Ultimately, the up-regulated downstream genes of Notch signaling pathway dramatically affected the angiogenesis of endothelial cells. In addition, we demonstrated that blocking Notch pathway with DAPT could restore the phenotype of METTL3 deficient endothelial cells. Conclusions Our findings revealed the mechanism by which m6A modification regulated the angiogenesis and might provide potential biomarkers to predict the outcome of treatment, as well as provide suitable pharmacological targets for preventing the formation and progression of cerebral AVM.

Abstract Background It is still unknown that whether co-existing intracranial stenosis and extracranial carotid vulnerable plaques have higher predictive value for subsequent vascular events. This study aimed to determine the relationship between co-existing extracranial carotid vulnerable plaques and intracranial stenosis and subsequent vascular events utilizing cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) vessel wall imaging. Methods Patients who had recent cerebrovascular symptoms in anterior circulation (

Controllably optimizing excited-state characteristics is crucial for luminescent nanoclusters but remains a formidable challenge. Herein, we report an effective “ligand-induced asymmetrization” strategy for constructing thermally activated delayed fluorescence-featured cubic Cu4I4 nanoclusters with asymmetric configurations, named [tBCzDBFDP]2Cu4I4 and [PTZDBFDP]2Cu4I4. Through changing 3,6-di-tert-butyl-carbazole (tBCz) to phenothiazine (PTZ) with a stronger electron-donating effect, emission color is tuned from greenish blue of [tBCzDBFDP]2Cu4I4 to yellow of [PTZDBFDP]2Cu4I4, as well as the triplet locally excited state of the former to the triplet charge transfer state of the latter. Temperature-correlated spectroscopic investigation indicates that in terms of triplet quenching suppression, [tBCzDBFDP]2Cu4I4 is superior to [PTZDBFDP]2Cu4I4, in accord with the stabilities of their triplet locally excited state and triplet charge transfer state. As a consequence, these asymmetric Cu4I4 nanocubes endowed their cluster light-emitting diodes with the external quantum efficiencies beyond 12% for sky blue and 8% for yellow. These results suggest the significance and effectiveness of ligand engineering for optoelectronic nanoclusters.

The long-term feeding of the high-concentrate diet (HC) reduced rumen pH and induced subacute rumen acidosis (SARA), leading to mammary gland tissue damage among ruminants. Disodium fumarate enhanced rumen bufferation and alleviated a decrease in rumen pH induced by the HC diet. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate whether disodium fumarate could alleviate endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, mitochondrial damage, and oxidative stress induced by the high-concentrate diet in the mammary gland tissue of Hu sheep. In this study, 18 Hu sheep in mid-lactation were randomly divided into three groups: one fed with a low-concentrate diet (LC) diet, one fed with a HC diet, and one fed with a HC diet with disodium fumarate (AHC). Each sheep was given an additional 10 g of disodium fumarate/day. The experiment lasted for eight weeks. After the experiment, rumen fluid, blood, and mammary gland tissue were collected. The results show that, compared with the LC diet, the HC diet could reduce rumen pH, and the pH below 5.6 was more than 3 h, and the LPS content of blood and rumen fluid in HC the diet was significantly higher than in the LC diet. This indicates that the HC diet induced SARA in Hu sheep. However, the supplementation of disodium fumarate in the HC diet increased the rumen pH and decreased the content of LPS in blood and rumen fluid. Compared with the LC diet, the HC diet increased Ca2+ content in mammary gland tissue. However, the AHC diet decreased Ca2+ content. The HC diet induced ER stress in mammary gland tissue by increasing the mRNA and protein expressions of GRP78, CHOP, PERK, ATF6, and IRE1α. The HC diet also activated the IP3R-VDAC1-MCU channel and lead to mitochondrial damage by inhibiting mitochondrial fusion and promoting mitochondrial division, while disodium fumarate could alleviate these changes. In addition, disodium fumarate alleviated oxidative stress induced by the HC diet by activating Nrf2 signaling and reducing ROS production in mammary gland tissue. In conclusion, the supplementation of disodium fumarate at a daily dose of 10 g/sheep enhanced rumen bufferation by maintaining the ruminal pH above 6 and reduced LPS concentration in ruminal fluid and blood. This reaction avoided the negative effect observed by non-supplemented sheep that were fed with a high-concentrate diet involving endoplasmic reticulum stress, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial damage in the mammary gland tissue of Hu sheep.

Abstract Background Intestinal mucosa barrier dysfunction after burn injury is an important factor for causing mortality of burn patients. The current study established a burn model in rats and used a free radical scavenger edaravone (ED) to treat the rats, so as to investigate the effect of edaravone on intestinal mucosa barrier after burn injury. Methods Anesthetized rats were subjected to 40% total body surface area water burn immediately, followed by treatment with ED, scrambled antagomir, or antagomiR-320. Intestinal mucosa damage was observed by hematoxylin-eosin staining and graded by colon mucosal damage index (CMDI) score. The contents of total sulfhydryl (TSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and malondialdehyde (MDA) were determined by spectrophotometry. Cell apoptosis, protein relative expression,and the in situ expressions of p-Akt and p-Bad were detected by flow cytometry, Western blotting and immunohistochemistry, respectively. The miR-320 expression was determined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Results ED alleviated intestinal mucosal damage caused by burn injury, down-regulated the levels of MDA, cytochrome C, cleaved caspase-9 and cleaved caspase-3, but up-regulated the levels of TSH, SOD, CAT and Bcl-2. We also found that ED could reduce oxidative stress, inhibit cell apoptosis, increase the expressions of p-Akt, p-Bad and miR-320, and decrease PTEN expression. PTEN was predicted to be the target gene for miR-320, and cell apoptosis could be promoted by inhibiting miR-320 expression. Conclusion ED regulates Akt/Bad/Caspase signaling cascade to reduce apoptosis and oxidative stress through up-regulating miR-320 expression and down-regulating PTEN expression, thus protecting the intestinal mucosal barrier of rats from burn injury.

Objectives: To investigate the association between radiomics features and epilepsy in patients with unruptured brain arteriovenous malformations (bAVMs) and to develop a prediction model based on radiomics features and clinical characteristics for bAVM-related epilepsy.Methods: This retrospective study enrolled 176 patients with unruptured bAVMs. After manual lesion segmentation, a total of 858 radiomics features were extracted from time-of-flight magnetic resonance angiography (TOF-MRA). A radiomics model was constructed, and a radiomics score was calculated. Meanwhile, the demographic and angioarchitectural characteristics of patients were assessed to build a clinical model. Incorporating the radiomics score and independent clinical risk factors, a combined model was constructed. The performance of the models was assessed with respect to discrimination, calibration, and clinical usefulness.Results: The clinical model incorporating 3 clinical features had an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.71. Fifteen radiomics features were used to build the radiomics model, which had a higher AUC of 0.78. Incorporating the radiomics score and clinical risk factors, the combined model showed a favorable discrimination ability and calibration, with an AUC of 0.82. Decision curve analysis (DCA) demonstrated that the combined model outperformed the clinical model and radiomics model in terms of clinical usefulness.Conclusions: The radiomics features extracted from TOF-MRA were associated with epilepsy in patients with unruptured bAVMs. The radiomics-clinical nomogram, which was constructed based on the model incorporating the radiomics score and clinical features, showed favorable predictive efficacy for bAVM-related epilepsy.

Objectives: Proteomics and high connotation functional gene screening (HCS) were used to screen key functional genes that play important roles in the pathogenesis of venous malformation. Furthermore, this study was conducted to analyze and explore their possible functions, establish a gene mutation zebrafish model, and perform a preliminary study to explore their possible pathogenic mechanisms in venous malformation.Methods: Pathological and normal tissues from patients with disseminated venous malformation were selected for Tandem Mass Tag (TMT) proteomics analysis to identify proteins that were differentially expressed. Based on bioinformatics analysis, 20 proteins with significant differential expression were selected for HCS to find key driver genes and characterize the expression of these genes in patients with venous malformations. In vitro experiments were then performed using human microvascular endothelial cells (HMEC-1). A gene mutant zebrafish model was also constructed for in vivo experiments to explore gene functions and pathogenic mechanisms.Results: The TMT results showed a total of 71 proteins that were differentially expressed as required, with five of them upregulated and 66 downregulated. Based on bioinformatics and proteomics results, five highly expressed genes and 15 poorly expressed genes were selected for functional screening by RNAi technology. HCS screening identified ACTA2 as the driver gene. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and western blot were used to detect the expression of ACTA2 in the pathological tissues of patients with venous malformations and in control tissues, and the experimental results showed a significantly lower expression of ACTA2 in venous malformation tissues (P < 0.05). Cell assays on the human microvascular endothelial cells (HMEC-1) model showed that cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and angiogenic ability were all significantly increased in the ACTA2 over-expression group (P < 0.05), and that overexpression of ACTA2 could improve the inhibitory effect on vascular endothelial cell proliferation. We constructed an ACTA2-knockdown zebrafish model and found that the knockdown of ACTA2 resulted in defective vascular development, disruption of vascular integrity, and malformation of micro vein development in zebrafish. Further qPCR assays revealed that the knockdown of ACTA2 inhibited the Dll4/notch1 signaling pathway, Ephrin-B2 signaling pathway, and vascular integrity-related molecules and activated the Hedgehog signaling pathway.Conclusion: This study revealed that ACTA2 deficiency is an important factor in the pathogenesis of venous malformation, resulting in the disruption of vascular integrity and malformed vascular development. ACTA2 can be used as a potential biomarker for the treatment and prognosis of venous malformations.

This study assesses the improvement of the latest Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) over Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) for precipitation simulation. Precipitation simulations under different future climate scenarios are also compared in this work. The results show that: 1) CMIP6 has no overall advantage over CMIP5 in simulating total precipitation (PRCPTOT) and maximum consecutive dry days (CDD). The performance of CMIP6 increases or decreases regionally in PRCPTOT and consecutive dry days. But it is slightly worse than CMIP5 in simulating very wet days (R95pTOT). 2) Comparing the trend test results of CMIP5 and CMIP6 in the future, there are more areas with significant trend based on Mann–Kendall test in CMIP6 compared with that of CMIP5. The differences in PRCPTOT are mainly found in Amazon Basin and Western Africa. The differences between the R95pTOT trends mainly noticeable in South America and Western Africa, and the differences in CDD are mainly reflected in Central Asia, Sahara Desert and central South America. 3) In Southern South America and Western North America, the PRCPTOT changing rate of CMIP6 in the future under various scenarios is always greater than that of CMIP5; in Alaska, Western Africa, Southern Africa, the PRCPTOT changing rate of CMIP6 in the future under various scenarios is always less than that of CMIP5. In Southern South America, the R95pTOT changing rate of CMIP6 in the future under various scenarios is always greater than that of CMIP5; in Alaska, East Asia, North Asia, the R95pTOT changing rate of CMIP6 in the future under various scenarios is always less than that of CMIP5. In almost half of the regions, the CDD changing rate of CMIP6 is less than that of CMIP5 under all scenarios, namely Australia, Amazon Basin, Southern South America, Central America, Western North America, Central North America, Eastern North America, Central Asia, Tibet.

The influences of proximity effect and complex dielectric permittivity on per-unit-length parameter matrices of three-core power line are analyzed. Based on the symmetrical structure of three-core cable, the per-unit-length parameter matrices are decomposed into common mode and differential mode parameters by phase-mode transformation. Taking the electromagnetic simulation results of finite element method as the initial values, a method of correcting per-unit-length parameters based on open-circuit impedance measurement in mode domain is proposed. Based on the theory of multi-conductor transmission line, the channel model of three-core power line in the frequency range from 30 kHz up to 15 MHz is established. The test results under the branch network show that the channel model has high accuracy, and the influence of the network structure on the impedance and transmission characteristics is further analyzed. The model can accurately take into account the coupling effect between multiple-input multiple-output channels.

Icariside II, an active flavonoid, is extracted from the traditional Chinese medicinal herb Epimedii. It possesses multiple biological and pharmacological properties, including anti-inflammatory, anticancer, and anti-osteoporotic properties. In recent years, apoptosis has become the hot spot in anticancer therapies. Icariside II exerts positive effects on inducing apoptosis and inhibiting proliferation in various cancers. The antitumorigenic activity of Icariside II was also proven through cell cycle arrest, triggering autophagy, reducing cellular metabolism, and inhibiting cancer metastasis and tumor-associated angiogenesis. Additionally, Icariside II, as a natural product, contributed to a synergistic effect alongside chemotherapeutic drugs. Due to its poor aqueous solubility and permeability, more strategies were developed to improve its therapeutic effects. This review aimed to summarize the chemopreventive properties of Icariside II in solid tumors and reveal its underlying molecular mechanisms.

The immune microenvironment is important for the development, progression, and prognosis of anaplastic glioma (AG). This complex milieu has not been fully elucidated, and a high-dimensional analysis is urgently required. Utilizing mass cytometry (CyTOF), we performed an analysis of immune cells from 5 patients with anaplastic astrocytoma, IDH-mutant (AAmut) and 10 patients with anaplastic oligodendroglioma, IDH-mutant and 1p/19q codeletion (AOD) and their paired peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Based on a panel of 33 biomarkers, we demonstrated the tumor-driven immune changes in the AG immune microenvironment. Our study confirmed that mononuclear phagocytes and T cells are the most abundant immunocytes in the AG immune microenvironment. Glioma-associated microglia/macrophages in both AAmut and AOD samples showed highly immunosuppressive characteristics. Compared to those in the PBMCs, the ratios of immune checkpoint-positive exhausted CD4+ T cells and CD8+ T cells were higher at the AG tumor sites. The AAmut immune milieu exhibits more immunosuppressive characteristics than that in AOD.

PAT1 homolog 2 (PATL2), encoding an RNA-binding protein, is a repressor involved in the translational regulation of maternal mRNAs during oocyte maturation. Previous studies have reported mutations in PATL2 those led to female infertility with oocyte maturation arrest; however, the mechanisms by which mutations affected meiotic maturation remained unclear. Here, we identified several novel and recurrent mutations of PATL2 in patients with similar phenotype, and chose the missense mutation c.649 T>A p.Tyr217Asn in PATL2 (PATL2Y217N) as a typical to investigate the underlying mechanisms. We confirmed that this mutation disturbed oocyte maturation and observed morphological defects of large polar body, symmetrical division and abnormal spindle after microinjection of corresponding mutated mRNA. We further evaluated the effect of the PATL2Y217N mutation in 293T cells, and found this mutation decreased the ubiquitination level and degradation of PATL2. Then, abnormally increased PATL2 bound mRNAs of Mos, an upstream activator of mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK), to regulate its translational activity and subsequently impaired MAPK signaling pathway and oocyte meiosis. These results dissented from the previous view that PATL2 mutations reduced their expression and highlight the role of PATL2 in translational regulation of Mos and its association with MAPK signaling pathway during oocyte meiotic maturation.

Background and aims: The role of statins in unruptured intracranial aneurysm (UIA) growth and rupture remains ambiguous. This study sought to determine whether atorvastatin is associated with aneurysm growth and rupture in patients harboring UIA

Background: Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is the most common chronic respiratory disease in premature infants. Oxygen inhalation and mechanical ventilation are common treatments, which can cause hyperoxia-induced lung injury, but the underlying mechanism is not yet understood. Mitochondrial fission is essential for mitochondrial homeostasis. The objective of this study was to determine whether mitochondrial fission (dynamin-related protein 1, Drp1) is an important mediator of hyperoxia lung injury in rats.Methods: The animal model of BPD was induced with high oxygen (80–85% O2). Pulmonary histological changes were observed by hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining. Pulmonary microvessels were observed by immunofluorescence staining of von Willebrand Factor (vWF). Protein expression levels of Drp1 and p-Drp1 (Ser616) were observed using Western Blot. We used echocardiography to measure pulmonary artery acceleration time (PAT), pulmonary vascular resistance index (PVRi), peak flow velocity of the pulmonary artery (PFVP), pulmonary arteriovenous diameter, and pulmonary vein peak velocity. Mitochondrial division inhibitor-1 (Mdivi-1) was used as an inhibitor of Drp1, and administered through intraperitoneal injection (25 mg/kg).Results: Pulmonary artery resistance of the hyperoxide-induced neonatal rat model of BPD increased after it entered normoxic convalescence. During the critical stage of alveolar development in neonatal rats exposed to high oxygen levels for an extended period, the expression and phosphorylation of Drp1 increased in lung tissues. When Drp1 expression was inhibited, small pulmonary vessel development improved and PH was relieved.Conclusion: Our study shows that excessive mitochondrial fission is an important mediator of hyperoxia-induced pulmonary vascular injury, and inhibition of mitochondrial fission may be a useful treatment for hyperoxia-induced related pulmonary diseases.

A new citation needs to be added to the original publication [...]