Search

Feature selection is an important preprocessing process in machine learning. It selects the crucial features by removing irrelevant features or redundant features from the original feature set. Most of feature selection algorithms focus on maximizing relevant information and minimizing redundant information. In order to remove more redundant information in the evaluation criteria, we propose a feature selection based on mutual information with correlation coefficient (CCMI) in this paper. We introduce the correlation coefficient in the paper, and combine the correlation coefficient and mutual information to measure the relationship between different features. We use the absolute value of the correlation coefficient between two different features as the weight of the redundant item denoted by the mutual information in the evaluation standard. In order to select low redundancy features effectively, we also use the principle of minimization in the evaluation criteria. By comparing with 7 popular contrast algorithms in 12 data sets, CCMI has achieved the highest average classification accuracy for two classifiers of SVM and KNN. Experimental results show that our proposed CCMI has better feature classification capability.

Exposing the active sites of heterogeneous catalysts is very important for catalysis. Herein, a series of two-dimensional (2D) bimetallic salen-based porous organic polymers BSPOPs (BSPOP-Al, BSPOP-Co, and BSPOP-Ni) have been elaborated by the reaction of 2,3,6,7,14,15-hexaammoniumtriptycene with 2,6-diformyl-4-methylphenol in the presence of metal salts, namely, aluminum chloride, cobalt acetate, and nickel acetate, respectively. Different from 2D π–π packing porous organic polymers, triptycene units are envisaged to support the alignment of bimetallic salen macrocycles in the side walls of channels for exposing many more catalytic metal sites. The bimetallic salen structure has been confirmed by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES), infrared (IR) spectrometry, and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies. The porous nature of these metal-containing organic polymers has been disclosed by gas sorption experiments. The isosteric heat of CO2 adsorption (Qst) for this series of organic polymers is as high as 42.1 kJ mol−1 for cobalt species, indicating their high affinity towards carbon dioxide. The synergistic effects from their porous nature together with high affinities between CO2 and Lewis acidic metal ions, as well as the many active catalytic sites in the channels, result in the high efficiency coupling reaction of epoxides with CO2 upon BSPOP-Co. The present work not only provides a new porous organic polymer but also proposes an effective strategy to expose many more active sites for heterogeneous catalysis.

Evaluating anthropogenic impacts on regional vegetation changes during historical time is not only important for a better understanding of the Anthropocene but also valuable in improving the vegetation-climate models. In this study, we analyzed stable isotopes (δ18O, δ13C) and trace elements (Mg/Ca, Sr/Ca) of a stalagmite from Huangchao Cave in central Shandong, northern China. 230Th and AMS14C dating results indicate the stalagmite deposited during 174BC and AD1810, with a hiatus between AD638 and 1102. Broad similarities of the δ18O and trace elements in the stalagmite suggest they are reliable precipitation indexes. The δ13C of the stalagmite, a proxy of vegetation change, was generally consistent with local precipitation and temperature variations on a centennial-scale before the 15th century. It typically varied from −9.6‰ to −6.3‰, indicating climate controlled C3 type vegetation during this period. However, a persistent and marked increasing trend in the δ13C record was observed since the 15th century, resulting in δ13C values from −7.7‰ to −1.6‰ in the next four centuries. This unprecedented δ13C change caused by vegetation deterioration cannot be explained by climate change but is fairly consistent with the dramatically increasing population and farmland in Shandong. We suggest that the increasing deforestation and reclamation in central Shandong began to affect vegetation in the mountain region of central Shandong since the 15th century and severely destroyed or even cleared the forest during the 16th–18th century.

We analyze late-career teacher turnover induced by pension incentives. Using longitudinal data with performance measures for Tennessee public school teachers, we find higher quality teachers are less likely to retire conditional on age and experience. To quantify the effects of pension incentives, we estimate a structural model for retirement and find that high quality teachers have a lower disutility for teaching relative to retirement. We use the structural estimates to simulate the effect of changes in retirement incentives. Enhancements to traditional plans accelerate teacher retirement, whereas targeted retention bonuses delay retirement and retain high quality teachers at relatively modest cost.

An oil-soluble molybdenum catalyst was synthesized by a simple and novel method and studied for hydrogenation in coal-oil co-processing. The catalyst was characterized by infrared spectrum (IR), thermogravimetry (TG), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The morphology and crystal structure of catalyst was characterized with scanning electron microscope (SEM) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The catalyst can be considered as a precursor that can be converted into active MoS2 components through thermal decomposition and sulfidation. The hydrogenation experiment was carried out by the model reactants of tetradecane and 2-methylnaphthalene with a change of reaction (405℃-445℃) temperature and concentrations of molybdenum catalyst (Mo conc. 0.6-10 mg/g), and results showed that the delightly hydrogenation function of catalyst is to improve the saturation of aromatic ring. The most abundant stacking numbers of decomposed catalyst were 2 and 3, accounting for 53% of all catalyst microcrystalline units. The rapid hydrogenation stage and the significant decrease of feed heavy fraction in co-processing experiment provided the evidence that the hydrogenation performance of the synthesized catalyst is remarkable in coal-oil co-processing.

Nanotubes with circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) are attracting much attention due to many potential applications, such as chiroptical materials, displays, and sensing. However, it remains a challenge to change the assemblies of ordinarily molecular building blocks into CPL supramolecular nanotubes. Herein, the regulation of quite common dipeptide (Fmoc-FF) assemblies into unprecedented helical nanotubes exhibiting intense CPL is reported by simply doping a few phthalocyanine (octakis(carboxyl)phthalocyaninato zinc complex (Pc)) molecules. Interestingly, altering the Fmoc-FF/Pc molar ratios over a wide range cannot change the nanotubes structures according to transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atomic force microscope (AFM) measurements. Although molecular dynamics simulations suggest that the noncovalent interactions between Fmoc-FF and Pc are quite weak, few Pc molecules can still change the secondary structures of a large number of Fmoc-FF assemblies, which hierarchically form helical supramolecular nanotubes with long-range ordered molecular packing, leading to intense CPL signals with large luminescence dissymmetry factor (glum = 0.04). Consequently, the chiral reorganization of Fmoc-FF assemblies is dependent on the coassembly between Pc molecule and Fmoc-FF supramolecular architectures. These results open the possibility for the fine-tuning of helix and supramolecular nanotubes with CPL properties by using a small number of cofactors.

A range of heat treatments has been carried out aimed at changing the microstructure and properties of HIPped (Hot Isostatically Pressed) powder Ti-6Al-4V (Ti64). Jet cooling in the HIP has been used to increase the cooling rate from the standard HIP temperature of 930 °C, from 5 °C/min to 50 °C/min. At these cooling rates only a small fraction of the β present at the HIP temperature transforms to f orm a dispersion of secondary α , whereas when samples are cooled at 200 °C/min, much of the β transforms and contains secondary α . The faster cooling leads to increases in tensile and fatigue strength. Additionally, samples have been HIPped or post-HIP heat-treated at 980 °C, where there is a large fraction of β and cooled at the same three rates. Again only a limited fraction of the β present at the HIP temperature forms secondary α when cooled at 5 °C/min or 50 °C/min, but when cooling at 200 °C/min virtually all of the β transforms to produce secondary α . This improves the fatigue and tensile properties significantly. Samples cooled at 200 °C/min from 980 °C have significantly higher values of microhardness than those cooled from 930 °C, both of which are significantly harder than as-HIPped samples. The hardening on cooling at 200 °C/min from 980 °C is associated with the higher O-content present in the β just below the transus, which Electron Energy Loss spectroscopy shows is retained in the transformed β .

As a worldwide major public health problem, cancer is one of the leading causes of death. Effective treatment of cancer is an important challenge. Therefore, photodynamic therapy (PDT) and photothermal therapy (PTT) have been widely applied as anti-tumour strategies due to their high-performance and limited side effects. Inspired by natural supramolecular architectures, such as cytochromes and photosystems, the hierarchical supramolecular assembly of small organic molecules has been developed for their use as photosensitizers or photothermal agents for PDT and PTT, respectively. In this manuscript, we will summarize the recent progress of PDT and PTT based on the assembly of small organic molecules.

Many states enhanced benefits in teacher retirement plans during the 1990s. This paper examines the school staffing effects of one such enhancement in a major urban school district with mostly high poverty schools. Pension rule changes in 1999 for St. Louis public school teachers resulted in large increases in pension wealth for active teachers, as well as a powerful increase in ‘push’ incentives for earlier retirement. Simple descriptive statistics on retirement patterns before and after the enhancements suggest much earlier retirement resulted. Shorter teaching spells imply a steady state with more teacher turnover and a larger share of novice teachers in classrooms. To better understand the long-run effects of these changes and alternative policies, the authors estimate a structural model of teacher retirement. Simulations of retirement behavior for representative senior teachers point to shorter completed teaching spells and earlier retirement age as a result of the enhancements. By contrast, moving from the post-1999 to a DC-type plan would extend the teaching career of a representative senior teacher by roughly two years.

Feature selection is an essential step in data mining. The core of it is to analyze and quantize the relevancy and redundancy between the features and the classes. In CFR feature selection method, they rarely consider which feature to choose if two or more features have the same value using evaluation criterion. In order to address this problem, the standard deviation is employed to adjust the importance between relevancy and redundancy. Based on this idea, a novel feature selection method named as Feature Selection Based on Weighted Conditional Mutual Information (WCFR) is introduced. Experimental results on ten datasets show that our proposed method has higher classification accuracy.

The study on CM247LC used the traditional approach for Near-Netshape Hot Isostatic Pressing (NNSHIP) with sacrificial low carbon steel tooling, which was built using Selective Laser Melting (SLM), to produce a shaped CM247LC blisk. The assessment of the microstructure focused on both the exterior components in order to determine the depth of the Fe-diffusion layer and on the interior microstructure. Samples were extracted from the Hot Isostatic Pressed (HIPped) components for tensile testing at both room and elevated temperatures. The components were scanned to assess the geometrical shrinkages due to Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIPping). An oversized blisk was also produced based on the measurements as a demonstrator component. In addition, a further study was carried out on a novel idea that used a solid IN718 disk in the centre of the blisk to create a multi-material component.

Studies have reminded that cardiovascular metabolic comorbidities made patients more susceptible to suffer 2019 novel corona virus (2019-nCoV) disease (COVID-19), and exacerbated the infection. The aim of this analysis is to determine the association of cardiovascular metabolic diseases with the development of COVID-19. A meta-analysis of eligible studies that summarized the prevalence of cardiovascular metabolic diseases in COVID-19 and compared the incidences of the comorbidities in ICU/severe and non-ICU/severe patients was performed. Embase and PubMed were searched for relevant studies. A total of six studies with 1527 patients were included in this analysis. The proportions of hypertension, cardia-cerebrovascular disease and diabetes in patients with COVID-19 were 17.1%, 16.4% and 9.7%, respectively. The incidences of hypertension, cardia-cerebrovascular diseases and diabetes were about twofolds, threefolds and twofolds, respectively, higher in ICU/severe cases than in their non-ICU/severe counterparts. At least 8.0% patients with COVID-19 suffered the acute cardiac injury. The incidence of acute cardiac injury was about 13 folds higher in ICU/severe patients compared with the non-ICU/severe patients. Patients with previous cardiovascular metabolic diseases may face a greater risk of developing into the severe condition and the comorbidities can also greatly affect the prognosis of the COVID-19. On the other hand, COVID-19 can, in turn, aggravate the damage to the heart.

In this manuscript, unexpected supramolecular assembly of [Formula: see text]-conjugated molecules containing complex aromatic substituents was investigated. The air–water interfacial assembly of double-decker phthalocyanines containing sixteen phenol substituents (Ce(Pc2)[Formula: see text] and Y(Pc2)[Formula: see text] form aligned nanoparticles. Depending on the different surface pressure, the Ce(Pc2)[Formula: see text] self-assembled nanostructures can be regulated thoroughly. Although Ce(Pc2)[Formula: see text] and Y(Pc2)[Formula: see text] have only aromatic substituent groups, no H- or J-aggregation of [Formula: see text]-conjugated systems can be detected from the UV-vis spectra of the assemblies of these double-decker phthalocyanines. When the nanostructures of these assemblies were changed greatly, no corresponding changes of UV-vis spectra and FT-IR spectra could be detected. These unusual results can be understood from the balance between the hydrophilicity of aromatic substituents and the ether linkages of double-decker phthalocyanines and the surface pressure, and open new. approaches for supramolecular assembly of complex [Formula: see text]-conjugated systems.

Specimens of Selectively Laser Melted (SLM) CM247LC powder have been characterised using analytical scanning and transmission electron microscopy. In specimens from the bulk, it has been found that longitudinal sections consist mainly of columnar γ grains, containing virtually identically oriented cells, approximately 700 nm in width and length up to hundreds of microns. These cells are separated from adjacent cells and from adjacent grains by γ′/γ eutectic, by high densities of Hf/Ti/Ta/W-rich precipitates and high densities of dislocations. The eutectic γ′ is up to about 50 nm in diameter but up to 10 nm within the cells. The microstructure in the top layer is similar to that taken from the bulk, but single-track samples are heterogeneous along the track length. The microstructures are interpreted in terms of the precipitation sequence, the volume fraction of eutectic and partitioning of the solute elements during solidification and the influence of subsequent laser-tracks. The cooling rate during solidification, calculated from the observed cell diameters is about 10 6 K/s, but the value obtained from the size of γ′ within the bulk is about 10 4 K/s. It is suggested that the discrepancy is due to the limited accuracy of this approach. Tensile tests on as-fabricated samples show that the yield strength is comparable with that of cast samples after standard heat treatments. The high strength of the as-fabricated samples is interpreted in terms the high densities of precipitates and dislocations in cell boundaries, the fine cell structure and the γ′ within cells.

// Yanqing Huo 1 , Qingbo Li 1 , Xiqian Wang 1 , Xiejia Jiao 1 , Jiachun Zheng 1 , Zhiqiang Li 1 and Xiaohan Pan 2 1 Department of Orthopedics, The Second Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, 250133, Shandong Province, China 2 Department of Health Management, The Second Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, 250133, Shandong Province, China Correspondence to: Xiaohan Pan, email: xiaohanpan@163.com Keywords: MALAT1, osteosarcoma, TGF-β, metastasis, EZH2 Received: January 25, 2017 Accepted: March 06, 2017 Published: March 24, 2017 ABSTRACT Osteosarcoma is the most common type of bone cancer, especially in children and young adults. Recently, long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have emerged as new prognostic markers and gene regulators in several cancers, including osteosarcoma. In this study, we investigated the contributions of the lncRNA MALAT1 in osteosarcoma with a specific focus on its transcriptional regulation and its interaction with EZH2. Our results showed that MALAT1 was significantly increased in osteosarcoma specimens and cell lines. ROC curve analysis showed that MALAT1 had a higher area under the curve than alkaline phosphatase, and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis indicated that patients with high serum levels of MALAT1 showed reduced survival rate. Knockdown of MALAT1 decreased osteosarcoma cell invasion and promoted E-cadherin expression. Mechanistic investigations showed that MALAT1 was transcriptionally activated by TGF-β. Additionally, EZH2 is highly expressed and associated with the 3’ end region of lncRNA MALAT1 in osteosarcoma, and this association finally suppressed the expression of E-cadherin. Subsequently, our gain and loss function assay showed that MALAT1 overexpression promoted cell metastasis and decreased E-cadherin level, however, this effect was partially reversed by EZH2 knockdown. In conclusion, our work illuminates that lncRNA MALAT1 is a potential diagnostic and prognostic factor in osteosarcoma and further demonstrates how MALAT1 confers an oncogenic function. Thus, lncRNA MALAT1 may serve as a promising prognostic and therapeutic target for osteosarcoma patients.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are powerful toolkits to directly correlate structure-function relationships due to their well-defined structures. In this work, 5,15-di(3,4,5-trihydroxyphenyl)porphyrin (DTPP) and 5,10,15,20-tetra(3,4,5-trihydroxyphenyl)porphyrin (TTPP) are reacted with zirconium ions to afford two MOFs (Zr-DTPP and Zr-TTPP) with acid and base tolerance in the pH range of 1.0-14.0. Powder X-ray diffraction investigation combined with Rietveld refinement reveals the J-aggregated porphyrin building blocks confined by benzene-1,2,3-trisolate-zirconium chains in the newly prepared Zr-DTPP. Electron spin-resonance, singlet-oxygen determination, and sulfides oxidation experiments demonstrate a much better singlet-oxygen evolution of J-aggregated Zr-DTPP than that of unaggregated Zr-TTPP reported previously, in good contrast to the weaker photocatalytic capability disclosed for DTPP than that for TTPP in solution, consummating the theory of photosensitizer J-aggregation in boosting heterogeneous photoinduced singlet-oxygen generation.

Supramolecular gels containing porphyrins and phthalocyanines motifs are attracting increased interests in a wide range of research areas. Based on the supramolecular gels systems, porphyrin or phthalocyanines can form assemblies with plentiful nanostructures, dynamic, and stimuli-responsive properties. And these π-conjugated molecular building blocks also afford supramolecular gels with many new features, depending on their photochemical and electrochemical characteristics. As one of the most characteristic models, the supramolecular chirality of these soft matters was investigated. Notably, the application of supramolecular gels containing porphyrins and phthalocyanines has been developed in the field of catalysis, molecular sensing, biological imaging, drug delivery and photodynamic therapy. And some photoelectric devices were also fabricated depending on the gelation of porphyrins or phthalocyanines. This paper presents an overview of the progress achieved in this issue along with some perspectives for further advances.

There is increasing interest in the use of additive manufacturing (AM) for Ni-based superalloys due to their various applications in the aerospace and power-generation sectors. Ni-based superalloys are known to have a complex chemistry, with over a dozen alloying elements in most alloys, enabling them to achieve outstanding high-temperature mechanical performance as well as oxidation resistance when processed using conventional routes (e.g., casting and forging). Nonetheless, this complex chemistry results in the formation of various phases that could affect their processability using AM, resulting in cracking. Furthermore, due to the directional solidification and rapid cooling associated with AM processes, the alloys experience significant anisotropy due to the epitaxially grown microstructure, as well as the residual stresses that can sometimes be difficult to mitigate using thermal postprocessing techniques. This article highlights the outstanding issues in Ni-based superalloys AM processing, with special emphasis on defect formation mechanisms, process optimization, and residual stress development.

Samples of laser powder bed processed AlSi10Mg have been examined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and scanning TEM so that the complex microstructures of as-fabricated samples could be characterised. In longitudinal sections, columnar Al grains, about 10 μm in diameter, dominate the microstructure, but some equiaxed regions are seen. The columnar grains are made up of long cells, about 500 nm in width, rather than dendrites, which are separated from adjacent identical orientation long cells and from non-parallel cells at Al grain boundaries, by Al-Si eutectic. There is a substructure on the scale of 300–500 nm, of identical orientation “sub-cells” throughout the length of the long cells also separated by regions of the Al-Si eutectic. Microdiffraction is necessary to distinguish between cell boundaries, sub-cell boundaries and grain boundaries. The “cell-like” structures observed in cross section samples are cross sections of these long cells and of the Al-Si eutectic at cell boundaries. Deformed as-fabricated samples have been examined in TEM to assess the role of Si particles within the cells and of the Al-Si-eutectic boundaries on the response of SLMed samples to plastic deformation. In addition in situ compression tests in a TEM have been carried out which show that cell boundaries, sub-cell boundaries and particles within the cells limit dislocation movement during deformation.

The main challenge associated with the application of selective laser melting (SLM) to Ni based superalloys is the performance of process optimisation to maximise the mechanical properties. The energy density parameter has typically been used as a semiquantitative approach to identify the energy threshold beyond which the material achieves virtually full consolidation. Nonetheless, some Ni superalloys are susceptible to crack formation during SLM, which cannot be avoided via process optimisation. In the present report, a comparative study is presented showing the utility of the energy density parameter in process optimisation for γ′ and γ′/γ″ strengthened Ni based superalloys. For both classes, it was found that the build density increases [i.e. void area (%) decreases] with the increase in the energy density. Nonetheless, no direct correlation can be found between the energy density parameter and the cracking density.

Objective. Both hyperuricemia and hypertension have important clinical implications, but their relationship in terms of gender and age is still a matter of debate. In this study, we aimed to explore gender- and age-specific differences in this association between hyperuricemia and hypertension in a Chinese population. Methods. A total of 78596 ostensibly healthy subjects (47781 men and 30815 women) were recruited. The association between hyperuricemia and hypertension was analyzed by multivariate logistic regression, and the analyses were stratified by gender and age. Results. Overall prevalence of hypertension and hyperuricemia was significantly higher in males than in females. Increasing trends of hypertension prevalence in both genders as well as hyperuricemia prevalence in females were found along with aging. However, males showed a reduced trend in hyperuricemia prevalence with aging. Higher hypertension and hyperuricemia prevalence was found in young and middle-aged men than in women, but not in elderly people older than 70 years. Significantly increased risk of hypertension from hyperuricemia was found only in men with an adjusted odds ratio of 1.131 (P<0.01), especially in the middle-aged male participants. However, such significant results were not found in women. Similarly, hyperuricemia was also an independent risk factor of increased systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure in males, but not in females. Conclusion. We observed significantly higher overall prevalence of hyperuricemia and hypertension in men than in women. Men with hyperuricemia (particularly in middle age) had a significantly increased susceptibility of hypertension, while this significant association was not observed in women.

The modulation of solid-state supramolecular assemblies at room temperature is still challenging even though it potentially has very important application prospects. Herein, based on the possibility of overall conformational changes in double-decker phthalocyanine, the room temperature chiral reorganization of solid-state assemblies was investigated. LS (Langmuir-Schaefer) films of achiral double-decker cerium phthalocyanine were fabricated via air-water interfacial assembly and the dependence of supramolecular chirality on the assembly of the achiral double-decker molecules was identified. Interestingly, the corresponding supramolecular chirality in the solid-state can be reorganized with amplification of the Cotton effect and formation of helical nanostructures upon storage at room temperature and atmospheric pressure. These results open new perspectives for the regulation of supramolecular assemblies.

Ectopic expression of Mer and Axl receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) are frequently found in various cancers as known to promote oncogenesis by activating antiapoptotic signaling pathways. However, the roles of these receptors in neuroblastoma remain unclear. We found Mer and Axl was co-expressed in neuroblastoma patient samples and cell lines. Ligand-dependent Mer or Axl activation led to an increase in phosphorylated ERK1/2, AKT and FAK indicating roles for these RTKs in multiple oncogenic processes. Furthermore, Mer and Axl knockdown led to apoptosis and inhibition of migration as well as a significant increase in chemosensitivity in response to cisplatin and vincristine treatment. Taken together, our results demonstrated that inhibition of Mer and Axl improved apoptotic response and chemosensitivity in neuroblastoma, providing new insights into development of novel therapeutic strategies by targeting these oncogenes.

Genus Comamonas is a group of bacteria that are able to degrade a variety of environmental waste. Comamonas aquatica CJG (C. aquatica) in this genus is able to absorb low-density lipoprotein but not high-density lipoprotein of human serum. Using 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy, we found that the O-polysaccharide (O-antigen) of this bacterium is comprised of a disaccharide repeat (O-unit) of d-glucose and 2-O-acetyl-l-rhamnose, which is shared by Serratia marcescens O6. The O-antigen gene cluster of C. aquatica, which is located between coaX and tnp4 genes, contains rhamnose synthesis genes, glycosyl and acetyl transferase genes, and ATP-binding cassette transporter genes, and therefore is consistent with the O-antigen structure determined here.

Although the treatment strategies for neuroblastoma (NB) develop rapidly, a considerable number of patients could not benefit from chemotherapy. Here, we revealed a miR-129-MYO10 axis that regulated neuroblastoma growth and chemosensitivity. Mechanistically, MYO10 was up-regulated in neuroblastoma tissues and associated with poor overall survival. While overexpression of MYO10 enhanced tumor growth, genetic inhibition of MYO10 led to growth-inhibitory and chemopotentiating effects in neuroblastoma. MYO10 was further identified as a target of miR-129. Our data showed that miR-129 down-regulated MYO10 expression and subsequently suppressed cell growth. Re-expression of MYO10 significantly rescued miR129-mediated proliferation repression and chemosensitivity. In conclusion, our results demonstrated that miR-129 inhibited neuroblastoma growth and potentiated chemosensitivity by targeting MYO10, which may represent promising targets and rational therapeutic options for neuroblastoma.

The functions of some natural supramolecular architectures, such as ribosomes, are dependent on the recognition of different types of chiral biomolecules. However, the recognition of different types of chiral molecules (multiobject chiral recognition), such as amino acids and sugars, by independent and identically artificial supramolecular assembly, was rarely achieved. In this article, simple amphiphilic achiral phthalocyanine was found to form supramolecular chiral assemblies with charged water-soluble polymers upon host-guest interactions at the air/water interface. Among these systems, one identical phthalocyanine/poly(l-lysine) assembly not only can distinguish enantiomers of different amino acids but also can recognize several epimers of monose. The chiral recognitions were achieved by comparing either the steady-state fluorescence intensity or fluorescence quenching rate of phthalocyanine/poly(l-lysine) assemblies, before and after interaction with different small chiral molecules. It was demonstrated that the interactions between poly(l-lysine) and different small chiral molecules could change the aggregation of phthalocyanines. And the sensitivity of fluorescence and the excellent multiobject chiral recognition properties of the phthalocyanine/poly(l-lysine) assembly are dependent on the subtle molecular packing mode and the cooperation of different noncovalent interactions.

Increasing evidences have indicated that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play an important role in multiply biological processes including cell development, differentiation, proliferation and invasion. The metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (MALAT1), is a highly conserved nuclear ncRNA and a key regulator of metastasis development in several cancers. However, its role in osteosarcoma progression is not well known. In this study, we sought to determine the clinical and bilogical role of MALAT1 in osteosarcoma progression. RT-qPCR analysis showed that MALAT1 expression was significantly increased in primary osteosarcoma tissues and cell lines. Kaplan-Meier analysis indicated that patients with high expression of MALAT1 was associated with poor overall survival compared with the low expressing patients. Furthermore, the gain and loss function assay showed that miR-205 was suppressed by MALAT1 in osteosarcoma and this interaction between miR-205 and MALAT1 has reciprocal effects. Cell viability assay showed that MALAT1 promoted MG-63 and SAOS-2 cell growth through suppressing miR-205. Subsequently, the downstream gene SMAD4 was identified as a direct functional target of miR-205, and miR-205 suppressed osteosarcoma cell growth through suppressing SMAD4. Finally, we demonstrated that MALAT1 promoted osteosarcoma progression via a miR-205-SMAD4 axis. In conclusion, we revealed that enhanced MALAT1 expression predicted unfavourable outcome in osteosarcoma and promoted cell proliferation through suppressing miR-205 and activating SMAD4 function. Thus, lncRNA MALAT1 may serve as a promising prognostic and therapeutic target for osteosarcoma patients.

Crocetin is an ingredient of traditional Chinese medicine and has therapeutic potential in various diseases due to its pharmacological properties, such as neuroprotection, anti-oxidative stress, and anti-inflammation. These properties might benefit the treatment of spinal cord injury. In the present study, we tested the effect of crocetin on neurite growth and sensorimotor dysfunction in a rat model of spinal cord injury. We evaluated the viability of cultured hippocampal neurons with tetrazolium dye and lactate dehydrogenase assays, visualized neurites and axons with antibody staining, and monitored motor and sensorimotor functions in rats with spinal cord injury using the Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan assay and the contact plantar placement test, respectively, and measured cytokine expression using enzyme-linked immuno-absorbent assays. We found that crocetin (1) did not alter the viability of cultured hippocampal neurons; (2) accelerated neurite growth with preference for the longest process in individual hippocampal neurons; (3) reversed the inhibition of neurite growth by chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan and NogoA; (4) facilitated the recovery of motor and sensorimotor functions after spinal cord injury; and (5) did not inhibit pro-inflammatory responses, but restored the innervation of the descending 5-HT system in injured spinal cord. Crocetin promotes neurite growth and facilitates the recovery of motor and sensorimotor functions after spinal cord injury, likely through repairing neuronal connections.

A Gram-negative bacterial strain, Comamonas aquatica CJG, absorbs low-density lipoprotein but not high-density lipoprotein in serum. Here, we report its draft genomic sequence of 3,764,434 bp, containing total 3,425 genes, 27% of which encode proteins for metabolism and energy conversion, and it is 30% identical to the genome of Comamonas testosteroni .

Background A number of meta-analyses have been carried out to evaluate the effects of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) versus open surgery (OS) for acute Achilles tendon rupture. However, discordant findings were seen in these meta-analyses. The present study, performing a systematic review of overlapping meta-analyses regarding MIS versus OS of acute Achilles tendon rupture, aimed to assist decision-makers interpret and choose among conflicting meta-analyses, as well as to offer treatment recommendations based on current best evidence. Methods The literature search was performed to identify systematic reviews comparing MIS with OS for Achilles tendon rupture. Meta-analyses only comprising randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included. Two authors individually evaluated the quality of meta-analysis and extracted data. The Jadad decision algorithm was conducted to ascertain which meta-analysis offered the best evidence. Results A total of four meta-analyses was included. All these meta-analyses comprised RCTs or quasi-RCTs and were determined as Level-II evidence. The scores of the Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR) ranged from 7 to 10 (median 9.5). The Jadad algorithm indicated that the best meta-analysis should be chosen according to the search strategies and application of selection. A high-quality meta-analysis with more RCTs was chosen, which suggested that there was no statistically significant difference between MIS and OS regarding rerupture rate, tissue adhesion, sural nerve injury, deep infection, and deep vein thrombosis. However, MIS could decrease superficial infection rate, and had a better patient satisfaction for good to excellent outcomes in comparison to OS. Conclusions Based on the best available evidence, MIS may be superior to OS for treating acute Achilles tendon rupture. However, due to some limitations, this should be cautiously interpreted, and further high-quality studies are needed.

Objective The number of citations that a paper has received reflects the impact of the article within a particular medical area. Citation analysis concerning the most cited articles have been widely reported in orthopedic surgery and its subspecialties. However, which articles are cited most frequently in orthopedic elbow surgery is unknown. This study aimed to identify and analyze the characteristics of the 50 most cited articles in elbow surgery. Methods Science Citation Index Expanded was used to search for citations in 181 journals chosen according to the relevance for elbow publications. The 50 most cited articles in elbow surgery were identified. The title, authors, year of publications, article type, journal source, country, institution, number of citations, decade published, citation density and level of evidence were recorded and analyzed. Results The 50 most cited articles were published between 1950 and 2010. The 1980s was the most productive decade. The number of citations ranged from 388 to 124. All the articles were written in English and published in nine journals. The majority of articles originated from United States, followed by Canada and United Kingdom. Fracture was the most discussed topic. The majority of the top cited articles were clinical studies, with the remaining basic research. The most common level of evidence was level IV. Conclusions Identification of the most cited papers in elbow surgery shows an insight into the historical development of elbow surgery and provides the foundation for further investigations.