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Abstract Background Increased level of serum cholic acid (CA) is often accompanied with decreased CYP2E1 expression in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. However, the roles of CA and CYP2E1 in hepatocarcinogenesis have not been elucidated. This study aimed to investigate the roles and the underlying mechanisms of CYP2E1 and CA in HCC cell growth. Methods The proteomic analysis of liver tumors from DEN-induced male SD rats with CA administration was used to reveal the changes of protein expression in the CA treated group. The growth of CA-treated HCC cells was examined by colony formation assays. Autophagic flux was assessed with immunofluorescence and confocal microscopy. Western blot analysis was used to examine the expression of CYP2E1, mTOR, AKT, p62, and LC3II/I. A xenograft tumor model in nude mice was used to examine the role of CYP2E1 in CA-induced hepatocellular carcinogenesis. The samples from HCC patients were used to evaluate the clinical value of CYP2E1 expression. Results CA treatment significantly increased the growth of HCC cells and promoted xenograft tumors accompanied by a decrease of CYP2E1 expression. Further studies revealed that both in vitro and in vivo, upregulated CYP2E1 expression inhibited the growth of HCC cells, blocked autophagic flux, decreased AKT phosphorylation, and increased mTOR phosphorylation. CYP2E1 was involved in CA-activated autophagy through the AKT/mTOR signaling. Finally, decreased CYP2E1 expression was observed in the tumor tissues of HCC patients and its expression level in tumors was negatively correlated with the serum level of total bile acids (TBA) and gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT). Conclusions CYP2E1 downregulation contributes to CA-induced HCC development presumably through autophagy regulation. Thus, CYP2E1 may serve as a potential target for HCC drug development.

Abstract Background While depression is increasing worldwide, some patients are diagnosed as having Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), but others are diagnosed with minor depression, however, the potential neuro mechanism is unknown. Methods Sixty-two patients with minor depression, 44 adolescents with MDD and 54 healthy adolescents participated in this study. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), both HAMD and HAMA data were collected from all of the participants. Results The result indicates the pervasively decreased activation of BA, 11, 21, 45 and 46 were observed in the MDD group and reduced activation of BA 45 was observed in the minor depression group. However, cortical activation was not observed between the minor depression or MDD groups. Cortical activation was also not correlated with the depressive/anxious score in the minor and MDD groups separately. Conclusions Cortical activation was pervasively decreased in the MDD group and slightly reduced in the minor depression group, which may be a potential neural mechanism. As reduced cortical activation in minor depression, interventions in the early stages of minor depression may help slow or even modify the development of the illness.

Soil salinization seriously affects soil microbial diversity, and crop yield and quality worldwide. Microorganisms play a vital role in the process of crop yield and quality. Traditional Chinese medicine Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch. (licorice) can grow tenaciously in the heavily salinized land. However, the relationship between licorice plants and soil microorganisms is not clear. A field experiment was carried out to explore the effects of three different degrees of salinized soils on (i) licorice crop performance indicators, (ii) soil physical and chemical properties, and (iii) the changes in soil bacterial community structure and functional diversity in a semi-arid area of northwest China. The results showed that with the aggravation of soil salinization, the licorice yield, soil nutrients, and the bacterial abundance of Gemmatimonadetes and Myxococcota showed a downward trend, while the concentration of glycyrrhizic acid and liquiritin, and the bacterial abundance of Actinobacteria and Firmicutes showed an upward trend. The change of licorice yield mainly depended on the soil physical and chemical properties (e.g., EC and alkaline hydrolysable nitrogen). The change of licorice quality was more closely related to the change of bacterial diversity. The effect of bacterial diversity on liquiritin was greater than that on glycyrrhizic acid. Among them, Gemmatimonadetes were significantly negatively correlated with liquiritin and glycyrrhizic acid. These findings suggest that the increased soil Actinobacteria and Firmicutes or reduced Gemmatimonadetes and Myxococcota may provide a healthy and suitable living condition for the sustainable development of medicinal plant crops in a salinized soil ecosystem.

Abstract To enhance the security of image data transmission, and address the weaknesses of existing image encryption schemes based on chaotic systems, particularly concerning resistance to differential attacks and the unstable performance of chaotic systems, this article introduces an improved four-dimensional chaotic system and integrates evolutionary operators to propose an image encryption scheme. Firstly, a method for generating pseudo-random sequences associated with the plaintext is designed. The change rate of the ciphertext pixel value exceeds 0.9967 after a slight modification of the plaintext pixel value, significantly improving the plaintext sensitivity and the scheme's ability to resist selected plaintext attacks. Secondly, an individual rearrangement operation is introduced to achieve bit-level scrambling, and pixel-level scrambling is achieved by selection strategy. Subsequently, crossover and mutation operations are incorporated into image encryption. To reflect the randomness of the pairing, we adopt the pseudo-random sequence generated by the chaotic system to control the crossover and mutation operators, and a diffusion operation is performed on selected pixel pairs. Finally, ciphertext feedback is applied. Experimental results and performance analysis demonstrate that the proposed scheme not only enhances the security of encrypted images but also effectively resists noise and cropping attacks. This method effectively meets the high-security requirements of images in network transmission and provides new ideas for further research in the field of image encryption.

Seven new alkaloids [1, (±)-2, (±)-3, 4, and 5] and one new natural product (6), along with eight known analogues, were isolated from the tubers of Pinellia pedatisecta Schott. Their structures were determined by a comprehensive analysis of spectroscopic data, including HRESIMS, and electronic circular dichroism (ECD). In addition, the results of the bioactivity evaluation showed that compounds (±)-3, 6, and 9 exhibited significantly protective effects against Aβ25-35-induced PC-12 cell injury and ameliorated cell viabilities by decreasing the levels of the reactive oxidative species (ROS) and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP).

Purpose/ObjectivesZAP-X, a novel and dedicated radiosurgery (SRS) system, has recently emerged, while CyberKnife has solidified its position as a versatile solution for SRS and stereotactic body radiation therapy over the past two decades. This study aims to compare the dosimetric performance and delivery efficiency of ZAP-X and CyberKnife in treating brain metastases of varying target sizes, employing circular collimation.Methods and materialsTwenty-three patients, encompassing a total of 47 brain metastases, were included in the creation of comparative plans of ZAP-X and CyberKnife for analysis. The comparative plans were generated to achieve identical prescription doses for the targets, while adhering to the same dose constraints for organs at risk (OAR). The prescription isodose percentage was optimized within the range of 97–100% for each plan to ensure effective target-volume coverage. To assess plan quality, indices such as conformity, homogeneity, and gradient (CI, HI, and GI) were computed, along with the reporting of total brain volumes receiving 12Gy and 10Gy. Estimated treatment time and monitor units (MUs) were compared between the two modalities in evaluating delivery efficiency.ResultsOverall, CyberKnife achieved better CI and HI, while ZAP-X exhibited better GI and a smaller irradiated volume for the normal brain. The superiority of CyberKnife’s plan conformity was more pronounced for target size less than 1 cc and greater than 10 cc. Conversely, the advantage of ZAP-X’s plan dose gradient was more notable for target sizes under 10 cc. The homogeneity of ZAP-X plans, employing multiple isocenters, displayed a strong correlation with the target’s shape and the planner’s experience in placing isocenters. Generally, the estimated treatment time was similar between the two modalities, and the delivery efficiency was significantly impacted by the chosen collimation sizes for both modalities.ConclusionThis study demonstrates that, within the range of target sizes within the patient cohort, plans generated by ZAP-X and CyberKnife exhibit comparable plan quality and delivery efficiency. At present, with the current platform of the two modalities, CyberKnife outperforms ZAP-X in terms of conformity and homogeneity, while ZAP-X tends to produce plans with a more rapid dose falloff.

Abstract Background This study aims to explore the psychological characteristics, related emotional problems and potential NIR brain function mechanism of adolescents who refuse to attend school. Methods The study included 38 adolescents (12–18 years old) who were not attending school and 35 healthy controls (12–18 years old) who are attending school regularly. Participants completed (1) general demographics, (2) Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ), (3) Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS), (4) Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), and (5) Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90). In addition to the clinical tests, participants completed functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Mental health, personality, and emotional state were evaluated in both groups to explore the differences and to understand the underlying mechanisms of school refusal during adolescence. Results Adolescents who did not attend school had higher neuroticism scores on the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire than healthy controls (p(FDR) 0.05). There were statistically significant differences in age and gender between the adolescents who refused school and the control group (p(FDR)

Ultrafine grained materials often have superior mechanical properties. In order to complement the advantages of other preparation methods of ultrafine materials, a new process of ultrasonic vibration extrusion cutting was proposed to induce severe plastic deformation of materials to prepare ultrafine grained strips with superior mechanical properties. The mathematical model, finite element simulation and cutting test were combined to validate each other. The mapping relationship and influence law among process parameters, physical field parameters, microstructures and mechanical properties were studied. After ultrasonic vibration extrusion cutting, average grain size of material was refined from tens of microns to ultra-fine grain level. With the decrease of extrusion ratio, thickness of nanocrystalline surface layer, degree of grain refinement, average microhardness and tensile strength of strip increase gradually. When extrusion ratio is 1.2, 1.5, 1.8 and 2.1, thickness of nanocrystalline surface layer is 52.9 μm, 44.1 μm, 26.5 μm and 22.8 μm, respectively. Compared with original matrix, average internal microhardness of strip is increased by about 39.9%, 37.6%, 32.8%, 24.1%, and tensile strength is increased by about 306.9%, 273.7%, 254.1%, 240.9%, respectively.

Ultrasonic machining, as an effective method to regulate the input external energy, is widely used in surface generation and modification. It can fabricate the microstructure through the precise regulation of interface energy. In order to promote the application of ultrasonic machining for fabricating surface micro-texture and enhancing the part's serviceability, firstly, the current processing methods for surface micro-texture are compared, and the focus is on the comprehensive review of ultrasonic vibration-assisted machining. The characteristics of ultrasonic vibration-assisted turning, milling, grinding, and ultrasonic reinforcement surface micro-texture are analyzed in terms of different vibration forms and ultrasonic dimensions, and the limitations of each process application and the key problems that need to be solved are summarized. Secondly, based on the surface micro-texture fabricated by each process, the serviceability such as friction, wetting, and structural color regulation is analyzed. The analysis mainly elaborates on the friction and wear, friction coefficient, bearing capacity, contact performance, and optical property regulation of surface micro-texture. The results show that surface micro-texture can improve the part’s wear resistance, hydrophobic characteristics, and optical functional characteristics to a certain extent. Finally, considering the issues to be further investigated, the surface micro-texture and serviceability in ultrasonic vibration-assisted machining are discussed for future prospects.

In the U.S., Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) is a major pest targeted by both transgenic maize and cotton expressing Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) proteins. Resistance of insect to Bt maize and cotton containing cry1A and cry2A genes has widely occurred in the U.S. In this study, two trials were performed to investigate larval survival and development of a Cry1A.105/Cry2Ab2 dual-protein resistant (VT2P-RR), a susceptible, and an F1 heterozygous (VT2P-RS) populations of H. zea on ears of nine Bt and three non-Bt maize hybrids. The Bt maize hybrids evaluated represent five common pyramided traits expressing two or three of the Cry1A.105, Cry1Ab, Cry1F, Cry2Ab2, and Vip3Aa20 proteins. In the laboratory, neonates of the three H. zea populations were inoculated on silks of ears collected from maize at R1–R2 plant stages; and larval survivorship was checked 10 d after neonate release. All three insect populations survived normally on non-Bt maize ears. Varied numbers of VT2P-RR and VT2P-RS survived on ears of Cry1A.105/Cry2Ab2 maize, while all larvae of the three populations died or could not develop on ears of Vip3Aa20-expressing maize. The results demonstrated that the dual-protein resistant H. zea was not cross-resistant to Vip3Aa20-expressing maize, and thus traits with vip3Aa20 gene should be effective to manage Cry1A.105/Cry2Ab2-resistant H. zea. The resistance in VT2P-RR was determined to be incomplete on Cry1A.105/Cry2Ab2 maize. The effective dominance levels varied greatly, from recessive to incompletely dominant, depending on maize hybrids and trials, suggesting that proper selection of maize hybrids could be important for mitigating the Cry1A.105/Cry2Ab2 resistance. The data generated should aid in modeling multiple-protein Bt resistance in H. zea.

The oxide film on the surface of the grinding wheel plays a very important role in ultrasonic-assisted electrolytic in-process dressing (UA-ELID) grinding. In order to investigate the influence of ultrasonic vibration on the characteristics of oxide film on the surface of grinding wheel in compound grinding, the formation mechanism of oxide film on the surface of grinding wheel under ultrasonic action was analyzed theoretically from two aspects: the change of single grain trajectory caused by ultrasonic vibration and the effect of ultrasonic cavitation. The pre-dressing tests were conducted with different pre-dressing times to observe the oxide layer properties at different pre-dressing stages. The grinding tests were conducted after pre-dressing to verify the grinding performance of oxide layer under different pre-dressing methods. The results show that after the ultrasonic vibration of the grinding wheel is added during electrolytic in-process dressing (ELID) process, the holes and cracks of the oxide film on the surface of the grinding wheel are greatly reduced during the whole pre-dressing process. In addition, the pre-dressing current decreases more stably and the current is smaller when it reaches stability. After the pre-dressing, the thickness of the oxide film is reduced by about 35 % and the hardness is increased by about 70 % compared with the ordinary pre-dressing process. The grinding test results show that the oxide film obtained by ultrasonic vibration of the additional grinding wheel is more conducive to improving the surface quality of the grinding process. Therefore, compared with the ordinary pre-dressing process, the density and uniformity of oxide film on the surface of grinding wheel is better and the hardness is higher after the additional ultrasonic vibration of grinding wheel. It is beneficial to improve the surface quality of workpiece.

Ultra-fine grain materials are widely used due to their superior material properties. In presented work, ultrasonic vibration extrusion cutting (UVEC) is put forward to prepare ultra-fine grain strip. UVEC induces material to produce strain and strain rate far exceeding that of ordinary severe plastic deformation process. The mathematical model and finite element simulation model of physical field parameters was established. UVEC test platform was set up to verify each other with previous model. Relationship and mechanism among processing parameters, physical field parameters and microstructure changes were analyzed, mechanism of grain refinement in UVEC was revealed. The results show that the grain size can be refined to ultra-fine grain size by UVEC method. With the increase of tool rake angle, the strip equivalent strain/equivalent strain rate decrease gradually, and the grain refinement weakens gradually. Besides UVEC, ordinary turning (OT) and ordinary extrusion cutting (OEC) tests are also carried out. The average grain size of UVEC-strip (0.75 μm) is about 3/4 that of OEC-strip (1.03 μm). The passivation layer depth of OT-strip (38 μm), OEC-strip (58 μm) and UVEC-strip (75 μm) increases gradually.

Dendrobium officinale (D. officinale), often used as a dual-use plant with herbal medicine and food applications, has attracted considerable attention for health-benefiting components and wide economic value. The antioxidant ability of D. officinale is of great significance to ensure its health care value and safeguard consumers’ interests. However, the common analytical methods for evaluating the antioxidant ability of D. officinale are time-consuming, laborious, and costly. In this study, near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy and chemometrics were employed to establish a rapid and accurate method for the determination of 2,2′-azinobis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) scavenging capacity, 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging capacity, and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) in D. officinale. The quantitative models were developed based on the partial least squares (PLS) algorithm. Two wavelength selection methods, namely the genetic algorithm (GA) and competitive adaptive reweighted sampling (CARS) method, were used for model optimization. The CARS-PLS models exhibited superior predictive performance compared to other PLS models. The root mean square errors of cross-validation (RMSECVs) for ABTS, FRAP, and DPPH were 0.44%, 2.64 μmol/L, and 2.06%, respectively. The results demonstrated the potential application of NIR spectroscopy combined with the CARS-PLS model for the rapid prediction of antioxidant activity in D. officinale. This method can serve as an alternative to conventional analytical methods for efficiently quantifying the antioxidant properties in D. officinale.

A chemical investigation of Anthriscus sylvestris roots led to the isolation and characterization of two new nitrogen-containing phenylpropanoids (1–2) and two new phenol glycosides (8–9), along with fifteen known analogues. Structure elucidation was based on HRESIMS, 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy, and electronic circular dichroism (ECD). In addition, compounds 3, 6, 9–10, 12, and 17 exhibited inhibitory effects against the abnormal proliferation of pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cells with IC50 values ranging from 10.7 ± 0.6 to 57.1 ± 1.1 μM.

Ultrasonic vibration extrusion cutting (UVEC), a new processing method, is proposed to prepare ultra-fine grained materials with better corrosion resistance. The mathematical models, finite element simulations, and experiments are combined and validated against each other to investigate the mapping relationships and influence mechanisms among ultrasonic amplitude, stress field parameters, microstructure, and corrosion resistance. It is found that with the increase of ultrasonic amplitude, the equivalent strain, equivalent strain rate, grain refinement degree of strip and thickness of a nanocrystalline surface layer on the side of the strip in contact with a tool (front side) increase gradually. The immersion corrosion test shows that both sides of the strip have better corrosion resistance than original matrix, and the corrosion resistance of the strip front side is better than that of strip side in contact with the extrusion block (back side). The electrochemical corrosion test shows that with the increase of ultrasonic amplitude, the electrochemical parameters are improved. It is determined that the corrosion resistance of ultra-fine grained strips prepared by UVEC is significantly improved compared with the original matrix, and the overall corrosion resistance is best at 2 μm ultrasonic amplitude.

The salp swarm algorithm (SSA) will converge prematurely and fall into local optimum when solving complex high-dimensional multimodal optimization tasks. This paper proposes an improved SSA (GMLSSA) based on gravitational search and multi-swarm search strategies. In the gravitational search strategy, using multiple salp individuals to guide the location update of search agents can get rid of the limitation of individual guidance and improve the exploration ability of the algorithm. In the multi-swarm leader strategy, the original population is divided into several independent subgroups to increase population diversity and avoid falling into local optimization. In the experiment, 20 benchmark functions (including the well-known CEC 2014 function) were used to test the performance of the proposed GMLSSA in different dimensions, and the results were compared with the most advanced search algorithm and SSA variants. The experimental results are evaluated through four different analysis methods: numerical, stability, high-dimensional performance, and statistics. These results conclude that GMLSSA has better solution quality, convergence accuracy, and stability. In addition, GMLSSA is used to solve the tension/compression spring design problem (TCSD). The proposed GMLSSA is superior to other competitors in terms of solution quality, convergence accuracy, and stability.

Background: Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is a common and burdensome symptom in cancer patients that is influenced by multiple factors. Identifying factors associated with CRF may help in developing tailored interventions for fatigue management. This study aimed to examine the correlates of CRF among colorectal cancer patients undergoing postoperative adjuvant therapy based on the theory of unpleasant symptoms. Methods: A cross-sectional study was implemented, and finally, a sample of 363 participants from one tertiary general hospital and one tertiary cancer hospital was purposively recruited. Data were collected using the general information questionnaire, cancer fatigue scale, the distress disclosure index, Herth hope index, and perceived social support scale. Univariate analysis and multiple linear regression analysis were performed to determine the correlates of CRF. Results: The mean score of CRF among colorectal cancer patients was 21.61 (SD = 6.16, 95% CI 20.98–22.25), and the fatigue degree rating was “moderate”. The multiple linear regression model revealed that 49.1% of the variance in CRF was explained by hope, sleep disorder, internal family support, self-disclosure, pain, and time since operation. Conclusions: Our study identified several significant, modifiable factors (self-disclosure, hope, internal family support, pain, and sleep disorder) associated with CRF. Understanding these correlates and developing targeted psychosocial interventions may be associated with the improvement of CRF in patients with colorectal cancer.

BackgroundMycophenolic acid (MPA)-induced colitis was still a severe side effect and challenge faced by solid transplant recipients. We aimed to explore the function and mechanism of probiotics in the treatment of MPA-induced colitis.MethodsIn this study, 15 mice (C57BL/6) were randomly assigned into three groups: control (CNTL) group (n = 5), MPA group (n = 5) and the MPA + Probiotic group (n = 5). Bifid Triple Viable capsules, which were drugs for clinical use and consisted of Bifidobacterium longum, Lactobacillus acidophilus, and Enterococcus faecalis, were used in Probiotic group. Body weight change, stool scores, colon histopathology and morphology were used to evaluate the disease severity. The intestinal mucosal barrier function was assessed by measuring the expression level of secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA), Zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1) and Occludin. Finally, 16S rDNA sequencing and bioinformatics analysis were performed on mice feces to compare the different intestinal microbial composition and diversity among three groups.ResultsCompared with the CNTL group, the mice in MPA group showed a significantly decreased body weight, increased stool scores, shortened colon length and severe colon inflammation. However, probiotics treated MPA mice reversed the disease severity, indicating that probiotics ameliorated MPA-induced colitis in mice. Mechanistically, probiotics improved the intestinal barrier function by up-regulating the expression of sIgA, ZO-1 and Occludin. Moreover, MPA-induced colitis led to intestinal microbiota dysbiosis, including the change of Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio, α- and β-diversity. But probiotic treated group showed mild change in these microbial features. Additionally, we found that Clostridiales was the most significantly different microbiota flora in MPA group.ConclusionProbiotics treatment ameliorated MPA-induced colitis by enhancing intestinal barrier function and improving intestinal microbiota dysbiosis. Clostridiales might be the dominant functional intestinal microflora and serve as the potential therapy target in MPA-induced colitis.

Weeds interfere with agricultural production activities worldwide and have a very serious impact on agriculture and animal husbandry. Identifying a safe and reliable weed control strategy may increase the yield and production net income, and improve crop quality. Licorice is one of the most popular traditional Chinese herbal medicines and has been used for over 2000 years in China. Liquiritin and glycyrrhizic acid are crucial active ingredients. A field experiment was carried out to explore the effects of weeding frequency on the yield and quality of Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch in an arid and semi-arid area of northwest China. The experiment consisted of seven treatments: (1) no weeding, marked as WF0, and (2)–(7) artificial weeding using a hoe once every 1, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 weeks after emergence, marked as WF1, WF2, WF4, WF6, WF8 and WF10, respectively. We found that a higher weeding frequency resulted in greater plant height, photosynthesis, yield and quality. The highest yield was obtained when the WF1 treatment was applied, while the cost of weeding was high among all treatments. The concentrations of liquiritin and glycyrrhizic acid were increased by 53.24% and 36.57%, with the highest nitrogen metabolism enzymatic activities and quality observed when the WF4 treatment was applied. The WF4 treatment resulted in the largest increase in the net income among all treatments in both growing seasons, with respective increases of up to 71.39% and 78.81%. These findings suggest that weeding once every four weeks could be an effective and sustainable measure to control weeds in an arid and semi-arid area.

Objective To evaluate the effect of miR-140 on the sensitivity of imatinib(IM)-resistant chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) cell strain KBM5R to IM and potential underlying mechanism. Methods The expression level of miR-140 and Bcl-2 in CML cells KBM5 and IM resistant CML cells KBM5R were detected by RT-qPCR and Western blot, respectively. KBM5R cells were transfected with miR-NC or miR-140 mimic, and then incubated with 25-100 nmol/L IM for 24 h. Cell viability was examined by CCK-8 assay. KBM5R cells transfected with miR-NC or miR-140 mimic were examined with 100 nmol/L IM for 24 h then cell apoptosis was detected by flow cytometry; Mitochondrial membrane potential was detected by JC-1 staining, and cleaved caspase-3 expression was detected by Western blot.The targeting relation between miR-140 and Bcl-2 was verified by bioinformatics and fluorescence activity analysis. Results Compared with KBM5 cells, the expression of miR-140 in KBM5R cells was significantly decreased (P＜0.01) and the expression of Bcl-2 was significantly increased(P＜0.001). In the presence of IM, compared with the miR-NC group, the cell viability in miR-140 mimic group was significantly decreased (P＜0.01 or P＜0.001); Cell apoptosis was significantly increased(P＜0.001); Mitochondrial membrane potential was significantly decreased (P＜0.001), and cleaved caspase-3 expression was significantly increased(P＜0.001). Bcl-2 was a target of miR-140. Conclusions miR-140 may increase the sensitivity of KBM5R cells to IM by inhibiting the target gene Bcl-2.

Abstract Background Traditional angiography only displays two-dimensional images of the coronary arteries during stent implantation. However, intravascular imaging can show the structure of the vascular wall, plaque characteristics. This article aims to evaluate the efficacy of intravascular imaging-guided drug-eluting stent (DES) implantation. Method We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials of intravascular imaging-guided, including patients with DES implantation guided by intravascular ultrasound or optical coherence tomography and traditional angiography. The databases of PubMed, EMBASE, web of science, and Cochrane Library were searched. The primary outcome was target lesion revascularization (TLR). The secondary outcomes included the target vessel revascularization (TVR), myocardial infarction (MI), stent thrombosis (ST), cardiac death, all-cause death, and the major adverse cardiac events (MACE) during the 6–24 months follow-up. The fixed-effects model was used to calculate the relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence interval of the outcome event. Meanwhile, the trial sequence analysis was employed to evaluate the results. Result This meta-analysis included fourteen randomized controlled trials with 7307 patients. Compared with angiography-guided, intravascular imaging-guided DES implantation can significantly reduce the risk of TLR (RR 0.63, 0.49–0.82, P = 0.0004), TVR (RR 0.66, 0.52–0.85, P = 0.001), cardiac death (RR 0.58; 0.38–0.89; P = 0.01), MACE (RR 0.67, 0.57–0.79; P

Longitudinal-torsional composite ultrasonic vibration has been widely used in grinding. This paper aims to solve the problem that the resonance frequency deviates greatly from the theoretical design frequency and the vibration mode is poor when the horn is matched with a larger tool head. This paper presents how the longitudinal-torsional composite ultrasonic conical transition horn was designed and optimized by the transfer matrix theory and finite element simulation. For this purpose, the spiral groove parameters were optimized and selected by finite element simulation. Then, the modal analysis and transient dynamic analysis of the horn with grinding wheel were carried out to verify the correctness of the theoretical calculation. The impedance analysis and amplitude test of the horn with grinding wheel were carried out. The test results were in very good agreement with the theoretical and simulation results. Finally, the grinding experiment was carried out. The surface roughness of the workpiece in longitudinal-torsional ultrasonic vibration grinding was obviously reduced compared to that of ordinary grinding. All these obtained results demonstrate that the designed longitudinal-torsional composite ultrasonic horn has very good operational performance for practical applications.

Abstract Background The inflammation hypothesis of atherosclerosis has been put forward for more than 20 years. Although many animal experiments have suggested that anti-inflammatory therapy can inhibit the atherosclerotic process, the efficacy of anti-inflammatory therapy for patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) is still controversial. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the safety and efficacy of anti-inflammatory drugs in patients with CAD. Method We conducted this systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials by searching PubMed, EMBASE, web of science, and Cochrane Library database. The primary outcome was a composite outcome of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction (MI), or stroke. The secondary outcomes included individual MI, coronary revascularization, cardiovascular death, all-cause death, and stroke. The relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for outcome events were calculated by the fixed effects model, and trial sequential analysis was applied to assess the results. Result A total of ten randomized controlled trials and 60,782 patients with CAD was included. Compared with patients receiving placebo, anti-inflammatory therapy significantly reduced the incidence of the primary outcome in patients with CAD (RR 0.93, 0.89–0.98, P = 0.007). In addition, the anti-inflammatory therapy can also reduce the risk of MI (RR 0.90, 0.84–0.96, P = 0.002) and coronary revascularization (RR 0.74, 0.66–0.84, P

Bearings are the core basic components that determine the stable operation of high-end equipment. The traditional processing technology of the raceway surface has been unable to meet the current processing requirements of high precision and high surface quality under the premise of certain efficiency. As one of the ultra-precision grinding technologies, electrochemical grinding (ECG) combines the advantages of electrochemical machining, makes up for the shortcomings of traditional grinding, and provides an effective way to solve this problem. In this paper, the ECG is successfully applied to the internal grinding process of the bearing raceway in combination with the plunge machining. The machining principle of the plunge ECG is described in detail. Based on this, the material removal speed model of the workpiece in the equilibrium state is established. Finally, the effects of main processing parameters such as processing voltage and feed rate on the surface roughness, microhardness, and residual stress of the workpiece after processing are explored through experiments.

The common material of bearing rings is GCr15 bearing steel which is a typical difficult-to-machine material. As an important working surface of the bearing, the inner surface of the raceway plays a vital role in the performance of the bearing. As an important means to solve the high-performance manufacturing of difficult-to-machine materials, longitudinal–torsional ultrasonic processing is widely used in various types of processing. In the presented work, the basic size of the horn is obtained from the wave equation of the forced vibration, and the modal analysis and amplitude test are carried out to verify the rationality of the LUTG structure. Then, according to the probability density function of cutting thickness and the overlapping effect of adjacent abrasive trajectories, the LUTG surface topography prediction model is established by using the height formula of the surface residual material, and the model reliability is verified by using the orthogonal test. The error between the test results and the prediction model is within 13.2%. Finally, based on the response surface method, the optimal process parameters that can meet the requirements of low roughness (Ra) and high material removal rate (MRR) are screened, and the optimal combination of process parameters is obtained as follows: A = 4.5 μm, n = 6493.3 r/min, ap = 28.4 μm, and vf = 21.1 mm/min.

The wide occurrence of resistance to Cry1A and Cry2A insecticidal toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) in the corn earworm/bollworm Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) leaves the Vip3A toxin produced during the vegetative stage of Bt as the only fully active toxin expressed in transgenic crops to control H. zea in the U.S.A. During 2021, the first unexpected survival of H. zea and injury (UXI) on a maize hybrid expressing Cry1A.105, Cry2Ab2, and Vip3Aa in Louisiana, U.S.A. were observed in two sentinel plots used for resistance monitoring. A follow-up intensive investigation was conducted with two H. zea populations established from larvae collected from the two UXI plots. The main goal of this study was to reveal if the unexpected damage was due to resistance development in the insect to the Bt toxins expressed in the maize hybrid. Diet-overlay bioassays showed that the two populations were highly resistant to Cry1A.105, moderately resistant to Cry2Ab2, but still highly susceptible to Vip3Aa when compared to a reference susceptible strain. In 10 d assays with detached ears, the larvae of the two UXI populations exhibited survival on ears expressing only Cry toxins but presented near 100% mortality on maize hybrids containing both cry and vip3A transgenes. Multiple field trials over three years demonstrated that natural H. zea populations in Louisiana were highly resistant to maize expressing only Cry toxins but remained susceptible to all tested hybrids containing cry and vip3A genes. Altogether, the results of this study suggest that the observed UXIs in Louisiana were associated with a resistance to Cry toxins but were not due to a resistance to Vip3A. The possible causes of the UXIs are discussed. The results generated and procedures adopted in this study help in determining thresholds for defining UXIs, assessing resistance risks, and documenting field resistance.

Physicochemical properties, bacterial communities, and volatile compounds of mutton sausage produced from Jianzhou Big-Eared goat meat during natural ripening were investigated. Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes accounted for over 66% of all operational taxonomic units (OTUs) throughout the whole process, with Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group and Staphylococcus as the predominant genus during the early and later ripening periods, respectively. The evolution of microbial composition became less rich and diverse. The uncultured bacterium, the Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group, and Staphylococcus were marker bacteria on days 0, 7, and 26, respectively, with none on day 16. The bacteria distribution seemed to influence the volatile profile of mutton sausage throughout processing, with the bacterial composition on day 0 and day 7 clustered separately from day 16 and day 26, and the same pattern for the volatile profile. Meanwhile, the concentration of total volatile fraction significantly increased, and the majority of the volatile compounds were generated during late ripening. Non-anal, hexanal, decanal, heptanal, dodecyl aldehyde, benzaldehyde, 3-methylbutanal, γ-dodecalactone, 2-pentylfuran, and 1-octen-3-ol were key volatile compounds, contributing to the overall mutton sausage flavors. Based on Spearman’s correlation analysis, Staphylococcus as well as Psychrobacter were positively correlated with the production of the key volatile compounds, and other bacteria such as Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group, Bacteroides, Lactobacillus, Prevotella_1, Odoribacter, and so on were associated with the production of most alcohols and esters.

Gastric cancer remains one of the major contributors to global cancer mortality, although there is no promising target drug in clinics. Hence, the identification of novel targeted drugs for gastric cancer is urgent. As a promising strategy for inducing ferroptosis for gastric cancer treatment, the ferroptosis inducer is a potential drug. Nevertheless, no ferroptosis inducer has entered clinics. So, our purpose was to identify a novel ferroptosis inducer for gastric cancer treatment using a drug repurposing strategy. Firstly, using a drug repurposing strategy with the aid of a commercialized compound library, HC-056456, a small molecule bioactive CatSper channel blocker, was characterized to inhibit the growth of gastric cancer line MGC-803. At the same time, this anti-proliferation effect can be blocked by ferrostatin-1, a ferroptosis inhibitor, indicating that HC-056456 is a ferroptosis inducer. Then, HC-056456 was identified to decrease GSH content via p53/SLC7A11 signaling pathway. Then Fe2+ and lipid peroxide were accumulated when cells were exposed to HC-056456. Finally, HC-056456 was found to suppress the growth of gastric cancer cells by increasing p53 and repressing SLC7A11 in vivo but not in the presence of ferrostatin-1. In sum, we systematically elucidate that HC-056456 exerts anti-gastric cancer effect by provoking ferroptosis in vitro and in vivo, suggesting its potential role in gastric cancer treatment.

A case who revealed the longest duration of viral shedding (67 days) in current reports, presented complicated characteristic on the relapse of COVID-19 due to the inconsistent performance of chest radiography and SARS-CoV-2-RNA detection after discharge. Lopinavir-interferon α2b boosted ribavirin following with lopinavir boosted budesonide might be a potent treatment for viral clearance.

Background and ObjectiveThe de novo coronary lesions are the most common form of coronary artery disease, and stent implantation still is the main therapeutic strategy. This network meta-analysis aims to evaluate the efficacy of drug-coated balloons only (DCB only) and DCB combined with bare-metal stents (DCB+BMS) strategies vs. drug-eluting stents (DES) and BMS approaches in coronary artery de novo lesion.MethodPubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library databases were retrieved to include the relevant randomized controlled trials that compared DCB approaches and stents implantation in patients with de novo coronary artery diseases. The primary outcome was major adverse cardiac events (MACE). The clinical outcomes included target lesion revascularization (TLR), all-cause death, and myocardial infarction. The angiographic outcomes consisted of in-segment late lumen loss (LLL) and binary restenosis. The odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for dichotomous data, and weighted mean differences for continuous data were calculated in the Bayesian network frame.ResultA total of 26 randomized controlled trials and 4,664 patients were included in this study. The DCB-only strategy was comparable with the efficacy of MACE, clinical outcomes, and binary restenosis compared with DES. In addition, this strategy can significantly reduce the in-segment LLL compared with the first-generation (MD −0.29, −0.49 to −0.12) and the second-generation DES (MD −0.15, −0.27 to −0.026). However, subgroup analysis suggested that DCB only was associated with higher in-segment LLL than DES (MD 0.33, 0.14 to 0.51) in patients with acute coronary syndrome. Compared with DES, the DCB+BMS strategy had a similar incidence of myocardial infarction and all-cause death, but a higher incidence of MACE, TLR, and angiographic outcomes. In addition, DCB+BMS was associated with a similar incidence of myocardial infarction and all-cause death than BMS, with a lower incidence of MACE, TLR, and angiographic outcomes.ConclusionThe DCB only is associated with similar efficacy and lower risk of LLL compared with DES. In addition, the DCB+BMS strategy is superior to BMS alone but inferior to DES (PROSPERO, CRD 42021257567).Systematic Review Registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/#recordDetails.

Objectives. This meta-analysis was to verify the short-time efficacy and safety of abciximab in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Background. Abciximab has long-term efficacy in patients with STEMI undergoing PCI, but the short-term efficacy is still controversial. Methods. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis compared with or without abciximab in patients with STEMI undergoing PCI. The relevant randomized controlled trials were included by searching PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science databases and other sources. The relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of outcomes were calculated by the fixed-effects model. Results. Ten randomized controlled trials with 5008 patients met inclusion criteria. There were no significant differences in risk of all-cause death at 30-day (RR 0.79, CI 0.55–1.12, P=0.18), major bleeding (1.37, 0.93–2.03, P=0.11), and transfusion (1.23, 0.94–1.61, P=0.13) between the two groups. However, there were significant differences in risk of all-cause death at 6 months (0.57, 0.36–0.90, P=0.02), recurrent myocardial infarction (0.55, 0.33–0.92, P=0.02), repeat revascularization (0.58, 0.43–0.78, P=0.0004), final TIMI flow

During the process of internal cylindrical ultrasonic-assisted electrochemical grinding (ICUAECG), both the workpiece and the conductive grinding wheel are rotating, the machining space is closed and narrow, the electrolyte is difficult to spray into the machining area, and the insulation between the workpiece and the machine bed is challenging. According to the machining characteristics of ICUAECG, the structure of a special machine tool was designed to mitigate these problems. In particular, the rotation, electrolyte supply, electric connection, and insulation modes of the workpiece clamping parts were studied, yielding a novel workpiece clamping- and rotating-device design. This structure can fully use the internal space of the hollow spindle of the machine tool, effectively reduce the external moving parts, and achieve the appropriate liquid injection angle of the electrolyte. The ultrasonic vibration system and its installation mechanism, the dressing device of the conductive grinding wheel, and the electric grinding spindle-mounting and -fixing device were analyzed in detail. Then, a special machine tool for ICUAECG was designed, the operability and feasibility of which were verified by experiments involving conductive grinding wheel dressing and ICUAECG.

In order to understand the role of symbionts for their insect hosts, it is customary to treat them with antibiotics or to sterilize eggs (treatments), resulting in aposymbiotic and axenic insects, respectively. Such axenic insects can then be compared with untreated controls. Fruit flies often bear complex communities which are greatly reduced by such treatments. However, the bacterial community is not completely eliminated. Here, we examine the effect of these procedures on the structure of the remaining bacterial communities in Bactrocera dorsalis (Diptera: Tephritidae) and on the insect longevity. The antibiotics (Norfloxacin and Ceftazedime) were administered to 1-day-old adult flies through sugar meal for 7 days, and eggs were surface sterilized and dechorionated to produce axenic lines. The flies were starved of protein before they were offered full diets or diets containing non-essential amino acids only. Antibiotic and egg disinfection treatments resulted in a significant reduction of the vast majority of gut bacterial populations, especially Proteobacteria, Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes. On the other hand, antibiotic allowed the persistence of Actinobacteria, Cyanobacteria and Acidobacteria populations. In untreated control flies, longevity was extended irrespective of diet quality in comparison to treated flies. Conversely, when gut bacteria were largely reduced (aposymbiotic and axenic flies), longevity was reduced in the non-essential amino acids diet treatment versus slightly improved in the presence of a protein diet. We discuss these results in an ecological–life-history perspective.

Spodoptera frugiperda (fall armyworm, FAW) is one of the most devastating insect pests to corn and soybean production in the Americas and is rapidly expanding its range worldwide. It is known to be hard to control either by chemical insecticide applications or by GM. Although the use of GM traits can be an effective way to control this pest, it is very rare to find native insecticidal proteins that provide the necessary level of FAW control in crop fields where FAW pressure and damage are high. Insecticidal Cry proteins sourced from Bacillus thuringiensis have been heavily utilized in the development of crops with GM traits; however, it is increasingly difficult to identify Cry proteins with unique modes of action. Protein engineering via a phylogenetically guided Cry protein domain swapping approach enabled us to discover novel chimeric Cry proteins engineered from inactive parent sequences. Some of these chimeras show excellent efficacy against key biotypes of FAW from Brazil and North America. In this study, we characterized a Cry-based chimera eCry1Gb.1Ig that is a very potent FAW toxin. eCry1Gb.1Ig showed high efficacy against multiple FAW strains that are resistant to various traits, including Cry1Fa, Vip3Aa and Cry1A.105/Cry2Ab. These results clearly indicate that the FAW strains resistant to Cry1Fa, Vip3Aa or Cry1A.105/Cry2Ab demonstrate no cross-resistance to eCry1Gb.1Ig and strongly suggest that eCry1Gb.1Ig acts through a novel mode of action compared to the existing traits. In addition to its FAW activity, eCry1Gb.1Ig has also been shown to control Chrysodeixis includens (soybean looper, SBL) and Anticarsia gemmatalis (velvetbean caterpillar, VBC), which are significant pests of soybean. When eCry1Gb.1Ig was introduced into corn and soybean crops, transgenic events showed strong efficacy against FAW, SBL and VBC, but no adverse plant phenotypes. This suggests that the in planta expression of the eCry1Gb.1Ig protein does not compromise plant growth or reproduction and can protect plants from FAW-related damage. Therefore, this valuable discovery will provide a differentiating FAW control trait that will give growers another tool to help them reduce yield loss due to FAW.