Abnormal degree centrality in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients with cognitive impairment: a resting-state functional MRI study

Brain Imaging and Behavior - To investigate functional connectivity (FC) changes in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients with and without cognitive impairment (CI) by using resting-state...     

Flower-like hydrogen titanate nanosheets: preparation,characterization and their photocatalytic hydrogen production performance in the presence of Pt cocatalyst

Flower-like hydrogen titanate nanosheets were prepared by a hydrothermal method and an assembling process. Then the Pt nanoparticles as cocatalysts were supported on the hydrogen titanate nanosheets through a photoreduction method. The samples were characterized by XRD, TG-DTA, ICP, SEM, TEM, XPS and UV-vis DRS. Their photocatalytic activity for H₂ production was also evaluated. The TEM results revealed that the as-prepared H₂Ti₂O₅·H₂O was with flower-like structure in which nanosheets were interlaced together. The formation mechanism of flower-like H₂Ti₂O₅·H₂O nanosheets was briefly proposed. With Pt cocatalyst, the flower-like H₂Ti₂O₅·H₂O had better photocatalytic activity (hydrogen production rate: 9.28 mmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹) and good cycling stability than original H₂Ti₂O₅·H₂O and commercial P25 under the same conditions. It was also found that the amount of cocatalyst Pt was positively correlated with photocatalytic performance.

Hydrogen titanate nanosheets were assembled into the flower-like hydrogen titanate nanosheets to obtain high photocatalytic performance.     

The animal experiment of a new optimised distraction implant

Our aim was to evaluate the function of a new optimised distraction implant. Six dogs with alveolar bone defects had a total of 18 distraction, and 6 normal, implants inserted into edentulous mandibular ridges after osteotomy. Five days after insertion the distraction implants were activated at a rate of 1 mm/2 days to achieve a distraction height of 6 mm. Radiographs were taken at 0, 1, 2, and 3 months after distraction. Two dogs were killed after 1, 2, and 3 months, respectively, and 12 distraction implants taken from the different time points were evaluated by microcomputed tomographic (MicroCT) scanning and histological examination. The other 6 distraction, and the 6 normal, implants were compared after osseointegration with a fatigue test. The results showed that all the distraction implants had successfully distracted the bone to the anticipated height. Radiographs showed that the density of the regenerated bone increased steadily during the consolidation period. MicroCT showed that the regenerated bone was comparable with the native bone 3 months after distraction. Both native and regenerated bone had osseointegrated histologically by 1 month and 3 months after distraction. The experiment successfully confirmed the usefulness and feasibility of this new distraction implant, and suggests interesting clinical uses.     

On Efficient and Accurate Calculation of Significance P‐Values for Sequence Kernel Association Testing of Variant Set

The objective of this paper is to discuss and develop alternative computational methods to accurately and efficiently calculate significance P‐values for the commonly used sequence kernel association test (SKAT) and adaptive sum of SKAT and burden test (SKAT‐O) for variant set association. We show that the existing software can lead to either conservative or inflated type I errors. We develop alternative and efficient computational algorithms that quickly compute the SKAT P‐value and have well‐controlled type I errors. In addition, we derive an alternative and simplified formula for calculating the significance P‐value of SKAT‐O, which sheds light on the development of efficient and accurate numerical algorithms. We implement the proposed methods in the publicly available R package that can be readily used or adapted to large‐scale sequencing studies. Given that more and more large‐scale exome and whole genome sequencing or re‐sequencing studies are being conducted, the proposed methods are practically very important. We conduct extensive numerical studies to investigate the performance of the proposed methods. We further illustrate their usefulness with application to associations between rare exonic variants and fasting glucose levels in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study.     

超声造影引导下导丝定位联合纳米碳染色对乳腺癌SLN的定位效果分析

目的探讨超声造影引导下导丝定位联合纳米碳染色对乳腺癌前哨淋巴结(SLN)定位价值。 方法将2017年1月至2018年12月期间进行手术治疗的90例乳腺癌患者作为研究对象,所有患者在入院后均进行常规超声检查,检查过程中于患者病灶侧乳晕3、6、9、12点或肿瘤周围皮下组织内注射六氟化硫溶液,经淋巴管造影后明确前哨淋巴结具体存在位置,后进行导丝定位,术前于肿瘤皮下组织注射纳米炭混悬液进行前哨淋巴结染色。术中对前哨淋巴结进行常规切除处理。数据采用SPSS20.0软件分析,淋巴结数目、SLN转移率、导丝定位率等计数资料采用[例(%)]表示,行χ²检验,P<0.05差异有统计学意义。 结果90例乳腺癌患者均顺利进行手术,完整切除病灶及定位导丝,42例患者发生淋巴结转移,共检出SLN 150枚,其中97枚SLN发生转移;转移淋巴结黑染率为88.66%(86/97),未转移淋巴结黑染率为91.87%(226/246),二者黑染率差异无统计学意义(P>0.05);淋巴结转移患者导丝定位率71.13%(69/97)明显高于淋巴结未转移51.03%(128/246)患者(χ²＝5.218,P<0.05);超声造影引导下导丝定位联合纳米碳染色对乳腺癌SLN定位的灵敏度为100.00%、特异性为97.47%、阳性预测值为98.34%、阴性预测值为100%,诊断效能较高。 结论超声造影引导下导丝定位联合纳米碳染色在乳腺癌SLN的定位中具有重要价值,其为患者制定合理的手术方案及预后均具有重要意义,值得临床推广应用。     

隐丹参酮对胰腺癌细胞生物学行为的影响及作用机制

背景与目的:胰腺癌是一种高度恶性的消化系统肿瘤,尽管目前针对胰腺癌的治疗方式在不断发展,患者预后仍然很差。隐丹参酮(CPT)是从植物丹参中提取的具有多种活性的单体,已被证实对宫颈癌、前列腺癌等有抗癌作用,但其对胰腺癌的作用尚不清楚,本研究通过体外实验探讨CPT对胰腺癌细胞生长和迁移的影响及相关机制,为相关的临床治疗药物研发提供理论和实验依据。方法:采用人胰腺癌BxPC-3细胞和SW1990细胞为研究对象,用3个浓度(10、20、40 μmol/L)的CPT处理该两种胰腺癌细胞不同时间(0、1、2、3 d)后,用CCK-8法检测CPT对细胞活力影响的浓度与时间效应;用以上3个浓度的CPT处理两种胰腺癌细胞24 h后,分别用克隆形成实验、划痕实验、Transwell实验检测对细胞克隆形成能力、迁移能力、侵袭能力的变化;用20 μmol/L CPT处理BxPC-3和SW1990细胞1、2、3 d后,用Western blot检测Akt、磷酸化Akt(p-Akt)以及上皮-间质转化(EMT)相关蛋白vimentin、E-cadherin与细胞周期相关蛋白CDK4、cyclin D1的表达。对照组细胞均只采用溶剂(DMSO)处理。结果:与各自对照组比较,CPT处理后的两种胰腺癌细胞的生长被明显抑制,且呈时间与浓度依赖性(均P0.05);划痕愈合程度、相对克隆形成率、侵袭细胞数均明显降低,且呈浓度依赖性(均P0.05);Akt、p-Akt、vimentin、E-cadherin、CDK4、cyclin D1蛋白的表达均明显下调,且呈时间依赖性(均P0.05)。结论:CPT能有效抑制胰腺癌细胞的生长和迁移,其作用机制可能与其下调Akt的表达,并进一步导致胰腺癌细胞生长周期阻滞及抑制EMT过程有关。     

《中国药典》中葡萄糖酸锌等含锌化合物分子量计算探析

目的：探讨不同企业生产的培养基用于2015年版《中国药典》沙门茵检查的可行性。方法：采用理化属性、适用性检查、生化试验、活茵检出四个方面对五个生产企业生产的培养基与实验室配制的培养基进行比对试验。结果：五个生产企业的相关培养基质量符合2015年版《中国药典》沙门茵检查的要求,实验室自行配制的RV和XLD等培养基因受诸多因素的影响不够理想。结论：研究结果可用于沙门茵检查用培养基质量控制依据。     

多个局部皮瓣在颜面部美学重建中的联合应用

目的 探讨联合应用多个局部皮瓣协同修复颜面部中、小面积的皮肤软组织缺损的优势.方法 根据患者皮肤软组织缺损创面大小及部位的不同,遵循分区修复原则,选择相应的局部皮瓣联合修复覆盖创面,使切口尽可能隐蔽及顺应面部自然轮廓线或皮肤皱纹线.结果 77例患者中74例创面Ⅰ期愈合,3例Ⅱ期愈合;术后全部随访1～8个月,修复皮瓣与周围皮肤在色泽、质地、轮廓等方面均有较好的相似度,切口隐蔽、无明显瘢痕,肿瘤切除后未见复发,面部轮廓及视觉效果良好,美学效果满意.结论 联合应用多个局部皮瓣对颜面部创伤缺损进行修复,可以明显提高修复质量,最大程度地恢复颜面部美学外观.     

Dual-generation dendritic mesoporous silica nanoparticles for co-delivery and kinetically sequential drug release

Although multi-drug synergetic therapy is increasingly important in clinical application, sophisticated delivery systems with the ability to deliver multiple drugs and realize sequential release with independently tunable kinetics at different stages are highly desirable. In this study, a dual-generation mesoporous silica nanoparticle (DAMSN) with three-dimensional dendrimer-like structure as an adaptable dual drug delivery system is developed. The DAMSN was synthesized via a heterogeneous interfacial reaction and was of uniformly spherical morphology (150–170 nm) with dendritic structures and hierarchical pores (inner pore, 3.5 nm; outer pore, 8.3 nm). And the inner generation of DAMSN was modified with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTMS). The IBU and BSA as model drugs were loaded into the inner generation via covalent conjugation and the outer generation by electrostatic adsorption, respectively. Intriguingly, DAMSN underwent a rapid bio-degradation for about 4 days, partly due to its center-radial dendritic channel structure. The release results showed that IBU was of a typical two-phase release profile with almost zero release in the first 12 h and more sustained release for the following 88 h, while BSA was sustained over a long period of 100 h. Notably, the release behaviors of both drugs can be independently tailored by changing the intrinsic properties of the DAMSN. In addition, DAMSN exhibited good bio-compatibility. These results indicated that the dual-generation, dendrimer-like MSN structure could spatiotemporally present different drugs to realize sequential drug release, and has potential use in the field of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.

The designed DAMSN could simultaneously load IBU and BSA, and realize sequential drug release efficiently.     

Primary cilia regulate hippocampal neurogenesis by mediating sonic hedgehog signaling

Primary cilia are present on mammalian neurons and glia, but their function is largely unknown. We generated conditional homozygous mutant mice for a gene we termed Stumpy. Mutants lack cilia and have conspicuous abnormalities in postnatally developing brain regions, including a hypoplasic hippocampus characterized by a primary deficiency in neural stem cells known as astrocyte-like neural precursors (ALNPs). Previous studies suggested that primary cilia mediate sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling. Here, we find that loss of ALNP cilia leads to abrogated Shh activity, increased cell cycle exit, and morphological abnormalities in ALNPs. Processing of Gli3, a mediator of Shh signaling, is also altered in the absence of cilia. Further, key mediators of the Shh pathway localize to ALNP cilia. Thus, selective targeting of Shh machinery to primary cilia confers to ALNPs the ability to differentially respond to Shh mitogenic signals compared to neighboring cells. Our data suggest these organelles are cellular “antennae” critically required to modulate ALNP behavior.