High-efficiency activated phosphorus-doped Ni2S3/Co3S4/ZnS nanowire/nanosheet arrays for energy storage of supercapacitors.

Transition metal sulfides (TMS) have been considered as a promising group of electrode materials for supercapacitors as a result of their strong redox activity, but high volumetric strain of the materials during electrochemical reactions causes rapid structural collapse and severe capacity loss. Herein, we have synthesized phosphorus-doped (P-doped) Ni2S3/Co3S4/ZnS battery-type nanowire/nanosheet arrays as an advanced cathode for supercapacitor through a two-step process of hydrothermal and annealing treatments. The material has a one-dimensional nanowire/two-dimensional nanosheet-like coexisting microscopic morphology, which facilitates the exposure of abundant active centers and promotes the transport and migration of ions in the electrolyte, while the doping of P significantly enhances the conductivity of the electrode material. Simultaneously, the element phosphorus with similar atomic radii and electronegativity to sulfur may act as electron donors to regulate the electron distribution, thus providing more effective electrochemically active sites. In gratitude to the synergistic effect of microstructure optimization and electronic structure regulation induced by the doing of P, the P-Ni2S3/Co3S4/ZnS nanoarrays provide a superior capacity of 2716 F g-1 at 1 A/g, while the assembled P-Ni2S3/Co3S4/ZnS//AC asymmetric supercapacitor exhibits a high energy density of 48.2 Wh kg-1 at a power density of 800 W kg-1 with the capacity retention of 89 % after 9000 cycles. This work reveals a possible method for developing high-performance transition metal sulfide-based battery-like electrode materials for supercapacitors through microstructure optimization and electronic structure regulation.

New use for old drug: Local delivery of puerarin facilitates critical-size defect repair in rats by promoting angiogenesis and osteogenesis.

Objectives: Large bone defect repair is a challenging clinical problem due to limited self-repair ability. A well-designed bone filling product should possess the ability to induce tissue in-growth and facilitate neovascularization and new bone formation. Puerarin has been used in clinics for a long time, and recently it was found to be able to promote osteogenesis. This study aimed to investigate a puerarin-based drug/delivery combination implant for promoting large bone defect repair. Methods: Puerarin was incorporated into the poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid)/ß-calcium phosphate (PLGA/TCP, PT) to form a porous PLGA/TCP/Puerarin (PTP) composite scaffold by low-temperature rapid prototyping technology. Its structural and degradation were analyzed in vitro. Then we employed a rat calvarial critical size defect model to assess the potency of the PTP scaffold. MC3T3-E1 cells and EA. hy 926 â€‹cells were used to investigate the underlying mechanism. Results: PTP scaffold inherited all advantages of PT scaffold in structural, mechanical, and biodegradation, meanwhile puerarin stably and continuously released from PTP scaffold and lasted for 5 months in vitro. At 8 weeks after implantation, the PTP scaffold triggered new bone formation in the macro-pores of the scaffold and inside the scaffold accompanied by the degrading materials. The underlying mechanism revealed that the PTP scaffold induced vascular infiltration and recruit repair cells through stimulating vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP-2) expressions to promote angiogenesis and osteogenesis. Conclusion: Puerarin-enriched porous PTP scaffold was a promising local delivery system with sustained release of puerarin for facilitating defect repair through getting synergistic angiogenic and osteogenic effects. The Translational Potential of this Article: The PTP scaffold presents a potential drug/device combination medical implant for large bone defect repair, which also provides a new and innovative application for the "old drug" puerarin.

Clinical study of diabetic peripheral neuropathy screening by retinal vascular geometric parameters.

To investigate the relationship between geometrical changes of retinal vessels and diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN), and to determine the effectiveness of retinal vascular geometry analysis and vibration perception threshold (VPT) for DPN assessment. Type 2 diabetes patients (n = 242) were categorized by stage of DPN. VPT and fundus photography was performed to obtain retinal vascular geometry parameters. The risk factors for DPN and the correlation between DPN stages were analyzed. The efficiency of the retinal vascular geometric parameters obtained with VPT as a diagnostic tool for DPN was examined. Stages of DPN showed a linear correlation with VPT (r = 0.818), central retinal vein equivalent (CRVE) (r = 0.716), and fractal dimension arterioles (DFa) (r = - 0.769). VPT, CRVE, DFa, and fractal dimension veins (DFv) showed high sensitivity (80%, 55%, 82%, and 67%, respectively) and specificity (92%, 93%, 82%, and 80%, respectively) for DPN diagnosis. Good agreement was observed between combined use of geometric parameters (CRVE, DFa and DFv) and VPT (Kappa value 0.430). The detection rate of DPN with combined use of geometric parameters of retinal vessels (64.88%) was significantly higher than that with use of VPT (47.52%). Retinal vascular geometry changes demonstrated significant correlation with DPN severity. VPT, CRVE, DFa, and DFv may provide insights for understanding DPN.

[Three-dimensional finite element analysis of implant restoration in aesthetic zone of resin-ceramic composite single crown].

PURPOSE: To observe and compare the stress distribution of implant, crown, abutment and surrounding bone tissues in the aesthetic zone after restoration of resin-ceramic composite single crown, and provide theoretical basis for clinical restoration. METHODS: Three-dimensional finite element models of alveolar bone, implant, crown, and the thickness of different adhesives between crown and abutment (0.05 mm and 0.1 mm) were established by using Mimics 17.0 software.Force was applied at the angle of 130° with the long axis of the implant, the loading position was 2 mm from the incisal cingulum, and other force on the incisal margin was loaded in parallel to the long axis of the implant. The size was 100 N. Linear static stress analysis was carried out to compare the Von Mises stress after single crown restoration with different materials. RESULTS: When the thickness of adhesive was 0.05 mm, and resin cement was selected, after restoration of Enamic, Ultimate resin ceramic composite crown, the peak stress of alveolar bone, implant, crown and abutment was more uniform and decreased slightly, but the difference was not significant compared with that of IPS Empress, blocs Mark Ⅱ ceramic crown. When the thickness of adhesive was 0.05 mm, the peak stress was significantly lower than that of 0.1 mm. There was no significant difference in the stress between glass ionomer cement and resin cement.Under the same conditions, restoration with Ultimate crown had smaller stress value of peak Von Mises. CONCLUSIONS: The stress of resin composite ceramics single crown when applied to implantation in aesthetic area is slightly less and more uniform. The proportion of resin in composites and the thickness of adhesive can affect the stress distribution and peak value.

Altered gut microbiota and mucosal immunity in patients with schizophrenia.

Evidence shows that gut microbiota may play important roles in schizophrenia pathogenesis via the "gut-brain" axis, but the mechanisms remain unclear. Here, eighty-four patients with schizophrenia and 84 sex- and age-matched healthy controls were enrolled. Shotgun metagenomic sequencing and 16S rRNA sequencing were performed, and the gut microbiota-associated epitopes (MEs) were predicted, which, together with IgA content, were used to determine the gut microbiota composition associated with gut immune status. Patients with schizophrenia had significantly reduced gut microbiota richnesses compared with those of the healthy controls, and the gut microbiota compositions clearly distinguished the patients with schizophrenia from the healthy controls. Based on two-stage metagenomic-wide association studies, nineteen gut microbiota taxonomies were associated with schizophrenia, and the microbial dysbiosis (MD) index was calculated based on the abundance of differential taxonomies. We found that MD index was positively correlated with MEs diversity and gut IgA levels, and negatively correlated with gut microbiota richness. Glutamate synthase (GOGAT) was more active in the guts of patients with schizophrenia than in those of healthy controls, and high GOGAT activity was associated with altered gut microbiota taxonomies associated with gut IgA levels. Our results may imply a role of the microbiome in the etiology of schizophrenia and contribute to the development of microbiome targeted interventions for schizophrenia.

Bioinformatic screening and experimental analysis identify SFRP1 as a prognostic biomarker for tongue squamous cell carcinomas.

OBJECTIVE: To provide a prognostic biomarker and a potential therapeutic target for tongue squamous cell carcinoma (TSCC). DESIGN: Screening the prognostic genes of TSCC by bioinformatics, and verifying the correlation between the above genes and the prognosis of TSCC by experiments. RESULTS: Twenty-four common differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between TSCC and the corresponding normal tissues were screened from four sets of TSCC functional gene expression series in Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) datasets. Further bioinformatics research based on the data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), Gene Ontology (GO), Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) indicate that the low expression of SFRP1 might be correlated with poor prognosis of TSCC patients. By colony formation assay, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), western blotting, immunohistochemical staining, flowcytometry, lentivirus transfection and animal experiments, it was confirmed that the low level of SFRP1 expression correlated with poor prognosis of TSCC patients. CONCLUSION: This study identified SFRP1 as a novel prognostic biomarker and a potential therapeutic target for TSCC.

A circular RNA derived from MMP9 facilitates oral squamous cell carcinoma metastasis through regulation of MMP9 mRNA stability.

Emerging evidence demonstrates that dysregulation of circular RNA is linked to tumorigenesis and aggressive progression. However, its role in oral squamous cell carcinoma remains largely uncharacterized. In this study, we identified a novel metastasis-associated circular RNA, circular matrix metalloproteinase 9 (hsa_circ_0001162, a circular RNA derived from matrix metalloproteinase 9), which was remarkably upregulated in oral squamous cell carcinoma and positively correlated with matrix metalloproteinase 9 expression. Patients with high circular matrix metalloproteinase 9 expression were prone to lymph node metastasis and an advanced TNM stage. Importantly, circular matrix metalloproteinase 9 was identified as an efficacious diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for oral squamous cell carcinoma patients. Functional experiments showed that depletion of circular matrix metalloproteinase 9 weakened the migratory and invasive capabilities of oral squamous cell carcinoma cells in vitro as well as inhibited lung metastasis in vivo. Regarding the mechanism, circular matrix metalloproteinase 9 could simultaneously interact with AUF1 and miR-149 to block the inhibitory effect of AUF1 and miR-149 on matrix metalloproteinase 9 3'-untranslated region, resulting in enhanced matrix metalloproteinase 9 messenger RNA stability, thereby facilitating oral squamous cell carcinoma metastasis. Collectively, our data indicate that circular matrix metalloproteinase 9 acts as a metastasis-promoting gene in oral squamous cell carcinoma through regulating the messenger RNA stability of its parental gene. Therapeutic targeting of circular matrix metalloproteinase 9 may be a promising treatment intervention for metastatic oral squamous cell carcinoma patients.

Synthesis and plugging behavior of fluorescent polymer microspheres as a kind of conformance control agent in reservoirs.

The fluorescent polymer microsphere is a newly developed chemical agent for conformance control in reservoirs. In this paper, one kind of fluorescent polymer microspheres P(AM-BA-RhB) was synthesized via the inverse suspension polymerization method with Rhodamine B as a fluorescence functional monomer. Laboratory experiments were performed to characterize the morphology, fluorescent property, swelling property and plugging behavior of fluorescent polymer microspheres. The experimental results showed that the polymer microspheres P(AM-BA-RhB) displayed stable fluorescence performance in solutions containing metal ions at pH values between 3.0 and 10.0. The swelling property was not dramatically affected by the Rhodamine B embedded in the polymer microspheres by grafting. Both a visual micromodel test and sand-pack tubes experiment demonstrated that the fluorescent polymer microspheres could pass directly or by deformation through porous media and get into the in-depth formation. The injection pressure showed the phenomenon of "Wave-type Variation". Three plugging behaviors such as piston plugging, protruding plugging and fingering plugging were put forward. The introduction of fluorescent polymer microspheres could provide one method to research the conformance control and EOR mechanism of polymer microspheres in the reservoirs.

Comparative analysis of the stress distribution in five anatomical types of maxillary central incisor.

BACKGROUND: The maxillary central incisor is one of the most important anatomical indicators in esthetics, and stress distribution may vary among its five anatomical views (labial, palatal, mesial, distal, and incisal). OBJECTIVE: To compare stress distribution among the five anatomical views of the maxillary central incisor under loading force at five angles and to observe and analyze the stress distribution in the dentin and periodontal ligament. METHODS: We established three-dimensional finite element models of the five different views, which simulated the bite force with a static load force at 0∘, 30∘, 45∘, 60∘, and 90∘. The stress and displacement values for the cementoenamel junction (CEJ)-apical labial, palatal, mesial, and distal and the equivalent stress values on the periodontal ligament of the maxillary central incisor were calculated. RESULTS: As the angle increased, the equivalent stress on the periodontal ligament, overall tooth displacement, equivalent stress, and displacement over the four views increased. The peaks of equivalent stress over the four views appeared within 0.8-17 mm below the CEJ, although all equivalent stress values decreased while approaching the peak. Within 1-19 mm below the CEJ, the equivalent stress over the M1 and P1 views of the maxillary central incisor decreased substantially. CONCLUSION: The peaks of the equivalent stress over the M1 and P1 views of the maxillary central incisor and their stress distribution were lower than those of the other three types. Our findings provided theoretical data on the biomechanics of this esthetically important tooth, which may be useful during implantation of missing maxillary central incisors.

Classification of the Root Position of the Maxillary Central Incisors and its Clinical Significance in Immediate Implant Placement.

PURPOSE: The aim was to classify the relationship of the sagittal root positions of the maxillary central incisor to alveolar bone using cone beam computed tomography (CBCT). METHODS: CBCT images of 934 maxillary central incisors were retrospectively reviewed included 542 men and 392 women. The sagittal root position in the alveolar bone was classified as buccal, middle, or palatal. The sagittal buccal type was further classified into 3 subtypes: I, II, and III. RESULTS: The root position type was buccal in 95.4% of the 934 incisors, middle in 4.4%, and palatal in 0.2%. In the buccal type, 47.5%, 44.2%, and 8.3% were subtypes I, II, and III, respectively. There was no significant difference in the major and subtypes of root position between the male and female subjects (both P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In Chinese adults, the predominant type of sagittal root position of the maxillary central incisor is buccal. This classification system is useful in planning the implant site for immediate placement in the maxillary esthetic zone.

Piezoelectric ultrasonic bone surgery system in the extraction surgery of supernumerary teeth.

INTRODUCTION: The anterior maxillary region is a common site for supernumerary teeth. The aim of this study was to compare the use of piezoelectric ultrasonic bone surgery for the extraction of supernumerary teeth and the use of traditional method using bone chisels. METHODS: 60 patients with supernumerary anterior maxillary teeth were considered in this study. They were randomly divided into two groups: 1) the control group, in which the supernumerary teeth were extracted using the traditional bone chisels method; 2) the experimental group, in which the supernumerary teeth were extracted using a piezoelectric ultrasonic bone surgery system. The operative time, amount of bleeding and post-operative pain were quantified and compared; in addition, the post-operative swelling was evaluated. RESULTS: We observed a significant decrease (P < 0.01) in the amount of bleeding and post-operative pain in the experimental group respect to the control group; but the operative time was significantly increased (P < 0.01) with the use of piezoelectric system. In addition, post-operative swelling resolved more quickly in the experimental group. CONCLUSION: Although the operative time for the extraction of the maxillary anterior supernumerary teeth was longer using the piezoelectric ultrasonic bone surgery system, the amount of bleeding and the post-operative complications were less, so this system could be considered an appropriate surgical method for the extraction of supernumerary teeth.

[Comparison of piezosurgery and chisel osteotomy in the extraction of mandibular impacted third molars].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of piezosurgery in the extraction of mandibular impacted third molars. METHODS: 228 mandibular impacted third molars with relative difficulty for extraction according to the scheme of degree of difficulty for extraction were included in the study, and were divided into two groups (114 teeth each group): Test group (treated by piezosurgery), control group (treated by traditional chisel osteotomy). The surgery time and pain, restriction of mouth opening and facial swelling after surgery, were evaluated in both groups. RESULTS: The average surgery time was (16 +/- 5.2) min in test group and (30 +/- 8.7) min in control group. The surgery time, pain, facial swelling rate, and restriction of mouth opening were lower than control group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Compared with traditional chisel osteotomy, the average surgery time with piezosurgery was significantly shorter and the complications are obviously reduced.