A rapid and eco-friendly approach for the synthesis of low-silica SAPO-34 with excellent MTO catalytic performance.

A rapid and eco-friendly route has been developed for the synthesis of SAPO-34 with short crystallization time (1-3 h), low silica content (as low as 6.2 wt%) and excellent methanol-to-olefin (MTO) catalytic performance by utilization of a recycled mother liquid at elevated crystallization temperature.

Unconventional mechanical and thermal behaviours of MOF CALF-20.

CALF-20 was recently identified as a benchmark sorbent for CO2 capture at the industrial scale, however comprehensive atomistic insight into its mechanical/thermal properties under working conditions is still lacking. In this study, we developed a general-purpose machine-learned potential (MLP) for the CALF-20 MOF framework that predicts the thermodynamic and mechanical properties of the structure at finite temperatures within first-principles accuracy. Interestingly, CALF-20 was demonstrated to exhibit both negative area compression and negative thermal expansion. Most strikingly, upon application of the tensile strain along the [001] direction, CALF-20 was shown to display a distinct two-step elastic deformation behaviour, unlike typical MOFs that undergo plastic deformation after elasticity. Furthermore, this MOF was shown to exhibit a fracture strain of up to 27% along the [001] direction at room temperature comparable to that of MOF glasses. These abnormal thermal and mechanical properties make CALF-20 as attractive material for flexible and stretchable electronics and sensors.

H2-Promoted Benign Coke Strategy for Dimethyl Ether Carbonylation with Long-Term Stability and High Activity.

Zeolite-catalyzed dimethyl ether (DME) carbonylation provides a novel route to producing methyl acetate (MeOAc). Mordenite (MOR) has drawn significant interest because of its remarkable MeOAc selectivity in DME carbonylation, albeit with limited catalytic stability. Herein, novel MOR-based DME carbonylation catalysts, distinguished by long-term stability and high activity were successfully developed, based on an H2-promoted benign coke strategy. Both the H2 cofeeds and the presence of metal species with hydrogenation capability are demonstrated to be crucial for the regulation of coke depositions. The coke deposits can potentially cover the acid sites in the 12-MR main channels, thereby mitigating the occurrence of undesirable methanol-to-hydrocarbon side reactions. Meanwhile, the elimination of ultralarge coke species under the assistance of H2 and Cu species could ensure smooth mass transfer within the catalyst, contributing to its remarkable catalytic performance. The most highlighted DME carbonylation performance was achieved on coke-mediated CuZn-HMOR with a high MeOAc yield of 0.4-0.5 g·gcat-1·h-1 for over 520 h (over 50× enhancement versus HMOR), exhibiting promising industrial application potential. The current strategy is expected to inspire further research into zeolite-catalyzed reactions, which could be potentially improved by the presence of benign coke.

Machine learning potential for modelling H2 adsorption/diffusion in MOFs with open metal sites.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) incorporating open metal sites (OMS) have been identified as promising sorbents for many societally relevant-adsorption applications including CO2 capture, natural gas purification and H2 storage. This has been ascribed to strong specific interactions between OMS and the guest molecules that enable the MOF to achieve an effective capture even under low gas pressure conditions. In particular, the presence of OMS in MOFs was demonstrated to substantially boost the H2 binding energy for achieving high adsorbed hydrogen densities and large usable hydrogen capacities. So far, there is a critical bottleneck to computationally attain a full understanding of the thermodynamics and dynamics of H2 in this sub-class of MOFs since the generic classical force fields (FFs) are known to fail to accurately describe the interactions between OMS and any guest molecules, in particular H2. This clearly hampers the computational-assisted identification of MOFs containing OMS for a target adsorption-related application since the standard high-throughput screening approach based on these generic FFs is not applicable. Therefore, there is a need to derive novel FFs to achieve accurate and effective evaluation of MOFs for H2 adsorption. On this path, as a proof-of-concept, the soc-MOF-1d containing OMS, previously envisaged as a potential platform for H2 adsorption, was selected as a benchmark material and a machine learning potential (MLP) was derived for the Al-soc-MOF-1d from a dataset initially generated by ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations. This MLP was further implemented in MD simulations to explore the H2 binding modes as well as the temperature dependence distribution of H2 in the MOF pores from 10 K to 80 K. MLP-Grand Canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) simulations were then performed to predict the H2 sorption isotherm of Al-soc-MOF-1d at 77 K that was further confirmed using sorption data we collected on this sample. As a further step, MLP-based molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were conducted to anticipate the kinetics of H2 in this MOF. This work delivers the first MLP able to describe accurately the interactions between the challenging H2 guest molecule and MOFs containing OMS. This innovative strategy applied to one of the most complex molecules owing to its highly polarizable nature, paves the way towards a more systematic accurate and efficient in silico assessment of MOFs containing OMS for H2 adsorption and beyond to the low-pressure capture of diverse molecules.

Antimicrobial peptide cecropin B functions in pathogen resistance of Mythimna separata.

Mythimna separata (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is an omnivorous pest that poses a great threat to food security. Insect antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are small peptides that are important effector molecules of innate immunity. Here, we investigated the role of the AMP cecropin B in the growth, development, and immunity of M. separata. The gene encoding M. separata cecropin B (MscecropinB) was cloned. The expression of MscecropinB was determined in different developmental stages and tissues of M. separata. It was highest in the prepupal stage, followed by the pupal stage. Among larval stages, the highest expression was observed in the fourth instar. Tissue expression analysis of fourth instar larvae showed that MscecropinB was highly expressed in the fat body and haemolymph. An increase in population density led to upregulation of MscecropinB expression. MscecropinB expression was also upregulated by the infection of third and fourth instar M. separata with Beauveria bassiana or Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). RNA interference (RNAi) targeting MscecropinB inhibited the emergence rate and fecundity of M. separata, and resulted in an increased sensitivity to B. bassiana and Bt. The mortality of M. separata larvae was significantly higher in pathogen plus RNAi-treated M. separata than in controls treated with pathogens only. Our findings indicate that MscecropinB functions in the eclosion and fecundity of M. separata and plays an important role in resistance to infection by B. bassiana and Bt.

ß-Receptor blocker enhances the anabolic effect of PTH after osteoporotic fracture.

The autonomic nervous system plays a crucial role in regulating bone metabolism, with sympathetic activation stimulating bone resorption and inhibiting bone formation. We found that fractures lead to increased sympathetic tone, enhanced osteoclast resorption, decreased osteoblast formation, and thus hastened systemic bone loss in ovariectomized (OVX) mice. However, the combined administration of parathyroid hormone (PTH) and the ß-receptor blocker propranolol dramatically promoted systemic bone formation and osteoporotic fracture healing in OVX mice. The effect of this treatment is superior to that of treatment with PTH or propranolol alone. In vitro, the sympathetic neurotransmitter norepinephrine (NE) suppressed PTH-induced osteoblast differentiation and mineralization, which was rescued by propranolol. Moreover, NE decreased the PTH-induced expression of Runx2 but enhanced the expression of Rankl and the effect of PTH-stimulated osteoblasts on osteoclastic differentiation, whereas these effects were reversed by propranolol. Furthermore, PTH increased the expression of the circadian clock gene Bmal1, which was inhibited by NE-ßAR signaling. Bmal1 knockdown blocked the rescue effect of propranolol on the NE-induced decrease in PTH-stimulated osteoblast differentiation. Taken together, these results suggest that propranolol enhances the anabolic effect of PTH in preventing systemic bone loss following osteoporotic fracture by blocking the negative effects of sympathetic signaling on PTH anabolism.

Knockdown of the Expression of Two Trehalase Genes with RNAi Disrupts the Trehalose and Chitin Metabolism Pathways in the Oriental Armyworm, Mythimna separata.

Trehalose is an important carbohydrate substance in insect hemolymph. Chitin is the main component of cuticle and peritrophic matrix in insects. Trehalase (Tre) catalyzes the decomposition of trehalose. Few studies of trehalase in lepidopteran insects have been conducted. Here, the functions of soluble Tre (Tre1) and membrane-bound Tre (Tre2) in the growth and development of Mythimna separata were investigated. We cloned and identified Tre1 and Tre2 cDNA sequences in M. separata. Analysis expression revealed that MsTre1 and MsTre2 were highly expressed in midgut and integument, respectively. The expression of MsTre1 and MsTre2 was highest in the pupal stage. We used RNA interference (RNAi) to inhibit Tre expression in M. separata larvae. Injection of dsMsTre1 or dsMsTre2 resulted in abnormal phenotypes and impeded normal molting. Silencing of MsTre1 and MsTre2 resulted in significant changes in the expression of genes in the trehalose and chitin metabolism pathways, significantly increased the trehalose and glycogen content, and significantly decreased MsTre1 and MsTre2 activity, the glucose content, and the chitin content in midgut and integument. Silencing of MsTre1 slowed larval molting, and the new cuticle was significantly thinner. These results indicate that RNAi of Tre may be useful for control strategies against M. separata.

RNA Interference Reveals the Impacts of CYP6CY7 on Imidacloprid Resistance in Aphis glycines.

Cytochrome P450 (CYP) is a group of important detoxification enzymes found in insects related to their resistance to insecticides. To elucidate the CYP6 family genes of P450, which are potentially related to imidacloprid resistance in Aphis glycines, the CYP6 cDNA sequences of A. glycines were studied. The transcriptome of A. glycines was constructed, and the CYP6 cDNA sequences of A. glycines were screened. Their relative expression levels in response to imidacloprid induction were examined through qRT-PCR, and the CYP6s with higher expression levels were used to study the detoxification of imidacloprid through RNA interference and a bioassay. Twelve CYP6s were obtained from the A. glycines transcriptome. These samples were named by the International P450 Nomenclature Committee and registered in GenBank. After 3, 6, 12, 24 and 48 h of induction with LC50 concentrations of imidacloprid, the relative expression levels of these CYP6s increased; the expression level of CYP6CY7 experienced the highest increase, being more than 3-fold higher than that of those of the non-imidacloprid-induced CYP6s. After RNA interference for CYP6CY7, the relative expression level of CYP6CY7 significantly decreased after 3, 6 and 12 h, while the corresponding P450 enzyme activity decreased after 12 and 24 h. The mortality of A. glycines due to imidacloprid treatment increased by 14.71% at 24 h. CYP6CY7 might detoxify imidacloprid in A. glycines. This study provides a theoretical basis for the further study of the mechanism of action of CYP6s and potential new methods for improving insecticidal efficacy.

Design of Mixed-Matrix MOF Membranes with Asymmetric Filler Density and Intrinsic MOF/Polymer Compatibility for Enhanced Molecular Sieving.

The separation of high-value-added chemicals from organic solvents is important for many industries. Membrane-based nanofiltration offers a more energy-efficient separation than the conventional thermal processes. Conceivably, mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs), encompassing metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) as fillers, are poised to promote selective separation via molecular sieving, synergistically combining polymers flexibility and fine-tuned porosity of MOFs. Nevertheless, conventional direct mixing of MOFs with polymer solutions results in underutilization of the MOF fillers owing to their uniform cross-sectional distribution. Therefore, in this work, a multizoning technique is proposed to produce MMMs with an asymmetric-filler density, in which the MOF fillers are distributed only on the surface of the membrane, and a seamless interface at the nanoscale. The design strategy demonstrates five times higher MOF surface coverage, which results in a solvent permeance five times higher than that of conventional MMMs while maintaining high selectivity. Practically, MOFs are paired with polymers of similar chemical nature to enhance their adhesion without the need for surface modification. The approach offers permanently accessible MOF porosity, which translates to effective molecular sieving, as exemplified by the polybenzimidazole and Zr-BI-fcu-MOF system. The findings pave the way for the development of composite materials with a seamless interface.

A Scalable Robust Microporous Al-MOF for Post-Combustion Carbon Capture.

Herein, a robust microporous aluminum tetracarboxylate framework, MIL-120(Al)-AP, (MIL, AP: Institute Lavoisier and Ambient Pressure synthesis, respectively) is reported, which exhibits high CO2 uptake (1.9 mmol g-1 at 0.1 bar, 298 K). In situ Synchrotron X-ray diffraction measurements together with Monte Carlo simulations reveal that this structure offers a favorable CO2 capture configuration with the pores being decorated with a high density of µ2-OH groups and accessible aromatic rings. Meanwhile, based on calculations and experimental evidence, moderate host-guest interactions Qst (CO2) value of MIL-120(Al)-AP (-40 kJ mol-1) is deduced, suggesting a relatively low energy penalty for full regeneration. Moreover, an environmentally friendly ambient pressure green route, relying on inexpensive raw materials, is developed to prepare MIL-120(Al)-AP at the kilogram scale with a high yield while the Metal- Organic Framework (MOF) is further shaped with inorganic binders as millimeter-sized mechanically stable beads. First evidences of its efficient CO2/N2 separation ability are validated by breakthrough experiments while operando IR experiments indicate a kinetically favorable CO2 adsorption over water. Finally, a techno-economic analysis gives an estimated production cost of ≈ 13 $ kg-1, significantly lower than for other benchmark MOFs. These advancements make MIL-120(Al)-AP an excellent candidate as an adsorbent for industrial-scale CO2 capture processes.

Penthorum chinense Pursh inhibits ferroptosis in cellular and Caenorhabditis elegans models of Alzheimer's disease.

BACKGROUND: Ferroptosis, a unique type of cell death triggered by iron-dependent lipid peroxidation, plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD), a debilitating condition marked by memory loss and cognitive impairment due to the accumulation of beta-amyloid (Aß) and hyperphosphorylated Tau protein. Increasing evidence suggests that inhibitors of ferroptosis could be groundbreaking in the treatment of AD. METHOD: In this study, we established in vitro ferroptosis using erastin-, RSL-3-, hemin-, and iFSP1-induced PC-12 cells. Using MTT along with Hoechst/PI staining, we assessed cell viability and death. To determine various aspects of ferroptosis, we employed fluorescence probes, including DCFDA, JC-1, C11 BODIPY, Mito-Tracker, and PGSK, to measure ROS production, mitochondrial membrane potential, lipid peroxidation, mitochondrial morphology, and intracellular iron levels. Additionally, Western blotting, biolayer interferometry technology, and shRNA were utilized to investigate the underlying molecular mechanisms. Furthermore, p-CAX APP Swe/Ind- and pRK5-EGFP-Tau P301L overexpressing PC-12 cells, along with Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) strains CL4176, CL2331, and BR5270, were employed to examine ferroptosis in AD models. RESULTS: Here, we conducted a screening of our natural medicine libraries and identified the ethanol extract of Penthorum chinense Pursh (PEE), particularly its ethyl acetate fraction (PEF), displayed inhibitory effects on ferroptosis in cells. Specifically, PEF inhibited the generation of ROS, lipid peroxidation, and intracellular iron levels. Furthermore, PEF demonstrated protective effects against H2O2-induced cell death, ROS production, and mitochondrial damage. Mechanistic investigations unveiled PEF's modulation of intracellular iron accumulation, GPX4 expression and activity, and FSP1 expression. In p-CAX APP Swe/Ind and pRK5-EGFP-Tau P301L overexpressing PC-12 cells, PEF significantly reduced cell death, as well as ROS and lipid peroxidase production. Moreover, PEF ameliorated paralysis and slowing rate in Aß and Tau transgenic C. elegans models, while inhibiting ferroptosis, as evidenced by decreased DHE intensity, lipid peroxidation levels, iron accumulation, and expression of SOD-3 and gst-4. CONCLUSION: Our findings highlight the suppressive effects of PEF on ferroptosis in AD cellular and C. elegans models. This study helps us better understand how ferroptosis affects AD and emphasizes the potential of PCP as a candidate for AD intervention.

Isolation and absolute configuration of alkylpyridine alkaloids from the marine sponge Hippospongia lachne.

Marine sponges are well known as prolific producers of structurally diverse molecules with valuable pharmacological potential. As part of our ongoing program to discover bioactive compounds from marine sponges collected from the Xisha Islands in the South China Sea, a chemical study on the specimens of Hippospongia lachne was conducted. As a result, eight undescribed compounds, including four zwitterionic alkylpyridinium salts, hippospondines A-D (1-4), and four 3-alkylpyridine alkaloids, hippospondines E (5), F (6), and (±)-hippospondine G (7), were isolated from the marine sponge H. lachne, together with one known 3-alkylpyridine alkaloid (8). The undescribed structures were elucidated by HRESIMS, NMR, DP4+ and CP3 probability analysis, and the Snatzke's method. Hippospondines A-D (1-4) represent the rare example of inner salt type alkylpyridinium alkaloid with a farnesyl moiety. Compounds 1-3 and 8 were subjected to cytotoxic and lymphocyte proliferation assays. Compound 3 exhibited a weak promotion effect on the ConA-induced T lymphocyte proliferation.

A doping strategy to regulate the adsorption energy of Li2S4 and Li2S to promote sulfur reduction on Chevrel phase Mo6Se8 in lithium-sulfur batteries.

Atomic doping in catalysts is an effective strategy for adjusting their catalytic activity, which has recently been applied to promote sulfur reduction reactions (SRRs) on the cathode of lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries. Herein, the electrocatalytic SRR mechanism of eight metal atom (Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co or Ni) doped Chevrel phase Mo6Se8 were investigated using density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The results reveal that the interaction between polysulfides and the catalyst mainly originates from the coupling of dz2 and dxz orbitals of doped metals and the 3p orbitals of S. The Ti-doped Mo6Se8 system significantly reduces the overpotential of the SRR to only 0.21 V. After analyzing SRR processes over doped and undoped Mo6Se8, no scalar relationship was found between the adsorption energies (Ead) of various polysulfides. Instead, a linear relationship is established between 4Ead-Li2S* - Ead-Li2S4* and overpotential. Finally, a linear relationship between overpotential and descriptors was established based on a machine learning (ML) method, which can accurately predict the overpotential of the SRR over the Mo6Se8 catalyst. This work provides new theoretical insights into the SRR mechanism over metal-selenides and the rational design of a catalyst for Li-S batteries.

Peri-lesion regions in differentiating suspicious breast calcification-only lesions specifically on contrast enhanced mammography.

PURPOSE: The explore the added value of peri-calcification regions on contrast-enhanced mammography (CEM) in the differential diagnosis of breast lesions presenting as only calcification on routine mammogram. METHODS: Patients who underwent CEM because of suspicious calcification-only lesions were included. The test set included patients between March 2017 and March 2019, while the validation set was collected between April 2019 and October 2019. The calcifications were automatically detected and grouped by a machine learning-based computer-aided system. In addition to extracting radiomic features on both low-energy (LE) and recombined (RC) images from the calcification areas, the peri-calcification regions, which is generated by extending the annotation margin radially with gradients from 1 mm to 9 mm, were attempted. Machine learning (ML) models were built to classify calcifications into malignant and benign groups. The diagnostic matrices were also evaluated by combing ML models with subjective reading. RESULTS: Models for LE (significant features: wavelet-LLL_glcm_Imc2_MLO; wavelet-HLL_firstorder_Entropy_MLO; wavelet-LHH_glcm_DifferenceVariance_CC; wavelet-HLL_glcm_SumEntropy_MLO;wavelet-HLH_glrlm_ShortRunLowGray LevelEmphasis_MLO; original_firstorder_Entropy_MLO; original_shape_Elongation_MLO) and RC (significant features: wavelet-HLH_glszm_GrayLevelNonUniformityNormalized_MLO; wavelet-LLH_firstorder_10Percentile_CC; original_firstorder_Maximum_MLO; wavelet-HHH_glcm_Autocorrelation_MLO; original_shape_Elongation_MLO; wavelet-LHL_glszm_GrayLevelNonUniformityNormalized_MLO; wavelet-LLH_firstorder_RootMeanSquared_MLO) images were set up with 7 features. Areas under the curve (AUCs) of RC models are significantly better than those of LE models with compact and expanded boundary (RC v.s. LE, compact: 0.81 v.s. 0.73, p <  0.05; expanded: 0.89 v.s. 0.81, p <  0.05) and RC models with 3 mm boundary extension yielded the best performance compared to those with other sizes (AUC = 0.89). Combining with radiologists' reading, the 3mm-boundary RC model achieved a sensitivity of 0.871 and negative predictive value of 0.937 with similar accuracy of 0.843 in predicting malignancy. CONCLUSIONS: The machine learning model integrating intra- and peri-calcification regions on CEM has the potential to aid radiologists' performance in predicting malignancy of suspicious breast calcifications.

Unravelling abnormal in-plane stretchability of two-dimensional metal-organic frameworks by machine learning potential molecular dynamics.

Two-dimensional (2D) metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) hold immense potential for various applications due to their distinctive intrinsic properties compared to their 3D analogues. Herein, we designed a highly stable NiF2(pyrazine)2 2D MOF in silico with a two-dimensional periodic wine-rack architecture. Extensive first-principles calculations and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations based on a newly developed machine learning potential (MLP) revealed that this 2D MOF exhibits huge in-plane Poisson's ratio anisotropy. This results in anomalous negative in-plane stretchability, as evidenced by an uncommon decrease in its in-plane area upon the application of uniaxial tensile strain, which makes this 2D MOF particularly attractive for flexible wearable electronics and ultra-thin sensor applications. We further demonstrated the unique capability of MLP to accurately predict the finite-temperature properties of MOFs on a large scale, exemplified by MLP-MD simulations with a dimension of 28.2 × 28.2 nm2, relevant to the length scale experimentally attainable for the fabrication of MOF films.

Mice with type I interferon signaling deficiency are prone to epilepsy upon HSV-1 infection.

Viral encephalitis continues to be a significant public health concern. In our previous study, we discovered a lower expression of antiviral factors, such as IFN-ß, STING and IFI16, in the brain tissues of patients with Rasmussen's encephalitis (RE), a rare chronic neurological disorder often occurred in children, characterized by unihemispheric brain atrophy. Furthermore, a higher cumulative viral score of human herpes viruses (HHVs) was also found to have a significant positive correlation with the unihemispheric atrophy in RE. Type I IFNs (IFN-I) signaling is essential for innate anti-infection response by binding to IFN-α/ß receptor (IFNAR). In this study, we infected WT mice and IFNAR-deficient A6 mice with herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) via periocular injection to investigate the relationship between IFN-I signaling and HHVs-induced brain lesions. While all mice exhibited typical viral encephalitis lesions in their brains, HSV-induced epilepsy was only observed in A6 mice. The gene expression matrix, functional enrichment analysis and protein-protein interaction network revealed four gene models that were positively related with HSV-induced epilepsy. Additionally, ten key genes with the highest scores were identified. Taken together, these findings indicate that intact IFN-I signaling can effectively limit HHVs induced neural symptoms and brain lesions, thereby confirming the positive correlation between IFN-I signaling repression and brain atrophy in RE and other HHVs encephalitis.

Immunocompetent mouse models revealed that S100A4+ monocytes/macrophages facilitate long-term Zika virus infection in the testes.

During its global epidemic, Zika virus (ZIKV) attracted widespread attention due to its link with various severe neurological symptoms and potential harm to male fertility. However, the understanding of how ZIKV invades and persists in the male reproductive system is limited due to the lack of immunocompetent small animal models. In this study, immunocompetent murine models were generated by using anti-IFNAR antibody blocked C57BL/6 male mice and human STAT2 (hSTAT2) knock in (KI) male mice. After infection, viral RNA could persist in the testes even after the disappearance of viremia. We also found a population of ZIKV-susceptible S100A4+ monocytes/macrophages that were recruited into testes from peripheral blood and played a crucial role for ZIKV infection in the testis. By using single-cell RNA sequencing, we also proved that S100A4+ monocytes/macrophages had a great impact on the microenvironment of ZIKV-infected testes, thus promoting ZIKV-induced testicular lesions. In conclusion, this study proposed a novel mechanism of long-term ZIKV infection in the male reproductive system.

Effects of COVID-19 vaccination on cervical lymph nodes in patients with thyroid cancer.

Background: Cervical lymph node enlargement caused by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination has been reported, but little is known on whether the vaccination would influence preoperative cervical lymph node evaluation and its risk of lymph node metastasis in thyroid cancer. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed data of patients who underwent thyroid cancer surgery in Tangdu Hospital, China, from 1 March 2021 to 30 June 2021. A total of 182 patients were included in the cohort study. All patients with suspected malignant tumors underwent ultrasound (US)-guided fine needle aspiration (FNA) of thyroid lesions before surgery to confirm the diagnosis. Cervical lymph nodes were evaluated by preoperative physical examination and imaging. Wilcoxon rank-sum test and Fisher's exact test were used to evaluate the effect of vaccination on cervical lymph nodes in patients with thyroid cancer. Statistical significance was defined at P<0.05. Results: The patients were divided into two groups according to whether they had been vaccinated or not. Our results showed that there were no significant differences between the two groups in the brand of the vaccine, operation method, and the extent of surgery. Moreover, there was no significant difference in the evaluation of US characteristics of cervical lymph nodes between the two groups regardless of having the vaccination or not. Interestingly, US evaluation found that the experimental group's proportion of cervical lymph node enlargement increased significantly within 14 days after vaccination, which was statistically significant. Conclusions: This study found that vaccination against COVID-19 did not increase the number of cervical lymph node metastases, but inaccurate assessment of cervical lymph nodes in thyroid cancer patients within 14 days of vaccination (due to temporary lymph node enlargement) may lead to more extensive surgery.

The metal atomic substitution induced half-metallic properties, metallic properties and semiconducting properties in X-N4 nanoribbons.

Armchair X-N4 nanoribbons (X-AN4NRs) and zigzag X-N4 nanoribbons (X-ZN4NRs) were calculated using first-principles calculations. Ferromagnets (FM) were found to be the most stable among the initial magnetic structures. Furthermore, nanoribbons were found to be thermodynamically stable through molecular dynamics simulations. It can be found that when the temperature and total energy of X-AN4NRs and X-ZN4NRs change with time, they have a small oscillation range, which confirms the dynamic stability of X-AN4NRs and X-ZN4NRs under realistic experimental conditions. Subsequently, the magnetic moment analysis of the X-AN4NRs and X-ZN4NRs revealed that the magnetic moment of the X-AN4NRs is significantly smaller than that of X-ZN4NRs. The band structure and density of states (DOS) of the X-AN4NRs and X-ZN4NRs were also computed, which indicate different properties for different transition metal nanoribbons. The results suggest that different edge structures and transition metals can influence the electronic structure of the nanoribbons. Moreover, based on the band structure and DOS, it was found that Mn-AN4NRs and Fe-ZN4NRs exhibit half-metallic properties. They can generate 100% polarized currents at the Fermi level, providing valuable information for developing spintronic devices. Our study has a positive value for regulating the properties of the nanoribbons by metal atom substitution.