Language model based on deep learning network for biomedical named entity recognition.

Biomedical Named Entity Recognition (BioNER) is one of the most basic tasks in biomedical text mining, which aims to automatically identify and classify biomedical entities in text. Recently, deep learning-based methods have been applied to Biomedical Named Entity Recognition and have shown encouraging results. However, many biological entities are polysemous and ambiguous, which is one of the main obstacles to the task of biomedical named entity recognition. Deep learning methods require large amounts of training data, so the lack of data also affect the performance of model recognition. To solve the problem of polysemous words and insufficient data, for the task of biomedical named entity recognition, we propose a multi-task learning framework fused with language model based on the BiLSTM-CRF architecture. Our model uses a language model to design a differential encoding of the context, which could obtain dynamic word vectors to distinguish words in different datasets. Moreover, we use a multi-task learning method to collectively share the dynamic word vector of different types of entities to improve the recognition performance of each type of entity. Experimental results show that our model reduces the false positives caused by polysemous words through differentiated coding, and improves the performance of each subtask by sharing information between different entity data. Compared with other state-of-the art methods, our model achieved superior results in four typical training sets, and achieved the best results in F1 values.

Daurisoline suppress glioma progression by inhibiting autophagy through PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway and increases TMZ sensitivity.

Glioma is one of the most common primary malignant tumors of the central nervous system. Temozolomide (TMZ) is the only effective chemotherapeutic agent, but it easily develops resistance and has unsatisfactory efficacy. Consequently, there is an urgent need to develop safe and effective compounds for glioma treatment. The cytotoxicity of 30 candidate compounds to glioma cells was detected by the CCK-8 assay. Daurisoline (DAS) was selected for further investigation due to its potent anti-glioma effects. Our study revealed that DAS induced glioma cell apoptosis through increasing caspase-3/6/9 activity. DAS significantly inhibited the proliferation of glioma cells by inducing G1-phase cell cycle arrest. Meanwhile, DAS remarkably suppressed the migration and invasion of glioma cells by regulating epithelial-mesenchymal transition. Mechanistically, our results revealed that DAS impaired the autophagic flux of glioma cells at a late stage by mediating the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway. DAS could inhibit TMZ-induced autophagy and then significantly promote TMZ chemosensitivity. Nude mice xenograft model revealed that DAS could restrain glioma proliferation and promote TMZ chemosensitivity. Thus, DAS is a potential anti-glioma drug that can improve glioma sensitivity to TMZ and provide a new therapeutic strategy for glioma in chemoresistance.

Heat/non-heat treatment alleviates ß-conglycinin-triggered food allergy reactions by modulating the Th1/Th2 immune balance in a BALB/c mouse model.

BACKGROUND: With the increasing popularity of plant protein-based diets, soy proteins are favored as the most important source of plant protein worldwide. However, potential food allergy risks limit their use in the food industry. This work aims to reveal the mechanism of ß-conglycinin-induced food allergy, and to explore the regulatory mechanism of heat treatment and high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) treatment in a BALB/c mouse model. RESULTS: Our results showed that oral administration of ß-conglycinin induced severe allergic symptoms in BALB/c mice, but these symptoms were effectively alleviated through heat treatment and HHP treatment. Moreover, ß-conglycinin stimulated lymphocyte proliferation and differentiation; a large number of cytokines interleukin (IL)-4, IL-5, IL-10, IL-12 and IL-13 were released and interferon γ secretion was inhibited, which disrupted the Th1/Th2 immune balance and promoted the differentiation and proliferation of naive T cells into Th2-type cells. CONCLUSION: Heat/non-heat treatment altered the conformation of soybean protein, which significantly reduced allergic reactions in mice. This regulatory mechanism may be associated with Th1/Th2 immune balance. Our results provide data support for understanding the changes in allergenicity of soybean protein within the food industry. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry.

NPS-2143 inhibit glioma progression by suppressing autophagy through mediating AKT-mTOR pathway.

Gliomas are the most common tumours in the central nervous system. In the present study, we aimed to find a promising anti-glioma compound and investigate the underlying molecular mechanism. Glioma cells were subjected to the 50 candidate compounds at a final concentration of 10 µM for 72 h, and CCK-8 was used to evaluate their cytotoxicity. NPS-2143, an antagonist of calcium-sensing receptor (CASR), was selected for further study due to its potent cytotoxicity to glioma cells. Our results showed that NPS-2143 could inhibit the proliferation of glioma cells and induce G1 phase cell cycle arrest. Meanwhile, NPS-2143 could induce glioma cell apoptosis by increasing the caspase-3/6/9 activity. NPS-2143 impaired the immigration and invasion ability of glioma cells by regulating the epithelial-mesenchymal transition process. Mechanically, NPS-2143 could inhibit autophagy by mediating the AKT-mTOR pathway. Bioinformatic analysis showed that the prognosis of glioma patients with low expression of CASR mRNA was better than those with high expression of CASR mRNA. Gene set enrichment analysis showed that CASR was associated with cell adhesion molecules and lysosomes in glioma. The nude mice xenograft model showed NPS-2143 could suppress glioma growth in vivo. In conclusion, NPS-2143 can suppress the glioma progression by inhibiting autophagy.

Investigating HMGB1 as a potential serum biomarker for early diabetic nephropathy monitoring by quantitative proteomics.

Current diagnostic methods for diabetic nephropathy (DN) lack precision, especially in early stages and monitoring progression. This study aims to find potential biomarkers for DN progression and evaluate their accuracy. Using serum samples from healthy controls (NC), diabetic patients (DM), early-medium stage DN (DN-EM), and late-stage DN (DN-L), researchers employed quantitative proteomics and Mfuzz clustering analysis revealed 15 proteins showing increased expression during DN progression, hinting at their biomarker potential. Combining Mfuzz clustering with weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) highlighted five candidates (HMGB1, CD44, FBLN1, PTPRG, and ADAMTSL4). HMGB1 emerged as a promising biomarker, closely correlated with renal function changes. Experimental validation supported HMGB1's upregulation under high glucose conditions, reinforcing its potential as an early detection biomarker for DN. This research advances DN understanding and identifies five potential biomarkers, notably HMGB1, as a promising early monitoring target. These findings set the stage for future clinical diagnostic applications in DN.

Meticulous Molecular Engineering of Crystal Orientation and Morphology in Conjugated Polymer Thin Films for Field-Effect Transistors.

The ability to precisely tailor molecular packing and film morphology in conjugated polymers offers a robust means to control their optoelectronic properties. This, however, remains a grand challenge. Herein, we report the dependency of molecular packing of an important conjugated polymer, poly(2,5-bis(3-alkylthiophen-2-yl)thieno[3,2-b]thiophene) (PBTTT), on a set of intrinsic parameters and unveil the correlation between their crystalline structures and charge transport characteristics. Specifically, a family of PBTTT with varying side chains (i.e., hexyl, octyl, decyl, dodecyl, tetradecyl, and hexadecyl referred to as C6, C8, C10, C12, C14, and C16, respectively) and molecular weights (MWs) with a focus on C14 are judiciously designed and synthesized. Various crystalline structures are yielded by tuning the alkyl chain and MW of PBTTT together with thermal annealing. It reveals that extending the alkyl chain length of PBTTT to C14, along with a larger MW and heating at 180 °C, promotes the formation of edge-on crystallites with significantly improved orientation and ordering. Furthermore, these distinct crystalline structures greatly impact their charge mobilities. This study sheds light on the tailored design of crystalline structures in PBTTT through a synergetic approach, which paves the way for potential applications of PBTTT and other conjugated polymers in optoelectronic devices with enhanced performance.

The crosstalk between epilepsy and dementia: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Epilepsy and dementia are bidirectional. The purpose of this review was to investigate the epidemiological characteristics of and to identify the risk factors for epilepsy in patients with dementia and dementia in patients with epilepsy. METHODS: We retrieved the PubMed, Embase, Cochrane and Web of Science databases through January 2023. Two individuals screened the articles, extracted the data, and used a random effects model to pool the estimates and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RESULTS: From 3475 citations, 25 articles were included. The prevalence of seizures/epilepsy was 4% among dementia patients and 3% among Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. For vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, and frontotemporal dementia, the pooled period prevalence of seizures/epilepsy was 6%, 3%, and 2%, respectively. Baseline early-onset AD was associated with the highest risk of 5-year epilepsy (pooled hazard ratios: 4.06; 95% CI: 3.25-5.08). Dementia patients had a 2.29-fold greater risk of seizures/epilepsy than non-dementia patients (95% CI: 1.37-3.83). Moreover, for baseline epilepsy, the pooled prevalence of dementia was 17% (95% CI: 10-25%), and that of AD was 15% (95% CI: 9-21%). The pooled results suggested that epilepsy is associated with a greater risk of dementia (risk ratio: 2.83, 95% CI: 1.64-4.88). CONCLUSIONS: There are still gaps in epidemiology regarding the correlation between dementia types and epilepsy, vascular risk factors, and the impact of antiseizure medication or cognitive improvement drugs on epilepsy and AD comorbidity.

Unfolding the Correlation between Solution Aggregation and Solid-State Crystal Orientation in Donor-Acceptor Copolymers via Solvent Additive Processing.

Tailoring the crystal orientation of donor-acceptor (D-A) copolymers is vital for boosting the performance of optoelectronic devices. Despite recent advances in controlling the crystal orientation of D-A copolymers in films, the investigation into their aggregates in solution and the correlation between the solution aggregates and solid-state crystal orientation has been limited. Herein, an effective solvent additive strategy is reported for tuning solution aggregates and the consequent solid-state structures of poly{[N,N'-bis(2-octyldodecyl)-naphthalene-1,4,5,8-bis(dicarboximide)-2,6-diyl]-alt-5,5'-(2,2'-bithiophene)} (P(NDI2OD-T2)). Specifically, the addition of 1-decanethiol (10-thiol) to the P(NDI2OD-T2) chloroform solution promoted the aggregation of P(NDI2OD-T2) chains because of the improved planarization of the backbones, which changed their crystal orientation in the film from coexisting edge-on and face-on to dominant edge-on when produced by drop-casting. The mechanism of this crystal orientation transformation is elucidated based on the interaction between 10-thiol and the side chains of P(NDI2OD-T2). The optical properties of P(NDI2OD-T2) films with different crystalline structures are closely correlated. Notably, the 10-thiol-enabled facile tailoring of the crystal orientation in P(NDI2OD-T2) can be readily applied to other D-A copolymers of interest. The findings of this study highlight a robust solvent additive strategy for regulating solution aggregates and crystal orientation in D-A copolymer films, which have applications in many optoelectronic devices.

"Floating Catalytic Foam" with prominent heat-induced convection for the effective photocatalytic removal of antibiotics.

Immobilized photocatalysts represent a promising candidate for the wastewater treatments due to their good reusability, high stability and low eco-risk. Mass transfer within the immobilized catalytic bed is a crucial process that determines the contacting, adsorption, and degradation kinetics in the photodegradation. In this study, a floating catalytic foam (FCF) with a prominent pumping effect was designed to promote mass transfer. The polyurethane foam immobilized with rGO/TiO2/ultrathin-g-C3N4 photocatalyst (PRTCN) was prepared by a simple dip-coating and Uv-light aging process. It was found that the hydrophilic-hydrophobic interfaces could not only contribute to the floating of the catalyst but also establish a temperature gradient across the floating immobilized catalyst. In addition, the temperature gradient induced convection could serve as a built-in pump to effectively promote the diffusion and adsorption of target antibiotic molecules during the photocatalytic process. Therefore, the PRTCN demonstrated a high photodegradation and mineralization efficiency with excellent reusability and anti-interference capability. Moreover, the photodegradation mechanism and the intermediates' toxicity of norfloxacin were detailly investigated by ultra-high resolution electrospray time-of-flight mass spectrometry, density functional theory simulation and ECOSAR estimation. This work proposed a facile and sustainable strategy to enhance the mass transfer problem on immobilized photocatalysts, which could promote the application of the immobilized photocatalysts in the real water-treatment scenarios.

Interaction effect of type 2 diabetes mellitus and hypertension on left atrial function: a three-dimensional echocardiography study.

Background: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and hypertension (HT) often coexist and contribute to left atrial (LA) functional abnormalities. The aim of the present study was to explore whether there is a potential interaction effect between T2DM and HT on LA function. Methods: A total of 135 patients (45 with T2DM only, 45 with HT only, and 45 with both T2DM and HT) were enrolled and compared to 45 age- and sex-matched controls. LA volume fraction, including LA ejection fraction (LAEF), LA expansion index (LAEI), LA passive emptying fraction (LAPEF), and LA active emptying fraction (LAAEF), and strain parameters, including LA reservoir longitudinal strain (LASr), LA conduit longitudinal strain (LAScd), and LA contraction longitudinal strain (LASct), were obtained using three-dimensional echocardiography (3DE). Results: Patients with T2DM had significantly more impaired LA reservoir and conduit functions compared to those without T2DM (P<0.05), and patients with HT had a significantly more impaired LA reservoir function, conduit function, and booster pump function compared to those without HT (P<0.05). Two-way analysis of variance showed that there were significant additive interaction effects between T2DM and HT with respect to LASr (PT2DM + HT =0.002) and LAScd (PT2DM + HT =0.001). Generalized linear model demonstrated that T2DM + HT had a greater relative contribution than either T2DM or HT alone to the LA strain indexes, even after adjustment for other confounders (LASr, ßT2DM + HT =-3.931, 95% CI: -6.237 to -1.624, P=0.001; LAScd, ßT2DM + HT=-3.781, 95% CI: -5.653 to -1.908, P<0.001). Conclusions: Both T2DM and HT had an adverse effect on LA function. The coexistence of both conditions further impaired LA performance in an additive interaction fashion.

LASS2 enhances p53 protein stability and nuclear import to suppress liver cancer progression through interaction with MDM2/MDMX.

LASS2 functions as a tumor suppressor in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common type of primary liver cancer, but the underlying mechanism of its action remains largely unknown. Moreover, details on its role and the downstream mechanisms in Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) and hepatoblastoma (HB), are rarely reported. Herein, LASS2 overexpression was found to significantly inhibit proliferation, migration, invasion and induce apoptosis in hepatoma cells with wild-type (HB cell line HepG2) and mutated p53 (HCC cell line HCCLM3 and CCA cell line HuCCT1). Gene set enrichment analysis determined the enrichment of the differentially expressed genes caused by LASS2 in the p53 signaling pathway. Moreover, the low expression of LASS2 in HCC and CCA tumor tissues was correlated with the advanced tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stage, and the protein expression of LASS2 positively correlated with acetylated p53 (Lys373) protein levels. At least to some extent, LASS2 exerts its tumor-suppressive effects in a p53-dependent manner, in which LASS2 interacts with MDM2/MDMX and causes dual inhibition to disrupt p53 degradation by MDM2/MDMX. In addition, LASS2 induces p53 phosphorylation at ser15 and acetylation at lys373 to promote translocation from cytoplasm to nucleus. These findings provide new insights into the LASS2-induced tumor suppression mechanism in liver cancer and suggest LASS2 could serve as a potential therapeutic target for liver cancer.

Primary adrenal diffuse large B cell Lymphoma with Tumor thrombus in central adrenal vein: a case report and literature review.

BACKGROUND: Primary adrenal lymphoma (PAL) is a rare disease confined wholly or chiefly to extramural involvement. Tumor thrombus in the central adrenal vein, renal vein, and inferior vena cava has been reported in adrenal pheochromocytoma, adrenocortical carcinoma, adrenal metastasis carcinoma, and adrenal leiomyosarcoma. Primary adrenal diffuse large B cell lymphoma with tumor thrombus in the central adrenal vein has rarely been reported in the current study. ( We searched in PubMed, Web of Science databases, Embase, and Medline in the English language from 1970 to December 2022. The keywords used were "Primary adrenal lymphoma " and " tumor thrombus".) CASE PRESENTATION: In this report, we discuss the case of a 57-year-old woman who complained of abdominal discomfort following cold stimulation, low back pain, anorexia, fatigue, and weight loss for 1 year. Contrast-enhanced spiral computed tomography (CT) showed mild-to-moderate enhancement of the bilateral masses and central adrenal vein tumor thrombus. After an exhaustive study, the patient was diagnosed with primary adrenal diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. In the diagnosis of PAL, the possibility of a tumor embolism in the central adrenal vein, renal vein, or inferior vena cava should be considered, although this is rare.

Unraveling the rate-limiting step in microorganisms' mediation of denitrification and phosphorus absorption/transport processes in a highly regulated river-lake system.

River-lake ecosystems are indispensable hubs for water transfers and flow regulation engineering, which have frequent and complex artificial hydrological regulation processes, and the water quality is often unstable. Microorganisms usually affect these systems by driving the nutrient cycling process. Thus, understanding the key biochemical rate-limiting steps under highly regulated conditions was critical for the water quality stability of river-lake ecosystems. This study investigated how the key microorganisms and genes involving nitrogen and phosphorus cycling contributed to the stability of water by combining 16S rRNA and metagenomic sequencing using the Dongping river-lake system as the case study. The results showed that nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations were significantly lower in lake zones than in river inflow and outflow zones (p < 0.05). Pseudomonas, Acinetobacter, and Microbacterium were the key microorganisms associated with nitrate and phosphate removal. These microorganisms contributed to key genes that promote denitrification (nirB/narG/narH/nasA) and phosphorus absorption and transport (pstA/pstB/pstC/pstS). Partial least squares path modeling (PLS-PM) revealed that environmental factors (especially flow velocity and COD concentration) have a significant negative effect on the key microbial abundance (p < 0.001). Our study provides theoretical support for the effective management and protection of water transfer and the regulation function of the river-lake system.

Exome sequencing in retinal dystrophy patients reveals a novel candidate gene ER membrane protein complex subunit 3.

Inherited retinal dystrophies (IRDs) are a heterogeneous group of visual disorders caused by different pathogenic mutations in genes and regulatory sequences. The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane protein complex (EMC) subunit 3 (EMC3) is the core unit of the EMC insertase that integrates the transmembrane peptides into lipid bilayers, and the function of its cytoplasmic carboxyl terminus remains to be elucidated. In this study, an insertional mutation c.768insT in the C-terminal coding region of EMC3 was identified and associated with dominant IRDs in a five-generation family. This mutation caused a frameshift in the coding sequence and a gain of an additional 16 amino acid residues (p.L256F-fs-ext21) to form a helix structure in the C-terminus of the EMC3 protein. The mutation is heterozygous with an incomplete penetrance, and cosegregates in all patients examined. This finding indicates that the C-terminus of EMC3 is essential for EMC functions and that EMC3 may be a novel candidate gene for retinal degenerative diseases.

Microbial diversity and functions in saline soils: A review from a biogeochemical perspective.

BACKGROUND: Soil salinization threatens food security and ecosystem health, and is one of the important drivers to the degradation of many ecosystems around the world. Soil microorganisms have extremely high diversity and participate in a variety of key ecological processes. They are important guarantees for soil health and sustainable ecosystem development. However, our understanding of the diversity and function of soil microorganisms under the change of increased soil salinization is fragmented. AIM OF REVIEW: Here, we summarize the changes in soil microbial diversity and function under the influence of soil salinization in diverse natural ecosystems. We particularly focus on the diversity of soil bacteria and fungi under salt stress and the changes in their emerging functions (such as their mediated biogeochemical processes). This study also discusses how to use the soil microbiome in saline soils to deal with soil salinization for supporting sustainable ecosystems, and puts forward the knowledge gaps and the research directions that need to be strengthened in the future. KEY SCIENTIFIC CONCEPTS OF REVIEW: Due to the rapid development of molecular-based biotechnology (especially high-throughput sequencing technology), the diversity and community composition and functional genes of soil microorganisms have been extensively characterized in different habitats. Clarifying the responding pattern of microbial-mediated nutrient cycling under salt stress and developing and utilizing microorganisms to weaken the adverse effects of salt stress on plants and soil, which are of guiding significance for agricultural production and ecosystem management in saline lands.

Glenoid segmentation from computed tomography scans based on a 2-stage deep learning model for glenoid bone loss evaluation.

BACKGROUND: The best-fitting circle drawn by computed tomography (CT) reconstruction of the en face view of the glenoid bone to measure the bone defect is widely used in clinical application. However, there are still some limitations in practical application, which can prevent the achievement of accurate measurements. This study aimed to accurately and automatically segment the glenoid from CT scans based on a 2-stage deep learning model and to quantitatively measure the glenoid bone defect. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients who were referred to our institution between June 2018 and February 2022 were retrospectively reviewed. The dislocation group consisted of 237 patients with a history of ≥2 unilateral shoulder dislocations within 2 years. The control group consisted of 248 individuals with no history of shoulder dislocation, shoulder developmental deformity, or other disease that may lead to abnormal morphology of the glenoid. All patients underwent CT examination with a 1-mm slice thickness and a 1-mm increment, including complete imaging of the bilateral glenoid. A residual neural network (ResNet) location model and a U-Net bone segmentation model were constructed to develop an automated segmentation model for the glenoid from CT scans. The data set was randomly divided into training (201 of 248) and test (47 of 248) data sets of control-group data and training (190 of 237) and test (47 of 237) data sets of dislocation-group data. The accuracy of the stage 1 (glenoid location) model, the mean intersection-over-union value of the stage 2 (glenoid segmentation) model, and the glenoid volume error were used to assess the performance of the model. The R2 value and Lin concordance correlation coefficient were used to assess the correlation between the prediction and the gold standard. RESULTS: A total of 73,805 images were obtained after the labeling process, and each image was composed of CT images of the glenoid and its corresponding mask. The average overall accuracy of stage 1 was 99.28%; the average mean intersection-over-union value of stage 2 was 0.96. The average glenoid volume error between the predicted and true values was 9.33%. The R2 values of the predicted and true values of glenoid volume and glenoid bone loss (GBL) were 0.87 and 0.91, respectively. The Lin concordance correlation coefficient value of the predicted and true values of glenoid volume and GBL were 0.93 and 0.95, respectively. CONCLUSION: The 2-stage model in this study showed a good performance in glenoid bone segmentation from CT scans and could quantitatively measure GBL, providing a data reference for subsequent clinical treatment.

Integrated optimization of urban rail transit line planning, timetabling and rolling stock scheduling.

Urban rail transit train operation plan is a comprehensive production plan encompassing line planning, timetabling, and rolling stock scheduling. In order to solve the problem of infeasibility of the line plan and timetable because the number of rolling stocks could be only precisely considered in the rolling stock scheduling. An integrated optimization solution is proposed which considers the line plan, timetable, and rolling stock schedule. Candidate service routes are generated according to the layout of the turn-back stations. Considering the constraints of operation and passenger flow demand, an integer nonlinear programming model is established to minimize the cost of operation and passenger waiting time. The model complexity is analyzed and based on its decomposability a deterministic search algorithm is designed. Taking Chongqing Metro Line 3 in China as an example to verify the effectiveness of the proposed model and algorithm. Compared with the train operation plan based on manual experience and compiled by stages, the integrated optimization model can better improve the quality of train operation plan.

Automated detection and classification of acute vertebral body fractures using a convolutional neural network on computed tomography.

Background: Acute vertebral fracture is usually caused by low-energy injury with osteoporosis and high-energy trauma. The AOSpine thoracolumbar spine injury classification system (AO classification) plays an important role in the diagnosis and treatment of the disease. The diagnosis and description of vertebral fractures according to the classification scheme requires a great deal of time and energy for radiologists. Purpose: To design and validate a multistage deep learning system (multistage AO system) for the automatic detection, localization and classification of acute thoracolumbar vertebral body fractures according to AO classification on computed tomography. Materials and Methods: The CT images of 1,217 patients who came to our hospital from January 2015 to December 2019 were collected retrospectively. The fractures were marked and classified by 2 junior radiology residents according to the type A standard in the AO classification. Marked fracture sites included the upper endplate, lower endplate and posterior wall. When there were inconsistent opinions on classification labels, the final result was determined by a director radiologist. We integrated different networks into different stages of the overall framework. U-net and a graph convolutional neural network (U-GCN) are used to realize the location and classification of the thoracolumbar spine. Next, a classification network is used to detect whether the thoracolumbar spine has a fracture. In the third stage, we detect fractures in different parts of the thoracolumbar spine by using a multibranch output network and finally obtain the AO types. Results: The mean age of the patients was 61.87 years with a standard deviation of 17.04 years, consisting of 760 female patients and 457 male patients. On vertebrae level, sensitivity for fracture detection was 95.23% in test dataset, with an accuracy of 97.93% and a specificity of 98.35%. For the classification of vertebral body fractures, the balanced accuracy was 79.56%, with an AUC of 0.904 for type A1, 0.945 for type A2, 0.878 for type A3 and 0.942 for type A4. Conclusion: The multistage AO system can automatically detect and classify acute vertebral body fractures in the thoracolumbar spine on CT images according to AO classification with high accuracy.

Identification of Embryonic Chicken Proteases Activating Newcastle Disease Virus and Their Roles in the Pathogenicity of Virus Used as In Ovo Vaccine.

In ovo vaccination is an attractive immunization approach for chickens. However, most live Newcastle disease virus (NDV) vaccine strains used safely after hatching are unsafe as in ovo vaccines due to their high pathogenicity for chicken embryos. The mechanism for viral pathogenicity in chicken embryos is poorly understood. Our previous studies reported that NDV strain TS09-C was a safe in ovo vaccine, and the F protein cleavage site (FCS) containing three basic amino acids (3B-FCS) was the crucial determinant of the attenuation of TS09-C in chicken embryos. Here, five trypsin-like proteases that activated NDV in chicken embryos were identified. The F protein with 3B-FCS was sensitive to the proteases Tmprss4, Tmprss9, and F7, was present in fewer tissue cells of chicken embryos, which limited the viral tropism, and was responsible for the attenuation of NDV with 3B-FCS, while the F protein with FCS containing two basic amino acids could be cleaved not only by Tmprss4, Tmprss9, and F7 but also by Prss23 and Cfd, was present in most tissue cells, and thereby was responsible for broad tissue tropism and high pathogenicity of virus in chicken embryos. Furthermore, when mixed with the protease inhibitors aprotinin and camostat, NDV with 2B-FCS exhibited greatly weakened pathogenicity in chicken embryos. Thus, our results extend the understanding of the molecular mechanism of NDV pathogenicity in chicken embryos and provide a novel molecular target for the rational design of in ovo vaccines, ensuring uniform and effective vaccine delivery and earlier induction of immune protection by the time of hatching. IMPORTANCE As an attractive immunization approach for chickens, in ovo vaccination can induce a considerable degree of protection by the time of hatching, provide support in closing the window in which birds are susceptible to infection, facilitate fast and uniform vaccine delivery, and reduce labor costs by the use of mechanized injectors. The commercial live Newcastle disease virus (NDV) vaccine strains are not safe for in ovo vaccination and cause the death of chicken embryos. The mechanism for viral pathogenicity in chicken embryos is poorly understood. In the present study, we identified five trypsin-like proteases that activate NDV in chicken embryos and elucidated their roles in the tissue tropism and pathogenicity of NDV used as in ovo vaccine. Finally, we revealed the molecular basis for the pathogenicity of NDV in chicken embryos and provided a novel strategy for the rational design of in ovo ND vaccines.

Reproductive outcomes of women with moderate to severe intrauterine adhesions after transcervical resection of adhesion: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Intrauterine adhesions (IUA) refers to the adhesion of the inner wall of the uterus, resulting in complete or partial occlusion of the uterine cavity, which causes a series of symptoms. Transcervical resection of adhesion (TCRA) is the standard surgical method for patients with IUA. However, the recurrence rate of women with moderate to severe IUA is high and it has raised a big concern about the reproductive outcomes. METHODS: We conducted a scoping review by using 4 databases, including Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, Embase, and web of science, to retrieve relevant literature from September 1, 2001, to February 1, 2023, and to explore the reproductive outcomes in women with moderate to severe IUA after TCRA treatment. Following defined guidelines, data extraction was carried out by 2 researchers, and the findings were examined by 2 senior academics. The papers were evaluated by 2 reviewers using the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Using a form developed especially for this study, pertinent information was retrieved, including the first author, research design, study duration, age, intervention measurement, pregnancy rate, techniques of conception, and live birth rate. Two researchers conducted a quality assessment to determine any potential bias using the Cochrane technique and the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. RevMan 5.4.1 (The Cochrane Collaboration, London, United Kingdom) was used for data analysis, while I2 was used to evaluate heterogeneity. RESULTS: In total, this study included 2099 participants. After a detailed systematic review and meta-analyses, the results showed that pregnancy and live birth rates were increased significantly after TCRA, and the risk difference of the pregnancy rate was 1.75 [1.17, 2.62]. Besides, in 2 retrospective studies, the risk difference of live birth rate was 2.26, with a 95% confidence interval of 1.99 to 2.58. Moreover, the menstrual status of women also was improved, and the risk difference of hypermenorrhoea and amenorrhea were -0.28 [-0.37, -0.19] and -0.06 [0.26, 0.13], respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, TCRA is the useful strategy for the treatment of moderate to severe IUA to enhance the reproductive outcomes in women.