Lateral Flow Test for Visual Detection of Multiple MicroRNAs.

The authors describe a rapid and low-cost approach for multiplex microRNA(miRNA) assay on lateral flow nucleic acid biosensor (LFNAB). The principle of assay is based on sandwich-type nucleic acid hybridization reactions to produce gold nanoparticle (GNP)-attached complexes (ssDNA-microRNA-ssDNA/GNPs), which are captured and visualized on the test zone of LFNAB. By designing three different test zones on LFNAB, simultaneous detection of microRNA-21, microRNA-155 and microRNA-210 was achieved with an adding-measuring model by using GNP as visual tag. The method was challenged by testing the microRNAs in spiked serum samples with satisfied results. In our perception, the test is a particularly valuable tool for clinical application and biomedical diagnosis, particularly in limited resource settings.

Application of a Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Based Lumbar Vertebral Bone Quality Scoring System in Patients with Degenerative Lumbar Scoliosis.

BACKGROUND: Although dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry is still the gold standard for diagnosing osteoporosis, it can lead to inaccurate bone mineral density measurements due to lumbar degeneration and scoliosis. Many researchers have investigated diagnostic methods for osteoporosis in patients with degenerative lumbar scoliosis (DLS). This study aimed to investigate the differences between conventional vertebral bone quality (VBQ) scores and modified VBQ scores in patients with DLS and the influence of lumbar scoliosis on VBQ scores. METHODS: We retrospectively collected the clinical and radiological data of 68 patients with DLS admitted to Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital from July 2018 to April 2023. The patients were classified into one of 2 groups based on the T score of the left femoral neck. VBQ scores relative to cerebrospinal fluid at different levels, VBQ scores on different planes and single-level VBQ scores were compared. Receiver operating characteristic analysis was also performed. Different modified VBQ scores were compared between the moderate scoliosis group (10°

Novel Risk Factors for Cervical Facet Joint Degeneration in the Subaxial Cervical Spine: Correlation with Cervical Sagittal Alignment and Bone Mineral Density.

OBJECTIVE: The impact of cervical sagittal alignment on cervical facet joint degeneration (CFD) and the risk factors for CFD in patients with degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM) were investigated in the current study. METHODS: A total of 250 surgical patients with DCM were recruited. The clinical data and radiographical characteristics, including CFD, cervical sagittal balance parameters, Hounsfield unit (HU) values, disc degeneration (DD), and modic change, were collected. The detailed correlation between these characteristics and CFD was analyzed. Characteristics, including CFD, were compared among the various cervical alignment types and different CFD groups. Finally, the risk factors for CFD were revealed via logistic regression. RESULTS: CFD was prevalent in DCM patients. Age, cervical sagittal vertical axis (cSVA), range of motion, T1 slope, thoracic inlet angle, DD, HU value, and modic change correlated with CFD segmentally and globally (P < 0.05). The lordosis and sigmoid types had a significantly higher CFD prevalence (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the average CFD threshold for the severe CFD group was 1.625 (area under the curve, 0.958). Additionally, 167 patients with average CFD <1.625 and 83 patients with CFD of ≥1.625 were classified into the mild CFD group and severe CFD group, respectively. Finally, multivariate analysis was performed, and age, cSVA, HU value, modic change, and DD were determined to be independent risk factors for CFD. CONCLUSIONS: The load distribution tends to shift to a more shear-like pattern in the sigmoid and kyphosis types and in those with a higher cSVA, thereby promoting CFD. Aging, cervical malalignment, low bone mineral density, DD, and modic change were revealed to result in high risks of CFD.

Glutamine Mitigates Oxidative Stress-Induced Matrix Degradation, Ferroptosis, and Pyroptosis in Nucleus Pulposus Cells via Deubiquitinating and Stabilizing Nrf2.

Aims: Intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) is closely related to low back pain, which is a prevalent age-related problem worldwide; however, the mechanism underlying IDD is unknown. Glutamine, a free amino acid prevalent in plasma, is recognized for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties in various diseases, and the current study aims to clarify the effect and mechanism of glutamine in IDD. Results: A synergistic interplay was observed between pyroptosis and ferroptosis within degenerated human disc specimens. Glutamine significantly mitigated IDD in both ex vivo and in vivo experimental models. Moreover, glutamine protected nucleus pulposus (NP) cells after tert-butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP)-induced pyroptosis, ferroptosis, and extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation in vitro. Glutamine protected NP cells from TBHP-induced ferroptosis by promoting the nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) accumulation by inhibiting its ubiquitin-proteasome degradation and inhibiting lipid oxidation. Innovation and Conclusions: A direct correlation is evident in the progression of IDD between the processes of pyroptosis and ferroptosis. Glutamine suppressed oxidative stress-induced cellular processes, including pyroptosis, ferroptosis, and ECM degradation through deubiquitinating Nrf2 and inhibiting lipid oxidation in NP cells. Glutamine is a promising novel therapeutic target for the management of IDD.

Psychometric validation of the simplified Chinese Copenhagen Neck Functional Disability Scale in patients with chronic nonspecific neck pain.

INTRODUCTION: Reliable and valid measurement tools are crucial for clinical practice in chronic nonspecific neck pain (CNSNP). The Copenhagen Neck Functional Disability Scale (CNFDS) is a widely used scale in neck pain assessment and has its unique advantages, but it is not available for patients with CNSNP in southern China. OBJECTIVE: To develop the simplified Chinese version of CNFDS (CNFDS-SC) cross-culturally and to investigate its measurement properties in patients with CNSNP. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Validation of neck pain measurement scale in southern China. PATIENTS: One hundred five patients with CNSNP. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were evaluated using Cronbach's alpha and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), respectively. Construct validity and structural validity were validated by hypothesis testing and exploratory factor analysis, respectively. Internal and external responsiveness were validated. Interpretability was revealed by the standard error of measurement (SEM) and smallest detectable change (SDC). RESULTS: Internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.77 for first test and 0.84 for retest) and test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.95) were satisfactory. CNFDS-SC scores showed strong correlations with the numeric rating scale (NRS), the Neck Disability Index (NDI), and the Northwick Park Neck Pain Questionnaire (NPQ) scores (r = 0.652, 0.763, and 0.719, respectively; p < .001). Factor analysis revealed a one-factor structure of the scale. Regarding responsiveness, the standardized response mean (SRM) and the Guyatt's responsiveness index (GRI) were 1.29 and 2.12, respectively. CNFDS-SC change scores showed good correlations with the anchoring question (r = 0.619, p < .001), NDI (r = 0.439, p = .001), and NPQ (r = 0.438 p = .001) change scores; the area under the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve was 0.89 (p < .001). The SEM and SDC were 0.93 and 2.57, respectively. No floor or ceiling effect and no missing items were observed. CONCLUSION: The CNFDS-SC was demonstrated with adequate reliability, validity, responsiveness, and interpretability. The CNFDS-SC could be an effective tool for the clinical assessment of patients with CNSNP in southern China.

Effects of antenatal corticosteroids on neonatal blood glucose fluctuation in late-preterm infants.

Objective: To evaluate the effects of antenatal corticosteroids (ACS) on blood glucose fluctuations in late-preterm neonates. Methods: A retrospective study was performed on 236 neonates with gestational age of 34+0 to 36+6 weeks who were admitted to the neonatology department of a tertiary general hospital in China's Zhejiang Province between April 2020 and February 2022. The neonates were divided into three groups: complete course, partial course, and control. Primary outcome was the neonatal blood glucose levels within the first 48 h of life. Results: 134 (56.8%) newborns were exposed to a complete course of ACS, 56 (23.7%) had a to a partial course of ACS, and 46 (19.5%) had no exposure to ACS. The patients in the complete course group had the highest proportion of neonatal hypoglycemia (16.4% vs. 3.6% and 6.5%).The patients exposed to a complete course of dexamethasone had significantly lower blood glucose levels within 12 h of birth than the control group, although no significant differences were observed after 24 h. Differences in blood glucose levels were more significant among male infants, although blood glucose curves of the male and female infants remained close to the overall trend. Conclusions: Blood glucose levels in late-preterm neonates may decrease after ACS administration, especially after exposure to a complete course. The effects are more pronounced in the first 12 h of life, with males being more severely affected; however, the effects on blood glucose levels were not significant 24 h after birth. This can provide a reference for future clinical studies.

Improved Sparrow Search Algorithm Based on Iterative Local Search.

This paper solves the shortcomings of sparrow search algorithm in poor utilization to the current individual and lack of effective search, improves its search performance, achieves good results on 23 basic benchmark functions and CEC 2017, and effectively improves the problem that the algorithm falls into local optimal solution and has low search accuracy. This paper proposes an improved sparrow search algorithm based on iterative local search (ISSA). In the global search phase of the followers, the variable helix factor is introduced, which makes full use of the individual's opposite solution about the origin, reduces the number of individuals beyond the boundary, and ensures the algorithm has a detailed and flexible search ability. In the local search phase of the followers, an improved iterative local search strategy is adopted to increase the search accuracy and prevent the omission of the optimal solution. By adding the dimension by dimension lens learning strategy to scouters, the search range is more flexible and helps jump out of the local optimal solution by changing the focusing ability of the lens and the dynamic boundary of each dimension. Finally, the boundary control is improved to effectively utilize the individuals beyond the boundary while retaining the randomness of the individuals. The ISSA is compared with PSO, SCA, GWO, WOA, MWOA, SSA, BSSA, CSSA, and LSSA on 23 basic functions to verify the optimization performance of the algorithm. In addition, in order to further verify the optimization performance of the algorithm when the optimal solution is not 0, the above algorithms are compared in CEC 2017 test function. The simulation results show that the ISSA has good universality. Finally, this paper applies ISSA to PID parameter tuning and robot path planning, and the results show that the algorithm has good practicability and effect.

Hetero-enzyme-based two-round signal amplification strategy for trace detection of aflatoxin B1 using an electrochemical aptasensor.

An electrochemical aptasensor for trace detection of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) was developed by using an aptamer as the recognition unit while adopting the telomerase and EXO III based two-round signal amplification strategy as the signal enhancement units. The telomerase amplification was used to elongate the ssDNA probes on the surface of gold nanoparticles, by which the signal response range of the signal-off model electrochemical aptasensor could be correspondingly enlarged. Then, the EXO III amplification was used to hydrolyze the 3'-end of the dsDNA after the recognition of target AFB1, which caused the release of bounded AFB1 into the sensing system, where it participated in the next recognition-sensing cycle. With this two-round signal amplified electrochemical aptasensor, target AFB1 was successfully measured at trace concentrations with excellent detection limit of 0.6*10(-4)ppt and satisfied specificity due to the excellent affinity of the aptamer against AFB1. Based on this designed two-round signal amplification strategy, both the sensing range and detection limit were greatly improved. This proposed ultrasensitive electrochemical aptasensor method was also validated by comparison with the classic instrumental methods. Importantly, this hetero-enzyme based two-round signal amplified electrochemical aptasensor offers a great promising protocol for ultrasensitive detection of AFB1 and other mycotoxins by replacing the core recognition sequence of the aptamer.

Integrated platform with magnetic purification and rolling circular amplification for sensitive fluorescent detection of ochratoxin A.

In this article, we report the detection of ochratoxin A (OTA) with excellent sensitivity with the two-aspect signal amplification treatments. Combining the unique property of magnetic nanoparticles and the high efficiency of the in vitro amplification of rolling circular amplification (RCA), the competitive sensing protocol for ultrasensitive detection of OTA was achieved in about 80 min. The excellent magnetic separation treatment could effectively avoid the interference of background fluorescent noise in the sensing system while the RCA could tremendously increase the hybridization sequence for the quantum dot labeled probes and further increase the sensing response signal. Afterwards, two factors affecting the final detection limit, concentration of RCA components and RCA reaction time, were all systematically optimized for the best sensing performance. The response of the optimized protocol for OTA detection is highly linear over the wider range from 10(-3) to 10 ppb, which is 3 orders improvement in sensing range, and the limit of detection is calculated to be as low as 0.13 ppt, which is 10,000 folds improvement compared with the traditional methods. More importantly, given the selected aptamer, this universal signal amplification protocol could be widely applied to other fields by just change the recognition sequence of the aptamer.