Efficacy and risk of donor-derived CAR-T treatment of relapsed B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

The one-year survival rate for patients experiencing a relapse of B-cell acute lymphocytic leukemia (B-ALL) following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is approximately 30%. Patients experiencing a relapse after allogeneic HSCT frequently encounter difficulties in obtaining autologous CAR-T products. We conducted a study involving 14 patients who received donor-derived CAR-T therapy for relapsed B-ALL following HSCT between August 2019 and May 2023 in our center. The results revealed a CR/CRi rate of 78.6% (11/14), a GVHD rate of 21.4% (3/14), and a 1-year overall survival (OS) rate of 56%. Decreased bone marrow donor cell chimerism in 9 patients recovered after CAR-T therapy. The main causes of death were disease progression and infection. Further analysis showed that GVHD (HR 7.224, 95% CI 1.42-36.82, P = 0.017) and platelet recovery at 30 days (HR 6.807, 95% CI 1.61-28.83, P = 0.009) are significantly associated with OS after CAR-T therapy. Based on the findings, we conclude that donor-derived CAR-T cells are effective in treating relapsed B-ALL patients following HSCT. Additionally, GVHD and poor platelet recovery impact OS, but further verification with a larger sample size is needed.

Evaluation of indoor environmental quality, personal cumulative exposure dose, and aerosol transmission risk levels inside urban buses in Dalian, China.

The transmission of pollutants in buses has an important impact on personal exposure to airborne particles and spread of the COVID-19 epidemic in enclosed spaces. We conducted the following real-time field measurements inside buses: CO2, airborne particle concentration, temperature, and relative humidity data during peak and off-peak hours in spring and autumn. Correlation analysis was adopted to evaluate the dominant factors influencing CO2 and particle mass concentrations in the vehicle. The cumulative personal exposure dose to particulate matter and reproduction number were calculated for passengers on a one-way trip. The results showed the in-cabin CO2 concentrations, with 22.11% and 21.27% of the total time exceeding 1000 ppm in spring and autumn respectively. In-cabin PM2.5 mass concentration exceeded 35 µm/m3 by 57.35% and 86.42% in spring and autumn, respectively. CO2 concentration and the cumulative number of passengers were approximately linearly correlated in both seasons, with R value up to 0.896. The cumulative number of passengers had the most impact on PM2.5 mass concentration among tested parameters. The cumulative personal exposure dose to PM2.5 during a one-way trip in autumn was up to 43.13 µg. The average reproductive number throughout the one-way trip was 0.26; it was 0.57 under the assumed extreme environment. The results of this study provide an important basic theoretical guidance for the optimization of ventilation system design and operation strategies aimed at reducing multi-pollutant integrated health exposure and airborne particle infection (such as SARS-CoV-2) risks.

Potential capture and conversion of CO2 from oceanwater through mineral carbonation.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted by human activities not only brings about a serious greenhouse effect but also accelerates global climate change. This has resulted in extreme climate hazards that can obstruct human development in the near future. Hence, there is an urgent need to achieve carbon neutrality by increasing negative emissions. The ocean plays a vital role in absorbing and sequestering CO2. Current research on marine carbon storage and sink enhancement mainly focuses on biological carbon sequestration using carbon sinks (macroalgae, shellfish, and fisheries). However, seawater inorganic carbon accounts for more than 95 % of the total carbon in marine carbon storage. Increasing total alkalinity at a constant dissolved inorganic carbon shifts the balance of existing seawater carbonate system and prompts a greater absorption of atmospheric CO2, thereby increasing the ocean's "carbon sink". This review explores two main mechanisms (i.e., enhanced weathering and ocean alkalinization) and materials (e.g., silicate rocks, metal oxides, and metal hydroxides) that regulate marine chemical carbon sink (MCCS). This work also compares MCCS with other terrestrial and marine carbon sinks and discusses the implementation of MCCS, including the following aspects: chemical reaction rate, cost, and possible ecological and environmental impacts.

Interactions of microplastics with organic, inorganic and bio-pollutants and the ecotoxicological effects on terrestrial and aquatic organisms.

As emerging contaminants, microplastics (MPs) have attracted global attention. They are a potential risk to organisms, ecosystems and human health. MPs are characterized by small particle sizes, weak photodegradability, and are good environmental carriers. They can physically adsorb or chemically react with organic, inorganic and bio-pollutants to generate complex binary pollutants or change the environmental behaviors of these pollutants. We systematically reviewed the following aspects of MPs: (i) Adsorption of heavy metals and organic pollutants by MPs and the key environmental factors affecting adsorption behaviors; (ii) Enrichment and release of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) on MPs and the effects of MPs on ARG migration in the environment; (iii) Formation of "plastisphere" and interactions between MPs and microorganisms; (iv) Ecotoxicological effects of MPs and their co-exposures with other pollutants. Finally, scientific knowledge gaps and future research areas on MPs are summarized, including standardization of study methodologies, ecological effects and human health risks of MPs and their combination with other pollutants.

Coagulation patterns and the impacts on traffic-related ultrafine particle dispersion in road tunnels employing dynamic mesh algorithms.

.In this study, we continue to analyze the diffusion mechanism of ultrafine particles and the particle coagulation phenomenon with a size range of 26-287 nm exhausted from vehicles during the process of passing through a 100-m-long tunnel using the realizable k-ε model and dynamic grid technique. A three-dimensional model consisting of a 100-m highway tunnel and four side-by-side gasoline vehicles (L × W × H = 4.5 m × 1.8 m × 1.5 m) was established in the STAR-CCM+ computational fluid dynamics software. The gasoline vehicles traveled simultaneously under different situations of three driving speeds of 60 km h-1, 40 km h-1, and 20 km h-1 during the simulation. Through data analysis and research, it was found that the coagulation process of particles is very complicated, especially at low speeds. When the vehicle speed is 20 km h-1, the variation in particle concentration at the vehicle wake near the tailpipe (at the vertical plane located 0.1 m behind the exhaust pipe) causes a large error if the coagulation action is not considered. The relative error of the average particle concentration at 0.5 s of the vertical section 0.1 m away from the exhaust pipe is as high as 193.51%. The relative error in the entire tunnel is only 2.82%, which is less than 5%. Thus, it is recommended that particle coagulation should be considered when analyzing particle dispersion in the near-wake region behind the vehicle and the breathing areas, especially when the vehicle travels slowly inside the tunnel. However, when evaluating the particle concentration and exposure levels for the entire tunnel, coagulation can be ignored without significant errors, especially at a high vehicle speeds. This study clarified the importance of coagulation in different areas and its influence on the diffusion of particulate matter. This is conducive to further analysis of the diffusion characteristics of particulate matter and can appreciably reduce the pollution degree in a tunnel by changing the coagulation efficiency of particulate matter in the future.

Clinical characteristics and prediction analysis of the recovered COVID-19 patients with re-detectable positive RNA test.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have unveiled the occurrence of re-detectable positive (RP) RNA test result after hospital discharge among recovered COVID-19 patients, but the clinical characteristics of RP patients (RP patients) and the potential features affecting RP RNA test outcome remain unclear. METHODS: A total of 742 COVID-19 patients discharged between March 1st, 2020 and March 20th, 2020 were enrolled. All patients were followed-up for SARS-CoV-2 RNA test and RP patents were identified. The clinical characteristics between RP patients and NRP patients were compared, and the potential features affecting re-detectable RNA test outcome were further evaluated. RESULTS: Up to April 9th, 2020, 60 recovered patients (8.09%) had been re-detected to be SARS-CoV-2 RNA positive. Among those 60 RP patients, the median RP time was 12 days from the last negative result of SARS-CoV-2 RNA test or 10 days from hospital discharge. RP patients were prone to be older, having mild/moderate conditions, unilateral lung involvement and fatigue, chills, stuffy or runny nose, with high lymphocyte count. Multivariate logistic analysis and COX regression analysis demonstrated that age, lymphocyte count, urea nitrogen, stuffy or runny nose as well as lung involvement were independently associated with RP RNA test (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Older patients accompanied with stuffy or runny nose, low urea nitrogen as well as unilateral lung involvement were more likely to develop RP RNA test result after hospital discharge. Therefore, we strongly suggest using broncho-alveolar lavage fluid for RNA detection, extending quarantine time, and conducting continual follow-up medical examination for those discharged patients.

Deposition and dispersion characteristics of ultrafine particles under different vehicle speeds in road tunnels employing dynamic mesh simulation.

The purpose of this study is to analyze the unsteady turbulence, deposition, and dispersion characteristics of ultrafine particles of different sizes during the passage of vehicles through a road tunnel. We present a realizable k-ε turbulence model based on a combination of Eulerian passive scalar and dynamic mesh models. A 100-m three-dimensional model of a road tunnel containing four vehicles in a row and 10-m long outlets was established using STAR-CCM+ computational fluid dynamics software. Ultrafine particles derived from vehicle exhaust gas were modeled at velocities of 60, 40, and 20 km h-1. The diameter and number of particles ranged from 26 to 287 nm and 1.7 × 104-1.7 × 105 cm-3, respectively. The results show that, in the vertical plane (located 0.1 m behind the exhaust pipe), the deposition effect cannot be ignored at low velocity. Furthermore, the particle concentration distribution both in the breathing zone and the entire tunnel is not significantly affected by deposition.

Correlation of GLUT1 and GLUT4 with prognosis of patients with hypothyroidism and cardiac insufficiency.

OBJECTIVE: Hypothyroidism is a disease with symptoms of collective metabolic dysfunction and systemic dysfunction due to the lack of serum thyroid hormones caused by various reasons. GLUT4 is over-expressed in monocytes of patients with hyperthyroidism, there are also studies suggesting that there is a certain regulatory relationship of GLUT1 and GLUT4 with thyroid function. This study is aimed to explore the correlation of glucose transporter 1 (GLUT1) and GLUT4 with prognosis of patients with hypothyroidism and cardiac insufficiency. METHODS: From July 2016 to October 2019, totally 116 patients with cardiac insufficiency complicated with subclinical hypothyroidism treated in our hospital were enrolled in the research group (RG), and 110 patients with cardiac insufficiency but normal thyroid function were enrolled in the control group (CG). Serum GLUT1, GLUT4, free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroxine (FT4) and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) were detected, and the correlation between them was analyzed. Then the predictive value and risk factors of GLUT1 and GLUT4 for poor prognosis of hypothyroidism complicated with cardiac insufficiency were analyzed. RESULTS: The expression levels of GLUT1, GLUT4, FT3 and FT4 in serum of patients in RG was notably lower than that in CG, and TSH expression was remarkably higher than those in CG (P<0.05). In RG, GLUT1 and GLUT4 expression levels were positively correlated with FT3 and FT4 expression (P<0.05), but negatively correlated with TSH expression (P<0.05). ROC of GLUT1 and GLUT4 in RG in predicting poor prognosis of patients was over 0.8. Low expression of GLUT1 and GLUT4 and diabetes were independent risk factors for poor prognosis in patients with hypothyroidism complicated with cardiac insufficiency. CONCLUSION: GLUT1 and GLUT4 expression levels were significantly decreased in serum of patients with hypothyroidism complicated with cardiac insufficiency. Both of them have high predictive value for poor prognosis of patients, and are independent risk factors for poor prognosis of patients.