PM2.5 induce neurotoxicity via iron overload and redox imbalance mediated-ferroptosis in HT22 cells.

PM2.5 is an important risk factor for the development and progression of cognitive impairment-related diseases. Ferroptosis, a new form of cell death driven by iron overload and lipid peroxidation, is proposed to have significant implications. To verify the possible role of ferroptosis in PM2.5-induced neurotoxicity, we investigated the cytotoxicity, intracellular iron content, iron metabolism-related genes, oxidative stress indices and indicators involving in Nrf2 and ferroptosis signaling pathways. Neurotoxicity biomarkers as well as the ferroptotic cell morphological changes were determined by Western Blot and TEM analysis. Our results revealed that PM2.5 induced cytotoxicity, lipid peroxidation, as indicated by MDA content, and neurotoxicity via Aß deposition in a dose-related manner. Decreased cell viability and excessive iron accumulation in HT-22 cells can be partially blocked by ferroptosis inhibitors. Interestingly, GPX activity, Nrf2, and its regulated ferroptotic-related proteins (i.e. GPX4 and HO-1) were significantly up-regulated by PM2.5. Moreover, gene expression of DMT1, TfR1, IRP2 and FPN1 involved in iron homeostasis and NCOA4-dependent ferritinophagy were activated after PM2.5 exposure. The results demonstrated that PM2.5 triggered ferritinophagy-dependent ferroptotic cell death due to iron overload and redox imbalance. Activation of Nrf2 signaling pathways may confer a protective mechanism for PM2.5-induced oxidative stress and ferroptosis.

Correction: The synergic effect between Mo species and acid sites in Mo/HMCM-22 catalysts for methane aromatization.

Correction for 'The synergic effect between Mo species and acid sites in Mo/HMCM-22 catalysts for methane aromatization' by Ding Ma et al., Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2005, 7, 3102-3109, https://doi.org/10.1039/B502794B.

Framework stability and Brønsted acidity of isomorphously substituted interlayer-expanded zeolite COE-4: a density functional theory study.

COE-4 zeolites possess a unique two-dimensional ten-ring pore structure with the Si(OH)2 hydroxyl groups attached to the linker position between the ferrierite-type layers, which has been demonstrated through the interlayer-expansion approach in our previous work (H. Gies et al. Chem. Mater. 2012, 24, 1536). Herein, density functional theory is used to study the framework stability and Brønsted acidity of the zeolite T-COE-4, in which the tetravalent Si is isomorphously substituted by a trivalent Fe, B, Ga, or Al heteroatom at the linker position. The influences of substitution energy and equilibrium geometry parameters on the stability of T-COE-4 are investigated in detail. The relative acid strength of the linker position is revealed by the proton affinity, charge analysis, and NH3 adsorption. It is found that the range of the ⟨T-O-Si⟩ angles is widened to maintain the stability of isomorphously substituted T-COE-4 zeolites. The smaller the ⟨O1-T-O2⟩ bond angle is, the more difficult is to form the regular tetrahedral unit. Thus, the substitution energies at the linker positions increase in the following sequence: Al-COE-4 < Ga-COE-4 < Fe-COE-4 < B-COE-4. The adsorption of NH3 as a probe molecule indicates that the acidity can affect the hydrogen-bonding interaction between (N-H⋅⋅⋅O2) and (N⋅⋅⋅H-O2). The relative Brønsted-acid strength of the interlayer-expanded T-COE-4 zeolite decreases in the order of Al-COE-4 > Ga-COE-4 > Fe-COE-4 > B-COE-4. These findings may be helpful for the structural design and functional modification of interlayer-expanded zeolites.

Comparison of primary and metastatic site-related PD-L1 expression in predicting ORR in patients with advanced NSCLC who received ICB-based therapy.

BACKGROUND: Whether the value of PD-L1 expression from metastatic sites to predict the efficacy of immune checkpoint blockade (ICB)-based treatment is equivalent to that from a primary tumor is uncertain. This study aimed to compare the utility of PD-L1 TPS from a primary lung tumor and metastatic sites to predict the overall response rate (ORR) of first-line ICB-based treatment. METHODS: This study included 249 patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who received first-line ICB-based treatment. All subjects underwent PD-L1 testing prior to ICB-based treatment and were divided into two cohorts corresponding to the different biopsy sites: lung primary site-sampled cohort (PT cohort, n = 167) and metastatic site-sampled cohort (MT cohort, n = 82). RESULTS: There was no statistical significance in PD-L1 TPS distribution between the two cohorts (p = 0.742). PD-L1 TPS ≥50% was also related to high ORR compared with PD-L1 < 50% in the PT cohort (34.3% vs. 14.1%, p = 0.004). In contrast, ICB-based therapy could bring comparable ORR (35.1% vs. 33.3%, p = 0.871) in the MT cohort regardless of PD-L1 TPS status (≥50%, or <50%). As supported, when the cutoff value of TPS was selected as 50%, it was suggested that PT-related PD-L1 was the independent predictor of ORR (OR 2.870, 95% CI: 1.231-6.694, p = 0.015) rather than MT-related PD-L1 (OR 0.689, 95% CI: 0.236-2.013, p = 0.495). Furthermore, ROC proved that PT-related PD-L1 expression manifested a better AUC of 0.621 (p = 0.026) than that of MT-related PD-L1 (AUC = 0.565, p = 0.362). CONCLUSION: Compared with PT-related PD-L1 expression, MT-related PD-L1 expression showed limited value in predicting ORR in patients with advanced NSCLC receiving ICB-based therapy. It was concluded that even patients with low MT-related PD-L1 expression could benefit from ICB-based therapy.

Risk analysis of visceral pleural invasion in malignant solitary pulmonary nodules that appear touching the pleural surface.

BACKGROUND: The preoperative determination of visceral pleural invasion (VPI) in patients with malignant solitary pulmonary nodules (SPNs) is essential for determining the surgical range and selecting adjuvant chemotherapy. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to systematically investigate risk factors of VPI in patients with SPN and construct a preoperative predictive model for such patients. DESIGN: This is a retrospective study. The clinical, radiological, and pathological characteristics of study subjects were reviewed, and the groups with and without VPI were compared. METHODS: Multivariate logistic analysis was utilized to identify independent risk factors for VPI. Moreover, a predictive nomogram was constructed to assess the likelihood of VPI occurrence. RESULTS: Of the 364 enrolled cases, SPNs adjacent to the pleura with VPI were found in 110 (30.2%) patients. By incorporating four preoperative variables, including tumor diameter (>2 cm), maximum computed tomography value (>200 Hu), air bronchogram sign, and age, a preoperative predictive nomogram was constructed. The nomogram demonstrated good discriminative ability, with a C-index of 0.736 (95% CI (0.662-0.790)). Furthermore, our data indicated that the air bronchogram sign (odd ratio (OR) 1.81, 95% CI (0.99-3.89), p = 0.048), a maximum diameter >2 cm (OR 24.48, 95% CI (8.43-71.07), p < 0.001), pathological type (OR 5.01, 95% CI (2.61-9.64), p < 0.001), and Ki-67 >30% (OR 2.95, 95% CI (1.40-6.21), p = 0.004) were overall independent risk factors for VPI. CONCLUSION: This study investigated the risk factors for VPI in malignant SPNs touching the pleural surface. Additionally, a nomogram was developed to predict the likelihood of VPI in such patients, facilitating informed decision-making regarding surgical approaches and treatment protocols.

Application of 24-h respiratory rate and oxygenation index variation to predict the outcome of high-flow nasal cannula therapy in patients with acute hypoxemic respiratory failure in a respiratory intensive care unit.

Background: An evaluation system is urgently needed to describe early predictors of the outcome of high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) oxygen therapy in acute hypoxemic respiratory failure (AHRF) patients. Methods: All consecutive AHRF patients in a Respiratory Intensive Care Unit (RICU) receiving HFNC therapy between January 2019 and December 2021 were enrolled. Results: Of the 106 enrolled AHRF subjects, 57 (53.8%) succeeded in HFNC therapy and 49 (46.2%) failed. Being male (p = 0.006), initial respiratory rate oxygenation (ROX) index (p = 0.011), Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score (p = 0.007) and 24-h ROX index variation rate (p = 0.004) were independent factors of HFNC outcome; among these, 24-h ROX index variation rate (area under the curve = 0.825) was the best evaluation indicator. Conclusion: 24-h ROX index variation rate, introduced by our study, has shown the best potential to predict HFNC outcome in AHRF patients.

A clinical spectrum of resectable lung adenocarcinoma with micropapillary component (MPC) concurrently presenting as mixed ground-glass opacity nodules.

BACKGROUND: In clinical practice, preoperative identification of mixed ground-glass opacity (mGGO) nodules with micropapillary component (MPC) to facilitate the implementation of individualized therapeutic strategies and avoid unnecessary surgery is increasingly importantOBJECTIVE: This study aimed to build a predictive model based on clinical and radiological variables for the early identification of MPC in lung adenocarcinoma presenting as mGGO nodules. METHODS: The enrolled 741 lung adenocarcinoma patients were randomly divided into a training cohort and a validation cohort (3:1 ratio). The pathological specimens and preoperative images of malignant mGGO nodules from the study subjects were retrospectively reviewed. Furthermore, in the training cohort, selected clinical and radiological variables were utilized to construct a predictive model for MPC prediction. RESULTS: The MPC was found in 228 (43.3%) patients in the training cohort and 72 (41.1%) patients in the validation cohort. Based on the predictive nomogram, the air bronchogram was defined as the most dominant independent risk factor for MPC of mGGO nodules, followed by the maximum computed tomography (CT) value (> 200), adjacent to pleura, gender (male), and vacuolar sign. The nomogram demonstrated good discriminative ability with a C-index of 0.783 (95%[CI] 0.744-0.822) in the training cohort and a C-index of 0.799 (95%[CI] 0.732-0.866) in the validation cohort Additionally, by using the bootstrapping method, this predictive model calculated a corrected AUC of 0.774 (95% CI: 0.770-0.779) in the training cohort. CONCLUSIONS: This study proposed a predictive model for preoperative identification of MPC in known lung adenocarcinomas presenting as mGGO nodules to facilitate individualized therapy. This nomogram model needs to be further externally validated by subsequent multicenter studies.

An Activatable Prodrug Nanosystem for Ultrasound-Driven Multimodal Tumor Therapy and Metastasis Inhibition.

Ultrasound, featuring deep tissue penetration and noninvasiveness, offers a new opportunity to activate functional materials in a tumor-selective manner. However, very few direct ultrasound-responsive redox systems are applicable under therapeutic ultrasound (1 MHz). Herein, the investigations on nanoprodrug of DHE@PEG-SS-DSPE are reported, which exhibit glutathione-activated release of dihydroethidium (DHE) in tumor cells. DHE is stable with good biosafety and is transformed into cytotoxic ethidium to induce DNA damage under medical ultrasound irradiation, accompanied by the generation of reactive oxygen species. Further, DHE@PEG-SS-DSPE could effectively induce ferroptosis through glutathione depletion, lipid peroxide accumulation, and downregulation of glutathione peroxidase 4. In vivo studies confirmed that DHE@PEG-SS-DSPE nanoparticles effectively inhibit both the growth of solid tumors and the expression of metastasis-related proteins in mice, thus effectively inhibiting lung metastasis. This DHE-based prodrug nanosystem could lay a foundation for the design of ultrasound-driven therapeutic agents.

Photo-Induced Electron Transfer-Triggered Structure Deformation Promoting Near-Infrared Photothermal Conversion for Tumor Therapy.

Photothermal therapy (PTT) is a promising approach to cancer treatment. Heptamethine cyanine (Cy7) is an attractive photothermal reagent because of its large molar absorption coefficient, good biocompatibility, and absorption of near-infrared irradiation. However, the photothermal conversion efficiency (PCE) of Cy7 is limited without ingenious excitation-state regulation. In this study, the photothermal conversion ability of Cy7 is efficiently enhanced based on photo-induced electron transfer (PET)-triggered structural deformation. Three Cy7 derivatives, whose Cl is replaced by carbazole, phenoxazine, and phenothiazine at the meso-position (CZ-Cy7, PXZ-Cy7, and PTZ-Cy7), are presented as examples to demonstrate the regulation of the energy release of the excited states. Because the phenothiazine moiety exhibits an obvious PET-induced structural deformation in the excited state, which quenches the fluorescence and inhibits intersystem crossing of S1 →T1 , PTZ-Cy7 exhibits a PCE as high as 77.5%. As a control, only PET occurs in PXZ-Cy7, with a PCE of 43.5%. Furthermore, the PCE of CZ-Cy7 is only 13.0% because there is no PET process. Interestingly, PTZ-Cy7 self-assembles into homogeneous nanoparticles exhibiting passive tumor-targeting properties. This study provides a new strategy for excited-state regulation for photoacoustic imaging-guided PTT with high efficiency.

Highly sensitive and fast-responsive fluorescent chemosensor for palladium: reversible sensing and visible recovery.

The well-known rhodamine spiro-lactam framework offers an ideal model for the development of fluorescence-enhanced chemosensors through simple and convenient syntheses. Herein, we report a new tridentate PNO receptor, which was introduced into a rhodamine spiro-lactam system to develop Pd(2+)-chemosensor RPd4, that displayed significantly improved sensing properties for palladium. Compound RPd4 shows a very fast response time (about 5 s), high sensitivity (5 nM), and excellent specificity for Pd(2+) ions over other PGE ions (Pt(2+), Rh(3+), and Ru(3+)). In addition, RPd4 displays quite different responses to different valence states of the Pd ions, that is, very fast response towards Pd(2+) ions but slow response towards Pd(0), which may provide us with a convenient method for the selective discrimination of Pd species in different valence states. According to proof-of-concept experiments, RPd4 has potential applications in Pd(2+)-analysis in drug compounds, water, soil, and leaf samples. Owing to its good reversibility, RPd4 can also be used as a sensor material for the selective detection and visual recovery of trace Pd(2+) ions in environmental samples.

Nucleic Acid Probe-Based Difunctional Hematology Analysis Kit for Peripheral Blood Cell Analysis.

Traditional "one for one channel" long-wavelength probes in hematology analyzers limit their resolution and detection efficiency. In this study, we developed a "one for two channels" probe named NATO, which shows a short wavelength (λabs = 460 nm), good nucleus and nucleolus location, and a high signal-to-noise ratio to nucleic acids. When NATO was made into a hematology analysis kit and applied in an automated hematology analyzer, short-wavelength absorbance endows NATO with higher resolution, which in turn leads to better separation of red blood cells and platelets in the blood shadow of the differentiating (DIFF) channel. In addition, this kit showed terrific performance in both DIFF and reticulocytes channels. Our study sheds light on the development of hematology analysis in an automated hematology analyzer by proposing a nucleic acid probe with difunction and higher resolution.

BMI Trajectories During the First 2 Years, and Their Associations With Infant Overweight/Obesity: A Registered Based Cohort Study in Taizhou, China.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to identify trajectories of body mass index (BMI) in toddlers from birth to 2 years old and examine their association with infantile overweight/obesity. Methods: Data were collected from 19,054 children born in any hospital or community healthcare center in Taizhou, China from 2018 to 2019 with at least three BMI measurements after birth. The Latent Class Growth Mixture Model was used to identify distinct BMI trajectories during the first 2 years of infants. Multiple logistic regression models were conducted to explore the associated factors of different BMI trajectories, and log-binomial regression was performed to assess the association between the trajectories and overweight/obesity. Results: Three heterogeneous BMI trajectories were identified and labeled as "lower" (36.21%, n = 6,899), "middle" (53.15%, n = 10,128) and "upper" (10.64%, n = 2,027), respectively. Several characteristics of infants and their corresponding mothers were found to be correlated with infant BMI trajectories, including infant sex, mode of delivery and weight at birth, as well as maternal parity, early pregnancy BMI and status of gestational diabetes mellitus. Furthermore, compared with those in the lower trajectory, infants in the middle [prevalence ratio (PR) = 2.63, 95% confidence interval (95%CI) = 2.17-2.63] or upper (PR = 2.98, 95%CI = 1.51-2.98) trajectory groups were prone to be overweight/obesity at their final observation. Conclusion: Heterogeneous BMI trajectories were observed in our study. Characteristics of both infants and their corresponding mothers could be potential determinants of infant growth. Moreover, infants in the middle and upper trajectory groups were more likely to suffer overweight/obesity.

Investigation and Analysis of Influencing Factors of Moderate to Severe Pain After Uterine Artery Embolization in Patients with Cesarean Scar Pregnancy.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the occurrence and influencing factors of moderate to severe pain in patients with cesarean scar pregnancy (CSP) after uterine artery embolization (UAE). METHODS: Ninety-eight patients with CSP who underwent UAE in gynecology department of the Fujian Medical University Union Hospital from January 2017 to December 2020 were enrolled, and the specialty data in patients were collected for pain assessment with the adoption of the numerical rating scale (NRS). RESULTS: Moderate to severe pain occurred in 36 patients after surgery, and the interquartile of time to the first onset of postoperative pain in patients was 3.04 (1.75, 7.40) hours. The number of pregnancies, number of miscarriages, human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) before curettage, duration of medication before UAE, and hemorrhage after UAE were not significantly correlated with the occurrence of moderate to severe pain after UAE (P > 0.05). The volume of gestational sac and days of gestation were responsible for the occurrence of moderate to severe pain after UAE (P < 0.05), with the former being the main influencing factor, and these explained 8.3% of the total variance. CONCLUSION: Moderate to severe pain occurred commonly in patients with CSP undergoing UAE. In clinical care of patients with CSP who are going to undergo UAE, data concerning the volume of gestational sac and days of gestation should be considered for anticipatory pain assessment, and interventions should be implemented as early as possible to reduce the pain and improve the experience of care.

Silencing circSLC19A1 Inhibits Prostate Cancer Cell Proliferation, Migration and Invasion Through Regulating miR-326/MAPK1 Axis.

BACKGROUND: Emerging evidence indicates that circular RNAs (circRNAs), which form as covalently closed loops, play a regulatory role in various types of cancer, including prostate cancer (PCa). CircSLC19A1, one kind of circRNA, was subjected to the study and its role in PCa was explored. METHODS: Expressions of circSLC19A1, miR-326 and MAPK1 in PCa tissues and cells were assessed by qRT-PCR. CircSLC19A1 was identified by RNase R treatment. The binding relations between circSLC19A1 and miR-326 and between miR-326 and MAPK1 were predicted by RegRNA2.0 or Targetscan7.2 and further confirmed by dual-luciferase reporter assay. Pearson correlation analysis of the correlation among circSLC19A1, miR-326 and MAPK1 was performed. CCK-8, cell colony formation, wound healing and Transwell assays were used to assess PCa cell viability, proliferation, migration and invasion, respectively. RESULTS: CircSLC19A1 expression was up-regulated in PCa tissue and cell cytoplasm. Silencing circSLC19A1 inhibited PCa cell viability, proliferation, migration, invasion and miR-326 expression. MiR-326 inhibitor promoted the luciferase activities of circSLC19A1 and MAPK1, increased MAPK1 expression and facilitated PCa cell progression. MiR-326 expression was down-regulated in PCa tissue and there was a negative correlation between miR-326 and circSLC19A1 expressions. MAPK1 expression was up-regulated in PCa tissue. There was a negative correlation between MAPK1 and miR-326 expressions as well as a positive correlation between MAPK1 and circSLC19A1 expressions. Silencing MAPK1 promoted the viability, proliferation, migration, and invasion of PCa cells co-transfected with siRNA-circSLC19A1a and miR-326 inhibitor. CONCLUSION: CircSLC19A1 silencing inhibited PCa cell proliferation, migration and invasion through regulating miR-326/MAPK1 axis.

The synergic effect between Mo species and acid sites in Mo/HMCM-22 catalysts for methane aromatization.

The acid properties of Mo/HMCM-22 catalyst, which is the precursor form of the working catalyst for methane aromatization reaction, and the synergic effect between Mo species and acid sites were studied and characterized by various characterization techniques. It is concluded that Brønsted and Lewis acidities of HMCM-22 are modified due to the introduction of molybdenum. We suggest a monomer of Mo species is formed by the exchange of Mo species with the Brønsted acid sites. On the other hand, coordinate unsaturated sites (CUS) are suggested to be responsible for the formation of newly detected Lewis acid sites. Computer modelling is established and coupling with experimental results, it is then speculated that the effective activation of methane is properly accomplished on Mo species accommodated in the 12 MR supercages of MCM-22 zeolite whereas the Brønsted acid sites in the same channel system play a key role for the formation of benzene. A much more pronounced volcano-typed reactivity curve of the Mo/HMCM-22 catalysts, as compared with that of the Mo/HZSM-5, with respect to Mo loading is found and this can be well understood due to the unique channel structure of MCM-22 zeolite and synergic effect between Mo species and acid sites.

Towards guest-zeolite interactions: an NMR spectroscopic approach.

Guest(metal)-zeolite interactions in a two component heterogeneous catalyst have been investigated by high-field and high-speed (27)Al MAS NMR, and two-dimensional (27)Al MQ MAS NMR experiments as well as ab initio DFT methods. It was established that strong interactions between guest and zeolite occur in a metal/zeolite system, with the metal anchored to the tetrahedral aluminum framework site through two oxygen bridges. It disturbs the tetrahedral environment of associated aluminum framework, changing AlO(4) geometry from near T(d) to C(2v); this enables us to resolve this species from the undisturbed aluminum framework species in high-field (27)Al MAS NMR and two-dimesional (27)Al MQ MAS NMR experiments.