Atorvastatin combining with probucol: a new way to reduce serum uric acid level during perioperative period of interventional procedure.

Uric acid has ever been considered as one of contrast induced acute kidney injury's risk factors. Atorvastatin and probucol can both improve contrast induced acute kidney injury separately. This prospective study is to assess their effect on reducing serum uric acid level and contrast induced acute kidney injury during perioperative period of interventional procedure. On the basis of different doses of atorvastatin and probucol, 208 cases admitted for coronary angiography or percutaneous coronary intervention were randomly classified into standard combined group (S-C group), intensive combined group (I-C group), and intensive atorvastatin group (I-A group). Patients' blood urea nitrogen, serum creatinine, and serum uric acid were measured and estimated glomerular filtration rate was evaluated 24 hours before and after the procedure. After procedure, blood urea nitrogen in all the three groups decreased; Scr of S-C group and I-A group increased significantly, while estimated glomerular filtration decreased in the S-C group (P < 0.05); serum uric acid in S-C group and I-C group decreased significantly (P < 0.05). Combination treatment of atorvastatin and probucol before intervention could reduce perioperative serum uric acid level; meanwhile, the intensive combined treatment can improve the contrast induced acute kidney injury. The result was the same for hypertensive patients.

Experimental study on the an-isotropic critical current of REBCO tape.

Superconducting magnets are widely used in nuclear fusion reactors, high-energy particle accelerators, steady-state high magnetic fields, etc. Higher magnetic fields and higher operating temperatures are two application trends. High temperature superconducting (HTS) materials are the only choice for high temperature and high field magnets in the future. The first- and second-generation HTS materials have a typical tape structure; their critical performance is magnetic field angle and temperature dependent. A new test facility is developed for an experimental study on the an-isotropic critical current. The field angle can be changed from 0° to 360° with a resolution of 1°. The rotation deviation angle is measured to be 0.2° when the upper part rotates 90°. The temperature can be changed from 4.2 to 80 K. The temperature errors are ±50, ±80, and ±135 mK for 4.2-20, 20-40, and 40-80 K, respectively. The angle dependence of critical current (Ic) of the tested rare-earth barium copper oxide tape within 0°-30° is strong. From 30° to 90°, the sample Ic almost does not change with the magnetic field angle. The implementation of the project will not only promote the structural optimization of HTS tapes but also promote the miniaturization and economical application of HTS magnets.

Cluster analysis-based classification of fatigue in stable maintenance hemodialysis patients: a prospective cohort study.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: This study has been registered (ChiCTR2100045493) 2021/04/03.

Adaptive Fuzzy Finite-Time Fault-Tolerant Consensus Tracking Control for High-Order Multiagent Systems With Directed Graphs.

This article investigates the distributed adaptive fuzzy finite-time fault-tolerant consensus tracking control for a class of unknown nonlinear high-order multiagent systems (MASs) with actuator faults and high powers (ratio of positive odd rational numbers). The fault models include both loss of effectiveness and bias fault. Compared with existing similar results, the MASs considered here are more general and complex, which include the special case when the powers are equal to 1. Besides, the functions in this article are completely unknown and do not need to satisfy any growth conditions. In the backstepping framework, an adaptive fuzzy fault-tolerant consensus tracking controller is designed via adding one power integrator technique and directed graph theory so that the controlled systems are semiglobal practical finite-time stability (SGPFTS). Finally, numerical simulation results further verify the effectiveness of the developed control scheme.

Sufentanil combined with parecoxib sodium inhibits proliferation and metastasis of HER2-positive breast cancer cells and regulates epithelial-mesenchymal transition.

BACKGROUND: Sufentanil combined with parecoxib sodium is a commonly used postoperative medication for cancer patients. However, the effects of this combination therapy on human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer cells have still remained elusive. This study aimed to investigate the effects and potential mechanisms of sufentanil combined with parecoxib sodium on HER2-positive breast cancer cells. METHODS: The cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8), colony formation, flow cytometry, scratch, transwell invasion, and angiogenesis assays were used to assess the proliferation, cell cycling, migration, invasion, and angiogenesis of HER2-positive breast cancer BT474 cells. Western blot assay was employed for detecting the expression levels of proteins involved in the cell cycle, migration, invasion, angiogenesis, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). The in vivo effects of tumor growth and metastasis were examined by establishing an orthotopic transplantation mouse model of HER2-positive breast cancer (MMTV-PyMT). RESULTS: Functional assays indicated that sufentanil combined with parecoxib sodium induced blockade of HER2-positive breast cancer BT474 cells in the G1 phase of the cell cycle and inhibited cell proliferation, migration, angiogenesis, and invasion in vitro. Western blot assay revealed that sufentanil combined with parecoxib sodium downregulated the expression levels of cyclin D1, matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA), and EMT-related proteins (N-cadherin, Vimentin, and Snail), while up-regulated the expression level of E-cadherin in BT474 cells. In addition, it was found that sufentanil combined with parecoxib sodium inhibited tumor growth and metastasis in the orthotopic transplantation mouse model of HER2-positive breast cancer. CONCLUSION: Sufentanil combined with parecoxib sodium inhibited HER2-positive breast cancer progression, including cell proliferation, cell cycle, migration, invasion, and angiogenesis, and regulated EMT.

Multiple Environment Integral Reinforcement Learning-Based Fault-Tolerant Control for Affine Nonlinear Systems.

This paper studies the fault-tolerant control (FTC) problem for unknown affine nonlinear systems with actuators faults. The considered types of faults are stuck (lock-in-place), loss-in-effectiveness (LIE), and bias, under which a part of the actuators is disabled. The objective is to find the remaining (not fully LIE) actuators, and manipulate them to obtain the best achievable performance in real time. First, considering that the best achievable performance is determined by the remaining actuators, a set of basic policies is predesigned with multiple levels of performances for different groups of activated actuators. Second, an identifier is designed based on history data to find the remaining actuators and, thus, the suitable predesigned basic policy. Third, to further accommodate the partial LIEs and biases, a compensator works together with the selected basic policy, to build the predesigned performance. In addressing the FTC problem, several techniques are developed: adjustable mechanisms are novelly integrated to deal with the state-dependent nonlinearities in neural network (NN) approximation, disturbances, and mismatch errors; history data are newly applied to estimate the faulty parameters; and a compensator is specially designed to deal with LIEs and biases in different input channels. Also in theory, the convergences of algorithms and the stability of closed-loop systems are proved, by formally giving the invariant sets of the initial state and the NN weights. Unlike the existing FTC methods dealing with LIE and bias based on model information to optimize the tracking error, this result can handle stuck faults without knowing system dynamics and satisfy different levels of performances described by Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equations. Finally, a simulation example of quadrotor unmanned aerial vehicle is given to verify the effectiveness of the proposed FTC scheme.

catena-Poly[[[bis-(thio-cyanato-κN)zinc(II)]-µ-1,2-bis-{[2-(2-pyrid-yl)-1H-imidazol-1-yl]meth-yl}benzene] 0.28-hydrate].

The title one-dimensional coordination polymer, {[Zn(NCS)(2)(C(24)H(20)N(6))(2)]·0.28H(2)O}(n), was obtained by the reaction of Zn(OAc)(2)·2H(2)O, KSCN and 1,2-bis-{[2-(2-pyrid-yl)-1H-imid-azol-1-yl]meth-yl}benzene (hereafter L). The Zn(II) ion shows a distorted octa-hedral coordination geometry and is coordin-ated by two N atoms from two SCN(-) anions and four N atoms from two organic ligands. The L ligands act as bridging bis-chelating ligands with cis coordination modes at the Zn(II) ion. One-dimensional coordination polymers are arranged into layers by π-π stacking inter-actions between the imidazole rings of adjacent chains, with an inter-planar distance of 3.46 (1) Šand centroid-centroid distances of 3.8775 (16) Å. One of the thio-cyanate ligands is disordered over two positions with an occupancy factor of 0.564 (3) for the major component. The partially occupied water mol-ecule forms an O-H⋯S hydrogen bond with the disordered thio-cyanate group.

Cooperative Fault Diagnosis for Uncertain Nonlinear Multiagent Systems Based on Adaptive Distributed Fuzzy Estimators.

This paper presents a cooperative fault diagnosis scheme for a class of uncertain nonlinear multiagent systems component and sensor faults in individual agents. Since the faulty system affects the healthy systems through interconnections, for each agent an estimator is designed to collect neighboring output estimations errors to consider its faulty effects on others, when computing its estimations for local state and faulty parameters. A new structure of distributed estimators is proposed by filtering regressor signals and sharing them among agents. Then, the sharings of signals are planned by properly constructing auxiliary graphs for undirected and directed networks. Two conditions are given to preselect estimators parameters for the convergences of the estimation errors. Unlike the existing results dealing with one common parameter with full state measurement and only for undirected graphs, this paper presents an output measurement-based approach for multiple parameters in undirected/directed networks. It shows that for the faults not providing persistent excitation in a signal agent, it is possible to estimate the faults exactly if the they excite all agents persistently. A simulation example of a group of single-link flexible-joint robots is given to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method.

[Butorphanol alleviates ischemic arrhythmia in SD rats by up-regulating connexin 43 (Cx43) pathway through miR-1-3p].

Objective To investigate the role of butorphanol in alleviating ischemic arrhythmias and its regulatory effects on the microRNA-1-3p/connexin 43 (miR-1-3p/Cx43) pathway. Methods SD rats were divided into the following groups: control group (the treatment was the same as that of modeling, but no coronary artery ligation was performed), butorphanol group (rats were injected 50 µg/kg butorphanol into the femoral vein after the needle has penetrated the myocardial surface), inhibitor group (5 days before the experiment, 80 mg/kg miR-1-3p inhibitor was administered via the tail vein, and the other treatment were the same as the control group); model group (ligation method was used to prepare rat ischemic arrhythmia models), butorphanol pretreatment group (50 µg/kg butorphanol was given at 5 minutes before ischemic treatment, and the other treatment were the same as the model group), inhibitor pretreatment group (5 days before the experiment, 80 mg/kg miR-1-3p inhibitor was administered via the tail vein, and the other treatment were the same as the model group). According to the electrocardiogram results, the ventricular arrhythmia score in each group was evaluated. Targetscan database was used to predict the upstream miRNAs of Cx43. Real-time quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the expression of miR-1-3p and Cx43 mRNA. Western blotting was performed to detect the expression of Cx43 in myocardial tissue. The binding of miR-1-3p and Cx43 mRNA was verified by double luciferase report experiment. Results Butorphanol significantly reduced the frequency of ventricular premature beat, ventricular arrhythmia score, duration of ventricular fibrillation and duration of ventricular tachycardia in ischemic arrhythmia rats, and significantly increased the expression of Cx43 protein in myocardial tissue. Subsequently, two binding sites of miR-1-3p were found in the 3' untranslated region of Cx43 mRNA. Additionally, butorphanol significantly reduced the level of miR-1-3p in myocardium. Inhibition of miR-1-3p significantly decreased the total score of ventricular arrhythmia in the rats with ischemic arrhythmia, and significantly increased the expression of Cx43 mRNA and protein. Conclusion Butorphanol can improve ischemic arrhythmia by up-regulating the expression of Cx43 mediated by miR-1-3p.

Expression of TdT in Myoepithelial Cells: Investigation in Breasts, Sweat Glands, and Salivary Lesions Emphasizing the Never-Documented Immunohistochemical Findings.

Background. The expression of terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT) in myoepithelial cells (MECs) within the breast was recently incidentally observed in our routine practice. This study aimed to elucidate the expression of TdT in MECs. Methods. TdT immunostaining was performed on 180 mammary, 89 cutaneous, and 94 salivary tissues or lesions. Other myoepithelial markers, including P63, calponin, and SMA as well as double staining for TdT and calponin, were also evaluated in some cases. Selected lesions with basal or myoid differentiation were also included in the investigation. Results. MECs were positive for TdT in mammary lesions that contained MECs (132/135) but negative when they did not contain MECs (45/45). MECs in sweat glands (24/30) and their neoplastic counterparts, including those in hidradenoma papilliferum (2/9), spiradenoma (6/6), and cutaneous mixed tumor (9/9), showed weak to moderate TdT positivity. MECs were variably immunolabeled for TdT in salivary or salivary gland-type tumors with myoepithelial differentiation (pleomorphic adenoma, 24/25; basal cell adenoma, 6/7; adenoid cystic carcinoma, 7/7; Warthin tumor, 0/6; mucoepidermoid carcinoma, 0/8; acinic cell carcinoma, 0/4), but MECs in normal salivary gland barely stained for TdT (30/32). Conclusions. Our findings indicate that TdT may be eligible as an additional auxiliary immunohistochemical marker as P63, but not a surrogate, to identify the MECs in the breast with limited cross-reactivity, particularly in lesions with a prominent proportion of MECs. Positivity for TdT, along with other relevant markers, in a subset of sweat gland lesions and salivary tumors may contribute to their diagnosis.

Loss of SDC1 Expression Is Associated with Poor Prognosis of Colorectal Cancer Patients in Northern China.

BACKGROUND: Syndecan-1 (SDC1/CD138) is a key cell surface adhesion molecule essential for maintaining cell morphology and the interactions with the surrounding microenvironment. SDC1 tumor immunoexpression may be increased or decreased in epithelial malignant neoplasms compared to that in adjacent non-neoplastic tissue, depending on the type of carcinoma, and it has been correlated with various clinicopathological parameters and patient prognosis. SDC1 expression is decreased in colorectal cancer (CRC) tissue, but the relationship between prognosis and SDC1 expression in CRC patients is controversial. METHODS: In this study, SDC1 expression was detected in 65 adjacent non-neoplastic colorectal tissues, 477 CRCs, and 79 metastatic lymph nodes using tissue microarray. RESULTS: The data show that SDC1 decreased in CRC tissues (p ≤ 0.001) and metastatic lymph node tissues (p ≤ 0.001) compared to that in adjacent non-neoplastic colorectal tissues. Loss of SDC1 protein expression is associated with poor overall (p < 0.0001) and disease-free survival (p < 0.0001), differentiation (p = 0.017), stage (p ≤ 0.001), and lymph node metastasis (p ≤ 0.001) in CRC patients. CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that the loss of SDC1 plays an important role in CRC malignant progression. Loss of SDC1 expression indicates poor prognosis in patients from northern China with CRC.

Clinicopathological characteristics of angiofibroma of soft tissue: report of three cases.

Angiofibroma of soft tissue (AFST) is a recently-reported, rare, fibrovascular soft tissue neoplasm that commonly develops in the lower extremities of middle-aged women. Here, we report three cases located in the right temporal lobe of a woman, the left popliteal fossa of a female, and the right lower limb of a male patient, respectively, the former of which is first reported in the light of a literature review owing to its anatomical location. Histological and immunohistochemical features were consistent with the diagnosis of AFST. The two female patients have been individually followed up for 20 and 16 months after surgical resection without any local recurrences or any metastases. Meanwhile, we reviewed the clinicopathological characteristics of 81 AFST to further characterize this tumor. In addition, AFST is a benign tumor that should be considered in the differential diagnosis of a solitary fibrous tumor, a low-grade fibromyxoid sarcoma, and low-grade myxofibrosarcoma, to avoid being misdiagnosed as malignant.

Critical current measurements of high-temperature superconducting short samples at a wide range of temperatures and magnetic fields.

High-Temperature Superconductors (HTS) are potential materials for high-field magnets, low-loss transmission cables, and Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage (SMES) due to their high upper critical magnetic field (Hc2) and critical temperature (Tc). The critical current (Ic) of HTS, which is one of the most important parameters for superconductor application, depends strongly on the magnetic fields and temperatures. A new Ic measurement system that can carry out accurate Ic measurement for HTS short samples with various temperatures (4.2-80 K), magnetic fields (0-14 T), and angles of the magnetic field (0°-90°) has been developed. The Ic measurement system mainly consists of a measurement holder, temperature-control system, background magnet, test cryostat, data acquisition system, and DC power supply. The accuracy of temperature control is better than ±0.1 K over the 20-80 K range and ±0.05 K when measured below 20 K. The maximum current is over 1000 A with a measurement uncertainty of 1%. The system had been successfully used for YBa2Cu3O7-x(YBCO) tapes Ic determination with different temperatures and magnetic fields.

Association between sociodemographic, psychosocial, lifestyle factors, and self-reported health among migrant laborers in China.

BACKGROUND: There were 245 million migrants in China in 2013, the majority of whom migrated from rural to urban areas. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate the association between sociodemographic, psychosocial, and lifestyle factors, and self-reported health (SRH) in Chinese migrant laborers. METHODS: This study was conducted based on data from the China Labor-force Dynamics Survey 2012. SRH was measured in a single item, although there were other risk factors from three different groups: sociodemographic, psychosocial, and lifestyle factors. The associations between these risk factors and SRH were tested using multilevel logistic regression analyses including interaction tests. RESULTS: All three groups of factors were explored simultaneously. These factors included age, working hours, marital status, illness, and hospitalization, which were associated with poor SRH, as well as earnings, number of friends, relations with neighbors, trust level, education, and alcohol consumption, which were associated with good SRH. However, there was minimal association found between the two factors of medical insurance and nationality, and SRH. CONCLUSION: Our investigation indicated that there are many factors associated with SRH. In particular, this study undertook a comprehensive investigation of the associations between sociodemographic, psychosocial, lifestyle factors, and SRH in China, the results of which could better inform medical researchers and governments from a Chinese perspective.

Electron microscopic radioautographic study of RNA synthesis in hepatocyte mitochondria of aging mouse.

In order to study the aging changes of intramitochondrial RNA synthesis in mouse hepatocytes, 10 groups of aging mice, each consisting of three individuals (total 30) from fetal day 19 to postnatal month 24 were injected with 3H-uridine, an RNA precursor, sacrificed 1 hour later, and the liver tissues processed for electron microscopic radioautography. On EM radioautograms obtained from each animal the number of mitochondria, the number of labeled mitochondria, and the mitochondrial labeling index labeled with 3H-uridine showing RNA synthesis in each hepatocytes, both mononucleate and binucleate cells, were counted and the averages in respective aging groups were compared. From the results it was demonstrated that the numbers of mitochondria, the numbers of labeled mitochondria, and the labeling indices of intramitochondrial RNA syntheses in both mononucleate and binucleate hepatocytes of mice at various ages increased and decreased according to the age of the animals.

Expression of vascular endothelial growth factor-C and the relationship between lymphangiogenesis and lymphatic metastasis in colorectal cancer.

AIM: To investigate the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor-C (VEGF-C) and the relationship between VEGF-C and lymphangiogenesis, lymph node metastasis in colorectal cancer. METHODS: Fifty six cases of colorectal cancer were selected randomly. Expression of VEGF-C was detected by immunohistochemistry, and lymphatic vessels were stained by enzyme histochemical method. RESULTS: VEGF-C expression was found in 66.7% (37/56) patients. In VEGF-C positive and negative patients, the lymphatic vessel density was 25.16+/-7.52 and 17.14+/-7.22, respectively (P<0.05). The rate of lymph node metastasis in VEGF-C positive patients (81.1%) was significantly higher than that in the negative group (42.1%). CONCLUSION: VEGF-C expression may induce lymphangiogenesis in colorectal cancer, as a result, tumor cells can entry the lymphatic vessels easily. VEGF-C may serve as a useful prognotic factor in colorectal carcinoma.

[The functional mechanism of CIK cells on ovarian carcinoma cell lines SKOV3/CDDP].

AIM: To investigate the functional mechanism of CIK cells or ovarian carcinoma cell lines SKOV3/CDDP. METHODS: The changes of ultramicrostructure, cell cycle, apoptosis, expression of multidrug resistance-associated protein (MDR1, Topo-IIbeta) and other molecules (hB7-1, hB7-2, MHCIb, HLA-DR) of SKOV3/CDDP cells treated with or without CIK cells were detected by electron microscope, MTT and FCM. The changes of cytokine (IL-2, TNF-alpha, IFN-gamma, GM-CSF) in sera of SCID mice bearing SKOV3/CDDP cells were detected by radioimmunit and ELISA. RESULTS: CIK cells could induce apoptosis of the SKOV3/CDDP cells by electronmicroscopic observations. The apoptosis rate in CIK group was 9.07%, and its cell cycle was arrested at S and G2/M phase (P<0.05). Compared with NS Group, the co-expression of MDR-1 and Topo-IIbeta were decreased significantly in the CIK treated group(P<0.05), and the expression of MHCIb, HLA-DR, hB7-1 and hB7-2 antigen were increased significantly (P<0.01). Compared with NS Group, the contents of IL-2, TNF-alpha, INF-gamma, GM-CSF were increased significantly (P<0.01) in SCID mice of CIK group. CONCLUSION: CIK cells have several important biological effects on the ovarian carcinoma cell line SKOV3/CDDP, which may lay the foundation for further research on anti-tumor therapy.

Strong cellular and humoral immune responses induced by transcutaneous immunization with HBsAg DNA-cationic deformable liposome complex.

Transcutaneous immunization presents a major challenge on account of poor permeability of antigens through the skin barrier. To overcome this limitation, the deformable liposome could be a better method for transcutaneous delivery of these antigens. In this study, hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) plasmid DNA-cationic complex deformable liposome was utilized as a mode for enhanced immunity against the antigen. Deformable liposome was prepared by conventional rotary evaporation method and characterized for various parameters such as vesicles shape and surface morphology, size and size distribution, entrapment efficiency, elasticity and stability. The immune stimulating activity was studied by measuring serum anti-HBsAg titre and cytokines level (interleukin-4 and interferon-gamma) following topical application of liposome in BALB/c mice and results were compared with deformable liposome encapsulated DNA applied topically as well as naked DNA and pure recombinant HBsAg, administered intramuscularly. It was observed that deformable liposome elicited a comparable serum antibody titre and endogenous cytokines levels compared to other vaccinations. The study signifies the potential of deformable liposome as DNA vaccine carriers for effective transcutaneous immunization.

Electron microscopic radioautographic study on nucleic acid synthesis in amitotic hepatocytes of the aging mouse.

Twenty groups of aging mice, each consisting of three individuals from fetal day 19 to postnatal month 24, were injected with either (3)H-thymidine or (3)H-uridine. The mice were killed 1 h and the livers processed for light and electron microscopic radioautography. On radioautograms obtained from each animal, amitotic nuclear divisions and resulting binucleate hepatocytes were detected and compared to mononucleate hepatocytes. From the results, it was demonstrated that only a few hepatocytes showing amitotic nuclear division were found labeled with the two precursors demonstrating DNA and RNA synthesis. However, there were very few silver grains showing incorporation of labeled precursors in respective amitotic cells. It was clarified that the amitotic cells did not synthesize such macromolecules as mononucleate hepatocytes did. On the other hand, the binucleate cells were found more often than the amitotic cells. DNA synthesis of binucleate hepatocyte nuclei was observed at the perinatal stage but disappeared at the adult stage. RNA syntheses in karyoplasm and cytoplasm in both mononucleate and binucleate cells significantly increased from the perinatal stage, reaching the maxima at the adult stage, then significantly decreased to the senescent stage. Grain counts revealed that RNA was synthesized significantly more in binucleate cells than in mononucleate cells at the respective aging stages.