Highly boosted trace-amount terahertz vibrational absorption spectroscopy based on defect one-dimensional photonic crystal.

Although terahertz (THz) spectroscopy demonstrates great application prospects in the fields of fingerprint sensing and detection, traditional sensing schemes face unavoidable limitations in the analysis of trace-amount samples. In this Letter, a novel, to the best of our knowledge, absorption spectroscopy enhancement strategy based on a defect one-dimensional photonic crystal (1D-PC) structure is proposed to achieve strong wideband terahertz wave-matter interactions for trace-amount samples. Based on the Fabry-Pérot resonance effect, the local electric field in a thin-film sample can be boosted by changing the length of the photonic crystal defect cavity, so that the wideband signal of the sample fingerprint can be greatly enhanced. This method exhibits a great absorption enhancement factor, of about 55 times, in a wide terahertz frequency range, facilitating the identification of different samples, such as thin α-lactose films. The investigation reported in this Letter provides a new research idea for enhancing the wide terahertz absorption spectroscopy of trace samples.

Conformal sphincteric resection for ultra-low rectal cancer located below the dentate line: A pilot report.

AIM: Sphincter-sparing surgery can be achieved in most cases of low rectal cancer with the development of intersphincteric resection. However, abdominoperineal resection is still inevitable for patients with tumours located below the dentate line. To address this, we have developed a procedure called conformal sphincteric resection (CSR) in which the corresponding part of the subcutaneous portion of the external anal sphincter and the perianal skin on the tumour side is removed to achieve a safe distal resection margin and lateral resection margin while the dentate line and the internal anal sphincter on the tumour-free side are preserved as much as possible, to achieve sphincter preservation without compromising oncological safety and functional acceptability, and to render tumour location no longer a contraindication for sphincter-sparing surgery. This is the first study to describe the concept, indication and surgical procedure of CSR and to report its preliminary surgical, oncological and functional results. METHODS: This is a retrospective, single-centre, single-arm pilot study conducted at Huashan Hospital, Fudan University. Demographic, clinicopathological, oncological and functional follow-up data were collected from 20 consecutive patients with rectal tumours located below the dentate line who underwent laparoscopic CSR by the same surgical team from June 2018 to March 2022. RESULTS: The mean distance of the tumour's lower edge from the anal verge was 13.1 ± 6.0 mm. The mean distal resection margin was 10.6 ± 4.3 mm. All circumferential resection margins were negative. There were no instances of perioperative mortality. The complication rate was 25% but all were Clavien-Dindo Grade I. Among the 20 cases, 17 were diagnosed with adenocarcinoma, one with squamous cell carcinoma and two with adenoma featuring high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia. Pathological TNM staging revealed two, seven, five, five and one case(s) in Stages 0, I, II, III and IV, respectively. The median follow-up period was 20 months (interquartile range 22 months), with no withdrawals. The overall and disease-free survival rates were both 95%. The mean Wexner incontinence score and low anterior resection syndrome score recorded 18 months following diverting ileostomy closure were 6.3 ± 3.8 and 27.3 ± 3.6, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This study has proposed the CSR procedure for the first time, which is a technically feasible, oncologically safe and functionally acceptable procedure for carefully selected patients with rectal tumours located below the dentate line.

[Clinical observation of dapoxetine combined with percutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation in the treatment of primary premature ejaculation].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical efficacy of dapoxetine combined with transcutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation (TNES) in the treatment of primary premature ejaculation. METHODS: A total of 60 patients who met the diagnostic criteria for primary premature ejaculation were selected as study subjects and randomly divided into a dapoxetine group (control group) and a dapoxetine combined with percutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation group (observation group).30 patients in each group were treated for 4 weeks. Intravaginal ejaculatory latency time (IELT), the score of Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool (PEDT), sympathetic skin response located in the penis (PSSR), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire (GAD-7) before and after treatment were recorded in the two groups. Before and after treatment, the difference in observed indexes in the two groups and the comparison of effective rates between the two groups were analyzed. RESULTS: The latency of IELT and PSSR was prolonged and the PEDT score was decreased in both the observation group and the control group, the difference was statistically significant (P<0.01). Compared with the control group, the observation group had statistically significant differences in extending IELT and PSSR latency and reducing PEDT score (P<0.05). The effective rates of the observation group and control group were 90% and 63.33%, respectively, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the improvement of depression and anxiety levels between the two groups (P> 0.05). CONCLUSION: Dapoxetine combined with TNES has a better clinical effect than dapoxetine alone in the treatment of primary premature ejaculation, and can be used as an effective option for clinical treatment of primary premature ejaculation.

[Effect of Suanzaoren Decoction on expression of ionotropic glutamate receptors and synaptic plasticity in hippocampus of anxiety rats].

This study investigated the effect of Suanzaoren Decoction on the expression of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors(NMDAR) and α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole-propionic acid receptors(AMPAR) in the hippocampus and synaptic plasticity in rats with conditioned fear-induced anxiety. The effect of Suanzaoren Decoction on rat behaviors were evaluated through open field experiment, elevated plus maze experiment, and light/dark box experiment. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA) was used to measure the levels of glutamate(Glu) and γ-aminobutyric acid(GABA) in the rat hippocampus. Real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR(qRT-PCR) and Western blot were employed to assess the gene and protein expression of ionotropic glutamate receptors in the hippocampal region. Transmission electron microscopy was utilized to observe the changes in the ultrastructure of synaptic neurons in the hippocampal region. Long-term potentiation(LTP) detection technique was employed to record the changes in population spike(PS) amplitude in the hippocampal region of mice in each group. The behavioral results showed that compared with the model group, the Suanzaoren Decoction group effectively increased the number of entries into open arms, time spent in open arms, percentage of time spent in open arms out of total movement time, number of entries into open arms out of total entries into both arms(P<0.01), and significantly increased the time spent in the light box and the number of shuttle crossings(P<0.01). There was an increasing trend in the number of grid crossings, entries into the center grid, and time spent in the center grid, indicating a significant anxiolytic effect. ELISA results showed that compared with the model group, the Suanzaoren Decoction group exhibited significantly reduced levels of Glu, Glu/GABA ratio(P<0.01), and significantly increased levels of GABA(P<0.01) in the rat hippocampus. Furthermore, Suanzaoren Decoction significantly decreased the gene and protein expression of NMDAR(GluN2B and GluN2A) and AMPAR(GluA1 and GluA2) compared with the model group. Transmission electron microscopy results demonstrated improvements in synapses, neuronal cells, and organelles in the hippocampal region of the Suanzaoren Decoction group compared with the model group. LTP detection results showed a significant increase in the PS amplitude changes in the hippocampal region of Suanzaoren Decoction group from 5 to 35 min compared with the model group(P<0.05, P<0.01). In conclusion, Suanzaoren Decoction exhibits significant anxiolytic effects, which may be attributed to the reduction in NMDAR and AMPAR expression levels and the improvement of synaptic plasticity.

Development and characterization of a skin cell line from Chinese perch (Siniperca chuatsi) and its application in aquatic animal viruses.

Chinese perch (Siniperca chuatsi), an important fish for the aquaculture industry of China, is often affected by viral diseases. A stable and sensitive cell line can play an important role in virus identification and isolation, functional gene identification, virus pathogenic mechanism and antiviral immunity study. In the present study, a new cell line (S. chuatsi skin cell, SCSC) derived from the skin of S. chuatsi was established. The SCSC mainly consisted of fibroblastic-like cells, which grew well in M199 medium supplemented with 10% foetal bovine serum at 25°C. Chromosome analysis revealed that the SCSC (44%) has a diploid chromosome number of 2n = 48. The SCSC can be transfected and expressed exogenous gene efficiently. It also showed high sensitivity to several aquatic animal viruses from different families including Rhabdoviridae, Iridoviridae and Reoviridae. In addition, RT-PCR showed that S. chuatsi rhabdovirus (SCRV) started genome replication as early as 3 h post infection in the cells, which also induced the up-regulation of a variety of immune-related genes including these related to interleukin family, pattern recognition receptors, JAK-STAT pathway and interferon regulatory factors. In summary, current study provided a new tool in research of fish viruses and its interaction with host.

[Transcutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation for the treatment of erectile dysfunction: A clinical observation].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the clinical efficacy of transcutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation (TNES) in the treatment of ED. METHODS: According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, we included and studied 25 cases of ED treated by TNES in Northern Jiangsu People's Hospital from June 2021 to February 2022 using the self-matched pre- and post-control method. Before and after treatment, we conducted RigiScan penile hardness test under audiovisual sexual stimulation (AVSS) for all the patients and obtained their scores on the Erectile Hardness Scale (EHS), IIEF-5, Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool (PEDT), Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire 7 (GAD-7). RESULTS: No adverse reactions such as pain, allergy, skin burn, and subcutaneous congestion were observed in any of the patients. There were statistically significant differences after treatment in erection time, average and maximum hardness of the penile tip, mean hardness of the penile root, and circumference of the penile tip (P < 0.05), but not in the circumference and maximum hardness of the penile root during erection compared with the baseline (P > 0.05). Significant improvement was observed after treatment in the IIEF-5 score (P < 0.05), with a total effectiveness rate of 68%, as well as in the PEDT score (P < 0.05) GAD-7 anxiety score (P < 0.05), but not in the PHQ-9 depression score (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: TNES, as a safe and non-invasive therapy, can improve penile hardness under AVSS and the erectile function and anxiety symptoms of ED patients, and can be used as a new option for the treatment of ED.

InAs/GaAs quantum dot single-section mode-locked lasers on Si (001) with optical self-injection feedback.

Silicon based InAs quantum dot mode locked lasers (QD-MLLs) are promising to be integrated with silicon photonic integrated circuits (PICs) for optical time division multiplexing (OTDM), wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) and optical clocks. Single section QD-MLL can provide high-frequency optical pulses with low power consumption and low-cost production possibilities. However, the linewidths of the QD-MLLs are larger than quantum well lasers, which generally introduce additional phase noise during optical transmission. Here, we demonstrated a single section MLL monolithically grown on Si (001) substrate with a repetition rate of 23.5 GHz. The 3-dB Radio Frequency (RF) linewidth of the QD-MLL was stabilized at optimized injection current under free running mode. By introducing self-injection feedback locking at a feedback strength of -24dB, the RF linewidth of MLL was significantly narrowed by two orders of magnitude from 900kHz to 8kHz.

P-doped 1300 nm InAs/GaAs quantum dot lasers directly grown on an SOI substrate.

The realization of monolithic integration of a stable III-V laser on a standard silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate has been regarded as a challenging technology for silicon-based photonic integration circuits (PICs). Here, we successfully demonstrated the electrically pumped P-doped 1300 nm InAs/GaAs quantum dot (QD) laser epitaxially grown on {111}-faceted SOI hollow substrates. These III-V QD lasers, which are epitaxially grown on an SOI substrate, generally exhibit strong thermal accumulation due to the oxide layer underneath. By applying a double-side heat dissipation design, the maximum operation temperature of the SOI-based InAs/GaAs QD laser under a continuous-wave (CW) operation mode is ramped up to 35°C from 20°C. Moreover, the thermal profile simulation of three different structures has also been carried out to show the effectiveness of the top heat sink design in order to improve laser performance. An integrated thermal shunt design is proposed to improve heat dissipation without using the external top heat sink. The successful realization of room-temperature SOI-based InAs/GaAs QD lasers pave a viable way for integrating light sources in PICs.

Pleural effusion as an indicator for the poor prognosis of COVID-19 patients.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus Disease 19 (COVID-19) is a global health concern that has become a pandemic over the past few months. This study aims at understanding the clinical manifestations of COVID-19 patients with pleural effusion. METHODS: COVID-19 patients were retrospectively enrolled from the Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. Pharyngeal swabs from patients were tested using real-time polymerase chain reaction. Patients with COVID-19 were divided into two groups based on their computed tomography (CT) scans for the presence of pleural effusion at admission. We compared the clinical features, laboratory findings, scans and clinical outcomes between the two groups. RESULTS: Pleural effusion was observed in 9.19% of the patients. Patients with pleural effusion were more likely to be severe or critical cases. Moreover, patients with pleural effusion were associated with increased mortality. Of the 799 discharged patients, patients with pleural effusion had longer hospital stays and duration of viral shedding since the onset of symptoms as compared with that for patients without pleural effusion. After discharge, 217 patients visited for a follow-up CT re-examination at the Union Hospital. The CT scans showed that patients with pleural effusion required a longer time to resolve the lung inflammation after the onset of COVID-19 as compared with the time required by patients without pleural effusion. CONCLUSION: This population of patients requires special attention and pleural effusion may be an indicator of poor prognosis in COVID-19 patients.

Selection signatures of Fuzhong Buffalo based on whole-genome sequences.

BACKGROUND: Fuzhong buffalo, a native breed of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, is traditionally used as a draft animal to provide farm power in the rice cultivation. In addition, the Fuzhong buffalo also prepared for the bullfighting festival organized by the locals. The detection of the selective signatures in its genome can help in elucidating the selection mechanisms in its stamina and muscle development of a draft animal. RESULTS: In this study, we analyzed 27 whole genomes of buffalo (including 15 Fuzhong buffalo genomes and 12 published buffalo genomes from Upper Yangtze region). The ZHp, ZFst, π-Ratio, and XP-EHH statistics were used to identify the candidate signatures of positive selection in Fuzhong buffalo. Our results detected a set of candidate genes involving in the pathways and GO terms associated with the response to exercise (e.g., ALDOA, STAT3, AKT2, EIF4E2, CACNA2D2, TCF4, CDH2), immunity (e.g., PTPN22, NKX2-3, PIK3R1, ITK, TMEM173), nervous system (e.g., PTPN21, ROBO1, HOMER1, MAGI2, SLC1A3, NRG3, SNAP47, CTNNA2, ADGRL3). In addition, we also identified several genes related to production and growth traits (e.g., PHLPP1, PRKN, MACF1, UCN3, RALGAPA1, PHKB, PKD1L). Our results depicted several pathways, GO terms, and candidate genes to be associated with response to exercise, immunity, nervous system, and growth traits. CONCLUSIONS: The selective sweep analysis of the Fuzhong buffalo demonstrated positive selection pressure on potential target genes involved in behavior, immunity, and growth traits, etc. Our findings provided a valuable resource for future research on buffalo breeding and an insight into the mechanisms of artificial selection.

Diarrhea Is Associated With Prolonged Symptoms and Viral Carriage in Corona Virus Disease 2019.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: We compared clinical, laboratory, radiological, and outcome features of patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection (COVID-19) with pneumonia, with vs without diarrhea. METHODS: We performed a retrospective, single-center analysis of 84 patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia in Wuhan Union Hospital, China, from January 19 through February 7, 2020. Cases were confirmed by real-time reverse-transcriptase PCR of nasal and pharyngeal swab specimens for SARS-CoV-2 RNA. Blood samples were analyzed for white blood cell count, lymphocyte count, alanine aminotransferase, creatine kinase, lactate dehydrogenase, D-dimer, C-reactive protein, and in some cases, immunoglobulins, complement, lymphocyte subsets, and cytokines. Virus RNA was detected in stool samples by real-time PCR. RESULTS: Of the 84 patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia, 26 (31%) had diarrhea. The duration of fever and dyspnea in patients with diarrhea was significantly longer than those without diarrhea (all P < .05). Stool samples from a higher proportion of patients with diarrhea tested positive for virus RNA (69%) than from patients without diarrhea (17%) (P < .001). As of February 19, a lower proportion of patients with diarrhea had a negative result from the latest throat swab for SARS-CoV-2 (77%) than patients without diarrhea (97%) (P = .010), during these patients' hospitalization. Of 76 patients with a negative result from their latest throat swab test during hospitalization, a significantly higher proportion of patients with diarrhea had a positive result from the retest for SARS-CoV-2 in stool (45%) than patients without diarrhea (20%) (P = .039). CONCLUSIONS: At a single center in Wuhan, China, 31% of patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia had diarrhea. A significantly higher proportion of patients with diarrhea have virus RNA in stool than patients without diarrhea. Elimination of SARS-CoV-2 from stool takes longer than elimination from the nose and throat.

InAs/GaAs quantum dot narrow ridge lasers epitaxially grown on SOI substrates for silicon photonic integration.

Monolithic integration of III-V laser sources on standard silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate has been recognized as an enabling technology for realizing Si-based photonic integration circuits (PICs). The Si-based ridge lasers employing III-V quantum dot (QD) materials are gaining significant momentum as it allows massive-scalable, streamlined fabrication of Si photonic integrated chips to be made cost effectively. Here, we present the successful fabrication of InAs/GaAs QD ridge lasers monolithically grown on {111}-faceted SOI hollow substrates. The as-cleaved Fabry-Perot (FP) narrow ridge laser is achieved with a relatively low threshold current of 50 mA at room temperature under pulse current operation. The maximum working temperature achieved is up to 80 oC. The promising lasing characteristics of such SOI-based InAs/GaAs QD ridge lasers with low threshold current and small footprint provide a viable route towards large-scale, low-cost integration of laser sources on SOI platform for silicon photonic integration purpose.

Phosphorus-free 1.5 µm InAs quantum-dot microdisk lasers on metamorphic InGaAs/SOI platform.

III-V semiconductor lasers epitaxially grown on silicon, especially on a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) platform, have been considered one of the most promising approaches to realize an integrated light source for silicon photonics. Although notable achievements have been reported on InP-based 1.5 µm III-V semiconductor lasers directly grown on silicon substrates, phosphorus-free 1.5 µm InAs quantum dot (QD) lasers on both silicon and SOI platforms are still uncharted territory. In this work, we demonstrate, to the best of our knowledge, the first phosphorus-free InAs QD microdisk laser epitaxially grown on SOI substrate emitting at the telecommunications S-band by growing metamorphic InAs/InGaAs QDs on (111)-faceted SOI hollow structures. The lasing threshold power for a seven-layer InAs QD microdisk laser with a diameter of 4 µm is measured as 234 µW at 200 K. For comparison, identical microdisk lasers grown on GaAs substrate are also characterized. The results obtained pave the way for an on-chip 1.5 µm light source for long-haul telecommunications.

Automatic scratch detector for optical surface.

Scratches on the surface of optical components have serious impacts on optical system such as imaging quality of lens and/or mirrors in optical imaging systems, light-collecting abilities of laser fusion and solar concentrator systems. The size of the scratches is a key issue for analyzing and assessing the impacts quantitatively. Most of the available testing methods for scratches depend on human visual inspection (HVI) with naked eyes by workers, which leads to low efficiency and accuracy. This paper presents an automatic detecting method for the scratches on optical surface with machine vision inspection (MVI) method. The microscopic dark-field scattering imaging system is used as the front end of the detection system. A dedicated algorithm is designed for non-closing scratch detection. The core merits of this algorithm lies in three folds: 1) automatic processing capabilities, which includes positioning, clustering, and precise estimation of the length of the scratches; 2) high efficiency, which is characterized by a short time interval, i.e., about 0.138 second per binary image with 2724 × 2724 pixels in our experiments; 3) high accuracy, where the error rate of the total length of the scratches detected is less than 5% when compared with the nominal visual measurement result obtained via HVI method. The proposed scratch detecting algorithm can be used for non-destructive testing (NDT) of the glass-like surfaces.

Identification of novel cell glycolysis related gene signature predicting survival in patients with endometrial cancer.

BACKGROUND: Endometrial cancer (EC) is one of the three major gynecological malignancies. Numerous biomarkers that may be associated with survival and prognosis have been identified through database mining in previous studies. However, the predictive ability of single-gene biomarkers is not sufficiently specific. Genetic signatures may be an improved option for prediction. This study aimed to explore data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) to identify a new genetic signature for predicting the prognosis of EC. METHODS: mRNA expression profiling was performed in a group of patients with EC (n = 548) from TCGA. Gene set enrichment analysis was performed to identify gene sets that were significantly different between EC tissues and normal tissues. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to identify genes significantly associated with overall survival. Quantitative real-time-PCR was used to verify the reliability of the expression of selected mRNAs. Subsequent multivariate Cox regression analysis was used to establish a prognostic risk parameter formula. Kaplan-Meier survival estimates and the log-rank test were used to validate the significance of risk parameters for prognosis prediction. RESULT: Nine genes associated with glycolysis (CLDN9, B4GALT1, GMPPB, B4GALT4, AK4, CHST6, PC, GPC1, and SRD5A3) were found to be significantly related to overall survival. The results of mRNA expression analysis by PCR were consistent with those of bioinformatics analysis. Based on the nine-gene signature, the 548 patients with EC were divided into high/low-risk subgroups. The prognostic ability of the nine-gene signature was not affected by other factors. CONCLUSION: A nine-gene signature associated with cellular glycolysis for predicting the survival of patients with EC was developed. The findings provide insight into the mechanisms of cellular glycolysis and identification of patients with poor prognosis in EC.

Divergent transcriptomic responses underlying the ranaviruses-amphibian interaction processes on interspecies infection of Chinese giant salamander.

BACKGROUND: Ranaviruses (family Iridoviridae, nucleocytoplasmic large DNA viruses) have been reported as promiscuous pathogens of cold-blooded vertebrates. Rana grylio virus (RGV, a ranavirus), from diseased frog Rana grylio with a genome of 105.79 kb and Andrias davidianus ranavirus (ADRV), from diseased Chinese giant salamander (CGS) with a genome of 106.73 kb, contains 99% homologous genes. RESULTS: To uncover the differences in virus replication and host responses under interspecies infection, we analyzed transcriptomes of CGS challenged with RGV and ADRV in different time points (1d, 7d) for the first time. A total of 128,533 unigenes were obtained from 820,858,128 clean reads. Transcriptome analysis revealed stronger gene expression of RGV than ADRV at 1 d post infection (dpi), which was supported by infection in vitro. RGV replicated faster and had higher titers than ADRV in cultured CGS cell line. RT-qPCR revealed the RGV genes including the immediate early gene (RGV-89R) had higher expression level than that of ADRV at 1 dpi. It further verified the acute infection of RGV in interspecies infection. The number of differentially expressed genes and enriched pathways from RGV were lower than that from ADRV, which reflected the variant host responses at transcriptional level. No obvious changes of key components in pathway "Antigen processing and presentation" were detected for RGV at 1 dpi. Contrarily, ADRV infection down-regulated the expression levels of MHC I and CD8. The divergent host immune responses revealed the differences between interspecies and natural infection, which may resulted in different fates of the two viruses. Altogether, these results revealed the differences in transcriptome responses among ranavirus interspecies infection of amphibian and new insights in DNA virus-host interactions in interspecies infection. CONCLUSION: The DNA virus (RGV) not only expressed self-genes and replicated quickly after entry into host under interspecies infection, but also avoided the over-activation of host responses. The strategy could gain time for the survival of interspecies pathogen, and may provide opportunity for its adaptive evolution and interspecies transmission.

Advantages of Early Preventive Ileostomy Closure after Total Mesorectal Excision Surgery for Rectal Cancer: An Institutional Retrospective Study of 123 Consecutive Patients.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Preventive ileostomy is frequently constructed to minimizethe consequences of anastomotic leakage after resection of rectal cancer. There is no consensus regarding the best timing for temporary stoma closure after proctectomy for rectal cancer. This retrospective study sought to determine whether the timing of stoma closure influenced postoperative outcomes. METHODS: Subjects were 123 patients with rectal cancer undergoing laparoscopic or open total mesorectal excision surgery with preventive ileostomy from 2012 to 2015. They were divided into 2 groups according the timing of stoma closure: the standard group who had closure within 90 (60-120) days (n = 78) and the late group who had closure after 180 (150-210) days (n = 45). RESULTS: There was no significant difference in operative time, operative blood loss or postoperative complications between the 2 groups. Timing of postoperative fasting and length of hospital stay was similar in both groups. Adjuvant chemotherapy was not a risk factor for postoperative complications after stoma closure. CONCLUSIONS: There was no significant difference between different timings of temporary stoma closure in relation to postoperative complications. Delayed stoma closure showed no benefit in prevention of morbidity. Early closure is safe and can provide better quality of life for patients.

Cytotoxic and antioxidant constituents from the leaves of Psidium guajava.

Psidium guajava (Myrtaceae) is an evergreen shrub growing extensively throughout the tropical and subtropical areas. Four new compounds, guavinoside C, D, E and F (1-3, 10) were isolated from the leaves of P. guajava, along with six known ones (4-9). Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic analysis. Compounds 1, 4 and 10 showed significant cytotoxic activities on HeLa, SGC-7901 and A549 cell lines, respectively. Compounds 1 and 4-10 showed antioxidant activities in DPPH, ABTS and FRAP assays, and five of them (1, 4-6, 10) exhibited stronger activities than that of vitamin C.

Characterization of the novel HLA-DQB1*03:516 allele by next-generation sequencing.

HLA-DQB1*03:516 differs from DQB1*03:03:02:03 by one nucleotide substitution at position 197G>A in exon 2.