Construction of a 3D Quantum Dot Nanoassembly with Two-Step FRET for One-Step Sensing of Human Telomerase RNA in Breast Cancer Cells and Tissues.

Telomerase is an important biomarker for early diagnosis of cancers, but current telomerase assays usually rely on measuring the extension products of telomerase substrates, which increases the assay complexity. More evidence indicates that human telomerase RNA (hTR), as a core component of telomerase, is positively correlated with the telomerase activity. Herein, we demonstrate the development of a duplex-specific nuclease (DSN)-propelled 3D quantum dot (QD) nanoassembly with two-step Föster resonance energy transfer (FRET) for the one-step sensing of hTR in breast cancer cells and tissues. This assay involves only one hairpin probe modified with a Cy5 at the sixth base from the 5'-biotin end and a BHQ2 at the 3'-terminus, which integrates three functions of target recognition, target recycling amplification, and signal readout. The anchoring of the hairpin probe on the 605QD surface results in the formation of a 3D 605QD-Cy5-probe-BHQ2 nanoassembly in which two-step FRET occurs among the 605QD, Cy5, and BHQ2 quencher. Notably, the formation of 605QD-Cy5-probe-BHQ2 nanoassembly facilitates the reduction of background signal and the increase of signal-to-background ratio due to its dense, highly oriented nucleic acid shell-induced steric hindrance effect. This assay can achieve one-step and rapid detection of hTR with a detection limit of 2.10 fM, which is the simplest and most rapid hTR assay reported so far. Moreover, this assay can efficiently distinguish single-base mismatched sequences, and it can discriminate the hTR level between breast cancer patients and healthy donors with a high accuracy of 100%, with great prospects for early diagnosis of cancers.

High-efficiency upconversion luminescence in UCNPs/CsPbBr3 nanocomposites enhanced by silver nanoparticles.

Upconversion nanocomposites with multiple light-emitting centers have attracted great attention as functional materials, but their low efficiency limits their further applications. Herein, a novel, to the best of our knowledge, system for nanocomposites consisting of upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) and perovskite quantum dots (PeQDs) assembled with Ag nanoparticles (NPs) is proposed. Upconversion luminescence (UCL) operation from PeQDs is triggered by near-infrared (NIR) sensitization through Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) and photon reabsorption (PR). Especially, the photoluminescence (PL) emission efficiency is found to be significantly enhanced due to the increased energy transfer efficiency and radiative decay rate in the UCNPs/CsPbBr3 nanocomposites. The results offer new opportunities to improve the UCL properties of perovskites and open new development in the fields of LED lighting, solar cells, biomedicine, and so on.

Mix-and-Detection Assay with Multiple Cyclic Enzymatic Repairing Amplification for Rapid and Ultrasensitive Detection of Long Noncoding RNAs in Breast Tissues.

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are valuable biomarkers and therapeutic targets, and they play essential roles in various pathological and biological processes. So far, the reported lncRNA assays usually suffer from unsatisfactory sensitivity and time-consuming procedures. Herein, we develop a mix-and-read assay based on multiple cyclic enzymatic repairing amplification (ERA) for sensitive and rapid detection of mammalian metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (lncRNA MALAT1). In this assay, we design two three-way junction (3WJ) probes including a 3WJ template and a 3WJ primer to specifically recognize lncRNA MALAT1, and the formation of a stable 3WJ structure induces cyclic ERA to generate triggers. The resulting triggers subsequently hybridize with a free 3WJ template and act as primers to initiate new rounds of cyclic ERA, generating abundant triggers. The hybridization of triggers with signal probes forms stable double-stranded DNA duplexes that can be specifically cleaved by apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease 1 to produce a high fluorescence signal. This assay can be carried out in a mix-and-read manner within 10 min under an isothermal condition (50 °C), which is the rapidest and simplest method reported so far for the lncRNA MALAT1 assay. This method can sensitively detect lncRNA MALAT1 with a limit of detection of 0.87 aM, and it can accurately measure endogenous lncRNA MALAT1 at the single-cell level. Moreover, this method can distinguish lncRNA MALAT1 expression in breast cancer patient tissues and their corresponding healthy adjacent tissues. Importantly, the extension of this assay to different RNAs detection can be achieved by simply replacing the corresponding target recognition sequences.

Construction of a Single-Molecule Biosensor for Antibody-Free Detection of Locus-Specific N6-Methyladenosine in Cancer Cells and Tissues.

N6-Methyladenosine (m6A) has emerged as a key post-transcriptional regulator in mRNA metabolism, and its dysregulation is associated with multiple human diseases. Herein, we construct a single-molecule fluorescent biosensor for antibody-free detection of locus-specific m6A in cancer cells and tissues. A 5'-biotinylated capture probe and a 3'-hydroxylated assistant probe are designed for the recognition of specific m6A-mRNA. The m6A-sensitive endoribonuclease MazF can identify and cleave the unmethylated mRNA, and the retained intact m6A-mRNA can hybridize with assistant probes and capture probes to achieve sandwich hybrids. The sandwich hybrids are immobilized on magnetic beads (MBs) to initiate the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT)-assisted polymerization, facilitating the continuous incorporation of Cy5-dATP to form long Cy5-polyA tails for the production of an on-bead amplified fluorescence signal. After magnetic separation and exonuclease digestion, numerous Cy5 fluorophores are released and subsequently measured by single-molecule detection. Especially, this biosensor is implemented simply and isothermally without the involvement of either radiolabeling or m6A-specific antibody. Moreover, this biosensor shows ultrahigh sensitivity with a detection limit of 2.24 × 10-17 M, and it can discriminate a 0.01% m6A level from a large pool of coexisting counterparts. Furthermore, this biosensor can be used for monitoring cellular m6A-mRNA expression and differentiating the m6A level in the breast cancer patient tissues from that in the healthy person tissues, providing a new avenue for clinical diagnosis and epitranscriptomic research.

Construction of a Dendritic Nanoassembly-Based Fluorescent Biosensor for Electrostatic Interaction-Independent and Label-Free Measurement of Human Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerase 1 in Lung Tissues.

Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 (PARP-1) is responsible for catalyzing the creation of poly(ADP-ribose) polymer and involved in DNA replication and repair. Sensitive measurement of PARP-1 is critical for clinical diagnosis. However, the conventional electrostatic attraction-based PAPR-1 assays usually involve laborious procedures, poor sensitivity, and false positives. Herein, we demonstrate the construction of a dendritic nanoassembly-based fluorescent biosensor for electrostatic interaction-independent and label-free measurement of human PARP-1 in lung tumor tissues. When PARP-1 is present, the specific double-stranded DNA (dsDNA)-activated PARP-1 transfers the ADP-ribosyl group from nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+)/biotinylated NAD+ to the PARP-1 itself, resulting in the formation of biotinylated dsDNA-PARP-1-PAR polymer bioconjugates that can be captured by magnetic beads. Upon the addition of TdT, APE1, and NH2-modified T-rich probe, the captured dsDNAs with dual 3'-OH termini initiate TdT-activated APE1-mediated hyperbranched amplification to produce abundant dendritic DNA nanoassemblies that can be stained by SYBR Green I to generate a high fluorescence signal. This biosensor is characterized by a template-free, electrostatic interaction-independent, high sensitivity, and label-free assay. It enables rapid (less than 3 h) measurement of PARP-1 with a limit of detection of 4.37 × 10-8 U/µL and accurate measurement of cellular PARP-1 activity with single-cell sensitivity. Moreover, it is capable of screening potential inhibitors and discriminating the PARP-1 level in normal person tissues and lung cancer patient tissues, with great potential in PARP-1-related clinical diagnosis and drug discovery.

Construction of Multiple DNAzymes Driven by Single Base Elongation and Ligation for Single-Molecule Monitoring of FTO in Cancer Tissues.

Fat mass and obesity-associated proteins (FTO) play an essential role in the reversible regulation of N6-methyladenosine (m6A) epigenetic modification, and the overexpression of FTO is closely associated with the occurrence of diverse human diseases (e.g., obesity and cancers). Herein, we demonstrate the construction of multiple DNAzymes driven by single base elongation and ligation for the single-molecule monitoring of FTO in cancer tissues. When target FTO is present, the m6A-RNA is specifically demethylated and subsequently acts as a primer to combine with the padlock probe, initiating single-base elongation and ligation reaction to generate a closed template probe. Upon the addition of phi29 DNA polymerase, a rolling circle amplification (RCA) reaction is initiated to produce large numbers of Mg2+-dependent DNAzyme repeats. Subsequently, the DNAzymes cyclically digest the signal probes, liberating numerous Cy5 molecules that can be precisely counted by single-molecule imaging. Taking advantage of the sequence specificity of the polymerase/ligase-mediated gap-filling and ligation as well as the high amplification efficiency of RCA, this biosensor shows excellent specificity and high sensitivity with a detection limit of 5.96 × 10-16 M. It can be applied to screen FTO inhibitors and quantify FTO activity at the single-cell level. Moreover, the proposed strategy can accurately distinguish the FTO expression level in tissues of healthy individuals and breast cancer patients, providing a new platform for drug discovery, m6A modification-related research, and clinical diagnostics.

Far-field mid-infrared microscopy via spatial frequency shifting of evanescent waves in photorefractive nematic liquid crystal.

Mid-infrared wavelength has unique advantages in revealing the nanostructures and molecular vibrational signatures. However, the mid-infrared subwavelength imaging is also limited by diffraction. Here, we propose a scheme for breaking the limitation in mid-infrared imaging. With the assistance of orientational photorefractive grating established in nematic liquid crystal, evanescent waves are efficiently shifted back into the observation window. The visualized propagation of power spectra in k-space also proves this point. The resolution has an improvement about 3.2 times higher than the linear case, showing potentials in various imaging areas, such as biological tissues imaging and label-free chemical sensing.

Multi-color UCNPs/CsPb(Br1-xIx)3 for upconversion luminescence and dual-modal anticounterfeiting.

Advanced hybrid materials have attracted extensive attention in optoelectronics and photonics application due to their unique and excellent properties. Here, the multicolor upconversion luminescence properties of the hybrid materials composed of CsPbX3(X = Br/I) perovskite quantum dots and upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs, core-shell NaYF4:25%Yb3+,0.5%Tm3+@NaYF4) is reported, achieving the upconversion luminescence with stable and bright of CsPbX3 perovskite quantum dots under 980 nm excitation. Compared with the nonlinear upconversion of multi-photon absorption in perovskite, UCNPs/CsPbX3 achieves lower power density excitation by using the UCNPs as the physical energy transfer level, meeting the demand for multi-color upconversion luminescence in optical applications. Also, the UCNPs/CsPbX3 combined with ultraviolet curable resin (UVCR) shows excellent water and air stability, which can be employed as multicolor fluorescent ink for screen printing security labels. Through the conversion strategy, the message of the security labels can be encrypted and decrypted by using UV light and a 980 nm continuous wave excitation laser as a switch, which greatly improves the difficulty of forgery. These findings provide a general method to stimulate photon upconversion and improve the stability of perovskite nanocrystals, which will be better applied in the field of anti-counterfeiting.

Synergistic luminescence effect and high-pressure optical properties of CsPbBr2Cl@EuMOFs nanocomposites.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are a class of highly porous materials that have garnered significant attention in the field of optoelectronics due to their exceptional properties. In this study, CsPbBr2Cl@EuMOFs nanocomposites were synthesized using a two-step method. The fluorescence evolution of the CsPbBr2Cl@EuMOFs was investigated under high pressure, revealing a synergistic luminescence effect between CsPbBr2Cl and Eu3+. The study found that the synergistic luminescence of CsPbBr2Cl@EuMOFs remains stable even under high pressure, and there is no energy transfer among different luminous centers. These findings provide a meaningful case for future research on nanocomposites with multiple luminescent centers. Additionally, CsPbBr2Cl@EuMOFs exhibit a sensitive color-changing mechanism under high pressure, making them a promising candidate for pressure calibration via the color change of the MOF materials.

Instability-driven image recovery of 180-degree backscattered polarized-light in turbid water.

Although the incoherent modulation instability has been proven to be effective for the recovery of forward-scattering images, the similar attempt of backscatter is still non-ideal. In this paper, considering the preservation properties of polarization and coherence in 180° backscatter, we propose an instability-driven nonlinear imaging method based on polarization modulation. A coupling model is established using Mueller calculus and mutual coherence function, in which the instability generation and image reconstruction are both analyzed. Experimental results clearly show the enhancement of imaging quality. This method is general and has potential for echo detection in various scattering environments.

Construction of an APE1-Mediated Cascade Signal Amplification Platform for Homogeneously Sensitive and Rapid Measurement of DNA Methyltransferase in Escherichia coli Cells.

DNA methylation is an essential genomic epigenetic behavior in both eukaryotes and prokaryotes. Deregulation of DNA methyltransferase (Dam MTase) can change the DNA methylation level and cause various diseases. Herein, we develop an apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease 1 (APE1)-mediated cascade signal amplification platform for homogeneously sensitive and rapid measurement of Dam MTase in Escherichia coli cells. This assay involves a partial double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) substrate and two hairpin signal probes (HP1 and HP2) that are modified with Cy5 and BHQ2 at two ends, respectively. When Dam MTase is present, it methylates the dsDNA substrate, and subsequently, endonuclease DpnI cleaves the methylated substrate, yielding trigger probe 1. Hybridization of trigger probe 1 with HP1 forms a partial dsDNA containing an apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP) site, which is cleaved by APE1 to induce the cyclic cleavage of HP1 and the production of abundant trigger probe 2. Subsequent hybridization of trigger probe 2 with HP2 forms a partial dsDNA with an AP site, inducing the cyclic cleavage of HP2 by APE1. Consequently, cyclic cleavage of HP1 and HP2 induces the generation of abundant Cy5 molecules, which are easily measured by single-molecule imaging. This assay can be performed homogeneously and rapidly within 2 h, which is the shortest among the reported amplification-based assays. Moreover, it exhibits good selectivity and high sensitivity, and it can discriminate Dam MTase from other enzymes and screen inhibitors. Importantly, it can accurately measure the Dam MTase activity in serum and E. coli cells, with promising applications in clinical diagnosis and drug discovery.

Single-Molecule Biosensing of Alkaline Phosphatase in Cells and Serum Based on Dephosphorylation-Triggered Catalytic Assembly and Disassembly of the Fluorescent DNA Chain.

Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) is a valuable biomarker and effective therapeutic target for the diagnosis and treatment of diverse human diseases, including bone disorder, cardiovascular disease, and cancers. The reported ALP assays often suffer from laborious procedures, costly reagents, inadequate sensitivity, and large sample consumption. Herein, we report a new single-molecule fluorescent biosensor for the simple and ultrasensitive detection of ALP. In this assay, the ALP-catalyzed dephosphorylation of detection probe can protect the detection probe against lambda exonuclease-mediated digestion, and the remaining detection probes can trigger ceaseless hybridization between two Cy5-labeled hairpin probes through toehold-mediated DNA strand displacement, generating a long fluorescent DNA chain, which can be subsequently separated from unhybridized hairpin probes and disassembled into dispersed Cy5 moieties upon NaOH treatment. The free Cy5 moieties indicate the presence of ALP and can be directly quantified via single-molecule counting. This biosensor enables efficient amplification and transduction of the target ALP signal through enzyme-free assembly and disassembly processes, significantly simplifying the experimental procedure and improving the assay accuracy. The proposed biosensor allows specific and ultrasensitive detection of ALP activity with a detection limit down to 2.61 × 10-6 U mL-1 and is suitable for ALP inhibition assay and kinetic analysis. Moreover, this biosensor can be applied for endogenous ALP detection in human cells and clinical human serum, holding the potential in the ALP biological function study and clinical diagnosis.

[68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT has potential application in predicting tumor HIF-2α expression and therapeutic response to HIF-2α antagonists in patients with RCC.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of parameters derived from [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT images in predicting pathological HIF-2α expression in primary tumors among patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC). METHODS: Fifty-three RCC patients with preoperative [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT scans and complete surgical specimens were retrospectively enrolled in this study. Radiographic parameters were obtained from PET/CT images, and immunohistochemistry was used to measure the expression of HIF-2α and PSMA. Continuous variables and categorical variables were analyzed by the Mann-Whitney U test and chi-square test, respectively. ROC analysis was used to test the efficacy of several preoperative parameters in identifying pathological HIF-2α expression. Univariable logistic regression analyses were performed for significant parameters to predict pathological HIF-2α expression in RCC. RESULTS: Of the 53 tumors, 29 (54.7%) had high expression of HIF-2α. The SUVmax was significantly different in the HIF-2α expression subgroups (p < 0.001). SUVmax emerged as the most significant parameter to differentiate HIF-2α expression subgroups (high vs. low), with the AUC of 0.93 (95% CI 0.85-1.00, p < 0.001), sensitivity of 90%, and specificity of 88%. Furthermore, SUVmax was confirmed as the most significant predictor of HIF-2α expression level by univariable logistic regression model analysis (odds ratio 1.39, 95% CI 1.17-1.65, p < 0.001). Consistent with the radiographic results of [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT, the staining intensity of pathological PSMA was significantly higher in HIF-2α-high-expressing tumors (p = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT was superior in identifying pathological HIF-2α expression in primary tumors of RCC patients, demonstrating its potential application in predicting responses to HIF-2α antagonists. KEY POINTS: • [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT could potentially predict the HIF-2α expression of primary tumors among patients with RCC. • SUVmaxof [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT was the most significant predictor of HIF-2α expression level. • This probability could help predict the therapeutic response of patients with RCC to HIF-2α antagonists.

3'-Terminal Repair-Powered Dendritic Nanoassembly of Polyadenine Molecular Beacons for One-Step Quantification of Alkaline Phosphatase in Human Serum.

Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) is an important hydrolase with crucial roles in biological processes, and the dysregulation of ALP may cause various human diseases. The conventional ALP assays usually involve cumbersome procedures with poor sensitivity. Herein, taking advantage of intrinsic superiorities of molecular beacons (MBs) and unique features of terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT), we demonstrate for the first time the 3'-terminal repair-powered dendritic nanoassembly of polyadenine (A) MBs for one-step quantification of ALP in human serum. When ALP is present, it catalyzes 3'-terminal dephosphorylation of poly-A MBs to induce TdT-mediated template-free polymerization, generating long chains of polythymidine (T) sequences. The long poly-T chains can function as the anchoring templates to hybridize with many poly-A MBs, leading to the unfolding of loop structures and the dissociation of FAM/BHQ1 pairs (the 1st amplification stage). Subsequently, all 3'-hydroxylated poly-A MBs can be extended with the assistance of TdT to generate the branched long poly-T chains, leading to the hybridization of more poly-A MBs and the dissociation of more FAM/BHQ1 pairs (the 2nd amplification stage). Through multiple rounds of extension, assembly, and activation of poly-A MBs, dendritic DNA nanostructures are automatically formed, resulting in the dissociation of abundant fluorophores from the FAM/BHQ1 pairs to generate an exponentially amplified fluorescence signal (the nth amplification stage). This strategy possesses high sensitivity and excellent specificity, and the detection limit can reach 1 cell. Moreover, it can evaluate kinetic parameters, screen inhibitors, estimate cellular inhibition effects, and measure ALP in human serums.

Self-Assembly of Superquenched Gold Nanoparticle Nanosensors for Lighting up BACE-1 in Live Cells.

The ß-site amyloid precursor protein-cleaving enzyme 1 (BACE-1) plays a key role in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis and is regarded as a valuable biomarker for AD diagnosis and treatment. The reported BACE-1 assay often suffers from laborious procedures, large sample consumption, and unsatisfactory sensitivity with high background signals. Herein, we report the self-assembly of superquenched gold nanoparticle (AuNP) nanosensors for lighting up the BACE-1 in live cells. Through the self-assembly of both fluorophore-labeled peptide probes and quencher-labeled assistant DNAs on the surface of a single AuNP, a superquenched AuNP nanoprobe is obtained with a high quenching efficiency of 98.37% and a near-zero background fluorescence. The presence of target BACE-1 induces a distinct fluorescence signal as a result of the BACE-1-catalyzed cleavage of peptide probe and the subsequent release of abundant fluorophore moieties from the AuNP nanoprobe. The fluorescence signal can be directly visualized by single-molecule imaging and easily quantified by single-molecule counting. This nanosensor involves only a single nanoprobe for the one-step homogeneous detection of the BACE-1 activity without the requirements of any antibodies and separation steps, and it possesses good selectivity and high sensitivity with a low detection limit of 26.48 pM. Moreover, it can be employed to screen BACE-1 inhibitors and analyze kinetic parameters. Especially, this nanoprobe possesses good stability and can be easily transferred into live cells for the real-time imaging of cellular BACE-1 activity, providing a new platform for BACE-1-associated research and early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease.

STED microscopy reveals in-situ photoluminescence properties of single nanostructures in densely perovskite thin films.

All-inorganic perovskite nanomaterials have attracted much attention recently due to their prominent optical performance and potential application for optoelectronic devices. The carriers dynamics of all-inorganic perovskites has been the research focus because the understanding of carriers dynamics process is of critical importance for improving the fluorescence conversion efficiency. While photophysical properties of excited carrier are usually measured at the macroscopic scale, it is necessary to probe the in-situ dynamics process at the nanometer scale and gain deep insights into the photophysical mechanisms and their localized dependence on the thin-film nanostructures. Stimulated emission depletion (STED) nanoscopy with super-resolution beyond the diffraction limit can directly provide explicit information at a single particle level or nanometer scale. Through this unique technique, we firstly study the in-situ dynamics process of single CsPbBr3 nanocrystals(NCs) and nanostructures embedded inside high-dense samples. Our findings reveal the different physical mechanisms of PL blinking and antibunching for single CsPbBr3 NCs and nanostructures that correlate with thin-film nanostructural features (e.g. defects, grain boundaries and carrier mobility). The insights gained into such nanostructure-localized physical mechanisms are critically important for further improving the material quality and its corresponding device performance.

Nonlinear super-resolution imaging via orientationally enhanced photorefractive effect in polymer.

Resulting from the attenuation of evanescent waves in imaging, conventional microscopy techniques always yield few subwavelength features. In this Letter, a nonlinear far-field super-resolution technique is investigated, which is theoretically beyond the linear diffraction limitation. Based on the orientationally enhanced photorefractive effect of polymer, an inherently phase-matched diffraction grating is established and generates daughter modes by wave mixture. Almost all of these modes can pass through a finite-aperture filter and be sensed for reconstruction. An improvement of resolution of about four times is obtained and expected to be increased further. This work may provide a potential strategy for various subwavelength-resolved imaging applications.

Comprehensive evaluation of 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT parameters for discriminating pathological characteristics in primary clear-cell renal cell carcinoma.

PURPOSE: To evaluate parameters derived from 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT images for discriminating pathological characteristics in primary clear-cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). METHODS: The study retrospectively examined data for 36 ccRCC patients with preoperative 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT scan and surgical specimens. Radiological parameters including maximal tumor diameter, mean CT value, and maximal standard uptake value (SUVmax) were derived from PET/CT images. Pathological characteristics included WHO/ISUP grade and adverse pathology (tumor necrosis or sarcomatoid or rhabdoid feature). Values of radiological parameters were compared within subgroups of pathological characteristics. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used for the effectiveness of radiological parameters in differentiating pathological characteristics, estimating area under the ROC curve (AUC) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RESULTS: The WHO/ISUP grade distribution for 36 tumors was grade 1, 9 (25.0%); grade 2, 12 (33.3%); grade 3, 9 (25.0%); and grade 4, 6 (16.7%). Adverse pathology was positive for 15 (41.7%). Radiological tumor diameter and SUVmax significantly differed by WHO/ISUP grade, pT stage, and adverse pathology (all P < 0.05), with no difference by CT value. Tumor diameter demonstrated sensitivity 86% and specificity 88% for pT stage, with cutoff 6.70 and AUC 0.91 (95% CI, 0.79-1.00, P < 0.001). SUVmax could effectively differentiate WHO/ISUP grade (3-4 vs. 1-2) and adverse pathology (positive vs. negative), with AUC 0.89 (95% CI, 0.81-0.98, P < 0.001), cutoff 16.4, sensitivity 100%, and specificity 71% and AUC 0.92 (95% CI, 0.85-0.99, P < 0.001), cutoff 18.5, sensitivity 94%, and specificity 87%, respectively. CONCLUSION: 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT could effectively identify aggressive pathological features of ccRCC.

Luminescence property improvement and controllable color regulation of a novel Bi3+ doped Ca2Ta2O7 green phosphor through charge compensation engineering and energy transfer.

In pursuit of warm WLEDs, exploration of novel phosphors and regulation of the existing phosphors are the two approaches usually used in the luminescent material field. In this work, we prepared green Ca2Ta2O7:Bi3+ phosphors firstly and investigated their properties in detail. The as-prepared Ca2Ta2O7:Bi3+ exhibits intense green emission in the 450-580 nm range under UV excitation, which matches well with the UV chip and can efficiently avoid the re-absorption problem. The improvement in the emission intensity and thermal stability of the phosphor was achieved using different charge compensation methods including codoping alkali metal ions (Li+, Na+, and K+), creating a cation vacancy, and host co-substitution (Ca2+ + Ta5+ → Bi3+ + Si4+, Ca2+ + Ta5+ → Bi3+ + Ge4+). Through systematic research, the emission intensity at room temperature was improved 2.1 times and the thermal stability was improved 2.9 times at 200 °C. By coating the prepared green sample with other commercial phosphors on the UV chip, warm WLEDs with Ra being 91.1 and CCT being 3990 K were obtained. Moreover, taking the Bi3+ → Eu3+ energy transfer strategy, the emitting color of the phosphor was tuned and yellow emitting phosphor was obtained. Our study indicates that Bi3+ doped Ca2Ta2O7 might be a potential UV excited green phosphor for WLEDs. The charge compensation methods and the Bi3+ → Eu3+ energy transfer approach are valuable ways to improve and adjust the luminescence properties, which can further derivate a series of novel phosphors for improving the quality of WLED devices.

Effect of high-density lipoprotein on penile erection: A cross-sectional study.

Previous studies have shown that elevated levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) could inhibit penile erection, but the relationship between HDL and the erection of the penile tip or base has not been extensively researched. We investigated the effects of HDL on erection of the penile tip and base through a cross-sectional study of 113 patients with erectile dysfunction, using a cut-off score of ≤21 on the International Index of Erectile Function-5. The following patient data were collected: nocturnal penile tumescence; blood pressure; platelet count; platelet distribution width; mean platelet volume; plateletcrit; and levels of serum glucose, total cholesterol, triglyceride, HDL, and low-density lipoprotein. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to assess the association between HDL levels and the erection of the penile tip and base. We confirmed that HDL had a beneficial effect on penile erectile function. We also found that when the HDL level exceeded the normal range, the change in HDL had a significant effect on the penile base. In addition, our study did not find any relationship between platelet parameters and erection of the penile tip or penile base.