[Shang Ring versus disposable circumcision suture device in the treatment of phimosis or redundant prepuce].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical efficiency of Shang Ring with that of the disposable circumcision suture device (DCSD) in the treatment of phimosis or redundant prepuce. METHODS: From June 2013 to March 2015, we treated 320 patients with phimosis or redundant prepuce using Shang Ring (n=158) or DCSD (n=162). We compared the operation time, intra-operative blood loss, incision healing time, postoperative complications, postoperative satisfaction, and treatment cost between the two groups of patients. RESULTS: Comparison between the Shang Ring and DCSD groups showed that the operation time was (5.6±1.3) vs (5.4±1.2) min, intra-operative blood loss (1.2±0.8) vs (1.3±0.9) ml, postoperative delayed hemorrhage 3.16% (5/158) vs 4.32% (7/162), incision healing time (16.1±7.2) vs (7.5±2.3) d, wound infection 15.82% (25/158) vs 7.41% (12/162), 1-month postoperative incision edema 29.11% (46/158) vs 9.26% (15/162), overall postoperative satisfaction rate 63.92% (101/158) vs 90.12% (146/162), and treatment cost (1121.2±15.6) vs (2142.6±10.8) RMB ¥. There were statistically significant differences between the two groups in the latter five parameters (P<0.05 ), but not in the first three (P>0.05 ). CONCLUSIONS: The DSCD has an obvious superiority over Shang Ring for its relatively lower complication rate, shorter incision healing time, and better cosmetic appearance.

Emerald Ash Borer Infestation-Induced Elevated Negative Correlations and Core Genera Shift in the Endophyte Community of Fraxinus bungeana.

Endophytes, prevalent in plants, mediate plant-insect interactions. Nevertheless, our understanding of the key members of endophyte communities involved in inhibiting or assisting EAB infestation remains limited. Employing ITS and 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing, along with network analysis techniques, we conducted a comprehensive investigation into the reaction of endophytic fungi and bacteria within F. bungeana phloem by comparing EAB-infested and uninfected samples. Our findings reveal that EAB infestation significantly impacts the endophytic communities, altering both their diversity and overall structure. Interestingly, both endophytic fungi and bacteria exhibited distinct patterns in response to the infestation. For instance, in the EAB-infested phloem, the fungi abundance remained unchanged, but diversity decreased significantly. Conversely, bacterial abundance increased, without significant diversity changes. The fungi community structure altered significantly, which was not observed in bacteria. The bacterial composition in the infested phloem underwent significant changes, characterized by a substantial decrease in beneficial species abundance, whereas the fungal composition remained largely unaffected. In network analysis, the endophytes in infested phloem exhibited a modular topology, demonstrating greater complexity due to an augmented number of network nodes, elevated negative correlations, and a core genera shift compared to those observed in healthy phloem. Our findings increase understanding of plant-insect-microorganism relationships, crucial for pest control, considering endophytic roles in plant defense.

[Investigation on damage of bovine serum albumin (BSA) catalyzed by nano-sized silicon dioxide (SiO2) under ultrasonic irradiation using spectral methods].

The damage of bovine serum albumin (BSA) molecules under ultrasonic irradiation in the presence of nano-sized silicon dioxide (SiO2) particles was studied by UV-Vis and fluorescence spectra. In addition, the influences of ultrasonic irradiation time, nano-sized SiO2 addition amount, solution acidity (pH) and ultrasonic irradiation power on the damage of BSA molecules in aqueous solution were also detected. For BSA solution of 1.0 x 10(-5) mol x L(-1) at (37.0+/-0.2) degrees C, the UV-Vis spectra of BSA solutions showed that the absorption peaks of BSA displayed obvious hyperchromic effect with the increase in some influence factors such as ultrasonic irradiation time, nano-sized SiO2 addition amount, pH value and ultrasonic irradiation power. However, the fluorescence spectra of BSA solutions showed the phenomenon of fluorescence quenching with the increase in ultrasonic irradiation time, nano-sized SiO2 addition amount, pH value and ultrasonic irradiation power. Moreover, the possible mechanism behind the damage of BSA molecule in the presence of nano-sized SiO2 powders under ultrasonic irradiation was discussed. It was considered that the damage of BSA molecules was attributed to the formation of *OH radicals resulting from the sonoluminescence and high-heat excitation of ultrasonic cavitation. The research results could be of great significance to using sonocatalytic method to treat tumour in clinic application and for developing nano-sized drug in the future.

Isaria cicadae conidia possess antiproliferative and inducing apoptosis properties in gynaecological carcinoma cells.

Isaria cicadae is an entomogenous fungus that has been used as a traditional Chinese medicinal materials to treat different diseases, including cancer. However, Isaria cicadae conidia for inhibitory activity against breast cancer cells growth are still not systematically studied. The present aim was to elucidate the phytochemical composition of Isaria cicadae conidia and to explore relevant anti-cancer potential in gynaecological carcinoma MCF-7 and Hela cells. Isaria cicadae conidia were identified by UPLC-ESI-Q-TOF-MS: high performance liquid chromatography-electrospray/quadrupole time of flight tandem mass spectrometry technology. Eight main compounds were identified which are nucleosides, cordycepic acid, cordycepin, beauvericin and myriocin by MS fragmentation ions. The nuclear morphology indicated the typical characteristics of apoptosis by Hoechst staining. Annexin V/PI staining revealed that the number of apoptotic cells was increased by Isaria cicadae conidia treatment. Furthermore, Isaria cicadae conidia also induced the caspase-mediated mitochondrial apoptosis pathway. The findings suggest that the full-scale active ingredients highlight the significance of Isaria cicadae conidia as potential anti-cancer agent in China.