Bidirectional Uptake, Transfer, and Transport of Dextran-Based Nanoparticles in Plants for Multidimensional Enhancement of Pesticide Utilization.

The development of effective multifunctional nano-delivery approaches for pesticide absorption remains a challenge. Here, a dextran-based pesticide delivery system (MBD) is constructed to deliver tebuconazole for multidimensionally enhancing its effective utilization on tomato plants. Spherical MBD nanoparticles are obtained through two-step esterification of dextran, followed by tebuconazole loading using the Michael addition reaction. Confocal laser scanning microscopy shows that fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled MBD nanoparticles can be bidirectionally transported in tomato plants and a modified quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe-HPLC approach demonstrates the capacity to carry tebuconazole to plant tissues after 24 h of root uptake and foliar spray, respectively. Additionally, MBD nanoparticles could increase the retention of tebuconazole on tomato leaves by up to nearly 2.1 times compared with the tebuconazole technical material by measuring the tebuconazole content retained on the leaves. In vitro antifungal and pot experiments show that MBD nanoparticles improve the inhibitory effect of tebuconazole against botrytis cinerea by 58.4% and the protection against tomato gray molds by 74.9% compared with commercial suspensions. Furthermore, the MBD nanoparticles do not affect the healthy growth of tomato plants. These results underline the potential for the delivery system to provide a strategy for multidimensional enhancement of pesticide efficacy.

The Application of Mixed Reality to Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy in Breast Cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the value of mixed reality (MR) in sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) in patients with breast cancer. METHODS: A total of 300 patients with breast cancer who underwent SLNB enrolled and were randomly divided into two groups. In group A, only dye (an injection of methylene blue) was used to detect sentinel lymph nodes, while in group B MR was used for positioning in addition to dye. (MR localization method: Before the surgery, we built a 1:1 3D reconstruction model based on the patient's CT or MRI original data, and after the patient was injected with dye, we completed MR localization by overlapping the pre-marked image with the model.) RESULTS: During surgery, the detection time in group B was significantly shorter than in group A (3.62 ± 1.20 vs.7.87 ± 1.86; p < 0.001). At 1-month post-surgery follow-up, the incidence of pain in group B was lower than that in group A (2.70 vs. 8.28%, p = 0.036). The incidence of upper limb dysfunction was lower in group B than in group A (2.03 vs. 8.97%, p = 0.009). In terms of the incidence of pain, group B was better than group A (0.68 vs. 3.45%, p = 0.094). The satisfaction of the two groups was scored, and the results showed that group B was better than group A (4.04 ± 0.91 vs.3.32 ± 0.94, p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: The application of MR to SLNB in breast cancer can significantly reduce the detection time and the occurrence of complications and improve patient satisfaction.

Comparison of curative effects between mammotome-assisted minimally invasive resection (MAMIR) and traditional open surgery for gynecomastia in Chinese patients: A prospective clinical study.

To analyze and compare prospectively the curative effects between mammotome-assisted minimally invasive resection (MAMIR) and traditional open surgery (TOS) for gynecomastia in Chinese male patients, a total of 60 patients suffering from grade I and II gynecomastia, evaluated by automated whole-breast ultrasound (AWBU), were recruited and randomly divided into TOS and MAMIR groups (each n = 30). The postoperative scar size, healing time, patient hospital stay, postoperative satisfaction, postoperative pain, and complications including edema and bruising were analyzed. The participants were followed up for 1 week, 1 month, 6 months, and 1 year after surgery. Compared with patients who received TOS, patients in the MAMIR group had significantly smaller scar sizes (0.40 ± 0.08 cm vs 5.34 ± 0.38 cm, P < 0.01), shorter healing times (3.67 ± 0.71 days vs 7.90 ± 0.92 days, P < 0.01), and hospitalization (2.60 ± 0.62 vs 7.17 ± 0.83 days, P < 0.01), as well as higher postoperative satisfaction (4.70 ± 0.60 vs 3.20 ± 0.55 scores, P < 0.01), respectively. Patients in the MAMIR group experienced postoperative mild pain significantly more often than those in the TOS group (6.70 ± 1.06 vs 4.13 ± 0.78 scores, P < 0.01, respectively), but with significantly less postoperative severe pain (53.33% vs 0.00%, P < 0.000). While the incidence rate of edema and bruises was significantly higher in the MAMIR group compared with the TOS group (47% vs 17%, P = 0.013 and 54% vs 20%, P = 0.007, respectively). MAMIR had advantages for curative effects compared with traditional open surgery. However, the recurrence rate in patients needs to be further studied.

Preparation, Characterization and Intracellular Imaging of 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid Conjugated Gold Nanorods.

Visualizing the biodistribution of pesticides inside living cells is great importance for enhancing targeting of pesticides. Here we reported for the first time that gold nanorods (Au NRs) with size of 39.4 nm x 11.3 nm could be used as a fluorescent tracer to examine the distribution of a typical herbicide, 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D), in tobacco bright yellow 2 (BY-2) cells. The nanostructures of hybrid materials were analyzed by using Raman spectra and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), including spectra assignments and electronic property. These data revealed 2,4-D has successfully conjugated MP-Au NRs according to Raman and XPS. The biodistribution of the conjugates inside BY-2 cells was directly examined at 12 and 24 h by the two-photon microscopy. The intensity of two-photon luminescence (TPL) inside cells demonstrated that the conjugates could be localized and excluded by BY-2 cells. Thus, this labeling approach opens up new avenues to the facile and efficient labeling of pesticides.

Cobalt Ion-Stabilized VO2 for Aqueous Ammonium Ion Hybrid Supercapacitors.

Aqueous ammonium ion hybrid supercapacitor (A-HSC) is an efficient energy storage device based on nonmetallic ion carriers (NH4+), which combines advantages such as low cost, safety, and sustainability. However, unstable electrode structures are prone to structural collapse in aqueous electrolytes, leading to fast capacitance decay, especially in host materials represented by vanadium-based oxidation. Here, the Co2+ preintercalation strategy is used to stabilize the VO2 tunnel structure and improve the electrochemical stability of the fast NH4+ storage process. In addition, the understanding of the NH4+ storage mechanism has been deepened through ex situ structural characterization and electrochemical analysis. The results indicate that Co2+ preintercalation effectively enhances the conductivity and structural stability of VO2, and inhibits the dissolution of V in aqueous electrolytes. In addition, the charge storage mechanisms of NH4+ intercalation/deintercalation and the reversible formation/fracture of hydrogen bonds were revealed.

Multi-Stimuli-Responsive, Topology-Regulated, and Lignin-Based Nano/Microcapsules from Pickering Emulsion Templates for Bidirectional Delivery of Pesticides.

The increasing demand for improving pesticide utilization efficiency has prompted the development of sustainable, targeted, and stimuli-responsive delivery systems. Herein, a multi-stimuli-responsive nano/microcapsule bidirectional delivery system loaded with pyraclostrobin (Pyr) is prepared through interfacial cross-linking from a lignin-based Pickering emulsion template. During this process, methacrylated alkali lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) are utilized as stabilizers for the tunable oil-water (O/W) Pickering emulsion. Subsequently, a thiol-ene radical reaction occurs with the acid-labile cross-linkers at the oil-water interface, leading to the formation of lignin nano/microcapsules (LNCs) with various topological shapes. Through the investigation of the polymerization process and the structure of LNC, it was found that the amphiphilicity-driven diffusion and distribution of cyclohexanone impact the topology of LNC. The obtained Pyr@LNC exhibits high encapsulation efficiency, tunable size, and excellent UV shielding to Pyr. Additionally, the flexible topology of the Pyr@LNC shell enhances the retention and adhesion of the foliar surface. Furthermore, Pyr@LNC exhibits pH/laccase-responsive targeting against Botrytis disease, enabling the intelligent release of Pyr. The in vivo fungicidal activity shows that efficacy of Pyr@LNC is 53% ± 2% at 14 days postspraying, whereas the effectiveness of Pyr suspension concentrate is only 29% ± 4%, and the acute toxicity of Pyr@LNC to zebrafish is reduced by more than 9-fold compared with that of Pyr technical. Moreover, confocal laser scanning microscopy shows that the LNCs can be bidirectionally translocated in plants. Therefore, the topology-regulated bidirectional delivery system LNC has great practical potential for sustainable agriculture.

Copper-coordinated nanoassemblies based on photosensitizer-chemo prodrugs and checkpoint inhibitors for enhanced apoptosis-cuproptosis and immunotherapy.

Cuproptosis is a recently identified copper-dependent form of nonapoptotic cell death and holds great prospect in cancer treatment. One of the most intriguing aspects of cuproptosis is its ability to synergize with apoptosis-based cancer treatments. Herein, we presented a novel approach using copper-coordinated nanoassemblies (CCNAs) that were constructed by incorporating a photosensitizer Zinc Phthalocyanine (ZnPc)-chemotherapeutic (DOX) prodrug with a thioketal (TK) spacer and an IDO inhibitor (1-methyl tryptophan, 1-MT) as building blocks for Cu2+-coordination self-assembly to achieve combinational apoptosis-cuproptosis and immunotherapy. Upon NIR laser irradiation, the ZnPc component of CCNAs exhibited a photodynamic effect that generated reactive oxygen species (ROS). This triggered the release of DOX, leading to enhanced tumor cell apoptosis. Additionally, the presence of Cu2+ in the CCNAs not only enhanced the photodynamic process by catalyzing oxygen generation but also promoted the aggregation of toxic mitochondrial proteins, leading to cell cuproptosis. Importantly, the intensified cuproptosis-apoptosis effect triggered an immunogenic cell death (ICD) response. The released 1-MT complemented this response by reversing the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (ITM), synergistically amplifying anti-tumor immunity and suppressing the growth of primary and distant tumors. The findings of this study provide a new perspective on potential cancer treatments based on cuproptosis-apoptosis synergistic immunotherapy and stimulate further research in the design of advanced metal-coordinated nanomedicines. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: The combination of cuproptosis and apoptosis that act with different mechanisms holds enormous potential in cancer treatment. Here, copper-coordinated nanoassemblies (CCNAs) based on photosensitizer-chemo prodrugs and checkpoint inhibitors were constructed for mediating cuproptosis-apoptosis and subsequently promoting cancer immunotherapy. CCNAs not only promoted the photodynamic effect and activation of chemotherapy through catalyzing the generation of oxygen but also induced toxic mitochondrial protein aggregation, leading to cell cuproptosis. These synergistic antitumor effects triggered robust immune responses with the aid of immune checkpoint blockade, almost eradicating primary tumors and inhibiting distant tumors by around 83 % without systemic toxicity.

Seed and Soil: Consensus Molecular Subgroups (CMS) and Tumor Microenvironment Features Between Primary Lesions and Metastases of Different Organ Sites in Colorectal Cancer.

Purpose: Consensus molecular subtypes (CMS) are mainly used for biological interpretability and clinical stratification of colorectal cancer (CRC) in primary tumors (PT) but few in metastases. The heterogeneity of CMS distribution in metastases and the concordance of CMS between PT and metastases still lack sufficient study. We used CMS to classify CRC metastases and combine it with histopathological analysis to explore differences between PT and distant metastases. Patients and Methods: We obtained gene expression profiles for 942 PT samples from TCGA database (n=376) and GEO database (n=566), as well as 442 metastasis samples from GEO database. Among these, 765 PT samples and 442 metastasis samples were confidently identified with CMS using the "CMS classifier" and enrolled for analysis. Clinicopathological manifestation and CMS classification of CRC metastases were assessed with data from GEO, TCGA, and cBioPortal. Overall, 105 PT-metastasis pairs were extracted from 10 GEO datasets to assess CMS concordance. Tumor microenvironment (TME) features between PT and metastases were analyzed by immune-stromal infiltration with ESTIMATE and xCell algorithms. Finally, TME features were validated with multiplex immunohistochemistry in 27 PT-metastasis pairs we retrospectively collected. Results: Up to 64% of CRC metastases exhibited concordant CMS groups with matched PT, and the TME of metastases was similar to that of PT. For most common distant metastases, liver metastases were predominantly CMS2 and lung and peritoneal metastases were mainly CMS4, highlighting "seed" of tumor cells of different CMS groups had a preference for metastasis to "soil" of specific organs. Compared with PT, cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAF) reduced in liver metastases, CD4+T cells and M2-like macrophages increased in lung metastases, and M2-like macrophages and CAF increased in peritoneal metastases. Conclusion: Our findings underscore the importance of CMS-guided specific organ monitoring and treatment post-primary tumor surgery for patients. Differences in immune-stromal infiltration among different metastases provide targeted therapeutic opportunities for metastatic CRC.

LINC00460/miR-186-3p/MYC feedback loop facilitates colorectal cancer immune escape by enhancing CD47 and PD-L1 expressions.

BACKGROUND: Long non-coding RNAs (LncRNAs) have been implicated as critical regulators of cancer tumorigenesis and progression. However, their functions and molecular mechanisms in colorectal cancer (CRC) still remain to be further elucidated. METHODS: LINC00460 was identified by differential analysis between human CRC and normal tissues and verified by in situ hybridization (ISH) and qRT-PCR. We investigated the biological functions of LINC00460 in CRC by in vitro and in vivo experiments. We predicted the mechanism and downstream functional molecules of LINC00460 by bioinformatics analysis, and confirmed them by dual luciferase reporter gene assay, RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP), RNA pull-down, etc. RESULTS: LINC00460 was found to be significantly overexpressed in CRC and associated with poor prognosis. Overexpression of LINC00460 promoted CRC cell immune escape and remodeled a suppressive tumor immune microenvironment, thereby promoting CRC proliferation and metastasis. Mechanistic studies showed that LINC00460 served as a molecular sponge for miR-186-3p, and then promoted the expressions of MYC, CD47 and PD-L1 to facilitate CRC cell immune escape. We also demonstrated that MYC upregulated LINC00460 expression at the transcriptional level and formed a positive feedback loop. CONCLUSIONS: The LINC00460/miR-186-3p/MYC feedback loop promotes CRC cell immune escape and subsequently facilitates CRC proliferation and metastasis. Our findings provide novel insight into LINC00460 as a CRC immune regulator, and provide a potential therapeutic target for CRC patients.

Construction of micro-nano robots: living cells and functionalized biological cell membranes.

Micro-nano robots have emerged as a promising research field with vast potential applications in biomedicine. The motor is the key component of micro-nano robot research, and the design of the motor is crucial. Among the most commonly used motors are those derived from living cells such as bacteria with flagella, sperm, and algal cells. Additionally, scientists have developed numerous self-adaptive biomimetic motors with biological functions, primarily cell membrane functionalized micromotors. This novel type of motor exhibits remarkable performance in complex media. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the structure and performance of micro-nano robots that utilize living cells and functionalized biological cell membranes. We also discuss potential practical applications of these mirco-nano robots as well as potential challenges that may arise in future development.

Comparison of breast-conserving surgery without radiotherapy and mastectomy in the treatment of elderly patients with early breast cancer: A PSM and SEER database study.

BACKGROUND: At present, there is no research on which surgical method can lead to a better prognosis in elderly patients with early breast cancer. The purpose of this study was to establish a nomogram to predict the survival outcome of elderly patients with early breast cancer and to compare the prognosis of the breast-conserving surgery (BCS) group who did not receive postoperative radiotherapy and the mastectomy group through risk stratification. METHODS: This study included patients with early breast cancer aged ≥70 years from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database (n = 20,520). The group was randomly divided into a development cohort (n = 14,363) and a validation cohort (n = 6157) according to a ratio of 7:3. Risk factors affecting overall survival (OS) and breast-cancer-specific survival (BCSS) were analyzed using univariate and multivariate Cox regression. Present results were obtained by constructing nomograms and risk stratifications. Nomograms were evaluated by the concordance index and calibration curve. Kaplan-Meier curves were established based on BCSS and analyzed using the log-rank test. RESULTS: Multivariate Cox regression results showed that age, race, pathological grade, T and N stages, and progesterone receptor (PR) status were independent risk factors for OS and BCSS in the BCS group and mastectomy group. Subsequently, they were incorporated into nomograms to predict 3- and 5-year OS and BCSS in patients after BCS and mastectomy. The concordance index was between 0.704 and 0.832, and the nomograms also showed good calibration. The results of risk stratification showed that there was no survival difference between the BCS group and the mastectomy group in the low-risk and high-risk groups. In the middle-risk group, BCS improved the BCSS of patients to a certain extent. CONCLUSION: This study constructed a well-performing nomogram and risk stratification model to assess the survival benefit of BCS without postoperative radiotherapy in elderly patients with early breast cancer. The results of the study can help clinicians analyze the prognosis of patients and the benefits of surgical methods individually.

Actoeside mitigated the renal proximal tubule cells damage triggered by high glucose through miR-766/VCAM1/NF-κB signalling pathway.

CONTEXT: Diabetic nephropathy (DN) triggered by diabetes mellitus is one of the primary causes of end-stage renal failure worldwide. OBJECTIVE: This study intends to explore the function and potential mechanism of actoeside on renal proximal tubule (HK-2) cells damage induced by high-glucose (HG). METHODS: The DN model was established in HK-2 cells with 30 mM HG treatment. The viability, apoptosis and inflammation of HK-2 cells were analysed severally via CCK-8, flow cytomery and ELISA. The key factors related to NF-κB were detected by western blotting. RESULTS: Actoeside attenuated the HG-induced HK-2 cells damage. The differentially expression of miR-766 and VCAM1 in DN patients was reversed by actoeside. Moreover, the increased phosphorylation levels of p65 NF-κB/IκBα induced by HG were attenuated by actoeside. CONCLUSIONS: Actoeside promoted the growth and repressed the apoptosis and inflammation of HK-2 cells via miR-766/VCAM1/NF-κB signalling pathway, affording a promising idea for the treatment of DN.

EEG Emotion Recognition Applied to the Effect Analysis of Music on Emotion Changes in Psychological Healthcare.

Music therapy is increasingly being used to promote physical health. Emotion semantic recognition is more objective and provides direct awareness of the real emotional state based on electroencephalogram (EEG) signals. Therefore, we proposed a music therapy method to carry out emotion semantic matching between the EEG signal and music audio signal, which can improve the reliability of emotional judgments, and, furthermore, deeply mine the potential influence correlations between music and emotions. Our proposed EER model (EEG-based Emotion Recognition Model) could identify 20 types of emotions based on 32 EEG channels, and the average recognition accuracy was above 90% and 80%, respectively. Our proposed music-based emotion classification model (MEC model) could classify eight typical emotion types of music based on nine music feature combinations, and the average classification accuracy was above 90%. In addition, the semantic mapping was analyzed according to the influence of different music types on emotional changes from different perspectives based on the two models, and the results showed that the joy type of music video could improve fear, disgust, mania, and trust emotions into surprise or intimacy emotions, while the sad type of music video could reduce intimacy to the fear emotion.

Advances in stimuli-responsive systems for pesticides delivery: Recent efforts and future outlook.

Effective pest management for enhanced crop output is one of the primary goals of establishing sustainable agricultural practices in the world. Pesticides are critical in preventing biological disasters, ensuring crop productivity, and fostering sustainable agricultural production growth. Studies showed that crops are unable to properly utilize pesticides because of several limiting factors, such as leaching and bioconversion, thereby damaging ecosystems and human health. In recent years, stimuli-responsive systems for pesticides delivery (SRSP) by nanotechnology demonstrated excellent promise in enhancing the effectiveness and safety of pesticides. SRSP are being developed with the goal of delivering precise amounts of active substances in response to biological needs and environmental factors. An in-depth analysis of carrier materials, design fundamentals, and classification of SRSP were provided. The adhesion of SRSP to crop tissue, absorption, translocation in and within plants, mobility in the soil, and toxicity were also discussed. The problems and shortcomings that need be resolved to accelerate the actual deployment of SRSP were highlighted in this review.

Acetalated dextran microparticles for the smart delivery of pyraclostrobin to control Sclerotinia diseases.

Dextran has emerged as a promising biopolymer carrier for controlled release formulations of pesticides. In this study, pH-sensitive acetalated dextran microparticles (Pyr@Ac-Dex) are prepared to encapsulate and control the release of pyraclostrobin (Pyr). In vitro fungicidal activity experiments showed that the prepared Pyr@Ac-Dex particles show comparable fungicidal ability against S. sclerotiorum compared to that of Pyr technical. In a 10-day pot experiment, the control efficacy of the Pyr@Ac-Dex treatment against S. sclerotiorum (77.1%) is significantly higher than that of Pyr emulsifiable concentrate (Pyr EC) treatment (42.4%). Photodegradation experiments show that compared to Pyr technical, Pyr@Ac-Dex doubles the half-life of Pyr in water. Acute toxicity experiments show that Pyr@Ac-Dex significantly reduced the acute exposure toxicity of Pyr to zebrafish. This study provides an environmentally friendly, feasible, and sustainable strategy for plant disease management.

Efficacy and safety of eplerenone treatment for patients with diabetic nephropathy: A meta-analysis.

Diabetic nephropathy (DN), which is correlated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, significantly elevates the morbidity and mortality of patients with diabetes. Recently, the benefits of mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists in chronic kidney disease (CKD), such as their anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic properties, have been discovered. Thus, the present meta-analysis aimed to systematically assess the efficacy and safety of eplerenone treatment in patients with DN. Six electronic databases-PubMed, The Cochrane Library, Embase, Web of Science, CNKI (China National Knowledge Infrastructure), and CBM(Chinese BioMedical Literature Database)-were searched to retrieve randomized controlled trials that assessed eplerenone treatment in patients with DN and were published up to July 31, 2021. Eight randomized controlled trials involving 838 patients were included. Between the eplerenone treatment groups and controls, significant differences were identified in 24-h urine protein levels (mean difference [MD], -19.63 [95% CI, -23.73 to -15.53], P < 0.00001), microalbuminuria (MD, -7.75 [95% CI, -9.75 to -5.75], P < 0.00001), urinary albumin-creatinine ratio (MD, -48.29 [95% CI, -64.45 to -32.14], P < 0.00001), systolic blood pressure (SBP) (MD, -2.49 [95% CI, -4.48 to -0.50], P = 0.01), serum potassium levels (MD, 0.19 [95% CI, 0.13 to 0.24], P < 0.00001), and levels of the renal fibrosis indicator laminin (MD, -8.84 [95% CI, -11.93 to -5.75], P < 0.00001). However, for the effect of estimated glomerular filtration rate (MD, 1.74 [95% CI, -0.87 to 4.35], P = 0.19) and diastolic blood pressure (MD, -0.51 [95% CI, -1.58 to 0.57], P = 0.36), the differences between the two groups were not significant. In addition, no noticeable difference was identified in the adverse events of hyperkalemia and cough between them. These findings suggest that eplerenone exerts beneficial effects on DN by significantly reducing urinary albumin or protein excretion, SBP, and laminin levels, without increasing the incidence of hyperkalemia and other adverse events.

pH-Responsive On-Demand Alkaloids Release from Core-Shell ZnO@ZIF-8 Nanosphere for Synergistic Control of Bacterial Wilt Disease.

Developing an effective and safe technology to control severe bacterial diseases in agriculture has attracted significant attention. Here, ZnO nanosphere and ZIF-8 are employed as core and shell, respectively, and then a pH-responsive core-shell nanocarrier (ZnO-Z) was prepared by in situ crystal growth strategy. The bactericide berberine (Ber) was further loaded to form Ber-loaded ZnO-Z (Ber@ZnO-Z) for control of tomato bacterial wilt disease. Results demonstrated that Ber@ZnO-Z could release Ber rapidly in an acidic environment, which corresponded to the pH of the soil where the tomato bacterial wilt disease often outbreak. In vitro experiments showed that the antibacterial activity of Ber@ZnO-Z was about 4.5 times and 1.8 times higher than that of Ber and ZnO-Z, respectively. It was because Ber@ZnO-Z could induce ROS generation, resulting in DNA damage, cytoplasm leakage, and membrane permeability changes so the released Ber without penetrability more easily penetrated the bacteria to achieve an efficient synergistic bactericidal effect with ZnO-Z carriers after combining with DNA. Pot experiments also showed that Ber@ZnO-Z significantly reduced disease severity with a wilt index of 45.8% on day 14 after inoculation, compared to 94.4% for the commercial berberine aqueous solution. More importantly, ZnO-Z carriers did not accumulate in aboveground parts of plants and did not affect plant growth in a short period. This work provides guidance for the effective control of soil-borne bacterial diseases and the development of sustainable agriculture.

Lignin-based non-crosslinked nanocarriers: A promising delivery system of pesticide for development of sustainable agriculture.

Lignin sulfonate (LS), a waste material from the paper pulping, was modified with benzoic anhydride to obtain benzoylated lignin sulfonates of adjustable hydrophilicity (BLS). When BLS was combined with difenoconazole (Di), a broad-spectrum fungicide, lignin-based, non-crosslinked nanoparticles were obtained either by solvent exchange or solvent evaporation. When a mass ratio of 1:5 LS: benzoic anhydride was used, the Di release from Di@BLS5 after 1248 h was ca. 74 %, while a commercial difenoconazole microemulsion (Di ME) reached 100 % already after 96 h, proving the sustained release from the lignin nanocarriers. The formulation of Di in lignin-based nanocarriers also improved the UV stability and the foliar retention of Di compared to the commercial formulation of the fungicide. Bioactivity assay showed that Di@BLS5 exhibited high activities and duration against strawberry anthracnose (Colletotrichum gloeosporioides). Overall, the construction of fungicide delivery nano-platform using BLS via a simple non-crosslinked approach is a novel and promising way to develop new formulations for nanopesticide and the development of sustainable agriculture.

Colon cancer patient with long-term colon stent placement: Case report and literature review.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer and the second leading cause of cancer mortality globally. Large bowel obstruction (occurring in 15-30% of patients with CRCs) accounts for approximately 80% of medical emergencies related to CRC. Currently, there is no standard treatment of this condition. The European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ESGE) recommends self-expandable metal stent (SEMS) as a bridge (two weeks) to surgery for left-sided obstructing colon cancer. In the present report, we describe an 81-year-old male with colon cancer who underwent colon stent placement for 32 months, but later underwent radical resection. A follow-up of more than four-months revealed that his condition was normal. The history as well as application and advantages of SEMS are discussed in this report.

A comparative study on ultrasound-guided elite, Mammotome, and core needle biopsy for diagnosing malignant breast masses.

Introduction: The present study aims to clarify the advantages and disadvantages of elite biopsy, to provide a reference for selecting the puncture method. Material and methods: A total of 802 patients with a BI-RADS grade ≥ 4, as evaluated by the molybdenum target, and measurable lesions revealed by colour Doppler ultrasound, who were admitted at our department from January 2017 to January 2018, were enrolled in the present study. These patients were randomly divided into three groups: elite, Mammotome and core needle biopsy groups. The pathological underestimation rate, diagnostic accordance rate, haematoma incidence rate, and costs of these three biopsy methods were compared. Results: The difference in diagnostic accordance rates between the elite biopsy group and core needle biopsy group was statistically significant (98.9% vs. 94.7%, p = 0.003), as well as between the Mammotome biopsy group and core needle biopsy group (99.6% vs. 94.7%, p < 0.001). The difference in pathological underestimation rates between the elite biopsy group and core needle biopsy group was statistically significant (7.2% vs. 37.3%, p < 0.001), as well as between the Mammotome biopsy group and core needle biopsy group (1.6% vs. 7.2%, p < 0.001). The difference between the Mammotome biopsy group and elite biopsy group was not statistically significant. The incidence of haematoma in the Mommotome, elite, and core needle groups was 15.9%, 13%, and 21.7%, respectively (13% vs. 21.7%, p = 0.021). Conclusions: Elite biopsy has a low rate of pathological underestimation and low incidence of haematoma, can improve the breast conserving rate, and has an affordable cost. As a biopsy method with high accuracy, safety, and economy, elite biopsy can be widely used in clinics.