Investigation on the Gas Emission Law of Water-Containing Coal across the Rank Range.

Water commonly occurs in coal reservoirs, and it can block the gas flow channels. This has a significant influence on methane transportation within coal. To reveal the gas emission law of water-containing coal across the rank range, three typical coal samples with different coal ranks covering lignite to anthracite were selected in this work. The initial velocity of gas emission (ΔP) under the effect of moisture was measured, and the combination of scanning electron microscopy and mercury injection method was adopted to study the pores and fracture characteristics within coal. Distribution features of oxygen-containing groups in coal were explored by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The microscopic influence mechanism of the water content on ΔP in coal was also comprehensively elucidated. The experimental results show that the moisture content has an obvious inhibitory effect on the ΔP of coal, but the degree of influence on different coal rank samples was different. As the pore space of anthracite (sample XJ) is developed with numerous gas transportation channels, the ΔP has less changes at the lower moisture content (<4.36%). When the moisture content is >4.36%, a large number of water molecules will band together to form water clusters, hindering the gas release, thus greatly reducing the ΔP. However, the change of lignite (sample SL) shows an inverse trend to that of anthracite. Its ΔP is sensitive to the moisture content due to the small number of pores and low porosity. In addition, a great number of oxygen-containing groups in lignite can also provide good surface hydrophilicity for water molecules, and even a small amount of the moisture content (<3.21%) can block most of the pore and facture channels within coal, leading to the remarkable decrease in ΔP. For bituminous coal (sample ML), the distribution of pores and oxygen-containing groups is the most uniform, and the ΔP decreases linearly with the increase in the moisture content.

Medicinal and edible polysaccharides from ancient plants: extraction, isolation, purification, structure, biological activity and market trends of sea buckthorn polysaccharides.

Sea buckthorn (Hippophae L.), a well-known medicinal and edible plant, is known as the "king of VC". Due to its excellent medicinal and nutritional value, it has been developed into a variety of functional products. Sea buckthorn polysaccharides (SPs), one of the important and representative active components, have attracted the attention of researchers in the fields of health food and medicine because of their potential beneficial effects on human health. Recently, SPs have shown various biological activities in in vitro and in vivo studies, such as anti-obesity, immunomodulatory, anti-tumor, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-fatigue, and hepatoprotective activities. This review provides a comprehensive and systematic summary of the extraction and purification methods, structural characterization, biological activity, and market trends of SPs to provide a theoretical basis for their therapeutic potential and sanitarian functions. A future scope is needed to further explore the medicinal and nutritional value of SPs and incorporate them in functional food products.

The potential of herbal drugs to treat heart failure: The roles of Sirt1/AMPK.

Heart failure (HF) is a highly morbid syndrome that seriously affects the physical and mental health of patients and generates an enormous socio-economic burden. In addition to cardiac myocyte oxidative stress and apoptosis, which are considered mechanisms for the development of HF, alterations in cardiac energy metabolism and pathological autophagy also contribute to cardiac abnormalities and ultimately HF. Silent information regulator 1 (Sirt1) and adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) are nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+)-dependent deacetylases and phosphorylated kinases, respectively. They play similar roles in regulating some pathological processes of the heart through regulating targets such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator 1α (PGC-1α), protein 38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR). We summarized the synergistic effects of Sirt1 and AMPK in the heart, and listed the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) that exhibit cardioprotective properties by modulating the Sirt1/AMPK pathway, to provide a basis for the development of Sirt1/AMPK activators or inhibitors for the treatment of HF and other cardiovascular diseases (CVDs).

SlBEL11 regulates flavonoid biosynthesis, thus fine-tuning auxin efflux to prevent premature fruit drop in tomato.

Auxin regulates flower and fruit abscission, but how developmental signals mediate auxin transport in abscission remains unclear. Here, we reveal the role of the transcription factor BEL1-LIKE HOMEODOMAIN11 (SlBEL11) in regulating auxin transport during abscission in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum). SlBEL11 is highly expressed in the fruit abscission zone, and its expression increases during fruit development. Knockdown of SlBEL11 expression by RNA interference (RNAi) caused premature fruit drop at the breaker (Br) and 3 d post-breaker (Br+3) stages of fruit development. Transcriptome and metabolome analysis of SlBEL11-RNAi lines revealed impaired flavonoid biosynthesis and decreased levels of most flavonoids, especially quercetin, which functions as an auxin transport inhibitor. This suggested that SlBEL11 prevents premature fruit abscission by modulating auxin efflux from fruits, which is crucial for the formation of an auxin response gradient. Indeed, quercetin treatment suppressed premature fruit drop in SlBEL11-RNAi plants. DNA affinity purification sequencing (DAP-seq) analysis indicated that SlBEL11 induced expression of the transcription factor gene SlMYB111 by directly binding to its promoter. Chromatin immunoprecipitation-quantitative polymerase chain reaction and electrophoretic mobility shift assay showed that S. lycopersicum MYELOBLASTOSIS VIRAL ONCOGENE HOMOLOG111 (SlMYB111) induces the expression of the core flavonoid biosynthesis genes SlCHS1, SlCHI, SlF3H, and SlFLS by directly binding to their promoters. Our findings suggest that the SlBEL11-SlMYB111 module modulates flavonoid biosynthesis to fine-tune auxin efflux from fruits and thus maintain an auxin response gradient in the pedicel, thereby preventing premature fruit drop.

Superhydrophobic aerogel blanket with magnetic and solar heating effect enables efficient continuous cleanup of highly viscous crude oil.

Rapid cleanup of highly-viscous oil spills the sea is eagerly desired while still remains a great challenge. Hydrophobic and lipophilic adsorbents are regarded as ideal candidate for oil spill remediation. However, traditional adsorbents are not suitable for viscous crude oil, which would block the porous structure and lead to poor adsorption efficiency. In this work, a non-contact responsive superhydrophobic SiO2 aerogel blankets (SAB) with excellent magnetic and solar heating effect for efficient removal of viscosity oils under harsh environments was developed, via assembled MXene and Fe3O4/polydimethylsiloxane layer-by-layer along the SAB skeleton (Fe3O4/MXene@SAB). The Fe3O4/MXene@SAB exhibited excellent compression tolerance (compression stress 70.69 kPa), superhydrophobic performance (water contact angle 166°), and corrosion resistance (weak acid/strong base). Due to high water repellency and stable porous structure, the Fe3O4/MXene@SAB could successfully separate oil-water mixture, while with remarkable separation flux (1.50-3.19 × 104 L m-2 h-1), and separation efficiency (99.91-99.98 %). Furthermore, the responsive Fe3O4/MXene@SAB also showed outstanding magnetic-heating and solar-heating conversion efficiency, which could continuously separate high viscosity crude oil from seawater by pump even under relatively low magnetic fields and mild sun. The superhydrophobic blankets hold great promise for efficient treatment of heavy oil spills.

[Application of health failure mode and effect analysis for the airbag pressure management of patients with artificial airways].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the application effect of health failure mode and effect analysis (HFMEA) model in patients with artificial airways in the cardiovascular surgery intensive care unit (CSICU) by establishing a HFMEA project team, and to develop targeted improvement measures and processes. METHODS: The patients undergoing cardiovascular surgeries and with established artificial airways in the Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University were recruited from October 2021 to March 2022. The enrolled patients were divided into the conventional management group and the HFMEA model management group according to random number table method. The conventional management group applied the conventional procedures for monitoring the air bag pressure. The HFMEA model management group used the HFMEA model to implement and improve the airbag pressure monitoring process. The efficacy of HFMEA was assessed by comparing the incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), the pass rate of airbag pressure monitoring, the duration of endotracheal intubation and the length of CSICU stay between two groups. The practicability of HFMEA model was evaluated by analyzing the theoretical assessment scores and practical skill scores of nurses and their satisfaction scores with HFMEA. RESULTS: Compared with the conventional management group, the patients in the HFMEA mode management group had a significantly higher rate of passing airbag pressure monitoring [94.99% (2 994/3 152) vs. 69.97% (1 626/2 324), P < 0.01], shorter duration of endotracheal intubation and length of CSICU stay [duration of endotracheal intubation (hours): 6 (7, 12) vs. 6 (8, 13), length of CSICU stay (hours): 40 (45, 65) vs. 41 (46, 85), both P < 0.05], but the incidences of VAP between the two groups were similar. The theoretical assessment scores and practical skill scores of nurses were significantly higher (theoretical assessment score: 44.47±2.72 vs. 37.59±6.56, practical skill score: 44.56±2.66 vs. 40.03±4.32, total score: 89.03±3.07 vs. 77.63±9.56, all P < 0.05) in the HFMEA mode management group. And the satisfaction scores with airbag pressure management were also significantly higher in the HFMEA mode management group (7.72±1.11 vs. 6.44±1.32, P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The application of the HFMEA can improve the airbag pressure measures and standardize the monitoring procedures in patients with artificial airways, and reduce the risk of clinical nursing. It is safe and effective for patients with invasive mechanical ventilation in the CSICU.

Optimal radiotherapy modality sparing for cardiac valves in left-sided breast cancer.

Background: The cardiotoxicity caused by radiotherapy is a critical problem in the treatment of patients with breast cancer. The appropriate radiotherapy modality sparing for cardiac valves in left-sided breast cancer has not been well defined. The aim of this study was thus to compare the dosimetric differences in heart and cardiac valves of 3-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3D-CRT), fixed-field intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), and volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) to find the optimal radiotherapy modality sparing for cardiac valves in patients with left breast cancer. Methods: From January 5, 2021, to March 15, 2021, 21 patients with left-sided breast cancer postmastectomy were included in this study, and 3 different plans for adjuvant radiation were created using 3D-CRT, IMRT, and VMAT for each patient. All patients received 50 Gy in 25 fractions. The mean dose (Dmean) of the heart; percentage volume of the heart receiving ≥5 Gy (V5), ≥30 Gy (V30), and ≥40 Gy (V40); and the Dmean and the near-maximum dose (D0.03cc) of cardiac valves were extracted from dose-volume histograms (DVHs) and compared. The correlations in dosimetric factors between cardiac valves and the whole heart were analyzed. Results: IMRT significantly decreased the values of V5, V30, V40, and Dmean in the whole heart compared to 3D-CRT and VMAT (P<0.001). Among the 3 different plans, IMRT had the lowest radiation dose to the Dmean and the D0.03cc of the aortic valve (1.27 Gy/1.75 Gy), pulmonary valve (3.44 Gy/6.89 Gy), tricuspid valve (1.02 Gy/1.14 Gy), and mitral valve (0.93 Gy/1.00 Gy). Pearson correlation analysis found that local parameters (Dmean and D0.03cc) within valves were strongly correlated to the global parameters (V5, V30, V40, and Dmean) of the heart. Conclusions: This study revealed that IMRT showed the lowest cardiac valves dose compared with 3D-CRT and VMAT in left-sided breast cancer radiotherapy. IMRT might be the optimal modality sparing for cardiac valves in this group of patients. Further studies need to be carried out in order to validate the protective role of IMRT on the cardiac valves.

A review: Pharmacokinetics and pharmacology of aminoalcohol-diterpenoid alkaloids from Aconitum species.

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Aconitum medicinal materials, such as Aconitum carmichaelii Debeaux (Chinese: Wutou/) and Aconitum kusnezoffii Reichb. (Chinese: Caowu/), are a kind of important Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) with great medicinal value. Statistics show that there are over 600 efficient TCM formulations comprising Aconitum medicinal materials. But high toxicity limits their clinical application. Clinically, the Aconitum medicinal materials must undergo a complex processing process that includes soaking, steaming, and boiling with pharmaceutical excipients, which makes highly toxic ester diterpenoid alkaloids are hydrolyzed to form less toxic aminoalcohol-diterpenoid alkaloids (ADAs). AIM OF THE STUDY: This review aims to summarize the pharmacokinetic and pharmacological activities of low-toxicity ADAs, providing a reference for future ADAs research and drug development. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Accessible literature on ADAs published between 1984 and 2022 were screened and obtained from available electronic databases such as PubMed, Web of Science, Springer, Science Direct and Google Scholar, followed by systematic analysis. RESULTS: ADAs are secondary products of plant metabolism, widely distributed in the Aconitum species and Delphinium species. The toxicity of ADAs as pharmacodynamic components of Aconitum medicinal materials is much lower than that of other diterpenoid alkaloids due to the absence of ester bonds. On the one hand, the pharmacokinetics of ADAs have received little attention compared to other toxic alkaloids. The research primarily focuses on aconine and mesaconine. According to existing studies, ADAs absorption in the gastrointestinal tract is primarily passive with a short Tmax. Simultaneously, efflux transporters have less impact on ADAs absorption than non-ADAs. After entering the body, ADAs are widely distributed in the heart, liver, lungs, and kidney, but less in the brain. Notably, aconine is not well metabolized by liver microsomes. Aconine and mesaconine are excreted in urine and feces, respectively. ADAs, on the other hand, have been shown to have a variety of pharmacological activities, including cardiac, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, antioxidant, and regenerative effects via regulating multiple signaling pathways, including Nrf2/ARE, PERK/eIF2α/ATF4/Chop, ERK/CREB, NF-κB, Bcl-2/Bax, and GSK3ß/ß-catenin signaling pathways. CONCLUSIONS: ADAs have been shown to have beneficial effects on heart disease, neurological disease, and other systemic diseases. Moreover, ADAs have low toxicity and a wide range of safe doses. All of these suggest that ADAs have great potential for drug development.

A SlCLV3-SlWUS module regulates auxin and ethylene homeostasis in low light-induced tomato flower abscission.

Premature abscission of flowers and fruits triggered by low light stress can severely reduce crop yields. However, the underlying molecular mechanism of this organ abscission is not fully understood. Here, we show that a gene (SlCLV3) encoding CLAVATA3 (CLV3), a peptide hormone that regulates stem cell fate in meristems, is highly expressed in the pedicel abscission zone (AZ) in response to low light in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum). SlCLV3 knockdown and knockout lines exhibit delayed low light-induced flower drop. The receptor kinases SlCLV1 and BARELY ANY MERISTEM1 function in the SlCLV3 peptide-induced low light response in the AZ to decrease expression of the transcription factor gene WUSCHEL (SlWUS). DNA affinity purification sequencing identified the transcription factor genes KNOX-LIKE HOMEDOMAIN PROTEIN1 (SlKD1) and FRUITFULL2 (SlFUL2) as SlWUS target genes. Our data reveal that low light reduces SlWUS expression, resulting in higher SlKD1 and SlFUL2 expression in the AZ, thereby perturbing the auxin response gradient and causing increased ethylene production, eventually leading to the initiation of abscission. These results demonstrate that the SlCLV3-SlWUS signaling pathway plays a central role in low light-induced abscission by affecting auxin and ethylene homeostasis.

Superhydrophobic nanofibrous sponge with hierarchically layered structure for efficient harsh environmental oil-water separation.

Oil leakage has posed serious threat to the environment, but still remain a great challenge to be solved especially for harsh environmental conditions. Herein, robust superhydrophobic nickel hydroxide grown by hydrothermal method and stearic acid modification on a blow-spun polyacrylonitrile (PAN)/Al2O3 nanofibrous sponge was proposed, so that the nickel hydroxide-modified polyacrylonitrile sponge (NPAS) was successfully obtained for efficient oil-water separation. The porous NPAS with a distinctive hierarchically layered structure, which exhibited excellent separation efficiency and mechanical elasticity. Due to its superhydrophobic and high porosity, the absorption capacity of NPAS could reach as high as 45 g g-1. It could not only separate a series of oil-water mixture with a high steady flux of 12,413 L m-2 h-1 (dichloromethane-water), but also separate stabilized emulsions with a superior flux 2032 L m-2 h-1 (water-in-dichloromethane) under gravity, all of that with above 99.92% separation efficiencies, which was higher than that of the most reported sponges. Most importantly, its strong acid/alkali resistance enable it is suitable for hazardous materials treatment applications in harsh environmental conditions. This novel NPAS via facile large-scale blow-spinning provide an efficient strategy for oil-containing wastewater treatment and environmental protection.

Effects of HMGA2 on the epithelial-mesenchymal transition-related genes in ACHN renal cell carcinoma cells-derived xenografts in nude mice.

BACKGROUND: The architectural transcriptional regulator high-mobility group AT-hook 2 (HMGA2) is an oncofetal protein which has been reported to be ectopically expressed in a variety of cancers. A high expression of HMGA2 in human renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is related with tumor invasiveness and poor prognosis. Recent in vitro studies have shown that HMGA2 knockdown was able to decrease cell proliferation and migration, and regulate the gene expression related to epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). METHODS: To understand the HMGA2's effect in vivo, HMGA2 expression was knocked down in ACHN cells using small hairpin RNA (shRNA), then the HMGA2-deficient ACHN cells were xenografted into the BALB/c nude mice. Tumor growth was monitored and the expression of EMT-related genes was analyzed. RESULTS: HMGA2 expression was confirmed to be knocked down in the cultured and xenografted ACHN cells. The xenograft tumor of HMGA2-deficient cells demonstrated a retarded growth pattern compared with the control. The expression of E-cadherin was increased, whereas N-cadherin and Snail were decreased in the HMGA2-deficient xenograft tumors. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, to the best of our knowledge, for the first time, we have successfully developed an in vivo experiment using HMGA2-silencing ACHN cells to be grown as xenografts in nude mice. Our findings show that HMGA2 deficiency was sufficient to suppress the xenograft tumor growth in vivo, which support our hypothesis that HMGA2-induced renal carcinogenesis occurs at least in part through the regulation of tumor associated EMT genes.

Effects of HMGA2 gene silencing on cell cycle and apoptosis in the metastatic renal carcinoma cell line ACHN.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the role of high mobility group AT-hook 2 (HMGA2) in the regulation of the cell cycle and apoptosis. METHODS: The renal carcinoma cell line ACHN was transiently transfected with small interfering RNA to knock down the expression of the HMGA2 gene. Cell cycle analysis was undertaken using flow cytometry. The mRNA and protein levels of HMGA2, E2F transcription factor 1 (E2F1), cyclin D1, cyclin dependent kinase 6 (CDK6), B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2), caspase-3 and caspase-9 were analysed using reverse transcription quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analysis. RESULTS: The mRNA and protein levels of HMGA2 were significantly higher in renal carcinoma cell lines compared with the human renal proximal tubular epithelial cell line HKC. After HMGA2 gene-specific silencing, more cells entered the G0/G1 phase, while fewer cells entered the G2/M phase; and the cells exhibited early and late apoptosis. HMGA2 gene-specific silencing significantly reduced the mRNA and protein levels of E2F1, cyclin D1, CDK6 and Bcl-2; and increased the mRNA and protein levels of caspase-3 and caspase-9. CONCLUSION: The HMGA2 gene may be involved in the tumorigenesis and development of renal cancer, thus inhibiting HMGA2 gene expression might provide a potential therapeutic target in the future.

Objective vestibular function changes in children following cochlear implantation.

BACKGROUND: To date, systematically objective evaluations of vestibular function in children with cochlear implantation (CI) have been conducted sparsely, especially in children with large vestibular aqueduct syndrome (LVAS). OBJECTIVE: Our goal was to investigate the function of all five vestibular end-organs pre- and post-cochlear implantation in children with LVAS and normal CT. METHODS: In this retrospective cohort study, 34 children (age 4-17 years) with bilateral profound sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) undergoing unilateral CI were included. Participants included 18 (52.9%) children with LVAS. Objective modalities to evaluate vestibular function included the caloric test, cervical vestibular-evoked myogenic potentials (cVEMP), ocular vestibular-evoked myogenic potentials (oVEMP), and video head impulse test (vHIT). All measurements were performed before surgery and 9 months after surgery. RESULTS: Mean age at CI was 8.1±3.7 years. Caloric testing showed hypofunction in 38.2% of cases before implantation and in 50% after (p > 0.05). We found a significant increase of overall abnormality rate in cVEMP and oVEMP from pre- to post-CI (p < 0.05). In all three semicircular canals tested by vHIT, there were no statistically significant mean gain changes (p > 0.05). Higher deterioration rates in cVEMP (53.3%) and oVEMP (52.0%) after surgery were observed (p < 0.05). In children with LVAS, cVEMP revealed a higher deterioration rate than superior semicircular canal (SSC) and posterior semicircular canal (PSC) (p < 0.05). In children with normal CT, the deterioration rates in VEMPs were both higher than those in vHIT (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In general, the otolith organs were the most affected peripheral vestibular sensors in children after cochlear implantation. The variations in otolith function influenced by CI were different between children with LVAS and normal CT. We recommend the use of this vestibular function test battery for children with cochlear implantation.

Cisplatin resistance of NSCLC cells involves upregulation of visfatin through activation of its transcription and stabilization of mRNA.

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is one of the prevalent and deadly cancers worldwide. Cisplatin (CDDP) has been used as a standard adjuvant therapy for advanced NSCLC patients, while chemoresistance is one of the most challenging problems to limit its clinical application. Our data showed that the expression of visfatin was significantly increased in CDDP resistant NSCLC cells as compared with that in their parental cells, while knockdown of visfatin or its neutralization antibody can restore the CDDP sensitivity of resistant NSCLC cells. The upregulation of visfatin in CDDP resistant NSCLC cells was due to the increased mRNA stability and promoter activity. Further, we found that signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), which was increased in chemoresistant cells, can increase the transcription of visfatin. While tristetraprolin (TTP), which can decease mRNA stability of visfatin, was decreased in chemoresistant cells. Inhibition of STAT3 or over expression of TTP can restore CDDP sensitivity of resistant NSCLC cells. Collectively, our data showed that STAT3 and TTP-regulated expression of visfatin was involved in CDDP resistance of NSCLC cells. It indicated that targeted inhibition of visfatin should be a potential approach to overcome CDDP resistance of NSCLC treatment.

Dosimetric impacts of cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT)-based anatomic changes in intensity-modulated radiotherapy for cervical cancer.

Background: To evaluate the effects of dose to tumors and organs at risk (OARs) on inter-fractional anatomic changes. Methods: We evaluated nine patients with cervical cancer treated with intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) (45 Gy in 25 fractions) using kV cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) image guidance once or twice a week before treatment. For each patient, the original plan on the computed tomography (CT) image was copied to merged images, and then the fractional doses were calculated. Subsequently, deformable accumulated doses were obtained by summing the fractional absolute doses into a single dose in MIM Maestro software. The volume changes in the target and OARs were compared between the original CT and merged CBCT images, and the differences in the fractional and accumulated doses were also evaluated. Results: Sixty-nine merged CBCT images were obtained and analyzed in this study. For the target areas, the volume changes in the clinical target volume (CTV) and planning target volume (PTV) reached -18.05% and -24.11% at most, respectively. The fractional D2% of the CTV and PTV was generally higher than the original plans, and the accumulated deviations were 2.27%±0.82% (P<0.01) and 2.42%±1.28% (P<0.01), respectively. The fractional D98% of the PTV was underdosed up to 18.28% for 78% of patients, and the accumulated deviations were -2.06% to -17.29% (P<0.05). For the OARs, the bladder volume changes were the most dramatic, reducing up to 93.60%. The fractional Dmean and D2cc of the bladder were generally higher than the original plans, and there were significant differences in their accumulated values (P<0.05). There was no obvious trend of rectal volume change with -69.65% to 74.20%. The rectum Dmean and D2cc of the accumulated were not significantly different from the planned dose (P>0.05). Conclusions: For patients with cervical cancer, the changes in bladder and rectal volume were greater than in the target volume. Although the volume changes in the bladder and rectum had no significant effect on D98% of the CTV and PTV, they had a significant effect on their own D2cc and the D2% of the CTV and PTV. More attention should be paid to the volume changes in the bladder and rectum in clinical work.

Comparison of Radiation Pneumonitis in Lung Cancer Patients Treated with HT versus IMRT and Circulating Lymphocyte Subsets as Predicting Risk Factors.

PURPOSE: We sought to compare the symptomatic radiation pneumonitis (RP) in lung cancer patients treated with helical tomotherapy (HT) versus intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT), and examine the predictive value of circulating lymphocyte subsets affecting the occurrence of RP. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Circulating lymphocyte subsets, clinical characteristics, dosimetric parameters and pulmonary function were collected from 130 lung cancer patients treated with HT (n = 53) or IMRT (n = 77) from 2016 through 2020. Symptomatic RP was compared between groups. Binary logistic regression was used to identify predictors of RP. RESULTS: The IMRT group had larger planning target volume (319.9 vs 240.8 cc, P = 0.041); more ECOG performance status 0-1 (96.1% vs 79.2%, P = 0.002); more stage III-IV disease (94.8% vs 37.6%, P = 0.028); and more combined systemic therapy (85.7% vs 69.8%, P = 0.022). Grade ≥2 RP were comparable between IMRT and HT groups (16.9% vs 15.1%, P = 0.785). For stage III-IV disease, IMRT was associated with lower lung V10 (31.9% vs 35.8%, P = 0.047) and lower incidence of grade 5 RP (0% vs 9.1%, P = 0.018). All lymphocyte subsets reduced after radiotherapy. The decrease degree of total T cell count and CD4+ T cell count were larger after IMRT than HT (P = 0.043, P = 0.021). In univariate analysis, the smoking status, lower baseline FEV1, and higher total T cell count, higher CD8+ T cell count, lower total B cell count, lower CD4+/CD8+ ratio after radiotherapy were associated with the development of grade ≥2 RP. The higher CD8+T cell count after radiotherapy was the only risk factor associated with grade ≥2 RP in multivariable analysis (OR 1.003; 95% CI: 1.000-1.005; P = 0.044). CONCLUSION: IMRT was associated with lower lung V10 and less grade 5 RP than HT for stage III-IV lung cancer. Higher CD8+ T cell count after radiotherapy was associated with an increased risk of RP. HT may better preserve total T cell and CD4+ T cell than IMRT.

Long non-coding RNA OIP5-AS1 promotes the progression of esophageal cancer by regulating miR-30a/VOPP1 expression.

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) serve an important role in the development of esophageal cancer (EC), which is the eighth most common type of cancer worldwide. lncRNA opa-interacting protein 5 antisense transcript 1 (OIP5-AS1) is associated with human malignancy. However, the biological roles of OIP5-AS1 in the development of EC remain unclear. In the present study, transfection was conducted, and reverse transcription-quantitative PCR and western blot analysis were used for the detection of mRNA and protein expression, respectively. Furthermore, dual-luciferase reporter and RNA immunoprecipitation assays were used to study the interaction between miRNA and lncRNA or genes. The results revealed that OIP5-AS1 expression in EC tissues and cultured EC cells was upregulated, microRNA-30a (miR-30a) expression was downregulated. OIP5-AS1-knockdown suppressed the proliferation, migration and invasion of EC9706 and EC109 cells. miR-30a was confirmed to interact with OIP5-AS1, and miR-30a-mimics transfection ameliorated the effects of OIP5-AS1 in EC cells. Vesicular overexpressed in cancer prosurvival protein 1 (VOPP1) was verified as the direct target of miR-30a. VOPP1 expression was positively correlated with OIP5-AS1 expression in EC cells. Overexpression of VOPP1 ameliorated the negative effects of OIP5-AS1-knockdown on EC9706 and EC109 cells. In conclusion, OIP5-AS1 promoted the proliferation, migration and invasion of EC cells by increasing VOPP1 expression by sponging miR-30a.

Influence of Cochlear Implantation on Vestibular Function in Children With an Enlarged Vestibular Aqueduct.

Background: Cochlear implantation (CI) is becoming increasingly used in the rehabilitation of hearing-impaired patients. Children with an enlarged vestibular aqueduct (EVA) need CI for severe or profound hearing loss, with excellent outcomes in hearing rehabilitation. However, vestibular function influenced by CI in children with EVA has not been clarified. We compared the characteristics of vestibular function in implanted children with EVA and those with a normal cochlea. Methods: In this retrospective case-control study, 16 children with large vestibular aqueduct syndrome (LVAS) and 16 children with a normal cochlea were recruited as the Study and Control Group, respectively. All children (mean age, 10.3 ± 4.4 years) had bilateral profound sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) and normal pre-operative vestibular functions and underwent unilateral CI. Otolith and canal functions were assessed before CI and 12 months thereafter. Cervical vestibular-evoked myogenic potential (cVEMP), ocular vestibular-evoked myogenic potential (oVEMP), and video head impulse test (vHIT) were evaluated. Results: Full insertion of the electrode array was achieved in all the cases. Preoperatively, no significant differences in parameters in cVEMP between the Study and Control Group were revealed (p > 0.05). In pre-operative oVEMP, shorter N1 latencies (p = 0.012), shorter P1 latencies (p = 0.01), and higher amplitudes (p = 0.001) were found in the Study than in the Control Group. The Study Group had shorter P1 latency in cVEMP (p = 0.033), and had lower amplitude in oVEMP after implantation (p = 0.03). Statistically significant differences were not found in VOR gains of all three semicircular canals before and after surgery (p > 0.05). VEMP results revealed that the Control Group had significantly lower deterioration rates after CI (p < 0.05). The surgical approach and electrode array had no statistically significant influence on the VEMP results (p > 0.05). Conclusion: oVEMP parameters differed between children with EVA and children with a normal cochlea before surgery. Systematic evaluations before and after CI showed that otolith function was affected, but all three semicircular canals functions were essentially undamaged after implantation. In contrast to subjects with a normal cochlea, children with EVA are more likely to preserve their saccular and utricular functions after CI surgery. Possible mechanisms include less pressure-related damage, a reduced effect in terms of the air-bone gap (ABG), or more sensitivity to acoustic stimulation.

Apoptosis Exerts a Vital Role in the Treatment of Colitis-Associated Cancer by Herbal Medicine.

Colitis-associated cancer (CAC) is known as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)-developed colorectal cancer, the pathogenesis of which involves the occurrence of apoptosis. Western drugs clinically applied to CAC are often single-targeted and exert many adverse reactions after long-term administration, so it is urgent to develop new drugs for the treatment of CAC. Herbal medicines commonly have multiple components with multiple targets, and most of them are low-toxicity. Some herbal medicines have been reported to ameliorate CAC through inducing apoptosis, but there is still a lack of systematic review. In this work, we reviewed articles published in Sci Finder, Web of Science, PubMed, Google Scholar, CNKI, and other databases in recent years by setting the keywords as apoptosis in combination with colitis-associated cancer. We summarized the herbal medicine extracts or their compounds that can prevent CAC by modulating apoptosis and analyzed the mechanism of action. The results show the following. (1) Herbal medicines regulate both the mitochondrial apoptosis pathway and death receptor apoptosis pathway. (2) Herbal medicines modulate the above two apoptotic pathways by affecting signal transductions of IL-6/STAT3, MAPK/NF-κ B, Oxidative stress, Non-canonical TGF-ß1, WNT/ß-catenin, and Cell cycle, thereby ameliorating CAC. We conclude that following. (1) Studies on the role of herbal medicine in regulating apoptosis through the Ras/Raf/ERK, WNT/ß-catenin, and Cell cycle pathways have not yet been carried out in sufficient depth. (2) The active constituents of reported anti-CAC herbal medicine mainly include polyphenols, terpenoids, and saccharide. Also, we identified other herbal medicines with the constituents mentioned above as their main components, aiming to provide a reference for the clinical use of herbal medicine in the treatment of CAC. (3) New dosage forms can be utilized to elevate the targeting and reduce the toxicity of herbal medicine.

Clinical Impact of the Bolus in Intensity-Modulated Radiotherapy and Volumetric-Modulated Arc Therapy for Stage I-II Nasal Natural Killer/T-Cell Lymphoma.

INTRODUCTION: To estimate the clinical impact of bolus in intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) for stage I-II nasal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma (NNKTCL), including target quality, organs at risk (OARs) sparing, and tumor control probability (TCP). METHODS: Two different treatment plans were designed in IMRT and VMAT for 10 stage I-II NNKTCL patients. The clinical plans added bolus perfectly contacting the nose skin, similar to common clinical planning design practices. The edited bolus plans resulted from dose recalculation with the edited bolus, which simulated the actual shape of a commercial flat bolus during treatment. All the plans were with no beam passing through the couch avoiding beam attenuation caused by the couch. Differences between both types of plans in target quality, OARs sparing, and TCP were evaluated. RESULTS: Compared with clinical plans, the D98%, D2%, Dmean, and TCP of edited bolus plans with IMRT slightly decreased (p = 0.002, 0.015, 0.000, and 0.000), the homogeneity index increased 8.33% (p = 0.024), and the doses to a small number of OARs slightly changed. Similar results were obtained for VMAT. CONCLUSION: The bolus deformation in practical clinical treatment resulted clinically in tiny changes with respect to the target coverage, OARs sparing, and TCP in both IMRT and VMAT for stage I-II NNKTCL. This implied that the clinical impact of the boluscan be negligible when utilizing it to increase the dose to irregularly shaped tumors in the nasal area.