The H9N2 avian influenza virus increases APEC adhesion to oviduct epithelia by viral NS1 protein-mediated activation of the TGF-ß pathway.

H9N2 avian influenza is a low-pathogenic avian influenza circulating in poultry and wild birds worldwide and frequently contributes to chicken salpingitis that is caused by avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC), leading to huge economic losses and risks for food safety. Currently, how the H9N2 virus contributes to APEC infection and facilitates salpingitis remains elusive. In this study, in vitro chicken oviduct epithelial cell (COEC) model and in vivo studies were performed to investigate the role of H9N2 viruses on secondary APEC infection, and we identified that H9N2 virus enhances APEC infection both in vitro and in vivo. To understand the mechanisms behind this phenomenon, adhesive molecules on the cell surface facilitating APEC adhesion were checked, and we found that H9N2 virus could upregulate the expression of fibronectin, which promotes APEC adhesion onto COECs. We further investigated how fibronectin expression is regulated by H9N2 virus infection and revealed that transforming growth factor beta (TGF-ß) signaling pathway is activated by the NS1 protein of the virus, thus regulating the expression of adhesive molecules. These new findings revealed the role of H9N2 virus in salpingitis co-infected with APEC and discovered the molecular mechanisms by which the H9N2 virus facilitates APEC infection, offering new insights to the etiology of salpingitis with viral-bacterial co-infections.IMPORTANCEH9N2 avian influenza virus (AIV) widely infects poultry and is sporadically reported in human infections. The infection in birds frequently causes secondary bacterial infections, resulting in severe symptoms like pneumonia and salpingitis. Currently, the mechanism that influenza A virus contributes to secondary bacterial infection remains elusive. Here we discovered that H9N2 virus infection promotes APEC infection and further explored the underlying molecular mechanisms. We found that fibronectin protein on the cell surface is vital for APEC adhesion and also showed that H9N2 viral protein NS1 increased the expression of fibronectin by activating the TGF-ß signaling pathway. Our findings offer new information on how AIV infection promotes APEC secondary infection, providing potential targets for mitigating severe APEC infections induced by H9N2 avian influenza, and also give new insights on the mechanisms on how viruses promote secondary bacterial infections in animal and human diseases.

Mitochondria-mediated ferroptosis contributes to the inflammatory responses of bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) in vitro.

Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) belongs to the family Flaviviridae and includes two biotypes in cell culture: cytopathic (CP) or non-cytopathic (NCP) effects. Ferroptosis is a non-apoptotic form of programmed cell death that contributes to inflammatory diseases. However, whether BVDV induces ferroptosis and the role of ferroptosis in viral infection remain unclear. Here, we provide evidence that both CP and NCP BVDV can induce ferroptosis in Madin-Darby bovine kidney cells at similar rate. Mechanistically, biotypes of BVDV infection downregulate cytoplasmic and mitochondrial GPX4 via Nrf2-GPX4 pathway, thereby resulting in lethal lipid peroxidation and promoting ferroptosis. In parallel, BVDV can degrade ferritin heavy chain and mitochondrial ferritin via NCOA4-mediated ferritinophagy to promote the accumulation of Fe2+ and initiate ferroptosis. Importantly, CP BVDV-induced ferroptosis is tightly associated with serious damage of mitochondria and hyperactivation of inflammatory responses. In contrast, mild or unapparent damage of mitochondria and slight inflammatory responses were detected in NCP BVDV-infected cells. More importantly, different mitophagy pathways in response to mitochondria damage by both biotypes of BVDV are involved in inflammatory responses. Overall, this study is the first to show that mitochondria may play key roles in mediating ferroptosis and inflammatory responses induced by biotypes of BVDV in vitro.IMPORTANCEBovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) threatens a wide range of domestic and wild cattle population worldwide. BVDV causes great economic loss in cattle industry through its immunosuppression and persistent infection. Despite extensive research, the mechanism underlying the pathogenesis of BVDV remains elusive. Our data provide the first direct evidence that mitochondria-mediated ferroptosis and mitophagy are involved in inflammatory responses in both biotypes of BVDV-infected cells. Importantly, we demonstrate that the different degrees of injury of mitochondria and inflammatory responses may attribute to different mitophagy pathways induced by biotypes of BVDV. Overall, our findings uncover the interaction between BVDV infection and mitochondria-mediated ferroptosis, which shed novel light on the physiological impacts of ferroptosis on the pathogenesis of BVDV infection, and provide a promising therapeutic strategy to treat this important infectious disease with a worldwide distribution.

A Diffusive Artificial Synapse Based on Charged Metal Nanoparticles.

We show that a diffusive memristor with analogue switching characteristics can be achieved in a layer of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) functionalized with charged self-assembled monolayers (deprotonated 11-mercaptoundecanoic acid). The nanoparticle core and the anchored stationary charges are jammed within the layer while the mobile counterions [N(CH3)4+] can respond to the electric field and spontaneously diffuse back to the initial positions upon removal of the field. This metal nanoparticle device is set-step free, energy consumption efficient, mechanically flexible, and analogous to bio-Ca2+ dynamics and has tunable conductance modulation capabilities at the counterion concentrations. The gradual resistive switching behavior enables us to implement several important synaptic functions such as potentiation/depression, spike voltage-dependent plasticity, spike duration-dependent plasticity, spike frequency-dependent plasticity, and paired-pulse facilitation. Finally, on the basis of the paired-pulse facilitation characteristics, the metal nanoparticle diffusive artificial synapse is used for edge extraction with exhibits excellent performance.

Urine microRNA-7977/G6PD level in DKD patients and its association with dysfunction of albumin-induced autophagy in proximal epithelial tubular cells.

Studies have shown that decreased expression of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) play an important role in DKD. However, the upstream and downstream pathways of G6PD downregulation leading to DKD have not been elucidated.We conducted a series of studies including clinical study, animal studies, and in vitro studies to explore this. Firstly, a total of 90 subjects were evaluated. The urinary G6PD activity and its association with the clinical markers were analyzed. Then, urine differentially microRNAs that can bind and degrade G6PD were screened and verified in DKD patients. After that, high glucose (HG)-cultured Human kidney cells (HK-2) and Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF) rats were used to test the roles of miR-7977/G6PD/albumin-induced autophagy in DKD. The plasma and urinary G6PD activity were decreased significantly in patients with DKD, accompanied by increased urinary mir-7977 level. The fasting plasma glucose (FPG), triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and urinary albumin excretion were independent predictors of urinary G6PD activity by multiple linear regression analysis.The increased expression of miR-7977 and decreased expression of G6PD were also found in the kidney of ZDF rats with early renal tubular damage.In HK-2 cells cultured with normal situation, low level of albumin could induce autophagy along with the stimulation of G6PD although this was impaired under high glucose. Overexpression of G6PD reversed albumin-induced autophagy in HK2 cells under high glucose.Inhibition mir-7977 expression led to significantly increased expression of G6PD and reversed the effects of high glucose on albumin induced autophagy.Our study supports a new mechanism of G6PD downregulation in DKD.

White Organic Light-Emitting Diodes with External Quantum Efficiency of 20.77% at 10000 cd m-2 and Ultra-High Color Stability by Controlling Exciton Distribution.

Although brightness and efficiency have been continually improved, the inability to achieve superior efficiency, color stability, and low-efficiency roll-off simultaneously in white organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) remains a knotty problem restricting the commercial application. In this paper, emission balance for two different horizontal orientation emitting molecules is maintained by using hole transport materials and bipolar host materials to control carriers' recombination and exciton diffusion. Impressively, the obtained devices exhibit extremely stable white emission with small chromaticity coordinates variation of (0.0023, 0.0078) over a wide brightness range from 1000 to 50000 cd m-2. Meanwhile, the optimal white OLED realizes the power efficiency, current efficiency, and external quantum efficiency up to 70.68 lm W-1, 85.53 cd A-1, and 24.33%, respectively at the practical brightness of 1000 cd m-2. Owing to reduced heterogeneous interfaces and broadening recombination region, this device exhibits a high EQE over 20% under high luminance of 10000 cd m-2, demonstrating slight efficiency roll-off. The operating mechanism of the device is analyzed by versatile experimental and theoretical evidences, which concludes precise manipulation of charges and excitons is the key points to achieve these excellent performances. This work provides an effective strategy for the design of high-performance white OLEDs.

Time-varying propagation model and dynamic-feedback-phase correction for multiplexed orbital angular momentum beams in atmospheric turbulence.

Freespace optical (FSO) communication in an outdoor setting is complicated by atmospheric turbulence (AT). A time-varying (TV) multiplexed orbital angular momentum (OAM) propagation model to consider AT under transverse-wind conditions is formulated for the first time, and optimized dynamic correction periods for various TV AT situations are found to improve the transmission efficiency. The TV nature of AT has until now been neglected from modeling of OAM propagation models, but it is shown to be important. First, according to the Taylor frozen-turbulence hypothesis, a series of AT phase screens influenced by transverse wind are introduced into the conventional angular-spectrum propagation analysis method to model both the temporal and spatial propagation characteristics of multiplexed OAM beams. Our model shows that while in weak TV AT, the power standard deviation of lower-order modes is usually smaller than that of higher-order modes, the phenomena in strong TV AT are qualitatively different. Moreover, after analyzing the effective time of each OAM phase correction, optimized dynamic correction periods for a dynamic feedback communication link are obtained. An optimized result shows that, under the moderate TV AT, both a system BER within the forward-error-correction limit and a low iterative computation volume with 6% of the real-time correction could be achieved with a correction period of 0.18 s. The research emphasizes the significance of establishing a TV propagation model for exploring the effect of TV AT on multiplexed OAM beams and proposing an optimized phase-correction mechanism to mitigate performance degradation caused by TV AT, ultimately enhancing overall transmission efficiency.

The selective sponging of miRNAs by OIP5-AS1 regulates metabolic reprogramming of pyruvate in adenoma-carcinoma transition of human colorectal cancer.

RNA interactomes and their diversified functionalities have recently benefited from critical methodological advances leading to a paradigm shift from a conventional conception on the regulatory roles of RNA in pathogenesis. However, the dynamic RNA interactomes in adenoma-carcinoma sequence of human CRC remain unexplored. The coexistence of adenoma, cancer, and normal tissues in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients provides an appropriate model to address this issue. Here, we adopted an RNA in situ conformation sequencing technology for mapping RNA-RNA interactions in CRC patients. We observed large-scale paired RNA counts and identified some unique RNA complexes including multiple partners RNAs, single partner RNAs, non-overlapping single partner RNAs. We focused on the antisense RNA OIP5-AS1 and found that OIP5-AS1 could sponge different miRNA to regulate the production of metabolites including pyruvate, alanine and lactic acid. Our findings provide novel perspectives in CRC pathogenesis and suggest metabolic reprogramming of pyruvate for the early diagnosis and treatment of CRC.

Wetting State Transition of Laser Direct Writing Aluminum Surface Based on Coupling Effect of Micro/Nanoscale Characteristics.

Micro/nanostructured metal surfaces fabricated by laser direct writing (LDW) have been widely used in wettability-related fields. Previous studies focused on the effects of surface structural patterns or chemical composition on wettability, while the coupling mechanism and respective contributions of the two are not distinct. This paper reveals the coupling effect of micro/nanoscale characteristics on the wettability of LDW aluminum surfaces and elucidates the transition mechanism between wetting states on the surfaces with linear laser energy density. Through the contact angle experiments, a wetting state transition of the LDW surface is found from a more hydrophilic than pristine rose petal effect to lotus effect. Based on the bionic analysis method of the superhydrophobicity factors of lotus leaves, the contributions to the wettability of LDW surfaces are divided into the micro/nanoscale characteristics. The theoretical model for identifying the wetting state of a rough surface is proposed. Based on this model, the average Young's contact angle, θ̅Y, is calculated, which indicates the contribution of the nanoscale characteristics. During the transition process from rose petal effect to lotus effect, θ̅Y > 90° is a necessary condition for detachment from the rose petal effect, which is contributed by the high specific surface organic adsorption at the nanoscale. What is more, the wetting state determined by the microscale characteristics further enhances its hydrophobicity, leading to the lotus effect. Based on the wetting state identification model and the Cassie-Baxter equation, the change of micro/nanoscale characteristics on aluminum surfaces after LDW treatment is presented, and the influence of micro/nanoscale characteristics on the wetting state is decoupled and quantified. This research helps to coordinate the effects of surface structure and chemical composition on wettability in the design of specific wettability functional surfaces and can also be applied to other high heat density surface processing fields.

Preparation of µ-HMX/C-Based Composite Energy Composite Microspheres by Microdroplet Technology.

Taking µ-HMX particles as the main research subject, a set of microdroplet sphericalization coating technology platforms was designed and constructed to realize the preparation of composite microspheres by sphericalization coating of µ-HMX. The suspension stability of µ-HMX particles and the mechanism of droplet formation were investigated, and the application effect of nanocarbon materials was also analyzed. The results showed that the prepared sample microspheres all showed a better spherical morphology, as well as good dispersibility; the samples with micron-sized particles for spherical coating had a lower thermal decomposition temperature, a higher energy release efficiency, lower mechanical sensibility, and better combustion performance; the incorporation of CNFs changed the combustion mode of the system, which resulted in the microsphere system of µ-HMX having a good safety performance. The stability and feasibility of uniform spheronization when the dispersed phase is a low-concentration particle suspension system in the spheronization encapsulation process by microdroplet technology were verified.

Systematic engineering enables efficient biosynthesis of L-phenylalanine in E. coli from inexpensive aromatic precursors.

BACKGROUND: L-phenylalanine is an essential amino acid with various promising applications. The microbial pathway for L-phenylalanine synthesis from glucose in wild strains involves lengthy steps and stringent feedback regulation that limits the production yield. It is attractive to find other candidates, which could be used to establish a succinct and cost-effective pathway for L-phenylalanine production. Here, we developed an artificial bioconversion process to synthesize L-phenylalanine from inexpensive aromatic precursors (benzaldehyde or benzyl alcohol). In particular, this work opens the possibility of L-phenylalanine production from benzyl alcohol in a cofactor self-sufficient system without any addition of reductant. RESULTS: The engineered L-phenylalanine biosynthesis pathway comprises two modules: in the first module, aromatic precursors and glycine were converted into phenylpyruvate, the key precursor for L-phenylalanine. The highly active enzyme combination was natural threonine aldolase LtaEP.p and threonine dehydratase A8HB.t, which could produce phenylpyruvate in a titer of 4.3 g/L. Overexpression of gene ridA could further increase phenylpyruvate production by 16.3%, reaching up to 5 g/L. The second module catalyzed phenylpyruvate to L-phenylalanine, and the conversion rate of phenylpyruvate was up to 93% by co-expressing PheDH and FDHV120S. Then, the engineered E. coli containing these two modules could produce L-phenylalanine from benzaldehyde with a conversion rate of 69%. Finally, we expanded the aromatic precursors to produce L-phenylalanine from benzyl alcohol, and firstly constructed the cofactor self-sufficient biosynthetic pathway to synthesize L-phenylalanine without any additional reductant such as formate. CONCLUSION: Systematical bioconversion processes have been designed and constructed, which could provide a potential bio-based strategy for the production of high-value L-phenylalanine from low-cost starting materials aromatic precursors.

Non-cytopathic bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) inhibits innate immune responses via induction of mitophagy.

Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) belongs to the genus Pestivirus within the family Flaviviridae. Mitophagy plays important roles in virus-host interactions. Here, we provide evidence that non-cytopathic (NCP) BVDV shifts the balance of mitochondrial dynamics toward fission and induces mitophagy to inhibit innate immune responses. Mechanistically, NCP BVDV triggers the translocation of dynamin-related protein (Drp1) to mitochondria and stimulates its phosphorylation at Ser616, leading to mitochondrial fission. In parallel, NCP BVDV-induced complete mitophagy via Parkin-dependent pathway contributes to eliminating damaged mitochondria to inhibit MAVS- and mtDNA-cGAS-mediated innate immunity responses, mtROS-mediated inflammatory responses and apoptosis initiation. Importantly, we demonstrate that the LIR motif of ERNS is essential for mitophagy induction. In conclusion, this study is the first to show that NCP BVDV-induced mitophagy plays a central role in promoting cell survival and inhibiting innate immune responses in vitro.

Construction of recombinant fluorescent LSDV for high-throughput screening of antiviral drugs.

Lumpy skin disease virus (LSDV) infection is a major socio-economic issue that seriously threatens the global cattle-farming industry. Here, a recombinant virus LSDV-ΔTK/EGFP, expressing enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP), was constructed with a homologous recombination system and applied to the high-throughput screening of antiviral drugs. LSDV-ΔTK/EGFP replicates in various kidney cell lines, consistent with wild-type LSDV. The cytopathic effect, viral particle morphology, and growth performance of LSDV-ΔTK/EGFP are consistent with those of wild-type LSDV. High-throughput screening allowed to identify several molecules that inhibit LSDV-ΔTK/EGFP replication. The strong inhibitory effect of theaflavin on LSDV was identified when 100 antiviral drugs were screened in vitro. An infection time analysis showed that theaflavin plays a role in the entry of LSDV into cells and in subsequent viral replication stages. The development of this recombinant virus will contribute to the development of LSDV-directed antiviral drugs and the study of viral replication and mechanisms of action.

Emergence of an ST1934:KL121 hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae carrying a novel virulence-resistance hybrid plasmid with chromosomal integration of ICEKp1.

To identify the phenotypic and genomic characteristics of K. pneumoniae KP43 from bloodstream infection. KP43 was resistant to ticarcillin and tetracycline and was hypervirulent in the Galleria mellonella larvae infection model, positive for string test, and possessed high-level macrophage killing resistance. The hypervirulence phenotype was associated with the chromosome integration of ICEKp1 carrying iroBCDN-iroP, rmpADC, and peg-344, and a novel plasmid pKP43_vir_amr harboring iutAiucABCD. pKP43_vir_amr was an IncFIBκ/FII virulence-resistance hybrid conjugative plasmid which also carried antibiotic resistance genes. The emergence of such a strain and the spread of the novel virulence-resistance plasmid might pose a potential threat to public health.

The association between weekly exercise patterns and acceleration of aging: Evidence from a population-based study.

BACKGROUND: Acceleration of aging is a major challenge in public health. Previous studies have focused on the associations between specific types of exercise or overall levels of physical activity with accelerated aging, with less attention given to the weekly exercise patterns. OBJECTIVE: To explore the relationship between weekly exercise patterns and acceleration of aging among American adults. METHODS: We extracted data from the 2015-2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), involving 9850 participants aged ≥20 with comprehensive records on exercise and phenotypic age. Hierarchical clustering categorized participants into three groups based on weekly exercise time and days: cluster 1 (Rare or No Exercise), cluster 2 (Moderate Frequency, Moderate Duration) and cluster 3 (Moderate Frequency, Long Duration). Acceleration of aging was defined as the phenotypic age advance >0. RESULTS: After full adjustment, weekly exercise time and days showed the significant non-linear negative correlation with accelerated aging. The risk of accelerated aging was lowest when weekly exercise days reached five and the weekly exercise time reached three hours. Both cluster 2 and cluster 3 were significantly negatively correlated with acceleration of aging. No significant differences were observed in the association with accelerated aging between cluster 2 and cluster 3. CONCLUSIONS: These findings highlight the importance of targeted exercise programs for healthy aging. They also emphasize the need for public health initiatives to integrate regular physical activity into daily routines to improve the longevity and well-being of American adults.

Association of prognostic nutritional index with peripheral artery disease in US adults: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between the prognostic nutritional index (PNI) and peripheral artery disease (PAD). METHODS: The present study is a cross-sectional study based on the National Health and Nutrition Survey (1999-2004). The laboratory-calculated PNI was divided into four groups based on quartiles(Q1:PNI ≤ 50.00; Q2: 50.01-53.00; Q3:53.01-56.00; Q4: > 56.00). PAD was defined as an ankle brachial pressure index (ABPI) ≤ 0.9 on the left or right. The relationship between PNI and PAD was examined using multifactor weighted logistic regression analysis, as well as subgroup analysis. Subgroup analyses were conducted based on demographic and clinical variables. RESULTS: A total of 5,447 individuals were included in our final analysis. The age of the participants was 59.56 ± 13.10 years, and males accounted for 52.8% (n = 2820). The prevalence of PAD was 6.7% (n = 363). After adjusting for all factors, participants with Q1 still had an increased risk of PAD, with an OR value of 1.593 and a 95% CI of 1.232-1.991. Subgroup analysis showed no significant interaction among multiple factors. CONCLUSIONS: In summary, we report that lower PNI are associated with a higher risk of PAD in US adults. It is hoped that this discovery can provide a reference for the prevention of PAD.

Association of secondhand smoke exposure with all-cause mortality and cardiovascular death in patients with hypertension: Insights from NHANES.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The impact of environmental chemical exposure on blood pressure (BP) is well-established. However, the relationship between secondhand smoke exposure (SHSE) and mortality in hypertensive patients in the general population remains unclear. METHODS AND RESULTS: This cohort study included US adults in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2007 to 2018. All-cause mortality and cause-specific mortality outcomes were determined by associating them with the National Death Index records. Cox proportional risk models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) for all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality, and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for SHSE. The cohort included 10,760 adult participants. The mean serum cotinine level was 0.024 ng/mL. During a mean follow-up period of 76.9 months, there were 1729 deaths, including 469 cardiovascular disease deaths recorded. After adjusting for lifestyle factors, BMI, hypertension duration, medication use, and chronic disease presence, the highest SHSE was significantly associated with higher all-cause and CVD mortality. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that higher SHSE is significantly associated with higher all-cause mortality and CVD mortality. Further research is necessary to elucidate the underlying mechanisms.

Association of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration with all-cause and cause-specific mortality in hypertensive patients.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: To examine the association of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] with all-cause mortality and disease-specific mortality in patients with hypertension. METHODS AND RESULTS: This cohort study included US adults in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2007 to 2018. All-cause mortality and cause-specific mortality outcomes were determined by association with National Death Index records. Cox proportional risk models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) for all-cause mortality and cause-specific mortality and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for serum 25(OH)D concentrations. The cohort included 10,325 adult participants. The mean serum 25(OH)D level was 65.87 nmol/L, and 32.2% of patients were vitamin D deficient (<50 nmol/L). During a mean follow-up of 77 months, 1290 deaths were recorded, including 345 cardiovascular deaths and 237 cancer deaths. Patients with higher serum 25(OH)D were more likely to have lower all-cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality than those with serum 25(OH)D < 25.00 nmol/L. For cancer mortality in hypertensive patients, vitamin D may not have a predictive role in this. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that higher 25(OH)D levels are significantly associated with lower all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality. These findings suggest that maintaining adequate vitamin D status may reduce the risk of death in patients with hypertension.

Performance analysis of the FSO communication system with random jamming over a composite Málaga turbulence fading channel.

The performance analysis of a free space optical (FSO) communication system in the presence of random jamming is presented over a Málaga (M) distributed channel model with pointing errors and atmospheric attenuation. Firstly, the probability density function expressions of the transmission channel, signal-to-jamming ratio, and signal-to-noise ratio are derived. Then, considering the probability of the jammer and Gaussian white noise, the closed-form expressions for the ergodic channel capacity, outage probability, and average bit error rate are derived. Moreover, asymptotic expressions for the aforementioned performance metrics are also derived to ascertain the diversity gain of the system. Extensive Monte Carlo simulations are performed to demonstrate the credibility of this theoretical analysis. Results indicate that the adverse impact of random jamming is higher than that of Gaussian noise for the FSO communication system. Besides, this observation highlights the pulsating nature of the jamming effect, showcasing that within high signal-to-jamming ratio regions, a low probability jammer exerts the most significant impact on the FSO system.

Treatment of ureteropelvic junction obstruction in patients with renal calculi via laparoscopic pyeloplasty and flexible vacuum-assisted ureteral access sheath ureteroscopy: a multicenter retrospective observational study.

BACKGROUND: Ureteropelvic junction obstruction (UPJO) is a common obstructive disease of the urinary tract. UPJO patients commonly exhibit coexistent renal calculi. The main aim of therapy is to relieve the obstruction and remove the stones at the same time. METHODS: This retrospective study included 110 patients diagnosed with UPJO coexisting with multiple renal calculi at Shanxi Bethune Hospital and the First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University between March 2016 and January 2022. Patients were divided according to the methods used for dealing with UPJO and renal calculi. In Group A, patients underwent traditional open pyeloplasty and pyelolithotomy. In Group B, patients underwent percutaneous nephrolithotomy first and then laparoscopic pyeloplasty. In Group C, patients underwent flexible cystoscopy to remove stones and then laparoscopic pyeloplasty. In Group D, patients underwent flexible vacuum-assisted ureteral access sheath (FV-UAS)assisted flexible ureteroscopy (f-URS) and underwent laparoscopic pyeloplasty. The stones were broken up using a holmium laser. The pyeloplasty success rate, stone clearance rate, operation time, bleeding amount, complication occurrence rate, postsurgical pain, length of stay, and hospitalization cost were compared between the groups. The follow-up period was at least 2 years. RESULTS: The use of f-URS and the FV-UAS, significantly increased the renal stone clearance rate and significantly reduced the complication incidence and operation time in UPJO patients with multiple coexisting renal calculi. CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopic pyeloplasty combined with f-URS and FV-UAS is safe and effective for treating UPJO in patients complicated by renal caliceal stones. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Retrospectively registered.

Transcriptome analysis of frontal fibrosis alopecia revealed involvement of immune cells and ferroptosis.

BACKGROUND: Frontal fibrosis alopecia (FFA) is a primary cicatricial alopecia and has received increasing attention in recent years. However, the pathogenesis of FFA has not been fully elucidated. METHODS AND RESULTS: Herein, we collected the transcriptome data of scalp lesions of seven patients with FFA and seven healthy controls. The differential expression analysis and weighted gene co-expression network analysis were conducted and we identified 458 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in two key modules. Later, we performed functional enrichment analysis and functional modules identification, revealing the participation of immune response and fatty acid metabolism. Based on the results, we processed further studies. On the one hand, we analyzed the infiltrating immune cells of FFA through CIBERSORT algorithm, indicating the activation of M1 macrophage and CD8+ T cell. On the other hand, considering lipid metabolism of FFA and oxidative stress of hair follicle cells in alopecia, we explored the potential ferroptosis of FFA. By intersection of DEGs and ferroptosis-related genes from FerrDb database, 19 genes were identified and their expression was validated in an external dataset containing 36 FFA cases and 12 controls. Then, we used LASSO algorithms to construct a four-gene diagnostic model, which achieved an AUC of 0.924 in validation dataset. Additionally, the immune cells were found to be related to ferroptosis in FFA. CONCLUSION: Taken together, this study contributed to reveal the molecular mechanisms of FFA and is expected to inspire future research on treatment.