Polypeptide Bilayer Assembly-Mediated Gene Delivery Enhances Chemotherapy in Cancer Cells.

Developing gene vectors with high transfection efficiency and low cytotoxicity to humans is crucial to improve gene therapy outcomes. This study set out to investigate the use of cationic polypeptide bilayer assemblies formed by coil-sheet poly(l-lysine)-block-poly(l-benzyl-cysteine) (PLL-b-PBLC) as gene vectors that present improved transfection efficiency, endosomal escape, and biocompatibility compared to PLL. The formation of the polyplexes was triggered by hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interactions, and electrostatic association between the cationic PLL segments and the negatively charged plasmid encoding p53, resulting in self-assembled polypeptide chains. Transfection efficiency of these polyplexes increased with increments of PLL-to-PBLC block ratios, with PLL15-b-PBLC5 bilayers exhibiting the best in vitro transfection efficiency among all, suggesting that PLL-b-PBLC bilayer assemblies are efficient in the protection and stabilization of genes. The polypeptide bilayer gene vector reversed the cisplatin sensitivity of p53-null cancer cells by increasing apoptotic signaling. Consistent with in vitro results, mouse xenograft studies revealed that PLL15-b-PBLC5/plasmid encoding p53 therapy significantly suppressed tumor growth and enhanced low-dose cisplatin treatment, while extending survival of tumor-bearing mice and avoiding significant body weight loss. This study presents a feasible gene therapy that, combined with low-dose chemotherapeutic drugs, may treat genetically resistant cancers while reducing side effects in clinical patients.

High-level production and extraction of C-phycocyanin from cyanobacteria Synechococcus sp. PCC7002 for antioxidation, antibacterial and lead adsorption.

Global warming and climate change because carbon dioxide (CO2) release to atmosphere is the forecasting challenges to human being. We are facing how to overcome the dilemma on the balance between economic and environment, thus taking more efforts on green processes to meet agreement of sustainable society are urgent and crucial. The absorption of CO2 by microalgae reduces the impact of CO2 on the environment. In this study, the CO2 removal efficiency was the highest in the culture of Cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC7002 (also called blue-green algae), at 2% CO2 to reach a value of 0.86 g-CO2/g-DCW. The main product of PCC7002 is C-phycocyanin (C-PC) which regarding to phycobilisome complex in all cyanobacterial species. A 160% increasing C-PC was achieved in the cultivation under 100 µmol/m2/s light intensity, 12:12 light-period with 2% CO2 at 30 °C. The mix-culture of nitric and ammonia ions had positive effect on the cell growth and C-PC accumulation, thus realized the highest yield of 0.439 g-CPC/g-DCW. Additionally, the partial purified C-PC displayed 89% antioxidant activity of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryhydrazyl (DPPH) and 11% of superoxide free radical scavenging activity, respectively. The production of C-PC from PCC7002 reduced the CO2 emission and exhibited antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and lead ion adsorption at room temperature, which has the great potential for eco-friendly application.

Interactions between Cationic Ion Pair Amphiphile Vesicles and Hyaluronan-A Physicochemical Study.

High-resolution ultrasound spectroscopy (HR-US), size and ζ-potential titrations, and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) were used to characterize the interactions between hyaluronan and catanionic ion pair amphiphile vesicles composed of hexadecyltrimethylammonium-dodecylsulphate (HTMA-DS), dioctadecyldimethylammonium chloride (DODAC), and cholesterol. In addition to these methods, visual observations were performed with the selected molecular weight of hyaluronan. A very good correlation was obtained between data from size titration, HR-US, and visual observation, which indicated in lower charge ratios the formation of hyaluronan-coated vesicles. On the contrary, at higher charge ratios, coated vesicles disintegrated to a size of around 2000 nm. The intensity of these interactions and the disaggregation were dependent on the molecular weight of hyaluronan. All interactions studied by ITC showed strong exothermic behavior, and these interactions between vesicles and hyaluronan were confirmed from the first addition, independently of the molecular weight of hyaluronan.

Cholesterol Effect on Membrane Properties of Cationic Ion Pair Amphiphile Vesicles at Different Temperatures.

This work is focused on the study of the effect of cholesterol on the properties of vesicular membranes of ionic amphiphilic pairs at different temperatures. The hexadecyltrimethylammonium-dodecyl sulfate ionic amphiphilic pair system with the addition of 10 mol % dioctadecyldimethylammonium chloride was chosen for a detailed study of vesicle properties. A large range of cholesterol concentrations (0-73 mol %) in the temperature range 10-80 °C was studied. Under these conditions, the size distribution, the membrane fluidity, and the surface layer were monitored together with the change in the mobility of water in the surface layer. Obtained quantities were correlated with each other and combined into appropriate graphs. It was found that in stable systems that meet the condition of unimodal size distribution with a PDI value lower than 0.3, temperature has virtually no effect on the size of vesicular systems. On the contrary, when studying the hydration and fluidity of the membrane, significant changes in these parameters were found, which, however, do not affect the short-term stability of these vesicular systems. The presented results thus indicate the possibility of adjusting the composition of the vesicular system in terms of fluidity and membrane hydration while maintaining short-term stability and size distribution.

Peptide Fibrillar Assemblies Exhibit Membranolytic Effects and Antimetastatic Activity on Lung Cancer Cells.

Cancer metastasis is a central oncology concern that worsens patient conditions and increases mortality in a short period of time. During metastatic events, mitochondria undergo specific physiological alterations that have emerged as notable therapeutic targets to counter cancer progression. In this study, we use drug-free, cationic peptide fibrillar assemblies (PFAs) formed by poly(L-Lysine)-block-poly(L-Threonine) (Lys-b-Thr) to target mitochondria. These PFAs interact with cellular and mitochondrial membranes via electrostatic interactions, resulting in membranolysis. Charge repulsion and hydrogen-bonding interactions exerted by Lys and Thr segments dictate the packing of the peptides and enable the PFAs to display enhanced membranolytic activity toward cancer cells. Cytochrome c (cyt c), endonuclease G, and apoptosis-inducing factor were released from mitochondria after treatment of lung cancer cells, subsequently inducing caspase-dependent and caspase-independent apoptotic pathways. A metastatic xenograft mouse model was used to show how the PFAs significantly suppressed lung metastasis and inhibited tumor growth, while avoiding significant body weight loss and mortality. Antimetastatic activities of PFAs are also demonstrated by in vitro inhibition of lung cancer cell migration and clonogenesis. Our results imply that the cationic PFAs achieved the intended and targeted mitochondrial damage, providing an efficient antimetastatic therapy.

Synthesis of Monometallic (Au and Pd) and Bimetallic (AuPd) Nanoparticles Using Carbon Nitride (C3N4) Quantum Dots via the Photochemical Route for Nitrophenol Reduction.

In this study, we report the synthesis of monometallic (Au and Pd) and bimetallic (AuPd) nanoparticles (NPs) using graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) quantum dots (QDs) and photochemical routes. Eliminating the necessity of any extra stabilizer or reducing agent, the photochemical reactions have been carried out using a UV light source of 365 nm where C3N4 QD itself functions as a suitable stabilizer as well as a reducing agent. The g-C3N4 QDs are excited upon irradiation with UV light and produce photogenerated electrons, which further facilitate the reduction of metal ions. The successful formation of Au, Pd, and AuPd alloy nanoparticles is evidenced by UV-vis, powder X-ray diffraction, X-ray photon spectroscopy, and energy-dispersive spectroscopy techniques. The morphology and distribution of metal nanoparticles over the C3N4 QD surface has been systematically investigated by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and SAED analysis. To explore the catalytic activity of the as-prepared samples, the reduction reaction of 4-nitrophenol with excellent performance is also investigated. It is noteworthy that the synthesis of both monometallic and bimetallic NPs can be accomplished by using a very small amount of g-C3N4, which can be used as a promising photoreducing material as well as a stabilizer for the synthesis of various metal nanoparticles.

Cholesterol-induced condensing and disordering effects on a rigid catanionic bilayer: a molecular dynamics study.

Molecular dynamics simulation is applied to investigate the bilayer properties of a novel catanionic vesicle composed of an ion pair amphiphile, hexadecyltrimethylammonium-dodecylsulfate (HTMA-DS), with cholesterol. Structural properties, such as molecular organization, orientation, and conformation, were analyzed from the resulting trajectory. Simulation results showed that cholesterol could induce both condensing and disordering effects on the rigid HTMA-DS bilayer. The condensing effect of cholesterol was ascribed to the maximizing contact between cholesterol ring and the neighboring hydrocarbon chains. Thus, the inserted cholesterol ring restrained the neighboring hydrocarbon chain segments from motion and increased the order of the neighboring hydrocarbon chains. However, the presence of cholesterol would increase the distance between head groups of HTMA-DS and induce a shift of DS(-) head groups toward the inside of the bilayer. This led to the protrusion of the HTMA(+) head groups and conformational disorder in the front segments of HTMA(+) hydrocarbon chains. In addition, the cholesterol-induced void in the hydrophobic core of the HTMA-DS bilayer increased the motion freedom of the terminal segments of the hydrocarbon chains. The cholesterol-induced space in the polar region and void in the nonpolar region of the bilayer led to a conformational disorder. With high cholesterol contents, the conformational disorder effect would overwhelm the condensing effect, resulting in the apparent disordering effect on the rigid HTMA-DS bilayer.

The interaction between the outer layer of a mixed ion pair amphiphile/double-chained cationic surfactant vesicle and DNA: a Langmuir monolayer study.

The charge density of vesicular bilayers plays an important role in the structure characteristic of the vesicle-DNA complex for gene delivery. In this work, the charge density effect of catanionic vesicle surfaces on the association behavior of the vesicle with DNA was explored with the model Langmuir monolayer approach. The interaction of negatively charged DNA with positively charged Langmuir monolayers composed of catanionic vesicle-forming materials, hexadecyltrimethylammonium-dodecylsulfate (HTMA-DS) and dihexadecyldimethylammonium bromide (DHDAB), was investigated with surface pressure-area isotherms, area-time relaxation curves and Brewster angle microscope images. The results showed that the adsorption of DNA molecules onto the monolayers was enhanced with an increased DHDAB molar fraction (XDHDAB), which was apparently related to the increased charge density of the monolayers. With XDHDAB being increased up to 0.5, the mixed monolayers with a higher XDHDAB, or higher charge density, possessed a more stable characteristic at high surface pressures, at which the molecular status was close to that in a corresponding vesicular bilayer, due to the DHDAB-improved molecular packing/interaction. It was found that the composition of the mixed HTMA-DS-DHDAB monolayers at high surface pressures would be affected by the adsorbed DNA with the extent depending on XDHDAB. For the formation of stable HTMA-DS-DHDAB monolayer-DNA complexes, a strong electrostatic interaction of DNA with a monolayer of high charge density and a high monolayer stability characteristic resulting from DHDAB-improved molecular packing/interaction were thus required. The finding has an implication for the formulation of catanionic vesicles composed of an ion pair amphiphile, HTMA-DS, with DHDAB in gene delivery applications.

Fabrication of Microalgae Oil Vesicles for Drug Delivery Applications.

In this study, it is demonstrated that natural microalgae oils, which contain fatty acid components including docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), could be directly applied to fabricate vesicular structures in aqueous phase through a forced formation process. The microalgae oil vesicles had initial average diameters of 170- 230 nm with negative charges apparently caused by dissociation of the fatty acid components. The vesicles possessed excellent stability with lifetimes for at least 450 days. The formation of the vesicular structures with hydrophilic cores/regions was confirmed by the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) image and successful encapsulation of a hydrophilic material. For encapsulation of a hydrophobic material, lutein, the vesicle size was increased probably due to the insertion of lutein into the hydrophobic vesicular bilayer structures. The analysis of Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy suggested that the vesicular bilayer fluidity was decreased by encapsulating lutein. However, the lutein-encapsulating microalgae oil vesicles still possessed high stability and the vesicular structures could maintain intact even at an environmental temperature up to 60℃. Applicability of the microalgae oil vesicles as drug delivery carriers was also demonstrated by successful encapsulation of curcumin. However, when the loaded curcumin was increased to a certain amount, physical stability of the microalgae oil vesicles was significantly reduced. This is probably because the vesicular structures with only limited spaces for accommodating hydrophobic materials were strongly affected by encapsulating a large amount of curcumin. It is interesting to note that by adding egg L-α-phosphatidylcholine, the curcumin encapsulation-induced instability of the microalgae oil vesicles could be alleviated. The results indicated that vesicular structures could be fabricated from microalgae oils and the microalgae oil vesicles were capable of encapsulating hydrophilic or hydrophobic materials for drug delivery applications. The findings lay a background for further dosage form development of nutritional supplements encapsulated by natural microalgae oils.

Effect of cationic dendrimer on membrane mimetic systems in the form of monolayer and bilayer.

Interactions between a zwitterionic phospholipid, 1, 2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphatidylcholine (DPPC) and four anionic phospholipids dihexadecyl phosphate (DHP), 1, 2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoglycerol (DMPG), 1, 2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphate (DPP) and 1, 2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phospho ethanol (DPPEth) in combination with an additional amount of 30 mol% cholesterol were separately investigated at air-buffer interface through surface pressure (π) - area (A) measurements. π-A isotherm derived parameters revealed maximum negative deviation from ideality for the mixtures comprising 30 mol% anionic lipids. Besides the film functionality, structural changes of the monomolecular films at different surface pressures in the absence and presence of polyamidoamine (PAMAM, generation 4), a cationic dendrimer, were visualised through Brewster angle microscopy and fluorescence microscopic studies. Fluidity/rigidity of monolayers were assessed by surface dilatational rheology studies. Effect of PAMAM on the formation of adsorbed monolayer, due to bilayer disintegration of liposomes (DPPC:anionic lipids= 7:3 M/M, and 30 mol% cholesterol) were monitored by surface pressure (π) - time (t) isotherms. Bilayer disintegration kinetics were dependent on lipid head group and chain length, besides dendrimer concentration. Such studies are considered to be an in vitro cell membrane model where the alteration of molecular orientation play important roles in understanding the nature of interaction between the dendrimer and cell membrane. Liposome-dendrimer aggregates were nontoxic to breast cancer cell line as well as in doxorubicin treated MDA-MB-468 cell line suggesting their potential as drug delivery systems.

Physicochemical Studies on Amino Acid Based Metallosurfactants in Combination with Phospholipid.

Dicarboxylate metallosurfactants (AASM), synthesized by mixing N-dodecyl aminomalonate, -aspartate and -glutamate with CaCl2, MnCl2 and CdCl2, were characterized by XRD, FTIR, and NMR spectroscopy. Layered structures, formed by metallosurfactants, were evidenced from differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analyses. Solvent-spread monolayer of AASM in combination with soyphosphatidylcholine (SPC) and cholesterol (CHOL) were studied using Langmuir surface balance. With increasing mole fraction of AASM mean molecular area increased and passed through maxima at ~60 mol% of AASMs, indicating molecular packing reorganization. Systems with 20 and 60 mol% AASM exhibited positive deviations from ideal behavior signifying repulsive interaction between the AASM and SPC, while synergistic interactions were established from the negative deviation at other combinations. Dynamic surface elasticity increased with increasing surface pressure signifying formation of rigid monolayer. Transition of monolayer from gaseous to liquid expanded to liquid condensed state was established by Brewster angle microscopic studies. Stability of the hybrid vesicles, formed by AASM+SPC+CHOL, was established by monitoring their size, zeta potential and polydispersity index values over 100 days. Size and spherical morphology of hybrid vesicles were confirmed by transmission electron microscopic studies. Biocompatibility of the hybrid vesicles were established by cytotoxicity studies revealing their possible applications in drug delivery and imaging.

Convolutional Neural Networks to Classify Alzheimer's Disease Severity Based on SPECT Images: A Comparative Study.

Image recognition and neuroimaging are increasingly being used to understand the progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, image data from single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) are limited. Medical image analysis requires large, labeled training datasets. Therefore, studies have focused on overcoming this problem. In this study, the detection performance of five convolutional neural network (CNN) models (MobileNet V2 and NASNetMobile (lightweight models); VGG16, Inception V3, and ResNet (heavier weight models)) on medical images was compared to establish a classification model for epidemiological research. Brain scan image data were collected from 99 subjects, and 4711 images were used. Demographic data were compared using the chi-squared test and one-way analysis of variance with Bonferroni's post hoc test. Accuracy and loss functions were used to evaluate the performance of CNN models. The cognitive abilities screening instrument and mini mental state exam scores of subjects with a clinical dementia rating (CDR) of 2 were considerably lower than those of subjects with a CDR of 1 or 0.5. This study analyzed the classification performance of various CNN models for medical images and proved the effectiveness of transfer learning in identifying the mild cognitive impairment, mild AD, and moderate AD scoring based on SPECT images.

A novel smart somatosensory wearable assistive device for older adults' home rehabilitation during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: Due to the Coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) related social distancing measures and health service suspension, physical activity has declined, leading to increased falling risk and disability, and consequently, compromising the older adult health. How to improve the quality of older adult life has become a crucial social issue. Objective: In traditional rehabilitation, manual and repetitive muscle training cannot identify the patient's rehabilitation effect, and increasing the willingness to use it is not easy. Therefore, based on the usability perspective, this study aims to develop a novel smart somatosensory wearable assistive device (called SSWAD) combined with wireless surface electromyography (sEMG) and exergame software and hardware technology. The older adult can do knee extension, ankle dorsiflexion, and ankle plantar flexion rehabilitation exercises at home. Meanwhile, sEMG values can be digitally recorded to assist physicians (or professionals) in judgment, treatment, or diagnosis. Methods: To explore whether the novel SSWAD could improve the older adult willingness to use and motivation for home rehabilitation, 25 frail older adult (12 males and 13 females with an average age of 69.3) perform the rehabilitation program with the SSWAD, followed by completing the system usability scale (SUS) questionnaire and the semi-structured interview for the quantitative and qualitative analyses. In addition, we further investigate whether the factor of gender or prior rehabilitation experience would affect the home rehabilitation willingness or not. Results: According to the overall SUS score, the novel SSWAD has good overall usability performance (77.70), meaning that the SSWAD makes older adult feel interested and improves their willingness for continuous rehabilitation at home. In addition, the individual item scores of SUS are shown that female older adult with prior rehabilitation experience perform better in "Learnability" (t = 2.35, p = 0.03) and "Confidence" (t = -3.24, p = 0.01). On the contrary, male older adult without rehabilitation experience are more willing to adopt new technologies (t = -2.73, p = 0.02), and perform better in "Learnability" (t = 2.18, p = 0.04) and "Confidence" (t = -3.75, p < 0.001) with the SSWAD. In addition, the result of the semi-structured interview shows that the operation of the SSWAD is highly flexible, thus reducing older adult burden during the rehabilitation exercise and using them long-term. Conclusion: This novel SSWAD receives consistently positive feedback regardless of the gender or prior rehabilitation experience of elders. The SSWAD could be used as a novel way of home rehabilitation for elders, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Older adult can do rehabilitation exercises at home, and physicians could make proper judgments or adjust suitable treatments online according to the sEMG data, which older adult can know their rehabilitation progress at the same time. Most importantly, older adult do not have to go to the hospital every time for rehabilitation, which significantly reduces time and the risk of infection.

Molecular dynamics study of catanionic bilayers composed of ion pair amphiphile with double-tailed cationic surfactant.

The physical stability of catanionic vesicles is important for the development of novel drug or DNA carriers. For investigating the mechanism by which catanionic vesicles are stabilized, molecular dynamics (MD) simulation is an attractive approach that provides microscopic structural information on the vesicular bilayer. In this study, MD simulation was applied to investigate the bilayer properties of catanionic vesicles composed of an ion pair amphiphile (IPA), hexadecyltrimethylammonium-dodecylsulfate (HTMA-DS), and a double-tailed cationic surfactant, ditetradecyldimethylammonium chloride (DTDAC). Structural information regarding membrane elasticity and the organization and conformation of surfactant molecules was obtained based on the resulting trajectory. Simulation results showed that a proper amount of DTDAC could be used to complement the asymmetric structure between HTMA and DS, resulting in an ordered hydrocarbon chain packing within the rigid membrane observed in the mixed HTMA-DS/DTDAC system. The coexistence of gel and fluid phases was also observed in the presence of excess DTDAC. MD simulation results agreed well with results obtained from experimental studies examining mixed HTMA-DS/DTDAB vesicles.

Surfactant-assisted synthesis and characterization of stable silver bromide nanoparticles in aqueous media.

Colloidal dispersions of silver bromide (AgBr) in aqueous surfactant medium have been prepared using a surfactant-assisted synthesis approach with hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). The surfactant acts both as source of bromide ion as well as the stabilizing agent. Upon progressive addition of silver nitrate to aqueous CTAB solution, stable AgBr dispersions were obtained. Formation of surfactant cation (CTA(+)) stabilized AgBr was confirmed by way of XRD, FTIR and NMR studies. Thermal behavior of the isolated nanoparticles was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), where the occurrence of phase transition in the surfactant-stabilized nanoparticles was observed. Kinetics of the particle growth was investigated by dynamic light scattering measurements, which predicted the formation of surfactant bilayered structures associated with the nanoparticles of AgBr. Band gap of the nanoparticles was determined by suitably analyzing the UV-visible spectral data, which concluded that the particles behaved like insulators. Morphology of the particles, studied by TEM measurements, was found to be spherical. Finally, enthalpy of formation of surfactant-stabilized AgBr, determined calorimetrically, was found to be dependent on the concentration of the precursors.

Hyaluronan interactions with cationic surfactants - Insights from fluorescence resonance energy transfer and anisotropy techniques.

Interactions of hyaluronan with micelles formed by cationic surfactants were studied by the time-resolved measurement of fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) using perylene and fluorescein as probes. Two surfactants were studied - Cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and Septonex. In pure micellar solutions, the same values of FRET efficiency were found for both surfactants, but values for the binding of the probe pair were lower for Septonex micelles than in the case of CTAB. This was attributed to steric effects of the carbethoxy group in the Septonex polar head. Upon the addition of hyaluronan, decreased FRET efficiency and increased binding were detected in comparison with pure surfactants. To resolve the structure of the formed aggregates, steady state and time-resolved fluorescence anisotropy was employed as an additional technique. All results indicated that cationic micelles bind to hyaluronan forming a pearl necklace structure with micelles of smaller size compared to pure surfactant. Besides theoretical interest, the studied polyelectrolyte-surfactant system may be interesting for the formulation of drug delivery systems.

Interactive Somatosensory Games in Rehabilitation Training for Older Adults With Mild Cognitive Impairment: Usability Study.

BACKGROUND: In aging societies, dementia risk increases with advancing age, increasing the incidence of dementia-related degenerative diseases and other complications, especially fall risk. Dementia also escalates the care burden, impacting patients, their families, social welfare institutions, and the social structure and medical system. OBJECTIVE: In elderly dementia, traditional card recognition rehabilitation (TCRR) does not effectively increase one's autonomy. Therefore, from the usability perspective, we used the Tetris game as a reference to develop an interactive somatosensory game rehabilitation (ISGR) with nostalgic style for elders with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Through intuitive gesture-controlled interactive games, we evaluated subjective feelings concerning somatosensory game integration into rehabilitation to explore whether the ISGR could improve the willingness to use and motivation for rehabilitation among elders with MCI. METHODS: A total of 15 elders with MCI (7 males and 8 females with an average age of 78.4 years) underwent 2 experiments for 15 minutes. During experiment 1, TCRR was performed, followed by completing the questionnaire of the System Usability Scale (SUS). After 3-5 minutes, the second experiment (the ISGR) was conducted, followed by completing another SUS. We used SUS to explore differences in impacts of TCRR and ISGR on willingness to use among elders with MCI. In addition, we further investigated whether the factor of gender or prior rehabilitation experience would affect the rehabilitation willingness or not. RESULTS: The novel ISGR made the elderly feel interested and improved their willingness for continuous rehabilitation. According to the overall SUS score, the ISGR had better overall usability performance (73.7) than the TCRR (58.0) (t28=-4.62, P<.001). Furthermore, the ISGR individual item scores of "Willingness to Use" (t28=-8.27, P<.001), "Easy to Use" (t28=-3.17, P<.001), "System Integration" (t28=-5.07, P<.001), and "Easy to Learn" (t28=-2.81, P<.001) were better than TCRR. The somatosensory game was easier to learn and master for females than for males (t13=2.71, P=.02). Besides, the ISGR was easier to use (t12=-2.50, P=.02) and learn (t14=-3.33, P<.001) for those without prior rehabilitation experience. The result indicates that for elders with no rehabilitation experience ISGR was easier to use and simpler to learn than TCRR. CONCLUSIONS: Regardless of prior rehabilitation experience, the ISGR developed in this study was easy to learn and effective in continuously improving willingness to use. Furthermore, the adoption of a nostalgic game design style served the function of cognitive training and escalated interest in rehabilitation. The ISGR also improved user stickiness by introducing different game scenarios and difficulties, increasing long-term interest and motivation for rehabilitation. For future research on the adoption of interactive somatosensory games in rehabilitation, additional rehabilitation movements can be developed to benefit the elderly with MCI.

Using 3D Microscope for Hepatic Artery Reconstruction in Living Donor Liver Transplant.

INTRODUCTION: This study compares the intraoperative process of hepatic artery anastomosis using conventional microscope and novel 3D digital microscope and discusses our technique and operative set-up. METHOD: A retrospective comparative cohort study with 46 hepatic artery reconstructions in living donor liver transplant patients. Either an operational microscope (control group) or a 3D digital microscope Mitaka Kestrel View II (study group) was used for hepatic artery anastomosis. We then discuss and share our institution's experience of improving surgical training. RESULTS: Both operation instruments provide effective and comparable results. There was no statistical difference regarding operational objective results between conventional microscope and exoscope. Both instruments have no hepatic artery size limit, and both resulted in complete vessel patency rate. CONCLUSIONS: There was no statistical differences regarding hepatic artery anastomosis between microscope and exoscope cohorts. Microsurgeons should perform hepatic artery anastomosis efficiently with the instruments they are most proficient with. Yet, exoscope provided better ergonomics in the operation room and lessened musculoskeletal strain, allowing surgeons to work in a more neutral and comfortable posture while allowing the first assistant to learn and assist more effectively. Using exoscope with micro-forceps and modified tie technique make artery reconstruction easier.

Headgroup effects of template monolayers on the adsorption behavior and conformation of glucose oxidase adsorbed at air/liquid interfaces.

Stearic acid (SA) and octadecylamine (ODA) monolayers at the air/liquid interface were used as template layers to adsorb glucose oxidase (GOx) from aqueous solution. The effect of the template monolayers on the adsorption behavior of GOx was studied in terms of the variation of surface pressure, the evolution of surface morphology observed by BAM and AFM, and the conformation of adsorbed GOx. The results show that the presence of a template monolayer can enhance the adsorption rate of GOx; furthermore, ODA has a higher ability, compared to SA, to adsorb GOx, which is attributed to the electrostatic attractive interaction between ODA and GOx. For adsorption performed on a bare surface or on an SA monolayer, the surface pressure approaches an equilibrium value (ca. 8 mN/m) after 2 to 3 h of adsorption and remains nearly constant in the following adsorption process. For the adsorption on an ODA monolayer, the surface pressure will increase further 1 to 2 h after approaching the first equilibrium pressure, which is termed the second adsorption stage. The measurement of circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy indicates that the Langmuir-Blodgett films of adsorbed GOx transferred at the first equilibrium state (π = 8 mN/m) have mainly a ß-sheet conformation, which is independent of the type of template monolayers. However, the ODA/GOx LB film transferred at the second adsorption stage has mainly an α-helix conformation. It is concluded that the specific interaction between ODA and GOx not only leads to a higher adsorption rate and adsorbed amount of GOx but also induces a conformation change in adsorbed GOx from ß-sheet to α-helix. The present results indicate that is possible to control the conformation of adsorbed protein by selecting the appropriate template monolayer.

Consecutive daily administration of intratracheal surfactant and human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells attenuates hyperoxia-induced lung injury in neonatal rats.

BACKGROUND: Surfactant therapy is a standard of care for preterm infants with respiratory distress and reduces the incidence of death and bronchopulmonary dysplasia in these patients. Our previous study found that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) attenuated hyperoxia-induced lung injury and the combination therapy of surfactant and human umbilical cord-derived MSCs (hUC-MSCs) did not have additive effects on hyperoxia-induced lung injury in neonatal rats. The aim is to evaluate the effects of 2 consecutive days of intratracheal administration of surfactant and hUC-MSCs on hyperoxia-induced lung injury. METHODS: Neonatal Sprague Dawley rats were reared in either room air (RA) or hyperoxia (85% O2) from postnatal days 1 to 14. On postnatal day 4, the rats received intratracheal injections of either 20 µL of normal saline (NS) or 20 µL of surfactant. On postnatal day 5, the rats reared in RA received intratracheal NS, and the rats reared in O2 received intratracheal NS or hUC-MSCs (3 × 104 or 3 × 105 cells). Six study groups were examined: RA + NS + NS, RA + surfactant + NS, O2 + NS + NS, O2 + surfactant + NS, O2 + surfactant + hUC-MSCs (3 × 104 cells), and O2 + surfactant + hUC-MSCs (3 × 105 cells). The lungs were excised for histological, western blot, and cytokine analyses. RESULTS: The rats reared in hyperoxia and treated with NS yielded significantly higher mean linear intercepts (MLIs) and interleukin (IL)-1ß and IL-6 levels and significantly lower vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGFs), platelet-derived growth factor protein expression, and vascular density than did those reared in RA and treated with NS or surfactant. The lowered MLIs and cytokines and the increased VEGF expression and vascular density indicated that the surfactant and surfactant + hUC-MSCs (3 × 104 cells) treatment attenuated hyperoxia-induced lung injury. The surfactant + hUC-MSCs (3 × 105 cells) group exhibited a significantly lower MLI and significantly higher VEGF expression and vascular density than the surfactant + hUC-MSCs (3 × 104 cells) group did. CONCLUSIONS: Consecutive daily administration of intratracheal surfactant and hUC-MSCs can be an effective regimen for treating hyperoxia-induced lung injury in neonates.