In Situ Growth Strategy to Construct "Four-In-One" Separators with Functionalized Polyphosphazene Coatings for Safe and Stable Lithium-Sulfur Batteries.

Lithium-sulfur batteries (LSBs) are facing many challenges, such as the inadequate conductivity of sulfur, the shuttle effect caused by lithium polysulfide (LiPSs), lithium dendrites, and the flammability, which have hindered their commercial applications. Herein, a "four-in-one" functionalized coating is fabricated on the surface of polypropylene (PP) separator by using a novel flame-retardant namely InC-HCTB to meet these challenges. InC-HCTB is obtained by cultivating polyphosphazene on the surface of carbon nanotubes with an in situ growth strategy. First, this unique architecture fosters an enhanced conductive network, bolstering the bidirectional enhancement of both ionic and electronic conductivities. Furthermore, InC-HCTB effectively inhibits the shuttle effect of LiPSs. LSBs exhibit a remarkable capacity of 1170.7 mA h g-1 at 0.2 C, and the capacity degradation is a mere 0.0436% over 800 cycles at 1 C. Third, InC-HCTB coating serves as an ion migration network, hindering the growth of lithium dendrites. More importantly, InC-HCTB exhibits notable flame retardancy. The radical trapping action in the gas phase and the protective effect of the shielded char layer in the condensed phase are simulated and verified. This facile in situ growth strategy constructs a "four-in-one" functional separator coating, rendering InC-HCTB a promising additive for the large-scale production of safe and stable LSBs.

Hydrophilic 1T-WS2 Nanosheet Arrays toward Conductive Textiles for High-Efficient and Continuous Hydroelectric Generation and Storage.

Flexible hydroelectric generators (HEGs) are promising self-powered devices that spontaneously derive electrical power from moisture. However, achieving the desired compatibility between a continuous operating voltage and superior current density remains a significant challenge. Herein, a textile-based van der Waals heterostructure is rationally designed between conductive 1T phase tungsten disulfide@carbonized silk (1T-WS2@CSilk) and carbon black@cotton (CB@Cotton) fabrics with an asymmetric distribution of oxygen-containing functional groups, which enhances the proton concentration gradients toward high-performance wearable HEGs. The vertically staggered 1T-WS2 nanosheet arrays on the CSilk fabric provide abundant hydrophilic nanochannels for rapid carrier transport. Furthermore, the moisture-induced primary battery formed between the active aluminum (Al) electrode and the conductive textiles introduces the desired electric field to facilitate charge separation and compensate for the decreased streaming potential. These devices exhibit a power density of 21.6 µW cm-2, an open-circuit voltage (Voc) of 0.65 V sustained for over 10 000 s, and a current density of 0.17 mA cm-2. This performance makes them capable of supplying power to commercial electronics and human respiratory monitoring. This study presents a promising strategy for the refined design of wearable electronics.

A Practical and Modular Method for Direct C-H Functionalization of the BODIPY Core via Thianthrenium Salts.

Direct structural modification of small-molecule fluorophores represents a straightforward and appealing strategy for accessing new fluorescent dyes with desired functionalities. We report herein a general and efficient visible-light-mediated method for the direct C-H functionalization of BODIPY, an important fluorescent chromophore, using readily accessible and bench-stable aryl and alkenylthianthrenium salts. This practical approach operates at room temperature with extraordinary site-selectivity, providing a step-economical means to construct various valuable aryl- and alkenyl-substituted BODIPY dyes. Remarkably, this protocol encompasses a broad substrate scope and excellent functional-group tolerance, and allows for the modular synthesis of sophisticated symmetrical and asymmetrical disubstituted BODIPYs by simply employing different combinations of thianthrenium salts. Moreover, the late-stage BODIPY modification of complex drug molecules further highlights the potential of this novel methodology in the synthesis of fluorophore-drug conjugates.

THBru attenuates diabetic cardiomyopathy by inhibiting RAGE-dependent inflammation.

Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a complication of diabetes mellitus characterized by heart failure and cardiac remodeling. Previous studies show that tetrahydroberberrubine (THBru) retrogrades cardiac aging by promoting PHB2-mediated mitochondrial autophagy and prevents peritoneal adhesion by suppressing inflammation. In this study we investigated whether THBru exerted protective effect against DCM in db/db mice and potential mechanisms. Eight-week-old male db/db mice were administered THBru (25, 50 mg·kg-1·d-1, i.g.) for 12 weeks. Cardiac function was assessed using echocardiography. We showed that THBru administration significantly improved both cardiac systolic and diastolic function, as well as attenuated cardiac remodeling in db/db mice. In primary neonatal mouse cardiomyocytes (NMCMs), THBru (20, 40 µM) dose-dependently ameliorated high glucose (HG)-induced cell damage, hypertrophy, inflammatory cytokines release, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. Using Autodock, surface plasmon resonance (SPR) and DARTS analyses, we revealed that THBru bound to the domain of the receptor for advanced glycosylation end products (RAGE), subsequently leading to inactivation of the PI3K/AKT/NF-κB pathway. Importantly, overexpression of RAGE in NMCMs reversed HG-induced inactivation of the PI3K/AKT/NF-κB pathway and subsequently counteracted the beneficial effects mediated by THBru. We conclude that THBru acts as an inhibitor of RAGE, leading to inactivation of the PI3K/AKT/NF-κB pathway. This action effectively alleviates the inflammatory responses and oxidative stress in cardiomyocytes, ultimately leading to ameliorated DCM.

Significance of ypTNM stage in determining the prognosis and therapy after surgery for locally advanced rectal cancer.

BACKGROUND: In the current NCCN guidelines, the prognosis and adjuvant chemotherapy of patients who underwent neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) are based on pre-radiotherapy clinical TNM (cTNM) stage. However, the value of neoadjuvant pathologic TNM (ypTNM) stage is not clearly described. METHODS: This retrospective study investigated the prognosis and adjuvant chemotherapy which based on ypTNM stage compared to cTNM stage. Between 2010 and 2015, a total of 316 rectal cancer patients who underwent nCRT, followed by total mesorectal excision (TME), were included for analysis. RESULTS: Our findings revealed that cTNM stage was the only significant independent factor in the pCR group (HR = 6.917, 95% CI: 1.133-42.216, P = 0.038). In the non-pCR group, ypTNM stage was more important than cTNM stage in prognosis (HR = 2.704, 95% CI: 1.811-4.038, P < 0.001). In ypTNM III stage group, there was a statistically significant difference in prognosis between the patients with and without adjuvant chemotherapy (HR = 1.943, 95% CI: 1.015-3.722, P = 0.040), but there was no significant difference in cTNM III stage group (HR = 1.430, 95% CI: 0.728-2.806, P = 0.294). CONCLUSIONS: We concluded that ypTNM stage, rather than cTNM stage, might be a more important factor in the prognosis and adjuvant chemotherapy of patients with rectal cancer who underwent nCRT.

Neuroendocrine differentiation: a risk fellow in colorectal cancer.

BACKGROUND: Neuroendocrine differentiation (NED) is often found in colorectal cancer (CRC) and may have unique biological behavior, which has not been previously delineated. Here, we explore the relationship between CRC, NED, and clinicopathological factors. We also offer a preliminary explanation of the mechanism underlying the malignant biological behavior of NED in CRC. METHODS: Between 2013 and 2015, 394 CRC patients who underwent radical operations were selected for analysis. The relationship between NED and clinicopathological factors was analyzed. To further clarify the pivotal role of NED in CRC, we performed bioinformatic analyses and identified genes that may be involved in NED, which were obtained from in silico data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Then, we conducted functional enrichment analyses and confirmed the critical pathways for intensive study. Moreover, we detected the expression of key proteins by immunohistochemistry and analyzed the correlation of their expression with NED. RESULTS: The statistical analysis showed that CRC with NED was positively correlated with lymph node metastasis. Through bioinformatic analysis, we found that chromogranin A (CgA) was positively correlated with invasion and lymph node metastasis. ErbB2 and PIK3R1, which are key proteins in the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, were closely related to NED. Furthermore, we determined that the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway likely plays a critical role in the NED of CRC. CONCLUSIONS: CRC with NED is associated with lymph node metastasis. The PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, which is closely related to CRC, may be the mechanism promoting the malignant biological behavior of CRC with NED.

PtrABR1 Increases Tolerance to Drought Stress by Enhancing Lateral Root Formation in Populus trichocarpa.

Roots are the main organ for water uptake and the earliest part of a plant's response to drought, making them of great importance to our understanding of the root system's response to drought. However, little is known about the underlying molecular mechanisms that control root responses to drought stress. Here, we identified and functionally characterized the AP2/ERF family transcription factor (TF) PtrABR1 and the upstream target gene zinc-finger protein TF PtrYY1, which respond to drought stress by promoting the growth and development of lateral roots in Populus trichocarpa. A root-specific induction of PtrABR1 under drought stress was explored. The overexpression of PtrABR1 (PtrABR1-OE) promoted root growth and development, thereby increasing tolerance to drought stress. In addition, PtrYY1 is directly bound to the promoter of PtrABR1 under drought stress, and the overexpression of PtrYY1 (PtrYY1-OE) promoted lateral root growth and development and increased tolerance to drought stress. An RNA-seq analysis of PtrABR1-OE with wild-type (WT) poplar identified PtrGH3.6 and PtrPP2C44, which share the same pattern of expression changes as PtrABR1. A qRT-PCR and cis-element analysis further suggested that PtrGH3.6 and PtrPP2C44 may act as potential downstream targets of PtrABR1 genes in the root response pathway to drought stress. In conclusion, these results reveal a novel drought regulatory pathway in which PtrABR1 regulates the network through the upstream target gene PtrYY1 and the potential downstream target genes PtrGH3.6 and PtrPP2C44, thereby promoting root growth and development and improving tolerance to drought stress.

Gefitinib Increases the Incidence of QT Prolongation in Patients with Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Gefitinib (GEF) may increase the risk of corrected QT prolongation (QTc). We aimed to evaluate whether gefitinib increases the risk of corrected QT interval (QTc) prolongation and analyze the associated risk factors.A total of 122 cases of advanced EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who received gefitinib therapy from January 2015 to December 2020 were evaluated. The results of at least two resting 12-lead electrocardiogram before and after gefitinib treatment were obtained. The Bazett and Fridericia formulas were used to calculate the QTc interval, and the changes of QTc interval values before and after treatment were evaluated. The correlation between gefitinib and QTc interval prolongation and related risk factors were analyzed.After gefitinib-targeted therapy, 23 patients (18.9%) had a prolonged QTc interval, which increased from a mean of 446 ± 25 ms at baseline to 478 ± 18 ms (P < 0.001). Three of the patients met criteria for Grade 3 QTc prolongation in the common term V5.0 for clinical adverse events. Univariate analysis showed that age (ORR, 1.054; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.003-1.107; P = 0.038), history of hypertension (ORR, 3.409; 95% CI, 1.334-8.713; P = 0.01), CCB medication history (ORR, 0.259; 95% CI, 0.094-0.712; P = 0.009), history of lung cancer surgery (ORR, 0.231; 95% CI, 0.064-0.829; P = 0.025), and baseline QT interval (ORR, 0.978; 95% CI, 0.964-0.993; P = 0.004) were important predictors of QTc interval prolongation in patients treated with gefitinib. The results of multivariate analysis showed that the history of lung cancer surgery and the baseline QT interval were important factors affecting QTc interval prolongation in patients treated with gefitinib.Gefitinib increases the risk of QTc prolongation in NSCLC patients, which may be more pronounced in patients with advanced age, hypertension, CCB therapy, lung cancer surgery, and a long QT interval at baseline.

Viral infection among children under the age of 5 with diarrhea in Shenyang from 2018 to 2020: A hospital-based study.

Diarrhea is one of the leading causes of death among children, especially in the age under 5, but few studies are available on viral diarrhea in Shenyang. To understand the infection status and the relevant epidemiological characteristics of viral diarrhea and to fill gaps of the distribution of viruses across Shenyang in children under the age of 5 with diarrhea, from 2018 to 2020, stool specimens of children with diarrhea aged 0-59 months and surveillance data were collected in Sentinel Hospital of Shenyang. Specimens were then tested to determine the type of viruses, the seasonal and spatial patterns for major viruses were determined. Viruses were identified in 47.9% of the 897 samples from children with diarrhea. The main viruses of stool samples were rotavirus (16.9%, predominant type G9P[8]), calicivirus (14.7%), adenovirus (11.8%), and astrovirus (4.5%). Viral infections were mainly detected in the age of 0-12 months. In the area of Shenyang, Huanggu had the most cases (198, 22.1%), followed by Dadong (137, 15.3%) and Hunnan (135, 15.1%). The positive rate of viruses varied among patients of different ages, seasons, and regions. Public health entities and the government should develop corresponding measures for different age groups, seasons, and regions.

Uncovering the Pathogenesis of Orofacial Clefts Using Bioinformatics Analysis.

OBJECTIVE: Many genes have been found to be associated with the occurrence of the orofacial clefts (OFC). The links between these pathogenic genes are rarely studied. In this study, bioinformatics analysis were performed in order to find associations between OFC- related genes and provide new ideas for etiology study of OFCs. METHODS: Orofacial clefts-related genes were searched and identified from the Online Mendelian Inheritance of Man (OMIM.org). These genes were then analyzed by bioinformatics methods, including protein-protein interaction network, functional enrichment analysis, module analysis, and hub genes analysis. RESULTS: After searching the database of OMIM.org and removing duplicate results, 279 genes were finally obtained. These genes were involved to 369 pathways in biological process, 56 in cell component, 64 in molecular function, and 45 in the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes. Most identified genes were significantly enriched in embryonic appendage morphogenesis (29.17%), embryonic limb morphogenesis (6.06%), and limb development (4.33%) for biological process ( Fig. 5A ); ciliary tip (42.86%), MKS complex (28.57%), ciliary basal body (14.29%), and ciliary membrane (14.29%) for cell component. The top 10 hub genes were identified, including SHH, GLI2, PTCH1, SMAD4, FGFR1, BMP4, SOX9, SOX2, RUNX2 , and CDH1. CONCLUSIONS: Bioinformatics methods were used to analyze OFC- related genes in this study, including hub gene identifying and analysis, protein - protein interaction network construction, and functional enrichment analysis. Several potential mechanisms related to occurrence of OFCs were also discussed. These results may be helpful for further studies of the etiology of OFC.

Effect of temperature and its interaction with other meteorological factors on bacillary dysentery in Jilin Province, China.

Bacterial dysentery (BD) brings a major disease burden to developing countries. Exploring the influence of temperature and its interaction with other meteorological factors on BD is significant for the prevention and early warning of BD in the context of climate change. Daily BD cases and meteorological data from 2008 to 2018 were collected in all nine prefecture-level cities in Jilin Province. A one-stage province-level model and a two-stage city-specific multivariate meta-pooled level distributed lag non-linear model were established to explore the correlation between temperature and BD, then the weather-stratified generalised additive model was used to test the interaction. During the study period, a total of 26 971 cases of BD were developed. The one-stage and two-stage cumulative dose-response 'J' curves overlapped, and results showed a positive correlation between temperature and BD with a 1-6 days lag effect. Age group ⩾5 years was found to be more sensitive to the effects. Moreover, there was a significant interaction between temperature, humidity and precipitation (P = 0.004, 0.002, respectively) on BD under high temperature (>0 °C), reminding residents and policymakers to pay attention to the prevention of BD in situations with both high temperature and humidity, high temperature and precipitation during the temperate monsoon climate.

Electrochemical Pourbaix diagrams of Mg-Zn alloys from first-principles calculations and experimental thermodynamic data.

Mg-Zn alloys have attracted much attention as biodegradable alloys owing to their superior mechanical properties and excellent biocompatibility. However, their corrosion/degradation behaviour has become a major issue for various biomedical applications. To understand their corrosion behaviours in aqueous environments, the first-principles informed Pourbaix diagrams, that is, electrochemical phase diagrams with respect to electrode potential and solution pH, were constructed for Mg-Zn alloys and compared with experimental observations. It was found that for Mg-rich alloys, the MgZn phase has a higher potential than the Mg matrix and may act as a cathode, resulting in galvanic corrosion, while for Zn-rich alloys, the phase Mg2Zn11 corrodes first. In Zn-rich alloys, Mg(OH)2 preferably precipitates under alkaline conditions, thus hindering the increase in pH and preventing the release of dissolved ZnO22- ions. In a Cl-containing solution, the soluble ZnCl2 eases the corrosion of the Zn matrix by decreasing the corrosion potential. These results are supported by various experimental observations; thus, they provide an in-depth understanding of the degradation behaviour of various Mg-Zn alloys as well as a feasible pathway in the design of biocompatible Mg-Zn alloys with first-principles informed Pourbaix diagrams.

Accelerated failure time model for case-cohort design with longitudinal covariates subject to measurement error and detection limits.

Biomarkers are often measured over time in epidemiological studies and clinical trials for better understanding of the mechanism of diseases. In large cohort studies, case-cohort sampling provides a cost effective method to collect expensive biomarker data for revealing the relationship between biomarker trajectories and time to event. However, biomarker measurements are often limited by the sensitivity and precision of a given assay, resulting in data that are censored at detection limits and prone to measurement errors. Additionally, the occurrence of an event of interest may preclude biomarkers from being further evaluated. Inappropriate handling of these types of data can lead to biased conclusions. Under a classical case cohort design, we propose a modified likelihood-based approach to accommodate these special features of longitudinal biomarker measurements in the accelerated failure time models. The maximum likelihood estimators based on the full likelihood function are obtained by Gaussian quadrature method. We evaluate the performance of our case-cohort estimator and compare its relative efficiency to the full cohort estimator through simulation studies. The proposed method is further illustrated using the data from a biomarker study of sepsis among patients with community acquired pneumonia.

[The study of selecting sample detecting position and lead plate inner material in thin film method X-ray fluorescence measurement].

(1) In this paper type 316 stainless steel metal plate as the research object, the selection of sample detecting position was studied when thin film method X-ray fluorescence measurement was conducted. The study showed that the optimal location for the sample detection was sample distance X-ray tube and detector baseline 1cm with the baseline into a 16°angle. (2) Heavy metal pollutants of Pb, Cd and Cr in industrial ambient air as the main analysis object, when thin film method X-ray fluorescence conducted with lead plate protection, X-rays will penetrate the membrane and continuely stimulate the protective lead plate. Therefore there is lead spectral line interference in the filter membrane background spectrum, which will affect the detection of lead element in real samples. Studies show that when a layer of isolating material was applied between the thin sample and the protective lead plate, the interference of lead line can effectively be avoided. (3) Several rigid insulating material of type 316 stainless steel, brass, aluminum, red copper and PTEE as lead inner material were selected and studied. The study results showed that compared with X-ray fluorescence spectra of other lead inner materials, the X-ray fluorescence spectrum of red copper contained the least element spectral lines. There were not Cr, Cd and Pb spectrum peaks in the X-ray fluorescence spectrum of red copper. And the target timber scattering spectrum intensity in the high energy part was weaker compared to other X-ray fluorescence spectrum. The above analysis shows that red copper has the minimal disturbance to the actual measurement of heavy metals Cr, Cd and Pb. At the same time, red copper as lead inner materials can effectively avoid the interference of lead spectrum line in lead plate. So red copper is the best lead plate inner materials in thin film method X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy measurement. This study provides an important theoretical basis for the assembling and setting'up air and water weight metal X-ray fluorescence spectrometer.

Patterns of response to patient-centered decision support through a personal health record.

BACKGROUND: Over 140 million people in the United States have at least one chronic medical condition, but they receive fewer than 60% of guideline-recommended services for these conditions. Increasing patients' involvement in their own care may improve the receipt of guideline-recommended services. We evaluated patients' patterns of responses to notifications regarding guideline-recommended services delivered through a personalized health record (PHR). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We enrolled 584 participants with high cardiovascular disease risk from 73 primary care practices into an active PHR in which they received patient-centered decision support-notifications delivered via a PHR regarding prevention gaps (i.e., unmet preventive healthcare or chronic disease monitoring). Participants with prevention gaps received up to three weekly messages regarding all services due within a 2-month time frame. These three-message cycles could repeat up to every 2 months for a new, or continuing, prevention gap. RESULTS: Of the 584 participants, 501 (86%) received at least one reminder. Approximately 61% of these participants accessed the PHR or received the care that triggered the message after the first message and 73% after the first two messages. In subsequent three-message cycles, we observed no change in the number of messages required prior to participants accessing the PHR or receiving recommended care (chi-squared = 12.4, p = 0.3). Of the 2,656 prevention gaps these participants had over 1 year, 1,539 (58%) were closed. CONCLUSIONS: In this low-intensity intervention, participants accessed the PHR and received recommended care. Providing notification through the PHR allows patients to choose when they receive, and take action on, the message. Notifications can be provided to patients through a PHR without alert fatigue and may be an additional tool to help patients achieve better health.

A facile fluorescence Eu MOF sensor for ascorbic acid and ascorbate oxidase detection.

In this work, a facile fluorescence Eu3+-based metal-organic framework (Eu MOF) sensor for ascorbic acid (AA) and ascorbate oxidase (AAO) detection was developed. The fluorescence of the Eu MOF could be effectively quenched by Ce3+ but not by Ce4+ at an appropriate concentration, and thus, when the reductant AA was added into the solution containing Ce4+, Ce4+ was chemically reduced to Ce3+, which induced the decreased fluorescence signal of the Eu MOF. However, when AAO was introduced, AA was effectively oxidized to dehydroascorbic acid (DHAA) under the catalysis of AAO, and thus, Ce4+ could not be reduced, resulting in the fluorescence restoration of the Eu MOF. Hence, the concentration of AA and AAO could be determined by the fluorescence decrease and restoration of the Eu MOF. The fluorescent platform showed high sensitivity with a limit of detection of 0.32 µM for AA and 1.18 U L-1 for AAO, respectively. Moreover, the proposed method was successfully applied for AA and AAO determination in real samples, indicating great potential for biomedical application in complex matrices.

A novel ratiometric sensor for fluorimetric and visual dual-mode detection of Al3+ in environmental water based on the target-regulated formation of Eu MOFs.

Herein, a novel ratiometric sensor for fluorimetric and smartphone-assisted visual detection of Al3+ in environmental water was developed based on the target-regulated formation of Eu metal-organic frameworks (Eu MOFs). By employing 2-[4-(2-hydroxyethyl) piperazin-1-yl] ethanesulfonic acid (Hepes), Eu3+ and tetracycline (TC) as raw materials, Eu MOFs with red emission were facilely synthesized through the coordination of Eu3+ with Hepes and TC. However, upon the introduction of Al3+, a higher affinity of TC towards Al3+ resulted in the formation of a TC-Al3+ complex with green fluorescence and inhibited the generation of Eu MOFs. This led to an increase in green fluorescence and a decrease in red fluorescence accompanied by the fluorescence color of the solution changing from red to green under the illumination of the UV lamp. Thus, a ratiometric sensor for fluorimetric and the smartphone-assisted visual detection of Al3+ was established. The ratiometric sensor exhibited high sensitivity for Al3+ detection with a detection limit of 0.14 µM for fluorescence detection and 1.21 µM for visual detection. Additionally, the proposed strategy was successfully applied to detect Al3+ in the environmental water samples with satisfactory results, indicating great application prospects for environmental monitoring.

Adverse childhood experiences and human immunodeficiency virus testing among adults with human immunodeficiency virus risk behaviours.

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been associated with poor HIV testing in adulthood yet, they have not been extensively described in those at increased risk for HIV. Cross-sectional analysis data (n = 204,231) on ACEs and HIV testing were obtained from the 2019-2020 Behavioural Risk Factor Surveillance Survey. Weighted logistic regression models were used to access the association of ACEs exposure, ACEs score, and ACEs type with HIV testing among adults with HIV risk behaviours, and stratified analysis was also performed to examine gender differences. The results indicated the overall rate of HIV testing was 38.8% and was higher among those with HIV risk behaviours (64.6%) than those without (37.2%). In populations with HIV risk behaviours, the negative association of HIV testing with ACEs exposure, ACEs score, and ACEs type was identified. Relative to those without ACEs, adults who were exposed to ACEs might decrease the rate of HIV testing, participants with ≥4 ACEs scores were less likely to have HIV testing, and childhood exposure to sexual abuse had the greatest impact on HIV testing. For both males and females, childhood exposure to ACEs was associated with lower odds of HIV testing and ACEs score ≥4 had the most robust associations with HIV testing. For males, those who experienced witnessed domestic violence had the lowest odds of HIV testing but the odds of engaging in HIV testing for females were the lowest among those who experienced childhood sexual abuse.

Cerebral endothelial cells mediated enhancement of brain pericyte number and migration in oxygen-glucose deprivation involves the HIF-1α/PDGF-ß signaling.

The present study focused on whether hypoxia-inducible factor-1alpha (HIF-1α) and platelet-derived factor-beta (PDGF-ß) are involved in the crosstalk between brain microvascular endothelial cells (BMECs) and brain vascular pericytes (BVPs) under ischaemic-hypoxic conditions. Mono-cultures or co-cultures of BVPs and BMECs were made for the construction of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) model in vitro and then exposed to control and oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) conditions. BBB injury was determined by assessing the ability, apoptosis, and migration of BVPs and the transendothelial electrical resistance and horseradish peroxidase permeation of BMECs. Relative mRNA and protein levels of HIF-1α and PDGF-ß, as well as tight junction proteins ZO-1 and claudin-5 were analyzed by western blotting, reverse transcription quantitative PCR, and/or immunofluorescence staining. Dual-luciferase reporter assays assessed the relationship between PDGF-ß and HIF-1α. Co-culturing with BMECs alleviated OGD-induced reduction in BVP viability, elevation in BVP apoptosis, and repression in BVP migration. Co-culturing with BVPs protected against OGD-induced impairment on BMEC permeability. OGD-induced HIF-1α upregulation enhanced PDGF-ß expression in mono-cultured BMECs and co-cultured BMECs with BVPs. Knockdown of HIF-1α impaired the effect of BMECs on BVPs under OGD conditions, and PDGFR-ß silencing in BVPs blocked the crosstalk between BMECs and BVPs under OGD conditions. The crosstalk between BMECs and BVPs was implicated in OGD-induced BBB injury through the HIF-1α/PDGF-ß signaling.

Electronic reminders to patients within an interactive patient health record.

Keeping patients with complex medical illnesses up to date with their preventive care and chronic disease management services, such as lipid testing and retinal exam in patients with diabetes, is challenging. Within a commercially available electronic health record (EHR) with a secure personal health record (PHR), we developed a system that sends up to three weekly reminders to patients who will soon be due for preventive care services. The reminder messages reside within the secure PHR, which is linked to the EHR, and are displayed on a screen where patients can also send to the physician's office an electronic message to request appointments for the needed services. The reminder messages stop when the patient logs on to review the reminders. The system, designed with patient input, groups together all services that will be due in the next 3 months to avoid repeatedly messaging the patient. After 2 months, the cycle of reminders begins again. This system, which is feasible and economical to build, has the potential to improve care and compliance with quality measures.