A Biomimetic Se-nHA/PC Composite Microsphere with Synergistic Immunomodulatory and Osteogenic Ability to Activate Bone Regeneration in Periodontitis.

Accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in periodontitis exacerbates the destruction of alveolar bone. Therefore, scavenging ROS to reshape the periodontal microenvironment, alleviate the inflammatory response and promote endogenous stem cell osteogenic differentiation may be an effective strategy for treating bone resorption in periodontitis. In this study, sericin-hydroxyapatite nanoparticles (Se-nHA NPs) are synthesized using a biomimetic mineralization method. Se-nHA NPs and proanthocyanidins (PC) are then encapsulated in sericin/sodium alginate (Se/SA) using an electrostatic injection technique to prepare Se-nHA/PC microspheres. Microspheres are effective in scavenging ROS, inhibiting the polarization of macrophages toward the M1 type, and inducing the polarization of macrophages toward the M2 type. In normal or macrophage-conditioned media, the Se-nHA/PC microspheres effectively promoted the osteogenic differentiation of human periodontal ligament stem cells (hPDLSCs). Furthermore, the Se-nHA/PC microspheres demonstrated anti-inflammatory effects in a periodontitis rat model by scavenging ROS and suppressing pro-inflammatory cytokines. The Se-nHA/PC microspheres are also distinguished by their capacity to decrease alveolar bone loss, reduce osteoclast activity, and boost osteogenic factor expression. Therefore, the biomimetic Se-nHA/PC composite microspheres have efficient ROS-scavenging, anti-inflammatory, and osteogenic abilities and can be used as a multifunctional filling material for inflammatory periodontal tissue regeneration.

Automatic Potential Energy Surface Exploration by Accelerated Reactive Molecular Dynamics Simulations: From Pyrolysis to Oxidation Chemistry.

Automatic potential energy surface (PES) exploration is important to a better understanding of reaction mechanisms. Existing automatic PES mapping tools usually rely on predefined knowledge or computationally expensive on-the-fly quantum-chemical calculations. In this work, we have developed the PESmapping algorithm for discovering novel reaction pathways and automatically mapping out the PES using merely one starting species is present. The algorithm explores the unknown PES by iteratively spawning new reactive molecular dynamics (RMD) simulations for species that it has detected within previous RMD simulations. We have therefore extended the RMD simulation tool ChemTraYzer2.1 (Chemical Trajectory Analyzer, CTY) for this PESmapping algorithm. It can generate new seed species, automatically start replica simulations for new pathways, and stop the simulation when a reaction is found, reducing the computational cost of the algorithm. To explore PESs with low-temperature reactions, we applied the acceleration method collective variable (CV)-driven hyperdynamics. This involved the development of tailored CV templates, which are discussed in this study. We validate our approach for known pathways in various pyrolysis and oxidation systems: hydrocarbon isomerization and dissociation (C4H7 and C8H7 PES), mostly dominant at high temperatures and low-temperature oxidation of n-butane (C4H9O2 PES) and cyclohexane (C6H11O2 PES). As a result, in addition to new pathways showing up in the simulations, common isomerization and dissociation pathways were found very fast: for example, 44 reactions of butenyl radicals including major isomerizations and decompositions within about 30 min wall time and low-temperature chemistry such as the internal H-shift of RO2 → QO2H within 1 day wall time. Last, we applied PESmapping to the oxidation of the recently proposed biohybrid fuel 1,3-dioxane and validated that the tool could be used to discover new reaction pathways of larger molecules that are of practical use.

Effectiveness of Home-Based Telerehabilitation Interventions for Dysphagia in Patients With Head and Neck Cancer: Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: Multimodal treatment-induced dysphagia has serious negative effects on survivors of head and neck cancer. Owing to advances in communication technologies, several studies have applied telecommunication-based interventions that incorporate swallowing exercises, education, monitoring, feedback, self-management, and communication. It is especially urgent to implement home-based remote rehabilitation in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the optimal strategy and effectiveness of remote interventions are unclear. OBJECTIVE: This systematic review aimed to examine the evidence regarding the efficacy of telerehabilitation for reducing physiological and functional impairments related to swallowing and for improving adherence and related influencing factors among head and neck cancer survivors. METHODS: The PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases were systematically searched up to July 2023 to identify relevant articles. In total, 2 investigators independently extracted the data and assessed the methodological quality of the included studies using the quality assessment tool of the Joanna Briggs Institute. RESULTS: A total of 1465 articles were initially identified; ultimately, 13 (0.89%) were included in the systematic review. The quality assessment indicated that the included studies were of moderate to good quality. The results showed that home-based telerehabilitation improved the safety of swallowing and oral feeding, nutritional status, and swallowing-related quality of life; reduced negative emotions; improved swallowing rehabilitation adherence; was rated by participants as highly satisfactory and supportive; and was cost-effective. In addition, this review investigated factors that influenced the efficacy of telerehabilitation, which included striking a balance among swallowing training strategy, intensity, frequency, duration, and individual motor ability; treating side effects of radiotherapy; providing access to medical, motivational, and educational information; providing feedback on training; providing communication and support from speech pathologists, families, and other survivors; and addressing technical problems. CONCLUSIONS: Home-based telerehabilitation has shown great potential in reducing the safety risks of swallowing and oral feeding, improving quality of life and adherence, and meeting information needs for dysphagia among survivors of head and neck cancer. However, this review highlights limitations in the current literature, and the current research is in its infancy. In addition, owing to the diversity of patient sociodemographic, medical, physiological and functional swallowing, and behavioral factors, we recommend the development of tailored telemedicine interventions to achieve the best rehabilitation effects with the fewest and most precise interventions.

Temperature sensitivity of leaf flushing in 12 common woody species in eastern China.

Leaf phenology is one of the most reliable indicators of global warming in temperate regions because it is highly sensitive to temperatures. Temperature sensitivity (ST) is defined as the values of changed days of leaf flushing date (LUD) per degree increase in temperatures. Climate warming substantially advanced LUD in the temperate region, but its effect on ST of LUD is still not clear. We used spring phenological records of 12 woody plants in eastern China in the years of 1983-2014 to explore temporal and spatial changes of LUD and ST. Furthermore, we compared the difference of ST and preseason temperatures in two periods (1983-1997 and 2000-2014), and explored the main factors regulating ST. The results showed that the average LUD significantly advanced (-2.7 days per decade). The mean LUD over the period 1983-2014 was in day of the year (DOY) 87 ± 7 across sites and species for the early leaf flushing species (EFS), and mean DOY 102 ± 5 for the late leaf flushing species (LFS). LUD was earlier in low latitude than that in high latitude. ST of Armeniaca vulgaris was the most sensitive to temperature across all sites (-3.66 d °C-1), while Firmiana simplex was the most insensitive (-2.37 d °C-1). LUD of EFS was more sensitive to temperature warming than that of LFS. At the same site, LUD of EFS would advance more obviously than that of LFS under global warming. For all species, ST decreased significantly with shorter preseason length and warmer temperatures at the preseason end. Our results had demonstrated a strong relationship between ST and the preseason length (mean temperature at the preseason end).

Spatial-temporal variations of forest and grassland phenology in the Yellow River Basin during 2000-2018.

The study of vegetation phenology is of great significance for understanding global climate change. The Yellow River basin has a wide spatial range and a complex ecological environment. The phenological characteristics of forest and grassland need further clarification. Based on the MODIS-EVI data from 2000 to 2018, we extracted the phenology of forest and grassland in the Yellow River basin using piecewise logistic and double logistic phenological models with the corresponding curvature change extremum method and derivative method, respectively. The temporal and spatial variations of phenological parameters were analyzed. The start of growing season (SOS) was at 90-165 day of year (DOY), and gradually delayed from southeast to northwest. The increase of 100 m elevation delayed SOS 0.94 d, and the SOS of forest was earlier than that of grassland. The end of growing season (EOS) was at 270-315 DOY, which delayed from west to southeast. For every 100 m increase in altitude, the EOS advanced 0.63 d, with EOS of forest being later than that of grassland. The length of growing season (LOS) was 110-230 d, which shortened gradually from southeast to northwest. The LOS of forest was larger than that of grassland. During the study, SOS showed an advance trend from 2000 to 2018 with a rate of 4.1 d·(10 a)-1, and the proportion of spatial advance area was 73.2%. There was an obvious advance in the central part of the basin. EOS generally showed a significant postponement trend with a rate of 2.3 d·(10 a)-1, and the proportion of spatially delayed area was 63.4%, the phenological advance and delay of forest was less stronger than that of grassland. LOS showed a significant prolongation trend with a rate of 6.4 d·(10 a)-1, and the proportion of spatial extension was 71.8%. The piecewise Logistic and double Logistic phenological models and the corresponding curvature extremum method and derivative method were suitable for the extraction of natural vegetation in the Yellow River Basin. The overall LOS of forest and grassland showed a prolonging trend, which was shortened with the increases of altitude. The LOS of forest was longer than that of grassland in the study area.