Cytoprotective Effect of Echinochrome A in Primary Culture of Pulmonary Fibroblasts from Albino Rats under Conditions of Oxidative Stress.

We studied the effect of echinochrome A on the primary culture of pulmonary fibroblasts under normal conditions and under oxidative stress. Exposure to echinochrome A (100 µM, 6 h) did not affect the production of superoxide radical by fibroblasts, area of their nuclei, and number of nucleoli, but reduced the total area of nucleolar organizer regions against the background of stable proliferative activity of the culture. Two-hour oxidative stress induced by hydrogen peroxide solution (60 µM) increased the generation of superoxide radical, decreased DNA-synthetic activity of fibroblasts, area of fibroblast nuclei, and total area of nucleolar organizer regions. Preliminary administration of echinochrome A significantly attenuated the damaging effect of oxidative stress: the intensity of production of superoxide radicals decreased, DNA-synthetic activity and nucleus area of fibroblasts partially recovered; normalization of the total area of nucleoli was accompanied by an increase in their number.

Desflurane reduces intraoperative remifentanil requirements more than sevoflurane: comparison using surgical pleth index-guided analgesia.

BACKGROUND: Sevoflurane and desflurane are widely used in balanced anaesthesia in combination with opioid analgesics. The opioid remifentanil is frequently chosen because of its extremely rapid pharmacokinetics. However, intraoperative high-dose remifentanil is associated with increased postoperative pain and rescue analgesic use owing to acute tolerance and opioid-induced hyperalgesia. This study aimed to compare intraoperative remifentanil requirements during equi-minimum alveolar concentration (MAC) sevoflurane and desflurane anaesthesia via surgical pleth index-guided remifentanil administration. METHODS: Eighty-two subjects undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy were randomly allocated to two groups receiving either sevoflurane (n=40) or desflurane (n=42). Anaesthesia was maintained with the assigned inhaled anaesthetics and remifentanil. End-tidal anaesthetic concentration was maintained at age-corrected 1.0 MAC, and remifentanil infusion was continuously adjusted to achieve a surgical pleth index of 20-50. Mean remifentanil infusion rate, which was the primary outcome of the study, was calculated as the total infused remifentanil dose per kg body weight per minute of total operative time. RESULTS: Mean remifentanil infusion rate [mean (standard deviation)] was significantly higher in the sevoflurane group than in the desflurane group [0.192 (0.064) vs. 0.099 (0.033) µg kg-1 min-1; difference, 0.093 (95% confidence interval, 0.071-0.115); P<0.001]. CONCLUSIONS: During equi-MAC anaesthesia of 1.0 MAC, sevoflurane and desflurane did not show similar intraoperative remifentanil consumption under surgical pleth index-guided opioid administration. Further studies using other monitors with different measuring mechanisms are warranted to determine the cause of this difference. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT02830243 (ClinicalTrials.gov).

Nomogram for Predicting Time to Death After Withdrawal of Life-Sustaining Treatment in Patients With Devastating Neurological Injury.

Reliable prediction of time of death after withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment in patients with devastating neurological injury is crucial to successful donation after cardiac death. Herein, we conducted a study of 419 neurocritical patients who underwent life support withdrawal at four neurosurgical centers in China. Based on a retrospective cohort, we used multivariate Cox regression analysis to identify prognostic factors for patient death, which were then integrated into a nomogram. The model was calibrated and validated using data from an external retrospective cohort and a prospective cohort. We identified 10 variables that were incorporated into a nomogram. The C-indexes for predicting the 60-min death probability in the training, external validation and prospective validation cohorts were 0.96 (0.93-0.98), 0.94 (0.91-0.97), and 0.99 (0.97-1.00), respectively. The calibration plots after WLST showed an optimal agreement between the prediction of time to death by the nomogram and the actual observation for all cohorts. Then we identified 22, 26 and 37 as cut-points for risk stratification into four groups. Kaplan-Meier curves indicated distinct prognoses between patients in the different risk groups (p < 0.001). In conclusion, we have developed and validated a nomogram to accurately identify potential cardiac death donors in neurocritical patients in a Chinese population.

A randomized trial comparing methyl aminolaevulinate photodynamic therapy with and without Er:YAG ablative fractional laser treatment in Asian patients with lower extremity Bowen disease: results from a 12-month follow-up.

BACKGROUND: Methyl aminolaevulinate photodynamic therapy (MAL-PDT) is an effective treatment for Bowen disease (BD) of the lower extremities. Er:YAG (erbium:yttrium-aluminium-garnet) ablative fractional laser (AFL) treatment removes the stratum corneum to increase MAL uptake and may improve efficacy. However, no studies have directly compared the efficacy of MAL-PDT with and without Er:YAG AFL therapy in treating BD of the lower extremities in Asians. OBJECTIVES: To compare the efficacy, recurrence rate, cosmetic outcomes and safety between Er:YAG AFL-assisted MAL-PDT (Er:YAG AFL-PDT) and standard MAL-PDT. METHODS: Twenty-one patients with a total of 58 BD lesions randomly received either one session of Er:YAG AFL-PDT or two sessions of MAL-PDT in two symmetrical areas. Er:YAG AFL therapy was performed with 550-600 µm ablation depth, level 1 coagulation, 22% treatment density and a single pulse. MAL cream was then applied under occlusion for 3 h and illuminated with a red light-emitting diode lamp at 37 J cm(-2) . A second session of MAL-PDT was administered 7 days later. Overall response rate, recurrence rate, cosmetic outcomes and safety were assessed at 1 week, 3 and 12 months after treatment. RESULTS: After 3 months, Er:YAG AFL-PDT was significantly more effective (93.8%) than MAL-PDT (73.1%; P = 0.031), and the recurrence rate was significantly lower for Er:YAG AFL-PDT (6.7%) than MAL-PDT (31.6%) at 12 months (P = 0.022). No significant difference was found between Er:YAG AFL-PDT and MAL-PDT in terms of cosmetic outcomes or safety. CONCLUSIONS: Er:YAG AFL-PDT showed significantly higher efficacy and lower recurrence rate than did standard MAL-PDT for treating lower extremity BD in an Asian population.

Fractional erbium: YAG laser-assisted photodynamic therapy for facial actinic keratoses: a randomized, comparative, prospective study.

BACKGROUND: Photodynamic therapy (PDT) with methyl aminolevulinate (MAL) is effective for treating multiple actinic keratoses (AKs). Ablative fractional laser (FL) creates vertical channels that may facilitate MAL delivery and improve PDT response. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of FL-assisted PDT (FL-PDT) in treating facial AKs in Korean patients. METHODS: A prospective randomized non-blinded trial initially evaluated 271 facial AKs in 45 patients. All patients underwent one session of MAL-PDT using a red light-emitting diode lamp at 37 J/cm(2) , and 23 patients with 135 AK lesions were randomly assigned to pre-treatment with a 2940-nm ablative fractional erbium:Yag laser. Patients were followed up at 1, 2 and 4 weeks and every month until 6 and 12 months post-treatment. Response, adverse events, cosmetic outcome and patient satisfaction were documented. Finally, a total of 236 facial AKs in 40 patients were enrolled and analysed in this study. RESULTS: FL-PDT was significantly more effective than MAL-PDT at treating all AK grades (86.9% vs. 61.2%; P < 0.001). The efficacy of FL-PDT was most pronounced in treating Olsen grade III AKs (69.4% vs. 32.5%; P = 0.001). FL-PDT also showed a lower lesion recurrence rate than MAL-PDT (9.7% vs. 26.6%; P = 0.004). Excellent or good cosmetic outcome was reported in >90% cases. Erythema and hyperpigmentation intensities were higher in the FL-PDT group (P > 0.05). Side-effects were more frequent in the FL-PDT group, but these were mild and well tolerated (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: FL-PDT is effective for treating AKs, especially moderate-to-thick lesions.

Effects of flunixin meglumine and prostaglandin F2 α treatments on the development and quality of bovine embryos in vitro.

Assisted reproduction procedures, such as embryo transfer (ET) and artificial insemination (AI), in cattle could induce the secretion of prostaglandin F2 -alpha (PGF2 α) from uterine horns which may in turn interrupt embryo development and implantation. This study investigated the effect of flunixin meglumine (FM), prostaglandin F2 alpha (PGF2α) and FM combined with PGF2α supplementation in culture medium (IVC-II) on the development and quality of in vitro produced bovine embryos. The development rate of embryos was significantly higher in the FM group (33.3%) than in control (24.3%), PGF2 α (23.9%) and FM + PGF2 α groups (24.5%). The percentage of hatched blastocysts was also higher (p < 0.05) in the FM group (41.2%) than in the control (27.8%) and PGF2 α groups (19.8%). While, there was no significant difference in total cell number in all experimental groups, the number of apoptotic cells was significantly higher in the PGF2 α group (8.2 ± 6.6) than in the control (4.7 ± 3.2), FM (4.7 ± 2.5) and FM + PGF2 α (4.9 ± 3.4) groups. Detected by real-time PCR, secreted vesicle seminal protein 1 (SSLP1) and prostaglandin G/H synthase 2 (PTGS2) gene expression decreased (p < 0.05) in the PGF2 α group. However, SSLP1 and PTGS2 gene expression in the FM + PGF2 α group returned to their baseline levels, similar to the control and FM groups. Caspase 3 (CAPS3) gene expression increased in the PGF2 α group compared with other groups (p < 0.05). In conclusion, addition of FM in vitro culture significantly improved embryo development as well as alleviated the negative impact of PGF2 α.

[The process of bacterial population splitting into dissociants and long-term batch cultivation of bacteria].

The growth and composition of a population were studied during long-term (up to 50 days) batch cultivation of mono and mixed cultures of Pseudomonas aeruginosa S- and M-dissociants and Rhodobacter sphaeroides R- and M-dissociants without the addition of nutrients. During the cultivation of P. aeruginosa on a glucose-containing mineral medium, periodic lysis followed by polyculture growth resumption in the late stationary phase occurred on account of the M-dissociant: the change in its cell number corresponded to the change in the total cell number of the association. It was shown that the periodic occurrence of reducing sugars in the medium preceded the resumption ofpolyculture growth.

Kidney transplantation from donors after cardiac death: an initial report of 71 cases from China.

Shortage of deceased donors is a severe problem in recent years in China especially in a culture in which brain death criteria is not widely accepted. Donation after cardiac death (DCD) has been reported to expand the donor pool despite higher rates of primary nonfunction (PNF) and delayed graft function (DGF) after transplantation. We collected 71 DCD kidney transplants performed at our hospital between February, 2007 and June, 2012 with aims to demonstrate the feasibility of DCD donation in China. All patients were followed up, and postoperative complications and graft loss were recorded. The PNF rate was 2.8%, and DGF rate was 28.2%. The 1- and 3-year graft survival was 95.7% and 92.4%. In conclusion, graft survival of DCD kidney transplantation in China is excellent despite of higher rates of PNF and DGF after transplantation.

Native portal vein embolization for persistent hyperoxaluria following kidney and auxiliary partial liver transplantation.

Type 1 primary hyperoxaluria (PH1) causes renal failure, for which isolated kidney transplantation (KT) is usually unsuccessful treatment due to early oxalate stone recurrence. Although hepatectomy and liver transplantation (LT) corrects PH1 enzymatic defect, simultaneous auxiliary partial liver transplantation (APLT) and KT have been suggested as an alternative approach. APLT advantages include preservation of the donor pool and retention of native liver function in the event of liver graft loss. However, APLT relative mass may be inadequate to correct the defect. We here report the first case of native portal vein embolization (PVE) to increase APLT to native liver mass ratio (APLT/NLM-R). Following initial combined APLT-KT, both allografts functioned well, but oxalate plasma levels did not normalize. We postulated the inadequate APLT/NLM-R could be corrected by trans-hepatic native PVE. The resulting increased APLT/NLM-R decreased serum oxalate to normal levels within 1 month following PVE. We conclude that persistently elevated oxalate levels after combined APLT-KT for PH1 treatment, results from inadequate relative functional capacity. This can be reversed by partial native PVE to decrease portal flow to the native liver. This approach might be applicable to other scenarios where partial grafts have been transplanted to replace native liver function.

Blue-phase templated fabrication of three-dimensional nanostructures for photonic applications.

A promising approach to the fabrication of materials with nanoscale features is the transfer of liquid-crystalline structure to polymers. However, this has not been achieved in systems with full three-dimensional periodicity. Here we demonstrate the fabrication of self-assembled three-dimensional nanostructures by polymer templating blue phase I, a chiral liquid crystal with cubic symmetry. Blue phase I was photopolymerized and the remaining liquid crystal removed to create a porous free-standing cast, which retains the chiral three-dimensional structure of the blue phase, yet contains no chiral additive molecules. The cast may in turn be used as a hard template for the fabrication of new materials. By refilling the cast with an achiral nematic liquid crystal, we created templated blue phases that have unprecedented thermal stability in the range -125 to 125 °C, and that act as both mirrorless lasers and switchable electro-optic devices. Blue-phase templated materials will facilitate advances in device architectures for photonics applications in particular.

[Sauna effect on blood oxygen transport function and proxidant/antioxidant balance in youths].

There was investigated sauna effect on blood oxygen transport function and proxidant/antioxidant balance in 18 to 22 years old males. Subjects being tested underwent thermal exposure once per week over a period of 5 months (20 procedures). There were two exposure over the course of sauna bathing (temperature 85-90 degrees C, humidity 10-15%): the first exposure lasted for 5 minutes and the second one for 10 minutes. Dry air sauna in youth's leads to respiratory alkalosis, increases pO2, decreases haemoglobin binding capacity to venous blood oxygen thus facilitating oxygen transport into body tissues. Single sauna visit results in oxidative stress (augmentation of free radical processes and deterioration of antioxidant defence mechanisms), while its manifestations being diminished after multiple thermal exposures. Increase in nitrogen monoxide formation being observed might matter for the modification of the oxygen dependent processes of the human body.

Early onset adenovirus infection after simultaneous kidney-pancreas transplant.

Adenoviruses (AdV) are increasingly recognized as important viral pathogens in immunocompromised hosts. The clinical spectrum ranges from asymptomatic viremia to allograft dysfunction, and death. Most of the medical literature is on AdV infection in children and bone marrow transplant recipients. We report a case of AdV in an adult recipient in the first month after simultaneous kidney-pancreas transplant with thymoglobulin induction. This is a rare report of adenovirus infection after multiorgan transplant, and is unique in that it exhibited tissue invasive disease without any localizing signs or allograft dysfunction, while other cases in medical literature had invasive disease of the allograft with allograft dysfunction, failure, or death. In addition, this is the first report of a radiologic presentation of AdV nephritis.

Changing pattern of organ donation at a single center: are potential brain dead donors being lost to donation after cardiac death?

Donation after cardiac death (DCD) has proven effective at increasing the availability of organs for transplantation.We performed a retrospective examination of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) records of all 201 donors from 1/1/98 to the 11/2008, including 54 DCD, 115 DBD and 32 DCD candidates that did not progress to donation (DCD-dnp). Comparing three time periods, era 1 (01/98-12/02), era 2 (01/03-12/05) and era 3 (01/06-11/08), DCD's comprised 14.8,48.4% and 60% of donors, respectively (p = 0.002). A significant increase in the incidence of cardiovascular/cerebrovascular as cause of death was evident in era 3 versus eras 1 and 2; 74% versus 57.1% (p<0.001),as was a corresponding decrease in the incidence of traumatic death. Interestingly, we noted an increase in utilization of aggressive neurological management over time, especially in the DCD group.We detected significant changes in the make-up of the donor pool over the past decade. That the changes in diagnosis over time did not differ between DCD and DBD groups suggests this difference is not responsible for the increase in DCD rates. Instead, we suggest that changes in clinical practice, especially in management of patients with severe brain injury may account for the increased proportion of DCD.

Mode tailoring in a ridge-type periodically poled lithium niobate waveguide.

We present a simple and powerful method for mode generation and transformation in a ridge-type periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) waveguide by the use of second-order nonlinear effect and local-temperature-control technique. We show that a Hermite-Gaussian (HG) mode wave (among HG(00) to HG(22)) can be selectively generated via the quasi-phase-matching (QPM) nonlinear process in a PPLN waveguide by tuning the wavelength of fundamental wave or the temperature of the waveguide. As well, it is demonstrated that HG mode can be transformed into Laguerre-Gaussian (LG) one via combination of HG modes which are simultaneously generated in a single PPLN waveguide with local-temperature-control technique.

Molecular insights into the development of hepatic metastases in colorectal cancer: a metastasis prediction study.

OBJECTIVE: Colorectal cancer is presently the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in the United States. In this study, we identified molecular differences between hepatic and non-hepatic metastases in colorectal cancer and evaluated their prognostic significance. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We downloaded primary data from the NCBI Gene Expression Omnibus (GSE6988, GSE62321, GSE50760, and GSE28722). To identify the molecular differences, we used the Significance Analysis of Microarray method. We selected nine prognostic genes (SYTL2, PTPLAD1, CDS1, RNF138, PIGR, WDR78, MYO7B, TSPAN3, and ATP5F1) with hepatic metastasis prediction score in colorectal cancer (hereafter referred to as LASSO Score). We confirmed the prognostic significance of the LASSO Score by using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, multivariate analysis, the time-dependent area under the curve (AUC) of Uno's C-index, and the AUC of the receiver operating characteristic curve at 1-5 years. RESULTS: Survival analysis revealed that a high LASSO Score is associated with a poor prognosis in colorectal cancer patients with hepatic metastases (p = 0). Analysis of C-indices and AUC values from the receiver operating characteristic curve further supported this prediction by the LASSO Score. Multivariate analysis confirmed the prognostic significance of the LASSO Score (p = 1.13e-06). CONCLUSIONS: This study reveals the biological mechanisms underlying hepatic metastases in colorectal cancer and will help in developing targeted therapies for colorectal cancer.

Interpret with caution: An evaluation of the commercial AusDiagnostics versus in-house developed assays for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 virus.

INTRODUCTION: There is limited data on the analytical performance of commercial nucleic acid tests (NATs) for laboratory confirmation of COVID-19 infection. METHODS: Nasopharyngeal, combined nose and throat swabs, nasopharyngeal aspirates and sputum was collected from persons with suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection, serial dilutions of SARS-CoV-2 viral cultures and synthetic positive controls (gBlocks, Integrated DNA Technologies) were tested using i) AusDiagnostics assay (AusDiagnostics Pty Ltd); ii) in-house developed assays targeting the E and RdRp genes; iii) multiplex PCR assay targeting endemic respiratory viruses. Discrepant SARS-CoV-2 results were resolved by testing the N, ORF1b, ORF1ab and M genes. RESULTS: Of 52 clinical samples collected from 50 persons tested, respiratory viruses were detected in 22 samples (42 %), including SARS CoV-2 (n = 5), rhinovirus (n = 7), enterovirus (n = 5), influenza B (n = 4), hMPV (n = 5), influenza A (n = 2), PIV-2 (n = 1), RSV (n = 2), CoV-NL63 (n = 1) and CoV-229E (n = 1). SARS-CoV-2 was detected in four additional samples by the AusDiagnostics assay. Using the in-house assays as the "gold standard", the sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values of the AusDiagnostics assay was 100 %, 92.16 %, 55.56 % and 100 % respectively. The Ct values of the real-time in-house-developed PCR assay targeting the E gene was significantly lower than the corresponding RdRp gene assay when applied to clinical samples, viral culture and positive controls (mean 21.75 vs 28.1, p = 0.0031). CONCLUSIONS: The AusDiagnostics assay is not specific for the detection SARS-CoV-2. Any positive results should be confirmed using another NAT or sequencing. The case definition used to investigate persons with suspected COVID-19 infection is not specific.

Mechanically controllable nonlinear dielectrics.

Strain-sensitive Ba x Sr1-x TiO3 perovskite systems are widely used because of their superior nonlinear dielectric behaviors. In this research, new heterostructures including paraelectric Ba0.5Sr0.5TiO3 (BSTO) and ferroelectric BaTiO3 (BTO) materials were epitaxially fabricated on flexible muscovite substrate. Through simple bending, the application of mechanical force can regulate the dielectric constant of BSTO from -77 to 36% and the channel current of BTO-based ferroelectric field effect transistor by two orders. The detailed mechanism was studied through the exploration of phase transition and determination of band structure. In addition, the phase-field simulations were implemented to provide theoretical support. This research opens a new avenue for mechanically controllable components based on high-quality oxide heteroepitaxy.

A linearly-polarized Nd:YVO4/KTP microchip green laser.

We described the principle and the fabrication of a Nd:YVO(4)/KTP microchip for the linearly-polarized green laser and verified its availability by manufacturing and characterizing the green laser using the microchip. Under the driving condition having the modulation frequency of 60 Hz and the duty ratio of 25%, the laser showed the stable linear polarization, the maximum average power of 37 mW, yielding the high electrical-to-optical efficiency of 10.9%.

Characteristics of a multi-mode interference device based on Ti:LiNbO3 channel waveguide.

We have analyzed the multi-mode interference effect depending on the wavelength and the polarization states of input beam in a multi-mode Ti:LiNbO(3) waveguide at about 1300 nm region. The transmitted optical signal of a Ti:LiNbO(3) waveguide shows the periodic oscillation as a function of input wavelength. The measured average periodicity of the oscillation in TM and TE polarization beams were about 18 nm and 48 nm, respectively. Actually, the periodicity is determined by the refractive index difference between the two modes (fundamental and first modes). Therefore, we have explained the experimental results with the theoretical calculations which are derived from a quasi-analytical technique based on the effective-refractive- index method and the equation of coupling length determined by the mode phase factor in the multi-mode waveguide.

Electronic and structural characteristics of Zr-incorporated Gd2O3 films on strained SiGe substrates.

Zr-incorporated Gd(2)O(3) films were grown on various substrates as a function of Zr content. The extent of interfacial reactions was found to be critically dependent on both the incorporated Zr content and the substrate type. Specifically, the silicide layer was suppressed and the Gd(2)O(3) phase was changed to ZrO(2) on a Si substrate with increasing Zr content. Crystalline Gd(2)Ge(2)O(7) was grown on a Ge substrate, as the result of interfacial reactions between Gd-oxide and the Ge substrate. However, interfacial reactions were not affected by the amount of Zr incorporated. On the SiGe/Si substrate, reactions between Gd-oxide and Si could be controlled effectively by the incorporation of Zr, while the extent of reactions with Ge was significantly enhanced as the Zr content increased. The formation of an interfacial layer between the film and the SiGe substrate resulted in a textured crystalline growth.