A High CMRR Differential Difference Amplifier Employing Combined Input Pairs for Neural Signal Recordings.

This article introduces a Combined .symmetrical and complementary Input Pairs (CIP) of a Differential Difference Amplifier (DDA), to boost the total Common-Mode Rejection Ratio (CMRR) for multi-channel neural signal recording. The proposed CIP-DDA employs three input pairs (transconductors). The dc-coupled input neural signal connection, via the gate terminal of the first transconductor, yields a high input impedance. The high-pass corner frequency and dc quiescent operation point are stabilized by the second transconductor. The calibration path of differential-mode gain and Common-Mode Feedback (CMFB) is provided by the proposed third transconductor. The parallel connection has no need for extra voltage headroom of input and output. The proposed CIP-DDA is targeted at integrated circuit realization and designed in a 0.18-µm CMOS technology. The proposed CIP-DDAs with system CMFB achieve an average CMRR of 103 dB, and each channel consumes circa 3.6 µW power consumption.

Antitumor effect of luteolin proven by patient-derived organoids of gastric cancer.

Luteolin (Lut) has been shown to inhibit gastric cancer (GC); however, its efficacy compared to other clinical drugs has not been examined in human samples. This study aimed to elucidate the antitumor activity of Lut in GC patient-derived organoids (PDOs). PDOs were established from GC cancer tissues, and the characterization of tissues and PDOs was performed using whole-exome sequencing. Drug sensitivity tests were performed by treating PDOs with Lut, norcantharidin (NCTD), and carboplatin (CP). RNA sequencing of PDOs was performed to elucidate the antitumor mechanism of Lut, which was further verified in three GC cell lines. Eleven PDOs were successfully constructed, and were highly consistent with the pathophysiology and genetic changes in the corresponding tumors. The IC50s of Lut, NCTD, and CP of PDOs were 27.19, 23.9, and 37.87 µM, respectively. Lut treatment upregulated FOXO3, DUSP1, and CDKN1A expression and downregulated IL1R1 and FGFR4 expression in GC cell lines, which was consistent with the results of PDOs. We demonstrate that Lut exerted stronger antitumor effects than CP, but a similar effect to that of NCTD, which was obtained in an in vitro PDO system. Additionally, Lut exerted varying degrees of antitumor effects against the PDOs, thereby indicating that PDO may be a useful preclinical drug screening tool for personalized treatment.

[Effects of Spartina alterniflora Invasion on Soil Phosphorus Forms in the Jiaozhou Bay Wetland].

To investigate the effects of Spartina alterniflora invasion on soil phosphorus(P) cycling in coastal wetlands, we selected a S. alterniflora zone(SA zone) and mudflat zone(MF zone) in the Jiaozhou Bay as the target areas for the study. The variability of total phosphorus(TP), inorganic phosphorus(IP), and their component contents in wetland soils after S. alterniflora invasion and their influencing factors was evaluated. The results showed that the average contents of TP(472.70 mg·kg-1) and IP(239.00 mg·kg-1) in the soils were significantly higher than those of TP(386.19 mg·kg-1) and IP(212.68 mg·kg-1) in the pre-invasion area, with an increase of 22.40% and 12.38%, respectively. The IP fractions in the study area were dominated by calcium-phosphorus(Ca-P) and iron-phosphorus(Fe-P), accounting for 45%-61% and 31%-49% of IP, respectively. The Ca-P content of the soil in the 10-30 cm layer decreased significantly(P<0.05) after S. alterniflora invasion, which was especially significant in July. The Fe-P content increased significantly(P<0.05); in the 0-40 cm soil layer, Fe-P was higher than that in the 40-60 cm layer(P<0.05), and showed significant enrichment in the 10-40 cm soil in July. The structural equation model showed that organic matter(OM) had a significant positive effect on TP and Fe-P after S. alterniflora invasion(P<0.01), and the normalized path coefficients were 0.775 and 0.724, respectively. Fe-P had a significant negative effect on Ca-P after invasion(P<0.01) with a normalised throughput coefficient of -0.435. The study found that S. alterniflora invasion generally increased wetland soil P content, while promoting the conversion of Ca-P to Fe-P, improving wetland P bioavailability.

Puerarin attenuates the inflammatory response and apoptosis in LPS-stimulated cardiomyocytes.

Patients with septic shock suffer from high mortality rates, particularly when complicated by severe myocardial depression which is characterized by hypotension and a reduction in cardiac output. Inflammation is an important factor involved in the early stages of sepsis. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of the Chinese herbal compound puerarin (1, 5, 10, 20 and 40 µM) on cardiomyocyte inflammatory response in a sepsis model using H9c2 cardiomyocytes stimulated with 1 µg/ml lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The mRNA expression levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and interleukin (IL)-ß were evaluated using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. In addition, the protein expression levels of various factors were determined using western blot analysis. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling was used to evaluate the apoptosis rates in the various groups, and immunocytochemical analysis was employed to determine the effect of puerarin on the nuclear translocation of p65 protein. The present study demonstrated that LPS stimulation increased IL-1ß and TNF-α mRNA expression levels, as compared with the controls (P<0.05). Following treatment with various concentrations of puerarin, the expression levels of IL-1ß and TNF-α were markedly blunted, particularly in the LPS + 40 µM puerarin group (P<0.05 vs. the LPS group). Furthermore, puerarin administration significantly inhibited LPS-induced apoptosis in H9c2 cardiomyocytes, as determined by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) staining (TUNEL positive cells: LPS + 40 µM puerarin group, 5.5% vs. LPS group, 10.5%; P<0.01). In addition, puerarin significantly decreased LPS-induced phosphorylated nuclear factor (p-NF)-κB p65 and Bax expression levels, and increased the expression levels of Bcl-2, as compared with the LPS group (P<0.05). These data indicated that puerarin may serve as a valuable protective agent against cardiovascular inflammatory diseases.

Shensongyangxin protects against pressure overload­induced cardiac hypertrophy.

Shensongyangxin (SSYX) is a medicinal herb, which has long been used in traditional Chinese medicine. Various pharmacological activities of SSYX have been identified. However, the role of SSYX in cardiac hypertrophy remains to be fully elucidated. In present study, aortic banding (AB) was performed to induce cardiac hypertrophy in mice. SSYX (520 mg/kg) was administered by daily gavage between 1 and 8 weeks following surgery. The extent of cardiac hypertrophy was then evaluated by pathological and molecular analyses of heart tissue samples. In addition, in vitro experiments were performed to confirm the in vivo results. The data of the present study demonstrated that SSYX prevented the cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis induced by AB, as assessed by measurements of heart weight and gross heart size, hematoxylin and eosin staining, cross­sectional cardiomyocyte area and the mRNA expression levels of hypertrophic markers. SSYX also inhibited collagen deposition and suppressed the expression of transforming growth factor ß (TGFß), connective tissue growth factor, fibronectin, collagen Ⅰα and collagen Ⅲα, which was mediated by the inhibition of the TGFß/small mothers against decapentaplegic (Smad) signaling pathway. The inhibitory action of SSYX on cardiac hypertrophy was mediated by the inhibition of Akt signaling. In vitro investigations in the rat H9c2 cardiac cells also demonstrated that SSYX attenuated angiotensin II­induced cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. These findings suggested that SSYX attenuated cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis in the pressure overloaded mouse heart. Therefore, the cardioprotective effect of SSYX is associated with inhibition of the Akt and TGFß/Smad signaling pathways.