Characterization of prostatic cancer lesion and gleason grade using a continuous-time random-walk diffusion model at high b-values.

Background: Distinguishing between prostatic cancer (PCa) and chronic prostatitis (CP) is sometimes challenging, and Gleason grading is strongly associated with prognosis in PCa. The continuous-time random-walk diffusion (CTRW) model has shown potential in distinguishing between PCa and CP as well as predicting Gleason grading. Purpose: This study aimed to quantify the CTRW parameters (α, ß & Dm) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) of PCa and CP tissues; and then assess the diagnostic value of CTRW and ADC parameters in differentiating CP from PCa and low-grade PCa from high-grade PCa lesions. Study type: Retrospective (retrospective analysis using prospective designed data). Population: Thirty-one PCa patients undergoing prostatectomy (mean age 74 years, range 64-91 years), and thirty CP patients undergoing prostate needle biopsies (mean age 68 years, range 46-79 years). Field strength/Sequence: MRI scans on a 3.0T scanner (uMR790, United Imaging Healthcare, Shanghai, China). DWI were acquired with 12 b-values (0, 50, 100, 150, 200, 500, 800, 1200, 1500, 2000, 2500, 3000 s/mm2). Assessment: CTRW parameters and ADC were quantified in PCa and CP lesions. Statistical tests: The Mann-Whitney U test was used to evaluate the differences in CTRW parameters and ADC between PCa and CP, high-grade PCa, and low-grade PCa. Spearman's correlation of the pathologic grading group (GG) with CTRW parameters and ADC was evaluated. The usefulness of CTRW parameters, ADC, and their combinations (Dm, α and ß; Dm, α, ß, and ADC) to differentiate PCa from CP and high-grade PCa from low-grade PCa was determined by logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis. Delong test was used to compare the differences among AUCs. Results: Significant differences were found for the CTRW parameters (α, Dm) between CP and PCa (all P<0.001), high-grade PCa, and low-grade PCa (α:P=0.024, Dm:P=0.021). GG is correlated with certain CTRW parameters and ADC(α:P<0.001,r=-0.795; Dm:P<0.001,r=-0.762;ADC:P<0.001,r=-0.790). Moreover, CTRW parameters (α, ß, Dm) combined with ADC showed the best diagnostic efficacy for distinguishing between PCa and CP as well as predicting Gleason grading. The differences among AUCs of ADC, CTRW parameters and their combinations were not statistically significant (P=0.051-0.526). Conclusion: CTRW parameters α and Dm, as well as their combination were beneficial to distinguish between CA and PCa, low-grade PCa and high-grade PCa lesions, and CTRW parameters and ADC had comparable diagnostic performance.

Long-term survival and portal vein patency with novel PVTT surgery approach in advanced HCC patients with Vp3/4 PVTT following combination therapy of TKIs and PD-1 inhibitors.

BACKGROUND: It is controversial whether patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with portal vein tumor thrombus (PVTT) should undergo salvage surgery following the combination therapy of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) inhibitors. This study aimed to elucidate the efficiency and safety of salvage surgery following combination therapy, while also summarizing a novel surgical approach for Vp3/4 PVTT. METHODS: Between April 2019 and December 2022, a consecutive series of unresectable HCC patients with PVTT who received salvage surgery following combination therapy were enrolled. Evaluation included perioperative and long-term follow-up outcomes. The complete removal of Vp3/4 PVTT was achieved using a novel surgical approach characterized by "longitudinal incision and transverse suturing" and "angle-to-straight conversion". RESULTS: Forty patients including 22 patients with Vp3 and 18 patients with Vp4 were included. Long-term follow-up showed similar rates of portal vein patency (Vp3: 95.5%, Vp4:94.4%, p = 0.900), and 3-year portal vein patency rates were 95.0%. There were no significant differences observed in combination therapy-related adverse events (p = 0.253) and perioperative complications (p = 0.613) between the Vp3 and Vp4 groups. The recurrence patterns were similar between the two groups (p = 0.131). There were no significant differences in overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free (RFS) survival between the Vp3 and Vp4 groups (OS p = 0.457, RFS p = 0.985). Patients who achieved a pathological complete response had significantly better RFS (p = 0.011). CONCLUSION: Salvage surgery after combination therapy demonstrated favorable efficacy and safety. The novel surgical approach for PVTT can effectively achieve complete removal of PVTT and ensured long-term portal vein patency.

Lenvatinib plus anti-PD-1 antibodies as conversion therapy for patients with unresectable intermediate-advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: a single-arm, phase II trial.

BACKGROUND: Over 70% of the patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are diagnosed at an advanced stage and lose the opportunity for radical surgery. Combination therapy of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and anti-programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) antibodies has achieved a high tumor response rate in both the first-line and second-line treatment of advanced HCC. However, few studies have prospectively evaluated whether TKIs plus anti-PD-1 antibodies could convert unresectable intermediate-advanced HCC into resectable disease. METHODS: This single-arm, phase II study enrolled systemic therapy-naïve adult patients with unresectable Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage B or C HCC. Patients received oral lenvatinib one time per day plus intravenous anti-PD-1 agents every 3 weeks (one cycle). Tumor response and resectability were evaluated before the fourth cycle, then every two cycles. The primary endpoint was conversion success rate by investigator assessment. Secondary endpoints included objective response rate (ORR) by independent imaging review (IIR) assessment per modified RECIST (mRECIST) and Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors, V.1.1 (RECIST 1.1), progression-free survival (PFS) and 12-month recurrence-free survival (RFS) rate by IIR per mRECIST, R0 resection rate, overall survival (OS), and safety. Biomarkers were assessed as exploratory objectives. RESULTS: Of the 56 eligible patients enrolled, 53 (94.6%) had macrovascular invasion, and 16 (28.6%) had extrahepatic metastasis. The median follow-up was 23.5 months. The primary endpoint showed a conversion success rate of 55.4% (31/56). ORR was 53.6% per mRECIST and 44.6% per RECIST 1.1. Median PFS was 8.9 months, and median OS was 23.9 months. Among the 31 successful conversion patients, 21 underwent surgery with an R0 resection rate of 85.7%, a pathological complete response rate of 38.1%, and a 12-month RFS rate of 47.6%. Grade ≥3 treatment-related adverse events were observed in 42.9% of patients. Tumor immune microenvironment analysis of pretreatment samples displayed significant enrichment of CD8+ T cells (p=0.03) in responders versus non-responders. CONCLUSION: Lenvatinib plus anti-PD-1 antibodies demonstrate promising efficacy and tolerable safety as conversion therapy in unresectable HCC. Pre-existing CD8+ cells are identified as a promising biomarker for response to this regimen. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, ChiCTR1900023914.

The sharp structural switch of covalent cages mediated by subtle variation of directing groups.

It is considered a more formidable task to precisely control the self-assembled products containing purely covalent components, due to a lack of intrinsic templates such as transition metals to suppress entropy loss during self-assembly. Here, we attempt to tackle this challenge by using directing groups. That is, the self-assembly products of condensing a 1:2 mixture of a tetraformyl and a biamine can be precisely controlled by slightly changing the substituent groups in the aldehyde precursor. This is because different directing groups provide hydrogen bonds with different modes to the adjacent imine units, so that the building blocks are endowed with totally different conformations. Each conformation favors the formation of a specific product that is thus produced selectively, including chiral and achiral cages. These results of using a specific directing group to favor a target product pave the way for accomplishing atom economy in synthesizing purely covalent molecules without relying on toxic transition metal templates.

Factors influencing the prognosis patients with Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage C hepatocellular carcinoma undergoing salvage surgery after conversion therapy.

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the prognostic factors influencing the outcome of patients with Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage C hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) receiving salvage surgery after conversion therapy based on tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and anti-programmed death-1 (PD-1) antibodies. Methods: From June 2018 to December 2022, patients receiving salvage surgery after conversion therapy based on PD-1 and TKIs at the Faculty of Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Surgery, Chinese PLA General Hospital were retrospectively recruited for this study. Overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) were observed as the primary end point in the Cox analysis of prognostic factors among this study. Results: The 6- and 12-month RFS rates were 77.0% and 64.8%, respectively, while the 6-, 12-, 24-, and 36-month OS rates were 98.4%, 93.4%, 76.8%, and 69.8%, respectively. The median OS and RFS were not reached. On multivariable Cox regression analyses, low serum alpha fetoprotein (AFP) level (≤20 ng/mL) after conversion therapy [hazard ratio (HR) 0.186, 95% CI: 0.039-0.887; P=0.035) and microvascular invasion (MVI) grade II (HR 3.054, 95% CI: 1.000-9.329; P=0.050) were independent factors associated with a higher OS and RFS. Conclusions: For patients with Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage C (BCLC-C) HCC, lower AFP level after conversion therapy (<20 ng/mL) and MVI II were associated with a higher OS and lower RFS rate, respectively.

Aromaticity in Fully π-Conjugated Multicyclic Macrocycles.

The research on aromaticity has mainly focused on monocyclic [n]annulene-like systems or polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. For fully π-conjugated multicyclic macrocycles (MMCs), the electronic coupling between the individual constitutional macrocycles would lead to unique electronic structures and aromaticity. The studies on MMCs, however, are quite limited, presumably due to the great challenges to design and synthesize a fully π-conjugated MMC molecule. Herein, we report the facile synthesis of two MMCs (2TMC and 3TMC) in which two and three thiophene-based macrocycles are fused together by employing both intramolecular and intermolecular Yamamoto coupling reactions of a properly designed precursor (7). The monocyclic macrocycle (1TMC) was also synthesized as a model compound. The geometry, aromaticity, and electronic properties of these macrocycles at different oxidation states were investigated by X-ray crystallographic analysis, NMR, and theoretical calculations, which disclosed how the constitutional macrocycles interplay with each other and lead to unique aromatic/antiaromatic character. This study provides new insights into the complex aromaticity in MMC systems.

Comparison of survival benefit between salvage surgery after conversion therapy versus surgery alone for hepatocellular carcinoma with portal vein tumor thrombosis: a propensity score analysis.

BACKGROUND: Salvage surgery after conversion therapy with a combination of tyrosine kinase inhibitor and anti-programmed death-1 antibody has shown improved survival benefits in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with portal vein tumor thrombosis (PVTT). We aimed to compare the survival benefits in a retrospective cohort of patients with HCC with PVTT who underwent salvage surgery after conversion therapy and surgery alone. METHODS: From January 2015 to October 2021, we selected patients diagnosed with HCC with PVTT who underwent liver resection at Chinese PLA General Hospital. The primary endpoint in the comparison of survival benefits between conversion therapy and surgery-alone groups was recurrence-free survival. Propensity score matching was applied to reduce any potential bias in the study. RESULTS: The 6-, 12-, and 24-month recurrence-free survival rates in the conversion and surgery alone groups were 80.3% vs 36.5%, 65.4% vs 29.4%, and 56% vs 21%, respectively. On multivariable Cox regression analyses, conversion therapy significantly reduced HCC-related mortality and HCC recurrence rates compared with surgery alone. CONCLUSIONS: For patients with HCC with PVTT, surgery after conversion therapy is in relationship with increased survival in comparison with surgery alone.

Deep Learning With an Attention Mechanism for Differentiating the Origin of Brain Metastasis Using MR images.

BACKGROUND: Brain metastasis (BM) is a serious neurological complication of cancer of different origins. The value of deep learning (DL) to identify multiple types of primary origins remains unclear. PURPOSE: To distinguish primary site of BM and identify the best DL models. STUDY TYPE: Retrospective. POPULATION: A total of 449 BM derived from 214 patients (49.5% for female, mean age 58 years) (100 from small cell lung cancer [SCLC], 125 from non-small cell lung cancer [NSCLC], 116 from breast cancer [BC], and 108 from gastrointestinal cancer [GIC]) were included. FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE: A 3-T, T1 turbo spin echo (T1-TSE), T2-TSE, T2FLAIR-TSE, DWI echo-planar imaging (DWI-EPI) and contrast-enhanced T1-TSE (CE T1-TSE). ASSESSMENT: Lesions were divided into training (n = 285, 153 patients), testing (n = 122, 93 patients), and independent testing cohorts (n = 42, 34 patients). Three-dimensional residual network (3D-ResNet), named 3D ResNet6 and 3D ResNet 18, was proposed for identifying the four origins based on single MRI and combined MRI (T1WI + T2-FLAIR + DWI, CE-T1WI + DWI, CE-T1WI + T2WI + DWI). DL model was used to distinguish lung cancer from non-lung cancer; then SCLC vs. NSCLC for lung cancer classification and BC vs. GIC for non-lung cancer classification was performed. A subjective visual analysis was implemented and compared with DL models. Gradient-weighted class activation mapping (Grad-CAM) was used to visualize the model by heatmaps. STATISTICAL TESTS: The area under the receiver operating characteristics curve (AUC) assess each classification performance. RESULTS: 3D ResNet18 with Grad-CAM and AIC showed better performance than 3DResNet6, 3DResNet18 and the radiologist for distinguishing lung cancer from non-lung cancer, SCLC from NSCLC, and BC from GIC. For single MRI sequence, T1WI, DWI, and CE-T1WI performed best for lung cancer vs. non-lung cancer, SCLC vs. NSCLC, and BC vs. GIC classifications. The AUC ranged from 0.675 to 0.876 and from 0.684 to 0.800 regarding the testing and independent testing datasets, respectively. For combined MRI sequences, the combination of CE-T1WI + T2WI + DWI performed better for BC vs. GIC (AUCs of 0.788 and 0.848 on testing and independent testing datasets, respectively), while the combined MRI approach (T1WI + T2-FLAIR + DWI, CE-T1WI + DWI) could not achieve higher AUCs for lung cancer vs. non-lung cancer, SCLC vs. NSCLC. Grad-CAM helped for model visualization by heatmaps that focused on tumor regions. DATA CONCLUSION: DL models may help to distinguish the origins of BM based on MRI data. EVIDENCE LEVEL: 3 TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 2.

Self-Assembly of a Purely Organic Bowl in Water via Acylhydrazone Formation.

A bowl-shaped molecule can be self-assembled by condensing a triscationic hexaaldehyde compound and three equiv. of a dihydrazide linkers in pure water. The molecular bowl is thus composed of a triscationic π-electron deficient platform, as well as a hexagonal rim that contains six acylhydrazone functions. When the counteranions are chloride, the solid-state structure reveals that this molecular bowl undergoes dimerization via N-H···Cl hydrogen bonds, forming a cage-like dimer with a huge inner cavity. This molecular bowl can employ its cavity to accommodate a hydrophobic guest, namely 1-adamantanecarboxylic acid in aqueous media.

Efficacy of treatment based on TKIs in combination with PD-1 inhibitors for unresectable recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The recurrence occurs within 5 years in up to 70% of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients who received radical liver resection, and most patients are no longer suitable for repeat surgery. There are limited treatment options for unresectable recurrent HCC. This study aimed to explore the potential efficacy of treatment based on TKIs in combination with PD-1 inhibitors for unresectable recurrent HCC. METHODS: Forty-four patients with unresectable recurrent HCC after radical surgery between January 2017 and November 2022 were retrospectively collected and screened. All patients received the combination therapy of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) inhibitors, and 18 of these patients received trans-arterial chemoembolization (TACE) or TACE combined with radiofrequency ablation (RFA). Two patients who received TKIs in combination with PD-1 inhibitors eventually obtained repeat surgery, with one patient undergoing a repeat hepatectomy and one patient receiving a liver transplant. RESULTS: The median survival for these patients was 27.0 months (95% confidence interval [CI] 21.2, 32.8), with a 1-year overall survival (OS) rate of 83.6% (95% CI 77.9%, 89.3%). Median progression-free survival (PFS) was 15.0 months (95.0% CI 12.1, 17.9), with a 1-year PFS rate of 77.0% (95% CI 70.6%, 83.4%). The two patients who underwent repeat surgery had a survival time of 34 and 37 months after the combined treatment with no recurrence, respectively, as of November 2022. CONCLUSION: The combination of TKIs and PD-1 inhibitors for unresectable recurrent HCC is effective and can prolong the survival of patients in this group.

Differentiation of Lung Metastases Originated From Different Primary Tumors Using Radiomics Features Based on CT Imaging.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: To explore the feasibility of differentiating three predominant metastatic tumor types using lung computed tomography (CT) radiomics features based on supervised machine learning. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective analysis included 252 lung metastases (LM) (from 78 patients), which were divided into the training (n = 176) and test (n = 76) cohort randomly. The metastases originated from colorectal cancer (n = 97), breast cancer (n = 87), and renal carcinoma (n = 68). An additional 77 LM (from 35 patients) were used for external validation. All radiomics features were extracted from lung CT using an open-source software called 3D slicer. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) method selected the optimal radiomics features to build the model. Random forest and support vector machine (SVM) were selected to build three-class and two-class models. The performance of the classification model was evaluated with the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) by two strategies: one-versus-rest and one-versus-one. RESULTS: Eight hundred and fifty-one quantitative radiomics features were extracted from lung CT. By LASSO, 23 optimal features were extracted in three-class, and 25, 29, and 35 features in two-class for differentiating every two of three LM (colorectal cancer vs. renal carcinoma, colorectal cancer vs. breast cancer, and breast cancer vs. renal carcinoma, respectively). The AUCs of the three-class model were 0.83 for colorectal cancer, 0.79 for breast cancer, and 0.91 for renal carcinoma in the test cohort. In the external validation cohort, the AUCs were 0.77, 0.83, and 0.81, respectively. Swarmplot shows the distribution of radiomics features among three different LM types. In the two-class model, high accuracy and AUC were obtained by SVM. The AUC of discriminating colorectal cancer LM from renal carcinoma LM was 0.84, and breast cancer LM from colorectal cancer LM and renal carcinoma LM were 0.80 and 0.94, respectively. The AUCs were 0.77, 0.78, and 0.84 in the external validation cohort. CONCLUSION: Quantitative radiomics features based on Lung CT exhibited good discriminative performance in LM of primary colorectal cancer, breast cancer, and renal carcinoma.

A Nomogram Based on CT Radiomics and Clinical Risk Factors for Prediction of Prognosis of Hypertensive Intracerebral Hemorrhage.

Purpose: To develop and validate a clinical-radiomics nomogram based on clinical risk factors and CT radiomics feature to predict hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage (HICH) prognosis. Methods: A total of 195 patients with HICH treated in our hospital from January 2018 to January 2022 were retrospectively enrolled and randomly divided into two cohorts for training (n = 138) and validation (n = 57) according to the ratio of 7 : 3. All CT radiomics features were extracted from intrahematomal, perihematomal, and combined intra- and perihematomal regions by using free open-source software called 3D slicer. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator method was used to select the optimal radiomics features, and the radiomics score (Rad-score) was calculated. The relationship between Rad-score, clinical risk factors, and the HICH prognosis was analyzed by univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses, and the clinical-radiomics nomogram was built. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) and decision curve analysis (DCA) were used to evaluate the performance of the clinical-radiomics nomogram in predicting the prognosis of HICH. Results: A total of 1702 radiomics features were extracted from the CT images of each patient for analysis. By univariate and stepwise multivariate logistic regression analyses, age, sex, RBC, serum glucose, D-dimer level, hematoma volume, and midline shift were clinical risk factors for the prognosis of HICH. Rad-score and clinical risk factors developed the clinical-radiomics nomogram. The nomogram showed the highest predictive efficiency in the training cohort (AUC = 0.95, 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.92 to 0.98) and the validation cohort (AUC = 0.90, 95% CI, 0.82 to 0.98). The calibration curve indicated that the clinical-radiomics nomogram had good calibration. DCA showed that the nomogram had high applicability in clinical practice. Conclusions: The clinical-radiomics nomogram incorporated with the radiomics features and clinical risk factors has good potential in predicting the prognosis of HICH.

Clinical-radiomics nomogram for identifying HER2 status in patients with breast cancer: A multicenter study.

Purpose: To develop and validate a clinical-radiomics nomogram based on radiomics features and clinical risk factors for identification of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) status in patients with breast cancer (BC). Methods: Two hundred and thirty-five female patients with BC were enrolled from July 2018 to February 2022 and divided into a training group (from center I, 115 patients), internal validation group (from center I, 49 patients), and external validation group (from centers II and III, 71 patients). The preoperative MRI of all patients was obtained, and radiomics features were extracted by a free open-source software called 3D Slicer. The Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator regression model was used to identify the most useful features. The radiomics score (Rad-score) was calculated by using the radiomics signature-based formula. A clinical-radiomics nomogram combining clinical factors and Rad-score was developed through multivariate logistic regression analysis. The performance of the nomogram was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and decision curve analysis (DCA). Results: A total of 2,553 radiomics features were extracted, and 21 radiomics features were selected as the most useful radiomics features. Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that Rad-score, progesterone receptor (PR), and Ki-67 were independent parameters to distinguish HER2 status. The clinical-radiomics nomogram, which comprised Rad-score, PR, and Ki-67, showed a favorable classification capability, with AUC of 0.87 [95% confidence internal (CI), 0.80 to 0.93] in the training group, 0.81 (95% CI, 0.69 to 0.94) in the internal validation group, and 0.84 (95% CI, 0.75 to 0.93) in the external validation group. DCA illustrated that the nomogram was useful in clinical practice. Conclusions: The nomogram combined with Rad-score, PR, and Ki-67 can identify the HER2 status of BC.

CT perfusion-based delta-radiomics models to identify collateral vessel formation after revascularization in patients with moyamoya disease.

Purpose: To build CT perfusion (CTP)-based delta-radiomics models to identify collateral vessel formation after revascularization in patients with moyamoya disease (MMD). Methods: Fifty-three MMD patients who underwent CTP and digital subtraction angiography (DSA) examination were retrospectively enrolled. Patients were divided into good and poor groups based on postoperative DSA. CTP parameters, such as mean transit time (MTT), time to drain (TTD), time to maximal plasma concentration (Tmax), and flow extraction product (FE), were obtained. CTP efficacy in evaluating surgical treatment were compared between the good and poor groups. The changes in the relative CTP parameters (ΔrMTT, ΔrTTD, ΔrTmax, and ΔrFE) were calculated to evaluate the differences between pre- and postoperative CTP values. CTP parameters were selected to build delta-radiomics models for identifying collateral vessel formation. The identification performance of machine learning classifiers was assessed using area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). Results: Of the 53 patients, 36 (67.9%) and 17 (32.1%) were divided into the good and poor groups, respectively. The postoperative changes of ΔrMTT, ΔrTTD, ΔrTmax, and ΔrFE in the good group were significantly better than the poor group (p < 0.05). Among all CTP parameters in the perfusion improvement evaluation, the ΔrTTD had the largest AUC (0.873). Eleven features were selected from the TTD parameter to build the delta-radiomics model. The classifiers of the support vector machine and k-nearest neighbors showed good diagnostic performance with AUC values of 0.933 and 0.867, respectively. Conclusion: The TTD-based delta-radiomics model has the potential to identify collateral vessel formation after the operation.

Prognosis and Tumour Immune Microenvironment of Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma by a Novel Pyroptosis-Related lncRNA Signature.

Worldwide, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common subtype of liver cancer. However, the survival rate of patients with HCC continues to be poor. The recent literature has revealed that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and the occurrence of pyroptosis can perform a substantial task in predicting the prognosis of the respective condition along with the response to immunotherapy among HCC patients. Thus, screening and identifying lncRNAs corelated with pyroptosis in HCC patients are critical. In the current study, pyroptosis-related lncRNAs (PR-lncRNAs) have been obtained by co-expression analysis. The Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO) and univariate and multivariate Cox regression assessments have been performed to develop a PR-lncRNA prognostic model. The risk model was analysed using Kaplan-Meier analysis, principal component analysis (PCA), functional enrichment annotation, and a nomogram. The risk model composed of five PR-lncRNAs was identified as an independent prognostic factor. The tumour immune microenvironment (TIME) was assessed using model groupings. Finally, we validated the five PR-lncRNAs in vitro using a quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR).

Experiment on the Scaling Mechanism of Strong Alkaline-Surfactant-Polymer in a Sandstone Reservoir.

Most of the mature oilfields are facing the problem of great difficulty in exploitation currently. Alkaline-surfactant-polymer (ASP) flooding has been widely used in Daqing Oilfield as a tertiary oil recovery technology that can effectively enhance oil recovery (EOR). However, various degrees of scaling appeared in field application tests, which hindered the large-scale application of this technology. The damage and scaling mechanisms of strong alkali-surfactant-polymer (SASP) flooding to heterogeneous reservoirs with high clay mineral content are still unclear. In this study, several sets of experiments have been carried out to determine the core mineral composition and the pore structure. Additionally, the damage mechanism and mineral corrosion with different permeabilities can be explored from a microscopic point of view. The results indicate that the corrosion of SASP reduces the contents of quartz and kaolinite, while the illite/montmorillonite mixed layer increases. In addition, there is chlorite and secondary quartz generation, which do not exist in the original mineral composition. Clay particles and sediment are easy to form bridges or stay on the surface and block the pore throats, which results in core seepage capacity reduction. All our preliminary results have contributed to the present understanding of scaling during ASP flooding. Moreover, it is of great significance to guide ASP flooding field application and prevent scaling.

Facile Synthesis of a Fully Fused, Three-Dimensional π-Conjugated Archimedean Cage with Magnetically Shielded Cavity.

The synthesis of molecular cages consisting of fully fused, π-conjugated rings is rare due to synthetic challenges including preorganization, large strain, and poor solubility. Herein, we report such an example in which a tris-2-aminobenzophenone precursor undergoes acid-mediated self-condensation to form a truncated tetrahedron, one of the 13 Archimedean solids. Formation of eight-membered [1,5]diazocine rings provides preorganization and releases the strain while still maintains weak π-conjugation of the backbone. Thorough characterizations were performed by X-ray, NMR, and UV-vis analysis, assisted by theoretical calculations. The cage exhibits a rigid backbone structure with a well-defined cavity that confines a magnetically shielded environment. The solvent molecule, o-dichlorobenzene, is precisely encapsulated in the cavity at a 1:1 ratio with multiple π···π, C-H···π, and halogen···π interactions with the cage skeleton, implying its template effect for the cage closing reaction. Our synthetic strategy opens the opportunity to access more complex, fully fused, three-dimensional π-conjugated cages.

Self-Assembly of a Purely Covalent Cage with Homochirality by Imine Formation in Water.

Self-assembly of host molecules in aqueous media via metal-ligand coordination is well developed. However, the preparation of purely covalent counterparts in water has remained a formidable task. An anionic tetrahedron cage was successfully self-assembled in a [4+4] manner by condensing a trisamine and a trisformyl in water. Even although each individual imine bond is rather labile and apt to hydrolyze in water, the tetrahedron is remarkably stable or inert due to multivalence. The tetrahedral cages, as well as its neutral counterparts dissolved in organic solvent, have homochirality, namely that their four propeller-shaped trisformyl residues adopt the same rotational conformation. The cage is able to take advantage of hydrophobic effect to accommodate a variety of guest molecules in water. When a chiral guest was recognized, the formation of one enantiomer of the cage became more favored relative to the other. As a consequence, the cage could be produced in an enantioselective manner. The tetrahedron is able to maintain its chirality after removal of the chiral guest-probably on account of the cooperative occurrence of intramolecular forces that restrict the intramolecular flipping of phenyl units in the cage framework.

A Self-Assembled Homochiral Radical Cage with Paramagnetic Behaviors.

Condensation of an inherently C3 -symmetric polychlorotriphenylmethyl (PTM) radical trisaldehyde with tris(2-aminoethyl)amine (TREN) yields a [4+4] tetrahedral radical cage as a racemic pair of homochiral enantiomers in 75 % isolated yield. The structure was characterized by X-ray crystallography, confirming the homochirality of each cage framework. The homochirality results from intramolecular [CH⋅⋅⋅π] and hydrogen-bonding interactions within the cage framework. The four PTM radicals in a cage undergo weak through-space coupling. Magnetic measurements demonstrated that each cage bears 3.58 spins.

Selective Recognition of Chloride Anion in Water.

A tricationic cage was synthesized via click chemistry. The cage has a preorganized cavity, which is surrounded by six relatively acidic C-H bonds. In organic solvent, the cage can recognize a variety of anions, among which the Cl- anion has the highest binding affinity due to size selectivity. The cage is also able to selectively recognize the Cl- anion in water, even though the binding affinity is just moderate.