Ultra-high-speed four-dimensional hyperspectral imaging.

We propose, to the best of our knowledge, a novel deep learning-enabled four-dimensional spectral imaging system composed of a reflective coded aperture snapshot spectral imaging system and a panchromatic camera. The system simultaneously captures a compressively coded hyperspectral measurement and a panchromatic measurement. The hyperspectral data cube is recovered by the U-net-3D network. The depth information of the scene is then acquired by estimating a disparity map between the hyperspectral data cube and the panchromatic measurement through stereo matching. This disparity map is used to align the hyperspectral data cube and the panchromatic measurement. A designed fusion network is used to improve the spatial reconstruction of the hyperspectral data cube by fusing aligned panchromatic measurements. The hardware prototype of the proposed system demonstrates high-speed four-dimensional spectral imaging that allows for simultaneously acquiring depth and spectral images with an 8 nm spectral resolution between 450 and 700 nm, 2.5 mm depth accuracy, and a 1.83 s reconstruction time.

Chromosome-level genome assembly and functional characterization of terpene synthases provide insights into the volatile terpenoid biosynthesis of Wurfbainia villosa.

Wurfbainia villosa is a well-known medicinal and edible plant that is widely cultivated in the Lingnan region of China. Its dried fruits (called Fructus Amomi) are broadly used in traditional Chinese medicine for curing gastrointestinal diseases and are rich in volatile terpenoids. Here, we report a high-quality chromosome-level genome assembly of W. villosa with a total size of approximately 2.80 Gb, 42 588 protein-coding genes, and a very high percentage of repetitive sequences (87.23%). Genome analysis showed that W. villosa likely experienced a recent whole-genome duplication event prior to the W. villosa-Zingiber officinale divergence (approximately 11 million years ago), and a recent burst of long terminal repeat insertions afterward. The W. villosa genome enabled the identification of 17 genes involved in the terpenoid skeleton biosynthesis pathway and 66 terpene synthase (TPS) genes. We found that tandem duplication events have an important contribution to the expansion of WvTPSs, which likely drove the production of volatile terpenoids. In addition, functional characterization of 18 WvTPSs, focusing on the TPS-a and TPS-b subfamilies, showed that most of these WvTPSs are multi-product TPS and are predominantly expressed in seeds. The present study provides insights into the genome evolution and the molecular basis of the volatile terpenoids diversity in W. villosa. The genome sequence also represents valuable resources for the functional gene research and molecular breeding of W. villosa.

Genome-wide identification and functional characterization of borneol dehydrogenases in Wurfbainia villosa.

MAIN CONCLUSION: Genome-wide screening of short-chain dehydrogenases/reductases (SDR) family reveals functional diversification of borneol dehydrogenase (BDH) in Wurfbainia villosa. Wurfbainia villosa is an important medicinal plant, the fruits of which accumulate abundant terpenoids, especially bornane-type including borneol and camphor. The borneol dehydrogenase (BDH) responsible for the conversion of borneol to camphor in W. villosa remains unknown. BDH is one member of short-chain dehydrogenases/reductases (SDR) family. Here, a total of 115 classical WvSDR genes were identified through genome-wide screening. These WvSDRs were unevenly distributed on different chromosomes. Seven candidate WvBDHs based on phylogenetic analysis and expression levels were selected for cloning. Of them, four BDHs can catalyze different configurations of borneol and other monoterpene alcohol substrates to generate the corresponding oxidized products. WvBDH1 and WvBDH2, preferred (+)-borneol to (-)-borneol, producing the predominant ( +)-camphor. WvBDH3 yielded approximate equivalent amount of (+)-camphor and (-)-camphor, in contrast, WvBDH4 generated exclusively (+)-camphor. The metabolic profiles of the seeds showed that the borneol and camphor present were in the dextrorotatory configuration. Enzyme kinetics and expression pattern in different tissues suggested WvBDH2 might be involved in the biosynthesis of camphor in W. villosa. All results will increase the understanding of functional diversity of BDHs.

TA-MSCs, TA-MSCs-EVs, MIF: their crosstalk in immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment.

As an important component of the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME), it has been established that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) promote the progression of tumor cells. MSCs can directly promote the proliferation, migration, and invasion of tumor cells via cytokines and chemokines, as well as promote tumor progression by regulating the functions of anti-tumor immune and immunosuppressive cells. MSCs-derived extracellular vesicles (MSCs-EVs) contain part of the plasma membrane and signaling factors from MSCs; therefore, they display similar effects on tumors in the immunosuppressive TME. The tumor-promoting role of macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) in the immunosuppressive TME has also been revealed. Interestingly, MIF exerts similar effects to those of MSCs in the immunosuppressive TME. In this review, we summarized the main effects and related mechanisms of tumor-associated MSCs (TA-MSCs), TA-MSCs-EVs, and MIF on tumors, and described their relationships. On this basis, we hypothesized that TA-MSCs-EVs, the MIF axis, and TA-MSCs form a positive feedback loop with tumor cells, influencing the occurrence and development of tumors. The functions of these three factors in the TME may undergo dynamic changes with tumor growth and continuously affect tumor development. This provides a new idea for the targeted treatment of tumors with EVs carrying MIF inhibitors.

Application of engineered extracellular vesicles for targeted tumor therapy.

All cells, including prokaryotes and eukaryotes, could release extracellular vesicles (EVs). EVs contain many cellular components, including RNA, and surface proteins, and are essential for maintaining normal intercellular communication and homeostasis of the internal environment. EVs released from different tissues and cells exhibit excellent properties and functions (e.g., targeting specificity, regulatory ability, physical durability, and immunogenicity), rendering them a potential new option for drug delivery and precision therapy. EVs have been demonstrated to transport antitumor drugs for tumor therapy; additionally, EVs' contents and surface substance can be altered to improve their therapeutic efficacy in the clinic by boosting targeting potential and drug delivery effectiveness. EVs can regulate immune system function by affecting the tumor microenvironment, thereby inhibiting tumor progression. Co-delivery systems for EVs can be utilized to further improve the drug delivery efficiency of EVs, including hydrogels and liposomes. In this review, we discuss the isolation technologies of EVs, as well as engineering approaches to their modification. Moreover, we evaluate the therapeutic potential of EVs in tumors, including engineered extracellular vesicles and EVs' co-delivery systems.

Estimating the effective pressure from nanosecond laser-induced breakdown in water.

Nanosecond laser-induced breakdown (LIB) in liquids (e.g., water) can produce dynamic high pressure and high temperature. However, since high pressure needs to negate the effect of high temperature to some degree, it is only partially effective. As a result, it is difficult to directly measure the effective pressure due to the transient and complex LIB process. Here, we presented a simple method based on Raman spectroscopy to indirectly determine the effective pressure caused by LIB in liquid pure H2O and low concentration H2O-H2O2 mixtures. By comparing the Raman shifts of the ice-VII mode for pure H2O and H2O-H2O2 mixtures under laser pumping and static high pressure, the LIB effective pressure can be first estimated. The empirical equation was then derived base on the correlation of the LIB effective pressure to ice-VII-point stimulated Raman scattering thresholds for pure and mixture water solutions, which can be used to estimate the LIB effective pressures for other different mixture water solutions with the uncertainty of 0.14-0.25 Gpa. Hopefully, our study here would advance the measurements of effective pressure in the LIB process.

Characteristics of endoscopic and pathological findings of amebic colitis.

BACKGROUND: The clinical features of amoebic colitis resemble those of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and therefore the risk of misdiagnosis is very high. The aim of this study was to analyse the characteristics of the endoscopic and pathological findings of amebic colitis and the lessons from our patients, which were useful for diagnosing the amebic colitis timely and avoiding the serious complication. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed data of all amebic colitis admitted to Beijing Friendship Hospital from January 2015 to January 2020. Cases were diagnosed by clinical presentation, laboratory examinations, and colonoscopy with biopsy and histological examination, no ELISA stool antigen or PCR tests were used. RESULTS: 16 patients were diagnosed with amebic colitis by the colonoscopy accompanied by biopsy and microscopic examination. At first time, 12 (75%) patients were misdiagnosed as IBD. Cecum was the most common site of amebic colitis (100%), and the caecum and rectum were also involved in many lesions (68.75%). Multiple lesions of erosion and/or ulcer were recognized in all patients (100%).The endoscopic findings included multiple irregular shaped ulcers and erosions with surrounding erythema, and the ulcers and erosions were covered by the white or yellow exudates. The intervening mucosae between the ulcers or erosions were normal. The features of rectums can be divided to 2 types: in 6 patients (54.5%), the irregular ulcer or erosions covered with white or yellow exudates were observed in rectum and cecum, and the bloody exudates in rectum were more severe than those in cecum; in other 5 patients (45.5%), rectal lesions were much less severe than those in cecum, the small superficial erosion or reddened mucosa were observed in the rectal ampulla. All patients were diagnosed as detection of amebic trophozoites from HE-stained biopsy specimens. The number of trophozoites ranged from 1/HPF to > 50/HPF. Among 16 cases, mild architectural alteration of colon crypt were observed in 10 cases (62.5%), and serious architectural alteration of colon crypt was found which had crypt branch in 1 case (16.7%). Cryptitis was observed in 12 cases (75%) and its severity was mild or moderate. No crypts abscess was observed in all cases. CONCLUSIONS: The colonoscopy with histological examination are very important to diagnose the amebic colitis. Detect the amoebic trophozoites in the exudates by histological examination is the vital. Sometimes a negative biopsy does not rule out amebiasis, repeated biopsies may be needed to make the diagnosis.

Optimized cross-correlation method for Brillouin frequency shift estimation in Brillouin scattering-based sensors.

The cross-correlation method has a low computational burden and is less sensitive to noise, but the method may have a long spectra measurement time, especially for Brillouin spectra with an asymmetric frequency sweep span. To improve the real-time performance of spectra measurement, the influence of the frequency sweep span, sweep span deviation, and frequency step on the error in the estimated Brillouin frequency shift (BFS) is systematically investigated. Based on the results, the optimal sweep span and its influencing factors are investigated. The results reveal that when the frequency sweep span is not wide enough and there is a sweep span deviation, the BFS error will not decrease with a decreasing frequency step. The error decreases rapidly with an increasing frequency sweep span, and then it tends to a stable value. The linewidth and sweep span deviation have an important effect on the optimal sweep span. An estimation formula for the optimal sweep span is presented, and an improved cross-correlation method is proposed based on it. The proposed method is compared with existing classic cross-correlation methods. The results reveal that the proposed method can ensure high BFS accuracy and decrease measurement time.

Differences between intentional and accidental ingestion of foreign body in China.

BACKGROUNDS: Previous reports of foreign-body ingestion focused primarily on accidental ingestion and very few studies focused on intentional ingestion of foreign body (FB) in China. Our study aimed to compare the prevalence of different age, gender, types, locations and management of FB ingested between intentional ingestion and accidental ingestion of FB in Northern China. METHODS: A retrospective case series studied all patients with suspected FB ingestion in Digestive Endoscopy Center of Beijing Friendship Hospital, between January 2011 and January 2019. The patients were divided into 2 groups. Group A included the patients who intentionally ingested FBs, and Group B included the patients who accidentally ingested FBs. Patients' database (demographics, past medical history, characteristics of FB, endoscopic findings and treatments) were reviewed. Statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS software. RESULTS: Group A consisted of 77 prisoners, 2 suspects and 11 psychologically disabled persons. Group B consisted of 1020 patients with no prisoners, suspects or psychologically disabled persons. In Group A, there were no food-related foreign bodies, and the majority of FBs were metallic objects (54.44%). However in Group B, food-related FBs were the most common (91.37%). In Group A, 58 cases (64.44%) were located in the stomach, while in Group B, 893 cases (87.55%) were located in the esophagus (P < 0.05). 1096 patients successfully underwent endoscopic removal and 14 failed, including 9 cases in Group A and 5 cases in Group B. The duration of FBs impaction was longer in Group A than that in Group B (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In our study, the patients who intentionally ingested FB were mainly prisoners, FBs were mostly sharp metallic objects, the duration of FBs impaction was longer, and the rate of successful endoscopic treatment was lower than that of the general population. Attention should be focused on these patients.

Study of correlations between metabolic risk factors, PWV and hypertension in college students.

Objective: Obesity, dyslipidemia and diabetes have been recognized as risk factors of hypertension in the general population. This study focused on college students and correlations between serum lipids, serum uric acid, fasting plasma glucose, serum creatinine, body mass index, brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity and hypertension. The results suggested that there was no relevance between serum lipids and hypertension. However, it came out that hypertension is associated with normal fasting plasma glucose, BMI (thinness and normal weight), normal serum creatinine. Methods: A total of 5185 students were enrolled, and their blood pressure, height and weight were measured. 285 of the students were selected to take physical examinations including serum uric acid, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, fasting plasma glucose, serum creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, ankle-brachial index and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity measured. Results: The values of systolic blood pressure(SBP), diastolic blood pressure(DBP), serum uric acid, fasting plasma glucose(FPG), serum creatinine, body mass index(BMI), and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity(baPWV) were higher in hypertension group than those in non-hypertension group (P < .001, <0.001, <0.001, = 0.009, = 0.07, <0.001, <0.001, respectively). Logistic regression showed correlations between hypertension and hyperuricemia (OR = 2.975, 95%CI: 1.672-5.291), obesity (OR = 2.814, 95%CI: 1.297-6.105), fasting plasma glucose (OR = 2.184, 95%CI: 1.090-4.378) and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (OR = 1.005, 95%CI: 1.003-1.007). The AUC was 0.786 (95%CI: 0.729-0.842, P < .0001). We can draw a conclusion that hyperuricemia, obesity, fasting plasma glucose and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity, listed in descending order of influence, are risk factors for hypertension in college students.

Complete excision of esophageal bronchogenic cyst by endoscopic submucosal tunnel dissection: a case presentation.

BACKGROUND: Intramural esophageal bronchogenic cyst is very rare. Surgical removal of the cysts is advised even the patients are asymptomatic, since the cyst can lead to complications, and there is a risk of malignant transformation. Thoracotomy or thoracoscopy is the most commonly used approach for complete excision of the cysts. To our knowledge, this is the first report to excise intramural esophageal bronchogenic cyst completely by endoscopic submucosal tunnel dissection (ESTD). CASE PRESENTATION: A 40-year-old male was referred to our hospital due to the detection of a submucosal tumor at the distal esophagus. The tumor was found during gastroendoscopy in a general health check-up. The patient had no symptoms. A benign esophageal tumor was confirmed by endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) and computed tomography (CT). On the basis of these results, ESTD was performed. During the procedure, a cystic mass was observed between the mucosa and the muscular layers of the esophagus, and a hybrid knife was used for dissection. Histopathological examination showed the cyst wall was lined by pseudostratified ciliated columnar epithelium, consistent with a bronchogenic cyst. The esophagography using meglumine diatrizoate showed no leakage on the seventh day after ESTD. The patient remained asymptomatic and had a regular diet during the follow-up period. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: We successfully utilized ESTD for complete removal of esophageal bronchogenic cysts originating from the muscularis propria. The approach appeared safe, providing a minimally invasive treatment option for patients.

EBV-associated lymphoproliferative disorder involving the gastrointestinal tract which mimic IBD in immunocompetent patients: case reports and literature review.

INTRODUCTION: Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated lymphoproliferative diseases (LPD) with digestive tract involvement in immunocompetent patients is rather rare. Since the symptoms of EBV-associated LPD involving the gastrointestinal tract in immunocompetent patients are similar to those of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), most patients are initially misdiagnosed. CASE PRESENTATION: In this paper, we present two cases of EBV-associated T cell LPD involving the colon in immunocompetent patients and review the relevant literature. CONCLUSION: EBV serological testing may help in detecting this disease, and our findings suggest that histopathological evidence of EBV, such as the Epstein-Barr encoding region, is very important to establish the diagnosis.

The role of YAP/TAZ activity in cancer metabolic reprogramming.

In contrast to normal cells, which use the aerobic oxidation of glucose as their main energy production method, cancer cells prefer to use anaerobic glycolysis to maintain their growth and survival, even under normoxic conditions. Such tumor cell metabolic reprogramming is regulated by factors such as hypoxia and the tumor microenvironment. In addition, dysregulation of certain signaling pathways also contributes to cancer metabolic reprogramming. Among them, the Hippo signaling pathway is a highly conserved tumor suppressor pathway. The core oncosuppressive kinase cascade of Hippo pathway inhibits the nuclear transcriptional co-activators YAP and TAZ, which are the downstream effectors of Hippo pathway and oncogenic factors in many solid cancers. YAP/TAZ function as key nodes of multiple signaling pathways and play multiple regulatory roles in cancer cells. However, their roles in cancer metabolic reprograming are less clear. In the present review, we examine progress in research into the regulatory mechanisms of YAP/TAZ on glucose metabolism, fatty acid metabolism, mevalonate metabolism, and glutamine metabolism in cancer cells. Determining the roles of YAP/TAZ in tumor energy metabolism, particularly in relation to the tumor microenvironment, will provide new strategies and targets for the selective therapy of metabolism-related cancers.

Construction of 9H-Pyrrolo[1,2-a]indoles by a Copper-Catalyzed Friedel-Crafts Alkylation/Annulation Cascade Reaction.

An efficient and concise Cu(OTf)2-catalyzed Friedel-Crafts alkylation/annulation cascade reaction of substituted indoles with 1,2-dicarbonyl-3-enes has been established. This reaction uses readily available starting materials and is operationally simple, thus representing a practical method for the construction of diverse 9H-pyrrolo[1,2-a]indoles bearing a carbonyl group.

Filtering Based Adaptive Visual Odometry Sensor Framework Robust to Blurred Images.

Visual odometry (VO) estimation from blurred image is a challenging problem in practical robot applications, and the blurred images will severely reduce the estimation accuracy of the VO. In this paper, we address the problem of visual odometry estimation from blurred images, and present an adaptive visual odometry estimation framework robust to blurred images. Our approach employs an objective measure of images, named small image gradient distribution (SIGD), to evaluate the blurring degree of the image, then an adaptive blurred image classification algorithm is proposed to recognize the blurred images, finally we propose an anti-blurred key-frame selection algorithm to enable the VO robust to blurred images. We also carried out varied comparable experiments to evaluate the performance of the VO algorithms with our anti-blur framework under varied blurred images, and the experimental results show that our approach can achieve superior performance comparing to the state-of-the-art methods under the condition with blurred images while not increasing too much computation cost to the original VO algorithms.

CuBr-promoted formal hydroacylation of 1-alkynes with glyoxal derivatives: an unexpected synthesis of 1,2-dicarbonyl-3-enes.

An efficient and concise protocol has been developed for the highly regio- and stereoselective synthesis of E-1,2-dicarbonyl-3-ene derivatives by a copper-promoted reaction of 1-alkynes with α-carbonyl aldehydes in the presence of morpholine. The products obtained are believed as the formal hydroacylation of the triple bond.

Palladium-catalyzed regio- and stereoselective arylesterification of ferrocenylallene: a synthetic route to ferrocene-containing disubstituted E-allylic esters.

An efficient and concise protocol for the highly regio- and stereoselective synthesis of ferrocene-containing disubstituted E-allylic ester derivatives via a palladium-catalyzed intermolecular arylesterification reaction of ferrocenylallene with aryl iodides and carboxylic acids has been developed. The regio- and stereoselectivities of this reaction may be controlled by the steric effect of the bulky ferrocene group.

Regio- and stereoselective synthesis of ferrocene-containing ß-iodoallylic esters and ethers from the iodofunctionalization of ferrocenylallene with carboxylic acids, phenols, and alcohols.

The iodofunctionalization of ferrocenylallene with carboxylic acids, phenols, and alcohols is described. The reaction proceeds smoothly in the presence of molecule iodine as a halonium promoter and using various carboxylic acids, phenols, and alcohols as nucleophiles to give the corresponding ferrocene-containing ß-iodoallylic ester and ether products in moderate to high yields and with high regio- and stereoselectivities. It can be envisaged that the regio- and stereoselectivity of this reaction may be controlled by the steric effect of the bulky ferrocene group. The presence of the C-I bond in the corresponding products makes these molecules highly attractive from a synthetic point of view, as it provides an opportunity for further transformations. Thus, palladium-catalyzed Heck coupling, Suzuki coupling, Sonogashira coupling, and copper-catalyzed click reactions were carried out successfully.