A simple method to prepare anion exchange membrane by PVA/EVOH/MIDA for acid recovery by diffusion dialysis.

Given the substantial environmental pollution from industrial expansion, environmental protection has become particularly important. Nowadays, anion exchange membranes (AEMs) are widely used in wastewater treatment. With the use of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), ethylene-vinyl alcohol (EVOH) copolymer, and methyl iminodiacetic acid (MIDA), a series of cross-linked AEMs were successfully prepared using the solvent casting technique, and the network structure was formed in the membranes due to the cross-linking reaction between PVA/EVOH and MIDA. Fourier transform infrared spectrometer, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy were used to analyze the prepared membranes. At the same time, its comprehensive properties which include water uptake, linear expansion rate, ion exchange capacity, thermal stability, chemical stability, and mechanical stability were thoroughly researched. In addition, diffusion dialysis performance in practical applications was also studied in detail. The acid dialysis coefficient (UH+) ranged from 10.2 to 35.6 × 10-3 m/h. Separation factor (S) value ranged from 25 to 38, which were all larger than that of the commercial membrane DF-120 (UH+: 8.5 × 10-3 m/h, S: 18.5). The prepared membranes had potential application value in acid recovery.

Anion Exchange Membrane Based on BPPO/PECH with Net Structure for Acid Recovery via Diffusion Dialysis.

In order to improve the performance of the anion exchange membrane (AEM) used in acid recovery from industrial wastewater, this study adopted a new strategy in which brominated poly (2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenyleneoxide) (BPPO) and polyepichlorohydrin (PECH) were used as the polymer backbone of the prepared membrane. The new anion exchange membrane with a net structure was formed by quaternizing BPPO/PECH with N,N,N,N-tetramethyl-1,6-hexanediamine (TMHD). The application performance and physicochemical property of the membrane were adjusted by changing the content of PECH. The experimental study found that the prepared anion exchange membrane had good mechanical performance, thermostability, acid resistance and an appropriate water absorption and expansion ratio. The acid dialysis coefficient (UH+) of anion exchange membranes with different contents of PECH and BPPO was 0.0173-0.0262 m/h at 25 °C. The separation factors (S) of the anion exchange membranes were 24.6 to 27.0 at 25 °C. Compared with the commercial BPPO membrane (DF-120B), the prepared membrane had higher values of UH+ and S in this paper. In conclusion, this work indicated that the prepared BPPO/PECH anion exchange membrane had the potential for acid recovery using the DD method.

Intraarterial Thrombolytic Treatment for Visual Deficits Caused by Hyaluronic Acid Filler: Efficacy, Safety, and Prognostic Factors.

BACKGROUND: The benefits of intraarterial thrombolytic treatment (IATT) in reversing hyaluronic acid (HA)-related visual deficits remain unclear. This study aimed to report a 5-year experience in the treatment of visual deficits resulting from HA embolization by IATT in a tertiary medical center. METHODS: From December of 2015 to June of 2021, the medical records of consecutive patients with HA-related visual deficits who underwent IATT were reviewed retrospectively. The demographics, clinical features, imaging data, treatment details, and follow-up results of the patients were analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 72 consecutive patients were analyzed, including five men (6.9%) men and 67 women (3.1%), aged 29.3 ± 7.6 years (range, 17 to 50 years). Thirty-two patients (44.4%) showed preserved visual acuity, and 40 (55.6%) exhibited no light perception on admission. Ocular motility disorders were detected in 63 patients (87.5%), ptosis was detected in 61 patients (84.7%), and facial skin changes were detected in 54 patients (75%). The technical success rate of IATT was 100%, with successful recanalization of the occlusive artery. No procedure-related complications were detected, and all skin injuries, ptosis, and ocular motility disorders were healed. Improved visual acuity was detected in 26 cases (36.1%). In the binary logistic regression model, only preoperative preserved visual acuity was independently associated with a good outcome. CONCLUSIONS: IATT for selective patients with HA-related visual deficits is efficient and safe. Preoperative preserved visual acuity was independently associated with a good outcome after IATT. CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic, IV.

Design and optimization of sheller for ginkgo nut: A study about multifunctional ginkgo nut sheller.

At present, ginkgo nut shellers have many problems, such as low shelling rate and high damage rate. To address these problems, a multifunctional ginkgo nut sheller was designed. The equipment had functions for shell breaking, shelling, and separation of shell from the kernel. The influencing factors of the shelling process were analyzed. A three-factor two-level response surface test was conducted, and mathematical models for the response surface were established. The influence of each factor on the operation quality was analyzed, and a combination of parameters was optimized. The experimental results showed that the factors in the order of importance of their influence on shelling rate was as follows: feeding rate, chainplate speed, and shelling gap. The factors in the order of importance of their influence on damage rate was as follows: shelling gap, chainplate speed, and feeding rate. The results of the interaction analysis conducted showed that the interaction between the chainplate speed and shelling gap had the highest significant effect on the shelling rate, followed by the interaction between the feeding rate and chainplate speed. The interaction between the chainplate speed and shelling gap had a significant effect on damage rate. The interaction between the other factors had no significant effect on shelling and damage rates. The optimal combination of parameters was as follows: the feeding rate was 30.2 g/s, the chainplate speed was 0.48 m/s, and the shelling gap was 12.3 mm. The optimal combination was employed, and the validation test resulted in a shelling rate of 98.02% and damage rate of 4.45%. The relative error between the measured and theoretical values was less than 5%, indicating that the models were reliable. This study can provide a reference for subsequent research on shelling equipment of ginkgo nut.

Chemoprotective Effect of Decalactone on Hepatic Cancer via Diminishing the Inflammatory Response and Oxidative Stress.

Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) is the 5th most common type of cancer in all types of cancers, globally. It is well known that the frequency of inflammatory reaction and oxidative stress increases during the HCC. The goal of this study was to see if decalactone could prevent rats against HCC caused by diethylnitrosamine (DEN). Single intraperitoneal administration of DEN (200 mg/kg) used as inducer and weekly intraperitoneal injection of phenobarbital (8 mg/kg) was used as promotor for induction the HCC in rats. Serum alpha fetoprotein (AFP) was used for the confirmation of HCC. Different doses of decalactone (5, 10 and 15 mg/kg) were orally administered to the rats. The body weight was determined at regular time. The hepatic, non-hepatic, antioxidant markers and inflammatory mediators were scrutinized. All groups of animals were scarified and macroscopically examination of the liver tissue was performed and the weight of organ (hepatic tissue) were estimated. Decalactone increased body weight while also suppressing hepatic nodules and tissue weight. Decalactone treatment reduced AFP, total bilirubin, and direct bilirubin levels while increasing albumin and total protein levels in a dose-dependent manner. Decalactone reduced lipid peroxidation (LPO) and increased catalase (CAT), glutathione (GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels significantly (p < 0.001) (SOD). Decalactone lowered the levels of significantly (p < 0.001) inflammatory cytokines and inflammatory markers in the liver. Based on the findings, we may conclude that decalactone inhibited HCC in DEN-induced HCC animals via reducing oxidative stress and inflammatory mediators.

Study on the drop impact characteristics and impact damage mechanism of sweet potato tubers during harvest.

Collision of falling in the mechanical harvesting process of sweet potato is one of the main causes of epidermal destruction and damage to sweet potato tubers. Therefore, a sweet potato mechanical characteristic test and a full-factor sweet potato drop test were designed. Based on the analysis of the fitting mathematical model, the impact of the drop height, collision material and sweet potato chunk size on the damage of the sweet potato were studied. The mathematical models were established by fitting analysis of the IBM SPSS Statistics 22 software between the drop height and the sweet potato chunk size with each test index (impact force, impact stress, broken skin area and damaged area). The critical epidermal destruction height and the critical damage height of a certain size of sweet potato when it collides with a collision material can be calculated by the mathematical model, and the critical epidermal destruction mass and critical damage mass of sweet potato when it falls from a certain height and collides with a collision material can also be calculated. Then a series of critical values (including critical epidermal destruction force value, critical epidermal destruction impact stress, critical damage force value, critical damage impact stress) of mechanical properties of sweet potato were obtained. The results show that the impact deformation of sweet potato includes both elastic and plastic ones, and has similar stress relaxation characteristics. The critical damage impact stress of sweet potato is that the average value of the impact stress on the contact surface is less than it's Firmness. The results provided a theoretical basis for understanding the collision damage mechanism of sweet potato and how to reduce the damage during harvest.

An Efficacy and Safety Study of Intra-arterial Recanalization of Occluded Ophthalmic Arteries in Patients with Monocular Blindness Caused by Injection of Hyaluronic Acid in Facial Tissues.

PROPOSE: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of recanalizing hyaluronic acid-occluded retinal central artery by intra-arterially infusing hyaluronidase. METHODS: Between December 2015 and December 2016, 30 patients with monocular blindness due to the injection of hyaluronic acid in facial tissue underwent ophthalmic artery recanalization. The outcome of the intra-arterial treatment was retrospectively reviewed. The fundus was examined 24 hours after the treatment to observe revisualization of the retinal arteries. The success rate of intra-arterial recanalization of the ophthalmic artery, procedure-related complications, visual acuity recovery, eyeball and eyelid movement restoration was followed up for up to 3 months. RESULTS: The success rate of ophthalmic arterial catheterization was 100%. No interventional procedure-related adverse events were found. Twenty-six patients presented ptosis and 23 patients presented ocular motility disorders. The ptosis disappeared and 18 patients had normal eye movement after the intra-arterial therapy. Five of the 30 patients had visual improvement and four patients with complete vision loss gained some light perception. After the intra-arterial thrombolysis, digital subtraction angiographic imaging revealed enlarged and numerous branches of the ophthalmic artery and a clearer ring around the eye. CONCLUSION: Intra-arterial infusion of hyaluronidase and mechanical recanalization is an effective and safe approach for recovering the visual acuity in the patients with monocular blindness caused by the migration of hyaluronic acid injected in the facial tissues. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE IV: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .

The emergence of a novel recombinant porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus with an amino acid insertion in GP5 protein.

As an economic devastating virus, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) has spread globally, and seriously hinders the healthy development of the swine industry worldwide. In recent years, however, recombinant PRRSV strains are continuously emerging, resulting in the death of a large number of pigs in China. In this study, we reported a NADC30-like PRRSV strain GD1909, a recombinant virus, which may originate from NADC30-like and HUN4-like strains. The GP5 protein of GD1909 strain has an asparagine insertion at position 60 and has more complex glycosylation pattern. This should be helpful for a better understanding of PRRSV molecular epidemiology and the prevention of PRRSV infection in the future.

Insight into the Regulatory Relationships between the Insulin-Like Androgenic Gland Hormone Gene and the Insulin-Like Androgenic Gland Hormone-binding Protein Gene in Giant Freshwater Prawns (Macrobrachium rosenbergii).

Giant freshwater prawns (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) are commonly found throughout the world. The size of the male giant freshwater prawn is much larger than that of the female. Therefore, understanding the molecular mechanism that underlies the sexual differentiation of M. rosenbergii is of both commercial and scientific importance. Insulin-like androgenic gland hormone (IAG) plays a key role in the differentiation of sex in M. rosenbergii. Although IAG has been investigated, the regulatory relationship between IAG and its binding protein partner, the insulin-like androgenic gland hormone-binding protein (IAGBP), has not been studied in M. rosenbergii. Here, we cloned and characterized the IAGBP from M. rosenbergii (Mr-IAGBP) for the very first time. Transcriptomic analysis showed that Mr-IAGBP mRNA was detected in a wide array of tissues with the highest expression found in the androgenic gland. The importance of IAG in male development was further demonstrated by an increase in IAG transcripts during the development of the androgenic gland and Mr-IAG was only highly transcribed in the androgenic gland of M. rosenbergii. Interestingly, we found that the Mr-IAG gene expression started during the 20th-day larva after hatching stage (LH20), followed (20th-day post-larval stage, PL20) by a gradual elevation of Mr-IAGBP levels. The levels of both genes peaked at the adult stage. The relationship between Mr-IAGBP and Mr-IAG was further analyzed using RNA interference. The injection of Mr-IAGBP double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) significantly reduced the transcription of Mr-IAG, while the amount of Mr-IAGBP mRNA and the translation of IAGBP protein was significantly reduced by the injection of Mr-IAG dsRNA. These results revealed that IAGBP is involved in IAG signaling. Furthermore, our data supports the hypothesis that (IAG and IAGBP)-IAG receptor signaling schemes exist in M. rosenbergii. Our results will provide important information for the further study of determining the sex of M. rosenbergii.

MARVELD1 attenuates arsenic trioxide-induced apoptosis in liver cancer cells by inhibiting reactive oxygen species production.

BACKGROUND: Arsenic trioxide (As2O3) is widely used for the treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), and more recently, has also been applied to solid tumors. However, there are a fraction of patients with solid tumors, such as liver cancer, who respond to As2O3 treatment poorly. The underlying mechanisms for this remain unclear. METHODS: We determined the suitable concentration of drugs by IC50. Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) and flow cytometry were used to analyze the apoptosis. Morphological changes of the cells were observed by laser scanning confocal microscopy. Furthermore, reactive oxygen species (ROS) and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) were detected by flow cytometry. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and Western blot tests were conducted to detect the mRNA and protein levels in different groups. Finally, a xenograft tumor assay and histopathological analysis were performed to evaluate the MARVELD1 function in cell proliferation and apoptosis. RESULTS: Here, we show that MARVELD1 enhances the therapeutic effects of epirubicin, while inducing the strong resistance of liver cancer cells to As2O3 treatment. We further demonstrate that the As2O3-induced apoptosis was inhibited by MARVELD1 overexpression (24 h Vector vs. MARVELD1 =30.58% vs. 17.41%, P<0.01; 48 h Vector vs. MARVELD1 =46.50% vs. 21.02%, P<0.01), possibly through inhibiting ROS production by enhancing TRXR1 expression. In vivo, we found a significantly increased size (Vector vs. MARVELD1 =203.90±21.92 vs. 675.70±37.84 mm3, P<0.001) and weight (Vector vs. MARVELD1 =0.19±0.02 vs. 0.58±0.05 g, P<0.001) of tumors with high expression of MARVELD1 after As2O3 treatment. Consistently, a higher expression of MARVELD1 predicted a poor prognosis for liver cancer patients. CONCLUSIONS: Our data identified a unique role of MARVELD1 in As2O3-induced apoptosis and As2O3 cancer therapy resistance.

Percutaneous implantation of (125)iodine seeds for treatment of portal vein tumor thrombosis in hepatocellular carcinoma.

The aim of the study is to evaluate the practicability and therapeutic efficacy of (125)iodine seeds implantation percutaneously for portal vein tumor thrombosis (PVTT) in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Nineteen patients with HCC accompanied with PVTT received ultrasound-guided implantation of 8-30 (125)iodine seeds, 8 mm apart within the portal vein tumor thrombi. The patients were followed up postoperatively for a period of 3-22 months. The successful rates of the procedure, postoperative changes of liver and renal function, hemogram, complications and therapeutic response were monitored. (125)I seeds were successfully implanted in the portal veins in all patients without serious complications. During the follow-up period, the portal vein tumor thrombi all shrunk obviously. Percutaneous implantation of (125)iodine seeds into the portal vein is an effective and safe treatment for PVTT accompanying HCC.

Interaction of key pathways in sorafenib-treated hepatocellular carcinoma based on a PCR-array.

This study aimed to identify the key pathways and to explore the mechanism of sorafenib in inhibiting hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The gene expression profile of GSE33621, including 6 sorafenib treated group and 6 control samples, was downloaded from the GEO (Gene Expression Omnibus) database. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in HCC samples were screened using the ΔΔCt method with the homogenized internal GAPDH. Also, the functions and pathways of DEGs were analyzed using the DAVID. Moreover, the significant pathways of DEGs that involved in HCC were analyzed based on the Latent pathway identification analysis (LPIA). A total of 44 down-regulated DEGs were selected in HCC samples. Also, there were 84 biological pathways that these 44 DEGs involved in. Also, LPIA showed that Osteoclast differentiation and hsa04664-Fc epsilon RI signaling pathway was the most significant interaction pathways. Moreover, Apoptosis, Toll-like receptor signaling pathway, Chagas disease, and T cell receptor signaling pathway were the significant pathways that interacted with hsa04664. In addition, DEGs such as AKT1 (v-akt murine thymoma viral oncogene homolog 1), TNF (tumor necrosis factor), SYK (spleen tyrosine kinase), and PIK3R1 (phosphoinositide-3-kinase, regulatory subunit 1 (alpha)) were the common genes that involved in the significant pathways. Several pathway interaction pairs that caused by several downregulated genes such as SYK, PI3K, AKT1, and TNF, were identified play curial role in sorafenib treated HCC. Sorafenib played important inhibition roles in HCC by affecting a complicate pathway interaction network.