A Comprehensive Review of Muscle-Tendon Junction: Structure, Function, Injury and Repair.

The muscle-tendon junction (MTJ) is a highly specific tissue interface where the muscle's fascia intersects with the extracellular matrix of the tendon. The MTJ functions as the particular structure facilitating the transmission of force from contractive muscle fibers to the skeletal system, enabling movement. Considering that the MTJ is continuously exposed to constant mechanical forces during physical activity, it is susceptible to injuries. Ruptures at the MTJ often accompany damage to both tendon and muscle tissues. In this review, we attempt to provide a precise definition of the MTJ, describe its subtle structure in detail, and introduce therapeutic approaches related to MTJ tissue engineering. We hope that our detailed illustration of the MTJ and summary of the representative research achievements will help researchers gain a deeper understanding of the MTJ and inspire fresh insights and breakthroughs for future research.

The Correlation Between Quality of Life and Positive Psychological Resources in Cancer Patients: A Meta-Analysis.

Purpose: This study aimed to assess the evidence of the association between positive psychological resources and quality of life in patients with cancer. Methods: Electronic searching was performed to retrieve articles from PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, CNKI, and CBM (from inception to 7 April 2022). Summary correlation coefficient (r) values were extracted from each study, and 95% CIs were calculated by the random-effect model. Subgroup and sensitivity analyses were performed to investigate potential heterogeneity. Results: In total, sixty-six articles were included in the present study. The pooled r for resilience was 0.71 (95%CI: 0.55, 0.87), hope 0.50 (95%CI: 0.43, 0.56), self-efficacy 0.53 (95%CI: 0.46, 0.61), self-esteem 0.46 (95%CI: 0.28, 0.63), and optimism 0.30 (95%CI: 0.19, 0.40). For subgroup analysis, no significant differences were found between minors and adults. Conclusion: This study indicated that resilience, hope, optimism, self-esteem, and self-efficacy were positively correlated with quality of life in patients with cancers. Therefore, intervention programs should be focused on increasing state-like positive psychological resources to improve the quality of life in patients with cancer.

Synthesis of magnetic hydrochar from Fenton sludge and sewage sludge for enhanced anaerobic decolorization of azo dye AO7.

A novel magnetic hydrochar synthesized from Fenton sludge (FS) and sewage sludge (SS) was employed in the anaerobic decolorization of acid orange 7 (AO7). The stable presence of Fe3O4 in magnetic hydrochar was confirmed by physicochemical characterization. The degradation efficiency of AO7 in the anaerobic system with the addition of hydrochar prepared in an optimal proportion (SS:FS=1:3, named as HC-1:3) could reach 98.55%, which was 1.91 times higher than the control system. Particularly, superior electrical conductivity, electron transport system activity and azo reductase activity of the sludge in anaerobic system with HC-1:3 were achieved. The redox of Fe(Ⅲ)/Fe(Ⅱ) in anaerobic system was realized by dissimilatory iron-reducing bacteria enriched with HC-1:3. According to the six-cycle batch experiments and 120-day continuous-flow UASB experiments, the addition of HC-1:3 into the anaerobic system facilitated the diversity of microbiological community and increased the ecological stability of anaerobic system. The possible electron transfer mechanism involving in the magnetic hydrochar-based anaerobic system for AO7 removal was speculated preliminarily. The as-prepared magnetic hydrochar not only showed a promising future in anaerobic system for recalcitrant contaminants degradation, but also provided a new approach for the resource utilization of FS and SS.

Recycle of Fenton sludge through one-step synthesis of aminated magnetic hydrochar for Pb2+ removal from wastewater.

In order to achieve proper disposal of Fenton sludge, a new recycle method for preparing adsorbents based on one-step hydrothermal carbonization synthesis of aminated hydrochar from Fenton sludge (AHFS) was developed. It was found that AHFS prepared at 340 °C for 60 min showed Pb2+ adsorption capacity as high as 359.83 mg g-1. Adsorption kinetics and thermodynamics results indicated that chemical interaction, intra-particle diffusion and monolayer homogeneous surface of AHFS dominated in adsorption process. The contribution proportion of different mechanisms, including cation-exchange (43.15%), acidic groups complexation (28.17%) and amino groups complexation (24.06%) to overall Pb2+ adsorption, demonstrated that complexation of surface functional groups played the dominated role in the adsorption process. Especially, the addition of amino was conducive to the increased adsorption capacity of hydrochar. In addition, according to the regeneration test, the magnetic AHFS exhibited a satisfactory reproducibility and recyclability. These findings illustrated that the synthesis of aminated magnetic hydrochar not only provided an innovative and efficient heavy metal adsorbent to remove Pb2+ from wastewater, but also explored a new method for the resource utilization of Fenton sludge.

Optimization ofS/Fe ratio for enhanced nitrobenzene biological removal in anaerobicSystem amended withSulfide-modified nanoscale zerovalent iron.

Anaerobic reduction of nitrobenzene (NB) can be efficiently enhanced bySupplementing withSulfide-modified nanoscale zerovalent iron (S-nZVI). In thisStudy,S/Fe ratio ofS-nZVI was further optimized for enhancing biological NB removal in anaerobicSystem amended withS-nZVI and inoculated by anaerobicSludge. The results indicated that the performance andStability of the coupled anaerobicSystem for NB reduction and aniline formation were remarkably improved byS-nZVI atS/Fe molar ratio of 0.3 (0.3S-nZVI). TheSecretion of extracellular polymericSubstances (EPS), transformation of volatile fatty acids (VFAs), yield of methane and activity ofSeveral key enzymes could be efficiently improved by 0.3S-nZVI. Furthermore,Species related to NB reduction, fermentation, electroactivity and methanogenesis could be enriched in 0.3S-nZVI coupled anaerobicSystem, with remarkable improvement in the biodiversity observed. ThisStudy demonstrated thatSulfidation would be a promising method to improve the performance of nZVI in coupled anaerobicSystems for the removal of recalcitrant nitroaromatic compounds from wastewater.

Enhanced nitrobenzene reduction by modified biochar supported sulfidated nano zerovalent iron: Comparison of surface modification methods.

In our previous study, biochar (BC) supported sulfidated nano zerovalent iron (S-nZVI@BC) was prepared for nitrobenzene (NB) reduction. In this study, in order to further improve the reduction performance of S-nZVI@BC, BC was modified before the loading of S-nZVI through three methods: oxidant (H2O2) pretreatment, alkali (NaOH) pretreatment and acid (HCl) pretreatment. The results indicated that S-nZVI could be evenly distributed onto HCl-BC due to increased surface area, negative surface charge and increased acidic functional groups on HCl-BC. At an initial concentration of 200 mg L-1, NB could be completely removed by S-nZVI@HCl-BC within a reaction time as short as 60 min, indicating rather excellent performance of S-nZVI@HCl-BC. NB reduction performance followed the order: S-nZVI@HCl-BC > S-nZVI@NaOH-BC > S-nZVI@BC > S-nZVI@H2O2-BC. The mass ratio of S-nZVI and HCl-BC was optimized in terms of NB removal efficiency, with 3:1 being identified as the best mass ratio. Furthermore, the mechanism involved in the enhanced NB reduction by S-nZVI@HCl-BC was proposed. This study demonstrated that S-nZVI@HCl-BC is a promising alternative for efficient NB removal from wastewater.

Dewatering of sewage sludge via thermal hydrolysis with ammonia-treated Fenton iron sludge as skeleton material.

In this study, the alkaline hydrothermal ferric carbon (AHFC), which was prepared by hydrothermal liquefaction method using Fenton iron sludge with NH3·H2O, was used as a skeleton materials for the dewatering of sewage sludge (SS) via thermal hydrolysis. NH2 functional group presented in the AHFC and nano-sized γ-Fe2O3 was anchored on the surface of AHFC. The NH2 functional group notably promoted thermal hydrolysis of SS from the increasing of TOC and TN value. γ-Fe2O3 showed adsorption effect to the water, resulting in decline of the dewatering rate of SS in present condition. When 100% of AHFC was added, dewatering rate of SS was decreased by 19.93% (at 160 °C), 4.50% (at 180 °C) and 8.34% (at 200 °C) respectively. 3D-EEM results showed that the degree of hydrolysis was deepened when AHFC was added for the intensity of soluble microbial products decline. AHFC promoted the decomposition of protein to form heterocycle compounds in the resulting cake according to in situ FTIR results. The nano γ-Fe2O3 catalysis to cake also can be observed for the activation energy was lower than blank in the range of 40˜60%. The study demonstrated concept and the effectiveness the reuse/recycle of the Fenton iron sludge for dewatering of SS.

Deep Sequencing Identification of Differentially Expressed miRNAs in the Spinal Cord of Resiniferatoxin-Treated Rats in Response to Electroacupuncture.

Electroacupuncture (EA) is an effective treatment to relieve pain in patients with postherpetic neuralgia. However, the mechanisms of EA involved therein are still unknown. We first injected resiniferatoxin (RTX) into Sprague Dawley rats to construct the neuralgia model. One week after injection, the rats were treated with EA at the "Huantiao" (GB30) and "Yanglingquan" (GB34) acupoints for 5 weeks. Nociceptive behavioral tests were performed to analyze the changes in thermal sensitivity and mechanical allodynia after RTX induction and EA treatment. Deep sequencing was performed to identify differentially expressed miRNAs in the spinal cord of RTX-induced rats in response to EA treatment. The nociceptive behavioral tests showed that EA at the left GB30 and GB34 acupoints significantly reduced RTX-induced tactile sensitivity and increased RTX-inhibited thermal sensitivity. The sequencing data indicated that RTX resulted in one upregulated and five downregulated miRNAs, and EA treatment resulted in two upregulated miRNAs. Furthermore, seven upregulated and two downregulated miRNAs were found between rats subjected to EA and sham operation. Functional analysis suggested that the targets of differentially expressed miRNAs were enriched in many nervous system-related pathways. The pathway-gene-miRNA net analysis showed that miR-7a-5p had the most target genes. Moreover, miR-233-3p was downregulated after RTX injection and upregulated by EA treatment. We speculated that the upregulation of miR-7a-5p and miR-233-3p is involved in the analgesic effects of EA. Our analysis on the EA-induced differential expression of miRNAs provides novel insights into the mechanisms of EA analgesia in postherpetic neuralgia.

Biochar supported sulfide-modified nanoscale zero-valent iron for the reduction of nitrobenzene.

Sulfide-modified nanoscale zerovalent iron (S-nZVI) was effectively utilized for the reduction of various contaminants, despite its applicability being limited due to agglomeration, oxidation and electron loss. In this study, biochar (BC)-supported S-nZVI was prepared to enhance the reactivity of S-nZVI for nitrobenzene (NB) reduction. Scanning electron microscopy images showed that the S-nZVI particles were well-dispersed on the BC surface as well as in the channels. NB removal and aniline formation could be significantly enhanced by using S-nZVI@BC, as compared to S-nZVI and blank BC. NB removal by S-nZVI@BC followed the pseudo second-order kinetics model and Langmuir isotherm model, suggesting hybrid chemical reaction-sorption was involved. Furthermore, a possible reaction mechanism for enhanced NB removal by S-nZVI@BC was proposed, including chemical adsorption of NB onto S-nZVI@BC, direct reduction by S-nZVI and enhanced electron transfer. The high reducibility of S-nZVI@BC as well as its excellent antioxidation ability and reusability demonstrated its promising prospects in remediation applications.