Moderate Salinity Stress Increases the Seedling Biomass in Oilseed Rape (Brassica napus L.).

Oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.), an important oil crop of the world, suffers various abiotic stresses including salinity stress during the growth stage. While most of the previous studies paid attention to the adverse effects of high salinity stress on plant growth and development, as well as their underlying physiological and molecular mechanisms, less attention was paid to the effects of moderate or low salinity stress. In this study, we first tested the effects of different concentrations of NaCl solution on the seedling growth performance of two oilseed rape varieties (CH336, a semi-winter type, and Bruttor, a spring type) in pot cultures. We found that moderate salt concentrations (25 and 50 mmol L-1 NaCl) can stimulate seedling growth by a significant increase (10~20%, compared to controls) in both above- and underground biomasses, as estimated at the early flowering stage. We then performed RNA-seq analyses of shoot apical meristems (SAMs) from six-leaf-aged seedlings under control (CK), low (LS, 25 mmol L-1), and high (HS, 180 mmol L-1) salinity treatments in the two varieties. The GO and KEGG enrichment analyses of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) demonstrated that such a stimulating effect on seedling growth by low salinity stress may be caused by a more efficient capacity for photosynthesis as compensation, accompanied by a reduced energy loss for the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites and redirecting of energy to biomass formation. Our study provides a new perspective on the cultivation of oilseed rape in saline regions and new insights into the molecular mechanisms of salt tolerance in Brassica crops. The candidate genes identified in this study can serve as targets for molecular breeding selection and genetic engineering toward enhancing salt tolerance in B. napus.

Refining stereotactic body radiation therapy as a bridge to transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma: An institutional experience.

BACKGROUND: Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) has been established as a safe and effective treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Currently, there are no consensus guidelines to advise optimal patient selection and radiotherapy planning parameters to minimise the risk of surgical and medical complications after liver transplant (LT) in patients who have had prior SBRT for HCC, whilst optimising treatment benefit. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of all adult patients who received liver SBRT as a bridge to LT at a tertiary institution between 2017 and 2019. RESULTS: Nine patients received SBRT as bridging therapy to LT. HCC location varied from peripheral to central/hilar regions and HCC diameter was 13-54 mm. Median time between SBRT and LT was 141 days (range 27-461 days). Median operating time was 360 min (range 270-480 min). Four patients (44%) had visible SBRT reaction or fibrosis at the time of LT. SBRT reaction resulted in clinical impact in one patient (11%) only, where vascular clamping of the IVC was required for 10 min. CONCLUSION: SBRT is a safe and effective treatment for HCC enabling patients to remain within LT criteria, even for lesions not amenable to other more conventional bridging therapies. We describe a preliminary decision pathway to guide the optimal use of SBRT as a bridge to LT developed in our institution.

Sugammadex Versus Neostigmine for Neuromuscular Block Reversal and Postoperative Pulmonary Complications in Patients Undergoing Resection of Lung Cancer.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to compare the effect of sugammadex and neostigmine on neuromuscular block reversal and the incidence of postoperative pulmonary complications in patients undergoing lung cancer resection. DESIGN: A double-blind, randomized, prospective study. SETTING: A single major urban teaching and university hospital. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred adult patients underwent elective radical resection of lung cancer under general anesthesia. INTERVENTIONS: Patients were assigned into neostigmine (0.05 mg/kg) + atropine 0.02 mg/kg group and sugammadex (2 mg/kg) group. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The primary outcomes were the incidence of any postoperative pulmonary complications, and the time to achieve 90% of train-of-four (TOF) after the administration of sugammadex or neostigmine. The secondary endpoints were the number of patients with TOF ratio (TOFr) <0.9 at the time of tracheal extubation, the incidence of readmission 30 days after discharge, and specific postoperative pulmonary complications. Results showed that the average time of recovery to TOFr ≥0.9 with sugammadex was 164.5 ± 27.7 seconds versus 562.9 ± 59.7 seconds with neostigmine + atropine treatment. Fewer sugammadex-treated patients did not achieve TOFr of 0.9 at the time of tracheal extubation than did neostigmine-treated participants. Patients in the sugammadex group had lower incidence of postoperative lung complications, and shorter durations of postanesthesia care unit stay and postoperative hospital stay than those in the neostigmine group. There was no significant difference in the incidence of readmission between the 2 groups. CONCLUSIONS: Administration of sugammadex provided faster recovery of rocuronium-induced neuromuscular block when compared with neostigmine. Moreover, for patients undergoing lung cancer resection, administration of sugammadex could reduce the incidence of postoperative pulmonary complications and duration of postoperative hospital stay.

Biomineralized Cascade Enzyme-Encapsulated ZIF-8 Nanoparticles Combined with Antisense Oligonucleotides for Drug-Resistant Bacteria Treatment.

The unrestrained use of antibiotics accelerates the development of drug-resistant bacteria and leads to an increasing threat to human health. Therefore, there is an urgent need to explore novel and effective strategies for the treatment of bacterial infections. Herein, zeolite imidazole framework-8 (ZIF-8) material was utilized to construct biomineralized nanomaterial (GOx&HRP@ZIF-8/ASO) by encapsulating biological cascade enzymes and combining with antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs), which achieved effective and synergistic antidrug-resistant bacteria therapy. Various in vitro assays confirmed that GOx&HRP@ZIF-8/ASO exhibited excellent antibacterial properties against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) during catalysis of glucose (Glu), especially the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against MRSA was only 16 µg/mL. Compared with simple ZIF-8 (32.85%) and ftsZ ASO (58.65%), GOx&HRP@ZIF-8/ASO+Glu exhibited superb biofilm destruction ability, and the bacteria removal efficiency of the MRSA biofilm could be as high as 88.2%, indicating that the reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced by the cascade enzyme reaction imparted the main synergistic antibacterial capability, and simultaneously, ftsZ ASO significantly enhanced the antibacterial effect by inhibiting the expression of the ftsZ gene. In vivo anti-infection treatment experiments revealed that GOx&HRP@ZIF-8/ASO exhibited the best wound repairing performance and excellent biocompatibility in the presence of Glu. These findings suggested that GOx&HRP@ZIF-8/ASO has favorably realized high-efficiency treatment of MRSA infection and filled the gap in the antibacterial application of biological enzymes.

The Incidence and Predictors of Postoperative Delirium After Brain Tumor Resection in Adults: A Cross-Sectional Survey.

BACKGROUND: Postoperative delirium (POD) describes a multifactorial disease process occurring after surgery. However, few studies have focused on patients undergoing brain tumor resection, and its influencing factors are unclear. METHODS: We performed a 1-year, single-center, cross-sectional, retrospective survey at Huashan Hospital. Patients were screened using the Confusion Assessment Method for the Intensive Care Unit (CAM-ICU), Confusion Assessment Method, and Richmond Agitation Sedation Scale by trained bedside nurses. Perioperative data were collected using demographic and disease-related questionnaires. The primary outcome measures were the incidence of POD and subtype of POD. Independent predictors of POD were estimated from multivariate logistic regression models, and receiver operating characteristic analysis was used to compare the predictive performance of the models. RESULTS: Of the 916 patients included in the study, 893 were analyzed. The overall incidence was 14.78%, 67 had hyperactive delirium (50.76%), 55 had hypoactive delirium (41.67%), and 10 had mixed delirium (7.57%). Age, sex, working status, tobacco use history, comorbidities, physical restraint, axillary temperature (>38.5°C), electrolyte disturbances, duration of anesthesia, pathologic diagnosis, tumor site, length of disease, and duration of operation were risk factors for POD. Conversely, saddle area mass was a protective factor. Age, tobacco use history, electrolyte disturbances, physical restraint, and duration of operation were included in the model. CONCLUSIONS: POD is harmful to patients undergoing brain tumor resection, increasing length of stay in the intensive care unit and hospitalization costs. Intraoperative factors and postoperative factors, in addition to older age and tobacco use history, are associated with POD.