Exploration of the molecular biological mechanisms and review of postoperative radiotherapy cases in tenosynovial giant cell tumors.

Tendon Sheath Giant Cell Tumor (TGCT) is a benign tumor that primarily grows within joints and bursae. However, it has a high postoperative recurrence rate, ranging from 15% to 45%. Although radiotherapy may reduce this recurrence rate, its applicability as a standard treatment is still controversial. Furthermore, the pathogenic mechanisms of TGCT are not clear, which limits the development of effective treatment methods. The unpredictable growth and high recurrence rate of TGCT adds to the challenges of disease management. Currently, our understanding of TGCT mainly depends on pathological slice analysis due to a lack of stable cell models. In this study, we first reviewed the medical records of two female TGCT patients who had undergone radiotherapy. Then, by combining bioinformatics and machine learning, we interpreted the pathogenesis of TGCT and its associations with other diseases from multiple perspectives. Based on a deep analysis of the case data, we provided empirical support for postoperative radiotherapy in TGCT patients. Additionally, our further analysis revealed the signaling pathways of differentially expressed genes in TGCT, as well as its potential associations with osteoarthritis and synovial sarcomas.

Identification of clinically relevant patient endotypes in traumatic brain injury using latent class analysis.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a complex condition where heterogeneity impedes the advancement of care. Understanding the diverse presentations of TBI is crucial for personalized medicine. Our study aimed to identify clinically relevant patient endotypes in TBI using latent class analysis based on comorbidity data. We used the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care III database, which includes 2,629 adult TBI patients. We identified five stable endotypes characterized by specific comorbidity profiles: Heart Failure and Arrhythmia, Healthy, Renal Failure with Hypertension, Alcohol Abuse, and Hypertension. Each endotype had distinct clinical characteristics and outcomes: The Heart Failure and Arrhythmia endotype had lower survival rates than the Renal Failure with Hypertension despite featuring fewer comorbidities overall. Patients in the Hypertension endotype had higher rates of neurosurgical intervention but shorter stays in contrast to the Alcohol Abuse endotype which had lower rates of neurosurgical intervention but significantly longer hospital stays. Both endotypes had high overall survival rates comparable to the Healthy endotype. Logistic regression models showed that endotypes improved the predictability of survival compared to individual comorbidities alone. This study validates clinical endotypes as an approach to addressing heterogeneity in TBI and demonstrates the potential of this methodology in other complex conditions.

Aspergillus niger Fermentation Broth Promotes Maize Germination and Alleviates Low Phosphorus Stress.

Aspergillus niger is a type of soil fungus with the ability to dissolve insoluble phosphate and secrete organic metabolites such as citric acid. However, whether cell-free Aspergillus niger fermentation broth (AFB) promotes maize growth and alleviates low-phosphorus stress has not been reported. In this study, we explored their relationship through a hydroponics system. The results indicated that either too low or too high concentrations of AFB may inhibit seed germination potential and germination rate. Under low phosphorus conditions, all physiological indexes (biomass, soluble sugar content, root length, etc.) increased after AFB was applied. A qRT-PCR analysis revealed that the expression of the EXPB4 and KRP1 genes, which are involved in root development, was upregulated, while the expression of the CAT2 and SOD9 genes, which are keys to the synthesis of antioxidant enzymes, was downregulated. The expression of LOX3, a key gene in lipid peroxidation, was down-regulated, consistent with changes in the corresponding enzyme activity. These results indicate that the application of AFB may alleviate the oxidative stress in maize seedlings, reduce the oxidative damage caused by low P stress, and enhance the resistance to low P stress in maize seedlings. In addition, it reveals the potential of A. niger to promote growth and provides new avenues for research on beneficial plant-fungal interactions.

QTL mapping of maize (Zea mays L.) kernel traits under low-phosphorus stress.

Low-phosphorus stress significantly impacts the development of maize kernels. In this study, the phosphor efficient maize genotype 082 and phosphor deficient maize genotype Ye107, were used to construct an F2:3 population. QTL mapping was then employed to determine the genetic basis of differences in the maize kernel traits of the two parents in a low-phosphorus environment. This analysis revealed several major QTL that control environmental impacts on kernel length, width, thickness, and weight. These QTL were detected in all three environments and were distributed on five genome segments of chromosomes 3, 5, 6, and 9, and some new kernel-trait QTL were also detected (eg: Qkwid6, Qkthi3, Qkwei9, and Qklen3-1). These environmentally insensitive QTL can be stably expressed in low phosphorus environments, indicating that they can lay a foundation for the breeding of high phosphorus utilization efficiency germplasm. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12298-023-01300-0.

Eyedrop Instillation Techniques, Difficulties, and Currently Available Solutions: A Literature Review.

Purpose: To review current eyedrop instillation techniques, common difficulties faced by patients instilling eyedrops, available eyedrop assistive devices, and patient education regarding eyedrop instillation. Methods: PubMed, Embase, and Google Scholar were searched from conception until June 2022 for articles on eyedrop instillation difficulties, techniques, tools, and patient education. Results: Instillation involves pulling down the lower eyelids and placing drops on the corneal surface or conjunctival fornix, followed by closing of the eyelids for about 1 min. Examples of techniques include eyelid closure and nasolacrimal obstruction techniques. Patients encounter many difficulties when administering eyedrops, including but not limited to poor visibility, squeezing the dropper bottle, aiming the bottle, and accidentally blinking. However, devices are available that assist with aim and dropper compression-force reduction in eyedrop instillation. These can be particularly useful in patient demographics with diminished manual dexterity or the ability to generate force from their fingers. Furthermore, despite patient education in eyedrop instillation not being a common practice, it has been found that adequate patient education can lead to significant improvement in eyedrop instillation technique. Conclusions: While many factors are associated with poor eyedrop instillation technique, there are many solutions available including assistive devices and proper instillation education.

Environment-friendly degradable zinc-ion battery based on guar gum-cellulose aerogel electrolyte.

With the vigorous development of electronics and the increasingly prominent problem of environmental pollution, it is particularly important to exploit environmentally friendly electronic devices. Transient electronics represent a kind of device that once the specified functions have completed can completely or partially disappear through physical or chemical actions. In this work, we introduce a novel guar gum-cellulose aerogel (GCA) membrane based on natural biomaterials and successfully use it as an electrolyte film to fabricate a degradable zinc-ion battery (DZIB). All components of the prepared DZIBs can be successfully degraded or disintegrate in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) containing a solution of proteinase K after approximately 40 days. This electrolyte film has a high ionic conductivity of approximately 4.73 × 10-2 S cm-1 and a good mechanical stress property. When applied to DZIB, the production of zinc dendrites can be restrained, leading to the battery showing excellent electrochemical performance. The battery exhibits a specific capacity of 309.1 mA h g-1 at a current density of 308 mA g-1 after 100 cycles and a steady cycling ability (100% capacity retention after 200 cycles). More importantly, the electrochemical performance of DZIB is better than that of transient batteries reported in the past, taking a solid step in the field of transient electronics in the initial stage.

Polymerase Chain Reaction-Assisted Evaluation of the Efficacy of Seed-Treatment Prevention of Sporisorium reilianum Infection in Sorghum Seedlings.

Head smut, caused by Sporisorium reilianum [(Kuhn) Langdon and Fullerton], is a major disease of sorghum. Seed treatment is considered to be the most effective way to control the disease; however, the pathogen can infect at the seedling stage and the infected plant will not display symptoms until the reproductive stage is reached. The evaluation of the efficacy of seed treatments is time consuming and is dependent upon visible symptoms. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods have the ability to identify pathogens and diagnose their presence at an early stage of infection. In this study, the S. reilianum-specific primer SR3 was used for PCR detection pathogen. We optimized temperature, humidity, and spore quantity test conditions and were able to achieve >88% infection incidence in sorghum seedlings. Sorghum seeds were soaked in various concentrations of tebuconazole and planted for 7 days in soil containing 0.2% teliospores. The efficacy of tebuconazole against S. reilianum was evaluated by PCR and recorded as disease incidence. Results indicated that the reduction in disease incidence after exposure to 0.15, 0.30, 0.45, 0.60, and 0.75 µg/mL tebuconazole was 6.24, 37.48, 67.74, 81.24, and 93.74%, respectively. Significant differences between the concentrations of tebuconazole were observed. The PCR assay represents a valuable tool for evaluating the efficacy of fungicide seed treatments for the control of S. reilianum in sorghum under laboratory conditions.

Fine Mapping of a New Major QTL-qGLS8 for Gray Leaf Spot Resistance in Maize.

Gray leaf spot (GLS), caused by different species of Cercospora, is a fungal, non-soil-borne disease that causes serious reductions in maize yield worldwide. The identification of major quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for GLS resistance in maize is essential for developing marker-assisted selection strategies in maize breeding. Previous research found a significant difference (P < 0.01) in GLS resistance between T32 (highly resistant) and J51 (highly susceptible) genotypes of maize. Initial QTL analysis was conducted in an F2 : 3 population of 189 individuals utilizing genetic maps that were constructed using 181 simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. One QTL (qGLS8) was detected, defined by the markers umc1130 and umc2354 in three environments. The qGLS8 QTL detected in the initial analysis was located in a 51.96-Mb genomic region of chromosome 8 and explained 7.89-14.71% of the phenotypic variation in GLS resistance in different environments. We also developed a near isogenic line (NIL) BC3F2 population with 1,468 individuals and a BC3F2-Micro population with 180 individuals for fine mapping. High-resolution genetic and physical maps were constructed using six newly developed SSRs. The QTL-qGLS8 was narrowed down to a 124-kb region flanked by the markers ym20 and ym51 and explained up to 17.46% of the phenotypic variation in GLS resistance. The QTL-qGLS8 contained seven candidate genes, such as an MYB-related transcription factor 24 and a C 3 H transcription factor 347), and long intergenic non-coding RNAs (lincRNAs). The present study aimed to provide a foundation for the identification of candidate genes for GLS resistance in maize.

Transient antibiotic-induced changes in the neonatal swine intestinal microbiota impact islet expression profiles reducing subsequent function.

Neonatal antibiotics administered to human infants initiate gut microbiota dysbiosis that may have long-term effects on body weight and metabolism. We examined antibiotic-induced adaptations in pancreatic islets of the piglet, a well-accepted model of human infant microbiota and pancreas development. Neonatal piglets randomized to amoxicillin [30 mg/kg body wt/day; n = 7, antibiotic (ANTI)] or placebo [vehicle control; n = 7, control (CON)] from postnatal day (PND)0-13 were euthanized at PND7, 14, and 49. The metabolic phenotype along with functional, immunohistological, and transcriptional phenotypes of the pancreatic islets were studied. The gut microbiome was characterized by 16S rRNA gene sequencing, and microbial metabolites and microbiome-sensitive host molecules were measured. Compared with CON, ANTI PND7 piglets had elevated transcripts of genes involved in glucagon-like peptide 1 ((GLP-1) synthesis or signaling in islets (P < 0.05) coinciding with higher plasma GLP-1 (P = 0.11), along with increased tumor necrosis factor α (Tnf) (P < 0.05) and protegrin 1 (Npg1) (P < 0.05). Antibiotic-induced relative increases in Escherichia, Coprococcus, Ruminococcus, Dehalobacterium, and Oscillospira of the ileal microbiome at PND7 normalized after antibiotic withdrawal. In ANTI islets at PND14, the expression of key regulators pancreatic and duodenal homeobox 1 (Pdx1), insulin-like growth factor-2 (Igf2), and transcription factor 7-like 2 (Tcf7l2) was downregulated, preceding a 40% reduction of ß-cell area (P < 0.01) and islet insulin content at PND49 (P < 0.05). At PND49, a twofold elevated plasma insulin concentration (P = 0.07) was observed in ANTI compared with CON. We conclude that antibiotic treatment of neonatal piglets elicited gut microbial changes accompanied by phasic alterations in key regulatory genes in pancreatic islets at PND7 and 14. By PND49, reduced ß-cell area and islet insulin content were accompanied by elevated nonfasted insulin despite normoglycemia, indicative of islet stress.

A general QSPR protocol for the prediction of atomic/inter-atomic properties: a fragment based graph convolutional neural network (F-GCN).

In this study, a general quantitative structure-property relationship (QSPR) protocol, fragment based graph convolutional neural network (F-GCN), was developed for the prediction of atomic/inter-atomic properties. We applied this novel artificial intelligence (AI) tool in predictions of NMR chemical shifts and bond dissociation energies (BDEs). The obtained results were comparable to experimental measurements, while the computational cost was substantially reduced, with respect to pure density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The two important features of F-GCN can be summarised as: first, it could utilise different levels of molecular fragments for atomic/inter-atomic information extraction; second, the designed architecture is also open to include additional descriptors for a more accurate solution of the local environment at atomic level, making itself more efficient for structural solutions. And during our test, the averaged prediction error of 1H NMR chemical shifts is as small as 0.32 ppm, and the error of C-H BDE estimation is 2.7 kcal mol-1. Moreover, we further demonstrated the applicability of this developed F-GCN model via several challenging structural assignments. The success of the F-GCN in atomic and inter-atomic predictions also indicates an essential improvement of computational chemistry with the assistance of AI tools.

[Protection of ulinastatin against myocardial injury induced by off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery: report of 24 cases].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the protective effect of ulinastatin against myocardial injury induced by off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery (OPCAB). METHODS: Twenty-four patients undergoing OPCAB were randomly divided into 2 equal groups: ulinastatin group in which ulinastatin was infused intravenously, firstly at the concentration of 6000 U/kg dissolved in 50 ml normal saline for 30 min and then at the speed of 1000 U.kg(-1).h(-1) up to the end of operation, and control group that underwent infusion of normal saline of the same volume. Blood samples were collected before skin incision, 0.5 h after the completion of vascular anastomosis, and 2, 6, and 18 h after the operation to detect the plasma level of cardiac troponin 1 (cTn1). RESULTS: The cTn1 levels 2, 6, and 18 h after the operation of both groups were all significantly higher than those before skin incision (all P < 0.01). The cTn1 levels 0.5 h after the completion of vascular anastomosis, and 2, 6, and 18 h after the operation of the ulinastatin group were all significantly lower than those of the control group (all P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Ulinastatin decreases the cTn1 level that increases peri-operatively, thus reducing the risk of myocardial injury in patients undergoing OPCAB.