[Research progress on pollution status and toxic effects of organophosphorus flame retardants 2-ethylhexyl diphenyl phosphate].

The environmental pollution and health hazards caused by the extensive use of organophosphorus flame retardants (OPFRs) have become a problem of wide concern around the world. As a typical OPFR, 2-ethylhexyl diphenyl phosphate (EHDPP) can be detected in water, atmosphere, soil and other environmental media. It widely exists in production and life and can accumulate in organisms, causing great risks the ecosystem and human health. This paper reviews the research of EHDPP domestically and abroad, and summarizes the physicochemical properties of EHDPP and the population situation of occupational exposure, environmental exposure, and population exposure in recent years. Besides, it summarizes the toxic effects and mechanisms of EHDPP, including acute toxicity, hepatotoxicity, neurotoxicity, reproductive and developmental toxicity, and carcinogenesis effects. This paper also proposes the future direction of toxicity and health risks of EHDPP, which provides a theoretical basis for further research on environmental hazards and safety evaluation of EHDPP.

Occurrence of Fusarium mycotoxins in freshly harvested highland barley (qingke) grains from Tibet, China.

Highland barley, also called "qingke" in Tibetan, is mainly cultivated in the Tibetan Plateau of China and has been used as a major staple food for Tibetans. Recently, Fusarium head blight (FHB) of qingke was frequently observed around the Brahmaputra River in Tibet. Considering the importance of qingke for Tibetans, the assessment of Fusarium mycotoxin contamination is essential for food safety. In this study, a total of 150 freshly harvested qingke grain samples were obtained from three regions around the Brahmaputra River in Tibet (China) in 2020. The samples were investigated for the occurrence of 20 Fusarium mycotoxins using high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC‒MS/MS). The most frequently occurring mycotoxin was enniatin B (ENB) (46%), followed by enniatin B1 (ENB1) (14.7%), zearalenone (ZEN) (6.0%), enniatin A1 (ENA1) (3.3%), enniatin A (ENA) (1.3%), beauvericin (BEA) (0.7%), and nivalenol (NIV) (0.7%). Due to the increase in altitude, the cumulative precipitation level and average temperature decreased from the downstream to the upstream of the Brahmaputra River; this directly correlated to the contamination level of ENB in qingke, which gradually decreased from downstream to upstream. In addition, the level of ENB in qingke obtained from qingke-rape rotation was significantly lower than that from qingke-wheat and qingke-qingke rotations (p < 0.05). These results disseminated the occurrence of Fusarium mycotoxins and provided further understanding of the effect of environmental factors and crop rotation on Fusarium mycotoxins.

[Clinical features and prognostic value of TP53 mutation in Chinese prostate cancer patients].

Objective: To examine the clinical features and prognostic value of TP53 mutation in circulating tumor DNA(ctDNA) of Chinese prostate cancer patients. Methods: A prospective cohort of 239 prostate cancer patients diagnosed in the Department of Urology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center from May 2018 to June 2019 was included. The age of diagnosis was(65.4±7.6) years(range: 45 to 85 years). Clinical data were collected from patient diagnosis and treatment records as well as follow-up surveys. TP53 mutations in plasma were detected by target sequence capture and second-generation sequencing. The relationship between TP53 mutation status and progression-free survival(PFS) was analyzed in patients who received any treatment lines. Kaplan-Meier analysis was performed in different subgroups, survival curves were drawn, and Log-rank test was used for comparison. Cox regression models were used to estimate multivariate adjusted HR and 95%CI associated with PFS. Results: In the cohort, 15.9%(38/239) patients had TP53 mutation. Patients with TP53 mutations had a higher rate of metastases initially diagnosed with prostate cancer (78.9% (30/38) vs. 60.2% (121/201), χ²=4.829, P=0.028), as well as a higher rate of castration resistance (68.4% (26/38) vs. 42.8% (86/201), χ²=8.434, P=0.004). Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed a median androgen-deprivation therapy-PFS of 13.0 months in patients with TP53 mutation and 17.0 months in patients with TP53 wild-type. The median abiraterone-PFS was 4.7 months for patients with TP53 mutation and 11.0 months for TP53 wild-type patients. The median docetaxel-PFS was 3.0 months in patients with TP53 mutation and 5.0 months in patients with TP53 wild-type. TP53 mutation was the undependent prognosis factor of PFS in patients treated with abiraterone(HR=2.23, 95%CI: 1.26 to 3.94, P=0.006) and docetaxel(HR=1.92, 95%CI: 1.01 to 3.66, P=0.047) had significant differences in PFS. Conclusions: TP53 mutations were associated with the presence of metastasis and castration resistance, and were also an independent prognostic factor for progression-free survival in patients treated with abiraterone and docetaxel.

[Research progress on spatiotemporal clustering of disease].

In recent years, the research of spatiotemporal clustering of disease is attracting more and more attention, which plays an important role in understanding the temporal and spatial distribution characteristics of diseases, and can provide references for the etiology exploration and prevention and control of diseases. In order to better understand the research methods of spatiotemporal clustering of diseases and its application progress, this paper summarizes the statistical methods commonly used in relevant researches at demestic and abroad from three aspects of temporal clustering, spatial clustering and spatiotemporal clustering of diseases.

[The value of adenosine triphosphate in CD4(+)T lymphocytes in predicting repeated respiratory tract infections in silicosis patients].

Objective: To explore the value of the concentration of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) in CD4(+)T lymphocytes in predicting repeated respiratory tract infections (RRTI) in silicosis patients. Methods: In April 2020, 614 silicosis patients admitted from March 2016 to March 2018 were included in the study, and they were divided into the RRTI group (n=105) and the non RRTI group (n=509) according to whether the occurrence of RRTI, another 30 healthy cases taken from body check were served as control group, and the concentrations of ATP produced by CD4(+)T lymphocytes was measured by ImmuKnow assay, and were compared between the three groups. And drawed the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, and the Logistic regression analysis was used to explore the risk factors of RRTI. Results: The incidence of RRTI in silicosis patients was 17.10% (105/614) . The concentration of ATP produced by CD4(+)T lymphocytes in the RRTI group [ (260.42±90.36) mg/L] was significantly lower than that in the non RRTI group [ (413.66±138.74) mg/L] (t=-10.849, P<0.01) . The area under the ROC curve was 0.834, the cutoff value was 284 mg/L, the sensitivity was 0.88, and the specificity was 0.83. Logistic regression analysis showed that the concentration of ATP produced by CD4(+)T lymphocytes≤284 mg/L, impaired pulmonary ventilation function, serum albumin<40 g/L and diabetes were the risk factors of RRTI in silicosis patients (OR=2.126, 1.217, 1.164, 1.125, P<0.05) . Conclusion: Low CD4(+)T lymphocyte ATP value was a risk factor of RRTI in silicosis patients, and can predict the risk of RRTI in patients with silicosis.

[Establishment of three-dimensional measurement methods of nasolabial soft tissue for patients with maxillary protrusion].

OBJECTIVE: To establish a series of three-dimensional measurement methods of nasolabial soft tissue for maxillary protrusion patients by using 3dMD camera, and to evaluate preoperative and postoperative changes of the nasolabial soft tissue. METHODS: Three-dimensional facial photos of 30 female patients with maxillary protrusion [average age, (27.33±2.54) years] were taken by 3dMD camera preoperatively and at the end of postoperative 6 months or more. Then, 3dMD patient software was used to locate the selected landmarks at nasolabial region on the three-dimensional photos. Ten measurements, including soft tissue line distance, angle, curve distance and postoperative three-dimensional volume changes were measured twice with one week interval by 3 investigators, respectively. A standard consistency test calculated by the correlation coefficients (ICC) was performed between two sets of data (including all of the 10 measurements) for each investigator and among the three investigators to verify the repeatability. RESULTS: The average maxillary incisor retraction distance of the 30 subjects was (5.13±0.99) mm, and the average follow-up time was (11.07±5.11) months. The standard consistency test was performed between the two sets of data for each investigator, and the correlation coefficients (ICC) of the 10 measurements were all over 0.8 for each investigator (P>0.05). The standard consistency test was performed among the three surveyors, with the result that the ICC of the width of the bilateral inner canthus, the height of the nose, the height of nasal tip, nasolabial angle, philtrum length, the curve height of upper vermilion and the height of upper lip were greater than 0.8 (P>0.05), and the ICC of the distance between SbalSbal, length of nasal dorsum and three-dimensional volume change of upper lip were 0.680, 0.627 and 0.528, respectively (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: 3dMD camera and 3dMD patient software can be used to measure and analyze the three-dimensional morphology of the nasolabial soft tissue for patients with maxillary protrusion preoperatively and postoperatively, and it is relatively accurate and reliable. However, the repeatability of three-dimensional positioning of the nasal tip point and the Sbal is slightly worse resulting in the lower value of the ICC of the distance between SbalSbal and length of nasal dorsum, as well as the upper lip three-dimensional volume change after the operation.

[Analysis of single-nucleotide polymorphism of Sonic hedgehog signaling pathway in non-syndromic cleft lip and/or palate in the Chinese population].

OBJECTIVE: To study the relationship between Sonic hedgehog (Shh) associated single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and non-syndromic cleft lip and/or palate (NSCL/P), and to explore the risk factors of cleft lip and/or palate. Many studies suggest that the pathogenesis of NSCL/P could be related to genes that control early development, in which the Shh signaling pathway plays an important role. METHODS: Peripheral blood was collected from 197 individuals (100 patients with NSCL/P and 97 healthy controls). Haploview software was used for haplotype analysis and Tag SNP were selected, based on the population data of Han Chinese in Beijing of the international human genome haplotype mapping project. A total of 27 SNP were selected for the 4 candidate genes of SHH, PTCH1, SMO and GLI2 in the Shh signaling pathway. The genotypes of 27 SNP were detected and analyzed by Sequenom mass spectrometry. The data were analyzed by chi-squared test and an unconditional Logistic regression model. RESULTS: The selected SNP basically covered the potential functional SNP of the target genes, and its minimum allele frequency (MAF) was >0.05: GLI2 73.5%, PTCH1 91.0%, SMO 100.0%, and SHH 75.0%. It was found that the genotype frequency of SNP (rs12674259) located in SMO gene and SNP (rs2066836) located in PTCH1 gene were significantly different between the NSCL/P group and the control group. Linkage disequilibrium was also found on 3 chromosomes (chromosomes 2, 7 and 9) where the 4 candidate genes were located. However, in the analysis of linkage imbalance haplotype, there was no significant difference between the disease group and the control group. CONCLUSION: In China, NSCL/P is the most common congenital disease in orofacial region. However, as it is a multigenic disease and could be affected by multiple factors, such as the external environment, the etiology of NSCL/P has not been clearly defined. This study indicates that Shh signaling pathway is involved in the occurrence of NSCL/P, and some special SNP of key genes in this pathway are related to cleft lip and/or palate, which provides a new direction for the etiology research of NSCL/P and may provide help for the early screening and risk prediction of NSCL/P.

[Effects of basic fibroblast growth factor on healing of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infective wound in New Zealand rabbit after debridement].

Objective: To investigate the effects of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) on healing of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infective wound in New Zealand rabbit after debridement. Methods: Thirty-two New Zealand rabbits (3 to 4 months old, no matter male or female) were intradermally injected with 0.1 mL of complete Freund's adjuvant on the buttocks. Six weeks later, each rabbit was injected with 0.5 mL 5×10(7) colony forming unit/mL Bacillus Calmette-Guerin on both sides of the back to reproduce the model of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infective wound in New Zealand rabbit. After successful modeling, the 32 rabbits were divided into growth factor (GF) group, antituberculosis drug (AD) group, combined treatment (CT) group, and blank control (BC) group according to the random number table, with 8 rabbits in each group. After a complete debridement, the wounds of rabbits in group GF were treated with recombinant bovine bFGF gel (300 IU/cm(2,) about 0.45 g for each wound), the wounds of rabbits in group AD were covered with gauze which was impregnated with 6 mL isoniazid injection and 0.15 g rifampicin powder-injection, the wounds of rabbits in group CT were covered with gauze which was impregnated with isoniazid injection and rifampicin powder-injection after being treated with recombinant bovine bFGF gel as before, the wounds of rabbits in group BC were covered with sterile gauze, with dressing change of once every two days until the wounds were completely healed. Immediately after surgery and on post surgery day (PSD) 7, 14, 21, and 28, the wounds of rabbits in each group were observed with naked eyes and photos. On PSD 7, 14, 21, and 28, the wound healing rate was calculated and the complete healing time of wound was recorded. On PSD 7, 14, 21, and 28, the tissue samples of wound edge were collected for histomorphological observation with hematoxylin and eosin staining and Masson staining. On PSD 21, the number of microvessels was counted with immunohistochemical method. On PSD 7, 14, 21, and 28, the content of hydroxyproline in wound edge was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The numbers of samples of above-mentioned experiments were all 8. Data were processed with analysis of variance for repeated measurement, analysis of variance of factorial design, one-way analysis of variance, least significant difference test and Bonferroni correction. Results: (1) The rabbits in four groups all survived to the end of experiment. Immediately after surgery, edema was observed in basal wounds of rabbits in the four groups. On PSD 7, the wounds of rabbits in the 4 groups were contracted with scabs and less edema. The wounds of rabbits in groups GF and CT became redder. On PSD 14, the wounds of rabbits in the 4 groups contracted obviously. There were no obvious exudates in wounds of rabbits in groups AD and CT, while 1 wound of rabbit in group GF and 2 wounds of rabbits in group BC became red and swelling with purulent exudates. On PSD 21, wounds of rabbits in groups GF and CT were basically healed, while 2 wounds of rabbits in group BC healed slowly with purulent secretion. On PSD 28, wounds of rabbits in the 4 groups were basically healed, while 2 wounds of rabbits in group BC hardly healed with redness and swelling. (2) From PSD 7 to 28, the wound healing rates of rabbits in groups GF, AD, and CT were significantly higher than those in group BC (P<0.05). On PSD 14 and 21, the wound healing rates of rabbits in groups GF and CT were significantly higher than those in group AD (P<0.05). From PSD 7 to 28, the wound healing rates of rabbits in group GF were close to those in group CT (P>0.05). (3) The complete healing time of wounds of rabbits in groups GF, AD, and CT was significantly shorter than that in group BC (P<0.05). The complete healing time of wounds of rabbits in groups GF and CT was significantly shorter than that in group AD (P<0.05). The complete healing time of wounds of rabbits in group GF was close to that in group CT (P>0.05). (4) On PSD 7, a large number of inflammatory cells infiltration were observed in wound tissue of rabbits in the 4 groups and a few epithelial cells were observed in wound tissue of rabbits in groups GF, AD, and CT. On PSD 14, more epithelial cells were observed in wound tissue of rabbits in groups GF and CT, and an obvious reduction of inflammatory cells infiltration was observed in wound tissue of rabbits in groups AD and CT. On PSD 21, there was a complete wound tissue structure and distinctive nuance of dyeing in wound tissue of rabbits in groups GF and CT while thinner new epithelium in wound tissue of rabbits in groups AD and BC, and inflammatory cell infiltration was observed in wound tissue of rabbits in group BC. On PSD 28, there was a complete wound tissue structure in wound tissue of rabbits in the 4 groups, the new epithelium in wound tissue of rabbits in groups GF, AD, and CT was thicker than that in group BC. (5) On PSD 7 and 14, the quantity of collagen fibers in wound tissue of rabbits in groups GF and CT was larger than that in the other two groups. On PSD 21, a large quantity of fibroblasts and well reorganized collagen fibers were observed in wound tissue of rabbits in groups GF and CT, a moderate quantity of fibroblasts and collagen fibers in a random arrangement were observed in wound tissue of rabbits in group AD, and a little quantity of fibroblasts and collagen fibers were observed in wound tissue of rabbits in group BC. On PSD 28, the quantity of collagen fibers in wound tissue of rabbits in the 4 groups was close to that of normal skin tissue, and the collagen fibers performed more well reorganized in wound tissue of rabbits in groups GF and CT. (6) On PSD 21, the numbers of microvessels per 200-time visual field in wound edge of rabbits in groups GF (31.6±1.2), AD (27.5±1.3), and CT (32.8±1.6) were significantly higher than the number in group BC (22.3±1.7, P<0.05). The numbers of microvessels in wound edge of rabbits in groups GF and CT were significantly higher than the number in group AD (P<0.05). The number of microvessels in wound edge of rabbits in group GF was close to that in group CT (P>0.05). (7) On PSD 7 and 28, there were no statistically significant differences in content of hydroxyproline in wound edge of rabbits in the 4 groups (F=0.916, 1.752, P>0.05). On PSD 14 and 21, the content of hydroxyproline in wound edge of rabbits in groups GF, AD, and CT was significantly higher than that in group BC (P<0.05). The content of hydroxyproline in the wound edge of rabbits in groups GF and CT was significantly higher than that in group AD (P<0.05). The content of hydroxyproline in the wound edge of rabbits in group GF was close to that in group CT (P>0.05). Conclusions: bFGF can be used solely or combined with AD to promote Mycobacterium tuberculosis infective wound healing in New Zealand rabbit after complete debridement of wound, which is better than single use of AD.

Chemically specific termination control of oxide interfaces via layer-by-layer mean inner potential engineering.

Creating oxide interfaces with precise chemical specificity at the atomic layer level is desired for the engineering of quantum phases and electronic applications, but highly challenging, owing partially to the lack of in situ tools to monitor the chemical composition and completeness of the surface layer during growth. Here we report the in situ observation of atomic layer-by-layer inner potential variations by analysing the Kikuchi lines during epitaxial growth of strontium titanate, providing a powerful real-time technique to monitor and control the chemical composition during growth. A model combining the effects of mean inner potential and step edge density (roughness) reveals the underlying mechanism of the complex and previously not well-understood reflection high-energy electron diffraction oscillations observed in the shuttered growth of oxide films. General rules are proposed to guide the synthesis of atomically and chemically sharp oxide interfaces, opening up vast opportunities for the exploration of intriguing quantum phenomena at oxide interfaces.

Phase I study of concurrent and consolidation cisplatin and docetaxel chemotherapy with thoracic radiotherapy in non-small cell lung cancer.

BACKGROUND: We designed a phase i study of concurrent chemoradiotherapy (ccrt) with docetaxel (D) and cisplatin (C), followed by consolidation dc, for unresectable stage iii non-small cell lung cancer (nsclc). METHODS: Patients with histologically proven and unresectable stage iii nsclc were eligible. During ccrt, C was given every 3 weeks (75 mg/m2) and D given weekly. The starting dose of D was 20 mg/m2, escalated in cohorts of 3 to define the maximum tolerated dose (mtd). Radiotherapy was prescribed to a dose of 60 Gy in 30 fractions. This was followed by 2 cycles of consolidation dc, which were dose escalated if ccrt was tolerated. RESULTS: Twenty-six patients were enrolled, with 1 excluded following evidence of metastatic disease. Nineteen patients completed both phases of treatment. There were 7 grade 3 events during ccrt (5 esophagitis, 2 nausea), and 8 grade 3 events during consolidation (2 neutropenia, 2 leukopenia, 1 esophagitis, 2 nausea, and 1 pneumonitis). Three patients had grade 4 neutropenia. No patients died due to toxicities. The mtd of concurrent weekly D was 20 mg/m2. Consolidation D and C were each dose escalated to 75 mg/m2 in 8 patients. The median overall survival (os) and progression-free survival (pfs) of all patients were 33.6 months and 17.2 months, respectively, with median follow-up of 26.6 months (range 0.43-110.8). CONCLUSIONS: The use of docetaxel 20 mg/m2 weekly and cisplatin 75 mg/m2 every 3 weeks concurrent with thoracic radiotherapy, followed by consolidation docetaxel and cisplatin, both given at 75 mg/m2 every 3 weeks, appears to be safe in this phase i trial.

Loss of STAG2 causes aneuploidy in normal human bladder cells.

The aim of this study was to determine how the function of human stromal antigen 2 (STAG2) plays an important role in proper chromosome separation. STAG2 mRNA in normal bladder cells and bladder tumor cells was evaluated by RT-PCR. The protein levels of STAG2 in normal bladder cells and bladder tumor cells were determined by western blot. A cell proliferation assay was used to measure the growth of tumor cells and STAG2-inhibited normal cells, and STAG2- inhibited normal cells were subjected to karyotype analysis. Both STAG-2 mRNA and protein expression levels were lower in bladder cancer cells compared to the controls. Knockdown of STAG2 caused aneuploidy in normal bladder cells, leading to a decreased expression of the cohesin complex components SMC1, SMC3 and RAD21, but there was no obvious effect of STAG2 knockdown on cell proliferation. Our study indicated that abnormal expression of STAG2 could cause aneuploidy in normal bladder cells.

Immune-related genes expression profile in orange-spotted grouper during exposure to Cryptocaryon irritans.

Cryptocaryon irritans is one of the most important ectoparasites of marine fish. To identify the potential role of immune-related genes in antiparasitic immune responses in fish, we monitored the expression change of IL-8, COX-2, C-type lectin and transferrin in local and systemic immune organs of orange-spotted grouper post-C. irritans infection. IL-8 expression was up-regulated during the course of infection in the skin, while COX-2 and transferrin expression was up-regulated in the gill. COX-2 expression was significantly down-regulated in the spleen (0·7-5% of its control) and head kidney (0·5-4% of its control) post-primary infection. Transferrin expression was also down-regulated in the spleen and head kidney from 6 h to 5 days post-primary infection. However, C-type lectin expression was up-regulated in all tested organs post-infection, with the exception of day 7 in the spleen post-primary infection where the expression level was slightly down-regulated (44% of its control). These results suggest that these four immune-related genes play an important role in grouper anti-C. irritans infection and that local immune organs as the active organs contribute more than systemic immune organs to this course.

Exposure of traffic police to Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in Beijing, China.

Exposure of on-duty traffic police in Beijing to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was investigated during the summer, 2004 using a personal sampling technique in measuring both particulate and gaseous phase PAHs. The results were then compared with those from two control sites away from the street. Exposure levels to gaseous and particulate PAHs for the traffic police were found to be 1525 +/- 759 ngm(-3) and 148 +/- 118 ngm(-3), respectively, representing 2-2.5 times higher levels than those at the control sites. The daily inhalation exposure of the police was estimated to be 277 ngkg(-1)d(-1). Most of the PAHs exposure came from the vapor phase, particularly NAP, FLO and PHE. Based on calculated PAH diagnostic ratios, the major source of PAHs exposure was from vehicle exhaust. The effects of temperature, humidity and atmospheric stability on exposure levels are also discussed.