Investigating the Impact of Tea Consumption on Cognitive Function and Exploring Tea-Genetic Interactions in Older Adults Aged 65-105 Years: Findings from the 2002-2018 CLHLS Data.

BACKGROUND: As the global population ages, cognitive impairment (CI) becomes more prevalent. Tea has been one of the most popular drinks in the world. Several studies have demonstrated that tea consumption has an impact on cognitive function. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to examine the association between tea consumption and cognitive function and explore the potential effect of genetics on the relationship between tea consumption and CI risk in older adults. DESIGN: This is a prospective longitudinal study using data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS). SETTING: Six waves of data from CLHLS containing 76,270 subjects were analyzed. Generalized estimation equations (GEE) with a logit link function were adopted to estimate the effect of tea consumption on CI risk from a cross-sectional and longitudinal perspective. PARTICIPANTS: A population-based cohort of adults aged 65-105 years. MEASUREMENTS: The frequency and type of tea consumption were obtained by questionnaires. CI was measured based on MMSE. Polygenic risk was measured using the polygenic score approach described by the International Schizophrenia. RESULTS: The results showed that drinking green tea had a better protective effect on cognitive function than other types of tea, the incidence of CI gradually decreased with the increase of tea consumption frequency, and men were more likely to benefit from tea consumption. Additionally, we also found a significant interaction between tea consumption and genetic risk, measured by polygenic risk score (PRS). CONCLUSIONS: Based on current research evidence, tea consumption, may be a simple and important measure for CI prevention.

[Etiological characterization of invasive non-typhoid Salmonella strains in Guangdong Province from 2018 to 2022].

Objective: To understand the serotype distribution, drug resistance and molecular characterization of invasive non-typhoid Salmonella (iNTS) in Guangdong Province from 2018 to 2022 and provide scientific evidence for the prevention and treatment of blood flow infection caused by Salmonella. Methods: Serological identification, antimicrobial susceptibility testing, multilocus sequence typing (MLST), and whole genome sequencing were performed on Salmonella isolated from blood and stool samples in Guangdong from 2018 to 2022. Simultaneously, annotated the sequencing results for drug resistance genes and virulence factors by a microbial gene annotation system. Results: The 136 iNTS strains were divided into 25 serotypes, and Salmonella enteritidis accounted for 38.24% (52/136). The OR of other iNTS serotypes were calculated with Salmonella typhimurium as the control. The OR values of Oreninburg, Rysson, and Pomona serotypes were the highest, which were 423.50, 352.92, and 211.75, respectively. The drug resistance rate of iNTS was 0.74%-66.91%, which was lower than that of non-iNTS (3.90%-77.21%). The main iNTS of drug resistance were ampicillin and tetracycline, with resistance rates of 66.91% (91/136) and 50.00% (68/136), respectively, while the resistance rates to ciprofloxacin (5.88%,8/136), ceftazidime (5.88%,8/136), gentamicin (5.13%,7/136) and cefoxitin (0.74%, 1/136) were relatively low. iNTS carried a variety of drug-resistance genes and virulence factors, but no standard virulence factor distribution has been found. MLST cluster analysis showed that iNTS was divided into 26 sequence types, and ST11 accounted for 38.24% (52/136). Conclusions: The iNTS strains in Guangdong were dominated by Salmonella enteritidis, of which three serotypes, Oreninburg, Rison, and Pomona, may be associated with a higher risk of invasive infection during 2018 to 2022. iNTS was sensitive to clinical first-line therapeutic drugs (cephalosporins and fluoroquinolones), with highly diverse sequences and clear phylogenetic branches. ST11 was the local dominant clone group.

[Outcomes after surgical repair of pulmonary atresia with ventricular septal defect and major aortopulmonary collateral arteries: a series of 104 cases].

Objective: To examine the early and midterm surgical outcome of pulmonary atresia with ventricular septal defect and major aortopulmonary collateral arteries (PA/VSD/MAPCA) using revised surgical strategies. Methods: A retrospective analysis of clinical data, surgical methods, and follow-up results was performed of 104 cases of PA/VSD/MAPCA in Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center from January 2017 to September 2022. There were 55 males and 49 females, aged (M(IQR)) 33.9(84.0) months (range: 0.5 to 209.6 months) at the first surgical procedures. The anatomical classification included 89 cases of type B and 15 cases of type C. The number of major aortopulmonary collateral arteries was 4.2 (3.0) (range: 1 to 8). The Kaplan-Meier method was used for survival estimation. Results: In the first stage of surgery, 50 patients underwent a complete primary repair, 12 patients underwent partial repair, 32 patients underwent palliative right ventricular-pulmonary artery connection, and only 10 patients chose the Blalock-Taussig shunt. There were 10 cases of early death. In the second stage, 14 patients underwent complete repair and 4 patients underwent partial repair with no early death. The interval between the two surgeries was 19 (10) months (range: 9 to 48 months). Finally, during the 40 (34) months follow-up period, a total of 64 patients were complete repair and the right/left ventricular pressure ratio after complete repair was 0.63±0.16 (range: 0.36 to 1.00). Survival analysis showed that survival rates at 1 and 5 years after first-stage surgery were both 89.4% (95%CI: 83.5% to 95.3%). At 28 (34) months (range: 1 to 67 months) of follow-up after complete repair, the survival analysis showed that the survival rates at 1 and 5 years were both 95.2% (95%CI: 89.9% to 100%). Conclusions: Using combined approaches tailored to individual patients and optimized unifocalization strategy, the complete repair rate at one stage and the cumulative complete repair rate at 5 years improved significantly with a lower right/left ventricular pressure ratio and satisfactory early and intermediate survival.

[Selection strategy of pedicled axial flaps for repairing high-voltage electric burn wounds in foot and ankle].

Objective: To explore the selection strategy of pedicled axial flaps for repairing high-voltage electric burn wounds in foot and ankle. Methods: The retrospective observational research method was used. From January 2017 to December 2022, 16 patients with skin and soft tissue defects in foot and ankle after high-voltage electric burns were treated in General Hospital of Eastern Theater Command, including 11 cases of unilateral defect and 5 cases of bilateral defect. All patients were male, aged from 25 to 75 years. After thorough debridement, the area of the defect to be repaired with the flap was 5.0 cm×4.0 cm to 12.0 cm×8.0 cm. Before operation, the color Doppler ultrasound, computed tomography angiography, or digital subtraction angiography was used to fully evaluate the degree of vascular injury in the affected limb and to identify the distribution and traffic anastomosis of vascular network. Pedicled axial flaps with reliable blood supply were used to repair the wounds as soon as possible, and the area of flaps ranged from 3.0 cm×2.0 cm to 13.0 cm×8.0 cm. The wound in the donor area of flaps was repaired with split-thickness skin graft from head or medium-thickness skin graft from thigh. The flap repair of wounds in various areas of the ankle and foot was recorded. The postoperative survivals of the flaps and skin grafts were observed after surgery. The postoperative appearance of flaps and walking function of patients were followed up. At the last follow-up, the foot and ankle function was evaluated and rated using the American Association of Foot and Ankle Surgeons Ankle Posterior Foot Scoring System. Results: Two wounds in toe area were repaired with reverse dorsal pedis flaps, 3 wounds in medial ankle area and 2 wounds in heel area were repaired with medial plantar flaps, 2 wounds in anterior plantar area combined with toe area were repaired with reverse medial plantar flaps, 2 wounds in anterior plantar area combined with toe area and 5 wounds in anterior plantar area were repaired with reverse medial pedis flaps, 1 wound in toe area was combined with proper plantar digital artery flap, 1 dorsal pedis wound and 1 lateral malleolus wound were repaired with lateral supramalleolar perforator flaps, and 1 lateral malleolus wound and 1 dorsal pedis wound were repaired with sural neurovascular flap. One flap had venous reflux disorder after surgery and survived after treatment, while the other flaps and skin grafts survived completely after surgery. During the follow-up of 6 to 24 months after operation, the appearance of the flaps was good, and the walking function of patients was normal. At the last follow-up, the functional score of foot and ankle was 76 to 95, which was evaluated as excellent in 11 cases and good in 5 cases. Conclusions: According to the condition of high-voltage electric burn in foot and ankle, early and thorough debridement, preoperative imaging examination to evaluate blood vessels of the affected limb, and selection of pedicled axial flap with reliable blood supply are good methods for wound repair and related functional reconstruction of high-voltage electric burn in foot and ankle.

Information-based continuous nursing on pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus.

OBJECTIVE: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a serious pregnancy complication, and women with undiagnosed diabetes mellitus can develop chronic hyperglycemia during pregnancy. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of information-based continuity of care on glucose levels, health awareness, and maternal and infant outcomes in pregnant women with GDM, thereby providing a basis for the clinical implementation of effective interventions for GDM to reduce or avoid adverse outcomes due to GDM. PATIENTS AND METHODS: One hundred and sixty cases of pregnant women with GDM who underwent treatment in the obstetrics and gynecology department of our hospital from June 2019 to September 2021 were randomly selected as the study population and divided into the control group (n=80) and the study group (n=80). Women in the control group were received with conventional nursing intervention, and those in the study group were obtained with information-based continuity of care on the basis of the control group. Basic clinical data were collected. The levels of fasting blood glucose (FBG), 2h postprandial glucose (2hPG), knowledge of health education, treatment compliance scores, and changes in delivery outcomes were compared between the two groups. According to the maternal blood glucose control level, 160 pregnant women with GDM were divided into the better control group (143 cases) and the poor control group (17 cases). The risk factors affecting the level of maternal glycemic control in gestational diabetes were analyzed. RESULTS: After the intervention, the levels of FBG and 2hPG were significantly lower in both groups than those before the intervention, while the levels of FBG and 2hPG in the study group were notably lower than those in the control group. The health education knowledge score and treatment compliance score after the intervention were significantly higher than those before the intervention, and the health education knowledge score and treatment compliance score in the study group were observably higher than those in the control group (p<0.01). The adverse pregnancy outcomes of pregnant women in the study group were significantly reduced compared with those in the control group (p<0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that body mass index (BMI), dietary control, literacy, and information-based continuity of care were all influential factors for maternal glycemic control level (p<0.05). Among the influencing factors, dietary control and continuity of care had clinical value in predicting maternal glycemic control levels in gestational diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: Continuous nursing based on informatization can effectively control the blood glucose level of pregnant women with GDM, improve the treatment compliance of pregnant women and the awareness rate of gestational diabetes knowledge so as to reduce the occurrence of adverse pregnancy outcomes and improve the health level. In addition, BMI and dietary control are independent risk factors that affect the blood glucose control level of pregnant women. Relevant intervention measures should be formulated according to the relevant influencing factors to effectively control the blood glucose level of pregnant women with GDM and improve maternal and infant outcomes.

[Curcumin suppresses proliferation, migration and invasion of papillary thyriod cancer B-CPAP cells through the Keap1-Nrf2 pathway].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effects of curcumin on migration and invasion of papillary thyriod cancer B-CPAP cells. METHODS: B-CPAP cells were treated with 5, 10, 15, or 20 µmol/L curcumin, and the changes in cell survival, migration and invasion were examined using MTT assay and Transwell assay. ROS levels in the treated cells were detected with a DCFH-DA probe. The expression levels of Nrf2 and Keap1 in the cells were determined using Western blotting and qRT-PCR. RESULTS: Treatment with curcumin dose- and time-dependently suppressed the viability of B-CPAP cells (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). Curcumin inhibited the migration and invasion (P < 0.001) and promoted ROS production in B-CPAP cells in a dose-dependent manner, and application of NAC effectively reversed curcumin- induced increase of ROS. Curcumin at 20 µmol/L significantly decreased the protein and mRNA expressions of Nrf2 and increased the expressions of Keap1 protein and mRNA (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01), causing also significantly reduced expression of Nrf2 protein in the cell nuclei (P < 0.05) without obviously affecting its expression in the cytoplasm (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Curcumin inhibits the proliferation, migration and invasion of papillary thyriod cancer B-CPAP cells probably via the Keap1-Nrf2 signaling pathway.

Prevalence and risk factors of erectile dysfunction in COVID-19 patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: Studies have found that erectile dysfunction (ED) may be a short-term or long-term complication in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients, but no relevant studies have completed a pooled analysis of this claim. The purpose of the review was to comprehensively search the relevant literature, summarize the prevalence of ED in COVID-19 patients, assess risk factors for its development, and explore the effect of the COVID-19 infection on erectile function. METHODS: Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Library was performed from database inception until April 14, 2022. Heterogeneity was analyzed by χ2 tests and I2 was used as a quantitative test of heterogeneity. Subgroup analyses, meta-regression, and sensitivity analyses were used to analyze sources of heterogeneity. RESULTS: Our review included 8 studies, 4 of which functioned as a control group. There were 250,606 COVID-19 patients (mean age: 31-47.1 years, sample size: 23-246,990). The control group consisted of 10,844,200 individuals (mean age: 32.76-42.4 years, sample size 75-10,836,663). The prevalence of ED was 33% (95% CI 18-47%, I2 = 99.48%) in COVID-19 patients. The prevalence of ED based on the international coding of diseases (ICD-10) was 9% (95% CI 2-19%), which was significantly lower than the prevalence of ED diagnosed based on the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) (46%, 95% CI 22-71%, I2 = 96.72%). The pooling prevalence of ED was 50% (95% CI 34-67%, I2 = 81.54%) for articles published in 2021, significantly higher than that for articles published in 2022 (17%, 95% CI 7-30%, I2 = 99.55%). The relative risk of developing ED was 2.64 times in COVID-19 patients higher than in non-COVID-19 patients (RR: 2.64, 95% CI 1.01-6.88). The GRADE-pro score showed that the mean incidence of ED events in COVID-19 patients was 1,333/50,606 (2.6%) compared with 52,937/844,200 (0.4%) in controls; the absolute impact of COVID-19 on ED was 656/100,000 (ranging from 4/100,000 to 2352/100,000). Anxiety (OR: 1.13, 95% CI 1.03-1.26, I2 = 0.0%) in COVID-19 patients was a risk factor for ED. CONCLUSION: COVID-19 patients have a high risk and prevalence of ED, mainly driven by anxiety. Attention should be paid to patient's erectile functioning when treating COVID-19.

Andrographolide restored production performances and serum biochemical indexes and attenuated organs damage in Mycoplasma gallisepticum-infected broilers.

1. This study aimed to study the preventive and therapeutic effects of andrographolide (Andro) during Mycoplasma gallisepticum HS strain (MG) infection in ArborAcres (AA) broilers.2. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of Andro against MG was measured. Broiler body weight, feed efficiency, morbidity, cure rate and mortality were recorded during the experiment. Air sac lesion scores and immune organ index were calculated. Expression of pMGA1.2 in lung tissue and serum biochemical indices were examined. Histopathological examinations of immune organs, liver, trachea and lung tissue were conducted by Haematoxylin and Eosin stain.3. MIC was 3.75 µg/mL and Andro significantly inhibited the expression of pMGA1.2 (P ≤ 0.05). Compared with control MG-infected group, Andro low-dose and high-dose prevention reduced the morbidity of chronic respiratory disease in 40.00% and 50.00%, respectively. Mortality of C, D and E group was 16.67%, 10.00% and 6.67%, respectively. Cure rate of E, F, G and H group was 92.00%, 92.86%, 93.33% and 100.0%, respectively. Compared with control MG-infected group, Andro treatment significantly increased average weight gain (AWG), relative weight gain rate (RWG) and feed conversion rate (FCR) at 18 to 24 days (P ≤ 0.05). Compared with control group, Andro alone treatment significantly increased AWG in broilers (P ≤ 0.05).4. Compared with control MG-infected group, Andro significantly attenuated MG-induced air sac lesion, immune organs, liver, trachea and lung damage in broilers. Andro alone treatment did not induce abnormal morphological changes in these organs in healthy broilers. Serum biochemical analysis results showed, comparing with control MG-infected group, Andro significantly decreased the content of total protein, albumin, globulin, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, total bilirubin, urea, creatinine, uric acid, total cholesterol, and increased the albumin/globulin ratio and content of alkaline phosphatase, apolipoprotein B and apolipoprotein A-I in a dose-dependent manner (P ≤ 0.05).5. Andro could act as a potential agent against MG infection in broilers.

Strain coupling of ferroelastic domains and misfit dislocations in [101]-oriented ferroelectric PbTiO3 films.

High-index perovskite ferroelectric thin films possess excellent dielectric permittivity, piezoelectric coefficient, and exotic ferroelectric switching properties. They also exhibit complications in the ferroelastic domains, misfit dislocations, and strain-relaxation behaviors. Exploring the relationship of the ferroelastic domains and misfit dislocations may be of benefit for promoting the high-quality growth of these thin films. Here, the strain field of the ferroelastic domains and misfit dislocations in [101]-oriented PbTiO3/(La, Sr)(Al, Ta)O3 epitaxial thin films were investigated by advanced aberration-corrected (scanning) transmission electron microscopy (TEM) combined with geometry phase analysis (GPA). Two types of misfit dislocations with projected Burgers vectors of a[001] or a[100] on the (010) plane were elucidated, whose strain fields included in-plane strain and lattice rotation coupled with the c domains above them. Besides, it was demonstrated that the coupling was kept inside the PbTiO3 films when the film thickness was increased. Furthermore, the polarization rotation was observed in both narrow c domains and around the misfit dislocation cores, which may be attributed to the flexoelectric effect. These results are expected to provide useful information for understanding the nucleation and propagation mechanism of ferroelastic domains and for further modifying the growth of high-index ferroelectric thin films.

Prognostic value of left atrial longitudinal strain by cardiac MRI feature tracking in atrial fibrillation patients with mitral valve disease.

AIM: To evaluate the prognostic value of left atrial global longitudinal strain (LAGLS) in atrial fibrillation (AF) patients with mitral valve disease (MVD). MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this single-centre retrospective study, 48 consecutive AF patients with MVD who underwent cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI) before surgery were enrolled. The LAGLS was assessed by cine-CMRI images and feature tracking (CMRI-FT) technique. Logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis were performed to identify the value of LAGLS in predicting atrial tachyarrhythmia recurrence after surgery. RESULTS: The LAGLS level of the total patients was 4.4% (interquartile range: 2.7-9.2%). LAGLS was significantly associated with many evaluated parameters of severity of disease including biventricular volumetric function, left atrial (LA) ejection fraction, and the European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation II score (all p<0.05). Multivariate Cox analysis showed that LAGLS (hazard ratio = 0.52, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.31, 0.87; p=0.013) was an independent predictor of atrial tachyarrhythmia recurrence after adjustment for LA diameter, LA and biventricular ejection fraction, aetiology of MVD (rheumatic or degenerative), and surgical procedure (valve surgery alone or valve surgery combined with Maze IV). The optimal cut-off value of LAGLS was 4.1% for predicting recurrent atrial tachyarrhythmia (sensitivity 81.8%, specificity 78.4%) and the area under the ROC curve was 0.854 (95% CI: 0.711, 0.996, p<0.001). CONCLUSION: CMRI-FT-derived LAGLS may act as a novel non-invasive imaging biomarker with which to evaluate the severity of disease and offer independent prognostic information for atrial tachyarrhythmia recurrence after surgery in AF patients with MVD.

[Clinical characteristics and risk factors of lower extremity arterial disease in patients with diabetic foot ulcer].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical characteristics of lower extremity arterial disease (LEAD) and its risk factors in patients with diabetic foot ulcer (DFU). METHODS: We retrospectively collected the clinical and follow-up data of 650 patients with DFU treated in the Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism of Nanfang Hospital between January, 2017 and December, 2019. We compared the data between patients who had LEAD and those without LEAD and used a multivariate logistic regression model to analyze the risk factors of LEAD in DFU patients. RESULTS: Among the 650 DFU patients, 470 (72.4%) had LEAD. The patients were followed up for a mean of 3.5 months, and the mean healing time of DFU was 2.55 months; healing of DFU occurred in 453 patients and 183 patients received amputation. The patients with LEAD and those without LEAD differed significantly in age, hospitalization costs, diastolic blood pressure (DBP), glycated hemoglobin, blood lipid levels, disease course, ankle brachial index, healing time, smoking history, clinical outcomes, Wagner grade and imaging results (P < 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified age (OR=1.070, 95% CI: 1.049-1.091), smoking history (OR= 2.013, 95% CI: 1.268-3.195), and a decreased DBP (OR=0.980, 95% CI: 0.963-0.997) as independent risk factors for LEAD in DFU patients. A prolonged healing time was a prominent clinical feature of DFU complicated by LEAD. CONCLUSION: DFU patients have a high incidence of LEAD, which leads to high rates of disability and mortality and is associated with an advanced age, high smoking rate and longer healing time. A decreased DBP is also a risk factor for LEAD in DFU patients.

[Using energy spectrum CT to evaluate the characteristics of adult abdominal fat distribution and analyze its influencing factors].

Objective: To evaluate the characteristics of adult abdominal fat distribution and analyze its influencing factors by energy spectrum CT scan. Methods: The body height, weight, waist circumference, and hip circumference of 105 adults were measured, and the characteristics of abdominal fat distribution were evaluated by energy spectrum CT scan. Results: Compared with non-obese individuals, the contents of abdominal subcutaneous fat, abdominal cavity and liver ectopic fat were higher in obese patients (P<0.05), and the intramuscular fat (IMAT) content did not increase with the increase of BMI. In middle-aged group, the waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) abdominal cavity area and IMAT content were higher than those in the youth group, and the muscle content of the middle-aged group was lower than that of the youth group, the difference between the two groups was significant (P<0.05); the male group had higher abdominal cavity area and muscle content than the female group, while the female group had higher the subcutaneous fat area, abdominal subcutaneous fat thickness and erector spinae fat content than the male group, the differences were significant (P<0.05). Conclusions: The characteristics of abdominal fat distribution of subjects with different BMI, age and gender were different. Therefore, we should pay attention to the individual assessment of ectopic fat distribution in obese patients. Energy spectrum CT can be used as an important approach for the assessment of ectopic fat to provide evidence for developing individualized weight loss programs.

COPB2: a transport protein with multifaceted roles in cancer development and progression

The Coatomer protein complex subunit beta 2 (COPB2) is involved in the formation of the COPI coatomer protein complex and is responsible for the transport of vesicles between the Golgi apparatus and the endoplasmic reticulum. It plays an important role in maintaining the integrity of these cellular organelles, as well as in maintaining cell homeostasis. More importantly, COPB2 plays key roles in embryonic development and tumor progression. COPB2 is regarded as a vital oncogene in several cancer types and has been implicated in tumor cell proliferation, survival, invasion, and metastasis. Here, we summarize the current knowledge on the roles of COPB2 in cancer development and progression in the context of the hallmarks of cancer (AU)

[An unsupervised unimodal registration method based on Wasserstein Gan].

We propose an unsupervised unimodal registration method based on Wasserstein Gan. Different from the existing registration methods based on deep learning, the proposed method can finish training without ground truth or preset similarity metrics. The network is composed of a generation network and a discrimination network. The generation network extracts the potential deformation fields between fixed images (positive images) and moving images, and predicts the registered images (negative images) by interpolation; the discrimination network then judges the similarity between the positive images and negative images that are input alternately, and feeds back the judgment result as a loss function to drive the network parameter update. Finally, through adversarial training, the registration image generated by the generation network deceives the discrimination network and the network converges. In the experiment, we randomly selected 30 cases of LPBA40 brain dataset, 25 cases of EMPIRE10 lung dataset and 15 cases of ACDC heart dataset as the training datasets, with 10 cases of LPBA40 brain dataset, 5 cases of EMPIRE10 lung dataset and 5 cases of ACDC heart dataset as the test datasets. The results of registration were compared with those obtained using Affine algorithm, Demons algorithm, SyN algorithm and VoxelMorph algorithm. The DICE coefficient (DSC) and the normalized correlation coefficient (NCC) evaluation index of the proposed algorithm were the highest, indicating a better registration accuracy of our method than Affine algorithm, Demons algorithm, SyN algorithm and the current unsupervised SOTA algorithm VoxelMorph.

COPB2: a transport protein with multifaceted roles in cancer development and progression.

The Coatomer protein complex subunit beta 2 (COPB2) is involved in the formation of the COPI coatomer protein complex and is responsible for the transport of vesicles between the Golgi apparatus and the endoplasmic reticulum. It plays an important role in maintaining the integrity of these cellular organelles, as well as in maintaining cell homeostasis. More importantly, COPB2 plays key roles in embryonic development and tumor progression. COPB2 is regarded as a vital oncogene in several cancer types and has been implicated in tumor cell proliferation, survival, invasion, and metastasis. Here, we summarize the current knowledge on the roles of COPB2 in cancer development and progression in the context of the hallmarks of cancer.

Baicalin ameliorates Mycoplasma gallisepticum-induced lung inflammation in chicken by inhibiting TLR6-mediated NF-κB signalling.

1. Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) causes severe lung inflammation and cell damage by activating toll-like receptor (TLR) signalling, the nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) pathway and pro-inflammatory cytokine gene expression. Baicalin (BA) is a flavonoid extracted from Scutellaria baicalensis, which possesses anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties. This study investigated the effect of BA in MG-induced lung inflammation and its potential mechanism in MG-infected chicken embryo lungs and DF-1 cells.2. The histopathological examination result showed that BA treatment alleviated MG-induced lung pathological changes. In addition, CCK-8 and cell cycle assays showed that BA treatment inhibited MG-induced cell proliferation and cell cycle progression in DF-1 cells.3. The ELISA and RT-qPCR results demonstrated that BA treatment decreased the expression of interleukin-1beta (IL-1ß), IL-6, and tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) both in MG-infected chicken embryo lungs and DF-1 cells.4. The results revealed that BA inhibited mRNA expression levels of toll-like receptor-6 (TLR6), myeloid differentiation primary response gene-88 (MyD88) and nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB), and the nuclear translocation of NF-κB-p655. In conclusion, the results showed that BA has a protective effect against MG-induced lung inflammation in chicken by inhibiting the TLR6-mediated NF-κB signalling.

[The early results of pulmonary autograft mitral valve replacement (Ross â ¡) in infants].

Objective: To evaluate the early results of pulmonary autograft mitral valve replacement (Ross Ⅱ procedure) in infants with intractable congenital mitral valve lesions. Methods: Between August 2018 and September 2019, 6 infants underwent mitral valve replacement with a pulmonary autograft in Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center. There were 2 males and 4 females.The age at surgery ranged from 50 days to 1 year old.Preoperative diagnoses included severe to critic mitral valve insuffiency in all patients, moderate mitral valve stenosis in 3 patients, and mitral valve prolapse in one. When the pulmonary autograft was harvested, a cuff of bovine or autologous pericardium was sewn onto the proximal (infundibular) end of the autograft ( "top-hat" configuration). The distal (pulmonary) end of the autograft was secured to the mitral annulus.At the level of the left atrial free wall, the pericardial cuff was progressively tailored and sewn onto the atrial wall to remain away from the ostia of the pulmonary veins and to maintain normal morphology of the autograft. The bovine jugular valved conduit was used to reconstruct the right ventricular outflow tract. Results: There was one early death due to sudden cardiac arrest at the night of surgery day. The remaining 5 patients were successfully recovered and discharged. Follow-up of survivors ranged from 3 to 13 months. Echocardiographic follow-up demonstrated the flow velocity across the mitral valve position was 1.5 to 2.3 m/s, with a means gradient of 4 to 6 mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa). Four patients showed mild mitral insuffiency, normal left atrium and ventricle size and left ventricle ejection fraction.One patient had moderate mitral insuffiency, pulmonary valve endocarditis, and reduced left ventricle ejection fraction. The clinical symptoms of all survivals improved significantly and the weight gain were satisfactory. Conclusion: Pulmonary autograft mitral valve replacement may be a feasible and effective remedial surgical strategy for young infants with intractable congenital mitral valve lesions.

Long non-coding RNA PVT1 functions as an oncogene in ovarian cancer via upregulating SOX2.

Since this article has been suspected of research misconduct and the corresponding authors did not respond to our request to prove originality of data and figures, "Long non-coding RNA PVT1 functions as an oncogene in ovarian cancer via upregulating SOX2, by M.-F. Zou, J. Ling, Q.-Y. Wu, C.-X. Zhang, published in Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci 2018; 22 (21): 7183-7188-DOI: 10.26355/eurrev_201811_16251-PMID: 30468460" has been withdrawn. The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. https://www.europeanreview.org/article/16251.

Polar meron lattice in strained oxide ferroelectrics.

A topological meron features a non-coplanar structure, whose order parameters in the core region are perpendicular to those near the perimeter. A meron is half of a skyrmion, and both have potential applications for information carrying and storage. Although merons and skyrmions in ferromagnetic materials can be readily obtained via inter-spin interactions, their behaviour and even existence in ferroelectric materials are still elusive. Here we observe using electron microscopy not only the atomic morphology of merons with a topological charge of 1/2, but also a periodic meron lattice in ultrathin PbTiO3 films under tensile epitaxial strain on a SmScO3 substrate. Phase-field simulations rationalize the formation of merons for which an epitaxial strain, as a single alterable parameter, plays a critical role in the coupling of lattice and charge. This study suggests that by engineering strain at the nanoscale it should be possible to fabricate topological polar textures, which in turn could facilitate the development of nanoscale ferroelectric devices.