Ligand-free Pd-catalyzed highly selective arylation of activated and unactivated alkenes via oxidative and reductive heck coupling.

In this work, an eco-friendly, green, efficient approach for oxidative and reductive Heck-Mizoroki (HM) reactions was developed, which offered acceptable yields from first-pass experiments. Mono-arylation was achieved without the use of ligands, directing groups, or prefunctionalized alkenes. Considering mild reaction conditions, good functional group compatibility, and great regioselectivity, the method can find broad applications in novel medicine and material development and discovery processes.

Submillimeter-scale multimaterial terrestrial robots.

Robots with submillimeter dimensions are of interest for applications that range from tools for minimally invasive surgical procedures in clinical medicine to vehicles for manipulating cells/tissues in biology research. The limited classes of structures and materials that can be used in such robots, however, create challenges in achieving desired performance parameters and modes of operation. Here, we introduce approaches in manufacturing and actuation that address these constraints to enable untethered, terrestrial robots with complex, three-dimensional (3D) geometries and heterogeneous material construction. The manufacturing procedure exploits controlled mechanical buckling to create 3D multimaterial structures in layouts that range from arrays of filaments and origami constructs to biomimetic configurations and others. A balance of forces associated with a one-way shape memory alloy and the elastic resilience of an encapsulating shell provides the basis for reversible deformations of these structures. Modes of locomotion and manipulation span from bending, twisting, and expansion upon global heating to linear/curvilinear crawling, walking, turning, and jumping upon laser-induced local thermal actuation. Photonic structures such as retroreflectors and colorimetric sensing materials support simple forms of wireless monitoring and localization. These collective advances in materials, manufacturing, actuation, and sensing add to a growing body of capabilities in this emerging field of technology.

Effects of copper and arsenic on their uptake and distribution in As-hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata.

Arsenic (As) and copper (Cu) are common co-contaminates in soils. However, their interactive effects on their accumulation and distribution in As-hyperaccumulator Pteris vittata are poorly understood. A hydroponic experiment was conducted with As being 0, 5, or 50 µM and Cu being 0.32, 3.2, or 32 µM to evaluate their phytotoxicity, accumulation, and distribution in P. vittata. In addition, As and Cu uptake kinetics were examined using the Michaelis-Menten kinetics model. Total As and Cu concentrations in P. vittata were up to 487 and 1355 mg kg-1. About 39-81% of the As was in the fronds compared to 0.6-18% for Cu. At 50 µM As, increasing Cu concentration from 0.32 to 32 µM increased root As while decreasing frond As concentrations, with the translocation factor (ratio of As in fronds to roots) being reduced from 4.0 to 0.31. In contrast, As did not affect Cu accumulation in P. vittata. Michaelis constant Km value for As was higher than that of Cu (6.49-24.9 vs. 0.43-3.36), consistent with higher Cu uptake than As. Besides, Cu reduced root K but increased P levels in the roots, whereas As increased the K and P concentrations in the fronds. Our results suggest that P. vittata accumulated more Cu than As in the roots, contributing to its low As translocation. As such, high levels of Cu are likely to reduce As uptake by P. vittata during phytoremediation of As-contaminated sites.

[A survey of regional citrate anticoagulation for emergency continuous renal replacement therapy].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the status of regional citrate anticoagulation (RCA) in continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) in emergency department. METHODS: Participants of a national emergency conference from August 1st to August 4th in 2019 from hospitals of different levels in different regions were interviewed by online questionnaire to collect data about the current status and limitations of the application of RCA in emergency CRRT by convenient sampling. RESULTS: Totally 407 questionnaires were collected through internet, and the completeness of the answers was as high as 100%. Twenty-three responses with logic errors were excluded, and 384 questionnaires were finally retrieved, with an effective rate of 94.35%. Representatives from 29 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government participated in the questionnaire survey, and the hospitals in which they worked were mainly class III grade A [70.31% (270/384)]. The survey showed that 61.46% (236/384) of the emergency departments could carry out CRRT independently. There were less than 10 CRRT cases per month in most emergency departments [52.87% (166/314)]. In the emergency departments where CRRT were carried out, heparin was a widely used and well-applied anticoagulant [82.17% (258/314)], and 199 emergency departments (63.38%) were proficient in RCA. In clinical practice, heparin [49.68% (156/314)] was preferred to RCA [25.80% (81/314)] and low molecular weight heparin [23.56% (74/384)]. In the emergency departments where RCA could be used skillfully, 4% sodium citrate was the main regional anticoagulant [68.34% (136/199)]. Anticoagulation protocol came from different sources, most of which were from nephrology or dialysis center (29.65%). Most departments could adjust the ionized calcium before the filter to the target safety level [0.9-1.2 mmol/L, 88.94% (177/199)], and adjust the ionized calcium after the filter to the target ideal anticoagulation level [0.2-0.4 mmol/L, 93.47% (186/199)] within 4 hours. The common complications that emergency physicians concerned were accumulation of citrate [58.29% (116/199)], metabolic alkalosis [54.77% (109/199)] and metabolic acidosis [37.19% (74/199)]. In 281 emergency departments that could not use RCA, there were kinds of factors that limited the use of citrate, such as higher cost than heparin (31.67%), unskilled personnel (21.00%), limited source of citrate (17.08%), concerns of complications (11.74%). At present, the substitution fluids used in clinical practice were mainly the commercial products (45.54%). In most cases, emergency CRRT filters had a life span of 12-23 hours (39.49%). CONCLUSIONS: The use of RCA in domestic emergency CRRT is low. Compared with the international peers, we are still lacking of adequate understanding of RCA. Therefore, it is necessary to develop an anticoagulation protocol of RCA for emergency departments in China, and promote training of CRRT.

Intensive insulin therapy versus plasmapheresis in the management of hypertriglyceridemia-induced acute pancreatitis (Bi-TPAI trial): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: It is widely agreed that triglyceride (TG)-lowering therapy is imperative in early hypertriglyceridemia-induced acute pancreatitis (HTG-AP). Intravenous insulin with or without heparin, and plasmapheresis are available regimens. However, there is no consensus on first-line therapy. METHODS/DESIGN: The Bi-TPAI trial is a multicenter, parallel group, randomized, controlled, non-inferiority trial in patients with early HTG-AP. The Bi-TPAI trial will include 220 patients with HTG-AP from 17 large tertiary hospitals in China. Patients assigned to the intensive insulin group will be administered an intravenous continuous infusion of regular human insulin at a rate of 0.1 units/kg·h and up to 0.3 units/kg·h. Patients allocated to the plasmapheresis group will receive standard-volume plasmapheresis. The primary endpoint is the time it takes for the TG level to reduce to 500 mg/dl. The secondary endpoints are ICU and hospital lengths of stay, 28-day mortality, severity of HTG-AP, incidence of hypoglycemia, HTG-AP complications, and cost-effectiveness. DISCUSSION: The Bi-TPAI trial will prove that intensive insulin therapy is non-inferior to plasmapheresis. Intensive insulin therapy should be an effective, safe, available, and cheaper triglyceride-lowering therapy for hypertriglyceridemia-induced acute pancreatitis. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03342807 . Registered on 5 Nov 2017.

Rho kinase: A new target for treatment of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.

Rho kinase inhibitor fasudil hydrochloride has been shown to reduce cerebral vasospasm, to inhibit inflammation and apoptosis and to promote the recovery of neurological function. However, the effect of fasudil hydrochloride on claudin-5 protein expression has not been reported after cerebral ischemia/reperfusion. Therefore, this study sought to explore the effects of fasudil hydrochloride on blood-brain barrier permeability, growth-associated protein-43 and claudin-5 protein expression, and to further understand the neuroprotective effect of fasudil hydrochloride. A focal cerebral ischemia/reperfusion model was established using the intraluminal suture technique. Fasudil hydrochloride (15 mg/kg) was intraperitoneally injected once a day. Neurological deficit was evaluated using Longa's method. Changes in permeability of blood-brain barrier were measured using Evans blue. Changes in RhoA, growth-associated protein-43 and claudin-5 protein expression were detected using immunohistochemistry and western blotting. Results revealed that fasudil hydrochloride noticeably contributed to the recovery of neurological function, improved the function of blood-brain barrier, inhibited RhoA protein expression, and upregulated growth-associated protein-43 and claudin-5 protein expression following cerebral ischemia/reperfusion. Results indicated that Rho kinase exhibits a certain effect on neurovascular damage following cerebral ischemia/reperfusion. Intervention targeted Rho kinase might be a new therapeutic target in the treatment of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion.