Self-breakdown statistics of a high-pressure spark gap with a microarray graphite cathode.

Comparative measurements with high-pressure spark gaps (gas pressure: 0.2-0.9 MPa nitrogen, gap spacing 5 mm) are presented, one with a regular Bruce-profile polished graphite cathode (diameter 25 mm, thickness 8 mm) and the other with a microarray graphite cathode of equal dimensions. By microstructuring, a V-type graphite microarray is created by purpose-developed laser treatment of a plane graphite electrode. The microarray graphite cathode brings more initial plasma and then produces more initial electrons. It is beneficial for electron emission, which improves the stability of the switch breakdown. The experimental results are achieved at a gas pressure of 0.9 MPa and a 200-kV voltage pulse applied to the switch. With these parameters, the mean breakdown voltage is 91.7 kV, the minimum is 91.4 kV, and the mean relative standard deviation in breakdown voltage of the first 100 shots is 0.4%. Compared to a plane graphite cathode, the mean breakdown voltage is about 10% lower, and the mean relative standard deviation is reduced by more than 90%. The main result can be stated that microarray graphite cathodes are a suitable choice as electrodes for low-jitter high-pressure spark gaps.

Low T3 syndrome predicts more adverse events in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

BACKGROUND: Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a common cardiac genetic disorder that clinically manifests with sudden death and progressive heart failure. Moreover, thyroid dysfunction is associated with increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality risks. Therefore, this study aimed to clarify whether thyroid hormones could serve as an independent predictor of adverse events in patients with HCM. METHODS: The cohort consisted of 782 patients with HCM who had thyroid hormones baseline data and were admitted to the Affiliated Hospital of Jiaxing University. Patients were divided into two groups according to serum levels of free triiodothyronine (fT3): the normal fT3 and low triiodothyronine (T3) syndrome groups. Low T3 syndrome was defined as fT3 < 2.43 pmol/L with a normal thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) level. Patients whose TSH levels were abnormally high or abnormally low were excluded from this study. The primary endpoint was the occurrence of sudden cardiac death (SCD) events, and the secondary endpoint was a composite of worsening heart failure (WHF) events, including heart failure death, cardiac decompensation, hospitalization for heart failure, and HCM-related stroke. The Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression were performed for the survival analysis. RESULTS: After a median follow-up of 52 months, 75 SCD events and 134 WHF events were recorded. The Kaplan-Meier survival curves showed that the cumulative incidence of SCD events and WHF events were significantly higher in patients with low T3 syndrome (log-rank p = .02 and log-rank p = .001, respectively). Furthermore, multivariate Cox regression analysis demonstrated that low T3 syndrome is a strong predictor of SCD events and WHF events (adjusted hazard ratio [HR: 1.53, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.13-2.24, p < .01; HR: 3.87, 95% CI: 2.91-4.98, p < .001, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Low T3 syndrome is highly prevalent among patients with HCM and was independently associated with an increased risk of SCD events and WHF events. The routine assessment of serum fT3 levels may provide risk stratification in this population.

Analysis between ABO blood group and clinical outcomes in COVID-19 patients and the potential mediating role of ACE2.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has become the most common coronavirus that causes large-scale infections worldwide. Currently, several studies have shown that the ABO blood group is associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection and some studies have also suggested that the infection of COVID-19 may be closely related to the interaction between angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) and blood group antigens. However, the relationship between blood type to clinical outcome in critically ill patients and the mechanism of action is still unclear. The current study aimed to examine the correlation between blood type distribution and SARS-CoV-2 infection, progression, and prognosis in patients with COVID-19 and the potential mediating role of ACE2. With 234 patients from 5 medical centers and two established cohorts, 137 for the mild cohort and 97 for the critically ill cohort, we found that the blood type A population was more sensitive to SARS-CoV-2, while the blood type distribution was not relevant to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), acute kidney injury (AKI), and mortality in COVID-19 patients. Further study showed that the serum ACE2 protein level of healthy people with type A was significantly higher than that of other blood groups, and type O was the lowest. The experimental results of spike protein binding to red blood cells also showed that the binding rate of people with type A was the highest, and that of people with type O was the lowest. Our finding indicated that blood type A may be the biological marker for susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection and may be associated with potential mediating of ACE2, but irrelevant to the clinical outcomes including ARDS, AKI, and death. These findings can provide new ideas for clinical diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of COVID-19.

First Report of Bark Split Disease Caused by Pectobacterium carotovorum on Artocarpus heterophyllus (Jackfruit) in China.

Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) is widely cultivated in the tropical areas in the world. Jackfruit bark split disease occurred in the large-scale plantations of 18 cities and counties surveyed in Hainan since 2021, among which the incidence rate of serious orchards reached about 70%, and the mortality rate reached about 35%. Jackfruit bark split disease mainly harms tree branches and trunks, manifested as water stains, bark gumming, bark depression, bark cracking, and ultimately plant death. To identify the pathogen, Four samples with jackfruit bark split disease symptoms were collected, sterilized with 75% ethanol for 30 s, then soaked in 2% sodium hypochlorite (NaClO) for 5 mins, and finally rinsed continuously with sterilized distilled water. The sterilized tissues were placed on LB agar medium and incubated in illumination incubator at 28 ℃. Four milky white, round with neat edges, convex and smooth, translucent colonies were obtained. All isolates (JLPs-1 to JLPs-4) were Gram-negative, negative for oxidase, catalase and gelatin liquefaction. Amplification and sequencing of 16S rDNA gene from 4 isolates were conducted with the universal primers 27f /1492r (Lane et al. 1991). The BLASTn analysis of obtained JLPs-1 and JLPs-3 sequences (GenBank accession nos. OP942452 and OP942453) showed an identity percentage of 98.99% and 98.93% with Pectobacterium sp. (CP104733), respectively. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rDNA gene using the neighbor-joining method with MEGA 7.0 software revealed that JLPs-1 and JLPs-3 were clustered together with P. carotovorum reference strains. The four housekeeping genes gyrA, recA, rpoA and rpoS were partially sequenced for JLPs-1 isolates using primers gyrA1/gyrA4, recA1/recA2c, rpoS1/rpoS2 and rpoA F1/rpoA R1 (Loc et al. 2022), respectively. Multilocus sequence analyses identified the isolates from jackfruit as P. carotovorum. To further confirm the identification of Pectobacterium carotovorum, pelY gene, P. carotovorum subsp. Brasiliensis 16S-23S intergenic region (Pcb IGS) and P. carotovorum subsp. carotovorum (Pcc) specific fragment were amplified with primers Y1/Y2 (Darrasse et al. 1994), BR1f/L1r (Duarte et al. 2004) and EXPCCF/EXPCCR (Kang et al. 2003), respectively. A 540 bp target fragment was successfully amplified from JTPs only by EXPCCF/EXPCCR and there no bands for the other two primers. Pathogenicity test was performed in the field, and all the inoculated trees were 2-3-year-old 'Qiong Yin No.1' variety. Dense small holes were pierced with sterilized inoculation needle on four healthy jackfruit trees. Then punctured wounds were spraying-inoculated with bacteria suspension of JLPs-1 (108 CFU/ml), and finally wrapped with plastic wrap to moisturize. Two trees inoculated with sterile distilled water served as negative control. Typical symptoms of bark gumming, bark depression, bark cracking were observed on all of the inoculated trees at 17 dpi which just similar to those originally caused by P. carotovorum in the field, whereas negative control trees remained asymptomatic. The strains were re-isolated successfully from symptomatic jackfruit trees and were consistent with the biological and molecular biological characteristics of original strains, confirming that the pathogen of jackfruit bark split disease was Pectobacterium carotovorum. To our knowledge, this is the first report of P. carotovorum causing bark split disease on jackfruit in China.

First Report of Bronzing Disease Caused by Pantoea stewartii on Jackfruit in China.

Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) is an important tropical commercial fruit crop grown in Hainan province, China. In recent years, severe jackfruit bronzing disease has been found in 11 cities and counties in Hainan. On average, 80% of trees in a jackfruit orchard are affected once bronzing disease is detected. The disease is characterized by yellow-orange to reddish discoloration of the pulp and rags of infected fruit (Hernández-Morales et al. 2017). Jackfruit bronzing disease has been reported previously in the Philippines (Gapasin et al. 2012), Malaysia (Zulperi et al. 2017), and Mexico (Hernández-Morales et al. 2017). Diseased samples of jackfruit 'Tai Eight' with the bronzing symptoms were collected from a plantation in Changjiang, Hainan. The samples were sterilized with 75% ethanol for 30 s, then soaked with 1% sodium hypochlorite for 8 min, and rinsed with sterilized distilled water. The sterilized tissues were ground in 2 mL sterile water, and allowed to stand for 30 min. Then, 500 µL of the supernatant was spread on Glucose-Yeast agar medium and incubated overnight at 28ºC. Representative bacterial colonies were lemon-yellow, convex and smooth, transparent with entire edges. Colonies were Gram-negative, positive for catalase and gelatin liquefaction, which were consistent with the characteristics of P. stewartii subsp. stewartii. In PCR amplifications, an 920 bp amplicon of strain JTPE2 with the primers ES16/ESIG2c (Coplin et al. 2002) and an 1100 bp amplicon of strain JTPC2 with the primers CPSL1/CPSR2c (Ibrahim et al. 2019) were obtained, whereas no bands were observed for the negative control samples. The ES16/ESIG2c and CPSL1/CPSR2c fragments were sequenced for nucleotide BLAST (BLASTn) searches of the NCBI database and phylogenetic tree construction. The obtained ES16/ESIG2c sequences (SAR accession no. SRR22405292) showed 99.07%-99.60% similarity with P. stewartii subsp. stewartii (CP017581, AJ311838 and MF598163). The obtained CPSL1/CPSR2c sequences (SAR accession no. SRR22405293) showed 99.40%-99.99% similarity with P. stewartii subsp. stewartii (MW971422, MH752485 and MH257287). Phylogenetic analysis based on cpsDE sequences (Ibrahim et al. 2019) using the maximum likelihood method revealed that strains JTPE2 and JTPC2 were clustered together with P. stewartii subsp. stewartii. A pathogenicity test was conducted by injecting 2 mL of 108 CFU/ml bacterial suspension into pulp from healthy, surface-sterilized jackfruit. Pulp injected with sterilized distilled water served as a negative control. All inoculated samples produced bronzing symptoms from 2-3 weeks post-inoculation similar to the field-observed symptoms, whereas control fruit were asymptomatic. The strains were reisolated from symptomatic jackfruit pulp to complete Koch's postulates. The bacterial suspension was inoculated on 2-week-old maize seedlings to supplement in vivo pathogenicity testing. Typical Stewart's disease leaf symptoms were visible at 2 weeks post-inoculation. Based on morphological, biochemical, and physiological evidence, pathogenicity tests, and molecular analyses, the pathogenic bacterium isolated from 'Tai Eight' jackfruit was identified as P. stewartii subsp. stewartii. To our knowledge, this is the first report of bronzing disease caused by P. stewartii subsp. stewartii on jackfruit in China, which may assist in preventing the global spread of jackfruit bronzing disease.

Tibetan medicine salidroside improves host anti-mycobacterial response by boosting inflammatory cytokine production in zebrafish.

The treatment for tuberculosis (TB), especially multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB), has a prolonged cycle which can last up to a year. This is partially due to the lack of effective therapies. The development of novel anti-TB drugs from the perspective of host immune regulation can provide an important supplement for conventional treatment strategies. Salidroside (SAL), a bioactive component from the Tibetan medicine Rhodiola rosea, has been used in the treatment of TB, although its mechanism remains unclear. Here, the bacteriostatic effect of SAL in vivo was first demonstrated using a zebrafish-M. marinum infection model. To further investigate the underlying mechanism, we then examined the impact of SAL on immune cell recruitment during wound and infection. Increased macrophage and neutrophil infiltrations were found both in the vicinity of the wound and infection sites after SAL treatment compared with control, which might be due to the elevated chemokine expression levels after SAL treatment. SAL treatment alone was also demonstrated to improve the survival of infected zebrafish larvae, an effect that was amplified when combining SAL treatment with isoniazid or rifampicin. Interestingly, the reduced bacterial burden and improved survival rate under SAL treatment were compromised in tnfα-deficient embryos which suggests a requirement of Tnfα signaling on the anti-mycobacterial effects of SAL. In summary, this study provides not only the cellular and molecular mechanisms for the host anti-mycobacterial effects of the Tibetan medicine SAL but also proof of concept that combined application of SAL with traditional first-line anti-TB drugs could be a novel strategy to improve treatment efficacy.

Coronary functional assessment in non-obstructive coronary artery disease: Present situation and future direction.

Non-obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD), which is defined as coronary stenosis <50%, has been increasingly recognized as an emerging entity in clinical practice. Vasomotion abnormality and coronary microvascular dysfunction are two major mechanisms contributing to the occur of angina with non-obstructive CAD. Although routine coronary functional assessment is limited due to several disadvantages, functional evaluation can help to understand the pathophysiological mechanism and/or to exclude specific etiologies. In this review, we summarized the potential mechanisms involved in ischemia with non-obstructive coronary arteries (INOCA) and myocardial infarction with non-obstructive coronary arteries (MINOCA), the two major form of non-obstructive CAD. Additionally, we reviewed currently available functional assessment indices and their use in non-obstructive CAD. Furthermore, we speculated that novel technique combined anatomic and physiologic parameters might provide more individualized therapeutic choice for patients with non-obstructive CAD.

Anxiety Predicts Poor Prognosis in Patients With Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.

Background: Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is the prevalent inherited cardiomyopathy and a major contributor to sudden death and heart failure in young adults. Although depression has been associated with poor prognosis in patients with cardiovascular disease, the relationship between anxiety and HCM clinical outcomes has not been addressed. We aimed to determine the prevalence of anxiety symptoms in patients with HCM and the association between anxiety and adverse prognosis in this population. Methods: A total of 793 patients with HCM were prospectively enrolled and followed up for a mean of 4.1 years from March 2014 to January 2018. The primary endpoint was sudden cardiac death (SCD) events, and the secondary endpoint was HCM-related heart failure events. Anxiety symptoms were assessed using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) during outpatient visits or hospital stays. Results: Elevated scores on the HADS anxiety subscale (HADS-A ≥ 8) were defined as clinically significant anxiety. SCD and HCM-related heart failure events occurred in 76 and 149 patients, respectively, during the follow-up period. Kaplan-Meier survival curves demonstrated the significant association of anxiety with SCD events (log-rank P = 0.012) and HCM-related heart failure events (log-rank P = 0.001). Multivariable Cox regression analysis showed anxiety as a predictor of SCD events and HCM-related heart failure events (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] = 1.42, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.12-2.04, P = 0.03; adjusted HR = 2.9,2 95% CI = 1.73-4.03, P < 0.001), independent of conventional risk factors and depression. Besides, patients with comorbid anxiety and depression showed a fourfold higher risk of heart failure events and 3.5-fold higher risk of SCD versus those with neither (adjusted HR = 4.08, 95% CI = 2.76-5.91, P < 0.001; adjusted HR = 3.52, 95% CI = 2.24-4.67, P < 0.001, respectively). Conclusions: Anxiety was prevalent among Chinese patients with HCM, and it was independently associated with a higher risk of SCD and HCM-related heart failure events, particularly when comorbid with depression. Psychological assessment and intervention should be considered to alleviate anxiety symptoms in this population. Clinical Trial Registration: http://www.chictr.org.cn, identifier: ChiCTR2000040759.

Intercropping Pinto Peanut in Litchi Orchard Effectively Improved Soil Available Potassium Content, Optimized Soil Bacterial Community Structure, and Advanced Bacterial Community Diversity.

Intercropping is widely used in agricultural production due to its capability of raising land productivity and providing an opportunity to achieve sustainable intensification of agriculture. In this study, soil samples from 10 to 20 cm depth of intercropping Pinto peanut in litchi orchard and litchi monoculture mode were established to determine soil attributes, enzyme activities, as well as the effect on soil bacterial diversity. On this basis, 16S rRNA V4-V5 region of soil bacterial communities in litchi/Pinto peanut intercropping (LP) mode and litchi monoculture mode (CK) was detected by the Illumina MiSeq sequencing platform. The results showed that the content of available potassium (AK) in LP was significantly higher than that in CK by 138.9%, and the content of available nitrogen (AN) in LP was significantly lower than that in CK by 19.6%. The soil enzyme activities were higher in LP as a whole, especially sucrase (SC) and acid protease (PT) were significantly higher by 154.4 and 76.5%, respectively. The absolute abundance and alpha diversity of soil microbiota were significantly higher in the intercropping group. Most importantly, endemic species with a significant difference in LP was higher by ~60 times compared to CK treatment. In the aspect of soil bacterial community structure, the dominant phyla of the two groups were Acidobacteria, Proteobacteria, Chloroflexi, and Actinobacteria. At the genus level, the absolute abundance of Flavobacterium and Nitrososphaera was significantly higher by 79.20 and 72.93%, respectively, while that of Candidatus_Koribacter was significantly lower with an amplitude of 62.24% in LP than in CK. Furthermore, the redundancy analysis (RDA) suggested that AK, which was highly associated with the dominant genera and phyla, is the vitally dominating environmental factors in LP groups, while in CK groups, it is AN and pH. In addition, PICRUSt2 analysis indicated that intercropping improved the metabolic activity of bacteria which can be correlated to the resistance of litchi root systems to soil-borne diseases. Overall, this study is expected to provide a theoretical basis and technical support for the healthy intercropping cultivation of litchi.

Hesperetin Inhibits TGF-ß1-Induced Migration and Invasion of Triple Negative Breast Cancer MDA-MB-231 Cells via Suppressing Fyn/Paxillin/RhoA Pathway.

Triple-negative breast cancer is an aggressive subtype of breast cancer with poor clinical outcomes and poor prognosis. Hesperetin is an active component extracted from Citrus fruits and Traditional Chinese Medicine has a wide range of pharmacological effects. Here, we assessed the anti-migration and anti-invasive effects and explored inhibitory mechanisms of hesperetin on metastasis of human triple negative breast cancer MDA-MB-231 cells. Cell viability experiments revealed that 200 µM hesperetin has a clear inhibitory effect on MDA-MB-231 cells. TGF-ß1 treatment induces apparent tumor progression in MDA-MB-231 cells including aberrant wound-healing and invasion ability, which is effectively suppressed by hesperetin co-treatment. Additionally, hesperetin inhibited the TGF-ß1-mediated actin stress fiber formation. Western blot results showed that hesperetin suppressed the TGF-ß1-mediated (i) activation of Fyn, (ii) phosphorylation of paxillin at Y31, Y88, and Y118 sites, (iii) the increased expression of RhoA, and (iv) activation of Rho-kinase. We demonstrated the increased interaction of Fyn with paxillin and RhoA protein in the TGF-ß1-induced metastasis of MDA-MB-231 cells. Small interfering RNA Fyn inhibited phosphorylation of paxillin (Y31) and activation of Rho-kinase induced by TGF-ß1. In conclusion, hesperetin has a significant inhibitory effect on migration and invasion of MDA-MB-231 cells induced by TGF-ß1, which might be attributed to inhibiting the Fyn/paxillin/RhoA pathway.

Ferroptosis: A Novel Therapeutic Target for Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury.

Ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury is a major cause of cell death and organ damage in numerous pathologies, including myocardial infarction, stroke, and acute kidney injury. Current treatment methods for I/R injury are limited. Ferroptosis, which is a newly uncovered type of regulated cell death characterized by iron overload and lipid peroxidation accumulation, has been investigated in various diseases. There is increasing evidence of a close association between ferroptosis and I/R injury, with ferroptosis frequently identified as a new therapeutic target for the management of I/R injury. This review summarizes the current status of ferroptosis and discusses its relationship with I/R injury, as well as potential treatment strategies targeting it.

Mycobacterial fatty acid catabolism is repressed by FdmR to sustain lipogenesis and virulence.

Host-derived fatty acids are an important carbon source for pathogenic mycobacteria during infection. How mycobacterial cells regulate the catabolism of fatty acids to serve the pathogenicity, however, remains unknown. Here, we identified a TetR-family transcriptional factor, FdmR, as the key regulator of fatty acid catabolism in the pathogen Mycobacterium marinum by combining use of transcriptomics, chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by sequencing, dynamic 13C-based flux analysis, metabolomics, and lipidomics. An M. marinum mutant deficient in FdmR was severely attenuated in zebrafish larvae and adult zebrafish. The mutant showed defective growth but high substrate consumption on fatty acids. FdmR was identified as a long-chain acyl-coenzyme A (acyl-CoA)-responsive repressor of genes involved in fatty acid degradation and modification. We demonstrated that FdmR functions as a valve to direct the flux of exogenously derived fatty acids away from ß-oxidation toward lipid biosynthesis, thereby avoiding the overactive catabolism and accumulation of biologically toxic intermediates. Moreover, we found that FdmR suppresses degradation of long-chain acyl-CoAs endogenously synthesized through the type I fatty acid synthase. By modulating the supply of long-chain acyl-CoAs for lipogenesis, FdmR controls the abundance and chain length of virulence-associated lipids and mycolates and plays an important role in the impermeability of the cell envelope. These results reveal that despite the fact that host-derived fatty acids are used as an important carbon source, overactive catabolism of fatty acids is detrimental to mycobacterial cell growth and pathogenicity. This study thus presents FdmR as a potentially attractive target for chemotherapy.

Keratin 18 induces proliferation, migration, and invasion in gastric cancer via the MAPK signalling pathway.

PURPOSE: Keratin 18 (KRT18) is a cytoskeleton protein that plays a key role in multiple cancers. The present study aims to further investigate the roles of KRT18 in gastric cancer (GC) tissues and cells. METHODS: The KRT18 protein expression levels of GC tissues and cells were detected using immunohistochemistry and western blot. The relationship between KRT18 expression levels and the prognosis of GC patients was further analyzed. To explore this relationship, small interfering RNA (siRNA) was used to inhibit the endogenous expression of KRT18 in GC cells. Furthermore, the effects of KRT18 on the proliferation, invasion, migration, and apoptosis of GC cells were analyzed in vitro. In addition, the role of KRT18 in GC-specific processes was investigated. RESULTS: Keratin 18 expression was shown to be up-regulated in GC tissues and associated with poor prognosis. Following KRT18 silencing with siRNA, the proliferation, invasion, and migration ability of GC cells were significantly inhibited, while the apoptotic process was promoted. Furthermore, the activation of the MAPK signalling pathway was identified as the potential mechanism through which KRT18 influenced GC processes. CONCLUSIONS: Keratin 18 plays a cancer-promoting role and might be a potential therapeutic target in the treatment of GC.

[Myricetin reduces the reproductive toxicity of cyclophosphamide in male mice].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect of myrica flavone on male reproductive toxicity induced by cyclophosphamide and its mechanism. METHODS: Thirty 6-week-old male ICR mice were randomly divided into 5 groups: blank control group, cyclophosphamide reproductive injury model group, myricetin low-medium high-dose intervention group. Except the blank control group, the other groups were intraperitoneally injected with cyclophosphamide 50 mg/kg daily for 7 consecutive days. The myricetin group received intragastric administration of 100, 200, and 400 mg/kg myricetin daily for 30 consecutive days since the second day of modeling. The blank control group and the model control group were given an equal volume of a 0. 25% sodium carboxymethyl cellulose solution. The body weight was measured every 3 days, and the day after the last administration, the mice were sacrificed by cervical dislocation, and the epididymis and testes were quickly taken. Testicular weighing, testicular index calculation, epididymis to obtain sperm, sperm analyzer to analyze sperm density and vitality. The expression of Bax and Bcl-2 in testicular tissues was detected by immunoblotting, and the mitochondrial membrane potential of sperm was detected by flow cytometry. RESULTS: After 9 days of modeling, the weight of mice in the model group was lower than that of the blank control group, which was statistically different(P<0. 05). There was no difference between the myricetin treatment group and the model group. The testis index of the model group was(3. 93±0. 91)mg/g, which was significantly lower than that of the blank control group(6. 93±0. 98)mg/g, and the difference was statistically significant(P<0. 05). After treatment with bayberry flavonoids, the testis index increased, in the 100 and 200 groups and 400 mg/kg testis index were(3. 94±1. 21) mg/g, (4. 33±0. 88) mg/g, and(4. 80±0. 43) mg/g, respectively. Compared with model control group, The difference was statistically significant(P<0. 05 and P<0. 01). Compared with the control group, the sperm density, sperm rate of forward movement, sperm rate of non-forward movement, and decreased sperm rate of non-moving sperm increased in the model group. After treatment with bayberry flavonoids, compared with the model group, the sperm density, sperm rate of forward motion, and sperm rate of non-forward motion increased, and the immobility sperm rate decreased. The 200 and 400 mg/kg groups had statistical significance(P<0. 05 or P<0. 01); the normal rate of sperm mitochondrial membrane potential in the model group was(54. 70±5. 45)%, and the normal mitochondrial membrane potential rate after treatment with myricetin of 100, 200 and 400 mg/kg(59. 10±9. 97)%, (62. 10±6. 07)% and(77. 10±8. 87)%, of which the 400 mg/kg group was statistically significant(P<0. 05); the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 in the model group was 5. 92±1. 45, and the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 decreased after treatment with myricetin of 100, 200 and 400 mg/kg, which were 2. 52±0. 51, 1. 71±0. 52 and 1. 07±0. 29. There were statistical differences(P<0. 05 or P<0. 01). CONCLUSION: Myrica flavone can protect sperm mitochondrial membrane potential, inhibit testicular cell apoptosis, and protect the male mice from reproductive toxicity induced by cyclophosphamide.

Treatment of solitary hepatocellular carcinoma up to 2 cm: A PRISMA-compliant systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: In recent years, there has been considerable uncertainty about the optimal treatment option for very early hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with tumor size less than 2 cm. Therefore, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the outcomes of the different treatments. METHODS: This study was designed in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (PRISMA). PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane library were searched for calculating the survival rates, and the "time to event" method was used to compare the outcomes of liver resection (LR) and radiofrequency ablation (RFA). All studies focusing on the treatment of solitary HCC up to 2 cm by different techniques were included in our analysis. The Hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) derived from multivariate and univariate analysis were utilized to assess the treatment risks. RESULTS: We included 32 studies in our systematic review. The median 5-year overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival rate (RFS) for LR were 73% and 47%, respectively, and those for RFA were 73% and 43%, respectively. RFA was found to be associated with increased risk of mortality and recurrence compared to LR (HR = 1.61, 95% CI: 1.35-1.92, P < .0001 for OS and HR = 1.75, 95% CI: 1.56-1.96, P < .0001 for RFS). CONCLUSION: Our meta-analysis demonstrated that LR is superior to RFA in the treatment of solitary HCC up to 2 cm, with reduction in mortality and recurrence risk and improved long-term outcome.

[Effects of curcumin on protein expression of glucose regulated protein 78 and caspase-12 of myocardial endoplasmic reticulum stress related factors in type 2 diabetes rats].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effect of curcumin on the expression of glucose regulated protein 78 kD(GRP78) and cysteinyl aspartate specific proteinase-12(caspase-12) of myocardial endoplasmic reticulum stress related factors in type 2 diabetes rats. METHODS: Type 2 diabetes rats model was established by high-fat drink feeding and one-time intraperitoneal injecting streptozotocin(35 mg/kg). After model rats were built, rats was randomly divided into diabetic model group and low dose of curcumin group(200 mg/kg), high dose of curcumin group(400 mg/kg) and captopril group(60 mg/kg) with 10 rats in each group. The rats in each group were ig administered with corresponding drugs once a day. Continuous administration for 12 w. The levels of fasting blood glucose(FBG) and lactate dehydrogenase(LDH), electrocardiogram and heart weight index(HWI) were measured respectively. The myocardial pathological changes were observed by HE staining. The levels of collagen fiber expression in myocardial tissue were performed by Masson staining. The protein expression levels of GRP78 and caspase-12 in myocardium of rats were observed by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: The result showed that compared with control group, the levels of FBG and LDH of serum were increased obviously, HWI was increased, myocardial cells were hypertrophy, the collagen fibers of intercellular space of cell were increased, the protein expressions of GRP78 and caspase-12 of myocardium were increased in rats, myocardial cell apoptosis was increased in the model group(P<0. 05). Compared with model group, FBG and LDH levels and HWI were reduced, the collagen fiber of intercellular space were decreased, the protein expression levels of GRP78 and caspase-12 were lowered in high dose of curcumin group(P<0. 05). CONCLUSION: It indicates that Cur defends myocardium tissue in type 2 diabetes rats, which may be related to decreasing the level of blood glucose and the protein expressions of GRP78 and caspase-12, and blocking the ERS-initiated apoptotic.

The principle of coaxial transmission line pulse transformer and square-wave response of it.

Transmission line pulse transformers have been widely used in pulsed power technology. Traditional transmission line pulse transformers often use separate structures, which always introduces larger spurious parameters, and have lower voltage levels. In order to solve these problems, this note proposes a coaxial transmission line pulse transformer. A circular symmetric structure is used in the input and output ports of the coaxial transmission line pulse transformer, and there are no spurious parameters theoretically. Furthermore, this structure is suitable for hundreds of kilovolts high voltage applications. The structure and working principle of the coaxial transmission line pulse transformer are introduced in this note, and the circuit simulation research is conducted. The factors that affect the pulse transformation are analyzed. Furthermore, experimental studies of the square wave impulse response are conducted on an actual device. The result shows that the proposed coaxial transmission line pulse transformer can achieve the purpose of increasing the voltage amplitude while keeping the pulse waveform undistorted.

Cu(I) Coordination Polymers as the Green Heterogeneous Catalysts for Direct C-H Bonds Activation of Arylalkanes to Ketones in Water with Spatial Confinement Effect.

To develop coordination polymers (CPs) as catalysts to selectively catalyze the reaction of C-H bond activation of arylalkanes to their homologous ketones, three new Cu(I)-based coordination polymers (CuI-CPs) [CuI(aas-TPB)]n (1), [CuBr(ass-TPB)CH3CN]n (2), and {[Cu(ass-TPB)]Cl}n (3) (TPB = N,N,N-tris(3-pyridinyl)-1,3,5-benzenetricarboxamide) were synthesized. Structural variations from a herringbone fashion one-dimensional framework of 1 to a two-dimensional framework of 2 containing a 48-membered macrocycle and a cationic three-dimensional framework of 3 filled with Cl- anions were observed arising from the different halogen ions (I-, Br-, and Cl-). 1-3 were used as the green heterogeneous catalysts to catalyze direct C-H bond activation reactions of arylalkanes to ketones under mild reaction conditions with water as solvent. Handy product separation, convenient reaction procedures, and recyclability of these catalysts make the catalytic system fascinating. Moreover, the CuI-CPs performed the reaction with high regioselectivity due to the unique spatial confinement effect of CPs.

Endothelial progenitor cells in peripheral blood may serve as a biological marker to predict severe acute pancreatitis.

AIM: To investigate the significance of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) in predicting severe acute pancreatitis (SAP). METHODS: We recruited 71 patients with acute pancreatitis (AP) and excluded 11 of them; finally, cases of mild acute pancreatitis (MAP) (n = 30) and SAP (n = 30), and healthy volunteers (n = 20) were internalized to investigate levels of EPCs, C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), fibrinogen (FIB) and white blood cells (WBC) in peripheral blood. RESULTS: The levels of TNF-α, WBC, FIB and CRP were higher both in SAP and MAP cases than in healthy volunteers (P < 0.05, all). Interestingly, the level of EPCs was higher in SAP than MAP (1.63% ± 1.47% vs 6.61% ± 4.28%, P < 0.01), but there was no significant difference between the MAP cases and healthy volunteers (1.63% ± 1.47% vs 0.55% ± 0.54%, P > 0.05). Receiver operating characteristics curve (ROC) showed that EPCs, TNF-α, CRP and FIB were significantly associated with SAP, especially EPCs and CRP were optimal predictive markers of SAP. When the cut-off point for EPCs and CRP were 2.26% and 5.94 mg/dL, the sensitivities were 90.0% and 73.3%, and the specificities were 83.3% and 96.7%. Although, CRP had the highest specificity, and EPCs had the highest sensitivity and highest area under the curve value (0.93). CONCLUSION: Data suggest that EPCs may be a new biological marker in predicting SAP.

Enhancement of Gastric Ulcer Healing and Angiogenesis by Hepatocyte Growth Factor Gene Mediated by Attenuated Salmonella in Rats.

The present study developed an oral hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) gene therapy strategy for gastric ulcers treatment. An attenuated Salmonella typhimurium that stably expressed high HGF (named as TPH) was constructed, and the antiulcerogenic effect of TPH was evaluated in a rat model of gastric ulcers that created by acetic acid subserosal injection. From day 5 after injection, TPH (1 × 109 cfu), vehicle (TP, 1 × 109 cfu), or sodium bicarbonate (model control) was administered orally every alternate day for three times. Then ulcer size was measured at day 21 after ulcer induction. The ulcer area in TPH-treated group was 10.56 ± 3.30 mm², which was smaller when compared with those in the TP-treated and model control groups (43.47 ± 4.18 and 56.25 ± 6.38 mm², respectively). A higher level of reepithelialization was found in TPH-treated group and the crawling length of gastric epithelial cells was significantly longer than in the other two groups (P < 0.05). The microvessel density in the ulcer granulation tissues of the TPH-treated rats was 39.9 vessels/mm², which was greater than in the TP-treated and model control rats, with a significant statistical difference. These results suggest that TPH treatment significantly accelerates the healing of gastric ulcers via stimulating proliferation of gastric epithelial cells and enhancing angiogenesis on gastric ulcer site.