Enhanced machine learning approaches for OSA patient screening: model development and validation study.

Age, gender, body mass index (BMI), and mean heart rate during sleep were found to be risk factors for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), and a variety of methods have been applied to predict the occurrence of OSA. This study aimed to develop and evaluate OSA prediction models using simple and accessible parameters, combined with multiple machine learning algorithms, and integrate them into a cloud-based mobile sleep medicine management platform for clinical use. The study data were obtained from the clinical records of 610 patients who underwent polysomnography (PSG) at the Sleep Medicine Center of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University between January 2021 and December 2022. The participants were randomly divided into a training-test group (80%) and an independent validation group (20%). The logistic regression, artificial neural network, naïve Bayes, support vector machine, random forest, and decision tree algorithms were used with age, gender, BMI, and mean heart rate during sleep as predictors to build a risk prediction model for moderate-to-severe OSA. To evaluate the performance of the models, we calculated the area under the receiver operating curve (AUROC), accuracy, recall, specificity, precision, and F1-score for the independent validation set. In addition, the calibration curve, decision curve, and clinical impact curve were generated to determine clinical usefulness. Age, gender, BMI, and mean heart rate during sleep were significantly associated with OSA. The artificial neural network model had the best efficacy compared with the other prediction algorithms. The AUROC, accuracy, recall, specificity, precision, F1-score, and Brier score were 80.4% (95% CI 76.7-84.1%), 69.9% (95% CI 69.8-69.9%), 86.5% (95% CI 81.6-91.3%), 61.5% (95% CI 56.6-66.4%), 53.2% (95% CI 47.7-58.7%), 65.9% (95% CI 60.2-71.5%), and 0.165, respectively, for the artificial neural network model. The AUROCs for the LR, NB, SVM, RF, and DT models were 80.2%, 79.7%, 79.2%, 78.4%, and 70.4%, respectively. The six models based on four simple and easily accessible parameters effectively predicted moderate-to-severe OSA in patients with PSG screening, with the artificial neural network model having the best performance. These models can provide a reliable tool for early OSA diagnosis, and their integration into a cloud-based mobile sleep medicine management platform could improve clinical decision making.

The relationship between sleep quality and daytime dysfunction among college students in China during COVID-19: a cross-sectional study.

Objective: College Students' sleep quality and daytime dysfunction have become worse since the COVID-19 outbreak, the purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between sleep quality and daytime dysfunction among college students during the COVID-19 (Corona Virus Disease 2019) period. Methods: This research adopts the form of cluster random sampling of online questionnaires. From April 5 to 16 in 2022, questionnaires are distributed to college students in various universities in Fujian Province, China and the general information questionnaire and PSQI scale are used for investigation. SPSS26.0 was used to conduct an independent sample t-test and variance analysis on the data, multi-factorial analysis was performed using logistic regression analysis. The main outcome variables are the score of subjective sleep quality and daytime dysfunction. Results: During the COVID-19 period, the average PSQI score of the tested college students was 6.17 ± 3.263, and the sleep disorder rate was 29.6%, the daytime dysfunction rate was 85%. Being female, study liberal art/science/ engineering, irritable (due to limited outdoor), prolong electronic entertainment time were associated with low sleep quality (p < 0.001), and the occurrence of daytime dysfunction was higher than other groups (p < 0.001). Logistics regression analysis showed that sleep quality and daytime dysfunction were associated with gender, profession, irritable (due to limited outdoor), and prolonged electronic entertainment time (p < 0.001). Conclusion: During the COVID-19 epidemic, the sleep quality of college students was affected, and different degrees of daytime dysfunction have appeared, both are in worse condition than before the COVID-19 outbreak. Sleep quality may was inversely associated with daytime dysfunction.

Study of oxygen-deficient W18O49-based drug delivery system readily absorbed through cellular internalization pathways in tumor-targeted chemo-/photothermal therapy.

W18O49-mediated photothermal therapy (PTT) is affected by the easily oxidized property and its direct exposure to physiological environment can cause biological events, which limit its development in the biomedical field. Herein, a composite nanoparticle PVP-W18O49@C (PW@C), with significant antioxidant and excellent biocompatibility, was constructed to overcome the limitations of W18O49 in the medical field. Oxygen-deficient W18O49, with irregular defect structure, was combined with hollow carbon nanospheres treated by reflux to obtain W18O49@C (W@C) similar to sea urchins. Compared with W18O49, W@C shows stronger antioxidant properties, and it still has the ability to convert light energy to heat energy after 6 months. In addition, polyvinyl pyrrolidone is coated on the surface of W@C to construct PW@C, which significantly improves biocompatibility of W@C. The photothermal conversion efficiency of PW@C was 42.9 ± 1.3. PWD (PW@C loaded with DOX·HCl) showed controllable drug release behavior under pH and NIR stimulation, and the drug release rate reached 69.1 ± 1.6% at pH = 5.0. Notably, PWD was readily absorbed by cells through clathrin/caveolae-mediated internalization channels, and the viability of HeLa cells treated with PWD + NIR was only 21.5 ± 1.0%. Through photothermal, drug delivery/release and cytotoxicity evaluation, PWD was proved to be an effective platform for chemo-/photothermal combinational tumor therapy.

Engineering Bio-MOF/polydopamine as a biocompatible targeted theranostic system for synergistic multi-drug chemo-photothermal therapy.

In this study, a biodegradable multifunctional photothermal drug delivery nanoparticles (MPH NPs) using curcumin (Cur) as the ligand coated with hyaluronic acid (HA) was successfully prepared, which could simultaneously deliver Cur and doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX·HCl) to overcome the common drug resistance in cancer cells. Polydopamine (PDA) as a protective shell prevents premature degradation of Cur in physiological environment and enables it to play effective medicinal value. MPH NPs can specifically recognize CD44 receptors on the surface of cancer cells for tumor targeting, with the damage of the partially released DOX to the superficial tumor cells, and then the positively charged Cur released may gradually penetrate into the cells through electron interaction to improve the problem of low permeability. In vitro cell experiments showed that hydrophobic/hydrophilic drugs co-loaded MPDH (MPH loaded with DOX·HCl) could enter the cancer cells through the endocytosis mediated by clathrin / caveolin, and the inhibition rate of MPDH on HeLa cells reached 79.28 % irradiation under 808 nm laser. MPH were composed of safe materials that have been proven to be biodegradable in human body, which avoided the disadvantages that NPs were difficult to discharge and caused damage to normal organs during long-term use.

CT-guided percutaneous implantation of 125I particles in treatment of early lung cancer.

BACKGROUND: To analyze the efficacy of computed tomography (CT)-guided implantation of 125I radioactive particles in treatment of early lung cancer. METHODS: Six patients were analyzed, including 4 squamous cell carcinoma, 1 adenocarcinoma, and 1 small cell lung cancer. TPS software was used to calculate the therapeutic dose amount of particles implanted, and the spacing and distribution of seeds in the target area and adjacent tissues. Under the guidance of CT, 20-55 particles were implanted at each site, with the total number of radioactive particles being 226, the particle spacing being 0.5-1.0 cm, and the implantation being performed in accordance with the principle of uniform implantation. The patients were each followed up with repeated pulmonary CT scans at 1, 3, 6, 12, 18, 24, 30 and 36 months after the procedure. In accordance with the response evaluation criteria in solid tumors (RECIST), the following definitions for responses were used: complete response (CR), partial response (PR), stable disease (SD), progressive disease (PD). RESULTS: There were 2 CRs and 4 PRs one month after procedure; six patients were followed up 3 months after procedure, including 2 CRs and 4 PRs; one patient was lost in follow-up, and 5 patients were followed up 6 months after procedure, including 3 CRs and 2 PRs; five patients were followed up 12 months after procedure, including 3 CRs, 1 PR and 1 PD. The single PD patient was again given CT-guided implantation of 125I radioactive particles for the treatment of recurrent lesions. The pulmonary CT was repeated 6 months after procedure, and the response was evaluated as SD. Four patients were followed up 18 months after procedure, including 3 CRs and 1 PR; one patient was lost in follow-up and 3 patients were followed up 24 months after the procedure with the response being evaluated as CR for all of them; one patient was followed up 36 months after procedure, and the response was evaluated as PD. During the follow-up, no serious complications occurred in any of the patients. CONCLUSIONS: The preliminary clinical observation showed that 125I radioactive particle implantation was a safe, reliable and effective therapeutic method for early lung cancer.

MoS2@C nanosphere as near infrared / pH dual response platform for chemical photothermal combination treatment.

The three-dimensional urchin-like MoS2@C nanocomposite was successfully synthesized via one-step hydrothermal synthesis approach. The as-prepared MoS2@C nanoparticles exhibits strong absorb, high photothermal conversion ability (40.8 %), superb biocompatibility and high drug loading capacity for doxorubicin (52.34 %). In vitro drug release experiments show a pH, temperature and near infrared laser-triggered doxorubicinhydro release profile that enhances therapeutic anticancer effects. The drug release curve increased step by step under laser irradiation, and the accumulative delivery amount reached to 64.59 %, which was about 2 times of that without laser irradiation. By using DOX-loaded nano-platform, effective synergistic photothermal therapy for cancer can be achieved and has been systematically verified in vitro. Cell viability experiments showed that the survival rate of cells with MoS2 @C-DOX was only 25.8 %. Therefore, this work presents carbon-based nanoparticles with significant characteristics and is used as a highly potential therapeutic nano-platform for cancer treatment.

MiR-323-3p Targeting Transmembrane Protein with EGF-Like and 2 Follistatin Domain (TMEFF2) Inhibits Human Lung Cancer A549 Cell Apoptosis by Regulation of AKT and ERK Signaling Pathways.

BACKGROUND Non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is predominant and has low 5-year relative survival rate. Therefore, the mechanisms of NSCLC tumorigenesis must be comprehensively elucidated. MicroRNA-323-3p (miR-323-3p) has been widely explored and found to exert functions in tumorigenesis of several cancer types. However, the expression pattern and biological function of miR-323-3p and the molecular mechanism underlying NSCLC development and progression remain unclear. MATERIAL AND METHODS Quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction was used to detect the expression of miR-323-3p and TMEFF2 in NSCLC cell lines (A549, NCI-H3255, and H1299) and normal cell line (BEAS-2B). Methylthiazolyl tetrazolium, colony formation, and flow cytometry assays were performed to evaluate the effects of miR-323-3p and TMEFF2 on cell proliferation. Transwell assay was conducted to determine the effects of TMEFF2 on cell migration and invasion. Dual-luciferase reporter assay was used to verify whether TMEFF2 is a target of miR-323-3p. Western blot analysis was performed to analyze protein expression. RESULTS The expression of miR-323-3p increased in the 3 NSCLC cell lines (A549, NCI-H3255, and H1299). miR-323-3p regulated cellular progression by directly suppressing TMEFF2 expression and indirectly prohibited the activation of AKT and ERK pathways in NSCLC. CONCLUSIONS Overall, miR-323-3p was considered a lung cancer oncogene and could be a valuable target for NSCLC therapy.

Fabrication of N and F Modified La-TiO2 Nanoparticles and Their Enhanced Photocatalytic Response to Visible Light.

N and F co-doped La-TiO2 (La-TONF) samples were prepared through the solvothermal method by using HMT and NaF as precursors. The obtained samples were characterized by UV-Vis DRS, XRD, XPS and PL measurements for light-harvesting properties, crystal phase and optical characteristics, respectively. Interestingly, the TONF sample had a different fluorescence emission intensity than the TON or TOF samples, thus suggesting a clear synergistic effect of N and F co-doping. The optimal doping amount of La was 2 wt.%, and the absorption edge was red-shifted from 453 nm to 464 nm for La-TiO2 and La-TONF. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by degradation of MO and oxidation of TMB under visible light irradiation. La-TONF exhibited excellent photocatalytic activity and a degradation rate of 92.4%, 4.4 times that of undoped TiO2 (20.8%). The photocatalytic degradation activity remained above 85.8%, even after five runs. In addition, the MO photodegradation catalyzed by La-TONF followed first order kinetics. According these results, a possible synergistic effect mechanism for the enhanced photocatalytic performance is proposed.

Effects of Connexin 43 Inhibition in an Ovalbumin-induced Mouse Model of Asthma.

Connexion 43 (Cx43), a gap junction protein, is expressed abundantly in the airway and has been implicated in the pathogenesis of asthma. However, the effects of blocking Cx43 in asthma remain unclear. We investigated the therapeutic effects of two specific Cx43 inhibitors (Gap26 and Gap27) on the development of allergic airway disease in mice. Allergic asthma was induced in BALB/c mice by sensitization and challenge with ovalbumin (OVA). Different doses of Cx43 inhibitors were administered by aerosol inhalation 1 h after OVA challenge on days 21 and 23. Airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR), lung pathology, mucus production, and inflammatory cells and cytokines in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) were examined. We found that Gap26 significantly inhibited OVA-induced AHR, inflammatory cell infiltration surrounding the bronchia, mucus production, inflammatory cells and cytokines in BALF, and OVA-specific IgE in the serum in a dose-dependent manner. Gap27 showed effects similar to those of Gap26 in inhibiting inflammatory cytokine production in BALF. We conclude Cx43 inhibitor inhalation alleviates asthma featuresin mice and may be a promising therapy for clinical asthma.

Persistent Methyl Orange Degradation Ability of MgAl2O4:(Pr3+,Dy3+)/M-TiO2 Luminescent Photocatalyst.

Metal ions (Cr, Ni, Co) doped titania (M-TiO2) coupled with the long after glow phosphor MgAl2O4:(Pr3+, Dy3+) particles were synthesized by the sol-gel method, with the best mass ratio of MgAl2O4:(Pr3+, Dy3+) to M-TiO2 as 4:6. MgAl2O4:(Pr3+, Dy3+)/M-TiO2 had the persistent methyl orange (MO) photocatalytic degradation ability and the photocatalytic degradation went on reacting more than 90 min in dark after turning off the light. MgAl2O4:(Pr3+, Dy3+) emitted the light as a light source in dark which was absorbed by M-TiO2. The differences of MgAl2O4:(Pr3+, Dy3+)/Cr-TiO2, MgAl2O4:(Pr3+, Dy3+)/Ni-TiO2 and MgAl2O4:(Pr3+, Dy3+)/Co-TiO2 might be attributed to the difference in the metal ions doping. The composite MgAl2O4:(Pr3+, Dy3+)/Cr-TiO2 revealed the highest ability of persistent photocatalytic degradation methyl orange. Different metal ions doping made the TiO2 with different band gap.

Ag-TON nanospheres coupled with fly ash cenospheres for wastewater treatment under visible light irradiation.

Using tetra-n-butyl titanate as raw material and fly ash cenospheres (FAC) as carrier, the photocatalysts of Ag-TON/FAC were successfully prepared by solvothermal and in-situ hydrolysis method. These visible light photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), fluorescence spectroscopy (FL) and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS). In this study, methyl orange and ciprofloxacin were used as wastewater degradation targets to investigate the effect of the amount of titanium dioxide and the amount of Ag doping on the activity of photocatalysts. On the basis of this, the optimal ratio of TiO2 to FAC was 2:1 and the optimum doping ratio of Ag was determined to be 15 wt.%. The composite photocatalysts dispersed uniformly and were easy to recycle and reuse, which were benefits in fully utilizing the solar energy. The degradation efficiency remained at more than 60% after being renewed five times for MO and ciprofloxacin. The photocatalysts of Ag-TON/FAC can reduce the environmental burden caused by FAC also.

Solvothermal synthesis of different phase N-TiO2 and their kinetics, isotherm and thermodynamic studies on the adsorption of methyl orange.

The different crystal forms of nitrogen doped-titanium oxide (N-TiO2) with different particle sizes were produced by precipitation-solvothermal method and their adsorption mechanism were also investigated. The adsorption kinetics showed that rutile N-TiO2 displayed higher adsorption capacity than anatase for methyl orange (MO) and its adsorption behavior followed the pseudo-second-order kinetics. The equilibrium adsorption rate of N-TiO2 for MO was well fitted by the Langmuir isotherm model and the adsorption process was monolayer adsorption. The adsorption capacity decreased with increasing temperature. The average correlation coefficient was beyond 97%. The thermodynamic parameters (ΔaGm(Ó©), ΔaHm(Ó©), and ΔaSm(Ó©)) were calculated. It was found that anatase and rutile N-TiO2 had different adsorption enthalpy and entropy. The smaller the particle size, the greater the surface area and surface energy was, then ΔaGm(Ó©) decreased and the standard equilibrium constant increased at the same time. The adsorption process onto different crystalline phase N-TiO2 was exothermic and non-spontaneous.

[Clinical and microbiological characteristics of Rhizobium radiobacter infectious: six cases report and literature review].

OBJECTIVE: to explore the clinical and microbiological characteristics of Rhizobium radiobacter infection, and therefore to provide information for the prevention and treatment of the disease. METHODS: the clinical and microbiological data were analyzed for patients proved to have Rhizobium radiobacter infection by blood culture obtained from May 2008 to July 2009 in the Second Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University. Related literature were reviewed. RESULTS: there were 4 males and 2 females aging 5 - 88 years old. All the patients suffered from fever and chillsor malaise, and had increased peripheral WBC or neutrophil count. The majority (5/6) of the infections was pneumonia, characterized by mild cough and expectoration, lung rales, patchy infiltrates on chest X-ray. All the patients had underlying diseases or were immunocompromised. Five of the 6 patients had close soil exposure. Four of the 6 patients received broad-spectrum antibiotics or immunosuppressive therapy. Antibacterial susceptibility testing showed that, all the isolates of Rhizobium radiobacter were susceptible to the third generation cephalosporins, cephamycins, Carbapenems, fluoroquinolones, tetracycline, nitrofurantoin and some of the aminoglycosides, but resistant to penicillins, penicillins/enzyme inhibitors, first and fourth generation cephalosporins, and helices beta-lactamase antibiotics. There were no complications, and all patients recovered uneventfully after treatment with antibiotics according to the susceptibility testing. CONCLUSIONS: rhizobium radiobacter infections often occur in patients with underlying risk factors. The clinical manifestations of Rhizobium radiobacter infection are nonspecific. The organism is sensitive to most antibiotics, and the clinical outcome is favorable.