A first-principles study on the promising thermoelectric properties of SnX (X = S, Se, Te) compounds.

SnSe has emerged as an outstanding thermoelectric material due to its exceptional performance. In this study, first-principles calculations are employed to investigate the thermoelectric properties of materials within the SnX family, where X can be either S, Se, or Te. Initially, we assessed the stability of SnX (X = S, Se, Te). We found that SnS exhibits better mechanical and thermal stability than SnSe and SnTe. We then conduct phonon and electronic transport analysis. Following the general rule that heavier atoms have lower thermal conductivity, SnTe demonstrates lower thermal conductivity due to its low group velocity compared with SnS and SnSe. Regarding electrical transport properties, the band gaps for SnS, SnSe, and SnTe are 0.56, 0.54, and 0.35 eV, respectively. Notably, the small band gap and higher degeneracy in its band valleys for SnTe make it more effective for achieving a high power factor. The maximum ZT values are determined to be 1.41, 1.41, and 1.87 for SnS, SnSe, and SnTe, respectively. Remarkably, ZTmax of SnTe exceeds that of SnSe by 32.6%. Overall, the results clearly demonstrate that SnTe exhibits superior thermoelectric properties compared to SnSe and SnS. This study provides valuable insights into the electronic structure, thermal conductivity, and mechanical and thermal stability of materials within the SnSe family, such as SnS or SnTe, without the need for extensive and costly experimental work.

Circ_0086720 knockdown strengthens the radiosensitivity of non-small cell lung cancer via mediating the miR-375/SPIN1 axis.

Radioresistance is an important cause of cancer treatment failure. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) play crucial roles in cancer development, including the radioresistance. This research aimed to determine the function and related mechanism of circ_0086720 in the radioresistance of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The expression of circ_0086720, miR-375, and Spindlin 1 (SPIN1) was measured using a quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Cell survival fraction was analyzed using colony formation assay, and cell apoptosis was monitored by flow cytometry assay. The activities of caspase 3 and caspase 9 were assessed using the corresponding commercial kits. The protein levels of SPIN1 and γH2AX were detected by western blot. Bioinformatics analysis was performed to predict the targets of circ_0086720 and miR-375. Dual-luciferase reporter assay, RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assay, and RNA pull-down assay were conducted to validate the interaction between miR-375 and circ_0086720 or SPIN1. The animal model was constructed to ascertain the role of circ_0086720 in vivo. The expression of circ_0086720 and SPIN1 was increased in the radioresistant NSCLC tissues, while miR-375 expression was decreased. The circ_0086720 knockdown sensitized NSCLC cells to the radiation to further inhibit cell survival and induce cell apoptosis. Circ_0086720 targeted miR-375 and suppressed miR-375 expression, and miR-375 bound to SPIN1 to impair SPIN1 expression. miR-375 deficiency or SPIN1 overexpression could attenuate circ_0086720 knockdown-mediated radiosensitivity. The circ_0086720 knockdown also enhanced radiosensitivity to further block tumor growth in vivo. To conclude, circ_0086720 downregulation enhanced the sensitivity of NSCLC to radiation by regulating the miR-375/SPIN1 axis, contributing to the improvement of the radiotherapies in NSCLC.

Electronic structure and thermoelectric properties of full Heusler compounds Ca2YZ (Y = Au, Hg; Z = As, Sb, Bi, Sn and Pb).

We investigate the transport properties of bulk Ca2YZ (Y = Au, Hg; Z = As, Sb, Bi, Sn and Pb) by a combination method of first-principles and Boltzmann transport theory. The focus of this article is the systematic study of the thermoelectric properties under the effect of a spin-orbit coupling. The highest dimensionless figure of merit (ZT) of Ca2AuAs at optimum carrier concentration are 1.23 at 700 K. Interestingly enough, for n-type Ca2HgPb, the maximum ZT are close to each other from 500 K to 900 K and these values are close to 1, which suggests that semimetallic material can also be used as an excellent candidate for thermoelectric materials. From another viewpoint, at room temperature, the maximum PF for Ca2YZ are greater than 3 mW m-1 K-2, which is very close to that of ∼3 mW m-1 K-2 for Bi2Te3 and ∼4 mW m-1 K-2 for Fe2VAl. However, the room temperature theoretical κ l of Ca2YZ is only about 0.85-1.6 W m-1 K-1, which is comparing to 1.4 W m-1 K-1 for Bi2Te3 and remarkably lower than 28 W m-1 K-1 for Fe2VAl at same temperature. So Ca2YZ should be a new type of promising thermoelectric material at room temperature.

Assessment of 64-slice spiral computed tomography with perfusion weighted imaging in the early diagnosis of ground-glass opacity lung cancer.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the use of the 64-slice spiral computed tomography (CT) with perfusion-weighted imaging in the early diagnosis of ground-glass opacity lung cancers. METHODS: 412 patients with ground-glass opacities found by conventional CT scan in our hospital, and deemed highly suspected of being lung cancers, were enrolled in the study between February of 2012 and February of 2015. Sixty four-slice spiral CTs with perfusion-weighted imaging were carried out on all patients, and the latest nodular contrast analysis software, MPR2D, 3D reconstruction technology, MIP technology and perfusion scanning technology were used to analyze lesion types, density, blood supply, peripheral signals, doubling time and tissue perfusion characteristics. This was repeated after one month, and the final pathologic diagnosis was used as a reference. RESULTS: There were 350 (84.95%) patients who were ultimately diagnosed with lung cancer. The main lesion type of lung cancer was quasi-circular, the average CT density was 56.7±5.4 HU, bronchial arterial enhancement increased in the nodule, peripheral signals were mainly irregular burrs, and the average doubling time was 1.2±0.3 s. Comparing these parameters with the ones in the non-cancer group, the differences found were with statistical significance (p<0.05). Importantly, tissue perfusion parameters of blood flow, blood volume, mean transit time and permeability surface in the lung cancer group were all significantly higher than those in non-cancer group (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: From the findings in our study, we propose that 64-slice spiral CT with perfusion-weighted imaging can be used to diagnose ground-glass opacity lung cancer early, by taking into account variables such as lesion type, density, blood supply, peripheral signals, doubling time and tissue perfusion characteristics.

The value of 64-slice spiral CT perfusion imaging in the treatment of liver cancer with argon-helium cryoablation.

We analyzed the effectiveness of using 64-slice spiral computed tomography (CT) and perfusion imaging to guide argon-helium cryoablation treatment of liver cancer. In total, 60 cases of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma before surgery treated with argon-helium cryoablation were inlcuded in the present study. Retrospective summary of the 60 cases of metaphase and advanced liver cancer were used as the control group. The control group were treated using cryoablation with argon-helium knife. We used enhanced scanning with 64-slice spiral CT to define the extent of their lesions and prepared a plan of percutaneous cryoablation for the treatment. Intraoperatively, we used the dynamics of CT perfusion imaging to observe the frozen ablation range and decreased the rate of complications. After surgery, the patients were followed-up regularly by 64-slice CT. We used conventional X-ray, CT and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for pre-operative lateralization. Intraoperative X-ray or ultrasound guidance and follow-up with CT or MTI were added to determine the clinical effectiveness and prognosis. The results showed that the total effective rate was improved significantly and incidence rate of overall complications decreased markedly in the observation group. Following treatment, AFP decreased significantly while the total freezing area and time were reduced significantly. The median survival time was increased significantly in the observation group. The numeric values of hepatic arterial perfusion, portal vein perfusion and hepatic arterial perfusion index were all markedly lowered after treatment. Differences were statistically significant (P<0.05). In conclusion, the use of 64-slice spiral CT perfusion imaging may considerably improve the effects of liver cancer treatment using the argon-helium cryoablation. It extended the survival time and reduced complications.

The development and evaluation of a loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) method for detection of Babesia spp. infective to sheep and goats in China.

The loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) reaction is a method that amplifies with high sensitivity, efficiency, and rapidity, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) under isothermal condition in simple incubators. Two primer sets for the LAMP method were designed using the nucleotide sequences of 18S rRNA gene of Babesia sp. BQ1 (Lintan) and Babesia sp. Xinjiang-2005 isolated in China. The primers were used to detect parasite DNA extracted from infected blood and purified parasites by LAMP. The specific ladder bands were amplified from the autologous genomic DNA of two Babesia species, respectively, and did not cross-react with the genomic DNA of Theileria sp. China 1, Theileria sp. China 2, B. bovis, Theileria sp. (Japan) and sheep. The LAMP was sensitive enough to detect 0.02 pg and 0.2 pg genomic DNA of Babesia sp. BQ1 (Lintan) and Babesia sp. Xinjiang-2005, respectively, from 10-fold serially diluted samples corresponding to the amount of DNA present in 50 microl of 0.000002% and 0.00002% parasitemic erythrocytes. Furthermore, DNA extracted from blood of intact (non-splenectomized) sheep experimentally infected with Babesia sp. BQ1 (Lintan) and Babesia sp. Xinjiang-2005 was amplified by the LAMP from week 1 to 9 and week 2 and 3 post-infection, respectively, demonstrating the high sensitivity of these primers. Of 365 samples collected from Gansu province, 14.3% (52/365) were positively detected by the LAMP. Of 145 samples collected on filter papers (Whatman) from the grazing sheep in Xinjiang province, 3.5% (5/145) were positive. These results show that the LAMP could be an alternative diagnostic tool for the detection of babesial infection in sheep and goats.