Automated diagnosis of adenoid hypertrophy with lateral cephalogram in children based on multi-scale local attention.

Adenoid hypertrophy can lead to adenoidal mouth breathing, which can result in "adenoid face" and, in severe cases, can even lead to respiratory tract obstruction. The Fujioka ratio method, which calculates the ratio of adenoid (A) to nasopharyngeal (N) space in an adenoidal-cephalogram (A/N), is a well-recognized and effective technique for detecting adenoid hypertrophy. However, this process is time-consuming and relies on personal experience, so a fully automated and standardized method needs to be designed. Most of the current deep learning-based methods for automatic diagnosis of adenoids are CNN-based methods, which are more sensitive to features similar to adenoids in lateral views and can affect the final localization results. In this study, we designed a local attention-based method for automatic diagnosis of adenoids, which takes AdeBlock as the basic module, fuses the spatial and channel information of adenoids through two-branch local attention computation, and combines the downsampling method without losing spatial information. Our method achieved mean squared error (MSE) 0.0023, mean radial error (MRE) 1.91, and SD (standard deviation) 7.64 on the three hospital datasets, outperforming other comparative methods.

Primary hepatic neuroendocrine tumor - 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography findings: A case report.

BACKGROUND: Primary hepatic neuroendocrine tumors (PHNETs) are rare hepatic tumors. Their diagnosis, which is based on radiological findings, is difficult. CASE SUMMARY: We present a case of PHNET in a 79-year-old man with no clinical symptoms. Computed tomography (CT) and 2-Deoxy-2-[fluorine-18] fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/CT (18F-FDG PET/CT) were performed for further evaluation. A hypoattenuating mass with rim-like enhancement in segment 6 of the liver was detected on contrast-enhanced CT imaging. Increased uptake was also observed on 18F-FDG PET/CT. Histopathological and immunohistochemical examinations, which revealed a grade 2 neuroendocrine tumor (NET), confirmed the diagnosis. CONCLUSION: Diagnosing PHNET is challenging, and must be distinguished from other liver tumors. Metastatic NETs should be excluded.

Silver Nanoparticle-Induced Phosphorylation of Histone H3 at Serine 10 Involves MAPK Pathways.

The phosphorylation of histone H3 at serine 10 (p-H3S10) has been shown to be closely correlated with mitotic chromosome condensation. We previously reported that intracellular silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) release Ag ions that alter actin filament dynamics, leading to the activation of Aurora kinases and the formation of p-H3S10 through a mechanism clearly different from that occurring during mitosis. In the present study, we examined other mechanisms underlying the induction of p-H3S10 formation by AgNPs. We observed that the early formation of p-H3S10 induced by AgNPs occurred via the activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways, specifically the Jun N-terminal protein kinase (JNK) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathways. The late AgNP-induced p-H3S10 formation occurred via the activation of the entire MAPK cascade. On the other hand, p-H3S10 formation was not due to DNA damage induced by AgNPs, or the activation of the kinases ataxia telangiectasia-mutated (ATM) and ATM-Rad3-related (ATR). Several studies have compared the mechanism of AgNP toxicity to a Trojan horse-type molecular pathway. We observed different effects of AgNO3 (Ag⁺) and AgNPs on cells, and only the JNK inhibitor suppressed the temporary AgNO3-induced formation of p-H3S10. These results strongly indicate that AgNP-induced p-H3S10 formation does not rely solely on one signaling pathway, but rather may involve two or more pathways.

Phenolic acids induced growth of 3D ordered gold nanoshell composite array as sensitive SERS nanosensor for antioxidant capacity assay.

A novel method based on surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) was developed to estimate the reducing capacity of phenolic acids by using self-assembled three-dimensionally (3D) ordered gold nanoparticles (GNPs) precursor composite (SiO2/GNPs) arrays as nanoprobes. In the present work, the 3D ordered SiO2/GNPs arrays immersed in the growth solution containing different phenolic acids, the SiO2/GNPs were enlarged to varying degrees. Phenolic acids with one or more phenolic hydroxyl groups served as reductants for the growth of GNPs. The enlargement conditions varied with the different reducing capacity of phenolic acids, exhibiting specific morphologies differ from the complete gold nanoshells (GNSs). Consequently, the UV-vis spectra and SERS spectra for the phenolic acid-treated SiO2/GNPs arrays were gradually changed. The change of the intensities of the SERS spectra correlated well with phenolic acids concentration which indicated that this SiO2/GNPs array is a suitable SERS nanoprobe for phenolic acids. Results showed that the higher reducing capacity of phenolic acid, the stronger SERS of the enlarged GNSs. Thus, the SERS results could be used to evaluate the antioxidant capacity of phenolic acids by utilizing 3D ordered SiO2/GNPs arrays as nanoprobes. The results also indicated that the reducing capacity of these three phenolic acids was in the order gallic acid > syringic acid > vanillic acid. The detection ranges of vanillic acid, syringic acid and gallic acid were 10-250 µM, 10-110 µM and 5-55 µM, respectively.

Fabrication of large-scale gold nanoplate films as highly active SERS substrates for label-free DNA detection.

We introduce a simple but robust label-free method to detect DNA based on large-scale gold nanoplate (GNP) films with tunable localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) and highly surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) activity. The common probe molecule, Neil Blue A sulfate (NBA) is used for testing the SERS activity of the GNP films at very low concentrations. It is found that the SERS properties are highly dependent on the edge lengths of gold nanoplate and gold nanoplate density in the films. Multiple-layer GNP films which are constructed by gold nanoplate with an edge length of 134±6nm have the density of 916±40GNPsGNPs/spot. It shows the highest signal intensity with SERS enhancement factor (EF) as high as 5.4×10(7) and also has excellent stability, reproducibility and repeatability. The optimized SERS-active substrate with the largest enhancement ability could be used to detect double-strand DNA without a dye label, and the detection limit is down to 10(-6)mg/mL.

Shape-controlled synthesis of gold nanoplates and their self-assembly by repulsive electrostatic interactions.

This study focuses on understanding the growth and control of the gold nanoplates by seed-mediated growth approach. These monodispersive size-controlled gold nanoplates have the average thickness of 8-10 nm and average size tunable from 70 to 150 nm, exhibiting strong surface plasmon absorption in the near infrared (NIR) region. For the gold nanoplates formation, the seeds serve as nucleation sites, ascorbic acid (AA) serves as a new reductant to reduce hydrogen tetrachloroaurate (HAuCl4), surface activity system cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and potassium iodide (KI) are critical factors. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and selected-area electron diffraction (SAED) analyses reveal that gold nanoplates with the (111) lattice plane as the basal plane are single crystals. CTAB are absorbed on the surface of the (111) lattice plane of the single crystals, accounting for self-assembled monolayer and head-to-head arrays. The two arrays have been shown to serve as effective surface-enhanced Raman scattering substrates using Niel blue A (NBA) sulfate as Raman report molecule.

Novel and simple route to fabricate 2D ordered gold nanobowl arrays based on 3D colloidal crystals.

In this study, we present a new method to fabricate large-area two-dimensionally (2D) ordered gold nanobowl arrays based on 3D colloidal crystals by wet chemosynthesis, which combines the advantages of a very simple preparation and an applicability to "real" nanomaterials. By combination of in situ growth of gold nanoshell (GNSs) arrays based on three-dimensional (3D) colloidal silica crystals, a monolayer ordered reversed GNS array (2D ordered GNS array) was conveniently manufactured by an acrylic ester modified biaxial oriented polypropylene (BOPP). 2D ordered gold nanobowl array with adjustable periodic holes, good stability, reproducibility, and repeatability could be obtained when the silica core was etched by HF solution. The surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) enhancement factor (EF) of this 2D ordered gold nanobowl array could reach 1.27 × 10(7), which shows high SERS enhancing activity and can be used as a universal SERS substrate.

Minimally invasive surface-enhanced Raman scattering detection with depth profiles based on a surface-enhanced Raman scattering-active acupuncture needle.

To obtain depth profiles of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) information in living systems, a SERS-active needle was structured by acupuncture needles, gold nanoshells (GNSs), and polystyrene, which were used as carriers, SERS-active elements to be absorbed on the carriers, and coatings to protect the absorbed GNSs from being erased during insertion, respectively. The SERS-active needle is minimally invasive for entering and exiting the body. The interspaces between the GNSs became vessels to collect diffused fluids at different depths after a SERS-active needle was inserted into an agarose gel, and the SERS intensity profile on the SERS-active needle coincided with the concentration profile of Nile Blue A (NBA) in the gel. SERS detection in vitro avoided the signal attenuation in gels, and the SERS detection at different spots of the SERS-active needle provided a depth profile of the NBA molecule in the gel. In vivo experiments of NBA and 6-mercaptopurine confirmed that the SERS-active needle could collect fluids in living systems easily with minimal invasion and provide information about depth profiles of target molecules in tissues.

Growth-sensitive 3D ordered gold nanoshells precursor composite arrays as SERS nanoprobes for assessing hydrogen peroxide scavenging activity.

A novel method based on surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) was developed to estimate the antioxidant activity of antioxidants by using self-assembled three-dimensionally (3D) ordered gold nanoparticles (GNPs) precursor composite (SiO(2)/GNPs) arrays as nanoprobes. H(2)O(2) could reduce AuCl(4)(-) to Au(0) which deposited onto the surface of the SiO(2)/GNPs arrays and enlarged the GNPs. As the concentration of H(2)O(2) increased, the surface coverage of the resultant gold on the silica cores increased accordingly until continuous gold nanoshells (GNSs) were formed. The change of the intensities of the SERS spectra correlated well with H(2)O(2) concentration which indicated that this SiO(2)/GNPs array was a potential SERS nanoprobe for H(2)O(2). The presence of antioxidant will prevent the growth of GNPs on the surface of the silica arrays from forming the structure which has strongest SERS-activity and the corresponding change in SERS intensity correlated well with the H(2)O(2) scavenging activity of the antioxidants. The H(2)O(2) scavenging activities of four plant-based antioxidants, tannic acid, citric acid, ferulic acid, and tartaric acid were studied. Our results showed the H(2)O(2) scavenging activities (SA(HP) values) of these four compounds were: tannic acid > ferulic acid > citric acid > tartaric acid.

Raman spectroscopy for scavenging activity assay using nanoshell precursor nanocomposites as SERSprobes.

In this work, we have developed a novel SERS-based approach to detect hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) scavenging activity by using gold nanoshell precursor nanocomposites (SiO2/GNPs) as nanoprobes. H2O2 can reduce AuCl4- to Au0 and enlarge the gold nanoparticles (GNPs) that attached on the surface of SiO2. As the concentration of H2O2 increases, the surface coverage of resultant gold on silica cores increases accordingly until continuous gold nanoshells (GNSs) are formed. During the growth process, there is a strong correlation between the SERS-activity of the GNSs and the amount of H2O2 that is used as reductant. When H2O2 reaches 250 µM, the resultant GNSs show the highest SERS-activity. H2O2 can be scavenged by antioxidants such as tannic acid and L-apple acid. Their H2O2 scavenging activities were determined by restraining the H2O2-mediated (250 µM) growth of SiO2/GNPs. The decrease of the SERS-activity was proportional to the H2O2 scavenging activity of the antioxidant. The results showed that tannic acid had a much higher H2O2 scavenging activity than that of L-apple acid.