[Clinical manifestation and treatment strategy of intervertebral space infection after radiofrequency ablation of lumbar nucleus pulposus].

OBJECTIVE: To study the clinical manifestations and treatment of intervertebral space infection after percutaneous lumbar radiofrequency ablation of nucleus pulposus. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed of 496 patients who underwent percutaneous lumbar disc decompression using low-temperature plasma radiofrequency ablation nucleus pulposus from June 2009 to June 2019. Six patients had lumbar infection, and the infection rate was 1.21%. All patients were male, ranging in age from 20 to 61 years old. Three patients underwent single segment radiofrequency ablation, two patients underwent dual segments ablation;and one patient underwent three segment ablation, totaling 10 intervertebral discs. One patient was complicated with type 2 diabetes before operation. The interval between infection occurrence ranged from 21 to 65 days. RESULTS: All 6 patients were followed up, and the duration ranged from 18 to 40 months, with an average of 24 months. Among them, 2 patients presented with symptoms of low back pain accompanied by fever, and imaging examination showed intervertebral space infection accompanied by abscess. In addition, 4 patients experienced low back pain but no fever, and MRI showed abnormal signals of the infected intervertebral endplate or vertebral body. One patient showed staphylococcus aureus in blood culture, while the remaining 5 patients showed negative bacterial culture. All the patients were treated with antibiotics after diagnosis. Four patients were treated with conservative management to control infection;1 patient was treated with debridement of posterior lumbar infection focus, and 1 patient was treated with debridement of posterior lumbar infection focus combined with interbody fusion and internal fixation. CONCLUSION: The occurrence of intervertebral space infection during lumbar radiofrequency ablation nucleoplasty should be given sufficient attention. Strict aseptic technique, avoiding repeated multi segment puncture, realizing early detection and treatment, and selecting appropriate treatment methods according to the severity of infection is the guarantee of achieving curative effect.

Research progress of cathepsin B in brain aging and Alzheimer's diseases.

Cathepsin B (CatB), a cysteine protease derived from lysosomes, was initially thought to non-selectively degrade proteins from phagocytosis and autophagy in lysosomes. However, CatB has been demonstrated to selectively degrade and specifically activate target proteins, thereby regulating the process of physiological and pathological responses. The expression, enzymatic activity, and cellular localization of CatB are significantly altered in brain aging and age-related neurodegenerative diseases. Therefore, the pathological function of CatB has attracted much attention in neuroscience research. In this review, we systematically summarize the molecular functions of CatB in brain aging and Alzheimer's disease and discuss the current problems in neuropathological studies of CatB, which lay a foundation for a comprehensive understanding of the pathogenesis of aging and Alzheimer's disease.

Three-Dimensional Silver-Containing Polyoxotungstate Frameworks for Photocatalytic Aerobic Oxidation of Benzyl Alcohol.

Photocatalytic organic transformation derived by functionalized polyoxometalate (POM)-based metal-organic frameworks provides a feasible route for fine chemical synthesis. Herein, three kinds of photoactive three-dimensional silver-containing polyoxotungstate frameworks are synthesized with the formulas [Ag3L2(OH)][Na(H2O)0.5][PW12O40]·H2O (1), [Ag4L3][SiW12O40] (2), and [Ag(H2O)][Ag4L3][BW12O40]·9H2O (3) (L = 1,4-di(4H-1,2,4-triazol-4-yl)benzene). In compounds 1-3, the cationic Ag-triazole clusters with diverse nuclei serve as nodes to assemble with rigid bridging ligands (L) and polyoxoanions to extend into stable three-dimensional frameworks, in which Keggin-type anions act as guests or pendants. When using them as heterogeneous photocatalysts, compounds 1-3 show high catalytic activity and selectivity for the photocatalytic aerobic oxidation of benzyl alcohol to benzoic acid under 10 W 365 nm light irradiation. Among them, compound 1 exhibits the highest performance with ca. 99% benzyl alcohol conversion and 99% selectivity of benzoic acid in 9 h. Compounds 2 and 3 show ca. 79 and 88% conversions of benzyl alcohol, respectively, which are higher than those of the individual Keggin-type precursors. Moreover, mechanism investigation suggests that the synergistic cooperation occurring between cationic Ag-triazole clusters and Keggin-type polyoxoanions modulates the energy band structures of compounds 1-3, resulting in the efficient separation of photogenerated carriers and accelerating the aerobic oxidation of benzyl alcohol. This work provides some important guidance for the design and development of efficient POM-based photocatalysts for practical organic transformation.

Polyoxometalate-Incorporated Metal-Organic Network as a Heterogeneous Catalyst for Selective Oxidation of Aryl Alkenes.

Selective oxidation of aryl alkenes is important for chemical synthesis reactions, in which the key lies in the rational design of efficient catalysts. Herein, four polyoxometalate (POM)-incorporated metal-organic networks, with the formulas of [Co(ttb)(H2O)3]2[SiMo12O40]·2H2O (1), [Co(ttb)(H2O)2]2[SiW12O40]·8H2O (2), [Zn(Httb)(H2ttb)][BW12O40]·9H2O (3) and {[Zn(H2O)3(ttb)]4[Zn3(H2O)6]}[H3SiW10.5Zn1.5O40]2·24H2O (4) (ttb = 1,3,5-tri(1,2,4-triazol-1-ylmethyl)-2,4,6-trimethylbenzene), were hydrothermally synthesized and structurally characterized. Structural analysis showed that compound 1 consists of a POM-encapsulated three-dimensional (3-D) supramolecular framework; compound 2 is composed of a POM-supported 3-D coordination network; and compounds 3-4 show POM-incorporated 3-D supramolecular networks. Using selective catalytic oxidation of styrene as the model reaction, compounds 1-4 as heterogeneous catalysts display excellent performance with the double advantages of high styrene conversion and benzaldehyde selectivity owing to the synergistic effect among POM anions and transition metal (TM) centers. Among them, compound 1 exhibits the highest performance with ca. 96% styrene conversion and ca. 99% benzaldehyde selectivity in 3 h. In addition, compound 1 also displays excellent substrate compatibility, good reusability, and structural stability. Thus, a plausible reaction pathway for the selective oxidation of styrene is proposed. This study on the structure-function relationship paves a way for the rational design of POM-based heterogeneous catalysts for important catalysis applications.

Metabolomic navigated Citrus waste repurposing to restore amino acids disorder in neural lesion.

The fruit juice food industry produces huge waste annually, mainly Citrus peel and seeds. We investigated their chemical composition using hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC-) and reverse phase liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (RPLC-MS/MS), revealing 277 compounds, mainly containing flavonoids and limonoids. As the primary representative component in Citrus waste, limonin was selected to be explored new bio-functions. We applied Zebrafish larvae to study the metabolomic response invoked by limonin. The differential metabolites (DMs) varied depending on the exposing concentration of limonin. Enrichment analysis indicated that the identified DMs related to inflammation and neurologic disorders, including epilepsy which were newly discovered for limonoids and Citrus waste. Limonin was found to restore amino acids disorder to take neuroprotection against epilepsy. Our findings provided a new bio-function and purpose for Citrus waste and limonoids. Also, we demonstrated a concise case to repurpose food waste for new applications under metabolome investigation.

Male social rank and food competition in a primate multi-level society.

OBJECTIVES: Social animals often have dominance hierarchies, with high rank conferring preferential access to resources. In primates, competition among males is often assumed to occur predominantly over reproductive opportunities. However, competition for food may occur during food shortages, such as in temperate species during winter. Higher-ranked males may thus gain preferential access to high-profitability food, which would enable them to spend longer engaged in activities other than feeding. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a field experiment with a breeding band of golden snub-nosed monkeys, a species that lives in a multi-level society in high-altitude forests in central China. We provisioned monkey's high-profitability food during winter when natural foods are limited, and then recorded the times individual adult males spent engaged in different behaviors. RESULTS: Higher-ranking males spent less time feeding overall and fed on provisioned foods at a higher rate than lower-ranking males. Higher-ranking males therefore had more time to spend on alternative behaviors. We found no significant difference according to rank in times spent moving or resting. However, high-ranking males spend significantly longer on affiliative behaviors with other members of their social sub-units, especially grooming and being groomed, behaviors known to promote social cohesion in primates. DISCUSSION: We show that preferential access to high-profitability foods likely relaxes time-budget constraints to higher-ranking males. High-ranking males thus spend more time on non-feeding activities, especially grooming, which may enhance social cohesion within their social sub-unit. We discuss the potential direct and indirect benefits to high-ranking males associated with preferential access to high-value food during winter.