Out-of-set association analysis of lung cancer drugs and symptoms based on clinical case data mining.

BACKGROUND: There are 1.8 million lung cancer deaths worldwide, accounting for 18% of global cancer deaths, including 710,000 in China, accounting for 23.8% of all cancer deaths in China. OBJECTIVE: To explore the out-of-set association rules of lung cancer symptoms and drugs through text mining of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) treatment of lung cancer, and form medical case analysis to analyze the experience of TCM syndrome differentiation in its treatment. METHODS: The medical records of all patients diagnosed with lung cancer in Nanjing Chest Hospital from January to December 2018 were collected, and the out-of-set association analysis was performed using the MedCase v5.2 TCM clinical scientific research auxiliary platform based on the frequent pattern growth enhanced association analysis algorithm. RESULTS: In terms of TCM treatment of lung cancer, the clinical symptoms with high correlation included cough, expectoration, chest distress, and white phlegm; and the drugs with high correlation included Pinellia ternata, licorice root, white Atractylodes rhizome, and Radix Ophiopogonis; with the prescriptions based on Erchen and Maimendong decoctions. CONCLUSION: This analytical study of the medical cases of TCM treatment for lung cancer was performed using data mining techniques, and the out-of-set association rules between clinical symptoms and drugs were analyzed, including the understanding of lung cancer in TCM. Moreover, the essence of experience in drug use was gathered, providing significant scientific guidance for the clinical treatment of lung cancer.

[Relationship between atherogenic index of plasma and childhood asthma]. / è¡€æµ†è‡´åŠ¨è„‰ç¡¬åŒ–æŒ‡æ•°ä¸Žå„¿ç«¥æ”¯æ°”ç®¡å“®å–˜çš„ç›¸å ³æ€§åˆ†æž.

OBJECTIVES: To explore the relationship between atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) and childhood asthma. METHODS: This retrospective study included 86 children with asthma admitted to the Changzhou Second People's Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing Medical University from July 2020 to August 2022 as the asthma group and 149 healthy children undergoing physical examination during the same period as the control group. Metabolic parameters including total cholesterol, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and blood glucose, as well as general information of the children such as height, weight, body mass index, presence of specific dermatitis, history of inhalant allergen hypersensitivity, family history of asthma, and feeding history, were collected. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to study the relationship between AIP, triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and asthma. The value of AIP, triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol for predicting asthma was assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. RESULTS: The AIP and triglyceride levels in the asthma group were significantly higher than those in the control group, while high-density lipoprotein cholesterol was significantly lower (P<0.05). However, there was no significant difference in total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol between the two groups (P>0.05). Before and after adjusting for height, weight, presence of specific dermatitis, history of inhalant allergen hypersensitivity, family history of asthma, feeding method, and blood glucose, multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that AIP, triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol were associated with asthma (P<0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that the optimal cutoff value for predicting asthma with AIP was -0.333, with a sensitivity of 80.2%, specificity of 55.0%, positive predictive value of 50.71%, and negative predictive value of 82.85%. The area under the curve (AUC) for AIP in predicting asthma was significantly higher than that for triglycerides (P=0.009), but there was no significant difference in AUC between AIP and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P=0.686). CONCLUSIONS: AIP, triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol are all associated with asthma. AIP has a higher value for predicting asthma than triglycerides and comparable value to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol.

Analysis of the cluster efficacy and prescription characteristics of traditional Chinese medicine intervention for non-small cell lung cancer based on a clustering algorithm.

BACKGROUND: In recent years, malignant tumors have gradually become one of the main causes of death for Chinese residents, of which lung cancer ranks first in both the incidence and mortality in China. OBJECTIVE: To mine the text of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) clinical medical cases after data cleaning, analyze it, and study the experience of TCM doctors in treating non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). METHODS: The applied approach was based on the data mining methods of decentralized and hierarchical system clustering of data from a drug and prescription database. This study involved 215 patients, 287 cases, and 147 types of clinical drugs. RESULTS: The data analysis of the clinical treatment of NSCLC in TCM showed that Erchen Decoction was the main method for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer in clinical treatment of non-small cell lung cancer. Junjian recipes were close to each other, with Banzhilian, Lobelia, Shanci Mushroom, Hedyotis diffusa to anticancer and detoxify. CONCLUSION: This study analyzed the core TCM prescription for NSCLC by collecting the empirical essence and characteristics of specific medications. It has some guiding scientific significance for the clinical treatment of lung cancer.

A micro-focusing and high-flux-throughput beamline design using a bending magnet for microscopic XAFS at the High Energy Photon Source.

An optical design study of a bending-magnet beamline, based on multi-bend achromat storage ring lattices, at the High Energy Photon Source, to be built in Beijing, China, is described. The main purpose of the beamline design is to produce a micro-scale beam from a bending-magnet source with little flux loss through apertures. To maximize the flux of the focal spot, the synchrotron source will be 1:1 imaged to a virtual source by a toroidal mirror; a mirror pair will be used to collimate the virtual source into quasi-parallel light which will be refocused by a Kirkpatrick-Baez mirror pair. In the case presented here, a beamline for tender X-rays ranging from 2.1 keV to 7.8 keV, with a spot size of approximately 7 µm (H) × 6 µm (V) and flux up to 2 × 1012 photons s-1, can be achieved for the purpose of X-ray absorption fine-structure (XAFS)-related experiments, such as scanning micro-XAFS and full-field nano-XAFS.

Proposal for a photoelectron spectroscopy and microscopy beamline (0.5-11†keV) at the High Energy Photon Source.

An optical design study of a beamline proposed for the new 6 GeV synchrotron, the High Energy Photon Source (HEPS), to be built in Beijing, China, is described. The beamline is designed to cover an energy range from 0.5 to 11 keV with two experimental stations, one for X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (PES) experiments and the other for photoelectron emission microscopy (XPEEM) experiments. A 5 m APPLE II-type undulator with a relatively long magnetic period (55 mm) is used as the only radiation source. To optimize the optical efficiency for the full energy range, the beamline is split into a soft X-ray branch that is based on a variable-line-spacing plane-grating monochromator and a tender X-ray branch that uses a four-bounce monochromator with three Si channel-cut pairs. To allow both PES and XPEEM to be performed over the entire energy range, two toroidal mirrors and a bendable KB mirror pair are employed to deliver the soft and tender beams, respectively, to either of two experimental stations.

Ex vivo detection of calcium phosphate and calcium carbonate in rat blood serum.

The total calcium (tCa) in blood serum comprises free Ca2+ ions (fCa), protein-bound calcium (prCa), and complexed calcium by small anions (cCa). The cCa fraction, in addition to fCa, has been indicated to have some physiological activity. However, there is little evidence for the structure of its constituents. Here we report an ex vivo detection of the cCa constituents by synchrotron X-ray absorption near-edge structure spectroscopy. We collected the data directly on rat blood serum and, by making use of the reference samples, derived a spectrum that exhibits the features of cCa constituents. Among the features are those of the complexes of calcium phosphate and calcium carbonate. The detected complexes in the cCa fraction are mainly Ca(η2-HPO4)(H2O)4 and Ca(η1-HCO3)(H2O)5+, in which HPO42- and HCO3- serve as bidentate and unidentate ligands, respectively. The remained H2O molecules on the coordination sphere of Ca2+ enable these complexes to behave partially like aquated Ca2+ ions in protein-binding. Besides, as the dominant part of prCa, albumin-bound calcium (albCa) exhibits a spectrum that closely resembles that of fCa, indicating weak interactions between the protein carboxyl groups and calcium. The weak-bound cCa and albCa, along with fCa and the relevant anions, compose a local chemical system that could play a role in maintaining the calcium level in blood.

Chlorine levels and species in fine and size resolved atmospheric particles by X-ray absorption near-edge structure spectroscopy analysis in Beijing, China.

An understanding of the species of chlorine is crucial in the metropolis-Beijing, which is suffering serious haze pollution with high frequency. Particulate Matters (PMs) with five different sizes were collected in Beijing from July 2009 to March 2016, and characterized non-destructively by X-ray absorption near edge structure spectroscopy. PM<0.2, PM0.2-0.5 and PM>2.5 contributed for the major PMs mass in spring and summer, PM0.5-1.0 and PM1.0-2.5 contributed for the major PMs mass in autumn and winter. The concentrations of the three chlorine species were in the order of inorganic chlorine (Clinorg) > aliphatic chlorine (Clali) > aromatic chlorine (Claro), indicating that Clinorg constituted the primary chlorine fraction and less toxic Clali constituted the primary total organic chlorine (Clali + Claro, abbreviated as Clorg) in the PMs in Beijing. In addition, these three chlorine species exhibited identical seasonal variation in PM2.5: winter > autumn > spring > summer. Wet precipitation is an important factor to result in the lower mass concentrations of these three chlorine species in summer. The temporal variations of both size resolved PM mass concentrations and chlorine species concentrations suggested that the air pollution prevention and control in Beijing has just won initial success.

[Effect of Long-Term Fertilization on Organic Nitrogen Functional Groups in Black Soil as Revealed by Synchrotron-Based X-Ray Absorption Near-Edge Structure Spectroscopy].

Nitrogen (N) is a common limiting nutrient in crop production. The N content of soil has been used as an important soil fertility index. Organic N is the major form of N in soil. In most agricultural surface soils, more than 90% of total N occurs in organic forms. Therefore, understanding the compositional characteristics of soil organic N functional groups can provide the scientific basis for formulating the reasonable farmland management strategies. Synchrotron radiation soft X-ray absorption near-edge structure (N K-edge XANES) spectroscopy is the most powerful tool to characterize in situ organic N functional groups compositions in soil. However, to our most knowledge, no studies have been conducted to examine the organic N functional groups compositions of soil using N K-edge XANES spectroscopy under long-term fertilization practices. Based on a long-term field experiment (started in 1990) in a black soil (Gongzhuling, Northeast China), we investigated the differences in organic N functional groups compositions in bulk soil and clay-size soil fraction among fertilization patterns using synchrotron-based N K- edge XANES spectroscopy. Composite soil samples (0-20 cm) were collected in 2008. The present study included six treatments: farmland fallow (FALL), no-fertilization control (CK), chemical nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium fertilization (NPK), NPK in combination with organic manure (NPKM), 1.5 times of NPKM (1.5 NPKM), and NPK in combination with maize straw (NPKS). The results showed that N K-edge XANES spectra of all the treatments under study exhibited characteristic absorption peaks in the ranges of 401.2-401.6 and 402.7-403.1 eV, which were assigned as amides/amine-N and pyrrole-N, respectively. These characteristic absorption peaks were more obvious in clay-size soil fraction than in bulk soil. The results obtained from the semi-quantitative analysis of N K-edge XANES spectra indicated that the relative proportion of amides/amine-N was the highest in both bulk soil and clay-size soil fraction, and it was the most major forms in soil organic nitrogen functional groups. Compared with the FALL treatment, the relative proportion of amide/amine-N was lower whereas that of Pyrrole-N was higher in the CK treatment. In the treatments with combined chemical fertilizers and organic manure, the relative proportion of amide/amine-N decreased with increasing application rates of organic manure, while that of Pyrrole-N had an opposite trend. In bulk soil, the relative proportion of amide/amine-N was the highest for the NPKS treatment than for the other treatments. On the other hand, the relative proportion of nitrile/aromatic-N was the highest for the Fallow treatment than for the other treatments in clay-size soil fraction. It is feasible to use N K-edge XANES spectroscopy for characterizing in situ the changes of organic N functional groups in soil under different fertilization practices.

Differential utilization and transformation of sulfur allotropes, µ-S and α-S8, by moderate thermoacidophile Sulfobacillus thermosulfidooxidans.

The utilization of amorphous µ-S and orthorhombic α-S8 by thermoacidophile Sulfobacillus thermosulfidooxidans was firstly investigated in terms of cell growth and sulfur oxidation behavior. The morphology and surface sulfur speciation transformation were evaluated by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Raman spectroscopy and sulfur K-edge X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy. The results showed that the strain grown on µ-S entered slower (about 1 day later) into the exponential phase, while grew faster in exponential phase and attained higher maximal cell density and lower pH than on α-S8. After bio-corrosion, both sulfur samples were evidently eroded, but only µ-S surface presented much porosity, while α-S8 maintained glabrous. µ-S began to be gradually converted into α-S8 from day 2 when the bacterial cells entered the exponential phase, with a final composition of 62.3% µ-S and 37.7% α-S8 on day 4 at the stationary phase. α-S8 was not found to transform into other species in the experiments with or without bacteria. These data indicated S. thermosulfidooxidans oxidized amorphous µ-S faster than orthorhombic α-S8, but the chain-like µ-S was transformed into cyclic α-S8 by S. thermosulfidooxidans.

Comparison analysis of coal biodesulfurization and coal's pyrite bioleaching with Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans.

Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans (A. ferrooxidans) was applied in coal biodesulfurization and coal's pyrite bioleaching. The result showed that A. ferrooxidans had significantly promoted the biodesulfurization of coal and bioleaching of coal's pyrite. After 16 days of processing, the total sulfur removal rate of coal was 50.6%, and among them the removal of pyritic sulfur was up to 69.9%. On the contrary, after 12 days of processing, the coal's pyrite bioleaching rate was 72.0%. SEM micrographs showed that the major pyrite forms in coal were massive and veinlets. It seems that the bacteria took priority to remove the massive pyrite. The sulfur relative contents analysis from XANES showed that the elemental sulfur (28.32%) and jarosite (18.99%) were accumulated in the biotreated residual coal. However, XRD and XANES spectra of residual pyrite indicated that the sulfur components were mainly composed of pyrite (49.34%) and elemental sulfur (50.72%) but no other sulfur contents were detected. Based on the present results, we speculated that the pyrite forms in coal might affect sulfur biooxidation process.

[Effects of long-term fertilization on organic carbon functional groups in black soil as revealed by synchrotron radiation soft X-ray near-edge absorption spectroscopy].

A 20 years (1984-2004) stationary field experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of long-term application of chemical fertilizers (N or NPK) alone or in combination with low (0.125 kg x hm(-2)) or high dose of corn stalk (0.25 kg x hm(-2)) on organic carbon functional groups in black soil using synchrotron radiation soft X-ray near-edge absorption spectroscopy (C-1s NEXAFS). Compared with the control (CK) treatment, the aromatic C and the carboxyl C of soil increased, whereas the aliphatic C, the carbonyl C and the aliphatic C/aromatic C ratio decreased after the application of chemical fertilizer alone. After the application of chemical fertilizations in combined with corn stalk, the aromatic C decreased while the aliphatic C and the aliphatic C/aromatic C ratio increased as compared to N or NPK fertilizer treatment. And the change tendency was more obvious with the increase in the dose of corn stalk applied. Regardless of corn stalk application, the aromatic C, the aliphatic C, and the aliphatic C/aromatic C ratio were all higher for NPK than for N fertilizer treatment. The above results indicated that, compared with the no-fertilizer control treatment, the application of chemical fertilizers alone resulted in the relative proportion of aromatic compounds increased whereas that of aliphatic hydrocarbon compounds decreased. On the other hand, the relative proportion of the aliphatic hydrocarbon compounds was higher after the application of chemical fertilizers with than without corn stalk, with high than with low dose of corn stalk, and with NPK than with N fertilization. C-1s NEXAFS spectroscopy could characterize in situ the changes of organic carbon functional groups in soil under long-term stationary fertilization.

Investigation of elemental sulfur speciation transformation mediated by Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans.

The speciation transformation of elemental sulfur mediated by the leaching bacterium Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans was investigated using an integrated approach including scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and X-ray absorption near edge spectroscopy (XANES). Our results showed that when grown on elemental sulfur powder, At. ferrooxidans ATCC23270 cells were first attached to sulfur particles and modified the surface sulfur with some amphiphilic compounds. In addition, part of the elemental sulfur powder might be converted to polysulfides. Furthermore, sulfur globules were accumulated inside the cells. XANES spectra of these cells suggested that these globules consisted of elemental sulfur bound to thiol groups of protein.

[Bioindicating function of sulfur in Haplocladium under heavy metals pollution by SRXRF and XANES].

Haplocladium was cultivated in a special prepared nutrient medium containing different concentrations of Pb, Fe and Cr in laboratory. The sulfur content in moss was measured by synchrotron radiation X-ray fluorescence (SRXRF), and the percentage of various oxidation states of sulfur was analyzed by X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectrum. The results show that the sulfur absorption increases under exposure to heavy metal ions of Pb and Fe, but it decreases under exposure to 400 mg/L Pb and 200 mg/L Fe. When Haplocladium was cultivated for 15 days, under the stress of 100 mg/L Pb, the relative content of low oxidation states sulfur increases from 17.8% to 23.6% and the sulfate sulfur decreases from 56.3% to 51.2%. Under the stress of 400 mg/L Pb, the relative content of low oxidation state sulfur increases from 17.8% to 24.8%, and the sulfate sulfur decreases from 56.3% to 48.4%. Under heavy metal exposure, the total relative content of low oxidation states sulfur such as cystine, cysteine, methionine and glutathione increases, and the relative content of sulfate sulfur apparently decreases. All these results indicate that the changing characteristics of sulfur content and oxidation states percentage in sulfur assimilation process under heavy metal exposure can be used as a bioindicator of heavy metal pollution.

Myosin-I isozymes in neonatal rodent auditory and vestibular epithelia.

Myosin isozymes are essential for hair cells, the sensory cells of the inner ear. Because a myosin-I subfamily member may mediate adaptation of mechanoelectrical transduction, we examined expression of all eight myosin-I isozymes in rodent auditory and vestibular epithelia. Using RT-PCR, we found prominent expression of three isozymes, Myo1b (also known as myosin-Ia or myr 1). Myo1c (myosin-Ib or myr 2). and Myo1e (myr 3). By contrast, Myo1a (brush-border myosin-I), Myo1d (myosin lg or myr 4). Myo1f, Myo1g, and Myo1h were less readily amplified. Because sequence analysis demonstrated that the RT-PCR products encoded the appropriate isozymes, this represents the first demonstration of expression of all eight mouse myosin-I genes. Using immunocytochemistry with isozyme-selective antibodies, we found that Myo1b was located at apical surfaces of supporting cells that surround hair cells in auditory epithelia of postnatal rats. In vestibular epithelia, Myo1b was present in a ring within the apical pole of the hair cell. In both cases, expression was prominent only immediately after birth. Myo1e was found in hair cells of the auditory and vestibular epithelia; this isozyme was enriched in the cuticular plate, the actin meshwork that anchors the stereocilia. Myo1c was found in hair-cell stereocilia, concentrated towards their tips; we confirmed this localization by using adenovirus vectors to direct expression of a GFP-Myo1c tail fusion protein; this fusion protein localized to plasma membranes, often concentrating at stereociliary tips. Myo1c therefore remains the myosin isozyme best localized to carry out transducer adaptation.