Hyperspectral and Fluorescence Imaging Approaches for Nondestructive Detection of Rice Chlorophyll.

Estimating and monitoring chlorophyll content is a critical step in crop spectral image analysis. The quick, non-destructive assessment of chlorophyll content in rice leaves can optimize nitrogen fertilization, benefit the environment and economy, and improve rice production management and quality. In this research, spectral analysis of rice leaves is performed using hyperspectral and fluorescence spectroscopy for the detection of chlorophyll content in rice leaves. This study generated ninety experimental spectral datasets by collecting rice leaf samples from a farm in Sichuan Province, China. By implementing a feature extraction algorithm, this study compresses redundant spectral bands and subsequently constructs machine learning models to reveal latent correlations among the extracted features. The prediction capabilities of six feature extraction methods and four machine learning algorithms in two types of spectral data are examined, and an accurate method of predicting chlorophyll concentration in rice leaves was devised. The IVSO-IVISSA (Iteratively Variable Subset Optimization-Interval Variable Iterative Space Shrinkage Approach) quadratic feature combination approach, based on fluorescence spectrum data, has the best prediction performance among the CNN+LSTM (Convolutional Neural Network Long Short-Term Memory) algorithms, with corresponding RMSE-Train (Root Mean Squared Error), RMSE-Test, and RPD (Ratio of standard deviation of the validation set to standard error of prediction) indexes of 0.26, 0.29, and 2.64, respectively. We demonstrated in this study that hyperspectral and fluorescence spectroscopy, when analyzed with feature extraction and machine learning methods, provide a new avenue for rapid and non-destructive crop health monitoring, which is critical to the advancement of smart and precision agriculture.

Effect of Raltitrexed on ECA109 Cellular Radiosensitivity and Its Mechanism in Esophageal Cancer.

BACKGROUND: To investigate the effect of raltitrexed + X-ray irradiation on esophageal cancer ECA109 cells and analyze the potential action mechanism. METHODS: The 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was used to analyze the inhibitory effect of raltitrexed on cell proliferation. The effect of raltitrexed on radiosensitivity was studied through a clone-forming experiment. The scratch assay and invasion test were performed to understand the cell migration and invasion abilities. The apoptosis rate change was measured using a flow cytometer, and Western Blotting was used to determine the expression of B cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) and Bcl2-associated X protein (Bax) in each group. RESULTS: Raltitrexed significantly inhibited ECA109 proliferation in a time-dose-dependent manner; there were significant differences among different concentrations and times of action. The results of the clone-forming experiment showed a sensitization enhancement ratio of 1.65, and this demonstrated a radiosensitization effect. After the combination of raltitrexed with X-ray, the cell migration distance was shortened, and the number of cells penetrating the membrane was reduced. CONCLUSION: Raltitrexed can inhibit the growth of esophageal cancer ECA109 cells and has a radiosensitization effect.

Microbiome profiling and Co-metabolism pathway analysis in cervical cancer patients with acute radiation enteritis.

Background: Intestinal bacteria significantly contribute to the metabolism of intestinal epithelial tissues. As the occurrence and development of radiation enteritis (RE) depend on the "co-metabolism" microenvironment formed by the host and intestinal microbiota, which involves complex influencing factors and strong correlations, ordinary techniques struggle to fully explain the underlying mechanisms. However, given that it is based on systems biology, metabolomics analysis is well-suited to address these issues. This study aimed to analyze the metabolomic changes in urine, serum, and fecal samples during volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) for cervical cancer and screen for characteristic metabolites of severe acute radiation enteritis (SARE) and RE. Methods: We enrolled 50 patients who received radiotherapy for cervical cancer. Urine, serum, and fecal samples of patients were collected at one day before radiotherapy and the second week, fourth week, and sixth week after the start of radiotherapy. Control group samples were collected during the baseline period. Differential metabolites were identified by metabolomics analysis; co-metabolic pathways were clarified. We used the mini-SOM library for incorporating characteristic metabolites, and established metabolite classification models for predicting SARE and RE. Results: Urine and serum sample data showed remarkable clustering effect; metabolomics data of the fecal supernatant were evidently disturbed. Patient sample analyses during VMAT revealed the following. Urine samples: Downregulation of the pyrimidine and riboflavin metabolism pathways as well as initial upregulation followed by downregulation of arginine and proline metabolism pathways and the arginine biosynthesis pathway. Fecal samples: Upregulation of linoleic acid and phenylalanine metabolic pathways and initial downregulation followed by upregulation of arachidonic acid (AA) metabolic pathways. Serum samples: Initial upregulation followed by downregulation of the arginine biosynthesis pathway and downregulation of glutathione, AA, and arginine and proline metabolic pathways. Conclusion: Patients with cervical cancer exhibited characteristic metabolic pathways and characteristic metabolites predicting RE and SARE were screened out. An effective RE mini-SOM classification model was successfully established.

TBX5 genetic variants and SCD-CAD susceptibility: insights from Chinese Han cohorts.

Background: The prevention and prediction of sudden cardiac death (SCD) present persistent challenges, prompting exploration into common genetic variations for potential insights. T-box 5 (TBX5), a critical cardiac transcription factor, plays a pivotal role in cardiovascular development and function. This study systematically examined variants within the 500-bp region downstream of the TBX5 gene, focusing on their potential impact on susceptibility to SCD associated with coronary artery disease (SCD-CAD) in four different Chinese Han populations. Methods: In a comprehensive case-control analysis, we explored the association between rs11278315 and SCD-CAD susceptibility using a cohort of 553 controls and 201 SCD-CAD cases. Dual luciferase reporter assays and genotype-phenotype correlation studies using human cardiac tissue samples as well as integrated in silicon analysis were applied to explore the underlining mechanism. Result: Binary logistic regression results underscored a significantly reduced risk of SCD-CAD in individuals harboring the deletion allele (odds ratio = 0.70, 95% CI [0.55-0.88], p = 0.0019). Consistent with the lower transcriptional activity of the deletion allele observed in dual luciferase reporter assays, genotype-phenotype correlation studies on human cardiac tissue samples affirmed lower expression levels associated with the deletion allele at both mRNA and protein levels. Furthermore, our investigation revealed intriguing insights into the role of rs11278315 in TBX5 alternative splicing, which may contribute to alterations in its ultimate functional effects, as suggested by sQTL analysis. Gene ontology analysis and functional annotation further underscored the potential involvement of TBX5 in alternative splicing and cardiac-related transcriptional regulation. Conclusions: In summary, our current dataset points to a plausible correlation between rs11278315 and susceptibility to SCD-CAD, emphasizing the potential of rs11278315 as a genetic risk marker for aiding in molecular diagnosis and risk stratification of SCD-CAD.

Integrated 4D Analysis of Intramuscular Fat Deposition: Quantitative Proteomic and Transcriptomic Studies in Wannanhua Pig Longissimus Dorsi Muscle.

Wannanhua (WH) is a pig breed indigenous to Anhui Province, China. This breed has a high intramuscular fat (IMF) content, making it an ideal model for investigating lipid deposition mechanisms in pigs. IMF content is one of the main indicators of meat quality in pigs and is regulated by multiple genes and metabolic pathways. Building upon our prior transcriptomic investigation, the present study focused on the longissimus dorsi muscle tissue of Wannanhua (WH) pigs in the rapid fat-deposition stages (120 and 240 days of age). Employing 4D label-free quantitative proteomic analysis, we identified 106 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs). Parallel reaction monitoring (PRM) technology was used to verify the DEPs, and the results showed that the 4D label-free results were reliable and valid. Functional enrichment and protein-protein interaction analyses showed that the DEPs were mainly involved in the skeletal-muscle-associated structural proteins, mitochondria, energy metabolism, and fatty acid metabolism. By integrating transcriptomic data, we identified seven candidate genes including ACADL, ACADM, ANKRD2, MYOZ2, TNNI1, UCHL1, and ART3 that play a regulatory role in fat deposition and muscle development. These findings establish a theoretical foundation for future analyses of lipid deposition traits, contributing to potential enhancements in pig meat quality during breeding and advancing the selection process for Chinese indigenous breeds.

Structural insights into the mechanism of GTP initiation of microtubule assembly.

In eukaryotes, the dynamic assembly of microtubules (MT) plays an important role in numerous cellular processes. The underlying mechanism of GTP triggering MT assembly is still unknown. Here, we present cryo-EM structures of tubulin heterodimer at their GTP- and GDP-bound states, intermediate assembly states of GTP-tubulin, and final assembly stages of MT. Both GTP- and GDP-tubulin heterodimers adopt similar curved conformations with subtle flexibility differences. In head-to-tail oligomers of tubulin heterodimers, the inter-dimer interface of GDP-tubulin exhibits greater flexibility, particularly in tangential bending. Cryo-EM of the intermediate assembly states reveals two types of tubulin lateral contacts, "Tube-bond" and "MT-bond". Further, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations show that GTP triggers lateral contact formation in MT assembly in multiple sequential steps, gradually straightening the curved tubulin heterodimers. Therefore, we propose a flexible model of GTP-initiated MT assembly, including the formation of longitudinal and lateral contacts, to explain the nucleation and assembly of MT.

An efficient and recyclable electroeluter: from homemade to modular design for potential mass production.

Electrophoresis is one of the most powerful techniques to separate nucleic acids or protein molecules. The recovery of purified components from the gel is key to downstream analysis or function study. Here, we provide a cost-effective electroeluter in both homemade and module-assembled versions. The recovery yield can reach as high as >90% for single-stranded DNA (ssDNA), double-stranded DNA (dsDNA), and protein in practical testing, which outperforms a commercial kit as well as a purchased electroeluter. It fully addresses the existing concerns in this field. First of all, for almost all kits, there remains ambiguity in recovering ssDNA to satisfy specific demands, which is generally ignored. Secondly, the recovery of dsDNA from agarose gel with consumables is vulnerable to a lot of factors and involves chemicals/materials that are not friendly to the environment and operating personnel. Thirdly, recovery from polyacrylamide matrices is very difficult, and the most exploited diffusion method through crush-and-soak suffers from low yield even after a long-time diffusion. Lastly, there is a universal problem in scaling up, especially for commercial electroeluters. The present electroelution method addresses the above issues, and it is believed that it will facilitate associated research and find widespread application.

Drying Kinetics of Microwave-Assisted Drying of Leaching Residues from Hydrometallurgy of Zinc.

In the hydrometallurgical process of zinc production, the residue from the leaching stage is an important intermediate product and is treated in a Waelz kiln to recover valuable metals. To ensure optimal results during the Waelz kiln process, it is necessary to pre-treat the residues by drying them first due to their higher water content. This work studies the residue's drying process using microwave technology. The study results indicate that microwave technology better removes the residue's oxygen functional groups and moisture. The dehydration process's effective diffusion coefficient increases as the microwave's heating power, the initial moisture content, and the initial mass increase. The Page model is appropriate for imitating the drying process, and the activation energy of the drying process for the residues is -13.11217 g/W. These results indicate that microwave technology efficiently dries the residues from the leaching stage. Furthermore, this study provides a theoretical basis and experimental data for the industrial application of microwave drying.

Vulnerable Carotid Plaque is Associated with an Increased Risk of Intracerebral Hemorrhage in Individuals at High Risk of Stroke: A Chinese Population-based Cohort Study.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the association between carotid artery plaques and the risk of incident intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) event in high-risk individuals for stroke. METHODS: We conducted a population-based cohort study using the longitudinal participant-level data of a multicenter, cross-sectional survey in southwestern China. 2644 high-risk participants for stroke were enrolled in the year 2015. The primary outcome was new-onset ICH events during a five-year follow-up period. Multivariate logistic regression was performed to identify the association between carotid plaque and new-onset ICH. Stratified analyses and interaction tests were conducted to identify variables that might modify the association between vulnerable carotid plaque and ICH. RESULTS: Among 2644 high-risk individuals enrolled, carotid plaques were found in 904 (34.2%) subjects, including 479 (18.1%) with stable plaques and 425 (16.1%) with vulnerable plaques. During a five-year follow-up period, 22 (0.83%) participants developed ICH. Vulnerable carotid plaque was associated with an increased risk of new-onset ICH in multivariable analyses (adjusted RR 3.72, 95 % CI 1.32 to 10.46, p=0.013). Stratified analyses and interaction analyses demonstrated the association between vulnerable carotid plaque and ICH was not changed by age, family history of stroke, hemorrhagic stroke and chronic disease, smoking, drinking, physical activity, BMI, antihypertensives, and antithrombotic drugs (all p for interaction>0.05). However, among the female cohort, participants with vulnerable plaques had a significantly higher risk of ICH compared with participants without vulnerable plaques (crude RR=9.8; 95%CI: 3.1-31.3, p<0.001; adjusted RR=26.3, 95%CI: 5.5-124.5, p<0.001), but not in man (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: In Chinese individuals at high risk of stroke, vulnerable carotid artery plaques are associated with an increased risk of intracerebral hemorrhage independent of classical vascular risk factors, especially in female individuals.

Major complications associated with unfavorable outcome in right-sided large hemisphere infarctions: A single-center study.

OBJECTIVES: To identify the major complications independently associated with unfavorable outcomes in right-sided large hemisphere infarction (RLHI) patients. METHODS: We retrospectively enrolled consecutive patients admitted within 24 h with the diagnosis of RLHI. The unfavorable outcome was defined as a modified Rankin Scale score of 4-6 at 3 months. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify the major complications independently associated with 3-month unfavorable outcomes. RESULTS: Of the 171 cases with RLHI included, 126 (73.7%) had unfavorable outcomes at 3 months: A total of 64 (37.4%) cases died, and 62 (36.3%) lived with severe disability. Stroke-related complications occurred in 168 (98.2%) patients during hospitalization. The five most common stroke-related complications were pulmonary infection (75.4%), electrolyte disorder (61.4%), hypoalbuminemia (49.1%), malignant brain edema (MBE) (48.5%), and hemorrhagic transformation (48.0%). RLHI patients with unfavorable outcomes had more frequent MBE (58.7% vs. 21.4%, p < .001), pulmonary infection (86.5% vs. 42.9%, p < .001), gastrointestinal bleeding (46.8% vs. 28.6%, p = .038), electrolyte disorder (68.3% vs. 40.5%, p = .001), acute renal failure (32.5% vs. 4.8%, p < .001), and hypoalbuminemia (61.1% vs. 11.9%, p < .001) than patients with favorable outcome. Multivariate analyses suggested that only MBE (adjusted OR 4.06, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.14-14.48, p = .031), pulmonary infection (adjusted OR 4.69, 95%CI 1.48-14.85, p = .009), and hypoalbuminemia (adjusted OR 6.58, 95%CI 1.74-24.86, p = .005) were independently associated with 3-month unfavorable outcome in patients with RLHI. CONCLUSIONS: Most of the RLHI patients have at least one stroke-related complication during hospitalization, and nearly three-quarters suffered unfavorable outcomes. Only MBE, pulmonary infection, and hypoalbuminemia are independently associated with 3-month unfavorable outcome.

m6A Regulator-mediated RNA Methylation Modulates Immune Microenvironment of Hepatitis B Virus-related Acute Liver Failure.

Acute liver failure (ALF) is a rare and complicated disease with a high mortality rate. Emergency liver transplantation is the only treatment method that can improve the ALF prognosis. However, its clinical application remains limited owing to the aggressive nature of liver transplantation, limited donors, and high postoperative mortality. The study investigated the effect of m6A on the immune microenvironment of hepatitis B virus-related ALF (HBV-ALF). In this study, the gene expression data of 47 normal people and 42 HBV-ALF patients were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibu (GEO) database. The known 23 m6A regulators which mediated RNA modification patterns were compared and analyzed in these two groups, and the gene diagnosis model of HBV-ALF patients was established based on the analysis results. In addition, we used unsupervised clustering to identify different m6A RNA methylation modification patterns in HBV-ALF based on m6A regulators, and evaluated the immune infiltration and biological differences in these subtypes. In addition, the relationship between m6A genes and immune cell activation in HBV-ACLF patients was explored by immune infiltration analysis. Nineteen m6A regulators mediated RNA methylation (m6A regulators for short) were differentially expressed in HBV-ALF and control groups. m6A regulators could well distinguish control samples from HBV-ALF samples, and m6A regulators might be used as a basis for diagnosing HBV-ALF patients. Immune cells such as activated CD8 T cells, activated B cells, and activated CD4 T cells might play important roles in HBV-ALF, and m6A regulators were closely associated with immune cell infiltration. ALKBH15, CBLL1, IGF2BP2, IGF2BP3, and ZC3H13 were significantly associated with immune cells. Considering 23 m6A regulators, HBV-ALF patients could be classified into two subtypes (cluster 1 and cluster 2) based on different immune cell infiltration. m6A regulators of the IGFBP and YHDF families have extremely different levels in these two subtypes. Differential immune cell infiltration among these subtypes was observed, a total of 913 differentially expressed genes among different m6A modification patterns was identified, and their biological functions were explored. m6A modification might play a crucial role in the diverse and complex immune microenvironment of HBV-ALF patients.

Establishment of a prediction model for severe acute radiation enteritis associated with cervical cancer radiotherapy.

BACKGROUND: Cervical cancer is one of the most common gynecological malignant tumors. Radiation enteritis (RE) leads to radiotherapy intolerance or termination of radiotherapy, which negatively impacts the therapeutic effect and seriously affects the quality of life of patients. If the incidence of RE in patients can be predicted in advance, and targeted clinical preventive treatment can be carried out, the side effects of radiotherapy in cervical cancer patients can be significantly reduced. Furthermore, accurate prediction of RE is essential for the selection of individualized radiation dose and the optimization of the radiotherapy plan. AIM: To analyze the relationships between severe acute RE (SARE) of cervical cancer radiotherapy and clinical factors and dose-volume parameters retrospectively. METHODS: We included 50 cervical cancer patients who received volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) from September 2017 to June 2018 in the Department of Radiotherapy at The First Affiliated Hospital Soochow University. Clinical and dose-volume histogram factors of patients were collected. Logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the predictive value of each factor for SARE. A nomogram to predict SARE was developed (SARE scoring system ≥ 3 points) based on the multiple regression coefficients; validity was verified by an internal verification method. RESULTS: Gastrointestinal and hematological toxicity of cervical cancer VMAT gradually increased with radiotherapy and reached the peak at the end of radiotherapy. The main adverse reactions were diarrhea, abdominal pain, colitis, anal swelling, and blood in the stool. There was no significant difference in the incidence of gastrointestinal toxicity between the radical and postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy groups (P > 0.05). There were significant differences in the small intestine V20, V30, V40, and rectal V40 between adjuvant radiotherapy and radical radiotherapy after surgery (P < 0.05). Univariate and multivariate analyses revealed anal bulge rating (OR: 14.779, 95%CI: 1.281-170.547, P = 0.031) and disease activity index (DAI) score (OR: 53.928, 95%CI: 3.822-760.948, P = 0.003) as independent predictors of SARE. CONCLUSION: Anal bulge rating (> 0.500 grade) and DAI score (> 2.165 points) can predict SARE. The nomogram shows potential value in clinical practice.

Effects and mechanisms of GSG2 in esophageal cancer progression.

BACKGROUND: Esophageal cancer was recognized as one of the malignant tumors with poor prognosis. Germ cell associated 2 (GSG2) has been reported to be of great significance in cell growth and tumor formation. This study aimed to investigate the biological function and molecular mechanism of GSG2 in esophageal cancer. METHODS: First, relationship between GSG2 expression and tumor characteristics in esophageal cancer patients was analyzed through immunohistochemical (IHC) staining. MTT assay, flow cytometry, cloning formation assay, wound-healing assay and Transwell assay were used to determine proliferation, apoptosis and migration of esophageal cancer cell with GSG2 knockdown in vitro. Expression of apoptosis related proteins and downstream pathway proteins after GSG2 knockdown were detected through Human Apoptosis Antibody Array and western blot analysis. The GSG2 knockdown function in vivo was explored through a xenograft tumor model. RESULTS: GSG2 was highly expressed in tumor tissues, which has clinical significance in predicting the malignant degree of patients with esophageal cancer. In addition, GSG2 knockdown significantly inhibited a variety of malignant biological behaviors of esophageal cancer cells, such as inhibiting proliferation, reducing colony formation, promoting apoptosis, hindering migration. The decrease of GSG2 expression in esophageal cancer cells can inhibit the xenograft tumor growth. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, GSG2 was involved in esophageal cancer progression and development, which may provide an effective molecular target for the treatment of esophageal cancer in the future.

Analysis of nutritional risk, skeletal muscle depletion, and lipid metabolism phenotype in acute radiation enteritis.

BACKGROUND: Radiation enteritis, which often occurs during radiation-induced acute intestinal symptoms (RIAIS), is the most common and important complication during radiotherapy for cervical cancer. RIAIS caused by abdominal and pelvic radiotherapy will affect nutrient intake, digestion, absorption, and metabolism, leading to malnutrition or poorer nutritional status. In patients with malignant tumors, malnutrition can adversely affect the curative effect and response of radiotherapy by reducing radiosensitivity, affecting the precision of radiotherapy placement and increasing the incidence of radiotherapy-related adverse reactions. AIM: To analyze nutritional risk, skeletal muscle depletion, and lipid metabolism phenotype in acute radiation enteritis. METHODS: Fifty patients with cervical cancer received external beam radiotherapy, and 15 patients received brachytherapy after external beam radiotherapy. Body weight, body composition parameters, nutritional risk screening (NRS) 2002 score, and blood biochemical indices of patients with cervical cancer during periradiation were tested by a one-way repeated measures analysis of variance. Metabolomics analysis was used to identify characteristic lipid metabolism pathways. Clinical factors that affect linoleic acid changes were screened using the generalized evaluation equation. RESULTS: Among the 50 patients, 37 had RIAIS, including 34 patients with grade 1-2 RIAIS and 3 patients with grade 3 RIAIS. The NRS 2002 score of patients who underwent cervical cancer radiotherapy continued to increase during the periradiation period, and 42 patients who underwent cancer radiotherapy had nutritional deficits (NRS 2002 score ≥ 3 points) at the end of radiotherapy. Correlation analyses revealed that body weight and body mass index changes were closely associated with body fat content (R2 = 0.64/0.51). The results of the univariate analysis showed that radiotherapy time, percentage reduction of serum albumin, and percentage reduction of serum prealbumin were the key factors affecting skeletal muscle exhaustion (P < 0.05). Metabolomic analysis of fecal supernatants of cervical cancer patients during the periradiation period revealed the involvement of linoleic acid, cholic acid, arachidonic acid, and N-acetyl-L-benzene alanine in the metabolic pathway of linoleic acid. CONCLUSION: Cervical cancer radiotherapy patients faced nutritional risks, decreased serum albumin synthesis, and increased risk of skeletal muscle exhaustion. Linoleic acid was a biomarker of high nutritional risk.

The impact of challenge and hindrance stressors on newcomers' organizational socialization: A moderated-mediation model.

The importance of work stress on newcomers' organizational socialization has been a topic of substantial interest. However, the impact mechanism of different stressors on newcomers' organizational socialization is still in the early stages of theory development. This study, based on the theory of the dual work stress model, explored how to challenge stressors and hindrance stressors impact newcomers' organizational socialization via the mediation of job crafting. Based on the empirical data from 247 newcomers, we found that challenge stressors positively affected newcomers' organizational socialization; on the contrary, hindrance stressors would result in negative influences. In addition, leader-member exchange enhanced the positive effect of challenge stressors on newcomers' job crafting and further moderated the indirect influence of challenge stressors on newcomers' organizational socialization via job crafting. These findings provide a practical guide for organizations to apply stress management and promote newcomers' socialization.

Persistence of drug therapy is associated with ischemic stroke and other vascular events in high-risk stroke population.

The high-risk stroke populations are significantly associated with an increased risk of stroke or other vascular events. Although proven primary and secondary stroke prevention medications are available, persistent use is required to be effective. However, the persistence of drug therapy and its association with outcomes in the high-risk stroke population have received limited study in China. Hence, according to the China National Stroke Screening Survey (CNSSS) program in 2015, we performed this multicenter population-based cross-sectional survey and prospective cohort study in Sichuan of southwestern China. The residents aged ≥ 40 years volunteered to participate in a face-to-face survey in 8 communities. Subjects with at least three of eight stroke-related risk factors or a history of stroke were defined as high-risk stroke population. The interviewers recorded individuals' medications at a face-to-face survey, and all the high-risk stroke population was followed up for 4.7 years. The persistence of antihypertensives, hypoglycemics, lipid-lowering medications, and antithrombotics for stroke was evaluated. The primary outcome was new stroke. Secondary outcomes included new composite vascular events of stroke, myocardial infarction, and death during follow-up periods. Among 16,892 participants, 2,893 (17.1%) participants were high-risk stroke population and 2,698 (93.3%) participants completed to follow-up. The 4.7-year persistence of therapy rate of antihypertensives, hypoglycemics, lipid-lowering medications, and antithrombotics was 38.0%, 39.9%, 43.9%, and 59.8%, respectively. The total persistence of therapy rate for antihypertensives, hypoglycemics, lipid-lowering medications, and antithrombotics was 47.6% (136/286) in patients with hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, and stroke at the same time. During the 4.7-year follow-up, there were 118 (4.4%) new ischemic stroke, 24 (0.9%) hemorrhagic stroke, 53 (2.0%) myocardial infarctions, and 33 (1.2%) deaths. After adjusting for the covariates, 4.7-year persistence of antihypertensives, hypoglycemics, lipid-lowering therapy, antithrombotics, and total persistence was independently associated with less new ischemic stroke and less new composite vascular events. Thus, more effective public education and efforts to understand and enhance the persistence of drug therapy are crucial to improve population health and decrease stroke and other vascular events for the high-risk stroke population.

Clinical evaluation of deep learning-based clinical target volume three-channel auto-segmentation algorithm for adaptive radiotherapy in cervical cancer.

OBJECTIVES: Accurate contouring of the clinical target volume (CTV) is a key element of radiotherapy in cervical cancer. We validated a novel deep learning (DL)-based auto-segmentation algorithm for CTVs in cervical cancer called the three-channel adaptive auto-segmentation network (TCAS). METHODS: A total of 107 cases were collected and contoured by senior radiation oncologists (ROs). Each case consisted of the following: (1) contrast-enhanced CT scan for positioning, (2) the related CTV, (3) multiple plain CT scans during treatment and (4) the related CTV. After registration between (1) and (3) for the same patient, the aligned image and CTV were generated. Method 1 is rigid registration, method 2 is deformable registration, and the aligned CTV is seen as the result. Method 3 is rigid registration and TCAS, method 4 is deformable registration and TCAS, and the result is generated by a DL-based method. RESULTS: From the 107 cases, 15 pairs were selected as the test set. The dice similarity coefficient (DSC) of method 1 was 0.8155 ± 0.0368; the DSC of method 2 was 0.8277 ± 0.0315; the DSCs of method 3 and 4 were 0.8914 ± 0.0294 and 0.8921 ± 0.0231, respectively. The mean surface distance and Hausdorff distance of methods 3 and 4 were markedly better than those of method 1 and 2. CONCLUSIONS: The TCAS achieved comparable accuracy to the manual delineation performed by senior ROs and was significantly better than direct registration.

Individualized Whole Course Nutrition Management for Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Patients Undergoing Radiotherapy.

BACKGROUND: Radiotherapy-induced oral mucositis (RIOM) is the most common toxicity associated with radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Patients with RIOM become malnourished, which can affect the delivery and dose of radiotherapy. The value of personalizing nutrition recommendations for cancer prevention and management is increasingly recognized. To investigate the effect of individualized whole course nutrition management on nutritional status and the incidence and severity of RIOM in NPCs. METHODS: This retrospective study included 77 patients who were provided individualized whole course nutrition management during radiotherapy (RT) and a 1-month follow-up. Seventy-one patients were included in the control group. RESULTS: During radiotherapy, severity of RIOM was significantly lower in the intervention group. There were statistically significant differences in oral mucosa recovery time and nutritional status between the two groups (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Individualized whole course nutrition management had the potential to maintain nutritional status and decrease the adverse effects of radiotherapy in NPCs.

Alterations of microRNAs expression profiles in small extracellular vesicle after traumatic brain injury in mice.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity worldwide. Tools available for diagnosis and therapy are limited. Small extracellular vesicle (sEV) microRNAs (miRNAs) play an important role in TBI disease progression. This study aimed to investigate the alterations in sEV miRNAs expression in the mouse brain extracellular space after TBI. Twenty-four C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into two groups (12/group). The TBI group was subjected to all surgical procedures and fluid percussion injury (FPI). The sham group only underwent surgery. Brain specimens were collected 3 h after TBI/sham. The brain sEV were isolated. Differentially expressed miRNAs were identified. A total of 50 miRNAs were observed to be differentially expressed (fold change ≥1.5 and P<0.05) after TBI, including 5 upregulated and 45 downregulated. The major enriched Gene Ontology terms were metabolic processes, cell, intracellular, organelle, cytoplasm, axon, binding, protein kinase activity, protein binding, and protein dimerization activity. The KEGG pathway analysis predicted that the pathways affected by the variation of miRNAs in sEVs after TBI included the Wnt signaling pathway and NF-κB signaling pathway. The changes in five miRNAs were confirmed by qRT-PCR. In conclusion, this study demonstrated the differential expression of a series of miRNAs in brain sEV after TBI, which might be correlated with post-TBI physiological and pathological processes. The findings might also provide novel targets for further investigating the molecular mechanisms underlying TBI and potential therapeutic interventions.

NiMoFe/Cu nanowire core-shell catalysts for high-performance overall water splitting in neutral electrolytes.

A bifunctional NiMoFe/Cu NW core-shell catalyst assembled into a practical solar-driven overall water splitting system leads to an unprecedented solar-to-hydrogen (STH) efficiency of 10.99% in neutral electrolytes, attributed to the synergic combination of a unique 3D self-supported core-shell architecture and rapid electron/mass transfer properties.