Plasma-assisted manipulation of vanadia nanoclusters for efficient selective catalytic reduction of NOx.

Supported nanoclusters (SNCs) with distinct geometric and electronic structures have garnered significant attention in the field of heterogeneous catalysis. However, their directed synthesis remains a challenge due to limited efficient approaches. This study presents a plasma-assisted treatment strategy to achieve supported metal oxide nanoclusters from a rapid transformation of monomeric dispersed metal oxides. As a case study, oligomeric vanadia-dominated surface sites were derived from the classic supported V2O5-WO3/TiO2 (VWT) catalyst and showed nearly an order of magnitude increase in turnover frequency (TOF) value via an H2-plasma treatment for selective catalytic reduction of NO with NH3. Such oligomeric surface VOx sites were not only successfully observed and firstly distinguished from WOx and TiO2 by advanced electron microscopy, but also facilitated the generation of surface amide and nitrates intermediates that enable barrier-less steps in the SCR reaction as observed by modulation excitation spectroscopy technologies and predicted DFT calculations.

The neurological decline and psychological factors caused by coronavirus disease 2019 may be predictors of erectile dysfunction.

BACKGROUND: Since the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019, it has had a serious impact on people's physical and mental health. However, in our clinical work, we have found that the erectile function of coronavirus disease 2019 patients with neurological decline was often seriously affected. OBJECTIVES: To further explore the relationship between erectile dysfunction and neurological dysfunction caused by coronavirus disease 2019. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted a survey from August 2022 to February 2023 at the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University and the Third People's Hospital of Linyi City. A total of 251 subjects with a history of coronavirus disease 2019 infection were included. Symptoms and changes in erectile function after the coronavirus disease 2019 infection were collected and assessed using the International Index of Erectile Function-5 scale and several targeted questions. RESULTS: In this study, we found that in patients infected with novel coronavirus, the proportion of erectile dysfunction was higher in those with neurological manifestations such as olfactory and taste impairment or psychological symptoms such as anxiety. DISCUSSION: We found that neurological decline and psychological factors were independent and significant risk factors for erectile dysfunction caused by coronavirus disease 2019. CONCLUSION: Patients with neurological damage or psychiatric symptoms are more likely to have erectile dysfunction, suggesting that the 2019 novel coronavirus may affect erectile function by damaging nerves. This provides a new insight into the mechanism of erectile dysfunction.

The Association between the Gut Microbiota and Erectile Dysfunction.

PURPOSE: Explore the causal relationship between the gut microbiota and erectile dysfunction (ED) at phylum, class, order, family, and genus levels, and identify specific pathogenic bacteria that may be associated with the onset and progression of ED. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The genetic variation data of 196 human gut microbiota incorporated in our study came from the human gut microbiome Genome Wide Association Studies (GWAS) dataset released by the MiBioGen Consortium. The GWAS statistics for ED were extracted from one study by Bovijn et al., which included 223,805 participants of European ancestry, of whom 6,175 were diagnosed with ED. Subsequently, Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis was carried out to explore whether a causal relationship exists between the gut microbiota and ED. Additionally, bidirectional MR analysis was performed to examine the directionality of the causal relationship. RESULTS: Through MR analysis, we found that family Lachnospiraceae (odds ratio [OR]: 1.27, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.05-1.52, p=0.01) and its subclass genus LachnospiraceaeNC2004 group (OR: 1.17, 95% CI: 1.01-1.37, p=0.04) are associated with a higher risk of ED. In addition, genus Oscillibacter (OR: 1.17, 95% CI: 1.02-1.35, p=0.03), genus Senegalimassilia (OR: 1.32, 95% CI: 1.06-1.64, p=0.01) and genus Tyzzerella3 (OR: 1.14, 95% CI: 1.02-1.27, p=0.02) also increase the risk of ED. In contrast, the inverse variance weighted estimate of genus RuminococcaceaeUCG013 (OR: 0.77, 95% CI: 0.61-0.96, p=0.02) suggests that it has a protective effect against the occurrence of ED. CONCLUSIONS: This study preliminarily identified 6 bacterial taxa that may have a causal relationship with ED, including family Lachnospiraceae, genus Lachnospiraceae NC2004 group, Oscillibacter, Senegalimassilia, Tyzzerella 3 and Ruminococcaceae UCG013. These identified important bacterial taxa may serve as candidates for microbiome intervention in future ED clinical trials.

Engineering the Crystal Facet of Monoclinic NiO for Efficient Catalytic Ozonation of Toluene.

Modulating oxygen vacancies of catalysts through crystal facet engineering is an innovative strategy for boosting the activity for ozonation of catalytic volatile organic compounds (VOCs). In this work, three kinds of facet-engineered monoclinic NiO catalysts were successfully prepared and utilized for catalytic toluene ozonation (CTO). Density functional theory calculations revealed that Ni vacancies were more likely to form preferentially than O vacancies on the (110), (100), and (111) facets of monoclinic NiO due to the stronger Ni-vacancy formation ability, further affecting O-vacancy formation. Extensive characterizations demonstrated that Ni vacancies significantly promoted the formation of O vacancies and thus reactive oxygen species in the (111) facet of monoclinic NiO, among the three facets. The performance evaluation showed that the monoclinic NiO catalyst with a dominant (111) facet exhibits excellent performance for CTO, achieving a toluene conversion of ∼100% at 30 °C after reaction for 120 min under 30 ppm toluene, 210 ppm ozone, 45% relative humidity, and a space velocity of 120 000 h-1. This outperformed the previously reported noble/non-noble metal oxide catalysts used for CTO at room temperature. This study provided novel insight into the development of highly efficient facet-engineered catalysts for the elimination of catalytic VOCs.

Atomically Dispersed Cobalt/Copper Dual-Metal Catalysts for Synergistically Boosting Hydrogen Generation from Formic Acid.

The development of practical materials for (de)hydrogenation reactions is a prerequisite for the launch of a sustainable hydrogen economy. Herein, we present the design and construction of an atomically dispersed dual-metal site Co/Cu-N-C catalyst allowing significantly improved dehydrogenation of formic acid, which is available from carbon dioxide and green hydrogen. The active catalyst centers consist of specific CoCuN6 moieties with double-N-bridged adjacent metal-N4 clusters decorated on a nitrogen-doped carbon support. At optimal conditions the dehydrogenation performance of the nanostructured material (mass activity 77.7 L ⋅ gmetal -1 ⋅ h-1 ) is up to 40 times higher compared to commercial 5 % Pd/C. In situ spectroscopic and kinetic isotope effect experiments indicate that Co/Cu-N-C promoted formic acid dehydrogenation follows the so-called formate pathway with the C-H dissociation of HCOO* as the rate-determining step. Theoretical calculations reveal that Cu in the CoCuN6 moiety synergistically contributes to the adsorption of intermediate HCOO* and raises the d-band center of Co to favor HCOO* activation and thereby lower the reaction energy barrier.

The relationship between four types of premature ejaculation patients and the quality of residential environment.

BACKGROUND: We investigated the association between premature ejaculation (PE) and the quality of residential environment from a new perspective to explore the influencing factors of PE, especially in four PE subtypes. We selected 499 adult males to participate in this study from September 2021 to September 2022. The satisfaction of residential environment was assessed by the Perceived Residential Environment Quality Indicators (PREQIs) scale, the control ability over ejaculation was assessed using the premature ejaculation diagnostic tool (PEDT), and their depression was assessed using the self-rating depression scale (SDS). RESULTS: The Architectural and Town-planning Spaces (ATS), Green Spaces (GS), and Commercial Services (CS) of PE patients (N = 346) were compared with those of control group (N = 153), showed a significant difference (p < .05), for PE patients, the score of ATS was 44.30 ± 12.38, the score of GS was 18.60 ± 6.24, and the score of CS was 20.82 ± 8.20; for control group, which were 40.46 ± 16.21, 20.69 ± 5.71 and 22.90 ± 7.03 respectively. After age was taken into account, ATS had a positive correlation with PEDT score (r = 0.76), whereas GS and CS had a negative correlation (r = -0.87, -0.90); ATS had a positive correlation with SDS (r = 0.96), whereas GS and CS had a negative correlation (r = -0.74, -0.81). CONCLUSIONS: We discovered that PE patients more likely resided in high-density areas with little green space and subpar commercial services, which might have an adverse effect on their mental health. This study offered a new viewpoint about the influence of residential environment on PE.

RéSUMé: CONTEXTE: Nous avons étudié l'association entre éjaculation précoce (PE) et qualité de l'environnement résidentiel sous un nouvel angle pour explorer les facteurs d'influence de la PE, en particulier dans quatre sous-types de PE. Nous avons sélectionné 499 hommes adultes pour participer à cette étude de septembre 2021 à septembre 2022. La satisfaction de l'environnement résidentiel a été évaluée par l'échelle des indicateurs de qualité perçue de l'environnement résidentiel (PREQI), la capacité de contrôle de l'éjaculation a été évaluée à l'aide de l'outil de diagnostic de la PE (PEDT) et leur dépression à l'aide de l'échelle d'auto-évaluation de la dépression (SDS). RéSULTATS: Les espaces architecturaux et urbanistiques (ATS), les espaces verts (GS) et les services commerciaux (CS) des patients atteints de PE (n = 346) ont été comparés à ceux du groupe témoin (n = 153). Ils ont montré une différence significative (p<,05) ; pour les patients PE, le score de l'ATS était de 44,30±12,38, le score de GS de 18,60±6,24 et le score de CS de 20,82±8,20 ; pour le groupe témoin, ces scores étaient respectivement de 40,46±16,21, 20,69±5,71 et 22,90±7,03. Une fois l'âge pris en compte, l'ATS avait une corrélation positive avec le score PEDT (r = 0,76), tandis que GS et CS avaient une corrélation négative (r = -0,87, -0,90) ; l'ATS avait une corrélation positive avec SDS (r = 0,96), tandis que GS et CS avaient une corrélation négative (r = -0,74, -0,81). CONCLUSIONS: Nous avons découvert que les patients atteints de PE résidaient plutôt dans des zones à forte densité avec peu d'espaces verts et des services commerciaux médiocres, ce qui pourrait avoir un effet néfaste sur leur santé mentale. Cette étude a offert un nouveau point de vue sur l'influence de l'environnement résidentiel sur la PE.

The role of tyrosine hydroxylase within dapoxetine-assisted therapy against premature ejaculation.

BACKGROUND: There are several investigations that have revealed that cerebral dopamine (DA) plays a pivotal role in the occurrence of premature ejaculation (PE). Although tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) is an essential enzyme for the synthesis of DA, only few investigations have described the role of TH in regulation mechanisms for ejaculation till now. To investigate whether there is a correlation between TH expression level in the brain and different ejaculation behavior in rats. Then explore whether the TH expression in the brain will change after acute dapoxetine treatment in rats with Rapid ejaculation. METHODS AND RESULTS: Rats (male, S-D rats, 6-8 weeks) were separated into three groups based on their ejaculation frequency: Rapid, Normal, and Sluggish. Expression level of DA in the brain was determined by enzyme-linked immune sorbent assay (ELISA) kit, TH expression level in the brain was determined by immunohistochemistry and Western Blot (WB) techniques. Among the three groups, DA and TH expression level were the highest in the Rapid ejaculation group, while the lowest was the Sluggish ejaculation group. The results also showed that TH level was positively associated with ejaculation frequency (r = 0.8038, P < 0.001) and negatively associated with ejaculation latency (r=-0.6199, P = 0.018). Furthermore, acute dapoxetine therapy in rats with Rapid ejaculation downregulated TH level in the brain. CONCLUSION: Changes in ejaculation behavior were significantly linked with TH level. Upregulated TH in selected brain regions related with ejaculation could cause rapid ejaculation. The effect of dapoxetine in prolonging ejaculation could be related to TH downregulation within the brain.

To promote catalytic ozonation of toluene by tuning Brönsted acid sites via introducing alkali metals into the OMS-2-SO42-/ZSM-5 catalyst.

Although free hydroxyl radical (·OH) generated on OMS-2-based catalysts during the catalytic ozonation process have been shown as important reactive oxygen species (ROSs) for toluene degradation, improvement of surface ·OH formation ability remains challenging. Here, Na, K, Rb, and Cs-OMS-2-SO42-/ZSM-5 catalysts were prepared, characterized and evaluated for catalytic ozonation of toluene. Both characterizations and DFT calculations showed that the appropriate alkali metal introduction made the catalyst possess with appropriate crystalline, reducibility, and acidity, which was favorable for catalytic ozonation of toluene. Characterizations also showed that alkali metal introduction resulted in water molecule adsorption on Brönsted acid sites of the catalysts, which made water molecule activation by ozone to form ·OH more easily. The introduction of K+ content of ∼ 5.9 wt% yielded K-OMS-2-SO42-/ZSM-5 catalyst with the highest Brönsted acid sites and thus formed the most ·OH among the five prepared catalysts. As a result, the catalyst exhibited excellent toluene conversion and COx selectivity for catalytic ozonation of toluene at room temperature and ambient humidity. Furthermore, the catalytic activity of deactivated K-OMS-2-SO42-/ZSM-5 catalyst was recovered after regeneration by a combination of water washing and heat treatment. Finally, a complete mechanism for toluene catalytic ozonation, catalyst deactivation, and regeneration was proposed.

Vital function of DRD4 in dapoxetine medicated premature ejaculation treatment.

BACKGROUND: Recently, dapoxetine has been widely accepted to treat premature ejaculation by fast-inhibiting 5-hydroxytryptamine reuptake. However, dapoxetine is not suitable for all premature ejaculation patients in clinical treatment. We need to investigate and reveal the mechanism deeply to solve this problem. OBJECTIVES: To investigate and reveal the function of dopamine D4 receptor in dapoxetine medicated premature ejaculation treatment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A rat model was used to screen rapid ejaculators. The molecular mechanisms of histone serotonylation-mediated regulation of dopamine D4 receptor were demonstrated by chromatin immunoprecipitation, DNA pull-down, mass spectrometry analysis, and coimmunoprecipitation experiments. The biological function of dopamine D4 receptor was investigated through in vivo experiments by intrathecal injection of shDRD4 to knockdown dopamine D4 receptor. RESULTS: In this study, we found that dapoxetine increased expression of 5-hydroxytryptamine and dopamine D4 receptor. We demonstrated that dapoxetine increased levels of 5-hydroxytryptamine, which promoted histone serotonylation (H3K4me3Q5ser) and transcription factor myeloid zinc-finger 1 complex binding on the dopamine D4 receptor promoter, upregulated the expression of dopamine D4 receptor and thus delayed ejaculation. DISCUSSION: In this study, we demonstrated that dapoxetine increased the levels of 5-hydroxytryptamine, which promoted histone serotonylation and myeloid zinc-finger 1 complex binding to the dopamine D4 receptor promoter and upregulated the expression of dopamine D4 receptor, thus delaying ejaculation. CONCLUSION: It is a novel mechanism that dapoxetine take effect of premature ejaculation treatment through upregulating the dopamine D4 receptor, which indicated that upregulated dopamine D4 receptor would enhance the dapoxetine effect in premature ejaculation treatment. This may lead to the development of novel therapeutic interventions for premature ejaculation.

Adsorption removal of styrene on C-Cl grafted silica gel adsorbents.

The heat desorption of styrene from adsorbents is impracticable owing to its spontaneous polymerization under heating conditions. However, the feature also brings a potential promoting effect on styrene adsorption. Therefore, it is expected to develop the non-regenerative adsorbents with large adsorption capacity by strengthening the polymerization effect. In this work, C-Cl grafted silica gel adsorbents were prepared by introducing (Chloromethyl)dimethylchlorosilane (CMDMCS) and FeCl2 into silica gel. The C-Cl grafted silica gel exhibited excellent styrene adsorption performance, its adsorption amounts for styrene were 4.67 times and 9 times of unmodified silica gel under dry air condition and high humidity condition (RH = 80%), respectively. In addition, the adsorption of styrene on C-Cl grafted silica gel was almost unaffected by the presence of toluene. The characterization of adsorbents after styrene adsorption indicated that the improvement of adsorption capacity of C-Cl grafted silica gel for styrene can be attributed to atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) of styrene molecules on modified silica gel during adsorption process.

Extraordinary deactivation offset effect of zinc and arsenic on V2O5 -WO3/TiO2 catalysts: Like cures like.

The commercial V2O5 -WO3/TiO2 (VWTi) catalysts often suffer from a serious joint deactivation by multiple heavy metals in the flue gas for NOx removal by NH3-SCR. Herein, we report an extraordinary deactivation offset effect between Zn and As on VWTi with alleviation of the toxic effects of the heavy metals by "like cures like". With the As&Zn content of 4 wt%, VWTi-As&Zn exhibited over 97% NO conversion under a GHSV of 100,000 h-1 and good SO2/H2O tolerance (> 93% NO conversion). It's presented 85% of fresh VWTi, exceeding those of VWTi-Zn (15%) by 5.6-fold and VWTi-As (70%) by 1.2-fold. Structure analysis showed that, unlike VWTi-As and VWTi-Zn, the VO vibration and dispersion state of VOx sites over VWTi-As&Zn were hardly affected. Moreover, VWTi-As&Zn possessed both the Lewis and Brønsted acid sites while VWTi-Zn and VWTi-As had only one type of them. The operando infrared/Raman/UV-vis spectroscopy and DFT calculations verified that the less affected VOx sites mainly reflected in three aspects: 1) the electron interaction between As and Zn; 2) the active VO Lewis acid sites; 3) lower energy barrier for N - H bond breaking. The "like cures like" phenomenon may open up an innovative pathway for the control of hazardous heavy metals.

High performance ozone decomposition over MnAl-based mixed oxide catalysts derived from layered double hydroxides.

Mesoporous and dispersed MnAl-based mixed metal oxide catalysts (Mn x AlO) were fabricated via the calcination of layered double hydroxide (LDH) precursors prepared by the coprecipitation method. Their physiochemical properties were characterized and their catalytic activities for ozone decomposition were evaluated. The results indicate that the prepared Mn x AlO catalysts have excellent catalytic activity owing to their large specific surface area, abundant surface oxygen vacancies and lower average Mn oxidation states. The Mn/Al atomic ratio and calcination temperature are found to significantly affect the textural properties and catalytic activity for ozone decomposition. The Mn2AlO-400 catalyst (Mn/Al = 2, calcined at 400 °C) exhibited 84.8% ozone conversion after 8 h reaction under an initial ozone concentration of 45 ± 2 ppm, 30 ± 1 °C, a relative humidity of 50% ± 3%, and a space velocity of 550 000 h-1. The results also show that the catalytic activity of Mn2AlO-400, which was deactivated owing to the accumulation of oxygen-related intermediates, was recovered by calcination at 400 °C under a N2 atmosphere for 1 h. A possible reason for catalyst deactivation and regeneration is proposed. This work provides a facile method for fabricating Mn x AlO catalysts with excellent characteristics to achieve better catalytic activity, which are promising candidates for practical ozone decomposition.

Promoting the Catalytic Ozonation of Toluene by Introducing SO42- into the α-MnO2/ZSM-5 Catalyst to Tune Both Oxygen Vacancies and Acid Sites.

Mn-based catalysts hold the promise of practical applications in catalytic ozonation of toluene at room temperature, yet improvement of toluene conversion and COx selectivity remains challenging. Here, an innovative α-MnO2/ZSM-5 catalyst modified with SO42- was successfully prepared, and both characterizations and density functional theory (DFT) calculations showed that SO42- introduction facilitated the formation of oxygen vacancies, Lewis and Brönsted acid sites, and active oxygen species and enhanced the adsorption ability of toluene on α-MnO2/ZSM-5. Characterizations also showed that SO42- introduction made the catalyst possess larger specific surface area, superior reducibility, and stronger surface acidity. As a result, α-MnO2/ZSM-5 with a S/Mn molar ratio of 0.019 exhibited the best toluene conversion and COx selectivity, 87 and 94%, respectively, after the reaction for 8 h at 30 °C under an initial concentration of 5 ppm toluene and 45 ppm ozone, relative humidity of 45%, and space velocity of 32,000 h-1, far superior to those of non-noble catalysts reported to date under comparable reaction conditions. The synergistic role of increased oxygen vacancies and acid sites of α-MnO2/ZSM-5 modified with SO42- resulted in excellent toluene conversion and COx selectivity. The findings represented a critical step toward the rational design and synthesis of highly efficient catalysts for catalytic ozonation of toluene.

Formic Acid-Mediated Regeneration Strategy for As-Poisoned V2O5-WO3/TiO2 Catalysts with Lossless Catalytic Activity and Simultaneous As Recycling.

Regeneration of spent V2O5-WO3/TiO2 catalysts is highly desirable, especially for those containing hypertoxic As, which is categorized as hazardous waste. However, common solution-leaching methods suffer from the trade-off between As removal and V2O5 retention, and it would be necessary to introduce extra proceedings like ingredients reimplantation and As-bearing waste treatment after regeneration. Herein, a formic acid-mediated regeneration strategy has been developed to achieve superior catalytic activity, short timescale regeneration, and nontoxic metallic As recycling with controllable and safe conduction. The specific activity of the optimal regenerated catalyst reaches 98.3% of the fresh catalyst with 99.1% As removal and less than 1.8% V loss within 15 min. Structure characterizations reveal that the distorted VOx molecular structure, surface acidity, and redox property recover to the fresh level after regeneration. In situ investigation of the regeneration process indicates that As-OH removal together with V-OH generation occurs at the first regeneration stage, followed by the active center V═O sites over-reduction at the second stage. The retained V═O species by suitable regeneration temperature and time are essential for NH3-selective catalytic reduction (SCR) since As existence and VOx over-reduction will separately cause unstable and excessive NH3 adsorption to further suppress the reaction cycle. The developed strategy and improved understanding of active site protection would exert benefits on the development of efficient and time-saving regeneration methods for spent catalysts.

Adsorptive removal of gas phase naphthalene on ordered mesoporous carbon.

Adsorptive removal of gas phase low concentration macromolecular organic component, represented by naphthalene, from the enclosed space using ordered mesoporous carbon (OMC) has been studied by molecular simulation and experimental investigation. The simulation results indicated that both adsorption capacity and adsorption stability of the OMCs for naphthalene decreased with the increase of pore sizes from 2 nm to 8 nm. Characterizations showed that the prepared OMCs had the pore structure similar to the simulated OMCs except for the rough surface. In particular, the adsorption performance of the prepared OMCs was significantly lower than that of the simulated OMCs when pore size was 2 nm and 3 nm, which was attributed to the rough inner surface of these adsorbents, blocking the narrow pore channels and significantly reducing the pore volume. OMC with pore size of 4 nm had the highest adsorption amount for naphthalene. The co-adsorption experiments in the presence of both naphthalene and toluene, acetone or water showed the adsorption performance of OMCs for naphthalene were almost unaffected by the presence of low concentration toluene and acetone, as well as high relative humidity.

Insights into the Profile of the Human Expiratory Microbiota and Its Associations with Indoor Microbiotas.

Microorganisms residing in the human respiratory tract can be exhaled, and they constitute a part of environmental microbiotas. However, the expiratory microbiota community and its associations with environmental microbiotas remain poorly understood. Here, expiratory bacteria and fungi and the corresponding microbiotas from the living environments were characterized by DNA amplicon sequencing of residents' exhaled breath condensate (EBC) and environmental samples collected from 14 residences in Nanjing, China. The microbiotas of EBC samples, with a substantial heterogeneity, were found to be as diverse as those of skin, floor dust, and airborne microbiotas. Model fitting results demonstrated the role of stochastic processes in the assembly of the expiratory microbiota. Using a fast expectation-maximization algorithm, microbial community analysis revealed that expiratory microbiotas were differentially associated with other types of microbiotas in a type-dependent and residence-specific manner. Importantly, the expiratory bacteria showed a composition similarity with airborne bacteria in the bathroom and kitchen environments with an average of 12.60%, while the expiratory fungi showed a 53.99% composition similarity with the floor dust fungi. These differential patterns indicate different relationships between expiratory microbiotas and the airborne microbiotas and floor dust microbiotas. The results here illustrated for the first time the associations between expiratory microbiotas and indoor microbiotas, showing a potential microbial exchange between the respiratory tract and indoor environment. Thus, improved hygiene and ventilation practices can be implemented to optimize the indoor microbial exposome, especially in indoor bathrooms and kitchens.

The upregulation of tryptophan hydroxylase-2 expression is important for premature ejaculation treatment with the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor.

BACKGROUND: Although there was some evidence to suggest that the serotonergic system in the brain played an important role in premature ejaculation (PE), tryptophan hydroxylase-2 (TPH2) is considered to be the key enzyme for the synthesis of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) and few studies have reported that brain TPH2 is involved in the regulation of ejaculation. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to investigate whether changes in brain TPH2 levels were associated with PE and to explore the effects of acute administration of dapoxetine on TPH2 expression in the brain of rats with rapid ejaculation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Based on the ejaculation frequency, the male rats were split into three groups: "rapid," "normal," and "sluggish" ejaculators. The level of 5-HT in the brain was determined by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. TPH2 expression was detected by western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: The results showed that the concentration of 5-HT and the expression of TPH2 in rapid rats were the lowest, while those in sluggish rats were the highest. Correlation analysis also indicated the level of TPH2 was positively correlated with ejaculation latency (r = 0.8633, p < 0.0001) and negatively correlated with ejaculation frequency (r = -0.874, p < 0.001). In addition, dapoxetine acute administration to rapid rats resulted in upregulation of TPH2 expression in the brain. DISCUSSION: There was an important link between the level of TPH2 and the change of ejaculation behaviors. Decreased expression of TPH2 in relevant brain regions will lead to rapid ejaculation. Moreover, the effect of dapoxetine on prolonging ejaculation may be due to the upregulation of TPH2 expression. CONCLUSION: We found the correlation between the level of TPH2 in the brain and PE. The findings in this study will open up a novel way for future research in PE therapy.

Exfoliated graphite blocks with resilience prepared by room temperature exfoliation and their application for oil-water separation.

Exfoliated graphite (EG) blocks are prepared from the ultra-large flakes of graphite by intercalation of H2SO4 using a large amount of H2O2 at 5 °C and following exfoliation at 30 °C. By the exfoliation in a closed container, EG blocks with the bulk densities of 0.008-0.024 g/cm3 are successfully prepared. The resultant EG blocks have high sorption capacities for a diesel oil, up to 45 g/g. The EG blocks after oil sorption can get certain resilience for compressive stress with high reproducibility by compression-release cycles, which allows us to apply the compression-releasing for the oil sorption-desorption of the EG blocks. The performance of cyclic oil sorption-desorption by compression-releasing of EG block is compared with those of filtration and distillation. Since the resultant EG blocks had sufficient mechanical strength, the continuous removal of oil floating on the water surface is possible, exporting oil through a catheter inserted into the block and connected to a peristaltic pump. By warming up by Joule heating, even a crude oil having high viscosity can be continuously removed from the water with sufficient rate. The high hydrophobicity and lipophilicity of EG make selective removal of oil from water possible.

Impact of Examined Lymph Node Count and Lymph Node Density on Overall Survival of Penile Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Few studies have explored the optimal examined lymph node count and lymph node density cutoff values that could be used to predict the survival of patients with penile cancer. We further clarify the prognostic value of lymph node density and examined lymph node count in penile cancer. METHODS: The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database was explored to recruit penile cancer patients from 2010 to 2015. A retrospective analysis of penile cancer patients' data from the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University was performed for verification (2006-2016). The cutoff values of examined lymph node count and lymph node density were performed according to the ROC curve. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to compare survival differences among different groups. Univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression analyses were used to determine the significant variables. On the basis of Cox proportional hazards regression model, a nomogram was established and validated by calibration plot diagrams and concordance index (C-index). RESULTS: A total of 528 patients in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results cohort and 156 patients in the Chinese cohort were included in this study. Using the ROC curve, we found that the recommended cutoff values of ELN and LND were 13 and 9.3%, respectively (P <0.001). Kaplan-Meier curves suggested the significant differences of overall survival among different examined lymph nodes and lymph node density. Multivariate analysis indicated ELN and LND were independent prognostic factor for OS of penile cancer patients. Nomogram showed the contribution of ELN and LND to predicting OS was large. The C-index at 3-, and 5-year were 0.744 for overall survival (95% CI 0.711-0.777). CONCLUSIONS: The more lymph nodes examined, the lower the density of lymph nodes, and the higher the long-term survival rate of penile cancer. We recommended 13 examined lymph nodes and lymph node density >9.3% as the cutoff value for evaluating the prognosis of penile cancer patients.

A huge recurrent retroperitoneal inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor implicating renal and ureter: a case report.

Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (IMT) is a rare sarcoma with unique molecular characteristics. It also has typical fasciitis-like, dense spindle cells and hypocellular fibrous histologic patterns and can occur at any age. The etiology of IMT is unknown and a complete treatment and monitoring plan for IMT have not been developed. We have found a rare case about a huge recurrent IMT implicating renal and ureter. The patient was accompanied by a history of a lesion sized 15.5 cm × 11.5 cm × 10.5 cm as a retroperitoneal IMT, and the first tumor resection was performed 12 months ago. The patient, who suffered from tumor recurrence within 1 year and whose recurrent tumor also invaded into the renal parenchymal was given a retroperitoneal neoplasm resection plus right nephrectomy. In order to clarify the pathological features, the histological specimens of recurrent retroperitoneal IMT were examined as well as primary retroperitoneal IMT, and immunohistochemical (IHC) stains showed that the spindle cells were positive for vimentin and negative for anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK). At 24 months follow-up, the patient recovered well and there was no evidence of tumor recurrence. This case report is conducive to understanding this rare tumor. When conditions permit, complete surgical resection is the recommended treatment for primary and recurrent IMT.