Hyperuricemia as an independent risk factor for achilles tendon rupture in male: a case-control study.

OBJECTIVE: To study the correlation between achilles tendon rupture (ATR) and hyperuricemia, also verify the known risk factors for ATR. METHODS: A retrospective review of 488 subjects was performed (182 with Achilles tendon rupture, 306 controls with ankle sprains). Demographic variables and risk factors for rupture were tabulated and compared. The baseline data and related indicators were compared, and the risk factors of ATR were analyzed by constructing a binary logistic regression model. RESULTS: Univariate logistic analysis showed that BMI, smoking, and hyperuricemia were risk factors for the development of ATR (OR = 1.65, 95%CI 1.13-2.42, P = 0.01; OR = 1.47, 95%CI 1.00-2.24, P < 0.05; OR = 2.85, 95%CI 1.84-4.42, P < 0.01). Multifactorial analysis showed that BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2, smoking, and hyperuricemia were independent risk factors for the development of ATR (OR = 1.66, 95%CI 1.11-2.49, P = 0.01; OR = 2.15, 95%CI 1.28-3.60, P < 0.01; OR = 3.06, 95%CI 1.92-4.89, P < 0.01). Among the blood biochemical indicators, total cholesterol (TC) and uric acid (UA) were independent risk factors for the occurrence of ATR (OR = 1.54, 95% CI 1.12-2.12, P = 0.01; OR = 1.01, 95% CI 1.01-1.01, P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Our study confirmed that, as in previous results, higher BMI, smoking, and total cholesterol are risk factors for ATR, Hyperuricemia may contribute to the development of ATR, and adjunctive tests for TC and UA in the blood biochemistry may be helpful in predicting the risk of ATR.

Impact of coconut-fiber biochar on lead translocation, accumulation, and detoxification mechanisms in a soil-rice system under elevated lead stress.

Biochar, an environmentally friendly material, was found to passivate lead (Pb) in contaminated soil effectively. This study utilized spectroscopic investigations and partial least squares path modeling (PLS-PM) analysis to examine the impact of coconut-fiber biochar (CFB) on the translocation, accumulation, and detoxification mechanisms of Pb in soil-rice systems. The results demonstrated a significant decrease (p < 0.05) in bioavailable Pb concentration in paddy soils with CFB amendment, as well as reduced Pb concentrations in rice roots, shoots, and brown rice. Synchrotron-based micro X-ray fluorescence analyses revealed that CFB application inhibited the migration of Pb to the rhizospheric soil region, leading to reduced Pb uptake by rice roots. Additionally, the CFB treatment decreased Pb concentrations in the cellular protoplasm of both roots and shoots, and enhanced the activity of antioxidant enzymes in rice plants, improving their Pb stress tolerance. PLS-PM analyses quantified the effects of CFB on the accumulation and detoxification pathways of Pb in the soil-rice system. Understanding how biochar influences the immobilization and detoxification of Pb in soil-rice systems could provide valuable insights for strategically using biochar to address hazardous elements in complex agricultural settings.

Circular RNA circNCOA3 promotes tumor progression and anti-PD-1 resistance in colorectal cancer.

Aim: Circular RNAs (circRNAs) have been found to be involved in tumor progression, but their role in colorectal cancer (CRC) immune escape remains to be elucidated. Methods: circRNAs differentially expressed in responsive and resistant CRC tissues to programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) antibody therapy were identified by microarray analysis. The clinical and pathological significance of circNCOA3 was validated in a separate cohort of CRC samples. The function of circNCOA3 was explored experimentally. RNA immunoprecipitation and luciferase activity assays were conducted to identify downstream targets of circNCOA3. Results: The circNCOA3 was markedly overexpressed in CRC samples resistant to PD-1 blockade. circNCOA3 expression was significantly correlated with adverse tumor phenotypes and poor outcomes in CRC patients. Knockdown of circNCOA3 expression markedly suppressed the proliferative and invasive capability of CRC cells. Moreover, knockdown of circNCOA3 increased the proportion of CD8+ T cells while decreasing the proportion of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs). Knockdown of circNCOA3 inhibited tumor growth and increased the sensitivity to PD-1 antibody treatment in mouse tumor models. Further studies revealed that circNCOA3 acted as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR-203a-3p.1 to influence the level of CXCL1. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that circNCOA3 might be useful as a potential biomarker to predict the efficacy and prognosis of CRC patients treated with anti-PD-1 therapy.

Prediction of electrical properties of GAAFET based on integrated learning model.

As device feature sizes continue to decrease and fin field effect transistors (FinFETs) reach their physical limits, gate all around field effect transistors (GAAFETs) have emerged with larger gate control areas and stackable characteristics for better suppression of second-order effects such as short-channel effects due to their gate encircling characteristics. Traditional methods for studying the electrical characteristics of devices are mostly based on the technology computer-aided design (TCAD). Still, it is not conducive to developing new devices due to its time-consuming and inefficient drawbacks. Deep learning (DL) and machine learning (ML) have been well-used in recent years in many fields. In this paper, we propose an integrated learning model that integrates the advantages of DL and ML to solve many problems in traditional methods. This integrated learning model predicts the direct current characteristics, capacitance characteristics, and electrical parameters of GAAFET better than those predicted by DL or ML methods alone, with a linear regression factor (R2) greater than 0.99 and very small root mean square error (RMSE). The proposed integrated learning model achieves fast and accurate prediction of GAAFET electrical characteristics, which provides a new idea for device and circuit simulation and characteristics prediction in microelectronics. .

Multi-DNA-Modified Double-Network Hydrogel with Customized Microstructure: A Novel System for Living Circulating Tumor Cells Capture and Real-Time Detection.

The precise and effective isolation of living circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from peripheral blood, followed by their real-time monitoring, is crucial for diagnosing cancer patients. In this study, a cell-imprinted double-network (DN) hydrogel modified with circular multi-DNA (CMD), coined the CMD-imprinted hydrogel with fixed cells as templates (CMD-CIDH), was developed. The hydrogel featured a customized surface for proficient capture of viable CTCs and in situ real-time fluorescent detection without subsequent release. The customized surface, constructed using polyacrylamide/chitosan DN hydrogel as the matrix on the cell template, had a dense network structure, thereby ensuring excellent stability and a low degradation rate. Optimal capture efficiencies, recorded at 93 ± 3% for MCF-7 cells and 90 ± 2% for Hela cells, were achieved by grafting the CMD and adjusting the nodule size on the customized surface. The capture efficiency remained significantly high at 67 ± 11% in simulated breast cancer patient experiments even at a minimal concentration of 5 cells mL-1. Furthermore, CMD grafted onto the surface produced a potent fluorescence signature, enabling in situ real-time fluorescent detection of the target cell's growth state even in complex environments. The customized surface is highly efficient for screening CTCs in peripheral blood and has promising potential for setting up the CTCs culture.

Screening the phytotoxicity of micro/nanoplastics through non-targeted metallomics with synchrotron radiation X-ray fluorescence and deep learning: Taking micro/nano polyethylene terephthalate as an example.

Microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs) are global pollutants with emerging concerns. Methods to predict and screen their toxicity are crucial. Elemental dyshomeostasis can be used to assess toxicity of environmental pollutants. Non-targeted metallomics, combining synchrotron radiation X-ray fluorescence (SRXRF) and machine learning, has successfully differentiated cancer patients from healthy individuals. The whole idea of this work is to screen the phytotoxicity of nano polyethylene terephthalate (nPET) and micro polyethylene terephthalate (mPET) through non-targeted metallomics with SRXRF and deep learning algorithms. Firstly, Seed germination, seedling growth, photosynthetic changes, and antioxidant activity were used to evaluate the toxicity of mPET and nPET. It was showed that nPET, at 10 mg/L, was more toxic to rice seedlings, inhibiting growth and impairing chlorophyll content, MDA content, and SOD activity compared to mPET. Then, rice seedling leaves exposed to nPET or mPET was examined with SRXRF, and the SRXRF data was differentiated with deep learning algorithms. It was showed that the one-dimensional convolutional neural network (1D-CNN) model achieved 98.99% accuracy without data preprocessing in screening mPET and nPET exposure. In all, non-targeted metallomics with SRXRF and 1D-CNN can effectively screen the exposure and phytotoxicity of nPET/mPET and potentially other emerging pollutants. Further research is needed to assess the phytotoxicity of different types of MPs/NPs using non-targeted metallomics.

The role of robotic surgery in neurological cases: A systematic review on brain and spine applications.

The application of robotic surgery technologies in neurological surgeries resulted in some advantages compared to traditional surgeries, including higher accuracy and dexterity enhancement. Its success in various surgical fields, especially in urology, cardiology, and gynecology surgeries was reported in previous studies, and similar advantages in neurological surgeries are expected. Surgeries in the central nervous system with the pathology of millimeters through small working channels around vital tissue need especially high precision. Applying robotic surgery is therefore an interesting dilemma for these situations. This article reviews various studies published on the application of brain and spine robotic surgery and discusses the current application of robotic technology in neurological cases.

Validation of combined AFP, AFP-L3, and PIVKA II for diagnosis and monitoring of hepatocellular carcinoma in Chinese patients.

Background: In this study, we aimed to investigate the performance of GALAD, GALAD-C, and GAAP models in Chinese population in comparison to our newly build statistical model. Methods: In this study, we built the AALP model based on age, α-fetoprotein (AFP), AFP-L3, and prothrombin induced by vitamin K absence-II (PIVKA II) to differentiate between patients with HCC and patients with CLD. We then compared the serum levels of AFP-L3 and PIVKA II in patients with HCC who were defined as remission or progression and showed the prognostic value of combined biomarkers. Results: The AUC value of the AALP model for HCC detection was 0.939 and AALP model exhibited a sensitivity of 81 % and a high specificity of 95 %. AALP model also exhibited good performance in the subgroups of patients with CLD. Furthermore, we demonstrated the consistency between imaging results and serum levels of AFP-L3 and PIVKA II. Conclusions: The AALP model achieved a good diagnostic performance and a high sensitivity for predicting HCC patients. Our research also showed that AFP-L3 and PIVKA II are complementary to each other but irreplaceable in the clinical detection and monitoring of HCC.

Research advance on cold tolerance in chrysanthemum.

Chrysanthemums are one of the top ten most well-known traditional famous flowers in China and one of the top four cut flowers worldwide, holding a significant position in landscape gardening. The cold temperatures of winter restrict the cultivation, introduction, and application of chrysanthemum, resulting in high costs for year-round production. This severely impacts the ornamental and economic value of chrysanthemum. Therefore, research on cold tolerance is of vital importance for guiding chrysanthemum production and application. With the development of genomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, and other omics approaches, along with high-throughput molecular marker technologies, research on chrysanthemum cold tolerance has been continuously advancing. This article provides a comprehensive overview of the progress in cold tolerance research from various aspects, including chrysanthemum phenotype, physiological mechanisms, the forward genetics, molecular mechanisms, and breeding. The aim is to offer insights into the mechanisms of cold tolerance in chrysanthemum and provide reference for in-depth research and the development of new cold tolerance chrysanthemum varieties.

Current Achievements and Future Prospects in Virus Elimination Technology for Functional Chrysanthemum.

Chrysanthemum is an important functional plant that is used for food, medicine and tea. Functional chrysanthemums become infected with viruses all around the world, seriously lowering their quality and yield. Viral infection has become an important limiting factor in chrysanthemum production. Functional chrysanthemum is often propagated asexually by cutting during production, and viral infection of seedlings is becoming increasingly serious. Chrysanthemums can be infected by a variety of viruses causing different symptoms. With the development of biotechnology, virus detection and virus-free technologies for chrysanthemum seedlings are becoming increasingly effective. In this study, the common virus species, virus detection methods and virus-free technology of chrysanthemum infection are reviewed to provide a theoretical basis for virus prevention, treatment and elimination in functional chrysanthemum.

Cold tolerance identification of nine Rosa L. materials and expression patterns of genes related to cold tolerance in Rosa hybrida.

Members of the Rosa genus have a high ornamental value, but their cultivation area is limited by their sensitivity to cold temperatures. The aim of this study was to evaluate the cold tolerance of a range of Rosa materials, and then determine which genes were related to cold tolerance. Nine Rosa materials were subjected to a cold treatment. To identify genes related to cold tolerance, R. hybrida was treated at -15°C for 10 min, and leaves collected before and after this treatment were collected for RNA-Seq analyses. The transcript profiles of four DEGs (POD17, NDUFA9, PMA1, and b-Amy1) in R. hybrida were determined by qRT-PCR at 0 h, 1 h, 2 h, and 3 h at -15°C. Nine Rosa materials were subjected to a cold treatment, and the most cold-tolerant materials were identified as those that showed the lowest levels of electrolyte leakage and the best recovery after 30 d of growth. The most cold-tolerant materials were Rosa hybrida, Rosa rugosa 'Pingyin 12', and Rosa rugosa. In total, 204 significantly differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified, of which 88 were significantly up-regulated and 116 were significantly down-regulated under cold conditions. Gene Ontology classification and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analyses showed that the DEGs were enriched in 57 pathways, especially starch and sucrose metabolism, phenylpropane biosynthesis, MAPK signaling, fructose and mannose metabolism, and oxidative phosphorylation. By transcriptional analysis, PMA1, which was related to H+ ATPase activity, was continuously up-regulated, but the transcript levels of POD17, NDUFA9, and ß-Amy1 fluctuated during the freezing treatment. This research uncovered scarce cold-resistant materials and layed the foundation for further research on the cold tolerance mechanism of Rosa plants and the breeding of cold-tolerant varieties.

MLP-Like Model With Convolution Complex Transformation for Auxiliary Diagnosis Through Medical Images.

Medical images such as facial and tongue images have been widely used for intelligence-assisted diagnosis, which can be regarded as the multi-label classification task for disease location (DL) and disease nature (DN) of biomedical images. Compared with complicated convolutional neural networks and Transformers for this task, recent MLP-like architectures are not only simple and less computationally expensive, but also have stronger generalization capabilities. However, MLP-like models require better input features from the image. Thus, this study proposes a novel convolution complex transformation MLP-like (CCT-MLP) model for the multi-label DL and DN recognition task for facial and tongue images. Notably, the convolutional Tokenizer and multiple convolutional layers are first used to extract the better shallow features from input biomedical images to make up for the loss of spatial information obtained by the simple MLP structure. Subsequently, the Channel-MLP architecture with complex transformations is used to extract deep-level contextual features. In this way, multi-channel features are extracted and mixed to perform the multi-label classification of the input biomedical images. Experimental results on our constructed multi-label facial and tongue image datasets demonstrate that our method outperforms existing methods in terms of both accuracy (Acc) and mean average precision (mAP).

A pan-cancer analysis of the role of USP5 in human cancers.

Posttranslational modifications (PTM) such as acetylation, deubiquitination, and phosphorylation of proteins, play important roles in various kinds of cancer progression. Ubiquitin-specific proteinase 5 (USP5), a unique member of deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) which recognizes unanchored polyubiquitin specifically, could regulate the stability of many tumorigenesis-associated proteins to influence cancer initiation and progression. However, the diverse biological significance of USP5 in pan-cancer has not been systematically and comprehensively studied. Here, we explored the role of USP5 in pan-cancer using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) database, and we also acquired and analyzed data via various software and web platforms such as R, GEPIA2.0, HPA, TISIDB, cBioPortal, UALCAN, TIMER 2.0, CancerSEA and BioGRID. USP5 expression was high in most cancers and differed significantly in different molecular and immune subtypes of cancers. In addition, USP5 had certain diagnostic value in multiple cancers, and high expression of USP5 generally predicted poor prognosis for cancer patients. We also found that the most frequent genetic alterations type of USP5 was mutation, and the DNA methylation level of USP5 decreased in various cancers. Furthermore, USP5 expression correlated with cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), endothelial cells (EC) and genetic markers of immunodulators in cancers. Moreover, the result from single cell sequencing showed that USP5 could regulate several tumor biological behaviors such as apoptosis, DNA damage and metastasis. Gene enrichment analysis indicated "spliceosome" and "RNA splicing" may be the critical mechanism for USP5 to involve in cancer. Taken together, our study elucidates the biological significance of USP5 in the diagnosis, prognosis and immune in human pan-cancer.

Asymmetric dinitrogen-coordinated nickel single-atomic sites for efficient CO2 electroreduction.

Developing highly efficient, selective and low-overpotential electrocatalysts for carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction is crucial. This study reports an efficient Ni single-atom catalyst coordinated with pyrrolic nitrogen and pyridinic nitrogen for CO2 reduction to carbon monoxide (CO). In flow cell experiments, the catalyst achieves a CO partial current density of 20.1 mA cmgeo-2 at -0.15 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (VRHE). It exhibits a high turnover frequency of over 274,000 site-1 h-1 at -1.0 VRHE and maintains high Faradaic efficiency of CO (FECO) exceeding 90% within -0.15 to -0.9 VRHE. Operando synchrotron-based infrared and X-ray absorption spectra, and theoretical calculations reveal that mono CO-adsorbed Ni single sites formed during electrochemical processes contribute to the balance between key intermediates formation and CO desorption, providing insights into the catalyst's origin of catalytic activity. Overall, this work presents a Ni single-atom catalyst with good selectivity and activity for CO2 reduction while shedding light on its underlying mechanism.

Chitosan-pullulan films enriched with Artemisia annua essential oil: Characterization and application in grape preservation.

Composite films were prepared using a flow casting method, with chitosan and pullulan as film-forming agents and Artemisia annua essential oil as the UV absorber. The utility of the composite films for preserving grape berries was assessed. The effect of the added Artemisia annua essential oil on the physicochemical properties of the composite film was investigated to determine the optimal amount of essential oil that should be added to the composite film. When the Artemisia annua essential oil content was 0.8 %, the elongation at break of the composite film increased to 71.25 ± 2.87 % and the water vapor transmission rate decreased to 0.378 ± 0.007 g‧mm/(m2‧h‧kpa). The transmittance of the composite film was almost 0 % in the UV region (200-280 nm) and <30 % in the visible light region (380-800 nm), reflecting the UV absorption by the composite film. Additionally, the composite film extended the storage time of the grape berries. Therefore, the composite film containing Artemisia annua essential oil may be a promising fruit packaging material.

The Diagnosis Significance of Serum Cysteine Protease Inhibitors (CST4) in Colorectal Cancer.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to evaluate the diagnostic value of human serum cysteine protease inhibitors (cystatin 4 [CST4]) in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. METHODS: A total of 291 patients who were admitted to Zhuzhou Central Hospital for colonoscopy from January 2020 to December 2021 and met the inclusion criteria were selected. Serum samples of the patients were collected, and CST4 was detected by double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Simultaneously, CEA and CA19-9 were detected, and the patients were divided into the CRC group, benign lesion group, and healthy control group. An attempt was made to construct a CRC prediction model including CST4 and draw a subject working characteristic curve as a diagnostic threshold for CRC prediction, and evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of the above indicators. At the same time, the expression analysis of CST4, CEA, and CA19-9 was verified by combining the data of CRC in the Tumor Genome Atlas (TCGA). RESULTS: In this study, the levels of serum CST4, CEA, and CA19-9 in the CRC group were higher than those in the colorectal benign lesion group and healthy control group, with statistical significance (P < .001). The analysis results of the receiver operating characteristic curve showed that the area under the receiver operator characteristic curve (AUC) of CST4 was 0.7739, which was obviously larger than the AUC of CA19-9 and CEA. CRC data from the TCGA expression database showed that CST4 expression and CEA expression were higher in CRC patients than in normal samples. The combined model based on CST4 was successfully constructed, and the AUC for predicting the occurrence of CRC was 0.7851. CONCLUSION: CST4 is a novel and improved diagnostic marker for CRC. The combined model based on CST4 has a certain potential value in terms of predicting the occurrence of intestinal cancer.

Single-Piece Membrane Supercapacitor with Exceptional Areal/Volumetric Capacitance via Double-Face Print of Electrode/Electrolyte Active Ink.

Single-piece flexible supercapacitors (FSCs) have light and ultrathin superiorities, thereby having great potential in portable/wearable electronics. However, all the available single-piece FSCs are fabricated by in situ growth routes, which are incompatible with large-scale technology. This work designs a carboxymethyl cellulose/phytic acid/polyaniline ink, incorporating electrode with electrolyte active compositions. Based on the electrode/electrolyte active ink, a double-face print technique on mixed cellulose ester and nylon membranes to fabricate single-piece membrane-FSCs, where both sides of membranes can be utilized well, is proposed. Consequently, one FSC is measured to be only ≈0.785 cm2 in area, ≈0.021 g in weight, and ≈200 µm in thickness, while it has exceptional areal and volumetric capacitances up to 757 mF cm-2 and 37.8 F cm-3 , respectively, based on the entire device. It also exhibits high flexibility with a capacitance retention of 98% after 2000 bend cycles from 0° to 180°. The state-of-the-art FSCs are expected to have exciting prospects in portable/wearable electronics, smart reading, and flexible displays. The preparation strategy renders the massive production of large-area and mini-size arrayed FSCs, and also the "do-it-yourself" or homemade preparation, which adds more interest and designability for general users.

Advances in the Research on Plant WRKY Transcription Factors Responsive to External Stresses.

The WRKY transcription factors are a class of transcriptional regulators that are ubiquitous in plants, wherein they play key roles in various physiological activities, including responses to stress. Specifically, WRKY transcription factors mediate plant responses to biotic and abiotic stresses through the binding of their conserved domain to the W-box element of the target gene promoter and the subsequent activation or inhibition of transcription (self-regulation or cross-regulation). In this review, the progress in the research on the regulatory effects of WRKY transcription factors on plant responses to external stresses is summarized, with a particular focus on the structural characteristics, classifications, biological functions, effects on plant secondary metabolism, regulatory networks, and other aspects of WRKY transcription factors. Future research and prospects in this field are also proposed.

Circular RNA circTNIK promotes tumor progression and metastasis in gastric cancer by regulating ZEB2.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Tumor progression and distant metastasis are the main causes of deaths in gastric cancer. Growing evidence revealed that circular RNAs (circRNAs) play critical role in the pathology of malignant disease, the role of circRNAs in gastric cancer progression and metastasis is still unknown. METHODS: Differentially expressed circRNAs was identified by circRNA microarray and validated by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase reaction. The biological function of circTNIK was evaluated by in vitro and in vivo experiments after ectopic expression or siRNA mediated knockdown of circTNIK. The interaction between circTNIK and miR-138-5p was determined by luciferase activity assay, RNA immunoprecipitation, and fluorescence in situ hybridization assays. RESULTS: circTNIK rather than linear TINK mRNA was significantly upregulated in gastric cancer tissues, cell lines compared with normal controls. Higher circTNIK expression was correlated with aggressive tumor phenotypes and poor overall survival in gastric cancer patients. Ectopic circTNIK expression promoted cell proliferation, invasion, tumorigenesis, and metastasis in gastric cancer cells whereas knockdown of circTNIK inhibited cell proliferation, invasion, tumorigenesis, and metastasis in gastric cancer cells. Importantly, circTNIK functions as a molecular sponge for miR-138-5p to regulate the expression of ZEB2. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, our study demonstrates how circTNIK regulates gastric cancer progression and metastasis by sponging miR-138-5p to modulate the expression of ZEB2. CircTNIK might be used as a prognostic biomarker in gastric cancer patients.