Association between clinical symptoms during the COVID-19 infection and SARS-CoV-2 immunoglobulin G titers in COVID-19 convalescent whole-blood donors in China.

BACKGROUND: Limited studies have explored the association between clinical symptoms and titers of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, whole-blood donors who had experienced a confirmed or suspected COVID-19 infection completed questionnaires at the time of blood donation. Plasma SARS-CoV-2 immunoglobulin G (IgG) titers were measured using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Logistic regression models were used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) for high-titer COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) for each variable. RESULTS: Among the total 386 donors, 120 (31%) donors with IgG titers ≥1:160 were classified as high-titer donors. The multivariable ORs (95% confidence intervals [CIs]) for high titers were 2.33 (1.45-3.75), 2.11 (1.29-3.43), 1.10 (1.01-1.21), 1.19 (1.00-1.43), and 1.97 (1.05-3.71) for sore throat, cough, symptom count, fever duration, and low fever (compared with non-fever), respectively. No significant association was observed between other symptoms and medical visits and the odds of high-titer CCP. The association between high-titer CCP and fever duration was restricted to confirmed COVID-19-infected donors, while associations with sore throat and cough remained significant in suspected infected donors. In addition, medical visit was positively associated with high-titer CCP in suspected donors, but not in confirmed donors. In bootstrapped logistic regression models, the associations remained significant and reproducible for medical visit in suspected donors and for sore throat and cough in both suspected donors and total donors. DISCUSSION: Experiencing a sore throat and cough were associated with high-titer CCP in overall donors. We also identified sore throat, cough, and medical visits as potential predictors of high-titer CCP for suspected donors during the pandemic.

Factors associated with the SARS-CoV-2 immunoglobulin-G titer levels in convalescent whole-blood donors: a Chinese cross-sectional study.

Blood transfusions from convalescent Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infected patients could be used to treat patients with severe infections or immunocompromised patients. However, it is necessary to select the optimal donors to maximize the utilization of resources. In this study, we investigated the associations among body mass index (BMI), tobacco smoking, exercise frequency and duration, and alcohol consumption with the SARS-CoV-2 immunoglobulin-G (IgG) antibody titer levels with in the Chinese convalescent blood donor population. Here we show that BMI, smoking habits, and exercise frequency appear to be predictive factors for IgG levels in convalescent male blood donors. However, these variables were not observed as predictive of IgG levels in female convalescent blood donors. The findings could be used to optimize the screening for potential blood donors to treat immunocompromised or severely ill COVID-19 patients.

Comparative analysis of the quality of platelet concentrates produced by apheresis procedures, platelet rich plasma, and buffy coat.

BACKGROUND: Platelet concentrates (PCs) could be prepared using either whole-blood processes or apheresis instruments. During collection, processing and storage, some biochemical and functional changes occur, which may result in quality reduction. Quality evaluation of PCs may be helpful for the precise control of platelet (PLT) inventory to reduce the risk of refractoriness and adverse effects caused by platelet transfusion. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: The study was aimed to evaluate the quality of PCs which were produced by five processes: apheresis (AP) procedures (using three different cell separators: Amicus, Trima Accel and MCS+ instruments), platelet rich plasma (PRP), and buffy coat (BC). A total of 100 PCs (20 of each group) were assessed in respect of routine quality control, morphology, size distribution, destroyed and activated platelets, and production of platelet-derived microparticles (PMPs). RESULTS: All PCs have satisfied the recommended quality of volume, platelet count, residual WBC count, residual RBC count, pH, and sterility according to the Chinese Technical Manual. There was no difference among the 5 groups in morphology and size of PLT and PMPs. Dynamic light scattering test showed that apheresis PCs showed peaks around 10-20 nm, but not whole blood-derived PCs. PCs prepared by Amicus had the relatively high percentage of destroyed platelet, activated platelets and PMPs than other groups. DISCUSSION: The data suggested high heterogeneity of PMPs, destroyed and activated platelets in PCs produced by different processes, which might be helpful to manage the platelet inventory for targeted use.

Enhancing understanding of healthy aging based on time-varying dependencies among multidimensional health, life satisfaction, and health behaviors of older adults aged 60 years and over.

BACKGROUND: Healthy aging is a process of not only achieving good health but also increasing the life satisfaction of older adults aged 60 years and over, in which health behaviors play an important role. There is a lack of research on the time-varying dependencies between health, life satisfaction, and health behaviors, impeding a deeper understanding of healthy aging. PURPOSE: To develop an integrated framework for modeling the interrelationships among the components of healthy aging between multiple time slices. METHODS: Based on the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Living Survey (CLHLS) data in the three waves of 2011/2012, 2014, and 2017/2018, Bayesian network and dynamic Bayesian network are jointly employed to study the relationships among the components of healthy aging within one time slice, as well as to explore the time-varying dependencies among the components between time slices. RESULTS: The results of structure learning reveal the direction of effects between different dimensions of health, with mental health and social health affecting physical health and self-rated health affecting both physical and mental health. In addition, health behaviors are found to affect mental health and social health, while self-rated health can influence life satisfaction. The parameters learned from the data show the magnitude and direction of concurrent effects, one-period lagged effects and two-period lagged effects between the factors, which find that the time-varying dependencies vary but are generally positive, long-term, and accumulative over time. In addition, the results of autoregressive effects show the positive predictive effects of health and life satisfaction. CONCLUSIONS: It confirms the influence pathway from health behaviors to multidimensional health to life satisfaction, and the time-varying dependencies among the components of healthy aging, which facilitates a deeper understanding of healthy aging. Combining the results of autoregressive effects and descriptive statistics, it further indicates that healthy aging is a comprehensive result arising from interactions of multiple factors. Policymakers should guide older adults aged 60 years and over to adopt healthier behaviors and ensure the long-term sustainability and continuity of policies.

Corrigendum: Predictors of high SARS-CoV-2 immunoglobulin G titers in COVID-19 convalescent whole-blood donors: a cross-sectional study in China.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1191479.].

Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Analysis of the bHLH Transcription Factor Family in Wintersweet (Chimonanthus praecox).

Wintersweet (Chimonanthus praecox (L.) Link, Calycanthaceae) is an esteemed ornamental flowering shrub known for its distinct blooming period in winter, vibrant color petals, and captivating floral fragrance. Basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factors (TFs) play pivotal roles as key regulators in secondary metabolites biosynthesis, growth, and development in plants. However, the systematic analysis of the bHLH family members and their role in the regulation of floral traits in Wintersweet remains insufficiently understood. To bridge this knowledge gap, we conducted a comprehensive genome-wide analysis of the C. praecox bHLH (CpbHLH) gene family, identifying a total of 131 CpbHLH genes across 11 chromosomes. Phylogenetic analysis classified these CpbHLH genes into 23 subfamilies, wherein most members within the same subfamily exhibited analogous intron/exon patterns and motif composition. Moreover, the expansion of the CpbHLH gene family was primarily driven by segmental duplication, with duplicated gene pairs experiencing purifying selection during evolution. Transcriptomic analysis revealed diverse expression patterns of CpbHLH genes in various tissues and distinct stages of Wintersweet flower development, thereby suggesting their involvement in a diverse array of physiological processes. Furthermore, yeast 2-hybrid assay demonstrated interaction between CpbHLH25 and CpbHLH59 (regulators of floral scent and color) as well as with CpbHLH112 and CpMYB2, suggesting potential coordinately regulation of secondary metabolites biosynthesis in Wintersweet flowers. Collectively, our comprehensive analysis provides valuable insights into the structural attributes, evolutionary dynamics, and expression profiles of the CpbHLH gene family, laying a solid foundation for further explorations of the multifaceted physiological and molecular roles of bHLH TFs in Wintersweet.

The heterogeneous impacts of government on health system efficiency in China's new health reform, 2010-2019.

BACKGROUND: Contextualizing in China's recent health reform, we empirically explore the heterogeneous effects of two distinct government roles, accommodating private hospitals vs investing in public hospitals, on health system efficiency. METHODS: We use panel data covering 31 provinces during 2010-2019 to assess health system efficiency. We incorporate health service volumes and population health outcomes to ascertain health system outputs, employing the non-radial directional distance function to estimate efficiency. We employ Bayesian Tobit quantile regression to explore the heterogeneous effects of the share of private hospitals and government subsidy to public providers on efficiency. RESULTS: China's health system inefficiency scores range from 0 to 0.45. The association between the share of private hospitals and inefficiency score are only significant in higher-inefficiency quantiles (coefficients -0.0258, -0.0315 and -0.0327 for quantiles 0.7, 0.8 and 0.9), meaning a heterogeneously positive impact for low-efficiency provinces. The association between government subsidy and inefficiency score are positive for all quantiles (from 0.0339 to 0.0567), meaning persistent negative impacts on efficiency. CONCLUSIONS: The heterogeneous impacts of the share of private hospitals suggest that the government should accommodate more private hospitals in provinces with low efficiency. The persistent negative impacts of government subsidy suggest that the government investment seems not be subjected to economic objectives.

An ultrasmall PVP-Fe-Cu-Ni-S nano-agent for synergistic cancer therapy through triggering ferroptosis and autophagy.

Photothermal therapy (PTT) is an emerging field where photothermal agents could convert visible or near-infrared (NIR) radiation into heat to kill tumor cells. However, the low photothermal conversion efficiency of photothermal agents and their limited antitumor activities hinder the development of these agents into monotherapies for cancer. Herein, we have fabricated an ultrasmall polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-Fe-Cu-Ni-S (PVP-NP) nano-agent via a simple hot injection method with excellent photothermal conversion efficiency (∼96%). Photothermal therapy with this nano-agent effectively inhibits tumor growth without apparent toxic side-effects. Mechanistically, our results demonstrated that, after NIR irradiation, PVP-NPs can induce ROS/singlet oxygen generation, decrease the mitochondrial membrane potential, release extracellular Fe2+, and consume glutathione, triggering autophagy and ferroptosis of cancer cells. Moreover, PVP-NPs exhibit excellent contrast enhancement according to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) analysis. In summary, PVP-NPs have a high photothermal conversion efficiency and can be applied for MRI-guided synergistic photothermal/photodynamic/chemodynamic cancer therapy, resolving the bottleneck of existing phototherapeutic agents.

Predictors of high SARS-CoV-2 immunoglobulin G titers in COVID-19 convalescent whole-blood donors: a cross-sectional study in China.

Background: Demographic information has been shown to help predict high antibody titers of COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) in CCP donors. However, there is no research on the Chinese population and little evidence on whole-blood donors. Therefore, we aimed to investigate these associations among Chinese blood donors after SARS-CoV-2 infection. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 5,064 qualified blood donors with confirmed or suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection completed a self-reported questionnaire and underwent tests of SARS-CoV-2 Immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody and ABO blood type. Logistic regression models were used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) for high SARS-CoV-2 IgG titers according to each factor. Results: Totally, 1,799 participants (with SARS-CoV-2 IgG titers≥1:160) had high-titer CCPs. Multivariable analysis showed that a 10-year increment in age and earlier donation were associated with higher odds of high-titer CCP, while medical personnel was associated with lower odds. The ORs (95% CIs) of high-titer CCP were 1.17 (1.10-1.23, p< 0.001) and 1.41 (1.25-1.58, p< 0.001) for each 10-year increment in age and earlier donation, respectively. The OR of high-titer CCP was 0.75 (0.60-0.95, p = 0.02) for medical personnel. Female early donors were associated with increased odds of high-titer CCP, but this association was insignificant for later donors. Donating after 8 weeks from the onset was associated with decreased odds of having high-titer CCP compared to donating within 8 weeks from the onset, and the HR was 0.38 (95% CI: 0.22-0.64, p <0.001). There was no significant association between ABO blood type or race and the odds of high-titer CCP. Discussion: Older age, earlier donation, female early donors, and non-medical-related occupations are promising predictors of high-titer CCP in Chinese blood donors. Our findings highlight the importance of CCP screening at the early stage of the pandemic.

Size-dependent bending of a rectangular polymer film.

Inhomogeneous swelling of polymer films in liquid environments may find applications in soft actuators and sensors. Among them, fluoroelastomer based films bend up spontaneously once they are placed on an acetone-soaked filter paper. The stretchability and dielectric properties of a fluoroelastomer is attractive in the fields of soft actuators and sensors, making in-depth studies on and understanding of fluoroelastomer bending behaviors important. Here, we report an abnormal size-dependent bending phenomenon of rectangular fluoroelastomer films, which transform the bending direction from the long-side bending to the short-side bending as their length or width increases or the thickness decreases. By using finite element analysis and an analytical expression obtained using a bilayer model, we reveal the key role of gravity in determining the size-dependent bending behavior. In the bilayer model, an energy quantity is obtained to characterize the role of each material and geometrical parameters in determining the size-dependent bending behavior. We further construct phase diagrams to correlate the bending modes and the film sizes based on the finite element results, which are in good agreement with experimental results. These findings can be useful for the design of future swelling-based polymer actuators and sensors.

Spatiotemporal patterns and threshold of chlorophyll-a in Lake Taihu based on microcystins.

Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) is considered as an indicator of phytoplankton biomass dynamically reflecting the growth of algae. Therefore, determination of Chl-a threshold is of vital importance to the health of aquatic ecosystems and drinking water security. This research is aimed to investigate the spatial and temporal distributions of Chl-a and microcystin (MC) concentrations using Geographic Information System (GIS) and identify the Chl-a threshold in Lake Taihu based on available guideline values of MCs. Nearly, the same characteristics of spatiotemporal variation of Chl-a and MCs were observed in Lake Taihu. Overall, the lakewide distributions of Chl-a and MCs were highly variable over time and space. The Chl-a concentration in the winter and spring was relatively low, and gradually increasing in summer and autumn, with the maximum concentration observed in August. But the maximum MCs concentration appeared in October, 2 months lagging behind the Chl-a. The highest annual average Chl-a and MCs concentrations were observed in Zhushan Bay, Meiliang Bay, and Gonghu Bay in northwest of Lake Taihu, following by West Zone and Center Zone. Dongtaihu Bay, East Zone, and South Zone always present good water quality. Referring to the guideline value of MCs, the Chl-a threshold was determined as 10-15 mg·m-3 based on the linear regression correlation between Chl-a and MCs. The establishment of Chl-a threshold is useful for eutrophication control, water quality management, and drinking water utilities in developing water safety plans.

Cell membrane-targeting NIR fluorescent probes with large Stokes shifts for ultralong-term transplanted neural stem cell tracking.

There is an emerging therapeutic strategy to transplant stem cells into diseased host tissue for various neurodegenerative diseases, owing to their self-renewal ability and pluripotency. However, the traceability of long-term transplanted cells limits the further understanding of the mechanism of the therapy. Herein, we designed and synthesized a quinoxalinone scaffold-based near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent probe named QSN, which exhibits ultra-strong photostability, large Stokes shift, and cell membrane-targeting capacity. It could be found that QSN-labeled human embryonic stem cells showed strong fluorescent emission and photostability both in vitro and in vivo. Additionally, QSN would not impair the pluripotency of embryonic stem cells, indicating that QSN did not perform cytotoxicity. Moreover, it is worth mentioning that QSN-labeled human neural stem cells held cellular retention for at least 6 weeks in the mouse brain striatum post transplantation. All these findings highlight the potential application of QSN for ultralong-term transplanted cell tracking.

Molecular characterization, expression and function analysis of Epinephelus coioides PKC-ɑ response to Singapore grouper iridovirus (SGIV) infection.

Protein kinase C (PKC) constitutes the main signal transduction pathway, and participates in the signal pathway of cell proliferation and movement in mammals. In this study, PKC-ɑ was obtained from Epinephelus coioides, an important marine fish cultivated in the coastal areas of southern China and Southeast Asia. The full length cDNA of PKC-ɑ was 3362 bp in length containing a 23 bp 5'UTR, a 1719 bp 3'UTR, and a 1620 bp open reading frame encoding 539 amino acids. It contains three conservative domains including protein kinase C conserved region 2 (C2), Serine/Threonine protein kinases, catalytic domain (S_TKc) and ser/thr-type protein kinases (S_TK_X). Its mRNA can be detected in all 11 tissues examined of E. coioides, and the expression was significantly upregulated response to Singapore grouper iridovirus (SGIV) infection, one of the important pathogens of marine fish. Upregulated E. coioides PKC-ɑ significantly inhibited the activation of nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) and activator protein-1 (AP-1), and SGIV-induced cell apoptosis. The results indicated that the PKC-ɑ may play an important role in pathogenic stimulation.

Cation-Induced Assembly of Conductive MXene Fibers for Wearable Heater, Wireless Communication, and Stem Cell Differentiation.

Emerging wearable electronics, wireless communication, and tissue engineering require the development of conductive fiber-shaped electrodes and biointerfaces. Ti3C2Tx MXene nanosheets serve as promising building block units for the construction of highly conductive fibers with integrated functionalities, yet a facile and scalable fabrication scheme is highly required. Herein, a cation-induced assembly process is developed for the scalable fabrication of conductive fibers with MXene sheaths and alginate cores (abbreviated as MXene@A). The fabrication scheme of MXene@A fibers includes the fast extrusion of alginate fibers followed by electrostatic assembly of MXene nanosheets, enabling high-speed fiber production. When multiple fabrication parameters are optimized, the MXene@A fibers exhibit a superior electrical conductivity of 1083 S cm-1, which can be integrated as Joule heaters into textiles for wearable thermal management. By triggering reversible de/hydration of alginate cores upon heating, the MXene@A fibers can be repeatedly contracted and generate large contraction stress that is >40 times higher than the ones of mammalian skeletal muscle. Furthermore, the MXene@A springs demonstrate large contraction strains up to 65.5% and are then fabricated into a reconfigurable dipole antenna to wirelessly monitor the surrounding heat sources. In the end, with the biocompatibility of MXene nanosheets, the MXene@A fibers enable the guidance of neural stem/progenitor cells differentiation and the promotion of neurite outgrowth. With a cation-induced assembly process, our multifunctional MXene@A fibers exhibit high scalability for future manufacturing and hold the prospect to inspire other applications.

Insights into the role of the microbial community lifestyle strategies in variations of the dissolved organic matter molecular composition along an effluent-dominated river.

Urbanization has dramatically changed the quality and quantity of dissolved organic matter (DOM) fluxes in rivers, thereby affecting the diversity and lifestyle strategies of microbial communities. However, relationships between DOM molecular composition and microbial lifestyle strategies in effluent-dominated rivers are poorly understood. Herein, we investigated the variations in DOM structure and composition of an effluent-dominated river and further revealed how these changes alter the abundance and lifestyle strategies of microbial communities. Results demonstrated that macromolecular (MW > 35 kDa) humic-like substances constituted the major components of effluent-dominated riverine DOM. Also, due to the degradation of humic-like substances, the accumulation of protein-like substances was observed from upstream to downstream areas, corresponding to an apparent decrease in overall aromaticity. The abundance of bacterial, Actinobacteria, and eukaryotic was higher in the upstream and midstream areas but relatively lower in the downstream area. The response of bacterial and Actinobacteria communities to the changes in DOM composition was more prominent as compared to that of eukaryotic. Based on multivariate statistical analysis, the decrease in aromatic components (MW > 35 kDa) was mainly attributed to the degradation of Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria (K-strategists), resulting in a decrease in their relative abundance along the river course. Proteins and polysaccharides (15 kDa < MW < 35 kDa, MW < 6 kDa) were more easily utilized by Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes (r-strategists), leading to an increase in their relative abundance. With the decrease of macromolecular humic-like substances and the increase of protein-like substances, river microbial communities shifted from K-strategists to r-strategists. This work unveils the evolution of DOM in an effluent-dominated river and the influence of the degradation of macromolecular humic-like substances on r/K-strategists.

Dysregulation of EZH2/miR-138-5p Axis Contributes to Radiosensitivity in Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cell by Downregulating Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1 Alpha (HIF-1α).

Enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) is a histone methyltransferase involved in cell proliferation, invasion, angiogenesis, and metastasis in various cancers, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the role and molecular mechanisms of EZH2 in HCC radiosensitivity remain unclear. Here, we show that EZH2 is upregulated in HCC cells and the aberrantly overexpressed EZH2 is associated with the poor prognosis of HCC patients. Using miRNA databases, we identified miR-138-5p as a regulator of EZH2. We also found that miR-138-5p was suppressed by EZH2-induced H3K27me3 in HCC cell lines. MiR-138-5p overexpression and EZH2 knockdown enhanced cellular radiosensitivity while inhibiting cell migration, invasion, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Analysis of RNA-seq datasets revealed that the hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) signaling pathway was the main enrichment pathway for differential genes after miR-138-5p overexpression or EZH2 knockdown. Expression level of HIF-1α was significantly suppressed after miR-138-5p overexpression or silencing of EZH2. HIF-1α silencing mitigated resistance of HCC cells and inhibited EMT. This study establishes the EZH2/miR-138-5p/HIF-1α as a potential therapeutic target for sensitizing HCC to radiotherapy.

Evaluation of Unified Healthcare Efficiency in China: A Meta-Frontier Non-radial Directional Distance Function Analysis During 2009-2019.

In this study, we analyze the unified healthcare efficiency in China at the regional level from 2009 to 2019. To accurately evaluate the evolution of unified efficiency from both static and dynamic perspectives, we combine the non-radial directional distance function and the meta-frontier method to evaluate the unified healthcare efficiency and its dynamic changes. This new approach allows for regional heterogeneity and non-radial slack simultaneously. The decomposition of the meta-frontier non-radial Malmquist unified healthcare efficiency index (MNMHEI) can be used to identify the driving factors of dynamic changes. The results show that the unified healthcare efficiency in eastern China is generally higher than that in non-eastern China from the static perspective, implying significant regional differences. Moreover, the unified efficiency in both eastern and non-eastern regions shows similar time trends and reaches the maximum in 2012. From the dynamic perspective, the unified healthcare efficiency increases annually by 2.68% during the study period. This increase in eastern China as a technology leader is mainly driven by technological progress, whereas the increase in non-eastern China is mainly driven by a better catch-up effect. In addition, the impact of the reform on the non-eastern region is more significant for the decreasing technology gap, the stronger growth momentum of technological progress, and global innovative provinces.

RNA-Seq Based Toxicity Analysis of Mesoporous Polydopamine Nanoparticles in Mice Following Different Exposure Routes.

Mesoporous polydopamine nanoparticles (MPDA NPs) are promising nanomaterials that have the prospect of clinical application for multi-strategy antitumor therapy, while the biosecurity of MPDA NPs remains indistinct. Here, transcriptome sequencing (RNA-Seq) was performed to systematically reveal the toxicity of MPDA NPs to five categories of organs after three different exposure routes, including intravenous injection, intramuscular injection, and intragastric administration. Our results uncovered that MPDA NPs could be deposited in various organs in small amounts after intravenous administration, not for the other two exposure routes. The number of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) identified in the heart, liver, spleen, lung, and kidney from the intragastric administration group was from 22 to 519. Similarly, the corresponding number was from 23 to 64 for the intramuscular injection group and was from 11 to 153 for the intravenous injection group. Functional enrichment analyses showed 6, 39, and 4 GO terms enriched for DEGs in intragastric administration, intramuscular injection, and intravenous injection groups, respectively. One enriched pathway was revealed in intragastric administration group, while no enriched pathway was found in other groups. Our results indicated that MPDA NPs produced only slight changes at the transcriptome level in mice, which provided new insights for further clinical application of MPDA NPs.

Artificially Intelligent Olfaction for Fast and Noninvasive Diagnosis of Bladder Cancer from Urine.

Globally, bladder cancer (BLC) is one of the most common cancers and has a high recurrence and mortality rate. Current clinical diagnostic approaches are either invasive or inaccurate. Here, we report on a cost-efficient, artificially intelligent chemiresistive sensor array made of polyaniline (PANI) derivatives that can noninvasively diagnose BLC at an early stage and maintain postoperative surveillance through ″smelling″ clinical urine samples at room temperature. In clinical trials, 18 healthy controls and 76 BLC patients (60 and 16 at early and advanced stages, respectively) are assessed by the artificial olfactory system. With the assistance of a support vector machine (SVM), very high sensitivity and accuracy from healthy controls are achieved, exceeding those obtained by the current techniques in practice. In addition, the recurrences of both early and advanced stages are diagnosed well, with the effect of confounding factors on the performance of the artificial olfactory system found to have a negligible influence on the diagnostic performance. Overall, this study contributes a novel, noninvasive, easy-to-use, inexpensive, real-time, accurate method for urine disease diagnosis, which can be useful for personalized care/diagnosis and postoperative surveillance, resulting in saving more lives.

Fully Integrated Self-Powered Electrical Stimulation Cell Culture Dish for Noncontact High-Efficiency Plasmid Transfection.

Plasmid DNA transfection of mammalian cells is widely used in biomedical research and genetic drug delivery, but low transfection efficiency, especially in the context of the primary cells, limits its application. To improve the efficiency of plasmid transfection, a fully integrated self-powered electrical stimulation cell culture dish (SESD) has been developed to provide self-powered electrical stimulation (ES) of adherent cells, significantly improving the efficiency of plasmid transfection into mammalian cells and cell survival by the standard lipofectamine transfection method. Mechanistically, ES can safely increase the intracellular calcium concentration by opening calcium-ion channels, leading to a higher efficiency of plasmid transfection. Therefore, SESD has the potential to become an effective platform for high-efficiency plasmid DNA transfection in biomedical research and drug delivery.