Effects of Aloe Gel on Lactating Women with Nipple Trauma.

Background: To investigate the efficacy of aloe gel in reducing pain and promoting wound healing in postpartum women with nipple trauma. Method: There were 80 postpartum women who took part in this study having developed nipple trauma during breastfeeding in the obstetrics department of a tertiary grade A hospital in Suzhou from January to December 2021. Postpartum women with nipple trauma whose hospital bed numbers ranged between 15 and 33 were included in the test group, whereas those whose hospital bed numbers ranged between 35 and 53 were included in the control group. Both groups received health education and breastfeeding guidance. The control group applied lanolin cream to their nipple trauma, whereas the test group used aloe gel. We used a nipple trauma severity assessment table to determine the severity of nipple trauma in lactating women and a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) to determine the level of nipple pain and referred to the Traditional Chinese Medicine Standard for Diagnosis and Therapeutic Efficacy for Diseases and Syndromes to determine the healing time of their wounds. Results: The test group scored 3.70 ± 1.24 and 1.65 ± 0.74 points on the VAS on the first and third days following the intervention, whereas the control group scored 4.30 ± 0.94 and 2.23 ± 1.07 points, respectively. It took 3.75 ± 1.08 days and 4.45 ± 1.15 days for the nipple pain to completely disappear in the test group and the control group, respectively. The healing period for nipple trauma was 5.28 ± 1.26 days for the test group and 6.03 ± 1.61 days for the control group. All of the aforementioned distinctions were statistically significant (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Aloe gel can significantly alleviate the pain associated with nipple trauma in lactating women, accelerate wound healing, and reduce the duration of nipple trauma.

TET3-mediated DNA demethylation modification activates SHP2 expression to promote endometrial cancer progression through the EGFR/ERK pathway.

OBJECTIVE: Src homology phosphotyrosin phosphatase 2 (SHP2) has been implicated in the progression of several cancer types. However, its function in endometrial cancer (EC) remains unclear. Here, we report that the ten-eleven translocation 3 (TET3)-mediated DNA demethylation modification is responsible for the oncogenic role of SHP2 in EC and explore the detailed mechanism. METHODS: The transcriptomic differences between EC tissues and control tissues were analyzed using bioinformatics tools, followed by protein-protein interaction network establishment. EC cells were treated with shRNA targeting SHP2 alone or in combination with isoprocurcumenol, an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling activator. The cell biological behavior was examined using cell counting kit-8, colony formation, flow cytometry, scratch assay, and transwell assays, and the median inhibition concentration values to medroxyprogesterone acetate/gefitinib were calculated. The binding of TET3 to the SHP2 promoter was verified. EC cells with TET3 knockdown and combined with SHP2 overexpression were selected to construct tumor xenografts in mice. RESULTS: TET3 and SHP2 were overexpressed in EC cells. TET3 bound to the SHP2 promoter, thereby increasing the DNA hydroxymethylation modification and activating SHP2 to induce the EGFR/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway. Knockdown of TET3 or SHP2 inhibited EC cell malignant aggressiveness and impaired the EGFR/ERK pathway. Silencing of TET3 inhibited the tumorigenic capacity of EC cells, and ectopic expression of SHP2 or isoprocurcumenol reversed the inhibitory effect of TET3 knockdown on the biological activity of EC cells. CONCLUSION: TET3 promoted the DNA demethylation modification in the SHP2 promoter and activated SHP2, thus activating the EGFR/ERK pathway and leading to EC progression.

Advance nitrogen removal from anaerobic sludge digestion liquor using partial nitrification and denitrification coupled with simultaneous partial nitrification, anammox, and denitrification process.

A novel two-stage continuous-flow partial nitrification and denitrification coupled with simultaneous partial nitrification, anammox, and denitrification (PND-SNAD) process was developed to treat anaerobic sludge digestion liquor. During the stable phase, the total nitrogen and chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiencies were 93 ± 3 % and 59 ± 7 %, respectively. Free ammonia suppression (26.2 ± 12.7 mg/L) and low dissolved oxygen (DO, 0.12 ± 0.07 mg/L) were key factors in the operation of the PND process, while the SNAD process was restricted successfully by limited oxygen (DO < 0.1 mg/L) and short solids retention time (9.7 d). The PND process was an important pretreatment process that could remove biodegradable dissolved COD by denitrification and supply ammonium-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) to the SNAD process. Nitrosomonas and Ca. Brocadia were the dominant AOB and anammox bacteria, respectively. Overall, this research presents a distinctive SNAD combined process for anaerobic sludge digestion liquor treatment.

Self-Assembled Amphiphilic Chitosan Nanomicelles: Synthesis, Characterization and Antibacterial Activity.

Although amphiphilic chitosan has been widely studied as a drug carrier for drug delivery, fewer studies have been conducted on the antimicrobial activity of amphiphilic chitosan. In this study, we successfully synthesized deoxycholic acid-modified chitosan (CS-DA) by grafting deoxycholic acid (DA) onto chitosan C2-NH2, followed by grafting succinic anhydride, to prepare a novel amphiphilic chitosan (CS-DA-SA). The substitution degree was 23.93% for deoxycholic acid and 29.25% for succinic anhydride. Both CS-DA and CS-DA-SA showed good blood compatibility. Notably, the synthesized CS-DA-SA can self-assemble to form nanomicelles at low concentrations in an aqueous environment. The results of CS, CS-DA, and CS-DA-SA against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus showed that CS-DA and CS-DA-SA exhibited stronger antimicrobial effects than CS. CS-DA-SA may exert its antimicrobial effect by disrupting cell membranes or forming a membrane on the cell surface. Overall, the novel CS-DA-SA biomaterials have a promising future in antibacterial therapy.

The role of segmental bioelectrical impedance technique in the assessment of intraperitoneal ultrafiltration volume with peritoneal dialysis patients.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the role of segmental bioelectrical impedance technique (SBIA) in the assessment of intraperitoneal ultrafiltration volume with peritoneal dialysis patients. METHOD: We selected the patients at the Department of Nephrology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University and measured the segmental bioelectrical impedance by a German Fresenius body composition analyzer (the Fresenius whole body composition measurement (BCM) machine was used as a segmental machine in this study). An alternating current (5 kHz, 0.05-0.7 mA) was continuously released during the measurement. The released current penetrated the peritoneal cavity on both sides of the body, from which the segmental resistance at a frequency of 5 kHz was obtained from the multifrequency data (R5/Ω). Baseline BIA measurements were initiated after the patient entered the supine position for 5-10 min, then dialysate was instilled into the peritoneal cavity. BIA measurements were performed at 10-min intervals during the retention of dialysate in the abdomen and finally ended when dialysate drainage was complete. Real-time intraperitoneal volume estimated by SBIA (IPVSBIA)and ultrafiltration volume estimated by SBIA(UFVSBIA) was calculated. At the same time, the actual ultrafiltration volume at the end of peritoneal dialysis was weighed and measured (UFVMEA). RESULTS: A total of 30 patients were included in the study, 9 patients withdrew from the study due to subjective factors during the measurement process, and 21 patients completed the study. The correlation coefficient R2 of UFVSBIA and UFVMEA was 0.21 (p < 0.05). Bland-Altman analysis showed that the bias of UFVSBIA to the actual UFVMEA was 0.12 L, and the 95% agreement limit was between -0.5 L and 0.74 L, which confirmed that UFVSBIA measured by electrical impedance method and UFVMEA measured by weighing method were in good agreement. The time required to reach the maximum ultrafiltration volume (UFVSBIA) was 108 ± 68 min, and the mean value of the maximum ultrafiltration volume (Max UFVSBIA) was 1.16 ± 0.60 L. CONCLUSION: The segmental bioelectrical impedance technique can be used to assess the intraperitoneal ultrafiltration volume of peritoneal dialysis patients in real-time and effectively. This method may guide the dialysis fluid retention time and the maximum ultrafiltration volume in PD patients.

The potential role of GSK-3ß signaling pathway for amelioration actions of ketamine on the PTSD rodent model.

RATIONALE: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a complex, chronic psychiatric disorder typically triggered by life-threatening events and, as yet, lacks a specialized pharmacological treatment. The potential therapeutic role of ketamine, an N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist, in mitigating PTSD has been the subject of investigation. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to elucidate alterations in the glycogen synthase kinase-3ß (GSK-3ß) signaling pathway in response to ketamine intervention, using the single prolonged stress (SPS) model of PTSD at a molecular level. METHODS: PTSD-like symptoms were simulated using the SPS model. Ketamine (10 mg/kg) and GSK-3ß antagonist SB216763 (5 mg/kg) were then administered intraperitoneally. Stress-related behavior was evaluated through the open field test (OFT) and the elevated plus maze test (EMPT). Additionally, brain activity was analyzed using quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG). Changes in protein and mRNA expressions of glucocorticoid receptor (GR), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), GSK-3ß, phosphorylated ser-9 GSK-3ß (p-GSK-3ß), FK506 binding protein 5 (FKBP5), and corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) were assessed in the hypothalamus via western blot and qPCR. RESULTS: SPS-exposed rats exhibited reduced distance and time spent in the center of the open arms, a pattern divergent from control rats. qEEG readings revealed SPS-induced increases in alpha power, low gamma and high gamma power. Furthermore, SPS triggered an upregulation in the protein and gene expression of GSK-3ß, GR, BDNF, p-GSK-3ß, and FKBP5, and downregulated CRH expression in the hypothalamus. Ketamine administration following the SPS procedure counteracted these changes by increasing the time spent in the center of the OFT, the distance traversed in the open arms of the EMPT, and mitigating SPS-induced alterations in cerebral cortex oscillations. Moreover, ketamine reduced the protein levels of GSK-3ß, GR, p-GSK-3ß, and altered the ratio of p-GSK-3ß to GSK-3ß. Gene expression of GSK-3ß, GR, BDNF, and FKBP5 decreased in the SPS-Ket group compared to the SPS-Sal group. CONCLUSIONS: Ketamine appeared to remediate the abnormal GSK-3ß signaling pathway induced by SPS. These findings collectively suggest that ketamine could be a promising therapeutic agent for PTSD symptoms, working through the modulation of the GSK-3ß signaling pathway.

Hyperoxidation active species produced by seawater electro membrane reactor assisted electrolytic cell system for simultaneous decyanation and carbon removal.

Herein, a novel triple-layered heterojunction catalytic cathode membrane (PVDF/rGO/TFe/MnO2, TMOHccm) was reported and applied in seawater electro membrane reactor assisted electrolytic cell system (SEMR-EC), achieving increased properties for cyanide wastewater treatment. Hydrophilic TMOHccm exhibits higher electrochemical activity (qT* 1.11 C cm-2, qo* 0.03 C cm-2), indicating excellent electron transfer efficiency. Further analysis shows a one-electron redox cycle of exposed transition metal oxides (TMOs) on rGO support mediated oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) process, and calculated results of density functional theory (DFT) demonstrates positive Bader charge (72 |e|) of synthesized catalyst. The developed SEMR-EC was implemented in intermittent-stream operation for treating cyanide wastewater, the system achieved optimized decyanation and carbon removal performance (CN- 100%, TOC 88.49%). Hyperoxidation active species produced SEMR-EC including hydroxyl, sulfate, and reactive chlorine species (RCS) was confirmed. The proposed mechanistic explanation indicated multiple removal pathways relevant to cyanide, organic matter, and iron were elucidated, and the engineering applications prospects were highlighted by cost (5.61 $) and benefit (Ce 399.26 mW m-2 $-1, EFe 248.11 g kWh-1) analysis of the system.

Neuroplastin 65 deficiency reduces amyloid plaque formation and cognitive deficits in an Alzheimer's disease mouse model.

Introduction: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by increasing cognitive dysfunction, progressive cerebral amyloid beta (Aß) deposition, and neurofibrillary tangle aggregation. However, the molecular mechanisms of AD pathologies have not been completely understood. As synaptic glycoprotein neuroplastin 65 (NP65) is related with synaptic plasticity and complex molecular events underlying learning and memory, we hypothesized that NP65 would be involved in cognitive dysfunction and Aß plaque formation of AD. For this purpose, we examined the role of NP65 in the transgenic amyloid precursor protein (APP)/presenilin 1 (PS1) mouse model of AD. Methods: Neuroplastin 65-knockout (NP65-/-) mice crossed with APP/PS1 mice to get the NP65-deficient APP/PS1 mice. In the present study, a separate cohort of NP65-deficient APP/PS1 mice were used. First, the cognitive behaviors of NP65-deficient APP/PS1 mice were assessed. Then, Aß plaque burden and Aß levels in NP65-deficient APP/PS1 mice were measured by immunostaining and western blot as well as ELISA. Thirdly, immunostaining and western blot were used to evaluate the glial response and neuroinflammation. Finally, protein levels of 5-hydroxytryptamin (serotonin) receptor 3A and synaptic proteins and neurons were measured. Results: We found that loss of NP65 alleviated the cognitive deficits of APP/PS1 mice. In addition, Aß plaque burden and Aß levels were significantly reduced in NP65-deficient APP/PS1 mice compared with control animals. NP65-loss in APP/PS1 mice resulted in a decrease in glial activation and the levels of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1ß, TNF-α, and IL-4) as well as protective matrix YM-1 and Arg-1, but had no effect on microglial phenotype. Moreover, NP65 deficiency significantly reversed the increase in 5-hydroxytryptamine (serotonin) receptor 3A (Htr3A) expression levels in the hippocampus of APP/PS1 mice. Discussion: These findings identify a previously unrecognized role of NP65 in cognitive deficits and Aß formation of APP/PS1 mice, and suggest that NP65 may serve as a potential therapeutic target for AD.

TSPTFBS 2.0: trans-species prediction of transcription factor binding sites and identification of their core motifs in plants.

Introduction: An emerging approach using promoter tiling deletion via genome editing is beginning to become popular in plants. Identifying the precise positions of core motifs within plant gene promoter is of great demand but they are still largely unknown. We previously developed TSPTFBS of 265 Arabidopsis transcription factor binding sites (TFBSs) prediction models, which now cannot meet the above demand of identifying the core motif. Methods: Here, we additionally introduced 104 maize and 20 rice TFBS datasets and utilized DenseNet for model construction on a large-scale dataset of a total of 389 plant TFs. More importantly, we combined three biological interpretability methods including DeepLIFT, in-silico tiling deletion, and in-silico mutagenesis to identify the potential core motifs of any given genomic region. Results: For the results, DenseNet not only has achieved greater predictability than baseline methods such as LS-GKM and MEME for above 389 TFs from Arabidopsis, maize and rice, but also has greater performance on trans-species prediction of a total of 15 TFs from other six plant species. A motif analysis based on TF-MoDISco and global importance analysis (GIA) further provide the biological implication of the core motif identified by three interpretability methods. Finally, we developed a pipeline of TSPTFBS 2.0, which integrates 389 DenseNet-based models of TF binding and the above three interpretability methods. Discussion: TSPTFBS 2.0 was implemented as a user-friendly web-server (http://www.hzau-hulab.com/TSPTFBS/), which can support important references for editing targets of any given plant promoters and it has great potentials to provide reliable editing target of genetic screen experiments in plants.

Critical role of Photo-electrode with Ce-g-C3N4 in multi-stage microbial fuel cells cascade reactor treating diluted hyper-saline industrial wastewater rich in amines.

Treatment of chemical industrial wastewater often faces problems of large volume occupation, high cost, and long processing time. In this study, low-content Ce-modified g-C3N4 was prepared and used as a catalyst on stainless steel mesh photo-cathode in constructing a multi-stage cascade microbial fuel cell system to reduce treatment costs in an energy-saving way. The large specific surface area (332.5 m2 g-1) and mesoporous structure of the material, is favorable for catalytic reactions, in which Ce elements were mainly present in single atoms. The characterized catalyst indicated a pronounced effect of Ce species in increasing photo-current and the synergistic pollutant removal, microbial bio-degradation and cascade operation stability. In Batch-mode (light illumination, aeration, total HRT (hydraulic residence time) of 54 h) treatment through three cascade reactors, removed 88% COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand). With 0.5 mM PMS (peroxymonosulfate), 94% COD and 86% NH4+-N of the system were removed. The cascade net average COD removal capacity reached 16.04 kg per kg catalyst per day. The addition of PMS also enhanced the electricity generation. In continuous-mode, in totally 18 h treatment through the three-stages cascade reactors without PMS, overall, 83% COD and 78% TOC (Total Organic Carbon) were removed, reaching a net calculated system average COD removal capacity of 19.29 kg per kg catalyst per day. With Ce-g-C3N4 catalyst, the batch or continuous multi-stage cascade system demonstrated great technical flexibility and economic potential in treating high-strength, high-salinity amine-rich industrial wastewater.

Inhibiting 5-hydroxytryptamine receptor 3 alleviates pathological changes of a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease.

Extracellular amyloid beta (Aß) plaques are main pathological feature of Alzheimer's disease. However, the specific type of neurons that produce Aß peptides in the initial stage of Alzheimer's disease are unknown. In this study, we found that 5-hydroxytryptamin receptor 3A subunit (HTR3A) was highly expressed in the brain tissue of transgenic amyloid precursor protein and presenilin-1 mice (an Alzheimer's disease model) and patients with Alzheimer's disease. To investigate whether HTR3A-positive interneurons are associated with the production of Aß plaques, we performed double immunostaining and found that HTR3A-positive interneurons were clustered around Aß plaques in the mouse model. Some amyloid precursor protein-positive or ß-site amyloid precursor protein cleaving enzyme-1-positive neurites near Aß plaques were co-localized with HTR3A interneurons. These results suggest that HTR3A -positive interneurons may partially contribute to the generation of Aß peptides. We treated 5.0-5.5-month-old model mice with tropisetron, a HTR3 antagonist, for 8 consecutive weeks. We found that the cognitive deficit of mice was partially reversed, Aß plaques and neuroinflammation were remarkably reduced, the expression of HTR3 was remarkably decreased and the calcineurin/nuclear factor of activated T-cell 4 signaling pathway was inhibited in treated model mice. These findings suggest that HTR3A interneurons partly contribute to generation of Aß peptide at the initial stage of Alzheimer's disease and inhibiting HTR3 partly reverses the pathological changes of Alzheimer's disease.

ncRNA-mediated low expression of P2RY14 correlates with poor prognosis and tumor immune infiltration in ovarian carcinoma.

Background: Ovarian cancer (OV) has been puzzling clinicians because of its poor prognosis. More and more evidence show that the G protein coupled receptor P2RY14 plays a key role in the initiation and progression of various types of human cancer. The purpose of our study is to explore the correlation between P2RY14 and the prognosis of ovarian cancer patients and the relevant mechanism. Methods: First, the differentially expressed gene P2RY14 was screened from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. Explored possible P2RY14 related miRNAs and lncRNAs through multiple public databases, predicted and analyzed the expression level of candidate miRNAs and candidate lncRNAs that can bind to candidate miRNAs in OV through StarBase database. The TIMER database was used to comprehensively analyze the expression of tumor infiltrating immune cells, and to analyze the correlation between the expression level of P2RY14 and the level of immune cell infiltration in OV or the expression level of immune checkpoints. Results: Patients with P2RY14 overexpression had better overall survival (OS) and progression-free interval (PFI). In the Targetscan database, 22 upstream miRNAs that may bind to P2RY14 were predicted. According to the regulatory network constructed by the Cytoscape software, correlation analysis and the role of miRNAs in the prognosis of OV, we first determined that the candidate miRNAs were miR-34c-5p. Then, we predicted the upstream lncRNAs of miR-34c-5p in the StarBase database, the expression level of these lncRNAs in OV in the Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA) database, and the role in prognosis. We determined that LINC00665 is the most potential lncRNA upstream of ovarian cancer miRNA (hsa-miR-34c-5p)-P2RY14. Then, we analyzed the results in the Timer database, suggesting that P2RY14 expression was positively correlated with CD8+T Cell, CD4+T Cell, Macrophage, Neutral and Dendritic cells, and negatively correlated with B cells. Meanwhile, P2RY14 was positively correlated with CD274 and PDCD1. Conclusions: P2RY14 can be used as a new predictive biomarker of ovarian cancer. Intervention of P2RY14 can affect the prognosis of ovarian cancer by affecting LINC00665-miR-34c-5p-P2RY14 axis. These findings provide a potential target for the development of anti-cancer strategies for ovarian cancer.

Systemic investigation of inetetamab in combination with small molecules to treat HER2-overexpressing breast and gastric cancers.

Most patients with metastatic breast cancer or gastric cancer who are treated with trastuzumab, an anti-HER2 monoclonal antibody, become refractory to the drug within a year after the initiation of treatment. Although the combination of trastuzumab with pertuzumab produced synergetic effects in the treatment of HER2-overexpressing cancers, not all patients with HER2 overexpression benefited from the trastuzumab plus pertuzumab combination. To improve the clinical benefits of trastuzumab, we systemically investigated the combination of inetetamab (Cipterbin), an analog of trastuzumab, with a variety of small molecules, including tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and chemotherapeutic agents in vivo. We showed that pan-TKIs-induced synergistic antitumor effects with inetetamab in the treatment of these two types of cancers and that adding chemotherapeutic agents to the existing TKI plus anti-HER2 monoclonal antibody combination strategies induced additional inhibitory effects, suggesting that such combination strategies may be choices for the treatment of these two tumors. Thus, combination therapies targeting distinct and broad pathways that are essential for tumor growth and survival can be effective for treating metastatic breast cancers and gastric cancers.

CD8+ T cell-intrinsic IL-6 signaling promotes resistance to anti-PD-L1 immunotherapy.

Although immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are established as effective cancer therapies, overcoming therapeutic resistance remains a critical challenge. Here we identify interleukin 6 (IL-6) as a correlate of poor response to atezolizumab (anti-PD-L1) in large clinical trials of advanced kidney, breast, and bladder cancers. In pre-clinical models, combined blockade of PD-L1 and the IL-6 receptor (IL6R) causes synergistic regression of large established tumors and substantially improves anti-tumor CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) responses compared with anti-PD-L1 alone. Circulating CTLs from cancer patients with high plasma IL-6 display a repressed functional profile based on single-cell RNA sequencing, and IL-6-STAT3 signaling inhibits classical cytotoxic differentiation of CTLs in vitro. In tumor-bearing mice, CTL-specific IL6R deficiency is sufficient to improve anti-PD-L1 activity. Thus, based on both clinical and experimental evidence, agents targeting IL-6 signaling are plausible partners for combination with ICIs in cancer patients.

Interspecific competition between the bloom-causing dinoflagellates Hetrocapsa bohaiensis and the local species Chlorella pyrenoidosa.

Harmful algal blooms caused by Heterocapsa bohaiensis have broken out in aquaculture areas near Liaodong Bay, China, since 2012, resulting in mass mortality of Eriocheir sinensis larvae and substantial economic loss. Chlorella pyrenoidosa is a local phytoplankton species that is found in aquaculture ponds. However, the reason why H. bohaiensis dominated and proliferated in the phytoplankton community remains unknown. Previous studies have revealed the toxicity and hemolytic activity of H. bohaiensis. It is suspected that the out-competition of H. bohaiensis to C. pyrenoidosa was associated with toxicity. Filtrate and bi-algal cultures were investigated to determine the interspecific competition between H. bohaiensis and C. pyrenoidosa in this study. Filtrate experiments revealed that H. bohaiensis showed no toxin allelopathy in C. pyrenoidosa. However, the C. pyrenoidosa filtrates had significant allelopathic effects on the growth of H. bohaiensis. The bi-algal culture experiments and the simulation showed that the dominant species were dependent on the initial cell density ratios of the species and nutrient ratios. Therefore, H. bohaiensis achieved competitive advantage through exploitation competition but not allelopathy. The results contribute to the reasons for the occurrence of H. bohaiensis blooms in a further study.

The downregulation of LINC00273 inhibits the proliferation, invasion, and migration of ovarian cancer cells in vivo and in vitro.

Background: This study sought to analyze long non-coding ribonucleic acid (lncRNA) LINC00273 expression in ovarian cancer tissues, and to preliminarily explore its effect on the growth and invasion of ovarian cancer cells and its influencing mechanism. Methods: Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was performed to detect the LINC00273 expression levels of cancerous ovarian tissues and their related cell lines. The ovarian cancer cells with the highest expression of LINC00273 were transfected with a knockdown lentiviral vector targeting the LINC00273 sequence and a negative control plasmid. The effects of the LINC00273 knockdown on the invasion and growth of these cancerous cells were evaluated by clonogenic assays, flow cytometry, EdU (5-Ethynyl-2'-deoxyuridine), Cell Counting Kit-8, and Transwell assays. Western Blot was used to measure the LINC00273 knockdown effects on invasion and migration-related gene expression, and the knockdown effects on the ovarian proliferation ability of the cancer cells in vivo were analyzed by in vivo nude mouse experiments. Results: LINC00273 expression was significantly more increased in the cancerous ovarian tissues than the adjacent tissues. The LINC00273 expression of the ovarian cancer cell lines was higher than that of the normal ovarian epithelial cells. LINC00273 knockdown greatly suppressed the proliferative and clonogenic function of these cancerous cells. The flow cytometry results revealed that LINC00273 knockdown notably induced G0/G1 phase arrest in the ovarian cancer cells. LINC00273 knockdown also promoted E-cadherin expression in the ovarian cancer cells, and inhibited vimentin, matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2), matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), and N-cadherin, expression to inhibit the invasion and migration ability of the ovarian cancer cells. The in vivo experiments indicated that LINC00273 knockdown suppressed in vivo cancer cell proliferation in the ovaries. Conclusions: LINC00273 is highly expressed in both ovarian cancerous tissues and ovarian cancerous cell lines. LINC00273 knockdown greatly suppressed the proliferative and invasive capabilities of the cancerous ovarian cells. In terms of the molecular process, it may be that the knockdown of LINC00273 promotes E-cadherin and inhibits vimentin, N-cadherin, MMP-2, and MMP-9 expression in cancerous ovarian cells.

Removal of Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products (PPCPs) by Free Radicals in Advanced Oxidation Processes.

As emerging pollutants, pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) have received extensive attention due to their high detection frequency (with concentrations ranging from ng/L to µg/L) and potential risk to aqueous environments and human health. Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) are effective techniques for the removal of PPCPs from water environments. In AOPs, different types of free radicals (HO·, SO4·-, O2·-, etc.) are generated to decompose PPCPs into non-toxic and small-molecule compounds, finally leading to the decomposition of PPCPs. This review systematically summarizes the features of various AOPs and the removal of PPCPs by different free radicals. The operation conditions and comprehensive performance of different types of free radicals are summarized, and the reaction mechanisms are further revealed. This review will provide a quick understanding of AOPs for later researchers.

The relationships among gut microbiota, hypoxia-inducible factor and anaemia with chronic kidney disease.

Gut microbiota plays a vital role in human intestinal homeostasis, correlating strongly with the progression of numerous diseases. Recent researches provide powerful evidence that the connections exist between gut microbiota and renal anaemia. Gut microbiota may have an impact on renal anaemia by regulating the hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) signalling, iron metabolism and inflammatory state. Because of this relationship, there may be potential treatments for renal anaemia. In this review, we will first provide an overview of current research progression on anaemia in chronic kidney disease and then introduce the relations among gut microbiota, HIF, and renal anaemia to explore the possible treatment options.

Folic Acid-Modified Fluorescent-Magnetic Nanoparticles for Efficient Isolation and Identification of Circulating Tumor Cells in Ovarian Cancer.

Ovarian cancer (OC) is a lethal disease occurring in women worldwide. Due to the lack of obvious clinical symptoms and sensitivity biomarkers, OC patients are often diagnosed in advanced stages and suffer a poor prognosis. Circulating tumor cells (CTCs), released from tumor sites into the peripheral blood, have been recognized as promising biomarkers in cancer prognosis, treatment monitoring, and metastasis diagnosis. However, the number of CTCs in peripheral blood is low, and it is a technical challenge to isolate, enrich, and identify CTCs from the blood samples of patients. This work develops a simple, effective, and inexpensive strategy to capture and identify CTCs from OC blood samples using the folic acid (FA) and antifouling-hydrogel-modified fluorescent-magnetic nanoparticles. The hydrogel showed a good antifouling property against peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). The FA was coupled to the hydrogel surface as the targeting molecule for the CTC isolation, held a good capture efficiency for SK-OV-3 cells (95.58%), and successfully isolated 2-12 CTCs from 10 OC patients' blood samples. The FA-modified fluorescent-magnetic nanoparticles were successfully used for the capture and direct identification of CTCs from the blood samples of OC patients.

Label-free detection of living cervical cells based on microfluidic device with terahertz spectroscopy.

Early diagnosis of cervical cancer is essential for a good prognosis. Terahertz wave detection technology is a nondestructive and label-free physical detection technology, which can detect and monitor the cancer cells in real time, especially for patients with deep or inaccessible tumors. In this study, a single-cell-layer microfluidic device was developed. After replacing the optical clearing agent, the characteristics of H8, HeLa and SiHa cell lines in adherent and suspended states were detected. Additionally, the absorption increased with increasing cell density. For the mixed suspension cell samples, principal component analysis-support vector machine method was used to identify benign and malignant cell component. After living cells formaldehyde, changes in cell membrane permeability were evaluated to identify the cell survival status (i.e., dead or living) based on terahertz spectroscopy amplitude differences. Therefore, extending the terahertz spectrum detection to the molecular level can characterize the life essence of cells and tissues.