Clinical features, treatment, and follow-up of OPPG and high-bone-mass disorders: LRP5 is a key regulator of bone mass.

Osteoporosis-pseudoglioma syndrome (OPPG) and LRP5 high bone mass (LRP5-HBM) are two rare bone diseases with opposite clinical symptoms caused by loss-of-function and gain-of-function mutations in LRP5. Bisphosphonates are an effective treatment for OPPG patients. LRP5-HBM has a benign course, and age-related bone loss is found in one LRP5-HBM patient. PURPOSE: Low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 5 (LRP5) is involved in the canonical Wnt signaling pathway. The gain-of-function mutation leads to high bone mass (LRP5-HBM), while the loss-of-function mutation leads to osteoporosis-pseudoglioma syndrome (OPPG). In this study, the clinical manifestations, disease-causing mutations, treatment, and follow-up were summarized to improve the understanding of these two diseases. METHODS: Two OPPG patients and four LRP5-HBM patients were included in this study. The clinical characteristics, biochemical and radiological examinations, pathogenic mutations, and structural analysis were summarized. Furthermore, several patients were followed up to observe the treatment effect and disease progress. RESULTS: Congenital blindness, persistent bone pain, low bone mineral density (BMD), and multiple brittle fractures were the main clinical manifestations of OPPG. Complex heterozygous mutations were detected in two OPPG patients. The c.1455G > T mutation in exon 7 was first reported. During the follow-up, BMD of two patients was significantly improved after bisphosphonate treatment. On the contrary, typical clinical features of LRP5-HBM included extremely high BMD without fractures, torus palatinus and normal vision. X-ray showed diffuse osteosclerosis. Two heterozygous missense mutations were detected in four patients. In addition, age-related bone loss was found in one LRP5-HBM patient after 12-year of follow-up. CONCLUSION: This study deepened the understanding of the clinical characteristics, treatment, and follow-up of OPPG and LRP5-HBM; expanded the pathogenic gene spectrum of OPPG; and confirmed that bisphosphonates were effective for OPPG. Additionally, it was found that Ala242Thr mutation could not protect LRP5-HBM patients from age-related bone loss. This phenomenon deserves further study.

The association between smoking and family health with the mediation role of personality among Chinese people: nationwide cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: There may be unexplored interactions between family health, personality, and smoking that could help provide new perspectives on tobacco control. OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between the health of one's family and their smoking habits, as well as investigate the potential influence of personality on this relationship. METHODS: For this cross-sectional investigation, a national survey conducted in China in 2022 recruited a total of 21,916 individuals. The Family Health Scale was utilized to assess the health of the family. The 10-item Big Five Inventory scale was utilized to assess the Big five personality traits. The relationship between big five personality, family health, and smoking were investigated using binary and linear logistic regression. The indirect effects mediated by Big five personality were analyzed using mediation analysis with Sobel tests, and the indirect effects were composited using the Karlson-Holm-Breen method. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of smoking in the study population was 14.87%, 26.19% for males and 3.54% for females. Urban and rural smoking prevalence was 13.81% and 16.10% respectively. Binary logistic regression analysis revealed a significant negative relationship between smoking and family health (odds ratio 0.964, 95% CI 0.959, 0.970, P < 0.001) with covariates controlled. The Karlson-Holm-Breen composition facilitated the connection between extraversion (47.81%) and nervousness (52.19%). CONCLUSIONS: Preventive interventions for smoking behavior should prioritize family health and the Big five personality as significant areas to focus on. According to this study, in addition to implementing various interventions for different personalities, family health should be strengthened to reduce smoking behavior.

Programmed cell death 4 governs NLRP3-mediated pyroptosis in septic lung disorders.

INTRODUCTION: Sepsis is a pathogenic syndrome of prolonged excessive inflammation and immunosuppression produced by invading pathogens. Programmed cell death 4 (PDCD4) may be implicated in a range of inflammatory lesions, and this study aimed to confirm the involvement of PDCD4 in septic lung injury. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Mice and bronchial epithelial 16HBE cells were separately subjected to CLP and LPS to generate in vivo and in vitro models. Following the level of PDCD4 was determined, the impacts of PDCD4 knockdown on mouse lung injury degree, inflammation, apoptosis, and pyroptosis levels were evaluated. Afterward, cells were treated with the NLRP3 agonist, and the influences of NLRP3 activation on the regulations of PDCD4 knockdown were determined. RESULTS: PDCD4 was elevated following mice developed septic lung injury, PDCD4 knockdown ameliorated septic lung injury and reduced lung inflammation and apoptosis. Moreover, PDCD4 knockdown suppressed NLRP3-mediated pyroptosis, indicating that PDCD4 also mediated pyroptosis. According to cellular models, NLRP3 activation broke the effects of PDCD4 knockdown on cells. CONCLUSIONS: The current study reveals that PDCD4 governs NLRP3-mediated pyroptosis in septic lung injury. PDCD4 is not only related to apoptosis and expands the knowledge of PDCD4 regulation of different cell death modes.

Immunogenicity Persistence of a Third-Dose Homologous BBIBP-CorV/CoronaVac Boosting Vaccination: A Prospective Open-Label Study.

The inactivated whole-virion severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccine has been widely used in a two-dose schedule, but with insufficient data on the immunogenicity of homologous BBIBP-CorV/CoronaVac boosting vaccination and too little follow-up to assess the duration of the immunogenic response. We prospectively evaluated the immunogenicity of a third-dose BBIBP-CorV/CoronaVac boosting vaccination, with neutralizing titers against wild type and Omicron assessed at the baseline (immediately before the booster dose), and days 14, 28, 98, and 174 post the third-booster. Of 182 volunteers screened, 165 were assessed eligible for enrolment. No moderate/severe adverse events were observed during the term of the study. From the baseline to day 174 post the third booster, neutralizing titers against wild type and Omicron peaked by approximately sixfold increase (up to 811.83 and 33.40, respectively) at day 14 and slowly decreased over time. The geometric mean titers against Omicron were lower than against type with a 19.8-39. Sixfold reduction at all time points. The seropositivity against Omicron at the baseline, days 14, 28, 98, and 174 after the booster dose was 12.6%, 50.0%, 37.8%, 38.6%, and 22.8%, respectively. Data presented herein indicated that the BBIBP-CorV/CoronaVac booster significantly enhances the neutralizing potency against wild-type strain but elicited weaker neutralizing activity to Omicron. Our findings suggest that individuals receiving booster inactivated vaccine remain at risk for Omicron infection, which is crucial to inform ongoing and future vaccination strategies to combat coronavirus disease 2019.

A Novel SiC Trench MOSFET with Self-Aligned N-Type Ion Implantation Technique.

We propose a novel silicon carbide (SiC) self-aligned N-type ion implanted trench MOSFET (NITMOS) device. The maximum electric field in the gate oxide could be effectively reduced to below 3 MV/cm with the introduction of the P-epi layer below the trench. The P-epi layer is partially counter-doped by a self-aligned N-type ion implantation process, resulting in a relatively low specific on-resistance (Ron,sp). The lateral spacing between the trench sidewall and N-implanted region (Wsp) plays a crucial role in determining the performance of the SiC NITMOS device, which is comprehensively studied through the numerical simulation. With the Wsp increasing, the SiC NITMOS device demonstrates a better short-circuit capability owing to the reduced saturation current. The gate-to-drain capacitance (Cgd) and gate-to-drain charge (Qgd) are also investigated. It is observed that both Cgd and Qgd decrease as the Wsp increases, owing to the enhanced screen effect. Compared to the SiC double-trench MOSFET device, the optimal SiC NITMOS device exhibits a 79% reduction in Cgd, a 38% decrease in Qgd, and a 41% reduction in Qgd × Ron,sp. A higher switching speed and a lower switching loss can be achieved using the proposed structure.

A novel two-dimensional NiCl2O8 lattice with negative Poisson's ratio and magnetic modulation.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials with simultaneous magnetic semiconducting properties and a negative Poisson's ratio are crucial for fabricating multifunctional electronic devices. However, progress in this area has been generally constrained. Based on first-principles calculations, we engineered a 2D Ni-based oxyhalide with a honeycomb lattice structure. It was observed that the NiCl2O8 monolayer exhibits both high- and low-buckling states in its geometry, along with intrinsic magnetic semiconductor properties in its electronic structure. Importantly, we demonstrated that the magnetic ordering of the NiCl2O8 lattice is susceptible to applied strain, which resulted in a phase transition from paramagnetic to ferromagnetic under biaxial strain. The Curie temperature was also evaluated using Monte Carlo simulations within the Ising model. Additionally, our research uncovered that the 2D NiCl2O8 lattice chain displays a negative Poisson's ratio (NPR) along the z-direction. The triangular hinge structure in its centrosymmetric configuration was identified as the origin of this unique phenomenon. The coexistence of NPR and magnetic phase transition properties in the NiCl2O8 lattice makes it quite promising for applications in nanoelectronic and spintronic devices.

Sensitive detection of microRNA by dynamic light scattering based on DNAzyme walker-mediated AuNPs self-assembly.

As an important biomarker, microRNAs (miRNAs) play an important role in gene expression, and their detection has attracted increasing attention. In this study, a DNAzyme walker that could provide power to perform autonomous movement was designed. Based on the continuous mechanical motion characteristics of DNAzyme walker, a miRNA detection strategy for the self-assembly of AuNPs induced by the hairpin probe-guided DNAzyme walker "enzyme cleavage and walk" was established. In this strategy, DNAzyme walker continuously cleaved and walked on the hairpin probe on the surface of AuNPs to induce the continuous shedding of some segments of the hairpin probe. The remaining hairpin sequences on the surface of the AuNP pair with each other, causing the nanoparticles to self-assemble. This strategy uses the autonomous movement mechanism of DNAzyme walker to improve reaction efficiency and avoid the problem of using expensive and easily degradable proteases. Secondly, using dynamic light scattering technology as the signal output system, ultra-sensitive detection with a detection limit of 3.6 fM is achieved. In addition, this strategy has been successfully used to analyze target miRNAs in cancer cell samples.

Extracellular vesicle biomarkers in circulation for the diagnosis of gastric cancer: A systematic review and meta­analysis.

The prognosis of a gastric cancer (GC) diagnosis is poor due to the current lack of effective early diagnostic methods. Extracellular vesicle (EV) biomarkers have previously demonstrated strong diagnostic efficiency for certain types of cancer, including pancreatic and lung cancer. The present review aimed to summarize the diagnostic value of circulating EV biomarkers for early stage GC. The PubMed, Medline and Web of Science databases were searched from May 1983 to September 18, 2022. All studies that reported the diagnostic performance of EV biomarkers for GC were included for analysis. Overall, 27 studies were selected containing 2,831 patients with GC and 2,117 controls. A total of 58 EV RNAs were reported in 26 studies, including 39 microRNAs (miRNAs), 10 long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), five circular RNAs, three PIWI-interacting RNAs and one mRNA, in addition to one protein in the remaining study. Meta-analysis of the aforementioned studies demonstrated that the pooled sensitivity, specificity and AUC value of the total RNAs were 84, 67% and 0.822, respectively. The diagnostic values of miRNAs were consistent with the total RNA, as the pooled sensitivity, specificity and AUC value were 84, 67% and 0.808, respectively. The pooled sensitivity, specificity and AUC values of lncRNAs were 89, 69% and 0.872, respectively, markedly higher compared with that of miRNAs. A total of five studies reported the diagnostic performance of EV RNA panels for early stage GC and reported powerful diagnostic values with a pooled sensitivity, specificity and AUC value of 80, 77% and 0.879, respectively. Circulating EV RNAs could have the potential to be used in the future as effective, noninvasive biomarkers for early GC diagnosis. Further research in this field is necessary to translate these findings into clinical practice.

Association of selenium profile with neutralizing antibody response to inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccination.

BACKGROUND: Selenium profile has been related with humoral immune response after vaccination, but evidence with regard to inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine is lacking. OBJECTIVE: The current study aimed to examine the relationship between selenium profile and neutralizing antibody response to inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. METHODS: Plasma selenium and selenoprotein P concentrations, neutralizing antibody against the wild-type and Omicron variant were measured at baseline and at 14 days, 98 days after the third dose of inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. RESULTS: Neutralizing antibody against the wild-type and Omicron variant increased significantly after the third vaccination dose. Both higher plasma selenium and selenoprotein P were associated with increased neutralizing antibody against the wild-type strain at baseline. Moreover, higher plasma selenoprotein P was associated with increased neutralizing antibody against Omicron variant at baseline. However, nonsignificant association were observed after the third vaccine dose. CONCLUSION: Higher selenium profile was associated with neutralizing antibody response before the third dose of inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, but not after the third dose. Further prospective cohort studies are warranted to confirm our findings.

Identifying therapeutic biomarkers of zoledronic acid by metabolomics.

Zoledronic acid (ZOL) is a potent antiresorptive agent that increases bone mineral density (BMD) and reduces fracture risk in postmenopausal osteoporosis (PMOP). The anti-osteoporotic effect of ZOL is determined by annual BMD measurement. In most cases, bone turnover markers function as early indicators of therapeutic response, but they fail to reflect long-term effects. We used untargeted metabolomics to characterize time-dependent metabolic shifts in response to ZOL and to screen potential therapeutic markers. In addition, bone marrow RNA-seq was performed to support plasma metabolic profiling. Sixty rats were assigned to sham-operated group (SHAM, n = 21) and ovariectomy group (OVX, n = 39) and received sham operation or bilateral ovariectomy, respectively. After modeling and verification, rats in the OVX group were further divided into normal saline group (NS, n = 15) and ZOL group (ZA, n = 18). Three doses of 100 µg/kg ZOL were administrated to the ZA group every 2 weeks to simulate 3-year ZOL therapy in PMOP. An equal volume of saline was administered to the SHAM and NS groups. Plasma samples were collected at five time points for metabolic profiling. At the end of the study, selected rats were euthanatized for bone marrow RNA-seq. A total number of 163 compound were identified as differential metabolites between the ZA and NS groups, including mevalonate, a critical molecule in target pathway of ZOL. In addition, prolyl hydroxyproline (PHP), leucyl hydroxyproline (LHP), 4-vinylphenol sulfate (4-VPS) were identified as differential metabolites throughout the study. Moreover, 4-VPS negatively correlated with increased vertebral BMD after ZOL administration as time-series analysis revealed. Bone marrow RNA-seq showed that the PI3K-AKT signaling pathway was significantly associated with ZOL-mediated changes in expression (adjusted-p = 0.018). In conclusion, mevalonate, PHP, LHP, and 4-VPS are candidate therapeutic markers of ZOL. The pharmacological effect of ZOL likely occurs through inhibition of the PI3K-AKT signaling pathway.

Clinical and Genetic Characteristics of Hypophosphatasia in Chinese Adults.

Hypophosphatasia (HPP) is an inherited disease caused by ALPL mutation, resulting in decreased alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and damage to bone and tooth mineralization. The clinical symptoms of adult HPP are variable, making diagnosis challenging. This study aims to clarify the clinical and genetic characteristics of HPP in Chinese adults. There were 19 patients, including 1 with childhood-onset and 18 with adult-onset HPP. The median age was 62 (32-74) years and 16 female patients were involved. Common symptoms included musculoskeletal symptoms (12/19), dental problems (8/19), fractures (7/19), and fatigue (6/19). Nine patients (47.4%) were misdiagnosed with osteoporosis and six received anti-resorptive treatment. The average serum ALP level was 29.1 (14-53) U/L and 94.7% (18/19) of patients had ALP levels below 40 U/L. Genetic analysis found 14 ALPL mutations, including three novel mutations-c.511C>G (p.His171Ala), c.782C>A (p.Pro261Gln), and 1399A>G (p.Met467Val). The symptoms of two patients with compound heterozygous mutations were more severe than those with heterozygous mutations. Our study summarized the clinical characteristics of adult HPP patients in the Chinese population, expanded the spectrum of pathogenic mutations, and deepened clinicians' understanding of this neglected disease.

Application of Nanomaterials in Stem Cell-Based Therapeutics for Cardiac Repair and Regeneration.

Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of disability and death worldwide. Although the survival rate of patients with heart diseases can be improved with contemporary pharmacological treatments and surgical procedures, none of these therapies provide a significant improvement in cardiac repair and regeneration. Stem cell-based therapies are a promising approach for functional recovery of damaged myocardium. However, the available stem cells are difficult to differentiate into cardiomyocytes, which result in the extremely low transplantation efficiency. Nanomaterials are widely used to regulate the myocardial differentiation of stem cells, and play a very important role in cardiac tissue engineering. This study discusses the current status and limitations of stem cells and cell-derived exosomes/micro RNAs based cardiac therapy, describes the cardiac repair mechanism of nanomaterials, summarizes the recent advances in nanomaterials used in cardiac repair and regeneration, and evaluates the advantages and disadvantages of the relevant nanomaterials. Besides discussing the potential clinical applications of nanomaterials in cardiac therapy, the perspectives and challenges of nanomaterials used in stem cell-based cardiac repair and regeneration are also considered. Finally, new research directions in this field are proposed, and future research trends are highlighted.

The nuclear factor kappa B signaling pathway is a master regulator of renal fibrosis.

Renal fibrosis is increasingly recognized as a global public health problem. Acute kidney injury (AKI) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) both result in renal fibrosis. Oxidative stress and inflammation play central roles in progressive renal fibrosis. Oxidative stress and inflammation are closely linked and form a vicious cycle in which oxidative stress induces inflammation through various molecular mechanisms. Ample evidence has indicated that a hyperactive nuclear factor kappa B (NF-ƙB) signaling pathway plays a pivotal role in renal fibrosis. Hyperactive NF-ƙB causes the activation and recruitment of immune cells. Inflammation, in turn, triggers oxidative stress through the production of reactive oxygen species and nitrogen species by activating leukocytes and resident cells. These events mediate organ injury through apoptosis, necrosis, and fibrosis. Therefore, developing a strategy to target the NF-ƙB signaling pathway is important for the effective treatment of renal fibrosis. This Review summarizes the effect of the NF-ƙB signaling pathway on renal fibrosis in the context of AKI and CKD (immunoglobulin A nephropathy, membranous nephropathy, diabetic nephropathy, hypertensive nephropathy, and kidney transplantation). Therapies targeting the NF-ƙB signaling pathway, including natural products, are also discussed. In addition, NF-ƙB-dependent non-coding RNAs are involved in renal inflammation and fibrosis and are crucial targets in the development of effective treatments for kidney disease. This Review provides a clear pathophysiological rationale and specific concept-driven therapeutic strategy for the treatment of renal fibrosis by targeting the NF-ƙB signaling pathway.

Comparative and phylogeny analysis of Asarum caudigerum and A. cardiophyllum complete chloroplast genomes / 药学学报

The complete chloroplast genome of medicinal plant Asarum caudigerum Hance and its close relative A. cardiophyllum Franchet were sequenced using Illumina Hiseq technology, and assembled, annotated, and characterized by bioinformatic methods in this study. Then phylogenetic analysis of the complete chloroplast genomes of A. caudigerum, A. cardiophyllum, and twelve published species was conducted. The results indicated that the chloroplast genomes ranged from 186 215-186 985 bp in length, with a large single copy (LSC, 89 445-90 169 bp) and two inverted repeats (IRa/IRb, 48 387-48 408 bp). The overall GC content was 37.4%-37.5%. A total of 144 chloroplast genes were annotated, including 98 protein coding genes, 38 tRNA genes and 8 rRNA genes. In addition, complex genomic rearrangements were detected in the chloroplast genome of Asarum. Meanwhile, visual evaluation of the discrete type of the sequence indicated that the variation level of non-coding region was higher than that of coding region. Phylogenetic analyses suggested that A. caudigerum and A. cardiophyllum were clustered into a single clade and A. cardiophyllum, A. sieboldii var. seoulense, A. misandrum and A. maculatum were clustered into another single branch. These two clade were sister species. This study provides a scientific basis for the identification, phylogenetic relationship, molecular breeding of Asarum species.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists for the management of diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

Diabetes mellitus is a prevalent chronic disease characterized by hyperglycemia. Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) is one of the complications of diabetes mellitus and is caused by neuron injury induced by hyperglycemic circumstances. The incidence of DPN varies among different countries and regions, ranging from nearly 20% to over 70%. Patients with DPN may encounter symmetric pain or discomfort of the extremes, leading to reduced quality of life and even amputation. The pharmacological management for painful DPN mainly includes antidepressants due to their analgesic effects. Nevertheless, effective therapies to impact the pathogenesis and progression of DPN are lacking. Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists show efficacy in controlling blood glucose and serve as a treatment modality for diabetes mellitus. In recent years, evidence has been proposed that GLP-1R agonists exert neuroprotective effects through modulating inflammation, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial dysfunction. On the other hand, clinical evidence on the potential of GLP-1R agonists for treating DPN is still controversial and limited. This narrative review summarizes the preclinical and clinical studies investigating the capacity of GLP-1R agonists as therapeutic agents for DPN.

Mortality prediction in ICU Using a Stacked Ensemble Model.

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology has huge scope in developing models to predict the survival rate of critically ill patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). The availability of electronic clinical data has led to the widespread use of various machine learning approaches in this field. Innovative algorithms play a crucial role in boosting the performance of models. This study uses a stacked ensemble model to predict mortality in ICU by incorporating the clinical severity scoring results, in which several machine learning algorithms are employed to compare the performance. The experimental results show that the stacked ensemble model achieves good performance compared with the model without integrating the severity scoring results, which has the area under curve (AUC) of 0.879 and 0.862, respectively. To improve the performance of prediction, two feature subsets are obtained based on different feature selection techniques, labeled as SetS and SetT. Evaluation performances show that the SEM based on the SetS achieves a higher AUC value (0.879 and 0.860). Finally, the SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) analysis is employed to interpret the correlation between the risk features and the outcome.

Dual specificity phosphatase 22 suppresses mesangial cell hyperproliferation, fibrosis, inflammation and the MAPK signaling pathway in diabetic nephropathy.

Dual specificity phosphatase 22 (DUSP22) regulates fibrosis and inflammation, which may be implicated in the development of diabetic nephropathy (DN). Hence, the current study aimed to assess the effect of DUSP22 on cell proliferation, apoptosis, fibrosis and inflammation in mouse mesangial cell line (SV40-MES13) under both high glucose (HG) and low glucose (LG) conditions. SV40-MES13 cells were treated with HG and LG, then HG-group cells were transfected with DUSP22 overexpression and control plasmids, meanwhile LG-group cells were transfected with DUSP22 and control siRNAs. Then, cell proliferation using Cell Counting Kit-8, cell apoptosis by TUNEL assay, protein expression using western blotting, inflammatory cytokines using ELISA and RNA using reverse transcription-quantitative PCR were determined. DUSP22 mRNA and protein were decreased in SV40-MES13 cells under the HG condition compared with those under the LG condition. Under the HG condition, DUSP22 overexpression suppressed SV40-MES13 cell proliferation at 48 and 72 h as well as Bcl2, but it facilitated TUNEL-reflected apoptotic rate and cleaved-caspase-3; besides, DUSP22 overexpression restrained proteins of fibronectin 1, collagen I, transforming growth factor beta 1, and their corresponding mRNAs. As to the inflammation, DUSP22 overexpression downregulated TNF-α, IL-1ß, IL-6 and IL-12 under the HG condition. By contrast, DUSP22 siRNA promoted SV40-MES13 cell proliferation, fibrosis and inflammation, but attenuated apoptosis in SV40-MES13 cells under the LG condition. Additionally, DUSP22 overexpression inactivated phosphorylated (p)-ERK, p-JNK, and p-P38 in HG-treated SV40-MES13 cells; differently, DUSP22 small interfering RNA facilitated them under the LG condition. In conclusion, DUSP22 suppresses HG-induced mesangial cell hyperproliferation, fibrosis, inflammation and the MAPK pathway, implying its potency in DN treatment.

Enhanced field-dependent conductivity and material properties of nano-AlN/micro-SiC/silicone elastomer hybrid composites for electric stress mitigation in high-voltage power modules.

This paper reports an enhancement of the nonlinear conductivity, thermal and mechanical properties of micro-silicon carbide/silicone elastomer (m-SiC/SE) composites by adding nano-aluminum nitride (n-AlN) for power module encapsulation applications. The electrical properties (such as nonlinear conductivity characteristics and transient permittivity obtained from polarization current, and trap distributions obtained from thermally stimulated depolarization current) and material properties (including thermo-gravimetric analysis, coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE), and thermal conductivity, tensile strength, strain at break and Young's modulus) of the pure SE, m-SiC/SE microcomposites, m-SiC/n-AlN/SE hybrid composites are investigated. The effect of the m-SiC fillers and n-AlN fillers on physicochemical properties of the SE matrix is analyzed by FT-IR spectroscopy and crosslinking degree. The measured nonlinear conductivity and transient permittivity are used for electric field simulation under DC stationary and square voltages. It is found that the addition of n-AlN fillers in the SE hybrid composite improves the nonlinear conductivity characteristics and mitigates the electric field under DC stationary and square voltages, compared to the SE microcomposite. Furthermore, the m-SiC/n-AlN/SE hybrid composite has a higher thermal degradation temperature, thermal conductivity, tensile strength, Young's modulus, and crosslinking degree than the SE microcomposite, whereas their CTE and strain at break are lower. It is elucidated that the m-SiC/n-AlN/SE hybrid composite with enhanced nonlinear conductivity and material properties is a promising packaging material for high-voltage power modules.

Reference intervals of 14 biochemical markers for children and adolescence in China: the PRINCE study.

OBJECTIVES: The Pediatric Reference Intervals in China (PRINCE) was initiated to establish the reference intervals (RIs) of Chinese children, as well as to make it possible to compare the variability of biochemical markers among countries internationally. METHODS: Healthy participants, aged up to 20 years, from 11 provinces across China, were enrolled in PRINCE and according to a standard screening procedure, that included a questionnaire survey, physical examinations and laboratory tests. Fasting venous blood specimens were collected. All serum specimens were analyzed with Cobas C702 in the center laboratory, i.e. clinical laboratory of Beijing Children's Hospital, with certified qualification (ISO15189). The nonparametric method recommended by Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines, was used to calculate the age- and sex-specified RIs. RESULTS: Among the 15,150 participants enrolled, 12,352 children (6,093 males and 6,259 females) were included to calculate RIs. The RIs for total protein, albumin, globulin, calcium, phosphate, potassium, sodium, chlorine, alkaline phosphatase, γ-glutamyl transpeptadase, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, creatinine and urea were established by age- or sex-partitions. Most biochemical markers displayed larger variability and higher dispersion during the periods between 28 days and 1 year old, and included 4-6 age partitions commonly during 1 to <20 years old. In addition, differences of RIs between sexes usually occurs around the initiation of puberty at 12-13 years old. CONCLUSIONS: The age- and sex-specified RIs of 14 biochemical markers in PRINCE study can provide a solid reference, which will be transferred into relevant RIs for other clinical laboratory's platforms according to the CLSI guidelines.

[Retracted] MicroRNA­379 acts as a tumor suppressor in non­small cell lung cancer by targeting the IGF­1R­mediated AKT and ERK pathways.

Following the publication of this paper, it was drawn to the Editors' attention by a concerned reader that the cell migration and invasion assay data shown in Figs. 2F, 5D and 6D were strikingly similar to data appearing in different form in other articles by different authors. Owing to the fact that the contentious data in the above article had already been published elsewhere, or were already under consideration for publication, prior to its submission to Oncology Reports, the Editor has decided that this paper should be retracted from the Journal. After having been in contact with the authors, they agreed with the decision to retract the paper. The Editor apologizes to the readership for any inconvenience caused. [the original article was published in Oncology Reports 38: 1857­1866, 2017; DOI: 10.3892/or.2017.5835].