Risk factors of bone loss after Prestige-LP cervical disc arthroplasty.

PURPOSE: Cervical disc arthroplasty (CDA) is widely employed for patients diagnosed with cervical degenerative disc disease (CDDD). Postoperative bone loss (BL) represents a radiological alteration that is a relatively novel consideration in the realm of CDA. This study endeavors to examine the risk factors associated with BL following CDA, aiming to elucidate the underlying mechanisms and the impact of BL on surgical outcomes. METHODS: A retrospective study was undertaken, encompassing consecutive patients subjected to one-level CDA, two-level CDA, or two-level hybrid surgery (HS) for the treatment of CDDD at our institution. Patient demographic and perioperative data were systematically recorded. Radiological images obtained preoperatively, at 1-week post-operation, and during the last follow-up were collected and evaluated, following with statistical analyses. RESULTS: A total of 295 patients and 351 arthroplasty segments were involved in this study. Univariate logistic regressions indicated that age ≥ 45 years and two-level HS was associated with lower risk of BL; and a greater ΔDA (change of disc angle before and after surgery) was correlated with an increased risk of BL. Multivariate logistic regression determined that two-level HS and greater ΔDA were independent preventative and risk factors for BL, respectively. Further analysis revealed that severe BL significantly elevated the risk of implant subsidence compared to non-BL and mild BL. CONCLUSIONS: This study posited bone remodeling and micromotion as potential underlying mechanisms of BL. Subsequent research endeavors should delve into the divergent mechanisms and progression observed between lower- and higher-grade BL, aiming to prevent potential adverse outcomes associated with severe BL.

Anterior cervical X-shape-corpectomy and fusion vs. anterior cervical corpectomy and fusion for two-level cervical spondylosis.

PURPOSE: Anterior cervical X-shape-corpectomy and fusion (ACXF) is a novel cervical surgery, designed as partial alternative to the classic technique, anterior cervical corpectomy and fusion (ACCF). The aim of this study was to evaluate the early-stage outcomes of ACXF in treating two-level cervical spondylosis (CS) through comparisons with ACCF. METHODS: A retrospectively comparative study was conducted in two cohorts of patients who underwent single-vertebral ACXF or ACCF to treat two-level CS during September 2019 and October 2021. Clinical and radiological data of all the patients were collected from pre-operation to 1 year after the surgery, following by intra- and intergroup analyses and comparisons. RESULTS: Fifty-seven patients were included, with 24 undergoing ACXF and 33 undergoing ACCF. ACXF group had significantly shorter drainage duration (2.13 ± 0.61 days vs. 3.48 ± 1.30 days, P < 0.001) and less drainage volume (30.21 ± 26.88 ml vs. 69.30 ± 37.65 ml, P < 0.001) than ACCF group. Both techniques significantly improved all the clinical parameters (P < 0.01) with comparable effects (P > 0.05). Each complication rate in ACXF group was lower than that in ACCF group without significant difference (P > 0.05). ACXF showed a significantly smaller transverse decompression range than ACCF (11.93 ± 1.27 mm vs. 16.29 ± 1.88 mm, P < 0.001). Postoperatively, ACXF yielded a comparable fusion rate (P > 0.05) and a significantly lower subsidence rate (P < 0.01) than ACCF technique at all time points. CONCLUSIONS: ACXF is a potential surgical alternative for certain patients with two-level CS, as it provides both adequate decompression range and fewer adverse events than ACCF. The further modifications on ACXF worth exploration.

Lipid concomitant γ-oryzanol decreased oil absorbency of French fries by changing the microstructure of French fries and physical properties of frying oil.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this research was to evaluate the possibility of lipid concomitant γ-oryzanol reducing oil absorbency of fried foods and the underlying mechanism. Therefore, the influence of γ-oryzanol on moisture and oil content, and distribution and micromorphology of French fries and the viscosity, fatty acid composition and total polar compounds content of rice bran oil (RBO) after frying were studied. RESULTS: Our results showed that the incorporation of low concentration of γ-oryzanol [low addition group (LAG)] (5.754 g/kg) decreased the oil absorbency and porous structure of French fries during frying. Additionally, LAG incorporation inhibited the degradation of linoleic acid, decreased the growth rate of saturated fatty acids, total polar compounds and viscosity of frying oil. CONCLUSIONS: Consequently, it was recommended to incorporate a small amount of γ-oryzanol in frying oil because it could inhibit oil absorption behavior of French fries. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Effects of nurses-led multidisciplinary-based psychological management in spinal surgery: a retrospective, propensity-score-matching comparative study.

BACKGROUND: Patients in spine surgery often have emotional disorders which is caused by multi-factors. Therefore, a multidisciplinary and multimodal intervention program is required to improve emotional disorders during the perioperative period. However, related studies were rare. This study aimed to confirm that the multidisciplinary-based psychological management leading by nurses was effective in treating emotional disorders and show the assignments of the members of the multidisciplinary team with the orientations of nurses. DESIGN: A retrospective, comparative study. METHOD: This study was a retrospective cohort research and compared the results between the intervention group and control group using the Huaxi Emotional Distress Index (HEI) which was used to evaluate emotional disorders. The intervention group consisted of patients who underwent surgery between January 2018 and December 2020 after psychological management was implemented. The control group consisted of patients with regular care who underwent surgery between January 2015 and December 2017. To improve comparability between the two groups, baseline data from the recruited patients were analyzed using propensity-score-matching (PSM) based on age, sex, marital status, education, and disease region. RESULTS: A total of 539 (11.5%) people developed emotional disorders, of which 319 (6.8%), 151 (3.2%) and 69 (1.5%) had mild, moderate mood and severe emotional disorders, respectively. 2107 pairs of patients were matched after PSM. Scores of HEI in the intervention group were heightened compared with those in the control group (P<0.001) after matching. Moreover, the incidence of emotional disorders in patients decreased after implementing psychological management (P = 0.001). The severity of emotional disorders was alleviated with statistical significance as well (P = 0.010). CONCLUSIONS: Nurses-led Multidisciplinary-Based psychological management was able to reduce the incidence of emotional disorders and improve the severity of these in spine surgery patients.

Reducing optical loss of dual-ion beam sputtered HfO2 films via optimization of coating and annealing parameters.

HfO2 films are widely used for optical coatings due to the high refractive index and low absorption, especially in the ultraviolet (UV) band. In this work, HfO2 film samples were prepared with the optimized assistant source power and deposition temperature by dual-ion beam sputtering (DIBS), followed by annealing treatments in vacuum and atmosphere, respectively. For samples with different annealing temperatures from 200 to 450 °C, the microstructure, morphology, film stress and optical properties from 200 to 1000 nm were systematically investigated. A monoclinic phase, a refractive index inhomogeneity along the film thickness and an absorption of shoulder-shape in the 250-300 nm band were found in the as-deposited samples. For samples annealed in vacuum, 400 °C annealing leaded to more oxygen defects, which in turn caused aggravated UV absorption. For samples annealed in atmosphere, the shoulder-shaped absorption weakened obviously above 300 °C annealing, which was suspected due to the reduction of oxygen defects during the crystallization process with sufficient oxygen. Scattering loss was investigated and found negligible for as-deposited and annealed samples. Additionally, film stress varied from compressive state to tensile state with increasing annealing temperature, and the zero-stress temperature is between 300-350 °C, which is due to the obvious crystallization behavior. Production methods and physical mechanisms for low absorption and scattering loss DIBS deposited HfO2 films were proposed and discussed in detail.

YouTube online videos as a source for patient education of cervical spondylosis-a reliability and quality analysis.

BACKGROUND: Given a prolonged course of Cervical spondylosis (CS) could cause irreversible neurological deficits, it is crucial to disseminate CS-related health information to the public to promote early diagnosis and treatment. YouTube has been widely used to search for medical information. However, the reliability and quality of videos on YouTube vary greatly. Thus, this study aimed to assess the reliability and educational quality of YouTube videos concerning CS and further explore strategies for optimization of patient education. METHODS: We searched YouTube online library for the keywords "cervical spondylosis", "cervical radiculopathy" and "cervical myelopathy" on January 15, 2023. Ranked by "relevance", the first 50 videos of each string were recorded. After exclusions, a total of 108 videos were included. All videos were extracted for characteristics and classified based on different sources or contents. Two raters independently evaluated the videos using Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) benchmark criteria, Modified DISCERN (mDISCERN) tool, Global Quality Scale (GQS) and Cervical-Spondylosis-Specific Scale (CSSS), followed by statistical analyses. All continuous data were described as median (interquartile range). RESULTS: All videos had median values for JAMA, mDISCERN, GQS and CSSS scores of were 3.00 (1.00), 3.00 (2.00), 2.00 (1.00) and 7.00 (8.88), respectively. There were significant differences in VPI (P = 0.009) and JAMA (P = 0.001), mDISCERN (P < 0.001), GQS (P < 0.001) and CSSS (P < 0.001) scores among different sources. Videos from academic source had advantages in reliability and quality scores than other sources. VPI (P < 0.001), mDISCERN (P = 0.001), GQS (P < 0.001) and CSSS (P = 0.001) scores also significantly differed among videos of various contents. Spearman correlation analysis indicated VPI was not correlated with either reliability or quality. Multiple linear regression analysis showed a longer duration and an academic source were independent predictors of higher reliability and quality, while a clinical source also led to the higher video quality. CONCLUSIONS: The reliability and educational quality of current CS-related videos on YouTube are unsatisfactory. Users face a high risk of encountering inaccurate and misleading information when searching for CS on YouTube. Longer duration, source of academic or clinician were closely correlated to higher video reliability and quality. Improving the holistic reliability and quality of online information requires the concerted effort from multiple parties, including uploaders, the platform and viewers.

Ferric citrate-induced colonic mucosal damage associated with oxidative stress, inflammation responses, apoptosis, and the changes of gut microbial composition.

Ferric citrate (FC) has been used as an iron fortifier and nutritional supplement, which is reported to induce colitis in rats, however the underlying mechanism remains to be elucidated. We performed a 16-week study of FC in male healthy C57BL/6 mice (nine-month-old) with oral administration of Ctr (0.9 % NaCl), 1.25 % FC (71 mg/kg/bw), 2.5 % FC (143 mg/kg/bw) and 5 % FC (286 mg/kg/bw). FC-exposure resulted in colon iron accumulation, histological alteration and reduce antioxidant enzyme activities, such as glutathione (GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), together with enhanced lipid peroxidation level, including malondialdehyde (MDA) level and 4-Hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) protein expression. Exposure to FC was associated with upregulated levels of the interleukin (IL)- 6, IL-1ß, IL-18, IL-8 and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), while down-regulated levels of IL-4 and IL-10. Exposure to FC was positively associated with the mRNA and protein expressions of cysteine-aspartic proteases (Caspase)- 9, Caspase-3, Bcl-2-associated X protein (Bax), while negatively associated with B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl2) in mitochondrial apoptosis signaling pathway. FC-exposure changed the diversity and composition of gut microbes. Additionally, the serum lipopolysaccharide (LPS) contents increased in FC-exposed groups when compared with the control group, while the expression of colonic tight junction proteins (TJPs), such as Claudin-1 and Occludin were decreased. These findings indicate that the colonic mucosal injury induced by FC-exposure are associated with oxidative stress generation, inflammation response and cell apoptosis, as well as the changes in gut microbes diversity and composition.

Fatty infiltration in cervical extensor muscle: is there a relationship with cervical sagittal alignment after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion?

PURPOSE: To investigate the relationship between the preoperative paraspinal Goutalier grade of fatty infiltration and postoperative cervical sagittal alignment in patients undergoing anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF). METHODS: A total of 101 patients who underwent single-level ACDF with the Zero-profile implant system between March 2011 and April 2020 were included in this study. Cervical sagittal alignment parameters, including the C2-C7 Cobb angle, functional spinal unit (FSU) angle, cervical sagittal vertical axis (SVA), and T1 slope (T1S), were assessed. Preoperative magnetic resonance images were used to classify patients according to Goutalier grade. Clinical outcomes including Neck Disability Index (NDI) scores, Japanese Orthepaedic Association (JOA) scores and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) scores were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: According to the Goutalier grade, 33 patients were classified as Goutalier 0-1 (Group A), 44 were classified as Goutalier 1.5-2 (Group B), and 24 were classified as Goutalier 2.5-4.0 (Group C). The mean age among the three groups showed significant differences (P = 0.007). At the last follow-up, the C2-C7 Cobb angle, FSU angle, and T1S improved after the surgery among the groups. Although there were varying degrees of loss of curvature among the different groups during the follow-up period, the postoperative cervical sagittal alignment parameters demonstrated no statistical differences among the three groups (P > 0.05). In addition, patients in all groups experienced significant relief of their symptoms, and the clinical scores were comparable among the groups (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The complex nature of anterior cervical surgery requires surgical attention both in decompression and sagittal alignment. Our study demonstrates satisfactory postoperative cervical sagittal alignment of patients despite different grades of fatty infiltration of the multifidus muscle following single-level ACDF. Based on our results, the improvement and maintenance of cervical sagittal alignment after ACDF remains a complex problem that spine surgeons should consider before surgery.

TRIM67 Deficiency Exacerbates Hypothalamic Inflammation and Fat Accumulation in Obese Mice.

Obesity has achieved the appearance of a global epidemic and is a serious cause for concern. The hypothalamus, as the central regulator of energy homeostasis, plays a critical role in regulating food intake and energy expenditure. In this study, we show that TRIM67 in the hypothalamus was responsive to body-energy homeostasis whilst a deficiency of TRIM67 exacerbated metabolic disorders in high-fat-diet-induced obese mice. We found exacerbated neuroinflammation and apoptosis in the hypothalamus of obese TRIM67 KO mice. We also found reduced BDNF in the hypothalamus, which affected the fat sympathetic nervous system innervation and contributed to lipid accumulation in adipose tissue under high-fat-diet exposure. In this study, we reveal potential implications between TRIM67 and the hypothalamic function responding to energy overuptake as well as a consideration for the therapeutic diagnosis of obesity.

Loss of TRIM67 Attenuates the Progress of Obesity-Induced Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease.

Obesity is considered as a major cause for the development and progress of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), which is one of the most prevalent chronic liver diseases worldwide. However, molecular mechanisms that implicate in obesity-driven pathophysiology of NAFLD are not well defined. Here, we report a tripartite motif (TRIM) protein family member-TRIM67-that is hardly expressed in liver but is inducible on obese conditions. Enhanced expression of TRIM67 activates hepatic inflammation to disturb lipid metabolic homeostasis and promote the progress of NAFLD induced by obesity, while the deficiency in TRIM67 is protective against these pathophysiological processes. Finally, we show that the important transcription coactivator PGC-1α implicates in the response of hepatic TRIM67 to obesity.

Ameliorating Effects of TRIM67 against Intestinal Inflammation and Barrier Dysfunction Induced by High Fat Diet in Obese Mice.

Tripartite Motif 67 (TRIM67) is an important member of TRIM family proteins, which participates in different cellular processes including immune response, proliferation, differentiation, carcinogenesis, and apoptosis. In recent years, a high fat diet (HFD) has remained one of the main causes of different metabolic diseases and increases in intestinal permeability as well as inducing intestinal inflammation. The current study investigated the protective effects of TRIM67 in the ileum and colon of obese mice. 4-week-old wild-type (WT) C57BL/6N mice and TRIM67 knockout (KO) C57BL/6N mice were selected and randomly divided into four sub-groups, which were fed with control diet (CTR) or HFD for 14 weeks. Samples were collected at the age of 18 weeks for analysis. To construct an in vitro obesity model, over-expressed IPEC-J2 cells (porcine intestinal cells) with Myc-TRIM67 were stimulated with palmitic acid (PA), and its effects on the expression level of TRM67, inflammatory cytokines, and barrier function were evaluated. The KO mice showed pathological lesions in the ileum and colon and this effect was more obvious in KO mice fed with HFD. In addition, KO mice fed with a HFD or CTR diet had increased intestinal inflammation, intestinal permeability, and oxidative stress compared to that WT mice fed with these diets, respectively. Moreover, IPEC-J2 cells were transfected with TRIM67 plasmid to perform the same experiments after stimulation with PA, and the results were found consistent with the in vivo evaluations. Taken together, our study proved for the first time that HFD and TRIM67 KO mice have synergistic damaging effects on the intestine, while TRIM67 plays an important protective role in HFD-induced intestinal damage.

Methyl-CpG-binding domain 3 inhibits stemness of pancreatic cancer cells via Hippo signaling.

Methyl-CpG-binding domain 3 (MBD3), as an induced stem cells reprogramming barrier, has an abnormal expression in various prevalent malignancies. However, in pancreatic cancer cell stemness, the roles of MBD3 remain unclear. In our study, the effects of MBD3 were investigated on the proliferation, stemness and the underlying mechanism in pancreatic cancer cells. Firstly, MBD3 knockdown was proved to promote proliferation and sphere formation of pancreatic cancer cells and tumorigenesis, while MBD3 upregulation inhibited the above results. Also, MBD3 downregulation notably increased stemness markers level of OCT4, NANOG and SOX2, and MBD3 upregulation resulted in the opposite effects. Mechanically, it was found that MBD3 involved in activation of Hippo pathway. There was a negative correlation between MBD3 and YAP expression in TCGA database. MBD3 knockdown improved YAP expression, and promoted YAP nuclear translocation increased TEAD luciferase activity, while MBD3 overexpression reversed the above results. Further evidence revealed that YAP could bind to MBD3, and decreased MBD3 expression. Collectively, MBD3 bound to YAP to significantly inhibit proliferation and weaken stemness maintenance in pancreatic cancer cells, as well as reduce tumorigenesis via Hippo signaling. Thus, MBD3 may serve as a potential molecular biomarker for exploring new therapeutic strategies to treat pancreatic cancer.

PRMT5 promotes epithelial-mesenchymal transition via EGFR-ß-catenin axis in pancreatic cancer cells.

Protein arginine methyltransferase 5 (PRMT5) has been implicated in the development and progression of human cancers. However, few studies reveal its role in epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of pancreatic cancer cells. In this study, we find that PRMT5 is up-regulated in pancreatic cancer, and promotes proliferation, migration and invasion in pancreatic cancer cells, and promotes tumorigenesis. Silencing PRMT5 induces epithelial marker E-cadherin expression and down-regulates expression of mesenchymal markers including Vimentin, collagen I and ß-catenin in PaTu8988 and SW1990 cells, whereas ectopic PRMT5 re-expression partially reverses these changes, indicating that PRMT5 promotes EMT in pancreatic cancer. More importantly, we find that PRMT5 knockdown decreases the phosphorylation level of EGFR at Y1068 and Y1172 and its downstream p-AKT and p-GSK3ß, and then results in down-regulation of ß-catenin. Expectedly, ectopic PRMT5 re-expression also reverses the above changes. It is suggested that PRMT5 promotes EMT probably via EGFR/AKT/ß-catenin pathway. Taken together, our study demonstrates that PRMT5 plays oncogenic roles in the growth of pancreatic cancer cell and provides a potential candidate for pancreatic cancer treatment.

The class II KNOX transcription factors KNAT3 and KNAT7 synergistically regulate monolignol biosynthesis in Arabidopsis.

The function of the transcription factor KNOTTED ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA7 (KNAT7) is still unclear since it appears to be either a negative or a positive regulator for secondary cell wall deposition with its loss-of-function mutant displaying thicker interfascicular and xylary fiber cell walls but thinner vessel cell walls in inflorescence stems. To explore the exact function of KNAT7, class II KNOTTED1-LIKE HOMEOBOX (KNOX II) genes in Arabidopsis including KNAT3, KNAT4, and KNAT5 were studied together. By chimeric repressor technology, we found that both KNAT3 and KNAT7 repressors exhibited a similar dwarf phenotype. Both KNAT3 and KNAT7 genes were expressed in the inflorescence stems and the knat3 knat7 double mutant exhibited a dwarf phenotype similar to the repressor lines. A stem cross-section of knat3 knat7 displayed an enhanced irregular xylem phenotype as compared with the single mutants, and its cell wall thickness in xylem vessels and interfascicular fibers was significantly reduced. Analysis of cell wall chemical composition revealed that syringyl lignin was significantly decreased while guaiacyl lignin was increased in the knat3 knat7 double mutant. Coincidently, the knat3 knat7 transcriptome showed that most lignin pathway genes were activated, whereas the syringyl lignin-related gene Ferulate 5-Hydroxylase (F5H) was down-regulated. Protein interaction analysis revealed that KNAT3 and KNAT7 can form a heterodimer, and KNAT3, but not KNAT7, can interact with the key secondary cell wall formation transcription factors NST1/2, which suggests that the KNAT3-NST1/2 heterodimer complex regulates F5H to promote syringyl lignin synthesis. These results indicate that KNAT3 and KNAT7 synergistically work together to promote secondary cell wall biosynthesis.

Optical properties of thickness-controlled PtSe2 thin films studied via spectroscopic ellipsometry.

Platinum diselenide (PtSe2) has attracted huge attention due to its intriguing physical properties for both fundamental research and promising applications in electronics and optoelectronics. Here, we explored the optical properties of chemical vapor deposition-grown PtSe2 thin films with varied thicknesses via spectroscopic ellipsometry. The dielectric function was extracted by using a Lorentz model over the spectral range of 1.25-6.0 eV. We firstly ascribed the resonant energies, extracted from the Lorentz model, to different interband electronic transitions between valence bands and conduction bands in the Brillouin zone. A predicted exciton is observed at 2.18 eV for the monolayer and the corresponding exciton binding energy is 0.65 eV, in line with previous theoretical calculation and the measured absorption spectra. Additionally, the exciton peak shows a red shift with the increase of thickness, which is the consequence of strong interlayer interaction. These results enrich the fundamental understanding of PtSe2 and are conducive to its potential applications.

Association between anterior bone loss and anterior heterotopic ossification in hybrid surgery.

BACKGROUND: Hybrid surgery (HS) has become an alternative procedure for the treatment of multilevel cervical degenerative disc disease with satisfactory outcomes. However, some adverse outcomes have recently emerged, such as heterotopic ossification (HO) and anterior bone loss (ABL). Furthermore, HO was found mostly located in the posterior and lateral of the cervical intervertebral disc space. The mechanism of anterior heterotopic ossification (AHO) formation may be different, and its relationship with ABL was uncertain. METHODS: Radiographical and clinical outcomes of ninety-seven patients who had undergone contiguous two-level HS between December 2010 and December 2017 and with a minimum of 2-year follow-up were analyzed. Postoperative radiographs were evaluated and compared to the initial postoperative films to determine the incidence of ABL and AHO. RESULTS: The overall incidence rate of ABL was 44.3% (43/97). It was identified in 70.6% of AHO cases (33.3% mild, 41.7% moderate, 25.0% severe) and 38.8% of non-AHO cases (38.7% mild, 45.2% moderate, 16.1% severe). A significant association between ABL and AHO occurrence was found (P = 0.016). There was no significant difference in prosthesis-endplate depth ratio or disc space angle change between the AHO group and the non-AHO group (P > 0.05). Compared with data preoperatively, clinical outcome scores significantly improved after surgery in both the AHO and non-AHO groups, with no significant differences between the two groups (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: ABL was common in HS, and it related to AHO. The formation of AHO could be an integral part of postoperative bone remodeling, as well as ABL.

Effect of preoperative segmental range of motion on patient outcomes in cervical disc arthroplasty.

BACKGROUND: Cervical disc arthroplasty (CDA) has been demonstrated, in clinical trials, as an effective and safe treatment for patients diagnosed with radiculopathy and/or myelopathy. However, the current CDA indication criteria, based on the preoperative segmental range of motion (ROM), comprises a wide range of variability. Although the arthroplasty level preserved ROM averages 7°-9° after CDA, there are no clear guidelines on preoperatively limited or excessive ROM at the index level, which could be considered as suitable for CDA. METHODS: This was a retrospective study of patients who underwent CDA between January 2008 and October 2018 using Prestige-LP discs in our hospital. They were divided into the small-ROM (≤5.5°) and the large-ROM (> 12.5°) groups according to preoperatively index-level ROM. Clinical outcomes, including the Japanese Orthopedics Association (JOA), Neck Disability Index (NDI), and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) scores, were evaluated. Radiological parameters, including cervical lordosis, disc angle (DA), global and segmental ROM, disc height (DH), and complications were measured. RESULTS: One hundred and twenty six patients, with a total of 132 arthroplasty segments were analyzed. There were 64 patients in the small-ROM and 62 in the large-ROM group. There were more patients diagnosed with cervical spondylosis in the small-ROM than in the large-ROM group (P = 0.046). Patients in both groups had significantly improved JOA, NDI, and VAS scores after surgery, but the intergroup difference was not significant. Patients in the small-ROM group had dramatic postoperative increase in cervical lordosis, global and segmental ROM (P < 0.001). However, there was a paradoxical postoperative decrease in global and segmental ROM in the large-ROM group postoperatively (P < 0.001). Patients in the small-ROM group had lower preoperative DH (P = 0.012), and a higher rate of postoperative heterotopic ossification (HO) (P = 0.037). CONCLUSION: Patients with preoperatively limited segmental ROM had severe HO, and achieved similar postoperative clinical outcomes as patients with preoperatively excessive segmental ROM. Patients with preoperatively limited segmental ROM showed a postoperative increase in segmental mobility, which decreased in patients with preoperatively excessive segmental ROM.

Symmetric guided-mode resonance sensors in aqueous media with ultrahigh figure of merit.

Optical sensors with a high figure of merit (FOM) for refractive index measurement can substantially enhance detection performance. For guided mode resonance (GMR) sensors, previous works mainly focused on the sensitivity enhancement rather than FOM optimization; therefore, the state-of-the-art FOM is limited within the range of 100. To address this, we propose a low-index, ultraviolet-curable resin (n = 1.344) to form a simple, stable, symmetric, GMR sensor, with enhanced sensitivity, narrowed resonant linewidth, and substantially improved FOM, in aqueous media. The influence of structural parameters was systematically investigated, and optimized FOM values as high as tens of thousands were obtained using numerical calculation. Using low-cost, nanoimprinting technology, we experimentally demonstrated a spectral linewidth as narrow as 56 pm, a bulk refractive index sensitivity of 233.35 nm / RIU, and a low detection limit 1.93 × 10-6, resulting in a FOM value up to 4200 (48 times typical GMR sensors). The proposed symmetric GMR sensor exhibits great potential in a variety of applications, including label-free biosensing, bio-imaging, and optical filters.

Synthesis, Characterization, and Performance Evaluation of Sulfur-Containing Diphenylamines Based on Intramolecular Synergism.

To obtain novel structural antioxidants that have different antioxidant mechanisms, four 2-(alkylthio)-N-(4-(phenylamino)phenyl)acetamides 2a-d as dual functional antioxidants are designed, synthesized, and confirmed by ¹H-NMR, FTIR, MS, and elemental analysis. The antioxidant behavior of compounds 2a-d as additives of base oil triisodecyl trimellitate (TIDTM) is evaluated by non-isothermal and isothermal DSC analyses. The results showed all compounds can greatly increase the incipient oxidation temperature (IOT) and oxidation induction time (OIT) of TIDTM, especially, compound 2c exhibited an OIT value of 72.5 min at 230 °C, which is almost 28 times the length of TIDTM. Moreover, compounds 2a-d do not affect the tribological performance of TIDTM. The mechanism of antioxidants involved an intramolecular synergism are proposed. This work demonstrates compound 2c can be used as a novel potential antioxidant additive of TIDTM; in addition, it would inspire the emergence of highly potent antioxidants with different antioxidant mechanisms.

Core-Shell Nanoencapsulation of α-Tocopherol by Blending Sodium Oleate and Rebaudioside A: Preparation, Characterization, and Antioxidant Activity.

Nanoencapsulation of α-tocopherol (α-TOC) by blending sodium oleate (NaOl) and rebaudioside A (RebA) was successfully prepared by self-assembly method under mild conditions. The optimized nanoemulsion showed the loading capacity of α-TOC was 30 wt% of sodium oleate. FTIR analysis suggested that hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions were the major forces in α-TOC-NaOl/RebA complexes that were spherical and possessed well-distinguishable core-shell structures. The freeze-dried α-TOC-NaOl/RebA complexes had great stability under ambient conditions. The release profile of α-TOC showed a first-order kinetics reaching around 67.9% after 90 h at 25 °C. Nanoencapsulation improved dispersibility and greatly increased the antioxidant activity of α-TOC. Therefore, the stable α-TOC-NaOl/RebA core-shell complexes prepared from "generally recognized as safe" (GRAS) ingredients have great potential to supplement α-TOC in food and cosmetic products.