Rapid Glutathione Analysis with SERS Microneedles for Deep Glioblastoma Tissue Differentiation.

Rapid tissue differentiation at the molecular level is a prerequisite for precise surgical resection, which is of special value for the treatment of malignant tumors, such as glioblastoma (GBM). Herein, a SERS-active microneedle is prepared by modifying glutathione (GSH)-responsive molecules, 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB), on the surface of Au@Ag substrates for the distinction of different GBM tissues. Since the Raman signals on the surface of the DTNB@Au@Ag microneedle can be collected by both portable and benchtop Raman spectrometers, the distribution of GSH in different tissues at centimeter scale can be displayed through Raman spectroscopy and Raman imaging, and the entire analysis process can be accomplished within 12 min. Accordingly, in vivo brain tissues of orthotopic GBM xenograft mice and ex vivo tissues of GBM patients are accurately differentiated with the microneedle, and the results are well consistent with tissue staining and postoperative pathological reports. In addition, the outline of tumor, peritumoral, and normal tissues can be indicated by the DTNB@Au@Ag microneedle for at least 56 days. Considering that the tumor tissues are quickly discriminated at the molecular level without the restriction of depth, the DTNB@Au@Ag microneedle is promising to be a powerful intraoperative diagnostic tool for surgery navigation.

Simultaneous assessment of stress hyperglycemia ratio and glycemic variability to predict mortality in patients with coronary artery disease: a retrospective cohort study from the MIMIC-IV database.

BACKGROUND: Stress hyperglycemia and glycemic variability (GV) can reflect dramatic increases and acute fluctuations in blood glucose, which are associated with adverse cardiovascular events. This study aimed to explore whether the combined assessment of the stress hyperglycemia ratio (SHR) and GV provides additional information for prognostic prediction in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) hospitalized in the intensive care unit (ICU). METHODS: Patients diagnosed with CAD from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care-IV database (version 2.2) between 2008 and 2019 were retrospectively included in the analysis. The primary endpoint was 1-year mortality, and the secondary endpoint was in-hospital mortality. Levels of SHR and GV were stratified into tertiles, with the highest tertile classified as high and the lower two tertiles classified as low. The associations of SHR, GV, and their combination with mortality were determined by logistic and Cox regression analyses. RESULTS: A total of 2789 patients were included, with a mean age of 69.6 years, and 30.1% were female. Overall, 138 (4.9%) patients died in the hospital, and 404 (14.5%) patients died at 1 year. The combination of SHR and GV was superior to SHR (in-hospital mortality: 0.710 vs. 0.689, p = 0.012; 1-year mortality: 0.644 vs. 0.615, p = 0.007) and GV (in-hospital mortality: 0.710 vs. 0.632, p = 0.004; 1-year mortality: 0.644 vs. 0.603, p < 0.001) alone for predicting mortality in the receiver operating characteristic analysis. In addition, nondiabetic patients with high SHR levels and high GV were associated with the greatest risk of both in-hospital mortality (odds ratio [OR] = 10.831, 95% confidence interval [CI] 4.494-26.105) and 1-year mortality (hazard ratio [HR] = 5.830, 95% CI 3.175-10.702). However, in the diabetic population, the highest risk of in-hospital mortality (OR = 4.221, 95% CI 1.542-11.558) and 1-year mortality (HR = 2.013, 95% CI 1.224-3.311) was observed in patients with high SHR levels but low GV. CONCLUSIONS: The simultaneous evaluation of SHR and GV provides more information for risk stratification and prognostic prediction than SHR and GV alone, contributing to developing individualized strategies for glucose management in patients with CAD admitted to the ICU.

Non-insulin-based insulin resistance indexes in predicting atrial fibrillation recurrence following ablation: a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: Insulin resistance (IR) is involved in the pathophysiological processes of arrhythmias. Increasing evidence suggests triglyceride and glucose (TyG) index, metabolic score for insulin resistance (METS-IR), triglyceride glucose-body mass index (TyG-BMI), and triglyceride to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (TG/HDL-C) ratio are simple and reliable surrogates for IR. Although they have been associated with atrial fibrillation (AF), evidence supporting this is limited. Here, this is the first study to investigate the association between TyG-BMI index and AF recurrence following radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA). The performance of the four non-insulin-based IR indexes in predicting AF recurrence after ablation was explored. METHODS: A total of 2242 AF patients who underwent a de novo RFCA between June 2018 to January 2022 at two hospitals in China were included in this retrospective study. The predictive values of IR indexes for AF recurrence after ablation were assessed. RESULTS: During 1-year follow-up, 31.7% of patients experienced AF recurrence. The multivariable analysis revealed that TyG index, METS-IR, and TyG-BMI index were independent risk factors for AF recurrence. Restricted cubic spline analysis revealed a connection between METS-IR, TyG-BMI index, and AF recurrence (P < 0.001). Furthermore, incorporating the METS-IR or TyG-BMI index to the basic risk model with fully adjusted factors considerably enhanced the forecast of AF recurrence, as demonstrated by the C-statistic, continuous net reclassification improvement, and integrated discrimination improvement. CONCLUSIONS: TyG index, METS-IR, and TyG-BMI index were independently associated with AF recurrence following ablation. Among the four non-insulin-based IR indexes, TyG-BMI had the highest predictive value, followed by METS-IR.

"Blade of Polarized Water Molecule" Is the Key to Hydrolase Catalysis Regulation.

Hydrolysis catalyzed by aspartic proteases is a crucial reaction in many biological processes. However, anchoring water molecules and unifying multiple catalytic pathways remain significant challenges. Consequently, molecular design often compromises by focusing on enhancing substrate specificity. Using our self-developed polarizable point charge (PPC) force field, we determined the significant role of polarization in the hydrolase of pepsin for the first time. To be stably anchored in the active site, the water should be intensely polarized with a charge higher than -0.94e. Induced by this polarization, the pepsin was shown to support three general base/general acid pathways, with a preference for the gemdiol-intermediate-based pathway. Consequently, we proposed the "Blade of Polarized Water Molecule" model for rational enzyme design, highlighting that the polarization of both the attacking water and the attacked carbonyl is crucial for enhancing hydrolysis. Mutants D290Q and S172P showed activity enhancements of 191.23% and 324.70%, respectively. The improved polarization of water, carbonyl, and relevant nucleophilic attack distances in the mutants reaffirmed the crucial role of polarization in improving hydrolysis. This study provides a new perspective on hydrolase analysis and modification.

Anti-Inflammatory Peroxidized Chlorahololide-Type Dimers Are Artifacts of Shizukaol-Type Dimers: From Phenomena Discovery and Confirmation to Potential Underlying Mechanism.

In our research on naturally occurring sesquiterpenes, eight shizukaol-type dimers, one chlorahololide-type dimer, and one sarcanolide-type dimer were isolated from the roots of Chloranthus fortunei. As the project was implemented, we accidentally discovered that shizukaol-type dimers can be converted into peroxidized chlorahololide-type dimers. This potential change was discovered after simulations of the changes in corresponding shizukaols showed that three peroxide products were generated (1-3), indicating that peroxidation reactions occurred. HPLC-HR-MS analysis results obtained for the shizukaol derivatives further demonstrate that the reaction occurred, and the type of substituent of small organic ester moieties at positions C-15' and C-13' of unit B were not decisively related to the reaction. Quantum chemical calculations of the mode dimer further demonstrated this phenomenon. The highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO)-lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy of the precursor and production revealed the advantageous yield of 4ß-hydroperoxyl production. Additionally, the potential reaction mechanism was speculated and validated using the free energy in the reaction which successfully explained the feasibility of the reaction. Finally, the anti-inflammatory activity of the precursors and products was evaluated, and the products of peroxidation showed better anti-inflammatory activity.

Exploring angular-steering illumination-based eyebox expansion for holographic displays.

Holography represents an enabling technology for next-generation virtual and augmented reality systems. However, it remains challenging to achieve both wide field of view and large eyebox at the same time for holographic near-eye displays, mainly due to the essential étendue limitation of existing hardware. In this work, we present an approach to expanding the eyebox for holographic displays without compromising their underlying field of view. This is achieved by utilizing a compact 2D steering mirror to deliver angular-steering illumination beams onto the spatial light modulator in alignment with the viewer's eye movements. To facilitate the same image for the virtual objects perceived by the viewer when the eye moves, we explore an off-axis computational hologram generation scheme. Two bench-top holographic near-eye display prototypes with the proposed angular-steering scheme are developed, and they successfully showcase an expanded eyebox up to 8 mm × 8 mm for both VR- and AR-modes, as well as the capability of representing multi-depth holographic images.

Investigating learning-empowered hologram generation for holographic displays with ill-tuned hardware.

Existing computational holographic displays often suffer from limited reconstruction image quality mainly due to ill-conditioned optics hardware and hologram generation software. In this Letter, we develop an end-to-end hardware-in-the-loop approach toward high-quality hologram generation for holographic displays. Unlike other hologram generation methods using ideal wave propagation, ours can reduce artifacts introduced by both the light propagation model and the hardware setup, in particular non-uniform illumination. Experimental results reveal that, compared with classical computer-generated hologram algorithm counterparts, better quality of holographic images can be delivered without a strict requirement on both the fine assembly of optical components and the good uniformity of laser sources.

Helicity-resolved Raman scattering of MoS2 bulk crystal.

Helicity-resolved Raman spectroscopy (HRRS) can effectively distinguish the Raman modes of two-dimensional (2D) layered materials by phonon symmetry. In this paper, we systematically investigated the phonon helicity selection of basal and edge planes of MoS2 bulk by HRRS. We find that the symmetry of the crystal structure changes the helicity selection of the E1g, E1 2g, and A1g modes in the edge plane. The theoretical calculation results confirm that the E1 2g and A1g modes of the basal plane exhibit a perfect helicity exchange, and the helicity selections of the E1 2g and A1g modes of the edge plane are eliminated or weakened. Our study provides references for phonon helicity selection of 2D layered materials represented by MoS2.

Effectiveness of Continuous Care Interventions in Elderly Patients with High-Risk Pressure Ulcers and Impact on Patients' Activities of Daily Living.

Objective: To explore the influence of continuous care interventions on the incidence of pressure ulcers in elderly patients with high-risk pressure ulcers and their activities of daily living (ADL). Methods: The clinical records of 114 elderly patients at high risk of pressure ulcers (Patients had a Braden pressure ulcer risk score less than or equal to 18 and suffered no pressure pressure ulcers) who attended our hospital from February 2020 to February 2022 were collected for retrospective analysis. Among them, 54 patients treated with conventional nursing interventions were assigned to the control group (CG) (64-91 years old), and the remaining 60 treated with continuous care interventions were assigned to the observation group (OG) (61-91years old). The detection indices and clinical related data were collected from LIS system of our hospital. The self-rating depression scale (SDS) and self-rating anxiety scale (SAS) scores of the two groups were compared before and after the intervention, and the improvement in quality of life and ADL scores were counted. The post-care satisfaction and incidence of pressure ulcers were analyzed, and the caregivers' pressure ulcer care behaviors and pressure ulcer management abilities before and after treatment were compared between both groups of patients. Results: The SAS and SDS scores were lower in the OG (38.33±3.21 and 39.07±4.15) than in the CG (44.74±4.13 and 45.80±3.92) after the intervention (P < .05); quality of life and ADL were higher in the OG (44.07±7.15 and 58.33±6.21) than in the CG (36.20±6.92 and 45.84±6.12) after the intervention (P < .05). The incidence of pressure ulcers in the OG (18.33%) was lower than that in the CG (37.04%) after the intervention (P < .05); total nursing satisfaction in the OG (91.67%) was higher than that in the CG (74.07%) after the intervention (P < .05), and caregivers' pressure ulcer care behaviors and pressure ulcer management abilities of patients in the OG (36.42±2.41 and 44.07±7.15) were higher than those in the CG (29.23±2.50 and 36.20±6.92) after the intervention (P < .05). Conclusion: Continuous care interventions can be promoted for elderly patients with high-risk pressure ulcers outside the hospital, which can reduce the incidence of pressure ulcers, negative emotions, related complications and treatment costs, and improve the effective utilization of medical resources. In the future, continuous care guidelines and training plans can be developed for elderly patients with high-risk pressure ulcers, so as to improve the understanding and application ability of health care providers and nurses on intervention measures.

Diffraction model-informed neural network for unsupervised layer-based computer-generated holography.

Learning-based computer-generated holography (CGH) has shown remarkable promise to enable real-time holographic displays. Supervised CGH requires creating a large-scale dataset with target images and corresponding holograms. We propose a diffraction model-informed neural network framework (self-holo) for 3D phase-only hologram generation. Due to the angular spectrum propagation being incorporated into the neural network, the self-holo can be trained in an unsupervised manner without the need of a labeled dataset. Utilizing the various representations of a 3D object and randomly reconstructing the hologram to one layer of a 3D object keeps the complexity of the self-holo independent of the number of depth layers. The self-holo takes amplitude and depth map images as input and synthesizes a 3D hologram or a 2D hologram. We demonstrate 3D reconstructions with a good 3D effect and the generalizability of self-holo in numerical and optical experiments.

Study on the material basis of Dahuang Zhechong pill of anti-hepatoma effect by promoting vascular normalization.

Dahuang Zhechong Pill (DHZCP) is a traditional Chinese medicine prescription used to treat many diseases especially chronic liver disease accompanied by promotion of vascular normalization. In this work, UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS analysis was applied to identify the chemical components absorbed in the blood. HIF-1α, VEGF, Ang2 and Tie2 related to vascular normalization were detected to determine the dynamic changes of pharmacodynamic indicators. Then, the spectrum-effect relationship between the UHPLC fingerprint and pharmacodynamic indicators was evaluated dynamically using partial least squares (PLS). As a result, 103 components were identified from rat serum samples, including 56 original compounds and 47 metabolites. According to the PLS, active constituents of DHZCP acting on HIF-1α, VEGF, Ang2 and Tie2 (8, 15, 17 and 20) were found. In subsequent experiments on cells, 7/11 components of HIF-1α/VEGF were found in HepG2 and HUVEC cells, and 11/14/2 components of HIF-1α/VEGF/Tie2. The main pharmacodynamic components of DHZCP in promoting vascular normalization were successfully identified by the spectrum-effect relationship analysis.

Chiral Separation and Determination of Etoxazole Enantiomers in Vegetables by Normal-Phase and Reverse-Phase High Performance Liquid Chromatography.

The chiral separation of etoxazole enantiomers on Lux Cellulose-1, Lux Cellulose-3, Chiralpak IC, and Chiralpak AD chiral columns was carefully investigated by normal-phase high performance liquid chromatography and reverse-phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Hexane/isopropanol, hexane/n-butanol, methanol/water, and acetonitrile/water were used as mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.8 mL/min. The effects of chiral stationary phase, mobile phase component, mobile phase ratio, and temperature on etoxazole separation were also studied. Etoxazole enantiomers were baseline separated on Lux Cellulose-1, Chiralpak IC, and Chiralpak AD chiral columns, and partially separated on Lux Cellulose-3 chiral column under normal-phase HPLC. However, the complete separation on Lux Cellulose-1, Chiralpak IC, and partial separation on Chiralpak AD were obtained under reverse-phase HPLC. Normal-phase HPLC presented better resolution for etoxazole enantiomers than reverse-phase HPLC. Thermodynamic parameters, including ΔH and ΔS, were also calculated based on column temperature changes from 10 °C to 40 °C, and the maximum resolutions (Rs) were not always acquired at the lowest temperature. Furthermore, the optimized method was successfully applied to determine etoxazole enantiomers in cucumber, cabbage, tomato, and soil. The results of chiral separation efficiency of etoxazole enantiomers under normal-phase and reverse-phase HPLC were compared, and contribute to the comprehensive environmental risk assessment of etoxazole at the enantiomer level.

Identifying Metabolic Perturbations and Toxic Effects of Rac-Metalaxyl and Metalaxyl-M in Mice Using Integrative NMR and UPLC-MS/MS Based Metabolomics.

Although metabolic perturbations are sensitive indicators for low-dose toxic effects, the metabolic mechanisms affected by rac-metalaxyl and metalaxyl-M in mammals from a metabolic profiling perspective remain unclear. In this study, the metabolic perturbations and toxic effects of rac-metalaxyl and metalaxyl-M in mice were carefully investigated using integrative nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) based metabolomics. Histopathology, NMR-based untargeted urine profile, multivariate pattern recognition, metabolite identification, pathway analysis, UPLC-MS/MS based targeted serum amino acids, and tryptophan pathway analysis were determined after rac-metalaxyl and metalaxyl-M exposure, individually. Histopathology indicated that metalaxyl-M induced greater hepatocellular inflammatory, necrosis, and vacuolation in mice than rac-metalaxyl at the same exposure dosage. The metabolic perturbations induced by rac-metalaxyl and metalaxyl-M were directly separated using partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA). Furthermore, metabolite identification and pathway analysis indicated that rac-metalaxyl mainly induced ten urine metabolite changes and four pathway fluctuations. However, metalaxyl-M induced 19 urine metabolite changes and six pathway fluctuations. Serum amino acids and tryptophan pathway metabolite changes induced by rac-metalaxyl and metalaxyl-M were also different even at the same exposure level. Such results may provide specific insight into the metabolic perturbations and toxic effects of rac-metalaxyl and metalaxyl-M, and contribute to providing available data for health risk assessments of rac-metalaxyl and metalaxyl-M at a metabolomics level.

Enantioselective metabolism of fenpropathrin enantiomers by carboxyl/choline esterase 6 in Tetranychus cinnabarinus.

BACKGROUND: Tetranychus cinnabarinus is a polyphagous pest mite commonly found in agriculture. As an excellent acaricide, fenpropathrin (FEN) is frequently used to control T. cinnabarinus in agriculture. However, commercial FEN is a racemate with two enantiomers, R-FEN and S-FEN. Considering that investigations on the metabolism of FEN by T. cinnabarinus are based on racemate FEN, it is important to investigate the enantioselective metabolism of FEN in T. cinnabarinus. RESULTS: S-FEN was more toxic to T. cinnabarinus than R-FEN by more than 68.8-fold. Moreover, the synergist bioassay revealed that carboxylesterase and cytochrome P450 were the primary enzymes engaged in the detoxification of FEN in T. cinnabarinus, with carboxylesterase playing a leading role. Seven genes were substantially different after the induction of S-FEN and R-FEN. TcCCE06 was screened and selected as a key gene that related to FEN metabolism in T. cinnabarinus. The metabolic results showed that the recombinant TcCCE06 effectively metabolized 32.1% of the R-FEN and 13.8% of the S-FEN within 4 h of incubation. Moreover, R-FEN was demonstrated to have a higher affinity for the TcCCE06 protein than S-FEN based on molecular docking. CONCLUSION: Our results indicated that TcCCE06 mediates the enantioselective metabolism of FEN in T. cinnabarinus. Our findings will contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms underlying the differential toxicity of the FEN enantiomers against T. cinnabarinus. Furthermore, they also provide a new perspective for the development of enantiomer-enriched acaricides with higher activity and lower pesticide dosage and pollution risks. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Identification of Adulteration of Flaxseed Oil From QINGHAI Area Using GC-MS Profiling of Phytosterol Composition and Chemometrics.

Flaxseed oil is an important source of vegetable oil with a polyunsaturated fatty acid. It is significant to establish a method to quickly identify adulterated flaxseed oil. In the present study, the qualitative and quantitative analysis of phytosterol of flaxseed oil from different varieties and different production areas in the Qinghai area was first performed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and the phytosterol standard profile of flaxseed oil was established. Then, a combination of similarity evaluation and cluster analysis was used to distinguish pure flaxseed oil from flaxseed oil adulterated with concentrations of 10-50% rapeseed oil, peanut oil, sunflower oil, and sesame oil, and discriminant analysis was used to identify the types of adulterated flaxseed oil. The results showed that similarity evaluation combined with cluster analysis can distinguish pure and adulterated flaxseed oil when the concentration of the adulterant was greater than 10%. Discriminant analysis models accurately identified the types of adulterating oil in flaxseed oil when the concentration of rapeseed, peanut, or sunflower oil was greater than 20%, and that of sesame oil was greater than 30%. This study shows that the determination of the phytosterol composition and chemometrics is a valuable tool to evaluate the purity of flaxseed oil.

Combination of fingerprint and chemometric analytical approaches to identify the geographical origin of Qinghai-Tibet plateau rapeseed oil.

Verification of the geographical origin of rapeseed oil is essential to protect consumers from fraudulent products. A prospective study was conducted on 45 samples from three rapeseed oil-producing areas in Qinghai Province, which were analyzed by GC-FID and GC-MS. To assess the accuracy of the prediction of origin, classification models were developed using PCA, OPLS-DA, and LDA. It was found that multivariate analysis combined with PCA separate 96% of the samples, and the correct sample discrimination rate based on the OPLS-DA model was over 98%. The predictive index of the model was Q2 = 0.841, indicating that the model had good predictive ability. The LDA results showed highly accurate classification (100%) and cross-validation (100%) rates for the rapeseed oil samples, demonstrating that the model had strong predictive capacity. These findings will serve as a foundation for the implementation and advancement of origin traceability using the combination of fatty acid, phytosterol and tocopherol fingerprints.

Reverse Micelles Extraction of Prolamin from Baijiu Jiuzao: Impact of Isolation Process on Protein Structure and Morphology.

Prolamins, proteins derived from plants, have extensive applications in pharmaceutics and food science. Jiuzao is a byproduct of the Baijiu brewing industry, and is a great source of prolamin. Despite its importance, knowledge regarding the extraction techniques and the properties of prolamin derived from Baijiu Jiuzao (PBJ) remains limited. Reverse micelles (RMs) extraction offers an efficient and cost-effective method for purifying proteins. In the present study, prolamin was extracted from Baijiu Jiuzao using RMs extraction and subsequently characterized in terms of its secondary structure, morphology, and particle size distribution. Our findings indicate that the purified prolamin extracted using further RMs extraction possessed higher α-helix content (+13.25%), forming a large-scale protein network, and narrower particle size distributions compared to the crude prolamin obtained by NaOH-ethanol method. This research suggests that RMs extraction has potential applications in extracting prolamin from brewing industry byproducts, offering an environmentally friendly approach to Baijiu Jiuzao recycling.

Roles of BOCu sites and graphite nitrogen on persulfate non-radical activation for tetracycline degradation.

The activation of peroxymonosulfate (PMS) by carbon-based catalysts is deemed to be a promising method for the degradation of refractory organic contaminants in wastewater. Herein, a Cu-doping strategy in B and N co-doped carbon nanotubes with highly dispersed BOCu sites and graphite nitrogen were successfully synthesized for activating PMS to degradate tetracycline. The best removal rate of tetracycline within 60 min (97.63 %) was obtained by the 1.5 % Cu-BNC and the degradation rate was increased by 17.9 times. The enhanced catalyst activity was attributed to the promoting the cycle of the Cu(I)/Cu(II) redox pair by the formed BOCu sites, and the accelerating the electron transfer process by the adsorption of graphitic N for PMS. The non-free radical pathway including 1O2 and electron transfer played a dominant role in the 1.5 % Cu-BNC/PMS system. The degradation intermediates of TC were identified and three possible degradation pathways were proposed. Further toxicity analysis of the intermediates showed that the 1.5 % Cu-BNC/PMS system had a significant effect on weakening and reducing the biological toxicity and mutagenicity of TC. Moreover, it presented an excellent degradation performance in raw natural water. In general, the proposed regulation of carbon-based catalysts via the coordination-driven effect provides ideas for efficient wastewater treatment.

Vascular smooth muscle cell phenotypic switching in atherosclerosis.

Atherosclerosis (AS) is a complex pathology process involving intricate interactions among various cells and biological processes. Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) are the predominant cell type in normal arteries, and under atherosclerotic stimuli, VSMCs respond to altered blood flow and microenvironment changes by downregulating contractile markers and switching their phenotype. This review overviews the diverse phenotypes of VSMCs, including the canonical contractile VSMCs, synthetic VSMCs, and phenotypes resembling macrophages, foam cells, myofibroblasts, osteoblasts/chondrocytes, and mesenchymal stem cells. We summarize their presumed protective and pro-atherosclerotic roles in AS development. Additionally, we underscore the molecular mechanisms and regulatory pathways governing VSMC phenotypic switching, encompassing transcriptional regulation, biochemical factors, plaque microenvironment, epigenetics, miRNAs, and the cytoskeleton, emphasizing their significance in AS development. Finally, we outline probable future research directions targeting VSMCs, offering insights into potential therapeutic strategies for AS management.

A Comparison of the Prognostic Value of Liver Fibrosis Scores in Acute Myocardial Infarction Patients With and Without Type 2 Diabetes.

Liver fibrosis scores have been demonstrated to be associated with poor prognosis after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, no studies have compared the prognostic value of these scores in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients with and without diabetes. We retrospectively enrolled 1576 AMI patients who underwent PCI. There were 177 all-cause deaths and 111 cardiac deaths during follow-up (median 3.8 years). The non-alcoholic fatty liver disease fibrosis score (NFS) showed a better prognostic value than the fibrosis-8 (FIB-8) score (Harrell's C-index: 0.703 vs 0.671, P = .014) and the fibrosis-4 (FIB-4) score (Harrell's C-index: 0.703 vs 0.648, P < .001) in the overall population. In the time-dependent receiver operating characteristic analysis, the NFS also had the highest area under the curve across all time points. Consistent results were observed in diabetic and non-diabetic populations. Adding the NFS to traditional cardiovascular risk factors significantly improved the prediction both for all-cause mortality (Harrell's C-index: 0.806 vs 0.771, P < .001) and cardiac death (Harrell's C-index: 0.800 vs 0.771, P = .014). The NFS showed a better prognostic value than the FIB-8 score and the FIB-4 score in patients with AMI undergoing PCI, which might be preferable for estimating the risk of mortality regardless of the presence or absence of diabetes.