Bio-Inspired Lotus-Fiber-like Spiral Hydrogel Bacterial Cellulose Fibers.

Hydrogel materials with high water content and good biocompatibility are drawing more and more attention now, especially for biomedical use. However, it still remains a challenge to construct hydrogel fibers with enough strength and toughness for practical applications. Herein, we report a bio-inspired lotus-fiber-mimetic spiral structure hydrogel bacterial cellulose fiber with high strength, high toughness, high stretchability, and energy dissipation, named biomimetic hydrogel fiber (BHF). The spiral-like structure endows BHF with excellent stretchability through plastic deformation and local failure, assisted by the breaking-reforming nature of the hydrogen bonding network among cellulose nanofibers. With the high strength, high stretchability, high energy dissipation, high hydrophilicity, porous structure, and excellent biocompatibility, BHF is a promising hydrogel fiber for biomedicine. The outstanding stretchability and energy dissipation of BHF allow it to absorb energy from the tissue deformation around a wound and effectively protect the wound from rupture, which makes BHF an ideal surgical suture.

Identification and characterization of isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) as a functional target of marine natural product grincamycin B.

Grincamycins (GCNs) are a class of angucycline glycosides isolated from actinomycete Streptomyces strains that have potent antitumor activities, but their antitumor mechanisms remain unknown. In this study, we tried to identify the cellular target of grincamycin B (GCN B), one of most dominant and active secondary metabolites, using a combined strategy. We showed that GCN B-selective-induced apoptosis of human acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) cell line NB4 through increase of ER stress and intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation. Using a strategy of combining phenotype, transcriptomics and protein microarray approaches, we identified that isocitrate dehydrogenase 1(IDH1) was the putative target of GCN B, and confirmed that GCNs were a subset of selective inhibitors targeting both wild-type and mutant IDH1 in vitro. It is well-known that IDH1 converts isocitrate to 2-oxoglutarate (2-OG), maintaining intracellular 2-OG homeostasis. IDH1 and its mutant as the target of GCN B were validated in NB4 cells and zebrafish model. Knockdown of IDH1 in NB4 cells caused the similar phenotype as GCN B treatment, and supplementation of N-acetylcysteine partially rescued the apoptosis caused by IDH1 interference in NB4 cells. In zebrafish model, GCN B effectively restored myeloid abnormality caused by overexpression of mutant IDH1(R132C). Taken together, we demonstrate that IDH1 is one of the antitumor targets of GCNs, suggesting wild-type IDH1 may be a potential target for hematological malignancies intervention in the future.

Bisbenzylisoquinoline alkaloids from the roots of cyclea tonkinensis.

Cissampentine A (1), an enantiomer of cissampentin, three new cycleatjehenine-type bisbenzylisoquinoline alkaloids, cissampentine B-D (2-4), and five known alkaloids were isolated from the roots of Cyclea tonkinensis. Their structures were established by interpretation of NMR, high-resolution ESI-MS data, and CD spectra. In vitro studies indicated that compounds 1 and 4 exhibited cytotoxicity against the HCT-8 tumor cell line (IC50 values of 8.97 and 9.73 µM, respectively), and compound 4 was also active against the Bel-7402 tumor cell line (IC50 value of 5.36 µM).

Intracranial hemorrhage following drainage of chronic subdural effusion and hematoma: A case report and review of the literature.

Acute intracranial hemorrhage (AIH) after drainage of chronic subdural hematoma is a rare but serious complication. An 86-year-old man with bilateral frontotemporal subdural effusion, hematoma, and cerebral hernia was admitted to our department and treated with bilateral burr hole surgery and closed-system drainage under local anesthesia. After the operation, computed tomography (CT) showed AIH in the left temporal and occipital lobe, and then a series of head CT showed that the hematoma gradually increased day by day. This patient had a medical history of hypertension, diabetes, atrial fibrillation, and taking warfarin. He was treated conservatively, but had not recovered at discharge after 1 month. We reviewed the relevant literature and analyzed the operation opportunity, causes of cerebral hemorrhage, and preventive measures in similar patients. We suppose that the coagulation abnormality and rapid fluctuations of intracranial pressure were the main causes of development of AIH in our patient. Several possible reasons such as brain shift and impaired vascular autoregulation are also associated with postoperative AIH. We must be aware of this complication and keep some preventive measures in our mind.

[Efficiency of Magnesium Hydroxide Capping and Amendment to Control Phosphorus Release from Sediments].

Eutrophication of freshwater bodies has become a global environmental problem, and phosphorus (P) has been identified as one of the key limiting factors responsible for this eutrophication problem. Reducing internal P release is crucial to the control of the eutrophication of freshwater bodies besides reducing the input of external P. To control sedimentary P release, magnesium hydroxide[Mg(OH)2] was applied as a capping and amendment material in this study. The adsorption performance of phosphate on Mg(OH)2 was investigated in batch mode, and the effect of Mg(OH)2 capping and amendment on the mobilization of P in sediments was studied using sediment incubation experiments. Results showed that Mg(OH)2 exhibited good adsorption performance toward phosphate. The phosphate removal efficiency of Mg(OH)2 increased with increasing adsorbent dosage. The adsorption equilibrium data of phosphate on Mg(OH)2 could be better described by the Freundlich and Dubinin-Radushkevich isotherm models compared to the Langmuir isotherm model. Mg(OH)2 capping and addition both could effectively control the release of reactive soluble P (SRP) from sediments into the overlying water, resulting in a low concentration of SRP in the overlying water under Mg(OH)2 capping and amendment conditions. Mg(OH)2 capping and amendment both could reduce pore water SRP in the uppermost sediment (0-10 mm), which played a key role in the control of the release of SRP from sediments into the overlying water. The as-prepared Mg(OH)2 possessed a much higher phosphate adsorption ability than commercial Mg(OH)2, and the former also had a higher controlling efficiency of sedimentary P release than the latter. In summary, Mg(OH)2 is a promising capping and amendment material for the control of internal phosphorus release in freshwater bodies.

[K-space undersampling algorithm based on PROPELLER MRI technique].

PROPELLER (periodically rotated overlapping parallel lines with enhanced reconstruction) is a new method of MRI data collection and reconstruction technique for reducing motion artifact. However, the minimum imaging time in PROPELLER is markedly longer than in conventional fast MRI. Through the current research of K-Space Undersampling algorithm based on PROPELLER technique, a proper undersampling method is conducted and then proved by simulation. The new data collection method can shorten the PROPELLER time without causing more image artifacts, which improves the value of PROPELLER technique.

A Risk Score System for Myopia Symptom Warning.

Myopia is the leading cause of visual impairments worldwide. Some studies revealed that visual experience in early life affected the final myopia, indicating that environmental factors play an impellent role in the development of myopia. However, risk factors of myopia are still not identified among adolescents in China. A total of 4104 cases of myopia symptom and 3306 emmetropia controls were selected from students in primary and middle schools in Wuhan in 2008. We identified the risk factors associated with myopia symptom by multivariate logistic regression in this cross-sectional study and constructed a risk score system for myopia symptom. The value of the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) was 0.735. Furthermore, we followed up 93 students aged 7-9 years for one year and calculated the total points using the score system. We found no significant difference between the final myopia symptom and the results predicted by the total points by pair chi-square test (P>0.05). The score system had a modest ability to estimate the risk factors of myopia symptom. Using this score system, we could identify the students who are at risk of myopia symptom in the future according to their behaviors and environmental factors, and take measures to slow the progress of myopia symptom.

Diagnostic performance of serum IgG4 level for IgG4-related disease: a meta-analysis.

An elevated serum IgG4 level is one of the most useful factors in the diagnosis of IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD). In this study, we performed a meta-analysis of the published articles assessing the diagnostic accuracy of serum IgG4 concentrations for IgG4-RD. The databases of MEDLINE/PubMed, EMBASE and Web of Science were systematically searched for relevant studies. Sensitivities and specificities of serum IgG4 in each study were calculated, and the hierarchical summary receiver operating characteristic (HSROC) model with a random effects model were employed to obtain the individual and pooled estimates of sensitivities and specificities. In total, twenty-three studies comprising 6048 patients with IgG4-RD were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled sensitivity was 85% with a 95% confidence interval (CI) of 78-90%; the pooled specificity was 93% with a 95% CI of 90-95%. The HSROC curve for quantitative serum IgG4 lies closer to the upper left corner of the plot, and the area under the curve (AUC) was 0.95 (95% CI 0.93, 0.97), which suggested a high diagnostic accuracy of serum IgG4 for the entity of IgG4-RD. Our study suggests that serum IgG4 has high sensitivity and specificity in the diagnosis of IgG4-RD.

[Optimization of fuel ethanol production from kitchen waste by Plackett-Burman design].

Kitchen garbage was chosen to produce ethanol through simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) by Zymomonas mobilis. Plackett-Burman design was employed to screen affecting parameters during SSF process. The parameters were divided into two parts, enzymes and nutritions. None of the nutritions added showed significant effect during the experiment, which demonstrated that the kitchen garbage could meet the requirement of the microorganism without extra supplementation. Protease and glucoamylase were determined to be affecting factors for ethanol production. Single factor experiment showed that the optimum usage of these two enzymes were both 100 U/g and the corresponding maximum ethanol was determined to be 53 g/L. The ethanol yield could be as high as 44%. The utilization of kitchen garbage to produce ethanol could reduce threaten of waste as well as improve the protein content of the spent. This method could save the ethanol production cost and benefit for the recycle of kitchen garbage.