Aberrant cortical morphology patterns are associated with cognitive impairment in patients with chronic heart failure.

A mounting body of evidences suggests that patients with chronic heart failure (HF) frequently experience cognitive impairments, but the neuroanatomical mechanism underlying these impairments remains elusive. In this retrospective study, 49 chronic HF patients and 49 healthy controls (HCs) underwent brain structural MRI scans and cognitive assessments. Cortical morphology index (cortical thickness, complexity, sulcal depth and gyrification) were evaluated. Correlations between cortical morphology and cognitive scores and clinical variables were explored. Logistic regression analysis was employed to identify risk factors for predicting 3-year major adverse cardiovascular events. Compared with HCs, patients with chronic HF exhibited decreased cognitive scores (p < .001) and decreased cortical thickness, sulcal depth and gyrification in brain regions involved cognition, sensorimotor, autonomic nervous system (family-wise error correction, all p values <.05). Notably, HF duration and New York Heart Association (NYHA) demonstrated negative correlations with abnormal cortex morphology, particularly HF duration and thickness in left precentral gyrus (r = -.387, p = .006). Cortical morphology characteristics exhibited positive associations with global cognition, particularly cortical thickness in left pars opercularis (r = .476, p < .001). NYHA class is an independent risk factor for adverse outcome (p = .001). The observed correlation between abnormal cortical morphology and global cognition suggested that cortical morphology may serve as a promising imaging biomarker and provide insights into neuroanatomical underpinnings of cognitive impairment in patients with chronic HF.

Effect of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure on Blood Pressure in Patients with Resistant Hypertension and Obstructive Sleep Apnea: An Updated Meta-analysis.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The effect of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) on resistant hypertension in patients at high risk with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) needs further investigation. We aimed to determine the effect of CPAP on blood pressure in patients with resistant hypertension and OSA. Databases including PubMed, EMBASE, MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, and CMB were searched. Data were pooled using a random-effects or fixed-effects model to derive weighted mean differences (WMDs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RECENT FINDINGS: A total of 12 trials and 718 participants were included. Compared with control, CPAP significantly reduced 24-h systolic blood pressure (SBP) (WMD: - 5.92 mmHg [ - 8.72, - 3.11]; P＜0.001), 24-h diastolic blood pressure (DBP) (WMD: - 4.44 mmHg [- 6.26 , - 2.62]; P ＜0.001),  daytime SBP (WMD: - 5.76 mmHg [ - 9.16, - 2.36]; P ＜0.001),  daytime DBP (WMD: - 3.92 mmHg [- 5.55, - 2.30];  nighttime SBP (WMD: - 4.87 mmHg [ - 7.96 , - 1.78]; P = 0.002), and nighttime DBP (WMD: - 2.05 mmHg [- 2.99, - 1.11]; P＜0.001) in patients with resistant hypertension and OSA. CPAP improved the blood pressure both in the short (＜3 months) and long term (≥ 3 months). No significant impact on mean heart rate was noted (WMD: -2.76 beats per min [- 7.50, 1.97]; P = 0.25). CPAP treatment was associated with BP reduction in patients with resistant hypertension and OSA.

Competitive fitness and homologous recombination of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants continue to emerge and cocirculate in humans and wild animals. The factors driving the emergence and replacement of novel variants and recombinants remain incompletely understood. Herein, we comprehensively characterized the competitive fitness of SARS-CoV-2 wild type (WT) and three variants of concern (VOCs), Alpha, Beta and Delta, by coinfection and serial passaging assays in different susceptible cells. Deep sequencing analyses revealed cell-specific competitive fitness: the Beta variant showed enhanced replication fitness during serial passage in Caco-2 cells, whereas the WT and Alpha variant showed elevated fitness in Vero E6 cells. Interestingly, a high level of neutralizing antibody sped up competition and completely reshaped the fitness advantages of different variants. More importantly, single clone purification identified a significant proportion of homologous recombinants that emerged during the passage history, and immune pressure reduced the frequency of recombination. Interestingly, a recombination hot region located between nucleotide sites 22,995 and 28,866 of the viral genomes could be identified in most of the detected recombinants. Our study not only profiled the variable competitive fitness of SARS-CoV-2 under different conditions, but also provided direct experimental evidence of homologous recombination between SARS-CoV-2 viruses, as well as a model for investigating SARS-CoV-2 recombination.

[A new monoterpene ester from Zingiberis Rhizoma Recens].

Five monoterpenoid compounds(1-5) were isolated and purified from the acetone fraction of the aqueous extract of Zingiberis Rhizoma Recens by MCI, Sephadex LH-20, silica gel, semi-preparative HPLC, and TLC. Their structures were identified with multiple spectroscopical methods including 1 D-NMR, 2 D-NMR, and MS. The five compounds were identified as(2E,6Z)-8-hydroxy-2,6-dimethylocta-2,6-dien-1-yl-(E)-3-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl) acrylate(1),(2E,6E)-8-hydroxy-3,7-dimethylocta-2,6-die-noic acid(2),(E)-1,8-dihydroxy-3,7-dimethyl-2-octenoic acid(3), linalyl-ß-D-glucopyranoside(4), and ß-D-glucopyranoside-(2E)-3,7-dimethyl-2,6-octadien-1-yl(5), respectively.Compound 1 was a new monoterpene ester, and compounds 4-5 were isolated from this plant for the first time.

Identification of long non-coding RNA HERC2P2 as a tumor suppressor in glioma.

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been reported to play important roles in glioma; however, most of them promote glioma progression. We constructed a competing endogenous (ceRNA) network based on the Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas dataset, and lncRNA hect domain and RLD 2 pseudogene 2 (HERC2P2) is the core of this network. Highly connected genes in the ceRNA network classified the glioma patients into three clusters with significantly different survival rates. The expression of HERC2P2 is positively correlated with survival and negatively correlated with clinical grade. Cell colony formation, Transwell and cell scratch tests were performed to evaluate the role of HERC2P2 in glioblastoma growth. Furthermore, we overexpressed HERC2P2 in U87 cells and established a mouse intracranial glioma model to examine the function of HERC2P2 in vivo. In conclusion, we identified a lncRNA with tumor suppressor functions in glioma that could be a potential biomarker for glioma patients.

Deteriorated functional and structural brain networks and normally appearing functional-structural coupling in diabetic kidney disease: a graph theory-based magnetic resonance imaging study.

PURPOSE: This study was conducted in order to investigate the topological organization of functional and structural brain networks in diabetic kidney disease (DKD) and its potential clinical relevance. METHODS: Two hundred two subjects (62 DKD patients, 60 diabetes mellitus [DM] patients, and 80 healthy controls) underwent laboratory examination, neuropsychological test, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Large-scale functional and structural brain networks were constructed and graph theoretical network analyses were performed. The effect of renal function on brain functional and structural networks in DKD patients was further evaluated. Correlations were performed between network properties and neuropsychological scores and clinical variables. RESULTS: Progressing deteriorated global and local network topology organizations (especially for functional network) were observed for DKD patients compared with control subjects (all p < 0.05, Bonferroni-corrected), with intermediate values for the patients with DM. DKD patients showed normally appearing functional-structural coupling compared with controls, while DM patients manifested functional-structural decoupling (p < 0.05, Bonferroni-corrected). Impaired kidney function markedly affected functional and structural network organization in DKD patients (all p < 0.05). Urea nitrogen correlated with global and local efficiency in the structural networks (r = - 0.551, p < 0.001; r = - 0.476, p < 0.001, respectively). Global and local efficiency in the structural networks and normalized characteristic path length in the functional networks were associated with information processing speed and/or psychomotor speed. CONCLUSION: DKD patients showed enhanced functional and structural brain network disruption and normally appearing functional-structural coupling compared with DM patients, which correlated with kidney function, renal toxins, and cognitive performance. KEY POINTS: • DKD patients showed markedly disrupted functional and structural brain network efficiency measures compared with DM patients and healthy controls. • Reduced kidney function clearly deteriorated functional and structural brain networks in DKD patients. • DKD patients displayed normally appearing functional-structural coupling compared with DM patients.

Paracrine and epigenetic control of CAF-induced metastasis: the role of HOTAIR stimulated by TGF-ß1 secretion.

BACKGROUND: The communication between carcinoma associated fibroblasts (CAFs) and cancer cells facilitate tumor metastasis. In this study, we further underlying the epigenetic mechanisms of CAFs feed the cancer cells and the molecular mediators involved in these processes. METHODS: MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells were treated with CAFs culture conditioned medium, respectively. Cytokine antibody array, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, western blotting and immunofluorescence were used to identify the key chemokines. Chromatin immunoprecipitation and luciferase reporter assay were performed to explore the transactivation of target LncRNA by CAFs. A series of in vitro assays was performed with RNAi-mediated knockdown to elucidate the function of LncRNA. An orthotopic mouse model of MDA-MB-231 was conducted to confirm the mechanism in vivo. RESULTS: Here we reported that TGF-ß1 was top one highest level of cytokine secreted by CAFs as revealed by cytokine antibody array. Paracrine TGF-ß1 was essential for CAFs induced EMT and metastasis in breast cancer cells, which is a crucial mediator of the interaction between stromal and cancer cells. CAF-CM significantly enhanced the HOTAIR expression to promote EMT, whereas treatment with small-molecule inhibitors of TGF-ß1 attenuated the activation of HOTAIR. Most importantly, SMAD2/3/4 directly bound the promoter site of HOTAIR, located between nucleotides -386 and -398, -440 and -452, suggesting that HOTAIR was a directly transcriptional target of SMAD2/3/4. Additionally, CAFs mediated EMT by targeting CDK5 signaling through H3K27 tri-methylation. Depletion of HOTAIR inhibited CAFs-induced tumor growth and lung metastasis in MDA-MB-231 orthotopic animal model. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrated that CAFs promoted the metastatic activity of breast cancer cells by activating the transcription of HOTAIR via TGF-ß1 secretion, supporting the pursuit of the TGF-ß1/HOTAIR axis as a target in breast cancer treatment.

Fabrication of Thermosensitive Cyclic Brush Copolymer with Enhanced Therapeutic Efficacy for Anticancer Drug Delivery.

Adaptation of cyclic brush polymer for drug delivery applications remains largely unexplored. Herein, cyclic brush copolymer of poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate-g-poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-st-N-hydroxyethylacrylamide)) (cb-P(HEMA-g-P(NIPAAm-st-HEAAm))), comprising a cyclic core of PHEMA and thermosensitive brushes of statistical copolymer of P(NIPAAm-st-HEAAm), is designed and synthesized successfully via a graft-from approach using atom transfer free radical polymerization from a cyclic multimacroinitiator. The composition of the brush is optimized to endow the resulting cyclic brush copolymer with a lower critical solution temperature (LCST) slightly above the physiological temperature, but lower than the localized temperature of tumor tissue, which is suitable for the hyperthermia-triggered anticancer drug delivery. Critical aggregation concentration determination reveals better stability for the unimolecular nanoparticle formed by the cyclic brush copolymer than that formed by the bottlebrush analogue. The dramatically increased size with elevated temperatures from below to above the LCST confirms hyperthermia-induced aggregation for both formulations. Such structural destabilization promotes significantly the drug release at 40 °C. Most importantly, the drug-loaded cyclic brush copolymer shows enhanced in vitro cytotoxicity against HeLa cells than the bottlebrush counterpart. The better stability and higher therapeutic efficacy demonstrates that the thermosensitive cyclic brush copolymer is a better formulation than bottle brush copolymer for controlled drug release applications.

Features of Ebola Virus Disease at the Late Outbreak Stage in Sierra Leone: Clinical, Virological, Immunological, and Evolutionary Analyses.

We performed Ebola virus disease diagnosis and viral load estimation for Ebola cases in Sierra Leone during the late stage of the 2014-2015 outbreak (January-March 2015) and analyzed antibody and cytokine levels and the viral genome sequences. Ebola virus disease was confirmed in 86 of 1001 (9.7%) patients, with an overall case fatality rate of 46.8%. Fatal cases exhibited significantly higher levels of viral loads, cytokines, and chemokines at late stages of infection versus early stage compared with survivors. The viruses converged in a new clade within sublineage 3.2.4, which had a significantly lower case fatality rate.

Radiology research in mainland China in the past 10 years: a survey of original articles published in Radiology and European Radiology.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the features and trends of Radiology research in Mainland China through bibliometric analysis of the original articles published in Radiology and European Radiology (ER) between 2006 and 2015. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We reviewed the original articles published in Radiology and ER between 2006 and 2015. The following information was abstracted: imaging subspecialty, imaging technique(s) used, research type, sample size, study design, statistical analysis, study results, funding declarations, international collaborations, number of authors, department and province of the first author. All variables were examined longitudinally over time. RESULTS: Radiology research in Mainland China saw a substantial increase in original research articles published, especially in the last 5 years (P < 0.001). Within Mainland China's Radiology research, neuroradiology, vascular/interventional Radiology, and abdominal Radiology were the most productive fields; MR imaging was the most used modality, and a distinct geographic provenience was observed for articles published in Radiology and ER. CONCLUSION: Radiology research in Mainland China has seen substantial growth in the past 5 years with neuroradiology, vascular/interventional Radiology, and abdominal Radiology as the most productive fields. MR imaging is the most used modality. Article provenience shows a distinct geographical pattern. KEY POINTS: • Radiology research in Mainland China saw a substantial increase. • Neuroradiology, vascular/interventional Radiology, and abdominal Radiology are the most productive fields. • MRI is the most used modality in Mainland China's Radiology research. • Guangdong, Shanghai, and Beijing are the most productive provinces.

Robust Dehaze Algorithm for Degraded Image of CMOS Image Sensors.

The CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor) is a new type of solid image sensor device widely used in object tracking, object recognition, intelligent navigation fields, and so on. However, images captured by outdoor CMOS sensor devices are usually affected by suspended atmospheric particles (such as haze), causing a reduction in image contrast, color distortion problems, and so on. In view of this, we propose a novel dehazing approach based on a local consistent Markov random field (MRF) framework. The neighboring clique in traditional MRF is extended to the non-neighboring clique, which is defined on local consistent blocks based on two clues, where both the atmospheric light and transmission map satisfy the character of local consistency. In this framework, our model can strengthen the restriction of the whole image while incorporating more sophisticated statistical priors, resulting in more expressive power of modeling, thus, solving inadequate detail recovery effectively and alleviating color distortion. Moreover, the local consistent MRF framework can obtain details while maintaining better results for dehazing, which effectively improves the image quality captured by the CMOS image sensor. Experimental results verified that the method proposed has the combined advantages of detail recovery and color preservation.

Resting-state functional MR imaging shed insights into the brain of diabetes.

Diabetes mellitus is a common metabolic disease which is associated with increasing risk for multiple cognitive declines. Alterations in brain functional connectivity are believed to be the mechanisms underlying the cognitive function impairments. During the past decade, resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) has been developed as a major tool to study brain functional connectivity in vivo. This paper briefly reviews the diabetes-associated cognitive impairment, analysis algorithms and clinical applications of rs-fMRI. We also provide future perspectives of rs-fMRI in diabetes.

Chinese herbal medicines for treating skin and soft-tissue infections.

BACKGROUND: Skin and soft-tissue infections (SSTIs) are common infections of the epidermis, dermis or subcutaneous tissue. SSTIs range in severity from minor, self-limiting, superficial infections to deep, aggressive, gangrenous, life-threatening infections. Some classifications divide SSTIs into 'complicated' and 'uncomplicated' infections based on clinical severity. Treatments of SSTIs involves antibiotic therapy, surgical debridement or drainage, and resuscitation if required. Sometimes these treatments are limited by high treatment costs, bacterial resistance to antibiotics and side effects, therefore, many people with SSTIs are turning to Chinese herbal medicines to treat this problem.Chinese herbal medicines are natural substances that have been used for centuries in China where they are generally considered to be effective for SSTIs. Some Chinese herbal medicines have been shown to have antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, although a few herbal medicines have been reported to have side effects. Therefore there is a need to review the current clinical evidence systematically to inform current practice and guide future studies on Chinese herbal medicines for SSTIs. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the benefits and harms of Chinese herbal medicines for treating skin and soft-tissue infections (SSTIs). SEARCH METHODS: Searches were not restricted by date, language or publication status. In July 2014 we searched the following electronic databases: the Cochrane Wounds Group Specialised Register; the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library); Ovid MEDLINE; Ovid MEDLINE (In-Process & Other Non-Indexed Citations); Ovid EMBASE; Ovid AMED (Allied and Complementary Medicine); and EBSCO CINAHL. SELECTION CRITERIA: All randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in people with SSTIs that compared Chinese herbal medicines with another intervention or control. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Two review authors screened the literature search results independently; there were no disagreements. MAIN RESULTS: We identified no RCTs that met the inclusion criteria. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: There is currently no information available from RCTs to support or refute the use of Chinese herbal medicines in treating people with SSTIs.

Succipenoids A-C: A dimeric abietane and nor-abietane diterpenoids from fossil Chinese medicinal succinum and their anti-inflammatory potential.

An unprecedented dimeric abietane, succipenoid A (1), and two previously undescribed nor-abietane diterpenoids featuring a rarely occurring naphthalene ring or with a large conjugated system, succipenoids B and C (2 and 3), along with seven known diterpenoids (4-10) were isolated from the CH2Cl2 extract of succinum. The structures of these compounds, including their absolute configurations, were elucidated using spectroscopic and computational techniques. Notably, compounds 1-4 and 6-10 were isolated from succinum for the first time. In order to evaluate their anti-inflammatory potential, in vitro tests were conducted. The results demonstrated that compounds 1, 2, 4, and 6-10 exhibite dose-dependent inhibition of iNOS expression in lipopolysaccharide-induced RAW 264.7 cells.

Predicting cognitive impairment in chronic kidney disease patients using structural and functional brain network: An application study of artificial intelligence.

OBJECTIVE: To develop and validate artificial intelligence models for the prediction of cognitive impairment in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients using structural and functional brain network. METHODS: This study retrospectively recruited 621 CKD patients and 625 healthy controls in Jinling hospital and 57 CKD patients in Hainan hospital. These CKD patients were divided into cognitive function impairment (CFI) group and non-CFI group based on diagnostic criteria. All patients underwent brain MRI scan, neuropsychological test and laboratory exam. A deep learning model (Attention MLP) based on structural and functional sub-network (determined by the comparison between the patients and healthy controls) topological properties was developed to generate the MRI signature for the discrimination of CFI. Finally, a clinical-topological logistic regression model was built by combining MRI signature and clinical features. The area under curve (AUC), sensitivity and specificity were calculated to evaluate the model performance. Delong test was used to examine the difference of AUCs between models. The integrated discrimination improvement (IDI) and net reclassification index (NRI) between models were calculated. RESULTS: Attention MLP model performed well in both internal test set and external test set (AUC = 0.744 and 0.763, respectively). After combining with the clinical features, the model performance was further improved both in the internal (AUC: 0.748) and external test sets (AUC: 0.774), while both IDI and NRI were significant (all p < 0.05) in the external test set. According to the comprehensive comparison, the AUC of the Attention MLP model was significantly or marginal significantly higher than that of traditional machine learning models (logistic regression: AUC = 0.634; support vector machine: AUC = 0.613; decision tree: AUC = 0.539; XGBoost: AUC = 0.639) in internal test set. The results showed that the model built on the combining of structural and functional networks data outperformed those on the single network, as well as the connection matrix. CONCLUSION: The result indicated that the integration of the clinical information and the MRI signature generated by artificial intelligence model based on structural and functional network topological properties could help to predict the CFI of CKD patients effectively. Our results provided a set of quantifiable imaging biomarkers for CFI which may be beneficial to CKD patients.

Prognostic value of oxygen inhalation therapy for simple nocturnal hypoxemia in COPD: a meta-analysis.

Objective: The effect of oxygen therapy on the prognosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) with nocturnal hypoxemia (NOD) has been controversial. Therefore, this study systematically evaluated the relevant literature and included it into randomized controlled studies for meta-analysis to evaluate the efficacy and prognosis. Methods: We searched PubMed, EMBASE, web of science, Cochrane, China HowNet and Wanfang database for the literature on the prognosis of COPD patients with simple NOD from the establishment of the database to 30 June 2022. The outcome indicators were death and aggravation of the disease. The efficacy evaluation measures were pulmonary function and arterial blood gas results. The publication bias and heterogeneity of the included studies were evaluated. Results: A total of 621 patients from 5 studies were included in this meta-analysis, and there was no publication bias in the included studies. The total mortality of long-term oxygen therapy (LTOT) in COPD patients with simple NOD in oxygen therapy group (RR = 1.04; 95% CI: 0.81-1.33, p = 0.77), mortality (RR = 0.87; 95% CI: 0.58-1.31, p = 0.50), risk of progression to LTOT events (RR = 1.07; 95% CI: 0.76-1.51, p = 0.71). PaO2 in patients with COPD and simple NOD in oxygen therapy group was higher than that in non-oxygen therapy group (mean difference (MD) = 13.47; 95% CI: 3.49-23.46, p = 0.008), the decrease of PaCO2 level was not statistically significant (MD = -10.05; 95% CI: -26.36-6.27, p = 0.23). Conclusion: Oxygen therapy can improve the prognosis of blood oxygen partial pressure in COPD patients with simple NOD, but oxygen therapy has no significant effect on the survival rate, controlling the progression of the disease to LTOT and reducing the partial pressure of carbon dioxide.

Effects of dietary oat supplementation on carcass traits, muscle metabolites, amino acid profiles, and its association with meat quality of Small-tail Han sheep.

Oat supplementation of the ruminant diet can improve growth performance and meat quality traits, but the role of muscle metabolites has not been evaluated. This study aimed to establish whether oat grass supplementation (OS) of Small-tail Han sheep improved growth performance and muscle tissue metabolites that are associated with better meat quality and flavor. After 90-day, OS fed sheep had higher live-weight and carcass-weight, and lower carcass fat. Muscle metabolomics analysis showed that OS fed sheep had higher levels of taurine, l-carnitine, inosine-5'-monophospgate, cholic acid, and taurocholic acid, which are primarily involved in taurine and hypotaurine metabolism, purine metabolism, and bile acid biosynthesis and secretion, decreased fat accumulation and they promote functional or flavor metabolites. OS also increased muscle levels of amino acids that are attributed to better quality and flavorsome mutton. These findings provided further evidence for supplementing sheep with oat grass to improve growth performance and meat quality.

[Assessment of external methods of traditional Chinese medicine in patients with chronic ulcer of the lower extremities: study protocol of a multicenter, randomized, parallel-group, prospective trial].

BACKGROUND: Chronic ulcer of the lower extremities amounts for a grave and serious problem for public health. Western medicine focuses on controlling infection, improving blood circulation, surgical debridement, skin grafting, etc, but there are bottlenecks in the treatment. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has a long history and a legacy of sound clinical efficacy in this area. TCM has developed a unique, effective external theory, and a large number of topical prescriptions and external technology. Through this research, a safe and effective treatment protocol of TCM for chronic ulcer of the lower extremities can be formed. To this end, during China's "Eleventh Five-Year" Plan, special research committees and projects on TCM external treatments and external technologies were established. This study on ulcer of the lower extremities constitutes one of the major research topics. METHODS AND DESIGN: Clinical information of patients with chronic ulcer of the lower extremities will be first collected in a large, multicenter, epidemiological survey. Concurrently, a large multicenter, randomized, parallel-group, prospective study will be launched based on evidence-based medical principles to evaluate the efficacy and safety of external methods for removing carrion, dissolving stasis, reinforcing deficiency and promoting tissue regeneration. The evaluated indexes will include the wound healing percentage for primary outcome, wound healing time, wound healing rate, time and rate of removal of necrotic tissue, and TCM syndromes for secondary outcomes and routine blood test, routine urine test, liver and kidney function, blood mercury content and finally urine mercury content for adverse events. DISCUSSION: In this trial, the authors will evaluate the efficacy and safety of external methods for removing carrion, dissolving stasis, reinforcing deficiency and promoting tissue regeneration in cases of chronic ulcer of the lower extremities for standardizing external therapy of TCM for treatment of this condition, and establishing the clinical assessment system for TCM. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: The research program was registered in the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry in both English and Chinese in June 2011. REGISTRATION NUMBER: ChiCTR-TRC-11001365.

Enhancement strategies for efficient activation of persulfate by heterogeneous cobalt-containing catalysts: A review.

As a clean and efficient technology for the degradation of organic contaminants, sulfate radical based advanced oxidation processes (SR-AOPs) have attracted more and more attention in the past decades. Cobalt is regarded as the most reactive and efficient non-noble metal catalyst for the activation of persulfate including peroxymonosulfate (PMS) and peroxydisulfate (PDS) to produce sulfate radicals. Due to the limitations of homogeneous catalytic systems, the heterogeneous cobalt-containing catalysts have been emerged and rapidly developed. Various strategies have been schemed to further enhance the activation ability of persulfate by heterogeneous cobalt-containing catalysts. This paper provides an overview on the recent progress in enhancement strategies for the highly efficient activation of persulfate by heterogeneous cobalt-containing catalysts. With a brief introduction on the chemistry and feature of sulfate radical reactions catalyzed by homogeneous Co2+/Co3+ species, the main strategies for enhancing persulfate activation by heterogeneous cobalt-containing catalysts are summarized, such as surface and morphology design, multiple reactive centers design, organic-inorganic hybrids and heterostructure composites. Future perspectives of heterogeneous SR-AOPs systems catalyzed by cobalt-containing catalysts are outlined.

KIR2DL4 promotes the proliferation of RCC cell associated with PI3K/Akt signaling activation.

BACKGROUND: Killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptor 2DL4 (KIR2DL4) is a transmembrane glycoprotein that is expressed by natural killer (NK) cells and certain subsets of T cells. However, its expression profiles and functions in solid tumor progression remain poorly defined. METHODS: In the present study, using bioinformatics analysis, immunohistochemistry, immunoblotting, MTT cell viability assay, soft agar colony formation assay and a human renal cell carcinoma (RCC) cell xenograft model in nude mice, we examined whether KIR2DL4 is expressed by RCC and its possible roles in RCC progression. RESULTS: We confirmed that KIR2DL4 is overexpressed by RCC cells. MTT and soft agar cloning assays showed that KIR2DL4 knockdown delayed cell proliferation and viability in RCC cell lines, Caki-1 and 769-P, in vitro. By contrast, KIR2DL4 overexpression promoted Caki-1 cell proliferation both in vitro and in vivo, which was observed in a BALB/c-nu/nu xenograft mouse model. Moreover, RNA sequencing data demonstrated that the differentially expressed genes found between parallel-controlled and Caki-1 cells overexpressing KIR2DL4 were highly associated with cancer development, of which those related to the phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (AKT) signaling pathway were particularly enriched, immunoblotting data showed that the level of AKT phosphorylation was higher or lower in KIR2DL4 overexpressing or KIR2DL4 knocking-down Caki-1 cells compared with that in the parallel-controlled cells. In addition, PI3K inhibitor wortmannin treatment and KIR2DL4-shRNA transfection further deregulated the levels of phosphorylated AKT and Caki-1 cell proliferation. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that KIR2DL4 is also expressed by RCC cells, which promotes RCC progression associated with PI3K/AKT activation.