Acyl carrier protein OsMTACP2 confers rice cold tolerance at the booting stage.

Low temperatures occurring at the booting stage in rice (Oryza sativa L.) often result in yield loss by impeding male reproductive development. However, the underlying mechanisms by which rice responds to cold at this stage remain largely unknown. Here, we identified MITOCHONDRIAL ACYL CARRIER PROTEIN 2 (OsMTACP2), the encoded protein of which mediates lipid metabolism involved in the cold response at the booting stage. Loss of OsMTACP2 function compromised cold tolerance, hindering anther cuticle and pollen wall development, resulting in abnormal anther morphology, lower pollen fertility, and seed setting. OsMTACP2 was highly expressed in tapetal cells and microspores during anther development, with the encoded protein localizing to both mitochondria and the cytoplasm. Comparative transcriptomic analysis revealed differential expression of genes related to lipid metabolism between the wild type and the Osmtacp2-1 mutant in response to cold. Through a lipidomic analysis, we demonstrated that wax esters, which are the primary lipid components of the anther cuticle and pollen walls, function as cold-responsive lipids. Their levels increased dramatically in the wild type but not in Osmtacp2-1 when exposed to cold. Additionally, mutants of two cold-induced genes of wax ester biosynthesis, ECERIFERUM1 and WAX CRYSTAL-SPARSE LEAF2, showed decreased cold tolerance. These results suggest that OsMTACP2-mediated wax ester biosynthesis is essential for cold tolerance in rice at the booting stage.

Hydrophilic Peptide and Glycopeptide as Immobilized Sorbents for Glycosylation Analysis.

Hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) is widely used for glycopeptide enrichment in shot-gun glycoproteomics to enhance the glycopeptide signal and minimize the ionization competition of peptides. In this work, we have developed a novel hydrophilic material (glycoHILIC) based on glycopeptides and peptides to provide hydrophilic properties. GlycoHILIC was synthesized by oxidizing cotton and then reacting the resulting aldehyde with the N-terminus of the glycopeptide or peptide by reductive amination. Due to the large amount of hydrophilic carbohydrates and hydrophilic amino acids contained in glycopeptides, glycoHILIC showed significantly better enrichment of glycopeptides than cotton itself. Our results demonstrate that glycoHILIC has high selectivity, a low detection limit, and good stability. Over 257 unique N-linked glycosylation sites in 1477 intact N-glycopeptides from 146 glycoproteins were identified from 1 µL of human serum using glycoHILIC. Serum analysis of pancreatic cancer patients found that 38 N-glycopeptides among 21 glycoproteins changed significantly, of which 7 N-glycopeptides increased and 31 N-glycopeptides decreased. These results demonstrate that glycoHILIC can be used for glycopeptide enrichment and analysis.

Identifying circRNA-disease association based on relational graph attention network and hypergraph attention network.

In recent years, with the in-depth study of circRNA, scholars have begun to discover a synergistic relationship between circRNA and microorganisms. Traditional wet lab experiments in biology require expensive financial, material, and human resources to investigate the relationship between circRNA and diseases. Therefore, we propose a new predictive model for inferring the association between circRNA and diseases, called HAGACDA. Specifically, we first aggregate the unique features of circRNA and diseases themselves through singular value decomposition, Pearson similarity, and the biological information characteristics of circRNA and diseases. Utilizing the competitive relationships between miRNA and other microorganisms, we construct a circRNA-miRNA-disease multi-source heterogeneous network. Subsequently, we use a relational graph attention network to aggregate features based on the structural connections between different nodes. To address the inherent limitations in capturing high-order patterns in edge sets, we integrate a hypergraph attention network to extract features of circRNA and diseases. Finally, association prediction scores for node pairs are obtained through a multilayer perceptron. We conducted a comprehensive analysis of the model, including comparative experiments and case studies. Experimental results demonstrate that our model accurately predicts the association between circRNA and diseases.

Predicting associations between CircRNA and diseases through structure-aware graph transformer and path-integral convolution.

A series of biological experiments has demonstrated that circular RNAs play a crucial regulatory role in cellular processes and may be potentially associated with diseases. Uncovering these connections helps in understanding potential disease mechanisms and advancing the development of treatment strategies. However, in biology, traditional experiments face limitations in terms of efficiency and cost, especially when enumerating possible associations. To address these limitations, several computational methods have been proposed, but existing methods only measure from a nodal perspective and cannot capture structural similarities between edges. In this study, we introduce an advanced computational method called SATPIC2CD for analyzing potential associations between circular RNAs and diseases. Specifically, we first employ an Structure-Aware Graph Transformer (SAT), which extracts five predefined metapath representations before calculating attention. This adaptive network integrates structural information into the original self-attention by aggregating information within and between paths. Subsequently, we use Path Integral Convolutional Networks (PACN) to integrate feature information for all path weights between two nodes. Afterward, we complement the network node features with feature loss and feature smoothing using Gated Recurrent Units (GRU) and node centrality. Finally, a Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) is employed to obtain the ultimate prediction scores for each circular RNA-disease pair. SATPIC2CD performs remarkably well, with an accuracy of up to 0.9715 measured by the Area Under the Curve (AUC) in a 5-fold cross-validation, surpassing other comparative models. Case studies further emphasize the high precision of our method in identifying circular RNA-disease associations, laying a solid foundation for guiding future biological research efforts.

Advances in the treatment of malignant ascites in China.

PURPOSE: Malignant ascites (MA) often occurs in recurrent abdominal malignant tumors, and the large amount of ascites associated with cancerous peritonitis not only leads to severe abdominal distension and breathing difficulties, but also reduces the patient's quality of life and ability to resist diseases, which usually makes it difficult to carry out anti-cancer treatment. The exploration of MA treatment methods is also a key link in MA treatment. This article is going to review the treatment of MA, to provide details for further research on the treatment of MA, and to provide some guidance for the clinical treatment of MA. METHOD: This review analyzes various expert papers and summarizes them to obtain the paper. RESULT: There are various treatment methods for MA, including systemic therapy and local therapy. Among them, systemic therapy includes diuretic therapy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, targeted therapy, anti angiogenic therapy, CAR-T, and vaccine. Local therapy includes puncture surgery, peritoneal vein shunt surgery, acellular ascites infusion therapy, radioactive nuclide intraperitoneal injection therapy, tunnel catheter, and intraperitoneal hyperthermia chemotherapy. And traditional Chinese medicine treatment has also played a role in enhancing efficacy and reducing toxicity to a certain extent. CONCLUSION: Although there has been significant progress in the treatment of MA, it is still one of the clinical difficulties. Exploring the combination or method of drugs with the best therapeutic effect and the least adverse reactions to control MA is still an urgent problem to be solved.

Distinct microbial communities under different rock-associated microhabitats in the Qaidam Desert.

Hypolithic communities, which occupy highly specialised microhabitats beneath translucent rocks in desert and arid environments, have assembly mechanisms and ecosystem functions are not fully understood. Thus, in this study, we aimed to examine the microbial community structure, assembly, and function of light-accessible (under quartz, calcite, and hypolithic lichen-dominated biocrusts) and light-inaccessible microhabitats (under basalt and adjacent soil) in the Qaidam Desert, China. The results showed that hypolithic communities have different characteristics compared with microbial communities of light-inaccessible microhabitats. Notably, hypolithic bacterial communities were dominated by Cyanobacteria, whereas light-inaccessible microhabitats showed a predominance of Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria. Although the class Dothideomycetes (phylum: Ascomycota) dominated the fungal communities between the two microhabitat types, Sordariomycetes were more prevalent in light-accessible microhabitats. Network and robustness analyses showed that hypolithic communities were less complex and more resilient than microbial communities in light-inaccessible microhabitats. Our results indicated that deterministic processes, specifically homogeneous selection, govern the establishment of bacterial and fungal communities in light-accessible and light-inaccessible microhabitats. The hypolithic community showed an increased frequency of phylotypes that exhibited increased tolerance to functional stress response pathways. In contrast to light-inaccessible microhabitats, light-accessible microhabitats showed a slight decrease and a notable increase in the prevalence of carbon fixation pathways in prokaryotes and carbon fixation in photosynthetic organisms, respectively. For fungi, light-accessible microhabitats enriched saprotrophic and ectomycorrhizal groups. These results highlight the importance of complex and diverse microhabitats in desert regions, which serve as vital shelters for microbes. Combining future research on interactions between hypolithic communities and environments may enhance our current understanding of their pivotal roles in sustaining desert ecosystems. This knowledge then be applied to design and implement informed conservation efforts to preserve these unique rock-associated microhabitats in desert ecosystems.

Unraveling the rapid ion migration in perovskite solar cells by circuit-switched transient photoelectric technique.

Ion migration activated by illumination is a critical factor responsible for the performance decline and stability degradation of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). While ion migration has been widely believed to be much slower than charge transport, recent research suggests that, despite the lack of understanding of the mechanism, it may also be involved in a series of rapid photoelectric responses of PSCs. Here, we report an improved circuit-switched transient photoelectric technique with nanosecond temporal resolution, which enables quantitative characterization of ion migration dynamics in PSCs across a fairly broad time window. Specifically, ion migration occurring within microseconds after illumination (corresponding to a diffusion length of ∼10-7 cm) is unambiguously identified. In conjunction with the composition engineering protocol, we justify that it arises from the short-range migration of halide anions and organic cations around the contact/perovskite interface. The rapid ion migration kinetics revealed in this work strongly complement the well-established ion migration model, which offers new insights into the mechanism of ion-carrier interaction in PSC devices.

A tailored ratiometric fluorescent sensor based on CdTe and MgF2 quantum dots for trace N-ethylpentylone detection.

The development of low-cost and highly sensitive ratiometric fluorescence sensor, CdTe@MIPs/MgF2, for N-Ethylpentylone (NEP) detection in wastewater samples is described. In this system, CdTe@MIPs (λex = 370, λem = 570) are employed as the receptor and response unit for NEP, with MgF2 (λex = 370, λem = 470) as the reference signal to enhance stability. Under optimal conditions, the sensor shows fluorescent quenching response at 570 nm to NEP in linear range of 2-200 nM, with LOD of 0.6 nM. The sensor also demonstrates significant selectivity for NEP over other analogues and interferents, making it ideal for practical applications in wastewater analysis. This approach is potentially more cost-effective and sensitive than conventional mass spectrometry in detecting abused substances in sewage. Additionally, the MgF2 fluorescent nano-material was first-ever developed and investigated, which may be significant in future research.

Regulation of Fuzheng Huayu capsule on inhibiting the fibrosis-associated hepatocellular carcinogenesis.

In the current study, bioinformatics analysis of the hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) dataset was conducted with the hepatoprotective effect of the Fuzheng Huayu (FZHY) capsule against the diethylnitrosamine-induced HCC progression analyzed. Eight cell clusters were defined and tanshinone IIA, arachidonic acid, and quercetin, compounds of the FZHY capsule, inhibit HCC progression-related fibrosis by regulating the expression of PLAU and IGFBP3. Combined with the ameliorative effect of the FZHY capsule against liver dysfunctions and expression of PLAU and IGFBP3, our study confirmed the effect of the FZHY capsule on inhibiting the fibrosis-associated HCC progression via regulating the expression of PLAU and IGFBP3.

Upgrading the genome of an elite japonica rice variety Kongyu 131 for lodging resistance improvement.

Developing a new rice variety requires tremendous efforts and years of input. To improve the defect traits of the excellent varieties becomes more cost and time efficient than breeding a completely new variety. Kongyu 131 is a high-performing japonica variety with early maturity, high yield, wide adaptability and cold resistance, but the poor-lodging resistance hinders the industrial production of Kongyu 131 in the Northeastern China. In this study, we attempted to improve the lodging resistance of Kongyu 131 from perspectives of both gene and trait. On the one hand, by QTL analysis and fine mapping we discovered the candidate gene loci. The following CRISPR/Cas9 and transgenic complementation study confirmed that Sd1 dominated the lodging resistance and favourable allele was mined for precise introduction and improvement. On the other hand, the Sd1 allelic variant was identified in Kongyu 131 by sequence alignment, then introduced another excellent allelic variation by backcrossing. Then, the two new resulting Kongyu 131 went through the field evaluation under different environments, planting densities and nitrogen fertilizer conditions. The results showed that the plant height of upgraded Kongyu 131 was 17%-26% lower than Kongyu 131 without penalty in yield. This study demonstrated a precise and targeted way to update the rice genome and upgrade the elite rice varieties by improving only a few gene defects from the perspective of breeding.

Clinical profile and prognosis of elderly patients with left ventricular thrombus after anticoagulation.

BACKGROUND: Contemporary data regarding the clinical characteristics and prognosis of left ventricular thrombus (LVT) in older adults (aged ≥ 65 years old) are lacking. In this study, we characterized elderly patients with LVT (aged ≥ 65 years old) and investigated the long-term prognosis in this highly vulnerable patient population. METHODS: This single-center, retrospective study was conducted from January 2017 to December 2022. Patients with a reported LVT were assessed primarily by transthoracic echocardiography (TEE) and classified into two groups: elderly LVT groups and younger LVT groups. All patients were treated with anticoagulant treatment. Major adverse cardiovascular event (MACE) was defined as the composite of all-cause mortality, systemic embolism, and rehospitalization for cardiovascular events. Survival analyses were performed with the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox proportional-hazard model. RESULTS: A total of 315 eligible patients were included. Compared to the younger LVT group (n = 171), the elderly LVT group (n = 144) had a lower proportion of males and lower serum creatinine clearance, as well as a higher level of NT-proBNP, and a higher rate of history of systemic embolism. LVT resolution occurred in 59.7% and 69.0% of patients in the elderly LVT group and younger LVT group, respectively, with no significant difference (adjusted HR, 0.97; 95% CI, 0.74-1.28; P = 0.836). Yet, elderly patients with LVT, had higher prevalence rates of MACE (adjusted HR, 1.52; 95% CI, 1.10-2.11; P = 0.012), systemic embolism (adjusted HR, 2.81; 95% CI, 1.20-6.59; P = 0.017) and all-cause mortality (adjusted HR, 2.20; 95% CI, 1.29-3.74; P = 0.004) compared with younger patients with LVT. After adjusting for mortality in the Fine-Gray model, similar results were observed. Additionally, patients treated with different anticoagulation therapies (DOACs vs. warfarin) achieved a similar improvement in prognosis (P > 0.05) or LVT resolution (P > 0.05) in elderly patients with LVT. CONCLUSIONS: Our results found that elderly patients experiencing LVT have a poor prognosis compared with the younger ones. Clinical prognosis in elderly patients did not significantly differ with the type of anticoagulant used. With aging societies worldwide, further evidence of antithrombotic therapy in elderly individuals with LVT is necessary.

Driving factors for decoupling water resources ecological footprint and economic growth in water-deficient cities dominated by agriculture.

To explore the key factors and specific thresholds of water resources limiting economic development, and to provide technical support for water resources management in cities dominated by agriculture similar to Zhangjiakou. We used the Tapio elastic decoupling method to quantitatively evaluate the decoupling relationship between the water resources ecological footprint (WEF) and economic growth. Then the logarithmic mean Divisia index (LMDI) and mathematical statistics are used to identify the key factors and threshold effects. The results show a significant decreasing trend in the WEF and obvious spatial differences in Zhangjiakou between 2006 and 2015, with agricultural ecological footprint dominating all districts and counties (77.54 ± 14.35%). The changes in technological effect are a contributing factor to the decoupling between the WEF and the economy in Zhangjiakou, while the economic effect is the main restricting factor. In particular, there is a high correlation between the WEF and the number of water-saving irrigation machines and the total power of agricultural machinery. According to the findings, for water-scarce cities such as Zhangjiakou, where agriculture is the primary focus, it is suggested that increasing the number of agricultural machinery can effectively alleviate the problem of water scarcity constraining economic development.

Overexpressing Ugp1 promotes phosphate uptake and accumulation in rice (Oryza sativa).

Plant responses to phosphate (Pi) starvation stress involve an array of adaptive strategies including enhanced accumulation and shoot-to-root transport of carbohydrates required for activating the plant Pi starvation signaling. However, the contribution of carbohydrate biosynthesis genes to maintaining phosphorus (P) homeostasis remains unknown, and the functional characterization of sugar metabolism genes is often impeded or compromised due to the loss of fertility of the null mutants. Here, a highly expressed gene encoding UDP-glucose pyrophosphorylase in rice (Oryza sativa), Ugp1, was functionally characterized. Ugp1 was transcriptionally induced in leaf blades by Pi starvation. As a link between sucrose (Suc) and P, we assumed that overexpression of Upg1 would alter the Suc concentration. Given that Suc is a signaling molecule, such concentration changes would affect the P deficiency signal transduction, thereby altering the homeostasis of endogenous P. The results showed that, overexpression of Ugp1 decreased plant biomass, increased sucrose content, and promoted Pi accumulation. The elevated Pi accumulation in Ugp1-OX plants was accompanied by the up-regulation of Pi-starvation-induced genes. Taken together, these results demonstrate that Ugp1 is a positive regulator of sucrose accumulation, and is required for maintaining P homeostasis in rice. Ugp1 thus represents a novel entry point to dissect the mechanisms underlying the carbon-P crosstalk. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12298-023-01368-8.

Effects of bilateral erector spinae plane block for posterior lumbar spine surgery in elderly patients. / åŒä¾§ç«–è„Šè‚Œå¹³é¢é˜»æ»žåœ¨è€å¹´æ‚£è€ è °æ¤ŽåŽè·¯æ‰‹æœ¯ä¸­çš„åº”ç”¨æ•ˆæžœ.

OBJECTIVES: With the rapid development of aging population, the number of elderly patients undergoing posterior lumbar spine surgery continues to increase. Lumbar spine surgery could cause moderate to severe postoperative pain, and the conventional opioid-based analgesia techniques have many side effects, which are barriers to the recovery after surgery of the elderly. Previous studies have demonstrated that erector spinae plane block (ESPB) could bring about favorable analgesia in spinal surgery. As far as the elderly are concerned, the analgesic and recovery effects of ESPB on posterior lumbar spine surgery are not completely clear. This study aims to observe the effects of bilateral ESPB on elderly patients undergoing posterior lumbar spine surgery, and to improve the anesthesia techniques. METHODS: A total of 70 elderly patients of both sex, who were selected from May 2020 to November 2021, scheduled for elective posterior lumbar spine surgery, and in the age of 60-79 years, with American Society of Anesthesiologists class Ⅱ-Ⅲ, were divided into a ESPB group and a control (C) group using a random number table method, with 35 patients each. Before general anesthesia induction, 20 mL 0.4% ropivacaine was injected to the transverse process of L3 or L4 bilaterally in the ESPB group and only saline in the C group. The score of Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) indicating pain at rest and on movement within 48 h after operation, time of first patient control analgesia (PCA), cumulative consumptions of sufentanil within 48 hours, Leeds Sleep Evaluation Questionnaire (LSEQ) scores on the morning of day 1 and day 2 after operation, Quality of Recovery-15 (QoR-15) scores at 24 and 48 h after operation, full diet intake times, perioperative adverse reactions such as intraoperative hypotension, postoperative dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and constipation were compared between the 2 groups. RESULTS: A total of 70 patients were enrolled and 62 subjects completed the study, including 32 in the ESPB group and 30 in the C group. Compared with the C group, the postoperative NRS scores at rest at 2, 4, 6, and 12 h and on movementat at 2, 4, and 6 h were lower, time of first PCA was later, sufentanil consumptions were significantly decreased during 0-12 h and 12-24 h after operation, LSEQ scores on the morning of day 1 and QoR-15 scores at 24 and 48 h after operation were higher, full diet intakes achieved earlier in the ESPB group (all P<0.05). There were no significant differences in the incidences of intraoperative hypotension, postoperative dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and constipation between the 2 groups (all P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Providing favorable analgesic effects with reduced opioids consumption, bilateral ESPB for posterior lumbar spine surgery in the elderly patients could also improve postoperative sleep quality, promote gastrointestinal functional restoration, and enhance recovery with few adverse reactions.

Recent advances in demystifying O-glycosylation in health and disease.

O-Glycosylation is one of the most common protein post-translational modifications (PTM) and plays an essential role in the pathophysiology of diseases. However, the complexity of O-glycosylation and the lack of specific enzymes for the processing of O-glycans and their O-glycopeptides make O-glycosylation analysis challenging. Recently, research on O-glycosylation has received attention owing to technological innovation and emerging O-glycoproteases. Several serine/threonine endoproteases have been found to specifically cleave O-glycosylated serine or threonine, allowing for the systematic analysis of O-glycoproteins. In this review, we first assessed the field of protein O-glycosylation over the past decade and used bibliometric analysis to identify keywords and emerging trends. We then summarized recent advances in O-glycosylation, covering several aspects: O-glycan release, site-specific elucidation of intact O-glycopeptides, identification of O-glycosites, characterization of different O-glycoproteases, mass spectrometry (MS) fragmentation methods for site-specific O-glycosylation assignment, and O-glycosylation data analysis. Finally, the role of O-glycosylation in health and disease was discussed.

The Critical Biomarkers Identification of Insulin Signaling Involved in Initiating cAMP Signaling Mediated Salivary Secretion in Sjogren Syndrome: Transcriptome Sequencing in NOD Mice Model.

BACKGROUND: Sjogren's syndrome (SS) is an autoimmune disorder characterized by the destruction of exocrine glands, resulting in dry mouth and eyes. Currently, there is no effective treatment for SS, and the mechanisms associated with inadequate salivary secretion are poorly understood. METHODS: In this study, we used NOD mice model to monitor changes in mice's salivary secretion and water consumption. Tissue morphology of the submandibular glands was examined by H&E staining, and Immunohistochemical detected the expression of AQP5 (an essential protein in salivary secretion). Global gene expression profiling was performed on submandibular gland tissue of extracted NOD mice model using RNA-seq. Subsequently, a series of bioinformatics analyses of transcriptome sequencing was performed, including differentially expressed genes (DEGs) identification, Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis, PPI network construction, hub gene identification, and the validity of diagnostic indicators using the dataset GSE40611. Finally, IFN-γ was used to treat the cells, the submandibular gland tissue of NOD mice model was extracted, and RT-qPCR was applied to verify the expression of hub genes. RESULTS: We found that NOD mice model had reduced salivary secretion and increased water consumption. H&E staining suggests acinar destruction and basement membrane changes in glandular tissue. Immunohistochemistry detects a decrease in AQP5 immunostaining within acinar. In transcriptome sequencing, 42 overlapping DEGs were identified, and hub genes (REN, A2M, SNCA, KLK3, TTR, and AZGP1) were identified as initiating targets for insulin signaling. In addition, insulin signaling and cAMP signaling are potential pathways for regulating salivary secretion and constructing a regulatory relationship between target-cAMP signaling-salivary secretion. CONCLUSION: The new potential targets and signal axes for regulating salivary secretion provide a strategy for SS therapy in a clinical setting.

Rare left-sided accessory pathway successfully ablated with atrial insertion site at the left-side fossa ovalis.

INTRODUCTION: Left-sided accessory pathway (AP) with atrial insertion away from the annulus is an atypical variation. Conventional mapping and ablation performed along mitral annulus (MA) is usually ineffective. METHODS: A 14-year-old girl without structural heart disease presented with recurrent episodes of sudden onset palpitations and electrocardiogram (ECG) showed a narrow QRS complex tachycardia. RESULTS: Electrophysiology study (EPS) was done and anterograde atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia (AVRT) with AP was diagnosed. Conventional mapping and ablation performed along TA and MA was failed. 3D-activation mapping found the retrograde atrial insertion site of AP on the left atrium fossa ovalis (FO), and AP was successfully abolished by radiofrequency ablation at that site. CONCLUSION: As reported, this patient is the first report of ablating a left-sided AP with retrograde atrial insertion on the left atrium FO.

Study on the monolayer dispersion behavior of SnO2 on ZSM-5 for NOx-SCR by C3H6: the remarkable promotional effects of air plasma treatment.

Aiming to fabricate more practical catalysts for NOx-SCR with C3H6, SnO2/ZSM-5 having different SnO2 loadings was prepared and treated with DBD air plasma. The dispersion of SnO2 on the H-ZSM-5 support and their interactions were investigated with both experimental methods and DFT calculations. SnO2 displays evident monolayer dispersion behavior, getting a threshold of 0.271 mmol 100 m-2 support. Plasma treatment improves significantly the SnO2 dispersion, hence amplifying the monolayer dispersion threshold to 0.380 mmol 100 m-2. XPS and DFT calculations have testified that plasma treatment strengthens strongly the SnO2-ZSM-5 support interaction, mainly through donating electrons from Sn4+ to Al3+ in the support, thus improving the dispersion of SnO2 at the same loadings. Consequently, the catalytic performance is remarkably improved because of the generation of more abundant surface acid sites and superoxide species devoted to the reaction. The sample having a SnO2 loading near the monolayer dispersion threshold shows the optimal activity in the corresponding catalyst series, demonstrating an evident threshold effect. Over SnO2/ZSM-5, the reaction goes through a Langmuir-Hinshelwood pathway, involving the adsorption and activation of both NO and C3H6 molecules. Surface mono-dentate/bridged-nitrate and carbonate species are the main reaction intermediates.

Rivaroxaban versus Vitamin K Antagonists (warfarin) based on the triple therapy for left ventricular thrombus after ST-Elevation myocardial infarction.

BACKGROUND: Left ventricular thrombus (LVT) can complicate ST-Elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and is associated with poor outcomes. Conventional triple anticoagulation [Vitamin K Antagonists (VKA) plus dual-antiplatelet therapy (DAPT)] is the first-line therapy for LVT after STEMI. In patients with LVT following STEMI, contemporary data of triple therapy with rivaroxaban are lacking. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study involving 1335 STEMI patients who underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Among patients who developed LVT after STEMI, we observed differences in efficacy between rivaroxaban plus DAPT therapy and VKA plus DAPT. The time of LVT resolution was also evaluated, as well as net clinical adverse events, and rates of bleeding events. RESULTS: In 1335 patients with STEMI, a total of 77 (5.7%) developed LVT over the follow-up period (median 25.0 months). Of the patients diagnosed with LVT, 31 patients were started on triple therapy with VKA, 33 patients on triple therapy with rivaroxaban. There was a consistent similarity in LVT resolution with rivaroxaban application compared to VKA application during the follow-up period [HR (log-rank test) 1.57(95% CI 0.89-2.77), p = 0.096; Adjusted HR 1.70(95% CI 0.90-3.22), p = 0.104]. Triple therapy with rivaroxaban showed quicker resolution than with VKA (6 months: p = 0.049; 12 months: p = 0.044; 18 months: p = 0.045). Similar risks of ISTH bleeding were not significantly different between the 2 groups [VKA 9.7% vs Rivaroxaban 6.1%, Adjusted HR 0.48 (95% CI 0.73-3.20); p = 0.444)]. Fewer net adverse clinical events (NACE) were observed in the rivaroxaban group [VKA 58.1% vs Rivaroxaban 24.2%; HR (log-rank test) 0.31(95% CI 0.14-0.68), p = 0.003; Adjusted HR 0.23(95% CI 0.09-0.57), p = 0.001]. CONCLUSION: In the observational study, triple therapy with rivaroxaban has similar and quicker LVT resolution in patients with LVT after STEMI, compared with triple therapy with VKA, and perhaps was associated with a better clinical benefit. Larger sample sizes and randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm this observation.

Highly dispersive AuNCs/ChOx@ZIF-8/PEI nanocomplexes for fluorescent detection of cholesterol in human serum.

Gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) are widely used in the fluorescence detection of biomolecules in human serum due to their good fluorescence properties, low toxicity, and better biocompatibility. However, the weak fluorescence intensity of AuNCs limits the fluorescence detection of molecules within a wide concentration range. It is reported that coating AuNCs in ZIF-8 with adjustable pore size can effectively improve the fluorescence intensity of AuNCs and broaden the detection range. And the AuNCs wrapped in the gaps of ZIF-8 can prevent the fluorescence quenching caused by the aggregation of AuNCs. However, ZIF-8 has high crystallinity, poor dispersion, and easy deposition, which reduces the fluorescence stability of the detection system and affects the detection. Based on the above research, the highly hydrophilic polymer PEI was modified to the surface of ZIF-8, and a kind of nanocomposite material AuNCs/ChOx@ZIF-8/PEI was obtained by co-encapsulating AuNCs prepared with glutathione as a ligand and cholesterol oxidase (ChOx) into ZIF-8 modified with PEI. The composite material emits strong red light at 650 nm under the excitation of 395-nm light, and the system can sensitively detect cholesterol (Chol) in human serum. Compared with other materials, the PEI-modified composite has better solubility and stability, so the detection effect of Chol is better. Encapsulation of ChOx in the ZIF-8 shell can protect the enzyme and increase the local concentration of ChOx, thereby speeding up the reaction rate. Compared with free AuNCs/ChOx, the quenching rate of AuNCs/ChOx@ZIF-8/PEI system is doubled. Secondly, the addition of Fe2+ to the detection process results in higher quenching rate and detection sensitivity. The system can detect Chol in the concentration range 0.1-2.4 µM, with a detection limit of 0.073 µM. The determination is a fast and sensitive strategy. In addition, the practicability of this assay in the detection of Chol in human serum has been verified. Due to its selectivity and sensitivity, it has potential application value in clinical diagnosis.