The prognostic utility of preoperative neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in patients with colorectal liver metastasis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio is used to reflect body's inflammatory status with prognostic value in different cancers. We aimed to investigate the influence of preoperative NLR in the prognosis of CRLM patients receiving surgery using meta-analysis. Data in Cochrane Library, PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases created before October 2022 were recruited. Meta-analysis was carried out with RevMan 5.3 and Stata16 software, and the primary outcome indicators included overall survival (OS), and secondary outcome indicators included disease-free survival (DFS) and relapse-free survival (RFS). The pooled risk ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for each outcome indicator were determined using random-effects models or fixed-effects models. The pooled odds ratio (OR) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) for NLR and clinicopathological characteristics were determined with a fixed-effects model. 18 papers published between 2008 and 2022 (3184 patients in total) were included. The pooled analysis found that high preoperative NLR was correlated with poor OS (multivariate HR = 1.83, 95% CI = 1.61-2.08, p < 0.01), DFS (multivariate HR = 1.78, 95% CI = 1.16-2.71, p < 0.01) and RFS (multivariate HR = 1.46, 95% CI = 1.15-1.85, p < 0.01), but NLR was not related to clinicopathological features of CRLM patients correlation. In conclusion, NLR is an independent risk factor for poor prognosis in patients with CRLM. More large-scale clinical researches are required in the future to demonstrate the inclusion of preoperative NLR as a prognostic indicator for CRLM patients to guide postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy.

Overexpression of protein regulator of cytokinesis 1 facilitates tumor growth and indicates unfavorable prognosis of patients with colon cancer.

BACKGROUND: Protein regulator of cytokinesis 1 (PRC1) has been reported to play important role in the pathogenesis of various cancers. However, its role in colon cancer has not been studied. Here, we aimed to investigate the biological functions and potential mechanism of PRC1 in colon cancer. METHODS: The expression level of PRC1 in colon cancer tissues and cell lines was detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), Western blotting, and immunohistochemical (IHC) staining of a tissue microarray (TMA). Furthermore, colon cancer cell lines HCT116 and SW480 were treated with short hairpin RNAs against PRC1. The biological function of PRC1 was determined by MTT proliferation, colony formation assay, cell cycle, and apoptosis assays. Then, an in vivo tumor formation assay was conducted to explore the effects of PRC1 on tumor growth. RESULTS: The mRNA and protein expression levels of PRC1 were highly expressed in colon cancer tissues and cell lines. PRC1 expression was associated with clinicopathological characteristics and overall survival of patients with colon cancer. Knockdown of PRC1 could decrease proliferation and colony forming ability of colon cancer cells, as well as arrested more cells at G2/M phase and promoted cell apoptosis. In cancer cells, the expression pattern of protein regulators included in cell cycle and apoptosis progress were reverted by PRC1 down-regulation. Additionally, PRC1 down-regulation could suppress colon tumor growth and differentiation. CONCLUSIONS: We confirmed that PRC1 was overexpressed in colon cancer and was associated with poor prognosis of colon cancer patients. PRC1 down-regulation could arrest cell cycle at G2/M stage, inhibit proliferation, and elicit apoptosis. These findings showed the potential of PRC1 to be used for therapeutic approaches in colon cancer.

Effects of differences in serum total homocysteine, folate, and vitamin B12 on cognitive impairment in stroke patients.

BACKGROUND: Vascular cognitive impairment-no dementia (VCIND) refers to the early or mild cognitive impairment induced by cerebral vascular injury. Research shows that serum total homocysteine (tHcy) level is an independent risk factor for cerebral vascular disease and may be closely related to cognitive function.Current studies on the tHcy level in VCIND patients are limited, and the relationship of tHcy with cognitive function remains unclear. This study aims to investigate the tHcy levels in patients with VCIND and to determine their correlation with cognitive function, as well as to provide useful clues for preventing and treating VCIND. METHODS: The tHcy, folate, and vitamin B12 levels in 82 patients with VCIND were reviewed retrospectively and compared with those of 80 stroke patients without cognitive impairment and 69 healthy controls by using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scale and the event-related potential P300 to evaluate cognitive function. RESULTS: The tHcy levels in the VCIND group were higher than those in the other two groups, whereas the folate and Vitamin B12 levels in the VCIND group were lower than those of the other two groups. The tHcy levels in the stroke group were higher than those in the control group, and the folate and vitamin B12 levels in the stroke group were lower than those in the control group. The patients in the VCIND group with high tHcy exhibited lower MoCA scores and prolonged P300 latency than those in with normal tHcy. Correlation analysis showed that tHcy level is positively correlated with P300 latency period and negatively correlated with MoCA score. CONCLUSION: The tHcy levels were significantly higher and the vitamin B12 and folate levels were significantly lower in the patients with VCIND than those in the other groups. The high tHcy levels in the VCIND patients may be correlated with impaired cognitive function.

Using the Conditional Process Analysis Model to Characterize the Evolution of Carbon Structure in Taxodium ascendens Biochar with Varied Pyrolysis Temperature and Holding Time.

Temperature determines biochar structure during pyrolysis. However, differences in holding time and feedstock types may affect this relationship. The conditional process analysis model was used in this paper to investigate the potential to affect this mechanism. The branch and leaf parts of Taxodium ascendens were separately pyrolyzed at 350, 450, 650, and 750 °C, and kept for 0.5, 1, and 2 h at each target temperature. We measured the fixed carbon and ash contents and the elemental composition (C, H, O and N) of the raw materials and their char samples. After plotting a Van Krevelen (VK) diagram to determine the aromatization of chars, the changes in the functional groups were analyzed using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), Raman, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results revealed that pyrolysis at temperatures between 450 and 750 °C accounted for the aromatization of biochar because the atomic H/C ratio of branch-based chars (BC) decreased from 0.53-0.59 to 0.15-0.18, and the ratio of leaf-based chars (LC) decreased from 0.56-0.68 to 0.20-0.22; the atomic O/C ratio of BC decreased from 0.22-0.27 to 0.08-0.11, while that of LC decreased from 0.26-0.28 to 0.18-0.21. Moreover, the average contents of N (1.89%) and ash (13%) in LC were evidently greater than that in BC (N:0.62%; Ash: 4%). Therefore, BC was superior to LC in terms of the stability of biochar. In addition, the increasing ID/IG and ID/I(DR+GL) ratios in BC and LC indicated an increasing amount of the amorphous aromatic carbon structure with medium-sized (2~6 rings) fused benzene rings. According to the CPA analysis, an extension of the holding time significantly enhanced the increase in aromatic structures of LC with temperature. But this extension slightly reduced the growth in aromatic structures of BC. All indicate that holding time and feedstock types (branch or leaf feedstock) could significantly affect the variation in biochar aromatic structure with respect to temperature.

Fabrication of silica/PDMS hybrid nanoparticles by a novel solvent adjustment route.

The silica/polydimethylsilane (PDMS) hybrid nanoparticles were successfully synthesized by a novel solvent adjustment route. The as-prepared hybrid nanoparticles were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, UV-vis spectra, and IR spectra. The possible mechanism for the formation of silica/PDMS nanoparticles was discussed. The adjustment of solvents is a very important factor since it could tune the surface ligands and improve the coordination ability. On the other hand, it could also tune the interaction between precursors, intermediate or the target hybrid materials and guarantee the monodispersion of prepared nanoparticles. With the merits of PDMS and silica, the as-prepared SiO2-PDMS hybrid nanoparticles have a good application in hard coating material.

Deformation Behavior and Constitutive Model of 34CrNi3Mo during Thermo-Mechanical Deformation Process.

With higher creep strength and heat resistance, 34CrNi3Mo has been widely used in the production of engine rotors, steam turbine impellers, and turbine blades. To investigate the hot deformation behaviors of 34CrNi3Mo steel, hot compressive tests were conducted on a Gleeble-3500 thermomechanical simulator, under the temperature range of 1073 K-1373 K and strain rate ranges of 0.1 s-1-20 s-1. The results show that the flow stress of 34CrNi3Mo steel under high temperatures is greatly influenced by the deformation temperature and strain rate, and it is the result of the interaction between strain hardening, dynamic recovery, and recrystallization. Under the same deformation rate, as the deformation temperature increases, the softening effect of dynamic recrystallization and dynamic recovery gradually increases, and the flow stress gradually decreases. Under the same deformation temperature, with the increase of strain rate, the influence of strain hardening on 34CrNi3Mo steel is gradually in power, and the flow stress gradually increases. To predict the flow stress of 34CrNi3Mo steel accurately, a modified Arrhenius-type constitutive model considering the effects of strain, temperature, and strain rate at the same time was made based on the experiment data. On this basis, the evolution law of deformation activation and instability characteristics of 34CrNi3Mo steel were investigated, and the processing map of 34CrNi3Mo steel was established. The formability of 34CrNi3Mo steel under high temperature deformation was revealed, which provided a theoretical foundation of the equation of reasonable hot working process.

Prediction of Fracture Behavior of 6061 Aluminum Alloy Based on GTN Model.

To determine the Gurson-Tvergaard-Needleman (GTN)damage model parameters of 6061 aluminum alloy after secondary heat treatment, the uniaxial tensile test was carried out on the aluminum alloy circular arc specimen, and the mechanical properties parameters and the load-displacement curve of aluminum alloy tube were obtained. With the help of the finite element reverse method, scanning electron microscope and a orthogonal test method, the GTN damage model parameters (f0, fN, fC, and fF) were calibrated, and their values were 0.004535, 0.04, 0.1, and 0.2135, respectively. Then the shear specimen and notch specimen were designed to verify the damage model, the results show that the obtained GTN damage model parameters can effectively predict the fracture failure of 6061 aluminum alloy after secondary heat treatment during the tensile process.

How Biochar Derived from Pond Cypress (Taxodium Ascendens) Evolved with Pyrolysis Temperature and Time and Their End Efficacy Evaluation.

Biomass type, pyrolysis temperature, and duration can affect biochar properties simultaneously. To further clarify the mechanism of this interaction, the branch and leaf parts of Pond cypress (Taxodium ascendens) were separately pyrolyzed at four peak temperatures (350 °C, 450 °C, 650 °C, and 750 °C) for three different durations (0.5 h, 1 h, and 2 h) in this study. The resulting biochar properties were measured, which included the yield, specific surface area (SSA), pH, EC (electricity conductivity), the bulk and surface elemental composition, and the contents of moisture, ash, fixed carbon, and volatile matter. The results showed that the pyrolysis temperature was more determinant for the modification of all biochar, but the residence time had a significant effect on the yield, pH, and SSA of branch-based biochar (B-biochar) at specific temperatures. However, such a phenomenon only happened on the pH of leaf-based biochar (L-biochar). Results: (1) With the temperature at 350 and 650 °C, the residence time had a significant effect on the yield of B-biochar. (2) The pH of B-biochar and L-biochar varied considerably between durations when the heating temperature hit 650 and 750 °C. (3) The SSA of B-biochar possessed an obvious fluctuation with the time during the pyrolysis from 650 to 750 °C. According to the properties measured above, the principal component and the cluster analysis classified the 24 types of biochar made in this experiment into four groups and revealed that an obvious disparity existed between B-biochar and L-biochar that were pyrolyzed at temperatures ranging from 450 to 750 °C, which suggested that biomass type was the primary factor for biochar-making. All this information can provide valuable references for the optimization of biochar-making in the real world.

Efficient inactivation of African swine fever virus by ozonized water.

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is the causative agent of African swine fever (ASF), which is a devastating disease of domestic pigs and wild boar, causing significant economic losses to the pig industry worldwide. To evaluate the ability of ozonized water as a disinfectant to inactivate ASFV, ozonized water of different concentrations was tested, and the viral reduction was determined by infectivity assay on porcine primary alveolar macrophages. The results showed that 2 log10 (99 %) reduction in viral titer was observed when 104.0 TCID50/mL wild-type or reporter ASFV was inactivated with ozonized water as lower as 5 mg/L within 1 min at room temperature; while a viral reduction of approximately 2 log10 (99 %) was observed when 105.0 TCID50/mL wild-type or reporter ASFV was inactivated with 5 mg/L ozonized water within 1 min, and 3 log10 (99.9 %) virus was inactivated by 10 or 20 mg/L ozonized water within 3 or 1 min, respectively; furthermore, 5 mg/L ozonized water inactivated 2 log10 (99 %) reporter ASFV as higher as 106.75 TCID50/mL in 1 min, and a viral reduction of approximately 3 log10 (99.9 %) in reporter ASFV or 2 log10 (99 %) in wild-type virus was observed when inactivated with 10 mg/L ozonized water in 1 min; meanwhile, a viral reduction of 3 log10 (99.9 %) was observed when 20 mg/L ozonized water was applied to the wild-type ASFV of 106.75 TCID50/mL in 3 min. Overall, ozonized water can rapidly and efficiently inactivate ASFV, representing an effective disinfectant for ASF control.

Heterogeneous hybrid signcryption for multi-message and multi-receiver.

To achieve secure communication in heterogeneous cryptography systems, we present a heterogeneous hybrid signcryption scheme. The proposed scheme allows a sender in an identity-based cryptography system to send multi-message to multi-receiver in a certificateless cryptography system with different master keys. At the same time, all users are mapped to a distinct pseudo-identity for conditional identity privacy preservation. A trusted authority could trace the real identity when necessary. Compared with existing schemes, the proposed scheme is more practical for actual applications. In addition, the proposed scheme has indistinguishability against adaptive chosen ciphertext attacks and existential unforgeability against adaptive chosen message attacks under the random oracle model.

[Expression of glutathione S-transferase zeta class genes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae].

The zeta class of glutathione S-transferase (GSTZs), which is an important multifunctional enzyme, relates to the cell metabolism and contamination elimination. The GSTZ genes from Arabidopsis thaliana L. and Brassica napus L. cv. Shan 2B and Ken C1 were cloned into the multi-cloning site of the shuttle expression vector pYES2. After the recombinants were obtained, the recombinant plasmids were isolated and introduced into the defective mutant INCSc1 of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Then the recombinant strains Y2At, Y2BnB and Y2BnC were obtained after cultured on SC-U selective plates. When induced in the medium containing galactose and maltose, the recombinant yeast expressed as active GSTZs showing the dichloroacetic acid dechlorinating activity, which existed in the yeast cell as a soluble state. The comparison of different carbon sources showed that sucrose and glucose significantly exhibited the expression of GSTZ gene; glycerol somewhat affected the growth of yeast but increased the specific activity of GSTZ by 17%; and galactose slightly affected the yeast growth with no affection to the activity of GSTZ. Zero to ninety-six hrs induction experiments showed that specific activity of GSTZ in recombinant yeast reached highest when induced for 36 hours. The specific activity of AtGSTZ, BnGSTZ-B and BnGSTZ-C was 5.3 U/mg, 4.3 U/mg and 0.3 U/mg, respectively. The values are lower than that expressed in the E. coli and wheat-sperm cell-free protein synthesis system. However, the relative activity of three sources was similar in E. coli and wheat cell free system. The Km value of GSTZ genes from different sources was 0.59 mmol/L and 0.79 mmol/L for AtGSTZ and BnGSTZ-B, respectively, suggesting the GSTZ enzyme from Abrabidopsis thaliana has higher affinity to DCA than that from Brassica napus.

[Temperature study on lightning return stroke in the coastal area of Guangdong].

In the coastal area of Guangdong, slit-less spectra for first return strokes of lightning between the cloud and ground were obtained. After spectrum analysis and line identification were done by using multi-configuration Dirac-Fock (MCDF) method, parameters like wavelengths, oscillator strengths, transition probabilities, and excitation energies were calculated. According to the relative intensities of lines and transition parameters, temperatures for individual lightning strokes and at different heights of the discharge channel were calculated by using multiple-line method. The result shows that the temperatures in return stroke channel varied from stroke to stroke. In general, the more intensive the lightning discharge, the higher the value of channel temperature. On the other hand, for a certain return stroke channel, the temperatures at different positions show signs of falling away with increasing height along the discharge channel. Compared with that of Qinghai plateau, lightning in Guangdong coastal area is more intensive, and the lines from higher excitation potential of N II in these lightning spectra are easier observed.

Enhancing the treatment effect on melanoma by heat shock protein 70-peptide complexes purified from human melanoma cell lines.

Dendritic cell (DC) vaccines are currently one of the most effective approaches to treat melanoma. The immunogenicity of antigens loaded into DCs determines the treatment effects. Patients treated with autologous antigen-loaded DC vaccines achieve the best therapeutic effects. In China, most melanoma patients cannot access their autologous antigens because of formalin treatment of tumor tissue after surgery. In the present study, we purified heat shock protein 70 (HSP70)-peptide complexes (PCs) from human melanoma cell lines A375, A875, M21, M14, WM­35, and SK­HEL­1. We named the purified product as M­HSP70­PCs, and determined its immunological activities. Autologous HSP70­PCs purified from primary tumor cells of melanoma patients (nine cases) were used as controls. These two kinds of tumor antigenic complexes loaded into DCs were used to stimulate an antitumor response against tumor cells in the corresponding patients. Mature DCs pulsed with M­HSP70­PCs stimulated autologous T cells to secrete the same levels of type I cytokines compared with the autologous HSP70­PCs. Moreover, DCs pulsed with M­HSP70­PCs induced CD8+ T cells with an equal ability to kill melanoma cells from patients compared with autologous HSP70­PCs. Next, we used these PC­pulsed autologous DCs and induced autologous specific CD8+ T cells to treat one patient with melanoma of the nasal skin and lung metastasis. The treatment achieved a good effect after six cycles. These findings provide a new direction for DC-based immunotherapy for melanoma patients who cannot access autologous antigens.

Gold nanoparticle-assembled capsules and their application as hydrogen peroxide biosensor based on hemoglobin.

Gold nanoparticle-assembled capsules (GNACs) with controllable size and tunable morphology were fabricated through a simple two-step mixing procedure. Cationic polyelectrolyte was first induced to self-assemble into spherical aggregates in the presence of multivalent anions. Then, the aggregates served as an effective template for the self-assembly of gold nanoparticles to form size-controllable capsules. By adjusting the quantity of gold nanoparticles, capsules with various morphologies could be obtained. Because of their unique nanoporous features, the capsules with intact shells were further used to load hemoglobin (Hb) for the fabrication of a novel H(2)O(2) biosensor. The results of UV-vis spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry indicated that the capsules provided a suitable matrix for the immobilization of Hb. Additionally, the resulting biosensor showed a high affinity and good catalytic activity to H(2)O(2). With the advantages of the large surface area, good conductivity and biocompatibility, the GNACs can offer a promising platform for the development of biosensors. Moreover, on the basis of the capsule structure, this material may also be expected to apply in some fields such as drug delivery, medical diagnostics and bio-encapsulation.