Nanoencapsulation-Induced Second Harmonic Generation in Pillararene-Based Host-Guest Complex Cocrystals.

The features of molecularly preferable centrosymmetric arrangements exclude organic nonlinear optical (NLO) materials for second harmonic generation (SHG) when used in the solid and crystalline states, which greatly limits their applications in optoelectronic devices. Herein, a pillar[5]arene (BrP5) is used as the macrocyclic host to encapsulate NLO molecules, 4-[4'-methoxystyryl]-1-methylpyridinium iodide (OM), 4-[2'-(5'-(dimethylamino)thiophen-2'-yl)vinyl]-1-methylpyridinium iodide (DAST), and 4-methoxy-ß-nitrostyrene (MNS), to alter the solid-state packing of these NLO molecules and manipulate their centrosymmetric arrangements. BrP5 forms 2:1 host-guest complexes with OM and DAST, while it forms a 1:1 host-guest complex with MNS. Experimental results show that the pillar[5]arene and each of these three NLO guests form a nanocapsule architecture along with an overall centrosymmetric crystal structure. However, the random orientation of OM and DAST molecules inside the 2:1 host-guest complex nanocapsules breaks the local centrosymmetric arrangement of the NLO molecules, resulting in strong SHG. On the contrary, for BrP5⊃MNS, the MNS molecules inside the pillar[5]arene cavities are unable to break the centrosymmetry. They have only one determined orientation in the one-dimensional (1D) channels of BrP5, while other MNS molecules in adjacent channels have the opposite direction. The centrosymmetry of the dipolar chains is strictly maintained with the cancellation of nonlinear polarization, resulting in the quenching of SHG. Furthermore, an ultrasound-induced host-guest crystallization method is developed for the fast preparation of these host-guest composite materials with NLO activity. This work opens a new way to construct solid-state organic NLO materials, which have potential in high-power lasers, optical switches, and imaging applications.

Direct Dioxygen Radical Coupling Driven by Octahedral Ruthenium-Oxygen-Cobalt Collaborative Coordination for Acidic Oxygen Evolution Reaction.

The acidic oxygen evolution reaction (OER) has long been the bottleneck of proton exchange membrane water electrolyzers given its harsh oxidative and corrosive environments. Herein, we suggest an effective strategy to greatly enhance both the acidic OER activity and stability of Co3O4 spinel by atomic Ru selective substitution on the octahedral Co sites. The resulting highly symmetrical octahedral Ru-O-Co collaborative coordination with strong electron coupling effect enables the direct dioxygen radical coupling OER pathway. Indeed, both experiments and theoretical calculations reveal a thermodynamically breakthrough heterogeneous diatomic oxygen mechanism. Additionally, the active Ru-O-Co units are well-maintained upon the acidic OER thanks to the electron transfer from surrounding electron-enriched tetrahedral Co atoms via bridging oxygen bonds that suppresses the overoxidation and thus dissolution of active Ru and Co species. Consequently, the prepared catalyst, even with a low Ru mass loading of ca. 42.8 µg cm-2, exhibits an attractive acidic OER performance with a low overpotential of 200 mV and a low potential decay rate of 0.45 mV h-1 at 10 mA cm-2. Our work suggests an effective strategy to significantly enhance both the acidic OER activity and stability of low-cost electrocatalysts.

Health-related quality of life (HRQoL), anxiety and depression in patients with ureteral stricture: a multi-institutional study.

PURPOSE: To evaluate health-related quality of life (HRQoL), anxiety and depression levels in patients with ureteral stricture (US) and to further investigate factors independently affecting this. METHODS: We prospectively recruited a cohort of 275 consecutive patients with US between June 2020 and April 2021. The participants were required to provide complete sociodemographic, clinical and pathologic information. All patients were administered questionnaires to evaluate HRQoL, anxiety and depression. Multivariate linear regression analyses were performed to assess the contribution of covariates on HRQoL, anxiety and depression. RESULTS: Patients with US, particularly iatrogenic US, scored significantly lower than the Chinese general population in all domains of the SF-36 (all p < 0.001), except SF. Increased age, female and high education attainment were independently associated with poor HRQoL. Interestingly, iatrogenic US, nephrostomy tube placement, urinary symptoms, high anxiety and depression level independently predicted poor HRQoL. Furthermore, the percentages of anxiety and depression cases in patients with US were 31.3% and 20.7%, respectively. Iatrogenic US and urinary symptoms, specifically waist discomfort, were the strongest predictors of increased levels of anxiety and depression. CONCLUSION: Patients with US exhibited poor quality of life and emotional status. Various factors independently predicted worse HRQoL and emotion, which provide potential targets for medical, lifestyle-related, psychological interventions.

Prediction of histologic types in solid lung lesions using preoperative contrast-enhanced CT.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to develop and validate a predicting model for the histologic classification of solid lung lesions based on preoperative contrast-enhanced CT. METHODS: A primary dataset of 1012 patients from Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital (TMUCIH) was randomly divided into a development cohort (708) and an internal validation cohort (304). Patients from the Second Hospital of Shanxi Medical University (SHSMU) were set as an external validation cohort (212). Two clinical factors (age, gender) and twenty-one characteristics on contrast-enhanced CT were used to construct a multinomial multivariable logistic regression model for the classification of seven common histologic types of solid lung lesions. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was used to assess the diagnostic performance of the model in the development and validation cohorts, separately. RESULTS: Multivariable analysis showed that two clinical factors and twenty-one characteristics on contrast-enhanced CT were predictive in lung lesion histologic classification. The mean AUC of the proposed model for histologic classification was 0.95, 0.94, and 0.92 in the development, internal validation, and external validation cohort, respectively. When determining the malignancy of lung lesions based on histologic types, the mean AUC of the model was 0.88, 0.86, and 0.90 in three cohorts. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated that by utilizing both clinical and CT characteristics on contrast-enhanced CT images, the proposed model could not only effectively stratify histologic types of solid lung lesions, but also enabled accurate assessment of lung lesion malignancy. Such a model has the potential to avoid unnecessary surgery for patients and to guide clinical decision-making for preoperative treatment. KEY POINTS: • Clinical and CT characteristics on contrast-enhanced CT could be used to differentiate histologic types of solid lung lesions. • Predicting models using preoperative contrast-enhanced CT could accurately assessment of tumor malignancy based on predicted histologic types.

Ligustrazine and liguzinediol protect against doxorubicin-induced cardiomyocytes injury by inhibiting mitochondrial apoptosis and autophagy.

Preventing or treating heart failure (HF) by blocking cardiomyocyte apoptosis is an effective strategy that improves survival and reduces ventricular remodelling and dysfunction in the chronic stage. Autophagy is a mechanism that degrades intracellular components and compensates for energy deficiency, which is commonly observed in cardiomyocytes of failed hearts. Cardiomyocytes activated by doxorubicin (DOX) exhibit strong autophagy. This study aims to investigate the potential protective effect of ligustrazine and its derivative liguzinediol on regulating DOX-induced cardiomyocyte apoptosis and explore the use of the embryonic rat heart-derived myoblast cell line H9C2 for identifying novel treatments for HF. The results indicated that it has been demonstrated to reverse myocardial infarction remodelling in failed hearts by promoting autophagy in salvaged cardiomyocytes and anti-apoptosis of cardiomyocytes in granulation tissue. Our study suggests that ligustrazine and liguzinediol can be a promising agents and autophagy is potential pathway in the management of HF.

Correlation of PADI4, GBP1, miR-215, and TMB Expression Levels with Clinical Characteristics and Prognosis of Lung Cancer.

Objective: The study aims to explore the correlation between the expression levels of peptidylarginine deiminase 4 (PADI4), guanylate binding protein 1 (GBP1), miR-215, and tumor mutational burden (TMB) and clinical features and prognosis of lung cancer. Methods: A total of 156 patients with lung cancer admitted to our hospital from July 2021 to March 2022 were selected. Clinical characteristics of patients were collected and PADI4, GBP1, miR-215, and TMB levels were detected. The correlation between the expression levels of PADI4, GBP1, miR-215, and TMB and the clinical characteristics of lung cancer was analyzed. The predictive value of the expression levels of PADI4, GBP1, miR-215, and TMB for lung cancer prognosis was analyzed by the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve. Results: The expression levels of PADI4 and GBP1 were significantly different with respect to smoking history and histopathological type of lung cancer (P < .05). The expression levels of miR-215 and TMB were significantly different in terms of age, smoking history, lymph node metastasis, and tumor node metastasis (TNM) stage of lung cancer (P < .05). ROC curve results showed that the area under the curve (AUC) of PADI4, GBP1, miR-215, and TMB combined to predict the prognosis of lung cancer was 0.814 (0.789-0.912), which was higher than the diagnostic efficacy of single biomarker (P < .05). Its sensitivity and specificity were 85.75% and 89.34%, respectively. Conclusions: The expression levels of PADI4, GBP1, miR-215, and TMB are correlated with the clinical characteristics and prognosis of lung cancer, and can be used as prognostic markers.

A Hydrazine-Nitrate Flow Battery Catalyzed by a Bimetallic RuCo Precatalyst for Wastewater Purification along with Simultaneous Generation of Ammonia and Electricity.

The traditional technologies for industrial and agricultural effluent treatment are often energy-intensive. Herein, we suggest an electrochemical redox strategy for spontaneous and simultaneous decontamination of wastewater and generation of both fuels and electricity at low cost. Using hydrazine and nitrate effluents as a demonstration, we propose a hydrazine-nitrate flow battery (HNFB) that can efficiently purify the wastewater and meanwhile generate both ammonia fuel and electricity with the assistance of our developed bimetallic RuCo precatalyst. Specifically, the battery delivers a peak power density of 12 mW cm-2 and continuously operates for 20 h with an ammonia yield rate of ca. 0.38 mmol h-1 cm-2 under 100 mA cm-2 . The generated electricity can further drive a hydrazine electrolyzer to produce hydrogen fuel. Our work provides an alternative pathway to purify wastewater and generate high value-added fuels at low cost.

SWI/SNF complex gene variations are associated with a higher tumor mutational burden and a better response to immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment: a pan-cancer analysis of next-generation sequencing data corresponding to 4591 cases.

BACKGROUND: Genes related to the SWItch/sucrose nonfermentable (SWI/SNF) chromatin remodeling complex are frequently mutated across cancers. SWI/SNF-mutant tumors are vulnerable to synthetic lethal inhibitors. However, the landscape of SWI/SNF mutations and their associations with tumor mutational burden (TMB), microsatellite instability (MSI) status, and response to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have not been elucidated in large real-world Chinese patient cohorts. METHODS: The mutational rates and variation types of six SWI/SNF complex genes (ARID1A, ARID1B, ARID2, SMARCA4, SMARCB1, and PBRM1) were analyzed retrospectively by integrating next-generation sequencing data of 4591 cases covering 18 cancer types. Thereafter, characteristics of SWI/SNF mutations were depicted and the TMB and MSI status and therapeutic effects of ICIs in the SWI/SNF-mutant and SWI/SNF-non-mutant groups were compared. RESULTS: SWI/SNF mutations were observed in 21.8% of tumors. Endometrial (54.1%), gallbladder and biliary tract (43.4%), and gastric (33.9%) cancers exhibited remarkably higher SWI/SNF mutational rates than other malignancies. Further, ARID1A was the most frequently mutated SWI/SNF gene, and ARID1A D1850fs was identified as relatively crucial. The TMB value, TMB-high (TMB-H), and MSI-high (MSI-H) proportions corresponding to SWI/SNF-mutant cancers were significantly higher than those corresponding to SWI/SNF-non-mutant cancers (25.8 vs. 5.6 mutations/Mb, 44.3% vs. 10.3%, and 16.0% vs. 0.9%, respectively; all p < 0.0001). Furthermore, these indices were even higher for tumors with co-mutations of SWI/SNF genes and MLL2/3. Regarding immunotherapeutic effects, patients with SWI/SNF variations showed significantly longer progression-free survival (PFS) rates than their SWI/SNF-non-mutant counterparts (hazard ratio [HR], 0.56 [95% confidence interval {CI} 0.44-0.72]; p < 0.0001), and PBRM1 mutations were associated with relatively better ICI treatment outcomes than the other SWI/SNF gene mutations (HR, 0.21 [95% CI 0.12-0.37]; p = 0.0007). Additionally, patients in the SWI/SNF-mutant + TMB-H (HR, 0.48 [95% CI 0.37-0.54]; p < 0.0001) cohorts had longer PFS rates than those in the SWI/SNF-non-mutant + TMB-low cohort. CONCLUSIONS: SWI/SNF complex genes are frequently mutated and are closely associated with TMB-H status, MSI-H status, and superior ICI treatment response in several cancers, such as colorectal cancer, gastric cancer, and non-small cell lung cancer. These findings emphasize the necessity and importance of molecular-level detection and interpretation of SWI/SNF complex mutations.

Construction and validation of a ferroptosis-related long noncoding RNA signature in clear cell renal cell carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) is characterized by the accumulation of lipid-reactive oxygen species. Ferroptosis, due to the lipid peroxidation, has been reported to be strongly correlated with tumorigenesis and progression. However, the functions of the ferroptosis process in ccRCC remain unclear. METHODS: After sample cleaning, data integration, and batch effect removal, we used the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) databases to screen out the expression and prognostic value of ferroptosis-related lncRNAs and then performed the molecular subtyping using the K-means method. Then, the functional pathway enrichment and immune microenvironment infiltration between the different clusters were carried out. The results showed a significant difference in immune cell infiltration between the two clusters and the associated marker responded to individualized differences in treatment. Then, least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) Cox regression was used to establish a prognostic signature based on 5 lncRNAs. This signature could accurately predicted patient prognosis and served as an independent clinical risk factor. We then combined significant clinical parameters in multivariate Cox regression and the prognostic signature to construct a clinical predictive nomogram, which provides appropriate guidance for predicting the overall survival of ccRCC patients. RESULTS: The prognostic differentially expressed ferroptosis-related LncRNAs (DEFRlncRNAs) were found, and 5 lncRNAs were finally used to establish the prognostic signature in the TCGA cohort, with subsequently validation in the internal and external cohorts. Moreover, we conducted the molecular subtyping and divided the patients in the TCGA cohort into two clusters showing differences in Hallmark pathways, immune infiltration, immune target expression, and drug therapies. Differences between clusters contributed to individualizing treatment. Furthermore, a nomogram was established to better predict the clinical outcomes of the ccRCC patients. CONCLUSIONS: Our study conducted molecular subtyping and established a novel predictive signature based on the ferroptosis-related lncRNAs, which contributed to the prognostic prediction and individualizing treatment of ccRCC patients.

Ileal ureteral replacement for the management of ureteral avulsion during ureteroscopic lithotripsy: a case series.

INTRODUCTION: To describe our initial experience with ileal ureteral replacement (IUR) for the management of ureteral avulsion (UA) during ureteroscopic lithotripsy. METHODS: Between September 2010 and April 2021, ten patients received ileal ureteral replacement for ureteral avulsion during ureteroscopic lithotripsy. Anterograde urography and computed tomography urography (CTU) were applied to evaluate the lesion. Follow-up was performed with magnetic resonance urography and renal ultrasound as well as clinical assessment of symptoms. We retrospectively analysed the clinical data of ten patients treated with ileal ureteral replacement for the treatment of ureteral avulsion. RESULTS: Four patients underwent open ileal ureteral replacement, two underwent laparoscopic ileal ureteral replacement, and four underwent robotic-assisted ileal ureteral replacement. The mean operative time (OT) was 310 min (range 191-530). The mean estimated blood loss (EBL) was 193 mL (range 10-1000). The mean length of the ileal graft was 21 cm (range 12-25). The median postoperative hospital time was 13 days (range 7-19). All surgeries were effectively completed, and no case required open conversion in laparoscopic and robotic-assisted surgeries. There was no obvious hydronephrosis according to contrast-enhanced computed tomography 3-dimensional reconstruction images without serious complications or progressive hydronephrosis during a median follow-up duration of 51 months (range 5-131), and the success rate was 100%. CONCLUSIONS: Our initial results and experience showed that ileal ureteral replacement for the management of ureteral avulsion during ureteroscopic lithotripsy is safe and feasible.

Reimplementing Guest Shape Sorting of Nonporous Adaptive Crystals via Substituent-Size-Dependent Solid-Vapor Postsynthetic Modification.

Postsynthetic modification (PSM) has been widely used in porous crystalline materials to gain better performance in adsorptive separation of gases or hydrocarbons. We here report that guest adsorption selectivity in a kind of nonporous crystalline materials, namely nonporous adaptive crystals (NACs), can be readily and precisely tuned via a facile substituent-size-dependent solid-vapor PSM method. Before PSM, NACs of pillar[4]arene[1]quinone EtP4Q1 show negligible selectivity for C5 hydrocarbons. PSM with a larger substituent, cyclopentylamine, onto EtP4Q1 NACs does not improve the selectivity, while EtP4Q1 NACs after PSM with a slightly smaller substituent, cyclobutylamine, is endowed with very high preference of n-pentane over cyclopentane. Comprehensive structural analyses confirm that the intermolecular interactions among the host compounds and host-guest interactions between the adsorbent and the adsorbate are the two major factors in determining the guest selectivity.

Platelet-rich plasma inhibits Adriamycin-induced inflammation via blocking the NF-κB pathway in articular chondrocytes.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies showed that doxorubicin could lead to osteoarthritis (OA) by inducing chondrocyte inflammation and apoptosis. Besides, it is reported that platelet-rich plasma (PRP) could suppress the activation of inflammatory NF-κB signaling. Here, we aimed to determine whether PRP was able to exert a protective effect against doxorubicin-induced chondrocyte damages. METHODS: To determine whether PRP protects chondrocytes against destabilization of the medial meniscus (DMM)-induced osteoarthritis, mice were treated with PRP and doxorubicin, and the cartilage destruction was observed through Safranin O-fast green staining and osteoarthritis scoring. ELISA assay was used to check the release of TNF-α and ILs. In vitro, we treated chondrocytes with doxorubicin and PRP; CCK-8 was used to measure cell viability. Western blot, real-time PCR, and ELISA were applied to check apoptosis-related signaling and inflammation-associated factors. RESULTS: The results from the mouse model suggested that PRP attenuated doxorubicin-induced cartilage destruction in vivo. Doxorubicin promoted chondrocyte apoptosis while PRP ameliorated this damage. PRP inhibited doxorubicin-induced dysregulation of cell matrix-related factors, including SOX9, Col2A1, Col10A1, and Aggrecan, reduced protein levels of doxorubicin-induced inflammatory markers, COX-2, and iNOS, and blocked doxorubicin-induced phosphorylation of IκB and NF-κB in articular chondrocytes. CONCLUSIONS: PRP improved doxorubicin-induced damage on chondrocytes. This research might provide a new theoretical basis for the clinical treatment of osteoarthritis caused by doxorubicin.

Knockdown of Foxg1 in supporting cells increases the trans-differentiation of supporting cells into hair cells in the neonatal mouse cochlea.

Foxg1 is one of the forkhead box genes that are involved in morphogenesis, cell fate determination, and proliferation, and Foxg1 was previously reported to be required for morphogenesis of the mammalian inner ear. However, Foxg1 knock-out mice die at birth, and thus the role of Foxg1 in regulating hair cell (HC) regeneration after birth remains unclear. Here we used Sox2CreER/+ Foxg1loxp/loxp mice and Lgr5-EGFPCreER/+ Foxg1loxp/loxp mice to conditionally knock down Foxg1 specifically in Sox2+ SCs and Lgr5+ progenitors, respectively, in neonatal mice. We found that Foxg1 conditional knockdown (cKD) in Sox2+ SCs and Lgr5+ progenitors at postnatal day (P)1 both led to large numbers of extra HCs, especially extra inner HCs (IHCs) at P7, and these extra IHCs with normal hair bundles and synapses could survive at least to P30. The EdU assay failed to detect any EdU+ SCs, while the SC number was significantly decreased in Foxg1 cKD mice, and lineage tracing data showed that much more tdTomato+ HCs originated from Sox2+ SCs in Foxg1 cKD mice compared to the control mice. Moreover, the sphere-forming assay showed that Foxg1 cKD in Lgr5+ progenitors did not significantly change their sphere-forming ability. All these results suggest that Foxg1 cKD promotes HC regeneration and leads to large numbers of extra HCs probably by inducing direct trans-differentiation of SCs and progenitors to HCs. Real-time qPCR showed that cell cycle and Notch signaling pathways were significantly down-regulated in Foxg1 cKD mice cochlear SCs. Together, this study provides new evidence for the role of Foxg1 in regulating HC regeneration from SCs and progenitors in the neonatal mouse cochlea.

Utility of the optical quality analysis system for decision-making in Nd: YAG laser posterior capsulotomy in patients with light posterior capsule opacity.

BACKGROUND: A prospective cohort study was performed to evaluate whether the Optical Quality Analysis System (OQAS) can serve as a valuable additional indicator for appropriate posterior capsulotomy referral. METHODS: One hundred and five eyes from 96 patients undergoing capsulotomy were divided into precapsulotomy logMAR CDVA ≤0.1 group and logMAR CDVA > 0.1 group. CDVA, and the Visual Function 14 index (VF-14) score were estimated before and 1 month after capsulotomy. The objective scattering index (OSI) value was measured by using the OQAS. Posterior capsule opacification (PCO) severity was assessed with Evaluation of PCO 2000 (EPCO 2000) software. RESULTS: In logMAR CDVA > 0.1 group, the correlations of OSI, logMAR CDVA, EPCO score and VF-14 score were very strong preoperatively. In logMAR CDVA ≤0.1 group, preoperatively, OSI was correlated with logMAR CDVA (r = 0.451), EPCO score (r = 0.789), and VF-14 score (r = 0.852). LogMAR CDVA has weak correlation with VF-14 score (r = - 0.384) and EPCO score (r = 0.566). VF-14 score was correlated with EPCO score (r = - 0.669). In the logMAR CDVA ≤0.1 group, there was no significant difference in logMAR CDVA between precapsulotomy and postcapsulotomy (P > 0.05). In the two groups, all the other optical quality parameters were significantly improved after capsulotomy (P < 0.05). In logMAR CDVA > 0.1 group, the area under the curve of the ROC of the OSI was 0.996 (P = 0.000). In logMAR CDVA ≤0.1 group, the area under the curve of the ROC of the OSI was 0.943 (P = 0.000). CONCLUSIONS: The OSI was useful for evaluating of PCO and prediction of beneficial capsulotomy. Especially for patients with slight PCO and better visual acuity, OSI is more valuable than CDVA and completely objective examination. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study protocol was registered at the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry. Register: ChiCTR1800018842 (Registered Date: October 13th, 2018).

Vapochromic crystals: understanding vapochromism from the perspective of crystal engineering.

Vapochromic materials, which undergo colour and/or emission changes upon exposure to certain vapours or gases, have received increasing attention recently because of their wide range of applications in, e.g., chemical sensors, light-emitting diodes, and environmental monitors. Vapochromic crystals, as a specific kind of vapochromic materials, can be investigated from the perspective of crystal engineering to understand the mechanism of vapochromism. Moreover, understanding the vapochromism mechanism will be beneficial to design and prepare task-specific vapochromic crystals as one kind of low-cost 'electronic nose' to detect toxic gases or volatile organic compounds. This review provides important information in a broad scientific context to develop new vapochromic materials, which covers organometallic or coordination complexes and organic crystals, as well as the different mechanisms of the related vapochromic behaviour. In addition, recent examples of supramolecular vapochromic crystals and metal-organic-framework (MOFs) vapochromic crystals are introduced.

Separation of 2-Chloropyridine/3-Chloropyridine by Nonporous Adaptive Crystals of Pillararenes with Different Substituents and Cavity Sizes.

Two monochloropyridine isomers, 2-chloropyridine (2-CP) and 3-chloropyridine (3-CP), are in need of a more effective separation method besides rectification. Herein we offer a facile and energy-saving adsorptive separation strategy using nonporous adaptive crystals of perethylated pillar[5]arene (EtP5), perethylated pillar[6]arene (EtP6), perbromoethylated pillar[5]arene (BrP5), and perbromoethylated pillar[6]arene (BrP6), which possess different cavity sizes and substituents and have never been employed in the separation of single-substituted heterocyclic aromatic compounds. BrP6 crystals show a marked preference for 2-CP in the equimolar mixture of 2-CP and 3-CP, affording it with 96.4% purity. Single crystal diffraction experiments demonstrate that BrP6 has stronger host-guest interactions with 2-CP than 3-CP. The cycling experiments demonstrate that BrP6 crystals can be used at least five times without losing their adsorption selectivity or capacity.

miR-150-5p suppresses the stem cell-like characteristics of glioma cells by targeting the Wnt/ß-catenin signaling pathway.

Glioma is the most common brain tumor malignancy with high mortality and poor prognosis. Emerging evidence suggests that cancer stem cells are the key culprit in the development of cancer. MicroRNAs have been reported to be dysregulated in many cancers, while the mechanism underlying miR-150-5p in glioma progression and proportion of stem cells is unclear. The expression levels of miR-150-5p and catenin beta 1 (CTNNB1, which encodes ß-catenin) were measured by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and western blot. The expression levels of downstream genes of the Wnt/ß-catenin pathway and stem cell markers were detected by qRT-PCR. Tumorigenesis was investigated by cell viability, colony formation, and tumor growth in vitro and in vivo. The interaction between miR-150-5p and ß-catenin was explored via bioinformatics analysis and luciferase activity assay. We found that miR-150-5p was downregulated in glioma and its overexpression inhibited cell proliferation, colony formation, and tumor growth. Moreover, miR-150-5p directly suppressed CTNNB1 and negatively regulated the abundances of downstream genes of the Wnt/ß-catenin pathway and stem cell markers. Furthermore, miR-150-5p expression was decreased and ß-catenin level was enhanced in CD133+ glioma stem cells. Knockdown of miR-150-5p contributed to CD133- cells with stem cell-like phenotype, whereas overexpression of miR-150-5p suppressed CD133+ glioma stem cell-like characteristics. In conclusion, miR-150-5p inhibited the progression of glioma by controlling stem cell-like characteristics via regulating the Wnt/ß-catenin pathway, providing a novel target for glioma treatment.

Digital Health Technologies Respond to the COVID-19 Pandemic In a Tertiary Hospital in China: Development and Usability Study.

BACKGROUND: The outbreak of COVID-19 has caused a continuing global pandemic. Hospitals are integral to the control and prevention of COVID-19; however, they are facing numerous challenges during the epidemic. OBJECTIVE: Our study aimed to introduce the practical experience of the design and implementation of a web-based COVID-19 service platform at a tertiary hospital in China as well as the preliminary results of the implementation. METHODS: The web-based COVID-19 service platform was deployed within the health care system of the Guangdong Second Provincial General Hospital and Internet Hospital; the function of the platform was to provide web-based medical services for both members of the public and lay health care workers. The focal functions of this system included automated COVID-19 screening, related symptom monitoring, web-based consultation, and psychological support; it also served as a COVID-19 knowledge hub. The design and process of each function are introduced. The usage data for the platform service were collected and are represented by three periods: the pre-epidemic period (December 22, 2019, to January 22, 2020, 32 days), the controlled period (January 23 to March 31, 2020, 69 days), and the postepidemic period (April 1 to June 30, 2020, 91 days). RESULTS: By the end of June 2020, 96,642 people had used the automated COVID-19 screening and symptom monitoring systems 161,884 and 7,795,194 times, respectively. The number of general web-based consultation services per day increased from 30 visits in the pre-epidemic period to 122 visits during the controlled period, then dropped to 73 visits in the postepidemic period. The psychological counseling program served 636 clients during the epidemic period. For people who used the automated COVID-19 screening service, 160,916 (99.40%) of the total users were classified in the no risk category. 464 (0.29%) of the people were categorized as medium to high risk, and 12 people (0.01%) were recommended for further COVID-19 testing and treatment. Among the 96,642 individuals who used the COVID-19 related symptoms monitoring service, 6696 (6.93%) were symptomatic at some point during the monitoring period. Fever was the most frequently reported symptom, with 2684/6696 symptomatic people (40.1%) having had this symptom. Cough and sore throat were also relatively frequently reported by the 6696 symptomatic users (1657 people, 24.7%, and 1622 people, 24.2%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The web-based COVID-19 service platform implemented at a tertiary hospital in China is exhibited to be a role model for using digital health technologies to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The digital solutions of automated COVID-19 screening, daily symptom monitoring, web-based care, and knowledge propagation have plausible acceptability and feasibility for complementing offline hospital services and facilitating disease control and prevention.

Intestinal interposition for complex ureteral reconstruction: A comprehensive review.

Long ureteral defects have remained a challenge to urologists for a long time. Bowel interposition, including ileal ureter, appendiceal interposition and reconfigured colon substitution, has gained wide acceptance, even though it is a complicated procedure and associated with some potential complications. Mucus obstruction and metabolic disorders are common complications of intestinal substitution. To circumvent these troubles, modified techniques, such as tapering the bowel graft, intestinal onlay flap and the Yang-Monti procedure, are used. In particular, Yang-Monti ileal ureter replacement is a highly effective option for ureteral reconstruction, and the incidence of complications would be significantly reduced in select patients. After being combined with the Boari flap or psoas hitch technique, the length of intestinal segment used can also be significantly reduced. Most recent long-term results suggest that ileal ureter replacement with antireflux anastomosis seems to be remarkably free of complications, and we highly praise the distal nipple valve technique. Appendiceal interposition is available for patients with normal appendix, and usually this procedure is limited to reconstructing the right ureter. Appendiceal onlay ureteroplasty has emerged as a feasible and effective option to manage patients with complex proximal and mid-ureteral strictures of the right side. The colon is rarely used for ureteral reconstruction because of its large caliber and mucous surface area. However, a reconfigured colon segment is a good substitute to reconstruct long-segment ureteral defects, and long-term follow up confirmed minimal complications and improved renal function. This review provides a comprehensive perspective on complex ureteral reconstruction and replacement using intestinal segments, in particular, ileal ureter replacement.

Bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells-derived exosomes prevent oligodendrocyte apoptosis through exosomal miR-134 by targeting caspase-8.

Ischemic stroke causes severe brain damage and remains one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The microRNA-134 (miR-134) is involved in regulating the process of ischemia injury in neural cells and brain with ischemia stroke. The role of miR-134 in ischemic stroke remains poorly understood. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effect of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs)-derived exosomal miR-134 on rat oligodendrocytes (OLs) apoptosis and its underlying mechanism of action. The results demonstrated that levels of miR-134 in BMSCs-exosome decreased but increased incaspase-8 after oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) treatment. Exosomal miR-134 significantly inhibited apoptosis by decreasing caspase-8 expression and activity in OGD-treated group cultured with BMSCs-exosome and OLs. In addition, the miR-134 mimics decreased caspase-8 expression in OGD-treated OLs, whereas miR-134 inhibitors exacerbated the changes in the expression of the procaspase-8 and caspase-8 cleaved product proteins caused by OGD. The caspase-8 knockdown using caspase-8 small interfering RNA decreased OLs apoptosis, reversing the improvements that the miR-134 inhibited cells apoptosis by targeting caspase-8. Taken together, these results demonstrated that BMSCs-derived exosomes suppressed OLs apoptosis through exosomal miR-134 by negatively regulating the caspase-8-dependent apoptosis pathway and may, therefore, be a novel potential therapeutic target for ischemic stroke treatment.