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Gossypin is a flavone that was originally isolated from Hibiscus vitifolius and has traditionally been used for the treatment of diabetes, jaundice, and inflammation. Recently, gossypin was found to ... have potent anticancer properties; however, its effect on human gliomas still remain unknown. To investigate the potential anticancer effects of gossypin on malignant gliomas and analyze the associated molecular mechanisms, we treated human glioma U251 cells with gossypin. Our study showed that the treatment of U251 cells with gossypin inhibited cell proliferation in a dose- and time-dependent manner and was observed to be minimally toxic to normal human astrocytes. Gossypin’s effect on cell cycle distribution was observed, and we found that it induced G2/M-phase arrest in U251 cells. An analysis of cell-cycle regulatory proteins indicated that the arresting effect of gossypin on the cell cycle at G2/M phase was involved in the phosphorylation of cell division cycle 25C (Cdc25C) tyrosine phosphatase via the activation of checkpoint kinase 1 (Chk1). These findings indicate that gossypin is a potential treatment of gliomas because of gossypin’s potential to regulate the proliferation of U251 cells via the cell-cycle regulatory proteins Chk1 and Cdc25C. more

:  Melatonin has been reported to reduce infarct volumes induced by transient middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion. We examined whether melatonin could improve electrophysiological and ... neurobehavioral recoveries in rats after 72 hr of reperfusion following 1.5 hr of MCA occlusion. Melatonin (5 mg/kg) or vehicle was given intravenously at the commencement of reperfusion. Neurobehavioral outcome was serially examined, and somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEP) were recorded prior to ischemia and at 72 hr after the onset of reperfusion. Brain infarction was assessed upon killing. Before ischemia‐reperfusion, stable SSEP waveforms were consistently recorded after individual fore‐ or hindpaw stimulation. The amplitude between the first positive (P1) and the first negative (N1) peaks and the P1 latency did not differ significantly between controls and melatonin‐treated animals. At 72 hr of reperfusion, controls had severely depressant SSEPs recorded from ischemic fore‐ and hindpaw cortical fields, and the amplitudes decreased to 36 and 35% of baselines, respectively (P < 0.001). These animals also had transcallosal electrophysiological diaschisis in the SSEPs recorded at the contralateral hindpaw cortical field (P < 0.01). Relative to controls, melatonin‐treated animals not only had significantly improved amplitudes of the SSEPs recorded from both ischemic fore‐ and hindpaw cortical fields, by 33 and 37% of baselines, respectively (P < 0.001), but also exhibited diminished transcallosal electrophysiological diaschisis following ischemia‐reperfusion. In addition, melatonin improved sensory and motor neurobehavioral outcomes by 40 and 28%, respectively (P < 0.001), and reduced cortical and striatal infarct sizes by 32 and 40%, respectively (P < 0.05). Thus, delayed intravenous administration with melatonin both enhances electrophysiological and neurobehavioral recoveries and reduces cortical and striatal infarct sizes after cerebral ischemia and reperfusion injury. more

P-InGaN/p-GaN superlattices （SLs） are developed for a hole accumulation layer （HAL） of a blue light emitting diode （LED）. Free hole concentration as high as 2.6× 1018 cm-3 is achieved by adjusting ... the Cp2Mg flow rate during the growth of p-InGaN/p-GaN SLs. The p-InGaN/p-GaN SLs with appropriate Cp2Mg flow rates are then incorporated between the multi-quantum well and A1GaN electron blocking layer as an HAL, which leads to the enhancement of light output power by 29% at 200 mA, compared with the traditional LED without such SL HAL. Meanwhile, the efficiency droop is also effectively alleviated in the LED with the SL HAL. The improved performance is attributed to the increased hole injection efficiency, and the reduced electron leakage by inserting the p-type SL HAL. more

Background Monocytes and macrophages in atherosclerotic plaque lead to plaque instability.The aim of the study was to determine if plaque neovascularization led to inflammation.Methods Patients were ... consecutively enrolled if their carotid intimal media thickness was ＞2 mm,as revealed by duplex ultrasound.The patients then underwent dynamic contrast enhanced magnetic resonance imaging （DCE MRI） and fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose （18F-FDG） positron emission tomography combined with computed tomography （PET CT）.A target to background ratio （TBR） of ＞1.25 or ＜1.25 served as the cutoff point for the presence and absence of inflammation,respectively.Results Twenty-six patients underwent bilateral carotid DCE MRI and 24 patients also underwent PET CT.One hundred and fifty-five plaques were evaluated by both DCE MRI and PET CT.There was no significant difference in plaque morphology between the TBR ＞1.25 （n=61） and TBR ＜1.25 （n=94） groups.No significant differences were found in plasma volume and transfer constant between the TBR ＞1.25 and TBR ＜1.25 groups.Conclusion Our study did not find a significant correlation between plaque neovascularization and the aggregation of inflammatory cells. more

Wang et al. (Research Articles, 11 December 2020, p. 1295), using photosynthesis proxies from long-term satellite records, report a significant decline in CO2 fertilization effects. We find that ... small systematic biases in Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) data affect their analysis to the degree that the key finding is not robust. Caution is recommended when using AVHRR to detect changes in near-infrared reflectance of vegetation (NIRv) trends and vegetation indices. more

A 13 X-chromosomal short tandem repeat (STR) multiplex system (DXS6807, DXS8378, DSX9902, DXS7132, DXS9898, DXS6809, DXS6789, DXS7424, DXS101, GATA172D05, HPRTB, DXS8377, and DXS7423) was tested on ... 1,037 DNA samples from eight population groups currently living in Taiwan. Different distributions of the allelic frequencies in different populations were presented. DXS8377 and DXS101 were the two most polymorphic loci in these eight populations, whereas DXS7423 was the least informative marker in most of the populations studied. The genetic distances between the populations and the constructed phylogenetic tree revealed a long genetic distance between Asian and Caucasian populations as well as isolation of the Tao population. The phylogenetic tree grouped populations into clusters compatible with their ethnogeographic relationships. This 13 X-chromosomal short tandem repeat multiplex system offers a considerable number of polymorphic patterns in different populations. This system can be useful in forensic identification casework and ethnogeographic research. more

Primary angiosarcoma of the spleen is a very rare and aggressive neoplasm with poor prognosis. Splenic angiosarcoma rarely occurs in the pediatric group (18 years or younger). Survival duration for ... pediatric patients is very limited. We report a 7-year-old boy with splenic angiosarcoma presented with left upper quadrant abdominal pain and a palpable abdominal mass. Hematogram revealed anemia. Abdominal ultrasound revealed a heterogeneous mass about 12 cm in diameter in the left upper abdomen. Abdominal computed tomography demonstrated a huge heterogeneous mass with some cystic components closely attached to the spleen. Splenectomy was performed. Histological examination of the surgical specimen showed that this tumor had typical feature of angiosarcoma including vasoformative architecture, highly pleomorphic tumor cells with irregular, hyperchromatic and prominent nucleoli, and some mitosis. The postoperative course was uneventful. The patient was disease free at 16 years after surgery. This is the longest reported duration of survival in a patient with splenic angiosarcoma. more

背景：2016年起愛滋感染者的服藥時機為診斷後立即服藥，選擇合適臨床評估工具，客觀地評估感染者服藥準備度對服藥的決定十分重要。目的：(1)比較開始服藥與未曾服藥的準備度差異，(2)比較開始服藥與未曾服藥二組其服藥準備度隨時間變化情形，(3)鑑別決定服藥之服藥準備度最佳臨床切點。方法：採多中心世代研究法，共297位2014年後新診斷愛滋感染尚未開始服藥者，共追蹤4個時程：基準值、用藥後一個月、3-6個月及9-12個月。資料收集包括人口學、服藥準備度中文量表（HIV Medication Readiness Scale, HMRS）及兩題簡易自評量尺（自覺服藥準備度、自覺信心程度）。結果：224位感染者（75.4%）決定開始服用抗病毒藥物。開始服藥者服藥準備度平均分數隨追蹤時程逐漸增加，且平均分數皆顯著高於未曾服藥者（p ＜ .001）。簡易自評量尺之平均分數，開始服藥者皆顯著高於未曾服藥者（p ＜ .001）。各工具最佳切點分別為：HMRS 23.5分；自覺服藥準備度5.5分；自覺信心程度6.5分。結論／實務應用：本研究顯示中文版HMRS 23.5分可做為評估愛滋感染者服藥時機的最佳切點。愛滋照顧專業人員可以簡易自評量尺做為評估感染者的服藥準備度是否決定開始服藥的工具。

Several surgical treatments have been proposed for treating chronic pancreatitis (CP), including standard pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD), pylorus-preserving PD, Beger's procedure, and Frey's procedure; ... however, few studies have compared pre- and postoperative pancreatic function in patients undergoing surgery for CP. Between 1996 and 2003, 42 patients with CP underwent pancreatic head resection; as PD in 17 and as Frey's procedure in 25. Frey's procedure was chosen if the pancreatic duct was dilated more than 5 mm. We conducted this prospective, nonrandomized study to compare the pre- and postoperative status after PD or Frey's procedure by evaluating pancreatic function and symptom relief. The demographic features, surgical morbidity, and mortality were similar in the two groups. Pancreatic exocrine function improved, pain subsided, and complications of the adjacent organs resolved after surgery in both groups. Similar postoperative endocrine and exocrine functional results were observed in both groups. Frey's procedure was associated with a significantly shorter hospital stay than PD (10.6 versus 15.4 days, respectively; (P < 0.0001)). There were no significant difference in operative time, surgical morbidity, or mortality rates between PD and Frey's procedure. Both procedures were equally effective in terms of pain relief, improvement of pancreatic exocrine function, and control of complications affecting the adjacent organs; however, Frey's procedure was associated with a significantly shorter hospital stay. more