Purpose
Long-term follow-up for pedicled anterolateral thigh (ALT) flap with vastus lateralis and tensor fascia lata for complex abdominal wall reconstruction is rarely reported. This study aimed to ...evaluate the feasibility of extended pedicled ALT flap.
Methods
This retrospective review was conducted at a single medical center between 2011 and 2018. A total of 35 patients with complex abdominal wall defects reconstructed with partition (
n
= 20) or pedicled ALT flap (
n
= 15) were enrolled. Data on gender, age, fascial defect size, operation time, hospital days, follow-up duration, and complications were obtained. Mann–Whitney test evaluated the differences in continuous data, and Chi-square test analyzed categorical data.
Results
The partition technique was associated with 10.15 cm (range 8–14 cm) mean defect size, 146 min average operation time, 13.5 hospital days, and 95.42 months of mean follow-up duration. Short- and long-term complications were observed in seven (35%) and six (30%) cases, respectively. The pedicled ALT flap technique was associated with 13.4 cm (range 10.6–16 cm), 342.86 min average operation time, 22.33 hospital days, and 69.4 months of mean follow-up duration. Short- and long-term complications were observed in six (40%) and five (33%) cases, respectively. Significant differences in defect size, operative time, hospital days, and donor-site skin graft loss (
p
< 0.05) were observed between the groups.
Conclusions
Extended pedicled ALT flap is a reliable option for complex abdominal wall reconstruction. Compared with the partition technique group, the extended pedicled ALT group had closure of larger fascia defects. However, it was associated with a higher risk of donor-site skin graft loss and longer operative time and hospital days.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Human action recognition (HAR) is growing in machine learning with a wide range of applications. One challenging aspect of HAR is recognizing human actions while playing music, further complicated by ...the need to recognize the musical notes being played. This paper proposes a deep learning-based method for simultaneous HAR and musical note recognition in music performances. We conducted experiments on Morin khuur performances, a traditional Mongolian instrument. The proposed method consists of two stages. First, we created a new dataset of Morin khuur performances. We used motion capture systems and depth sensors to collect data that includes hand keypoints, instrument segmentation information, and detailed movement information. We then analyzed RGB images, depth images, and motion data to determine which type of data provides the most valuable features for recognizing actions and notes in music performances. The second stage utilizes a Spatial Temporal Attention Graph Convolutional Network (STA-GCN) to recognize musical notes as continuous gestures. The STA-GCN model is designed to learn the relationships between hand keypoints and instrument segmentation information, which are crucial for accurate recognition. Evaluation on our dataset demonstrates that our model outperforms the traditional ST-GCN model, achieving an accuracy of 81.4%.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
Background and Objective
It is known that chronic periodontal infection can magnify the cytokine responses in patients with diabetes. Hyperglycemia increases the proinflammatory status, including the ...levels of advanced glycation end‐products (AGEs), in patients with periodontitis. However, whether AGEs have additional effects on the production of those proinflammatory cytokines in diabetic patients with periodontitis is still unknown. To examine in vitro the effect of hyperglycemia and AGEs on the amounts of interleukin (IL)‐6 and IL‐8 produced in periodontally infected gingiva, human gingival fibroblasts (HGFs) were stimulated with glucose, AGE‐modified bovine serum albumin (AGE‐BSA) and Porphyromonas gingivalis LPS in the present study.
Material and Methods
Primary culture of HGFs was incubated with various concentrations of AGE‐BSA (0, 50, 100 and 200 μg/mL) and LPS (0, 10, 100 or 1000 ng/mL) at two different glucose concentrations – normal glucose (5 mm) and high glucose (25 mm). The amounts of IL‐6 and IL‐8 produced by HGFs were evaluated using ELISA. Expression of the AGE receptor on HGFs was determined by flow cytometry.
Results
High glucose stimulated a significant increase in the production of IL‐6 and IL‐8 by HGFs compared with normal glucose. This enhanced production of IL‐6 and IL‐8 could also be observed in the presence of LPS and/or AGE‐BSA. When both LPS and AGE‐BSA were present, especially at high concentrations (≥ 500 μg/mL of LPS and ≥ 25 μg/mL of AGE‐BSA), a synergistic effect on IL‐8 production was found in the high‐glucose condition.
Conclusions
A synergistic effect of the production of IL‐8 could be induced in HGFs with the combination of high glucose, LPS and AGEs.
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CMK, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Purpose
This study tries to compare three methods in complex abdominal wall reconstruction.
Methods
A retrospective review was conducted at a single medical center between December 2008 and May 2019. ...Forty-seven patients who received abdominal fascia repair were enrolled. The patients were divided into three groups: A component separation technique (CST), B (partition technique), and C extended anterolateral thigh (ALT) flap. All relevant patient information was collected. Statistical analysis including one-way analysis of variance, Chi-square test, and the receiver operating characteristic curve were used.
Results
There were no significant differences between the group results related to gender, age, BMI, follow-up, diabetes mellitus, tobacco, or short-, and long-term complications. However, there were significant differences in fascia defect size between groups (group A: 7.6 cm vs. group B: 10.76 cm vs. group C: 13.64 cm). The averaged operative time in group C (339.25 mins) was significantly longer than that in group A (145.40 mins) and B (152.37 mins). The hospitalization in group C (24.1 days) was significantly longer than that in group A (8.2 days) and B (10.3 days). The complication thresholds of group A and group B are 9.45 cm and 11.75 cm, respectively.
Conclusion
This study suggests that extended ALT flap provides the largest fascia defect closure, followed orderly by partition technique and CST, but requires longer operative time and hospitalization. There are no significant differences in postoperative complications between three groups. A prospective study with indications based on these findings is suggested.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
By using a low temperature scanning tunneling microscope we have probed the superconducting energy gap of epitaxially grown Pb films as a function of the layer thickness in an ultrathin regime (5-18 ...ML). The layer-dependent energy gap and transition temperature (Tc) show persistent quantum oscillations down to the lowest thickness without any sign of suppression. Moreover, by comparison with the quantum-well states measured above Tc and the theoretical calculations, we found that the Tc oscillation correlates directly with the density of states oscillation at E(F) . The oscillation is manifested by the phase matching of the Fermi wavelength and the layer thickness, resulting in a bilayer periodicity modulated by a longer wavelength quantum beat.
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CMK, CTK, FMFMET, IJS, NUK, PNG, UM
High-grade serous ovarian carcinomas (HGSOCs) with BRCA1/2 mutations exhibit improved outcome and sensitivity to double-strand DNA break (DSB)-inducing agents (i.e., platinum and poly(ADP-ribose) ...polymerase inhibitors PARPis) due to an underlying defect in homologous recombination (HR). However, resistance to platinum and PARPis represents a significant barrier to the long-term survival of these patients. Although BRCA1/2-reversion mutations are a clinically validated resistance mechanism, they account for less than half of platinum-resistant BRCA1/2-mutated HGSOCs. We uncover a resistance mechanism by which a microRNA, miR-622, induces resistance to PARPis and platinum in BRCA1 mutant HGSOCs by targeting the Ku complex and restoring HR-mediated DSB repair. Physiologically, miR-622 inversely correlates with Ku expression during the cell cycle, suppressing non-homologous end-joining and facilitating HR-mediated DSB repair in S phase. Importantly, high expression of miR-622 in BRCA1-deficient HGSOCs is associated with worse outcome after platinum chemotherapy, indicating microRNA-mediated resistance through HR rescue.
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•miR-622 induces resistance to PARP inhibitors and cisplatin in BRCA1-deficient cells•miR-622 levels in BRCA1-mutant ovarian tumors correlates with survival of patients•The Ku complex is directly downregulated by miR-622 to suppress the NHEJ pathway•MiR-622 helps to balance HR and NHEJ pathways for DSB repair during the cell cycle
Choi et al. show that expression of miR-622 induces resistance to PARP inhibitors and cisplatin in BRCA1-mutant ovarian tumors and correlates with survival of patients. miR-622 suppresses NHEJ by downregulating expression of the Ku complex and facilitates homologous recombination mediated repair of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) in the S phase of cycling cells.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
The process of in situ chemical oxidation (ISCO) by persulfate (S2O82−) can be accelerated by metal ion activation, which more effectively degrades subsurface pollutants by enhancing sulfate radical ...(SO4−) generation. This study compared the results of propachlor degradation by Cu2+ and Fe2+ activated persulfate and revealed differing degradation kinetics and mechanisms between the two types of activation system. The activation of persulfate by Fe2+ ions generally resulted in rapid degradation in the early stage, but was accompanied by a dramatic decrease in efficiency due to the rapid depletion of Fe2+ by the sulfate radicals generated. In contrast, the Cu2+ activated persulfate had a longer lasting degradation effect and a proportionally greater degradation enhancement at elevated Cu2+ concentrations. An optimal Fe2+ concentration should be sought to activate the persulfate, as a high Fe2+ concentration of 2.5mM or above, as was used in this study, may inhibit propachlor degradation due to the competitive consumption of sulfate radicals by the excess Fe2+ ions. Higher temperatures (55°C compared with 30°C) resulted in enhanced metal activation, particularly with the Cu2+ activated system. Furthermore, acidic conditions were found to be more favorable for propachlor degradation by metal activated persulfate. The ecotoxicity of degraded propachlor samples, which was indicated by average well color development (AWCD) for its microbial community activity, was confirmed to be decreased during the degradation processes with these two ions activated persulfate.
► Propachlor can be efficiently degraded by persulfate activated by either Cu2+ or Fe2+ ions. ► Different degradation kinetics was observed in Cu2+ and Fe2+ activated persulfate. ► Reaction conditions influence the activated persulfate differently by Cu2+ and Fe2+. ► The ecotoxicity of propachlor sample was confirmed decreased by Cu2+/Fe2+ activated persulfate.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
Diabetes mellitus is associated with extensive morbidity and mortality in any human community. It is well understood that the burden of diabetes is attributed to chronic progressive damage in major ...end-organs, but it is underappreciated that the most superficial and transparent organ affected by diabetes is the cornea. Different corneal components (epithelium, nerves, immune cells and endothelium) underpin specific systemic complications of diabetes. Just as diabetic retinopathy is a marker of more generalized microvascular disease, corneal nerve changes can predict peripheral and autonomic neuropathy, providing a window of opportunity for early treatment. In addition, alterations of immune cells in corneas suggest an inflammatory component in diabetic complications. Furthermore, impaired corneal epithelial wound healing may also imply more widespread disease. The non-invasiveness and improvement in imaging technology facilitates the emergence of new screening tools. Systemic control of diabetes can improve ocular surface health, possibly aided by anti-inflammatory and vasoprotective agents.
Low temperature atmospheric pressure plasma (produced by a 250 mW pulsed gliding arc discharge) with water spray was utilized to inactivate bacteria colonies of Escherichia coli grown on the surface ...of an agar substrate. The pH, solution conductivity, H2O2, and nitrate concentrations were determined for air and argon carrier gases and different water flow rates. Control experiments conducted by spraying solutions of H2O2 in the absence of the discharge demonstrated that this chemical and its delivery by spraying account for approximately two to three orders of magnitude (depending upon bacterial loading) of the bacterial colony decontamination process for both carrier gases when bacteria are allowed to grow on the agar plate to form a biofilm. Reactive species or other factors arising from the gas flow from the plasma with the water spray caused bacteria inactivation of one to two orders of magnitude beyond those of spraying H2O2 alone.
Water sprayed through a low power pulsed plasma leads to relatively large concentrations of hydrogen peroxide which is a major factor in bacteria inactivation on agar substrates downstream of the plasma. Other factors or species formed in the plasma inactive bacteria by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude beyond the chemical effects of hydrogen peroxide.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
The formation rates and energy yields of H2 and H2O2 from pure water exposed to a nonthermal pulsed plasma-gliding arc reactor equipped with a spray nozzle were determined. Both H2 and H2O2 formation ...rates were the highest with the argon carrier where the maximum energy yields were 13 and 81 g/kWh, respectively. Both H2O2 and H2 were suppressed with carrier gases (air and nitrogen) where significant amounts of nitrates are formed. The energy yields of H2 and H2O2 with the argon carrier gas in the present work are higher than previously reported microwave plasma, corona, and AC gliding arc. The results for H2 are very close to an ideal quenching limit of 45% of thermodynamic limitations, thereby suggesting that the presence of water droplets in the plasma enhance energy yield through enhanced quenching of radicals and reactions that destroy the desired molecular products.
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IJS, KILJ, NUK, PNG, UL, UM
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