Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) combined with multitarget tyrosine kinase inhibitors (MTKIs) exert a synergistic effect and are effective in unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (uHCC). However, ...precise data regarding the real-world clinical applications of these combination therapies in uHCC are lacking. This study compared the treatment efficacy of sorafenib versus lenvatinib in combination with programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) inhibitors in patients with uHCC in a clinical setting. Among 208 patients with uHCC treated with PD-1 inhibitors, 88 were administered with ICIs in combination with sorafenib or lenvatinib. The treatment response and survival outcomes were evaluated. Predictors of survival were assessed by multivariate analysis. A total of 49 patients were treated with PD-1 inhibitors combined with sorafenib, and 39 patients were treated with PD-1 inhibitors combined with lenvatinib. The lenvatinib group exhibited a stronger objective response rate (ORR) (20.51% vs. 16.33%) and had a higher disease control rate (41.03% vs. 28.57%) than did the sorafenib group. The median overall survival was longer in the lenvatinib group than the sorafenib group (13.1 vs. 7.8 months; hazard ratio = 0.39,
= 0.017). The incidence of treatment-related adverse events was similar. PD-1 inhibitors combined with lenvatinib can be a feasible treatment strategy for HCC patients receiving MTKI-based combination therapy. PD-1 inhibitors combined with lenvatinib resulted in more favorable survival outcomes without increased toxic effects compared with PD-1 inhibitors with sorafenib. Additional larger-scale and prospective studies should be conducted to verify the study results.
We propose and study a new definition for the effective bandwidths of the broadband chaotic signals, which sums up only those discrete spectral segments of the chaos power spectrum accounting for 80% ...of the total power. Compared to the definitions used conventionally, which tend to overestimate the effective bandwidths of the chaotic signals, the proposed definition measures only the bandwidths that possess significant amounts of power in the chaos spectra. With the proposed definition, the broadband chaos states can be clearly distinguished from the narrowband periodic oscillation states, based on just the values of the effective bandwidths measured. In this paper, the bandwidths of the dynamical states generated with an optically injected semiconductor laser under different definitions are studied and compared. To demonstrate the usefulness of the proposed definition in applications, such as ranging using chaos, the relations between the chaos bandwidths and the peak to sidelobe levels of the autocorrelations of the chaotic signals are also investigated.
This study cross-validated the factor structure of the Self-Stigma Scale-Short (SSS-S) in a cohort of patients with mental illness in southern Taiwan. The measurement invariance of the SSS-S factor ...structure across mental illness and gender was also examined.
The sample consisted of 161 patients with schizophrenia (51.6% males; mean age ± SD = 40.53 ± 10.38 years) and 189 patients with other mental illnesses (34.9% males; mean age = 46.52 ± 11.29 years).
The internal reliability (total score: α = 0.948) and concurrent validity (r = 0.335 to 0.457 with Depression and Somatic Symptoms Scale; r = -0.447 to -0.556 with WHOQOL-BREF) of the SSS-S were both satisfactory, and the results verified that the factor structure in our Taiwan sample (RMSEA = 0.0796, CFA = 0.992) was the same as that of the Hong Kong population. In addition, the results supported the measurement invariance of the SSS-S across mental illness (ΔRMSEAs = -0.0082 to -0.0037, ΔCFAs = 0.000) and gender (ΔRMSEAs = -0.0054 to -0.0008, ΔCFAs = -0.001 to 0.000).
Future studies can use the SSS-S to compare self-stigma between genders and between patients with different kinds of mental illnesses.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Tensor decomposition is critical for compressing data and extracting key features in novel high-dimensional signal processing systems. However, due to the enormous amount of data and the highly ...complicated computations, designing an efficient tensor decomposition processor is very challenging. This paper presents the algorithm and VLSI architecture design of a low-latency and high-throughput tensor decomposition processor. A parallel higher-order orthogonal iteration (P-HOOI) algorithm is proposed where multiple updated matrices are computed concurrently. Thus, a low-latency tensor decomposition is achieved. Furthermore, a novel VLSI architecture is presented so that the efficiency of the component utilization is improved and the hardware complexity is greatly reduced. Therefore, the proposed tensor decomposition processor enhances the processing throughput with minimum employment of hardware components. Performance evaluations based on the post-layout estimations in the ASIC flow and based on the FPGA platform are reported in this paper. Compared with state-of-the-art designs in the literature the proposed tensor decomposition engine greatly enhances the throughput and hardware efficiency.
Developing a stroke health-education mobile app (SHEMA) and examining its effectiveness on improvement of knowledge of stroke risk factors and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in patients with ...stroke.
We recruited 76 stroke patients and randomly assigned them to either the SHEMA intervention (n = 38) or usual care where a stroke health-education booklet was provided (n = 38). Knowledge of stroke risk factors and HRQOL were assessed using the stroke-knowledge questionnaire and European Quality of Life-Five Dimensions (EQ-5D) questionnaire, respectively.
Sixty-three patients completed a post-test survey (the SHEMA intervention, n = 30; traditional stroke health-education, n = 33). Our trial found that patients' mean knowledge score of stroke risk factors was improved after the SHEMA intervention (Mean difference = 2.83; t = 3.44; p = .002), and patients' knowledge was also improved in the after traditional stroke health-education (Mean difference = 2.79; t = 3.68; p = .001). However, patients after the SHEMA intervention did not have significantly higher changes of the stroke knowledge or HRQOL than those after traditional stroke health-education.
Both the SHEMA intervention and traditional stroke health-education can improve patients' knowledge of stroke risk factors, but the SHEMA was not superior to traditional stroke health-education.
NCT02591511 Verification Date 2015-10-01.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Evodiamine is one of the main components isolated from
, and it has been reported to exert inhibitory effects on cancers by anti-proliferative and apoptosis-inducing activities. Although the ...anti-cancer activity of evodiamine has been identified, the precise mechanisms of this action remain obscure. While previous studies indicated that evodiamine exerts anti-tumor effects through inhibiting β-catenin activity, and WW domain-containing oxidoreductase (WWOX) regulates β-catenin accumulation in cytoplasm, the effects of evodiamine on the expression of WWOX are still unknown. In this study, we provide evidence that evodiamine dose- and time-dependently inhibits both
and
hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells, as well as Hepa1-6 and HepG2 cell proliferation. We further tested the therapeutic effects of evodiamine in Hepa1-6 hepatoma-bearing mice, and we found that treatment of evodiamine by oral gavage significantly decreased the tumor size of the mice. Moreover, the expressions of WWOX were dose-dependently increased in HCC cell lines as well as in Hepa1-6 hepatoma-bearing mice after the treatment with evodiamine. Knockdown of WWOX in HepG2 and Hepa1-6 cells diminished the effects of evodiamine on the inhibitory effect of cancer cell growth, indicating that evodiamine induced anti-cancer activity through a WWOX-dependent pathway. As such, evodiamine activated WWOX to exert an anti-HCC activity, and might be a potential therapeutic or preventive candidate for HCC treatment.
Abstract
This study examines the ionosphere response to gravitational forces of the lunar phase and dynamical disturbances of the stratospheric sudden warmings (SSWs). The total electron content ...(TEC) of global ionosphere maps is employed to examine responses of the equatorial ionization anomaly (EIA) crests to lunar phases and twelve SSW events during 2000–2013. The most prominent feature in the ionosphere is the EIA, characterized by two enhanced TEC crests at low latitudes straddling the magnetic equator, which can be used to observe ionospheric plasma dynamics and structures. Results show that the EIA crest appearance time on new/full moons (first/third quarters) leads (lags) that of the overall 14-year average, which causes a pattern of TEC morning enhancements (suppressions) and afternoon suppressions (enhancements). A statistical analysis shows that SSWs can also significantly cause the early appearance of EIA crests, regardless of the lunar phase. Thus, both lunar phase and SSWs can significantly modulate the appearance time of EIA crest and ionospheric plasma dynamics and structures.
Aggrecan is a high molecular weight proteoglycan that plays a critical role in cartilage structure and the function of joints, providing intervertebral disc and cartilage with the ability to resist ...compressive loads. Aggrecan degradation in articular cartilage is a significant event in early‐stage osteoarthritis (OA). Currently, no effective treatment exists for OA other than pain relief. Dextrose (D‐glucose) prolotherapy has shown promising activity in the treatment of different musculoskeletal disorders, including OA. However, little is known about the molecular mechanism of the glucose effect in OA and on the regulation of chondrogenesis. We show for the first time that glucose upregulates aggrecan expression and subsequent chondrogenesis in ATDC5 cells. Moreover, we found that glucose‐induced aggrecan expression is mediated through the protein kinase Cα (PKCα)‐ and p38‐dependent pathway. As demonstrated by microRNA (miR) and luciferase analyses, the glucose‐induced PKCα/p38 signaling axis is responsible for downregulating miR141‐3p which targets to the 3′untranslated region of aggrecan. In summary, we show that glucose enhances chondrogenesis by upregulating aggrecan expression via the PKCα‐p38‐miR141‐3p signaling pathway. This result provides new insights into the mechanism of glucose on chondrogenesis.
Aggrecan degradation in articular cartilage is a significant event in early‐stage osteoarthritis. Glucose enhances chondrogenesis by upregulating aggrecan expression via the PKCα‐p38‐miR141‐3p signaling pathway.
Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) has been a critical morbidity in preterm infants. To improve our definition and prediction of BPD is challenging yet indispensable. We aimed to apply machine learning ...(ML) to investigate effective models by using the recently-proposed and data-driven definition to predict late respiratory support modalities at 36 weeks' post menstrual age (PMA). We collected data on very-low-birth-weight infants born between 2016 and 2019 from the Taiwan Neonatal Network database. Twenty-four attributes associated with their early life and seven ML algorithms were used in our analysis. The target outcomes were overall mortality, death before 36 weeks' PMA, and severity of BPD under the new definition, which served as a proxy for respiratory support modalities. Of the 4103 infants initially considered, 3200 were deemed eligible. The logistic regression algorithm yielded the highest area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC). After attribute selection, the AUROC of the simplified models remain favorable (e.g., 0.801 when predicting no BPD, 0.850 when predicting grade 3 BPD or death before 36 weeks' PMA, and 0.881 when predicting overall mortality). By using ML, we developed models to predict late respiratory support. Estimators were developed for clinical application after being simplified through attribute selection.
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