Noncoding RNA molecules (ncRNAs) have been implicated in numerous biological processes including transcriptional regulation and the modulation of protein function. Yet, in spite of the apparent ...abundance of ncRNA, little is known about the biological role of the projected thousands of ncRNA genes present in the human genome. To facilitate functional analysis of these RNAs, we have created an arrayed library of short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) directed against 512 evolutionarily conserved putative ncRNAs and, via cell-based assays, we have begun to determine their roles in cellular pathways. Using this system, we have identified an ncRNA repressor of the nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT), which interacts with multiple proteins including members of the importin-beta superfamily and likely functions as a specific regulator of NFAT nuclear trafficking.
Summary
Background Elevated blood glucose in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) leads to complications including poor wound healing. Proper keratinocyte migration and proliferation are the crucial ...steps during re‐epithelialization. We hypothesize that the impaired wound healing in patients with DM is due to the disruption of proper re‐epithelialization.
Objectives We aimed to explore the effects of high glucose on keratinocytes in terms of cell migration and proliferation.
Methods Keratinocytes were cultivated in normal and high glucose conditions. Their viability was evaluated by MTS assay. Transwell migration and in vitro scratch assays were used to evaluate their mobility. The mRNA expressions and activities of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)‐2 and MMP‐9 were determined. The mRNA of their respective physiological inhibitors, tissue inhibitor of MMP (TIMP)‐1 and TIMP‐2, was also evaluated. Immunofluorescent staining and Western blotting were used to examine the expression of phosphorylated focal adhesion kinase (pp125FAK). The impacts of high glucose on keratinocyte proliferation were assessed by 5‐bromo‐2′‐deoxyuridine incorporation assay.
Results High glucose treatment did not affect keratinocyte viability up to 3 days. In contrast, the mobility of keratinocytes, the activities and gene expressions of MMP‐2 and MMP‐9, the expression of pp125FAK, and the cell proliferation after 5 days were significantly downregulated after hyperglycaemic treatments while the mRNA expression of TIMP‐1 increased.
Conclusions Under hyperglycaemic conditions, keratinocytes demonstrate reduced migration and decreased proliferation capacities. These impairments of keratinocyte functions are likely to result in inadequate re‐epithelialization. These defective physiological events provide a reasonable explanation for the poor wound healing commonly observed in patients with DM.
To examine how nurses' self-efficacy impacts professional engagement (professional opportunities exploration and workplace improvement participation), nurses' turnover intention and further on actual ...turnover.
The problem of nursing shortage has become a common global issue. Nurses' self-efficacy could reduce nurses' turnover intention. However, whether professional engagement could connect nurses' self-efficacy and their actual turnover remains unknown.
This study adopts a three-wave follow-up design.
This study uses proportionate random sampling to survey nurses in a large medical centre in Taiwan. Totally, 417 participants were enrolled from December 2021 to January 2022 (first wave) and followed up from February 2022 to March 2022 (second wave). The data of nurses' actual turnover (or not) were traced in May 2022 (third wave). STROBE statement was chosen as the EQUATOR checklist.
Self-efficacy was positively linked to outcome expectation, which is positively linked to professional opportunities exploration. Self-efficacy was positively linked to career interest and workplace improvement participation. Professional engagement was negatively linked to nurses' intention to leave the target hospital, which was positively linked to actual turnover.
This study uniquely finds that professional engagement is the key to the mechanism underlying the influence of nurse' self-efficacy on their actual turnover.
Our findings impact nursing management that professional engagement is as well important as nurses' self-efficacy, with an aim to maintain the professional nursing workforce.
Nurses complete the questionnaires, return them to the investigators and permit investigators to check their personnel data.
In this work, we present a systematic study on the feasibility of probing the largely unexplored transverse-momentum-dependent gluon Sivers function (GSF) in open charm production, and high-pT ...charged dihadron and dijet production at a future high-energy, high-luminosity electron-ion collider (EIC). The Sivers function is a measure for the anisotropy of the parton distributions in momentum space inside a transversely polarized nucleon. It is proposed that it can be studied through single spin asymmetries in the photon-gluon fusion subprocess in electron-proton collisions at the EIC. Using a well-tuned Monte Carlo model for deep inelastic scattering, we estimate the possible constraints of the GSF from the future EIC data. A comparison of all the accessible measurements illustrates that the dijet channel is the most promising way to constrain the magnitude of the GSF over a wide kinematic range.
A new powder manufacturing process for Ti and Mg metallic foams designs porosity, pore size and morphology. These open-cellular foams (pores: 200–500 μm) have exceptional characteristics (e.g., Ti ...foam porosity 78%, compressive strength 35 MPa, Young's modulus 5.3 GPa). Anticipated applications include biocompatible implant materials.
The influence of different amounts and types of process control agent (PCA), i.e., stearic acid and ethylene bis-stearamide, on the porous structure and mechanical properties of a biomedical ...Ti–16Sn–4Nb (wt.%) alloy was investigated. Alloy synthesis was performed on elemental metal powders using high-energy ball milling for 5
h. Results indicated that varying the PCA content during ball milling led to a drastic change in morphology and particle-size distribution of the ball-milled powders. Porous titanium alloy samples sintered from the powders ball milled with the addition of various amounts of PCA also revealed different pore morphology and porosity. The Vickers hardness of the sintered titanium alloy samples exhibited a considerable increase with increasing PCA content. Moreover, the addition of larger amounts of PCA in the powder mixture resulted in a significant increase in the elastic modulus and peak stress for the sintered porous titanium alloy samples under compression. It should also be mentioned that the addition of PCA introduced contamination (mainly carbon and oxygen) into the sintered porous product.
Background
Recent data associate eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) with IgG4 rather than IgE, but its significance and function have not been determined. Our aims were to measure esophageal IgG4 levels ...and to determine functional correlations as assessed by histologic and transcriptome analyses.
Methods
This case‐control study included pediatric subjects with EoE (≥15 eosinophils/HPF) and non‐EoE controls. Protein lysates were analyzed for IgA, IgM, and IgG1‐IgG4 using the Luminex 100 system; IgE was quantified by ELISA. Esophageal biopsies were scored using the EoE histology scoring system. Transcripts were probed by the EoE diagnostic panel, designed to examine the expression of 96 esophageal transcripts.
Results
Esophageal IgG subclasses, IgA, and IgM, but not IgE, were increased in subjects with EoE relative to controls. The greatest change between groups was seen in IgG4 (4.2 mg/g protein interquartile range: 1.0‐13.1 mg/g protein vs 0.2 mg/g protein 0.1‐0.9; P < .0001). Tissue IgG4 levels correlated with esophageal eosinophil counts (P = .0006); histologic grade (P = .0011) and stage (P = .0112) scores; and IL4, IL10, IL13, but not TGFB1, expression and had strong associations with a subset of the EoE transcriptome. Esophageal IgG4 transcript expression was increased and correlated with IgG4 protein levels and IL10 expression.
Conclusion
These findings extend prior studies on IgG4 in adult EoE to the pediatric population and provide deeper understanding of the potential significance and regulation of IgG4, demonstrating that IgG4 is a relevant feature of the disease; is closely related to esophageal eosinophil levels, type 2 immunity and T regulatory cytokines; and is likely produced locally.
Esophageal IgG4 levels are increased in patients with EoE compared with control individuals and strongly correlate with esophageal eosinophil numbers and multiple features of histologic grade and stage scores. Esophageal IgG4 protein levels correlate with multiple components of the disease as assessed by transcriptome profiling, including IL4, IL13 and IL10 mRNA expression levels. IgG4 heavy chain mRNA expression is proportional to IgG4 protein levels and IL10 mRNA expression levels in the esophagus of patients with EoE.
We report the discovery and dynamical analysis of 2015 BP519, an extreme trans-Neptunian object (TNO) detected by the Dark Energy Survey at a heliocentric distance of 55 au, perihelion of ∼36 au, and ...absolute magnitude Hr = 4.3. The current orbit, determined from a 1110 day observational arc, has a semimajor axis a 450 au, eccentricity e 0.92, and inclination i 54°. With these orbital elements, 2015 BP519 is the most extreme TNO discovered to date, as quantified by the reduced Kozai action, , which is a conserved quantity at fixed semimajor axis a for axisymmetric perturbations. We discuss the orbital stability and evolution of this object and find that, under the influence of the four known giant planets, 2015 BP519 displays rich dynamical behavior, including rapid diffusion in semimajor axis and more constrained variations in eccentricity and inclination. We also consider the long-term orbital stability and evolutionary behavior within the context of the Planet Nine hypothesis and find that 2015 BP519 adds to the circumstantial evidence for the existence of this proposed new member of the solar system, as it would represent the first member of the population of high-i, ϖ-shepherded TNOs.
A simple sol–gel method was developed for hydroxyapatite/titania (HA/TiO
2) coatings on non-toxic titanium–zirconium (TiZr) alloy for biomedical applications. The HA/TiO
2-coated TiZr alloy displayed ...excellent bioactivity when soaked in a simulated body fluid (SBF) for an appropriate period. Differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectrometry were used to characterize the phase transformations and the surface structures and to assess the in vitro tests. The HA/TiO
2 layers were spin-coated on the surface of TiZr alloy at a speed of 3000
rpm for 15
s, followed by a heat treatment at 600
°C for 20
min in an argon atmosphere sequentially. The TiO
2 layer exhibited a cracked surface and an anatase structure and the HA layer displayed a uniform dense structure. Both the TiO
2 and HA layers were 25
μm thick, and the total thickness of the HA/TiO
2 coatings was 50
μm. The TiZr alloy after the above HA/TiO
2 coatings displayed excellent bone-like apatite-forming ability when soaked in SBF and can be anticipated to be a promising load-bearing implant material.
The microstructure evolution within the shear localization areas formed in commercial titanium subjected to cold rolling is systematically investigated. Sheared micro-regions are first initiated ...followed by the formation of distinct microscopic shear bands, which gradually grow and coalesce to form a macroscopic shear band. The latter contains thin lath structures in the boundary regions, fine elongated subgrains in the outer areas and roughly equiaxed (sub)grains with a mean size of 70
nm in the centre region. The early stage of shear localization involves the formation of twin/matrix lamellae aligned along the shear direction. The lamellae subsequently undergo longitudinal splitting into thin laths, which are in turn subjected to transverse breakdown, giving rise to fine elongated subgrains. The continuing thermally assisted lath breakdown, in conjunction with lateral sliding and lattice rotations, ultimately leads to the formation of roughly equiaxed, nanosized (sub)grains in the macroscopic shear band centre at large strains.
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