A new technique, plasma activated water (PAW), was used to inactivate bacteria on the tomato surface. The PAW was generated at 60 Watts (W) for 20 min using air flow rates at 6 or 10 standard liter ...per min (slm) with 1 or 2 plasma jet(s). Tomatoes inoculated with Salmonella Typhimurium, Escherichia coli, or Listeria monocytogenes were treated by the PAW for 30, 60, 90, 120, 150, 180 or 210 s. Significantly higher reductions (p < 0.05) of bacterial populations were obtained with 2 plasma jets. More than 5 log reductions of S. Typhimurium, E. coli, and L. monocytogenes were obtained when treated with 2 acting plasma jets for 30, 180, and 210 s, respectively. When treatment time increased, lower values of pH and higher values of oxidative reduction potential, nitrite, nitrate, ozone, and peroxide were obtained. An analysis of the electron paramagnetic resonance confirmed the generation of reactive oxygen species in PAW. This study showed that PAW was effective against bacteria on tomato surfaces and offered evidences for the antibacterial mechanism of PAW.
•Reducing S. Typhimurium, E. coli, and L. monocytogenes on tomato.•S. Typhimurium and L. monocytogenes was the most susceptible and resistant, respectively.•The concentrations of NO2−, NO3−, O3, and H2O2 were correlated with the antibacterial efficacy.•The generation of ROS was confirmed.
In a meta-analysis of three GWAS for susceptibility to Kawasaki disease (KD) conducted in Japan, Korea, and Taiwan and follow-up studies with a total of 11,265 subjects (3428 cases and 7837 ...controls), a significantly associated SNV in the immunoglobulin heavy variable gene (IGHV) cluster in 14q33.32 was identified (rs4774175; OR = 1.20, P = 6.0 × 10
). Investigation of nonsynonymous SNVs of the IGHV cluster in 9335 Japanese subjects identified the C allele of rs6423677, located in IGHV3-66, as the most significant reproducible association (OR = 1.25, P = 6.8 × 10
in 3603 cases and 5731 controls). We observed highly skewed allelic usage of IGHV3-66, wherein the rs6423677 A allele was nearly abolished in the transcripts in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of both KD patients and healthy adults. Association of the high-expression allele with KD strongly indicates some active roles of B-cells or endogenous immunoglobulins in the disease pathogenesis. Considering that significant association of SNVs in the IGHV region with disease susceptibility was previously known only for rheumatic heart disease (RHD), a complication of acute rheumatic fever (ARF), these observations suggest that common B-cell related mechanisms may mediate the symptomology of KD and ARF as well as RHD.
Acupuncture can be conveniently used for pain control in patients with a variety of conditions, and it has obvious effects on various acute pains. In 2018, we implemented a program for emergency ...treatment with Chinese medicine to promote the integration of Chinese and Western medicine at the Emergency Department (ED). Ileus is a common cause of abdominal pain among patients in the ED, and it is an indication for emergency treatment with Chinese medicine. This study investigated the efficacy of acupuncture as a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM)-based treatment method for the treatment of patients with ileus in the ED. We analyzed data of patients with ileus, who visited ED between January and December 2019, and compared the length of ED stay between the Western medicine group and the Western medicine plus acupuncture group. Furthermore, pain intensity was measured by a visual analogue scale before and after acupuncture. We found that the length of ED stay was 10.8 hours lesser in the Western medicine plus acupuncture group than in the Western medicine group (P = .04), and the visual analogue scale score decreased by 2.0 on average from before to after acupuncture treatment (P = .02). Acupuncture treatment was effective and rapid in relieving the symptoms and discomfort in patients with ileus and in reducing their length of stay in the ED.
To enhance the adhesion and polymerization of lipase‐plasma‐polymerized‐ethylene (lipase‐PPE) coatings deposited by aerosol‐assisted atmospheric plasma deposition (AAAPPD), the effects of voltage, ...ceramic‐dielectric thickness, and pre‐coated PPE layer were investigated. In AAAPPD system, ethylene and lipase‐phosphate‐buffered‐saline aerosol were used as precursors to polymerize ethylene and embed lipase simultaneously. The deposited lipase‐PPE coatings were analyzed with FTIR, SEM, and surface profiler. The results show that increasing voltage from 3 to 4 kV and decreasing ceramic‐dielectric thickness from 1 to 0.38 mm improved the coating adhesion and polymerization. Also, depositing a PPE layer with high energy prior to lipase‐PPE coating enhanced adhesion. These improvements of the biomolecule‐PPE coatings facilitate further bioapplications of this new biomolecule‐embedding method.
In this study, the adhesion and polymerization of the aerosol‐assisted atmospheric‐pressure plasma deposition (AAAPPD) deposited lipase‐plasma‐polymerized ethylene (lipase‐PPE) coatings were improved by increasing applied voltage, decreasing ceramic‐dielectric thickness, and adding a pre‐coated PPE buffer layer. According to the results, we also hypothesized the related mechanisms of the AAAPPD process.
OTULIN coordinates with LUBAC to edit linear polyubiquitin chains in embryonic development, autoimmunity, and inflammatory diseases. However, the mechanism by which angiogenesis, especially that of ...endothelial cells (ECs), is regulated by linear ubiquitination remains unclear. Here, we reveal that constitutive or EC-specific deletion of Otulin resulted in arteriovenous malformations and embryonic lethality. LUBAC conjugates linear ubiquitin chains onto Activin receptor-like kinase 1 (ALK1), which is responsible for angiogenesis defects, inhibiting ALK1 enzyme activity and Smad1/5 activation. Conversely, OTULIN deubiquitinates ALK1 to promote Smad1/5 activation. Consistently, embryonic survival of Otulin-deficient mice was prolonged by BMP9 pretreatment or EC-specific ALK1Q200D (constitutively active) knockin. Moreover, mutant ALK1 from type 2 hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT2) patients exhibited excessive linear ubiquitination and increased HOIP binding. As such, a HOIP inhibitor restricted the excessive angiogenesis of ECs derived from ALK1G309S-expressing HHT2 patients. These results show that OTULIN and LUBAC govern ALK1 activity to balance EC angiogenesis.
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•Otulin deletion in mice leads to arteriovenous malformations and embryonic lethality•Linear ubiquitination of ALK1 decreases downstream Smad1/5 signaling•The survival of Otulin-deficient mice is prolonged by BMP9 and ALK1Q200D knockin•HOIP inhibitor restricts angiogenesis of ECs from ALK1-related HHT2 patients
Fu et al. demonstrate that OTULIN and LUBAC govern ALK1 kinase activity to balance endothelial cell angiogenesis. ALK1 from Otulin-deficient mice or mutant ALK1 from type 2 hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT2) patients exhibits excessive linear ubiquitination, decreased ALK1 enzyme activity, and hyperactivated angiogenesis of endothelial cells.
The differential effects of online student-constructed tests (SCT) and student-generated questions (SGQ) strategies on knowledge construction in term of the breadth, depth, interconnectivity and ...elaboration of knowledge were examined via a quasi-experimental research design. Two classes of undergraduates (N = 65) participated and were randomly assigned to two different treatment groups. An online system supporting the associated learning activities for the respective groups was developed. The results from the ANCOVA showed that students who engaged in SCT activities generated questions that covered significantly more concepts, involved significantly more levels of subordinate concepts, and built significantly more links between clusters of study topics, as compared to those in the SGQ group. Moreover, significantly more students in the SCT group engaged in item revision behavior than those in the SGQ group, and a majority of students in the SCT group exhibited item sequencing behavior, both of which are deemed indicative of knowledge elaboration. Suggestions and implications for instructional implementation, online system development and future studies are offered.
•Online Student-Constructed Test (SCT) is facilitative of knowledge construction.•SCT enhanced knowledge breadth and depth better than student-generated questions.•SCT is effective in promoting knowledge integration and elaboration.•Knowledge integration is manifested in building more cross-links between concepts.•Knowledge elaboration is demonstrated by item revision and sequencing behavior.
Optical control of ferroic orders and phase stability in ferroelectric/multiferroic materials is of significant importance not only for scientific research but also for the development of ...next‐generation electronics. In article number 2007264, Jan‐Chi Yang and co‐workers adopt extremely short light pulses to modulate the phases and ferroelectric domain structures in multiferroic BiFeO3 thin films, fulfilling ultrafast all optical nonvolatile control of ferroic ordering at ambient temperature.
Multiferroics-materials that exhibit coupled ferroic orders-are considered to be one of the most promising candidate material systems for next-generation spintronics, memory, low-power ...nanoelectronics and so on. To advance potential applications, approaches that lead to persistent and extremely fast functional property changes are in demand. Herein, it is revealed that the phase transition and the correlated ferroic orders in multiferroic BiFeO
(BFO) can be modulated via illumination of single short/ultrashort light pulses. Heat transport simulations and ultrafast optical pump-probe spectroscopy reveal that the transient strain induced by light pulses plays a key role in determining the persistent final states. Having identified the diffusionless phase transformation features via scanning transmission electron microscopy, sequential laser pulse illumination is further demonstrated to perform large-area phase and domain manipulation in a deterministic way. The work contributes to all-optical and rapid nonvolatile control of multiferroicity, offering different routes while designing novel optoelectronics.
Hemoglobinopathies are the most common inherited diseases in southern China. However, there have been only a few epidemiological studies of hemoglobinopathies in Guangdong province.
Peripheral blood ...samples were collected from 15299 "healthy" unrelated subjects of dominantly ethnic Hakka in the Meizhou region, on which hemoglobin electrophoresis and routine blood tests were performed. Suspected cases with hemoglobin variants and hereditary persistence of fetal hemoglobin (HPFH) were further characterized by PCR, DNA sequencing, reverse dot blot (RDB) or multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA). In addition, 1743 samples were randomly selected from the 15299 subjects for thalassemia screening, and suspected thalassemia carriers were identified by PCR and RDB.
The gene frequency of hemoglobin variants was 0.477% (73/15299). The five main subgroups of the ten hemoglobin variants were Hb E, Hb G-Chinese, Hb Q-Tahiland, Hb New York and Hb J-Bangkok. 277 cases (15.89%, 277/1743) of suspected thalassemia carriers with microcytosis (MCV<82 fl) were found by thalassemia screening, and were tested by a RDB gene chip to reveal a total of 196 mutant chromosomes: including 124 α-thalassemia mutant chromosomes and 72 β-thalassemia mutant chromosomes. These results give a heterozygote frequency of 11.24% for common α and β thalassemia in the Hakka population in the Meizhou region. 3 cases of HPFH/δβ-thalassemia were found, including 2 cases of Vietnamese HPFH (FPFH-7) and a rare Belgian( G)γ((A)γδβ)⁰-thalassemia identified in Chinese.
Our results provide a detailed prevalence and molecular characterization of hemoglobinopathies in Hakka people of the Meizhou region. The estimated numbers of pregnancies each year in the Meizhou region, in which the fetus would be at risk for β thalassemia major or intermedia, Bart's hydrops fetalis, and Hb H disease, are 25 (95% CI, 15 to 38), 40 (95% CI, 26 to 57), and 15 (95% CI, 8 to 23), respectively.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Purpose
The aim of this study was to examine the association between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) diagnosis and diverse types of injuries.
Design
This population‐based retrospective cohort study ...compared records from 2000 to 2013 in the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database.
Methods
3025 patients identified with OSA were compared against the control cohort consisting of 12,100 age‐ and sex‐matched patients. Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was performed to estimate the effects of OSA on injury risk.
Findings
Patients with OSA exhibited a significantly higher overall incidence of injury of 2599 per 100,000 person‐years compared to the control cohort (2248 per 100,000 person‐years). After the confounding factors were considered, subjects with OSA showed a higher risk of injury than subjects in the control group (adjusted hazard ratio HR = 1.78, 95% confidence interval CI = 1.64–1.93). The risk of unintentional injury (traffic, poisoning, falls) and intentional injury (suicide) in the group of patients with OSA was higher than that in the controls.
Conclusions
Our study strongly supports the conclusion that adults with OSA are at increased risk of injury.
Clinical relevance
The present results indicate the significance of OSA as a predictor of injury risk, which will provide valuable information for clinical practice and injury prevention.
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