The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of intimacy and dyadic coping on anxiety and depression in patients with pancreatic cancer and their spousal caregivers.
This study conducted from ...October 2021 to June 2022, included 277 pancreatic cancer patients and their spousal caregivers. This research used actor-partner interdependence mediation model to explore the relationship of intimacy, dyadic coping, and psychological distress among pancreatic cancer patients and their spousal caregivers.
The results of this study showed that there were two actor effects: the satisfaction of intimate relationship between pancreatic cancer patients and their spouse caregivers had a positive predictive effect on their dyadic coping (
= 1.787,
< 0.001) and (
= 1.587,
< 0.001). The dyadic coping of pancreatic cancer patients and their spouse caregivers had a negative predictive effect on their own anxiety and depression (
= -0.253,
< 0.001) and (
= -0.293,
< 0.001). The results of this study showed that there was a partner effect: intimate relationship satisfaction of pancreatic cancer patients had a positive predictive effect on dyadic coping of their spousal caregivers (
= 0.574,
< 0.05).
This study demonstrates the interdependence of pancreatic cancer patients and their spousal caregivers in coping with the disease. The healthy intimate relationship and effective dyadic coping styles are essential to alleviating disease pressure and lowering the psychological burden on cancer families.
•Analyze the effect of fissure inclinations on the macro-and meso-mechanical properties of sandstone under uniaxial compression.•Comparing the energy evolution characteristics of sandstone containing ...different fissure inclinations under uniaxial compression.•Investigate the failure process of fractured sandstones under uniaxial compression by the evolution of microcracks.
For the rocky slope with potential sliding hazard, there are a larger number of flaws such as fractures and joints, which greatly affect the stability and safety of the slope. Thus, it is important and relevant to the behavior of fractured rock from a macroscopic and mesoscopic perspective by experiments and numerical simulation. In this paper, the mechanical properties and crack evolution behavior of grey sandstone containing two parallel fissures under the uniaxial compression tests were evaluated by experimental and bond-based Peridynamics (BB-PD) simulation. The results show that with the increase of fissure dip angle, the peak strength, elastic modulus and Poisson's ratio of pre-cracked sandstone samples under uniaxial compression condition gradually increase. At the same time, the total energy, dissipated energy and elastic peak energy of fractured sandstone also increase with the increase of fissure dip angle. In order to validate the experimental findings, a set of calibration parameters were used to model the intact samples using BB-PD. The numerical simulation reproduced the stress–strain curves, mechanical parameters and failure modes of double-fractured sandstone. Based on the results of indoor experiments and numerical simulations, it is concluded that the failure mode of double-fractured sandstone has three types under uniaxial compression: tensile failure, shear failure and conjugate shear failure. As the fissure dip angle increases, the main control factor for failure of sample gradually changes from rock bridge failure to secondary crack coalescence, and the stress distribution of fractured sandstone gradually changes from high stress concentration in the rock bridge zone to uniform stress distribution as a whole.
Stroke has always been a major threat worldwide but is most severe in China, with 2.5 million new stroke cases each year and 7.5 million stroke survivors, placing a heavy burden on the social and ...national health care systems. Zhishi Rhubarb Soup (ZRS) is a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) that has been used clinically for many years in China. To explore the potential mechanism of ZRS in the treatment of stroke, liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was performed. In this study, a quantitative proteomic method with LC-MS was used to analyse the proteomic differences between MACO samples treated with ZRS and those without ZRS treatment. Liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry (LC-MS) analysis led to the identification of 35,006 peptides, with 5160.0 proteins identified and 4094.0 quantified. Significantly differentially expressed proteins were identified through data analysis, and the difference was found to be more than 1.2 times (P < 0.05). The Gene Ontology (GO) analysis provided a summary of the dysregulated protein expression in the biological process (BP), cell component (CC), and molecular function (MF) categories. Proteins related to brain repair, including BDNF, IL-10, IL-6, and TGF-beta, were found to change significantly, partially demonstrating the effectiveness of ZRS to attenuate tissue injury. In this study, LC-MS/MS was performed to assess the effects of ZRS on differentially expressed proteins in rats with cerebral infarction. These promising results could help to improve the understanding of the effects of drugs on stroke.
As part of the Blue-Sky Protection Campaign, we develop the Chinese Blue Days Index based on meteorology data from 385 stations in China during 1980-2014. This index is defined as the days with no ...rain, low cloud cover ≤75th percentile, and visibility ≥15 km at 2 pm. The spatio-temporal variations and possible driving factors of Chinese Blue Days (CBD) are further investigated, revealing a steadily rising rate of 1.6 day (d)/10 year (y) for the nationally averaged CBD during 1980-2014. At regional scales, the CBD exhibit an increasing trend >4 d/10 y in western China and a decreasing trend <−2 d/10 y in southeastern China, northwestern Xinjiang, and Qinghai. The minimum/maximum trends (−7.5/9.5 d/10 y) appear in Yangtze-Huai River Valley (YHRV)/southwestern China (SWC). The interannual variations in CBD are highly related to wind speed and windless days in YHRV but are closely associated with wind speed, rainless days and relative humidity in SWC, suggesting that the two regions are governed by different meteorological factors. Moreover, a dynamic adjustment method called partial least squares is used to remove the atmospheric circulation-related CBD trend. The residual CBD contributions for the total trend in summer and winter are 43.62% and 35.84% in YHRV and are 14.25% and 60.38% in SWC. The result indicates that considerable parts of the CBD trend are due to the change of atmospheric circulation in the two regions.
To deter herbivore attacks, plants employ a diverse array of volatile compounds, particularly during the early developmental stages. The highly expressed genes LaTPS7, LaTPS8, and LaCYP71D582 were ...identified during the budding phases of Lavandula angustifolia. In vitro studies revealed that LaTPS7 generated nine distinct compounds, including camphene, myrcene, and limonene. LaTPS8 enzymatically converted eight volatiles by utilizing geranyl diphosphate and nerolidyl diphosphate as substrates. Overexpression of plastid-localized LaTPS7 in Nicotiana benthamiana resulted in the production of limonene. Furthermore, the endoplasmic reticulum-associated enzyme LaCYP71D582 potentially converted limonene into carveol. In N. benthamiana, LaTPS8 is responsible for the synthesis of α-pinene and sylvestrene. Furthermore, leaves transfected with LaTPS7 and leaves cotransfected with LaTPS7 and LaCYP71D582 exhibited a repellent effect on aphids, with an approximate rate of 70%. In comparison, leaves with an empty vector displayed a repellent rate of approximately 20%. Conversely, tobacco leaves expressing LaTPS7 attracted ladybugs at a rate of 48.33%, while leaves coexpressing LaTPS7 and LaCYP71D582 attracted ladybugs at a slightly higher rate of 58.33%. Subsequent authentic standard tests confirmed that limonene and carveol repel Myzus persicae while attracting Harmonia axyridis. The promoter activity of LaTPS7 and LaCYP71D582 was evaluated in Arabidopsis thaliana using GUS staining, and it was observed that wounding stimulated the expression of LaTPS7. The volatile compounds produced by LaTPS7, LaTPS8, and LaCYP71D582 play a crucial role in plant defence mechanisms. In practical applications, employing biological control measures based on plant-based approaches can promote human and environmental health.
To investigate the construct and criterion validity of the Euro Qol-5D (EQ-5D), which allows quality-adjusted life-years to be calculated, in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).
...Consecutive SLE patients who had been followed at the Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University were recruited. Cross-sectional correlations of the EQ-5D with equivalent domains in disease-specific health-related quality of life (HRQoL), LupusQol, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI) measures, the Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics Damage Index (SDI), and patient characteristics were tested. Discriminant validity to assess the ability to distinguish between patients of different disease severity was assessed. There also were evaluations of ceiling and floor effects.
240 patients were recruited in total. The EQ-5D correlated moderately to strongly with all domains of the LupusQoL (r: 0.44-0.7) apart from intimate relationships (r = 0.25) and body image (r = 0.18). There was moderate negative correlation between EQ-5D and clinical assessment of disease, SLEDAI (r = -0.589) and SDI (r = -0.509). When compared with equivalent domains on LupusQoL, there was good construct validity in EQ-5D (r: 0.631-0.812). EQ-5D could also discriminate patients with varied disease severity (according SLEDAI and SDI). There was no floor effect in EQ-5D but the ceiling effect remains strong (34%).
Our results provide sufficient evidence that the EQ-5D displays construct and criterion validity for use in SLE patients. Disease-specific measures of HRQoL used alongside may be a better choice.
The phospholipase A2 receptor (PLA2R) associated with membranous nephropathy (MN) is an organ-specific autoimmune disease associated with PLA2R and human leukocyte antigen (HLA) genes. Familial ...PLA2R-related MN is rarely reported. The combination of anti-GBM disease and MN has been well documented, though the mechanism behind it remains unclear.
We describe two siblings diagnosed with pathology-confirmed PLA2R-related MN 1 year apart. And one of the two siblings developed an anti-GBM disease. The high-resolution HLA typing showed identical alleles in both siblings, specifically heterozygotes of DRB1*15:01/*03:01.
We describe a familial case of PLA2R-related MN supporting the role of genetic factors that HLA-DRB1*15:01 and DRB1*03:01 predispose patients in the development of PLA2R-related MN in the Han Chinese population. The combination of MN and anti-GBM disease may also partially be associated with the same susceptible HLA allele DRB1*15:01.
Detecting welding defects is a key aspect in the safety assessment of pressure vessels. Using non-destructive testing methods to reveal influences of welding defects on the evolution of material ...damage is of great significance. In this paper, the damage evolution of Q245R steel with different welding defects was monitored by acoustic emission and infrared thermography technology. First, cluster analysis was used to reduce the effects of noise on acoustic emission signals. Then, differences in the characteristic parameters during the damage evolution were compared. Furthermore, the predominant peak frequency and time-frequency spectrum using fast Fourier transform and wavelet transform were investigated for acoustic emission waveforms, and temperature changes were monitored during damage evolution using thermal conductivity. The results indicated that the effects of different welding defects on the damage evolution of Q245R steel can be effectively revealed through the non-destructive testing technology combining acoustic emission and infrared thermography, which can provide a reference for evaluating the overall structural health of pressure vessels and reducing the failure risk.
Acute tubulointerstitial nephritis (ATIN) is a common cause of acute kidney injury characterized by inflammatory cells infiltrating in the interstitium. The present study aimed to explore noninvasive ...biomarkers that might indicate activity of pathological injuries and help direct treatment. Fifty-four patients with clinical-pathologically diagnosed ATIN from January 1, 2014, to June 30, 2016, at Peking University First Hospital were enrolled. Urine samples were collected on the morning of renal biopsy and assessed for urinary kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1) and urinary soluble C5b-9 (sC5b-9). Immunofluorescence staining for KIM-1 and C5b-9 was performed in biopsied kidney sections from ATIN cases. The clinical and pathological relevance of the two urinary biomarkers was analyzed. Both urinary KIM-1 and sC5b-9 values were significantly elevated in patients with ATIN compared with healthy controls. The urinary KIM-1 level positively correlated with urinary
-acetyl-β-d-glucosaminidase (
= 0. 542,
= 0.001) and the pathological tubular injury score (
= 0.469,
< 0.001), whereas the urinary sC5b-9 level was related to pathological activity scores for tubular injury (
= 0.413,
= 0.002), interstitial inflammation (
= 0.388,
= 0.004), and treatment response (
= 0.564,
< 0.001). Urinary KIM-1 tended to have better diagnostic value for tubular injury than urinary sC5b-9, whereas only urinary sC5b-9 was able to demonstrate severe interstitial inflammation. A combination of urinary KIM-1 and sC5b-9 had an area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve of 0.864 (95% confidence interval: 0.766-0.963,
< 0.001, sensitivity: 75%, specificity: 88%) for acute tissue injury in ATIN. KIM-1 expression was markedly increased in renal tubular cells in both ATIN and acute tubular necrosis conditions, whereas a significant upregulation of C5b-9 was only detected in the tubular cells and interstitial cells in ATIN cases. Urinary KIM-1 is a specific biomarker for renal tubular injury in ATIN, whereas urinary sC5b-9 is valuable in demonstrating severe interstitial inflammation. The combination of these two biomarkers helps identify patients at an acute injury stage and, therefore, might facilitate clinical evaluation and guide immunosuppressive therapy.
To reduce the problems of poor solubility, high in vivo dosage requirement, and weak targeting ability of paclitaxel (PTX), a hyaluronic acid-octadecylamine (HA-ODA)-modified nano-structured lipid ...carrier (HA-NLC) was constructed. HA-ODA conjugates were synthesized by an amide reaction between HA and ODA. The hydrophobic chain of HA-ODA can be embedded in the lipid core of the NLC to obtain HA-NLC. The HA-NLC displayed strong internalization in cluster determinant 44 (CD44) highly expressed MCF-7 cells, and endocytosis mediated by the CD44 receptor was involved. The HA-NLC had an encapsulation efficiency of PTX of 72.0%. The cytotoxicity of the PTX-loaded nanoparticle HA-NLC/PTX in MCF-7 cells was much stronger than that of the commercial preparation Taxol®. In vivo, the HA-NLC exhibited strong tumor targeting ability. The distribution of the NLCs to the liver and spleen was reduced after HA modification, while more nanoparticles were aggregated to the tumor site. Our results suggest that HA-NLC has excellent properties as a nano drug carrier and potential for in vivo targeting.
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