In this study, the first trial of donor and acceptor bulk heterojunctions (BHJs) is proposed for light-addressable potentiometric sensors (LAPSs) due to organic conjugated molecules with the ...advantages of energy level/band gap modification and high absorption of visible light. The benzodithiophene-based polymer PTB7-Th and fullerene PC71BM are selected for integration with an Al2O3 sensing membrane using atomic layer deposition at temperatures lower than 100 ℃ for pH sensing LAPS. In the stability performance, the hysteresis width of the best condition with a mixing weight ratio of PC71BM to PTB7-Th of 1.5 is 4.4 mV, which is inferior to that of the conventional inorganic semiconductor-based LAPSs. By means of an additional spin-coated zinc oxide (ZnO) layer, the signal-to-noise ratio of the photocurrent of this fabricated LAPS can be maintained at 3.2 after 170 min of measurement with an acceptable sensitivity, linearity, drift coefficient and hysteresis of 50.2 mV/pH, 99.9%, − 3.1 mV/h and 1.4 mV, respectively. With the proper adjustment of illumination with low power and large spots, chemical imaging with a scanning step of 25 µm can be conducted to indicate the feasibility of this low-temperature process developed for spin-coated organic semiconductor-based LAPSs.
•Organic semiconductor is first used in light-addressable potentiometric sensors.•Low-temperature processes including spin coating and ALD are developed.•A ZnO layer before organic semiconductor is used to improve the sensing stability.•pH sensing and 2D chemical imaging are both achieved in organic LAPS.
This study was conducted to investigate whether eucalyptol plays a role in influencing bacterial growth in cigarette smoke‐exposed lungs. Rats were exposed to air (control) and cigarette smoke ...(smoking) in the presence and absence of eucalyptol (260 mg/day). Morphological analysis of lung structures and status of airway mucous production were observed under microscope. Pathological changes of ciliated columnar epithelium in airways were examined using transmission electron microscopy. MUC5AC protein and messenger RNA (mRNA) expression in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and lungs were determined. Application of eucalyptol reduced pulmonary bullae formation and airway mucus overproduction in the smoke‐exposed lungs. Treatment with eucalyptol attenuated ciliated cell damage in cigarette smoke‐exposed lungs. Bacterial colonies of lungs were obviously lower in the eucalyptol‐treated rats than that in the smoking rats (p < 0.01). Treatment with eucalyptol reduced the counts of bacterial colonization residing in the challenged lungs (p < 0.01). Application of eucalyptol not only decreased MUC5AC protein expression in BALF and tobacco‐exposed lungs but also suppressed its mRNA expression in the lungs (all p < 0.05). Intervention of eucalyptol benefits elimination of bacterial organisms from tobacco‐exposed lungs through attenuating ciliated cell damage and suppressing MUC5AC expression in the lungs.
Intervention of Eucalyptol protects lungs against bacterial invasion of tobacco smoke‐exposed lungs. The protection role of Eucalyptol in the tobacco smoke‐exposed lungs was realized by attenuating ciliated cell damage and suppressing MUC5AC protein and gene expression.
The present study was to examine sex and strain differences in glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and renal blood flow (RBF) in C57BL6, 129/Sv, and C57BLKS/J mice, three commonly used mouse strains in ...renal research. GFR was measured by transdermal measurement of FITC‐sinitrin clearance in conscious mice. RBF was measured by a flow probe placed in the renal artery under an anesthetic state. In C57BL6 mice, there were no sex differences in both GFR and RBF. In 129/Sv mice, females had significantly greater GFR than males at age of 24 weeks, but not at 8 weeks. However, males had higher RBF and lower renal vascular resistance (RVR). Similar to 129/Sv, female C57BLKS/J had significantly greater GFR at both 8 and 24 weeks, lower RBF, and higher RVR than males. Across strains, male 129/Sv had lower GFR and higher RBF than male C57BL6, but no significant difference in GFR and greater RBF than male C57BLKS/J. No significant difference in GFR or RBF was observed between C57BL6 and C57BLKS/J mice. Deletion of eNOS in C57BLKS/J mice reduced GFR in both sexes, but decreased RBF in males. Furthermore, there were no sex differences in the severity of renal injury in eNOS−/− dbdb mice. Taken together, our study suggests that sex differences in renal hemodynamics in mice are strain and age dependent. eNOS was not involved in the sex differences in GFR, but in RBF. Furthermore, the sexual dimorphism did not impact the severity of renal injury in diabetic nephropathy.
There are sex and strain differences in renal hemodynamics, which may also be age dependent. The sex difference in renal hemodynamics is not attributed to eNOS, and do not impact the development of diabetic kidney disease.
Background: Several independent clinical studies have reported that Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy could achieve complete remission in some patients with H. pylori–positive early-stage ...gastric mucosa–associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma. Methods: To compare the long-term results of anti–H. pylori therapy in early-stage, gastric low-grade and high-grade transformed MALT lymphoma, two multicenter prospective studies of anti–H. pylori therapy for early-stage gastric lymphoma conducted in Taiwan, one for low-grade MALT lymphoma, with 34 patients enrolled from March 1996 through April 1999, and one for high-grade transformed tumors (diffuse large B-cell lymphoma with features of MALT, DLBCLMALT lymphoma), with 24 patients enrolled since June 1995, were directly compared. In both studies, patients generally received 2 weeks of antibiotics and had multiple sequential follow-up endoscopic examinations until complete histologic remission (CR) or disease progression; patients were monitored through January 31, 2004. CR was defined as regression of lymphoid infiltration to Wotherspoon's score of 2 or less on all pathologic sections of endoscopic biopsy specimens. All statistical tests were two-sided. Results: The H. pylori–positive rate among the 34 low-grade patients was 94% (32 of 34). All 24 selected high-grade patients were H. pylori positive. H. pylori was eradicated in 97% (30 of 31) of evaluable H. pylori–positive low-grade patients and in 92% (22 of 24) of high-grade patients, which led to CR in 80% (24 of 30, 95% confidence interval CI = 65% to 95%) and 64% (14 of 22, 95% CI = 42% to 86%) of patients, respectively. None of the five patients who were either initially H. pylori negative or had persistent H. pylori infection after antibiotics achieved CR. After median follow-up of more than 5 years in complete responders, tumor recurrence was observed in three (13%) low-grade patients but not in high-grade patients. Conclusions: Anti–H. pylori therapy may be considered as one of the treatment options for early-stage H. pylori–positive gastric DLBCL(MALT), and large-scale prospective studies to validate its use as first-line therapy for such tumors should be undertaken.
Concomitant development of 6,6-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) aggregation and poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) crystallization in bulk heterojunction (BHJ) thin-film (ca. 85 nm) solar cells ...has been revealed using simultaneous grazing-incidence small-/wide-angle X-ray scattering (GISAXS/GIWAXS). With enhanced time and spatial resolutions (5 s/frame; minimum q ≈ 0.004 Å–1), synchrotron GISAXS has captured in detail the fast growth in size of PCBM aggregates from 7 to 18 nm within 100 s of annealing at 150 °C. Simultaneously observed is the enhanced crystallization of P3HT into lamellae oriented mainly perpendicular but also parallel to the substrate. An Avrami analysis of the observed structural evolution indicates that the faster PCBM aggregation follows a diffusion-controlled growth process (confined by P3HT segmental motion), whereas the slower development of crystalline P3HT nanograins is characterized by constant nucleation rate (determined by the degree of supercooling and PCBM demixing). These two competing kinetics result in local phase separation with space-filling PCBM and P3HT nanodomains less than 20 nm in size when annealing temperature is kept below 180 °C. Accompanying the morphological development is the synchronized increase in electron and hole mobilities of the BHJ thin-film solar cells, revealing the sensitivity of the carrier transport of the device on the structural features of PCBM and P3HT nanodomains. Optimized structural parameters, including the aggregate size and mean spacing of the PCBM aggregates, are quantitatively correlated to the device performance; a comprehensive network structure of the optimized BHJ thin film is presented.
The fruits, twigs and leaves of Daphniphyllum oldhamii (Hemsl.) K. Rosenthal, collected from Longshan County, Hunan Province, China, were chemically investigated. Three undescribed daphniphyllum ...alkaloids, namely longshanoldhamines A‒C, and six known related ones have been isolated from the fruits, whereas two undescribed triterpenoids and one undescribed lignan, along with six known triterpenoids, were found in the twigs and leaves. Their structures were elucidated by extensive spectroscopic analysis, X-ray diffraction analysis and comparison with the reported data.
Three undescribed daphniphyllum alkaloids, namely longshanoldhamines A‒C, have been isolated from the fruits of Daphniphyllum oldhamii collected in Hunan Province, China, whereas two undescribed triterpenoids and one undescribed lignan were found from its twigs and leaves. Display omitted
Three undescribed alkaloids, namely longshanoldhamines A‒C, were isolated from the fruits of Daphniphyllum oldhamii.Two undescribed triterpenoids and one lignan were found from the twigs and leaves of D. oldhamii.The metabolic patterns varied by the geographic locations and plant tissues.
Available research about the anatomic patterns of intertrochanteric fractures is lacking, and fracture mapping has not previously been performed on intertrochanteric fractures. This study aimed to ...determine the major trajectories of intertrochanteric fracture lines using computed tomography data from a series of surgically treated patients.
In this study, 504 patients with intertrochanteric fractures were retrospectively analyzed. Fracture patterns were graded according to Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Osteosynthesefragen (AO) classification. Fracture lines were transcribed onto proximal femoral templates and graphically superimposed to create a compilation of fracture maps that were subsequently divided into anterior, posterior, lateral, and medial fracture maps to create a three-dimensional (3D) pattern by reducing fragments in the 3D models. The fracture maps were then converted into frequency spectra. The major fracture patterns were assessed by focusing on the lateral femoral wall, lesser trochanter, intertrochanteric crest, and inner cortical buttress.
Anterior, posterior, lateral, and medial fracture maps were created. The majority of fracture lines (85.9%, 433/504) on the anterior maps were along the intertrochanteric line where the iliofemoral ligament was attached. In the medial plane, the majority of fracture lines (49.0%, 247/504) shown on the frequency spectrum included the turning point involving the third quadrant. In the posterior plane, the majority of fracture lines (52.0%, 262/504) involved the intertrochanteric crest from the greater to the lesser trochanter. In the lateral plane, the majority of fracture lines (62.7%, 316/504) involved the greater trochanter at the gluteus medius attachment.
The fracture patterns observed in the present study might be used to describe morphologic characteristics and aid with management strategies. Further classifications or modifications that incorporate the fracture patterns identified in this study may be used in future research.
DNA methylation has critical roles in the nervous system and has been traditionally considered to be restricted to CpG dinucleotides in metazoan genomes. Here we show that the single base-resolution ...DNA methylome from adult mouse dentate neurons consists of both CpG (~75%) and CpH (~25%) methylation (H = A/C/T). Neuronal CpH methylation is conserved in human brains, enriched in regions of low CpG density, depleted at protein-DNA interaction sites and anticorrelated with gene expression. Functionally, both methylated CpGs (mCpGs) and mCpHs can repress transcription in vitro and are recognized by methyl-CpG binding protein 2 (MeCP2) in neurons in vivo. Unlike most CpG methylation, CpH methylation is established de novo during neuronal maturation and requires DNA methyltransferase 3A (DNMT3A) for active maintenance in postmitotic neurons. These characteristics of CpH methylation suggest that a substantially expanded proportion of the neuronal genome is under cytosine methylation regulation and provide a new foundation for understanding the role of this key epigenetic modification in the nervous system.
PurposeThis randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, phase II trial assessed the efficacy and safety of adagloxad simolenin (OBI-822; a Globo H epitope covalently linked to ...keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH)) with adjuvant OBI-821 in metastatic breast cancer (MBC).MethodsAt 40 sites in Taiwan, USA, Korea, India, and Hong Kong, patients with MBC of any molecular subtype and ≤2 prior progressive disease events with stable/responding disease after the last anticancer regimen were randomized (2:1) to adagloxad simolenin (AS/OBI-821) or placebo, subcutaneously for nine doses with low-dose cyclophosphamide. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS). Secondary endpoints included overall survival, correlation of clinical outcome with humoral immune response and Globo H expression, and safety.ResultsOf 349 patients randomized, 348 received study drug. Patients with the following breast cancer subtypes were included: hormone receptor-positive (HR+)/human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative (HER2–) (70.4%), triple negative (12.9%), and HER2+ (16.7%), similarly distributed between treatment arms. Median PFS was 7.6 months (95% CI: 6.5–10.9) with AS/OBI-821 (n=224) and 9.2 months (95% CI: 7.3–11.3) with placebo (n=124) (HR=0.96; 95% CI: 0.74–1.25; p=0.77), with no difference by breast cancer subtype. AS/OBI-821 recipients with anti-Globo H IgG titer ≥1:160 had significantly longer median PFS (11.1 months (95% CI: 9.3–17.6)) versus those with titers <1:160 (5.5 months (95% CI: 3.7–5.6); HR=0.52; p<0.0001) and placebo recipients (HR=0.71; p=0.03). Anti-KLH immune responses were similar at week 40 between AS/OBI-821 recipients with anti-Globo IgG titer ≥1:160 and those with anti-Globo IgG titer <1:160. The most common adverse events with AS/OBI-821 were grade 1 or 2 injection site reactions (56.7%; placebo, 8.9%) and fever (20.1%; placebo, 6.5%).ConclusionAS/OBI-821 did not improve PFS in patients with previously treated MBC. However, humoral immune response to Globo H correlated with improved PFS in AS/OBI-821 recipients, leading the way to further marker-driven studies. Treatment was well tolerated.NCT01516307.
Most patients with isolated methylmalonic acidemia (MMA) /propionic acidemia (PA) presenting during the neonatal period with acute metabolic distress are at risk for death and significant ...neurodevelopmental disability. The nationwide newborn screening for MMA/PA has been in place in Taiwan from January, 2000 and data was collected until December, 2016.
During the study period, 3,155,263 newborns were screened. The overall incidence of MMA mutase type cases was 1/121,356 (n = 26), 1 cobalamin B was detected and that for PA cases (n = 4) was 1/788,816. The time of referral is 8.8 days for MMA patients, and 7.5 days for PA patients. The MMA mutase type patients have higher AST, ALT, and NH
values as well as a lower pH value (p < 0.05). The mean age for liver transplantation (LT) is 402 days (range from 0.6-6.7 yr) with 16 out of 20 cases (80.0%) using living donors. The mean admission length shortened from 90.6 days/year (pre-LT) to 5.3 days/year (at 3rd year post-LT) (p < 0.0005). Similarly, the tube feeding ratio decreased from 67.8 to 0.50% (p < 0.00005). The anxiety level of the caregiver was reduced from 33.4 to 27.2 after LT (p = 0.001) and the DQ/IQ performance of the patients was improved after LT from 50 to 60.1 (p = 0.07).
MMA/PA patients with LT do survive and have reduced admission time, reduced tube feeding and the caregiver is less anxious.
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