Background
The Child–Pugh (CP) score is used widely to assess liver function and predict postoperative outcomes in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Recently, the albumin–bilirubin (ALBI) ...score has been validated as a predictor of overall survival in these patients. This study aimed to compare the ability of the ALBI and CP scores to predict outcomes in patients with HCC after liver resection with curative intent.
Methods
Consecutive patients who underwent liver resection with curative intent for HCC between January 2007 and July 2013 were included in this retrospective study. The performance of the ALBI score in predicting postoperative liver failure (PHLF) and long‐term survival was compared with that of the CP score.
Results
A total of 1242 patients were enrolled. Of these, 166 (13·4 per cent) experienced PHLF. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of the ALBI score for predicting PHLF was greater than that of the CP score (0·723 versus 0·607; P < 0·001). Similar to findings for CP grade, the incidence and severity of PHLF increased with increasing ALBI grade. The ALBI grade stratified patients into at least two distinct overall survival cohorts (P < 0·001), whereas the CP grade did not. The ALBI grade also classified patients with CP grade A disease into two distinct overall survival cohorts (P < 0·001), and overall survival rates in the group with poorer survival were similar to those in the majority of patients with CP grade B disease. Both CP and ALBI scores had low power in predicting disease‐free survival.
Conclusion
The ALBI grade predicted PHLF and overall survival in patients with HCC undergoing liver resection with curative intent more accurately than the CP grade.
ALBI score may be better
We investigate the heat transfer and coherent structures in Taylor–Couette (TC) flows that undergo thermal convection driven by an axially applied temperature gradient. Direct numerical simulations ...are performed in a Rayleigh number range $10^6 \leq Ra \leq 3 \times 10^8$ for Prandtl number $Pr = 4.38$ and with the shear Reynolds number up to $Re = 10^4$. When the rotation number $R_f$ increases, the flows undergo a transition from buoyancy-dominated ($R_f<1$) to shear-dominated convection ($R_f>1$). In the buoyancy-dominated regime with weak rotations, the flow features are similar to those in Rayleigh–Bénard (RB) convection with large-scale plumes emanating from the thermal boundary layers. In this regime, the $Re$-dependence of heat transport $Nu$ is sensitive to $Ra$. We find that for low $Ra$, $Nu$ decreases with increasing $Re$ and becomes independent of $Re$ at high $Ra$. In the shear-dominated regime, the flow structures are characterised by Taylor vortices (TVs), which effectively enhance the heat transport. With sufficiently high Reynolds number for $2000< Re \le 10\,000$, the flow structures are dominated by turbulent TVs, and the transport scaling laws of heat and angular velocity fluxes become independent of buoyancy. We report that in this turbulent regime the axial heat-transport scaling $(Nu\sim Re^{0.578\pm 0.018})$ is consistent with the scaling of radial angular-momentum transport $(Nu_{\omega }\sim Re^{0.581\pm 0.026})$.
Highlights • Regional and network functional changes could be seen in the early stage of SCI. • Functional changes were associated with clinical symptom severity in SCI patients. • Functional ...reorganization may reflect a compensatory role in the recovery of SCI.
Summary
There is no consensus about factors that increase risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) among patients with chronic hepatitis B who have achieved seroclearance of hepatitis B surface antigen ...(HBsAg). To assess the available evidence about risk factors for HCC after HBsAg seroclearance, Scopus, EMBASE, PubMed and Cochrane Library databases were systematically searched for relevant studies published through 15 September 2017. A total of 28 studies involving more than 105 411 patients with chronic hepatitis B were included. HBsAg seroclearance occurred spontaneously in 7656, while it occurred after interferon or nucleos(t)ide analogue therapy in 1248. The rate of HBsAg seroclearance was 6.77%. Incidence of HCC was significantly lower among patients who experienced HBsAg seroclearance than among those who remained HBsAg‐positive (1.86% vs 6.56%, P < .001). Risk factors of HCC occurrence included cirrhosis (incidence with vs without: 9.51% vs 1.66%), male gender (2.34% vs 0.64%) and age ≥ 50 year at HBsAg seroclearance (2.34% vs 0.63%) (all P < .001). The available evidence suggests that HCC can develop at a low rate after HBsAg seroclearance, so periodic surveillance is recommended, especially for male patients, patients with cirrhosis and patients who experience HBsAg seroclearance when at least 50 years old.
Cytoplasmic STAT3, after activation by growth factors, translocates to different subcellular compartments, including nuclei and mitochondria, where it carries out different biological functions. ...However, the precise mechanism by which STAT3 undergoes mitochondrial translocation and subsequently regulates the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle-electron transport chain (ETC) remains poorly understood. Here, we clarify this process by visualizing STAT3 acetylation in starved cells after serum reintroduction or insulin stimulation. CBP-acetylated STAT3 undergoes mitochondrial translocation in response to serum introduction or insulin stimulation. In mitochondria, STAT3 associates with the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex E1 (PDC-E1) and subsequently accelerates the conversion of pyruvate to acetyl-CoA, elevates the mitochondrial membrane potential, and promotes ATP synthesis. SIRT5 deacetylates STAT3, thereby inhibiting its function in mitochondrial pyruvate metabolism. In the A549 lung cancer cell line, constitutively acetylated STAT3 localizes to mitochondria, where it maintains the mitochondrial membrane potential and ATP synthesis in an active state.
The plastic deformation behavior and the effects of the impact time on the LY2 aluminum (Al) alloy during multiple laser shock processing (LSP) impacts were investigated. The residual stress in the ...near-surface region was determined by X-ray diffraction. In addition, the micro-structural features of the hardening layer were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, optical microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. It was found that the micro-structure was obviously refined due to the ultra-high plastic strain induced by multiple LSP impacts. The minimum grain size in the top surface after multiple LSP impacts was about 100–200
nm. The grain refinement process after multiple LSP impacts can be described as follows: (i) the formation and development of dislocation lines in original grains; (ii) dislocation tangles (DTs) and the formation of dense dislocation walls (DDWs); (iii) transformation of DTs and DDWs into subgrain boundaries; and (iv) evolution of the continuous dynamic recrystallization in subgrain boundaries to refined grain boundaries.
Aims
To study the antimicrobial agents of the Bacillus velezensis strain HC6 and assess the application potential of B. velezensis HC6 in maize.
Methods and Results
We applied a dual culture ...technique to test the antimicrobial activity of B. velezensis HC6 against bacteria and fungi of common contaminated crops. Bacillus velezensis HC6 showed antagonistic action on pathogenic fungi, including Aspergillus and Fusarium, as well as pathogenic bacteria (especially Listeria monocytogenes). When applied in maize, B. velezensis HC6 could also inhibit the growth of multiple pathogenic fungi and reduce their production of aflatoxin and ochratoxin. Three kinds of antimicrobial lipopeptides, including iturin, fengycin and surfactin were identified in B. velezensis HC6 culture supernatant by high‐performance liquid chromatography and MALDI‐TOF mass spectrometry. Iturin and fengycin showed obvious antimicrobial activity to the tested fungal strains.
Conclusions
Bacillus velezensis HC6 produces three kinds of lipopeptides which showed antimicrobial activity against several common pathogenic fungi and bacteria. Bacillus velezensis HC6 is potential to be biocontrol bacteria in maize.
Significance and Impact of the Study
Bacillus velezensis HC6 shows obvious antimicrobial activity to important crops pathogenic fungi which usually produce mycotoxins that are harmful to animal and human health. We demonstrate that three different types of lipopeptides produced by B. velezensis contributed to the antimicrobial activity. Bacillus velezensis HC6 has the potential to be effective biocontrol agent in crops.
A novel high-throughput strategy was developed to determine the calcium precipitation activity (CPA) of mineralization bacteria used for self-healing of concrete cracks. A bacterial strain designated ...as H4 with the highest CPA of 94.8 % was screened and identified as a
Bacillus
species based on 16S rDNA sequence and phylogenetic tree analysis. Furthermore, the effects of certain influential factors on the microbial calcium precipitation process of H4 were evaluated. The results showed that lactate and nitrate are the best carbon and nitrogen sources, with optimal concentrations of approximately 25 and 18 mM, respectively. The H4 strain is able to maintain a high CPA in the pH range of 9.5–11.0, and a suitable initial spore concentration is 4.0 × 10
7
spores/ml. Moreover, an ambient Ca
2+
concentration greater than 60 mM resulted in a serious adverse impact not only on the CPA but also on the growth of H4, suggesting that the maintenance of the Ca
2+
concentration at a low level is necessary for microbial self-healing of concrete cracks.
To confront energy shortage, global warming and climate changes, biofuels derived from biomass have received increasing attention from the industry, academia and governments. Of the potential sources ...of biofuels a most promising one is the simple photosynthetic microalgae, which can be grown in open ponds, photobioreactors and fermenters. The advantages to produce biofuels from microalgae include easy adaption to environmental conditions, high photosynthesis efficiency, high lipid content and noncompetition for farmlands. Nonetheless, the real hallmark of microalgae is the fact that these microscopic organisms can provide the biomass feedstock for the flexible production of several different types of renewable and sustainable biofuels such as biodiesel, bioethanol, biogas, biohydrogen among others via thermochemical and biochemical conversion processes. Amazingly, from a sustainability perspective the integrated algal biofuels production, where biodiesel, bioethanol and biogas are continuously produced from one biomass source, can evidently lead to an increase in the energetic productivity of the microalgal biomass, thus improving the economics of this algal biorefinery approach. Developments in several areas, such as genetic and metabolic engineering, are expected to further improve the costeffectiveness of the biofuels from microalgae in an environmentally sustainable manner.
MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) measurements taken during passes over Mercury's dayside hemisphere indicate that on four occasions the spacecraft remained in ...the magnetosheath even though it reached altitudes below 300 km. During these disappearing dayside magnetosphere (DDM) events, the spacecraft did not encounter the magnetopause until it was at very high magnetic latitudes, ~66 to 80°. These DDM events stand out with respect to their extremely high solar wind dynamic pressures, Psw ~140 to 290 nPa, and intense southward magnetic fields, Bz ~ −100 to −400 nT, measured in the magnetosheath. In addition, the bow shock was observed very close to the surface during these events with a subsolar altitude of ~1,200 km. It is suggested that DDM events, which are closely associated with coronal mass ejections, are due to solar wind compression and/or reconnection‐driven erosion of the dayside magnetosphere. The very low altitude of the bow shock during these events strongly suggests that the solar wind impacts much of Mercury's sunlit hemisphere during these events. More study of these disappearing dayside events is required, but it is likely that solar wind sputtering of neutrals from the surface into the exosphere maximizes during these intervals.
Key Points
The dayside magnetosphere of Mercury is observed to disappear at MESSENGER's orbit during some coronal mass ejection impacts
The cause appears to be extreme solar wind compression and/or reconnection‐driven erosion of Mercury's dayside magnetic field
The low altitude of the bow shock during these events strongly suggests that Mercury's dayside surface experiences direct solar wind impact
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