Highly efficient catalysts for both oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) are key to the commercialization of rechargeable zinc–air batteries (ZABs). In this work, a ...catalyst with uniform nanospherical morphology was prepared from cobalt nitrate, acetylacetone, and hydrazine hydrate. The final catalyst possesses high ORR and OER performances, with a half-wave potential of 0.911 V vs reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) for ORR and a low potential of 1.57 V (vs RHE) at 10 mA cm–2 for OER in 0.1 M KOH solution. Specially, a ZAB based on the catalyst demonstrates an ultrahigh power density of 479.1 mW cm–2, as well as excellent stability, and potential in practical applications.
Evidence shows that being left behind experience (LBE) during childhood may increase the risks of poor psychopathological outcomes. However, it is unclear to what extent the mental health is affected ...by the LBE. Telomere length (TL), one of the most extensively studied biological markers of cellular ageing, provides a valuable tool for exploring the potential effects of parent-child separation on psychological problems by integrating genetic and environmental factors. In this study, a total of 613 children (mean age = 10.77, SD = 1.92) were recruited from the rural area of Deyang, Sichuan Province, China. We used a self-designed questionnaire to assess LBE, and collected psychopathological outcomes by using the Piers-Harris Children's Self-concept Scale, the Teacher's Report Form 6/18 and the Youth Self-Report 11/18. Terminal restriction fragment analysis was used to measure TL in peripheral blood leukocytes. Analyses revealed that 342 out of 613 participants (55.79%) were Left-behind children. LBE was observed to associated with shorter TL, lower self-esteem, and increased behavioural and emotional problems. The cumulative effects of LBE may be reflected by greater altered telomere homeostasis, decreased self-esteem, and worsened behavioural and emotional problems. The association of the total time of being left behind with self-esteem and behavioural and emotional problems was significantly mediated by altered telomere homeostasis, with estimated effects of 14.19%, 47.95% and 45.13%, respectively. The LBE in childhood, especially prolonged parent-child separation, increases the risk of mental health problems in childhood and adolescence.
•It is the first to assess the relationship among Left-behind Experience (LBE), Telomere Length (TL) and behavioural and emotional problems.•The LBE in childhood is associated with shorter TL, lower self-esteem, and more behavioural and emotional problems.•The altered telomere homeostasis partially mediated the association between LBE and an increased risk of psychopathological outcomes.•The prolonged parent-child separation increases the susceptibility to cellular ageing and consequently increases the risk of mental health problems.
Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a debilitating neurodevelopmental disorder with a high heritability. In this study, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were donated by a pair of dizygotic twins. The ...female was clinically diagnosed as SCZ by Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV (DSM-IV) criteria, and her unaffected male sibling was healthy control. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) were established using Episomal vectors carrying reprograming factors OCT4, SOX2, NANOG, LIN28, c-MYC, KLF4, and SV40LT. These lines with normal karyotype highly expressed pluripotency markers and are capable to differentiate into derivatives of three germ layers. Both lines are negative of mycoplasma.
To investigate brain network centrality and connectivity alterations in different Parkinson’s disease (PD) clinical subtypes using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (RS-fMRI), and ...to explore the correlation between baseline connectivity changes and the clinical progression. Ninety-two PD patients were enrolled at baseline, alongside 38 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Of these, 85 PD patients underwent longitudinal assessments with a mean of 2.75 ± 0.59 years. Two-step cluster analysis integrating comprehensive motor and non-motor manifestations was performed to define PD subtypes. Degree centrality (DC) and secondary seed-based functional connectivity (FC) were applied to identify brain network centrality and connectivity changes among groups. Regression analysis was used to explore the correlation between baseline connectivity changes and clinical progression. Cluster analysis identified two main PD subtypes: mild PD and moderate PD. Two different subtypes within the mild PD were further identified: mild motor-predominant PD and mild-diffuse PD. Accordingly, the disrupted DC and seed-based FC in the left inferior frontal orbital gyrus and left superior occipital gyrus were severe in moderate PD. The DC and seed-based FC alterations in the right gyrus rectus and right postcentral gyrus were more severe in mild-diffuse PD than in mild motor-predominant PD. Moreover, disrupted DC were associated with clinical manifestations at baseline in patients with PD and predicted motor aspects progression over time. Our study suggested that brain network centrality and connectivity changes were different among PD subtypes. RS-fMRI holds promise to provide an objective assessment of subtype-related connectivity changes and predict disease progression in PD.
Idiopathic interstitial pneumonia (IIP) can induce type II alveolar epithelial cell proliferation and pulmonary basement membrane damage and subsequent release of Krebs von den Lungen-6 antigen ...(KL-6) to the bloodstream. This study investigated the diagnostic and prognostic value of serum KL-6 levels for IIP.
One hundred five patients with lung disease were divided into IIP (n=75) and non-IIP groups (n=30) according to pathological and computed tomography findings. Serum KL-6 levels were evaluated in blood samples from all subjects. Nineteen IIP group patients were also subjected to a longitudinal study of disease progression and serum KL-6 levels over time.
Serum KL-6 levels were significantly higher in the IIP group
the non-IIP group 1,096.0 (565.0-1,544.0)
226.0 (173.5-346.5) U/mL; P<0.01. Within the IIP group, serum KL-6 levels differed significantly between patients with and without concomitant disease or pulmonary infection (Z=-2.475, P=0.013). In a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, the area below the curve for serum KL-6 was 0.911 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.847-0.975, P<0.001, indicating a good diagnostic performance for IIP, with a cut-off level of 485 U/mL, sensitivity of 85.33%, specificity of 90.00%, positive predictive value (PPV) of 95.52%, negative predictive value (NPV) of 71.05%, and Kappa value of 0.70. Accordingly, the serum KL-6 and clinical diagnostic results were consistent. Moreover, in the longitudinal study, the serum KL-6 levels differed significantly from before to after treatment in patients with exacerbated or improved disease (P=0.004 and P=0.043, respectively), whereas no obvious changes were observed in patients with stable disease (P=0.692).
The serum KL-6 level is a valuable and significant diagnostic marker of IIP and a useful predictor of clinical prognosis.
The objective of this study was to investigate the topical iontophoresis of flurbiprofen (FBF) as a means to enhance its local bioavailability and thereby provide an improved and targeted treatment ...of plantar heel pain. Initial in vitro experiments using porcine ear skin investigated iontophoretic transport of FBF under different conditions. Local FBF biodistribution in the rat paw in vivo was compared after topical or oral administration. Efficacy of pain management was investigated using a plantar incisional model by evaluating pharmacodynamic responses to local pain stimuli. The results demonstrated that iontophoresis of FBF significantly increased cutaneous deposition and transdermal permeation of FBF as compared to passive delivery—it also enabled drug input to be controlled by modulation of current density and drug concentration (r2 > 0.99). Topical iontophoresis of FBF in vivo enabled higher drug levels in skin and muscle in rat plantar aspect and superior pharmacodynamic responses to local pain stimuli, in comparison to oral and passive delivery. In conclusion, short-duration topical iontophoresis of FBF may better help to relieve plantar heel pain than oral or passive administration, which should be of clinical interest.
The prevalence of allergen-induced chronic respiratory disease (CRD) is increasing annually.
This study aimed to analyze the sensitization characteristics of adult Chinese CRD patients.
The serum ...specific immunoglobulin E (sIgE) was detected via an inhalation allergy screening test. Total immunoglobulin E (tIgE) levels were measured in 85 asthma patients, 98 chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients, and 69 patients with other CRDs.
The total positive rate of allergy screening among CRD patients was 36.1%. Asthma showed the highest rate (45.9%), followed by COPD (32.7%) and other CRDs (29.0%). The positive rate of inhalation allergy screening was significantly higher among office staff (68.9%) than among outdoor workers (42.8%) and farmers (25.0%, P < 0.05). In patients with COPD, atopy was a risk factor for dyspnea (Odds ratio = 1.22; P < 0.05). Optimal scaling analysis revealed a correlation between tIgE levels and smoking index (Cronbach's alpha = 91.1%). Up to 35.0% of GOLD III or IV patients showed low sIgE and high tIgE.
Patients with CRD had high sensitization. Asthma patients who work indoors were more susceptible to allergies. Atopy was associated with COPD pulmonary function. It is necessary to initially screen the sensitization situation of CRD patients.
The role of statin therapy in the development of kidney disease in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) remains uncertain. We aimed to determine the relationships between statin initiation and ...kidney outcomes in patients with type 2 DM.
Through a new-user design, we conducted a multicentre retrospective cohort study using the China Renal Data System database (which includes inpatient and outpatient data from 19 urban academic centres across China). We included patients with type 2 DM who were aged 40 years or older and admitted to hospital between Jan. 1, 2000, and May 26, 2021, and excluded those with pre-existing chronic kidney disease and those who were already on statins or without follow-up at an affiliated outpatient clinic within 90 days after discharge. The primary exposure was initiation of a statin. The primary outcome was the development of diabetic kidney disease (DKD), defined as a composite of the occurrence of kidney dysfunction (estimated glomerular filtration rate eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73 m
and > 25% decline from baseline) and proteinuria (a urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio ≥ 30 mg/g and > 50% increase from baseline), sustained for at least 90 days; secondary outcomes included development of kidney function decline (a sustained > 40% decline in eGFR). We used Cox proportional hazards regression to evaluate the relationships between statin initiation and kidney outcomes, as well as to conduct subgroup analyses according to patient characteristics, presence or absence of dyslipidemia, and pattern of dyslipidemia. For statin initiators, we explored the association between different levels of lipid control and outcomes. We conducted analyses using propensity overlap weighting to balance the participant characteristics.
Among 7272 statin initiators and 12 586 noninitiators in the weighted cohort, statin initiation was associated with lower risks of incident DKD (hazard ratio HR 0.72, 95% confidence interval CI 0.62-0.83) and kidney function decline (HR 0.60, 95% CI 0.44-0.81). We obtained similar results to the primary analyses for participants with differing patterns of dyslipidemia, those prescribed different statins, and after stratification according to participant characteristics. Among statin initiators, those with intensive control of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) (< 1.8 mmol/L) had a lower risk of incident DKD (HR 0.51, 95% CI 0.32-0.81) than those with inadequate lipid control (LDL-C ≥ 3.4 mmol/L).
For patients with type 2 DM admitted to and followed up in academic centres, statin initiation was associated with a lower risk of kidney disease development, particularly in those with intensive control of LDL-C. These findings suggest that statin initiation may be an effective and reasonable approach for preventing kidney disease in patients with type 2 DM.
•Piperacillin/tazobactam (PT) is widely used in adults worldwide, and is recommended in various guidelines.•Increased risk of acute kidney injury (AKI) in those who used PT and vancomycin ...concomitantly raises concern about the safety of PT administration.•In this real-world data analysis of hospitalized adults in China, PT without concomitant use of vancomycin was not associated with increased risk of hospital-acquired AKI compared with other antipseudomonal beta-lactams (meropenem or ceftazidime).•In adults hospitalized with infection, concern regarding the risk of AKI may not be an important consideration in the choice of PT compared with meropenem or ceftazidime if not used in combination with vancomycin.
There is uncertainty about whether piperacillin/tazobactam (PT) increases the risk of acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients without concomitant use of vancomycin. This study compared the risk of hospital-acquired AKI (HA-AKI) among adults treated with PT or antipseudomonal β-lactams (meropenem, ceftazidime) without concomitant use of vancomycin.
This real-world study analysed the data from China Renal Data System and assessed the risk of HA-AKI in adults hospitalized with infection after exposure to PT, meropenem or ceftazidime in the absence of concomitant vancomycin. The primary outcome was any stage of HA-AKI according to the Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes guidelines. A multi-variable Cox regression model and different propensity score (PS) matching models were used.
Among the 29,441 adults mean (standard deviation) age 62.44 (16.84) years; 17,980 females (61.1%) included in this study, 14,721 (50%) used PT, 9081 (31%) used meropenem and 5639 (19%) used ceftazidime. During a median follow-up period of 8 days, 2601 (8.8%) develped HA-AKI. The use of PT was not associated with significantly higher risk of HA-AKI compared with meropenem adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) 1.07, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.97–1.19, ceftazidime (aHR 1.09, 95% CI 0.92–1.30) or both agents (aHR 1.07, 95% CI 0.97–1.17) after adjusting for confounders. Results were consistent in stratified analyses, PS matching using logistic regression or random forest methods to generate a PS, and in an analysis restricting outcomes to AKI stage 2–3.
Without concomitant use of vancomycin, the risk of AKI following PT therapy is comparable with that of meropenem or ceftazidime among adults hospitalized with infection.
The transmembrane glycoprotein Trop2 plays important roles in various types of human cancers, especially lung cancer. Although it has been found to form clusters on cancer cell membranes, the factors ...that affect its clustering are not yet fully understood. Here, using direct stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy (dSTORM), we found that Trop2 generated more, larger, and denser clusters on apical cell membranes than on basal membranes and that the differences might be related to the different membrane structures. Moreover, dual-color dSTORM imaging revealed significant colocalization of Trop2 and lipid rafts, and methyl-β-cyclodextrin disruption dramatically impaired the formation of Trop2 clusters, indicating a key role of lipid rafts in Trop2 clustering. Additionally, depolymerization of the actin cytoskeleton decreased Trop2 cluster numbers and areas, revealing that actin can stabilize the clusters. More importantly, stimulation of Trop2 in cancer cells hardly changed the cluster morphology, suggesting that Trop2 is activated and forms clusters in cancer cells. Altogether, our work links the spatial organization of Trop2 to different membrane structures and Trop activation and uncovers the essential roles of lipid rafts and actin in Trop2 cluster maintenance.
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