γ-Glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) is a key biomarker for cancer diagnosis and post-treatment surveillance. Currently available methods for sensing GGT show high potential, but face certain challenges ...including an inability to be used to directly sense analytes in turbid biofluid samples such as whole blood without tedious sample pretreatment. To overcome this issue, activity-based electrochemical probes (GTLP and GTLPOH) were herein developed for a convenient and specific direct targeting of GGT activity in turbid biosamples. Both probes were designed to have GGT catalyze the hydrolysis of the gamma-glutamyl amide moiety of the probe, and result in a self-immolative reaction and concomitant ejection of the masked amino ferrocene reporter. The GTLPOH probe, delivered distinctive key results including high sensitivity, high affinity, a wide detection range of 2-100 U/L, and low LOD of 0.38 U/L against GGT. This probe delivered a precise target for sensing GGT and was free of interference from other electroactive biological species. Furthermore, the GTLPOH probe was employed to monitor and quantify the activity of GGT on the surfaces of tumor cells. The designed sensing method was also validated by the direct quantitative measurement of GGT activity in whole blood and urine samples, and the results were found to be consistent with those of the standard fluorometric assay kit. Thus, GTLPOH is of great significance for its promise as a point-of-care tool for early-stage cancer diagnosis as well as a new drug screening method.
This study aimed to investigate the relationship of four chronic kidney disease-mineral and bone disorder (CKD-MBD) biomarkers, including intact parathyroid hormone (PTH), fibroblast growth factor 23 ...(FGF23), soluble klotho, and fetuin-A, with aortic stiffness in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients, comparing those with and without diabetes mellitus (DM). A total of 213 patients (mean age 58 ± 14 years; 81 (38.0%) patients with DM) were enrolled. Their aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) was measured using pressure applanation tonometry, while serum intact PTH, FGF23, α-klotho, and fetuin-A levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Overall, patients with DM had higher aortic PWV than those without (9.9 ± 1.8 vs. 8.6 ± 1.4 m/s, p < 0.001). Among the four CKD-MBD biomarkers, FGF23 levels were significantly lower in DM group (462 127-1790 vs. 1237 251-3120 pg/mL, p = 0.028) and log-FGF23 independently predicted aortic PWV in DM group (β: 0.61, 95% confidence interval: 0.06-1.16, p = 0.029 in DM group; β: 0.10, 95% confidence interval: - 0.24-0.45, p = 0.546 in nonDM group; interaction p = 0.016). In conclusion, the association between FGF23 and aortic PWV was significantly modified by DM status in PD patients.
Recommended treatment for hepatitis C virus genotype 1 (HCV‐1) patients is peginterferon plus ribavirin for 48 weeks. We assessed whether treatment duration of 24 weeks is as effective as standard ...treatment in HCV‐1 patients with a rapid virological response (RVR; seronegative for hepatitis C virus HCV RNA at 4 weeks). Two hundred HCV‐1 patients were randomized (1:1) to either 24 or 48 weeks of peginterferon‐alpha‐2a (180 μg/week) and ribavirin (1000–1200 mg/day) with a 24‐week follow‐up. The primary endpoint was a sustained virological response (SVR; seronegative for HCV RNA at 24‐week follow‐up). Overall, the 48‐week arm had a significantly higher SVR rate (79%) than the 24‐week arm (59%, P = 0.002). For 87 (43.5%) patients with an RVR, the 24‐week arm had a lower SVR rate 88.9%; 95% confidence interval (CI): 80%–98% than the 48‐week arm (100%, P = 0.056). For 52 patients with low baseline viremia (<400,000 IU/mL) and an RVR, the 24‐week arm had rates (CI) of relapse and SVR of 3.6% (−3%–11%) and 96.4% (89%–103%), respectively, which were comparable to those of the 48‐week arm (0% and 100%) with difference (CI) of 3.6% (−7.2%–6.6%) and −3.6% (−14.3% to −0.6%), respectively. Multivariate analysis in all patients showed that RVR was the strongest independent factor associated with an SVR, followed by treatment duration, mean weight–based exposure of ribavirin, and baseline viral load. Conclusion: HCV‐1 patients derive a significantly better SVR from 48 weeks versus 24 weeks of peginterferon/ribavirin even if they attain an RVR. Both 24 and 48 weeks of therapy can achieve high SVR rates (>96%) in HCV‐1 patients with low viral loads and an RVR. (HEPATOLOGY 2008;47:1884–1893.)
Intracortical brain–computer interfaces (iBCIs) translate neural activity into control commands, thereby allowing paralyzed persons to control devices via their brain signals. Recurrent neural ...networks (RNNs) are widely used as neural decoders because they can learn neural response dynamics from continuous neural activity. Nevertheless, excessively long or short input neural activity for an RNN may decrease its decoding performance. Based on the temporal attention module exploiting relations in features over time, we propose a temporal attention-aware timestep selection (TTS) method that improves the interpretability of the salience of each timestep in an input neural activity. Furthermore, TTS determines the appropriate input neural activity length for accurate neural decoding. Experimental results show that the proposed TTS efficiently selects 28 essential timesteps for RNN-based neural decoders, outperforming state-of-the-art neural decoders on two nonhuman primate datasets (R2=0.76±0.05 for monkey Indy and CC=0.91±0.01 for monkey N). In addition, it reduces the computation time for offline training (reducing 5–12%) and online prediction (reducing 16–18%). When visualizing the attention mechanism in TTS, the preparatory neural activity is consecutively highlighted during arm movement, and the most recent neural activity is highlighted during the resting state in nonhuman primates. Selecting only a few essential timesteps for an RNN-based neural decoder provides sufficient decoding performance and requires only a short computation time.
The downregulation of melatonin receptor 1A (MTNR1A) is associated with a range of pathological conditions, including membranous nephropathy. Knowledge of the mechanism underlying MTNR1A expression ...has been limited to the transcriptional regulation level. Here, RNA interference screening in human kidney cells revealed that heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein L (hnRNPL) upregulated MTNR1A RNA post‐transcriptionally. hnRNPL knockdown or overexpression led to increased or decreased levels of cyclic adenosine monophosphate‐responsive element‐binding protein phosphorylation, respectively. Molecular studies showed that cytoplasmic hnRNPL exerts a stabilizing effect on the MTNR1A transcript through CA‐repeat elements in its coding region. Further studies revealed that the interaction between hnRNPL and MTNR1A serves to protect MNTR1A RNA degradation by the exosome component 10 protein. MTNR1A, but not hnRNPL, displays a diurnal rhythm in mouse kidneys. Enhanced levels of MTNR1A recorded at midnight correlated with robust binding activity between cytoplasmic hnRNPL and the MTNR1A transcript. Both hnRNPL and MTNR1A were decreased in the cytoplasm of tubular epithelial cells from experimental membranous nephropathy kidneys, supporting their clinical relevance. Collectively, our data identified cytoplasmic hnRNPL as a novel player in the upregulation of MTNR1A expression in renal tubular epithelial cells, and as a potential therapeutic target.
Our results suggest that the diurnal rhythmic variation in melatonin receptor 1A (MTNR1A) levels may depend on binding to heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein L (hnRNPL) in the cytoplasm. Both hnRNPL and MTNR1A were downregulated in the cytoplasm of renal tubular epithelial cells from experimental membranous nephropathy kidneys. Our results provide a positive oscillatory mechanism between the cytoplasmic hnRNPL protein and the MTNR1A messenger RNA for the modulation of this pathological condition.
•Ferric oxide nanoparticles were modified and homogeneously dispersed in chitosan solution.•Magnetic chitosan scaffolds with nanoparticles embedded were made by 3D printing.•Bone cells were cultured ...on the magnetic scaffolds in the presence of a electromagnetic force.•Inductive coupling magnetism promoted osteoblast proliferation, differentiation and mineralization.
The surface of iron oxide nanoparticles was chemically modified before being embedded in a chitosan hydrogel and for the first time, made into a scaffold by three-dimensional printing. The nanoparticles were embedded in the scaffold so that they would not be ingested by the surrounding tissue cells. The effects of the inductive coupling magnetism on bone cells were studied in the presence of an external magnetic force.
Results from the FTIR and surface zeta potential analyses suggested that the citrate modification of the nanoparticles was successful. TEM images showed that the modification helped reduce the sizes of the agglomerates from 1237 nm to 408 nm. The negative charge on the particle surface formed ionic interaction with the chitosan in the solution. The smaller and charged particles evenly dispersed in a chitosan solution without blocking the extruding nozzle during three-dimensional printing.
With the presence of the inductive coupling magnetism, osteoblast cells had a higher proliferation, type I collagen production, alkaline phosphatase expression, and mineralization (p < 0.01). The morphology of the osteoblast cells appeared normal and elongated. At the end of 21 days the cells proliferated into the interconnected pores as seen in the SEM images.
Inductive coupling was shown to have invoked additional osteogenic responses in bone cells aside from the positive effects from the external magnetic force. The novel magnetic scaffold provided a potential alternative for bone tissue repair using magnetic therapy.
Background
In remote thyroid surgery, a reliable intraoperative neuromonitoring (IONM) procedure is an important tool for reducing injury to recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN). This study proposes an ...alternative or adjunct technique for performing full percutaneous (PC) IONM and confirms its feasibility in animal experiments.
Methods
This prospective porcine model study enrolled four piglets with eight nerve sides. Evoked electromyography (EMG) was stimulated from PC ball‐tip probe, and recorded from EMG endotracheal tube (ETT) and from PC paired long‐needle electrodes on the perichondrium of the lateral aspect of thyroid cartilage.
Results
In all RLNs and vagus nerves, typical laryngeal EMG waveforms were successfully evoked by PC probe stimulation and recorded by both ETT and PC needle electrodes.
Conclusions
This study confirms the feasibility of the full PC IONM techniques in porcine model. However, further clinical studies are needed to compare the practicality of different remote‐access approaches for thyroid surgery.
This work describes catalytic and asymmetric aziridinations (15 examples, 95-98% ee) of benzyl bromide and imines via the imino Corey-Chaykovsky reaction using (thiolan-2-yl)diarylmethanol benzyl ...ether as an organocatalyst. The catalyst and analogues thereof were prepared through an expeditious and efficient synthetic route featuring a double nucleophilic substitution and Shi epoxidation as key steps.
Extracorporeal shock wave therapy (ESWT) is reportedly effective for improving spasticity and motor function in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Because late-stage Rett syndrome has a similar ...presentation, this study aimed to investigate the effects of ESWT on these two diseases.
Patients diagnosed with spastic CP and Rett syndrome received 1500 impulses of ESWT at 4 Hz and 0.1 mJ/mm
, on their spastic legsonce weekly for a total of 12 weeks. Outcomes were assessed before and 4 and 12 weeks after ESWT. Clinical assessments included the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS), passive range of motion (PROM), and Gross Motor Function Measure 88 (GMFM-88). Ultrasonographic assessments included muscle thickness, acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI), and strain elastography.
Fifteen patients with CP and six with Rett syndrome were enrolled in this study. After ESWT, patients with CP showed significant clinical improvement in the MAS (P = 0.011), ankle PROM (P = 0.002), walking/running/jumping function (P = 0.003), and total function (P < 0.001) of the GMFM-88. The patients with Rett syndrome showed improved MAS scores (P = 0.061) and significantly improved total gross motor function (P = 0.030). Under ARFI, patients with CP demonstrated decreased shear wave speed in the gastrocnemius medial head (P = 0.038). Conversely, patients with Rett syndrome show increased shear-wave speeds after ESWT.
Our study provides evidence that a weekly course of low-dose ESWT for 12 weeks is beneficial for children with both CP and Rett syndrome, with the clinical effects of reducing spasticity and improving the gross motor function of the lower limbs. The ARFI sonoelastography reveals improvement of muscle stiffness in patients with CP after ESWT, but deteriorated in patients with Rett syndrome. The diverse therapeutic response to ESWT may be caused by the MECP2 mutation in Rett syndrome, having a continuous impact and driving the pathophysiology differently as compared to CP, which is secondary to a static insult. Trial registration IRB 201700462A3. Registered 22March 2017, https://cghhrpms.cgmh.org.tw/HRPMS/Default.aspx .
Neutrophils play essential anti-microbial and inflammatory roles in host defense, however, their activities require tight regulation as dysfunction often leads to detrimental inflammatory and ...autoimmune diseases. Here we show that the adhesion molecule GPR97 allosterically activates CD177-associated membrane proteinase 3 (mPR3), and in conjugation with several protein interaction partners leads to neutrophil activation in humans. Crystallographic and deletion analysis of the GPR97 extracellular region identified two independent mPR3-binding domains. Mechanistically, the efficient binding and activation of mPR3 by GPR97 requires the macromolecular CD177/GPR97/PAR2/CD16b complex and induces the activation of PAR2, a G protein-coupled receptor known for its function in inflammation. Triggering PAR2 by the upstream complex leads to strong inflammatory activation, prompting anti-microbial activities and endothelial dysfunction. The role of the complex in pathologic inflammation is underscored by the finding that both GPR97 and mPR3 are upregulated on the surface of disease-associated neutrophils. In summary, we identify a PAR2 activation mechanism that directs neutrophil activation, and thus inflammation. The PR3/CD177/GPR97/PAR2/CD16b protein complex, therefore, represents a potential therapeutic target for neutrophil-mediated inflammatory diseases.
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