In this paper, a hierarchical NiCo2S4@polypyrrole core–shell heterostructure nanotube array on Ni foam (NiCo2S4@PPy/NF) was successfully developed as a bind-free electrode for supercapacitors. ...NiCo2S4@PPy-50/NF obtained under 50 s PPy electrodeposition shows a low charge-transfer resistance (0.31 Ω) and a high area specific capacitance of 9.781 F/cm2 at a current density of 5 mA/cm2, which is two times higher than that of pristine NiCo2S4/NF (4.255 F/cm2). Furthermore, an asymmetric supercapacitor was assembled using NiCo2S4@PPy-50/NF as positive electrode and activated carbon (AC) as negative electrode. The resulting NiCo2S4@PPy-50/NF//AC device exhibits a high energy density of 34.62 Wh/kg at a power density of 120.19 W/kg with good cycling performance (80.64% of the initial capacitance retention at 50 mA/cm2 over 2500 cycles). The superior electrochemical performance can be attributed to the combined contribution of both component and unique core–shell heterostructure. The results demonstrate that the NiCo2S4@PPy-50 core–shell heterostructure nanotube array is promising as electrode material for supercapacitors in energy storage.
Treatment of severe Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is challenging. We performed a phase 2 trial to assess the efficacy and safety of human umbilical cord-mesenchymal stem cells (UC-MSCs) to ...treat severe COVID-19 patients with lung damage, based on our phase 1 data. In this randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled trial, we recruited 101 severe COVID-19 patients with lung damage. They were randomly assigned at a 2:1 ratio to receive either UC-MSCs (4 × 10
cells per infusion) or placebo on day 0, 3, and 6. The primary endpoint was an altered proportion of whole lung lesion volumes from baseline to day 28. Other imaging outcomes, 6-minute walk test (6-MWT), maximum vital capacity, diffusing capacity, and adverse events were recorded and analyzed. In all, 100 COVID-19 patients were finally received either UC-MSCs (n = 65) or placebo (n = 35). UC-MSCs administration exerted numerical improvement in whole lung lesion volume from baseline to day 28 compared with the placebo (the median difference was -13.31%, 95% CI -29.14%, 2.13%, P = 0.080). UC-MSCs significantly reduced the proportions of solid component lesion volume compared with the placebo (median difference: -15.45%; 95% CI -30.82%, -0.39%; P = 0.043). The 6-MWT showed an increased distance in patients treated with UC-MSCs (difference: 27.00 m; 95% CI 0.00, 57.00; P = 0.057). The incidence of adverse events was similar in the two groups. These results suggest that UC-MSCs treatment is a safe and potentially effective therapeutic approach for COVID-19 patients with lung damage. A phase 3 trial is required to evaluate effects on reducing mortality and preventing long-term pulmonary disability. (Funded by The National Key R&D Program of China and others. ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT04288102.
Objective
To compare the value of reduced field-of-view (FOV) intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and arterial spin labeling (ASL) for assessing renal allograft ...fibrosis and predicting long-term dysfunction.
Methods
This prospective study included 175 renal transplant recipients undergoing reduced FOV IVIM DWI, ASL, and biopsies. Renal allograft fibrosis was categorized into ci0, ci1, ci2, and ci3 fibrosis according to biopsy results. A total of 83 participants followed for a median of 39 (IQR, 21–42) months were dichotomized into stable and impaired allograft function groups based on follow-up estimated glomerular filtration rate. Total apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC
T
), pure diffusion ADC, pseudo-perfusion ADC, perfusion fraction
f
from IVIM DWI, and renal blood flow (RBF) from ASL were calculated and compared. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) was calculated to assess the diagnostic and predictive performances.
Results
RBF was different in ci0 vs ci1 (147.9 ± 46.3 vs 126.0 ± 49.4 ml/min/100 g,
p
= .02) and ci2 vs ci3 (92.9 ± 46.9 vs 70.8 ± 37.8 ml/min/100 g,
p
= .03). RBF in the stable group was higher than that in the impaired group (144.73 ± 49.33 vs 102.19 ± 47.58 ml/min/100 g,
p
< .001). AUCs in distinguishing renal allograft fibrosis and predicting long-term allograft dysfunction for RBF were higher than cortical ADC
T
(ci0 vs ci1–3, 0.76 vs 0.59,
p
< .001; ci0–1 vs ci2–3, 0.79 vs 0.68,
p
= .01; ci0–2 vs ci3, 0.79 vs 0.68,
p
= .01; 0.76 vs 0.60,
p
= .04, respectively).
Conclusion
Compared to reduced FOV IVIM DWI, ASL was a more promising technique for noninvasively distinguishing renal allograft fibrosis degree and predicting long-term allograft dysfunction.
Key Points
• Compared to total ADC from rFOV IVIM DWI, RBF from ASL can distinguish no fibrosis (ci0) vs mild fibrosis (ci1) (p = .02) and moderate fibrosis (ci2) vs severe fibrosis (ci3) (p = .04).
• RBF had superior performance than diffusion parameters in discriminating fibrosis (no fibrosis ci0 vs fibrosis ci1–3, mild fibrosis ci0–1 vs moderate to severe fibrosis ci2–3, non-severe ci0–2 vs severe ci3 fibrosis; AUC = 0.76 vs 0.59, p < .001; 0.79 vs 0.68, p = .01; 0.79 vs 0.68, p = .01).
• Compared to reduced FOV IVIM DWI, ASL was a more promising technique for noninvasively predicting long-term allograft dysfunction (AUC = 0.76 vs 0.60, p = .04).
Objectives
To evaluate the utility of arterial spin labeling (ASL) for the identification of kidney allografts with underlying pathologies, particularly those with stable graft function.
Methods
A ...total of 75 patients, including 18 stable grafts with normal histology (normal group), 21 stable grafts with biopsy-proven pathology (subclinical pathology group), and 36 with unstable graft function (unstable graft group), were prospectively examined by ASL magnetic resonance imaging. Receiver operating characteristic curves were generated to calculate the area under the curve (AUC), sensitivity, and specificity.
Results
Patient demographics among the 3 groups were comparable. Compared with the normal group, kidney allograft cortical ASL values decreased in the subclinical pathology group and the unstable graft group (204.7 ± 44.9 ml/min/100 g vs 152.5 ± 38.9 ml/min/100 g vs 92.3 ± 37.4 ml/min/100 g,
p
< 0.001). The AUC, sensitivity, and specificity for discriminating allografts with pathologic changes from normal allografts were 0.92 (95% CI, 0.83–0.97), 71.9%, and 100% respectively by cortical ASL and 0.82 (95% CI, 0.72–0.90), 54.4%, and 100% respectively by serum creatinine. The cortical ASL identified allografts with subclinical pathology among patients with stable graft function with an AUC of 0.80 (95% CI, 0.64–0.91), sensitivity of 57.1%, and specificity of 88.9%. Combined use of proteinuria and cortical ASL could improve the sensitivity and specificity to 76.2% and 100% respectively for distinguishing the subclinical pathology group from the normal group.
Conclusions
Cortical ASL is useful for the identification of allografts with underlying pathologies. More importantly, ASL showed promise as a non-invasive tool for the clinical translation of identifying kidney allografts with subclinical pathology.
Key Points
• Cortical ASL values were decreased in kidney allografts with subclinical pathologic changes as compared with normal allografts (152.5 ± 38.9 ml/min/100 g vs 204.7 ± 44.9 ml/min/100 g, p < 0.001).
• Cortical ASL differentiated allografts with pathologic changes and subclinical pathology group from normal group with an AUC of 0.92 (95% CI, 0.83–0.97) and 0.80 (95% CI, 0.64–0.91) respectively.
• Cortical ASL discriminated allografts with underlying pathologic changes from normal allografts with a specificity of 100%, and combined use of proteinuria and cortical ASL values could also achieve 100% specificity for discriminating allografts with subclinical pathology from normal allografts.
Carboxymethyl cellulose was first incorporated into nano-hydroxyapatite/chitosan to obtain a novel composite of nano-hydroxyapatite/chitosan/carboxymethyl cellulose (n-HA/CS/CMC) as a ...three-dimensional scaffolds by freeze-drying. The surface morphology and properties of the scaffold were investigated by infrared absorption spectra (IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), mechanical testing and soaking in simulated body fluids (SBF) soaking. The results showed that strong chemical interactions were formed between the three phases. Moreover, the n-HA/CS/CMC composite scaffold with 30
wt% CMC had the most ideal porous structure with a pore size ranging from 100 to 500
μm and a porosity 77.8%, and the highest compressive strength of 3.54
MPa. In addition, the SBF soaking experiment showed the scaffold of 30
wt% CMC had an acceptable degradation rate and good bioactivity
in vitro. All the results suggest that n-HA/CS/CMC composite scaffolds have potential as bone tissue engineering materials.
Over the past decade, however, few landmark studies from populations in Europe2,3 and the United States4 have provided important reference data for this issue. ...we propose to conduct a nationwide ...multicenter retrospective study, which was launched by the National Clinical Research Center of Kidney Diseases, Jinling Hospital, Nanjing University School of Medicine, from 2017 to 2020, to retrospectively analyze and collect the clinical prognosis characteristics of different chronic GN patients in China after kidney transplantation, laying the foundation for describing disease outcomes, exploring relevant risk factors, guiding clinical decision-making, and improving the long-term prognosis of kidney transplant patients in China. There was no significant difference in the cumulative human survival rate between ESRD patients due to GN and ADPKD. Funding This work is supported by grants from National Key R&D Program of China (No. 2018YFC1312705), Jinling Hospital Clinical Research Project (No. 22LCYY-XH7), the Special Funds of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 32141004), and Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (No.
Observation of superconductivity in twisted-bilayer-graphene and highly-oriented-pyrolytic-graphite (HOPG) for certain magic-angles-of-rotation has recently attracted an important attention. Unusual ...temperature-(T)-induced-shifts in the graphitic c-axis have also been reported in HOPG in conditions of θmisfit ∼ 1° (first-magic-angle).
We report a novel investigation of HOPGs with θmisfit of 0.5°, 0.8°, 1.5°, ≫ 1.5° and of water-treated-turbostratic-graphite in the T-range from 298.15 to 673.15K. Presence of magic angles of rotations corresponding to the reported θmisfit values is demonstrated by repeated HRTEM and Moiré pattern analyses of HOPG lamellae extracted from individual samples with scotch tape methods. Interestingly in our measurements the c-axis-shift is found to depend strongly on the misfit-angle, with the highest-values of 0.00428 and 0.00426 nm in proximity of the first-magic-angle (θmisfit ∼ 0.8° and ∼0.5°). Two diffraction-peaks present at ∼23.5° and ∼48.5° 2θ (detector angle, in typical Bragg- Brentano configuration) for θmisfit ∼1° are also found to vanish for θmisfit ≫ 1.5°. These findings imply existence of additional symmetry elements at the magic angle, which are not present in the standard space group notation used for structural characterization of graphite (P63/mmc).
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In China, most of the patients who underwent kidney transplants have unknown causes of end-stage renal disease (uESRD). However, little is known regarding the incidence of graft glomerulonephritis ...(GN) and graft survival in kidney transplant recipients (KTRs) with uESRD.
In this retrospective cohort study, 473 of the 565 KTRs who underwent kidney transplantation (KTx) from 2015 to 2020 were included. We mainly observed the occurrence of graft GN between uESRD group and definitively diagnosed GN group, and repeatedly compared after propensity score matching (PSM).
The median follow-up was 50 months in 473 KTRs, and about 75% of KTRs of native kidney disease of unknown etiology. The total cumulative incidence of graft GN was 17%, and no difference was observed between the definitively diagnosed GN group and the uESRD group (
= 0.76). Further, PSM analysis also showed no difference in the incidence of graft GN between the 2 groups. Multivariable analysis disclosed males (
= 0.001), younger age (
= 0.03), and anti-endothelial cell anti-body (AECA) positive pre-KTx (
= 0.001) were independent risk factors for graft GN.
The incidence of graft GN was similar between uESRD and definitively diagnosed GN group. The allograft survival was also similar between two groups.
To investigate the pattern of spontaneous neural activity in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) with and without neurocognitive dysfunction using resting-state functional magnetic resonance ...imaging (rs-fMRI) with a regional homogeneity (ReHo) algorithm.
rs-fMRI data were acquired in 36 ESRD patients (minimal nephro-encephalopathy MNE, n = 19, 13 male, 37±12.07 years; non-nephro-encephalopathy non-NE, n = 17, 11 male, 38±12.13 years) and 20 healthy controls (13 male, 7 female, 36±10.27 years). Neuropsychological (number connection test type A NCT-A, digit symbol test DST) and laboratory tests were performed in all patients. The Kendall's coefficient of concordance (KCC) was used to measure the regional homogeneity for each subject. The regional homogeneity maps were compared using ANOVA tests among MNE, non-NE, and healthy control groups and post hoc t -tests between each pair in a voxel-wise way. A multiple regression analysis was performed to evaluate the relationships between ReHo index and NCT-A, DST scores, serum creatinine and urea levels, disease and dialysis duration.
Compared with healthy controls, both MNE and non-NE patients showed decreased ReHo in the multiple areas of bilateral frontal, parietal and temporal lobes. Compared with the non-NE, MNE patients showed decreased ReHo in the right inferior parietal lobe (IPL), medial frontal cortex (MFC) and left precuneus (PCu). The NCT-A scores and serum urea levels of ESRD patients negatively correlated with ReHo values in the frontal and parietal lobes, while DST scores positively correlated with ReHo values in the bilateral PCC/precuneus, MFC and inferior parietal lobe (IPL) (all P<0.05, AlphaSim corrected). No significant correlations were found between any regional ReHo values and disease duration, dialysis duration and serum creatinine values in ESRD patients (all P>0.05, AlphaSim corrected).
Diffused decreased ReHo values were found in both MNE and non-NE patients. The progressively decreased ReHo in the default mode network (DMN), frontal and parietal lobes might be trait-related in MNE. The ReHo analysis may be potentially valuable for elucidating neurocognitive abnormalities of ESRD patients and detecting the development from non-NE to MNE.
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