Emulation of diverse electronic devices on textile platform is considered as a promising approach for implementing wearable smart electronics. Of particular, the development of multifunctional ...polymeric fibers and their integration in common fabrics have been extensively researched for human friendly wearable platforms. Here we report a successful emulation of multifunctional body-motion sensors and user-interface (UI) devices in textile platform by using in situ polymerized poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT)-coated fibers. With the integration of PEDOT fibers in a fabric, via an optimization of the fiber pattern design, multifunctional textile sensors such as highly sensitive and reliable strain sensors (with maximum gauge factor of ∼1), body-motion monitoring sensors, touch sensors, and multilevel strain recognition UI devices were successfully emulated. We demonstrate the facile utilization of the textile-based multifunctional sensors and UI devices by implementing in a wireless system that is capable of expressing American Sign Language through predefined hand gestures.
An exact classification of different gait phases is essential to enable the control of exoskeleton robots and detect the intentions of users. We propose a gait phase classification method based on ...neural networks using sensor signals from lower limb exoskeleton robots. In such robots, foot sensors with force sensing registers are commonly used to classify gait phases. We describe classifiers that use the orientation of each lower limb segment and the angular velocities of the joints to output the current gait phase. Experiments to obtain the input signals and desired outputs for the learning and validation process are conducted, and two neural network methods (a multilayer perceptron and nonlinear autoregressive with external inputs (NARX)) are used to develop an optimal classifier. Offline and online evaluations using four criteria are used to compare the performance of the classifiers. The proposed NARX-based method exhibits sufficiently good performance to replace foot sensors as a means of classifying gait phases.
The role of the serine/glycine metabolic pathway (SGP) has recently been demonstrated in tumors; however, the pathological relevance of the SGP in thyroid cancer remains unexplored. Here, we perform ...metabolomic profiling of 17 tumor-normal pairs; bulk transcriptomics of 263 normal thyroid, 348 papillary, and 21 undifferentiated thyroid cancer samples; and single-cell transcriptomes from 15 cases, showing the impact of mitochondrial one-carbon metabolism in thyroid tumors. High expression of serine hydroxymethyltransferase-2 (SHMT2) and methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase 2 (MTHFD2) is associated with low thyroid differentiation scores and poor clinical features. A subpopulation of tumor cells with high mitochondrial one-carbon pathway activity is observed in the single-cell dataset. SHMT2 inhibition significantly compromises mitochondrial respiration and decreases cell proliferation and tumor size in vitro and in vivo. Collectively, our results highlight the importance of the mitochondrial one-carbon pathway in undifferentiated thyroid cancer and suggest that SHMT2 is a potent therapeutic target.
Recently, noncontact vital sign monitors have attracted attention because of issues related to the transmission of contagious diseases. We developed a real-time vital sign monitor using impulse-radio ...ultrawideband (IR-UWB) radar with embedded processors and software; we then evaluated its accuracy in measuring heart rate (HR) and respiratory rate (RR) and investigated the factors affecting the accuracy of the radar-based measurements. In 50 patients visiting a cardiology clinic, HR and RR were measured using IR-UWB radar simultaneously with electrocardiography and capnometry. All patients underwent HR and RR measurements in 2 postures-supine and sitting-for 2 min each. There was a high agreement between the RR measured using radar and capnometry (concordance correlation coefficient CCC 0.925 0.919-0.926; upper and lower limits of agreement LOA, - 2.21 and 3.90 breaths/min). The HR measured using radar was also in close agreement with the value measured using electrocardiography (CCC 0.749 0.738-0.760; upper and lower LOA, - 12.78 and 15.04 beats/min). Linear mixed effect models showed that the sitting position and an HR < 70 bpm were associated with an increase in the absolute biases of the HR, whereas the sitting position and an RR < 18 breaths/min were associated with an increase in the absolute biases of the RR. The IR-UWB radar sensor with embedded processors and software can measure the RR and HR in real time with high precision. The sitting position and a low RR or HR were associated with the accuracy of RR and HR measurement, respectively, using IR-UWB radar.
There has been the possibility for respiration and carotid pulsation to be simultaneously monitored from a distance using impulse-radio ultra-wideband (IR-UWB) radar. Therefore, we investigated the ...validity of simultaneous respiratory rates (RR), pulse rates (PR) and R-R interval measurement using IR-UWB radar. We included 19 patients with a normal sinus rhythm (NSR) and 14 patients with persistent atrial fibrillation (PeAF). The RR, PR, R-R interval and rhythm were obtained simultaneously from the right carotid artery area in a supine position and under normal breathing conditions using IR-UWB radar. There was excellent agreement between the RR obtained by IR-UWB radar and that manually counted by a physician (intraclass correlation coefficient ICC 0.852). In the NSR group, there was excellent agreement between the PR (ICC 0.985), average R-R interval (ICC 0.999), and individual R-R interval (ICC 0.910) measured by IR-UWB radar and electrocardiography. In the PeAF group, PR (ICC 0.930), average R-R interval (ICC 0.957) and individual R-R interval (ICC 0.701) also agreed well between the two methods. These results demonstrate that IR-UWB radar can simultaneously monitor respiration, carotid pulse and heart rhythm with high precision and may thus be utilized as a noncontact continuous vital sign monitoring in clinical practice.
This study was designed to select potent cholesterol-lowering probiotic strains on HepG2 cell and investigate the effect of selected strain, Lactobacillus plantarum LRCC 5273 and LRCC 5279 in ...hypercholesterolemic mice. In the results, LP5273 group showed significantly reduced total and LDL cholesterol compared to HCD group. In addition to significantly up-regulated hepatic mRNA expression of LXR-α and CYP7A1, intestinal LXR-α and ABCG5 were significantly up-regulated in LP5273 group. With activation of hepatic and intestinal LXR-α and its target genes, fecal cholesterol and bile acid excretion were increased in LP5273 fed mice. These results suggest that LP5273 ameliorates hypercholesterolemia in mice through the activation of hepatic and intestinal LXR-α, resulting in enhancement of fecal cholesterol and bile acids excretion in the small intestine. The results of present study suggest mechanistic evidences for hypocholesterolemic effects of L. plantarum spp., and may contribute to future researches for prevention of hypercholesterolemia and cardiovascular disease.
We investigated the effectiveness of the transforming growth factor beta-1 (TGF-β) receptor inhibitor GW788388 on the epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) using human peritoneal mesothelial ...cells (HPMCs) and examined the effectiveness of GW788388 on the peritoneal membrane using a peritoneal fibrosis mouse model. HPMCs were treated with TGF-β with or without GW788388. Animal experiments were conducted on male C57/BL6 mice. Peritoneal fibrosis was induced by intraperitoneal injection of chlorhexidine gluconate. GW788388 was administered by once-daily oral gavage. The morphological change, cell migration, and invasion resulted from TGF-β treatment, but these changes were attenuated by cotreatment with GW788388. TGF-β-treated HPMCs decreased the level of the epithelial cell marker and increased the levels of the mesenchymal cell markers. Cotreatment with GW788388 reversed these changes. Phosphorylated Smad2 and Smad3 protein levels were stimulated with TGF-β and the change was attenuated by cotreatment with GW788388. For the peritoneal fibrosis mice, thickness and collagen deposition of parietal peritoneum was increased, but this change was attenuated by cotreatment with GW788388. GW788388, an orally available potent TGF-β receptor type 1 inhibitor, effectively attenuated TGF-β-induced EMT in HPMCs. Cotreatment with GW788388 improved peritoneal thickness and fibrosis, and recovered peritoneal membrane function in a peritoneal fibrosis mouse model.
The initial stability of a dental implant is known to be an indicator of osseointegration at immediate loading upon insertion. Implant designs have a fundamental role in the initial stability. ...Although new designs with advanced surface technology have been suggested for the initial stability of implant systems, verification is not simple because of various assessment factors. Our study focused on comparing the initial stability between two different implant systems via design aspects. A simulated model corresponding to the first molar derived from the mandibular bone was constructed. Biomechanical characteristics between the two models were compared by finite element analysis (FEA). Mechanical testing was also performed to derive the maximum loads for the two implant systems. CMI IS-III active (IS-III) had a more desirable stress distribution than CMI IS-II active (IS-II) in the surrounding bone region. Moreover, IS-III decreased the stress transfer to the nerve under the axial loading direction more than IS-II. Changes of implant design did not affect the maximum load. Our analyses suggest that the optimized design (IS-III), which has a bigger bone volume without loss of initial fixation, may minimize the bone damage during fixture insertion and we expect greater effectiveness in older patients.
Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) induces autophagy-associated apoptotic cell death in wild-type p53 cancer cells via regulation of p53. The present study investigated the effects of DHA on PC3 and DU145 ...prostate cancer cell lines harboring mutant p53. Results show that, in addition to apoptosis, DHA increased the expression levels of lipidated form LC3B and potently stimulated the autophagic flux, suggesting that DHA induces both autophagy and apoptosis in cancer cells expressing mutant p53. DHA led to the generation of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS), as shown by the mitochondrial ROS-specific probe mitoSOX. Similarly, pretreatment with the antioxidant N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC) markedly inhibited both the autophagy and the apoptosis triggered by DHA, indicating that mitochondrial ROS mediate the cytotoxicity of DHA in mutant p53 cells. Further, DHA reduced the levels of phospho-Akt and phospho-mTOR in a concentration-dependent manner, while NAC almost completely blocked that effect. Collectively, these findings present a novel mechanism of ROS-regulated apoptosis and autophagy that involves Akt-mTOR signaling in prostate cancer cells with mutant p53 exposed to DHA.
Background and Purpose- Based on its mechanism, the use of balloon guide catheters (BGCs) may be beneficial during endovascular treatment, regardless of the type of mechanical recanalization modality ...used-stent retriever thrombectomy or thrombaspiration. We evaluated whether the use of BGCs can be beneficial regardless of the first-line mechanical endovascular modality used. Methods- We retrospectively reviewed consecutive acute stroke patients who underwent stent retriever thrombectomy or thrombaspiration from the prospectively maintained registries of 17 stroke centers nationwide. Patients were assigned to the BGC or non-BGC group based on the use of BGCs during procedures. Endovascular and clinical outcomes were compared between the BGC and non-BGC groups. To adjust the influence of the type of first-line endovascular modality on successful recanalization and favorable outcome, multivariable analyses were also performed. Results- This study included a total of 955 patients. Stent retriever thrombectomy was used as the first-line modality in 526 patients (55.1%) and thrombaspiration in 429 (44.9%). BGC was used in 516 patients (54.0%; 61.2% of stent retriever thrombectomy patients; 45.2% of thrombaspiration patients). The successful recanalization rate was significantly higher in the BGC group compared with the non-BGC group (86.8% versus 74.7%, respectively; P<0.001). Furthermore, the first-pass recanalization rate was more frequent (37.0% versus 14.1%; P<0.001), and the number of device passes was fewer in the BGC group (2.5±1.9 versus 3.3±2.1; P<0.001). The procedural time was also shorter in the BGC group (54.3±27.4 versus 67.6±38.2; P<0.001). The use of BGC was an independent factor for successful recanalization (odds ratio, 2.18; 95% CI, 1.54-3.10; P<0.001) irrespective of the type of first-line endovascular modality used. The use of BGC was also an independent factor for a favorable outcome (odds ratio, 1.40; 95% CI, 1.02-1.92; P=0.038) irrespective of the type of first-line endovascular modality used. Conclusions- Regardless of the first-line mechanical endovascular modality used, the use of BGC in endovascular treatment was beneficial in terms of both recanalization success and functional outcome.
PDF
