Summary Since the beginning of the 1980s, 33 emerging tick-borne agents have been identified in mainland China, including eight species of spotted fever group rickettsiae, seven species in the family ...Anaplasmataceae, six genospecies in the complex Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato, 11 species of Babesia , and the virus causing severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome. In this Review we have mapped the geographical distributions of human cases of infection. 15 of the 33 emerging tick-borne agents have been reported to cause human disease, and their clinical characteristics have been described. The non-specific clinical manifestations caused by tick-borne pathogens present a major diagnostic challenge and most physicians are unfamiliar with the many tick-borne diseases that present with non-specific symptoms in the early stages of the illness. Advances in and application of modern molecular techniques should help with identification of emerging tick-borne pathogens and improve laboratory diagnosis of human infections. We expect that more novel tick-borne infections in ticks and animals will be identified and additional emerging tick-borne diseases in human beings will be discovered.
Bacterial infections remain a leading threat to global health because of the misuse of antibiotics and the rise in drug‐resistant pathogens. Although several strategies such as photothermal therapy ...and magneto‐thermal therapy can suppress bacterial infections, excessive heat often damages host cells and lengthens the healing time. Here, a localized thermal managing strategy, thermal‐disrupting interface induced mitigation (TRIM), is reported, to minimize intercellular cohesion loss for accurate antibacterial therapy. The TRIM dressing film is composed of alternative microscale arrangement of heat‐responsive hydrogel regions and mechanical support regions, which enables the surface microtopography to have a significant effect on disrupting bacterial colonization upon infrared irradiation. The regulation of the interfacial contact to the attached skin confines the produced heat and minimizes the risk of skin damage during thermoablation. Quantitative mechanobiology studies demonstrate the TRIM dressing film with a critical dimension for surface features plays a critical role in maintaining intercellular cohesion of the epidermis during photothermal therapy. Finally, endowing wound dressing with the TRIM effect via in vivo studies in S. aureus infected mice demonstrates a promising strategy for mitigating the side effects of photothermal therapy against a wide spectrum of bacterial infections, promoting future biointerface design for antibacterial therapy.
A localized thermal‐management strategy from thermal‐disrupting interface induced mitigation (TRIM) is developed to maintain intercellular cohesion and reduce function loss of epidermis tissue for topical antibacterial therapy. A dressing film with the TRIM effect inhibits aggregation of bacteria, promotes selective elimination of pathogens, and shortens the healing process.
Portal vein tumor thrombus (PVTT) is a significant poor prognostic factor for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Patients with PVTT limited to a first‐order branch of the main portal vein (MPV) or above ...could benefit from negative margin (R0) liver resection (LR). An Eastern Hepatobiliary Surgery Hospital (EHBH)/PVTT scoring system was established to predict the prognosis of HCC patients with PVTT after R0 LR and guide selection of subgroups of patients that could benefit from LR. HCC patients with PVTT limited to a first‐order branch of the MPV or above who underwent R0 LR as an initial therapy were included. The EHBH‐PVTT score was developed from a retrospective cohort in the training cohort using a Cox regression model and validated in a prospective internal validation cohort and three external validation cohorts. There were 432 patients in the training cohort, 285 in the prospective internal validation cohort, and 286, 189, and 135 in three external validation cohorts, respectively. The score was calculated using total bilirubin, α‐fetoprotein (AFP), tumor diameter, and satellite lesions. The EHBH‐PVTT score differentiated two groups of patients (≤/>3 points) with distinct long‐term prognoses (median overall survival OS, 17.0 vs. 7.9 months; P < 0.001). Predictive accuracy, as determined by the area under the time‐dependent receiver operating characteristic curves (AUCs; 0.680‐0.721), was greater than that of the other commonly used staging systems for HCC and PVTT. Conclusion: The EHBH‐PVTT scoring system was more accurate in predicting the prognosis of HCC patients with PVTT than other staging systems after LR. It selected appropriate HCC patients with PVTT limited to a first‐order branch of the MPV or above for LR. It can be used to supplement the other HCC staging systems.
Double-function stewart platform designed for both vibration isolation and energy harvesting.•Vibration isolation efficiency of the 6-dofs enhanced by the stiffness nonlinearity.•Using a shorter ...initial distance d between magnets leads to higher power output and wider isolation range.•Varying the resistance r produces the opposite effect between vibration isolation.
An electromagnetic Stewart platform with high static and low dynamic stiffness is explored to reduce the vibration in six degrees of freedom (6-dofs) and simultaneously harvest energy. Each strut in the Stewart platform contains a moving electromagnet suspended between two fixed permanent magnets that are configured so that the magnet spring has both negative stiffness and soft nonlinearity. The use of stiffness nonlinearity improves vibration isolation efficiency. To obtain the frequency-response function for transmissibility and the power output in the first primary resonance, we apply the harmonic balance method, which is based on rigid-body dynamics and nonlinear elastic theory. The frequency response curves of the 6-dofs have peaks that redshift and bend leftward (toward lower frequencies), and a bubble-shaped resonance curve appears around the first resonance frequency. The numerical simulations support the analytical results. For various mechanical and electrical parameters, the analytical and numerical results both demonstrate that the frequency band of vibration isolation extends to lower frequencies and produces considerable power output. Moreover, the increase in energy harvesting leads to reduced vibration transmissibility under varying some parameters.
Prior research has produced inconsistent results on the relationship between top management team (TMT) diversity and firm performance. Drawing on the information–social categorization framework, this ...study is designed to investigate both the mechanism and the contextual factors underlying the relationship between TMT cognitive diversity and firm performance by examining them in a unified model so as to better understand how a diverse TMT works. Based on a multi‐sourced survey of top managers from 118 Chinese firms, this study finds that team interdependence and team cohesion moderate in the linkage between TMT cognitive diversity and elaboration of task‐related information. In addition, TMT's elaboration of task‐related information mediates the interactive effects of TMT cognitive diversity and team interdependence on firm performance as well as the interactive effects of TMT cognitive diversity and team cohesion on firm performance.
The initial cases of novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV)-infected pneumonia (NCIP) occurred in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, in December 2019 and January 2020. We analyzed data on the first 425 confirmed ...cases in Wuhan to determine the epidemiologic characteristics of NCIP.
We collected information on demographic characteristics, exposure history, and illness timelines of laboratory-confirmed cases of NCIP that had been reported by January 22, 2020. We described characteristics of the cases and estimated the key epidemiologic time-delay distributions. In the early period of exponential growth, we estimated the epidemic doubling time and the basic reproductive number.
Among the first 425 patients with confirmed NCIP, the median age was 59 years and 56% were male. The majority of cases (55%) with onset before January 1, 2020, were linked to the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market, as compared with 8.6% of the subsequent cases. The mean incubation period was 5.2 days (95% confidence interval CI, 4.1 to 7.0), with the 95th percentile of the distribution at 12.5 days. In its early stages, the epidemic doubled in size every 7.4 days. With a mean serial interval of 7.5 days (95% CI, 5.3 to 19), the basic reproductive number was estimated to be 2.2 (95% CI, 1.4 to 3.9).
On the basis of this information, there is evidence that human-to-human transmission has occurred among close contacts since the middle of December 2019. Considerable efforts to reduce transmission will be required to control outbreaks if similar dynamics apply elsewhere. Measures to prevent or reduce transmission should be implemented in populations at risk. (Funded by the Ministry of Science and Technology of China and others.).
The phosphorylation of STAT3 plays a critical physiological role in the proliferation of rectal cancer. Hence, inhibiting STAT3 phosphorylation is an effective anticancer approach. In this work, we ...designed a novel 5‐R'‐1‐naphthylmethylamide scaffold as a small molecule inhibitor of STAT3 phosphorylation. The results showed that 3D and 4D have exceptional inhibitory ability against three different colorectal cancer (CRC) cell lines, and can induce apoptosis of CRC cells by inhibiting STAT3 phosphorylation, while having no killing effect on normal human cells. 3D and 4D can inhibit STAT3 phosphorylation in a time‐ and concentration‐dependent manner, and also inhibit the nuclear translocation of interleukin (IL)‐6‐induced STAT3. In the in vivo tumor model research, 4D significantly reduced the tumor volume of mice and had no drug toxicity on other organ tissues. Furthermore, molecular docking studies revealed that 3D and 4D had greater binding free energy when interacting with the STAT3 SH2 structural domain, and could establish H–π interaction modes. Dynamic simulation studies indicated that both compounds were able to bind tightly to STAT3.
Based on the structures of nine existing STAT3 phosphorylation inhibitors, a novel small‐molecule compound with a simple structure was constructed. Derivative 4D exhibited good biological activity in colorectal cancer cell lines, induced apoptosis of tumor cells, and showed good bioactivity in vitro and in vivo, exerting its biological activity by inhibiting STAT3 phosphorylation. 4D also significantly reduced the tumor tissue in mouse tumor models.
Summary Background Human infections with different avian influenza viruses—eg, H5N1, H9N2, and H7N9—have raised concerns about pandemic potential worldwide. We report the first human infection with a ...novel reassortant avian influenza A H10N8 virus. Methods We obtained and analysed clinical, epidemiological, and virological data from a patient from Nanchang City, China. Tracheal aspirate specimens were tested for influenza virus and other possible pathogens by RT-PCR, viral culture, and sequence analyses. A maximum likelihood phylogenetic tree was constructed. Findings A woman aged 73 years presented with fever and was admitted to hospital on Nov 30, 2013. She developed multiple organ failure and died 9 days after illness onset. A novel reassortant avian influenza A H10N8 virus was isolated from the tracheal aspirate specimen obtained from the patient 7 days after onset of illness. Sequence analyses revealed that all the genes of the virus were of avian origin, with six internal genes from avian influenza A H9N2 viruses. The aminoacid motif GlnSerGly at residues 226–228 of the haemagglutinin protein indicated avian-like receptor binding preference. A mixture of glutamic acid and lysine at residue 627 in PB2 protein—which is associated with mammalian adaptation—was detected in the original tracheal aspirate samples. The virus was sensitive to neuraminidase inhibitors. Sputum and blood cultures and deep sequencing analysis indicated no co-infection with bacteria or fungi. Epidemiological investigation established that the patient had visited a live poultry market 4 days before illness onset. Interpretation The novel reassortant H10N8 virus obtained is distinct from previously reported H10N8 viruses. The virus caused human infection and could have been associated with the death of a patient. Funding Emergency Research Project on human infection with avian influenza H7N9 virus, the National Basic Research Program of China, and the National Mega-projects for Infectious Diseases.
The temporal relationship between SARS-CoV-2 and antibody production and clinical progression remained obscure. The aim of this study was to describe the viral kinetics of symptomatic patients with ...SARS-CoV-2 infection and identify factors that might contribute to prolonged viral shedding.
Symptomatic COVID-19 patients were enrolled in two hospitals in Wuhan, China, from whom the respiratory samples were collected and measured for viral loads consecutively by reverse transcriptase quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) assay. The viral shedding pattern was delineated in relate to the epidemiologic and clinical information.
Totally 2726 respiratory samples collected from 703 patients were quantified. The SARS-CoV-2 viral loads were at the highest level during the initial stage after symptom onset, which subsequently declined with time. The median time to SARS-CoV-2 negativity of nasopharyngeal test was 28 days, significantly longer in patients with older age (> 60 years old), female gender and those having longer interval from symptom onset to hospital admission (> 10 days). The multivariate Cox regression model revealed significant effect from older age (HR 0.73, 95% CI 0.55-0.96), female gender (HR 0.72, 95% CI 0.55-0.96) and longer interval from symptom onset to admission (HR 0.44, 95% CI 0.33-0.59) on longer time to SARS-CoV-2 negativity. The IgM antibody titer was significantly higher in the low viral loads group at 41-60 days after symptom onset. At the population level, the average viral loads were higher in early than in late outbreak periods.
The prolonged viral shedding of SARS-CoV-2 was observed in COVID-19 patients, particularly in older, female and those with longer interval from symptom onset to admission.
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