Thermoelectrics interconvert heat to electricity and are of great interest in waste heat recovery, solid-state cooling and so on. The efficiency of thermoelectric materials depends directly on the ...average ZT (dimensionless figure of merit) over a certain temperature range, which historically has been challenging to increase. Here we report that 2.5% K-doped PbTe0.7S0.3 achieves a ZT of >2 for a very wide temperature range from 673 to 923 K and has a record high average ZT of 1.56 (corresponding to a theoretical energy conversion efficiency of ~20.7% at the temperature gradient from 300 to 900 K). The PbTe0.7S0.3 composition shows spinodal decomposition with large PbTe-rich and PbS-rich regions where each region exhibits dissimilar types of nanostructures. Such high average ZT is obtained by synergistically optimized electrical- and thermal-transport properties via carrier concentration tuning, band structure engineering and hierarchical architecturing, and highlights a realistic prospect of wide applications of thermoelectrics.
Aim
To identify the basic characteristics and gene expression profiles of supernumerary teeth derived stem cells (SNTSCs) and compare them with those of normal dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs).
...Methodology
Flow cytometry was conducted to identify the protein expression of stem cell markers. Cell proliferation, migration and differentiation abilities of both SNTSCs and DPSCs were determined by CCK8, transwell and differentiation assays, respectively. Gene expression profiles were studied by RNA sequencing analyses. After knocking down the expression of certain differential expression genes (DEGs), the function of DEGs was investigated by CCK8 and transwell assays. Statistical differences were determined using a two‐tailed t‐test and P values below 0.05 were considered significant.
Results
Supernumerary teeth derived stem cells were capable of differentiating into adipocyte, chondrocyte and osteoblast lineage cells, and compared to ordinary DPSCs, SNTSCs had a significantly higher cell proliferation rate (P < 0.01) and significantly lower migration rate (P < 0.01). RNA‐seq results revealed the differential expression genes (DEGs) between SNTSCs and DPSCs. A principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis revealed that the gene expression patterns of SNTSCs and DPSCs were different from each other. A total of 12 861 genes were differentially expressed at a significant P value (P ≤ 0.01), and 5292 of these increased in SNTSCs and 7569 decreased. Further study on the selected DEGs revealed that FUT11, FAM155A and BRD2 inhibited the cell proliferation rate of SNTSCs, and FUT11 and GLUD1 inhibited the cell migration rate, whilst FAM155A promoted the migration rate.
Conclusions
The biological characteristics and gene expression profile of SNTSCs was revealed. The stem cell properties of SNTSCs were similar to normal DPSCs but they had a high cell proliferation rate and may have greater potential for cell differentiation.
Pembrolizumab demonstrated robust antitumor activity and safety in the phase Ib KEYNOTE-001 study (NCT01295827) of advanced melanoma. Five-year outcomes in all patients and treatment-naive patients ...are reported herein. Patients whose disease progressed following initial response and who received a second course of pembrolizumab were also analyzed.
Patients aged ≥18 years with previously treated or treatment-naive advanced/metastatic melanoma received pembrolizumab 2 mg/kg every 3 weeks, 10 mg/kg every 3 weeks, or 10 mg/kg every 2 weeks until disease progression, intolerable toxicity, or patient/investigator decision to withdraw. Kaplan–Meier estimates of overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were calculated. Objective response rate and PFS were based on immune-related response criteria by investigator assessment (data cut-off, September 1, 2017).
KEYNOTE-001 enrolled 655 patients with melanoma; median follow-up was 55 months. Estimated 5-year OS was 34% in all patients and 41% in treatment-naive patients; median OS was 23.8 months (95% CI, 20.2–30.4) and 38.6 months (95% CI, 27.2–not reached), respectively. Estimated 5-year PFS rates were 21% in all patients and 29% in treatment-naive patients; median PFS was 8.3 months (95% CI, 5.8–11.1) and 16.9 months (95% CI, 9.3–35.5), respectively. Median response duration was not reached; 73% of all responses and 82% of treatment-naive responses were ongoing at data cut-off; the longest response was ongoing at 66 months. Four patients all with prior response of complete response (CR) whose disease progressed during observation subsequently received second-course pembrolizumab. One patient each achieved CR and partial response (after data cut-off). Treatment-related AEs (TRAEs) occurred in 86% of patients and resulted in study discontinuation in 7.8%; 17% experienced grade 3/4 TRAE.
This 5-year analysis of KEYNOTE-001 represents the longest follow-up for pembrolizumab to date and confirms the durable antitumor activity and tolerability of pembrolizumab in advanced melanoma.
ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT01295827.
We performed this meta-analysis to investigate and determine the role of metformin on serum adiponectin levels in Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) patients. Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library PubMed, and ...China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) were thoroughly searched. Eligible human studies assessing the association between serum adiponectin levels and metformin in patients were included, and data were extracted and then analyzed with STATA 12.0 statistical software. Eighteen cohort studies conducted among Asians and Caucasians from 2004 to 2013 were recruited. Post-treatment serum adiponectin level (mmol/l) was higher than pre-treatment levels in T2DM patients (SMD=0.19, 95% CI=0.09-0.30, p<0.001). Country-subgroup analysis showed that serum adiponectin levels in T2DM patients increased after the treatment of metformin in Italy (SMD=0.34, 95% CI=0.09-0.59, p=0.008). Further detection method and follow-up time subgroup analyses implied a positive association of metformin with serum adiponectin level in T2DM patients by using all ELISA, PETIA, and RIA in both<12 weeks and≥12 weeks subgroups (all p<0.05). The present meta-analysis provides compelling evidence that metformin may increase serum adiponectin levels when treating T2DM. Further studies should be promoted to explore the combined efficacy of metformin with other antidiabetic drugs, or developing new predictors with antidiabetic efficacy.
Abstract Introduction Most monochorionic (MC) twin pregnancies have an uncomplicated course, but some develop severe complications including selective intrauterine growth restriction (sIUGR), ...twintwin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) and twin anemia–polycythemia sequence (TAPS). The underlying pathogenesis of these various complications is associated with the ubiquitous presence of vascular anastomoses in MC placentas. Methods The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence, number, size and localization of the anastomoses in sIUGR, TTTS and TAPS placentas compared to normal MC placentas using color dye injection. We excluded MC twin pregnancies treated with fetoscopic laser surgery or selective feticide. Results A total of 235 placentas fulfilled the inclusion criteria: 126 normal MC, 47 TTTS, 46 sIUGR and 16 spontaneous TAPS. Median number of anastomoses in normal MC, sIUGR, TTTS and TAPS placentas was 8 (IQR: 4–12), 8 (IQR: 5–14), 7 (IQR: 5–11) and 4 (IQR: 3–5), respectively. The prevalence of arterio-arterial (AA) anastomoses in normal MC, sIUGR, TTTS and TAPS placentas was 96%, 98%, 47% and 19%, respectively. We found AV anastomoses to be evenly distributed along the vascular equator in all MC placentas except in TAPS cases, where anastomoses were mostly localized near the margin. We also found that, in sIUGR and TTTS placentas, AA anastomoses tended to be at the center of the placenta. Conclusion The present study shows that the prevalence, size, number and localization of the various types of anastomoses differ between normal MC, sIUGR, TTTS and TAPS placentas.
Abstract There are indications for changes in glutamate metabolism in relation to depression or suicide. The glutamate-glutamine cycle and neuronal/glial glutamate transporters mediate the uptake of ...the glutamate and glutamine. The expression of various components of the glutamate-glutamine cycle and the neuronal/glial glutamate transporters was determined by qPCR in postmortem prefrontal cortex. The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) were selected from young MDD patients who had committed suicide (MDD-S; n = 17), from MDD patients who died of non-suicide related causes (MDD-NS; n = 7) and from matched control subjects (n = 12). We also compared elderly depressed patients who had not committed suicide (n = 14) with matched control subjects (n = 22). We found that neuronal located components (EAAT3, EAAT4, ASCT1, SNAT1, SNAT2) of the glutamate-glutamine cycle were increased in the ACC while the astroglia located components (EAAT1, EAAT2, GLUL) were decreased in the DLPFC of MDD-S patients. In contrast, most of the components in the cycle were increased in the DLPFC of MDD-NS patients. In conclusion, the glutamate-glutamine cycle - and thus glutamine transmission - is differentially affected in depressed suicide patients and depressed non-suicide patients in an area specific way.
The effect of N form (NO₃ ⁻ versus NH₄ ⁺) on growth and uptake of Cd and Zn by the hyperaccumulator Thlaspi caerulescens (Ganges ecotype) was investigated in hydroponic and rhizobox experiments. In ...the hydroponic experiments, NO₃ ⁻ or NH₄ ⁺ was supplied to plants with the pH of the nutrient solution being unbuffered or buffered at around 6.0. A moderately contaminated soil was used in the rhizobox experiment with or without additions of NO₃ ⁻, NH₄ ⁺ or NH₄ ⁺ + DCD (dicyanodiamide, a nitrification inhibitor). A higher biomass was obtained when N was supplied as NO₃ ⁻ in both experiments, indicating that T. caerulescens prefers NO₃ ⁻ over NH₄ ⁺. In the hydroponic experiments, supplying NO₃ ⁻ resulted in a doubling of Cd concentration in the shoots compared with the NH₄ ⁺ treatment, regardless whether solution pH was buffered or not. The form of N also had a noticeable effect on root Zn concentrations. In the rhizosphere box experiment, rhizosphere pH was markedly influenced by the N treatment. The acidification in the NH₄ ⁺ and NH₄ ⁺ + DCD treatments increased the concentrations of extractable Cd and Zn, both of which showed a considerable depletion in the rhizosphere. However, total uptake of Cd and Zn were highest in the NO₃ ⁻ treatment, despite the fact that concentrations of extractable Cd and Zn in the rhizosphere were the lowest in this treatment. The results showed that supplying N as NO₃ ⁻ promoted growth and phytoextraction of Cd and Zn by T. caerulescens compared with NH₄ ⁺.
We report results on the searches of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) with sub-GeV masses (mχ) via WIMP-nucleus spin-independent scattering with Migdal effect incorporated. Analysis on ...time-integrated (TI) and annual modulation (AM) effects on CDEX-1B data are performed, with 737.1 kg day exposure and 160 eVee threshold for TI analysis, and 1107.5 kg day exposure and 250 eVee threshold for AM analysis. The sensitive windows in mχ are expanded by an order of magnitude to lower DM masses with Migdal effect incorporated. New limits on σχNSI at 90% confidence level are derived as 2×10−32∼7×10−35 cm2 for TI analysis at mχ∼50–180 MeV/c2, and 3×10−32∼9×10−38 cm2 for AM analysis at mχ∼75 MeV/c2–3.0 GeV/c2.
A series of pseudo-quinary Ti20Zr20Hf20Be20(Cu20-xNix) (x=2.5, 5, 7.5, 10, 12.5, 15, 17.5 and 20at.%) high entropy bulk metallic glasses (HE-BMGs) with large glass forming ability (GFA) were ...successfully prepared by copper mold tilt-casing. The critical diameters (Dc) of these HE-BMGs are all above 12mm. In particular, the developed Ti20Zr20Hf20Be20(Cu7.5Ni12.5) and Ti20Zr20Hf20Be20Ni20 high entropy alloys (HEAs) can be produced in the amorphous state with diameters up to 30mm and 15mm, respectively, which are the largest HE-BMG and quinary HE-BMG hitherto. The two HE-BMGs also exhibit high yield strength, together with the plastic strain values of (3.0±1.1) % and (4.0±0.9) %, respectively. With increasing Ni additions in the pseudo-quinary HEAs, the crystallization growth resistance and thermal stability have been improved, which is apparently due to the sluggish diffusion of the atoms in the HEAs.
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•These high entropy bulk metallic glasses (HE-BMGs) have large glass-forming ability.•These HE-BMGs have a critical diameter up to 30mm.•This is the largest size in the HE-BMGs reported so far.•All the developed HE-BMGs exhibit good mechanical properties.•The developed HE-BMGs possess high thermal stability.
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