The benefit and risk of addition of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors to chemotherapy for advanced cervical cancer: a phase 3 randomized controlled trials based meta-analysis.

Background: Chemotherapy has been confirmed as an effective treatment for advanced cervical cancer. However, whether combining PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors with chemotherapy (PIC) offers superior efficacy remains a subject of debate. This meta-analysis aims to compare the antitumor effects and safety profile of PIC versus chemotherapy.

The mediating role of circulating inflammatory cytokines in causal associations between plasma metabolites and asymptomatic bile duct and cholecyst calculus: A Mendelian randomization study.

Asymptomatic gallbladder and biliary tract calculus may make into symptomatic disease or bring anxiety for patients. The formation of gallstones was associated with genetic risk factors and metabolic abnormalities. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) data of 1400 plasma metabolites (PMs) and 91 circulating inflammatory cytokines (CICs) were obtained from the GWAS catalog, while the GWAS data of calculus of gallbladder without cholecystitis and calculus of bile duct without cholangitis or cholecystitis were retrieved from the IEU OpenGWAS project.

BSRF1 modulates IFN-β-mediated antiviral responses by inhibiting NF-κB activity via an IKK-dependent mechanism in Epstein-Barr virus infection.

The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) encoded tegument protein BSRF1 plays a significant role in the processes of viral maturation and release, however, it's not clear whether BSRF1 is involved in the modulation of host innate immunity. In this study, we demonstrated that BSRF1 can inhibit interferon β (IFN-β) production by downregulating nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) activity and subsequently reducing the yield of inflammatory cytokines, thereby facilitating viral replication. Dual luciferase reporter assays indicated that BSRF1 may inhibit NF-κB signaling at the level of IKK or between IKK and p65, while co-immunoprecipitation experiments revealed its association with multiple critical host adaptor proteins.

The Role of MATN3 in Cancer Prognosis and Immune Infiltration Across Multiple Tumor Types.

MATN3 is a member of the matrix protein family and is involved in the regulation of osteoarthritis as well as the development of gastric cancer. We investigated the role of MATN3 in pan-cancer and validated this result by experiments. We applied multiple databases to explore the expression of MATN3 in 33 types of tumors.

A detection method for small casting defects based on bidirectional feature extraction.

X-ray inspection is a crucial technique for identifying defects in castings, capable of revealing minute internal flaws such as pores and inclusions. However, traditional methods rely on the subjective judgment of experts, are time-consuming, and prone to errors, which negatively impact the efficiency and accuracy of inspections. Therefore, the development of an automated defect detection model is of significant importance for enhancing the scientific rigor and precision of casting inspections.

Safety of edaravone in real-world use: analysis based on FDA adverse event reporting system.

Background: Edaravone is a novel free radical scavenger utilized to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). However, long-term safety data remain limited.

Research Design And Methods: Adverse event reports related to edaravone from the second quarter of 2017 to the second quarter of 2024 were extracted from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Adverse Event Reporting System database (FAERS).

Accurate Characterization of the Allosteric Energy Landscapes, Binding Hotspots and Long-Range Communications for KRAS Complexes with Effector Proteins : Integrative Approach Using Microsecond Molecular Dynamics, Deep Mutational Scanning of Binding Energetics and Allosteric Network Modeling.

KRAS is a pivotal oncoprotein that regulates cell proliferation and survival through interactions with downstream effectors such as RAF1. Oncogenic mutations in KRAS, including G12V, G13D, and Q61R, drive constitutive activation and hyperactivation of signaling pathways, contributing to cancer progression. Despite significant advances in understanding KRAS biology, the structural and dynamic mechanisms of KRAS binding and allostery by which oncogenic mutations enhance KRAS-RAF1 binding and signaling remain incompletely understood.

Chinese expert consensus on refined diagnosis, treatment, and management of advanced primary liver cancer (2023 edition).

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), commonly known as primary liver cancer, is a major cause of malignant tumors and cancer-related deaths in China, accounting for approximately 85% of all cancer cases in the country. Several guidelines have been used to diagnose and treat liver cancer. However, these guidelines provide a broad definition for classifying advanced liver cancer, with an emphasis on a singular approach, without considering treatment options for individual patients.

Chinese expert consensus on the clinical application of molecular diagnostics in hepatobiliary cancers (2024 edition).

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and biliary tract cancer (BTC) are significant health challenges in China because of their high prevalence and mortality rates. Advances in molecular diagnostics have opened new avenues for personalized treatment strategies. This consensus provides a comprehensive update on the clinical applications of molecular diagnostics in HCC and BTC and addresses the urgent need for personalized treatment strategies tailored to the Chinese population, emphasizing the importance of molecular markers in guiding targeted therapies and immunotherapies.

Characterization of Strains Isolated from Adult Patients with Diarrhea and Aquatic Environments - Beijing Municipality, China, 2016-2022.

Introduction: is widely distributed in aquatic environments. This study describes the pathogenic characteristics of isolated from adult diarrhea patients and aquatic environments in Beijing, China.

Methods: isolates from patients with diarrhea and river water samples were assessed using whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and antibiotic resistance profiling.

Reactions of oxazepam with two typical water treatment oxidants in aqueous solutions: Results based on density functional theory.

Pharmaceutical residues in the environment and their transformation mechanism are important challenges in environmental pollution research. The present study investigated the transformation mechanisms and reaction kinetics of oxazepam, a representative of benzodiazepine pharmaceutical, with two typical water treatment oxidants including HOCl and ∙OH in aqueous solution through theoretical calculations and experimental verification. The results showed that oxazepam is a chiral molecule with two enantiomers in equal proportions.

Effect of parecoxib on postoperative delirium in patients with hyperlipidemia: a randomized, double-blind, single-center, superiority trial.

Background: Hyperlipidemia has been implicated in the higher risk of developing postoperative delirium. Prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase-2 mediates neuroinflammatory processes in postoperative delirium. This study aims to investigate whether preoperative administration of parecoxib is more efficient than a placebo in averting postoperative delirium in patients with hyperlipidemia.

Feature-targeted deep learning framework for pulmonary tumorous Cone-beam CT (CBCT) enhancement with multi-task customized perceptual loss and feature-guided CycleGAN.

Thoracic Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) is routinely collected during image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) to provide updated patient anatomy information for lung cancer treatments. However, CBCT images often suffer from streaking artifacts and noise caused by under-rate sampling projections and low-dose exposure, resulting in loss of lung anatomy which contains crucial pulmonary tumorous and functional information. While recent deep learning-based CBCT enhancement methods have shown promising results in suppressing artifacts, they have limited performance on preserving anatomical details containing crucial tumorous information due to lack of targeted guidance.

Development of a genetically modified full-length human respiratory syncytial virus preF protein vaccine.

Human Respiratory Syncytial Virus (hRSV) is a major cause of acute lower respiratory tract infections (ALRTI) in infants, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals. The recent approval of recombinant protein-based hRSV vaccines represents significant progress in combating hRSV. However, these vaccines utilized optimized preF ectodomain attached with an exogenous trimeric motif, which may induce immunological complications.

The efficacy of hypothermia combined with thrombolysis or mechanical thrombectomy on acute ischemic stroke: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Therapeutic hypothermia improves outcomes in experimental stroke models, especially after ischemia-reperfusion injury. In recent years, the safety and efficacy of hypothermia combining thrombolysis or mechanical thrombectomy have attracted widespread attention. The primary objective of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of hypothermia by combining reperfusion therapy in acute ischemic stroke patients.

Novel and (Tubeufiaceae, Tubeufiales) species from terrestrial habitats in China and Thailand.

During our investigations of saprobic fungi, five fungal collections from terrestrial habitats in China and Thailand were examined using both morphological and multi-gene phylogenetic approaches (LSU, ITS, 1-α, and 2), resulting in the identification of three novel species: , , and . and are morphologically similar in their asexual morphs but can be distinguished based on their molecular phylogenetic data. In this study, our new species, , represents the fourth sexual species within the genus, characterized by yellow-brown ascomata and fusiform ascospores.

Bioorthogonal chemical reporters for profiling retinoic acid-modified and retinoic acid-interacting proteins.

Vitamin A and its primary active derivative, all-trans retinoic acid (RA), are endogenous signaling molecules essential for numerous biological processes, including cell proliferation, differentiation, and immune modulation. Owing to its differentiation-inducing effect, RA was the first differentiating agent approved for the clinical treatment of acute myeloid leukemia. While the classical mechanisms of RA signaling involve nuclear receptors, such as retinoic acid receptors (RARs), emerging evidence suggests that RA also engages in non-covalent and covalent interactions with a broader range of proteins.

Distribution of microbial taxa and genes degrading halogenated organic pollutants in the mangroves.

Anthropogenic activities have led to serious contamination of halogenated organic pollutants (HOPs), such as PCBs, PBDEs, and HBCDs, in the mangrove wetland. Biodegradation of HOPs is generally driven by environmental microorganisms harboring dehalogenase genes. However, little is known if HOPs can affect the distributions of HOPs-degrading bacteria and dehalogenase genes in the mangrove wetlands.

Superstable lipid vacuoles endow cartilage with its shape and biomechanics.

Conventionally, the size, shape, and biomechanics of cartilages are determined by their voluminous extracellular matrix. By contrast, we found that multiple murine cartilages consist of lipid-filled cells called lipochondrocytes. Despite resembling adipocytes, lipochondrocytes were molecularly distinct and produced lipids exclusively through de novo lipogenesis.

Rectus Femoris Muscle Segmentation on Ultrasound Images of Older Adults Using Automatic Segment Anything Model, nnU-Net and U-Net-A Prospective Study of Hong Kong Community Cohort.

Sarcopenia is characterized by a degeneration of muscle mass and strength that incurs impaired mobility, posing grievous impacts on the quality of life and well-being of older adults worldwide. In 2018, a new international consensus was formulated to incorporate ultrasound imaging of the rectus femoris (RF) muscle for early sarcopenia assessment. Nonetheless, current clinical RF muscle identification and delineation procedures are manual, subjective, inaccurate, and challenging.

Pressure-Induced Assembly of Organic Phase-Change Materials Hybridized with Expanded Graphite and Carbon Nanotubes for Direct Solar Thermal Harvesting and Thermoelectric Conversion.

Direct harvesting of abundant solar thermal energy within organic phase-change materials (PCMs) has emerged as a promising way to overcome the intermittency of renewable solar energy and pursue high-efficiency heating-related applications. Organic PCMs, however, generally suffer from several common shortcomings including melting-induced leakage, poor solar absorption, and low thermal conductivity. Compounding organic PCMs with single-component carbon materials faces the difficulty in achieving optimized comprehensive performance enhancement.

Preparation of chitin-derived hierarchical porous materials and their application and mechanism in adsorption of mycotoxins.

In this study, the hierarchical porous materials for adsorbing mycotoxins were prepared by one-step carbonization-activation method using potassium permanganate (KMnO) and chitin as activators and carbon source, respectively. The hierarchical porous materials had different specific surface area and pore distribution owing to different carbonization temperatures. In this paper, the effects of pH, time and temperature of adsorption as well as the concentration of patulin on the adsorption characteristics were systematically investigated.

Chinese expert consensus on sequential surgery following conversion therapy based on combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors and antiangiogenic targeted drugs for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (2024 edition).

Up to half of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cases are diagnosed at an advanced stage, for which effective treatment options are lacking, resulting in a poor prognosis. Over the past few years, the combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors and anti-angiogenic targeted therapy has proven highly efficacious in treating advanced HCC, significantly extending patients' survival and providing a potential for sequential curative surgery. After sequential curative hepatectomy or liver transplantation following conversion therapy, patients can receive long-term survival benefits.

Absolute quantification of Neuron-specific enolase based on surface plasmon resonance.

Neuron-specific enolase (NSE) is currently the most reliable biomarker for small cell lung cancer (SCLC), which is important for disease monitoring, clinical evaluation and diagnosis. However, traditional methods suffer from various disadvantages, including instability, complexity, time-consuming operations, and the necessity for standards. In this study, we developed a calibration-free concentration analysis (CFCA) method based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR) technology, to accurately quantify the active concentration of NSE without relying on any standards.