Tofacitinib ameliorates atherosclerosis and reduces foam cell formation in apoE deficient mice.

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory cardiovascular disease with high mortality worldwide. Tofacitinib (CP-690,550), an oral small-molecule Janus kinase inhibitor, has been shown to be effective in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, autoimmune encephalomyelitis and ulcerative colitis. However, its protective effect against atherosclerosis remains poorly understood.

Placental and cord blood brain derived neurotrophic factor levels are decreased in nondiabetic macrosomia.

Purpose: To measure levels of placental brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene expression and umbilical cord blood BDNF in neonates with nondiabetic macrosomia and determine associations between these levels and macrosomia.

Methods: This case-control study included 58 nondiabetic macrosomic and 59 normal birth weight mother-infant pairs. Data were collected from interviews and our hospital's database.

A 6-DOF parallel bone-grinding robot for cervical disc replacement surgery.

Artificial cervical disc replacement surgery has become an effective and main treatment method for cervical disease, which has become a more common and serious problem for people with sedentary work. To improve cervical disc replacement surgery significantly, a 6-DOF parallel bone-grinding robot is developed for cervical bone-grinding by image navigation and surgical plan. The bone-grinding robot including mechanical design and low level control is designed.

Mindfulness Is Associated With Treatment Response From Nonpharmacologic Exercise Interventions in Knee Osteoarthritis.

Objective: To examine the association between baseline mindfulness and response from exercise interventions in knee osteoarthritis (OA).

Design: Cohort study; responder analysis of a clinical trial subset.

Setting: Urban tertiary care academic hospital.

Responsiveness and Minimally Important Differences for 4 Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System Short Forms: Physical Function, Pain Interference, Depression, and Anxiety in Knee Osteoarthritis.

Unlabelled: Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) instruments can provide valid, interpretable measures of health status among adults with osteoarthritis (OA). However, their ability to detect meaningful change over time is unknown. We evaluated the responsiveness and minimally important differences (MIDs) for 4 PROMIS Short Forms: Physical Function, Pain Interference, Depression, and Anxiety.

The association of changes in DNA methylation with temperature-dependent sex determination in cucumber.

Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) is characterized by its diverse and flexible sexual types. Here, we evaluated the effect of low temperature (LT) exposure on cucumber femaleness under short-day conditions.

[Circulating levels of Th1- and Th2-chemokines increase in patients with early syphilis].

Objective To study the changes of plasma T helper type I (Th1)-and Th2-chemokine levels and analyze their roles in immune response and pathogenesis of early syphilis. Methods Heparin-anticoagulated peripheral blood was collected from 56 patients with early syphilis (primary syphilis, PS, n=22; secondary syphilis, SS, n=34) and healthy controls (HC, n=20). The levels of plasma Th1 chemokines including monokine induced by interferon-γ (MIG), interferon-γ inducible protein-10 (IP-10), interferon-inducible T-cell α chemoattractant (I-TAC) and Th2 chemokines including thymus-and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC), macrophage-derived chemokine (MDC) were examined using ELISA.

Rbm46 regulates mouse embryonic stem cell differentiation by targeting β-Catenin mRNA for degradation.

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are pluripotent cells and have the capability for differentiation into any of the three embryonic germ layers. The Wnt/β-Catenin pathway has been shown to play an essential role in ESC differentiation regulation. Activation of β-Catenin by post-translational modification has been extensively studied.

Toxic effects of microcystin-LR on the development of prostate in mice.

Although it is well known that microcystin-LR (MC-LR) may cause male reproductive toxicity, less is known on its potential impact on the development of prostate. In this study, from the 12th day in the embryonic period to the 21st day after birth, 4 randomly assigned groups of pregnant mice were exposed to 0, 1, 10, and 50μg/L of MC-LR through drinking water followed by the analyses of their 30- and 90-day-old male offspring. The result showed that MC-LR could enter and be accumulated in the offsprings prostate.

Phyllodes tumors of the breast: diagnosis, treatment and prognostic factors related to recurrence.

Phyllodes tumors of the breast are rare tumor types that consist of 0.3-1.0% in all breast tumors.

Feasibility, qualitative findings and satisfaction of a brief Tai Chi mind-body programme for veterans with post-traumatic stress symptoms.

Objective: To examine feasibility, qualitative feedback and satisfaction associated with a 4-session introduction to Tai Chi for veterans with post-traumatic stress symptoms.

Design: We observed and reported recruitment and retention rates, participant characteristics, adherence, and satisfaction across 2 cohorts. We also examined qualitative feedback provided by questionnaires, focus groups and individual interviews.

Concordance of immune checkpoints within tumor immune contexture and their prognostic significance in gastric cancer.

Checkpoint blockade therapy has emerged as a novel approach for cancer immunotherapy in several malignancies. However, patient prognosis and disease progression relevant to immune checkpoints in gastric tumor microenvironment are not defined. This study aims to investigate the expression and prognostic significance of immune checkpoints within gastric cancer.

Physical examination findings and their relationship with performance-based function in adults with knee osteoarthritis.

Background: Many physical examination (PE) maneuvers exist to assess knee function, none of which are specific to knee osteoarthritis (KOA). The Osteoarthritis Research Society International also recommends the use of six functional performance measures to assess function in adults with KOA. While earlier studies have examined the relationship between PE findings and self-reported function or PE findings and select performance tests in adults with knee pain and KOA, few have examined the all three types of measures.

Reproducibility and validity of dietary patterns identified using factor analysis among Chinese populations.

In the present study, we evaluated the reproducibility and validity of dietary patterns among Chinese adult populations. A random subsample of 203 participants (aged 31-80 years) from a community-based nutrition and health survey was enrolled. An eighty-seven-item FFQ was administered twice (FFQ1 and FFQ2) 1 year apart; four 3 consecutive day, 24-h dietary recalls (24-HDR, as a reference method) were performed between the administrations of the two FFQ every 3 months.

Outcome Expectations and Osteoarthritis: Association of Perceived Benefits of Exercise With Self-Efficacy and Depression.

Objective: Outcome expectancy is recognized as a determinant of exercise engagement and adherence. However, little is known about which factors influence outcome expectations for exercise among people with knee osteoarthritis (OA). This is the first study to examine the association of outcome expectations for exercise with demographic, physical, and psychosocial outcomes in individuals with knee OA.

Traditional Chinese Medications for Knee Osteoarthritis Pain: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Traditional Chinese medication (TCM) has analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). We conducted the first systematic review of the best quantitative and qualitative evidence currently available in order to evaluate the effectiveness of TCM in relieving pain in knee OA. A comprehensive literature search was conducted using three English and four Chinese biomedical databases from their inception through March 1, 2015.

Comparative Effectiveness of Tai Chi Versus Physical Therapy for Knee Osteoarthritis: A Randomized Trial.

Background: Few remedies effectively treat long-term pain and disability from knee osteoarthritis. Studies suggest that Tai Chi alleviates symptoms, but no trials have directly compared Tai Chi with standard therapies for osteoarthritis.

Objective: To compare Tai Chi with standard physical therapy for patients with knee osteoarthritis.

Dual-nanomaterial based electrode for voltammetric stripping of trace Fe(II) in coastal waters.

In this work, a dual-nanomaterial based electrode was established for selective and sensitive detection of trace Fe(II) in the presence of complexing agent (2,2'-bipyridyl). Titanium carbide nanoparticles (TiCNPs) were used as the growth-template for the formation of three-dimensional platinum nanoflowers (PtNFs) due to their unique cubic structures. Nafion was employed as the conducting matrix to help TiCNPs better attached onto the surface of the electrode and slow down the crystal rate of PtNFs during electrodeposition, which resulted in flower structure and more active surface of PtNFs.

Protagonista lugubris, a cockroach species new to China and its contribution to the revision of genus Protagonista, with notes on the taxonomy of Archiblattinae (Blattodea, Blattidae).

The blattid genus Protagonista Shelford, 1908, which is tentatively assigned to the subfamily Archiblattinae (= Planeticinae), is reported from China for the first time with illustrations and description of Protagonista lugubris Shelford, 1908. It is a wood-dwelling and potentially a wood-feeding species. The male and female genitalia of Protagonista are described and illustrated for the first time.

Enantioselectivity in Environmental Safety and Metabolism of Typical Chiral Organic Pollutants.

Background: Understanding the enantioselectivity is critical for the assessment of environmental behavior and toxicological effect, as well as the ecological risk. As chirality is an important consideration in green chemistry, recent studies demonstrated that enantioselectivity of typical chiral organic pollutants, especially for chiral pesticides, exists in most processes such as aquatic toxicity and degradation. However, to further clarify the metabolism mechanism of enantioselectivity, especially when catalyzed by cytochrome P450 enzymes, development of computational methods is of great importance in this field.

Modeling of Toxicity-Relevant Electrophilic Reactivity for Guanine with Epoxides: Estimating the Hard and Soft Acids and Bases (HSAB) Parameter as a Predictor.

According to the electrophilic theory in toxicology, many chemical carcinogens in the environment and/or their active metabolites are electrophiles that exert their effects by forming covalent bonds with nucleophilic DNA centers. The theory of hard and soft acids and bases (HSAB), which states that a toxic electrophile reacts preferentially with a biological macromolecule that has a similar hardness or softness, clarifies the underlying chemistry involved in this critical event. Epoxides are hard electrophiles that are produced endogenously by the enzymatic oxidation of parent chemicals (e.

Reproducibility and validity of an FFQ developed for adults in Nanjing, China.

We evaluated the reproducibility and validity of an FFQ used in a Chinese community-based nutrition and health survey. A total of ninety-nine males and 104 females aged 31-80 years completed four three consecutive 24-h dietary recalls (24-HDR, served as a reference method, one three consecutive 24-HDR for each season) and two FFQ (FFQ1 and FFQ2) over a 1-year interval. The reproducibility of the FFQ was estimated with correlation coefficients, misclassification and weighted κ statistic.

Sigma-1 Receptor Antagonist BD1047 Reduces Mechanical Allodynia in a Rat Model of Bone Cancer Pain through the Inhibition of Spinal NR1 Phosphorylation and Microglia Activation.

Previous studies have demonstrated that sigma-1 receptor plays important roles in the induction phase of rodent neuropathic pain; however, whether it is involved in bone cancer pain (BCP) and the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. The aim of this study was to examine the potential role of the spinal sigma-1 receptor in the development of bone cancer pain. Walker 256 mammary gland carcinoma cells were implanted into the intramedullary space of the right tibia of Sprague-Dawley rats to induce ongoing bone cancer-related pain behaviors; our findings indicated that, on days 7, 10, 14, and 21 after operation, the expression of sigma-1 receptor in the spinal cord was higher in BCP rats compared to the sham rats.