Assessment of Physiological Signals from Photoplethysmography Sensors Compared to an Electrocardiogram Sensor: A Validation Study in Daily Life.

Wearables with photoplethysmography (PPG) sensors are being increasingly used in clinical research as a non-invasive, inexpensive method for remote monitoring of physiological health. Ensuring the accuracy and reliability of PPG-derived measurements is critical, as inaccuracies can impact research findings and clinical decisions. This paper systematically compares heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV) measures from PPG against an electrocardiogram (ECG) monitor in free-living settings.

Tunable Activated Esters Enable Lysine-Selective Protein Labeling and Profiling.

Lysine residues on protein surfaces are abundant and often found in enzyme active sites, making them critical targets for studying undruggable proteins. However, the varied microenvironment surrounding lysine residues results in a wide range of p values, complicating site-specific covalent binding. In this study, we address the challenges posed by the diverse reactivity of amino side chains by modulating the amide reaction activity of heteroaromatic activated esters.

Clinical efficacy and safety of targeted therapy, immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy for treating patients with advanced gastric cancer.

Objective: Exploring the clinical efficacy and safety of targeted therapy, immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy in the treatment of advanced gastric cancer.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on the medical records of 134 patients with advanced gastric cancer who visited Renmin Hospital, Hubei University of Medicine from January 2019 to December 2022. According to therapeutic regimens, enrolled patients were divided into the control group and the study group.

Analysis of hepatitis B Virus Test results among blood donors in Chongqing, China.

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a major concern regarding blood safety in countries with a high HBV prevalence, such as China. We aimed to understand the prevalence of HBV infection among blood donors in Chongqing and provide an important basis for developing appropriate blood screening strategies.

Methods: Dual enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) were conducted in parallel with nucleic acid testing (NAT) of donors.

Hierarchical deep reinforcement learning for self-adaptive economic dispatch.

It is challenging to accurately model the overall uncertainty of the power system when it is connected to large-scale intermittent generation sources such as wind and photovoltaic generation due to the inherent volatility, uncertainty, and indivisibility of renewable energy. Deep reinforcement learning (DRL) algorithms are introduced as a solution to avoid modeling the complex uncertainties and to adapt the fluctuation of uncertainty by interacting with the environment and using feedback to continuously improve their strategies. However, the large-scale nature and uncertainty of the system lead to the sparse reward problem and high-dimensional space issue in DRL.

Development and identification of a novel wheat-Thinopyrum ponticum disomic substitution line DS5Ag(5D) with new genes conferring resistance to powdery mildew and leaf rust.

Background: Powdery mildew (caused by Blumeria graminis f. sp. tritici (Bgt)) and leaf rust (caused by Puccinia triticina (Pt)) are prevalent diseases in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.

Comparison of clinical effects of coronary artery bypass grafting between left anterior small thoracotomy approach and lower-end sternal splitting approach.

Objective: To compare the clinical effects of coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) between the left anterior small thoracotomy (LAST) and lower-end sternal splitting (LESS) approaches for coronary artery disease.

Methods: In total, 110 patients who underwent LAST from October 2015 to December 2020 in Tianjin Chest Hospital were selected as the observation group. Patients who underwent the LESS approach during the same period were analyzed.

A pyridinium-based strategy for lysine-selective protein modification and chemoproteomic profiling in live cells.

Protein active states are dynamically regulated by various modifications; thus, endogenous protein modification is an important tool for understanding protein functions and networks in complicated biological systems. Here we developed a new pyridinium-based approach to label lysine residues under physiological conditions that is low-toxicity, efficient, and lysine-selective. Furthermore, we performed a large-scale analysis of the ∼70% lysine-selective proteome in MCF-7 cells using activity-based protein profiling (ABPP).

β-Carbonyl sulfonium enables cysteine-specific bioconjugation for activity-based protein profiling in live cells.

Chemical labeling methods for proteins are highly researched. Herein, we introduced β-carbonyl sulfonium compounds for selective cysteine modification in proteins within biological systems. Structural tuning led to sulfonium-based probes with high reactivity and selectivity.

Traceless Peptide and Protein Modification via Rational Tuning of Pyridiniums.

Herein, we report a versatile reaction platform for tracelessly cleavable cysteine-selective peptide/protein modification. This platform offers highly tunable and predictable conjugation and cleavage by rationally estimating the electron effect on the nucleophilic halopyridiniums. Cleavable peptide stapling, antibody conjugation, enzyme masking/de-masking, and proteome labeling were achieved based on this facile pyridinium-thiol-exchange protocol.

Pressure-induced phase transition of LuTiOand LuCeTiOpyrochlores.

This study utilizes both experimental and computational approaches to investigate the performance of LuTiO(LTO) and LuCeTiO(LCTO) pyrochlores under high pressure. The structural changes of LTO and LCTO pyrochlores were characterized usingsynchrotron x-ray diffraction (SXRD) andRaman spectroscopy at pressures up to 44.6 GPa.

Pyridinium-Based Strategy for a Bioorthogonal Conjugation-Assisted Purification Method for Profiling Cell Surface Proteome.

Cell surface proteins (CSPs) are valuable targets for therapeutic agents, but achieving highly selective CSP enrichment in cellular physiology remains a technical challenge. To address this challenge, we propose a newly developed sulfo-pyridinium ester (SPE) cross-linking probe, followed by two-step imaging and enrichment. The SPE probe showed higher efficiency in labeling proteins than similar NHS esters at the level of cell lysates and demonstrated specificity for Lys in competitive experiments.

The thiol-sulfoxonium ylide photo-click reaction for bioconjugation.

Visible-light-mediated methods were heavily studied as a useful tool for cysteine-selective bio-conjugation; however, many current methods suffer from bio-incompatible reaction conditions and slow kinetics. To address these challenges, herein, we report a transition metal-free thiol-sulfoxonium ylide photo-click reaction that enables bioconjugation under bio-compatible conditions. The reaction is highly cysteine-selective and generally finished within minutes with naturally occurring riboflavin derivatives as organic photocatalysts.

Ninety-seven cases of experiences with the left thoracotomy approach for off-pump conventional revascularization: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Minimally invasive coronary surgery-coronary artery bypass grafting (MICS CABG) is well adopted in clinical practice. However, this procedure did not really achieve conventional complete revascularization. The present study aimed to explore the feasibility and safety of conventional revascularization via the left thoracotomy (8-10 cm) approach.

Synthesis of potent antifungal 3,4-dichloroisothiazole-based strobilurins with both direct fungicidal activity and systemic acquired resistance.

To continue our efforts to discover novel fungicide lead structures, a series of 3,4-dichloroisothiazole-based-strobilurin derivatives were synthesized and characterized. bioassay screening with 9 different plant pathogens suggested that the linker between 3,4-dichloroisothiazole and the pharmacophore played a critical role in fungicidal potency and scope. Among these, compound 2a with a -methoxy oxime ether as a linker was a better active compound.

Flavin catalyzed desulfurization of peptides and proteins in aqueous media.

A biomimetic method has been established for the chemo-selective desulfurization of cysteinyl peptides and proteins in aqueous media. The derivatives of biocatalytic cofactors, flavins, were found to be efficient photosensitizers in a thiyl-radical-mediated desulfurization of Cys. The reaction was conducted in an ultrafast manner with both polypeptides and proteins.

Low-Toxicity Sulfonium-Based Probes for Cysteine-Specific Profiling in Live Cells.

Despite being a low-abundance amino acid, cysteine plays an essential role in regulating protein function and serves as a satisfactory target of post-translational modifications and drug developments. To comprehensively assess reactive-cysteine-containing proteins, the development of chemical proteomic probes to label cysteine residues in human cells is an important objective. Cysteine modification using sulfonium-based probes is a novel method to identify reactive cysteine residues in proteins.

Sulfonium Triggered Alkyne-Azide Click Cycloaddition.

Herein, we report the first facile Cu-free click reaction between alkynyl sulfonium and azide at ambient temperatures in aqueous media. DFT computations indicate that the sulfonium group is the key factor to gaining reactivity by stabilizing LUMO+1 and influencing the charge distribution of the triple bond. Sulfonium alkynes can be easily synthesized and scaled up, and most of them are biocompatible.

Electrophilic Sulfonium-Promoted Peptide and Protein Amidation in Aqueous Media.

A novel amidation strategy using electrophilic sulfonium, which is soluble and stable in aqueous conditions, was developed. The sulfoniums could activate thioacid and carboxyl acid to efficiently react with amines to afford amides. This method enables applications in amidation in both aqueous media and solid-phase peptide synthesis, peptide/protein modifications, and reactive lysines of a proteome at pH 10 with activity-based protein profiling.

Synthesis of novel N-(2-phenyl-3-pyridyl) thiadiazole/isothiazole carboxamide analogs as potent plant elicitors.

Background: Plant elicitors are a class of plant protection agents that can stimulate plant immunity against phytopathogen without a potential resistance problem. In searching for novel plant elicitor candidates, a series of novel N-(2-phenyl-3-pyridyl) thiadiazole/isothiazole carboxamide analogs were designed and synthesized.

Results: In vitro bioassay showed that all new compounds exhibited weak direct fungicidal activity.

Advantages of interstitial radioactive seed implantation for the treatment of Stage III pancreatic cancer.

Objective: The objective of the study was to identify the advantages of interstitial radioactive seed implantation for the treatment of Stage III pancreatic cancer.

Materials And Methods: Clinical data of 160 patients with pancreatic cancer implanted with radioactive seeds were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were grouped according to tumor size, lymph node metastasis, and tumor invasion to important blood vessels, and survival time statistics were obtained.

Design, synthesis and fungicidal activity of pyrazole-thiazole carboxamide derivatives.

Twenty-one novel pyrazole-thiazole carboxamide derivatives were rationally designed and synthesized. Bioassay results indicated that 6d (EC = 5.11 μg/mL) and 6j (EC = 8.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of pyrazole-aromatic containing carboxamides as potent SDH inhibitors.

To continue our ongoing studies on discovery of new potent antifungal leads, 43 novel pyrazole-aromatic containing carboxamides were rationally designed and synthesized. Bioassays indicated that most target compounds displayed good in vitro antifungal activities against Botrytis cinerea, Rhizoctonia cerealis and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum and in vivo antifungal activity against R. solani.

Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation in Refractory Cardiogenic Shock.

Background: Many clinicians do not know under what exact conditions extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) can get the best results. In this study, we explored the optimal indications for ECMO in patients with refractory cardiogenic shock.

Methods: From October 2014 to November 2019, 23 patients with refractory cardiogenic shock were treated with ECMO in our hospital, including 11 cases with acute left anterior myocardial infarction, 3 with acute left inferior and right ventricular myocardial infarction, and 9 with fulminant myocarditis.