Objective: As a reversible condition at its early stages, liver fibrosis can progress to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma, underscoring the importance of early detection for preventing severe outcomes and improving prognosis. To address this issue, we developed a platelet-derived growth factor receptor β (PDGFRβ)-targeted nanoscale phase-change contrast agent to target activated hepatic stellate cells (aHSC) and enable ultrasound imaging as a foundation for the early evaluation of liver fibrosis.
Methods: PDGFR-β antibody-modified phase-change contrast agents (PPCAs) were synthesized utilizing film hydration and ultrasonic emulsification with perfluoropentane (PFP) encapsulated.
Phosphorus (P) limitation of ecosystem processes is widespread in terrestrial habitats. While a few auxiliary metabolic genes (AMGs) in bacteriophages from aquatic habitats are reported to have the potential to enhance P-acquisition ability of their hosts, little is known about the diversity and potential ecological function of P-acquisition genes encoded by terrestrial bacteriophages. Here, we analyze 333 soil metagenomes from five terrestrial habitat types across China and identify 75 viral operational taxonomic units (vOTUs) that encode 105 P-acquisition AMGs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: This study examined the anti-obesity and anti-inflammatory effects of sporoderm-broken spore powder of (SSPL) against obese mice fed with a high-fat diet.
Methods: Four groups of C57BL/6J mice were randomly assigned to the following diets: control diet (CD); high-fat diet (HD); high-fat diet plus l-carnitine (HDL); and high-fat diet with sporoderm-broken spore powder of (HDG). They were subjected to 12 weeks of testing.
Background & Objective: Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and signal transducers and activators of transcription (STAT) are closely correlated to the genesis of tumors. This study was to investigate the expression and clinical significance of COX-2, p-Stat3 and p-Stat5 (the activated forms of Stat3 and Stat5) in various lesions of esophageal tissues, and to analyze their correlations to clinicopathologic features of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).
Methods: The expression of COX-2, p-Stat3, and p-Stat5 in 59 specimens of ESCC, 24 specimens of squamous dysplasia, and 18 specimens of normal squamous epithelium was examined by SP immunohistochemistry.