Clinical outcomes and prognostic factors of stereotactic body radiation therapy for intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma.

Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) has been an emerging non-invasive treatment modality for patients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) when surgical treatment cannot be applied. The CyberKnife is a SBRT system that allows for real-time tracking of the tumor. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcomes and prognostic factors for ICC patients receiving this treatment.

Origami silicon optoelectronics for hemispherical electronic eye systems.

Digital image sensors in hemispherical geometries offer unique imaging advantages over their planar counterparts, such as wide field of view and low aberrations. Deforming miniature semiconductor-based sensors with high-spatial resolution into such format is challenging. Here we report a simple origami approach for fabricating single-crystalline silicon-based focal plane arrays and artificial compound eyes that have hemisphere-like structures.

Development of Competitive Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assays for Antibody Detection Based on Bluetongue Virus Monoclonal Antibodies.

Bluetongue is a ruminant infectious disease that is characterized by hyperpyrexia, leukocyte decrease and mucosal ulcerative inflammation changes. In this study, three segments of Bluetongue virus (BTV)-8 VP2 protein (BTV-8A, 8B, and 8C) were cloned into pET-28a (+) and pMAl-c5X vectors and expressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) as histidine (His)-tagged (His-8A/8B/8C) and maltose-binding protein (MBP)-tagged (MBP-8A/8B/8C) fusion proteins. After purification, His-8A/8B/8C were used to immunize BALB/mice and MBP-8A/8B/8C were used to screen for monoclonal antibody (mAb)-secreting hybridomas.

First identification of porcine parvovirus 7 in China.

Porcine parvovirus (PPV) are small, non-enveloped and single-stranded DNA viruses, taxonomically classifiable within the family Parvoviridae. Seven PPV genotypes (PPV1 to PPV7) have been identified to date. PPV7, the most recently discovered PPV genotype, was first reported in US pigs in 2016.

A novel compound heterozygous mutation of SLC26A4 in two Chinese families with nonsyndromic hearing loss and enlarged vestibular aqueducts.

Enlarged vestibular aqueduct (EVA)‑associated hearing loss is frequently detected in individuals carrying the SLC26A4 mutation in the Chinese population. The present study aimed to identify the causative SLC26A4 coding mutations in a patient group with nonsyndromic hearing loss (NSHL) and EVA. Genomic DNA was extracted from blood samples obtained from 52 NSHL patients with EVA and from 60 normal controls.

Autophagy protects auditory hair cells against neomycin-induced damage.

Aminoglycosides are toxic to sensory hair cells (HCs). Macroautophagy/autophagy is an essential and highly conserved self-digestion pathway that plays important roles in the maintenance of cellular function and viability under stress. However, the role of autophagy in aminoglycoside-induced HC injury is unknown.

Disrupting nNOS-PSD-95 coupling in the hippocampal dentate gyrus promotes extinction memory retrieval.

Granule cells in the dentate gyrus regenerate constantly in adult hippocampus and then integrate into neural circuits in the hippocampus thereby providing the neural basis for learning and memory. Promoting the neurogenesis in the hippocampus facilitates learning and memory such as spatial learning, object identification, and extinction learning. The interaction between neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) and postsynaptic density protein-95 (PSD-95) is reported to negatively regulate neurogenesis in brain, so we hypothesized that disrupting this interaction might facilitate the neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus (DG) and thus enhance the extinction memory retrieval of fear learning.

[Establishment of two competitive ELISAs for specific detection of bluetongue virus serotype 4].

To develop a clinical diagnosis technique for bluetongue virus infection, we established serotype-specific methods to detect serotype 4 of bluetongue virus (BTV-4). Two monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against VP2 protein of BTV-4, named 4A-1G7 and 4B-1B6, were used as competitive antibodies in the competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (C-ELISA). We detected 50 negative serum samples from sheep, goats and cattle by C-ELISA.

[Identification of epitope recognized by a monoclonal antibody against VP2 protein of bluetongue virus serotype 8].

To confirm the B cell epitope recognized by monoclonal antibody (MAb) 3G11 of bluetongue virus type 8 (BTV-8) VP2 protein prepared in our laboratory, antigen epitopes recognized by 3G11 were screened and identified by phage display technology. KLLAT sequence was found by sequencing of blue spot after four rounds panning and 283LL284 of common short peptide sequence was obtained after comparison to amino acid sequence of BTV-8 VP2 protein. The peptide sequences KLLAA, KALAT, KLAAT and KLLAT were synthesized and identified by indirect ELISA.

Loss of the podocyte glucocorticoid receptor exacerbates proteinuria after injury.

Nephrotic syndrome is a common disorder in adults and children whose etiology is largely unknown. Glucocorticoids remain the mainstay of therapy in most cases, though their mechanism of action remains poorly understood. Emerging evidence suggests that immunomodulatory therapies used in nephrotic syndrome directly target the podocytes.

Characterization of Lgr5+ Progenitor Cell Transcriptomes after Neomycin Injury in the Neonatal Mouse Cochlea.

Lgr5+ supporting cells (SCs) are enriched hair cell (HC) progenitors in the cochlea. Both and studies have shown that HC injury can spontaneously activate Lgr5+ progenitors to regenerate HCs in the neonatal mouse cochlea. Promoting HC regeneration requires the understanding of the mechanism of HC regeneration, and this requires knowledge of the key genes involved in HC injury-induced self-repair responses that promote the proliferation and differentiation of Lgr5+ progenitors.

Empathy skill-dependent modulation of working memory by painful scene.

As an important online information retaining and processing function, working memory plays critical roles in many other cognitive functions. Several long-term factors, such as age, addiction and diseases, have been affirmed to impair working memory, but whether or how the short-term factors, like painful stimuli or emotions, regulate the human working memory ability is not well explored. Here we investigated the influences of empathic pain on upcoming working memory and existing working memory, by presenting human subjects with the pictures depicting painful or neutral scene.

Poly(amido amine) and calcium phosphate nanocomposite remineralization of dentin in acidic solution without calcium phosphate ions.

Objective: Patients with dry mouth often have an acidic oral environment lacking saliva that provides calcium (Ca) and phosphate (P) ions. However, there has been no study on dentin remineralization by placing samples in an acidic solution without Ca and P ions. Previous studies used saliva-like solutions with neutral pH and Ca and P ions.

Operating Point Self-Regulator for Giant Magneto-Impedance Magnetic Sensor.

The giant magneto-impedance (GMI) magnetic sensor based on the amorphous wire has been believed to be tiny dimensions, high sensitivity, quick response, and small power consumption. This kind of sensor is usually working under a bias magnetic field that is called the sensor's operating point. However, the changes in direction and intensity of the external magnetic field, or the changes in sensing direction and position of the sensor, will lead to fluctuations in operating point when the sensor is working without any magnetic shield.

Autophagy-related protein 12 associates with anti-apoptotic B cell lymphoma-2 to promote apoptosis in gentamicin-induced inner ear hair cell loss.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the underlying mechanisms of autophagy in a gentamicin (GM)-induced ototoxic model, and to establish whether the blocking of autophagy significantly increases the survival of inner ear hair cells. Cochleae were carefully dissected from four day‑old C57BL/6J mice and randomly divided into three groups prior to explant culture: Control (culture medium), GM‑treated (culture medium + GM) and GM + 3-methyladenine (3-MA; culture medium + GM + 3‑MA). Transmission electron microscopy, immunofluorescence and western blotting were performed to observe the expression of the autophagy protein microtubule‑associated protein 1A/B‑light chain 3 in explant cultures treated with GM and the autophagy inhibitor 3‑MA.

Discovery of new muscarinic acetylcholine receptor antagonists from Scopolia tangutica.

Scopolia tangutica (S. tangutica) is a traditional Chinese medicinal plant used for antispasmodics, anesthesia, analgesia and sedation. Its pharmacological activities are mostly associated with the antagonistic activity at muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAchRs) of several known alkaloids such as atropine and scopolamine.

Tumor marker detection using surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy on 3D Au butterfly wings.

Tumor markers are usually over-expressed in human body fluids during the development of cancers. Monitoring tumor markers' level is thus important for early diagnosis and screening of cancers. One way to achieve this is based on the surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) technique that can drastically amplify Raman signals of analytes on a plasmonic metal (e.

Enantioselective Terminal Addition to Allenes by Dual Chiral Primary Amine/Palladium Catalysis.

We herein describe a synergistic chiral primary amine/achiral palladium catalyzed enantioselective terminal addition to allenes with α-branched β-ketocarbonyls and aldehydes. The reactions afford allylic adducts bearing acyclic all-carbon quaternary centers with high regio- and enantioselectivity. A wide range of allenes including those aliphatic or 1,1'-disubstituted could be employed, thus expanding the scope of typical asymmetric allylic alkylation reactions.

Human Cannabinoid Receptor 2 Ligand-Interaction Motif: Transmembrane Helix 2 Cysteine, C2.59(89), as Determinant of Classical Cannabinoid Agonist Activity and Binding Pose.

Cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2R)-dependent signaling is implicated in neuronal physiology and immune surveillance by brain microglia. Selective CB2R agonists hold therapeutic promise for inflammatory and other neurological disorders. Information on human CB2R (hCB2R) ligand-binding and functional domains is needed to inform the rational design and optimization of candidate druglike hCB2R agonists.

A Mutation Identified in Neonatal Microcephaly Destabilizes Zika Virus NS1 Assembly in Vitro.

An unprecedented epidemic of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection had spread to South and Central America. ZIKV infection was recently confirmed by CDC (the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) to cause neonatal microcephaly, which posed a significant public health emergency of international concern. No specific vaccines or drugs are currently available to fight ZIKV infection.

The conformational changes of Zika virus methyltransferase upon converting SAM to SAH.

An outbreak of Zika virus (ZIKV) infection has been reported in South and Central America and the Caribbean. Neonatal microcephaly potentially associated with ZIKV infection has already caused a public health emergency of international concern. Currently, there are no clinically effective vaccines or antiviral drugs available to treat ZIKV infection.

3D Printing of Carbon Nanotubes-Based Microsupercapacitors.

A novel 3D printing procedure is presented for fabricating carbon-nanotubes (CNTs)-based microsupercapacitors. The 3D printer uses a CNTs ink slurry with a moderate solid content and prints a stream of continuous droplets. Appropriate control of a heated base is applied to facilitate the solvent removal and adhesion between printed layers and to improve the structure integrity without structure delamination or distortion upon drying.

A universal synthetic route to carbon nanotube/transition metal oxide nano-composites for lithium ion batteries and electrochemical capacitors.

We report a simple synthetic approach to coaxially grow transition metal oxide (TMO) nanostructures on carbon nanotubes (CNT) with ready control of phase and morphology. A thin (~4 nm) sulfonated-polystyrene (SPS) pre-coating is essential for the deposition of transition metal based materials. This layer has abundant sulfonic groups (-SO) that can effectively attract Ni, Co, Zn ions through electrostatic interaction and induce them via hydrolysis, dehydration and recrystallization to form coaxial (NiO, CoO, NiCoO and ZnCoO) shells and a nanosheet-like morphology around CNT.

Exploring Different Patterns of Love Attitudes among Chinese College Students.

Individual differences in love attitudes and the relationship between love attitudes and other variables in Asian culture lack in-depth exploration. This study conducted cluster analysis with data regarding love attitudes obtained from 389 college students in mainland China. The result of cluster analysis based on love-attitude scales distinguished four types of students: game players, rational lovers, emotional lovers, and absence lovers.