Natural products alleviate atrial fibrillation by modulating mitochondrial quality control.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF), one of the most common cardiac arrhythmias, is associated with high mortality rates and significant healthcare burdens. Mitochondrial homeostasis has recently emerged as a critical factor in AF pathogenesis but remains at the experimental stage. Current drug and surgical treatments for AF often involve side effects and require ongoing treatment plan evaluation and adjustment.

Deep Hypothermic Low Flow Results in Multiple Aspects of Neurological Deficits in Mice by eEF2 Hyperphosphorylation.

Postoperative neurological dysfunction is a common complication caused by deep hypothermia with cerebral hypoperfusion during aortic arch surgery, but the exact pathological changes and molecular mechanisms are not yet clear. In this study, we established an adult mouse model of deep hypothermic low flow (DHLF) to simulate the ischemic-reperfusion brain injury during aortic arch surgery. The DHLF-modeled mice showed significant neurological and cognitive dysfunction, accompanied by reduced dendritic spine density and increased glial cell activation in the hippocampus and cortex.

Occurrence and bioaccumulation of organophosphate flame retardants in high-altitude regions: A comprehensive field survey in Qinghai Province, China.

Organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) are a class of substances that pose potential risks to human health and ecosystems due to their large-scale production, wide range of applications, and ubiquitous presence in the environment. With their potential for long-range atmospheric transport (LRAT), OPFR pollution in high-altitude areas has become an increasing concern. Herein, a general pretreatment method for OPFRs across various sample matrices was established and combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), utilizing a programmed temperature ramp in the vaporization chamber to enable high-throughput detection of OPFRs in various environmental matrices.

Targeting mitochondria by lipid-selenium conjugate drug results in malate/fumarate exhaustion and induces mitophagy-mediated necroptosis suppression.

Atherosclerosis (AS) is a chronic vascular disease primarily affecting large and medium-sized arteries and involves various complex pathological mechanisms and factors. Previous studies have demonstrated a close association between atherosclerosis and inflammatory damage, metabolic disorders, and gut microbiota. It is also closely linked to several cellular processes, such as endothelial cell pyroptosis, ferroptosis, mitophagy, mitochondrial dynamics, and mitochondrial biogenesis.

Development and validation of a nomogram for predicting in-hospital mortality in ICU patients with infective endocarditis.

Background: Infective endocarditis (IE) is a disease with high in-hospital mortality. The objective of the present investigation was to develop and validate a nomogram that precisely anticipates in-hospital mortality in ICU individuals diagnosed with infective endocarditis.

Methods: Retrospectively collected clinical data of patients with IE admitted to the ICU in the MIMIC IV database were analyzed using the Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO) regression to identify potential hazards.

Analysis of Combustion Instability of Methane-Air Premixed Swirling Flame Based on OH-PLIF Measurements.

A method for determining combustion instability using flame structure parameters is presented. A speaker is used to provide controllable external excitation for the combustion system. The experimental object is a methane-air swirl premixed flame.

Efficacy and safety evaluation of neoadjuvant immunotherapy plus chemotherapy for resectable non-small cell lung cancer in real world.

Objectives: The combination of immunotherapy and chemotherapy has shown great efficacy in stage IV non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and is now widely used in clinical treatment strategy. This study retrospectively analyzed the efficacy and safety of neoadjuvant immunotherapy plus chemotherapy for resectable NSCLC in real world.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed patients with NSCLC who received neoadjuvant immunotherapy plus chemotherapy and underwent complete tumor resection in Zhejiang Cancer Hospital between January 2019 and January 2021.

Investigating the Pathogenesis of MYH7 Mutation Gly823Glu in Familial Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy using a Mouse Model.

Familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM, OMIM: 613690) is the most common cardiomyopathy in China. However, the underlying genetic etiology of HCM remains elusive. We previously identified a myosin heavy chain 7 (MYH7) gene heterozygous variant, NM_000257.

Establishment and Evaluation of a Porcine Vein Graft Disease Model.

Venous graft disease (VGD) is the leading cause of coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) failure. Large animal models of CABG-VGD are needed for the investigation of disease mechanisms and the development of therapeutic strategies. To perform the surgery, we enter the cardiac chamber through the third intercostal space and carefully dissect the internal mammary vein and immerse it in normal saline.

Associations of Clinical and Molecular Characteristics with the Response to Immune Checkpoint Blockade in Advanced Gastric Cancers.

Purpose: Immunotherapy provides a new treatment option for advanced gastric cancer (AGC). This study aims to explore the response markers of immunotherapy in AGCs.

Methods: Next-generation sequencing was performed on 44 AGC patients who received immune checkpoint inhibitors and the associations between their outcomes after combination immunotherapy, and the clinicopathological/molecular characteristics were analyzed.

Protein Tyrosine Kinase 7 Regulates EGFR/Akt Signaling Pathway and Correlates With Malignant Progression in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

Purpose: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), the most aggressive subtype of breast cancer, is associated with high invasiveness, high metastatic occurrence and poor prognosis. Protein tyrosine kinase 7 (PTK7) plays an important role in multiple cancers. However, the role of PTK7 in TNBC has not been well addressed.

Multi-region exome sequencing reveals genomic evolution from preneoplasia to lung adenocarcinoma.

There has been a dramatic increase in the detection of lung nodules, many of which are preneoplasia atypical adenomatous hyperplasia (AAH), adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS), minimally invasive adenocarcinoma (MIA) or invasive adenocarcinoma (ADC). The molecular landscape and the evolutionary trajectory of lung preneoplasia have not been well defined. Here, we perform multi-region exome sequencing of 116 resected lung nodules including AAH (n = 22), AIS (n = 27), MIA (n = 54) and synchronous ADC (n = 13).

Genomic analysis of oesophageal squamous-cell carcinoma identifies alcohol drinking-related mutation signature and genomic alterations.

Approximately half of the world's 500,000 new oesophageal squamous-cell carcinoma (ESCC) cases each year occur in China. Here, we show whole-genome sequencing of DNA and RNA in 94 Chinese individuals with ESCC. We identify six mutational signatures (E1-E6), and Signature E4 is unique in ESCC linked to alcohol intake and genetic variants in alcohol-metabolizing enzymes.

Improving the Accuracy of Mesothelioma Diagnosis in China.

Introduction: In the Western world, malignant mesothelioma (MM) is most prevalent in the pleura of older males who have been professionally exposed to asbestos. Information about MM from rapidly industrializing countries such as China is minimal. There is concern that a proportion of MM diagnoses in China may be incorrect because most Chinese physicians do not have experience diagnosing this rare cancer.

C-Met as a Molecular Marker for Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma and Its Association with Clinical Outcome.

Background: Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), c-Met, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) are overexpressed in a variety of human cancers, and may serve as biomarkers for disease prognosis. We examined whether high expression of these molecular markers correlates with poor disease prognosis in esophageal squamous cell cancer (ESCC).

Materials And Methods: Expression of EGFR, c-Met, and HER2 protein was detected by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in 180 paraffin-embedded tissue samples from stage IIB-IIIC ESCC patients.

Vascular invasion is an independent prognostic factor for distant recurrence-free survival in papillary thyroid carcinoma: a matched-case comparative study.

Objective: It is still unclear whether the clinicopathological and outcome characteristics of vascular invasion (VI) (+) papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) differ from VI (-) PTC. This study aims to establish distinguishing features of patients with VI (+) and VI (-) PTC and to investigate the biological and clinical aggressiveness of the disease in these patient groups.

Design: A matched-case comparative study.

Inhibitor Response to HER2 G776(YVMA) In-frame Insertion in HER2-positive Breast Cancer.

Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2/neu or HER2) has long been recognized as an attractive therapeutic target for breast cancer. The YVMA in-frame insertion at the residue G776 (G776(YVMA)) of HER2 kinase domain is a frequently observed mutation that can largely shift drug sensitivity in targeted therapy of HER2-positive breast cancer. Here, the molecular mechanism and biological significance of tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) response to HER2 G776(YVMA) insertion were investigated in detail.

Expression levels of HER2 and MRP1 are not prognostic factors of long-term survival in 829 patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is the eighth most frequent neoplasm in China. However, the expression levels of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) and multidrug resistance protein 1 (MRP1) in patients with ESCC remain to be determined. In the present study, 829 ESCC cases were evaluated using immunohistochemistry.

Epidermal growth factor receptor protein overexpression and gene amplification are associated with aggressive biological behaviors of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

Alterations of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), including overexpression or gene mutations, contribute to the malignant transformation of human epithelial cells. The aim of this study was to assess EGFR overexpression or gene amplification in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) tissue samples and investigate their correlations with biological behaviors. Tissue specimens from 56 patients with surgically resected ESCC were obtained for immunohistochemical analysis of EGFR expression and fluorescence hybridization analysis of amplification.

Concurrent radiotherapy with gefitinib in elderly patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: Preliminary results of a phase II study.

The survival rate associated with esophageal cancer is very poor due to diagnosis at advanced stages of disease and insensitivity to chemotherapy. This study investigated the efficacy of gefitinib combination with radiation in 20 elderly patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) who were not eligible for platinum-based chemotherapy. Immunohistochemistry was performed to analyze epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) expression, and the amplified refractory mutation system was used to detect EGFR mutations.

Abnormal Expression of DNA Double-Strand Breaks Related Genes, ATM and GammaH2AX, in Thyroid Carcinoma.

ATM and γH2AX play a vital role in the detection of DNA double-strand breaks (DSB) and DNA damage response (DDR). This study aims to investigate ATM and γH2AX expression in thyroid cancer and discuss possible relationship between thyroid function tests and DNA damage. The expression of ATM and γH2AX was detected by immunohistochemistry in 30 cases of benign nodular goiter, 110 cases of well differentiated thyroid cancer, 22 cases of poorly differentiated thyroid cancer, and 21 cases of anaplastic thyroid cancer.

Mesoporous silica nanospheres decorated with CdS nanocrystals for enhanced photocatalytic and excellent antibacterial activities.

Uniform SiO2@CdS mesoporous nanospheres with an average diameter of 300 nm have been synthesized successfully by a facile process. The as-prepared mesoporous composite nanospheres have a BET-specific surface area of 640 m(2) g(-1) and an average pore size of 2.82 nm.