Publications by authors named "L-M Ma"

Background: Granulomatous mastitis (GM) is an inflammatory breast condition with high recurrence risk, often complicating management. Existing imaging techniques provide limited predictive insight. This study aims to analyze the correlation between contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) features and the risk of GM recurrence, developing a predictive model.

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Groundwater is widely threatened by hazardous manganese and ammonia. In present study, a novel gravity-driven fixed-bed ceramic membrane filtration (GDFBCM) with critical PAC-MnOx-ceramsite filters was built to address these issues. Static ceramsite filters in GDCM significantly increased membrane flux from 11 L/m·h to 18 L/m·h on the 50th day of filtration.

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Mosaic loss of Y (mLOY) is the most common somatic chromosomal alteration detected in human blood. The presence of mLOY is associated with altered blood cell counts and increased risk of Alzheimer disease, solid tumors, and other age-related diseases. We sought to gain a better understanding of genetic drivers and associated phenotypes of mLOY through analyses of whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of a large set of genetically diverse males from the Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine (TOPMed) program.

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The discharge of oil-laden wastewater from industrial processes and the frequent occurrence of oil spills pose severe threats to the ecological environment and human health. Membrane materials with special wettability have garnered attention for their ability to achieve efficient oil-water separation by leveraging the differences in wettability at the oil-water interface. These materials are characterized by their simplicity, energy efficiency, environmental friendliness, and reusability.

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Front-of-pack nutrition labels (FOPNLs) have been developed since 1989 to curb the increasing prevalence of obesity and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and to promote healthy consumption choices. While several countries have introduced their own labeling schemes on a voluntary basis, the European Commission aims to harmonize a FOPNL system that will be mandatory for all member states. This paper summarizes a contribution to the current debate on FOPNLs from Italian and Spanish researchers working in the fields of human nutrition, nutritional epidemiology and public health education and communication policy before the final decision on FOPNLs to become mandatory in Europe is taken.

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Rationale And Objectives: To investigate the feasibility of amide proton transfer-weighted (APTw) and diffusion-weighted MRI in evaluating the response of bladder cancer (BCa) to neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy.

Materials And Methods: From June 2021 to July 2023, participants with pathologically confirmed BCa were prospectively recruited to undergo MRI examinations, including APTw and diffusion-weighted MRI before and after neoadjuvant immunochemotherapy. Histogram analysis features (mean, median, and entropy) were extracted from pre- and post-treatment APTw and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps, respectively.

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Background: Cervical cancer is associated with persistent infection of high-risk human papillomaviruses (HPVs). Prophylactic HPV vaccines have been recommended and have significant efficacy in preventing cervical cancer. Multivalent HPV vaccines have a better preventative effect on HPV-related diseases.

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Directed evolution in mammalian cells offers a powerful approach for advancing synthetic biology applications. However, existing mammalian-based directed evolution methods face substantial bottlenecks, including host genome interference, small library size and uncontrolled mutagenesis. Here we engineered an orthogonal alphaviral RNA replication system to evolve RNA-based devices, enabling RNA replicase-assisted continuous evolution (REPLACE) in proliferating mammalian cells.

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Efficient prime editor (PE) delivery in vivo is critical for realizing its full potential in disease modeling and therapeutic correction. Although PE has been divided into two halves and delivered using dual adeno-associated viruses (AAVs), the editing efficiency at different gene loci varies among split sites. Furthermore, efficient split sites within Cas9 nickase (Cas9n) are limited.

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Metal-phenolic networks (MPNs) are supramolecular materials that have received interest in various fields, including biomedicine, separations, environmental remediation, and catalysis. Despite recent advances, the construction of thick and robust MPN coatings that withstand harsh conditions (e.g.

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  • The study investigates how gut microbial metabolites (GMM), specifically phenylacetylglutamine (PAGln), are linked to cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in people with alcohol use disorder.
  • In experiments with mice, researchers found that chronic alcohol consumption led to changes in gut microbes and increased PAGln levels, which were associated with cardiovascular issues.
  • PAGln was shown to cause heart and blood vessel problems independent of alcohol, indicating that it plays a significant role in the development of CVD related to alcohol consumption.
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Two-dimensional (2D) nanochannels have demonstrated outstanding performance for sieving specific molecules or ions, owing to their uniform molecular channel sizes and interlayer physical/chemical properties. However, controllably tuning nanochannel spaces with specific sizes and simultaneously achieving high mechanical strength remain the main challenges. In this work, the inter-sheet gallery d-spacing of graphene oxide (GO) membrane is successfully tailored with high mechanical strength via a general radical-induced polymerization strategy.

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The issue of environmental pollution caused by wastewater discharge from fruit juice production has attracted increasing attention. However, the cost-effectiveness of conventional treatment technology remains insufficient. In this study, a gravity-driven membrane bioreactor (GDMBR) was developed to treat real fruit juice wastewater from secondary sedimentation at pressures ranging from 0.

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  • - Recent advancements in sponge materials for oil spill cleanup show promising results, utilizing silane coupling agents and nano-SiO₂ particles to enhance traditional melamine sponges.
  • - The modified “SiMAP” sponges exhibit impressive properties like a water contact angle of 162.6° and can absorb 40 to 90 times their weight in oil, achieving separation efficiencies over 98%.
  • - Their performance in oil-water separation is exceptional, with over 99.8% efficiency in continuous cycles, suggesting SiMAP sponges could be a major advancement in addressing oil pollution.
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Background: Genome-wide association studies identified a 20-Kb region of chromosome 8 (8q24.13) associated with plasma lipids, hepatic steatosis, and risk for coronary artery disease. The region is proximal to , and given its well-established role in lipid regulation in animal models, TRIB1 has been proposed to mediate the contribution of the 8q24.

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To efficiently remove micropollutants from drinking water, this study developed an adsorption-enhanced Fenton catalytic membrane with a two-dimensional structure composed of graphene oxide loaded with iron-cyclodextrin metal-organic frameworks (FeCD-MOF). As water passes through the interlayer channels, micropollutants and hydrogen peroxide (HO) are adsorbed into the voids of the FeCD-MOF and the cavities of the CD. This process increases the concentration of micropollutants and HO in the confined space, thereby significantly enhancing the efficiency of the Fenton catalytic reaction.

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  • TnpB proteins from the IS200/IS605 family have potential for genome editing, but their uncharacterized collateral nuclease activity hinders the development of diagnostic tools.
  • Research revealed that TnpB from a heat-loving archaeon has increased ability to cleave single-stranded DNA when heated, and mutations in target DNA affect this activity.
  • A new detection method called TESD (TnpB Enable fast and Sensitive Detection) was created, achieving sensitivity of 29 copies per microliter in 30 minutes, paving the way for improved molecular diagnostics.
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SARS-CoV-2 continues to be a public health burden, driven in-part by its continued antigenic diversification and resulting emergence of new variants. By increasing herd immunity, current vaccines have improved infection outcomes for many. However, prophylactic and treatment interventions that are not compromised by viral evolution of the Spike protein are still needed.

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In the field of wastewater treatment, the efficient separation of dyes/salts and the high-pressure drive easily results in concentration polarization and membrane contamination. In this study, inspired by the capillary effect of natural sponge structure, an aerogel layer with a bionic three-dimensional mesh porous sponge structure was designed to construct an ultra-low-pressure membrane. With the assistance of tannic acid, the carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) aerogel layer were constructed on the surface of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membrane using the layer-by-layer cross-linking and freeze-drying methods.

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Two-dimensional (2D) ion crystals may represent a promising path to scale up qubit numbers for ion trap quantum information processing. However, to realize universal quantum computing in this system, individually addressed high-fidelity two-qubit entangling gates still remain challenging due to the inevitable micromotion of ions in a 2D crystal as well as the technical difficulty in 2D addressing. Here we demonstrate two-qubit entangling gates between any ion pairs in a 2D crystal of four ions.

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Lignin, a complex natural 3D aromatic polymer compound known for its high thermal stability, stiffness, and ability to effectively withstand chemical and biological attacks. When combined with various other natural biomass components, lignin can offer the promise of fortifying the physical, chemical, and biological stability of matrix materials, which has garnered significant interest. Herein, through the incorporation of alginate with aminated lignin using chemical and ionic double cross-linking and freeze-drying techniques, alginate-lignin composite functional foams (SA-NAL) with improved water affinity, mechanical strength, and overall service performance have been successfully developed.

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  • * Results indicate a decline in overall stroke burden trends, but with notable increases in East Asia and Southern Sub-Saharan Africa, highlighting a variated impact across different regions and genders.
  • * A key finding is that stroke burden correlates negatively with the sociodemographic index, suggesting higher burdens in regions with lower socioeconomic status, while trends also shifted upward between 2019 and 2021, coinciding with the pandemic.
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Superhydrophobic separation membranes are considered to be one of the most promising technologies for oil-water separation. However, the plastic waste generated from discarded membranes poses a challenge to the preparation of degraded superhydrophobic separation membranes for achieving eco-friendly separation. In this study, superhydrophobic poly(lactic acid) (PLA) membranes were fabricated using a non-solvent induced phase separation method assisted by l-cysteine modified carbon dots (Cys-CDs).

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  • The treatment of shale gas produced water (SGPW) poses challenges due to its complex composition and issues with membrane fouling in single desalination processes like forward osmosis (FO) and membrane distillation (MD).
  • A new integrated approach combining fertilizer-driven FO (FDFO) with MD shows promise, leveraging high osmotic pressure fertilizer draw solutions (DS) to minimize fouling and enhance water quality for irrigation purposes.
  • The study found that using specific fertilizers improved MD performance significantly, reducing permeate conductivity and maintaining membrane effectiveness, providing insights for better SGPW treatment methods.
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Background Standardized methods to measure and describe Crohn disease strictures at CT enterography are needed to guide clinical decision making and for use in therapeutic studies. Purpose To assess the reliability of CT enterography features to describe Crohn disease strictures and their correlation with stricture severity. Materials and Methods A retrospective study was conducted in 43 adult patients with symptomatic terminal ileal Crohn disease strictures who underwent standard-of-care CT enterography at a tertiary care center at the Cleveland Clinic between January 2008 and August 2016.

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