Downregulated DKK2 may serve as a molecular mechanism of high-fat diet-induced myocardial injury via Wnt/β-catenin pathway.

Objective: High-fat diet could induce structural and functional disorders of the heart, but the underlying mechanism remains elusive. This study aimed to explore related mechanism of obesity cardiomyopathy.

Methods: Obesity model was established by feeding rats with a high-fat diet, and H9c2 cells were stimulated with palmitic acid to mimic high-fat stimulation.

A complex case study: coexistence of multi-drug-resistant pulmonary tuberculosis, HBV-related liver failure, and disseminated cryptococcal infection in an AIDS patient.

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection can cause liver failure, while individuals with Acquired Immunodeficiency Virus Disease (AIDS) are highly susceptible to various opportunistic infections, which can occur concurrently. The treatment process is further complicated by the potential occurrence of immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS), which presents significant challenges and contributes to elevated mortality rates.

Case Presentation: The 50-year-old male with a history of chronic hepatitis B and untreated human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection presented to the hospital with a mild cough and expectoration, revealing multi-drug resistant pulmonary tuberculosis (MDR-PTB), which was confirmed by XpertMTB/RIF PCR testing and tuberculosis culture of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF).

Mariculture affects antibiotic resistome and microbiome in the coastal environment.

Antibiotics are increasingly used and released into the marine environment due to the rapid development of mariculture, resulting in spread of antibiotic resistance. The pollution, distribution, and characteristics of antibiotics, antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and microbiomes have been investigated in this study. Results showed that 20 antibiotics were detected in Chinese coastal environment, with predominance of erythromycin-HO, enrofloxacin and oxytetracycline.

[Related factors of cervical lymph node metastasis and prognosis of patients with cN0 tongue squamous cell carcinoma].

Purpose: To explore the related factors of cervical lymph node metastasis and postoperative quality of life in patients with cN0 tongue squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), and provide a theoretical basis for clinical prediction of occult neck metastasis and improvement of survival rate.

Methods: A total of 283 patients with cN0 tongue SCC who underwent surgery in Huaian No.1 People's Hospital were collected.

Understanding the Impact of Microstructures on Reconstitution and Drying Kinetics of Lyophilized Cake Using X-ray Microscopy and Image-Based Simulation.

The drying time of lyophilization and resultant cake microstructure are dependent on each other as water and solvent leave a lyophilized cake. The drying rate affects the size, distribution, and tortuosity of the pores as these macropores evolve during the primary drying phase, which in return impact the further removal of water and solvent from the cake throughout the drying period. This interplay results in a microstructure that determines the reconstitution time for a given formulation.

Noninvasive Moisture Detection in Lyophilized Drug Product Using NIR Spectrometer and Headspace Moisture Analyzer.

Utilization of laser headspace and near-infrared (NIR) methods provides rapid and non-destructive approaches for moisture detection of lyophilized drug products to facilitate lyophilization formulation characterization and process development. In the present study, the NIR method was developed based on a partial least square regression (PLSR) model calibrated and validated with Karl Fisher (KF) data, whereas the laser headspace method was developed with aid of dynamic vapor sorption (DVS) method so that the water vapor pressure measured from the headspace of a lyophilized drug product vial can be converted directly to water content value through the water vapor sorption isotherm of the lyophilized drug product bypassing KF calibration. The water contents of lyophilized samples obtained from both methods agreed well with KF data, with a root mean squared error of prediction (RMSEP) of less than 0.

MMP1 Overexpression Promotes Cancer Progression and Associates with Poor Outcome in Head and Neck Carcinoma.

Matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP1) has been reported to play key roles in a variety of cancers by degrading the extracellular matrix. However, its carcinogenic roles have not been shown yet in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). This study aimed to elucidate its expression pattern and functional roles as well as clinical significance in HNSCC.

Preoperative circulating fibrinogen to albumin ratio in predicting 5-year prognosis of oral cancer radical surgery.

Accurate prediction of oral cancer (OC) prognosis before surgery is the key to treatment. The prognosis of OC is mainly based on the Tumor-Node-Metastasis (TNM) staging system, but TNM staging cannot accurately predict clinical prognosis. Current research results show that systemic inflammatory and nutritional markers can influence the postoperative prognosis and outcome of malignant tumors.

Prognostic role of an inflammation scoring system in radical resection of oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Background: Inflammatory markers can influence the postoperative prognosis and outcome of malignant tumors. However, the role of inflammatory factors in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) are still debatable. The primary objective of this investigation was to detect the preoperative blood fibrinogen and neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in OSCC patients and to determine the predictive validity of F-NLR (combined fibrinogen and NLR score).

Unplanned reoperation after radical surgery for oral cancer: an analysis of risk factors and outcomes.

Background: Unplanned reoperation (UR) after radical surgery for oral cancer (OC) is a health threat for the patients. The aim of the study was to identify the incidence of and risk factors for unplanned reoperation following oral cancer radical surgery, and to explore a potential role for long-term survival.

Methods: The present study followed a retrospective study design.

Development of an enhanced formulation to minimize pharmacokinetic variabilities of a weakly basic drug compound.

Formulating poorly water soluble, weakly basic drugs with consistent exposure is often a challenge due to pH-dependent solubility. When the oral formulation is exposed to different pH ranges in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, drug precipitation, or incomplete dissolution may occur resulting in decreased drug absorption and higher intra- and inter-patient pharmacokinetic (PK) variabilities. In the present study, a series of enhanced formulations containing organic acids and/or surfactants were developed and compared with conventional formulations with respect to their dissolution performance.

Assessment of Resonant Acoustic Mixing for Low-Dose Pharmaceutical Powder Blends.

Obtaining a homogeneous low-dose pharmaceutical powder blend without multi-step processing remains a challenge. One promising technology to address this risk is resonant acoustic mixing (RAM). In this study, the performance of a laboratory resonant acoustic mixer (LabRAM) was studied at low active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) concentrations (0.

Using a Model-based Material Sparing Approach for Formulation and Process Development of a Roller Compacted Drug Product.

The present work details a material sparing approach that combines material profiling with Instron uniaxial die-punch tester and use of a roller compaction mathematical model to guide both formulation and process development of a roller-compacted drug product. True density, compression profiling, and frictional properties of the pre-blend powders are used as inputs for the predictive roller compaction model, while flow properties, particle size distribution, and assay uniformity of roller compaction granules are used to select formulation composition and ribbon solid fraction. Using less than 10 g of a model drug compound for material profiling, roller compacted blend in capsule formulations with appropriate excipient ratios were developed at both 1.

Rapid Test Method for Multi-Beam Profile of Phased Array Antennas.

The measurement of the phased array antenna (PAA) is completely different from the traditional antenna, due to its multi beam patterns. Usually, each beam pattern of the PAA needs a separate measurement, which makes the overall time extremely long. Thus, the traditional method can no longer meet the efficiency and cost requirements of new PAA measurement.

Antibiotics, antibiotic resistance genes and microbial community in grouper mariculture.

Increasing use of feed and medicine in mariculture could cause negative environmental impacts such as habitat modification, microbial disease development and antibiotic resistance. Here we investigated contamination of antibiotics and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), and composition of microbial community in grouper mariculture systems in Hainan province, China. Results showed detection of various antibiotic residues with the dominance of fluoroquinolones and tetracyclines in the six grouper cultivation systems.

[Pollution Characteristics and Removal of Typical Pharmaceuticals in Hospital Wastewater and Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants].

In this study, solid phase extraction (SPE) coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) was used to track the contamination of 17 benzodiazepines, 14 acidic pharmaceuticals, and 5 neutral pharmaceuticals in 4 hospital wastewater treatment systems and 3 municipal wastewater treatment plants in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province. The results showed that a total of 10 benzodiazepines, 8 acidic, and 3 neutral pharmaceuticals were detected in the hospital wastewater treatment systems with concentrations in the ranges of 0.41-23376 ng·L and 0.

The fate of sulfonamides in the process of phytoremediation in hydroponics.

Phytoremediation has been proven to be an alternative in-situ treatment technique for sulfonamide polluted wastewater. However, the fate of sulfonamides in the phytoremediation process of multiple sulfonamides coexistence is unclear. Therefore, the possibility and mechanism of phytoremediation of ten sulfonamides by different wetland plants through hydroponics were investigated in this study.

Biodegradation of typical azole fungicides in activated sludge under aerobic conditions.

Widespread use of azole fungicides and low removal efficiency in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have led to the elevated concentration of azole fungicides in receiving environment. However, there was limited research about the removal mechanism of azole fungicides in the biological treatment of WWTPs. Imidazole fungicide climbazole and triazole fungicide fluconazole were selected to investigate the biodegradation mechanism of azole fungicides in activated sludge under aerobic conditions.

Highly enhanced biodegradation of pharmaceutical and personal care products in a novel tidal flow constructed wetland with baffle and plants.

Research on decentralized wastewaters deserves special focus due to the potential abundance of emerging organic pollutants including pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs), which might pose serious threats to the local water bodies and even to human health. Constructed wetland (CW) is a common decentralized wastewater treatment technology, with a certain ability to eliminate PPCPs. Nonetheless, PPCPs removal in common CWs is frequently challenging, besides, the removal mechanism remains elusive.

Trace analysis of 28 antibiotics in plant tissues (root, stem, leaf and seed) by optimized QuEChERS pretreatment with UHPLC-MS/MS detection.

Phytoremediation has proven to be an effective in-situ treatment technique for antibiotic contamination. Due to the immature methods of extracting multi-antibiotics in different plant tissues, the antibiotic absorption and transportation mechanism in the phytoremediation process has yet to be resolved. Therefore, an improved Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged and Safe (QuEChERS) pretreatment with ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) detection method for 28 antibiotics in different plant tissues (root, stem, leaf and seed) was developed in this study.

Fabrication of Sub-Micron Polymer Waveguides through Two-Photon Polymerization in Polydimethylsiloxane.

Flexible ultra-compact low-loss optical waveguides play a vital role in the development of soft photonics. The search for suitable materials and innovative fabrication techniques to achieve low loss long polymer optical waveguides and interconnects has proven to be challenging. In this paper, we demonstrate the fabrication of submicron optical waveguides in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) using divinylbenzene (DVB) as the photopolymerizable monomer through two-photon polymerization (2PP).

Occurrence, fate and mass loading of benzodiazepines and their transformation products in eleven wastewater treatment plants in Guangdong province, China.

Benzodiazepines (BZDs) are one of the most widely prescribed psychoactive drugs, however their persistence in the receiving environment has raised great concerns about their potential ecological risks. Here we investigated the occurrence, fate and mass loading of 17 BZDs and their 3 transformation products in 11 wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in Guangdong province, China. A total of 10 BZDs and 1 transformation product were found in the WWTPs influents, effluents and excess sludge, with concentrations reaching up to 44.

Imaging hair cells through laser-ablated cochlear bone.

We report an innovative technique for the visualization of cells through an overlying scattering medium by combining femtosecond laser bone ablation and two-photon excitation fluorescence (TPEF) microscopy. We demonstrate the technique by imaging hair cells in an intact mouse cochlea . Intracochlear imaging is important for the assessment of hearing disorders.

Hollow Mesoporous Plasmonic Nanoshells for Enhanced Solar Vapor Generation.

In the past decade, nanomaterials have made their way into a variety of technologies in solar energy, enhancing the performance by taking advantage of the phenomena inherent to the nanoscale. Recent examples exploit plasmonic core/shell nanoparticles to achieve efficient direct steam generation, showing great promise of such nanoparticles as a useful material for solar applications. In this paper, we demonstrate a novel technique for fabricating bimetallic hollow mesoporous plasmonic nanoshells that yield a higher solar vapor generation rate compared with their solid-core counterparts.

The in vitro and in vivo investigation of inhaled migraine therapies using a novel aerosol delivery system consisting of an air pressurized capsule device (APCD) in combination with a pMDI spacer for endotracheal dosing into beagle dogs.

Context: Aerosol delivery to animals in preclinical settings has historically been very challenging, requiring the use of techniques, such as intratracheal instillation and dry powder insufflation, that are somewhat invasive, inefficient and not representative of clinical inhalation.

Objective: The objective of this work is to develop a system to deliver dry powder to dogs in an efficient and effective manner for the study of new anti-migraine compounds in development.

Materials And Methods: The new device uses a metered aliquot of a dry gas to force dry powder drug from a pre-filled HPMC capsule into an AeroChamber® spacer for subsequent inhalation by the animal.