A combination of captopril challenge test after saline infusion test improves diagnostic accuracy for primary aldosteronism.

Context: The saline infusion test (SIT) is a common confirmatory test for primary aldosteronism (PA). According to the guideline, a postinfusion plasma aldosterone concentration (PAC) of 5-10 ng/dL is considered indeterminate, and recommendations for diagnostic strategies are currently limited in this situation.

Objective: To explore whether an addition of the captopril challenge test (CCT) could improve the diagnostic accuracy in patients with indeterminate SIT.

Sustainable synthesis of modulated Fe-MOFs with enhanced catalyst performance for persulfate to degrade organic pollutants.

In this study, four typical modulators (NHOH(A), CHCOOH(B), CHCOONa(C) and CHCOONH(D)) were applied to modulate the microwave-assisted synthesis of Fe-MOFs. The effects of various modulators on the yield, electrochemistry activity and PS activation capacity of prepared catalysts were systematically investigated. The ideal modulator was revealed as the 7.

AMBTC based high payload data hiding with modulo-2 operation and Hamming code.

An efficient data hiding method with modulo-2 operation and Hamming code (3, 2) based on absolute moment block truncation coding (AMBTC) is proposed. In order to obtain good data hiding performance, different textures are assigned to different embedding strategies. The AMBTC compressed codes are divided into smooth and complex blocks according to texture.

Tuning Electron Density Endows FeCoP with Exceptional Capability of Electrooxidation of Organic Pollutants.

The good performance of base metal catalysts for the electrooxidation of organic pollutants has attracted great attention. However, base metal phosphides for electrooxidation are seldom studied owing to the sluggish water adsorption and dissociation dynamics, which will hinder the production of the sorbed hydroxyl radicals (M(OH)) and thus inhibit the electrooxidation of organic pollutants. Herein, we proposed a universal strategy to improve the electrooxidation capability of metal phosphides by modulating the surface electron densities.

Limonin: A Review of Its Pharmacology, Toxicity, and Pharmacokinetics.

Limonin is a natural tetracyclic triterpenoid compound, which widely exists in (Juss.) Benth., Schneid.

Higher maternal embryonic leucine zipper kinase mRNA expression level is a poor prognostic factor in non-small-cell lung carcinoma patients.

To elucidate potential prognostic significance of mRNA expression in non-small-cell lung carcinoma patients. A loop algorithm based on R software was used to select genes with the best prognostic value. Mantel-Haenszel method and functional enrichment analysis were used to perform this analysis.

High-Resolution, Adaptive Optics Imaging of the Human Trabecular Meshwork In Vivo.

Purpose: To image the human trabecular meshwork (TM) in vivo using adaptive optics gonioscopy (AOG) with approximately 2-μm lateral resolution.

Methods: An existing Indiana University adaptive optics scanning laser ophthalmoscope was altered by adding a 12-mm button lens to a clinical gonioscopic lens allowing high-resolution imaging of the human iridocorneal angle. First an anatomic model eye was used to refine the imaging technique and then nine participants (7 controls and 2 participants with pigment dispersion syndrome) were imaged.

Presl: A Review of Its Traditional Uses, Phytochemistry, Pharmacology and Toxicology.

Presl is a tropical aromatic evergreen tree of the Lauraceae family, commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine. It is also a traditional spice, widely used around the world. This paper summarizes the achievements of modern research on , including the traditional uses, phytochemistry, pharmacology and toxicology.

Maternal exposure to different sizes of polystyrene microplastics during gestation causes metabolic disorders in their offspring.

Microplastics (MPs) are highly concerned environmental pollutants that are ubiquitous in the environmental and might affect human and animal health. In this study, we exposed pregnant mice to 0.5 and 5 μm with 100 and 1000 μg/L polystyrene MPs, then investigated maternal MPs exposure during gestation and evaluated the potential effects on the mice offspring (PND42).

A large π-conjugated tetrakis (4-carboxyphenyl) porphyrin anode enables high specific capacity and superior cycling stability in lithium-ion batteries.

We demonstrated a novel single molecule - tetrakis(4-carboxyphenyl) porphyrin (TCPP) with a large π-conjugated system as a high-performance organic anode of lithium batteries. It was found that this TCPP displayed relatively low solubility (<0.1 mg mL-1) in a 1 M LiDFOB/PC electrolyte, high reversible specific capacity (ca.

Review of micro-optical sectioning tomography (MOST): technology and applications for whole-brain optical imaging [Invited].

Elucidating connectivity and functionality at the whole-brain level is one of the most challenging research goals in neuroscience. Various whole-brain optical imaging technologies with submicron lateral resolution have been developed to reveal the fine structures of brain-wide neural and vascular networks at the mesoscopic level. Among them, micro-optical sectioning tomography (MOST) is attracting increasing attention, as a variety of technological variations and solutions tailored toward different biological applications have been optimized.

Maternal Polystyrene Microplastic Exposure during Gestation and Lactation Altered Metabolic Homeostasis in the Dams and Their F1 and F2 Offspring.

Microplastics (MPs) are considered as a pollutant of marine environments and have become a global environmental problem in recent years. A number of studies have demonstrated that MPs can enter the human food chain, and MPs have even been detected in human stools. Therefore, there is increasing concern about the potential risks of MPs to human and animal health.

Liquid-Phase Epitaxial Growth of Azapyrene-Based Chiral Metal-Organic Framework Thin Films for Circularly Polarized Luminescence.

Development of chiral metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) for circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) is a challenging but important task. In this work, we report a first example of azapyrene-based chiral MOF thin films [ZnCamDAP] grown on functionalized substrates (named SURchirMOF-4) for CPL property. By using a liquid-phase epitaxial layer-by-layer method, the resulted SURchirMOF-4 was constructed from chiral camphoric acid and 2,7-diazapyrene ligand, which has high orientation and homogeneity.

Sulfamethoxazole degradation by an Fe(ii)-activated persulfate process: insight into the reactive sites, product identification and degradation pathways.

In this study, the effects of key parameters on the degradation kinetics of sulfamethoxazole (SMX) in an Fe(ii)-activated persulfate (PS) process were elucidated. SMX could be completely degraded within 240 min at an initial pH of 3.3.

H-score of 11β-hydroxylase and aldosterone synthase in the histopathological diagnosis of adrenocortical tumors.

Purpose: To assess the diagnostic performance of the H-score of 11β-hydroxylase (CYP11B1) and aldosterone synthase (CYP11B2) in the histopathological diagnosis of adrenocortical tumors (ACT).

Methods: We retrospectively evaluated 199 cases of ACT, of which 85 were diagnosed as aldosterone-producing adenoma (APA), 66 as cortisol-producing adenoma (CPA), 9 as aldosterone-cortisol co-secreting adenoma, 30 as nonhyperfunctioning adenoma, and 9 as adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC). Immunohistochemical staining was performed using anti-CYP11B1 and anti-CYP11B2 monoclonal antibodies.

Triterpenoids from : A Class of Sensitizers of FLC-Resistant to Fluconazole.

Fungal drug resistance is a major health threat, and reports of clinical resistance worldwide are becoming increasingly common. In a research program to discover new molecules to help overcome this problem, 14 new lanostane-type triterpenoids, gibbosicolids A-G (-) and gibbosic acids I-O (-), were isolated from the fruiting bodies of , along with seven known triterpenoid derivatives. These compounds featured high levels of oxidation, epimerization, and γ-lactonization.

The complete chloroplast genome sequence of .

is an important economical tree in Africa. In this study, the complete chloroplast genome (cpDNA) sequence of was determined from Illumina HiSeq pair-end sequencing data. The cpDNA is 159,725 bp in length, contains a large single copy region (LSC) of 88,720 bp and a small single copy region (SSC) of 19,338 bp, which were separated by a pair of inverted repeat (IR) regions of 25,981 bp.

Targeting mTOR for cancer therapy.

Mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a protein kinase regulating cell growth, survival, metabolism, and immunity. mTOR is usually assembled into several complexes such as mTOR complex 1/2 (mTORC1/2). In cooperation with raptor, rictor, LST8, and mSin1, key components in mTORC1 or mTORC2, mTOR catalyzes the phosphorylation of multiple targets such as ribosomal protein S6 kinase β-1 (S6K1), eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E binding protein 1 (4E-BP1), Akt, protein kinase C (PKC), and type-I insulin-like growth factor receptor (IGF-IR), thereby regulating protein synthesis, nutrients metabolism, growth factor signaling, cell growth, and migration.

Risk factors for endemic Acinetobacter Baumannii colonization: A case-case study.

Background: Acinetobacter baumannii causes increasingly resistant nosocomial infections worldwide. Although some patients are already colonized with A baumannii on hospital admission, others become colonized with endemic strains that are more likely to be antibiotic-resistant. Colonization increases risk of infection and transmission to others.

Corrigendum: Anti-breast Cancer Enhancement of a Polysaccharide From Spore of With Paclitaxel: Suppression on Tumor Metabolism With Gut Microbiota Reshaping.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.

Circulating TNF receptors 1 and 2 predict progression of diabetic kidney disease: A meta-analysis.

Background: We conducted a meta-analysis to investigate the association of circulating tumor necrosis factor-1 (TNFR-1) and TNFR-2 with diabetic kidney disease (DKD) progression, which is the first-ever quantitative analysis of these associations thus far. Whether TNFRs were better than albumin-creatinine ratio (ACR) in predicting DKD progression was also explored.

Methods: A systematic search of the PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library databases up to 1 February 2018, was conducted.

Free 25-Vitamin D Is Correlated with Cardiovascular Events in Prevalent Hemodialysis Patients but Not with Markers of Renal Mineral Bone Disease.

Free vitamin D is the biologically active form of vitamin D. Vitamin D deficiency is associated with cardiovascular disease, the most common cause of mortality in hemodialysis patients. The goal of our current study was to investigate the relation between blood concentrations of free 25-hydroxyvitamin D with cardiovascular events in end-stage chronic kidney disease patients on hemodialysis, because this is unknown so far.

Advantages of using reduced-volume intensity modulated radiation therapy for the treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a retrospective paired study.

Background: The definition of clinical target volume (CTV) in intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) has not been addressed. We performed this study to assess the feasibility and efficacy of using IMRT with reduced-volume CTV for the treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 293 non-metastatic NPC patients treated with IMRT from 2002 to 2013.

Radiomic features from computed tomography to differentiate invasive pulmonary adenocarcinomas from non-invasive pulmonary adenocarcinomas appearing as part-solid ground-glass nodules.

Objective: We aim to investigate radiomic imaging features extracted in computed tomography (CT) images to differentiate invasive pulmonary adenocarcinomas (IPAs) from non-IPAs appearing as part-solid ground-glass nodules (GGNs), and to incorporate significant radiomic features with other clinically-assessed features to develop a diagnostic nomogram model for IPAs.

Methods: This retrospective study was performed, with Institutional Review Board approval, on 88 patients with a total of 100 part-solid nodules (56 IPAs and 44 non-IPAs) that were surgically confirmed between February 2014 and November 2016 in the First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University. Quantitative radiomic features were computed automatically on 3D nodule volume segmented from arterial-phase contrast-enhanced CT images.

Efficacy Assessment of Ultrasound Guided Lauromacrogol Injection for Ablation of Benign Cystic and Predominantly Cystic Thyroid Nodules.

Background: To assess the efficacy and safeness of ultrasound guided lauromacrogol injection for ablation of benign cystic and predominantly cystic thyroid nodules.

Methods: From July 2016 to July 2018, 102 patients with 107 nodules were treated with ultrasound guided lauromacrogol injections for ablation and 43 nodules completed at least 12 months follow-up. Nodules sonographic characteristics, volume changes before and after USG-LIA, and complications were evaluated.