Thermally-Responsive Loading and Release of Elastin-Like Polypeptides from Contact Lenses.

Contact lenses are widely prescribed for vision correction, and as such they are an attractive platform for drug delivery to the anterior segment of the eye. This manuscript explores a novel strategy to drive the reversible adsorption of peptide-based therapeutics using commercially available contact lenses. To accomplish this, thermo-sensitive elastin-like polypeptides (ELPs) alone or tagged with a candidate ocular therapeutic were characterized.

Tenofovir alafenamide for hepatitis B virus infection including switching therapy from tenofovir disoproxil fumarate.

Background And Aim: Tenofovir alafenamide (TAF) is a new prodrug of tenofovir, enabling treatment of patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection at a lower dose than tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF), via more efficient delivery of tenofovir to the hepatocytes. We compared the efficacy and safety of TDF and TAF and investigated switching from TDF to TAF therapy.

Methods: Consent for TDF and TAF therapy was obtained from 117 and 67 patients from August 2014 to January 2018.

Risk assessment of hepatocellular carcinoma development by magnetic resonance elastography in chronic hepatitis C patients who achieved sustained virological responses by direct-acting antivirals.

Prediction of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development after sustained virological response (SVR) is clinically important, and the usefulness of noninvasive markers for prediction HCC have been reported. The aim of this study was to compare the prediction accuracy for HCC development by noninvasive markers. A total of 346 patients with chronic hepatitis C without history of HCC who achieved SVR through direct-acting antivirals were included.

Water-Soluble Brown Carbon in Atmospheric Aerosols from Godavari (Nepal), a Regional Representative of South Asia.

Brown carbon (BrC) has recently emerged as an important light-absorbing aerosol. This study provides interannual and seasonal variations in light absorption properties, chemical composition, and sources of water-soluble BrC (WS-BrC) based on PM samples collected in Godavari, Nepal, from April 2012 to May 2014. The mass absorption efficiency of WS-BrC at 365 nm (MAE) shows a clear seasonal variability, with the highest MAE of 1.

Effect of pH on physicochemical properties of oil bodies from different oil crops.

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of pH on the physicochemical properties of soybean oil bodies (SBOBs), peanut oil bodies (PNOBs) and sunflower oil bodies (SFOBs). The mean particle diameter (D) of oil bodies (OBs) changed to a stationary trend with increased pH. The surface hydrophobicity (H) of SBOBs, PNOBs and SFOBs significantly decreased with increasing pH 2-12.

Gene mutations in a Han Chinese Alzheimer's disease cohort.

Objective: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia characterized by memory loss at disease onset. The gene mutations in the amyloid precursor protein (APP), presenilin 1 (PSEN1), and presenilin 2 (PSEN2) are the frequent causes of AD. However, the clinical and genetic features of AD overlap with other neurodegenerative diseases.

Prediction of Hepatocellular Carcinoma After Sustained Virological Responses Using Magnetic Resonance Elastography.

Direct acting antivirals (DAAs) have made it possible for most patients to achieve sustained virologic responses (SVR). However, some patients developed hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) even after the eradication of hepatitis C virus; therefore, it is clinically important to identify patients with a high risk of HCC development after SVR.

Non-invasive liver fibrosis assessment correlates with collagen and elastic fiber quantity in patients with hepatitis C virus infection.

Aim: Elastic fiber deposition is a cause of irreversibility of liver fibrosis. However, to date, its relevance to clinical features has not yet been clarified. This study aimed to clarify the correlation between non-invasive markers of fibrosis and fiber quantity, including elastic fiber, obtained from computational analysis.

The role of insulin-like growth factor 1 in ALS cell and mouse models: A mitochondrial protector.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a common neurodegenerative disorder, but little is known about the exact causes and pathophysiology of this disease. In transgenic mouse models of ALS, mitochondrial abnormalities develop during the disease and might contribute to the progression of ALS. Gene therapy was recently shown to induce beneficial effects.

Real-World Study of the Incidence, Risk Factors, and Prognostic Factors Associated with Bone Metastases in Women with Uterine Cervical Cancer Using Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Data Analysis.

BACKGROUND The aims of this study were to investigate the incidence and risk factors for the development of bone metastases and prognosis in women with cancer of the uterine cervix using database analysis. MATERIAL AND METHODS The National Cancer Institute (NCI) Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database was analyzed for the incidence and survival rates of women diagnosed with uterine cervical cancer in the United States between 2010-2015. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified risk factors for bone metastases.

Expression of MMIF, HIF-1α and VEGF in Serum and Endometrial Tissues of Patients with Endometriosis.

The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MMIF), hypoxia-inducible factor-1 a (HIF-1α) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the serum and endometrial tissues of patients with endometriosis (EM) and the clinical significance. Eighty EM patients [American Reproductive Association stage I (n=20), stage II (n=22), stage III (n=21) and stage IV (n=17)] were enrolled and divided into mild (10-14 points, n=28), moderate (16-24 points, n=27) and severe (26-30 points, n=25) dysmenorrhea groups. The control group included 40 healthy women of childbearing age who underwent routine healthcare examinations in the enrolment period.

Wisteria floribunda agglutinin-positive Mac-2 binding protein predicts early occurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma after sustained virologic response by direct-acting antivirals for hepatitis C virus.

Aim: The aim of this study is to clarify the value of serum Wisteria floribunda agglutinin-positive Mac-2 binding protein (WFA -M2BP) for predicting hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in chronic hepatitis C patients who achieved sustained virologic response (SVR) by therapy with interferon-free, direct-acting antivirals (DAAs).

Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study that included 567 patients who underwent antiviral therapy with an interferon-free DAA regimen and achieved SVR. Serum WFA -M2BP was measured after SVR.

Preclinical evaluation of novel PI3K/mTOR dual inhibitor SN202 as potential anti-renal cancer agent.

The PI3K/mTOR pathway is one of the most frequently aberrantly activated pathways in human malignancies, such as renal cell carcinoma (RCC), and contributes to resistance to antitumor therapies. Thus, PI3K/mTOR is an attractive target for the development of antitumor agents. In this study, we evaluated the preclinical effects of a novel inhibitor SN202.

Intra-vitreal αB crystallin fused to elastin-like polypeptide provides neuroprotection in a mouse model of age-related macular degeneration.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of severe and irreversible central vision loss, and the primary site of AMD pathology is the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Geographic atrophy (GA) is an advanced form of AMD characterized by extensive RPE cell loss, subsequent degeneration of photoreceptors, and thinning of retina. This report describes the protective potential of a peptide derived from the αB crystallin protein using a sodium iodate (NaIO) induced mouse model of GA.

[Modeling evapotranspiration of greenhouse tomato under different water conditions based on the dual crop coefficient method].

An experiment was conducted to investigate soil evaporation (E), crop transpiration (T), evapotranspiration (ET) and the ratio of evaporation to evapotranspiration (E/ET) of drip-irrigated tomato, which was planted in a typical solar greenhouse in the North China, under different water conditions [irrigation amount was determined based on accumulated pan evaporation (E) of 20 cm pan evaporation, and two treatments were designed with full irrigation (0.9E) and deficit irrigation (0.5E)] at different growth stages in 2015 and 2016 at Xinxiang Comprehensive Experimental Station, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

A new colorimetric sensor for visible detection of Cu(II) based on photoreductive ability of quantum dots.

Quantum dots (QDs) have been widely used to develop analytical methods due to their unique fluorescent and photoelectrochemical characteristics. However, analytical strategies based on their catalytic property are rarely reported. Here, we demonstrate that the photoreductive ability of QDs can be utilized to develop a sensitive and selective colorimetric sensor for Cu(II).

Evolution of H9N2 avian influenza virus in embryonated chicken eggs with or without homologous vaccine antibodies.

Background: Vaccines constitute a unique selective pressure, different from natural selection, drives the evolution of influenza virus. In this study, A/Chicken/Shanghai/F/1998 (H9N2) was continually passaged in specific pathogen-free embryonated chicken eggs with or without selective pressures from antibodies induced by homologous maternal antibodies. Genetic mutations, antigenic drift, replication, and pathogenicity of the passaged virus were evaluated.

Systemic administration of scAAV9-IGF1 extends survival in SOD1 ALS mice via inhibiting p38 MAPK and the JNK-mediated apoptosis pathway.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is closely associated with a reduction of neurotrophic factors in the central nervous system (CNS). Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1)-encoding vectors delivered via intramuscular and intraparenchymal spinal cord injections have conferred therapeutic benefits in ALS model mice, although the development of a noninvasive delivery route is still needed. Intravenous administration of adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors has been used to induce expression of neurotrophic genes in the lumbar spinal cords of adult mice.

eNOS S-nitrosylation mediated OxLDL-induced endothelial dysfunction via increasing the interaction of eNOS with β‑catenin.

Protein S-nitrosylation plays an important role in the progression of cardiovascular diseases. eNOS can be S-nitrosylated in endothelial cells, and this modification reversibly attenuates enzyme activity. Under physiological conditions, eNOS directly interacts with β‑catenin.

Characterization and source identification of fine particulate matter in urban Beijing during the 2015 Spring Festival.

The Spring Festival (SF) is the most important holiday in China for family reunion and tourism. During the 2015 SF an intensive observation campaign of air quality was conducted to study the impact of the anthropogenic activities and the dynamic characteristics of the sources. During the study period, pollution episodes frequently occurred with 12days exceeding the Chinese Ambient Air Quality Standards for 24-h average PM (75μg/m), even 8days with exceeding 150μg/m.

Intrathecal Injection of scAAV9-hIGF1 Prolongs the Survival of ALS Model Mice by Inhibiting the NF-kB Pathway.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a chronic, fatal neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the progressive loss of upper and lower motor neurons. Currently, there is no effective drug for ALS. Recent studies in ALS model mice have shown that insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF1) may be a promising therapeutic drug.

[CADASIL with clinical manifestations of baldness, lumbago and Parkinson's symptoms].

Objective: To investigate a cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with the subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy (CADASIL) case with clinical manifestations of baldness, lumbago and Parkinson's symptoms.

Methods: Clinical and imaging data of the patient were analyzed. The patient and his family members were also subjected to genetic testing.

Rapid and green determination of 58 fragrance allergens in plush toys.

This paper presents a simple, rapid, and green method based on a static headspace gas chromatography-mass spectrometry for determining 58 fragrance allergens in plush toys. This study is the first to meet the requirement for simultaneously determining 66 fragrances, except for eight natural extracts restricted by the European Toy Safety Directive 2009/48/EC. A minimal amount of sample (20 mg) and acetone solvent (20 μL) were placed in a headspace vial.

Interactions of cinnamaldehyde and its metabolite cinnamic acid with human serum albumin and interference of other food additives.

Considering the adverse effect of food additives on humans, thorough research of their physiological effects at the molecular level is important. The interactions of cinnamaldehyde (CNMA), a food perfume, and its major metabolite cinnamic acid (CA) with human serum albumin (HSA) were examined by multiple-spectroscopies. NMR analysis revealed CNMA and CA both bound to HSA, and STD-NMR experiments established CNMA and CA primarily interacted with site I and site II of HSA, respectively.