MR-VWI concentric ring sign: a potential imaging feature of internal carotid artery pseudo occlusion and predictive value for successful recanalization.

Background: Predicting the success of endovascular recanalization in non-acute internal carotid artery occlusion (NICAO) remains a challenge.

Objective: To examine the hypothesis that the concentric ring sign observed on high-resolution magnetic resonance vessel wall imaging (MR-VWI) could serve as a potential imaging biomarker to improve the accuracy of predicting recanalization success and guide treatment decisions.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on patients with NICAO who underwent endovascular treatment at our institution between January 2020 and December 2023.

Comparative Analysis of Hearing Loss Induced by Cisplatin Versus Carboplatin in Locally Advanced Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma: Early to Mid-Term Findings.

Introduction: To investigate the clinical course of ototoxicity induced by induction chemotherapy followed by concurrent chemoradiotherapy (iCRT), and to determine whether replacing cisplatin with carboplatin in iCRT can reduce hearing damage in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Methods: This retrospective study aimed to evaluate hearing loss in patients with locally advanced NPC treated with carboplatin or cisplatin-based iCRT. Bone conduction hearing thresholds were measured before treatment and at 1 week, 3-6 months and 12-18 months following treatment.

Chromosome-level genome assembly of the smallscale yellowfin (Plagiognathops microlepis).

The small-scale yellowfin (Plagiognathops microlepis) is a highly valued species in East Asian aquaculture due to its adaptability and high yield. However, the lack of genomic data has impeded genetic research and breeding efforts. In this study, we utilize PacBio Hifi long-read sequencing and Hi-C technologies to construct a highly detailed genome of P.

Methylobacterium flocculans sp. nov., a Floc-Forming Bacterium Isolated from Aquaculture Ponds.

Strain FF17, a Gram-negative, obligate aerobic, motile, pink-pigmented, and methylotrophic bacterium, was selected for a polyphasic taxonomic investigation due to its capacity for aggregation, or floc formation. The predominant respiratory quinone observed was Q-10, accounting for 83.36% of the total, while the major fatty acids were summed feature 8 (18:1 w6c and/or 18:1 w7c).

Coupling Relationships between the Brain and the Central Pattern Generator Based on a Fractional-Order Extended Hindmarsh-Rose Model.

Background: The states of the central nervous system (CNS) can be classified into subcritical, critical, and supercritical states that endow the system with information capacity, transmission capabilities, and dynamic range. A further investigation of the relationship between the CNS and the central pattern generators (CPG) is warranted to provide insight into the mechanisms that govern the locomotion system.

Methods: In this study, we established a fractional-order CPG model based on an extended Hindmarsh-Rose model with time delay.

Variations and Interseasonal Changes in the Gut Microbial Communities of Seven Wild Fish Species in a Natural Lake with Limited Water Exchange during the Closed Fishing Season.

The gut microbiota of fish is crucial for their growth, development, nutrient uptake, physiological balance, and disease resistance. Yet our knowledge of these microbial communities in wild fish populations in their natural ecosystems is insufficient. This study systematically examined the gut microbial communities of seven wild fish species in Chaohu Lake, a fishing-restricted area with minimal water turnover, across four seasons.

Nomogram incorporating Epstein-Barr virus DNA and a novel immune-nutritional marker for survival prediction in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background: Since Immune response, nutritional status and Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) DNA status have been confirmed to be relevant to the prognosis of patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), we believe that the combination of these factors is of great value for improving the predictive ability. LA (lymphocytes × albumin), a novel indicator, had not been studied yet in NPC. We combined it with EBV DNA and used nomograms to increase the accuracy of prognosis.

Ambient plasma treatment of pectin in aqueous solution to produce a polymer used in packaging.

Water resistance, mechanical behavior and coloration of pectin needs to be tuned for packing utilization. Plasma was used for the treatment of natural products, but there is no research on its effect on the biomass in the presence of ammonia. Though the reaction of pectin (PE) and ammonia was known to impart the ammonolysis and de-esterification, the plasma treatment on PE solution containing ammonia was explored to exemplify the amination and polymerization of the carbohydrate at the ambient condition.

Impact of sex on treatment-related adverse effects and prognosis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background: In nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC), women have a lower incidence and mortality rate than men. Whether sex influences the prognosis of NPC patients remains debatable. We retrospectively examined the influence of sex on treatment-related side effects and prognosis in NPC.

Nacre-Inspired MXene Nanocomposite-based Strain Sensor with Ultrahigh Sensitivity in a Small Strain Range for Parkinson's Disease Diagnosis.

Nowadays, chronic diseases are the primary threat to public health and are getting younger. By taking the advantages of continuousness, convenience, and real-time response, wearable strain sensors have been given great attention to diagnose chronic diseases via analyzing the patient's health state. However, most physiological signals, such as limb tremor of Parkinson's disease, microexpression, and slight joint movement, are tiny and difficult to be detected.

A new method for multiancestry polygenic prediction improves performance across diverse populations.

Polygenic risk scores (PRSs) increasingly predict complex traits; however, suboptimal performance in non-European populations raise concerns about clinical applications and health inequities. We developed CT-SLEB, a powerful and scalable method to calculate PRSs, using ancestry-specific genome-wide association study summary statistics from multiancestry training samples, integrating clumping and thresholding, empirical Bayes and superlearning. We evaluated CT-SLEB and nine alternative methods with large-scale simulated genome-wide association studies (~19 million common variants) and datasets from 23andMe, Inc.

Systemic immune-inflammation index during treatment predicts prognosis and guides clinical treatment in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Purpose: Systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) has been demonstrated to be closely associated with the poor prognosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). However, the role of SII during treatment of NPC has not been reported. This study aimed to determine the prognostic value of SII during treatment for NPC patients.

Bacterial community composition and indicators of water quality in Caizi Lake, a typical Yangtze-connected freshwater lake.

Caizi Lake is an important lake connected to the Yangtze River in Anhui Province and a crucial connection for the Yangtze-to-Huaihe Water Diversion Project. There were marked differences in trophic status of the six sampling sites based on the physicochemical characterization. The Bacterial Eutrophic Index (BEI), used to quantify water quality, was well related to Carlson's trophic state index (TSI) (Spearman's ρ = 0.

Trace metals in sediment from Chaohu Lake in China: Bioavailability and probabilistic risk assessment.

Bioavailability-based probabilistic risk assessment is an effective approach for risk characterization of trace metals towards aquatic species. However, it has not been routinely applied in lake management due to limited research. In this study, Chaohu Lake (Anhui Province, China) was selected as a case study, and total and bioavailable concentrations of trace metals in surface sediment were investigated using chemical extraction and diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT).

Source tracing with cadmium isotope and risk assessment of heavy metals in sediment of an urban river, China.

The Nanfei River was one of dominant inflowing rivers of the fifth largest freshwater Chaohu Lake in China, which had been subjected to increasing nutrients and contaminants from population expansion, rapid industrialization and agricultural intensification in recent decades. In present study, surface sediment from the Nanfei River was collected to investigate the anthropogenic impact on distribution and bioavailability of heavy metals. Possible Cd sources along the river were constrained by using Cd isotope signatures and labile concentrations of heavy metals in sediment were determined through the DGT technique for risk assessment.

Cellulose-mediated floc formation by the activated sludge bacterium Shinella zoogloeoides ATCC 19623.

Background: Bacterial floc formation plays a central role in the activated sludge (AS) process. The formation of AS flocs has long been known to require exopolysaccharide biosynthesis. We had demonstrated that both expolysaccharides and PEP-CTERM (a short C-terminal domain includes a near-invariant motif Pro-Glu-Pro (PEP)) proteins were required for floc-forming in Zoogloea resiniphila MMB, a dominant AS bacterium.

Functionally similar species of ciliates have similar dynamics: A biennial survey study in a large eutrophic lake.

The spatial and temporal planktonic ciliate community structure of a large shallow eutrophic lake was described in detail based on a monthly monitoring campaign over 2 years using the quantitative protargol stain approach. We found that there was a large variety and low constancy of ciliate plankton and a clear advantage of several small species. Balanion planctonicum, Rimostrombidium brachykinetum, and Urotricha farcta contributed 19.

Microplastic contamination assessment in water and economic fishes in different trophic guilds from an urban water supply reservoir after flooding.

Rain and floods events are responsible for the transport of microplastics in freshwater ecosystems, yet to date, rare study has examined microplastics pollution in urban water supply reservoirs during such events. In this study, we investigated the concentrations and characteristics of microplastic in water and economic fish species with different feeding guilds in the Dafangying Reservoir, an important source of drinking water for Hefei city. Microplastic concentrations in water were relatively higher than that in natural lakes, indicating abundant microplastic contaminants input through overland runoff triggered by flooding.

Knockdown of USP9X reverses cisplatin resistance by decreasing β-catenin expression in nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells.

In various cancers, abnormal USP9X expression is involved in tumorigenesis, progression, apoptosis, and metastasis. However, the relationship between USP9X abnormal expression and cisplatin resistance in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) cells remains unclear. Using qRT-PCR and western blot, we detected the expressions of USP9X and β-catenin in NPC cells.

Biomonitoring of heavy metal contamination with roadside trees from metropolitan area of Hefei, China.

Air and dust borne heavy metals can be deposited and bioaccumulated by plants; therefore, biomonitoring employing plants is an effective tool for environmental impact assessment in urban environments. In this study, in addition to road dust, leaves and bark were collected from four common tree species at roadside and urban park sampling sites within the metropolitan area of Hefei, China. A range of heavy metals were analyzed by ICP-MS and AFS.

Blue-light emitting aminated pectin for detecting Cu ion.

This research studied the chemo-sensing of low-cost aminated pectin (PE) obtained by a facile calcination under ammonia gas at temperature no higher than 175 °C without excessive use of alkaline, acid or solvents. The ammonia gas was found to replace the hydroxyl and methoxyl group, enhancing the crystallinity and solubility of the resultant pectin than those calcined in air or in 5% H. Though the increase of light absorption could be attributed mainly to the dehydration during calcination which caused the formation of CC double bond or aromatic ring, the N incorporation could be important to the photoluminescence (PL) emission.

Effect of different types of anthropogenic pollution on the bacterial community of urban rivers.

The health of urban rivers is threatened by multiple anthropogenic stressors. Bacterial communities in rivers can quickly respond to different types of polluted environments, making them useful for water quality assessments and predictive insights. However, research on river bacterial communities has largely ignored interactions between these communities.

Long-term agricultural contamination shaped diversity response of sediment microbiome.

The pollution caused by agricultural production poses a threat to the ecological integrity of river ecosystems, altering the structure and function of river ecosystems. Differences in microbial community structure provide useful information about the impact of agricultural pollution on the biological integrity of ecosystems, but generally convey little information regarding ecosystem functions. In this study, using Illumina MiSeq sequencing technology based on the 16S rRNA gene, river sediment samples associated with four different types of agricultural pollution were comprehensively analyzed.

Bacterial community evolution along full-scale municipal wastewater treatment processes.

Sewage pollution is a major threat to public health because sewage is always accompanied by pathogens. Generally, wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) receive and treat sewage to control pathogenic risks and improve environmental health. This study investigated the changes in the bacterial community over the course of treatment by a WWTP.

Impact of long-term industrial contamination on the bacterial communities in urban river sediments.

Background: The contamination of the aquatic environment of urban rivers with industrial wastewater has affected the abiotic conditions and biological activities of the trophic levels of the ecosystem, particularly sediments. However, most current research about microorganism in urban aquatic environments has focused on indicator bacteria related to feces and organic pollution. Meanwhile, they ignored the interactions among microorganisms.