Publications by authors named "X-J Li"

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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  • Early neurological deterioration (END) is linked to poor outcomes in acute ischemic stroke (AIS), and the study investigates how the drug evolocumab can help prevent this condition by lowering LDL cholesterol levels.
  • The research was a clinical trial with AIS patients divided into two groups: one receiving evolocumab combined with atorvastatin and the other receiving atorvastatin alone, assessing outcomes like END rates and inflammatory markers over 7 days.
  • Results showed that the combination therapy group had significantly lower rates of END (13.2% vs. 24.3%) and a much higher LDL cholesterol target achievement rate (74.3% vs. 14.7%), indicating the effectiveness of evolocumab in this context.
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Neuroimaging is a cornerstone in the diagnosis and treatment decision-making for brain acute ischemic stroke. A rapid and accurate diagnosis is the key, specifically for time-critical reperfusion therapies. Successful reperfusion of salvageable penumbra can reduce the extent of ischemic stroke and thus improve clinical outcomes, whereas reperfusion of irreversibly affected brain tissue is thought to be futile and may result in harm due to the risk of hemorrhagic transformation.

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Background: Skeletal class III malocclusion is among the most common dental and maxillofacial malformations. Three-dimensional (3D) printing technology has become widely applied in orthopaedics. The data source for 3D printing of maxillofacial bones is computed tomography (CT).

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Background: Liver hemangiomas (HGs) are characterized by cavernous venous spaces delineated by a lining of vascular endothelial cells and interspersed with connective tissue septa. Typically, a liver HG has higher apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and T2 values than those of hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) and liver metastases, and lower ADC and T2 values than those of liver simple cysts. However, a portion of HGs shows ADC and T2 overlapping with those of HCC, liver metastasis, and simple cyst.

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Background: Type A aortic dissection (TAAD) is a life-threatening condition characterized by complex pathophysiology, in which macrophages play a critical but not yet fully understood role. This study focused on the role of endothelial cells with elevated expression of ACKR1 (atypical chemokine receptor 1) and their interaction with proinflammatory macrophages in TAAD development.

Methods: Single-cell transcriptomic analysis of human aortic tissues was used to identify cellular heterogeneity in TAAD.

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Background: Lack of a dedicated thrombectomy device for cerebral venous thrombosis hinders the recanalization ability of endovascular treatment (EVT). Novel NiTi-braided stent retriever (Venous-TD) is a dedicated venous sinus thrombectomy device. This study aims to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of Venous-TD.

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Rationale And Objectives: The escalating incidence of placental accreta spectrum (PAS), a pregnancy complication, underscores the need for accurate prenatal diagnosis to guide optimal management strategies. This study aims to develop, validate, and compare various prenatal PAS prediction models integrating clinical data, MRI signs, and radiomics signatures.

Materials And Methods: A cohort comprising 111 patients (72 with PAS and 39 without, denoted as N-PAS) served as the training set, while another 47 patients (33 PAS and 14 N-PAS) constituted the validation set.

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  • Cadonilimab combined with FLOT chemotherapy shows potential as a neoadjuvant treatment for locally advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction (G/GEJ) adenocarcinoma, based on a multicenter trial in China.
  • The trial involved treatment-naive patients, achieving a 100% R0 resection rate, a 21.1% pathological complete response rate, and a 44.7% major pathological response rate, indicating significant tumor reduction.
  • The treatment had manageable side effects, with 31.6% of patients experiencing grade 3 adverse events, suggesting further research is warranted to explore its efficacy and safety.
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Rationale And Objectives: Non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) is highly recurrent, with each recurrence potentially progressing to muscle-invasive cancer, affecting patient prognosis. Intratumoral heterogeneity plays a crucial role in NMIBC recurrence. This study investigated a novel habitat-based radiomic analysis for stratifying NMIBC recurrence risk.

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Rationale And Objectives: Breast cancer screening is critical for reducing mortality rates. YOLOv9, a new real-time object-detection model, is ideal for cancer screening. A customized YOLOv9 model with enhancements for detecting breast cancer on the basis of species and morphological diversity has potential clinical significance.

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Rationale And Objectives: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have revolutionized the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, immune-related adverse events still occur, of which checkpoint inhibitor pneumonitis (CIP) is the most common. We aimed to construct and validate a contrast-enhanced computed tomography-based radiomic nomogram to predict the probability of CIP before ICIs treatment in NSCLC.

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Background: Atherosclerosis is the most common cause of cardiovascular diseases. Clinical studies indicate that loss-of-function ASGR1 (asialoglycoprotein receptor 1) is significantly associated with lower plasma cholesterol levels and reduces cardiovascular disease risk. However, the effect of ASGR1 on atherosclerosis remains incompletely understood; whether inhibition of ASGR1 causes liver injury remains controversial.

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Protoberberine alkaloids and benzophenanthridine alkaloids (BZDAs) are subgroups of benzylisoquinoline alkaloids (BIAs), which represent a diverse class of plant-specialized natural metabolites with many pharmacological properties. Microbial biosynthesis has been allowed for accessibility and scalable production of high-value BIAs. Here, we engineer Saccharomyces cerevisiae to de novo produce a series of protoberberines and BZDAs, including palmatine, berberine, chelerythrine, sanguinarine and chelirubine.

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  • This study investigates spine degeneration differences among older populations in Hong Kong (HK) Chinese, Thais, and Indonesians, focusing on radiographic features.
  • It includes 195 Thai women, 202 Thai men, 227 Indonesian women, and 174 Indonesian men, all age-matched with HK Chinese participants, to assess various spine conditions through radiographs.
  • The findings reveal that older Chinese exhibit higher rates of spine degeneration issues compared to Thais and Indonesians, with Indonesians showing the least prevalence, potentially linked to climate factors.
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  • Renal denervation (RDN) was tested in a sham-controlled trial in China to see if it can effectively lower blood pressure (BP) in hypertensive patients on medication.
  • The study involved 217 participants, showing that those who underwent RDN experienced a significantly greater reduction in 24-hour ambulatory systolic BP (by -13.0 mm Hg) compared to the placebo group (by -3.0 mm Hg).
  • Overall, RDN was found to be safe, as only one minor complication occurred, and it effectively reduced both ambulatory and office BP at the 6-month mark compared to the sham procedure.
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Type I CRISPR-Cas systems are widespread and have exhibited high versatility and efficiency in genome editing and gene regulation in prokaryotes. However, due to the multi-subunit composition and large size, their application in eukaryotes has not been thoroughly investigated. Here, we demonstrate that the type I-F2 Cascade, the most compact among type I systems, with a total gene size smaller than that of SpCas9, can be developed for transcriptional activation in human cells.

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  • Prostate stem cell antigen (PSCA) is important in all stages of prostate cancer and is a potential marker for other cancers like pancreatic and renal cell carcinoma.
  • Researchers developed a fully human PSCA antibody, F12, that specifically targets PSCA and has shown the ability to internalize into cancer cells.
  • The antibody-drug conjugate F12-MMAE demonstrated effective and specific treatment in a mouse model of prostate cancer, highlighting its potential for further research in various solid tumors.
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Ionizable lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) are seeing widespread use in mRNA delivery, notably in SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccines. However, the expansion of mRNA therapies beyond COVID-19 is impeded by the absence of LNPs tailored for diverse cell types. In this study, we present the AI-Guided Ionizable Lipid Engineering (AGILE) platform, a synergistic combination of deep learning and combinatorial chemistry.

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Using renewable electricity to convert CO into CO offers a sustainable route to produce a versatile intermediate to synthesize various chemicals and fuels. For economic CO-to-CO conversion at scale, however, there exists a trade-off between selectivity and activity, necessitating the delicate design of efficient catalysts to hit the sweet spot. We demonstrate here that copper co-alloyed with isolated antimony and palladium atoms can efficiently activate and convert CO molecules into CO.

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Background: Aging is one of the most potent risk determinants for the onset of atrial fibrillation (AF). Sirts (sirtuins) have been implicated in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease, and their expression declines with aging. However, whether Sirts involved in age-related AF and its underlying mechanisms remain unknown.

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Despite the potential of oral immunotherapy against food allergy, adverse reactions and loss of desensitization hinder its clinical uptake. Dysbiosis of the gut microbiota is implicated in the increasing prevalence of food allergy, which will need to be regulated to enable for an effective oral immunotherapy against food allergy. Here we report an inulin gel formulated with an allergen that normalizes the dysregulated ileal microbiota and metabolites in allergic mice, establishes allergen-specific oral tolerance and achieves robust oral immunotherapy efficacy with sustained unresponsiveness in food allergy models.

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  • The study investigates the role of imbalanced gut microbiota in neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) and explores the therapeutic potential of GV-971, a drug initially used for Alzheimer's disease, in treating NMOSD.
  • Using an experimental mouse model, researchers injected NMO-IgG and tested GV-971's effects on disease incidence, symptoms, and survival, with positive results compared to a control drug.
  • Results showed that GV-971 significantly reduced NMOSD symptoms and neuroinflammation, improved gut microbiota balance, and lessened peripheral inflammation, suggesting it could be a promising treatment for NMOSD.
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Background: The mitochondrial unfolded protein response (UPR) is an evolutionarily conserved mitochondrial response that is critical for maintaining mitochondrial and energetic homeostasis under cellular stress after tissue injury and disease. Here, we ask whether UPR may be a potential therapeutic target for ischemic stroke.

Methods: We performed the middle cerebral artery occlusion and oxygen-glucose deprivation models to mimic ischemic stroke in vivo and in vitro, respectively.

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