An individualized immune prognostic signature in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Background: Immune-related characteristics can serve as reliable prognostic biomarkers in various cancers. Herein, we aimed to construct an individualized immune prognostic signature in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

Methods: This study retrospectively included 455 NPC samples and 39 normal healthy nasopharyngeal tissue specimens.

Icariin regulates RANKL-induced osteoclast differentiation via the ER/-Src/RANK signaling.

Osteoporosis (OP) is a common metabolic bone disease. Excessive osteoclastic activity significantly contributes to the development of OP. Icariin (ICA) is a flavonol glycoside derived from herbal plants and possesses curative effects on postmenopausal OP and bone fracture.

Intensity-modulated radiotherapy alone compared with intensity-modulated radiotherapy plus concurrent chemotherapy in intermediate-risk nasopharyngeal carcinoma : A prospective multicenter phase II trial.

Background: This study aimed to investigate the clinical benefit of adding concurrent chemotherapy to intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients with an intermediate risk (stage II and T3N0M0).

Methods: A multicenter phase II randomized trial was conducted in intermediate-risk NPC patients. Enrolled patients were previously untreated and aged ranged from 18 to 70 years without severe coexisting diseases.

Development and validation of an individualized angiogenesis and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes prognostic signature in nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

In recent years, targeted therapy and immunotherapy have become ideal choices for the treatment of advanced, metastatic, recurrent, and drug-resistant nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), but the lack of understanding of the relationship and mechanism between TILs and angiogenic factors hinders therapeutic development and optimization. In this study, the expression of angiogenesis-related markers (VEGF-A,VEGFR-2) and TILs (CD4T,CD8T) was studied by using immunohistochemistry (IHC). Then we constructed an immunohistochemical scoring model for the co-expression of angiogenesis-related markers and TILs (CO score)in the training (n = 124) and validated the accuracy and reliability of the scoring system in the validation cohorts (n = 114), respectively We established the CO score model and stratified patients into different risk level in the training cohorts according to CO score (cut-off value=28).

Review on the protective activity of osthole against the pathogenesis of osteoporosis.

Osteoporosis (OP), characterized by continuous bone loss and increased fracture risk, has posed a challenge to patients and society. Long-term administration of current pharmacological agents may cause severe side effects. Traditional medicines, acting as alternative agents, show promise in treating OP.

Protective effects of ginseng and ginsenosides in the development of osteoarthritis (Review).

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic inflammatory joint disease. Traditional chinese medicine provides a resource for drug screening for OA treatment. Ginseng and the associated bioactive compound, ginsenosides, may reduce inflammation, which is considered a risk factor for the development of OA.

The Development of Naringin for Use against Bone and Cartilage Disorders.

Bone and cartilage disorders are the leading causes of musculoskeletal disability. There is no absolute cure for all bone and cartilage disorders. The exploration of natural compounds for the potential therapeutic use against bone and cartilage disorders is proving promising.

Fine-Grained Lesion Classification Framework for Early Auxiliary Diagnosis.

The deep neural networks are envisaged for the early disease diagnosis from medical images. However, in the early stage of the disease, the medical images of patients and healthy people have only subtle visual differences. Distinguishing the medical images for early diagnosis belongs to the Fine-Grained Visual Classification (FGVC) task.

Proximity hybridization-regulated CRISPR/Cas12a-based dual signal amplification strategy for sensitive detection of circulating tumor DNA.

Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) is regarded as an ideal candidate biomarker for the non-invasive diagnosis of cancer. However, the lack of convenient and reliable detection methods for ctDNA restricts its clinical application. Herein, we developed a dual signal amplification strategy for sensitive detection of ctDNA based on hybridization chain reaction (HCR) and proximity hybridization-regulated CRISPR/Cas12a.

An inner filter effect-based fluorescent aptasensor for sensitive detection of kanamycin in complex samples using gold nanoparticles and graphene oxide quantum dots.

In this work, a label-free fluorescent aptasensor based on the inner filter effect (IFE) between gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and graphene oxide quantum dots (GOQDs) was developed for the detection of kanamycin in complex samples. AuNPs are capable of functioning as the fluorescence absorber of GOQDs because of the complementary overlap between their absorption spectra and the emission spectra of GOQDs. AuNPs can effectively quench the fluorescence of GOQDs the IFE and modulate it with their aggregation state.

DNAzyme-regulated CRISPR/Cas12a based fluorescent biosensor for sensitive detection of alkaline phosphatase activity and inhibition.

Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) is regarded as an emerging biomarker and therapeutic target for various diseases. Herein, we developed a DNAzyme-regulated CRISPR/Cas12a cascade signal amplification strategy for sensitive and selective detection of ALP activity and inhibition. In this assay, the substrate strand of Cu-specific DNAzyme was designed as the DNA activator for Cas12a.

Target-induced activation of DNAzyme for highly sensitive colorimetric detection of bleomycin DNA scission.

In this work, a label-free and sensitive colorimetric sensing strategy for the detection of bleomycin (BLM) was developed on the basis of BLM-mediated activation of G-quadruplex DNAzyme DNA strand scission. A G-quadruplex based hairpin probe (G4HP) containing the scission site (5'-GT-3') of BLM at the loop region and guanine (G)-rich sequences at its 5'-end was employed in this protocol. In the presence of BLM, it may cleave the 5'-GT-3' site of the hairpin probe with Fe(ii) as a cofactor, releasing the G-tetrads DNA fragment, which may further bind hemin to form a catalytic G-quadruplex-hemin DNAzyme.

Enhanced in vitro cytotoxicity and antitumor activity in vivo of iridium(III) complexes liposomes targeting endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria.

In this paper, two new iridium(III) complexes [Ir(ppy)(CBIP)](PF) (ppy = 2-phenylpyridine, CBIP = 2-(4'-chloro-(1,1'-biphenyl))-1H-imidazo[4,5-f][1,10]phenanthroline) (Ir1) and [Ir(piq)(CBIP)](PF) (piq = 1-phenylisoquinoline) (Ir2) were synthesized and characterized. The anticancer activity of the complexes against cancer A549, HepG2, SGC-7901, BEL-7402, HeLa and LO2 cells was evaluated by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) method. Unexpectedly, the complexes exhibit no or low cytotoxic activity toward the selected cancer cells.

Iridium(III) complexes entrapped in liposomes trigger mitochondria-mediated apoptosis and GSDME-mediated pyroptosis.

In this report, a new ligand TFBIP (TFBIP = 2-(4'-trifluoromethyl)-[1,1'-biphenyl]-4-yl)-1H-imidazo[4,5-f][1,10]phenanthroline) and its three iridium (III) complexes [Ir(ppy)(TFBIP)](PF) (Ir1, ppy = 2-phenylpyridine), [Ir(bzq)(TFBIP)](PF) (Ir2, bzq = benzo[h]quinolone) and [Ir(piq)(TFBIP)](PF) (Ir3, piq = 1-phenylisoquinoline) were synthesized and characterized. The cytotoxicity in vitro of the complexes toward several cancer cells was evaluated by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazole-2-yl)-2,5-biphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) methods. The complexes show no cytotoxicity (IC > 100 μM) against these cancer cells.

Smartphone-Assisted Colorimetric Detection of Glutathione and Glutathione Reductase Activity in Human Serum and Mouse Liver Using Hemin/G-Quadruplex DNAzyme.

Abnormal levels of reduced glutathione (GSH) and glutathione reductase (GR) are usually related to a variety of diseases, so it is of great significance to determine the GSH concentration and GR activity. We herein develop a smartphone-assisted colorimetric biosensor for the detection of GSH and GR activity in human serum and mouse liver using hemin/G-quadruplex DNAzyme. Firstly, an obvious color change from colorless to green can be observed, owing to the high peroxidase-like activity of hemin/G-quadruplex DNAzyme toward 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiozoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS).

Prediction of Sepsis in COVID-19 Using Laboratory Indicators.

Background: The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a global public health concern. Many inpatients with COVID-19 have shown clinical symptoms related to sepsis, which will aggravate the deterioration of patients' condition. We aim to diagnose Viral Sepsis Caused by SARS-CoV-2 by analyzing laboratory test data of patients with COVID-19 and establish an early predictive model for sepsis risk among patients with COVID-19.

Autologous tumor cell-derived microparticle-based targeted chemotherapy in lung cancer patients with malignant pleural effusion.

Cell membrane-derived microparticles (MPs), the critical mediators of intercellular communication, have gained much interest for use as natural drug delivery systems. Here, we examined the therapeutic potential of tumor cell-derived MPs (TMPs) in the context of malignant pleural effusion (MPE). TMPs packaging the chemotherapeutic drug methotrexate (TMPs-MTX) markedly restricted MPE growth and provided a survival benefit in MPE models induced by murine Lewis lung carcinoma and colon adenocarcinoma cells.