A clinical-radiomics nomogram based on dual-layer spectral detector CT to predict cancer stage in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Background: This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of radiomics signatures derived from polyenergetic images (PEIs) and virtual monoenergetic images (VMIs) obtained through dual-layer spectral detector CT (DLCT). Moreover, it sought to develop a clinical-radiomics nomogram based on DLCT for predicting cancer stage (early stage: stage I-II, advanced stage: stage III-IV) in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC).

Methods: A total of 173 patients histopathologically diagnosed with PDAC and who underwent contrast-enhanced DLCT were enrolled in this study.

Room Temperature Crystallized Phase-Pure α-FAPbI Perovskite with In-Situ Grain-Boundary Passivation.

Energy loss in perovskite grain boundaries (GBs) is a primary limitation toward high-efficiency perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Two critical strategies to address this issue are high-quality crystallization and passivation of GBs. However, the established methods are generally carried out discretely due to the complicated mechanisms of grain growth and defect formation.

Is disease activity associated with social support and psychological distress in Crohn's disease patients? Results of a cross-sectional study in a Chinese hospital population.

Objectives: This study aims to assess the relative of social support and psychological distress in disease activity among patients with Crohn's disease (CD) in China, and explore whether sex moderates the relationship between disease activity and social support and psychological distress in CD.

Design: Our study has a cross-sectional design.

Setting: This was a single-centre study, which was conducted in Wuhan, China.

Large-scale and stacked transfer of bilayers MoSdevices on a flexible polyimide substrate.

Two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), as flexible and stretchable materials, have attracted considerable attention in the field of novel flexible electronics due to their excellent mechanical, optical, and electronic properties. Among the various TMD materials, atomically thin MoShas become the most widely used material due to its advantageous properties, such as its adjustable bandgap, excellent performance, and ease of preparation. In this work, we demonstrated the practicality of a stacked wafer-scale two-layer MoSfilm obtained by transferring multiple single-layer films grown using chemical vapor deposition.

Clinical-radiomics-based treatment decision support for KIT Exon 11 deletion in gastrointestinal stromal tumors: a multi-institutional retrospective study.

Objective: gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) with KIT exon 11 deletions have more malignant clinical outcomes. A radiomics model was constructed for the preoperative prediction of KIT exon 11 deletion in GISTs.

Methods: Overall, 126 patients with GISTs who underwent preoperative enhanced CT were included.

Intermediate Phase Free α-FAPbI Perovskite via Green Solvent Assisted Perovskite Single Crystal Redissolution Strategy.

Perovskite single-crystal redissolution (PSCR) strategy is highly desired for efficient formamidinium lead triiodide (FAPbI ) perovskite photovoltaics with enhanced phase purity, improved film quality, low trap-state density, and good stability. However, the phase transition and crystallization dynamics of FAPbI remain unclear in the PSCR process compared to the conventional fabrication from the mixing of precursor materials. In this work, a green-solvent-assisted (GSA) method is employed to synthesize centimeter-sized α-FAPbI single crystals, which serve as the high-purity precursor to fabricate perovskite films.

Green Solvent Polishing Enables Highly Efficient Quasi-2D Perovskite Solar Cells.

Preferred crystalline orientation at the surface of quasi-2D organic-inorganic halide perovskites is crucial to promote vertical carrier transport and interface carrier extraction, which further contribute to device efficiency and stability in photovoltaic applications. However, loose unoriented and defective surfaces are inevitably formed in the crystallization process, especially with the introduction of bulky organic cations into the quasi-2D perovskites. Here, a facile and effective surface polishing method using a natural-friendly green solvent, 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol, is proposed to reconstruct the surface.

Twist-angle-dependent momentum-space direct and indirect interlayer excitons in WSe/WS heterostructure.

Interlayer excitons (ILEs) in the van der Waals (vdW) heterostructures of type-II band alignment transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) have attracted significant interest owing to their unique exciton properties and potential in quantum information applications. However, the new dimension that emerges with the stacking of structures with a twist angle leads to a more complex fine structure of ILEs, presenting both an opportunity and a challenge for the regulation of the interlayer excitons. In this study, we report the evolution of interlayer excitons with the twist angle in the WSe/WS heterostructure and identify the direct (indirect) interlayer excitons by combining photoluminescence (PL) and density functional theory (DFT) calculations.

Differential diagnosis of adrenal adenomas and metastases using spectral parameters in dual-layer detector spectral CT.

Objective: To assess the diagnostic value of spectral parameters in differentiating adrenal adenomas from metastases based on dual-layer detector spectral CT (DLSCT).

Materials And Methods: Patients with adenomas or metastases who underwent enhanced DLSCT of the adrenals were enrolled. The CT values of virtual non-contrast images (CT), iodine density (ID) values, and Z-effective (Z-eff) values, the normalized iodine density (NID) values, slopes of spectral HU curves (s-SHC), and iodine-to-CT ratios of the tumors were measured in each phase.

Revealing the origin of PL evolution of InSe flake induced by laser irradiation.

Two-dimensional InSe has been considered as a promising candidate for novel optoelectronic devices owing to large electron mobility and a near-infrared optical band gap. However, its widespread applications suffer from environmental instability. A lot of theoretical studies on the degradation mechanism of InSe have been reported whereas the experimental proofs are few.

The Effect of the Pre-Strain Process on the Strain Engineering of Two-Dimensional Materials and Their van der Waals Heterostructures.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials and their van der Waals stacked heterostructures (vdWH) are becoming the rising and glowing candidates in the emerging flexible nanoelectronics and optoelectronic industry. Strain engineering proves to be an efficient way to modulate the band structure of 2D materials and their vdWH, which will broaden understanding and practical applications of the material. Therefore, how to apply desired strain to 2D materials and their vdWH is of great importance to get the intrinsic understanding of 2D materials and their vdWH with strain modulation.

Application of Intravoxel Incoherent Motion in the Evaluation of Hepatocellular Carcinoma after Transarterial Chemoembolization.

(1) Background: To assess the efficacy of the quantitative parameters of intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) diffusion-weighted imaging for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) diagnosis after transarterial chemoembolization (TACE). (2) Methods: Fifty HCC patients after TACE were included and underwent MRI. All of the patients were scanned with the IVIM-DWI sequence and underwent TACE retreatment within 1 week.

Highly Efficient and Stable Self-Powered Mixed Tin-Lead Perovskite Photodetector Used in Remote Wearable Health Monitoring Technology.

Realization of remote wearable health monitoring (RWHM) technology for the flexible photodiodes is highly desirable in remote-sensing healthcare systems used in space stations, oceans, and forecasting warning, which demands high external quantum efficiency (EQE) and detectivity in NIR region. Traditional inorganic photodetectors (PDs) are mechanically rigid and expensive while the widely reported solution-processed mixed tin-lead (MSP) perovskite photodetectors (PPDs) exhibit a trade-off between EQE and detectivity in the NIR region. Herein, a novel functional passivating antioxidant (FPA) strategy has been introduced for the first time to simultaneously improve crystallization, restrain Sn oxidization, and reduce defects in MSP perovskite films by multiple interactions between thiophene-2-carbohydrazide (TAH) molecules and cations/anions in MSP perovskite.

Strain Release and Defect Passivation in Formamidinium-Dominated Perovskite via a Novel in-Plane Thermal Gradient Assisted Crystallization Strategy.

It is essential to release annealing induced strain during the crystallization process to realize efficient and stable perovskite solar cells (PSCs), which does not seem achievable using the conventional annealing process. Here we report a novel and facile thermal gradient assisted crystallization strategy by simply introducing a slant angle between the preheated hot plate and the substrate. A distinct crystallization sequence resulted along the in-plane direction pointing from the hot side to the cool side, which effectively reduced the crystallization rate, controlled the perovskite grain growth, and released the in-plane tensile strain.

The Effects of Radiotherapy on Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma in Patients with Liver Metastases.

Background: While radiotherapy has been studied in the treatment of locally advanced pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), few studies have analyzed the effects of radiotherapy on PDAC in patients with liver metastases. This study aimed to determine whether PDAC patients with liver metastases have improved survival after radiotherapy treatment.

Methods: The data of 8535 patients who were diagnosed with PDAC with liver metastases between 2010 and 2015 were extracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database.

Automated three-dimensional echocardiographic quantification for left ventricular volume and function in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

Background: Accurate, reproducible, noninvasive determination of left ventricular (LV) volumes and ejection fraction (EF) is important for clinical assessment, selection of therapy, and serial monitoring of patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Current clinical Two-dimensional echocardiography (2DE) may cause inaccurate measurements in patients with HCM because of their asymmetric ventricles and limitations of 2DE technology. Three-dimensional echocardiography (3DE) have demonstrated significantly greater accuracy.

The role of gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI features for predicting microvascular invasion in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

Objective: To evaluate the predictive value of gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI features (focused on Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System (LI-RADS) v2018 features and non-LI-RADS imaging features) for microvascular invasion (MVI) of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods: From October 2018 to December 2020, 134 patients who underwent gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI with a pathological diagnosis of HCC after hepatectomy were enrolled in this retrospective study. Two radiologists assessed the pre-hepatectomy LI-RADS v2018 imaging features and non-LI-RADS features to identify independent predictors of MVI of HCC with a logistic regression model.

Early Assessment of Response to Radiofrequency Ablation With CT Perfusion Imaging in Rabbit VX2 Liver Tumor Model.

Objectives: To discriminate viable tumors from benign periablational enhancement (BPE) in early stage after radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a major confounding problem. The goal of this study is to evaluate quantitative assessment and diagnostic value of CT perfusion between viable tumors and BPE after RFA in the rabbit liver VX2 tumor model, with pathological results as the standard.

Methods: Twenty-eight VX2 liver tumors were treated with RFA, on days 1, 3, 7, and 14, seven rabbits were randomly chosen for CT perfusion and performed pathology examinations immediately.

Development, validation, and clinical application of an FIA-MS/MS method for the quantification of lysophosphatidylcholines in dried blood spots.

Background: Lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) plays pivotal roles in several physiological processes and their disturbances are closely associated with various disorders. In this study, we described the development and validation of a reliable and simple flow injection analysis-tandem mass spectrometry (FIA-MS/MS)-based method using dried blood spots (DBS) for quantification of four individual LPC (C20:0, C22:0, C24:0, and C26:0).

Methods: Lysophosphatidylcholines were extracted from 3.

Quantitative dual-energy CT for evaluating hepatocellular carcinoma after transarterial chemoembolization.

We aimed to investigate the role of the quantitative parameters of dual-energy computed tomography (DECT) in evaluating patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treated by transarterial chemoembolization (TACE). We retrospectively identified 80 HCC patients (mean age, 56 years; 61 men) treated by TACE who received contrast-enhanced DECT and were retreated by TACE within 7 days between November 2018 and December 2019. Taking digital subtraction angiography (DSA) and CT images as reference standard, two readers measured and calculated the values of normalized iodine concentration at arterial phase (NICAP), normalized iodine concentration at portal venous phase (NICPP), iodine concentration difference (ICD), arterial iodine fraction (AIF) and slope of the spectral Hounsfield unit curve (λ) by placing matched regions of interests (ROIs) within the tumor active area (TAA), adjacent normal hepatic parenchyma (ANHP) and tumor necrotic area (TNA).

Relationship between pancreatic parenchyma loss and early postoperative hyperglycemia in patients with benign pancreatic diseases.

Objective: To evaluate the relationship between pancreatic parenchyma loss and early postoperative hyperglycemia in patients with benign pancreatic diseases.

Methods: A total of 171 patients with benign pancreatic tumors or chronic pancreatitis, whose preoperative fasting blood glucose (FBG) was normal and who underwent partial pancreatectomy were reviewed. The pancreatic volume was measured by CT imaging before and after the operation.

Development and validation of an LC-MS/MS method for quantifying nine antimicrobials in human serum and its application to study the exposure of Chinese pregnant women to antimicrobials.

Background: To study the prevalence of the exposure of pregnant women to antimicrobials, a sensitive and reliable liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method was developed and validated to determine nine antimicrobials, namely sulfadimidine, sulfapyridine, sulfadiazine, sulfathiazole, ofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, norfloxacin, tetracycline, and lincomycin, in human serum.

Methods: The sample preparation procedure included protein precipitation followed by a cleanup step with solid phase extraction (SPE). Separation was carried out using a CORTECS T3 column (100 × 2.

Benchmark Examination of Blood Amino Acids Patterns in Phenylketonuria Neonates and Young Children on Phenylalanine-Restricted Dietary Treatment.

Phenylalanine-restricted diets have been the basis of therapy for phenylketonuria; however, little is known how this treatment effects homeostasis of other amino acids. This study aimed to assess blood amino acid alterations in phenylketonuric neonates before and after treatment to identify any residual amino acid alterations with phenylalanine restriction in these treated children. Concentrations of 11 amino acids were measured using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry performed on dried blood spots.

Valley-polarized local excitons in WSe/WS vertical heterostructures.

Two-dimensional van der Waals heterostructures (vdWHs) are drawing growing interest in the investigation of their valley polarization properties of localized excitons. However, most of the reported vdWHs were made by micro-mechanical peeling, limiting their large-scale production and practical applications. Furthermore, the circular polarization characters of localized excitons in WSe/WS heterostructures remain elusive.