It has long been a decades-old dogma that image perception is mediated solely by rods and cones, while intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) are responsible only for non-image-forming vision, such as circadian photoentrainment and pupillary light reflexes. Surprisingly, we discovered that ipRGC activation enhances the orientation selectivity of layer 2/3 neurons in the primary visual cortex (V1) of mice by both increasing preferred-orientation responses and narrowing tuning bandwidth. Mechanistically, we found that the tuning properties of V1 excitatory and inhibitory neurons are differentially influenced by ipRGC activation, leading to a reshaping of the excitatory/inhibitory balance that enhances visual cortical orientation selectivity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMicrowave ablation (MWA) is a novel modality for thermal ablation (TA) to treat benign and malignant thyroid nodules, mostly papillary thyroid cancer (PTC). Compared to surgery, TA is less invasive and less painful, has faster recovery, better cosmetic outcomes, and fewer complications. TA techniques have been evolving over the past decade to be more energy efficient, precise, and produce long-lasting results.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: To assess the diagnostic performance and inter-observer agreement of a PREoperative sarcoma scoring based on ultrasound (PRESS-US) in differentiating uterine leiomyosarcoma (uLMS) from leiomyoma (LM).
Methods: We conducted a retrospective evaluation of patients who underwent surgery and received standardized ultrasound examinations due to the presence of uterine myoma-like masses. Histological diagnosis was used as the reference standard.
As the third essential trace element in the human body, copper plays a crucial role in various physiological processes, which lays the foundation for its broad applications in cancer treatments. The overview of copper, including pharmacokinetics, signaling pathways, and homeostasis dysregulation, is hereby discussed. Additionally, cuproptosis, as a newly proposed cell death mechanism associated with copper accumulation, is analyzed and further developed for efficient cancer treatment.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRadiol Cardiothorac Imaging
October 2024
Purpose To explore the role of cardiac MRI feature tracking (FT) and T1 mapping in predicting sustained ventricular arrhythmias (VA) in patients with arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) and to investigate their possible incremental value beyond ARVC risk score. Materials and Methods The retrospective study analyzed 91 patients with ARVC (median age, 36 years [IQR, 27-50 years]; 60 male, 31 female) who underwent cardiac MRI examinations between November 2010 and March 2022. The primary end point was the first occurrence of sustained VA after cardiac MRI to first VA, with censoring of patients who were alive without VA at last follow-up.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Aim: Recent studies have demonstrated the anti-allergic effects of probiotics in humans. However, their role in preventing and treating pediatric allergic rhinitis has not been thoroughly investigated. This study aimed to systematically review the efficacy and preventive effects of probiotics on pediatric allergic rhinitis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF2D sliding ferroelectric semiconductors have greatly expanded the ferroelectrics family with the flexibility of bandgap and material properties, which hold great promise for ultrathin device applications that combine ferroelectrics with optoelectronics. Besides the induced different resistance states for non-volatile memories, the switchable ferroelectric polarizations can also modulate the photogenerated carriers for potentially ultrafast optoelectronic devices. Here, it is demonstrated that the room temperature sliding ferroelectricity can be used for ultrafast switchable photovoltaic response in ε-InSe layers.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFClin Appl Thromb Hemost
August 2024
Background: ICU patients have a high incidence of VTE. The American College of Chest Physicians antithrombotic practice guidelines recommend assessing the risk of VTE in all ICU patients. Although several VTE risk assessment tools exist to evaluate the risk factors among hospitalized patients, there is no validated tool specifically for assessing the risk of VTE in ICU patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe enhancement of conventional liposome and lipid nanoparticle (LNP) methodologies in the formulation and deployment of messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines necessitates further refinement to augment both their effectiveness and biosafety profiles. Additionally, researching these innovative delivery carrier materials represents both a prominent focus and a significant challenge in the current scientific landscape. Here we designed new chiral self-assembling peptides as the delivery carrier for RNA vaccines to study the underlying mechanisms in the feline infectious peritonitis virus (FIPV) model system.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCamping has become a popular outdoor activity in China. However, the long and scorching summers in China's hot and humid regions pose challenges for campsites in maintaining thermal comfort. Therefore, we explored the impact of tree species and planting methods on the thermal comfort of urban campsites in hot and humid areas using the ENVI-met model to simulate the conditions of the study area.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: Intensive care unit (ICU)-acquired weakness often occurs in patients with invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV). Early active mobility may reduce ICU-acquired weakness, improve functional status, and reduce disability. The aim of this study was to investigate whether high-intensity early mobility improves post-ICU discharge functional status of IMV patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHuman bronchial epithelial cells in the airway system, as the primary barrier between humans and the surrounding environment, assume a crucial function in orchestrating the processes of airway inflammation. Target to develop a new three-dimensional (3D) inflammatory model to airway system, and here we report a strategy by using self-assembling D-form peptide to cover the process. By testing physicochemical properties and biocompatibility of Sciobio-Ⅲ, we confirmed that it can rapidly self-assembles under the trigger of ions to form a 3D nanonetwork-like scaffold, which supports 3D cell culture including the cell strains like BEAS-2B cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHyaluronic acid (HA), the main component of the extracellular matrix, has the ability to promote tissue repair and regulate inflammation. It is used in otolaryngology as an adjuvant treatment to alleviate postoperative nasal symptoms. However, there is currently insufficient evidence demonstrating the therapeutic efficacy of HA for patients with nasal inflammatory diseases (NIDs).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: This study endeavors to examine the feasibility of predicting the clinical outcomes of patients suffering from peripheral artery disease (PAD) who undergo endovascular intervention, by employing the Syngo iFlow technology.
Methods: Retrospectively enrolling 76 patients from December 2021 to May 2023, yielding a total of 77 affected limbs, this study employs clinical outcomes (improvement or otherwise) as the gold standard. Two physicians conducted visual assessments on both DSA and iFlow images to gauge patient improvement and assessed inter-observer consistency for each image modality.
Percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI) is a widely used treatment option for cystic and predominantly cystic thyroid nodules. It has several advantages over other treatment modalities. Compared to surgery, PEI is less painful, can be performed in the outpatient setting, and carries less risk of transient or permanent side effects.
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