In Situ Study of Metabolic Response of Leaves to Salt Stress by Neutral Desorption-Extractive Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry.

Salt stress is one of the most common factors limiting plant cultivation. In this study, metabolic responses to salt stress in () leaves were analyzed in situ by neutral desorption-extractive electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ND-EESI-MS) without any sample pretreatment. Metabolic changes of leaves were observed in response to salt stress conditions, including the levels of serine, glutamic acid, arginine, cinnamic acid, ferulic acid, caffeic acid, protocatechuic acid, epicatechin, morin, myricetin, apigravin, and β-cotonefuran.

The Parkinson's Disease Mendelian Randomization Research Portal.

Background: Mendelian randomization is a method for exploring observational associations to find evidence of causality.

Objective: To apply Mendelian randomization between risk factors/phenotypic traits (exposures) and PD in a large, unbiased manner, and to create a public resource for research.

Methods: We used two-sample Mendelian randomization in which the summary statistics relating to single-nucleotide polymorphisms from 5,839 genome-wide association studies of exposures were used to assess causal relationships with PD.

Senolytics decrease senescent cells in humans: Preliminary report from a clinical trial of Dasatinib plus Quercetin in individuals with diabetic kidney disease.

Background: Senescent cells, which can release factors that cause inflammation and dysfunction, the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP), accumulate with ageing and at etiological sites in multiple chronic diseases. Senolytics, including the combination of Dasatinib and Quercetin (D + Q), selectively eliminate senescent cells by transiently disabling pro-survival networks that defend them against their own apoptotic environment. In the first clinical trial of senolytics, D + Q improved physical function in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a fatal senescence-associated disease, but to date, no peer-reviewed study has directly demonstrated that senolytics decrease senescent cells in humans.

Changes in macular ultrastructural morphology in unilateral anisometropic amblyopia.

It is controversial that retina and photoreceptors are involved in amblyopic development. Lack of imaging devices for quantitative assessment of photoreceptors in vivo impedes further investigation. In this study we investigated the differences of macular thickness, outer nuclear layer (ONL) thickness and cone density among eyes with unilateral anisometropic amblyopia, amblyopic fellow eyes, and normal control eyes using high-definition spectral-domain optical coherence tomography and adaptive optics imaging system.

Genotype-by-environment interactions inferred from genetic effects on phenotypic variability in the UK Biobank.

Genotype-by-environment interaction (GEI) is a fundamental component in understanding complex trait variation. However, it remains challenging to identify genetic variants with GEI effects in humans largely because of the small effect sizes and the difficulty of monitoring environmental fluctuations. Here, we demonstrate that GEI can be inferred from genetic variants associated with phenotypic variability in a large sample without the need of measuring environmental factors.

The Supercharged Pedicled Jejunal Flap for Total Esophageal Reconstruction: A Retrospective Review of 100 Cases.

Background: When gastric pull-up is unsuccessful or unsuitable for total esophageal reconstruction, a supercharged pedicled jejunum can be used to reestablish gastrointestinal continuity. The authors reviewed their technique and outcomes of the supercharged pedicled jejunum for total esophageal reconstruction.

Methods: A retrospective review of a prospectively maintained database was performed of 100 patients who underwent supercharged pedicled jejunum for total esophageal reconstruction between 2000 and 2017 at the Texas Medical Center.

DUETT quantitatively identifies known and novel events in nascent RNA structural dynamics from chemical probing data.

Motivation: RNA molecules can undergo complex structural dynamics, especially during transcription, which influence their biological functions. Recently developed high-throughput chemical probing experiments that study RNA cotranscriptional folding generate nucleotide-resolution 'reactivities' for each length of a growing nascent RNA that reflect structural dynamics. However, the manual annotation and qualitative interpretation of reactivity across these large datasets can be nuanced, laborious, and difficult for new practitioners.

Environmental heterogeneity and not vicariant biogeographic barriers generate community-wide population structure in desert-adapted snakes.

Genetic structure can be influenced by local adaptation to environmental heterogeneity and biogeographic barriers, resulting in discrete population clusters. Geographic distance among populations, however, can result in continuous clines of genetic divergence that appear as structured populations. Here, we evaluate the relevant importance of these three factors over a landscape characterized by environmental heterogeneity and the presence of a hypothesized biogeographic barrier in producing population genetic structure within 13 codistributed snake species using a genomic data set.

Photoreceptor Degeneration is Correlated With the Deterioration of Macular Retinal Sensitivity in High Myopia.

Purpose: To investigate structural changes in the retinal outer layers and choroid using adaptive optics (AO) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) in eyes with myopia, and to correlate the changes with decreased macular light sensitivity (MLS).

Methods: This prospective study included 27 subjects with emmetropia and low myopia (EM/LM), 25 with moderate myopia (MM), and 25 with high myopia (HM). Microperimetry was used to quantify MLS in each subject, while AO and OCT images of fundus were analyzed to quantify cone density and regularity and thickness of outer retinal sublayers and choroid.

Elevated serum preptin concentrations in patients with diabetic nephropathy.

Preptin is a peptide synthesized and secreted accompanied with insulin from pancreatic β cells. Here, we tested the hypothesis that serum preptin concentrations are correlated with diabetic nephropathy (DN). Our study was performed in a population of 234 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and 78 healthy subjects.

Sustained release and improved bioavailability in mice after subcutaneous administration of griseofulvin as nano- and microcrystals.

The objective of the study was to evaluate the pharmacokinetic profile after different subcutaneous (s.c.) administrations of nano- and microparticle suspensions of griseofulvin to mice.

Liraglutide promotes apoptosis of HepG2 cells by activating JNK signaling pathway.

Objective: To study the effect and mechanism of liraglutide on the apoptosis of human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cells.

Materials And Methods: HepG2 cell was treated with different concentrations of liraglutide at 0, 1, 10, 100, and 1000 nmol/L. The effect of liraglutide on HepG2 proliferation was detected by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) method; the effect of liraglutide on the protein expression of c-Jun NH2-terminal Kinase (JNK) and phosphorylated JNK (p-JNK) was detected by Western blot; the degree of HepG2 apoptosis was observed by flow cytometry, and JNK pathway blocker SP600125 was used to further confirm that liraglutide promoted HepG2 apoptosis by regulating JNK signaling pathway.

Clinicopathological Features and Prognosis of Small Gastric Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors (GISTs).

Background: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the safety of endoscopic surgery, the clinicopathological features, and prognoses of small gastric gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs).

Methods: Small gastric GIST patients (diameter: 0.10-2.

Six Sigma Methodology and Postoperative Information Reporting: A Multidisciplinary Quality Improvement Study With Interrupted Time-Series Regression.

Objective: The postoperative handover is often compromised by reporting inconsistencies between different specialties. We describe a multidisciplinary quality improvement initiative to improve postoperative information reporting.

Design: A quality improvement project with interrupted time-series data collection was undertaken in the postanesthesia care unit between January 2015 and August 2015.

Exploration of the nanomedicine-design space with high-throughput screening and machine learning.

Only a tiny fraction of the nanomedicine-design space has been explored, owing to the structural complexity of nanomedicines and the lack of relevant high-throughput synthesis and analysis methods. Here, we report a methodology for determining structure-activity relationships and design rules for spherical nucleic acids (SNAs) functioning as cancer-vaccine candidates. First, we identified ~1,000 candidate SNAs on the basis of reasonable ranges for 11 design parameters that can be systematically and independently varied to optimize SNA performance.

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) with remarkable cystic change: a specific subtype of GISTs with relatively indolent behaviors and favorable prognoses.

Purpose: Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are typically solid neoplasms with small cystic change detected occasionally but in rare instances may present predominantly as cystic lesions. The histopathologic features and prognoses of cystic GISTs (cGISTs) are poorly understood.

Methods: We herein reviewed 20 cGISTs resected or consulted in our institution from January 1, 2003 to December 31, 2014.

SELDI-TOF MS Analysis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma in an Australian Cohort.

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common cause of cancer death worldwide. Resection offers the best chance of long-term survival, but a consistent adverse prognostic factor is the presence of microvascular invasion (MVI). In this study, surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (SELDI-TOF MS), a high throughput method of analyzing complex samples, was used to explore differentially expressed proteins between HCC and adjacent nontumour liver tissue (ANLT).

Development of a Simple Hydroponic Assay to Study Vertical and Horizontal Resistance of Soybean and Pathotypes of Phytophthora sojae.

Phytophthora root rot, caused by Phytophthora sojae, is one of the most damaging diseases of soybean and the introgression of Rps (Resistance to P. sojae) genes into elite soybean lines is arguably the best way to manage this disease. Current bioassays to phenotype the gene-for-gene relationship are hampered with respect to reproducibility and long-term stability of isolates, and do not accurately predict horizontal resistance individually.

The efficacy of posterior scleral contraction in controlling high myopia in young people.

Objective: To investigate the clinical effectiveness and safety of posterior scleral contraction (PSC) surgery in controlling high myopia in young people.

Methods: Twenty patients with high myopia (30 eyes) were treated with PSC. The average age for the patients was 11.

Quantitative determination of trace metals in single yeast cells by time-resolved ICP-MS using dissolved standards for calibration.

Time-resolved inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) for studying cellular heterogeneity or detecting metals in single cells draws increasing attention in the recent years. Considering the full width of a single-cell event is about 0.5-0.

MicroRNA-15a - cell division cycle 42 signaling pathway in pathogenesis of pediatric inflammatory bowel disease.

Aim: To determine whether cell division cycle (Cdc)42 is regulated by microRNA (miR)-15a in the development of pediatric inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Methods: We cultured 293T cells, used plasmids and performed dual-luciferase assay to determine whether Cdc42 is a miR-15a target gene. We cultured Caco-2 cells, and stimulated them with tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α.

Long-term safety and activity of axicabtagene ciloleucel in refractory large B-cell lymphoma (ZUMA-1): a single-arm, multicentre, phase 1-2 trial.

Background: Axicabtagene ciloleucel is an autologous anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy. In the previous analysis of the ZUMA-1 registrational study, with a median follow-up of 15·4 months (IQR 13·7-17·3), 89 (82%) of 108 assessable patients with refractory large B-cell lymphoma treated with axicabtagene ciloleucel achieved an objective response, and complete responses were noted in 63 (58%) patients. Here we report long-term activity and safety outcomes of the ZUMA-1 study.

Screening utility of a rapid non-invasive dry eye assessment algorithm.

Purpose: To evaluate the discriminative ability of a rapid non-invasive dry eye assessment algorithm (global evaluation component: SANDE questionnaire, and non-invasive tear film breakup time; subtype classification testing component: tear film lipid layer grade, and tear meniscus height) in detecting dry eye disease, as defined by the TFOS DEWS II diagnostic criteria.

Methods: Two hundred and thirty-five participants (77 male, 158 female), with a mean ± SD age of 43 ± 17 years, were recruited into a prospective diagnostic accuracy study. OSDI, DEQ-5, and SANDE dry eye symptomology scores; non-invasive tear film breakup time; absolute and inter-ocular differences in tear osmolarity; corneal, conjunctival, and lid margin staining scores; tear film lipid layer, meibum expressibility, meibomian gland orifice plugging, and eyelid margin telangiectasia grades; and tear meniscus height were evaluated in a single clinical session.