A feasibility study on cortisol and cortisone as biomarkers for psychological stress in wastewater-based epidemiology.

Psychological stress has a significant impact on individuals' quality of life and health. Traditionally, psychological stress assessment relies on self-reported tools such as the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), which are inherently subjective. This study aims to evaluate the feasibility of using wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) to assess cortisol and cortisone as biomarkers for psychological stress.

Mn oxide-modified biochars with high adsorption capacity for Pb(II) in wastewater: Preparation and adsorption mechanisms.

The occurrence of excessive levels of bivalent plumbum (Pb(II)) in wastewater poses a notable threat to both human health and ecological safety. In this study, orthogonal experiments were conducted to prepare coprecipitation-modified biochar (C-BC) and impregnation pyrolysis-modified biochar (I-BC) via potassium permanganate (KMnO) for removing Pb(II) from wastewater. Three types of modified biochars (BCs) (Mn-BCs) namely, C-BC, I-BC, and I-BC, were selected as high-efficiency adsorbents on the basis of their high removal rates (87.

Three undescribed isosteroidal alkaloids from the bulbs of Fritillaria ussuriensis maxim: Anti-inflammatory activities, docking studies and molecular dynamic.

Three undescribed isosteroidal alkaloids (1-3), along with two known ones (4, 5) were isolated from the bulbs of Fritillaria ussuriensis Maxim, their structures were established by comprehensive analyses of the 1D, 2D-NMR and HR-ESI-MS data. Meanwhile, LPS-activated RAW 264.7 macrophages were used to determine the potential anti-inflammatory activity of all the alkaloids in vitro.

[Retracted] MicroRNA‑19b promotes the migration and invasion of ovarian cancer cells by inhibiting the PTEN/AKT signaling pathway.

[This retracts the article DOI: 10.3892/ol.2018.

[Source Apportionment of Morphine in Wastewater].

It is a new approach to identify legal or illegal use of morphine through information on municipal wastewater. However, the sources of morphine in wastewater are complex, and distinguishing the contribution of different sources has become a key issue. A total of 262 influent samples from 61 representative wastewater treatment plants in a typical city were collected from October 2022 to March 2023.

Myosteatosis is associated with coronary artery calcification in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Background: Myosteatosis, rather than low muscle mass, is the primary etiologic factor of sarcopenia in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Myosteatosis may lead to a series of metabolic dysfunctions, such as insulin resistance, systematic inflammation, and oxidative stress, and all these dysfunctions are closely associated with the acceleration of T2DM and atherosclerosis.

Aim: To investigate the association between myosteatosis and coronary artery calcification (CAC) in patients with T2DM.

[Research Progress of Iron Metabolism in Disease Progression and Drug Resistance of Multiple Myeloma--Review].

Iron metabolism is involved in the development and drug resistance of many malignancies, including multiple myeloma (MM). Based on recent studies on iron metabolism and MM, this paper reviews the relationship between iron metabolism and disease process of MM in terms of iron overload leading to ferroptosis in MM cells, the role of iron deficiency in oxidative respiration and proliferation of MM cells, and the interaction between ferroptosis and autophagy in the disease process. The mechanisms by which iron metabolism-related substances lead to MM cells' resistance to proteasome inhibitors (PI) through inducing redox imbalance and M2 macrophage polarization are also briefly described, aiming to provide a theoretical basis for the application of iron metabolism-related drugs to the clinical treatment of MM patients.

Surveillance of COVID-19 and influenza A(H1N1) prevalence in China via medicine-based wastewater biomarkers.

The simultaneous monitoring of individual or multiple diseases can be achieved by selecting therapeutic medicines used to treat the primary symptoms of the condition as biomarkers in wastewater. This study proposes a novel approach to monitor the prevalence of COVID-19 and influenza A (H1N1) by selecting nine medicines to serve as biomarkers, including three antipyretics, three antivirals, and three cough suppressants. To verify our approach, wastewater samples were collected from seventeen urban and five rural wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in a Chinese city over a period of one year.

Matrix metalloproteinases and tissue inhibitors in multiple myeloma: promote or inhibit?

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases (TIMPs) play a vital role in the pathogenesis of multiple myeloma (MM), especially for tumor invasion and osteolytic osteopathy. By breaking down extracellular matrix (ECM) components and releasing the proteins composing the ECM and growth factors, as well as their receptors, MMPs affect tissue integrity and promote cancer cell invasion and metastasis. A vital pathophysiological characteristic of MM is the progress of osteolytic lesions, which are brought on by interactions between myeloma cells and the bone marrow microenvironment.

Effect of short neuropeptide F signaling on larval feeding in Mythimna separata.

Mythimna separata is a notorious phytophagous pest which poses serious threats to cereal crops owing to the gluttony of the larvae. Because short neuropeptide F (sNPF) and its receptor sNPFR are involved in a diversity of physiological functions, especially in functions related to feeding in insects, it is a molecular target for pest control. Herein, an sNPF and 2 sNPFRs were identified and cloned from M.

[Clinical Role of M Protein in Multiple Myeloma and Lymphoma --Review].

M protein is often expressed in multiple myeloma and also can be detected in several lymphoma such as Waldenstrm macroglobulinaemia. M protein level can reflect the malignant degree and even genetic abnormality of multiple myeloma and lymphoma to some extent to predict the progress of the diseases, and the therapeutic response and prognosis of the disease can be evaluated by monitoring the M protein level and its change degree. This article reviews the role of M protein in the progression and prognosis of multiple myeloma and lymphoma, and discusses the differences in M protein expression between multiple myeloma and lymphoma, in order to provide new insights for clinical diagnosis, monitoring and evaluation of therapeutic effect.

A Vision-Based System for In-Sleep Upper-Body and Head Pose Classification.

Sleep quality is known to have a considerable impact on human health. Recent research shows that head and body pose play a vital role in affecting sleep quality. This paper presents a deep multi-task learning network to perform head and upper-body detection and pose classification during sleep.

Separation and Enrichment of Alkaloids from Coptidis Rhizoma and Euodiae Fructus by Macroporous Resin and Evaluation of the Effect on Bile Reflux Gastritis Rats.

The Zuojin Pill consists of Coptidis Rhizoma (CR) and Euodiae Fructus (EF). It has been a classic prescription for the treatment of gastrointestinal diseases in China since ancient times. Alkaloids are considered to be its main pharmacologically active substances.

The primary pulmonary NUT carcinomas and some uncommon somatic mutations identified by next-generation sequencing: a case report.

Nuclear protein in testis (NUT) carcinoma (NUT-C) is an exceedingly rare and aggressive squamous tumor characterized by an acquired rearrangement of the NUT gene involving the NUTM1 (Nut midline carcinoma, family member 1, NUT) gene encoding the nuclear protein of the testis on 15q14. As a rare tumor, there is little information available on the clinicopathologic and molecular cytogenetic findings of NMC. We herein reported a case of a 69-year-old man diagnosed with lung NMC involving the rearrangement of chromosomal region 15q14 harboring the NUTM1 gene.

Simultaneous Qualitative and Quantitative Evaluation of the Coptidis Rhizoma and Euodiae Fructus Herbal Pair by Using UHPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS and UHPLC-DAD.

The herbal pair of Coptidis Rhizoma (CR) and Euodiae Fructus (EF) is a classical traditional Chinese medicine formula used for treating gastro-intestinal disorders. In this study, we established a systematic method for chemical profiling and quantification analysis of the major constituents in the CR-EF herbal pair. A method of ultra high performance liquid chromatography/quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QTOF-MS) for qualitative analysis was developed.

Leptomeningeal metastasis after effective first-generation EGFR TKI treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

Objective: To evaluate the influence of a first-generation epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor (EGFR TKI) treatment on the clinical features of leptomeningeal metastasis (LM) progression and outcome in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients.

Methods: We retrospectively evaluated advanced NSCLC patients receiving effective first-generation EGFR TKI treatment (e.g.

MicroRNA-19b promotes the migration and invasion of ovarian cancer cells by inhibiting the PTEN/AKT signaling pathway.

Local and systemic metastasis is the main reason for the poor survival rate of patients with ovarian cancer (OC). MicroRNAs (miRNAs/miRs) are short non-coding RNAs that serve critical roles in the initiation and progression of OC. The present study demonstrated that expression of miR-19b was significantly increased in OC tissues and cell lines.

[Treatment of type 2 diabetic peripheral neuropathy patients of qi-yin deficiency complicated phlegm-dampness blocking collaterals syndrome by internal application of qigui mixture and external application of qigui huoxue lotion: a clinical study].

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of internal application of Qigui Mixture (QM) and external application of Qigui Huoxue Lotion (QHL) in treating type 2 diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DNP) patients of qi-yin deficiency complicated phlegm-dampness blocking collaterals syndrome (QYD-PDBCS), and to primarily discuss its mechanism.

Methods: Totally 62 DPN patients of QYD-PDBCS were randomly assigned to the treatment group (31 cases) and the control group (31 cases). All patients received routine comprehensive therapy.

Female and male moths display different reproductive behavior when facing new versus previous mates.

Multiple mating allows females to obtain material (more sperm and nutrient) and/or genetic benefits. The genetic benefit models require sperm from different males to fertilize eggs competitively or the offspring be fathered by multiple males. To maximize genetic benefits from multiple mating, females have evolved strategies to prefer novel versus previous mates in their subsequent matings.

Age-related iron deposition in the basal ganglia of controls and Alzheimer disease patients quantified using susceptibility weighted imaging.

This study aimed to investigate age-related iron deposition changes in healthy subjects and Alzheimer disease patients using susceptibility weighted imaging. The study recruited 182 people, including 143 healthy volunteers and 39 Alzheimer disease patients. All underwent conventional magnetic resonance imaging and susceptibility weighted imaging sequences.