Chiral Metal-Organic Framework Hollow Nanospheres for High-Efficiency Enantiomer Separation.

Chiral ZIF-8 hollow nanospheres with d-histidine as part of chiral ligands (denoted as H-d-his-ZIF-8) were prepared for separation of (±)-amine acids. Compared to bulk d-his-ZIF-8 without a hollow cavity, the prepared H-d-his-ZIF-8 showed 15 times higher separation capacity and higher ee values of 90.5 % for alanine, 95.

The expressional disorder of the renal RAS mediates nephrotic syndrome of male rat offspring induced by prenatal ethanol exposure.

This study aimed to prove that prenatal ethanol exposure (PEE) can induce nephrotic syndrome in male rat offspring and to explore the underlying intrauterine programming mechanisms. Pregnant Wistar rats were intragastrically administered ethanol (4 g/kg d) from gestational day (GD) 9 to GD 20, and the male fetuses were delivered by cesarean section at GD20 and the male adult offspring were euthanized at postnatal week (PW) 24. In vitro, the primary metanephric mesenchyme cells were treated with ethanol at concentrations of 15-60 mM.

Long Noncoding RNA Meg3 Regulates Mafa Expression in Mouse Beta Cells by Inactivating Rad21, Smc3 or Sin3α.

Background/aims: The main pathogenic mechanism of diabetes is a decrease in the number of islet beta cells or a decline in their function. Recent studies have shown that pancreatic long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have a high degree of tissue specificity and may be involved in the maintenance of islet cells function and the development of diabetes. The aim of this study was to investigate the molecular regulatory mechanism of mouse maternal expressed gene 3 (Meg3) in insulin biosynthesis in pancreatic islets.

Developmental disorder of podocytes and the related renal diseases.

Podocyte is one of the main components of glomerular filtration barrier in the kidney; the loss or dysfunction of podocyte could impair the functions of glomerular filtration barrier, leading to development of various renal diseases. Podocyte is a terminally differentiated cell, and thus does not possess any proliferative properties. Accordingly, its number and contribution to renal function are initially determined by its normal development.

Serum Hepatocyte Growth Factor Is Associated with Small Vessel Disease in Alzheimer's Dementia.

: While hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is known to exert cell growth, migration and morphogenic effects in various organs, recent studies suggest that HGF may also play a role in synaptic maintenance and cerebrovascular integrity. Although increased levels of HGF have been reported in brain and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), it is unclear whether peripheral HGF may be associated with cerebrovascular disease (CeVD) and dementia. In this study, we examined the association of baseline serum HGF with neuroimaging markers of CeVD in a cohort of pre-dementia (cognitive impaired no dementia, CIND) and AD patients.

Ptosis induced by topical steroid eye drops: Two cases reports.

Rationale: Ptosis is a rare complication of periocular steroid use. Studies report that local injections of steroids produce ptosis. We describe the first 2 cases of ptosis because of long-term treatment with topical steroid eye drops.

Antibiotic-resistant infection in patients with bronchiectasis: prevalence, risk factors and prognostic implications.

Background And Aims: (PA) is the most common pathogen in bronchiectasis and frequently develops resistance to multiple classes of antibiotics, but little is known about the clinical impacts of PA-resistant (PA-R) isolates on bronchiectasis. We, therefore, investigated the prevalence, risk factors and prognostic implications of PA-R isolates in hospitalized bronchiectasis patients.

Patients And Methods: Between June 2011 and July 2016, data from adult bronchiectasis patients isolated with PA at the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University were retrospectively analyzed.

Downregulation of Long Noncoding RNA Gas5 Affects Cell Cycle and Insulin Secretion in Mouse Pancreatic β Cells.

Background: Evidence shows that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in individual development, cell differentiation, cell cycle processes and other important life processes and are closely related to major human diseases, including diabetes. Recent studies have reported that lncRNAs are involved in β cell functions and that lncRNA Gas5 levels decreased in T2DM patients' serum. The purpose of this study was to clarify the role of lncRNA Gas5 in mouse β cell functions in vitro and in vivo.

Morphologic features and surgically induced astigmatism of femtosecond laser versus manual clear corneal incisions.

Purpose: To compare the morphologic features and surgically induced astigmatism (SIA) between laser and manual clear corneal incisions (CCIs) after femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery.

Setting: Eye Center, 2nd Affiliated Hospital, Medical College of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.

Design: Prospective case series.

The African Zika virus MR-766 is more virulent and causes more severe brain damage than current Asian lineage and dengue virus.

The Zika virus (ZIKV) has two lineages, Asian and African, and their impact on developing brains has not been compared. Dengue virus (DENV) is a close family member of ZIKV and co-circulates with ZIKV. Here, we performed intracerebral inoculation of embryonic mouse brains with dengue virus 2 (DENV2), and found that DENV2 is sufficient to cause smaller brain size due to increased cell death in neural progenitor cells (NPCs) and neurons.

Imaging the Infant Chest without Sedation: Feasibility of Using Single Axial Rotation with 16-cm Wide-Detector CT.

Purpose To compare image quality, patient preparation time, and radiation dose using a single axial rotation with 16-cm wide-detector computed tomography (CT) in imaging the infant chest without sedation with those in infants examined by using a 64-row CT and sedation. Materials and Methods Thirty-two infants (group 1) were prospectively enrolled to undergo nonenhanced chest CT without sedation using a single axial rotation on a 16-cm wide-detector CT scanner. Patients were imaged with automatic tube current modulation and tube voltages of 80 kVp for patients weighing 5 kg or less and 100 kVp for patients weighing more than 5 kg.

Descemet membrane detachment in femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery: a case report.

Background: Femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery (FLACS) has grown in popularity among ophthalmologists as a novel technique. However, descemet membrane detachment (DMD) began to be found as the complication after FLACS. We report a case of serious DMD following FLACS due to the inappropriate incision design.

A general route to coat poly(cyclotriphosphazene-co-4,4'-sulfonyldiphenol) on various substrates and the derived N, P, S-doped hollow carbon shells for catalysis.

The construction of core-shell structures through surface coating, and then making use of the synergistic effects between the core and shell to design and synthesize heterogeneous catalysts is a hot topic in the heterogeneous catalysis field. Developing a general coating route with functional shell materials is further highly desirable. Here we found that a poly(cyclotriphosphazene-co-4,4'-sulfonyldiphenol) (PZS) layer can be generally coated on various substrates with different components and morphologies, including metal oxides, noble metal nanoparticles, carbon materials and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs).

Anxiety and depression in adult outpatients with bronchiectasis: Associations with disease severity and health-related quality of life.

Background: Anxiety and depression might frequently affect bronchiectasis patients, but data in Chinese patients, including their association with disease severity assessed with Bronchiectasis Severity Index (BSI) and FACED score, are limited.

Objective: To investigate the rate, risk factors, association with disease severity and impact of anxiety and depression on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in adult outpatients with steady-state bronchiectasis.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 163 outpatients (102 females; mean age, 45.

Modafinil attenuates inflammation via inhibiting Akt/NF-κB pathway in apoE-deficient mouse model of atherosclerosis.

Modafinil, an FDA approved wakefulness drug prescribed to narcolepsy patients, has recently been shown to have anti-inflammatory effects and provides protection against neuroinflammation. It is unknown if modafinil can also protect against atherosclerosis, pathogenesis of which implicates inflammation. Using an apoE-deficient mouse model, we tried to elucidate the effects of modafinil treatment on the development of atherosclerosis.

Thermosensitive chitosan-based hydrogels releasing stromal cell derived factor-1 alpha recruit MSC for corneal epithelium regeneration.

Unlabelled: Corneal epithelium integrity depends on continuous self-renewing of epithelium and connections between adjacent cells or between the cells and the basement membrane. Self-renewing epithelium cells mainly arise from the continuous proliferation and differentiation of the basal layer and limbal stem cells. The aim of the present study was to generate a bioactive, thermosensitive chitosan-gelatin hydrogel (CHI hydrogel) by incorporating exogenous recombinant human stromal cell-derived factor-1 alpha (SDF-1 alpha) for corneal epithelium regeneration.

Online study on the co-pyrolysis of coal and corn with vacuum ultraviolet photoionization mass spectrometry.

With the aim to support the experimental tests in a circulating fluidized bed pilot plant, the pyrolysis processes of coal, corn, and coal-corn blend have been studied with an online pyrolysis photoionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (Py-PI-TOFMS). The mass spectra at different temperatures (300-800°C) as well as time-evolved profiles of selected species were measured. The pyrolysis products such as alkanes, alkenes, phenols, aromatics, as well as nitrogen- and sulfur-containing species were detected.

A deep convolutional neural network approach to single-particle recognition in cryo-electron microscopy.

Background: Single-particle cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) has become a mainstream tool for the structural determination of biological macromolecular complexes. However, high-resolution cryo-EM reconstruction often requires hundreds of thousands of single-particle images. Particle extraction from experimental micrographs thus can be laborious and presents a major practical bottleneck in cryo-EM structural determination.

A Sustainable Long-Term Health Care System for Aging China: A Case Study of Regional Practice.

This article documents the Qingdao Long-term Care Medical Insurance (LTCMI) program and analyzes its recipient demographics, costs of program expansion and potential drivers of costs. About 10% of the program's clients received institutional care, while the rest received care at home or in other residential locations. More than 60% of recipients were aged 80 years and older.

Transcriptome of Pterospermum kingtungense provides implications on the mechanism underlying its rapid vegetative growth and limestone adaption.

Pterospermum kingtungense C.Y.Wu ex Hsue is a typical tree species living in the relatively adverse limestone habitat.

The miR-125a/HK2 axis regulates cancer cell energy metabolism reprogramming in hepatocellular carcinoma.

The Warburg effect is a metabolic hallmark of cancer. Tumor cells rapidly adjust their energy source to glycolysis in order to efficiently proliferate in a hypoxic environment, but the mechanism underlying this switch remains incompletely understood. Here, we show that hypoxia potently induces the down-regulation of miR-125a expression in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells and tumors.

Effect of water on the effective Goldschmidt tolerance factor and photoelectric conversion efficiency of organic-inorganic perovskite: insights from first-principles calculations.

Water is often believed to be the leading killer of perovskite solar cells' efficiency. However, recent experimental results show that perovskite solar cells have higher photoelectric conversion efficiency in a suitably moist environment. In this study, the relationship between the interstitial water molecule and the theoretical maximum efficiency of the perovskite absorber layer is discussed based on density functional theory calculations.

Clinical outcomes of femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery versus conventional phacoemulsification surgery for hard nuclear cataracts.

Purpose: To compare the outcomes between femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery (femtosecond group) and conventional phacoemulsification cataract surgery (conventional group) in patients with hard nuclear cataract.

Setting: Eye Center, Second Affiliated Hospital of School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.

Design: Prospective consecutive nonrandomized comparative cohort study.

Clinical comparison of patient outcomes following implantation of trifocal or bifocal intraocular lenses: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

To assess the visual effects of trifocal intraocular lenses (IOLs) compared to bifocal IOLs in cataract surgery, a meta-analysis of prospective comparative clinical trials (including 4 randomized controlled trials and 4 cohorts) was conducted. The defocus curves showed a better distance-corrected intermediate visual acuity (VA) for the trifocal group (MD -0.07; 95% CI, -0.

Indole-3-Carbinol Induces Apoptosis of Hepatic Stellate Cells through K63 De-Ubiquitination of RIP1 in Rats.

Background/aims: The apoptosis of activated hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) is the central event in the reversal of liver fibrosis. K63 de-ubiquitinated receptor-interacting protein (RIP)1 promotes apoptosis in tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α signaling pathway. In the previous study, we have proved that indole-3-carbinol (I3C) could reverse different models of liver fibrosis in rats, but the mechanism is still unclear.