Inactivation of in postnatal chondrocytes leads to epiphyseal growth-plate abnormalities and promotes enchondroma-like formation.

Liver serine-threonine kinase B1 (LKB1) is a tumor suppressor that has been linked to many types of tumors. However, the role of LKB1 in cartilaginous tumorigenesis is still poorly understood. In this study, we find that cartilage-specific, tamoxifen-inducible knockout results in multiple enchondroma-like lesions adjacent to the disorganized growth plates.

Shift of microbial diversity and function in high-efficiency performance biotrickling filter for gaseous xylene treatment.

Xylene is the main component of many volatile industrial pollution sources, and the use of biotechnology to remove volatile organic compounds (VOCs) has become a growing trend. In this study, a biotrickling filter for gaseous xylene treatment was developed using activated sludge as raw material to study the biodegradation process of xylene. Reaction conditions were optimized, and long-term operation was performed.

A C-Met chemical inhibitor promotes fracture healing through interacting with osteogenic differentiation via the mTORC1 pathway.

Currently, HGF/C-Met signaling inhibitors are being investigated to determine if they are useful for enhancing progenitor cell differentiation into osteoblasts, and one of them, BMS-777607, has been utilized to treat osteoporosis and bone loss in several types of diseases. However, whether BMS-777607 could be a potential treatment during fracture healing remains elusive. Here, we examined the therapeutic effects of BMS-777607 on bone fracture healing in a mouse model.

Traumatic neuroma in mastectomy scar: Two case reports and review of the literature.

Rationale: Traumatic neuroma is a reparative proliferative response of the nerve after trauma or surgery, which rarely occurs in the breast. However, it must be distinguished from tumor recurrence.

Patient Concerns: A 78-year-old woman underwent left-sided modified radical mastectomy for invasive carcinoma, 7 years before this case.

Identification of hepatitis E virus subtype 4f in blood donors in Shanghai, China.

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) has been divided into eight genotypes and approximately thirty subtypes. Past studies of blood donors have revealed a substantial prevalence of HEV infection. We examined anti-HEV antibodies and HEV RNA in Chinese voluntary blood donors (VBDs).

Structural characterization of three polysaccharides from the roots of Codonopsis pilosula and their immunomodulatory effects on RAW264.7 macrophages.

Three polysaccharides were isolated from the roots of Codonopsis pilosula by ion-exchange and gel-filtration chromatography. They were named RCNP, RCAP-1, and RCAP-2, and had apparent molecular weights of 1.14 × 10, 5.

A highly aggressive invasive ductal carcinoma from a complex cystic breast mass and BI-RADS assessment: A case report.

Rationale: The term cystic breast lesions is a sonographic diagnosis, which can be categorized as simple, complicated or complex. The complex cysts are deemed as having a low risk of breast cancer. The highly aggressive invasive ductal carcinomas among complex cysts, in particular, are infrequent reported.

Depression-Induced Neuropeptide Y Secretion Promotes Prostate Cancer Growth by Recruiting Myeloid Cells.

Purpose: Psychologic depression has been shown to dysregulate the immune system and promote tumor progression. The aim of this study is to investigate how psychologic depression alters the immune profiles in prostate cancer.

Experimental Design: We used a murine model of depression in Myc-CaP tumor-bearing immunocompetent FVB mice and Hi-myc mice presenting with spontaneous prostate cancer.

Comparison of the inhibition potential of parthenolide and micheliolide on various UDP-glucuronosyltransferase isoforms.

Parthenolide (PTL) and micheliolide (MCL) are sesquiterpene lactones with similar structures, and both of them have been reported to exhibit multiple biochemical and pharmacological activities. This study aims to investigate the inhibition of these two compounds on the activity of UDP-glucuronosyltransferases (UGTs). incubation mixture for recombinant UGTs-catalyzed glucuronidation metabolism of 4-methylumbelliferone (4-MU) was utilized to investigate the inhibition potential.

Ploidy and hybridity effects on leaf size, cell size and related genes expression in triploids, diploids and their parents in Populus.

Cell-size enlargement plays a pivotal role in increasing the leaf size of triploid poplar, and polyploidization could change leaf shape. ABP1 was highly expressed in triploid plants and positively related to cell size. In the plant kingdom, the leaf is the most important energy production organ, and polyploidy often exhibits a "Gigas" effect on leaf size, which benefits agriculture and forestry.

The effects of donepezil on phencyclidine-induced cognitive deficits in a mouse model of schizophrenia.

Donepezil is the first-line of treatment for Alzheimer's disease (AD), which improves cognitive impairment effectively, but whether it has an impact on cognitive impairment in schizophrenia remains unknown. In this study, we evaluated the effects and mechanisms of donepezil on schizophrenia-like cognitive deficits induced by phencyclidine (PCP). The cognitive deficits model of schizophrenia was established by injecting PCP into mice.

Pseudoaneurysm associated with arteriovenous fistula involving a superficial breast arteriole after vacuum-assisted removal of a benign mass: A case report.

Rationale: Pseudoaneurysm (PA) with associated arteriovenous fistula (AVF) is most often secondary to vascular catheterization, percutaneous biopsy, surgery, or trauma. PA-AVF occurs mainly in large or median arterial territories but rarely in the superficial arterioles of the breast.

Patient Concerns: A 30-year-old woman underwent vacuum-assisted removal of breast fibroadenomas under ultrasonic guidance.

Indirect detection of broad spectra in solid-state NMR using interleaved DANTE trains.

We analyze the performances and the optimization of H-{I} HMQC experiments using basic and interleaved DANTE schemes for the indirect detection of nuclei I = 1/2 or 1 exhibiting wide lines dominated by chemical shift anisotropy (CSA) or quadrupole interaction, respectively. These sequences are first described using average Hamiltonian theory. Then, we analyze using numerical simulations (i) the optimal lengths of the DANTE train and the individual pulses, (ii) the robustness of these experiments to offset, and (iii) the optimal choice of the defocusing and refocusing times for both H-{I} J- and D-HMQC sequences for Pt (I = 1/2) and N (I = 1) nuclei subject to large CSA and quadrupole interaction, respectively.

Mechanically Robust Atomic Oxygen-Resistant Coatings Capable of Autonomously Healing Damage in Low Earth Orbit Space Environment.

Polymeric materials used in spacecraft require to be protected with an atomic oxygen (AO)-resistant layer because AO can degrade these polymers when spacecraft serves in low earth orbit (LEO) environment. However, mechanical damage on AO-resistant coatings can expose the underlying polymers to AO erosion, shortening their service life. In this study, the fabrication of durable AO-resistant coatings that are capable of autonomously healing mechanical damage under LEO environment is presented.

Lactoferrin Promotes Osteogenesis through TGF-β Receptor II Binding in Osteoblasts and Activation of Canonical TGF-β Signaling in MC3T3-E1 Cells and C57BL/6J Mice.

Background: Lactoferrin (LF), as a major functional protein in dairy products, is known to modulate bone anabolic effects. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear; the receptor of LF in osteoblast differentiation has not been identified.

Objective: The aims of the study were to 1) illuminate whether the receptor of LF in osteoblast differentiation is transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) receptor (TβR) II and 2) determine whether the TGF-β signaling pathway is activated by LF in promoting osteogenesis in vitro and in vivo, in addition to P38 and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathways.

Uniform signal enhancement in MAS NMR of half-integer quadrupolar nuclei using quadruple-frequency sweeps.

We introduce two MAS schemes that allow manipulating the satellite-transition (ST) populations of half-integer quadrupolar nuclei, and which both exhibit improved robustness to the quadrupolar coupling constant (C). These schemes, called quadruple frequency sweep (QFS) or quadruple WURST (QWURST) are the sums of two DFS or four WURST to efficiently invert the ST populations of nuclei subject to large or small quadrupole interactions, simultaneously. These quadruple sweeps methods only require 6% more rf-power than the double sweeps ones.

Self-Healing Proton-Exchange Membranes Composed of Nafion-Poly(vinyl alcohol) Complexes for Durable Direct Methanol Fuel Cells.

Proton-exchange membranes (PEMs) that can heal mechanical damage to restore original functions are important for the fabrication of durable and reliable direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). The fabrication of healable PEMs that exhibit satisfactory mechanical stability, enhanced proton conductivity, and suppressed methanol permeability via hydrogen-bonding complexation between Nafion and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) followed by postmodification with 4-carboxybenzaldehyde (CBA) molecules is presented. Compared with pure Nafion, the CBA/Nafion-PVA membranes exhibit enhanced mechanical properties with an ultimate tensile strength of ≈20.

Downregulation and Aberrant Localization of Forkhead Box J1 in Allergic Nasal Mucosa.

Background: Forkhead box J1 (FOXJ1) plays pivotal roles in motile cilia formation. However, it remains unclear whether abnormal expression or localization of FOXJ1 in nasal mucosa tissues is associated with allergic rhinitis (AR), in which impaired mucociliary clearance is implicated.

Objective: We sought to investigate the expression and localization of FOXJ1 in inferior turbinate from patients with AR and controls.

Effects of enhanced ultraviolet-B radiation, water deficit, and their combination on UV-absorbing compounds and osmotic adjustment substances in two different moss species.

A simulation experiment was conducted to explore the influence of enhanced ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation, water deficit, and their combination on UV-absorbing compounds and osmotic adjustment substances of mosses Bryum argenteum and Didymodon vinealis isolated from biological soil crusts (BSCs) growing in a revegetated area of the Tengger Desert, China. Four levels of UV-B radiation and two gradients of water regime were employed. Compared with their controls, amounts of total flavonoids, chlorophyll, carotenoids, soluble sugars, and soluble proteins significantly decreased (p < 0.

Healability Demonstrates Enhanced Shape-Recovery of Graphene-Oxide-Reinforced Shape-Memory Polymeric Films.

The fabrication of shape-memory polymers or films that can simultaneously heal the mechanical damage and the fatigued shape-memory function remains challenging. In this study, mechanically robust healable shape-memory polymeric films that can heal the mechanical damage and the fatigued shape-memory function in the presence of water are fabricated by layer-by-layer assembly of branched poly(ethylenimine) (bPEI)-graphene oxide (GO) complexes with poly(acrylic acid) (PAA), followed by the release of the (PAA/bPEI-GO)*n films from the underlying substrates. The free-standing (PAA/bPEI-GO)*35 films made of bPEI-GO complexes with a mass ratio of 0.

Accelerated development of instability-induced osteoarthritis in transgenic mice overexpressing SOST.

Objective: Sclerostin (SOST), acting as a Wnt antagonist, has been shown to play a key role in regulating bone homestasis, and has also been linked to osteoarthritis (OA) development. Here, we investigated whether overexpressing SOST could affect OA development after destabilization of the medial meniscus (DMM) using mice.

Methods: Bone and cartilage phenotypes of mice at 10 weeks of age were investigated by dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and histology.

Stabilization of alpha-lipoic acid by complex formation with octenylsuccinylated high amylose starch.

The thermal and oxidative stability of alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) in aqueous dispersions containing beta-cyclodextrin (CD), native high amylose (HA) and octenylsuccinylated high amylose (OS) starches (0.1% ALA and 1.0% CD or starch solids) were compared.

Changes in expression of Wnt signaling pathway inhibitors dickkopf-1 and sclerostin before and after total joint arthroplasty.

The aim is to study how serum concentration of Dickkopf-1 (DKK1) and Sclerostin (SOST) varies in patients before and after undergoing total joint arthroplasty (TJA). A total of 104 patients undergoing TJA were included in this study. Serum DKK1 and SOST were measured at 1 day before and 1, 3, and 5 days after surgery.

Distinguished Cr(VI) capture with rapid and superior capability using polydopamine microsphere: Behavior and mechanism.

Toxic heavy metal containing Cr(VI) species is a serious threat for ecological environment and human beings. In this work, a new mussel-inspired polydopamine microsphere (PDA-sphere) is prepared through in situ oxidative polymerization at air condition with controllable sizes. The adsorption of Cr(VI) ions onto PDA-sphere is highly pH dependent with the optimal pH ranging from 2.

Efficient removal and environmentally benign detoxification of Cr(VI) in aqueous solutions by Zr(IV) cross-linking chitosan magnetic microspheres.

Zirconium(IV) cross-linking chitosan (CTS) magnetic microspheres (FeO@Zr-CTS) as a recoverable adsorbent were synthesized through the coordination reaction between zirconium oxychloride and CTS biopolymeric matrix for efficient adsorption and simultaneous detoxification of hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), in aqueous solutions. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) confirmed the formation of core@shell magnetite microspheres. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) verified the crosslinking of Zr(IV) to CTS on the microspheres.