Qiliqiangxin Alleviates Imbalance of Inflammatory Cytokines in Patients with Dilated Cardiomyopathy: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Objective: Qiliqiangxin (QLQX) capsule- a traditional Chinese medicine used for treating heart failure (HF), can modulate inflammatory cytokines in rats with myocardial infarction. However, its immune-regulating effect on dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) remains unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate whether QLQX has a unique regulatory role in the imbalance of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines in patients with DCM.

Genetic Characterization of Two Novel Insect-Infecting Negative-Sense RNA Viruses Identified in a Leaf Beetle, .

Herbivorous insects harbor a variety of insect-specific viruses (ISVs) some of which are considered to be valuable biological agents for potential applications in biological defense and control strategies. Leaf beetles with chewing mouthparts are particularly known for their capacity to disrupt plant tissue while feeding, often creating openings that can act as entry points for plant pathogens. In this study, we have identified two new negative-sense RNA viruses infecting the leaf beetle , an important member of the Chrysomelidae family.

Seed-Assisted Reversible Dissolution/Deposition of MnO for Long-Cyclic and Green Aqueous Zinc-Ion Batteries.

Manganese oxide (MnO) based aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZIBs) are considered to be a promising battery for grid-scale energy storage. However, they usually suffer from the great challenge of capacity attenuation due to Mn dissolution and irreversible structural transformation. Herein, full use of the shortcomings is made to design high-performance cathode-free AZIBs.

The Causal Effect of Adult Height on Late-Life Handgrip Strength: The Singapore Chinese Health Study.

Background: Adult height has been associated with handgrip strength, which is a surrogate marker of physical frailty. However, it is uncertain if this association is causative or due to confounding bias.

Methods: We evaluated pairwise associations among handgrip strength, adult height, and genetically determined height (using a polygenic score [PGS] for height in a mediation framework and a 2-sample Mendelian randomization approach) by means of a multivariable regression model using a prospective cohort of Chinese living in Singapore.

Nab-paclitaxel plus capecitabine as first-line treatment for advanced biliary tract cancers: An open-label, non-randomized, phase II clinical trial.

Background: Biliary tract cancers (BTCs) are a heterogeneous group of tumors with high malignancy, poor prognosis, and limited treatment options.

Aim: To explore the efficacy and safety of nab-paclitaxel plus capecitabine as first-line treatment for advanced and metastatic BTCs.

Methods: This open-label, non-randomized, double-center, phase II clinical trial recruited systemic therapy-naive patients with unresectable or metastatic BTCs between April 2019 and June 2022 at Beijing Cancer Hospital and the First Hospital of China Medical University.

The potential role of heparin-binding protein in neonatal sepsis: research progress.

Neonatal sepsis is a major global health challenge, leading to significant morbidity and mortality in newborns. The search for precise biomarkers for its early prediction in clinical settings has been ongoing, with heparin-binding protein (HBP) emerging as a promising candidate. Originating from granules in neutrophils, HBP is released into the bloodstream in response to infection and plays a pivotal role in the body's inflammatory response.

Stability of population genetic structure in large yellow croaker (): Insights from temporal, geographical factors, and artificial restocking processes.

Despite concerns about overfishing and the potential impact of release programs on wild populations, our study of 3116 individuals from 13 wild populations and 2787 individuals from two cultured populations in Zhejiang and Fujian provinces spanning 2008 to 2023 reveals a relatively stable genetic diversity in . Surprisingly, the genetic diversity of wild large yellow croaker populations has remained consistent over the years, suggesting minimal influence from population declines due to overfishing. With the exception of populations in Sansha Bay and Luoyuan Bay, no significant genetic differences were observed among wild populations, indicating a single panmictic genetic population across the East and South China seas.

Deep Graph Reinforcement Learning for Solving Multicut Problem.

The multicut problem, also known as correlation clustering, is a classic combinatorial optimization problem that aims to optimize graph partitioning given only node (dis)similarities on edges. It serves as an elegant generalization for several graph partitioning problems and has found successful applications in various areas such as data mining and computer vision. However, the multicut problem with an exponentially large number of cycle constraints proves to be NP-hard, and existing solvers either suffer from exponential complexity or often give unsatisfactory solutions due to inflexible heuristics driven by hand-designed mechanisms.

Quercetin ameliorates celiac-related intestinal inflammation caused by wheat gluten through modulating oxidative stress, Th1/Th2/Treg balance, and intestinal microflora structure.

Celiac disease is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease of the small bowel, and about 1% of the world's population is afflicted with celiac disease. To date, the most efficient treatment option is that the patient is required to strictly follow a gluten-free diet for their entire life, but it's difficult to adhere to and can lead to new nutritional imbalances, making it urgent to find novel nutritional interventions. Our aim was to explore the effects of nutritional intervention with quercetin on the celiac toxic effects of wheat gluten.

UBAP2 contributes to radioresistance by enhancing homologous recombination through SLC27A5 ubiquitination in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Radiotherapy stands as an effective method in the clinical treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. However, both primary and acquired radioresistance limit its clinical application in HCC. Therefore, investigating the mechanism of radioresistance may provide other options for treating HCC.

Predicting gastric cancer response to anti-HER2 therapy or anti-HER2 combined immunotherapy based on multi-modal data.

The sole use of single modality data often fails to capture the complex heterogeneity among patients, including the variability in resistance to anti-HER2 therapy and outcomes of combined treatment regimens, for the treatment of HER2-positive gastric cancer (GC). This modality deficit has not been fully considered in many studies. Furthermore, the application of artificial intelligence in predicting the treatment response, particularly in complex diseases such as GC, is still in its infancy.

Developing an off-on fluorescence sensor based on red copper nanoclusters wrapped by sulfhydryl and polymer double ligands for sensitive detection of N-acetyl-L-cysteine.

N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) as a class of thiols is commonly used in the treatment of lung diseases, detoxification and prevention of liver damage. In this paper, 4-mercaptobenzoic acid (4-MBA) coated and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) attached copper nanoclusters (4-MBA@PVP-CuNCs) were successfully synthesized using a simple one-pot method with an absolute quantum yield of 10.98 %, and its synthetic conditions (like effects of single/double ligands and temperature) were studied intensively.

Impact of ultrasound-guided high-intensity focused ultrasound for the treatment of uterine fibroids on ovarian reserve and quality of life: a single-center prospective cohort study.

Background: We aimed to evaluate changes in ovarian reserve and quality of life in women treated with ultrasound-guided high-intensity focused ultrasound (USgHIFU) for uterine fibroids.

Methods: In this single-center prospective study, a total of 69 patients with uterine fibroids treated with USgHIFU from October 2018 to November 2021 were enrolled. Fibroid volume, anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) levels, uterine fibroid symptom scores, and uterine fibroid symptoms and quality of life (UFS-QOL) questionnaire scores before and 1, 3, and 6 months after USgHIFU treatment were analyzed.

Genetic and pathophysiological insights from autopsied patient with primary familial brain calcification: novel MYORG variants and astrocytic implications.

Primary familial brain calcification (PFBC) is a genetic neurological disorder characterized by symmetric brain calcifications that manifest with variable neurological symptoms. This study aimed to explore the genetic basis of PFBC and elucidate the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms. Six patients from four pedigrees with brain calcification were enrolled.

Study of the uptake mechanism of two small extracellular vesicle subtypes by granulosa cells.

As a new mechanism of intercellular communication, the uptake of extracellular vesicles (EVs) by receptor cells has become a hot topic in the field. Previously, research on the uptake of EVs has focused on the mechanism of small EVs (sEVs, also known as exosomes). As sEVs represent a mixed heterogeneous population, the issue of whether there are different uptake mechanisms for different subsets of sEVs by recipient cells urgently need to be addressed.

Identification of Pyroptosis-Related Molecular Subtypes and Diagnostic Model development in Major Depressive Disorder.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a prevalent psychological disorder associated with inflammation, with complex pathological mechanisms. Pyroptosis has been suggested to contribute to inflammation in central nervous system diseases. Little research, however, has examined what role pyroptosis played in MDD.

Effectiveness of platelet-rich plasma in treating female hair loss: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Background: Hair loss profoundly affects women's physical appearance and psychological health. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy has gained attention as a potential treatment for female hair loss. This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to evaluate the efficacy and safety of PRP in treating different forms of female hair loss.

Sealing the Pandora's vase of pancreatic fistula through entrapping the digestive enzymes within a dextrorotary (D)-peptide hydrogel.

A variety of therapeutic possibilities have emerged for skillfully regulating protein function or conformation through intermolecular interaction modulation to rectify abnormal biochemical reactions in diseases. Herein, a devised strategy of enzyme coordinators has been employed to alleviate postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF), which is characterized by the leakage of digestive enzymes including trypsin, chymotrypsin, and lipase. The development of a dextrorotary (D)-peptide supramolecular gel (CP-CNDS) under this notion showcases its propensity for forming gels driven by intermolecular interaction.

Life history strategies predict responses of lacustrine fish communities to eutrophication.

The demographic traits of an organism are key components of its fitness and life history theory aims at identifying the environmental drivers underlying the evolution of life history strategies. For fishes, the equilibrium species, those investing into larval survival (large eggs, parental care) rather than into absolute fecundity, are hypothesized to have evolved in stable and predictable environments with high biotic pressure. Human induced nutrient enrichment in many lakes around the world makes them increasingly subjected to perturbations such as anoxia and toxic algal blooms.

Multieffect Preoxidation Strategy to Convert Bituminous Coal into Hard Carbon for Enhancing Sodium Storage Performance.

Preoxidation is an effective strategy to inhibit the graphitization of coals during carbonization. However, the single effect of the traditional preoxidation strategy could barely increase surface-active sites, hindering further enhancement of sodium storage. Herein, a multieffect preoxidation strategy was proposed to suppress structural rearrangement and create abundant surface-active sites.