New insights into the role of complement system in colorectal cancer (Review).

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers worldwide. With the growing understanding of immune regulation in tumors, the complement system has been recognized as a key regulator of tumor immunity. Traditionally, the complement cascade, considered an evolutionarily conserved defense mechanism against invading pathogens, has been viewed as a crucial inhibitor of tumor progression.

Farnesoid X receptor (FXR) as a potential therapeutic target for lung diseases: a narrative review.

Background And Objective: Farnesoid X receptor (FXR), which is encoded by the gene, is a ligand-activated transcription factor and a member of the nuclear receptor (NR) superfamily. As a receptor for bile acid (BA), FXR has been shown to play a key role in the regulation of BA metabolism, lipid metabolism, and the inflammatory response. This article reviews the roles of FXR in the pathogenesis of various lung diseases, and identifies potential diagnostic indicators or therapeutic targets for these diseases.

Characterization and quantification of the phytochemical constituents and anti-inflammatory properties of .

The dry roots of (Sims) Kosterm have a long-standing history in traditional Chinese medicine, renowned for their ability to regulate vital energy, relieve pain, warm the kidney, and dissipate cold. Recently, has been approved as a new food resource. To gain insights into the bioactive phytochemicals in , an ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution electrospray ionization quadrupole orbitrap spectrometry method was developed to investigate the chemical profiles of the ethanol extract of .

Involvement of plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 in p300/p53-mediated age-related atrial fibrosis.

Plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), a key regulator of the fibrinolytic system, is also intimately involved in the fibrosis. Although PAI-1 may be involved in the occurrence of atrial fibrillation (AF) and thrombosis in the elderly, but whether it participated in aging-related atrial fibrosis and the detailed mechanism is still unclear. We compared the transcriptomics data of young (passage 4) versus senescent (passage 14) human atrial fibroblasts and found that PAI-1 was closely related to aging-related fibrosis.

Structure-Interaction Relationship of Polymyxins with Lung Surfactant.

Multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria present an urgent and formidable threat to the global public health. Polymyxins have emerged as a last-resort therapy against these 'superbugs'; however, their efficacy against pulmonary infection is poor. In this study, we integrated chemical biology and molecular dynamics simulations to examine how the alveolar lung surfactant significantly reduces polymyxin antibacterial activity.

Physiological responses and transcriptome analysis of soybean under gradual water deficit.

Soybean is an important food and oil crop widely cultivated globally. However, water deficit can seriously affect the yield and quality of soybeans. In order to ensure the stability and increase of soybean yield and improve agricultural water use efficiency (WUE), research on improving drought tolerance and the efficiency of water utilization of soybeans under drought stress has become particularly important.

Induction Immunosuppression Does Not Worsen Tumor Recurrence After Liver Transplantation for Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Background: Prior studies are inconsistent regarding the impact of antibody induction therapy on outcomes after liver transplantation (LT) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods: Adults transplanted with HCC exception priority were identified from February 27, 2002, to March 31, 2019, using the United Network for Organ Sharing database. Time-to-event analyses evaluated the association of antibody induction therapy (none, nondepleting induction [NDI], depleting induction [DI]) with overall post-LT patient survival and HCC recurrence.

A novel approach on designing ultrahigh burnup metallic TWR fuels: Upsetting the current technological limits.

Abstract: The grand challenge of "net-zero carbon" emission calls for technological breakthroughs in energy production. The traveling wave reactor (TWR) is designed to provide economical and safe nuclear power and solve imminent problems, including limited uranium resources and radiotoxicity burdens from back-end fuel reprocessing/disposal. However, qualification of fuels and materials for TWR remains challenging and it sets an "end of the road" mark on the route of R&D of this technology.

Mechanical Performance Study of Beam-Column Connection with U-Shaped Steel Damper.

The article proposes the use of a semi-rigid energy-dissipation connection combined with a U-shaped metal damper to avoid brittle failure of rigid steel beam-column connections under seismic loading. The U-shaped metal damper connects the H-section column and the H-section beam to form a new energy-dissipation connection as an energy-dissipation member. Compared with the existing research, this connection has a stable energy-dissipation performance and great ductility.

Clinical Utility in Adopting Race-free Kidney Donor Risk Index.

Unlabelled: Recent events of racial injustice prompted us to study potential impact of removing race from kidney donor risk index (KDRI) calculator.

Methods: We used Scientific Registry for Transplant Recipients data to analyze outcomes of 66 987 deceased-donor kidney transplants performed in the United States between 2010 and 2016. Graft failure (GF) was defined as death or return to dialysis or requiring repeat transplant.

Synthesis of 3--Acetyl-11-keto-β-boswellic Acid (AKBA)-Derived Amides and Their Mitochondria-Targeted Antitumor Activities.

In this study, we synthesized a series of amide and mitochondria-targeted derivatives with 3--acetyl-11-keto-β-boswellic acid (AKBA) as the parent structure and an ethylenediamine moiety as the link chain. Compound , a mitochondrial-targeting potential derivative, showed significantly stronger antitumor activity than that of AKBA, and it could induce vacuolization of A549 cells and stimulate the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. The antioxidant -acetylcysteine (NAC) could inhibit the ROS level but could not suppress vacuolization and cell death induced by .

[Determination of trace genotoxic impurities in nifedipine by ultra high performance liquid chromatography-electrostatic field orbitrap high resolution mass spectrometry].

A method based on ultra high performance liquid chromatography-electrostatic field orbitrap high resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Orbitrap HRMS) was established for the determination of genotoxic impurities 2, 6, and 12 in nifedipine. After extraction with methanol, the sample was injected into the UHPLC-Orbitrap HRMS system for analysis. An ACE EXCEL 3 C18-AR column (150 mm×4.

Design strategies for ceria nanomaterials: untangling key mechanistic concepts.

The morphologies of ceria nanocrystals play an essential role in determining their redox and catalytic performances in many applications, yet the effects of synthesis variables on the formation of ceria nanoparticles of different morphologies and their related growth mechanisms have not been systematised. The design of these morphologies is underpinned by a range of fundamental parameters, including crystallography, optical mineralogy, the stabilities of exposed crystallographic planes, CeO stoichiometry, phase equilibria, thermodynamics, defect equilibria, and the crystal growth mechanisms. These features are formalised and the key analytical methods used for analysing defects, particularly the critical oxygen vacancies, are surveyed, with the aim of providing a source of design parameters for the synthesis of nanocrystals, specifically CeO.

Connexin 43 participates in atrial electrical remodelling through colocalization with calcium channels in atrial myocytes.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with atrial conduction disturbances caused by electrical and/or structural remodelling. In the present study, we hypothesized that connexin might interact with the calcium channel through forming a protein complex and, then, participates in the pathogenesis of AF. Western blot and whole-cell patch clamp showed that protein levels of Cav1.

Center Variability in Acute Rejection and Biliary Complications After Pediatric Liver Transplantation.

Transplant center performance and practice variation for pediatric post-liver transplantation (LT) outcomes other than survival are understudied. This was a retrospective cohort study of pediatric LT recipients who received transplants between January 1, 2006, and May 31, 2017, using United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) data that were merged with the Pediatric Health Information System database. Center effects for the acute rejection rate at 1 year after LT (AR1) using UNOS coding and the biliary complication rate at 1 year after LT (BC1) using inpatient billing claims data were estimated by center-specific rescaled odds ratios that accounted for potential differences in recipient and donor characteristics.

[Determination of -nitrosodimethylamine in metformin hydrochloride and its preparations by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry].

A method was established for the determination of -nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) in metformin hydrochloride active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) and preparation samples by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). Water was used as the extraction solvent for the metformin hydrochloride API and preparation samples. The samples were analyzed by HPLC-MS/MS after vortex mixing, constant temperature shaking, high speed centrifugation and microfiltration.

Two new sesquiterpenoid lactone derivatives from .

Two new sesquiterpenoid lactone derivatives, linderin A () and linderin B () comprising a sesquiterpenoid lactone and a methyl geranylhomogentisate moiety together with six known compounds were isolated from the roots of . Their chemical structures were elucidated using extensive spectroscopic analysis including 1 D, 2 D NMR, and HR-ESI-MS data and compared with previously reported data. The absolute configurations of and were assigned based on the electronic circular dichroism calculation.

Involvement of plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 and its related molecules in atrial fibrosis in patients with atrial fibrillation.

Atrial fibrillation is the most common form of cardiac arrhythmia. Atrial fibrosis is a significant feature of atrial fibrillation though its mechanism is not well understood. We searched the Gene Expression Omnibus database to compare mRNA expression patterns between atrial fibrillation and sinus rhythm samples; one hundred and forty eight differentially expressed genes were identified.

Ratiometric electrochemical sensing based on MoC for detection of acetaminophen.

In this work, MoO2 nanoparticles were synthesized and annealed to form Mo2C nanoparticles. This is the first report of a ratiometric electrochemical sensor (R-ECS) for the detection of acetaminophen (AP), in which Mo2C is used as the sensing agent and ferrocene (FC) is used as an internal reference. FC (100 μM) is added directly to the electrolyte solution for convenient operation.

Activation of PKCα participates in the reduction of Ikur in atrial myocytes induced by tumour necrosis factor-α.

The atrial-specific ultra-rapid delayed rectifier K current (Ikur) plays an important role in the progression of atrial fibrillation (AF). Because inflammation is known to lead to the onset of AF, we aimed to investigate whether tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) played a role in regulating Ikur and the potential signalling pathways involved. Whole-cell patch-clamp and biochemical assays were used to study the regulation and expression of Ikur in myocytes and in tissues from left atrial appendages (LAAs) obtained from patients with sinus rhythm (SR) or AF, as well as in rat cardiomyocytes (H9c2 cells) and mouse atrial myocytes (HL-1 cells).

Synthesis of MOF-derived Ni@C materials for the electrochemical detection of histamine.

Histamine (HA) plays an important role in food safety supervision and is also involved in various physiological functions. Accurate and rapid detection of HA in real sample is count for much as this is the significant prerequisite for its effective monitoring. In this study, we fabricated an electrochemical sensor to detect HA via the pyrolysis of the hydrothermal Ni-MOF (metal-organic frameworks), in which the obtained Ni@C material was deployed as the sensing agent.

The evolution of a collaboration network and its impact on innovation performance under the background of government-funded support: an empirical study in the Chinese wind power sector.

To accelerate the transformation and application of basic research results, the Chinese government has repeatedly mentioned in a government work report that it is necessary to support research and innovation collaborations between knowledge research institutions and enterprises. However, few studies have focused on the evolution of collaborations between these organizations and the impact of collaborations on innovation performance (IP) in the field of renewable energy under the background of government-funded support (GFS). Based on scientific publications, we construct a GFS collaboration network in the wind power field to investigate the evolution of network structure characteristics, attribute proximity variables, and applied research collaboration (ARC), and we study the impact of network evolution on the IP of actors.

Targeted and nontargeted screening and identification of 50 antihypertensive adulterants in dietary supplements and herbal medicines using quadrupole-orbitrap high resolution mass spectrometry with compound database.

In the present work, a novel database of drug compounds and a rapid screening method based on ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to high resolution orbitrap mass spectrometry were developed and applied in the screening and identification of targeted and nontargeted antihypertensive adulterants in dietary supplements and herbal medicines. The established screening database includes retention time, exact mass, fragments, isotopic pattern, and MS spectra library of the target compounds and thus provides automated search and identification of the targets with a single injection. The nontargeted compounds in the samples are identified through the full MS scan and MS data by using the Chemspider database and the data analysis in XCalibur, MassFrontier and TraceFinder software.