New Ultrasound-Controlled Paclitaxel Releasing Balloon vs. Asymmetric Drug-Eluting Stent in Primary ST-Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction - A Prospective Randomized Trial.

Background: Application of drug-coated balloons (DCBs) is popular for the treatment of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). A new DCB has been designed as ultrasound-controlled paclitaxel releasing. This study was conducted to determine whether a DCB-only strategy has a similar safety profile and equal angiographic and clinical outcomes to DES implantation in primary ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients, as well as determine the efficiency and safety of this new DCB.

MicroRNA-375-3p is implicated in carotid artery stenosis by promoting the cell proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells.

Background: Atherosclerosis is the main cause of carotid artery stenosis (CAS) which mostly occurs in the elderly. In this paper, the expression level of miR-375-3p in asymptomatic CAS patients and its diagnostic value for asymptomatic CAS were investigated, and the effects of miR-375-3p on the cell proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) was further explored.

Methods: 98 healthy subjects and 101 asymptomatic CAS patients were participated in this study.

ECG-guided PICC insertion using a new silicon catheter with a conductive tip: A retrospective clinical study.

Objective: Safety and efficacy of ECG-guided PICC insertion using a new silicon catheter with a conductive tip was evaluated in daily practice.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on 1659 patients who accepted successful tip-conductive PICC placement and clinically followed-up until the catheter removal between January 2018 and April 2019. Baseline of patient characteristics, catheter placement characteristics, date of dressing changes as well as records of catheter-related complications were extracted from a special designed mobile APP.

Unexpected Role of Nonimmune Cells: Amateur Phagocytes.

Effective and efficient efferocytosis of dead cells and associated cellular debris are critical to tissue homeostasis and healing of injured tissues. This important task was previously thought to be restricted to professional phagocytes (PPs). However, accumulating evidence has revealed another type of phagocyte, the amateur phagocyte (AP), which can also participate in efferocytosis.

Randomized multicenter study on long-term complications of peripherally inserted central catheters positioned by electrocardiographic technique.

Background: The intracavitary electrocardiogram (IC-ECG) method has been used for the tip location of central venous access devices for the advantage of being safe, accurate and highly cost effective. However, long-term follow-up is rare. This randomized clinical trial aimed to evaluate the long-term complications of peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) positioned by the IC-ECG method.

Comparison of complications in cranioplasty with various materials: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Meta-analysis to evaluate complications in the use of autogenous bone and bone substitutes and to compare bone substitutes, specifically HA, polyetheretherketone (PEEK) and titanium materials. Search of PubMed, Cochrane, Embase and Google scholar to identify all citations from 2010 to 2019 reporting complications regarding materials used in cranioplasty. 20 of 2266 articles met the inclusion criteria, including a total of 2913 patients.

GEM on proliferation and apoptosis of childhood AL cells through inhibiting c-myc expression by upregulating miR-125a-3p.

Effect of gemcitabine (GEM) on proliferation and apoptosis of childhood acute leukemia (AL) cells and the mechanism of action were investigated. Bone marrow and peripheral blood of 18 newly diagnosed children with childhood AL admitted to Yidu Central Hospital of Weifang were selected, and the miR-125a-3p level in peripheral blood of healthy children and children with AL was detected by quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Leukemia cells from the bone marrow of children with AL were primarily cultured and purified to observe the morphology.

Design biodegradable Zn alloys: Second phases and their significant influences on alloy properties.

Alloying combined with plastic deformation processing is widely used to improve mechanical properties of pure Zn. As-cast Zn and its alloys are brittle. Beside plastic deformation processing, no effective method has yet been found to eliminate the brittleness and even endow room temperature super-ductility.

Drug-eluting balloons versus drug-eluting stents for small vessel coronary artery disease: a meta-analysis.

Objective: We aimed to conduct a network meta-analysis of treatments for small vessels coronary artery disease between drug-eluting balloon (DEB) and drug-eluting stent (DES).

Method: A meta-analysis comparing DEB and DES outcomes was performed using the Medline, Embase, and Cochrane databases. The primary outcome was target lesion revascularization (TLR) or target vessel revascularization (TVR), and myocardial infarction (MI), death and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) were secondary outcomes.

Influence of arm position change from adduction to abduction on intracavitary electrocardiogram.

Purpose: The aim of this study is to evaluate the influence of arm movements from adduction to abduction on intracavitary electrocardiogram and the position of a catheter tip.

Methods: Overall, 192 peripherally inserted central catheter lines were placed under intracavitary electrocardiogram guidance and 188 of them were enrolled in the study. The catheter was first placed at a time point corresponding to the peak P wave with the arm in adduction.

Hemocompatibility of biodegradable Zn-0.8 wt% (Cu, Mn, Li) alloys.

Zinc alloys have been explored as potential materials for biodegradable vascular stents due to their tolerable corrosion rates and tunable mechanical properties. However, the performances of Zn alloys were not supported with enough toxicity or biological compatibility evaluation, particularly hemocompatibility for vascular scaffolding application. In this work, the hemocompatibility of three zinc alloys (Zn-0.

Long-term in vivo study of biodegradable Zn-Cu stent: A 2-year implantation evaluation in porcine coronary artery.

In the present study, a novel biodegradable Zn-0.8Cu coronary artery stent was fabricated and implanted into porcine coronary arteries for up to 24 months. Micro-CT analysis showed that the implanted stent was able to maintain structural integrity after 6 months, while its disintegration occurred after 9 months of implantation.

Safety and efficacy of leadless pacemaker retrieval.

Background And Objectives: The success rate of leadless cardiac pacemaker (LP) retrieval remains a major concern for this disruptive technology. The present paper performed a systematic review of the safety and feasibility of the retrieval of LPs.

Methods: Primary publications that performed LP retrieval were collected and included five animal experiments and two worldwide retrieval experiences in human.

Effects of Implicit Prosody and Semantic Bias on the Resolution of Ambiguous Chinese Phrases.

By manipulating the location of prosodic boundary and the semantic bias of the ambiguous "V+N1+de+N2" phrase, which is composed of one verb (V), one noun (N1), one functional word (de), and another noun (N2), this study investigated how prosodic boundary and the semantic bias affect the processing of temporary ambiguous sentences formed by the ambiguous phrase "V+N1+de+N2" through an eye movement experiment. We found the effect of prosodic boundary in the late processing stage and observed an interaction between prosodic boundary and the semantic bias of ambiguous phrases as well. The participants required more time for fixation and more regressions occurred when the meaning of the ambiguous phrase guided by prosodic boundary was inconsistent with context, especially when the ambiguous phrase was biased to the narrative-object phrase.

Effects of Ag, Cu or Ca addition on microstructure and comprehensive properties of biodegradable Zn-0.8Mn alloy.

Zn-0.8Mn (in wt%) alloy with good ductility is used for design of novel Zn-0.8Mn-0.

Meta-analysis of intracavitary electrocardiogram guidance for peripherally inserted central catheter placement.

Background: Recently, intracavitary electrocardiogram technology has been applied to peripherally inserted central catheter placement and demonstrates many potential advantages. However, the tip positioning accuracy of intracavitary electrocardiogram technology compared to conventional X-ray method is unknown.

Objective: We did a meta-analysis to compare the tip positioning accuracy between intracavitary electrocardiogram technology and conventional X-ray method.

Radiofrequency Ablation Versus Antiarrhythmic Drug Therapy for Atrial Fibrillation: Meta-analysis of Safety and Efficacy.

Background: Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and antiarrhythmic drugs (AADs) are the main treatments used for atrial fibrillation (AF). In recent years, a number of articles comparing the 2 treatments have begun to emerge. Though, the influence of follow-up time in the meta-analysis was not considered in these articles.

Insertion of peripherally inserted central catheters with intracavitary electrocardiogram guidance: A randomized multicenter study in China.

Introduction: Ultrasound-guided venipuncture and tip location by intracavitary electrocardiogram have many advantages during the insertion of peripherally inserted central catheters, both in terms of safety and cost-effectiveness. Recently, a new tip-conductive peripherally inserted central catheters and new Doppler ultrasound device integrated with intracavitary electrocardiogram have been introduced into clinical practice in China. A randomized multicenter study (clinical trial no.

Meta-analysis of the incidence of lead dislodgement with conventional and leadless pacemaker systems.

Introduction: Leadless cardiac pacemaker (LCP) implantation using a transcatheter was recently developed to avoid pocket- and lead-related complications. Although a LCP has an active fixation mechanism using tines or a helix, LCP and lead dislodgement issues remain a major safety concern for patients. This article reviews the literature to determine the incidence of lead and LCP dislodgement.

RanBPM contributes to TrkB signaling and regulates brain-derived neurotrophic factor-induced neuronal morphogenesis and survival.

Tropomyosin-related kinase (Trk) B is a receptor tyrosine kinase for brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) which plays a critical role in neuronal survival, differentiation and morphogenesis. Ran-binding protein in the microtubule-organizing center (RanBPM) is a cytosolic scaffold protein that has been shown to interact with protein-tyrosine kinase receptor MET, Axl/Sky, and TrkA in addition to the pan-neurotrophin receptor pan-neurotrophin receptor 75 kDa. In this study, we report RanBPM is a novel TrkB-interacting protein that contributes to BDNF-induced MAPK and Akt activation together with neuronal morphogenesis and survival.

Mechanism underlying activity-dependent insertion of TrkB into the neuronal surface.

Activity-dependent insertion of tyrosine kinase receptor type 2 (TrkB receptor) into the plasma membrane can explain, in part, the preferential effect of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) on active neurons; however, the detailed cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying this process are still unclear. In our study, we developed a fluorescence ratiometric assay for surface TrkB receptors to investigate the mechanisms of recruitment of TrkB to the plasma membrane following chemical long-term potentiation (cLTP) induction. We found that, in hippocampal neurons, the effect of cLTP-induced TrkB surface-recruitment occurred predominantly on neurites with rapid kinetics (t(1/2) of approximately 2.

Down-regulation of Sonic hedgehog signaling pathway activity is involved in 5-fluorouracil-induced apoptosis and motility inhibition in Hep3B cells.

The Sonic hedgehog (SHh) pathway plays a critical role in normal embryogenesis and carcinogenesis, but its function in cancer cells treated with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) remains unknown. We examined the expression of a subset of SHh signaling pathway genes, including SHh, SMO, PTC1, Su(Fu) and HIP in human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cell lines, Hep3B and HepG2, treated with 5-FU by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Using trypan blue analysis, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated digoxigenin-dUTP nick-end labeling assay, we also detected the apoptosis of Hep3B cells resulting from the transfection of pCS2-Gli1 expression vector combined with 5-FU treatment.