The use of MitraClip for nonobstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy with mixed severe mitral valve regurgitation.

Reports on the treatment of nonobstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) and severe mitral valve regurgitation (MR) with transcatheter edge-to-edge repair (TEER) are rare. Herein, we present the case of a 68-year-old Chinese man with nonobstructive HCM admitted to our hospital with dyspnoea [New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional Class IV]. Transthoracic echocardiography indicated severe MR in addition to asymmetric hypertrophy of the left ventricle.

Screening Carbon-Boron Frustrated Lewis Pairs for Small-Molecule Activation including N , O , CO, CO , CS , H O and CH : A Computational Study.

Dinitrogen (N ) activation is particularly challenging under ambient conditions because of its large highest occupied molecular orbital-lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (HOMO-LUMO) gap (10.8 eV) and high bond dissociation energy (945 kJ mol ) of the N≡N triple bond, attracting considerable attention from both experimental and theoretical chemists. However, most effort has focused on metallic systems.

Ternary nanocomposites of CdS/WO/g-CN for hydrogen production.

The sustainable rise in global warming and the consumption of fossil fuels considerably contribute to energy and environmental issues. To address these issues, semiconductor heterostructures can be used to generate clean energy sources as alternative energy sources and to reduce environmental impacts. Herein, we report the synthesis of a ternary semiconductor of the CdS/WO/g-CN ( C-CNW) nanostructured composite for hydrogen production and dye degradation under visible-light irradiation.

Distribution and removal mechanism of microplastics in urban wastewater plants systems via different processes.

Microplastic pollution threatens water systems worldwide. As one of the most important parts of city wastewater treatment, wastewater treatment plants are not only microplastics interception barriers but also emission sources. Water samples were collected from each sewage treatment plant stage and sludge from the sludge dewatering room.

Additive-controlled asymmetric iodocyclization enables enantioselective access to both α- and β-nucleosides.

β-Nucleosides and their analogs are dominant clinically-used antiviral and antitumor drugs. α-Nucleosides, the anomers of β-nucleosides, exist in nature and have significant potential as drugs or drug carriers. Currently, the most widely used methods for synthesizing β- and α-nucleosides are via N-glycosylation and pentose aminooxazoline, respectively.

Buffer zone-based trace elements indicating the impact of human activities on karst urban groundwater.

The tanglesome allocation of landscape types at various spatial dimensions is an important component influencing the quality of groundwater environment in karst cities. Trace elements can be used as indicators of the extent of impact on groundwater which is an effective means of tracing groundwater contamination. In this study, we studied the influence of landscape patterns on trace elements in groundwater of typical karst cities in Southwest China (Guiyang City) on a multi-spatial scale by using multivariate statistical analysis.

High-Throughput Strategies for the Design, Discovery, and Analysis of Bismuth-Based Photocatalysts.

Bismuth-based nanostructures (BBNs) have attracted extensive research attention due to their tremendous development in the fields of photocatalysis and electro-catalysis. BBNs are considered potential photocatalysts because of their easily tuned electronic properties by changing their chemical composition, surface morphology, crystal structure, and band energies. However, their photocatalytic performance is not satisfactory yet, which limits their use in practical applications.

Prediction of Spatiotemporal Changes in Sloping Cropland in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River Region under Different Scenarios.

With the rapid urban expansion and extensive occupation of cropland, sloping cropland has become an important cropland resource across China. How sloping cropland will change under different socioeconomic scenarios is poorly understood. Therefore, we modeled land-cover change using SSP-RCP multi-scenario simulations and analyzed the evolution and driving factors of sloping cropland change in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River Region (MRYRR).

Development of a designed comparison method based on isotope dilution liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for determining plasma renin activity and its clinical assessment of renin activity stability in plasma.

Plasma renin activity (PRA) is recommended as the first screening indicator for primary aldosteronism. Immunoassays and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) methods have been developed for quantifying PRA, but the interchangeability across assays and laboratories was suboptimal, which predominantly related to the differences in the plasma incubation strategy. This study aims to establish and validate a designed comparison method based on LC-MS/MS.

Regulating Spin States in Oxygen Electrocatalysis.

Developing efficient and stable transition metal oxides catalysts for energy conversion processes such as oxygen evolution reaction and oxygen reduction reaction is one of the key measures to solve the problem of energy shortage. The spin state of transition metal oxides is strongly correlated with their catalytic activities. In an octahedral structure of transition metal oxides, the spin state of active centers could be regulated by adjusting the splitting energy and the electron pairing energy.

Label-free impedimetric immunosensor for point-of-care detection of COVID-19 antibodies.

The COVID-19 pandemic has posed enormous challenges for existing diagnostic tools to detect and monitor pathogens. Therefore, there is a need to develop point-of-care (POC) devices to perform fast, accurate, and accessible diagnostic methods to detect infections and monitor immune responses. Devices most amenable to miniaturization and suitable for POC applications are biosensors based on electrochemical detection.

Structural-Based Stability Enhancement of Antisense DNA Oligonucleotides.

Antisense DNA oligonucleotide (AS) technology is a promising approach to regulate gene expression and cellular processes. For example, ASs can be used to capture the overexpressed, oncogenic miRNAs in tumors to suppress tumor growth. Among many challenges faced by AS approach is the degradation of ASs by nucleases under physiological conditions.

Engineering 2D Aligned Nanowires Assembled Porous Hetero-Membrane for Smart Ion Transport.

Engineering 2D nanosheets with well-defined porous structures and their assembled heterostructure membrane is a promising method to improve osmotic energy conversion. However, it is still a great challenge to directly fabricate 2D nanosheets with regular parallel nanochannels in aqueous media. Here, the desired functional nanosheets and heterostructure membrane device are successfully prepared through a simple interfacial assembly strategy.

Bicyclomycin Activity against Multidrug-Resistant Gram-Negative Pathogens.

The growing prevalence of antimicrobial resistance poses a grave threat to human health. Among the most difficult bacterial infections to treat are those caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) Gram-negative pathogens because few effective regimens are available. One approach to this problem is to find ways to increase the activity of old antimicrobials that had seen limited application.

Coupled controls of the infiltration of rivers, urban activities and carbonate on trace elements in a karst groundwater system from Guiyang, Southwest China.

Hydrogeochemical processes of trace elements (TEs) are of considerable significance to river water and groundwater resource assessment and utilization in the karst region. Therefore, seven TEs were analyzed to investigate their contents, spatial variations, sources, and controlling factors in Guiyang, a typical karst urban area in southwest China. The results showed that the average content of TEs in river water (e.

Oral Administration of Branched-Chain Amino Acids Attenuates Atherosclerosis by Inhibiting the Inflammatory Response and Regulating the Gut Microbiota in ApoE-Deficient Mice.

Atherosclerosis (AS) is a chronic inflammatory disease that serves as a common pathogenic underpinning for various cardiovascular diseases. Although high circulating branched-chain amino acid (BCAA) levels may represent a risk factor for AS, it is unclear whether dietary BCAA supplementation causes elevated levels of circulating BCAAs and hence influences AS, and the related mechanisms are not well understood. Here, ApoE-deficient mice (ApoE) were fed a diet supplemented with or without BCAAs to investigate the effects of BCAAs on AS and determine potential related mechanisms.

One-Step Approach for Constructing High-Density Single-Atom Catalysts toward Overall Water Splitting at Industrial Current Densities.

The construction of highly active, durable, and cost-effective catalysts is urgently needed for green hydrogen production. Herein, catalysts consisting of high-density Pt (24 atoms nm ) and Ir (32 atoms nm ) single atoms anchored on Co(OH) were constructed by a facile one-step approach. Remarkably, Pt /Co(OH) and Ir /Co(OH) only required 4 and 178 mV at 10 mA cm for hydrogen evolution reaction and oxygen evolution reaction, respectively.

Microbiological quality of roof tank water in an urban village in southeastern China.

Urban villages are unique residential neighborhoods in urban areas in China. Roof tanks are their main form of water supply, and water quality deterioration might occur in this system because of poor hygienic conditions and maintenance. In this study, water samples were seasonally collected from an urban village to investigate the influence of roof tanks as an additional water storage device on the variation in the microbial community structure and pathogenic gene markers.

Deficiency of astrocyte CysLTR ameliorates depression-like behaviors in mice by modulating glutamate synaptic transmission.

Our previous study suggests that hippocampal cysteinyl leukotriene receptor 1 (CysLTR) could be involved in depression. Herein we hypothesize that CysLTR may regulate depression by affecting synaptic glutamate cycling based on existence of CysLTR in the astrocytes that participate in occurrence of depression. We found that CysLTR expression was significantly increased in the astrocyte of chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS)-induced depression-like mice, CysLTR astrocyte-specific conditional knockout (AcKO) significantly improved depression-like behaviors, as indicated by decreased immobility time in the forced swimming test and tail suspension test and increased sucrose preference in the sucrose preference test, and knockdown of CysLTR in the astrocyte of dentate gyrus (DG), the region with the most significant increase of CysLTR in the astrocyte of depression-like mice, produced similar effects.

Switchable ROS Scavenger/Generator for MRI-Guided Anti-Inflammation and Anti-Tumor Therapy with Enhanced Therapeutic Efficacy and Reduced Side Effects.

Photosensitizer in photodynamic therapy (PDT)  accumulates in both tumor and adjacent normal tissue due to low selective biodistribution, results in undesirable side effect with limited clinic application. Herein, an intelligent nanoplatform is reported that selectively acts as reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenger in normal tissue but as ROS generator in tumor microenvironment (TME) to differentially control ROS level in tumor and surrounding normal tissue during PDT. By down-regulating the produced ROS with dampened cytokine wave in normal tissue after PDT, the nanoplatform reduces the inflammatory response of normal tissue in PDT, minimizing the side effect and tumor metastasis in PDT.

Monitoring Electron Flow in Nickel Single-Atom Catalysts during Nitrogen Photofixation.

An efficient catalytic system for nitrogen (N) photofixation generally consists of light-harvesting units, active sites, and an electron-transfer bridge. In order to track photogenerated electron flow between different functional units, it is highly desired to develop characterization techniques with element-specific capability, surface sensitivity, and detection of unoccupied states. In this work, we developed synchrotron radiation soft X-ray absorption spectroscopy ( sXAS) to probe the variation of electronic structure for a reaction system during N photoreduction.

Regulating photochemical properties of carbon dots for theranostic applications.

As a new zero-dimensional carbon-based material, carbon dots (CDs) have attracted extensive attention owing to their advantages such as easy preparation and surface modification, good biocompatibility and water solubility, and tunable photochemical properties. CDs have become one of the most promising nanomaterials in the field of fluorescent sensing, bioimaging, and cancer therapy. How to precisely regulate the photochemical properties, especially the absorption, fluorescence, phosphorescence, reactive oxygen species generation, and photothermal conversion of the CDs, is the key to developing highly efficient phototheranostics for cancer treatment.

Optimized ventilation strategy for surgery on patients with obesity from the perspective of lung protection: A network meta-analysis.

Objectives: New ventilation modes have been proposed to support the perioperative treatment of patients with obesity, but there is a lack of consensus regarding the optimal strategy. Therefore, a network meta-analysis update of 13 ventilation strategies was conducted to determine the optimal mode of mechanical ventilation as a protective ventilation strategy decreases pulmonary atelectasis caused by inflammation.

Methods: The following databases were searched: MEDLINE; Cochrane Library; Embase; CINAHL; Google Scholar; and Web of Science for randomized controlled trials of mechanical ventilation in patients with obesity published up to May 1, 2022.

A Prognostic Nomogram with High Accuracy Based on 2D-SWE in Patients with Acute-on-chronic Liver Failure.

Background And Aims: Acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) is associated with very high mortality. Accurate prediction of prognosis is critical in navigating optimal treatment decisions to improve patient survival. This study was aimed to develop a new nomogram integrating two-dimensional shear wave elastography (2D-SWE) values with other independent prognostic factors to improve the precision of predicting ACLF patient outcomes.

A Rapid, Simple, Trace, Cost-Effective, and High-Throughput Stable Isotope-Dilution Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry Method for Serum Methylmalonic Acid Quantification and Its Clinical Applications.

Background: Methylmalonic acid (MMA) is an essential indicator of vitamin B12 (VB12) deficiency and inherited metabolic disorders (IMDs). The increasing number of requests for MMA testing call for higher requirements for convenient MMA testing methods. This study aims to develop a convenient quantification method for serum MMA.