Interleukin-9 blockage reduces early hepatic granuloma formation and fibrosis during Schistosoma japonicum infection in mice.

Hepatic fibrosis induced by schistosomes is regulated by a complex network of cytokines. T helper type 9 (Th9) cells are a new type of effector T helper cells, which mainly secrete the specific cytokine interleukin-9 (IL-9). Interleukin-9 has been shown to contribute to liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B and in a mouse model due to carbon tetrachloride.

Brain Lesion Segmentation Based on Joint Constraints of Low-Rank Representation and Sparse Representation.

The segmentation of brain lesions from a brain magnetic resonance (MR) image is of great significance for the clinical diagnosis and follow-up treatment. An automatic segmentation method for brain lesions is proposed based on the low-rank representation (LRR) and the sparse representation (SR) theory. The proposed method decomposes the brain image into the background part composed of brain tissue and the brain lesion part.

Inhibition of long non-coding RNA metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 attenuates high glucose-induced cardiomyocyte apoptosis via regulation of miR-181a-5p.

Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is one of the cardiovascular complications of diabetes mellitus independent of hypertension, coronary disease, and other heart diseases. The development of DCM is multifactorial and hard to detect at an early stage. Long non-coding RNA metastasis-associated lung adenocarcinoma transcript 1 (Malat1) is emerging as a regulator of DCM, the underlying mechanism of its role in DCM has not been elaborated yet.

Comparison of Efficacy and Complications Between Negative Pressure Wound Therapy and Conventional Mechanical Fixation in Skin Grafts: A Retrospective Analysis.

Introduction: Graft fixation is critical for the successful survival of a skin graft. Conventional mechanical fixation may induce inappropriate pressure and increase wound complications. Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) could be utilized to secure a skin graft and improve drainage.

A Visible-Light-Induced Dynamic Mechanical Bond as a Linkage for Dynamic Materials.

Exploring dynamic bonds and their applications in fabricating dynamic materials has received great attention. A photoinduced [2]rotaxane-based dynamic mechanical bond (DMB) features visible-light-triggered dynamic bonding behavior that is essentially distinguished from conventional dynamic chemical bonds. In this DMB, a photoisomerizable ortho-fluoroazobenzene unit is introduced as a steric-controllable stopper, the visible-light-induced dynamic wagging movement of which enables the photoregulated threading of the macrocycle.

Shift in the timing of microvascular free tissue transfer failures in head and neck reconstruction.

Objective: Analyze the cause and significance of a shift in the timing of free flap failures in head and neck reconstruction.

Study Design: Retrospective multi-institutional review of prospectively collected databases at tertiary care centers.

Methods: Included consecutive patients undergoing free flap reconstructions of head and neck defects between 2007 and 2017.

A new mitochondrion targetable fluorescent probe for carbon monoxide-specific detection and live cell imaging.

A new mitochondrion targetable molecular probe for carbon monoxide (CO)-specific detection based on palladium-free mediated opening of spirolactam was designed. The turn-on red fluorescence caused by CO enables a safe and powerful method for unravelling the function of CO in biological systems to be established.

Detection of mutational patterns in cell-free DNA of colorectal cancer by custom amplicon sequencing.

Monitoring the mutational patterns of solid tumors during cancer therapy is a major challenge in oncology. Analysis of mutations in cell-free (cf) DNA offers a noninvasive approach to detect mutations that may be prognostic for disease survival or predictive for primary or secondary drug resistance. A main challenge for the application of cfDNA as a diagnostic tool is the diverse mutational landscape of cancer.

["Watch and wait" strategy after neoadjuvant therapy for rectal cancer: status survey of perceptions, attitudes and treatment selection in Chinese surgeons].

To understand the perceptions, attitudes and treatment selection of Chinese surgeons on the "watch and wait" strategy for rectal cancer patients after achieving a clinical complete response (cCR) following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT). A crosssectional survey was used in this study. Selection of subjects: (1) Domestic public grade III A (provincial and prefecture-level) oncology hospitals or general hospitals possessing the radiotherapy department and the diagnosis and treatment qualifications for colorectal cancer.

Postoperative opioid-prescribing practices in otolaryngology: A multiphasic study.

Objectives: In otolaryngology, postoperative pain management lacks evidence-based guidelines. We designed a prospective, multiphasic study aimed to develop evidence-based guidelines for postoperative pain management within our institution. In this first phase of our project, we investigated opioid prescription and consumption as well as pain trends for common otolaryngologic procedures.

Inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated pyroptosis in macrophage by cycloastragenol contributes to amelioration of imiquimod-induced psoriasis-like skin inflammation in mice.

Psoriasis is a common chronic inflammatory skin disease, and the infiltrated macrophages in psoriatic skin lesions play a key role in the progression of this uncontrolled cutaneous inflammation. However, the current therapeutic strategies for patients with psoriasis are not satisfactory. Here, we report that cycloastragenol (CAG), a natural active small compound isolated from Astragalus membranaceus, significantly ameliorated imiquimod (IMQ)-induced psoriasiform dermatitis in mice by targeting proinflammatory macrophages.

Electrochemical removal of amoxicillin using a Cu doped PbO electrode: Electrode characterization, operational parameters optimization and degradation mechanism.

This work investigated the electrochemical degradation of amoxicillin (AMX) in aqueous solution with Cu-PbO electrode. The main influence factors on the degradation of AMX, such as NaSO concentration, initial AMX concentration, current density and initial pH value, were analyzed in detail. Under the optimal conditions, the removal rates of AMX and chemical oxygen demand (COD) reached 99.

Treatment-Related Prognostic Factors in Managing Osteosarcoma around the Knee with Limb Salvage Surgery: A Lesson from a Long-Term Follow-Up Study.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to assess the treatment-related factors associated with local recurrence and overall survival of patients with osteosarcoma treated with limb-salvage surgery.

Patients And Methods: Treatment-related factors were analyzed to evaluate their effects on local recurrence-free survival (LRFS) and overall survival (OS) in 182 patients from 2004 to 2013.

Results: The mean length of follow-up was 73.

In situ growth of ultrathin NiFe layered double hydroxide nanosheets on reduced oxide graphene as an enhanced oxygen evolution electrocatalyst.

It is highly essential but challengeable to explore the earth-abundant and low-cost oxygen evolution reaction catalysts to replace Ir- or/and Ru-based ones. In this article, we report an in situ growth of ultrathin NiFe layered double hydroxide nanosheets on reduced graphene oxide in formamide aqueous solution followed by simple chemical reduction. These ultrathin layered double hydroxide nanosheets in the composite occur in single- or multi-layer forms on reduced graphene oxide matrix.

Performance-Enhanced 365 nm UV LEDs with Electrochemically Etched Nanoporous AlGaN Distributed Bragg Reflectors.

A 365-nm UV LED was fabricated based on embedded nanoporous AlGaN distributed Bragg reflectors (DBR) by electrochemical etching. The porous DBR had a reflectance of 93.5% at the central wavelength of 365 nm; this is the highest value of porous AlGaN DBRs below 370 nm which has been reported so far.

Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation for Multiple Myeloma: Growth Factor Matters.

Engraftment syndrome (ES) is a known complication of autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant during neutrophil recovery. There is a limited amount of data available comparing the incidence of ES with post-transplant granulocyte colony-stimulating factor versus granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), specifically in patients with multiple myeloma. Our retrospective review of 156 patients at a single center showed that GM-CSF was associated with a higher incidence of ES compared with G-CSF (32% versus 8% of patients, P < .

Salvage endovascular septectomy in patients with chronic abdominal aortic dissection after failed endovascular aneurysm repair.

This study aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of salvage endovascular septectomy in patients with abdominal chronic aortic dissection (CAD) after endovascular aneurysm repair. A study cohort comprising 6 patients with chronic abdominal aortic dissection after failed endovascular aortic repair [mean age 62.5 (36-69) years] were enrolled to undergo salvage endovascular septectomy.

Improving near-eye display resolution by polarization multiplexing.

We present here an optical approach to boost the apparent pixel density by utilizing the superimposition of two shifted-pixel grids generated by a Pancharatnam-Berry deflector (PBD). The content of the two shifted pixel grids are presented to the observer's eye simultaneously using a polarization-multiplexing method. Considering the compact and lightweight nature of PBD, this approach has potential applications in near-eye display systems.

Surgical complications after different therapeutic approaches for locally advanced rectal cancer.

Background: Preoperative radiochemotherapy is widely used in locally advanced rectal cancer. It can improve local control of rectal cancer. However, some researchers believe it increases the incidence of surgical complications.

Comparison of minimally invasive Ivor Lewis esophagectomy and left transthoracic esophagectomy in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients: a propensity score-matched analysis.

Background: To investigate the long-term efficacy of the minimally invasive Ivor Lewis esophagectomy (MIILE) in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) patients, a retrospective comparison of the quality of life (QOL) and survival between patients who underwent MIILE and left transthoracic esophagectomy (Sweet approach) was conducted.

Methods: A detailed database search identified 614 patients who underwent MIILE and 243 patients who underwent Sweet esophagectomy between January 2011 and December 2017. After propensity score matching, 216 paired cases were selected for statistical analysis.

Down-regulation of HTR1A-modulated ACC activation contributes to stress-induced visceral hyperalgesia in rats.

Background: Long-term stress was suggested to cause visceral hypersensitivity and promote functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs). Some brain regions such as the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) may play an important role for generating visceral hypersensitivity; however, its molecular mechanisms are not clear. This study aimed to explore the role of 5-HT1A receptors (HTR1As) in activating ACC and corresponding mechanism, in stress-induced visceral hyperalgesia rats.

Awareness of ocular diagnosis, transportation means, and barriers to ophthalmology follow-up in the Philadelphia Telemedicine Glaucoma Detection and Follow-up Study.

: The purpose of this study was to assess factors affecting follow-up eye care in participants enrolled in the , such as awareness of ocular diagnosis, availability of transportation methods, and reasons for missing eye care appointments. : The sample included 172 participants who were randomized to the intervention group and contacted by the social worker. : A total of 155 participants completed the assessment form, which was used as an instrument to assess factors affecting adherence to follow-up eye care.

MEK inhibitors activate Wnt signalling and induce stem cell plasticity in colorectal cancer.

In colorectal cancer (CRC), aberrant Wnt signalling is essential for tumorigenesis and maintenance of cancer stem cells. However, how other oncogenic pathways converge on Wnt signalling to modulate stem cell homeostasis in CRC currently remains poorly understood. Using large-scale compound screens in CRC, we identify MEK1/2 inhibitors as potent activators of Wnt/β-catenin signalling.

Thoracoscopic surgery for management of pleuroperitoneal communication complicating continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis: A case report.

Rationale: Pleuroperitoneal communication (PPC) has been reported to complicate continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD). However, cases of patients in whom the results of the methylene blue dye test and peritoneopleural scintigraphy were negative and treatment was thoracoscopic surgery have been rarely reported.

Patient Concerns: A 58-year-old man with end-stage chronic renal failure who underwent CAPD presented with massive right-sided hydrothorax.