Sex hormones and reproductive factors with cardiac arrhythmia and ECG indices: a mendelian randomization study.

Background: Sex is a determinant of the incidence and etiology of arrhythmia. Observational and basic studies suggest that sex hormones are essential in this process; however, the relationship between sex hormones and arrhythmia remains unclear. Mendelian randomization (MR) was used to investigate the causal relationships between sex hormone levels, arrhythmia, and electrocardiographic (ECG) indices.

Risk factors for urinary tract infection in elderly patients with type 2 diabetes: A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.

Introduction: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a frequent chronic condition among the elderly, which increasing their susceptibility to infection. Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most prevalent infections among older people with T2DM. However, the association between geriatric T2DM and the risk of UTI has not been thoroughly researched and is still contentious.

Catheter ablation for patients with anomalous pulmonary venous return and atrial fibrillation: a case report and literature review.

Background: Anomalous pulmonary venous return involves the partial or complete absence of a connection between the pulmonary veins and the left atrium. The pulmonary vein potential plays a vital role in atrial fibrillation, and catheter ablation to isolate the pulmonary vein is crucial for treating this condition. However, when anomalous pulmonary venous return is present, it makes ablation more challenging and increases the risk of atrial fibrillation recurrence after the procedure.

Relationship between the Co-Continuous Morphology of Immiscible Polymer Blends and the Structure of an In Situ Formed Graft Copolymer.

In order to get stable co-continuous morphology in immiscible polymer blends, besides reducing the interfacial tension, the compatibilizer should not only promote the formation of flat interface between different phases, but also not hinder the coalescence of the dispersed phase. Herein, the relationship between the morphology of the compatibilized polystyrene/nylon 6/styrene-maleic anhydride (PS/PA6/SMA) immiscible polymer blends and the structures of the in-situ formed SMA-g-PA6 graft copolymers as well as the processing conditions are studied. Two kinds of SMA are used: SMA28 (28 wt.

Synergistic Double Cross-Linked Dynamic Network of Epoxidized Natural Rubber/Glycinamide Modified Polyacrylic Acid for Silicon Anode in Lithium Ion Battery: High Peel Strength and Super Cycle Stability.

Silicon (Si), a high-capacity lithium-ion battery anode material, has aroused wide attention. Its further practical application has been limited by its huge volume change during the cycle. To reduce this defect, the double cross-linked product of glycinamide hydrochloride modified poly(acrylic acid) (PAG) and epoxidized natural rubber (ENR) was developed as a water-based binder to obtain sufficient elasticity and a sufficiently strong adhesive force.

A narrative review on sacubitril/valsartan and ventricular arrhythmias.

Sacubitril/valsartan, the first angiotensin receptor neprilysin inhibitor approved by the Food and Drug Administration for marketing, has been shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular death or heart failure hospitalization and improve symptoms in patients with chronic heart failure with a reduced ejection fraction. However, some researchers have also found that sacubitril/valsartan has an antiarrhythmic effect. The mechanism by which sacubitril/valsartan reduces the mortality associated with malignant ventricular arrhythmias is not precise.

The "criminal" artery of de Winter may be the left circumflex artery: A CARE-compliant case report.

Rationale: De Winter et al first described a new ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI)-equivalent pattern associated with acute occlusion of the left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD). Studies show that this pattern has a positive predictive value of 95.2% to 100%.

Density Functional Theory of Polymer Structure and Conformations.

We present a density functional approach to quantitatively evaluate the microscopic conformations of polymer chains with consideration of the effects of chain stiffness, polymer concentration, and short chain molecules. For polystyrene (PS), poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO), and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) melts with low-polymerization degree, as chain length increases, they display different stretching ratios and show non-universal scaling exponents due to their different chain stiffnesses. In good solvent, increase of PS concentration induces the decline of gyration radius.

Theoretical Insight into Dispersion of Silica Nanoparticles in Polymer Melts.

Silica nanoparticles dispersed in polystyrene, poly(methyl methacrylate), and poly(ethylene oxide) melts have been investigated using a density functional approach. The polymers are regarded as coarse-grained semiflexible chains, and the segment sizes are represented by their Kuhn lengths. The particle-particle and particle-polymer interactions are calculated with the Hamaker theory to reflect the relationship between particles and polymer melts.

Arabidopsis ABCG14 protein controls the acropetal translocation of root-synthesized cytokinins.

Cytokinins are a major group of phytohormones regulating plant growth, development and stress responses. However, in contrast to the well-defined polar transport of auxins, the molecular basis of cytokinin transport is poorly understood. Here we show that an ATP-binding cassette transporter in Arabidopsis, AtABCG14, is essential for the acropetal (root to shoot) translocation of the root-synthesized cytokinins.

Folate polyglutamylation eliminates dependence of activity on enzyme concentration in mitochondrial serine hydroxymethyltransferases from Arabidopsis thaliana.

The reversible reaction catalyzed by serine hydroxymethyltransferase (SHMT) is the major one-carbon unit source for essential metabolic processes. The Arabidopsis thaliana genome encodes seven SHMT isozymes localized in mitochondria, plastids, nuclei, and the cytosol. Knowledge of the biochemical properties of each isozyme is central to understanding and manipulating one-carbon metabolism in plants.

An FMN hydrolase of the haloacid dehalogenase superfamily is active in plant chloroplasts.

FMN hydrolases catalyze dephosphorylation of FMN to riboflavin. Although these enzymes have been described in many organisms, few had their corresponding genes cloned and their recombinant proteins biochemically characterized, and none had their physiological roles determined. We found previously that FMN hydrolase activity in pea chloroplasts is Mg(2+)-dependent, suggesting an enzyme of the haloacid dehalogenase (HAD) superfamily.

A high-performance liquid chromatography-based fluorometric method for assaying serine hydroxymethyltransferase toward serine formation.

A high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-based fluorometric method for measuring serine hydroxymethyltransferase (SHMT) activity toward formation of serine and (6S)-H(4)PteGlu(n) has been developed. In this method, serine formed by SHMT activity is reacted with 4-fluoro-7-nitro-2,1,3-benzoxadiazole (NBD-F) to form the fluorescent adduct NBD-serine. The fluorescent assay components are then separated by reversed-phase chromatography, and NBD-serine is quantified by comparison with standards.