bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of near-infrared hyperspectral imaging for the assessment of potato processing aptitude
Authors: López-Maestresalas Ainara , Lopez-Molina Carlos , Oliva-Lobo Gil Alfonso , Jarén Carmen , Ruiz de Galarreta Jose Ignacio , Peraza-Alemán Carlos Miguel , Arazuri Silvia
Published: October 2022

The potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is the world’s fifth most important staple food with high socioeconomic relevance. Several potato cultivars obtained by selection and crossbreeding are currently on the market. This diversity causes tubers to exhibit different behaviors depending on the processing to which they are subjected. Therefore, it is interesting to identify cultivars with specific characteristics that best suit consumer preferences. In this work, we present a method to classify potatoes according to their cooking or frying as crisps aptitude using NIR hyperspectral imaging (HIS) combined with a Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA). Two classification approaches were used in this study. First, a classification model using the mean spectra of a dataset composed of 80 tubers belonging to 10 different cultivars. Then, a pixel-wise classification using all the pixels of each sample of a small subset of samples comprised of 30 tubers. Hyperspectral images were acquired using fresh-cut potato slices as sample material placed on a mobile platform of a hyperspectral system in the NIR range from 900 to 1,700 nm. After image processing, PLS-DA models were built using different pre-processing combinations. Excellent accuracy rates were obtained for the models developed using the mean spectra of all samples with 90% of tubers correctly classified in the external dataset. Pixel-wise classification models achieved lower accuracy rates between 66.62 and 71.97% in the external validation datasets. Moreover, a forward interval PLS (iPLS) method was used to build pixel-wise PLS-DA models reaching accuracies above 80 and 71% in cross-validation and external validation datasets, respectively. Best classification result was obtained using a subset of 100 wavelengths (20 intervals) with 71.86% of pixels correctly classified in the validation dataset. Classification maps were generated showing that false negative pixels were mainly located at the edges of the fresh-cut slices while false positive were principally distributed at the central pith, which has singular characteristics.
HPGDS is a novel prognostic marker associated with lipid metabolism and aggressiveness in lung adenocarcinoma
Authors: Shao Fengling , Mao Huajie , Luo Tengling , Li Qijun , Xu Lei , Xie Yajun
Published: October 2022

Background

Lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) is the most common respiratory globallywith a poor prognosis. Lipid metabolism is extremely important for the occurrence and development of cancer. However, the role of genes involved in lipid metabolism in LUAD development is unclear. We aimed to identify the abnormal lipid metabolism pathway of LUAD, construct a novel prognostic model of LUAD, and discover novel biomarkers involved in lipid metabolism in LUAD.

Methods

Based on differentially expressed genes involved in lipid metabolism in LUAD samples from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), abnormal lipid metabolism pathways in LUAD were analyzed. The lasso penalized regression analysis was performed on the TCGA cohort (training set) to construct a risk score formula. The predictive ability of the risk score was validated in the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) dataset (validation set) using Kaplan-Meier analysis and ROC curves. Finally, based on CRISPR gene editing technology, hematopoietic prostaglandin D synthase (HPGDS) was knocked out in A549 cell lines, the changes in lipid metabolism-related markers were detected by western blotting, and the changes in cell migration were detected by transwell assay.

Results

Based on the differential genes between lung cancer tissue and normal tissue, we found that the arachidonic acid metabolism pathway is an abnormal lipid metabolism pathway in both lung adenocarcinoma and lung squamous cell carcinoma. Based on the sample information of TCGA and abnormally expressed lipid metabolism-related genes, a 9-gene prognostic risk score was successfully constructed and validated in the GEO dataset. Finally, we found that knockdown of HPGDS in A549 cell lines promoted lipid synthesis and is more invasive than in control cells. Rescue assays showed that ACSL1 knockdown reversed the pro-migration effects of HPGDS knockdown. The knockdown of HPGDS promoted migration response by upregulating the expression of the lipid metabolism key enzymes ACSL1 and ACC.

Conclusion

The genes involved in lipid metabolism are associated with the occurrence and development of LUAD. HPGDS can be a therapeutic target of a potential lipid metabolism pathway in LUAD, and the therapeutic target of lipid metabolism genes in LUAD should be studied further.
Potential roles of PIWI-interacting RNAs in lung cancer
Authors: Jian Zheng , Han Yichao , Li Hecheng
Published: October 2022

Lung cancer is a malignant tumor with high morbidity and mortality in the world today. Emerging evidence suggests that PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) are aberrantly expressed in various human cancers, including lung cancer. Despite of the poorly understood mechanism, piRNAs may work as carcinogenic roles or tumor suppressors by engaging in a variety of cancer-associated signaling pathways. Therefore, they might serve as potential therapeutic targets, diagnostic indicators, or prognostic indicators in lung cancer. This review will discuss the new findings of piRNAs, including their biosynthetic processes, mechanisms of gene suppression, and the significance of these piRNAs tested in lung cancer samples to determine their involvement in cancer progression.
Evaluation of tracer kinetic parameters in cervical cancer using dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI as biomarkers in terms of biological relevance, diagnostic performance and inter-center variability
Authors: Wang Xue , Li Shujian , Lin Xianhui , Lu Yi , Mao Chuanwan , Ye Zhijun , Li Xuesheng , Koh Tong-San , Liu Jie , Liu Jingjing , Ma Xiaoyue , Cheng Jingliang , Ning Gang , Yan Zhihan , Hou Zujun
Published: October 2022

Objectives

This study assessed the clinical value of parameters derived from dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) MRI with respect to correlation with angiogenesis and proliferation of cervical cancer, performance of diagnosis and reproducibility of DCE-MRI parameters across MRI scanners.

Materials and Methods

A total of 113 patients with cervical carcinoma from two centers were included in this retrospective study. The DCE data were centralized and processed using five tracer kinetic models (TKMs) (Tofts, Ex-Tofts, ATH, SC, and DP), yielding the following parameters: volume transfer constant (Ktrans), extravascular extracellular volume (Ve), fractional volume of vascular space (Vp), blood flow (Fp), and permeability surface area product (PS). CD34 counts and Ki-67 PI (proliferation index) of cervical cancer and normal cervix tissue were obtained using immunohistochemical staining in Center 1.

Results

CD34 count and Ki-67 PI in cervical cancer were significantly higher than in normal cervix tissue (p<0.05). Parameter Ve from each TKM was significantly smaller in cervical cancer tissue than in normal cervix tissue (p<0.05), indicating the higher proliferation of cervical cancer cells. Ve of each TKM attained the largest AUC to diagnose cervical cancer. The distributions of DCE parameters for both cervical cancer and normal cervix tissue were not significantly different between two centers (P>0.05).

Conclusion

Parameter Ve was similar to the expression of Ki-67 in revealing the proliferation of tissue cells, attained good performance in diagnosis of cervical cancer, and demonstrated consistent findings on measured values across centers.
MiR-140 leads to MRE11 downregulation and ameliorates oxaliplatin treatment and therapy response in colorectal cancer patients
Authors: Horak Josef , Dolnikova Alexandra , Cumaogullari Ozge , Cumova Andrea , Navvabi Nazila , Vodickova Ludmila , Levy Miroslav , Schneiderova Michaela , Liska Vaclav , Andera Ladislav , Vodicka Pavel , Opattova Alena
Published: October 2022

Cancer therapy failure is a fundamental challenge in cancer treatment. One of the most common reasons for therapy failure is the development of acquired resistance of cancer cells. DNA-damaging agents are frequently used in first-line chemotherapy regimens and DNA damage response, and DNA repair pathways are significantly involved in the mechanisms of chemoresistance. MRE11, a part of the MRN complex involved in double-strand break (DSB) repair, is connected to colorectal cancer (CRC) patients’ prognosis. Our previous results showed that single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the 3′ untranslated region (3′UTR) microRNA (miRNA) binding sites of MRE11 gene are associated with decreased cancer risk but with shorter survival of CRC patients, which implies the role of miRNA regulation in CRC. The therapy of colorectal cancer utilizes oxaliplatin (oxalato(trans-l-1,2-diaminocyclohexane)platinum), which is often compromised by chemoresistance development. There is, therefore, a crucial clinical need to understand the cellular processes associated with drug resistance and improve treatment responses by applying efficient combination therapies. The main aim of this study was to investigate the effect of miRNAs on the oxaliplatin therapy response of CRC patients. By the in silico analysis, miR-140 was predicted to target MRE11 and modulate CRC prognosis. The lower expression of miR-140 was associated with the metastatic phenotype (p < 0.05) and poor progression-free survival (odds ratio (OR) = 0.4, p < 0.05). In the in vitro analysis, we used miRNA mimics to increase the level of miR-140 in the CRC cell line. This resulted in decreased proliferation of CRC cells (p < 0.05). Increased levels of miR-140 also led to increased sensitivity of cancer cells to oxaliplatin (p < 0.05) and to the accumulation of DNA damage. Our results, both in vitro and in vivo, suggest that miR-140 may act as a tumor suppressor and plays an important role in DSB DNA repair and, consequently, CRC therapy response.
Niraparib-induced STAT3 inhibition increases its antitumor effects
Authors: Zhao Qianqian , Kohut Adrian , Li Yi-Jia , Martincuks Antons , Austria Theresa , Zhang Chunyan , Santiago Nicole Lugo , Borrero Rosemarie Martinez , Phan Xuan Thuy , Melstrom Laleh , Rodriguez-Rodriguez Lorna , Yu Hua
Published: October 2022

Recently, poly(ADP-ribosyl)ation polymerase inhibitors (PARPis), which induce synthetic lethality of tumor cells with DNA damage repair defects, have emerged as a promising therapy for ovarian, breast, and pancreatic cancer. Although the PARPi Olaparib is limited to treating cancer patients with DNA repair deficiencies, the PARPi Niraparib is FDA approved to treat ovarian cancer patients regardless of their status in DNA repair pathways. Despite differences in the affinity to PARP enzymes, the rationale behind the clinical use of Niraparib in patients without DNA repair deficiencies is still lacking. Moreover, only Olaparib has been approved for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) patients with BRCA mutations, accounting for only 5-7% of total PDACs. It remains unclear whether Niraparib could be beneficial to PDACs without BRCA mutations. We found that Niraparib inhibits ovarian and PDAC tumor cell growth, regardless of BRCA mutational status, more effectively than Olaparib. Unlike Olaparib, which is known to activate STAT3, Niraparib inhibits STAT3 activity in ovarian and PDAC cancer cell lines and patient tumors. Moreover, Niraparib regulates the expression of several STAT3 downstream genes involved in apoptosis. Overexpression of a constitutively activated STAT3 mutant rescues Niraparib-induced cancer cell apoptosis. Our results suggest that Niraparib inhibits pSTAT3 by interfering with SRC tyrosine kinase. Collectively, our studies provide a mechanism underlying Niraparib’s ability to induce tumor cell apoptosis without BRCA mutations, suggesting the potential use of Niraparib for treating PDAC patients regardless of BRCA status.
A novel vector for magnetic resonance imaging-guided chemo-photothermal therapy for cancer
Authors: Kong Ji chuan , Li Yang , Ma Wang , Du Yu rong , Liu Lei , Qu Tian tian , Liu Shuo shuo , Wang Meng li , Dou Wei
Published: October 2022

As an effective strategy for oncotherapy, developing efficacious drug delivery systems for cancer combination therapy remains a major challenge. To improve nanodrug biocompatibility and composite function facilitating their clinical conversion application, a novel nanocarrier was presented by a facile method through conjugating humic acid with gadolinium ions to synthesize HA-Gd with good biocompatibility and dispersity. HA-Gd exhibited high photothermal conversion efficiency up to 38%, excellent photothermal stability, and high doxorubicin (DOX) loading capacity (93%) with pH-responsive release properties. HA-Gd loading DOX showed a combined chemo-photothermal inhibitory effect on tumor cells. Compared with lipid-DOX, HA-Gd-DOX had a more significant inhibitory effect on tumor growth and fewer side effects. T1-weighted MRI contrast toward tumor tissue provided HA-Gd with an MRI-based cancer diagnosis. This study revealed the great potential of humic acids as a novel vector for developing more drug carriers with desirable functions for clinical anticancer therapy.
Comparative study on the clinical effect of preparing neobladder with different lengths of ileum
Authors: Zheng Bin , Liu Zhenghong , Wang Heng , Wang Jinxue , Zhang Pu , Zhang Dahong
Published: October 2022

Objective

To investigate the relationship between orthotopic U-shaped ileal neobladder volume and bladder function. To investigate the correlation between the volume of the radical cystectomy and the U-shaped ileal neobladder in situ and the function of the bladder.

Methods

The clinical data of patients undergoing in orthotopic U-shaped neobladder in our hospital were retrospectively analyzed. They were divided into two groups according to the length of the retained ileum. Group 1: The length of the ileum was 25-35cm (including 35cm), and the second group: the length of the ileum was 35-45cm. The basic information, cushion usage, urodynamic examination and complications of the two groups were obtained.

Results

A total of 88 patients were included in the study, including 33 in the first group and 55 in the second group. There was no statistical difference in general data, lymph node collection, lymph node positive rate, positive margin rate, postoperative pathological stage, pathological grade, pathological type, intraoperative blood loss, blood transfusion, postoperative hospital stay, and complications between the two groups of patients. significance. Although the usage of urine pads in group 1 was more than that in group 2 in the short term after operation (P<0.05), it started from the third year after operation. Patients in group 1 used less cushion than group 2 (P<0.05). Urodynamic examination was performed on the patients, and the bladder function of group 1 maintained satisfactory time longer than that of group 2. The total number of deaths in the two groups was 12 and 23, respectively. The 5-year overall survival (OS) rate of group 1 was 53.60%, and the 5-year overall survival rate of group 2 was 52.9%.

Conclusions

A new bladder formed by cutting the ileum with a length of 25-35 cm (including 35cm) has a longer time to maintain good bladder function than cutting the ileum with a length of 35-45 cm to produce a new bladder.
Genomic profiling of non-small cell lung cancer with the rare pulmonary lymphangitic carcinomatosis and clinical outcome of the exploratory anlotinib treatment
Authors: Dong Changqing , Cheng Wanwan , Zhang Meiling , Li Si , Zhao Lele , Chen Dongsheng , Qin Yong , Xiao Mingzhe , Fang Shencun
Published: October 2022

Background

To evaluate the potential treatment for patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and rare malignant pulmonary lymphangitis carcinomatosis (PLC), our study provided a genomic profile and clinical outcome of this group of patients.

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed patients with NSCLC who developed PLC. The genomic alterations, tumor mutation burden (TMB), and microsatellite instability (MSI) based on DNA-based next-generation sequencing were reviewed and compared in a Chinese population with lung adenocarcinomas (Chinese-LUAD cohort). Clinical outcomes after exploratory anlotinib treatment and factors influencing survival are summarized.

Results

A total of 564 patients with stage IV NSCLC were reviewed, and 39 patients with PLC were included. Genomic profiling of 17 adenocarcinoma patients with PLC (PLC-LUAD cohort) revealed TP53, EGFR, and LRP1B as the three most frequently altered genes. EGFR was less mutated in PLC-LUAD than Chinese-LUAD cohort of 778 patients (35.3% vs. 60.9%, P = 0.043). BRIP1 was mutated more often in the PLC-LUAD cohort (11.8% vs. 1.8%, P= 0.043). Two patients presented with high tumor mutational burden (TMB-H, 10 mutations/MB). Combing alterations in the patient with squamous cell carcinoma, the most altered pathways of PLC included cell cycle/DNA damage, chromatin modification, the RTK/Ras/MAPK pathway and VEGF signaling changes. Fourteen of the participants received anlotinib treatment. The ORR and DCR were 57.1% and 92.9%, respectively. Patients achieved a median progression-free survival of 4.9 months and a median overall survival of 7 months. The adverse effects were manageable. In patients with adenocarcinoma, the mPFS (5.3 months vs. 2.6 months) and mOS (9.9 months vs. 4.5 months) were prolonged in patients receiving anlotinib treatment compared to those receiving other treatment strategies (P < 0.05).

Conclusion

Patients with PLC in NSCLC demonstrated distinct genetic alterations. The results improve our understanding of the plausible genetic underpinnings of tumorigenesis in PLC and potential treatment strategies. Exploratory anlotinib treatment achieved considerable benefits and demonstrated manageable safety.
Glutamine metabolism in cancers: Targeting the oxidative homeostasis
Authors: Gong Tengfang , Zheng Changbing , Ou Xidan , Zheng Jie , Yu Jiayi , Chen Shuyu , Duan Yehui , Liu Wei
Published: October 2022

Glutamine is the most abundant amino acid in blood and tissues, and the most important nutrient except for glucose in cancer cells. Over the past years, most studies have focused on the role of Gln metabolism in supporting energy metabolism rather than maintaining oxidative homeostasis. In fact, Gln is an important factor in maintaining oxidative homeostasis of cancer cells, especially in “Glutamine addicted” cancer cells. Here, this paper will review the recent scientific literature about the link between Gln metabolism and oxidative homeostasis, with an emphasis on the potential role of Gln metabolism in different cancers. Given that oxidative homeostasis is of critical importance in cancer, understanding the impacts of a Gln metabolism on oxidative homeostasis, gaining great insights into underlying molecular mechanisms, and developing effective therapeutic strategies are of great importance.
Relationship between Iron deposition and T lymphocytes in children with β-thalassemia with haematopoietic stem cell transplantation
Authors: Zhou Yuhang , Luo Jianming
Published: October 2022

Background

β-Thalassemia cellular immunity is associated with iron overload. However, the relationship between varying degrees of iron deposition and T cell immune recovery after allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplantation(allo-HSCT) in children remain unclear.

Methods

A retrospective analysis was performed on 84 children with β-Thalassemia undergoing sibling allo-HSCT. According to the degrees of hepatic iron deposition, patients were divided into four classes. T lymphocyte counts were measured. Hepatic iron deposition was assessed by T2* MRI. Epstein–Barr virus and cytomegalovirus infection rates and graft-vs.-host disease incidence were recorded.

Results

Immune recovery after allo-HSCT was compared between the two groups. Normal vs. mild group: CD4 cells were higher at 1, 3, and 6 months (P < 0.05), CD3 and CD8 cells were higher at 3 and 6 months, and 1 year in normal group (P < 0.05). Normal vs. moderate group: CD3 and CD4 cells were higher at 1, 3 and 6 months, and 1 year (P < 0.05), CD8 cells were higher at 1 and 3 months, and 1 year in normal group (P < 0.05). Normal vs. severe group: CD3, CD4 and CD8 cell at 1, 3 and 6 months, and 1 year in normal group (P < 0.05). Mild vs. moderate group: CD3, CD4 and CD8 cells were higher at 1 month in mild group (P < 0.05). Mild vs. severe group: CD4 cells were higher at 1, 3 and 6 month, and 1 year (P < 0.05), CD3 and CD8 cells were higher at 1 month in mild group (P < 0.05). Moderate vs. severe group: CD4 cells were higher at 3 months (P < 0.05), CD8 cells were higher at 6 months in moderate group (P < 0.05). The hepatic T2* values were positively correlated with CD3, CD4 and CD8 cells. The infection rates of Epstein-Barr virus and cytomegalovirus were significantly different among the groups (P < 0.05).

Conclusion

Iron deposition affects immune recovery of T lymphocytes after allo-HSCT in children with β-thalassemia. The lower the levels of iron deposition, the greater the CD4 cell count.
Wendan decoction in the treatment of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Zhang Yufeng , Liu Ting , Zhang Lianyue , Pu Zhongping , Yan Zheng , Hua Haibing
Published: October 2022

Introduction: The use of Wendan decoction (WDD) as a therapy for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has been studied in many clinical trials, and some of them showed that WDD is effective for treating this condition. However, no comprehensive research to evaluate the clinical efficacy of WDD in NAFLD patients had been performed. This systematic review and meta-analysis sought to provide an in-depth inquiry into the data currently available about the safety and effectiveness of WDD to treat NAFLD.

Methods: We examined the primary database for any reports of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) including WDD and its effectiveness in treating NAFLD. We used the Jadad rating scale to determine the overall quality of the selected RCTs, and we searched the Cochrane Reviewer’s Handbook for criteria for potential bias. The primary findings from the included RCTs were recorded, and the meta-analysis was performed using RevMan5.4 software developed by the Cochrane Collaboration.

Results: We retrieved ten RCTs that were suitable for this evaluation and included them in a systematic review and meta-analysis. The quality and risk of bias in the included RCTs were assessed. The meta-analysis showed that the total clinical effective rate was substantially greater in the WDD cohort compared with that in the control cohort, and liver function, blood lipid indices, and blood glucose-related indicators were substantially improved in the WDD-treated cohort compared with those in the control cohort. There was no significant difference in the incidence of adverse events between the two cohorts.

Conclusion: WDD is safe and effective for treating NAFLD, which is advantageous for the patients’ liver function as well as their blood lipid indices and blood glucose-related indicators.
A 9-aminoacridine derivative induces growth inhibition of Ehrlich ascites carcinoma cells and antinociceptive effect in mice
Authors: Mangueira Vivianne M. , de Sousa Tatyanna K. G. , Batista Tatianne M. , de Abrantes Renata A. , Moura Ana Paula G. , Ferreira Rafael C. , de Almeida Reinaldo N. , Braga Renan M. , Leite Fagner Carvalho , Medeiros Karina C. de P. , Cavalcanti Misael Azevedo T. , Moura Ricardo O. , Silvestre Geovana F. G. , Batista Leônia M. , Sobral Marianna V.
Published: October 2022

Acridine derivatives have been found with anticancer and antinociceptive activities. Herein, we aimed to evaluate the toxicological, antitumor, and antinociceptive actions of N’-(6-chloro-2-methoxyacridin-9-yl)-2-cyanoacetohydrazide (ACS-AZ), a 9-aminoacridine derivative with antimalarial activity. The toxicity was assessed by acute toxicity and micronucleus tests in mice. The in vivo antitumor effect of ACS-AZ (12.5, 25, or 50 mg/kg, intraperitoneally, i.p.) was determined using the Ehrlich tumor model, and toxicity. The antinociceptive efficacy of the compound (50 mg/kg, i.p.) was investigated using formalin and hot plate assays in mice. The role of the opioid system was also investigated. In the acute toxicity test, the LD50 (lethal dose 50%) value was 500 mg/kg (i.p.), and no detectable genotoxic effect was observed. After a 7-day treatment, ACS-AZ significantly (p < 0.05) reduced tumor cell viability and peritumoral microvessels density, suggesting antiangiogenic action. In addition, ACS-AZ reduced (p < 0.05) IL-1β and CCL-2 levels, which may be related to the antiangiogenic effect, while increasing (p < 0.05) TNF-α and IL-4 levels, which are related to its direct cytotoxicity. ACS-AZ also decreased (p < 0.05) oxidative stress and nitric oxide (NO) levels, both of which are crucial mediators in cancer known for their angiogenic action. Moreover, weak toxicological effects were recorded after a 7-day treatment (biochemical, hematological, and histological parameters). Concerning antinociceptive activity, ACS-AZ was effective on hotplate and formalin (early and late phases) tests (p < 0.05), characteristic of analgesic agents with central action. Through pretreatment with the non-selective (naloxone) and μ1-selective (naloxonazine) opioid antagonists, we observed that the antinociceptive effect of ACS-AZ is mediated mainly by μ1-opioid receptors (p < 0.05). In conclusion, ACS-AZ has low toxicity and antitumoral activity related to cytotoxic and antiangiogenic actions that involve the modulation of reactive oxygen species, NO, and cytokine levels, in addition to antinociceptive properties involving the opioid system.
Enhanced anti-breast cancer efficacy of co-delivery liposomes of docetaxel and curcumin
Authors: Ye Xi , Chen Xin , He Ruixi , Meng Wangyang , Chen Weidong , Wang Fengling , Meng Xiangyun
Published: October 2022

The successful treatment of breast cancer is hampered by toxicity to normal cells, impaired drug accumulation at the tumor site, and multidrug resistance. We designed a novel multifunctional liposome, CUR-DTX-L, to co-deliver curcumin (CUR) and the chemotherapeutic drug docetaxel (DTX) for the treatment of breast cancer in order to address multidrug resistance (MDR) and the low efficacy of chemotherapy. The mean particle size, polydispersity index, zeta potential, and encapsulation efficiency of CUR-DTX-L were 208.53 ± 6.82 nm, 0.055 ± 0.001, −23.1 ± 2.1 mV, and 98.32 ± 2.37%, respectively. An in vitro release study and CCK-8 assays showed that CUR-DTX-L has better sustained release effects and antitumor efficacy than free drugs, the antitumor efficacy was verified by MCF-7 tumor-bearing mice, the CUR-DTX-L showed better antitumor efficacy than other groups, and the in vivo pharmacokinetic study indicated that the plasma concentration–time curve, mean residence time, and biological half-life time of CUR-DTX-L were significantly increased compared with free drugs, suggesting that it is a promising drug delivery system for the synergistic treatment of breast cancer.
Transcriptomic profile analysis of the left atrium in spontaneously hypertensive rats in the early stage
Authors: Fang Qinghua , Wang Jing , Wei Jiangjun , Long Xianglin , Wang Yao , He Jiacheng , Yuan Xin , Du Jianlin
Published: October 2022

Left atrial remodeling, characterized by enlargement and hypertrophy of the left atrium and increased fibrosis, was accompanied by an increased incidence of atrial fibrillation. While before morphological changes at the early stage of hypertension, how overloaded hypertension influences the transcriptomic profile of the left atrium remains unclear. Therefore, RNA-sequencing was performed to define the RNA expressing profiles of left atrium in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) and normotensive Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats as a control group. We also compared the changes in the RNA expression profiles in SHRs treated with an angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) and angiotensin receptor-neprilysin inhibitor (ARNI) to assess the distinct effects on the left atrium. In total, 1,558 differentially expressed genes were found in the left atrium between WKY rats and SHRs. Bioinformatics analysis showed that these mRNAs could regulate upstream pathways in atrial remodeling through atrial fibrosis, inflammation, electrical remodeling, and cardiac metabolism. The regulated transcripts detected in the left atrial tissue in both the ARB-treated and ARNI-treated groups were related to metabolism. In contrast to the ARB-treated rates, the transcripts in ARNI-treated rats were mapped to the cyclic guanosine monophosphate-protein kinase G signaling pathway.
Magnetic anisotropy-controlled vortex nano-oscillator for neuromorphic computing
Authors: Yun Chao , Wu Yu , Liang Zhongyu , Yang Wenyun , Du Honglin , Liu Shunquan , Han Jingzhi , Hou Yanglong , Yang Jinbo , Luo Zhaochu
Published: October 2022

Chiral magnetic vortex has shown great potential for high-density magnetic storage, modern telecommunication and computation devices, thanks to its topological stability and rich dynamic behaviours. Particularly, the synchronization of magnetic vortex nano-oscillators leads to the emergence of fascinating collective phenomena used for microwave generator and neuromorphic computing. In this work, by means of micromagnetic simulations, we create stable chiral magnetic vortices by exploiting the chiral coupling principle and study the gyrotropic motion of the vortex core under spin-transfer torques. The gyrotropic oscillation frequency can be tuned by injecting spin-polarised current as well as the change of the magnetic anisotropy in the vortex area, resulting from the modification of the vortex confine potential and the size of the vortex core. Two vortex nano-oscillators can be synchronized wherein the synchronization state can be modulated by the spin-polarised current and the magnetic anisotropy. Moreover, we demonstrate that the magnetic anisotropy can modify the synchronization patterns when integrating six vortices into an oscillator network, making it potentially serve as an oscillator-based neural network. Our work provides a new route to constructing a flexible oscillator network for neuromorphic computing hardware.
Edge GPU cluster processing system for laser interference image collection
Authors: Chang Dajun , Li Li
Published: October 2022

In order to realize the real-time processing and communication of multi-laser interference images, a GPU cluster processing system for laser interference images was designed. The measured target was illuminated by multiple lasers, and the image information of the multi-laser interference fringes was obtained by the CCD. The data of laser interference images from CPU was transmitted by the GPU cluster, and the image feature recognition and transmission were completed through the cluster image processing module. A multi-channel laser interference image transmission algorithm was designed by the multi-core and multi-buffer (MCMB) algorithm. In the experiment, the laser interference images were collected by the CPU, and then the real-time communication of multi-channel images data was completed by the GPU cluster. The packet loss rate experiment showed that when the data traffic reached 110, the data was lost with the traditional UDP communication algorithm, and the slope of the fitting curve was 0.6,053. When the data flow reached 160, the data was lost with MCMB algorithm, and the slope of the fitting curve was 0.2,181. In contrast, the GPU occupancy of this algorithm was improved, and it was still not saturated at 210 data streams. In a word, the system has better optimization effect in real-time processing and communication of multi-laser interference images.
Feature extraction method of ship radiated noise based on BOA-VMD and slope entropy
Authors: Yi Yingmin , Tian Ge
Published: October 2022

Although the technical requirements for the feature extraction of ship radiated noise (SRN) in the fields of national defense and economy increase with each passing day, the complexity of the marine environment makes the feature extraction of SRN difficult. The traditional feature extraction method based on variational mode decomposition (VMD) is widely used in the feature extraction of SRN. Nevertheless, the use of VMD is greatly affected by parameters. In this paper, the butterfly optimization algorithm (BOA) is introduced to optimize VMD, which is called BOA-VMD algorithm, and realizes the optimal selection of VMD parameters K and α. To further improve the efficiency of feature extraction method, combined with slope entropy (SE), a feature extraction method of SRN based on BOA-VMD and SE is proposed. The experimental results of the simulated signal show that the BOA-VMD algorithm has a smaller envelope entropy value and better decomposition effect than the genetic algorithm (GA) and particle swarm optimization (PSO). The experimental results of feature extraction of SRN show that the highest recognition rate of the four entropy values improve with the increase of the number of extracted features, compared with the three entropy values of dispersion entropy (DE), fluctuation dispersion entropy (FDE) and permutation entropy (PE), the SRN feature extraction method based on BOA-VMD and SE has the highest recognition rate under different quantity features, and the recognition rate has reached 100% under three features.
Enabling real-time adaptation of machine learning models at x-ray Free Electron Laser facilities with high-speed training optimized computational hardware
Authors: Milan Petro Junior , Rong Hongqian , Michaud Craig , Layad Naoufal , Liu Zhengchun , Coffee Ryan
Published: October 2022

The emergence of novel computational hardware is enabling a new paradigm for rapid machine learning model training. For the Department of Energy’s major research facilities, this developing technology will enable a highly adaptive approach to experimental sciences. In this manuscript we present the per-epoch and end-to-end training times for an example of a streaming diagnostic that is planned for the upcoming high-repetition rate x-ray Free Electron Laser, the Linac Coherent Light Source-II. We explore the parameter space of batch size and data parallel training across multiple Graphics Processing Units and Reconfigurable Dataflow Units. We show the landscape of training times with a goal of full model retraining in under 15 min. Although a full from scratch retraining of a model may not be required in all cases, we nevertheless present an example of the application of emerging computational hardware for adapting machine learning models to changing environments in real-time, during streaming data acquisition, at the rates expected for the data fire hoses of accelerator-based user facilities.
CT-derived vessel segmentation for analysis of post-radiation therapy changes in vasculature and perfusion
Authors: Wuschner Antonia E. , Flakus Mattison J. , Wallat Eric M. , Reinhardt Joseph M. , Shanmuganayagam Dhanansayan , Christensen Gary E , Gerard Sarah E. , Bayouth John E.
Published: October 2022

Vessel segmentation in the lung is an ongoing challenge. While many methods have been able to successfully identify vessels in normal, healthy, lungs, these methods struggle in the presence of abnormalities. Following radiotherapy, these methods tend to identify regions of radiographic change due to post-radiation therapytoxicities as vasculature falsely. By combining texture analysis and existing vasculature and masking techniques, we have developed a novel vasculature segmentation workflow that improves specificity in irradiated lung while preserving the sensitivity of detection in the rest of the lung. Furthermore, radiation dose has been shown to cause vascular injury as well as reduce pulmonary function post-RT. This work shows the improvements our novel vascular segmentation method provides relative to existing methods. Additionally, we use this workflow to show a dose dependent radiation-induced change in vasculature which is correlated with previously measured perfusion changes (R2 = 0.72) in both directly irradiated and indirectly damaged regions of perfusion. These results present an opportunity to extend non-contrast CT-derived models of functional change following radiation therapy.
Noninvasive optoacoustic imaging of breast tumor microvasculature in response to radiotherapy
Authors: Wu Dan , Xu Nan , Xie Yonghua , Shen Yang , Fu Yunlu , Liu Liang , Chi Zihui , Lu Runyu , Xiang Renjie , Wen Yanting , Yang Jun , Jiang Huabei
Published: October 2022

Detailed insight into the radiation-induced changes in tumor microvasculature is crucial to maximize the efficacy of radiotherapy against breast cancer. Recent advances in imaging have enabled precise targeting of solid lesions. However, intratumoral heterogeneity makes treatment planning and monitoring more challenging. Conventional imaging cannot provide high-resolution observation and longitudinal monitoring of large-scale microvascular in response to radiotherapy directly in deep tissues. Herein, we report on an emerging non-invasive imaging assessment method of morphological and functional tumor microvasculature responses with high spatio-temporal resolution by means of optoacoustic imaging (OAI). In vivo imaging of 4T1 breast tumor response to a conventional fractionated radiotherapy at varying dose (14 × 2 Gy and 3 × 8 Gy) has been performed after 2 weeks following treatment. Remarkably, optoacoustic images can generate richful contrast for the tumor microvascular architecture. Besides, the functional status of tumor microvasculature and tumor oxygenation levels were further estimated using OAI. The results revealed the differential (size-dependent) nature of vascular responses to radiation treatments at varying doses. The vessels exhibited an decrease in their density accompanied by a decline in the number of vascular segments following irradiation, compared to the control group. The measurements further revealed an increase of tumor oxygenation levels for 14 × 2 Gy and 3 × 8 Gy irradiations. Our results suggest that OAI could be used to assess the response to radiotherapy based on changes in the functional and morphological status of tumor microvasculature, which are closely linked to the intratumor microenvironment. OAI assessment of the tumor microenvironment such as oxygenation status has the potential to be applied to precise radiotherapy strategy.
The origin and distribution of the main oxygen sensing mechanism across metazoans
Authors: Song Bing , Modjewski Luca David , Kapust Nils , Mizrahi Itzhak , Martin William F.
Published: October 2022

Oxygen sensing mechanisms are essential for metazoans, their origin and evolution in the context of oxygen in Earth history are of interest. To trace the evolution of a main oxygen sensing mechanism among metazoans, the hypoxia induced factor, HIF, we investigated the phylogenetic distribution and phylogeny of 11 of its components across 566 eukaryote genomes. The HIF based oxygen sensing machinery in eukaryotes can be traced as far back as 800 million years (Ma) ago, likely to the last metazoan common ancestor (LMCA), and arose at a time when the atmospheric oxygen content corresponded roughly to the Pasteur point, or roughly 1% of present atmospheric level (PAL). By the time of the Cambrian explosion (541–485 Ma) as oxygen levels started to approach those of the modern atmosphere, the HIF system with its key components HIF1α, HIF1β, PHD1, PHD4, FIH and VHL was well established across metazoan lineages. HIF1α is more widely distributed and therefore may have evolved earlier than HIF2α and HIF3α, and HIF1β and is more widely distributed than HIF2β in invertebrates. PHD1, PHD4, FIH, and VHL appear in all 13 metazoan phyla. The O2 consuming enzymes of the pathway, PHDs and FIH, have a lower substrate affinity, Km, for O2 than terminal oxidases in the mitochondrial respiratory chain, in line with their function as an environmental signal to switch to anaerobic energy metabolic pathways. The ancient HIF system has been conserved and widespread during the period when metazoans evolved and diversified together with O2 during Earth history.
Image classification and identification for rice leaf diseases based on improved WOACW_SimpleNet
Authors: Lu Yang , Zhang Xinmeng , Zeng Nianyin , Liu Wanting , Shang Rou
Published: October 2022

In view of the problem that manual selection of hyperparameters may lead to low performance and large consumption of manpower cost of the convolutional neural network (CNN), this paper proposes a nonlinear convergence factor and weight cooperative self-mapping chaos optimization algorithm (WOACW) to optimize the hyperparameters in the identification and classification model of rice leaf disease images, such as learning rate, training batch size, convolution kernel size and convolution kernel number. Firstly, the opposition-based learning is added to the whale population initialization with improving the diversity of population initialization. Then the algorithm improves the convergence factor, increases the weight coefficient, and calculates the self-mapping chaos. It makes the algorithm have a strong ability to find optimization in the early stage of iteration and fast convergence rate. And disturbance is carried out to avoid falling into local optimal solution in the late stage of iteration. Next, a polynomial mutation operator is introduced to correct the current optimal solution with a small probability, so that a better solution can be obtained in each iteration, thereby enhancing the optimization performance of the multimodal objective function. Finally, eight optimized performance benchmark functions are selected to evaluate the performance of the algorithm, the experiment results show that the proposed WOACW outperforms than 5 other common improved whale optimization algorithms. The WOACW_SimpleNet is used to identify rice leaf diseases (rice blast, bacterial leaf blight, brown spot disease, sheath blight and tungro disease), and the experiment results show that the identification average recognition accuracy rate reaches 99.35%, and the F1-score reaches 99.36%.
Exogenous melatonin enhances cell wall response to salt stress in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) and the development of the associated predictive molecular markers
Authors: Zhang Qi , Qin Bin , Wang Guang-da , Zhang Wen-jing , Li Ming , Yin Zhen-gong , Yuan Xiankai , Sun Hao-yue , Du Ji-dao , Du Yan-li , Jia Pengyu
Published: October 2022

Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is an important food crop; however, its production is affected by salt stress. Salt stress can inhibit seed germination, promote senescence, and modify cell wall biosynthesis, assembly, and architecture. Melatonin, an indole heterocycle, has been demonstrated to greatly impact cell wall structure, composition, and regulation in plants under stress. However, the molecular basis for such assumptions is still unclear. In this study, a common bean variety, “Naihua” was treated with water (W), 70 mmol/L NaCl solution (S), and 100 μmol/L melatonin supplemented with salt solution (M+S) to determine the response of common bean to exogenous melatonin and explore regulatory mechanism of melatonin against salt stress. The results showed that exogenous melatonin treatment alleviated salt stress-induced growth inhibition of the common bean by increasing the length, surface area, volume, and diameter of common bean sprouts. Moreover, RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and real-time quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR) indicated that the cell wall regulation pathway was involved in the salt stress tolerance of the common bean enhanced by melatonin. Screening of 120 germplasm resources revealed that melatonin treatment improved the salt tolerance of more than 65% of the common bean germplasm materials. Melatonin also up-regulated cell wall pathway genes by at least 46%. Furthermore, we analyzed the response of the common bean germplasm materials to melatonin treatment under salt stress using the key genes associated with the synthesis of the common bean cell wall as the molecular markers. The results showed that two pairs of markers were significantly associated with melatonin, and these could be used as candidate markers to predict whether common bean respond to exogenous melatonin and then enhance salt tolerance at the sprouting stage. This study shows that cell wall can respond to exogenous melatonin and enhance the salt tolerance of common bean. The makers identified in this study can be used to select common bean varieties that can respond to melatonin under stress. Overall, the study found that cell wall could response melatonin and enhance the salt tolerance and developed the makers for predicting varieties fit for melatonin under stress in common bean, which may be applied in the selection or development of common bean varieties with abiotic stress tolerance.
Transcriptome analysis reveals the proline metabolic pathway and its potential regulation TF-hub genes in salt-stressed potato
Authors: Jing Quankai , Hou Hualan , Meng Xiaoke , Chen Airu , Wang Lixia , Zhu Husen , Zheng Shuang , Lv Zhaoyan , Zhu Xiaobiao
Published: October 2022

Potato (Solanum tuberosum) is currently the third most important food crop in the world. However, the production of potato is seriously threatened by salt stress, which often occurs in the facility cultivation environment, and the mining of salt tolerance genes in potato remains to be further studied. In this study, test-tube plantlets of DM potato were treated with 200-mM NaCl to simulate salt stress, and 15 cDNA libraries were constructed for RNA-seq analysis. A total of 8383 DEGs were identified, of which 3961 DEGs were shared among all the salt treatments, and 264 (7.15%) TF-coding genes were identified from these shared DEGs. KEGG enrichment analysis showed that most DEGs identified from the “arginine and proline metabolism” (ko00330) were enriched in the proline metabolic pathway, and their functions almost covered the whole proline metabolic process. Further analysis showed that expression levels of all the 13 structural DEGs in the pathway were significantly up-regulated and proline accumulation was also significantly increased under salt stress, and 13 TF-hub genes were discovered by WGCNA in the lightcyan and tan modules which were highly positively correlated with the proline contents. Correlation analysis revealed that the four TF-hub genes of the lightcyan module and seven structural DEGs of the proline metabolic pathway might be the potential candidate genes, especially the potential and novel regulatory gene StGLK014720. Furthermore, the dual-luciferase reporter assay confirmed that the key protein StGLK014720 could activate the promoters of both structural genes StAST021010 and StAST017480. In conclusion, these results lay the foundation for further study on the salt tolerance mechanism of potato, and provide a theoretical basis and new genetic resources for salt tolerance breeding of potato.