bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Epigenomic Regulatory Mechanism of Flowering in Apple Demonstrated in Two Varieties with Contrasted Flowering Behaviors
Authors: Zhou Hua , Zhang Chenguang , Wang Mengxue , Zhang Wei , Ma Juanjuan , Qi Siyan , Wang Shujin , Xing Libo
Published: August 2021

Background: Flowering is the necessary condition and yield basis for woody fruits in their life cycle. Although there has been considerable interest in the regulatory mechanisms underlying floral induction and flowering, the associated epigenetic modifications remain relatively uncharacterized. Results: We identified the genome-wide of DNA methylation changes and the transcriptional responses in axillary bud of ‘Qinguan’ (QA) and ‘Fuji’ (FA) varieties with contrasted flowering behaviors. The DNA methylations were19.35%, 62.96% and 17.68% for FA, and 19.64%, 62.49% and 17.86% for QA in the CG, CHG and CHH contexts, respectively. Number of hypermethylated or hypomethylated DMRs in different regions were contributed to significantly up/downregulated gene expression. DNA methylation can positively or negatively regulate gene expression based on the CG, CHG and CHH contexts in different regions. Additionally, the huge differences in transcription of MIKCc-Type MADS-box genes, and multiple flowering genes in multiple flowering pathways (i.e., light, age, GA and sugar) by changing DNA methylation, contributed to contrasted flowering behaviors in both QA and FA. Specifically, the floral meristem identify genes (i.e., FT, LEAFY, AP1 and SOC1) were significantly higher expression in QA than FA, but the floral repressor (i.e., SVP, AGL15, and AGL18) had an opposite result. Significant differences in multiple hormone levels were due to DEGs and their DMRs in their synthesis pathways, leading to both contrasted axillary bud outgrowth and flowering behaviors. Conclusions: The whole-genome bisulfite sequencing (BS) libraries of QA and FA with diverse flowering capabilities have been constructed for finding whole-genome cytosine methylation profiles. The RNA sequencing of QA and FA and diverse flowering capabilities have been combined together to identify the gene expression patterns and the correlation with their methylation states so that we can better understand the epigenetic regulation mechanisms of floral induction and formation in apple.
Distribution Characteristics of Antibiotic Resistance Bacteria and Related Genes in Urban Recreational Lakes Replenished by Different Supplementary Water Source
Authors: Li Yongqiang , Zhang Chong-Miao , Mou Xiao , Zhang Peipei , Liang Jie , Wang Zhen
Published: August 2021

The objective of this study was to investigate the distribution characteristics of antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in urban recreational water with different water supply sources, 2 lakes as XQ and FQ which represented as surface water and reclaimed water were selected for the study. Water samples were collected from April to November in 2018 to investigate aspects including 8 physical and chemical indexes of waters, resistance degree of 5 different kinds of antibiotics, antimicrobial resistance heterotrophic bacteria content, resistance phenotype, antibiotic resistance gene types and antibiotic resistance strains of species distribution. The results showed that the changes of antibiotic resistance rate of heterotrophic bacteria in 2 lakes to 5 kinds of antibiotics were synchronous with time, and it would reach its maximum in autumn. The detection of 10 ARGs and intⅠ gene in 80 strains screened out from 125 strains of heterotrophic bacteria showed that the detection rate of tetG and tetA genes was relatively high, especially intI, with the rate as high as 90%. In the detection of resistance spectrum, 51.25% of the resistance bacteria were double-resistance to AMP-CTX. The 80 isolate strains were of 9 genera and 19 species, among which Bacillus cereus, Escherichia coli, Aeromonas veronii, Aeromonas caviae and Raoultella ornithinolytica were the common ARB species in FQ and XQ. There was no relatively large differences in the content of ARB, detection rate, and identification of ARGs in 2 lakes. Correlation analysis was used to evaluate the association between the change of water quality indexes and the content of antibiotic resistance bacteria in 2 lakes, and it was found that the water temperature was significantly correlated with the content of ARB in Sulfamethoxazole and Cefotaxime (p<0.05), while there were no other correlations between the changes of other water quality indexes and the content of ARB (p>0.05).
Treatment of Coal Fly Ash And Its Environmentally Friendly Use In Rubber And Plastic Industry
Authors: Hussain Zawar , Lizhen Gao , Haitao Wang , Ayaz Tehreem , Khan Amir Zeb
Published: August 2021

Coal power plants are the major contributor of electricity but these power plants are also producing waste in the form of coal fly ash (CFA). However, it can cause high risk of environmental pollution and pulmonary diseases in humans. Plastic waste is also a problematic waste for many countries in terms of its reuse and recycling. Therefore, this study aims to reuse the waste product (CFA) of coal power plants in rubber conveyer belt instead of calcium carbonate or talcum powder and in recycling of plastic propylene as bonding filler material instead of barium sulfate to increase the durability of plastic products and reduce cost, CFA waste and plastic waste. For this purpose, CFA was treated by different pulverization techniques for the production of conveyor belt. The study found that the most favorable technique was shear based pulverization technique. Application of CFA with rubber was compared with two different chemicals (calcium carbonate and talcum powder) and found that the elongation at break of conveyor belt was 35% increased and abrasion volume was 64% reduced by using treated CFA. Furthermore, CFA was used in molten mass of plastic instead of barium sulfate and the results showed that the use of CFA has improved the dimensional stability of plastic material reducing the cost per ton by 2410 CNY. The study concluded that the performance was increased by applying CFA with a reduction in price as compared to other chemicals.
Burden of Disease of Dietary Exposure to Four Chemical Contaminants in Denmark in 2019
Authors: Thomsen Sofie T. , Jakobsen Lea S. , Redondo Hernan G. , Outzen Malene , Fagt Sisse , Devleesschauwer Brecht , Hansen Max , Fabricius Freja A. , Pires Sara M.
Published: August 2021

Exposure to chemical contaminants found in foods has been associated with diverse adverse health effects. The aim of this study was to estimate the burden of disease associated with dietary exposure to four chemicals in Denmark in 2019: lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), methylmercury (MeHg) and inorganic arsenic (i-As). We collected national food consumption and chemical food monitoring data from Danish data bases, dose-response and severity data from the scientific literature, and disease incidence and population numbers from national statistics. We adopted a risk assessment approach to estimate disease burden, quantifying the incidence, mortality and Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) attributable to dietary exposure to the chemicals. In all models, we propagated uncertainty around the input parameters through the calculations using Monte Carlo simulation. We estimated that, among these chemicals, Pb and MeHg were responsible for the highest disease burden. MeHg led to the loss of nearly 600 healthy life years, or approximately 10 DALYs per 100,000 inhabitants. Dietary exposure to Pb was estimated to cause 383 to 1,261 DALYs, corresponding to 6.6 (lower bound) to 22 (upper bound) DALYs/100,000 per year. The foods contributing most to disease burden were fish (MeHg) and sweets, fruit, and bread and cereals (Pb). The burden attributed to dietary exposure to i-As (5 DALYs) and Cd (0.04 DALY) was substantially lower. These estimates are useful supplements to traditional risk assessment to guide food safety interventions and inform dietary guidelines for different population groups.
Genetic Heterogeneity in GJB2, COL4A3, ATP6V1B1 and EDNRB Variants Detected Among Hearing Impaired Families in Morocco
Authors: Aitraise Imane , Amalou Ghita , Charoute Hicham , Kandil Mostafa , Rouba Hassan , Snoussi Khalid , Abdelghaffar Houria , Bonnet Crystel , Petit Christine , Barakat Abdelhamid
Published: August 2021

Deafness has a very variable disease. It may occur as a result of external auditory canal involvement or a deficiency in the sound conduction mechanism (transmission deafness) or impairment of the cochlear, cochlear nerve or central auditory perception. Genetics is the most common cause, as approximately 70% of hearing disorders are of hereditary origin. 1/3 of hereditary deafness is syndromic (associated with other symptoms) and 2/3 are non-syndromic (isolated deafness). At this date, 173 loci of deafness gene have been reported in the literature (69 DFNA, 94 DFNB, 6 X-linked DFN, 2 DFNM, 1 DFNY and 1 AUNA1). For syndromic deafness, approximately 400 syndromes associated with hearing disorders are already described. Thus, the determination of causal mutations is a valuable aid for accurate and early diagnosis. This makes it possible to better guide the management since forms of deafness respond better to the cochlear implant than others. The correct diagnosis also gives an idea of ​​the evolutionary profile of deafness and whether it is a syndromic deafness requiring special surveillance. In this study, we have examined the genetic causes of sensorineural hearing loss in Moroccan patients through whole exome sequencing (WES) to identify candidate genes for six severely deaf Moroccan families. The results revealed four genetic variants in the genes GJB2, COL4A3, ATP6V1B1 and EDNRB, which are therefore common causes of syndromic and non-syndromic deafness.
Wireless Covert Channel With Polarized Dirty Constellation in Backscatter Communication
Authors: Qiao Sen , Liu Guangjie , Shi Jianfeng , Ji Xiaopeng , Liu Weiwei
Published: August 2021

Ambient backscatter communication has become a low-cost and green solution to next-generation Internet-of-Things (IoT). In this paper, we investigate a problem of wireless covert communication in backscatter communication system. The purpose of covert communication is to hide the process of communication and avoid being detected by eavesdropper. Covert messages are modulated into a random-like noise, and then superimposed on the carrier signal. Specially, we propose a wireless covert channel with polarization dirty constellation (WCC-PDC), which is polarized to solve the problem of low signal power in backscatter communication. Some methods are used to combine covert code block with carrier information block and increase the undetectability of covert communication. Additionally, successive-cancellation decoder and successive-cancellation list decoder are adopted to improve the reliability of WCC-PDC. Simulation results are finally provided to verify the improvement of undetectability and reliability with WCC-PDC.
Resonant Collisions Among Two-Dimensional Localized Waves in the Mel'nikov Equation
Authors: Xu Yinshen , Mihalache Dumitru , He Jingsong
Published: August 2021

We study the resonant collisions among different types of localized solitary waves in the Mel'nikov equation, which are described by exact solutions constructed using Hirota's direct method. The elastic collisions among different solitary waves can be transformed into resonant collisions when the phase shifts of these solitary waves tend to infinity . First, we study the resonant collision among a breather and a dark line soliton. We obtain two collision scenarios: (i) the breather is semi-localized in space and is not localized in time when it obliquely intersects with the dark line soliton, and (ii) the breather is semi-localized in time and is not localized in space when it parallelly intersects with the dark line soliton. The resonant collision of a lump and a dark line soliton, as the limit case of resonant collision of a breather and a dark line soliton, shows the fusing process of the lump into the dark line soliton. Then we investigate the resonant collision among a breather and two dark line solitons. In this evolution process we also obtain two dynamical behaviors: (iii) when the breather and the two dark line solitons obliquely intersect each other we get that the breather is completely localized in space and is not localized in time, and (iv) when the breather and the two dark line solitons are parallel to each other, we get that the breather is completely localized in time and is not localized in space. The resonant collision of a lump and two dark line solitons is obtained as the limit case of the resonant collision among a breather and two dark line solitons. In this special case the lump first detaches from a dark line soliton and then disappears into the other dark line soliton. Eventually, we also investigate the intriguing phenomenon that when a resonant collision among a breather and four dark line solitons occurs, we get the interesting situation that two of the four dark line solitons are degenerate and the corresponding solution displays the same shape as that of the resonant collision among a breather and two dark line solitons, except for the phase shifts of the solitons, which are not only dependent of the parameters controlling the waveforms of the solitons and the breather, but also dependent of some parameters irrelevant to the waveforms.
Fibroblast Growth Factor 21 Attenuates Salt-sensitive Hypertension-induced Nephropathy Through Anti-inflammation and Anti-oxidation Mechanism
Authors: Weng Hua-Chun , Lu Xin-Yu , Xu Yu-Peng , Wang Yi-Hong , Wang Dan , Feng Yi-Ling , Chi Zhang , Yan Xiao-Qing , Lu Chao-Sheng , Wang Hongwei
Published: August 2021

BackgroundPatients with salt-sensitive hypertension are often accompanied with severe renal damage and accelerate to end-stage renal disease, which currently lacks effective treatment. Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) has been shown to suppress nephropathy in both type 1 and type 2 diabetes mice. Here, we aimed to investigate the therapeutic effect of FGF21 in salt-sensitive hypertension-induced nephropathy.MethodsChanges of FGF21 expression in deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA)-salt-induced hypertensive mice were detected. The influence of FGF21 knockout in mice on DOCA-salt-induced nephropathy were determined. Recombinant human FGF21 (rhFGF21) was intraperitoneally injected into DOCA-salt-induced nephropathy mice, and then the inflammatory factors, oxidative stress levels and kidney injury-related indicators were observed. In vitro, human renal tubular epithelial cells (HK-2) were challenged by palmitate acid (PA) with or without FGF21, and then changes in inflammation and oxidative stress indicators were tested.ResultsWe observed significant elevation in circulating levels and renal expression of FGF21 in DOCA-salt-induced hypertensive mice. We found that deletion of FGF21 in mice aggravated DOCA-salt-induced nephropathy. Supplementation with rhFGF21 reversed DOCA-salt-induced kidney injury. Mechanically, rhFGF21 induced AMPK activation in DOCA-salt-treated mice and PA-stimulated HK-2 cells, which inhibited NF-κB-regulated inflammation and Nrf2-mediated oxidative stress and thus, is important for rhFGF21 protection against DOCA-salt-induced nephropathy. ConclusionThese findings indicated that rhFGF21 could be a promising pharmacological strategy for the treatment of salt-sensitive hypertension-induced nephropathy.
Evaluation of Cytotoxicity and Apoptotic behavior of Cerium Oxide/Zinc Oxide/ Graphene Oxide in HeLa and VERO cell Lines
Authors: J saranya , Sre BS , Arivanandan M , Bhuvaneswari K , Sherin S , Shivani K S , Saroja K K , SaradhaPreetha G
Published: August 2021

Using the ultrasonic approach, we produced a morphology involving cerium oxide/ Zinc oxide/graphene oxide (CeO2/ZnO/GO) nanocomposite-based system. The developed nanocomposite was examined using X-Ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). The average crystallite size was found to be 11.44 nm, as determined by XRD. FTIR analysis was used to confirm the existence of functional groups. FESEM was used to verify the morphological properties of CeO2/ZnO/GO. The micromorphology of CeO2/ZnO/GO nanocomposite reveals a smoother sheet-like structure. In addition, using an antiproliferative assay test, the developed nanosystem was evaluated for its scavenging anti-cancer capability against HeLa cell lines at various doses and incubation intervals. In our investigation, the effective IC50 concentration was reported to be 62.5 µg/ml at 72 h. Further, the developed nanosystem was evaluated for its killing efficacy against normal cell line. To identify apoptosis-associated alterations of cell membranes throughout the apoptosis process, a dual acridine orange/ethidium bromide (AO/EB) fluorescent staining was done using CeO2/ZnO/GO nanocomposite at three specific concentrations. The quantitative analysis was carried out using flow cytometry (FACS study) to determine the cell cycle during which the greatest number of HeLa cells were destroyed. According to the results of the FACS investigation, maximum cell cycle has taken place in P2, P4.As a result, the newly designed CeO2/ZnO/GO hybrid has demonstrated improved anti-cancer efficacy against the HeLa cell line, making it a better therapeutic agent for cervical cancer detection.
Improving Smoking Cessation After Myocardial Infarction by Systematically Implementing Evidence-Based Treatment Methods: A Retrospective Observational Cohort Study
Authors: Leosdottir Margret , Wärjerstam Sanne , Michelsen Halldora Ögmundsdottir , Schlyter Mona , Hag Emma , Wallert John , Larsson Matz
Published: August 2021

Background: Evidence-based methods for aiding smoking cessation post-myocardial infarction are effective yet underused in clinical practice. We compared the odds of smoking cessation at 2-months post-myocardial infarction before versus after implementing a set of pre-specified routines optimizing evidence-based treatment methods for smoking cessation, initiated during admission. Methods: Structured routines for early smoking cessation counselling and treatment optimization were implemented at six cardiac rehabilitation centres in Sweden. The routines included cardiac rehabilitation nurses providing current smokers hospitalized for acute myocardial infarction with short consultation, written material, and optimal dosage of nicotine replacement therapy during admission, increasing early prescription of varenicline for eligible patients, and contacting the patients by telephone 3-5 days after discharge, after which usual care follow-up commenced. Centres were also encouraged to strive for continuity in nurse-patient care. Using logistic regression, we compared the odds for smoking cessation at 2-months post-discharge for currently smoking patients admitted (a) before (n=188, median age 60 years, 23% females) and (b) after (n=195, median age 60 years, 29% females) routine implementation. Secondary outcomes included adherence to implemented routines and the association of each routine with smoking cessation odds at 2-months.Results: In total, 159 (85%) and 179 (92%) of enrolled patients attended the 2-month follow-up, before and after implementation of the new routines. After implementation, a significantly larger proportion of patients (65% vs 54%) were abstinent from smoking at 2-months (OR 1.60 [1.04-2.48], p=0.034). Including only those counselled during admission (n=89), 74% (vs 54%) were abstinent at 2-months (OR 2.50 [1.42-4.41], p=0.002). After the new routine implementation patients were counselled more frequently during admission (50% vs 6%, p<0.001), prescribed varenicline at discharge or during follow-up (23% vs 7%, p<0.001), and contacted by telephone during the first week post-discharge (18% vs 2%, p<0.001), compared to before. Being prescribed varenicline before discharge or during follow-up had the strongest independent association with smoking abstinence at 2-months (adjusted OR 4.09 [1.68-10.00], p=0.002).Conclusions: Our results support that readily available methods for aiding smoking cessation can be implemented effectively in routine practice, with possible beneficial effects on smoking cessation for the high-risk group of smoking myocardial infarction patients.
The Global Burden and Attributable Risk Factors of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia in 204 Countries and Territories from 1990 to 2019: Analysis Based on the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019.
Authors: Yao Yiyi , Lin Xiangjie , Li Fenglin , Jin Jie , Wang Huafeng
Published: August 2021

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is the most prevalent subtype of leukemia in Western countries. Evaluation of the epidemiological characteristics of CLL is warranted, especially in the current context of global population aging. CLL data including incidence, mortality, and disability adjusted life-years (DALYs) were extracted and estimated annual percentage changes (EAPCs) were calculated from the 2019 Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study. Social-demographic index (SDI) was collected to investigate the impaction of social development degree on epidemiological trends and risk analysis. The global incidence of CLL has increased dramatically from 40,537 in 1990 to 103,467 in 2019. A high incidence has been achieved in males and elder people. Countries and territories with high SDI tended to have higher global burden than low-SDI region. Of the risk factors, high body mass index and smoking were the major contributors for CLL-related mortality and DALYs. In summary, the global CLL burden continues to rise over the past 30 years. Although most of the CLL incidence and death occurred in high-SDI regions, the CLL burden tends to grow rapidest in middle-SDI regions compared with high-/low-SDI regions. Therefore, it is necessary to pay special attention on taking further measures to alleviate the growing burden of CLL.
Hydroxychloroquine Attenuates Myocardial Ischemic and Post-ischemic Reperfusion Injury by Inhibiting the Toll-like Receptor 9 – Type I Interferon Pathway
Authors: Marsh Katherine M. , Rastogi Radhika , Zhang Aimee , Wu Di , Kron Irving L. , Yang Zequan
Published: August 2021

Background: Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) is a toll-like receptor (TLR) 7 and 9 inhibitor that has been used clinically for its anti-inflammatory effects. We hypothesized that HCQ would attenuate myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (IR) injury by inhibiting the TLR9 – type I interferon (IFN-I) pathway. Methods: The left coronary artery of wild-type (WT) C57BL/6 and congenic TLR9-/- mice was occluded for 40 minutes to induce myocardial ischemia, with or without 60 minutes of subsequent reperfusion (40’/0’ or 40’/60’). Treatment with TLR9 inhibitors ODN-2088 or HCQ, or with TLR9 agonist ODN-1826 was administered either before ischemia or before reperfusion to determine effect on infarct size (IS). Myocardial IS as a percentage of risk region was measured by TTC-Blue staining. After 40’/0’, cardiac perfusate (CP) was collected from harvested hearts and used to treat either intact WT mice after 20 minutes of ischemia or isolated splenocytes. IFNa and IFNb levels were measured in plasma and splenocyte culture supernatant, and HMGB1 and cfDNA levels were measured in CP. Results: After 40’/60’ of IR, WT mice treated with HCQ or ODN-2088 had significantly reduced IS. Both 40’/0’ ischemic injury and 40’/60’ IR injury were similarly attenuated in TLR9-/- mice and HCQ-treated WT mice. HCQ did not further reduce IS in TLR9-/- mice. TLR9-/- and HCQ-treated WT mice had significantly lower IFNa and IFNb in CP after 40’/0’ ischemic injury and in plasma after 40’/60’ IR. 40’/0’ CP or ODN-1826 significantly increased IS in WT mice undergoing 20’/60’ IR. CP-treated WT splenocytes produced significantly higher IFNa and IFNb in culture supernatant at 2 hours. HCQ significantly reduced the production of IFNa and IFNb. Conclusions: The TLR9 – IFN-I-mediated inflammatory response is an important contributor to both ischemic and post-ischemic myocardial IR injury. HMGB1 and cfDNA released from ischemic myocardium activated the intra-myocardial TLR9 – IFN-I inflammatory pathway during ischemia and the extra-myocardial TLR9 – IFN-I inflammatory pathway during reperfusion. Hydroxychloroquine reduces production of IFN-I and attenuates myocardial IR injury, likely by inhibiting the TLR9 – IFN-I pathway.
Modeling the relevance of immune and metabolic cues in the macrophage/fibroblast interplay during fibrosis
Authors: Setten Elisa , Castagna Alessandra , Nava-Sedeno Josue , Weber Jonathan , Carriero Roberta , Reppas Andreas , Volk Valery , Schmitz Jessica , Gwinner Wilfried , Hatzikirou Haralampos , Feuerhake Friedrich , Locati Massimo
Published: August 2021

Fibrosis is a progressive biological process leading to organ dysfunction in different clinical settings. As fibroblasts and macrophages are known as key cellular players for fibrosis development, we adopted an in vitro model to define the functional effects of inflammation, hypoxia, and the adaptive immune context on their functional interplay with respect to fibrosis development. Transcriptomic analysis defined the impact of each parameter, acting alone or in combination, on functional properties of both cell types, exposed individually or in a cell-cell contact. These in vitro signatures were matched with transcriptomic profiles generated on laser-captured glomeruli and cortical tubulointerstitial area isolated from human transplanted kidneys with advanced stages of glomerulosclerosis and interstitial fibrosis/tubular atrophy, two clinically relevant conditions associated with organ failure in renal allografts. In vitro signatures were also used to instruct the development of a mathematical model predicting the relevance of each parameter in fibrosis development scenario, which indicated tolerance to inflammatory infiltrates under otherwise favorable conditions and defined an operative window in which hypoxia exerts a crucial role, supported by the degree of inflammation. Observed signatures and model-based predictions strongly suggested that irreversible fibrosis development is the result of specific combinations of metabolic and inflammatory cues, which drive distinct profibrotic paths in the glomeruli and the tubulointerstitial compartments. These findings, which found confirmation in tissue-based quantitative immune-phenotyping of transplanted kidney biopsies, indicate that the combination of in vitro and in silico modeling represents a powerful systems medicine approach to dissect fibrosis pathogenesis and develop coordinated targeted approaches.
Potential Key Markers for Predicting the Prognosis of Gastric Adenocarcinoma based on the Expression of Ferroptosis Related LncRNA
Authors: Yanqun Cai , Susu Wu , Yifan Jia , Xiao Pan , Caiqin Li
Published: August 2021

Background Gastric cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors, and it ranks third in global cancer-related mortality. At present, there is still no optimal treatment for gastric cancer, which makes it important to identify new therapeutic targets. This research aims to identify new targeted treatments for gastric adenocarcinoma by constructing a ferroptosis-related lncRNA prognostic feature model.MethodsThe gene expression profile and clinical data of gastric adenocarcinoma patients were downloaded from TCGA database. FerrDb database was used to determine the expression of iron death related genes. We used R software to clean the TCAG gastric adenocarcinoma gene expression cohort and screen iron death related differential genes and lncrna, and then carried out go and KEGG functional enrichment analysis of the related differential genes. The potential prognostic markers and immune infiltration characteristics were determined by constructing prognostic model and multivariate validation of lncRNA related to ferroptosis prognosis. Finally, the characteristics of immune infiltration were determined by immune correlation analysis.ResultsWe identified 26 ferroptosis-related lncRNA with independent prognostic value. Kaplan-Meier analysis identified high-risk lncRNA associated with poor prognosis of STAD. The risk scoring model constructed by AC115619.1, AC005165.1, LINC01614, AC002451.1 was better than traditional clinicopathological features. The 1, 3, and 5-year survival rates of STAD patients were predicted by the nomogram. GSEA reveals the oxidative respiration and tumor-related pathways in different risk groups. Immune analysis found significant differences in the expression of immune checkpoint-related genes TNFSF9, TNFSF4 and PDCD1LG2 between the two groups of patients. Meanwhile, there were significant differences in APC co stimulation, CCR and checkpoint between the two groups.ConclusionBased on the prognostic characteristics of ferroptosis-related lncRNA, we identified the potential ferroptosis-related lncRNA and immune infiltration characteristics in gastric adenocarcinoma, which will help provide new targeted treatments for gastric adenocarcinoma.
Dorsal Skin Microbial Assemblages in Free-ranging Hellbenders, Cryptobranchus Alleganiensis, Associated With Subspecies and Chronic Toe Lesions, but Not With Chytrid Fungal Infection.
Authors: Hardman Rebecca Hale , LeCleir Gary , Fitzpatrick Benjamin , Irwin Kelly J. , Sutton William B. , Neto Jeronimo G. da Silva , Freake Michael , Walker Donald M. , Miller Debra L.
Published: August 2021

BackgroundSkin microbiomes are important components of skin health and have been shown to contribute to immunity in amphibians, especially against the chytrid fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd). Hellbenders (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis) are large aquatic amphibians (Order Caudata) native to the eastern United States that have experienced population declines of both the Ozark and eastern subspecies, C. a. bishopi and C. a. alleganiensis, respectively. In addition, ulcerative non-healing toe lesions have become increasingly prevalent in C. a. bishopi, in Arkansas (AR) where populations are now reduced to a single river. To evaluate the potential impacts of both chronic toe lesions and Bd on hellbender health, we compared dorsal skin microbial assemblages based on 16S rRNA gene amplicons between a declining Ozark hellbender population in Arkansas (AR) presenting lesions and a reference, recruiting, lesion-free, population of eastern hellbenders in eastern Tennessee (ETN). We further evaluated effects of mass and life stage across both subspecies, as well as toe lesion severity and Bd infection status within AR, to better understand the associations between microbiomes and disease in a wild salamander.ResultsWe found skin of ETN hellbenders to have greater bacterial alpha diversity compared to AR, with this disparity decreasing as Hill number order increased. Conversely, within AR, animals with more severe lesions had decreased alpha diversity than those with mild lesions, which became more pronounced with increasing Hill number. Further, the average microbial assemblage structure differed between ETN and AR. Specifically, AR communities displayed increased beta diversity compared to those from ETN, which appeared to be linked to toe lesion severity. Neither size class (mass) nor Bd infection status had a significant effect on alpha or beta diversity. Taxonomic analysis revealed ETN to have greater OTU abundance of phylum Cyanobacteria 24.3%) compared to AR (5.9%); whereas AR had increased abundance of Proteobacteria (48.5%), Firmicutes (9.1%), and Synergistetes (1.5%), in comparison to ETN (31.5%, 2.6%, 0.2%, respectively).ConclusionsResults demonstrate that eastern hellbenders of ETN have richer and less dispersed dorsal skin bacterial assemblages compared to Ozark hellbenders of AR. Furthermore, we suggest that increased severity of toe lesions may be linked to systemic changes resulting in skin microbial dysbiosis, independent of Bd infection. Although lesions remain to have an unknown etiology, this study is another step towards understanding skin bacterial microbiomes in hellbenders, and their potential associations with chronic disease.
Novel Humanized Monoclonal Antibodies for Targeting Hypoxic Human Tumors via Two Distinct Extracellular Domains of Carbonic Anhydrase IX
Authors: Zatovicova Miriam , Kajanova Ivana , Barathova Monika , Takacova Martina , Labudova Martina , Csaderova Lucia , Jelenska Lenka , Svastova Eliska , Pastorekova Silvia , Harris Adrian L , Pastorek Jaromír
Published: August 2021

Background Hypoxia in the tumor microenvironment (TME) is often the main factor in the cancer progression. Moreover, low levels of oxygen in tumor tissue may signal that the first or second-line therapy will not be successful. This knowledge triggers the inevitable search for different kinds of treatment that will successfully cure aggressive tumors. Due to its exclusive expression on cancer cells, carbonic anhydrase IX belongs to the group of the most precise targets in hypoxic tumors. CA IX possesses several exceptional qualities that predetermine its crucial role in targeted therapy. Its expression on the cell membrane makes it an easily accessible target, while its absence in healthy corresponding tissues makes the treatment practically harmless. The presence of CA IX in solid tumors causes an acidic environment that may lead to the failure of standard therapy. Methods Parental mouse hybridomas (IV/18 and VII/20) were humanized to antibodies which were subsequently named CA9hu-1 and CA9hu-2. From each hybridoma we obtained 25 clones. Each clone was tested for ADCC and CDC activity, affinity, extracellular pH measurement, multicellular aggregation analysis and real-time monitoring of invasion with xCELLigence system. ResultsBoth CA9hu-1 and CA9hu-2 are IgG1 antibodies and they were both examined in vivo. Here we describe anti-CAIX antibodies that can reverse the failure of standard therapy as a result of an acidic environment by modulating the TME. CA9hu-1 is directed at the conformational epitope of the catalytic domain, while CA9hu-2 targets the sequential epitope of the proteo-glycan domain. They are both able to induce an immune response, have high affinity, as well as ADCC and CDC activity. While the first one internalizes after binding to the antigen, the second one is able to reduce metastases formation. More importantly, they have both proved the ability to block the acidification of the extracellular environment. ConclusionCA9hu-1 and CA9hu-2 are the very first humanized antibodies against CA IX that are likely to become suitable therapies for hypoxic tumors. These antibodies can be applied in the treatment therapy of primary tumors and suppression of metastases formation.
EEG-Based Driving Fatigue Alleviation Using Multi-Acupoint Electrical Stimulation Combine Music Conditioning Method
Authors: Wang Fuwang , Kang Xiaogang , Lu Bin , Wang Hao , Fu Rongrong
Published: August 2021

In the present work, we propose the multi-acupoint electrical stimulation (stimulating the Láogóng point (劳宫PC8) and acupuncture points on waist, shoulders, buttocks of the human body) combined with music conditioning (MESCMC) to alleviate driving fatigue. In our study, the complexity of α and β rhythms of EEG of the drivers, the relative power spectrum of θ and β, as well as two relative power spectrum ratio θ/β and (θ+α)/(α+β) are used as fatigue features during driving. The features of the complexity, which can effectively reflect brain activity information, were used to detect the change of driving fatigue over time. Combined with the traditional relative power spectrum features, the changes in driving fatigue features were comprehensively analyzed. The results show that the MESCMC method can effectively alleviate the mental fatigue of drivers. Besides, compared with the single-acupoint electrical stimulation[only stimulating the Láogóng point (劳宫PC8)] (SES) method, the MESCMC method is more effective in relieving driving fatigue.The mitigation equipment is low in cost and practical, and the MESCMC method is individualized and improves the universality of driving fatigue detection and relieve, so will be practical to use in actual driving situations in the future.
Adverse Events of Inactivated COVID-19 Vaccine in HIV-Infected Adults
Authors: Wu Songjie , Zhang Yubin , Ming Fangzhao , Zou Shi , Wu Mengmeng , Guo Wei , Tang Weiming , Liang Ke
Published: August 2021

This study aims to evaluate the safety of inactivated COVID-19 vaccineamong adult people living with HIV (PLWH). In total, 259 PLWH who received at least one dose of inactivated COVID-19 vaccine were enrolled, and post-vaccination adverse events (AEs) were evaluated seven days following each vaccination dose. The overall AE frequency was 22.8% after dose one, which was higher than after dose two(10.2%)(P＜0.001). No severe side event or vaccine safety concern was observed. Our finding was essential in reducing vaccine hesitancy among PLWH.
WITHDRAWN: Identification of TFE3/TFEB and its Related Genes as Prognostic Biomarkers in Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Authors: Li Qiaoli
Published: August 2021

Background: Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is one of the most common hematologic malignances with an ever-increasing incidence and high mortality. TFE3 and TFEB, two transcription factors that mediate cellular adaptation to stress by simultaneously promoting lysosomal biogenesis, autophagy induction, as well as expression of critical mitochondrial and metabolic regulators, which are substantial contributors to cell fate and cancer progress. However, the expression and prognostic values of TFE3/TFEB in AML have not been clarified.Objective: To explore the expression and role of TFE3/TFEB in AML and thus to find potential therapy. Methods: RNA sequence data from AML patients and healthy donors were obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) analysis were performed by GEO2R. TFE3/TFEB related genes were obtained from UALCAN. Gene ontology (GO) and KEGG pathway were analyzed by WEB-based GEne SeT AnaLysis Toolkit (WebGestalt) and DAVID. Protein-protein interactions (PPIs) network construction and module analysis were performed by STRING and Cytoscape. The Kaplan-Meier survival curves were drawn in TCGA portal. Results: We found TFE3 and TFEB can be used prognostic factors for AML, and most of their positively related genes were worse prognostic factors too. ITGB2, FGR, ITGAM, ITGAX and SELPLG were identified as the most significant genes in survival-related genes contributed by TFE3 and TFEB.Conclusions: In this study, we performed a comprehensive analysis of gene expression and gene function to identify key prognostic biomarkers in AML.
Comprehensive Biological Information Analysis of PTEN Gene in Pan-Cancer
Authors: Zhang Hang , Zhou Wenhan , Yang Xiaoyi , Wen Shuzhan , Zhao Baicheng , Feng Jiale , Chen Bozhou , Chen Shuying
Published: August 2021

Background: PTEN is a multifunctional tumor suppressor gene mutating at high frequency in a variety of cancers. However, its expression in pan-cancer, correlated genes, survival prognosis, and regulatory pathways are not completely described. Here, we aimed to conduct a comprehensive analysis from the above perspectives in order to provide reference for clinical application. Methods: we studied the expression levels in cancers by using data from TCGA and GTEx database. Obtain expression box plot from UALCAN database. Perform mutation analysis on the cBioportal website. Obtain correlation genes on the GEPIA website. Construct protein network and perform KEGG and GO enrichment analysis on the STRING database. Perform prognostic analysis on the Kaplan-Meier Plotter website. We also performed transcription factor prediction on the PROMO database and performed RNA-RNA association and RNA-protein interaction on the RNAup Web server and RPISeq. The gene 3D structure, protein sequence and conserved domain were obtained in NCBI respectively.Results: PTEN was underexpressed in all cancers we studied. It was closely related to the clinical stage of tumors, suggesting PTEN may involved in cancer development and progression. The mutations of PTEN were present in a variety of cancers, most of which were truncation mutations and missense mutations. Among cancers (KIRC, LUAD, THYM, UCEC, Gastric Cancer, Liver Cancer, Lung Cancer, Breast Cancer), patients with low expression of PTEN had a shorter OS time and poorer OS prognosis. The low expression of PTEN can cause the deterioration of RFS in certain cancers (TGCT, UCEC, LIHC, LUAD, THCA), suggesting that the expression of PTEN was related to the clinical prognosis. Our study identified genes correlated with PTEN and performed GO enrichment analysis on 100 PTEN-related genes obtained from the GEPIA website. Conclusions: The understanding of PTEN gene and the in-depth exploration of its related regulatory pathways may provide insight for the discovery of tumor-specific biomarkers and clinical potential therapeutic targets.
Varus and Steep Medial Posterior Tibial Slope Are Risk Factors for Degenerative Medial Meniscus Lesions
Authors: Xu Tao , Xu Liuhai , Li Xinzhi , Zhou You
Published: August 2021

Purpose: Degenerative medial meniscus lesions(DMMLs) is different from other meniscus injuries, which have a high incidence and easy to miss diagnosis in the middle-aged and elderly. The present study was designed to identify the risk factors for DMMLs among an Asian sample.Methods: The experimental group included 121 patients（ones partly confirmed during arthroscopic surgery) with DMMLs and the control group included 51 patients with no pathological changes identified by using 3.0-T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) from January 2017 to January 2021 were analyzed retrospectively. By full-length anteroposterior radiographs of lower limbs in weight-bearing position of the two groups, the Hip-Knee-Ankle (HKA) angle in the coronal plane and the Medial Posterior Tibial Slope(MPTS) in the sagittal plane were measured by the MRI T1 sequence of the knee. The potential risk factors of DMMLs were analyzed by multivariate logistic regression. The independent variables included gender, age, body mass index (BMI), occupational kneeling, Kellgren-Lawrence (K-L) grade, HKA, and MPTS.Results: T-test analysis between the Experimental Group and the Control Group showed statistically significant differences in age (t=10.718, p<0.001), BMI (t=7.300, p<0.001), HKA (t=8.677, p<0.001), and MPTS (t=5.025, p<0.001). Chi-square test analysis between the two groups showed no statistically significant differences in gender (t=0.183, p=0.669) and occupational kneeling (t=0.339, p=0.560). Non-parametric analysis showed statistically significant differences in K-L (z=5.857, p<0.001) between the two groups. Logistic regression analysis showed that age, BMI, HKA, and MPTS were risk factors for DMMLs among the above-mentioned variables with statistically significant differences.Conclusions: varus, steep MPTS, advancing age and obesity were risk factors for DMMLs.
Variation in Community and Ambulance Care Processes for Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Masuda Yoshio , Teoh Seth , Yeo Jun Wei , Tan Darren , Lim Shir Lynn , Ong Marcus , Blewer Audrey , Ho Andrew
Published: August 2021

Bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (BCPR) and early defibrillation can double the chance of survival from out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest (OHCA). We investigated the effect of COVID-19 on the pre-hospital chain of survival. We searched five bibliographical databases for articles that compared prehospital OHCA care processes during and before the COVID-19 pandemic. Random effects meta-analyses were conducted, and meta-regression with mixed-effect models and subgroup analyses were conducted where appropriate. The search yielded 966 articles; 20 articles were included in our analysis. OHCA at home was more common during the pandemic (OR=1.38, 95%CI 1.11-1.71, p=0.0069). BCPR did not differ between COVID-19 and Pre-COVID-19 populations (OR=0.94, 95%CI 0.80-1.11, p=0.4631), although bystander defibrillation was significantly lower during the COVID-19 period (OR=0.65, 95%CI 0.48-0.88, p=0.0107). EMS call-to-arrival time was significantly higher in COVID-19 populations (SMD=0.27, 95%CI 0.13-0.40, p=0.0006). Resuscitation duration did not differ significantly between pandemic and pre-pandemic timeframes. The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected prehospital processes for OHCA. These findings may inform future interventions, particularly to consider interventions to increase BCPR and improve the pre-hospital chain of survival.
Accelerating Neural Network Training with Distributed Asynchronous and Selective Optimization (DASO)
Authors: Coquelin Daniel , Debus Charlotte , Götz Markus , Lehr Fabrice von der , Kahn James , Siggel Martin , Streit Achim
Published: August 2021

With increasing data and model complexities, the time required to train neural networks has become prohibitively large. To address the exponential rise in training time, users are turning to data parallel neural networks (DPNN) and large-scale distributed resources on computer clusters. Current DPNN approaches implement the network parameter updates by synchronizing and averaging gradients across all processes with blocking communication operations after each forward-backward pass. This synchronization is the central algorithmic bottleneck. We introduce the Distributed Asynchronous and Selective Optimization (DASO) method, which leverages multi-GPU compute node architectures to accelerate network training while maintaining accuracy. DASO uses a hierarchical and asynchronous communication scheme comprised of node-local and global networks while adjusting the global synchronization rate during the learning process. We show that DASO yields a reduction in training time of up to 34% on classical and state-of-the-art networks, as compared to current optimized data parallel training methods.
‘Some Refugees Move because the Health Facilities in the Settlement are not Good’: A Qualitative Study of Factors Influencing Movement of Somali Refugees from Nakivale Settlement to Kampala City
Authors: Bagonza Pape , KYALIGONZA TADDEO , BAGONZA ARTHUR
Published: August 2021

Background: There is a growing number of urban refugees that may necessitate local government and humanitarian organizations to factor in when planning for the urban infrastructure as this has proved to be a planning blind spot. This study assessed factors influencing Somali refugee movement from Nakivale refugee settlement to Kampala, the capital city of Uganda. Methods: Six key informant interviews were held with the Principle Protection Officer-OPM, Legal Coordinator-NRC, Manager Access to Justice Program-RLP, Psychosocial Counsellor-JRS, Somali elder Nakivale settlement and the Chairperson-SCK. Three focus group discussions were conducted with one group of male and two groups of female Somali refugees. Transcripts were managed using Atlas ti version 7 (ATLAS. Ti GmbH, Berlin). Results: The need for better basic needs such as food, water, health care, education, employment, a better quality life and difficulties related to having a language barrier emerged in the first theme. Movement due to political and cultural persecution emerged as a combined theme of security. The need for better economic benefits, livelihood support and an enabling refugee policy were influencers. The study also revealed that Somali refugees are a well-knit society with a robust communication network that relies on Islamic religion and country background in exploiting connections that enable those who move from Nakivale settlement to quickly adapt to the situation in Kampala.Conclusion: Somali movement from Nakivale refugee settlement to Kampala is influenced by a need for better basic needs and security; economic benefits, livelihood support and an enabling refugee policy which guarantees freedom of movement. A communication network based on religion and country background are facilitators.