bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Relationships among structure, memory, and flow in sheared disordered materials
Authors: Galloway Kevin , Teich Erin , Ma Xiaoguang , Kammer Christoph , Graham Ian , Keim Nathan , Reina Celia , Jerolmack Douglas , Yodh Arjun , Arratia Paulo
Published: May 2021

A fundamental challenge for disordered solids is predicting macroscopic yield from the microscopic arrangements of constituent particles. Yield is accompanied by a sudden and large increase in energy dissipation due to the onset of plastic rearrangements. This suggests that one path to understanding bulk rheology is to map particle configurations to their mode of deformation. Here, we perform laboratory experiments and numerical simulations that are designed to do just that: 2D dense colloidal systems are subjected to oscillatory shear, and particle trajectories and bulk rheology are measured. We quantify particle microstructure using excess entropy. Results reveal a direct relation between excess entropy and energy dissipation, that is insensitive to the nature of interactions among particles. We use this relation to build a physically-informed model that connects rheology to microstructure. Our findings suggest a framework for tailoring the rheological response of disordered materials by tuning microstructural properties.
Predicting South Africa’s Daily COVID-19 Cases using ARIMA Forecasting Model: 6 March to 6 July 2020
Authors: Claris Shoko , Delson Chikobvu
Published: May 2021

Background and Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic caused approximately 11,421,822 laboratory confirmed cases globally with 196,750 confirmed cases in South Africa by the 6th of July 2020. Coronavirus is transmitted from one person to another even before any symptoms appear, thus posing a severe threat to the society as a whole. This study is aimed at coming up with an ARIMA model to predict daily COVID-19 disease cases in South Africa using data from online sources. Materials and Methods: The study used online data on daily COVID-19 reported cases in South Africa (SA) recorded from 6 March 2020 to the 6th of July 2020. Time series analysis is used to investigate the trend in the daily COVID-19 disease cases leading to the Auto-Regressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) model. Results: The time plot of the series suggests the need for differencing of the data up to the second-order to achieve a stationary time series. The best candidate model was an ARIMA(7,2,0). Residuals for the selected model are non-correlated and normally distributed with mean zero with a constant variance as expected in a good model. The fitted model predicted a continuous increase in the daily COVID-19 disease cases for the next 20 days ahead to day 143 with slight falls at a few time points.Conclusion: The results showed that ARIMA models can be applied to COVID-19 patterns in South Afriva. The model forecasted a continuous increase in the daily COVID-19 cases in South Africa. These results are important for public health planning in order combat the pandemic.
Clinical Value of Serum β-Catenin Protein in Monitoring of Progress in Patients with Osteonecrosis of the Femoral Head
Authors: Huang Junyuan , Zhou Yingchun , Xiao Wei , Deng Peng , Lu Weiguo
Published: May 2021

Background Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway is closely related to the pathogenesis Osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH). β-catenin, as a major component of Wnt signaling pathway, plays a vital role in the proliferation of osteoblasts. But the effect of altering β-catenin level on the early diagnosis and progress of ONFH have not been studied. Our purpose was to investigate the role of β-catenin level in the progress of ONFH.MethodOne hundred and one patients with three stages of ONFH and fifty healthy controls were recruited between May 2016 and November 2016. We divided the patients into 32 cases of stage II, 41 cases of stage Ⅲ and 28 cases of stage IV according to the Association Research Circulation Osseous (ARCO) classification. We evaluated the clinical bone histomorphology, expression position and level of β-Catenin as well as the plasma β-catenin level. ResultsWe found that serum β-catenin level was significantly higher in the ONFH group than those in healthy control group (P<0.001). We also found that the area under the curve (AUC) calculated by ROC curve analysis to determine the values for β-catenin levels in ONFH compared with those in the control group was 0.9358(P<0.001), where the sensitivity was 77.23% and specificity was 98.00%.ConclusionOur results indicated that the increased β-catenin may play a vital role in the progress of ONFH. The cutoff concentration may be used as one of the sensitive signs to assess the disease process of ONFH.
Novel Combined Preparation and Investigation of Bergenin Loaded Albumin Nanoparticles for the Treatment and Care of Acute Lung Injury: In Vitro and In Vivo Evaluations
Authors: Yan Lingqiao , Chen Hui , Xie Mindan
Published: May 2021

A new method for targeting lung infections is of great interest using biodegradable nanoparticles. In this study, bergenin loaded BSA NPs were developed against lung injury. Briefly, BG@BSA NPS were synthesized and characterized. HPLC recorded the major peak of bergenin. UV-vis spectra had an absorbance at 376nm. XRD revealed the presence of crystalline particles. FTIR confirmed the occurrence of functionalized molecules in the synthesized NPS. The particles were highly stable with a net negative charge of -24.2. The morphology of NPS were determined by SEM and TEM. The mean particle size was 124.26nm. The production of NO by NR8383 cells was decreased by BG@BSA NPs. Also, in mice, lipopolysaccharide mediated acute lung inflammation was induced. BG@BSA NPs reduced macrophages and neutrophils in BALF and remarkably enhanced wet-to-dry weight (W/D) ratios and myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity. Further, BG@BSA NPs inhibited the production of inflammatory cells as well as tumour necrosis factor. The histopathological studies revealed that the damage and neutrophil infiltration was greatly inhibited by BG@BSA NPs. This indicates that BG@BSA NPs may be used to treat lung infections Therefore, this study has given new insight into producing an active drug for the treatment of lung associated diseases in the future.
Expression Profiling of Contralateral Dorsal Root Ganglia of a Rat Model of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome Type-i Uncovers Potential Mechanisms Involved in Mirror-image Painexpression Profiling of Contralateral Dorsal Root Ganglia of a Rat Model of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome Type-i Uncovers Potential Mechanisms Involved in Mirror-image Pain
Authors: Nie Huimin , Liu Boyu , Yin Chengyu , Chen Ruixiang , Wang Jie , Zeng Danyi , Tai Yan , He Dongwei , Liu Boyi
Published: May 2021

Background: Mirror-image pain (MIP), which develops from the healthy body region contralateral to the actual injured site, is a mysterious pain phenomenon accompanying many chronic pain conditions, including complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS). However, the pathogenesis of MIP still remained largely unknown. The purpose of this study is to perform an expression profiling to identify genes related with MIP in an animal model of CRPS-I. Methods: We established a rat chronic post-ischemic pain (CPIP) model to mimic human CRPS-I. RNA-sequencing (RNA-Seq), bioinformatics, qPCR, immunostaining and animal behavioral assays were used to screen potential genes in contralateral dorsal root ganglia (DRG) that may be involved in MIP. Results: The CPIP model rats developed robust and persistent MIP in contralateral hind paws. Bilateral DRG neurons did not exhibit obvious neuronal damage. RNA-Seq of contralateral DRG from CPIP model rats identified a total 527 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) vs. control rats. The expression changes of several representative DEGs were verified by qPCR. Bioinformatics analysis indicated that immune system process, innate immune response and cell adhesion were among the mostly enriched biological processes, which are all important processes involved in pain sensitization, neuroinflammation and chronic pain. We further identified DEGs potentially involved in pain mechanisms or enriched in small- to medium-sized sensory neurons or TRPV1-lineage nociceptors. By comparing with published datasets summarizing genes enriched in pain mechanisms, we sorted out a core set of genes which might contribute to nociception and pain mechanism in MIP. Conclusions: We provided by far the first study to profile gene expression changes and pathway analysis of contralateral DRG for investigating MIP mechanisms. This work may provide novel insights into understanding the mysterious mechanisms underlying MIP.
The cyclin dependent kinase inhibitor Roscovitine reverses diet- induced metabolic disruption in obese mice
Authors: Rabhi Nabil , Desevin Kathleen , Cortez Briana Noel , Hekman Ryan , Lin Jean Z. , Emili Andrew , Farmer Stephen R.
Published: May 2021

Most strategies to treat obesity-related disorders have involved prevention of diet-induced weight gain in lean mice. Treatment of obese individuals will require therapies that reverse the detrimental effects of excess body weight. Here, we show that roscovitine given to mice during the last six weeks of a 19-week high fat diet, reduced weight gain and prevented accompanying insulin resistance, hepatic steatosis, visceral adipose tissue (eWAT) inflammation/fibrosis as well as restored insulin secretion and enhanced whole body energy expenditure. Proteomics and phosphoproteomics analysis of eWAT demonstrated that roscovitine suppressed expression of peptides and phosphopeptides linked to inflammation and extracellular matrix proteins. It also identified 17 putative protein kinases perturbed by roscovitine, including CMGC kinases, AGC kinases and CAMK kinases. Pathway enrichment analysis showed that lipid metabolism, TCA cycle, fatty acid beta oxidation and creatine biosynthesis are enriched following roscovitine treatment. For brown adipose tissue (BAT), analysis of upstream kinases controlling the phosphoproteome revealed two major kinase groups, AGC and CMGC kinases. Among the top enriched pathways were insulin signaling, regulation of lipolysis in adipocytes, thyroid hormone signaling, thermogenesis and cAMP-PKG signaling. We conclude that roscovitine is effective at reversing prolonged diet-induced metabolic disruption and restoring mitochondrial activity in BAT and eWAT.
Control of Late-life Systolic Blood Pressure and All-cause Mortality Among Oldest-old People in China: The Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey
Authors: Gao Hui , Wang Kan , Ahmadizar Fariba , Zhao Wensui , Jiang Yu , Zhang Lei , Yu Li , Zhou Fangjia , Gu Jialing , Zhuang Jianlin , Xia Zhao-lin
Published: May 2021

Background: Blood pressure targets for oldest-old people have been long debated due to the concern that more stringent targets are associated with increased mortality. We aimed to investigate the association between late-life systolic blood pressure control (mean SBP) and variability (SBPV) and mortality in oldest-old people.Methods: Based on the community-based Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey with follow-up conducted in the 3-year interval, we assembled a retrospective cohort of 5951 participants ≥80 years with available blood pressure measurements at baseline and second wave. The primary exposures were mean SBP and SBPV (defined as the annual difference in SBP divided by mean SBP) measured between baseline and second wave. The primary outcome was 3-year all-cause mortality assessed between the second and third waves.Results: During 21733.9 person-years of follow-up, 4290 death was recorded. U-shaped associations of mortality with mean SBP and SBPV were identified; the value of 137 mmHg and 2.3 %/year conferred the minimum mortality risk, respectively. The associations of a larger SBPV with an increased mortality risk were observed for both rises and large falls in SBP. The hazard ratio was 1.16 (comparing lowest versus middle quintile; 95% CI: 1.06, 1.28) with large falls in SBPV and 1.10 (comparing highest versus middle quintile; 95% CI: 1.00, 1.21) with large rises in SBPV.Conclusions: U-shaped associations between late-life SBP and SBPV and all-cause mortality were found. Our study suggests that a stable SBP level in the middle range decreases the risk of mortality in the oldest-old people.
Phylogenetically diverse bacteria isolated from tattoo inks, an azo dye-rich environment, decoloize a wide range of azo dyes
Authors: Nho Seong Won , Cui Xue Wen , Kweon Ohgew , Jin Jinshan , Chen Huizhong , Moon Mi Sun , Kim Seong-jae , Cerniglia Carl E
Published: May 2021

Purpose: There has been an interest in the microbial azo dye degradation as an optional method for the treatment of azo dye-containing wastes. Tattoo ink is an extremely unique azo dye-rich environment, which never been explored in terms of microorganisms capable of degrading azo dyes. Previously, we isolated 81 phylogenetically diverse bacteria, belonging to 20 genera and 49 species, contaminated in tattoo inks. In this study, we investigated if these bacteria, which can survive in the azo dye-rich environment, have an ability to degrade azo dyes. Methods: We conducted a two-step azo dye degradation (or decolorization) assay. In step 1, a high-throughput degradability assay was done for 81 bacterial isolates using Methyl Red and Oragne II. In step 2, a further degradation assay was done for 10 selected bacteria with a representative of 11 azo dyes, including 3 commercial tattoo ink azo dyes. Degradation of azo dyes were calculated from measuring optical absorbance of souble dyes at specific wavelenths. Results: The initial high-throughput azo dye assay (step 1) showed that 79 isolates had a complete or partial degradation of azo dyes; >90% of Methyl Red and Orange II were degraded within 24 h, by 74 and 20 isolates, respectively. A further evaluation of azo dye degradability for 10 selected isolates in step 2 showed that the isolates, belonging to Bacillus , Brevibacillus , Paenibacillus , and Pseudomonas , exhibited an excellent decolorization ability for a wide range of azo dyes. Conclusions: This study showed that phylogenetically diverse bacteria, isolated from azo dye-rich tattoo inks, is able to degrade a diverse range of azo dyes, including 3 azo dyes used in commercial tattoo inks. Some of the strains would be good candidates for future studies to provide a systematic understanding of azo dye degradation mechanisms
The Effects of a Comprehensive Rehabilitation Program Involving Traditional Chinese Medicine in Severe and Critical COVID-19 Patients: a Clinical Study
Authors: Ren Yi , Wang Yujin , Liu Huabao , Mou Fangzheng , Yan Xiaofeng , Tang Lilin , Tan Dengyong , Zuo Guoqing
Published: May 2021

Background: A year ago, a new type of coronavirus emerged. Once treated for severe and critical COVID-19 infections, patients are discharged from the hospital for further treatment and rehabilitation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a newly developed comprehensive rehabilitation program based on traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in the rehabilitation of patients with severe and critical COVID-19.Methods: We recruited a total of 72 patients who had suffered from severe and critical COVID-19 infections and were undergoing rehabilitation in Chongqing, China. A comprehensive rehabilitation program was formulated according to the TCM syndromes of these patients. Specific treatments included oral TCM, Baduanjin, Moxibustion, Acupoint application, and foot baths. Prior to the initiation of treatment, and four weeks after the initiation of treatment, we carried out a range of assessments, including the TCM Syndrome curative effect score, the modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) dyspnea score, the St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire, the Short Form (SF)-36 Quality of Life Scale, and the 6-minute walking test. We also carried out CT scans, serology tests. Statistical analysis was also conducted to evaluate the efficacy and safety of TCM on severe and critical COVID-19 patients.Results: Analysis showed that there were significant differences (P < 0.05) when compared before and after four weeks of TCM treatment, in terms of the TCM syndrome curative effect score, mMRC dyspnea score, St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire score, SF-36 Quality of Life Scale score, and the 6-minute walking test. We also identified significant differences (P < 0.05) between these two timepoints, with regards to the neutrophil ratio, lymphoid cell ratio, lymphocytes, platelets, red blood cells, and hemoglobin. There were no significant differences when compared between the two timepoints with regards to white blood cells and neutrophils (P > 0.05). The efficacy of chest CT scans was 83.9%. Logistic regression showed that the CT scans of patients who did not take the TCM decoction did not improve significantly. The higher a patient’s score on the 6-minute walking test, the higher the probability of no significant improvement on the CT scan.Conclusions: A comprehensive rehabilitation program based on TCM improved a number of clinical parameters in patients suffering from severe and critical COVID-19 infections, including quality of life, clinical symptoms, exercise endurance, and respiratory function. TCM also enhanced lymphocytes, lymphocyte ratio, platelet, red blood cell (RBC) count, and hemoglobin content. TCM also appeared to contribute to the absorption of lung lesions.
First Results of Undersea Muography with the Tokyo-Bay Seafloor Hyper-Kilometric Submarine Deep Detector MAGMA-HKMSDD Collaboration
Authors: Tanaka Hiroyuki K.M. , Bozza Cristiano , Coniglione Rosa , Gluyas Jon , Steigerwald Sara , Holma Marko , Kuusiniemi Pasi , Leone Giovanni , Mori Hirohisa , Matsushima Jun , Paling Sean , Presti Domenico Lo , Kin Tadahiro , Kamoshida Osamu , Aichi Masaatsu , Oláh László , Sumiya Kenji , Thompson Lee F. , Yokota Yusuke , Varga Dezső , Hayashi Naoto , Nomura Yukihiro , Kato Yasuhiro , Miyamoto Hideaki , Shimazoe Kenji , Takahashi Hiroyuki , Satoh Masaki
Published: May 2021

Tidal measurements are of great significance since they may provide us with essential data to apply towards protection of coastal communities and sea traffic. Currently, the tide gauge stations, satellite-based, pressure-based and ultrasonic-based techniques are commonly used. However, with these techniques, sensors have to be either floated on the sea surface or sunk onto the seafloor. The former option makes it difficult to conduct the tide measurements in high traffic maritime sea channels, and the latter option requires the construction of undersea electric and telecommunication infrastructures to support real time monitoring. On the other hand, with muography, sensors can be located underneath the seafloor inside, for example, an undersea tunnel where the electric and telecommunication infrastructures are more readily available. In this work, the world’s first under-seafloor particle detector array called the Tokyo-bay Seafloor Hyper-Kilometric Submarine Deep Detector (TS-HKMSDD) was deployed underneath the Tokyo-Bay seafloor for conducting submarine muography. Time-sequential muographic data were converted to the tidal levels above the detector and compared with the data acquired from the nearby tide gauge station. The results were consistent, indicating that submarine muography could be an alternative tool for tide measurements. We anticipate that if the length of the TS-HKMSDD is extended from 100 m to a full-scale as large as 9.6 km to provide continuous tidal information along the tunnel, muography will become an established standard, demonstrating its effectiveness as practical tide monitor for this heavy traffic waterway in Tokyo and in other important sea traffic areas worldwide.
NGS4THAL, a one-stop molecular diagnosis and carrier screening tool for thalassemia and other hemoglobinopathies by next-generation sequencing
Authors: Cao Yujie , Ha Shau Yin , So Chi-Chiu , For Tong Ming , Tang Clara Sze-Man , Zhang Huoru , Liang Rui , Yang Jing , Chung Brian Hon-Yin , Chan Godfrey Chi-Fung , Lau Yu-Lung , Garcia‑Barcelo Maria‑Mercè , Ma Edmond Shiu-Kwan , Sucharitchan Pranee , Hirankarn Nattiya , Yang Wanling
Published: May 2021

Background Thalassemia is one of the most common genetic diseases and a major health threat worldwide. Accurate, efficient and scalable genetic testing methodology is much needed for its molecular diagnosis and carrier screening.Results We developed NGS4THAL, a bioinformatics analysis pipeline analyzing next generation sequencing (NGS) data to detect pathogenic variants for thalassemia and other hemoglobinopathies. NGS4THAL recovers and realigns ambiguously mapped NGS reads derived from the homologous hemoglobin gene clusters to achieve accurate detection of point mutations and small insertion/deletions (InDels). And it uses several structural variant (SV) detection tools with complementary algorithms, and an inhouse database with control data on a number of known SVs to achieve accurate detection of hemoglobin SVs. Detected variants are matched with those in HbVar, allowing recognition of known pathogenic variants, including disease modifiers. Tested on simulation data, NGS4THAL achieved high sensitivity and specificity. For targeted NGS sequencing data from samples with laboratory-confirmed pathogenic hemoglobin variants, it achieved 100% detection accuracy. Application of NGS4THAL on whole genome sequencing data from unrelated studies detected thalassemia mutation carrier rates for Hong Kong Chinese and Northern Vietnamese that were consistent with those from epidemiological studies.Conclusions NGS4THAL is a highly accurate and efficient molecular diagnosis tool for thalassemia and other hemoglobinopathies based on tailored analysis of NGS data, and is potentially scalable for carrier screening purposes.
Hypoxia adipose stem cell-derived exosomes promote high-quality healing of diabetic wound involves activation of PI3K/Akt pathways
Authors: Wang Jie , Wu Hao , Peng Yixuan , Zhao Yue , Qin Youyou , Zhang Yingbo , xiao zhibo
Published: May 2021

Refractory diabetic wounds can cause persistent inflammation and delayed healing due to hypoxia. Currently, no optimal solution is available. Exosomes of adipose stem cells (ADSCs-exo) may promote skin wound healing, however, molecular mechanisms remains mysterious. We found significantly enhanced survival and proliferation of adipose stem cells after hypoxia induction compared to normoxia. Here, we aimed to investigate if hypoxic adipose stem cells exosomes (HypADSCs-exo) participate in hypoxia adaptability and accelerate diabetic wound healing. Based on high-throughput sequencing, 215 microRNAs (miRNAs) were upregulated and 369 miRNAs downregulated in HypADSCs-exo compared to ADSCs-exo. Up-regulated miR-21-3p, miR-126-5p, miR-31-5p whereas down-regulated gene miR-99b and miR-146-a correlated with wound healing. According to Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG), these miRNAs might regulate cell metabolism, differentiation and Transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) function. Consistently, HpyADSCs-exo could promote diabetic wounds healing and inhibit inflammation through PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Collectively, HpyADSCs-exo may potentially be applied in clinical therapy as an alternative strategy to improve wound healing.
The gene TaCB1 overcomes genotype dependency in wheat genetic transformation
Authors: Ke Wang , Shi Lei , Liang Xiaona , Zhao Pei , Wang Wanxin , Liu Junxian , Chang Yanan , Hiei Yukoh , Yanagihara Chizu , Du Pu , Ishida Yuji , Guo Ye
Published: May 2021

Genotype dependency is the most important factor in wheat genetic transformation, which further limits wheat improvement by transgenic integration and genome editing approaches. The application of regeneration related genes during in vitro culture could potentially contribute to enhancement of plant transformation efficiency. In the present study, a wheat gene TaCB1 in the WUSCHEL family was identified to dramatically increase the transformation efficiencies of many wheat varieties without genotype dependency after its over-expression. The expression of TaCB1 in wheat calli did not prohibit shoot differentiation and root development. The application of TaCB1 can lighten the requirement to wheat immature embryo for plant regeneration. Transgenic wheat plants can be clearly recognized by the visible phenotype of wide flag leaves. The promise function of TaCB1 on improving transformation efficiency was also tested in T. monococcum, triticale, rye, barley, and maize.
Genetic deletion of β-arrestin 2 modulates LSD-stimulated behaviors in mice
Authors: Rodriguiz Ramona M. , Nadkarni Vineet , Means Christopher R. , Pogorelov Vladimir M. , Chiu Yi-Ting , Roth Bryan L. , Wetsel William C.
Published: May 2021

Recent evidence suggests that psychedelic drugs can exert beneficial effects on anxiety, depression, and ethanol and nicotine abuse in humans. However, their hallucinogenic side-effects often preclude their clinical use. Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is a prototypical hallucinogen and its psychedelic actions are exerted through the 5-HT2A serotonin receptor (5-HT2AR). 5-HT2AR activation stimulates Gq- and β-arrestin- (βArr) mediated signaling. To separate these signaling modalities, we have used βArr1 and βArr2 mice. We find that LSD stimulates motor activities to similar extents in WT and βArr1-KO mice, with non-significant effects in βArr2-KOs. LSD robustly stimulates many surrogates of psychedelic drug actions including head twitches, grooming, retrograde walking, and nose-poking in WT and βArr1-KO animals. By contrast, LSD slightly stimulates head twitches in βArr2-KO mice, without effects on other surrogates. The 5-HT2AR antagonist MDL100907 (MDL) blocks these LSD effects. LSD also disrupts prepulse inhibition (PPI) in WT and βArr1-KOs; PPI is unaffected in βArr2-KOs. MDL restores PPI in WT mice, but this antagonist is without effect and haloperidol is required in βArr1-KOs. Collectively, these results reveal that LSD’s psychedelic drug-like actions appear to require βArr2.
Oral health-related quality of life among a group of patients with substance use disorders in rehabilitation treatment: a cross-sectional study
Authors: Amiri Saeed , Shekarchizadeh Hajar
Published: May 2021

Background
Little is known about the effect of illicit drugs on oral health-related quality of life. Our aim was to investigate oral health-related quality among patients with substance use disorder, and its association with dental caries experience and drug use profile.
Methods
Applying a stratified cluster random sampling method, we conducted a cross-sectional study on 267 in-treatment patients with substance use disorder in Isfahan, Iran in 2016. Self-administered questionnaires requested participants’ demographics and drug use profile. A trained dental student carried out personal interviews utilizing Oral Impact on Daily Performance (OIDP) instrument. Clinical examinations were conducted to record dental caries experience. T-test, ANOVA, pearson and spearman correlation coefficient, and linear regression model served for statistical analysis (p < 0.05).
Results
A great majority of the participants reported past use of opium (85%) followed by heroin (42.7%) and amphetamines (20.2%). The most common routes of drug administration were combined routes (44.6%) followed by smoking (36.7%). The mean score of OIDP was 22.4 ± 8.6. As high as 74.1% of the participants reported at least one OIDP impact. The most prevalent OIDP impact was “difficulty eating” (64.8%). The most prevalent cause of the impacts were “dental decay” and “tooth loss”. No significant association revealed between OIDP and patients’ demographics and drug use profile (p > 0.05). Participants with higher caries experience, reported greater OIDP (p < 0.05).
Conclusions
There is an oral impact on the daily performance of patients with substance use disorder. Patients with higher caries experience reported greater OIDP. Thus, in addition to normative assessment of oral health, clinicians should consider the patients' self-reported oral problems, and the social and mental aspects of oral conditions.
Pharmacologically induced weight loss is associated with distinct gut microbiome changes in obese rats
Authors: Raineri Silvia , Sherriff Julia A , Thompson Kevin S.J. , Jones Huw , Pfluger Paul T , Ilott Nicholas E , Mellor Jane
Published: May 2021

Background: Obesity, metabolic disease and some psychiatric conditions are associated with changes to relative abundance of bacterial species and specific genes in the fecal microbiome. Little is known about the impact of pharmacologically induced weight loss on distinct gut microbiome species and their respective gene programs in obese individuals. Results: Using shotgun metagenomics, the composition of the microbiome was obtained for two cohorts of obese female Wistar rats (n=10-12, total of 82) maintained on a high fat diet before and after a 42-day treatment with a panel of four investigatory or approved anti-obesity drugs (tacrolimus/FK506, bupropion, naltrexone and sibutramine), alone or in combination. We found that sibutramine treatment induced consistent weight loss through reducing food intake. Weight loss in sibutramine-treated rats was associated with changes to the gut microbiome that included increased beta-diversity, increased Bacteroides/Firmicutes ratio and increased relative abundance of multiple Bacteroides species. In addition, the relative abundance of multiple genes was found to be differentially abundant, including significant reductions in components of flagellum and genes involved in flagellum assembly. Conclusions: This study provides a large resource comprising complete shotgun metagenomics datasets of the fecal microbiome coupled with weight change and food intake at day 3, day 15 and day 42 from 82 obese rats treated with a range of compounds used for weight loss, which are available to the community for detailed analysis. Furthermore, by conducting a detailed analysis of the microbiome associated with sibutramine-induced weight loss, we have identified multiple weight-loss associated microbial taxa and pathways. These include a reduction in components of flagellum and the flagellum assembly pathway that points to a potential role of sibutramine-induced weight-loss on regulating bacterially driven anti-inflammatory responses.
An Innovation Research on the Foreign Language Teaching Theory with Chinese Characteristics Based On Whitehead’s Process Philosophy
Authors: Su Hui
Published: May 2021

Since China’s reform and opening up, foreign language teaching(hereafter: FLT) in China has achieved rapid development under the guidance of foreign language teaching theories at home and abroad. However, problems such as ‘time-consuming and inefficient foreign language learning’ and ‘dumb foreign languages’ in FLT in China have not been fundamentally solved. Based on Whitehead’s process philosophy, this research aims to put forward feasible solutions to the existing problems in FLT in China in order that the level of FLT in China can be promoted by discussing the purpose, contents, processes and stages of FLT, the relationship between teachers and students in FLT and FLT evaluation system.
Association Study of Sperm DNA Integrity, Routine Semen Parameters and In Vitro Fertilization Clinical Outcome
Authors: Lan Yunzhu , Feng Xinjian , Sun Xingyu , Fu Li
Published: May 2021

This paper explores the relationship among sperm DNA integrity, routine semen parameters and in vitro fertilization (IVF) clinical outcome. It applies sperm chromatin dispersion (SCD) test to conduct sperm DNA fragmentation index (DFI) towards the semen samples of 60 male patients who undergoing assisted reproduction techniques (ART) treatments including intrauterine insemination (IUI), in vitro fertilization (IVF), and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) treatment in human assisted reproductive medical technology of our hospital. According to the test results, semen samples are divided into group A (DFI≤10%), group B (10%<DFI<30%) and group C (DFI≥30%) to compare semen routine main parameters in each group as well as fertility rate, cleavage rate and high-quality embryonic rate. There is a negative correlation among DFI and sperm activate rate, progressive motility(PR) rate as well as non-progressive motility(NP) rate. The difference of the sperm activate rate, progressive motility rate and non-progressive motility rate in three groups are statistically significant (P<0.05), and there is no statistically significant difference in sperm concentration (P>0.05). The fertility rate, cleavage rate and high-quality embryonic rate in each group have no statistical significance (P>0.05). Sperm DNA integrity have some connection with routine semen parameters, thus, it could play a guiding role for the analysis of semen routine diagnosis. DFI has little influence on the assisted reproductive technology IVF clinical outcome, which requires follow-up tracking clinical outcome and a large number of samples for validation.
Effect of Regular Physical Activity and Lifestyle Changes on Insulin Resistance in Patients after Kidney Transplantation
Authors: Karol Graňák , Matej Vnučák , Petra Skálová , Margaréta Pytliaková , Ľudovít Laca , Marián Mokáň , Dedinská Ivana
Published: May 2021

Introduction: Insulin resistance (IR) at the time of kidney transplant (KT) is the most significant risk factor for the development of post-transplant diabetes mellitus (PTDM) and is a strong predictor of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients after KT. It is possible to improve long-term survival of grafts and patients by influencing just modifiable risk factors, including obesity and the associated IR. The aim of this work is to determine the effect of regular physical activity and lifestyle changes on IR and other risk factors for PTDM in patients after KT.Material and methods: The primary goal was to complete at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity physical exertion per week. Study group (n = 22) performed an aerobic or combined (aerobic + anaerobic) type of sports activity. Monitoring was provided by a sports tracker (Xiaomi Mi Band 4 compatible with Mi Fit mobile application). Control group was consisted of 22 stable patients after KT. Patients in both groups have the same immunosuppressive protocol. The duration of follow-up was 6 months.Results: There were significantly lower waist circumference (P = 0.0437, P = 0.0372), better graft function (P = 0.0036, P = 0.0137), lower value of fasting blood glucose (P = 0.0016, P = 0.0003), C-peptide (P = 0.0447, P = 0014) in the 3rd and 6th month of monitoring and lower low-density lipoprotein at 6 months (P = 0.0444) in the observed group compared to the control group. IR was statistically significantly lower at 6 months (P = 0.0202) and fasting blood glucose at 3 and 6 months (P = 0.0227) in the observed group. In the monitored group, the subgroup performing intensive training achieved a significant additional effect on the reduction of waist circumference (P = 0.0173). Conclusion: In our study, we confirmed a significant effect of regular physical activity in preventing the development of IR and impaired fasting glucose in patients after KT. It is necessary to perform at least 150 minutes of medium-intensity aerobic or combined sport effort per week to achieve this goal.
Surfactin-Like Biosurfactant Production and Optimization by Bacillus Subtilis SNW3: Product Characterization and Its Influence on Seed Development and Plant Growth
Authors: Umar Aiman , Zafar Aneeqa , Wali Hasina , Siddique Meh Para , Malik Zulfiqar Ali , AHMED SAFIA
Published: May 2021

Background: Biosurfactants, being environment friendly, highly biodegradable, less toxic and stable compounds have applications in several environmental and industrial sectors that includes cosmetics, biomedical, bioremediation, and agriculture. Growing concern about eco-friendly compounds leads to replacement of chemical surfactants with biological surfactants. However, use of biosurfactant limits due to high production cost. Surfactin, a class of lipopeptide, considered as powerful biosurfactants having wide applications in therapeutics and environmental field. This study aims to investigate production and characterization of surfactin by Bacillus subtilis SNW3 and evaluating their potential application in seed germination and plant growth. Results: In present study, Bacillus subtilis SNW3 was previously isolated from Chakwal Pakistan and used for biosurfactant production. Optimized media for biosurfactant production was at (6% w/v) white beans powder in combination with (1.5% w/v) waste frying oil and (0.1% w/v) urea that shows surface tension reduction (28.8 mN/m), oil displacement assay (4.9 cm) and emulsification index (69.8 %). Environmental growth parameters like temperature (30 °C), inoculum size (1%), pH (6) and agitation (150 rpm) exhibit important role towards enhanced biosurfactant yield. Furthermore, surfactin obtained was found to be most stable at (5-7) pH, (8%) NaCl and (100 °C) temperature. Biosurfactant obtained was of lipopeptide nature called surfactin characterized by thin-layer chromatography (TLC) and fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The surfactin obtained, used in a concentration of (0.7 g/100 mL) helps in seed germination and significantly enhanced growth of Solanum lycopersicum (tomato), Pisum sativum (pea), Capsicum annuum (peppers) and Lactuca sativa (lettuce).Conclusions: Bacillus subtilis SNW3 produces surfactin with more stability, that makes it useful for processing of food and in agriculture. The use of white beans powder and waste frying oil as sole source of carbon and energy makes the biosurfactant production more profitable, and environment friendly procedure by utilizing food processing by-products and wastes as substrate. Results obtained provide understanding about surfactin use for seed development and plant growth.
Pharmacodynamic Study of QingFei Paidu Decoction in the Treatment of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Caused by Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19)
Authors: He Zhixian , Wang Xinyv , Wang Xing , Wang Jinyue
Published: May 2021

Background: The outbreak of the Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) has threatened the public health of the world, and may eventually lead to acute respiratory impoverishment syndrome (ARDS). ARDS is a clinical syndrome caused by intrapulmonary or extrapulmonary reasons, which has complex pathogenesis and high mortality rate, it’s also one of the important factors in death from the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) epidemic. It has been reported that traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) can exert a good effect in the process of treatment. The present study aimed to observe the protective effects of TCM formula Qingfei Paidu Decoction (QFPD) on ARDS rats and explore the pharmacodynamic mechanism of the compound. Methods: 24 male rats were randomly divided into 4 groups (n=6), blank control group, model group, QFPD group (18.6g·kg-1·d-1) and dexamethasone group (2mg·kg-1·d-1). Blank control group rats were given saline, whereas other groups were injected with oleic acid (OA) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) successively to establish ARDS model, and observed the behavioral performance of rats after model building. The morphological changes of lung tissue under optical microscope were observed; rat lung index (LI) and lung permeability index (LPI) were measured; blood PH, partial arterial oxygen pressure (PaO2, mmHg), partial arterial carbon dioxide pressure (PaCO2, mmHg), arterial oxygen saturation (SaO2) were measured by blood gas analyzer; the levels of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin (IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10), thromboxane B2 (TXB2), 6-keto-prostaglandin F1α (6-keto-PGF1α), kerbs von lungren 6 antigen (KL-6), C-reactive protein (CRP), and the expression of superoxide dismutase (SOD) were measured via test kit.Results: Compared with the model group, the two treatment groups could improve the respiratory and lung injury in rats, and could restore the expression levels of thromboxane, various cytokines and protein to varying degrees.Conclusions: QFPD and dexamethasone have protective effects on ARDS rats induced by jointly injecting OA and LPS, and QFPD has the better effect in between. These may be related to reducing the expression levels of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-α, CRP, TXB2, KL-6, and increasing the contents of IL-10, 6Keto-PGF1a and SOD vitality in the body.
An Efficient Enhanced Full Homomorphic Encryption For Securing Video In Cloud Environment
Authors: N Geetha , K Mahesh
Published: May 2021

At present days, exponential growth in the transmission of multimedia data takes place due to a significant rise in network bandwidth and video image compression technologies. However, the transmission of videos over wireless channels often brings an unseen risk that sensitive video details might be corrupted and distributed in an illegal way. So, the security of video transmission has become a hot research topic. Several encryption models have been presented in the literature, yet, it is believed that the performance of encryption process can be further improved. In this perspective, an efficient novel video encryption technique is presented using an enhanced variant of Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE) model called as EFHE model. By the hybridization of Ducas and Micciancio (DM) with the FHE model presented by Gentry, Sahai, and Waters (GSW), matrix operations vector additions are properly employed in the proposed EFHE model. In addition, a new key generation scheme to increase the fastness of the encryption process. The EFHE model is designed and placed on a cloud environment which leads to reduced cloud user’s communication and computation complexity. It is ensured that the presented EFHE model is highly efficient and secure over the compared methods.
The Diagnostic Value of LncRNAs for Bladder Cancer: A Meta-Analysis
Authors: Chen Yuan , Naz Faiza , Fu Shi , Shi Mengran , Li Haihao , Zhang Zichen , Huang Ju , Wang Haifeng , Yang Zhao
Published: May 2021

Background: In recent years, qualitative and quantitative analysis of LncRNA has been reported as a potential method for early diagnosis of bladder cancer, but the results from each research are insufficient and not completely consistent. This meta-analysis aims to evaluate the diagnostic value of LncRNA for BC.Methods: We conducted a diagnostic meta-analysis and the diagnostic significance of LncRNA in blood, urine and tumor tissues was discussed. We searched the PUBMED, EMABASE, and Cochrane Library until June 2020. The current meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.2, Stata 16.0 and Meta-Disc 1.4 software. Results: A total of 18 researches involving early and/or advanced bladder cancer were finally included. The overall diagnostic accuracy was measured as follows: pooled sensitivity and specificity were 0.72 (95%CI:0.70, 0.73) and 0.76 (95%CI: 0.75, 0.78). Pooled positive likelihood ratio and negative likelihood ratio were 3.09 (95%CI: 2.66, 3.58) and 0.37 (95%CI: 0.33, 0.42). Combined diagnostic odds ratio was 9.43 (95%CI: 7.30, 12.20). A high diagnostic accuracy was demonstrated by the summary receiver operating characteristic curve, with area under the curve of 0.82 (95%CI: 0.78, 0.85). UCA1 and H19 had the best diagnostic effect, their diagnostic sensitivity and specificity were 80%, 79% and 79%, 73% respectively, the combined diagnostic odds ratio was 16.85 and 12.67 respectively.Conclusions: This meta-analysis suggests that LncRNA have great potential in the diagnosis of bladder cancer, UCA1 and H19 had the best diagnostic effect. LncRNA panel is the future development direction in the diagnosis of bladder cancer. However, larger sample researches are needed to further confirm our conclusion.
Sex Disparities in Vitamin D Status and the Impact on Systemic Inflammation and Survival in Rectal Cancer
Authors: Abrahamsson Hanna , Meltzer Sebastian , Hagen Vidar Nyløkken , Johansen Christin , Bousquet Paula A , Redalen Kathrine Røe , Ree Anne Hansen
Published: May 2021

Background: We reported previously that rectal cancer patients given curative-intent chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery for non-metastatic disease had enhanced risk of metastatic progression and death if circulating levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] were low. Here we investigated whether the association between the vitamin D status and prognosis pertains to the general, unselected population of rectal cancer patients.Methods: Serum 25(OH)D at the time of diagnosis was assessed in 129 patients, enrolled 2013-2017 and representing the entire range of rectal cancer stages, and analyzed with respect to season, sex, systemic inflammation, and survival.Results: In the population-based cohort residing at latitude 60°N, 25(OH)D varied according to season in men only, who were overrepresented among the vitamin D-deficient (<50 nmol/L) patients. Consistent with our previous findings, the individuals presenting with T4 disease had significantly reduced 25(OH)D levels. Low vitamin D was associated with systemic inflammation, albeit with distinct modes of presentation. While men with low vitamin D showed circulating markers typical for the systemic inflammatory response (e.g., elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate), the corresponding female patients had elevated serum levels of interleukin-6 and the chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 7. Despite disparities in vitamin D status and the potential effects on disease attributes, significantly shortened cancer-specific survival was observed in vitamin D-deficient patients irrespective of sex.Conclusion: This unselected rectal cancer cohort confirmed the interconnection of low vitamin D, more advanced disease presentation, and poor survival, and further suggested it may be conditional on disparate modes of adverse systemic inflammation in men and women.Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01816607; registration date: 22 March 2013.
Therapeutic Effects of a Neoantigen Vaccine With an Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor in a Cisplatin-Treated Mouse Model
Authors: Lee Sung Eun , Jang Gun-Young , Lee Ji Won , Han Hee Dong , Park Yeong-Min , Kang Tae Heung
Published: May 2021

Background: Cancer immunotherapy is widely used as a treatment for cancer that works by improving the immune system with fewer side effects than conventional methods. Neoantigen vaccines are one form of immunotherapy that use cancer-specific neoantigens that are extracted from cancer patients and are not recognized by normal cells in the immune system.Methods: In this study, mutant genes of 4T1 mouse breast cancer cells were identified by direct sequence analysis using tumor-specific MHC I (Major Histocompatibility Complex) or MHC II epitopes through in vivo experiments. Results: The neoantigen vaccine with mutant CD4+ or CD8+ T cell-reactive neoantigen peptides was shown to inhibit tumor growth, increase long-term survival, and induce the secretion of IFN-γ (Interferon gamma) in the cisplatin-treated mouse models. In particular, mutant CD4+ T cell neoantigen peptides induced full potential anti-tumor effects, whereas dual treatment with CD4+ (Cluster of differentiation 4) and CD8+ (Cluster of differentiation 8) T cell neoantigen peptides increased the suppression of tumor growth. Moreover, the combination of neoantigen vaccine with mutant CD4+ T cell neoantigen peptide and anti-PD-L1 (Programmed death-ligand 1) as an immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) has been shown to have synergistic therapeutic effects in cisplatin-treated mouse models. Conclusion: This study, therefore, proved that cancer cell-derived neoantigens have great potential to induce immunogenic responses and cancer treatment effects, along with synergistic efficiency when applied to various combinational therapies. Through the methods that were used in our experiments, we could contribute to the development of new adjuvants for evaluating efficacy, discovering unfound neoantigens, and investigating immune checkpoint blockade antibodies for non-clinical studies.