Synthetic Methanol/Fischer-Tropsch Fuel Production Capacity, Cost, and Carbon Intensity Utilizing CO2 from Industrial and Power Plants in the United States

Captured CO₂ is a potential feedstock to produce fuel/chemicals using renewable electricity as the energy source. We explored resource availability and synergies by region in the United States and conducted cost and environmental analysis to identify unique opportunities in each region to inform possible regional and national actions for carbon capture and utilization development. This study estimated production cost of synthetic methanol and Fischer-Tropsch (FT) fuels by using CO₂ captured from the waste streams emitted from six industrial [ethanol, ammonia, natural gas (NG) processing, hydrogen, cement, and iron/steel production plants] and two power generation (coal and NG) processes across the United States. The results showed that a total of 1594 million metric ton per year of waste CO₂ can be captured and converted into 85 and 319 billion gallons of FT fuels and methanol, respectively. FT fuels can potentially substitute for 36% of the total petroleum fuels used in the transportation sector in 2018. Technoeconomic analysis shows that the minimum selling prices for synthetic FT fuels and methanol are 1.8-2.8 times the price of petroleum fuel/chemicals, but the total CO₂ reduction potential is 935-1777 MMT/year.

Current Advances and Limitations of Deep Learning in Anticancer Drug Sensitivity Prediction

Anticancer drug screening can accelerate drug discovery to save the lives of cancer patients, but cancer heterogeneity makes this screening challenging. The prediction of anticancer drug sensitivity is useful for anticancer drug development and the identification of biomarkers of drug sensitivity. Deep learning, as a branch of machine learning, is an important aspect of in silico research. Its outstanding computational performance means that it has been used for many biomedical purposes, such as medical image interpretation, biological sequence analysis, and drug discovery. Several studies have predicted anticancer drug sensitivity based on deep learning algorithms. The field of deep learning has made progress regarding model performance and multi-omics data integration. However, deep learning is limited by the number of studies performed and data sources available, so it is not perfect as a pre-clinical approach for use in the anticancer drug screening process. Improving the performance of deep learning models is a pressing issue for researchers. In this review, we introduce the research of anticancer drug sensitivity prediction and the use of deep learning in this research area. To provide a reference for future research, we also review some common data sources and machine learning methods. Lastly, we discuss the advantages and disadvantages of deep learning, as well as the limitations and future perspectives regarding this approach.

Perceptions and experiences of older patients and healthcare professionals regarding shared decision-making in pulmonary rehabilitation: A qualitative study

OBJECTIVE

To understand the perceptions and experiences of older patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and healthcare professionals (HCPs) regarding shared decision-making in pulmonary rehabilitation (PR).

DESIGN

A qualitative study using single, semi-structured interviews, and thematic analysis.

SETTING

Face-to-face interviews were conducted in the Jiangnan University, in hospital and in patients' homes.

PARTICIPANTS

Twenty-two older patients with COPD and 29 HCPs.

METHODS

An initial codebook and semi-structured interview guide were developed based on the shared decision-making 3-circle conceptual model. Thematic analysis was used to analyze data.

RESULTS

The study identified 10 themes that describe the perceptions and experiences of patients and HCPs involved in PR decision-making: (1) patients' confidence, (2) patients' perceptions of the cost-benefit of decisions, (3) patients' perceived stress about the consequences of decision-making, (4) HCPs' perceived stress on shared decision-making, (5) cognitive biases of patients toward illness and rehabilitation, (6) shared decision-making as a knowledge gap, (7) the knowledge gap between patients and HCPs, (8) authority effect, (9) family support, (10) human resources. These themes were then divided into three groups according to their characteristics: (1) the feelings of the participants, (2) knowledge barriers, and (3) support from the social system.

CONCLUSION

Patients and HCPs described their negative perceptions and experiences of participating in decision-making in PR. The implementation of shared decision-making in PR is currently limited; therefore, health education for patients and families should be strengthened and a training system for HCPs in shared decision-making should be established.

SYBR Green-based real-time polymerase chain reaction assay for detection of porcine parvovirus 6 in pigs

In this study, a SYBR Green-based real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assay was developed for rapid detection of porcine parvovirus (PPV) 6. Primer pairs targeting the conserved regions of PPV6 Capsid gene were designed. Sensitivity analyses revealed the lowest detection limit of the SYBR Green-based real-time PCR assay to be 47.8 copies/μL, which indicated it was 1000 times higher than that found in the conventional PCR investigations. This assay was specific and showed no cross-species amplification with other six porcine viruses. The assay demonstrated high repeatability and reproducibility; the intra- and inter-assay coefficients of variation were 0.79% and 0.42%, respectively. The positive detection rates of 180 clinical samples with SYBR Green-based real-time PCR and conventional PCR were 12.22% (22/180) and 4.44% (8/180), respectively. Our method is sensitive, specific, and reproducible. The use of SYBR Green-based real-time PCR may be suitable for the clinical detection and epidemiological investigation of PPV6.

Technoeconomic and Life Cycle Analysis of Synthetic Methanol Production from Hydrogen and Industrial Byproduct CO2

CO₂ capture and utilization provides an alternative pathway for low-carbon hydrocarbon production. Given the ample supply of high-purity CO₂ emitted from ethanol and ammonia plants, this study conducted technoeconomic analysis and environmental life cycle analysis of several systems: integrated methanol-ethanol coproduction, integrated methanol-ammonia coproduction, and stand-alone methanol production systems, using CO₂ feedstock from ethanol plants, ammonia plants, and general market CO₂ supply. The cradle-to-grave greenhouse gas emissions of methanol produced from the stand-alone methanol, integrated methanol-ethanol, and integrated methanol-ammonia systems are 13.6, 37.9, and 84.6 g CO₂-equiv/MJ, respectively, compared to 91.5 g CO₂-equiv/MJ of conventional methanol produced from natural gas. The minimum fuel selling price (MFSP) of methanol ($0.61-0.64/kg) is 61-68% higher than the average market methanol price of $0.38/kg, when using a Department of Energy target renewable hydrogen production price of $2.0/kg. The methanol price increases to $1.24-1.28/kg when the hydrogen price is $5.0/kg. Without CO₂ abatement credits, the H₂ price needs to be within $0.77-0.95/kg for the MFSP of methanol to equal the average methanol market price. With a CO₂ credit of $35/MT according to tax credit per metric ton of CO₂ captured and used, the methanol price is reduced to $0.56-0.59/kg.

Pathological prognostic factors of retroperitoneal liposarcoma: comprehensive clinicopathological analysis of 124 cases

Background

Retroperitoneal liposarcoma (RLS) is a type of rare malignant tumor. The aim of the present study was to study the correlations between the clinicopathological characteristics and the prognostic factors of RLSso as to delineate independent pathological indicators affecting prognosis.

Methods

The RLS pathological specimens were collected at Beijing Shijitan Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University from 2008 to 2018, and were used to study the histopathological features, including tumor size, histological types, lymphatic metastasis, tumor emboli in the blood and lymph vessels, and nerve invasion; immunohistochemical features, including Ki-67 and P53 proteins; and molecular pathological features, such as MDM2 (murine double minute2) gene amplification. Clinical treatment and follow-up data were collected, and the survival rate was calculated by Kaplan-Meier method. Univariate and multivariate survival analyses were performed to study the independent pathological factors.

Results

Of the 124 RLS cases, 63 were males (50.8%) and 61 were females (49.2%), with a median age of 52 years (range, 22-80 years). There were 51 cases (41.1%) of well-differentiated liposarcoma, 73 cases (57.3%) of dedifferentiated liposarcoma (DDL); 3 cases (2.4%) with lymph node metastases; 4 cases (3.2%) with tumor emboli in the vessels; 21 cases (16.9%) with Ki-67 label index <20% and 103 cases (83.1%) with Ki-67 label index ≥20%; and 81 cases (65.3%) with P53 <60% and 43 cases (24.7%) with P53 ≥60%. Fluorescence in situ hybridization studies revealed MDM2 gene amplification. Univariate analysis found the following pathological factors were correlated with prognosis: histopathological classification, recurrence, mitosis, tumor necrosis, Ki-67 label index, and P53. Multivariate analysis by Cox proportional hazard model found the following three independent pathological prognostic factors: age [hazard ratio (HR): 1.798, P=0.018], tumor site (HR: 1.263, P=0.002), tumor necrosis (HR: 1.984, P=0.024), and recurrence (HR: 2.161, P=0.049).

Conclusions

Age, tumor necrosis, tumor site, and recurrence could be independent pathological prognostic factors for RLS.

Eplerenone inhibits oxidized low-density lipoprotein-induced proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells by downregulating GPER expression

BACKGROUND

Excessive proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) are associated with the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis (AS). Eplerenone (EPL), a novel selective aldosterone receptor blocker, plays a substantial role in the treatment of cardiovascular disease. The G protein-coupled estrogen receptor (GPER) is a target of EPL as the STITCH website predicated.

OBJECTIVES

We aimed to investigate the roles of EPL in AS and identify its potential mechanisms of action.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) was employed to stimulate VSMCs to establish a cellular model of AS. The ability of cell proliferation was examined using a Cell Counting Kit-8, and the expression of proliferation-related proteins was tested using immunofluorescence staining and western blot analysis. Subsequently, cell migration and the expression of migration-associated proteins were evaluated with a wound healing assay, transwell assay and western blot analysis. Then, GPER expression was determined using western blot analysis in the absence or presence of EPL. To explore the regulatory mechanisms of EPL in ox-LDL-stimulated VSMCs, GPER was overexpressed, followed by measurement of cell proliferation and migration.

RESULTS

The Ox-LDL stimulation notably upregulated GPER expression, whereas EPL treatment downregulated GPER expression in a dose-dependent manner. Additionally, EPL markedly inhibited proliferation and migration of VSMCs, and the highest dose of EPL resulted in the most marked effect. By contrast, GPER overexpression reversed the inhibitory effects of EPL on proliferation and migration of VSMCs.

CONCLUSIONS

Eplerenone suppressed ox-LDL-induced proliferation and migration of VSMCs partly through downregulation of GPER, providing a new mechanism of support for EPL use in the clinical treatment of AS.

MiR-214 promotes proliferation and inhibits apoptosis of oral cancer cells through MAPK/ERK signaling pathway

OBJECTIVE

To study the influences of micro ribonucleic acid (miR)-214 on the proliferation and apoptosis of oral cancer cells through the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In this work, human oral cancer HB cell lines were cultured in vitro and then treated with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) as Control group, with miR-214 mimics as miR-214 mimics group or with miR-214 mimics + ERK inhibitor U0126 as miR-214 mimics + U0126 group. The messenger RNA (mRNA) levels of miR-214 and ERK were determined using quantitative Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR), and the protein expression levels of phosphorylated ERK (p-ERK), ERK, proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), p21, and tubulin were measured via Western blotting (WB). Besides, the proliferation and apoptosis of cells in each group were evaluated via methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) assay and Hoechst staining, respectively.

RESULTS

Compared with Control group, miR-214 mimics group exhibited increased expression of miR-214 in oral cancer cells (p<0.01), extremely raised expression levels of p-ERK and PCNA, but an extremely decreased protein expression level of p21 (p<0.01), whereas miR-214 mimics + U0126 group had remarkably lower levels of p-ERK and PCNA, and a considerably higher protein level of p21 than miR-214 mimics group (p<0.05). The qRT-PCR results showed no significant differences in the mRNA level of ERK among the three groups (p>0.05). In addition, the proliferation ability was enhanced successively in Control group, miR-214 mimics + U0126 group and miR-214 mimics group, and the increase was more notable in miR-214 mimics group, with statistically significant differences (p<0.05). Finally, it was found through the Hoechst apoptosis assay that compared with that in Control group, the cell apoptosis was notably inhibited in miR-214 mimics group, and it was greatly increased in miR-214 mimics + U0126 group.

CONCLUSIONS

MiR-214 increases p-ERK level and p-ERK/ERK to activate the MAPK/ERK signaling pathway, raise PCNA level, and decrease p21 level, thereby promoting cell proliferation and inhibiting cell apoptosis.

Life Cycle Analysis of Electrofuels: Fischer-Tropsch Fuel Production from Hydrogen and Corn Ethanol Byproduct CO2

Electrofuels from renewable H₂ and waste CO₂ streams are of increasing interest because of their CO₂ emissions reduction potentials compared to fossil counterparts. This study evaluated the well-to-wheel (WTW) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of Fischer-Tropsch (FT) fuels from various electrolytic H₂ pathways and CO₂ sources, using various process designs (i.e., with and without H₂ recycle) and system boundaries. Two systems with different boundaries were considered: a stand-alone plant (with CO₂ from any source) and an integrated plant with corn ethanol production (supplying CO₂). The FT fuel synthesis process was modeled using Aspen Plus, which showed that 45% of the carbon in CO₂ can be fixed in the FT fuel, with a fuel production energy efficiency of 58%. Using nuclear or solar/wind electricity, the stand-alone FT fuel production from various plant designs can reduce WTW GHG emissions by 90-108%, relative to petroleum fuels. When integrating the FT fuel production process with corn ethanol production, the WTW GHG emissions of FT fuels are 57-65% lower compared to petroleum counterparts. This study highlights the sensitivity of the carbon intensity of FT fuels to the system boundary selection (i.e., stand-alone vs integrated), which has different implications under various GHG emission credit frameworks.

The effects of psychological intervention on anxiety symptoms of COVID19-positive patients isolated in hospital wards

OBJECTIVE

The study aimed to explore the effects of psychological intervention on alleviating anxiety in patients in novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) isolation wards.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Between January 24th, 2020 and March 5th, 2020, 103 patients were studied. Among these, 32 were patients in the isolation ward of the Infectious Disease Department in Baoding Second Hospital with suspected 2019-nCoV, and 71 patients diagnosed with 2019-nCoV were in the Tangshan Infectious Disease Hospital. Of the 103 patients included, 97 cases were observed in isolation. Using a self-control study design, each patient's anxiety was scored on a self-rating anxiety scale before receiving the psychological intervention (on the 7th day of isolation) and after receiving the intervention (on the 14th day of isolation). The severity of anxiety was evaluated based on the anxiety score before receiving the intervention. The anxiety scores before and after receiving the intervention were then compared using the paired t-test, and p<0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS

After receiving the psychological intervention once or twice a week, the anxiety of the patients improved significantly after one week.

CONCLUSIONS

The anxiety of patients with 2019-nCoV in isolation wards can be alleviated through psychological intervention. By alleviating patient anxiety, this intervention also helps patients maintain their psychological wellbeing, which promotes rehabilitation and helps with the control of 2019-nCoV.

Fuzzy knowledge graph system for artificial intelligence-based smart education

Fuzzy knowledge graph system is a semantic network that reveals the relationships between entities, and a tool or methodology that can formally describe things in the real world and their relationships. Smart education is an educational concept or model that uses advanced information technology to build a smart environment, integrates theory and practice to build an educational framework for information age, and provides paths to practice it. Artificial intelligence (AI) is a comprehensive discipline developed by the interpenetration of computer science, cybernetics, information theory, linguistics, neurophysiology and other disciplines, which is a direction for the development of information technology in the future. On the basis of summarizing and analyzing of previous research works, this paper expounded the research status and significance of AI technology, elaborated the development background, current status and future challenges of the construction and application of fuzzy knowledge graph system for smart education, introduced the methods and principles of data acquisition methods and digitalized apprenticeship, realized the process design, information extraction, entity recognition and relationship mining of smart education, constructed a systematic framework for fuzzy knowledge graph, and analyzed the high-quality resources sharing and personalized service of AI-assisted smart education, discussed automatic knowledge acquisition and fusion of fuzzy knowledge graph, performed co-occurrence relationship analysis, and finally conducted application case analysis. The results show that the smart education knowledge graph for AI-assisted smart education can integrate teaching experience and domain knowledge of discipline experts, enhance explainable and robust machine intelligence for AI-assisted smart education, and provide data-driven and knowledge-driven information processing methods; it can also discover the analysis hotspots and main content of research objects through clustering of high-frequency topic words, reveal the corresponding research structure in depth, and then systematically explore its research dimensions, subject background and theoretical basis.

[Operative efficacy of 13 malignant uterine tumors after Cf-252 intracavitary irradiation]

Objective: To investigate the surgical therapeutic efficacy of uterine tumors patients underwent Cf-252 neutron intra-cavity and external radiotherapy, and evaluate the application value of Cf-252 neutron radiotherapy. Methods: Thirteen cases of uterine tumor with local suspicious lesions or poor prognostic factors after CF-252 neutron intracavity and external radiotherapy were treated with surgery. Among them, 12 cases underwent extrafascial hysterectomy, 1 case underwent extensive hysterectomy and lymphadenectomy. The postoperative pathology and follow-up results were used to evaluate the efficacy. Results: Nine cases showed severe response to radiotherapy in postoperative cervical pathological tissues without residual tumor, and survived for more than 3-14 years, the median survival time was 8 years. All of 4 cases with residual tumor died within 1 year. Delayed healing of vaginal wounds occurred in 3 of the 12 cases. Conclusions: Cf-252 is a good brachytherapy source. The cervical tissue shows severe response to radiotherapy and prolonged healing time of vaginal wound is observed in some cases after CF-252 radiotherapy. To those uterine tumor patients with local suspicious lesions or poor prognostic factors after CF-252 neutron intracavity and external radiotherapy, extrafascial hysterectomy is a safe and feasible treatment method.

[Consistency of two commercial secondary antibodies for immunohistochemistry]

Objective To compare the consistency of immunohistochemical staining between the two commercial secondary antibodies. Methods Eighteen common immunohistochemical primary antibodies were selected and positive and negative controls were set up according to the recommendations from the AD Hoc Committee of International Experts. Under the same experimental conditions, the DAKO automatic immunohistochemical staining platform was used to test two different secondary antibodies for immunohistochemical staining. The standard group for the secondary antibody was provided by the DAKO polymer system (DAKO EnVision FLEX, High pH), and the experimental group for the secondary antibody was provided by the Power-Stain^TM kit (Power-Stain^TM 1.0 Poly HRP DAB Kit for Mouse+Rabbit). Subsequently, the images were captured. A single-blind, positioning, qualitative and semi-quantitative scoring criterion was used for describing the positive stains by the experienced pathologist. Absorbance corrected values, measured area values and positive integral absorbance were detected by the digital pathology quantitative measurement in the same areas from the two groups. Then, the mean absorbance was calculated. Results The stains of all the samples from the two groups showed accurate location and consistent qualitative evaluation. No significant differences were found between the two groups in all the semi-quantitative scoring, including stain intensity, positive stain percentages and mean absorbance. Conclusion The two commercial secondary antibodies have strong consistency in the immunohistochemical staining.

Infiltration of metastatic lymph nodes with PD-1+ T cells is associated with improved disease-free and overall survival in resected N+ NSCLC

Tumor metastases to regional lymph nodes are associated with worse outcome for patients with resected non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but there is a wide variation in survival. We hypothesized that infiltration of tumor-involved lymph nodes with activated effector T cells would impact subsequent outcome. A total of 54 lymph nodes (27 N⁺ and 15 N^- collected from 12 patients with Stage IIB (T₂N₁M₀) and 12 N^- lymph nodes collected from 10 patients with Stage IIA (T₂N₀M₀) who underwent lymphadenectomy during surgical management of their NSCLC) were analyzed for effector T cells expressing activation markers PD-1 and TIM-3 using the Opal-multiple immunofluorescence assay. The frequency of CD3⁺CD8⁺ (P=0.0001), CD3⁺CD8⁺TIM-3⁺ (P<0.0001), and CD3⁺CD8⁺TIM-3⁺Ki-67⁺ (P<0.0001) T cells was greater in lymph nodes of IIA patients compared with IIB patients; however the frequency of CD3⁺CD8⁺PD-1⁺ (P=0.0086), CD3⁺CD8⁺TIM-3⁺ (P=0.0129), CD3⁺CD8⁺PD-1⁺Ki-67⁺ (P<0.0001) and CD3⁺CD8⁺TIM-3⁺Ki-67⁺ (P=0.0001) T cells was greater among the tumor involved (N⁺) nodes of N1 patients compared with the tumor-uninvolved (N^-) nodes. The frequency of intranodal CD3⁺CD8⁺, CD3⁺CD8⁺PD-1⁺ and CD3⁺CD8⁺PD-1⁺Ki-67⁺ T cells in N⁺ nodes was associated with prolonged progression-free (PFS) and overall survival (OS). These data suggest that CD3⁺CD8⁺TIM-3⁺ T cells may suppress tumor spread to regional lymph nodes but once tumor cells metastasize to lymph nodes, CD3⁺/CD8⁺/PD-1⁺/Ki67⁺ T cells localizing to N⁺ nodes may prevent further tumor spread, resulting in prolonged survival.

Efficacy of utidelone plus capecitabine versus capecitabine for heavily pretreated, anthracycline- and taxane-refractory metastatic breast cancer: final analysis of overall survival in a phase III randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND

Primary analysis of the phase III trial BG01-1323L demonstrated that utidelone plus capecitabine significantly improved progression-free survival (PFS) and overall response rate (ORR) versus capecitabine alone in heavily-pretreated patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC). Here, we report the final overall survival (OS) analysis and updates of other endpoints.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

In total, 405 patients were randomised 2:1 to receive utidelone (30 mg/m² IV daily, days 1-5, over 90 min) plus capecitabine (1000 mg/m² orally b.i.d., days 1-14) or capecitabine alone (1250 mg/m² orally b.i.d., days 1-14) every 21 days. The secondary endpoint, OS, was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier product-limit approach at a two-sided alpha level of 0.05 after the prespecified 310 death events had been reached. Exploratory analyses of the primary endpoint, PFS, and the secondary endpoint, ORR, were also done. Safety was analysed in patients who had at least one dose of study drug.

RESULTS

At the final OS analysis, the median duration of follow-up was 19.6 months in the utidelone plus capecitabine group and 15.4 months in the capecitabine alone group. In the intention-to-treat population, 313 deaths had occurred at data cut-off, 203 of 270 patients in the combination group and 110 of 135 in the monotherapy group. Median OS in the combination group was 19.8 months compared with 16.0 months in the monotherapy group [hazard ratio (HR) = 0.75, 95% confidence intervals (CI) 0.59-0.94, P = 0.0142]. The updated analysis of PFS and ORR showed that the combination therapy remained superior to monotherapy. Safety results were similar to those previously reported with respect to incidence, severity and specificity. No late-emerging toxicities or new safety concerns occurred.

CONCLUSIONS

For heavily-pretreated, anthracycline- and taxane-resistant MBC patients, utidelone plus capecitabine significantly improved OS versus capecitabine alone. These results support the use of utidelone plus capecitabine as a novel therapeutic regimen for patients with MBC.

Effect of Lonicera japonica extract on lactation performance, antioxidant status, and endocrine and immune function in heat-stressed mid-lactation dairy cows

Here, we examined the effects of Lonicera japonica extract (LJE) on lactation performance, antioxidant status, and endocrine and immune function in heat-stressed mid-lactation dairy cows. Twenty-four healthy Chinese Holstein mid-lactation dairy cows, all with similar milk yield (30.0 ± 1.0 kg/d), parity (2.5 ± 0.3), and days in milk (105 ± 5 d) were allocated to 4 groups using a randomized complete block design: a negative control group (without LJE supplementation; CON) and groups that received LJE at 14, 28, and 56 g/d. The experiment lasted 10 wk over a hot summer, with a pre-feeding period of 2 wk. Cows were exposed to heat stress, as the average temperature-humidity index was greater than 72. The results showed that LJE had no effect on respiration rate; however, it reduced the rectal temperature of dairy cows experiencing heat stress in both a linear and quadratic manner; the lowest (39.03°C) was recorded for the LJE-28 group, lower than the CON group. Supplementation with LJE did not affect dry matter intake, milk yield, or milk composition. The majority of biochemical parameters in serum were unaffected by supplementation with different amounts of LJE; the exception was creatinine, which was reduced quadratically. Compared with the CON group, serum triiodothyronine concentrations increased significantly in the LJE-28 group. Addition of LJE to the diet increased thyroxine concentrations quadratically; values peaked at 18.62 ng/mL in the LJE-28 group. Furthermore, supplementation with increasing amounts of LJE quadratically increased the activity of glutathione peroxidase and total antioxidant capacity in serum but decreased concentration of malondialdehyde. Although we detected no differences in the concentrations of IgA, IgM, or cytokines, dairy cows in the LJE-28 group had higher IgG and IL-4 concentrations than did cows in the CON group. Supplementation with LJE increased concentrations of IgG and IL-4 in the serum quadratically but decreased that of IL-2. Finally, heat shock protein 72 concentrations in the serum tended to fall quadratically as the amount of LJE increased. In summary, LJE had no negative effects on lactation performance but helped to alleviate heat stress by improving antioxidant status and promoting endocrine and immune functions. Supplementation with LJE at 28 g/d is recommended for lactating dairy cows experiencing heat stress during hot summers.

Long non-coding RNA LINC01287 promotes breast cancer cells proliferation and metastasis by activating Wnt/ß-catenin signaling

OBJECTIVE

Long noncoding RNA (lncRNAs) frequently exhibited abnormal levels in numerous tumors and other diseases in current biological researches. LINC01287, a newly discovered lncRNA, has been found to act as an oncogene in hepatocellular carcinoma. The aim of this research was to explore the expressions and functions of LINC01287 in breast cancer (BC).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

The relative expressions of LINC01287 in BC tissues and cells were determined using RT-PCR. The associations between the LINC01287 expression, the clinicopathological factors, and the overall survival of BC patients were statistically examined. The apoptosis and proliferation abilities of MCF-7 and MDA-MB-468 cells were analyzed by MTT and flow cytometry assay after LINC01287 knockdown. The effects of LINC01287 in migration and invasion were determined using wound-healing and transwell assays. The protein expressions of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway were determined using Western blot.

RESULTS

We showed that the levels of LINC01287 were significantly upregulated in BC tissues and BC cell lines, and the abnormal expressions of LINC01287 were correlated with TNM stage and lymph node metastasis. A distinct difference was observed and indicated that BC patients with higher LINC01287 expressions had significantly shorter overall survival than patients with lower LINC01287 expressions. The multivariate analysis demonstrated that LINC01287 expression was independently correlated with the overall survival. Si-LINC01287 transfection significantly inhibited the proliferation and metastasis of BC cells, and further promoted apoptosis. Besides, the knockdown of LINC01287 suppressed Wnt/β-catenin activation and affected the expressions of β-catenin, cyclin D1, and c-myc.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings indicated that the new lncRNA LINC01287 was correlated with poor clinical outcome and may function as a novel prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target in the development of antineoplastic therapies for BC.

MiR-181b regulates atherosclerotic inflammation and vascular endothelial function through Notch1 signaling pathway

OBJECTIVE

To explore the influences of micro ribonucleic acid (miR)-181b on the inflammation and vascular endothelial function in atherosclerosis (AS), and its specific molecular regulatory mechanism.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

44 apolipoprotein E (ApoE)-/- 7 weeks old male rats were randomly divided into normal diet group (NC group) and AS model group (high-fat diet feeding). Rat aorta was dissected and the serum sample was collected in both groups. The serum levels of inflammatory factors in both groups were detected via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The mRNA levels of miR-18b and Notch1 were detected via Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR). Moreover, aortic endothelial cells were extracted from AS rats. The mir-18b binding target gene was analyzed via bioinformatics and further verified by the Luciferase reporter gene assay. The protein expressions of miR-18b and Notch1 in endothelial cells transfected with miR-181b mimic or inhibitor were detected. Influence of miR-181b on vascular endothelial indexes was also detected.

RESULTS

Compared with those in the NC group, the serum levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-10, IL-13 and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in the AS group significantly increased (p<0.05). The mRNA level of miR-18b in AS plaques was significantly lower than that in NC arterial tissues. Conversely, Notch1 level in AS plaques was markedly higher than that in the NC arterial tissues (p<0.05), with the mean difference of 2.12 and 2.82 folds (p<0.05). According to the Pearson correlation analysis, there was a significant negative correlation between mRNA levels of miR-181b and Notch1 in AS tissues (r=-0.65, p=0.014). The bioinformatics analysis showed that there were complementary binding sites between miR-181b and Notch1. The Luciferase reporter gene assay confirmed the presence of direct binding sites between miR-181b and Notch1. Western blotting revealed that the overexpression of miR-181b downregulated Notch1 and hs-CRP, but upregulated BNP (p<0.05). Opposite trends were obtained by miR-181b knockdown (p<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

The decline in the miR-181b expression may be an important factor in AS plaque formation and vascular endothelial injury by regulating Notch1.