BMX deletion mitigates neuroinflammation induced by retinal ischemia/reperfusion through modulation of the AKT/ERK/STAT3 signaling cascade

Aims

Retinal ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury is implicated in the etiology of various ocular disorders. Prior research has demonstrated that bone marrow tyrosine kinase on chromosome X (BMX) contributes to the advancement of ischemic disease and inflammatory reactions. Consequently, the current investigation aims to evaluate BMX's impact on retinal I/R injury and clarify its implied mechanism of action.

Main methods

This study utilized male and female systemic BMX knockout (BMX-/-) mice to conduct experiments. The utilization of Western blot assay and immunofluorescence labeling techniques was employed to investigate variations in the expression of protein and tissue localization. Histomorphological changes were observed through H&E staining and SD-OCT examination. Visual function changes were assessed through electrophysiological experiments. Furthermore, apoptosis in the retina was identified using the TUNEL assay, as well as the ELISA technique, which has been utilized to determine the inflammatory factors level.

Key findings

Our investigation results revealed that the knockdown of BMX did not yield a significant effect on mouse retina. In mice, BMX knockdown mitigated the negative impact of I/R injury on retinal tissue structure and visual function. BMX knockdown effectively reduced apoptosis, suppressed inflammatory responses, and decreased inflammatory factors subsequent to I/R injury. The outcomes of the current investigation revealed that BMX knockdown partially protected the retina through downregulating phosphorylation of AKT/ERK/STAT3 pathway.

Significance

Our investigation showed that BMX-/- reduces AKT, ERK, and STAT3 phosphorylation, reducing apoptosis and inflammation. Thus, this strategy protected the retina from structural and functional damage after I/R injury.

Diabetic retinopathy related homeostatic dysregulation and its association with mortality among diabetes patients: A cohort study from NHANES

AIMS

To develop a metric termed the diabetic retinopathy-related homeostatic dysregulation (DRHD) value, and estimate its association with future risk of mortality in individuals with type 2 diabetes.

METHODS

With the data of the NHANES, the biomarkers associated with DR were identified from 40 clinical parameters using LASSO regression. Subsequently, the DRHD value was constructed utilizing the Mahalanobis distance approach. In the retrospective cohortof 6420 type 2 diabetes patients, we estimated the associations between DRHD values and mortality related to all-cause, cardiovascular disease (CVD) and diabetes-specific causes using Cox proportional hazards regression models.

RESULTS

A set of 14 biomarkers associated with DR was identified for the construction of DRHD value. During an average of 8 years of follow-up, the multivariable-adjusted HRs and corresponding 95 % CIs for the highest quartiles of DRHD values were 2.04 (1.76, 2.37), 2.32 (1.78, 3.01), and 2.29 (1.72, 3.04) for all-cause, CVD and diabetes-specific mortality, respectively. Furthermore, we developed a web-based calculator for the DRHD value to enhance its accessibility and usability (https://dzwxl-drhd.streamlit.app/).

CONCLUSIONS

Our study constructed the DRHD value as a measure to assess homeostatic dysregulation among individuals with type 2 diabetes. The DRHD values exhibited potential as a prognostic indicator for retinopathy and for mortality in patients affected by type 2 diabetes.

Association of glyphosate exposure with multiple adverse outcomes and potential mediators

Glyphosate (GLY) is a widely used herbicide with potential adverse effects on public health. However, the current epidemiological evidence is limited. This study aimed to investigate the potential associations between exposure to GLY and multiple health outcomes. The data on urine GLY concentration and nine health outcomes, including type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), hypertension, cardiovascular disease (CVD), obesity, chronic kidney disease (CKD), hepatic steatosis, cancers, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and neurodegenerative diseases (NGDs), were extracted from NHANES (2013-2016). The associations between GLY exposure and each health outcome were estimated using reverse-scale Cox regression and logistic regression. Furthermore, mediation analysis was conducted to identify potential mediators in the significant associations. The dose-response relationships between GLY exposure with health outcomes and potential mediators were analyzed using restricted cubic spline (RCS) regression. The findings of the study revealed that individuals with higher urinary concentrations of GLY had a higher likelihood of having T2DM, hypertension, CVD and obesity (p < 0.001, p = 0.005, p < 0.001 and p = 0.005, respectively). In the reverse-scale Cox regression, a notable association was solely discerned between exposure to GLY and the risk of T2DM (adjusted HR = 1.22, 95% CI: 1.10, 1.36). Consistent outcomes were also obtained via logistic regression analysis, wherein the adjusted OR and 95% CI for T2DM were determined to be 1.30 (1.12, 1.52). Moreover, the present investigation identified serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) as a mediator in this association, with a mediating effect of 7.14% (p = 0.040). This mediating effect was further substantiated by RCS regression, wherein significant dose-response associations were observed between GLY exposure and an increased risk of T2DM (p = 0.002) and reduced levels of HDL (p = 0.001). Collectively, these findings imply an association between GLY exposure and an increased risk of T2DM in the general adult population.

[The trend of birth weight of full-term newborns and its association with parental reproductive age in Chongqing municipality from 2010 to 2022]

To analyze the trend of abnormal birth weight of full-term newborns and its correlation with parental reproductive age in Chongqing municipality from 2010 to 2022. Based on the Chongqing Birth Certificate System, full-term newborns born from January 2010 to December 2022 were selected. Parental information and birth weight were abstracted from the system. The joinpoint regression model was used to assess the trend of incidence of low birth weight (LBW) and macrosomia in the offspring from 2010 to 2022. The logistic regression model was utilized to analyze the association between parental reproduction age and birth weight of newborns. The average birth weight of 3 155 542 newborns was (3 305.8±410.5) g. The joinpoint regression model showed a decreasing trend for the incidence of LBW from 2010 to 2016 (APC=-4.26%, P<0.05), and an increasing trend from 2020 to 2022 (APC=8.99%, P<0.05). The incidence of macrosomia exhibited a decreasing trend from 2015 to 2022 (APC=-3.37%, P<0.05). The logistic regression model showed that, compared to the group with parents aged 20-34 years, the risk of LBW increased in other age groups. The risk of macrosomia decreased when either parent was aged<20 years, and increased when both parents were aged≥20 years. In conclusion, from 2010 to 2022, the incidence of LBW in full-term offspring in Chongqing municipality decreased first and then increased, and the incidence of macrosomia increased first and then decreased. Both young and advanced parental age were associated with an increased risk of LBW in offspring, and advanced parental age was also associated with an increased risk of macrosomia in offspring. Attention should be paid to the effects of advanced maternal and paternal age on offspring birth weight. Further efforts to control childbearing at a young age were needed.

Association between co-exposure to phenols, phthalates, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons with the risk of frailty

The phenomenon of population aging has brought forth the challenge of frailty. Nevertheless, the contribution of environmental exposure to frailty remains ambiguous. Our objective was to investigate the association between phenols, phthalates (PAEs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) with frailty. We constructed a 48-item frailty index using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The exposure levels of 20 organic contaminants were obtained from the survey circle between 2005 and 2016. The association between individual organic contaminants and the frailty index was assessed using negative binomial regression models. The combined effect of organic contaminants was examined using weighted quantile sum (WQS) regression. Dose-response patterns were modeled using generalized additive models (GAMs). Additionally, an interpretable machine learning approach was employed to develop a predictive model for the frailty index. A total of 1566 participants were included in the analysis. Positive associations were observed between exposure to MIB, P02, ECP, MBP, MHH, MOH, MZP, MC1, and P01 with the frailty index. WQS regression analysis revealed a significant increase in the frailty index with higher levels of the mixture of organic contaminants (aOR, 1.12; 95% CI, 1.05-1.20; p < 0.001), with MIB, ECP, COP, MBP, P02, and P01 identified as the major contributors. Dose-response relationships were observed between MIB, ECP, MBP, P02, and P01 exposure with an increased risk of frailty (both with p < 0.05). The developed predictive model based on organic contaminants exposure demonstrated high performance, with an R2 of 0.9634 and 0.9611 in the training and testing sets, respectively. Furthermore, the predictive model suggested potential synergistic effects in the MIB-MBP and P01-P02 pairs. Taken together, these findings suggest a significant association between exposure to phthalates and PAHs with an increased susceptibility to frailty.

Identification of dietary components in association with abdominal aortic calcification

The precise impact of dietary components on vascular health remains incompletely understood. To identify the dietary components and their associations with abdominal aortic calcification (AAC), the data from NHANES was employed in this cross-sectional study. The LASSO method and logistic regression were utilized to identify dietary components that exhibited the strongest association with AAC. Grouped WQS regression analysis was employed to evaluate the combined effects of dietary components on AAC. Furthermore, principal component analysis was employed to identify the primary dietary patterns in the study population. The present analysis included 1862 participants, from whom information on 35 dietary macro- and micronutrient components was obtained through 24-hour dietary recall interviews. The assessment of AAC was performed utilizing dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. The LASSO method identified 10 dietary components that were associated with AAC. Total protein, total fiber, vitamin A, and β-cryptoxanthin exhibited a negative association with AAC. Compared to the first quartile, the adjusted odds ratios (95% CIs) for the highest quartile were 0.59 (0.38, 0.93), 0.63 (0.42, 0.93), 0.59 (0.41, 0.84), and 0.68 (0.48, 0.94), respectively. Grouped WQS regression demonstrated a positive association between the lipid group and AAC (aOR: 1.29; 95% CI: 1.12, 1.50), while the proteins and phytochemical group exhibited a negative association with AAC (aOR: 0.69; 95% CI: 0.58, 0.82). For the dietary pattern analysis, high adherence to the plant-based pattern (aOR: 0.62; 95% CI: 0.44, 0.88) was associated with a lower risk of AAC, whereas the caffeine and theobromine pattern (aOR: 1.73; 95% CI: 1.25, 2.41) was associated with a higher risk of AAC. The findings of this study indicate that adopting a dietary pattern characterized by high levels of protein and plant-based foods, as well as reduced levels of fat, may offers potential advantages for the prevention of AAC.

Inhibition of NOX4 with GLX351322 alleviates acute ocular hypertension-induced retinal inflammation and injury by suppressing ROS mediated redox-sensitive factors activation

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) overproduction plays an essential role in the etiology of ischemic/hypoxic retinopathy caused by acute glaucoma. NADPH oxidase (NOX) 4 was discovered as one of the main sources of ROS in glaucoma. However, the role and potential mechanisms of NOX4 in acute glaucoma have not been fully elucidated. Therefore, the current study aims to investigate the NOX4 inhibitor GLX351322 that targets NOX4 inhibition in acute ocular hypertension (AOH)-induced retinal ischemia/hypoxia injury in mice. Herein, NOX4 was highly expressed in AOH retinas, particularly the retinal ganglion cell layer (GCL). Importantly, the NOX4 inhibitor GLX351322 reduced ROS overproduction, inhibited inflammatory factor release, suppressed glial cell activation and hyperplasia, inhibited leukocyte infiltration, reduced retinal cell senescence and apoptosis in damaged areas, reduced retinal degeneration and improved retinal function. This neuroprotective effect is at least partially associated with mediated redox-sensitive factor (HIF-1α, NF-κB, and MAPKs) pathways by NOX4-derived ROS overproduction. These results suggest that inhibition of NOX4 with GLX351322 attenuated AOH-induced retinal inflammation, cellular senescence, and apoptosis by inhibiting the activation of the redox-sensitive factor pathway mediated by ROS overproduction, thereby protecting retinal structure and function. Targeted inhibition of NOX4 is expected to be a new idea in the treatment of acute glaucoma.

Effects of heavy metal exposure on hypertension: A machine learning modeling approach

Heavy metal exposure is a common risk factor for hypertension. To develop an interpretable predictive machine learning (ML) model for hypertension based on levels of heavy metal exposure, data from the NHANES (2003-2016) were employed. Random forest (RF), support vector machine (SVM), decision tree (DT), multilayer perceptron (MLP), ridge regression (RR), AdaBoost (AB), gradient boosting decision tree (GBDT), voting classifier (VC), and K-nearest neighbour (KNN) algorithms were utilized to generate an optimal predictive model for hypertension. Three interpretable methods, the permutation feature importance analysis, partial dependence plot (PDP), and Shapley additive explanations (SHAP) methods, were integrated into a pipeline and embedded in ML for model interpretation. A total of 9005 eligible individuals were randomly allocated into two distinct sets for predictive model training and validation. The results showed that among the predictive models, the RF model demonstrated the highest performance, achieving an accuracy rate of 77.40% in the validation set. The AUC and F1 score for the model were 0.84 and 0.76, respectively. Blood Pb, urinary Cd, urinary Tl, and urinary Co levels were identified as the main influencers of hypertension, and their contribution weights were 0.0504 ± 0.0482, 0.0389 ± 0.0256, 0.0307 ± 0.0179, and 0.0296 ± 0.0162, respectively. Blood Pb (0.55-2.93 μg/dL) and urinary Cd (0.06-0.15 μg/L) levels exhibited the most pronounced upwards trend with the risk of hypertension within a specific value range, while urinary Tl (0.06-0.26 μg/L) and urinary Co (0.02-0.32 μg/L) levels demonstrated a declining trend with hypertension. The findings on the synergistic effects indicated that Pb and Cd were the primary determinants of hypertension. Our findings underscore the predictive value of heavy metals for hypertension. By utilizing interpretable methods, we discerned that Pb, Cd, Tl, and Co emerged as noteworthy contributors within the predictive model.

Anomalous deep-red luminescence of perylene black analogues with strong π-π interactions

Perylene bisimide (PBI) dyes are known as red, maroon and black pigments, whose colors depend on the close π-π stacking arrangement. However, contrary to the luminescent monomers, deep-red and black PBI pigments are commonly non- or only weakly fluorescent due to (multiple) quenching pathways. Here, we introduce N-alkoxybenzyl substituted PBIs that contain close π stacking arrangement (exhibiting d_π-π ≈ 3.5 Å, and longitudinal and transversal displacements of 3.1 Å and 1.3 Å); however, they afford deep-red emitters with solid-state fluorescence quantum yields (Φ_F) of up to 60%. Systematic photophysical and computational studies in solution and in the solid state reveal a sensitive interconversion of the PBI-centred locally excited state and a charge transfer state, which depends on the dihedral angle (θ) between the benzyl and alkoxy groups. This effectively controls the emission process, and enables high Φ_F by circumventing the common quenching pathways commonly observed for perylene black analogues.

A Hybrid System for Automatic Identification of Corneal Layers on In Vivo Confocal Microscopy Images

Purpose

Accurate identification of corneal layers with in vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM) is essential for the correct assessment of corneal lesions. This project aims to obtain a reliable automated identification of corneal layers from IVCM images.

Methods

A total of 7957 IVCM images were included for model training and testing. Scanning depth information and pixel information of IVCM images were used to build the classification system. Firstly, two base classifiers based on convolutional neural networks and K-nearest neighbors were constructed. Second, two hybrid strategies, namely weighted voting method and light gradient boosting machine (LightGBM) algorithm were used to fuse the results from the two base classifiers and obtain the final classification. Finally, the confidence of prediction results was stratified to help find out model errors.

Results

Both two hybrid systems outperformed the two base classifiers. The weighted area under the curve, weighted precision, weighted recall, and weighted F1 score were 0.9841, 0.9096, 0.9145, and 0.9111 for weighted voting hybrid system, and were 0.9794, 0.9039, 0.9055, and 0.9034 for the light gradient boosting machine stacking hybrid system, respectively. More than one-half of the misclassified samples were found using the confidence stratification method.

Conclusions

The proposed hybrid approach could effectively integrate the scanning depth and pixel information of IVCM images, allowing for the accurate identification of corneal layers for grossly normal IVCM images. The confidence stratification approach was useful to find out misclassification of the system.

Translational Relevance

The proposed hybrid approach lays important groundwork for the automatic identification of the corneal layer for IVCM images.

The Multiplicity of π-π Interactions of Fused-Ring Electron Acceptor Polymorphs on the Exciton Migration and Charge Transport

Efficient long-range exciton migration and charge transport are the key parameters for organic photovoltaic materials, which strongly depend on the molecular stacking modes. Herein, we extracted the stacked structures of the archetype fused-ring electron acceptor molecule, ITIC, based on the information on four polymorphic crystals and investigated the relationship between molecular stacking modes and exciton migration/charge transport properties through the intermolecular Coulomb coupling and charge transfer integral calculation. Experimentally, the thin film texture is crystallized through a post-annealing treatment through grazing-incidence wide-angle X-ray scattering (GIWAXS) measurements, which lead to the enhanced exciton migration through exciton-exciton annihilation in the femtosecond transient absorption (fs-TA) measurements. This work demonstrates the relationship between the molecular arrangement and the exciton migration and electron transport and highlights the significance of optimizing molecular stacking for the development of high-performance electron acceptor materials.

An artificial intelligence approach to classify pathogenic fungal genera of fungal keratitis using corneal confocal microscopy images

PURPOSE

Fungal keratitis is a common cause of blindness worldwide. Timely identification of the causative fungal genera is essential for clinical management. In vivo confocal microscopy (IVCM) provides useful information on pathogenic genera. This study attempted to apply deep learning (DL) to establish an automated method to identify pathogenic fungal genera using IVCM images.

METHODS

Deep learning networks were trained, validated, and tested using a data set of 3364 IVCM images that collected from 100 eyes of 100 patients with culture-proven filamentous fungal keratitis. Two transfer learning approaches were investigated: one was a combined framework that extracted features by a DL network and adopted decision tree (DT) as a classifier; another was a complete supervised DL model which used DL-based fully connected layers to implement the classification.

RESULTS

The DL classifier model revealed better performance compared with the DT classifier model in an independent testing set. The DL classifier model showed an area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC) of 0.887 with an accuracy of 0.817, sensitivity of 0.791, specificity of 0.831, G-mean of 0.811, and F1 score of 0.749 in identifying Fusarium, and achieved an AUC of 0.827 with an accuracy of 0.757, sensitivity of 0.756, specificity of 0.759, G-mean of 0.757, and F1 score of 0.716 in identifying Aspergillus.

CONCLUSION

The DL model can classify Fusarium and Aspergillus by learning effective features in IVCM images automatically. The automated IVCM image analysis suggests a noninvasive identification of Fusarium and Aspergillus with clear potential application in early diagnosis and management of fungal keratitis.

Montreal cognitive assessment (MoCA) is highly correlated with 1-year mortality in hip fracture patients

Prevalence of cognitive impairment in hip fractures was 86.5%. MoCA is an independent risk factor of mortality. MoCA score of < 15 is correlated with 11.71 times increased risk of mortality. Early attention and caution should be given to these patients for appropriate intervention to decrease mortality rates.

INTRODUCTION

Hip fractures rank amongst the top 10 causes of disability and current mortality of hip fractures is high. Objectives were to determine 1) prevalence of cognitive impairment, 2) whether Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score was an independent risk factor associated with mortality, 3) MoCA cut-off that result in high risk of mortality.

METHODS

This was a cohort study between July 2019 to June 2020. Inclusion criteria were 1) hip fracture, 2) >  = 65 years old, and 3) low-energy trauma. Patients undergo assessment for cognitive impairment with MoCA. Prevalence was assessed, MoCA cut-off point, and accuracy of statistical model was evaluated. Logistic regression modelling was used to assess association between mortality and MoCA.

RESULTS

There were 260 patients recruited. Two hundred twenty-five patients had MoCA score < 22 signifying cognitive impairment, and 202 patients had MoCA score of < 19. 46 hip fracture patients died at 1-year follow-up. 45 of these patients had MoCA score < 19, and 1 patient had a MoCA > 22. Results showed statistical significance and good model effect (at least 0.8) with MoCA cut-off points between < 15 and < 19 (p < 0.05). After controlling confounding factors, statistical significance still existed in MoCA cut-off point at < 15 (odds ratio (95% CI) = 11.71 (1.14, 120.71); p = 0.04).

CONCLUSION

Prevalence of cognitive impairment in hip fractures was 86.5%. MoCA is an independent risk factor of mortality in hip fracture patients. MoCA score of < 15 is correlated with 11.71 times increased risk of mortality at 1-year after a hip fracture. AUC with MoCA score < 15 was 0.948. Early attention and caution should be given to these patients for appropriate intervention to decrease mortality rates.

[Glucose-6 phosphatase catalytic subunit inhibits the proliferation of liver cancer cells by inducing cell cycle arrest]

Objective: To investigate the effects of glucose-6-phosphatase catalytic subunit (G6PC) recombinant adenovirus on proliferation and cell cycle regulation of liver cancer cells. Methods: Recombinant adenovirus AdG6PC was constructed. Huh7 cells and SK-Hep1 cells were set as Mock, AdGFP and AdG6PC group. Cell proliferation and clone formation assay were used to observe the proliferation of liver cancer cells. Transwell and scratch assay were used to observe the invasion and migration of liver cancer cells. Cell cycle flow cytometry assay was used to analyze the effect of G6PC overexpression on the proliferation cycle of liver cancer cells. Western blot was used to detect the effect of G6PC overexpression on the cell-cycle protein expression in liver cancer cells. Results: The recombinant adenovirus AdG6PC was successfully constructed. Huh7 and SK-Hep1 cells proliferation assay showed that the number of proliferating cells in the AdG6PC group was significantly lower than the other two groups (P < 0.05). Clone formation assay showed that the number of clones was significantly lower in AdG6PC than the other two groups (P < 0.05), suggesting that G6PC overexpression could significantly inhibit the proliferation of liver cancer cells. Transwell assay showed that the number of cell migration was significantly lower in AdG6PC than the other two groups (P < 0.05). Scratch repair rate was significantly lower in AdG6PC than the other two groups (P < 0.05), suggesting that G6PC overexpression can significantly inhibit the invasion and migration of liver cancer cells. Cell cycle flow cytometry showed that G6PC overexpression had significantly inhibited the Huh7 cells G(1)/S phase transition. Western blot result showed that G6PC overexpression had down-regulated the proliferation in cell-cycle related proteins expression. Conclusion: G6PC inhibits the proliferation, cell-cycle related expression, and migration of liver cancer cells by inhibiting the G(1)/S phase transition.

A living cell-based fluorescent reporter for high-throughput screening of anti-tumor drugs

Suppression of cellular O-linked β-N-acetylglucosaminylation (O-GlcNAcylation) can repress proliferation and migration of various cancer cells, which opens a new avenue for cancer therapy. Based on the regulation of insulin gene transcription, we designed a cell-based fluorescent reporter capable of sensing cellular O-GlcNAcylation in HEK293T cells. The fluorescent reporter mainly consists of a reporter (green fluorescent protein (GFP)), an internal reference (red fluorescent protein), and an operator (neuronal differentiation 1), which serves as a “sweet switch” to control GFP expression in response to cellular O-GlcNAcylation changes. The fluorescent reporter can efficiently sense reduced levels of cellular O-GlcNAcylation in several cell lines. Using the fluorescent reporter, we screened 120 natural products and obtained one compound, sesamin, which could markedly inhibit protein O-GlcNAcylation in HeLa and human colorectal carcinoma-116 cells and repress their migration in vitro. Altogether, the present study demonstrated the development of a novel strategy for anti-tumor drug screening, as well as for conducting gene transcription studies.

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The reporter developed in this study is living cell-based with convenient utility.

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The method can be used for high-throughput screening.

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The reporter is versatile with potential applicability in the discovery of OGT/GFAT inhibitors and antitumor drugs.

The Clinical Value of Explainable Deep Learning for Diagnosing Fungal Keratitis Using in vivo Confocal Microscopy Images

Background: Artificial intelligence (AI) has great potential to detect fungal keratitis using in vivo confocal microscopy images, but its clinical value remains unclarified. A major limitation of its clinical utility is the lack of explainability and interpretability. Methods: An explainable AI (XAI) system based on Gradient-weighted Class Activation Mapping (Grad-CAM) and Guided Grad-CAM was established. In this randomized controlled trial, nine ophthalmologists (three expert ophthalmologists, three competent ophthalmologists, and three novice ophthalmologists) read images in each of the conditions: unassisted, AI-assisted, or XAI-assisted. In unassisted condition, only the original IVCM images were shown to the readers. AI assistance comprised a histogram of model prediction probability. For XAI assistance, explanatory maps were additionally shown. The accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity were calculated against an adjudicated reference standard. Moreover, the time spent was measured. Results: Both forms of algorithmic assistance increased the accuracy and sensitivity of competent and novice ophthalmologists significantly without reducing specificity. The improvement was more pronounced in XAI-assisted condition than that in AI-assisted condition. Time spent with XAI assistance was not significantly different from that without assistance. Conclusion: AI has shown great promise in improving the accuracy of ophthalmologists. The inexperienced readers are more likely to benefit from the XAI system. With better interpretability and explainability, XAI-assistance can boost ophthalmologist performance beyond what is achievable by the reader alone or with black-box AI assistance.

CHANGES IN THE CHOROIDAL THICKNESS AFTER MACULAR BUCKLING IN HIGHLY MYOPIC EYES

PURPOSE

To assess changes in the choroidal thickness (CT) after macular buckling in eyes with high myopia.

METHODS

Highly myopic eyes that underwent macular buckling surgery were retrospectively analyzed. Data of swept-source optical coherence tomography scanning at baseline and at 1, 3, 6, 12, and 18 months after macular buckling were collected. Subfoveal CT and CT at 750 µm superior, inferior, nasal, and temporal to the fovea were measured. The total choroidal area, vascular area, and stromal area were measured by the binarization method. The choroidal vascularity index was calculated by dividing the vascular area by the total choroidal area.

RESULTS

Forty-one eyes were included in the final analysis. The subfoveal CT increased from 49.85 ± 31.23 µm preoperatively to 75.74 ± 37.89 µm 1 month after macular buckling (P < 0.001), then decreased over time, coinciding with the trends of parafoveal CT, total choroidal area, vascular area, and stromal area. The subfoveal CT was restored to the preoperative level six months postoperatively (P = 0.202) and remained stable until the end of follow-up. The choroidal vascularity index increased at 1 and 3 months postoperatively (P = 0.001 and 0.005, respectively).

CONCLUSION

The choroid thickened in the early postoperative period. The compression force of the buckle implant might disturb microcirculatory drainage and contribute to the thickening. The choroid spontaneously recovered to the preoperative level over time.

Knockdown of enhancer of rudimentary homolog expression attenuates proliferation, cell cycle and apoptosis of melanoma cells

Early stage or localized melanoma can be surgically resected with satisfactory outcome, whereas advanced malignant melanoma responds to treatment poorly and has a negative prognosis even after surgery, radiotherapy and other comprehensive treatments. Gene therapy targeting various biological signaling pathways has become an increasingly popular area in melanoma research. However, for gene therapy success, it is important to reveal the molecular mechanisms of melanoma tumorigenesis and development. The present study examined the effects of downregulating enhancer of rudimentary homolog (ERH) expression on the proliferation, metastasis and cell cycle of melanoma cells. ERH expression levels in melanoma tissues and cells were determined. Then, ERH gene expression in melanoma cell lines was downregulated or overexpressed by the lentiviral RNA interference technique. Furthermore, we performed cell counting kit-8, clone formation, scratch, transwell migration, subcutaneous tumorigenesis and venous metastasis assays as well as carried out flow cytometry analysis to explore the effects of ERH expression on cell proliferation, cell cycle, apoptosis and metastasis. We found that ERH expression in melanoma tissues and cells was markedly higher than in normal melanin nevus. Suppressing ERH expression by RNA interference in melanoma A375, WM35 and SK28 cell lines inhibited their proliferation and induced cell apoptosis. The cell cycle was also found to be blocked in the G1 phase. However, the metastatic properties of melanoma cells in vitro and in vivo remained largely unaltered by ERH knockdown. Our results show that ERH expression is increased in melanoma. Meanwhile, the proliferation and cell cycle transformation abilities are impaired potentially by downregulating the ERH expression in melanoma cells. Therefore, targeting ERH might serve as a novel therapeutic approach for malignant melanoma.

A deep transfer learning framework for the automated assessment of corneal inflammation on in vivo confocal microscopy images

Purpose

Infiltration of activated dendritic cells and inflammatory cells in cornea represents an important marker for defining corneal inflammation. Deep transfer learning has presented a promising potential and is gaining more importance in computer assisted diagnosis. This study aimed to develop deep transfer learning models for automatic detection of activated dendritic cells and inflammatory cells using in vivo confocal microscopy images.

Methods

A total of 3453 images was used to train the models. External validation was performed on an independent test set of 558 images. A ground-truth label was assigned to each image by a panel of cornea specialists. We constructed a deep transfer learning network that consisted of a pre-trained network and an adaptation layer. In this work, five pre-trained networks were considered, namely VGG-16, ResNet-101, Inception V3, Xception, and Inception-ResNet V2. The performance of each transfer network was evaluated by calculating the area under the curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristic, accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, and G mean.

Results

The best performance was achieved by Inception-ResNet V2 transfer model. In the validation set, the best transfer system achieved an AUC of 0.9646 (P<0.001) in identifying activated dendritic cells (accuracy, 0.9319; sensitivity, 0.8171; specificity, 0.9517; and G mean, 0.8872), and 0.9901 (P<0.001) in identifying inflammatory cells (accuracy, 0.9767; sensitivity, 0.9174; specificity, 0.9931; and G mean, 0.9545).

Conclusions

The deep transfer learning models provide a completely automated analysis of corneal inflammatory cellular components with high accuracy. The implementation of such models would greatly benefit the management of corneal diseases and reduce workloads for ophthalmologists.

Impact of air injection on subretinal fluid following successful scleral buckling surgery for macular-involving retinal detachment

Air injection is an accessory technique during scleral buckling (SB). Subclinical subretinal fluid (SRF) may presence and persistent after SB. The impact of air injection on SRF is unclear. In the study, we retrospectively enrolled 51 patients with macular-involving RD who had undergone successful SB. They were categorized into Group A (SB without air injection) and Group B (SB with air injection). First, we found that although group B seem to be severer than group A before surgery, Kaplan–Meier graph showed that SRF absorbed more rapidly in group B after surgery, and the incidence of SRF in group B was much lower during the whole follow-up period. Moreover, the cases with superior breaks had the lowest incidence. Second, during the follow-up period, there was no significant difference about postoperative complication between two groups. Lastly, risk factors for persistent SRF were investigated with binary logistic regression, and no risk factor was found. In conclusion, air injection during the SB might accelerate SRF absorption and reduce the incidence of persistent SRF, especially for the longstanding macular-off RD with superior breaks.

Epigenetic Landscape Analysis of the Long Non-Coding RNA and Messenger RNA in a Mouse Model of Corneal Alkali Burns

Purpose

Corneal alkali burns (CABs) are a common clinical ocular disease, presenting a poor prognosis. Although some long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) reportedly play a key role in epigenetic regulation associated with CABs, studies regarding the lncRNA signature in CABs remain rare and elusive.

Methods

A CAB model was established in C57BL/6J mice and profiling of lncRNA expressions was performed by RNA-Seq. Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses were conducted to predicate the related pathological pathways and candidate genes. RT-qPCR was used to verify the expression pattern of lncRNAs and related mRNAs, both in vitro and in vivo. Data were statistically analyzed by GraphPad Prism version 6.0.

Results

In all, 4436 aberrantly expressed lncRNAs were identified in CAB mice when compared with control mice. In the top 13 aberrantly expressed lncRNAs, Bc037156 and 4930511E03Rik were confirmed as the most significantly altered lncRNAs. Pathway analysis revealed that mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway was most enriched. Following 4930511E03Rik siRNA treated, Srgn, IL-1β and Cxcr2 were significant upregulated in corneal epithelial cells, corneal keratocytes, and bone marrow dendritic cells, with NaOH treatment. Moreover, after Bc037156 siRNA treated, expression levels of IL-1β and Srgn were significantly downregulated in the three cell lines.

Conclusions

Our study suggests that Bc037156 and 4930511E03Rik may be involved in inflammation, immune response, and neovascularization by regulating Srgn, IL-1β, and Cxcr2 expression after CAB. These candidate lncRNAs and mRNAs may be the potential targets for the treatment strategy of the alkali injured cornea.

Coexistence of Parallel and Rotary Stackings in the Lamellar Crystals of a Perylene Bisimide Dyad for Temperature-Sensitive Bicomponent Emission

Coexistence of rotationally π-π stacked columns and discrete slip-stacked dimers of perylene bisimide (PBI) chromophores is revealed by single crystal X-ray diffraction in the lamellar crystal of a head-to-tail linked PBI dyad. The rotary π-π stacked columnar moieties show H-type spectral character with relatively higher excitation energy, while the discrete slip-stacked π-π dimers have J-type spectral behavior with lower excitation energy. The lamellar crystals show relatively low photoluminescence efficiency of 12% at room temperature, while this dramatically increases to ∼90% at low temperature (80 K). Both of the rotary and slip-stacked moieties are emissive, and the nonradiative energy transfer processes between them are suppressed at low temperature, ensuring the highly efficient excimer-like long-lived fluorescence.

Does Serum Vitamin D Level Affect COVID-19 Infection and Its Severity?-A Case-Control Study

BACKGROUND

As effective medication to treat COVID-19 is currently unavailable, preventive remedies may be particularly important.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the relationship between serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25(OH)D) level and COVID-19 infection, its severity, and its clinical case characteristics.

METHODS

This case-control study compared serum 25(OH)D levels and rates of vitamin D deficiency (VDD) between 80 healthy controls and 62 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 and admitted to Guangxi People's Hospital, China, 2/16/2020-3/16/2020. Cases were categorized into asymptomatic, mild/moderate, and severe/critical disease. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to examine the associations between 25(OH)D level, or VDD, and case status/severity of COVID-19 while controlling for demographics and comorbidities. A threshold level of vitamin D for conveying COVID-19 risk was estimated.

RESULTS

Severe/critical COVID-19 cases were significantly older and had higher percentages of comorbidity (renal failure) compared to mild cases. The serum 25(OH)D concentration in COVID-19 patient was much lower than that in healthy control. And 25(OH)D level was the lowest in severe/critical cases, compared with mild cases. In further, significantly higher rates of VDD were found in COVID-19 cases (41.9%) compared to healthy controls (11.1%). And VDD was the greatest in severe/critical cases (80%), compared with mild cases (36%). These statistically significant associations remained even after controlling for demographics and comorbidities. A potential threshold of 25(OH)D (41.19 nmol/L) to protect against COVID-19 was identified.

CONCLUSION

Elderly and people with comorbidities were susceptible to severe COVID-19 infection. VDD was a risk factor for COVID-19, especially for severe/critical cases. While further confirmation is needed, vitamin D supplementation may have prevention or treatment potential for COVID-19 disease.

Collapsing dynamics of a laser-induced cavitation bubble near the edge of a rigid wall

In the present paper, the collapsing dynamics of a laser-induced cavitation bubble near the edge of a rigid wall is experimentally investigated with a high-speed photography system. For a symmetrical setup, the two primary control parameters of the bubble collapsing behavior include the equivalent maximum bubble radius and the distance between the bubble and the edge of the rigid wall. Based on the bubble interface deformation during the collapsing process, three typical cases are identified for the categorization of the phenomenon with the influences of the parameters revealed. Through a quantitative analysis of the obtained high-speed photos, the motions of the bubble interface in different directions are given together with the calculations of the bubble centroid. The primary findings of the present paper could be summarized in terms of the bubble-edge distance as follows. When the bubble is close to the edge, the movement of the bubble interface near the edge will be restricted with a clear neck formation in the middle part of the bubble. For this case, the edge could delay the bubble collapsing time up to 22% of the Rayleigh collapsing time. When the bubble is of the medium distance to the edge, the differences of the expansion or shrinkage of the bubble interface among different directions will be reduced with an olive-shaped bubble formed during the collapsing process. For this range of parameters, the bubble moves rapidly toward the edge especially during the final collapsing stage. When the bubble is far away from the edge, the bubble will be a nearly spherical one.

Long noncoding RNA PCAT-1 promoted ovarian cancer cell proliferation and invasion by suppressing KLF6

OBJECTIVE

Recently, the role of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) in tumor progression has caught attention in numerous researchers. In our investigation, lncRNA PCAT-1 was studied to identify how it functioned in the progression of ovarian cancer.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

LncRNA PCAT-1 expression was detected by quantitative Real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) in both ovarian cancer cells and tissue samples. Furthermore, to identify the function of PCAT-1 in ovarian cancer, cell proliferation, transwell assay and Matrigel assay were conducted. In addition, by performing qRT-PCR and Western blot assay, the underlying mechanism was explored.

RESULTS

PCAT-1 expression was remarkably higher in ovarian cancer samples when compared with that in corresponding ones. Moreover, cell proliferation, migration and invasion were inhibited after PCAT-1 was knocked down in ovarian cancer cells. Moreover, the mRNA and protein expression of KLF6 (Krüppel-like factor 6) was upregulated after PCAT-1 was knocked down. Furthermore, the KLF6 expression level was negatively related to the PCAT-1 expression level in ovarian cancer samples.

CONCLUSIONS

We showed that PCAT-1 promotes the progression of ovarian cancer through enhancing cell metastasis and proliferation via suppressing KLF6, which might be a novel therapeutic strategy in ovarian cancer.

Ultrafast and Long-Range Exciton Migration through Anisotropic Coulombic Coupling in the Textured Films of Fused-Ring Electron Acceptors

The exciton migration mechanism in organic photovoltaic devices is still an ambiguity owing to the insufficient understanding of molecular arrangement on a microscopic scale. Herein, we reveal the relationship between the molecular stacking modes and exciton migration for a representative fused-ring electron acceptor, namely, ITIC. The precise molecular stacking patterns are extracted, and directional Coulombic couplings are calculated based on the information of a single-crystal structure, which proves the anisotropic character for exciton motion. The theoretical analysis results indicate ultrafast exciton migration along the head-to-tail stacking directions with maximum migration length of 330 nm in the finite lifetime of 1 ns. Experimentally, the exciton diffusion length is determined to be 183 nm by exciton-exciton annihilation measurement. This work reveals head-to-tail type intermolecular stacking induces strong anisotropic Coulombic coupling, leading to the ultrafast and long-range exciton migration in nonfullerene systems.

Long noncoding RNA PCAT-1 promoted ovarian cancer cell proliferation and invasion by suppressing KLF6

Since this article has been suspected of research misconduct and the corresponding authors did not respond to our request to prove originality of data and figures, "Long noncoding RNA PCAT-1 promoted ovarian cancer cell proliferation and invasion by suppressing KLF6, by H.-P. Liu, D. Lv, J.-Y. Wang, Y. Zhang, J.-F. Chang, Z.-T. Liu, N. Tang, published in Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci 2019; 23 (11): 4650-4655-DOI: 10.26355/eurrev_201906_18044-PMID: 31210290" has been withdrawn. The Publisher apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. https://www.europeanreview.org/article/18044.

CT features of COVID-19 patients with two consecutive negative RT-PCR tests after treatment

The objective of this study is to expound the CT features of COVID-19 patients whose throat swab samples were negative for two consecutive nucleic acid tests after treatment. We retrospectively reviewed 46 COVID-19 patients with two consecutive negative RT-PCR tests after treatment. The cases were divided into moderate group and severe/critical group according to disease severity. Clinical and CT scanning data were collected. CT signs of pulmonary lesions and the score of lung involvement were expounded. Thirty-nine moderate cases and seven severe/critical cases were included. Residual pulmonary lesions were visible in CT images. Moderate patients showed peripheral lesions while severe/critical cases exhibited both central and peripheral lesions with all lobes involvement. Mixed ground glass opacity (GGO) and pulmonary consolidation were noted. A larger proportion of severe patients showed reticular pulmonary interstitium thickening. Air bronchogram, pleural effusion, vascular enlargement, bronchial wall thickening, bronchiectasis, pleural thickening and pleural adhesion were more frequently observed in severe/critical group. The severe/critical group showed higher CT score. Pulmonary lesions persisted even after twice consecutive negative nucleic acid tests. We strongly recommended regular follow-up of CT scans after nucleic acid tests conversion. Evaluation of complete remission should base on chest CT.

Regulating the Packing of Non-Fullerene Acceptors via Multiple Noncovalent Interactions for Enhancing the Performance of Organic Solar Cells

Three noncovalently fused-ring electron acceptors (FOC6-IC, FOC6-FIC, and FOC2C6-2FIC) are synthesized. Single crystals of FOC6-IC and FOC2C6-2FIC are prepared, and structure analyses reveal that the molecular backbone can be planarized via the formation of the intramolecular noncovalent interactions. These acceptor molecules can be packed closely in the solid state via π-π stacking and static interactions between the central phenylene unit and the terminal group with a distance of 3.3-3.4 Å. Besides, multiple intermolecular noncovalent interactions can be observed in the single crystal structure of the fluorinated acceptor FOC2C6-2FIC, which help increase the crystallinity of acceptors and the charge mobility of the blends. Photovoltaic devices based on FOC2C6-2FIC give a power conversion efficiency of 12.36%, higher than 12.08% for FOC6-FIC and 10.80% for FOC6-IC.

Ischemic preconditioning protects brain from ischemia/reperfusion injury by attenuating endoplasmic reticulum stress-induced apoptosis through PERK pathway

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of cerebral ischemic preconditioning which can decrease brain ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury by inhibiting endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-induced apoptosis.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The focal cerebral ischemia rat was selected as the experimental model. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) positive cells in ischemic penumbra were assessed after cerebral reperfusion. We assessed terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) positive cells and measured the expressions of phosphorylation PERK (p-PERK), glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78), activating transcription factor-4 (ATF4) and caspase-12 in ischemic penumbra after cerebral reperfusion.

RESULTS

We showed that the infarct sizes can be reduced due to the preconditioning under the influence of brain ischemia after reperfusion. The effect of preconditioning on the expression of ER stress proteins suggested the expressions of the 4 proteins p-PERK, ATF4, caspase-12 and GRP78 in the penumbra cortex by immunohistochemistry and Western blot increased after cerebral ischemia. Significant reduction of the number of TUNEL-positive cells was in the penumbra cortex of the preconditioning group.

CONCLUSIONS

We found that cerebral ischemic preconditioning can protect the brain from I/R injury by inhibiting ER stress-induced apoptosis; the pathway of PERK is involved.

Vibration treatment modulates macrophage polarisation and enhances early inflammatory response in oestrogen-deficient osteoporotic-fracture healing

Fracture healing is a well-orchestrated and coordinated process and begins with the inflammatory stage involving the infiltration of immune cells and the release of cytokines, including tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-10 (IL-10). Low-magnitude high-frequency vibration (LMHFV) stimulation is effective in promoting fracture healing. The study hypothesis was that the innate immune response was impaired in osteoporotic fracture and LMHFV could positively modulate it. 9-month-old ovariectomy (OVX)-induced osteoporotic rats were randomised into sham (SHAM), OVX control (OVX), OVX-vibration (OVX-VT) or OVX vibration plus administration of COX-2 specific non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs (OVX-VT-NSAID). LMHFV (35 Hz, 0.3 g) was given 20 min/d and 5 d/week to the treatment groups. Healing and innate immune response were evaluated by weekly radiographs, endpoint micro-computed tomography (µCT), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and histomorphometry at weeks 1, 2, 4 and 8 post-treatment. Results showed that OVX slightly elevated systemic inflammation but impaired the innate immune response locally at the fracture site, with significantly lower expressions of TNF-α and IL-6 but higher IL-10 expression during the early stage of healing. LMHFV was effective in accelerating the delayed fracture healing in OVX bones by partly restoring the impaired innate immune response at the fracture site, accompanied by promoted progression of macrophage polarisation from M1 (pro-inflammatory) to M2 (anti-inflammatory) phenotype. In conclusion, vibration treatment could positively modulate the impaired innate immune response and promote macrophage polarisation in osteoporotic-fracture healing.

[Fructose-1, 6-bisphosphatase inhibits autophagy and proliferation in liver cancer cells]

Objective: To construct the recombinant adenoviral containing fructose 1, 6-biphosphatase 1 (FBP1), and to investigate whether FBP1 has effect on autophagy and proliferation in liver cancer cells (HepG2). Methods: FBP1 cDNA sequence was amplified by PCR and cloned in adenovirus vector pAdTrack-TO4, and then recombinant adenovirus plasmid pAdTrack-FBP1 was constructed. The recombinant adenovirus plasmid was transfected into HEK293 cells by Lipofectamine 3000. High-titer of recombinant adenovirus AdFBP1 was obtained by packaging and amplification. HepG2 cells were infected with recombinant adenovirus AdFBP1, and the Mock and AdGFP group were set at the same time. Western blot and confocal laser scanning microscopy were used to observe the effect of FBP1 on the level of autophagy in hepatocellular carcinoma cells, and the effect of FBP1on the proliferation was observed by MTS and colony formation assay. A t-test and one-way ANOVA were used to compare the mean between group. Results: A high-titer recombinant adenovirus FBP1 was successfully constructed. Western blot and confocal laser scanning microscopy showed that the level of autophagy in AdFBP1 group was significantly lower than that in AdGFP group. Western blot results showed that LC3-II protein expression level in AdGFP was 1.10 ± 0.10 and 0.30 ± 0.01 in AdFBP1 group, F = 90.36, P < 0.01. Confocal laser scanning microscopy analysis showed that the average number of autophages in AdGFP was 28.33 ± 1.53 and 12.33 ± 1.53 in AdFBP1group, F = 97.40, P < 0.01. In addition, the results of colony formation assay and MTS assay showed that the proliferation of liver cancer cells in the AdFBP1 group was significantly inhibited compared with the AdGFP group. The results of colony formation showed that the cell clones in the AdGFP group was 65.66 ± 2.57 and 34.00 ± 2.00 in AdFBP1 group, F = 141.50, P < 0.01. MTS results showed that the absorbance of AdGFP group at 96h was 39.13 ± 2.21 and 30.61 ± 3.33 in AdFBP1 group, F = 7.80, P < 0.05. Conclusion: FBP1 inhibited the autophagy and proliferation in liver cancer cells (HepG2).

MiR-378a-5p Regulates Proliferation and Migration in Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell by Targeting CDK1

Objective: Abnormal proliferation or migration of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) can lead to vessel lesions, resulting in atherosclerosis and in stent-restenosis (IRS). The purpose of our study was to establish the role of miR-378a-5p and its targets in regulating VSMCs function and IRS.

Methods: EdU assays and Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assays were applied to evaluate VSMCs proliferation, wound healing assays and transwell assays were applied to assess cells migration. Furthermore, quantitative reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was performed to investigate the expression level of miR-378a-5p IRS patients and healthy individuals. Target genes were predicted using Target Scan and miRanda software, and biological functions of candidate genes were explored through bioinformatics analysis. Moreover, RNA-binding protein immunoprecipitation (RIP) was carried out to analyze the miRNAs interactions with proteins. We also used Immunofluorescence (IF) and fluorescence microscopy to determine the binding properties, localization and expression of miR-378a-5p with downstream target CDK1.

Results: The expression of miR-378a-5p was increased in the group with stent restenosis compared with healthy people, as well as in the group which VSMCs stimulated by platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB) compared with NCs. MiR-378a-5p over-expression had significantly promoted proliferative and migratory effects, while miR-378a-5p inhibitor suppressed VSMC proliferation and migration. CDK1 was proved to be the functional target of miR-378a-5p in VSMCs. Encouragingly, the expression of miR-378a-5p was increased in patients with stent restenosis compared with healthy people, as well as in PDGF-BB-stimulated VSMCs compared with control cells. Furthermore, co-transfection experiments demonstrated that miR-378a-5p over-expression promoted proliferation and migration of VSMCs specifically by reducing CDK1 gene expression levels.

Conclusion: In this investigatory, we concluded that miR-378a-5p is a critical mediator in regulating VSMC proliferation and migration by targeting CDK1/p21 signaling pathway. Thereby, interventions aimed at miR-378a-5p may be of therapeutic application in the prevention and treatment of stent restenosis.

Negative-Pressure Wound Therapy Promotes Wound Healing by Enhancing Angiogenesis Through Suppression of NLRX1 via miR-195 Upregulation

Negative-pressure wound therapy (NPWT) is one of the most advanced therapeutic methods in the treatment of various hard-to-heal acute and refractory chronic wounds. Recent emerging evidence points to a role of the microRNA-mediated regulation of angiogenesis in ischemic tissues, and a series of microRNAs associated with angiogenesis have been successively identified. In this study, we found that miR-195 expression was significantly upregulated and the microvessel density (MVD) was increased in granulation tissue collected 7 days after NPWT compared with those in the pre-NPWT tissue. Moreover, the expression of NLRX1, the potential target gene of miR-195, was down-regulated in post-NPWT compared with that in pre-NPWT tissue. Significant negative correlations were detected between miR-195 and NLRX1 expression levels ( r = -.856, P < .001) and between NLRX1 expression and MVD ( r = -.618, P < .05), whereas miR-195 expression was positively correlated with MVD in the granulation tissue ( r = .630, P < .05). In summary, NPWT may suppress NLRX1 expression through the upregulation of miR-195 expression, thus efficaciously promoting angiogenesis in the granulation tissue to enhance wound healing.

Noncoding RNAs as therapeutic targets in atherosclerosis with diabetes mellitus

Atherosclerosis is one of the major macrovascular complications of diabetes mellitus (DM), and it is the main cause of death from clinical observation. Among various cell types involved in this disorder, endothelial cells, vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs), and macrophages play a crucial role in the occurrence and development of this disease. The regulation and stabilization of these cells are a key therapeutic strategy for DM-associated atherosclerosis. An increasing number of evidences implicate that various types of noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) play a vital role in many cellular responses as well as in physiological and pathological processes of atherosclerosis and DM that drive atherogenic/antiatherogenic processes in those cells. Encouragingly, many ncRNAs have already been tested in animal experiments or clinical trials showing good performance. In this review, we summarize recent progresses in research on functional regulatory role of ncRNAs in atherosclerosis with DM. More importantly, we illustrate new thoughts and findings relevant to ncRNAs as potential therapeutic targets or biomarkers for atherosclerosis with DM.

Geant4-DNA example applications for track structure simulations in liquid water: A report from the Geant4-DNA Project

This Special Report presents a description of Geant4-DNA user applications dedicated to the simulation of track structures (TS) in liquid water and associated physical quantities (e.g., range, stopping power, mean free path…). These example applications are included in the Geant4 Monte Carlo toolkit and are available in open access. Each application is described and comparisons to recent international recommendations are shown (e.g., ICRU, MIRD), when available. The influence of physics models available in Geant4-DNA for the simulation of electron interactions in liquid water is discussed. Thanks to these applications, the authors show that the most recent sets of physics models available in Geant4-DNA (the so-called "option4" and "option 6" sets) enable more accurate simulation of stopping powers, dose point kernels, and W-values in liquid water, than the default set of models ("option 2") initially provided in Geant4-DNA. They also serve as reference applications for Geant4-DNA users interested in TS simulations.

Understanding the role of non-coding RNA (ncRNA) in stent restenosis

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is one of the leading disorders with the highest mortality rate. Percutaneous angioplasty and stent implantation are the currently available standard methods for the treatment of obstructive coronary artery disease. However, the stent being an exogenous substance causes several complications by promoting the proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells, immune responses and neointima formation after implantation, leading to post-stent restenosis (ISR) and late thrombosis. The prevention of these adverse vascular events is important to achieve long-term proper functioning of the heart after stent implantation. Non-coding ribonucleic acids (ncRNAs) are RNA molecules not translated into proteins, theyhave a great potential in regulating endothelial cell and vascular smooth muscle function as well as inflammatory reactions. In this review, we outline the regulatory functions of different classes of ncRNA in cardiovascular disease and propose ncRNAs as new targets for stent restonosis treatment.

[Interaction between TRPC1 and STIM1 in calcium sensing receptor mediated calcium influx and nitric oxide production in human umbilical vein endothelial cells]

Objective: To investigate the interaction of Ca(2+) protein TRPC1 and STIM1 in extracellular Ca(2+) -sensing receptor (CaR)-induced extracellular Ca(2+) influx and the production of nitric oxide (NO). Methods: Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were cultured and incubated with CaR agonist spermine (activating store-operates cation channels (SOC) and receptor-operated channels (ROC)), CaR negative allosteric modulator Calhex231 (blocking SOC, activating ROC) and ROC analogue TPA (activating ROC, blocking SOC), protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitor Ro31-8220, PKCs and PKCμ inhibitor Go6967(activate SOC, blocking ROC), respectively. The interaction of TRPC1 and STIM1 was determined using the immunofluorescence methods. The interaction between TRPC1 and STIM1 were examined by Co-immuno precipitation. The HUVECs were divided into: TRPC1 and STIM1 short hairpin RNA group (shTRPC1+ shSTIM1 group), vehicle-TRPC1+ vehicle-STIM1 group and control group. The cells were incubated with four different treatments under the action of above mentioned interventions, intracellular Ca(2+) concentration ([Ca(2+) ](i)) was detected using the fluorescence Ca(2+) indicator Fura-2/AM, the production of NO was determined by DAF-FM. Results: (1) The expression of TRPC1 and STIM1 proteins levels in HUVECs: Under the confocal microscope, TRPC1 and STIM1 protein expression showed masculine gender, both located in cytoplasm in the normal control group. Post incubation with Calhex231+ TPA, Ro31-8220 and Go6967, TRPC1 and STIM1 positioned in cytoplasm was significantly reduced, and the combined TRPC1 and STIM1 was also significantly reduced. (2) The interaction of TRPC1 and STIM1 in HUVECs: The relative ratios of Calhex231+ TPA+ Spermine+ Ca(2+) group, Ro31-8220+ Spermine+ Ca(2+) group and Go6976+ Spermine+ Ca(2+) group STIM1/TRPC1 and TRPC1/STIM1 were as follows: (25.98±2.17)% and (44.10±4.01)%, (20.85±1.01)% and (46.31±3.47)%, (23.88±2.05)% and (39.65±2.91)%, which were significantly lower than those in the control group (100.00±4.66)% and (100.00±6.40)% and in the Spermine+ Ca(2+) group (106.04±2.45)% and (107.78±2.66)% (all P<0.05). (3) The influence of joint TRPC1 and STIM1 transfection to four different drugs treated HUVECs on [Ca(2+) ](i) and NO generation: The changes of two excitation fluorescence intensity ratio and NO net fluorescence intensity values were consistent, [Ca(2+) ](i) and NO net fluorescence intensity values were significantly lower in the experimental group than the control group and the vehicle group (all P<0.05), while which were similar between the vehicle group and control group (all P>0.05). Conclusions: Our results indicate that TRPC1 and STIM1 jointly regulate CaR-mediated Ca(2+) influx and nitric oxide generation in HUVECs in the form of binary complex.

[The regulation of CD44 expression by new tumor suppressor gene Arid2 and the influence of Arid2 on the invasion and metastasis in hepatocellular carcinoma cells]

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the effect of a new tumor-suppressor gene Arid2 on the expression level of CD44 and the mechanism that Arid2 regulates the invasion and metastasis in human hepatocellular carcinoma cells HepG2 and Huh7.

METHODS

Recombinant pGL3-CD44 reporter plasmids were transfected into hepatoma cell lines HepG2 and Huh7 cells infected with adenovirus Arid2(Ad-Arid2). Dual luciferase assays were used to determine the relative luciferase activities of reporter plasmids. Western blot technique was used to detect the influence of Arid2 on the expression of transmembrane glycoprotein CD44. Cell migration assays of tumor cells were employed to observe the impact of overexpression of Arid2 on the invasion and metastasis abilities of tumor cells. The sizes of transplanted tumors were recorded to observe the growth of subcutaneous transplanted tumors in nude mice. Statistical significance was analyzed by one-way ANOVA for multiple comparisons, and independent-samples t-test was utilized to compare two groups.

RESULTS

Luciferase assay showed cells were transfected with different length of CD44 reporter plasmids, and their relative luciferase activities were improved to different degrees, compared with pGL3-Basic control. Meanwhile, the mean luciferase activities of pGL3-CD44 -791~+224bp reporter plasmids were significantly repressed by the overexpression of Arid2 which inhibition rates were up to 73.83%±0.92%(P< 0.05, HepG2) or 48.99%±1.37% (P <0.05, Huh7), compared with Ad-GFP control. Western blot results showed that CD44 protein expression was obviously decreased by overexpression of Arid2. Cell migration assays confirmed that the invasion and metastasis abilities were inhibited by increasing Arid2 expression in Human HepG2 or Huh7 cells, which inhibition rates were 66.95%±0.59%(P< 0.05)in HepG2 cells and 73.86%±0.49%(P< 0.05) in Huh7 cells respectively. The animal experiment results indicated that Arid2 could obviously delay or restrict the subcutaneous transplanted tumors growth in nude mice, which was declined by 98.57%±0.34%(P< 0.05).

CONCLUSION

CD44 promoter activities and protein expressions were significantly down-regulated by Arid2 in vitro. The growth and metastasis of tumors were obviously restrained in the hepatocellular carcinoma cells and nude models. In brief, these researches indicate CD44 may play important roles in the process where the invasion and metastasis of hepatocellular carcinoma cells are under the control of Arid2.The studies introduce and evaluate the relationships between Arid2 and CD44, and further provide a new research direction with the occurrence and development of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Surgical outcome of daytime and out-of-hours surgery for elderly patients with hip fracture

INTRODUCTION

Surgery for hip fracture may be performed out-of-hours to avoid surgical delay. There is, however, a perception that this may constitute less-than-ideal conditions and result in a poorer outcome. The aim of this study was to evaluate the surgical outcome of elderly patients with hip fracture who underwent daytime versus out-of-hours surgery in Hong Kong. This will help make decisions about whether to operate out-of-hours or to delay surgery until the following day.

METHODS

This retrospective study included all elderly patients with hip fracture who were operated on and discharged from the Prince of Wales Hospital in 2014. Patients were divided into groups according to the time of surgical incision. Records were examined for 30-day mortality and postoperative surgical complications, and their potential associations with surgeon characteristics.

RESULTS

Overall, 367 patients were selected in this study with 242 patients in the daytime group and 125 in the out-of-hours group. Demographic characteristics were comparable between the two groups. The overall 30-day mortality rate was 2.0% and the surgical complication rate was 24.2%. Compared with the daytime group, there was no increase in 30-day mortality or surgical complications for out-of- hours group. Fewer surgeons were involved in out-of-hours surgery but the number of surgeons and their qualifications did not affect the outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS

The two groups were homogeneous in terms of demographic characteristics. Outcomes for 30-day mortality and postoperative surgical complications were comparable between the two groups. Surgeons' qualifications and number of surgeons involved were also not associated with the outcomes. Out-of-hours surgery remains a viable option in order to facilitate early surgery.

miRNAs as potential therapeutic targets and diagnostic biomarkers for cardiovascular disease with a particular focus on WO2010091204

INTRODUCTION

A number of miRNAs have been reported to be critically involved in the regulation of cardiovascular disease (CVDs). Therefore, the development of potent analogues/inhibitors for miRNAs have thus become a key focus in the present drug discovery. In this review, we discuss the basic research and clinical use of miRNAs as the early diagnosis and therapeutic targets for CVD. We have also focused on the efficiency of therapeutically targeting miR-499, which is considered as one of the most promising molecules for treating CVDs. Areas covered: In this review, we have discussed the patents and patent applications related to miRNAs detected in CVD patients published in recent years. This review also covers the expression pattern of miR-499, as well as it highlights functions of its inhibitors in CVD. We used Google and Pubmed search engines to find relevant patents. Expert opinion: Although a massive number of miRNAs are patented as CVD biomarkers, further work is absolutely required to evaluate the reliable diagnostic values and therapeutic potential of these candidates. Overall, targeting miRNAs is definitely a promising strategy to be investigated for diagnosis and treatment of CVDs in future, however, the delivery system and off-targets effects are still a difficult challenge need to be elucidated.