Blocking of FGFR4 signaling by F30 inhibits hepatocellular carcinoma cell proliferation through HMOX1-dependent ferroptosis pathway

Excessive activation of FGF19/fibroblast growth factor receptor 4 (FGFR4) signaling is associated with poor survival of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). FGFR4 inhibitors show promise for HCC treatment. F30, an indazole derivative designed through computer-aided drug design targeting FGFR4, demonstrated anti-HCC activity as described in our previous studies. However, the precise molecular mechanisms underlying F30's anticancer effects remain largely unexplored. We report here that F30 could effectively induce ferroptosis in HCC cells. The concentrations of cellular ferrous iron, the peroxidation of cell membranes and the homeostasis of reduced glutathione (GSH)/oxidized glutathione disulfide (GSSG) were dysregulated by F30, thereby affecting cellular redox status. Induction of ferroptosis in HCC by F30 was inhibited by specific ferroptosis inhibitor ferrostatin-1. F30 upregulates various ferroptosis-related genes, including the heme oxygenase enzymes 1 (HMOX1), a key mediator of redox regulation. Surprisingly, F30-induced ferroptosis in HCC is dependent on HMOX1. The dysregulation of cellular ferrous iron concentrations and cell membrane peroxidation was rescued when knocking down HMOX1 with specific small interfering RNA. These findings shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying FGFR4-targeting F30's anti-HCC effects and suggest that FGFR4 inactivation could be beneficial for HCC treatment involving ferroptosis.

Glycosidic bond protection of cellulose during solvent dissolution by coordination interaction competition strategy

Exploiting new solvents on efficiently dissolving cellulose is imperative to promote the utilization of cellulosic resources. The process of cellulose dissolution typically necessitates extreme conditions, such as high-temperature treatment, utilization of potent acidic or basic solvents, or the catalytic action of Lewis acids. As a result, the structure of the cellulose is invariably compromised, subsequently obstructing the creation of high-performance materials. In this study, we address this challenge through a simple process, introducing polyethylene glycol (PEG) as glycosidic bond protecting agent, to preserve the polymerization degree of cellulose during its room-temperature dissolution in ZnCl2-phosporic acid eutectic solvent. The PEG units preferentially coordinate with Zn2+ to weaken the hydrolysis of glycosidic bond of cellulose through ether bond competition. The polymerization degree of regenerated cellulose is thus greatly improved, reaching up to seven times that of unprotected cellulose. Overall, this study offers an easy and cost-effective approach to develop cellulose solvents and provides a significant drive towards the fabrication of practical materials through cellulose dissolution.

First Measurement of Discrimination between Helium and Electron Recoils in Liquid Xenon for Low-Mass Dark Matter Searches

We report the first measurement of discrimination between low-energy helium recoils and electron recoils in liquid xenon. This result is relevant to proposed low-mass dark matter searches which seek to dissolve light target nuclei in the active volume of liquid-xenon time projection chambers. Low-energy helium recoils were produced by degrading α particles from ^{210}Po with a gold foil situated on the cathode of a liquid xenon time-projection chamber. The resulting population of helium recoil events is well separated from electron recoils and is also offset from the expected position of xenon nuclear recoil events.

Risk profiles and incidence of cardiovascular events across different cancer types

BACKGROUND

Cancer survivors are at increased risk for cardiovascular (CV) disease, although additional data are needed to better understand the incidence of CV events across different malignancies. This study sought to characterize the incidence of major adverse CV events [myocardial infarction, stroke, unstable angina (MACE), or heart failure (HF)] across multiple cancer types after cancer diagnosis.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Patients were identified from a USA-based administrative claims database who had index cancer diagnoses of breast, lung, prostate, melanoma, myeloma, kidney, colorectal, leukemia, or lymphoma between 2011 and 2019, with continuous enrollment for ≥12 months before diagnosis. Baseline CV risk factors and incidence rates of CV events post-index were identified for each cancer. Multivariable Cox hazards models assessed the cumulative incidence of MACE, accounting for baseline risk factors.

RESULTS

Among 839 934 patients across nine cancer types, CV risk factors were prevalent. The cumulative incidence of MACE was highest in lung cancer and myeloma, and lowest in breast cancer, prostate cancer, and melanoma. MACE cumulative incidence for lung cancer was 26% by 4 years (2.7-fold higher relative to breast cancer). The incidence of stroke was especially pronounced in lung cancer, while HF was highest in myeloma and lung cancer.

CONCLUSIONS

CV events were especially increased following certain cancer diagnoses, even after accounting for baseline risk factors. Understanding the variable patient characteristics and associated CV events across different cancers can help target appropriate CV risk factor modification and develop strategies to minimize adverse CV events and improve patient outcomes.

KI-Catalyzed C(sp3)-H Amination and Acyloxylation of Indolin-3-ones Using Air as the Oxidant

We have developed an efficient and green strategy for the synthesis of C2-amino indolin-3-ones and C2-acyloxy indolin-3-ones via KI-catalyzed C(sp3)-H amination and acyloxylation of indolin-3-ones using air as the oxidant. The reaction provides straightforward access to 2-substituted indolin-3-ones by the direct functionalization of indolin-3-ones at the C2 position under mild conditions. Moreover, the conditions enable direct functionalization of a range of complex pharmaceuticals, providing attractive products for medicinal chemistry programs.

First Dark Matter Search Results from the LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) Experiment

The LUX-ZEPLIN experiment is a dark matter detector centered on a dual-phase xenon time projection chamber operating at the Sanford Underground Research Facility in Lead, South Dakota, USA. This Letter reports results from LUX-ZEPLIN's first search for weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) with an exposure of 60 live days using a fiducial mass of 5.5 t. A profile-likelihood ratio analysis shows the data to be consistent with a background-only hypothesis, setting new limits on spin-independent WIMP-nucleon, spin-dependent WIMP-neutron, and spin-dependent WIMP-proton cross sections for WIMP masses above 9  GeV/c^{2}. The most stringent limit is set for spin-independent scattering at 36  GeV/c^{2}, rejecting cross sections above 9.2×10^{-48}  cm at the 90% confidence level.

Cu-Catalyzed Regioselective C-H Amination of 2H-Indazoles for the Synthesis of Indazole-Containing Indazol-3(2H)-ones

A copper-catalyzed C3 amination of 2H-indazoles with 2H-indazoles and indazol-3(2H)-ones under mild conditions was developed. A series of indazole-containing indazol-3(2H)-one derivatives were produced in moderate to excellent yields. The mechanistic studies suggest that the reactions probably proceed through a radical pathway.

[Multiple primary malignancies combined with SWI/SNF complex-deficient gastric cancer: a case report and literature review]

Multiple primary malignancies combined with SWI/SNF complex-deficient gastric cancer is a rare clinical entity and poorly documented. Herein we report a case of this disease in an 81-year-old male patient treated in our hospital. Before the established diagnosis of metachronous multiple primary malignancies, the patient received left lower lobectomy for a spaceoccupying mass in the left lung, which was confirmed by postoperative pathology as early stage lung cancer. SWI/SNF complex-deficiency gastric cancer with metastasis was subsequently detected by gastroscopy, and high-throughput sequencing identified ARID1A and TMB-H gene mutations in the tumor tissues. The patient received chemotherapy combined with immunotherapy but failed to respond to the treatment, and died 13 months later. We conducted a literature review and analyzed the occurrence, pathological and immunohistochemical characteristics, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of this disease.

Acute thrombocytopenia during cesarean section

We report a case of a healthy 29-year-old parturient with a normal pre-operative platelet count who received combined spinal-epidural anesthesia for cesarean section, and who suffered the sudden intra-operative onset of severe thrombocytopenia (platelet count 3 × 10⁹/L). This event was likely due to cefoxitin administered for the prophylaxis of surgical infection.

[Susceptibility and mechanism of sodium salicylate-induced tinnitus model in low estrogen rats]

Objective: The susceptibility of tinnitus rats with low estrogen level induced by sodium salicylate and the changes of tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) in serum were observed to investigate the relationship between tinnitus occurrence and estrogen level. Methods: Forty-two healthy female Wistar rats were randomly divided into control group(n=6), normal group(n=6), sham operation group(n=6) and ovariectomized group(n=24). Control group was intraperitoneally injected with normal saline 200 mg/kg for 14 consecutive days. Normal group, sham operation group and ovariectomized group were intraperitoneally injected with sodium salicylate 200 mg/kg for 14 consecutive days. Before and after sodium salicylate induction, the tinnitus behavior of rats in each group was detected by prepulse inhibition (PPI) and gap pre-pulse inhibition of the acoustic startle (GPIAS) test. Before and after sodium salicylate induction, blood samples were collected from eyeballs of rats in each group, and serum levels of estradiol and TNF-α were detected by ELISA. SPSS 25.0 software was used to analyze the data. Results: (1) Following 14 days of sodium salicylate intervention, there was no significant difference in PPI inhibition rate between groups or within groups(all P>0.05). (2)There was no significant difference in the inhibition rate of GPIAS in the four groups before sodium salicylate injection(F=0.217, P>0.05). With sodium salicylate injected for 14 days, the inhibition rate of GPIAS in ovariectomized group (30.88%±15.40%) was significantly lower than that in the other three groups (44.11%±21.06%, 38.27%±10.92%, 51.59%±11.34%), and the difference was statistically significant(F=3.533, P<0.05). The inhibition rate of GPIAS in ovariectomized group with sodium salicylate injected for 14 days was significantly lower than that before injection, and the difference was statistically significant(t=2.977, P<0.05).There was no significant difference in GPIAS inhibition rate between the other three groups before and after sodium salicylate injection(P>0.05). (3)The level of TNF-α in ovariectomized rats was significantly higher than that in the other three groups, the difference was statistically significant(all P<0.05). With sodium salicylate injection for 14 days, TNF-α level in the ovariectomized group increased more significantly than that in the other three groups, the difference was statistically significant(F=8.045, P<0.05). TNF-α levels increased following salicylate injection in normal group, sham operation group and ovariectomized group, and the differences were statistically significant(t value was -4.843, -4.932 and -5.965 respectively, each P<0.05). There was no significant difference in TNF-α levels before and after normal saline injection in control group(all P>0.05). Conclusion: Low estrogen levels increase susceptibility to sodium salicylate-induced tinnitus. Decreased estrogen levels may increase susceptibility to tinnitus through the increased expression of pro-inflammatory factor TNF-α.

The novel FGFR inhibitor F1-7 induces DNA damage and cell death in colon cells

BACKGROUND

Fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR) signaling influenced tumour occurrence and development. Overexpression of FGFR had been observed in many types of cancers, including colon cancer. FGFR inhibitor is considered to be effective in treating colon cancer patients.

METHODS

First, the kinase inhibition rate was determined. MTT, western blotting, colony formation, EdU and comet assays were performed to evaluate the anti-tumour effects of F1-7 in vitro. RNA-seq and bioinformatics analysis were used for further verification. Additionally, a xenograft model was generated to investigate the anti-tumour effect of F1-7.

RESULTS

F1-7 can inhibit the proliferation of colon cancer cells in vitro. It could significantly inhibit FGFR phosphorylation and its downstream signaling pathway. Whole-genome RNA-seq analysis found that the changed genes were not only functionally focused on MAPK signaling pathway but also related to cell apoptosis and ferroptosis. Experimental evidence demonstrated that F1-7 can directly increase the level of cellular DNA damage. The occurrence of DNA damage led to cell cycle arrest and inhibition of cell metastasis and cell apoptosis. Mouse model experiments also confirmed that F1-7 could inhibit tumour growth by inhibiting the FGFR pathway.

CONCLUSIONS

F1-7 exhibits anti-tumour activity by inhibiting the FGFR pathway. It could be a novel therapeutic agent for targeting colon cancer cells.

AB0883 Real-World Treatment Patterns In Patients With Psoriatic Arthritis

Background

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a complex inflammatory disease with manifestations that play an important role in treatment selection.1 Treatments include oral agents, biologic therapies (inhibitors of tumor necrosis factor [TNFi], interleukin [IL-17Ai, IL-12/23i], cytotoxic T lymphocyte–associated antigen 4 inhibitor [CTLA-4i]), and new targeted oral agents (inhibitors of phosphodiesterase-4 [PDE-4i] and Janus kinase [JAKi]).1 Few studies have examined real-world treatment patterns of recently approved therapies.

Objectives

Evaluate real-world treatment patterns for branded systemic therapy in patients with PsA.

Methods

In this retrospective study, medical and pharmacy claims from the US IBM MarketScan Commercial and Medicare databases (1/1/2012–12/31/2019) were used to identify patients with PsA who initiated treatment with a TNFi (adalimumab, etanercept, infliximab, golimumab, or certolizumab), IL-17Ai (secukinumab, ixekizumab), IL-12/23p40i (ustekinumab), IL-23p19i (guselkumab), CTLA-4i (abatacept), JAKi (tofacitinib), or PDE-4i (apremilast). Patients (≥18 years) with ≥1 prescription, ≥2 PsA claims separated by ≥1 day on or before the index date (first prescription date [1/1/13–12/31/2018]), and 1-year continuous enrollment before and after the index date were eligible. Treatment patterns were grouped into continuers, discontinuers, and patients with treatment modification (switchers [without a treatment gap], reinitiators [same drug with a treatment gap], and restarters [different drug with a treatment gap]) (Table 1). Patients were followed for 1 year or until treatment modification, whichever came first. Descriptive statistics were used.

Table 1.

Terminology

CohortDefinitionn/N (%)ContinuersOn index treatment during 1-year follow-up with no treatment gaps*1910/6455 (29.6)DiscontinuersNo prescription claims for any therapy during 1-year follow-up1614/6455 (25.0)Patients with treatment modificationsAll patients with a change in treatment during 1-year follow-up2908/6455 (45.1)SwitchersPrescription claims for treatments different than index therapy before permissible treatment gaps*794/6455 (12.3)ReinitiatorsPrescription claims for treatments SAME as index therapy AFTER treatment gaps*1686/6455 (26.1)RestartersPrescription claims for DIFFERENT therapy AFTER treatment gap*428/6455 (6.6)

Note: All terminology applies to cohorts within the first year of treatment.

*Treatment gap: gap of 200% of recommended dosing schedule from end of previous prescription’s days’ supply.

Results

A total of 6455 patients were included (mean age, 50.5 years; 55.5% female; mean Charlson Comorbidity Index score, 0.54). At baseline, the most commonly used therapies were immunosuppressants (58.5%), corticosteroids (52.2%), and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (45.9%). Treatments most used at index were TNFi (72.5%; including adalimumab [41.6%] and etanercept [23.8%]) and the PDE-4i apremilast (21.1%). During the 1-year study period, 29.6% of patients maintained their index therapy and 25.0% discontinued. Treatment modification was observed in 45.1% of patients; 12.3% switched to a new therapy without a treatment gap, 26.1% restarted their index therapy, and 6.6% started a new therapy after a treatment gap.

Conclusion

Among patients with PsA, there is substantial variability, including high rates of discontinuation within the first year and after index therapy. Further studies are warranted to understand reasons for these treatment patterns.

References

[1]Ogdie A et al. Treatment guidelines in psoriatic arthritis. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2020;59(Suppl 1):i37-i46.

Acknowledgements

This study was sponsored by Bristol Myers Squibb. Statistical analysis support was provided by Arindom Borkakoti, formerly of Mu Sigma. Professional medical writing assistance was provided by LeeAnn Braun, MPH, MEd, of Peloton Advantage, LLC, an OPEN Health company, Parsippany, NJ, USA, and funded by Bristol Myers Squibb.

Disclosure of Interests

Jiyoon Choi Shareholder of: Bristol Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol Myers Squibb, Antoine Sreih Shareholder of: Bristol Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol Myers Squibb, Thomas Lehman Shareholder of: Bristol Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol Myers Squibb, Manasi Suryavanshi Shareholder of: Bristol Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol Myers Squibb, Qian Xia Shareholder of: Bristol Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol Myers Squibb, Miroslawa Nowak Shareholder of: Bristol Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol Myers Squibb

Metal-Free Boron/Phosphorus Co-Doped Nanoporous Carbon for Highly Efficient Benzyl Alcohol Oxidation

An in-depth understanding of the electronic structures of catalytically active centers and their surrounding vicinity is key to clarifying the structure-activity relationship, and thus enabling the design and development of novel metal-free carbon-based materials with desired catalytic performance. In this study, boron atoms are introduced into phosphorus-doped nanoporous carbon via an efficient strategy, so that the resulting material delivers better catalytic performance. The doped B atoms alter the electronic structures of active sites and cause the adjacent C atoms to act as additional active sites that catalyze the reaction. The B/P co-doped nanoporous carbon shows remarkable catalytic performance for benzyl alcohol oxidation, achieving high yield (over 91% within 2 h) and selectivity (95%), as well as low activation energy (32.2 kJ mol^-1 ). Moreover, both the conversion and selectivity remain above 90% after five reaction cycles. Density functional theory calculations indicate that the introduction of B to P-doped nanoporous carbon significantly increases the electron density at the Fermi level and that the oxidation of benzyl alcohol occurs via a different reaction pathway with a very low energy barrier. These findings provide important insights into the relationship between catalytic performance and electronic structure for the design of dual-doped metal-free carbon catalysts.

Fabrication of Cellulose-Graphite Foam via Ion Cross-linking and Ambient-Drying

Conventional plastic foams are usually produced by fossil-fuel-derived polymers, which are difficult to degrade in nature. As an alternative, cellulose is a promising biodegradable polymer that can be used to fabricate greener foams, yet such a process typically relies on methods (e.g., freeze-drying and supercritical-drying) that are hardly scalable and time-consuming. Here, we develop a fast and scalable approach to prepare cellulose-graphite foams via rapidly cross-linking the cellulose fibrils in metal ions-containing solution followed by ambient drying. The prepared foams exhibit low density, high compressive strength, and excellent water stability. Moreover, the cross-linking of the cellulose fibrils can be triggered by various metal ions, indicating good universality. We further use density functional theory to reveal the cross-linking effect of different ions, which shows good agreement with our experimental observation. Our approach presents a sustainable route toward low-cost, environmentally friendly, and scalable foam production for a range of applications.

High-Loading, Well-Dispersed Phosphorus Confined on Nanoporous Carbon Surfaces with Enhanced Catalytic Activity and Cyclic Stability

Phosphorus-doped carbon materials are promising alternatives to noble metal-based catalysts for the highly selective oxidation of benzyl alcohol to benzaldehyde, but it is challenging to achieve high loadings of high-activity P dopants in metal-free catalysts. Here, the preparation of high-loading and well-dispersed P atoms confined to the surfaces of cellulose-derived carbon via a dissolving-doping strategy is reported. In this method, cellulose is dissolved in phosphoric acid to generate a cellulose-phosphoric supramolecular collosol, which is then directly carbonized. The as-prepared carbon possesses a high specific surface area of 1491 cm³ g^-1 and a high P content of 8.8 wt%. The P-doped nanoporous carbon shows a superior catalytic activity and cyclic stability toward benzyl alcohol oxidation, with a high turnover frequency of 3.5 × 10^-3 mol g^-1 h^-1 and a low activation energy of 35.6 kJ mol^-1 . Experimental results and theoretical calculations demonstrate that the graphitic C₃ PO species is the leading catalytic active center in this material. This study provides a novel strategy to prepare P dopants in nanoporous carbon materials with excellent catalytic performance.

Room temperature dissolving cellulose with a metal salt hydrate-based deep eutectic solvent

Abundant and renewable cellulose is a potential candidate for petroleum-derived synthetic polymers. However, the efficient dissolution of this material is problematic because of the high cost, severe reaction condition (e.g., high temperature) and environmentally unfriendly (e.g., toxic reagents, and solvent recyclability). Herein, to realize the room temperature dissolution of cellulose with an inexpensive and eco-friendly solvent, we design a novel low-cost deep eutectic solvent that is composed of zinc chloride, water and phosphoric acid for the efficient dissolution of cellulose. This solvent is featured as having both the superior hydrogen bonding acidity and the hydrogen bonding basicity, and thus can act as a hydrogen bond molecular scissors to cleave the hydrogen bonds within cellulose. In this process, microcrystalline cellulose can be easily dissolved in the solvent at room temperature with a dissolution ratio up to 15 wt%. The dissolved cellulose can also be recovered without any derivatization. The universality, recyclability and pilot production of dissolving cellulose using this solvent are also demonstrated. This work provides a new strategy for the design of novel deep eutectic solvent capable of disrupting the hydrogen bonds of cellulose under mild conditions.

[(NHC)PdCl2(Aniline)] Complexes: Easily Synthesized, Highly Active Pd(II)-NHC Precatalysts for Cross-Coupling Reactions

We report the synthesis, characterization, and reactivity of [(NHC)PdCl₂(aniline)] complexes. These well-defined, air- and moisture-stable catalysts are highly active in the Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling of amides by N-C(O) activation as well as in the Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling of esters, aryl chlorides, and Buchwald-Hartwig amination. Most crucially, this study introduces broadly available anilines as stabilizing ligands for well-defined Pd(II)-NHC catalysts. The availability of various aniline scaffolds, including structural and electronic diversity, has a significant potential in fine-tuning of challenging cross-couplings by Pd-NHCs. The parent catalyst in this class, [Pd(IPr)(AN)Cl₂], has been commercialized in collaboration with Millipore Sigma, offering broad access for reaction screening and optimization.

Lightweight, strong, moldable wood via cell wall engineering as a sustainable structural material

[Figure: see text].

Scalable Wood Hydrogel Membrane with Nanoscale Channels

Many efforts have been dedicated to exploring nanofluidic systems for various applications including water purification and energy generation. However, creating robust nanofluidic materials with tunable channel orientations and numerous nanochannels or nanopores on a large scale remains challenging. Here, we demonstrate a scalable and cost-effective method to fabricate a robust and highly conductive nanofluidic wood hydrogel membrane in which ions can transport across the membrane. The ionically conductive balsa wood hydrogel membrane is fabricated by infiltrating poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)/acrylic acid (AA) hydrogel into the inherent bimodal porous wood structure. The balsa wood hydrogel membrane demonstrates a 3 times higher strength (52.7 MPa) and 2 orders of magnitude higher ionic conductivity compared to those of natural balsa both in the radial direction (coded as R direction) and along the longitudinal direction (coded as L direction). The ionic conductivity of the balsa wood hydrogel membrane is 1.29 mS cm^-1 along the L direction and nearly 1 mS cm^-1 along the R direction at low salt concentrations (up to 10 mM). In addition, the surface-charge-governed ion transport also renders the balsa wood hydrogel membrane able to harvest electrical energy from salinity gradients. A current density of up to 17.65 μA m^-2 and an output power density of 0.56 mW m^-2 are obtained under a 1000-fold salt concentration gradient, which can be further improved to 2.7 mW m^-2 by increasing the AA content from 25 wt % to 50 wt %. These findings make contributions to develop energy-harvesting systems and other nanofluidic devices from sustainable wood materials.

[Application of DNA origami in nanobiomedicine]

The development of DNA nanotechnology make it possible to artificially generate complex nucleic acid nanostructures with controllable sizes and shapes. DNA origami emerges as an effective and versatile approach to construct two- and three-dimensional programmable nanostructures, and represents a milestone in the development of structural DNA nanotechnology. Due to its high degree of controllable geometry, spatial addressability, easy chemical modification and good biocompatibility, DNA origami has great potentials for applications in many fields. In this review, we briefly summarize the applications of DNA origami in antigen-antibody interaction, targeted drug delivery and the synthesis of biomaterials.

Strong, Hydrostable, and Degradable Straws Based on Cellulose-Lignin Reinforced Composites

The huge consumption of single-use plastic straws has brought a long-lasting environmental problem. Paper straws, the current replacement for plastic straws, suffer from drawbacks, such as a high cost of the water-proof wax layer and poor water stability due to the easy delamination of the wax layer. It is therefore crucial to find a high-performing alternative to mitigate the environmental problems brought by plastic straws. In this paper, all natural, degradable, cellulose-lignin reinforced composite straws, inspired by the reinforcement principle of cellulose and lignin in natural wood are developed. The cellulose-lignin reinforced composite straw is fabricated by rolling up a wet film made of homogeneously mixed cellulose microfibers, cellulose nanofibers, and lignin powders, which is then baked in oven at 150 °C. When baked, lignin melts and infiltrates the micro-nanocellulose network, acting as a polyphenolic binder to improve the mechanical strength and hydrophobicity performance of the resulting straw. The obtained straws demonstrate several advantageous properties over paper straws, including 1) excellent mechanical performance, 2) high hydrostability, and 3) low cost. Moreover, the natural degradability of the cellulose-lignin reinforced composite straws makes them promising candidates to replace plastic straws and suggests possible substitutes for other petroleum-based plastics.

In Situ Lignin Modification toward Photonic Wood

Lignin serves as a binder that forms strong matrices of the cell walls of wood. However, it has many photolabile chromophore groups that create a monotonic brownish color and make wood susceptible to photodegradation. Herein, a new strategy is reported for modifying lignin using an in situ, rapid, and scalable process that involves the photocatalytic oxidation of native lignin in wood by H₂ O₂ and UV light. The reaction selectively eliminates lignin's chromophores while leaving the aromatic skeleton intact, thus modulating the optical properties of wood. The resulting "photonic wood" retains ≈80% of its original lignin content, which continues to serve as a strong binder and water-proofing agent. As a result, photonic wood features a much higher mechanical strength in a wet environment (20-times higher tensile strength and 12-times greater compression resistance), significant scalability (≈2 m long sample), and largely reduced processing times (1-6.5 h vs 4-14 h) compared with delignification methods. Additionally, this in situ lignin-modified wood structure is easily patterned through a photocatalytic oxidation process. This photocatalytic production of photonic wood paves the way for the large-scale manufacturing of sustainable biosourced functional materials for a range of applications, including energy-efficient buildings, optical management, and fluidic, ionic, electronic, and optical devices.

Design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of indazole derivatives as selective and potent FGFR4 inhibitors for the treatment of FGF19-driven hepatocellular cancer

Fibroblast growth factor receptor 4 (FGFR4) is a member of the fibroblast growth factor receptor family, which is closely related to the occurrence and development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In this article, a series of indazole derivatives were designed and synthesized by using computer-aided drug design (CADD) and structure-based design strategies, and then they were evaluated for their inhibition of FGFR4 kinase and antitumor activity. F-30 was subtly selective for FGFR4 compared to FGFR1; it affected cell growth and migration by inhibiting FGFR4 pathways in HCC cell lines in a dose-dependent manner.

Insight into the impact of EGFR L792Y/F/H mutations on sensitivity to osimertinib: an in silico study

EGFR L792Y/F/H mutation makes it difficult for Osimertinib to recognize ATP pockets.

Solar-assisted fabrication of large-scale, patternable transparent wood

Transparent wood is considered a promising structural and light management material for energy-efficient engineering applications. However, the solution-based delignification process that is used to fabricate transparent wood generally consumes large amounts of chemicals and energy. Here, we report a method to produce optically transparent wood by modifying the wood's lignin structure using a solar-assisted chemical brushing approach. This method preserves most of the lignin to act as a binder, providing a robust wood scaffold for polymer infiltration while greatly reducing the chemical and energy consumption as well as processing time. The obtained transparent wood (~1 mm in thickness) demonstrates a high transmittance (>90%), high haze (>60%), and excellent light-guiding effect over visible wavelength. Furthermore, we can achieve diverse patterns directly on wood surfaces using this approach, which endows transparent wood with excellent patternability. Combining its efficient, patternable, and scalable production, this transparent wood is a promising candidate for applications in energy-efficient buildings.

Continuous Synthesis of Hollow High-Entropy Nanoparticles for Energy and Catalysis Applications

Mixing multimetallic elements in hollow-structured nanoparticles is a promising strategy for the synthesis of highly efficient and cost-effective catalysts. However, the synthesis of multimetallic hollow nanoparticles is limited to two or three elements due to the difficulties in morphology control under the harsh alloying conditions. Herein, the rapid and continuous synthesis of hollow high-entropy-alloy (HEA) nanoparticles using a continuous "droplet-to-particle" method is reported. The formation of these hollow HEA nanoparticles is enabled through the decomposition of a gas-blowing agent in which a large amount of gas is produced in situ to "puff" the droplet during heating, followed by decomposition of the metal salt precursors and nucleation/growth of multimetallic particles. The high active sites per mass ratio of such hollow HEA nanoparticles makes them promising candidates for energy and electrocatalysis applications. As a proof-of-concept, it is demonstrated that these materials can be applied as the cathode catalyst for Li-O₂ battery operations with a record-high current density per catalyst mass loading of 2000 mA g_cat. ^-1 , as well as good stability and durable catalytic activity. This work offers a viable strategy for the continuous manufacturing of hollow HEA nanomaterials that can find broad applications in energy and catalysis.

Lignin-Based Direct Ink Printed Structural Scaffolds

3D printing of lignocellulosic biomass (cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin) has attracted increasing attention by using this abundant, sustainable, and ecofriendly material. While cellulose can be easily tailored into a highly viscous ink for 3D printing, after solvent evaporation, the final printed structures become highly porous, fragile, and easily fall apart in water due to its hydrophilic nature. Lignin, another crucial component of natural lignocellulose, has not yet been reported for ink printing due to its unfavorable rheological behavior. Herein, a low-cost direct ink printing strategy is developed to fabricate lignin-based 3D structures with lignin no further refined and a more compact microstructure as well as different functionalities compared with printed cellulose. By using a soft triblock copolymer as the crosslinking agent, the rheology of lignin-based inks can be adjusted from soft to rigid, and even enables vertical printing which requires stiff and self-supporting features. The lignin-based inks contain less water (≈40 wt%) and exhibit a much denser, stiffer structure, resulting in a wet tensile strength of ≈30 MPa, compared to only ≈0.6 MPa for printed cellulose. In addition, the unique macromolecular structure of lignin also demonstrates significantly improved stability in water and under heat, as well as UV-blocking performance.

Measurement of the Spectral Shape of the β-Decay of ^{137}Xe to the Ground State of ^{137}Cs in EXO-200 and Comparison with Theory

We report on a comparison between the theoretically predicted and experimentally measured spectra of the first-forbidden nonunique β-decay transition ^{137}Xe(7/2^{-})→^{137}Cs(7/2^{+}). The experimental data were acquired by the EXO-200 experiment during a deployment of an AmBe neutron source. The ultralow background environment of EXO-200, together with dedicated source deployment and analysis procedures, allowed for collection of a pure sample of the decays, with an estimated signal to background ratio of more than 99 to 1 in the energy range from 1075 to 4175 keV. In addition to providing a rare and accurate measurement of the first-forbidden nonunique β-decay shape, this work constitutes a novel test of the calculated electron spectral shapes in the context of the reactor antineutrino anomaly and spectral bump.

SAT0219 PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS, TREATMENT PATTERNS, AND RESOURCE UTILIZATION OF SJOGREN’S SYNDROME PATIENTS IN A LARGE US HEALTH NETWORK

Background:

Sjogren’s syndrome (SS) is a chronic progressive autoimmune disorder which occurs as primary (pSS) or secondary SS (sSS). With no approved disease modifying therapy, there is limited information on the treatment patterns and resource utilization among these patients (pts).

Objectives:

To describe pts characteristics, treatment patterns and healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) using electronic health records (EHR) of pts with pSS and sSS treated at the Providence St. Josephs Health system (PSJH).

Methods:

Pts ≥18 years of age with at least one clinical encounter with ICD-9-CM or ICD-10-CM diagnosis of SS, between Jan 2013 and Mar 2019 were included. Date of first encounter with SS diagnosis (index date) was used to assess pts demographics. Pt baseline comorbidities were evaluated during the 24 months pre-index period. Treatment patterns and HCRU were assessed during the 12 months post-index follow-up. Descriptive statistics were used to describe pts’ demographic and clinical characteristics, and medications use in the baseline and follow up.

Results:

Study cohort included 9,108 SS pts of which 76.5% had sSS diagnosis on index date. Majority of SS pts were women, Caucasian, with mean age of 58.3 yrs, and from western states in the US (Table 1). Endocrine conditions including hypo- and hyperthyroidism, and diabetes was the most common (45.5%) comorbidity at baseline, followed by rheumatologic disorders (25.6%) and neurological conditions (22.2%). Among patients with treatment information (4088, 44.88%), 42.95% were using symptomatic treatments for dry eye and mouth at baseline (Table 1). In the follow-up, SS pts had average 5.8 healthcare visits per patient per year (PPPY), including 0.6 inpatient and 3.4 outpatient visit respectively. About 40% of the SS pts (53.8% pSS and 35.8% sSS) were diagnosed by rheumatologists. Majority of the SS pts initiated treatment with cDMARDs (82%) and remained on the same treatment during 1 year follow-up (Fig 2).

Table 1.

Baseline Demographic and Clinical Pts Characteristics

SS Pts (n=9,108)DemographicsAge (years) on index date, mean (SD)58.3 (15.1)Female, n (%)8,338 (91.6)Caucasian, n (%)6.936 (76.2)Western Region, n (%)8,998 (98.8)Married, n (%)5,164 (56.7)Never Smoked, n (%)4,847 (53.2)Primary diagnosis, n (%)2,137 (23.5)Comorbidities, n (%)Cardiovascular1,408 (17.2)Endocrine3,733 (45.5)Oncology800 (9.8)Blood disorders1,221 (14.9)Pulmonary1,802 (22.0)Neurological1,821 (22.2)Liver/Kidney1,782 (21.7)Rheumatologic disorders2,096 (25.6)Autoimmune/ Immune related1,527 (18.6)Baseline Medications, n (%)Symptomatic11,756 (43.0)NSAIDs21,578 (38.6)cDMARDs31,435 (35.1)Corticosteroid41,393 (34.1)bDMARDs5266 (6.5)

1cevimeline, pilocarpine hydrochloride, ophthalmic insert etc;2aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxen;3methotrexate, hydroxychloroquine, sulfasalazine, leflunomide, myophenolate mofetil, azathioprine;4prednisone;5sarilumab, belimumab, ustekinumab, infliximab, adalimumab, certolizumab pegol, golimumab, etanercept, abatacept, tocilizumab, rituximab, tofacitinib, baricitinib

Figure 1.

HCRU for pSS and sSS Pts

Figure 2.

Treatment Sequencing for pSS and sSS Pts. Note: Discontinued: pts who discontinued and didn’t advance to any therapy; same treatment: pts continued on index treatment till we have information.

Conclusion:

Observation of higher comorbidities suggests substantial burden of SS pts on healthcare system, with majority of pts being diagnosed outside of rheumatology offices.

Acknowledgments: :

We acknowledge the contributions of Manasi Suryavanshi towards drafting and reviewing the abstract.

Disclosure of Interests:

Philip J Mease Grant/research support from: Abbott, Amgen, Biogen Idec, BMS, Celgene Corporation, Eli Lilly, Novartis, Pfizer, Sun Pharmaceutical, UCB – grant/research support, Consultant of: Abbott, Amgen, Biogen Idec, BMS, Celgene Corporation, Eli Lilly, Novartis, Pfizer, Sun Pharmaceutical, UCB – consultant, Speakers bureau: Abbott, Amgen, Biogen Idec, BMS, Eli Lilly, Genentech, Janssen, Pfizer, UCB – speakers bureau, Joe Zhuo Shareholder of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Roshanthi Weerasinghe Grant/research support from:., Qian Xia Shareholder of: I own shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Employee of: I am a paid employee of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Chidananda Samal Consultant of: I work as a consultant for Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Niyati Sharma Consultant of: I work as a consultant for Bristol-Myers Squibb Company

SAT0129 ROLE OF SHARED EPITOPE ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF TNFI TREATMENT FOR PATIENTS WITH RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS

Background:

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has been shown a strong genetic association with particularHLA–DRB1alleles containing shared epitope (SE). However, whether SE is clinically useful in treatment choices is insufficiently investigated1and previous studies have presented mixed findings in the role of SE in the response of TNFi therapies2,3.

Objectives:

To assess the role of SE in response to TNFi treatment in real-world RA patients (pts).

Methods:

Pts enrolled in a large RA registry, Brigham and Women’s Hospital RA Sequential Study, with known SE and received TNFi therapies were included for the analysis. TNFi pts were identified by the first-time use of the drugs between March 2003 to June 2018. For this analysis, all pts were followed up to 1 year. Summary statistics are reported for demographics, serostatus and disease activity (DA) at baseline and follow-up, stratified by SE status. Given the strong association of SE and anti-citrullinated protein antibody (ACPA), the analysis was further stratified by ACPA status. The effect of SE on change in DA was assessed using linear regression model with age, gender, RA disease duration, baseline DA, smoking status, SE, ACPA and ACPA-SE interaction as covariates.

Results:

Of the 484 TNFi pts included in the study, 68.8% were SE+. SE+ pts (vs SE-) were more likely to be rheumatoid factor positive, have erosive disease and a higher disease duration, irrespective of ACPA status. No difference in the change of DA was observed by SE. In SE- pts, ACPA+ pts had a greater reduction of DA than ACPA- pts (Table 1). After accounting for baseline differences, there was no significant effect of SE status on the mean change from baseline in any of the 3 DA measures.(Figure 1) The change in DA was not associated with ACPA but was significantly affected by disease duration and baseline DA.

Table 1.

Disease Activity in TNFi Patients, Stratified by SE and ACPA Status

ParameterSE+ (1 & 2 alleles, n=333)SE- (n=151)ACPA+ACPA–OverallACPA+ACPA-Overall(n=264)(n=69)(n=333)(n=90)(n=61)(n=151)Baseline, Mean (SD)DAS28 CRP3.94 (1.69)3.57 (1.61)3.86 (1.67)3.85 (1.49)3.45 (1.65)3.69 (1.57)CDAI23.06 (18.13)18.95 (15.96)22.25 (17.78)21.91 (15.96)17.72 (17.06)20.26 (16.48)SDAI24.08 (18.82)19.96 (16.59)23.27 (18.45)22.58 (16.34)18.55 (17.87)20.99 (17.01)Follow-up, Mean (SD)DAS28 CRP3.42 (1.55)2.69 (1.32)3.27 (1.53)3.19 (1.43)3.11 (1.53)3.16 (1.47)CDAI17.61 (15.53)12.11 (12.65)16.51 (15.14)15.15 (13.35)14.94 (14.73)15.07 (13.84)SDAI18.35 (15.73)12.45 (12.78)17.15 (15.34)15.31 (13.81)15.71 (15.45)15.46 (14.38)Change, Mean (SD)DAS28 CRP-0.48 (1.31)-0.65 (1.53)-0.52 (1.36)-0.52 (1.50)-0.24 (0.93)-0.42 (1.34)CDAI-4.29 (13.16)-4.79 (13.13)-4.39 (13.12)-6.45 (13.56)-2.63 (9.58)-4.99 (12.28)SDAI-4.74 (14.13)-5.07 (13.90)-4.80 (14.05)-6.87 (14.21)-2.97 (10.32)-5.41 (12.98)Figure 1.

Linear Regression Model for Change in Disease Activity*Estimates, p-values are shown as data labels on the graphs; The above model is adjusted for age, gender, RA duration, smoking status, SE status, baseline DA, ACPA and ACPA*SE status

Conclusion:

This real-world study validates the finding from previous studies conducted in clinical settings that SE does not differentiate treatment response for TNFi therapies.

References:

[1]Saruhan-Direskeneli G, et al.Rheumatology (Oxford) 2007;46(12):1842-44

[2]Skapenko A, et al.Clin Exp Rheumatol2019;37(5):783-790

[3]Rigby W, et al.Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases2019;78(2):263-264

Disclosure of Interests:

Joe Zhuo Shareholder of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Joshua Bryson Shareholder of: I own shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Employee of: I am a paid employee of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Qian Xia Shareholder of: I own shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Employee of: I am a paid employee of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Niyati Sharma Consultant of: I work as a consultant for Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Chidananda Samal Consultant of: I work as a consultant for Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Sonie Lama Shareholder of: I own shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company., Employee of: I am a paid employee of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company., Michael E. Weinblatt Grant/research support from: BMS, Amgen, Lilly, Crescendo and Sonofi-Regeneron, Consultant of: Horizon Therapeutics, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Amgen, Abbvie, Crescendo, Lilly, Pfizer, Roche, Gilead, Nancy Shadick Grant/research support from: Mallinckrodt, BMS, Lilly, Amgen, Crescendo Biosciences, and Sanofi-Regeneron, Consultant of: BMS

AB1344-HPR POOLED ANALYSIS OF ASSOCIATION BETWEEN ABATACEPT OR OTHER TARGET DISEASE-MODIFYING ANTI-RHEUMATIC DRUGS (TDMARD) AND TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS (T2DM)-RELATED HEALTHCARE RESOURCE UTILIZATION (HCRU) AND COSTS IN TNFI-NAÏVE RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS (RA) PATIENTS WITH T2DM

Background:

Limited information is available on the impact of target disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (tDMARD) on patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Objectives:

The objective was to compare T2DM-related healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) and cost for TNF inhibitors (TNFi)-naive patients pooled from two commercial databases with RA and T2DM receiving abatacept, other non-TNFi, or TNFi.

Methods:

A retrospective, observational study was conducted with MarketScan and PharMetrics (January 2008-September 2018). The study population included TNFi-naïve adult patients with RA and T2DM newly initiating abatacept, TNFi (adalimumab, certolizumab pegol, etanercept, golimumab, infliximab) or other non-TNFi (tocilizumab, anakinra, sarilumab, rituximab, tofacitinib). Date of tDMARD initiation was the index date. Patients had ≥2 RA diagnoses separated by ≥7 days, ≥1 T2DM diagnosis, and had ≥12 months of pre-index continuous enrollment. Follow-up ended at the end of patient insurance enrollment, study period or index treatment. T2DM-related HCRU and costs including inpatient stay, outpatient visits, ER visits, and pharmacy use were measured on a per-patient-per-month (PPPM) basis (2018 USD). Patients treated with abatacept were matched to TNFi and non-TNFi cohorts separately by propensity score adjusted with patients baseline comorbidities, HCRU, and costs.

Results:

A total of 16,236 patients meeting criteria were identified. Most patients were female (74.3%), and the overall average age of 55.4 years (Table 1). After matching, 850 pairs of abatacept vs non-TNFi patients, and 1,096 pairs of abatacept vs TNFi patients were included in the adjusted results. Patients initiating abatacept had $144 lower adjusted T2DM-related costs as compared to non-TNFi and $79 lower costs than TNFi cohorts (Table 2).

Table 1.

Patient Characteristics

Abataceptn=1,134Non-TNFin=1,353TNFin=13,749TotalN=16,236Age, mean years (SD)58.5 (11.3)57.7 (11.2)54.9 (10.6)55.41 (10.7)Gender, female, n (%)936 (82.5)993 (73.4)10,142 (73.8)12,071 (74.3)CCI, mean (SD)2.2 (1.4)2.3 (1.4)1.8 (1.1)1.89 (1.14)DCSI, n (%) Cardiovascular361 (31.8)406 (30.0)2,500 (18.2)3,267 (20.1) Neuropathy294 (25.9)374 (27.6)3,161 (23.0)3,829 (23.6) Nephropathy146 (12.9)193 (14.3)1,151 (8.4)1,490 (9.2) PVD131 (11.6)155 (11.5)874 (6.4)1,160 (7.1) Retinopathy103 (9.1)119 (8.8)922 (6.7)1,144 (7.0) Cerebrovascular74 (6.5)102 (7.5)620 (4.5)796 (4.9) Metabolic9 (0.8)20 (1.5)141 (1.0)170 (1.0)

CCI: Charlson comorbidity index; DCSI: diabetes complications severity index; PVD: peripheral vascular disease.

Table 2.

Adjusted T2DM-related HCRU and Costs after Propensity Score Matching

Abataceptn=850Non-TNFin=850Diff (ABA- Non-TNF)Abataceptn=1,096TNFin=1,096Diff (ABA- TNF)T2DM-related HCRU (per 1000 Patients per Month)Number of Hospitalizations13.920.4-6.5*12.614.9-2.3*Number ofER Visits22.016.15.9*18.416.32.0*Number ofOutpatient Visits311334.8-23.7*299.3286.912.4T2DM-related Costs (PPPM $)Inpatient Costs507535-28413475-62ER Costs271710*2225-3Outpatient Costs190323-13318617016*Pharmacy Costs1071007*97128-31Total Costs831975-144719798-79*

*P<0.05

Conclusion:

TNFi-naive RA patients with T2DM newly initiating abatacept had lower adjusted rates of T2DM-related hospitalizations compared to patients who initiated a non-TNFi or a TNFi. Total costs were lower among patients initiating abatacept vs. patients who initiated a non-TNFi or a TNFi. Findings suggest that initial abatacept among TNFi-naïve patients may be able to reduce healthcare utilization arising from T2DM complications and reduce T2DM-related costs in RA patients.

Disclosure of Interests:

Xue Han Employee of: BMS, Qian Xia Shareholder of: I own shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Employee of: I am a paid employee of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Ying Bao Shareholder of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Vardhaman PATEL Employee of: Bristol Myers Squibb, Amrina Roy Employee of: Mu-Sigma, Varshini Rajagopalan Employee of: Mu-Sigma, Francis Lobo Shareholder of: Bristol-Myers Squibb (US), Employee of: Bristol-Myers Squibb (US)

SAT0061 ROLE OF SHARED EPITOPE IN THE PROGNOSIS OF RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS IN RELATION TO ACPA POSITIVITY

Background:

The mechanistic association ofHLA-DRB1alleles that code a “shared epitope” (SE) with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is not yet clear. Previous data has suggested the carriage of SE is associated with the production of cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies (anti-CCP)1and severe RA2-4. The interrelationship among SE, anti-citrullinated protein antibody (ACPA) positivity and disease outcomes is not fully understood.

Objectives:

To assess the RA prognosis associated with the carriage of SE, in relation to ACPA positivity.

Methods:

Pts enrolled in a large RA registry, Brigham and Women’s Hospital RA Sequential Study between March 2003 to June 2018, with known SE and ACPA status were included in the analysis. HLA-DRB1 SE status was determined by allele-specific polymerase chain reaction and DNA sequencing for most of the subjects and by GWAS-based imputation for the rest. Disease activity (DA) was measured at baseline (BL) and 1-year follow-up by DAS28(CRP), CDAI and SDAI. Pts were stratified by SE+ (1 or 2 SE alleles) and SE- (0 alleles) and ACPA status. We analyzed the relationship of SE with ACPA positivity and change in DA by a linear regression model separately. A mediation analysis was used to examine the mediating effect of ACPA on association between SE and change in DA.

Results:

Out of 926 pts included in the analysis, 65.1% were SE+, of whom 75.6% were ACPA+. In comparison, 51.7% were ACPA+ in SE- pts. SE+ pts were similar with SE- pts in age, gender, BMI and smoking status, but had longer disease duration, were more likely to be rheumatoid factor positive, have erosive disease and higher comorbidity burden irrespective of ACPA status. The differences were more pronounced if the pts were also ACPA+. Adjusting for BL differences, pts with SE 1 and 2 alleles (vs 0) had an odd ratio of 1.97 (95% CI:1.36-2.84; p=0.0003) and 3.82 (95% CI: 2.44-5.98; p<.0001) to be ACPA +, respectively. The regression analysis suggests that SE+ (vs SE-) pts had an average increase in DAS28 (CRP) of 0.22 (p=0.033), CDAI of 2.07 (p=0.045) and SDAI of 2.43 (p=0.029) over a year (Fig 1). Using a mediation analysis, the direct effect of SE+ account for 78.8% to 81.0% of total effect in the increase in DAS28 (CRP), CDAI and SDAI, and the indirect effect mediated by ACPA account for 19.0% to 21.2% (Table 1).

Table 1.

Mediation Analysis for SE and ACPA Association with Change in DA

ParameterChange in DAS28 CRP (N=666)Change in CDAI (N=653)Change in SDAI (N=629)EstimateP-valueEstimateP-valueEstimateP-valueTotal Effect of SE on DA change0.220.0342.050.0472.400.030Direct effect of SE on DA change excluding mediation of ACPA0.170.1011.570.1401.890.098Indirect effect of SE on DA change due to ACPA mediation and interaction0.040.1830.480.1330.510.143

The model is adjusted with other covariates: Age, Gender, Charlson comorbidity score; baseline biologic use, Smoking status, baseline DA, Interaction term (ACPA*SE)

Figure 1.

Linear Regression Model for SE Association with Change in Disease Activity *Estimates, p-values are shown as data labels on the graphs; Change in disease activity (DA) = (follow-up DA- baseline DA); The above model is adjusted for age, gender, CCI, baseline DA, baseline biologic use, SE status and smoking status

Conclusion:

SE is strongly related to ACPA and a greater burden of disease in RA pts. In pts receiving standard treatments including biologics, SE is predictive of a greater increase in DA, which is partially mediated by the presence of ACPA.

References:

[1] Dayan I, et al.,Arch of Rheumatology, 2010;25:012-018.

[2] Gregerson PK, et al,Arthritis Rheum. 1987;30:1205-1213.

[3] Turesson C, et al.Arthritis Res Ther. 2005;7:R1386-1393.

[4] Moreno I, et al.J Rheumatol. 1996;23:6-9.

Disclosure of Interests:

Joe Zhuo Shareholder of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Joshua Bryson Shareholder of: I own shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Employee of: I am a paid employee of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Qian Xia Shareholder of: I own shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Employee of: I am a paid employee of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Niyati Sharma Consultant of: I work as a consultant for Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Sheng Gao Shareholder of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Employee of: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Sonie Lama Shareholder of: I own shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company., Employee of: I am a paid employee of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company., Michael E. Weinblatt Grant/research support from: BMS, Amgen, Lilly, Crescendo and Sonofi-Regeneron, Consultant of: Horizon Therapeutics, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Amgen, Abbvie, Crescendo, Lilly, Pfizer, Roche, Gilead, Nancy Shadick Grant/research support from: Mallinckrodt, BMS, Lilly, Amgen, Crescendo Biosciences, and Sanofi-Regeneron, Consultant of: BMS

Estrogen-related receptor participates in regulating glycolysis and influences embryonic development in silkworm Bombyx mori

Estrogen-related receptors (ERRs) play indispensable roles in development, energy metabolism, and cancers and are metabolic switches in Drosophila. However, the mechanism underlying their metabolic role is unknown in insects. This study analysed the expression profiles of Bombyx mori ERR (BmERR), hexokinase (BmHK), pyruvate kinase (BmPK) and phosphofructokinase (BmPFK) during embryonic development. The expression of BmERR tended to be similar to that of the other genes. We observed a regulatory association between BmERR and glycolytic rate-limiting enzymes by BmERR overexpression, RNA interference (RNAi), and ERR inhibitors in B. mori embryo cells. Subsequently, ERR cis-regulation elements (ERREs) were predicted and identified in the BmPFK promoter. Transfection assays, electrophoretic mobility shift assays and chromatin immunoprecipitation showed that BmERR can bind to one of these elements to regulate the expression of BmPFK. ERREs were also predicted in the BmHK and BmPK promoters. In the eggs, the expression of glycolytic rate-limiting enzyme genes was suppressed when the expression of BmERR was interference by double-stranded BmERR, the glucose levels also was increased. Meanwhile, the development of silkworm embryos was delayed by about 1 day. These results indicate that BmERR can bind to the ERREs of glycolytic gene promoters and regulate the expression of glycolytic genes, ultimately affecting embryonic development in silkworms.

Application of Convolutional Neural Network in Identifying Different Levels of Isokinetic Exercise Efforts

Objective To develop a convolutional neural network （CNN） that can identify isokinetic knee exercises moment of force-time diagrams under different levels of efforts. Methods The 200 healthy young volunteers performed concentric isokinetic right knee flexion-extension reciprocating exercises with maximal effort as well as half the effort at angular velocities of 30°/s and 60°/s twice, respectively, with an interval of 45 min. The moment of force-time diagrams were collected. The 200 subjects were randomly divided into the training set （140 subjects） and the testing set （60 subjects）. The moment of force-time diagrams from subjects in the training set were used to train CNN model, and then the fully trained model was used to predict types of curves from the testing set. Random sampling of subjects along with subsequent development of models were performed 3 times. Results Under the circumstances of isokinetic knee exercises with maximal effort and half the effort, 2 400 moment of force-time diagrams were produced, respectively. Classification accuracy rates of the CNN models after the 3 trainings were 91.11%, 90.49% and 92.08%, respectively, and the average accuracy rate was 91.23%. Conclusion The CNN models developed in this study have a good effect on differentiating isokinetic moment of force-time diagrams of maximal effort exercises from those made with half the effort, which can contribute to identifying levels of efforts exerted by subjects during isokinetic knee exercises.

Rapid, High-Temperature, In Situ Microwave Synthesis of Bulk Nanocatalysts

Carbon-black-supported nanoparticles (CNPs) have attracted considerable attention for their intriguing catalytic properties and promising applications. The traditional liquid synthesis of CNPs commonly involves demanding operation conditions and complex pre- or post-treatments, which are time consuming and energy inefficient. Herein, a rapid, scalable, and universal strategy is reported to synthesize highly dispersed metal nanoparticles embedded in a carbon matrix via microwave irradiation of carbon black with preloaded precursors. By optimizing the amount of carbon black, the microwave absorption is dramatically improved while the thermal dissipation is effectively controlled, leading to a rapid temperature increase in carbon black, ramping to 1270 K in just 6 s. The whole synthesis process requires no capping agents or surfactants, nor tedious pre- or post-treatments of carbon black, showing tremendous potential for mass production. As a proof of concept, the synthesis of ultrafine Ru nanoparticles (≈2.57 nm) uniformly embedded in carbon black using this microwave heating technique is demonstrated, which displays remarkable electrocatalytic performance when used as the cathode in a Li-O₂ battery. This microwave heating method can be extended to the synthesis of other nanoparticles, thereby providing a general methodology for the mass production of carbon-supported catalytic nanoparticles.

Search for Neutrinoless Double-β Decay with the Complete EXO-200 Dataset

A search for neutrinoless double-β decay (0νββ) in ^{136}Xe is performed with the full EXO-200 dataset using a deep neural network to discriminate between 0νββ and background events. Relative to previous analyses, the signal detection efficiency has been raised from 80.8% to 96.4±3.0%, and the energy resolution of the detector at the Q value of ^{136}Xe 0νββ has been improved from σ/E=1.23% to 1.15±0.02% with the upgraded detector. Accounting for the new data, the median 90% confidence level 0νββ half-life sensitivity for this analysis is 5.0×10^{25}  yr with a total ^{136}Xe exposure of 234.1 kg yr. No statistically significant evidence for 0νββ is observed, leading to a lower limit on the 0νββ half-life of 3.5×10^{25}  yr at the 90% confidence level.

[The effects of long-term exposure to silica dust on serum CC16 and KL-6 levels]

Objective: To investigate the effects of long-term exposure to silica dust on serum CC16 and KL-6 levels. Methods: The patients with stage I silicosis who were hospitalized in our hospital from April 2016 to April 2017 were treated as silicosis group. The silica dust exposed workers without silicosis who were taken the physical examination in our hospital were taken as a dust-exposed group. The healthy control group comes from in the same period of community physical examination did not touch the dust. The levels of CC16 and KL-6 in serum of all subjects were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) , and the levels of CC16 and KL-6 in serum were compared in three groups. Results: Compared with the control group, the serum levels of CC16 in the silicosis group (P<0.01) and the dust-exposed group (P<0.01) were significantly lower. Compared with the control group, the level of serum KL-6 in the silicosis group was significantly decreased (P<0.01) compared with the control group, while the level of KL-6 in the serum of the dust-exposed group was significantly increased (P<0.01) . The ROC area of CC16 for diagnosis of silicosis was 0.92 (P<0.01) , with a sensitivity of 81.37%, specificity of 92.63% and Kappa value of 0.74. Conclusion: Long-term exposure to silica dust may lead to a decrease in serum CC16 levels. Reduced serum CC16 levels may be useful in identifying the diagnosis of silicosis.