Design and expected performance of a variable-radii sinusoidal spiral x-ray spectrometer for the National Ignition Facility

A novel high-resolution x-ray spectrometer for point-like emission sources has been developed using a crystal shape having both a variable major and a variable minor radius of curvature. This variable-radii sinusoidal spiral spectrometer (VR-Spiral) allows three common spectrometer design goals to be achieved simultaneously: 1. reduction of aberrations and improved spectral (energy) resolution, 2. reduction of source size broadening, and 3. use of large crystals to improve total throughput. The VR-Spiral concept and its application to practical spectrometer design are described in detail. This concept is then used to design a spectrometer for an extreme extended x-ray absorption fine structure experiment at the National Ignition Facility looking at the Pb L₃ absorption edge at 13.0352 keV. The expected performance of this VR-Spiral spectrometer, both in terms of energy resolution and spatial resolution, is evaluated through the use of a newly developed raytracing tool, xicsrt. Finally, the expected performance of the VR-Spiral concept is compared to that of spectrometers based on conventional toroidal and variable-radii toroidal crystal geometries showing a greatly improved energy resolution.

[Interference of long noncoding RNA FOXCUT inhibits epithelial-mesenchymal transformation and induces mitochondrial injury in nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells]

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the effects of RNA interference of long noncoding RNA FOXCUT on epithelial mesenchymal transformation and mitochondrial function in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) cells.

METHODS

FOXCUT expression levels were detected by RT-PCR in tumor tissues and adjacent tissues from 50 patients with NPC and in NP69, CNE1, CNE2, SUNE2, HER2 and 5-8F cell lines. CNE1 cells were transfected with a short hairpin RNA (shRNA) targeting FOXCUT or a negative control RNA construct (shRNA-NC), and the changes in cell proliferation and morphology were assessed with CCK8 assay, clone formation assay and microscopic observation. An immunofluorescence assay was used to examine the vimentin-positive cells, and the levels of SOD, MDA and LDH in the cells were detected. The changes of mitochondrial membrane potential were detected with flow cytometry, and the expression levels of E-cad, N-cad, vimentin, Bax, Bcl-2, caspase-3 and c-Myc in the cells were detected with Western blotting.

RESULTS

The expression level of FOXCUT was significantly increased in NPC tissues as compared with the adjacent tissues (P < 0.001). Compared with NP69 cells, CNE1, CNE2, SUNE2, HER2 and 5-8F cells all exhibited significantly increased expressions of FOXCUT (P < 0.001). In CNE1 cells, transfection with FOXCUT shRNA significantly inhibited cell proliferation and clone formation (P < 0.001), and caused obvious changes in cell morphology. FOXCUT knockdown significantly decreased the expressions of N-cad and vimentin, increased E- cad expression and the contents of MDA and LDH (P < 0.05), reduced vimentin- positive cells and the activity of SOD, and caused a shift of red fluorescent cells to green fluorescent cells and an increased percentage of green fluorescent cells. FOXCUT knockdown also resulted in significantly increased expressions of Bax/Bcl2 and cleaved Cas3/Cas3 and a lowered expression of c-Myc.

CONCLUSIONS

Interference of FOXCUT can inhibit the proliferation and epithelial-mesenchymal transformation, enhance oxidative stress, induce mitochondrial function injury, and promote apoptosis in NPC cells, suggesting the potential of FOXCUT interference for targeted treatment of NPC.

[Research and application progress of mechanical measures for oral plaque control]

Effective removal of dental plaque is a key measure to prevent and control common oral diseases and to maintain the long-term effect of dental prostheses. The methods of oral plaque control are mainly depending on mechanical measures, including regular toothbrushing, interdental cleaning and oral irrigation. Toothbrushing is the most common and effective method for mechanical removal of dental plaque.How ever the effect of toothbrushing alone to remove dental plaque is limited. It is necessary to control the interdental plaque using tools such as dental floss and interdental brushes. Oral irrigation is an assistant method to improve oral hygiene. Toothbrushing combined with the use of oral irrigator can significantly improve the removal rate of dental plaque. The present article reviews the research progress of the mechanical plaque control methods and their application results.

[High frequency ultrasound combined with ultrasound-guided core needle biopsy for the diagnosis of primary thyroid lymphoma]

Objective: To investigate the sonographic features of primary thyroid lymphoma (PTL) and to evaluate the clinical significance of ultrasound-guided core needle biopsy (US-CNB) in PTL. Methods: A total of 24 patients with suspected PTL in Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital from January 2013 to June 2018 were analyzed retrospectively. All cases were confirmed by pathology, of them 23 patients received US-CNB and 1 patient chose operation without US-CNB, including 5 males and 19 females, aged from 39 to 75 years old. The effectiveness and safety of 23 patients with US-CNB were evaluated, and the sonographic features of 20 patients with PTL diagnosed by pathology were analyzed. Descriptive statistical methods were used in the study. Results: In the 23 patients with suspected PTL underwent US-CNB, 18 patients were diagnosed as PTL, 4 patients were respectively diagnosed as subacute thyroiditis, anaplastic carcinoma, Hashimoto's thyroiditis, and fibro thyroiditis, and the another patient was hard to diagnose by US-CNB and then was diagnosed as PTL by surgical biopsy. The success rate of US-CNB for diagnosis of PTL was 18/19, and no severe complications occurred in the patients with US-CNB. The other case was diagnosed as PTL by surgical biopsy without US-CNB. Sonographic features of 20 cases with PTL (18 cases diagnosed by US-CNB and 2 cases by surgery or surgery biopsy) were as follows: (1) Most nodules had irregular shapes and unsmooth margins; (2) Hypoechoic or markedly hypoechoic nodules with honeycombed or cord structures were observed in most cases; (3) Calcification was rare; (4) Multiple lesions were common; (5) Abundant intralesional vascularization was commonly observed; (6) Most cases had intensification of posterior acoustic enhancement; (7) Thyroid gland enlargement or with irregular shape; and (8) PTL often accompanied with lymph nodes enlargement in lateral neck or central region. Conclusion: PTL has certain sonographic features, with assistance of US-CNB, more accurate diagnosis of PTL can be obtained.

Application of artificial intelligence in diagnosis of osteoporosis using medical images: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a potentially reliable assistant in the diagnosis of osteoporosis. This meta-analysis aims to assess the diagnostic accuracy of the AI-based systems using medical images. We searched PubMed and Web of Science from inception to June 15, 2020, for eligible articles that applied AI approaches to diagnosing osteoporosis using medical images. Quality and bias of the included studies were evaluated with the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies (QUADAS-2) tool. The main outcome was the sensitivity and specificity of the performance of the AI-based systems. The data analysis utilized the R Foundation packages of "meta" for univariate analysis and Stata for bivariate analysis. Random effects model was utilized. Seven studies with 3186 patients were included in the meta-analysis. The overall risk of bias of the included studies was assessed as low. The pooled sensitivity was 0.96 (95% CI 0.93-1.00), and the pooled specificity was 0.95 (95% CI 0.91-0.99). However, high heterogeneity was found in this meta-analysis. The results supported that the AI-based systems had good accuracy in diagnosing osteoporosis. However, the high risk of bias in patient selection and high heterogeneity in the meta-analysis made the conclusion less convincing. The application of AI-based systems in osteoporosis diagnosis needs to be further confirmed by more prospective studies in multi-centers including more random samples from complete patient types.

The multi-optics high-resolution absorption x-ray spectrometer (HiRAXS) for studies of materials under extreme conditions

We report the development of a high-resolution spectrometer for extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) studies of materials under extreme conditions. A curved crystal and detector in the spectrometer are replaceable such that a single body is employed to perform EXAFS measurements at different x-ray energy intervals of interest. Two configurations have been implemented using toroidal crystals with Ge 311 reflection set to provide EXAFS at the Cu K-edge (energy range 8.9-9.8 keV) and Ge 400 reflection set to provide EXAFS at the Ta L3-edge (9.8-10.7 keV). Key performance characteristics of the spectrometer were found to be consistent with design parameters. The data generated at the National Ignition Facility have shown an ≃3 eV spectral resolution for the Cu K-edge configuration and ≃6 eV for the Ta L3-edge configuration.

[Correlation analysis between serum ferritin level and liver damage in acute stage of dengue fever]

Objective: To investigate the correlation between serum ferritin (SF) level and liver damage in the acute stage of dengue fever. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted to analyze 171 cases diagnosed with dengue fever as dengue fever group and 130 healthy patients as control group in Hangzhou 3A grade hospital from July to December 2017. Clinical data, SF and liver function related indicators were collected from both groups: alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), total bilirubin (TBIL) to analyze the correlation between liver damage and SF in patients with dengue fever. Results: ALT, AST, and SF levels were significantly higher in the dengue fever group than those in the healthy control group (Z = 11.553, 15.054 and 15.163, P < 0.001). SF levels were higher in the dengue fever combined with liver damage group than those without the liver damage group (z = 6.930, P < 0.001). However, there was no statistically significant differences in age, gender, peak body temperature, and history of liver disease (P > 0.05). In addition, Spearman's correlation analysis showed that SF was positively correlated with ALT, AST, and TBIL (r = 0.464, 0.531 and 0.315, P < 0.001). Among dengue patients with different SF levels, there were significant difference in ALT, AST levels and incidence of liver damage (H = 14.240 and 17.584, χ(2) = 49.547, P < 0.001). Patients with higher SF levels had higher ALT, AST levels and incidence of liver damage. Binary logistic regression analysis showed that hyperferritinemia (SF≥500 ng/ml) was the risk factor for dengue fever combined with liver damage (OR = 8.120, P < 0.001). Furthermore, ROC curve analysis showed that the AUC for SF to judge dengue fever combined liver damage was 0.846 (95% CI: 0.785-0.908), and the sensitivity and specificity when the SF cut-off value was 1 506 ng/ml were 74.8% and 83.3%. Conclusion: There is a certain correlation between the SF level and the degree of liver damage in acute stage of dengue fever patients, and hyperferritinemia is a risk factor for dengue fever combined with liver damage.

Development of the gas puffing imaging diagnostic on J-TEXT tokamak

Edge turbulence is important for plasma confinement, so the gas puffing imaging (GPI) diagnostic was proposed on the J-TEXT tokamak for the two-dimensional measurement of turbulence in the edge region. GPI is a diagnostic of plasma turbulence that uses a puff of neutral gas at the plasma edge to increase the local visible light emission for improved space-time resolution of plasma fluctuations. Considering the conditions of J-TEXT, the observation area is 21° away from the position of the optical system in the toroidal direction, and the observation area is 10 cm × 10 cm inside and outside the last closed flux surface. To have a lower divergence of the gas flow, the gas puff nozzle is specially designed. An interface has been developed for operation. To photograph the line radiation generated by the neutral gas cloud along the magnetic field lines, the optical system is designed. It is composed of a quartz glass, mirrors, commercial lenses, filters, and high-speed cameras. The high-speed camera can capture the line radiation with a speed up to 180 000 frames/s with 256 pixels × 256 pixels and an exposure time of 5 µs. In a recent experiment, the new GPI diagnostic has obtained some preliminary pictures.

Tunable spin Hall shift of light from graphene-wrapped spheres

Graphene has taken impressive roles in light manipulation and optical engineering. The most attractive advantage of graphene is its tunable conductivity that could be dynamically modulated by various means. In this paper, we show that the spin Hall shift of light is dynamically tunable via changing the Fermi level of the graphene-wrapped spheres. Such tunability is prominent when different modes interfere with each other, such as at the interference of electric and magnetic dipolar modes or at the interference of electric dipolar and electric quadrupole modes. The circular polarization degree in the near field clearly demonstrates the strength of spin-orbit interaction, which is associated with spin Hall shift of light in the far-field. In addition, the spin Hall effect is shown in far-field detection plane and should be observed in experiment. Our results provide insights into how the spin Hall effect could be tuned and add new perspective in designing optical super-resolution imaging techniques.

[Correlation between midpalatal suture stage on cone-beam CT images and its cervical vertebral maturation stage for 1 076 Chinese children and youth]

Objective: To investigate the correlation between cone-beam CT (CBCT) morphological stage of midpalatal suture (MPS) and cervical vertebral maturation stage (CS) of Chinese children and youth. Methods: This study was a retrospective observational study. A total of 1 076 CBCT images (male: 401, female: 675, age≥ 6.0 years old and<21.0 years old) taken from January 2013 to April 2018 in Peking University School and Hospital of Stomatology were included. MPS and CS of each sample were recorded according to previous studies. MPS included five stages: MPS 1, MPS 2, MPS 3, MPS 4s1 (substage), MPS 4s2 (substage), and MPS 5. CS included six stages: CS 1-6. Correlation between MPS and CS (ordinal categorical variables) was investigated by Spearman correlation coefficient and diagnostic test analysis. Results: Spearman coefficient between CS and MPS was 0.803. Diagnostic pairs with the best diagnostic performance include: CS 6-MPS 5, CS 5-MPS 4s2, CS 1-MPS 1, CS 4-MPS 4s1, CS 2-MPS 1, CS 3-MPS 3. The 90.9% (309/340) of individuals at CS 1-3 were at MPS 1-3 and 9.1% (31/340) were at MPS 4s1. The 33.0% (107/324) of individuals at CS 4 were at MPS 3 and 46.6% (151/324) were at MPS 4s1. Conclusions: CS has a close relationship with MPS. Individuals at CS 4 are recommended to take pre-treatment CBCT, so as to estimate feasibility of skeletal expansion with traditional tooth-borne rapid maxillary expansion.

The synergistic antifungal activity of resveratrol with azoles against Candida albicans

Candida albicans is one of the most common clinical pathogenic microorganisms and it is becoming a serious health threat, particularly to immunocompromised populations. Drug resistance of Candida species has also frequently emerged, and combination therapy for fungal infections has attracted considerable attention. In this study, we established the Qinling Mountains myxobacterial secondary metabolites library and a synergic assay in combination with ketoconazole against C. albicans was introduced for metabolites screening. Two active compounds with synergic anticandidal activities were obtained, which were identified as trans-resveratrol and cis-resveratrol. According to our study, resveratrol can reduce the dosage to 1/64 of ketoconazole as well as itraconazole. Furthermore, synergistic anticandidal activity of resveratrol combined with azoles was verified against a panel of clinical C. albicans isolates, and the combination strategy enhanced the azoles susceptibility of three fluconazole-resistant isolates. These findings suggest that resveratrol enhances the efficacy of azoles and provides a promising application in therapy of C. albicans infection.

Curcumin suppresses tumor growth of gemcitabine-resistant non-small cell lung cancer by regulating lncRNA-MEG3 and PTEN signaling

BACKGROUND

Lung cancer is one of the most aggressive malignancies and the efficacy of chemotherapy or concurrent chemoradiation is limited in clinical application. Curcumin has been reported to block cancer development by modulating multiple signaling pathways. However, whether curcumin can inhibit gemcitabine-resistant non-small cell lung cancer through regulation of lncRNA and the involved molecular mechanisms are rarely reported.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

MTT assay, clonogenic assay, apoptosis assay, qRT-PCR, Western blotting, immunohistochemistry, xenograft experiment were carried out in the present study.

RESULTS

The results showed that curcumin suppressed gemcitabine-resistant non-small cell lung cancer cell proliferation and induced apoptosis. Curcumin upregulated the expression of lncRNA-MEG3 and PTEN, and MEG3 overexpression could increase the level of PTEN expression, while MEG3 knockdown decreased the level of PTEN expression in gemcitabine-resistant non-small cell lung cancer cells. Curcumin treatment failed to inhibit the proliferation and induce apoptosis in MEG3 knockdown or PTEN knockdown cells.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings show the antitumor activity of curcumin for potential clinical application in gemcitabine-resistant non-small cell lung cancer treatment.

[The clinical observation of sirolimus combined with calcineurin inhibitors for steroid-resistant/steroid-dependent extensive cGVHD]

Objective: To observe the efficacy and safety of sirolimus combined with calcineurin inhibitor (CNI) in the treatment of glucocorticoid resistant/dependent extensive chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) . Methods: A total of 27 patients with steroid-resistant/steroid-dependent extensive cGVHD from November 2015 to January 2019 were enrolled and given sirolimus capsules combined with cyclosporine or tacrolimus to observe the clinical efficacy and adverse events. Results: The median duration of medication was 14.2 months and the mean duration was 16.7 months. The median follow-up time was 20.1 months (12.9-46.1 months) . Following the 6-month follow-up, 3 cases achieved complete response (CR) and 12 cases partial response (PR) . The overall response rate (ORR) was 55.6% ; for progression-free survival (PFS) , PFS-6 reached 88.9% (24/27) , and for overall survival (OS) , OS-6 was 100% . At the 1-year follow-up, there were 5 cases of CR and 11 cases of PR, ORR was 59.3% , PFS-12 reached 62.9% (17/27) , and OS-12 was 100% . The subgroup analysis found that the program was more effective for cGVHD in male donors and the target organ analysis had an advantage in the treatment of oral cavity, skin, and liver rejection. Adverse events were observed: hyperlipidemia 11.1% , oral ulcer 7.4% , fungal infection 11.1% , liver injury 3.7% , renal insufficiency 0, and no new CMV and EB viremia. Conclusion: Sirolimus combined with calcineurin inhibitors is effective in treating steroid-resistant/steroid-dependent extensive cGVHD, especially because adverse reactions (renal toxicity, CMV, EBV infection) are low in number, which is suitable for long-term treatment of cGVHD.

Water as a probe to understand the traditional Chinese medicine extraction process with near infrared spectroscopy: A case of Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge) extraction process

Extraction process is not only a critical manufacturing unit but also the initial process of various extracts and preparations. Taking the most extensive Chinese herbal medicine Danshen (Salvia miltziorrhiza Bge) as an example, salvianolic acid B (Sal B) is its main active pharmaceutical ingredient but lacks accurate characterization of the extraction process. As one of process analytical technologies, near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) technology has been widely applied for monitoring pharmaceutical extraction process. In most past studies, water spectral information is often eliminated due to its high absorption. However, this study proposed a method of using water spectrum to understand the whole extraction process and to quickly determine the content of Sal B. Principal component analysis (PCA) was first utilized to investigate the whole extraction process, then the reconstructed spectrum based on PCA was established and analyzed by Aquaphotomics, and finally the partial least squares regression (PLSR) quantitative model of Sal B was established. PCA and Aquaphotomics results showed the whole extraction process could be considered as a dynamic change from structure breaker to structure maker, and the dominance of highly H-bonded water structures increases with the extraction time. Also, the Sal B quantitative model with water spectrum showed higher accuracy and stability than other methods, which parameters (RMSEC, RMSECV, RMSEP, R²c, R²cv, R²p, RPD) were 0.2408 mg/mL, 0.2939 mg/mL, 0.2584 mg/mL, 0.9536, 0.9300, 0.9494, 4.6298, respectively, and the paired t-test showed that Sal B content measured by NIR and HPLC methods had no significant differences (p > 0.05). In conclusion, all result indicated that water can be used as a probe to understand the traditional Chinese medicine extraction process with NIRS.

[Correlation between thyroid function and glucolipid metabolism in type 1 diabetic adults]

To assess the correlation between thyroid function and glucolipid metabolism in type 1 diabetic adults. A retrospective analysis was conducted in 230 type 1 diabetic adults who were hospitalized in the Department of Endocrinology of Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong University from January 2008 to January 2020. It showed that thyroid stimulating hormone(TSH) was significantly positively correlated with total cholesterol (TC) (r=0.239), triglycerides (TG) (r=0.166) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) (r=0.249), respectively (all P<0.05). Free triiodothyronine (FT₃) was significantly negatively correlated with fasting plasma glucose (FPG) (r=-0.272), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) (r=-0.240), TC (r=-0.197) and LDL-C (r=-0.220), respectively (all P<0.05). Free thyroxine (FT₄) was negatively correlated with TC (r=-0.171) and LDL-C (r=-0.170), respectively (all P<0.05). TC was an independent predictor of TSH, FT₃ and FT₄, FT₃ and FT₄ were independent predictors of HbA1c. TSH was an independent predictor of TC, TG and LDL-C. Thyroid function is closely related to glucolipid metabolism in type 1 diabetic adults.

Correlation between Sarcopenia and Arteriosclerosis in Elderly Community Dwellers: A Multicenter Study

BACKGROUND

Evidence suggests that arteriosclerosis and sarcopenia (decreased muscle mass) share some of their many causes. However, after controlling for confounding factors, it is unclear whether the presence of arteriosclerosis correlates with sarcopenia.

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this paper is to explore whether sarcopenia is associated with arteriosclerosis.

DESIGN

A multicenter cross-sectional community-based study.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 2511 elderly subjects from six Chinese community health service centers in Anhui province were surveyed through an e-health promotion system to collect basic data and measurements of brachial-ankle pulse wave (baPWV), body composition, and handgrip strength (HGS). Pearson's correlation and binary logistic regression analyses were performed to identify associations between sarcopenia and high baPWV.

RESULTS

The prevalence rates of sarcopenia were 12.9% in men and 15.3% in women according to the 2019 standard of Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia. Among subjects with high baPWV, the proportion of sarcopenia was higher compared to those with normal baPWV (men: 17.7% vs. 3.7%; women: 20.4% vs. 4.9%, both p<0.001). Binary logistic regression analysis revealed that sarcopenia was associated with high baPWV (p<0.0001, odds ratio=1.619) after adjusting for confounding factors. HGS slightly and negatively correlated with baPWV (-0.19 in men and -0.18 in women).

CONCLUSIONS

The intertwined pathophysiological mechanisms shared by arteriosclerosis and sarcopenia are potential targets for future interventions to reduce morbimortality in subjects with both disorders. Upcoming prospective studies and clinical trials are expected to advance these findings.