Strain measurement with adaptive local feature extraction method based on special fiber OFDR system

The optical fiber distributed strain sensor based on the optical frequency domain reflectometer (OFDR) preserves its dominant position in short-distance measurement fields with high spatial resolution, such as biomedical treatment, soft robot, etc. However, owing to the weak intensity of the Rayleigh backscattered signal (RBS) in the single-mode fiber (SMF) and complex computation, the large strain changes cannot be precisely and rapidly demodulated by the traditional cross-correlation method. In this work, the OFDR with backscattering enhanced optical fiber (BEOF) is proposed and demonstrated for fast and large strain measurement. By enhancing the RBS amplitude, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is improved, resulting in a higher similarity between the reference signal and test signal, which is beneficial for the expansion of the strain measurement range. Moreover, the adaptive local feature extraction and matching (ALFEM) algorithm is presented and demonstrated, which replaces the traditional cross-correlation method for strain demodulation and fast measurement. On account of the enhancement ratio of BEOF, the dominant characteristic data segment can be extracted from whole wavelength data. In the experiments, the enhancing ratio of BEOF is designed as 10, resulting in the spatial resolution reaches 400µm and the strain measurement range is greatly increased to 4800µɛ. Further, the effectiveness of the ALFEM algorithm has been verified, in which the strain demodulation time is approximately 25% of that of the traditional method. This scheme fully exploits the enhancement characteristic of the BEOF and is also applicable to the systems based on other types of BEOF, different strain changes and sensing distances.

High-Resolution MRI for Evaluation of the Possibility of Successful Recanalization in Symptomatic Chronic ICA Occlusion: A Retrospective Study

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Accurate radiologic evaluation of the possibility of successful recanalization in symptomatic chronic ICA occlusion remains challenging. This study aimed to investigate the high-resolution MR imaging characteristics of symptomatic chronic ICA occlusion and their association with successful recanalization.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Consecutive patients with symptomatic chronic ICA occlusion who underwent balloon dilation plus stent implantation were identified retrospectively and divided into 2 groups: a successful recanalization group and an unsuccessful recanalization group. Clinical and high-resolution MR imaging characteristics were compared between the groups. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to identify the characteristics associated with successful recanalization.

RESULTS

A total of 114 patients were included in the study. High-resolution MR imaging characteristics independently associated with unsuccessful recanalization were longer lesion length (OR, 0.41; 95% CI, 0.36-0.55; P = .009) and larger calcification volume (OR, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.37-0.68; P = .002) for proximal occlusion and reversed distal ICA flow at the level of ophthalmic segment or above (OR, 0.14; 95% CI, 0.08-0.48; P = .001). Reversed distal ICA flow at the level of the petrous segment or below (OR, 4.07; 95% CI, 1.65-8.38; P = .001) and lumen area (OR, 1.13; 95% CI, 1.04-1.61; P = .002) for distal occlusion were risk factors of successful recanalization.

CONCLUSIONS

In symptomatic chronic ICA occlusion, lesion length and calcification volume (for proximal occlusion), the level of reversed distal ICA flow, and the lumen area (for distal occlusion) appear to be predictors of successful recanalization. High-resolution MR imaging can evaluate chronic ICA occlusion and help in clinical decision-making.

Experimental Research on the Antitumor Effect of Human Gastric Cancer Cells Transplanted in Nude Mice Based on Deep Learning Combined with Spleen-Invigorating Chinese Medicine

Gastric cancer is still the fifth most common malignant tumor in the world and has the fourth highest mortality rate in the world. Gastric cancer is difficult to treat because of its unobvious onset, low resection rate, and rapid deterioration. Therefore, humans have been working hard to combat gastric cancer. At present, the most commonly used treatment method is radiotherapy. However, this method will damage the normal tissues of the irradiated area while treating malignant tumor cells. It not only has side effects of damage to the patient's skin and mucous membranes but also needs high-rate radiotherapy and has high cost for chemotherapy. In order to solve these problems, it is necessary to find new treatment methods. This article proposes the use of Chinese medicine to invigorate the spleen to inhibit human gastric cancer cells. This article combines modern machine learning technology with traditional Chinese medicine and combines traditional Chinese medicine physiotherapy with Western medicine nude mouse transplantation experiments. The treatment of tumors in Chinese medicine is based on the theory of Chinese medicine and has different characteristics. Western medicine has the advantage of permanently injuring patients. The process of the experiment is to transplant human-derived gastric cancer cells into nude mice. After grouping treatments and obtaining comparative data, deep learning techniques are used to analyze the properties of Chinese medicines for strengthening the spleen and to compare the properties of Chinese medicines for strengthening the spleen. The experimental results showed that the tumor inhibition rate of mice using fluorouracil was 18%, the tumor inhibition rate of mice using low-dose Chinese medicine was 16%, and the tumor inhibition rate of mice using high-dose Chinese medicine reached 52%. 80 days after the experiment, the survival rate of mice using high-dose Chinese medicine is 100% higher than that of mice without treatment.

[Immunotherapy for locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma: research advances and perspectives]

Urothelial carcinoma is the common malignancy involving the urinary system. Cisplatin-based chemotherapy is the initial regimen of choice for cisplatin-eligible patients with metastatic urothelial carcinoma. However, due to toxicity, the regimen is not well tolerated in part of the patients, such as in elderly patients or those with multiple complications, and there is still a risk of recurrence. During the past years, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) have become available as a new option for urothelial carcinoma patients, with the benefits of clinical efficacy and quality of life. Development and researches of the ICI axis blockade have changed the contemporary treatment paradigm for patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma. In addition, multiple clinical studies of combined treatment strategies of ICI have been explored recently. It is necessary to further understand the clinical value of ICI through summarizing the evidence supporting the use of checkpoint inhibitors for patients with inoperable locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma, which also may helpful to perspective the future research direction of combined strategies and precision medicine in urothelial carcinoma immunotherapy.

High expression level of interleukin-1β is correlated with poor prognosis and PD-1 expression in patients with lung adenocarcinoma

PURPOSE

Cytokines are vital pro-inflammatory factors and involved in tumor immune infiltration, and immune infiltration is closely related to PD-1/PD-L1 blockades immunotherapy. This study aims to explore the associations between cytokines and prognosis and also PD-1/PD-L1 expression in early lung adenocarcinoma, which is seldom reported.

METHODS

324 early lung adenocarcinoma patients with prior surgical resection were included and the associations between overall survival time and clinical factors and also cytokines including IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α were analyzed by multivariate cox regression and Kaplan-Meier curve (log-rank test). Resected tumor samples were randomly obtained to detect the PD-1/PD-L1 expression by immunohistochemistry, and Chi square test was used for relations between cytokines and PD-1/PD-L1 expression.

RESULTS

In this study group, 26.2% patients showed a high level of IL-1β and patients with high IL-1β level showed 19 months shortened mOS than those with normal IL-1 β expression (mOS: 24.00, 95%CI 11.98-36.02 vs 43.00, 95% CI 37.37-48.63, p = 0.017). Among detected samples, the positive rate of PD-1 was 25.0% (13/52), and the positive rate of PD-L1 was 37.3% (19/52). The positive rate of PD-1 was 36.1% higher in high-IL-1 β-level group as compared to normal-IL-1β-level group (50.0% vs 13.9%, p = 0.012). No significant association was found between IL-1 β and PD-L1 expression.

CONCLUSION

High expression level of IL-1β was correlated with poor prognosis and higher positive rate of PD-1 expression, which gave us insights into biomarkers of survival prediction and immunotherapy in lung adenocarcinoma. Further studies were still needed.

Analysis of ceRNA network identifies prognostic circRNA biomarkers in bladder cancer

Bladder cancer remains a very challenging disease to treat with the high rates of recurrence and progression associated with current therapies. Although the association between bladder cancer pathology and circRNAs remains undetermined, circRNAs signatures may be useful as prognostic and predictive factors and clinical tools for assessing disease state and outcome. This study investigates if these circRNAs can be used as biomarkers for bladder cancer diagnosis. Using bioinformatics method to analysis GEO databases (GSE37815, GSE39093, GSE97239, and GSE92675) for differentially expressed RNAs in bladder cancer and normal bladder tissues were screened from. The related volcanic maps and the interaction network maps of differentially expressed RNAs were drawn, and the mRNA-miRNA and miRNA-circRNA interaction were predicted to establish mRNA-miRNA-circRNA competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network. The differential circRNAs related to prognosis of bladder cancer patients were screened based on the influence of miRNA interacting with the circRNA above on survival rate. The expression of miRNA (hsa-mir-214), circRNA (hsa_circ_0076704, hsa_circ_0081963, hsa_circ_0001361) in bladder cancer tissues, adjacent tissues, bladder cancer cells and normal bladder epithelial cells were validated by qRT-PCR. Kaplan Meier curve analysis confirmed the relationship between circRNA (hsa_circ_0076704) and overall survival and prognosis of bladder cancer patients. Through database screening and analysis, we found 19231 differentially expressed genes, 847 differentially expressed miRNAs, 7282 differentially expressed circRNAs. The establishment of ceRNA network consisted of 28 DERNAs (differentially- expressed RNAs), 12 Demi-RNAs and 12 DEcircRNAs. Further prognostic analysis showed that circRNA interacted miRNA hsa-miR-106b, hsa-miR-145 and hsa-miR-214 were associated with overall survival in patients with bladder cancer (P < 0.05). Among them, hsa_circ_0076704, hsa_circ_0081963 and hsa_circ_0001361 are potential circRNA related to OS in bladder cancer and expressed in bladder cancer. The expression of hsa-mir-214 was contrary. Further Kaplan Meier survival analysis showed that hsa_circ_0076704 had significant prognostic value (P < 0.05). In conclusion, hsa_circ_0076704 is independent prognostic factor for bladder cancer.

[Triterpene saponins in Panax japonicus and their ~(13)C-NMR spectroscopic characteristics]

Panax japonicus( PJ) is a valuable medicinal plant belonging to the genus Panax of Araliaceae,the recumbent rhizome of which is widely used in clinic therapy,healthcare products and as cosmetic additives with functions of dissipating stasis,reducing swelling,stanching bleeding,and reinforcing deficiency,etc. PJ contains abundant levels of oleanane-and dammarane-type triterpene saponins,which are considered as the material basis for exerting pharmacodynamic action. Based on the previous researches,more than110 triterpene saponins have been reported from PJ. These triterpene saponins were summarized in this review,and could be classified into dammarenediol Ⅱ,protopanaxadiol,protopanaxatiol,ocotillol,oleanolic acid,ursolic acid and miscellaneous subtypes,according to their molecular skeletons in biosynthesis processes. Further more,the structural features of these triterpene saponins in the seven different subtypes,together with their~(13)C-NMR spectroscopic characteristics were described,hoping to provide available information for chemical diversity research of PJ.

[Cloning and expression analysis of two pro-inflammatory cytokines, IL-1β and its receptor, IL-1R2, in the Asian swamp eel Monopterus albus]

Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) is the prototypic pro-inflammatory cytokine, whose functions are mediated through interaction with its receptors (IL-1R1 and IL-1R2). Herein, we cloned the full-length cDNA and genomic DNA of IL-1β and IL-1R2 in the Asian swamp eel (Monopterus albus). The eel IL-1β cDNA encodes a putative polypeptide of 246 amino acids. The protein sequence includes a typical IL-1 family signature, but lacked an interleukin-converting enzyme cleavage site. The genomic DNA of eel IL-1β was 2520 bp and comprised five exons and four introns. The eel IL-1R2 cDNA encoded a putative propeptide of 423 amino acid residues, comprising a signal peptide, a transmembrane region and two Ig-like domains in the extracellular region. Similar to other vertebrates, the genomic DNA of the eel IL-1R2 has nine exons and eight introns. Real-time PCR analysis indicated that IL-1β and IL-1R2 were constitutively expressed in all tissues, especially in the liver and immune-related organs. After infection with Aeromonas hydrophila, the transcript levels of IL-1β and IL-1R2 were induced in the head kidney and spleen, reaching their highest levels at 6 h post injection. In vitro, IL-1β and IL-1R2 mRNA levels were also upregulated rapidly at 1h post infection with A. hydrophila. Furthermore, acanthocephalan Pallisentis (Neosentis) celatus could induce the expression of both genes in the head kidney and intestine. In infected intestines, the transcript levels of IL-1β and IL-1R2 were increased by 21.4-fold and 20.8-fold, respectively, relative to the control. The present study indicated that IL-1β and IL-1R2 play an important role in inflammation and host defense, especially in the antiacanthocephalan response.

Sevoflurane preconditions stunned myocardium in septic but not healthy isolated rat hearts

BACKGROUND

Recent evidence indicates that sevoflurane treatment before prolonged ischaemia reduces infarct size in normal hearts, mimicking ischaemic preconditioning. We examined whether exposure to sevoflurane before brief ischaemia, inducing a 'stunned myocardium', provided such protective effects in an isolated working heart from normal or septic rats.

METHODS

With institutional approval, 91 rats were randomly allocated into one of either caecal-ligation and perforation (CLP: n=50) or sham (Sham: n=41) procedure groups 24 h before the study. After determination of baseline measurements, including cardiac output (CO), myocardial oxygen consumption (mVO(2)) and cardiac efficiency (CE; CO x peak systolic pressure/mVO(2)), each isolated heart was perfused with or without 2% sevoflurane for 15 min before global ischaemia (pre-ischaemia). After 15 min ischaemia and 30 min reperfusion, all hearts were assessed for functional recovery of myocardium (post-reperfusion).

RESULTS

During the pre-ischaemia period, 2% sevoflurane caused a significant reduction of CO in the CLP group compared with the Sham group. During the post-reperfusion period, both CO (16.9 vs 11.0 ml min(-1)) and CE (11.2 vs 7.7 mm Hg ml(-1) ( micro l O(2))(-1)) was higher in the sevoflurane-treated vs -untreated hearts from CLP rats, and was accompanied by lower incidence of reperfusion arrhythmia compared with control hearts (8 vs 32%). In contrast, 2% sevoflurane did not provide cardioprotective effects in normal rats.

CONCLUSIONS

The current study demonstrates that pre-treatment with sevoflurane minimizes myocardial dysfunction and the incidence of reperfusion arrhythmia after brief ischaemic insults in septic hearts.

Epidural anesthesia retards intestinal acidosis and reduces portal vein endotoxin concentrations during progressive hypoxia in rabbits

BACKGROUND

Because it is postulated that gut is important via bacterial translocation in the development of the systemic inflammatory response and multiple organ dysfunction, the preservation of gut integrity is a therapeutic goal for physicians who care for critically ill patients. The aim of the current study was to evaluate whether epidural anesthesia prevented gut injury and subsequent translocation of endotoxin during acute progressive hypoxia in rabbits.

METHODS

After the placement of an epidural catheter, 18 male rabbits, anesthetized with buprenorphine-midazolam, were allocated randomly to two groups: 0.5% lidocaine (group E) and saline (group C) groups. The solutions (0.4 ml/kg) were injected epidurally, followed by continuous infusion (0.1 ml x kg(-1) x h(-1)) during the study period. Portal blood flow, portal endotoxin concentrations, and intramucosal pH (pHi) of the ileum were measured at baseline and during two stages of progressive hypoxia (fraction of inspired oxygen [Fio2] = 0.15 and 0.10).

RESULTS

In both study groups, the portal blood flow was preserved to a similar extent during acute hypoxia. However, pHi was reduced to a lesser extent in group E (7.33 +/- 0.12 versus 7.22 +/- 0.12 at an Fio2 of 0.15 and 7.13 +/- 0.15 versus 7.03 +/- 0.12 at an Fio2 of 0.10; mean +/- SD, P < 0.01), concurrently with lower portal endotoxin concentrations (P < 0.05) compared with group C.

CONCLUSIONS

The current study showed that epidural anesthesia slowed the progression of intestinal ischemia during acute hypoxia, subsequently preventing translocation of endotoxin through the gut mucosa.

[Changes of vascular reactivity following esophagectomy measured by near-infrared spectroscopy]

We examined the alterations of peripheral vascular responses following ischemic insult during perioperative period of esophagectomy. Increase of palm blood flow after vascular occlusion, i.e., reactive hyperemia (RH), measured by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) was employed to assess forearm vascular responses. The measurements of RH were performed in esophagectomized patients (n = 12) before induction of anesthesia and postoperatively until the next day of extubation in comparison with normal volunteers (n = 11). After esophagectomy, the RH, which was comparable with those in volunteers, was depressed by 50% on 1 POD, and did not recover until the third POD. In particular, patients receiving laparoscopy-assisted surgery showed less decrease of RH than those receiving the standard open laparotomy. These results suggest that vascular responses to increase blood flow against ischemic insult is depressed following esophagectomy.

Additional droperidol, not butorphanol, augments epidural fentanyl analgesia following anorectal surgery

STUDY OBJECTIVE

To examine the effects of additional droperidol or butorphanol to epidural fentanyl infusion on postsurgical analgesia.

DESIGN

Prospective, randomized, single blinded clinical study.

SETTING

University-affiliated medical center.

PATIENTS

60 ASA physical status I and II patients undergoing anorectal surgery by one surgeon.

INTERVENTIONS

Patients were randomly allocated to the following groups according to the medication that was continuously administered into the epidural space: 1) Group C (n = 20) received 0.4 mg fentanyl in 40 ml of 0.125% bupivacaine; 2) Group D (n = 20) received 2.5 mg droperidol and 0.4 mg fentanyl in 40 ml of 0.125% bupivacaine; and 3) Group B (n = 20) received 2 mg butorphanol and 0.4 mg fentanyl in 40 ml of 0.125% bupivacaine over 24 hours postoperatively.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULT

Postsurgical analgesia and the incidence of fentanyl-related complications, such as nausea/vomiting, somnolence, pruritus, and respiratory depression, were assessed for 24 hours postoperatively. At 16 and 24 hours after surgery, 75% of patients in Group D reported no pain versus 35% in Group C (p < 0.05). In addition, the overall visual analogue scale examined at 24 hours was significantly lower in Group D than that in Group C (22 +/- 17 mm vs. 44 +/- 22 mm, respectively; p < 0.05). Simultaneously, the incidence of postoperative nausea/vomiting was lower in Group D compared with Group C (20% vs. 60%; p < 0.05). On the other hand, butorphanol did not modify the analgesic effects or complications of epidural fentanyl infusion.

CONCLUSION

In this study population, additional droperidol, not butorphanol, improved postsurgical analgesia accompanied by less incidence of nausea/vomiting during epidural fentanyl administration.

[Chemical constituents of Girardinia palmata ssp ciliata]

Thirteen constituents were identified from Girardinia palmata ssp ciliata C. J. Chen by using GC-MS, which amounted to 84.5% of the total peaks, the main constituent were linoleic acid (52.01%) and dimethyl fumarate (10.05%). The dissociated amino acids and KNO(3) in the sample amounted to 43.30 mg/100 g and 3.0%. Five compounds were isolated and elucidated as octadecane, hexadecylic acid, beta-sitosterol, p-coumaric acid and potasium nitrate.