UVB Induces HIF-1α-Dependent TSLP Expression via the JNK and ERK Pathways

Thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) may have a key role in the initiation and maintenance of allergic inflammatory diseases, including atopic dermatitis. The present study revealed that UVB radiation exposure could induce TSLP expression in human keratinocytes and a human skin equivalent model. In addition, we investigated the regulatory mechanism of UVB-induced TSLP expression in keratinocytes. TSLP expression was upregulated by transfection with pcDNA3–hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1α (P402A and P564A), which stably expresses HIF-1α protein. UVB-induced TSLP induction in keratinocytes was suppressed in the treatment of mitogen-activated protein kinase inhibitors or small interfering RNAs against HIF-1α. The results of chromatin immunoprecipitation assays indicate the direct involvement of HIF-1α in UVB-mediated TSLP induction. Taken together, these findings indicate that UVB exposure may increase TSLP expression through a HIF-1α-dependent mechanism via the c-JUN N-terminal kinase and extracellular signal-regulated kinase pathways in human keratinocytes. Our data showed that UVB-induced TSLP might increase secretion of the T-helper type 2–attracting chemokine (c–c motif) ligand 17 by human dendritic cells. The present study suggests an important role of HIF-1α in UVB-mediated immune response in keratinocytes

The reproducibility of indoor air pollution (IAP) measurement: A test case for the measurement of key air pollutants from the pan frying of fish samples

To assess the robustness of various indoor air quality (IAQ) indices, we explored the possible role of reproducibility-induced variability in the measurements of different pollutants under similar sampling and emissions conditions. Polluted indoor conditions were generated by pan frying fish samples in a closed room. A total of 11 experiments were carried out to measure a list of key variables commonly used to represent indoor air pollution (IAP) indicators such as particulate matter (PM: PM 1 , PM 2.5 , PM 10 , and TSP) and a set of individual volatile organic compounds (VOCs) with some odor markers. The cooking activity conducted as part of our experiments was successful to consistently generate significant pollution levels (mean PM 10 : 7110 g m −3 and mean total VOC (TVOC): 1400 g m −3 , resp.). Then, relative standard error (RSE) was computed to assess the reproducibility between different IAP paramters measured across the repeated experiments. If the results were evaluated by an arbitrary criterion of 10%, the patterns were divided into two data groups (e.g., <10% for benzene and some aldehydes and >10% for the remainders). Most noticeably, TVOC had the most repeatable results with a reproducibility (RSE) value of 3.2% ( = 11)

The Reproducibility of Indoor Air Pollution (IAP) Measurement: A Test Case for the Measurement of Key Air Pollutants from the Pan Frying of Fish Samples

To assess the robustness of various indoor air quality (IAQ) indices, we explored the possible role of reproducibility-induced variability in the measurements of different pollutants under similar sampling and emissions conditions. Polluted indoor conditions were generated by pan frying fish samples in a closed room. A total of 11 experiments were carried out to measure a list of key variables commonly used to represent indoor air pollution (IAP) indicators such as particulate matter (PM: PM1, PM2.5, PM10, and TSP) and a set of individual volatile organic compounds (VOCs) with some odor markers. The cooking activity conducted as part of our experiments was successful to consistently generate significant pollution levels (mean PM10: 7110 μg m−3 and mean total VOC (TVOC): 1400 μg m−3, resp.). Then, relative standard error (RSE) was computed to assess the reproducibility between different IAP paramters measured across the repeated experiments. If the results were evaluated by an arbitrary criterion of 10%, the patterns were divided into two data groups (e.g., <10% for benzene and some aldehydes and >10% for the remainders). Most noticeably, TVOC had the most repeatable results with a reproducibility (RSE) value of 3.2% (n=11)

Magnetic moments of the SU(3) decuplet baryons in the chiral quark-soliton model

Magnetic moments of baryons are studied within the chiral quark soliton model with special emphasis on the decuplet of baryons. The model is used to identify all symmetry breaking terms proportional to $m_{\rm s}$. Sum rules for the magnetic moments are derived. A ``model-independent'' analysis of the symmetry breaking terms is performed and finally model calculations are presented, which show the importance of the rotational $1/N_{\rm c}$ corrections for cranking of the soliton.Comment: 22 pages, RevTex. The final version accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

The Genetic Effect of Copy Number Variations on the Risk of Type 2 Diabetes in a Korean Population

BACKGROUND: Unlike Caucasian populations, genetic factors contributing to the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are not well studied in Asian populations. In light of this, and the fact that copy number variation (CNV) is emerging as a new way to understand human genomic variation, the objective of this study was to identify type 2 diabetes-associated CNV in a Korean cohort. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Using the Illumina HumanHap300 BeadChip (317,503 markers), genome-wide genotyping was performed to obtain signal and allelic intensities from 275 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and 496 nondiabetic subjects (Total n = 771). To increase the sensitivity of CNV identification, we incorporated multiple factors using PennCNV, a program that is based on the hidden Markov model (HMM). To assess the genetic effect of CNV on T2DM, a multivariate logistic regression model controlling for age and gender was used. We identified a total of 7,478 CNVs (average of 9.7 CNVs per individual) and 2,554 CNV regions (CNVRs; 164 common CNVRs for frequency>1%) in this study. Although we failed to demonstrate robust associations between CNVs and the risk of T2DM, our results revealed a putative association between several CNVRs including chr15:45994758-45999227 (P = 8.6E-04, P(corr) = 0.01) and the risk of T2DM. The identified CNVs in this study were validated using overlapping analysis with the Database of Genomic Variants (DGV; 71.7% overlap), and quantitative PCR (qPCR). The identified variations, which encompassed functional genes, were significantly enriched in the cellular part, in the membrane-bound organelle, in the development process, in cell communication, in signal transduction, and in biological regulation. CONCLUSION/SIGNIFICANCE: We expect that the methods and findings in this study will contribute in particular to genome studies of Asian populations

Evaluation of Sediment Trapping Efficiency of Vegetative Filter Strips Using Machine Learning Models

The South Korean government has recently focused on environmental protection efforts to improve water quality which has been degraded by nonpoint sources of water pollution from runoff. In order to take care of environmental issues, many physically-based models have been used. However, the physically-based models take a large amount of work to carry out site simulations, and there is a need to find faster and more efficient approaches. For an alternative approach for sediment management using the physically-based models, the machine learning-based models were used for estimating sediment trapping efficiency of vegetative filter strips. The seven nonlinear regression algorithms of machine learning models (e.g., decision tree, multilayer perceptron, k-nearest neighbors, support vector machine, random forest, AdaBoost and gradient boosting) were applied to select the model which best estimates the sediment trapping efficiency of vegetative filter strips. The sediment trapping efficiencies calculated by the machine learning models showed similar results as those of vegetative filter strip modeling system (VFSMOD-W) model. As a result of the accuracy evaluation among the seven machine learning models, the multilayer perceptron model-derived the best fit with VFSMOD-W model. It is expected that the sediment trapping efficiency of the vegetative filter strips in various cases in agricultural fields in South Korea can be predicted easier, faster and accurately by the machine learning models developed in this study. Machine learning models can be used to evaluate sediment trapping efficiency without complicated physically-based model design and high computational cost. Therefore, decision makers can maximize the quality of their outputs by minimizing their efforts in the decision-making process.</p

Stereotactic body radiotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma: meta-analysis and International Stereotactic Radiosurgery Society practice guidelines

PURPOSE This systematic review and meta-analysis reports on outcomes and hepatic toxicity rates following stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) for liver confined hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and presents consensus guidelines regarding appropriate patient management. METHODS AND MATERIALS Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systemic Review and Meta-analyses guidelines, a systematic review was performed from articles reporting outcomes at ≥5 years published prior to October 2022 from the Embase, MEDLINE, Cochrane, and Scopus databases using the key words terms ("Stereotactic body radiotherapy" OR "SBRT" OR "SABR" OR "Stereotactic ablative radiotherapy") AND ("Hepatocellular carcinoma" OR "HCC"). An aggregated data (AD) meta-analysis was conducted to assess overall survival (OS) and local control (LC) using weighted random effects models. In addition, an individual patient data (IPD) analysis incorporating data from 6 institutions was conducted as its own subgroup analyses. RESULTS Seventeen observational studies, comprising 1889 HCC patients treated with ≤9 SBRT fractions, between 2003 and 2019, were included in the AD meta-analysis. The 3- and 5- year OS rates after SBRT were 57% (95% confidence interval [CI], 47-66%) and 40% (95% CI, 29-51%). The 3- and 5- year LC rates after SBRT were 84% (95% CI, 77-90%) and 82% (95% CI, 74-88%), respectively. Tumor size was the only prognostic factor for LC. Tumor size and region were significantly associated with OS. Five-year LC and OS rates of 79% (95% CI, 0.74-0.84) and 25% (95% CI, 0.20-0.30), respectively, were observed in the IPD analyses. Factors prognostic for improved OS were tumor size <3 cm, eastern region, Child-Pugh score ≤B7, and the Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage of 0 and A. The incidence of severe hepatic toxicity varied according to the criteria applied. CONCLUSIONS SBRT is an effective treatment modality for HCC patients with mature follow up. Clinical practice guidelines were developed on behalf of the XXXX

30 inch Roll-Based Production of High-Quality Graphene Films for Flexible Transparent Electrodes

We report that 30-inch scale multiple roll-to-roll transfer and wet chemical doping considerably enhance the electrical properties of the graphene films grown on roll-type Cu substrates by chemical vapor deposition. The resulting graphene films shows a sheet resistance as low as ~30 Ohm/sq at ~90 % transparency which is superior to commercial transparent electrodes such as indium tin oxides (ITO). The monolayer of graphene shows sheet resistances as low as ~125 Ohm/sq with 97.4% optical transmittance and half-integer quantum Hall effect, indicating the high-quality of these graphene films. As a practical application, we also fabricated a touch screen panel device based on the graphene transparent electrodes, showing extraordinary mechanical and electrical performances