Significantly reduced radiation dose to operators during percutaneous vertebroplasty using a new cement delivery device

BACKGROUND: Percutaneous vertebroplasy (PVP) might lead to significant radiation exposure to patients, operators, and operating room personnel. Therefore, radiaton exposure is a concern. The aim of this study was to present a remote control cement delivery device and study whether it can reduce dose exposue to operators. METHODS: After meticulous preoperative preparation, a series of 40 osteoporosis patients were treated with unilateral approach PVP using the new cement delivery divice. We compared levels of fluoroscopic exposure to operator standing on different places during operation. group A: operator stood about 4 meters away from X-ray tube behind the lead sheet. group B: operator stood adjacent to patient as using conventional manual cement delivery device. RESULTS: During whole operation process, radiation dose to the operator (group A) was 0.10 ± 0.03 (0.07-0.15) μSv, group B was 12.09 ± 4.67 (10–20) μSv. a difference that was found to be statistically significant (P < 0.001) between group A and group B. CONCLUSION: New cement delivery device plus meticulous preoperative preparation can significantly decrease radiation dose to operators

Glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase 3 (OsGPAT3) is required for anther development and male fertility in rice

Lipid molecules are key structural components of plant male reproductive organs, such as the anther and pollen. Although advances have been made in the understanding of acyl lipids in plant reproduction, the metabolic pathways of other lipid compounds, particularly glycerolipids, are not fully understood. Here we report that an endoplasmic reticulum-localized enzyme, Glycerol-3-Phosphate Acyltransferase 3 (OsGPAT3), plays an indispensable role in anther development and pollen formation in rice. OsGPAT3 is preferentially expressed in the tapetum and microspores of the anther. Compared with wild-type plants, the osgpat3 mutant displays smaller, pale yellow anthers with defective anther cuticle, degenerated pollen with defective exine, and abnormal tapetum development and degeneration. Anthers of the osgpat3 mutant have dramatic reductions of all aliphatic lipid contents. The defective cuticle and pollen phenotype coincide well with the down-regulation of sets of genes involved in lipid metabolism and regulation of anther development. Taking these findings together, this work reveals the indispensable role of a monocot-specific glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase in male reproduction in rice.Xiao Men, Jianxin Shi, Wanqi Liang, Qianfei Zhang, Gaibin Lian, Sheng Quan, Lu Zhu, Zhijing Luo, Mingjiao Chen, Dabing Zhan

Cell Treatment for Stroke in Type Two Diabetic Rats Improves Vascular Permeability Measured by MRI

Treatment of stroke with bone marrow stromal cells (BMSC) significantly enhances brain remodeling and improves neurological function in non-diabetic stroke rats. Diabetes is a major risk factor for stroke and induces neurovascular changes which may impact stroke therapy. Thus, it is necessary to test our hypothesis that the treatment of stroke with BMSC has therapeutic efficacy in the most common form of diabetes, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). T2DM was induced in adult male Wistar rats by administration of a high fat diet in combination with a single intraperitoneal injection (35mg/kg) of streptozotocin. These rats were then subjected to 2h of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAo). T2DM rats received BMSC (5x106, n = 8) or an equal volume of phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) (n = 8) via tail-vein injection at 3 days after MCAo. MRI was performed one day and then weekly for 5 weeks post MCAo for all rats. Compared with vehicle treated control T2DM rats, BMSC treatment of stroke in T2DM rats significantly (

A novel ZRS variant causes preaxial polydactyly type I by increased sonic hedgehog expression in the developing limb bud.

PurposePreaxial polydactyly (PPD) is a common congenital hand malformation classified into four subtypes (PPD I-IV). Variants in the zone of polarizing activity regulatory sequence (ZRS) within intron 5 of the LMBR1 gene are linked to most PPD types. However, the genes responsible for PPD I and the underlying mechanisms are unknown.MethodsA rare large four-generation family with isolated PPD I was subjected to genome-wide genotyping and sequence analysis. In vitro and in vivo functional studies were performed in Caco-2 cells, 293T cells, and a knockin transgenic mouse model.ResultsA novel g.101779T&gt;A (reference sequence: NG_009240.2; position 446 of the ZRS) variant segregates with all PPD I-affected individuals. The knockin mouse with this ZRS variant exhibited PPD I phenotype accompanying ectopic and excess expression of Shh. We confirmed that HnRNP K can bind the ZRS and SHH promoters. The ZRS mutant enhanced the binding affinity for HnRNP K and upregulated SHH expression.ConclusionOur results identify the first PPD I disease-causing variant. The variant leading to PPD I may be associated with enhancing SHH expression mediated by HnRNP K. This study adds to the ZRS-associated syndromes classification system for PPD and clarifies the underlying molecular mechanisms

catena-Poly[[(5-carb­oxy-2H-1,2,3-triazole-4-carboxyl­ato-κ2 N 3,O 4)sodium]-di-μ-aqua-κ4 O:O]

In the title coordination polymer, [Na(C4H2N3O4)(H2O)2]n, the NaI atom is six-coordinated by one O atom and one N atom from a 2H-1,2,3-triazole-4-carb­oxy-5-carboxyl­ate ligand and four O atoms from four water mol­ecules, forming a distorted octa­hedal geometry. The NaI atoms are bridged by water mol­ecules into a chain structure along [100]. Inter­molecular N—H⋯O, O—H⋯N and O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds connect the chains. An intra­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bond between the carboxyl­ate groups is observed

Low-intensity pulsed ultrasound of different intensities differently affects myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury by modulating cardiac oxidative stress and inflammatory reaction

IntroductionThe prevalence of ischemic heart disease has reached pandemic levels worldwide. Early revascularization is currently the most effective therapy for ischemic heart diseases but paradoxically induces myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (MI/R) injury. Cardiac inflammatory reaction and oxidative stress are primarily involved in the pathology of MI/R injury. Low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) has been demonstrated to reduce cell injury by protecting against inflammatory reaction and oxidative stress in many diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, but rarely on MI/R injury.MethodsThis study was designed to clarify whether LIPUS alleviates MI/R injury by alleviating inflammatory reaction and oxidative stress. Simultaneously, we have also tried to confirm which intensity of the LIPUS might be more suitable to ameliorate the MI/R injury, as well as to clarify the signaling mechanisms. MI/R and simulated ischemia/reperfusion (SI/R) were respectively induced in Sprague Dawley rats and human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs). LIPUS treatment, biochemical measurements, cell death assay, estimation of cardiac oxidative stress and inflammatory reaction, and protein detections by western blotting were performed according to the protocol.ResultsIn our study, both in vivo and in vitro, LIPUS of 0.1 W/cm2 (LIPUS0.1) and 0.5 W/cm2 (LIPUS0.5) make no significant difference in the cardiomyocytes under normoxic condition. Under the hypoxic condition, MI/R injury, inflammatory reaction, and oxidative stress were partially ameliorated by LIPUS0.5 but were significantly aggravated by LIPUS of 2.5 W/cm2 (LIPUS2.5) both in vivo and in vitro. The activation of the apoptosis signal-regulating kinase 1 (ASK1)/c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) pathway in cardiomyocytes with MI/R injury was partly rectified LIPUS0.5 both in vivo and in vitro.ConclusionOur study firstly demonstrated that LIPUS of different intensities differently affects MI/R injury by regulating cardiac inflammatory reaction and oxidative stress. Modulations on the ASK1/JNK pathway are the signaling mechanism by which LIPUS0.5 exerts cardioprotective effects. LIPUS0.5 is promising for clinical translation in protecting against MI/R injury. This will be great welfare for patients suffering from MI/R injury

MicroRNA: role in macrophage polarization and the pathogenesis of the liver fibrosis

Macrophages, as central components of innate immunity, feature significant heterogeneity. Numerus studies have revealed the pivotal roles of macrophages in the pathogenesis of liver fibrosis induced by various factors. Hepatic macrophages function to trigger inflammation in response to injury. They induce liver fibrosis by activating hepatic stellate cells (HSCs), and then inflammation and fibrosis are alleviated by the degradation of the extracellular matrix and release of anti-inflammatory cytokines. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a class of small non-coding endogenous RNA molecules that regulate gene expression through translation repression or mRNA degradation, have distinct roles in modulating macrophage activation, polarization, tissue infiltration, and inflammation regression. Considering the complex etiology and pathogenesis of liver diseases, the role and mechanism of miRNAs and macrophages in liver fibrosis need to be further clarified. We first summarized the origin, phenotypes and functions of hepatic macrophages, then clarified the role of miRNAs in the polarization of macrophages. Finally, we comprehensively discussed the role of miRNAs and macrophages in the pathogenesis of liver fibrotic disease. Understanding the mechanism of hepatic macrophage heterogeneity in various types of liver fibrosis and the role of miRNAs on macrophage polarization provides a useful reference for further research on miRNA-mediated macrophage polarization in liver fibrosis, and also contributes to the development of new therapies targeting miRNA and macrophage subsets for liver fibrosis

Stabilization of the Single-Chain Fragment Variable by an Interdomain Disulfide Bond and Its Effect on Antibody Affinity

The interdomain instability of single-chain fragment variable (scFv) might result in intermolecular aggregation and loss of function. In the present study, we stabilized H4—an anti-aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) scFv—with an interdomain disulfide bond and studied the effect of the disulfide bond on antibody affinity. With homology modeling and molecular docking, we designed a scFv containing an interdomain disulfide bond between the residues H44 and L100. The stability of scFv (H4) increased from a GdnHCl50 of 2.4 M to 4.2 M after addition of the H44-L100 disulfide bond. Size exclusion chromatography revealed that the scFv (H44-L100) mutant existed primarily as a monomer, and no aggregates were detected. An affinity assay indicated that scFv (H4) and the scFv (H44-L100) mutant had similar IC50 values and affinity to AFB1. Our results indicate that interdomain disulfide bonds could stabilize scFv without affecting affinity

Organizing XML data in a wireless broadcast system by exploiting structural similarities

Wireless data broadcast is an efficient way of delivering data of common interest to a large population of mobile devices within a proximate area, such as smart cities, battle fields, etc. In this work, we focus ourselves on studying the data placement problem of periodic XML data broadcast in mobile and wireless environments. This is an important issue, particularly when XML becomes prevalent in today’s ubiquitous and mobile computing devices and applications. Taking advantage of the structured characteristics of XML data, effective broadcast programs can be generated based on the XML data on the server only. An XML data broadcast system is developed and a theoretical analysis on the XML data placement on a wireless channel is also presented, which forms the basis of the novel data placement algorithm in this work. The proposed algorithm is validated through a set of experiments. The results show that the proposed algorithm can effectively place XML data on air and significantly improve the overall access efficiency

Mechanistic aspects of photo-induced formation of peroxide ions on the surface of cubic Ln(2)O(3) (Ln = Nd, Sm, Gd) under oxygen

National Basic Research Program of China [2010CB732303]; National Natural Science Foundation of China [21173173, 21033006, 20923004]; Program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team in University [IRT1036]The photo-induced formation of peroxide ions on the surface of cubic Ln(2)O(3) (Ln = Nd, Sm, Gd) was studied by in situ microprobe Raman spectroscopy using a 325 nm laser as excitation source. It was found that the Raman bands of peroxide ions at 833-843 cm(-1) began to grow at the expense of the Ln(3+)-O-2 bands at 333-359 cm(-1) when the Ln(2)O(3) samples under O-2 were continuously irradiated with a focused 325 nm laser beam at temperatures between 25-150 degrees C. The intensity of the peroxide Raman band was found to increase with increasing O-2 partial pressure, whereas no peroxide band was detected on the Ln(2)O(3) under N-2 as well as on the samples first irradiated with laser under Ar or N-2 followed by exposure to O-2 in the dark. The experiments using O-18 as a tracer further confirmed that the peroxide ions are generated by a photo-induced reaction between O-2 and the lattice oxygen (O2-) species in Ln(2)O(3). Under the excitation of 325 nm UV light, the transformation of O-2 to peroxide ions on the surface of the above lanthanide sesquioxides can even take place at room temperature. Basicity of the lattice oxygen species on Ln(2)O(3) also has an impact on the peroxide formation. Higher temperature or laser irradiation power is required to initiate the reaction between O-2 and O2- species of weaker basicity