Role of inflammation and immunity in vascular calcification: a bibliometric and visual analysis, 2000–2022

BackgroundIn recent years, a great deal of research has been done on vascular calcification (VC), and inflammation and immunity have been displayed to play important roles in the mechanism of VC. However, to date, no comprehensive or systematic bibliometric analyses have been conducted on this topic.MethodsArticles and reviews on the roles of inflammation and immunity in VC were obtained from the Web of Science Core Collection on August 5, 2022. Four scientometric software packages—HistCite, CiteSpace, VOSviewer, and R-bibliometrix—were used for the bibliometric and knowledge mapping analyses.ResultsThe obtained 1,868 papers were published in 627 academic journals by 9,595 authors of 2,217 institutions from 69 countries. The annual number of publications showed a clear growth trend. The USA and China were the most productive countries. Karolinska Institutet, Harvard University, and the University of Washington were the most active institutions. Stenvinkel P published the most articles, whereas Demer LL received the most citations. Atherosclerosis published the most papers, while Circulation was the most highly cited journal. The largest cluster among the 22 clusters, based on the analysis of co-citations, was osteo-/chondrogenic transdifferentiation. “Vascular calcification,” “inflammation,” “chronic kidney disease,” and “expression” were the main keywords in the field. The keyword “extracellular vesicle” attracted great attention in recent years with the strongest citation burst.ConclusionsOsteo-/chondrogenic transdifferentiation is the primary research topic in this field. Extracellular vesicles are expected to become a new research focus for exploring the inflammatory and immune mechanisms of VC

Seismic Fragility of Chinese Light-Gauge Steel Keel Gypsum Board Partition Walls

A quasi-static experimental program of light-gauge steel keel gypsum board partition walls (LSKGBPW) was carried out to evaluate the seismic damage phenomena, failure mechanisms, and fragility. The 15 specimens in five groups were designed per current Chinese codes and engineering practice. Then, three damage states were defined based on the damage and repair measures, and the fragility data of each group were presented, providing basic data for the estimation of seismic damage and consequential loss of nonstructural components

Failure modes for reticulated domes under diverse impact

p. 1813-1822FE models of both the single-layer Kiewitt-8 reticulated domes with a span of 60m and the cylindrical impactor were developed incorporating ANSYS/LS-DYNA. Afterward, fourteen groups impact are simulated by changing the impact position or impacted angle on reticulated dome, and impact velocity and mass of impactor are changed for each group impact. On the basis of large numbers of numerical simulations, characteristics of dynamic response for reticulated dome under impact are shown. And four failure modes (Members slightly damaged, Local collapse of dome, Global collapse of dome, Members shear failed) are presented for single-layer Kiewitt-8 reticulated dome under diverse impact. The distributing of failure modes for the fourteen types impact are different from each other, and the adverse position and angle are summrized.Fan, F.; Wang, D.; Zhi, X.; Tan, S.; Shen, S. (2009). Failure modes for reticulated domes under diverse impact. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/681

Effects of progressive muscle relaxation on anxiety and sleep quality in patients with COVID-19

BACKGROUND: Patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019(COVID-19) will experience high levels of anxiety and low sleep quality due to isolation treatment. Some sleep-improving drugs may inhibit the respiratory system and worsen the condition. Prolonged bedside instruction may increase the risk of medical infections. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of progressive muscle relaxation on anxiety and sleep quality of COVID-19. METHODS: In this randomized controlled clinical trial, a total of 51 patients who entered the isolation ward were included in the study and randomly divided into experimental and control groups. The experimental group used progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) technology for 30 min per day for 5 consecutive days. During this period, the control group received only routine care and treatment. Before and after the intervention, the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Scale (STAI) and Sleep State Self-Rating Scale (SRSS) were used to measure and record patient anxiety and sleep quality. Finally, data analysis was performed using SPSS 25.0 software. RESULTS: The average anxiety score (STAI) before intervention was not statistically significant (P = 0.730), and the average anxiety score after intervention was statistically significant (P < 0.001). The average sleep quality score (SRSS) of the two groups before intervention was not statistically significant (P = 0.838), and it was statistically significant after intervention (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Progressive muscle relaxation as an auxiliary method can reduce anxiety and improve sleep quality in patients with COVID-19

Regioselective Synthesis of 3‑Trifluoromethylpyrroles by [3 + 2] Cycloaddition of <i>N</i>‑Acyl α‑Amino Acids and 2‑Bromo-3,3,3-trifluoropropene

A mild and concise method for the synthesis of 3-trifluoromethylpyrroles via base-mediated [3 + 2] cycloaddition of N-acyl α-amino acids and 2-bromo-3,3,3-trifluoropropene is described. N-Acyl α-amino acids serve as 1,3-dipole precursors without additional activating agents directly. A high level of regioselectivity was observed, regardless of the electronic nature and size of the substituents on 1,3-dipoles

Investigation of the effective components of the flowers of Trollius chinensis from the perspectives of intestinal bacterial transformation and intestinal absorption

Context: The flowers of Trollius chinensis Bunge (Ranunculaceae), used for respiratory tract infections, mainly contain flavonoids, phenolic acids, and alkaloids; however, the effective components are debatable because of their unclear in vivo activities. Objective: This study investigates the effective components from the perspectives of biotransformation and absorption. Materials and methods: Both single person derived- and multiple people-derived intestinal florae were used to investigate the biotransformation of aqueous extract of the flowers of T. chinensis (AEOF) at the concentrations of 15.0, 30.0, and 60.0 mg/mL, respectively, for 72 h. Both human colon adenocarcinoma cell line (Caco-2) monolayers and everted gut sacs were employed to evaluate the intestinal absorption of the intestinal bacterial transformed AEOF at the concentrations of 10, 20, and 30 mg/mL, respectively, for 180 min. Results: 2″-O-β-l-Galactopyranosylorientin, orientin, vitexin, quercetin, veratric acid, proglobeflowery acid, and trolline in AEOF were not transformed by intestinal bacteria, while isoquercetin and trollioside were completely transformed. The Papp values of 2″-O-β-l-galactopyranosylorientin, orientin, and vitexin calculated based on the experimental data of intestinal absorption were at the levels of 10−5, whereas those of veratric acid, proglobeflowery acid, and trolline were at 10−4. The mass ratio of flavonoids to phenolic acids to alkaloids changed from 16:10:7 to 9:12:8 before and after absorption. Discussion and conclusion: The dominant position of flavonoids was replaced by phenolic acids after absorption. In addition to flavonoids which are usually considered as the dominant effective ones, phenolic acids and alkaloids should be also very important for the efficacy of these flowers