Difference of Oxide Hetero-Structure Junctions with Semiconductor Electronic Devices

Charge carrier injection performed in Pr0.7Ca0.3MnO3 (PCMO) hetero-structure junctions exhibits stable without electric fields and dramatic changes in both resistances and interface barriers, which are entirely different from behaviors of semiconductor devices. Disappearance and reversion of interface barriers suggest that the adjustable resistance switching of such hetero-structure oxide devices should associate with motion of charge carriers across interfaces. The results suggested that injected carriers should be still staying in devices and resulted in changes in properties, which guided to a carrier self-trapping and releasing picture in strongly correlated electronic framework. Observations in PCMO and oxygen deficient CeO2 devices show that oxides as functional materials could be used in microelectronics with some novel properties, in which interface is very important.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure

Consumer behavior and healthy food consumption: quasi-natural experimental evidence from Chinese household participation in long-term care insurance

IntroductionThere is a strong link between consumer behavior and healthy food consumption. However, how to narrow the gap between consumption intentions and actual healthy food consumption is still under discussion.MethodsThis study takes Chinese families as the research object, based on the family participation in long-term care insurance (LTCI) policy, and constructs an analytical framework including healthy eating behavior, food consumption, and insurance system to discuss how to narrow the gap between consumption intention and actual healthy food consumption. In addition, the intermediary role played by the risk prevention mechanism is also analyzed. Based on data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS), this study uses a difference-in-differences analysis framework to empirically examine the impact of changes in consumption behavior on healthy food consumption after households participate in the LTCI pilot.Results and discussionThe research results show that implementing LTCI can increase the frequency of healthy meal preparation methods by 0.045 units and the frequency of not including processed foods in the meals of households participating in the policy by 0.033 units compared with households that do not participate. The daily meal quantity is increased by 0.198 (converted to 1.219 grams), and 0.198 units increase the healthy food consumption structure. This conclusion holds under a series of robustness tests. Mechanism test shows that LTCI affects healthy food consumption through risk prevention mechanisms. The impact of the LTCI policy will also not be affected by similar competitive policies. The heterogeneity test further proves that LTCI policies are more likely to increase healthy food consumption among urban households, larger households, and households employed in private enterprises. Based on these findings, it is recommended that families participate in LTCI to reduce the financial stress faced by families due to illness and care needs while increasing the demand for and consumption of healthy foods. The findings also provide a valuable reference for current policy formulation on improving family dietary quality in China

Tumor characteristics and surgical outcome in incidentally discovered pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas

Objective: The proportion of incidentally discovered pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas (PPGL) has increased over time. However, our knowledge of them is quite limited. The purpose of this retrospective study is to generalize the commonalities in incidentally discovered PPGL, offer evidence for clinical diagnosis and management. Methods: Five hundred twenty-six patients were included in our study after filtration from the database of West China Hospital of Sichuan University between May, 2007 and December, 2016. Among the patients, 148 of them were incidental findings and 378 of them were suspected findings. All patients’ demography and tumor characteristics were recorded in detail, especially hemodynamic records and hormonal assays. The reasons for taking radiography were also collected. Most patients received preoperative medical preparation. Intraoperative and postoperative courses as well as surgical outcomes were also analyzed to identify differences between incidental findings and suspected findings. Results: Incidentally discovered PPGL took up 28.1% of the study population. Suspected PPGLs had a higher prevalence of hypertension, lower proportion of non-functioning PPGL, higher prevalence of MEN2 and better post-surgical blood pressure recovery than incidental finding group. However, patients in the incidental finding group showed no significant difference in preoperative blood pressure and hormonal assays with suspected findings in metaphrine and normetaphrine in plasma and urine (P > 0.05). Conclusions: Due to the development of technology, more PPGLs are discovered incidentally. Considering the tumor characteristics and surgical outcome, surgical decisions should be made more cautiously

The clinical significance and anti-tumor role of PRKG1 in bladder cancer

IntroductioncGMP-dependent protein kinase 1 (PRKG1) has shown to be associated with some tumorigenesis, while the role of PRKG1 in bladder cancer is unclear.MethodsTo investigate the biological and clinical significance of PRKG1 in bladder cancer, we detected the expression of PRKG1 and explored the function of PRKG1 in bladder cancer cells. The PRKG1 transcripts data was downloaded from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, and immunohistochemistry staining was conducted on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) sample tissues. Relationship between clinical characteristics of patients and expression of PRKG1 was analyzed in FFPE samples, TCGA database, and GSE19423 dataset. PRKG1 was over-expressed, and cell proliferation, migration, invasion, apoptosis, and spheroidizing ability were then detected. Chemosensitivity to cisplatin was detected with cell viability, and half-maximal drug inhibitory concentration (IC50) was calculated. In addition, the relation between PRKG1 expression and the infiltration level of tumor immune cells in tumor microenvironment were analyzed.ResultsThe results showed expression of PRKG1 was lower in bladder cancer, compared with normal tissues both at protein and transcript levels. Lower PRKG1 expression was related to higher tumor grade, T stage, and muscle invasion, also predicted worse overall survival and recurrence free survival in patients treated with Bacillus Calmette–Guerin (BCG) intravesical immunotherapy. Analysis of tumor immune cells infiltration showed lower PRKG1 was associated with non-inflamed tumor microenvironment.ConclusionThe present study firstly identified the anti-tumor role and tumor immune regulatory role of PRKG1, also found loss of PRKG1 could be used as a prognosis factor. The present study provided a potential biomarker and therapy target to bladder cancer

SIRT1-regulated ROS generation activates NMDAR2B phosphorylation to promote central sensitization and allodynia in a male chronic migraine rat model

BackgroundCentral sensitization is one of the pivotal pathological mechanisms in chronic migraine (CM). Silent information regulator 1 (SIRT1) was shown to be involved in CM, but its specific mechanism is unclear. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are increasingly regarded as important signaling molecules in several models of pain. However, studies about the role of ROS in the central sensitization of CM model are rare. We thus explored the specific process of SIRT1 involvement in the central sensitization of CM, focusing on the ROS pathway.MethodsInflammatory soup was repeatedly administered to male Sprague–Dawley rats to establish a CM model. The SIRT1 expression level in trigeminal nucleus caudalis (TNC) tissues was assessed by qRT–PCR and Western blotting analysis. The levels of ROS were detected by a Tissue Reactive Oxygen Detection Kit, DHE staining, and the fluorescence signal intensity of 8-OHdG. A ROS scavenger (tempol), a SIRT1 activator (SRT1720), a SIRT1 inhibitor (EX527), and a mitochondrial fission inhibitor (Mdivi-1) were used to investigate the specific molecular mechanisms involved. NMDAR2B, CGRP, ERK, and mitochondrial fission-related protein were evaluated by Western blotting, and the CGRP level in frozen sections of the TNC was detected via immunofluorescence staining.ResultsAfter repeated inflammatory soup infusion and successful establishment of the CM rat model, SIRT1 expression was found to be significantly reduced, accompanied by elevated ROS levels. Treatment with Tempol, SRT1720, or Mdivi-1 alleviated allodynia and reduced the increase in NMDAR2B phosphorylation and CGRP and ERK phosphorylation in the CM rat. In contrast, EX527 had the opposite effect in CM rat. SRT1720 and EX527 decreased and increased ROS levels, respectively, in CM rats, and tempol reversed the aggravating effect of EX527 in CM rats. Furthermore, the regulatory effect of SIRT1 on ROS may include the involvement of the mitochondrial fission protein DRP1.ConclusionThe results indicate the importance of SIRT1 in CM may be due to its role in regulating the production of ROS, which are involved in modulating central sensitization in CM. These findings could lead to new ideas for CM treatment with the use of SIRT1 agonists and antioxidants

Long Non-Coding RNA PVT1/miR-150/ HIG2 Axis Regulates the Proliferation, Invasion and the Balance of Iron Metabolism of Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Background/Aims: To investigate the biological roles and underlying molecular mechanisms of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) PVT1 in Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: qRT-PCR was performed to measure the expression of miRNA and mRNA. Western blot was performed to measure the protein expression. CCK-8 assay was performed to determine cell proliferation. Flow cytometry was performed to detect cell apoptosis. Wounding-healing assay and Transwell assay was performed to detect cell migration and invasion. Dual luciferase reporter assay was performed to verify the target relationship. Quantichrom iron assay was performed to check uptake level of cellular iron. Results: PVT1 expression was up-regulated in HCC tissues and cell lines. Function studies revealed that PVT1 knockdown significantly suppressed cell proliferation, migration and invasion, and induced cell apoptosis in vitro. Furthermore, PVT1 could directly bind to microRNA (miR)-150 and down-regulate miR-150 expression. Hypoxia-inducible protein 2 (HIG2) was found to be one target gene of miR-150, and PVT1 knockdown could inhibit the expression of HIG2 through up-regulating miR-150 expression. In addition, the expression of miR-150 was down-regulated, while the expression of HIG2 was up-regulated in HCC tissues and cell lines. Moreover, inhibition of miR-150 could partly reverse the biological effects of PVT1 knockdown on proliferation, motility, apoptosis and iron metabolism in vitro, which might be associated with dysregulation of HIG2. In vivo results showed that PVT1 knockdown suppressed tumorigenesis and iron metabolism disorder by regulating the expression of miR-150 and HIG2. Conclusion: Taken together, the present study demonstrates that PVT1/miR-150/HIG2 axis may lead to a better understanding of HCC pathogenesis and provide potential therapeutic targets for HCC