GraphGrind: addressing load imbalance of graph partitioning

The incidence of HCAIs before and after antimicrobial stewardship. Incidence of VAP, CRBSI and CAUTI were defined as the number of VAP, CRBSI and CAUTI patients per 1000 ventilation days, per 1000 central venous catheter days and per 1000 urine-catheter days, respectively. (DOCX 15 kb

2D MXene Ti3C2Tx nanosheets in the development of a mechanically enhanced and efficient antibacterial dental resin composite

The bacterial accumulation at the margins of dental resin composites is a main cause of secondary caries, which may further lead to prosthodontic failure. In this regard, this study for the first time incorporated 2D MXene Ti3C2Tx nanosheets (NSs) into epoxy resin at different mass ratios (0, 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 wt%) by solution blending and direct curing for dental applications. Compared to the pure resin, the as-fabricated MXene/resin composite not only exhibited improved mechanical and abrasive results but also displayed gradually improved antibacterial activity with MXene loading which was further enhanced by illumination in natural light due to the high photothermal efficiency of MXene. In addition, the cytotoxicity result demonstrated that the MXene-modified resin did not cause severe damage to normal cells. This novel MXene/resin nanocomposite could pave the way for new designs for high-performance, multifunctional nanocomposites to effectively protect dental health in daily life

Effect of Aged Wuyi Rock Tea on Relieving Dextran Sulfate Sodium-Induced Colitis and Regulating the Gut Microbiota in Mice

This research was performed in order to investigate the alleviative effect of aged Wuyi rock tea on dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis in mice. Fifty C57BL/6JGpt female mice were randomly and equally divided into five groups: control, DSS, DSS + infusion of 20-year-old Wuyi rock tea (DSS + OT01), DSS + infusion of 10-year-old Wuyi rock tea (DSS + OT11) and DSS + infusion of fresh Wuyi rock tea (DSS + OT20). The physiological and histopathological conditions of mice after Wuyi rock tea interventions, and the changes of serum inflammatory factors and cecal microbiota were analyzed. The results showed that aged Wuyi rock tea could significantly alleviate the symptoms of body mass loss, diarrhea, bloody stool, and colon length shortening, reduce inflammatory cell infiltration, and significantly inhibit the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines. In addition, aged Wuyi rock tea could alleviate the disorder of the gut microbiota, significantly down-regulate the relative abundance of Proteobacteria, Enterobacteriaceae and Escherichia, and up-regulate the relative abundance of Verrucomicrobia and Akkermansia. In summary, aged Wuyi rock tea can alleviate DSS-induced colitis in mice, and the tea produced in 2011 is more effective than that produced in 2001, which may be due to proper oxidation of catechins such as epigallocatechin gallate to produce thearubigins, with better anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. In addition, aged Wuyi rock tea is able to maintain intestinal homeostasis by regulating the relative abundance of Escherichia and Akkermansia in the intestine, which in turn alleviates the symptoms of DSS-induced colitis in mice such as body mass loss, diarrhea, bloody stool, colon length shortening, mucosal and crypt damage, inflammatory cell infiltration, and serum inflammatory factor overexpression

Clinicopathological Significance and Prognostic Value of DNA Methyltransferase 1, 3a, and 3b Expressions in Sporadic Epithelial Ovarian Cancer

Altered DNA methylation of tumor suppressor gene promoters plays a role in human carcinogenesis and DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs) are responsible for it. This study aimed to determine aberrant expression of DNMT1, DNMT3a, and DNMT3b in benign and malignant ovarian tumor tissues for their association with clinicopathological significance and prognostic value. A total of 142 ovarian cancers and 44 benign ovarian tumors were recruited for immunohistochemical analysis of their expression. The data showed that expression of DNMT1, DNMT3a, and DNMT3b was observed in 76 (53.5%), 92 (64.8%) and 79 (55.6%) of 142 cases of ovarian cancer tissues, respectively. Of the serious tumors, DNMT3a protein expression was significantly higher than that in benign tumor samples (P = 0.001); DNMT3b was marginally significant down regulated in ovarian cancers compared to that of the benign tumors (P = 0.054); DNMT1 expression has no statistical difference between ovarian cancers and benign tumor tissues (P = 0.837). Of the mucious tumors, the expression of DNMT3a, DNMT3b, and DNMT1 was not different between malignant and benign tumors. Moreover, DNMT1 expression was associated with DNMT3b expression (P = 0.020, r = 0.195). DNMT1 expression was associated with age of the patients, menopause status, and tumor localization, while DNMT3a expression was associated with histological types and serum CA125 levels and DNMT3b expression was associated with lymph node metastasis. In addition, patients with DNMT1 or DNMT3b expression had a trend of better survival than those with negative expression. Co-expression of DNMT1 and DNMT3b was significantly associated with better overall survival (P = 0.014). The data from this study provided the first evidence for differential expression of DNMTs proteins in ovarian cancer tissues and their associations with clinicopathological and survival data in sporadic ovarian cancer patients

Chinesische Schriftbilder 2006

5 Fotos des Künstlerbuchs 75 Kun KBS 217. - Chinesische Schriftbilder 2006: Theoretische Abschlussarbeit im Studiengang Visuelle Kommunikation an der Kunsthochschule Kassel. Chinesische Schriftbilder, persönlich in Peking fotografiert und durch ergänzende, persönliche Anmerkungen kommentiert. Papierart: Bio Top3 extra. Satz, Druckverfahren: Flattersatz, linksbündig; Laserdruck. Bindung: Klebebindung. Schrift: Bembo; Gill Sans. - Chinesische Landschaft 2006: Praktische Abschlussarbeit im Studiengang Visuelle Kommunikation an der Kunsthochschule Kassel. In Anlehnung an die alte chinesische Bildtradition der Landschaftsmalerei, aktualisiert durch zeitgenössische Inhalte, setzt sich die Künstlerin mit der veränderten Lebensumgebung, dem urbanen Raum, in Beziehung. Eine Fotomontage aus fotografierten, für Peking charakteristischen Gebäuden ersetzt das landschaftliche Bild. Den Bildern werden idyllische Gedichte aus der Tang-Dynastie (7. Jahrhundert) von Wang Wei und Meng Hao Ran gegenüber gestellt, die beschreiben, dass die Menschen Elemente der Natur sind. Papierart: Heavy Coated 150gr. Satz, Druckverfahren: zweisprachig: chinesisch-englisch. Tintenstrahldruck; Umschlag mit Siebdruck. Bindung: Leporello. Schrift: Syntax; Li Shu

Plasma microRNAs levels associate with the outcome of ARDS patients

Background: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) are stromal cells with renew ability for multilineage differentiation. Therefore MSC has been considered as a therapy method for rebuilding alveoli structure and repairing the function of pulmonary vascular endothelial cells (VEC). However, whether MSC can play a therapeutic role in ARDS patients depends on different ARDS phenotypes. Recent studies about microRNAs (miRNAs) proved that miRNAs played important roles in MSC regulating function and activity of VEC which may affect therapeutic response and outcome to different ARDS patients, but few studies focused on this field. The purpose of our study is that plasma miRNAs regulated VEC’s function and specific miRNAs which were related to MSC and VEC (MSC‑VEC‑miRNAs) expressed differently between survival and non-survival ARDS patients. We aim to find specific MSC‑VEC‑miRNAs which are associated with the outcome of ARDS patients. Methods: We obtained MSC-VEC-miRNAs through searching PUBMED database. A number of 101 ARDS patients were screened and 57 of them were included in our research within 24 hours of admission to ICU. We then collected their clinical data and their blood samples, then we did real-time PCR to test plasma levels of MSC-VEC-miRNAs. Results: Fourteen MSC-VEC-miRNAs were selected in this study. We included 57 ARDS patients and 18(31.6%) of them died on Day 28 after diagnosis. Plasma miR-26a level in non-survival group was significantly lower than that in survival group (0.33[0.09-1.17] vs. 0.97[0.17-3.49], P=0.046). Plasma miR-320 level in non-survival group was significantly higher than that in survival group (0.37[0.16-1.66] vs. 0.18[0.07-0.39], P=0.041). There was no statistical difference of other 12 miRNA between two groups. Conclusion: Plasma miR-26a and miR-320 levels have a certain predictive value for the prognosis of ARDS patients

Plasma microRNAs levels associate with the outcome of ARDS patients

Background: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) are stromal cells with renew ability for multilineage differentiation. Therefore MSC has been considered as a therapy method for rebuilding alveoli structure and repairing the function of pulmonary vascular endothelial cells (VEC). However, whether MSC can play a therapeutic role in ARDS patients depends on different ARDS phenotypes. Recent studies about microRNAs (miRNAs) proved that miRNAs played important roles in MSC regulating function and activity of VEC which may affect therapeutic response and outcome to different ARDS patients, but few studies focused on this field. The purpose of our study is that plasma miRNAs regulated VEC’s function and specific miRNAs which were related to MSC and VEC (MSC‑VEC‑miRNAs) expressed differently between survival and non-survival ARDS patients. We aim to find specific MSC‑VEC‑miRNAs which are associated with the outcome of ARDS patients. Methods: We obtained MSC-VEC-miRNAs through searching PUBMED database. A number of 101 ARDS patients were screened and 57 of them were included in our research within 24 hours of admission to ICU. We then collected their clinical data and their blood samples, then we did real-time PCR to test plasma levels of MSC-VEC-miRNAs. Results: Fourteen MSC-VEC-miRNAs were selected in this study. We included 57 ARDS patients and 18(31.6%) of them died on Day 28 after diagnosis. Plasma miR-26a level in non-survival group was significantly lower than that in survival group (0.33[0.09-1.17] vs. 0.97[0.17-3.49], P=0.046). Plasma miR-320 level in non-survival group was significantly higher than that in survival group (0.37[0.16-1.66] vs. 0.18[0.07-0.39], P=0.041). There was no statistical difference of other 12 miRNA between two groups. Conclusion: Plasma miR-26a and miR-320 levels have a certain predictive value for the prognosis of ARDS patients

The challenge of training for family medicine across different contexts:Insights from providing training in China

Physicians with expertise in providing training for family medicine, at both undergraduate level and postgraduate level, are frequently invited to run training workshops in countries with developing systems of family medicine but this approach is often a challenge for the incoming external trainers. There are general challenges in working across different contexts, especially cultural factors, the different approaches to training, including the aims, methods, and assessment, and additional organizational factors, influenced by the wider sociopolitical environment of the host country. Practical responses to these challenges are discussed, with relevance to both external trainers and those responsible for requesting training. This commentary contains insights from the experiences of the authors in providing training for family medicine in China

The challenge of training for family medicine across different contexts: Insights from providing training in China

Physicians with expertise in providing training for family medicine, at both undergraduate level and postgraduate level, are frequently invited to run training workshops in countries with developing systems of family medicine but this approach is often a challenge for the incoming external trainers. There are general challenges in working across different contexts, especially cultural factors, the different approaches to training, including the aims, methods, and assessment, and additional organizational factors, influenced by the wider sociopolitical environment of the host country. Practical responses to these challenges are discussed, with relevance to both external trainers and those responsible for requesting training. This commentary contains insights from the experiences of the authors in providing training for family medicine in China