Glycyrrhizic Acid Attenuates Balloon-Induced Vascular Injury Through Inactivation of RAGE Signaling Pathways

Percutaneous coronary intervention is a well-established technique used to treat coronary artery disease, but the risk of coronary artery in-stent restenosis following percutaneous coronary intervention is still high. Previous studies revealed that high mobility group protein B1 (HMGB1) plays a critical role in neointima formation. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of glycyrrhizic acid (GA), an HMGB1 inhibitor, in the process of neointima formation and the potential mechanisms. We investigated the role of GA in neointima formation through an iliac artery balloon injury model in rabbits. Proliferation, migration, and phenotype transformation of human vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) were observed. Besides, inflammation and receptor for advanced glycosylation end products (RAGE) signaling pathways were studied. The results indicate that GA attenuated neointima formation and downregulated HMGB1 expression in injured artery in rabbits. HMGB1 promoted proliferation, migration, and phenotype transformation through the activation of RAGE signaling pathways in VSMCs, and blockade of HMGB1 by GA (1, 10, and 100 μM) could attenuate those processes and reduce proliferation of human VSMCs. In conclusion, the HMGB1 inhibitor GA might be useful to treat proliferative vascular diseases by downregulating RAGE signaling pathways. Our results indicate a new and promising therapeutic agent for restenosis

Risk Factors for Prognosis after the Maze IV Procedure in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation Undergoing Valve Surgery

The present study evaluated risk factors related to persistent atrial fibrillation (AF) at discharge (AF-d) and recurrent atrial fibrillation (rAF) and all-cause death after the maze IV procedure. Two hundred nineteen patients (63 female, aged 52.5±8.8 years) with valve disease and persistent AF undergoing valve surgery and the maze IV procedure in our center between 2015 and 2016 were included. Baseline demographic and clinical data were obtained by review of medical records. The median follow-up period was 27 months (interquartile range 21–34 months) in our patient cohort. The primary end point was all-cause death. The secondary end point was AF-d or rAF. rAF is defined as AF recurrence at 3 months or later after the procedure. Twenty-eight patients (12.8%) died during follow-up. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that thrombocytopenia, elevated serum total bilirubin level, a larger right atrium, AF-d, and rAF were independent determinants for all-cause death after the maze IV procedure after adjustment for age, sex, and clinical covariates, including New York Heart Association class III/IV disease, hypertension, and aortic regurgitation, while valvular disease duration and left atrial diameter greater than 80.5 mm were independent determinants for AF-d, and thrombocytopenia, elevated serum total bilirubin level, higher mean pulmonary artery pressure, and AF-d were independent predictors for rAF. In conclusion, thrombocytopenia, elevated serum total bilirubin level, an enlarged right atrium, AF-d, and rAF are independent predictors of all-cause death in patients undergoing the maze IV procedure. </p

Experimental and numerical study on heat emission characteristics of ventilated air annular in tunneling roadway

With the increase in mining depth, thermal hazard becomes a prominent problem. Reducing heat dissipation of the surrounding rocks on the basis of artificial refrigeration can be an important thermal hazard-control technique. There are several researches on spray and surrounding rock-filling insulations, but only a few researches were conducted on air jacket heat insulation performance. To enrich the research content of air jacket heat insulation, a similar experiment platform was designed. Based on the analysis of the test data, the friction factor for the turbulent flow in the interlayer of air annular is obtained and a modified equation for calculating the friction factor is proposed based on the Blasius equation model. The average Nusselt number of the inner and outer wall surfaces in the annular air of roadway is calculated under turbulent state, and the Gnielinski equation is modified based on the experimental results. Based on the finite volume method, the unsteady mathematical model of the heat dissipation structure of ventilated air annular with surrounding rock was established. A computer program was developed, and the accuracy of the mathematical model was verified using experimental results. The numerical calculation results were used to analyze the variations of heat absorption of airflow in the main roadway and heat exhaust of the ventilated air annular at different wind speeds and annular diameters. The results show that the heat insulation effect of interlayer of ventilated air is the best when the air flow in the annular is at the turning point of laminar flow turbulence. The heat insulation effect of ventilated air interlayer is the best in the early ventilation stage, and the heat insulation rate will decrease with the increase of ventilation time, but the heat insulation rate can reach more than 69.7% in 10 years

Model of Heat and Mass Exchange between a Downcast Shaft and the Air Flow to the Mine

Mining activities have increased owing to the rise in the social demand for minerals. Thermal hazards have become a major health and safety consideration in mines. The thermal environment of a working face is related to the air parameters at the bottom of shaft. The objective of this study is to accurately predict the air temperature at the bottom of a shaft in a mine with the ventilation time over 3 years. For this purpose, a mathematical model of the heat and mass exchange between the surrounding rock of the shaft and the downcast air is established by utilizing the finite volume method. The C++ languages are used for numerical calculations. The results are in agreement with the measured data. The effects of the relative humidity of air at the inlet of the shaft, the surface moisture coefficient of the shaft surface, and the physical parameters of the rock on the air parameters at the shaft bottom are studied in detail. Equations for calculating the enthalpy increase of air per 100 m in shaft with the depth of 1300 m were established by using cluster analysis. This equation provides a theoretical basis for predicting the air parameters along the shaft with the ventilation time over 3 years

The Effect of Senders' Perceived Ability to Control Emotion on Raters' Deception Judgments

The present studies aimed to examine whether the raters&#39; impressions of the senders&#39; ability to control emotion could influence the raters&#39; judgments of deceit and to explore the underlying mechanism. It was proposed that perceived emotional control ability would influence individuals&#39; deception judgments either by itself or by interacting with actual lie-related behaviors. Two experiments were conducted to examine our hypotheses. The results revealed that if participants were informed that the sender had a higher emotional control ability, they would judge the sender as less truthful in an actual deception judgment task (Study 1). It was also found that perceived emotional control ability did interact with actual lie-related behaviors: participants judged behaviors violating expectations or social norms as more deceptive (Study 2).</p

Template-induced crystallization of charged colloids: a molecular dynamics study

By using a large enough number of particles and implementing a parallel algorithm on the CUDA platform, we have performed brute-force molecular dynamics simulations to study the template-induced heterogeneous crystallization in charged colloids. Six kinds of templates, whose patterns include the planes of fcc(100), fcc(110), fcc(111), bcc(100), bcc(110) and bcc(111), have been implanted into the middle of the simulation box. Except the fcc(111) template, whose structure benefits not only fcc but also hcp crystals resulting in a similar behavior to homogeneous crystallization, bcc-type templates favor the formation of bcc crystals and bcc-like precursors while fcc-type templates favor the formation of fcc crystals and fcc-like precursors. Therefore, for fcc(100) and fcc(110) templates, heterogeneous crystallization will definitely result in a fcc crystallite. However, the results of heterogeneous crystallization that are induced by bcc-type templates are subtly different at different state points. At the state points where the interaction strength of charged colloids is weak and the fcc phase is thermodynamically stable, the bcc crystals formed with the promotion of bcc-type templates are not stable so as to tend to transform into fcc or hcp crystals. When the interaction strength of charged colloids is high, the predominant bcc crystals formed with the promotion of bcc-type templates can always persist within the time scale of simulation although not bcc but fcc crystals are thermodynamically stable

The Control of the Expansion or Compression of Colloidal Crystals Lattice with Salt Solution

Tuning the lattice spacing or stop bands holds great significance in the design and application of materials with colloidal crystals. Typically, particle surface modifications or the application of external physical fields are needed. In this study, we demonstrated the ability to expand or compress the lattice of colloidal crystals simply by utilizing a salt solution, without the need for any special treatments to the colloidal particles. We found that by only considering the diffusiophoresis effect we cannot explain the reversion of lattice expansion to lattice compression with the increase in the salt concentration and that the diffusioosmotic flow originating from the container wall must be taken into account. Further analysis revealed that variations in the salt concentration altered the relative amplitudes between diffusiophoresis and diffusioosmosis through changing the zeta potentials of the particles and the wall, and the competition between the particle diffusiophoresis and wall diffusioosmosis lay at the center of the underlying mechanism

RESEARCH ON FLOW SHIFT LAW OF POROUS MEDIA IN GOAF BASE ON THE UNSTEADY AIRFLOW THEORY

Based on unsteady flow theory, supported by the theories of mine ventilation, fluid mechanics and infiltration flow through porous media, a mathematical model of fluctuating airflow in the porous media of goafs of mines is established. Features of distribution of flow field in goaf when airflow fluctuating are researched by numerical simulation, and the distribution of flow field is tested with the help of an experiment model which was designed and done by the authors. The results show that the numerical simulation and experiment agree well. This shows that the mathematical model of flow field of porous media in goaf of mine established in the paper can be used to research distribution of flow field in goaf and flow shift law

STUDY OF THE WELDING RESIDUAL STRESS INFLUENCE ON STABILITY OF SOLUTION OF NONLINEAR THIN RECTANGULAR PLATE

According to theory of nonlinear vibration and Higher theory of plates and shells,the welding residual stress influence on stability of solution of nonlinear thin rectangular plate was studied to choose nonlinear rectangular thin plate possessed the welding residual stress as subject investigated. The conclusion which the stable and unstable regions of periodic solution of nonlinear rectangular thin plate possessed the welding residual stress has with the welding residual stress and change was gained. The conclusion which in different frequency ranges,the welding residual stress effects on stability of periodic solutions of different was obtained. The conclusion which the welding residual stress on the whole bring to reduce the stable region of periodic Solutions. The conclusion has certain guiding significance for the design of nonlinear rectangular thin plate possessed the welding residual stress

Ultrasound-guided scalp nerve block in anesthesia of children receiving cranial suture reconstruction

Abstract Objective Analgesia is very important for children with craniosynostosis who are undergoing cranial suture reconstruction. This study investigated the effectiveness and safety of an analgesic technique based on scalp nerve block combined with general anesthesia versus general anesthesia alone. Methods This was a single-center, prospective, randomized, controlled study. A total of 60 children aged 6-24 months who underwent cranial suture reconstruction were randomly divided into two groups: Group A (general anesthesia combined with scalp nerve block) and Group N (general anesthesia). The hemodynamics were recorded preoperatively, at 5 min after incision and at 1, 6 and 12 h after surgery; the pain was scored at 1, 6 and 12 h after surgery, and blood glucose was detected at 1 h after surgery. Results The mean arterial pressure and heart rate at 5 min after incision and 1 h after surgery in Group N were higher than those in Group A; the blood glucose and FLACC score in Group N were higher than those in Group A; and the number of postoperative analgesic pump presses were also significantly increased in Group N. Conclusion Preoperative scalp nerve block can reduce hemodynamic fluctuation and postoperative pain in children undergoing cranial suture reconstruction for craniosynostosis. Thus, it can be safely and effectively applied in the anesthesia of these children