Chiral symmetry restoration and properties of Goldstone bosons at finite temperature

We study chiral symmetry restoration by analyzing thermal properties of QCD's (pseudo-)Goldstone bosons, especially the pion. The meson properties are obtained from the spectral densities of mesonic imaginary-time correlation functions. To obtain the correlation functions, we solve the Dyson-Schwinger equations and the inhomogeneous Bethe-Salpeter equations in the leading symmetry-preserving rainbow-ladder approximation. In the chiral limit, the pion and its partner sigma degenerate at the critical temperature $T_c$. At $T \gtrsim T_c$, it is found that the pion rapidly dissociates, which signals deconfinement phase transition. Beyond the chiral limit, the pion dissociation temperature can be used to define the pseudo-critical temperature of chiral phase crossover, which is consistent with that obtained by the maximum point of the chiral susceptibility. The parallel analysis for kaon and pseudoscalar $s\bar{s}$ suggests that heavy mesons may survive above $T_c$

Functionalized halloysite nanotube-based carrier for intracellular delivery of antisense oligonucleotides

Halloysites are cheap, abundantly available, and natural with high mechanical strength and biocompatibility. In this paper, a novel halloysite nanotube [HNT]-based gene delivery system was explored for loading and intracellular delivery of antisense oligodeoxynucleotides [ASODNs], in which functionalized HNTs [f-HNTs] were used as carriers and ASODNs as a therapeutic gene for targeting survivin. HNTs were firstly surface-modified with γ-aminopropyltriethoxysilane in order to facilitate further biofunctionalization. The f-HNTs and the assembled f-HNT-ASODN complexes were characterized by transmission electron microscopy [TEM], dynamic light scattering, UV-visible spectroscopy, and fluorescence spectrophotometry. The intracellular uptake and delivery efficiency of the complexes were effectively investigated by TEM, confocal microscopy, and flow cytometry. In vitro cytotoxicity studies of the complexes using MTT assay exhibited a significant enhancement in the cytotoxic capability. The results exhibited that f-HNT complexes could efficiently improve intracellular delivery and enhance antitumor activity of ASODNs by the nanotube carrier and could be used as novel promising vectors for gene therapy applications, which is attributed to their advantages over structures and features including a unique tubular structure, large aspect ratio, natural availability, rich functionality, good biocompatibility, and high mechanical strength

Histone acetylation increases in response to ferulic, gallic, and sinapic acids acting synergistically in vitro to inhibit \u3ci\u3eCandida albicans\u3c/i\u3e yeast‐to‐hyphae transition

Novel treatments are needed to prevent candidiasis/candidemia infection due to the emergence of Candida species resistant to current antifungals. Considering the yeast-to‐hyphae switch is a critical factor to Candida albicans virulence, phenols common in plant sources have been reported to demonstrating their ability to prevent dimorphism. Therefore, phenols present in many agricultural waste stress (ferulic (FA) and gallic (GA) acid) were initially screened in isolation for their yeast‐to‐hyphae inhibitory properties at times 3, 6, and 24 hr. Both FA and GA inhibited 50% of hyphae formation inhibitory concentration (IC50) but at a concentration of 8.0 ± 0.09 and 90.6 ± 1.05 mM, respectively, at 24 hr. However, the inhibitory effect of FA increased by 1.9–2.6 fold when combined with different GA concentrations. GA and FA values decreased even lower when sinapic acid (SA) was added as a third component. As evidenced by concave isobolograms and combination indexes less than 1, both GA:F A and GA:FA:SA combinations acted synergistically to inhibit 50% hyphae formation at 24 hr. Lastly, acetylation of histone H3 lysine 56 acetylation (H3K56) was higher in response to the triple phenolic cocktail (using the IC50 24 hr inhibitory concentration level) comparable with the nontreated samples, indicating that the phenols inhibited hyphal growth in part by targeting H3K56 acetylation

1,3-Bis(4-tert-butyl­phen­yl)-4-nitro­butan-1-one

In the crystal structure of the title compound, C24H31NO3, mol­ecules are connected via C—H⋯O inter­molecular hydrogen bonds, forming dimers. The benzene rings are oriented at a dihedral angle of 29.8 (1)°

Soy isoflavones have an antiestrogenic effect and alter mammary promoter hypermethylation in healthy premenopausal women1

We hypothesized that soy isoflavones would have dose related estrogenic and methylation effects. 34 healthy premenopausal women were prospectively enrolled and randomized in double-blind fashion to receive either 40 mg or 140 mg isoflavones daily through one menstrual cycle. Breast specific (NAF) and systemic (serum) estrogenic effects were assessed measuring the estrogenic marker complement (C)3 and changes in cytology, while methylation effects were evaluated in mammary ductoscopy (MD) specimens using methylation specific PCR assessment of five genes (p16, RASSF1A, RARβ2, ER, and CCND2) associated with breast carcinogenesis. Serum genistein significantly increased post treatment in women consuming both isoflavone doses. Neither NAF nor MD cytology significantly changed after either low or high dose isoflavones. Serum C3 levels post treatment were inversely related to change in serum genistein (r= -0.76, p=0.0045) in women consuming low dose isoflavones. RARβ2 hypermethylation increased post treatment correlated with the post treatment level of genistein among all subjects (r=0.67, p=0.0017) and in women receiving high dose isoflavones (r=0.68, p=0.021). At the low dose, CCND2 hypermethylation increase correlated with post treatment genistein levels (r=0.79, p=0.011). The inverse correlation between C3 and genistein suggests an antiestrogenic effect. Isoflavones induced dose specific changes in RARβ2 and CCND2 gene methylation which correlated with genistein levels. This work provides novel insights into estrogenic and methylation effects of dietary isoflavones.

Construction of α,α‐disubstituted α‐Amino Acid Derivatives via aza‐Morita‐Baylis‐Hillman Reactions of 2‐Aminoacrylates with Activated Olefins

A useful and convenient strategy for the synthesis of α,α‐disubstituted α‐amino acid (α‐AA) derivatives via aza‐Morita‐Baylis‐Hillman reaction of 2‐aminoacrylates with activated olefins has been developed. A variety of α‐AA derivatives containing an α‐amino tertiary center were synthesized in good to excellent yields. The kinetic profiles and calculated methyl anion affinity (MAA) values were employed to rationalize the reactivities of different Michael acceptors used in the reaction

An immunological electrospun scaffold for tumor cell killing and healthy tissue regeneration

Antibody-based cancer immune therapy has attracted lots of research interest in recent years; however, it is greatly limited by the easy distribution and burst release of antibodies. In addition, after the clearance of the tissue, healthy tissue regeneration is another challenge for cancer treatment. Herein, we have developed a specific immunological tissue engineering scaffold using the agonistic mouse anti-human CD40 antibody (CD40mAb) incorporated into poly(l-lactide) (PLLA) electrospun fibers through the dopamine (PDA) motif (PLLA-PDA-CD40mAb). CD40mAb is successfully incorporated onto the surface of the electrospun fibrous scaffold, which is proved by immunofluorescence staining, and the PLLA-PDA-CD40mAb scaffold has an anti-tumor effect by locally releasing CD40mAb. Therefore, this immunological electrospun scaffold has very good potential to be developed as a powerful tool for localized tumor treatment, and this is the first to be reported in this area.Peer reviewe

Machine learning in the prediction of post-stroke cognitive impairment: a systematic review and meta-analysis

ObjectiveCognitive impairment is a detrimental complication of stroke that compromises the quality of life of the patients and poses a huge burden on society. Due to the lack of effective early prediction tools in clinical practice, many researchers have introduced machine learning (ML) into the prediction of post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI). However, the mathematical models for ML are diverse, and their accuracy remains highly contentious. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the efficiency of ML in the prediction of PSCI.MethodsRelevant articles were retrieved from Cochrane, Embase, PubMed, and Web of Science from the inception of each database to 5 December 2022. Study quality was evaluated by PROBAST, and c-index, sensitivity, specificity, and overall accuracy of the prediction models were meta-analyzed.ResultsA total of 21 articles involving 7,822 stroke patients (2,876 with PSCI) were included. The main modeling variables comprised age, gender, education level, stroke history, stroke severity, lesion volume, lesion site, stroke subtype, white matter hyperintensity (WMH), and vascular risk factors. The prediction models used were prediction nomograms constructed based on logistic regression. The pooled c-index, sensitivity, and specificity were 0.82 (95% CI 0.77–0.87), 0.77 (95% CI 0.72–0.80), and 0.80 (95% CI 0.71–0.86) in the training set, and 0.82 (95% CI 0.77–0.87), 0.82 (95% CI 0.70–0.90), and 0.80 (95% CI 0.68–0.82) in the validation set, respectively.ConclusionML is a potential tool for predicting PSCI and may be used to develop simple clinical scoring scales for subsequent clinical use.Systematic Review Registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=383476