Comparing Day 5 versus Day 6 euploid blastocyst in frozen embryo transfer and developing a predictive model for optimizing outcomes: a retrospective cohort study

BackgroundOptimal protocols for frozen-thawed embryo transfer (FET) after preimplantation genetic testing (PGT) remain unclear. This study compared Day 5 (D5) and Day 6 (D6) blastocysts and evaluated predictors of FET success.MethodsA total of 870 patients with genetic diseases or chromosomal translocations who received PGT at the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from January 2015 to December 2019 were recruited. All patients underwent at least one year of follow-up. Patients were divided into groups according to the blastocyst development days and quality. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression were applied to identify risk factors that affect clinical outcomes and to construct a predictive nomogram model. Area under the curve (AUC) of the subject’s operating characteristic curve and GiViTI calibration belt were conducted to determine the discrimination and fit of the model.ResultsD5 blastocysts, especially high-quality D5, resulted in significantly higher clinical pregnancy (58.4% vs 49.2%) and live birth rates (52.5% vs 45%) compared to D6. Multivariate regression demonstrated the number of blastocysts, endometrial preparation protocol, days of embryonic development and the quality of blastocysts independently affected live birth rates (P<0.05). A nomogram integrating these factors indicated favorable predictive accuracy (AUC=0.598) and fit (GiViTI, P=0.192).ConclusionsTransferring high-quality D5 euploid blastocysts after PGT maximizes pregnancy outcomes. Blastocyst quality, blastocyst development days, endometrial preparation protocols, and number of blastocysts, independently predicted outcomes. An individualized predictive model integrating these factors displayed favorable accuracy for counseling patients and optimizing clinical management

LLM-Mini-CEX: Automatic Evaluation of Large Language Model for Diagnostic Conversation

There is an increasing interest in developing LLMs for medical diagnosis to improve diagnosis efficiency. Despite their alluring technological potential, there is no unified and comprehensive evaluation criterion, leading to the inability to evaluate the quality and potential risks of medical LLMs, further hindering the application of LLMs in medical treatment scenarios. Besides, current evaluations heavily rely on labor-intensive interactions with LLMs to obtain diagnostic dialogues and human evaluation on the quality of diagnosis dialogue. To tackle the lack of unified and comprehensive evaluation criterion, we first initially establish an evaluation criterion, termed LLM-specific Mini-CEX to assess the diagnostic capabilities of LLMs effectively, based on original Mini-CEX. To address the labor-intensive interaction problem, we develop a patient simulator to engage in automatic conversations with LLMs, and utilize ChatGPT for evaluating diagnosis dialogues automatically. Experimental results show that the LLM-specific Mini-CEX is adequate and necessary to evaluate medical diagnosis dialogue. Besides, ChatGPT can replace manual evaluation on the metrics of humanistic qualities and provides reproducible and automated comparisons between different LLMs

Research and comparative analysis of the qualitative parameters of food powders produced from grain raw materials using an improved jet mill

The object of the study is samples of food powders obtained by grinding the products of the collection and processing of a number of grain crops, using air-grinding technology in an improved jet mill. One of the most important problems of the modern food industry is that for the production of flour from cereals endosperm is used while the most important nutrients are found in shells and the germ of the grain. As a result of its grinding in conventional mills, common at existing mills, large pieces of bran and a large variation in the particle size of the grinding products are obtained, and this method is energy-intensive. According to the authors, the best solution to ensure truly whole grain grinding – that is, grinding grains with shells – is air grinding in jet mills. An improved jet mill makes it possible to grind both endosperm and grain shells into flour of the same consistency. From the same amount of raw material, therefore, it is possible to produce approximately 30 % more final grinding products. It is also important that the improved jet mill, under proven conditions, spends no more energy for grinding than a conventional mill. For research, the most popular products ground in such a mill were taken – wheat flour (black grain), buckwheat flour (from roasted buckwheat) and wheat bran. The first two products are whole grain milled, and the bran is produced from the collapse of wheat grown in accordance with the requirements of organic farming. Samples of powders obtained by grinding these products in an improved jet mill were compared with control samples – produced from similar raw materials in a roller mill – the most common design in service with mills. Physical indicators of the powders, thermophysical properties and biotechnological parameters were carried out. The obtained results allow to state that whole grain grinding produced on an improved jet mill has the characteristics better or close to standard types of flour produced on conventional mills. It allows them to be used without significant changes in the formulation of products with their addition (bakery, pasta, etc.), and also to create new dietary, healthy products rich in biologically active substances

Strong Neel ordering and luminescence correlation in a two-dimensional antiferromagnet

Magneto-optical effect has been widely used in light modulation, optical sensing and information storage. Recently discovered two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals layered magnets are considered as promising platforms for investigating novel magneto-optical phenomena and devices, due to the long-range magnetic ordering down to atomically-thin thickness, rich species and tunable properties. However, majority 2D antiferromagnets suffer from low luminescence efficiency which hinders their magneto-optical investigations and applications. Here, we uncover strong light-magnetic ordering interactions in 2D antiferromagnetic MnPS3 utilizing a newly-emerged near-infrared photoluminescence (PL) mode far below its intrinsic bandgap. This ingap PL mode shows strong correlation with the Neel ordering and persists down to monolayer thickness. Combining the DFT, STEM and XPS, we illustrate the origin of the PL mode and its correlation with Neel ordering, which can be attributed to the oxygen ion-mediated states. Moreover, the PL strength can be further tuned and enhanced using ultraviolet-ozone treatment. Our studies offer an effective approach to investigate light-magnetic ordering interactions in 2D antiferromagnetic semiconductors

The Effect of Myosin Light Chain Kinase on the Occurrence and Development of Intracranial Aneurysm

Myosin light chain kinase is a key enzyme in smooth muscle cell contraction. However, whether myosin light chain kinase plays a role in the occurrence or development of intracranial aneurysms is not clear. The present study explored the function of myosin light chain kinase in human intracranial aneurysm tissues. Five aneurysm samples and five control samples were collected, and smooth muscle cells (SMCs) were dissociated and cultured. A label-free proteomic analysis was performed to screen the differentially expressed proteins between aneurysm and control samples. The expression and function of myosin light chain kinase in aneurysms were examined. We found that 180 proteins were differentially expressed between the aneurysm and control samples, among which 88 were increased and 92 (including myosin light chain kinase) were decreased in aneurysms compared to control tissues. In a model of the inflammatory environment, contractility was weakened and apoptosis was increased in aneurysm SMCs compared to human brain SMCs (p < 0.05). The knock down of myosin light chain kinase in human brain SMCs caused effects similar to those observed in aneurysm SMCs. These results indicated that myosin light chain kinase plays an important role in maintaining smooth muscle contractility, cell survival and inflammation tolerance

Face mask integrated with flexible and wearable manganite oxide respiration sensor

Face masks are key personal protective equipment for reducing exposure to viruses and other environmental hazards such as air pollution. Integrating flexible and wearable sensors into face masks can provide valuable insights into personal and public health. The advantages that a breath-monitoring face mask requires, including multi-functional sensing ability and continuous, long-term dynamic breathing process monitoring, have been underdeveloped to date. Here, we design an effective human breath monitoring face mask based on a flexible La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 (LSMO)/Mica respiration sensor. The sensor’s capabilities and systematic measurements are investigated under two application scenes, namely clinical monitoring mode and daily monitoring mode, to monitor, recognise, and analyse different human breath status, i.e., cough, normal breath, and deep breath. This sensing system exhibits super-stability and multi-modal capabilities in continuous and long-time monitoring of the human breath. We determine that during monitoring human breath, thermal diffusion in LSMO is responsible for the change of resistance in flexible LSMO/Mica sensor. Both simulated and experimental results demonstrate good discernibility of the flexible LSMO/Mica sensor operating at different breath status. Our work opens a route for the design of novel flexible and wearable electronic devices