Respiratory muscle ultrasonography evaluation and its clinical application in stroke patients: A review

BackgroundRespiratory muscle ultrasound is a widely available, highly feasible technique that can be used to study the contribution of the individual respiratory muscles related to respiratory dysfunction. Stroke disrupts multiple functions, and the respiratory function is often significantly decreased in stroke patients.MethodA search of the MEDLINE, Web of Science, and PubMed databases was conducted. We identified studies measuring respiratory muscles in healthy and patients by ultrasonography. Two reviewers independently extracted and documented data regarding to the criteria. Data were extracted including participant demographics, ultrasonography evaluation protocol, subject population, reference values, etc.ResultA total of 1954 participants from 39 studies were included. Among them, there were 1,135 participants from 19 studies on diaphragm, 259 participants from 6 studies on extra-diaphragmatic inspiratory muscles, and 560 participants from 14 studies on abdominal expiratory muscles. The ultrasonic evaluation of diaphragm and abdominal expiratory muscle thickness had a relatively typically approach, while, extra-diaphragmatic inspiratory muscles were mainly used in ICU that lack of a consistent paradigm.ConclusionDiaphragm and expiratory muscle ultrasound has been widely used in the assessment of respiratory muscle function. On the contrary, there is not enough evidence to assess extra-diaphragmatic inspiratory muscles by ultrasound. In addition, the thickness of the diaphragm on the hemiplegic side was lower than that on the non-hemiplegic side in stroke patients. For internal oblique muscle (IO), rectus abdominis muscle (RA), transversus abdominis muscle (TrA), and external oblique muscle (EO), most studies showed that the thickness on the hemiplegic side was lower than that on the non-hemiplegic side.Clinical Trial Registration: The protocol of this review was registered in the PROSPERO database (CRD42022352901)

Targeting RNA N6-methyladenosine modification—— a novel therapeutic target for HER2- positive gastric cancer

Gastric cancer is one of the most common cancers and is considered the 5th most frequent occurring cancer worldwide. It has gained great attention from the clinicians and researchers because of high mortality rate. It is generally treated with chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery. Recently, additional treatment options including immunotherapy and targeted therapy and immunotherapy have been developed. However, poor prognosis, limited survival rate of patients, and drug resistance to treatment remain critical problems. To improve treatment options or to overcome the bottleneck of treatment, identification of diagnostic and prognostic markers, determining the most effective therapeutic options, and uncovering the molecular regulations associated with treatment strategies are required. In this regard n6-methyladenosine (m6A) regulation is considered important. This reversible modification plays a crucial role in progression, development and treatment of HER2-positive gastric cancer. Here, we discuss the role of m6A modification in HER2-positive gastric cancer progression through collecting related studies at present. We further discuss the association of m6A modification with therapeutic efficacy in HER2-positive gastric cancer and list some examples. We conclude that modification of m6A can be a new strategy for improving the prognosis and survival rate of HER2-positive gastric cancer patients

Pricing Game between Customized Bus and Conventional Bus with Combined Operational Objectives

Social welfare and profit are two main factors to be included in the operational goal of bus services. It is assumed that conventional bus services are “welfare pro” with more consideration of social welfare, while customized bus services are “profit pro” with more consideration of profit, and the goal of each bus service is to maximize the overall payoffs, namely, the weighted sum of social welfare and profit. A bi-level pricing game is proposed to shed light on the impact of two bus services’ pricing competition on the payoffs when the operational objectives with different weights of social welfare are adopted. A case study shows that the pricing strategies of conventional bus services have a significant impact on the customized bus services. The customized bus operator should consider more “social welfare” to attract customers and to achieve the overall payoffs when the conventional bus service takes a high price strategy, and the customized bus operator can take a strategy of a high price to maintain its overall payoffs when the conventional bus operator maximizes the social welfare. It is found that there exists a trade-off by which both sides obtain the balanced overall payoffs

Associations of genetic polymorphisms of the vitamin D pathway with blood pressure in a Han Chinese population

Vitamin D deficiency can lead to high blood pressure. Polymorphisms in the vitamin D hydroxylase gene have been associated with serum vitamin D levels in some Western countries. The aim of this study was to investigate whether polymorphisms of hydroxylase genes in the vitamin D metabolic pathway contribute to hypertension by affecting serum vitamin D status in a Han Chinese population. We selected four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs; rs1993116 and rs10741657 of CYP2R1; rs4809957 and rs6068816 of CYP24A1) for genotyping in 525 control subjects and 324 hypertensive patients, and detected vitamin D levels in blood in subsets of these groups. The results showed that rs1993116 and rs10741657 were associated with a reduced risk of hypertension. The odds ratios, 95% confidence intervals, and p values from the adjusted additive and dominant models were 0.788 (0.644–0.963, p = 0.02) and 0.719 (0.545–0.949, p = 0.02) for rs1993116 and 0.805 (0.66–0.983, p = 0.033) and 0.733 (0.556–0.966, p = 0.028) for rs10741657. A protective effect of CYP2R1 with regard to hypertension was also found in males and non-smokers. The TT genotypes of rs1993116 and rs10741657 were associated with significantly lower systolic blood pressure in treated hypertensive patients (both p = 0.002). No association with hypertension was found for the two SNPs of CYP24A1, and no difference in vitamin D level was found among the three genotypes of the four SNPs. Our results suggest that CYP2R1 polymorphisms are associated with a reduced risk of hypertension independent of the vitamin D level in the Han Chinese population

Caffeinated Drinks Intake, Late Chronotype, and Increased Body Mass Index among Medical Students in Chongqing, China: A Multiple Mediation Model

Background: This paper investigates the problems regarding caffeinated drinks intake, late chronotype, and increased body mass index (BMI) among medical students at a Chinese university. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2018 with 616 medical students from Chongqing Medical University in Chongqing, China, whose information were collected by a self-reported questionnaire that included four sections: Demographic characteristics; Caffeinated drinks intake and physical state; Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire; Depression Anxiety Stress Scale 21. Multiple mediation analyses were conducted to test the impact of late chronotype on increased BMI through caffeinated drinks consumption through two models. Results: The significantly mediated effect of caffeinated drinks consumption was revealed (estimate: −0.01, SE = 0.01, 95% CI [−0.02, −0.01]), and which played a positive role in linking late chronotype (B = −0.01, SE = 0.01, p < 0.001) and increased BMI (B = 1.37, SE = 0.21, p < 0.01), but their significant association did not be found in reversed model. In addition, physical activity and inactivity times demonstrated significant indirect effects in the two models. Conclusions: Interventions should focus on reducing caffeinated drinks intake and sedentary behavior time, enhancing physical activity among medical students

Assessment of Diaphragm in Hemiplegic Patients after Stroke with Ultrasound and Its Correlation of Extremity Motor and Balance Function

Background: A variety of functional disorders can be caused after stroke, among which impairment of respiratory function is a frequent and serious complication of stroke patients. The aim of this study was to examine diaphragmatic function after stroke by diaphragm ultrasonography and then to apply to explore its correlation with extremity motor function and balance function of the hemiplegia patients. Methods: This cross-sectional observational study recruited 48 hemiplegic patients after stroke and 20 matched healthy participants. The data of demographic and ultrasonographic assessment of all healthy subjects were recorded, and 45 patients successfully underwent baseline data assessment in the first 48 h following admission, including post-stroke duration, stroke type, hemiplegia side, pipeline feeding, pulmonary infection, ultrasonographic assessment for diaphragm, Fugl–Meyer Motor Function Assessment Scale (FMA Scale), and Berg Balance Scale assessment. Ultrasonographic assessment parameters included diaphragm mobility under quiet and deep breathing, diaphragm thickness at end-inspiratory and end-expiratory, and calculated thickening fraction of the diaphragm. The aim was to analyze the diaphragm function of hemiplegic patients after stroke and to explore its correlation with extremity motor function and balance function. Results: The incidence of diaphragmatic dysfunction under deep breath was 46.67% in 45 hemiplegia patients after stroke at the convalescent phase. The paralyzed hemidiaphragm had major impairments, and the mobility of the hemiplegic diaphragm was significantly reduced during deep breathing (p < 0.05). Moreover, the thickness fraction of hemiplegic side was extremely diminished when contrasted with the healthy control and non-hemiplegic side (p < 0.05). We respectively compared the diaphragm mobility under deep breath on the hemiplegic and non-hemiplegic side of patients with left and right hemiplegia and found there was no significant difference between the hemiplegic side of right and left hemiplegia (p > 0.05), but the non-hemiplegic side of right hemiplegia was significantly weaker than that of left hemiplegia patients (p < 0.05). The diaphragm mobility of stroke patients under quiet breath was positively correlated with age and FMA Scale score (R2 = 0.296, p < 0.05), and significant positive correlations were found between the diaphragm mobility under deep breath and Berg Balance Scale score (R2 = 0.11, p < 0.05), diaphragm thickness at end-inspiratory and FMA Scale score (R2 = 0.152, p < 0.05), and end-expiratory thickness and FMA Scale score (R2 = 0.204, p < 0.05). Conclusions: The mobility and thickness fraction of the hemiplegic diaphragm after stroke by diaphragm ultrasonography were significantly reduced during deep breathing. Diaphragm mobility on bilateral sides of the right hemiplegia patients were reduced during deep breathing. Moreover, the hemiplegic diaphragmatic function was positively correlated with extremity motor and balance function of the hemiplegia patients

Effect of Physical and Mechanical Activation on the Physicochemical Structure of Coal-Based Activated Carbons for SO2 Adsorption

The SO2 adsorption efficiency of activated carbons (ACs) is clearly dependent on its physicochemical structure. Related to this, the effect of physical and mechanical activation on the physicochemical structure of coal-based ACs has been investigated in this work. In the stage of CO2 activation, the rapid decrease of the defective structure and the growth of aromatic layers accompanied by the dehydrogenation of aromatic rings result in the ordered conversion of the microstructure and severe carbon losses on the surfaces of Char-PA, while the oxygen content of Char-PA, including C=O (39.6%), C–O (27.3%), O–C=O (18.4%) and chemisorbed O (or H2O) (14.7%), is increased to 4.03%. Char-PA presents a relatively low SBET value (414.78 m2/g) owing to the high value of Non-Vmic (58.33%). In the subsequent mechanical activation from 12 to 48 h under N2 and dry ice, the strong mechanical collision caused by ball-milling can destroy the closely arranged crystalline layers and the collapse of mesopores and macropores, resulting in the disordered conversion of the microstructure and the formation of a defective structure, and a sustained increase in the SBET value from 715.89 to 1259.74 m2/g can be found with the prolonging of the ball-milling time. There is a gradual increase in the oxygen content from 6.79 to 9.48% for Char-PA-CO2-12/48 obtained by ball-milling under CO2. Remarkably, the varieties of physicochemical parameters of Char-PA-CO2-12/48 are more obvious than those of Char-PA-N2-12/48 under the same ball-milling time, which is related to the stronger solid-gas reactions caused by the mechanical collision under dry ice. Finally, the results of the SO2 adsorption test of typical samples indicate that Char-PA-CO2-48 with a desirable physicochemical structure can maintain 100% efficiency within 30 min and that its SO2 adsorption capacity can reach 138.5 mg/g at the end of the experiment. After the 10th cycle of thermal regeneration, Char-PA-CO2-48 still has a strong adsorptive capacity (81.2 mg/g)

Highly Porous Graphitic Activated Carbons from Lignite via Microwave Pretreatment and Iron-Catalyzed Graphitization at Low-Temperature for Supercapacitor Electrode Materials

At present, the preparation of highly porous graphitic activated carbons (HPGACs) using the usual physical and chemical activation methods has met a bottleneck. In this study, HPGACs are directly synthesized from lignite at 900 °C. The whole process is completed by a microwave pretreatment, a graphitization conversion of the carbon framework at a low temperature using a small amount of FeCl3 (10−30 wt%), and a subsequent physical activation using CO2. Consequently, the dispersed and mobile iron species, in the absence of oxygen functional groups (removed during the microwave pretreatment), can greatly promote catalytic graphitization during pyrolysis, and, as an activating catalyst, can further facilitate the porosity development during activation. The as-obtained AC-2FeHLH-5-41.4(H) presents a low defect density, high purity, and specific surface area of 1852.43 m2 g−1, which is far greater than the AC-HLH-5-55.6(H) obtained solely by physical activation. AC-2FeHLH-5-41.4(H) as a supercapacitor electrode presents an excellent performance in the further electrochemical measurements. Such a convenient and practical method with low cost proves a scalable method to prepare HPGACs from a wide range of coal/biomass materials for industrial scale-up and applications

Conditioned Medium from Malignant Breast Cancer Cells Induces an EMT-Like Phenotype and an Altered N-Glycan Profile in Normal Epithelial MCF10A Cells

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a key process in cancer development and progression. Communication (crosstalk) between cancer cells and normal (nonmalignant) cells may facilitate cancer progression. Conditioned medium (CM) obtained from cultured cancer cells contains secreted factors capable of affecting phenotypes and the behaviors of normal cells. In this study, a culture of normal breast epithelial MCF10A cells with CM from malignant breast cancer cells (termed 231-CM and 453-CM) resulted in an alteration of morphology. CM-treated MCF10A, in comparison with control cells, showed a reduced expression of the epithelial marker E-cadherin, increased expression of the mesenchymal markers fibronectin, vimentin, N-cadherin, and TWIST1, meanwhile cell proliferation and migration were enhanced while cell apoptosis was decreased. N-glycan profiles of 231-CM-treated and control MCF10A cells were compared by MALDI-TOF/TOF-MS (Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/ Ionization Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry) and a lectin microarray analysis. The treated cells showed lower levels of high-mannose-type N-glycan structures, and higher levels of complex-type and hybrid-type structures. Altered N-glycan profiles were also detected in 453-CM-treated and non-treated MCF10A cells by MALDI-TOF/TOF-MS, and we found that the expression of five fucosylated N-glycan structures (m/z 1406.663, 1590.471, 1668.782, 2421.141, and 2988.342) and one high-mannose structure m/z 1743.722 have the same pattern as 231-CM-treated MCF10A cells. Our findings, taken together, show that CM derived from breast cancer cells induced an EMT-like process in normal epithelial cells and altered their N-glycan profile