An Alternative to Current Therapies of Functional Dyspepsia: Self-Administrated Transcutaneous Electroacupuncture Improves Dyspeptic Symptoms

Functional dyspepsia is of high prevalence with little treatment options. The aim of this study was to develop a new treatment method using self-management transcutaneous electroacupuncture (TEA) for functional dyspepsia (FD). Twenty-eight patients with FD were enrolled and underwent a crossover clinical trial with 2-week TEA at ST36 and PC6 and 2-week sham-TEA at nonacupuncture sham-points. Questionnaires were used to assess symptoms of dyspepsia and quality of life. Physiological testing included gastric emptying and electrogastrography. It was found that (1) TEA but not sham-TEA significantly improved dyspeptic symptoms and 4 domains in quality of life; improvement was also noted in self-rated anxiety and depression scores; (2) gastric emptying was significantly and substantially increased with 2-week TEA but not sham-TEA; and (3) gastric accommodation was also improved with TEA but not sham-TEA, reflected as increased ingested nutrient volumes at the levels of satiety and maximum tolerance. These findings suggest a therapeutic potential of self-administrated TEA method for functional dyspepsia, possibly attributed to improvement in gastric motility

HRST: An Improved HRNet for Detecting Joint Points of Pigs

The body size of pigs is a vital evaluation indicator for growth monitoring and selective breeding. The detection of joint points is critical for accurately estimating pig body size. However, most joint point detection methods focus on improving detection accuracy while neglecting detection speed and model parameters. In this study, we propose an HRNet with Swin Transformer block (HRST) based on HRNet for detecting the joint points of pigs. It can improve model accuracy while significantly reducing model parameters by replacing the fourth stage of parameter redundancy in HRNet with a Swin Transformer block. Moreover, we implemented joint point detection for multiple pigs following two steps: first, CenterNet was used to detect pig posture (lying or standing); then, HRST was used for joint point detection for standing pigs. The results indicated that CenterNet achieved an average precision (AP) of 86.5%, and HRST achieved an AP of 77.4% and a real-time detection speed of 40 images per second. Compared with HRNet, the AP of HRST improved by 6.8%, while the number of model parameters and the calculated amount reduced by 72.8% and 41.7%, respectively. The study provides technical support for the accurate and rapid detection of pig joint points, which can be used for contact-free body size estimation of pigs

Preparation, characterization, and photocatalytic performance of polyvinylidene fluoride membrane modified with TiO2-C hybrid aerogels

TiO2-C hybrid aerogels containing submicrometer anatase and carbon nanoparticles were prepared with TiCl4 and resorcinol-furfural. A modified polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) ultrafiltration membrane was prepared through phase inversion after dispersing the TiO2-C hybrid aerogel into a PVDF solution. The surface features, structure, and hydrophilicity of the membrane were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, contact angle measurement, and pure water flux. The mechanical strength of this membrane was also determined. The photocatalytic performance of the modified membrane was investigated using reactive brilliant red (X-3B) as a representative contaminant. Characterization results indicated that the TiO2-C hybrid aerogels were distributed evenly in the PVDF membrane, showing enhanced hydrophilicity, mechanical strength, and pure water flux. Furthermore, the photodegradation rate of X-3B through the modified membrane was significantly high owing to the photocatalytic action of the TiO2-C hybrid aerogels distributed in the modified membrane

CFD Simulation of Airflow Dynamics During Cough Based on CT-Scanned Respiratory Airway Geometries

The airflow dynamics observed during a cough process in a CT-scanned respiratory airway model were numerically analyzed using the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method. The model and methodology were validated by a comparison with published experimental results. The influence of the cough peak flow rate on airflow dynamics and flow distribution was studied. The maximum velocity, wall pressure, and wall shear stress increased linearly as the cough peak flow increased. However, the cough peak flow rate had little influence on the flow distribution of the left and right main bronchi during the cough process. This article focuses on the mathematical and numerical modelling for human cough process in bioengineering

A thermosensitive hydrogel-copper meta-organic framework composite improves hindlimb ischemia therapy through synergistically enhancing HIF-1α production and inhibiting HIF-1α degradation

Critical limb ischemia (CLI) remains a significant clinical challenge with high morbidity and mortality. Considering the critical role of hypoxia-inducible factor 1α (HIF-1α) in hypoxic site to induce angiogenesis by regulating the expression of growth factors, we prepared a cooperative composite (P-F-HKUST-1) by mixing thermo-responsive hydrogel (PPCN) with folic acid modified copper-based MOFs (F-HKUST-1) for the hindlimb ischemia therapy. The gelation of P-F-HKUST-1 in hindlimb muscle generated a more serious ischemia environment and subsequently induced the expression of HIF-1α, while the slowly released Cu2+ from P-F-HKUST-1 increased HIF-1α stability by inactivating the factor-inhibiting hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (FIH-1), which synergistically induced the productions of downstream growth factors and finally restored the blood perfusion rapidly. In addition, P-F-HKUST-1 hydrogel exhibited a long in vivo retention time, which endowed the sustaining action on HIF-1α to reduce the frequency of administration. The rapid blood flow recovery, together with the good biocompatibility suggested that P-F-HKUST-1 could be a potential novel combined therapy (HIF-1α stimulation and stabilization) for critical limb ischemia

Serum Cystatin C and Coronavirus Disease 2019: A Potential Inflammatory Biomarker in Predicting Critical Illness and Mortality for Adult Patients

This study aimed at determining the relationship between baseline cystatin C levels and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and investigating the potential prognostic value of serum cystatin C in adult patients with COVID-19. 481 patients with COVID-19 were consecutively included in this study from January 2, 2020, and followed up to April 15, 2020. All clinical and laboratory data of COVID-19 patients with definite outcomes were reviewed. For every measure, COVID-19 patients were grouped into quartiles according to the baseline levels of serum cystatin C. The highest cystatin C level was significantly related to more severe inflammatory conditions, worse organ dysfunction, and worse outcomes among patients with COVID-19 (P values < 0.05). In the adjusted logistic regression analyses, the highest cystatin C level and ln-transformed cystatin C levels were independently associated with the risks of developing critically ill COVID-19 and all-cause death either in overall patients or in patients without chronic kidney disease (P values < 0.05). As a potential inflammatory marker, increasing baseline levels of serum cystatin C might independently predict adverse outcomes for COVID-19 patients. Serum cystatin C could be routinely monitored during hospitalization, which showed clinical importance in prognosticating for adult patients with COVID-19

Nanoscale Metal–Organic Frameworks for Ratiometric Oxygen Sensing in Live Cells

We report the design of a phosphorescence/fluorescence dual-emissive nanoscale metal–organic framework (NMOF), R-UiO, as an intracellular oxygen (O₂) sensor. R-UiO contains a Pt­(II)-porphyrin ligand as an O₂-sensitive probe and a Rhodamine-B isothiocyanate ligand as an O₂-insensitive reference probe. It exhibits good crystallinity, high stability, and excellent ratiometric luminescence response to O₂ partial pressure. <i>In vitro</i> experiments confirmed the applicability of R-UiO as an intracellular O₂ biosensor. This work is the first report of a NMOF-based intracellular oxygen sensor and should inspire the design of ratiometric NMOF sensors for other important analytes in biological systems

ddRAD‐Seq reveals evolutionary insights into population differentiation and the cryptic phylogeography of Hyporhamphus intermedius in Mainland China

Abstract Species differentiation and local adaptation in heterogeneous environments have attracted much attention, although little is known about the mechanisms involved. Hyporhamphus intermedius is an anadromous, brackish‐water halfbeak that is widely distributed in coastal areas and hyperdiverse freshwater systems in China, making it an interesting model for research on phylogeography and local adaptation. Here, 156 individuals were sampled at eight sites from heterogeneous aquatic habitats to examine environmental and genetic contributions to phenotypic divergence. Using double‐digest restriction‐site‐associated DNA sequencing (ddRAD‐Seq) in the specimens from the different watersheds, 5498 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were found among populations, with obvious population differentiation. We find that present‐day Mainland China populations are structured into distinct genetic clusters stretching from southern and northern ancestries, mirroring geography. Following a transplant event in Plateau Lakes, there were virtually no variations of genetic diversity occurred in two populations, despite the fact two main splits were unveiled in the demographic history. Additionally, dorsal, and anal fin traits varied widely between the southern group and the others, which highlighted previously unrecognized lineages. We then explore genotype–phenotype‐environment associations and predict candidate loci. Subgroup ranges appeared to correspond to geographic regions with heterogeneous hydrological factors, indicating that these features are likely important drivers of diversification. Accordingly, we conclude that genetic and phenotypic polymorphism and a moderate amount of genetic differentiation occurred, which might be ascribed to population subdivision, and the impact of abiotic factors