Rapid assessment of early biophysical changes in K562 cells during apoptosis determined using dielectrophoresis

Apoptosis, or programmed cell death, is a vital cellular process responsible for causing cells to self-terminate at the end of their useful life. Abrogation of this process is commonly linked to cancer, and rapid detection of apoptosis in vitro is vital to the discovery of new anti-cancer drugs. In this paper, we describe the application of the electrical phenomenon dielectrophoresis for detecting apoptosis at very early stages after drug induction, on the basis of changes in electrophysiological properties. Our studies have revealed that K562 (human myelogenous leukemia) cells show a persistent elevation in the cytoplasmic conductivity occurring as early as 30 minutes following exposure to staurosporine. This method therefore allows a far more rapid detection method than existing biochemical marker methods

Simulating the Effect of Mixed Subsidy Policies on Urban Low-Value Recyclable Waste in China: A System Dynamics Approach

Low-value recyclable waste accounts for a large portion of urban waste output in many modern cities. The improper management and disposal of LVRW result in environmental pollution and a waste of resources. Given the characteristics of a high recovery cost and low recovery income of low-value recyclables, it is difficult to obtain a satisfactory waste disposal effect by completely relying on the market mechanism. It is thus necessary for the government to implement effective subsidies for multiple subjects in the urban waste recycling system (UWRS). This study examines the independent roles of four subsidy policies—subsidy to the third-party waste disposal institutions, subsidy to a state-owned waste disposal institution, R&D subsidy for green technology, and subsidy for government publicity—and develops a system dynamics model to verify the performance of the UWRS under different combinations of subsidy-based policies under multiple scenarios. Data on urban waste disposal for Guangzhou from 2019 and 2020 were used to validate and simulate the model. A sensitivity analysis of the main exogenous variables was carried out, and the conclusions are as follows: (1) On the premise of a fixed subsidy capital pool, a mixed subsidy policy produced the best impact on the UWRS. (2) The total subsidy needed to reach a certain threshold; otherwise, the mixed subsidy policy did not improve the UWRS. The total subsidy produced diminishing returns once it had exceeded the threshold. (3) Appropriately reducing subsidies for the third-party waste disposal institutions within a reasonable range does not affect the performance of the UWRS. (4) The effect of government publicity has short-term advantages, while the long-term potential of green technology is greater. Multi-agent coordination and the guidance of the market mechanism are important priorities in the design of subsidy-based policies. In addition, the trade-off between subjects needs attention, and a plan for mixed subsidy policies needs to be designed and implemented according to the response periods of different policies. The research here provides theoretical support for the government for designing subsidy-based policies

Additional file 1: of Classification of gallbladder cancer by assessment of CD8+ TIL and PD-L1 expression

Figure S1. Representative staining patterns of FFPE GBC lesions with CD133-specific mono antibody. CD133 expression was only seen at the membranous of tumor cells. A (× 100 original magnification), B (× 200 original magnification) and C (× 400 original magnification). Figure S2. Kaplan-Meier analysis of progression-free survival and overall survival for different biomarkers. PD-1 expression (A and B), CD133 expression (C and D) and PD-L2 expression (E and F) were all not associated with progression-free survival and overall survival. Figure S3. Kaplan-Meier analysis of progression-free survival and overall survival for PD-L1+ TCs (A and B) and three patterns of PD-L1 expression (C and D). Figure S4. Representative staining patterns of co-expression between PD-L1 and PD-L2. A. PD-L1 expression (× 200 original magnification); B. PD-L1 expression (× 400 original magnification); C. PD-L2 expression (× 200 original magnification); D. PD-L2 expression (× 400 original magnification). Table S1. Clinical and pathological features of the 66 GBC patients. Table S2. The clinicopathological characteristic of PD-L1 expression and CD8+ TILs in gallbladder cancer. (DOCX 1126 kb