Quantum state transmission via a spin ladder as a robust data bus

We explore the physical mechanism to coherently transfer the quantum information of spin by connecting two spins to an isotropic antiferromagnetic spin ladder system as data bus. Due to a large spin gap existing in such a perfect medium, the effective Hamiltonian of the two connected spins can be archived as that of Heisenberg type, which possesses a ground state with maximal entanglement. We show that the effective coupling strength is inversely proportional to the distance of the two spins and thus the quantum information can be transferred between the two spins separated by a longer distance, i.e. the characteristic time of quantum state transferring linearly depends on the distance.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, 1 tabl

Gender bias in fetal malformations: A cross-sectional study in Asian populations

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to detect any gender bias in fetal malformation cases.DesignThis study was a cross-sectional, quantitative survey.SubjectsOverall, 1,661 Asian fetal malformation cases involving induced abortions in the obstetrics department of the first Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from 2012 to 2021 were included.Main outcome measuresMeasurements of ultrasound detectable structural malformations were classified into 13 subtypes. Karyotyping, single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array, or sequencing diagnosis of these fetus was also included in the outcome measures.ResultsThe sex ratio (male/female) of all malformation types was 1.446. Cardiopulmonary had the highest proportion of all malformation types with 28%. Diaphragmatic hernia, omphalocele, gastroschisis, nuchal translucency (NT), and Multy malformations had significantly higher proportions of males (p < 0.05). Digestive system malformations had a significantly higher proportion of females (p < 0.05). Maternal age was associated with genetic factors (r = 0.953, p < 0.001) and inversely associated with brain malformations (r = −0.570, p = 0.002). More males were found with trisomy 21, trisomy 18, and monogenetic diseases, while duplications, deletions, and uniparental disomy (UPD) had similar sex ratios between males and females, but not statistically significant.ConclusionSex differences are common with fetal malformations, with higher proportions of males. Genetic testing has been proposed to account for these differences

MFGE8 Regulates TGF-β-Induced Epithelial Mesenchymal Transition in Endometrial Epithelial Cells in vitro

This study investigated the role of milk fat globule-epidermal growth factor-factor 8 (MFGE8) in TGF-β-induced epithelial– mesenchymal transition (EMT) of endometrial epithelial cells. These were in vitro studies using human endometrial epithelial cells and mouse blastocysts. We investigated the ability of TGF-β to induce EMT in endometrial epithelial cells (HEC-1A) by assessment of cytological phenotype (by light and atomic force microscopy), changes in expression of the markers of cell adhesion/differentiation E- and N-cadherin, and of the transcription factor Snail (by immunofluorescence and immunoblotting), and competence to support embryo attachment in a mouse blastocyst outgrowth assay. We also studied the effects of E-cadherin expression in cells transfected by retroviral shRNA vectors specifically silencing MFGE8. Results demonstrated that TGF-β induced EMT as demonstrated by phenotypic cell changes, by a switch of cadherin expression as well as by upregulation of the expression of the mesenchymal markers Snail and Vimentin. Upon MFGE8 knockdown, these processes were interfered with, suggesting that MFGE8 and TGF-β together may participate in regulation of EMT. This study demonstrated for the first time that endometrial MFGE8 modulates TGF-β-induced EMT in human endometrium cells

Short-term and medium-term clinical outcomes of laparoscopic-assisted and open surgery for colorectal cancer: a single center retrospective case-control study

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic procedure is a rapid developed technique in colorectal surgery. In this investigation we aim at assessing the diversities of short-term and medium-term clinical outcomes of laparoscopic-assisted versus open surgery for colorectal cancer. METHODS: A total number of 519 patients with non-metastatic colorectal cancer were enrolled for this study. The patients underwent either laparoscopic-assisted surgery (LAP) (n = 254) or open surgery (OP) (n = 265). Surgical techniques, perioperative managements and clinical follow-ups were standardized. Short-term perioperative data and medium-term recurrence and survival were compared and analyzed between the two groups. RESULTS: There were no differences in perioperative parameters between the two groups except in regards to a trend of faster recovery in laparoscopic procedures. There was no statistically significant difference in postoperative complications, reoperation rate, or perioperative mortality. Statistically significant differences in a faster return of gastrointestinal function and shorter hospital stay were identified in favor of laparoscopic-assisted resection. In colon and rectal cancer cases separately, the overall survival, cancer-free survival and recurrence rate were similar in two groups. There was also no tendency of significant differences in overall survival, cancer-free survival and recurrence in stage I-II and stage III patients in two cancer categories between the two groups, respectively. pT, lymph node metastasis, and clinical stage were independent predictors of overall death risk, while pT, pN, lymph node metastasis and clinical stage were found to be the independent predictors of recurrence risk in enrolled patients database. CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopic-assisted procedure has more benefits on postoperative recovery, while has the same effects on medium-term recurrence and survival compared with open surgery in the treatment of non-metastatic colorectal cancer

Optical amplification in hollow-core negative-curvature fibers doped with perovskite CsPbBr3 nanocrystals

We report a hollow-core negative-curvature fiber (HC-NCF) optical signal amplifier fabricated by the filling of the air microchannels of the fiber with all-inorganic CsPbBr3 perovskite nanocrystals (PNCs). The optimum fabrication conditions were found to enhance the optical gain, up to +3 dB in the best device. Experimental results were approximately reproduced by a gain assisted mechanism based on the nonlinear optical properties of the PNCs, indicating that signal regeneration can be achieved under low pump powers, much below the threshold of stimulated emission. The results can pave the road for new functionalities of the HC-NCF with PNCs, such as optical amplification, nonlinear frequency conversion and gas sensors

Baicalein inhibits acinar-to-ductal metaplasia of pancreatic acinal cell AR42J via improving the inflammatory microenvironment

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the most aggressive cancers. Recent research has demonstrated that chronic pancreatitis (CP) is associated with an increased risk of PDAC, partly due to acinar-to-ductal metaplasia (ADM). Baicalein has been shown to exert anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor effects for CP or PDAC, respectively. The aim of our study was to investigate the effect of baicalein, and the putative underlying mechanism, on inflammatory cytokines-induced ADM of rat pancreatic acinar cell line AR42J. To investigate ADM and baicalein effects in vitro, AR42J were treated with recombinant rat Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha (rTNFα) with or without baicalein for 5 days. Results showed that rTNFα-induced AR42J cells switched their phenotype from dominantly amylase-positive acinar cells to dominantly cytokeratin 19-positive ductal cells. Moreover, expression of the transcripts for TNFα or Hes-1, a Notch target, was up-regulated in these cells. Interestingly, baicalein reduced the population of ADM as well as cytokines gene expression but not Hes-1. Baicalein inhibited NF-κB activation induced by rTNFα in AR42J, but no effect on Notch 1activation. Moreover, baicalein suppressed the secretion of TNFα and Nitric Oxide (NO) in macrophages stimulated with LPS and further inhibited ADM of conditional medium-treated AR42J cells. Baicalein also suppressed the inflammatory response of LPS-activated macrophages, thereby inhibited ADM of AR42J by altering their microenvironment. Taken together, our study indicates that baicalein reduces rTNFα-induced ADM of AR42J cells by inhibiting NF-κB activation. It also sheds new light on Chinese material medica therapy of pancreatitis and thereby prevention of PDAC

Cerebellar white and gray matter abnormalities in temporal lobe epilepsy: a voxel-based morphometry study

BackgroundPrevious structural neuroimaging studies linked cerebellar deficits to temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). The functions of various cerebellar regions are increasingly being valued, and their changes in TLE patients warrant further in-depth investigation. In this study, we used the Spatially Unbiased Infratentorial (SUIT) toolbox with a new template to evaluate the cerebellar structural abnormalities in patients with TLE, and further explored the relationship between the changes of different cerebellar regions and cognition.MethodsThirty-two patients with TLE were compared with 39 healthy controls (HC) matched according to age, gender, handedness, and education level. All participants underwent a high-resolution T1-weighted MRI scan on a 3.0 Tesla scanner. We used a voxel-based morphometry (VBM) approach utilizing the SUIT toolbox to provide an optimized and fine-grained exploration of cerebellar structural alterations associated with TLE.ResultsCompared with HC, TLE patients showed a significant reduction in the volume of gray matter in the Left lobule VI and white matter in the Right Crus II. In the TLE patient group, we conducted partial correlation analysis between the volumes of different cerebellar regions and cognitive rating scale scores, such as MMSE and MoCA. The volume of the Left lobule VI (GM) exhibited a positive correlation with the MMSE score, but no significant correlation was found with the MoCA score. On the other hand, there was no significant correlation observed between the volume of the Right Crus II (WM) and the two cognitive scale scores mentioned above. Furthermore, it was observed that the MMSE was more effective than the MoCA in identifying epilepsy patients with cognitive impairment.ConclusionThis study supported previous research indicating that temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is linked to structural changes in the cerebellum, specifically affecting the volume of both gray and white matter. These findings offer valuable insights into the neurobiology of TLE and hold potential to inform the development of enhanced diagnostic methods and more effective treatment approaches

U-shaped association between serum Klotho and all-cause mortality in US cardiovascular patients: a prospective cohort study

BackgroundIncreased levels of serum Klotho have been associated with a reduced risk of several cardiovascular diseases (CVD). However, limited studies exist on the association between serum Klotho and mortality in patients with CVD.MethodsWe collected data from CVD patients in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) spanning 2007 to 2016. We linked NHANES data with the National Death Index to determine the survival status of participants. Univariate and multivariable Cox regression models were used to investigate the relationship between serum Klotho levels and mortality in CVD patients. The relationship between serum Klotho quartiles and mortality in CVD patients was visualized using Kaplan-Meier (KM) curves and restricted cubic spine. Finally, subgroup analyses were used to examine the association between serum Klotho and all-cause mortality in different populations.Results1905 patients with CVD were finally enrolled in our study with a mean follow-up of 7.1 years. The average age of the participants was 63.4 years, with 58.40% being male. KM showed that lower Klotho levels were associated with lower survival rates. After adjusting for potential confounders, patients with higher serum Klotho levels had lower all-cause mortality (Q1: 1.00, Q2: 0.58 (0.42–0.80), Q3: 0.69 (0.47–1.01), and Q4:0.64 (0.45–0.92). However, the relationship between serum Klotho levels and cardiovascular mortality was not statistically significant. Dose-response analysis shows a U-shaped relationship between serum Klotho levels and all-cause mortality in patients with CVD (P nonlinear=0.002). Subgroup analysis indicated that participants with a history of hypertension had a higher risk of all-cause mortality in serum Klotho Q4 compared to Q1 (P trend <0.05).ConclusionThe relationship between serum Klotho levels and all-cause mortality in CVD patients exhibits a U-shaped association. The underlying mechanisms of this association need further investigation

Epidemiologic characterization of 30 confirmed cases of human infection with avian influenza A(H7N9) virus in Hangzhou, China

BACKGROUND: We examined the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of 30 cases of human infection with avian influenza A(H7N9) virus in Hangzhou and investigated their external environments to provide evidence for contact tracing and disease prevention and control. METHODS: The cases confirmed from April 1 through May 1, 2013 were studied. Field epidemiologic surveys were conducted to collect the clinical and epidemiologic data. Case-related and environmental specimens were collected for etiologic detection. RESULTS: Thirty cases of human infection with avian influenza A(H7N9) virus were confirmed in Hangzhou from April 1 through May 1, 2013, including one pregnant woman and three deaths. The median age of the patients was 62 years (range: 38–86 years). Twenty-three of the patients were men (76.67%). The median duration between disease onset and occurrence of respiratory failure and confirmed diagnosis was 5 and 6 days, respectively. Maximum medical observation of 666 close contacts of the patients revealed no irregularity. Of 314 external environmental specimens, the overall positive detection rate of H7N9 nucleic acid was 28.98%. Eight districts of Hangzhou city had positive detections in the external environments, the highest rate being in Yuhang District (78.13%). Statistical analysis of the specimen collection locations indicates a significant difference between the case-linked locations and the non-case locations (χ( 2 ) = 16.563, p < 0.05) in terms of H7N9 viral nucleic acid detection rate. No epidemiologic link has been found among the 30 cases. CONCLUSIONS: Most of the infected were retired individuals aged 60 years or older. Men made the majority. The cases are sporadic at present, with no evidence of human-to-human transmission. Exposures to poultry and live poultry markets may be important sources of infection