Metabolic Syndrome Increases the Risk for Knee Osteoarthritis: A Meta-Analysis

Background. Studies revealed that metabolic factors might contribute substantially to osteoarthritis (OA) pathogenesis. There has been an increasing interest to understand the relationship between knee OA and the metabolic syndrome (MetS). The purpose of this study was to explore the association between metabolic syndrome and knee osteoarthritis using meta-analysis. Methods. Databases, including PUBMED, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library, were searched to get relevant studies. Data were extracted separately by two authors and pooled odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated. Results. The meta-analysis was finished with 8 studies with a total of 3202 cases and 20968 controls finally retrieved from the database search. The crude pooled OR is 2.24 (95% CI = 1.38–3.64). Although there was significant heterogeneity among these studies, which was largely accounted for by a single study, the increase in risk was still significant after exclusion of that study. The pooled adjusted OR remained significant with pooled adjusted OR 1.05 (95% CI = 1.03–1.07, p<0.00001). No publication bias was found in the present meta-analysis. Conclusions. The synthesis of available evidence supports that metabolic syndrome increases the risk for knee osteoarthritis, even after adjustment for many risk factors

Electrical Stimulation to Conductive Scaffold Promotes Axonal Regeneration and Remyelination in a Rat Model of Large Nerve Defect

BACKGROUND: Electrical stimulation (ES) has been shown to promote nerve regeneration when it was applied to the proximal nerve stump. However, the possible beneficial effect of establishing a local electrical environment between a large nerve defect on nerve regeneration has not been reported in previous studies. The present study attempted to establish a local electrical environment between a large nerve defect, and examined its effect on nerve regeneration and functional recovery. METHODOLOGY/FINDINGS: In the present study, a conductive scaffold was constructed and used to bridge a 15 mm sciatic nerve defect in rats, and intermittent ES (3 V, 20 Hz) was applied to the conductive scaffold to establish an electrical environment at the site of nerve defect. Nerve regeneration and functional recovery were examined after nerve injury repair and ES. We found that axonal regeneration and remyelination of the regenerated axons were significantly enhanced by ES which was applied to conductive scaffold. In addition, both motor and sensory functional recovery was significantly improved and muscle atrophy was partially reversed by ES localized at the conductive scaffold. Further investigations showed that the expression of S-100, BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor), P0 and Par-3 was significantly up-regulated by ES at the conductive scaffold. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Establishing an electrical environment with ES localized at the conductive scaffold is capable of accelerating nerve regeneration and promoting functional recovery in a 15 mm nerve defect in rats. The findings provide new directions for exploring regenerative approaches to achieve better functional recovery in the treatment of large nerve defect

Present and Future of Phase-Selectively Disordered Blue TiO2 for Energy and Society Sustainability

HighlightsMilestones of TiO2 development and invention of phase-selectively ordered/disordered blue TiO2 (BTO) is in-depth illustrated. The explored and potential applications of BTO are reviewed and proposed thoroughly.The forthcoming flourishing research trends based on account of BTO are suggested. AbstractTitanium dioxide (TiO2) has garnered attention for its promising photocatalytic activity, energy storage capability, low cost, high chemical stability, and nontoxicity. However, conventional TiO2 has low energy harvesting efficiency and charge separation ability, though the recently developed black TiO2 formed under high temperature or pressure has achieved elevated performance. The phase-selectively ordered/disordered blue TiO2 (BTO), which has visible-light absorption and efficient exciton disassociation, can be formed under normal pressure and temperature (NPT) conditions. This perspective article first discusses TiO2 materials development milestones and insights of the BTO structure and construction mechanism. Then, current applications of BTO and potential extensions are summarized and suggested, respectively, including hydrogen (H-2) production, carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen (N-2) reduction, pollutant degradation, microbial disinfection, and energy storage. Last, future research prospects are proposed for BTO to advance energy and environmental sustainability by exploiting different strategies and aspects. The unique NPT-synthesized BTO can offer more societally beneficial applications if its potential is fully explored by the research community.11Nsciescopu

Influence of Restrainer Piers on the Seismic Performance of Long Bridges with Equal-Height Piers

Pounding may occur between the main girders under the action of strong earthquakes, so as between main girders and abutments. This causes excessive longitudinal displacement of the main girder and unseating damage to bridges. Because long bridges in mountainous areas with high intensity are easy to unseat, the authors studied the influence of restrainer piers, expansion joint spacings (EJSs), and the span on the seismic performance of long bridges. The ABAQUS finite element software was used to simulate a bridge dynamic analysis model considering the elastoplasticity of the pounding effect of the pier and the beam. By inputting El-Centro, Northbridge, and Taft seismic waves, the time-history analysis of the seismic response of long bridges was carried out. The results indicated that a reasonable number of restrainer piers, an appropriate EJS, and a span could effectively reduce the maximum relative displacement of pier-beams. This behavior will improve the seismic performance of bridge structures. Moreover, for a 24-span equal-height beam bridge, the optimum seismic effect was obtained when 3 restrainer piers, an EJS of 70 mm, and a 50 m span were used

Dielectric properties and microwave heating behavior of neutral leaching residues from zinc metallurgy in the microwave field

The method of microwave strengthens roasting neutral leaching slag contained germanium is put forward. The dielectric properties and temperature rising behavior of neutral leaching slag in the microwave field are analyzed via experimental and theoretical analysis. The experiment used the dielectric constant test device, the microwave roasting device and the temperature measuring device. The neutral leaching slag can absorb microwave energy and transform into heat energy. The specific surface area of the calcined slag containing the neutral leaching slag is increased by microwave roasting, and the microwave energy can reduce the particle size of the mineral particles to some extent. At the same time, cracks can be seen on the surface of the calcined sand after microwave roasting. The surface of neutral leaching slag roasted by microwave reformed cracks which help to open reaction channels making the oxygen to inside takes part in oxidizing reaction significantly improving germanium oxide reaction conditions, besides increasing the leaching process of the reaction area and increasing the leaching rate. The research on the dielectric constants and temperature characteristics of neutral leaching residue can provide the theoretical and experimental basis for microwave strengthen roasting

Characterization of the mitochondrial genome of Microphysogobio tungtingensis (Cypriniformes) and its taxonomic status

In the present study, the complete mitochondrial genome of Microphysogobio tungtingensis has been amplified with 16 pairs of primers. There are 16 627 base pairs has been identified and deposited in the GenBank with accession numbers MN970213. The arrangement was similar to typical vertebrate mitochondrial, including 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNAs, 2 ribosomal RNAs genes and a noncoding control region. The overall base composition of M. tungtingensis was G + C: 42.9%, A + T: 57.1%, apparently with a slight AT bias. Phylogenetic analysis showed that M. tungtingensis was close to M. fukiensis

Characterization the mitochondrial genome of Acrossocheilus Labiatus (Cypriniformes, Acrossocheilus) and its phylogeny

The first complete mitochondrial genome of Acrossocheilus Labiatus from the Qingshui River were reported in this study with accession number MG878098. The overall nucleotide composition was 31.13% A, 25.10% T, 27.52% C, 16.24% G, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis shows that the A. parallens and A. Hemispinus showed a closest phylogenetic relationship, then clustal with A. Labiatus

Silver Nanocluster-Embedded Zein Films as Antimicrobial Coating Materials for Food Packaging

Highly efficient antimicrobial agents with low toxicity and resistance have been enthusiastically pursued to address public concerns on microbial contamination in food. Silver nanoclusters (AgNCs) are known for their ultrasmall sizes and unique optical and chemical properties. Despite extensive studies of AgNCs for biomedical applications, previous research on their application as antimicrobials for food applications is very limited. Here, for the first time, by incorporating AgNCs (~2 nm in diameter) into zein films that are widely used as food packaging materials, we developed a novel coating material with potent antimicrobial activity, low toxicity to human cells, and low potential to harm the environment. In addition, we systematically evaluated the antimicrobial activities and cytotoxicity of AgNCs-embedded zein films and compared them to zein films embedded with AgNO3 or Ag nanoparticles with diameters of 10 and 60 nm (AgNP10 and AgNP60, respectively). At equivalent silver concentrations, AgNCs and AgNO3 solutions exhibited considerably higher antimicrobial activities than those of AgNP10 and AgNP60 solutions. Moreover, AgNCs exhibited less cytotoxicity to human cells than AgNO3, with a half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 34.68 μg/mL for AgNCs, compared to 9.14 μg/mL for AgNO3. Overall, the novel AgNCs coating developed in this research has great potential for antimicrobial applications in food packaging materials due to its high antimicrobial efficacy, ultrasmall size, and low cytotoxicity