Influence of /\u27 lattice misfit on hydrogen embrittlement mechanism of single-crystal nickel-based superalloy CMSX-4

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Effects of exercise on obesity-induced mitochondrial dysfunction in skeletal muscle

Obesity is known to induce inhibition of glucose uptake, reduction of lipid metabolism, and progressive loss of skeletal muscle function, which are all as- sociated with mitochondrial dysfunction in skeletal muscle. Mitochondria are dy- namic organelles that regulate cellular metabolism and bioenergetics, including ATP production via oxidative phosphorylation. Due to these critical roles of mitochon- dria, mitochondrial dysfunction results in various diseases such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. Obesity is associated with impairment of mitochondrial function (e.g., decrease in O2 respiration and increase in oxidative stress) in skeletal muscle. The bal- ance between mitochondrial fusion and fission is critical to maintain mitochondrial homeostasis in skeletal muscle. Obesity impairs mitochondrial dynamics, leading to an unbalance between fusion and fission by favorably shifting fission or reducing fusion proteins. Mitophagy is the catabolic process of damaged or unnecessary mito- chondria. Obesity reduces mitochondrial biogenesis in skeletal muscle and increases accumulation of dysfunctional cellular organelles, suggesting that mitophagy does not work properly in obesity. Mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress are reported to trigger apoptosis, and mitochondrial apoptosis is induced by obesity in skeletal muscle. It is well known that exercise is the most effective intervention to protect against obesity. Although the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which exercise protects against obesity-induced mitochondrial dysfunction in skeletal mus- cle are not clearly elucidated, exercise training attenuates mitochondrial dysfunction, allows mitochondria to maintain the balance between mitochondrial dynamics and mitophagy, and reduces apoptotic signaling in obese skeletal muscle

Micro-Segregated Liquid Crystal Haze Films for Photovoltaic Applications: A Novel Strategy to Fabricate Haze Films Employing Liquid Crystal Technology

Herein, a novel strategy to fabricate haze films employing liquid crystal (LC) technology for photovoltaic (PV) applications is reported. We fabricated a high optical haze film composed of low-molecular LCs and polymer and applied the film to improve the energy conversion efficiency of PV module. The technique utilized to fabricate our haze film is based on spontaneous polymerization-induced phase separation between LCs and polymers. With optimized fabrication conditions, the haze film exhibited an optical haze value over 95% at 550 nm. By simply attaching our haze film onto the front surface of a silicon-based PV module, an overall average enhancement of 2.8% in power conversion efficiency was achieved in comparison with a PV module without our haze film

Selection of internal reference genes for SYBR green qRT-PCR studies of rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta) tissues

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The rhesus monkey (<it>Macaca mulatta</it>) is a valuable and widely used model animal for biomedical research. However, quantitative analyses of rhesus gene expression profiles under diverse experimental conditions are limited by a shortage of suitable internal controls for the normalization of mRNA levels. In this study, we used a systematic approach for the selection of potential reference genes in the rhesus monkey and compared their suitability to that of the corresponding genes in humans.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Eight housekeeping genes (HKGs) (<it>GAPDH, SDHA, ACTB, RPL13A, RPL32, UBA52, PGK1Y</it>, and <it>YWHAZ</it>) from rhesus monkeys and humans were selected to test for normalization of expression levels in six different tissue types (brain, colon, kidney, liver, lung, and stomach). Their stability and suitability as reference genes were validated by <it>geNorm</it>, <it>NormFinder </it>and <it>BestKeeper </it>programs. Intriguingly, <it>RPL13A </it>and <it>RPL32 </it>were selected as ideal reference genes only in rhesus monkeys.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The results clearly indicated the necessity of using different reference genes for normalization of expression levels between rhesus monkeys and humans in various tissues.</p

Influence of sarcopenia on postoperative complications in patients undergoing autologous microsurgical breast reconstruction: an inverse probability of treatment weighting analysis

BackgroundSarcopenia is characterized by the loss of skeletal muscle mass and power. Preoperative sarcopenia may be associated with an increased risk of postoperative complications after autologous free-flap breast reconstruction surgery; however, this relationship is controversial.ObjectivesThis study aimed to determine whether preoperative sarcopenia is associated with a high complication rate in patients undergoing autologous free-flap breast reconstruction.MethodsPatients who underwent autologous free-flap breast reconstruction at our hospital between 2019 and 2021 were included in the study. Data on significant complications requiring surgical intervention were retrospectively collected from the medical records. Sarcopenia was defined as having a skeletal muscle index value &lt;41 cm2/m2. The skeletal muscle index was calculated by dividing the sum of the psoas and iliopsoas muscle areas at the level of the third lumbar vertebra by the patient’s height in meters squared. The relationship between preoperative sarcopenia and postoperative complications was investigated using an inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) analysis.ResultsAmong the 203 participants, 90 (44.33%) had preoperative sarcopenia. The general patient characteristics were similar between the sarcopenia and non-sarcopenia groups after IPTW adjustment. Sarcopenia did not significantly increase the risk of flap failure or emergency surgery related to breast reconstruction before IPTW adjustment. However, after IPTW adjustment, the rates of recipient site infection and hematoma were significantly higher in participants with sarcopenia than in those without sarcopenia (p &lt; 0.001 and p = 0.014, respectively).ConclusionPreoperative sarcopenia may influence certain complications of autologous free-flap breast reconstruction surgery

Novel Antidepressant-Like Activity of Caffeic Acid Phenethyl Ester Is Mediated by Enhanced Glucocorticoid Receptor Function in the Hippocampus

Caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) is an active component of propolis that has a variety of potential pharmacological effects. Although we previously demonstrated that propolis has antidepressant-like activity, the effect of CAPE on this activity remains unknown. The present study assessed whether treatment with CAPE (5, 10, and 20 µmol/kg for 21 days) has an antidepressant-like effect in mice subjected to chronic unpredictable stress via tail suspension (TST) and forced swim (FST) tests. CAPE administration induced behaviors consistent with an antidepressant effect, evidenced by decreased immobility in the TST and FST independent of any effect on serum corticosterone secretion. Western blots, conducted subsequent to behavioral assessment, revealed that CAPE significantly decreased glucocorticoid receptor phosphorylation at S234 (pGR(S234)), resulting in an increased pGR(S220/S234) ratio. We also observed negative correlations between pGR(S220)/(S234) and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38MAPK) phosphorylation, which was decreased by CAPE treatment. These findings suggest that CAPE treatment exerts an antidepressant-like effect via downregulation of p38MAPK phosphorylation, thereby contributing to enhanced GR function