Size Distribution and Fractal Characteristics of Coal Pores through Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Cryoporometry

This research was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant no. 41602170), the Research Program for Excellent Doctoral Dissertation Supervisor of Beijing (grant no. YB20101141501), the Key Project of Coal-based Science and Technology in Shanxi Province-CBM accumulation model and reservoir evaluation in Shanxi province (grant no. MQ2014-01) and the Fundamental Research Funds for Central Universities (grant no. 35832015136).Peer reviewedPostprin

Variation of adsorption effects in coals with different particle sizes induced by differences in microscopic adhesion

Acknowledgements This research was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant nos. 41830427, 42130806 and 41922016), the Fundamental Research Funds for Central Universities (grant no. 2-9-2021-067) and the 2021 Graduate Innovation Fund Project of China University of Geosciences, Beijing (grant no. ZD2021YC035). We are very grateful to the reviewers and editors for their valuable comments and suggestionsPeer reviewedPostprin

ABCC3 as a marker for multidrug resistance in non-small cell lung cancer

Multidrug resistance (MDR) contributes to the failure of chemotherapy and high mortality in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We aim to identify MDR genes that predict tumor response to chemotherapy. 199 NSCLC fresh tissue samples were tested for chemosensitivity by MTT assay. cDNA microarray was done with 5 samples with highest resistance and 6 samples with highest sensitivity. Expression of ABCC3 mRNA and protein was detected by real-time PCR and immunohistochemisty, respectively. The association between gene expression and overall survival (OS) was examined using Cox proportional hazard regression. 44 genes were upregulated and 168 downregulated in the chemotherapy-resistant group. ABCC3 was one of the most up-regulated genes in the resistant group. ABCC3-positive expression correlated with lymph node involvement, advanced TNM stage, more malignant histological type, multiple-resistance to anti-cancer drugs, and reduced OS. ABCC3 expression may serve as a marker for MDR and predictor for poor clinical outcome of NSCLC

miRNA-378 reverses chemoresistance to cisplatin in lung adenocarcinoma cells by targeting secreted clusterin

Cisplatin resistance is a major obstacle in the treatment of NSCLC, and its mechanism has not been fully elucidated. The objectives of the study were to determine the role of miR-378 in the sensitivity of lung adenocarcinoma cells to cisplatin (cDDP) and its working mechanism. With TargetScan and luciferase assay, miR-378 was found to directly target sCLU. miR-378 and sCLU were regulated in A549/cDDP and Anip973/cDDP cells to investigate the effect of miR-378 on the sensitivity and apoptotic effects of cDDP. The effect of miR-378 upregulation on tumor growth was analyzed in a nude mouse xenograft model. The correlation between miR-378 and chemoresistance was tested in patient samples. We found that upregulation of miR-378 in A549/cDDP and Anip973/cDDP cells significantly down-regulated sCLU expression, and sensitized these cells to cDDP. miR-378 overexpression inhibited tumor growth and sCLU expression in a xenograft animal model. Analysis of human lung adenocarcinoma tissues revealed that the cDDP sensitive group expressed higher levels of miR-378 and lower levels of sCLU. miR-378 and sCLU were negatively correlated. To conclude, we identified sCLU as a novel miR-378 target, and we showed that targeting sCLU via miR-378 may help disable the chemoresistance against cisplatin in lung adenocarcinoma cells

Baseline Staging Tests Based on Molecular Subtype is Necessary for Newly Diagnosed Breast Cancer

Background: Bone scanning (BS), liver ultrasonography (LUS), and chest radiography (CXR) are commonly recommended for baseline staging in patients with newly diagnosed breast cancer. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate whether these tests are indicated for specific patient subpopulation based on clinical staging and molecular subtype. Methods: A retrospective study on 5406 patients with newly diagnosed breast cancer was conducted to identify differences in occurrence of metastasis based on clinical staging and molecular subtypes. All patients had been evaluated by BS, LUS and CXR at diagnosis. Results: Complete information on clinical staging was available in 5184 patients. For stage I, II, and III, bone metastasis rate was 0%, 0.6% and 2.7%, respectively (P \u3c 0.01); liver metastasis rate was 0%, 0.1%, and 1.0%, respectively (P \u3c 0.01); lung metastasis rate was 0.1%, 0.1%, and 0.7%, respectively (P \u3c 0.01). Complete information on molecular subtype was available in 3411 patients. For Luminal A, Luminal B (HER2−), Luminal BH (HER2+), HER2+ overexpression, and Basal-like, bone metastasis rate was 1.4%, 0.7%, 2.5%, 2.7%, and 0.9%, respectively (P \u3c 0.05); liver metastasis rate was 0.1%, 0.1%, 1.0%, 1.1%, and 0.9%, respectively (P \u3c 0.01); lung metastasis rate was 0.20%, 0%, 0%, 0.27%, and 0.9%, respectively (P \u3c 0.05). cT (tumor size), cN (lymph node), PR (progesterone receptor), and HER2 status predicted bone metastasis (P \u3c 0.05). cT, cN, ER (estrogen receptor), PR, and HER2 status predicted liver metastasis (P \u3c 0.05). cT, cN, and PR status predicted lung metastasis (P \u3c 0.05). Conclusion: These data indicate that based on clinical staging and molecular subtypes, BS, LUS and CXR are necessary for patients with newly diagnosed breast cancer

Recent Development of Nano-Materials Used in DNA Biosensors

As knowledge of the structure and function of nucleic acid molecules has increased, sequence-specific DNA detection has gained increased importance. DNA biosensors based on nucleic acid hybridization have been actively developed because of their specificity, speed, portability, and low cost. Recently, there has been considerable interest in using nano-materials for DNA biosensors. Because of their high surface-to-volume ratios and excellent biological compatibilities, nano-materials could be used to increase the amount of DNA immobilization; moreover, DNA bound to nano-materials can maintain its biological activity. Alternatively, signal amplification by labeling a targeted analyte with nano-materials has also been reported for DNA biosensors in many papers. This review summarizes the applications of various nano-materials for DNA biosensors during past five years. We found that nano-materials of small sizes were advantageous as substrates for DNA attachment or as labels for signal amplification; and use of two or more types of nano-materials in the biosensors could improve their overall quality and to overcome the deficiencies of the individual nano-components. Most current DNA biosensors require the use of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in their protocols. However, further development of nano-materials with smaller size and/or with improved biological and chemical properties would substantially enhance the accuracy, selectivity and sensitivity of DNA biosensors. Thus, DNA biosensors without PCR amplification may become a reality in the foreseeable future