Effect of Hedyotis diffusa Willd extract on gouty arthritis in rats

Purpose: To investigate the effect of Hedyotis diffusa Willd extract (HDWE) on gouty arthritis in rats.Method: Monosodium urate (MSU) crystal was injected into the ankle joint of rats to establish a rat model of gouty arthritis. HDWE (4.8, 9.6 and 19.2 g/kg) was administered to the rats treated with MSU crystals. The walking behavior of the rats was observed daily, and the gait score was calculated to evaluate the Oswestry disability index of rats. Levels of IL-1β and TNF-α in lavage fluid of articularcavities were measured using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits. The synovial tissues of joint of control, model and 19.2 g/kg HDWE group rats were obtained and NLRP3 inflammasome was analysed by Western blot.Results: The results showed that HDWE ameliorated the symptoms of gouty arthritis and gait score in rats significantly (p < 0.05). Further pharmacological experiments showed that all doses of HDWE decreased the levels of inflammatory cytokines IL-1β and TNF-α (p < 0.05), and inhibited NLRP3, caspase-1, ASC, IL-1β and IL-18 protein expressions of the lavage fluid of articular cavities in MSU crystal-treated rats (p < 0.01).Conclusion: The results indicate that HDWE exhibits a significant effect in ameliorating gouty arthritis via inhibition NLRP3  inflammasome, and thus is a potential new drug choice for the treatment of gouty arthritis. Keywords: Hedyotis diffusa, Caspase, Gouty arthritis, Inflammatory cytokines, NLRP3 inflammaso

Dynamic performance analysis for wind turbine in complex conditions

The effect of dynamic performance shall be considered when calculating the wind speed relative to the wind turbine structure, since it is essential to prolong its service life. This article presents a method to get dynamic responses of a wind turbine under different conditions. The time-varying load acting on the blade is calculated by using the blade element momentum theory, and the dynamic performance of the wind turbine are calculated by applying the modal superposition method with blade loads as excitations. A platform is constructed to experimentally test the dynamic responses of the wind turbine system. The dynamic response process is adopted to carry out a dynamic analysis, and theoretical results are compared with experimental results, indicated that the analysis presented in this paper is correct. In addition, the 2 MW wind turbine operating in different wind fields is analyzed by applying the computing method. The results indicate that the wind turbine experiences a huge transverse vibration under turbulent wind, the hub vibration is intensified up to 179.52 %, and the vibration of the blade tip intensifies up to 190.41 % under the action of gusts in extreme conditions relative to the steady state, which shall be considered during design

“Be a Pattern for the World”: The Development of a Dark Patterns Detection Tool to Prevent Online User Loss

Dark Patterns are designed to trick users into sharing more information or spending more money than they had intended to do, by configuring online interactions to confuse or add pressure to the users. They are highly varied in their form, and are therefore difficult to classify and detect. Therefore, this research is designed to develop a framework for the automated detection of potential instances of web-based dark patterns, and from there to develop a software tool that will provide a highly useful defensive tool that helps detect and highlight these patterns

Single-cell sequencing combined with machine learning reveals the mechanism of interaction between epilepsy and stress cardiomyopathy

BackgroundEpilepsy is a disorder that can manifest as abnormalities in neurological or physical function. Stress cardiomyopathy is closely associated with neurological stimulation. However, the mechanisms underlying the interrelationship between epilepsy and stress cardiomyopathy are unclear. This paper aims to explore the genetic features and potential molecular mechanisms shared in epilepsy and stress cardiomyopathy.MethodsBy analyzing the epilepsy dataset and stress cardiomyopathy dataset separately, the intersection of the two disease co-expressed differential genes is obtained, the co-expressed differential genes reveal the biological functions, the network is constructed, and the core modules are identified to reveal the interaction mechanism, the co-expressed genes with diagnostic validity are screened by machine learning algorithms, and the co-expressed genes are validated in parallel on the epilepsy single-cell data and the stress cardiomyopathy rat model.ResultsEpilepsy causes stress cardiomyopathy, and its key pathways are Complement and coagulation cascades, HIF-1 signaling pathway, its key co-expressed genes include SPOCK2, CTSZ, HLA-DMB, ALDOA, SFRP1, ERBB3. The key immune cell subpopulations localized by single-cell data are the T_cells subgroup, Microglia subgroup, Macrophage subgroup, Astrocyte subgroup, and Oligodendrocytes subgroup.ConclusionWe believe epilepsy causing stress cardiomyopathy results from a multi-gene, multi-pathway combination. We identified the core co-expressed genes (SPOCK2, CTSZ, HLA-DMB, ALDOA, SFRP1, ERBB3) and the pathways that function in them (Complement and coagulation cascades, HIF-1 signaling pathway, JAK-STAT signaling pathway), and finally localized their key cellular subgroups (T_cells subgroup, Microglia subgroup, Macrophage subgroup, Astrocyte subgroup, and Oligodendrocytes subgroup). Also, combining cell subpopulations with hypercoagulability as well as sympathetic excitation further narrowed the cell subpopulations of related functions

The Role of Sleep Deprivation in Arrhythmias

Sleep is essential to the normal psychological and physiological activities of the human body. Increasing evidence indicates that sleep deprivation is associated with the occurrence, development, and poor treatment effects of various arrhythmias. Sleep deprivation affects not only the peripheral nervous system but also the central nervous system, which regulates the occurrence of arrhythmias. In addition, sleep deprivation is associated with apoptotic pathways, mitochondrial energy metabolism disorders, and immune system dysfunction. Although studies increasingly suggest that pathological sleep patterns are associated with various atrial and ventricular arrhythmias, further research is needed to identify specific mechanisms and recommend therapeutic interventions. This review summarizes the findings of sleep deprivation in animal experiments and clinical studies, current challenges, and future research directions in the field of arrhythmias

Ferroptosis and Iron Metabolism after Intracerebral Hemorrhage

The method of iron-dependent cell death known as ferroptosis is distinct from apoptosis. The suppression of ferroptosis after intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) will effectively treat ICH and improve prognosis. This paper primarily summarizes the mechanism of ferroptosis after ICH, with an emphasis on lipid peroxidation, the antioxidant system, iron metabolism, and other pathways. In addition, regulatory targets and drug molecules were described. Although there has been some progress in the field of study, there are still numerous gaps. The mechanism by which non-heme iron enters neurons through the blood–brain barrier (BBB), the mitochondrial role in ferroptosis, and the specific mechanism by which lipid peroxidation induces ferroptosis remain unclear and require further study. In addition, the inhibitory effect of many drugs on ferroptosis after ICH has only been demonstrated in basic experiments and must be translated into clinical trials. In summary, research on ferroptosis following ICH will play an important role in the treatment of ICH

Damage Model and Experimental Study of a Sand Grouting-Reinforced Body in a Seawater Environment

A water-rich sand layer is a common stratum in marine underground engineering. Grouting is a technology for soil or rock sealing, a method to solve the water seepage problem, and can be used to solve geological challenges in water-rich sand layers. A grouting-reinforced body deteriorates by the long-term erosion of seawater, resulting in attenuation of the performance of the solid. Obtaining the decay law of the performance of the grouting-reinforced body can guarantee the safe operation of the underground structure over a long life cycle. To this end, by describing the solid damage after seawater erosion, the stress–strain curve and the relationship between the damage variable and the internal micro-cracks and pores in the grouting-reinforced body were analyzed. Then, a constitutive model of the solid damage in the seawater environment was established. The stress–strain curve of added solid after deterioration was obtained by designing an indoor grouting reinforcement test and an accelerated deterioration test. Finally, the constitutive model of the sand layer plus solid deterioration in a seawater environment was determined. This research is of great importance for improving the deterioration theory under a seawater environment and ensuring the long term safety of tunnel operations

Dietary Supplementation with Putrescine Improves Growth Performance and Meat Quality of Wenchang Chickens

This study was to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation with putrescine on the growth performance and meat quality of chickens. A total of 480 eighty-day-old female Wenchang chickens were randomly assigned into four groups, with 8 replications per group and 15 animals per replicate. The chickens in the control group (Con) were fed a basal diet; the 3 experimental groups were fed a basal diet with 0.01%, 0.03%, and 0.05% putrescine, respectively. The experiment lasted for 40 days. The results showed that dietary supplementation with 0.05% putrescine increased (p p p p p < 0.05) the ratio of n-6/n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in breast meat. Overall, dietary supplementation with 0.05% putrescine enhanced the growth performance and meat quality of Wenchang chickens