Involvement of ROS in the inhibitory effect of thermotherapy combined with chemotherapy on A549 human lung adenocarcinoma cell growth through the Akt pathway

Mechanisms of synergistic effect of thermotherapy and chemotherapy on human lung adenocarcinoma cell growth are unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate these effects and explore the function of ROS, Akt and caspase-3 in relation to these. A549 cells were subjected to different thermochemotherapy treatments: 43°C heat + 50 μg/l paclitaxel (thermochemotherapy group), 43°C heat + 50 μg/l paclitaxel + 1 μmol/l wortmannin (wortmannin group), 43°C heat + 50 μg/l paclitaxel + 30 μmol/l NAC (NAC group) and 50 μg/l paclitaxel (chemotherapy group). The cells without any treatment were regarded as controls. Cell proliferation rates were measured with MTT assay and intracellular ROS levels were detected with fluorescence labeling technologies. Phosphorylation of Akt and caspase-3 expression were determined by western blotting and the cell apoptosis rates were examined by flow cytometry. Tests in vivo were carried out at the same time. It was found that the cell proliferation rates of the thermochemotherapy group were significantly lower compared to those of the controls or the chemotherapy group (P<0.05). The intracellular ROS levels of the thermochemotherapy group were elevated significantly compared with those of other groups, and these changes could be reversed using the ROS inhibitor NAC but not a PI3K inhibitor (wortmannin). Phosphorylation of Akt was significantly decreased in the thermochemotherapy group (P<0.05), which could be blocked by wortmannin, but increased by NAC (P<0.05). The caspase-3 expression levels and cell apoptosis rates of the thermochemotherapy group were higher compared to those of the other groups (P<0.05). All results have been confirmed by in vivo tests. Thus, the combination of thermotherapy with chemotherapy showed a stronger inhibitory effect on A549 cell growth compared to chemotherapy alone, which may be able to cause additional cell apoptosis through inhibition of Akt phosphorylation and activation of caspases by increased intracellular ROS production

Optimization of high-order harmonic generation for the time-resolved ARPES

We experimentally investigated the optimized phase matching condition for high order harmonic generation as a source of time-resolved Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (TR-ARPES) applications. In the loose focusing scheme, we find that the divergence of harmonics decreases with the increase of gas cell length, while the maximum intensity is obtained with 10–15 mm gas cell. Our result shows that stable beam condition with best temporal resolution can be realized for TR-ARPES by using a longer gas cell (longer than 25 mm in our experiment), and an appropriate gas cell length can provide balanced condition for good beam intensity and good temporal resolution

Selective catalytic reduction of NO with propene over Au/Fe2O3/Al2O3 catalysts

A series of Au/Fe2O3/Al2O3 Catalysts were prepared by the homogeneous deposition-precipitation method. The catalytic activity of the catalyst samples for selective catalytic reduction of NO by propene under oxygen-rich atmosphere was evaluated. The results showed that 2%Au/10%Fe2O3/Al2O3 exhibited good low-temperature activity. The maximum of NO conversion reached 43% at 300 degrees C, while it was only 21% over 2% Au/Al2O3 catalyst at the same temperature. The addition of 2% steam to the feed gas had little effect on the catalytic activity. X-ray diffraction results indicated that both An and Fe2O3 particles were highly dispersed over Al2O3. H-2-temperature-programmed reduction results indicated that there was strong interaction between An and Fe2O3, which made the reduction of Fe2O3 easy. The synergistic effect between An and Fe2O3 was probably responsible for the good catalytic performance of the Au/Fe2O3/Al2O3 catalyst at low ternperature

Preparation, structure and catalytic properties of magnetically separable Cu-Fe catalysts for glycerol hydrogenolysis

The Cu-Fe catalysts with stoichiometric proportion (Cu/Fe molar ratio was 0.5) were prepared by an epoxide assisted route. The structural properties of Cu-Fe catalysts were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Mossbauer spectroscopy measurements. These results indicated that a crystalline phase transformation from c-CuFe2O4 to t-CuFe2O4 occurred when elevating the calcination temperature from 500 to 600 degrees C. The M-H plots exhibited that all Cu-Fe catalysts had ferromagnetic nature and the saturation magnetization values monotonously increased with increasing calcination temperature irrespective of the phases composition. The significant superparamagnetic behavior was observed in the results of magnetic and Mossbauer spectroscopy measurements. The H-2 temperature-programmed reduction (H-2-TPR) was also conducted for examining the reducibility of Cu-Fe catalysts. The catalytic performance of Cu-Fe catalysts was examined for the hydrogenolysis reaction of glycerol. It is found that the formation of spinel CuFe2O4 greatly enhances the hydrogenolysis activity. The highest glycerol conversion (47%) was obtained over CuFe-500 catalyst, while the selectivity of 1,2-propanediol was maintained at about 92% for all catalysts

Performance Evaluation of Asphalt Modified with Steel Slag Powder and Waste Tire Rubber Compounds

As two kinds of solid wastes, waste tires and steel slag have caused serious threats to the environment. Both waste tire rubber (WTR) and steel slag powder (SSP) can improve the performance of asphalt, while the performance indexes and modification mechanism of modified asphalt are not clear. In this paper, asphalt modified with SSP and WTR was prepared, and its performance was evaluated. The physical properties of asphalt modified with SSP and WTR, including penetration, the softening point, and viscosity, were investigated. Furthermore, high-temperature performance, fatigue resistance, low-temperature performance, and blending mechanism of asphalt modified with SSP and WTR were tested with a dynamic shear rheometer (DSR), bending beam rheometer (BBR), and Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR). The results showed that with the same content of WTR and SSP, WTR reveals a more significant modification effect on physical properties, fatigue, and low-temperature performance of base asphalt than SSP. The anti-rutting performance of SSP-modified asphalt is better than that of WTR-modified asphalt at 30~42 &deg;C, and the anti-rutting performance of WTR-modified asphalt is better than that of SSP-modified asphalt at 42~80 &deg;C. When the total content of WTR and SSP is the same, the physical properties, high-temperature resistance, fatigue resistance, and low-temperature performance of the asphalt modified with WTR and SSP decrease with the decrease in the ratio of WTR and SSP, and their performance is between WTR-modified asphalt and SSP-modified asphalt. Infrared spectrum results verified that the preparation of WTR- and SSP-modified asphalt is mainly a physical blending process. Overall, this research is conducive to promoting the application of modified asphalt with WTR and SSP in the construction of high-standard pavement

Trace Elements and Pb-O Isotopes of Scheelite: Metallogenic Implications for the Shimensi W-Polymetallic Deposit in South China

The world-class Shimensi tungsten (W)-polymetallic deposit is located in Jiangnan Orogen, with an estimated reserve of 742.5 kt WO3 @ 0.195% W, 403.6 kt Cu and 28 kt Mo. In this paper, the trace elements and Pb-O isotopes of scheelite (the main ore mineral) are presented to study the ore-forming material source and ore-forming fluid evolution. The results show that the REE distribution in scheelite is mainly controlled by the substitution mechanism of 3Ca2+ = 2REE3+ + □Ca (where □Ca is the Ca-site vacancy). Oxygen isotope data indicate that the scheelite mineralization occurred under high-temperature oxygen isotope equilibrium conditions, and that the ore-forming fluid has a magmatic–hydrothermal origin. The variation in scheelite Eu anomalies and the wide range of scheelite Y/Ho ratio indicate that the ore-forming fluid evolves from reducing to oxidizing, and the early-stage and late-stage ore-forming fluid may have been relatively rich in F− and HCO3−, respectively. The significant Mo decrease in scheelite from the early to late stage that are opposite to the influence of fO2 variation may have resulted from the crystallization of molybdenite and Mo-rich scheelite. Lead isotopes of the ore minerals of scheelite, wolframite, molybdenite and chalcopyrite can be divided into three groups, similar to these of feldspars in different granites. Both the Mesozoic porphyritic and fine-grained biotite granites have Pb isotope ratios similar to the ores, which suggests that the former two are the main ore material source

A Network Pharmacology Approach to Uncover the Multiple Mechanisms of Hedyotis diffusa

Background. As one of the most frequently diagnosed cancer diseases globally, colorectal cancer (CRC) remains an important cause of cancer-related death. Although the traditional Chinese herb Hedyotis diffusa Willd. (HDW) has been proven to be effective for treating CRC in clinical practice, its definite mechanisms have not been completely deciphered. Objective. The aim of our research is to systematically explore the multiple mechanisms of HDW on CRC. Methods. This study adopted the network pharmacology approach, which was mainly composed of active component gathering, target prediction, CRC gene collection, network analysis, and gene enrichment analysis. Results. The network analysis showed that 10 targets might be the therapeutic targets of HDW on CRC, namely, HRAS, PIK3CA, KRAS, TP53, APC, BRAF, GSK3B, CDK2, AKT1, and RAF1. The gene enrichment analysis implied that HDW probably benefits patients with CRC by modulating pathways related to cancers, infectious diseases, endocrine system, immune system, nervous system, signal transduction, cellular community, and cell motility. Conclusions. This study partially verified and predicted the pharmacological and molecular mechanism of HDW against CRC from a holistic perspective, which will also lay a foundation for the further experimental research and clinical rational application of HDW

Comparative Efficacy of Chinese Herbal Injections for Treating Pediatric Bronchopneumonia: A Bayesian Network Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Introduction. Pediatric bronchopneumonia is one of the common respiratory diseases in pediatrics. Chinese herbal injections (CHIs) are widely used to treat pediatric bronchopneumonia. In this study, we examined the efficacy of CHIs in the treatment of pediatric bronchopneumonia using a network meta-analysis (NMA). Methods. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of CHIs combined western medicine (WM) versus WM were searched from electronic databases. WinBUGS 1.4.3 and Stata 13.0 were adopted to compute calculations and prepare graphs, respectively. Results. 168 RCTs with 21917 patients were included. The results revealed that Xixinnao injection (XXN) + WM had the most probability to be the best intervention in the four aspects of rate of clinical efficacy, antipyretic time, cough disappearance time, and lung shadow disappearance time. While as to lung shadow disappearance time, asthma disappearance time, and hospitalization time, Yanhuning injection (YHN) + WM could be the best intervention. The safety of CHIs needs to be further assessed. Conclusions. Based on this NMA, XXN + WM and YHN + WM were potential optimal therapies in pediatric bronchopneumonia, and their safety should be strictly monitored

UIR-Net: A Simple and Effective Baseline for Underwater Image Restoration and Enhancement

Because of the unique physical and chemical properties of water, obtaining high-quality underwater images directly is not an easy thing. Hence, recovery and enhancement are indispensable steps in underwater image processing and have therefore become research hotspots. Nevertheless, existing image-processing methods generally have high complexity and are difficult to deploy on underwater platforms with limited computing resources. To tackle this issue, this paper proposes a simple and effective baseline named UIR-Net that can recover and enhance underwater images simultaneously. This network uses a channel residual prior to extract the channel of the image to be recovered as a prior, combined with a gradient strategy to reduce parameters and training time to make the operation more lightweight. This method can improve the color performance while maintaining the style and spatial texture of the contents. Through experiments on three datasets (MSRB, MSIRB and UIEBD-Snow), we confirm that UIR-Net can recover clear underwater images from original images with large particle impurities and ocean light spots. Compared to other state-of-the-art methods, UIR-Net can recover underwater images at a similar or higher quality with a significantly lower number of parameters, which is valuable in real-world applications