Stresses induced by the deficiency or excess of trace mineral elements, such as manganese (Mn), represent a common limiting factor for the production of crops like Brassica napus. To identify key genes involved in Mn allocation in B. napus and elucidate the underlying mechanisms, a member of the metal tolerance protein (MTP) family obtained in the previous screening of cDNA library of B. napus under Mn stress was selected as the research subject. Based on the sequence information and phylogenetic analysis, it was named as BnMTP10. It belongs to the Mn-cation diffusion facilitator (CDF) subfamily. Expression of BnMTP10 in yeast significantly improved the tolerance of transformants to excessive Mn and iron (Fe) and reduced the accumulation of Mn and Fe. However, the yeast transformants exhibited no significant changes in tolerance to excess cadmium, boron, aluminum, zinc, or copper. The qRT-PCR results demonstrated that the flowers of B. napus had the highest expression of BnMTP10, followed by roots and leaves. Subcellular localization studies revealed that BnMTP10 was localized in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Compared with wild-type plants, transgenic Arabidopsis overexpressing BnMTP10 exhibited enhanced tolerance to excessive Mn stress but showed no significant difference under Fe stress. Correspondingly, under excessive Mn stress, the Mn content in the roots of transgenic Arabidopsis increased significantly. However, under excessive Fe stress, the Fe content in transgenic Arabidopsis did not alter significantly. According to the results, we hypothesize that BnMTP10 may alleviate excessive Mn stress in plants by mediating Mn transport to the ER. This study facilitated our understanding of efficient mineral nutrients, and provided theoretical foundations and gene resources for breeding B. napus.
Brassica napus/genetics* ; Manganese/metabolism* ; Plants, Genetically Modified/genetics* ; Plant Proteins/physiology* ; Arabidopsis/metabolism* ; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant ; Phylogeny ; Cation Transport Proteins/metabolism* ; Stress, Physiological

Objective To investigate the effect of circSKA3 on the malignant behaviors of ovari-an cancer cells and its potential mechanism.Methods Human ovarian cancer SK-OV-3 cells were cultured in vitro and randomly divided into si-NC group,si-circSKA3 group,miR-NC group,miR-532-5p group and si-circSKA3+anti-miR-NC and si-circSKA3+anti-miR-532-5p group.The expres-sion levels of circSKA3 and miR-532-5p were detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain re-action(qRT-PCR).Cell proliferation,apoptosis and migration were detected by CCK-8 assay,plate clone formation assay,flow cytometry and Transwell assay.The targeting relationship between circS-KA3 and miR-532-5p was evaluated using dual-luciferase reporter assays.Protein expression of Cleaved-caspase3 was measured by Western blotting.Results The expression level of circSKA3 in ovarian cancer tissues was significantly higher than that in adjacent normal ovarian tissues(P＜0.05).The expression of miR-532-5p in the ovarian cancer tissues was significantly lower than that in the adjacent normal ovarian tissues(P＜0.05).Compared with the si-NC group,the si-circSKA3 group showed significantly reduced circSKA3 expression,increased miR-532-5p expression,elevat-ed cell proliferation inhibition rates and apoptosis rates,decreased colony formation numbers and mi-grating cell counts,and significantly higher Cleaved-caspase3 protein expression(P＜0.05).Circ-SKA3 was found to target miR-532-5p.After transfection with miR-532-5p mimictors,cell prolifera-tion and cell migration were inhibited,and the inhibition rate of cell proliferation,the apoptosis rate,and the protein level of Cleaved-caspase3 were significantly increased(P＜0.05).Compared with transfection with circSKA3 small interfering RNA alone,co-transfection with circSKA3 small in-terfering RNA and miR-532-5p inhibitor promoted cell proliferation and migration,inhibited apopto-sis rates,and reduced Cleaved-caspase3 protein expression(P＜0.05).Conclusion Silencing circSKA3 upregulates miR-532-5p expression,thereby inhibiting the malignant development of ovar-ian cancer cells.

Background The high work intensity and possible subsequently increased susceptibility to occupational hazards of calcium carbide plants may lead to hypertension in workers, but there are few studies on the relationship between occupational hazard exposure and hypertension in workers involving the production process of calcium carbide. Objective To explore the influence of occupational hazards on the incidence of hypertension in calcium carbide plants. Methods Using historical cohort design, the employees of a calcium carbide factory in the western part of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region were selected as research subjects. According to the pre-determined inclusion and exclusion criteria, the study population comprised an exposure group of 377 employees (including furnace workers, inspection workers, and maintenance workers) exposed to dust, noise & carbon monoxide, and a control group of 388 employees (including central control workers, electricians, and administrative personnel) without above-mentioned exposure. The total sample size was 765 participants. The follow-up period was from April 2011 to October 2022, and the study endpoint was defined as the conclusion of the follow-up period or diagnosed hypertension in annual occupational health examination. Information on general demographic characteristics, living habits, and work status was collected from all study subjects. Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to analyze the association between occupational hazard exposure and the risk of hypertension among the calcium carbide plant employees. Results The average age, mean systolic and diastolic blood pressure, proportion of males, smoking rate, and alcohol consumption rate in the exposure group were higher than those in the control group (P<0.05). Compared to baseline, both systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels increased in the exposure group and the control group at the end of the follow-up (P<0.05). At the end of the follow-up, the average differences between systolic/ diastolic blood pressure and baseline values in the exposure group were higher than those in the control group (P<0.05). During the follow-up period, a total of 223 cases of hypertension occurred, with a total follow-up of 2785 person-years, resulting in an incidence density of 8007.18 per 100000 person-years, an average age of onset of (35.90±8.22) years, and an average working age of onset of (2.69±1.97) years. The incidence density in the exposure group was 128.71% higher than that in the control group, and the risk of hypertension in the exposure group was 2.115 times that of the control group. The risk of hypertension was 2.199 times higher for men than for women, 1.344 times higher for those aged 30 and above than for those under 30, 1.546 times higher for smokers than for non-smokers, and 1.750 times higher for drinking workers than for non-drinking ones. The results of Cox proportional hazards regression modeling indicated that the hazard ratio (95%CI) of hypertension among the employees exposed to dust, noise, and carbon monoxide was 2.254 (1.703, 2.982), 1.594 (1.107, 2.295), and 1.567 (1.079, 2.274), respectively, when different covariates (gender, age, smoking, and alcohol consumption) were included. The results of Log-rank test showed that there were statistically significant differences in the distribution of disease-free survival between the exposure group and the control group (P<0.05). Conclusion Occupational exposures to dust, noise, and carbon monoxide may increase the risk of hypertension among calcium carbide plant workers.

Dental pulp-dentin complex defects remain a major unresolved problem in oral medicines. Clinical therapeutic methods including root canal therapy and vital pulp therapy are both considered as conservative strategies, which are incapable of repairing the pulp-dentin complex defects. Although biomaterial-based strategies show remarkable progress in antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and pulp regeneration, the important modulatory effects of nerves within pulp cavity have been greatly overlooked, making it challenging to achieve functional pulp-dentin complex regeneration. In this study, we propose an injectable bioceramics-containing composite hydrogel in combination of Li-Ca-Si (LCS) bioceramics and gelatin methacrylate matrix with photo-crosslinking properties. Due to the sustained release of bioactive Li, Ca and Si ions from LCS, the composite hydrogels possess multiple functions of promoting the neurogenic differentiation of Schwann cells, odontogenic differentiation of dental pulp stem cells, and neurogenesis-odontogenesis couples in vitro. In addition, the in vivo results showed that LCS-containing composite hydrogel can significantly promote the pulp-dentin complex repair. More importantly, LCS bioceramics-containing composite hydrogel can induce the growth of nerve fibers, leading to the re-innervation of pulp tissues. Taken together, the study suggests that LCS bioceramics can induce the innervation of pulp-dentin complex repair, offering a referable strategy of designing multifunctional filling materials for functional periodontal tissue regeneration.
Dental Pulp/drug effects* ; Hydrogels/pharmacology* ; Animals ; Ceramics/pharmacology* ; Dentin/drug effects* ; Biocompatible Materials/pharmacology* ; Rats ; Gelatin ; Regeneration/drug effects* ; Cell Differentiation/drug effects* ; Injections ; Humans ; Odontogenesis/drug effects*

Objective: To conduct a scoping review on prognostic prediction models for patients with comorbidity of chronic diseases, and understand modeling methods, predictive factors and predictive effect of the models, so as to provide the reference for prognostic evaluation on patients with comorbidity of chronic diseases. Methods: Literature on prognostic prediction models for patients with comorbidity of chronic diseases was collected through SinoMed, CNKI, Wanfang Data, VIP, PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library and Web of Science published from the time of their establishment to November 1, 2023. The quality of literature was assessed using prediction model risk of bias assessment tool (PROBAST), then modeling methods, predictive factors and predictive effects were reviewed. Results: Totally 2 130 publications were retrieved, and nine publications were finally enrolled, with an overall high risk of bias. Thirteen models were involved, with three established using machine learning methods and ten established using logistic regression. The prediction results of four models were death, with main predictive factors being age, gender, body mass index (BMI), Barthel index and pressure ulcers; the prediction results of nine models were rehospitalization, with main predictive factors being age, BMI, hospitalization frequency, duration of hospital stay and hospitalization costs. Eleven models reported the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), ranging from 0.663 to 0.991 6; two models reported the C-index, ranging from 0.64 to 0.70. Eight models performed internal validation, one model performed external validation, and four models did not reported verification methods. Conclusions The prognostic prediction models for patients with comorbidity of chronic diseases are established by logistic regression and machine learning methods with common nursing evaluation indicators, and perform well. Laboratory indicators should be considered to add in the models to further improve the predictive effects.

BACKGROUND:A large number of studies have confirmed that tissue engineering scaffolds can almost completely repair osteochondral defects.However,when osteochondral defects are complicated with infection,even after thorough debridement in the early stage,the repair effect of simple osteochondral tissue engineering scaffolds is often unsatisfactory. OBJECTIVE:To prepare fibroin/chitosan/nano-hydroxyapatite scaffold loaded with vancomycin hydrochloride sustained release microspheres,and to investigate the repair effect on infected osteochondral defect in distal femur of rabbit. METHODS:(1)Vancomycin hydrochloride sustained release microspheres were prepared by emulsified solvent evaporation method.The sustained-release microspheres of different weights(7.5,10,and 12.5 mg)were mixed with fibroin protein-chitosan nanohydroxyapatite solution,and the scaffolds of fibroin protein/chitosan/nano-hydroxyapatite were prepared by chemical crosslinking method.The porosity,water absorption and expansion rate,hot water loss rate of the scaffolds,and drug sustained-release in vitro were characterized.(2)Forty-five New Zealand white rabbits were randomly divided into blank group,control group,and experimental group,with 15 rabbits in each group.The osteochondral defect and infection model of the distal femur of the right hind limb was established in both groups.The blank group was not treated,and the control group was implanted with fibroin protein-chitosan-nano-hydroxyapatite scaffold.Vancomycin hydrochloride sustained-release microspheres(10 mg)of fibroin/chitosan/nano-hydroxyapatite scaffold were implanted in the defect of the experimental group.The levels of C-reactive protein and leukocytes in blood samples were detected 1 week after operation.At 4,8 and 12 weeks after operation,the tissue of the operative area was taken for gross observation and pathological observation. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)With the increase of sustained-release microspheres content,the porosity of scaffolds decreased,and there was significant difference among groups(P＜0.05).There were no significant differences in the pore size,water absorption expansion rate and hot water loss rate among the three groups(P＞0.05).Vancomycin hydrochloride was released sustainably in vitro for more than 30 days in all three groups of scaffolds.(2)The levels of C-reactive protein and leukocytes in blood samples of the experimental group were lower than those of the blank group and control group(P＜0.05).The repair of gross cartilage in the experimental group was significantly better than that in the blank group and the control group.Hematoxylin-eosin,Masson,Alcian blue and type Ⅱ collagen immunohistochemical stainings showed that the osteochondral repair effect of the experimental group was significantly better than that of the blank group and the control group at each time point.(3)The results showed that fibroin/chitosan/nano-hydroxyapatite scaffolds loaded with vancomycin hydrochloride sustained-release microspheres could effectively promote the repair of open osteochondral defects.

Liver failure often has rapid progression， multiple complications， and dangerous conditions. Acute pancreatitis is a common comorbidity during the progression of liver failure， and since acute pancreatitis has extremely similar clinical symptoms and signs to liver failure complicated by spontaneous peritonitis， it is often neglected in clinical practice. This article elaborates on the mechanisms of liver failure complicated by acute pancreatitis from the five aspects of inflammatory response， duodenal papillary dysfunction， gut microbiota dysbiosis， oxidative stress， and microcirculatory disturbance and proposes corresponding preventive measures based on these mechanisms.

This article reported a case of successful delivery in a woman with right atrial angiosarcoma and ovarian metastasis. At 31 weeks of gestation, the pregnant woman experienced dyspnea, osphyalgia, nausea, and vomiting. An echocardiogram performed at a local hospital indicated a hypoechoic mass in the right atrium. On December 12, 2023 (32 weeks of gestation), she was transferred to the Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University. On admission, cardiac ultrasound suggested an irregular slightly high echo in the right atrium, and MRI indicated a malignant tumor. On the day of admission, the patient underwent cardiac exploratory surgery and cesarean section. An enlarged left ovary was found during the surgery, and postoperative pathology confirmed primary right atrial angiosarcoma with left ovarian metastasis. The patient was transferred to the intensive care unit for further treatment. At the request of her family, she was discharged after her condition improved (11 d after the surgery). A male infant who had shallow breathing but did not cry at birth was delivered via cesarean section. He was transferred to the neonatal department for intubation and positive pressure ventilation with a resuscitation bag and was discharged 25 d after birth. The patient was lost to follow-up after discharge.

Objective The stress variations during the wear process of an artificial knee joint were studied.Then,a signal acquisition system was designed to capture the vibration signals induced by the wear of knee joint prosthesis.The aim was to provide new technical means for online wear monitoring of the artificial knee joint.Methods To effectively collect vibration signals,the optimal installation position of the vibration sensors was determined by analyzing the dynamic model of the knee joint prosthesis during motion and identifying the main distribution areas of the tibial insert contact stress.The dynamic model of the femoral prosthesis was solved using Lagrangian equations.The torque variation curve of the femoral prosthesis was obtained to validate the effectiveness of finite element analysis.The signals collected by the vibration sensors installed at different positions in the friction wear experiments and the surface morphology in different areas were compared to verify the effectiveness of the acquisition system design and finite element analysis results.Results The stress concentration regions of the tibial pad under four degrees of freedom(flexion,internal and external rotation,anterior-posterior displacement,and up-and-down displacement)were obtained based on a dynamic simulation.A stress concentration was evident in the middle and posterior regions of the tibial pad.A vibration signal with a higher amplitude was collected when the vibration sensor was installed at the rear end of the tibial pad.This aided the vibration feature extraction of the knee joint prosthesis.Conclusions The vibration signal acquisition system designed based on the dynamic simulation analysis effectively collected the vibration signals generated by the artificial knee joint during the wear process.This study provides an important means for evaluating the wear mechanisms of artificial knee joints and monitoring their full-life health status.

Objective The stress variations during the wear process of an artificial knee joint were studied.Then,a signal acquisition system was designed to capture the vibration signals induced by the wear of knee joint prosthesis.The aim was to provide new technical means for online wear monitoring of the artificial knee joint.Methods To effectively collect vibration signals,the optimal installation position of the vibration sensors was determined by analyzing the dynamic model of the knee joint prosthesis during motion and identifying the main distribution areas of the tibial insert contact stress.The dynamic model of the femoral prosthesis was solved using Lagrangian equations.The torque variation curve of the femoral prosthesis was obtained to validate the effectiveness of finite element analysis.The signals collected by the vibration sensors installed at different positions in the friction wear experiments and the surface morphology in different areas were compared to verify the effectiveness of the acquisition system design and finite element analysis results.Results The stress concentration regions of the tibial pad under four degrees of freedom(flexion,internal and external rotation,anterior-posterior displacement,and up-and-down displacement)were obtained based on a dynamic simulation.A stress concentration was evident in the middle and posterior regions of the tibial pad.A vibration signal with a higher amplitude was collected when the vibration sensor was installed at the rear end of the tibial pad.This aided the vibration feature extraction of the knee joint prosthesis.Conclusions The vibration signal acquisition system designed based on the dynamic simulation analysis effectively collected the vibration signals generated by the artificial knee joint during the wear process.This study provides an important means for evaluating the wear mechanisms of artificial knee joints and monitoring their full-life health status.