Objective To evaluate the ambient dose equivalent rates of photons and neutrons inside and outside the door of a 10 MV accelerator room, and to report the shielding effect of boron-containing polyethylene as maze wall lining. Methods The ambient dose equivalent rates of photons and neutrons inside and outside the door of an accelerator room were taken as the research subject. The Kersey, Falcão, and modified Kersey methods were used to calculate the ambient dose equivalent rates of neutrons and neutron capture gamma rays inside and outside the door of the room before and after renovation. Measurements were made using an X-ray/γ-ray dose rate instrument and a neutron ambient dose equivalent rate meter. Calculated and measured results were compared. Results Before renovation, the measured neutron dose rate inside the door was 409 μSv/h, while the calculated values were 323 μSv/h (Kersey method), 428 μSv/h (Falcão method), and 219 μSv/h (modified Kersey method). The Falcão method yielded a value closest to the measured value, while the Kersey and the modified Kersey methods underestimated the value by 21% and 46%, respectively. After the installation of boron-containing polyethylene plates, the measured neutron dose rate inside the door was 190 μSv/h, with a 54% reduction. The neutron and photon ambient dose equivalent rates outside the door were 5.8 μSv/h and 6.0 μSv/h, respectively, before renovation, and 0.14 μSv/h and 1.6 μSv/h, respectively, after renovation. Conclusion For a 10 MV accelerator room, neutron shielding and protection measurements are necessary, especially for rooms with short mazes. The Falcão method provides the best estimate of neutron dose rates inside and outside the door. Using boron-containing polyethylene plates as maze wall lining is an economical and effective shielding method.

Varicocele (VC) is a common cause of male infertility, yet there is a lack of molecular information for VC-associated male infertility. This study investigated alterations in the seminal plasma metabolomic and lipidomic profiles of infertile male VC patients. Twenty infertile males with VC and twenty-three age-matched healthy controls (HCs) were recruited from Peking Union Medical College Hospital (Beijing, China) between October 2019 and April 2021. Untargeted metabolite and lipid profiles from seminal plasma were analyzed using mass spectrometry. Four hundred and seventy-six metabolites and seventeen lipids were significantly different in infertile male VC patients compared to HCs. The top enriched pathways among these significantly different metabolites are protein digestion and absorption, aminoacyl-transfer RNA (tRNA) biosynthesis, and biosynthesis of amino acids. Different key lipid species, including triglyceride (TG), diacylglycerol (DG), ceramides (Cer), and phosphatidylserine (PS), varied between VC and HC groups. The distinct metabolites and lipids were moderately correlated. DL-3-phenyllactic acid is a potential diagnostic biomarker for VC-related male infertility (area under the curve [AUC] = 0.893), positively correlating with sperm count, concentration, and motility. Furthermore, DL-3-phenyllactic acid is the only metabolite shared by all four comparisons (VC vs HC, VC-induced oligoasthenospermia [OAS] vs VC-induced asthenospermia [AS], OAS vs HC, and AS vs HC). DL-3-phenyllactic acid significantly decreased in OAS than AS. Metabolite-targeting gene analysis revealed carbonic anhydrase 9 (CA9) might be the strongest candidate associated with the onset and severity of VC. The seminal plasma metabolite and lipid profiles of infertile males with VC differ significantly from those of HCs. DL-3-phenyllactic acid could be a promising biomarker.
Humans ; Male ; Varicocele/complications* ; Infertility, Male/etiology* ; Semen/metabolism* ; Lipidomics ; Adult ; Metabolomics ; Case-Control Studies ; Biomarkers/metabolism*

Clinical management of atopic dermatitis (AD) is challenged by its susceptibility to recurrence, side effects, and high costs. We found that Portulaca oleracea L.-derived nanovesicles (PDNV) exert anti-inflammatory effects by modulating macrophage M1/M2 polarization. These effects were achieved through pathways including inhibition of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) and stimulator of interferon genes (STING) protein expression in diseased tissues, demonstrating their potential to ameliorate AD symptoms. To increase the transdermal permeation of PDNV, dissolvable microneedles composed primarily of hyaluronic acid (HA) were developed as an adjunctive means of delivery. Meanwhile, polysaccharides of Portulaca oleracea L., which were synergistic with PDNV, were used as microneedle constituent materials to enhance the mechanical properties and physical stability of HA. This new means of delivery significantly improves the treatment of AD and also provides new options for the efficient utilization of plant extracellular vesicles and the treatment of AD. In addition, transcriptomic analysis of PDNV showed that the mRNAs of Portulaca oleracea L. are closest to those of ferns, which may shed light on related evolutionary and plant species identification studies.

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TCM believes that spleen deficiency is the root cause of emotional abnormalities in chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), and clinical treatment often involves the heart, liver and kidney. TCM therapy has a significant efficacy in CFS emotional abnormalities. It is mostly treated with oral administration of TCM, acupuncture, moxibustion and massage therapy. It may play a therapeutic role by improving oxidative stress and immune inflammation, regulating nerve-endocrine, controlling energy metabolism and other ways. It is suggested to establish the syndrome differentiation standard of CFS emotional abnormality in the future, so as to improve the accuracy of syndrome differentiation and treatment; form a perfect treatment guide or expert consensus to guide the standardized application of various internal and external treatment methods; explore objective indicators based on the pathogenesis, and focus on the morphological and functional changes of disease target brain regions with the help of neuroimaging techniques, so as to improve the diagnosis and prognosis evaluation of CFS; based on the guidance of TCM theory, improve the CFS emotional abnormal animal modeling method.

Objective To analyze the changes of B lymphocyte(B cells)subsets in peripheral blood of patients with chronic hepatitis B(CHB)and to explore its clinical significance.Methods Peripheral blood samples were collected from 37 treatment-na?ve CHB patients who were admitted to the Fifth Medical Center of PLA General Hospital from July 2022 to October 2022,and peripheral blood samples collected from 18 healthy individuals who have received the hepatitis B vaccine as healthy controls(HC).The study subjects'clinical indexes such as age,HBV DNA viral load,HBsAg quantification,HBeAg semi quantification,ALT,AST,and AST/ALT ratio were collected.The change characteristics of the frequency,phenotypic and functional markers of peripheral blood B lymphocytes and their subsets were compared between CHB and HC.Using multi-color flow cytometry,and the correlation between them and clinical indexes was analyzed.Results Frequency analysis of each subset of B cells showed that compared with HC,the frequency of total B cells,transitional B cells and naive B cells was decreased(P<0.05),while the frequency of mature B cells,memory B cells,atypical memory B cells and activated memory B cells was increased in CHB patients(P<0.01).And there was no significant difference in the frequency of resting memory B cells between the two groups(P>0.05).The results of functional analysis showed that compared with HC,the expression levels of CD79b on total B cells,mature B cells,memory B cells,naive B cells,activated memory B cells,atypical memory B cells and resting memory B cells in CHB patients were increased(P<0.05).The expression level of programmed cell death protein-1(PD-1)on atypical memory B cells in CHB patients was also higher than that in HC group(P<0.05).The results of correlation analysis showed that the frequency of total B cells in CHB patients was slightly negatively correlated with age(r=-0.39,P<0.05),while the expression of programmed death-1(PD-1)on total B cells,mature B cells,transitional B cells,memory B cells and naive B cells were slightly positively correlated with age(r>0.36,P<0.05).Conclusions Chronic HBV infection leads to depletion of the frequency and function of a portion of B cells in the peripheral blood of CHB patients,and age is a potential risk factor for the decline in humoral immune function in CHB patients.

Objective To identify stable reference genes for a comparison of the transcription levels of target host genes under viral infection in order to provide data for studies on interactions between the host and the influenza virus.Methods Reverse transcription quantitative real-time PCR(RT-qPCR)was performed to detect the relative expression levels of six candidate reference genes,including glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase(GAPDH),β-actin,18S RNA,β2-microglobulin(B2M),ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2D2(UBE2D2),and ribosomal protein L37A(RPL37A)in classical cell models(A549 cells and THP-1 cells)under different conditions.The stability of the reference genes was evaluated using such methods as BestKeeper,GeNorm,NormFinder,and comparative A Ct method.Results The stability of reference genes varied depending on conditions.When such experimental factors as influenza virus infection and immune activation were taken into consideration,β-actin and GAPDH were identified as the most stable reference genes in A549 cells and THP-1 cells,followed by UBE2D2 and B2M.Conclusion The optimal reference genes in A549 cells and THP-1 cells under influenza virus infection or after being treated with interferons or LPS have been identified,which is of referential value for studying the mechanisms of viral infections.

TCM functional exercises are the important means of TCM to prevent and cure diseases. By adjusting the bones and muscles externally, adjusting the heart and organs internally, promoting blood circulation, improving sleep disorders, enhancing metabolism and immune capacity, the aim of preventing and treating diseases, prolonging life span, and strengthening the body is achieved. TCM exercises have a significant effect on the treatment of various types of fatigue such as chronic fatigue syndrome, Exercise-induced fatigue, post-stroke fatigue, and cancer-related fatigue.

Objective To analyze the medication rules of Professor HUANG Feng for the treatment of low back pain using data mining methods.Methods The information of prescriptions for the effective cases of outpatients with low back pain treated by Professor HUANG Feng were collected and screened.Microsoft Excel 2019 was used to analyze the frequency of medication and the distribution of properties,flavors and meridian tropism of the drugs in the included prescription.IBM SPSS Modeler 18.0 was used for association rule analysis,and IBM Statistics 26.0 was used for cluster analysis.Results A total of 239 prescriptions and 75 Chinese medicines were included.There were 23 high-frequency Chinese medicines with the medication frequency being or over 20 times,and the top 10 Chinese medicines were Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma,vinegar-processed Corydalis Rhizoma,Cibotii Rhizoma,Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma,Zanthoxyli Radix,salt-processed Achyranthis Bidentatae Radix,Rehmanniae Radix,Dipsaci Radix,Coicis Semen,and Salviae Miltiorrhizae Radix et Rhizoma.The medicines were mainly warm in nature,and were sweet,bitter and pungent in flavor.Most of the drugs had the meridian tropism of liver,stomach and spleen meridians.Among the drug combinations obtained from association rule analysis with the top 20 highest support,vinegar-processed Corydalis Rhizoma,Cibotii Rhizoma,Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma and Zanthoxyli Radix were the core drugs.Cluster analysis yielded 6 clustering combinations.Conclusion For the treatment of low back pain,Professor HUANG Feng follows the principle of"treatment adapting to the climate,individuality,and environment"and"treating the root cause of the disease",usually adopts the drugs for activating blood,moving qi and relieving pain,nourishing the liver and kidney,and also uses the medicines for replenishing qi and strengthening the spleen.The ideas of HUANG Feng for the treatment of low back pain can be used as a reference for the clinical treatment.