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Herein, a novel Ag NP substrate doped with Au nanobipyramids was designed and fabricated via a convenient procedure of galvanic reaction for the identification and classification of amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS) in oral fluids in combination with surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). The substrate was shown to have a three-dimensional nanostructure, high SERS activity, and good stability. In combination with SERS, the Ag NP substrate doped with Au nanobipyramids was able to detect ultra-low traces of ATS, including amphetamine, methylamphetamine (MA), 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA), and 3,4-methylenedioxymethylamphetamine (MDMA) in oral fluid with limit of detection (LOD) and limit of determination quantitation (LOQ) as low as 10 –9  mg/mL, which is much better than the current spectroscopic techniques. The equations between concentration and peaks intensity for quantitative analysis displied good doublelogarithmic linear relations and reliability figures of merit at nanogram concentration level in compartion with GC–MS method. The approach can be broadly applied to the ultra-low trace detection of ATS in oral fluid and would be particularly useful for the analyses of nitrogenous organic compounds.

The FePC-based bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) have been demonstrated to possess high plasticity and good soft magnetic properties. However, the relatively poor glass forming ability (GFA) and thermal stabilities limited their application in industries. The effects of microalloying with B in FePC-based BMGs on the GFA and thermal behaviors were systematically investigated. It was found that a small amount of B addition can dramatically enhance the GFA of FePC-based BMGs, which in turn leads to the critical maximum diameter up to 2 mm for full glass formation even using low cost raw materials. The underlying mechanism of the enhancement of GFA from the competing crystalline phase with amorphous phase, the average thermal expansion coefficient and dynamic viscosity were discussed in detail.

Background： Therapeutic angiogenesis has been shown to promote blood vessel growth and improve tissue perfusion.Nerve growth factor （NGF） has been reported to play an important role in both physiological and pathological angiogenesis.This study aimed to investigate the effects of NGF on angiogenesis and skeletal muscle fiber remodeling in a murine model of hindlimb ischemia and study the relationship between NGF and vascular endothelial growth factor （VEGF） in angiogenesis.Methods： Twenty-four mice were randomly allocated to normal control group （n =6）, blank control group （n =6）, VEGF gene transfection group （n =6）, and NGF gene transfection group （n =6）.The model of left hindlimb ischemia model was established by ligating the femoral artery.VEGF165 plasmid （125 μg） and NGF plasmid （125 μg） was injected into the ischemic gastrocnemius of mice from VEGF group and NGF group, respectively.Left hindlimb function and ischemic damage were assessed with terminal points at 21th day postischemia induction.The gastrocnemius of four groups was tested by hematoxylin-eosin staining, proliferating cell nuclear antigen and CD34 immunohistochemistry staining, and myosin ATPase staining.NGF and VEGF protein expression was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.Results： On the 21th day after surgery, the functional assessment score and skeletal muscle atrophy degree of VEGF group and NGF group were significantly lower than those of normal control group and blank control group.The endothelial cell proliferation index and the capillary density of VEGF group and NGF group were significantly increased compared with normal control group and blank control group （P 〈 0.05）.The NGF and VEGF protein expression of NGF group showed a significant rise when compared with blank control group （P 〈 0.05）.Similarly, the VEGF protein expression of VEGF group was significantly higher than that of blank control group （P 〈 0.05）, but there was no significant difference of the NGF protein expression between VEGF group and blank control group （P 〉 0.05）.The type Ⅰ skeletal muscle fiber proportion in gastrocnemius of NGF group and VEGF group was significantly higher than that of blank control group （P 〈 0.05）.Conclusions： NGF transfection can promote NGF and VEGF protein expression which not only can induce angiogenesis but also induce type Ⅰ muscle fiber expression in ischemic limbs.

The research and development of organometallic supramolecular complexes as anticancer supramolecular drugs, which are aggregates mainly formed by one or more inorganic metal compounds with one or more either inorganic or organic molecules in general via coordination bonds, has been a quite rapidly developing, increasingly active and newly rising highlight interdisciplinary field. Numerous efforts have been directed toward organometallic supramolecular complexes as potential anticancer agents and the unprecedented progress has been made. This has opened up a wholly new and infinite space to create novel metal-based bioactive supermolecules. More importantly, metal-based complex supermolecules as potential anticancer agents with wide potential applications have become highlight topics in recent years, and are becoming increasingly useful and important in preventing and treating cancer diseases. In view of the rapid progress in organometallic complex anticancer supermolecules with rich variation of structural types, this work systematically reviewed the recent research and development of the whole range of metal-based supramolecular complexes as anticancer agents mainly since 2009. The perspectives of the foreseeable future and potential application of organometallic supramolecular complexes in cancer therapy were also presented. It is hoped that this review will serve as a stimulant for new thoughts in the quest for rational designs of more active and less toxic organometallic supramolecular complex anticancer drugs.

In this study, we investigated whether the ability of aucubin to mitigate the pathology of GONFH involves suppression of TLR4/NF‐κB signalling and promotion of macrophage polarization to an M2 phenotype. In necrotic bone tissues from GONFH patients, we compared levels of pro‐inflammatory M1 macrophages and anti‐inflammatory M2 macrophages as well as levels of TLR4/NF‐κB signalling. In a rat model of GONFH, we examined the effects of aucubin on these parameters. We further explored its mechanism of action in a cell culture model of M1 macrophages. Necrotic bone tissues from GONFH patients contained a significantly increased macrophage M1/M2 ratio, and higher levels of TLR4, MYD88 and NF‐κB p65 than bone tissues from patients with hip osteoarthritis. Treating GONFH rats with aucubin mitigated bone necrosis and demineralization as well as destruction of trabecular bone and marrow in a dose‐dependent manner, based on micro‐computed tomography. These therapeutic effects were associated with a decrease in the overall number of macrophages, decrease in the proportion of M1 macrophages, increase in the proportion of M2 macrophages, and downregulation of TLR4, MYD88 and NF‐κB p65. These effects in vivo were confirmed by treating cultures of M1 macrophage‐like cells with aucubin. Aucubin mitigates bone pathology in GONFH by suppressing TLR4/NF‐κB signalling to shift macrophages from a pro‐ to anti‐inflammatory phenotype.

Kelch proteins are implicated in the pathogenesis of many human diseases, including cancer. Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a rare malignancy in most countries, but prevalent in southern China and certain areas of Southeast Asia. In this study, we identified Kelch Domain Containing 4 (KLHDC4), an orphan member of the kelch repeat superfamily, as a prognosis marker for NPC. We examined the expression of KLHDC4 in 168 NPC cases by immunohistochemical staining and found a substantially higher level of KLHDC4 in NPC biopsies compared to adjacent normal nasopharyngeal mucosa. KLHDC4 expression was significantly related to the T classification (P <0.05), N classification (P <0.05) and total staging (P <0.01) in NPC, and patients with higher KLHDC4 expression had poorer overall (P <0.01) and metastasis-free survival (P <0.05) rates. Knockout (KO) of KLHDC4 via CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene editing in NPC cell line dramatically inhibited cell proliferation, colony formation in soft agar and tumor formation in nude mice. In addition, cell migration and invasion were also impaired by KLHDC4 depletion as revealed by wound healing and Transwell assay. Mechanically, loss of KLHDC4 markedly induced spontaneous apoptosis in NPC cells, as evidenced by increased levels of cleaved caspase-3 and cleaved PARP. Consistently, KLHDC4 knockout cell-derived xenografts also showed elevated cleaved caspase-3 and PARP but reduced Ki-67 staining. In conclusion, our results suggest that KLHDC4 promotes NPC oncogenesis by suppressing cellular apoptosis. Thus, KLHDC4 may serve as a prognosis biomarker and a potential therapeutic target for NPC.

Cardiac hypertrophy (CH) is an independent risk factor for many cardiovascular diseases, and is one of the primary causes of morbidity and mortality in elderly people. Pathological CH involves excessive protein synthesis, increased cardiomyocyte size, and ultimately the development of heart failure. Myotubularin-related protein 14 (MTMR14) is a member of the myotubularin (MTM)-related protein family, which is involved in apoptosis, aging, inflammation, and autophagy. However, its exact function in CH is still unclear. Herein, we investigated the roles of MTMR14 in CH. We show that MTMR14 expression was increased in hypertrophic mouse hearts. Mice deficient in heart MTMR14 exhibited an aggravated aortic-banding (AB)-induced CH phenotype. In contrast, MTMR14 overexpression prevented pressure overload-induced hypertrophy. At the molecular level, prevention of CH in the absence of MTMR14 involved elevations in Akt pathway components, which are key elements that regulate apoptosis and cell proliferation. These results demonstrate that MTMR14 is a new molecular target for the treatment of CH.

The International Union Against Cancer/American Joint Committee on Cancer (UICC/AJCC) TNM staging system of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is the most important system for survival prediction. The TNM 7th edition UICC/AJCC TNM staging system for NPC was adopted in January 2009, and is now internationally recommended. In comparison with the TNM 6th edition, there were several revisions in the new edition staging system. This study aims to evaluate the prognostic value of the TNM 7th edition for NPC patients in comparison with the TNM 6th edition. Clinical data of 2,629 NPC patients from the Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center between January 2006 and December 2010 were retrospectively collected and all the patients were restaged according to the criteria of the TNM 6th edition and TNM 7th edition UICC/AJCC staging manual. Univariate and multivariate COX proportional hazards analyses were applied to evaluate the prognostic values between adjacent stage categories of the TNM 6th edition and TNM 7th edition. In comparison with the TNM 6th edition, a significant alteration of the distribution of N categories was observed when the TNM 7th edition was applied (χ2 = 20.589, P<0.001), with 119 (119/670, 17.8%) patients up-staging from N0 to N1. With regard to T and overall stage, 37 (37/561, 6.6%) patients were down-staged from T2a with the TNM 6th edition to T1 with the TNM 7th edition, and finally two patients were up-staged to overall stage II (2/118, 1.7%). Moreover, the survival curves were significantly segregated (P<0.05) between T1 and T2 as well as N1 and N2 with the TNM 7th edition. The TNM 7th edition led to a significant alteration in the distribution of N categories and it is superior to the TNM 6th edition in predicting the frequency of overall survival and distant metastasis-free survival.

The dried roots of Rehmannia glutinosa Libosch. (Scrophulariaceae) are of both medicinal and nutritional importance. Our previous study has found that the 80% ethanol extract of R. glutinosa (RGEE) produced antidepressant-like activities in mouse behavioral despair depression models. However, its mechanisms are still unclear. The present study aimed to observe the antidepressant-like mechanisms of RGEE on a rat chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) model by involving monoaminergic neurotransmitters and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). CUMS-stressed rats were orally given RGEE daily (150, 300, and 600 mg/kg) or fluoxetine hydrochloride (FH) for 3 weeks after starting the CUMS procedure. Sucrose preference test was carried out to observe depression-like behavior, and serum and brain tissues were used for neurochemical and fluorescent quantitative reverse transcription PCR analysis. Results demonstrated that CUMS induced depression-like behavior, whereas RGEE and FH administration inhibited this symptom. Furthermore, CUMS caused excessively elevated levels of serum corticosterone (CORT), an index of hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis hyperactivity, in a manner attenuated by RGEE and FH administration. RGEE administration also further elevated monoamine neurotransmitters and BDNF levels, up-regulated the mRNA expression of BDNF and tropomyosin-related kinase B (TrkB) in hippocampus of rats suffering CUMS. Together, our findings suggest that RGEE can improve CUMS-evoked depression-like behavior, and indicate its mechanisms may partially be associated with restoring HPA axis dysfunctions, enhancing monoamineergic nervous systems, and up-regulating BDNF and TrkB expression.

Background SHR-1707 is a novel humanized anti-Aβ IgG1 monoclonal antibody that binds to Aβ fibrils and monomers to block the formation of Aβ plaques or to promote the microglial phagocytosis of Aβ. Preclinical studies showed that SHR-1707 reduced brain Aβ deposition in 5xFAD transgenic mice. Herein, we conducted two phase 1 studies to evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics (PK) and pharmacodynamics (PD) of a single intravenous dose of SHR-1707 in healthy adult subjects. Methods Two randomized, double-blind, single-ascending-dose, phase 1 studies were conducted in China (Study CHN) and Australia (Study AUS). Study CHN consisted of 2 parts. In Part 1, eligible healthy young adults (18–45 years) were sequentially randomized 8:2 to receive SHR-1707 (five cohorts: 2, 6, 20, 40, and 60 mg/kg) or placebo in each cohort; in Part 2, elderly subjects (55–80 years) were randomized 8:4 to receive SHR-1707 (20 mg/kg) or placebo. A similar design was used in Study AUS, but with only healthy young adults enrolled across three dosing cohorts (2, 20, and 60 mg/kg). Results Sixty-two (part 1/2, n  = 50/12; age range, 18–42/55–63 years) and 30 subjects (age range, 18–42 years) received SHR-1707 or placebo in Study CHN and Study AUS, respectively. In Study CHN, all treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) were mild, with the most common being transient laboratory abnormalities. In Study AUS, TRAEs were mostly mild (1 moderate event each with SHR-1707/placebo); the most common TRAEs with SHR-1707 were dysgeusia and fatigue (8.3% each). In both studies, the exposure of SHR-1707 increased in a slightly greater than dose-proportional manner over the dose range of 2–60 mg/kg in young adults; there was a dose-dependent increase in plasma Aβ42 concentration following SHR-1707 administration compared with the placebo group. The safety and PK and PD profiles of SHR-1707 in the elderly subjects were consistent with the younger counterpart at the same dose level. No ethnic difference in safety, PK and PD of SHR-1707 was observed. Conclusions A single intravenous dose of SHR-1707 at 2–60 mg/kg was safe and well tolerated in healthy young adult and elderly subjects. The PK and PD profiles are supportive for further clinical development. Trial registration NCT04973189 (retrospectively registered on Jul.21, 2021) and NCT04745104 (registered on Feb.6, 2021) on clinicaltrials.gov.