Effectiveness of MRA on embolized intracranial aneurysms: a comparison of DSA, CE-MRA, and TOF-MRA

Purpose: The endovascular treatment of intracranial aneurysms was proven safe and effective compared to the alternative method of surgical clipping, despite the high recurrence rate. Follow-up of embolized intracranial aneurysms is mandatory for the early detection of recurrence and improved outcomes. DSA is used as the reference standard for this assessment. To determine the effectiveness of MRA in follow-up evaluations of intracranial aneurysms after embolization by comparing DSA, CE-MRA, and TOF-MRA. Materials and Methods: Sixty-eight consecutive patients undergoing DSA, TOF-MRA, and CE-MRA during an interval of <1 week were enrolled in this 6-month study. Images were evaluated for occlusion status, patency of the parent vessels, and artifacts. The modified Raymond-Roy occlusion classification and Aneurysm Embolization Grades were used to assess the occlusion status and initial DSA images for detection of recurrence in two filtered study phases with optimized selection criteria. Seventeen observers(phase I: 9, phase II: 8) independently interpreted the double-blinded images. Agreement was expressed with a Fleiss kappa value; p < 0.05 was considered significant. Results: This study included 68 patients with 77 aneurysms; 38(49.35%) were treated with coil alone and 39(50.65%) with stent-assisted coiling. In both phases, DSA was superior to TOF-MRA and CE-MRA using MRRC(Phase I: k = 0.567, p ≤ 0.001; k = 0.287, p ≤ 0.001; k = 0.117, p ≤ 0.001, respectively; Phase II: k = 0.503, p ≤ 0.001; k = 0.303, p ≤ 0.001; k = 0.115, p = 0.038, respectively). TOF-MRA was as effective as DSA(TOF: k = 0.335, p ≤ 0.001; DSA: k = 0.323, p ≤ 0.001) for recurrence detection. Conclusion: We suggest TOF-MRA as a first-line follow-up tool to detect aneurysm recurrence, and DSA to quantify the filling space to make a definite decision on re-embolization.

Polarized red, green, and blue light emitting diodes fabricated with identical device configuration using rubbed PEDOT:PSS as alignment layer

Polarized red, green, and blue light emitting diodes(LEDs) are successfully fabricated using polyfluorene and its derivatives, namely, poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene)(PFO), poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene-co-benzothiadiazole)(F8BT),and poly(triphenylamine-co-4,7-di(thiophen-2-yl)benzo[c][1,2,5]thiadiazole-co-benzo[c]thiadiazole-co-9,9-dioctyl-9 Hfluorene)(Red F).Rubbed hole transport layer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene): poly(styrene sulfonate)(PEDOT:PSS)is employed in the devices as the alignment layer to achieve fully monodomain alignment in all polymer layers.Red F is blended with F8BT to realize the polarized electroluminescence of red light(dichroic ratio ~3.3), despite having no liquid crystallinity itself.Comparing PFO/F8BT blend to F8BT, higher efficiency of polarized emission is found due to the energy transfer.All the polarized LEDs exhibit pronounced dichroism and efficient polarized emission compared to the non-alignment regular devices.

Binary molten salt in situ synthesis of sandwich-structure hybrids of hollowβ-Mo2C nanotubes and N-doped carbon nanosheets for hydrogen evolution reaction

Focused exploration of earth-abundant and cost-efficient non-noble metal electrocatalysts with superior hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)performance is very important for large-scale and efficient electrolysis of water.Herein,a sandwich composite structure(designed as MS-Mo2C@NCNS)ofβ-Mo2C hollow nanotubes(HNT)and N-doped carbon nanosheets(NCNS)is designed and prepared using a binary NaCl–KCl molten salt(MS)strategy for HER.The temperature-dominant Kirkendall formation mechanism is tentatively proposed for such a three-dimensional hierarchical framework.Due to its attractive structure and componential synergism,MS-Mo2C@NCNS exposes more effective active sites,confers robust structural stability,and shows significant electrocatalytic activity/stability in HER,with a current density of 10 mA cm-2 and an overpotential of only 98 mV in 1 M KOH.Density functional theory calculations point to the synergistic effect of Mo2C HNT and NCNS,leading to enhanced electronic transport and suitable adsorption free energies of H*(ΔGH*)on the surface of electroactive Mo2C.More significantly,the MS-assisted synthetic methodology here provides an enormous perspective for the commercial development of highly active non-noble metal electrocatalysts toward efficient hydrogen evolution.

Inter3D:Capture of TAD Reorganization Endows Variant Patterns of Gene Transcription

Topologically associating domain(TAD)reorganization commonly occurs in the cell nucleus and contributes to gene activation and inhibition through the separation or fusion of adjacent TADs.However,functional genes impacted by TAD alteration and the underlying mechanism of TAD reorganization regulating gene transcription remain to be fully elucidated.Here,we first developed a novel approach termed Inter3D to specifically identify genes regulated by TAD reorganization.Our study revealed that the segregation of TADs led to the disruption of intrachromosomal looping at the myosin light chain 12B(MYL12B)locus,via the meticulous reorganization of TADs mediating epigenomic landscapes within tumor cells,thereby exhibiting a significant correlation with the down-regulation of its transcriptional activity.Conversely,the fusion of TADs facilitated intrachromosomal interactions,suggesting a potential association with the activation of cytochrome P450 family 27 subfamily B member 1(CYP27B1).Our study provides comprehensive insight into the capture of TAD rearrangement-mediated gene loci and moves toward understanding the functional role of TAD reorganization in gene transcription.The Inter3D pipeline developed in this study is freely available at https://github.com/bm2-lab/inter3D and https://ngdc.cncb.ac.cn/biocode/tool/BT7399.

Costunolide covalently targets NACHT domain of NLRP3 to inhibit inflammasome activation and alleviate NLRP3-driven inflammatory diseases

The NLRP3 inflammasome’s core and most specific protein,NLRP3,has a variety of functions in inflammation-driven diseases.Costunolide(COS)is the major active ingredient of the traditional Chinese medicinal herb Saussurea lappa and has anti-inflammatory activity,but the principal mechanism and molecular target of COS remain unclear.Here,we show that COS covalently binds to cysteine 598 in NACHT domain of NLRP3,altering the ATPase activity and assembly of NLRP3 inflammasome.We declare COS’s great anti-inflammasome efficacy in macrophages and disease models of gouty arthritis and ulcerative colitis via inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome activation.We also reveal that theα-methylene-γ-butyrolactone motif in sesquiterpene lactone is the certain active group in inhibiting NLRP3 activation.Taken together,NLRP3 is identified as a direct target of COS for its anti-inflammasome activity.COS,especially theα-methylene-γ-butyrolactone motif in COS structure,might be used to design and produce novel NLRP3 inhibitors as a lead compound.

Lower lymphocyte to monocyte ratio is a potential predictor of poor outcome in patients with cerebral venous sinus thrombosis

Background Lymphocyte to monocyte ratio(LMR)is associated with functional outcome in patients with stroke.But the relationship between the LMR value and the prognosis of cerebral venous sinus thrombosis(CVST)has not been investigated.Methods CVST patients,admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University,were retrospectively identified from November 2010 to January 2017.Functional outcomes of patients were evaluated with the modified Rankin Scale(mRS).Patients were divided into good(mRS 0-2)and poor(mRS 3-6)outcomes groups.Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were used to assess the relationship between LMR and the poor survival outcome.Results A total of 228 patients were included of which 41 had poor outcomes(18.0%).The duration of follow-up was 22 months(6-66 months).LMR(2.3±1.2 vs 3.2±1.8,p<0.01)was significantly lower in the poor outcome group.Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that LMR(HR 0.726,95%CI 0.546 to 0.964,p=0.027)was a independent predictor of poor prognosis.Conclusions LMR may be a predictor of poor prognosis in CVST patients.