Pragmatic Clinical Studies: An Emerging Clinical Research Discipline for Improving Evidence-Based Practice of Cardiovascular Diseases in Asia

Dong Zhao,Chen Yao 대한심장학회 2022 Korean Circulation Journal Vol.52 No.6

Pragmatic clinical studies, an emerging clinical research discipline, include a wide range of studies that are largely embedded with routine clinical practice and aim to evaluate the comparative effectiveness and safety of different clinical intervention strategies. Increased availability and quality of electronic medical/health records drives the development of pragmatic clinical studies. In this review, we describe evolution of the conceptual framework of pragmatic clinical studies and share perspectives on the importance of pragmatic clinical studies in evidence-based practice for cardiovascular diseases, as a complement to conventional randomized controlled trials. We also highlight specific needs of pragmatic clinical studies in improving evidence-based practice for cardiovascular disease in Asian countries. The main challenges of pragmatic clinical studies are discussed briefly in this review.

The Direct Feedback Control and Exponential Stabilization of a Coupled Heat PDE-ODE System with Dirichlet Boundary Interconnection

Dong-Xia Zhao,Jun-Min Wang,Ya-Ping Guo 제어·로봇·시스템학회 2019 International Journal of Control, Automation, and Vol.17 No.1

This paper addresses the exponential stability for an interconnected system of an nth-order ODE systemwith the input governed by the Dirichlet boundary of a heat equation, and conversely, the output of the ODE isfluxed into the heat equation. The semigroup approach is adopted to show that the system operator is well-posed. We establish the exponential stability of the system by Riesz basis method. Furthermore, with MATLAB software,some numerical simulations are presented to show the effectiveness of the interconnection between the heat PDEand ODE systems.

Investigation of Strain Measurements using Digital Image Correlation with a Finite Element Method

Zhao Jian,Zhao Dong 한국광학회 2013 Current Optics and Photonics Vol.17 No.5

This article proposes a digital image correlation (DIC) strain measurement method based on a finite element (FE) algorithm. A two-step digital image correlation is presented. In the first step, the gradientbased subpixels technique is used to search the displacements of a region of interest of the specimen,and then the strain fields are obtained by utilizing the finite element method in the second step. Both simulation and experiment processing, including tensile strain deformation, show that the proposed method can achieve nearly the same accuracy as the cubic spline interpolation method in most cases and higher accuracy in some cases, such as the simulations of uniaxial tension with and without noise. The results show that it also has a good noise-robustness. Finally, this method is used in the uniaxial tensile testing for Dahurian Larch wood specimens with or without a hole, and the obtained strain values are close to the results which were obtained from the strain gauge and the cubic spline interpolation method.

Fluorescent Nanoparticles for Observing Primo Vascular System Along Sciatic Nerve

Zhao-Feng Jia,Ki-Hoon Eom,Jin-Myung Cha,Jin-Kyu Lee,Zhen-Dong Su,Wen-Hui Yu,Pan Dong Ryu,소광섭,Byung-Cheon Lee 사단법인약침학회 2010 Journal of Acupuncture & Meridian Studies Vol.3 No.3

The primo vascular system was found in the epineurium along the rat sciatic nerve following subcutaneous injection of fluorescent nanoparticles at the Zusanli acupoint (ST-36). Nanoparticles were injected into the primo-vessel near ST-36 and flowed along the sciatic nerve. Fluorescence revealed a structure in the epineurium that was hardly detectable. Images of the isolated sample stained with 4’,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole were captured using confocal microscopy. These images showed the distinctive nuclei distribution and multi-lumen structure of primo-vessels that differentiate them from lymphatic vessels, blood capillaries and nerves. This study demonstrates a new use for nanoparticles in fluorescence reflectance imaging techniques during in vivo imaging of primo-vessels.

8q24 rs4242382 Polymorphism is a Risk Factor for Prostate Cancer among Multi-Ethnic Populations: Evidence from Clinical Detection in China and a Meta-analysis

Zhao, Cheng-Xiao,Liu, Ming,Xu, Yong,Yang, Kuo,Wei, Dong,Shi, Xiao-Hong,Yang, Fan,Zhang, Yao-Guang,Wang, Xin,Liang, Si-Ying,Zhao, Fan,Zhang, Yu-Rong,Wang, Na-Na,Chen, Xin,Sun, Liang,Zhu, Xiao-Quan,Yuan Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.19

Background: Evidence supporting an association between the 8q24 rs4242382-A polymorphism and prostate cancer (PCa) risk has been reported in North American and Europe populations, though data from Asian populations remain limited. We therefore investigated this association by clinical detection in China, and meta-analysis in Asian, Caucasian and African-American populations. Materials and Methods: Blood samples and clinical information were collected from ethnically Chinese men from Northern China with histologically-confirmed PCa (n=335) and from age-matched normal controls (n=347). The 8q24 (rs4242382) gene polymorphism was genotyped by polymerase chain reaction-high-resolution melting analysis. We initially analyzed the associations between the risk allele and PCa and clinical covariates. A meta-analysis was then performed using genotyping data from a total of 1,793 PCa cases and 1,864 controls from our study and previously published studies in American and European populations, to determine the association between PCa and risk genotype. Results: The incidence of the risk allele was higher in PCa cases than controls (0.222 vs 0.140, $P=7.3{\times}10^{-5}$), suggesting that the 8q24 rs4242382-A polymorphism was associated with PCa risk in Chinese men. The genotypes in subjects were in accordance with a dominant genetic model (ORadj=2.03, 95%CI: 1.42-2.91, $Padj=1.1{\times}10^{-4}$). Presence of the risk allele rs4242382-A at 8q24 was also associated with clinical covariates including age at diagnosis ${\geq}65$ years, prostate specific antigen >10 ng/ml, Gleason score <8, tumor stage and aggressive PCa, compared with the non-risk genotype ($P=4.6{\times}10^{-5}-3.0{\times}10^{-2}$). Meta-analysis confirmed the association between 8q24 rs4242382-A polymorphism and PCa risk (OR=1.62, 95%CI: 1.39-1.88, $P=1.0{\times}10^{-5}$) across Asian, Caucasian and African American populations. Conclusions: The replicated data suggest that the 8q24 rs4242382-A variation might be associated with increased PCa susceptibility in Asian, Caucasian and African American populations. These results imply that this polymorphism may be a useful risk biomarker for PCa in multi-ethnic populations.

Anti-proliferation Effects of Interferon-gamma on Gastric Cancer Cells

Zhao, Ying-Hui,Wang, Tao,Yu, Guang-Fu,Zhuang, Dong-Ming,Zhang, Zhong,Zhang, Hong-Xin,Zhao, Da-Peng,Yu, Ai-Lian Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.9

IFN-${\gamma}$ plays an indirect anti-cancer role through the immune system but may have direct negative effects on cancer cells. It regulates the viability of gastric cancer cells, so we examined whether it affects their proliferation and how that might be brought about. We exposed AGS, HGC-27 and GES-1 gastric cancer cell lines to IFN-${\gamma}$ and found significantly reduced colony formation ability. Flow cytometry revealed no effect of IFN-${\gamma}$ on apoptosis of cell lines and no effect on cell aging as assessed by ${\beta}$-gal staining. Microarray assay revealed that IFN-${\gamma}$ changed the mRNA expression of genes related to the cell cycle and cell proliferation and migration, as well as chemokines and chemokine receptors, and immunity-related genes. Finally, flow cytometry revealed that IFN-${\gamma}$ arrested the cells in the G1/S phase. IFN-${\gamma}$ may slow proliferation of some gastric cancer cells by affecting the cell cycle to play a negative role in the development of gastric cancer.

Endostar Combined with Cisplatin Inhibits Tumor Growth and Lymphatic Metastasis of Lewis Lung Carcinoma Xenografts in Mice

Dong, Xiao-Peng,Xiao, Tian-Hui,Dong, Hong,Jiang, Ning,Zhao, Xiao-Gang Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2013 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.14 No.5

Objective: To investigate the effects of endostar, a recombined humanized endostatin, plus cisplatin on the growth, lymphangiogenesis and lymphatic metastasis of the Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) in mice. Methods: A tumor model were established in C57BL/6 mice by intravenious transplantation of LLC cells. Then the mice were randomized to receive administration with NS, endostar, cisplatin, or endostar plus cisplatin. After the mice were sacrificed, tumor multiplicity, tumor size and lymph node metastasis were assessed. Then the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor-c (VEGF-C) and podoplanin were determined by immunohistochemical staining. Results: Endostar plus cisplatin significantly suppressed tumor growth. lymphatic metastasis and prolonged survival time of the mice without obvious toxicity. The inhibition of lymphatic metastasis was associated with decreased microlymphatic vessel density (MLVD) and expression of VEGF-C. Conclusions: Endostar combined with cisplatin was more effective to suppress tumor growth and lymphatic metastasis than either agent alone. Thus this may provide a rational alternative for lung carcinoma treatment.

Effects of Zinc on the Activity and Conformational Changes of Arginine Kinase and Its Intermediate

( Zhao Dong Du ),( Xi Cheng Wang ) 생화학분자생물학회 2003 BMB Reports Vol.36 No.4

The effects of zinc on arginine kinase and its collapsed-state intermediate were studied. Both arginine kinase and the collapsed-state intermediate were inactivated in the presence of zinc, following a biphasic kinetic course. The corresponding apparent rate constants of inactivation at different zinc concentrations and conformational changes in the presence of 0.5 mM zinc were obtained. The conformational changes of arginine kinase and the collapsed-state intermediate were followed by fluorescence spectra and circular dichroism spectra. Comparison of the results for arginine kinase and the collapsed-state intermediate showed that the collapsed-state intermediate was more susceptible to zinc, which indicated that the collapsed-state intermediate was more flexible and unstable than arginine kinase. The special structure of arginine kinase might explain these diverse phenomena.

Assessment of Gradient-based Digital Speckle Correlation Measurement Errors

Zhao Jian,Zhao Dong,Zhang Zhe 한국광학회 2012 Current Optics and Photonics Vol.16 No.4

The optical method Digital Speckle Correlation Measurement (DSCM) has been extensively applied due its capability to measure the entire displacement field over a body surface. A formula of displacement measurement errors by the gradient-based DSCM method was derived. The errors were found to explicitly relate to the image grayscale errors consisting of sub-pixel interpolation algorithm errors, image noise,and subset deformation mismatch at each point of the subset. A power-law dependence of the standard deviation of displacement measurement errors on the subset size was established when the subset deformation was rigid body translation and random image noise was dominant and it was confirmed by both the numerical and experimental results. In a gradient-based algorithm the basic assumption is rigid body translation of the interrogated subsets, however, this is in contradiction to the real circumstances where strains exist. Numerical and experimental results also indicated that, subset shape function mismatch was dominant when the order of the assumed subset shape function was lower than that of the actual subset deformation field and the power-law dependence clearly broke down. The power-law relationship further leads to a simple criterion for choosing a suitable subset size, image quality, sub-pixel algorithm,and subset shape function for DSCM.

Opposition-based ant colony optimization with all-dimension neighborhood search for engineering design

Zhao Dong,Liu Lei,Yu Fanhua,Heidari Ali Asghar,Wang Maofa,Chen Huiling,무함마드칸 한국CDE학회 2022 Journal of computational design and engineering Vol.9 No.3

The ant colony optimization algorithm is a classical swarm intelligence algorithm, but it cannot be used for continuous class optimization problems. A continuous ant colony optimization algorithm (ACOR) is proposed to overcome this difficulty. Still, some problems exist, such as quickly falling into local optimum, slow convergence speed, and low convergence accuracy. To solve these problems, this paper proposes a modified version of ACOR called ADNOLACO. There is an opposition-based learning mechanism introduced into ACOR to effectively improve the convergence speed of ACOR. All-dimension neighborhood mechanism is also introduced into ACOR to further enhance the ability of ACOR to avoid getting trapped in the local optimum. To strongly demonstrate these core advantages of ADNOLACO, with the 30 benchmark functions of IEEE CEC2017 as the basis, a detailed analysis of ADNOLACO and ACOR is not only qualitatively performed, but also a comparison experiment is conducted between ADNOLACO and its peers. The results fully proved that ADNOLACO has accelerated the convergence speed and improved the convergence accuracy. The ability to find a balance between local and globally optimal solutions is improved. Also, to show that ADNOLACO has some practical value in real applications, it deals with four engineering problems. The simulation results also illustrate that ADNOLACO can improve the accuracy of the computational results. Therefore, it can be demonstrated that the proposed ADNOLACO is a promising and excellent algorithm based on the results.