Risk Factors Associated with Pain Severity in Patients with Non-specific Low Back Pain in Southern China

Shilabant Sen Sribastav,Jun Long,Peiheng He,Wei He,Fubiao Ye,Zemin Li,Jianru Wang,Hui Liu,Hua Wang,Zhaomin Zheng 대한척추외과학회 2018 Asian Spine Journal Vol.12 No.3

Study Design: A prospective cross-sectional study. Purpose: To evaluate the risk factors associated with the severity of pain intensity in patients with non-specific low back pain (NSLBP) in Southern China. Overview of Literature: Low back pain (LBP) is the leading cause of activity limitation and work absence throughout the world, so a firm understanding of the risk factor associated with NSLBP can provide early and prompt interventions that are aimed at attaining long-term results. Methods: Participants were recruited from January 2014 to January 2016 and were surveyed using a self-designed questionnaire. Anonymous assessments included Short Form 36-Item Health Survey (SF-36) and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). The association between the severity of NSLBP and these potential risk factors were evaluated. Results: A total of 1,046 NSLBP patients were enrolled. The patients with primary school education, high body mass index (BMI), those exposed to sustained durations of driving and sitting, smoking, recurrent LBP had increased VAS and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) scores with lower SF-36 scores (p <0.01). Workers and drivers compared with waiters and patients who lifted >10 kg objects in a quarter of their work time for >10 years had higher VAS and ODI scores with lower SF-36 scores (p <0.01). Multiple logistic regression showed lower levels of education, LBP for 1–7 days, long-lasting LBP in last year, smoking, long duration driving, and higher BMI were associated with more severe VAS score. Conclusions: The severity of NSLBP is associated with lower levels of education, poor standards of living, heavy physical labor, long duration driving, and sedentary lifestyle. Patients with recurrent NSLBP have more severe pain. Reducing rates of obesity, the duration of heavy physical work, driving or riding, and attenuating the prevalence of sedentary lifestyles and smoking may reduce the prevalence of NSLBP.

Comparative proteomic analysis of parasitic loranthus seeds exposed to dehydration stress

Limei Pan,Lingyun Wan,Lili He,Lisha Song,Hairong Long,Xiaowen Ji,Ni Jiang,Juan Huo,Shugen Wei,Jine Fu 한국식물생명공학회 2021 Plant biotechnology reports Vol.15 No.1

Parasitic loranthus [Taxillus chinensis (DC.) Danser] is an important medicinal plant that produces recalcitrant seeds that are sensitive to dehydration. Desiccation tolerance is critical for the survival of recalcitrant seeds in low-moisture environments. Clarifying how these seeds respond to desiccation is important for long-term conservation. Thus, the viability, germination, microstructure, and antioxidant enzyme activities of dehydrated parasitic loranthus seeds were investigated. Diverse organelles were degraded or deformed during dehydration treatments. Additionally, superoxide dismutase and catalase activities gradually decreased in response to desiccation stress. A proteomic analysis involving TMT-labeling and LC–MS/ MS were performed. A total of 1479 proteins were identifed, of which 141 were diferentially expressed proteins (DEPs) at 16 and 36 h after initiating the dehydration treatments. A functional annotation based on gene ontology revealed that the DEPs were mainly localized in chloroplasts and were related to energy metabolism, responses to stimuli, and the regulation of biological processes. A KEGG pathway enrichment analysis determined that several of the identifed proteins were associated with signal transductions, photosynthesis, and glycolysis/gluconeogenesis. The results suggest that the efcient removal of excessive ROS amounts may be crucial for promoting parasitic loranthus seed germination under dehydration stress conditions. A series of candidate dehydration stress-related proteins were identifed and may be relevant for enhancing the dehydration tolerance of the recalcitrant seeds. To the best of our knowledge, this is the frst study to elucidate the possible molecular mechanisms underlying the sensitivity of recalcitrant parasitic loranthus seeds to dehydration via a proteomic analysis involving TMT-labeling.

Temporal expression profiling of long noncoding RNA and mRNA in the peripheral blood during porcine development

Gu, Yiren,Zhou, Rui,Jin, Long,Tao, Xuan,Zhong, Zhijun,Yang, Xuemei,Liang, Yan,Yang, Yuekui,Wang, Yan,Chen, Xiaohui,Gong, Jianjun,He, Zhiping,Li, Mingzhou,Lv, Xuebin Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2020 Animal Bioscience Vol.33 No.5

Objective: We investigated the temporal expression profiles of long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) and mRNA in the peripheral blood of pigs during development and identified the lncRNAs that are related to the blood-based immune system. Methods: Peripheral blood samples were obtained from the pigs at 0, 7, 28, and 180 days and 2 years of age. RNA sequencing was performed to survey the lncRNA and mRNA transcriptomes in the samples. Short time-series expression miner (STEM) was used to show temporal expression patterns in the mRNAs and lncRNAs. Gene ontology and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes analyses were performed to assess the genes' biological relevance. To predict the functions of the identified lncRNAs, we extracted mRNAs that were nearby loci and highly correlated with the lncRNAs. Results: In total of 5,946 lncRNA and 12,354 mRNA transcripts were identified among the samples. STEM showed that most lncRNAs and mRNAs had similar temporal expression patterns during development, indicating the expressional correlation and functional relatedness between them. The five stages were divided into two classes: the suckling period and the late developmental stage. Most genes were expressed at low level during the suckling period, but at higher level during the late stages. Expression of several T-cell-related genes increased continuously during the suckling period, indicating that these genes are crucial for establishing the adaptive immune system in piglets at this stage. Notably, lncRNA TCONS-00086451 may promote blood-based immune system development by upregulating nuclear factor of activated T-cells cytoplasmic 2 expression. Conclusion: This study provides a catalog of porcine peripheral blood-related lncRNAs and mRNAs and reveals the characteristics and temporal expression profiles of these lncRNAs and mRNAs during peripheral blood development from the newborn to adult stages in pigs.

Prognostic Significance of Overexpression of EZH2 and H3k27me3 Proteins in Gastric Cancer

He, Long-Jun,Cai, Mu-Yan,Xu, Guo-Liang,Li, Jian-Jun,Weng, Zi-Jin,Xu, Da-Zhi,Luo, Guang-Yu,Zhu, Sen-Lin,Xie, Dan Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.7

The enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) methyl transferase and histone 3 lysine 27 (H3K27me3) protein can repress gene transcription, and their aberrant expression has been observed in various human cancers. This study determined their expression levels in gastric cancer tissues with reference to clinicopathological features and patient survival. We collected 117 gastric cancer and corresponding normal tissues for immunohistochemistry analysis. In gastric cancers, 82/117 (70.1%) were positive for EZH2 and 66/117 (56.4%) for H3K27me3 proteins in contrast to only 5.41% and 7.25% of normal gastric mucosa specimens, respectively. Kaplan-Meier survival data showed the average overall and disease-free survival of EZH2 high expression patients was 25.2 and 20.2 months, respectively, shorter than that with EZH2 low expression (40.5 and 35.9 months). The average overall survival and disease-free survival of high H3K27me3 expression patients was 23.4 and 17.4 months, shorter than without H3K27me3 expression (37.6 and 34.5 months). The average overall survival and disease-free survival of patients with both EZH2 and H3K27me3 expression was 18.8 and 12.9 months, respectively, shorter than that with either alone (34.7 and 31.2 months) or with low levels of both (43.9 and 39.9 months). Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that H3K27me3 and EZH2 expression, tumor size differentiation and clinical stage were all independent prognostic factors for predicting patient survival. This study demonstrated that detection of both EZH2 and H3K27me3 proteins can predict poor survival of gastric cancer patients, superior to single protein detection. In addition, H3K27me3 and EZH2 protein expression could predict lymph node metastasis.

The effect of maternal exercise and altitude training on performance in hypoxic environment: a brief review

He Long Quan,Chang Keun Kim 국민체육진흥공단 한국스포츠정책과학원 2020 International Journal of Applied Sports Sciences Vol.32 No.2

Environmental and maternal exercise experienced even during the very earliest stages of life has the potential to cause developmental changes. The growing evidence demonstrated that diverse environmental stressors affect offspring in various aspects in early stage of life and can be transmitted directly or indirectly by both parental lines. The development of normobaric hypoxic environment facilities began in recent years after athletes born and trained at high altitude continued to update their records in sports competition, especially marathons and other endurance sports. Although a large number of studies have proved the effect of hypoxic training in the field of sports science and competition, the effectiveness of this training model on exercise performance/capacity and physiological variables is still controversial. Therefore, this study makes a brief review of the papers related to this scope and attempted to understand the potential mechanism of maternal exercise in hypoxic environment on exercise performance and reduction of metabolic risk factors.

Learner Language Analysis: A Case Study of a Chinese EFL Student

Long He 아시아테플 2019 The Journal of Asia TEFL Vol.16 No.3

Influence of Reaction Conditions on the Grafting Pattern of 3-Glycidoxypropyl trimethoxysilane on Montmorillonite

He, Wentao,Yao, Yong,He, Min,Kai, Zhang,Long, Lijuan,Zhang, Minmin,Qin, Shuhao,Yu, Jie Korean Chemical Society 2013 Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society Vol.34 No.1

Surface modification of montmorillonite (MMT) with 3-glycidoxypropyl trimethoxysilane (3GTO) in mild methanol/water mixture has been investigated in detail. The influence of reaction conditions (including silane concentration in feed, reaction time and reaction temperature) on the grafting amount and yield of silane, and further on the grafting pattern of silanes was studied by thermogravimetric analysis, elemental analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and BET. Higher silane concentration, longer reaction time and higher reaction temperature are all benefit to higher grafting amount. When the grafting reaction was performed with 3 mmol/g silane concentration, at $90^{\circ}C$ for 24 h, the grafted amount and yield of silane reached 1.4443 mmol/g and 30%, respectively. Based on the XRD and BET data analysis, a speculation that the grafting pattern of silanes was concentration dependence was proposed.

mTORC1 Promotes Metabolic Reprogramming by the Suppression of GSK3-Dependent Foxk1 Phosphorylation

He, Long,Gomes, Ana P.,Wang, Xin,Yoon, Sang Oh,Lee, Gina,Nagiec, Michal J.,Cho, Sungyun,Chavez, Andre,Islam, Tasnia,Yu, Yonghao,Asara, John M.,Kim, Bo Yeon,Blenis, John Elsevier 2018 Molecular cell Vol.70 No.5

<P><B>Summary</B></P> <P>The mammalian Target of Rapamycin Complex 1 (mTORC1)-signaling system plays a critical role in the maintenance of cellular homeostasis by sensing and integrating multiple extracellular and intracellular cues. Therefore, uncovering the effectors of mTORC1 signaling is pivotal to understanding its pathophysiological effects. Here we report that the transcription factor forkhead/winged helix family k1 (Foxk1) is a mediator of mTORC1-regulated gene expression. Surprisingly, Foxk1 phosphorylation is increased upon mTORC1 suppression, which elicits a 14-3-3 interaction, a reduction of DNA binding, and nuclear exclusion. Mechanistically, this occurs by mTORC1-dependent suppression of nuclear signaling by the Foxk1 kinase, Gsk3. This pathway then regulates the expression of multiple genes associated with glycolysis and downstream anabolic pathways directly modulated by Foxk1 and/or by Foxk1-regulated expression of Hif-1α. Thus, Foxk1 mediates mTORC1-driven metabolic rewiring, and it is likely to be critical for metabolic diseases where improper mTORC1 signaling plays an important role.</P> <P><B>Highlights</B></P> <P> <UL> <LI> mTORC1 suppresses GSK3-dependent Foxk1 phosphorylation </LI> <LI> Foxk1 phosphorylation promotes 14-3-3 binding and nuclear exclusion </LI> <LI> Foxk1 transcriptionally regulates Hif1α expression </LI> <LI> Foxk1 and Hif1α contribute to mTORC1-regulated metabolic reprogramming </LI> </UL> </P> <P><B>Graphical Abstract</B></P> <P>[DISPLAY OMISSION]</P>

Hysteretic behavior studies of self-centering energy dissipation bracing system

Long-He Xu,Xiaowei Fan,Dengcheng Lu,Zhong-Xian Li 국제구조공학회 2016 Steel and Composite Structures, An International J Vol.20 No.6

This paper presents a new type of pre-pressed spring self-centering energy dissipation (PS-SCED) bracing system that combines friction mechanisms between the inner and outer tube members to provide the energy dissipation with the pre-pressed combination disc springs installed on both ends of the brace to provide the selfcentering capability. The mechanics and the equations governing the design and hysteretic responses of the bracing system are outlined, and a series of validation tests of components comprising the self-centering mechanism of combination disc springs, the friction energy dissipation mechanism, and a large scale PS-SCED bracing specimen were conducted due to the low cyclic reversed loadings. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed bracing system performs as predicted by the equations governing its mechanical behaviors, which exhibits a stable and repeatable flag-shaped hysteretic response with excellent self-centering capability and appreciable energy dissipation, and large ultimate bearing and deformation capacities. Results also show that almost no residual deformation occurs when the friction force is less than the initial pre-pressed force of disc springs.

Seismic behavior enhancement of frame structure considering parameter sensitivity of self-centering braces

Long-He Xu,Xing-Si Xie,Xintong Yan,Zhong-Xian Li 국제구조공학회 2019 Structural Engineering and Mechanics, An Int'l Jou Vol.71 No.1

A modified mechanical model of pre-pressed spring self-centering energy dissipation (PS-SCED) brace is proposed, and the hysteresis band is distinguished by the indication of relevant state variables. The MDOF frame system equipped with the braces is formulated in an incremental form of linear acceleration method. A multi-objective genetic algorithm (GA) based brace parameter optimization method is developed to obtain an optimal solution from the primary design scheme. Parameter sensitivities derived by the direct differentiation method are used to modify the change rate of parameters in the GA operator. A case study is conducted on a steel braced frame to illustrate the effect of brace parameters on node displacements, and validate the feasibility of the modified mechanical model. The optimization results and computational process information are compared among three cases of different strategies of parameter change as well. The accuracy is also verified by the calculation results of finite element model. This work can help the applications of PS-SCED brace optimization related to parameter sensitivity, and fulfill the systematic design procedure of PS-SCED brace-structure system with completed and prospective consequences.