Comorbidity Relationship to Outcome of Radical Cystectomy in Chinese: a Single Institution Study with the ACE-27 Comorbidity Index

Xuan, Zhu,Zhong, Zhao-Hui,Zhang, Xuan-Zhi,Zhang, Lei,Zhao, Xiao-Kun,Lv, Chen,Xu, Ran,Ren, Wei-Gang,Li, Song-Chao Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2012 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.13 No.3

To determine the relationship between comorbidity and outcome after radical cystectomy in Chinese patients by using the Adult Comorbidity Evaluation (ACE)-27 index. Two-hundred-and-forty-six patients treated with radical cystectomy at the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Hunan Province, China between 2000 and 2010 were retrospectively analyzed. Medical records were reviewed for age, gender, delayed time of radical cystectomy, urinary diversion type, pelvic lymphadenectomy status, TNM stage, and pathological grade. Comorbidity information was assessed by the ACE-27 index. The outcome measurement was overall survival. Univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression analyses were used to determine the association between comorbidity and outcome. The study population consisted of 215 (87.40%) males and 31 (12.60%) females with a mean age of $62{\pm}11$ years. Median duration of follow-up was $47{\pm}31$ months. A total of 151 (61.38%) patents died during follow-up. Of those, 118 (47.97%) had at least one comorbidity. According to the ACE-27 scores, 128 (52.03%) patients had no comorbidity, 79 (32.11%) had mild, 33 (13.41%) had moderate, and 6 (2.45%) had severe comorbidities. Multivariate analysis indicated that moderate (p=0.002) and severe (p<0.001) comorbidity was significantly associated with decreased overall survival. In addition, age ${\geq}70$ years (p=0.002), delayed time of radical cystectomy >12 weeks (p=0.044), pelvic lymphadenectomy status (p=0.014), and TNM stage >T3 (p<0.001) were determined to be independent risk factors of overall survival. Increasing severity of comorbidity statistically correlated with decreased overall survival after radical cystectomy.

Cat NPC2, a Newly Identified Allergen, With High Cross-Reactivity to Can f 7

Zhu Dan-Xuan,Li Lin,Xu Zhi-Qiang,Zhang Cheng,Zhang Jin-Song,Sun Jin-Lyu,Wei Ji-Fu 대한천식알레르기학회 2021 Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Research Vol.13 No.1

Purpose: Pet-derived allergens are the common indoor inhalant allergens. Among them, cat and dog allergens constitute more than 80% of animal allergic patients, which greatly affect the quality-of-life of patients and increase the burden of social health care. The aim of this study was to identify Cat-Niemann pick type C2 (NPC2) protein, a homologue of Can f 7, as a new allergen. Methods: Cat-NPC2 complementary DNA (cDNA) was cloned and optimized for amplification and expression in Escherichia coli. Then, recombinant Cat-NPC2 (rCat-NPC2) was purified by Ni2+ affinity chromatography. The allergenicity was assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), western blot and basophil activation test (BAT). Based on the sequence similarity, the cross-reactivity between Cat-NPC2 and Can f 7 was investigated by inhibition ELISA. Circular dichroism spectroscopy and homology modeling were used to characterize the structure of Cat-NPC2. Results: The cDNA sequence of Cat-NPC2 was cloned with a 450-bp open reading frame coding for 149 amino acids (GenBank MN_737596). The condon-optimized NPC2 gene was subcloned and expressed in E. coli with a molecular weight of 18.9 kDa. The native Cat-NPC2 was detected in cat dander extracts. The allergenicity determined by ELISA, western blot and BAT suggested at least 14.5% cat-allergic patients displayed high specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) recognition of Cat-NPC2. The predicted structure of Cat-NPC2 was found to consist of 7 β-strands arranged in 2 β-sheets. An ELISA based assay showed that rCat-NPC2 bound to cholesterol in a dose dependent manner. Based on the structure and sequence similarities, IgE cross-reactivity was demonstrated between Cat-NPC2 and Can f 7/Der f 2. Conclusions: In the study, a novel cat allergen, belonging to the NPC2 protein family, was identified and characterized at both molecular and immunological levels. The study will offer a deeper understanding of cat allergens and improve a component-resolved diagnosis in pet allergy.

Active control of amplitude and phase of high-power RF systems in EAST ICRF heating experiments

Zhu Guanghui,Liu Lunan,Mao Yuzhou,Zhang Xinjun,Guo Yaoyao,Ai Lin,Jiang Runhao,Qin Chengming,Zhang Wei,Yang Hua,Yuan Shuai,Wang Lei,Ju Songqing,Wang Yongsheng,Sun Xuan,Yang Zhida,Wang Jinxin,Cheng Yan 한국원자력학회 2023 Nuclear Engineering and Technology Vol.55 No.2

The EAST ICRF system operating space has been extended in power and phase control with a low-level RF system for the new double-strap antenna. Then the multi-step power and periodic phase scanning experiment were conducted in L-mode plasma, respectively. In the power scanning experiment, the stored energy, radiation power, plasma impedance and the antenna's temperature all have positive responses during the short ramp-ups of PL;ICRF. The core ion temperature increased from 1 keV to 1.5 keV and the core heating area expanded from jZj 5 cmto jZj 10 cm during the injection of ICRF waves. In the phasing scanning experiment, in addition to the same conclusions as the previous relatively phasing scanning experiment, the superposition effect of the fluctuation of stored energy, radiation power and neutron yield caused by phasing change with dual antenna, resulting in the amplitude and phase shift, was also observed. The active control of RF output facilitates the precise control of plasma profiles and greatly benefits future experimental exploration.

Identification of pathways and genes associated with cerebral palsy

Qingwen Zhu,Yufei Ni,Jing Wang,Honggang Yin,Qin Zhang,Lingli Zhang,Wenjun Bian,Bo Liang,Lingyin Kong,Liming Xuan,Naru Lu 한국유전학회 2018 Genes & Genomics Vol.40 No.12

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a non-progressive neurological disease, of which susceptibility is linked to genetic and environmental risk factors. More and more studies have shown that CP might be caused by multiple genetic factors, similar to other neurodevelopmental disorders. Due to the high genetic heterogeneity of CP, we focused on investigating related molecular pathways. Ten children with CP were collected for whole-exome sequencing by next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology. Customized processes were used to identify potential pathogenic pathways and variants. Three pathways (axon guidance, transmission across chemical synapses, protein–protein interactions at synapses) with twenty-three genes were identified to be highly correlated with CP. This study showed that the three pathways associated with CP might be the molecular mechanism of pathogenesis. These findings could provide useful clues for developing pathway-based pharmacotherapies. Further studies are required to confirm potential roles for these pathways in the pathogenesis of CP.

Experimental and numerical study on large-curvature curved composite box girder under hogging moment

Li Zhu,Jia J. Wang,Guan Y. Zhao,Xue J. Huo,Xuan Li 국제구조공학회 2020 Steel and Composite Structures, An International J Vol.37 No.2

Curved steel-concrete composite box girder has been widely adopted in urban overpasses and ramp bridges. In order to investigate its mechanical behavior under complicated and combined bending, shear and torsion load, two large-curvature composite box girders with interior angles of 25º and 45º were tested under static hogging moment. Based on the strain and deflection measurement on critical cross-sections during the static loading test, the failure mode, cracking behavior, load-displacement relationship, and strain distribution in the steel plate and rebar were investigated in detail. The test result showed the large-curvature composite box girders exhibited notable shear lag in the concrete slab and steel girder. Also, the constraint torsion and distortion effect caused the stress measured at the inner side of the composite beam to be notably higher than that of the outer side. The strain distribution in the steel web was approximately linear; therefore, the assumption that the plane section remains plane was approximately validated based on strain measurement at steel web. Furthermore, the full-process non-linear elaborate finite element (FE) models of the two specimens were developed based on commercial FE software MSC.MARC. The modeling scheme and constitutive model were illustrated in detail. Based on the comparison between the FE model and test results, the FE model effectively simulated the failure mode, the load-displacement curve, and the strain development of longitudinal rebar and steel girder with sufficient accuracy. The comparison between the FE model and the test result validated the accuracy of the developed FE model.

Seroprevalence and Risk Factors of Fascioliasis in Yaks, Bos grunniens, from Three Counties of Gansu Province, China

Xiao-Xuan Zhang,Sheng-Yong Feng,Jian-Gang Ma,Wen-Bin Zheng,Ming-Yang Yin,Si-Yuan Qin,Dong-Hui Zhou,Quan Zhao,Xing-Quan Zhu 대한기생충학열대의학회 2017 The Korean Journal of Parasitology Vol.55 No.1

Application of Energy Dissipation Technology in High-Rise Buildings

Hu, Da-Zhu,Zhang, Xiao-Xuan,Li, Guo-Qiang,Sun, Fei-Fei,Jin, Hua-Jian Council on Tall Building and Urban Habitat Korea 2021 International journal of high-rise buildings Vol.10 No.2

The principle of energy dissipation technology is to dissipate or absorb the seismic energy input through the deformation or velocity change of dampers installed in the main structure of high-rise buildings, so as to reduce the seismic response of the buildings. With the development of energy dissipation technology, recognized as an effective and new measurement for reducing seismic effects, its application in high-rise buildings has become more and more popular. The appropriate energy dissipation devices suitable for high-rise buildings are introduced in this paper. The effectiveness of energy-dissipation technology for reducing the seismic response of high-rise buildings with various structural forms is demonstrated with a number of actual examples of high-rise buildings equipped with various energy dissipation devices.

Metabolism of dl-Praeruptorin A in Rat Liver Microsomes using HPLC-Electrospray Ionization Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Hang Ruan,Xuan Zhu,Zhen Zhang,Xin-fang Liang,Yan Fu,Mei-qin Su,Qi-lin Liu,Xiu-min Wang 대한약학회 2011 Archives of Pharmacal Research Vol.34 No.8

dl-Praeruptorin A (Pd-Ia) is the major active constituent of the traditional Chinese medicine Peucedanum praeruptorum Dunn. Recently it has been identified as a novel agent in the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular diseases. Accordingly, we investigated the metabolism of Pd-Ia in rat liver microsomes. The involvement of cytochrome P450 (CYP) and CYP isoforms were identified using a CYP-specific inhibitor (SKF-525A), CYP-selective inhibitors (α-naphthoflavone, metyrapone, fluvastatin, quinidine, disulfiram, ketoconazole and ticlopidine) and CYP-selective inducers (phenobarbital, dexamethasone and β-naphthoflavone). Residual concentrations of the substrate and metabolites were determined by HPLC, and further identified by their mass spectra and chromatographic behavior. These experiments showed that CYP450 is involved in Pd-Ia metabolism, and that the major CYP isoform responsible is CYP3A1/2, which acts in a concentration-dependent manner. Four Pd-Ia metabolites (M1, M2, M3, and M4) were detected after incubation with rat liver microsomes. Hydroxylation was the primary metabolic pathway of Pd-Ia, and possible chemical structures of the metabolites were identified. Further research is now needed to link the metabolism of Pd-Ia to its drug-drug interactions.

Profiling Total Viable Bacteria in a Hemodialysis Water Treatment System

( Lihua Chen ),( Xuan Zhu ),( Menglu Zhang ),( Yuxin Wang ),( Tianyu Lv ),( Shenghua Zhang ),( Xin Yu ) 한국미생물 · 생명공학회 2017 Journal of microbiology and biotechnology Vol.27 No.5

Culture-dependent methods, such as heterotrophic plate counting (HPC), are usually applied to evaluate the bacteriological quality of hemodialysis water. However, these methods cannot detect the uncultured or viable but non-culturable (VBNC) bacteria, both of which may be quantitatively predominant throughout the hemodialysis water treatment system. Therefore, propidium monoazide (PMA)-qPCR associated with HPC was used together to profile the distribution of the total viable bacteria in such a system. Moreover, high-throughput sequencing of 16S rRNA gene amplicons was utilized to analyze the microbial community structure and diversity. The HPC results indicated that the total bacterial counts conformed to the standards, yet the bacteria amounts were abruptly enhanced after carbon filter treatment. Nevertheless, the bacterial counts detected by PMA-qPCR, with the highest levels of 2.14 × 107 copies/100 ml in softener water, were much higher than the corresponding HPC results, which demonstrated the occurrence of numerous uncultured or VBNC bacteria among the entire system before reverse osmosis (RO). In addition, the microbial community structure was very different and the diversity was enhanced after the carbon filter. Although the diversity was minimized after RO treatment, pathogens such as Escherichia could still be detected in the RO effluent. In general, both the amounts of bacteria and the complexity of microbial community in the hemodialysis water treatment system revealed by molecular approaches were much higher than by traditional method. These results suggested the higher health risk potential for hemodialysis patients from the up-to-standard water. The treatment process could also be optimized, based on the results of this study.

Photonic Generation of Frequency-tripling Vector Signal Based on Balanced Detection without Precoding or Optical Filter

Kun Qu,Shanghong Zhao,Xuan Li,Zihang Zhu,Qinggui Tan 한국광학회 2018 Current Optics and Photonics Vol.2 No.2

A novel approach for frequency-tripling vector signal generation via balanced detection without precoding and optical filter is proposed. The scheme is mainly utilizing an integrated dual-polarization quadrature phase shift keying (DPQPSK) modulator. In the DPQPSK modulator, one QPSK modulator is driven by an RF signal to generate high-order optical sidebands, while the other QPSK modulator is modulated by I/Q data streams to produce baseband vector signal as an optical carrier. After that, a frequency-tripling 16-quadrature-amplitude-modulation (16QAM) vector millimeter-wave (mm-wave) signal can be obtained by balanced detection. The proposed scheme can reduce the complexity of transmitter digital signal processing. The results show that, a 4 Gbaud baseband 16QAM vector signal can be generated at 30 GHz by frequency-tripling. After 10 km single-mode fiber (SMF) transmission, the constellation and eye diagrams of the generated vector signal perform well and a bit-error-rate (BER) below than 1e-3 can be achieved.