Decreasing biotoxicity of fume particles produced in welding process

Yu, Kuei-Min,Topham, Nathan,Wang, Jun,Kalivoda, Mark,Tseng, Yiider,Wu, Chang-Yu,Lee, Wen-Jhy,Cho, Kuk Elsevier 2011 Journal of hazardous materials Vol.185 No.2

<P><B>Abstract</B></P><P>Welding fumes contain heavy metals, such as chromium, manganese, and nickel, which cause respiratory diseases and cancer. In this study, a SiO<SUB>2</SUB> precursor was evaluated as an additive to the shielding gas in an arc welding process to reduce the biotoxicity caused by welding fume particles. Transmission electron micrographic images show that SiO<SUB>2</SUB> coats on the surface of welding fume particles and promotes particle agglomeration. Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy further shows that the relative amount of silicon in these SiO<SUB>2</SUB>-coated agglomerates is higher than in baseline agglomerates. In addition, <I>Escherichia coli</I> (<I>E. coli</I>) exposed to different concentrations of pure SiO<SUB>2</SUB> particles generated from the arc welding process exhibits similar responses, suggesting that SiO<SUB>2</SUB> does not contribute to welding fume particle toxicity. The trend of <I>E. coli</I> growth in different concentrations of baseline welding fume particle shows the most significant inhibition occurs in higher exposure concentrations. The 50% lethal logarithmic concentrations for <I>E. coli</I> in arc welding particles of baseline, 2%, and 4.2% SiO<SUB>2</SUB> precursor additives were 823, 1605, and 1800mg/L, respectively. Taken together, these results suggest that using SiO<SUB>2</SUB> precursors as an additive to arc welding shielding gas can effectively reduce the biotoxicity of welding fume.</P>

Serum Tumor Marker Levels might have Little Significance in Evaluating Neoadjuvant Treatment Response in Locally Advanced Breast Cancer

Wang, Yu-Jie,Huang, Xiao-Yan,Mo, Miao,Li, Jian-Wei,Jia, Xiao-Qing,Shao, Zhi-Min,Shen, Zhen-Zhou,Wu, Jiong,Liu, Guang-Yu Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2015 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.16 No.11

Background: To determine the potential value of serum tumor markers in predicting pCR (pathological complete response) during neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively monitored the pro-, mid-, and post-neoadjuvant treatment serum tumor marker concentrations in patients with locally advanced breast cancer (stage II-III) who accepted pre-surgical chemotherapy or chemotherapy in combination with targeted therapy at Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center between September 2011 and January 2014 and investigated the association of serum tumor marker levels with therapeutic effect. Core needle biopsy samples were assessed using immunohistochemistry (IHC) prior to neoadjuvant treatment to determine hormone receptor, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2(HER2), and proliferation index Ki67 values. In our study, therapeutic response was evaluated by pCR, defined as the disappearance of all invasive cancer cells from excised tissue (including primary lesion and axillary lymph nodes) after completion of chemotherapy. Analysis of variance of repeated measures and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were employed for statistical analysis of the data. Results: A total of 348 patients were recruited in our study after excluding patients with incomplete clinical information. Of these, 106 patients were observed to have acquired pCR status after treatment completion, accounting for approximately 30.5% of study individuals. In addition, 147patients were determined to be Her-2 positive, among whom the pCR rate was 45.6% (69 patients). General linear model analysis (repeated measures analysis of variance) showed that the concentration of cancer antigen (CA) 15-3 increased after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in both pCR and non-pCR groups, and that there were significant differences between the two groups (P=0.008). The areas under the ROC curves (AUCs) of pre-, mid-, and post-treatment CA15-3 concentrations demonstrated low-level predictive value (AUC=0.594, 0.644, 0.621, respectively). No significant differences in carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) or CA12-5 serum levels were observed between the pCR and non-pCR groups (P=0.196 and 0.693, respectively). No efficient AUC of CEA or CA12-5 concentrations were observed to predict patient response toward neoadjuvant treatment (both less than 0.7), nor were differences between the two groups observed at different time points. We then analyzed the Her-2 positive subset of our cohort. Significant differences in CEA concentrations were identified between the pCR and non-pCR groups (P=0.039), but not in CA15-3 or CA12-5 levels (p=0.092 and 0.89, respectively). None of the ROC curves showed underlying prognostic value, as the AUCs of these three markers were less than 0.7. The ROC-AUCs for the CA12-5 concentrations of inter-and post-neoadjuvant chemotherapy in the estrogen receptor negative HER2 positive subgroup were 0.735 and 0.767, respectively. However, the specificity and sensitivity values were at odds with each other which meant that improving either the sensitivity or specificity would impair the efficiency of the other. Conclusions: Serum tumor markers CA15-3, CA12-5, and CEA might have little clinical significance in predicting neoadjuvant treatment response in locally advanced breast cancer.

Dissecting Causal Relationships Between Gut Microbiota, Blood Metabolites, and Stroke: A Mendelian Randomization Study

Wang Qi,Dai Huajie,Hou Tianzhichao,Hou Yanan,Wang Tiange,Lin Hong,Zhao Zhiyun,Li Mian,Zheng Ruizhi,Wang Shuangyuan,Lu Jieli,Xu Yu,Liu Ruixin,Ning Guang,Wang Weiqing,Bi Yufang,Zheng Jie,Xu Min 대한뇌졸중학회 2023 Journal of stroke Vol.25 No.3

Background and Purpose We investigated the causal relationships between the gut microbiota (GM), stroke, and potential metabolite mediators using Mendelian randomization (MR). Methods We leveraged the summary statistics of GM (n=18,340 in the MiBioGen consortium), blood metabolites (n=115,078 in the UK Biobank), and stroke (cases n=60,176 and controls n=1,310,725 in the Global Biobank Meta-Analysis Initiative) from the largest genome-wide association studies to date. We performed bidirectional MR analyses to explore the causal relationships between the GM and stroke, and two mediation analyses, two-step MR and multivariable MR, to discover potential mediating metabolites. Results Ten taxa were causally associated with stroke, and stroke led to changes in 27 taxa. In the two-step MR, <i>Bifidobacteriales</i> order, <i>Bifidobacteriaceae</i> family, <i>Desulfovibrio</i> genus, apolipoprotein A1 (ApoA1), phospholipids in high-density lipoprotein (HDL_PL), and the ratio of apolipoprotein B to ApoA1 (ApoB/ApoA1) were causally associated with stroke (all <i>P</i><0.044). The causal associations between <i>Bifidobacteriales</i> order, <i>Bifidobacteriaceae</i> family and stroke were validated using the weighted median method in an independent cohort. The three GM taxa were all positively associated with ApoA1 and HDL_PL, whereas <i>Desulfovibrio</i> genus was negatively associated with ApoB/ApoA1 (all <i>P</i><0.010). Additionally, the causal associations between the three GM taxa and ApoA1 remained significant after correcting for the false discovery rate (all q-values <0.027). Multivariable MR showed that the associations between <i>Bifidobacteriales</i> order, <i>Bifidobacteriaceae</i> family and stroke were mediated by ApoA1 and HDL_PL, each accounting for 6.5% (<i>P</i>=0.028) and 4.6% (<i>P</i>=0.033); the association between <i>Desulfovibrio</i> genus and stroke was mediated by ApoA1, HDL_PL, and ApoB/ApoA1, with mediated proportions of 7.6% (<i>P</i>=0.019), 4.2% (<i>P</i>=0.035), and 9.1% (<i>P</i>=0.013), respectively. Conclusion The current MR study provides evidence supporting the causal relationships between several specific GM taxa and stroke and potential mediating metabolites.

Long-term Multiple Chemical Exposure Assessment for a Thin Film Transistor Liquid Crystal Display (TFT-LCD) Industry

Wang, Ying-Fang,Wang, Shih-Min,Kuo, Yu-Chieh,Yoon, Chungsik,Wang, Ya-Fen,Tsai, Perng-Jy Taiwan Association for Aerosol Research 2017 Aerosol and air quality research Vol.17 No.11

Risk factor analysis of coexisting endometrial carcinoma in patients with endometrial hyperplasia: a retrospective observational study of Taiwanese Gynecologic Oncology Group

Yu-Li Chen,Kung-Liahng Wang,Min-Yu Chen,Mu-Hsien Yu,Chen-Hsuan Wu,Yu-Min Ke,Yi-Jen Chen,Yin-Yi Chang,Keng-Fu Hsu,Ming-Shyen Yen 대한부인종양학회 2013 Journal of Gynecologic Oncology Vol.24 No.1

Objective: To evaluate the clinical outcome and parameters related to coexisting endometrial carcinoma in women with tissuediagnosed endometrial hyperplasia. Methods: Between January 1991 and December 2009, three hundred and eighty-six patients with the presumptive diagnosis of endometrial hyperplasia were retrieved. Among these, one hundred and twenty-five patients were identified as having coexisting endometrial carcinoma in hysterectomy specimens. The three hundred and eighty-six patients were divided into two groups: the hyperplasia-benign group (261 cases) and the hyperplasia-malignant group (125 cases). Several clinical parameters including age, menopausal status, history of abnormal uterine bleeding, obstetrical history, medical history of diabetes and hypertension, BMI, and preoperative pathologic results were investigated. Results: Age ≥53 (odds ratio [OR], 2.40; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.26 to 4.57), menopausal status (OR, 2.07; 95% CI, 1.14to 3.76), diabetes history (OR, 7.33; 95% CI, 2.79 to 19.26), abnormal uterine bleeding (OR, 3.99; 95% CI, 1.22 to 13.02), atypical endometrial hyperplasia (OR, 7.38; 95% CI, 4.03 to 13.49), and body mass index ≥27 (OR, 3.24; 95% CI, 1.76 to 5.97) were independent risk factors for prediction of endometrial hyperplasia coexisting with endometrial carcinoma. The diagnostic efficacy of atypical endometrial hyperplasia to predict the endometrial hyperplasia coexisting with endometrial carcinoma was better than or similar to those of other independent factors and combinations of these factors. Conclusion: Coexisting malignancy should be considered when examining endometrial hyperplasia patients with the related risk factors, especially atypical endometrial hyperplasia.

Hydrogen sensing characteristics of non-polar a-plane GaN Schottky diodes

Yu-Lin Wang,F. Ren,S.J. Pearton,Kwang Hyeon Baik,Sung-Min Hwang,Yong Gon Seo,장수환,Wantae Lim 한국물리학회 2010 Current Applied Physics Vol.10 No.4

Pd and Pt Schottky diodes on non-polar a-plane (11–20) GaN layers show large increases in both forward and reverse bias current upon exposure to 4% H2 in N2. The barrier height reduction due to hydrogen exposure is 0.11 eV for Pd/GaN and 0.14 eV for Pt/GaN, with long recovery times (>25 min) at room temperature. The sensitivity to hydrogen is significantly greater than for diodes on conventional c-plane (Gapolar)GaN, but less than for c-plane (N-polar) material. The diode characteristics remain rectifying after exposure to hydrogen, unlike the case of N-polar GaN where Ohmic behavior is observed.

Hollow-structured Pd/TiO2 as a dual functional photocatalyst for methyl orange oxidation and selective reduction of nitrate into nitrogen

Wen-Min Wang,Shi-Jer Tseng,Yu-Shuan Huang,Qian-Yuan Wu,Wen-Long Wang,Jerry J. Wu 한국공업화학회 2023 Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Vol.119 No.-

Nitrate pollution in wastewater has posed a threat to human health and the environment. Photocatalyticreduction is a promising technology to remove nitrate due to its high adaptability, low cost, and high efficiency. However, there is a great challenge to design photocatalyst with high nitrate reduction and highselectivity of nitrogen (N2) yield. In this study, a novel hollow-structured Pd/TiO2 (PHT1) photocatalyst issynthesized with large specific surface area (SBET) and pore volume, strong UV adsorption, high reductionpotential than nitrate to nitrite, high charge transfer rate, and low electron-hole recombination rate. PHT1 exhibits a superior photocatalytic activity on the removal of methyl orange and nitrate. In addition,PHT1 exhibits high N2 selectivity (>95 %). A lower pH can promote the reduction of nitrate and the selectivityof N2 by PHT1. Electrons (e-) and CO2– are the main active species for nitrate reduction with OH asauxiliary radicals. Three main pathways for nitrate reduction are proposed: i) the reaction with formicacid under acidic conditions; ii) the reduction by electrons and the loaded Pd of photocatalyst to captureelectrons to inhibit electron-hole recombination; iii) the reduction by CO2 – generated from formic acidoxidation by OH.

A small hairpin RNA targeting myeloid cell leukemia-1 enhances apoptosis in host macrophages infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Fei-yu Wang,Yu-qing Zhang,Xin-min Wang,Chan Wang,Xiao-fang Wang,Jiang-dong Wu,Fang Wu,Wan-jiang Zhang,Le Zhang 한국미생물학회 2016 The journal of microbiology Vol.54 No.4

Myeloid cell leukemia-1 (Mcl-1) plays an important role in various cell survival pathways. Some studies indicated that the expression of Mcl-1 was upregulated in host cells during infection with the virulent Mycobacterium tuberculosis strain, H37Rv. The present study was designed to investigate the effect of inhibiting Mcl-1 expression both in vivo and in vitro on apoptosis of host macrophages infected with M. tuberculosis using a small hairpin (sh)RNA. Mcl-1 expression was detected by the real time-polymerase chain reaction, western blotting, and immunohistochemistry. Flow cytometry and transmission electron microscopy were used to measure host macrophage apoptosis. We found elevated Mcl-1 levels in host macrophages infected with M. tuberculosis H37Rv. The expression of Mcl-1 was downregulated efficiently in H37Rv-infected host macrophages using shRNA. Knockdown of Mcl-1 enhanced the extent of apoptosis in H37Rv-infected host macrophages significantly. The increased apoptosis correlated with a decrease in M. tuberculosis colony forming units recovered from H37Rv-infected cells that were treated with Mcl-1-shRNA. Reducing Mcl-1 accumulation by shRNA also reduced accumulation of the anti-apoptotic gene, Bcl-2, and increased expression of the pro-apoptotic gene, Bax, in H37Rv-infected host macrophages. Our results showed that specific knockdown of Mcl-1 expression increased apoptosis of host macrophages significantly and decreased the intracellular survival of a virulent strain of M. tuberculosis. These data indicate that interference with Mcl-1 expression may provide a new avenue for tuberculosis therapy.

Risk Factors for Anxiety in Major Depressive Disorder Patients

Li-Min Xin,Lin Chen,Zhen-Peng Ji,Suo-Yuan Zhang,Jun Wang,Yan-Hong Liu,Da-Fang Chen,Fu-De Yang,Gang Wang,Yi-Ru Fang,Zheng Lu,Hai-Chen Yang,Jian Hu,Zhi-Yu Chen,Yi Huang,Jing Sun,Xiao-Ping Wang,Hui-Chun 대한정신약물학회 2015 CLINICAL PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY AND NEUROSCIENCE Vol.13 No.3

Objective: To analyze the sociodemographic and clinical factors related to anxiety in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). Methods: This study involved a secondary analysis of data obtained from the Diagnostic Assessment Service for People with Bipolar Disorders in China (DASP), which was initiated by the Chinese Society of Psychiatry (CSP) and conducted from September 1, 2010 to February 28, 2011. Based on the presence or absence of anxiety-related characteristics, 1,178 MDD patients were classified as suffering from anxious depression (n=915) or non-anxious depression (n=263), respectively. Results: Compared with the non-anxious group, the anxious-depression group had an older age at onset (t=−4.39, p<0.001), were older (t=−4.69, p<0.001), reported more lifetime depressive episodes (z=−3.24, p=0.001), were more likely to experience seasonal depressive episodes (χ2=6.896, p=0.009) and depressive episodes following stressful life events (χ2=59.350, p <0.001), and were more likely to have a family history of psychiatric disorders (χ2=6.091, p=0.014). Their positive and total scores on the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ) and the 32-item Hypomania Checklist (HCL-32) (p<0.05) were also lower. The logistic regression analysis indicated that age (odds ratio [OR]=1.03, p<0.001), a lower total MDQ score (OR=0.94, p=0.011), depressive episodes following stressful life events (OR=3.04, p<0.001), and seasonal depressive episodes (OR=1.75, p=0.039) were significantly associated with anxious depression. Conclusion: These findings indicate that older age, fewer subclinical bipolar features, an increased number of depressive episodes following stressful life events, and seasonal depressive episodes may be risk factors for anxiety-related characteristics in patients with MDD.

Comparison of Liver Transplantation and Liver Resection for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Patients with Portal Vein Tumor Thrombus Type I and Type II

Jia-Yu Lv,Ning-Ning Zhang,Ya-Wei Du,Ying Wu,Tian-Qiang Song,Ya-Min Zhang,Yan Qu,Yu-Xin Liu,Jie Gu,Ze-Yu Wang,Yi-Bo Qiu,Bing Yang,Da-Zhi Tian,Qing-Jun Guo,Li Zhang,Ji-San Sun,Yan Xie,Zheng-Lu Wang,Xin 연세대학교의과대학 2021 Yonsei medical journal Vol.62 No.1

Purpose: The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of liver transplantation (LT) and liver resection (LR) for hepatocellularcarcinoma (HCC) patients with portal vein tumor thrombus (PVTT) and to investigate risk factors affecting prognosis. Materials and Methods: A total of 94 HCC patients with PVTT type I (segmental PVTT) and PVTT type II (lobar PVTT) were involvedand divided into LR (n=47) and LT groups (n=47). Recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) were comparedbefore and after inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW). Prognostic factors for RFS and OS were explored. Results: Two treatment groups were well-balanced using IPTW. In the entire cohort, LT provided a better prognosis than LR. Among patients with PVTT type I, RFS was better with LT (p=0.039); OS was not different significantly between LT and LR(p=0.093). In subgroup analysis of PVTT type I patients with α-fetoprotein (AFP) levels >200 ng/mL, LT elicited significantly longermedian RFS (18.0 months vs. 2.1 months, p=0.022) and relatively longer median OS time (23.6 months vs. 9.8 months, p=0.065). Among patients with PVTT type II, no significant differences in RFS and OS were found between LT and LR (p=0.115 and 0.335,respectively). Multivariate analyses showed treatment allocation (LR), tumor size (>5 cm), AFP and aspartate aminotransferase(AST) levels to be risk factors of RFS and treatment allocation (LR), AFP and AST as risk factors for OS. Conclusion: LT appeared to afford a better prognosis for HCC with PVTT type I than LR, especially in patients with AFP levels>200 ng/mL.