Dysregulated expression of microRNAs （miRNAs） in various tissues has been associated with a variety of diseases, including cancers. Here we demonstrate that miRNAs are present in the serum and plasma of humans and o...Dysregulated expression of microRNAs （miRNAs） in various tissues has been associated with a variety of diseases, including cancers. Here we demonstrate that miRNAs are present in the serum and plasma of humans and other animals such as mice, rats, bovine fetuses, calves, and horses. The levels of miRNAs in serum are stable, reproducible, and consistent among individuals of the same species. Employing Solexa, we sequenced all serum miRNAs of healthy Chinese subjects and found over 100 and 91 serum miRNAs in male and female subjects, respectively. We also identified specific expression patterns of serum miRNAs for lung cancer, colorectal cancer, and diabetes, providing evidence that serum miRNAs contain fingerprints for various diseases. Two non-small cell lung cancer-specific serum miRNAs obtained by Solexa were further validated in an independent trial of 75 healthy donors and 152 cancer patients, using quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assays. Through these analyses, we conclude that serum miRNAs can serve as potential biomarkers for the detection of various cancers and other diseases.展开更多
Metamaterials based on effective media can be used to produce a number of unusual physical properties(for example,negative refraction and invisibility cloaking)because they can be tailored with effective medium parame...Metamaterials based on effective media can be used to produce a number of unusual physical properties(for example,negative refraction and invisibility cloaking)because they can be tailored with effective medium parameters that do not occur in nature.Recently,the use of coding metamaterials has been suggested for the control of electromagnetic waves through the design of coding sequences using digital elements‘0’and‘1,'which possess opposite phase responses.Here we propose the concept of an anisotropic coding metamaterial in which the coding behaviors in different directions are dependent on the polarization status of the electromagnetic waves.We experimentally demonstrate an ultrathin and flexible polarization-controlled anisotropic coding metasurface that functions in the terahertz regime using specially designed coding elements.By encoding the elements with elaborately designed coding sequences(both 1-bit and 2-bit sequences),the x-and y-polarized waves can be anomalously reflected or independently diffused in three dimensions.The simulated far-field scattering patterns and near-field distributions are presented to illustrate the dual-functional performance of the encoded metasurface,and the results are consistent with the measured results.We further demonstrate the ability of the anisotropic coding metasurfaces to generate a beam splitter and realize simultaneous anomalous reflections and polarization conversions,thus providing powerful control of differently polarized electromagnetic waves.The proposed method enables versatile beam behaviors under orthogonal polarizations using a single metasurface and has the potential for use in the development of interesting terahertz devices.展开更多
Background Acute kidney injury （AKI） has been recognized as a major healthcare problem affecting millions of patients worldwide.However,epidemiologic data concerning AKI in China are still lacking.The objectives of ...Background Acute kidney injury （AKI） has been recognized as a major healthcare problem affecting millions of patients worldwide.However,epidemiologic data concerning AKI in China are still lacking.The objectives of this study were to characterize AKI defined by RIFLE criteria,assess the association with hospital mortality,and evaluate the impact of AKI in the context of other risk factors.Methods This prospective multicenter observational study enrolled 3,063 consecutive patients from 1 July 2009 to 31 August 2009 in 22 ICUs across China's Mainland.We excluded patients who were admitted for less than 24 hours （n=1623）,younger than 18 years （n=127）,receiving chronic hemodialysis （n=29）,receiving renal transplantation （n=1） and unknown reasons （n=28）.There were 1255 patients in the final analysis.AKI was diagnosed and classified according to RIFLE criteria.Results There were 396 patients （31.6％） who had AKI,with RIFLE maximum class R,I,and F in 126 （10.0％）,91 （7.3％）,and 179 （14.3％） patients,respectively.Renal function deteriorated in 206 patients （16.4％）.In comparison with non AKI patients,patients in the risk class on ICU admission were more likely to progress to the injury class （odds ratio （OR） 3.564,95％ confidence interval （CI） 1.706-7.443,P =0.001],while patients in the risk class （OR 5.215,95％ CI 2.798-9.719,P ＜0.001） and injury class （OR 13.316,95％ CI 7.507-23.622,P ＜0.001） had a significantly higher probability of deteriorating into failure class.The adjusted hazard ratios for 90-day mortality were 1.884 for the risk group,3.401 for the injury group,and 5.306 for the failure group.Conclusions The prevalence of AKI was high among critically ill patients in Chinese ICUs.In comparison with non-AKI patients,patients with RIFLE class R or class I on ICU admission were more susceptibility to progression to class I or class F.The RIFLE criteria were robust and correlated well with clinical deterioration and mortality.展开更多
Clayey silt reservoirs bearing natural gas hydrates(NGH)are considered to be the hydrate-bearing reservoirs that boast the highest reserves but tend to be the most difficult to exploit.They are proved to be exploitabl...Clayey silt reservoirs bearing natural gas hydrates(NGH)are considered to be the hydrate-bearing reservoirs that boast the highest reserves but tend to be the most difficult to exploit.They are proved to be exploitable by the first NGH production test conducted in the South China Sea in 2017.Based on the understanding of the first production test,the China Geological Survey determined the optimal target NGH reservoirs for production test and conducted a detailed assessment,numerical and experimental simulation,and onshore testing of the reservoirs.After that,it conducted the second offshore NGH production test in 1225 m deep Shenhu Area,South China Sea(also referred to as the second production test)from October 2019 to April 2020.During the second production test,a series of technical challenges of drilling horizontal wells in shallow soft strata in deep sea were met,including wellhead stability,directional drilling of a horizontal well,reservoir stimulation and sand control,and accurate depressurization.As a result,30 days of continuous gas production was achieved,with a cumulative gas production of 86.14×104 m3.Thus,the average daily gas production is 2.87×10^4 m^3,which is 5.57 times as much as that obtained in the first production test.Therefore,both the cumulative gas production and the daily gas production were highly improved compared to the first production test.As indicated by the monitoring results of the second production test,there was no anomaly in methane content in the seafloor,seawater,and atmosphere throughout the whole production test.This successful production test further indicates that safe and effective NGH exploitation is feasible in clayey silt NGH reservoirs.The industrialization of hydrates consists of five stages in general,namely theoretical research and simulation experiments,exploratory production test,experimental production test,productive production test,and commercial production.The second production test serves as an important step from the exploratory production test to exper展开更多
The terahertz region is a special region of the electromagnetic spectrum that incorporates the advantages of both microwaves and infrared light waves.In the past decade,metamaterials with effective medium parameters o...The terahertz region is a special region of the electromagnetic spectrum that incorporates the advantages of both microwaves and infrared light waves.In the past decade,metamaterials with effective medium parameters or gradient phases have been studied to control terahertz waves and realize functional devices.Here,we present a new approach to manipulate terahertz waves by using coding metasurfaces that are composed of digital coding elements.We propose a general coding unit based on a Minkowski closed-loop particle that is capable of generating 1-bit coding(with two phase states of 0 and 180°),2-bit coding(with four phase states of 0,90°,180°,and 270°),and multi-bit coding elements in the terahertz frequencies by using different geometric scales.We show that multi-bit coding metasurfaces have strong abilities to control terahertz waves by designing-specific coding sequences.As an application,we demonstrate a new scattering strategy of terahertz waves—broadband and wide-angle diffusion—using a 2-bit coding metasurface with a special coding design and verify it by both numerical simulations and experiments.The presented method opens a new route to reducing the scattering of terahertz waves.展开更多
AIM: To evaluate the survival benefits of different treatment strategies for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients with portal vein tumor thrombus (PVTT) and to determine the prognosis factors.
Background Shensong Yangxin （SSYX） is one of the compound recipe of Chinese materia medica. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of SSYX on sodium current （/Na）, L-type calcium current （/Ca.L）, tr...Background Shensong Yangxin （SSYX） is one of the compound recipe of Chinese materia medica. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of SSYX on sodium current （/Na）, L-type calcium current （/Ca.L）, transient outward potassium current （/to）, delayed rectifier current （/K）, and inward rectifier potassium currents （/K1） in isolated ventricular myocytes. Methods Whole cell patch-clamp technique was used to study ion channel currents in enzymatically isolated guinea pig or rat ventricular myocytes. Results SSYX decreased peak Na by （44.84±7.65）% from 27.21±5.35 to 14.88±2..75 pA/pF （n=-5, P〈0.05）. The medicine significantly inhibited the /Ca,L. At concentrations of 0.25, 0.50, and 1.00 g/100 ml, the peak/Ca,L was reduced by （19.22±1.10）%, （44.82±6.50）% and （50.69±5.64）%, respectively （n=5, all P〈0.05）. SSYX lifted the I-V curve of both /Na and /Ca,L without changing the threshold, peak and reversal potentials. At the concentration of 0.5%, the drug blocked the transient component of /to by 50.60% at membrane voltage of 60 mV and negatively shifted the inactive curve and delayed the recovery from channel inactivation. The tail current density of /K was decreased by （30.77±1.11）% （n=5, P〈0.05） at membrane voltage of 50 mV after exposure to the medicine and the time-dependent activity of /K was also inhibited. Similar to the effect on /K, the SSYX inhibited /K1 by 33.10% at the test potential of -100 mV with little effect on reversal potential and the rectification property. Conclusions The experiments revealed that SSYX could block multiple ion channels such as /Na /Ca,L, /k, /to and /K1, which may change the action potential duration and contribute to some of its antiarrhythmic effects.展开更多
AIM: To evaluate the therapeutic effects of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells(BMSCs) with human urokinase-type plasminogen activator(u PA) on liver fibrosis, and to investigate the mechanism of gene therapy.M...AIM: To evaluate the therapeutic effects of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells(BMSCs) with human urokinase-type plasminogen activator(u PA) on liver fibrosis, and to investigate the mechanism of gene therapy.METHODS: BMSCs transfected with adenovirusmediated human urokinase plasminogen activator(Adu PA) were transplanted into rats with CCl4-induced liver fibrosis. All rats were sacrificed after 8 wk, and their serum and liver tissue were collected for biochemical, histopathologic, and molecular analyzes. The degree of liver fibrosis was assessed by hematoxylin and eosin or Masson's staining. Western blot and quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction were used to determine protein and m RNA expression levels.RESULTS: Serum levels of alanine aminotransferase, aminotransferase, total bilirubin, hyaluronic acid, laminin, and procollagen type Ⅲ were markedly decreased, whereas the levels of serum albumin were increased by u PA gene modified BMSCs treatment. Histopathology revealed that chronic CCl4-treatment resulted in significant fibrosis while u PA gene modified BMSCs treatment significantly reversed fibrosis. By quantitatively analysing the fibrosis area of liver tissue using Masson staining in different groups of animals, we found that model animals with CCl4-induced liver fibrosis had the largest fibrotic area(16.69% ± 1.30%), while fibrotic area was significantly decreased by BMSCs treatment(12.38% ± 2.27%) and was further reduced by u PA-BMSCs treatment(8.31% ± 1.21%). Both protein and m RNA expression of β-catenin, Wnt4 and Wnt5 a was down-regulated in liver tissues following u PA gene modified BMSCs treatment when compared with the model animals.CONCLUSION: Transplantation of u PA gene modified BMSCs suppressed liver fibrosis and ameliorated liver function and may be a new approach to treating liver fibrosis. Furthermore, treatment with u PA gene modified BMSCs also resulted in a decrease in expression of molecules of the Wnt signaling pathway.展开更多
基金Acknowledgments We thank Drs Fengyong Liu and Sheng Luan at UC Berkeley, USA, for their discussion and help with the writing of the manuscript. This work was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China （no. 30225037, 30471991, 30570731）, National Basic Research Program of China （973 Program） （no. 2006CB503909, 2004CB518603）, the ＂111＂ Project, and the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province （no. BK2004082, BK2006714）.
文摘Dysregulated expression of microRNAs （miRNAs） in various tissues has been associated with a variety of diseases, including cancers. Here we demonstrate that miRNAs are present in the serum and plasma of humans and other animals such as mice, rats, bovine fetuses, calves, and horses. The levels of miRNAs in serum are stable, reproducible, and consistent among individuals of the same species. Employing Solexa, we sequenced all serum miRNAs of healthy Chinese subjects and found over 100 and 91 serum miRNAs in male and female subjects, respectively. We also identified specific expression patterns of serum miRNAs for lung cancer, colorectal cancer, and diabetes, providing evidence that serum miRNAs contain fingerprints for various diseases. Two non-small cell lung cancer-specific serum miRNAs obtained by Solexa were further validated in an independent trial of 75 healthy donors and 152 cancer patients, using quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assays. Through these analyses, we conclude that serum miRNAs can serve as potential biomarkers for the detection of various cancers and other diseases.
基金supported by the National Science Foundation of China(61571117,61522106,61138001,61302018 and 61401089)Natural Science Foundation of the Jiangsu Province(BK2012019)the 111 Project(111-2-05).
文摘Metamaterials based on effective media can be used to produce a number of unusual physical properties(for example,negative refraction and invisibility cloaking)because they can be tailored with effective medium parameters that do not occur in nature.Recently,the use of coding metamaterials has been suggested for the control of electromagnetic waves through the design of coding sequences using digital elements‘0’and‘1,'which possess opposite phase responses.Here we propose the concept of an anisotropic coding metamaterial in which the coding behaviors in different directions are dependent on the polarization status of the electromagnetic waves.We experimentally demonstrate an ultrathin and flexible polarization-controlled anisotropic coding metasurface that functions in the terahertz regime using specially designed coding elements.By encoding the elements with elaborately designed coding sequences(both 1-bit and 2-bit sequences),the x-and y-polarized waves can be anomalously reflected or independently diffused in three dimensions.The simulated far-field scattering patterns and near-field distributions are presented to illustrate the dual-functional performance of the encoded metasurface,and the results are consistent with the measured results.We further demonstrate the ability of the anisotropic coding metasurfaces to generate a beam splitter and realize simultaneous anomalous reflections and polarization conversions,thus providing powerful control of differently polarized electromagnetic waves.The proposed method enables versatile beam behaviors under orthogonal polarizations using a single metasurface and has the potential for use in the development of interesting terahertz devices.
文摘Background Acute kidney injury （AKI） has been recognized as a major healthcare problem affecting millions of patients worldwide.However,epidemiologic data concerning AKI in China are still lacking.The objectives of this study were to characterize AKI defined by RIFLE criteria,assess the association with hospital mortality,and evaluate the impact of AKI in the context of other risk factors.Methods This prospective multicenter observational study enrolled 3,063 consecutive patients from 1 July 2009 to 31 August 2009 in 22 ICUs across China's Mainland.We excluded patients who were admitted for less than 24 hours （n=1623）,younger than 18 years （n=127）,receiving chronic hemodialysis （n=29）,receiving renal transplantation （n=1） and unknown reasons （n=28）.There were 1255 patients in the final analysis.AKI was diagnosed and classified according to RIFLE criteria.Results There were 396 patients （31.6％） who had AKI,with RIFLE maximum class R,I,and F in 126 （10.0％）,91 （7.3％）,and 179 （14.3％） patients,respectively.Renal function deteriorated in 206 patients （16.4％）.In comparison with non AKI patients,patients in the risk class on ICU admission were more likely to progress to the injury class （odds ratio （OR） 3.564,95％ confidence interval （CI） 1.706-7.443,P =0.001],while patients in the risk class （OR 5.215,95％ CI 2.798-9.719,P ＜0.001） and injury class （OR 13.316,95％ CI 7.507-23.622,P ＜0.001） had a significantly higher probability of deteriorating into failure class.The adjusted hazard ratios for 90-day mortality were 1.884 for the risk group,3.401 for the injury group,and 5.306 for the failure group.Conclusions The prevalence of AKI was high among critically ill patients in Chinese ICUs.In comparison with non-AKI patients,patients with RIFLE class R or class I on ICU admission were more susceptibility to progression to class I or class F.The RIFLE criteria were robust and correlated well with clinical deterioration and mortality.
基金This study is supported by the offshore NGH production test projects under the Marine Geological Survey Program initiated by the China Geological Survey(DD20190226,DD20190218)the Major Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China(41730528,51991365)。
文摘Clayey silt reservoirs bearing natural gas hydrates(NGH)are considered to be the hydrate-bearing reservoirs that boast the highest reserves but tend to be the most difficult to exploit.They are proved to be exploitable by the first NGH production test conducted in the South China Sea in 2017.Based on the understanding of the first production test,the China Geological Survey determined the optimal target NGH reservoirs for production test and conducted a detailed assessment,numerical and experimental simulation,and onshore testing of the reservoirs.After that,it conducted the second offshore NGH production test in 1225 m deep Shenhu Area,South China Sea(also referred to as the second production test)from October 2019 to April 2020.During the second production test,a series of technical challenges of drilling horizontal wells in shallow soft strata in deep sea were met,including wellhead stability,directional drilling of a horizontal well,reservoir stimulation and sand control,and accurate depressurization.As a result,30 days of continuous gas production was achieved,with a cumulative gas production of 86.14×104 m3.Thus,the average daily gas production is 2.87×10^4 m^3,which is 5.57 times as much as that obtained in the first production test.Therefore,both the cumulative gas production and the daily gas production were highly improved compared to the first production test.As indicated by the monitoring results of the second production test,there was no anomaly in methane content in the seafloor,seawater,and atmosphere throughout the whole production test.This successful production test further indicates that safe and effective NGH exploitation is feasible in clayey silt NGH reservoirs.The industrialization of hydrates consists of five stages in general,namely theoretical research and simulation experiments,exploratory production test,experimental production test,productive production test,and commercial production.The second production test serves as an important step from the exploratory production test to exper
基金This work was supported by the National High Tech Projects(2012AA030402 and 2011AA010202)the National Science Foundation of China(61138001,61171024,61171026,61371035 and 11227904)+2 种基金the 111 Project(111-2-05)the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province(BK2012019)and the 973 Program(2014CB339800).
文摘The terahertz region is a special region of the electromagnetic spectrum that incorporates the advantages of both microwaves and infrared light waves.In the past decade,metamaterials with effective medium parameters or gradient phases have been studied to control terahertz waves and realize functional devices.Here,we present a new approach to manipulate terahertz waves by using coding metasurfaces that are composed of digital coding elements.We propose a general coding unit based on a Minkowski closed-loop particle that is capable of generating 1-bit coding(with two phase states of 0 and 180°),2-bit coding(with four phase states of 0,90°,180°,and 270°),and multi-bit coding elements in the terahertz frequencies by using different geometric scales.We show that multi-bit coding metasurfaces have strong abilities to control terahertz waves by designing-specific coding sequences.As an application,we demonstrate a new scattering strategy of terahertz waves—broadband and wide-angle diffusion—using a 2-bit coding metasurface with a special coding design and verify it by both numerical simulations and experiments.The presented method opens a new route to reducing the scattering of terahertz waves.
文摘AIM: To evaluate the survival benefits of different treatment strategies for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients with portal vein tumor thrombus (PVTT) and to determine the prognosis factors.
文摘Background Shensong Yangxin （SSYX） is one of the compound recipe of Chinese materia medica. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of SSYX on sodium current （/Na）, L-type calcium current （/Ca.L）, transient outward potassium current （/to）, delayed rectifier current （/K）, and inward rectifier potassium currents （/K1） in isolated ventricular myocytes. Methods Whole cell patch-clamp technique was used to study ion channel currents in enzymatically isolated guinea pig or rat ventricular myocytes. Results SSYX decreased peak Na by （44.84±7.65）% from 27.21±5.35 to 14.88±2..75 pA/pF （n=-5, P〈0.05）. The medicine significantly inhibited the /Ca,L. At concentrations of 0.25, 0.50, and 1.00 g/100 ml, the peak/Ca,L was reduced by （19.22±1.10）%, （44.82±6.50）% and （50.69±5.64）%, respectively （n=5, all P〈0.05）. SSYX lifted the I-V curve of both /Na and /Ca,L without changing the threshold, peak and reversal potentials. At the concentration of 0.5%, the drug blocked the transient component of /to by 50.60% at membrane voltage of 60 mV and negatively shifted the inactive curve and delayed the recovery from channel inactivation. The tail current density of /K was decreased by （30.77±1.11）% （n=5, P〈0.05） at membrane voltage of 50 mV after exposure to the medicine and the time-dependent activity of /K was also inhibited. Similar to the effect on /K, the SSYX inhibited /K1 by 33.10% at the test potential of -100 mV with little effect on reversal potential and the rectification property. Conclusions The experiments revealed that SSYX could block multiple ion channels such as /Na /Ca,L, /k, /to and /K1, which may change the action potential duration and contribute to some of its antiarrhythmic effects.
基金Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of ChinaNo.81460114+5 种基金Natural Science Foundation of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous RegionNo.1355005-3-2 and No.2012GXNSFAA053143Chinese Traditional Medicine Science Foundation of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous RegionNo.GZPT1238Science Foundation of Guangxi Department of EducationNo.201203YB036 and No.2013LX031
文摘AIM: To evaluate the therapeutic effects of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells(BMSCs) with human urokinase-type plasminogen activator(u PA) on liver fibrosis, and to investigate the mechanism of gene therapy.METHODS: BMSCs transfected with adenovirusmediated human urokinase plasminogen activator(Adu PA) were transplanted into rats with CCl4-induced liver fibrosis. All rats were sacrificed after 8 wk, and their serum and liver tissue were collected for biochemical, histopathologic, and molecular analyzes. The degree of liver fibrosis was assessed by hematoxylin and eosin or Masson's staining. Western blot and quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction were used to determine protein and m RNA expression levels.RESULTS: Serum levels of alanine aminotransferase, aminotransferase, total bilirubin, hyaluronic acid, laminin, and procollagen type Ⅲ were markedly decreased, whereas the levels of serum albumin were increased by u PA gene modified BMSCs treatment. Histopathology revealed that chronic CCl4-treatment resulted in significant fibrosis while u PA gene modified BMSCs treatment significantly reversed fibrosis. By quantitatively analysing the fibrosis area of liver tissue using Masson staining in different groups of animals, we found that model animals with CCl4-induced liver fibrosis had the largest fibrotic area(16.69% ± 1.30%), while fibrotic area was significantly decreased by BMSCs treatment(12.38% ± 2.27%) and was further reduced by u PA-BMSCs treatment(8.31% ± 1.21%). Both protein and m RNA expression of β-catenin, Wnt4 and Wnt5 a was down-regulated in liver tissues following u PA gene modified BMSCs treatment when compared with the model animals.CONCLUSION: Transplantation of u PA gene modified BMSCs suppressed liver fibrosis and ameliorated liver function and may be a new approach to treating liver fibrosis. Furthermore, treatment with u PA gene modified BMSCs also resulted in a decrease in expression of molecules of the Wnt signaling pathway.
