Preparative Separation and Identification of the Flavonoid Phlorhizin from the Crude Extract of Lithocarpus Polystachyus Rehd

The flavonoid phlorhizin is abundant in the leaves of Sweet Tea(ST, Lithocarpus Polystachyus Rehd). Phlorhizinwas preparatively separated and purified from a crude ST extract containing 40% total flavonoids by static adsorption and dynamic desorption on ADS-7 macroporous resin and neutral alumina column chromatography. Only water and ethanol were used as solvents and eluants throughout the whole separation and purification process. Using a phlorhizin standard as the reference compound, the target compound separated from the crude ST extracts was analyzed by thin layer chromatography (TLC), high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and electrosprayionization mass spectrometry (EIS-MS) and identified as 99.87% pure (by HPLC-UV) phlorhizin. The results showed that 10g of the targetcompound could be obtained from 40g of the crude extracts in a single operation, indicating a 40% recovery. Therefore, this represents an efficientand environmentally-friendly technology for separating and purifying phlorhizinfrom ST leaves

Editorial: Novel Technologies for Sustainable and Energy-efficient Flow Photochemistry

Due to the development of novel light-sources, methodologies and technologies, photochemistry has seen a remarkable renaissance in academia and industry. Many photochemical investigations are now routinely performed under continuous-flow conditions in purpose-designed reactors. Successful examples of pre-industrial applications have subsequently been developed and realized. Likewise, photocalytic materials can be easily incorporated into reactor channels, thus further advancing the potential of flow-photochemistry. This Research Topic comprises of four submissions and highlights recent achievements in photochemical research

Bicoptor 2.0: Addressing Challenges in Probabilistic Truncation for Enhanced Privacy-Preserving Machine Learning

This paper primarily focuses on analyzing the problems and proposing solutions for the probabilistic truncation protocol in existing PPML works from the perspectives of accuracy and efficiency. In terms of accuracy, we reveal that precision selections recommended in some of the existing works are incorrect. We conduct a thorough analysis of their open-source code and find that their errors were mainly due to simplified implementation, more specifically, fixed numbers are used instead of random numbers in probabilistic truncation protocols. Based on this, we provide a detailed theoretical analysis to validate our views. We propose a solution and a precision selection guideline for future works. Regarding efficiency, we identify limitations in the state-of-the-art comparison protocol, Bicoptor's (S\&P 2023) DReLU protocol, which relies on the probabilistic truncation protocol and is heavily constrained by the security parameter to avoid errors, significantly impacting the protocol's performance. To address these challenges, we introduce the first non-interactive deterministic truncation protocol, replacing the original probabilistic truncation protocol. Additionally, we design a non-interactive modulo switch protocol to enhance the protocol's security. Finally, we provide a guideline to reduce computational and communication overhead by using only a portion of the bits of the input, i.e., the key bits, for DReLU operations based on different model parameters. With the help of key bits, the performance of our DReLU protocol is further improved. We evaluate the performance of our protocols on three GPU servers, and achieve a 10x improvement in DReLU protocol, and a 6x improvement in the ReLU protocol over the state-of-the-art work Piranha-Falcon (USENIX Sec 22). Overall, the performance of our end-to-end (E2E) privacy-preserving machine learning (PPML) inference is improved by 3-4 times.Comment: 17 pages, 5 figure

Investigation of a minor groove-binding polyamide targeted to E2F1 transcription factor in chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) cells

No abstract available

Lentiviral vector-mediated RBM5 overexpression downregulates EGFR expression in human non-small cell lung cancer cells

BACKGROUND: RNA binding motif 5 (RBM5) is a tumor suppressor gene that modulates apoptosis through the regulation of alternative splicing of apoptosis-related genes. Our previous studies suggested that RBM5 expression was negatively correlated with the expression of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) tissues. This study was aimed at determining whether RBM5 is able to regulate EGFR expression. METHODS: Both in vitro and in vivo studies were carried out to determine the effect of RBM5 on the expression of EGFR. Lentiviral vector-mediated RBM5 overexpression was employed in lung adenocarcinoma cell line A549. A549 xenograft mice were treated with recombinant RBM5 plasmid carried by attenuated Salmonella typhi Ty21a. Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction and Western blot were carried out to detect RBM5 and EGFR expression. RESULTS: Both in vivo and in vitro studies indicated that the expression of EGFR mRNA and protein was decreased significantly in the RBM5 overexpression group compared to control groups as shown by real-time PCR and Western blot analysis. We identified that RBM5 overexpression inhibited EGFR expression both in A549 cells and in A549 xenograft mice model. CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrated that EGFR expression is regulated by RBM5 in lung adenocarcinomas cells either in a direct or indirect way, which might be meaningful with regards to target therapy in lung cancer

Comparative analysis of six nutritional scores in predicting prognosis of COVID-19 patients

BackgroundIdentifying nutritional risk in COVID-19 patients poses a challenge due to the unique qualities of every nutritional screening instrument. The objective was to assess the efficacy of six nutritional scores, including the Nutritional Risk Screening 2002 (NRS-2002) score, the NUTRIC (nutrition risk in the critically ill) score, the modified NUTRIC score, the prognostic nutritional index (PNI), controlling nutritional status (CONUT) score, TCB index (TCBI), predicting prognosis of COVID-19 patients.MethodsClinical data were collected from COVID-19 patients admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University between December 2022 and February 2023. Participants in this research were divided into two groups: all patients and those specifically from the intensive care unit (ICU). Each group was further stratified into two groups: survivors and non-survivors.Result506 COVID-19 patients and 190 COVID-19 patients in intensive care unit (ICU) were evaluated. In all COVID-19 patients, we found that NRS-2002 (p < 0.001) and TCBI (p = 0.002) were statistically significant independent predictors in multivariate analyses, while APACHE II score (p = 0,048) and the mNUTRIC score (p = 0.025) were statistically significant independent predictors in multivariate analyses in ICU patients. The NRS-2002 demonstrated a higher AUC value (0.687) than other nutritional scores in all patients, with an optimum cut-off value of 3, translating into a corresponding sensitivity of 66.2% and specificity of 68.7%. With an optimum cut-off value of 4, the mNUTRIC score demonstrated a higher AUC value (0.884) in ICU patients, resulting in a sensitivity of 88.4% and a specificity of 76.9%. By using the discrimination and clinical application (DCA) curve, NRS-2002 demonstrated the greatest net benefit in all patients, while NUTRIC score and mNUTRIC score offered the more significant overall advantage than other nutritional scores in ICU patients. Kaplan–Meier analyses showed lower survival rates in patients in low nutritional risk.ConclusionMalnutrition was common in COVID-19 patients. The mNUTRIC score and NRS-2002 were, respectively, more effctive scoring systems of prognosis in all COVID-19 patients and severe or critical COVID-19 patients of the intensive care unit (ICU)

Risk factors for prolonged surgical duration of tracheobronchial foreign body removal in children: a single-center retrospective study

ObjectThis study aims to analyze the clinical characteristics of children with tracheobronchial foreign body and to investigate the factors influencing the surgical duration of rigid bronchoscopic foreign body removal under general anesthesia.MethodsWe retrospectively identified 421 children diagnosed with tracheobronchial foreign body undergoing rigid bronchoscopy between January 2020 and December 2021. A comprehensive analysis was conducted on patient demographics, including age, weight, gender, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status classification, foreign body type and location, duration of foreign body retention, preoperative symptoms, signs, imaging findings, tracheobronchial manifestations observed during bronchoscopy, and surgical durations. Statistical analysis utilized both univariate and multivariate linear regression models to assess factors influencing the surgical duration of tracheobronchial foreign body removal in children.ResultsThe mean age of children with tracheobronchial foreign body was 1.59 years (1.32, 2.04). The male-to-female ratio was 1.8:1, and the ASA physical status classification was predominantly ASA II (96.7%). Organic foreign body accounted for 94.8% of cases, with 91.7% located unilaterally. Univariate and multivariate linear regression analyses revealed that ASA III, pulmonary rales, and the presence of one, two, or three specific tracheobronchial manifestations observed during bronchoscopy—including mucosal hyperemia and edema, purulent exudate, and granulation tissue—were independent risk factors associated with prolonged surgical duration for foreign body removal (P < 0.05).ConclusionASA III, pulmonary rales, and various tracheobronchial manifestations observed during bronchoscopy are significant risk factors associated with prolonged surgical duration for foreign body removal in children

Overexpression of RBM5 induces autophagy in human lung adenocarcinoma cells

BACKGROUND: Dysfunctions in autophagy and apoptosis are closely interacted and play an important role in cancer development. RNA binding motif 5 (RBM5) is a tumor suppressor gene, which inhibits tumor cells’ growth and enhances chemosensitivity through inducing apoptosis in our previous studies. In this study, we investigated the relationship between RBM5 overexpression and autophagy in human lung adenocarcinoma cells. METHODS: Human lung adenocarcinoma cancer (A549) cells were cultured in vitro and were transiently transfected with a RBM5 expressing plasmid (GV287-RBM5) or plasmid with scrambled control sequence. RBM5 expression was determined by semi-quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Western blot. Intracellular LC-3 I/II, Beclin-1, lysosome associated membrane protein-1 (LAMP1), Bcl-2, and NF-κB/p65 protein levels were detected by Western blot. Chemical staining with monodansylcadaverine (MDC) and acridine orange (AO) was applied to detect acidic vesicular organelles (AVOs). The ultrastructure changes were observed under transmission electron microscope (TEM). Then, transplanted tumor models of A549 cells on BALB/c nude mice were established and treated with the recombinant plasmids carried by attenuated Salmonella to induce RBM5 overexpression in tumor tissues. RBM5, LC-3, LAMP1, and Beclin1 expression was determined by immunohistochemistry staining in plasmids-treated A549 xenografts. RESULTS: Our study demonstrated that overexpression of RBM5 caused an increase in the autophagy-related proteins including LC3-I, LC3-II, LC3-II/LC3-I ratio, Beclin1, and LAMP1 in A549 cells. A large number of autophagosomes with double-membrane structure and AVOs were detected in the cytoplasm of A549 cells transfected with GV287-RBM5 at 24 h. We observed that the protein level of NF-κB/P65 was increased and the protein level of Bcl-2 decreased by RBM5 overexpression. Furthermore, treatment with an autophagy inhibitor, 3-MA, enhanced RBM5-induced cell death and chemosensitivity in A549 cells. Furthermore, we successfully established the lung adenocarcinoma animal model using A549 cells. Overexpression of RBM5 enhanced the LC-3, LAMP1, and Beclin1 expression in the A549 xenografts. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings showed for the first time that RBM5 overexpression induced autophagy in human lung adenocarcinoma cells, which might be driven by upregulation of Beclin1, NF-κB/P65, and downregulation of Bcl-2. RBM5-enhanced autophagy acts in a cytoprotective way and inhibition of autophagy may improve the anti-tumor efficacy of RBM5 in lung cancer

Low body mass index adversely affects the live birth rate following fresh embryo transfer in Chinese women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a pilot study

ObjectiveTo examine the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and pregnancy outcomes after fresh embryo transfer in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).MethodsWomen diagnosed with PCOS who underwent in vitro fertilization or intracytoplasmic sperm injection treatment at the Reproductive Center of Guangdong Maternal and Child Health Hospital in China between August 2014 and July 2023 were included. Patients were divided into four groups based on BMI: Low <18.5Kg/m2 (group 1); Normal 18.5≤BMI <24 Kg/m2(group 2); Overweight 24≤BMI <28 Kg/m2(group 3); Obesity ≥28 Kg/m2(group 4). The retrospective cohort study explored the relationship between BMI and pregnancy outcomes using a logistic regression approach. The live birth rates of different BMI groups were compared after adjusting for age, antimullerian hormone (AMH), antral follicle count (AFC), homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA), estrogen (E2), total testosterone (T), baseline follicle-stimulating hormone (bFSH), and baseline luteinizing hormone (bLH).ResultsA total of 649 patients with PCOS who underwent fresh embryo transfer were included. A curvilinear relationship was observed between BMI and pregnancy outcomes. Compared with the normal BMI group, the low BMI group had the lowest live birth rate (P = 0.021). An inflection point was identified at approximately 22 kg/m². When BMI was below 22 kg/m², the live birth rate increased by 29% for each 1 kg/m² increase in BMI (P = 0.018). When BMI exceeded 22 kg/m², the live birth rate plateaued. A significant interaction between age and BMI was also observed in relation to live birth rate (P = 0.011), with the adverse effect of low BMI being particularly pronounced in younger patients.ConclusionAmong patients with PCOS, those with low BMI had the lowest live birth rate following fresh embryo transfer. The optimal BMI associated with the highest live birth rate was approximately 22 kg/m²

Dictamnine, a novel c-Met inhibitor, suppresses the proliferation of lung cancer cells by downregulating the PI3K/AKT/mTOR and MAPK signaling pathways

Dictamnine (Dic), a naturally occurring small-molecule furoquinoline alkaloid isolated from the root bark of Dictamnus dasycarpus Turcz., is reported to display anticancer properties. However, little is known about the direct target proteins and anticancer mechanisms of Dic. In the current study, Dic was found to suppress the growth of lung cancer cells in vitro and in vivo, and to attenuate the activation of PI3K/AKT/mTOR and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways by inhibiting the phosphorylation and activation of receptor tyrosine kinase c-Met. Moreover, the binding of Dic to c-Met was confirmed by using cellular thermal shift assay (CETSA) and drug affinity responsive target stability (DARTS) assay. Among all cancer cell lines tested, Dic inhibited the proliferation of c-Met-dependent EBC-1 cells with the greatest potency (IC50 = 2.811 μM). Notably, Dic was shown to synergistically improve the chemo-sensitivity of epidermal growth factor receptor-tyrosine kinase inhibitor (EGFR-TKI)-resistant lung cancer cells to gefitinib and osimertinib. These results suggest that Dic is a c-Met inhibitor that can serve as a potential therapeutic agent in the treatment of lung cancer, especially against EGFR TKI-resistant and c-Met-dependent lung cancer