| 1. |
- Beal, Jacob, et al.
(författare)
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Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density
- 2020
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Ingår i: Communications Biology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2399-3642. ; 3:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals <1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data.
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| 2. |
- Jin, Ying-Hui, et al.
(författare)
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Chemoprophylaxis, diagnosis, treatments, and discharge management of COVID-19 : An evidence-based clinical practice guideline (updated version)
- 2020
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Ingår i: Military Medical Research. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2054-9369. ; 7:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the cause of a rapidly spreading illness, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), affecting more than seventeen million people around the world. Diagnosis and treatment guidelines for clinicians caring for patients are needed. In the early stage, we have issued "A rapid advice guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) infected pneumonia (standard version)"; now there are many direct evidences emerged and may change some of previous recommendations and it is ripe for develop an evidence-based guideline. We formed a working group of clinical experts and methodologists. The steering group members proposed 29 questions that are relevant to the management of COVID-19 covering the following areas: chemoprophylaxis, diagnosis, treatments, and discharge management. We searched the literature for direct evidence on the management of COVID-19, and assessed its certainty generated recommendations using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. Recommendations were either strong or weak, or in the form of ungraded consensus-based statement. Finally, we issued 34 statements. Among them, 6 were strong recommendations for, 14 were weak recommendations for, 3 were weak recommendations against and 11 were ungraded consensus-based statement. They covered topics of chemoprophylaxis (including agents and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) agents), diagnosis (including clinical manifestations, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), respiratory tract specimens, IgM and IgG antibody tests, chest computed tomography, chest x-ray, and CT features of asymptomatic infections), treatments (including lopinavir-ritonavir, umifenovir, favipiravir, interferon, remdesivir, combination of antiviral drugs, hydroxychloroquine/chloroquine, interleukin-6 inhibitors, interleukin-1 inhibitors, glucocorticoid, qingfei paidu decoction, lianhua qingwen granules/capsules, convalescent plasma, lung transplantation, invasive or noninvasive ventilation, and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO)), and discharge management (including discharge criteria and management plan in patients whose RT-PCR retesting shows SARS-CoV-2 positive after discharge). We also created two figures of these recommendations for the implementation purpose. We hope these recommendations can help support healthcare workers caring for COVID-19 patients.
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| 3. |
- Nie, Huizhen, et al.
(författare)
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The short isoform of PRLR suppresses the pentose phosphate pathway and nucleotide synthesis through the NEK9-Hippo axis in pancreatic cancer
- 2021
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Ingår i: Theranostics. - : Ivyspring International Publisher. - 1838-7640. ; 11:8, s. 3898-3915
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Prolactin binding to the prolactin receptor exerts pleiotropic biological effects in vertebrates. The prolactin receptor (PRLR) has multiple isoforms due to alternative splicing. The biological roles and related signaling of the long isoform (PRLR-LF) have been fully elucidated. However, little is known about the short isoform (PRLR-SF), particularly in cancer development and metabolic reprogramming, a core hallmark of cancer. Here, we reveal the role and underlying mechanism of PRLR-SF in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). Methods: A human PDAC tissue array was used to investigate the clinical relevance of PRLR in PDAC. The in vivo implications of PRLR-SF in PDAC were examined in a subcutaneous xenograft model and an orthotopic xenograft model. Immunohistochemistry was performed on tumor tissue obtained from genetically engineered KPC (KrasG12D/+; Trp53R172H/+; Pdx1-Cre) mice with spontaneous tumors. 13C-labeled metabolite measures, LC-MS, EdU incorporation assays and seahorse analyses were used to identify the effects of PRLR-SF on the pentose phosphate pathway and glycolysis. We identified the molecular mechanisms by immunofluorescence, coimmunoprecipitation, proximity ligation assays, chromatin immunoprecipitation and promoter luciferase activity. Public databases (TCGA, GEO and GTEx) were used to analyze the expression and survival correlations of the related genes. Results: We demonstrated that PRLR-SF is predominantly expressed in spontaneously forming pancreatic tumors of genetically engineered KPC mice and human PDAC cell lines. PRLR-SF inhibits the proliferation of PDAC cells (AsPC-1 and BxPC-3) in vitro and tumor growth in vivo. We showed that PRLR-SF reduces the expression of genes in the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) and nucleotide biosynthesis by activating Hippo signaling. TEAD1, a downstream transcription factor of Hippo signaling, directly regulates the expression of G6PD and TKT, which are PPP rate-limiting enzymes. Moreover, NEK9 directly interacts with PRLR-SF and is the intermediator between PRLR and the Hippo pathway. The PRLR expression level is negatively correlated with overall survival and TNM stage in PDAC patients. Additionally, pregnancy and lactation increase the ratio of PRLR-SF:PRLR-LF in the pancreas of wild-type mice and subcutaneous PDAC xenograft tumors. Conclusion: Our characterization of the relationship between PRLR-SF signaling, the NEK9-Hippo pathway, PPP and nucleotide synthesis explains a mechanism for the correlation between PRLR-SF and metabolic reprogramming in PDAC progression. Strategies to alter this pathway might be developed for the treatment or prevention of pancreatic cancer.
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| 4. |
- Pecunia, Vincenzo, et al.
(författare)
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Roadmap on energy harvesting materials
- 2023
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Ingår i: Journal of Physics. - : IOP Publishing. - 2515-7639. ; 6:4
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Ambient energy harvesting has great potential to contribute to sustainable development and address growing environmental challenges. Converting waste energy from energy-intensive processes and systems (e.g. combustion engines and furnaces) is crucial to reducing their environmental impact and achieving net-zero emissions. Compact energy harvesters will also be key to powering the exponentially growing smart devices ecosystem that is part of the Internet of Things, thus enabling futuristic applications that can improve our quality of life (e.g. smart homes, smart cities, smart manufacturing, and smart healthcare). To achieve these goals, innovative materials are needed to efficiently convert ambient energy into electricity through various physical mechanisms, such as the photovoltaic effect, thermoelectricity, piezoelectricity, triboelectricity, and radiofrequency wireless power transfer. By bringing together the perspectives of experts in various types of energy harvesting materials, this Roadmap provides extensive insights into recent advances and present challenges in the field. Additionally, the Roadmap analyses the key performance metrics of these technologies in relation to their ultimate energy conversion limits. Building on these insights, the Roadmap outlines promising directions for future research to fully harness the potential of energy harvesting materials for green energy anytime, anywhere.
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| 5. |
- Song, Dan-Na, et al.
(författare)
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Luminescent Thermochromic Silver Iodides as Wavelength-Dependent Thermometers
- 2020
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Ingår i: Inorganic Chemistry. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0020-1669 .- 1520-510X. ; 59:18, s. 13067-13077
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Luminescent thermochromic materials with a dramatic shift of emission band under different temperatures are highly desirable in temperature sensing fields. However, the design of the synthesis of such compounds remains a great challenge. In this work, two new luminescent thermochromic silver iodides, (emIm)Ag3I4 (1) and (emIm)Ag2I3 (2) (emIm = 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidazole), have been synthesized under solvothermal conditions. Compound 1 features a [Ag3I4]− anionic layer, while compound 2 possesses an infinite [Ag2I3]− chain structure, both of which are charge balanced by emIm+ cations. Particularly, they display luminescent thermochromism with a significant wavelength shift of emission maximum with temperature change. They represent rare examples of infinite layered or chain silver iodides that show luminescent thermochromism. Furthermore, the results indicate that compounds 1 and 2 are promising wavelength-dependent luminescent thermometers.
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| 6. |
- Jiang, Shu-Heng, et al.
(författare)
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Modeling of cancer-related body-wide effects identifies LTB4 as a diagnostic biomarker for pancreatic cancer
- 2022
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Ingår i: EBioMedicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 2352-3964. ; 80, s. 104050-104050
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Cancer elicits a complex adaptive response in an organism. Limited information is available for the body-wide effects induced by cancer. Here, we evaluated multiorgan changes in mouse models of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) and its precursor lesions (pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia, PanIN) to decipher changes that occur during PDAC development.METHODS: RNA-sequencing was employed in the brain, colon, stomach, kidney, heart, liver, and lung tissues of mice with PanIN and PDAC. A combination of differential expression analysis and functional-category enrichment was applied for an in-depth understanding of the multiorgan transcriptome. Differentially expressed genes were verified by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Neutrophil and macrophage infiltration in multiple organs was analyzed by immunohistochemical staining. Leukotriene B4 (LTB4) levels in mouse and human serum samples were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.FINDINGS: Transcriptional changes within diverse organs during PanIN and PDAC stages were identified. Using Gene Ontology enrichment analysis, increased neutrophil infiltration was discovered as a central and prominent affected feature, which occurred in the liver, lung, and stomach at the PanIN stage. The brain appeared to be well protected from the sequels of PanIN or PDAC. Importantly, serum LTB4 was able to discriminate PDAC from normal controls, chronic pancreatitis, and intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms with high performance.INTERPRETATION: Our study provides a high-resolution cartographic view of the dynamic multiorgan transcriptomic landscape of mice with PDAC and its precursor lesions. Our findings suggest that LTB4 could serve as a biomarker for the early detection of PDAC.FUNDING: The complete list of funders can be found in the Acknowledgement section.
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| 7. |
- Abbafati, Cristiana, et al.
(författare)
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- 2020
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)
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| 8. |
- Ding, Xue Bing, et al.
(författare)
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Impaired meningeal lymphatic drainage in patients with idiopathic Parkinson’s disease
- 2021
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Ingår i: Nature Medicine. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1078-8956 .- 1546-170X. ; 27:3, s. 411-418
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Animal studies implicate meningeal lymphatic dysfunction in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease (PD). However, there is no direct evidence in humans to support this role1–5. In this study, we used dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging to assess meningeal lymphatic flow in cognitively normal controls and patients with idiopathic PD (iPD) or atypical Parkinsonian (AP) disorders. We found that patients with iPD exhibited significantly reduced flow through the meningeal lymphatic vessels (mLVs) along the superior sagittal sinus and sigmoid sinus, as well as a notable delay in deep cervical lymph node perfusion, compared to patients with AP. There was no significant difference in the size (cross-sectional area) of mLVs in patients with iPD or AP versus controls. In mice injected with α-synuclein (α-syn) preformed fibrils, we showed that the emergence of α-syn pathology was followed by delayed meningeal lymphatic drainage, loss of tight junctions among meningeal lymphatic endothelial cells and increased inflammation of the meninges. Finally, blocking flow through the mLVs in mice treated with α-syn preformed fibrils increased α-syn pathology and exacerbated motor and memory deficits. These results suggest that meningeal lymphatic drainage dysfunction aggravates α-syn pathology and contributes to the progression of PD.
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| 9. |
- Gao, Yulong, et al.
(författare)
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The molecular gas resolved by ALMA in the low-metallicity merging dwarf galaxy Haro 11
- 2022
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 661
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. The physical mechanisms driving starbursts and quenching in less massive (M* ≤ 1010 M⊙) galaxies are unclear. The merger is one of the inescapable processes referred to as both starburst and quenching in massive galaxies. However, the effects of the merger on star formation in dwarf galaxies and their evolution are still uncertain.Aims. We aim to explore how star formation in dwarf galaxies is both triggered and quenched by studying metal-poor gas-rich dwarf mergers based on multi-band observations at a spatial resolution of ∼460 pc.Methods. We use archival data of Atacama Large Millimetre Array (Band 3 and 8) and Very Large Telescope/Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer to map CO(J = 1–0), [CI](3P1–3P0), and Hα emission in one of the most extreme merging starburst dwarf galaxies, Haro 11.Results. We find the molecular gas is assembled around the central two star-forming regions (knots B and C). The molecular and ionized gas and stellar components show complex kinematics, indicating that the gas is probably at a combined stage of collision of clouds and feedback from star formation. The peak location and distribution of [CI](1–0) closely coincide with the CO(1–0) emission, meaning that it might trace the same molecular gas as CO in such a dwarf merger starburst galaxy. The enhancement of line ratios (∼0.5) of [CI]/CO around knot C is probably generated by the dissociation of CO molecules by cosmic rays and far-ultraviolet photons. Globally, Haro 11 and its star-forming regions share similar star formation efficiency (SFE) to the high-z starburst galaxies or the clumps in nearby ultraluminous infrared galaxies.Conclusions. Given the high SFE, the high specific star formation rate, small stellar mass, low metallicity, and deficient HI gas, Haro 11 could be an analog of a high-z dwarf starburst and the potential progenitor of the nearby less massive elliptical galaxies. The significantly smaller turbulent pressure and viral parameter is probably triggering the intense starbursts. We predict that Haro 11 will quench at M* ≤ 8.5 × 109 M⊙.
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| 10. |
- Kim, Min-Jeong, et al.
(författare)
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Independent enhancement of the in-plane Seebeck effect in 2D PtSe2/PtSe2 homostructures via a facile interface tuning method
- 2024
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Ingår i: Acta Materialia. - : Elsevier. - 1359-6454 .- 1873-2453. ; 268
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Atomically thin two-dimensional (2D) transition-metal dichalcogenide (TMDC) films have emerged as promising semiconducting materials for use in thermoelectric (TE) applications. However, the utilization of such materials remains challenging owing to the relatively high intrinsic resistance as the size of the TMDC thin films increases to the centimeter scale. These 2D TMDC films can also form vertically stacked homo- or heterostructures at large interfaces with other 2D TMDC films, resulting in unique TE properties at room temperature. This article reports on the in-plane TE properties when the interfaces formed within a PtSe2/PtSe2 (3 nm/3 nm) homostructure are modulated as a function of O2 plasma treatment time. The results show enhanced Seebeck coefficients compared with that of the single-layer PtSe2 with the same thickness. The independent enhancement in the Seebeck coefficient while keeping the electrical conductivity leads to a substantial increase in the power factor. Such extra Seebeck voltage in 2D PtSe2/PtSe2 homostructures is mainly as a result of momentum exchange by charge carriers caused by the temperature gradient in the vertical direction, which occurs in-plane Seebeck coefficient measurements, at the interface between the PtSe2 layers in the in-plane temperature gradient along the samples. These results resemble the characteristics of the phonon drag effect at low temperatures, which can independently increase the Seebeck coefficient at room temperature.
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