| 1. |
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| 2. |
- Klionsky, Daniel J., et al.
(author)
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Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy
- 2012
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In: Autophagy. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1554-8635 .- 1554-8627. ; 8:4, s. 445-544
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In 2008 we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, research on this topic has continued to accelerate, and many new scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Accordingly, it is important to update these guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Various reviews have described the range of assays that have been used for this purpose. Nevertheless, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to measure autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. A key point that needs to be emphasized is that there is a difference between measurements that monitor the numbers or volume of autophagic elements (e.g., autophagosomes or autolysosomes) at any stage of the autophagic process vs. those that measure flux through the autophagy pathway (i.e., the complete process); thus, a block in macroautophagy that results in autophagosome accumulation needs to be differentiated from stimuli that result in increased autophagic activity, defined as increased autophagy induction coupled with increased delivery to, and degradation within, lysosomes (in most higher eukaryotes and some protists such as Dictyostelium) or the vacuole (in plants and fungi). In other words, it is especially important that investigators new to the field understand that the appearance of more autophagosomes does not necessarily equate with more autophagy. In fact, in many cases, autophagosomes accumulate because of a block in trafficking to lysosomes without a concomitant change in autophagosome biogenesis, whereas an increase in autolysosomes may reflect a reduction in degradative activity. Here, we present a set of guidelines for the selection and interpretation of methods for use by investigators who aim to examine macroautophagy and related processes, as well as for reviewers who need to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of papers that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a formulaic set of rules, because the appropriate assays depend in part on the question being asked and the system being used. In addition, we emphasize that no individual assay is guaranteed to be the most appropriate one in every situation, and we strongly recommend the use of multiple assays to monitor autophagy. In these guidelines, we consider these various methods of assessing autophagy and what information can, or cannot, be obtained from them. Finally, by discussing the merits and limits of particular autophagy assays, we hope to encourage technical innovation in the field.
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| 3. |
- Qin, Shuang-Jian, et al.
(author)
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Neurotoxicity of fine and ultrafine particulate matter : a comprehensive review using a toxicity pathway-oriented adverse outcome pathway framework
- 2024
-
In: Science of the Total Environment. - : Elsevier. - 0048-9697 .- 1879-1026. ; 947
-
Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) can cause brain damage and diseases. Of note, ultrafine particles (UFPs) with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to 100 nm are a growing concern. Evidence has suggested toxic effects of PM2.5 and UFPs on the brain and links to neurological diseases. However, the underlying mechanism has not yet been fully illustrated due to the variety of the study models, different endpoints, etc. The adverse outcome pathway (AOP) framework is a pathway-based approach that could systematize mechanistic knowledge to assist health risk assessment of pollutants. Here, we constructed AOPs by collecting molecular mechanisms in PM-induced neurotoxicity assessments. We chose particulate matter (PM) as a stressor in the Comparative Toxicogenomics Database (CTD) and identified the critical toxicity pathways based on Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA). We found 65 studies investigating the potential mechanisms linking PM2.5 and UFPs to neurotoxicity, which contained 2, 675 genes in all. IPA analysis showed that neuroinflammation signaling and glucocorticoid receptor signaling were the common toxicity pathways. The upstream regulator analysis (URA) of PM2.5 and UFPs demonstrated that the neuroinflammation signaling was the most initially triggered upstream event. Therefore, neuroinflammation was recognized as the MIE. Strikingly, there is a clear sequence of activation of downstream signaling pathways with UFPs, but not with PM2.5. Moreover, we found that inflammation response and homeostasis imbalance were key cellular events in PM2.5 and emphasized lipid metabolism and mitochondrial dysfunction, and blood-brain barrier (BBB) impairment in UFPs. Previous AOPs, which only focused on phenotypic changes in neurotoxicity upon PM exposure, we for the first time propose AOP framework in which PM2.5 and UFPs may activate pathway cascade reactions, resulting in adverse outcomes associated with neurotoxicity. Our toxicity pathway-based approach not only advances risk assessment for PM-induced neurotoxicity but shines a spotlight on constructing AOP frameworks for new chemicals.
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| 4. |
- Wu, Qi-Zhen, et al.
(author)
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Long-term exposure to major constituents of fine particulate matter and neurodegenerative diseases : a population-based survey in the Pearl River Delta Region, China
- 2024
-
In: Journal of Hazardous Materials. - : Elsevier. - 0304-3894 .- 1873-3336. ; 470
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Exposure to PM2.5 has been linked to neurodegenerative diseases, with limited understanding of constituent-specific contributions.Objectives: To explore the associations between long-term exposure to PM2.5 constituents and neurodegenerative diseases.Methods: We recruited 148,274 individuals aged ≥ 60 from four cities in the Pearl River Delta region, China (2020 to 2021). We calculated twenty-year average air pollutant concentrations (PM2.5 mass, black carbon (BC), organic matter (OM), ammonium (NH4+), nitrate (NO3-) and sulfate (SO42-)) at the individuals' home addresses. Neurodegenerative diseases were determined by self-reported doctor-diagnosed Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD). Generalized linear mixed models were employed to explore associations between pollutants and neurodegenerative disease prevalence.Results: PM2.5 and all five constituents were significantly associated with a higher prevalence of AD and PD. The observed associations generally exhibited a non-linear pattern. For example, compared with the lowest quartile, higher quartiles of BC were associated with greater odds for AD prevalence (i.e., the adjusted odds ratios were 1.81; 95% CI, 1.45–2.27; 1.78; 95% CI, 1.37–2.32; and 1.99; 95% CI, 1.54–2.57 for the second, third, and fourth quartiles, respectively).Conclusions: Long-term exposure to PM2.5 and its constituents, particularly combustion-related BC, OM, and SO42-, was significantly associated with higher prevalence of AD and PD in Chinese individuals.Environmental implication: PM2.5 is a routinely regulated mixture of multiple hazardous constituents that can lead to diverse adverse health outcomes. However, current evidence on the specific contributions of PM2.5 constituents to health effects is scarce. This study firstly investigated the association between PM2.5 constituents and neurodegenerative diseases in the moderately to highly polluted Pearl River Delta region in China, and identified hazardous constituents within PM2.5 that have significant impacts. This study provides important implications for the development of targeted PM2.5 prevention and control policies to reduce specific hazardous PM2.5 constituents.
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| 5. |
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- 2019
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
- Hu, Li-Peng, et al.
(author)
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Terbinafine prevents colorectal cancer growth by inducing dNTP starvation and reducing immune suppression
- 2022
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In: Molecular Therapy. - : Elsevier BV. - 1525-0024 .- 1525-0016. ; 30:10, s. 3284-3299
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Existing evidence indicates that gut fungal dysbiosis might play a key role in the pathogenesis of colorectal cancer (CRC). We sought to explore whether reversing the fungal dysbiosis by terbinafine, an approved antifungal drug, might inhibit the development of CRC. A population-based study from Sweden identified a total of 185 patients who received terbinafine after their CRC diagnosis and found that they had a decreased risk of death (hazard ratio=0.50) and metastasis (hazard ratio=0.44) compared with patients without terbinafine administration. In multiple mouse models of CRC, administration of terbinafine decreased the fungal load, the fungus-induced myeloid-derived suppressor cell (MDSC) expansion, and the tumor burden. Fecal microbiota transplantation from mice without terbinafine treatment reversed MDSC infiltration and partially restored tumor proliferation. Mechanistically, terbinafine directly impaired tumor cell proliferation by reducing the ratio of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADP+) to reduced form of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH), suppressing the activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), resulting in nucleotide synthesis disruption, deoxyribonucleotide (dNTP) starvation and cell cycle arrest. Collectively, terbinafine can inhibit CRC by reversing fungal dysbiosis, suppressing tumor cell proliferation, inhibiting fungus-induced MDSC infiltration, and restoring antitumor immune response.
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| 8. |
- Huang, Xin, et al.
(author)
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A tensor-based analysis of stress variability in granular media subjected to various loading conditions
- 2019
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In: Powder Technology. - : Elsevier. - 0032-5910 .- 1873-328X. ; 356, s. 581-593
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This paper uses a novel tensor-based approach to characterize the spatial variability and localization of stress fields in granular media derived from three-dimensional discrete element simulations. We use the Euclidean distance of the stress tensor of each particle to the bulk mean stress tensor to quantify local stress fluctuations and use the effective variance of the stress field to quantify the overall dispersion. We observe that the evolutions of both the local stress fluctuation and the bulk stress dispersion strongly depend on the stress state, packing density and shearing process. However, they become constant, and are uniquely related to the deviatoric stress and the void ratio when the sample is at critical state, under which the stress variability reaches an ultimate condition. Multifractal analysis further shows that the local stress field is highly heterogeneous and exhibits self-organized patterns.
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| 9. |
- Kanoni, Stavroula, et al.
(author)
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Implicating genes, pleiotropy, and sexual dimorphism at blood lipid loci through multi-ancestry meta-analysis.
- 2022
-
In: Genome biology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1474-760X .- 1465-6906 .- 1474-7596. ; 23:1
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Genetic variants within nearly 1000 loci are known to contribute to modulation of blood lipid levels. However, the biological pathways underlying these associations are frequently unknown, limiting understanding of these findings and hindering downstream translational efforts such as drug target discovery.To expand our understanding of the underlying biological pathways and mechanisms controlling blood lipid levels, we leverage a large multi-ancestry meta-analysis (N=1,654,960) of blood lipids to prioritize putative causal genes for 2286 lipid associations using six gene prediction approaches. Using phenome-wide association (PheWAS) scans, we identify relationships of genetically predicted lipid levels to other diseases and conditions. We confirm known pleiotropic associations with cardiovascular phenotypes and determine novel associations, notably with cholelithiasis risk. We perform sex-stratified GWAS meta-analysis of lipid levels and show that 3-5% of autosomal lipid-associated loci demonstrate sex-biased effects. Finally, we report 21 novel lipid loci identified on the X chromosome. Many of the sex-biased autosomal and X chromosome lipid loci show pleiotropic associations with sex hormones, emphasizing the role of hormone regulation in lipid metabolism.Taken together, our findings provide insights into the biological mechanisms through which associated variants lead to altered lipid levels and potentially cardiovascular disease risk.
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| 10. |
- Kristan, Matej, et al.
(author)
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The Sixth Visual Object Tracking VOT2018 Challenge Results
- 2019
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In: Computer Vision – ECCV 2018 Workshops. - Cham : Springer Publishing Company. - 9783030110086 - 9783030110093 ; , s. 3-53
-
Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The Visual Object Tracking challenge VOT2018 is the sixth annual tracker benchmarking activity organized by the VOT initiative. Results of over eighty trackers are presented; many are state-of-the-art trackers published at major computer vision conferences or in journals in the recent years. The evaluation included the standard VOT and other popular methodologies for short-term tracking analysis and a “real-time” experiment simulating a situation where a tracker processes images as if provided by a continuously running sensor. A long-term tracking subchallenge has been introduced to the set of standard VOT sub-challenges. The new subchallenge focuses on long-term tracking properties, namely coping with target disappearance and reappearance. A new dataset has been compiled and a performance evaluation methodology that focuses on long-term tracking capabilities has been adopted. The VOT toolkit has been updated to support both standard short-term and the new long-term tracking subchallenges. Performance of the tested trackers typically by far exceeds standard baselines. The source code for most of the trackers is publicly available from the VOT page. The dataset, the evaluation kit and the results are publicly available at the challenge website (http://votchallenge.net).
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| 11. |
- Li, Shenpan, et al.
(author)
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Hepatic injury and ileitis associated with gut microbiota dysbiosis in mice upon F–53B exposure
- 2024
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In: Environmental Research. - : Elsevier. - 0013-9351 .- 1096-0953. ; 248
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Chlorinated polyfluorinated ether sulfonate (F–53B), a substitute of perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), has attracted significant attention for its link to hepatotoxicity and enterotoxicity. Nevertheless, the underlying mechanisms of F–53B-induced enterohepatic toxicity remain incompletely understood. This study aimed to explore the role of F–53B exposure on enterohepatic injury based on the gut microbiota, pathological and molecular analysis in mice. Here, we exposed C57BL/6 mice to F–53B (0, 4, 40, and 400 μg/L) for 28 days. Our findings revealed a significant accumulation of F–53B in the liver, followed by small intestines, and feces. In addition, F–53B induced pathological collagen fiber deposition and lipoid degeneration, up-regulated the expression of fatty acid β-oxidation-related genes (PPARα and PPARγ, etc), while simultaneously down-regulating pro-inflammatory genes (Nlrp3, IL-1β, and Mcp1) in the liver. Meanwhile, F–53B induced ileal mucosal barrier damage, and an up-regulation of pro-inflammatory genes and mucosal barrier-related genes (Muc1, Muc2, Claudin1, Occludin, Mct1, and ZO-1) in the ileum. Importantly, F–53B distinctly altered gut microbiota compositions by increasing the abundance of Akkermansia and decreasing the abundance of Prevotellaceae_NK3B31_group in the feces. F–53B-altered microbiota compositions were significantly associated with genes related to fatty acid β-oxidation, inflammation, and mucosal barrier. In summary, our results demonstrate that F–53B is capable of inducing hepatic injury, ileitis, and gut microbiota dysbiosis in mice, and the gut microbiota dysbiosis may play an important role in the F–53B-induced enterohepatic toxicity.
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| 12. |
- Nie, Huizhen, et al.
(author)
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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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In: Theranostics. - : Ivyspring International Publisher. - 1838-7640. ; 11:8, s. 3898-3915
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)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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| 13. |
- Qin, Linqing, et al.
(author)
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Triplet Acceptors with a D-A Structure and Twisted Conformation for Efficient Organic Solar Cells
- 2020
-
In: Angewandte Chemie International Edition. - : WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH. - 1433-7851 .- 1521-3773. ; 59:35, s. 15043-15049
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Triplet acceptors have been developed to construct high-performance organic solar cells (OSCs) as the long lifetime and diffusion range of triplet excitons may dissociate into free charges instead of net recombination when the energy levels of the lowest triplet state (T-1) are close to those of charge-transfer states ((CT)-C-3). The current triplet acceptors were designed by introducing heavy atoms to enhance the intersystem crossing, limiting their applications. Herein, two twisted acceptors without heavy atoms, analogues of Y6, constructed with large pi-conjugated core and D-A structure, were confirmed to be triplet materials, leading to high-performance OSCs. The mechanism of triplet excitons were investigated to show that the twisted and D-A structures result in large spin-orbit coupling (SOC) and small energy gap between the singlet and triplet states, and thus efficient intersystem crossing. Moreover, the energy level of T-1 is close to (CT)-C-3, facilitating the split of triplet exciton to free charges.
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| 14. |
- Sun, Huaiwei, et al.
(author)
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Different types of meteorological drought and their impact on agriculture in Central China
- 2023
-
In: Journal of Hydrology. - 0022-1694. ; 627
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Challenges in drought monitoring hinder social development. In this study, a robust drought monitoring framework composed of ten indicators was established based on the standard precipitation actual evapotranspiration (SPAEI) index calculated using the maximum entropy production (MEP) model. Additionally, the relationship between meteorological drought and agricultural development was analyzed. The results indicated that the seasonal SPAEI performed better than the standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI) in terms of drought area, vegetation drought, and drought identification in Central China. The annual drought duration was between 3.4 and 4.5 months, and the annual drought frequency ranged from 1.1 to 1.9 times per year. The main drought pattern was divided into persistent light drought and short-term severe drought, with the latter dominating crop yields in Central China. Although persistent light drought contributes more to drought, short-term severe drought has a greater impact on crop yields. Thoroughly investigating regional drought patterns and assessing their impacts on agriculture will contribute to a better understanding of drought characteristics and provide valuable guidance for regional agricultural water resource allocation and management.
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| 15. |
- Sun, Hui-Min, et al.
(author)
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SERPINA4 is a novel independent prognostic indicator and a potential therapeutic target for colorectal cancer
- 2016
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In: American Journal of Cancer Research. - Madison : E-CENTURY PUBLISHING CORP. - 2156-6976. ; 6:8, s. 1636-1649
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Serpina family A member 4 (SERPINA4), also known as kallistatin, exerts important effects in inhibiting tumor growth and angiogenesis in many malignancies. However, the precise role of SERPINA4 in CRC has not been fully elucidated. The present study aimed to investigate the expression of SERPINA4 and its clinical significance in CRC. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and western blot analyses showed that the mRNA and protein expression of SERPINA4 in colorectal cancer (CRC) specimens was significantly decreased than that in adjacent normal mucosa. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was conducted to characterize the expression pattern of SERPINA4 by using a tissue microarray (TMA) containing 327 archived paraffin-embedded CRC specimens. Statistical analyses revealed that decreased SERPINA4 expression was significantly associated with invasion depth, nodal involvement, distant metastasis, American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) stage, and tumor differentiation. SERPINA4 was also an independent prognostic indicator of disease-free survival and overall survival in patients with CRC. Furthermore, the impact of altered SERPINA4 expression on CRC cells was analyzed with a series of in vitro and in vivo assays. The results demonstrated that SERPINA4 significantly inhibits malignant tumor progression and serves as a novel prognostic indicator and a potential therapeutic target for CRC.
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| 16. |
- Wang, Fang, et al.
(author)
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Emerging contaminants: A One Health perspective
- 2024
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In: Innovation. - 2666-6758. ; 5
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Environmental pollution is escalating due to rapid global development that often prioritizes human needs over planetary health. Despite global efforts to mitigate legacy pollutants, the continuous introduction of new substances remains a major threat to both people and the planet. In response, global initiatives are focusing on risk assessment and regulation of emerging contaminants, as demonstrated by the ongoing efforts to establish the UN's Intergovernmental Science-Policy Panel on Chemicals, Waste, and Pollution Prevention. This review identifies the sources and impacts of emerging contaminants on planetary health, emphasizing the importance of adopting a One Health approach. Strategies for monitoring and addressing these pollutants are discussed, underscoring the need for robust and socially equitable environmental policies at both regional and international levels. Urgent actions are needed to transition toward sustainable pollution management practices to safeguard our planet for future generations.
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| 17. |
- Wang, Fei, et al.
(author)
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Endothelial cell heterogeneity and microglia regulons revealed by a pig cell landscape at single-cell level
- 2022
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In: Nature Communications. - : Springer Nature. - 2041-1723. ; 13:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Pigs are valuable large animal models for biomedical and genetic research, but insights into the tissue- and cell-type-specific transcriptome and heterogeneity remain limited. By leveraging single-cell RNA sequencing, we generate a multiple-organ single-cell transcriptomic map containing over 200,000 pig cells from 20 tissues/organs. We comprehensively characterize the heterogeneity of cells in tissues and identify 234 cell clusters, representing 58 major cell types. In-depth integrative analysis of endothelial cells reveals a high degree of heterogeneity. We identify several functionally distinct endothelial cell phenotypes, including an endothelial to mesenchymal transition subtype in adipose tissues. Intercellular communication analysis predicts tissue- and cell type-specific crosstalk between endothelial cells and other cell types through the VEGF, PDGF, TGF-beta, and BMP pathways. Regulon analysis of single-cell transcriptome of microglia in pig and 12 other species further identifies MEF2C as an evolutionally conserved regulon in the microglia. Our work describes the landscape of single-cell transcriptomes within diverse pig organs and identifies the heterogeneity of endothelial cells and evolutionally conserved regulon in microglia.
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| 18. |
- Wang, Yan, et al.
(author)
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Evaluation of precipitable water vapor from four satellite products and four reanalysis datasets against GPS measurements on the Southern Tibetan Plateau
- 2017
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In: Journal of Climate. - 0894-8755. ; 30, s. 5699-5713
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- © 2017 American Meteorological Society. The southern Tibetan Plateau (STP) is the region in which water vapor passes from South Asia into the Tibetan Plateau (TP). The accuracy of precipitable water vapor (PWV) modeling for this region depends strongly on the quality of the available estimates of water vapor advection and the parameterization of land evaporation models. While climate simulation is frequently improved by assimilating relevant satellite and reanalysis products, this requires an understanding of the accuracy of these products. In this study, PWV data from MODIS infrared and near-infrared measurements, AIRS Level-2 and Level-3, MERRA, ERA-Interim, JRA-55, and NCEP final reanalysis (NCEP-Final) are evaluated against ground-based GPS measurements at nine stations over the STP, which covers the summer monsoon season from 2007 to 2013. The MODIS infrared product is shown to underestimate water vapor levels by more than 20% (1.84 mm), while the MODIS near-infrared product overestimates them by over 40% (3.52 mm). The AIRS PWV product appears to be most useful for constructing high-resolution and high-quality PWV datasets over the TP; particularly the AIRS Level-2 product has a relatively low bias (0.48 mm) and RMSE (1.83 mm) and correlates strongly with the GPS measurements (R = 0.90). The four reanalysis datasets exhibit similar performance in terms of their correlation coefficients (R = 0.87-0.90), bias (0.72-1.49 mm), and RMSE (2.19-2.35 mm). The key finding is that all the reanalyses have positive biases along the PWV seasonal cycle, which is linked to the well-known wet bias over the TP of current climate models.
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| 19. |
- Wei, Yanan, et al.
(author)
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A universal method for constructing high efficiency organic solar cells with stacked structures
- 2021
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In: Energy & Environmental Science. - : ROYAL SOC CHEMISTRY. - 1754-5692 .- 1754-5706. ; 14:4, s. 2314-2321
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The construction of organic solar cells with stacked structures by the sequential deposition (SD) of donor and acceptor films has great potential in industrial production, as it demonstrates little dependence on the ratio of donor and acceptor materials, solvents, and additives. Herein, we present an eco-friendly solvent protection (ESP) method for the fabrication of high-performance OSCs with stacked structures. Several non-aromatic and non-halogenated solvents are employed as protective agents to build SD devices with a configuration of indium tin oxide (ITO)/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS Clevios P VP Al 4083)/donor/protective solvent/acceptor/perylene diimide functionalized with amino N-oxide (PDINO)/Al, which shows that n-octane is the optimal choice for SD devices. Nine different SD systems including the fullerene and nonfullerene ones present comparable photovoltaic performance to their BC counterparts, which proves the universality of this ESP method. Significantly, the device of ITO/PEDOT:PSS/D18/N3/PDINO/Al with n-octane as the protective solvent achieves a maximum PCE of 17.52%, which is the record efficiency of SD devices. Furthermore, a protective factor (delta) is proposed to demonstrate the quantitative relationship between delta and PCE after experimental and theoretical investigation, which presents an idea to understand the mechanism and provides a guideline for solvent choices.
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| 20. |
- Xue-Jian, Xu, et al.
(author)
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Enhanced Performance and Stability in Polymer Photovoltaic Cells Using Ultraviolet-Treated PEDOT:PSS
- 2013
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In: Chinese Physics Letters. - : Institute of Physics. - 0256-307X .- 1741-3540. ; 30:7
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We investigate the effects of ultraviolet (UV) irradiation treatment with varying irradiation intensities for different treatment times of poly(3, 4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) film on the performance and stability of polymer solar cells (PSCs) based on regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and methanofullerene [6,6]-phenyl C-61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) blend. Ultraviolet-visible transmission spectra, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, contact angle measurement, atomic force microscopy and the Kelvin probe method are conducted to characterize the UV-treated PEDOT:PSS film. The results demonstrate that UV treatment can improve the power conversion efficiency (PCE) and stability of PSCs effectively. The best performance is achieved under 1200 mu W/cm(2) UV treatment for 50 min. Compared to the control device, the optimized device exhibits enhanced performance with a V-OC of 0.59 V, J(SC) of 12.3 mA/cm(2), fill factor of 51%, and PCE of 3.64%, increased by 3.5%, 33%, 8.7% and 50%, respectively. The stability of the PSCs is enhanced by 2.5 times simply through the UV treatment on the PEDOT:PSS buffer layer. The improvement in the device performance and stability is attributed to the improvement in the wettability property and the increase in the work function of the PEDOT:PSS film by UV treatment, while the impact of UV treatment on the transparency of the PEDOT:PSS film is negligible. The strategy of using UV treatment to improve device performance and stability is attractive due to its simplicity, cost-effectiveness, and because it is suitable for large-scale commercial production.
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| 21. |
- Yang, Lei, et al.
(author)
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Sulfur vs. tellurium: the heteroatom effects on the nonfullerene acceptors
- 2019
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In: Science in China Series B. - : SCIENCE PRESS. - 1674-7291 .- 1869-1870. ; 62:7, s. 897-903
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The effect of chalcogen heteroatom variation on donor materials has been systematically investigated. However, this effect on acceptors has rarely been explored. Herein, nonfullerene acceptors BFPSP and BFPTP were reported by simply changing the chalcogen atoms from S to Te. The differences between BFPSP and BFPTP in light absorption, energy levels, excited-state lifetimes, energy loss, charge mobilities, morphology, and photovoltaic properties were systematically investigated to understand the heteroatom effects. More importantly, the electroluminescence spectra, external quantum efficiency of photovoltaics and TD-DFT calculations revealed that the triplet excited state (T-1) in energy of BFPTP equals to the charge transfer (CT) state in PBDB-T:BFPTP, which allows T-1 excitons, generated by intersystem crossing, to split into free charges to contribute to the efficiency. This contribution provides a strategy for tuning the photophysical properties of nonfullerene acceptors and designing high performance triplet materials for OSCs.
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| 22. |
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| 23. |
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| 24. |
- Zhang, Huai, et al.
(author)
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A global survey on the use of the international classification of diseases codes for metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease.
- 2024
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In: Hepatology international. - 1936-0541.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- With the implementation of the 11th edition of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) and the publication of the metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) nomenclature in 2020, it is important to establish consensus for the coding of MAFLD in ICD-11. This will inform subsequent revisions of ICD-11.Using the Qualtrics XM and WJX platforms, questionnaires were sent online to MAFLD-ICD-11 coding collaborators, authors of papers, and relevant association members.A total of 890 international experts in various fields from 61 countries responded to the survey. We also achieved full coverage of provincial-level administrative regions in China. 77.1% of respondents agreed that MAFLD should be represented in ICD-11 by updating NAFLD, with no significant regional differences (77.3% in Asia and 76.6% in non-Asia, p=0.819). Over 80% of respondents agreed or somewhat agreed with the need to assign specific codes for progressive stages of MAFLD (i.e. steatohepatitis) (92.2%), MAFLD combined with comorbidities (84.1%), or MAFLD subtypes (i.e., lean, overweight/obese, and diabetic) (86.1%).This global survey by a collaborative panel of clinical, coding, health management and policy experts, indicates agreement that MAFLD should be coded in ICD-11. The data serves as a foundation for corresponding adjustments in the ICD-11 revision.
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| 25. |
- Zhang, Wei, et al.
(author)
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Activation of nuclear factor-kappa B pathway is responsible for tumor necrosis factor-a-induced up-regulation of endothelin B2 receptor expression in vascular smooth muscle cells in vitro
- 2012
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In: Toxicology Letters. - : Elsevier BV. - 1879-3169 .- 0378-4274. ; 209:2, s. 107-112
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The endothelin B2 (ETB2) receptors are induced in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) in cardiovascular diseases. We tested if in vitro short-term exposure to the pro-inflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) could up-regulate ETB2 receptors in rat mesenteric arteries, and if this effect is through activation of intracellular nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kappa B) pathway. The mesenteric arteries were dissected from male Sprague-Dawley rats and the endothelium was removed. The arteries were co-incubated with TNF-alpha in serum-free Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium. Real-time reverse transcription-PCR, Western blot and immunohistochemical staining were employed to assess the mRNA/protein expression of ETB2 receptors and activation of NF-kappa B pathway. The results showed that, during organ culture. TNF-alpha concentration-dependently enhanced ET52 receptors expression at both mRNA and protein levels, paralleled with activation of NF-kappa B pathway in VSMC. The up-regulated ETB2 receptor expression and NF-kappa B activation could be effectively suppressed by general transcriptional inhibitor actinomycin D, or either of the selective I kappa B kinase inhibitors wedelolactone and IMD-0354. Conclusively, the activation of intracellular NF-kappa B pathway is responsible for the up-regulation of ETB2 receptors induced by short-term exposure to TNF-alpha. This could partly explain the toxic effects of TNF-alpha on VSMCs that account for cardiovascular diseases. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
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| 26. |
- Zhang, Xin, et al.
(author)
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Enhancing the Photovoltaic Performance of Triplet Acceptors Enabled by Side-Chain Engineering
- 2021
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In: Solar RRL. - : WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH. - 2367-198X. ; 5:10
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Triplet excitons have both longer lifetimes and diffusion lengths than singlet excitons due to the nature of triplet excitons, which is expected to increase the photocurrent and further improve the performance of organic solar cells (OSCs). However, the working mechanism of triplet excitons in OSCs is not clearly clarified. Therefore, it is urgent to develop new triplet acceptors for in-depth understanding. Herein, a series of acceptors (BTn-4Cl) are synthesized by fine-tuning of the side-chain branch positions. The generation of triplet excitons of BTn-4Cl is confirmed by the time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) spectra, magnetophotocurrent (MPC) experiment, and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectra. The effects of side-chain engineering on the optoelectronic properties, packing behaviors, energy losses, charge transport properties, spin lifetimes of triplet polarons, and blend film morphologies are systematically studied. These results show that D18:BT3-4Cl-based OSCs possess the best power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 17.31% due to lower energy losses, less recombination losses, more balanced charge carrier mobilities, longer spin-lattice (T-1) relaxation time, and more favorable morphology. This work enhances the understanding of the structure-property relationship for high-performance triplet acceptors.
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| 27. |
- Zhang, Xin, et al.
(author)
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High-Performance All-Small-Molecule Organic Solar Cells Enabled by Regio-Isomerization of Noncovalently Conformational Locks
- 2022
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In: Advanced Functional Materials. - : WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH. - 1616-301X .- 1616-3028. ; 32:19
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of organic solar cells (OSCs) have surpassed 19% thanks to the innovation of polymer donors and molecular acceptors. However, the batch-to-batch variations in polymer materials are detrimental to the reproducibility of the device performance. In comparison, small-molecule donors (SMDs) possess some unique advantages, such as well-defined molecular weights, easy purification, and excellent batch-to-batch repeatability. Herein, a pair of regioisomeric SMDs (BT-O1 and BT-O2) has been synthesized with alkoxy groups as S center dot center dot center dot O noncovalently conformational locks (NoCLs) at the inner and outer position, respectively. Theoretical and experimental results reveal that the regioisomeric effect has a significant influence on the light-harvest ability, energy levels, molecular geometries, internal reorganization energy, and packing behaviors for the two SMDs. As a result, BT-O2-based binary device shows an impressive PCE of 13.99%, much higher than that of BT-O1 based one (4.07%), due to the better-aligned energy level, more balanced charge transport, less charge recombination, lower energy loss, and more favorable phase separation. Furthermore, the fullerene derivative PC71BM is introduced into BT-O2:H3 as the third component to achieve a notable PCE of 15.34% (certified 14.6%). Overall, this work reveals that NoCLs is a promising strategy to achieve high-performance SMDs for all-small-molecule OSCs.
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| 28. |
- Zhang, Xin, et al.
(author)
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High-Performance Noncovalently Fused-Ring Electron Acceptors for Organic Solar Cells Enabled by Noncovalent Intramolecular Interactions and End-Group Engineering
- 2021
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In: Angewandte Chemie International Edition. - : WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH. - 1433-7851 .- 1521-3773. ; 60:22, s. 12475-12481
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Noncovalently fused-ring electron acceptors (NFREAs) have attracted much attention in recent years owing to their advantages of simple synthetic routes, high yields and low costs. However, the efficiencies of NFREAs based organic solar cells (OSCs) are still far behind those of fused-ring electron acceptors (FREAs). Herein, a series of NFREAs with S...O noncovalent intramolecular interactions were designed and synthesized with a two-step synthetic route. Upon introducing pi-extended end-groups into the backbones, the electronic properties, charge transport, film morphology, and energy loss were precisely tuned by fine-tuning the degree of multi-fluorination. As a result, a record PCE of 14.53 % in labs and a certified PCE of 13.8 % for NFREAs based devices were obtained. This contribution demonstrated that combining the strategies of noncovalent conformational locks and pi-extended end-group engineering is a simple and effective way to explore high-performance NFREAs.
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| 29. |
- Zhang, Xin, et al.
(author)
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Side-Chain Engineering for Enhancing the Molecular Rigidity and Photovoltaic Performance of Noncovalently Fused-Ring Electron Acceptors
- 2021
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In: Angewandte Chemie International Edition. - : WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH. - 1433-7851 .- 1521-3773. ; 60:32, s. 17720-17725
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Side-chain engineering is an effective strategy to regulate the solubility and packing behavior of organic materials. Recently, a unique strategy, so-called terminal side-chain (T-SC) engineering, has attracted much attention in the field of organic solar cells (OSCs), but there is a lack of deep understanding of the mechanism. Herein, a new noncovalently fused-ring electron acceptor (NFREA) containing two T-SCs (NoCA-5) was designed and synthesized. Introduction of T-SCs can enhance molecular rigidity and intermolecular pi-pi stacking, which is confirmed by the smaller Stokes shift value, lower reorganization free energy, and shorter pi-pi stacking distance in comparison to NoCA-1. Hence, the NoCA-5-based device exhibits a record power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 14.82 % in labs and a certified PCE of 14.5 %, resulting from a high electron mobility, a short charge-extraction time, a small Urbach energy (E-u), and a favorable phase separation.
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| 30. |
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