Effect of doped wax on the rheological properties and chemical structure of ultraviolet aged bitumen.

Wax has a significant influence on the durability of roofing and pavement. The paper investigated the effects of wax dosages (1%, 3% and 5%) on the performance of bitumen during ultraviolet aging systematically from the macro and micro perspectives. The high-medium-low temperature rheological performance and chemical composition of bitumens were mainly studied, and their light-thermal sensitivity was used by differential scanning calorimetry and ultraviolet spectrophotometer tests, respectively.

TLR3-overexpressing umbilical cord mesenchymal stromal cells suppress immune responses to attenuate high-risk corneal transplantation rejection.

Background: The success rates of high-risk corneal transplantation are significantly hindered by immunological rejection. Umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (UC-MSCs) have emerged as a potential solution to improve graft outcomes. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) play pivotal roles in the immune response, however, their specific functions in UC-MSC-based treatments for corneal graft rejection requires further investigation.

TIGIT blockade improves anti-Mycobacterium tuberculosis immunity.

Despite the therapeutic benefit of immune checkpoint blockade in cancers, there is no consensus on its effect in infectious diseases. Here we investigated whether blocking the immune checkpoint T cell immunoreceptor with immunoglobulin and immunoreceptor tyrosine-based inhibitory motif domains (TIGIT) increases T cell immunity in active Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. TIGIT expression in both peripheral blood and lung lesions in tuberculosis patients was assessed, and the correlation with clinical features analyzed.

Outcomes of the transformation to diffuse large B-cell lymphoma in hodgkin lymphoma and indolent B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma: a population-based study.

Histological transformation (HT) to diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) can occur in both Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) and indolent B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL), typically associated with poor clinical outcomes. However, following the introduction of rituximab, the prognosis of transformed DLBCL (t-DLBCL) has shown considerable variability across studies. This study aimed to evaluate the outcomes of t-DLBCL originating from HL and indolent B-NHL, and to compare survival rates between t-DLBCL and primary DLBCL (p-DLBCL).

Quantitative Analysis of Wettability and Its Transition Mechanism in Carbonate Rocks Based on Surface Energy Characterization.

Wettability significantly influences crude oil occurrence within reservoirs and hydrocarbon recovery efficiency. Carbonate rock wettability undergoes substantial alteration under elevated temperatures or asphalt adsorption. To quantitatively assess the impacts of temperature and asphalt on carbonate wettability and analyze its transformation mechanisms, inverse gas chromatography was employed to measure surface energy of Ordovician carbonate samples from Tahe Oilfield across 30-130 °C.

Lactate accumulation drives hepatocellular carcinoma metastasis through facilitating tumor-derived exosome biogenesis by Rab7A lactylation.

Previous studies have demonstrated that lactate accumulation, a common hallmark for metabolic deprivation in solid tumors, could actively drive tumor invasion and metastasis. However, whether lactate influences the biogenesis of tumor-derived exosomes (TDEs), the prerequisite for distant metastasis formation, remains unknown. Here, we demonstrated that extracellular lactate, after taken up by tumor cells via lactate transporter MCT1, drove the release of TDE mainly through facilitating multivesicular body (MVB) trafficking towards plasma membrane instead of lysosome.

METTL3 knockout accelerates hepatocarcinogenesis via inhibiting endoplasmic reticulum stress response.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is among the most common causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Previous studies showed that N6-methyladenosine (mA), the most abundant chemical modification in eukaryotic RNAs, is implicated in HCC progression. Using liver-specific conditional knockout mice, we found that the loss of METTL3, the core catalytic subunit of mA methyltransferase, significantly promoted hepatic tumor initiation under various oncogenic challenges, contrary to the previously reported oncogenic role of METTL3 in liver cancer cell lines or xenograft models.

Efficient Biosynthesis of Phycocyanin Holo-β Subunits in and Their Stability and Antioxidant Properties.

Phycocyanin is a biliprotein that has been used as a natural food colorant due to its brilliant color. However, their application is limited by their poor stability. In this study, biosynthesis pathways of two phycocyanin holo-β subunits, CpcB from mesophilic and CpcB from thermophilic BP-1, were constructed in Coexpression of ferredoxin (Fd), Fd-NADP reductase (FNR), and NADP-specific glutamate dehydrogenase (gdhA) enabled full chromophorylation of these recombinant CpcBs in recombinant .

Combining geometrical and intensity information to recognize vehicles from super-high density UAV-LiDAR point clouds.

The traditional airborne LiDAR point clouds vehicle recognition algorithms only utilize the contained geometric information and are not sufficient to recognize vehicles accurately, especially in complex urban scenes. And their applicability in super-high density UAV-LiDAR point clouds is unknown. Therefore, a 3-D algorithm combining geometric and intensity information from super-high density UAV-LiDAR point clouds is presented.

Investigation of the Properties of High-Viscosity Modified Asphalt Binder under Hygrothermal Environments.

High-viscosity modified asphalt binder (HVMA) is used widely as a polymer-modified binder in porous asphalt pavement because it can improve the cohesiveness of the asphalt mixture. However, because of the high voidage in the mixture, HVMA is vulnerable to aging induced by temperature, oxygen, water, sunlight, and other climatic conditions, which degrades the performance of pavement. The properties of asphalt binder are affected adversely by the effects of hygrothermal environments in megathermal and rainy areas.

A Molecular Dynamics Analysis of the Thickness and Adhesion Characteristics of the Quasi-Liquid Layer at the Asphalt-Ice Interface.

The quasi-liquid layer (QLL), a microstructure located between ice and an adhering substrate, is critical in generating capillary pressure, which in turn influences ice adhesion behavior. This study employed molecular dynamics (MD) methods to obtain QLL thickness and utilized these measurements to estimate the adhesive strength between ice and asphalt. The research involved constructing an ice-QLL-asphalt MD model, encompassing four asphalt types and five temperature ranges from 250 K to 270 K.

Tunable electronic and optical properties of BAs/WTeheterostructure for theoretical photoelectric device design.

The geometric structure of the BAs/WTeheterojunction was scrutinized by employingcalculations grounded on density functional theory. Multiple configurations are constructed to determine the equilibrium state of the heterojunction with optimal stability. The results show that the H1-type heterojunction with interlayer distance of 3.

Targeting Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 1 Induces Apoptosis and Cell Cycle Arrest of Activated Hepatic Stellate Cells.

Liver fibrosis is the integral process of chronic liver diseases caused by multiple etiologies and characterized by excessive deposition of extracellular matrix (ECM). During liver fibrosis, hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) transform into a highly proliferative, activated state, producing various cytokines, chemokines, and ECM. However, the precise mechanisms that license HSCs into the highly proliferative state remain unclear.

m 6 A-mediated gluconeogenic enzyme PCK1 upregulation protects against hepatic ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Background And Aims: Ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury frequently occurs during liver surgery, representing a major reason for liver failure and graft dysfunction after operation. The metabolic shift from oxidative phosphorylation to glycolysis during ischemia increased glucose consumption and accelerated lactate production. We speculate that donor livers will initiate gluconeogenesis, the reverse process of glycolysis in theory, to convert noncarbohydrate carbon substrates (including lactate) to glucose to reduce the loss of hepatocellular energy and foster glycogen storage for use in the early postoperative period, thus improving post-transplant graft function.

Photocatalytic water splitting properties of GeC/InS van der Waals heterostructure: first-principles calculations.

Based on first-principles, we conducted an in-depth study of the GeC/InS van der Waals heterostructure formed by GeC and InS and discussed its structure, electronic properties and optical properties. First, we observe that this heterostructure has negative binding energy, indicating that the interlayer interactions are mainly affected by van der Waals forces. Through band structure and density of state analysis, we confirmed its type-II band alignment characteristics, which means that photogenerated carriers have the ability to automatically separate in space.

Recent Progress of Natural and Recombinant Phycobiliproteins as Fluorescent Probes.

Phycobiliproteins (PBPs) are natural water-soluble pigment proteins, which constitute light-collecting antennae, and function in algae photosynthesis, existing in cyanobacteria, red algae, and cryptomonads. They are special pigment-protein complexes in algae with a unique structure and function. According to their spectral properties, PBPs can be mainly divided into three types: allophycocyanin, phycocyanin, and PE.

Minimally invasive valve surgery including patients of combined simultaneous surgery: a retrospective study.

Objective: This study investigated the perioperative safety and advantages of performing a minimally invasive valve surgery (MIVS) and conducting a preliminary examination of the combined simultaneous surgery (CSS).

Methods: A total of 29 patients (16 men and 13 women; mean age, 58.41 ± 13.

Combined inhibition of surface CD51 and γ-secretase-mediated CD51 cleavage improves therapeutic efficacy in experimental metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background & Aims: Integrin αv (ITGAV, CD51) is regarded as a key component in multiple stages of tumor progression. However, the clinical failure of cilengitide, a specific inhibitor targeting surface CD51, suggests the importance of yet-unknown mechanisms by which CD51 promotes tumor progression.

Methods: In this study, we used several hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cell lines and murine hepatoma cell lines.

Administration of AG490 decreases the senescence of umbilical cord-mesenchymal stem cells and promotes the cytotherapeutic effect in liver fibrosis.

The therapeutic potential of umbilical cord-mesenchymal stem cell (UC-MSC) transplantation in liver fibrosis has been highlighted. However, the fate of transplanted MSCs in the fibrotic microenvironment remains unclear. In this study, we aim to uncover the fate of transplanted MSCs and develop targeting strategies that could enhance the therapeutic efficacy of MSC therapy in liver fibrosis.

Predicting Dynamic Properties of Asphalt Mastic Considering Asphalt-Filler Interaction Based on 2S2P1D Model.

The relationship between the various phases of asphalt materials, from asphalt binder to mastic and mixture, has received great attention over the years, with efforts being made to establish linkages among these phases. Many methods for predicting the rheology properties of asphalt mastics from those of asphalt and filler volume fractions exist. However, most prediction methods are based on an empirical formula and on the micromechanical model.

Role and mechanism of the zinc finger protein ZNF580 in foam-cell formation.

Coronary atherosclerotic heart disease poses a significant threat to human health. The pathological basis is atherosclerosis and foam-cell formation is the key factor in the initiation of atherosclerosis. In the present study, foam cell models were established using 50 ng/ml oxidized low-density lipoprotein to stimulate cultures of THP-1 cells for 72 h.

The mA methyltransferase Mettl3 deficiency attenuates hepatic stellate cell activation and liver fibrosis.

Activation of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) is a central driver of liver fibrosis. Previous investigations have identified various altered epigenetic landscapes during the cellular progression of HSC activation. N6-methyladenosine (mA) is the most abundant internal RNA modification in eukaryotic cells and is dynamically regulated under various physiological and pathophysiological conditions.

Phycobiliproteins-A Family of Algae-Derived Biliproteins: Productions, Characterization and Pharmaceutical Potentials.

Phycobiliproteins (PBPs) are colored and water-soluble biliproteins found in cyanobacteria, rhodophytes, cryptomonads and cyanelles. They are divided into three main types: allophycocyanin, phycocyanin and phycoerythrin, according to their spectral properties. There are two methods for PBPs preparation.