A Phase II Study of Nivolumab plus Gemcitabine in Patients with Recurrent or Metastatic Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma (KCSG HN17-11).

Purpose: Although programmed death 1/programmed death ligand 1 (PD-1/PD-L1) inhibitors are promising agents for recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor monotherapy has shown modest efficacy. This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of nivolumab plus gemcitabine in patients with NPC who failed prior platinum-based chemotherapy.

Patients And Methods: This is a phase II, multicenter, open-label, single-arm study.

A pilot study of nailfold capillaroscopy in hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis.

Nailfold capillaroscopy (NFC) is a safe and non-invasive imaging tool for evaluating microvascular abnormalities. This retrospective cross-sectional study aimed to analyze the NFC outcomes and clinical characteristics in patients and an asymptomatic carrier with transthyretin (TTR) gene mutation. The participants consist of eight patients with genetically and clinically confirmed hereditary amyloidogenic transthyretin (ATTRv) amyloidosis and one asymptomatic carrier.

IL-34 Aggravates Steroid-Induced Osteonecrosis of the Femoral Head via Promoting Osteoclast Differentiation.

IL-34 can promote osteoclast differentiation and activation, which may contribute to steroid-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH). Animal model was constructed in both BALB/c and IL-34 deficient mice to detect the relative expression of inflammation cytokines. Micro-CT was utilized to reveal the internal structure.

Proteomic and miRNA profiling of radon-induced skin damage in mice: FASN regulated by miRNAs.

Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas and considered as a serious carcinogen to humans. Continuous radioactive decay of this gas emits high-energy alpha particles. Long-term radon exposure induces oxidative stress and inflammatory response, which results in chronic lung diseases.

On-Site Synthesis and Characterizations of Atomically-Thin Nickel Tellurides with Versatile Stoichiometric Phases through Self-Intercalation.

Self-intercalation of native metal atoms in two-dimensional (2D) transition metal dichalcogenides has received rapidly increasing interest, due to the generation of intriguing structures and exotic physical properties, however, only reported in limited materials systems. An emerging type-II Dirac semimetal, NiTe, has inspired great attention at the 2D thickness region, but has been rarely achieved so far. Herein, we report the direct synthesis of mono- to few-layer Ni-tellurides including 1T-NiTe and Ni-rich stoichiometric phases on graphene/SiC(0001) substrates under ultra-high-vacuum conditions.

Corrigendum: Diagnostic Accuracy and Generalizability of a Deep Learning-Based Fully Automated Algorithm for Coronary Artery Stenosis Detection on CCTA: A Multi-Centre Registry Study.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fcvm.2021.

Ultrasonic-Assisted Extraction of Cannabidiolic Acid from Cannabis Biomass.

Industrial hemp (Cannabis spp.) has many compounds of interest with potential medical benefits. Of these compounds, cannabinoids have come to the center of attention, specifically acidic cannabinoids.

Continuous centrifugal microfluidics (CCM) isolates heterogeneous circulating tumor cells via full automation.

Understanding cancer heterogeneity is essential to finding diverse genetic mutations in metastatic cancers. Thus, it is critical to isolate all types of CTCs to identify accurate cancer information from patients. Moreover, full automation robustly capturing the full spectrum of CTCs is an urgent need for CTC diagnosis to be routine clinical practice.

A vitronectin-derived peptide prevents and restores alveolar bone loss by modulating bone re-modelling and expression of RANKL and IL-17A.

Aim: This study investigated whether a vitronectin-derived peptide (VnP-16) prevents and/or reverses alveolar bone resorption induced by ligature-induced periodontitis in rodents and identified the underlying mechanism.

Materials And Methods: We evaluated the effects of VnP-16 on osteogenic differentiation in human periodontal ligament cells (hPDLCs), lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammatory responses in gingival fibroblasts, and immune response in T lymphocytes. Ligature-induced periodontitis was induced by ligating the bilateral mandibular first molars for 14 days in rats and for 7 days in mice (n = 10/group).

Biomass-Derived Anion-Anchoring Nano-CaCO Coating for Regulating Ion Transport on Li Metal Surface.

The free transport of anions in a Li metal battery can cause multiple issues, including a high anion transference number, space charge, and concentration polarization, eventually leading to uncontrolled dendrite formation and decreased performance. Herein, we report an anion-anchoring nano-CaCO (NC) coating derived from eggshell biowaste for stabilizing Li metal anodes. As the adsorption of local TFSI anions onto the NC adsorbent can undermine the anion concentration gradient and promote rapid Li-ion diffusion, it can effectively inhibit the proliferation of Li dendrites assisted by the NC coating.

Australian policy on international students: pivoting towards discourses of diversity?

As the third-largest export industry, international education occupies an important place in the Australian economy and society. Employing Bacchi's "What is the Problem Represented to be" (WPR) approach, this paper critically analyses four key policies pertaining to international students in Australia since the 1990s. Drawing upon theorising of the globalisation of international education policy, we uncover contestation and problem representation in discourses around the economisation of education and of international students' experiences.

Multi-pathway inducing ferroptosis by MnO-based nanodrugs for targeted cancer therapy.

A multifunctional nanodrug (Tf-DHA-ASO-MnO) based on manganese dioxide nanosheets was constructed by triple-dressing with transferrin, dihydroartemisinin, and antisense oligonucleotide sequences. Tf-DHA-ASO-MnO shows an effective targeted cancer therapy ability through the ferroptosis caused by the production of excessive lipid peroxides resulting from the combined effect of glutathione exhaustion, reactive oxygen species generation and down-regulation of glutathione peroxidase 4.

Dual-emission ratio fluorescence for selective and sensitive detection of ferric ions and ascorbic acid based on one-pot synthesis of glutathione protected gold nanoclusters.

A fluorometric method was proposed for the determination of Fe and ascorbic acid (AA) based on blue and red dual fluorescence emissions of glutathione (GSH) stabilized-gold nanoclusters (AuNCs). AuNCs were synthesized from GSH and tetrachloroauric acid. The fluorescence peaks of AuNCs were at 425 nm and 585 nm, respectively.

The influence of artificial intelligence assistance on the diagnostic performance of CCTA for coronary stenosis for radiologists with different levels of experience.

Background: The interpretation of coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) stenosis may be difficult among radiologists of different experience levels. Artificial intelligence (AI) may improve the diagnostic performance.

Purpose: To investigate whether the diagnostic performance and time efficiency of radiologists with different levels of experience in interpreting CCTA images could be improved by using CCTA with AI assistance (CCTA-AI).

Increased risks of aortic regurgitation and atrial fibrillation in radiographic axial spondyloarthritis patients: a 10-year nationwide cohort study.

Background: To compare the incidences of aortic regurgitation, atrial fibrillation (AF), and atrioventricular (AV) block II-III between radiographic axial spondyloarthritis (r-axSpA) patients and the general population (GP).

Methods: National Health Insurance Services data were used. R-axSpA patients ( = 8877) and the age- and sex-matched GP ( = 26,631) were followed from August 2006 to December 2019.

Incorporation of SKI-G-801, a Novel AXL Inhibitor, With Anti-PD-1 Plus Chemotherapy Improves Anti-Tumor Activity and Survival by Enhancing T Cell Immunity.

A recently developed treatment strategy for lung cancer that combines immune checkpoint inhibitors with chemotherapy has been applied as a standard treatment for lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) and lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC), and it has improved the outcomes of chemotherapy. Maintenance treatment with anti-PD-1 antibody (aPD-1) enhances the effect of immunochemical combination therapy and improves therapeutic efficacy, which contributes toward a significant improvement in patient survival rates. The AXL receptor tyrosine kinase (AXL), which is expressed in tumor cells, plays an essential role in the resistance of cancers to chemotherapy and immunotherapy, and stimulates signaling associated with epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in metastatic cancer.

Rapid Pressureless Sintering of Glasses.

Silica glasses have wide applications in industrial fields due to their extraordinary properties, such as high transparency, low thermal expansion coefficient, and high hardness. However, current methods of fabricating silica glass generally require long thermal treatment time (up to hours) and complex setups, leading to high cost and slow manufacturing speed. Herein, to obtain high-quality glasses using a facile and rapid method, an ultrafast high-temperature sintering (UHS) technique is reported that requires no additional pressure.

Rapid Degradation of SARS-CoV-2 Spike S Protein by A Specific Serine Protease.

The S protein of SARS-CoV-2 is a crucial structural and functional component for virus entry. Due to the constant mutation of the virus, there are very limited ways to prevent and control COVID-19. This experiment used a macroscopic SDS-PAGE method and proved that the S protein of wild-type SARS-CoV-2 virus, especially the S1 subunit, is very sensitive to alkaline serine protease with acidic pI (ASPNJ), NJ represents (Izuka) from which ASP is purified).

Molecular characterization of wheat floret development-related F-box protein (TaF-box2): Possible involvement in regulation of Arabidopsis flowering.

In wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), the floret development stage is an important step in determining grain yield per spike; however, the molecular mechanisms underlying floret development remain unclear. In this study, we elucidated the role of TaF-box2, a member of the F-box-containing E3 ubiquitin protein ligases, which is involved in floret development and anthesis of wheat.

The Development of AXL Inhibitors in Lung Cancer: Recent Progress and Challenges.

AXL, along with MER and TYRO3, is a receptor tyrosine kinase from the TAM family. Although AXL itself is not thought to be a potent oncogenic driver, overexpression of AXL is known to trigger tumor cell growth, survival, invasion, metastasis, angiogenesis, epithelial to mesenchymal transition, and immune suppression. Overexpression of AXL is associated with therapy resistance and poor prognosis.

A highly active copper-nanoparticle-based nitrate reduction electrocatalyst prepared by in situ electrodeposition and annealing.

In recent years, copper-based electrodes have attracted intense attention for the electrochemical reduction of nitrate (NO), the so-called ECRN. However, these electrodes suffer from low activity and selectivity. Herein, we report a novel Cu-based electrode (IE-Cu-400) for the ECRN fabricated by loading Cu-based nanoparticles onto graphite felt using in situ electrodeposition followed by annealing.