Abstract Femoral hernias (FHs), predominantly seen in females, require surgery for cure. To date, surgical repair of primary FHs in female patients with either open surgery or laparoscopic operation has been poorly documented. We retrospectively investigated the treatment of female primary FHs with open surgery using the ULTRAPRO Hernia System (UHS procedure) or the laparoscopic procedure, namely, the transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP) technique. A total of 41 female patients with primary FHs who had undergone UHS or TAPP were included in this study. The procedural parameters, post-surgical complications, treatment expense, and follow-up results were analyzed. The vast majority of patients (39/41) underwent elective operations: 15 received UHS (including 2 emergency cases) and 26 had TAPP ( P = .08). The UHS group had a greater average age, due to the fact that FHs occur often in people with advanced age who tend to have systemic disease, limiting the use of general anesthesia required for TAPP. Compared with UHS, TAPP took a significantly shorter time to complete and patients undergoing TAPP had a dramatically shorter hospital stay. While no recurrence was observed in both groups, post-procedure pain and foreign body sensation were reported by significantly more patients in UHS group. The cost was greater with TAPP. Taken together, we concluded that both UHS and TAPP are effective in the management of female FHs. In view of the advantages and disadvantages between the open and the laparoscopic operation, surgeons can select a procedure according to their skills and patients’ situation.
Abstract Background: College students generally experience academic burnout, seriously affecting their normal learning as well as physical and mental well-being. This paper aims to examine the level of academic burnout among nursing students from traditional Chinese medicine ( TCM ) universities, and to determine whether professional commitmentacts as a mediator between psychological capital and academic burnout. Methods: This cross-sectional study used convenience sampling to recruit 733 voluntary student participants from a four-year undergraduate nursing program at a TCM university in Shandong Province, China, from April to June 2020. All participants completed self-reported questionnaires online. The mediating role of professional commitment was evaluated using the bootstrap method. Results : Psychological capitaland professional commitmenthad a significantly negative correlation academic burnout (both p < 0.01), and psychological capital was positively related to professional commitment ( p < 0.01). Additionally, psychological capital and academic burnout were partially mediated by professional commitment ( b = -0.223 , 95% Confidence Interval = -0.282–0.168). Conclusions: It was found that psychological capitaland professional commitment contribute to reducing academic burnout, while psychological capitalenhances professional commitment. Moreover, professional commitment was a mediator between psychological capital and academic burnout. Thus, Effective strategies should be implemented to strengthen psychological capital and professional commitment and alleviate academic burnout.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common types of hepatic malignancies. This study aimed to better understand the pathogenesis of HCC and may help facilitate the improvement of the diagnostic of HCC.The mRNA and miRNA expression profiles of HCC, which was retrieved from The Cancer Genome Atlas database, and the circRNA expression profiles of HCC, which was retrieved from Gene Expression Omnibus database, were included in this study to perform an integrated analysis. The differentially expressed mRNAs (DEmRNAs), differentially expressed miRNAs (DEmiRNAs), and differentially expressed circRNAs (DEcircRNAs) were identified, and competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) (DEcircRNA-DEmiRNA-DEmRNA) regulatory network was conducted. Functional annotation of host gene of DEcircRNAs and DEmRNAs in ceRNA regulatory network was performed. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction validation of the expression of the selected DEmRNAs, DEmiRNAs, and DEcircRNAs was performed.A total of 2982 DEmRNAs, 144 DEmiRNAs, and 264 DEcircRNAs were obtained. The ceRNA network contained 61 circRNA-miRNA pairs and 1149 miRNA-mRNA pairs, including 48 circRNAs, 30 miRNAs, and 1149 mRNAs. Functional annotation of DEmRNAs in ceRNA regulatory network revealed that these DEmRNAs were significantly enriched in tryptophan metabolism, fatty acid metabolism, and pathways in cancer. Except for ARNT2 and hsa-miR-214-3p, expression of the others in the quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction results was consistent with that in our integrated analysis, generally.We speculate that hsa_circRNA_104268/hsa-miR-214-3p/E2F2, hsa_circRNA_104168/hsa-miR-139-5p/HRAS, and hsa_circRNA_104769/hsa-miR-93-5p/JUN interaction pairs may play a vital role in HCC. This study expected to provide a novel insight into the pathogenesis and therapy of HCC from the circRNA-miRNA-mRNA network view.
β‐Galactosidases are crucial enzymes that hydrolyse oligosaccharides and polysaccharides with terminal β‐1,4‐glycosidic bonds. Though the traditional application of β‐Galactosidases has been to catalyse the breakdown of lactose in dairy products, its application extends beyond the production of lactose‐free products since variants capable of facilitating lactose condensation and exhibiting galactosyl transferase activity are extensively utilised for the synthesis of prebiotic galacto‐oligosaccharides. This review analyses β‐Galactosidase in multiple aspects, including sources, classification, characterisation, immobilisation, genetic engineering and applications in terms of whey treatment, biofuel production, production of lactose‐free dietary product, synthesis of galacto‐oligosaccharides and the early detection of cellular senescence and tumours.
Significance Classification of cancer provides crucial guidance for clinical treatment and mechanistic studies. Our work extends previous glioma classification studies in that we established EGFR module (EM)/ PDGFRA module (PM) glioma classification scheme based on gene coexpression modules around key signaling pathways conserved in neural development and gliomagenesis. We identified coexpressed EM and PM genes as classifiers. Based on the EM and PM signatures, our classification scheme robustly assigns adult low-grade and high-grade diffuse gliomas into three major subtypes that are distinct in patient survival, and in transcriptomic and genomic patterns. Our work suggests that EM and PM genes may play currently unrecognized roles in gliomagenesis. EM/PM glioma classification scheme forms a framework toward establishing molecular diagnostic tools and identifying new therapeutic targets to combat gliomas.
Abstract Background Osteosarcoma (OS) is a common type of bone malignancy that often occurs in children and adolescents. Chemoresistance is a huge barrier to cancer therapy. This study aimed to investigate the role and potential mechanism of circ_0001721 in doxorubicin (DXR) resistance and OS development. Methods The levels of circ_0001721, miR-758 and transcription factor 4 (TCF4) were detected by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction or western blot assay. Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay was used to calculate the half inhibition concentration (IC 50 ) of DXR and assess cell viability. Cell migration and invasion were evaluated by transwell assay. Cell apoptosis was monitored by flow cytometry. The levels of multidrug resistance-related and Wnt/β-catenin pathway-related proteins were measured by western blot assay. The interaction among circ_0001721, miR-758 and TCF4 were confirmed by dual-luciferase reporter assay, RNA immunoprecipitation assay or RNA pull-down assay. The xenograft model was established to analyze tumor growth in vivo. Results Circ_0001721 and TCF4 were upregulated, whereas miR-758 was down-regulated in DXR-resistant OS tissues and cells. Circ_0001721 silence reduced DXR resistance of KHOS/DXR and MG63/DXR cells. Circ_0001721 regulated DXR resistance via sponging miR-758. Moreover, miR-758 modulated DXR resistance by targeting TCF4. Besides, circ_0001721 knockdown inhibited tumor growth in vivo. Conclusion Circ_0001721 potentiated DXR resistance and facilitated the progression of OS by regulating miR-758/TCF4 axis, which provides promising therapeutic targets for OS treatment.