No abstract

Natural killer (NK) cells are key effectors in cancer immunosurveillance and can be used as a prognostic biomarker in diverse cancers. Nonetheless, the role of NK cells in pancreatic cancer (PC) remains elusive, given conflicting data on their association with disease prognosis. In this study, using conventional K562 target cells and complementary engineered target cells providing defined and synergistic stimulation for NK cell activation, a correlation between impaired NK cell cytotoxic degranulation and PC progression was determined. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from 31 patients with newly diagnosed PC, 24 patients with non-malignant tumors, and 37 healthy controls were analyzed by flow cytometry. The frequency, phenotype, and effector functions of the NK cells were evaluated, and correlations between NK cell functions and disease stage and prognosis were analyzed. The results demonstrated that effector functions, but not frequency, of NK cells was progressively decreased on a per-cell basis during PC progression. Impaired cytotoxic degranulation, but not IFN-γ production, was associated with clinical features indicating disease progression, such as high serum CA19-9 and high-grade tumors. Significantly, this impairment correlated with cancer recurrence and mortality in a prospective analysis. Furthermore, the impaired cytotoxic degranulation was unrelated to NKG2D downregulation but was associated with increased circulating and tumor-associated TGF-β1 expression. Thus, NK cell cytotoxic activity was associated with PC progression and may be a favorable biomarker with predictive and prognostic value in PC.

Even though a number of studies have evaluated postural adjustments based on kinematic changes in subjects with low back pain (LBP), kinematic stability has not been examined for abnormal postural responses during the one leg standing test. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relative kinematic stability of the lower extremities and standing duration in subjects with and without chronic LBP. In total, 54 subjects enrolled in the study, including 28 subjects without LBP and 26 subjects with LBP. The average age of the subjects was 37.8 ± 12.6 years and ranged from 19 to 63 years. The outcome measures included normalized holding duration and relative kinematic stability. All participants were asked to maintain the test position without visual input (standing on one leg with his/her eyes closed and with the contra lateral hip flexed 90°) for 25 s. The age variable was used as a covariate to control confounding effects for the data analyses. The control group demonstrated significantly longer holding duration times (T = -2.78, p = 0.007) than the LBP group (24.6 ± 4.2 s vs. 20.5 ± 6.7 s). For the relative kinematic stability, there was a difference in dominance side (F = 9.91, p = 0.003). There was a group interaction between side and lower extremities (F = 11.79, p = 0.001) as well as an interaction between age and dominance side (F = 7.91, p = 0.007). The relative kinematic stability had a moderate negative relationship with age (r = -0.60, p = 0.007) in subjects without LBP. Clinicians need to understand the effects of age and relative stability, which decreased significantly in the single leg holding test, in subjects with LBP in order to develop effective rehabilitation strategies.

No abstract

No abstract

The effects of cold plasma (CP) treatment on the physicochemical and biodegradable properties of polylactic acid (PLA) films were studied. The PLA films were exposed to CP for 40 min at 900 W and 667 Pa using oxygen as the plasma-forming gas. The tensile, optical, and dynamic mechanical thermal properties, surface morphology, printability, water contact angle, chemical structure, weight change, and biodegradability properties of the films were evaluated during storage for up to 56 d. The tensile and optical properties of the PLA films were not significantly affected by CP treatment (CPT; P > 0.05). The surface roughness and water contact angle of PLA films increased by CPT and further increased during storage for 56 d. The printability of the PLA films increased following CPT and remained stable throughout the storage period. CP-induced hydrophilicity was also sustained during the storage period. The PLA films lost 1.9% of their weight after CPT, but recovered 99.5% of this loss after 14 d in storage. Photodegradation, thermal, and microbial biodegradable properties of the films were significantly improved by CPT (P < 0.05). Accelerated biodegradation of CP-treated PLA sachets with and without cheese was observed in compost. These results demonstrate the potential of CPT for modifying the stiffness, water contact angle, and chemical structure of PLA films and improving the printability and biodegradability of the films for food packaging.

No abstract

The Fe(3)O(4)-Ca(3)(PO(4))(2) core-shell nanoparticles were prepared by one-pot non-aqueous nanoemulsion with the assistance of a biocompatible triblock copolymer, poly(ethylene glycol)-block-poly(propylene glycol)-block-poly(ethylene glycol) (PEO-PPO-PEO), integrating the magnetic properties of Fe(3)O(4) and the bioactive functions of Ca(3)(PO(4))(2) into single entities. The Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles were pre-formed first by thermal reduction of Fe(acac)(3) and then the Ca(3)(PO(4))(2) layer was coated by simultaneous deposition of Ca(2+) and PO(4)(3-). The characterization shows that the combination of the two materials into a core-shell nanostructure retains the magnetic properties and the Ca(3)(PO(4))(2) shell forms an hcp phase (a = 7.490 Å, c = 9.534 Å) on the Fe(3)O(4) surface. The magnetic hysteresis curves of the nanoparticles were further elucidated by the Langevin equation, giving an estimation of the effective magnetic dimension of the nanoparticles and reflecting the enhanced susceptibility response as a result of the surface covering. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis provides the characteristic vibrations of Ca(3)(PO(4))(2) and the presence of the polymer surfactant on the nanoparticle surface. Moreover, the nanoparticles could be directly transferred to water and the aqueous dispersion-collection process of the nanoparticles was demonstrated for application readiness of such core-shell nanostructures in an aqueous medium. Thus, the construction of Fe(3)O(4) and Ca(3)(PO(4))(2) in the core-shell nanostructure has conspicuously led to enhanced performance and multi-functionalities, offering various possible applications of the nanoparticles.