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INTRODUCTION: Familial chylomicronemia syndrome (FCS) is a rare genetic disease. FCS usually manifests by the age of 10 years, and 25% of cases of FCS occur during infancy. Here we present a case of FCS in a male infant and summarize our experiences on the diagnosis and therapy of this case. PATIENT CONCERNS: A male infant aged 1 month and 8 days had recurrent hematochezia and hyperchylomicronemia. DIAGNOSIS: FCS based on symptoms and genetic test. INTERVENTIONS: Plasma exchange therapy. OUTCOMES: His development was normal with a good spirit and satisfactory weight gain, and no hematochezia occurred again. CONCLUSION: Genetic test is important for accurate diagnosis of FCS, and we identified a new mutation of lipoprotein lipase gene c.88C>A which conformed to autosomal recessive inheritance. Plasma exchange therapy can be applied to infants with FCS with low risk and good outcomes.

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We investigated a novel processing technique of municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) ashes. By using two thermodynamic driving forces - a strong alkaline activator and a compaction pressure, the otherwise relatively nonreactive MSWI ashes could form strong solids, with relatively high flexural and compressive strengths. The produced material was dense, with a low defect density. The effects of the compaction pressure range, the alkaline activator amount, and the MSWI fly ash to bottom ash ratio were examined. We also used 5 wt% class-C fly ash, 5 wt% class-F fly ash, and/or 1 wt% epoxy as additives. This study may open a door to advanced MSWI ash upcycling approaches, useful to environmental preservation and sustainability.

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As essential components in intelligent systems, printed soft electronics (PSEs) are playing crucial roles in public health, national security, and economics. Innovations in printing technologies are required to promote the broad application of high-performance PSEs at a low cost. However, current printing techniques are still facing long-lasting challenges in addressing the conflict between printing speed and performance. To overcome this challenge, we developed a new corona-enabled electrostatic printing (CEP) technique for ultra-fast (milliseconds) roll-to-roll (R2R) manufacturing of binder-free multifunctional e-skins. The printing capability and controllability of CEP were investigated through parametric studies and microstructure observation. The electric field generation, material transfer, and particle amount and size selecting mechanisms were numerically and experimentally studied. CEP-printed graphene e-skins were demonstrated to possess an outstanding strain sensing performance. The binder-free feature of the CEP-assembled networks enables them to provide pressure sensitivity as low as 2.5 Pa and capability to detect acoustic signals of hundreds of hertz in frequency. Furthermore, the CEP technique was utilized to pattern different types of functional materials (e.g., graphene and thermochromic polymers) onto different substrates (e.g., tape and textile). Overall, this study demonstrated that CEP can be a novel contactless and ultra-fast manufacturing platform compatible with the R2R process for fabricating high-performance, scalable, and low-cost soft electronics.

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We investigate the concept of molecular-sized outward-swinging gate, which allows for entropy decrease in an isolated system. The theoretical analysis, the Monte Carlo simulation, and the direct solution of governing equations all suggest that under the condition of local nonchaoticity, the probability of particle crossing is asymmetric. It is demonstrated by an experiment on a nanoporous membrane one-sidedly surface-grafted with bendable organic chains. Remarkably, through the membrane, gas spontaneously and repeatedly flows from the low-pressure side to the high-pressure side. While this phenomenon seems counterintuitive, it is compatible with the principle of maximum entropy. The locally nonchaotic gate interrupts the probability distribution of the local microstates, and imposes additional constraints on the global microstates, so that entropy reaches a nonequilibrium maximum. Such a mechanism is fundamentally different from Maxwell's demon and Feynman's ratchet, and is consistent with microscopic reversibility. It implies that useful work may be produced in a cycle from a single thermal reservoir. A generalized form of the second law of thermodynamics is proposed.

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N95 decontamination protocols and KN95 respirators have been described as solutions to a lack of personal protective equipment. However, there are a few material science studies that characterize the charge distribution and physical changes accompanying disinfection treatments, particularly heating. Here, we report the filtration efficiency, dipole charge density, and fiber integrity of N95 and KN95 respirators before and after various decontamination methods. We found that the filter layers in N95 and KN95 respirators maintained their fiber integrity without any deformations during disinfection. The filter layers of N95 respirators were 8-fold thicker and had 2-fold higher dipole charge density than that of KN95 respirators. Emergency Use Authorization (EUA)-approved KN95 respirators showed filtration efficiencies as high as N95 respirators. Interestingly, although there was a significant drop in the dipole charge in both respirators during decontamination, there was no remarkable decrease in the filtration efficiencies due to mechanical filtration. Cotton and polyester face masks had a lower filtration efficiency and lower dipole charge. In conclusion, a loss of electrostatic charge does not directly correlate to the decreased performance of either respirator.

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Corona charging of a free-standing polymer film can produce a quasi-permanent potential difference across the film thickness, while the absolute amplitude of the surface voltage may be highly sensitive to the free charges. To precisely control the voltage distribution, we investigated the flow electrification technology by exposing corona-charged polyethylene terephthalate films to sodium salt solutions. The surface voltage and the free-charge density were adjusted by the salt concentration, the anion size, and the flow rate. The dipolar component of electric potential remained unchanged. This result has significant scientific interest and technological importance to surface treatment, filtration, energy harvesting, among others.

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We report the experimental results of fatigue behavior of ultralow-binder-content inorganic-organic hybrid (IOH) based on lunar soil simulant, which may be viewed as a "lunar cement". Under the same loading condition, the fatigue life of the IOH is superior to typical steel-reinforced concrete, especially when the stress amplitude is relatively high. Fatigue damage mostly occurs in the binder phase, followed by rapid cleavage-like failure. The important material parameters include filler type, filler particle size, and filler-binder bonding.

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OBJECTIVE: To study the changes in the levels of autophagy-related proteins, Atg1, Atg5, and Beclin1, in organophosphate-induced delayed neuropathy (OPIDN) caused by tri-ortho-cresyl phosphate (TOCP), and to investigate the molecular pathogenic mechanism of OPIDN. METHODS: Thirty adult Roman hens were randomly and equally divided into control group and 1, 5, 10, and 21 d intoxication groups. Each hen in the intoxication group was administered TOCP by gavage at a single dose of 750 mg/kg, while each hen in the control group was administered the same volume of corn oil. The hens were killed at the corresponding time points, and their tibial nerves and spinal cords were collected. The levels of Atg1, Atg5, and Beclin1 in the tibial nerves and spinal cords were measured by immunoblotting. RESULTS: Compared with those in the control group, the levels of Atg1 in tibial nerves decreased by 29.8%, 64.4%, 43.5%, and 19.8% at 1, 5, 10, and 21 d, respectively, after intoxication ((P < 0.05); the levels of Atg5 in tibial nerves decreased by 36.8%, 49.6%, 51.2%, and 31.5% at 1, 5, 10, and 21 d, respectively, after intoxication (P < 0.05); the levels of Beclin1 in tibial nerves decreased by 68.5%, 66.3%, and 32.2% at 1, 5, and 10 d, respectively, after intoxication (P < 0.05). Compared with those in the control group, the levels of Atg1 in spinal cords decreased by 23.5%, 48.7%, and 20% at 1, 5, and 10 d, respectively, after intoxication (P < 0.05); the levels of Atg5 in spinal cords decreased by 32.7%, 51.5%, 47.3%, and 39.6% at 1, 5, 10, and 21 d, respectively, after intoxication (P < 0.05); the levels of Beclin1 in spinal cords decreased by 28.9%, 50.2%, 43.2%, and 28.3% at 1, 5, 10, and 21 d, respectively, after intoxication (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The intoxication of TOCP is associated with the significant changes in the levels of autophagy-related proteins in the nervous tissues of hens, which might be involved in the pathogenesis of OPIDN.

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OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of 2,5-hexanedione (HD) on degradation of low-molecular-weight neurofilaments (NF-L) in nervous tissue of rats, and to explore the molecular mechanism of n-hexane neuropathy. METHODS: Fifty male Wistar rats were randomly divided into one-week poisoning group (n = 10), two-week poisoning group (n = 10), three-week poisoning group (n = 10), four-week poisoning group (n = 10), and control group (n = 10). In the four poisoning groups, a rat model of n-hexane neuropathy was established by intraperitoneal injection of HD (400 mg/kg/d). The change in the sciatic nerve ultrastructure of each rat was observed under an electron microscope. The progression of HD-induced peripheral neuropathy was evaluated using a gait scoring system. The degradation rates of NF-L in the sciatic nerve and spinal cord of each rat were measured by Western Blotting. RESULTS: The rats showed decrease in muscle strength and abnormal gait after two weeks of HD poisoning and mild or moderate paralysis after four weeks of HD poisoning. The sciatic nerve showed degenerative change, according to electron microscope observation. Compared with the control group, the two-week poisoning group, three-week poisoning group, and four-week poisoning group had the NF-L degradation rates decreased by 25.8%, 70.4%, and 69.7%, respectively, in the supernatant fraction of sciatic nerve, and by 14.7%, 64.6%, and 67.3%, respectively, in the sediment fraction of sciatic nerve, all showing a significant difference (P < 0.01). Compared with the control group, the one-week poisoning group had the NF-L degradation rate decreased by 33.87% in the supernatant fraction of spinal cord, the four-week poisoning group had the NF-L degradation rate increased by 16.2% in the supernatant fraction of spinal cord, and the one-week poisoning group and two-week poisoning group had the NF-L degradation rates decreased by 46.3% and 13.0% in the sediment fraction of spinal cord, all showing a significant difference (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: HD poisoning significantly inhibits NF-L degradation in the sciatic nerve, which may be associated with NF degeneration and accumulation in the axons of patients with n-hexane neuropathy.

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Neuropeptide S (NPS), a newly identified neuropeptide, is involved in many physiological and pathological activities through the NPS receptor (NPSR). Recently, the NPS and NPSR have been detected in peripheral systems of pigs including immune tissues, suggesting that NPS may play an important role in the regulation of immune function. The aim of this study was to demonstrate the presence and function of NPS and NPSR in splenic lymphocytes (SPLs) and pulmonary alveolar macrophages (PAMs) of pigs. By RT-PCR, the expression of NPS and NPSR mRNA was detected in the SPLs and PAMs. NPS immunoreactivity was observed in the membrane and cytoplasm of both SPLs and PAMs. We found that NPS could stimulate the proliferation of SPLs, when NPS was added at concentrations of 0.01, 0.1, 1, 10, 100 and 1000 nM alone or in combination with PHA/LPS in vitro. In macrophages from bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid of pigs, various doses of NPS (0.01, 0.1, 1, 10, 100 and 1000 nM) up-regulated the phagocytosis of PAMs in comparison to controls. In PAMs, NPS could induce the production of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1ß, IL-6 and TNF-α. Taken together, all data suggest that NPS is capable of inducing phagocytosis of non-opsonized E. coli. NPS might act as potent neuroimmunomodulatory factors and affects the maintenance of immune homeostasis.

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Evidence has revealed that neuromedin S (NMS) and neuromedin U-receptor type-2 (NMU2R) mRNAs are expressed in the central nervous system and reproductive organs. Previous data indicated that variation of NMS and NMU2R was due to the phases of the adult rat hypothalamus estrus cycle. However, the expression and function of NMS in the pig reproductive axis remains unexplored. In this study, 16 virginal gilts were classified into four groups: proestrus, estrus, diestrus 1, and diestrus 2; the expression of NMS and NMU2R in the cyclic pig hypothalamus-pituitary-ovary axis was studied by reverse transcriptaion-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and the effect of NMS on the reproductive axis in vitro was detected by radioimmunoassay (RIA). The cloned pig NMS and NMU2R sequences were 82% and 90.2% identical to those of the corresponding human homologues, respectively. RT-PCR showed that NMS and NMU2R mRNA expression in the hypothalamus and pituitary changed with the estrus cycle, i.e., with the highest level in the proestrus group and the lowest in the estrus group. In the ovary, NMS and NMU2R expression was highest in the diestrus 2 group and the lowest in the proestrus group. In the in vitro study, different concentrations of NMS induced the release of gonadotropin-releasing hormone, luteinizing hormone, and estradiol at different levels of the reproductive axis. Taken together, the expression pattern of NMS during the estrus cycle and its role in reproductive hormones in vitro provide novel evidences of the potential roles of NMS in the regulation of pig reproduction.

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