date new AEs to further improve the downstream analysis of scRNA-Seq data. Considering the relevant results we achieved, scAEspy can be considered as a starting point to build a more comprehensive toolkit designed to integrate multi single-cell omics.

Wild rice, including Oryza nivara and Oryza rufipogon, which are considered as the ancestors of Asian cultivated rice (Oryza sativa), possess high genetic diversity and serve as a crucial resource for breeding novel cultivars of cultivated rice. Although rice domestication related traits, such as seed shattering and plant architecture, have been intensively studied at the phenotypic and genomic levels, further investigation is needed to understand the molecular basis of phenotypic differences between cultivated and wild rice. Drought stress is one of the most severe abiotic stresses affecting rice growth and production. Adaptation to drought stress involves a cascade of genes and regulatory factors that form complex networks. O. nivara inhabits swampy areas with a seasonally dry climate, which is an ideal material to discover drought tolerance alleles. Long noncoding natural antisense transcripts (lncNATs), a class of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs), regulate the corresponding sense transcripts and play an imified lncNATs associated with drought stress response in cultivated rice and O. nivara. Omilancor These results will improve our understanding of the function of lncNATs in drought tolerance and accelerate rice breeding.

We identified lncNATs associated with drought stress response in cultivated rice and O. nivara. These results will improve our understanding of the function of lncNATs in drought tolerance and accelerate rice breeding.

Activity monitoring devices may be used to facilitate goal-setting, self-monitoring, and feedback towards a step-based physical activity (PA) goal. This study examined the performance of the wrist-worn Fitbit Charge 3™ (FC3) and sought opinions on walking and stepping-in-place from women with gestational diabetes (GDM).

Participants completed six 2-min metronome-assisted over ground bouts that varied by cadence (67, 84, or 100 steps per minute) and mode (walking or stepping-in-place; N = 15), with the sequence randomized. Steps were estimated by FC3 and measured, in duplicate, by direct observation (hand-tally device, criterion). Equivalence testing by the two one-sided tests (TOST) method assessed agreement within ± 15%. Mean absolute percent error (MAPE) of steps were compared to 10%, the accuracy standard of the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)™. A subset (n = 10) completed a timed, 200-m self-paced walk to assess natural walking pace and cadence. All participants completed semi-structured intervir PA.

The FC3 appears to be a valid step counter during the third trimester, particularly when walking or stepping-in-place at or close to women’s preferred cadence.

The FC3 appears to be a valid step counter during the third trimester, particularly when walking or stepping-in-place at or close to women’s preferred cadence.

Whole-body diffusion-weighted imaging (WB-DWI) is a method for evaluating bone marrow infiltration in multiple myeloma (MM). This study seeks to elucidate the correlation between the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) value and some selected clinical parameters.

A total of 101 Chinese patients with MM who had undergone WB-DWI from May 2017 to May 2019 were enrolled in this study. The ADC values of the MM lesions and the clinical parameters were quantified at the first (baseline) visit and after four-course induction chemotherapy. Multiple linear regression and logistic analyses were carried out to find the implicit inherent relationships within the patients’ data.

The paired Wilcoxon test showed that the ADC values at the baseline visit (ADC

) were significantly lower than the values after four-course induction chemotherapy (ADC

) (p < 0.001), including different therapeutic responses. The Revised International Staging System (RISS) stage, type of MM, and β2-microglobulin (β2-MG) were predictors of clinically significant increases or decreases in the ADC values (p < 0.05). Multiple linear regression showed that the ADC

was negatively associated with β2-MG (p < 0.001) and immunoglobulin heavy chain gene rearrangement (p = 0.012), while the RISS Stage III (p = 0.001), type IgG λ (p = 0.005), and albumin were negatively associated with ADC

(p = 0.010). The impacts of the therapeutic response were associated with ADC

and immunoglobulin heavy chain gene rearrangement (p < 0.001).

The ADC values of WB-DWI may be associated with clinical parameters of MM including the fluorescence in situ hybridization result, and may be useful in the prognosis of patients with MM.

ChiCTR2000029587.

ChiCTR2000029587.

Nitric oxide (NO) plays an important role in lung cancer. However, the results of previous studies about NO in the occurrence, progress and therapy were not consistent. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the relationship between NO and lung cancer.

We carried out comprehensive search in the databases, and collected related studies. The data of fraction of exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) or blood NO in different populations (lung cancer patients and control subjects) and different time points (before therapy and after therapy) were extracted by two investigators. A random effect model was applied to analyze the differences of FeNO and blood NO in different populations and different time points. To further compare NO level of each subgroup with different pathological types and different stages, a network meta-analysis (NMA) was performed.

Fifty studies including 2551 cases and 1691 controls were adopted in this meta-analysis. The FeNO (SMD 3.01, 95% CI 1.89-4.13, p < 0.00001) and blood NO ion of therapy effect, especially for NSCLC patients.

FeNO and blood NO level would contribute to diagnosis of lung cancer and evaluation of therapy effect, especially for NSCLC patients.

Malignant melanoma of the female genital tract is relatively uncommon and accounts for 3-7% of all melanoma localizations. This study aimed to identify driver genes in melanoma of the female genital tract with the purpose of enhancing understanding of disease pathogenesis and identifying potential new therapeutic targets to develop effective therapies.

KIT (CD117) and BRAF expression were detected immunohistochemically. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and Sanger sequencing techniques were performed to identify the mutational status of BRAF, NRAS, KRAS, NF1, KIT, PDGFRA and SF3B1 on 19 melanomas of the female genital tract, paired with 25 cutaneous melanomas, 18 acral melanomas and 11 melanomas of nasal cavity.

Somatic variant analysis identified KRAS (6/19; 32%) as the most commonly mutated gene, followed by KIT (4/19; 21%), SF3B1 (3/19; 16%) and NRAS (1/19; 5%). None of the cases were found to harbor BRAF, NF1 and PDGFRA mutations in melanomas of the female genital tract. However, none of the cases were found to harbor SF3B1 and KIT mutations in cutaneous melanomas, acral melanomas and melanomas of nasal cavity.