Sjögren's syndrome (SS) is a chronic autoimmune disease caused by immune system disorders. The main clinical manifestations of SS are dry mouth and eyes caused by the destruction of exocrine glands, such as the salivary and lacrimal glands, and systemic manifestations, such as interstitial pneumonia, interstitial nephritis and vasculitis. The pathogenesis of this condition is complex. However, this has not been fully elucidated. Treatment mainly consists of glucocorticoids, disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs and biological agents, which can only control inflammation but not repair the tissue. Therefore, identifying methods to regulate immune disorders and repair damaged tissues is imperative. Cell therapy involves the transplantation of autologous or allogeneic normal or bioengineered cells into the body of a patient to replace damaged cells or achieve a stronger immunomodulatory capacity to cure diseases, mainly including stem cell therapy and immune cell therapy. Cell therapy can reduce inflammation, relieve symptoms and promote tissue repair and regeneration of exocrine glands such as the salivary glands. It has broad application prospects and may become a new treatment strategy for patients with SS. However, there are various challenges in cell preparation, culture, storage and transportation. This article reviews the research status and prospects of cell therapies for SS.

Autoimmune diseases are pathological autoimmune reactions in the body caused by various factors, which can lead to tissue damage and organ dysfunction. They can be divided into organ-specific and systemic autoimmune diseases. These diseases usually involve various body systems, including the blood, muscles, bones, joints and soft tissues. The transient receptor potential (TRP) and PIEZO receptors, which resulted in David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian winning the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2021, attracted people's attention. Most current studies on TRP and PIEZO receptors in autoimmune diseases have been carried out on animal model, only few clinical studies have been conducted. Therefore, this study aimed to review existing studies on TRP and PIEZO to understand the roles of these receptors in autoimmune diseases, which may help elucidate novel treatment strategies.

Cis-1,4-polyisoprene latex (IRL) is the best alternative to natural rubber latex (NRL), and can help to avoid human allergic reactions caused by proteins in NRL. The mechanical properties of IRL are inferior to those of NRL, however. To address this issue, a novel strategy was developed using an in situ solution emulsification to prepare a latex composite incorporating sodium montmorillonite (Na-Mnt). The properties of the latex film prepared were investigated. The dispersion state of the Mnt in the latex composites and the morphology of the resulting composite films were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). In addition, the mechanism of Mnt reinforcement of IRL is described comprehensively. The results showed that the Mnt/IRL latex composites prepared were stable and excellent films were formed, similar to those of NRL. The current research provided an effective method for preparing high-performance composite films suitable for use in high-end medical applications.

Stem cells are an immortal cell population capable of self-renewal; they are essential for human development and ageing and are a major focus of research in regenerative medicine. Despite considerable progress in differentiation of stem cells in vitro, culture conditions require further optimization to maximize the potential for multicellular differentiation during expansion. The aim of this study was to develop a feeder-free, serum-free culture method for human embryonic stem cells (hESCs), to establish optimal conditions for hESC proliferation, and to determine the biological characteristics of the resulting hESCs. The H9 hESC line was cultured using a homemade serum-free, feeder-free culture system, and growth was observed. The expression of pluripotency proteins (OCT4, NANOG, SOX2, LIN28, SSEA-3, SSEA-4, TRA-1-60, and TRA-1-81) in hESCs was determined by immunofluorescence and western blotting. The mRNA expression levels of genes encoding nestin, brachyury and α-fetoprotein in differentiated H9 cells were determined by RT-PCR. The newly developed culture system resulted in classical hESC colonies that were round or elliptical in shape, with clear and neat boundaries. The expression of pluripotency proteins was increased, and the genes encoding nestin, brachyury, and α-fetoprotein were expressed in H9 cells, suggesting that the cells maintained in vitro differentiation capacity. Our culture system containing a unique set of components, with animal-derived substances, maintained the self-renewal potential and pluripotency of H9 cells for eight passages. Further optimization of this system may expand the clinical application of hESCs.

Previous studies have supported the theory that there is a positive association between ferritin and carotid atherosclerosis in Western people. Diet plays an important role in determining serum ferritin concentration. Asian dietary patterns are different from Western dietary patterns, implying that there may be a difference in the association of ferritin with carotid atherosclerosis between Asian and Western people. However, few studies focus on the association between ferritin and carotid atherosclerosis among Asians. The aim of this study was to investigate how serum ferritin levels are associated with carotid atherosclerosis in an Asian adult population. A cross-sectional assessment was performed in 8302 adults in Tianjin, China. Carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) and plaques were assessed using ultrasonography, and serum ferritin was measured using the protein chip-chemiluminescence method. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to examine the association between quartiles of serum ferritin concentration and carotid atherosclerosis. In the present study, the overall prevalence of IMT and carotid plaques in participants is 29·2 and 22·7 %, respectively. In women, after adjustments for potentially confounding factors, the OR of IMT and carotid plaques by increasing serum ferritin quartiles were 1·00, 1·39 (95 % CI 0·98–1·99), 1·39 (95 % CI 0·99–1·97), 1·81 (95 % CI 1·30–2·55) (Pfor trend<0·001) and 1·00, 1·24 (95 % CI 0·89–1·73), 1·18 (95 % CI 0·85–1·65), 1·59 (95 % CI 1·15–2·20) (Pfor trend<0·01), respectively. However, no association was found between serum ferritin and carotid atherosclerosis in men. The study demonstrated that increased serum ferritin levels are independently associated with IMT and carotid plaques in Asian women but not in Asian men.

Late-type stars with thick convective zones and rapid rotations exhibit magnetic activity phenomena, such as starspots, plages, and flares. However, in many such kinds of eclipsing binaries, the details of the active phenomena are not well understood. In order to improve our understanding of stellar magnetic activities, we are carrying out an extensive study of the magnetic activities of eclipsing binaries by multi-color CCD photometry using several telescopes (SARA 90cm at KPNO, and NAOC 85cm and 60 cm telescopes at Xinglong). In this paper, we will present our preliminary results with revised orbital parameters, starspot parameters, and stellar flare events on DV Psc and BX Tri.

A compact dual-frequency antenna with enhanced bandwidth is proposed in this paper. Dual-frequency operation is realized by cutting a slot in the elliptical patch, and bandwidth enhancement is achieved by using a partial ground plane. Compared with the conventional half-wave antenna, the antenna has a compact size of 24 × 20 mm2, which equals to 0.38 λ1 × 0.31 λ1 (λ1, the guided wavelength at the first resonant frequency). The dual-frequency antenna with a partial rectangle ground and a partial arc-shaped ground is investigated for impedance matching. Simulated results indicate that the antenna with a partial arc-shaped ground can obtain a larger bandwidth for two bands than that with a partial rectangle ground. Experimental results show that the antenna with a partial arc-shaped ground can operate in 2.4 and 5 GHz bands, which covers the 2.4, 5.2 and 5.8 GHz for wireless local area network. The impedance bandwidths of two bands are 9.5 and 13.6%, respectively. Also, good radiation performances have been achieved at two bands.

We introduced our preliminary results of chromospheric activity of late-type stars based on the stellar spectrum of the pilot survey of the Large Sky Area Multi-object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST, also called Guo Shou Jing telescope). We have found 1151 active M stars from 17471 M samples using the chromospheric active indicator of the Hα line.