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In this paper, we investigate the optimal decision making of an insurer towards a new insurable business, whose risk is independent of the existing risk faced by the insurer. We assume that the insurer, with the objective of maximizing the expected utility of its final wealth, together with the solvency constraint and the availability of reinsurance as a risk transfer mechanism, is deciding if it is viable to underwrite a new insurance business risk. If this new business is underwritten, it is shown that a stop-loss reinsurance contract is optimal when the solvency risk is quantified by the conditional value at risk. If the regulatory regime changes to the value at risk, the optimal reinsurance form becomes more complicated; it can be either stop-loss or two-layer under the assumption that the new risk has a strictly decreasing probability density function. Numerical examples are provided to illuminate the insurer's decision making and the optimal form of the reinsurance strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Body fat composition is believed to be associated with the progression, medical response, and prognosis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Hence, we conducted this study to explore if fat metrics were associated with the disease activity of severe IBD and the response to intravenous corticosteroids (IVCS). Methods: We included 69 patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) and 72 patients with Crohn's disease (CD) who had previously received IVCS during hospitalization. We quantified individual fat distribution using abdominal computed tomography slices. The correlations between fat parameters and disease activity were available with Spearman correlation analysis. The prediction model was developed using independent risk factors derived from multivariable logistic regression analysis. Model discrimination was evaluated leveraging the receiver operating characteristic curve. 1000 bootstrap resamples internally validated the model's prediction performance. Results: Notable differences in age, nutritional status, serum cytomegalovirus replication, stool condition, and extraintestinal involvement between UC and CD patients were observed. UC subjects who responded to IVCS had higher subcutaneous adipose tissue index (SATI), visceral adipose tissue index (VATI), and mesorectal adipose tissue index (MATI) than non-responders. IVCS-responding CD individuals had lower VATI and mesenteric fat index (MFI) than non-responders. CD patients with a prolonged disease duration had a decreased SATI and an elevated MFI. VATI and MATI were reduced as UC clinically progressed, while more prominent clinical activity in CD correlated with increased VATI, MATI, and MFI. A high SATI indicated that patients with UC were more prone to be IVCS responders. For patients with CD, levels of VATI and MFI were negatively associated with effective IVCS treatment. The established models showed a discriminative accuracy of 0.834 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.740–0.928] in the UC cohort and 0.871 (95% CI 0.793–0.949) in the CD cohort. Repeated samples supported the reliability of the developed models (AUCUC = 0.836, 95% CI 0.735–0.919; AUCCD = 0.876, 95% CI 0.785–0.946). Conclusion: Human fat indexes represent novel imaging biomarkers for identifying IBD patients who respond to IVCS, thus building accelerated therapy regimens and avoiding the adverse effects of ineffective IVCS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In traditional Confucianist culture in China, marriage and offspring are highly valued, placing sexual minority adults under tremendous pressure to marry an opposite sex partner. This study explored how Confucianism and stigma were associated with the intention to pursue a heterosexual marriage among Chinese sexual minority individuals as well as the moderating mechanisms of gender and age. Cross-sectional data were collected from 747 participants via online social networks from March to June 2020. Items assessed Confucianism values (communalism, filial piety, traditional gender roles); stigma (rejection sensitivity, social discrimination); and heterosexual marital intention (HMI). A total of 1.7% (n = 12) participants had ever been married, 11.6% (n = 87) planned to marry a different-sex partner, 60.4% (n = 451) had no intention to pursue a heterosexual marriage, and 26.4% (n = 197) had no specific marital plan. Bisexual participants scored significantly higher than homosexual individuals in HMI. Sexual minority adults with high levels of Confucianism and stigma were more likely to intend to marry. Importantly, both individual stigma (rejection sensitivity) and interpersonal stigma (social discrimination) partially mediated the relationship between Confucianism and HMI. Confucianism had a stronger impact on HMI for men than women, and age moderated the influence of Confucianism (including communalism and filial piety) on HMI, with a stronger impact for younger than older generations. This study contributes to a better understanding of how Confucianism and stigma may be connected to the intention to pursue a heterosexual marriage, suggesting culture-modified theories of stigma and sexual minority stress are needed to explain the experiences of sexual minority people in contemporary China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study to examine the efficacy and risk factors associated with pyrrotinib in the second- and third-line treatment of advanced breast cancer with Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2- (HER2-) positive cells was conducted. Progression-free survival (PFS) was assessed as the primary endpoint, and the objective response rate (ORR), overall survival (OS), and safety were secondary endpoints. Across all the patients, the ORR was 48.57%, and the disease control rate (DCR) was 94.29%. In the follow-up period, the median PFS was 15 months, and second-line treatment had significantly longer PFS than third-line treatment (P = 0.027). The OS among all the patients was up to 28 months, but the median OS has not yet been reached. Diarrhea (69.57%) was the most important AE, mainly in grades 1 and 2. According to the COX regression analysis, brain metastasis was a risk factor for PFS, while second-line treatment and capecitabine chemotherapy were relevant to a longer PFS correlation among patients. In the second- and third-line treatment, pyrrotinib is still highly effective and safe. Pyrrotinib is a potential ideal salvage treatment plan for patients who failed in first-line treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper sets up an integrated economic model to analyze an optimal public-private partnership (PPP) in financing a high-speed rail (HSR) project. The model considers the HSR's spillover onto the regional economy, which is uncertain in terms of both the direction (i.e., benefiting or harming the regional economy) and magnitude. The optimal private ownership is found to increase with the expected value of the marginal economic spillover of HSR traffic. In view of the risk sharing, the government also raises the private ownership when there is a higher uncertainty concerning the marginal spillover. However, when either the expected value of the marginal spillover or its uncertainty gets too high, the government may choose not to adopt PPP, but rather to entirely finance HSR projects with public funds. Essentially, in this case, PPP would require too much private ownership and as a result, seriously reduce social welfare. Finally, we apply our analytical results to offer an explanation for why China has so far implemented PPP for HSR construction only in its eastern/coastal regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study two classes of optimal reinsurance models from perspectives of both insurers and reinsurers by minimizing their convex combination of the total losses where the risk is measured by a distortion risk measure and the reinsurance premium is calculated according to a distortion premium principle. In the first place, we show how to formulate the unconstrained optimization problem and constrained optimization problem in a unified way. Then, we propose a geometric approach to solve optimal reinsurance problems directly. This paper considers a class of increasing convex ceded loss functions and derives the explicit solutions of the optimal reinsurance, which can be in forms of quota-share, stop-loss, change-loss, the combination of quota-share and change-loss or the combination of change-loss and change-loss with different retentions. Finally, we consider two specific cases of the distortion risk measures: Value at Risk (VaR) and Tail Value at Risk (TVaR). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND Diethylstilbestrol (DES) residues are harmful to human health because of their potential carcinogenic properties. Therefore, it is important to develop a fast and efficient pretreatment method to prevent their harmful effects on human health and the environment. RESULTS: In this paper, two types of magnetic molecularly imprinted polymers (MMIPs) of DES were prepared by bulk polymerization and the sol–gel method, respectively. The synthetic materials were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and thermogravimetric analysis. Adsorption capacities of the bulk and sol–gel MMIPs were investigated. A rapid detection method was developed using the two types of MMIPs as sorbents, coupled to high‐performance liquid chromatography, for the determination of DES residues in milk samples. Under optimized conditions, the limit of detection (S/N = 3) of both methods for DES was 2.0 μg L−1; and the linear response range to DES was 0.1–500 mg L−1. The milk samples were analyzed according to this method with good recoveries of 88.3–97.6 and 90.5–103.5% for the two types of MMIPs, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The method described had high sensitivity and high selectivity, and could prove to be a new method for the rapid determination of DES residues in milk samples. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The comprehensive and efficient characterization of components in traditional Chinese medicine is crucial for elucidating its active constituents and uncovering its mechanism. Identifying the compounds of the Bushen Huoxue Prescription (BHP) is difficult because of its complex composition and the large difference in concentration among its compounds. In this study, a hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography coupled with reversed‐phase LC (HILIC × RPLC) offline 2D‐LC tandem high‐resolution mass spectrometry method was established to analyze the total compounds of the BHP. Database screening and molecular networking were performed to identify the compounds. In contrast to conventional 1D chromatography, 2D chromatography increased peak capacity, enriched trace ingredients, and prevented the masking of high‐abundance compounds. A total of 165 compounds were identified, and 14 potential compounds needed to be further identified. This study provided an effective method for comprehensively analyzing the complex system of traditional Chinese medicine compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a general complication of diabetes, which has become a serious threat to human health worldwide. However, the best treatment is still under development. Qiming (QM) granules are mainly composed of Astragalus membranaceus , Pueraria lobata , Rehmannia Glutinosa , Lycium barbarum , Cassiae Semen , Fructus Leonuri , Pollen Typhae, and Leech , which are beneficial to qi, nourish liver and kidney, and clear collaterals and eyes. The treatment of DR is a comprehensive application based on the above traditional Chinese medicine. In recent years, satisfactory results have been achieved for DR. Through the traditional application analysis, network pharmacology analysis and clinical research summary of QM granules, to review the effectiveness and advantages of QM granules in the treatment of DR comprehensively. Analysis of main active components of QM granules by network pharmacology and prediction of mechanism of action of QM granules on DR. Further, PubMed, Web of Science, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure were used to search literature, using the keywords of "Qiming granules", "diabetic retinopathy", "clinical research" and their combinations, mainly from 1999 to 2022. Traditional pharmacological analysis, Network pharmacological analysis, animal experiments, and clinical studies have confirmed that QM granules plays a role in the treatment of DR through multiple components, multiple targets, and multiple channels. This systematic review for the first time provides meaningful information for the further study of the pharmacodynamic material basis and pharmacological mechanism of QM granules, and also provides a basis for further study of quality markers and quality control of QM granules. [Display omitted] • The first comprehensive review of QM granules. • General analysis of QM granules by combining network pharmacology with literatures. • A more detailed description of the clinical cases of QM granules combination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) have been used as a robust tool for agricultural and environmental applications in recent years. Remote sensing systems based on UAS typically acquire massive hyper-spatial images in its short turnaround. This paper takes advantage of graphics processing unit (GPU) massive parallel computation in order to process the huge data timely and efficiently. More specifically, this paper presents an index array approach for lens distortion correction and geo-referencing. They are the two essential components in UAS hyper-spatial image processing. The index array approach is also capable of parallelizing image file I/O and the orthoimage generation. In addition, this paper presents the dual tiled similarity algorithm for the image co-registration. The index array approach and the dual tiled similarity algorithm were evaluated using two UAS remote sensing datasets of South Padre island shorelines. The results show that this index array approach was able to speed up at least 10 times the lens distortion correction and the geo-referencing relative to the central processing unit (CPU) computation. This dual tiled algorithm could provide 12 times speedup compared with the CPU similarity computation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Categorizing geographic features from text is a process of assigning a collection of text documents that describe geographic features to predefined categories. This paper presents a new approach to categorize geographic features from text that begins at the level of the individual document. Using latent semantic analysis, similar geographic features are grouped into predefined categories through capturing the semantic context of text. By incorporating ontologies into latent semantic analysis, the domain knowledge can be incorporated into the categorizing process. The proposed approach can allocate each geographic feature into more than one category and is able to identify a set of key concepts to represent each category. The results from an experimental evaluation using the proposed approach showed promise in categorizing geographic features from text. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The past 2000 years represent an important period of climate change. The Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA) and the Little Ice Age (LIA) have attracted much attention, but the start and end times and humidity characteristics of these climate stages are still controversial. Here, we present a lacustrine sediment record from the Erxianyan wetland in central China covering a timespan of 1900 years. The pollen, grain size, total organic carbon (TOC) content, total nitrogen (TN) and carbon-to‑nitrogen ratio (C/N) analyses of the sediments derived from the Erxianyan wetland revealed the vegetation and climate changes that have occurred in central China over the past 1900 years. From 70 to 740 CE, the water level was high, the organic matter content of the lake reached a high level, and many plants surrounded the lake. The climate was warm and humid. From 740 to 1150 CE, the forest coverage increased, the fern coverage decreased, and the lake water volume decreased. The climate gradually changed from humid to dry. From 1150 to 1990 CE, the vegetation coverage around the lake decreased, the tree proportion declined, and the proportions of terrestrial herbs and ferns increased. The climate was cold and dry. The climate change characteristics reflected in the EXY profile roughly correspond to the Qin-Han Warm Period and Sui-Tang Warm Period. The MCA was warm and dry, while the LIA was cold and arid. Based on comparisons with other climate records and modern precipitation records, we found that the Erxianyan climate changes over the past 1900 years may have been affected by the combined effects of solar radiation, the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the East Asian Summer Monsoon (EASM). These results also confirm the complexity of the climate in the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River during the MCA and the LIA. • In the past 1900 years, the climate in this region has shown a trend of becoming colder and drier. • The characteristics of MCA were warm and dry. • LIA was characterized by cold and arid. • Climate change in Erxianyan in the past 1900 years may be affected by the combined effects of solar radiation, ENSO and EASM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 2010 Health Needs Assessment for 15 counties of the Coastal Bend in the state of Texas indicates limited access to health care services and health insurance coverage is a main potential barrier to health care for some segments of the Coastal Bend population. The purpose of this paper is to obtain geographical sight of the health insurance coverage. The hypothesis is that the health insurance coverage by racial and ethnic groups would vary spatially. Data came from the local hospital systems and included 145,669 patient visits from 1 September 2007 through 31 August 2009. A series of maps were produced showing financial class categories for both Hispanics and Whites adults by combining the cross-tabulations of patient data and estimated population both at the zip code level. The maps show that the health insurance coverage disparities vary spatially within zip codes in the Coastal Bend. Moreover, Hispanic and White adult patients do not follow the same pattern of spatial distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports on dangerous communicable diseases, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and H1N1 flu, have repeatedly stressed the importance of individuals in disease transmission. Still in its infancy, individual-based modeling faces many challenges. From the perspective of modeling approaches, this article explores (1) the framework of a three-population (daytime, nighttime, and pastime population) and two-scale (local and societal scale) social network; (2) a design that can represent heterogeneous, mobile, interacting individuals and their individualized vulnerability to infection; and (3) a simulation of individuals’ vulnerability to influenza in an urban area in the Northeastern United States to illustrate the proposed framework and design. Simulation results correspond well to the reported epidemic information. The findings offer a valuable platform to devise much-needed spatially and temporally oriented control and intervention strategies for communicable diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The purpose of this article is to understand the effect of multi-temporal multi-angle data on vegetation community type mapping in desert regions. Based on data from the multi-angle imaging spectroradiometer (MISR), a set of 46 multi-temporal classification experiments were carried out in the Jornada Experimental Range in New Mexico, USA. Besides multi-angle observations, bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) model parameters were also used as input data for the classifications. The experiments used two widely accepted BRDF models, the Rahman–Pinty–Verstraete (RPV) model and the Ross-thin Li-sparse reciprocal (RTnLS) model. The experiments show that multi-temporal multi-angle classifications can yield a more accurate mapping than multi-temporal nadir classifications, and multi-temporal BRDF model parameters combined with a single nadir image can provide an accuracy roughly the same as all multi-temporal multi-angle observations for the vegetation mapping. These findings opened not only a path of reducing data dimensionality for multi-temporal multi-angle classifications, but also a way of merging products of both MISR and moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) to improve semi-arid vegetation mapping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Perceptual load is known to influence the locus of attentional selection in the brain but through an unknown underlying mechanism. We used event-related potentials (ERPs) to investigate how perceptual load interacts with cue-driven involuntary attention. Perceptual load was manipulated in a line orientation discrimination task in which target location was cued involuntarily by means of peripheral cues. Attentional modulation was observed for P1m (the posterior midline P1 component with peak latency between 108 and 140 ms) with invalid trials eliciting larger P1m than valid trials. This attentional effect on P1m increased as a function of perceptual load, suggesting an early temporal locus for the interaction of perceptual load and involuntary attention. Attentional modulation for the C1 component (peak latency at approximately 80 ms) was also observed, but only for high-load stimuli that were presented intermixed with low-load stimuli. Results suggest that (a) perceptual load affects attentional selection at early processing stages; (b) perceptual load interacts with involuntary attention earlier and with different brain mechanisms relative to voluntary attention; and (c) attentional modulation in the C1 time range is possible under optimal experimental conditions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In this study we show that multiangle remote sensing is useful for increasing the accuracy of vegetation community type mapping in desert regions. Using images from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Multiangle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR), we compared roles played by Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF) model parameters with those played by topographic parameters in improving vegetation community type classifications for the Jornada Experimental Range and the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico, USA. The BRDF models used were the Rahman-Pinty-Verstraete (RPV) model and the RossThin-LiSparseReciprocal (RTnLS) model. MISR nadir multispectral reflectance was considered as baseline because nadir observation is the most basic remote sensing observation. The BRDF model parameters and the topographic parameters were considered as additional data. The BRDF model parameters were obtained by inversion of the RPV model and the RTnLS model against the MISR multiangle reflectance data. The results of 32 classification experiments show that the BRDF model parameters are useful for vegetation mapping; they can be used to raise classification accuracies by providing information that is not available in the spectral-nadir domain, or from ancillary topographic parameters. This study suggests that the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and MISR BRDF model parameter data products have great potential to be used as additional information for vegetation mapping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Selecting tourist attractions to visit at a destination is a main stage in planning a trip. Although various online travel recommendation systems have been developed to support users in the task of travel planning during the last decade, few systems focus on recommending specific tourist attractions. In this paper, an intelligent system to provide personalized recommendations of tourist attractions in an unfamiliar city is presented. Through a tourism ontology, the system allows integration of heterogeneous online travel information. Based on Bayesian network technique and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method, the system recommends tourist attractions to a user by taking into account the travel behavior both of the user and of other users. Spatial web services technology is embedded in the system to provide GIS functions. In addition, the system provides an interactive geographic interface for displaying the recommendation results as well as obtaining users’ feedback. The experiments show that the system can provide personalized recommendations on tourist attractions that satisfy the user. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The quantification of urban impervious area has important implications for the design and management of urban water and environmental infrastructure systems. This study proposes a deep learning model to classify 15‐cm aerial imagery of urban landscapes, coupled with a vector‐oriented post‐classification processing algorithm for automatically retrieving canopy‐covered impervious surfaces. In a case study in Corpus Christi, TX, deep learning classification covered an area of approximately 312 km2 (or 14.86 billion 0.15‐m pixels), and the post‐classification effort led to the retrieval of over 4 km2 (or 0.18 billion pixels) of additional impervious area. The results also suggest the underestimation of urban impervious area by existing methods that cannot consider the canopy‐covered impervious surfaces. By improving the identification and quantification of various impervious surfaces at the city scale, this study could directly benefit a variety of environmental and infrastructure management practices and enhance the reliability and accuracy of processed‐based models for urban hydrology and water infrastructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study focused on the validation of the Three-Factor Reflective Functioning Questionnaire for Youth(RFQY) within a sample of Chinese adolescents. Patients and Methods: All the items of the RFQY were translated into Chinese language through the process of translation and back translation. A total of 532 adolescents aged between 12– 20 years completed the Chinese version of RFQY, McLean Screening Instrument for Borderline Personality Disorder (MSI-BPD), Basic Empathy Scale (BES), and the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). Results: Twenty items meeting psychometric standards were retained in the Chinese version of the RFQY. The indices for confirmatory factor analysis, including χ 2/df (2.354), SRMR (0.053), GFI (0.930), CFI (0.921), TLI (0.910), and RMSEA (0.050), all conformed to the requirements of psychometrics. The Cronbach's alpha coefficients for the three factors, "uncertainty/confusion", "interest/curiosity", and "excessive certainty", were 0.820, 0.673, and 0.839, respectively, with test-retest reliability scores of 0.751, 0.643, and 0.764. A significant positive correlation was found between uncertainty/confusion and symptoms of borderline personality disorder (BPD), particularly in adolescents with high BPD traits. Excessive certainty was positively correlated with unstable interpersonal relationships, while the interest/curiosity factor shows no significant correlation with BPD symptoms. The uncertainty/confusion factor demonstrates a complex relationship with empathy, correlating positively with affective empathy but negatively with cognitive empathy. The uncertainty/confusion factor shows a significant positive correlation with alexithymia, while the factor of excessive certainty demonstrates the opposite effect. Additionally, a significant negative correlation exists between the interest/curiosity factor and the externally oriented thinking. Conclusion: This study validates the Chinese version of the Reflective Functioning Questionnaire for Youth (RFQY), demonstrating its reliability and validity in assessing reflective functioning among Chinese adolescents. This enhances the understanding of reflective functioning and its role in adolescent mental health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a prevalent microvascular complication of diabetes. Chinese medicine believes that kidney deficiency and blood stasis are significant pathogenesis of DR. A characteristic therapeutic approach for this pathogenesis is the kidney-tonifying and blood-activating method. By literature retrieval from several databases, we methodically summarized the commonly used kidney-tonifying and blood-activating herbs for treating DR, including Lycii Fructus, Rehmanniane Radix Praeparata, and Corni Fructus with the function of nourishing kidney; Salvia Miltiorrhizae Radix et Rhizoma with the function of enhancing blood circulation; Rehmanniae Radix with the function of nourishing kidney yin; and Astragali Radix with the function of tonifying qi. It has been demonstrated that these Chinese herbs described above, by tonifying the kidney and activating blood circulation, significantly improve the course of DR. Through literature research, to gain a thorough comprehension of the pathogenesis of DR. Simultaneously, through the traditional application analysis, modern pharmacology research and network pharmacology analysis of kidney-tonifying and blood-activating herbs, to review the effectiveness and advantages of kidney-tonifying and blood-activating herbs in treating DR comprehensively. PubMed, the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), and Wanfang Data were used to filter the most popular herbs for tonifying kidney and activating blood in the treatment of DR. The search terms were "diabetic retinopathy" and "tonifying kidney and activating blood". Mostly from 2000 to 2023. Network pharmacology was applied to examine the key active components and forecast the mechanisms of kidney-tonifying and blood-activating herbs in the treatment of DR. Kidney deficiency and blood stasis are the pathogenesis of DR, and the pathogenesis is linked to oxidative stress, inflammation, hypoxia, and hyperglycemia. Scientific data and network pharmacology analysis have demonstrated the benefit of tonifying kidney and activating blood herbs in treating DR through several channels, multiple components, and multiple targets. This review first presents useful information for subsequent research into the material foundation and pharmacodynamics of herbs for tonifying kidney and activating blood, and offers fresh insights into the treatment of DR. [Display omitted] • DR causes analyzed using traditional Chinese and western medicine perspectives. • Collected common drugs for curing DR in kidney-tonifying and blood-activating ways. • Literature study the anti-DR effect of kidney-tonifying blood-activating herbs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we present a different proof of the well known recurrence formula for the Riemann zeta function at positive even integers, the integral representations of the Riemann zeta function at positive integers and at fractional points by means of a probabilistic approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is one of the most severe complications of diabetes mellitus, diabetes belongs to the category of "emaciation-thirst disease" in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Bushen Huoxue Prescription (BHP) is composed of traditional Chinese materia medica, which has therapeutic effects on DR and early diabetic retinal edema (EDRE). However, the therapeutic mechanism is unclear. Exploring the mechanism of BHP against EDRE. Feeding Sprague Dawley (SD) rats a high-fat, high-sugar diet as well as providing intraperitoneal injections of streptozotocin (STZ) to promote inner blood-retinal barrier (iBRB) damage that can trigger EDRE, evaluating the therapeutic effect of BHP by the level of expressiveness of TJ proteins (ZO-1,Occludin) of the iBRB and the leakage of rhodamine B isothiocyanate (RITC) in the retina. The combination of network pharmacology and metabolomics was employed to study the mechanism of BHP in preventing of EDRE, then four proteins which were closely to the damage of iBRB were chosen for the validation by employing Western Blot (WB). Research of network pharmacology had shown that BHP had efficacy against EDRE by regulating targets such as AKT1, ALB, TNF, PPARG, etc, its potential pathways mainly involving signaling pathways such as HIF-1. In untargeted metabolomics analysis of serum, 15 differential metabolites were identified, with the metabolic pathways focusing on ketone body metabolism and synthesis, sphingolipid metabolism and phenylalanine metabolism. The conclusions of metabolomics and network pharmacology revealed that BHP can treat EDRE by alleviating hypoxia and oxidative stress and exerting protection of the iBRB. Finally, BHP's protection behavior of the iBRB was validated by WB experiments. Through integrating pharmacodynamics, network pharmacology and metabolomics, BHP was discovered to have a crucial function in EDRE therapy by preserving the integrity of iBRB. This comprehensive strategy also provided a reasonable way to reveal the multi-components, multi-targets, multi-pathways mechanism of TCM. [Display omitted] • Presentation of "early diabetic retinal edema" as a crucial therapeutic point. • Dyslipidemia is believed to play a significant influence in the progression of EDRE. • The mechanism of BHP anti-EDRE was studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nano zinc oxide-decorated graphene (G-ZnO) was blended with polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) to improve its tensile, thermal, crystalline, and barrier properties. The properties of neat PPS and PPS/G-ZnO nanocomposites were characterized and compared using various tests, including tensile tests, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, evaluation of Escherichia coli inhibition, and barrier performance. The results demonstrated that G-ZnO played a crucial role in heterogeneous nucleation and reinforcement. When the concentration of G-ZnO was 0.3%, the tensile strength, elongation at break, thermostability, crystallinity, and water vapor permeability coefficients (WVPC) approached their maximum values, and the microscopic morphology changed from the original brittle fracture to a relatively tough fracture. In addition, when G-ZnO was added to PPS at a ratio of 0.3%, the tensile strength, elongation at break, and WVPC of PPS were increased by 129%, 150%, and 283%, respectively, compared to pure PPS. G-ZnO endowed the nanocomposites with antibacterial properties. The improvement in barrier performance can be attributed to three reasons: (1) the presence of G-ZnO extended the penetration path of molecules; (2) the coordination and hydrogen bonds between PPS polymer matrix and G-ZnO nanofiller narrowed the H2O transmission path; and (3) due to its more hydrophobic surface, water molecules were less likely to enter the interior of PPS/G-ZnO nanocomposites. This study provides valuable insights for developing high-performance PPS-based nanocomposites for various applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) young adults are at increased risk of mental distress in China. To better carry out psychological intervention, it is essential to understand unique patterns of mental distress and their association with childhood abuse/neglect, including experiencing being left behind by migrating parents. In a sample of Chinese LGB young adults, we examined: (1) associations between childhood abuse and left-behind status and mental distress; (2) latent profiles of mental distress; and (3) associations between childhood abuse and left-behind status and latent profiles of mental distress. A sample of 630 Chinese LGB young adults aged 18–30 years was recruited to complete an online survey. Participants provided demographic information and completed validated measures of childhood abuse experience and mental distress. Latent profile analysis (LPA) was used to identify patterns of mental distress, and logistic regression analysis was used to examine the relationships among these variables. Results showed that all forms of childhood abuse and left-behind status were associated with all dimensions of adulthood mental distress. The LPA suggested a 3-group solution as optimal (no mental distress , mild mental distress , and moderate/severe mental distress). Participants who experienced any forms of childhood abuse were more likely to be members of both the mild mental distress and moderate/severe mental distress groups (all p's < 0.001). Also, participants who had left-behind status were more likely to be in the moderate/severe mental distress group (AOR = 1.61, p <.05). Our findings highlight the need for interventions aimed at addressing childhood abuse/neglect among Chinese LGB young adults, as these experiences increase the risk for mental health issues in adulthood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In the research field of anxiety, previous studies generally focus on emotional responses following threat. A recent model of anxiety proposes that altered anticipation prior to uncertain threat is related with the development of anxiety. Behavioral findings have built the relationship between anxiety and distinct anticipatory processes including attention, estimation of threat, and emotional responses. However, few studies have characterized the brain organization underlying anticipation of uncertain threat and its role in anxiety. In the present study, we used an emotional anticipation paradigm with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine the aforementioned topics by employing brain activation and general psychophysiological interactions (gPPI) analysis. In the activation analysis, we found that high trait anxious individuals showed significantly increased activation in the thalamus, middle temporal gyrus (MTG), and dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC), as well as decreased activation in the precuneus, during anticipation of uncertain threat compared to the certain condition. In the gPPI analysis, the key regions including the amygdala, dmPFC, and precuneus showed altered connections with distributed brain areas including the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), inferior parietal sulcus (IPS), insula, para‐hippocampus gyrus (PHA), thalamus, and MTG involved in anticipation of uncertain threat in anxious individuals. Taken together, our findings indicate that during the anticipation of uncertain threat, anxious individuals showed altered activations and functional connectivity in widely distributed brain areas, which may be critical for abnormal perception, estimation, and emotion reactions during the anticipation of uncertain threat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chinese herbal medicines have complex chemical composition; therefore, revealing the effective substances of Chinese herbal medicine becomes a prerequisite for scientific elucidation of the mechanism of action of Bushen Huoxue Prescription (BHP) against diabetic retinopathy (DR) and the development of new drugs. The Chinmedomics technique was used to evaluate the pharmacodynamic ingredients and mechanism of action of BHP against DR rats. The overall physiological condition of the rats, including body weight, blood glucose, inflammatory factor levels, histological staining, and urine metabolic profile were examined to evaluate the model and its effects. The chemical composition of BHP in vivo and ex vivo was fully analyzed utilizing UPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap MS in conjunction with TCM serum pharmacochemistry. Finally, correlation analysis between biomarkers, and serum migration components was used to identify Quality markers (Q-markers) that were significantly associated with effectiveness. The UPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap MS platform was used to identify a total of 29 chemicals in serum, 17 of which were highly linked with effectiveness and can be potentially employed as pharmacodynamic substances for BHP against DR. In addition, 14 biomarkers related to galactose metabolism, starch and sucrose metabolism, pantothenate and CoA biosynthesis, glycine, serine, and threonine metabolism were identified. These pathways reveal that DR may be inextricably linked to levels of oxidative stress and inflammation in the organism. Finally, five active ingredients were identified as potential Q-markers of BHP against DR, namely ajugol, protocatechuic acid, tanshinone IIA, panaxatriol and puerarin. This study successfully clarified the efficacy and Q-markers of BHP through the Chinmedomics strategy, which is of great significance in determining the quality standards of BHP. [Display omitted] • Twenty-nine chemical components from BHP were identified in the serum. • BHP prevents and treats DR by modulating 14 biomarkers. • First application of Chinmedomics strategy to screen for Q-markers of BHP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A cDNA encoding cecropin A (CecA) was cloned from the larvae of silkworm, Bombyx mori , using RT-PCR. It encodes a protein of 63 amino acids, containing a 22 amino acid signal peptide and a 37 amino acid mat peptide of functional domain. The CecA secondary structure contains two typical amphiphilic α-helices. Real-time qPCR analysis revealed that CecA was expressed in all the tissues tested, including cuticle, fat body, hemocytes, Malpighian tubule, midgut and silk gland in the silkworm larvae with the highest expression in the fat body and hemocytes. The gene expression of B. mori CecA was rapidly induced by Beauveria bassiana challenge and reached maximum levels at 36 h after inoculation in third instar larvae. In the fifth instar larvae infected with B. bassiana , the relative expression level of CecA was upregulated in fat body and hemocytes, but not in cuticle, Malpighian tubule, midgut and silk gland. The cDNA segment of the CecA was inserted into the expression plasmid pET-30a(+) to construct a recombinant expression plasmid. Western blot results revealed that his-tagged fusion protein was successfully expressed and purified. Then the mat peptide of CecA was chemically synthesized with C-terminus amidation for in vivo antifungal assay and purity achieved 93.7%. Mass spectrometry and SDS-PAGE showed its molecular weight to be 4046.95 Da. Antifungal assays indicated that the B. mori CecA had a high antifungal activity to entomopathogenic fungus B. bassiana both in vitro and in vivo in the silkworm larvae. This is the first report that the CecA is effective to inhibit B. bassiana inside the body of silkworm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dust aerosol, one of the important light-absorbing impurities in snow and ice sheets in the Tibet Plateau (TP), can significantly affect the magnitude and timing of snow melting and glacier recession by altering the surface albedo. It is thus of great importance to understand the potential source and transport mechanism of the dust aerosol over the TP. A typical dust storm case, erupted from the Thar Desert (ThD) in South Asia on 1 to 4 May 2018, was selected to understand synoptic causes and a transport mechanism to the TP using the latest Second Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA-2) reanalysis data. Comparing with active/passive satellite-based and AERONET-based observations, the MERRA-2 data provide both the spatio-temporal distribution and evolution process of the dust aerosol more accurately. This study also found that the entire Indian-Gangetic Plain (IGP), Southern India, the Bay of Bengal, and even the TP were influenced by the dust event. The synoptic analysis showed that the dust storm was caused jointly by an upper-level jet stream (ULJS), an upper trough and the subtropical high. A typical south-north secondary circulation adjacent its exit zone, mainly triggered by the ULJS, promoted much stronger and higher vertical uplift of the dust aerosols over the ThD. Consequently, those uplifted dust particles were easily transported to the TP across the majestic Himalayas by the southerly airflows in front of the low-pressure trough over Afghanistan and the southern branch trough over the Bengal Bay. These results indicate that dust aerosol and anthropogenic pollutions constrained and driven by the typical atmospheric circulation condition from South Asia are likely to be transported to the TP. Therefore, it is necessary to further pay attention to the influence of dust aerosols from South Asia on the weather and climate in the TP and its downstream areas. Unlabelled Image • A typical dust case can affect the Tibetan Plateau (TP) through two routes. • A secondary circulation triggered by an upper-level jet elevates dust higher. • High trough and its northward airflows cause the transport of uplifted dust to the TP. • The evolution of a dust event described by MERRA-2 is consistent with observations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• 7 highway segments, in total 292 km, were investigated in field and laboratory. • HIR effectiveness was quantitatively evaluated by DRR and WDRR using field data. • HIR is positively effective in repairing pavement deteriorations. • Rejuvenator is recommended for reconstituting aged asphalt. • Longer deterioration monitoring is recommended to determine extended service life. To evaluate the short- and long-term effectiveness of hot in-place recycling (HIR), the field measurements and laboratory tests were performed. Results indicate the HIR with favorable construction quality is positively effective in restoring high-temperature stability and is acceptable in maintaining low-temperature performance and moisture susceptibility. The findings highlight the rejuvenator application to reconstitute the rheological properties of aged asphalt and the construction control to ensure the uniformity of recycled layer and the degree of compaction. In addition, longer monitoring of pavement deteriorations is promising to determine the practically extended service life from HIR and optimize the follow-up maintenance decision-making, especially in maintenance timing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reduction of salt (sodium chloride) in fermented sausages is motivated by the positive association between excessive intake of sodium and some diseases. However, pathogens control and shelf life of fermented sausages is of vital importance when salt is reduced. In this study, we investigated the impacts of an IIa bacteriocin-producing strain, Lactobacillus plantarum LPL-1, on the composition of bacterial community in low-salt fermented sausages by using a culture-independent high-throughput sequencing approach. Meanwhile, impacts of LPL-1 on physicochemical characteristics of low-salt fermented sausages were investigated. Our results showed that LPL-1 changed the bacterial community composition, reduced community diversity and inhibited the growth of spoilage bacteria during fermentation and ripening of low-salt fermented sausages. After fermentation, Lactobacillus was the most abundant genus with the proportion over 90% in sausages which inoculated with LPL-1. We predicted microbial metabolism related to nutrients transport and metabolism enhanced in sausages by inoculating with LPL-1. We also found that the decrease of pH and tyramine, putrescine and cadaverine and total biogenic amines content in sausages inoculated with LPL-1. These findings indicated that L. plantarum LPL-1 can be applied as starter culture to improve the safety of low-salt fermented sausages. • Bacterial community composition of low-salt fermented sausages was studied. • L. plantarum LPL-1 changed the bacterial community composition and diversity. • L. plantarum LPL-1 controlled the spoilage bacteria during sausages production. • Inoculation of L. plantarum LPL-1 enhanced potential nutrients metabolism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Facial expressions affect the categorization accuracy of the following bodily expressions. • Bodily expressions tend to be judged as the former facial emotions except the sad face-angry body condition. • Facial expressions affect the categorization speed of the following bodily expressions, particularly for happy bodies. The ability to extract correct emotional information from facial and bodily expressions is fundamental for the development of social skills. Previous studies have shown that bodily expressions affect the recognition of basic facial expressions dramatically. However, few studies have considered the view that facial expressions may influence the recognition of bodily expressions. Further, previous studies have failed to consider a comprehensive set of emotional categories. The present study sought to examine whether facial expressions would impact the recognition of bodily expressions asynchronously, using four basic emotions. Participants performed an affective priming task, in which the priming stimuli included four facial expressions (happy, sad, fearful, and angry), and the target stimuli were bodily expressions matching the same emotions. The results indicated that the perception of affective facial expressions significantly influenced the accuracy and reaction time for body-based emotion categorization, particularly for bodily expression of happiness. The recognition accuracy of congruent expressions was higher, relative to that of incongruent expressions. The findings show that facial expressions influence the recognition of bodily expressions, despite the asynchrony. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]