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In this paper, we utilized the deep convolutional neural network D-LinkNet, a model for semantic segmentation, to analyze the Himawari-8 satellite data captured from 16 channels at a spatial resolution of 0.5 km, with a focus on the area over the Yellow Sea and the Bohai Sea (32°-42°N, 117°-127°E). The objective was to develop an algorithm for fusing and segmenting multi-channel images from geostationary meteorological satellites, specifically for monitoring sea fog in this region. Firstly, the extreme gradient boosting algorithm was adopted to evaluate the data from the 16 channels of the Himawari-8 satellite for sea fog detection, and we found that the top three channels in order of importance were channels 3, 4, and 14, which were fused into false color daytime images, while channels 7, 13, and 15 were fused into false color nighttime images. Secondly, the simple linear iterative super-pixel clustering algorithm was used for the pixel-level segmentation of false color images, and based on super-pixel blocks, manual sea-fog annotation was performed to obtain fine-grained annotation labels. The deep convolutional neural network D-LinkNet was built on the ResNet backbone and the dilated convolutional layers with direct connections were added in the central part to form a string-and-combine structure with five branches having different depths and receptive fields. Results show that the accuracy rate of fog area (proportion of detected real fog to detected fog) was 66.5%, the recognition rate of fog zone (proportion of detected real fog to real fog or cloud cover) was 51.9%, and the detection accuracy rate (proportion of samples detected correctly to total samples) was 93.2%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chalcogen bond (ChB) catalysis, as a new type in the field of non‐covalent bond catalysis, has become a hot research topic in the field of organocatalysis in recent years. In the present work, we investigated the catalytic performance of a series of hypervalent ChB catalysis based on the intramolecular Aza‐Michael reaction of aminochalcone. The reaction includes the carbon‐nitrogen bond coupling step (key step) and the proton transfer step. The catalytic performance of mono‐dentate pentafluorophenyl chalcogen bond donor ChB1 was comparable to that of bis‐dentate chalcogen bond donor ChB4, and stronger than that of mono‐dentate chalcogen bond donors ChB2 and ChB3. The formation of the chalcogen bond between the catalyst and the carbonyl oxygen atom of the reactant, causing the charge rearrangement of the reactant and C(1) charge of the −C−Ph group to become more positive, thereby the ChB catalysis promoted the nucleophile reaction. The electron density of the chalcogen bond of the pre‐complex, the most positive electrostatic potentials of the catalyst, and the NPA charge of the key atom are proportional to the Gibbs energy barrier of the C−N bond coupling process, which provides an idea to predict the catalytic activity of the ChB catalysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human stem cells and derivatives transplantation are widely used to treat nervous system diseases, while the fate determination of transplanted cells is not well elucidated. To explore cell fate changes of human brain organoids before and after transplantation, human brain organoids are transplanted into prefrontal cortex (PFC) and hippocampus (HIP), respectively. Single‐cell sequencing is then performed. According to time‐series sample comparison, transplanted cells mainly undergo neural development at 2 months post‐transplantation (MPT) and then glial development at 4MPT, respectively. A different brain region sample comparison shows that organoids grafted to PFC have obtained cell fate close to those of host cells in PFC, other than HIP, which may be regulated by the abundant expression of dopamine (DA) and acetylcholine (Ach) in PFC. Meanwhile, morphological complexity of human astrocyte grafts is greater in PFC than in HIP. DA and Ach both activate the calcium activity and increase morphological complexity of astrocytes in vitro. This study demonstrates that human brain organoids receive host niche factor regulation after transplantation, resulting in the alignment of grafted cell fate with implanted brain regions, which may contribute to a better understanding of cell transplantation and regenerative medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThe pressure control of once-through steam generator (OTSG) is critical for the operation and safety of small modular reactors. However, the dynamics of the OTSG are quite nonlinear, time varying, and uncertain. Classical control methods face significant challenges in keeping the pressure within acceptable limits in an environment with frequent load variations and multiple sources of external disturbances.In this paper, a robust control strategy based on active disturbance rejection control (ADRC) optimized by the differential evolution (DE) algorithm is proposed to satisfy the requirements of steam pressure control in an optimum and efficient way. First, a lumped parameter model for the OTSG is developed based on the notion of moving boundaries and linearized to introduce a transfer function model for control design purposes. Then a feedforward cascade control system based on an ADRC controller and a proportional integral differential (PID) controller is designed, which mainly consists of a pressure ADRC controller, a feedwater PID controller, and a feedforward compensator.To improve the pressure control performance and parameter tuning efficiency of the OTSG control system, a DE algorithm is applied to optimize the ADRC parameters, and the frequency domain and time domain characteristics are compared with particle swarm optimization and the genetic algorithm. Transient simulation experiments were used to evaluate the control performance at 100%, 50%, and 25% power levels, respectively. Moreover, a performance robustness criterion is proposed to demonstrate the robust stability of the ADRC, and the robustness metric is compared with that of the PID control schemes. The simulation results show that DE-ADRC control strategy has better set point tracking, interference rejection, and robust stability than DE-PID control strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper decodes the dependence of phononic superlubricity on commensurability caused by relative rotation between molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) layers. Results show that under commensurate state, due to the strong interfacial potential, the sliding probe exhibits obvious stick–slip phenomenon; the vibration frequencies of the probe and the substrate are coupled, constructing effective energy transfer channels. As the rotation angle increases, the stick–slip phase and probe inherent oscillation are coupled owing to the decreasing interfacial potential. Once the contacting state reaches to completely incommensurability, the probe only undergoes inherent oscillation. More importantly, we further find that the potential period is determined by the lattice period, which causes the frequency distribution of the excited phonons to remain unchanged although changes in rotation angle. In addition, the contribution of atoms adjacent to friction interface to frictional energy dissipation becomes more significant with the rotation angle increasing. These findings reveal the phononic mechanism of angle-dependent superlubricity between MoS2 layers and provide a viable approach for friction regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A modified 3D re-entrant honeycomb is designed and fabricated utilizing Laser Cladding Deposition (LCD) technology, the mechanical properties of which are systematically investigated by experimental and finite element (FE) methods. Firstly, the influences of honeycomb angle on localized deformation and the response of force are studied by an experiment. Experimental results reveal that the honeycomb angles have a significant effect on deformation and force. Secondly, a series of numerical studies are conducted to analyze stress characteristics and energy absorption under different angles (α) and velocities (v). It is evident that two variables play an important role in stress and energy. Thirdly, response surface methodology (RSM) and the Non-Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II (NSGA-II) are implemented with high precision to solve multi-objective optimization. Finally, the final compromise solution is determined based on the fitness function, with an angle of 49.23° and an impact velocity of 16.40 m/s. Through simulation verification, the errors of energy absorption (EA) and peak crush stress (PCS) are 9.26% and 0.4%, respectively. The findings of this study offer valuable design guidance for selecting the optimal design parameters under the same mass conditions to effectively enhance the performance of the honeycomb. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate segmentation of industrial CT images is of great significance in industrial fields such as quality inspection and defect analysis. However, reconstruction of industrial CT images often suffers from typical metal artifacts caused by factors like beam hardening, scattering, statistical noise, and partial volume effects. Traditional segmentation methods are difficult to achieve precise segmentation of CT images mainly due to the presence of these metal artifacts. Furthermore, acquiring paired CT image data required by fully supervised networks proves to be extremely challenging. To address these issues, this paper introduces an improved CycleGAN approach for achieving semi-supervised segmentation of industrial CT images. This method not only eliminates the need for removing metal artifacts and noise, but also enables the direct conversion of metal artifact-contaminated images into segmented images without the requirement of paired data. The average values of quantitative assessment of image segmentation performance can reach 0.96645 for Dice Similarity Coefficient(Dice) and 0.93718 for Intersection over Union(IoU). In comparison to traditional segmentation methods, it presents significant improvements in both quantitative metrics and visual quality, provides valuable insights for further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To describe the characteristics of commercial sexual behavior of HIV-infected men who have sex with men (MSM) and analyze its influencing factors. Methods An anonymous questionnaire survey was conducted through the recruitment of HIV-infected MSM by two social organizations in Chongqing. The x² test was used to compare the commercial sexual behavior of HIV infected with MSM with different social demographic characteristics, mental health status, and sexual behavioral characteristics. Multivariate Logistic regression model was used to analyze the influencing factors of commercial behavior. Results A total of 1 501 cases of HIV infection with MSM were investigated in this study. In total 12.50% of the respondents reported same-sex commercial sex in the past six months, of which 28.34% reported unprotected commercial sex behavior. The results of multivariate Logistic regression showed HIV-infected MSM with marital status as marriage/cohabitation (OR =2.345, 95%CI: 1.442-3.814), working status as part-time and others (OR=6.522, 95%CI: 3.575-11.900), monthly income exceeding 5 000 yuan (OR=7.890, 95%CI: 4.254-14.634), age of first sexual intercourse less than 18 years old (OR= 1.818, 95%CI: 1.014-3.260), using same-sex dating software (using one: OR=2.984, 95%CI: 1.477-6.030; using two: OR = 3.683, 95%C$: 1.650-8.221; using 3 and above: OR=21.777, 95%CI: 8.349-56.804), drinking (0R=2.528, 95%C$: 1.5684.074), and using Rush (OR=3.114, 95%CI: 1.988-4.877) were more likely to have commercial sexual behavior (P < 0.05). Conclusion The commercial sexual behavior of HIV infection with MSM is common in Chongqing, and the proportion of commercial sexual behavior without condom is high_ Comprehensive measures should be taken to intervene the drinking, Rush use, and commercial sexual behavior of this population in order to reduce the further spread of HIV/STIs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In modern gas turbines, film cooling confronts complex near-wall flow conditions. Because of the low velocity ratio and the inclined injection in film cooling, the jet is more attached to the wall, making the influence of the local boundary layer critical. This paper investigates the interaction between the inclined jet and the mainstream boundary layer using large eddy simulation (LES). Four inflow boundary layer conditions were investigated, including a thin laminar case (δ / D = 0.5) and three turbulent cases with different thicknesses (δ / D = 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0). The jet velocity ratios are 0.23, 0.46, and 0.91 for each inflow condition. To consistently extract vortices of varying intensities, a local threshold was proposed using λci criterion. Based on the extracted vortices, a comprehensive analysis of the vortical strength, size, and position for horseshoe vortex (HSV), counter-rotating vortex pair (CRVP), and shear layer vortices (SLV) is performed under different inflow conditions. The results provide a clear picture of how HSV and CRVP form and evolve. Quantitative patterns are disclosed for the vortex lifting and vortical decay. Moreover, the thermal transport effects of HSV, CRVP, and SLV are examined. It was proven that these vortices dominate the coolant coverage, coolant core lifting, and thermal diffusion, respectively. Meanwhile, the jet has a significant impact on the near-wall flow development. The length of transition and the magnitude of thickening were discovered to be correlated with the jet velocity ratio and inflow thickness. Overall, these findings present a fresh perspective in understanding the flow and heat transport processes for inclined jet-in-crossflow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An air pocket is very likely to be trapped in a downward-sloping pipe (DSP) when water fills an undulating pipeline consisting of a series of inclined U-shaped pipes. To investigate the entrainment and evolution behavior of the entrapped air pocket, a series of experiments was carried out using a self-built inclined U-shaped device. The results show that at the junction between the DSP and the upward-sloping pipe (USP), the water phase forms a liquid accumulation. In addition to the agreed mechanism of liquid film jet shear and turbulent pulsation, the initiation of air entrainment is promoted further by the unique entraining effect of the reverse upward movement of the liquid accumulation in the DSP. Based on this, the flow patterns in the DSP are classified into four categories, namely single long slug flow (SLSF), unsteady transitional flow (UTF), quasi-slug flow (QSF), and plug flow (PF). Among them, UTF identified in this paper is a new and unique flow pattern for U-shaped pipe. Due to the development of UTF, the additional head loss of the air pocket and the critical Froude number required to completely remove the air pocket are increased. The effects of pipe inflow Froude number, liquid film Reynolds number, and upward-inclination angle on flow pattern transition, bubble movement, and air removal are explained and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Timely and accurate flame detection is a very important and practical technology for preventing the occurrence of fire accidents effectively. However, the current methods of flame detection are still faced with many challenges in video surveillance scenarios due to issues such as varying flame shapes, imbalanced samples, and interference from flame-like objects. In this work, a real-time flame detection method based on deformable object detection and time sequence analysis is proposed to address these issues. Firstly, based on the existing single-stage object detection network YOLOv5s, the network structure is improved by introducing deformable convolution to enhance the feature extraction ability for irregularly shaped flames. Secondly, the loss function is improved by using Focal Loss as the classification loss function to solve the problems of the imbalance of positive (flames) and negative (background) samples, as well as the imbalance of easy and hard samples, and by using EIOU Loss as the regression loss function to solve the problems of a slow convergence speed and inaccurate regression position in network training. Finally, a time sequence analysis strategy is adopted to comprehensively analyze the flame detection results of the current frame and historical frames in the surveillance video, alleviating false alarms caused by flame shape changes, flame occlusion, and flame-like interference. The experimental results indicate that the average precision (AP) and the F-Measure index of flame detection using the proposed method reach 93.0% and 89.6%, respectively, both of which are superior to the compared methods, and the detection speed is 24–26 FPS, meeting the real-time requirements of video flame detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wilms tumor (WT) is the most common pediatric renal malignant tumor in the world. Overall, the prognosis of Wilms tumor is very good. However, the prognosis of patients with anaplastic tumor histology or disease relapse is still poor, and their recurrence rate, metastasis rate and mortality are significantly increased compared with others. Currently, the combination of histopathological examination and molecular biology is essential to predict prognosis and guide the treatment. However, the molecular mechanism has not been well studied. Genetic profiling may be helpful in some way. Hence, we sought to identify novel promising biomarkers of WT by integrating bioinformatics analysis and to identify genes associated with the pathogenesis of WT. In the presented study, the NCBI Gene Expression Omnibus was used to download two datasets of gene expression profiles related to WT patients for the purpose of detecting overlapped differentially expressed genes (DEGs). The DEGs were then uploaded to DAVID database for enrichment analysis. In addition, the functional interactions between proteins were evaluated by simulating the protein–protein interaction (PPI) network of DEGs. The impact of selected hub genes on survival in WT patients was analyzed by using the online tool R2: Genomics Analysis and Visualization Platform. The correlation between gene expression and the degree of immune infiltration was assessed by the Estimation of Stromal and Immune cells in Malignant Tumor tissues using the Expression (ESTIMATE) algorithm and the single sample GSEA. Top 12 genes were identified for further study after constructing a PPI network and screening hub gene modules. Kinesin family member 2C (KIF2C) was identified as the most significant gene predicting the overall survival of WT patients. The expression of KIF2C in WT was further verified by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemistry. Furthermore, we found that KIF2C was significantly correlated with immune cell infiltration in WT. Our present study demonstrated that altered expression of KIF2C may be involved in WT and serve as a potential prognostic biomarker for WT patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To improve the recognition accuracy of badminton players' swing movements, this study proposes a single inertial sensor based method for badminton swing movement recognition. This article proposes a badminton racket-mounted data gathering system with a single inertial sensor and proposes a real-time motion data flow-based window segmentation technique to capture motion data. On this basis, a two-layer classifier recognition model based on C4.5 Decision Tree (C4.5 T) algorithm and Random Forest (RF) method is constructed to recognize swing technical actions. Using the C4.5 T to identify the swing style of athletes; The RF method is used to recognize the swing technical action. The final experiment showed that the method studied achieved a recognition accuracy of 95.36% for six common swing movements. The proposed model has good application prospects in the recognition of badminton swing movements. However, due to the limitations of the experimental conditions, the recognition effect of this method on more complex swing movements needs to be further verified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore the surgical risk variables in patients with necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) and develop a nomogram model for predicting the surgical intervention timing of NEC. Methods: Infants diagnosed with NEC were enrolled in our study. We gathered information from clinical data, laboratory examinations, and radiological manifestations. Using LASSO (least absolute shrinkage and selection operator) regression analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis, a clinical prediction model based on the logistic nomogram was developed. The performance of the nomogram model was evaluated using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, calibration curves, and decision curve analysis (DCA). Results: A surgical intervention risk nomogram based on hypothermia, absent bowel sounds, WBC > 20 × 109/L or < 5 × 109/L, CRP > 50 mg/L, pneumatosis intestinalis, and ascites was practical, had a moderate predictive value (AUC > 0.8), improved calibration, and enhanced clinical benefit. Conclusions: This simple and reliable clinical prediction nomogram model can help physicians evaluate children with NEC in a fast and effective manner, enabling the early identification and diagnosis of children at risk for surgery. It offers clinical revolutionary value for the development of medical or surgical treatment plans for children with NEC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fe-Ni-based nanocrystalline coatings with unique magnetic properties are widely used as soft magnetic materials and usually act as the core component in electronic devices. Nanocrystallized particles and thin films have become a popular contemporary research direction. Electrical explosion, characterized by an ultrafast atomization and quenching rate (dT/dt ~ 109–1011 K/s) for the material, is a unique approach for the rapid "single-step" synthesis of nanomaterials and coatings. In this study, experiments were carried out with intertwined wire under a directional spraying device in atmospheric Ar ambience. Two load systems of Fe-Ni and Fe-Ni-Co were considered in this work. Electrical parameters and high-speed camera images were obtained to reveal the physical mechanism and dynamic process of explosive spraying. The morphologic and crystallographic results were characterized by SEM and XRD. The magnetic properties were measured via VSM equipment, and the parameters of saturation magnetization Ms, residual magnetization Mr, and coercivity Hc were emphasized in the hysteresis loop pattern. The experimental results indicate that a dense coating was prepared with extremely low porosity, and the morphology of the coating surface shows different regions characterized by solidified chunks and loose particles. XRD patterns showed that crystalline structures were discrepant under two load systems with different Ni weight proportions. Magnetic measurements gave a thin and narrow hysteresis loop, which represents loops with good soft magnetic properties. Quantitatively, coercivity Hc decreased from 59.3 to 52.6 and from 121.0 to 49.9 for the coatings not containing and containing Co under parallel and perpendicular fields, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regulating the parameters of the atmospheric pressure plasma jet (APPJ) is meaningful for industrial applications. Since plasma is a typical functional fluid in the magnetic field, it is possible to control the discharge characteristics via the Lorentz force. In this study, the effects of a locally divergent magnetic field on the generation and propagation of APPJ were examined experimentally. The experiments used a coplanar dielectric barrier discharge (CDBD) device driven by a 30 kHz AC high-voltage source to generate a helium APPJ. A locally divergent magnetic field of 250 mT (maximum) was applied coupled with the electric field, and noticeable enhancement was observed. The results showed that the magnetic field changed the motion state of electrons and promoted collision ionization, leading to a 40% improvement in the APPJ length (0.6 cm) and a 23% increase in the intensity of line O (777.2 nm). In addition, the spatiotemporal evolution and flow field of APPJ were diagnosed by ICCD and schlieren technique. The combination of electric and magnetic fields may effectively optimize the APPJ in practical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Immune function is an important indicator for assessing postoperative recovery and long-term survival in patients with malignancy, and laparoscopic surgery is thought to have a less suppressive effect on the immune response than open surgery. This study aimed to investigate this effect in a retrospective clinical study. Methods: In this retrospective clinical study, we enrolled 63 patients with colorectal cancer in the Department of General Surgery of the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University and assessed the changes in their postoperative immune function by measuring CD3+T, CD4+T, CD8+T lymphocytes, and CD4+/CD8+ ratio. Results: Compared with open surgery, laparoscopic colorectal surgery was effective in improving the postoperative decline in immune function. We determined that the number of CD4+, CD8+T lymphocytes, and the CD4+/CD8+ ratio was not significantly reduced in the laparoscopic group. Conclusion: Laparoscopic-assisted colorectal resection can reduce the inhibition of immune functions compared with conventional open surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zinc is essential for normal growth and reproduction in all animals and plays a crucial role in many biological processes. The present study aimed to compare the intervention effects of zinc on intestinal health in a high lipid diet or high starch diet. Seven iso-nitrogenous (∼520 g kg−1) diets were formulated containing a positive control diet (115 g kg−1 lipid + 115 g kg−1 starch + 20 mg kg−1 Zn), three high starch diets (HS, 166 g kg−1 starch) and three high lipid diets (HL, 182 g kg−1 lipid), with 0 (HS-LZn, HL-LZn), 20 (HS-MZn, HL-MZn) and 150 (HS-HZn, HL-HZn) mg kg−1 Zn being supplemented. High starch diet and high lipid diet promoted feed efficiency, as evidenced by the lower feed conversion ratio. Three-way factorial ANOVA analysis showed high starch diet (166 g kg−1) significantly decreased final body weight and weight gain compared to the normal starch level (115 g kg−1). Diamine oxidase in serum significantly increased in diets HS-LZn and HL-LZn. In addition, distal intestinal mucosal fold damage and inflammatory infiltration were observed in the HS-LZn, HS-HZn, HL-LZn and HL-HZn groups. Fish fed HL diets (HL-LZn, HL-MZn, HL-HZn) showed lower expressions of claudin 5 and claudin 34 , and higher IgD and IgM. Diets HL-LZn and HL-MZn significantly up-regulated C4 and C7. Proinflammatory cytokines including il8 , il1β and tnfα significantly up-regulated in diet HL-LZn, even higher than the HS-LZn. Intestinal microbial composition indicated the abundance of Cetobacterium in HL-LZn was significantly higher than the control and HL-MZn diets. Similarly, LEfSe showed that Cetobacterium (P = 0.039) significantly enriched in the HL-LZn group. This study clarified high energy diet induced intestinal damage, which can be alleviated by zinc. • High energy diet impairs intestinal health and alters microbial community. • High starch diet causes intestinal structural damage. • High lipid diet induces intestinal inflammation. • Zinc has mitigative effects on intestinal damage induced by a high energy diet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Feline bocavirus (FBoV) is a globally distributed linear, single-stranded DNA virus infect cats, currently classified into three distinct genotypes. Although FBoV can lead to systemic infections, its complete pathogenic potential remains unclear. In this study, 289 blood samples were collected from healthy cats in Harbin, revealing an overall FBoV prevalence of 12.1%. Notably, genotypes 1 and 3 of FBoV were found co-circulating among the cat population in Harbin. Additionally, recombination events were detected, particularly in the newly discovered NG/104 and DL/102 strains. Furthermore, negative selection sites were predominantly observed across the protein coding genes of FBoV. These findings suggest a co-circulation of genetically diverse FBoV strains among cats in Harbin, indicate that purifying selection is the primary driving force shaping the genomic evolution of FBoV, and also underscore the importance of comprehensive surveillance efforts to enhance our understanding of the epidemiology and evolutionary characteristics of FBoV. • FBoV was detected in cats from Harbin, northeastern China. • FBoV-1 and FBoV-3 was co-circulating in cats with an overall prevalence of 12.1%. • Inter-genotype recombination events were observed within the newly identified FBoV. • Purifying selection is the primary driving force shaping the genomic evolution of FBoV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glucose metabolism reprogramming is an important reason for the functional remodeling, growth, and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). It is also an important basis for the occurrence and development of aortic dissection (AD), but the specific regulatory factors are not clear. Noncoding RNA activated by DNA damage (NORAD) is dysfunctional in many diseases, but the role of NORAD in AD etiology is unclear. We first established a vascular remodeling cell model of AD, and the expression of NORAD in VSMCs was significantly increased. Functional experiments showed that inhibition of NORAD could downregulate the proliferation and migration of VSMCs. Meanwhile, silencing NORAD could also inhibit the flux of glycolysis, suggesting that NORAD may aggravate AD by promoting glycolysis. In addition, mechanism studies have shown that NORAD can exert VSMCs-regulating function by recruiting LIN28B to bind to TGF-β mRNA, which subsequently facilitates the expression of TGF-β1 (transforming growth factor β1). The recovery experiment also showed that overexpression of TGF-β could reverse the inhibitory effect of NORAD knockdown on VSMCs in terms of proliferation, migration, and glycolysis. Collectively, these results indicated that the NORAD/LIN28B/TGF-β axis promoted cell proliferation and migration through regulating aerobic glycolysis in VSMCs. Therefore, NORAD may regulate the occurrence of AD by affecting the reprogramming of glucose metabolism, and NORAD can be recognized as a good target for VSMC phenotypic intervention and AD treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reaction of Cl atoms with two C 5 aldehydes (3-methyl-2-butenal and 3-methylbutanal) were investigated by proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrum (PTR-MS) using smog chamber at 298 ± 1 K and 760 Torr. A relative rate method was used to determine the rate constants of the title reactions with m -xylene and trans -2-butene as reference compounds: (3.04 ± 0.18) × 10−10 and (2.07 ± 0.14) × 10−10 cm3/(molecule⋅sec) for 3-methyl-2-butenal and 3-methylbutanal, respectively. Additionally, the gas-phase products were also identified by PTR-MS, and the possible reaction mechanisms were proposed basing on the identified products. The detected gas-phase products are similar for two C 5 aldehydes reactions, mainly including small molecules of aldehydes, ketones and chlorinated aldehyde compounds. The atmospheric lifetimes (τ) calculated for 3-methyl-2-butenal (τ = 7.0 hr, marine boundary layer (MBL)) and 3-methylbutanal (τ = 10.3 hr, MBL) according to the obtained rate constants. The results indicate that Cl atoms at MBL are competitive with OH radicals for the degradation contribution of C 5 aldehyde compounds. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we set out to study the ensemble forecast for tropical cyclones. The case study is based on the Conditional Nonlinear Optimal Perturbation related to Parameter (CNOP-P) method and the WRF model to improve the prediction accuracy for track and intensity, and two different typhoons are selected as cases for analysis. We first select perturbed parameters in the YSU and WSM6 schemes, and then solve CNOP-Ps with simulated annealing algorithm for single parameters as well as the combination of multiple parameters. Finally, perturbations are imposed on default parameter values to generate the ensemble members. The whole proposed procedures are referred to as the Perturbed-Parameter Ensemble (PPE). We also conduct two experiments, which are control forecast and ensemble forecast, termed Ctrl and perturbed-physics ensemble (PPhyE) respectively, to demonstrate the performance for contrast. In the article, we compare the effects of three experiments on tropical cyclones in aspects of track and intensity, respectively. For track, the prediction errors of PPE are smaller. The ensemble mean of PPE filters the unpredictable situation and retains the reasonably predictable components of the ensemble members. As for intensity, ensemble mean values of the central minimum sea-level pressure and the central maximum wind speed are closer to CMA data during most of the simulation time. The predicted values of the PPE ensemble members included the intensity of CMA data when the typhoon made landfall. The PPE also shows uncertainty in the forecast. Moreover, we also analyze the track and intensity from physical variable fields of PPE. Experiment results show PPE outperforms the other two benchmarks in track and intensity prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Methionine is the first-limiting essential amino acid in plant-based diet, and also is the most toxic amino acid. The study aimed to evaluate the tolerance and toxicity of a dipeptide DL -methionyl- DL -methionine (Met-Met) in the diet of common carp Cyprinus carpio. Five iso‑nitrogenous (∼ 380 g kg−1) and isoenergetic (∼185 MJ kg−1) diets were formulated including a positive control diet (100 g kg−1 fish meal, FM) supplemented with 3 g kg−1 DL -Met and four low fish meal diets (40 g kg−1 fish meal), with 0 (M0), 3 (M3), 6 (M6), and 15 (M15) g kg−1 Met-Met being supplemented. The Met-Met supplementation levels of 6 and 15 g kg−1 were designed as the 2- and 5-fold of the optimal level (3 g kg−1) for the tolerance and toxicity assessment, respectively. After 10 weeks of feeding, the lowest growth performance was observed in the M0 group, as evidenced by the lowest weight gain rate and specific growth rate. Contents of protein and amino acid in whole-body, and retentions of nitrogen and amino acid were highest in the M6 group, while these values decreased in M15 group. Fish fed diet M15 showed lower levels of albumin, high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL), total cholesterol, alkaline phosphatase, and higher alanine aminotransferase, total bile acid, total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) compared with M3. Fish fed diet M15 had lower levels of glucose, HDL, and higher T-AOC and malonaldehyde compared to M6. Genes related to bile acid metabolism (cyp8b1 , rxrα , fxr), anti-inflammatory (tgfβ1 , tgfβ2 , il10), proinflammatory (tnfα , il1β , il17) were significantly down-regulated in the M15 group compared to M3. However, caspase-3 expression significantly up-regulated in the M15 group compared with M6. Increased signals of hepatic vacuolation and fibrosis were observed in the M0 and M15 groups. Besides M15 group showed higher expression of apoptosis signal marker, cleaved caspase-3 in hepatopancreas. This study clarified the safety margin of Met-Met was 2× dosage as 6 g kg−1, while 15 g kg−1 Met-Met caused deleterious consequences, manifested as the highly occurred of cholestatic liver disease. • Met-Met is an efficient methionine source to improve growth of common carp. • The safety margin of Met-Met was 6 g kg−1, as 2× of optimal level on common carp. • 5× overdose Met-Met did not negatively affect growth performance. • 5× overdose Met-Met induced high-proportioned cholestatic liver disease with fibrosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A steady-state distributed parameter model considering the unsaturated wick was developed. • The volume distribution and heat transfer characteristics of the ultrathin heat pipe at different filling rates were analyzed and studied. • The medium volume distribution in the unsaturated wick is a self-regulating process according to the heat flux. • The thermal resistance in the vapor cavity is determined by the countercurrent at the vapor-liquid interface and the exposure degree of the mesh wick. • Too large or too small filling rate will cause the decline of the maximum heat flux. Ultrathin heat pipe is an effective means to handle the heat dissipation problem of portable mobile devices. Different from conventional heat pipes, the interior vapor chamber of the ultrathin heat pipes is usually <1 mm, so the underlying mechanisms of how the filling rate affecting its heat transfer performance in a narrow space is still unclear. In this paper, a steady-state distributed parameter model considering the unsaturated wick was developed. The volume distribution and heat transfer characteristics of a 60 mm×15 mm×0.26 mm (length × width × thickness) copper-water mesh wick ultrathin heat pipe at different filling rates were analyzed and studied. The results show that under ideal operating conditions, the working medium can automatically adjust the capillary pressure to accommodate varying heat fluxes by modulating the volume distribution in the unsaturated wick at different filling rates, which is a self-regulating process. When the filling rate increased from 0.55 to 0.65, the overall thermal resistance increased by 11.1 %. The thermal resistance in the evaporator and condenser both increase due to the thicker film in the wick. The thermal resistance in the vapor cavity is determined by the countercurrent at the vapor-liquid interface and the exposure degree of the mesh wick. In addition, the optimal filling rate of the studied ultrathin heat pipe is 0.6, which is determined by the variation of capillary pressure distribution, ensuring that the evaporator is not dried out and the condenser is not subcooling. At this condition, the maximum heat flux is 3.2 W/cm2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate calibration of the external parameters of a laser scanner is crucial to ensure consistency in data representation from multiple sources. Plane features, known for their simplicity and ease of extraction, are widely used in external parameter calibration. The use of control planes with known plane parameters enables the simultaneous estimation of both translation and rotation parameters, while the use of planes with unknown parameters allows for efficient self-calibration. In this paper, we introduce a novel method that combines the strengths of both types of plane calibration methods to calibrate the external parameters of a laser scanner. The approach, with the help of a Gauss-Helmert adjustment model, integrates control and constraint planes to calibrate the external parameters. The method boasts the ease and accessibility offered by the plane constraint method, utilizing fewer control features while successfully estimating the external parameters of the laser scanner. To evaluate the feasibility of this method, two sets of 12 calibration experiments were conducted on the mobile measurement system platform. Notably, the residual Root Mean Square Errors (RMSE) obtained from these experiments were comparable to those achieved using traditional plane-control-based method. Furthermore, the external parameter correlation aligns with that obtained using the plane-control-based method, while the plane parameter correlation exhibits similarity to that obtained using the plane-constraint-based method. These results confirm that our method effectively minimizes the requirement for control features and enables more convenient calibration of the external parameters of the laser scanner. • A new method for calibrating laser scanner has been proposed by combining plane-control-based and plane-constraints-based methods. • Introducing plane-constraints-based method and utilizing fewer control planes can reduce preparation work before calibration, alleviate implementation difficulties, and thus enhance efficiency. • Simultaneous estimation of laser scanner offsets and rotation angles is achieved by adding plane-control-based method. • The accuracy and correlation of the calibration results were assessed, confirming that the method can achieve comparable calibration accuracy to plane-control-based method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A multi-line-scan camera inspection system for rail transit tunnel is introduced. • A flexible global calibration method is proposed for multi-line-scan camera systems. • This work will facilitate tunnel panoramic image mosaicking and 3D reconstruction. Vision-based inspection techniques have improved the efficiency of tunnel inspection. This paper presents a rail transit tunnel multi-line-scan camera inspection system that requires global calibration to obtain the spatial relationships among all line-scan cameras, which is crucial for tunnel panoramic image mosaicking and 3D reconstruction. A flexible global calibration method is proposed, a hybrid calibration target is designed that includes triangular patterns based on the cross-ratio(CR) invariance principle and target holes. Establishing a virtual target field and using coplanarity as a constraint to refit a new view plane and globally optimizing the initial coordinates, which would ensure the calibration accuracy. In addition, an accuracy evaluation method based on CR triangles is proposed to assess the calibration results. The experimental results demonstrate the feasibility and reliability of the proposed calibration method and that the developed accuracy evaluation method is feasible compared with the traditional reprojection error method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article, published in Advanced Science, explores the concept of stem cell and neural regeneration in human brain organoids after transplantation therapy. The authors, Mingyan Lin, Xing Guo, Yan Liu, and their colleagues, conducted single-cell sequencing of grafted organoids and discovered a developmental landscape of lineage specification. They also decoded the spatial and temporal dynamics following transplantation. The findings of this study have potential implications for the use of human brain organoids in transplantation therapy. The cover of the journal features a depiction of Nezha Reborn, a Chinese mythology, which symbolizes the themes explored in the study. [Extracted from the article]

At present, the steel industry produces a large amount of steel slag during the smelting process, which causes serious pollution to the environment and land. Therefore, new technologies must be used to deal with steel slag. In this study, the steel slag powder refined by the wet grinding technology is used as the matrix material, MgO as material additive, and the clay is used as the binder to prepare a new type of composite heat storage material. The results indicate that the mass ratio of wet grinding steel slag powder, MgO powder and clay is 6:3:1, the composite heat storage material can have a strong compressive strength of 70.9 MPa. The thermal conductivity of the heat storage material is 0.98 W/m⋅K and can reach 1.27 J/g⋅K at 720 ℃, which has good thermal conductivity and long service life. When the heat storage material rises to 900 ℃, the heat storage density can reach 905 J/g, with good heat storage performance and thermal cycle stability. The objective is to develop sustainable and low-cost thermal energy storage material for industry waste heat recovery and in renewable energy applications. At the same time, this valuable market for slag in the energy field provide a new way to directly utilize steel slag with extraordinary economic and environmental benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: To evaluate the effect of laparoscopic-assisted resection and colorectal anastomosis with a stapling technique in the treatment of Hirschsprung disease (HSCR) in infants. Methods: From June 2018 to January 2019, 25 cases of HSCR diagnosed by clinical examination and pathology were selected at the Children's Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, China. All children were treated with standard laparoscopic-assisted transanal endorectal pull-through surgery (the modified Swenson technique). The short segment type and the typical type with a descending colon–rectum anastomosis were both included. The long segment type had an ascending colon–rectal anastomosis after ascending colon turnover. The colorectal anastomosis was divided into traditional manual anastomosis and straight intraluminal stapler (SIS) anastomosis. According to the different methods of anastomosis, the patients were divided into a traditional group and a SIS group. Age, gender, body weight, operation time, blood loss, postoperative anal exhaust and defecation time, postoperative hospitalization time, and postoperative short-term complications were analyzed retrospectively. Results: A total of 25 children were diagnosed with HSCR. There were 17 boys and 8 girls, and their average age was 10.20 months (interquartile range, 8.60–11.30). Their average body weight was 7.90 kg (interquartile range, 7.50–8.40). There were 17 cases of the typical type, 5 cases of the short segment type, and 3 cases of the long segment type. The different colorectal anastomosis methods were divided into 10 cases in the traditional group and 15 cases in the SIS group. There were no intraoperative complications, wound infections, or anastomotic fistula. Compared with the SIS group, children in the traditional group had an increased operative time (129.5 versus 103.00 minutes; P < .0001), increased intraoperative blood loss (20.00 versus 7.00 mL; P < .0001), increased postoperative hospitalization time (12.00 versus 9.00 days; P = .0003), and increased postoperative defecation time (18.40 versus 13.20 hours; P < .0001). After 6–12 months of follow-up, there was no anastomotic stenosis or enterocolitis in the SIS group. In the traditional group, 1 child had anastomotic stenosis, which improved 6 months after anal dilatation. One case of enterocolitis occurred 4 months after the operation and was cured after enema and infusion. Conclusion: Laparoscopic-assisted resection combined with colorectal anastomosis with the stapling technique in the treatment of HSCR in infants is feasible. It had a short operation time, less bleeding, less trauma, and a rapid recovery of postoperative intestinal function. The anastomosis was smooth, wide, and reliable, and anastomotic fistula and stenosis did not occur. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An 8‐week feeding trial was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary manganese (Mn) levels on growth performance, Mn bioaccumulation in tissues and antioxidant capacity in juvenile swimming crab (Portunus trituberculatus). Six semipurified experimental diets were formulated to contain graded levels of Mn (manganese sulphate monohydrate as Mn source); the analysed Mn concentrations were 9.8, 20.2, 29.7, 38.2, 65.6 and 123.6 mg/kg. The percent weight gain (PWG) and specific growth rate (SGR) were significantly affected by dietary Mn levels; the highest PWG and SGR were found in crabs fed with the diet containing 38.2 mg/kg Mn. Crabs fed with the diet containing 123.6 mg/kg Mn had higher Mn concentration in muscle and carapace than those fed with the other diets. However, the highest Mn concentration in hepatopancreas was recorded in crabs fed with the diet containing 65.6 mg/kg Mn. Moreover, the lowest activities of manganese superoxide dismutase (Mn‐SOD), catalase (CAT) and total antioxidant capacity (T‐AOC) occurred at crabs fed with the dietary 9.8 mg/kg Mn. Crabs fed with the 9.8 mg/kg Mn diet exhibited lower relative expression of genes involved into antioxidant ability such as cytosolic manganese superoxide dismutase (cMnsod), glutathione peroxidase (gpx), peroxiredoxin (prx) and catalase (cat) in hepatopancreas than those fed with the other diets, and the highest expression were recorded in crabs fed with the diet containing 38.2 mg/kg Mn. Based on two slope broken‐line and quadratic regression analysis of PWG against dietary Mn levels, the optimum dietary Mn requirement was estimated to be 48.02 and 53.30 mg/kg for juvenile Portunus trituberculatus. The present study provided further insight into the function of dietary Mn in crustacean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bitter gourd is increasingly being recognized for its value as a vegetable and medicinal use, but the molecular mechanisms of pathogen resistance remain relatively poorly understood. The serine carboxypeptidase-like (SCPL) protein family plays a key role in plant growth, pathogen defense, and so on. However, a comprehensive identification and functional characterization of the SCPL gene family has yet to be conducted in bitter melon. In this study, 32 SCPL genes were identified in bitter gourd and divided into three classes. The number of SCPL genes contained in the three clusters was 7, 7, and 18, respectively. Most SCPL gene promoters contain cis-acting elements with light, hormone, and stress responses. The RNA sequencing data showed that the expression of several SCPL genes changed significantly after pathogen infection. In particular, expression of the McSCPL4, 10, 17, 22, and 25 genes increased substantially in the resistant varieties after infection, and their expression levels were higher than those in the susceptible varieties. These results suggested that genes such as McSCPL4, 10, 17, 22, and 25 may play a significant role in conferring resistance to fungal infections. Moreover, the expression levels of the McSCPL10, 17, 22, 23, and 25 genes were likewise significantly changed after being induced by salicylic acid (SA) and jasmonic acid (JA). In situ hybridization showed that McSCPL22 was expressed in the vascular tissues of infected plants, which largely overlapped with the location of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. Momordicae (FOM) infection and the site of hydrogen peroxide production. Our results showed that McSCPL22 may be involved in the regulation of the SA and JA pathways and enhance resistance to FOM in bitter gourd plants. This is the first study to perform SCPL gene family analysis in bitter gourd. McSCPL22 may have the potential to enhance FOM resistance in bitter gourd, and further investigation into its function is warranted. The results of this study may enhance the yield and molecular breeding of bitter gourd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Realizing efficient and durable non‐precious metal‐based electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) still remains a great challenge. Here, a multi‐component composite of Co2P2O7‐MoN/NC containing pyrophosphate, nitride, and nitrogen‐doped carbon is successfully prepared via a facile two‐step synthesis method. Combining the structural regulation between the active metal‐ and non‐metal‐based species, Co2P2O7‐MoN/NC demonstrates superior activity and durability for OER, requiring an overpotential of 278 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm−2, a Tafel slope of 83.3 mV dec−1, and long‐term stability over 100 h in an alkaline solution. Post‐characterizations reveal that synergistic effect among stable Co2P2O7, partially dissolved MoN, N‐doped carbon, and new‐formed CoOOH nanosheets enable structural reconstruction, fast charge transfer, and formation of oxygen‐containing intermediates, promoting the OER performance significantly. This work provides a promising pathway to tune multi‐components to fabricate efficient transition‐metal‐based electrocatalysts in energy conversion applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microbial acetate metabolism is an important part of marine carbon cycling. We present a comprehensive study to constrain microbial acetate metabolism and its regulation in surface seawater of the northwest Pacific Ocean. We found that acetate oxidation (rate constant k: 0.016–0.506 day−1) accounted for 77.6%–99.4% of the total microbial acetate uptake, suggesting that acetate was predominantly used as a microbial energy source. Acetate also served as a significant biomass carbon source, as reflected by the elevated contribution of acetate assimilation to bacterial carbon production. Acetate turnover was largely influenced by water mass mixing and nutrient conditions. Atmospheric deposition was a source of acetate in surface water and this process can also impact the microbial acetate uptake. Microbial utilization of acetate could account for up to 25.9% of the bacterial carbon demand, suggesting the significant role of acetate metabolism in microbial carbon cycling in the open ocean. Plain Language Summary: Acetate is a key metabolic intermediate during the mineralization of organic matter and microbial acetate metabolism plays a crucial role in marine carbon cycling. However, the microbial metabolism of acetate and its environmental controls in pelagic waters remain poorly understood. We investigated biogeochemical cycling of acetate in the Kuroshio‐Oyashio extension region of northwest Pacific Ocean. Acetate concentrations in surface waters were generally low and atmospheric deposition was a source of acetate in the upper ocean. Acetate was used preferentially as a microbial energy source and the proportion of acetate devoted to bacterial growth or respiration largely depended on local nutrient conditions. Rapid biological turnover of acetate contributed significantly to bacterial carbon demand, exceeding the contributions of other compounds such as methanol. These results constrain the atmospheric sources and microbial sinks of marine acetate and reveal the ecological significance of microbial acetate metabolism in the open ocean. Key Points: Microbial uptake rates of acetate ranged from 1.7 to 495 nmol L−1 day−1 in surface waters of the northwest Pacific OceanAcetate is used preferentially as a microbial energy source rather than as a biomass carbon sourceMicrobial acetate metabolism is influenced by water mass mixing and atmospheric deposition [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To study the association of CREB1 gene with depression and bipolar disorder type II. Methods. Three hundred and sixty-two patients with depression, 381 patients with bipolar disorder type II and 416 healthy subjects were included. There were no significant differences in gender, age and year of education between depression group, bipolar disorder type II group and control group. Patients with severity of depression were evaluated by Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. Hypomania Check List-32 was used to screen the history of hypomanic episode of patients with depression and patients with bipolar disorder type II. A total of 2 mL of venous blood was collected from each subject, and whole genome of peripheral blood leukocyte DNA was extracted using a centrifugal column genomic DNA kit. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping of SNaPshot was used to identify the rs10932201 and rs3770704 loci of CREB1 gene, and the effects of SNP on CREB1 expression in brain were analyzed using BRAINEAC database. Results. The genotypes of rs10932201 and rs3770704 of CREB1 gene in the depression group, bipolar disorder type II group and control group were well matched with Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (P>0.05). Linkage disequilibrium analysis showed that there was a strong linkage disequilibrium between rs10932201 and rs3770704 (r²>0.4). At the rs10932201 locus of CREB1 gene, there was a significant difference in allelic frequency between the bipolar disorder type II group and the control group (χ²=4.27, P=0.042); there was no difference in allelic frequency between the depression group and the control group. There were no significant differences in either allelic or genotypic frequency of rs3770704 of CREB1 gene in the depression group and bipolar disorder type II group compared with the control group. In the haplotype constructed between rs10932201 and rs3770704 of CREB1 gene, the frequency of haplotype A-T in the bipolar disorder type II group was 57.5%, which was statistically significant (χ²=4.07,P=0.044). Expression quantitative trait loci analysis showed that rs10932201 was associated with CREB1 gene expression in temporal cortex (P=0.048). Conclusion. The rs10932201 of CREB1 gene is associated with bipolar disorder type II, and may be a risk factor for bipolar disorder type II, not depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oceanic production and occurrence of dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and its subsequent ventilation to the atmosphere significantly contribute to the global sulfur cycle and impact the climate regulation. Spatial distributions of DMS, dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP, precursor of DMS), and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO, oxidation product of DMS), production and removal processes of DMS (including biological production, microbial consumption, photo‐degradation, and sea‐to‐air exchange), and biogenic contributions to the atmospheric sulfate burden were simultaneously studied in the western Pacific Ocean during winter. Sea surface DMS, DMSP, and DMSO were strongly correlated and had similar distribution patterns. The DMS photo‐degradation efficiency ratio (normalized using incident photon flux density) for ultraviolet B radiation (UVB): ultraviolet A radiation (UVA): photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) was 391: 36: 1. However, considering the solar spectral composition, the actual contributions of UVB, UVA, and PAR to DMS photo‐degradation in surface waters were 40.6% ± 10.7%, 41.2% ± 15.6%, and 18.2% ± 7.2%, respectively. When integrated across the entire mixed layer, UVA and PAR became the dominant drivers, accounting for 45.2% ± 18.0% and 38.0% ± 17.3% of DMS photo‐degradation, respectively, as UVB was significantly attenuated in seawater. The DMS budget of the entire mixed layer indicated that microbial consumption, photo‐degradation, and ventilation accounted for about 74.3% ± 11.9%, 19.3% ± 9.3%, and 6.5% ± 4.0% of total DMS removal, respectively. Even if ventilation was a minor DMS removal pathway, DMS emissions still contributed approximately 45.2% ± 25.6% of the atmospheric non‐sea‐salt sulfate burden over the western Pacific Ocean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Underwater non-stationary acoustic signal detection has a variety of applied research in marine, military and civilian fields. Moreover, the signal has strong randomness and short-term characteristics. Usually, the background noise sources of the actual signal detection environment have diversity and complexity. In the marine environment, signal detection methods like the short-time Fourier transform (STFT) may encounter uncertainties and limitations when dealing with unknown interferences such as Gaussian white noise and colored noise. In order to suppress marine background noise and obtain the best signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) for underwater acoustic observation signals detected in the frequency domain, this paper proposes a noise suppression detection and analysis method that combines short-term signal stabilization and higher-order cumulants. Through marine environment simulation and comparison experiments, the noise suppression effect of short-term higher-order cumulants (STHOCs) on Gaussian background noise under different SNR conditions and the performance improvement to signal frequency-domain (Fre-SNR) is analyzed. The processing results of experimental case data show that the frequency-domain noise energy standard deviation (Fre-STD) of the target signal is reduced. Compared to the STFT algorithm, the STHOC algorithm exhibits enhanced noise suppression and signal detection capabilities for target signals B and C. Finally, building upon the aforementioned analysis, the efficacy and superiority of the STHOC in detecting non-stationary underwater acoustic signals are further substantiated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Robotic total stations have been widely used in continuous automatic monitoring of dam deformations. In this regard, monitoring accuracy is an important factor affecting deformation analysis. First the displacements calculation methods for dam deformation monitoring with total stations are presented, and the corresponding mean square error formulas are derived. Then for errors caused by atmospheric refraction, two correction methods are described. Simulations were conducted to compare the displacement accuracy calculated through different methods. It indicated that the difference between polar coordinate method and forward intersection is less than 0.5mm within around 400m' monitoring range, and in such cases, the polar coordinate method is preferred, as only one total station is required. Refraction correction tests with observations from two dams demonstrated that both correction methods could effectively enhance the monitoring accuracy. For observation correction, correction through the closest reference point achieves better correction results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined the effect of microRNA-320b (miR-320b) on tumor growth and angiogenesis in lung cancer and also determined its downstream molecular mechanisms. Lung cancer tissues and adjacent non-cancerous tissues were collected from 66 patients with lung cancer. miR-320b expression was experimentally determined to be expressed at low level in cancer tissues. The results of gain-of-function experiments suggested that miR-320b overexpression suppressed cancer cell invasion, tube formation, tumor volume and angiogenesis in xenografted nude mice. Hepatocyte nuclear factor 4 gamma (HNF4G) was identified as a target of miR-320b based on in silico analysis. Dual-luciferase reporter gene assays further identified the binding relationship between HNF4G and miR-320b. Lung cancer tissues exhibited increased expression of HNF4G and insulin-like growth factor 2 mRNA-binding protein 2 (IGF2BP2). Meanwhile, HNF4G knockdown suppressed IGF2BP2 expression, thereby repressing cancer cell invasion and tube formation. Furthermore, IGF2BP2 modified m6A to increase the expression of thymidine kinase 1 (TK1), thus promoting angiogenesis. In nude mice, restoration of TK1 reversed the suppressive effect of miR-320b overexpression on tumor growth rate and CD31 expression. In conclusion, miR-320b suppresses lung cancer growth and angiogenesis by inhibiting HNF4G, IGF2BP2 and TK1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sterol regulatory element-binding proteins (SREBPs) are a family of transcription factors known to activate the transcription of genes encoding key lipogenic enzymes. The present study reports on the molecular cloning, tissue expression and nutritional regulation of SREBP-1 from the swimming crab Portunus trituberculatus (Miers, 1876). The SREBP-1 full-length cDNA was 3785 bp, encoding a polypeptide of 1039 amino acids. Quantitative PCR analysis revealed that SREBP-1 expression was detected in various tissues, and the significantly higher expression levels were found in eyestalk and hepatopancreas compared with other tested tissues. Additionally, the effects of dietary iron on expression of SREBP-1 were investigated, and the results indicated that SREBP-1 expressions were down-regulated by crabs fed diets containing 218.9 and 373.9 mg/kg iron compared with that fed the basal diet (55.2 mg/kg). Suggesting that the relative expression level of SREBP-1 can be suppressed by dietary iron supplementation. These findings provide further insight into the regulatory capacity of SREBP-1 in the lipid anabolism of P. trituberculatus. Résumé: Les SREBPs (protéines de liaison à l'élément de régulation des stérols) sont une famille de facteurs de transcription connus pour activer la transcription de gènes codant des enzymes lipogéniques. Cette étude présente le clonage moléculaire, l'expression des tissus et la régulation de la nutrition de SREBP-1 du crabe Portunus trituberculatus (Miers, 1876). La longueur totale de l'ADNc de SREBP-1 est de 3785 pb, codant un polypeptide de 1039 acides aminés. Une analyse par PCR quantitative révèle que l'expression de SREBP-1 a été détectée dans différents tissus, et que l'expression significativement la plus élevée a été trouvée dans le pédoncule oculaire et l'hépatopancréas par comparaison aux autres tissus testés. De plus, les effets du fer alimentaire sur l'expression de SREBP-1 a été examiné, et les résultats indiquent que, par comparaison avec un régime de base (55,2 mg kg−1 de fer), les expressions de SREBP-1 ont été régulées à la baisse chez les crabes nourris avec un régime contenant 218,9 et 373,9 mg kg−1 de fer. Ce qui laisse supposer que le niveau d'expression relatif de SREBP-1 peut être réprimé par une supplémentation en fer alimentaire. Ces résultats fournissent plus d'information sur la capacité régulatrice de SREBP-1 dans le metabolisme lipidique de P. trituberculatus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An 8‐week feeding trial was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary choline levels on growth performance, antioxidant capacity and lipid metabolites in juvenile Pacific white shrimp. Six isonitrogenous and isolipidic diets were formulated to supply 0, 1,000, 2,000, 4,000, 6,000, 10,000 mg/kg choline chloride, and dietary choline levels were analysed to be 1,317 (basal diet), 1,721, 2,336, 3,294, 5,421 and 9,495 mg/kg, respectively. Dietary choline levels significantly influenced percent weight gain (PWG) and protein efficiency ratio (PER), with the highest PWG was observed in shrimp fed the 5,421 mg/kg choline diet. However, there were no significant differences in proximate composition of whole body and muscle. Shrimp fed the diet containing 2,336 mg/kg choline had lower HDL and LDL in haemolymph than those fed the basal diet (1,317 mg/kg diet). Dietary choline prevented the accumulation of free radicals and improved antioxidant capacity by increasing catalase activity and reducing malondialdehyde content. Based on broken‐line regression and quadratic regression analysis between PWG against dietary choline levels, the optimal choline requirements were estimated to be 3,254.1 and 6,488.3 mg/kg for juvenile L. vannamei, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The long‐term outcome of gastric cancer (GC) patients remains unsatisfactory despite some recent improvements. Leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) is a prognostic biomarker for some solid tumors, however its role in GC remains unknown. In this study, we demonstrated that LIF and LIF receptor (LIFR) are overexpressed in GC tissues and established that a correlation exists between them. LIF and LIFR expression are associated with tumor differentiation, lymphovascular invasion, tumor stage, lymph node metastasis, and pTNM stage, indicating that they may be useful prognostic factors. LIF promoted GC cell proliferation, colony formation, invasion, migration, and tumor growth; it also promoted cell cycle progression and inhibited apoptosis; and knocking out the LIFR gene reversed the effects of LIF. LIF inhibited the activity of the Hippo pathway, resulting in reduced phosphorylation of YAP, increased YAP nuclear translocation, and increased cell proliferation. Finally, silencing YAP mRNA expression suppressed cell proliferation. Overall, the results demonstrate that LIF promotes the malignant biological behavior of GC cells through LIFR–Hippo–YAP signaling. LIF may therefore be a useful biomarker for GC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Cyclospora cayetanensis is an emerging zoonotic intestinal protozoan that poses a threat to human health, and the main symptoms of C. cayetanensis infection are voluminous, watery diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea, low-grade fever, fatigue, and weight loss. However, to date, no study of Cyclospora spp. has been reported in cattle in Shanxi Province. We first reported the occurrence and prevalence of Cyclospora spp. in beef and dairy cattle in Shanxi Province, China. A total of 761 fecal samples collected from cattle in three representative counties in this Province were examined for Cyclospora spp. by using a polymerase-chain-reaction–restriction-fragment-length polymorphism (PCR–RFLP) test targeting the nuclear small subunit ribosomal RNA (SSU rRNA) gene. The prevalence of Cyclospora spp. in cattle was 2.1%, and region, age, sex, and breed were not found to be significantly associated with Cyclospora prevalence. Twelve representative sequences were obtained. Among them, seven sequences were identified as Cyclospora colobi and five sequences were identified as other Cyclospora spp.. This study reported the occurrence and prevalence of Cyclospora spp. in cattle in Shanxi Province for the first time, which extends the geographical distribution of the genus Cyclospora. To date, more than 20 species in the genus Cyclospora have been reported. Among them, Cyclospora cayetanensis has been recognized as the causative agent of human cyclosporiasis, which is characterized by severe intestinal injury and prolonged diarrhea in patients with immune dysfunction. The presence of C. cayetanensis in cattle has been confirmed. To date, however, no surveillance data are available on the occurrence and prevalence of Cyclospora spp. in cattle in Shanxi Province, North China. In the present study, a total of 761 fecal samples collected from cattle in three representative counties (Qi, Jishan, and Shanyin) in this Province were examined for Cyclospora spp. by using a polymerase-chain-reaction–restriction-fragment-length polymorphism (PCR–RFLP) test based on the nuclear small subunit ribosomal RNA (SSU rRNA) gene. The prevalence of Cyclospora spp. in cattle was 2.1%, and region, age, sex, and breed were not identified to be risk factors. Molecular evolutionary analysis based on the SSU rRNA sequences revealed that all 12 of the isolates were relatively distant from the human pathogen C. cayetanensis; seven isolates were grouped with Cyclospora colobi, whereas the others were grouped with cattle Cyclospora spp. reported previously. Though C. cayetanensis was not detected in cattle in the present study, more investigations should be performed in human populations, other animal species, or cattle from other regions of Shanxi Province and other environmental sources from the One Health perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The noncovalent interactions between the σ-hole region outside the halogen atom and the nitrogen atom of pyridine and its para-substituted derivatives are the focus of this work. Based on the analyses of the electrostatic potentials, YCF3 (Y = Cl, Br, I) act as halogen bond donors, XC5H4N (X = CH3, H, Cl, CN, NO2) act as halogen bond acceptors, and the binary halogen-bonded complexes XC5H4N···YCF3 have been designed and investigated by B3LYP-D3/aug-cc-pVDZ calculations together with the aug-cc-pVDZ-PP basis set for iodine. When the halogen bond acceptor remains unchanged, the interactions between C5H5N and YCF3 (Y = Cl, Br, I) increase with the order of Y = Cl, Br, and I. When the halogen donor ICF3 is fixed, the halogen bonding interactions decrease along the sequence of X = CH3, H, Cl, CN, NO2. Therefore, the halogen bond of the CH3C5H4N···ICF3 complex is the strongest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the problem of parameter estimation for a Fluctuating Two-Ray (FTR) model in the context of wireless mobile communications. Precisely, the received signal is assumed to be the superposition of two dominant components (typically a direct plus a reflected path signal) in addition to diffusive secondary contributions. The signal components may be affected by random amplitude shadowing, statistically modeled by Nakagami- $m$ distribution, multiplied by unknown scaling factors with random uniform independent phases, whereas the diffusive component is assumed to follow the complex Gaussian distribution. Exploiting the method of moments, a $4\times 4$ nonlinear system is herein mathematically derived, which is very hard to be solved due to the strong nonlinearity. Therefore, a sequential procedure based on some prior information about the diffusive component power level is devised to solve it. The effectiveness of the proposed estimation technique is shown by evaluating the normalized root mean square errors as well as mean errors and standard deviations in several operating conditions of practical interest also considering the limit case of only one-ray in order to compare the proposed approach to simpler estimators, already presented in the literature. The results show the robustness of the new estimator even under a multipath model mismatch. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed estimation procedure is confirmed through measured mmWave data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How do non-superconducting inclusions influence the magnetostriction of bulk superconductors with viscous flux flow? This problem has still not been addressed in theoretical models. In the paper, a model is developed focusing on superconducting composites under zero-field cooling process, with the aim to investigate the effects of inclusion on the macroscale magnetostriction of composites, including the elastic properties, such as elastic modulus, volume fraction. Moreover, in order to evaluate the accuracy of the model, the theoretical values in the paper are compared with the results published in the literature, and the results show that the prediction of the model is quantitatively consistent with the data without viscous flux flow. It may be useful to researchers interested in the practical application of the superconductors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Sarcopenia is a syndrome in which skeletal muscle reduction is the main manifestation of age-related and/or disease-related malnutrition associated with postoperative complications and mortality. Objectives: The aim of the current study was to investigate the association between sarcopenia and postoperative complications as well as the nutrition risk of patients with gastric cancer (GC) who received gastrectomy. In addition, a comparative analysis was performed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of total psoas muscle area (TPA) and skeletal muscle area (SMA) in sarcopenia. Methods: Preoperative computed tomography scans were obtained from 279 GC patients who received a gastrectomy from June 2011 to May 2016. TPA and SMA at the level of the third lumbar vertebra (L3) were used as the sarcopenia diagnostic index. Patients were diagnosed with sarcopenia via the total psoas muscle index (TPI) and skeletal muscle index (SMI) methods. TPI and SMI were normalized with the square of the patient's height (m2) by TPA and SMA. The Clavien-Dindo complications score system was used to classify the complication extent after gastrectomy. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were carried out to evaluate the risk factors for postoperative complications. Results: A total of 68 and 125 patients were diagnosed with sarcopenia by TPI and SMI, respectively. Eighty-eight (31.5%) patients experienced postoperative complications. Patients with sarcopenia also had a significantly extended postoperative stay (TPI-sarcopenia, 15.0 days vs. non-sarcopenia, 11.0 days, p < 0.001; and SMI-sarcopenia, 14.0 days vs. non-sarcopenia, 11.0 days, p < 0.001) and hospital stay (TPI-sarcopenia, 22.5 days vs. non-sarcopenia, 17.0 days, p < 0.001; and SMI-sarcopenia, 21.0 days vs. non-sarcopenia, 16.5 days, p < 0.001). Multivariate logistic analysis showed that both TPI-sarcopenia (OR 7.561, p < 0.001) and SMI-sarcopenia (OR 10.085, p < 0.001) were associated with the risk of postoperative complications. Furthermore, univariate analysis showed a high correlation between nutrition risk screening 2002 (NRS2002) and sarcopenia (p < 0.001). A total of 54 (79.4%) of the 68 patients who were classified as having sarcopenia by TPI and 94 (75.3%) of the 125 patients who were classified as having sarcopenia by SMI were diagnosed with nutritional risk. Conclusions: Sarcopenia is associated with the total length of hospital stay, postoperative hospital stay, and severe complications in GC patients undergoing gastrectomy. Moreover, SMI may be a more meaningful index than TPI in reducing the rate of misdiagnosis and in predicting adverse perioperative risk. In addition, sarcopenia may cause severe malnutrition and increases perioperative adverse risk. Thus, both sarcopenia and the NRS2002 nutritional score should be assessed during preoperative nutritional screening and evaluation for GC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]