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Immune system and inflammation had a great influence on the progression of muscle atrophy. However, the causal relationship with specific immune cell traits remained uncertain. The aim of this study was to elucidate the genetic influences on these associations, providing insights into the underlying mechanisms of muscle atrophy. A bidirectional two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis was conducted to investigate the causal relationship between immune cell phenotypes and muscle atrophy. Data on immune cell phenotypes were obtained from a research cohort containing data on 731 immune cell phenotypes and data on muscle atrophy were sourced from a Finnish database. MR analysis was performed using the MR-Egger method, weighted median, inverse variance weighting, heterogeneity testing, sensitivity analysis, and multiplicity analysis, with results subjected to false discovery rate(FDR) correction. Additionally, the UK Biobank cohort was utilized as an external validation. A total of 31 immune phenotypes with causal relationships with muscle atrophy were identified, including various phenotypes of conventional dendritic cells, myeloid cells, T cells/B cells/natural killer cells, regulatory cells, and T cell maturation stages. Among them, 12 immune phenotypes were identified as exhibiting a positive causal relationship with muscle atrophy, while 19 immune phenotypes were demonstrated to have a negative causal association, highlighting the complex interactions between immune cells and muscle health. The results of the reverse MR analysis indicated that a negative correlation between muscle atrophy and CD28 on secreting Treg (OR = 0.9038, 95%CI:0.8308 ~ 0.9832, P = 0.0186). A significant positive correlation was revealed by external datasets between the CD25 on IgD + CD38- immune phenotype and the risk of muscle atrophy, which was consistent with the trend observed in the training group (OR = 1.1041, 95% CI: 1.1005–1.1076, P = 0.0263). No evidence of pleiotropy was observed, and the reliability of these findings was demonstrated by the leave-one-out analysis. The findings highlight significant correlations between certain immune cell features and muscle atrophy, providing potential targets for further investigation of immunological mechanisms and therapeutic interventions for this condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contact prelithiation is widely used to compensate for the initial capacity loss of lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs). However, the low utilization of the Li source, which suffers from the deteriorated contact interfaces, results in cycling degeneration. Herein, Li−Ag alloy‐based artificial electron channels (AECs) are established in Li source/graphite anode contact interfaces to promote Li‐source conversion. Due to the shielding effect of the Li−Ag alloy (50 at. % Li) on Li‐ion diffusion, the dry‐state interfacial corrosion is restricted. The unblocked electronic conduction across the AEC‐involved interface not only facilitates the Li‐source conversion but also accelerates the prelithiation kinetics during the wet‐state process, resulting in an ultrahigh Li‐source utilization (90.7 %). Implementing AEC‐assisted prelithiation in a LiNi0.5Co0.2Mn0.3O2 pouch cell yields a 35.8 % increase in energy density and stable cycling over 600 cycles. This finding affords significant insights into the construction of an efficient prelithiation technology for the development of high‐energy LIBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ultrathin ferroelectric tunnel junctions (FTJs) hold considerable promise for next‐generation, high‐speed, low‐power, and high‐density nonvolatile memory applications. Achieving a substantial tunneling electro‐resistance (TER) remains a challenge as the ferroelectric layer is thinned to nanoscale dimensions, often resulting in a diminished or lost polarization. An innovative interface barrier gain mechanism is introduced, employing interface electronic state modulation to precisely control the size of an additional interface barrier. This strategy lessens the dependency of the tunneling barrier on ferroelectric polarization strength, facilitating a remarkable TER even at ferroelectric thicknesses as minimal as ≈1 nm. The focus is on composite FTJs using In2Se3/MTe2 (M = Mo, W), where the inclusion of an MTe2 monolayer disrupts the asymmetric electrode configuration. The weak ferroelectric polarization reversal of the In2Se3 monolayer effectively modulates the electronic state coupling at the In2Se3/MTe2 interface. This modulation leads to variations in the width and height of the Schottky barrier at the heterojunction‐electrode interface corresponding with the ferroelectric polarization reversal, establishing a beneficial Ohmic contact in the “on” state and resulting in an exponential TER increase up to 5.4 × 106%. This work introduces a universal mechanism to overcome the thickness limitations traditionally associated with enhancing TER, marking a significant advancement in the development of ultrathin ferroelectric nonvolatile devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Henosepilachna vigintioctomaculata is distributed in several Asian countries. The larvae and adults often cause substantial economic losses to Solanaceae crops such as potato, tomato, eggplant, and Chinese boxthorn. Even though a chromosome-level genome has been documented, the expression profiles of genes involved in development are not determined. In this study, we constructed embryonic, larval, pupal, and adult transcriptomes, generated a comprehensive RNA-sequencing dataset including ~52 Gb of clean data, and identified 602,773,686 cleaned reads and 33,269 unigenes. A total of 18,192 unigenes were successfully annotated against NCBI nonredundant protein sequences, Swissprot, Eukaryotic Orthologous Groups, Gene Ontology (GO), or Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) databases. There were 3580, 2040, 5160, 2496, 3008, and 3895 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between adult/egg, egg/larval, larval/pupal, adult/pupal, egg/pupal, and adult/larval samples, respectively. GO and KEGG analyses of the DEGs highlighted several critical pathways associated with specific developing stages. This is the first comprehensive transcriptomic dataset encompassing all developmental stages in H. vigintioctomaculata. Our data may facilitate the exploitation of gene targets for pest control and can serve as a valuable gene resource for future molecular investigations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study concentration inequalities in gossip opinion dynamics over random graphs. In the model, a network is generated from a random graph model with independent edges, and agents interact pairwise randomly over the network. During the process, regular agents average neighbors' opinions and then update, whereas stubborn agents do not change opinions. To approximate the original process, we introduce a gossip model over an expected graph, obtained by averaging all possible networks generated from the random graph model. Using concentration inequalities, we derive high-probability bounds for the distance between the expected final opinion vectors over the random graph and over the expected graph. Leveraging matrix perturbation results, we show how such concentration can help study the effect of network structure on the expected final opinions in two cases: (i) When the influence of stubborn agents is large, the expected final opinions polarize and are close to stubborn agents' opinions. (ii) When the influence of stubborn agents is small, the expected final opinions are close to each other. With the help of concentration inequalities for Markov chains, we obtain high-probability bounds for the distance between time-averaged opinions and the expected final opinions over the expected graph. In simulation, we validate the theoretical findings and study a gossip model over a stochastic block model that has community structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Warm-sector heavy rainfall along the south China coast poses significant forecasting challenges due to its localized nature and prolonged duration. To improve the prediction of such high-impact weather events, high-resolution numerical weather prediction (NWP) models are increasingly used to more accurately represent topographic effects. However, as these models' grid spacing approaches the scale of convective processes, they enter a "gray zone", where the models struggle to fully resolve the turbulent eddies within the atmospheric boundary layer, necessitating partial parameterization. The appropriateness of applying convection parameterization (CP) schemes within this gray zone remains controversial. To address this, scale-aware CP schemes have been developed to improve the representation of convective transport. Among these, the multi-scale Kain–Fritsch (MSKF) scheme enhances the traditional Kain–Fritsch (KF) scheme, incorporating modifications that facilitate its effective application at spatial resolutions as high as 2 km. In recent years, there has been an increase in the application of machine learning (ML) models across various domains of atmospheric sciences, including efforts to replace conventional physical parameterizations with ML models. This work introduces a multi-output bidirectional long short-term memory (Bi-LSTM) model intended to replace the scale-aware MSKF CP scheme. This multi-output Bi-LSTM model is capable of simultaneously predicting the convection trigger while also modeling the associated convective tendencies and precipitation rates with a high performance. Data for training and testing the model are generated using the Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) model over south China at a horizontal resolution of 5 km. Furthermore, this work evaluates the performance of the WRF model coupled with the ML-based CP scheme against simulations with the traditional MSKF scheme. The results demonstrate that the Bi-LSTM model can achieve high accuracy, indicating the promising potential of ML models to substitute the MSKF scheme in the gray zone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although new cell-based research suggests a link between PPFIA4 and colon adenocarcinoma cancer, there is currently no pan-cancer study available. Using The Cancer Genome Atlas datasets, we firstly investigated the possible oncogenic function of PPFIA4 in 33 tumors. We discovered that PPFIA4 is substantially expressed in most malignancies and is associated with tumor patient prognosis. Furthermore, missense mutation and amplification of the PPFIA4 gene were the most common types of genetic change. In contrast to lung squamous cell carcinoma, tumor purity in prostate adenocarcinoma was strongly negatively connected with PPFIA4 expression and considerably positively correlated with the amount of infiltration of cluster of differentiation 8+ T cells, dendritic cells, macrophages, cluster of differentiation 4+ T cells, B cells and neutrophils in the tumor microenvironment. PPFIA4 expression in bladder cancer and lung squamous cell carcinoma is a strong correlation with the expression levels of tumor microenvironment, M1 and M2 macrophages, which are seen in the majority of monocyte marker groups. Furthermore, the functional mechanisms of PPFIA4 were influenced by chemical synaptic transmission as well as the development of the nervous system. In summary, our work provided essential insights into PPFIA4 dysregulation in pan-cancer and prompted potential molecular mechanisms in the progression of cancer, which highlight its potential therapeutic target for patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ascorbic acid (AA) is a biomarker of some nervous system diseases, whose detection is of significance in many fields. The hydrothermal reaction of naphthalene‐2,6‐dicarboxylic acid (H2NDBC) with Eu3+ produced a europium MOF, Eu‐NDBC. Eu‐NDBC emits the combined emissions from the intraligand charge transfer (ILCT) of NDBC2− ligand and 5D0→7Fj (j=1–4) transfers of Eu(III). The factors of MOF dosage, pH and fluorescence response time are optimized as 0.6 mg, 7.35, and 5 min respectively. The sensitivity test shows a linear fitting equation of I0/I=0.00239 ⋅ CAA+1.03774 (CAA=AA concentration), with its limit of detection calculated as 4.53 μM in a wide linear range of 0–900 μM. The linear fitting of Stern‐Volmer equation gives KSV=2.46×103 M−1 and Kq=4.96×106 M−1 S−1, suggesting Eu‐NDBC sensing AA is a dynamic fluorescence quenching process. Nine control amino acids can't affect Eu‐NDBC sensing AA and the emission intensity stay stable in five fluorescence quenching‐recovery cycles. The returned CAA closed to the set CAA and the recoveries around 100 % support the accurate AA detection by Eu‐NDBC in human serum. Totally, Eu‐NDBC can be regarded as a quantitative turn‐off fluorescence sensor to AA with high sensitivity and selectivity, rapid response and durability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Liquid hydrogen storage and transportation is an effective method for large-scale transportation and utilization of hydrogen energy. Revealing the flow mechanism of cryogenic working fluid is the key to optimize heat exchanger structure and hydrogen liquefaction process (LH2). The methods of cryogenic visualization experiment, theoretical analysis and numerical simulation are conducted to study the falling film flow characteristics with the effect of co-current gas flow in LH2 spiral wound heat exchanger. The results show that the flow rate of mixed refrigerant has a great influence on liquid film spreading process, falling film flow pattern and heat transfer performance. The liquid film of LH2 mixed refrigerant with column flow pattern can not uniformly and completely cover the tube wall surface. As liquid flow rate increases, the falling film flow pattern evolves into sheet-column flow and sheet flow, and liquid film completely covers the surface of tube wall. With the increase of shear effect of gas-phase mixed refrigerant in the same direction, the liquid film gradually becomes unstable, and the flow pattern eventually evolves into a mist flow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To examine the short-term efficacy and imaging results of using the Mobi-C in cervical hybrid surgery on 2-level cervical spondylolisthesis. To observe post-operative changes in the flexion–extension centre of rotation (FE-COR) and anterior bone loss (ABL) of the anterior cervical disc replacement (ACDR) segment. Methods: Forty-two patients (20 males and 22 females, aged 42‒67 years) who underwent cervical hybrid surgery were retrospectively analysed. Their ACDR segment used Mobi-C, and the fusion segment used ROI-C, with a follow-up of 25‒42 months (31.1 ± 4.8 months). The modified Japanese Orthopaedic Association (mJOA) score, Neck Disability Index (NDI), and visual analogue scale (VAS) were used to assess clinical outcomes. Pre-operative, 6-month post-operative, and final follow-up radiographs were collected to compare total cervical spine curvature (C2–C7), curvature of the operated segments, range of motion (ROM) in the total cervical spine, operated segmental ROM, ACDR segmental ROM, and operated adjacent segmental ROM. The height of the superior articular process (HSAP), the orientation of zygapophyseal joint spaces (OZJS), and the length of the superior articular surface (LSAS) were measured. The FE-COR of the ACDR segment was measured using the mid-plumb line method. The translation distance of the Mobi-C was measured. The degree of disc degeneration in the adjacent segment, bony fusion of the ACDF segment, and ABL of the upper and lower vertebra of the ACDR segment were observed. Results: In our group, all patients have shown improvements in their postoperative mJOA, NDI, and VAS scores. Overall cervical ROM and surgical segmental ROM decreased (P < 0.05). However, there was no significant decrease in ACDR segmental ROM and upper or lower adjacent segmental ROM compared with pre-operatively (P > 0.05). For FE-COR-X, only the last follow-up compared with pre-surgery showed statistical significance (46.74 ± 7.71% vs. 50.74 ± 6.92%, P < 0.05). For FE-COR-Y, the change was statistically significant at both 6 months post-operation and the final follow-up compared to pre-operation (45.37% ± 21.11% vs. 33.82% ± 10.87%, 45. 37% ± 21.11% vs. 27.48% ± 13.58%, P < 0.05). No significant difference in the Mobi-C translation distance was observed (P > 0.05). Moreover, the difference in HSAP was not statistically significant at each node (P > 0.05). The OZJS and LSAS were significantly different at the final follow-up compared to the pre-operative period (P < 0.05). All the ACDF segments were observed in a stable condition at the final follow-up. Furthermore, 9 of the adjacent segments showed imaging ASD (9/82, 10.98%), and all were present at the last follow-up, of which 6 were mild, and 3 were moderate. Twenty of the 42 Mobi-C segments had no significant ABL (grade 0) 6 months post-operatively (47.62%). Sixteen cases (38.10%) showed mild ABL (grade 1), and 6 cases (14.28%) showed moderate ABL (grade 2). No severe ABL occurred. Conclusion: The cervical hybrid surgery using Mobi-C artificial cervical discs can achieve satisfactory results. The Mobi-C segmental FE-COR-X shows a slow forward shift trend, and FE-COR-Y drops noticeably within 6 months post-surgery before stabilizing. It's common to see mild to moderate ABL after cervical hybrid surgery using Mobi-C, and significant progression is unlikely in the short term. Furthermore, changes in the FE-COR after hybrid surgery in the Mobi-C segment might not affect clinical outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective This study is aimed to elucidate age-associated clinical and echocardiography-defined coronary artery (CA) abnormalities features and to identify independent determinants of CA dilatation in pediatric patients with complete Kawasaki disease (cKD) and incomplete KD (iKD) over 15 years in a tertiary hospital in China. Methods This study comprised 241 patients with KD hospitalized in the pediatric department between 2003 and 2018. Patients were divided into three groups according to age at diagnosis: ≤12, 13 to 35, and ≥36 months. Results A total of 167 (69.3%) patients were defined as cKD (aged 24 months, male 60.5%) and 74 (30.7%) patients as iKD (aged 18 months, male 59.5%). The prevalence of cervical lymphadenopathy significantly increased with age in both cKD and iKD patients. In iKD patients, the prevalence of rash significantly decreased with age. CA dilatation most frequently occurred in patients with cKD and iKD aged ≤12 months. The absence of conjunctivitis or oral changes and higher serum creatinine levels were independent determinants of CA dilatation in KD patients aged ≤12 months, regardless of age, sex, and the type of KD. Conclusion Present study underlines the age-stratified disease characteristics, and the factors associated with CA dilatation in cKD and iKD patients. The absence of conjunctivitis or oral changes, higher serum creatinine levels, and mycoplasma, cytomegalovirus, and adenovirus infections might be associated with an increased risk of CA dilatation in KD patients. These findings provide additional hints for pediatricians in the early diagnosis and treatment of KD, especially for individual medical care of cKD and iKD patients in different age groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An efficient method for the synthesis of M2B10H14 (M = Na and K) has been developed. The two possible formation mechanisms of the B10H142− anion are proposed, in which the NH2BH3− anion acts as a proton abstractor and a hydride donor. Furthermore, the B10H13− and B10H15− intermediates were detected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coexistence of perisellar tumors and intracranial aneurysms was previously considered a rare phenomenon. In this study, we introduce our experience with surgical strategies for the treatment of such coexisting pathologies. This retrospective study reviews the medical records and intraoperative videos of patients with coexisting pathologies of perisellar tumors and aneurysms from Nov 2017 to Oct 2022. Our study involved 20 patients, including 9 males and 11 females. Three patients selected the single-stage endoscopic endonasal approach (EEA), including one with a type of MP trigeminal schwannoma with an anterior communicating aneurysm, 1 with a pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma with a left internal carotid artery paraclinoid aneurysm, and 1 with a recurrent pituitary adenoma with a right internal carotid artery paraclinoid aneurysm. Thirteen patients chose tumor resection first through the EEA with embolization or aneurysm conservation. There were also 2 patients with irregularly shaped aneurysms who chose embolization before tumor resection. All tumors were completely removed, with only a few patients experiencing recurrence and postoperative complications, and the follow-up of the aneurysms was also stable. There were also 2 patients who chose conservative management for both tumors and aneurysms, but unfortunately, one of them suffered from aneurysm rupture and eventually died. No cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhea, severe intracranial infection, or surgical-related hemorrhage was found in any patients. Staged surgery or conservative treatment for aneurysms can be considered a safe and effective strategy for the treatment of coexisting pathologies. However, in very selected cases, the single-stage EEA can be used as part of a comprehensive treatment for such coexisting pathologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research design. Finite element analysis based on computed tomography images from the lumbar spine. Objective. Determined the pullout strength of unsatisfactorily placed screws and repositioned screws after unsatisfactory place in lumbar spine surgery. Background. Pedicle screws are widely used to stabilize the spinal vertebral body. Unsatisfactory screws could lead to surgical complications, and may need to be repositioned. Screw removal and reposition, however, may decrease pullout strength. Methods. We conducted a three-dimensional finite element analysis based on high-resolution computed tomography images from a 39-year- old healthy woman. Pullout strength was determined with the screw placed in different orientations at the same entry point (as selected by the Magerl method), as well as after removal and reposition. The material properties of the vertebral body and the screw were simulated by using grayscale values and verified data, respectively. A load along the screw axis was applied to the end of the screw to simulate the pullout. Results. The pullout strength was 1840.0 N with the Magerl method. For unsatisfactorily placed screws, the pullout strength was 1500.8 N at 20% overlap, 1609.6 N at 40% overlap, 1628.9 N at 60% overlap, and 1734.7 N at 80% overlap with the hypo- thetical screw path of the Magerl method. For repositioned screws, the pullout strength was 1763.6 N, with 20% overlap, 1728.3 N at 40% overlap, 1544.0 N at 60% overlap, and 1491.1 N at 80% overlap, with the original path. Comparison of repositioned screw with unsatisfactorily placed screw showed 14.04% decrease in pullout strength at 80% overlap, 5.21% decrease at 60% overlap, 7.37% increase at 40% overlap, and 17.51% increase at 20% overlap, with the screw path of the Magerl method. Conclusions. Removal and reposition increased the pullout strength at 20% and 40% overlap, but decreased the pullout strength at 60% and 80% overlap. For clinical translation, we recommend removal and reposition of the screw when the overlap is in the range of 20% to 40% or less. In vitro specimen studies are needed to verify these preliminary findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rechargeable lithium batteries are one of the most appropriate energy storage systems in our electrified society, as virtually all portable electronic devices and electric vehicles today rely on the chemical energy stored in them. However, sub‐zero Celsius operation, especially below −20 °C, remains a huge challenge for lithium batteries and greatly limits their application in extreme environments. Slow Li+ diffusion and charge transfer kinetics have been identified as two main origins of the poor performance of RLBs under low‐temperature conditions, both strongly associated with the liquid electrolyte that governs bulk and interfacial ion transport. In this review, we first analyze the low‐temperature kinetic behavior and failure mechanism of lithium batteries from an electrolyte standpoint. We next trace the history of low‐temperature electrolytes in the past 40 years (1983–2022), followed by a comprehensive summary of the research progress as well as introducing the state‐of‐the‐art characterization and computational methods for revealing their underlying mechanisms. Finally, we provide some perspectives on future research of low‐temperature electrolytes with particular emphasis on mechanism analysis and practical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rechargeable lithium batteries are one of the most appropriate energy storage systems in our electrified society, as virtually all portable electronic devices and electric vehicles today rely on the chemical energy stored in them. However, sub‐zero Celsius operation, especially below −20 °C, remains a huge challenge for lithium batteries and greatly limits their application in extreme environments. Slow Li+ diffusion and charge transfer kinetics have been identified as two main origins of the poor performance of RLBs under low‐temperature conditions, both strongly associated with the liquid electrolyte that governs bulk and interfacial ion transport. In this review, we first analyze the low‐temperature kinetic behavior and failure mechanism of lithium batteries from an electrolyte standpoint. We next trace the history of low‐temperature electrolytes in the past 40 years (1983–2022), followed by a comprehensive summary of the research progress as well as introducing the state‐of‐the‐art characterization and computational methods for revealing their underlying mechanisms. Finally, we provide some perspectives on future research of low‐temperature electrolytes with particular emphasis on mechanism analysis and practical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key message: ER stress-responsive miRNAs, tae-miR164, tae-miR2916, and tae-miR396e-5p, are essential in response to abiotic stress. Investigating ER stress-responsive miRNAs is necessary to improve plant tolerance to environmental stress. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play vital regulatory roles in plant responses to environmental stress. Recently, the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress pathway, an essential signalling pathway in plants in response to adverse conditions, has been widely studied in model plants. However, miRNAs associated with ER stress response remain largely unknown. Using high-throughput sequencing, three ER stress-responsive miRNAs, tae-miR164, tae-miR2916, and tae-miR396e-5p were identified, and their target genes were confirmed. These three miRNAs and their target genes actively responded to dithiothreitol, polyethylene glycol, salt, heat, and cold stresses. Furthermore, in some instances, the expression patterns of the miRNAs and their corresponding target genes were contrasting. Knockdown of tae-miR164, tae-miR2916, or tae-miR396e-5p using a barley stripe mosaic virus-based miRNA silencing system substantially enhanced the tolerance of wheat plants to drought, salt, and heat stress. Under conditions involving these stresses, inhibiting the miR164 function by using the short tandem target mimic approach in Arabidopsis thaliana resulted in phenotypes consistent with those of miR164-silenced wheat plants. Correspondingly, overexpression of tae-miR164 in Arabidopsis resulted in a decreased tolerance to drought stress and, to some extent, a decrease in tolerance to salt and high temperature. These results revealed that tae-miR164 plays a negative regulatory role in wheat/Arabidopsis in response to drought, salt, and heat stress. Taken together, our study provides new insights into the regulatory role of ER stress-responsive miRNAs in abiotic stress responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The status and sources of OMPs pollution in urban surface runoff and the effects mechanisms influencing factors and migration models of OMPs removed by bio retention facilities are reviewed. The re-sults show that OMPs in urban runoff mainly come from human production and life and their removal in bio retention facilities mainly depends on soil adsorption plant uptake and biodegradation and the removal effect of OMPs can be improved by optimizing filler design-laying plants or adjusting microbial communities. Multi-media migration models have good applicability in bio retention facilities but how to quantify the pollution flux between various environmental phases and develop a migration model with spatial heterogeneity is still a key research direction in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an area of low ambient air pollution, no increased cancer risk associated with traffic-related air pollution was detectable, and further studies are required to quantify the cancer risk at low levels of air pollution. However, community deprivation was significantly associated with both lung and breast cancer risk. Objectives: We assessed the association of traffic-related air pollution (TRAP) with the incidence of lung, breast, and urinary tract cancer in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Methods: Our case-control study included 2315 cancers and 8501 age-sex–matched controls. Land-use regression was used to estimate TRAP concentrations. Logistic regression was used to assess cancer risk in relation to TRAP, adjusting for community social and material deprivation. Results: There was no association between the risk of lung, breast, or urinary tract cancer in relation to TRAP. Lung cancer risk was significantly increased in the most deprived communities, whereas breast cancer risk was highest in the least deprived communities. Conclusions: In a city characterized by low levels of ambient air pollution, there was no evidence of a linear increased lung, breast, or urinary tract cancer risk in relation to TRAP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biocatalytic regio- and stereo-selective functionalization of renewable fatty acids for sustainable synthesis of value-added chiral chemicals is highly desirable but remains a great challenge. Herein, a three-step one-pot multienzyme cascade for the asymmetric synthesis of D -amino acids from renewable fatty acids was developed. Combination of P450 peroxygenase with two enantiocomplementary hydroxyacid oxidase(s) enabled the regioselective oxyfunctionalization of fatty acids into prochiral α-ketoacids with internal H2O2 recycling. An engineered D -amino acid dehydrogenase with formate dehydrogenase for self-recycling of the expensive cofactor NADPH was adopted for the reductive amination of α-ketoacids to D -amino acids. Various fatty acids (C6–C10) with different chain lengths can be efficiently converted into the corresponding D -amino acids with high yield (up to 99%) and excellent ee value (>99%). This study exploits the advantage of cascades and showcases the potential for synthesizing valuable chiral chemicals from inexpensive renewable feedstocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a clean fossil energy and chemical feedstock, development of breakthrough strategies for direct conversion of methane (CH4) into various chemicals under mild reaction conditions is highly desired. Herein, Rh/ZSM‐5 catalyst was reported to convert CH4 to oxygenates with molecular oxygen (O2) in the presence of CO at low temperature with promising catalytic performance. The oxygenates productivity reached as high as 5638.0 μmol gcat.−1 h−1. Structure characterization confirmed the existence of highly dispersed Rh2O3 nanoparticles with an average diameter of 2.4 nm in the Rh/ZSM‐5 catalyst. Based on control experiments and mechanism study, it was suggested that CO plays a pivotal role over the Rh/ZSM‐5 catalyst to boost direct oxidation of methane. CO participates in water‐gas‐shift reaction to produce in‐situ H species, which enables to form *OH, *OOH and H2O2 active species by reacting with O2. The as‐obtained *OH, *OOH and H2O2 species will thus render high activity for methane oxidation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rising temperatures can enhance foraging activity and accelerate the encounter rate of different predators, which may increase their interference competition strengths. However, limited information is available on such effects of temperature, and on the consequences for their predation rates. We used a functional response approach to experimentally quantify the interspecific interference competition strength of two species of ladybirds, Harmonia axyridis and Propylea japonica (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), toward their prey Myzus persicae (Hemiptera: Aphididae) at 23 and 33 °C, respectively. The results indicated that high temperature could cause P. japonica to be more active and interfere with H. axyridis more often, and strengthened the interference competition between these two predators. The functional response of H. axyridis was changed from type II in single H. axyridis treatment to type III in paired predator assays at 23 and 33 °C. Moreover, single H. axyridis consumed more aphids than H. axyridis in heterospecific predator trials at aphid densities below 50 and 35 at 23 and 33 °C treatments, respectively. For P. japonica, type II functional responses were detected in all assays. Additionally, when competing with H. axyridis, the predation rate of P. japonica at 23 °C was almost unchanged compared to that of single P. japonica, but fewer aphids were eaten compared with single P. japonica across all aphid densities at 33 °C. Thus, with interference competition, two predator species respond differently to temperature changes in terms of foraging efficiency, which may further affect the population adaptability and control efficiency of these two focal species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an ideal 'indicator' for directly monitoring plant photosynthesis, solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence(SIF) has a rapid response to variations in plant physiological status. SIF is becoming one of the most active research direction in vegetation remote sensing. This study conducted a systematic literature review on topics of relevance to SIF. To do so, there are 786 SIF-related papers published during 1982-2021 were collected from the Scopus database. Based on VOSviewer, the visual bibliometric analysis was applied to analyze these papers from the perspective of country, institution, author, journal and keyword. The results show that the number of SIF articles published per year is rising rapidly. Among all the countries, United States, China and Germany published 285, 263, and 166, making them the top three countries that have the most SIF papers during the study period. Germany has the highest citations per publication (56.2) and the largest number of cooperative countries(36). Nanjing University, California Institute of Technology, and University of Valencia have made outstanding contributions to the development of this field as they have not only the large number of publications but also the high h-indices Among the scholars in this area, Guanter L(Polytechnic University of Valencia), Zhang Y(Nanjing University), Frankenberg C(California Institute of Technology), Liu L(Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth, Chinese Academy of Sciences), and Rascher U(Jülich Research Centre), are currently the most productive, having published more than 40 papers. The Journal Remote Sensing of Environment has the highest number of SIF articles (92) and the highest H-index (40), and Global Change Biology has the highest citations per publication (65.6) in this field. The keyword analysis shows that SIF is a highly multidisciplinary area mainly involving geoscience, ecology, agronomy, plant physiology across a range of spatial and temporal scales. Currently, the most active research topics are the monitor of plant physiological status and stress condition, the acquisition methods of SIF measurements, and the applications of SIF in remote sensing such as terrestrial carbon cycle. China leads the world of overall research focus in this field, which, however, still should have a further improvement of its influence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Soybeans and defatted soybeans, commonly used as protein ingredients, have different flavors of their fermented soy sauce. Clarifying the differences between the two soy sauces, as well as the formation mechanism, is an important prerequisite for improving the flavor of defatted soybean soy sauce. To this goal, the aroma characteristics of two soy sauces and their volatile profiles were compared by sensory evaluation and gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry, and eight enzyme activities and volatile profiles of matured koji were determined. RESULTS: Sensory results showed that the acids, fruity and cooked potato‐like attributes were higher in whole soybean fermented soy sauce, whereas defatted soybean soy sauce exhibited higher smoky and malty attributes, closely related to the contents of aroma‐active compounds in soy sauce, such as isobutyl acetate, 2/3‐methylbutanal, acetic acid and 2/3‐methylbutanoic acid. The content of most volatiles in the matured kojis showed a consistent trend with that of soy sauce: alcohols, acids, furan(one)s and ketones. Interestingly, acid protease and cellulase activities were 3.3 and 1.6 times higher in the whole soybean koji than in defatted soybean koji, respectively, whereas neutral protease, aminopeptidase, glucoamylase and β‐glucosidase were approximately 2.0 times higher in defatted soybean koji. CONCLUSION: In summary, the flavor differences between soybean and defatted soybean fermented soy sauce were not only caused by the differences in the content of flavor precursors in the materials, but also closely related to the differences in the enzymatic profiles accumulated during the koji‐making process. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extreme fast charging (XFC) of high‐energy Li‐ion batteries is a key enabler of electrified transportation. While previous studies mainly focused on improving Li ion mass transport in electrodes and electrolytes, the limitations of charge transfer across electrode–electrolyte interfaces remain underexplored. Herein we unravel how charge transfer kinetics dictates the fast rechargeability of Li‐ion cells. Li ion transfer across the cathode–electrolyte interface is found to be rate‐limiting during XFC, but the charge transfer energy barrier at both the cathode and anode have to be reduced simultaneously to prevent Li plating, which is achieved through electrolyte engineering. By unlocking charge transfer limitations, 184 Wh kg−1 pouch cells demonstrate stable XFC (10‐min charge to 80 %) which is otherwise unachievable, and the lifetime of 245 Wh kg−1 21700 cells is quintupled during fast charging (25‐min charge to 80 %). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extreme fast charging (XFC) of high‐energy Li‐ion batteries is a key enabler of electrified transportation. While previous studies mainly focused on improving Li ion mass transport in electrodes and electrolytes, the limitations of charge transfer across electrode–electrolyte interfaces remain underexplored. Herein we unravel how charge transfer kinetics dictates the fast rechargeability of Li‐ion cells. Li ion transfer across the cathode–electrolyte interface is found to be rate‐limiting during XFC, but the charge transfer energy barrier at both the cathode and anode have to be reduced simultaneously to prevent Li plating, which is achieved through electrolyte engineering. By unlocking charge transfer limitations, 184 Wh kg−1 pouch cells demonstrate stable XFC (10‐min charge to 80 %) which is otherwise unachievable, and the lifetime of 245 Wh kg−1 21700 cells is quintupled during fast charging (25‐min charge to 80 %). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The majority of terrestrial plants are symbiotic with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). Plants supply carbohydrates to microbes, whereas AMF provide plants with water and other necessary nutrients—most typically, phosphorus. Understanding the response of the AMF community structure to biogas slurry (BS) fertilization is of great significance for sustainable forest management. This study aimed to look into the effects of BS fertilization at different concentrations on AMF community structures in rhizospheric soil in poplar plantations. We found that different fertilization concentrations dramatically affected the diversity of AMF in the rhizospheric soil of the poplar plantations, and the treatment with a high BS concentration showed the highest Shannon diversity of AMF and OTU richness (Chao1). Further analyses revealed that Glomerales, as the predominant order, accounted for 36.2–42.7% of the AMF communities, and the relative abundance of Glomerales exhibited negligible changes with different BS fertilization concentrations, whereas the order Paraglomerales increased significantly in both the low- and high-concentration treatments in comparison with the control. Furthermore, the addition of BS drastically enhanced the relative abundance of the dominant genera, Glomus and Paraglomus. The application of BS could also distinguish the AMF community composition in the rhizospheric soil well. An RDA analysis indicated that the dominant genus Glomus was significantly positively correlated with nitrate reductase activity, while Paraglomus showed a significant positive correlation with available P. Overall, the findings suggest that adding BS fertilizer to poplar plantations can elevate the diversity of AMF communities in rhizospheric soil and the relative abundance of some critical genera that affect plant nutrient uptake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the widespread application of blockchain technology, the cyberspace security issue of phishing has also appeared in the emerging blockchain cryptocurrency ecosystem. Because phishing fraud in cryptocurrency transactions has its own unique characteristics compared to traditional phishing, many existing phishing detection algorithms are not usable. Therefore, based on graph convolutional networks, we have researched and built a high-performance model for detecting blockchain cryptocurrency phishing fraud. Our model divides the constructed blockchain cryptocurrency transaction graph into "Sender" and "Receiver" graphs, according to the sending and receiving directions. Then, the edge features in the graph are transferred. Finally, we use a double-layer graph convolution network for feature learning and send it to the classifier for fraud detection. After completing training on the actual dataset collected from Ethereum, the model achieved an accuracy of 88.02% and an F1 score of 88.14% on the test data, which had a better performance than that of the other models. Our model provides a new concept for the detection of phishing scams in blockchain cryptocurrency networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Significance: Pancreatic cancer and diabetes have a reciprocal causation relationship. As a potential risk factor, diabetes increases morbidity and promotes pancreatic cancer progression. The main mechanisms include islet dysfunction-induced systemic metabolic disorder, pancreatic stellate cell activation, and immunosuppression. Ferroptosis is regarded as regulated cell death, which participates in chemotherapy resistance and is refractory to radiation therapy and immunotherapy. Diabetes-induced ferroptosis causes many complications, but the underlying mechanism of diabetes-related ferroptosis in pancreatic cancer has not been discussed. Recent Advances: Ferroptosis alleviates pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PanIN) progression by activating chronic inflammation. The specific drugs that cause ferroptosis achieve tumor suppression by inducing lipid peroxidation. Ferroptosis plays pro and con roles in cancer. Both the ferroptosis inhibitor and inducer exhibit antitumor effects through killing cancer cells or directly affecting tumor growth. Diabetes-induced ferroptosis contributes to tumor cell death by different components, including tumor cells, fibroblasts, immune cells, and adipocytes. A better understanding of its role in modulating the tumor microenvironment will reveal diabetes-associated ferroptotic features in cancer development, which can be used to figure out possible treatment strategies for cancer patients with hyperglycemia. Critical Issues: We demonstrate the potential roles of diabetes-related ferroptosis in pancreatic cancer progression and discuss ferroptosis-related antitumor effects and therapeutics for pancreatic cancer treatment. Future Directions: Further studies are required to highlight mechanisms of diabetes-mediated ferroptosis in pancreatic cancer tumorigenesis and progression. The antitumor effects of ferroptosis regulators combined with chemotherapy, targeted therapy, or immunotherapy in diabetic patients should be investigated. We hope that pancreatic cancer patients with diabetes will benefit from ferroptosis-related therapies. Antioxid. Redox Signal. 37, 1206–1221. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three-dimensional electro-thermo-hydrodynamic (ETHD) flows of dielectric fluids driven by simultaneous Coulomb and buoyancy forces in a cubic box is numerically studied. The set of coupled equations associated with the ETHD phenomena are solved with the finite volume method. The code is first validated by comparing the numerically obtained linear critical values of the pure electro-convection and thermal convection with the previous studies. Then the neutral stability curve of the system is given and the finite amplitude instability thresholds with different Rayleigh numbers ( Ra) are presented. It is found that along the neutral stability curve, the flow strength becomes weaker with the increase of Ra and the decrease of electric Rayleigh number (T). Besides, the gap between the linear and nonlinear critical values expressed in terms of T decreases with the increase of Ra. Primarily, the distributions of charge density, temperature and velocity fields with different governing parameters near neutral stability curve are presented. The temperature and charge density profiles near the linear and nonlinear critical values are given, showing that higher T results in wider charge void region and shorter distance between the charge void region’s lower boundary and injection electrode. Finally, the symmetries of the flow patterns along the neutral stability curve are also discussed briefly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering the dynamic nature of market conditions, this paper introduces a state-dependent futures hedging optimization model and methodology. This approach dynamically adjusts the traditional model-driven hedging strategy, effectively balancing the pursuit of returns with the imperative of risk mitigation. Empirical evidence shows that integrating Hidden Markov Model (HMM) with machine learning techniques, as demonstrated in this study, improves the accuracy of market state forecasts. Compared to the traditional model-driven hedging strategy, the innovative state-dependent hedging strategy introduced here significantly enhances the return-to-risk ratio, and revenue, without increasing hedging risks. Moreover, the hedging portfolio developed under this strategy achieves an average hedging efficiency of 0.76, highlighting the effectiveness of the proposed methodology. Additional robustness tests indicate that this market state-dependent hedging optimization strategy is promising under various conditions, including different position adjustment ratios, volatility benchmarks, evaluation periods, types of crude oil, and transaction costs. The research conducted in this paper not only contributes to and expands traditional hedging theories but also provides a practical risk management solution for market participants. • A state-dependent hedging strategy is proposed. • A state prediction model combining HMM and machine learning is established. • The hedging model effectively balances the pursuit of returns with the imperative of risk mitigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Tyrosine kinase inhibitors target transarterial chemoembolization (TACE)‐mediated vascular endothelial growth factor to inhibit tumor revascularization and to slow tumor progression. The present study aimed to compare the clinical outcomes of TACE combined with lenvatinib (TACE‐lenvatinib) and TACE combined with sorafenib (TACE‐sorafenib) in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: The clinical data of patients diagnosed with unresectable HCC who received TACE‐lenvatinib or TACE‐sorafenib between January 2018 and April 2021 were retrospectively reviewed. The tumor response, progression‐free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and adverse events (AEs) were evaluated and compared between the two groups. Results: A total of 112 patients were enrolled and classified into the TACE‐lenvatinib group (n = 53) and the TACE‐sorafenib group (n = 59). The objective response rates of patients in the TACE‐lenvatinib and TACE‐sorafenib groups were 54.7% and 44.1%, respectively (p = 0.260), and the disease control rates (DCRs) were 81.1% and 61.0% (p = 0.020). The median PFS time was significantly longer in the TACE‐lenvatinib group than in the TACE‐sorafenib group (10.7 vs. 6.0 months; p = 0.002). The median OS time between the TACE‐lenvatinib and TACE‐sorafenib groups also showed a significant difference (30.5 vs. 20.5 months, p = 0.018). All treatment‐related AEs and grade 3/4 AEs were comparable between the two groups (p > 0.05). Conclusion: Compared to TACE‐sorafenib, TACE‐lenvatinib was associated with better DCR, PFS and OS outcomes in patients with unresectable HCC. In subgroups of Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer B stage or TACE‐refractory patients, TACE‐lenvatinib also showed a trend of superiority. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrogen has attracted much attention from governments and enterprises around the world due to its zero pollution and recycling use. However, it may bring safety problems such as hydrogen jet fire due to its wide flammability range and low ignition energy. Therefore, the methods of preventing hydrogen jet fire need to be explored urgently. In order to investigate the effect of gaseous fire extinguishing agent on the hydrogen jet fire, a series of experiments were carried out to study the flame behaviors under the effects of nitrogen and carbon dioxide jets. The fire extinguishing agents were released through a jet nozzle with diameter of 3 mm at the pressure of 11 atm. The flame length, thermal radiant flux and total heat flux were analyzed. The results show that the reduction ratio of vertical flame length increases with the decrease of the installation height of the extinguishing agent nozzle. It indicates that when the fire extinguishing agent is injected at the root of hydrogen jet flame, the fire may be extinguished. Due to the reduction of flame size, the thermal radiant flux received by the radiometer decreases, which corresponds to the reduction of flame radiation fraction. The total heat flux received in the downstream region of deflected flame is determined by the joint action of thermal radiation and convection. The convective heat transfer of high-temperature gas may cause the value measured by the heat flux meter on the flow path of the deflected flame to increase. Besides, the extinguishing limit for hydrogen jet flame under the effects of nitrogen and carbon dioxide jets are analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. There can be extreme variability between individual responses to exercise training, and the identification of genetic variants associated with individual variabilities in exercise-related traits could guide individualized exercise programs. We aimed to screen the exercise-related gene sensitivity of patients with acute myocardial infarction after PCI by establishing the gene spectrum of aerobic exercise and cardiopulmonary function sensitivity, test the effect of individualized precision exercise therapy, and provide evidence for the establishment of a precision medicine program for clinical research. Methods. Aerobic exercise- and cardiopulmonary function-related genes and single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were obtained by data mining utilizing a major publicly available biomedical repository, the NCBI PubMed database. Biological samples from all participants underwent DNA testing. We performed SNP detection using Samtools. A total of 122 patients who underwent PCI were enrolled in the study. We screened the first 24 cases with a high mutation frequency for aerobic exercise- and cardiopulmonary function-related genes and the last 24 cases with a low mutation frequency and separated them into two groups for the exercise intervention experiment. Results. In both the low mutation frequency group and the high mutation frequency group, after 8 weeks of exercise intervention, 6 MWT distance, 6 MWT%, VO2/kg at peak, and VO2/kg at AT were significantly improved, and the effect in the high mutation frequency group was significantly higher than that in the low mutation frequency group (6 MWT distance: 468 vs. 439, P = 0.003 ; 6 MWT%: 85 vs. 77, P = 0.002 , VO2/kg at peak: 14.7 vs. 13.3, P = 0.002 ; VO2/kg at AT: 11.9 vs. 13.3, P = 0.003). Conclusions. There is extreme variability between individual responses to exercise training. The identification of genetic variants associated with individual variabilities in exercise-related traits could guide individualized exercise programs. We found that the subjects with a high mutation frequency in aerobic exercise and cardiopulmonary function-related genes achieved more cardiorespiratory fitness benefits in the aerobic exercise rehabilitation program and provided evidence for the establishment of a precision medicine program for clinical research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cronkhite-Canada syndrome (CCS) is a rare disease that is characterized by multiple gastrointestinal polyps and ectodermal abnormalities. This study aimed to improve the understanding of CCS by presenting our patient data. Clinical features, treatment, and outcomes of four CCS patients at a single medical center were retrospectively analyzed. The age of the patients ranged from 32 to 61 years (mean: 49.5 years), including three men and one woman. All the patients presented with gastrointestinal symptoms, ectodermal abnormalities, and multiple gastrointestinal polyps. Two patients showed abnormal immune indices. Three patients underwent magnetic resonance enterography, and the typical manifestations of small intestine involvement were diffuse wall thickening, high signal intensity on diffusion-weighted imaging, obvious enhancement, and multiple small nodular enhancements of the small intestine. The main histological manifestations were chronic inflammation and hyperplastic, adenomatoid, and hamartomatoid polyps. Eosinophilic infiltration was observed in two patients. One patient had rectal adenocarcinoma at the time of diagnosis. All the four patients received prednisone at a dose of 0.75–1 mg/kg/day, and had their gastrointestinal symptoms gradually resolved (including two with ectodermal abnormality and endoscopic remission). Two patients are currently receiving low-dose prednisone (2.5–5 mg/day) with no recurrence after a 1.5- and 6-year follow-up periods, respectively. Magnetic resonance enterography has the potential to evaluate small-intestinal lesions in CCSs. Long-term therapy with low doses of prednisone may be beneficial in maintaining remission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contact prelithiation is an important strategy to compensate the initial capacity loss of lithium‐ion batteries. However, the dead Li generated from inadequate Li conversion reduces the cycling stability of rechargeable batteries. Herein a mono‐solvent dimethyl carbonate (DMC) electrolyte was employed in contact prelithiation for the first time. We discover that the low‐organic‐content raw electrolyte interphase (REI) induced by this electrolyte on Li source and anode is a mixed ion/electron conductor. Therefore, electron channels can be maintained even when the Li source has been completely wrapped by the DMC‐derived REI. As a result, an outstanding Li source utilization of 92.8 % and a negligible dead Li yield can be realized. This strategy renders batteries with a very high initial Coulombic efficiency (90.0 %) and an excellent capacity retention (94.9 %) over 210 cycles, highlighting the significance of REI for effective contact prelithiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contact prelithiation is an important strategy to compensate the initial capacity loss of lithium‐ion batteries. However, the dead Li generated from inadequate Li conversion reduces the cycling stability of rechargeable batteries. Herein a mono‐solvent dimethyl carbonate (DMC) electrolyte was employed in contact prelithiation for the first time. We discover that the low‐organic‐content raw electrolyte interphase (REI) induced by this electrolyte on Li source and anode is a mixed ion/electron conductor. Therefore, electron channels can be maintained even when the Li source has been completely wrapped by the DMC‐derived REI. As a result, an outstanding Li source utilization of 92.8 % and a negligible dead Li yield can be realized. This strategy renders batteries with a very high initial Coulombic efficiency (90.0 %) and an excellent capacity retention (94.9 %) over 210 cycles, highlighting the significance of REI for effective contact prelithiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Nondiabetic kidney disease (NDKD), which is prevalent among patients with diabetes mellitus (DM), is considerably different from diabetic kidney disease (DKD) in terms of the pathological features, treatment strategy and prognosis. Although renal biopsy is the current gold-standard diagnostic method, it cannot be routinely performed due to a range of risks. The aim of this study was to explore the predictors for differentiating NDKD from DKD to meet the urgent medical needs of patients who cannot afford kidney biopsy. Methods: This is a retrospective study conducted by reviewing the medical records of patients with type 2 DM who underwent percutaneous renal biopsy at the Affiliated Hospital of Guizhou Medical University between January 2017 and May 2021. The demographic data, clinical data, blood test results, and pathological examination results of the patients were obtained from their medical records. Multivariate regression analysis was performed to evaluate the predictive factors for NDKD. Results: A total of 244 patients were analyzed. The median age at biopsy was 55 (46, 62) years. Patients diagnosed with true DKD, those diagnosed with NDKD and those diagnosed with NDKD superimposed DKD represented 48.36% (118/244), 45.9% (112/244) and 5.74% (14/244), respectively, of the patient population. Immunoglobulin A nephropathy was the most common type of lesion in those with NDKD (59, 52.68%) and NDKD superimposed DKD (10, 71.43%). Independent predictive indicators for diagnosing NDKD included a DM duration of less than 5 years (odds ratio [OR] = 4.476; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.257–8.877; P < 0.001), an absence of diabetic retinopathy (OR = 4.174; 95% CI: 2.049–8.502; P < 0.001), a high RBC count (OR = 1.901; 95% CI: 1.251–2.889; P = 0.003), and a negative of urinary glucose excretion test result (OR = 2.985; 95% CI: 1.474–6.044; P = 0.002).. Conclusions: A DM duration less than 5 years, an absence of retinopathy, a high RBC count and an absence of urinary glucose excretion were independent indicators for the diagnosis of NDKD, suggesting that patients with NDKD may require a different treatment regimen than those with DKD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Evaluation of the mid-long-term kinematics of single-level Bryan artificial cervical disc replacement (ACDR) in vivo by analyzing the center of rotation (COR) at the operated level. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted using data collected from 38 patients who underwent single-level Bryan ACDR from January 2010 to March 2013. Radiological parameters including range of motion (ROM), lordosis angle, translation, and COR were obtained. Clinical outcomes were assessed based on Odom Criteria, modified Japanese Orthopedic Association (mJOA), Neck Disability Index (NDI), and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) scores. Correlations between COR and other follow-up data were discussed at the last follow-up. Results: Compared with preoperative values, the last follow-up data showed that 86.84% of cases achieved good-or-excellent outcomes based on Odom criteria; Significant improvements were observed across all scales assessed for clinical outcomes (P < 0.05); Lordosis angle was significantly increased in both the overall cervical spine and the operated level (P < 0.05); ROM of the overall cervical spine, operated level, and adjacent levels was preserved (P > 0.05); There was no significant change in COR at the operated level (P > 0.05). At the last follow-up and at the operated level, COR (Y) showed negative correlations with ROM and translation (P < 0.05), but no follow-up data correlated with COR (X) were found (P > 0.05). Conclusions: Satisfactory clinical and radiological outcomes were achieved 7 years or more after single-level Bryan ACDR. At the operated level, preoperative COR was maintained, probably due to replicating the physiological interrelations of COR (Y), translation, and ROM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under microwave irradiation, five organotin complexes were produced through the reaction of 4‐methylbenzhydrazide, sodium phenylpyruvate and corresponding dialkyltin. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy; 1H, 13C and 119Sn nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy; high‐resolution mass spectrometry; X‐ray crystallography and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were performed to characterise the synthesised complexes. The in vitro antitumour activity for the complexes involved was assessed using the MTT assay on the human carcinoma cells of HepG2, NCI‐H460 and MCF7. 2‐Oxo‐3‐pheny propionic acid p‐methyl benzoylhydrazone dibutyltin, C5, exhibited an intensive anticarcinoma activity. Cell apoptosis revealed that C5 mediated the cell apoptosis of HepG2 cells. DNA binding in C5 was investigated through UV‐visible absorption spectrometry and viscosity measurement. Molecular docking was performed for predicting C5‐DNA binding, which revealed C5 could be implanted into the DNA double helix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The training and updating of the supervised deep learning model are both dependent on labelled data. Unfortunately, the data‐labelling process is usually expensive and time consuming, which makes obtaining labelled data a huge challenge, especially in the field of geophysics. Because of the above‐mentioned factors, some seismic data denoising methods based on supervised deep learning use synthetic seismic data for network training. Since synthetic seismic data are more or less different from real seismic data, the denoising results may have some amount of residual noise and some false signals when dealing with real seismic data. In response to the above problems, this paper introduces an unpaired domain‐to‐domain translation method based on the framework of two‐way generative adversarial networks, which does not need to use labelled data for training, and effectively solves the problem of lacking labelled data in the seismic data denoising tasks. We use an unpaired mixed training set containing synthetic seismic data and real seismic data to train the network, which effectively improves the denoising ability of the network for the real seismic data. The experimental results show that compared with the state‐of‐the‐art denoising methods such as denoising convolutional neural network, the proposed method can suppress the random noise and ground roll more thoroughly, and the denoising results basically would have no false signals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The local structural, electronic, optical, and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) properties are uniformly studied for Cu2+‐doped rutile (TiO2) crystals by using the density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The local cation–oxygen bond lengths and planar bond angle, band gap, Mulliken charge and overlapping population, density of state (DOS), and UV–Vis absorption spectra are calculated for pure and copper‐doped rutile. The smaller overlapping population of Cu–O bonds in the doped system than Ti–O bonds in pure rutile reflects weaker orbital admixtures or covalency of the former. Compared with pure rutile, Cu2+ doping leads to significant redshift of the UV–Vis absorption band and the narrow impurity band in visible and near‐infrared regions arising from the Cu2+ d–d transitions and narrowing of the band gap by about 0.636 eV, possibly suggesting enhancement of visible light activity. The Cu dopant induces a spin magnetic moment of 0.74 μB for the doped rutile. The calculated UV–Vis absorption spectra and spin Hamiltonian parameters for copper‐doped rutile show reasonable agreement with the experimental data and some improvement related to the previous perturbation formula calculations. Present systematic studies would be helpful to understand the mechanisms of the enhancement in the optical and magnetic properties of this material with transition‐metal (especially Cu2+) dopants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study the hedging effectiveness of crude oil futures on the basis of the lower partial moments (LPMs). An improved kernel density estimation method is proposed to estimate the optimal hedge ratio. We investigate crude oil price hedging by contributing to the literature in the following twofold: First, unlike the existing studies which focus on univariate kernel density method, we use bivariate kernel density to calculate the estimated LPMs, wherein the two bandwidths of the bivariate kernel density are not limited to the same, which is our main innovation point. According to the criterion of minimizing the mean integrated square error, we derive the conditions that the optimal bandwidths satisfy. In the process of derivation, we make a distribution assumption locally in order to simplify calculation, but this type of local distribution assumption is far better than global distribution assumption used in parameter method theoretically and empirically. Second, in order to meet the requirement of bivariate kernel density for independent random variables, we adopt ARCH models to obtain the independent noises with related to the returns of crude oil spot and futures. Genetic algorithm is used to tune the parameters that maximize quasi-likelihood. Empirical results reveal that, at first, the hedging strategy based on the improved kernel density estimation method is of highly efficiency, and then it achieves better performance than the hedging strategy based on the traditional parametric method. We also compare the risk control effectiveness of static hedge ratio vs. time-varying hedge ratio and find that static hedging has a better performance than time-varying hedging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The species of Ramaria are coralloid-fungi with intricately branched and vividly coloured basidiomata. There are many studies on the genus Ramaria in China, but molecular phylogenetic analysis is rarely employed. In this study, we performed a multigene phylogenetic analysis to identify Ramaria species in Shanxi Province of northern China. Phylogenetic analyses based on four loci, the internal transcribed spacer region of nuclear ribosomal DNA (ITS), the nuclear large subunit ribosomal DNA (nrLSU), ATPase subunit 6 (atp6), and mitochondrial small subunit ribosomal DNA (mtSSU), revealed 13 Ramaria species from our collections. Combined with morphological examinations, 12 of them were identified as new species, plus a new report to China. The thirteen species were described and illustrated in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study aims to assess the diagnostic utility of vertebral CT value and CT value difference in distinguishing between fresh and old osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures (OVCF). Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 118 patients with OVCF who underwent both MRI and CT examinations at our hospital. The nature of the fractured vertebra was determined according to MRI. The CT value of the fractured vertebrae and the mean CT value of the adjacent normal vertebrae were measured separately, and the differences between these values were calculated. Independent samples t-tests were used to compare CT value and CT value difference among all groups. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was employed to determine the optimal cut-off value for both CT value and CT value difference in differentiating fresh and old fractures. Results: The study included a total of 163 fractured vertebrae from 118 patients. The CT value of fresh fractured vertebrae was significantly higher than those of adjacent normal vertebrae, which was statistically different (P < 0.001). In contrast, the difference between CT value of old fractured vertebrae and those of adjacent normal vertebrae was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). There were significant differences in CT value and CT value difference between fresh fractured vertebrae and old fractured vertebrae (P < 0.001). The ROC curve analysis showed that the optimal cut-off value of CT value for fresh fractures and old fractures was 103.40 HU. The optimal cut-off value of CT value difference was 39.81 HU. Conclusion: Vertebral CT value and CT value difference offer a certain reference value for distinguishing between fresh and old OVCF. These parameters can serve as a rapid diagnostic tool when MRI is unavailable or impractical, aiding in the timely assessment of OVCF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The difference of Hounsfield Unit (HU) value in different regions of L3 vertebra in middle-aged and elderly patients with lumbar degeneration diseases (LDD) was analyzed. To investigate the influence of proliferative tissue on HU value of cancellous bone and its correlation with bone mineral density (BMD). Methods: The medical records of middle-aged and elderly patients with LDD in our hospital from December 2020 to December 2023 were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into osteophyte group and no-osteophyte group according to the presence or absence of osteophyte formation on lumbar spine X-ray. In osteophyte group, cancellous bone HU value, containing cortical bone overall HU value and containing osteophyte overall HU value in L3 vertebra were measured on the lumbar CT cross-section. In no-osteophyte group, only the cancellous bone HU value and the containing cortical bone overall HU value were measured. Differences in HU value in different regions of the L3 vertebral body were compared within and between groups of middle-aged and elderly patients with LDD, respectively. To investigate its effect on cancellous bone HU measurements and to do a correlation analysis with patients' BMD. Results: A total of 115 patients with LDD were included in this study, including 65 males and 50 females, with an average age of 67.83 ± 6.59 years. The results of the study showed no statistical differences in age (P = 0.15), gender (P = 0.57), smoking (P = 0.88), drinking history (P = 0.76), medical history (P > 0.05) and BMI(P = 0.29) between the two groups. In osteophyte group, the mean cancellous bone HU value was 98.00 ± 25.50 HU, the containing cortical bone overall HU value was 189.02 ± 46.18 HU, and the containing osteophyte overall HU value was 232.69 ± 56.01 HU. The overall HU values containing cortical bone and containing osteophyte were significantly higher than cancellous bone HU value (P < 0.001). In no-osteophyte group, the mean cancellous bone HU value was 102.04 ± 19.64 HU, and the containing cortical bone overall HU value was 175.00 ± 28.97 HU, which was statistically significantly different (P < 0.001). There was no significant difference in cancellous bone HU value and the containing cortical bone overall HU value between the two groups (P > 0.05). The results of the Pearson correlation analysis showed a significant correlation between the cancellous bone HU value of the L3 vertebrae and the QCT BMD value of the patients (r = 0.95, P < 0.001). However, there was no significant correlation between containing cortical bone overall HU value and containing osteophyte overall HU value and the patient's QCT BMD value (P > 0.05). Conclusions: Vertebral HU value is an alternative measurement that effectively reflects the patient's BMD. In middle-aged and elderly LDD patients, HU values in different areas of L3 vertebra are significantly different, and hyperplastic tissues such as cortical bone and osteophytes may exponentially lead to higher HU value in patients. Compared with other measurement areas, vertebral cancellous bone HU value have the advantage of accurately assessing patients' BMD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel and simple design approach of compact four‐way filtering power divider (FPD) using half‐mode substrate integrated waveguide (HMSIW) cavity is investigated in this letter. The pre‐defined power division ratio of the four outputs is obtained by adjusting the external quality factor (Qe) of each output port, while the total output Qe is equal to the input Qe. The four outputs are loaded to a single HMSIW resonator, achieving a compact size. Meanwhile, both bandpass response and power division can be designed independently. For demonstration, a prototype with pre‐defined power division ratio of 1:3:3:1 is designed, fabricated, and measured. The measured results show that the FPD centered at 4.88 GHz owns a 3‐dB fractional bandwidth (FBW) of 11.3%. The insertion loss of the passband is about 1.4 dB and the return loss is better than 17 dB, meanwhile the phase differences of in‐phase four outputs are all within 5° from 4.61 to 5.16 GHz. Good agreement is observed between the simulated and measured results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A single-column model (SCM) is developed in the regional climate model RegCM4. The evolution of a dry convection boundary layer (DCBL) is used to evaluate this SCM. Moreover, four planetary boundary layer (PBL) schemes, namely the Holtslag-Boville scheme (HB), Yonsei University scheme (YSU), and two University of Washington schemes (UW01, Grenier-Bretherton-McCaa scheme and UW09, Bretherton-Park scheme), are compared by using the SCM approach. A large-eddy simulation (LES) of the DCBL is performed as a benchmark to examine how well a PBL parameterization scheme reproduces the LES results, and several diagnostic outputs are compared to evaluate the schemes. The results show that the SCM is properly constructed. In general, with the DCBL case, the YSU scheme performs best for reproducing the LES results, which include well-mixed features and vertical sensible heat fluxes; the simulated wind speed, turbulent kinetic energy, entrainment flux, and height of the entrainment zone are all underestimated in the UW09; the UW01 has all those biases of the UW09 but larger, and the simulated potential temperature is not well mixed; the HB is the least skillful scheme, by which the PBL height, entrainment flux, height of the entrainment zone, and the vertical gradients within the mixed layer are all overestimated, and a inversion layer near the top of the surface layer is wrongly simulated. Although more cases and further testing are required, these simulations show encouraging results towards the use of this SCM framework for evaluating the simulated physical processes by the RegCM4. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clarifying interfacial electronic effects on molecular adsorption is significant in many chemical and biochemical processes. Here, we used STM breaking junction and shell‐isolated nanoparticle‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy to probe electron transport and adsorption geometries of 4,4′‐bipyridine (4,4′‐BPY) at Au(111). Modifying the surface with 1‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium cation‐containing ionic liquids (ILs) decreases surface electron density and stabilizes a vertical orientation of pyridine through nitrogen atom σ‐bond interactions, resulting in uniform adsorption configurations for forming molecular junctions. Modulation from vertical, tilted, to flat, is achieved on adding water to ILs, leading to a new peak ascribed to CC stretching of adsorbed pyridyl ring and 316 % modulation of single‐molecule conductance. The dihedral angle between adsorbed pyridyl ring and surface decreases with increasing surface electronic density, enhancing electron donation from surface to pyridyl ring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]