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A green, efficient, and cost-effective bio-derived solvent-based automated dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction (BDS-ADLLME) method was developed in the present study. A liquid handling platform with only the pipetting function module was employed to achieve automated multiple-sample pretreatment and eliminate manual errors. Green bio-derived solvents, γ-valerolactone and eucalyptol, derived from renewable resources and exhibiting high environmental friendliness, were used as dispersant and extractant, respectively. The eucalyptol self-separated from the samples within 5 minutes, eliminating the need for centrifuges and demulsifiers. Four greenness evaluation tools confirmed that the BDS-ADLLME was an environmentally friendly sample pretreatment method meeting the requirements of green chemistry. The linear range was 0.006–3 μg L−1 with R2 > 0.999. The limit of detection was 0.002 μg L−1. The BDS-ADLLME method successfully detected chlorantraniliprole and flubendiamide in tap, river, lake, and spring water samples, with recoveries and relative standard deviations ranging from 83.4–107.7% and 1.7%–5.4%, respectively. The BDS-ADLLME provides a feasible approach for developing automated eco-friendly dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study introduces the concept and methodologies of equity cooperation into the research on the coordinated development of the "water-economy-environment" nexus, and develops a corresponding economic analysis model. The research begins by proposing a theoretical framework for equity cooperation in water resources, exploring foundational theories, conceptual extensions, analogies, and stakeholder interactions. It then introduces the "economic-equity mapping" matrix and its associated model, based on the Input-Output model. An empirical case study is conducted in Hubei Province, China. The findings reveal that between 2010 and 2020, the total input-output increased from 2,218.37 billion to 9,445.80 billion Chinese Yuan (CNY), with an average annual growth rate of 15.6%. Within this period, the total input-output of Water Utilization rose from 7.42 billion to 10.59 billion CNY, while Water Protection increased from 7.53 billion to 19.32 billion CNY. Compared to the initial equity structure, equity in the Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary industries, as well as Water Protection, improved, whereas equity in the Water Supply sector declined. The study recommends increasing environmental investment, particularly led by the Secondary sectors, to achieve regional sustainable development. This research aims to provide a decision-making bases and valuable references for advancing regional sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Malic acid-derived polyamides, polyhydrazides, and hydrazides exhibit strong potential for a variety of biological applications. This study demonstrates the synthesis of cobalt, silver, copper, zinc, and iron particles by a facile chemical reduction approach utilizing malic acid-derived polyamides, polyhydrazides, and hydrazides as stabilizing and reducing agents. Comprehensive characterization of the particles was performed using UV–Vis spectroscopy, FTIR, XRD, SEM, and EDX analysis. The synthesized particles included both zero-valent metals and oxides exhibiting mixed-phase compositions that may influence their functional properties. UV–vis analysis confirmed the formation of particles represented by the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) peaks specific to each metal particle. FTIR spectroscopy revealed the interaction of the metal particles with the polymer matrix owing to the significant contribution of functional groups in the processes of reduction and stabilization. Further structural insights were obtained via X-ray diffraction (XRD), which identified crystalline phases, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), which demonstrated uniform morphologies. Additionally, energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis provided compositional details, affirming the purity and distribution of metallic elements. These findings highlight the potential of malic acid-derived polymers as versatile agents for nanoparticle synthesis with applications in catalysis, sensing, and biomedical technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate the 12-month rotational stability and outcomes of V4c toric Implantable Collamer Lenses (TICLs) (STAAR Surgical) located at two different lens orientations (horizontal or oblique). Methods: This retrospective study included a total of 403 eyes with TICL implantation, enrolled between January 2021 and December 2022, that were divided into two groups based on the minimum intended angle off the horizontal axis: horizontal with 263 eyes at an angle ±22.5 degrees or less and oblique with 140 eyes at a minimum intended angle of greater than ±22.5 degrees. A comparison was made of the preoperative characteristics, surgical outcomes, secondary surgical interventions, footplate positions, and adverse events at 1, 6, and 12 months postoperatively. The rotation-related factors were analyzed. Results: At 12 months, there were 243 eyes (92%) in the horizontal group and 130 eyes (93%) in the oblique group that were within ±0.50 diopters (D) of emmetropia. Their rotation proportion was 5.3 % and 5.7%, respectively, and their rotation angle was 9.11 ± 2.84 and 9.96 ± 2.42 degrees, respectively (P =.086). TICL footplates were mostly positioned on the ciliary body. No correlation was observed of lens placement axis, vault, or manifest refraction with rotation in both groups (P >.05). During the follow-up, no vision-threatening complications were observed in both groups. Rotation cases were successfully addressed via alignment or lens exchange. Conclusions: TICLs, when implanted across a range of lens orientations, demonstrated favorable rotational stability and postoperative outcomes. The postoperative rotational stability is independent of the placement angle of the TICL. [J Refract Surg. 2025;41(1):e29–e38.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An innovative assembled stiffener‐plate PEC beam‐column joint (SP‐PEC) is proposed to improve better constructability. In this paper, 12 PEC beam‐column joint specimens were subjected to quasi‐static cyclic tests. The design parameters included the thickness of the stiffener‐plate (equal‐stiffness thickness at load standard combination, full‐stiffness thickness of the cross‐section, and 120% of full‐stiffness thickness of the cross‐section) and the beam‐column connection with or without the stub beam. The results revealed that the assembled SP‐PEC beam‐column joint exhibited better seismic performance than the conventional PEC beam‐column concrete joint. The strength degradation coefficients of SP‐PEC beam‐column nodes are all greater than 0.92, and the stiffness decreases slowly. The specimens had good bearing capacity, deformation ability, energy dissipation capacity, and stiffness under a reasonable stiffener‐plate thickness. Then, the bearing capacity calculation formulae of the novel joint with certain prediction accuracy were proposed. Besides, the finite element models of the test specimens were established in ABAQUS and validated against the test results. Finally, further investigations of the SP‐PEC joint configuration by finite element analysis and engineering design recommendations for the assembled SP‐PEC beam‐column joint were provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early racial disparities in COVID-19 vaccination rates have been attributed primarily to personal vaccine attitudes and behavior. Little attention has been paid to the possibility that inequitable vaccine distribution may have contributed to racial disparities in vaccine uptake when supplies were most scarce. We test the hypothesis that scarce vaccines were distributed inequitably using the shipping addresses of 385,930 COVID-19 vaccine doses distributed in the first 17 weeks of Pennsylvania's Phase 1 rollout (December 14, 2020 through April 12, 2021). All shipments we analyze were allocated via the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, a public-private partnership coordinated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Overall, White people had an average of 81.4% more retail pharmacy program doses shipped to their neighborhoods than did Black people. Regression models reveal that weekly vaccine allocations determined by pharmacy chains—rather than initial shipment and administration site decisions requiring state and federal approval—drove these effects. All findings remained consistent after controlling for neighborhood differences in income, population density, insurance coverage, number of pharmacies, and other social determinants of health. Our findings suggest that the private distribution of scarce public resources should be assessed for racial impact, regulated as public resources, and monitored continuously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The exploration of microbial genetic resources for the production of fFen-flavor Baijiu has not only enriched the microbial library for baijiu production but has also laid the foundation for process improvement and strain optimization in baijiu brewing. In this study, a total of 177 fungal isolates were screened, including Saccharomyces cerevisiae, non-Saccharomyces cerevisiae, molds, and some pathogenic bacteria. Among them, Saccharomyces cerevisiae was the most abundant with 119 isolates, playing a major role in the fermentation of baijiu production. A total of 148 bacterial isolates were obtained from the fermentation mash samples, showing greater diversity compared to fungi. Bacillus species were the most abundant, with 94 isolates. Bacillus licheniformis, in particular, can produce a rich enzymatic system and flavor precursors, making it an important contributor to the sensory quality of baijiu. Lactic acid bacteria were the second most abundant, with 16 isolates. Additionally, five pathogenic fungal species were identified, including Candida pelliculosa, Candida lusitaniae, Fusarium oxysporum, Fusarium solani and Talaromyces marneffei. Six pathogenic bacterial species were also isolated, namely Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus xylosus, Moraxella osloensis, Actinomyces meyeri and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia. Finally, two strains of high acetate ethyl ester-producing yeast and lactate-degrading bacteria with good tolerance to temperature, pH, and ethanol concentration were identified as Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Bacillus licheniformis, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cutting-edge detection is a critical step in mechanized rice harvesting. Through visual cutting-edge detection, an algorithm can sense in real-time whether the rice harvesting process is along the cutting-edge, reducing loss and improving the efficiency of mechanized harvest. Although convolutional neural network-based models, which have strong local feature acquisition ability, have been widely used in rice production, these models involve large receptive fields only in the deep network. Besides, a self-attention-based Transformer can effectively provide global features to complement the disadvantages of CNNs. Hence, to quickly and accurately complete the task of cutting-edge detection in a complex rice harvesting environment, this article develops a Transformer Convolution Network (TCNet). This cutting-edge detection algorithm combines the Transformer with a CNN. Specifically, the Transformer realizes a patch embedding through a 3 × 3 convolution, and the output is employed as the input of the Transformer module. Additionally, the multi-head attention in the Transformer module undergoes dimensionality reduction to reduce overall network computation. In the Feed-forward network, a 7 × 7 convolution operation is used to realize the position-coding of different patches. Moreover, CNN uses depth-separable convolutions to extract local features from the images. The global features extracted by the Transformer and the local features extracted by the CNN are integrated into the fusion module. The test results demonstrated that TCNet could segment 97.88% of the Intersection over Union and 98.95% of the Accuracy in the unharvested region, and the number of parameters is only 10.796M. Cutting-edge detection is better than common lightweight backbone networks, achieving the detection effect of deep convolutional networks (ResNet-50) with fewer parameters. The proposed TCNet shows the advantages of a Transformer combined with a CNN and provides real-time and reliable reference information for the subsequent operation of rice harvesting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study aimed to construct a competing risk prediction model for predicting specific mortality risks in endometrial cancer patients from the SEER database based on their demographic characteristics and tumor information. Methods: We collected relevant clinical data on patients with histologically confirmed endometrial cancer in the SEER database between 2010 and 2015. Univariate and multivariate competing risk models were used to analyze the risk factors for endometrial cancer‐specific death, and a predictive nomogram was constructed. C‐index and receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) at different time points were used to verify the accuracy of the constructed nomogram. Results: There were 26 109 eligible endometrial cancer patients in the training cohort and 11 189 in the validation cohort. Univariate and multivariate analyses revealed that Age, Marriage, Grade, Behav, FIGO, Size, Surgery, SurgOth, Radiation, ParaAortic_Nodes, Peritonea, N positive, DX_liver, and DX_lung were independent prognostic factors for specific mortality in endometrial cancer patients. Based on these factors, a nomogram was constructed. Internal validation showed that the nomogram had a good discriminative ability (C‐index = 0.883 [95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.881–0.884]), and the 1‐, 3‐, and 5‐year AUC values were 0.901, 0.886 and 0.874, respectively. External validation indicated similar results (C‐index = 0.883 [95%CI: 0.882–0.883]), and the 1‐, 3‐, and 5‐ AUC values were 0.908, 0.885 and 0.870, respectively. Conclusion: We constructed a competing risk model to predict the specific mortality risk among endometrial cancer patients. This model has favorable accuracy and reliability and can provide a reference for the development and update of endometrial cancer prognostic risk assessment tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fermentation process of Chinese Baijiu's fermented grains involves the intricate succession and metabolism of microbial communities, collectively shaping the Baijiu's quality. Understanding the composition and succession of these living microbial communities within fermented grains is crucial for comprehending fermentation and flavor formation mechanisms. However, conducting high-throughput analysis of living microbial communities within the complex microbial system of fermented grains poses significant challenges. Thus, this study addressed this challenge by devising a high-throughput analysis framework using light-flavor Baijiu as a model. This framework combined propidium monoazide (PMA) pretreatment technology with amplicon sequencing techniques. Optimal PMA treatment parameters, including a concentration of 50 μM and incubation in darkness for 5 min followed by an exposure incubation period of 5 min, were identified. Utilizing this protocol, viable microorganism biomass ranging from 8.71 × 106 to 1.47 × 108 copies/μL was successfully detected in fermented grain samples. Subsequent amplicon sequencing analysis revealed distinct microbial community structures between untreated and PMA-treated groups, with notable differences in relative abundance compositions, particularly in dominant species such as Lactobacillus, Bacillus, Pediococcus, Saccharomycopsis, Issatchenkia and Pichia, as identified by LEfSe analysis. The results of this study confirmed the efficacy of PMA-amplicon sequencing technology for analyzing living microbial communities in fermented grains and furnished a methodological framework for investigating living microbial communities in diverse traditional fermented foods. This technical framework holds considerable significance for advancing our understanding of the fermentation mechanisms intrinsic to traditional fermented foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research presents a new, eco-friendly, and swift method combining solid-phase extraction and hydrophobic deep eutectic solvents (DES) with high-performance liquid chromatography (SPE-DES-HPLC) for extracting and quantifying catechin and epicatechin in Shanxi aged vinegar (SAV). The parameters, such as the elution solvent type, the XAD-2 macroporous resin dosage, the DES ratio, the DES volume, the adsorption time, and the desorption time, were optimized via a one-way experiment. A central composite design using the Box–Behnken methodology was employed to investigate the effects of various factors, including 17 experimental runs and the construction of three-dimensional response surface plots to identify the optimal conditions. The results show that the optimal conditions were an HDES (tetraethylammonium chloride and octanoic acid) ratio of 1:3, an XAD-2 macroporous resin dosage of 188 mg, and an adsorption time of 11 min. Under these optimal conditions, the coefficients of determination of the method were greater than or equal to 0.9917, the precision was less than 5%, and the recoveries ranged from 98.8% to 118.8%. The environmentally friendly nature of the analytical process and sample preparation was assessed via the Analytical Eco-Scale and AGREE, demonstrating that this method is a practical and eco-friendly alternative to conventional determination techniques. In summary, this innovative approach offers a solid foundation for the assessment of flavanol compounds present in SAV samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the tensile and shear characteristics of fully prefabricated partially composite floor slab joints through the design and testing of two tensile specimens, three steel–concrete specimens, and three concrete–concrete shear specimens. These tests aimed to evaluate how various connection designs influence the joints' load-bearing capabilities and failure patterns. The findings revealed that the tensile specimens predominantly showed bond failures at the interface of the precast and cast-in-place layers, accompanied by rebar pull-out. Incorporating reinforcing bars or sleeves was found to potentially increase their ultimate load-bearing capacity by about 20%. The shear failures in the steel–concrete specimens were primarily due to interactions between the steel beam and adjacent composite slab, whereas the concrete–concrete specimens mostly underwent local crushing at the load application point and failure at the bonding interface. These observations affirmed the accuracy of the existing methods for calculating tensile and shear strengths, offering vital insights for the architectural design and construction of such floor joints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Although previous studies have found a close relationship between sense of place and creativity, few studies have been conducted considering the micro-environment of the classroom. The mediating role of classmate relationships in the association between students' sense of place and creativity remains unclear. Methods: This study explores classmate relationships as a mediating factor in the relationship between sense of place and creativity. Therefore, we considered a sample of 1555 Chinese high-school students and used a paper-based questionnaire survey. Data analysis was performed using SPSS 24.0, PROCESS 3.2 plugin, and AMOS. Results: Sense of place in the micro-environment of the classroom has a significant positive predictive effect on creativity. Sense of place also has a significant positive predictive effect on peer relationships. The mediation analysis reveals that peer relationships play a mediating role in the relationship between the sense of place and creativity. Conclusions: This study revealed the associations between sense of place, classmate relationships, and creativity. Creativity is better expressed in students with a strong sense of place in the classroom. Moreover, a student's sense of place can enhance their creativity by influencing their peer relationships. These findings enrich the research in educational psychology within the classroom, providing new insights for fostering creativity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mine dust pollution poses a hindrance to achieving green and climate-smart mining. This paper uses weather forecast data and mine production intensity data as model inputs to develop a novel model for forecasting daily dust concentration values in open pit mines by employing and integrating multiple machine learning techniques. The results show that the forecast model exhibits high accuracy, with a Pearson correlation coefficient exceeding 0.87. The PM2.5 forecast model performs best, followed by the total suspended particle and PM10 models. The inclusion of production intensity significantly enhances model performance. Total column water vapor exerts the most significant impact on the model's predictive performance, while the impacts of rock production and coal production are also notable. The proposed daily forecast model leverages production intensity data to predict future dust concentrations accurately. This tool offers valuable insights for optimizing mine design parameters, enabling informed decisions based on real-time forecasts. It effectively prevents severe pollution in the mining area while maximizing the use of natural meteorological conditions for effective dust removal and diffusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rice lodging is a crucial problem in rice production. Lodging during growing and harvesting periods can decrease rice yields. Practical lodging judgment for rice can provide effective reference information for yield prediction and harvesting. This article proposes a binocular camera-based lodging judgment method for rice in real-time. As a first step, the binocular camera and Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) were calibrated. Secondly, Census and Grayscale Level cost features are constructed for stereo matching of left and right images. The Cross-Matching Cost Aggregation method is improved to compute the aggregation space in the LAB color space. Then, the Winner-Takes-All algorithm is applied to determine the optimal disparity for each pixel. A disparity map is constructed, and Multi-Step Disparity Refinement is applied to the disparity map to generate the final one. Finally, coordinate transformation obtains 3D world coordinates corresponding to pixels. IMU calculates the real-time pose of the binocular camera. A pose transformation is applied to the 3D world coordinates of the rice to obtain its 3D world coordinates in the horizontal state of the camera (pitch and roll angles are equal to 0). Based on the distance between the rice and the camera level, thresholding was used to determine whether the region to be detected belonged to lodging rice. The disparity map effect of the proposed matching algorithm was tested on the Middlebury Benchmark v3 dataset. The results show that the proposed algorithm is superior to the widely used Semi-Global Block Matching (SGBM) stereo-matching algorithm. Field images of rice were analyzed for lodging judgments. After the threshold judgment, the lodging region results were accurate and could be used to judge rice lodging. By combining the algorithms with binocular cameras, the research results can provide practical technical support for yield estimation and intelligent control of rice harvesters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to investigate the antioxidant activity of Elaeagnus umbellata polysaccharides, the physicochemical characteristics of purified Elaeagnus umbellata polysaccharides (EUP, consisting of two fractions, EUP1 and EUP2) were investigated using UV spectrophotometry, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), high-performance gel permeation chromatography (HPGPC), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). This revealed that EUP1 and EUP2 were acidic polysaccharides with an average molecular weight (MW) of 63 and 38 kDa, respectively. EUP1 mainly consisted of L-rhamnose and D-galactose in a molar ratio of 2.05:1, and EUP2 consisted of D-mannose, L-rhamnose, D-galactose, and D-arabinose in a molar ratio of 2.06:1:2.78:1. Furthermore, EUP exhibited considerable antioxidant potential for scavenging hydroxyl, superoxide anion, DPPH, and ABTS radicals. Therefore, EUP can be developed as a potential antioxidant for the functional food or pharmaceutical field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to explore key physicochemical characteristics and evolutionary patterns of microbial community structure during the fermentation of aged vinegar. The correlation between microorganisms and physicochemical characteristics during fermentation was examined. The results revealed significant differences in genera at different stages of fermentation. The dominant bacteria in R1 were Bacillus, Lactobacillus, Aspergillus, and Issatchenkia. During the R2 fermentation stage, Lactobacillus, Acetobacter, and Saccharomyces exhibited an upward trend and finally became the dominant bacteria. Aspergillus was the main bacterial genus at the end of overall fermentation. The correlation analysis showed that the bacterial genera significantly positively and negatively correlated with reducing sugars and amino acid nitrogen were the same in Cuqu. Similarly, the bacterial genera significantly positively and negatively correlated with pH and saccharification power were the same. pH, reducing sugar, and saccharification ability were mainly positively correlated with bacterial genera during fermentation. Further, studies found that the overall correlation between fungal communities and physicochemical characteristics was weaker than the correlation with bacteria during fermentation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Financial time series are nonlinear, volatile and chaotic. Inspired by quantum computing, this paper proposed a new model, called primary ensemble empirical mode decomposition combined with quantum neural network (PEEMD-QNN) in predicting the stock index. PEEMD-QNN takes the advantages of the PEEMD which retains the main component of modal component and QNN. To demonstrate that our PEEMD-QNN model is robust, we used the new model to predict six major stock index time series in China at a specific time. Detailed experiments are implemented for both of the proposed prediction models, in which empirical mode decomposition combined with QNN (EMD-QNN), QNN and BP neural network are compared. The results demonstrate that the proposed PEEMD-QNN model has higher accuracy than BP neural network, QNN model and EMD-QNN model in stock market prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate the safety and the effectiveness of our novel penetrating keratoplasty for infectious keratitis. Methods: Retrospective, noncomparative, interventional case series of patients with infectious keratitis who received the novel penetrating keratoplasty technique were analyzed. A prepared plastic sheet was located between the diseased cornea and iris-lens diaphragm. After the diseased lesions were removed, the graft was positioned on the plastic sheet and sutured to the recipient bed. The plastic sheet was pulled out from the anterior chamber before the all interrupted sutures were placed. The intra- and post-operative complications, the outcome of the graft and the number of corneal endothelial cells were analyzed. Results: A total of 82 eyes of 82 patients was included. The mean follow-up period was 29 ± 16 months (range from 13 to 45 months). No intraocular content extrusion, simultaneous cataract extraction and suprachoroidal hemorrhage occurred. Direct contact between the infectious cornea and the graft was successfully avoided. Greater than expected endothelial cell reduction or complications were not found. Conclusions: This modified technique effectively prevents the extrusion of intraocular contents while avoiding the direct contact with donor endothelium during the procedure. The occurrence rate of complications such as endothelial cell loss is not higher than the conventional methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microvascular endothelial cells (MiVECs) impair angiogenic potential, leading to microvascular rarefaction, which is a characteristic feature of chronic pressure overload‐induced cardiac dysfunction. Semaphorin3A (Sema3A) is a secreted protein upregulated in MiVECs following angiotensin II (Ang II) activation and pressure overload stimuli. However, its role and mechanism in microvascular rarefaction remain elusive. The function and mechanism of action of Sema3A in pressure overload‐induced microvascular rarefaction, is explored, through an Ang II‐induced animal model of pressure overload. RNA sequencing, immunoblotting analysis, enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay, quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT‐PCR), and immunofluorescence staining results indicate that Sema3A is predominantly expressed and significantly upregulated in MiVECs under pressure overload. Immunoelectron microscopy and nano‐flow cytometry analyses indicate small extracellular vesicles (sEVs), with surface‐attached Sema3A, to be a novel tool for efficient release and delivery of Sema3A from the MiVECs to extracellular microenvironment. To investigate pressure overload‐mediated cardiac microvascular rarefaction and cardiac fibrosis in vivo, endothelial‐specific Sema3A knockdown mice are established. Mechanistically, serum response factor (transcription factor) promotes the production of Sema3A; Sema3A‐positive sEVs compete with vascular endothelial growth factor A to bind to neuropilin‐1. Therefore, MiVECs lose their ability to respond to angiogenesis. In conclusion, Sema3A is a key pathogenic mediator that impairs the angiogenic potential of MiVECs, which leads to cardiac microvascular rarefaction in pressure overload‐induced heart disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate the safety and the effectiveness of our novel penetrating keratoplasty for infectious keratitis. Methods: Retrospective, noncomparative, interventional case series of patients with infectious keratitis who received the novel penetrating keratoplasty technique were analyzed. A prepared plastic sheet was located between the diseased cornea and iris-lens diaphragm. After the diseased lesions were removed, the graft was positioned on the plastic sheet and sutured to the recipient bed. The plastic sheet was pulled out from the anterior chamber before the all interrupted sutures were placed. The intra- and post-operative complications, the outcome of the graft and the number of corneal endothelial cells were analyzed. Results: A total of 82 eyes of 82 patients was included. The mean follow-up period was 29 ± 16 months (range from 13 to 45 months). No intraocular content extrusion, simultaneous cataract extraction and suprachoroidal hemorrhage occurred. Direct contact between the infectious cornea and the graft was successfully avoided. Greater than expected endothelial cell reduction or complications were not found. Conclusions: This modified technique effectively prevents the extrusion of intraocular contents while avoiding the direct contact with donor endothelium during the procedure. The occurrence rate of complications such as endothelial cell loss is not higher than the conventional methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate the safety and the effectiveness of our novel penetrating keratoplasty for infectious keratitis. Methods: Retrospective, noncomparative, interventional case series of patients with infectious keratitis who received the novel penetrating keratoplasty technique were analyzed. A prepared plastic sheet was located between the diseased cornea and iris-lens diaphragm. After the diseased lesions were removed, the graft was positioned on the plastic sheet and sutured to the recipient bed. The plastic sheet was pulled out from the anterior chamber before the all interrupted sutures were placed. The intra- and post-operative complications, the outcome of the graft and the number of corneal endothelial cells were analyzed. Results: A total of 82 eyes of 82 patients was included. The mean follow-up period was 29 ± 16 months (range from 13 to 45 months). No intraocular content extrusion, simultaneous cataract extraction and suprachoroidal hemorrhage occurred. Direct contact between the infectious cornea and the graft was successfully avoided. Greater than expected endothelial cell reduction or complications were not found. Conclusions: This modified technique effectively prevents the extrusion of intraocular contents while avoiding the direct contact with donor endothelium during the procedure. The occurrence rate of complications such as endothelial cell loss is not higher than the conventional methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research presents a novel, eco-friendly, vortex-assisted liquid–liquid microextraction (VALLME) approach, integrating hydrophobic deep eutectic solvents (DESs) with HPLC for the identification and quantification of nine specific flavonoids in Shanxi aged vinegar (SAV). The parameters of DES-VALLME, including the ratio of trioctylmethylammonium chloride to 1,4-butanediol (1:6), DES volume (150 μL), vortex duration (5 min), the concentration of NaCl (0.40 g), and centrifugation time (10 min), were optimized to achieve the maximum extraction efficiency of target substances. Under these optimal conditions, quantitative analyses performed via HPLC demonstrated a broad linear range of 0.20–50.00 μg/mL and correlation coefficients (r2) greater than 0.9944 for all nine calibration curves. The limits of detection (LOD) and limits of quantitation (LOQ) were 0.09–0.18 μg/mL and 0.30–0.60 μg/mL, respectively, ensuring high sensitivity. The relative standard deviations for intra-day and inter-day variability were within the acceptable range, 2.34–3.77% and 3.04–4.96%, respectively, demonstrating the method's reliability. The recovery rates ranged from 85.97% to 108.11%, underscoring the method's precision. This technique exhibited a significant enrichment effect (enrichment factor: 43 to 296) on SAV flavonoids. Notably, the eco-friendliness of this procedure was evaluated using the Analytical Eco-Scale, Green Analytical Procedure Index, and Analytical Greenness Metric. The results suggested that this technique is a viable green alternative to traditional flavonoid determination methods in SAV. In summary, this novel method provides a theoretical basis for assessing flavonoid content in SAV samples and tracing SAV products. This contribution has significant implications for enhancing analytical techniques in food chemistry and environmental science and the sustainable development of the food industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stubble after cotton harvesting was used as the detection object to achieve the visual navigation operation for residual film recovery after autumn. An improved (You Only Look Once v3) YOLOv3-based target detection algorithm was proposed to detect cotton stubble. First, field images of residual film recycling were collected. Considering the inconsistency between stubble size and shape, a segmented labeling data set of stubble is proposed. Secondly, the Darknet-53 backbone of the original YOLOv3 network is improved to accommodate tiny targets. Next, the prediction anchor box of the improved detection backbone is clustered using K-means++, and the size of the prediction anchor box suitable for improved YOLOv3 is determined. Finally, for the false detection points after detection, a mean value denoising method is used to remove the false detection points. Feature points are extracted from the denoised stubble, and the candidate points are fitted by the least square method to obtain the navigation line. The optimal model with a mean average precision (mAP) of 0.925 is selected for testing at the test stage. The test results show that the algorithm in this article can detect the stubble of residual film recovery images at different locations, different time periods, and different camera depression angles without misdetection. The detection speed of a single image is 98.6 ms. Based on an improvement over YOLOv3, the improved model has a significantly higher detection rate in different scenarios than YOLOv3. This can provide practical technical support for the visual navigation of residual film recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Purpose: To observe the safety and effect of the C-pupilloplasty for the treatment of iris coloboma and traumatic iris defects. Methods: A total of 21 cases (21 eyes) with iris coloboma or traumatic iris defects who underwent C-pupilloplasty (a single-pass three-throw technique) from Feb. 2016 to Mar. 2020 were analyzed retrospectively. Uncorrected visual acuity, refraction, corneal topographic keratometry and endothelial cell density were examined. Results: All the patients were successfully treated, and a central and round pupil was restored. The mean follow-up duration was 8.76 ± 3.58 months (ranging from 2 to 14 months). All patients had round or round-like pupils with a diameter less than or equal to 3 mm after the C-pupilloplasty. Very slightly endothelial loss, negligible symptoms such as glare, distortion, dizziness and photophobia were observed. Conclusion: We introduced a new technique of pupilloplasty (C-pupilloplasty) which could be a more straight forward and more effective treatment for iris coloboma and traumatic iris defect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Slope engineering is a type of complex system engineering that is mostly involved in water conservancy and civil and mining engineering. Moreover, the link between slope stability and engineering safety is quite close. This study took the stable state of the slope as the prediction object and used the unit weight, cohesion, internal friction angle, pore water pressure coefficient, slope angle, and slope height as prediction indices to analyze the slope stability based on the collection of 117 slope data points. The genetic algorithm was used to solve the hyperparameters of machine learning algorithms by simulating the phenomena of reproduction, hybridization, and mutation in the natural selection and natural genetic processes. Five algorithms were used, including the support vector machine, random forest, nearest neighbor, decision tree, and gradient boosting machine models. Finally, all of the obtained stability prediction results were compared. The prediction outcomes were analyzed using the confusion matrix, receiver characteristic operator (ROC), and area under the curve (AUC) value. The AUC values of all machine learning prediction results were between 0.824 and 0.964, showing excellent performance. Considering the AUC value, accuracy, and other factors, the random forest algorithm with KS cutoff was determined to be the optimal model, and the relative importance of the influencing variables was studied. The results show that cohesion was the factor that most affects slope stability, and the influence factor was 0.327. This study proves the effectiveness of the integrated techniques for slope stability prediction, makes essential suggestions for future slope stability analysis, and may be extensively applied in other industrial projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the prevalence and clinical metabolic characteristics of lean nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in an elderly Chinese population and assessed the relevance of lipid markers and genetic variation. All 5,338 community subjects underwent detailed clinical and laboratory examinations and were divided into three groups: lean (Body mass index (BMI) < 23 kg/m2, n = 2,012), overweight (BMI = 23–24.9 kg/m2, n = 1,354), and obese (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2, n = 1,972). Single nucleotide polymorphisms were selected based on those reported in previous NAFLD or obesity genome-wide association studies. The frequencies of alleles and genotypes were calculated and statistically analyzed with Pearson's χ2 tests. One-way ANCOVA was used to test the association between positive SNPs and metabolic parameters in lean NAFLD individuals. Our results showed that the C allele frequency of rs2279026, the G allele of rs2279028, the C allele of rs780093, and the C allele frequency of rs1260326 were higher in obese NAFLD than in lean NAFLD (P < 0.05). In addition, we observed an association between the CC of rs1421085, TT of rs3751812, AA of rs8050136, and AA of rs9939609 genotypes in the FTO gene and low-density lipoprotein levels (P < 0.05). In conclusion, our findings provide a unique perspective on the prevalence, genetic characteristics, and metabolic profile of NAFLD in older lean individuals in China. This is the first study to examine the association between genetic variants in the FTO, TFAP2B and GCKR genes and NAFLD in a cohort of lean individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A polarization‐insensitive frequency‐selective rasorber (FSR) with a high‐transmission passband and two wide absorption bands is proposed. The proposed FSR consists of an absorptive layer and a frequency selective surface (FSS) layer. The absorptive layer employs a four‐arm square spiral resonator with four fork shape resonators connected by lumped resistances to form broadband transmission and absorption. The FSS layer is formed by three metallic patches and two dielectric substrates, which are applied to generate a wide passband. The simulated results demonstrate that the 1‐dB transmission passband enables to obtain of 40.2% fractional bandwidth (FBW) from 9 GHz to 13.53 GHz, and the minimum in‐band insertion loss (IL) is 0.07 dB. Besides, the reflection bandwidth below −10 dB can reach 135% from 3.29 GHz to 16.90 GHz. Finally, the FSR's prototype is fabricated and measured. The results of measurement are fitted well with the simulated ones, which means that the proposed FSS can achieve broadband transmission and absorption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate the composition, structure, in vitro antioxidant, and hypoglycemic activities of a novel water‐soluble MBP‐1, an extract from millet bran, isolated by DEAE‐52 cellulose and purified by Sephadex G‐100. The results showed that MBP‐1 was mainly composed of xylose, mannose, galactose, rhamnose, and arabinose with a molar ratio of 0.72:0.59:76.26:1.04:0.83 and a molecular weight of 6.6×104 Da, and its purity was 98%, and the yield was 3.76%. MBP‐1 has an irregular granular structure by atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy, and the anomeric carbon in MBP‐1 molecule has α‐configuration and β‐configuration by NMR and FTIR. The in vitro scavenging abilities of MBP‐1 for·OH, DPPH, O2·−, and ABTS+ were 73.5%, 80%, 69.8%, and 75.2%, respectively, and the chelating activity for Fe2+ was 50%, and the inhibition rates of α‐glucosidase and α‐amylase were 78.5% and 74.6%, respectively, which indicated that MBP‐1 possessed strong antioxidant and hypoglycemic activities. The results indicated that MBP‐1 have certain application prospects in food‐related fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elaeagnus mollis oil (EMO) meal, a by-product of oil production with plentiful protein, is considered a cheap and good quality source of plant protein for use in the food industry. In this study, the influence of limited enzymatic hydrolysis of EMO meal protein on the structure, solubility, foaming and emulsifying capacities was investigated in detail. The hydrolysates with different DH values (5, 10, 15, and 17) were obtained by controlling the time of enzymatic hydrolysis with alcalase. The results showed that enzymatic hydrolysis decreased molecular weight and increased flexibility and surface hydrophobicity. At the given range of pH and concentration of NaCl, the solubility, foaming and emulsifying capacities of hydrolysates were significantly improved, especially in the area of isoelectric point, and increased with the increase of DH. It was also found that the hydrolysate with DH10 had better foaming and emulsifying stability. In general, appropriate enzymatic hydrolysis could improve the functional properties in favor of their potential use as food ingredients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Active bystandership (AB) training in the Baltimore Police Department (titled Ethical Policing is Courageous, (EPIC)) was designed to (1) prevent misconduct, (2) avoid mistakes, and (3) promote healthy officers. AB training promotes an organizational culture where officers feel empowered to intervene when noticing their colleagues are or are about to, engage in dangerous, unwanted, or inappropriate behaviour. It focuses on direct intervention in an informal capacity rather than formalized reporting. Self-report surveys (n = 1,753) were collected immediately post-completion of EPIC training. Survey domains included perceived impact of the training on behaviour, application to the job, confidence in ability to intervene, and ability to address ethical challenges. A large majority of respondents indicated greater likelihood of intervening after the training and having confidence in their ability to intervene with peers and supervisors; write-in responses suggested that the biggest perceived challenge was in intervening with supervisors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital content creators, such as podcasters, musicians, writers, and YouTubers, are increasingly using subscription-based crowdfunding (SBC) platforms to attract backers and obtain recurring funding from them. Unlike conventional crowdfunding, a hallmark of SBC is the recurring funding scheme structured as a creator-centered freemium model. Empowering creators to build their person brands, SBC platforms are providing creators with novel features to control the information that they share with their backers or fans or conceal from them. Based on a large-scale study on Patreon, an SBC platform, we show how creators can effectively leverage two types of information controls—earnings concealment and private postings—to build their person brands and thereby develop their backer base and fan engagement. Interestingly, we also find a reinforcing relationship in which the increases in backer base and fan engagement further stimulate creators to leverage information controls in their SBC campaigns to grow their person brands. In sum, although information controls are effective in aggregate to build person brands on SBCs, creators need to dynamically adjust the extent of use of information controls based on changes in their backer base and fan engagement. Subscription-based crowdfunding (SBC) is an emerging platform for creators of digital content (e.g., music, comics, stories, and videos) to build their person brands and garner support from fans. A unique feature that sets SBC apart from other crowdfunding models is the creator-centered freemium model. That is, creators can offer free content to attract fans, who can then subscribe to financially support a creator; in return, the backers gain access to the creator's premium content and exclusive perks. In doing so, creators receive regular (e.g., monthly) subscription payments from their backers to sustain their ongoing creative activities. The SBC context engenders unique creator-centric dynamics and mechanisms that are ill understood in crowdfunding literature. In this study, we investigate the effects of SBC creators' two information control strategies: (1) earnings concealment and (2) private postings. From a brand management perspective, we theorize that earnings concealment improves brand authenticity, whereas private postings foster brand differentiation, cocreation, and attachment. These will lead to a positive impact on the financial (backer base) and nonfinancial (fan participation) outcomes of an SBC campaign. Furthermore, we propose a reinforcing dynamic between information control and SBC performance whereby better SBC outcomes will increase the creators' tendencies to engage in information control. To test our hypotheses, we obtained panel data from a large SBC platform that contains monthly observations of 92,850 creators from August 2016 to December 2017. The results of our empirical analyses provide evidence for the benefits of the two information control strategies in SBC and demonstrate the reinforcing relationships between information control and SBC outcomes for creators. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of our findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An optic‐fiber sensor for detecting the concentration of trace copper ions is proposed using a ternary cross‐linked sensitive film coated on the Mach–Zehnder microfiber interferometer surface. The microfiber has a huge evanescent field offering high sensitivity to the ambient refractive index. The chelation between imidazole groups in the coated thin film and copper ions changes the refractive index of the sensor surface, which is converted into macroscopic wavelength drift in the interference spectrum. The sensitivity of the sensor is up to 7.715 × 106 nm M−1 with the detection limit of 0.0576 ppm. This sensor can effectively avoid the effect of temperature cross‐response and has good specificity and stability. This study has instructive meanings for designing optical pollutant sensors with high stability and improved detection accuracy in a potentially multi‐characteristic environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rosmarinic acid (RosA) is a phenolic acid compound extracted from perilla. In this experiment, the Oxford cup method was used to verify the antibacterial activity of PerillaRosA against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella, and Bacillus subtilis. By polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, the effect of RosA on bacterial nucleic acid and bacterial Na+/K+‐ATP‐ase activity, and scanning electron microscope to exploration of its antibacterial mechanism preliminarily. The results showed that RosA had antibacterial properties against all four bacteria. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of E. coli were 0.8 and 0.9 mg/ml, respectively. The MIC and MBC of Salmonella were 0.9 and 1.0 mg/ml, respectively. The MIC and MBC of S. aureus and B. subtilis were both 1.0 and 1.1 mg/ml. RosA has the bacteriostasis function, which can destroy bacterial cells and cell proteins and inhibit the activity of Na+/K+‐ATP‐ase in cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: This study investigated the inhibitory effects of curcumin and piperine on fluorescent advanced glycation end products (fAGEs) formation in a bovine serum albumin (BSA)–fructose model. Model systems of BSA and fructose were prepared, and curcumin or piperine was added. fAGEs and BSA oxidation product (dityrosine, kynurenine and N'‐formylkynurenine) contents were determined. The results showed that fAGEs content decreased with increasing concentration of curcumin and piperine (P < 0.05). Addition of curcumin and piperine at 160 µg mL−1 could inhibit fluorescent AGEs by 100% and 93% respectively. Dityrosine and N'‐formylkynurenine contents decreased as curcumin and piperine concentration increased (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the result of principal component analysis indicated that curcumin and piperine markedly impeded BSA oxidation, resulting in a lower level of fAGEs in model systems. Therefore, adding curcumin and piperine may facilitate reduced fAGEs levels in BSA–fructose model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Partially encased composite (PEC) members are novel composite members that efficiently exploit the advantages of mechanical properties of concrete and steel. However, the application of PEC members is limited to low‐ and mid‐rise buildings. To overcome this limitation, a study was conducted to assess the seismic performance of a newly proposed steel–concrete hybrid coupled wall consisting of PEC wall piers coupled by means of steel beams. Parametric analysis was conducted to investigate the elastic coupling ratio (CRelastic) and the way of changing CRelastic on the seismic behavior of the hybrid coupled PEC wall. The results showed that the CRelastic was the main parameter that affected the seismic performance of the wall. The way of changing CRelastic had little influence on the trend of the energy dissipation capacity and strength reservation of the wall. The failure mode and the development of plastic hinges of the wall were also not affected by the way of changing CRelastic. Both too large and too small CRelastic were detrimental to the seismic performance of the wall. To form an ideal plastic hinge development mode and experience good seismic performance, it is suggested that the reasonable range of CRelastic for the wall was 60%–70%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effective chemotherapy treatment for cancer patients remains an urgent issue due to the difficulty in precisely delivering drugs to the tumor site. Based on the pH‐responsive degradation characteristics of the zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF‐8), the optical fiber drug delivery system is proposed to achieve efficient drug loading and release. ZIF‐8 nanomaterial prepared by in‐situ synthesis technology is not only the protective shell of the drug (doxorubicin hydrochloride, DOX) but also as the analyte collector on the optical fiber, which monitors the process of nano‐scale drug loading and releases in real‐time because of the refractive index (RI) change caused by the interaction of light and DOX@ZIF‐8 films. The experimental results show that the successful loading and release of the drug are respectively calibrated by wavelength red‐shift (53 nm) and blue‐shift (43.42 nm) with a loading rate of 11.6%. The drug release process also achieved a faster response time. These observations indicate that the metal‐organic framework (MOF) material coated on optical fiber can retain the robust framework structure and demonstrate that the fiber‐based drug delivery platform has the advantages of fast response, high sensitivity, and good photophysical stability, which provides new insights for combination cancer therapy and precise treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: At present, the residual film pollution in cotton fields is crucial. The commonly used recycling method is the manual-driven recycling machine, which is heavy and time-consuming. The development of a visual navigation system for the recovery of residual film is conducive, in order to improve the work efficiency. The key technology in the visual navigation system is the cotton stubble detection. A successful cotton stubble detection can ensure the stability and reliability of the visual navigation system. Methods: Firstly, it extracts the three types of texture features of GLCM, GLRLM and LBP, from the three types of images of stubbles, residual films and broken leaves between rows. It then builds three classifiers: Random Forest, Back Propagation Neural Network and Support Vector Machine in order to classify the sample images. Finally, the possibility of improving the classification accuracy using the texture features extracted from the wavelet decomposition coefficients, is discussed. Results: The experiment proves that the GLCM texture feature of the original image has the best performance under the Back Propagation Neural Network classifier. As for the different wavelet bases, the vertical coefficient texture feature of coif3 wavelet decomposition, combined with the texture feature of the original image, is the feature having the best classification effect. Compared with the original image texture features, the classification accuracy is increased by 3.8%, the sensitivity is increased by 4.8%, and the specificity is increased by 1.2%. Conclusions: The algorithm can complete the task of stubble detection in different locations, different periods and abnormal driving conditions, which shows that the wavelet coefficient texture feature combined with the original image texture feature is a useful fusion feature for detecting stubble and can provide a reference for different crop stubble detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Female sex hormone secretion and reproductive ability decrease with ageing. Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMMSCs) have been postulated to play a key role in treating ovarian ageing. Methods: We used macaque ovarian ageing models to observe the structural and functional changes after juvenile BMMSC treatment. Moreover, RNA-seq was used to analyse the ovarian transcriptional expression profile and key pathways through which BMMSCs reverse ovarian ageing. Results: In the elderly macaque models, the ovaries were atrophied, the regulation ability of sex hormones was reduced, the ovarian structure was destroyed, and only local atretic follicles were observed, in contrast with young rhesus monkeys. Intravenous infusion of BMMSCs in elderly macaques increased ovarian volume, strengthened the regulation ability of sex hormones, reduced the degree of pulmonary fibrosis, inhibited apoptosis, increased density of blood vessels, and promoted follicular regeneration. In addition, the ovarian expression characteristics of ageing-related genes of the elderly treatment group reverted to that of the young control group, 1258 genes that were differentially expressed, among which 415 genes upregulated with age were downregulated, 843 genes downregulated with age were upregulated after BMMSC treatment, and the top 20 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the protein-protein interaction (PPI) network were significantly enriched in oocyte meiosis and progesterone-mediated oocyte maturation pathways. Conclusion: The BMMSCs derived from juvenile macaques can reverse ovarian ageing in elderly macaques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: This study investigated the effects of oxidation and hydrolysis of porcine myofibrillar protein (MFP) on Nε‐carboxymethyl‐lysine (CML) formation in model systems. Model systems of MFP/oxidised linoleic acid (MFP/OLA), mildly oxidised MFP/OLA (MO‐MFP/OLA), severely oxidised MFP/OLA (SO‐MFP/OLA), mildly hydrolysed MFP/OLA (MH‐MFP/OLA) and severely hydrolysed MFP/OLA (SH‐MFP/OLA) were incubated, and CML content was determined. Compared with MFP/OLA (39.1 ± 5.7 ng mg−1 protein), there was a significant increase of CML in MO‐MFP/OLA (53.9 ± 2.5 ng mg−1 protein), whereas a marked decrease was observed in SO‐MFP/OLA (25.1 ± 4.4 ng mg−1 protein) during incubation. CML level increased with increasing degree of hydrolysis of MFP after 6 days of incubation. Therefore, mildly oxidised MFP and hydrolysed MFP could promote CML formation, while severely oxidised MFP impeded CML generation. These results suggested that effects of oxidation and hydrolysis of MFP on CML generation were mainly dependent on the degree of structural changes of MFP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We statistically study the relationship between the Lyα and 1–8 Å soft X-ray (SXR) emissions from 658 M- and X-class solar flares observed by the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite during 2006–2016. Based on the peak times of the two wave band emissions, we divide the flares into three types. Type I (III) has an earlier (a later) peak time in the Lyα emission than that in the SXR emission, while type II has nearly the same peak time (within the time resolution of 10 s) between the Lyα and SXR emissions. In these 658 flares, we find that there are 505 (76.8%) type I flares, 10 (1.5%) type II flares, and 143 (21.7%) type III flares, and that the three types appear to have no dependence on the flare duration, flare location, or solar cycle. Besides the main peak, the Lyα emission of the three type flares also shows sub-peaks which can appear in the impulsive or gradual phase of the flare. It is found that the main-peak (for type I) and subpeak (for type III) emissions of Lyα that appear in the impulsive phase follow the Neupert effect in general. This indicates that such Lyα emissions are related to the nonthermal electron beam heating. While the main-peak (for type III) and subpeak (for type I) emissions of Lyα that appear in the gradual phase are supposed to be primarily contributed by the thermal plasma that cools down. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: To determine plasma ephrin-A1 and VEGF165 levels in a cohort of diabetic retinopathy patients. Methods: Plasma ephrin-A1 and VEGF165 levels in fifty-five subjects including 19 individuals without diabetes (non-DM), 16 patients with diabetes (DM) but without diabetic retinopathy, and 20 patients with diabetic retinopathy (DR), were determined by ELISA. Serum creatinine, total cholesterol, fasting blood glucose and HbA1c were also measured. One-way ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis Test, Mann-Whitney U Test corrected by Bonferroni, Pearson Correlation Analysis and Spearman Correlation Coefficient Analysis were used for data analysis. Results: Ephrin-A1 expression could be detected in human plasma with an average of 1.52 ± 0.43 (mean ± SEM) ng/ml. In DR subjects, the plasma ephrin-A1concentration was 3.63 ± 4.63 ng/ml, which was significantly higher than that of the other two groups (non-DM: 0.27 ± 0.13 ng/ml, DM: 0.35 ± 0.34 ng/ml). The expression of VEGF165 in human plasma was 34.00 ± 42.55 pg/ml, with no statistical difference among the three groups. There was no correlation between ephrin-A1 and VEGF165 in human plasma, but there was a correlation between plasma ephrin-A1 and duration of diabetes. Conclusions: Plasma ephrin-A1 was highly expressed in patients with diabetic retinopathy, and there was no difference of plasma VEGF165 expression in patients with diabetic retinopathy compared to the other two groups, suggesting that changes of plasma ephrin-A1 may be a more sensitive biomarker than plasma VEGF165 in detecting diabetic retinopathy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: To determine plasma ephrin-A1 and VEGF165 levels in a cohort of diabetic retinopathy patients.Methods: Plasma ephrin-A1 and VEGF165 levels in fifty-five subjects including 19 individuals without diabetes (non-DM), 16 patients with diabetes (DM) but without diabetic retinopathy, and 20 patients with diabetic retinopathy (DR), were determined by ELISA. Serum creatinine, total cholesterol, fasting blood glucose and HbA1c were also measured. One-way ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis Test, Mann-Whitney U Test corrected by Bonferroni, Pearson Correlation Analysis and Spearman Correlation Coefficient Analysis were used for data analysis.Results: Ephrin-A1 expression could be detected in human plasma with an average of 1.52 ± 0.43 (mean ± SEM) ng/ml. In DR subjects, the plasma ephrin-A1concentration was 3.63 ± 4.63 ng/ml, which was significantly higher than that of the other two groups (non-DM: 0.27 ± 0.13 ng/ml, DM: 0.35 ± 0.34 ng/ml). The expression of VEGF165 in human plasma was 34.00 ± 42.55 pg/ml, with no statistical difference among the three groups. There was no correlation between ephrin-A1 and VEGF165 in human plasma, but there was a correlation between plasma ephrin-A1 and duration of diabetes.Conclusions: Plasma ephrin-A1 was highly expressed in patients with diabetic retinopathy, and there was no difference of plasma VEGF165 expression in patients with diabetic retinopathy compared to the other two groups, suggesting that changes of plasma ephrin-A1 may be a more sensitive biomarker than plasma VEGF165 in detecting diabetic retinopathy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, triethylene tetramine–modified water‐insoluble corn flour caged in magnetic chitosan resin (TETA‐WICF/MCR) was firstly prepared, which indicates novel aspects for immobilization and chemically modification of mycotoxin adsorbents. The TETA‐WICF/MCR was characterized using zoom stereo microscope, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X‐ray diffractometer (XRD), and magnetic separation performance analysis. Experimental results confirmed successful layer by layer modification of chitosan, biosorbent water‐insoluble corn flour (WICF), TETA onto the surface of magnetic beads. The mean diameter of the TETA‐WICF/MCR was 2.63 mm with good magnetic‐responsive ability. Subsequently, the adsorption performance of the TETA‐WICF/MCR obtained toward patulin was assessed in batch adsorption system and the results demonstrated that the adsorption process was strongly depended on adsorbent dosage, contact time, temperature, and initial patulin concentration. The results of SEM images and FTIR analysis showed obvious changes in the porous structure of TETA‐WICF/MCR after adsorbing patulin, and ‐NH2 and ‐OH groups were predominantly involved in the adsorption of patulin. Furthermore, the adsorption kinetics followed the mechanism of pseudo‐second‐order model, and equilibrium data were well fitted in the Freundlich isotherm model. It was also found that the TETA‐WICF/MCR had good reusability without any adverse changes in apple juice. Practical Application: Patulin is a regulated toxin biosynthesized by certain fungi that contaminate agricultural commodities, such as fruits, juices, and other beverages. Several approaches have been studied to reduce patulin levels in apple juice and other aqueous systems. There is need for more low‐cost and eco‐friendly adsorbent capable of detoxifying patulin contaminated. In this sense, triethylene tetramine–modified water‐insoluble corn flour caged in magnetic chitosan resin (TETA‐WICF/MCR) was first prepared and exhibits easy solid–liquid separation and high adsorption capacity for removing patulin from contaminated apple juice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]