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Magnons, as fundamental quasiparticles emerged in elementary spin excitations, hold a big promise for innovating quantum technologies in information coding and processing. Here we discover subtle roles of entanglement in a metrological scheme based on an experimentally feasible cavity magnomechanical system, where the magnons are responsible for sensing a weak magnetic field whereas the cavity field carries out a precision measurement of the weak field. By establishing exact relations between the Fisher information and entanglement, we show that for the weak coupling case the measurement precision can reach the Heisenberg limit, whereas quantum criticality enables us to enhance measurement precision for the strong coupling case. In particular, we also find that the entanglement between magnons and photons is of crucial importance during the dynamical encoding process, but the presence of such an entanglement in the measurement process dramatically reduces the final measurement precision., 7pages+ Supplemental material 7 pages

Background Numerous studies have examined catastrophic health expenditures (CHE) worldwide, mostly focusing on general or common chronic populations, rather than particularly vulnerable groups. This study assessed the medical expenditure and compensation of lung cancer, and explored the extent and influencing factors of CHE among households with lung cancer patients in China. Methods During 2018–2019, a hospital-based multicenter retrospective survey was conducted in seven provinces/municipalities across China as a part of the Cancer Screening Program of Urban China. CHE was measured according to the proportion of out-of-pocket (OOP) health payments of households on non-food expenditures. Chi-square tests and logistic regression analysis was adjusted to determine the factors that significantly influenced the likelihood of a household with lung cancer patient to incur in CHE. Results In total, 470 households with lung cancer patients were included in the analysis. Health insurance was shown to protect some households from the impact of CHE. Nonetheless, CHE incidence (78.1%) and intensity (14.02% for average distance and 22.56% for relative distance) were still relatively high among households with lung cancer patients. The incidence was lower in households covered by the Urban Employee Basic Medical Insurance (UEMBI) insurance, with higher income level and shorter disease course. Conclusion More attention is needed for CHE incidence among vulnerable populations in China. Households with lung cancer patients were shown to be more likely to develop CHE. Therefore, policy makers should focus on improving the financial protection and reducing the economic burden of this disease.

Amid trends in non-dairy probiotic foods and functional coffees, it is timely to develop a high-count probiotic, fermented coffee beverage. Here, we aimed to enhance the viabilities of different probiotic lactobacilli strains in coffee brews by co-culturing with the probiotic yeast, Saccharomyces boulardii CNCM-I745. The growth, survival, and metabolic activities of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 299v, Lactobacillus acidophilus NCFM, Limosilactobacillus fermentum PCC, and Lactobacillus gasseri LAC-343 were monitored when cultured individually or co-cultured in coffee brews with S. boulardii CNCM-I745. In co-cultures, all four probiotic lactobacilli maintained viable populations above 5.5 Log CFU/mL for at least 6 months at 4 and 25 °C. In contrast, singly cultured lactobacilli populations generally could not be detected beyond 3 months of storage at either temperature. In co-cultures, vigorous nutrient uptake (glucose, glutamate, and alanine) by the yeast limited lactic acid accumulation by the lactobacilli. Co-culturing also led to accumulations in yeast-derived metabolites (ethanol, 2/3-methylbutanol, 2,3-dimethoxystyrene, and decanoic acid), and lactobacilli-derived metabolites (4-ethylphenol), but the coffee bioactive components (caffeine, trigonelline, and 5-O-caffeoylquinic acid) and antioxidant capacities were maintained. Overall, S. boulardii CNCM-I745 is effective in enhancing the viabilities of probiotic lactobacilli from different species, which may be useful in developing shelf-stable probiotic foods.

Frankliniella occidentalis is a destructive pest of horticultural plants, while Orius similis is a natural enemy of thrips. It has been demonstrated that exogenous calcium could induce plant defenses against herbivore attack. We examined whether CaCl2 supplementation altered the volatile emissions of kidney bean plants, which influence the oviposition preference of F. occidentalis. We also assessed the influence of volatile cues on O. similis. Using Y-tube olfactometer tests, we found that exogenous CaCl2 treatment inhibited the selectivity of F. occidentalis but attracted O. similis. In addition, CaCl2 treatment reduced the oviposition preference of F. occidentalis. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry analyses revealed that CaCl2 treatment altered the number and relative abundance of the volatile compounds in kidney bean plants and that (E)-2-hexen-1-ol, 1-octen-3-ol, β-lonone, and (E,E)-2,4-hexadienal might be potential olfactory cues. Furthermore, the results of the six-arm olfactometer test indicated that 1-octen-3-ol (10−2 μL/μL), β-lonone (10−2 μL/μL), and (E,E)-2,4-hexadienal (10−3 μL/μL) repelled F. occidentalis but attracted O. similis. Overall, our results suggested that exogenous CaCl2 treatment induced defense responses in kidney bean plants, suggesting that CaCl2 supplementation may be a promising strategy to enhance the biological control of F. occidentalis.

Semi-quantum key distribution (SQKD) is an important research issue which allows one quantum participant equipped with advanced quantum devices to distribute a shared secret key securely with one classical user who has restricted capabilities. In this paper, we propose a SQKD protocol which allows one quantum user to distribute two different private secret keys to two classical users respectively at the same time. Alice distributes two particle sequences from Bell states to Bob and Charlie respectively. Once the particles have been processed and returned, Alice can simultaneously detect reflected particles by Bob and Charlie based on Bell-state measurement and generate two different raw keys. To enable more participants in sharing keys, this protocol can be extended to the m + 1 party communication scheme by employing m-particle GHZ state. In large-scale communication networks, this extended model significantly reduces the complexity of communication compared to the traditional SQKD scheme. Security analyses show that the presented protocol is free from several general attacks, such as the entangle-measure attack, the modification attack, the double CNOT attack, and so on.

Background:. Early detection of gastric cancer (GC) has been the topic of major efforts in China. This study aimed to explore the risk factors associated with GC and to provide evidence for the selection of a high-risk population of GC. Methods:. Based on the cancer screening cohort of the National Cancer Screening Program in Urban China, GC patients diagnosed by endoscopy and pathological examinations constituted the case group, and controls were 1:3 matched by sex and age (±5 years) individually. The variables were selected by univariable analysis of factors such as body mass index (BMI), dietary habits, lifestyle, stomach disease history, and family history of GC; and multivariable logistic regression was used to analyze the influencing factors of GC and to calculate the odds ratio (OR) of related factors and its 95% confidence interval (CI). Results:. A total of 215 GC cases and 645 matched healthy controls were included in the final analysis, with a median age of 61 years for the case and control groups. Overall analysis showed that high educational level (above primary school) (OR = 0.362, 95% CI = 0.219–0.599, P

Background:. Cancer is one of the leading causes of death globally, but its burden is not uniform. GLOBOCAN 2020 has newly updated the estimates of cancer burden. This study summarizes the most recent changing profiles of cancer burden worldwide and in China and compares the cancer data of China with those of other regions. Methods:. We conducted a descriptive secondary analysis of the GLOBOCAN 2020 data. To depict the changing global profile of the leading cancer types in 2020 compared with 2018, we extracted the numbers of cases and deaths in 2018 from GLOBOCAN 2018. We also obtained cancer incidence and mortality from the 2015 National Cancer Registry Report in China when sorting the leading cancer types by new cases and deaths. For the leading cancer types according to sex in China, we summarized the estimated numbers of incidence and mortality, and calculated China's percentage of the global new cases and deaths. Results:. Breast cancer displaced lung cancer to become the most leading diagnosed cancer worldwide in 2020. Lung, liver, stomach, breast, and colon cancers were the top five leading causes of cancer-related death, among which liver cancer changed from the third-highest cancer mortality in 2018 to the second-highest in 2020. China accounted for 24% of newly diagnosed cases and 30% of the cancer-related deaths worldwide in 2020. Among the 185 countries included in the database, China's age-standardized incidence rate (204.8 per 100,000) ranked 65th and the age-standardized mortality rate (129.4 per 100,000) ranked 13th. The two rates were above the global average. Lung cancer remained the most common cancer type and the leading cause of cancer death in China. However, breast cancer became the most frequent cancer type among women if the incidence was stratified by sex. Incidences of colorectal cancer and breast cancer increased rapidly. The leading causes of cancer death varied minimally in ranking from 2015 to 2020 in China. Gastrointestinal cancers, including stomach, colorectal, liver, and esophageal cancers, contributed to a massive burden of cancer for both sexes. Conclusions:. The burden of breast cancer is increasing globally. China is undergoing cancer transition with an increasing burden of lung cancer, gastrointestinal cancer, and breast cancers. The mortality rate of cancer in China is high. Comprehensive strategies are urgently needed to target China's changing profiles of the cancer burden.

BACKGROUND Leukaemias comprise a heterogenous group of haematological malignancies. In CONCORD-3, we analysed data for children (aged 0-14 years) and adults (aged 15-99 years) diagnosed with a haematological malignancy during 2000-14 in 61 countries. Here, we aimed to examine worldwide trends in survival from leukaemia, by age and morphology, in young patients (aged 0-24 years). METHODS We analysed data from 258 population-based cancer registries in 61 countries participating in CONCORD-3 that submitted data on patients diagnosed with leukaemia. We grouped patients by age as children (0-14 years), adolescents (15-19 years), and young adults (20-24 years). We categorised leukaemia subtypes according to the International Classification of Childhood Cancer (ICCC-3), updated with International Classification of Diseases for Oncology, third edition (ICD-O-3) codes. We estimated 5-year net survival by age and morphology, with 95% CIs, using the non-parametric Pohar-Perme estimator. To control for background mortality, we used life tables by country or region, single year of age, single calendar year and sex, and, where possible, by race or ethnicity. All-age survival estimates were standardised to the marginal distribution of young people with leukaemia included in the analysis. FINDINGS 164 563 young people were included in this analysis: 121 328 (73·7%) children, 22 963 (14·0%) adolescents, and 20 272 (12·3%) young adults. In 2010-14, the most common subtypes were lymphoid leukaemia (28 205 [68·2%] patients) and acute myeloid leukaemia (7863 [19·0%] patients). Age-standardised 5-year net survival in children, adolescents, and young adults for all leukaemias combined during 2010-14 varied widely, ranging from 46% in Mexico to more than 85% in Canada, Cyprus, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, and Australia. Individuals with lymphoid leukaemia had better age-standardised survival (from 43% in Ecuador to ≥80% in parts of Europe, North America, Oceania, and Asia) than those with acute myeloid leukaemia (from 32% in Peru to ≥70% in most high-income countries in Europe, North America, and Oceania). Throughout 2000-14, survival from all leukaemias combined remained consistently higher for children than adolescents and young adults, and minimal improvement was seen for adolescents and young adults in most countries. INTERPRETATION This study offers the first worldwide picture of population-based survival from leukaemia in children, adolescents, and young adults. Adolescents and young adults diagnosed with leukaemia continue to have lower survival than children. Trends in survival from leukaemia for adolescents and young adults are important indicators of the quality of cancer management in this age group. FUNDING Children with Cancer UK, the Institut National du Cancer, La Ligue Contre le Cancer, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Swiss Re, Swiss Cancer Research foundation, Swiss Cancer League, Rossy Family Foundation, US National Cancer Institute, and the American Cancer Society.

Chinese quince fruits are rich in proanthocyanidins (PAs), which have antioxidant properties. This work describes a method to isolate PAs from Chinese quince fruits by a combination of ball-milling and enzyme hydrolysis pretreatments. The yield, total PA and total phenolic contents, structural characteristics, antioxidant activity, and α-amylase inhibitory activity of different pretreated PA samples were determined and analyzed. Among them, the ball-milling combined with multi-enzyme (cellulase, xylanase, and pectinase) hydrolysis pretreated sample (BEP-4) was the most outstanding. The yield of BEP-4 could be improved up to 7.72%, which was 2.51 times higher than that of the conventional organic solvent extraction method (3.02%). It had the highest total phenols and PAs content of 750.98 ± 6.95 and 948.72 ± 3.50 mg/g extract, respectively. The thermal stability and molecular weight (9610 Da) of BEP-4 were lower than other fractions. BEP-4 contained a high proportion of PC structure (98.35%) and flavan-3-ol content (87.88%). It also had the highest antioxidant capacity with IC50 values of 131.45 ± 0.97, 22.66 ± 0.32, 134.05 ± 0.71, and 182.07 ± 0.28 μg/mL for DPPH, ABTS, hydroxyl radical scavenging capacity, and α-amylase inhibiting capacity, respectively. These investigations provide a new, efficient way to isolate PAs from Chinese quince fruits, and reveal that Chinese quince fruits may be a good source of antioxidants, worthy of further development.

Adjoint operators have been found to be effective in the exploration of CNN's inner workings [1]. However, the previous no-bias assumption restricted its generalization. We overcome the restriction via embedding input images into an extended normed space that includes bias in all CNN layers as part of the extended input space and propose an adjoint-operator-based algorithm that maps high-level weights back to the extended input space for reconstructing an effective hypersurface. Such hypersurface can be computed for an arbitrary unit in the CNN, and we prove that this reconstructed hypersurface, when multiplied by the original input (through an inner product), will precisely replicate the output value of each unit. We show experimental results based on the CIFAR-10 dataset that the proposed approach achieves near $0$ reconstruction error., 19 pages, 8 figures

Antibiotics are designed to treat bacterial infections in humans and animals; however, the overuse of various antibiotics and consequent contamination in the environment can have adverse effects on aquatic, soil, and saprophytic organisms. The house fly, an important decomposer in ecosystems, has been used for bioconversion of human and animal waste. Vermireactors have been used to remove antibiotics from waste for pollution control, but the effects of antibiotics on fly larvae are unclear. In the present work, we aimed to reveal the mechanism underlying the effects of antibiotics on larval growth in house flies at the transcriptome and microbiome levels and the relationships between genes and the microbiota. Observation of house flies after antibiotic exposure showed that gentamicin sulfate and levofloxacin hydrochloride inhibited larval development to a greater extent than amoxicillin. Transcriptome analysis revealed that biological pathways related to protein synthesis and the metabolism of fatty acids, pentose, and glucuronate were significantly enriched in flies exposed to gentamicin sulfate and levofloxacin hydrochloride. Crucial genes in these pathways were identified as candidates for future study. Microbiome analysis revealed three key bacteria that were closely correlated with gentamicin sulfate and levofloxacin hydrochloride exposure. The correlation network between the differentially expressed genes and bacteria identified an important microbic effector, Pseudomonas and its associated genes. This work will improve the knowledge about the mechanism underlying the effects of antibiotics on the larval development of house flies in the environment and provide guidance for improving the application of house fly bioconversion.

Key Points Question Is the modified newborn genetic and hearing screening feasible in China? Findings In this population-based cohort study including 32 512 infants, incorporating the limited and expanded genetic screening into physiological screening was associated with identifying 31 newborns with hearing loss missed by the conventional hearing screening, providing etiologic information to 1299 participants, and targeting 517 children at risk of late-onset hearing loss to improve prevention. Meaning Large observational studies are needed to evaluate the cost-effectiveness and long-term benefits of integrated genetic and hearing screening programs., This cohort study investigates the feasibility and utility of a modified genetic and hearing screening program among newborn infants in Nantong, China., Importance Early identification and intervention for newborns with hearing loss (HL) may lead to improved physiological and social-emotional outcomes. The current newborn hearing screening is generally beneficial but improvements can be made. Objective To assess feasibility and evaluate utility of a modified genetic and hearing screening program for newborn infants. Design, Setting, and Participants This population-based cohort study used a 4-stage genetic and hearing screening program at 6 local hospitals in Nantong city, China. Participants were newborn infants born between January 2016 and June 2020 from the Han population. Statistical analysis was performed from April 1 to May 1, 2021. Exposures Limited genetic screening for 15 variants in 4 common HL-associated genes and newborn hearing screening (NHS) were offered concurrently to all newborns. Hearing rescreening and/or diagnostic tests were provided for infants with evidence of HL on NHS or genetic variants on screening. Expanded genetic tests for a broader range of genes were targeted to infants with HL with negative results of limited genetic tests. Main Outcomes and Measures The detection capability for infants with hearing impairment who passed conventional hearing screening, as well as infants with normal hearing at risk of late-onset HL due to genetic susceptibility. Results Among a total of 35 930 infants, 32 512 infants completed the follow-up and were included for analysis. Among the infants included in the analysis, all were from the Han population in China and 52.3% (16 988) were male. The modified genetic and hearing screening program revealed 142 cases of HL and 1299 cases of genetic variation. The limited genetic screening helped identify 31 infants who passed newborn hearing screening, reducing time for diagnosis and intervention; 425 infants with normal hearing with pathogenic SLC26A4 variation and 92 infants with MT-RNR1 variation were at risk for enlarged vestibular aqueduct and aminoglycoside-induced ototoxicity respectively, indicating early aversive or preventive management. Conclusions and Relevance This study found that performing modified genetic and hearing screening in newborns was feasible and provides evidence that the program could identify additional subgroups of infants who need early intervention. These findings suggest an advantage for universal adoption of such a practice.

Background Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway is closely related to osteoarthritis. In our preliminary study, β-catenin conditional activation (cAct) mice that specifically over-express β-catenin gene in cartilage chondrocyte exhibits osteoarthritis-like phenotype in the lumbar disc and knee joint. Therefore, we used the mice to model FJ-OA and test the potential curative effect of Velvet Antler Polypeptide (VAP) on this mice model. Methods We tested the effect of VAP on β-catenin conditional activation mice, and used Cre negative littermates as controls. Micro-CT, histology and histomorphometry analysis were performed to evaluate the curative effect of VAP on mice facet joint-like phenotype. Expression of β-catenin and collagen II was detected by immunohistochemistry (IHC) and western-blot., MMP13, ADAMTS4 and ADAMTS5 was detected by immunofluorescence (IF). RT-PCR analysis was preformed to detect mRNA expression of cartilage degrading enzymes, such as MMP13, ADAMTS4 and ADAMTS5. Results Results of micro-CT (μCT) analysis showed that VAP could partially reverse lumbar disc osteophyte formation observed in β-catenin(ex3) Col2ER mice. Histology data revealed VAP partially improved facet joint cartilage tissue invades. Histomorphometry analysis showed an increase in total cartilage area after VAP treatment. IHC show that VAP reduced β-catenin protein levels and moderately up-regulated collagen II protein levels. RT-PCR and IF data showed that VAP down-regulated the expression of extracellular matrix synthesis (ECM) degradation enzymes MMP13, ADAMTS4 and ADAMTS5. Conclusion Taken together, VAP may modulate ECM by inhibits MMP13, ADAMTS4 and ADAMTS5 via Wnt /β-catenin signaling pathway. Velvet Antler Polypeptide may be a potential medicine for FJ-OA.

Background Most lung cancer patients are diagnosed after the onset of symptoms. However, whether the symptoms of lung cancer were independently associated with the diagnosis of lung cancer is unknown, especially in the Chinese population. Methods We conducted a 10 years (2005‐2014) nationwide multicenter retrospective clinical epidemiology study of lung cancer patients diagnosed in China. As such, this study focused on nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We calculated the odds ratios (ORs) for variables associated with the symptoms and physical signs using multivariate unconditional logistic regressions. Results A total of 7184 lung cancer patients were surveyed; finally, 6398 NSCLC patients with available information about their symptoms and physical signs were included in this analysis. The most common initial symptom and physical sign was chronic cough (4156, 65.0%), followed by sputum with blood (2110, 33.0%), chest pain (1146, 17.9%), shortness of breath (1090, 17.0%), neck and supraclavicular lymphadenectasis (629, 9.8%), weight loss (529, 8.3%), metastases pain (378, 5.9%), fatigue (307, 4.8%), fever (272, 4.3%), and dyspnea (270, 4.2%). Patients with squamous carcinoma and stage III disease were more likely to present with chronic cough (P

This study analyzed the in vitro drug sensitivity of Cryptococcus spp. from Guangxi, Southern China. One hundred three strains of Cryptococcus were recovered from 86 patients; 14 were HIV positive and 72 were HIV negative. Ninety-two strains were identified as Cryptococcus neoformans var. grubii, while 11 strains were identified as Cryptococcus gattii (5 C. gattii sensu stricto and 6 Cryptococcus deuterogattii). The recovered strains were tested against commonly used antifungal drugs (fluconazole, amphotericin B, 5-fluorocytosine, itraconazole, and voriconazole) and to novel antifungal drugs (posaconazole and isavuconazole) using CLSI M27-A4 method. The results showed that all isolates were susceptible to most antifungal drugs, of which the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) ranges were as follows: 0.05–4 μg/ml for fluconazole, 0.25–1 μg/ml for amphotericin B; 0.0625–2 μg/ml for 5-fluorocytosine, 0.0625–0.25 μg/ml for itraconazole, 0.0078–0.25 μg/ml for voriconazole, 0.0313–0.5 μg/ml for posaconazole, 0.0020–0.125 μg/ml for isavuconazole for C. neoformans var. grubii isolates, and 1–16 μg/ml for fluconazole, 0.125–1 μg/ml for 5-fluorocytosine, 0.25–1 μg/ml for amphotericin B, 0.0625–0.25 μg/ml for itraconazole, 0.0156–0.125 μg/ml for voriconazole, 0.0156–0.25 μg/ml for posaconazole, and 0.0078–0.125 μg/ml for isavuconazole for C. gattii isolates. Furthermore, some C. neoformans var. grubii isolates were found to be susceptible-dose dependent to 5-fluorocytosine and itraconazole. In addition, a reduction in the potency of fluconazole against C. gattii is possible. We observed no statistical differences in susceptibility of C. neoformans var. grubii and C. gattii in the tested strains. Continuous observation of antifungal susceptibility of Cryptococcus isolates is recommended to monitor the emergence of resistant strains.

Soybean meal (SBM) is a high-quality protein source and widely used in aquafeeds. However, high percentage of dietary SBM would make negative influences on fish. Here, we evaluated the effects of dietary high level of SBM on growth, intestine healthy and intestinal inflammation in large yellow croaker. Two isonitrogenous (450 g kg−1) and isolipidic (100 g kg−1) diets were prepared, in which SBM was added at 0 or 45 %. An 8-week feeding trail was conducted by feeding fish (initial weight 18.2 ± 0.8 g) with these two diets. After feeding trail, SBM0 group had significantly enhanced growth performance, antioxidant capacity and digestive enzyme activities compared with SBM45 group (P < 0.05). Dietary SBM45 caused intestine injury symptoms and decreased intestine villus length of fish. In addition, dietary SBM45 induced intestinal inflammation of large yellow croaker, manifested as significant upregulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines and downregulation of anti- inflammatory cytokines (P < 0.05). The increased inflammatory response of SBM45 group may be due to activation of TLR-MAPK/NF-κB signaling pathway, as the mRNA expression levels of TLRs and protein levels of c-Rel, P65 and ERK were significantly increased in SBM45 group (P < 0.05). All these results indicated that high percentage of dietary soybean meal could inhibit growth, impair intestine healthy and induce intestinal inflammation possibly by TLR-MAPK/NF-κB signaling pathway in large yellow croaker.

Highly selective synthesis of either indene or 1-naphthol derivatives through intramolecular alkene-alkene cross-coupling is reported. The reaction works with different alkene pairs that couple to give the corresponding products in good to satisfactory yields. The indene products of our reaction also allow further derivatization. The reaction pathway is dependent on alkene functionalities. Ministry of Education (MOE) Nanyang Technological University The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support of Tier 1 grant M4012045.110 (RG12/18-S) from the Ministry of Education of Singapore and Distinguished University Professor grant, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. H.H. acknowledges a Presidential Fellowship and a University Development Fund (UDF01001996) from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen.

This study investigated the effects of cyclical fasting and refeeding on growth performance, digestibility, muscle composition and mTOR signaling pathway of Penaeus vannamei. Three feeding strategies were designed: feeding everyday of a week (control); fasting one day and refeeding six days of a week (F1), fasting two days and refeeding five days of a week (F2). Shrimp with initial body weight of 6.52 ± 0.46 g was used for feeding strategy experiments. The stocking density was 20 shrimps (130.4 g biomass) per 100 L seawater. There were no significant differences in growth performance (final weight, weight gain and specific growth ratio), muscle composition (moisture, crude protein, crude lipid and ash contents) and digestive enzyme activity (trypsin, α-amylase and lipase) among three treatments (P > 0.05). However, survival rate of control treatment was significantly higher than that of F1 and F2 treatments (P < 0.05). Feed efficiency (FE) of shrimp in F1 and F2 treatments were higher than that of shrimp in control treatments. The expression level of trypsin in F1 and F2 treatments were significantly up-regulated than that of control treatment (P < 0.05). Both tor and s6k expression levels of F1 and F2 treatments were up-regulated than those of control treatment. These results suggest that the compensatory growth response of shrimp caused by starvation and refeeding may be attributed to the high feed efficiency after starvation and refeeding or the cannibalism caused by starvation, which provides a better source of protein for shrimp and promotes the growth performance of shrimp. However, considering the low survival rate, cyclical fasting and refeeding is not an advisable feeding strategy for P. vannamei.

Metal-based additive manufacturing (AM) is a disruptive technique with great potential across multiple industries, however, its manufacturing quality is unstable, leading to an urgent requirement for component properties detection. The distribution of grain size has an important effect on many mechanical properties in AM, while the distribution of added elements, such as titanium (Ti), has a measurable effect on the grain size of an aluminum (Al) alloy. Therefore, the detection of the distributions of grain size and elements is of great significance for AM. In this study, we investigated the distribution of grain size and elements simultaneously for wire + arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) with an Al alloy using laser opto-ultrasonic dual (LOUD) detection. The average grain size obtained from the acoustic attenuation of ultrasonic signals was consistent with the results of electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), with a coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.981 for linear fitting. The Ti element distribution obtained from optical spectra showed that the enrichment of Ti corresponded to the grain refinement area in the detected area. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectra showed that the spectral peaks were moved from Al to AlTi and Al2Ti forms in the Ti-rich areas, which confirmed the LOUD results. The results indicated that LOUD detection holds promise for becoming an effective method of analyzing the mechanical and chemical properties of components simultaneously, which could help explain the complex physical and chemical changes in AM and ultimately improve the manufacturing quality.

As the first examination of distribution, guanine-cytosine (GC) pattern, and variation analysis of microsatellites (SSRs) in different genomic regions of six bovid species, SSRs displayed nonrandomly distribution in different regions. SSR abundances are much higher in the introns, transposable elements (TEs), and intergenic regions compared to the 3′-untranslated regions (3′UTRs), 5′UTRs and coding regions. Trinucleotide perfect SSRs (P-SSRs) were the most frequent in the coding regions, whereas, mononucleotide P-SSRs were the most in the introns, 3′UTRs, TEs, and intergenic regions. Trifold P-SSRs had more GC-contents in the 5′UTRs and coding regions than that in the introns, 3′UTRs, TEs, and intergenic regions, whereas mononucleotide P-SSRs had the least GC-contents in all genomic regions. The repeat copy numbers (RCN) of the same mono- to hexanucleotide P-SSRs showed significantly different distributions in different regions (P tri- > tetra- > penta- > hexanucleotide P-SSRs in the same regions. The analysis of coefficient of variability (CV) of SSRs showed that the CV variations of RCN of the same mono- to hexanucleotide SSRs were relative higher in the intronic and intergenic regions, followed by the CV variation of RCN in the TEs, and the relative lower was in the 5′UTRs, 3′UTRs, and coding regions. Wide SSR analysis of different genomic regions has helped to reveal biological significances of their distributions.

Cornea is an important part ofhuman's refractive system. Corneal biomechanics plays an important role in corneal ectasia and related diseases. The corneal biomechanics measured in vitro and in vivo and its clinical application in system diseases and elastic corneal disease, glaucoma, myopic are reviewed in this literature summary.

Rough sets theory is a powerful tool to deal with uncertainty and incompleteness of knowledge in information systems. Wang et al. proposed single valued neutrosophic sets as an extension of intuitionistic fuzzy sets to deal with real-world problems. In this paper, we propose the covering-based rough single valued neutrosophic sets by combining covering-based rough sets and single valued neutrosophic sets. Firstly, three types of covering-based rough single valued neutrosophic sets models are built and the properties of lower/upper approximation operators are explored. Secondly, the lower/upper approximations in two different covering approximation spaces are studied. The sufficient and necessary condition for generating the same lower/upper approximations from two different covering approximation spaces is discussed. Moreover, the relations of the three models are discussed and the equivalence conditions for three models are given.

The human gut microbiome can modulate metabolic health and affect insulin resistance, and it may play an important role in the etiology of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Here, we compared the gut microbial composition of 43 GDM patients and 81 healthy pregnant women via whole-metagenome shotgun sequencing of their fecal samples, collected at 21–29 weeks, to explore associations between GDM and the composition of microbial taxonomic units and functional genes. A metagenome-wide association study identified 154 837 genes, which clustered into 129 metagenome linkage groups (MLGs) for species description, with significant relative abundance differences between the 2 cohorts. Parabacteroides distasonis, Klebsiella variicola, etc., were enriched in GDM patients, whereas Methanobrevibacter smithii, Alistipes spp., Bifidobacterium spp., and Eubacterium spp. were enriched in controls. The ratios of the gross abundances of GDM-enriched MLGs to control-enriched MLGs were positively correlated with blood glucose levels. A random forest model shows that fecal MLGs have excellent discriminatory power to predict GDM status. Our study discovered novel relationships between the gut microbiome and GDM status and suggests that changes in microbial composition may potentially be used to identify individuals at risk for GDM.

Maintaining coherence of a qubit is of vital importance for realizing a large-scale quantum computer in practice. In this work, we study the central spin decoherence problem in the $XXX$ central spin model (CSM) and focus on the quantum states with different initial entanglement, namely intra-bath entanglement or system-bath entanglement. We analytically obtain their evolutions of fidelity, entanglement, and quantum coherence. When the initial bath spins constitute an $N$-particle entangled state (the Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger-bath or the $W$-bath), the leading amplitudes of their fidelity evolutions both scale as $\mathcal O(1/N)$, which is the same as the case of a fully polarized bath. However, when the central spin is maximally entangled with one of the bath spins, the amplitude scaling of its fidelity evolution declines from $\mathcal O(1/N)$ to $\mathcal O(1/N^2)$. That implies appropriate initial system-bath entanglement is contributive to suppress central spin decoherence. In addition, with the help of system-bath entanglement, we realize quantum coherence-enhanced dynamics for the central spin where the consumption of bath entanglement is shown to play a central role., 17 pages, 1 figures

The clinical significance of peripheral blood parameters has been considered to be a potential prognostic indicator for malignancies. In this study, 224 colorectal cancer (CRC; ncolon = 103; nrectal = 121) patients who underwent resection were enrolled, and the pre- and post-operative clinical laboratory data within 1 week, before and after surgery, were collected. The prognostic value of the counts of white blood cell (WBC), neutrophil, lymphocyte and platelet, the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), and systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) were analyzed. Data revealed that pre-operative lymphocyte count (pre-LC) was much higher than that of post-LC (p < 0.001), and only rectal cancer patients with pre-LChigh (>median: 1.61 × 109/L) had a significantly better overall survival (OS) and 5-year survival rate (SR) than those with pre-LClow (OS: 62.3 vs. 49.5 months; SR: 74.0 vs. 43.0%; p = 0.006). Cox's proportional hazard models revealed that pre-LChigh was an independent, favorable prognostic factor for rectal cancer patients (hazard ratio = 0.348; p = 0.003). Moreover, when the disease stages were stratified, the pre-LChigh was significantly associated with better prognosis of rectal cancer patients with stage I + II rectal cancer (n = 65; OS: 67.5 vs. 54.3 months; p = 0.011). Taken together, our study revealed that pre-operative lymphocyte count is an independent prognostic factor for patients with stage I and II rectal cancer.

Objective: A retrospective review aims to investigate the operative methods and therapeutic effects of the modified Stoppa approach for treating pelvic and acetabular fractures. Methods: 18 patients with acetabular fracture of the anterior column and pelvic anterior ring fracture underwent surgical treatment using the modified Stoppa approach. Some of the treatment was combined with the iliac fossa approach or rear K-L approach. Fracture reduction and postoperative function were evaluated using the Matta scoring standard and the Majeed scoring system. The Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine system was used to grade the literature review and create graded B recommendations. Results: Incision length was 6-12 cm (mean, 10 cm), operative duration was 50-150 minutes (mean, 85 minutes), and intraoperative blood loss volume was 400-1,000 ml (mean, 500 ml). 18 patients were followed up for 12-36 months post-operation. In the results of X-ray films, 12 cases were anatomical reductions and the remaining cases were satisfactory reductions. According to Majeed standard, 13 patients were excellent and five patients were good. Conclusions: Treatment using the modified Stoppa approach was suitable for anterior approaches, in which pelvic and acetabular fractures were sufficiently exposed, the fracture was conveniently reduced, less complications occurred, and curative effect was satisfactory. Level of evidence III, Retrospective comparative study. RESUMO Objetivo: Uma revisão retrospectiva tem como objetivo investigar os métodos operatórios e efeitos terapêuticos da abordagem modificada de Stoppa para o tratamento de fraturas pélvicas e acetabulares. Métodos: 18 pacientes com fratura acetabular da coluna anterior e fratura do anel anterior pélvico foram submetidos a tratamento cirúrgico utilizando a abordagem de Stoppa modificada. Parte do tratamento foi feita em conjunto com a abordagem da fossa ilíaca ou com a abordagem pelo acesso posterior de K-L. A redução da fratura e a função pós-operatória foram avaliadas pelo padrão de pontuação de Matta e o sistema de pontuação de Majeed. O sistema do Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine foi usado para classificar a revisão de literatura e criar as recomendações de grau B. Resultados: O comprimento da incisão foi de 6 a 12 cm (média de 10 cm), a duração da cirurgia foi de 50 a 150 minutos (média de 85 minutos) e o volume de perda sanguínea intraoperatória foi de 400 a 1.000 ml (média de 500 ml). 18 pacientes foram acompanhados por 12-36 meses após a operação. Nos resultados dos filmes radiográficos, 12 casos foram de reduções anatômicas e os demais casos foram de reduções satisfatórias. De acordo com o padrão de Majeed, 13 pacientes foram considerados excelentes e cinco pacientes foram considerados bons. Conclusões: O tratamento que utilizou a abordagem de Stoppa modificada foi adequado para abordagens anteriores, nas quais as fraturas pélvicas e acetabulares estavam suficientemente expostas, a fratura foi convenientemente reduzida, ocorreram menos complicações e o efeito curativo foi satisfatório. Nível de evidencia III, Estudo retrospectivo comparativo.

This study explores the interaction between environmental consciousness and sustainable food attributes as predictors in the market segmentation process for sustainable foods with respect to United States (U.S.) Generation Z (Gen Z) consumers. This study was executed using a cross-national, web-based survey to analyze and categorize Gen Z female (n = 435) and male (n = 377) consumers between 18 and 23 years of age living in the continental United States. The objectives of this study were to classify U.S. Gen Z consumers into unique segments based on their environmental consciousness and to assess the functional relationships among the following: (a) their degree of ecological awareness, (b) the importance of the perception of sustainable food attributes, (c) their food choices associated with healthy eating habits, and (d) sociodemographics. Survey data were analyzed using cluster analysis of consumer groups based on environmental consciousness. Environmental consciousness was measured using a composite score of the environmental involvement scale and the environmental values scale. Gen Z consumers with high environmental consciousness (sustainable activists) and moderate ecological awareness (sustainable believers) considered more eco-friendly and healthy product attributes when purchasing sustainable food, whereas Gen Z consumers with low environmental consciousness (sustainable moderates) considered more extrinsic product attributes (e.g., price and convenience). Furthermore, the results indicate that food choices associated with healthy eating habits could be used to develop a profile for different eco-conscious Gen Z consumer groups. The contributions of this study are twofold. First, for academic researchers, this paper extends marketing segmentation research concerning environmentally sensitive young consumers. Second, for industry professionals, this study provides food retailers or food service operators with sustainable consumer values that will aid in the development of effective, green marketing strategies to better attract and meet the sustainability expectations of Gen Z&mdash, the consumer segment with the most spending power of any generation.

Eser, Sultan (Balikesir Author), Background In 2015, the second cycle of the CONCORD programme established global surveillance of cancer survival as a metric of the effectiveness of health systems and to inform global policy on cancer control. CONCORD-3 updates the worldwide surveillance of cancer survival to 2014. Methods CONCORD-3 includes individual records for 37.5 million patients diagnosed with cancer during the 15-year period 2000-14. Data were provided by 322 population-based cancer registries in 71 countries and territories, 47 of which provided data with 100% population coverage. The study includes 18 cancers or groups of cancers: oesophagus, stomach, colon, rectum, liver, pancreas, lung, breast (women), cervix, ovary, prostate, and melanoma of the skin in adults, and brain tumours, leukaemias, and lymphomas in both adults and children. Standardised quality control procedures were applied; errors were rectified by the registry concerned. We estimated 5-year net survival. Estimates were age-standardised with the International Cancer Survival Standard weights.Findings For most cancers, 5-year net survival remains among the highest in the world in the USA and Canada, in Australia and New Zealand, and in Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden. For many cancers, Denmark is closing the survival gap with the other Nordic countries. Survival trends are generally increasing, even for some of the more lethal cancers: in some countries, survival has increased by up to 5% for cancers of the liver, pancreas, and lung. For women diagnosed during 2010-14, 5-year survival for breast cancer is now 89.5% in Australia and 90.2% in the USA, but international differences remain very wide, with levels as low as 66.1% in India. For gastrointestinal cancers, the highest levels of 5-year survival are seen in southeast Asia: in South Korea for cancers of the stomach (68.9%), colon (71.8%), and rectum (71.1%); in Japan for oesophageal cancer (36.0%); and in Taiwan for liver cancer (27.9%). By contrast, in the same world region, survival is generally lower than elsewhere for melanoma of the skin (59.9% in South Korea, 52.1% in Taiwan, and 49.6% in China), and for both lymphoid malignancies (52.5%, 50.5%, and 38.3%) and myeloid malignancies (45.9%, 33.4%, and 24.8%). For children diagnosed during 2010-14, 5-year survival for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia ranged from 49.8% in Ecuador to 95.2% in Finland. 5-year survival from brain tumours in children is higher than for adults but the global range is very wide (from 28.9% in Brazil to nearly 80% in Sweden and Denmark). Interpretation The CONCORD programme enables timely comparisons of the overall effectiveness of health systems in providing care for 18 cancers that collectively represent 75% of all cancers diagnosed worldwide every year. It contributes to the evidence base for global policy on cancer control. Since 2017, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development has used findings from the CONCORD programme as the official benchmark of cancer survival, among their indicators of the quality of health care in 48 countries worldwide. Governments must recognise population-based cancer registries as key policy tools that can be used to evaluate both the impact of cancer prevention strategies and the effectiveness of health systems for all patients diagnosed with cancer., American Cancer Society Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Swiss Re Swiss Cancer Research foundation Swiss Cancer League Institut National du Cancer La Ligue Contre le Cancer Rossy Family Foundation US National Cancer Institute Susan G Komen Foundation

The aim of this study was to explore the changes in the characteristics of titanium surface and the osteoblast-titanium interactions under cigarette smoke extract (CSE) exposure. In this study, CSE was used to simulate the oral liquid environment around the implant under cigarette smoke exposure. Titanium samples were immersed in CSE to explore the changes in the characteristics of titanium surface. The physical properties of titanium surface were measured, including surface micromorphology, surface elemental composition, roughness, and surface hydrophilicity. MC3T3-E1 cells were cultured on the titanium surface in vitro under different concentrations of CSE exposure, and cell adhesion, cell proliferation, and osteogenic differentiation were observed. The surface micromorphology and elemental composition of titanium surface changed under CSE exposure. No obvious changes were found in the surface roughness and the hydrophilicity of titanium samples. Moreover, the results of in vitro study showed that CSE exposure downregulated the cell spreading, proliferation, and osteogenic differentiation of MC3T3-E1 cells on the titanium surface. It could be speculated that some carbon-containing compounds from CSE adsorbed on the titanium surface and the osteoblast-titanium interactions were influenced under CSE exposure. It is hoped that these results could provide valuable information for further studies on smoking-mediated inhibition of implants osseointegration.

Presentation ID 16247

Despite decades of studies, the currently available drugs largely fail to control neuropathic pain. Koumine—an alkaloidal constituent derived from the medicinal plantGelsemium elegansBenth.—has been shown to possess analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties; however, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, we aimed to investigate the analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects and the possible underlying mechanisms of koumine. The analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects of koumine were explored by using chronic constriction injury of the sciatic nerve (CCI) neuropathic pain modelin vivoand LPS-induced injury in microglia BV2 cellsin vitro. Immunofluorescence staining and Western blot analysis were used to assess the modulator effect of koumine on microglia and astrocyte activation after CCI surgery. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to evaluate the levels of proinflammatory cytokines. Western blot analysis and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) were used to examine the modulator effect of koumine on microglial M1 polarization. We found that single or repeated treatment of koumine can significantly reduce neuropathic pain after nerve injury. Moreover, koumine showed inhibitory effects on CCI-evoked microglia and astrocyte activation and reduced proinflammatory cytokine production in the spinal cord in rat CCI models. In BV2 cells, koumine significantly inhibited microglia M1 polarization. Furthermore, the analgesic effect of koumine was inhibited by a TSPO antagonist PK11195. These findings suggest that the analgesic effects of koumine on CCI-induced neuropathic pain may result from the inhibition of microglia activation and M1 polarization as well as the activation of astrocytes while sparing the anti-inflammatory responses to neuropathic pain.

Purpose: To analyze the incidence and mortality of laryngeal cancer in cancer registration areas of China in 2010. Materials and Methods: Until June 1, 2013, 219 population-based cancer registries submitted data of 2010 to the National Central Cancer Registry of China covering about 207,229,403 population, and 120 cancer registries were selected after quality evaluation for this analysis. Laryngeal cancer cases were selected from the database according to International Classification of Diseases 10th Revision coded as "C32." We calculated the crude incidence and mortality rates of laryngeal cancer by sex, age, and location (urban/rural). The China population in 2000 and Segi's population were used as standardized populations for the calculation of age-standardized rates. Results: In 2010, it was estimated that there were 20,272 new cases diagnosed as laryngeal cancer in China, including 17,703 males and 2569 females. The crude incidence rate of laryngeal cancer was 1.54/100,000 in 2010, accounting for 0.66% of overall new cancer cases. The age-standardized by China population (ASRcn) and by world population (ASRwld) were 1.18/100,000 and 1.20/100,000, respectively. Cumulative rate (0–74 years old) and truncated age-standardized rate (35–64 years old) were 0.15% and 1.98/100,000, respectively. Moreover, it was estimated that there were 11 914 cases died in laryngeal cancer in China, including 10,038 males and 1876 females. The crude mortality rate was 0.91/100,000, accounting for 0.61% of overall cancer deaths. The ASRcn and ASRwld were 0.68/100,000 and 0.69/100,000, respectively. Cumulative rate and truncated age-standardized rates were 0.08% and 0.88/100,000, respectively. Conclusions: Both incidence and mortality of laryngeal cancer in China were still low in 2010.

In 2011, three supplements to Shu Mu Da Wen were published in Mainland China. These supplements offer rich information on the different editions of Shu Mu Da Wen and therefore are of great value to the researchers of Chinese literatures. However, some problems exist in the supplements regarding the entries of Guo Yu. This paper discusses and corrects the errors based on existing editions of Guo Yu and related research. [Article content in Chinese with English extended abstract]

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is common in South China. Although regional epidemiological data on NPC in China is available, national epidemiological data have been unavailable up to now. The goal of this study was to analyze the NPC incidence and mortality data in some domestic cancer registries, estimate these rates in China in 2010, and provide scientific information that can be harnessed for NPC control and prevention. To accomplish this goal, NPC incidence and mortality data for 2010 were collected from 145 Chinese cancer registries from which data were included in the 2013 National Cancer Registry Annual Report. Such indices as its incident and death numbers, crude rates, age-standardized rates and truncated rates were calculated and analyzed. The incidence and mortality in China and constituent areas were estimated according to the national population in 2010. An estimated 41,503 new cases and 20,058 deaths were attributed to NPC in China in 2010, accounting for 1.34% of all new cancer cases and 1.03% of all cancer-related deaths that year in China. Crude incidence and mortality were 3.16/100,000 and 1.53/100,000, respectively. World age-standardized incidence and mortality were 2.44/100,000 and 1.18/100,000, respectively. Incidence and mortality were higher among males than among females and slightly higher in urban areas than in rural areas. Among seven Chinese administrative regions, NPC incidence and mortality were obviously higher in South China than in other regions and lowest in North China. The male and female age-specific incidence and mortality both rose quickly from age 25-29 years, but peaked at different ages and varied by location. These results demonstrated that NPC incidence and mortality in China especially in South China were at high levels in the world, and suggested that control and prevention efforts should be enhanced.

Liver cancer is a common malignant tumor in China and a major health concern. We aimed to estimate the liver cancer incidence and mortality in China in 2010 using liver cancer data from some Chinese cancer registries and provide reference for liver cancer prevention and treatment. We collected and evaluated the incidence and mortality data of liver cancer in 2010 from 145 cancer registries, which were included in the 2013 Chinese Cancer Registry Annual Report, calculated crude, standardized, and truncated incidences and mortalities, and estimated new liver cancer cases and deaths from liver cancer throughout China and in different regions in 2010 from Chinese practical population. The estimates of new liver cancer cases and deaths were 358,840 and 312,432, respectively, in China in 2010. The crude incidence, age-standardized rate by Chinese standard population (ASR China), and age-standardized rate by world standard population (ASR world) were 27.29/100,000, 21.35/100,000, and 20.87/100,000, respectively; the crude, ASR China, and ASR world mortalities were 23.76/100,000, 18.43/100,000, and 18.04/100,000, respectively. The incidence and mortality were the highest in western regions, higher in rural areas than in urban areas, and higher in males than in females. The age-specific incidence and mortality of liver cancer showed a rapid increase from age 30 and peaked at age 80-84 or 85+. Our results indicated that the 2010 incidence and mortality of liver cancer in China, especially in undeveloped rural areas and western regions, were among high levels worldwide. The strategy for liver cancer prevention and treatment should be strengthened.

Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) begins with the death of rod photoreceptors and is slowly followed by a gradual loss of cones and a rearrangement of the remaining retinal neurons. Clusterin is a chaperone protein that protects cells and is involved in various pathophysiological stresses, including retinal degeneration. Using a well-established transgenic rat model of RP (rhodopsin S334ter), we investigated the effects of clusterin on rod photoreceptor survival. To investigate the role of clusterin in S334ter-line3 retinas, Voronoi analysis and immunohistochemistry were used to evaluate the geometry of rod distribution. Additionally, immunoblot analysis, Bax activation, STAT3 and Akt phosphorylation were used to evaluate the pathway involved in rod cell protection. In this study, clusterin (10μg/ml) intravitreal treatment produced robust preservation of rod photoreceptors in S334ter-line3 retina. The mean number of rods in 1mm2 was significantly greater in clusterin injected RP retinas (postnatal (P) 30, P45, P60, & P75) than in age-matched saline injected RP retinas (P

Purpose. To investigate the evidence of minimally invasive (MI) versus open (OP) posterior lumbar fusion in treatment of lumbar spondylolisthesis from current prospective literatures. Methods. The electronic literature database of Pubmed, Embase, and Cochrane library was searched at April 2016. The data of operative time, estimated blood loss and length of hospital stay, visual analog scale (VAS) of both lower back pain and leg pain, Oswestry disability index (ODI), SF-36 PCS (physical component scores) and SF-36 MCS (mental component scores), complications, fusion rate, and secondary surgery were extracted and analyzed by STATA 12.0 software. Results. Five nonrandom prospective comparative studies were included in this meta-analysis. The meta-analysis showed that the MI group had a significantly longer operative time than OP group, less blood loss, and shorter hospital stay. No significant difference was found in back pain, leg pain, ODI, SF-36 PCS, SF-36 MCS, complications, fusion rate, and secondary surgery between MI and OP groups. Conclusion. The prospective evidence suggested that MI posterior fusion for spondylolisthesis had less EBL and hospital stay than OP fusion; however it took more operative time. Both MI and OP fusion had similar results in pain and functional outcomes, complication, fusion rate, and secondary surgery.

This study aimed to examine the reproducibility and validity of a new food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) used in a birth cohort study to estimate the usual consumption frequencies of foods during pregnancy. The reference measure was the average of three inconsecutive 24 h diet recalls (24 HR) administrated between two FFQs, and the reproducibility was measured by repeating the first FFQ (FFQ1) approximately eight weeks later (FFQ2). A total of 210 pregnant women from the Born in Guangzhou Cohort Study (BIGCS) with full data were included in the analysis. The Spearman’s correlation coefficients of FFQ1 and FFQ2 ranged from 0.33 to 0.71. The intraclass correlation coefficients of the two FFQs ranged from 0.22 to 0.71. The Spearman’s correlation coefficients of the 24 HR and FFQ2 ranged from 0.23 to 0.62. Cross-classification analysis showed 65.1% of participants were classified into same and contiguous quintiles, while only 3.2% were misclassified into the distant quintiles. Bland-Altman methods showed good agreement for most food groups across the range of frequencies between FFQ1 and FFQ2. Our findings indicated that the reproducibility and validity of the FFQ used in BIGCS for assessing the usual consumption frequencies of foods during pregnancy were acceptable.

Historically low breast cancer incidence rates among Asian women have risen worldwide; purportedly due to the adoption of a ‘Western’ life style among younger generations (i.e., the more recent birth-cohorts). However, no study has simultaneously compared birth-cohort effects between both younger and older women in different Asian and Western populations. Using cancer registry data from rural and urban China, Singapore, and the United States (1990–2008), we estimated age-standardized incidence rates (ASR), annual percentage change (EAPC) in the ASR, net drifts, birth-cohort specific incidence rates and cohort rate ratios (CRR). Younger (30–49 years, 1943–1977 birth-cohorts) and older women (50–79 years; 1913–1957 birth-cohorts) were assessed separately. CRRs among Chinese populations were estimated using birth-cohort specific rates with US non-Hispanic white women (NHW) serving as the reference population with an assigned CRR of 1.0. We observed higher EAPCs and net drifts among those Chinese populations with lower ASRs. Similarly, we observed the most rapidly increasing cohort-specific incidence rates among those Chinese populations with the lowest baseline CRRs. Both trends were more significant among older than younger women. Average CRRs were 0.06~0.44 among older and 0.18~0.81 among younger women. Rapidly rising cohort specific rates have narrowed the historic disparity between Chinese and US NHW breast cancer populations particularly in regions with the lowest baseline rates and among older women. Future analytic studies are needed to investigate risk factors accounting for the rapid increase of breast cancer among older and younger women separately in Asian populations.

Flexible metal oxide/graphene oxide hybrid multi-gate neuron transistors were fabricated on flexible graphene substrates. Dendritic integrations in both spatial and temporal modes were successfully emulated, and spatiotemporal correlated logics were obtained. A proof-of-principle visual system model for emulating lobula giant motion detector neuron was investigated. Our results are of great interest for flexible neuromorphic cognitive systems.

Neuron is the most important building block in our brain, and information processing in individual neuron involves the transformation of input synaptic spike trains into an appropriate output spike train. Hardware implementation of neuron by individual ionic/electronic coupled device is of great importance for enhancing our understanding of the brain and solving sensory processing and complex recognition tasks. Here, we provide a proof-of-principle artificial neuron with multiple presynaptic inputs and one modulatory terminal based on a proton-coupled oxide-based electric-double-layer transistor. Regulation of dendritic integration was realized by tuning the voltage applied on the modulatory terminal. Additionally, neuronal gain control (arithmetic) in the scheme of temporal-correlated coding and rate coding are also mimicked. Our results provide a new-concept approach for building brain-inspired neuromorphic systems.

Background: Anastomotic leakage is one of serious complications of colorectal surgery. Research is inconsistent about whether non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs influence the healing of colorectal anastomoses and increase the incidence of anastomotic leakage. Objective: To study the influence of NSAIDs on the healing of rat colonic anastomoses. Design: This was an animal randomized-control trial. This study was approved by the ethical committee of Yangpu Hospital, Tongji University. Intervention: 90 healthy Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into 6 groups of 15 rats/group. Trail was performed in C (cotrol group) with no drugs, group M with morphine for analgesia, group F with flurbiprofen axeil, group L with lornoxicam, and group P with parecoxib sodium. Main outcome measures: The main outcomes measures were serological indexes including vascular endothelial growth factor, prostaglandin E2, hydroxyproline, and C reactive protein; histological specimens from the anastomotic stoma tissue including the collagen proportion, and hydroxyproline, cycloxygenase-2, and vascular endothelial growth factor content; physical indicators, including stoma fracture pressure, fracture strength and anastomotic leakage. Results: No significant difference was observed among the indices of each group (P > 0.05). A significant difference occurred after operation (P < 0.05), with the data for groups K and M being dramatically higher than those for group F. Limitation: The study was nonblinded. Conclusion: The postoperative usages of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs can decrease the strength of anastomotic tissue, and increase the incidence of anastomotic leakage.

Background To study the morphology of the human spine and new spinal fixation methods, scientists require cadaveric specimens, which are dependent on donation. However, in most countries, the number of people willing to donate their body is low. A 3D printed model could be an alternative method for morphology research, but the accuracy of the morphology of a 3D printed model has not been determined. Methods Forty-five computed tomography (CT) scans of cervical, thoracic and lumbar spines were obtained, and 44 parameters of the cervical spine, 120 parameters of the thoracic spine, and 50 parameters of the lumbar spine were measured. The CT scan data in DICOM format were imported into Mimics software v10.01 for 3D reconstruction, and the data were saved in .STL format and imported to Cura software. After a 3D digital model was formed, it was saved in Gcode format and exported to a 3D printer for printing. After the 3D printed models were obtained, the above-referenced parameters were measured again. Results Paired t-tests were used to determine the significance, set to P0.800. The other ICC values were 0.600; none were

Worldwide data for cancer survival are scarce. We aimed to initiate worldwide surveillance of cancer survival by central analysis of population-based registry data, as a metric of the eff ectiveness of health systems, and to inform global policy on cancer control. Methods Individual tumour records were submitted by 279 population-based cancer registries in 67 countries for 25·7 million adults (age 15–99 years) and 75 000 children (age 0–14 years) diagnosed with cancer during 1995–2009 and followed up to Dec 31, 2009, or later. We looked at cancers of the stomach, colon, rectum, liver, lung, breast (women), cervix, ovary, and prostate in adults, and adult and childhood leukaemia. Standardised quality control procedures were applied; errors were corrected by the registry concerned. We estimated 5-year net survival, adjusted for background mortality in every country or region by age (single year), sex, and calendar year, and by race or ethnic origin in some countries. Estimates were age-standardised with the International Cancer Survival Standard weights. Findings 5-year survival from colon, rectal, and breast cancers has increased steadily in most developed countries. For patients diagnosed during 2005–09, survival for colon and rectal cancer reached 60% or more in 22 countries around the world; for breast cancer, 5-year survival rose to 85% or higher in 17 countries worldwide. Liver and lung cancer remain lethal in all nations: for both cancers, 5-year survival is below 20% everywhere in Europe, in the range 15–19% in North America, and as low as 7–9% in Mongolia and Thailand. Striking rises in 5-year survival from prostate cancer have occurred in many countries: survival rose by 10–20% between 1995–99 and 2005–09 in 22 countries in South America, Asia, and Europe, but survival still varies widely around the world, from less than 60% in Bulgaria and Thailand to 95% or more in Brazil, Puerto Rico, and the USA. For cervical cancer, national estimates of 5-year survival range from less than 50% to more than 70%; regional variations are much wider, and improvements between 1995–99 and 2005–09 have generally been slight. For women diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2005–09, 5-year survival was 40% or higher only in Ecuador, the USA, and 17 countries in Asia and Europe. 5-year survival for stomach cancer in 2005–09 was high (54–58%) in Japan and South Korea, compared with less than 40% in other countries. By contrast, 5-year survival from adult leukaemia in Japan and South Korea (18–23%) is lower than in most other countries. 5-year survival from childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia is less than 60% in several countries, but as high as 90% in Canada and four European countries, which suggests major defi ciencies in the management of a largely curable disease. Interpretation International comparison of survival trends reveals very wide diff erences that are likely to be attributable to diff erences in access to early diagnosis and optimum treatment. Continuous worldwide surveillance of cancer survival should become an indispensable source of information for cancer patients and researchers and a stimulus for politicians to improve health policy and health-care systems This work was funded by the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer, Cancer Focus Northern Ireland, Cancer Institute New South Wales, Cancer Research UK (C1336/A16148), US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC; 12FED03123, ACO12036), Swiss Re, Swiss Cancer Research foundation, Swiss Cancer League, and the University of Kentucky (3049024672-12-568)

Learning and logic are fundamental brain functions that make the individual to adapt to the environment, and such functions are established in human brain by modulating ionic fluxes in synapses. Nanoscale ionic/electronic devices with inherent synaptic functions are considered to be essential building blocks for artificial neural networks. Here, Multi-terminal IZO-based artificial synaptic transistors gated by fast proton-conducting phosphosilicate electrolytes are fabricated on glass substrates. Proton in the SiO2 electrolyte and IZO channel conductance are regarded as the neurotransmitter and synaptic weight, respectively. Spike-timing dependent plasticity, short-term memory and long-term memory were successfully mimicked in such protonic/electronic hybrid artificial synapses. And most importantly, spatiotemporally correlated logic functions are also mimicked in a simple artificial neural network without any intentional hard-wire connections due to the naturally proton-related coupling effect. The oxide-based protonic/electronic hybrid artificial synaptic transistors reported here are potential building blocks for artificial neural networks.

Dual-gate electrostatic modulation gives an attractive approach for transistors performance improvement, threshold voltage (Vth) and operation mode modulation, which is favorable for chemical sensor and logic applications. Here, a self-aligned junctionless semiconducting oxide channels are dual-gate electrostatic modulated by solution-processed chitosan-based proton conductors on paper substrates. The low-voltage junctionless paper transistors can be effectively tuned from depletion mode to enhancement mode by the second in-plane gate. OR logic gate was experimentally demonstrated on such dual-in-plane gate junctionless transistors. Such dual-gate organic/inorganic hybrid paper transistors are promising for portable paper electronics.

A simple laser scribing process has been developed to fabricate low-voltage junctionless in-plane-gate thin-film transistors (TFTs) arrays without any mask and photolithography. Such junctionless TFTs feature that the channel and the source/drain electrodes are of the same indium-tin-oxide films without any intentional source/drain junction deposition process. Effective field-effect modulation of the drain current has been realized on such in-plane-gate device with a field-effect mobility of ~12.6cm2/Vs. At last, AND gate logic function was demonstrated on dual in-plane-gate device.

Transistors are the fundamental building block of modern electronic devices. So far, all transistors are based on various types of semiconductor junctions. The most common bipolar-junction transistors and metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors contain p-n junctions to control the current, depending on applied biases across the junctions. Thin-film transistors need metal-semiconductor junctions for injecting and extracting electrons from their channels. Here, by coating a heavily-doped thin indium-tin-oxide (ITO) film through a shadow mask onto a biopolymer chitosan/ITO/glass substrate, we can have a high-performance junctionless transparent organic-inorganic hybrid thin film transistor. This could be the simplest transistor in the world, to our knowledge, not only in its structure, but also its fabrication process. In addition, the device performance is found to be greatly enhanced using a reinforced chitosan/SiO2 hybrid bilayer dielectric stack. Our results clearly show that this architecture can lead to a new class of low-cost transistors., 25 pages, 7 figures