Search

SERS spectrum-based error calibration method of TMB–H2O2 colorimetric system to achieve the actual process information during TMB oxidation and open a new horizon for enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays and other biomedical applications.

This work presents an in-situ technique to quantify the layer-by-layer roughness of thin films and heterostructures by measuring the spectral profile of the reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED). The characteristic features of the diffraction spot, including the vertical to lateral size ratio c/b and the asymmetrical ratio c1/c2 along the vertical direction, are found to be quantitatively dependent on the surface roughness. The quantitative relationships between them are established and discussed for different incident angles of high-energy electrons. As an example, the surface roughnesses of LaCoO3 films grown at different temperatures are obtained using such an in-situ technique, which are confirmed by the ex-situ atomic force microscopy. Moreover, the in-situ measured layer-by-layer roughness oscillations of two LaCoO3 films are demonstrated, revealing drastically different information from the intensity oscillations. The experiments assisted with the in-situ technique demonstrate an outstanding high resolution down to ∼ 0.1 A. Therefore, the new quantitative RHEED technique with real-time feedbacks significantly escalates the thin film synthesis efficiency, especially for achieving atomically smooth surfaces and interfaces. It opens up new prospects for future generations of thin film growth, such as the artificial intelligence-assisted thin film growth.

Purpose: M-protein is a well-established biomarker used for multiple myeloma monitoring. Current improvements in multiple myeloma treatment created the need to monitor minimal residual disease (MRD) with high sensitivity. Measuring residual levels of M-protein in serum by MS was established as a sensitive assay for disease monitoring. In this study we evaluated the performance of EasyM—a noninvasive, sensitive, MS-based assay for M-protein monitoring. Experimental Design: Twenty-six patients enrolled in MCRN-001 clinical trial of two high-dose alkylating agents as conditioning followed by lenalidomide maintenance were selected for the study. All selected patients achieved complete responses (CR) during treatment, whereas five experienced progressive disease on study. The M-protein of each patient was first sequenced from the diagnostic serum using our de novo protein sequencing platform. The patient-specific M-protein peptides were then measured by targeted MS assay to monitor the response to treatment. Results: The M-protein doubling over 6 months measured by EasyM could predict the relapse in 4 of 5 relapsed patients 2 to 11 months earlier than conventional testing. In 21 disease-free patients, the M-protein was still detectable by EasyM despite normal FLC and MRD negativity. Importantly, of 72 MRD negative samples with CR status, 62 were positive by EasyM. The best sensitivity achieved by EasyM, detecting 0.58 mg/L of M-protein, was 1,000- and 200-fold higher compared with serum protein electrophoresis and immunofixation electrophoresis, respectively. Conclusions: EasyM was demonstrated to be a noninvasive, sensitive assay with superior performance compared with other assays, making it ideal for multiple myeloma monitoring and relapse prediction.

A series of Terbium ions and Samarium ions doped NaBiF4 phosphors were synthesized by precipitation method at room temperature. Under ultraviolet light excitation, the phosphors possess multicolor emissions including green, yellow-green as well as white. Furthermore, in NaBiF4: Tb3+, Sm3+ system, there are energy transfer processes from Bi3+ to Tb3+ and from Tb3+ to Sm3+ ions, and the energy transfer mechanism between Tb3+ and Sm3+ ion is quadrupole–quadrupole (q-q) interaction. Multicolor luminescence including white light emission can be acquired via varying the content of Tb3+ or Sm3+. The CIE chromaticity diagram directly displays the hue variability of the as-synthesized samples. This type of color-tunable luminescence phosphors is potential in the fields of photoelectronic devices and biomedical science.

Research on the impact of anthropogenic heat discharge in a thermal environment is significant in climate change research. Central heating is more common in the winter in Northeast China as an anthropogenic heat. This study investigates the impact of central heating on the thermal environment in Shenyang, Changchun, and Harbin based on multi-temporal land surface temperature retrieval from remote sensing. An equivalent heat island index method was proposed to overcome the problem of the method based on a single-phase image, which cannot evaluate all the central heating season changes. The method improves the comprehensiveness of a thermal environment evaluation by considering the long-term heat accumulation. The results indicated a significant increase in equivalent heat island areas at night with 22.1%, 17.3%, and 19.5% over Shenyang, Changchun, and Harbin. The increase was significantly positively correlated with the central heating supply (with an R-value of 0.89 for Shenyang, 0.93 for Changchun, and 0.86 for Harbin; p < 0.05). The impact of central heating has a more significant effect than the air temperature. The results provide a reference for future studies of urban thermal environment changes.

The objective of this study is to establish a safety risk warning system for the construction of underground engineering and to solve the problems existing in current construction of underground engineering, such as large investment, long construction period, complex construction environment, and many unforeseen risk factors. In this research, building information modeling (BIM) technology and Internet of things technology are used to analyze the construction of safety risk warning system for underground engineering. Firstly, the concept and application of BIM technology and safety risk warning of underground engineering construction are introduced. Then, aiming at the existing safety problems of underground construction, the construction principle of underground construction safety indicator system, the establishment steps of indicator system and safety risk indicator system are introduced in detail, and a set of early warning and control system of safety risk of underground construction based on BIM technology and Internet of things technology is established. At last, the working mode and real-time monitoring of underground engineering early warning based on BIM technology and Internet of things are expounded. The results show that the underground engineering prediction system based on BIM technology and the Internet of things adopts the working mode that combines the circular safety risk warning wheel mode and the three-dimensional safety risk warning mode. Moreover, the real-time dynamic monitoring of the security risk warning system can be achieved through the periodic recording and testing of process indicators by the BIM management platform. It is hoped that this study can provide a good management platform for underground construction safety and reduce the occurrence of safety accidents in underground construction.

With the rise and development of the concept of autonomous ships, autonomous ships have become a research hotspot in the field of international maritime and transportation. The intelligent navigation system has attracted much attention as a typical function of autonomous ships. During navigation, new risks are inevitable due to the separation from human control, so carrying out a dynamic risk analysis is of great significance. This paper is based on the risk influencing factors and typical risk events during navigation. Then, the Dynamic Bayesian Network model is established by using risk factors and typical risk events, and the risk value of each risk factor is determined. It is substituted into the model to calculate and predict the current and future risk values.

Due to the special interest and unique advantage of bovine serum albumin among various proteins, we carried out researches into effects of bovine serum albumin on photophysical characters of meso-tetrakis(sulfonatophenyl) porphyrin. The laser source we chose is picosecond pulse trains containing 20 subpulses of 70 picoseconds width separating by 13 nanoseconds at 532 nanometers. The theoretical analysis was carried out with a generalized five-level model representing the molecular populating structure. The two-dimensional paraxial field combined with the rate equations was solved by Crank-Nicholson numerical method. The nonlinear optical absorption mechanism in porphyrin is mainly two-step two-photon absorption. We found meso-tetrakis(sulfonatophenyl) porphyrin always shows prominent optical limiting effects binding with or without bovine serum albumin. In the presence of bovine serum albumin, the photophysical parameters of porphyrin get certain influence and cause slight weakening of optical limiting for porphyrin.

Ultrashort laser pulses have been utilized to dynamically drive phase transitions in correlated quantum materials. Of particular interest is whether phases not achievable in thermal equilibrium can be induced in complex oxides with intricately coupled lattice, electron and spin degrees of freedom. Here, we tracked atomic motions in LaMnO3 following photoexcitation with MeV ultrafast electron diffraction (MeV-UED) technique. We found that the light excited state exhibits numerous signatures different from thermal equilibrium ones, including nearly conserved Bragg intensities, strongly suppressed La cation and oxygen anion displacements, and the long-range lattice orthorhombicity evolution. Furthermore, using first-principles calculations, we predict that the ferromagnetic ordering and conductivity are both enhanced upon laser excitation due to the reduction of the lattice orthorhombicity. This work benefits from recent advance in fabrication of membrane films with high epitaxial quality and in MeV-UED with large momentum space access and high temporal resolution.

We develop a watt-level 725 nm continuous-wave tunable narrow linewidth injection-locked Ti:sapphire laser. The seed laser is frequency-locked on a Fabry–Perot cavity to narrow the linewidth and stabilize the frequency. Because the wavelength of the seed laser is located at the edge of the gain profile of the Ti:sapphire crystal, it is difficult to injection-lock the Ti:sapphire laser at 725 nm. A cavity mirror, which has a long-pass-filter coating with a sharp edge, is used in the Ti:sapphire cavity to suppress mode competition from the long wavelength side. This method effectively reduces the power requirement of the seed laser at 725 nm, and the Ti:sapphire laser can be injection-locked at higher output power. As a result, a 1 W output power with a 27% slope efficiency is achieved in the injection-locked laser, and a 210 mW UV laser is obtained in a subsequent second-harmonic generation stage. To the best of our knowledge, this is the shortest wavelength for the watt-level injection-locked continuous-wave Ti:sapphire laser. This laser will be used in a mercury optical lattice clock in the future.

Background The Taylor Spatial Frame (TSF) has been widely used for tibial fracture. However, traditional radiographic measurement method is complicated and the reduction accuracy is affected by various factors. The purpose of this study was to propose a new marker- three dimensional (3D) measurement method and determine the differences of reduction outcomes, if any, between marker-3D measurement method and traditional radiographic measurement in the TSF treatment. Methods Forty-one patients with tibial fracture treated by TSF in our institution were retrospectively analyzed from January 2016 to June 2019, including 21 patients in the marker-3D measurement group (experimental group) and 20 patients in the traditional radiographic measurement group (control group). In the experimental group, 3D reconstruction with 6 markers installed on the TSF was performed to determine the electronic prescription. In the control group, the anteroposterior (AP) and lateral radiographs were performed for the traditional parameter measurements. The effectiveness was evaluated by the residual displacement deformity (RDD) and residual angle deformity (RAD) in the coronal and sagittal plane, according to the AP and lateral X-rays after reduction. Results All patients achieved functional reduction. The residual RDD in AP view was 0.5 (0, 1.72) mm in experimental group and 1.74 (0.43, 3.67) mm in control group. The residual RAD in AP view was 0 (0, 1.25) ° in experimental group and 1.25 (0.62, 1.95) °in control group. As for the lateral view, the RDD was 0 (0, 1.22) mm in experimental group and 2.02 (0, 3.74) mm in control group, the RAD was 0 (0, 0) ° in experimental group and 1.42 (0, 1.93) ° in control group. Significant differences in all above comparisons were observed between the two groups (AP view RDD: P = 0.024, RAD: P = 0.020; Lateral view RDD: P = 0.016, RAD: P = 0.004). Conclusions The present study introduced a marker-3D measurement method to complement the current TSF treatment. This method avoids the manual measurement error and improves the accuracy of fracture reduction, providing potential advantages of bone healing and function rehabilitation.

Surface temperature is one of the key parameters for estimating regional evapotranspiration (ET) based on the Surface Energy Balance System (SEBS) model using remote sensing data. However, continuous daily remote sensing surface temperature data are often not available due to the weather and environmental conditions. This paper proposed a scheme to obtain reliable ET that estimating ET using WRF-simulated surface skin temperature (TSK) and then modifying the deviation using the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). This study aims to explore whether the model data can be a viable option when the continuous-time-series remote sensing surface temperature is missing for estimating ET. Comparison results show that the correlation between WRF TSK and the measured temperature of the 2-cm soil (Ts) is better than MODIS land surface temperature (LST) in the study area, while the correlation between MODIS LST and the measured surface radiation temperature (IRT) is better than WRF TSK. The MODIS LST is significantly higher than Ts, and the WRF TSK is closer to Ts than MODIS LST. However, the ET calculated using WRF TSK was not good, exhibiting relatively high ET in the whole area and a poor correlation with the measurements, whereby R2, RMSE, and the percent bias (PBIAS) were equal to 0.1256, 5.2783 mm, and −202.17%, respectively. According to the principle of land surface process simulation in WRF, this paper proposes using NDVI to modify ET calculated using TSK. The comparison between the modified ET and the measurements exhibited a relatively good correlation, with R2 = 0.7532, RMSE = 1.0993 mm, and PBIAS = −17.9%. Therefore, the model surface temperature data can be used to estimate continuous-time-series regional ET when NDVI is used to modify the deviation, which indicates the surface temperature data simulated by the WRF Model can become the optional data for estimating ET and compensate for the shortcoming of poor time continuity of remote sensing data, further expanding the application prospects of meteorological model data in the remote sensing field.

BackgroundThe prognostic and clinicopathological value of Ki-67 in melanoma is controversial. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to determine the prognostic role of Ki-67 in melanoma patients.Materials and MethodsThe PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Embase databases were searched systematically up to April 9, 2021. We calculated the pooled hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) to determine the relationship between Ki-67 overexpression and survival outcomes. We also calculated the combined odds ratios (ORs) and 95% CIs to determine the relationship between Ki-67 expression levels and clinicopathologic parameters. All data were statistically analyzed by Stata 11.0.ResultsA total of 10 studies involving 929 patients were included in our meta-analysis. The pooled HR showed that Ki-67 overexpression was connected with poor overall survival rates (HR=2.92, 95% CI=2.17-3.91, pConclusionKi-67 is a useful poor prognostic indicator for melanoma patients.

Optical imaging through scattering media such as ground glass, fog, biological tissues, etc. has always been a widely used and challenging task in the optical field. Compared with traditional imaging methods such as transmission matrix and optical phase conjugation, deep learning has shown great potential in this field because of its simple device and fast reconstruction speed. In this article, we developed an algorithm based on convolutional neural network to realize imaging through scattering media and applied this algorithm to recover complex images. The speckle images of the original images are obtained through a speckle generation program, and then the speckle images and the original images are input into the neural network in pairs for training. Finally, the reconstructed speckle images can be obtained by using the trained neural network. In the numerical simulation, we proposed two indicators, peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) and structural similarity (SSIM), to evaluate the quality of reconstructed images. The results show that our method can restore highfidelity images. This new image reconstruction method provides new ideas for research in the fields of astronomy and biomedicine.

Hydrogen peroxide (H

Background: The Taylor Spatial Frame (TSF) has been widely used for tibiofibular fractures. However, traditional radiograph measurement method is complicated and the reduction accuracy is not high enough for correcting residual deformities. We proposed the marker-3D measurement method to solve these problems. This study aimed to compare the reduction accuracy of the traditional radiograph measurement method and the marker-3D measurement method in tibiofibular fracture treated with TSF.Methods: From January 2016 to June 2019, A retrospective analysis was performed based on the patients with tibiofibular fracture treated with TSF in our department. 41 patients were qualified for this study, including 21 patients in the marker-3D measurement group (experimental group) and 20 patients in the traditional radiograph measurement group (control group). In the experimental group, CT scan was performed for 3D reconstruction with 6 markers installed on the TSF, to determine the adjusting plan. In the control group, the anteroposterior (AP) and lateral radiographs were performed for the deformity parameters. X-rays were taken to measure the residual deformities after correction.Results: All patients reached functional reduction. The residual displacement deformity (RDD) in AP radiograph was 0.5 (0, 1.72) mm in experimental group and 1.74 (0.43, 3.67) mm in control group. The residual angle deformity (RAD) in AP radiograph was 0 (0, 1.25) ° in experimental group and 1.25 (0.62, 1.95) °in control group. As to the Lateral radiograph, the RDD was 0 (0, 1.22) mm in experimental group and 2.02 (0, 3.74) mm in control group. The RAD was 0 (0, 0) ° in experimental group and 1.42 (0, 1.93) ° in control group. Significant differences in all above comparisons were found between the groups (AP radiograph RDD: P = 0.024, RAD: P = 0.020; Lateral radiograph RDD: P = 0.016, RAD: P = 0.004). Conclusions: Both groups achieved satisfactory fracture reduction. However, the residual deformities in the experimental group were significantly smaller. This study proved that the marker-3D measurement method could further improve the reduction accuracy.

The amino acid sequence of the M-protein for multiple myeloma is unique compared to the polyclonal antibodies in patients' blood. This uniqueness is exploited to develop an ultrasensitive M-protein detection method utilizing mass spectrometry (MS). The method involves the de novo amino acid sequencing of the full-length M-protein, and a targeted MS/MS assay to detect and quantify the unique M-protein sequence in serum samples. Healthy control serum spiked with NISTmAb and serial samples from an MM patient were used to demonstrate the ability of the platform to sequence and monitor a target M-protein. The de novo NISTmAb protein sequence obtained matched the published sequence, confirming the ability of the platform to accurately sequence a target M-protein in serum. NISTmAb was quantified down to 0.0002 g/dL in serum, a level hundreds of times more sensitive than conventional blood-based tests such as SPEP and IFE. The M-protein in the patient sample could be quantified throughout complete remission, demonstrating the utility of the assay to track M-protein considerably beyond the sensitivities of current blood-based tests. Notably, the assay detected a 2-fold rise in M-protein levels 10 months before any changes were detected by conventional IFE. The MS-based assay is highly sensitive, noninvasive, and requires only a small amount of serum, less than 100 μL. Sequencing data is deposited into PRIDE with identifier PXD022784, and quantification data can be found in Panorama Public with identifier PXD022980.

Root zone soil moisture is an important component in water cycling through the soil-plant-atmosphere continuum. However, its measurement in the field remains a challenge, especially non-invasively and repeatedly. Here, we developed a new method that uses ground-penetrating radar (GPR) to quantify root zone soil moisture. Coarse roots were chosen as reflectors to collect GPR radargrams. An automatic hyperbola detection algorithm identified coarse root reflections in GPR radargrams and determined the velocity of GPR wave, which then was used to calculate the average soil water content of a soil profile (ASWC) and soil water content in a depth interval (ISWC). In total, GPR reflection data of 55 root samples from three computer simulation scenarios and two field experiments in sandy shrubland, one burying roots at known depths and the other under the undisturbed condition, were used to evaluate the proposed method. Both the simulated and the field collected data demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed method for measuring root zone soil moisture with high accuracy. Even in the two field experiments, the root-mean-square errors of the estimated ASWC and ISWC relative to measurements from soil cores were as low as 0.003 and 0.012 m3·m−3, respectively. The proposed method offers a new way of quantifying root zone soil moisture non-invasively that allows repeated measurements. This study expands the application of GPR in root and soil study and enhances our ability to monitor plant-soil-water interactions.

Herein, uniform Ag nanocube@NaYF4:Yb3+,Tm3+ multifunctional nanocomposites were constructed by a facile synthetic strategy. Following the successful synthesis of Ag nanocubes, cubic phase NaYF4:Yb3+,Tm3+ upconversion luminescent nanocrystals were modified on the surface of the Ag nanocubes, enhanced the mutual assistance of energy and versatility of the materials. Upon irradiation with a near-infrared laser, the nanocomposites exhibited excellent upconversion fluorescence and good photothermal conversion capability. Furthermore, the potential biological applications and biosafety of the Ag@NaYF4:Yb3+,Tm3+ nanocomposites were also demonstrated; the obtained nanocomposites could achieve a good bactericidal performance and photothermal treatment of cancer cells, and they could be potentially applied in the biomedical field as a promising agent. Furthermore, this method provides a facile approach for synthesizing a multifunctional nanocomposite with different properties.

A large number of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) persist in wastewater, and the consumption of PPCPs for COVID-19 control and prevention has sharply increased during the pandemic. This study investigated the occurrence, removal efficiency, and risk assessment of six typical PPCPs commonly used in China in two wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Ribavirin (RBV) is an effective pharmaceutical for severely ill patients with COVID-19, and the possible biodegradation pathway of RBV by activated sludge was discovered. The experimental results showed that PPCPs were detected in two WWTPs with a detection rate of 100% and concentrations ranging between 612 and 2323 ng L

The recent proposal of antidoping scheme breaks new ground in conceiving conversely functional materials and devices; yet, the few available examples belong to the correlated electron systems. Here, we demonstrate both theoretically and experimentally that the main group oxide BaBiO

The utilization and residue of pesticides exist multifaceted non-restrictive effects on food safety and ecological protection. Exploitation of rapid and sensitive pesticide detection technology is imperative and will be helpful to better control the detriment of pesticides. Here, a novel flexible film has been prepared based on organic-inorganic composite materials (coumarin-3-carboxylic acid and GdF

The recent proposal of antidoping scheme breaks new ground in conceiving conversely functional materials and devices, yet the few available examples belong to the correlated electron systems. Here we demonstrate both theoretically and experimentally that the main group oxide BaBiO3 is a model system for antidoping using oxygen vacancies. The first-principles calculations show that the band gap systematically increases due to the strongly enhanced Bi-O breathing distortions away from the vacancies and the annihilation of Bi 6s/O 2p hybridized conduction bands near the vacancies. The spectroscopic experiments confirm the band gap increasing systematically with electron doping, with a maximal gap enhancement of ~75% when the film’s stoichiometry is reduced to BaBiO2.75. The Raman and diffraction experiments show the suppression of the overall breathing distortion. The study unambiguously demonstrates the remarkable antidoping effect in a material without strong electron correlations and underscores the importance of bond disproportionation in realizing such an effect.

Background: Postoperative malalignment in fractures treated by monolateral external fixation is not uncommon in clinical practice. Accurate reduction without excessive tissue disruption caused by surgical intervention and sequentially manage the fractures using monolateral external fixation for definitive treatment is still a challenge for surgeons. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of the temporary application of the hexapod external fixator (HEF) for the postoperative malalignment correction in tibial diaphyseal fractures treated by monolateral external fixation. Methods: We carried out a retrospective analysis of 23 trauma patients with tibial diaphyseal fracture treated by the monolateral external fixation at our institution from January 2016 to May 2019. There were 21 males and 2 females with a mean age of 38 years (range 18-60 years). The hexapod external fixator was temporarily applied due to postoperative malalignment within two weeks and who unwilling to undergo a secondary surgical intervention. For patients with postoperative malalignment requiring correction, the HEF components were installed on the original existing half pins of the monolateral external fixator after removing the connecting rod. The standard anteroposterior and lateral X-rays of the injured limb combined with the temporary HEF were conducted to measure the hexapod external fixator parameters. Any residual deformities were corrected by gradual struts adjustment with the aid of computer-based software. When satisfactory alignment was achieved, the HEF was removed, and the monolateral external fixator was sequentially used as the definitive structure. Results: All patients acquired functional reduction, which was evaluated by radiographs. The mean correction time was 4 days (range 2 to 8 days). The mean coronal plane translation (1.3±1.0 mm), coronal plane angulation (0.9±0.7°), sagittal plane translation (1.4±1.1 mm), and sagittal plane angulation (0.7±0.7°) after correction were all less than those (7.0±4.9 mm, 4.7±2.3°, 5.6±3.6 mm, 3.2±2.5°) before correction. Conclusions: The temporary application of the hexapod external fixator is an alternative and feasible method for the postoperative malalignment correction in tibial diaphyseal fractures treated by monolateral external fixation.

Soil moisture content (SMC) plays an essential role in geoscience research. The SMC can be retrieved using an artificial neural network (ANN) based on remote sensing data. The quantity and quality of samples for ANN training and testing are two critical factors that affect the SMC retrieving results. This study focused on sample optimization in both quantity and quality. On the one hand, a sparse sample exploitation (SSE) method was developed to solve the problem of sample scarcity, resultant from cloud obstruction in optical images and the malfunction of in situ SMC-measuring instruments. With this method, data typically excluded in conventional approaches can be adequately employed. On the other hand, apart from the basic input parameters commonly discussed in previous studies, a couple of new parameters were optimized to improve the feature description. The Sentinel-1 SAR and Landsat-8 images were adopted to retrieve SMC in the study area in eastern Austria. By the SSE method, the number of available samples increased from 264 to 635 for ANN training and testing, and the retrieval accuracy could be markedly improved. Furthermore, the optimized parameters also improve the inversion effect, and the elevation was the most influential input parameter.

Background/objectives Micro-induction is a novel buprenorphine induction approach that seeks to avoid withdrawal and minimize precipitated withdrawal, both barriers to standard inductions. We aimed to synthesize evidence on micro-induction effectiveness, and regimens described. Methods We searched scientific databases and grey literature for studies including adolescents or adults with opioid use disorder who received buprenorphine micro-induction. Study selection, data extraction and quality assessments occurred in duplicate. We narratively synthesized results. Results We screened 4,752 citations and included 19 case studies/series and one feasibility study (n = 57 patients; mean age 38 years [SD 12.0]; 57.9% male [33/57]). Studies described 26 regimens; starting and maintenance doses ranged from 0.03 to 1.0 mg, and 8 to 32 mg, respectively. We calculated rate of increase to 8 mg. All patients achieved the desired maintenance dose. Among 54 patients in whom precipitated withdrawal was not reported, mean increases were 1.36 mg/day (SD 0.41). For three patients in whom precipitated withdrawal was specifically reported, mean increase was 1.17 mg/day (SD 0.11). All studies were low quality. Discussion Described regimens are highly variable. Inconsistent reporting, selection bias, and poor quality evidence limit conclusions regarding optimal dosing, and patient characteristics and clinical settings in which micro-induction is likely beneficial. Conclusions This systematic review provides the most up-to-date synthesis on buprenorphine micro-induction regimens. Rigorous studies evaluating effectiveness and safety of micro-induction, and patient and clinical factors influencing its success, are needed.

Background The Taylor Spatial Frame (TSF) has been widely used on tibia fractures. However, traditional radiograph measurement method is complicated and the reduction accuracy is not high enough for correcting residual deformities. We proposed the marker-3D measurement method to solve these problems. This study aimed to compare the reduction accuracy of the traditional radiograph measurement method and the marker-3D measurement method in tibia fracture treated with TSF. Methods From January 2016 to June 2019, A retrospective analysis was performed based on the patients with tibia fracture treated with TSF in Tianjin Hospital. Forty-one patients were qualified for this study, including 21 patients in the marker-3D measurement group (experimental group) and 20 patients in the traditional radiograph measurement group (control group). In the experimental group, CT scan was performed for 3D reconstruction with 6 markers installed on the TSF, to determine the adjusting plan; in the control group, the Anteroposterior (AP) and Lateral radiographs were performed for the deformity parameters. All fractures were corrected after TSF adjusting, and then X-rays were taken to measure the residual deformities. Results All patients reached functional reduction. The residual displacement deformity (RDD) in AP radiograph was 0.5 (0, 1.72) mm in experimental group and 1.74 (0.43, 3.67) mm in control group; the residual angle deformity (RAD) in AP radiograph was 0 (0, 1.25) ° in experimental group and 1.25 (0.62, 1.95) °in control group. As to the Lateral radiograph, the RDD was 0 (0, 1.22) mm in experimental group and 2.02 (0, 3.74) mm in control group; the RAD was 0 (0, 0) ° in experimental group and 1.42 (0, 1.93) ° in control group. Significant differences in all above comparisons were found between the groups (AP radiograph RDD: P = 0.024, RAD: P = 0.020; Lateral radiograph RDD: P = 0.016, RAD: P = 0.004). Conclusion Both groups achieved satisfactory fracture reduction. However, the residual deformities in the experimental group were significantly smaller. This study proved that the marker-3D measurement method could further improve the accuracy of the reduction.

Accurate cropland classification is important for agricultural monitoring and related decision-making. The commonly used input spectral features for classification cannot be employed to effectively distinguish crops that have similar spectro-temporal features. This study attempted to improve the classification accuracy of crops using both the thermal feature, i.e., the land surface temperature (LST), and the spectral feature, i.e., the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), for classification. To amplify the temperature differences between the crops, a temperature index, namely, the modified land surface temperature index (mLSTI) was built using the LST. The mLSTI was calculated by subtracting the average LST of an image from the LST of each pixel. To study the adaptability of the proposed method to different areas, three study areas were selected. A comparison of the classification results obtained using the NDVI time series and NDVI + mLSTI time series showed that for long time series from June to November, the classification accuracy when using the mLSTI and NDVI time series was higher (85.6% for study area 1 in California, 96.3% for area 2 in Kansas, and 91.2% for area 3 in Texas) than that when using the NDVI time series alone (82.0% for area 1, 94.7% for area 2, and 90.9% for area 3), the same was true in most of the cases when using the shorter time series. With the addition of the mLSTI time series, the shorter time series achieved higher classification accuracy, which is beneficial for timely crop identification. The sorghum and soybean crops, which exhibit similar NDVI feature curves in this study, could be better distinguished by adding the mLSTI time series. The results demonstrated that the classification accuracy of crops can be improved by adding mLSTI long time series, particularly for distinguishing crops with similar NDVI characteristics in a given study area.

Many arid and semiarid grasslands around the world are suffering from shrub encroachment to a great extent. However, the process of shrub encroachment is still poorly understood. Particularly, there has been limited historical datasets and inadequate field samples about the encroachment species. Shrub age can serve as an important indicator of the shrub encroachment history; and the population structure based on the shrub age distribution can reflect the population dynamics of an encroachment species. Using a high spatial resolution (HSR) remote sensing data, this paper estimates the age and population structure of a typical shrub, the Caragana genus (hereafter shrubs) in the temperate arid and semiarid grasslands of Inner Mongolia, China. The primary methods include: (1) building a shrub age estimation model considering different shrub crown growth rates affected by different precipitation regimes in the Inner Mongolian grassland; (2) identifying shrub individuals from multiple HSR remote sensing images and estimating the age of shrub individuals using the developed shrub age estimation model; (3) establishing a shrub age histogram, fitting the population structure, and calculating the survival rate and regeneration count using a negative exponential function. The results indicate that this shrub age estimation model performs better than a simple statistical regression using only the shrub crown area. Further, employing the negative exponential function for research on shrub encroachment provides supporting evidence of its effective role in capturing the population structure. Result also identifies that the survival rate increases with precipitation.

Using Surface Energy Balance System (SEBS) to estimate actual evapotranspiration (ET) on a regional scale generally uses gridded meteorological data by interpolating data from meteorological stations with mathematical interpolation. The heterogeneity of underlying surfaces cannot be effectively considered when interpolating meteorological station measurements to gridded data only by mathematical interpolation. This study aims to highlight the improvement of modeled meteorological data from the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) mesoscale numerical model which fully considers the heterogeneity of underlying surfaces over the data from mathematical interpolation method when providing accurate meteorological input for SEBS model. Meteorological data at 1 km resolution in the Hotan Oasis were simulated and then were put into SEBS model to estimate the daily actual ET. The accuracy of WRF simulation was evaluated through comparison with data collected at the meteorological station. Results found that the WRF-simulated wind speed, air temperature, relative humidity and surface pressure correlate well with the meteorological stations measurements (R2 are 0.628, 0.8242, 0.8089 and 0.8915, respectively). Comparison between ET calculated using the meteorological data simulated from the WRF (ETa-WRF) and meteorological data interpolated from measurements at met stations (ETa-STA) showed that ETa-WRF could better reflect the ET difference between different land cover, and capture the vegetation growing trend, especially in areas with sparse vegetation, where ETa-STA intends to overestimate. In addition, ETa-WRF has less noise in barren areas compared to ETa-STA. Our findings suggest that WRF can provide more reliable meteorological input for SEBS model than mathematical interpolation method.

Background The Functional Assessment Of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being-Expanded (FACIT-Sp-Ex) scale can simultaneously evaluate the quality of life and spiritual health level of patients with chronic orthopaedic diseases. We performed the FACIT-Sp-Ex scale in Chinese, and tested its reliability and validity in patients with chronic orthopaedic diseases. Methods There were 249 patients with chronic orthopaedic diseases who were selected for the questionnaire survey. AMOS 23.0 and SPSS 25.0 were used for statistical analysis to calculate the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of the scale. Results The Chinese version of FACIT-Sp-Ex scale showed that root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) was 0.06. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.83, the subscale was 0.72 ~ 0.82. The meaning, peace, relational subscales and total scale of the FACIT-Sp-Ex were negatively correlated with hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS) and positively correlated with health-related quality of life (HRQOL). All four subdomains were inversely associated with HADS anxiety symptoms, the peace and relational subscales were inversely associated with HADS depressive symptoms. Elderly female patients score higher than male patients in faith subscale. The highest-scoring disease in FACIT-Sp-Ex faith scale was osteoarthritis, which in FACIT-Sp-Ex total scale are piriformis syndrome and osteoarthritis. Conclusion The Chinese version of FACIT-Sp-Ex scale has good reliability and validity, which can be used as an evaluation tool for the spiritual status and quality of life of Chinese elderly chronic orthopaedic patients.

Downscaling is a very important process to convert a coarse domain satellite product to a finer spatial resolution. In this paper, a deep learning based downscaling method was designed to improve the spatial resolution of the global sea surface salinity (SSS) products of Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) satellite. The proposed algorithm is able to efficiently and effectively use high spatial-resolution Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite data to improve the spatial resolution of SMOS SSS products.

With the rapid increasing of urban areas, impervious surfaces play an important role as an indicator of urban development and the change of the city's environment. Due to the wide variety of materials of impervious surfaces, it is an arduous task to draw impervious surfaces. Fortunately, the Sentinel-2 satellite provides accessible multi-spectral imagery with a high spatial resolution to solve this problem. However, huge volumes of Sentinel-2 imagery produced every 5 days need a fast and accurate classifier for impervious mapping. In this paper, a novel spectral spatial residual convolution neural network (SSRCNN) has been designed to deal with the massive imagery for impervious classification with high speed and accuracy. Compared to typical algorithms, deep learning methods are more suitable in this task. The CNN demonstrates great success in image classification. In this study, a comparison between CNN and SSRCNN has been done, and the result shows that the SSRCNN model outperforms the CNN model by about 0.74 percent in terms of overall classification accuracy (OA). The use of the NVIDIA 1080Ti graphics processing unit (GPU) can improve the computational efficiency of the SSRCNN model.

Due to its in situ and nondestructive nature, ground-penetrating radar (GPR) has recently been applied to the field investigation of plant roots. The discrepancy between the roots and surrounding soils creates a dielectric constant contrast, forming clear hyperbolic reflections on the GPR radargram. The intensity and shape of the reflecting signals from roots are substantially affected by the root orientation as well as the relative geometry between the root in the subsurface and the GPR survey direction on the ground surface. However, no previous study has utilized the information on the intensity and shape of a root’s GPR reflection to map its orientation, which is crucial in interpreting radargrams and rebuilding 3-D root system architecture. In this paper, a mathematical formulation of hyperbolic reflection formed by a single root was first deduced based on the principles of electromagnetic wave propagation. Then, using this formulation, curve fitting was conducted on both simulated and field collected data sets by GPR. Information on the horizontal orientation and vertical inclination of a single root was acquired according to the formulation coefficient retrievals. Conditions for this method of application and factors impacting the extraction of root orientation information were analyzed. The results indicated fairly precise root orientation estimations. The proposed method has extended the application of GPR in root investigation, thus advancing the frontier of noninvasive root system architecture mapping.

Electrochemical reduction of CO2 (ECO2RR) to formate is one of effective approaches to achieve carbon recycling processes. Despite Bi nanosheets (NSs) have been proven to be highly selective in ECO2RR to formate, the understanding of the true active sites is needed to further dig out the potential of catalytic activity of Bi NSs. In this work, we developed a rational synthesis approach to manipulate the basal-/edge-plane ratio of Bi NSs via topotactic reduction of (004)-oriented Bi5O7I NSs and (102)-oriented BiOI NSs to reveal the contribution of basal and edge planes on the performance of ECO2RR. In comparison with edge-oriented Bi NSs, basal-oriented Bi NSs show higher catalytic activity. DFT calculations have proven that the competition of the kinetically favored HER would be inhibited on basal planes of Bi NSs, indicating the increasement of the proportion of basal planes on Bi NSs or Bi based 2D catalysts improves ECO2RR conversion efficiency.