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In this study, a three-dimensional internal wave (IW)—cylinder—terrain coupled numerical model is established. Based on the large-eddy simulation (LES) method, the IW mechanical characteristics of the cylinder and the flow field evolution around the cylinder over different types of terrains are explored. The similarities and differences in the mechanical characteristics of the cylinders in the environments with and without terrains are compared. The research results show that, when the IWs propagate over terrain, the waveform structures are prone to continuous changes. The intense reverse alternating flow of the upper and the lower water, bounded by the pycnocline, results in huge IWs forces differences between the case without terrains and the cases with terrains. In the case without terrains, the maximum horizontal resultant force on the cylinder is positive, while the resultant forces are negative in the cases with terrain. Compared with the case without terrain, the shallow-water effect caused by the combined action of the terrain and the IWs enhances the flow field strength, making the lower parts of the cylinder suffer larger horizontal forces in the opposite direction to the IW direction. Moreover, the additional vortices produced by the interaction between the IWs and the terrain causes a more complex flow field around the cylinder and the greater forces on the cylinder.

The seepage characteristics of sand affect its strength, mechanical deformation characteristics, and find safety and stability. The drag coefficient is a dimensionless physical quantity expressing the interaction between fluid and particles, it is also an important parameter that characterizes the permeability of granular soils. Through the seepage test of standard sand with single particle sizes and different grades, analyze the seepage laws of standard sand with different particle sizes in the Darcy and non-Darcy seepage. The relationship between parameters a and b in the seepage equation and porosity (n), average particle size (d50), nonuniformity coefficient (CU), and curvature coefficient (CC), and their influence degree were studied. An empirical formula for determining the permeability coefficient of standard sand is established. By adding a correction factor and verifying its rationality, the empirical formula of standard sand permeability parameters is finally obtained.

Background Squamous cell carcinoma of the lung (LUSC) is a malignant tumor with a high mortality rate and few treatment options. Methods This study explored novel biomarkers and the related mechanisms in LUSC development via integrated bioinformatics analysis based on multiple databases. TCGA-LUSC, GSE30219, and GSE37745 datasets were selected, and univariate Cox analysis was applied to each. The candidate prognostic genes were those survival hazardous genes that overlapped in the three datasets and were further applied in Kaplan-Meier log-rank test. Receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) curves were made to compare the candidate prognostic genes’ predictive accuracy and traditional clinicopathological parameters (CPPs). Moreover, fast preranked gene set enrichment analysis, single-sample gene set enrichment analysis, gene set variation analysis, and correlation analysis was sequentially performed to explore the candidate prognostic genes’ potential functions. Results Based on the data for stage I–III LUSC, aldehyde dehydrogenase 7 family member A1 (ALDH7A1), progestogen-associated endometrial protein (PAEP), and vav guanine nucleotide exchange factor 2 (VAV2) were identified as prognostic candidate biomarkers that could improve the accuracy of traditional CPPs for predicting overall survival (OS). Moreover, ALDH7A1, PAEP, and VAV2 were, respectively, correlated with the immune microenvironment and epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT), but not with tumor mutation burden, microsatellite instability, or CPPs. The EMT biomarker vimentin (but not E-cadherin) was consistent with ALDH7A1, PAEP, and VAV2. Conclusion This study elucidated the prognostic roles and potential functions of ALDH7A1, PAEP, and VAV2 in LUSC.

Balanced incomplete block design (BIBD) offers an important way to construct non-homogeneous quantum low-density-parity-check (LDPC) codes of Calderbank-Shor-Steane (CSS) type. However, the rates of the quantum codes based on this method are limited to be $1-2/m$ approximately, where $m$ , the number of base blocks chosen from the associated BIBD, is even. We overcome this limitation by providing a rate scalable way to construct non-homogeneous quantum LDPC codes of CSS type. With our method, the rates of the resultant quantum codes are $1-2/m'$ , where $m'=m/e$ and $e\in \{1, 2\}$ . Note that here $m'$ can be odd . Thus, we double the rate range of the codes yielded from the existing strategies. Moreover, one can switch codes between the two rates flexibly adapting to various application scenarios.

Background: Acute meningitis or encephalitis (AME) results from a neurological infection causing high case fatality and severe sequelae. AME lacked comprehensive surveillance in China. Methods: Nation-wide surveillance of all-age patients with AME syndromes was conducted in 144 sentinel hospitals of 29 provinces in China. Eleven AME-causative viral and bacterial pathogens were tested with multiple diagnostic methods. Findings: Between 2009 and 2018, 20,454 AME patients were recruited for tests. Based on 9,079 patients with all-four-virus tested, 28.43% (95% CI: 27.50%‒29.36%) of them had at least one virus-positive detection. Enterovirus was the most frequently determined virus in children

Flap endonuclease‑1 (FEN1), a structure‑specific nuclease participating in DNA replication and repair processes, has been confirmed to promote the proliferation and drug resistance of tumor cells. However, the biological functions of FEN1 in cancer cell migration and invasion have not been defined. In the present study, using online database analysis and immunohistochemistry of the specimens, it was found that FEN1 expression was associated with a highly invasive triple‑negative breast cancer (TNBC) subtype in both breast cancer samples from the Oncomine database and from patients recruited into the study. Furthermore, FEN1 was an important biomarker of lymph node metastasis and poor prognosis in patients with TNBC. FEN1 promoted migration of TNBC cell lines and FEN1 knockdown reduced the number of spontaneous lung metastasis in vivo. Ingenuity Pathway Analysis of FEN1‑related transcripts in 198 patients with TNBC demonstrated that the polo‑like kinase family may be the downstream target of FEN1. PLK4 was further identified as a critical target of FEN1 mediating TNBC cell migration, by regulating actin cytoskeleton rearrangement. The results of the present study validate FEN1 as a therapeutic target in patients with TNBC and revealed a new role for FEN1 in regulating TNBC invasion and metastasis.

Hormone receptor-positive breast cancer accounts for around 75% of breast cancers. The estrogen receptor pathway promotes tumor progression and endocrine resistance. Recently, the cross-talk between the ER signaling pathway and cell cycle regulation has been identified. It is necessary to determine the underlying molecular mechanisms involved in the ER signaling pathway and find new target genes for prognosis and drug resistance in ER+ breast cancer. In this study, lncRNA MAFG-AS1 was shown to be up-regulated and associated with poor prognosis in ER+ breast cancer. Functionally, down-regulation of MAFG-AS1 could inhibit cell proliferation and promote apoptosis. In addition, MAFG-AS1 which contained an estrogen-responsive element could promote CDK2 expression by sponging miR-339-5p. Subsequently, MAFG-AS1 and CDK2 were found to be up-regulated in tamoxifen-resistant MCF-7 cells. Cross-talk between the ER signaling pathway and cell cycle conducted by MAFG-AS1 and CDK2 could promote tamoxifen resistance. In conclusion, our study indicated that estrogen-responsive lncRNA MAFG-AS1 up-regulated CDK2 by sponging miR-339-5p, which promoted ER+ breast cancer proliferation. Cross-talk between the ER signaling pathway and cell cycle suggested that lncRNA MAFG-AS1 is a potential biomarker and therapeutic target in ER+ breast cancer. CDK2 inhibitors may be applied to endocrine resistance therapy.

Background: The prediction of RNA secondary structure using optimization algorithms is key to understand the real structure of an RNA. Evolutionary algorithms (EAs) are popular strategies for RNA secondary structure prediction. However, compared to most state-of-the-art software based on DPAs, the performances of EAs are a bit far from satisfactory. Objective: Therefore, a more powerful strategy is required to improve the performances of EAs when applied to the prediciton of RNA secondary structures. Methods: The idea of quantum computing is introduced here yielding a new strategy to find all possible legal paired-bases with the constraint of minimum free energy. The sate of a stem pool with size N is encoded as a population of QGA, which is represented by N quantum bits but not classical bits. The updating of populations is accomplished by so-called quantum crossover operations, quantum mutation operations and quantum rotation operations. Results: The numerical results show that the performances of traditional EAs are significantly improved by using QGA with regard to not only prediction accuracy and sensitivity but also complexity. Moreover, for RNA sequences with middle-short length, QGA even improves the state-of-art software based on DPAs in terms of both prediction accuracy and sensitivity. Conclusion: This work sheds an interesting light on the applications of quantum computing on RNA structure prediction.

The deterioration of soil salinization has caused great harm to modern agricultural production in the world. Sorghum is not only one of five main crops, but also an outstanding salt tolerant crop. The screening and identification of sorghum salt toletion of sorghum salt tolerance will be very important to the development and utilization of salinized land, increasing grain yield and maintaining sustainable agricultural development. In this experiment, 110 sorghum landraces were selected to test salt tolerance at germination (200 mmol L-1 NaCl treated) and seedling stages (100 mmol L-1 NaCl treated). The two germination indicators including the germination potential and the germination rate, as well as seven seedling indicators, including the relative chlorophyll content (SPAD), seedling length, root length, seedling fresh weight, seedling dry weight, root fresh weight, root dry weight were measured. The relative values of various indicators under salt stress were calculated, showing that the relative germination potential and relative germination rate of 110 sorghum landraces were 0 – 98.89% and 23.65 %– 101.79%, and The seven seedling indicators were 59.53% – 99.91%, 52.47% – 95.23%, 47.87% – 100.14%, 27.43% – 95.28%, 30.48% – 98.26%, 21.62% – 100.34%, 31.46% – 102.13%, respectively. Combined the membership function value analysis, principal component analysis with cluster analysis, the salt tolephyll content (SPAD), seedling length, root length, seedling fresh weight, seedling dry weight, root fresh weight, root dry weight were measured. The relative values of various indicators under salt stress were calculated, showing that the relative germination potential and relative germination rate of 110 sorghum landraces were 0 – 98.89% and 23.65 %– 101.79%, and The seven seedling indicators were 59.53% – 99.91%, 52.47% – 95.23%, 47.87% – 100.14%, 27.43% – 95.28%, 30.48% – 98.26%, 21.62% – 100.34%, 31.46% – 102.13%, respectively. Combined the membership function value analysis, principal component analysis with cluster analysis, the salt tolerance ability of the 110 landraces at germination stage and seedling stage was comprehensively evaluated and the 110 landraces were clustered into four groups. A batch of sorghum landraces with salt tolerance at germination and seedling stages were identified, especially ten landraces, including Chaoyangbangchui (00003011) from Inner Mongolia and the Baidazimao (00001081) from Beijing showed high salt tolerance, which can be used in further research. There was no significant correlation in salt toleghum landraces with salt tolerance at germination and seedling stages were identified, especially ten landraces, including Chaoyangbangchui (00003011) from Inner Mongolia and the Baidazimao (00001081) from Beijing showed high salt tolerance, which can be used in further research. There was no significant correlation in salt tolerance between the germination stage and the seedling stage. Principal component analysis results indicated that seedling dry weight and root fresh weight can be used as indicators for the evaluation of salt tolerance of a large number of sorghum landraces at seedling stage.

Background: Breast cancer is one of the most frequent malignant tumors worldwide, with 1.67 million newly-diagnosed cases and 522,000 deaths each year. Therefore, seeking the novel biomarkers and therapeutic targets that contribute to postoperative recurrence and metastasis in patients with breast cancer is emerging and facilitates the development of innovative therapeutics. Methods: Retrieving the dataset of patients with hormone receptor (HR)-positive breast cancers from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) and collecting the data from the patients with HR-positive breast cancers enrolled in the First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University are so as to identify the miRNAs associated with metastasis and distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS). Then MTT and Transwell migration assays were used to validate the effect of miRNAs on cell proliferation and migration of estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer T47D and MCF7 cells in vitro, respectively. Results: From GSE59829 dataset, the miRNA expression levels of miR-891a-5p, miR-383-5p and miR-1295a were significantly downregulated while the levels of miR-128-3p, miR-661 and miR-296-3p were significantly upregulated in breast cancers from patients with metastasis as compared to the matched non-metastatic group. Moreover, low expression levels of miR-891a-5p, miR-383-5p and miR-1295a or high expression levels of miR-128-3p, miR-661 and miR-296-3p were respectively associated with low DMFS in patients with breast cancer. Our clinical cohort study supported that the levels of miR-891a-5p, miR-383-5p and miR-1295a were significantly lower in breast cancers from the metastasis group when compared with non-metastatic group. However, there is no significant difference with regard to the levels of miR-128-3p, miR-661 and miR-296-3p in breast cancer between these two groups. Moreover, low expression levels of miR-891a-5p and miR-383-5p but not miR-1295a in breast cancer were significantly associated with low DMFS in patients, implying that the expression of miR-891a-5p and miR-383-5p were the potential prognosis markers for metastatic human breast cancers. Further investigation disclosed that miR-891a-5p but not miR-383-5p restrained both proliferation and migration of T47D and MCF7 cells. In silico analysis of miRNAs target gene through online computational algorithms revealed that A Disintegrin and metalloproteinase domain-containing protein 10 (ADAM10) is the downstream target for miR-891a-5p. Further study confirmed that miR-891a-5p impeded ADAM10 expression by directly binding to its 3'UTR, leading to the inhibition of breast cancer cells proliferation and migration. Moreover, silencing ADAM10 inhibited T47D and MCF7 cells growth and migration. Conclusion: miR-891a-5p is the vital prognostic marker for HR-positive breast cancer. In addition, miR-891a-5p and miR-383-5p are the potential targets for HR-positive breast cancer therapeutics.

Purpose: At the first time of metastatic breast cancer recurrence, conversion of the receptors status may occur between primary lesions and metastatic lesions, including the estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2). Whether the decision of the treatment regimen is based on the primary receptor status or that of metastatic lesions is still unclear. Methods: This study enrolled 411 female patients with a diagnosis of metastatic breast cancer at the first time of recurrence to explore the influence of receptor conversion on prognosis prediction and treatment regimen of patients with metastatic breast cancer. Results: ER and PR changes from negative to positive are both prognostic factors for patients with breast cancer. Patients receiving endocrine therapy showed a better survival after recurrence than those using chemotherapy alone in the ER or PR Prim– Met+ subgroup. Patients in the HER2 Prim– Met+ subgroup using HER2-targeted therapy in multilines showed a post-recurrence survival advantage. In the bone re-biopsy subgroup, the PR change from positive to negative appeared to be more frequent than at other re-biopsy sites. Conclusions: Patients with metastatic breast cancer should perform re-biopsy to clarify the receptor status of the first metastatic lesions, which may provide clinicians valuable evidence to conduct treatments with higher precision.

Ammopiptanthus mongolicus is an evergreen broad-leaved shrub living in plateau cold desert ecosystem, which with remarkable tolerance to diverse abiotic stresses. We measured the photosynthetic physiological indexes of A. mongolicus. under extreme seasonal climate in the field, and analyzed the transcriptome of its leaves. We found that the photosynthetic physiological indexes and gene expression at transcriptome level have significant characteristics when temperature changes. Under the low temperature condition, A. mongolicus. consumes excess light energy by increasing PSII non-regulatory energy dissipation Y (NO) at the physiological level. At the molecular level, it resists low temperature stress by changing photosynthesis, circadian rhythm and synthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, but its photosynthetic machinery is still damaged and photosynthesis is blocked. At the physiological level, A. mongolicus. regulates its own water content and improves the regulation of the PSII regulatory energy dissipation Y(NPQ) to consumes excess light energy and to adapt to high temperature stress. At the molecular level, A. mongolicus. protects itself from high temperature and strong light by using the LHCII of PSII to consume excess energy, continuously assembling and maintaining PSII, and changing the production of antioxidants and so on.

Ammopiptanthus mongolicus is the only evergreen broad-leaved shrub present in arid areas of Northwest China and plays an important role in maintaining the stability of the local desert ecosystem. It can survive under extreme temperatures (e.g., extreme low temperature: − 24.8 °C and extreme high temperature: 37.7 °C). To understand the gene expression-physiological regulation network of A. mongolicus in extreme temperature environments, we monitored the changes in gene expression and photosynthetic traits of the leaves. The results showed that at low temperatures, the net photosynthetic rates (A), Fv'/Fm' and electron transport rate (ETR) decreased, the Fv/Fm ratio was only 0.32, and the proportion of nonregulatory heat dissipation Y(NO) increased. Based on a KEGG analysis of the differentially expressed genes, 15 significantly enriched KEGG pathways were identified, which were mainly related to circadian rhythm, photosynthesis, lipid metabolism, carbohydrate metabolism, plant hormones and other life activities. At high temperatures, the A value increased, and the proportion of regulatory energy dissipation Y(NPQ) increased. The KEGG analysis identified 24 significantly enriched KEGG pathways, which are mainly related to circadian rhythm, carbon sequestration of photosynthesis, carotenoid biosynthesis, secondary metabolites, cofactors and vitamin metabolism. In general, at the expense of photosynthesis, A. mongolicus can ensure the survival of leaves by increasing Y(NO) levels, regulating the circadian rhythm, increasing the synthesis of unsaturated fatty acids and changing the role of plant hormones. Under high-temperature stress, a high photosynthetic capacity was maintained by adjusting the stomatal conductance (gsw), increasing Y(NPQ), consuming excess light energy, continuously assembling and maintaining PSII, and changing the production of antioxidants.

Nationwide prospective surveillance of all-age patients with acute respiratory infections was conducted in China between 2009‒2019. Here we report the etiological and epidemiological features of the 231,107 eligible patients enrolled in this analysis. Children, China operates a national surveillance program for acute respiratory infections and sampled over 200,000 patients between 2009–2019. Here, the authors present results from this program and describe patterns by age, pathogen type, presence of pneumonia, and season.

Background Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) might be associated with oxidative stress, and antioxidants are commonly used in the treatment of young people with ASD. However, the evidence about the effectiveness of these interventions remains debatable. We performed a meta-analysis to evaluate the effect of antioxidants on the symptoms of patients with autism. Methods Data sources: PubMed and Web of Science databases. Study selection: We selected placebo-controlled, double-blind, randomized clinical trials published until February 2021 to evaluate the efficacy of antioxidant interventions on ASD. Data analysis: Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC), Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised (RBS), Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS), Developmental Behavior Checklist (DBC) and Clinical Global Impressions Severity scale (CGI S) were used to evaluate the 22 different symptom outcomes. The Hedges-adjusted g value was used to estimate the effect of each dietary intervention relative to the placebo. Results In this meta-analysis, we examined 13 double-blind randomized clinical trials, comprising a total of 570 patients with ASD: 293 in the intervention group and 277 in the placebo group. Antioxidants (N-acetylcysteine (NAC), other antioxidants) are more effective than placebos in improving the irritability among symptoms in the ABC and communication disturbance symptoms in the DBC. There was a good trend of improvement in the stereotypic behavior symptoms in the ABC. Treatment with NAC antioxidants showed a good trend of improvement in irritability in the ABC and symptoms of hyperactivity. The effect size was small, and there was a low risk of statistical heterogeneity and publication bias. Limitations: The number of studies in this meta-analysis was small and the sample size was small. Conclusion This meta-analysis suggests that antioxidant intervention has a potential role in the management of some symptoms in patients with ASD, and indicates the feasibility of using antioxidants to treat autism in the future.

So far, all existing quantum oblivious transfer protocols focused on realization of the oblivious transfer of a classical bit or classical bit-string. In this paper, p-Rabin quantum oblivious transfer of a qubit protocol is achieved by using a probabilistic teleportation protocol. As the probabilistic teleportation protocol is able to transfer an (un)known pure state with a certain probability, this feature makes the probabilistic teleportation protocol well fit for Rabin oblivious transfer. Here, this is the first time that the concept of qubit oblivious transfer is presented. Furthermore, p-Rabin quantum oblivious transfer of a qubit protocol can also be used for oblivious of a bit by encoding classical bit with two pre-agreed orthogonal states. Finally, security analysis shows that the protocol satisfies the security requirements of oblivious transfer, and what’s more, the discussion of relationship with no-go theorem demonstrates that the probabilistic teleportation protocol is able to evade the no-go theorem.

The first transcriptome analyses of Tetraena mongolica provided 224,618 Unigenes and identified the genes that were differentially expressed under salt and drought conditions, giving some insights into the unique adaptive capacity of this relic plant. Tetraena mongolica Maxim, the only member of the Tetraena genus in the Zygophyllaceae, is endemic to the northwest of China. As one of the relic shrubs of the Paleo-Mediterranean flora, T. mongolica plays a key role in preserving the local ecological environment. To investigate its good adaptability in desert, we studied the transcriptome of T. mongolica under NaCl and PEG6000 stresses. Three libraries were constructed from a mixture of seedlings and mature plants of T. mongolica, and the de novo transcriptome was sequenced using an Illumina HiSeq 4000. Approximately 218.15 million clean reads were assembled de novo into 383,612 transcripts, and 116,027 All-Unigenes were identified. By aligning All-Unigene sequences against the NR database, we found that most of the All-Unigenes had very low matches with the sequences from other plants. A total of 21,112 SSRs and 6 types of SNP variants were identified. The RNA-Seq data revealed 60 transcription factor (TF) families with 3163 genes in total. Six libraries were constructed from the separate control or stressed seedlings, and the transcriptome was sequenced using a BGISEQ-500 platform. There are 1105 and 1383 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) with 42 and 54 TFs under NaCl and PEG6000 treatment, respectively. The genes that were putatively involved in salt and osmotic stresses were searched and analyzed. Quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) showed that DEG expression profiles were consistent with those from RNA-seq (RNA sequencing). Overall, this study provides new insights into the molecular mechanisms that control salt and drought stress responses in T. mongolica.

Flap endonuclease 1 (FEN1) is recognized as a pivotal factor in DNA replication, long-patch excision repair, and telomere maintenance. Excessive FEN1 expression has been reported to be closely associated with cancer progression, but the specific mechanism has not yet been explored. In the present study, we demonstrated that FEN1 promoted breast cancer cell proliferation via an epigenetic mechanism of FEN1-mediated up-regulation of DNA methyltransferase (DNMT)1 and DNMT3a. FEN1 was proved to interact with DNMT3a through proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) to suppress microRNA (miR)-200a-5p expression mediated by methylation. Furthermore, miR-200a-5p was identified to repress breast cancer cell proliferation by inhibiting the expression of its target genes, hepatocyte growth factor (MET), and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). Overall, our data surprisingly demonstrate that FEN1 promotes breast cancer cell growth via the formation of FEN1/PCNA/DNMT3a complex to inhibit miR-200a expression by DNMT-mediated methylation and to recover the target genes expression of miR-200a, MET, and EGFR. The novel epigenetic mechanism of FEN1 on proliferation promotion provides a significant clue that FEN1 might serve as a predictive biomarker and therapeutic target for breast cancer.-Zeng, X., Qu, X., Zhao, C., Xu, L., Hou, K., Liu, Y., Zhang, N., Feng, J., Shi, S., Zhang, L., Xiao, J., Guo, Z., Teng, Y., Che, X. FEN1 mediates miR-200a methylation and promotes breast cancer cell growth via MET and EGFR signaling.

Quantum-inspired genetic algorithms (QGAs) were recently introduced for the prediction of RNA secondary structures, and they showed some superiority over the existing popular strategies. In this paper, for RNA secondary structure prediction, we introduce a new QGA named multi-population assisted quantum genetic algorithm (MAQGA). In contrast to the existing QGAs, our strategy involves multi-populations which evolve together in a cooperative way in each iteration, and the genetic exchange between various populations is performed by an operator transfer operation. The numerical results show that the performances of existing genetic algorithms (evolutionary algorithms [EAs]), including traditional EAs and QGAs, can be significantly improved by using our approach. Moreover, for RNA sequences with middle-short length, the MAQGA improves even this state-of-the-art software in terms of both prediction accuracy and sensitivity.

In parallel with the rapid developments of cloud-assisted IoT, the corresponding security and privacy issue emerges as a challenge. Biometric recognition technologies are interesting and promising to reinforce traditional cryptographic and personal authentication systems for cloud-assisted IoT. However, the biometric information, if compromised, cannot be canceled and substituted easily. In this paper, based on fuzzy commitment protocol, a fingerprint recognition scheme using minutiae-based sector coding strategy is proposed for cloud-assisted IoT. In our approach, the minutiae of a fingerprint are classified into many designed sectors and then encoded according to their features. With the idea of fuzzy commitment, the key encryption process is accomplished by using BCH codes and Hash mappings. Our scheme, not only provides a flexible way to realize the fingerprint recognition between the complexity and security by designing error-correcting codes with different parameters, but also offers a good balance between the genuine accept rate (GAR) and the false acceptance rate (FAR) with customized sector coding strategies.

National-based prospective surveillance of all-age patients with acute diarrhea was conducted in China between 2009‒2018. Here we report the etiological, epidemiological, and clinical features of the 152,792 eligible patients enrolled in this analysis. Rotavirus A and norovirus are the two leading viral pathogens detected in the patients, followed by adenovirus and astrovirus. Diarrheagenic Escherichia coli and nontyphoidal Salmonella are the two leading bacterial pathogens, followed by Shigella and Vibrio parahaemolyticus. Patients aged, Diarrhoea is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in China. Here, the authors present results from a large sentinel surveillance scheme from 217 hospitals in all 31 provinces in mainland China, including ~150,000 patients with acute diarrhoea and covering years 2009-2018.

Objectives To investigate the epidemiological features of diarrheagenic Escherichia coli (DEC) in patients with acute diarrhea in China. Methods An active sentinel surveillance was performed in all-age patients with acute diarrhea in China, 2009‒2018. DEC was isolated and identified by serological assay and PCR from stool samples. Results DEC was determined in 6.68% (6,119/91,651) of the patients, with higher positive rates among females than among males (6.97% vs. 6.46%) and among 18‒59 years patients (7.88%) than among other age groups. Five pathotypes were identified, the most prevalent was enteroaggregative E. coli (EAEC), followed by enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC), and enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC). Pediatric patients

Oxidative stress has been suggested to play a key role in multiple sclerosis (MS), but clinical data on oxidative stress markers in MS patients were inconsistent. This study sought to quantitatively summarize the data of oxidative stress markers in the blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with MS in the literature. We conducted a systematic search of PubMed and Web of Science and included studies if they provided data on the concentrations of oxidative stress markers in the peripheral blood and CSF of MS patients and healthy control (HC) subjects. The systematic search resulted in the inclusion of 31 studies with 2,001 MS patients and 2,212 HC subjects for meta-analysis. Random-effects meta-analysis demonstrated that patients with MS had significantly increased concentrations of blood oxidative stress markers compared with HC subjects for malondialdehyde (MDA; Hedges' g, 2.252; 95% CI, 1.080 to 3.424; p < 0.001) and lipid hydroperoxide by tert-butyl hydroperoxide-initiated chemiluminescence (CL-LOOH; Hedges' g, 0.383; 95% CI, 0.065 to 0.702; p = 0.018). In contrast, concentrations of albumin (Hedges' g, −1.036; CI, −1.679 to −0.394; p = 0.002) were significantly decreased in MS patients when compared with those in HC subjects. However, the other analyzed blood oxidative stress markers did not show significant differences between cases and controls. Furthermore, this meta-analysis showed significant association between CSF MDA and MS (Hedges' g, 3.275; 95% CI, 0.859 to 5.691; p = 0.008). Taken together, our results revealed increased blood and CSF MDA and decreased blood albumin levels in patients with MS, strengthening the clinical evidence of increased oxidative stress in MS.

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive subtype of breast cancer, which is very difficult to treat and commonly develops resistance to chemotherapy. The following study investigated whether the inhibition of Flap Endonuclease 1 (FEN1) expression, the key enzyme in the base excision repair (BER) pathway, could improve the anti-tumor effect of arsenic trioxide (ATO), which is a reactive oxygen species (ROS) inducer. Our data showed that ATO could increase the expression of FEN1, and the knockdown of FEN1 could significantly enhance the sensitivity of TNBC cells to ATO both in vitro and in vivo. Further mechanism studies revealed that silencing FEN1 in combination with low doses of ATO might increase intracellular ROS and reduce glutathione (GSH) levels, by reducing the nuclear translocation of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2); elevating ROS leaded to apoptosis and p38 and JNK pathway activating. In conclusion, our study suggested the combination of FEN1 knockdown and ATO could induce TNBC cell death by promoting ROS production. FEN1 knockdown can effectively decrease the application concentrations of ATO, thus providing a possibility for the treatment of TNBC with ATO.

Data clustering is the unsupervised classification of data records into groups. As one of the steps in data analysis, it has been widely researched and applied in practical life, such as pattern recognition, image processing, information retrieval, geography, and marketing. In addition, the rapid increase of data volume in recent years poses a huge challenge for resource-constrained data owners to perform computation on their data. This leads to a trend that users authorize the cloud to perform computation on stored data, such as keyword search, equality test, and outsourced data clustering. In outsourced data clustering, the cloud classifies users’ data into groups according to their similarities. Considering the sensitive information in outsourced data and multiple data owners in practical application, it is necessary to develop a privacy-preserving outsourced clustering scheme under multiple keys. Recently, Rong et al. proposed a privacy-preserving outsourced k-means clustering scheme under multiple keys. However, in their scheme, the assistant server (AS) is able to extract the ratio of two underlying data records, and key management server (KMS) can decrypt the ciphertexts of owners’ data records, which break the privacy security. AS can even reduce all data records if it knows one of the data records. To solve the aforementioned problem, we propose a highly secure privacy-preserving outsourced k-means clustering scheme under multiple keys in cloud computing. In this paper, noncolluded cloud computing service (CCS) and KMS jointly perform clustering over the encrypted data records without exposing data privacy. Specifically, we use BCP encryption which has additive homomorphic property and AES encryption to double encrypt data records, where the former cryptosystem prevents CCS from obtaining any useful information from received ciphertexts and the latter one protects data records from being decrypted by KMS. We first define five protocols to realize different functions and then present our scheme based on these protocols. Finally, we give the security and performance analyses which show that our scheme is comparable with the existing schemes on functionality and security.

Due to the transparency of the wireless channel, users in multiple-key environment are vulnerable to eavesdropping during the process of uploading personal data and re-encryption keys. Besides, there is additional burden of key management arising from multiple keys of users. In addition, profile matching using inner product between vectors cannot effectively filter out users with ulterior motives. To tackle the above challenges, we first improve a homomorphic re-encryption system (HRES) to support a single homomorphic multiplication and arbitrarily many homomorphic additions. The public key negotiated by the clouds is used to encrypt the users’ data, thereby avoiding the issues of key leakage and key management, and the privacy of users’ data is also protected. Furthermore, our scheme utilizes the homomorphic multiplication property of the improved HRES algorithm to compute the cosine result between the normalized vectors as the standard for measuring the users’ proximity. Thus, we can effectively improve the social experience of users.

Background Tamoxifen is a frontline therapy for estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer in premenopausal women. However, many patients develop resistance to tamoxifen, and the mechanism underlying tamoxifen resistance is not well understood. Here we examined whether ER-c-Src-HER2 complex formation is involved in tamoxifen resistance. Methods MTT and colony formation assays were used to measure cell viability and proliferation. Western blot was used to detect protein expression and protein complex formations were detected by immunoprecipitation and immunofluorescence. SiRNA was used to examine the function of HER2 in of BT474 cells. An in vivo xenograft animal model was established to examine the role of c-Cbl in tumor growth. Results MTT and colony formation assay showed that BT474 cells are resistant to tamoxifen and T47D cells are sensitive to tamoxifen. Immunoprecipitation experiments revealed ER-c-Src-HER2 complex formation in BT474 cells but not in T47D cells. However, ER-c-Src-HER2 complex formation was detected after overexpressing HER2 in T47D cells and these cells were more resistant to tamoxifen. HER2 knockdown by siRNA in BT474 cells reduced ER-c-Src-HER2 complex formation and reversed tamoxifen resistance. ER-c-Src-HER2 complex formation was also disrupted and tamoxifen resistance was reversed in BT474 cells by the c-Src inhibitor PP2 and HER2 antibody trastuzumab. Nystatin, a lipid raft inhibitor, reduced ER-c-Src-HER2 complex formation and partially reversed tamoxifen resistance. ER-c-Src-HER2 complex formation was disrupted by overexpression of c-Cbl but not by the c-Cbl ubiquitin ligase mutant. In addition, c-Cbl could reverse tamoxifen resistance in BT474 cells, but the ubiquitin ligase mutant had no effect. The effect of c-Cbl was validated in BT474 tumor-bearing nude mice in vivo. Immunofluorescence also revealed ER-c-Src-HER2 complex formation was reduced in tumor tissues of nude mice with c-Cbl overexpression. Conclusions Our results suggested that c-Cbl can reverse tamoxifen resistance in HER2-overexpressing breast cancer cells by inhibiting the formation of the ER-c-Src-HER2 complex. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12885-018-4387-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Survival of Ammopiptanthus mongolicus in a cold desert environment is facilitated by high photosynthesis rates in spring and summer, and efficient photoprotective strategies in winter cold. Woody evergreen plants inhabiting cold desert ecosystems must retain their foliage amidst chronically dry conditions and large seasonal temperature variations. To understand the strategies enabling survival of evergreens in these environments, we monitored seasonal changes in foliar gas exchange and photosynthetic traits of Ammopiptanthus mongolicus, an evergreen broadleaved shrub native to the cold desert of northwestern China. We found that photosynthesis was relatively higher in spring and summer and lower in fall and winter. Transitioning from spring to summer, A. mongolicus maintained high photosynthetic capacity (Amax). Transitioning into fall, the Amax and maximum stomatal conductance (gsmax) decreased, while the relative stomatal limitation to photosynthesis (Ls) increased. In winter, A. mongolicus decreased Amax, maximum quantum efficiency of photosystem II (Fv/Fm), maximum RuBisCo carboxylation rates (Vcmax), maximum RuBP regeneration rates (Jmax), and photosynthetic nitrogen-use efficiency (PNUEmax) relative to other seasons. Collectively, these results suggest that A. mongolicus adapts physiologically to maximize carbon assimilation during spring and summer, and to maximize foliar resistance to cold stress at the expense of photosynthesis in winter. Foliage was protected against photo-oxidative damage during temperature extremes in winter by dark-sustained thermal energy dissipation. Overall, our study reveals that multiple photosynthetic adjustments, varying among the seasons, enable the survival of cold desert evergreens.

Based on the governing equations of steady incompressible fluid, renormalization group (RNG) turbulence model and SIMPLEC algorithm are used to calculate the steady flow field of regulating tank in the pumping station with six different geometries operating under same condition. The impacts of the layout schemes of guide walls for the flow field of the regulating tank are analyzed. The numerical results are verified by physical model experiment and good agreement is found. The results show that: 1) serious flow separation of side wall will occur in the regulating tank when the interval of diversion wall is 10 L; 2) the flow velocity in the regulating tank will be too low when the diversion wall spacing is 16 L; 3) the improvement of the flow pattern of the regulating tank is not obvious; and the project cost is increased when the excavation depth of the regulating tank is increased by 1 m; 4) the bottom velocity reached the non-silting velocity and the head loss of the regulating tank reducing nearly 1.2 m by using arrangement form of wide 21 L and narrow 10L of the guide walls, which provides a certain guarantee for the safe operation of the pumping station. The regulation tank layout scheme proposed in the paper can be applied to engineering practice.

Assessment of urban water security is an important scientific basis for the sustainable utilization of urban water resources. This study established an evaluation model for urban water security based on DPSIR model, entropy method and comprehensive index method. The model was applied to Gong Qingcheng City (GQCC) in Jiangxi Province, China. An indicator system is developed based on four aspects including social development, water resources status, water pollution and water resources management, as well as summing up predecessors’ experience. This study analysed per capita domestic water consumption; ratio of ecological water compensation; percentage of water conservancy and public infrastructure investment; and water consumption per ten thousand yuan of industrial output value; where ratio of urban sewage treatment are the main effects on urban water security. The results of single index evaluation show that the change of stress subsystem was most dramatic from 2013 to 2017, while others were relatively stable. This indicates that positive interventions were urgently needed to relieve pressure of the stress subsystem. The results of comprehensive index evaluation show that water security at GQCC was in a critical state. In this paper, the causal relationship between social development and water security was clarified while the main factors and other factors affecting urban water security was identified. Finally, a reference for the formulation of urban development planning based on water resources demand was provided.

In order to study the percolation and dam slope’s stability of an impermeable wall composed by clay and concrete for earth-rock dam, the steady seepage field of a reservoir in Jiangxi is numerically simulated by using finite element method based on the basic principles of saturated and unsaturated seepage under different ratios of clay to concrete. The results of the flow field of steady seepage are carried out and the dam slope’s stability is analyzed. We found relatively minor impacts of concrete proportion on the discharge of seepage per unit width and the dam slope’s stability. In this study, the impermeability performance of the impermeable wall is concerned. The results showed that impermeable effect of the impermeable wall has not obviously changed if the concrete proportion is below 0.43. When the proportion of concrete exceeds 0.43, the anti-seepage effect of the impermeable wall begins to change significantly. Besides, when the proportion of concrete reaches 1.0, the reduction of water level at front and behind impermeable wall, the discharge of seepage per unit width, and the safety factor of the Bishop method are all infinitely close to the value of the best anti-seepage performance and the most stable state of the dam slope.

Polar codes can be efficiently decoded by the successive cancellation list (SCL) algorithm in which the sorter plays an important role. The sorter, however, is time-consuming. We significantly improve this decoding scheme by developing a new non-sorting direct selection method for the SCL algorithm. In the non-sorting strategy, we design a new selector for choosing the $L$ best surviving paths, which is achieved by exploiting the bitwise comparison of the candidate path metrics. The analysis and simulation results show that, for $M$ -bit length path metrics, our direct selection method with time complexity $O(ML)$ ) is superior to the latest simplified bubble sorter and the quick sorting strategy whose time complexity is $O(ML^{2})$ and $O(ML \log L)$ , respectively. In the scenario of short codeword length and large list size, our selector can remarkably reduce the latency and the hardware resource consumption while not assuming that the metrics in the decoding are sorted.

Achalasia is generally accepted as a condition associated with an increased risk for developing esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. In our paper, we introduced an achalasia patient combined with synchronous early esophageal neoplasms. We performed a combination of concurrent endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) and peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM). No complications other than postoperative pain that needed morphine treatment for two days had occurred. Dysphagia was significantly improved. Neither reflux nor cough occurred. The short-term efficacy and safety of our case is favorable and suggests that concurrent ESD and POEM could be a treatment option to such patients.

Background: Guillain Barre Syndrome (GBS) is an autoimmune disorder caused by the immune-mediated damage of the peripheral nervous system. Increasing evidence suggests that inflammatory cytokines are important mediators for the onset and progression of GBS. A number of clinical studies have demonstrated elevated levels of T helper-1 (Th1-), Th2-, and Th17-related cytokines in patients with GBS; however, the results were inconsistent across studies. Methods: We performed a systematic review and a meta-analysis of studies comparing the levels of inflammatory cytokines in the cerebrospinal fluid and peripheral blood between patients with GBS and healthy individuals, using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis Version 2 software. A database search identified 30 studies comprising 1,302 patients with GBS and 1,073 healthy controls. Results: The random-effects meta-analysis demonstrated that peripheral blood tumor necrosis factor-α (Hedges g, 1.544; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.923–2.165; p < 0.001), interleukin-1β (IL-1β; Hedges g, 0.678; 95% CI, 0.183–1.172; p = 0.007), IL-6 (Hedges g, 0.630; 95% CI, 0.100–1.160; p = 0.02), IL-4 (Hedges g, 0.822; 95% CI, 0.220–1.423; p = 0.007), IL-17 (Hedges g, 1.452; 95% CI, 0.331–2.573; p = 0.011), interferon-γ (Hedges g, 1.104; 95% CI, 0.490–1.719; p < 0.001), and C-reactive protein (Hedges g, 0.909; 95% CI, 0.453–1.365; p < 0.001) levels were significantly increased in patients with GBS when compared with healthy controls. Contrastingly, the blood IL-10 and transforming growth factor-β levels were not significantly associated with GBS. Furthermore, the meta-analysis found that cerebrospinal fluid IL-17 levels were significantly associated with GBS (Hedges g, 1.882; 95% CI, 0.104–3.661; p = 0.038). Conclusion: Altogether, our results clarified the circulating inflammatory cytokine profile in patients with GBS, and revealed that Th1-, Th2-, and Th17-related cytokines were highly elevated in the GBS patients, suggesting the potential use of these cytokines as biomarkers for GBS.

Breast cancer is the most lethal malignancy in women. N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase 6 (GALNT6) is an enzyme which mediates the initial step of mucin-type O-glycosylation, and has been reported to be involved in mammary carcinogenesis. However, the molecular mechanism of GALNT6 in breast cancer metastasis has not been fully explored. In this study, based on online database analyses and tissue microarrays, the overall survival (OS) of breast cancer patients with high expression of GALNT6 was found to be shorter than those with low expression of GALNT6. Also, high GALNT6 expression was positively correlated with advanced pN stage and pTNM stage. GALNT6 was shown to be able to promote the migration and invasion of breast cancer cells, and enhance the level of mucin-type O-glycosylation of substrates in the supernatants of breast cancer cells. Qualitative mucin-type glycosylomics analysis identified α2M as a novel substrate of GALNT6. Further investigation showed that GALNT6 increased O-glycosylation of α2M, and the following activation of the downstream PI3K/Akt signaling pathway was involved in the promotion of migration and invasion of breast cancer cells. This study identified a new substrate of GALNT6 and provides novel understanding of the role of GALNT6 in promoting metastasis and poor prognosis in breast cancer.

Flap endonuclease 1 (FEN1) is recognized as a pivotal factor in DNA replication, long-patch excision repair, and telomere maintenance. Excessive FEN1 expression has been reported to be closely associated with cancer progression, but the specific mechanism has not yet been explored. In the present study, we demonstrated that FEN1 promoted breast cancer cell proliferation

Background Tamoxifen is an important choice in endocrine therapy for patients with oestrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancer, and disease progression-associated resistance to tamoxifen therapy is still challenging. Flap endonuclease-1 (FEN1) is used as a prognostic biomarker and is considered to participate in proliferation, migration, and drug resistance in multiple cancers, especially breast cancer, but the prognostic function of FEN1 in ER+ breast cancer, and whether FEN1 is related to tamoxifen resistance or not, remain to be explored. Methods On-line database Kaplan-Meier (KM) plotter, GEO datasets, and immunohistochemistry were used to analyse the prognostic value of FEN1 in ER+ breast cancer from mRNA and protein levels. Cell viability assay and colony formation assays showed the response of tamoxifen in MCF-7 and T47D cells. Microarray data with FEN1 siRNA versus control group in MCF-7 cells were analysed by Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA). The protein levels downstream of FEN1 were detected by western blot assay. Results ER+ breast cancer patients who received tamoxifen for adjuvant endocrine therapy with poor prognosis showed a high expression of FEN1. MCF-7 and T47D appeared resistant to tamoxifen after FEN1 over-expression and increased sensitivity to tamoxifen after FEN1 knockdown. Importantly, FEN1 over-expression could activate tamoxifen resistance through the ERα/cyclin D1/Rb axis. Conclusions As a biomarker of tamoxifen effectiveness, FEN1 participates in tamoxifen resistance through ERα/cyclin D1/Rb axis. In the future, reversing tamoxifen resistance by knocking-down FEN1 or by way of action as a small molecular inhibitor of FEN1 warrants further investigation.

Cigarette smoking during young adult may result in serious health issues in later life. Hence, it is extremely necessary to study the smoking neurophysiological mechanisms in this critical transitional period. However, few studies revealed the electrophysiological mechanisms of cognitive processing biases in young adult smokers. In present study, nineteen young smokers with 12 h abstinent and 19 matched nonsmokers were recruited. By employing event-related potentials (ERP) measurements during a smoking cue induced craving task, electrophysiological brain responses were compared between the young adult smokers and nonsmokers. The Slow Positive Wave (SPW) amplitude of smoking-related cues was enhanced in young adult smokers compared with nonsmokers. In addition, increased P300/SPW component of smoking-related cues relative to neutral cues were found in young adult smokers. Meanwhile, a positive correlation between Cigarette Per Day (CPD) and the amplitude of ERPs wave (P300/SPW) at anterior (Fz), central (Cz) were observed in young adult smokers. Our findings provided direct electrophysiological evidence for the cognitive processing bias of smoking cue and may shed new insights into the smoking behavior in young adult smokers.

Studying the neural correlates of smoking behaviors in young adulthood is of great importance to improve treatment outcomes. In previous addiction studies, the important roles of the salience network (SN) in drug cue processing and cognitive control have been revealed. Unfortunately, few studies focused on the resting-state functional connectivity and structural integrity abnormalities of SN in young adult smokers, and less is known about its association with smoking behaviors and cognitive control deficits. Thirty-one young male adult smokers and 30 age-, education- and gender-matched nonsmokers participated in this study. The structural and functional connectivity differences of SN were investigated between young adult smokers and nonsmokers by using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC), which were then correlated with the smoking behavioral assessments (pack-years and Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND)) as well as impaired cognitive control measured by the Stroop task. Within SN, reduced RSFC and increased fractional anisotropy (FA) were found between the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and the right insula in young adult smokers relative to nonsmokers. The RSFC between the ACC and right insula was negatively correlated with the number of errors during the incongruent condition of the Stroop task in young adult smokers. Additionally, the right insula-ACC RSFC was negatively correlated with pack-years in young adult smokers. Our results revealed abnormal RSFC and structural integrity within the SN in young adult smokers, which shed new insights into the neural mechanism of nicotine dependence.

Populus euphratica is an important native tree found in arid regions from North Africa and South Europe to China, and is known to tolerate many forms of environmental stress, including drought. We describe cuticle waxes, cutin and cuticle permeability for the heteromorphic leaves of P. euphratica growing in two riparian habitats that differ in available soil moisture. Scanning electron microscopy revealed variation in epicuticular wax crystallization associated with leaf type and site. P. euphratica leaves are dominated by cuticular wax alkanes, primary-alcohols and fatty acids. The major cutin monomers were 10,16-diOH C16:0 acids. Broad-ovate leaves (associated with adult phase growth) produced 1.3- and 1.6-fold more waxes, and 2.1- and 0.9-fold more cutin monomers, than lanceolate leaves (associated with juvenile phase growth) at the wetter site and drier site, respectively. The alkane-synthesis-associated ECERIFERUM1 (CER1), as well as ABC transporter- and elongase-associated genes, were expressed at much higher levels at the drier than wetter sites, indicating their potential function in elevating leaf cuticle lipids in the dry site conditions. Higher cuticle lipid amounts were closely associated with lower cuticle permeability (both chlorophyll efflux and water loss). Our results implicate cuticle lipids as among the xeromorphic traits associated with P. euphratica adult-phase broad-ovate leaves. Results here provide useful information for protecting natural populations of P. euphratica and their associated ecosystems, and shed new light on the functional interaction of cuticle and leaf heterophylly in adaptation to more arid, limited-moisture environments.

Although ionic liquids (ILs) have been used extensively in recent years as a high-capacitance "dielectric" in electric double layer transistors, the dynamics of the double layer formation have remained relatively unexplored. Better understanding of the dynamics and relaxation processes involved in electric double layer formation will guide device optimization, particularly with regard to switching speed. In this paper, we explore the dynamical characteristics of an IL in a metal/ionic liquid/metal (M/IL/M) capacitor. In particular, we examine a Au/IL/Au structure where the IL is 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium tris(pentafluoroethyl)trifluorophosphate. The experiments consist of frequency-dependent impedance measurements and time-dependent current vs voltage measurements for applied linear voltage ramps and abrupt voltage steps. The parameters of an equivalent circuit model are determined by fits to the impedance vs frequency data and subsequently verified by calculating the current vs voltage characteristics for the applied potential profiles. The data analysis indicates that the dynamics of the structure are characterized by a wide distribution of relaxation times spanning the range of less than microseconds to longer than seconds. Possible causes for these time scales are discussed.

Objective To examine whether bacteria are transferred between the hands of medical staff and high-frequency contact surfaces within and between departments of a major metropolitan hospital, and to further analyze the patterns of cross-transmission. Methods Microbiological samples were collected from the hands of 112 hospital employees as well as from 120 high-frequency contact surfaces in four hospital departments. Samples were collected on agar plates, analyzed for the presence of Staphylococcus aureus or methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) by standard microbiology testing, and partially genotyped using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Results Genetically identical MRSA was identified on the surface of an electrocardiography device in the medical intensive care unit and on the same type of device in the neurosurgical unit. Genetically similar S. aureus was identified on an infusion pump in the medical intensive care unit and on the hands of several doctors in a different department who regularly use that pump. Genetically identical S. aureus was also identified on bedside rail restraint in the medical intensive care unit and on the hands of the nurse in the neurosurgical unit. Finally, genetically similar MRSA was identified both on the surface of an electrocardiography device and on the suction apparatus in the medical intensive care unit. Conclusion Cross-contamination of S. aureus or MRSA on medical workers' hands and contact surfaces was demonstrated within and between departments of a large metropolitan hospital. Improvements are needed in medical staff hygiene habits and in the cleaning of high-frequency contact surfaces to help prevent and control nosocomial infections.

Tetraena mongolica Maxim, a relic shrub of the paleo-Mediterranean flora, is normally accompanied in the Western Ordos desert by another plant species in the same taxonomic family, Zygophyllum xanthoxylum (Bunge) Maxim, and together they play a vital role in the ecology of the local environment. Z. xanthoxylum has been identified as having stronger drought tolerance than T. mongolica. As an important water barrier, cuticles were compared between these two relatives to better reveal the mechanism of their different drought tolerance. Z. xanthoxylum possesses more flattened wax crystals, lower epidermal permeability and higher water use efficiency (WUE) than T. mongolica. The composition of cuticular lipids were analyzed, and the results showed that Z. xanthoxylum had significantly higher total amounts of both cuticular wax and cutin monomers than T. mongolica, with all wax class (especially alkanes) and cutin monomer amounts being much higher in Z. xanthoxylum. Cuticle-associated genes were analyzed by transcriptome sequencing, and the results showed that more alkane synthesis genes were up-regulated in Z. xanthoxylum. These findings provide different cuticles on these two succulent xerophytes and reveal the relationships with their different drought tolerance. This study is helpful to reveal the function of plant cuticle in adaptability to extreme environments.

Aquilariaenes A-H (1-8), eight new diterpenoids and nor-diterpenoids (1-8) belonging to abietane or pimarane, were isolated from the petroleum ether extract of Chinese eaglewood. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of extensive spectroscopic methods including HRESIMS, IR, 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopic data analyses. Antidepressant activities of isolates for in vitro inhibition of serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake in rat brain synaptosomes were evaluated.

We study the quantum controlled and probabilistic teleportation protocol via a four-cluster state (Front. Phys. (2017) 12: 120306). The protocol cannot achieve the goal that if the teleportation fails, it can be repeated without copies of the teleported state. And the reason is that all the information of the teleported state shifts to the receiver's particle after Bell measurement and the information cannot shift back to the sender without other entangled states. To realize the claimed goal, a new quantum controlled and probabilistic teleportation protocol using the same four-cluster state is presented. Because no information of the teleported stated is lost during the whole teleportation process, the teleportation process can be repeated until the teleportation success., 7 pages, 3 figures