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In this paper, we are interested in reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS)-assisted symbiotic radio (SR) systems, where an RIS assists a primary transmission by passive beamforming and simultaneously acts as an information transmitter by periodically adjusting its reflecting coefficients. The above modulation scheme innately enables a new multiplicative multiple access channel (M-MAC), where the primary and secondary signals are superposed in a multiplicative and additive manner. To pursue the fundamental performance limits of the M-MAC, we focus on the characterization of the capacity region of such systems. Due to the passive nature of RISs, the transmitted signal of the RIS should satisfy the peak power constraint. Under this constraint at the RIS as well as the average power constraint at the primary transmitter (PTx), we analyze the capacity-achieving distributions of the transmitted signals and characterize the capacity region of the M-MAC. Then, theoretical analysis is performed to reveal insights into the RIS-assisted SR. It is observed that: 1) the capacity region of the M-MAC is strictly convex and larger than that of the conventional TDMA scheme; 2) the secondary transmission can achieve the maximum rate when the PTx transmits the constant envelope signals; 3) and the sum rate can achieve the maximum when the PTx transmits Gaussian signals and the RIS transmits the constant envelope signals. Finally, extensive numerical results are provided to evaluate the performance of the RIS-assisted SR and verify the accuracy of our theoretical analysis.

Tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs) are ectopic lymphocyte aggregates that form at sites of chronic inflammation, including cancers, in non-lymphoid tissues. Although the formation of TLSs is similar to that of secondary lymphoid organs, the pathogenic factors leading to TLS formation in cancerous tissues and the mechanisms underlying the role of these structures in the intra-tumoral adaptive antitumor immune response are not fully understood. The presence of TLSs may impact patient prognosis and treatment outcomes. This review examines the current understanding of TLSs in cancers, including their composition and formation as well as their potential to predict prognosis and therapeutic efficacy. We also summarize strategies to induce TLS formation for cancer treatment.

ObjectiveThis study aimed to analyze the correlation between quantitative computed tomography (CT) parameters and airflow obstruction in patients with COPD.MethodsPubMed, Embase, Cochrane and Web of Knowledge were searched by two investigators from inception to July 2022, using a combination of pertinent items to discover articles that investigated the relationship between CT measurements and lung function parameters in patients with COPD. Five reviewers independently extracted data, and evaluated it for quality and bias. The correlation coefficient was calculated, and heterogeneity was explored. The following CT measurements were extracted: percentage of lung attenuation area 1%pred) and FEV1 divided by forced expiratory volume lung capacity.ResultsA total of 141 studies (25,214 participants) were identified, which 64 (6,341 participants) were suitable for our meta-analysis. Results from our analysis demonstrated that there was a significant correlation between quantitative CT parameters and lung function. The absolute pooled correlation coefficients ranged from 0.26 (95% CI, 0.18 to 0.33) to 0.70 (95% CI, 0.65 to 0.75) for inspiratory CT and 0.56 (95% CI, 0.51 to 0.60) to 0.74 (95% CI, 0.68 to 0.80) for expiratory CT.ConclusionsResults from this analysis demonstrated that quantitative CT parameters are significantly correlated with lung function in patients with COPD. With recent advances in chest CT, we can evaluate morphological features in the lungs that cannot be obtained by other clinical indices, such as pulmonary function tests. Therefore, CT can provide a quantitative method to advance the development and testing of new interventions and therapies for patients with COPD.

Additional file 1: Table S1. The Baseline Comparison Between Included and Excluded Participants. Table S2. Odds Ratios for the Associations Between Infertility Treatment (ART and Non-ART) and Chorioamnionitis.

Supplemental material, sj-doc-1-ict-10.1177_15347354231172511 for Effects of Managing Cancer and Living Meaningfully on Cancer-Related Fatigue and Cytokine Levels in Gastrointestinal Cancer Patients by Yinlian Cai, Qianqian Zhang, Chen Gan, Jian Xu, Sheng Yu, Lingxue Tang, Senbang Yao, Wen Li, Runze Huang and Huaidong Cheng in Integrative Cancer Therapies

Additional file 5: Supplementary Table 1. Lifestyle-related questionnaire.

The relationship among alcohol, acetaldehyde, and gastric cancer (GC) is a very interesting research direction. Although many studies have focused on the correlation between ALDH2 polymorphism and GC, ALDH2 expression in GC and its relationship with the prognosis of GC patients remain to be fully understood. To explore these, 455 GC cases were included in this study. The relationships of ALDH2 expression with patients’ survival and clinicopathological characteristics were assessed. The immune infiltration characteristics of ALDH2 in GC were also analyzed. Furthermore, the gene regulatory network and functional pathways of ALDH2 in GC were investigated. We found that high expression of ALDH2 was associated with better prognosis in GC patients. GC patients with high ALDH2 expression had a lower degree of pathological malignancy, consistent with our hypothesis that ALDH2 may play as a tumor suppressor role in GC. Mechanistically, ALDH2 may cooperate with genes such as C5orf32, TSPAN8 and RILP to inhibit GC progression via regulating multiple signaling pathways and chemical carcinogenesis. Therefore, our study suggested that ALDH2, an important variant gene in Asians, might serve as a prognostic marker and a potential therapeutic target for patients with GC.

The interactions between symbiotic bacterial consortia and their protist hosts in benthic environments have attracted increasing interest in recent years. In the present study, we investigated the diversity of potentially associated bacteria for an astomatous ciliate, Kentrophoros flavus, collected in the intertidal zone of Yantai, China. For the first time, the diversity of the associated bacteria in the species K. flavus was examined using 16S rRNA-based techniques (clone libraries and PacBio sequencing) and the fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) technique. The 16S rRNA-based sequencing revealed a higher diversity of associated bacteria in K. flavus than previously expected. In addition to a genus-typical thiotrophic symbiont, the “Candidatus Kentron” stain YE, we provide evidence showing the consistent existence of one Muribaculaceae-like bacterium that was secondarily abundant among the bacterial operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) with three specific probes and double-label FISH experiments with “Candidatus Kentron” probes showed that the Muribaculaceae-like bacterium was abundant and merged with the “Candidatus Kentron” stain YE on the cell surface of the host. A phylogenetic analysis of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene showed that the bacterium was a distinct branch in Muribaculaceae, members of which are primarily reported from gut microbiome. The name “Muribaculaceae-like bacterium associated with Kentrophoros flavus” (MLAKF) is proposed for the new bacterium. The higher 16S rRNA diversity in K. flavus and the discovery of MLAKF on the cell surface both suggest a potential bacterial consortium that interacts with the host K. flavus.

Context Current medicine for Alzheimer's disease (AD) cannot effectively reverse or block nerve injury. Traditional Chinese Medicine practice and research imply Aconiti lateralis Radix Praeparata (Fuzi) may meet this goal. Objective Analysing the anti-AD effect of Fuzi and its potential molecular mechanism. Materials and methods AD model cells were treated with Fuzi in 0-300 mg/mL for 24 h in 37 °C. The cell viability (CV) and length of cell projections (LCP) for each group were observed, analysed, and standardised using control as a baseline (CVs and LCPs). The Fuzi and AD relevant genes were identified basing on databases, and the molecular mechanism of Fuzi anti-AD was predicted by network analysis. Results Experiment results showed that Fuzi in 0.4 mg/mL boosted LCP (LCPs = 1.2533, p ≤ 0.05), and in 1.6-100 mg/mL increased CV (CVs from 1.1673 to 1.3321, p ≤ 0.05). Bioinformatics analysis found 17 Fuzi target genes (relevant scores ≥ 20), showing strong AD relevant signals (RMS_p ≤ 0.05, related scores ≥ 5), enriched in the pathways regulating axon growth, synaptic plasticity, cell survival, proliferation, apoptosis, and death (p ≤ 0.05). Especially, GRIN1 and MAPK1 interacted with APP protein and located in the key point of the "Alzheimer's disease" pathway. Discussion and conclusions These results suggest that Fuzi may have therapeutic and prevention potential in AD, and GRIN1 and MAPK1 may be the core of the pathways of the Fuzi anti-AD process. Fuzi should be studied more extensively, especially for the prevention of AD.

Photocatalytic H2 generation has been believed to be a hopeful technology to deal with the current energy shortage issue. Among multifarious photocatalysts, graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) has acquired enormous interests in virtue of its numerous advantages, such as peculiar physicochemical stability, favorable energy band structure and easy preparation. However, the insufficient light response range, low specific surface area, and inferior charge separation efficiency make its photocatalytic activity still unsatisfactory. In this work, the thermal exfoliation method was taken to prepare the thin g-C3N4 nanosheets with significantly improved specific surface area, which can afford more reaction sites and shorten the charge migration distance. Moreover, phosphorus (P) doping in g-C3N4 nanosheets can greatly expand its light absorption, improve the conductivity and charge-transfer capability. Due to the synergistic effect of these two strategies, the optimal H2 generation performance of P-doped g-C3N4 nanosheets came up to 1146.8 μmol g−1 h−1, which improved 15, 2.94 and 2.62 times compared to those of original bulk g-C3N4, thermally exfoliated g-C3N4 and P-doped bulk g-C3N4, respectively. The synergistic effect will inspire the design of other photocatalytic systems to achieve the efficient photocatalytic H2 generation activity.

Yu Cui,1,&ast; Yu Wang,2,&ast; Jing Yang,1,&ast; Longqing Ran,1,&ast; Qianqian Zhang,1 Qinghua Huang,1 Tianqing Gong,1 Rong Cao,1 Xiao Yang3 1Department of Anesthesiology, The Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, UESTC Chengdu Women’s & Children’s Central Hospital, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Anesthesiology, No.363 Hospital, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Hospital Management, The Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, UESTC Chengdu Women’s & Children’s Central Hospital, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Xiao Yang, Tel/Fax +86 13882288881, Email yczar@126.comStudy Objective: Pain management plays a pivotal role in enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS). Erector spinae plane block (ESPB) is widely used in many regions to treat perioperative pain, but its benefits are still somewhat controversial. We, therefore, intent to systematically review the available literature on ESPB, to elucidate its effects on opioid-sparing analgesia, and summarize its potential complications.Design: Systematic review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with meta-analysis.Setting: Postoperative opioid consumption for various surgeries.Patients: Patients undergoing various surgeries.Intervention: We searched relevant studies in PubMed, EMBASE, Medline, and the Cochrane Library up to May 16, 2021. All prospective and RCTs that compared ESPB and sham block or no block were enrolled.Measurements: The primary outcomes were postoperative opioid consumption during the first 24 hours. The secondary outcomes were the requirement of rescue analgesia, time to first rescue analgesic and ESPB-related adverse events.Results: We included 52 trials that reported postoperative opioid consumption during the first 24 hours. The results presented that compared to control group (ie, no intervention or a sham block), ESPB reduced the accumulated opioid consumption during the first 24 h after surgery [mean difference (MD) of − 12.83 (95% CI: − 17.29 to − 8.38; p < 0.001) mg; I2 = 100%]. Besides, ESPB could prolong time to first rescue analgesia after surgery [SMD = 5.31; 95% CI 4.01– 6.61; p < 0.001; I2 = 97%]. The number of patients who received rescue analgesia after surgery in the ESPB group was less than that in the control group (OR 0.13; 95% CI 0.09, 0.21; p < 0.001; I2 = 54%), and the incidence of PONV was lower in the ESPB group (OR 0.51; 95% CI 0.43, 0.62; p < 0.001; I2 = 19%).Conclusion: ESPB is an effective technique on pain management with few complications.Keywords: erector spinae plane block, ESPB, opioid consumption, postoperative nausea and vomiting, PONV

Additional file 4.

Additional file 1.

Additional file 1: Fig. S1 Aberrant expression of METTL2A in BRCA from GEO cohorts. a, b The expression alteration of METTL2A probes between tumor (red) and normal (blue) tissue samples in BRCA from GSE3744. c The Overall survival curve of METTL2A in GSE1456. d The Disease-Free survival curve of METTL2A in GSE4922. e, f The Relapse-Free survival curves of METTL2A in e GSE1456 and f GSE6532.

Additional file 2: Fig. S2 Relationship between METTL2A expression and clinicopathological parameters in BRCA form GEO cohorts. Distribution of METTL2A expression stratified by a, b Age, c N stage, d M stage, and e-g PR status.

Additional file 2.

Additional file 2.

Supplemental material, sj-docx-1-ict-10.1177_15347354221140498 for The Managing Cancer and Living Meaningfully (CALM) Intervention Alleviates Chemotherapy-Related Cognitive Impairment in Patients with Breast Cancer by Modulating Pan-Immune-Inflammation Values by Senbang Yao, Ke Ding, Shaochun Liu, Qianqian Zhang, Wen Li, Lingxue Tang, Sheng Yu, Lulian Pang, Xiangxiang Yin and Huaidong Cheng in Integrative Cancer Therapies

Additional file 3.

Additional file 3: Table S1. GRADE summary of findings table.

Ramucirumab, as a vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 inhibitor, was first approved in 2014 for treated advanced or metastatic gastric/gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma. This study deeply analyzed the efficacy and safety of advanced or metastatic cancer treated with ramucirumab, which included 11 global, double-blind, phase 3 randomized controlled trials with a total of 7410 patients. Subgroup analysis based on different cancer types showed that standard regimens plus ramucirumab significantly increased progression-free survival and overall survival compared with placebo groups in patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), hepatocellular carcinoma, gastric cancer, or GEJ adenocarcinoma. Although a higher proportion of patients achieved overall response and disease control than those treated with placebo, the overall response was not statistically significant between the two groups in advanced NSCLC. Grade 3 or worse treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) that occurred in at least 5% of patients were neutropenia (30.5% in the ramucirumab group vs. 23.5% in the placebo group), leucopenia (14.8% vs. 9.2%), weight decreased (14.2% vs. 8.0%), myalgia (11.7% vs. 7.7%), fatigue (10.9% vs. 7.7%), hypertension (9.2% vs. 2.3%), and anaemia (6.2% vs. 7.7%). In the TEAEs of special interest, the ramucirumab group had a significantly higher incidence of bleeding (mainly grade 1-2 epistaxis and gastrointestinal bleeding), hypertension, proteinuria, liver injury/failure (grade 1-2), venous thromboembolism (grade 1-2), and gastrointestinal perforation (grade ≧3) than the control group.

Additional file 7.

Additional file 1: Figure S1. Centile curves of CRL measured in 7–13+6 gestational weeks fitted with BCGo model (P0.4, P2, P10, P25, P50, P75, P90, P98, P99.6). Figure S2. Restricted cubic spline plot of risk ration of preterm birth. Table S1. Selection of models of crown-rump length. Table S2. Neonatal outcomes of the population.

Additional file 6.

Additional file 1. Figure S1. Survival curves of offspring in LPS group (N = 5) compared with NS group (N = 5). Figure S2. A���C. Gross morphology of liver in LPS group. D���F. in NS group. G���I, Representative H&E-treated images of liver in LPS, J���L. H&E stained images of liver in NS group (40X,100X,200X, respectively). Figure S3. Glucose homeostasis of 9 weeks and 18 weeks old offspring. A Measured of GTT of males at 9 weeks old. B Measured of ITT f of males at 9 weeks old. C Measured of GTT of males at 18 weeks old. D Measured of ITT f of males at 18 weeks old. E Serum GHb1c at 20 weeks old. F Random and fasting blood glucose at 18 weeks. *P

Background Breast cancer is a common disease in women. Early detection and early treatment can reduce breast cancer mortality. Studies have shown that breast cancer microcalcifications is one of the important clinical manifestations of early breast cancer, and sometimes even the only manifestation. When the mammography image shows typical malignant microcalcification, it can be diagnosed as breast cancer without any other signs of malignancy. In the aided diagnosis of microcalcifications, it is a crucial step to automatically find and locate regions of interest containing microcalcifications. However, the existing feature extraction method for microcalcifications only extracts features in the time domain or wavelet domain, and does not completely represent all the information of the region of interest. An extraction method based on the combination of Dual-Tree Complex Wavelet Transform (DTCWT) and texture features is proposed in the paper. Methods First, the processing operations including denoising, enhancement, and edge detection were performed on mammograms. Sub-image segmentation is then performed. DTCWT features and texture features are extracted for each sub-image.DTCWT features are combined with texture features, and then genetic algorithm is used for feature optimization. The features are classified by the Extreme Learning Machine (ELM) to achieve rapid detection and automatic extraction of ROI with microcalcifications. The experimental results verify that the feature model proposed in this paper has the highest detection rate for ROI regions. The ROI region extracted by the proposed feature model was used as subsequent experimental data. Three different methods were used to detect the microcalcifications, including Top-hat, wavelet transform, and methods combining Top-Hat and wavelet transform. Results The method was applied to 100 mammograms from the mammograms database of women in Northeast China. In the automatic extraction of ROI, the accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive accuracy and negative accuracy of the proposed model combined with DTCWT were 95.92%, 96.71%, 92.20%, 93.65%, 96.33%, respectively. When the Top-hat algorithm was used for microcalcifications detection, the sensitivity reached 89.6%, and the false positive detection rate was 2.6. When the wavelet transform algorithm was used for microcalcifications detection, the sensitivity was 91.1%, and the false positive detection rate was 3.28. When the combined algorithm was used for microcalcifications detection, the sensitivity was 86.7%, and the false positive detection rate decreased to 1.35. Conclusions The proposed model combined with DTCWT features achieves better result in the automatic extraction of ROI. Moreover, in the subsequent detection of microcalcifications based on three methods, the three methods achieved better results in sensitivity and false positive detection rate, respectively.

Electrochemical water splitting is considered as an effective and promising method to produce the ideal hydrogen energy to solve the energy crisis and environmental pollution problems. Herein, we s...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to propose a deformable two-wheel-like mobile mechanism based on overconstrained mechanism, with the abilities of fast rolling and obstacle surmounting. The drive torque of the multi-mode motions is generated by self-deformation. Moreover, the analyses of feasibility and locomotivity of two mobile modes are presented. Design/methodology/approach The main body of the two-wheel-like mobile mechanism is a kind of centrally driven 4 R linkages. The mobile mechanism can achieve the capabilities of fast rolling and obstacle surmounting through integrating two mobile modes (spherical-like rolling mode and polyhedral-like obstacle-surmounting mode) and can switch to the corresponding mode to move or surmount obstacles. The mobility and kinematics of the mobile modes are analyzed. Findings Based on the results of kinematics analysis and dynamics analysis of the wheel-like mechanism, the spherical-like rolling mode has the capability of fast rolling, and the polyhedral-like obstacle-surmounting mode has the capability of surmounting different obstacle heights by two submodes (quasi-static obstacle-surmounting submode and dynamic obstacle-surmounting submode). The proposed concept is verified by experiments on a physical prototype. Originality/value The work presented in this paper is a novel exploration to apply bar linkages in the field of scout. The two-wheel-like mobile mechanism improves the torque imbalance of bar linkages by centrally driven method, removes the rear support structures of the traditional two-wheeled mechanisms by self-deformation and increases the height of obstacle surmounting by mode switching angle.

Large size and high efficient nanoporous BiVO4 photoelectrode was prepared through a simple printing-like electrochemical synthesis method. The prepared BiVO4 electrode was applied to split water to produce O2 and H2 in a three-electrode system under the irradiation of simulated solar light. NiOOH as cocatalyst was deposited by photo-electrodeposition method to improve the photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of BiVO4 photoanode. Results reveal that NiOOH can enhance the photocurrent density and lower the over potential of water oxidation reaction. IPCE measurements were used to evaluate solar energy conversion efficiencies of BiVO4 photoanode and BiVO4/NiOOH photoanode. These two kind electrodes showed 17% and 24% IPCE in water splitting reaction. Furthermore, the prepared large size photoanode was proved to have good stability for water splitting. Our study raises the feasibility of fabrication of large size photoelectrode with high efficiency for practical application.

In this work, we reported a novel and effective cancer treatment strategy by fabricating carbon dot (CD)-polyethylenimine (PEI)-doxorubicin (DOX) antitumor drug complexes from a combination of PEI-passivated CDs (CD-PEI) and DOX. CD-PEI was synthesized by the one-step microwave hydrothermal carbonization of a mixture of glycerol and PEI-25k, enabling simultaneous synthesis and surface passivation of CDs. DOX was loaded onto CD-PEI by electrostatic interactions. The results show that this system not only improves selective drug release but also prolongs the drug release time and improves the killing effect on tumors. Compared with free DOX, the CD-PEI-DOX complex has a stronger killing effect on liver cancer cells (MHCC-97L and Hep3B cells) but a very low killing effect on normal liver cells (L02). Studies have also confirmed that compared with DOX alone, CD-PEI-DOX nanoparticles can effectively inhibit tumors because of the larger amount of drugs localized in tumor cells and the higher apoptosis rate of MHCC-97L cells. In vivo experiments confirmed that CD-PEI-DOX has a stronger inhibitory effect on tumor growth, indicating that CD-PEI-DOX nanomedicine has inhibitory effects on tumors.

Objective Poria cocos and Polyporus umbellatus are similar medicinal fungi in traditional Chinese medicines. A method for fingerprint analysis of monosaccharide composition of polysaccharides by HPLC combined with chemometrics methods has been developed for characterization and discrimination of them in this research. Methods The polysaccharides were extracted by decocting in water, and then completely hydrolyzed with hydrochloride. Monosaccharides in the hydrolyzates were derivatized with 1-phenyl-3-methyl-5-pyrazolone (PMP) for HPLC analysis. More than 20 batches of P. cocos and P. umbellatus from different regions were analyzed. Results The fingerprints of P. cocos showed five common characteristic peaks, which were identified by comparing with the reference substances. The five peaks corresponded to the derivatives of mannose, ribose, glucose, galactose, and fucose. At the same time, the fingerprints of P. umbellatus showed eight common characteristic peaks, of which seven were identified as the derivatives of mannose, ribose, rhamnose, glucose, galactose, xylose, and fucose. Moreover, the similarity of their fingerprints was respectively calculated by the Similarity Evaluation System for Chromatographic Fingerprint of TCM published by China Pharmacopoeia Committee (Version 2004A). And the data were further processed by hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) and principal component analysis (PCA). The similarity evaluation and HCA indicated that there were no significant difference in P. cocos or P. umbellatus samples from different geographical regions, but PCA was performed to characterize the difference in monosaccharide constituents between P. cocos and P. umbellatus, and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) showed the overall correct classification rate was 100%. Conclusion The fingerprint analysis method of monosaccharide composition of water-soluble polysaccharides can distinguish P. cocos and P. umbellatus, and can be applied for the authentication or quality control for P. cocos and P. umbellatus.

In modern society, the power of college students has been able to provide creative growth for the local economy, so the work situation of college students is closely related to the social dynamics. Colleges and universities are important places for talent cultivation and output. They are closely related to the cultivation of college students and the choice of employment and entrepreneurship of college students. Entrepreneurship and employment are interdependent. It is not enough to rely only on entrepreneurs to make enterprises stronger. In order to increase the creativity and environmental adaptability of enterprises, there need to be sufficient and excellent employees who are willing to work in the regions where enterprises are located. Therefore, enterprises need college students with innovation and creativity in their regions. In this study, graduates from a university in Zhejiang Province were selected as the subjects. Based on the Theory of Reasoned Action, literature analysis and interview method were combined to systematically construct a research model affecting college Students’ choice of entrepreneurship and employment. The questionnaire survey method and structural equation model (PLS-SEM) were used to test the hypothesis. A total of 798 valid questionnaires were collected. The results show that local attraction and family factors are the two most important factors affecting the entrepreneurship and employment of college students. Family factors have a significant positive impact on the attitude toward entrepreneurship and employment, subjective norms and intention to entrepreneurship and employment; local attraction also has a significant positive impact on the subjective norms, intention to entrepreneurship and employment, and attitude toward entrepreneurship and employment. The results of this study provide a reference for the decision-making of improving local attractiveness and promoting college Students’ employment in start-up enterprises under the background of higher education popularization.

OBJECTIVE: Yang-deficiency constitution (YADC) is a common unbalanced constitution that predisposes individuals to certain diseases. However, not all people with YADC manifest develop diseases. This calls for delineation of the underlying molecular mechanisms. Previous studies suggested that the gut microbiota and gene differential expression should be considered. METHODS: In the present study, we compared profiles of gut microbiota between four healthy YADC individuals and those of five healthy balanced constitution (BC) counterparts, based on 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. Furthermore, YADC relevant genes identified by comparing 62 healthy YADC and 58 healthy BC individuals in total to perform intersection analysis, functional clustering and pathway enrichment analyses. RESULTS: The levels of harmful gut microbiota (Prevotellaceae, LDA score > 4.0, P = 0.0141) and beneficial gut microbiota (Ruminococcaceae, LDA score > 4.0, P = 0.0025, Faecalibacterium, LDA score > 4.0, P = 0.0484) were both elevated in healthy YADC individuals. Also, we found that the specific metabolic pathway with 2, 6-Dichloro-p-hydroquinone 1, 2-Dioxygenase (PcpA) as the core in gut microbiota and the glutathione transferase activity has been enriched by YADC relevant genes in healthy YADC individuals were both responsible for the detoxification of halogenated aromatic hydrocarbon substances. CONCLUSIONS: Both beneficial and harmful factors had been detected in healthy YADC individuals, functionally, they may have triggered homeostasis to maintain the health of individuals with YADC. The homeostasis may be maintained by beneficial and harmful factors from gut flora and genes. Future studies are expected to focus on halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons and their detoxification processes.

Silymarin is an antioxidant component taken from milk thistle seeds. Such milk thistle seeds have been recognized as a safe and well-tolerated herb for pork production. Therefore, in this study we used micelle silymarin (MS) supplementation in finishing pigs’ diet to evaluate their growth performance, nutrient digestibility, fecal microbial, fecal gas emission, blood profile, meat quality, and antioxidant property. A total of 140 [(Landrace ×Yorkshire) ×Duroc] finishing pigs with average initial body weight (BW) of 51 ± 2.8 kg were used in the 10-week trial and allotted to 1 of 4 treatment groups (7 replicates/treatment with 5 pigs per pen). The nutritional diets were: Basal diet supplemented with 0%, 0.05%, 0.1%, and 0.2% of MS. Dietary supplemented with increasing level of MS linearly improved (P = 0.041) average daily gain (ADG) and trend to increase the feed conversion ratio (FCR) at week 10. While pigs fed dietary supplements with graded levels of MS linearly increased the digestibility of nitrogen (N) at weeks 5 and 10 (P = 0.017, 0.031), respectively. The inclusion of graded level of MS in the finishing diet of pigs linearly increased the fecal Lactobacillus counts (P = 0.048) at week 5, reduced the hydrogen sulfide (P = 0.022) and ammonia (P = 0.033) gas emission at weeks 5 and 10, respectively. Moreover, the inclusion of MS supplementation had linearly reduced (P = 0.004) the blood cholesterol level at week 10. At the end of the trial, pig fed diet containing MS supplementation linearly improved the meat color (P < 0.05). Thus, among tested doses, inclusion 0.2% of micelle silymarin to the basal diet is found to be optimal level to enhance the growth performance, nutrient digestibility, fecal microbial, fecal gas emission, and meat quality of finishing pigs.

Next-generation cellular systems will rely on millimeter wave (mmWave) bands to meet the increasing demand for wireless connectivity from end user equipment. Given large available bandwidth and small-sized antenna elements, mmWave frequencies can support high communication rates and facilitate the use of multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) techniques to increase the wireless capacity. However, the small wavelength of mmWave yields severe path loss and high channel uncertainty. Meanwhile, using a large number of antenna elements requires a high energy consumption and heavy communication overhead for MIMO transmissions and channel measurement. To facilitate efficient mmWave communications, in this dissertation, the challenges of energy efficiency and communication overhead are addressed. First, the use of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), intelligent signal reflector, and device-to-device (D2D) communications are investigated to improve the reliability and energy efficiency of mmWave communications in face of blockage. Next, to reduce the communication overhead, new channel modeling and user localization approaches are developed to facilitate MIMO channel estimation by providing prior knowledge of mmWave links. Using advance mathematical tools from machine learning (ML), game theory, and communication theory, this dissertation develops a suite of novel frameworks using which mmWave communication networks can be reliably deployed and operated in wireless cellular systems, UAV networks, and wearable device networks. For UAV-based wireless communications, a learning framework is developed to predict the cellular data traffic during congestion events, and a new framework for the on-demand deployment of UAVs is proposed to offload the excessive traffic from the ground base stations (BSs) to the UAVs. The results show that the proposed approach enables a dynamical and optimal deployment of UAVs that alleviates the cellular traffic congestion. Subsequently, a novel energy-efficient framework is developed to reflect mmWave signals from a BS towards mobile users using a UAV-carried intelligent reflector (IR). To optimize the location and reflection coefficient of the UAV-carried IR, a deep reinforcement learning (RL) approach is proposed to maximize the downlink transmission capacity. The results show that the RL-based approach significantly improves the downlink line-of-sight probability and increases the achievable data rate. Moreover, the channel estimation challenge for MIMO communications is addressed using a distributional RL approach, while optimizing an IR-aided downlink multi-user communication. The results show that the proposed method captures the statistic feature of MIMO channels, and significantly increases the downlink sum-rate. Moreover, in order to capture the characteristics of air-to-ground channels, a data-driven approach is developed, based on a distributed framework of generative adversarial networks, so that each UAV collects and shares mmWave channel state information (CSI) for cooperative channel modeling. The results show that the proposed algorithm enables an accurate channel modeling for mmWave MIMO communications over a large temporal-spatial domain. Furthermore, the CSI pattern is analyzed via semi-supervised ML tools to localize the wireless devices in the mmWave networks. Finally, to support D2D communications, a novel framework for mmWave multi-hop transmissions is investigated to improve the performance of the high-rate low-latency transmissions between wearable devices. In a nutshell, this dissertation provides analytical foundations on the ML-based performance optimization of mmWave communication systems, and the anticipated results provide rigorous guidelines for effective deployment of mmWave frequency bands into next-generation wireless systems (e.g., 6G). Doctor of Philosophy Different kinds of new smart devices are invented and deployed every year. Emerging smart city applications, including autonomous vehicles, virtual reality, drones, and Internet-of-things, will require the wireless communication system to support more data transmissions and connectivity. However, existing wireless network (e.g., 5G and Wi-Fi) operates at congested microwave frequency bands and cannot satisfy needs of these applications due to limited resources. Therefore, a different, very high frequency band at the millimeter wave (mmWave) spectrum becomes an inevitable choice to manage the exponential growth in wireless traffic for next-generation communication systems. With abundant bandwidth resources, mmWave frequencies can provide the high transmission rate and support the wireless connectivity for the massive number of devices in a smart city. Despite the advantages of communications at the mmWave bands, it is necessary to address the challenges related to high-frequency transmissions, such as low energy efficiency and unpredictable link states. To this end, this dissertation develops a set of novel network frameworks to facilitate the service deployment, performance analysis, and network optimization for mmWave communications. In particular, the proposed frameworks and efficient algorithms are tailored to the characteristics of mmWave propagation and satisfy the communication requirements of emerging smart city applications. Using advanced mathematical tools from machine learning, game theory, and wireless communications, this dissertation provides a comprehensive understanding of the communication performance over mmWave frequencies in the cellular systems, wireless local area networks, and drone networks. The anticipated results will promote the deployment of mmWave frequencies in next-generation communication systems.

In this paper, a stage structured predator-prey model with general nonlinear type of functional response is established and analyzed. The state-dependent time delay (hereafter SDTD) is the time taken from predator's birth to its maturity, formatted as a monotonical (ly) increasing, continuous(ly) differentiable and bounded function on the number of mature predator. The model is quite different from many previous models with SDTD, in the sense that the derivative of delay on the time is involved in the model. First, we have shown that for a large class of commonly used types of functional responses, including Holling types I, II and III, Beddington-DeAngelis-type (hereafter BD-type), etc, the predator coexists with the prey permanently if and only if the predator's net reproduction number is larger than one unit; Secondly, we have discussed the local stability of the equilibria of the model; Finally, for the special case of BD-type functional response, we claim that if the system is permanent, that is, the derivative of SDTD on the state is small enough and the predator interference is large enough, then the coexistence equilibrium is globally asymptotically stable., 28 pages

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text., Background: Selenium (Se) is an essential element and also toxic at an excessive level for human body. However, few studies have investigated adverse effects of Se exposure on birth weight and placental weight. Methods: All participants were selected from the Prenatal Environment and Offspring Health cohort conducted in 2016 in Guangzhou, China. Se in each participant was measured by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry in their urine samples. The urinary Se concentrations were corrected by creatinine and transformed by natural logarithm (ln-Se). Multiple-linear regression models were applied to estimate the associations among Se exposure levels, placenta weight, and birth weight. Results: A total of 2758 mother-newborn pairs were included in this study. Each interquartile range (0.53 μg/g creatinine) increment in urine ln-Se concentration during the first trimester was associated with a mean 21.7 g (95% CI = −41.3g to −2.1g) decrease in birth weight and 3.6g (95% CI = −6.3g to −0.9g) decrease in placental weight. Compared with the lowest quartile (Q1) of ln-Se concentrations during the first trimester, significantly lower birth weight was found in the highest quartile (Q4) (β = −45.7g; 95% CI = −90.7g to −0.7g). Similar dose-response associations with birthweight and placental weight were found for Se exposure during the third trimester. Mediation analyses showed that 44.2% and 18.2% of the effects of Se exposure in first and third trimester on birth weight were mediated by decreased placental weight, respectively. Conclusion: Maternal Se exposure during pregnancy was negatively associated with birth weight, the reduction of placental weight may partially mediate the association of prenatal Se exposure with birth weight.

Ultrahigh-strength concrete (UHSC) is a promising material for engineering applications, owing to the rapid increase of compressive strength at early ages. In this study, the creep behaviour of UHSC with an ultralow water/binder ratio (= 0·16) under loading at early ages was investigated. The influence factors of loading age (1, 2, 3 and 7 d), normal coarse aggregate and steel fibre content (0, 1 and 2%) were taken into consideration. Experiment results showed that the addition of coarse aggregates and ultrafine steel fibres were obviously effective in decreasing the creep deformation of UHSC but that the specific creep of UHSC with 2% steel fibres was higher than that of UHSC with 1% steel fibres. Specimens loaded at earlier ages had higher creep. At a microscopic level, it could be seen that the creep of UHSC was influenced by hydration products and concrete internal defects. From a macroscopic perspective, it could be seen that this was the result of a combination of strength and elastic modulus development factors. By introducing a coordination factor for the development of strength and elastic modulus, a modified creep model was proposed to predict the creep of UHSC.

Yuying Zhang,1 Qianqian Zhang,1 Wei Xin,2 Na Liu,1 Hua Zhang11School of Biological Science and Technology, University of Jinan, Jinan, People’s Republic of China; 2Central Laboratory, Shandong Provincial Hospital, Shandong University, Jinan, People’s Republic of ChinaPurpose: Osteosarcoma is the most common malignancy of the bone in children and adolescents. There is an urgent need for the development of novel drugs to treat it. Nudol(1), a phenanthrene compound from the traditional Chinese medicine, Dendrobium nobile, exhibited antiproliferative activity against osteosarcoma cells. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the role and underlying mechanism of nudol(1) as potential chemotherapy for osteosarcoma.Methods: Cell viability was determined by MTT assay. Cell-cycle phase distribution was analyzed by flow cytometry and Western blot. DAPI staining was used for morphology observation. Apoptosis was analysis via flow cytometry. The expression levels of mRNA and protein related to capase-mediated apoptotic pathway were detected by real-time PCR and western blotting. Migration was determined by wound healing assays.Results: Nudol(1) significantly decreased cell viability in several cancer cell lines. Moreover, nudol(1) caused cell cycle arrest at G2/M phase in U2OS cells, and it also induced cell apoptosis through the caspase-dependent pathway. In addition, treatment with nudol(1) suppressed the migration of U2OS cells.Conclusion: The present study, for the first time, demonstrated effects of nudol(1) on OS in vitro and the potential molecular mechanisms. Accordingly, nudol(1) might have the potential for further development as a lead compound against bone tumor.Keywords: nudol(1), phenanthrene, Dendrobium nobile, anti-proliferation, osteosarcoma

Qianqian Zhang,1,2,* Meimei Xiong,2,* Jinlu Liu,1,2 Shuai Wang,2 Ting Du,2 Tianyi Kang,2 Yu Liu,2 Hao Cheng,2 Meijuan Huang,1 Maling Gou21Department of Thoracic Oncology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, People’s Republic of China; 2State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally tothis workBackground: Phospholysine phosphohistidine inorganic pyrophosphate phosphatase (LHPP) is a novel tumor suppressor. However, whether LHPP is effective to melanoma has not been investigated. Gene therapy provides a new strategy for the treatment of melanoma. Currently, it suffers from the lack of safe and effective gene delivery systems. Methods: A CRGDKGPDC peptide (iRGD) modified hybrid monomethoxy poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(D,L-lactide)nanoparticle (iDPP)was prepared and complexed with a LHPP plasmid, forming an iDPP/LHPP nanocomplex. The iDPP/LHPP nanocomplex was characterized by particle size distribution, zeta potential, morphology, cytotoxicity, and transfection efficiency. The antitumor efficacy of the nanocomplex against melanoma was studied both in vitro and in vivo. Further, the potential epigenetic changes in melanoma induced by iDPP/LHPP nanocomplex were evaluated.Results: The iDPP/LHPP nanocomplex showed high transfection efficiency and low toxicity. Moreover, the nanocomplex displayed a neutral charge that can meet the requirement of intravenous injection for targeted gene therapy. In vitro and in vivo experiments indicated that the iDPP/LHPP nanocomplex significantly inhibited the melanoma growth without causing notable adverse effects. We also found that LHPP played an important role in epigenetics. It regulated the expression of genes related to the proliferation and apoptosis chiefly at the level of transcription.Conclusion: This work demonstrates that the iDPP nanoparticle-delivered LHPP gene has a potential application in melanoma therapy through regulation of the genes associated with epigenetics.Keywords: melanoma, LHPP, nanoparticle, gene therapy, epigenetics

A simple and efficient light-assisted method is employed to prepare powder samples of all-inorganic mixed-perovskite CsPbBr3-xIx from CsPbBr3 by ion exchange in aqueous HBr/KI solution such that the concentration of I in a sample particle decreases on going from the surface to the interior. CsPbBr3-xIx/Pt, namely, CsPbBr3-xIx samples loaded with Pt nanoparticles, shows a high performance for the hydrogen evolution under visible-light irradiation in aqueous HBr solution saturated with CsPbBr3. The H2 evolution rate of the CsPbBr3-xIx/Pt powders (200 mg) is determined to be 224 μmol h−1, under 120 mW cm-2 visible-light (λ ≥ 420 nm) illumination. The CsPbBr3-xIx samples have a high stability, with no apparent decrease in the catalytic activity after 50 h of repeated H2 evolution experiments. The apparent quantum efficiency of CsPbBr3-xIx/Pt is determined to be 2.15% under the irradiation of 450 nm light.

Photo-electrochemical and electrochemical water splitting are considered as effective ways to realize the efficient hydrogen evolution reaction and solve the increased energy demand. Herein, the photo-responsive MoS2 electrocatalyst modified with Co(OH)2 was synthesized on a carbon cloth (CC) by a facile approach. Benefiting from the heterogeneous interface between MoS2 and Co(OH)2, this hybrid catalyst shows superior HER activity in 1 M KOH aqueous solution with an overpotential of 117 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and a Tafel slope of 59.82 mV dec−1, which are smaller than those of MoS2/CC (an overpotential of 171 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and a Tafel slope of 90.78 mV dec−1) or Co(OH)2/CC (an overpotential of 268 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and a Tafel slope of 99.84 mV dec−1). The HER activity of Co(OH)2/MoS2/CC can be further promoted with an overpotential of 101 mV at 10 mA cm−2 due to the enhanced conductivity and exchange current density under light irradiation. Density functional theory calculations are carried out to gain a deeper insight into the effect of Co(OH)2 MoS2 interface, indicating that the introduction of Co(OH)2 can reduce the energy barrier of the initial water dissociation process and provide the hydroxyl adsorption sites, while MoS2 can promote the adsorption of hydrogen intermediates and H2 release. The synergistic effect of light irradiation and interface engineering strategy can realize efficient hydrogen evolution reaction, which can enlighten and extend to other electrocatalytic system.

This work demonstrates the sensitive amperometric determination of organophosphorus pesticides (OPs) on screen-printed electrodes (SPEs) modified with antimony tin oxide-chitosan (ATO-CS) and ordered mesoporous carbon-chitosan (OMC-CS) composite nanomaterials. ATO could effectively promote electron transfer and enhance the electrochemical reaction. OMC had a larger specific surface area, so it could effectively fix more AChE and improve the sensitivity of the sensor. Thus, ATO-CS and OMC-CS were modified onto the SPE layer-by-layer, which could improve the electrochemical response, increase the fixed amount of the enzyme on the electrode, and, accordingly, the sensitivity of the biosensor was obviously improved. The electrochemical behavior of the AChE biosensor was studied by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) techniques. Under optimum conditions, with chlorpyrifos and methamidophos as the model compounds, the inhibition of AChE activity based on OPs was detected. The proposed acetylcholinesterase biosensor displayed an excellent analytical performance with great reproducibility. The detection limits for chlorpyrifos and methamidophos were 0.01 μg L−1 and 1 μg L−1, respectively. In addition, the as-prepared acetylcholinesterase biosensor was successfully utilized for the determination of OPs in actual samples.

Ethylene (C2H4) is harmful for storage and fresh-keeping of fruits and vegetables. Photocatalytic technology is an effective and environmentally friendly approach for degrading ethylene. Herein, we first report the synthesis of a WO3 photocatalyst with high photocatalytic activity and stability using synergetic internal Fe3+ doping and superficial Pt loading for ethylene degradation under visible-light irradiation. Internal Fe3+ doping not only enhances the visible-light absorption but also improves the stability to some degree due to more positive reduction potential of Fe3+/Fe2+ than that of W6+/W5+ and separation efficiency of the photo-generated carriers. Furthermore, the loading of Pt as a co-catalyst through the photo-reduction of H2PtCl6 on the surface of Fe-doped WO3 promotes the effective transfer of photo-generated electrons and reduces the photo-corrosion of WO3. Due to the synergistic effect, extremely high degradation speed can be achieved by doping 0.25 mol% Fe and loading 0.75 wt% Pt for WO3, which exceeds that of pristine WO3 by about 3.3 times under visible-light irradiation. In addition, due to the excellent stability of Pt@Fe-doped WO3, it has good industrial application prospects in the field of photocatalysis.

In this paper, n-type Ag2ZnSnS4 (AZTS) thin film was prepared by a simple electrodeposition and in situ sulfurization method on Mo-mesh substrate. Pristine AZTS photoanode yielded a photocurrent density of 4.0 mA cm−2 at 0.6 V vs. RHE. In order to improve the stability of Ag2ZnSnS4 photoanode, TiO2 offering more protection against the photo corrosion was deposited through an atomic layer deposition (ALD) process. IPCE measurements were used to evaluate solar energy utilization efficiencies of AZTS and TiO2/AZTS photoanodes, which showed 25% and 20% IPCE (510–530 nm) in water splitting reaction, respectively. The analysis of gas yield determined that the faradaic efficiency during the H2 evolution process was over 90%. Furthermore, the reasons for the high photoelectrochemical performance of AZTS/Mo-mesh and mechanism of PEC H2 evolution in system are discussed below.

In this study, we synthesized noble metal-free Co3O4 as a cocatalyst for a modified ZnO nanorod photocatalyst to achieve efficient ethylene degradation under light irradiation. The Co3O4-decorated ZnO nanorods demonstrate photocatalytic activity for ethylene oxidation that is better than that of pure ZnO and even better than that of the noble metal-based RuO2-modified ZnO. Furthermore, Co3O4-modified ZnO exhibits good stability in a six-cycle experiment. Measurement results indicate that the Co3O4 nanoparticles can effectively promote the transfer and inhibit the recombination of photogenerated electrons and holes during the photocatalytic reaction. Therefore, the Co3O4-modified ZnO nanorod photocatalyst displays excellent photocatalytic properties for ethylene degradation and can effectively realize the complete mineralization of ethylene molecules.

The electrocatalysts with low-cost, good stabilities, rich reserves and efficient activities are required to replace Pt-based materials for the hydrogen evolution reaction. Herein, we synthesize the low-cost MoS2/Ni3S2 heterostructure on Ni foam with efficient HER activity and good stability through optimizing the sulfur sources selection among thioacetamide (TAA), L-cysteine and thiourea. The different sulfur sources have a very important influence on the structures and morphologies of NF-MoS2/Ni3S2 composites, which may attribute to the different selective combining capacities of sulfur sources with Na2MoO4 and Ni foam. By contrast, NF-MoS2/Ni3S2-TAA shows relatively lower overpotential of 91 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and Tafel slope of 48.62 mV dec−1 than those of NF-MoS2/Ni3S2-L-cysteine (overpotential of 148 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and Tafel slope of 68.81 mV dec−1) or NF-MoS2/Ni3S2-thiourea (overpotential of 187 mV at 10 mA cm−2 and Tafel slope of 93.41 mV dec−1). The superior HER activity of NF-MoS2/Ni3S2-TAA is benefit from the higher MoS2 content and larger electrochemically active surface area. Optimizing the sulfur source selection can realize the efficient electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution of MoS2/Ni3S2 heterostructure which has an important guiding significance for the practical application in the future.