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In this letter, a method called visual computing was used to solve angular four-components' proportions and directional vegetation cover fraction for discrete canopies and continuous row-planted plants. It proved effective to predict the angular characteristics on pixel scale. The method could be an alternative way to classical solution of geometrical optical models. Visual computing method would be effective especially when the canopies' spatial distribution and shapes were irregular and could not be described statistically. Index Terms--Four components, geometrical optical (GO) model, quantitative remote sensing, visual computing.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic performance of strain elastography, acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) imaging and point shear wave elastography (p‐SWE) for assessment of the predominant types of intestinal stenosis in Crohn disease. Methods: Twenty‐five patients were enrolled in this study, among whom 25 suspicious stenoses in 25 intestinal segments were studied using gray scale ultrasonography. All 3 elastography methods were performed, and all patients underwent endoscopy within 24 hours with pathologic biopsy. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), Youden index, and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) were calculated. Pathologic findings were regarded as the gold standard. Results: For SE, the optimal cutoff value was a score of 4 or greater (sensitivity, 75%; specificity, 66.7%; accuracy, 68%; PPV, 30%; NPV, 93.3%; AUROC, 0.708; however, P > .05). The results of ARFI imaging were similar: the optimal cutoff value was a score of 4 or greater (sensitivity, 50%; specificity, 81%; accuracy, 76%; PPV, 33.3%; NPV, 89.4%; AUROC, 0.669; P < .05). However, for p‐SWE, the optimal cutoff value was reached when the shear wave velocity exceeded 2.73 m/s (sensitivity, 75%; specificity, 100%; accuracy, 96%; PPV, 100%; NPV, 95.5%; AUROC, 0.833; P < .05). Conclusions: p‐SWE had the best performance for evaluating and differentiating intestinal stenosis in Crohn disease, while neither SE nor ARFI imaging achieved satisfactory outcomes for evaluating inflammatory stenosis and fibrotic stenosis of Crohn disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Aims: This study aims to identify whether Urothelial Cancer Associated 1 (UCA1) regulates mitochondrial metabolic reprogramming in bladder cancer, and to explore how UCA1 participates in mitochondrial metabolism by the UCA1/miR-195/ARL2 signaling pathway; these findings may be aid in the development of tumor diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. Methods: Bladder tissues were obtained from patients. Stable cell lines were constructed, with ectopic expression of UCA1 in UMUC2 cells and knockdown of UCA1 in 5637 cells. The expression levels of UCA1, miR-195, and ARL2 were detected by real-time PCR, western blotting, and immunohistochemistry. Cell viability was detected by Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK8) assay; mitochondrial DNA copy numbers were tested by realtime PCR; ATP level was evaluated by ATP assay kit; mitochondrial membrane potential was analyzed by 5,5',6,6'-tetrachloro-1,1',3,3'-tetraethylbenzimidazolylcarbocyanine iodide (JC-1) fluorescent probe. miRNAs between UCA1 and ARL2 were predicted by TargetScan and RNAHybrid, and then determined by real-time PCR. Dual-luciferase activity assay and RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) assay were used to verify the relationship between UCA1 and miR-195. The expression level of ARL2 was silenced by small interfering RNA(siRNA). For in vivo experiments, UCA1-silencing 5637 cells were subcutaneously injected into BALB/C nude mice to evaluate the effects of UCA1 on tumor progression by the regulation of miR-195 and ARL2. Results: We demonstrate here that UCA1 enhances mitochondrial function in bladder cancer cells. UCA1 contributes to ARL2-induced mitochondrial activity, which plays an important role in mitochondrial function. UCA1, as a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA), regulates mitochondrial function through upregulating ARL2. In this way, it inhibited the miR-195 signaling pathway to enhance mitochondrial function in bladder cancer. Additionally, ARL2 is a direct target of miR-195 and can be repressed by either miR-195 overexpression or UCA1 inhibition. Knockdown of ARL2 was analogous to the inhibition of UCA1 and the upregulation of miR-195. Animal experiments further indicated that UCA1 promoted bladder tumor growth by regulating miR-195/ARL2. Conclusion: These data suggest that UCA1 enhanced mitochondrial function and cell viability through the UCA1/miR-195/ARL2 axis in vitro and in vivo. The elucidation of this signaling network provides a more adequate theoretical basis for understanding the molecular pathology of bladder cancer, and also UCA1 as a potential diagnosis and treatment target for bladder cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many studies have explored the social consequences of ethnic essentialism in recent decades. In addition, a few studies have focused on the impact of perceived cultural context on ethnic essentialism. However, it is not clear why perceived cultural context can lead to changes in ethnic essentialism. In the present study, we hypothesized that the cultural anxiety of ethnic minorities may trigger a strong endorsement of and support for a multicultural ideology, thereby affecting beliefs about ethnic groups. To address the issue, 226 Tibetan and 102 Hui college students from Mainland China completed our questionnaires. The results across the two samples showed that (1) cultural anxiety was positively associated with both the endorsement of a multicultural ideology and ethnic essentialism, (2) cultural anxiety and the endorsement of a multicultural ideology positively predicted ethnic essentialism after controlling for demographic variables, and (3) cultural anxiety had both a direct effect on ethnic essentialism and an indirect effect on ethnic essentialism through the endorsement of a multicultural ideology. Our findings suggest that when ethnic minorities experience cultural anxiety, they might endorse a multicultural ideology and adopt essentialism to affirm their ethnic identities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The developing world is witness to a major urban transformation. How to facilitate intergroup relations between new migrants and long-time urban residents is a critical issue in developing societies globally. The current research explored the effect of group boundary permeability on intergroup prejudice by the case of rural-to-urban migration in China. As the boundary between rural-to-urban migrants and permanent urban residents in China can be ascribed to China's unique hukou system, we conducted three interrelated studies to approach the topic from the perspective of the hukou system and its reforms. Study 1 used a correlational investigation and found a negative correlation between group boundary permeability and prejudice against rural-to-urban migrants. In Study 2, we manipulated the group boundary permeability using the points accumulation system scheme of the hukou system reform, and found a causal effect of the group boundary permeability on the social distance of urban dwellers to migrants. In Study 3, using a more general hukou reform scheme, that of gradually abolishing the hukou system, we replicated the findings from Study 2 and further found that a permeable group boundary could reduce prejudice. These three studies suggest that the group boundary based on the Chinese hukou system is an institutional cause of prejudice against rural-to-urban migrants. Our experimental manipulations can be interpreted as analogues to potential policy arena actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the dynamics and underlying mechanism of carbon exchange between terrestrial ecosystems and the atmosphere is one of the key issues in global change research. In this study, we quantified the carbon fluxes in different terrestrial ecosystems in China, and analyzed their spatial variation and environmental drivers based on the long-term observation data of China FLUX sites and the published data from other flux sites in China. The results indicate that gross ecosystem productivity ( GEP), ecosystem respiration ( ER), and net ecosystem productivity ( NEP) of terrestrial ecosystems in China showed a significantly latitudinal pattern, declining linearly with the increase of latitude. However, GEP, ER, and NEP did not present a clear longitudinal pattern. The carbon sink functional areas of terrestrial ecosystems in China were mainly located in the subtropical and temperate forests, coastal wetlands in eastern China, the temperate meadow steppe in the northeast China, and the alpine meadow in eastern edge of Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. The forest ecosystems had stronger carbon sink than grassland ecosystems. The spatial patterns of GEP and ER in China were mainly determined by mean annual precipitation ( MAP) and mean annual temperature ( MAT), whereas the spatial variation in NEP was largely explained by MAT. The combined effects of MAT and MAP explained 79%, 62%, and 66% of the spatial variations in GEP, ER, and NEP, respectively. The GEP, ER, and NEP in different ecosystems in China exhibited 'positive coupling correlation' in their spatial patterns. Both ER and NEP were significantly correlated with GEP, with 68% of the per-unit GEP contributed to ER and 29% to NEP. MAT and MAP affected the spatial patterns of ER and NEP mainly by their direct effects on the spatial pattern of GEP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One hundred and twelve sampling sites in the forest ecosystems along the North-South Transect of Eastern China (NSTEC) were selected to study the stoichiometric characteristics and variability of leaf carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorous (P) of 102 dominant species. The contents of leaf C (Cmass), leaf N (Nmass), and leaf P (Pmass) ranged in 374. 1-646. 5 mg·g-1, 8. 4-30. 5 mg·g-1, and 0. 6-6. 2 mg·g-1, with the arithmetic mean (AM) being 480. 1, 18.3 and 2. 0 mg·g-1, and the variation coefficient (CV) being 11. 1%, 27. 5%, and 56. 4%, respectively. The leaf C/ N, C/ P and N/ P ranged from 14. 1 to 64. 1, from 70. 9 to 838. 6, and from 1.5 to 21. 2, with the AM being 29. 1, 313. 9 and 11. 5, and the CV being 32. 8%, 48. 3% and 44. 1%, respectively. The mass ratio of C:N:P was 313. 9:11. 5:1, and the atom ratio was 810-9:25-4:1. As compared with those at global scale, the tree leaf Cmass and C/ N in the study area were significantly higher, Nmass and N/ P were significantly lower, while Pmass and C/ P had less differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The δ18O and δD of atmospheric water vapor are important tracers in hydrological and ecological studies. Isotope ratio infrared spectroscopy (IRIS) provides an in situ technology for measuring δ18O and δD in ambient conditions. An intercomparison experiment was carried out with four commercial IRIS analyzers to characterize their performance and transferability of calibration methods. Over a 15-day atmospheric measurement, during which the water vapor concentration ranged from 14 to 27 mol mol−1 and the isotopic ratios spanned about 90‰ and 13‰ for δD and δ18O, respectively, these analyzers tracked the natural variability in ambient conditions very well and achieved an average difference between one another within 2‰ for δD and within 0.1‰ for δ18O after calibration at appropriate frequencies. Two of the calibration methods (discrete liquid water injection and continuous dripping) agreed with each other within the tolerance thresholds of 2‰ for δD and 0.1‰ for δ18O. The Rayleigh distillation technique appeared to be acceptable as a calibration standard for δD but not for δ18O. The δD measurements were less prone to concentration dependence errors than the δ18O measurements. The concentration dependence underscores the importance of using a calibration procedure at multiple mixing ratios to bracket the range of natural variability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A mechanism for neuroprotection of interleukin-6 (IL-6) via reduction of intracellular Ca2++ overload induced by N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) was explored. Cerebellar granule neurons (CGNs) from postnatal 8-day infant rats were chronically exposed to IL-6 for 8 days. Confocal laser scanning microscope was used to measure dynamic changes of intracellular Ca2++ fluorescence intensity. NMDA triggered an acute and sustaining enhancement of intracellular Ca2++ fluorescence intensity in the cultured CGNs, whereas NMDA stimulation of the neurons that had been exposed to IL-6 reduced the intracellular Ca2++ fluorescence intensity relative to that of non-IL-6-pretreated neurons. Ethylene glycol bis(aminoethylether) tetraacetate (EGTA), a chelator of extracellular Ca2++, decreased the intracellular Ca2++ overload triggered by NMDA. The component of intracellular Ca2++ overload after EGTA treatment was prevented by IL-6 chronic exposure. Cotreatment with dantrolene sodium (DAN) and 2-aminoethoxydiphenylborate (2-APB), blockers of ryanodine receptor (RyR) and inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor (IP3R), respectively, also decreased the intracellular Ca2++ overload triggered by NMDA. However, the component of intracellular Ca2++ overload after DAN and 2-APB treatment was only slightly but not significantly diminished by IL-6. These results suggest that IL-6 has a neuroprotective effect against NMDA-induced intracellular Ca2++ overload, and that the effect is implemented primarily via a suppression of Ca2++ release from the intracellular Ca2++ store. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Net ecosystem productivity (NEP) was continuously measured using the eddy covariance (EC) technique from 2003 to 2005 at three forest sites of ChinaFLUX. The forests include Changbaishan temperate mixed forest (CBS), Qianyanzhou subtropical coniferous plantation (QYZ), and Dinghushan subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest (DHS). They span wide ranges of temperature and precipitation and are influenced by the eastern Asian monsoon climate to varying extent. In this study, we estimated ecosystem respiration (RE) and gross ecosystem productivity (GEP). Comparison of ecosystem carbon exchange among the three forests shows that RE was mainly determined by temperature, with the forest at CBS exhibiting the highest temperature sensitivity among the three ecosystems. The RE was highly dependent on GEP across the three forests, and the ratio of RE to GEP decreased along the North–South Transect of Eastern China (NSTEC) (i.e. from the CBS to the DHS), with an average of 0.77 ± 0.06. Daily GEP was mainly influenced by temperature at CBS, whereas photosynthetic photon flux density was the dominant factor affecting the daily GEP at both QYZ and DHS. Temperature mainly determined the pattern of the interannual variations of ecosystem carbon exchange at CBS. However, water availability primarily controlled the interannual variations of ecosystem carbon exchange at QYZ. At DHS, NEP attained the highest values at the beginning of the dry seasons (autumn) rather than the rainy seasons (summer), probably because insufficient radiation and frequent fog during the rainy seasons hindered canopy photosynthesis. All the three forest ecosystems acted as a carbon sink from 2003 to 2005. The annual average values of NEP at CBS, QYZ, and DHS were 259 ± 19, 354 ± 34, and 434 ± 66 g C m−2 yr−1, respectively. The slope of NEP that decreased with increasing latitude along the NSTEC was markedly different from that observed on the forest transect in the European continent. Long-term flux measurements over more forest ecosystems along the NSTEC will further help verify such a difference between the European forest transect and the NSTEC and provide insights into the responses of ecosystem carbon exchange to climate change in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]