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Bacillus subtilis, as a biocontrol bacterium, possess a variety of biological functions and the capacity to control plant pathogens. Iturin A is a biosurfactant with broad-spectrum antifungal activity produced by fermentation of B. subtilis. In this study, the dynamic parameters of solid-state fermentation (SSF) and submerged fermentation (SMF) of Bacillus velezensis ND were compared, and a method for producing iturin A with a yield of 12.46 g/kg utilizing SSF was proposed. It has significant advantages over SMF and has the highest yield of all previously reported studies. B. velezensis ND also contains protease activity, cellulase activity, iron-carrying activity, the ability to synthesis 3-indoleacetic acid (IAA), fixation nitrogen, and degrade phosphorus. In cotton pot experiments, it can effectively increase cotton growth and minimize Verticillium wilt. This strain's superior fermentation efficiency, biological function, and biocontrol ability are sufficient to demonstrate its promise for the development and use of biocontrol agents.

Various crowdsourced logistics platforms are forming rapidly along with the booming mobile Internet. Motivated by modern crowdsourced truck logistics platforms, we introduce the online crowdsourced truck delivery (OCTD) problem and reformulate it as the online bipartite hyper-matching problem. We then explore the possibility of accommodating historical information to design efficient online algorithms to serve online orders. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first work on incorporating historical information to solve the online bipartite hyper-matching problem. Depending on whether orders can be partially served, we investigate two practical situations, i.e. separable and inseparable cases. For the inseparable case, we propose a randomized online algorithm, named Hyper-Matching , whose competitive ratio is a non-decreasing function of the amount of historical information. For the separable case, we modify Hyper-Matching to present another randomized online algorithm, named Separable-Hyper-Matching . It is worth noting that the competitive ratios of Hyper-Matching and Separable-Hyper-Matching either beat or match the current best online algorithms when no historical information is considered. We then present four computationally efficient heuristic algorithms, including a greedy variant and a batch-processing variant for each of the inseparable and separable cases. We perform a sequence of experiments using synthetic and real-world datasets, with an emphasis on the influence that historical information has on algorithm performance. The experiment results demonstrate the effectiveness of our algorithms and particularly the positive influence of historical information on our algorithms.

Adenomyosis is a common gynecological disease in reproductive women, which causes serious dysmenorrhea, menorrhagia, anemia, and infertility, and has a serious impact on the physical and mental health of women. Considering that the efficacy of the traditional medication and surgical treatment is not ideal, an increasing number of patients are searching for more effective and less invasive therapies. Ultrasound (US)-guided microwave ablation (MWA) has emerged as a new effective and minimally invasive alternative treatment for symptomatic adenomyosis, and it is widely being used in clinical settings. Several studies have proven that it is an efficient and safe treatment modality for symptomatic adenomyosis, but a significant variance in clinical outcomes reported in previous studies was also observed. Herein, we have analyzed the potential causes of this problem from the aspects of the diagnosis of adenomyosis, symptom evaluation before ablation, steps of US-guided ablation treatment, and outcome evaluation after ablation. Simultaneously, the clinical problems existing in the ablation treatment of adenomyosis are discussed, and the directions of future research are pointed out.

抽象 本文從焦點–重音匹配的角度來探討漢語日常口語中「把」字句謂語部分的複雜性。本文認為，與一般 [PP V] 結構不同，「把」字句是為了在句子層面上把位於「把」NP 後的謂語部分處理為資訊焦點而產生的一種特殊句式，而實現為資訊焦點的必要條件就是必須得到句法結構提供的核心重音。由於「把」字句中「把」後 NP 是謂語動詞的論元，其後的謂語部分只有在句法上形成分支結構才能夠得到核心重音，僅僅在韻律上形成分支結構是不夠的，因此光杆動詞和不形成句法分支的雙音節動詞都被排除在「把」字句之外。這個觀點也適用於其他動詞在尾的結構，例如被動句和「連…都」結構等。

In order to improve the analysis and forecasting effect of economic fluctuations, this paper combines the high-frequency financial sequence algorithm to conduct measured analysis of economic fluctuations. Under the continuous jump-diffusion price model, this paper considers the jump part and the continuous part in the process of asset pricing. Moreover, for the jump part, this paper uses the wavelet method to analyze the observation data, and obtains the estimator of the second-order jump covariation difference matrix and its convergence speed. For the continuous part, this paper adopts a two-scale realized volatility model under the continuous price model. In addition, this paper verifies the effect of the intelligent model proposed in this paper through simulation experiments. The simulation data shows that the economic fluctuation analysis system based on high-frequency financial time series proposed in this paper has good economic analysis and economic forecasting effects.

As a hybrid of the Parallel Two-stage Flowshop problem and the Multiple Knapsack problem, we investigate the scheduling of parallel two-stage flowshops under makespan constraint, which was motivated by applications in cloud computing and introduced by Chen et al. [3] recently. A set of two-stage jobs are selected and scheduled on parallel two-stage flowshops to achieve the maximum total profit while maintaining the given makespan constraint. We give a positive answer to an open question about its approximability proposed by Chen et al. [3]. More specifically, based on guessing strategies and rounding techniques for linear programs, we present a polynomial-time approximation scheme (PTAS) for the case when the number of flowshops is a fixed constant., Comment: Theoretical Computer Science (2022)

Summary This paper investigates three-way gravity models with multiplicative unobserved effects, which are popular in bilateral trade analysis and many other contexts. Such models are usually estimated by the fixed effects Poisson pseudo maximum likelihood method. As an alternative, we extend the estimation strategy proposed by Jochmans (2017) to our new settings by constructing moment conditions that are independent of the unobserved effects. Our method entails estimation of the conditional mean of a variety of functional forms. The generalized method of moments (GMM) estimator based on these moment conditions is N-consistent and asymptotically normally distributed. We also discuss the estimation of dynamic models by extending the linear feedback models to our three-way settings. Through various simulation designs, we show that our GMM estimator outperforms the competing Poisson pseudo maximum likelihood estimator. As an empirical application, we estimate the effects of the currency unions on exports.

The use of alkaline salt lands for crop production is hindered by a scarcity of knowledge and breeding efforts for plant alkaline tolerance. Through genome association analysis of sorghum, a naturally high-alkaline–tolerant crop, we detected a major locus, Alkaline Tolerance 1 ( AT1 ), specifically related to alkaline-salinity sensitivity. An at1 allele with a carboxyl-terminal truncation increased sensitivity, whereas knockout of AT1 increased tolerance to alkalinity in sorghum, millet, rice, and maize. AT1 encodes an atypical G protein γ subunit that affects the phosphorylation of aquaporins to modulate the distribution of hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) . These processes appear to protect plants against oxidative stress by alkali. Designing knockouts of AT1 homologs or selecting its natural nonfunctional alleles could improve crop productivity in sodic lands.

This meta-analysis was conducted to summarize the effects of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (n-3 PUFA) on metabolic status including insulin metabolism and lipid metabolism in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) by randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Four mainstream databases including PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase and Web of Science were searched from their inception to October 2021. The registration number of this study was CRD42021285233. The quality assessment was performed referring the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool. Mean differences (MD) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were generated for continuous variables by meta-analysis. Subgroup analyses were performed based on study duration (≤ 8 weeks or > 8 weeks), the source of n-3 PUFA (marine derived or plant origins) and dosage of n-3 PUFA (≤ 1000 mg/d or > 1000 mg/d). Eventually, 11 RCTs reporting 816 patients were enrolled. Compared with control group, n-3 PUFA treatment decreased waist circumference (MD = -2.76, 95% CI: -3.82 to -1.69; p p p p = 0.01), triglyceride (MD = -9.33, 95% CI: -10.56 to -8.10; p p = 0.0004), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (MD = -10.53, 95% CI: -19.31 to -1.75; p = 0.02), and increase quantitative insulin sensitivity check index (MD = 0.01, 95% CI: 0.01 to 0.02; p p 8 weeks regardless of the source and the dosage to retard the pathogenesis of PCOS related metabolic diseases.

A volcano diagram of BF3 catalytic species and their activities was proposed for the DRA of aldehyde and amine with formic acid.

Future energy systems must call upon clean and renewable sources capable of reducing associated CO2 emissions. The present research opens new perspectives for renewable energy-based hydrogen production by water splitting using metal oxide oxidation/reduction reactants. An earlier multicriteria assessment defined top priorities, with MnFe2O4/Na2CO3/H2O and Mn3O4/MnO/NaMnO2/H2O multistep redox cycles having the highest potential. The latter redox system was previously assessed and proven difficult to be conducted. The former redox system was hence experimentally investigated in the present research at the 0.5 to 250 g scale in isothermal thermogravimetry, an electrically heated furnace, and a concentrated solar reactor. Over 30 successive oxidation/reduction cycles were assessed, and the H2 production efficiencies exceeded 98 % for the coprecipitated reactant after these multiple cycles. Tentative economics using a coprecipitated reactant revealed that 120 cycles are needed to achieve a 1 € per kg H2 cost. Improving the cheaper ball-milled reactant could reduce costs by approximately 30 %. The initial results confirm that future research is important. ispartof: RSC ADVANCES vol:12 issue:48 pages:31392-31401 ispartof: location:England status: published

High operation and maintenance costs, and ‘last-mile’ issues for populations not connected to municipal water infrastructure, have limited the utility of centralized reverse osmosis (RO) systems to alleviate water availability issues for rural communities. To address these challenges, a decentralized RO module which employs tubular RO membranes was designed and investigated. The system represents an appropriate technology because it requires minimal pretreatment and it fits in self-contained, low-profile suitcase. This compact desgin also incorporated innovative 3D printed static mixers to minimize salt concentration polarization and to improve performance. Since grid electricity may also be discontinuous in the target use cases, the system was tested with two direct current (DC) power solutions: a photovoltaics-battery configuration and an alternator-battery. The final prototype weighs less than 15 kg and was found to have a production capacity of ∼8 L/h, consuming ∼100 W of pumping power. Experiments of the prototype module revealed a 96% rejection rate of salt from a 1000–2000 ppm synthetic groundwater solution and a >99% rejection coefficient for bovine serum albumin protein and humic acid. From these performance metrics, it was estimated that 36 sets of this decentralized system (with a total CapEx of US$23,400) could provide drinking water for ∼600 rural households at a unit cost of water of 1 LKR/L (0.005 USD/L) in Sri Lanka. Overall, this study demonstrates how computational modeling and 3D printing can be leveraged to develop a compact and cost-effective decentralized RO package that could be rapidly deployed to water-stressed rural areas and in disaster relief applications.

We demonstrate the laser performance of a 968 nm LD side-pumped Er:LuYSGG crystal rod by optimizing the cavity length and output coupler transmission.

In this study, a two-compartment biofilm reactor was designed for iturin A production. The biofilm reactor consists of a stirred-tank fermentor containing exclusively suspended cells and a packing column where the biofilm is attached. Polyester fiber with sphere shape and rough surfaces was chosen as the carrier of biofilm in packing column. Batch, fed-batch, and repeated-batch fermentation using Bacillus velezensis ND in the biofilm reactor were studied. Compared to conventional suspended cell fermentations, the productivity of iturin A in batch and fed-batch biofilm fermentation were increased by 66.7% and 63.3%, respectively. Maximum itutin A concentration of 6.8 ± 0.1 g/L and productivity of 46.9 ± 0.2 mg/L/h were obtained in fed-batch biofilm fermentation. Repeated-batch fermentation showed high stability, with almost same profile as batch fermentation. After a step-wise temperature control strategy was introduced in the biofilm reactor, productivity of iturin A was increased by 131.9% compared to suspended cell reactor. This superior performance of biofilm reactor confirms that it has great potential in industrial production of iturin A.

A large amount of sludge produced in the processing of crude oil has brought great harm. In this paper, common flocculants are summarized. According to the treatment process of crude oil, flocculants are divided into organic flocculants, inorganic flocculants, microbial flocculants, composite flocculants, and magnetic flocculants. The mechanism and limitation of each flocculation on crude oil sludge were analyzed. Finally, it is pointed out that the flocculation process of sludge is complex, and the development of new flocculant with high efficiency, safety, and economy is the main trend of flocculant development in the future.

We study the impact of transparency on stock price informativeness by using an exogenous change in China: the comply-or-explain dividend regulation. Employing a difference-in-difference (DID) desig...

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of our study is to present a method combining radiomics with deep learning and clinical data for improved differential diagnosis of sclerosing adenosis (SA)and breast cancer (BC). METHODS: A total of 97 patients with SA and 100 patients with BC were included in this study. The best model for classification was selected from among four different convolutional neural network (CNN) models, including Vgg16, Resnet18, Resnet50, and Desenet121. The intra-/inter-class correlation coefficient and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator method were used for radiomics feature selection. The clinical features selected were patient age and nodule size. The overall accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, Youden index, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and area under curve (AUC) value were calculated for comparison of diagnostic efficacy. RESULTS: All the CNN models combined with radiomics and clinical data were significantly superior to CNN models only. The Desenet121+radiomics+clinical data model showed the best classification performance with an accuracy of 86.80%, sensitivity of 87.60%, specificity of 86.20% and AUC of 0.915, which was better than that of the CNN model only, which had an accuracy of 85.23%, sensitivity of 85.48%, specificity of 85.02%, and AUC of 0.870. In comparison, the diagnostic accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, and AUC value for breast radiologists were 72.08%, 100%, 43.30%, and 0.716, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: A combination of the CNN-radiomics model and clinical data could be a helpful auxiliary diagnostic tool for distinguishing between SA and BC.

Background Within 24 hours a day, people are mostly in a non-fasting state. However, little is known about the characteristics and clinical significance of non-fasting lipids in Chinese population with coronary heart disease (CHD) in response to traditional Chinses diets. Methods A total number of 1022 Chinese CHD patients with coronary artery luminal stenosis more than 40% diagnosed by coronary artery angiography were enrolled. All the patients received the routine treatment for CHD, including statins. They were divided into intermediate stenosis group (luminal stenosis 40–70%, n = 486) or severe stenosis group (luminal stenosis > 70%, n = 536). Their blood lipid profiles were measured in the fasting state or 4 hours after normal breakfast. All the participants followed up for five years. Major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) including all cause death, cardiac death, myocardial infarction, unscheduled coronary revascularization and stroke were recorded. Results After normal breakfast intake, patients with either intermediate or severe stenosis had an apparent increase from the fasting state in the levels of TG, remnant cholesterol (RC) and ApoA1, but a significant reduction in the levels of total cholesterol (TC), LDL-C, non-HDL-C, Apo B and Apo E. Multivariate logistic regression models showed that both the fasting and non-fasting levels of HDL-C and Apo A1 was negatively associated with the severity of coronary artery stenosis. In addition to the traditional risk factors (age, male, diabetes and smoking) and the severity of coronary artery stenosis, both the fasting and non-fasting levels of lipoproteins (LDL-C and HDL-C) and apolipoproteins (Apo A1 and Apo B) were identified as independent predictors of 5-year MACE occurrence by multivariate Cox proportional hazards analysis. Conclusion This prospective observational study demonstrated that the levels of lipoproteins and apolipoproteins in either fasting or non-fasting state were highly associated with the long-term risk of MACE in Chinses CHD patients. Measurements of lipid profiles in the non-fasting state may be feasible for CHD management in routine clinical practice in China.

For thousands of years, caries, periodontitis and mucosal diseases, which are closely related to oral microorganisms, have always affected human health and quality of life. These complex microbiota present in different parts of the mouth can cause chronic infections in the oral cavity under certain conditions, some of which can also lead to acute and systemic diseases. With the mutation of related microorganisms and the continuous emergence of drug-resistant strains, in order to prevent and treat related diseases, in addition to the innovation of diagnosis and treatment technology, the development of new antimicrobial drugs is also important. Catechins are polyphenolic compounds in green tea, some of which are reported to provide health benefits for a variety of diseases. Studies have shown that epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) is the most abundant and effective active ingredient in green tea catechins, which acts against a variety of gram-positive and negative bacteria, as well as some fungi and viruses. This review aims to summarize the research progress on the activity of EGCG against common oral disease-associated organisms and discuss the mechanisms of these actions, hoping to provide new medication strategies for the prevention and treatment of oral infectious diseases, the future research of EGCG and its translation into clinical practice are also discussed.

Non-Hermiticity has widespread applications in quantum physics. It brings about distinct topological phases without Hermitian counterparts, and gives rise to the fundamental challenge of phase classification from both theoretical and experimental aspects. Here we report the first experimental demonstration of unsupervised learning of non-Hermitian topological phases with the nitrogen-vacancy center platform. In particular, we implement the non-Hermitian twister model, which hosts peculiar knotted topological phases, with a solid-state quantum simulator consisting of an electron spin and a nearby $^{13}$C nuclear spin in a nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond. By tuning the microwave pulses, we efficiently generate a set of experimental data without phase labels. Furthermore, based on the diffusion map method, we cluster this set of experimental raw data into three different knotted phases in an unsupervised fashion without a priori knowledge of the system, which is in sharp contrast to the previously implemented supervised learning phases of matter. Our results showcase the intriguing potential for autonomous classification of exotic unknown topological phases with experimental raw data., 7+20 pages

The development of multifunctional optical materials can meet the huge demands of modern optics. Generally, it is difficult to achieve multiple optical properties in one material. In this work, we choose ferroelectric (Ba, Ca)(Ti, Sn)O3 ceramics as the hosts, which are doped with rare earth ion Pr3+. The integration of photoluminescence, ferroelectricity, and piezoelectricity is realized in the Pr3+-doped (Ba, Ca)(Ti, Sn)O3 ferroelectric ceramics. The Pr-BCTS ceramics show excellent piezoelectric properties (Pr-BCTS-I: d33 = 210 pC/N; Pr-BCTS-II: d33 = 350 pC/N). Under 449 nm light excitation, all samples show strong orange-red emission centered at 603 nm, 617 nm, and 643 nm. Photoluminescence performance of the Pr-BCTS-I ceramics with orthogonal and tetragonal phase structure increases after polarization treatment, while that of the Pr-BCTS-II ceramics with rhombohedral and tetragonal phase structure after polarization treatment declines. The mechanism of luminescence modulation and polarization processing is discussed. Current research can provide a feasible example to achieve photoluminescence tunability in a material.

The second-order elastic constants, third-order elastic constants, and the generalized-stacking-fault energy for semiconductor GaAs are investigated using the first-principles calculations. The predictions of elastic constants are obtained from the coefficients of the fitted polynomials of the energy-strain functions. It is found that the nonlinear elastic effects must be considered when the applied deformations are larger than approximately 1.5%. With the Lagrangian strains up to 6.4%, the terms included up to third order in energy expansion functions are sufficient. The elastic constants given in this work agree well with the previous results and experimental data except for C144. C144 given by the present paper is a positive value, and the estimated 3 GPa agrees well with the experimental result of 2 GPa. The research results can provide a reference for understanding the elasticity of GaAs. The generalized-stacking-fault energy has been calculated without and with structural relaxation, respectively. The unstable stacking fault energy with structural relaxation is about two-thirds of that without relaxation. The dislocation width and Peierls stress for 30° partial in GaAs have been investigated based on the improved P-N theory. The dislocation width is very narrow (only about one-fifth of Burgers vector b), which is reasonable for covalent materials. The Peierls stress is about 4 GPa, in good agreement with the experimental result of 2∼3 GPa.

BACKGROUND: Medium or large coronary artery aneurysm (CAA) is a serious complication of Kawasaki disease (KD) and may cause thrombosis, coronary artery stenosis, and even myocardial infarction at different stages of the disease. Dual antiplatelet therapy (aspirin plus clopidogrel) is considered for prophylaxis of coronary thrombosis in KD presenting with more than medium CAAs based on adult coronary artery disease experience and expert consensus. This paper describes the study protocol for a randomized controlled trial that measures the clinical effectiveness and safety of dual antiplatelet therapy in the thromboprophylactic treatment of KD. METHODS: The present study is a multicenter, open-label, randomized controlled trial (RCT) with a 12-month follow-up. KD patients with medium or large CAAs (Z-value ≥5), evaluated by echocardiogram and clinicians before treatment, are randomized in a 1:1 ratio and assigned to aspirin therapy alone (Control group), or dual antiplatelet (aspirin plus clopidogrel) therapy (Experimental group). Antiplatelet therapy is given to the KD patients from the time of diagnosis until the coronary artery returns to normal. Weekly or monthly follow-up visits are conducted to record compliance, recovery, and biochemical indicators and continue for one year. The primary outcome is the incidence of thrombus throughout the disease and the effective of dual antiplatelet. The secondary outcomes are the safety of dual antiplatelet drugs, platelet-related indicators, inflammatory indicators, biochemical indexes and drug-related indicators during the study period. Patients who do not meet the inclusion criteria of the RCT trial or those unwilling to provide informed consent enter the registration trial. DISCUSSION: This is the first study to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of dual antiplatelet therapy in coronary aneurysms caused by Kawasaki disease in children. It is hoped that this study will play an important and significant role in improving the prognosis and long-term quality of life for children with KD complicated by CAAs. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, ChiCTR1800019181. Registered on Oct 30, 2018.

Gas adsorption is widely used in air pollution control, with mainly activated carbon and zeolites used as adsorbents. Although physical and chemisorption can be used, most air pollution application...

We demonstrate the laser performance of a LD end-pumped Er:YSGG crystals with different doping concentrations comparatively. The experimental results show that 30 at. % Er:YSGG crystal with dimensions of 2 mm $\times2$ mm $\times8$ mm has the best laser output. In continuous-wave (CW) mode and pulse mode, the maximum output powers of 1.37 and 1.20 W are achieved, corresponding to slope efficiencies of 23.62% and 22.91%, respectively. To the best of our knowledge, compared with other Er $^{3+}$ -doped garnet laser crystals, we obtained a larger power and higher efficiency CW laser simultaneously for LD end-pumped Er:YSGG crystal. The beam quality factor M2 in x and y directions are determined to be 1.64/1.65, suggesting the Er:YSGG laser possesses a higher beam quality. All these results indicate that Er:YSGG is a promising mid-infrared gain medium for high efficiency and high power laser operation.