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The genus Streptomyces comprises the most important chitin decomposers in soil and revealing their chitinolytic machinery is beneficial for the conversion of chitinous wastes. Streptomyces sp. SCUT-3, a chitin-hydrolyzing and a robust feather-degrading bacterium, was isolated previously. The potential chitin-degrading enzymes produced by SCUT-3 were analyzed in the present study. Among these enzymes, three chitinases were successfully expressed in Pichia pastoris at comparatively high yields of 4.8 U/mL (SsExoChi18A), 11.2 U/mL (SsExoChi18B), and 17.8 U/mL (SsEndoChi19). Conserved motifs and constructive 3D structures of these three exo- and endochitinases were also analyzed. These chitinases hydrolyzed colloidal chitin to chitin oligomers. SsExoChi18A showed apparent synergic effects with SsEndoChi19 in colloidal chitin and shrimp shell hydrolysis, with an improvement of 29.3 % and 124.9 %, respectively. Compared with SsExoChi18B and SsEndoChi19, SsExoChi18A exhibited the strongest antifungal effects against four plant pathogens by inhibiting mycelial growth and spore germination. This study provided good candidates for chitinous waste-processing enzymes and antifungal biocontrol agents. These synergic chitin-degrading enzymes of SCUT-3 are good targets for its further genetical modification to construct super chitinous waste-degrading bacteria with strong abilities to hydrolyze both protein and chitin, thereby providing a direction for the future path of the chitinous waste recycling industry.

The cerebral ischemia was one of the most common causes of disability and death worldwide. Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) was reported to have neuroprotective function as well as promoting angiogenesis in the ischemic brain, but the targeting delivery of bFGF to ischemic brain was still difficult. In present study, a specific peptide was used to modify bFGF to construct recombinant CFBP-bFGF, and CFBP-bFGF could specifically deliver to ischemic brain through binding with the upregulated protein-connective tissue growth factor (CTGF). When CFBP-bFGF was used in rats with cerebral ischemia by intravenous injection, local concentration of the bFGF in ischemic brain was significantly increased. In addition, enhanced neurons survival, increased angiogenesis, decreased neuroinflammation were observed, that improved the motor functional recovery of cerebral ischemic injury. These results demonstrated that the targeting delivery of CFBP-bFGF would be a potential therapeutic approach for cerebral ischemia.

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is the most potent angiogenic factor and plays an important role in therapy of myocardial infarction (MI). Currently, how to retain regional concentration and decrease rapid diffusion is critical for its clinical application of VEGF. In recent years, the application of targeting peptides has been developed rapidly and provides new strategies for the sustained release of VEGF. In present study, a bi-functional EBP-PR1P peptide was designed and bridged VEGF to injectable cardiac extracellular matrix (c-ECM). Through EBP-PR1P peptides, VEGF could specifically bind with c-ECM to realize the sustained release, without impacting the bioactivity of VEGF. Then VEGF/EBP-PR1P/c-ECM scaffolds were constructed and administrated into rats with MI. The results showed VEGF/EBP-PR1P/c-ECM could promote angiogenesis, protect cardiomyocytes survival against apoptosis, and improve the recovery of cardiac function. In addition, the mechanism of EBP-PR1P/VEGF was also investigated which canonical downstream of VEGF-Akt signaling pathway was activated. These results showed specific VEGF/EBP-PR1P/c-ECM scaffolds served as promising delivery system for VEGF that facilitated the functional recovery of MI.

To investigate the genotype and clinical characteristics of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) strains in southwest China and provide information on the treatment stopping the spread of the infection.The clinical information of CRE isolates was collected from 19 hospitals in 12 cities across Sichuan Province, China, between June 2018 and April 2019. The isolates were detected by DNA sequencing of genes encoding carbapenem enzymes and multilocus sequence types (MLSTs).A total of 166 nonrepetitive CRE isolates were isolated during the study period from sputum, blood, urine, and other samples. Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC) was dominant in Klebsiella pneumoniae (53.9%), followed by New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase (NDM) (42.1%). A total of 43 STs were detected. The most common ST of K. pneumoniae was ST11, and that of Escherichia coli was ST410. Pairwise single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) distances and the likelihood of local transmission by epidemiology were plotted for each species. About 65% of these pairs had ≤ 20 pairwise SNPs.A large number of CRE strains carried carbapenemase. Although NDM-ST12 K. pneumoniae should not be disregarded, KPC-ST11is the predominant strain. Thus, the possibility of transmission between E. coli and K. pneumoniae could not be ignored.

Depression is characterized by poor emotion regulation that makes it difficult to escape the effects of emotional pain, but the neuromodulation behind these symptoms is still unclear. This study investigated the neural mechanism of emotional state-related responses during music stimuli in participants with major depressive disorder (MDD) compared to never-depressed (ND) controls. A novel two-level feature selection method, integrating recursive feature elimination based on support vector machine (SVM-RFE) and random forest algorithm (RF), was proposed to screen emotional recognition brain regions (ERBRs). On this basis, the differences of functional connectivity (FC) were systematically analyzed by two-sample t-test. The results demonstrate that ND participants show eight pairs of FCs with a significant difference between positive emotional music stimuli (pEMS) versus negative emotional music stimuli (nEMS) in 15 ERBRs of MDD, but the participants with MDD show one pair of significant difference in FC. The decreased number reflects the fuzzy response to positive and negative emotions in MDD, which appears to arise from obstacle to emotional cognition and regulation. Furthermore, there was no significant difference in FC between MDDs and NDs under pEMS, but a significant difference was detected between the two groups under nEMS (p 0.01), revealing a 'bias' against the negative state in MDD. The current study may help to better comprehend the abnormal evolution from normal to depression and inform the utilization of pEMS in formal treatment for depression.

Osimertinib (AZD9291) is a third-generation epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI), used for treating patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) harboring EGFR-activating mutations or the resistant T790M mutation. However, acquired resistance to osimertinib is inevitable in EGFR-mutant NSCLC. By employing a global mass spectrometry-based phosphoproteomics approach, we identified that the activated p21-activated kinase 2 (PAK2)/β-catenin axis acts as a driver of osimertinib resistance. We found that PAK2 directly phosphorylates β-catenin and increases the nuclear localization of β-catenin, leading to the increased expression and transcriptional activity of β-catenin, which in turn enhances cancer stem-like properties and osimertinib resistance. Moreover, we revealed that HER3 as an upstream regulator of PAK2, drives the activation of PAK2/β-catenin pathways in osimertinib-resistant cells. The clinical relevance of these findings was further confirmed by examining tissue specimens from patients with EGFR-mutant NSCLC. The results demonstrated that the levels of HER3, phospho-PAK2 (p-PAK2) and β-catenin in the tissues from patients with EGFR-mutant NSCLC, that had relapsed after treatment with osimertinib, were elevated compared to those of the corresponding untreated tissues. Additionally, the high levels of HER3, p-PAK2 and β-catenin correlated with shorter progression-free survival (PFS) in patients with EGFR-TKI-treated NSCLC. We additionally observed that the suppression of PAK2 via knockdown or pharmacological targeting with PAK inhibitors markedly restored the response of osimertinib-resistant NSCLC cells to osimertinib both in vitro and in vivo. In conclusion, these results indicated that the PAK2-mediated activation of β-catenin is important for osimertinib resistance and targeting the HER3/PAK2/β-catenin pathway has potential therapeutic value in NSCLCs with acquired resistance to osimertinib.

Backgroud: A large amount of research has shown that spinal cord injury causes bone loss and increases fracture risk, while spinal cord injuries caused by fractures and their underlying molecular mechanisms still need further investigation.Methods To investigate the specific changes in the spinal cord after bone fractures, we obtained L4-L5 spinal cord segments from the same side of SD rats with tibial fractures at 0, 3, 7, 14, and 28 days after the fracture. Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis, KEGG pathway analysis, and Ingenuity Pathway Analysis(IPA) were used to analyze the differential gene expression of the genes at different time points .Results Our sequencing results showed that the transcriptional changes in the spinal cord after fracture developed towards the direction of restoring normal physiological function. At 3 and 7 days after fracture, the same-side L4-L5 spinal cord segment showed significant activation of neurodegeneration and central nervous system development, with neurodegeneration activation being most significant at 3 days after fracture and the spinal cord also showing activation of cell survival regulation effects after 7 days of bone fracture. At 14 days after bone fracture, the spinal cord showed significant enrichment in the myelin sheath formation signaling pathway, activation of cell death in the central nervous system, GO terms relating to synaptic function were also significantly enriched. The spinal cord had active gene transcription, protein synthesis, and degradation metabolism processes at these three time points after fracture. At 28 days after fracture, the spinal cord showed recovery of motor function. In addition, a series of important genes in the spinal cord after fracture were differentially expressed, including PCP4 and Krit1. Rictor, TEAD1, torin1, DDX5, CAB39L, and Ngf in the spinal cord may act as upstream master regulators to play a role in fracture repair.Conclusions We speculate that local injury stimulation of the fracture through DRG enters the intermediate neurons of the spinal cord dorsal horn, triggering a series of adaptive changes including activation of neurodegeneration and central nervous system development in the spinal cord, among other changes. With the involvement of important molecules such as PCP4 and Krit1, the physiological function of the spinal cord gradually recovers after fracture, reducing the risk of disuse osteoporosis and promoting fracture repair. This study provides an understanding of the transcriptome changes in the spinal cord following fracture at different time points, and the changes observed across these time points, and screens for important genes that might participate in the regulation of spinal cord fracture healing, providing a sequencing basis for exploring the bidirectional relationship between fracture and the spinal cord.

Biorefinery is pivotal to the sustainability of modern chemical industry. However, since biomass is oxygen-enriched, new and green chemical strategies are required for expanding the biomass derived chemical space. In this work, synthesis of natural products dihydrocapsaicin and dihydrocapsiate was achieved exclusively from lignocellulosic platform chemicals. Natural products dihydrocapsaicin and dihydrocapsiate were synthesized exclusively from lignocellulosic platform chemicals, using furfural (from hemicellulose) and methyl isopropyl ketone (from cellulose) through aldol condensation-hydrolysis-hydrodeoxygenation to synthesize 8-methylnonanoic acid and then combined with vanillin derivates (from lignin). This synthesis demonstrates the feasibility of constructing natural products entirely from renewable biomass platform through green processes. The utilization of inherent functional groups of biomass demonstrates their potential to open up chemical space.

Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC)-producing K.pneumoniae has represented a serious health problem in worldwide. The resistance to ceftazidime-avibactam (CAZ-AVI) began to emerge since its approval in 2015. We aim to explore the resistance mechanism of CAZ-AVI.Phenotypic test and whole-genome sequencing (WGS) analysis were performed in KP-HX0917 and KP-HX1016 Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates, collected from the same patient following treatment with CAZ-AVI.We report a case of emergence of CAZ-AVI resistance in ST 11 KPC-2-producing K. pneumoniae (KP-HX1016) during 14 days of exposure with CZA-AVI. Molecular analysis highlighted the A533C mutation in the blaKPC-2 gene, resulting a D179A substitution in protein sequence, which restored the hydrolysis ability of imipenem and meropenem, but not for ertapenem, and the result of phenotypic test was negative. However, KP-HX0917 produced serine-carbapenemase by phenotypic detection and lost its capacity of hydrolyzing carbapenems.The emergence of CAZ-AVI resistance should arouse our attention, the susceptibility testing should be followed by a combination of phenotypic and molecular methods, to make sure that no potential carbapenemase-producing bacteria are missed.

BackgroundEwing’s sarcoma (ES) is one of the most prevalent malignant bone tumors worldwide. However, the molecular mechanisms of the genes and signaling pathways of ES are still not well sufficiently comprehended. To identify candidate genes involved in the development and progression of ES, the study screened for key genes and biological pathways related to ES using bioinformatics methods.MethodsThe GSE45544 and GSE17618 microarray datasets were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified, and functional enrichment analysis was performed. A protein–protein interaction (PPI) network was built, and key module analysis was performed using STRING and Cytoscape. A core-gene was gained and was validated by the validation dataset GSE67886 and immunohistochemistry (IHC). The diagnostic value and prognosis evaluation of ES were executed using, respectively, the ROC approach and Cox Regression.ResultsA total of 187 DEGs, consisting of 56 downregulated genes and 131 upregulated genes, were identified by comparing the tumor samples to normal samples. The enriched functions and pathways of the DEGs, including cell division, mitotic nuclear division, cell proliferation, cell cycle, oocyte meiosis, and progesterone-mediated oocyte maturation, were analyzed. There were 149 nodes and 1246 edges in the PPI network, and 15 hub genes were identified according to the degree levels. The core gene (UBE2T) showed high expression in ES, validated by using GSE67886 and IHC. The ROC analysis revealed UBE2T had outstanding diagnostic value in ES (AUC = 0.75 in the training set, AUC = 0.90 in the validation set). Kaplan-Meier (analysis of survival rate) and Cox Regression analyses indicated that UBE2T was a sign of adverse results for sufferers with ES.ConlusionUBE2T was a significant value biomarker for diagnosis and treatment of ES, thereby presenting a novel potential therapeutic target for ES as well as a new perspective for assessing the effect of treatment and prognostic prediction.

The neat levulinic acid is directly converted to 2-methyltetrahydrofuran under mild conditions. Inexpensive and environmentally friendly non-noble metal catalysts are used.

Immunosuppression in response to severe sepsis remains a serious human health concern. Evidence of sepsis-induced immunosuppression includes impaired T lymphocyte function, T lymphocyte depletion or exhaustion, increased susceptibility to opportunistic nosocomial infection, and imbalanced cytokine secretion. CD4 T cells play a critical role in cellular and humoral immune responses during sepsis. Here, using an RNA sequencing assay, we found that the expression of T cell-containing immunoglobulin and mucin domain-3 (Tim-3) on CD4 T cells in sepsis-induced immunosuppression patients was significantly elevated. Furthermore, the percentage of Tim-3(+) CD4 T cells from sepsis patients was correlated with the mortality of sepsis-induced immunosuppression. Conditional deletion of Tim-3 in CD4 T cells and systemic Tim-3 deletion both reduced mortality in response to sepsis in mice by preserving organ function. Tim-3(+) CD4 T cells exhibited reduced proliferative ability and elevated expression of inhibitory markers compared with Tim-3(−)CD4 T cells. Colocalization analyses indicated that HMGB1 was a ligand that binds to Tim-3 on CD4 T cells and that its binding inhibited the NF-κB signaling pathway in Tim-3(+) CD4 T cells during sepsis-induced immunosuppression. Together, our findings reveal the mechanism of Tim-3 in regulating sepsis-induced immunosuppression and provide a novel therapeutic target for this condition.

Background: The purpose of this study was to compare postoperative opioid consumption following total shoulder arthroplasty, after: (A) a single-shot undiluted liposomal bupivacaine (LB; commercial name: Exparel) interscalene block, or (B) a Ropivacaine block (R), supplemented with continuous catheter infusion. Methods: This prospective, randomized study (NCT03739021) compared postoperative analgesic requirements in Morphine Milligram Equivalent (MME) during the first 24 h after discharge from the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) in patients receiving total shoulder arthroplasty. Two similar groups of 30 patients each received equivalent general operative anesthesia. Preoperative interscalene block was performed with either 10mL of undiluted liposomal bupivacaine (LB) or ropivacaine (R) 0.5% plus continuous catheter infusion. Results: There were no differences between the two groups regarding age, gender, length of surgery, intraoperative narcotic usage, or length of hospital stay. The time required to administer (LB) compared to (R) was significantly reduced (5 min vs. 15 min). The LB group experienced a reduction in MME during the first 24 h after PACU discharge (25 vs. 41 MME). Conclusion: A single shot of undiluted liposomal bupivacaine (LB) provided a significant (p = 0.045) reduction in opioid use during the first 24 h after shoulder replacement surgery compared to ropivacaine (R) with continuous catheter infusion. A larger sample group will be required to bolster these results. There was no measured difference in reported pain level. LB also took less time to administer.

The Ti3C2/TiO2-PVP HJs displayed enhanced photothermal conversion efficiency at NIR-II range and broadened the photocatalytic working wavelength range relative to TiO2, resulting in improved in-depth phototoxicity.

Neat levulinic acid is directly converted to valeric acid under mild conditions. Inexpensive and environmentally friendly non-noble metal catalysts are used.

BACKGROUND Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4) is associated with cognitive dysfunction in patients with type 2 diabetes. AIM To assess a possible relationship between serum DPP4 and cognitive function in perinatal pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). METHODS The study subjects were divided into three groups: GDM group (n = 81), healthy pregnant (HP) group (n = 85), and control group (n = 51). The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) was used to assess the cognitive status of each group. Venous blood samples were collected to measure blood lipids, glycated hemoglobin, and glucose levels. For each participant, a 3-mL blood sample was collected and centrifuged, and the serum was collected. Blood samples were stored at -80 ℃, and DPP4, interleukin-6 (IL-6), and 8-iso-prostaglandin F2α (8-iso-PGF2α), and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) were detected using ELISA. RESULTS The MoCA scores in the GDM and HP groups were significantly different from those in the control group in terms of visuospatial/executive function and attention (P < 0.05); however, the scores were not significantly different between the GDM and HP groups (P > 0.05). In terms of language, the GDM group had significantly different scores from those in the other two groups (P < 0.05). In terms of memory, a significant difference was found between the HP and control groups (P < 0.05), as well as between the GDM and HP groups. The levels of DPP4, IL-6, and 8-iso-PGF2α in the GDM group were significantly higher than those in the HP and control groups (P < 0.05); however, the differences between these levels in the HP and control groups were not significant (P > 0.05). The level of BDNF in the GDM group was significantly lower than that in the HP and control groups (P < 0.05), although the difference in this level between the HP and control groups was not significant (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION Cognitive dysfunction in perinatal pregnant women with GDM mainly manifested as memory loss, which might be associated with elevated DPP4 levels.

Objective This study blindly evaluated sugammadex compared with neostigmine on length of stay in the postanesthesia care unit (PACU). Methods Fifty patients undergoing elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy or abdominal wall hernia repair consented to receive either sugammadex (2 mg/kg) or neostigmine (0.07 mg/kg) for the reversal of rocuronium neuromuscular blockade. Reversal agents were administered during surgical closing, and the train of four was measured until a twitch ratio of T4:T1 ≥ 0.9 was obtained to signify a robust reversal. Postreversal outcomes also were measured during PACU stay. Aldrete scores, pain visual analog scale score, and nausea were measured during the PACU stay. Results Patients receiving sugammadex experienced a shorter PACU stay at the time of discharge than patients receiving neostigmine, by an average of 12 minutes (P Conclusions Sugammadex patients had a significantly shorter PACU stay.

Integrative analysis of histopathology images and genomic data enables the discovery of potential biomarkers and multimodal association patterns. However, few studies have established effective association models for complex diseases, such as sarcoma, by combining histopathological images with multiple genetic variation data. Here, we present an integrative multiple genomic imaging framework called multi-dimensional constrained joint non-negative matrix factorization (MDJNMF) to identify modules related to lung metastasis of sarcomas based on sample-matched whole-solid image, DNA methylation , and copy number variation features. Three types of feature matrices were projected onto a common feature space, in which heterogeneous variables with large coefficients in the same projected direction form a common module. The correlation between image features and genetic variation features is used as network-regularized constraints to improve the module accuracy. Sparsity and orthogonal constraints are utilized to achieve the modular sparse solution . Multi-level analysis indicates that our method effectively discovers biologically functional modules associated with sarcoma or lung metastasis. The representative module reveals a significant correlation between image features and genetic variation features and excavates potential diagnostic biomarkers. In summary, the proposed method provides new clues for identifying association patterns and biomarkers using multiple types of data sources for other diseases.

The microstructure of loess mainly reflects the size distribution, orientation, contact mode and pore distribution of particles. The six original loess (low clayey silt loess) on the same site in Lanzhou is selected by the direct shear test, high power electron microscope and energy spectrum test. To simulated calculation the cohesion (C) and internal friction angle (φ), used by the parameters data, including to the mineral element (Fe/Al/Si, Al/Si, K) ratio, microstructure parameters (Long axis of the particles, long axis’ skewness, kurtosis and orientation degree. The results indicated that the (φ) value was linearly correlated with the mean value of the Angle, and the correlation coefficient of the fitting formula was 0.82. The cohesion C value was linearly correlated with the kurtosis, Skewness, Fe/Si, Al/Si and K/Al of the long axis, and the maximum correlation coefficient after fitting was 0.99. The fitting formula of microcosmic parameters and shear strength can provide a new research method for predicting the shear strength of loess samples.

To explore the value of monocyte subsets and CD64 expression in the diagnosis and prognosis of sepsis.A prospective case-control study was designed. 30 septic patients and 30 non-septic patients who were admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of the PLA Army Characteristic Medical Center from March 2021 to March 2022 were enrolled. After 1, 3, and 5 days of ICU admission, peripheral blood samples were taken from patients. Flow cytometry was used to detect the proportion of monocyte subsets and the expression level of CD64 on the surface, and the difference of expression between patients in two group was analyzed. The risk variables for sepsis were analyzed using single-factor and multi-factor Logistic regression. The diagnostic efficacy of each risk factor for sepsis was determined using the receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve).One day after ICU admission, the proportions of monocytes and classic monocytes in white blood cells (WBC) of septic patients were significantly lower than those of non-septic patients [proportion of monocytes to WBC: (4.13±2.03)% vs. (6.53±3.90)%, proportion of classic monocytes to WBC: 1.97 (1.43, 2.83)% vs. 3.37 (1.71, 5.98)%, both P0.05]. The proportion of non-classical monocytes in monocytes was significantly higher in septic patients than that in non-septic patients [(11.42±9.19)% vs. (6.57±4.23)%, P0.05]. The levels of CD64 expression in monocytes, classic monocytes, intermediate monocytes and non-classic monocytes were significantly higher in sepsis patients than those in non-septic patients [mean fluorescence intensity (MFI): 13.10±6.01 vs. 9.84±2.83 for monocytes, 13.58±5.98 vs. 10.03±2.84 for classic monocytes, 13.48±6.35 vs. 10.22±2.99 for intermediate monocytes, 8.21±5.52 vs. 5.79±2.67 for non-classic monocytes, all P0.05]. Multivariate Logistic regression research showed that CD64 in typical monocytes [odds ratio (OR) = 1.299, 95% confidence interval (95%CI) was 1.027-1.471, P = 0.025] and the proportion of non-typical monocytes in monocytes (OR = 1.348, 95%CI was 1.034-1.758, P = 0.027) were the independent risk factors for sepsis. ROC curve showed that the area under the ROC curve (AUC) of CD64 expression of classical monocytes, the fraction of non-classical monocytes in monocytes, and procalcitonin (PCT) in the diagnosis of sepsis was 0.871. A correlation analysis revealed a negative relationship between the acute physiology and chronic health status evaluation II (APACHE II) on the first, third, and fifth days following ICU admission and the expression level of CD64 in patients' classic monocytes (r values were -0.264, -0.428 and -0.368, respectively, all P0.05).Combining the proportion of non-classical monocytes in monocytes, the level of plasma PCT, and the CD64 expression of classic monocytes in peripheral blood has good efficacy in identifying sepsis and assessing its severity.

The climate-induced spatio-temporal evolutionary characteristics of glaciers have a strong response in understanding the surface earth system processes, including hydrology, ecology, and topography. With use of multispectral remote sensing, this study explores the long-time glacier shrinkage evolution and their geographical features of Gongga Mountain glaciers (i.e. Gongga Mountain glacier group), in eastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China. We used a band ratio and decision-tree classification mixed method to automatically delineate Gongga Mountain glaciers shrinking nature. Based on the multispectral Landsat images over nearly 30 years, the long-time spatio-temporal shrinkage evolution of Gongga Mountain glaciers was extracted, in which the glacier shrinkage area changes are consistent with the results from previous works. This study analyzed the nature of shrinking glaciers with topographic derivatives (i.e., different glacier scale, altitude, slope gradient, and slope direction). We noticed that the characteristic of shirking glaciers is associated with the topographic variables. The maximum shrinkage was concentrated at altitudes of 5000–5500 m, and a slope angle of 30° in the south direction. Findings shed light that glaciers in our study area are correlated with temperature changes and precipitation with a correlation coefficient of −0.97 and 0.35, respectively, suggesting that the decreasing glaciers are highly correlated with the temperature increase. This study implies the usefulness of remote sensing in understanding the long-time ecological environment change and helping manage the potential glacial disasters in eastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

Massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) with lens antenna array, referred to as beamspace MIMO, is attractive for millimeter wave (mmWave) communications, since it can realize the adequate beamforming gain with a small number of radio frequency (RF) chains. This paper addresses wideband channel estimation for mmWave beamspace MIMO. Specifically, a two-stage channel estimation scheme is proposed. In the first stage, we utilize multi-task sparse Bayesian learning (MT-SBL) to coarsely estimate the beamspace channel vectors, each corresponding to one OFDM subcarrier. In the second stage, we re-formulate the channel estimation problem by artfully exploiting the characteristics of beamspace channels. Then we develop an expectation maximization (EM) based algorithm to estimate the parameters involved in the formulation, thereby refining the channel estimates. Compared with the state-of-the-art counterparts, the proposed scheme can achieve much better performance while requiring a lower training overhead.

The laser ultrasonic method using the characteristics of transmitted Rayleigh waves in the frequency domain to determine micro-crack depth is proposed. A low-pass filter model based on the interaction between Rayleigh waves and surface cracks is built and shows that the stop band, called the sensitive frequency range, is sensitive to the depth of surface cracks. The sum of transmission coefficients in the sensitive frequency range is defined as an evaluated parameter to determine crack depth. Moreover, the effects of the sensitive frequency range and measured distance on the evaluated results are analyzed by the finite-element method to validate the robustness of this depth-evaluating method. The estimated results of surface cracks with depths ranging from 0.08 mm to ~0.5 mm on the FEM models and aluminum-alloy samples demonstrate that the laser ultrasounds using the characteristics of Rayleigh waves in the frequency domain do work for quantitative crack depth.

The series of YY/T 0987 standards converted from the corresponding ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) standards regulate the marking medical devices and testing methods for passive implants in the magnetic resonance environment. Along with the advancement of scientific cognition and the development of technology, the ASTM continuously amends and updates standards. This article studies the new version of ASTM standards and analyzes the advancing parts newly added as compared to the current YY/T 0987-2016 standard and eventually pinpoints some problems that remained to be solved. Except for the standard for image artifacts, this study found out that other standards had also been constantly updated, such as the standard of ASTM F2503 for marking medical devices extends its referenced documents and adds some ISO standards in, meanwhile, the test method on magnetically induced displacement force, radio frequency induced heating and magnetically induced torque also had been significantly adjusted and improved accordingly. This article recommends that domestic standards need to keep pace with the latest edition of ASTM F standards and to supplement new research achievements timely, just in order to provide a better normalization, guidance and support to the development of Chinese passive implants industry.

Hyperphosphatemia and anemia, which are common complications of chronic kidney disease (CKD), can independently contribute to cardiovascular events. Several previous studies have found that the iron-based phosphate binder, ferric citrate (FC), could be beneficial to both hyperphosphatemia and anemia.Relevant literature from PUBMED, EMBASE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CCRCT) and MEDLINE databases were searched up to 21 February 2022, in order to conduct a meta-analysis to investigate the efficacy, safety and economic benefits of ferric citrate treatment in CKD patients with hyperphosphatemia and anemia. The meta-analysis was conducted independently by two reviewers using the RevMan software (version 5.3).In total, this study included 16 randomized clinical trials (RCT) involving 1754 participants. The meta-analysis showed that ferric citrate could significantly reduce the serum phosphorus in CKD patients compared to the placebo control groups (MD -1.76 mg/dL, 95% CI (-2.78, -0.75);Collectively, our review suggests that iron-based phosphate binder, ferric citrate is an effective and safe treatment option for CKD patients with hyperphosphatemia and anemia. More importantly, this alternative treatment may also less expensive. Nevertheless, more scientific studies are warranted to validate our findings.

To investigate the distribution of pathogenic bacteria in blood samples and changes in their drug resistance in our hospital from 2016 to 2020, and to provide evidence for the diagnosis and treatment of clinical bloodstream infections.Bruker Corporation's matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) was used for bacterial identification, VITEK 2 Compact was used for antimicrobial susceptibility test, some of which was done with the Kirby-Bauer method, and the data was statistically analyzed with WHONET 5.6 software.A total of 8931 bacterial strains, including 4502 (50.4%) Gram-positive bacteria and 4429 (49.6%) Gram-negative bacteria, were isolated from the blood samples between 2016 and 2020. Among the isolated bacteria of the orderThe distribution of common species of pathogenic bacteria in clinical blood samples in our hospital did not show significant changes, but the problem of multi-drug resistant bacteria is becoming increasingly more serious, especially so for carbapenem-resistant

Background/aim We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to evaluate the comparison and its timing between mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) and calcineurin inhibitor (CNI) as maintenance immunosuppression for kidney transplant recipients. Materials and methods The RCTs of MMF versus CNI as maintenance immunosuppression for kidney transplant recipients were searched from PUBMED, EMBASE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CCRCT), and ClinicalTrials.gov. After screening relevant RCTs, two authors independently assessed the quality of included studies and performed a meta-analysis using RevMan5.3. Relative risk (RR) was used to report dichotomous data, while mean difference (MD) with 95% confidence interval (CI) was used to report continuous outcomes. The analysis was conducted using the random-effect model due to the expected heterogeneity among different studies. Four subgroups were allocated to compare MMF with CNI as maintenance immunosuppression: (1) after 3 months of CNI-based therapy; (2) after 6 months of CNI-based therapy; (3) after 12 months of CNI-based therapy; and (4) in recipients with allograft dysfunction. Results Twelve RCTs with 950 renal transplant recipients were included. This meta-analysis presented the following results upon comparison between MMF and CNI as maintenance immunosuppression for kidney transplant recipients: (1) MMF significantly improved the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) not only in the comparison performed after 3, 6 or 12 months of CNI-based therapy but also in the comparison of recipients with allograft dysfunction; (2) MMF may increase the risk of acute rejection in the comparison performed after 3 months of CNI-based therapy, but no increase was noted in the comparison performed after 6 or 12 months of CNI-based therapy. Conclusions Our present meta-analysis suggested that MMF followed at least 6 months of CNI-based therapy is an effective maintenance immunosuppressive regimen for kidney transplant recipients to improve renal function but not increase rejection.

The maritime environment is significantly different compared with the terrestrial environment, which will inevitably have a certain impact on the brain functional activities of sailors and lead to differential changes in the brain functional connectivity (FC). Therefore, it has a great significance to explore the impact of the marine environment on the brain functional activities of sailors. It is not only the need for more detailed research work of sailors, but also an inevitable requirement for accurately revealing the impact of the marine environment. In this paper, the functional magnetic resonance image data of 33 sailors before and after sailing were used to study the brain FCs changes of sailors at the activated voxels level, in which the activated voxels were obtained by independent component analysis combined with Anatomical Automatic Labelling template. Then, the FCs between the corresponding brain regions of these activated voxels were statistically analyzed to obtain the FCs with significant differences (DFCs) between sailors before and after sailing. Finally, the classification evaluation of sailors before and after sailing was realized by using the FCs and DFCs as the characteristic samples in support vector machine. The results indicated that the DFCs between the activated brain regions had better discriminative performance for sailors before and after sailing, especially for the FCs within Prefrontal lobe and Occipital lobe as well as those between them which showed a significant difference between sailors before and after sailing.

Background Noninvasive monitoring of partial pressure of carbon dioxide can be accomplished indirectly with capnography (PETCO2) or with transcutaneous carbon dioxide monitoring (PTCCO2). The use of capnography has been shown to offer an advantage over pulse oximetry alone in the early detection of adverse respiratory events when supplemental oxygen is administered. Furthermore, capnography allows for the monitoring of various respiratory measures, including end-tidal carbon dioxide, respiratory rate, tidal volume, and changes in breathing patterns. Transcutaneous CO2 also closely approximates arterial CO2 values, but is not as easy to monitor for prolonged periods. The purpose of this study was to examine the usefulness of capnography and of transcutaneous carbon dioxide monitoring in patients recovering from obesity surgery at high risk of developing postoperative obstructive sleep apnea. Methods In a prospective observational study, 64 bariatric surgery patients at risk of developing obstructive sleep apnea were monitored in the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) with either capnography alone (31 patients) or capnography plus transcutaneous carbon dioxide monitoring (33 additional patients) every 3–5 minutes for the duration of their recovery. Primary endpoints included end-tidal and transcutaneous carbon dioxide, peripheral oxygen saturation, respiratory rate, pain scores, and incidence of adverse respiratory events. Results Although no adverse pulmonary events were observed, capnography detected several patients who experienced short periods of respiratory apnea while maintaining pulse oximetry readings within normal limits. Transcutaneous values were slow to change and averaged 4.5 ± 5.5 mm Hg (P Conclusions These results indicate the capabilities of both these noninvasive techniques for postoperative monitoring. Capnography acutely monitors changes in respiration, whereas transcutaneous monitoring more accurately reflects arterial CO2 levels.