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The aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) have gained increasing attention because of their high specific capacity, low cost, and good safety. However, side reactions, hydrogen evolution reaction, and uncontrolled zinc dendrites accompanying the Zn metal anodes have impeded the applications of ZIBs in grid-scale energy storage. Herein, the poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) nanowires as an interfacial layer on the Zn anode (Zn–PEDOT) are reported to address the above issues. Our experimental results and density functional theory simulation reveal that the interactions between the Zn2+and S atoms in thiophene rings of PEDOT not only facilitate the desolvation of hydrated Zn2+but also can regulate the diffusion of Zn2+along the thiophene molecular chains and induce the dendrite-free deposition of Zn along the (002) surface. Consequently, the Zn||Cu–PEDOT half-cell exhibits highly reversible plating/stripping behavior with an average Coulombic efficiency of 99.7% over 2500 cycles at 1 mA cm–2and a capacity of 0.5 mAh cm–2. A symmetric Zn–PEDOT cell can steadily operate over 1100 h at 1 mA cm–2(1 mAh cm–2) and 470 h at 10 mA cm–2(2 mAh cm–2), outperforming the counterpart bare Zn anodes. Besides, a Zn–PEDOT||V2O5full cell could deliver a specific capacity of 280 mAh g–1at 1 A g–1and exhibits a decent cycling stability, which are much superior to the bare Zn||V2O5cell. Our results demonstrate that PEDOT nanowires are one of the promising interfacial layers for dendrite-free aqueous ZIBs.

Liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs), consisting of polymer networks and liquid crystal mesogens, show a reversible phase change under thermal stimuli. However, the kinetic performance is limited by the inherently low thermal conductivity of the polymers. Transforming amorphous bulk into a fiber enhances thermal conductivity through the alignment of polymer chains. Challenges are present due to their rigid networks, while cross-links are crucial for deformation. Here, we employ hydrodynamic alignment to orient the LCE domains assisted by controlled in situ cross-linking and to remarkably reduce the diameter to submicrons. We report that the intrinsic thermal conductivity of LCE fibers at room temperature reaches 1.44 ± 0.32 W/m-K with the sub-100 nm diameter close to the upper limit determined in the quasi-1D regime. Combining the outstanding thermal conductivity and thin diameters, we anticipate these fibers to exhibit a rapid response and high force output in thermomechanical systems. The fabrication method is expected to apply to other cross-linked polymers.

Background: This study aimed to compare postoperative complications in patients with esophagogastric variceal bleeding (EVB) who underwent laparoscopic splenectomy combined with pericardial devascularization (LSPD) versus transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) procedures. Methods: A retrospective collection of medical records was conducted from January 2014 to May 2020 at Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. The study included patients from the departments of trauma surgery, interventional radiology, and general surgery who were diagnosed with EVB caused by portal hypertension and treated with LSPD or TIPS. Follow-up data were obtained to assess the occurrence of postoperative complications in both groups. Results: A total of 201 patients were included in the study, with 104 cases in the LSPD group and 97 cases in the TIPS group. There was no significant difference in the 1-year and 3-year post-surgery survival rates between the TIPS and LSPD groups (P= 0.669, 0.066). The 3-year survival rate of Child–Pugh B patients in the LSPD group was higher than TIPS group (P= 0.041). The LSPD group also had a significantly higher rate of freedom from rebleeding at 3-year post-surgery compared to the TIPS group (P= 0.038). Stratified analysis showed no statistically significant difference in the rebleeding rate between the two groups. Furthermore, the LSPD group had a higher rate of freedom from overt hepatic encephalopathy at 1-year and 3-year post-surgery compared to the TIPS group (P= 0.007, < 0.001). The LSPD group also had a lower rate of severe complications at 3-year post-surgery compared to the TIPS group (P= 0.020). Conclusion: Compared to TIPS, LSPD does not increase the risk of mortality and rebleeding, while demonstrating fewer complications. In patients classified as Child–Pugh A and B, the use of LSPD for treating EVB is both safe and effective.

The 3-D object detection is a crucial task for autonomous driving and robotics. However, it faces various challenges attributed to the complexity and sparsity of 3-D data. Light detection and ranging (LiDAR) and camera are two common sensors that provide complementary information for 3-D object detection. LiDAR provides accurate depth and shape information, while camera captures rich semantic and texture information. However, most existing methods for LiDAR–camera fusion either ignore the frequency-domain information or use simple concatenation or elementwise operations to fuse the features, which may not fully realize the potential of both modalities. This article proposes frequency-aware LiDAR–camera fusion networks (FAFNs) that leverage the frequency-domain information to enhance the LiDAR and camera feature maps. Specifically, we design a frequency-aware feature enhancement module (FAFEM) that adaptively learns the frequency importance of each modality and assigns different weights to different frequency bands. We also design a frequency-aware multiscale query initialization strategy that enriches the object query with frequencywise information and multiscale variations. We conduct the evaluation of our FAFNs using two well-established benchmarks for 3-D object detection, nuScenes and Waymo, which demonstrates its competitive performance over existing state-of-the-art methods.

IMPORTANCE: Adults with Alzheimer disease and related dementias (ADRD) are particularly vulnerable to the direct and indirect effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Deaths associated with ADRD increased substantially in pandemic year 1. It is unclear whether mortality associated with ADRD declined when better prevention strategies, testing, and vaccines became widely available in year 2. OBJECTIVE: To compare pandemic-era excess deaths associated with ADRD between year 1 and year 2 overall and by age, sex, race and ethnicity, and place of death. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This time series analysis used all death certificates of US decedents 65 years and older with ADRD as an underlying or contributing cause of death from January 2014 through February 2022. EXPOSURE: COVID-19 pandemic era. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Pandemic-era excess deaths associated with ADRD were defined as the difference between deaths with ADRD as an underlying or contributing cause observed from March 2020 to February 2021 (year 1) and March 2021 to February 2022 (year 2) compared with expected deaths during this period. Expected deaths were estimated using data from January 2014 to February 2020 fitted with autoregressive integrated moving average models. RESULTS: Overall, 2 334 101 death certificates were analyzed. A total of 94 688 (95% prediction interval [PI], 84 192-104 890) pandemic-era excess deaths with ADRD were estimated in year 1 and 21 586 (95% PI, 10 631-32 450) in year 2. Declines in ADRD-related deaths in year 2 were substantial for every age, sex, and racial and ethnic group evaluated. Pandemic-era ADRD-related excess deaths declined among nursing home/long-term care residents (from 34 259 [95% PI, 25 819-42 677] in year 1 to −22 050 [95% PI, −30 765 to −13 273] in year 2), but excess deaths at home remained high (from 34 487 [95% PI, 32 815-36 142] in year 1 to 28 804 [95% PI, 27 067-30 571] in year 2). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: This study found that large increases in mortality with ADRD as an underlying or contributing cause of death occurred in COVID-19 pandemic year 1 but were largely mitigated in pandemic year 2. The most pronounced declines were observed for deaths in nursing home/long-term care settings. Conversely, excess deaths at home and in medical facilities remained high in year 2.

Defects in autophagy contribute to neurological deficits and motor dysfunction after spinal cord injury. Here a nanosystem is developed to deliver autophagy‐promoting, anti‐inflammatory drugs to nerve cells in the injured spinal cord. Celastrol, metformin, and everolimus as the mTOR inhibitor are combined into the zein‐based nanoparticles, aiming to solubilize the drugs and prolong their circulation. The nanoparticles are internalized by BV2 microglia and SH‐SY5Y neuron‐like cells in culture; they inhibit the secretion of inflammatory factors by BV2 cells after insult with lipopolysaccharide, and they protect SH‐SY5Y cells from the toxicity of H2O2. In a rat model of spinal cord injury, the nanoparticles mitigate inflammation and promote spinal cord repair. In the in vitro and in vivo experiments, the complete nanoparticles function better than the free drugs or nanoparticles containing only one or two drugs. These results suggest that the triple‐drug nanoparticles show promise for treating spinal cord injury. The authors developed a nanosystem, the metformin‐ and everolimus‐loaded nanoparticles (Cel‐MET‐EVE@NPs), to deliver autophagy‐promoting anti‐inflammatory drugs to nerve cells and promote autophagy after spinal cord injury. Celastrol is incorporated into the surface of nanoparticles to synergistically promote autophagy and reduce inflammation. Cel‐MET‐EVE@NPs show promise for treating spinal cord injury.

Mounds constructed by plateau zokors, which is widely distributed in alpine meadows significantly modified plant community structure. However, the variations of plant community structure under the disturbance of plateau zokor-made mound are less concerned. Therefore, we investigated the responses of plant community on zokor-made mound of different years (1 a and 3–4 a), and compared with undisturbed sites (no mound) in an alpine meadow in the eastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP), China. Species richness, coverage and Simpson diversity index were all significantly reduced by the presence of zokor-made mound, but plant heights were significantly increased, particularly in grasses and sedges. Several perennial forage species showed an increased importance value and niche breadth, including Koeleria macrantha, Elymus nutansand Poa pratensis. The effect of zokor-made mound on niche overlap showed that more intense interspecific competition produced a greater utilization of environmental resources. And this interspecific niche overlap was strengthened as succession progressed. The bare mound created by zokor burrowing activities provided a colonizing opportunity for non-dominant forage species, resulting in abundant plant species and plant diversity during the succession period. We concluded that presence of zokor-made mound was conducive to regeneration and vitality of plant community in alpine meadows, thus improving their resilience to anthropogenic stress.

ABSTRACTThis study investigated the antioxidant defense system involved in the tolerance of soybean (Glycine max) to aluminum (Al) stress. Physiological assays showed that the amount of superoxide free radicals (O2−), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), and malondialdehyde (MDA) were significantly lower in an Al-resistant soybean cultivar (cv. PI416937) than in an Al-sensitive soybean cultivar (cv. Huachun18). Comparative analysis of microarray data from both genotypes following Al-stress treatment revealed that the expression of a series of antioxidant enzymes genes was induced in the Al-resistant cultivar. The quantitative real time-PCR (qRT-PCR) assay showed that the transcript levels of genes encoding antioxidant enzymes, including GmCAT1, GmPOD1, GmGST1, GmAPX, GmGSH1, and GmSOD, were higher in the Al-resistant cultivar than in the Al-sensitive cultivar in Al-stress conditions. Furthermore, GmCAT1-overexpressing Arabidopsis plants had improved tolerance to Al-stress and lower O2−, H2O2, and MDA contents than wild-type plants. Therefore, providing evidence that the antioxidant defense system is essential for Al tolerance in soybean.AbbreviationsAl: aluminum; O2−: superoxide free radicals; ROS: reactive oxygen species; H2O2: hydrogen peroxide; MDA: malondialdehyde; qRT-PCR: quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction; GO: gene ontology; WT: wild type; MS medium: Murashige and Skoog medium

Wampee (Clausena lansium) is an economically significant subtropical fruit tree widely cultivated in Southern China. To provide high-quality genomic resources for C. lansium, we report a chromosome-level genome sequence for the “JinFeng” cultivar. The 297.1 Mb C. lansiumgenome contained nine chromosomes with a scaffold N50 of 29.2 Mb and encoded 23,468 protein-coding genes. Selective sweep analysis between sweet and sour C. lansiumvarieties and genome-wide association analysis identified 14 candidate genes putatively involved in sugar and acid accumulation. ClERF061, encoding an ethylene response factor, and ClSWEET7, encoding a Sugars Will Eventually be Exported Transporters (SWEET) family protein, were proposed as key regulators of the sweet and sour tastes of the wampee fruit. ClERF061and ClSWEET7overexpression in tomatoes increased the total sugar and acid content in fruits. ClSWEET7promoter activation by ClERF061 was confirmed via Nicotiana benthamianatransient expression. Our study provides valuable genomic resources for C. lansiumgenetics and breeding.

Sanghuang mycelial polysaccharides (SVMPs) were studied using poplar sanghuang as raw material (sanghuangporus vanninii, SV). The bioactivity of SVMPs was evaluated through in vitro antioxidant and cellular immunity activity assays, and the acute oral toxicity and anti-fatigue ability of SVMPs in mice were determined using mice as an experimental animal model. The results showed that SVMPs have a good scavenging effect on 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), hydroxyl, and 2,2′-Azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS+) radicals, with a slightly weaker reducing power. SVMPs promote, to some extent, the secretion of cytokines Tumor Necrosis Factor-α (TNF-α), Interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and Interleukin-6 (IL-6), and the release of NO from mouse macrophage RAW264.7. In mouse experiments, the mouse tolerance of SVMPs was more greater than 18.2 g/kg BW, which was 2724 times the daily dosage of humans, and it was a non-toxic substance; the high dose group of SVMPs could significantly prolong the swimming time of weight-bearing mice. Thus, the results of this study clearly demonstrate the biological activity of SVMPs and provide a valuable basis for the potential application of SVMPs as antioxidants, immunomodulators, and functional foods.

Surface phonon polaritons (SPhPs) originate from the coupling of mid-IR photons and optical phonons, generating evanescent waves along the polar dielectric surface. The emergence of SPhPs gives rise to a phase of quantum matter that facilitates long-range energy transfer (100s μm-scale). Albeit of the recent experimental progress to observe the enhanced thermal conductivity of polar dielectric nanostructures mediated by SPhPs, the potential mechanism to present the high thermal conductivity beyond the Landauer limit has not been addressed. Here, we revisit the comprehensive theoretical framework to unify the distinct pictures of two heat transfer mechanisms by conduction and radiation. We first designed our experimental platform to distinguish contributions of two distinct fundamental modes of SPhPs, resulting in far-field radiation and long propagating conduction, respectively, by tuning the configuration of a nanostructured heat channel integrated into the thermometer. We could effectively control the transmission of long-propagating SPhPs to influence the apparent thermal conductivity of the nanostructure. This study reveals the high thermal conductance of 1.63 nW/K by a fast SPhP mode comparable to that by classical phonons, with measurements showing apparent conductivity values of up to 2 W/m·K at 515 K. The origin of the enhanced thermal conductivity was exploited by observing the interference of dispersive evanescent waves by double heat channels. Furthermore, our experimental observations of length-dependent thermal conductance by SPhPs are in good agreement with the revisited Landauer formula to illustrate a polaritonic mode of heat conduction, considering the dispersive nature of radiation not limited to the physical boundaries of a solid object yet directionally guided along the surface.

Spinal cord injury is a disease that causes severe damage to the central nervous system. Currently, there is no cure for spinal cord injury. Azithromycin is commonly used as an antibiotic, but it can also exert anti-inflammatory effects by down-regulating M1-type macrophage genes and up-regulating M2-type macrophage genes, which may make it effective for treating spinal cord injury. Bone mesenchymal stem cells possess tissue regenerative capabilities that may help promote the repair of the injured spinal cord. In this study, our objective was to explore the potential of promoting repair in the injured spinal cord by delivering bone mesenchymal stem cells that had internalized nanoparticles preloaded with azithromycin. To achieve this objective, we formulated azithromycin into nanoparticles along with a trans-activating transcriptional activator, which should enhance nanoparticle uptake by bone mesenchymal stem cells. These stem cells were then incorporated into an injectable hydrogel. The therapeutic effects of this formulation were analyzed in vitrousing a mouse microglial cell line and a human neuroblastoma cell line, as well as in vivousing a rat model of spinal cord injury. The results showed that the formulation exhibited anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects in vitroas well as therapeutic effects in vivo. These results highlight the potential of a hydrogel containing bone mesenchymal stem cells preloaded with azithromycin and trans-activating transcriptional activator to mitigate spinal cord injury and promote tissue repair.

Purpose Uncertainty is ubiquitous in practical engineering and scientific research. The uncertainties in parameters can be treated as interval numbers. The prediction of upper and lower bounds of the response of a system including uncertain parameters is of immense significance in uncertainty analysis. This paper aims to evaluate the upper and lower bounds of electric potentials in an electrostatic system efficiently with interval parameters.Design/methodology/approach The Taylor series expansion is proposed for evaluating the upper and lower bounds of electric potentials in an electrostatic system with interval parameters. The uncertain parameters of the electrostatic system are represented by interval notations. By performing Taylor series expansion on the electric potentials obtained using the equilibrium governing equation and by using the properties of interval mathematics, the upper and lower bounds of the electric potentials of an electrostatic system can be calculated.Findings To evaluate the accuracy and efficiency of the proposed method, the upper and lower bounds of the electric potentials and the computation time of the proposed method are compared with those obtained using the Monte Carlo simulation, which is referred to as a reference solution. Numerical examples illustrate that the bounds of electric potentials of this method are consistent with those obtained using the Monte Carlo simulation. Moreover, the proposed method is significantly more time-saving.Originality/value This paper provides a rapid computational method to estimate the upper and lower bounds of electric potentials in electrostatics analysis with interval parameters. The precision of the proposed method is acceptable for engineering applications, and the computation time of the proposed method is significantly less than that of the Monte Carlo simulation, which is the most widely used method related to uncertainties. The Monte Carlo simulation requires a large number of samplings, and this leads to significant runtime consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bi(Te, Se)-based compounds have attracted lots of attention for nearly two centuries as one of the most successful commercial thermoelectric (TE) materials due to their high performance at near room temperature. Compared with 3D bulks, 2D thin films are more compatible with modern semiconductor technology and have unique advantages in the construction of micro- and nano-devices. For device applications, high average TE performance over the entire operating temperature range is critical. Herein, highly c-axis-oriented N-type Bi(Te, Se) epitaxial thin films have been successfully prepared using the pulsed laser deposition technology by adjusting the deposition temperature. The film deposited at ∼260 °C demonstrate a remarkable average power factor (PFave) of ∼24.4 μW cm−1·K−2over the temperature range of 305–470 K, higher than most of the state-of-the-art Bi(Te, Se)-based films. Moreover, the estimated average zTvalue of the film is as high as ∼0.81. We then constructed thin-film TE devices by using the above oriented Bi(Te, Se) films, and the maximum output power density of the device can reach up to ∼30.1 W/m2under the temperature difference of 40 K. Predictably, the outstanding average TE performance of the highly oriented Bi(Te, Se) thin films will have an excellent panorama of applications in semiconductor cooling and power generation.

Current points of departure used to derive health-based guidance values for deoxynivalenol (DON) are based on studies in laboratory animals. Here, an animal-free testing approach was adopted in which a reverse dosimetry physiologically based kinetic (PBK) modeling is used to predict in vivo dose response curves for DON’s effects on intestinal pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion and intestinal bile acid reabsorption in humans from concentration–effect relationships for DON in vitro. The calculated doses for inducing a 5% added effect above the background level (ED5) of DON for increasing IL-1β secretion in intestinal tissue and for increasing the amounts in the colon lumen of glycochenodeoxycholic acid (GCDCA) were 246 and 36 μg/kg bw/day, respectively. These in vitro–in silico-derived ED5values were compared to human dietary DON exposure levels, indicating that the risk of DON’s effects on these end points occurring in various human populations cannot be excluded. This in vitro–in silico approach provides a novel testing strategy for hazard and risk assessment without using laboratory animals.

Copper selenide (Cu2Se) is a P-type thermoelectric (TE) semiconductor that is environmentally friendly and has rich crust content and high cost performance–price ratio. Present studies on Cu2Se focus on the high TE performance of the bulks because of the intrinsic low thermal conductivity resulting from the ‘liquid-like’ behavior of Cu ions. Compared with three-dimensional bulks, two-dimensional thin films are more compatible with modern semiconductor technology and have unique advantages in the construction and application of TE micro- and nano-devices. In this study, b-axis–oriented Cu2Se epitaxial thin films were successfully prepared using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technology. The element ratios (Cu:Se) were adjusted in a small range (2.0:0.899–0.942). Correspondingly, the Cu vacancy concentration was optimized by changing the deposition temperature of the substrate. The in-plane directional power factor of the thin film is as high as ∼20.02 μW/cm K−2at 580 K and ∼8.44 μW/cm K−2at room temperature, which are higher than that of Cu2Se bulks. As per theoretical calculation, the estimated zTvalue of the Cu2Se film with a thickness of 295.0 nm reaches ∼0.58 at 580 K. The relatively high TE performance and good repeatability demonstrate that Cu2Se films have great application potential in solid-state refrigeration and power generation. The PLD preparation and performance control methods involved in this research will promote the development of high-performance Cu2Se films and devices.

Yin Yang 1 (YY1) is highly expressed in various types of cancers and regulates tumorigenesis through multiple pathways. In the present study, we evaluated YY1 expression levels in breast cancer cell lines, a breast cancer TMA, and two gene arrays. We observed that, compared with normal samples, YY1 is generally overexpressed in breast cancer cells and tissues. In functional studies, depletion of YY1 inhibited the clonogenicity, migration, invasion, and tumor formation of breast cancer cells, but did not affect the clonogenicity of nontumorigenic cells. Conversely, ectopically expressed YY1 enhanced the migration and invasion of nontumorigenic MCF-10A breast cells. In both a monolayer culture condition and a three-dimensional Matrigel system, silenced YY1 expression changed the architecture of breast cancer MCF-7 cells to that resembling MCF-10A cells, whereas ectopically expressed YY1 in MCF-10A cells had the opposite effect. Furthermore, we detected an inverse correlation between YY1 and p27 expression in both breast cancer cells and xenograft tumors with manipulated YY1 expression. Counteracting the changes in p27 expression attenuated the effects of YY1 alterations on these cells. In addition, YY1 promoted p27 ubiquitination and physically interacted with p27. In conclusion, our data suggest that YY1 is an oncogene and identify p27 as a new target of YY1.

Abstract: CHOP (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and prednisone) is accepted as the best available standard treatment for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) patients; however, the therapeutic efficacy seems unsatisfactory. Additional rituximab will improve the cure rate, but it is not popular in China because of its increased medical cost. Germinal center B-cell (GCB) and non-GCB subtypes distinction have been described as independent prognostic factors, and provides likelihood for cure with chemotherapy. The aim of the study is to explore the association between Immunophenotype and treatment regimen. Between August 2003 and May 2006, 66 patients with DLBCL were enrolled, according to immunohistochemistry results (GCB and non-GCB phenotype), randomly assigned to receive either six to eight cycles of CHOP every 2 weeks or standard CHOP every 3 weeks. After a median follow-up duration of 32 months (range of 4 to 42 months), an estimated 3-year overall survival (OS) rate for the GCB patients were 68.2% and 55.6% for the biweekly CHOP regimen and standard CHOP regimen respectively, while the data were 62.8% and 37.9% respectively for the non-GCB cases. The biweekly CHOP therapy showed higher efficacy than standard treatment, and its superiority was more obvious with the non-GCB subgroup. All rights reserved.

To accurately reproduce the seismic response of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage tank equipped with the variable curvature friction pendulum system (VCFPS), a real-time hybrid (RTH) experiment, also known as a real-time substructure experiment, is conducted on it in this study. A typical LNG storage tank with a capacity of 160,000 m3is employed as the numerical substructure simulated using the MATLAB/Simulink, while the variable curvature friction pendulum bearing (VCFPB) is utilized as the experimental substructure tested using the compression-shear equipment. Thereafter, the validity and feasibility of the RTH experiment are verified using the SAP2000 results. Finally, the working performance of the VCFPB is evaluated scientifically, comprehensively, reasonably, and efficiently. The results show that the VCFPB is very effective in avoiding the resonance phenomenon. It can be seen from the displacement of isolation layer that the VCFPB meets the design requirement. The maximum relative deviations between the RTH test results and the SAP2000 results are 3.45% for the displacement of isolation layer, 4.27% for the base shear, and 1.49% for the liquid sloshing height, respectively. The RTH test is stable and reliable and the predicted results are highly accurate and effective. The RTH test method proves to be accurate in the prediction of the seismic response of the LNG storage tank equipped with the VCFPBs.

Colorectal cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and the second leading cause of cancer mortality globally. Colorectal adenomas are recognised as precursors in most new cases of colorectal cancer. However, few studies reported the prevalence of different types of colorectal neoplasia among the Chinese population. This systematic review and meta-analysis estimated the prevalence of any type of adenomas, advanced adenomas, and colorectal cancer according to age and gender among average-risk Chinese populations.

Screening for colorectal cancer can reduce mortality, yet, participation rate is suboptimal in various countries. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a pilot programme for colorectal cancer screening on increasing the enabling factors of screening in a large Chinese population, and identified factors associated with its participation based on variables pertinent to the Health Belief Model.

Taking a quasi-rectangular Tunnel in a city as a prototype, a 1:3 scale tunnel test platform is built. Through the analysis of the smoke spread phenomenon and the change of tunnel longitudinal smoke temperature, the smoke exhaust effect of the quasi-rectangular tunnel with longitudinal ventilation in the ignition tunnel and positive pressure ventilation in the non-ignition tunnel is explored. The test results show that under the smoke exhaust mode of the longitudinal ventilation of the ignition tunnel and positive pressure ventilation in the non-ignition tunnel, in the case of a double-hole in an evacuation passage of quasi-rectangular tunnel, when the fire source is located at the evacuation passage, it can effectively prevent the smoke from entering the non-ignition tunnel.

The fluorescence spectrum and thermal properties of the mixed crystal Nd:Lu0.99La0.01VO4 are determined. The strongest emission peak located at 1065.6 nm had a full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 2.1 nm. Continuous-wave (CW) laser performance is demonstrated by a compact planar-planar cavity that is endpumped by a diode laser. The laser output characteristics are investigated by using output couplers with different transmissions. A maximum CW output power of 8.09 W was obtained at an incident pump power of 19.4 W, which corresponds to an optical-to-optical conversion efficiency of 41.7% and a slope efficiency of 54.6%. The dependence of optimum transmission on pump power is calculated theoretically and is found to be consistent with experimental results.