Search

Abstract Objectives To investigate the prognostic value of visible hematuria in T1a renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Materials and methods In the RCC database of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army General Hospital Department of Urology, we assembled the records of patients with unilateral RCC over 18 years of age diagnosed between 2008 and 2019. The clinical stage was cT1, and the tumors ranged in size from 0 to 7 cm. The primary treatments were partial nephrectomy (PN) or radical nephrectomy (RN). Logistic regression analysis, Cox regression, interaction analysis, and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis were used to study the correlation between visible hematuria and progression-free survival (PFS), and cancer-specific survival (CSS). Results A total of 7,610 patients with cT1 RCC comprised the study population, including 505 RCC patients with visible hematuria. The average follow-up time was 64.6 months (range: 12–144 months). Visible hematuria was significantly associated with the prognosis (PFS, hazard ratio [HR] = 2.7, P

Abstract Cancer cells encounter unavoidable stress during tumor growth. The stress-induced transcription factor, activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4), has been reported to upregulate various adaptive genes involved in salvage pathways to alleviate stress and promote tumor progression. However, this effect is unknown in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). In this study, we found that ATF4 expression was remarkably upregulated in tumor tissues and associated with poor ccRCC outcomes. ATF4 depletion significantly impaired ccRCC cell proliferation, migration, and invasion in vitro and in vivo by inhibiting the AKT/mTOR and epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related signaling pathway. RNA sequencing and functional studies identified nuclear protein 1 (NUPR1) as a key downstream target of ATF4 for repressing ferroptosis and promoting ccRCC cell survival. In addition, targeting ATF4 or pharmacological inhibition using NUPR1 inhibitor ZZW115 promoted antitumor immunity in syngeneic graft mouse models, represented by increased infiltration of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Furthermore, ZZW115 could improve the response to the PD-1 immune checkpoint blockade. The results demonstrate that the ATF4/NUPR1 signaling axis promotes ccRCC survival and facilitates tumor-mediated immunosuppression, providing a set of potential targets and prognostic indicators for ccRCC patients. Graphical abstract

Abstract Oceanic mesoscale eddies influence air-sea interaction and atmosphere dynamics through ventilating heat and moisture upward. However, whether the sea surface temperature (SST) gradient on the eddy edge could affect the heat and moisture release is still unknown because of the limited observations and coarse-resolution climate models. Using high-resolution atmospheric simulations, this study compares the atmospheric response to the mesoscale (~ 40 km) and submesoscale (~ 4 km) SST gradients at the edge of an eddy. Results show that submesoscale SST gradient drives stronger surface heat and moisture fluxes, enhancing the vertical mixing intensity by 2–3 times within and above the marine atmospheric boundary layer. As a result, one local precipitation event is found to be an order of magnitude larger overlying the eddy. Our findings highlight the importance of resolving oceanic submesoscale features for accurately predicting atmosphere dynamics and precipitation over the ocean.

Abstract Primary cilia are present on renal tubules and are implicated to play a pivotal role in transducing signals during development; however, the oncogenic role of cilia in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) has not been examined. Here we show that VHL wild-type ccRCC cell lines have a high incidence of primary cilia, and a high frequency of primary cilia is positively correlated with VHL expression and poor prognosis. Besides, the depletion of KIF3A and IFT88, genes required for ciliogenesis, significantly inhibited tumor proliferation and metastasis in vitro and in vivo. Further analysis found that mutations of key genes in hedgehog signaling are enriched in VHL wild ccRCC, its downstream signaling activation depends on ciliogenesis. Moreover, depletion of primary cilia or suppression of hedgehog pathway activation with inhibitor-induced robust autophagic cell death. Collectively, our findings revealed that primary cilia could serve as a diagnostic tool and provide new insights into the mechanism of VHL wild-type ccRCC progression. Targeting the primary cilia-hedgehog pathway may represent an effective therapeutic strategy for VHL wild-type ccRCC.

Abstract Background The development of modern agriculture has significantly contributed to improving global food security and safety, alleviating poverty, and enhancing human health and livelihoods. However, the rapid advancement of modern agriculture has also brought about various challenges that limit its sustainable development. This commentary aims to discuss these issues through the One Health lens, and provide valuable insights for balancing modern agricultural activities with the need to protect and promote the health of all the sectors. Main text This commentary explores the multifaceted impacts of modern agriculture on social development, as well as the associated various health challenges and environmental impacts within the One Health framework. Key issues include ecosystem degradation, increased risk of interspecies disease transmission like zoonoses, reverse zoonoses, and vector-borne diseases, and the escalated threat of antimicrobial resistance due to intensified agricultural production and increased antimicrobial use. To address these challenges, this commentary outlines potential solutions anchored in the development and implementation of modern technologies and good agricultural practices, such as precision farming, integrated pest management, biosecurity measures, vaccination programs, as well as surveillance and early detection of health risks. Conclusions Good agricultural practices supported by scientific and technological advancements are essential for aligning productivity with the One Health vision, ensuring the health and resilience of all the sectors. Enhancing stakeholder education, strengthening regulatory frameworks, and providing supportive policies and infrastructure for farmers to adopt sustainable practices are crucial for the long-term viability of agrifood systems. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations plays a pivotal role in guiding this sustainable transformation through the One Health approach.

Abstract The potential benefit of neoadjuvant toripalimab plus axitinib in cases with clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) and inferior vena cava tumor thrombus (IVC-TT) remains unclear. NEOTAX was a phase 2 study to investigate the efficacy and safety of neoadjuvant toripalimab plus axitinib in patients with ccRCC and IVC-TT (ChiCTR2000030405). The primary endpoint was the down-staging rate of IVC-TT level. Secondary endpoints included change in TT length, response rate, percentage change in surgical approach, surgical morbidity, progression-free survival (PFS), safety, and biomarker analyses. In all, 25 patients received study treatment, 44.0% (11/25) patients had a reduction in thrombus level, and none experienced an increase in Mayo level. The median change in tumor thrombus length was −2.3 cm (range: −7.1 to 1.1 cm). Overall, 61.9% (13/21) patients experienced changes in surgical strategy compared with planned surgery, three patients experienced major complications. The median PFS was 25.3 months (95% CI: 17.0-NE). The 1-year PFS was 89.1% (95% CI: 62.7–97.2). No any of grade 4 or 5 treatment-related adverse event was identified. Biopsy samples of non-responders exhibited increased T cytotoxic cell infiltration, but these cells were predominantly PD-1 positive. Biopsy samples of responders exhibited lower T helper cells, however, their subtype, regulatory T cells remained unchanged. In surgical samples of the TT, non-responders exhibited increased CD8T_01_GZMK_CXCR4 subset T cells. NEOTAX met preset endpoints proving that toripalimab in combination with axitinib downstages IVC-TT in a significant proportion of patients leading to simplification in the procedure of surgery.

Abstract Background N4-Acetylcytidine (ac4C), a highly conserved post-transcriptional mechanism, plays a pivotal role in RNA modification and tumor progression. However, the molecular mechanism by which ac4C modification mediates tumor immunosuppression remains elusive in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). Methods NAT10 expression was analyzed in TNBC samples in the level of mRNA and protein, and compared with the corresponding normal tissues. ac4C modification levels also measured in the TNBC samples. The effects of NAT10 on immune microenvironment and tumor metabolism were investigated. NAT10-mediated ac4C and its downstream regulatory mechanisms were determined in vitro and in vivo. The combination therapy of targeting NAT10 in TNBC was further explored. Results The results revealed that the loss of NAT10 inhibited TNBC development and promoted T cell activation. Mechanistically, NAT10 upregulated JunB expression by increasing ac4C modification levels on its mRNA. Moreover, JunB further up-regulated LDHA expression and facilitated glycolysis. By deeply digging, remodelin, a NAT10 inhibitor, elevated the surface expression of CTLA-4 on T cells. The combination of remodelin and CTLA-4 mAb can further activate T cells and inhibite tumor progression. Conclusion Taken together, our study demonstrated that the NAT10-ac4C-JunB-LDHA pathway increases glycolysis levels and creates an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME). Consequently, targeting this pathway may assist in the identification of novel therapeutic strategies to improve the efficacy of cancer immunotherapy.

Knowledge about the effect of different prostate biopsy approaches on the prostate cancer detection rate (CDR) in patients with gray-zone prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is limited. We performed this study to compare the CDR among patients who underwent different biopsy approaches and had rising PSA levels in the gray zone. Two hundred and twenty-two patients who underwent transrectal prostate biopsy (TRB) and 216 patients who underwent transperineal prostate biopsy (TPB) between June 2016 and September 2022 were reviewed in this study. In addition, 110 patients who received additional targeted biopsies following the systematic TPB were identified. Clinical parameters, including age, PSA derivative, prostate volume (PV), and needle core count, were recorded. The data were fitted via propensity score matching (PSM), adjusting for potential confounders. TPB outperformed TRB in terms of the CDR (49.6% vs 28.3%, P = 0.001). The clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa) detection rate was not significantly different between TPB and TRB (78.6% vs 68.8%, P = 0.306). In stratified analysis, TPB outperformed TRB in CDR when the age of patients was 65–75 years (59.0% vs 22.0%, P < 0.001), when PV was 25.00–50.00 ml (63.2% vs 28.3%, P < 0.001), and when needle core count was no more than 12 (58.5% vs 31.5%, P = 0.005). The CDR (P = 0.712) and detection rate of csPCa (P = 0.993) did not significantly differ among the systematic, targeted, and combined biopsies. TPB outperformed TRB in CDR for patients with gray-zone PSA. Moreover, performing target biopsy after systematic TPB provided no additional benefits in CDR.

Coal is a mixture of organic macerals and minerals. The presence of minerals can lead to differences in the macromolecular structure of coal, resulting in significant heterogeneity in its mechanical properties, which in turn affects the overall coalbed methane production, fracturing and transformation effects, and the large-scale application of mature technologies within the block. Taking typical anthracite and kaolinite minerals from the Qinshui Basin as the research object, the influence of kaolinite and its content on the mechanical properties of anthracite is quantitatively studied through molecular dynamics methods. The molecular structure and pore characteristics of anthracite under different mineral contents are analyzed, and its microscopic mechanism is revealed from the perspective of energy and ordering. The results indicate that: ① There are both van der Waals forces and hydrogen bonding forces during the binding process between coal organic matter and kaolinite, and the intensity of hydrogen bonding is higher than that of van der Waals forces. The probability, interaction strength, and orderliness of kaolinite molecules appearing around coal organic matter increase with the increase of mineral content. ② The porosity of anthracite decreases linearly with the increase of kaolinite content, with φ=−0.229 3a+9.629 5, while the bulk modulus, elastic modulus, and shear modulus of anthracite all increase linearly with the increase of kaolinite content. The Poisson’s ratio decreases exponentially with the increase of kaolinite content. ③ The degree of mechanical heterogeneity of anthracite increases overall with the increase of kaolinite content. The variability of bulk modulus, elastic modulus, and shear modulus under different kaolinite contents can be divided into five parts: very low, low, medium, high, and very high. The coefficient of variation of Poisson's ratio is all less than 0.1, indicating very low variability. ④ As the content of kaolinite increases, the interaction energy between coal organic matter and kaolinite shows a linear increase (Einteraction=4.558 5a+443.929). Compared with pure organic matter, when the content of kaolinite reaches 20%, the bond energy and van der Waals energy of anthracite increase by 63.86% and 48.06%, respectively. ⑤ The internal reason why kaolinite enhances the mechanical properties of coal is that it occupies a certain pore space after entering the coal organic matter and interacts with the aromatic carbon skeleton and different functional groups of the coal organic matter. The higher the content of kaolinite, the greater the degree of filling the pores of the coal macromolecular structure and the energy of the coal macromolecular structure, resulting in a decrease in the porosity of the coal macromolecular structure, an increase in orderliness, and an increase in mechanical strength and resistance to deformation.

Abstract Background Postoperative pneumonia is a common but serious complication in patients with lung cancer. This meta-analysis aims to evaluate the effect of respiratory exercise on reducing postoperative pneumonia in patients with lung cancer and to provide a reliable basis for clinical treatment and nursing of patients with lung cancer. Methods Two reviewers searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, China Knowledge Network, Wanfang, and Weipu databases. We searched for the randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published in Chinese or English on the breathing exercises in patients with lung cancer up to January 30, 2024. The quality of the literature was evaluated with the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool 2 (ROB 2). RevMan 5.3 software was used for meta-analysis. Results Eleven RCTs with 1429 patients with lung cancer were included, and 710 patients received breathing exercises. The meta-analysis results showed that breathing exercises could significantly reduce the incidence of postoperative pneumonia [RR = 0.35, 95%CI (0.25, 0.51)], improve the FEV1 [MD = − 0.49, 95%CI (− 0.73, − 0.24)], FVC [MD = − 0.59, 95%CI (− 0.83, − 0.35)] in patients with lung cancer (all P 4 times (RR = 0.36, 95%CI 0.23 ~ 0.57) per day (all P

Abstract Background The SLC26A4 gene is the second most common cause of hereditary hearing loss in human. The aim of this study was to utilize the minigene assay in order to identify pathogenic variants of SLC26A4 associated with enlarged vestibular aqueduct (EVA) and hearing loss (HL) in two patients. Methods The patients were subjected to multiplex PCR amplification and next-generation sequencing of common deafness genes (including GJB2, SLC26A4, and MT-RNR1), then bioinformatics analysis was performed on the sequencing data to identify candidate pathogenic variants. Minigene experiments were conducted to determine the potential impact of the variants on splicing. Results Genetic testing revealed that the first patient carried compound heterozygous variants c.[1149 + 1G > A]; [919–2 A > G] in the SLC26A4 gene, while the second patient carried compound heterozygous variants c.[2089 + 3 A > T]; [919–2 A > G] in the same gene. Minigene experiments demonstrated that both c.1149 + 1G > A and c.2089 + 3 A > T affected mRNA splicing. According to the ACMG guidelines and the recommendations of the ClinGen Hearing Loss Expert Panel for ACMG variant interpretation, these variants were classified as “likely pathogenic”. Conclusions This study identified the molecular etiology of hearing loss in two patients with EVA and elucidated the impact of rare variants on splicing, thus contributing to the mutational spectrum of pathogenic variants in the SLC26A4 gene.

Abstract Extreme events with increasing frequency and intensity are significantly affecting the permafrost environment. Analysis using the ERA5-Land reanalysis data revealed that the permafrost region of the central Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) experienced the summer heat wave in 2022. Four active layer sites experienced maximum active layer thicknesses (ALT) in 2022 (mean: 207.7 cm), which was 20% higher than the mean ALT during 2000–2021 (mean: 175.9 cm). The mean annual ground temperature (MAGT) observed in 2022 was also the highest, exceeding the average of the previous years by 10%. The contribution fraction of heat wave to the seasonal thaw depth of active layer was quantified using Stefan model with ranging from 6.6% to 13.6%, and the maximum contribution fraction occurs in 2022. These findings are helpful to better understand the impact processes of extreme events on the active layer and permafrost.

Abstract Background Clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) remains one of the most lethal urological malignancies even though a great number of improvements in diagnosis and management have achieved over the past few decades. Accumulated evidence revealed that histone deacetylases (HDACs) play vital role in cell proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis. Nevertheless, the biological functions of histone deacetylation modification related genes in ccRCC remains poorly understood. Method Bulk transcriptomic data and clinical information of ccRCC patients were obtained from the TCGA database and collected from the Chinese PLA General Hospital. A total of 36 histone deacetylation genes were selected and studied in our research. Univariate cox regression analysis, least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression, random forest (RF) analysis, and protein-protein interaction (PPI) network analysis were applied to identify key genes affecting the prognosis of ccRCC. The ‘oncoPredict’ algorithm was utilized for drug-sensitive analysis. Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis was used to explore the potential biological function. The ssGSEA algorithm was used for tumor immune microenvironment analysis. The expression levels of HDAC10 were validated by RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry (IHC). 5-ethynyl-2′-deoxyuridine (EdU assay), CCK-8 assay, cell transwell migration and invasion assay and colony formation assay were performed to detect the proliferation and invasion ability of ccRCC cells. A nomogram incorporating HDAC10 and clinicopathological characteristics was established to predict the prognosis of ccRCC patients. Result Two machine learning algorithms and PPI analysis identified four histone deacetylation genes that have a significant association with the prognosis of ccRCC, with HDAC10 being the key gene among them. HDAC10 is highly expressed in ccRCC and its high expression is associated with poor prognosis for ccRCC patients. Pathway enrichment and the experiments of EdU staining, CCK-8 assay, cell transwell migration and invasion assay and colony formation assay demonstrated that HDAC10 mediated the proliferation and metastasis of ccRCC cells and involved in reshaping the tumor microenvironment (TME) of ccRCC. A clinically reliable prognostic predictive model was established by incorporating HDAC10 and other clinicopathological characteristics ( https://nomogramhdac10.shinyapps.io/HDAC10_Nomogram/ ). Conclusion Our study found the increased expression of HDAC10 was closely associated with poor prognosis of ccRCC patients. HDAC10 showed a pro-tumorigenic effect on ccRCC and promote the proliferation and metastasis of ccRCC, which may provide new light on targeted therapy for ccRCC.

FeCrAl alloy, a promising candidate for accident tolerance fuel (ATF) cladding, has relatively low resistance to general corrosion in high temperature water. To improve the corrosion resistance, a continuous Al2O3 layer was formed on the surface of FeCrAl alloy through gaseous pre-oxidation. It was found that such treatment can significantly improve its corrosion resistance in high temperature hydrogenated water. The thickness of inner oxide layer after exposure to 320 °C hydrogenated water for 950 h was reduced by ∼40%. In addition, the size and density of outer oxide particles were also decreased. However, the Al2O3 film pre-formed on FeCrAl alloy had poor stability in high temperature water and its long-term effect needs to be further evaluated.

Abstract The morphological characteristics of the foot arch and the plantar soft tissue thickness are pivotal in assessing foot health, which is associated with various foot and ankle pathologies. By applying deep learning image segmentation techniques to lateral weight-bearing X-ray images, this study investigates the correlation between foot arch morphology (FAM) and plantar soft tissue thickness (PSTT), examining influences of age and sex. Specifically, we use the DeepLab V3+ network model to accurately delineate the boundaries of the first metatarsal, talus, calcaneus, navicular bones, and overall foot, enabling rapid and automated measurements of FAM and PSTT. A retrospective dataset containing 1497 X-ray images is analyzed to explore associations between FAM, PSTT, and various demographic factors. Our findings contribute novel insights into foot morphology, offering robust tools for clinical assessments and interventions. The enhanced detection and diagnostic capabilities provided by precise data support facilitate population-based studies and the leveraging of big data in clinical settings.

Adhesion after tendon injury, which can result in limb movement disorders, is a common clinical complication; however, effective treatment methods are lacking. Hyaluronic acid hydrogels are a new biomedical material used to prevent tendon adhesion owing to their good biocompatibility. In addition, potential drugs that inhibit adhesion formation have gradually been discovered. The anti-adhesion effects of a combination of loaded drugs into hydrogels have become an emerging trend. However, current drug delivery systems usually lack specific regulation of drug release, and the effectiveness of drugs for treating tendon adhesions is mostly flawed. In this study, we identified a new drug, imatinib mesylate (IM), that prevents tendon adhesion and explored its related molecular pathways. In addition, we designed a pH-responsive sustained-release hydrogel for delivery. Using the metal-organic framework ZIF-8 as a drug carrier, we achieved controlled drug release to increase the effective drug dose at the peak of adhesion formation to achieve better therapeutic effects. The results showed that IM blocked the formation of peritendon adhesions by inhibiting the PDGFRβ/ERK/STAT3/CLDN1 pathway. Furthermore, the hydrogel with ZIF-8 exhibited better physical properties and drug release curves than the hydrogel loaded only with drugs, showing better prevention and treatment effects on tendon adhesion.

Due to the concentrated carbon emission sources and the enormous carbon emissions in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous, it is necessary to evaluate carbon sequestration potential to support future CCUS planning and major demonstrations. Based on the basic geological conditions for carbon sequestration in Ningxia, this study used the volumetric method of the US Department of Energy (US-DOE) to assess the geological potential for deep saline aquifer sequestration in Ningxia. The results show that the predicted geological potential of carbon sequestration in the deep saline aquifers in Ningxia is approximately 86.742 billion tons, with the predicted technical capacity of about 42.334 billion tons. The main reservoirs are concentrated in the Yanchi area in eastern Ningxia and the Liupan Mountain Basin. A preliminary evaluation of the suitability of saline aquifer sequestration in Ningxia was conducted by considering many factors such as the overall sequestration potential, cap rock integrity, geological stability, and socio-environmental risks. The results indicate that the Yanchi area in eastern Ningxia has favorable reservoir and cap rock conditions, stable structures, and low population density, making it a potential region for CO2 sequestration in Ningxia.

Abstract The effectiveness of national policies for air pollution control has been demonstrated, but the relative effectiveness of short-term emission reduction measures in comparison with national policies has not. Here we show that short-term abatement measures during important international events substantially reduced PM2.5 concentrations, but air quality rebounded to pre-event levels after the measures ceased. Long-term adherence to strict emission reduction policies led to successful decreases of 54% in PM2.5 concentrations in Beijing, and 23% in atmospheric nitrogen deposition in China from 2012 to 2020. Incentivized by “blue skies” type campaigns, economic development and reactive nitrogen pollution are quickly decoupled, showing that a combination of inspiring but aggressive short-term measures and effective but durable long-term policies delivers sustainable air quality improvement. However, increased ammonia concentrations, transboundary pollutant flows, and the complexity to achieving reduction targets under climate change scenarios, underscore the need for the synergistic control of multiple pollutants and inter-regional action.

Background Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) such as minimally invasive chevron osteotomy and Akin osteotomy (MICA) has become popular in the treatment of hallux valgus. However, how to correct three‐dimensional deformities in hallux valgus effectively and simply in MICA is still difficult. Special equipment is required in MICA as has been reported before. It is meaningful and necessary to reduce the reliance on special equipment in MICA. Methods From January 2021 to July 2022, patients with mild or moderate hallux valgus were treated with a joy‐stick assistant three‐dimensional modified technique (Joy‐stick 3D technique) of MIS. VAS, AOFAS Hallux MTP‐IP scores, hallux valgus angle (HVA), intermetatarsal angle (IMA), and distal metatarsal articular angle (DMAA) were measured pre‐ and postoperatively at the last follow‐up of at least 6 months. Scores and radiologic angles were compared using paired sample t‐test. Results A total of 36 cases were included. HVA, IMA, and DMAA were (22.3 ± 6.1)°, (14.0 ± 3.2)°, and (8.9 ± 3.2)° preoperatively, and decreased to (7.0 ± 1.8)°, (3.7 ± 1.0)°, and (3.3 ± 1.1)° postoperatively. VAS decreased from 4.3 ± 1.7 to 0.7 ± 0.7. AOFAS Hallux MTP‐IP scores improved from 68.6 ± 7.6 to 92.9 ± 6.1. Comparing mild and moderate cases, though HVA, IMA, and DMAA were significantly different preoperatively, the angles became statistically similar after surgery. Conclusions A joy‐stick assistant three‐dimensional modified technique is proposed to control the three‐dimensional position of the metatarsal head and to reduce dependence on special tools. Mild and moderate hallux valgus deformities are effectively corrected using Joy‐stick 3D technique.

Background and objective: Robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) is widely used because of the many advantages of a robotic approach. The da Vinci Si robot is one of the most commonly used surgical robot systems, but it may be associated with higher costs owing to the use of consumable surgical supplies. Our aim was to conduct a preliminary investigation of the capability of the MP1000 system for RARP. Methods: In this prospective, multicentre, single-blinded study, we randomly assigned 42 patients scheduled to undergo RARP between April and September 2021 to a da Vinci Si group (control) or an MP1000 group (intervention). Patients underwent RARP performed using the assigned robotic system and were followed up at 3-mo intervals. The primary outcome was the rate of conversion to open/laparoscopic surgery. Secondary outcomes were installation and operation times, intraoperative blood loss, postoperative surgical margin status, hospital stay, incontinence, complications, safety indicators, and surgeon ergonomics. Key findings and limitations: All procedures were successfully completed without conversion to open/laparascopic surgery or major complications. Secondary outcomes, including oncological and ergonomic indicators, did not differ significantly between the groups over the study period. One patient in the control group experienced dysuria (Clavien-Dindo grade 3). No patients had incontinence at 3 mo. A limitation of the study is the small sample size. Conclusions and clinical implications: RARP with the MP1000 system is feasible, safe, and effective in the management of localised prostate cancer. Patient summary: We assessed the effectiveness and safety of the new MP1000 robot system for robot-assisted removal of the prostate in comparison to the da Vinci Si robot. We found no difference in effectiveness or safety among 42 patients with prostate cancer who were assigned randomly to one of the two systems. We conclude that the MP1000 is a suitable robot for this surgery.

BackgroundDifficulty in achieving complete resection leads to a poor prognosis for retroperitoneal soft tissue sarcoma, hence emphasizing the significance of adjuvant treatment. The benefit of preoperative radiotherapy for retroperitoneal liposarcoma was initially demonstrated by the STRASS trial. However, the impact of intraoperative radiotherapy (IORT) on retroperitoneal liposarcoma remains unexplored.MethodPatients with retroperitoneal liposarcoma were identified in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database, treated between 2000 and 2019. Subsequently, a 1:1 propensity score-matched (PSM) analysis was conducted based on variables identified from a multivariate analysis. T-tests were used to assess differences in normally distributed continuous variables, while the rank-sum test was applied to variables that did not follow a normal distribution. The chi-squared test was utilized to evaluate differences in categorical variables. Ultimately, survival analysis was performed using SPSS to evaluate patient prognosis.ResultA total of 2129 patients with retroperitoneal liposarcoma were included in our study. Age, sex, histology, grading, chemotherapy, and tumor size as independent prognostic risk factors for these patients through multivariate Cox regression analysis. Subsequently, 66 patients were included in the survival analysis through PSM, with 33 patients receiving IORT. Finally, the survival analysis revealed that there was no difference in overall survival among patients with retroperitoneal liposarcoma, regardless of whether they received IORT or not (p= 0.711).ConclusionAs an exploratory study, our findings suggest that patients may not derive benefit from intraoperative radiotherapy. These observations are intended to lay the groundwork for future prospective clinical studies.

Study region: Agricultural Irrigation and Drainage system - Ulansuhai Lake Continuum, located in the Hetao Irrigation District, Inner Mongolia, China. Study focus: In this study, carbon isotope tracing technology was applied to analyze the sources and migration-transformation characteristics of Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC) and Dissolved Inorganic Carbon (DIC) in the continuous system of the agricultural irrigation and drainage system - Ulansuhai Lake in the Hetao Irrigation Area of Inner Mongolia during typical irrigation periods. New hydrological insights for the region: During typical irrigation periods, DOC and DIC increase simultaneously with the increase in salinity, and dissolved carbon dioxide in the irrigation and drainage channels escapes. The main sources of DOC in farmland drainage water are terrestrial C3 plants (94.00 %) and plankton (6.00 %). The primary sources of DOC in the lake are farmland drainage (98.19 %) and macroaquatic plants (1.81 %). The main sources of DIC in farmland drainage water are irrigation water from the Yellow River (64.73 %) and the equilibrium dissolution process between carbonates and soil CO₂ (35.27 %); while the primary sources of DIC in the lake are farmland drainage (93.10 %) and air-water exchange (6.90 %). Crop types in the irrigated area, soil salinization, rock weathering, metabolic processes, and the hydrological connectivity induced by irrigation from the Yellow River jointly control the sources, migration, and transformation of carbon within the continuum.

Lifting path planning is critical for the safety and efficiency of tower cranes operating in dynamic construction environments. This paper proposes a lifting path planner to efficiently generate safe and smooth lifting paths for tower cranes in an unknown construction environment through a deep reinforcement learning (DRL) method. Based on the Twin-Delayed DDPG (TD3) framework, the planner effectively plans a lifting path within constraints of collision avoidance and operational limitations using the local environmental information measured by lidar. A Long Short-Term Memory network is applied in the planner to handle the dynamic characteristics of the obstacles in the construction sites to ensure that the lifting path is collision-free with dynamic obstacles. A discrete-continuous hybrid action space for tower cranes is proposed to optimize planned lifting paths more suitable for practical engineering operations. Moreover, a novel reward function is introduced to optimize the smoothness of the lifting path, which improves the success rate and optimizes the energy and time cost. A new Hindsight Experience Replay algorithm is proposed to address the reward sparsity problem in lifting path planning, which improves the training speed. Simulation results in Webots platform show the presented method effectively reduces the planning time and achieves better performance on online path planning compared with the existing DRL path planning methods.

P32 protein serves as a crucial structural component of Goat pox virus (GTPV), which causes a highly virulent infectious disease in sheep and goats. Despite the fact that P32 has been widely expressed in the previous studies, it is difficult to obtain recombinant P32 efficiently. This study aimed to achieve soluble expression of P32 recombinant protein and to develop its specific monoclonal antibody. The gene fragment of P32Δ (GP32Δ) was synthesized by optimizing the coding sequence of amino acids 1-246 of the known goatpox P32 protein. Subsequently, GP32Δ was cloned into a prokaryotic expression vector for expression and purification, resulting in the successful production of soluble recombinant protein rP32Δ. Utilizing rP32Δ, an indirect ELISA method was established by immunizing 6-week-old BALB/c mice with inactivated GTPV as the antigen. Through hybridoma technology, three monoclonal antibody hybridoma cell lines secreting anti-goat pox virus rP32Δ were screened, designated as 2F3, 3E8, and 4H5, respectively. These monoclonal antibodies, classified as IgG1, IgG2a, and IgG2b, respectively, with κappa light chains, were characterized following ascites preparation and purification. Indirect ELISA results demonstrated that the ELISA potency of the three monoclonal antibodies exceeded 1:12800. Furthermore, Western blot analysis revealed specific reactivity of both 3E8 and 4H5 with rP32Δ, while immunofluorescence assays confirmed 3E8's ability to specifically recognize GTPV in cells. The preceding findings demonstrate the successful acquisition of the soluble expressed recombinant P32 protein and its specific monoclonal antibody 3E8 in this study, thereby laying a foundational material basis for the establishment of a GTPV detection method.

To meet the demands for non-destructive testing of uniaxial mechanical properties of welded joints of thick-wall hydrogenation reactors, this study provides an experimental investigation on whether the spherical indentation tests (SITs) can accurately characterize the uniaxial mechanical property variations along the thickness of welded joints. The phenomenologically summarized empirical method (i.e., the Kwon method) and the semi-analytical method (i.e., the simplified-IIEM) were selected as representatives, and their reliability was judged from the viewpoints of stress-strain prediction, the inversion accuracy and repeatability of strength, and the ability to characterize the variation of uniaxial mechanical properties along the thickness of welded joints. Characteristics of the inverse predictions were analyzed, and the source of errors in each method were extensively investigated. This study provides a theoretical and technical guidance for the engineering application and promotion of SITs.

Permafrost in Mongolia is located in the transition zone between high-latitude and high-altitude permafrost regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with large temperature differences and complex subsurface characteristics. In this study, the reliability of the skin temperature data from the ERA5-Land product covering Mongolia is assessed via site observations. The ERA5-Land skin temperature dataset shows a cold bias, which is more pronounced in the cold season. Following calibration based on elevation differences, significant improvements are observed at both the annual scale (92 % improvement in RMSE (root mean square error) and 98 % improvement in MBE (mean bias error)) and the seasonal scale (78 % improvement in RMSE and 82 % improvement in MBE). Additionally, the spatial variations in the surface freezing index (SFI) and surface thawing index (STI) are most pronounced in the central and northeastern Mongolia. The SFI exhibits a significant decreasing trend of 7.16 °C·d/year, while the STI shows a significant increasing trend of 4.49 °C·d/year. Furthermore, the permafrost extent in Mongolia is simulated from 1950 to 2022 using the frost number (Fn) model and the temperature on top of permafrost (TTOP) model. The validated results indicate that the accuracy of the Fn model is relatively high, with an overall accuracy of 0.9 and a Kappa coefficient of 0.47. The permafrost extent in Mongolia has declined from 734.7 × 103 km2 in the 1950 s to 480.1 × 103 km2 in the 2010 s, with a prominent decrease of 3.2 × 103 km2/decade after 1994. According to the variations in permafrost extent during past 72 years, the Hovsgol and Khentii Mountain ranges have experienced significant permafrost degradation.

Abstract With its high energy consumption and pollutant emissions, the iron and steel industry is a significant source of air pollution and carbon emissions in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei (BTH) region. To improve air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, a series of policies involving ultra-low emission, synergistic reduction of pollution, and carbon application have been implemented in the region. This study has assessed air pollutant and CO2 emission patterns in the iron and steel industry of the region by employing co-control effects coordinate system, marginal abatement cost curve, and numerical modeling, along with the synergistic benefits of typical technologies. The results have demonstrated that: (1) the intensive production activities pertinent to iron and steel enterprises has contributed greatly to the emission in Tangshan and Handan, where the sintering process is the main source of SO2, NOx, PM2.5, and CO, accounting for 64.86%, 55.15%, 29.98%, and 46.43% of the total emissions, respectively. (2) Among the typical pollution control and reduction measures, industrial restructuring and adjustment of the energy-resource structure have led to the greatest effects on emission reduction. Technologies exhibiting great potential in emission reduction and high-cost efficiency such as Blast Furnace Top Gas Recovery Turbine Unit (TRT) need to be promoted. (3) In Tangshan city with the highest level of steel production, the iron and steel production activities contributed to the concentration of 30.51% of PM2.5, 50.67% of SO2, and 42.54% of NO2 during the non-heating period. During the heating period, pollutants pertinent to the combustion of fossil energy for heating have increased, while iron and steel induced emissions have decreased to 23.7%, 34.32%, and 29.13%, respectively. By 2030, it is speculated that the contribution of the iron and steel industry to air quality will be significantly decreased as result of successful implementation of ultra-low emission policies and typical synergistic reduction technologies.

Abstract Patients with ischemic cerebrovascular disease (ICVD) frequently develop concomitant peripheral artery disease (PAD) or renal artery stenosis (RAS), and multiterritorial atherosclerotic patients usually have a worse prognosis. We aimed to evaluate the status of peripheral atherosclerosis (AS) and cervicocephalic AS (CAS) in ICVD patients with AS, their correlation, and related risk factors contributing to coexisting cervicocephalic-peripheral AS (CPAS). Based on the severity and extent of AS evaluated by computed tomography angiography and ultrasound, the degree of AS was triple categorized to assess the correlation between CAS and PAD/RAS. CAS and PAD/RAS were defined as the most severe stenosis being ≥ 50% luminal diameter in cervicocephalic or lower limb arteries, and a peak systolic velocity at the turbulent site being ≥ 180 cm/s in the renal artery. Among 403 patients with symptom onset within 30 days, CAS, PAD, and RAS occurrence rates were 68.7%, 25.3%, and 9.9%, respectively. PAD was independently associated with the degree of extracranial and intracranial CAS (p = 0.042, OR = 1.428, 95% CI 1.014–2.012; p = 0.002, OR = 1.680, 95% CI 1.206–2.339), while RAS was independently associated with the degree of extracranial CAS (p = 0.001, OR = 2.880, 95% CI 1.556–5.329). Independent CPAS risk factors included an ischemic stroke history (p = 0.033), increased age (p

Abstract A DMA (dynamic mechanical analysis)-like device based on the principle of classical viscoelasticity testing is invented to investigate the in-situ/in-vivo shear-bearing mechanism of plantar soft tissue. Forty-three volunteers were recruited for the shear-strain test in the longitudinal and transverse directions at five anatomical spots on the plantar surface. Several encouraging observations indicated significant variances among different spots and individuals, implying that the outer forefoot surrounding the second, fifth metatarsal head is a more intensive shear-bearing region on the plantar surface compared to the inner forefoot under the first metatarsal head, and drawing the hypothesis of a significant effect of BMI on the shear-bearing property. The speculations agree with our expectations and other previous research. The feasibility and practical value of this novel approach are substantiated, and these intriguing discoveries provide foundational underpinnings for further in-depth investigations.

Abstract Biochar is widely used for sediment remediation owing to its excellent adsorption properties and low carbon footprint. However, the impacts of biochar capping on phosphorus (P) bioavailability and mobility in the sediment are little known. In this study, the P mobilization processes in sediments capped with biochar were investigated by combining advanced high-resolution sampling techniques and microbiome analysis. The results showed that biochar is a double-edged sword for the sediment P release, depending on the application dosage and the capping time. In the short term (30 days), 2-cm biochar capping decreased the release flux of soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) by 73.1%, whereas the 1-cm biochar capping significantly increased the release flux of SRP by 51.0%. After aging of biochar (80 days), the resupply capacity of sediment P was improved, resulting in increases of more than 33.7% and 121.5% in the release fluxes of SRP in the 1-cm and 2-cm capping groups, respectively, compared to the control group. Chemisorption played a pivotal role in regulating the levels of SRP, particularly during the short-term capping period. And more biochar can provide more adsorption sites on P. The P mobilization increase could be attributed to P desorption from biochar after biochar aging. Furthermore, biochar capping intensified the microbial-mediated iron reduction and organic matter decomposition, which enhanced P mobility. Our study highlights the importance of biochar application dosage and the capping time in sediment remediation, providing a scientific basis for the optimization of biochar capping techniques. Graphical Abstract

Abstract With the continuous development of wireless communication and artificial intelligence technology, Internet of Things (IoT) technology has made great progress. Deep learning methods are currently used in IoT technology, but deep neural networks (DNNs) are notoriously susceptible to adversarial examples, and subtle pixel changes to images can result in incorrect recognition results from DNNs. In the real‐world application, the patches generated by the recent physical attack methods are larger or less realistic and easily detectable. To address this problem, a Generative Adversarial Network based on Visual attention model and Style transfer network (GAN‐VS) is proposed, which reduces the patch area and makes the patch more natural and less noticeable. A visual attention model combined with generative adversarial network is introduced to detect the critical regions of image recognition, and only generate patches within the critical regions to reduce patch area and improve attack efficiency. For any type of seed patch, an adversarial patch can be generated with a high degree of stylistic and content similarity to the attacked image by generative adversarial network and style transfer network. Experimental evaluation shows that the proposed GAN‐VS has good camouflage and outperforms state‐of‐the‐art adversarial patch attack methods.

Minimally invasive surgery for hallux valgus correction, has been attracting great interests in the recent decades, due to the potential benefits of less pain, decreased recovery times, smaller scars with better cosmesis, and improved early post-operative range of motion. The most recent developments in minimally invasive surgery have evolved into the third generation with modifications of the chevron-type osteotomy. This evidence-based clinical guideline of the third generation minimally invasive surgery for hallux valgus is initiated and developed collectively by the Foot and Ankle Committee of Orthopedic Branch of Chinese Medical Doctor Association, Foot and Ankle Committee of Sports Medicine Branch of Chinese Medical Doctor Association, and Foot and Ankle Expert Committee of Orthopedic Branch of the Chinese Association of the Integrative Medicine. This clinical guideline provides recommendations for indications, contraindications, operative planning and techniques, post-operative management, management of complications, and prognosis of the third generation minimally invasive surgery for hallux valgus.The Translational Potential of this Article This comprehensive guideline aims to establish standardized recommendations for the indications, contraindications, operative techniques, and post-operative management of the third generation minimally invasive surgery for hallux valgus. By adhering to this guideline, the success rate of the procedure could be maximized. This comprehensive guideline serves as a valuable reference for practitioners interested in or preparing to perform minimally invasive surgery for hallux valgus.

The energy spectrum of energetic electrons is a key factor representing the dynamic variations of Earth’s Van Allen radiation belts. Increased measurements have indicated that the commonly used Maxwellian and Kappa distributions are inadequate for capturing the realistic spectral distributions of radiation belt electrons. Here we adopt the Kappa-type (KT) distribution as the fitting function and perform a statistical analysis to investigate the radiation belt electron flux spectra observed by the Van Allen Probes. By calculating the optimal values of the key KT distribution parameters (i.e., κ and θ2) from the observed spectral shapes, we fit the radiation belt electron fluxes at different L-shells under different geomagnetic conditions. In this manner, we obtain typical values of the KT distribution parameters, which are statistically feasible for modeling the radiation belt electron flux profiles during either geomagnetically quiet or active periods. A comparison of the KT distribution model results with those using the Maxwellian or Kappa distribution reveals the advantage of the KT distribution for studying the overall properties of the radiation belt electron spectral distribution, which has important implications for deepening the current understanding of the radiation belt electron dynamics under evolving geomagnetic conditions.

An accumulation of previous work has established organoids as good preclinical models of human tumors, facilitating translation from basic research to clinical practice. They are changing the paradigm of preclinical cancer research because they can recapitulate the heterogeneity and pathophysiology of human cancers and more closely approximate the complex tissue environment and structure found in clinical tumors than in vitro cell lines and animal models. However, the potential applications of cancer organoids remain to be comprehensively summarized. In the review, we firstly describe what is currently known about cancer organoid culture and then discuss in depth the basic mechanisms, including tumorigenesis and tumor metastasis, and describe recent advances in patient-derived tumor organoids (PDOs) for drug screening and immunological studies. Finally, the present challenges faced by organoid technology in clinical practice and its prospects are discussed. This review highlights that organoids may offer a novel therapeutic strategy for cancer research.

IntroductionPostpartum endometritis is a prevalent reproductive disorder in bovines, leading to a prolonged open period, infertility, and other complications. While Lactobacillus strains can mitigate these conditions by reducing uterine inflammation, their effectiveness is limited due to a lack of direct anti microbial action and extended treatment duration. This study aimed to construct a recombinant Lactobacillus johnsonii strain expressing bovine Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) to evaluate its potential in reducing postpartum uterine inflammation.MethodsThe recombinant Lactobacillus johnsonii strain was engineered to express bovine GM-CSF and administered to pregnant mice via vaginal perfusion. Postpartum endometritis was induced using E. coli infection, and the protective effects of the engineered strain were assessed. Inflammatory markers (IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α), myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity, and nitric oxide (NO) concentration were measured. Histological examination was performed to evaluate uterine morphology and pathological damage.ResultsThe recombinant L. johnsonii strain expressing GM-CSF significantly reduced inflammation levels induced by E. coli infection in the uterus. This reduction was evidenced by decreased expression of IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α, as well as reduced MPO activity and NO concentration. Histological examination revealed improved uterine morphology and reduced pathological damage in mice treated with the recombinant GM-CSF strain. Crucially, the recombinant strain also exerts beneficial effects on bovine endometritis by reducing levels of inflammatory cytokines, suggesting a beneficial effect on clinical bovine endometritis.ConclusionThe recombinant Lactobacillus johnsonii expressing GM-CSF demonstrated protective effects against postpartum endometritis in bovines by reducing inflammatory cytokines. The findings indicate the potential clinical application of this engineered strain in preventing postpartum uterine inflammation, offering a novel and effective protective option for related disorders and improving bovine reproductive efficiency.

Diazinon, an organophosphorus insecticide, is predominantly removed through photodegradation and biodegradation in the environment. However, photodegradation can generate diazoxon, a highly toxic oxidation byproduct, while biodegradation is hard to complete mineralize diazinon, showing limitations in both methods. In this study, we provided an efficient strategy for the complete and harmless removal of diazinon by synergistically employing biodegradation and photodegradation. The diazinon-degrading strain X1 was capable of completely degrading 200 μM of diazinon into 2-isopropyl-6-methyl-4-pyrimidinol (IMP) within 6 h without producing the highly toxic diazoxon. IMP was the only intermediate metabolite in biodegradation process, which cannot be further degraded by strain X1. Through RT-qPCR and prokaryotic expression analyses, the hydrolase OpdB was pinpointed as the key enzyme for diazinon degradation in strain X1. Photodegradation was further used to degrade IMP and a pyridazine ring-opening product of IMP was identified via high resolution mass spectrometry. The acute toxicity of this product to aquatic organisms were 123 times and 6630 times lower than that of diazinon and IMP, respectively. The stepwise application of biodegradation and photodegradation was proved to be a successful approach for the remediation of diazinon and its metabolite IMP. This integrated method ensures the harmless and complete elimination of diazinon and IMP within only 6 h. The research provides a theoretical basis for the efficient and harmless remediation of organophosphorus insecticide residuals in the environment.

Microbiota in the reproductive tract of cattle play a vital role in maintaining normal reproduction. However, the information on microbiota in different parts of reproductive tracts with different genetic background is few. The aim of the present study was to describe and compare the microbiota in vagina, cervix and uterus of Yanbian cattle and Yanhuang cattle. The results showed that microbial diversity increases from the vagina to the uterus. The top three bacterial phyla in bovine reproductive tract were Proteobacteria, Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes, accounting for more than 85%. From the vagina to the uterus, the relative abundance of Proteobacteria gradually decreased, while that of Firmicutes gradually increased. Phylum-level Firmicutes and genus-level UCG_010 were significantly enriched in the uterus of Yanbian cattle and Yanhuang cattle. Comparing the same parts of the two breeds, it was found that there was no significant difference in alpha diversity, but significant differences in beta diversity. In addition, microbiota with significant differences in the relative abundance of the reproductive tract were found. These findings lay a foundation for a comprehensive understanding of the structure of the genital tract microbiota of cows and its regulatory mechanisms.

Abstract The Land Surface, Snow and Soil moisture Model Intercomparison Project (LS3MIP) offers valuable land surface hydrology products from the land modules of current Earth system models (ESMs). Historical hydrological variables from six ESMs driven by four meteorological forcing data sets (GSWP, WFDEI, CRU‐NCEP, and Princeton) in Land Model Intercomparison Project (LMIP) have been extensively evaluated with various high‐quality reference data sets over Chinese mainland. Compared with the reference data sets, the multi‐model ensemble means (MMEs) of most hydrological variables are underestimated, while their annual trends show high spatial consistency, with sign consistency over 56%–85% of land area. After computing and ranking four statistical metrics (bias, correlation coefficient, normalized standard deviation, and unbiased root‐mean‐square biases) between simulations and references, it is found that the CLM5 has the best performance, while the GSWP3 exhibits the highest quality. Furthermore, the analysis of variance method (ANOVA) is then used to trace sources (model, atmospheric forcing data sets and their interactions) of the uncertainty of those modeling hydrological variables for 1900–2012 (1948–2012 for runoff) over China. The results indicate that the total uncertainty and its composition vary with time and decrease significantly in recent decades, reflecting the enhanced forcing data quality. Larger forcing uncertainty existed during the early twentieth century because less available observation data sets have been adopted to constrain climate variables. For all modeling hydrological variables, the model uncertainty plays the dominant role, suggesting that the quality of LMIP products largely relies on Land surface models.

BackgroundIn emergency departments (EDs), triage nurses are under tremendous daily pressure to rapidly assess the acuity level of patients and log the collected information into computers. With self-service technologies, patients could complete data entry on their own, allowing nurses to focus on higher-order tasks. Kiosks are a popular working example of such self-service technologies; however, placing a sufficient number of unwieldy and fixed machines demands a spatial change in the greeting area and affects pretriage flow. Mobile technologies could offer a solution to these issues. ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to investigate the use of mobile technologies to improve pretriage flow in EDs. MethodsThe proposed stack of mobile technologies includes patient-carried smartphones and QR technology. The web address of the self-registration app is encoded into a QR code, which was posted directly outside the walk-in entrance to be seen by every ambulatory arrival. Registration is initiated immediately after patients or their proxies scan the code using their smartphones. Patients could complete data entry at any site on the way to the triage area. Upon completion, the result is saved locally on smartphones. At the triage area, the result is automatically decoded by a portable code reader and then loaded into the triage computer. This system was implemented in three busy metropolitan EDs in Shanghai, China. Both kiosks and smartphones were evaluated randomly while being used to direct pretriage patient flow. Data were collected during a 20-day period in each center. Timeliness and usability of medical students simulating ED arrivals were assessed with the After-Scenario Questionnaire. Usability was assessed by triage nurses with the Net Promoter Score (NPS). Observations made during system implementation were subject to qualitative thematic analysis. ResultsOverall, 5928 of 8575 patients performed self-registration on kiosks, and 7330 of 8532 patients checked in on their smartphones. Referring effort was significantly reduced (43.7% vs 8.8%; P

Abstract Submesoscale fronts, with horizontal scale of 0.1–10 km, are key components of climate system by driving intense vertical transports of heat, salt and nutrients in the ocean. However, our knowledge on how large the vertical transport driven by one single submesoscale front can reach remains limited due to the lack of comprehensive field observations. Here, based on high-resolution in situ observations in the Kuroshio-Oyashio Extension region, we detect an exceptionally sharp submesoscale front. The oceanic temperature (salinity) changes sharply from 14 °C (34.55 psu) to 2 °C (32.7 psu) within 2 km across the front from south to north. Analysis reveals intense vertical velocities near the front reaching 170 m day−1, along with upward heat transport up to 1.4 × 10−2 °C m s−1 and salinity transport reaching 4 × 10−4 psu m s−1. The observed heat transport is much larger than the values reported in previous observations and is three times as that derived from current eddy-rich climate models, whereas the salinity transport enhances the nutrients concentration with prominent implications for marine ecosystem and fishery production. These observations highlight the vertical transport of submesoscale fronts and call for a proper representation of submesoscale processes in the next generation of climate models.

The ICESat-2 photon-counting lidar can simultaneously observe high-resolution radiometric and geometric characteristics of ocean waves. In this study, combining the wave radiometric and geometric characteristics, ICESat-2 can provide robust and accurate wind speeds over oceans that cannot be achieved by using a single characteristic. Specifically, with an along-track segment of 700 m, the sea surface photons and surface profile are detected and generated from ICESat-2 ATL03 geolocated photons by which the received energy and wave height are obtained. The unknown atmospheric transmittance and swell wave height have significant impacts on deriving the water surface reflectance (radiometric characteristic) and the wind-driven water height (geometric characteristic), respectively. We use all available ICESat-2 data in 2018 and 2019 to determine the unknown parameters and further separately estimate wind speeds. The radiation-based method performs better at low wind speeds, while the geometry-based method performs better at high wind speeds, and we combine each specific advantage to obtain more reliable wind speeds. In the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, and Indian Ocean, thousands of ICESat-2 ground tracks from 2020 are used to estimate wind speeds, and the performance is validated against a trustworthy data source of ERA5 with a root-mean-square error (RMSE) of ∼0.3 m for wave heights and an RMSE of ∼1.5 m/s for wind speeds. ICESat-2 has shown great ability to provide independent wind speeds over oceans with high accuracy and resolution, which may fill the gap of wind speeds on a small scale as the large-scale results are well observed by spaceborne microwave devices.

The surface water and ocean topography (SWOT) satellite, carrying a Ka-band radar interferometer, is designed to detect global hydrological, ecological, and climatic changes through high-precision measurements of water elevation level and to promote the sustainable use and conservation of water resources. The accuracy of water level elevations of inland from SWOT was verified globally in this article by comparing SWOT data with Hydroweb and G-REALM data, so as to better utilize the advanced global remote sensing observation capabilities of SWOT in hydrology. Through spatiotemporal matching validation, this experiment validates the SWOT data by time series within different regions, confirming that SWOT observations have an accuracy of more than 99% for inland lakes and rivers globally in eight geographic subregions. Compared with Hydroweb and G-REALM, SWOT's lake products have mean absolute error of less than 0.5 and 0.3 m, as well as a root mean square error (RMSE) of less than 1.5 and 2 m, respectively. SWOT's data reduce the error in the measurement of the lake by more than 0.1 m compared with the priori data and improves the accuracy by more than 10%. As for river measurements, SWOT's global average measurement error is less than 0.15 m, with an RMSE of less than 1.5 m, providing highly accurate measurements for rivers in most regions of the world. Overall, the product of SWOT can provide high-precision heights of terrestrial water bodies, which is of great significance for small inland water body measurements, global water quantity monitoring, and water circulation research.

FPGA has become a very powerful platform to provide real-time Electromagnetic Transient (EMT) solutions due to the much lower investment costs in comparison to the other existing real-time platform. Existing off-line initialization methods cannot be applied to real-time FPGA directly owing to timing constraints and resource utilization. Without appropriate initialization, it can lead to divergence for FPGA-based EMT simulations and cause inaccurate simulation results. To provide real-time initialization, this paper presents four initialization methods for FPGA-based EMT, namely, physical interface (Method 1), signal declaration (Method 2), signal assignment (Method 3) and Coefficient (COE) file (Method 4). The performance of these four methods are also compared, and Method 4 can initialize instantly with the simplest code. To improve hardware adaptability, optimized strategies are developed for address sequence, interface, update modes and dataflow. To accelerate initialization, software-to-hardware algorithm and structure are developed to automate initialization data sources for different topologies. Case study shows Method 2–4 can both initialize successfully on FPGA platform, while Method 4 achieves the best timing and routing performance. To verify scalability, Method 4 is expanded to initialize 4-machine 11-bus system and eliminate significant error to less than 5%, with a timing constraint of 0.005 ns.

Abstract Introduction This study aimed to investigate the microbial characteristics of yak uteri collected using intrauterine cotton swabs (CS) during different reproductive stages and the correlation of these microbial characteristics with reproductive status. Methods We used a macrogenomic approach to analyze the functional aspects of different microorganisms in samples collected during the pre-estrus, estrus, late estrus, and diestrus stages. Results The results revealed the presence of 1293 microbial genera and 3401 microbial species in the uteri of yaks at different reproductive stages. The dominant bacterial species varied across the different periods, with Micrococcus and Proteus being dominant during pre-estrus; Pseudomonas, Clostridium, Flavobacterium, Bacillus, and Staphylococcus during estrus; Acinetobacter, Bacillus and Proteus during late estrus; and Pseudomonas, Escherichia coli, and Proteus during diestrus. Discussion The primary functions of these bacteria are enriched in various metabolic pathways, including carbohydrate and amino acid metabolism, intracellular transport and secretion, post-translational protein modification, and drug resistance. These findings suggest that the microbial diversity in the uterus of yaks plays a crucial role in reproductive regulation and can help prevent reproductive tract-related diseases.

Abstract Background Cisplatin (CDDP)-based chemotherapy is a standard first-line treatment for metastatic bladder cancer (BCa) patients, and chemoresistance remains a major challenge in clinical practice. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) have emerged as essential regulators in carcinogenesis and cancer progression. However, the role of circRNAs in mediating CDDP chemosensitivity has yet to be well elucidated in BCa. Methods CircSTX6 (hsa_circ_0007905) was identified by mining the public circRNA datasets and verified by Sanger sequencing, agarose gel electrophoresis, RNase R treatment and qRT-PCR assays. Then, function experiments were performed to evaluate the effects of circSTX6 on BCa metastasis. Luciferase reporter assay, RNA pull-down, RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP), RNA stability assay, Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and Immunofluorescence (IF) were conducted to evaluate the interaction among circSTX6, miR-515-3p, PABPC1 and SUZ12. Animal experiments were performed to explore the function of circSTX6 in tumor metastasis and CDDP sensitivity. Results We identified that circSTX6 was significantly upregulated in clinical samples and cells of BCa. Functionally, circSTX6 promoted cell migration and invasion both in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, circSTX6 could act as a miR-515-3p sponge and abolish its effect on SUZ12. Moreover, circSTX6 was confirmed to increase the stability of SUZ12 mRNA by interacting with a mRNA stabilizer PABPC1 and subsequently promote the expression of SUZ12. Importantly, silencing of circSTX6 improved the chemosensitivity of CDDP-resistant bladder cancer cells to CDDP. Furthermore, in vivo analysis supported that knockdown of circSTX6 attenuated CDDP resistance in BCa tumors. Conclusion These studies demonstrate that circSTX6 plays a pivotal role in BCa metastasis and chemoresistance, and has potential to serve as a therapeutic target for treatment of BCa.

In some special working environments, such as high temperatures, strong electromagnetic fields, dark and narrow spaces, existing technologies such as laser doppler velocimetry (LDV) and high-speed photography velocimetry (HSP) cannot effectively measure the velocity of objects. Multi-core fiber (MCF) is a new type of microstructure optical fiber, which combines the characteristics of traditional optical fibers such as high temperature resistance and electromagnetic field resistance. At the same time, its structure is more compact and its volume is smaller, making it very suitable for working in harsh environments. In this article, we will use the special core layout structure of MCF, combined with their compact volume, to measure the velocity of object. The effects of distance between adjacent fiber cores and the number of cores on average coupling efficiency of spatial light are analyzed. Velocity error caused by the uniformity of fiber core layout is analyzed. An experimental comparison between MCF method and HSP method is conducted to verify the feasibility of the method.

Gait coordination (GC), meaning that one leg moves in the same pattern but with a specific phase lag to the other, is a spontaneous behavior in the walking of a healthy person. It is also crucial for unilateral amputees with the robotic leg prosthesis to perform ambulation cooperatively in the real world. However, achieving the GC for amputees poses significant challenges to the prostheses’ dynamic modeling and control design. Still, there has not been a clear survey on the initiation and evolution of the detailed solutions, hindering the precise decision of future explorations. To this end, this paper comprehensively reviews GC-oriented dynamic modeling and adaptive control methods for robotic leg prostheses. Considering the two representative environments concerned with adaptive control, we first classify the dynamic models into the deterministic model for structured terrain and the constrained stochastic model for stochastically uneven terrain. Inspired by the concept of synchronization, we then emphasize three typical problems for the GC realization, i.e., complete coordination on structured terrain, stochastic coordination on stochastically uneven terrain, and finite-time delayed stochastic coordination. Finally, we conclude with a discussion on the remaining challenges and opportunities in controlling robotic leg prostheses.

Gait impairment in Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is quantitatively assessed using the Movement Disorder Society Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS), a well-established clinical tool. Objective and efficient PD gait assessment is crucial for developing interventions to slow or halt its advancement. Skeleton-based PD gait MDS-UPDRS score estimation has attracted increasing interest in improving diagnostic efficiency and objectivity. However, previous works ignore the important cross-spacetime dependencies between joints in PD gait. Moreover, existing PD gait skeleton datasets are very small, which is a big issue in deep learning-based gait studies. In this work, we collect a sizable PD gait skeleton dataset by multi-view Azure Kinect sensors. The collected dataset contains 102 PD patients and 30 healthy older adults. In addition, gait data from 16 young adults (aged 24–50 years) are collected to further examine the effect of age on PD gait assessment. For skeleton-based automatic PD gait analysis, we propose a novel cross-spatiotemporal graph convolution network (CST-GCN) to learn complex features of gait patterns. Specifically, a gait graph labeling strategy is designed to assemble and group cross-spacetime neighbors of the root node according to the spatiotemporal semantics of the gait skeleton. Based on this strategy, the CST-GCN module explicitly models the cross-spacetime dependencies among joints. Finally, a dual-path model is presented to realize the modeling and fusion of spatial, temporal, and cross-spacetime gait features. Extensive experiments validate the effectiveness of our method on the collected dataset.

Satellite technology is an efficient tool, which can provide valuable observations for coastal areas from space. Compared with conventional bathymetric surveying approaches, remote sensing-based shallow water bathymetry retrieval methods have been widely used in recent years. Various empirical models have been proposed for deriving bathymetry of coastal shallow water, and prior topographic information is required to construct models. Traditional studies tend to select a cloud-free remote sensing image to map the coastal shallow water topography. As a result, in addition to the selection of empirical models, the high-quality remote sensing image and accurate prior topographic data are also of importance. This study aims to propose a method for mapping coastal shallow water bathymetry from multitemporal remote sensing imagery. Here, Sentinel-2 imagery time series are composited to produce a clear image, which can effectively avoid the contamination of clouds, water turbidity and other noises. ICESat-2 lidar altimeter data that contain accurate underwater elevations are used to provide topographic information. Moreover, Sentinel-2-based multispectral information and ICESat-2-based topographic information are combined for the coastal bathymetry retrieval by five empirical models (i.e., linear band model, ratio band model, support vector machine, neural network, and random forest). This proposed method is tested in Dongsha Atoll in South China Sea, and achieve a good performance [training: root mean square error (RMSE): 0.97 m ± 0.76 m, mean absolute percentage error (MAPE): 4.07% ± 0.046%, R-square (R2): 0.90 ± 0.14; validation: RMSE: 1.22 m ± 0.43 m, MAPE: 5.43% ± 0.035%, R2: 0.86 ± 0.089]. The comparison confirms that machine learning methods perform better than traditional methods, and the deep learning techniques can be further introduced in estimating shallow water bathymetry in the future, which is expected to achieve an excellent accuracy in bathymetry inversion.

Abstract Telomere length (TL) shortening is a pivotal indicator of biological aging and is associated with many human diseases. The genetic determinates of human TL have been widely investigated, however, most existing studies were conducted based on adult tissues which are heavily influenced by lifetime exposure. Based on the analyses of terminal restriction fragment (TRF) length of telomere, individual genotypes, and gene expressions on 166 healthy placental tissues, we systematically interrogate TL-modulated genes and their potential functions. We discover that the TL in the placenta is comparatively longer than in other adult tissues, but exhibiting an intra-tissue homogeneity. Trans-ancestral TL genome-wide association studies (GWASs) on 644,553 individuals identify 20 newly discovered genetic associations and provide increased polygenic determination of human TL. Next, we integrate the powerful TL GWAS with placental expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) mapping to prioritize 23 likely causal genes, among which 4 are functionally validated, including MMUT, RRM1, KIAA1429, and YWHAZ. Finally, modeling transcriptomic signatures and TRF-based TL improve the prediction performance of human TL. This study deepens our understanding of causal genes and transcriptomic determinants of human TL, promoting the mechanistic research on fine-grained TL regulation.