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In the past few decades, many works have devoted to obtain low-dose CT (LDCT) or cone-beam CT (CBCT) to reduce the risk of X-rays in computed tomography (CT). Generating synthetic CT (sCT) images with low-dose examination (such as LDCT and CBCT) is an effective method. However, it is exceedingly challenging to generate high-quality sCT images from CBCT or LDCT images because of the poor image quality caused by artifacts, noise, complex multi-scale structure and surrounding tissue. In this article, we propose a novel Generative-Transformer Adversarial-CNN (GTAC) to achieve high-quality sCT images with low-dose examination. The GTAC learns a multi-scale mapping function to correct the HU value between low-dose CT and high-quality CT images. Specifically, the GTAC is composed of transformer-style UNet for sCT images generation and CNN-style Network for discriminator, the transformer-style UNet learns the global structures of anatomies in multiple scales with the well-designed. The Channel Transformer (CTrans) and Multi-Scale Feature Aggregation (MSFA) module capture the multi-scale structure information of anatomies and tissues, which makes the generated sCT images with complete anatomies and details. The Cascade Multi-Scale Convolution (CMSC) module trains the generator with low noise and artifacts by aggregating multi-scale information. The proposed GTAC is evaluated on two challenging dataset: private data from Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, public data from '2016 NIH AAPM-Mayo Clinic Low-dose CT Challenge'. The experimental results show the advantages of the proposed GTAC on sCT images generation with higher peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR), structural similarity (SSIM) and lower mean absolute error (MAE), root mean squared error (RMSE). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a typical C 4 plant and important crop worldwide, maize is susceptible to drought. In maize, transitory starch (TS) turnover occurs in the vascular bundle sheath of leaves, differing from that in Arabidopsis (a C 3 plant). This process, particularly its role in drought tolerance and the key starch-hydrolyzing enzymes involved, is not fully understood. We discovered that the expression of the β-amylase (BAM) gene ZmBAM8 is highly upregulated in the drought-tolerant inbred line Chang7-2t. Inspired by this finding, we systematically investigated TS degradation in maize lines, including Chang7-2t, Chang7-2, B104, and ZmBAM8 overexpression (OE) and knockout (KO) lines. We found that ZmBAM8 was significantly induced in the vascular bundle sheath by drought, osmotic stress, and abscisic acid. The stress-induced gene expression and chloroplast localization of ZmBAM8 align with the tissue and subcellular sites where TS turnover occurs. The recombinant ZmBAM8 was capable of effectively hydrolyzing leaf starch. Under drought conditions, the leaf starch in ZmBAM8 -OE plants substantially decreased under light, while that in ZmBAM8 -KO plants did not decrease. Compared with ZmBAM8 -KO plants, ZmBAM8 -OE plants exhibited increased drought tolerance. Our study provides insights into the significance of leaf starch degradation in C 4 crops and contributes to the development of drought-resistant maize. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exposure to metals during pregnancy can potentially influence blood pressure (BP) in children, but few studies have examined the mixed effects of prenatal metal exposure on childhood BP. We aimed to assess the individual and combined effects of prenatal metal and metalloid exposure on BP in preschool children. A total of 217 mother–child pairs were selected from the Zhuang Birth Cohort in Guangxi, China. The maternal plasma concentrations of 20 metals [e.g. lead (Pb), rubidium (Rb), cesium (Cs), and zinc (Zn)] in early pregnancy were measured by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Childhood BP was measured in August 2021. The effects of prenatal metal exposure on childhood BP were explored by generalized linear models, restricted cubic spline and Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) models. In total children, each unit increase in the log10-transformed maternal Rb concentration was associated with a 10.82-mmHg decrease (95% CI: −19.40, −2.24) in childhood diastolic BP (DBP), and each unit increase in the log10-transformed maternal Cs and Zn concentrations was associated with a 9.67-mmHg (95% CI: −16.72, −2.61) and 4.37-mmHg (95% CI: −8.68, −0.062) decrease in childhood pulse pressure (PP), respectively. The log10-transformed Rb and Cs concentrations were linearly related to DBP (P nonlinear=0.603) and PP (P nonlinear=0.962), respectively. Furthermore, an inverse association was observed between the log10-transformed Cs concentration and PP (β =-12.18; 95% CI: −22.82, −1.54) in girls, and between the log10-transformed Rb concentration and DBP (β =-12.54; 95% CI: −23.87, −1.21) in boys, while there was an increasing association between the log10-transformed Pb concentration and DBP there was an increasing in boys (β =6.06; 95% CI: 0.36, 11.77). Additionally, a U-shaped relationship was observed between the log10-transformed Pb concentration and SBP (P nonlinear=0.015) and DBP (P nonlinear=0.041) in boys. Although there was no statistically signiffcant difference, there was an inverse trend in the combined effect of maternal metal mixture exposure on childhood BP among both the total children and girls in BKMR. Prenatal exposure to both individual and mixtures of metals and metalloids influences BP in preschool children, potentially leading to nonlinear and sex-specific effects. [Display omitted] • The combined effect of maternal metal mixtures on childhood BP show a potential inverse trend. • Maternal exposure to Rb and Cs are inversely associated with childhood DBP and PP, respectively. • The associations between maternal Fe, Sb, V, Cd, Co, and Cr exposure and childhood BP are nonlinear. • Sex-specific between maternal metal exposures and childhood BP are observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Food authenticity is essential to protect against fraudulent activities and ensure food safety. However, traditional authentication methods have limited capabilities due to lengthy testing period, bulky equipment, and low sensitivity and specificity. To address this, CRISPR/Cas and digital CRISPR (dCRISPR) have emerged as potential tools for quick and reliable food authentication. This review focuses on the CRISPR/Cas system and absolute quantification technologies, like sample partitioning-based dCRISPR, for food authentication. It provides a detailed overview of various Cas proteins for detection, diverse amplification methods to enhance signal, and different digital sample partitioning techniques facilitating absolute quantification. Notably, it explores the latest advancements of CRISPR/Cas and digital assays for food authentication applications. Furthermore, it discusses the potential opportunities and challenges that CRISPR/Cas and dCRISPR present in food authentication. CRISPR/Cas and dCRISPR are ground breaking technologies for food authentication. When combined with digital sample partitioning, dCRISPR become even more sensitive and accurate than normal CRISPR/Cas-based detection, while also providing absolute quantification. These techniques can detect and quantify food adulterants, identify genetically modified food, distinguish closely-related species, and authenticate clean labels. With improved performance, CRISPR/Cas and dCRISPR have the potential to revolutionize the food supply chain. [Display omitted] • CRISPR/Cas and digital CRISPR provide a rapid and sensitive solution for food authentication. • Different CRISPR/Cas technologies for food detection were illustrated. • Diverse amplification methods to enhance CRISPR/Cas detection signal were reviewed. • Digital sample partitioning techniques that facilitate absolute quantification were discussed. • Recent applications of CRISPR/Cas and digital assays in food authentication were presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sodium lignosulfonate (SL) and silane coupling agent (SCA) were used to modify the fibrous filter elements to remove the useless binder and improve the strength, and their effects on the microstructures and properties were investigated. SL reduced the slurry viscosity to remove the binder present in the pores. The bulk density of the filter element was decreased after modification by SL, but the flexural strength was hardly affected. SCA enabled more Si O bonds to be formed to enhance the adhesion between the binder and fibers. After further modification by SCA, the binder content at the crossing points between the fibers and the bonding strength between the binder and fibers were improved so that the flexural strength was significantly increased. Furthermore, owing to the decrease in the surface tension after adding SL, more binder bridges were formed on the upper surface of the filter element, affecting the gas permeability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We aimed to investigate clinical symptoms and epidemiologic features of emergency surgery patients infected with the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). More than 5 million people worldwide have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since December 2019 to the time of this publication. Thousands of emergency operations have been carried out since December 2019. To date, however, no literature has focused on the clinical symptoms of emergency surgery patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 164 emergency surgery patients with or without COVID-19 pneumonia in Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University in Wuhan, China, from January 1, 2020, to January 20, 2020. For this report, the final date of follow-up was February 5, 2020. The associated clinical, laboratory, epidemiologic, demographic, radiologic, and outcome data were collected and analyzed. Of the 164 emergency surgery patients, the median age was 41 years (interquartile range, 29–89), and 136 (82.9%) were women. The associated main clinical symptom included fever (93 [56.7%])，dry cough (56 [34.2%]), fatigue (86 [52.4%]), nausea (78 [47.6%]), and dizziness (77 [47%]). Of 54 emergency surgery patients infected with COVID-19, the median age was 46 years (interquartile range: 25–89), and 45 (83.3%) were women. The pathologic clinical symptoms investigated included fever (54 [100%]), fatigue (48 [88.9%]), nausea (52 [96.3%]), dizziness (46 [85.2%]), and dry cough (44 [81.5%]). The lymphopenia (0.37 × 109/L [interquartile range: 0.23-0.65]) and increased C-reactive protein (24.7 × 109/L [interquartile range: 13.57-38]) were observed. The preoperative fever and postoperative fever in emergency surgery patients with or without COVID-19 pneumonia were analyzed in this study. Of 54 emergency surgery patients with COVID-19, 15 (27.8%) showed preoperative fever, 54 (100%) had postoperative fever. Of 110 emergency surgery patients without COVID-19, 5 (4.5%) had preoperative fever, 31 (28.2%) patients had postoperative fever. In emergency surgery patients with COVID-19, the fever lasted more than 7 days, markedly exceeded the length of time non–COVID-19 patients experienced fever (approximately 3 days). Furthermore, 43 health care workers were exposed to emergency surgery patients with COVID-19 pneumonia and were infected with COVID-19 pneumonia. In our study, the clinical symptoms of emergency surgery patients infected with COVID-19 displayed marked differences from those reporting common COVID-19 pneumonia. In addition, the health care workers were suspected to have been exposed to a great risk when caring for emergency surgery patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. Management guidelines of emergency surgery patients are described in in this report. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aluminum silicate fiber-based ceramic filter elements were prepared using different drying methods and calcination temperatures. The effects of these parameters on the performance, including the microstructure, bulk density, shrinkage, flexural strength, and pressure drop, were investigated. The results indicated that there were differences in the microstructures of the filter elements fabricated via three drying methods and that the microstructure significantly affected the flexural strength and initial pressure drop. Compared with blast and vacuum drying, microwave drying inhibited the migration of the binder, improving the structural uniformity and mechanical strength. The filter element effectively removed particles with a size of >1 μm and exhibited a good regeneration performance. Furthermore, owing to the crystallization of fibers after calcination at 1000 °C, the density and shrinkage of the sample were significantly increased and the initial pressure drop was reduced. The mechanical strength was significantly reduced after calcination at 800 and 1000 °C. As the calcination temperature increased, the filter element gradually became brittle. Therefore, the optimal calcination temperature of 600 °C was important for obtaining an excellent filter element with a high flexural strength and low pressure drop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]