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This study focuses on the interaction of the pseudoscalar meson octet and the baryon decuplet. In the continuum, it is observed that several J P = 3 2 - baryon resonances can be produced by the Weinberg-Tomozawa interaction in unitarized chiral perturbation theory, including the N(1875), Σ (1670) , Σ (1910) , Ξ (1820) and Ω (2012) . Among them, the Ξ (1820) and Σ (1670) may exhibit a potential two-pole structures. The unitarized chiral perturbation approach is then applied as the underlying theory to predict the energy levels of these systems in a finite volume. These energy levels are well described by the K-matrix parameterization constrained by flavor SU(3) symmetry. With the parameters from the best fits, the poles extracted from the K-matrix parameterization closely correspond to those derived from the underlying chiral effective field theory, as long as they are close to physical region and not significantly higher than the lowest relevant threshold. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MicroRNAs play a crucial role in regulating the epithelial barrier and immune response, which are implicated in the pathogenesis of ulcerative colitis (UC). This study aimed to investigate the role and molecular mechanism of miR-30c in the pathogenesis of UC using a dextran sulfate sodium salt (DSS)-induced colitis model, which is similar to ulcerative colitis. Wild-type (WT) and miR-30c knockout (KO) mice were assigned to either control or DSS-treated groups to evaluate the influence of aberrant miR-30c expression on UC pathogenesis. The disease activity index, inflammatory factors, and the extent of pathological and histological damage in colon tissues were analyzed. The effect of miR-30c on vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) gene expression was validated through luciferase reporter assay, qRT-PCR, Western blotting, and immunohistochemistry. The results showed that miR-30c KO mice with DSS-induced colitis model showed more severe phenotypes: significantly higher disease activity indices, significant body weight loss, reduced length of the colon of mice, increased number of aberrant crypt structures, reduced mucus secretion, and significant differences in inflammatory factors. These findings suggested that the absence of miR-30c might promote DSS-induced colitis, and the targe-regulatory effect of miR-30c on VIP might play an important role in the development of colitis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we employed a two-step modification process to improve the properties of 2D bimetallic nanoplates M(OH)(OCH3) (M = Co, Ni), which were recently proven as a promising "nano-flame retardant". The nanoplates were in situ modified with metal-organic framework ZIF-67 first and then silanized with a coupling agent APTES. Epoxy resin (EP) nanocomposites were fabricated using the functionalized M(OH)(OCH3). We investigated the performance of the nanocomposites in flame retardance and thermal stability. The results showed that 3% of APTES@ZIF-67@M(OH)(OCH3) gave the EP nanocomposite the V-1 rating in UL-94 test and the highest limited oxygen index of 27.6%. Moreover, the pHRR value of EP/APTES@ZIF-67@M 3% was reduced by 20.0% and 9.6%, respectively, compared to neat EP and EP/ZIF-67@M 3%. Regarding the mechanical properties, the Tensile properties and energy storage modulus of EP nanocomposite were both improved with 3% of APTES@ZIF-67@M(OH)(OCH3). The GC-MS test results revealed that the functionalized M(OH)(OCH3) significantly increased the cross-linking propensity of the EP matrix upon combustion, leading to the formation of a dense char layer. This study demonstrates the great potential of M(OH)(OCH3) as a highly efficient "nano-flame retardant" with tunable functionality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hierarchical zeolite (ZC) was synthesized by using electrospinning cellulose microfibers (ECM) with three-dimensional network structure as a hard template. The textual and structural properties of the prepared materials were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction patterns (XRD), nitrogen adsorption–desorption analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, and TG-DSC. In terms of adsorption properties, the performance was examined by adsorption of methylene blue (MB) on the conventional zeolite (ZA) and ZC. The results showed that ECM templating could significantly increase the mesoporous area and volume of the traditional microporous zeolite, and thus improve the mass transfer performance and adsorption capacity. ZC exhibited much faster and higher MB removal performance than the traditional zeolite with adsorption rate constant and maximum adsorption capacity of ZC approximately 20 and 1.2 times greater than that of ZA. Besides, ZC exhibited better resistance to interfering ions than ZA. Moreover, ZC could be conveniently regenerated by washing with NaCl and the MB adsorption capacity was almost constant in five cycles of the regeneration. These features enable ZC to be an effective and promising adsorbent to remove MB from water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electrode materials of copper oxide (CuO) nanospheres composite activated carbon (AC) (CuO/AC) were prepared by a hydrothermal method. CuO/AC and chitosan (CTS) were immobilized on the surface of the glassy carbon electrode (GCE) to construct a non-enzymatic glucose electrochemical sensor (CuO/AC + CTS + GCE). The results show that an average particle size of spherical CuO is about 500 nm, which evenly distribute on the surface of AC. The nanocomposites have a large surface area, more active sites, and higher electron transfer ability. CuO/AC + CTS + GCE-2 with a Cu2+ and AC molar ratio of 1 : 2 enhanced electrocatalytic activity toward the oxidation of glucose in alkaline media. It displays a fast response to glucose with a high sensitivity of 2073.6 μA mM–1 cm–2, a good linear concentration range from 0.2 to 2400 μM, a low detection limit of 0.1 μΜ (S/N = 3), and fast current response of 5 s. The sensor is highly selective to glucose in the presence of commonly interfering species. CuO/AC as electrode materials has the potential application for a cost-effective, non-enzymatic glucose electrochemical sensor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Survival for gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) has been increasing over the years after the introduction of tyrosine kinase inhibitors. However, the role of metastasectomy for GIST is still controversial. Patients are currently treated with imatinib or sunitinib in case of imatinib failures as optimal medical therapy for metastatic GIST. Methods: The Pubmed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library were systematically searched. Overall survival following liver resection ± tyrosine kinase inhibitor treatment for metastatic GIST was compared to treatment with tyrosine kinase inhibitors alone. Results: Eleven studies including both randomized control trials and retrospective cohort studies were included in the final analysis with a total of 988 patients. Seven studies encompassed data on 556 patients with isolated liver metastases (219 surgery ± drug groups and 337 drug-only groups) were included. Overall survival was significantly improved in patients undergoing liver resection ± drug therapy in comparison to drug therapy alone. [HR (95%CI) = 2.10 (1.58, 2.79); p<0.00001]. Subgroup analysis showed that patients also had improved progression free survival based on 4 studies. [HR (95%CI) = 1.92 (1.43, 2.56); p<0.00001]. In case of concurrent liver and peritoneal metastases, patients showed improved overall survival with aggressive surgical approaches based on 10 studies. [HR (95%CI) = 1.90 (1.56, 2.31); p<0.00001]. Conclusion: This meta-analysis found that liver resection for patients with metastatic GIST regardless of peritoneal metastases improved progression free and overall survival in conjunction with tyrosine kinase inhibitors as compared with medical therapy alone. Furthermore, liver resections did not have any immediate detrimental impact on survival in the group of patients selected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The combination of gemcitabine-based chemotherapy and immune checkpoint inhibitors has a good efficacy in advanced biliary tract cancer (BTC). The multi-target TKI lenvatinib and NGS-guided targeted therapy are also promising in BTC treatment. This study aimed to explore the performance of GemOX plus sintilimab and TKI (either lenvatinib or by NGS-guided targeted therapy) for local advanced or metastatic BTCs. Methods: This prospective single-arm study included patients with local advanced or metastatic BTCs and applied intravenous infusion of standard GemOX plus sintilimab and lenvatinib (no targetable gene alterations) or targeted therapy based on NGS (olaparib for BRCA1/2 mutation, dasatinib for IDH1/2 mutation, afatinib for EGFR amplification, lenvatinib for PDGFR and KIT mutation, and lenvatinib for FGFR/KIT mutation). Results: From November 2020 to December 2021, 22 patients BTCs (6 GBC, 14 iCCA, 1 pCCA and 1 dCCA cases) were enrolled, with an average age of 58.4 years. Partial response (PR) was achieved in 10 cases, stable disease (SD) in 9 cases and progression disease (PD) in 3 cases (13.6%). The objective response rate (ORR) was 45.5%, and the disease control rate (DCR) was 86.4%. During the treatment, the incidence of adverse reactions was 81.8%, and the incidence of grade 3/4 adverse events was 9.09%. For 14 patients with NGS, 5 patients were treated by targeted therapy and there were 1 SD and 4 PR cases. For four patients with positive PD-L1 expression, the ORR was 100%. While among the three patients with super-progression markers such as RET, MDM2 and FGF14/STK24, there were two SD and one PD cases. Conclusion: In patients with advanced BTCs, the combination of GemOX plus sintilimab and lenvatinib or NGS-guided targeted therapy showed promising ORR and DCR, especially for the patients with positive PD-L1 expression and targetable gene alterations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polygonatum Miller belongs to the tribe Polygonateae of Asparagaceae. The horizontal creeping fleshy roots of several species in this genus serve as traditional Chinese medicine. Previous studies have mainly reported the size and gene contents of the plastomes, with little information on the comparative analysis of the plastid genomes of this genus. Additionally, there are still some species whose chloroplast genome information has not been reported. In this study, the complete plastomes of six Polygonatum were sequenced and assembled, among them, the chloroplast genome of P. campanulatum was reported for the first time. Comparative and phylogenetic analyses were then conducted with the published plastomes of three related species. Results indicated that the whole plastome length of the Polygonatum species ranged from 154,564 bp (P. multiflorum) to 156,028 bp (P. stenophyllum) having a quadripartite structure of LSC and SSC separated by two IR regions. A total of 113 unique genes were detected in each of the species. Comparative analysis revealed that gene content and total GC content in these species were highly identical. No significant contraction or expansion was observed in the IR boundaries among all the species except P. sibiricum1, in which the rps19 gene was pseudogenized owing to incomplete duplication. Abundant long dispersed repeats and SSRs were detected in each genome. There were five remarkably variable regions and 14 positively selected genes were identified among Polygonatum and Heteropolygonatum. Phylogenetic results based on chloroplast genome strongly supported the placement of P. campanulatum with alternate leaves in sect. Verticillata, a group characterized by whorled leaves. Moreover, P. verticillatum and P. cyrtonema were displayed as paraphyletic. This study revealed that the characters of plastomes in Polygonatum and Heteropolygonatum maintained a high degree of similarity. Five highly variable regions were found to be potential specific DNA barcodes in Polygonatum. Phylogenetic results suggested that leaf arrangement was not suitable as a basis for delimitation of subgeneric groups in Polygonatum and the definitions of P. cyrtonema and P. verticillatum require further study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hierarchically structured CHA-type zeolite composite was fabricated from industrial wastes red mud and coal fly ash via a facile two-step method without the addition of templates. A macro-porous ceramic support was first sintered, then zeolite/ceramic composite was formed through alkaline hydrothermal reaction. The physico-chemical properties of the samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and surface area analyzer (BET). It was found that the as-prepared zeolite/ceramic composite featured micron sized CHA-type zeolite particles (14.1 wt%) on the macro holes and channels of its ceramic support, which developed a hierarchical structure. Compared to the ceramic support, its specific surface area was increased by 2400%. The successfully made zeolite/ceramic composite was tested as an adsorbent for Cs(I) adsorption in batch mode. The results showed that the adsorption of Cs(I) on ZCC can be well described by the pseudo-first-order model and Langmuir model with the maximum adsorption capacity of 34.5 mg/g (25 °C), which is nearly 8 times that of ceramic support. The thermodynamic studies revealed an endothermic and spontaneous process. TCLP results showed that all targeted toxic metals met the regulatory standard. Thus, the reported hierarchically structured zeolite synthesized from industrial solid wastes, exhibiting high adsorption capacity of Cs(I) ions and good environmental compatibility, has the potential to be applied in wastewater treatment. Highlights: Industrial solid wastes were used to prepare zeolite/ceramic composites. Zeolite/ceramic composite had a specific surface area 25 times that of its ceramic support. Zeolite/ceramic composite has Cs(I) adsorption capacity of 34.5 mg/g at 25 °C. All targeted toxic metals of samples from TCLP test met the regulatory standard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the epidemiological characteristics of susceptibility and age selectivity for women in Xp11.2 translocation renal cell carcinoma (Xp11.2 tRCC), we inferred that estrogen was to be blamed. Rad54 like 2 (Rad54l2) which might be one of key effector proteins of DNA damage mediated by estrogen was downregulated in numerous cancers, however, its role in epidemiological characteristics of Xp11.2 tRCC was needed to further study. We reviewed 1005 Xp11.2 tRCC cases and collected estrogen data and then compared the onset time of Xp11.2 tRCC cases in female with estrogen changing trend. An RNA-sequencing was performed in estrogen treated HK-2 cells and subsequently bioinformatic analysis was applied based on the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and GEO database. The male-to-female ratio of Xp11.2 tRCC was 1:1.4 and the median age of onset was 29.7 years old. The onset trend of female was similar to estrogen physiological rhythm (r = 0.67, p < 0.01). In Xp11.2 tRCC and HK-2 cells after estrogen treatment, Rad54l2 was downregulated, and GSEA showed that pathways significantly enriched in DNA damage repair and cancer related clusters after estrogen treated, as well as GO and KEGG analysis. Downregulation of Rad54l2 was in numerous cancers, including renal cell carcinoma (RCC), in which Rad54l2 expression was significantly decreased in male, age over 60 years old, T2&T3&T4 stages, pathologic SII&SIII&SIV stages as well as histologic G3&G4 grades, and cox regression analysis proved that Rad54l2 expression was a risk factor for overall survival, disease-specific survival and progression-free interval in univariate analysis. There existed female predominance in Xp11.2 tRCC and Rad54l2 might play vital role in estrogen mediating female predominance in Xp11.2 tRCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Patients with colorectal cancer frequently present with liver metastases requiring either concurrent colon and liver resection or staged resection for curative therapy. The goal of this study is to determine if synchronous resection increases risk of perioperative adverse outcomes such as surgical site infections (SSIs). Methods and procedures: We conducted a cross-sectional retrospective analysis of the targeted hepatectomy NSQIP database from 2015 to 2019. The primary outcome was surgical site infections stratified into superficial, deep, organ space, and wound dehiscence. We performed univariate followed by a multivariate logistic regression to determine if there were higher odds of SSIs in patients undergoing hepatic resection concurrently with primary colorectal resection. Additionally, we performed stratified analyses by size of hepatic resections (partial, total left, total right, and trisegmentectomy). Results: Of the 7,445 patients included in the study, 431(5.8%) underwent synchronous resection and 7,014 metachronous resection. On average, synchronous resections prolonged surgery by 62 min. There was no difference in superficial and deep SSIs between the groups; however, there was a significant difference in organ space SSIs. Patients undergoing synchronous resection had 1.51 times the odds of developing an organ space SSI (OR 1.51, 95%CI 1.10, 2.17, p = 0.04) compared to patients with metachronous resection on multivariate analysis. Patients undergoing a total right hepatectomy concurrently with a colorectal resection had 2.30 times the odds of developing an organ space SSI (OR 2.30, 95%CI 1.20, 6.86, p = 0.010). Conclusions: Prior studies demonstrated that synchronous resections are safe in properly selected patients with no difference in long-term outcomes. Few studies have explored immediate perioperative outcomes between the two approaches. After controlling for confounders, we demonstrate that synchronous resection with major hepatic surgery increases the risk of organ space SSIs. Future studies should elucidate the precise source of organ space SSIs in order to decrease the risk of this adverse outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has become an evolving global health crisis. Currently, a number of risk factors have been identified to have a potential impact on increasing the morbidity of COVID-19 in adults, including old age, male sex, pre-existing comorbidities, and racial/ethnic disparities. In addition to these factors, changes in laboratory indices and pro-inflammatory cytokines, as well as possible complications, could indicate the progression of COVID-19 into a severe and critical stage. Children predominantly suffer from mild illnesses due to COVID-19. Similar to adults, the main risk factors in pediatric patients include age and pre-existing comorbidities. In contrast, supplementation with a healthy diet and sufficient nutrition, COVID-19 vaccination, and atopic conditions may act as protective factors against the infection of SARS-CoV-2. COVID-19 vaccination not only protects vulnerable individuals from SARS-CoV-2 infection, more importantly, it may also reduce the development of severe disease and death due to COVID-19. Currently used therapies for COVID-19 are off-label and empiric, and their impacts on the severity and mortality of COVID-19 are still unclear. The interaction between asthma and COVID-19 may be bidirectional and needs to be clarified in more studies. In this review, we highlight the clinical evidence supporting the rationale for the risk and protective factors for the morbidity, severity, and mortality of COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Melamine–formaldehyde resin-coated bamboo fiber (MFBF) and ammonium polyphosphate (MFAPP) were prepared, and then flame-retardant polypropylene (PP)/bamboo fiber composites based on MFBF/MFAPP were obtained by melt blending. The water resistance, flame retardant, and thermal properties of the composites were studied. The results show that MFBF and MFAPP have excellent water resistance with the water contact angles 130.85° and 119.78°, respectively. Compared with pure PP, the limit oxygen index (LOI) of the prepared composite increased from 18.5 to 25.5% with the UL-94V-0 rating. The peak heat release rate of the composite decreased from 1011.8 to 344.3 kW·m−2 and the total heat release decreased from 100.6 to 58.8 MJ·m−2. Meanwhile, the total smoke release decreased from 1453.3 to 922.0 m2·m−2. After soaking in 70 °C water for 36 h, the composite still reached the V-0 rating in UL-94 test, demonstrating a good water resistance. This work provides an effective method to improve the water resistance and flame retardancy of PP/bamboo fiber composites. Melamine–formaldehyde resin-coated bamboo fibers (MFBF) and ammonium polyphosphate (MFAPP) were prepared, then flame-retardant PP/BF composites were obtained based on MFBF/MFAPP. The results show that prepared composite exhibited excellent water resistance and flame-retardant properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The soft continuum arm has extensive application in industrial production and human life due to its superior safety and flexibility. Reinforcement learning is a powerful technique for solving soft arm continuous control problems, which can learn an effective control policy with an unknown system model. However, it is often affected by the high sample complexity and requires huge amounts of data to train, which limits its effectiveness in soft arm control. An improved policy gradient method, policy gradient integrating long and short-term rewards denoted as PGLS, is proposed in this paper to overcome this issue. The short-term rewards provide more dynamic-aware exploration directions for policy learning and improve the exploration efficiency of the algorithm. PGLS can be integrated into current policy gradient algorithms, such as deep deterministic policy gradient (DDPG). The overall control framework is realized and demonstrated in a dynamics simulation environment. Simulation results show that this approach can effectively control the soft arm to reach and track the targets. Compared with DDPG and other model-free reinforcement learning algorithms, the proposed PGLS algorithm has a great improvement in convergence speed and performance. In addition, a fluid-driven soft manipulator is designed and fabricated in this paper, which can verify the proposed PGLS algorithm in real experiments in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metal—organic framework-derived materials have attracted significant attention in the applications of functional materials. In this work, the rod-like nickel-based metal—organic frameworks were first synthesized and subsequently employed as the hard templates and nickel sources to prepare the whisker-shaped nickel phyllosilicate using a facile hydrothermal technology. Then, the nickel phyllosilicate whiskers were evaluated to enhance the mechanical, thermal, flammable, and tribological properties of epoxy resin. The results show that adequate nickel phyllosilicate whiskers can disperse well in the matrix, improving the tensile strength and elastic modulus by 13.6% and 56.4%, respectively. Although the addition of nickel phyllosilicate whiskers could not obtain any UL-94 ratings, it enhanced the difficulty in burning the resulted epoxy resin nanocomposites and considerably enhanced thermal stabilities. Additionally, it was demonstrated that such nickel phyllosilicate whiskers preferred to improve the wear resistance instead of the antifriction feature. Moreover, the wear rate of epoxy resin nanocomposites was reduced significantly by 80% for pure epoxy resin by adding 1 phr whiskers. The as-prepared nickel phyllosilicate whiskers proved to be promising reinforcements in preparing of high-performance epoxy resin nanocomposites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: How to discriminate different risks of recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma (rNPC) patients and guide individual treatment has become of great importance. This study aimed to explore the associations between deep learning signatures and biological functions as well as survival in (rNPC) patients. Methods: A total of 420 rNPC patients with PET/CT imaging and follow-up of overall survival (OS) were retrospectively enrolled. All patients were randomly divided into a training set (n = 269) and test set (n = 151) with a 6:4 ratio. We constructed multi-modality deep learning signatures from PET and CT images with a light-weighted deep convolutional neural network EfficienetNet-lite0 and survival loss DeepSurvLoss. An integrated nomogram was constructed incorporating clinical factors and deep learning signatures from PET/CT. Clinical nomogram and single-modality deep learning nomograms were also built for comparison. Furthermore, the association between biological functions and survival risks generated from an integrated nomogram was analyzed by RNA sequencing (RNA-seq). Results: The C-index of the integrated nomogram incorporating age, rT-stage, and deep learning PET/CT signature was 0.741 (95% CI: 0.688–0.794) in the training set and 0.732 (95% CI: 0.679–0.785) in the test set. The nomogram stratified patients into two groups with high risk and low risk in both the training set and test set with hazard ratios (HR) of 4.56 (95% CI: 2.80–7.42, p < 0.001) and 4.05 (95% CI: 2.21–7.43, p < 0.001), respectively. The C-index of the integrated nomogram was significantly higher than the clinical nomogram and single-modality nomograms. When stratified by sex, N-stage, or EBV DNA, risk prediction of our integrated nomogram was valid in all patient subgroups. Further subgroup analysis showed that patients with a low-risk could benefit from surgery and re-irradiation, while there was no difference in survival rates between patients treated by chemotherapy in the high-risk and low-risk groups. RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) of data further explored the mechanism of high- and low-risk patients from the genetic and molecular level. Conclusion: Our study demonstrated that PET/CT-based deep learning signatures showed satisfactory prognostic predictive performance in rNPC patients. The nomogram incorporating deep learning signatures successfully divided patients into different risks and had great potential to guide individual treatment: patients with a low-risk were supposed to be treated with surgery and re-irradiation, while for high-risk patients, the application of palliative chemotherapy may be sufficient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The more efficient and hydrophobic modificated ammonium polyphosphate (M-APP) and charring agent (M-CA) were prepared based on sol–gel method, and they were used in the preparation of water-resistant and flame-retardant polypropylene (PP) composites. The results showed that the contact angles of M-APP and M-CA were 135.11° and 137.89°, respectively. The flame-retardant and thermal properties of the PP composites were also studied. The results showed that the flame retardancy of PP loaded with 30 mass% intumescent flame retardant (M-APP/M-CA = 3:1) was significantly increased. The limiting oxygen index (LOI) reached 36.8% and passed UL-94 V-0. The peak heat release rate and total heat release of the PP composite decreased from 1011.77 to 134.43 kW·m−2 and 100.58 to 6.86 MJ·m−2, respectively. The peak smoke production rate and total smoke release decreased from 0.13 to 0.0056 m2·s−1 and 1453.09 to 74.82 m2·m−2. The PP composite with M-APP/M-CA = 3:1 also exhibited excellent water resistance, and it could still reach UL-94 V-0 after soaking in 70 ℃ water for 168 h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current visual-based simultaneous localization and mapping(SLAM) system suffers from feature loss caused by fast motion and unstructured scene in complex environments. Addressing this problem, a fast semi-direct SLAM algorithm is proposed in this paper. The main idea of this method is to combine the feature point method with the direct method in order to improve the robustness of the system in the environment of scarce visual features and low texture. First, the feature enhancement module based on subgraph is developed to extract image feature points more stably. Second, an apparent shape weighted fusion method is proposed for camera pose estimation, which can still work robustly in the absence of feature points. Third, an incremental dynamic covariance scaling algorithm is studied for optimizing the error of camera pose estimation. Finally, based on the optimized camera pose, a face element model is designed to estimate and fuse the point cloud pose, and obtain an ideal three-dimensional point cloud map. The proposed algorithm has been tested extensively on the benchmark TUM dataset and the real environment. The results show that the algorithm has better performance than existing visual based SLAM algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An exotic state with JPC = 1−+, denoted by η1(1855), was observed by BESIII Collaboration recently in J/ψ → γηη′. The fact that its mass is just below the threshold of KK̄1(1400) stimulates us to investigate whether this exotic state can be interpreted as a KK̄1(1400) + c.c. molecule or not. Using the one boson exchange model, we show that it is possible for KK̄1(1400) with JPC = 1−+ to bind together by taking the momentum cutoff Λ ≳ 2 GeV and yield the same binding energy as the experimental value when Λ ≈ 2.5 GeV. In this molecular picture, the predicted branch ratio Br(η1(1855) → ηη′) ≈ 15% is consistent with the experimental results, which again supports the molecular explanation of η1(1855). Relevant systems, namely KK̄1(1400) with JPC = 1−− and KK̄1(1270) with JPC = 1−±, are also investigated, some of which can be searched for in the future experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to quantitatively study the effect of anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) on the risk of spinal injury under frontal impact. A head-neck finite element model incorporating active neck muscles and soft tissues was developed and validated. Based on the intact head-neck model, three ACDF models (single-level, two-level and three-level) were used to analyze the frontal impact responses of the head-neck. The results revealed that various surgical approaches led to distinct patterns of vertebral damage under frontal impact. For single-level and three-level ACDFs, vertebral destruction was mainly concentrated at the lower end of the fused segment, while the other vertebrae were not significantly damaged. For two-level ACDF, the lowest vertebra was the first to suffer destruction, followed by severe damage to both the upper and lower vertebrae, while the middle vertebra of the cervical spine exhibited only partial damage around the screws. Fusion surgery for cervical spine injuries predominantly influences the vertebral integrity of the directly fused segments when subjected to frontal impact, while exerting a comparatively lesser impact on the cross-sectional properties of adjacent, non-fused segments.Graphical abstract: The aim of this study was to quantitatively study the effect of anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) on the risk of spinal injury under frontal impact. A head-neck finite element model incorporating active neck muscles and soft tissues was developed and validated. Based on the intact head-neck model, three ACDF models (single-level, two-level and three-level) were used to analyze the frontal impact responses of the head-neck. The results revealed that various surgical approaches led to distinct patterns of vertebral damage under frontal impact. For single-level and three-level ACDFs, vertebral destruction was mainly concentrated at the lower end of the fused segment, while the other vertebrae were not significantly damaged. For two-level ACDF, the lowest vertebra was the first to suffer destruction, followed by severe damage to both the upper and lower vertebrae, while the middle vertebra of the cervical spine exhibited only partial damage around the screws. Fusion surgery for cervical spine injuries predominantly influences the vertebral integrity of the directly fused segments when subjected to frontal impact, while exerting a comparatively lesser impact on the cross-sectional properties of adjacent, non-fused segments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Southern blight, caused by Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc., is a significant disease of apple in China and many other counties. Sclerotium germination and hyphal growth are two critical processes for epidemic development. Controlled experiments were conducted to study the effects of environmental conditions on sclerotium germination and hyphal growth of the pathogen. Temperature for sclerotium germination and hyphal growth of S. rolfsii ranges from 15 to 35oC with the optimum at 31.5oC. The soil water content needs to exceed 30%, and once over this threshold, soil water content did not affect sclerotium germination and hyphal growth. The rate of sclerotium germination was high in sawdust, and hyphae grew fastest in the mixture of sawdust and soil. Sclerotium germination and hyphal growth were inhibited in nursery substrate. Hyphal growth was affected by pH but to a far lesser extent sclerotium germination. Soaking in water inhibited sclerotium germination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs) of the gallbladder are very rare. As a result, the classification of pathologic specimens from gallbladder NENs, currently classified as gallbladder neuroendocrine tumors (GB-NETs) and carcinomas (GB-NECs), is inconsistent and makes nomenclature, classification, and management difficult. Our study aims to evaluate the epidemiological trend, tumor biology, and outcomes of GB-NET and GB-NEC over the last 5 decades. Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of the SEER database from 1973 to 2016. The epidemiological trend was analyzed using the age-adjusted Joinpoint regression analysis. Survival was assessed with Kaplan–Meier analysis and Cox regression was used to assess predictors of poor survival. Results: A total of 482 patients with GB-NEN were identified. Mean age at diagnosis was 65.2 ± 14.3 years. Females outnumbered males (65.6% vs. 34.4%). The Joinpoint nationwide trend analysis showed a 7% increase per year from 1973 to 2016. The mean survival time after diagnosis of GB-NEN was 37.11 ± 55.3 months. The most common pattern of nodal distribution was N0 (50.2%) followed by N1 (30.9%) and N2 (19.2%). Advanced tumor spread (into the liver, regional, and distant metastasis) was seen in 60.3% of patients. Patients who underwent surgery had a significant survival advantage (111.0 ± 8.3 vs. 8.3 ± 1.2 months, p < 0.01). Cox regression analysis showed advanced age (p < 0.01), tumor stage (P < 0.01), tumor extension (p < 0.01), and histopathologic grade (p < 0.01) were associated with higher mortality. Conclusion: Gallbladder NENs are a rare histopathological variant of gallbladder cancer that is showing a rising incidence in the USA. In addition to tumor staging, surgical resection significantly impacts patient survival, when patients are able to undergo surgery irrespective of tumor staging. Advanced age, tumor extension, and histopathological grade of the tumor were associated with higher mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the phosphorus-modified nickel phyllosilicate (P-NiPS) particles were synthesized, and the effect on the thermal stability, flame retardancy and mechanical properties of epoxy (EP) composite was investigated. A phosphorus-containing silane agent was first chemically obtained and then adopted as a silicon source to synthesize the P-NiPS particles via a facile sol–gel method, which were then physically mixed with EP to yield EP composites. Results showed that the introduced P-NiPS could enhance the thermal stabilities, showing the suppressed mass loss rate and increased residual chars. Also, the flame retardancy of EP/P-NiPS composites was enhanced significantly. With the addition of 5 wt%, the limiting oxygen index increased from 23.8% up to 29.2% while the burning time dropped from 214 s down to 7 s remarkably, achieving the UL-94 V-0 rating. The peak heat release rate and total heat release were also declined considerably by 62.5% and 23.7%, respectively, when compared with pure EP. Simultaneously, the smoke and carbon monoxide productions were also suppressed significantly. According to the analysis of residual chars and pyrolysis products, the major retardant mechanism was discussed. The elastic modulus of EP composites was boosted to some extent while the tensile strength and elongation at break were decreased reasonably. This work provided a promising method for preparing EP composites with excellent flame retardancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spatiotemporal evolution of hairpin vortex structures in a fully developed turbulent boundary layer is investigated qualitatively and quantitatively by using two image methods. In this paper, the moving single-frame and long-exposure (MSFLE) image method is used to intuitively track the evolution process of a hairpin vortex, while the moving particle image velocimetry (moving-PIV) method is applied for obtaining a moving velocity field for quantitative analysis. According to the structural characteristics of the hairpin vortex, an inclined light sheet with an appropriate inclination of 53° is arranged to capture the complete hairpin vortex structure at Reθ = 97–194. In addition, the core size and the rotational strength of a hairpin vortex are further defined and quantified by the Liutex vector method. The evolution process of a complete hairpin vortex structure observed by MSFLE shows that the shear along the normal direction leads to an increasing strength of the hairpin vortex, accompanied by a lifting vortex head and a distance decrease between two vortex legs during the dissipation period. By combining moving-PIV with the Liutex identification, the spatiotemporal evolution of four typical regions of a hairpin vortex projecting into a 53° cross-section is obtained. The results show that the process from the generation to the dissipation of a single hairpin vortex can be well characterized and recorded by the Liutex based on the core size and rotational intensity, and the evolution process is consistent with the MSFLE result. According to the statistics of vortex core size and rotation intensity along time, the evolution of the hairpin vortex necks and legs can be described as a process of enhancement followed by dissipation. For the vortex head, its evolution maintains longer attributed to its far-from-wall position, which consists of an absolute enhancement process (stage 1) with an increasing rotation strength and a constant core size, and an absolute dissipation (stage 2) with a decreasing rotation strength and a constant core size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many candidates of the so-called exotic hadrons have been observed experimentally and most of them are located close to the threshold of a pair of hadrons. The general behavior of the near-threshold line shapes of invariant mass distributions is discussed. To be precise, the threshold cusp can show up as a peak only for channels with attractive interaction, and the width of the cusp is inversely proportional to the reduced mass relevant for the threshold. We argue that there should be (near-)threshold structures for any pair of heavy-quark and heavy-antiquark hadrons, which have attractive interaction at threshold, in the invariant mass distribution of a heavy quarkonium and light hadrons that couple to that open-flavor hadron pair. Predictions of the possible pairs that have near-threshold peaks are given for the ground state heavy hadrons based on the interaction saturated by vector mesons. We also give a survey of the possible hadronic molecules composed of a pair of charmed-anticharmed hadrons by solving the Bethe-Salpeter equation with constant interactions and the experimental candidates of hadronic molecules fit this spectrum well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SBA-15 was chosen as the matrix to form WO3/SBA-15 composite by chemical deposition method. The surfaces of prepared SBA-15 matrix were modified using silane coupling agent (SBA-15-Si) to enhance its surface activity, and then the SBA-15-Si was covered with a layer of W film through the chemical deposition method, and WO3/SBA-15 was obtained by the following calcination. By this method, the WO3 was preferentially deposited on the pore surfaces of SBA-15. The WO3/SBA-15 material was structured with amorphous SBA-15 and n-type WO3, but it strangely showed a p-type semiconducting character. At room temperature, WO3/SBA-15 gas sensor had an excellent and stable gas sensitivity of 96.6% with the response time of 5 s towards 100 ppm NOx (mixed gas of NO and NO2). The outstanding gas sensing properties of WO3/SBA-15 composite was attributed to the large specific surface area, small grain size and lattice mismatch between WO3 and SBA-15 substrate, which made the WO3/SBA-15 composite had the more active sites and lattice defects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aimed to isolate and identify lactic acid bacteria (LAB) from silages and their application to improve the fermentation quality of alfalfa. Forty-nine LAB strains were isolated from silages, and two strains were screened for growth and acid production rates. Then two strains were selected for Physiological and morphological tests and 16S rRNA sequencing. They were Gram-positive and Catalase-negative and were able to grow at pH 3.5 and at 45 °C, were unable to grow different NaCl concentrations as 3.0% and 6.5%. Strain BDy3-10 was identified as Lactobacillus rhamnosus, while TSy1-3 was identified as L. buchneri. The selected strains were evaluated on fermentation of alfalfa silage. The highest crude protein content occurred in the BDy3-10 treatment group. The contents of neutral detergent fiber and acid detergent fiber in the TSy1-3 treatment were significantly lower than other treatment (P < 0.05). Compared to the control treatment, inoculation treatments deceased pH during ensiling (P < 0.001) and provided the most increased lactic acid content after ensiling for 10 days (P < 0.001). The acetic acid contents of all the inoculation groups were significantly increased (P < 0.001) during ensiling, and were lower than that of control group (P < 0.001). So, the TSy1-3 treatment most effectively improved the fermentation quality of alfalfa silage in warm and humid climate area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stimulated by recent experimental observation of X 1 (2900) just below the D ¯ 1 K threshold, we extend our previous study of D ¯ 1 D S-wave bound state by vector meson exchange to D ¯ 1 K system as well as similar D ¯ K 1 , D 1 K and D K 1 systems to look for possible bound states. We find that the potential of D K 1 is attractive and strong enough to form bound states with mass around 3110 MeV for D K 1 (1270) and 3240 MeV for D K 1 (1400) . D 1 K is also attractive but weaker, hardly enough to form bound states. While D ¯ K 1 becomes further less attractive, the potential between D ¯ 1 K is the weakest, definitely too weak to form any bound state, which excludes the recently observed X 1 (2900) to be a D ¯ 1 K bound state. We also give the decay properties of the predicted D K 1 bound states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silicon technology is dominant in electronics and optoelectronics. The cut-off wavelength of silicon is less than 1.1 μ m due to the bandgap, limiting applications of silicon in communication, sensing, and light harvesting. A new strategy for infrared photodetection is presented by integrating silicon and PbSe colloidal quantum dots (CQDs), which combines advantages of silicon devices and PbSe-CQDs. In this study, we introduce a silicon-based photodetector that is sensitive to infrared light with spectral response from 405 nm to 1550 nm. The device can deliver a high responsivity of 648.7AW− 1 and a fast response of 32.3 μ s at 1550 nm. Besides, the detectivity and the external quantum efficiency of the device reached 7.48 × 1010 Jones and 6.47 × 104%, respectively. The performance of the device originates from the photovoltage generated at the interface between the silicon and the quantum dots. This photovoltage changed the width of the depletion layer to realize detection. These results indicate that the silicon-based quantum dot infrared photodetectors prepared by this method have application prospects in the field of optoelectronics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this meta-analysis was to evaluate whether robotic pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) may provide better clinical and pathologic outcomes compared to its open counterpart. The Pubmed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library were systematically searched. Overall postoperative morbidity and resection margin involvement rate were the primary endpoints. Secondary endpoints included operating time, estimated blood loss (EBL), incisional surgical site infection (SSI) rate, length of hospital stay (LOS), and number of lymph nodes harvested. Twenty-four studies totaling 12,579 patients (2,175 robotic PD and 10,404 open PD were included. Overall postoperative mortality did not significantly differ [OR (95%CI) = 0.86 (0.74, 1.01); p = 0.06]. Resection margin involvement rate was significantly lower in robotic PD [15.6% vs. 19.9%; OR (95%CI) = 0.64 (0.41, 1.00); p = 0.05; NNT = 23]. Operating time was significantly longer in robotic PD [MD (95%CI) = 75.17 (48.05, 102.28); p < 0.00001]. EBL was significantly decreased in robotic PD [MD (95%CI) = − 191.35 (− 238.12, − 144.59); p < 0.00001]. Number of lymph nodes harvested was significantly higher in robotic PD [MD (95%CI) = 2.88 (1.12, 4.65); p = 0.001]. This meta-analysis found that robotic PD provides better histopathological outcomes as compared to open PD at the cost of longer operating time. Furthermore, robotic PD did not have any detrimental impact on clinical outcomes, with lower wound infection rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key message: Low number of pistillate flowers in the tung tree is a major factor causing the low yield of tung fruits. The tung tree (Vernicia fordii Hemsl.), an economically important woody oil plant, produces excellent fast-drying oil from the seeds which has been used as a protective finish on projects and surfaces for centuries. Knowledge of sex determination and flower development of tung trees is helpful for high-yield cultivation and breeding of new elite cultivars. However, studies on tung flower biology and ontogeny are still lacking. Here, we reported a comprehensive study of the flower biology and ontogeny of the tung tree, focusing on flower cycle, flower morphology and flower development. The inflorescence phenophases of monoecious tung trees were divided into 12 pivotal stages and used as a unique timeline to reference the events registered throughout the flower cycle. Histological studies on sporogenesis and gametogenesis were also conducted. Meanwhile, all the unique events throughout flower cycle were linked together to show the correlation between inflorescence development phenophases, pistillate and staminate flower stages and its embryological development. Tung trees in our plantation were grouped into three major types, i.e., monoecious, gynoecious and androecious trees which produced different number of fruits in each inflorescence. We propose that low number of pistillate flowers in the tung tree is a major factor causing the low yield of tung fruits, and that any measures increasing the number of pistillate flowers would effectively improve the yield of tung fruits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dynamic mechanism of the vortex generation and evolution process in a fully developed turbulent boundary layer with Reθ =97–194 is experimentally investigated. In this study, a moving single-frame and long-exposure (MSFLE) imaging method and a moving particle image velocimetry/particle tracing velocimetry (M-PIV/PTV) are designed and implemented for measuring the temporal and spatial evolution of vortex cores in both qualitative and quantitative ways, respectively. On the other hand, the Liutex vector, which is a new mathematical definition and identification of the vortex core proposed by Liu's group, is first applied in the experiment for the structural visualization and quantitative analysis of the local fluid rotation. The results show that an intuitional process of vortex evolution can be clearly observed by tracking the vortex using MSFLE and verify that the roll-up of the shear layer induced by shear instability is the origin of vortex formation in turbulence. Furthermore, a quantitative investigation in terms of the critical vortex core boundary (size) and its accurate rotation strength is carried out based on the Liutex vector field analysis by M-PIV/PTV. According to statistics of the relation between vortex core size and the rotation strength during the whole process, the phy sical mechanism of vortex generation and evolution in a turbulent boundary layer of low Reynolds number can be summarized as a four-dominant-state course consisting of the "synchronous linear segment (SL)-absolute enhancement segment (AE)-absolute diffusion segment (AD)-skewing dissipation segment (SD)". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Liutex core line method, first combined with the snapshot proper orthogonal decomposition (POD), is utilized in a supersonic micro-vortex generator (MVG) wake flow at Ma = 2.5 and Reθ = 5 760 to reveal the physical significance of each POD mode of the flow field. Compared with other scalar-based vortex identification methods, the Liutex core line identification is verified to be the most appropriate approach that is threshold-free and provides full information of a fluid rotation motion. Meanwhile, the Liutex integration is employed to quantitatively track the evolution of the vortices in MVG wake and is applied to the determination of the effective control section of the MVG wake for the optimization study of MVG design. The physical mechanism of each POD mode for multi-scale and multi-frequency vortical structures is investigated by using Liutex core line identification to give some revelations. For the mean mode (mode 0) indicating the time-averaged velocity flowfield of the MVG wake flow, a pair of primary counter-rotating streamwise vortices and another pair of secondary vortices is uniquely identified by two pairs of Liutex core lines with Liutex magnitude. In contrast, mode 1 is featured by a fluctuated roll-up motion of streamwise vortex, and the streamwise component of the MVG wake is demonstrated to be dominant in terms of the total kinetic energy contribution. Meanwhile, a dominant shedding frequency of St = 0.072 is detected from the temporal behavior of mode 2, which has the organized arc-shaped vortex structures shedding from MVG induced by the K-H instability. Additionally, mode 4 subjects to low-frequency oscillations of the wall vortices and thus takes a relatively lower frequency of St = 0.044. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The third-generation vortex identification method of Liutex (previously called Rortex) was introduced by the team led by Prof. Chaoqun Liu from University of Texas at Arlington to mathematically extract the rigid rotation part from the fluid motion, and thus to define and visualize vortices. Unlike the vorticity-based first generation and the scalar-valued second generation, Q, λ2, Δ and λci methods for example, the Liutex vector provides a unique, mathematical and systematic way to define vortices and visualize vortical structures from multiple perspectives without ambiguity. In this article, we summarize the recent developments of the Liutex framework and discuss the Liutex theoretical system including its existence, uniqueness, stability, Galilean invariance, locality and globality, decomposition in tensor and vector forms, Liutex similarity in turbulence, and multiple Liutex-based vortex visualization methods including Liutex lines, Liutex magnitude iso-surfaces, Liutex-Ω method, and Liutex core line method, etc.. Thereafter, the six core elements of vortex identification, including (1) absolute strength, (2) relative strength, (3) local rotational axis, (4) vortex rotation axes, (5) vortex core size, (6) vortex boundary, are used as touchstones against which the Liutex vortex identification system is examined. It is demonstrated with illustrative examples that the Liutex system is able to give complete and precise information of all six core elements in contrast to the failure and inaccuracy of the first and second-generation methods. The important concept that vorticity cannot represent vortex and the superiority of the Liutex system over previous methods are reiterated and stated in appropriate places throughout the paper. Finally, the article concludes with future perspectives, especially the application of the Liutex system in studying turbulence mechanisms encouraged by the discovery of Liutex similarity law. As a newly defined physical quantity, Liutex may open a door for quantified vortex and turbulence research including Liutex (vortex) dynamics and lead the community out of the shadow of turbulence research which traditionally relies on observations, graphics, assumptions, hypotheses, and other qualitative analyses. An optimistic projection is that the Liutex system could be critical to investigation of the vortex dynamics in applications from hydrodynamics, aerodynamics, oceanography, meteorology, etc. and to research of the generation, sustenance, modelling and controlling of turbulence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vanadium dioxide (VO2) is an ideal material for smart windows, which can initiate an automatic reversible metal-to-insulator transition from tetragonal to monoclinic structure at the transition temperature (Tc) of 68 °C, resulting in a large difference in near-infrared transmittance, but its application is limited by the poor luminous transmittance (Tlum) and low solar modulation ability (ΔTsol). Besides, metamaterials have shown their superiority as one of the strong competitors and candidates according to previous researches. In this paper, a VO2-based metamaterial structure (VO2(ms), where "ms" is an abbreviation for metamaterial structure) uniformly distributed with round holes was introduced to form a VO2(ms)/TiO2/VO2 multilayer structure, which is designed and produced by simulation and polystyrene microsphere-assisted preparation for enhanced performance. The simulation results obtained a considerable Tlum up to 50.4% and an ultra-high ΔTsol of 22.8%; this is due to the introduction of VO2(ms) which causes the multilayer structure to form metal–insulator–metal cavities at high temperatures and produces a resonance absorption effect. Meanwhile, it is found that the spacing of the round holes (D) has a great influence on the performance of the structure; specifically, an increase in D results in a slight decrease in both ΔTsol and Tlum. Moreover, the experimentally prepared sample demonstrated a ΔTsol of 20.4% and a Tlum of 42.6%, slightly lower than simulation because it has a larger spacing D, which is consistent with the analysis. In summary, both simulation and experiment can get ultra-high ΔTsol while guaranteeing a high Tlum. Such enhanced performance will benefit the application for VO2-based smart windows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, we investigate the improvement of the thermochromic properties of W-doped vanadium dioxide (VO2) films induced by annealing temperatures. Firstly, W-doped VO2 films with different W contents were successfully prepared on quartz substrates by direct current (DC) reactive magnetron sputtering. The results show that the W element not only decrease the phase transition temperature of VO2 film but also seriously decrease the infrared modulation performance of the film. Secondly, Undoped and W-doped VO2 films with different annealing temperatures were prepared and characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) tests. The effect of annealing temperature on the chemical states, crystal structure, and surface morphology of W-doped VO2 films was analyzed. It is found that VO2 film with the 1.4 at.% ratio of W contents has excellent metal–insulator phase transition performance compared to undoped VO2 film at the annealing temperature of 400 °C, i.e., narrower hysteresis width (4.3 °C) and lower phase transition temperature (37.4 °C). More importantly, the infrared amplitude modulation of the film is closer to that of undoped VO2 films. This is attributed to the enhanced (011) diffraction peak intensity and larger particle size and obvious grain boundary in the film. This work shows proper annealing temperatures can maintain the phase-change amplitude modulation performance of W-doped VO2 films while lowering the phase transition temperature and have great potential for infrared modulation applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Sugan Lake Basin is located in the inland arid region of northwestern China, in which groundwater is of great significance to human and ecology. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the chemical characteristics and quality of groundwater in the basin. Based on samples collected from 35 groundwater wells in Sugan Lake Basin, the spatial distribution characteristics of groundwater chemistry, main hydrogeochemical processes and groundwater quality have been discussed in this paper by using the multivariate statistics and hydrochemistry analysis methods. The results showed that the groundwater is weakly alkaline, and its total dissolved solid (TDS) and total hardness (TH) are high, with the average values of 1244.03 mg/L and 492.10 mg/L, respectively. The types of groundwater are mainly HCO3−-SO42−-Ca2+ type in the runoff area and Cl−-SO42−-Na+ type in the catchment area. Rock weathering and ion exchange are the main controlling factors of regional groundwater chemistry, followed by evaporative crystallization, and human activities have less impact on groundwater. The spatial difference of groundwater quality is obvious, the water quality of the catchment area is not suitable for drinking, and the suitability for plant growth is also poor. The groundwater in the runoff area can be used for drinking, but the hardness is slightly higher, which is more suitable for ecological purpose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is evidence that corticotropin-releasing hormone receptor 1 (CRHR1) gene polymorphisms and indifferent impulsive personality traits play an important role in violent aggression in male adolescents. Genotyping for two tag single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) (rs242924, rs17689966) was conducted using TaqMan SNP for 138 violent young male criminals, 98 nonviolent young male criminals, and 153 noncriminal adults. The general situation and personality traits (SSP) questionnaire was given to the young violent and nonviolent male criminal groups. The results showed that the frequency of the G allele in rs242924 of the CRHR1 gene in the violent aggression group was higher than that in the normal adult controls (P < 0.025, OR = 2.29, 95% CI = 1.13–4.62). The difference in genotype distribution was significant among the three groups (P < 0.05), and when the violent group was compared with the two control groups, no significant difference was found (P > 0.025). The impulsiveness, trait irritability, verbal trait aggression, and physical trait aggression scores in the violent group were significantly higher than those in the nonviolent group of adolescents. These findings suggest that the variance in CRHR1 gene polymorphisms and personality traits may play a role in violent aggression in male adolescents, and that the interaction of the CRHR1 gene and the impulsive personality trait may cause an increased susceptibility to violence towards others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vanadium dioxide (VO2) is a promising candidate for implementing switching modulation devices due to its well-known metal-to-insulator transition (MIT). In addition, the application of VO2 on modulation devices requires a narrow hysteresis loop width and a large phase transition amplitude, which is related to significant changes of electrical properties. In this paper, by adding a low-valence vanadium buffer layer, it is possible to increase the phase transition amplitude, reduce the loop width, and reduce the phase transition temperature. The VO2 film deposited at a argon–oxygen ratio of 98:0.5 with a buffer layer (sputtering time: 1 min) demonstrated excellent properties: phase transition amplitude of 819 times, loop width of 10.3 °C, and phase transition temperature of 58.2 °C, which is better than that of pure VO2 film with phase transition amplitude of 253 times, loop width of 17.8 °C, and phase transition temperature of 66 °C. As the thickness of the buffer layer increases, the phase change amplitude of the film decreases, and the width of the loop decreases. When the buffer layer was sputtered for 2 min, the loop width was only 5.4 °C, and it also maintained a high phase transition amplitude of 423 times. The enhancement of the phase transition properties of the film is related to the high crystallinity of the buffer layer film. These results indicate that the MIT characteristics of the vanadium oxide film can be adjusted by the buffer layer composition and the thickness of the buffer layer, providing an effective solution for designing a switch modulation device based on vanadium oxide film with a suitable MIT property. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Single radius knee implants were introduced to reduce the level of paradoxical anterior femoral translation (AFT) during mid-flexion after total knee arthroplasty. Findings from clinical and experiment studies are inconsistent, which may be due to the different loading conditions and articular conformities of the knee implants studied. The aim of this study is to analyze how variations in these two factors affect the mid-flexion stability of a single radius knee prosthesis.Methods: Six daily activities (walking, stair ascent, stair descent, sit-to-stand, pivot turn and crossover turn), and three articular conformity ratios (low, moderate and high) were considered. The resulting AFTs from the 18 finite element models were analyzed.Results: For low conformity knees, the worst case activity (the greatest AFT) was sit-to-stand with an AFT of 6.2 mm, while for the moderate conformity the worst case was crossover turn and pivot turn. For high conformity, all activities produced a relatively small AFT ranging from 0 mm to 1.8 mm, which more closely resembles natural knee motion. In addition, no AFT was recorded during stair ascent for all three conformities (low, moderate, high).Conclusions: This study demonstrated that the amount of AFT is highly dependent on the activity being undertaken and the articular conformity of the knee prosthesis, and the worst case activity depends on the knee conformity. The clinical relevance of this study is that it offers valuable information towards the design of improved knee prostheses and selection of knee implants for clinical use.Level Of Evidence: II. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A vortex is intuitively recognized as the rotational/swirling motion of fluids, but a rigorous and universally-accepted definition is still not available. Vorticity tube/filament has been regarded equivalent to a vortex since Helmholtz proposed the concepts of vorticity tube/filament in 1858 and the vorticity-based methods can be categorized as the first generation of vortex identification methods. During the last three decades, a lot of vortex identification methods, including Q, Δ, λ2 and λci criteria, have been proposed to overcome the problems associated with the vorticity-based methods. Most of these criteria are based on the Cauchy-Stokes decomposition and/or eigenvalues of the velocity gradient tensor and can be considered as the second generation of vortex identification methods. Starting from 2014, the Vortex and Turbulence Research Team at the University of Texas at Arlington (the UTA team) focus on the development of a new generation of vortex identification methods. The first fruit of this effort, a new omega (Ω) vortex identification method, which defined a vortex as a connected region where the vorticity overtakes the deformation, was published in 2016. In 2017 and 2018, a Liutex (previously called Rortex) vector was proposed to provide a mathematical definition of the local rigid rotation part of the fluid motion, including both the local rotational axis and the rotational strength. Liutex/Rortex is a new physical quantity with scalar, vector and tensor forms exactly representing the local rigid rotation of fluids. Meanwhile, a decomposition of the vorticity to a rotational part namely Liutex/Rortex and an anti-symmetric shear part (RS decomposition) was introduced in 2018, and a universal decomposition of the velocity gradient tensor to a rotation part (R) and a non-rotation part (NR) was also given in 2018 as a counterpart of the traditional Cauchy-Stokes decomposition. Later in early 2019, a Liutex/Rortex based Omega method called Omega-Liutex, which combines the respective advantages of both Liutex/Rortex and Omega methods, was developed. And a latest objective Omega method, which is still under development, is also briefly introduced. These advances are classified as the third generation of vortex identification methods in the current paper. To elaborate the advantages of the third-generation methods, six core issues for vortex definition and identification have been raised, including: (1) the absolute strength, (2) the relative strength, (3) the rotational axis, (4) the vortex core center location, (5) the vortex core size, (6) the vortex boundary. The new third generation of vortex identification methods can provide reasonable answers to these questions, while other vortex identification methods fail to answer all questions except for the approximation of vortex boundaries. The purpose of the current paper is to summarize the main ideas and methods of the third generation of vortex identification methods rather than to conduct a comprehensive review on the historical development of vortex identification methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to its outstanding metal–insulator transition, vanadium dioxide is considered as an attractive material used for optical modulation devices at far-IR bands. In this work, vanadium dioxide films were successfully prepared on (111) directional silicon substrates using Al2O3 as buffer layer by direct current magnetron sputtering. It is worth noting that, Al2O3 buffer layer significantly enhances the amplitude modulation at far-IR bands. Particularly, when Al2O3 buffer layer's thickness increases to ~ 40 nm and VO2 film is ~ 300 nm, the amplitude modulation is largely increased from 51.2 to 71.3% at 395 cm−1 and from 18.0 to 40.2% at 280 cm−1. According to XRD, XPS and SEM tests, it can be found that Al2O3 buffer layer affects the composition, crystal structure and metal–insulator transition properties of the films. Moreover, compared with VO2 films deposited on silicon substrates, VO2 films using Al2O3 as buffer layer exhibit better metal–insulator phase transition properties with narrower hysteresis width (11.8 °C, 6.7 °C narrower than former films). Such excellent metal–insulator transition properties indicate that VO2 films using Al2O3 as buffer layer have great potential for far-IR bands modulation applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trichothecium roseum is an important pathogen and causes moldy core and black spots on apple fruit. The effects of temperature, moisture and nutrition on conidial germination, survival, colonization and sporulation of T. roseum were examined in controlled environments. The results revealed that external nutriments, such as extracts from apple fruit and flower promoted the conidial germination. The temperature required for conidial germination and sporulation of T. roseum ranged from 10 °C to 35 °C, with an optimum at approximately 28 °C. No conidia were produced at 35 °C, although conidia germinated at this temperature. The lethal temperature for the conidia was 46 °C and the conidia survived for 6.8 days at 40 °C. The most favorable moisture for conidial germination and sporulation of the pathogen was 95% relative humidity (RH). The humidity limit was RH = 90% for the conidial germination and RH = 70% for the fungal sporulation. At the optimum temperature, the fungi finished one generation (i.e., from conidial germination to sporulation) was no more than two days in Malus micromalus flowers, although the conidia germinated more slowly in vitro. Conidial germination and sporulation dynamics of T. roseum were well described by modified logistic models. The results can be used to develop disease forecasting model and help improving fungicide control of the disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of combining human parathyroid hormone (1-34) (PTH1-34; PTH) and menaquinone-4 (MK-4) on calvarial bone defect repair in osteopenic rats.Methods: Fourteen week olds were subject to craniotomy for the establishment of osteopenic animal models fed through a chronically low-protein diet. After that, critical calvarial defect model was established and all rats were randomly divided into four groups: sham, MK-4, PTH, and PTH + MK-4. The animals received MK-4 (30 mg/kg/day), PTH1-34 (60 μg/kg, three times a week), or PTH1-34 (60 μg/kg, three times a week) plus MK-4 (30 mg/kg/day) for 8 weeks, respectively. Serum γ-carboxylated osteocalcin (Gla-OC) levels, histological and immunofluorescent labeling were employed to evaluate the bone formation and mineralization in calvarial bone defect. In addition, Microfil perfusion, immunohistochemical, and micro-CT suggested enhanced angiogenesis and bone formation in calvarial bone healing.Results: In this study, treatment with either PTH1-34 or MK-4 promoted bone formation and vascular formation in calvarial bone defects compared with the sham group. In addition, combined treatment of PTH1-34 plus MK-4 increased serum level of Gla-OC, improved vascular number and vascular density, and enhanced bone formation in calvarial bone defect in osteopenic conditions as compared with monotherapy.Conclusions: In summary, this study indicated that PTH1-34 plus MK-4 combination therapy accelerated bone formation and angiogenesis in calvarial bone defects in presence of osteopenia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]