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Robust recognition of objects is crucial across various applications, spanning from industrial automation to healthcare and security. Nevertheless, real-world datasets often introduce label noise, encoding inaccurate correlation patterns that compromise the performance of visual recognition systems. Recent approaches utilize the predicted label distributions of individual samples for noise verification and correction, potentially exacerbating the accumulation of noise. To tackle this concern, in this paper, we introduce the context-driven reliability assessment strategy (CRA) for object robust recognition, where the reliability of a candidate sample is re-evaluated and rectified by comparing it with its neighbors in feature space. Specifically, CRA is divided into two steps: (1) consistency-aware pure sample selection (CPS) for estimating and choosing reliable samples based on consistent relations with the candidate sample and its k-reciprocal neighbors; and (2) similarity-guided label noise refurbishment (SLR) for re-labeling noisy samples by penalizing the divergence of each example's prediction from a weighted combination of its neighbors' predictions, with weights determined by their similarity in feature space. Thereafter, auxiliary techniques are used to assist further model optimization. Extensive experiments on three commonly used benchmark datasets, i.e., CIFAR-10, CIFAR-100 and Webvision - 1.0, demonstrate that our proposed method considerably outperforms state-of-the-art methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: With the treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) by PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors used widely in clinic, it becomes very necessary to anticipate whether patients would benefit from it. We aimed to develop a nomogram to evaluate the efficacy of anti-PD-1/PD-L1 in NPC patients. Methods: Totally 160 NPC patients were enrolled in the study. Patients were measured before the first PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors treatment and after 8–12 weeks of immunotherapy by radiological examinations to estimate the effect. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) logistic regression was used to screen hematological markers and establish a predictive model. The nomogram was internally validated by bootstrap resampling and externally validated. Performance of the model was evaluated using concordance index, calibration curve, decision curve analysis and receiver operation characteristic curve. Results: Patients involved were randomly split into training cohort ang validation cohort. Based on Lasso logistic regression, systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) and ALT to AST ratio (LSR) were selected to establish a predictive model. The C-index of training cohort and validating cohort was 0.745 and 0.760. The calibration curves and decision curves showed the precise predictive ability of this nomogram. The benefit of the model showed in decision curve was better than TNM stage. The area under the curve (AUC) value of training cohort and validation cohort was 0.745 and 0.878, respectively. Conclusion: The predictive model helped evaluating efficacy with high accuracy in NPC patients treated with PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Posttraumatic epilepsy (PTE) accounts for approximately 20% of structural epilepsy, and surgical intervention may be a potential treatment option for these patients. Therefore, the purpose of this meta-analysis is to evaluate the effectiveness of surgical interventions for the management of PTE. Four electronic databases (Pubmed, Embase, Scopus and Cochrane library) were searched to identify studies on surgical management of PTE. Seizures reduction rate were analyzed quantitatively in a meta-analysis. Fourteen studies involving 430 PTE patients were selected for analysis, out of which 12 reported on resective surgery (RS), 2 on vagus nerve stimulation (VNS), and 2 of the 12 RS studies reported that 14 patients underwent VNS. The seizure reduction rate for surgical interventions (both RS and VNS) was 77.1% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 69.8%-83.7%) with moderate heterogeneity (I2 = 58.59%, Phetero = 0.003). Subgroup analysis based on different follow-up times revealed that the seizure reduction rate was 79.4% (95% CI: 69.1%-88.2%) within 5 years and 71.9% (95% CI: 64.5%-78.8%) beyond 5 years. The seizure reduction rate for RS alone was 79.9% (95% CI: 70.3%-88.2%) with high heterogeneity (I2 = 69.85%, Phetero = 0.001). Subgroup analysis showed that the seizure reduction rate was 77.9% (95% CI: 66%-88.1%) within 5 years and 85.6% (95% CI: 62.4%-99.2%) beyond 5 years, with 89.9% (95% CI: 79.2%-97.5%) for temporal lobectomy and 84% (95% CI: 68.2%-95.9%) for extratemporal lobectomy. The seizure reduction rate for VNS alone was 54.5% (95% CI: 31.6%-77.4%). Surgical interventions appeared to be effective for PTE patients without severe complications, RS seemed more beneficial than VNS, while temporal lobectomy is more favorable than extratemporal resection. However, further studies with long-term follow-up data are needed to better understand the relationship between VNS and PTE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantum key distribution (QKD) theoretically achieves unconditional security for communication. However, the secret-key rate is limited, which can be enhanced by increasing the repetition rate of QKD. Additionally, to achieve a small form factor instead of a large one in a printed-circuit-board (PCB) solution, a novel integrated modulator driving circuit is proposed in this paper, which can realize adjustable amplitude and pulse width with a maximum repetition rate of 4 GHz. In the proposed architecture, four low-speed digital-to-analog converters (DACs) instead of one high-speed DAC are utilized to tune the pulse amplitude, so low cost and high-level output are achieved. The modulator driving circuit can output a random return-to-zero (RZ) pulse train with four different pulse amplitudes. Operated with 1.8 V supply, the four levels with a minimum 1.76 mV tunable accuracy cover a range of 0–225 mV, 225–450 mV, 450–900 mV, and 0.9–1.8 V, respectively. A 4-bit and a 6-bit controller are applied to the modulator driving circuit to achieve different pulse widths. Fabricated in 130-nm CMOS technology, the proposed modulator driving circuit occupies a core area of 7.6 mm2 and consumes 612 mW. A repetition rate of 4 GHz is achieved and the measured pulse amplitude ranges from 77 mV to 1.67 V and the range of pulse width is 140 ps to 1049 ps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: N-cadherin-mediated cell adhesion is a vital inductor for mesenchymal condensation in chondrogenesis. Recent studies have revealed the involvement of E-cadherin in enhancing the multipotency of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and limb development; however, the signaling crosstalk of E/N-cadherin remains unclear. Objective: This study aimed to explore the synergistic modulation of E/N-cadherin in the chondrogenic differentiation of MSC aggregates. Methods: Human E/N-cadherin-functionalized (hE/N-cad-Fc) poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) microparticles (hE/N-cad-PLGA) were incorporated into the human MSC (hMSC) aggregates to upregulate the expression of the corresponding endogenous cadherin. The chondrogenic differentiation of the hMSC aggregates was initiated by hE/N-cad-PLGA, controlling the release of transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β). A transcriptome analysis was used to assess differentially expressed genes (DEGs) modulated by hE/N-cad-Fc in hMSC aggregate chondrogenesis. Gene functions and signaling pathways were assessed using Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analyses. The associated biological pathways were assessed by a protein–protein interaction (PPI) network analysis, and the results were further confirmed by real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) and western blotting. Results: A total of 1083 DEGs, comprising 111 upregulated and 972 downregulated genes, were discovered to be related to the enhanced chondrogenic differentiation modulated by hE/N-cad-Fc. The GO and KEGG functional enrichment analyses revealed that hE/N-cad-Fc synergistically regulated the p53-related survival signaling pathway. PPI analysis revealed that mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) caspase regulation is a core aspect of the chondrogenic differentiation process, confirmed by western blotting. Conclusion: To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first to reveal that the synergistic modulation of E/N-cadherin enhances the chondrogenic differentiation of hMSCs via the ERK1/2-p53 signaling axis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Differential diagnosis of pulmonary nodules detected by computed tomography (CT) remains a challenge in clinical practice. Here, we characterize the global metabolomes of 480 serum samples including healthy controls, benign pulmonary nodules, and stage I lung adenocarcinoma. The adenocarcinoma demonstrates a distinct metabolomic signature, whereas benign nodules and healthy controls share major similarities in metabolomic profiles. A panel of 27 metabolites is identified in the discovery cohort (n = 306) to distinguish between benign and malignant nodules. The discriminant model achieves an AUC of 0.915 and 0.945 in the internal validation (n = 104) and external validation cohort (n = 111), respectively. Pathway analysis reveals elevation in glycolytic metabolites associated with decreased tryptophan in serum of lung adenocarcinoma vs benign nodules and healthy controls, and demonstrates that uptake of tryptophan promotes glycolysis in lung cancer cells. Our study highlights the value of the serum metabolite biomarkers in risk assessment of pulmonary nodules detected by CT screening. Detection of lung adenocarcinoma through serum sampling could be an alternative to CT scanning. Here, the authors use global metabolomics to create a 27 metabolite signature, which showed accuracy in detection in an external validation cohort. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mapping of lithological units is a significant challenge for geological tasks. Stream sediment geochemical survey data contain abundant geological information that can help delineate lithological units. In this study, a convolutional neural network (CNN) was applied to map the lithological units in the Daqiao gold District, West Qinling Orogen, China, based on stream sediment geochemical data, in which each sample includes the concentrations of 15 trace elements (Cu, Pb, Zn, Ag, Mo, Sn, W, Mn, Ba, As, Sb, Bi, Cd, Au, and Hg). The training samples were firstly constructed with a certain window size by randomly selecting locations within each lithological unit. A CNN model was then established based on AlexNet to classify the lithologic categories. The classification map showed that 7 lithological units were correctly distinguished with an overall classification accuracy of 90.0%, suggesting that (1) stream sediment geochemical survey data of only trace element concentrations are useful for lithological mapping, and (2) a CNN can extract effectively geochemical characteristics from geochemical survey data. This study confirms the potential of a CNN as an effective method for geological mapping based on geochemical survey data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) is currently one of the most reliable and improved tools for analyzing gene expression. Various studies have shown that housekeeping genes vary with cultivars, tissues and treatment. Reliable and stable reference genes were necessarily identified and evaluated according to different experimental requirements. In this study, 10 candidate reference genes were initially screened based on transcriptome sequencing data of four pear fruit development stages for three pear cultivars, including a candidate housekeeping gene PbrTUB. Furthermore, we ranked the expression stability of 10 candidate reference genes using GeNorm, NormFinder, BestKeeper and ReFinder algorithms. The results showed that Pbr028511, Pbr038418 and Pbr041114 were the most stable reference genes in Cuiguan, Housui and Xueqing fruit, respectively. Taken together, these results serve as a useful reference for gene function investigations and molecular mechanism studies in fruit development and ripening for various pear cultivars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is significant to study railway wheel tread wear laws and predict wheel tread wear for the safe operation of trains. In this paper, a wheelset-rail finite element model was established for contact analysis, and simulation results were verified by contact tests carried out on a self-built wheel-rail test rig. Based on the physical work, the FE friction work calculation method was proposed to obtain the node friction work of contact area, and the wheel tread friction work was obtained by superposition of node friction work along the train running direction. Based on FE results of the wheel tread friction work, a wheel tread wear calculation method was proposed to predict wear amounts and worn profiles under different operating mileage conditions. It was found that the difference between predicted wear amounts and measured data is less than 5%, and the predicted worn profiles have the same change trend as the measured profiles. The wheel tread wear calculation method based on the FE friction work has high computational efficiency and reliability, and it has good research significance and practical value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microplastics (MPs) are ubiquitous in marine sedimentary environments. Their occurrence in horseshoe crabs and interactions with the sedimentary environment has not been determined. In this study, MPs, mostly microfibers, were found in all extracted gastrointestinal tract (GIT) samples of the juvenile Tachypleus tridentatus from the northern Beibu Gulf, China. The MP concentrations (4–53 items ind−1) were higher than those in most marine benthic invertebrates (< 15 items ind−1) reported in Chinese waters, despite their generally low level in habitat sediments (9-1818 items kg−1). The correlation between the juveniles and sediments was not evident, but the abundance in juvenile horseshoe crab GITs decreased with ages. The findings were relevant to the life-history characteristics of the species, typically with limited dispersal capability and their spending nine years or longer time living in mangrove wetlands during low tides, with apparent ontogenetic changes in their diets. These baseline data enable a better understanding of MP availability in benthic macroinvertebrates, and the ecological risks present in the ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Horseshoe crabs are iconic and ecologically significant macroinvertebrates in coastal environments. The processes and mechanisms of larval hatching in Asian horseshoe crabs that occurs beneath the sand are largely unknown. The spawning and developmental ecology of Tachypleus tridentatus and T. gigas are assumed to be similar to their Atlantic counterpart Limulus polyphemus. However, Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda has been cited as an exception owing to their frequent sightings in muddy mangrove areas even during low tides. To reveal the larval hatching mechanisms, in this study, we examined varying hatching responses of C. rotundicauda embryos within the sediment to the environmental conditions under continuous tidal cycles. During the eight-week experiment, the count of hatched larvae ranged 4%–30% per week, while the cumulative emergence rate from the sediment was 0–47%. Embryos were observed to have the highest active rotation activity in the first two weeks after incubation. The inundation of tidal water significantly enhanced the occurrence of hatching, in which hydration, osmotic shock and possibly agitation had triggered or facilitated the eclosion. The larvae were found to remain in the sediment for approximately 2–6 weeks before emergence. In general, C. rotundicauda was found to share a similar hatching mechanism with L. polyphemus. Our findings provide insight into the developmental ecology of Asian horseshoe crabs exposed to varying tidal conditions, and are helpful to the management and protection of their spawning habitats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vacuolar processing enzymes (VPEs) play important roles in plant development, programmed cell death, and the responsiveness to biotic and abiotic stresses. To characterize the VPEs in upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum), the VPE gene family within four Gossypium species, consisting of G. hirsutum, G. barbadense, G. arboreum, and G. raimondii, together with Arabidopsis thaliana, was comparatively analyzed at the genome-wide level. As a result, a total of 43 VPEs were identified, including 13 GhVPEs, 12 GbVPEs, 7 GaVPEs, and 7 GrVPEs, which are evenly distributed with one gene on a chromosome from four Gossypium species, respectively. The phylogenetic tree showed that the identified VPEs within the four Gossypium species could be categorized into β-type, δ-type, and γ-type VPE clades. Collinearity analysis presented 36 of intraspecies VPE-pairs and 152 of interspecies VPE-pairs, respectively, which are included in synteny blocks on chromosome. These results indicate that VPE duplication events have accorded well with the whole genome duplication. And expression profiles of GhVPEs in G. hirsutum seedlings demonstrated that the GhVPEs from the same clade are not necessarily identical in the pattern of transcriptional expression. Upon abiotic stresses (i.e., waterlogging and salt treatments), three GhVPEs (i.e., Ghir_A05G004610, Ghir_A09G011870, and Ghir_D09G011410) were significantly upregulated in their expression amounts, respectively. The GhVPE genes that presented inducible expression under some abiotic stresses may be applied to the improvement of resilience to abiotic stresses for the cultivated cottons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analyzes the signal quality and the accuracy of BeiDou 3rd generation Satellite Navigation System (BDS3) Precise Point Positioning (PPP) in the Arctic Ocean. Assessment of signal quality of BDS3 includes signal to noise ratio (SNR), multipath (MP), dilution of precision (DOP), and code-minus-carrier combination (CC). The results show that, 5 to 13 satellites are visible at any time in the Arctic Ocean area as of September 2018, which are sufficient for positioning. In the mid-latitude oceanic region and in the Arctic Ocean, the SNR is 25–52 dB Hz and the MP ranges from −2 m to 2 m. As the latitude increases, the DOP values show large variation, which may be related to the distribution of BDS satellites. The CC values of signals B1I and BIC range from −5 m to 5 m in the mid-latitude sea area and the Arctic Ocean, which means the effect of pseudorange noise is small. Moreover, as to obtain the external precise reference value for GNSS positioning in the Arctic Ocean region is difficult, it is hard to evaluate the accuracy of positioning results. An improved isotropy-based protection level method based on Receiver Autonomous Integrity Monitoring is proposed in the paper, which adopts median filter to smooth the gross errors to assess the precision and reliability of PPP in the Arctic Ocean. At first, the improved algorithm is verified with the data from the International GNSS Service Station Tixi. Then the accuracy of BDS3 PPP in the Arctic Ocean is calculated based on the improved algorithm. Which shows that the kinematic accuracy of PPP can reach the decimeter level in both the horizontal and vertical directions, and it meets the precision requirements of maritime navigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

RNA N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modifications are essential in plants. Here, we show that transgenic expression of the human RNA demethylase FTO in rice caused a more than threefold increase in grain yield under greenhouse conditions. In field trials, transgenic expression of FTO in rice and potato caused ~50% increases in yield and biomass. We demonstrate that the presence of FTO stimulates root meristem cell proliferation and tiller bud formation and promotes photosynthetic efficiency and drought tolerance but has no effect on mature cell size, shoot meristem cell proliferation, root diameter, plant height or ploidy. FTO mediates substantial m6A demethylation (around 7% of demethylation in poly(A) RNA and around 35% decrease of m6A in non-ribosomal nuclear RNA) in plant RNA, inducing chromatin openness and transcriptional activation. Therefore, modulation of plant RNA m6A methylation is a promising strategy to dramatically improve plant growth and crop yield. Rice and potato plants are more productive after epitranscriptome engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dietary fiber in oats is mainly concentrated in the bran; however, the oat bran is mostly used for livestock and poultry feed and thus has a low utilization rate and low added value. In this study, insoluble dietary fiber (IDF) was extracted by a combination of α-amylase and neutral protease. The optimal extraction conditions of the IDF were obtained by response surface methodology. The material-to-water ratio was 1:12.1, the concentration of α-amylase was 1.85%, and the hydrolysis time was 39.14 min. After purifying the crude fiber with 4% sodium oxide (NaOH), 70 °C hot water, and anhydrous ethanol, the purity of dietary fiber exceeded 95%. X-ray diffraction analysis indicated that the IDF was predominantly amorphous. Scanning electron microscopy showed that the IDF surface exhibited a loose porous network structure. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy of the crude IDF showed characteristic absorption peaks at 3626, 2929, 1667, 1538, 1455, 1242, and 1048 cm−1, while the infrared spectrum of the purified IDF showed characteristic absorption peaks at 3401, 2924, 1744, 1643, 1418, and 1040 cm−1, which is consistent with the structure of cellulose polysaccharide. Differential scanning calorimetry analysis showed that there were three exothermic peaks at 270–310 °C, 320–350 °C, and 440–460 °C, which may represent the pyrolysis peaks of hemicellulose, cellulose, and lignin, respectively, indicating that the oat bran IDF had good thermal stability. The results indicate that the oat bran IDF can be used for the production of dietary fiber products and health-care products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Waardenburg syndrome type 1 (WS1) is a rare genetic disorder characterized by dystopia canthorum, abnormal iris pigmentation, and congenital hearing loss with variable penetrance.WS1 is caused by mutations in paired box gene 3 (PAX3). The current study aimed to investigate the genetic cause of hearing loss in a four-generation Chinese WS1 family. Methods: The phenotype of the study family was characterized using clinical evaluation and pedigree analysis. Target region high-throughput sequencing system was designed to screen the all coding exons and flanking intronic sequences of the six WS-associated genes. Sanger sequencing was used to identify the causative nucleotide changes and perform the co-segregating analysis. The expression, subcellular distribution, and transcriptional activity of the mutant PAX3 protein were analysis to reveal the functional consequences of the mutation. Results: Based on diagnostic criteria, the proband of this pedigree classified as WS1. We identified a novel missense mutation (c.117 C > A, p. Asn39Lys) in exon 2 of the PAX3 gene. In vitro, the Asn39Lys PAX3 retained nuclear distribution ability. However, it failed to activate the melanocyte inducing transcription factor (MITF) promoter and impaired the function of WT PAX3. Conclusions: Our study reports a novel missense PAX3 mutation in a Chinese family and shows haploinsufficiency may be the underlying mechanism for the WS1 phenotype. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is an Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated tumor occurring in southeastern Asia. Due to insidious onset, it is difficult to diagnose NPC from clinical symptoms. Thus, there is an urgent need for non-invasive, high-performance biomarkers to aid the clinical diagnosis of NPC. Heat shock protein 90α (HSP90α) is an important member of the heat shock protein family that significantly increases under stress conditions such as oxidation and tumors. This is the first investigation of the role of Hsp90α in the diagnosis and progress of NPC.Methods: Plasma Hsp90α was detected by ELISA in 196 newly diagnosed NPC patients, 76 corresponding post-treatment NPC patients, 230 VCA-IgA-positive normal subjects and 106 healthy controls.Results: (1) The level of Hsp90α in plasma of 196 NPC patients was (212.16 ± 144.32) ng/ml, which was significantly higher than that in VCA-IgA-positive normal subjects (68.12 ± 64.94 ng/ml, P < 0.001) and healthy controls (35.87 ± 17.47 ng/ml, P < 0.001); (2) the levels of Hsp90α in patients with NPC in the early stage (I + II), stage III and stage IV were significantly different (159.69 ± 117.12 pg/ml vs. 195.24 ± 126.38 pg/ml vs. 250.85 ± 164.66 pg/ml, P = 0.018 and P = 0.029, respectively). The level of Hsp90α in plasma in patients with metastasis of NPC and those without metastasis was significantly different (P < 0.001); (3) Hsp90α is closely related to EBV DNA levels, but not to the VCA-IgA titer and EA-IgA titer; (4) the levels of Hsp90α in plasma of patients with NPC before and after treatment were significantly different (212.16 ± 144.32 pg/ml vs. 62.36 ± 34.04 pg/ml, P < 0.001); (5) the ROC curves demonstrated that the sensitivity of plasma Hsp90α in distinguishing NPC patients from healthy controls was 74.50% and the specificity was 99.10% (AUC = 0.931, 95% CI 0.903-0.958).Conclusion: The study found that the plasma HSP90α level is closely related to the clinical stage, metastasis and therapeutic effect of NPC. HSP90α may serve as a new biomarker for diagnosis and treatment of NPC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At present, many researchers are increasingly aware of the importance of using models to identify heavy metal (HM) pollution sources. However, on the performance and application of different source identification models to HMs under different land use types had been studied little. In this study, comparison of absolute principal component scores-multiple linear regression (APCS-MLR) and positive matrix factorization (PMF) models and their application characteristics in identifying pollution sources were carried out by using 11 HMs in Zhongwei City farmland and Shizuishan industrial park, Ningxia. The results indicated that HM pollution in farmland mainly came from pesticides, fertilizers, and deposition of the Yellow River, while the pollution in industrial park mainly originated from atmospheric deposition and various industrial productions. The APCS-MLR model had the problem of less identification sources and the difficulty to explain the complex pollution, while the PMF model not only identified more pollution sources, but also distinguished heavy metal–related sources for two different land use types and different industrial production conditions. It is of great significance the formulation of agricultural-related pesticides' and chemical fertilizers' rational use and various industrial production–related raw materials put in and emission control strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Early diagnosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) remains a major problem in Southern China. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) biomarkers have been widely used in NPC screening. This study aims to evaluate the early diagnostic performances of individual EBV biomarkers in NPC.Methods: The levels of EBV biomarkers-IgA antibodies against EBV nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA1-IgA), EBV capsid antigen (VCA-IgA), EBV early antigen (EA-IgA), EBV BZLF1 transcription activator protein (Zta-IgA) and IgG antibodies against EBV BRLF1 transcription activator protein (Rta-IgG)-from 106 NPC patients (stage I and II) and 150 normal subjects were measured. VCA-IgA and EA-IgA were detected by immunofluorescence assay (IFA), EBNA1-IgA, Rta-IgG and Zta-IgA were measure by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and EBV DNA was detected by qPCR. Statistical analyses of a single index were conducted to evaluate the significance of NPC early diagnosis and TNM classification.Results: The level of EBNA1-IgA, EBV DNA, VCA-IgA, EA-IgA, Rta-IgG and Zta-IgA in early-stage NPC was significantly higher than in healthy controls (all P < 0.001). EBNA1-IgA yielded the biggest area under the curve (AUC) of 0.962 in distinguishing early-stage NPC patients from the normal subjects, with a sensitivity of 91.5% and a specificity of 98.7%. However, EBV biomarker levels were not associated with tumor size (all P > 0.050), whereas four biomarker levels (EBNA1-IgA, EBV DNA, VCA-IgA, EA-IgA) were related to lymph node metastasis (N0 and N1-2), among which EBNA1-IgA and EBV DNA showed good performance. Finally, high correlation was found between VCA-IgA and EA-IgA (r > 0.800).Conclusion: A single EBNA1-IgA exhibits excellent discrimination performance in early diagnosis of NPC and could become a promising marker for NPC screening. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the aroma components of bead-shaped green teas were compared through headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry/olfactometry (GC–MS/O) coupled with chemometrics. A total of 62 volatile compounds were identified in 16 green tea samples. Notably, comparison of GC–MS/O and odour activity values (OAV) results revealed that nonanal, decanal, (E)-2-nonenal, β-ionone, and 1-octen-3-one were the most powerful aroma-active compounds that contributed to the aroma profile of the bead-shaped green teas. Furthermore, multivariate statistical techniques (such as principal component analysis, partial least squares-discriminant analysis, and hierarchical cluster analysis) were used to characterise the bead-shaped green teas according to their geographical origin and the flavour characteristics of their volatile compounds. Additionally, the variable importance in the projection method was used to identify 20 volatile markers that could successfully distinguish bead-shaped green teas on the basis of three flavour characteristics. The results of the analysis revealed that HS-SPME and GC–MS/O coupled with chemometrics can provide an effective method for characterising and classifying bead-shaped green teas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Gastric cancer (GC) is the fifth most common cancer worldwide, and every year approximately 950,000 individuals are diagnosed worldwide. Our study aimed to establish an effective nomogram to predict the prognosis of GC based on inflammation biomarkers.Methods: We retrospectively analysed GC patients from the Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center. The nomogram was developed with a primary cohort (n = 1067), and 537 patients were included in the validation cohort. The univariate survival analyses included 19 biomarkers.Results: The multivariate analysis showed that tumour stage, metastasis stage and C-reactive protein (CRP), albumin (ALB), carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and carbohydrate antigen-199 (CA199) levels as well as the lymphocyte (LYM) count were independent risk factors for the prognosis of GC patients. The nomogram was based on the above factors. In the primary cohort, the nomogram had a concordance index (C-index) of 0.825 (95% CI 0.796-0.854), which was higher than the C-index of the AJCC TNM stage and that of the other biomarkers (CEA and CA199). The calibration plot suggested good agreement between the actual and nomogram-predicted overall survival (OS) probabilities, and the decision curve analyses showed that the nomogram model had a higher overall net benefit in predicting OS than the AJCC TNM stage. Moreover, we divided the patients into the following three distinct risk groups for OS based on the nomogram points: low, middle and high risk. The differences in OS rates were significant among the subgroups (P < 0.001).Conclusion: A novel nomogram integrated with inflammatory prognostic factors was proposed, which is highly predictive of OS in GC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, with the frequent occurrences of heavy metal (HM) pollution in agriculture, the problem of HM pollution in farmland soil, especially in the areas irrigation by the Yellow River, has been attracted increasing attention because of the complex sources of pollution. Qualitative identification of pollution sources and quantification of their contributions to HMs in soil are the key links in the prevention and control of HM pollution. The contents of 11 heavy metals (As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sn, V, and Zn) in the rhizosphere soil of the Ningxia irrigation area were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Multiple methods were used for source identification, including positive matrix factorization (PMF) analysis combined with multiple other analyses (single factor index method (Pi), coefficient of variation(CV), correlation analysis(CA), enrichment factor(EF), and principal component analysis(PCA)). The results showed that (1) the over-standard rates of As, Cd, Cr, Mn, Pb, Sn, and Zn in the study area were 100%, of which Cd was seriously polluted, while As, Zn, and Sn were moderately polluted. (2) The HM contributions from irrigation and silt soil formed by the Yellow River sediment were the highest (42.45%), followed by the smelting industry and traffic pollution (16.06%). (3) The contribution of agricultural pollution to HMs in the region was 15.54%, in which As was mainly from pesticides and Cd was mainly from fertilizers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mangrove wetlands can reduce heavy metal pollution by trapping heavy metals. In this study, the concentration, transport and bioaccumulation of Cr, Cd, Cu, Zn and Pb in the sediments and different parts of Aegiceras corniculatum at four different sites in the Qinzhou Bay in southwestern China were investigated. The results showed that although the potential ecological risk of all five heavy metals was slight, the concentration of Cr was at a moderate pollution level due to the emissions of industries and aquaculture waste water. Core sediment records indicated that the concentrations of heavy metals at the depth of 0–20 cm were relatively high, showing an increasing trend of heavy metals over the past 20–30 years. Cr, Cu, Pb and Cd accumulated mainly in the roots of A. corniculatum, while Zn accumulated mainly in the stems. Aegiceras corniculatum showed the strongest transport capacity for Zn and Cu and the strongest bioaccumulation ability for Cd. Compared with other mangrove communities, A. corniculatum can be chosen as a restoration species in tropical and subtropical coastal zones polluted by Zn, Cu and Cd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transcription factors are recognized as the key regulators of gene expression. However, the changes in the correlation of transcription factors and their target genes between normal and tumor tissues are usually ignored. In this research, we used mRNA expression profile data from The Cancer Genome Atlas which included 5726 samples across 11 major human cancers to perform co-expression analysis by the Pearson correlation coefficients. Then, integrating 81,357 pairs of transcription factors and target genes from transcription factors databases to find out the changes in the co-expression correlation of these gene pairs from normal to tumor tissues. Based on the changes in the number of co-expressed TF-TG pairs and changes in the level of co-expression, we found the generally reduced correlation between transcription factors and their target genes in cancer. Additionally, we screened out universal and specific transcription factors-target genes pairs which may significant influence particular cancer. Then, we obtained 423 cancer cell line expression profiles from Broad Institute Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia to verify our results. Some of these pairs like XRCC5-XRCC6 have been reported to involve in multiple cancers, while pairs like IRF1-PSMB9 without any previous articles related to tumor but involve in the biological processes of cancer, which are of great potential to be therapeutic targets. Our research may provide insights to better understand the tumor development mechanisms and find potential therapeutic targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In digital multi-focal images (DMIs), morphological and topological information for a transparent specimen can be captured in the form of a stack of high-quality images. We propose to use projection methods such as coefficient of variation projection to exploit the entire information of a given DMI stack using its projection images from different directions. Besides, multiple features extracted from the projection images along different directions are combined by using canonical correlation analysis. Because DMI stacks represent the effect of different factors-texture, the directions of projection, different instances within the same class and different classes of objects, we embed the projection method within a multi-linear analysis framework to propose a multiple direction projection-based multi-linear classification approach. The experimental results on the nematode data show that our proposed classifier can achieve very reliable recognition rate (98.5%) on a real-life database, even we only use the texture feature instead of the combination of texture and shape features as in a previous work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mapping mineral prospectivity in vegetated areas is a challenge. For this reason, we aimed to map spatial distribution characteristics of linear structures detected in remote sensing images using fractal and multifractal models. The selected study area was the Pinghe District of the Fujian Province (China), located in the Shanghang-Yunxiao polymetallic and alunite ore belt (within the Wuyishan polymetallic belt), where mineral resources such as copper, molybdenum, gold, silver, iron, lead, zinc, alunite and pyrophyllite have been discovered. The results of our study showed that: (1) the values of fractal dimension for all lineaments, NW-trending lineaments, and NE-trending lineaments, are 1.36, 1.32, and 1.23, respectively, indicating that these lineaments are statistically self-similar; (2) the fractal dimensions of the spatial distribution of the linear structures in the four selected hydrothermal-type ore deposits of the Pinghe District, named Zhongteng, Panchi, Xiaofanshan and Fanshan, are 1.43, 1.52, 1.37 and 1.37, respectively, which are higher than the mean value in South China; (3) the spatial distribution of the linear structures extracted from the remote sensing image and displayed by the contour map of fractal dimensions, correlates well with the known hydrothermal ore deposits; and (4) the results of the anomaly map decomposed by the spectrum-area (S-A) multifractal model is much better than the original fractal dimension contour map, which showed most of the known hydrothermal-type deposits occur in the high anomalous area. It is suggested that a high step tendency possibly matches with the boundary of the volcanic edifice and the deep fault controlling the development of the rock mass and the volcanic edifice. The complexity of the spatial distribution of mapped lineations (faults) in the Pinghe District, characterized by high values in the anomaly map, may be associated with the hydrothermal polymetallic ore mineralization in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The distribution, sources, and potential risks of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination in the rivers of Shanghai, China were investigated. Fourteen PCB congeners in surface waters and sediments, which were collected from 53 sampling sites, were quantified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometer (GC-MS). The total concentrations of PCBs in the dissolved phase, in particulates, and in sediments ranged from not detected (nd) to 34.8 ng·L, from 0.76 to 39.71 ng·L, and from 1.46 to 46.11 ng·g (dry weight, dw), respectively. The corresponding WHO toxic equivalents (TEQs) of dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (dl-PCBs) ranged between nd-1135.63 pg TEQ·L, 0.02-605.94 pg TEQ·L, and 0.05-432.12 pg TEQ·g dw, respectively. The penta-CBs, especially PCB 118 and PCB 105, were the dominant congeners in all samples. Principle Component Analysis (PCA) indicated that the PCBs were mainly influenced by a historical accumulation of commercial PCB products, the burning of house coal, and emissions from municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) and secondary metallurgy industries. The center of Shanghai was significantly affected by PCB contamination, followed by the industrial parklands and suburban towns, while the farmland of Chongming Island was the least affected area. Adverse biological and health effects would be likely in the central urban areas, industrial parks, and residential towns of Shanghai. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Road dusts and agricultural soil samples were collected from eight sites close to steel mills, chemical plants, and municipal solid waste incinerator in suburban Shanghai. Sixteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) priority controlled list were analyzed quantitatively using GC-MS. The total PAH concentrations ranged from 0.79 to 6.2 μg g in road dust samples with a mean value of 2.38 μg g and 0.26 to 0.54 μg g in agricultural soils with an average of 0.36 μg g. The most abundant individual PAHs were phenanthrene, fluoranthene, pyrene, chrysene, and benzo(b)fluoranthene in dust samples and phenanthrene, fluoranthene, chrysene, and benzo(b)fluoranthene, benzo (k) fluoranthene in soil samples. Dominant compounds were four-ring and five- to six-ring PAHs, which accounted for 41.5 and 31.5 % in dusts and 33.9 and 41.1 % in soils. The spatial distribution of PAHs in dusts and soils was consistent. The wind direction could affect the spatial distribution of PAHs. Organic matter contents were found to be significantly positively correlated with PAH concentrations in both dusts and soils while grain size of particles had no correlation with PAH concentrations and could not significantly influence the distribution of PAH concentrations. PAH isomer ratios showed that combustion of grass, wood, and coal was important sources of PAHs in road dusts and agricultural soils. Toxic equivalent concentrations indicated seven kinds of carcinogenetic PAHs were major toxic equivalent concentration (TEQ) contributors, accounting for 98 % of TEQ, in the road dusts and agricultural soils. Incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) estimation results showed that the PAHs in the dusts and soils had potential cancer risk for both children and adults only by direct ingestion exposure. The TEQ and ILCR values of PAHs in road dusts were much higher than those in soils, which suggested that PAHs in road dusts could be an important source of PAHs in soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ferritins are the iron storage proteins which regulate intracellular iron content via the absorption and release of iron, and related to plant oxidative stress and pathogens. However, the possible role of FER in heat stress responses remains unknown. In this study, the black rice ( Vigna eylindrica) ferritin gene, VeFER, was cloned and integrated into the genome of wheat cultivar ZY9507 via biolistic transformation. Expression analysis of T transgenic plants subjected to heat treatment showed significantly increased VeFER expression in the transgenic lines as compared to the untransformed plants. The MDA content of the transgenic lines was significantly lower than that in the cultivar. Further, the transgenic lines had similar relative electrical conductivities to the heat resistant variety TAM107, but were significantly lower than the untransformed control cultivar and the heat-sensitive variety CS. These results indicate that the VeFER gene plays a crucial role in improving the heat tolerance of transgenic wheat plants, likely by promoting the thermal stability of cell membranes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study employs slope, aspect, relief degree of land surface, land use, vegetation index, hydrology and climate, as evaluation indexes to set up the Human Settlements Environmental Index (HEI) model to evaluate the environmental suitability for human settlements in the Shiyang River Basin. By using GIS spatial analysis technology, such as spatial overlay analysis, buffer analysis and density analysis, the environmental suitability of the human settlement spatial situation and spatial pattern are established to analyze their spatial distribution. The results show that the index of suitability for human settlements in the Shiyang River Basin is between 17.13 and 84.32. In general, suitability for human settlements decreases from the southwest to the northeast. Seen from an area pattern, the suitable region is mainly distributed in the Minqin oasis, Wuwei oasis and Changning basin, which are about 1080.01 km and account for 2.59% of the total area. Rather and comparatively suitable region is mainly distributed around the counties of Gulang, Yongchang and north of Tianzhu, which is about 1100.30 km. The common suitable region is mainly distributed outside the counties of Yongchang, Jinchuan and most parts of Minqin County, which are about 23328.04 km, accounting for 56.08% of the total area. The unsuitable region is mainly distributed upstream and to the north of the river, which is about 9937.60 km, accounting for 23.89% of the total area. Meanwhile, the least suitable region is distributed around the Qilian Mountains, which are covered by snow and cold desert and lie in the intersecting area between the Tengger Desert and Badain Jaran Desert. The total area is about 6154.05 km, accounting for 14.79% of the total area. Suitable regions for human habitation are mainly distributed around rivers in the form of ribbons and batches, while others are scattered. The distribution pattern is identical to the residential spatial pattern. In addition, the relationships between HEI and other factors have been analyzed. There is a clear logarithmic correlation between the residential environment and population, that is, the correlation coefficient between the evaluation value and population density reaches 0.851. There is also a positive correlation between the residential environment and economy, which reaches an evaluation value of 0.845 between the residential environment and GDP. Results also show that the environment is out of bearing with the existing population in Shiyang River Basin. Spatial distribution of population is profoundly affected by severe environmental problems, such as the expanded deserts, the hilly terrain and the changing climate. Surface water shortage and slow economic growth are bottlenecks for suitable human settlement in the Shiyang River Basin. Combining these problems with planning for construction of new country and the exploitation of local land, some residential areas should be relocated to improve the residential environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we introduce a concept of principal divisor lattice and describe the structure of its elements. We first give a necessary and sufficient condition for the existence of irredundant join irreducible decompositions in complete principal divisor distributive lattices, and prove that the complete lower continuous, principal divisor lattices have irredundant join irreducible decompositions. In the end, we show the descriptions of lattices that have unique (resp. replaceable) irredundant join irreducible decompositions in complete lower continuous principal divisor lattices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]