Search

Importance: Intra-arterial therapies(IATs) are promising options for unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC). Stratifying the prognostic risk before administering IAT is important for clinical decision-making and for designing future clinical trials. Objective: To develop and validate a machine learning(ML)-based decision support model(MLDSM) for recommending IAT modalities for unresectable HCC. Design, setting, and participants: Between October 2014 and October 2022, a total of 2,959 patients with HCC who underwent initial IATs were enroled retrospectively from 13 tertiary hospitals. These patients were divided into the training cohort (n = 1700), validation cohort (n = 428), and test cohort (n = 200). Main outcomes and measures: Thirty-two clinical variables were input, and five supervised ML algorithms, including eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost), Categorical Gradient Boosting (CatBoost), Gradient Boosting Decision Tree (GBDT), Light Gradient Boosting Machine (LGBM) and Random Forest (RF), were compared using the areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) with the DeLong test. Results: A total of 1856 patients were assigned to the IAT alone Group(I-A), and 1103 patients were assigned to the IAT combination Group(I-C). The 12-month death rates were 31.9% (352/1103) in the I-A group and 50.4% (936/1856) in the I-C group. For the test cohort, in the I-C group, the CatBoost model achieved the best discrimination when 30 variables were input, with an AUC of 0.776 (95% confidence intervals [CI], 0.833–0.868). In the I-A group, the LGBM model achieved the best discrimination when 24 variables were input, with an AUC of 0.776 (95% CI, 0.833–0.868). According to the decision trees, BCLC grade, local therapy, and diameter as top three variables were used to guide clinical decisions between IAT modalities. Conclusions and relevance: The MLDSM can accurately stratify prognostic risk for HCC patients who received IATs, thus helping physicians to make decisions about IAT and providing guidance for surveillance strategies in clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Delay/disruption tolerant networking (DTN) is proposed as a networking architecture to overcome challenging space communication characteristics for reliable data transmission service in presence of long propagation delays and/or lengthy link disruptions. Bundle protocol (BP) and Licklider Transmission Protocol (LTP) are the main key technologies for DTN. LTP red transmission offers a reliable transmission mechanism for space networks. One of the key metrics used to measure the performance of LTP in space applications is the end-to-end data delivery delay, which is influenced by factors such as the quality of spatial channels and the size of cross-layer packets. In this paper, an end-to-end reliable data delivery delay model of LTP red transmission is proposed using a roulette wheel algorithm, and the roulette wheel algorithm is more in line with the typical random characteristics in space networks. The proposed models are validated through real data transmission experiments on a semi-physical testing platform. Furthermore, the impact of cross-layer packet size on the performance of LTP reliable transmission is analyzed, with a focus on bundle size, block size, and segment size. The analysis and study results presented in this paper offer valuable contributions towards enhancing the reliability of LTP transmission in space communication scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The long-term survival benefit of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in neoadjuvant and adjuvant settings is unclear for colorectal cancers (CRC) and gastric cancers (GC) with deficiency of mismatch repair (dMMR) or microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H). Methods: This retrospective study enrolled patients with dMMR/MSI-H CRC and GC who received at least one dose of neoadjuvant ICIs (neoadjuvant cohort, NAC) or adjuvant ICIs (adjuvant cohort, AC) at 17 centers in China. Patients with stage IV disease were also eligible if all tumor lesions were radically resectable. Results: In NAC (n = 124), objective response rates were 75.7% and 55.4%, respectively, in CRC and GC, and pathological complete response rates were 73.4% and 47.7%, respectively. The 3-year disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) rates were 96% (95%CI 90–100%) and 100% for CRC (median follow-up [mFU] 29.4 months), respectively, and were 84% (72–96%) and 93% (85–100%) for GC (mFU 33.0 months), respectively. In AC (n = 48), the 3-year DFS and OS rates were 94% (84–100%) and 100% for CRC (mFU 35.5 months), respectively, and were 92% (82–100%) and 96% (88–100%) for GC (mFU 40.4 months), respectively. Among the seven patients with distant relapse, four received dual blockade of PD1 and CTLA4 combined with or without chemo- and targeted drugs, with three partial response and one progressive disease. Conclusion: With a relatively long follow-up, this study demonstrated that neoadjuvant and adjuvant ICIs might be both associated with promising DFS and OS in dMMR/MSI-H CRC and GC, which should be confirmed in further randomized clinical trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the emergence of novel variants, Omicron variant caused a different clinical picture than the previous variants and little evidence was reported regarding perioperative outcomes after Omicron variants. The aim of the study was to evaluate the postoperative outcomes of gastrointestinal cancer patients following Omicron variants infection and also to determine the timing of surgery after infection recovery. A total of 124 patients who underwent gastrointestinal cancer surgery with prior SARS-CoV-2 infection between December 2022 and February 2023 were retrospectively reviewed. 174 cases underwent the same operation during December 2018 and February 2019 as control group. SARS-CoV-2-infected patients were further categorized into three groups based on infected time (1–3 weeks; 4–6 weeks; and ≥ 7 weeks). 90.3% of SARS-CoV-2-infected patients had mild symptoms. The COVID-19 vaccination rate was 71.0%, with a full vaccination rate of 48.4%. There were no significant differences in 30-day morbidity and mortality. There was also no significant difference in pulmonary complications, cardiovascular complications, and surgical complications between the three different diagnosis time groups. In conclusion, reducing waiting time for elective surgery was safe for gastrointestinal cancer patients in the context of an increased transmissibility and milder illness severity with Omicron variant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Portal vein tumor thrombosis (PVTT) signifies late-stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with high-risk progression and poor prognosis. As a standard treatment, sorafenib monotherapy has limited the efficacy in managing HCC with PVTT. Currently, both hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy (HAIC) and the combination of camrelizumab and rivoceranib have shown favorable survival benefits for advanced HCC, surpassing the standard sorafenib treatment. In this study, we investigate the safety and efficacy of HAIC combined with camrelizumab and rivoceranib in treating HCC patients with PVTT. Methods: From January 2020 to December 2021, HCC patients with PVTT, who received either a triple regime of HAIC combined with camrelizumab and rivoceranib or a dual regime of camrelizumab and rivoceranib as their first-line treatment, were reviewed for eligibility at four hospital centers in China. To balance any intergroup differences, propensity score matching (PSM) was applied. The aim of this study is to compare the efficacy of the dual and triple combination treatment regimens based on survival prognosis and tumor response and evaluate the safety based on the occurrence of adverse reactions. Result: In this study, a total of 411 patients who received either the triple treatment regime (HAIC combined with camrelizumab plus rivoceranib, referred to as the HAICCR group, n = 292) or the dual treatment regime (camrelizumab combined with rivoceranib, referred to as the CR group, n = 119) between January 2020 and December 2021 were included. The results showed that the HAICCR group exhibited significantly better overall survival (mOS: 19.60 months vs. 11.50 months, p < 0.0001) and progression-free survival (mPFS: 10.0 months vs. 5.6 months, p < 0.0001) compared to the CR group in the overall cohort. Moreover, the HAICCR group also had a significantly higher ORR (objective response rate, 55.5% vs. 42.0%, p = 0.013) and DCR (disease control rate, 89.0% vs. 79.0%) compared to the CR group. After PSM, a final matched cohort of 83 pairs was obtained, and the survival benefits were consistent in this cohort as well (mOS: 18.70 months vs. 11.0 months, p < 0.0001; mPFS: 10.0 months vs. 5.6 months, p < 0.0001). However, there was no significant difference in the ORR between the triple and dual combination regimes. Univariate and multivariate analysis showed that CTP (Child–Turcotte–Pugh) stage, ALBI (albumin–bilirubin index) grade, tumor number, and treatment regime were significant risk factors affecting overall survival, while AFP (α-fetoprotein) level, tumor number, metastasis, and treatment regime were significant risk factors affecting progression-free survival. As for safety, hypertension and hand–foot syndrome were the two most common adverse reactions in both groups, with no significant difference in the occurrence of adverse reactions between the two groups (p < 0.05). Conclusion: In the context of advanced HCC patients with PVTT, the combination regime of HAIC and camrelizumab plus rivoceranib demonstrates more excellent capacity for prolonging survival and offers a well-tolerated safety compared to the CR dual therapy approach. This triple regime represents a therapeutic modality of broad prospects and vast potential for HCC patients with PVTT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Rare Metals is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Recent studies have linked alterations in the gut microbiome and metabolic disruptions to the invasive behavior and metastasis of colorectal cancer (CRC), thus affecting patient prognosis. However, the specific relationship among gut microbiome, metabolite profiles, and mutated-RAS/BRAF metastatic colorectal cancer (M-mCRC) remains unclear. Furthermore, the potential mechanisms and prognostic implications of metabolic changes induced by gut microbiome alterations in patients with M-mCRC still need to be better understood. Methods: We conducted Mendelian randomization (MR) to evaluate the causal relationship of genetically predicted 196 gut microbiome features and 1400 plasma metabolites/metabolite ratios on M-mCRC-specific survival. Additionally, we identified significant gut microbiome-metabolites/metabolite ratio associations based on M-mCRC. Metabolite information was annotated, and functional annotation and pathway enrichment analyses were performed on shared proteins corresponding to significant metabolite ratios, aiming to reveal potential mechanisms by which gut microbiome influences M-mCRC prognosis via modulation of human metabolism. Results: We identified 11 gut microbiome features and 49 known metabolites/metabolite ratios correlated with M-mCRC-specific survival. Furthermore, we identified 17 gut microbiome-metabolite/metabolite ratio associations specific to M-mCRC, involving eight lipid metabolites and three bilirubin degradation products. The shared proteins corresponding to significant metabolite ratios were predominantly localized within the integral component of the membrane and exhibited enzymatic activities such as glucuronosyltransferase and UDP-glucuronosyltransferase, crucial in processes such as glucuronidation, bile secretion, and lipid metabolism. Moreover, these proteins were significantly enriched in pathways related to ascorbate and aldarate metabolism, pentose and glucuronate interconversions, steroid hormone biosynthesis, and bile secretion. Conclusion: Our study offers novel insights into the potential mechanisms underlying the impact of the gut microbiome on the prognosis of M-mCRC. These findings serve as a meaningful reference for exploring potential therapeutic targets and strategies in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Image and video inpainting is a classic problem in computer vision and computer graphics, aiming to fill in the plausible and realistic content in the missing areas of images and videos. With the advance of deep learning, this problem has achieved significant progress recently. The goal of this paper is to comprehensively review the deep learning-based methods for image and video inpainting. Specifically, we sort existing methods into different categories from the perspective of their high-level inpainting pipeline, present different deep learning architectures, including CNN, VAE, GAN, diffusion models, etc., and summarize techniques for module design. We review the training objectives and the common benchmark datasets. We present evaluation metrics for low-level pixel and high-level perceptional similarity, conduct a performance evaluation, and discuss the strengths and weaknesses of representative inpainting methods. We also discuss related real-world applications. Finally, we discuss open challenges and suggest potential future research directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oil and gas occurrence characteristics and seepage characteristics of tight reservoirs are the key to production. CT technology can monitor displacement and advance seepage front in time In this chapter, NMR experiments of spontaneous imbibition and CT monitoring experiments of differential pressure displacement are carried out for dense conglomerate to clarify the law of two-phase seepage. The results show that in spontaneous imbibition, the fluid circulation in the pore of tight glutenite is high, and there is no micro-fracture The pore volume of clay minerals with high content increases when exposed to water, which improves the imbibition recovery ratio However, the highly heterogeneous gravel distribution increases the complexity of seepage path and thus enhances the imbibition recovery ratio. The strong heterogeneity of sandy conglomerate leads to the formation of preponderant passages in seepage In the early stage of displacement, the water flooding effect is poor and a large amount of water accumulates With the increase of displacement time, there is no obvious change in oil saturation at both ends of the middle part of a large number of water rock samples The oil saturation is lower at both ends and higher in the middle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Iterative learning control (ILC) is a popular scheme in the trajectory tracking of manipulators, greatly improving tracking accuracy despite often requiring multiple iterations over identical trajectories. This research introduces an optimization technique for ILC parameters, enhanced with proportional-derivative (PD) feedback control, which aims to significantly reduce tracking errors within a single iteration. In the proposed approach, a PD feedback controller is utilized in the first run, collecting error data. An ILC controller is then incorporated in the second run to minimize the tracking error. Utilizing the dynamic model of the system, the transcription method transforms the continuous-form optimization problem concerning the ILC parameters into a discrete form, enabling its solution via standard numerical optimization algorithms. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach in reducing tracking errors, we compared the tracking errors for the first and second runs of the system using frequency-domain analysis and conducted simulations and experiments on two different trajectory types. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The operating speed of the commercial electromagnetic suspension (EMS) maglev train has been over 430 km/h, making it the fastest means of land transportation. With the increasing demands of people traveling, it is necessary to further improve the operating speed of maglev trains. Aiming to examine whether the existing EMS system can meet the requirements of ultra-high-speed operation (more than 600 km/h), the electromagnetic characteristics of an EMS linear motor under the operating speed of 600–1000 km/h fed by a square-wave voltage supply is investigated in this article. First, an electromagnetic field model of the EMS system under the square-wave voltage supply is established to investigate its electromagnetic performance, e.g., the characteristics of phase current, the magnetic flux density, and the electromagnetic force. Second, the relationship between the harmonic components of the air-gap magnetic flux density and electromagnetic force is investigated using the two-dimensional fast Fourier transform (2D-FFT) to reveal the mechanism of electromagnetic force ripple. Third, to address the issues of excessive armature current density and significant electromagnetic force ripple, the linear motor is re-designed by enlarging the stator slot area and reshaping the mover's main magnetic poles. Furthermore, the Taguchi method is used to further improve the electromagnetic characteristics of the linear electric motor. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed optimal design is validated by the finite-element analysis (FEA) based co-simulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marine umbilical is one of the key equipment for subsea oil and gas exploitation, which is usually integrated by a great number of different functional components with multi-layers. The layout of these components directly affects manufacturing, operation and storage performances of the umbilical. For the multi-layer cross-sectional layout design of the umbilical, a quantifiable multi-objective optimization model is established according to the operation and storage requirements. Considering the manufacturing factors, the multi-layering strategy based on contact point identification is introduced for a great number of functional components. Then, the GA-GLM global optimization algorithm is proposed combining the genetic algorithm and the generalized multiplier method, and the selection operator of the genetic algorithm is improved based on the steepest descent method. Genetic algorithm is used to find the optimal solution in the global space, which can converge from any initial layout to the feasible layout solution. The feasible layout solution is taken as the initial value of the generalized multiplier method for fast and accurate solution. Finally, taking umbilicals with a great number of components as examples, the results show that the cross-sectional performance of the umbilical obtained by optimization algorithm is better and the solution efficiency is higher. Meanwhile, the multi-layering strategy is effective and feasible. The design method proposed in this paper can quickly obtain the optimal multi-layer cross-sectional layout, which replaces the manual design, and provides useful reference and guidance for the umbilical industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Rare Metals is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

A new rhodium complex [Rh(cod)(TTT)2] was synthesized by [Rh(cod)Cl]2 as a precursor, and 4,4',4''-(1,3,5-triazine-2,4,6-triyl)trianiline (TTT) as a ligand. Its structure was verified by 1H and 13C NMR. The results indicate that the complex shows high activity in phenylacetylene polymerization. It was applied to the polymerization of phenylacetylene with a yield of 45.0% and Mw = 2.26×105 at ultra-low rhodium feed ratio ([Rh.]/[M.]=1/60000). A new rhodium complex [Rh(cod)(TTT)2] was synthesized by [Rh(cod)Cl]2 as a precursor, and 4,4',4''-(1,3,5-triazine-2,4,6-triyl)trianiline (TTT) as a ligand. It was applied to the polymerization of phenylacetylene with a yield of 45.0% and Mw = 2.26×105 at ultra-low rhodium feed ratio ([Rh.]/[M.]=1/60000 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To explore the performance of laboratory items alone in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) classification. Methods: Our cohort consisted of 352 and 385 (control) patients with and without SLE. This study evaluated the performance of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR)-1997, Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics (SLICC)-2012, European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR)/ACR-2019, and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Risk Probability Index (SLERPI) using laboratory items alone, including blood and urine test results. Results: The median ratio of laboratory items/total items was 66.7%, 75.0%, 60.4%, and 77.4% in ACR-1997, SLICC-2012, EULAR/ACR-2019, and SLERPI, respectively. After including laboratory items alone, the sensitivity of ACR-1997, SLICC-2012, EULAR/ACR-2019, and SLERPI was 31.3% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 26.4%–36.4%), 79.8% (95% CI: 75.3%–83.9%), 75.9% (95% CI: 71.0%–80.2%), and 85.2% (95% CI: 81.1%–88.8%), respectively. We referenced the SLERPI and removed the additional restrictions, i.e., SLICC-2012 criteria only needs to fulfill at least four items (mSLICC-2012) and EULAR/ACR-2019 criteria needs to have ≥ 10 points (mEULAR/ACR-2019) to qualify for SLE classification. The mSLICC-2012 and mEULAR/ACR-2019 criteria, including laboratory items alone, newly identified 13 and 25 patients, respectively. Based on laboratory items alone, the combination of mSLICC-2012, mEULAR/ACR-2019, and SLERPI identified 348 patients with an improved sensitivity of 90.6% (95% CI: 87.1%–93.5%). Patients, who were classified according to the mEULAR/ACR-2019 criteria, all met the other criteria. Conclusion: Incorporating laboratory items alone was clinically feasible to help identify SLE. SLERPI and SLICC-2012, using laboratory items alone, were more worthwhile to promote in the clinic compared with EULAR/ACR-2019. Key Points • Laboratory items play a crucial role in the SLE classification criteria, and incorporating laboratory items alone was clinically feasible to help in the identification of SLE. • The SLERPI and SLICC-2012, using laboratory items alone, were more worthwhile to promote in the clinic compared with EULAR/ACR-2019, and the combination of the two could further improve the sensitivity. • The relative simplicity of evaluating laboratory indices may help nonrheumatologists and inexperienced rheumatologists to identify SLE more quickly, thereby reducing the risk of delayed diagnosis in patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel reactive flame retardant based on L-cysteines containing P, N and S flame retardant elements was synthesized, and using its good water solubility, different concentrations of flame retardant poplar wood powder were prepared, and using the hot pressing process method, flame retardant density boards were made and their flame retardancy was studied. The thermogravimetric infrared coupler (TG-FTIR) test and thermal cracking gas mass spectrometer (Py-GC–MS) test both revealed that the flame retardant modified the thermal decomposition pathway of the wood, forming many residues and producing only a small amount of combustible gas. The ultimate oxygen index (LOI) of poplar density board treated with 20% cysteine-based flame retardant was as high as 60.9%. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images revealed that the surface of the treated wood powder was rough and that the wood powder particles were interconnected by the flame retardant. This suggests that the flame-retardant molecules have a bridging effect on the inner structure of the density board. Moreover, the cone calorimetry (CONE) experiments showed that with the flame-retardant treatment, there was significant reduction of total heat release (THR) and heat release rate (HRR) of the density board. The outcomes demonstrated the excellent flame retardancy and catalytic carbon formation of the poplar density board treated with the flame retardant. These findings demonstrate the effectiveness of the cysteine-based flame retardant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Psoriasis is one of the common chronic inflammatory skin diseases worldwide. The skin microbiota plays a role in psoriasis through regulating skin homeostasis. However, the studies on the interactions between symbiotic microbial strains and psoriasis are limited. In this study, Staphylococcus strain XSB102 was isolated from the skin of human, which was identified as Staphylococcus warneri using VITEK2 Compact. To reveal the roles of Staphylococcus warneri on psoriasis, XSB102 were applied on the back of imiquimod-induced psoriasis-like dermatitis mice. The results indicated that it exacerbated the psoriasis and significantly increased the thickening of the epidermis. Furthermore, in vitro experiments confirmed that inactivated strain XSB102 could promote the proliferation of human epidermal keratinocytes (HaCaT) cell. However, real-time quantitative PCR and immunofluorescence results suggested that the expression of inflammatory factors such as IL-17a, IL-6, and so on were not significantly increased, while extracellular matrix related factors such as Col6a3 and TGIF2 were significantly increased after XSB102 administration. This study indicates that Staphylococcus warneri XSB102 can exacerbate psoriasis and promote keratinocyte proliferation independently of inflammatory factors, which paves the way for further exploration of the relationship between skin microbiota and psoriasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Central South University is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction: Chaigui granules are a novel manufactured traditional Chinese antidepressant medicine, which is originated from the ancient classical prescription of Xiaoyaosan. It ameliorated depression-like behavior and concomitant symptoms in animal models. But its antidepressant mechanism is still unclear. Therefore, network pharmacology and molecular biology were used to explore underlying antidepressant mechanism in this study. Methods: Firstly, network pharmacology was used to screen main active ingredients and potential targets in the treatment of depression with Chaigui granules, and to perform pathway enrichment analysis. Secondly, chronic and unpredictable mild stress-induced depression model rats were used, and behavioral tests were used to evaluate the antidepressant effect of Chaigui granules. Finally, the core targets and key pathways predicted by network pharmacology were validated by qRT-PCR and Western blot to determine the relevant gene and protein expression levels in rat hippocampus. Results: The results of network pharmacology indicated that the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway may play a key role in antidepressant of Chaigui granules. The results of animal experiments showed that Chaigui granules significantly modulated behavioral indicators. Subsequently, the upregulation of relative mRNA levels of mTOR, Akt and PI3K and downregulation of GSK-3β and FoxO3a were observed in rat hippocampus by molecular biology diagnosis. In addition, the decreased expression of Akt and mTOR in CUMS rats hippocampus was significantly reversed, and the expression levels of GSK-3β and FoxO3a were upregulated. Conclusions: Based on the results of network pharmacology and animal experiment validation, Chaigui granules may reverse CUMS-induced depression-like behavior in rats through PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The association between post-resection radiotherapy for primary gynecological malignant neoplasms (GMNs) and the development of secondary primary malignancies (SPMs) remains a subject of debate. This study represents the first population-based analysis employing a multivariate competitive risk model to assess risk factors for this relationship and to develop a comprehensive competing-risk nomogram for quantitatively predicting SPM probabilities. Materials and methods: In our study, data on patients with primary GMNs were retrospectively collected from the Epidemiology, Surveillance and End Results (SEER) database from 1973 to 2015. The incidence of secondary malignant tumors diagnosed at least six months after GMN diagnosis was compared to determine potential risk factors for SPMs in GMN patients using the Fine and Gray proportional sub-distribution hazard model. A competing-risk nomogram was constructed to quantify SPM probabilities. Results: A total of 109,537 patients with GMNs were included in the study, with 76,675 and 32,862 GMN patients in the training and verification sets, respectively. The competing-risk model analysis identified age, primary tumor location, tumor grade, disease stage, chemotherapy, and radiation as risk factors for SPMs in GMN patients. Calibration curves and ROC curves in both training and verification cohorts demonstrated the predictive accuracy of the established nomogram, which exhibited a good ability to predict SPM occurrence. Conclusions: This study presents the nomogram developed for quantitatively predicting SPM probabilities in GMN patients for the first time. The constructed nomogram can assist clinicians in designing personalized treatment strategies and facilitate clinical decision-making processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The risk for recurrence and metastasis after treatment for urothelial carcinoma of the bladder (UCB) is high. Therefore, identifying efficient prognostic markers and novel therapeutic targets is urgently needed. Several long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been reported to be correlated with UCB progression. In this study, we found that the subtype-specific lncRNA MIR4435-2 host gene (MIR4435-2HG) plays a novel oncogenic role in UCB. Methods: RNA-Seq data of TCGA/BLCA were analyzed. The expression of MIR4435-2HG was measured by qRT-PCR in 16 pairs of bladder cancer tissues and adjacent normal tissues. The clinical relecance of MIR4435-2HG was validated via in situ hybridization performed on an in-house cohort of 116 UCB patient samples. RNA pull-down followed by mass spectrometry was performed to identify MIR4435-2HG-binding proteins. To identify signaling pathways involved in MIR4435-2HG activity, comprehensive in vitro and in vivo studies and RNA-Seq assays were performed using UCB cells in which MIR4435-2HG expression was knocked down or exogenously overexpressed. In addition, we performed RNA immunoprecipitation and Western blot analyses to validate the identified MIR4435-2HG-binding proteins and to determine the molecular mechanisms by which MIR4435-2HG promotes UCB progression. Results: We found that MIR4435-2HG was significantly upregulated in the stromal-enriched subtype of UCB. Increased MIR4435-2HG expression was positively correlated with a high histological grade, advanced T stages, larger tumors, lymph node metastasis and a poor prognosis. In vitro experiments revealed that MIR4435-2HG expression silencing suppressed cell proliferation and induced apoptosis. Inhibition of MIR4434-2HG delayed xenograft tumor growth, while MIR4435-2HG overexpression reversed the MIR4435-2HG silencing-induced inhibition of UCB tumor phenotype acquisition. Mechanistically, we found that MIR4435-2HG positively regulated the expression of a variety of cell cycle regulators, including BRCA2 and CCND1. Knocking down MIR4435-2HG increased the sensitivity of tumor cells to the VEGFR inhibitor cediranib. Furthermore, we found that MIR4435-2HG regulated mTOR signaling and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) signaling pathways by modulating the phosphorylation of mTOR, 70S6K and 4EBP1. Finally, we confirmed that MIR4435-2HG enhances tumor metastasis through regulation of the EMT pathway. Conclusions: Our data indicate that upregulated MIR4435-2HG expression levels are significantly correlated with a poor prognosis of UCB patients. MIR4435-2HG promotes bladder cancer progression, mediates cell cycle (de)regulation and modulates mTOR signaling. MIR4435-2HG is an oncogenic lncRNA in UCB that may serve as a diagnostic and therapeutic target. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is an inflammation-associated tumor involved in immune tolerance and evasion in the immune microenvironment. Immunotherapy can enhance the immune response of the body, break immune tolerance, and then recognize and kill tumor cells. The polarization homeostasis of M1 and M2 macrophages in tumor microenvironment (TME) is involved in the occurrence and development of tumors and has been considered a hot topic in tumor research. Programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) plays an important role in the polarity of TAM and affects the prognosis of HCC patients as a target of immunotherapy. To this end, efforts were hereby made to further explore the application value of PD-L1, M1 macrophages (CD86), and M2 macrophages (CD206) in the prognosis assessment of HCC, their correlation with immune cell infiltration in HCC tissues, and their bioenrichment function. Methods: The gene expression omnibus (GEO) and the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database were used to analyze the expression of PD-L1, CD86, and CD206 in different tumor tissues. The correlation between the expression of PD-L1, CD86, and CD206 and the infiltration of immune cells was analyzed using the Tumor Immune Estimation Resource (TIMER). The tissue specimens and clinicopathological data of hepatocellular carcinoma patients having undergone surgical treatment in our hospital were collected. Immunohistochemistry was used to verify the expression of PD-L1, CD86, and CD206, and analyze the relationship with clinicopathological features and prognosis of patients. Besides, nomogram was constructed to predict the overall survival (OS) of patients at 3 and 5 years. Finally, the protein–protein interaction network information was analyzed using STRING database, and GO analysis and KEGG (Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes) analysis were performed to study the biological functions of PD-L1, CD86, and CD206. Result: Bioinformatics analysis found that PD-L1, CD86, and CD206 were underexpressed in various tumor tissues including liver cancer, while the present immunohistochemical detection found that PD-L1, CD86, and CD206 were overexpressed in liver cancer tissues. Expressions of PD-L1, CD86, and CD206 were positively correlated with the infiltration level of immune cells in liver cancer, while the expression of PD-L1 was positively correlated with the degree of tumor differentiation. Meanwhile, the expression level of CD206 was positively correlated with gender and preoperative hepatitis, and patients with high expression of PD-L1 or low expression of CD86 had poor prognosis. AJCC stage, preoperative hepatitis, and the expression levels of PD-L1 and CD86 in cancer tissues were independent risk factors affecting survival of patients after radical hepatoma surgery. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis showed that PD-L1 was significantly enriched in T cell aggregation and lymphocyte aggregation, and might be involved in the formation of T cell antigen receptor CD3 complex and cell membrane. Besides, CD86 was significantly enriched in positive regulation of cell adhesion, regulation of mononuclear cell proliferation, regulation of leukocyte proliferation, and transduction of T cell receptor signaling pathway, while CD206 was significantly enriched in type 2 immune response, cellular response to LPS, cellular response to LPS, and involvement in cellular response to LPS. Conclusion: In conclusion, these results suggest that PD-L1, CD86, and CD206 may be involved not only in the occurrence and development of HCC, but also in immune regulation, indicating the potential role of PD-L1 and CD86 as potential biomarkers and new therapeutic targets for prognosis assessment of liver cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effects of sex hormone imbalance on rat prostatic inflammation and fibrosis and identify the key molecules involved. Methods: Castrated Sprague–Dawley (SD) rats were treated with a constant dose of oestradiol (E2) and different doses of dihydrotestosterone (DHT) to achieve different oestrogen/androgen ratios. After 8 weeks, serum E2 and DHT concentrations, relative seminal vesicle weights, histopathological changes and inflammation were measured, collagen fiber content and oestrogen receptor (ER) and androgen receptor (AR) expression were detected, mRNA sequencing and bioinformatics analysis were performed to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Results: The severity of inflammation in the rat dorsolateral prostate (DLP) was higher, collagen fibre content and ER expression in the rat DLP and prostatic urethra were increased and AR expression in the rat DLP was decreased in the 1:1 E2/DHT-treated group than that in the 1:10 E2/DHT-treated group. RNA-seq analysis identified 487 DEGs, and striking increases in the expression of mRNAs encoding collagen, collagen synthesis and degradation enzymes, growth factors and binding proteins, cytokines and chemokines, and cell-surface molecules were confirmed in the 1:1 E2/DHT-treated group compared to the 1:10 E2/DHT-treated group. mRNA expression of secreted phosphoprotein 1 (Spp1) and protein expression of osteopontin (OPN, encoded by Spp1) were increased in the 1:1 E2/DHT-treated group compared to the 1:10 E2/DHT-treated group, and Spp1 expression correlated positively with Mmp7, Cxcl6 and Igfn1 expression. Conclusions: The imbalance in the oestrogen/androgen ratio may affect rat prostatic inflammation and fibrosis, and OPN might be involved in this process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shape descriptors have recently gained popularity in shape matching, statistical shape modeling, etc. Their discriminative ability and efficiency play a decisive role in these tasks. In this paper, we first propose a novel handcrafted anisotropic spectral descriptor using Chebyshev polynomials, called the anisotropic Chebyshev descriptor (ACD); it can effectively capture shape features in multiple directions. The ACD inherits many good characteristics of spectral descriptors, such as being intrinsic, robust to changes in surface discretization, etc. Furthermore, due to the orthogonality of Chebyshev polynomials, the ACD is compact and can disambiguate intrinsic symmetry since several directions are considered. To improve the ACD's discrimination ability, we construct a Chebyshev spectral manifold convolutional neural network (CSMCNN) that optimizes the ACD and produces a learned ACD. Our experimental results show that the ACD outperforms existing state-of-the-art handcrafted descriptors. The combination of the ACD and the CSMCNN is better than other state-of-the-art learned descriptors in terms of discrimination, efficiency, and robustness to changes in shape resolution and discretization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

NVS-ZP7-4 was identified as a novel chemical reagent targeting the zinc input protein ZIP7, which accounts for the zinc surge from the apparatus to the cytoplasm. Since zinc dysregulation is related to multiple diseases, in this study, we aimed to identify the anti-tumor effects of NVS-ZP7-4 and explore the molecular mechanisms of NVS-ZP7-4 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression. We found that NVS-ZP7-4 inhibited cell viability, caused cell cycle arrest, induced apoptosis, and inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion of HCCLM3 and Huh7 cells. We further investigated the inhibited activation of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway was involved in the antitumor effect of NVS-ZP7-4 in HCC. Furthermore, NVS-ZP7-4 inhibited HCC tumor growth in vivo. The present study demonstrated that NVS-ZP7-4 is a promising therapeutic target for HCC by regulating PI3K/AKT signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urocortin 2 (UCN2) acts as a ligand for the G protein-coupled receptor corticotropin-releasing hormone receptor 2 (CRHR2). UCN2 has been reported to improve or worsen insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance in vivo. Here we show that acute dosing of UCN2 induces systemic insulin resistance in male mice and skeletal muscle. Inversely, chronic elevation of UCN2 by injection with adenovirus encoding UCN2 resolves metabolic complications, improving glucose tolerance. CRHR2 recruits Gs in response to low concentrations of UCN2, as well as Gi and β-Arrestin at high concentrations of UCN2. Pre-treating cells and skeletal muscle ex vivo with UCN2 leads to internalization of CRHR2, dampened ligand-dependent increases in cAMP, and blunted reductions in insulin signaling. These results provide mechanistic insights into how UCN2 regulates insulin sensitivity and glucose metabolism in skeletal muscle and in vivo. Importantly, a working model was derived from these results that unifies the contradictory metabolic effects of UCN2. UCN2 acts as a ligand for the GPCR CRHR2 and there have been conflicting reports on whether UCN2 treatment improves or worsens glucose tolerance. Here, the authors show that acute UCN2 recruits Gs and decreases glucose uptake, while chronic treatment desensitizes CRHR2 and improves glucose uptake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A hypergraph ℋ is an (n, m)-hypergraph if it contains n vertices and m hyperedges, where n ≥ 1 and m ≥ 0 are two integers. Let k be a positive integer and let L be a set of nonnegative integers. A hypergraph ℋ is k-uniform if all its hyperedges have the same size k, and ℋ is L-intersecting if the number of common vertices of every two hyperedges belongs to L. In this paper, we propose and investigate the problem of estimating the maximum k among all k-uniform L-intersecting (n, m)-hypergraphs for fixed n, m and L. We will provide some tight upper and lower bounds on k in terms of n, m and L. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microplastic, being a direct carrier of many pollutants, has caused grave concern and become a public issue. This gives rise to the need of a quick method for quantifying and identifying microplastics in the environment. This study uses impedance spectroscopy, particularly the imaginary part of impedance, for detection and identification of sample microplastics. Two type of common microplastic contaminants, Polyethylene and Polystyrene, diameter 20 µm and 150 µm, were chosen for this study. The results confirm accurate identification of microplastic material in question, by using self-normalized ratio between two characteristic frequencies of 7 MHz and 8.9 MHz, Z′f=7 MHz/Z′f=8.9 MHz. 3-kNN classifier built with the ratio Z′f=7 MHz/Z′f=8.9 MHz, and Z′f=8 MHz/Z′f=8.9 MHz, demonstrates accuracy upto 90% for the identification of single or both microplastic types in samples. These results confirm impedance spectroscopy, permitting rapid identification of microplastic without labeling and skillful techniques, as a potential rapid sensor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering limited energy density of current lithium metal batteries (LMBs) due to low capacity of traditional intercalation-type cathodes, alternative high-energy cathodes are eagerly demanded. In this regard, conversion-type metal fluoride/sulfide/oxide cathodes have emerged great attention owing to their high theoretical specific capacities, supplying outstanding energy density for advanced LMBs. However, their low ionic/electrical conductivities, huge volume changes, sluggish reaction kinetics, and severe side reactions result in quick capacity fading and poor rate capability of LMBs. Recent research efforts on the conversion-type cathodes have brought new insights, as well as effective approaches toward realizing their excellent electrochemical performances. Here, the recent discoveries, challenges, and optimizing strategies including morphology regulation, phase structure engineering, surface coating, heterostructure construction, binder functionalization, and electrolyte design, are reviewed in detail. Finally, perspectives on the conversion-type metal fluoride/sulfide/oxide cathodes in LMBs are provided. It is believed that the conversion-type cathodes hold a promising future for the next-generation LMBs with high energy density. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing deep unfolding methods unroll an optimization algorithm with a fixed number of steps, and utilize convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to learn data-driven priors. However, their performance is limited for two main reasons. Firstly, priors learned in deep feature space need to be converted to the image space at each iteration step, which limits the depth of CNNs and prevents CNNs from exploiting contextual information. Secondly, existing methods only learn deep priors at the single full-resolution scale, so ignore the benefits of multi-scale context in dealing with high level noise. To address these issues, we explicitly consider the image denoising process in the deep feature space and propose the deep unfolding multi-scale regularizer network (DUMRN) for image denoising. The core of DUMRN is the feature-based denoising module (FDM) that directly removes noise in the deep feature space. In each FDM, we construct a multi-scale regularizer block to learn deep prior information from multi-resolution features. We build the DUMRN by stacking a sequence of FDMs and train it in an end-to-end manner. Experimental results on synthetic and real-world benchmarks demonstrate that DUMRN performs favorably compared to state-of-the-art methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The anterior auditory field (AAF) is a core region of the auditory cortex and plays a vital role in discrimination tasks. However, the role of the AAF corticostriatal neurons in frequency discrimination remains unclear. Here, we used c-Fos staining, fiber photometry recording, and pharmacogenetic manipulation to investigate the function of the AAF corticostriatal neurons in a frequency discrimination task. c-Fos staining and fiber photometry recording revealed that the activity of AAF pyramidal neurons was significantly elevated during the frequency discrimination task. Pharmacogenetic inhibition of AAF pyramidal neurons significantly impaired frequency discrimination. In addition, histological results revealed that AAF pyramidal neurons send strong projections to the striatum. Moreover, pharmacogenetic suppression of the striatal projections from pyramidal neurons in the AAF significantly disrupted the frequency discrimination. Collectively, our findings show that AAF pyramidal neurons, particularly the AAF–striatum projections, play a crucial role in frequency discrimination behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We address the 3D shape assembly of multiple geometric pieces without overlaps, a scenario often encountered in 3D shape design, field archeology, and robotics. Existing methods depend on strong assumptions on the number of shape pieces and coherent geometry or semantics of shape pieces. Despite raising attention to 3D registration with complex or low overlapping patterns, few methods consider shape assembly with rare overlaps. To address this problem, we present a novel framework inspired by solving puzzles, named PuzzleNet, which conducts multi-task learning by leveraging both 3D alignment and boundary information. Specifically, we design an end-to-end neural network based on a point cloud transformer with two-way branches for estimating rigid transformation and predicting boundaries simultaneously. The framework is then naturally extended to reassemble multiple pieces into a full shape by using an iterative greedy approach based on the distance between each pair of candidate-matched pieces. To train and evaluate PuzzleNet, we construct two datasets, named DublinPuzzle and ModelPuzzle, based on a real-world urban scan dataset (DublinCity) and a synthetic CAD dataset (ModelNet40) respectively. Experiments demonstrate our effectiveness in solving 3D shape assembly for multiple pieces with arbitrary geometry and inconsistent semantics. Our method surpasses state-of-the-art algorithms by more than 10 times in rotation metrics and four times in translation metrics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnetization roasting is one of the most effective way of utilizing low-grade refractory iron ore. However, the reduction roasting of siderite (FeCO3) generates weakly magnetic wüstite, thus reducing iron recovery via weak magnetic separation. We systematically studied and proposed the fluidized preoxidation-low-temperature reduction magnetization roasting process for siderite. We found that the maghemite generated during the air oxidation roasting of siderite would be further reduced into wüstite at 500 and 550°C due to the unstable intermediate product magnetite (Fe3O4). Stable magnetite can be obtained through maghemite reduction only at low temperature. The optimal fluidized magnetization roasting parameters included preoxidation at 610°C for 2.5 min, followed by reduction at 450°C for 5 min. For roasted ore, weak magnetic separation yielded an iron ore concentrate grade of 62.0wt% and an iron recovery rate of 88.36%. Compared with that of conventional direct reduction magnetization roasting, the iron recovery rate of weak magnetic separation had greatly improved by 34.33%. The proposed fluidized preoxidation-low-temperature reduction magnetization roasting process can realize the efficient magnetization roasting utilization of low-grade refractory siderite-containing iron ore without wüstite generation and is unlimited by the proportion of siderite and hematite in iron ore. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Okadaic acid (OA), a lipophilic phycotoxin distributed worldwide, causes diarrheic shellfish poisoning and even leads to tumor formation. Currently, the consumption of contaminated seafood is the most likely cause of chronic OA exposure, but there is a serious lack of relevant data. Here, the Sprague-Dawley rats were exposure to OA by oral administration at 100 µg/kg body weight, and the tissues were collected and analyzed to assess the effect of subchronic OA exposure. The results showed that subchronic OA administration disturbed colonic mucosal integrity and induced colitis. The colonic tight junction proteins were disrupted and the cell cycle of colonic epithelial cells was accelerated. It is inferred that disruption of the colonic tight junction proteins might be related to the development of chronic diarrhea by affecting water and ion transport. Moreover, the accelerated proliferation of colonic epithelial cells indicated that subchronic OA exposure might promote the restitution process of gut barrier or induce tumor promoter activity in rat colon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The solubility of a direct arylation polycondensation (DArP) synthesized conjugated polymer, i.e., poly(3,6-bis(furan-2-yl)-2,5-bis(4-tetradecyloctadecyl)-pyrrolo[3,4-c]pyrrole-1,4(2H,5H)-dione-alt-1,2-bis(3,4-difluorothien-2-yl)ethene) (PFuDPP-4FTVT), in various organic solvents was studied. The polymer is soluble in 3-methylcyclohexanone (3-MC), a green solvent from peppermint oil, besides other solvents such as anisole, cyclopentyl methyl ether (CPME) and o-dichlorobenzene (o-DCB), etc. Based on the Hansen solubility parameters (HSP) analysis, 3-MC is identified as a "marginal solvent" of PFuDPP-4FTVT. The morphology of the spin-coated films with 3-MC as the solvent strongly correlated with the solution preparation conditions. With a 3-MC solution aged for 3 h at 70 °C, n-channel organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) with electron mobility (μe) above 1 cm2·V−1·s−1 and current on/off ratio (Ion/Ioff) higher than 105 were fabricated by spin-coating. This is the first report on high mobility conjugated polymers for OTFTs processible with naturally occurred green solvent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In structural materials, architecting a heterogeneous structure has been proven an effective strategy to achieve extraordinary comprehensive mechanical properties, such as combining high strength, excellent fatigue resistance, high ductility, etc. Improvement of mechanical properties is also a constant pursuit of metallic functional materials of shape memory alloys (SMAs), which is the precondition for realizing associated functional responses. The microstructural heterogeneity of SMAs plays a critical role in resisting irreversible deformation and regulating the nature of thermoelastic martensitic transformation. In this review, we focus on the recent progress of SMAs reinforced by heterogeneous microstructure spanning various length scales, which incorporates favorable mechanical and functional properties under external stimuli. These results point to an intriguing future in which novel and specific functionality of SMAs can be triggered programmatically by building a hierarchy of microstructures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heterostructured materials (HSMs) have shown great potential for breaking the strength-ductility tradeoff. HSMs consist of heterogeneous zones that may have different sizes, shapes, compositions, structures, etc. Interactions and competitions among them often lead to unprecedented properties. However, due to the complex structures in a broad range of length scales, it is challenging to unravel deformation physics and strengthening mechanisms underlying extraordinary mechanical properties. Synchrotron x-rays provide powerful techniques and indispensable tools for investigating HSMs at various length scales. Here, we will present in situ high-energy x-ray diffraction and Laue x-ray microdiffraction techniques and their application in studying the HSMs. The principles of these techniques will be briefly introduced. We will focus on their application in studying stress partitioning and plastic accommodation during tensile deformation, thermo-driven and/or stress-driven phase transformations and various deformation microstructures like geometrically necessary dislocations and local stress/strain distributions, etc., in HSMs. Some important findings will be summarized. Challenging issues remain in studying HSMs and will be discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dental X-ray image segmentation is helpful for assisting clinicians to examine tooth conditions and identify dental diseases. Fast and lightweight segmentation algorithms without using cloud computing may be required to be implemented in X-ray imaging systems. This paper aims to investigate lightweight deep learning methods for dental X-ray image segmentation for the purpose of deployment on edge devices, such as dental X-ray imaging systems. A novel lightweight neural network scheme using knowledge distillation is proposed in this paper. The proposed lightweight method and a number of existing lightweight deep learning methods were trained on a panoramic dental X-ray image data set. These lightweight methods were evaluated and compared by using several accuracy metrics. The proposed lightweight method only requires 0.33 million parameters ( ∼ 7.5 megabytes) for the trained model, while it achieved the best performance in terms of IoU (0.804) and Dice (0.89) comparing to other lightweight methods. This work shows that the proposed method for dental X-ray image segmentation requires small memory storage, while it achieved comparative performance. The method could be deployed on edge devices and could potentially assist clinicians to alleviate their daily workflow and improve the quality of their analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Specular highlight detection and removal is a fundamental problem in computer vision and image processing. In this paper, we present an efficient end-to-end deep learning model for automatically detecting and removing specular highlights in a single image. In particular, an encoder—decoder network is utilized to detect specular highlights, and then a novel Unet-Transformer network performs highlight removal; we append transformer modules instead of feature maps in the Unet architecture. We also introduce a highlight detection module as a mask to guide the removal task. Thus, these two networks can be jointly trained in an effective manner. Thanks to the hierarchical and global properties of the transformer mechanism, our framework is able to establish relationships between continuous self-attention layers, making it possible to directly model the mapping between the diffuse area and the specular highlight area, and reduce indeterminacy within areas containing strong specular highlight reflection. Experiments on public benchmark and real-world images demonstrate that our approach outperforms state-of-the-art methods for both highlight detection and removal tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Organ fat may affect bone metabolism and be associated with vertebral fracture (VF). This study aimed to explore relationships between VF, adiposity indexes measured by MRI, and volumetric BMD (vBMD) measured by quantitative CT (QCT). Methods: Four hundred volunteers, ranging in age from 22 to 83 years, were recruited and underwent same-day abdominal QCT and chemical shift–encoded (CSE) MRI. We used MRI to quantify the fat content of bone marrow (BMF), psoas major and paraspinal muscles, and the liver. Abdominal fat, VF, and vBMD of the lumbar spine were measured by QCT. For VF discrimination analysis, we examined both the whole cohort (60 VF cases in 30 men and 30 women) and a restricted subgroup of those aged over 50 years (50 VF cases in 23 men and 27 women). Results: Amongst the men, a 1 SD increase in BMF was associated with a 27.67 (95% CI, −32.71 to −22.62) mg/cm3 decrease in vBMD after adjusting for age and BMI. Amongst women, all adiposity indexes except for liver fat were significantly associated with vBMD, with BMF having the strongest association (β, −24.00; 95% CI, −28.54 to −19.46 mg/cm3). Similar findings were also observed in participants aged over 50 years. The associations of adiposity indexes with vertebral fracture were not significant after adjusting for age in both sexes aged over 50 years. Conclusions: In both sexes, higher bone marrow fat was associated with lower vBMD at the spine. However, marrow fat and other adipose tissues were not associated with radiographic-based prevalent vertebral fractures. Key Points: • In both sexes, higher bone marrow fat was associated with lower vBMD at the spine. • Among women, all adiposity indexes except for liver fat content were significantly associated with vBMD, with bone marrow fat having the strongest association. • Marrow fat and other adipose tissues were not associated with radiographic-based asymptomatic vertebral fractures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Special medical supplies such as blood and vaccines have strict temperature requirements in medical cold storage. In order to improve the stability of the temperature monitoring system in the medical cold storage and solve the problem of low measurement accuracy caused by node failure or abnormal data interference, we propose an algorithm based on classification adaptive estimation (CAEWF). The algorithm first monitors and classifies the data collected by the nodes, and uses the mutual support matrix between the data to filter out the validity abnormal data and transmit them to the cluster head. Then use the classification adaptive estimation weighted fusion algorithm to estimate the weighted fusion of the data. The simulation results show that the accuracy of the CAEWF algorithm is better than the arithmetic mean and batch estimation fusion algorithm, which can meet the temperature accuracy requirements of medical cold storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to move towards sustainable development, the discovery of energy-efficient and environmentally friendly materials has become increasingly imperative. Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) as emerging designable crystalline porous materials have captured increasing attention for a wide array of clean-energy and environmental applications, attributed to their attractive advantages of low density, high surface area, adjustable and periodic pores, and functional skeletons. This review attempts to highlight the key advancements made in the green synthesis of COFs, processing of COFs, energy and environment-related applications, including gas storage, water treatment, the separation of gas mixture and organic molecules, catalysis, supercapacitors, fuel cell, and rechargeable batteries. Finally, a perspective regarding the remaining challenges and future directions on the synthesis and promising application for green chemical engineering of COFs has also been presented based on current achievements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Rare Metals is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Based on the gas–solid two-phase flow theory, numerical simulation of the dust dispersion law of fully mechanized mining work under different inclination angles and comparative analysis of field-measured data show that with the increase of working face inclination, the inclination of airflow into the unmined zone increases from 25° to 50° and the maximum wind speed increases from 2.16 to 2.25 m/s after the mixing of cutting turbulent wind and system ventilation. Meanwhile, the range of high-concentration dust clusters, suspension time, lateral migration intensity, and deposition zone increase to varying degrees; dust clusters increases from 62.02 to 202.46 m3. When X < 53.96 m, the dust concentration in the sidewalk-breathing zone shows a sine function with the length of the working face, and when X ≥ 53.96 m, it satisfies the exponential decay function. Based on this, the tracking closed dust control technology is proposed. Combining the offset angle of the airflow and t the gathering position of dust mass, the wind curtain angle and air velocity are automatically controlled to ensure that the dust is restricted to one side of the cable trough. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low illumination, under which discriminative clues are buried in the captured images, is an under-investigated but noteworthy issue in wild scene text detection. Existing deep learning approaches suffer from the scarcity of training data and illumination-sensitive feature representation. To address these issues, we propose a Low Illumination Scene Text (LIST) Detector training with authentic synthetic data and integrating dedicated feature enhancement modules. Specifically, we adopt a lightweight and non-reference low-light scene text image synthesis network to acquire adequate training data through pixel-wisely adjusting the dynamic range curve of normal-light images. Moreover, illumination invariant feature representation is learned through dual path feature extraction stem with intensity adjusted inputs, and feature fusion branch with automatically designed fusion cell. In the end, the enhanced feature is fed into a segmentation-based layer to localize arbitrary shape text instances. We construct a labeled real-world scene text image dataset called "DarkText" and conduct extensive experiments to validate the advantages of our proposed framework over state-of-the-art competitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key message: Twelve QTL associated with pre-harvest sprouting tolerance were identified using association analysis in wheat. Two markers were validated and a candidate gene TaNAC074 for Qgpf.cas-3B.2 was verified using Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. Pre-harvest sprouting (PHS) is a considerable global threat to wheat yield and quality. Due to this threat, breeders must identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) and genes conferring PHS-tolerance (PHST) to reduce the negative effects of PHS caused by low seed dormancy. In this study, we evaluated a panel of 302 diverse wheat genotypes for PHST in four environments and genotyped the panel with a high-density wheat 660 K SNP array. By using a genome-wide association study (GWAS), we identified 12 stable loci significantly associated with PHST (P < 0.0001), explaining 3.34 − 9.88% of the phenotypic variances. Seven of these loci co-located with QTL and genes reported previously. Five loci (Qgpf.cas-3B.2, Qgpf.cas-3B.3, Qgpf.cas-3B.4, Qgpf.cas-7B.2, and Qgpf.cas-7B.3), located in genomic regions with no known PHST QTL or genes, are likely to be new QTL conferring PHST. Additionally, two molecular markers were developed for Qgpf.cas-3A and Qgpf.cas-7B.3, and validated using a different set of 233 wheat accessions. Finally, the PHST-related function of candidate gene TaNAC074 for Qgpf.cas-3B.2 was confirmed by CAPS (cleaved amplified polymorphic sequences) marker association analysis in 233 wheat accessions and by expression and phenotypic analysis of transgenic wheat. Overexpression of TaNAC074 significantly reduced seed dormancy in wheat. This study contributes to broaden the genetic basis and molecular marker-assisted breeding of PHST. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cell adhesion molecule CD44 has been implicated in diverse biological functions including the pathological responses to infections and inflammatory diseases. The variable forms of CD44 contribute to functional variations, which are not yet defined in teleost. Here, we show that zebrafish CD44a plays a protective role in the host defense against Edwardsiella piscicida infection. Zebrafish CD44a deficiency inhibits cell growth and proliferation, impairs cell growth and death pathways, and regulates the expression levels of many genes involved in p53 signaling, apoptosis and autophagy. In addition, CD44a gene disruption in zebrafish leads to inhibition of apoptosis and induction of autophagy, with the increased susceptibility to E. piscicida infection. Furthermore, we show that zebrafish CD44a variants including CD44a_tv1 and CD44a_tv2 promote the translocation of p53 from the nucleus to the cytoplasm and interact with p53 in the cytoplasm. Mechanistically, zebrafish CD44a_tv1 mediates the beneficial effect for larvae survival infected with E. piscicida is depending on the CASP8-mediated apoptosis. However, the antibacterial effect of zebrafish CD44a_tv2 depends on the cytoplasmic p53-mediated inhibition of autophagy. Collectively, our results identify that different mechanisms regulate CD44a variants-mediated antibacterial responses. The adhesion molecule CD44 drives host defence in zebrafish by regulating apoptosis and autophagy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]