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In order to improve the measurement accuracy of near-bit apparent resistivity and its measurement range, this paper excites the underground transmitting antenna by a sinusoidal pulse-width modulated (SPWM) current excitation method, which can improve the response of the receiving antenna and circuit in the resistivity measurement system under the usual square wave excitation, thus improving the measurement accuracy of near-bit apparent resistivity. In this paper, the effect of square wave, SPWM wave and sine wave excitation on resistivity measurement was studied, and the modulation algorithm and hardware control are programmed by DSP (Digital Signal Processor), and the SPWM signal is output by full-bridge inverter circuit and tuned antenna. The indoor experimental results show that the near-bit apparent resistivity measurement method based on the SPWM wave pulse excitation can achieve the measurement in the range of formation equivalent resistor value of less than 600kΩ. There is a high trend matching between near-bit apparent resistivity LWD curve and RT resistivity curve of well completion electrical logging in field tests of formation resistivity less than 2000Ω·m, which proves that the method can improve the accuracy of near-bit apparent resistivity measurement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of new chiral liquid crystal compounds named Mt4BOPnAB containing (-)-menthyl group has been prepared and characterised by FT-IR and 1H NMR spectra. The series contains nine membersthat vary in the terminal length of the alkanoyloxy chain (Cn−1H2n−1COO-, where n = 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18). The thermal properties and optical properties were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), polarising optical microscopy (POM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and ultraviolet/visible sepctroscopy (UV/Vis). High chiral menthyl group in Mt4BOPnAB molecules triggers the formation of a cubic structure of a blue phase (BPI/II). Increasing the length of the terminal alkanoyloxy group leads to the reduction in Tc, narrowing the N* phase, and contributing to the development of the Sc* phase. In addition, only CLCs with short terminal chains (n ≤ 8) show selective reflection of visible light and themochromic behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of a hybrid filler on the thermal conductivity of an epoxy composite is described. The hybrid filler, containing boron nitride (BN) particles and silicon nitride (Si3N4) whiskers with different wt% ratios (20:0, 18:2, 15:5, 10:10, 5:15, 2:18 and 0:20), was loaded into the epoxy resin. The thermal conductivities of the doped composites were higher than that of the pure EP (0.4287 W·m−1·K−1); with addition of BN and Si3N4 fillers the 10%BN/10%Si3N4/EP composites exhibited the highest thermal conductivity (1.1486 W·m−1·K−1), which was 185% and 214% that of the 20%BN/EP composite (0.6200 W·m−1·K−1) and the 20%Si3N4/EP (0.5374 W·m−1·K−1), respectively. The impact strength of the composite material 10%BN/10%Si3N4/EP also was the maximum (3.48 KJ/m2). Thus, the 10%BN/10%Si3N4/EP composites not only exhibited excellent thermal conductivity, but also slight improvements in thermal stability and impact strength. Suggesting it would be useful for thermal sensor interconnections of electronic circuits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because of its high stability, good wear resistance, and high mechanical hardness, SiC is widely used in various mechanical parts as a protective film. However, there have been few reports published on the preparation of SiC films by pulsed DC magnetron sputtering. In this work, SiC films were deposited onto glass and ceramic substrates from a sintered SiC target through pulsed DC magnetron sputtering. The influence of the variation of the power pulse frequency (0 kHz, 50 kHz, 150 kHz, 250 kHz, and 300 kHz) on the film's performance was studied. The surface morphology, structural characteristics, hardness, and adhesion strength of the deposited SiC films were investigated here. The results show that all the deposited films adhered well to the substrate. They were smooth, compact, and presented an amorphous structure. The film hardness was found to increase as the pulse frequency was increased. When the pulse frequency was 250 kHz, the resulting SiC film possessed optimal mechanical properties with a hardness of 25.74 GPa (measured using a nanometer indentation instrument) and an adhesion strength of about 36 N (measured by scratch tester). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We, the Editors and Publisher of the journal of Inorganic and Nano-Metal Chemistry have retracted the following article: Qian Shi, Jing Wang & Hai-Li Zhang. Two trisimidazole-based coordination polymers: application values on breast cancer combined with psychological counseling, Inorganic and Nano-Metal Chemistry, 2021, DOI: Since publication, significant concerns have been raised about the integrity of the data and reported results in the article. When approached for an explanation, the authors did not provide their original data or any necessary supporting information. As verifying the validity of published work is core to the integrity of the scholarly record, we are therefore retracting the article. The corresponding author listed in this publication has been informed. We have been informed in our decision-making by our policy on publishing ethics and integrity and the COPE guidelines on retractions. The retracted article will remain online to maintain the scholarly record, but it will be digitally watermarked on each page as 'Retracted'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enhanced knowledge of the biological and genetic basis of cancer is re-defining the target population for new treatments. In oncology, potential targets for a new therapeutic agent often include various solid and hematologic malignancies that share common signaling pathways. New agents are often tested in multiple tumor types across which information can be borrowed. We propose a hierarchical Bayesian design (HBD) to simultaneously test a novel agent in multiple groups for randomized Phase II clinical trials with binary endpoints. Compared to parallel design for individual tumor groups, the HBD has greatly reduced sample size. Therefore, this improves efficiency and decreases the financial cost of conducting randomized Phase II clinical trials. An R package hbdct has been developed to implement the HBD and streamline the sample size calibration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background: Poor quality of warfarin control (time in therapeutic range [TTR] < 65%) can lead to increased risk of adverse events. The objective of this study was to examine the overall quality of international normalized ratio (INR) control and the association of TTR with clinical outcomes including stroke, major bleeding, and all-cause mortality among US warfarin users.Methods and Results: This retrospective observational cohort study utilized the US Veterans Affairs electronic medical records database (VA EMR). Patients with NVAF who newly initiated warfarin from 1 January 2005 to 31 December 2015 were grouped into two cohorts based on TTR <65% or ≥65%. TTR was computed from INR test results. Clinical outcomes assessed were stroke/systemic embolism (SE), hemorrhagic stroke, ischemic stroke, and major bleeding, defined based on hospitalization with those conditions as primary diagnosis, as well as all-cause mortality. Patients were followed from warfarin initiation to the first occurrence of an outcome or censoring. Propensity score weighted time-varying Cox regression was used to evaluate the risk of the clinical events. A total of 127,385 NVAF patients with mean TTR of 51% were included. TTR <65% was observed in 65% of patients. Mean CHA2DS2-VASC score (SD) was 2.9 (1.5) in the low TTR cohort and 2.7 (1.4) in the high TTR cohort. Patients with TTR <65% had a higher risk for any stroke/SE (HR: 1.57; 95% CI: 1.41-1.75), major bleeding (HR: 2.78; 95% CI: 2.55-3.03) and all-cause mortality (HR: 1.73; 95% CI: 1.67-1.79).Conclusions: The observed quality of warfarin control in VA EMR suggests room for improvement given the association with elevated risk of adverse clinical outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conclusion: These results provided a battery of genes relating to TPF chemotherapeutic sensitivity and might act as molecular targets in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) treatment. Moreover, these candidate biomarkers could contribute to LSCC individualized treatment. Objectives: To screen out a set of candidate genes which could help to determine whether patients with LSCC could benefit from TPF induction chemotherapy. Method: Gene-expression profiles in seven TPF-sensitive patients were compared to four resistant controls by microarray analysis. Subsequently, expression levels of potential biomarkers in chemosensitive cell line UMSCC5 after TPF treatment were observed by qRT-PCR. Results: Through microarray analysis, 1546 differently expressed genes were identified, of which 769 were up-regulated in TPF chemotherapy-responsive tissues, whereas 777 were down-regulated. Gene ontology (GO) analysis suggested these genes participating in physiological processes including cell differentiation, metabolism, signal transduction, and cellular component organization. Additionally, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) database revealed that Wnt and p53 signaling pathways occupied important roles in TPF chemotherapeutic sensitivity. Moreover, in vitro cell culture experiments revealed the expression alternations of Mapk10, Jun, Vegfb, Pik3r5, Pld1, Tek, Itga6 exposed to TPF treatment by qRT-PCR, whilst providing an insight into the mechanism underlying TPF chemother-apeutic response in LSCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate the long-term cost-effectiveness of dapagliflozin (a novel sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitor) versus glimepiride (a widely used sulfonylurea), when applied as monotherapy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in China.Methods: Literature screening, meta-analysis and indirect comparison were used to compare efficacy and safety between dapagliflozin and glimepiride. Direct medication costs and medical expenditure on treating diabetes related comorbidities were calculated based on published and local sources and reported in 2015 Chinese Renminbi (RMB). A discount rate of 3% was applied to both costs and health effects. The Cardiff model, an economic model designed to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of comparator therapies in diabetes, was used to generate outputs including macrovascular and microvascular complications, diabetes-specific mortality, costs and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) over a time horizon of 40 years from the health provider perspective. Univariate and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed to assess uncertainty in the model results.Results: Compared with glimepiride, patients on dapagliflozin gained 1.01 QALYs, at a cost saving of RMB 49,065 in our simulated cohort. This resulted in a cost saving of RMB 48,585 per QALY gained with dapagliflozin. The cost-effectiveness results were robust to various sensitivity analyses including probabilistic sensitivity analysis (PSA).Conclusions: Compared with glimepiride, dapagliflozin as monotherapy for T2DM is a more cost-effective treatment for T2DM patients on monotherapy in China. The weight control has been identified as the major contributor for the higher cost-effectiveness of dapagliflozin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highly ordered TiO2nanotube arrays were fabricated by anodisation of titanium, and then anodic TiO2nanotubes were modified in calcium ion-containing solution using ultrasound-assisted impregnation. For reference, the experiments were also carried out by conventional impregnation. The ability to form apatite on specimens was examined upon exposure to modified simulated body fluids combined with FESEM, EDS, XRD, FTIR and Zeta potential investigations. The results reveal that it had a negligible effect on the morphology of nanotubes with varying calcium source and impregnation time using conventional impregnation. Nevertheless, TiO2nanotubes were modified by the method of ultrasound-assisted impregnation, the mouth of nanotubes became glossy, the diameter of nanotubes became non-uniform and the amount of adsorbate in the inner wall of nanotubes increased. The calcium ion-modified nanotubes were more efficient in promoting apatite formation than the unmodified nanotubes, which may be attributed to the release of calcium ions and the significantly high amount of Ti–OH groups on its surface. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The study has determined the complete mitochondrial genome sequence of the Rhabdophis adleri. The mitogenome was 17,505 bp in size, containing 26.33% T, 27.08% C, 33.38% A, and 13.21% G, 2 ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes, 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 22 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes, as well as 2 Dloop regions. The gene arrangement, nucleotide composition, and the codon usage pattern of the mitochondrial genome of R. adleri were alike in other alethinophidian snakes. The phylogenetic reconstruction analyses yielded similar topologies, having been expressed that R. adleri can strongly be placed within Colubridae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainable construction is achieved by the implementation of sustainable development principles in the construction industry. The complexity and higher level of inter-project conflicts that occur in large-scale projects mean that the implementation of sustainable construction in those projects is substantially different from that in smaller scale projects. A case study approach has been adopted to analyse the planning and implementation of sustainable construction in the Shanghai World Expo 2010 across the entire programme lifecycle. As one of the largest programmes in China, the Shanghai World Expo 2010 has the potential to serve as a showcase for the application of sustainable development principles in construction. The key factors that need to be considered in order to promote sustainable construction at the programme level are identified. These include the establishment of a dedicated department to coordinate various stakeholders’ efforts and the release of conceptual guidelines and management regulations. In addition, a framework is proposed to implement sustainable construction at the programme management level. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A method based on high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with diode array detector coupled with electrospray ionisation–mass spectrometry and an online detection system for radical scavenging was established and used to rapidly find and quantify antioxidant compounds in the water extracts of Hippocampus japonicus Kaup, Hippocampus kuda Bleeker and Syngnathus acus Linnaeus. The online screening results revealed the presence of one major radical scavenging compound identified as hypoxanthine by comparison of mass data and retention time with the standard. Subsequently, the developed HPLC method was applied to quantify hypoxanthine in different H. japonicus, H. kuda and S. acus samples. The results indicated that the developed HPLC method is simple and reliable for the quantification of hypoxanthine with a detection limit at 0.002 µg mL–1, and a high recovery from 96.3% to 102.1%. This method provides a powerful tool for rapid identification and quantification of free radical scavenging compounds in complex marine natural products. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

As cancer treatment development has shifted its attention to targeted therapies, it is becoming increasingly important to provide tools for selecting the right treatment for an individual patient to achieve optimal clinical benefit. Biomarkers, identified and studied in the process of understanding the nature of the disease at the molecular pathogenesis level, have been increasingly recognized as a critical aspect in more accurate diagnosis, prognosis assessment, and therapeutic targeting. Predictive biomarkers, which can aid treatment decisions, require extensive data for validation. In this article, we discuss the definition, clinical usages, and more extensively the clinical trial designs for the validation of predictive biomarkers. Predictive biomarker validation methods can be broadly grouped into retrospective and prospective designs. Retrospective validation utilizes data from previously conducted prospective randomized controlled trials. Prospective designs include enrichment designs, treatment-by-marker interaction designs, marker-based strategy designs, and adaptive designs. We discuss each design with examples and provide comparisons of the advantages and disadvantages among the different designs. We conclude that the combination of scientific, clinical, statistical, ethical, and practical considerations provides guidance for the choice of the clinical trial design for validation of each proposed predictive biomarker. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three cobalt(II) coordination polymers, {[Co(nip)(4,4'-bpy)] · 3H2O}n (1), [Co(nip)(bpe)]n (2), and [Co(nip)(bpp)(H2O)]n (3), were hydrothermally synthesized by the reaction of cobalt nitrate hexahydrate and nip with 4,4'-bpy, bpe, and bpp [nip = 5-nitro-1,3-benzenedicarboxylato, 4,4'-bpy = 4,4'-bipyridine, bpe = 1,2-bis(4-pyridyl)ethane, bpp = 1,3-bis(4-pyridyl)propane], respectively. Co(II) displays different coordination in the three complexes, resulting in different structures with nanoscale channels. Compounds 1 and 2 form 2-D layer structures, but 3 has a two-fold interpenetrated 3-D framework. The magnetic properties associated with their crystal structures were investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A secondary building unit (SBU), [Ni(2,2'-bipy)(5-npa)(H2O)]n [where 2,2'-bipy = 2,2'-bipyridine, 5-npa = 5-nitroisophthalic dianion], was synthesized as starting material of a polystep reaction. A ladderlike complex (LLC) Ni(II) coordination polymer, {[Ni(2,2'-bipy)(5-npa)(4,4'bipy)0.5]·(H2O)}n, was constructed by polystep reaction using this SBU. In LLC, two SBUs were cross-linked by 4,4'-bipy [where 4,4'-bipy = 4,4'-bipyridine] forming a 1-D ladderlike structure. The magnetic properties of the LLC and SBU are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

3D LaIII and 2D CuII coordination polymers with 5-nitroisophthalate anions, [La2(μ-Nip)(μ-SO4)2(H2O)5]n (1) and {[Cu3(μ-OH)2(μ-Nip)2(μ-H2O)2] · 2H2O}n (2), have been synthesized, characterized and studied by X-ray crystallography. The La atoms have eight-coordinate geometries in distorted square antiprism environments and the Cu atoms have five- and six-coordinate geometries with distorted square pyramidal and octahedral environments. Self-assembly of these compounds in the solid state occurs through coordination and hydrogen bonding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A linear-chain one-dimension polymeric complex of Co(II), [[Co(TMA)2(4,4'-bipyridine)2] · H2O]n has been synthesized and characterized. The complex crystallizes in the monoclinic system, space group P2(1)/c with a = 11.344(3) Å, b = 15.880(4) Å, c = 23.436(5) Å, β = 117.831(10)°, V = 3733.5(16) Å3 and Dc = 1.437 g cm-3. The effective magnetic moment for this complex indicates that there is almost no ferromagnetic coupling between the Co(II) ions and the magnetic behavior is due to the isolated Co(II). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rhabdophis himalayanus listed as a vulnerable species has been included in the IUCN Red List. Here, the complete mitochondrial genome sequence of this kind of snake is first reported. The genome is 17,149 bp in length, containing 2 ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes, 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes, and 2 D-loop regions. The mitochondrial genome order, nucleotide composition, and codon usage pattern of it are similar to other snakes. The phylogenetic results indicating that R. himalayanus can be firmly placed in the family Colubridae, under the genus Rhabdophis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The complete mitochondrial genome of Rhabdophis guangdongensis is 17,785 bp in length, with a base composition of 38.7% A, 15.9% G, 23.5% C, and 21.9% T. It contains 2 ribosomal RNA(rRNA), 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA (tRNA), and 2 control regions, similar to that of other (Colubridae). Twelve concatenated heavy-strand encoded protein-coding genes were used for Bayesian method to construct phylogenetic tree, R. guangdongensis forms a monophyletic group with Rhabdophis tigrinus. This is the first report for the complete mitochondrial genome of R. guangdongensis and it provides the basic data for the taxonomic and phylogenetic of snakes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]