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ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to objectively quantify and evaluate the ergonomic risk of clinical physiotherapy practices and evaluate physiotherapists for work-related musculoskeletal disorders and pain.MethodsTwenty-nine physiotherapists in the rehabilitation department of a large-scale tertiary hospital were recruited in this study. The sampling period lasted for 2 weeks for each physiotherapist and interval sampling was adopted to avoid duplication of cases. Therapist posture during physiotherapy was captured, tracked and analyzed in real time using structured light sensors with an automated assessment program. The quantification of ergonomic risk was based on REBA (Rapid Entire Body Assessment) and the RPE (perceived physical exertion) scores of the therapists were recorded before and after treatment, respectively.ResultsTwo hundred and twenty-four clinical physiotherapy cases were recorded, of which 49.6% were high risk and 33% were very high risk, with none of the cases presenting negligible risk. The positioning (p < 0.001) of physiotherapist had a considerable impact on ergonomic risk and pediatric physiotherapy presented a higher risk to physiotherapists than adults (p < 0.001). The RPE score of physiotherapist after performing physiotherapy was greater than before physiotherapy and was positively correlated with the REBA distribution.ConclusionOur study creates an automatic tool to assess the ergonomic risk of physiotherapy practices and demonstrates unacceptable ergonomic risk in common practices. The high prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders and pains recommends that rehabilitation assistance devices should be optimized and standard ergonomic courses should be included in physiotherapists' training plans.

It is often argued that the sensitivity of atom interferometer depends on the geometry of the interfering atom paths, conventionally, atom interferometer are usually configured to be sensitive to all deformations including tensor and scalar field deformations, it is a promising and robust tool for obtaining a highly sensitive and accurate measurements of gravitational signals, as such they are potentially capable of testing a wide range of fundamental physics questions including gravitational decoherence. Therefore, motivated by the recent search to improve the sensitivity of the next generation atom interferometer, we derived a broad class of equations that obeys a specific geometric configuration for the interfering paths for a 2-level atom interferometer model, and in doing so, we further analysed various configurations for the geometric interpretation, in addition to interferometric influence phase shift and a possible decoherence factor which could lead to a systematic theoretical framework for future sensing of weak forces, due to, for example, gravitational waves and light dark matter.

The energy conversion in rocks has an important significance for evaluation of the stability and safety of rock engineering. In this paper, some uniaxial compression tests for fifteen different rocks were performed. The evolution characteristics of the total energy, elastic energy, and dissipated energy for the fifteen rocks were studied. The dissipation energy coefficient was introduced to study the evolution characteristics of rock. The evolution of the dissipation energy coefficient for different rocks was investigated. The linear interrelations of the dissipation energy coefficients and the yield strength and peak strength were explored. The method was proposed to determine the strength of rock using the dissipation energy coefficients. The results show that the evolution of the dissipation energy coefficient exhibits significant deformation properties of rock. The dissipation energy coefficients linearly increase with the compaction strength, but decrease with the yield strength and peak strength. Moreover, the dissipation energy coefficient can be used to determine the rock burst proneness and crack propagation in rocks.

Background Isobutanol is considered a potential biofuel, thanks to its high-energy content and octane value, limited water solubility, and compatibility with gasoline. As its biosynthesis pathway is known, a microorganism, such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae, that inherently produces isobutanol, can serve as a good engineering host. Isobutanol’s toxicity, however, is a major obstacle for bioproduction. This study is to understand how yeast tolerates isobutanol. Results A S. cerevisiae gene-deletion library with 5006 mutants was used to screen genes related to isobutanol tolerance. Image recognition was efficiently used for high-throughput screening via colony size on solid media. In enrichment analysis of the 161 isobutanol-sensitive clones identified, more genes than expected were mapped to tryptophan biosynthesis, ubiquitination, and the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP). Interestingly, adding exogenous tryptophan enabled both tryptophan biosynthesis and PPP mutant strains to overcome the stress. In transcriptomic analysis, cluster analysis of differentially expressed genes revealed the relationship between tryptophan and isobutanol stress through some specific cellular functions, such as biosynthesis and transportation of amino acids, PPP, tryptophan metabolism, nicotinate/nicotinamide metabolism (e.g., nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide biosynthesis), and fatty acid metabolism. Conclusions The importance of tryptophan in yeast’s tolerance to isobutanol was confirmed by the recovery of isobutanol tolerance in defective strains by adding exogenous tryptophan to the growth medium. Transcriptomic analysis showed that amino acid biosynthesis- and transportation-related genes in a tryptophan biosynthesis-defective host were up-regulated under conditions similar to nitrogen starvation. This may explain why ubiquitination was required for the protein turnover. PPP metabolites may serve as precursors and cofactors in tryptophan biosynthesis to enhance isobutanol tolerance. Furthermore, the tolerance mechanism may also be linked to tryptophan downstream metabolism, including the kynurenine pathway and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide biosynthesis. Both pathways are responsible for cellular redox balance and anti-oxidative ability. Our study highlights the central role of tryptophan in yeast’s isobutanol tolerance and offers new clues for engineering a yeast host with strong isobutanol tolerance.

Significance We report the study using X-ray absorption and resonant inelastic X-ray scattering techniques to investigate the evolution of superconductivity in K 1.9 Fe 4.2 Se 5 , which was synthesized from its nonsuperconducting parent compound, K 2 Fe 4 Se 5 , by increasing the Fe concentration. The results provide a deeper insight into the magnetic and local electronic properties of K 1.9 Fe 4.2 Se 5 , such as a decrease in antiferromagnetic spin magnetic moment of Fe, charge transfer, and hybridization between Fe 3 d –Se 4 p orbitals, and increase in the local static structural disorder, to gain an understanding of the evolution of superconductivity in the compound.

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) and reduced graphene oxide (r-GO) were synthesized separately by the radio frequency reactive magnetron sputtering technique on a Si-substrate (TiO2/Si) and the improved Hummers method, respectively. For deposition of r-GO onto TiO2, an aqueous solution of r-GO was deposited on the TiO2/Si thin film by the spin coating process to fabricate the (r-GO/TiO2)/Si composite thin-film. The (r-GO/TiO2)/Si composite thin-film is characterized using different spectroscopic techniques to study the effects at the interface of TiO2 and r-GO in the surface defects, vacancy, incorporation of the different oxygenated moiety, microstructural, surface morphological, electronic, and magnetic performance. Our motivation is to contribute and understand mainly the tuning of the electronic structure and magnetic performance of the (r-GO/TiO2)/Si composite structure for the development of future promising optoelectronic and spintronic applications. We found that the magnetic performance is improved due to the change in the electronic properties of r-GO deposited on TiO2 thin films. Thus, the role of the interfacial defects in the (r-GO/TiO2)/Si thin film and the mechanism of the tuning of the electronic structure and magnetic performance are elucidated comprehensively.

Summary Controversy still exists as to whether surgical treatment has any impact on the long-term survival of esophageal cancer (EC) patients with coronary artery disease treated with curative esophagectomy combined with off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCABG). Therefore, the aim of this study was to introduce and assess the effect of esophagectomy combined with OPCABG on both short- and long-term outcomes. From January 2010 to January 2015, 1428 EC or esophagogastric junction cancer patients underwent surgical treatment at Henan Chest Hospital, Zhengzhou, China. The clinical data of 25 patients who underwent EC resection through a left thoracotomy following OPCABG and the perioperative characteristics and follow-up results were analyzed. The majority of the patients were male, and the EC stage was predominantly cT2N0-1M0 II. The most common pathological types were squamous cell carcinoma. The EC surgeries consisted of 15 chest anastomosis procedures and 10 cervical anastomosis procedures with aortocoronary graft implantation (mean: 2.36 grafts per patient). The mean total operative time was 330.8 ± 83.5 minutes. The median intensive care unit and hospital lengths of stay were 1.72 and 21.16 days, respectively. Resection without macroscopic residual disease (R0) was achieved in all of the patients. The most frequent complications included pulmonary infections (24%), arrhythmias (24%), pleural effusion (12%), and esophageal anastomotic leakage (8%). There were no postoperative deaths or myocardial infarctions within 30 days after the surgery. The overall 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates were 88%, 40%, and 24%, respectively, with a median survival time of 43 months. In the short-term, radical resection of EC following OPCABG is a safe and feasible treatment with low postoperative mortality rates. In the long-term, simultaneous surgery is acceptable and is associated with favorable overall and disease-free survival.

A series of Eu3+-activated strontium silicate phosphors, Sr2SiO4:xEu3+ (SSO:xEu3+, x = 1.0, 2.0 and 5.0%), were synthesized by a sol–gel method, and their crystalline structures, photoluminescence (PL) behaviors, electronic/atomic structures and bandgap properties were studied. The correlation among these characteristics was further established. X-ray powder diffraction analysis revealed the formation of mixed orthorhombic α'-SSO and monoclinic β-SSO phases of the SSO:xEu3+ phosphors. When SSO:xEu3+ phosphors are excited under ultraviolet (UV) light (λ = 250 nm, ~ 4.96 eV), they emit yellow (~ 590 nm), orange (~ 613 nm) and red (~ 652 and 703 nm) PL bands. These PL emissions typically correspond to 4f–4f electronic transitions that involve the multiple excited 5D0 → 7FJ levels (J = 1, 2, 3 and 4) of Eu3+ activators in the host matrix. This mechanism of PL in the SSO:xEu3+ phosphors is strongly related to the local electronic/atomic structures of the Eu3+–O2− associations and the bandgap of the host lattice, as verified by Sr K-edge and Eu L3-edge X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES)/extended X-ray absorption fine structure, O K-edge XANES and Kα X-ray emission spectroscopy. In the synthesis of SSO:xEu3+ phosphors, interstitial Eu2O3-like structures are observed in the host matrix that act as donors, providing electrons that are nonradiatively transferred from the Eu 5d and/or O 2p–Eu 4f/5d states (mostly the O 2p–Eu 5d states) to the 5D0 levels, facilitating the recombination of electrons that have transitioned from the 5D0 level to the 7FJ level in the bandgap. This mechanism is primarily responsible for the enhancement of PL emissions in the SSO:xEu3+ phosphors. This PL-related behavior indicates that SSO:xEu3+ phosphors are good light-conversion phosphor candidates for use in near-UV chips and can be very effective in UV-based light-emitting diodes.

To study the expression of long non-coding ribonucleic acid (lncRNA) UNC5B antisense RNA 1 (UASR1) in colorectal cancer (CRC) and its biological functions, and to discuss the regulatory effect of the transcription factor on lncRNA UASR1.The expressions of lncRNA UASR1 in the CRC tissues and cells were detected via quantitative Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR) assay. After the expression of lncRNA UASR1 was interfered, the change in the CRC cell proliferation ability was investigated through cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay and colony formation assay, respectively. Changes in cell cycle distribution and apoptosis rate in CRC cells after transfection of small-interfering UASR1 (si-UASR1) were detected using flow cytometry. Potential transcription factors binding UASR1 promoter region were analyzed through bioinformatics. The change in the UASR1 expression was measured through the qRT-PCR assay after the paired box 5 (PAX5) expression was interfered. Following the interference in the expressions of PAX5 and UASR1, expression changes in the molecular markers of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway were detected via Western blotting assay.The qRT-PCR results indicated that the UASR1 expression was up-regulated in 39/45 CRC tissues, and it identically presented the up-regulated expression level in the CRC cells. After the UASR1 expression was interfered, the CRC cell proliferation ability was degraded according to the CCK-8 assay and colony formation assay. Based on the flow cytometry results, compared with the small-interfering-negative control (si-NC) group, the cell cycle was arrested in the G1/G0 phase in the si-UASR1 group, and apoptosis rate increased. Bioinformatics and qRT-PCR results showed that the transcription factor PAX5 regulated the UASR1 expression. The Western blotting assay indicated that the expressions of the molecular markers of the mTOR signaling pathway were changed after the expressions of PAX5 and UASR1 were interfered.The transcription factor PAX5 promotes the expression of lncRNA UASR1 in CRC. The highly expressed UASR1 facilitates the malignant proliferation of CRC via the mTOR signaling pathway.

Tensile properties of the high-deformability dual-phase ferrite-bainite X70 pipeline steel have been investigated at room temperature under the strain rates of 2.5 × 10−5, 1.25 × 10−4, 2.5 × 10−3, and 1.25 × 10−2 s−1. The microstructures at different amount of plastic deformation were examined by using scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Generally, the ductility of typical body-centered cubic steels is reduced when its stain rate increases. However, we observed a different ductility dependence on strain rates in the dual-phase X70 pipeline steel. The uniform elongation (UEL%) and elongation to fracture (EL%) at the strain rate of 2.5 × 10−3 s−1 increase about 54 and 74%, respectively, compared to those at 2.5 × 10−5 s−1. The UEL% and EL% reach to their maximum at the strain rate of 2.5 × 10−3 s−1. This phenomenon was explained by the observed grain structures and dislocation configurations. Whether or not the ductility can be enhanced with increasing strain rates depends on the competition between the homogenization of plastic deformation among the microconstituents (ultra-fine ferrite grains, relatively coarse ferrite grains as well as bainite) and the progress of cracks formed as a consequence of localized inconsistent plastic deformation.

We have demonstrated a nonlinear behavior for the bandgap opening of doped graphene by controlling the concentration of B and N co-dopants. X-ray absorption and emission spectra reveal that the ban ...

Vibration frequencies of four nerve agents and two simulators are calculated using B3LYP coupled with ten basis sets. To evaluate the accuracy of calculated spectra, root mean square error (RMSE) and weighted cross-correlation average (WCCA) are considered. The evaluation shows that B3LYP/6-311+g(d,p) performs best in predicting infrared spectra, and polarization functions are found to be more important than diffusion functions in spectra simulation. Moreover, B3LYP calculation underestimates frequencies related to the P atom. The WCCA metric derives 1.008 as a unique scaling factor for calculated frequencies. The results indicate that the WCCA metric can identify six agents based on calculated spectra.

Electrochemical N2 reduction reaction (NRR) has long been regarded as a promising process to generate NH3 under ambient conditions. Therefore, developing cost-effective and high-performance non-noble-metal catalysts for NRR is highly desirable. Inspired by the biological nitrogenase structure, we here designed and synthesized a catalyst with iron-molybdenum sub-nanoclusters and single atoms on porous nitrogen-doped carbon (FeMo/NC). The catalyst features porous structure beneficial to active site exposure and accessibility to electrolyte as well as FeMo sub-nanoclusters and single atoms enabling to activate N2 molecular. In situ near-ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy tests reveal that during the process from vacuum to nitrogen saturation, N2 was close to, adsorbed on and interacted with Fe and Mo in FeMo/NC. The Fe and Mo through electron transfer play a key role in activating the N2 molecules. Therefore, when tested for NRR, FeMo/NC achieves the maximum Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 11.8 ± 0.8% at −0.25 V and NH3 yield rate of 26.5 ± 0.8 μg h−1 mgcat.−1 at −0.3 V in neutral electrolyte. Moreover, the catalyst exhibits ignorable variations in the FE and a slight decrease in current density for 100,000 s. This work develops a non-precious bimetallic electrocatalyst with synergetic effect capability for efficient NH3 production and provides a guideline for the design of efficient and robust catalysts with coexistence of sub-nanoclusters and single atoms.

© 2018 American Chemical Society. As the lightest and cheapest transition metal dichalcogenide, TiS2possesses great potential as an electrode material for lithium batteries due to the advantages of high energy density storage capability, fast ion diffusion rate, and low volume expansion. Despite the extensive investigation of its electrochemical properties, the fundamental discharge-charge reaction mechanism of the TiS2electrode is still elusive. Here, by a combination of ex situ and operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy with density functional theory calculations, we have clearly elucidated the evolution of the structural and chemical properties of TiS2during the discharge-charge processes. The lithium intercalation reaction is highly reversible and both Ti and sulfur are involved in the redox reaction during the discharge and charge processes. In contrast, the conversion reaction of TiS2is partially reversible in the first cycle. However, Ti - O related compounds are developed during electrochemical cycling over extended cycles, which results in the decrease of the conversion reaction reversibility and the rapid capacity fading. In addition, the solid electrolyte interphase formed on the electrode surface is found to be highly dynamic in the initial cycles and then gradually becomes more stable upon further cycling. Such understanding is important for the future design and optimization of TiS2based electrodes for lithium batteries.

Background Vinorelbine (VNB) is a member of vinca alkaloid medications and approved for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer as well as off-label use for metastatic breast cancer over 20 years based upon FDA-approved indication. Several studies have suggested the potential of VNB in treating sarcomas. Liposomal VNB (TLC178) is a novel sustained release liposomal formulation. In the presented studies, TLC178 resulted in enhanced tumor accumulation and greater anti-tumor efficacy than non-liposomal VNB. Methods Mice were subcutaneously inoculated with human sarcoma cell lines (1.5∼4 × 106/mouse) at the dorsal-lateral flank. Treatment was commenced once tumor size reached 150 to 400 mm3 in average. Mice were intravenously (i.v.) injected with test articles by groups. Table . 1722P Study # Cell Type [Cell Density] Initial Tumor Size (mm3) Treatment Group (Dosage) Dosing Regimen PD17060 Human Rhabdomyo- sarcoma (RMS) cell line (SJCRH30) [1.5 × 106/mouse] 200 Saline TLC178 (5 mg/kg) VNB solution (5 mg/kg) TLC178 and VNB were injected at a 4-day interval for three doses. PD17069 Human RMS cell line (SJCRH30) [4 × 106/mouse] 150 Saline TLC178 (7.5 mg/kg) VNB solution (10 mg/kg) + cyclophosphamide (CTX) (19.8 mg/kg) TLC178 and VNB were injected once weekly for two doses while CTX was administrated at 19.8 mg/kg on day 0, 7 and 50 mg/kg on day 8. PD17008 Human fibrosarcoma cell line (HT1080) [2.2 × 106/mouse] 390 D5W TLC178 (5 mg/kg) Doxorubicin (3.4 mg/kg) TLC178 and doxorubicin were injected at a 4-day interval for two doses. PK17066 Human RMS cell line (SJCRH30) [2.3 × 106/mouse] 150 to 400 TLC178 (5 mg/kg) TLC178 (10 mg/kg) VNB solution (10 mg/kg) Single injection *Tumor size was monitored with digital caliper during the study. * Plasma and tumors were collected to determine VNB concentration in bio-distribution study. * Saline or D5W (Dextrose 5% in Water) was used as the control group according to the study design. * VNB solution is vinorelbine injectable solution Results In efficacy studies (Study #PD17060, #PD17069 and #PD17008), TLC178 not only showed better inhibitory effect than that of VNB alone and VNB+CTX treatments in the SJCRH30 RMS xenograft model, but also remarkably suppressed HT1080 human fibrosarcoma compared with doxorubicin, an approved drug for treatment of sarcomas. In a biodistribution study (Study #PK17066), TLC178 yielded larger systemic exposure of total VNB (comprising liposome-encapsulated and unencapsulated VNB), higher local concentration and longer elimination half-life in tumor compared to VNB. Conclusions TLC178 demonstrated improved in vivo systemic VNB PK profile and tumor distribution, which resulted in superior anti-cancer efficacy compared to traditional VNB treatment. Therefore, TLC178 may have potential as a single or combination treatment for sarcomas with decreased dosage and/or frequency, reduced toxicity, and enhanced efficacy. Legal entity responsible for the study Taiwan Liposome Company, Ltd. Funding Has not received any funding. Disclosure All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.

We study the magnetic anisotropic properties of as-grown and annealed Pd/Co/Pd trilayer films based on their atomic and electronic structures using extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS), X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy and magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) measurements. The annealed film exhibits interesting perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) whereas the as-grown film exhibits in-plane anisotropy. Cross-sectional transmission electron microscopic analysis together with the Co K-edge EXAFS results confirm the formation of an ordered-alloy CoPd phase in the annealed film, whereas the as-grown film has an hcp Co-like phase. Co L3,2-edge XMCD measurements reveal an enhanced ratio of the Co 3d orbital to spin moments of the annealed film providing evidence of the observed PMA upon annealing.

Electronic structure and optical properties of ZnO(y nm)–Au(10 nm) hybrid films, with y = 20, 50 and 150, have been investigated for effective coupling of surface plasmon resonance (SPR) of Au nanoparticles (NPs) with ZnO band structure to enhance their optical properties. The films have been synthesized by a pulsed laser deposition method and studied by UV-Visible absorption, Raman, Photoluminescence, and X-ray absorption near-edge structural analyses. The effect of defects on coupling of SPR with ZnO band structure has been discussed based on optical and electronic structural studies. The local electronic structure analysis at the O K-edge reveals that, in the thinnest film more unoccupied states are introduced in ZnO due to hybridization of O 2p–Au 5d/6s orbitals. The increased density of states causes the enhanced optical properties of ZnO–Au hybrid films via increasing the population at the conduction band of ZnO. Our experimental findings demonstrate that in the thickest film, the exponential decay of SPR induced local field and defects are the main factors affecting the coupling of SPR with the ZnO band structure.

The present study was aimed to analyze the correlation between cognitive impairment and ambulatory blood pressure in patients with cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD).108 patients with CSVD received in our hospital were selected. Assessment of cognitive impairment was by the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). 39 cases were established as the impairment group and 69 cases were established as the normal group. 24 h ambulatory blood pressure was monitored, and changes in ambulatory blood pressure parameters between the two groups were compared. Also, the correlation between blood pressure parameters and MoCA score were analyzed.Comparisons of ambulatory systolic blood pressure, ambulatory pulse pressure and the ratios of night blood pressure reduction of patients in both groups showed statistical differences (p0.05), while the changes in diastolic blood pressure showed no statistical differences (p0.05). The comparison of the blood pressure curves in both groups showed statistical differences (p0.05). The ambulatory systolic blood pressure, ambulatory pulse pressure and the ratio of night blood pressure reduction of patients with CSVD showed prominently negative correlations with MoCA score (p0.05).Cognitive impairment and the ambulatory blood pressure of patients with CSVD are intimately correlated. The rise of ambulatory systolic blood pressure, pulse pressure, and the decline of blood pressure may represent risk factors for cognitive impairment in patients with CSVD. Improving blood pressure management will reduce the incidence of cognitive impairment caused by CSVD.

This study examines the relationship between intracranial pressure (ICP) changes after skull injury repair and neurocognitive function before and after the repair.Sixty patients undergoing skull injury repair participated in the study. A non-invasive detection analyzer was used to detect the ICP 2 days before operation, 10 days after the operation and one month after the operation in all patients. Additionally, the mean cerebral blood flow velocities (MV) in the internal carotid and the medial cerebral arteries were detected using a transcranial Doppler ultrasound (TCD). The neurological and cognitive functions were assessed using the NIHSS and the MMSE scales, respectively. And finally, an ELISA assay was used to detect the plasma insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1 and beta-amyloid peptide (Ab) levels.The results showed that all parameters studied improved significantly and continuously after surgery.We suggest that the improvement in the ICP values and the neurocognitive functions are related to the resulting decreased expression levels of IGF-1 and Abeta after the repair.

The local electronic and atomic structures of the high-quality single crystal of SrFeO3-δ (δ~0.19) were studied using temperature-dependent x-ray absorption and valence-band photoemission spectroscopy (VB-PES) to investigate the origin of anisotropic resistivity in the ab-plane and along the c-axis close to the region of thermal hysteresis (near temperature for susceptibility maximum, Tm~78 K). All experiments herein were conducted during warming and cooling processes. The Fe L3,2-edge X-ray linear dichroism results show that during cooling from room temperature to below the transition temperature, the unoccupied Fe 3d eg states remain in persistently out-of-plane 3d3z2-r2 orbitals. In contrast, in the warming process below the transition temperature, they change from 3d3z2-r2 to in-plane 3dx2-y2 orbitals. The nearest-neighbor (NN) Fe-O bond lengths also exhibit anisotropic behavior in the ab-plane and along the c-axis below Tm. The anisotropic NN Fe-O bond lengths and Debye-Waller factors stabilize the in-plane Fe 3dx2-y2 and out-of-plane 3d3z2-r2 orbitals during warming and cooling, respectively. Additionally, a VB-PES study further confirms that a relative band gap opens at low temperature in both the ab-plane and along the c-axis, providing the clear evidence of the charge-density-wave nature of SrFeO3-δ (δ~0.19) single crystal.

Various synchrotron radiation-based spectroscopic and microscopic techniques are used to elucidate the room-temperature ferromagnetism of carbon-doped ZnO-nanowires (ZnO-C:NW) via a mild C+ ion implantation method. The photoluminescence and magnetic hysteresis loops reveal that the implantation of C reduces the number of intrinsic surface defects and increases the saturated magnetization of ZnO-NW. The interstitial implanted C ions constitute the majority of defects in ZnO-C:NW as confirmed by the X-ray absorption spectroscopic studies. The X-ray magnetic circular dichroism spectra of O and C K-edge respectively indicate there is a reduction in the number of unpaired/dangling O 2p bonds in the surface region of ZnO-C:NW and the C 2p-derived states of the implanted C ions strongly affect the net spin polarization in the surface and bulk regions of ZnO-C:NW. Furthermore, these findings corroborate well with the first-principles calculations of C-implanted ZnO in surface and bulk regions, which highlight the stability of implanted C for the suppression and enhancement of the ferromagnetism of the ZnO-C:NW in the surface region and bulk phase, respectively.

In this paper, we systematically perform optimal design of microwave-assisted magnetic recording (MAMR) and heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) by applying response surface methodology (RSM) to optimize the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the recording process. We evaluate the performance of design of MAMR and HAMR through micromagnetic modeling. Design of experiments (DoE) is conducted by using composite central design (CCD), and the influence of the design parameters on the SNR is investigated. The optimal designs of MAMR and HAMR systems are obtained by solving for the best-fit quadratic response-surface to the sampled points and solving for the parameters that maximize this cost function.

X-ray scattering (XRS), x-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) and extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopic techniques were used to study the electronic and atomic structures of the high-quality Sr3Ir4Sn13 (SIS) single crystal below and above the transition temperature (T* ≈ 147 K). The evolution of a series of modulated satellite peaks below the transition temperature in the XRS experiment indicated the formation of a possible charge density wave (CDW) in the (110) plane. The EXAFS phase derivative analysis supports the CDW-like formation by revealing different bond distances [Sn1(2)-Sn2] below and above T* in the (110) plane. XANES spectra at the Ir L3-edge and Sn K-edge demonstrated an increase (decrease) in the unoccupied (occupied) density of Ir 5d-derived states and a nearly constant density of Sn 5p-derived states at temperatures T * in the (110) plane. These observations clearly suggest that the Ir 5d-derived states are closely related to the anomalous resistivity transition. Accordingly, a close relationship exists between local electronic and atomic structures and the CDW-like phase in the SIS single crystal.

The local electronic and atomic structures of the high-quality single crystal of SrFeO3-δ (δ~0.19) were studied using temperature-dependent x-ray absorption and valence-band photoemission spectroscopy (VB-PES) to investigate the origin of anisotropic resistivity in the ab-plane and along the c-axis close to the region of thermal hysteresis (near temperature for susceptibility maximum, Tm~78 K). All experiments herein were conducted during warming and cooling processes. The Fe L 3,2-edge X-ray linear dichroism results show that during cooling from room temperature to below the transition temperature, the unoccupied Fe 3d e g states remain in persistently out-of-plane 3d 3z 2 -r 2 orbitals. In contrast, in the warming process below the transition temperature, they change from 3d 3z 2 -r 2 to in-plane 3d x 2 -y 2 orbitals. The nearest-neighbor (NN) Fe-O bond lengths also exhibit anisotropic behavior in the ab-plane and along the c-axis below Tm. The anisotropic NN Fe-O bond lengths and Debye-Waller factors stabilize the in-plane Fe 3d x 2 -y 2 and out-of-plane 3d 3z 2 -r 2 orbitals during warming and cooling, respectively. Additionally, a VB-PES study further confirms that a relative band gap opens at low temperature in both the ab-plane and along the c-axis, providing the clear evidence of the charge-density-wave nature of SrFeO3-δ (δ~0.19) single crystal.

Ultrasound (US) is an effective tool for local delivery of genes into target tumors or organs. In combination with microbubbles, US can temporarily change the permeability of cell membranes by cavitation and facilitate entry of plasmid DNA into cells. Here, we demonstrate that repeated US-mediated delivery of anti-angiogenic genes, endostatin or calreticulin, into muscle significantly inhibits the growth of orthotopic tumors in the liver, brain or lung. US-mediated anti-angiogenic gene therapy also seems to function as an adjuvant therapy that significantly enhances the antitumor effects of the chemotherapeutic drug doxorubicin and adenovirus-mediated cytokine gene therapy. Significantly higher levels of tumor apoptosis or tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes were observed after combined therapy consisting of either anti-angiogenic therapy and chemotherapy, or anti-angiogenic therapy and immunotherapy. Taken together, our experiments demonstrate that intramuscular delivery of anti-angiogenic genes by US exposure can effectively treat distant orthotopic tumors, and thus has great therapeutic potential in terms of clinical treatment.

The surface modification of the anatase titania nanoparticles prepared via a controlled nonhydrolytic sol-gel process is achieved by the formation of the bidentate coordination between titania and methacrylic acid (MAA) molecules. The in situ photocatalytic polymerization of methyl methacrylate (MMA) monomer is initiated by surface modified anatase titania nanoparticles under Xe lamp irradiation. A variety of techniques including differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) are employed to characterize the resulting materials. The glass transition temperatures and the thermal stabilities of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) composite materials prepared via photocatalytic polymerization are enhanced compared with pure polymer. The partial aggregation of titania nanoparticles in PMMA composite films is derived from the surface polymerization of MMA, which makes the inor- ganic particles hydrophobic and drives them to the water/oil interfaces.

To improve knowledge about the clinical and pathological features of diffuse alveolar hemorrhage (DAH).Six cases DAH with intact clinical and pathological data were retrospectively analyzed during the period from May 1999 to May 2015 in Beijing Hospital. There were altogether 2 males and 4 females, with age ranging from 32 to 68 years (mean 58.8 years). Specimens were obtained by autopsy (3 cases), open lung biopsy (2 cases) and renal biopsy (2 cases), including 1 case of open lung biopsy in 2003, renal biopsy in 2012.Clinically, the patients presented with cough, shortness of breath and dyspnea, including 5 cases of hemoptysis, 4 cases of fever, 3 cases of skin and mucosa bleeding, 2 cases of gross hematuria, 2 cases of microscopic hematuria, 3 cases of renal functional impairment. A total of 5 cases had different levels of elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate and C-reactive protein, 6 cases had moderate anemia, hypoxemia, diffuse infiltrates with alveolar filling in chest CT. Serum antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody was positive in 3 cases, anti-glomerular basement membrane antibody was present in 1 case. Pathological diagnosis: 2 cases of Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA), 2 cases of Microscopic polyangiitis (MPA), 1 case of Goodpasture syndrome, 1 case of pulmonary veno-occlusive disease (PVOD).3 cases died; 2 cases were discharged; 1 case received symptomatic treatment, follow-up after discharge.The mainly clinical characteristics of DAH are varied degree of dyspnea, anemia, hypoxemia, and extensive ground-glass opacification or consolidation in image, with or without haemoptysis; diffuse acute or chronic pulmonary hemorrhage in lung tissue is the main pathological feature.

With the advancement of ultrasonic technology in recent years, sonography has become a common medical diagnostic tool, as it has elevated output sonic intensity and elongated exposure time. This study investigates the effect of ultrasound on human chorionic villus cell apoptosis during early pregnancy. Transvaginal ultrasound was performed for a total of 60 women who had undergone induced abortion at our hospital. They were randomly divided into the control, short ultrasound (10 min), and long ultrasound (20 min) groups (N = 20 each). Twenty-four hours after ultrasonic exposure, chorionic villus tissues were extracted during induced abortion, and were tested for cell apoptosis using flow cytometry. Bax and B cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) protein levels were also quantified by immunohistochemistry. We found that the long ultrasound group had significantly higher cell apoptosis rates compared to the short ultrasound group, which in turn had higher rates compared to the control group (P < 0.05 in both cases). Bax protein levels were elevated in both the long and short ultrasound groups (P < 0.05). Bcl-2 proteins in two ultrasound groups, however, were downregulated as compared to those in the control group (P < 0.05). It is therefore possible that transvaginal sonography can potentiate the apoptosis of human chorionic villus cells by increasing the Bax/Bcl-2 protein ratio.

We conducted a case-control study to assess the role of the XRCC1 Arg399Gln, Arg280His, and Arg194Trp gene polymorphisms in pancreatic cancer susceptibility in a Chinese population. A total of 152 patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and 264 control subjects were enrolled in this study between March 2012 and October 2014. XRCC1 Arg399Gln, Arg280His, and Arg194Trp were genotyped using the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method. As determined by the chi-squared test, a statistically significant difference was observed between pancreatic cancer patients and control subjects in regard to the genetic distribution of XRCC1 Arg399Gln (χ(2) = 16.13, P < 0.001). Using an unconditional regression analysis, we found that the TT genotype of Arg399Gln was associated with a significantly increased risk of pancreatic cancer (OR = 2.33, 95%CI = 1.20-4.51), and that the CT+TT genotype also significantly increased pancreatic cancer risk (OR = 1.58, 95%CI = 1.04-2.41), compared to the wild-type genotype. In conclusion, we found that XRCC1 Arg399Gln genetic variations are associated with pancreatic cancer development, whereas the XRCC1 Arg280His and Arg194Trp polymorphisms did not affect pancreatic cancer risk.

Secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) is an extracellular matrix glycoprotein involved in cell proliferation, migration and angiogenesis. The aim of this study was to assess its expression in colorectal cancer, see whether and how it correlates with clinicopathological features, and evaluate its potential prognostic significance.SPARC expression was detected by microarrays containing 847 immunohistochemically stained specimens, and further correlated with the clinicopathological and prognostic data. The prognostic significance of its expression was assessed using Kaplan-Meier survival with log-rank tests. Multivariate regression utilizing Cox's proportional hazard model was used to evaluate prognostic factors.SPARC expression in the normal colorectal mucosa and colorectal cancer tissue was significantly different (p0.001). Low SPARC expression was found to be associated with poor prognosis, and it was unfavorably correlated with overall survival and disease-free survival in colorectal cancer patients. In addition, SPARC expression in surrounding mesenchymal and stromal cells, bowel wall invasion, lymph node metastasis, and distant metastasis were independent prognostic factors for overall survival and disease-free survival.Reduced expression of SPARC in colorectal cancer tissue is associated with poor prognosis and aggressive clinicopathological features. Therefore, SPARC expression could potentially be used as a prognostic predictor for colorectal cancer patients.

In this study, a branched gravity sewer system design problem is treated as a serial multi-stage multi-option system, composed of a series of sewer pipes and manholes. An optimal hydraulic design is made possible by selecting from the several different commercial pipe sizes available as options for each sewer pipe stage, which are determined by a detailed hydraulic analysis, the goal of which is to meet the design criteria at a minimal cost. In this work a 0-1 mixed integer optimization model is adopted, which uses an efficient screening algorithm, the intelligent Bounded Implicit Enumeration (BIE) algorithm, to develop the Sewer System Optimization Model (SSOM) which in turn can be used to find the optimal hydraulic design. In the modeling one also has to provide a set of design variables (corresponding to the various construction modes) for urban sewer system design problems. This approach can lead to obtaining design results that compared with other optimization models and techniques are more practical and cost-effective. Finally, a case study of a 73-manhole project is conducted to verify the optimal hydraulic design found by the SSOM model.

This paper concerns the determination of singular electromechanical stress field in piezoelectrics. A one-dimensional finite element procedure is generalized to compute the eigensolutions of the singular electromechanical field. The generalized procedure is capable of taking differently poled piezoelectrics, cracks and ultra-thin electrodes into account. To determine the strength of the singular electromechanical stress field, the hybrid-Trefftz finite element method is adopted. The independently assumed electromechanical stress modes are extracted from the eigensolutions previously computed from the one-dimensional procedure. Since the eigensolutions satisfy all the balance conditions, the hybrid-Trefftz models can be constructed by boundary integration. This feature enables the models to be interfaced compatibly with conventional finite element models. To illustrate the efficacy of the present approach, the eigensolutions and/or parameters directly related to the electromechanical stress intensity in crack, interfacial crack and bimorph with embedded electrode are considered. The predictions are in good agreement with the reference solutions reported in the literature or computed by using over 10,000 conventional finite elements.

Modern manufacturing technology has put forward a more exacting demand of speed and accuracy on coordinate measuring machines (CMMs). However, with the increase of speed, the dynamic accuracy will decrease since dynamic errors will have a great impact on accuracy and act as a barrier to the measuring cycle time. In this paper, the influence of velocity parameters on dynamic performance of CMMs is studied. The main dynamic error sources of CMMs are identified and a method for evaluating the positioning accuracy under different dynamic conditions using a laser interferometer on a moving bridge type CMM is designed and analyzed, which might be utilized to realize dynamic error compensation.

By parametrizing the action integral for the standard Schrodinger equation we present a derivation of the recently proposed method for quantizing a parametrized theory. The reformulation suggests a natural extension from conventional to nonlinear quantum mechanics. This generalization enables a unitary description of the quantum evolution for a broad class of constrained Hamiltonian systems with a nonlinear kinematic structure. In particular, the new theory is applicable to the quantization of cosmological models where a chosen gravitational degree of freedom acts as geometric time. This is demonstrated explicitly using three cosmological models: the Friedmann universe with a massless scalar field and Bianchi type I and IX models. Based on these investigations, the prospect of further developing the proposed quantization scheme in the context of quantum gravity is discussed., Comment: 14 pages

Discrete fracture network models can be used to study groundwater flow in fractured rock masses. However, one may find that it is not easy to apply such models to practical projects as it is difficult to investigate every fracture and measure its hydraulic parameters. To overcome such difficulties, a dual fracture model is proposed. Taking into account the hydraulic characteristics of the various elements of the fracture system, a hydrogeological medium is assumed to consist of two components: the dominant fracture network and the fractured rock matrix. As the dominant fracture network consists of large fractures and faults, it controls the groundwater flow in rock masses. Depending on the permeabilities of the in-fill materials, these fractures and faults may serve as channels or barriers of the flow. The fractured rock matrix, which includes rock blocks and numerous small fractures, plays a secondary role in groundwater flow in such medium. Although the small fractures and rock blocks possess low permeability, their numbers and their total porosity are relatively large. Therefore, they provide large volume for groundwater storage. In this paper, the application of the proposed model to simulate the groundwater flow for a hydropower station before and after reservoir storage is reported. The implications of the results on the design of the station are also highlighted.Key words: seepage flow, dual fracture model, dominant fracture, fractured rock matrix, case studies, rock-filled dam.