Search

Simple Summary: A promising approach to combat aggressive prostate cancer involves androgen receptor degraders, which break down the crucial protein driving cancer progression. In contrast to traditional drugs, these degraders offer a potential solution to drug resistance. Methods like PROTACs have shown promise in reducing androgen receptor levels in cells and clinical benefits in patients. Six PROTACs and two other degraders have entered early clinical trials for potential treatment. While progress has been made in understanding these degraders, it is essential to stay updated on emerging developments. This article provides an overview of advancements in this field since 2020. Induced protein degradation has emerged as an innovative drug discovery approach, complementary to the classical method of suppressing protein function. The androgen receptor signaling pathway has been identified as the primary driving force in the development and progression of lethal castration-resistant prostate cancer. Since androgen receptor degraders function differently from androgen receptor antagonists, they hold the promise to overcome the drug resistance challenges faced by current therapeutics. Proteolysis-targeting chimeras (PROTACs), monomeric degraders, hydrophobic tagging, molecular glues, and autophagic degradation have demonstrated their capability in downregulating intracellular androgen receptor concentrations. The potential of these androgen receptor degraders to treat castration-resistant prostate cancer is substantiated by the advancement of six PROTACs and two monomeric androgen receptor degraders into phase I or II clinical trials. Although the chemical structures, in vitro and in vivo data, and degradation mechanisms of androgen receptor degraders have been reviewed, it is crucial to stay updated on recent advances in this field as novel androgen receptor degraders and new strategies continue to emerge. This review thus provides insight into recent advancements in this paradigm, offering an overview of the progress made since 2020. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Purpose/Significance] Generative artificial intelligence (AI) technology has been widely used in many fields, and the application of this technology has become popular among researchers. However, there are few studies on the willingness of researchers willingness to accept generative AI. This leads to an insufficient understanding of the psychological mechanism, cognitive process and behavioral pattern of users' acceptance of generative AI, which limits the ability of theoretical innovation and practical exploration in user information behavior. This study focuses on researchers acceptance of generative AI. By studying the evaluation process of ChatGPT by college students, it explores the acceptance behavior of generative AI. At the same time, it verifies the applicability of the AIDUA model in the new context, and introduces the new variable of school identity, which further extends the AIDUA model. [Method/Process] Based on the cognitive assessment theory and the AI acceptance framework (AIDUA), this paper constructs a theoretical model of the intention to use generative artificial intelligence, and develops and empirically tests the theoretical model of the intention to use generative AI. Taking college students as the main research object, based on the maturity scale in authoritative literature at home and abroad, 8 variables and 29 observation variables such as social influence, hedonic motivation and anthropomorphism were designed. College students with experience in using generative AI were invited to participate in the questionnaire survey. SPSS26.0 was used to analyze the data from 294 valid questionnaires collected. SmartPLS 3.2.9 was used to construct a structural equation model to test the hypothesis, and the JN method was used to detect the regulatory effect. [Results/Conclusions] The study found that users went through three stages of decision making before using generative AI. The PLS-SEM results show that: 1) Social influence, hedonic motivation and anthropomorphism significantly affect performance expectancy and effort expectancy, and anthropomorphism is the strongest variable affecting performance expectancy and effort expectancy. 2) Performance expectancy and effort expectancy are significantly negatively correlated with negative emotions, while hedonic motivation has no significant effect on negative emotions. 3) Negative emotions are significantly negatively correlated with users' intension to use. 4) School identity moderates the relationship between effort expectancy and negative emotions. This study combines anthropomorphic research on college students' acceptance of generative AI, and provides a framework for the acceptance of generative AI. Researchers can use this framework to better study the acceptance of AI. This study has some limitations. In the future, we will focus on the following three aspects: 1) to evaluate the users' acceptance of generative AI in different usage scenarios. 2) to use samples of other groups to test the applicability of the model, such as civil servants, librarians, researchers and other groups. 3) to incorporate variables from other technology acceptance models into the model, such as ease of use and practicality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In this study, the prognostic and reproductive outcomes of women who underwent excision of uterine myomas and were sutured using different techniques while undergoing a cesarean section were investigated. Methods: A total of 299 females who underwent cesarean section between January 2015 and June 2022 due to a scarred uterus were enrolled in this study. These participants were segregated into two categories: the experimental group (comprising 155 cases) in which uterine myoma (single lesion) was excised during the cesarean procedure, and the control group (consisting of 144 cases) in which only the cesarean section was conducted. A comparison between the two groups was carried out based on the following parameters: volume of intraoperative bleeding (mL), additional measures taken for intraoperative hemostasis (n, %), percentage (%) of patients experiencing postoperative fever, duration required for the passage of gas (hours [h]), length of hospital stay (days [d]), weight of newborns (kg) and their Apgar scores, and the reproductive outcomes of the experimental group assessed two years after the surgical procedure. Results: In the experimental group, the amount of bleeding during surgery, occurrence of postoperative fever among women, time taken for patients to resume passing gas, and length of hospital stay were 540.65 ± 269.12 mL, 9.03%, 15.99 ± 4.68 h, and 5.08 ± 1.18 days, respectively. In contrast, the control group had values of 409.03 ± 93.24 mL, 2.77%, 16.24 ± 4.92, and 4.47 ± 0.70 days, respectively (P < 0.05). No notable increase was observed in the need for additional intraoperative hemostasis measures, and there was no significant difference in the time it took for patients to pass gas after the surgery. All newborns had positive health status. In the experimental group, 25 patients underwent subsequent pregnancies, and 15 of them successfully reached full-term deliveries, all of which had positive outcomes. Conclusion: Combining myomectomy with various suture methods during cesarean delivery did not cause excessive bleeding and resulted in healthy newborns. This approach offers the advantage of avoiding additional surgeries under anesthesia and can be considered a viable option. Subsequent pregnancies after myomectomy were considered high-risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Prostate cancer is one of topmost health concerns, and metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer is the fatal form. Two taxanes, docetaxel and cabazitaxel, are the only two FDA-approved chemotherapeutics that can provide survival benefits to patients with the lethal version of prostate cancer. Taxanes, alongside numerous other naturally occurring products, can promote the assembly and stability of microtubules to halt cell division and promote various cancer cell deaths. Additionally, this group of compounds, named microtubule stabilizing agents, can impede the androgen–androgen receptor complex from moving into the cell nucleus, conquering androgen receptor-containing prostate cancer cell proliferation and metastasis. This review aims to overview the preclinical and clinical studies, clinical uses, and the mechanisms of action of microtubule-stabilizing agents as anti-prostate cancer agents. A variety of microtubule-stabilizing cytotoxic agents (MSA) with diverse chemical scaffolds have been discovered from marine sponges, microorganisms, and plants. Two MSAs, docetaxel and cabazitaxel, are the exclusive chemotherapeutics that convey a survival benefit in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). Additional MSAs have been investigated for their potential in treating prostate cancer in both clinical and preclinical settings. Independent of promoting mitotic arrest, MSAs can suppress the nuclear accumulation of androgen receptor (AR), which is the driving force for prostate cancer cell growth and progression. The alternative mechanism not only helps to better understand the clinical efficacy of docetaxel and cabazitaxel for AR-driven CRPC but also provides an avenue to seek better treatments for various forms of prostate cancer. The dual mechanisms of action enable MSAs to suppress AR-null prostate cancer cell proliferation by cell mitosis pathway and to interfere with the AR signaling pathway in AR positive cells. MSA chemotherapeutics, being administered alone or in combination with other therapeutics, may serve as the optimal therapeutic option for patients with either castration-sensitive or castration-resistant prostate cancer. This review provides an overview of the anti-prostate cancer profiles (including preclinical and clinical studies, and clinical use) of diverse MSAs, as well as the mechanism of action. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global coal plants are gradually decreasing to improve sustainability, resulting in the possible resource shortage of fly ash (FA) as the main raw material of engineered cementitious composite (ECC). In order to seek good candidates, this paper systematically studied the possibility of using ground granulated blast-furnace slag (or slag, GGBS) as the partial FA replacement for preparing ECC (i.e., GGBS-ECC). Using the uniaxial tensile and compressive tests, the macromechanical properties were achieved; at mesoscale, the three-point bending, single crack tensile, and single fiber pullout tests were performed to explain the tensile ductility; the microscopic techniques including gas permeation and mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) were applied to measure the permeability and pore structure. The results revealed that adding GGBS into ECC increased the tensile and compressive strength at either 7 days or 28 days and changed little (reduced) the tensile and compressive strain capacity at 7 days (28 days). The calculated pseudo strain hardening indices based on the mesoscale experimental results were higher, accompanied by the higher tensile strain capacity; incorporation of GGBS could improve the interfacial chemical bonding between fiber and matrix. Moreover, the GGBS-ECC exhibited a lower gas permeability and a smaller average pore size than the ECC without GGBS. Based on these findings, it was concluded that GGBS could be utilized in the development of ECC with appropriate ductility and facilitate the compactness of the matrix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Abnormal activation of immune system is an important pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease, but the relationship between peripheral inflammation, central microglia activation and dopaminergic degeneration remains unclear.Objectives: To evaluate the brain regional microglia activation and its relationship with clinical severity, dopaminergic presynaptic function, and peripheral inflammatory biomarkers related to adaptive immunity.Methods: In this case-control study, we recruited 23 healthy participants and 24 participants with early-stage Parkinson's disease. 18F-PBR06 PET/MR for microglia activation, 18F-FP-DTBZ for dopaminergic denervation, total account of T cells and subpopulations of T helper (Th1/Th2/Th17) cells, and the levels of serum inflammatory cytokines were assessed. Sanger sequencing was used to exclude the mix-affinity binders of 18F-PBR06-PET.Results: Compared to healthy controls, patients with Parkinson's disease had an increased 18F-PBR06-PET standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR) in the putamen, particularly in the ipsilateral side of the motor onset. 18F-PBR06-PET SUVR was positively associated with 18F-FP-DTBZ-PET SUVR in the brainstem and not associated with disease severity measured by Hoehn and Yahr stage, MDS-UPDRS III scores. Patients with Parkinson's disease had elevated frequencies of Th1 cells and serum levels of IL10 and IL17A as compared to healthy controls. No significant association between peripheral inflammation markers and microglia activation in the brain of PD was observed.Conclusion: Parkinson's disease is associated with early putaminal microglial activation and peripheral phenotypic Th1 bias. Peripheral adaptive immunity might be involved in microglia activation in the process of neurodegeneration in PD indirectly, which may be a potential biomarker for the early detection and the target for immunomodulating therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The elastodynamic responses of the multilayered transversely isotropic medium subjected to uniform pressures occupying a rectangular flexible domain are precisely investigated by virtue of the precise integration approach (PIA) and the mixed dual vector technique. The dynamic rectangular distributed loadings are prescribed either at the external surface or within the stratified soil. The axes of material symmetry for different strata are assumed to be normal to the interfaces of adjacent layers and thus parallel with each other. As for the introduced technology, there is no limit of the thickness and number of soil layers to be discussed. The classical two-dimensional Fourier integral transformation is applied to convert the governing partial differential equilibrium equations corresponding to elastic displacements in the Cartesian coordinate system, and a set of easily solved second-order ordinary differential equations are acquired. Aided by the mixed dual vectors, the second-order ordinary differential equations are further reduced into first-order ordinary differential matrix equation and its general solution is analytically expressed as the exponential matrix. The PIA is adopted to estimate the changing patterns of displacement components by means of solving the exponential matrix in the Fourier-transformed domain. As a highly precise methodology, the PIA is advantageous to obtain the dynamic solutions with any desired accuracy. The physical-domain counterpart is then derived with the aid of the double Fourier inverse transform. Finally, comparisons with existing numerical results are provided to validate the high accuracy of the employed scheme. Selected numerical examples are presented to portray the dependence of the dynamic responses of the multilayered media on material properties, thicknesses, frequencies of excitation and dimensions of the loading size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Screening ligands directly binding to an ensemble of intrinsically disordered proteins (IDP) to discover potential hits or leads for new drugs is an emerging but challenging area as IDPs lack well-defined and ordered 3D-protein structures. To explore a new IDP-based rational drug discovery strategy, a differential binding score (DIBS) is defined. The basis of DIBS is to quantitatively determine the binding preference of a ligand to an ensemble of conformations specified by IDP versus such preferences to an ensemble of random coil conformations of the same protein. Ensemble docking procedures performed on repeated sampling of conformations, and the results tested for statistical significance determine the preferential ligand binding sites of the IDP. The results of this approach closely reproduce the experimental data from recent literature on the binding of the ligand epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) to the intrinsically disordered N-terminal domain of the tumor suppressor p53. Combining established approaches in developing a new method to screen ligands against IDPs could be valuable as a screening tool for IDP-based drug discovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to its potential superiorities in terms of flexibility, compliance, and robustness, the musculoskeletal robotic system has become a promising direction for next-generation robots. However, motion learning and generalization of musculoskeletal systems are still challenging problems. In this article, a muscle-synergies-based neuromuscular control is proposed. First, a new computational model of time-varying muscle synergies is constructed, which utilizes both phasic and tonic muscle synergies to characterize the basic features of muscle excitations more sufficiently. Second, a novel neuromuscular control method is proposed for realizing the motion learning and generalization of musculoskeletal systems. Therein, a radial basis function (RBF) neural network is designed to modulate muscle synergies according to different movement targets. Muscle excitations are computed with the combination of modulated muscle synergies. Covariance matrix adaptation evolutionary strategy is applied to realize the synchronous optimization of muscle synergies and the RBF neural network. In the experiment, a sophisticated musculoskeletal system learns to perform center-out reaching tasks through trial-and-error learning on a few targets. With the muscle synergies and neural modulation learned from a few targets, the musculoskeletal system can also reach many unexperienced targets. The proposed method not only improves the speed and accuracy of motion learning but also enhances motion generalization. This article also promotes the development of the musculoskeletal robotic system and the fusion of neuroscience and robotics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has a long history in the treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) based on the syndrome identification. Previous studies reported CHB patients with damp-heat (DH) syndrome accompanied with a severe liver function damage, but lacked the medication analysis. In this study, we analyzed 999 CHB patients with unidentified individual-level data from database to explore clinical features of two common syndromes of CHB patients based on the real world. Compared with the spleen deficiency (SD) syndrome, the CHB patients with DH syndrome had a significantly higher level of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (P < 0.05) but took more immunomodulators and hepatoprotective drugs (P < 0.1). Similarly, in the follow-up of 207 patients after 3 months, the improvement trend of ALT and AST of patients with sustained SD syndrome was significantly better than those whose TCM syndrome changed from SD to DH (P < 0.05). The logistic model indicated DH syndrome was a significant negative factor for reducing ALT level in CHB patients (OR = 4.854, P = 0.032). This study suggests that CHB patients with DH syndrome have potentially more serious and sustained liver damage than the SD syndrome, which provides a reference for the personalized management of CHB patients from the perspective of TCM syndromes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is concerned with the abstract evolution equation with delay. Firstly, we establish some sufficient conditions to ensure the existence results for the S -asymptotically periodic solutions by means of the compact semigroup. Secondly, we consider the global asymptotic behavior of the delayed evolution equation by using the Gronwall-Bellman integral inequality involving delay. These results improve and generalize the recent conclusions on this topic. Finally, we give an example to exhibit the practicability of our abstract results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We first developed a well-aligned mesoporous CoFe 2 O 4 thin film from surface epitaxial growth of oriented CoFe-based prussian blue analogue thin film (CoFe-PBA thin film) for efficient electrocatalytic OER. CoFe-PBA thin film with preferred [100] orientation is first prepared on the substrate surface by employing liquid-phase epitaxial method without any structure-directing surfactants. After thermal pyrolysis, such CoFe-PBA thin film was transformed into well-aligned mesoporous CoFe 2 O 4 thin film with remarkable catalytic performance and durable stability. This study provides an effective paradigm for preparing binder-free, self-support and low-cost spinel oxide electrocatalyst for efficient OER derived from surface epitaxial growth of oriented PBA thin film. • Epitaxial growth of oriented prussian blue analogue derived a bimetallic oxide film. • Obtained CoFe 2 O 4 film has higher electrocatalytic OER than commercial RuO 2. • Homogeneous and continuous bimetallic oxide film increased the OER performance. • Synergistic effect of Co and Fe promote the low-cost and high-efficient OER. The development of cost-effective, high-efficiency, and non-noble metal based electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is considered to be the most pivotal portion for electrochemical water splitting to generate renewable energy. Herein, well-aligned mesoporous CoFe 2 O 4 thin film is first developed from surface epitaxial growth of oriented CoFe-based prussian blue analogue thin film (CoFe-PBA thin film) for efficient electrocatalytic OER. CoFe-PBA thin film with preferred [100] orientation is first prepared on the substrate surface by employing liquid phase epitaxial method without any structure-directing surfactants. After thermal pyrolysis, such CoFe-PBA thin film was transformed into well-aligned mesoporous CoFe 2 O 4 thin film. Interestingly, the self-support CoFe 2 O 4 thin film electrode with the mass loading of 1.6 mg cm−2 delivers an oxygen evolution current density of 10 mA cm−2 at an overpotential of 266 mV and exhibits durable stability in 1 M KOH aqueous solution. The remarkable and stable catalytic performance of the CoFe 2 O 4 thin film can be mainly owing to the mesoporous structure of CoFe 2 O 4 , efficient charge/electron transfer, the numerous exposed active sites, and the well-structured configuration of the electrode. Hence, this work provides an effective paradigm for preparing binder-free, self-support, and low-cost spinel oxide electrocatalyst for efficient OER derived from surface epitaxial growth of oriented PBA thin film. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a method for calculating the evolutionary power spectral density (EPSD) of the seismic response of bridges using the convolution summation. With zero initial values, a formula for the dynamic component of the response of bridges to spatially varying seismic ground motions is derived as the convolution summation, by assuming the seismic acceleration to vary linearly between two adjacent time stations. The convolution summation is used for calculating the convolution integral of the dynamic component response factor in the EPSD, in which the constant coefficients are independent of the harmonically modulated excitation. The constant coefficients are obtained by the time-history analysis using triangular unit impulse acceleration excitations. The computational cost of the EPSD depends mainly on the amount of degrees-of-freedom (DOFs) numbers of bridge supports in contact. The corresponding computational scheme is proposed, and its validity is indirectly verified with a single DOF system, by comparing the results obtained with those of the existing methods. Finally, a three-span continuous rigid-frame bridge is taken as a case study to illustrate the applicability and effectiveness of the proposed scheme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Objective: Growing evidence has implicated dysfunction of the thalamus and its projection cortical targets in depression. However, the anatomical specificity of thalamo‐cortical connectivity in major depressive disorder (MDD) remains unknown due to the regional heterogeneity of the thalamus and limited methods to examine this. Methods: Resting‐state fMRI was collected on 70 MDD patients and 70 healthy controls. The thalamus was parcellated based on connectivity with six predefined cortical regions of interest (ROIs). The segmented thalamic nuclei were used as seeds to map connectivity with the rest of the whole brain. The cortical‐to‐thalamus connectivity values and thalamus‐based connectivity maps were compared between groups. Results: The cortical ROIs demonstrated correlations with spatially distinct zones within the thalamus. We found a trend toward reduced parietal ROI‐to‐thalamus connectivity in MDD. Importantly, MDD patients demonstrated reduced connectivity between prefrontal and parietal thalamus ROIs and bilateral middle frontal gyrus (MFG) and the right posterior default mode network (DMN) and between the prefrontal and motor thalamus ROIs and lateral temporal regions. Conversely, increased connectivity emerged between the motor thalamus ROI and right MFG and right medial frontal gyrus/anterior cingulate; between motor/somatosensory thalamus ROIs and right posterior DMN; between prefrontal/somatosensory thalamus ROIs and cerebellum; and between the parietal thalamus ROI and left insula. Conclusions: This study is the first to examine the anatomical specificity of thalamo‐cortical connectivity disturbances in MDD. Subjects with MDD demonstrated altered thalamo‐cortical connectivity characterized by a complex pattern of region‐dependent hypo‐ or hyperconnectivity. We therefore speculate that selectively modulating the connectivity of thalamo‐cortical circuitry may be a potential novel therapeutic mechanism for MDD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

C30H24N4NiO6, triclinic, P1̄ (no. 2), a = 10.5870(2) Å, b = 10.6944(2) Å, c = 13.6830(3) Å, α = 100.700(1)°, β = 110.090(1)°, γ = 104.735(1)°, Z = 2, V = 1342.02(5) Å3, Rgt(F) = 0.0388, wRref(F2) = 0.0925, T = 298(2) K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The substructure method is applied to the dynamic analysis of a train-bridge system considering the soil-structure interaction. With this method, the integrated train-bridge-foundation-soil system is divided into the train-bridge subsystem and the soil-foundation subsystem. Further, the train-bridge subsystem is divided into the train and bridge components. The frequency-dependent impedance function of the soil-foundation subsystem is transformed into time domain by rational approximation and simulated by a high-order lumped-parameter model with masses. The equations of motion of the train and bridge components are established by the rigid-body dynamics method and the modal superposition method, respectively. Finally, the dynamic responses of the two subsystems are obtained by iterative procedures, with the influence of the soil shear velocity studied. The case study reveals that it is important to consider the effect of soil-foundation interaction in the dynamic analysis of train-bridge systems, but with the increase of the shear velocity of the soil, such influence becomes weaker. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The solubilities of ternary system Na 2 SO 4 –CO(NH 2 ) 2 –H 2 O and MgSO 4 –CO(NH 2 ) 2 –H 2 O and quaternary system Na 2 SO 4 –MgSO 4 –CO(NH 2 ) 2 –H 2 O at 60 °C were measured by isothermal method, and the corresponding phase diagrams were studied. There are five crystalline fields in the quaternary system Na 2 SO 4 –MgSO 4 –CO(NH 2 ) 2 –H 2 O at 60 °C, which correspond to MgSO 4 ·6H 2 O, Na 2 SO 4 ·MgSO 4 ·4H 2 O, Na 2 SO 4 , CO(NH 2 ) 2 and MgSO 4 ·CO(NH 2 ) 2 ·4H 2 O respectively. On the basis of the analyses of the phase diagram of the quaternary system Na 2 SO 4 –MgSO 4 –CO(NH 2 ) 2 –H 2 O at 60 °C and 25 °C, Na 2 SO 4 and Mg–N compound fertilizers can be produced using CO(NH 2 ) 2 as salting-out agent directly. On the basis of the extended Pitzer model of electrolyte solution theory, the solubilities of Na 2 SO 4 –MgSO 4 –CO(NH 2 ) 2 –H 2 O system at 60 °C were calculated. The results showed that calculated values were well consistent with experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Low Clostridium leptum levels are a risk factor for the development of asthma. C. leptum deficiency exacerbates asthma; however, the impact of early-life C. leptum exposure on cesarean-delivered mice remains unclear. This study is to determine the effects of early-life C. leptum exposure on asthma development in infant mice. Methods: We exposed infant mice to C. leptum (fed-CL) and then induced asthma using the allergen ovalbumin (OVA). Results: Fed-CL increased regulatory T (Treg) cells in cesarean-delivered mice compared with vaginally delivered mice. Compared with OVA-exposed mice, mice exposed to C. leptum + OVA did not develop the typical asthma phenotype, which includes airway hyper-responsiveness, cell infiltration, and T helper cell subset (Th1, Th2, Th9, Th17) inflammation. Early-life C. leptum exposure induced an immunosuppressive environment in the lung concurrent with increased Treg cells, resulting in the inhibition of Th1, Th2, Th9, and Th17 cell responses. Conclusion: These findings demonstrate a mechanism whereby C. leptum exposure modulates adaptive immunity and leads to failure to develop asthma upon OVA sensitization later in life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes may be a manifestation of antitumor immunity. In the present study, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and pericancerous non-tumor liver tissues samples were obtained from 86 surgical patients who had not received preoperative treatment. The cellular expression levels of CD4 and CD8 were immunohistochemically examined in the two tissue groups using tissue microarrays, to evaluate their clinicopathological relevance. Immunohistochemically, CD4 and CD8 T cells were observed in the tumor parenchyma and tumor stroma, and the intensity of CD4 and CD8 immunoreactivity w as h omogeneous i n a ll H CC s amples examined. Morphometrically, the average numbers of CD4- and CD8-positive T cells were significantly increased in the tumor stroma, compared with those in the tumor parenchyma (tumor stroma versus tumor parenchyma: 22±3.6 versus 7.4±0.9 in CD4, 32.8±4.2 versus 16±2.5 in CD8; both P<0.01). Furthermore, the average numbers of CD8-positive T cells in the tumor parenchyma and stroma were significantly increased, compared with the average numbers of CD4-positive cells (P<0.05). In addition, in the tumor parenchyma and stroma, the average numbers of CD8 T cells were significantly higher in patients with tumor diameters ≤5 cm compared with those in patients with tumor diameters >5 cm (diameter ≤5 cm versus diameter >5 cm: 18.1±3.3 versus 12.2±3.8 in tumor parenchyma, 36.5±4.8 versus 21.9±8.9 in tumor stroma; both P<0.05). In addition, CD8 expression was significantly enhanced in patients with chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis, compared with paired tumor parenchymal tissues (P<0.01). Furthermore, a significant positive correlation was observed between CD4 and CD8 expression in the tumor parenchyma and stroma (both P<0.001). These observations suggest that tumor parenchyma- or stroma-infiltrating CD8 T cells may be involved in HCC tumor diameter control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The convex and concave relaxation procedure (CCRP) was recently proposed and exhibited state-of-the-art performance on the graph matching problem. However, CCRP involves explicitly both convex and concave relaxations which typically are difficult to find, and thus greatly limit its practical applications. In this paper we propose a simplified CCRP scheme, which can be proved to realize exactly CCRP, but with a much simpler formulation without needing the concave relaxation in an explicit way, thus significantly simplifying the process of developing CCRP algorithms. The simplified CCRP can be generally applied to any optimizations over the partial permutation matrix, as long as the convex relaxation can be found. Based on two convex relaxations, we obtain two graph matching algorithms defined on adjacency matrix and affinity matrix, respectively. Extensive experimental results witness the simplicity as well as state-of-the-art performance of the two simplified CCRP graph matching algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we propose the graduated nonconvexity and concavity procedure (GNCCP) as a general optimization framework to approximately solve the combinatorial optimization problems defined on the set of partial permutation matrices. GNCCP comprises two sub-procedures, graduated nonconvexity which realizes a convex relaxation and graduated concavity which realizes a concave relaxation. It is proved that GNCCP realizes exactly a type of convex-concave relaxation procedure (CCRP), but with a much simpler formulation without needing convex or concave relaxation in an explicit way. Actually, GNCCP involves only the gradient of the objective function and is therefore very easy to use in practical applications. Two typical related NP-hard problems, partial graph matching and quadratic assignment problem (QAP), are employed to demonstrate its simplicity and state-of-the-art performance. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Sensorless manipulation strategies have been successfully used in the precision robotic assembly. Most previous work in this area has concentrated on inserting a peg into a fixed hole. However, in some cases, e.g., the assembly of piston-peg-rod of the automotive engine, due to the motion of piston, the position of the hole in piston is hard to be fully constrained. The purpose of this paper is to give a novel sensorless manipulation strategy for the high-precision assembly of a peg into an unfixed hole. Firstly, a decomposition method of the high-dimensional configuration space of the peg hole is analyzed. Subsequently, the robotic manipulations are proposed in the two low-dimensional spaces decomposed from the high-dimensional configuration space. Then, the attractive regions formed in the two sub-spaces are constructed, thus, the position and orientation uncertainties of the peg hole can be eliminated by the attractive regions and the robotic manipulations. Finally, a typical industry application, fitting a peg into an unfixed piston rod hole of the automotive engine, is used to validate the presented strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Variants in the gene encoding transcription factor 7-like 2 (TCF7L2) are associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) in several ethnic groups. Two intronic variants, rs290487 and rs11196218, were originally identified as T2D modifiers in Hong Kong Chinese and Taiwan Chinese populations, respectively. However, discrepancies were noted in subsequent replicated studies. In this study, an association of these two loci with T2D was investigated in a Harbin Chinese population. Whereas the two populations in the initial studies were southern Han Chinese, Harbin Chinese are from northeastern China. The SNPs rs290487 and rs11196218 were genotyped by ligase detection reactions in 700 T2D patients and 570 unrelated non-diabetic controls. Association analyses, which were carried out using the case-control sample set, yielded a significant association between rs290487 and T2D, with a trend opposite to that described in a previous report. Specifically, rs290487T was found to be significantly associated with disease susceptibility (p =0.039), and the allelic OR of rs290487T carriers was 1.184 (95% CI 1.008–1.391). There was no significant association between rs11196218 and T2D. Taken together, TCF7L2 may be an important susceptibility gene for T2D in some Chinese populations. The discrepancies in the allelic associations determined for northern vs. southern Chinese allude to the presence of genetic variation among the Han Chinese. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Several adaptive visual tracking algorithms have been recently proposed to capture the varying appearance of target. However, adaptability may also result in the problem of gradual drift, especially when the target appearance changes drastically. This paper gives some theoretical principles for online learning of target model, and then presents a novel adaptive tracking algorithm which is able to effectively cope with drastic variations in target appearance and resist gradual drift. Once target is localized in each frame, the patches sampled from target observation are first classified into foreground and background using an effective classifier. Then the adaptive, pure and time-continuous target model is extracted online through two processes: absorption process and rejection process, through which only the reliable features with high separability are absorbed in the new target model, while the “dangerous” features which may cause interfusion of background patterns are rejected. To minimize the influence of background and keep the temporal continuity of target model, two collaborative models dominant model and continuous model are designed. The proposed learning and generation mechanisms of target model are finally embedded in an adaptive tracking system. Experimental results demonstrate the robust performance of the proposed algorithm under challenging conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HCV is prevailed in the world as well as in China. Blood transfusion is one of the most common transmission pathways of this pathogen. Although data of HCV infection character were reported during the past years, anti-HCV reactive profile of China donors was not fully clear yet. Furthermore, infection progress was found related to the HCV genotype. Different genotype led to different efficacy when interferon was introduced into HCV therapy. Here we provided character data of HCV infection in China blood donors from the year of 2000 to 2009. The infection rate in local donors was lower than general population and descended from 0.80% to 0.40% or so in recent years. About 83% HCV strains were categorized into genotypes 1b and 2a. But 1b subtype cases climbed and 2a subtype cases decreased. The current study threw more light on HCV infection of blood donors in China, at least in the Northern region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The characteristics of bridge pile-group foundation have a significant influence on the dynamic performance of the superstructure. Most of the existing analysis methods for the pile-group foundation impedance take the trait of strong specialty, which cannot be generalized in practical projects. Therefore, a project-oriented numerical solution algorithm is proposed to compute the dynamic impedance of bridge pile-group foundation. Based on the theory of viscous-spring artificial boundary, the derivation and solution of the impedance function are transferred to numerical modeling and harmonic analysis, which can be carried out through the finite element method. By taking a typical pile-group foundation as a case study, the results based on the algorithm are compared with those from existing literature. Moreover, an impact experiment of a real pile-group foundation was implemented, the results of which are also compared with those resulting from the proposed numerical algorithm. Both comparisons show that the proposed numerical algorithm satisfies engineering precision, thus showing good effectiveness in application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pollen tubes elongate within the pistil to transport sperm cells to the embryo sac for fertilization. Growth occurs exclusively at the tube apex, rendering pollen tube elongation a most dramatic polar cell growth process. A hallmark pollen tube feature is its cytoskeleton, which comprises elaborately organized and dynamic actin microfilaments and microtubules. Pollen tube growth is dependent on the actin cytoskeleton; its organization and regulation have been examined extensively by various approaches, including fluorescent protein labeled actin-binding proteins in live cell studies. Using the previously described GFP-NtADF1 and GFP-LlADF1, and a new actin reporter protein NtPLIM2b-GFP, we re-affirm that the predominant actin structures in elongating tobacco and lily pollen tubes are long, streaming actin cables along the pollen tube shank, and a subapical structure comprising shorter actin cables. The subapical collection of actin microfilaments undergoes dynamic changes, giving rise to the appearance of structures that range from basket- or funnel-shaped, mesh-like to a subtle ring. NtPLIM2b-GFP is used in combination with a guanine nucleotide exchange factor for the Rho GTPases, AtROP-GEF1, to illustrate the use of these actin reporter proteins to explore the linkage between the polar cell growth process and its actin cytoskeleton. Contrary to the actin cytoskeleton, microtubules appear not to play a direct role in supporting the polar cell growth process in angiosperm pollen tubes. Using a microtubule reporter protein based on the microtubule end-binding protein from Arabidopsis AtEB1, GFP-AtEB1, we show that the extensive microtubule network in elongating pollen tubes displays varying degrees of dynamics. These reporter proteins provide versatile tools to explore the functional connection between major structural and signaling components of the polar pollen tube growth process. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

By minimizing the mean square reconstruction error, multisets mixture learning (MML) provides a general approach for object detection in image. To calculate each sample reconstruction error, as the object template is represented by a set of contour points, the MML needs to inefficiently enumerate the distances between the sample and all the contour points. In this paper, we develop the line segment approximation (LSA) algorithm to calculate the reconstruction error, which is shown theoretically and experimentally to be more efficient than the enumeration method. It is also experimentally illustrated that the MML based algorithm has a better noise resistance ability than the generalized Hough transform (GHT) based counterpart. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An immune optimization algorithm is proposed in this paper based on the immune negative selection. The algorithm NSIOA is motivated by the negative selection mechanism in biological immune recognition. Different from the existing immune optimization methods, NSIOA constantly removes the worst solutions to get the optimal solution. Considering that removal of poor members of a population might lead to the loss of design information that may actually help identify better solutions in the search space, the proposed NSIOA is designed to keep the diversity of antibodies while removing poor members, therefore the algorithm will converge to global optimal solution with high probability. The convergence property and the complexity of the algorithm have also been analyzed. To illustrate the efficiency of the algorithm is used in solving the travel salesman problem. The theoretical analysis and experimental results show that the algorithm is of a strong potential in solving practical problems. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In this paper, a novel methodology called a reference model approach to stability analysis of neural networks is proposed. The core of the new approach is to study a neural network model with reference to other related models, so that different modeling approaches can be combinatively used and powerfully cross-fertilized. Focused on two representative neural network modeling approaches (the neuron state modeling approach and the local field modeling approach), we establish a rigorous theoretical basis on the feasibility and efficiency of the reference model approach. The new approach has been used to develop a series of new, generic stability theories for various neural network models. These results have been applied to several typical neural network systems including the Hopfield-type neural networks, the recurrent back-propagation neural networks, the BSB-type neural networks, the bound-constraints optimization neural networks, and the cellular neural networks. The results obtained unify, sharpen or generalize most of the existing stability assertions, and illustrate the feasibility and power of the new method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A three-valued function f defined on the vertex set of a graph G=(V,E), f : V→{−1,0,1} is a minus dominating function if the sum of its function values over any closed neighborhood is at least one. That is, for every v∈V, f(N[v])&ges;1, where N[v] consists of v and all vertices adjacent to v. The weight of a minus function is f(V)=∑v∈Vf(v). The minus domination number of a graph G, denoted by γ−(G), equals the minimum weight of a minus dominating function of G. In this paper, sharp lower bounds on minus domination of a bipartite graph are given. Thus, we prove a conjecture proposed by Dunbar et al. (Discrete Math. 199 (1999) 35), and we give a lower bound on γks(G) of a graph G. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The prevalence of papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) has been rising in recent years. Despite its relatively low mortality, PTC frequently metastasizes to lymph nodes and often recurs, posing significant health and economic burdens. The role of iodine in the pathogenesis and advancement of thyroid cancer remains poorly understood. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are recognized to function as competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNAs) that modulate gene expression and play a role in various cancer stages. Consequently, this research aimed to elucidate the mechanism by which circRNA influences the impact of iodine on PTC. Our research indicates that high iodine levels can exacerbate the malignancy of PTC via the circ_0004851/miR-296-3p/FGF11 axis. These insights into iodine's biological role in PTC and the association of circRNA with the disease could pave the way for novel biomarkers and potentially effective therapeutic strategies to mitigate PTC progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We first stepwise grew cobalt coordinated bipyridine-based COFs TpBpy on silica nanospheres (SiO 2 @Co-TpBpy) for preparing cobalt subnanoclusters dispersed C/N (Co-TpBpy-X) nanocages after optimizing calcination temperature and removing the silica template. The experimental and DFT calculation results indicated Co-TpBpy-800 nanocages has highly efficient ORR activity due to the ORR catalyst skips the intermediate of OOH*. These finding opens a new approach for development of high-efficient catalyst from COFs derivative for electrochemical applications. • COFs templated Synthesis of Co subnanoclusters dispersed N/C Nanocages. • The high ORR activity due to Co subnanoclusters coordinated N atoms in the carbon nanocages. • An unconventional five-step ORR process without the intermediate OOH* • The oxygen adsorption/dissociation on catalyst surface promote high-efficient ORR. Development of nonprecious metal-based electrocatalysts with highly efficient oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) has increasingly attracted wide attention in energy conversion and storage systems. In this work, we stepwise grow cobalt chelated COF TpBpy (Co-TpBpy) on silica nanospheres to form core–shell SiO 2 @Co-TpBpy nanospheres. After calcination high temperatures and removing silica template, cobalt subnanoclusters dispersed in N-doped carbon (N/C) nanocages are obtained for ORR. As a result, the Co-TpBpy-800 nanocages exhibit highly efficient activity on electrocatalytic ORR with 0.831 V of half-wave potential and high stability. Moreover, DFT calculation verifies the resulting unique nanocages reveal an unconventional five-step ORR process in which it skips the intermediate OOH* because the oxygen dissociation and adsorption directly occur on the catalyst surface. The present work will help the development of highly-efficient nonprecious metal-based catalysts for various energy applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication following non-cardiac surgery with adverse short- and long- term morbidity and mortality. Evidence shows that hypoalbuminemia is associated with increased AKI risk in patients with infectious diseases and cancer and following cardiac surgery and transplant surgery. However, little evidence is available on non-cardiac surgery population. Thus, we investigated the association between preoperative hypoalbuminemia and AKI following non-cardiac surgery. Methods: We retrospectively assessed perioperative risk factors and preoperative serum albumin concentration in 729 consecutive adult patients who underwent non-cardiac surgery from July 1, 2017, to June 30, 2018. Each patient was categorized according to maximal Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes criteria based on creatinine changes and urine output within the first week after surgery. Multivariate Logistic regression models were used to analyze the association between preoperative hypoalbuminemia and postoperative AKI. Results: Of 729 patients, 188 (25.8%) developed AKI. AKI incidence was higher in patients with preoperative serum albumin < 37.5 g/L than in those with preoperative serum albumin ≥37.5 g/L [35.9% (98/273) vs. 19.7% (90/456), P < 0.001]. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that preoperative serum albumin < 37.5 g/L (odds ratio 1.892; 95% confidence interval 1.238–2.891; P = 0.003) was independently associated with postoperative AKI. Patients with preoperative serum albumin < 37.5 g/L tended to have a higher but not significant ratio in AKI stage 2 (2.6% vs 1.1%, P = 0.144) and much higher ratio in AKI stage 3 (4.8% vs 0.7%, P < 0.001) than those with preoperative serum albumin ≥37.5 g/L. AKI patients had a higher in-hospital mortality rate [6.9% (13/188) vs. 0.2% (1/541), P < 0.001]. Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that the cumulative survival rate decreased with increasing AKI severity (P < 0.001). Postoperative AKI was also associated with other worse outcomes, such as prolonged mechanical ventilation [53.4 (33.0, 73.8) vs 14.7 (11.1, 18.3) hours, P < 0.001], intensive care unit stay [4.0 (3.1, 4.9) vs 2.0 (1.8, 2.3) days, P < 0.001], postoperative hospital stay [17.8 (14.8, 20.9) vs 12.3 (11.3, 13.3) days, P < 0.001], and higher total cost [13,453 (8538, 20,228) vs 11,306 (6277, 16,400) dollars, P < 0.001]. Conclusions: Preoperative hypoalbuminemia was independently associated with AKI after non-cardiac surgery, and postoperative AKI was associated with poor outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patient: Female, 70-year-old Final Diagnosis: Chemical burn in the oral cavity Symptoms: Heightened salivation * intense burning sensation * oral edema Clinical Procedure: -- Specialty: Dentistry Objective: Rare disease Background: Chemical burns in the oral cavity, although rare, cause more severe tissue damage than thermal burns, continuing tissue destruction even after removing the causative substance. Prompt identification of the substance, exposure extent, time from injury to treatment, and the injured area are imperative for effective management. This report details severe oral burns in an elderly woman from accidental NaOH ingestion. Case Report: A 70-year-old female patient was presented to our hospital approximately 15 h after inadvertent consumption of approximately 20 ml of NaOH (sodium hydroxide) solution. This incident led to oral discomfort and restricted mouth opening. The ingested solution, erroneously assumed to be a beverage, was later identified as a potent alkaline substance typically employed in grease removal. Initial manifestations included intense burning sensation, oral edema, and heightened salivation, which exacerbated on the following day, adversely impacting her alimentation and verbal communication. Clinical examination disclosed extensive damage to the oral mucosa. The diagnosis encompassed a chemical burn in the oral cavity coupled with chronic gastritis. The treatment regimen comprised dietary limitations, administration of famotidine for gastric acid suppression, intravenous hydration, nutritional support, oral care with Kangfuxin liquid, and nebulization therapy. Six months after therapy, she exhibited complete recovery, with the absence of discomfort and restored normal oral functions. Conclusions: Timely and targeted treatment strategies, particularly nebulization medication and Kangfuxin liquid, are effective in managing chemical burns in the oral cavity, promoting wound healing, and preventing complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Dynamic DNA methylation regulatory networks are involved in many biological processes. However, how DNA methylation patterns change during flower senescence and their relevance with gene expression and related molecular mechanism remain largely unknown.Here, we used whole genome bisulfite sequencing to reveal a significant increase of DNA methylation in the promoter region of genes during natural and ethylene‐induced flower senescence in carnation (Dianthus caryophyllus L.), which was correlated with decreased expression of DNA demethylase gene DcROS1. Silencing of DcROS1 accelerated while overexpression of DcROS1 delayed carnation flower senescence.Moreover, among the hypermethylated differentially expressed genes during flower senescence, we identified two amino acid biosynthesis genes, DcCARA and DcDHAD, with increased DNA methylation and reduced expression in DcROS1 silenced petals, and decreased DNA methylation and increased expression in DcROS1 overexpression petals, accompanied by decreased or increased amino acids content. Silencing of DcCARA and DcDHAD accelerates carnation flower senescence. We further showed that adding corresponding amino acids could largely rescue the senescence phenotype of DcROS1, DcCARA and DcDHAD silenced plants.Our study not only demonstrates an essential role of DcROS1‐mediated remodeling of DNA methylation in flower senescence but also unravels a novel epigenetic regulatory mechanism underlying DNA methylation and amino acid biosynthesis during flower senescence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article proposes a novel decision-making framework that bridges a gap between model-based (MB) and model-free (MF) control processes through only adjusting the planning horizon. Specifically, the output policy is obtained by solving a model predictive control problem with a locally optimal state value as terminal constraints. When the planning horizon decreases to zero, the MB control will transform into the MF control smoothly. Meanwhile, inspired by the neural mechanism of emotion modulation on decision-making, we build a biologically plausible computational model of emotion processing. This model can generate an uncertainty-related emotional response on the basis of the state prediction error and reward prediction error, and then dynamically modulates the planning horizon in the tasks. The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed decision-making framework can produce better policies than traditional methods. Emotion modulation can shift the MB and MF control well to improve the learning efficiency and the speed of decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to evaluate effects of extraction techniques on the physicochemical characteristics and antioxidant activities of kiwifruit polysaccharides (KPS), and further explore KPS as functional food ingredients, both microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) and ultrasonic-assisted extraction (UAE) were optimized for the extraction of KPS. Furthermore, the physicochemical structures and antioxidant activities of KPS extracted by different techniques were investigated. The optimal extraction conditions of UAE and MAE for the extraction of KPS were obtained by response surface methodology. Different extraction techniques significantly affected the contents of uronic acids, molecular weights, molar ratios of constituent monosaccharides, and the degree of esterification of KPS. Results showed that KPS exhibited remarkable DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activities, and reducing power. The high antioxidant activities observed in KPS extracted by the MAE method (KPS-M) might be partially attributed to its low molecular weight and high content of unmethylated galacturonic acid. Results suggested that the MAE method could be a good potential technique for the extraction of KPS with high antioxidant activity, and KPS could be further explored as functional food ingredients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to conduct the free vibration analysis of single-layer and laminated composite plates with multiple cutouts based on the scaled boundary finite element method (SBFEM) incorporated with the precise integration method (PIM) and the technique of the degree of freedom transform. It is applicable to a variety of shaped plates containing cordiform, circular and other complicated cutouts. The key equations are formulated built on the two-dimensional model, and the discretization is carried out in terms of only three translational displacement components as the basic unknowns. The high-order spectral elements are applied in the proposed technique to accurately simulate the arc boundaries of cutouts. Characterized by the important semi-analytical feature of the SBFEM, responses of the transverse free vibration are accurately explored. The derivation of governing equations strictly follows the 3D theory of elasticity without introducing any assumptions. The general solution of the SBFEM key equation is in the form of the matrix exponent, which is calculated by the PIM. As a type of highly precise approach, the PIM is introduced to create the global stiffness matrix from the analytical exponential matrix, which can make sure the eigensolutions with enough accuracy. Aided by the methodology of the kinetic energy formula, the global mass matrix of the perforated plate structure is constructed. According to the thin plates, the degree of freedom transform is employed to lower the dimensions of eigenvalue equation and thus improve the computational efficiency. Numerical examples of flexible square and circular plates with various cutouts reveal that excellent agreement is achieved between the natural frequencies predicted by the developed method and those from other methods and exact solutions. Furthermore, the effect of boundary conditions, skew angles, thickness-to-length ratios and sizes of cutouts on distributions of vibration frequencies is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) is crucial for achieving a glycemic target and upholding blood glucose stability, both of which are the primary purpose of anti-diabetic treatments. However, the association between time in range (TIR), as assessed by SMBG, and β-cell insulin secretion as well as insulin sensitivity remains unexplored. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the connections between TIR, derived from SMBG, and indices representing β-cell functionality and insulin sensitivity. The primary objective of this study was to elucidate the relationship between short-term glycemic control (measured as points in range [PIR]) and both β-cell function and insulin sensitivity. This cross-sectional study enrolled 472 hospitalized patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). To assess β-cell secretion capacity, we employed the insulin secretion-sensitivity index-2 (ISSI-2) and (ΔC-peptide0–120/Δglucose0–120) × Matsuda index, while insulin sensitivity was evaluated using the Matsuda index and HOMA-IR. Since SMBG offers glucose data at specific point-in-time, we substituted TIR with PIR. According to clinical guidelines, values falling within the range of 3.9–10 mmol were considered "in range, " and the corresponding percentage was calculated as PIR. We observed significant associations between higher PIR quartiles and increased ISSI-2, (ΔC-peptide0–120/Δglucose0–120) × Matsuda index, Matsuda index (increased) and HOMA-IR (decreased) (all P < 0.001). PIR exhibited positive correlations with log ISSI-2 (r = 0.361, P < 0.001), log (ΔC-peptide0–120/Δglucose0–120) × Matsuda index (r = 0.482, P < 0.001), and log Matsuda index (r = 0.178, P < 0.001) and negative correlations with log HOMA-IR (r = -0.288, P < 0.001). Furthermore, PIR emerged as an independent risk factor for log ISSI-2, log (ΔC-peptide0–120/Δglucose0–120) × Matsuda index, log Matsuda index, and log HOMA-IR. PIR can serve as a valuable tool for assessing β-cell function and insulin sensitivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) negatively affects the quality of life of pregnant women and is influenced by several factors. Research to date treats pregnant women with gestational diabetes as a homogeneous group based on their quality of life. We attempted to identify subgroups based on self-reported quality of life and explored variables associated with subgroups. Methods: From September 1, 2020 to November 29, 2020, pregnant women with GDM from two hospitals in Guangdong Province were selected as subjects by convenience sampling method. Medical records provided sociodemographic data, duration of GDM, pregnancy status, and family history of diabetes. Participants completed validated questionnaires for quality of life, anxiety and depression. Latent profile analysis was used to identify profiles of quality of life in pregnant women with GDM, and then a mixed regression method was used to analyze the influencing factors of different profiles. Results: A total of 279 valid questionnaires were collected. The results of the latent profile analysis showed that the quality of life of pregnant women with GDM could be divided into two profiles: C1 "high worry-high support" group (75.6%) and C2 "low worry-low support" group (24.4%). Daily exercise duration and depression degree are negative influencing factors, making it easier to enter the C1 group (p < 0.05). Disease duration and family history of diabetes are positive influencing factors, making it easier to enter the C2 group (p < 0.05). Conclusion: The quality of life of pregnant women with GDM had obvious classification characteristics. Pregnant women with exercise habits and depression are more likely to enter the "high worry-high support" group, and health care providers should guide their exercise according to exercise guidelines during pregnancy and strengthen psychological intervention. Pregnant women with a family history of diabetes and a longer duration of the disease are more likely to fall into the "low worry-low support" group. Healthcare providers can strengthen health education for them and improve their disease self-management abilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Backgrounds: Glioma is the most fatal primary brain glioma in central nervous system mainly attributed to its high invasion. Prucalopride, a Serotonin-4 (5-HT4) receptor agonist, has been reported to regulate neurodevelopment. This study aimed to investigate the influence of the Prucalopride on glioma cells and unveil underlying mechanism.Methods: In this study, glioma cells proliferation was evaluated by Cell counting kit-8 (CCK8). Wound healing and transwell assay were used to test cellular migration and invasion. Flow cytometry was utilized to determine cellular apoptosis rate. Apoptosis related markers, autophagy markers, and protein kinase B (AKT)-mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway key molecules were detected using western blot assay.Results: As a result, the proliferation, migration and invasiveness of glioma cells were impaired by Prucalopride treatment, the apoptosis rate of glioma cells was enhanced by Prucalopride stimulation, accompanied by the increased pro-apoptosis proteins Bax and Cleaved caspase-3 and decreased anti-apoptosis protein Bcl-2. Prucalopride significantly promoted autophagy by increased expression level of Beclin 1 and LC3-II, while decreased expression level of p62. Prucalopride administration resulted in obvious inhibitions of key molecules of AKT-mTOR pathway, including phosphorylated- (p-) AKT, p-mTOR and phosphorylated-ribosomal p70S6 kinase (p-P70S6K).Conclusions: Taking together, these results indicate that Prucalopride may be likely to play an anti-tumor role in glioma cells, which suggests potential implications for glioma promising therapy alternation in the further clinics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Feature correspondence lays the foundation for many computer vision and image processing tasks, which can be well formulated and solved by graph matching. Because of the high complexity, approximate methods are necessary for graph matching, and the continuous relaxation provides an efficient approximate scheme. But there are still many problems to be settled, such as the highly nonconvex objective function, the ignorance of the combinatorial nature of graph matching in the optimization process, and few attention to the outlier problem. Focusing on these problems, this paper introduces a continuation method directly targeting at the combinatorial optimization problem associated with graph matching. Specifically, first a regularization function incorporating the original objective function and the discrete constraints is proposed. Then a continuation method based on Gaussian smoothing is applied to it, in which the closed forms of relevant functions with respect to the outlier distribution are deduced. Experiments on both synthetic data and real world images validate the effectiveness of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background This study aimed to analyze the relationship between health literacy and quality of life in patients with TB in Tibet and explore the mediating effects of self-efficacy and self-management in the relationship between health literacy and quality of life. Methods We used a convenience sampling method to select 271 cases of patients with TB in Tibet to conduct a survey of their general information, health literacy, self-management, self-efficacy and quality of life, and to construct structural equation models. Results The total health literacy score of patients with TB in Tibet was 84.28±18.57, while the lowest score was for information acquisition ability (55.99±25.66). Scores for quality of life were generally lower than the norm (patients with chronic diseases from other cities in China) (p<0.01). Moreover, self-efficacy and self-management mediated the relationship between health literacy and quality of life (p<0.05). Conclusions In Tibet, patients with TB have a low level of health literacy and an average level of quality of life. Emphasis should be placed on improving information access literacy, role-physicals and role-emotional to improve overall quality of life. The mediating roles of self-efficacy and self-management between health literacy and quality of life may provide a basis for further interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biologically inspired model (BIM) for image recognition is a robust computational architecture, which has attracted widespread attention. BIM can be described as a four-layer structure based on the mechanisms of the visual cortex. Although the performance of BIM for image recognition is robust, it takes the randomly selected ways for the patch selection, which is sightless, and results in heavy computing burden. To address this issue, we propose a novel patch selection method with oriented Gaussian–Hermite moment (PSGHM), and we enhanced the BIM based on the proposed PSGHM, named as PBIM. In contrast to the conventional BIM which adopts the random method to select patches within the feature representation layers processed by multi-scale Gabor filter banks, the proposed PBIM takes the PSGHM way to extract a small number of representation features while offering promising distinctiveness. To show the effectiveness of the proposed PBIM, experimental studies on object categorization are conducted on the CalTech05, TU Darmstadt (TUD) and GRAZ01 databases. Experimental results demonstrate that the performance of PBIM is a significant improvement on that of the conventional BIM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Androgen receptor (AR) is a viable therapeutic target for lethal castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), because the continued progression of CRPC is mainly driven by the reactivation of AR transcriptional activity. The current FDA-approved AR antagonists binding to ligand binding domain (LBD) become ineffective in CRPC with AR gene amplification, LBD mutation, and the evolution of LBD-truncated AR splice variants. Encouraged by the fact that tricyclic aromatic diterpenoid QW07 has recently been established as a potential N-terminal AR antagonist, this study aims to explore the structure–activity relationship of tricyclic diterpenoids and their potential to suppress AR-positive cell proliferation. Dehydroabietylamine, abietic acid, dehydroabietic acid, and their derivatives were selected, since they have a similar core structure as QW07. Twenty diterpenoids were prepared for the evaluation of their antiproliferative potency on AR-positive prostate cancer cell models (LNCaP and 22Rv1) using AR-null cell models (PC-3 and DU145) as comparisons. Our data indicated that six tricyclic diterpenoids possess greater potency than enzalutamide (FDA-approved AR antagonist) towards LNCaP and 22Rv1 AR-positive cells, and four diterpenoids are more potent than enzalutamide against 22Rv1 AR-positive cells. The optimal derivative possesses greater potency (IC50 = 0.27 µM) and selectivity than QW07 towards AR-positive 22Rv1 cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Molybdenum disulphide (MoS2), which is a typical semiconductor from the family of layered transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), is an attractive material for optoelectronic and photodetection applications because of its tunable bandgap and high quantum luminescence efficiency. Although a high photoresponsivity of 880-2000 AW−1 and photogain up to 5000 have been demonstrated in MoS2-based photodetectors, the light absorption and gain mechanisms are two fundamental issues preventing these materials from further improvement. In addition, it is still debated whether monolayer or multilayer MoS2 could deliver better performance. Here, we demonstrate a photoresponsivity of approximately 104 AW−1 and a photogain of approximately 107 electrons per photon in an n-n heterostructure photodetector that consists of a multilayer MoS2 thin film covered with a thin layer of graphene quantum dots (GQDs). The enhanced light-matter interaction results from effective charge transfer and the re-absorption of photons, leading to enhanced light absorption and the creation of electron-hole pairs. It is feasible to scale up the device and obtain a fast response, thus making it one step closer to practical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To exactly study the riding comfort of passengers in urban rail transit trains, a coupling vibration model, including passengers, train, and bridge is proposed in this paper. According to the Lagrange Equation, the differential equations of motion of each part are derived, which are coupled with each other through displacement and dynamic interaction forces. A corresponding calculation program is compiled by the Fortran language. A representative steel-concrete composite girder bridge on Beijing Metro Line 5 is selected as the research background, the dynamic responses of passengers and train are simulated in detail, and the dynamic response differences between the passenger and carriage are compared. The passengers' riding comfort is evaluated according to ISO-2631 Standard based on the simulated data. The result shows that passengers in the middle carriages of the train feel better than those in the head and tail ones. While in the same carriage, passengers on the middle seats feel better than those on both ends of it. If only vibration is considered, passengers will feel better in a fully loaded carriage than those with few passengers. The riding comfort of passengers will be gradually reduced with the increase of the train speed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]