Search

Obesity has become a global health concern. It increases the risk of several diseases, such as type 2 diabetes mellitus, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and certain cancers, which threatens human health and increases social economic burden. As one of the most consumed beverages, tea contains various phytochemicals with potent bioactive properties and health-promoting effects, such as antioxidant, immune-regulation, cardiovascular protection and anticancer. Tea and its components are also considered as potential candidates for anti-obesity. Epidemiological studies indicate that regular consumption of tea is beneficial for reducing body fat. In addition, the experimental studies demonstrate that the potential anti-obesity mechanisms of tea are mainly involved in increasing energy expenditure and lipid catabolism, decreasing nutrient digestion and absorption as well as lipid synthesis, and regulating adipocytes, neuroendocrine system and gut microbiota. Moreover, most of clinical studies illustrate that the intake of green tea could reduce body weight and alleviate the obesity. In this review, we focus on the effect of tea and its components on obesity from epidemiological, experimental, and clinical studies, and discuss their potential mechanisms.

Background: While sarcopenia and frailty independently contribute to functional impairment and disability, the combined impact resulting from their interplay is unclear. We investigated if functional, physical, cognitive, and nutritional measures were more adversely affected in community-dwelling older adults who were screened positive for both frailty and sarcopenia.Methods: Using the FRAIL (≥1) and SARC-F (Strength, Assistance with walking, Rising from a chair, Climbing stairs, and Falls) (≥1) scales for screening, we categorized 200 participants (age, 67.9±7.9 years) as combined (both positive, 12.5%), intermediate (either positive, 25.5%), or robust (both negative, 62%). Results: Comparisons of the three groups showed that the combined group had significantly worse functional ability (Frenchay Activities Index and Modified Barthel Index), physical performance (knee extension, gait speed, and Short Physical Performance Battery score), cognition/mood (Chinese Mini-Mental State Examination [CMMSE] score and Geriatric Depression Scale), and nutrition (Mini Nutritional Assessment [MNA] score) (p

Dual task training benefits older adults by improving their balance and gait parameters. There is strong evidence suggesting its usefulness in reduction of falls with reduced falls risk. Current interventions for dual task training include exercises with cognitive exercises. There exists limited evidence for the use of Virtual Reality (VR) in training for dual tasking. Our study sets out to evaluate the usability and feasibility of an immersive VR dual tasking platform for older adults. An immersive VR dual tasking training platform for older adults was developed in conjunction with the engineers for this pilot study. The cognitive task involves training of executive function through an immersive 3-dimensional game where the participants have to follow instructions to catch and avoid certain specified objects. The motor task involves walking on a motorized treadmill at a preset speed. The two tasks were incorporated into a single platform with a training protocol over twelve sessions. We evaluated for side effects from using this immersive VR device and tolerability of the training protocol. The mean age of the participants is 62.9(±3.0)years old. Their mean comfortable gait speed is 1.27m/s. There were no falls throughout the entire training program. Participants tolerated the training protocol well with only 0.83% (1/120 training sessions) experiencing lower muscle ache/pain. The most common adverse effect from the immersive VR environment was tiredness – which made up 88% of all the adverse effects. However, this did not prevent participants from completing the training. The mean rating on the Borg Scale of perceived exertion is fairly light. The VR platform and training protocol is safe and feasible for use in healthy older adults. We aim to conduct a clinical trial using this VR dual tasking platform in older adults to assess for clinical benefits in falls preventions, improvements in gait parameters and cognitive scores.

Metabolic diseases are serious threats to public health and related to gut microbiota. Probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, and postbiotics (PPSP) are powerful regulators of gut microbiota, thus possessing prospects for preventing metabolic diseases. Therefore, the effects and mechanisms of PPSP on metabolic diseases targeting gut microbiota are worth discussing and clarifying. Generally, PPSP benefit metabolic diseases management, especially obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus. The underlying gut microbial-related mechanisms are mainly the modulation of gut microbiota composition, regulation of gut microbial metabolites, and improvement of intestinal barrier function. Moreover, clinical trials showed the benefits of PPSP on patients with metabolic diseases, while the clinical strategies for gestational diabetes mellitus, optimal formula of synbiotics and health benefits of postbiotics need further study. This review fully summarizes the relationship between probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, postbiotics, and metabolic diseases, presents promising results and the one in dispute, and especially attention is paid to illustrates potential mechanisms and clinical effects, which could contribute to the next research and development of PPSP.

Gait recognition is a promising video-based long-distance biometric technology which needs no cooperation from subjects. Actually, the existing gait recognition can be roughly divided into two categories: silhouette-based and skeleton-based approaches. The former shows low computational cost but is relatively sensitive to different variations such as coat-wearing, carrying status and camera viewpoints. The latter is more robust against environmental changes, but highly dependent on accuracy of skeleton. To address the above issue, this paper proposes a hybrid silhouette-skeleton body representation for gait recognition. Inspired by the success of pose estimation approaches, we adopt recent state-of-the-art pose estimator to obtain robust body skeletons from RGB images. Besides, a novel fusion strategy is proposed to integrate silhouette and skeleton information into a single compact silhouette-skeleton representation for gait. And then we prove that heatmap for joints achieve better performance than the other skeleton representation. Extensive experiments on CASIA-B show that the proposed approach essentially boosts performance of both set-based and sequence-based gait recognition solution. In addition, it outperforms GaitPart by 1.2%, 0.6% and 2.8%, in NM, BG, and CL conditions, respectively.

Purpose This purpose of this study was to develop a 3D printer based on powder particle. The best degreasing and sintering process of a blank body was investigated to obtain a metal product with high precision and high surface finish. This process will greatly reduce the difficulty and cost of forming a complex metal product with high application value. Design/methodology/approach Stainless steel powder and polymer materials were mixed using a rubber mixing machine. The powders were granulated to prepare a mixed material. A powder feed 3D printer was used at low temperature (about 200°C) to print and degrease the body. A series of sintering experiments were performed to study the different sintering temperatures, and the physical and mechanical properties of the sample sintered under various conditions were compared to determine the best degreasing and sintering process. Findings The reaction at 1,370°C was the optimal route for the metal billet degreasing. The resulting metal products had fine structure and stable performance compared with the products with traditional powder metallurgy composition. Originality/value Most 3D printed metal powder materials rely on imports, which are expensive and increase the manufacturing cost. These drawbacks limit the application and development of metal 3D printing technology to a certain extent. The successful study of this molding method greatly reduces the difficulty and cost of forming complex metal products with high application value. This report will provide valuable guidance for sintering process and forming methods.

A locally-adapted, multisensory, psychosocial intervention called Namaste Care program was developed to improve the daily life of persons with advanced dementia (PwAD) through arranging meaningful activities and physical interactions by healthcare staff (Namaste Carers). Congruent with Asian values, the families of PwAD were invited to participate in Namaste Care sessions. The study aimed to explore the influence of Namaste Care on cognitive status and quality of life (QOL) of PwAD, and perceptions and attitudes of caregivers and Namaste Carers toward dementia care were determined. A total of 10 individuals, including patient-caregiver dyads (n = 4) and Namaste Carers (n = 6) participated in a program in a tertiary hospital in Singapore. Quality of Life in Late-Stage Dementia (QUALID) scale and Severe Impairment Rating Scale (SIRS) were employed to evaluate QOL and cognition, respectively, in the pre- and post-survey program in patient-caregiver dyads. Namaste Carers’ knowledge and attitudes toward PwAD were assessed using the Questionnaire on Palliative Care for Advanced Dementia (qPAD). Caregivers and Namaste carers were interviewed post-program separately. A concurrent explanatory mixed-method analysis was done. The mean age of PwAD was 84 years, with 75% (n = 3) patients on enteral tube feeding. Namaste carers were nurses with an average experience of 4.1 years in dementia care. On comparison of pre- and post-program scores of PwAD, QUALID scores showed a decrease (indicating an improvement in the QOL), while the SIRS scores were increased (indicating an improved cognitive response). Namaste Carers scored high on qPAD, reflecting the good understanding and a positive attitude toward PwAD. Thematic analysis of 10 interview transcripts from caregivers and Namaste Carers revealed three themes: the polarizing paradigm of care in advanced dementia; pre-eminence of the Asian family values, and theme of “small actions make a big difference”. Namaste Care served as a bridge between the person-centered care approach and the biomedical model of dementia care. Namaste Care with family participation may be the cornerstone of PwAD to receive culturally-appropriate personalized care and serve as a premise for the operationalization of person-centered care in Asian societies, and undeniably across the world.

Osteosarcopenia is associated with increased risk of adverse outcomes such as falls and fractures. Its association with frailty is less well-described, particularly in independent community-dwelling older adults. Although nutrition plays a crucial role in maintaining bone and muscle health, the complex relationship between osteosarcopenia and nutrition in the pathogenesis of frailty remains to be elucidated. In this cross-sectional analysis of 230 independent, community-dwelling individuals (mean age 67.2 ± 7.4 years), we examined the associations between osteosarcopenia with nutritional status and frailty, and the mediating role of nutrition in the association between osteosarcopenia and frailty. Osteosarcopenia was defined as fulfilling both the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia 2019 consensus definition (low relative appendicular skeletal muscle mass adjusted for height, in the presence of either of either low handgrip strength or slow gait speed) and T-score ≤ −2.5 SD on bone mineral densitometry. We assessed frailty using the modified Fried criteria and nutrition using the Mini-Nutritional Assessment. We performed multiple linear regression, followed by pathway analysis to ascertain whether nutrition mediates the relationship between osteosarcopenia and frailty. Our study population comprised: 27 (11.7%) osteosarcopenic, 35 (15.2%) sarcopenic, 36 (15.7%) osteoporotic and 132 (57.4%) normal (neither osteosarcopenic, sarcopenic nor osteoporotic). Osteosarcopenia (β = 1.1, 95% CI 0.86–1.4) and sarcopenia (β = 1.1, 95% CI 0.90–1.4) were significantly associated with frailty, but not osteoporosis. Nutrition mediated the association between osteosarcopenia and frailty (indirect effect estimate 0.09, bootstrap 95% CI 0.01–0.22). In conclusion, osteosarcopenia is associated with frailty and poorer nutritional status, with nutrition mediating the association between osteosarcopenia and frailty. Our findings support early nutritional assessment and intervention in osteosarcopenia to mitigate the risk of frailty.

Resveratrol is a bioactive compound in many foods. Since its anticancer activity was reported in 1997, its health benefits have been intensively investigated. Resveratrol has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory, glucose and lipid regulatory, neuroprotective, and cardiovascular protective effects, therefore, can protect against diverse chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), cancer, liver diseases, obesity, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease. This review summarizes the main findings of resveratrol-related health benefits in recent epidemiological surveys, experimental studies, and clinical trials, highlighting its related molecular mechanisms. Resveratrol, therefore, has been regarded as a potent candidate for the development of nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals to prevent and treat certain chronic diseases.

Objective: We aimed to identify key susceptibility gene targets in multiple datasets generated from post-mortem brains of Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients and healthy controls (HC). Methods: We performed a multi-tiered analysis to integrate the gene expression data using multiple-gene chips from 244 human post mortem tissues. We identified hub node genes in the highly PD-related consensus module by constructing protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks. Next we validated the top four interacting genes in 238 subjects (90 sporadic PD, 125 HC and 23 Parkinson’s Plus Syndrome (PPS)). Utilizing multinomial logistic regression analysis(MLRA) and Receiver Operating Characteristic(ROC), we analyzed the risk factors and diagnostic power for discriminating PD from HC and PPS. Results: We identified 1333 genes that were significantly different between PD and HCs based on seven microarray datasets. The identified MEturquoise module is related to synaptic vesicle trafficking (SVT) dysfunction in PD (P

The consumption of vitamins C and D for prevention and treatment of cancer is still an uncertain recommendation due to their controversial roles in cancer. The epidemiological studies document that vitamins C and D possess potential antineoplastic property. In addition, accumulating experimental studies strongly support their anticancer efficacy both in vitro and in vivo, although the mechanisms of action are not completely clear. Vitamin C at pharmacological concentration has cancer-selective cytotoxicity in several cancer cell lines. Moreover, the cognition of vitamin D has become "hormone D", which modulates a variety of molecular targets and signaling pathways, contributing to the inhibition of cancer. Furthermore, limited small-scale clinical trials favor their roles as the adjuncts of standard cancer therapies. On the other hand, opposite opinions also exist, and high-quality evidence are still lacking to ascertain the roles of vitamins C and D in cancer. In general, in light of the potential and promising anticancer values of vitamins C and D, it is essential to gain insight into their roles in cancer based on current epidemiological, experimental and clinical studies.

Helicobacter pylori is the main pathogen that induces chronic gastritis, peptic ulcers, atrophic gastritis, and other gastric disorders, and it is classified as a group I carcinogen. To eradicate H. pylori infection, triple therapy consisting of two antibiotics and a proton pump inhibitor is the most widely recommended first-line therapeutic strategy. Antimicrobial resistance to antibiotics contained in triple therapy could lead to therapeutic regimen failures. Recent studies showed that many natural products, including fruits, vegetables, spices, and medicinal plants, possess inhibitory effects on H. pylori, indicating their potential to be alternatives to prevent and manage H. pylori infection. This review summarizes the effects of natural products on H. pylori infection and highlights the mechanisms of action.

Background The evaluation of hip arthroplasty is a challenge in computed tomography (CT). The virtual monochromatic spectral (VMS) images with metal artifact reduction software (MARs) in spectral CT can reduce the artifacts and improve the image quality. Purpose To evaluate the effects of VMS images and MARs for metal artifact reduction in patients with unilateral hip arthroplasty. Material and Methods Thirty-five patients underwent dual-energy CT. Four sets of VMS images without MARs and four sets of VMS images with MARs were obtained. Artifact index (AI), CT number, and SD value were assessed at the periprosthetic region and the pelvic organs. The scores of two observers for different images and the inter-observer agreement were evaluated. Results The AIs in 120 and 140 keV images were significantly lower than those in 80 and 100 keV images. The AIs of the periprosthetic region in VMS images with MARs were significantly lower than those in VMS images without MARs, while the AIs of pelvic organs were not significantly different. VMS images with MARs improved the accuracy of CT numbers for the periprosthetic region. The inter-observer agreements were good for all the images. VMS images with MARs at 120 and 140 keV had higher subjective scores and could improve the image quality, leading to reliable diagnosis of prosthesis-related problems. Conclusion VMS images with MARs at 120 and 140 keV could significantly reduce the artifacts from hip arthroplasty and improve the image quality at the periprosthetic region but had no obvious advantage for pelvic organs.

Objective To summarize the pathologic and computed tomography (CT) imaging characteristics of myoepithelial carcinoma in the salivary gland. Study Design Ten patients with myoepithelial carcinoma of the salivary gland underwent enhanced CT scanning, and the pathologic and CT imaging features were evaluated, including the pathologic type, size, margin morphology, and enhancement pattern of the lesions. Results Myoepithelial carcinoma had a multinodular or lobulated outline. The cut surfaces were gray-brown with no or incomplete capsules, and visible bleeding was observed in some cases. The pathologic cell type of the tumor was spindle-shaped, clear, plasmacytoid, or epithelioid cells or a mixture of cell types. Nonenhanced CT imaging showed an irregular lobulated or multinodular lesion with ill-defined margins and inhomogeneous attenuation and punctate calcification in a minority of the lesions. The enhanced CT imaging results revealed moderate and intense inhomogeneous enhancement, including cystic and slit-like regions with no enhancement, intense nodular enhancement, and small tortuous vessels in the arterial phase. Conclusion The pathologic features and CT imaging findings of myoepithelial carcinoma were characteristic, and familiarity with these imaging findings might aid in the diagnosis of this entity.

Tea is a traditional and popular beverage worldwide, and the consumption of tea has been demonstrated to possess many health benefits, such as cardiovascular protection, anti-obesity, anti-diabetes, and anticancer. Epidemiological studies have shown that the consumption of tea is inversely associated with the risk of several cancers. In addition, experimental studies have revealed that the anticancer actions of tea are mainly attributed to tea polyphenols, such as epigallocatechin-3-gallate and theaflavins. Both in vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated that the possible anticancer mechanisms are the inhibition on proliferation, anti-angiogenesis, induction of apoptosis, suppression on metastasis, inhibition on cancer stem cells, and modulation on gut microbiota. Its synergetic anticancer effects with drugs or other compounds could promote anticancer therapies. Furthermore, clinical trials have elucidated that intervention of tea phytochemicals is effective in the prevention of several cancers. This paper is an updated review for the prevention and management of cancers by tea based on the findings from epidemiological, experimental and clinical studies, and special attention is paid on the mechanisms of action.

Cancers are common chronic diseases worldwide and cause severe health burdens. There have been ongoing debates on the role of gut microbiota in the prevention and management of cancers, thus, it is worthwhile to pay high attention to the impacts of gut microbiota on several cancers, such as colon, liver, and breast cancers. In addition, it has been reported that gut microbiota may also affect the efficacy of cancer chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Among all the factors that influence gut microbiota, diet is the most influential and modifiable. The prebiotics, dietary fibers, short-chain fatty acids, and other bioactive compounds are all important dietary components to assist the growth of beneficial microbiota in the gut, which can protect against cancers and promote human health. Their beneficial effects can be due to the fermentation of dietary fibers, the metabolism of phytochemicals, the synthesis of estrogens, and interactions with chemotherapies and immunotherapies. In order to provide updated information of the relationships among dietary components, gut microbiota, and cancer, in this review, we summarize the reciprocal interactions between dietary components and gut microbiota, and highlight the impacts of dietary components on several common cancers by targeting gut microbiota, with the potential mechanisms of actions also intensively discussed. As a result, this review can be very helpful for healthy people as well as cancer patients to prevent or manage cancers via dietary factor-mediated regulation of gut microbiota.

Epidemiological studies have shown that vegetable consumption is inversely related to the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Moreover, research has indicated that many vegetables like potatoes, soybeans, sesame, tomatoes, dioscorea, onions, celery, broccoli, lettuce and asparagus showed great potential in preventing and treating cardiovascular diseases, and vitamins, essential elements, dietary fibers, botanic proteins and phytochemicals were bioactive components. The cardioprotective effects of vegetables might involve antioxidation; anti-inflammation; anti-platelet; regulating blood pressure, blood glucose, and lipid profile; attenuating myocardial damage; and modulating relevant enzyme activities, gene expression, and signaling pathways as well as some other biomarkers associated to cardiovascular diseases. In addition, several vegetables and their bioactive components have been proven to protect against cardiovascular diseases in clinical trials. In this review, we analyze and summarize the effects of vegetables on cardiovascular diseases based on epidemiological studies, experimental research, and clinical trials, which are significant to the application of vegetables in prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are leading global health problems. Accumulating epidemiological studies have indicated that consuming fruits was inversely related to the risk of CVDs. Moreover, substantial experimental studies have supported the protective role of fruits against CVDs, and several fruits (grape, blueberry, pomegranate, apple, hawthorn, and avocado) have been widely studied and have shown potent cardiovascular protective action. Fruits can prevent CVDs or facilitate the restoration of morphology and functions of heart and vessels after injury. The involved mechanisms included protecting vascular endothelial function, regulating lipids metabolism, modulating blood pressure, inhibiting platelets function, alleviating ischemia/reperfusion injury, suppressing thrombosis, reducing oxidative stress, and attenuating inflammation. The present review summarizes recent discoveries about the effects of fruits on CVDs and discusses potential mechanisms of actions based on evidence from epidemiological, experimental, and clinical studies.

As one type of general power converter, matrix converter can realize n phase to m phase voltage conversion, the control strategy of which is now a research hotspot. For three input and one output phase matrix converter (31MC), in view of the insufficiency of normal strategies, a control strategy is adopted based on the hysteresis current control technology. Moreover, aimed at the contradiction between the constant switching frequency of present current control mode and the control speediness, a novel hysteresis current control method is introduced with frequency feedback included. On the condition of relax the rigid requirement to the switching frequency, the current control speed is highly improved without its reliability drop. The proposed technology of MC is proved by theory analysis and computer simulation in the paper.

Aiming the lubricating oil quality can cause the machine failure and decrease operating time, its impurities can also change the oil capacitance, the online detecting system which based on the LabVIEW virtual programming language is designed. LabVIEW can make data collection, processing, display, memory, etc, implementing the online monitoring of the lubricating oil. This design greatly decrease the workload of the staff, reduce the detecting time, raise the testing efficiency of the equipment and measure the various impurity content of lubricating oil more accuracy.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are critical global public health issues with high morbidity and mortality. Epidemiological studies have revealed that regular tea drinking is inversely associated with the risk of CVDs. Additionally, substantial in vitro and in vivo experimental studies have shown that tea and its bioactive compounds are effective in protecting against CVDs. The relevant mechanisms include reducing blood lipid, alleviating ischemia/reperfusion injury, inhibiting oxidative stress, enhancing endothelial function, attenuating inflammation, and protecting cardiomyocyte function. Moreover, some clinical trials also proved the protective role of tea against CVDs. In order to provide a better understanding of the relationship between tea and CVDs, this review summarizes the effects of tea and its bioactive compounds against CVDs and discusses potential mechanisms of action based on evidence from epidemiological, experimental, and clinical studies.

Objective: A large number of studies have shown the adverse neonatal outcomes of maternal psychological ill health. Given the potentially high prevalence of antenatal anxiety and few studies performed among Chinese people, the authors wanted to investigate the prevalence of antenatal anxiety and associated factors among pregnant women and to provide scientific basis to reduce prenatal anxiety effectively. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out at the Changchun Gynecology and Obstetrics Hospital from January 2015 to march 2015, with 467 participants of at least 38 weeks’ gestation enrolled. Antenatal anxiety was measured using the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS). χ2 test and logistic regression analysis were performed to evaluate the association of related factors of antenatal anxiety. Results: Among the 467 participants, the prevalence of antenatal anxiety was 20.6% (96 of 467). After adjustment for women’s socio-demographic characteristics (e.g., area, age, household income), multivariate logistical regression analysis revealed that antenatal anxiety showed significant relationship with education level lower than middle school (years ≤ 9), expected natural delivery, anemia during pregnancy, pregnancy-induced hypertension syndrome, disharmony in family relationship and life satisfaction. Conclusions: It is important to prevent or reduce antenatal anxiety from occurring by improving the health status of pregnant women and strengthening prenatal-related education and mental intervention.

Based on the deflection theory and the virtual displacement principle, the stress state of different components of the self-anchored suspension bridge was analyzed; the formulas denoted by trigonometric series for computing the internal force and deformation of the stiffened girder, were derived respectively under a variety of loads, and the cable force was determined under the live load combined with Newton-Simpson iteration approach. On the basis, a practical method to calculate the internal force and deformation of the stiffening girder of self-anchored suspension bridge, was presented, and also the corresponding analysis program. Then, Sanchaji Bridge across Xiangjiang River in Changsha (self-anchored suspension bridge, main span of 328m), was taken for example, the calculation results compared with finite displacement theory, proved it to be simple, convenient, accurate and reliable; if the distribution of the hangers is uniform, the results were consistent between deflection theory and finite displacement theory. This shows that, this method proposed by this paper can be used to study the influences of design parameters, having on the internal force and deformation of self-anchored suspension bridge, especially in the preliminary design stage, can be easy for the selection of the main design parameters.

With the development of economy and society, the management mode and business of taxpayers have been updated; the complexity of tax administration significantly increased; the asymmetry of levying for both information have become increasingly prominent; therefore, the traditional way of managing households according to their apanage by tax administrator has been difficult to adapt to new needs of tax source management. We should base on information technology to build a new tax management mechanism (system) under the government leadership where national tax system and local system cooperate, and relevant department must give info-technical support, to form the comprehensive taxation atmosphere with definite power and duty, standard management, effective collaboration and powerful supervisory control in order to improve the work of information management tax.

Numerical simulation method is adopted to optimize the design of air flow distribution in China Pavilion. Four cases of different supply air velocity and temperature based on the same cooling capacity are simulated. Through comparing draught sensation (DR), ADPI index, energy consuming and so on, indoor thermal comfort and energy-saving are analyzed. The results show that, under the case which the supply air velocity is 2m/s, the indoor air velocity in occupied zone is mainly 0.2m/s, draft sensation is about 8%, the temperature, velocity field and energy consuming are basically meet the requirement of thermal comfort and energy saving.

Network Coding (NC) can improve the information transmission efficiency and throughput of data networks. Random Linear Network Coding (RLNC) is a special form of NC scheme that is easy to be implemented. However, quantifying the performance gain of RLNC over conventional Store and Forward (S/F)-based routing system, especially for wireless network, remains an important open issue. To solve this problem, in this paper, based on abstract layer network architecture, we build a dynamic random network model with Poisson distribution describing the nodes joining the network randomly for tree-based single-source multicast in MANET. We then examine its performance by applying conventional Store and Forward with FEC (S/F-FEC) and RLNC methods respectively, and derive the analytical function expressions of average packet loss rate, successful decoding ratio and throughput with respect to the link failure probability. An experiment shows that these expressions have relatively high precision in describing the performance of RLNC. It can be used to design the practical network coding algorithm for multi-hop multicast with tree-based topology in MANET and provide a research tool for the performance analysis of RLNC.

Process analysis of CO2 capture from flue gas using Ca-based carbonation/calcination cycles is presented here. A carbonation/calcination system is composed essentially of two reactors (an absorber and a regenerator) with Ca-based sorbent circulating between the two reactors (assumed here as fluidized beds). CO2 is, therefore, transferred from the absorber to the regenerator. Because of the endothermicity of the calcination reaction, a certain amount of coal is burned with pure oxygen in the regenerator. Detailed mass balance, heat balance and cost of electricity and CO2 mitigation for the carbonation/calcination cycles with three Ca-based sorbents in dual fluidized beds were calculated and analyzed to study the effect of the Ca-based sorbent activity decay on CO2 capture from flue gas. The three sorbents considered were: limestone, dolomite and CaO/Ca12Al14O33 (75/25 wt %) sorbent. All results, including the amount of coal and oxygen required, are presented with respect to the difference in calcium oxide conversion between the absorber and the regenerator, which is an important design parameter. Finally, costs of electricity and CO2 mitigation costs using carbonation/calcination cycles for the three sorbents were estimated. The results indicate that the economics of the carbonation/calcination process compare favorably with competing technologies for capturing CO2. © 2008 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2008

The catalytic effects of alkali, alkaline earth and transition metals on pyrolysis of lignite and bituminous coals were investigated using TG-FTIR. The results indicate that the orders of catalytic effects on the pyrolysis of lignite and bituminous coals are Ni ~ Fe ~ Ca ~ K and Ca ~ Fe > Ni > K, respectively. The maximal increments of conversion for the lignite and the bituminous coal are 10.1% and 6.4% with catalysts loaded. The CH4 yield of the bituminous coal is larger than that of the lignite. The increase in yield of CO2, H2O, CH4, and CO is dependent on the catalysts, which are closely related to the temperature region and coal ranks.

OBJECTIVES To analyze polymorphism of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) gene in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients from the Han Chinese ethnic group, and to investigate the role of polymorphism in the pathogenesis of IBD. METHODS Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) techniques were used to analyze gene polymorphisms in the TNF-alpha and TNF-beta genes in 131 patients with IBD. RESULTS The genotype frequency and allelic frequency of TNF-alpha-308 in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) were 15.5% and 8.7%, respectively, significantly higher than the control population (4.1% and 2.0%, respectively; P < 0.001). There was no significant difference between patients with Crohn's disease (CD) and the normal population with regard to the genotype frequency and allelic frequency of TNF-alpha-308, and neither were there any differences with regard to TNF-beta+252 in patients with IBD (UC and CD) and the normal population. The TNF-alpha-308 polymorphism and the TNF-beta+252 loci did not correlate with age, gender, disease activity or lesion site for IBD patients. CONCLUSIONS The TNF-alpha-308 allele may be related to susceptibility to UC. The TNF-alpha-308 gene polymorphism is not involved in pathogenesis of CD. No correlation was found between the TNF-beta+252 polymorphism and IBD. Polymorphisms of the TNF-alpha-308 and TNF-beta+252 loci do not correlate with age, gender, disease activity or lesion site.

Infectious diseases caused by pathogens and food poisoning caused by spoilage microorganisms are threatening human health all over the world. The efficacies of some antimicrobial agents, which are currently used to extend shelf-life and increase the safety of food products in food industry and to inhibit disease-causing microorganisms in medicine, have been weakened by microbial resistance. Therefore, new antimicrobial agents that could overcome this resistance need to be discovered. Many spices—such as clove, oregano, thyme, cinnamon, and cumin—possessed significant antibacterial and antifungal activities against food spoilage bacteria like Bacillus subtilis and Pseudomonas fluorescens, pathogens like Staphylococcus aureus and Vibrio parahaemolyticus, harmful fungi like Aspergillus flavus, even antibiotic resistant microorganisms such as methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Therefore, spices have a great potential to be developed as new and safe antimicrobial agents. This review summarizes scientific studies on the antibacterial and antifungal activities of several spices and their derivatives.

Based on the structural feature of high speed railway bridge , one space finite element model is established for the construction of the influence factors of the bridge deformation sensitivity analysis . Using adaptive genetic algorithm and neural network technology , taking the deformation of the bridge sample error minimizing as the objective function to get the new BP neural network after the neural network model weights and thresholds optimized. And compile eformation intelligent forecasting system based on MATLAB platform. Taking the cantilever construction of Shanghai-Kunming high-speed rail a continuous beam of measured data compared with the predicted results of experimental data, the results shows that the method is of high accuracy , good feasibility, provided reference for high precision linear intelligent control to similar Bridges.

We determine the capacity of the classical compound quantum wiretapper channel with channel state information at the transmitter. Moreover we derive a lower bound on the capacity of this channel without channel state information and determine the capacity of the classical quantum compound wiretap channel with channel state information at the transmitter.

The construction project of coal mine is characterized by onetime, high cost, long duration, difficult construction, technical complexity and multitudinous project participants, whose risk events occur frequently in its construction. Therefore, the risk monitoring of construction project of coal mine is of theoretical significance and practical value. The risk control problems of coal mine construction project were studied from two aspects in the paper: First of all, the organizational framework and process of risk monitoring about coal mine construction project are built; Secondly, the issues about the risk monitoring of construction project of coal mine are dynamically and quantitatively researched through the establishment of system dynamics model.

Concerning the economic development situation of Zhejiang Province, a set of evaluation indicators urgently need to be established to reflect the regional development demand and fit for the regional innovation of the Province. Yet, since the economic and social development in Zhejiang is unbalanced, there are still obvious differences in regional innovation among the 11 prefecture-level cities. Thus, how to objectively evaluate the creativity of one region and make countermeasures to raise the regional innovation in accordance with the differences among the regions has become an urgent theoretical problem and practical requirement. The paper constructs an evaluation system of Zhejiang’s regional innovation by theoretical and empirical selection. Based on the evaluation indicator system and combined with the specific data material, the paper conducts practical measurement and horizontal comparative analysis to the regional innovation of the 11 prefecture-level cities of Zhejiang Province.

OBJECTIVE: Atrophic body gastritis (ABG) is common in China. Although histology via endoscopy is an efficient and reliable means of diagnosing ABG, it is an invasive procedure. Therefore, in the present study serum pepsinogen (PG) was used as a biomarker to develop a novel noninvasive test as the first option for screening of ABG in certain groups of Chinese. METHODS: The study population consisted of 81 selected dyspeptic patients (mean age, 64.8 ± 0.7 years; M:F, 43:38) who underwent diagnostic gastroscopy. At least four biopsy specimens were taken from the antrum and corpus of the stomach (two specimens from each site) for histological diagnosis. Blood samples for ELISA assays of serum pepsinogen I (PGI), pepsinogen II (PGII) and IgG antibodies against Helicobacter pylori (Hp IgG) were drawn after endoscopy. Cut-off points were calculated using receiver operating curves (ROC). RESULTS: There was no correlation between serum PG and atrophy in the antral mucosa. The mean serum concentration of PGI was lower (P

A synthetic approach to processing the experimental data is discussed in this paper. The mathematical statistics, fuzzy mathematics and artificial neural network technique are synthesized together in order to process a kind of unperfected experimental data, and a mathematical model in the shape of fuzzy neural networks is built. This method then is used to process the experimental data obtained from a complicated chemical reaction. The actual results have proved that this approach is simple, practical and effective. The model obtained by the method mentioned above can be used in further simulation and optimization study of the reaction process.

AIM:To study the effects and clinical significance of parenteral hyperalimentation on levels of serum motilin, peptide YY, IgG and glycoproteins in patients with severe ulcerative colitis. METHODS:Eighty-nine patients (males 51,females 38,age 23-57 years) with severe ulcerative colitis were examinated with colonoscope, barium enema, the diagnosis was confirmed histologically. Bacterial infection was excluded through twice consecutive stool cultures. And ameba, schistosomiasis, gastroentertinal cancer and endocrine diseases were also excluded. Ulcerative colitis was found in sigmoid (n =45), descending colon (n =21), colon splenic flexure (n =15) and transverse colon (n =8). Its clinical categories included relapse (n =44), persistent (n =30) and initial (n =15). Parenteral hyperalimentation was applied to patients once diagnosis was made; three days later, fasting venous blood was drawed to test serum motilin (MTL), peptide YY (PYY) and IgG by radioimmunoassy, and serum α1, α2 and γ glycoproteins by electrophoresis. RESULTS:After 4-week period therapy with parental hypernutrition,27 cases (30 %) recovered completely, 48 (54 %) improved, and 14(16 %) failed to therapy, the total effective rate was 84 %. Level of serum MTL, PYY, IgG, and α1-glycoprotein in colitis patients were significant higher than those in control, α 2-glycoprotein was lower than that in control ( P 0.05).Level of serum albumin was increased (P