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To compare diffusion parameters obtained from mono-exponential, bi-exponential, and stretched-exponential diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) in stratifying non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Thirty-two New Zealand rabbits were fed a high-fat/cholesterol or standard diet to obtain different stages of NAFLD before 12 b-values (0–800 s/mm2) DWI. The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) from the mono-exponential model; pure water diffusion (D), pseudo-diffusion (D*), and perfusion fraction (f) from bi-exponential DWI; and distributed diffusion coefficient (DDC) and water molecular diffusion heterogeneity index (α) from stretched-exponential DWI were calculated for hepatic parenchyma. The goodness of fit of the three models was compared. NAFLD severity was pathologically graded as normal, simple steatosis, borderline, and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Spearman rank correlation analysis and receiver operating characteristic curves were used to assess NAFLD severity. Upon comparison, the goodness of fit chi-square from stretched-exponential fitting (0.077 ± 0.012) was significantly lower than that for the bi-exponential (0.110 ± 0.090) and mono-exponential (0.181 ± 0.131) models (p

Large scale wind power integration into the power grid will pose a serious threat to the frequency control of power system. If only Control Performance Standard (CPS) index is used as the evaluation standard of frequency quality, it will easily lead to short-term centralized frequency crossing, which will affect the effect of intelligent Automatic Generation Control (AGC) on frequency quality. In order to solve this problem, a multi-objective collaborative reward function is constructed by introducing a collaborative evaluation mechanism with multiple evaluation indexes, and Negotiated W-Learning strategy is proposed to globally optimize the solution of the objective function from multi dimensions, which avoids the poor learning efficiency of the Q-function linear weighted multi-objective reinforcement learning algorithm under the traditional Greedy strategy. The simulation of AGC control model of standard two area interconnected power grid shows that the proposed intelligent strategy can effectively improve the frequency control performance and improve the frequency quality of the system in the whole-time scale.

Objective: To investigate the efficacy and safety of a novel lower-limb exoskeletal robot, BEAR-H1 (Shenzhen Milebot Robot Technology), in the locomotor function of subacute stroke patients.Methods: The present study was approved by the ethical committee of the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University (No. 2019-MD-43), and registration was recorded on the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry with a unique identifier: ChiCTR2100044475. A total of 130 patients within 6 months of stroke were randomly divided into two groups: the robot group and the control group. The control group received routine training for walking, while in the robot group, BEAR-H1 lower-limb exoskeletal robot was used for locomotor training. Both groups received two sessions daily, 5 days a week for 4 weeks consecutively. Each session lasted 30 min. Before treatment, after treatment for 2 weeks, and 4 weeks, the patients were assessed based on the 6-minute walking test (6MWT), functional ambulation scale (FAC), Fugl-Meyer assessment lower-limb subscale (FMA-LE), and Vicon gait analysis.Results: After a 4-week intervention, the results of 6MWT, FMA-LE, FAC, cadence, and gait cycle in the two groups significantly improved (P < 0.05), but there was no significant difference between the two groups (P > 0.05). The ratio of stance phase to that of swing phase, swing phase symmetry ratio (SPSR), and step length symmetry ratio (SLSR) was not significantly improved after 4 weeks of training in both the groups. Further analyses revealed that the robot group exhibited potential benefits, as the point estimates of 6MWT and Δ6MWT (post-pre) at 4 weeks were higher than those in the control group. Additionally, within-group comparison showed that patients in the robot group had a significant improvement in 6MWT earlier than their counterparts in the control group.Conclusions: The rehabilitation robot in this study could improve the locomotor function of stroke patients; however, its effect was no better than conventional locomotor training.

To assess the diagnostic effectiveness of arterial spin labeling (ASL) MR imaging in differentiating fat-poor AML from clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). In this prospective study, 29 ccRCC patients and 9 fat-poor AML patients underwent routine anatomical MRI and ASL at 3T before surgery after signing written informed consent form. For each tumor, tumor blood flow (TBF) was measured in a region of interest (ROI) which was positioned to outline the edge of the target lesions on ASL perfusion maps. Additionally, the mean TBF values were obtained by standardizing the TBF using a blood flow measurement in the reference ROI. Moreover, a cluster containing more than 10 voxels was chosen from the renal cortex and medulla area in normal contralateral kidney as a reference ROI to calculate tumor-to-cortex ratio and tumor-to-medulla ratio. Independent sample t test was used to examine the alteration among the groups of fat-poor AML and ccRCC. ASL images were together analyzed by two radiologists to assess the following characteristics of the renal mass: predominant SI in the tumor on ASL images was lower than, as same as, or higher than SI of the cortex. For qualitative variables, Fisher’s exact test was employed to compare the proportions of these two groups. The sensitivity, specificity ,and accuracy required for discrimination of fat-poor AML from ccRCC were quantified using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. The corresponding optimal cutoff value was obtained for each parameter as well. The TBF value was significantly higher in ccRCC group than that in fat-poor AML (270.49 ± 78.88 ml/100 g/min vs. 146.68 ± 47.21 ml/100 g/min; P

For large aperture and high-resolution space optical cameras, the focusing requirements caused by different resolution requirements, or the requirements for the segmented primary mirror for deployable telescopes or on-orbit assembly space telescopes, the micro- or nano-metric multi degree of freedom adjusting of the primary mirror or the segment mirror is one of the inevitable development trends of the active optical system. According to the different degrees of freedom involved in the primary mirror adjustment, the micro- or nano-metric multi degree of freedom adjusting displacement scaling mechanisms of the monolithic and segmented primary mirror are studied. The development history and structural characteristics of multi degree of freedom adjusting displacement scaling mechanisms including rigid lever type, gear deceleration type, hydraulic mechanism type and compliant hinge type, as well as their research status and application fields, are introduced. The performance characteristics and applications of various displacement scaling mechanisms are analyzed and compared. Finally, according to the application requirements of space telescopes in the future, the development trend of multi degree of freedom (DOF) adjusting displacement scaling mechanism for segmented primary mirror is proposed.

Rationale: ALL is the most common form of leukemia (75% to 80%), it is characterized by clonal expansion of the lymphoid blasts in bone marrow, blood, and other tissues, which can be divided into T lineage and B lineage. Although relapse of acute leukemia is common, a change of immunophenotype at relapse only occurs rarely. Some of these cases have been labeled “lineage switch”. Patient concerns: A 31-year-old man had multiple lymph nodes in the neck, and the lymph nodes on the right side adhered to the surrounding tissues. His lymphocytes ratio in blood was up to 86.3%. Flow cytometry of the bone marrow aspirate showed positive results for CD2, CD5, CD7, cCD3, TDT, CD4, CD8, and CD10, negative results for CD34, CD117, CD33, HLA-DR, CD19, and CD20. Twenty six months later, the patient felt pain in the neck and shoulder after touching. His lymphocytes of blood were 109.9×109 /L. 43 fusion genes and positive BCR/ABL was detected. Flow cytometry of the bone marrow aspirate showed pro B lymphocytes accounted for 85.54%, and positive expression of CD38, CD10, CD34, CD33, TDT, CD9, and HLA-DR. Moreover, the RT-PCR data showed the patient expressed high level of T cell and B cell development transcription factors. Diagnoses: Upon examination, the patient was initially diagnosed with T-lineage pro cell ALL. BM morphologic analysis presented complete remission (CR) after systemic chemotherapy. Twenty six months later, we discovered the patient was diagnosed with B-lineage acute lymphocytic leukemia. Interventions: Systemic chemotherapy is first given when a patient was diagnosed with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. After the patient happened linage switch, we adjusted the treatment plan, and the patient was complete remission after 1 course of treatment. Outcomes: Our case provides information of lineage switch from T-ALL to B-ALL in this report, which is never seen in our knowledge. Lessons: This lineage switch from T-ALL to B-ALL is never reported beforemoreover, the RT-PCR data showed the patient expressed high level of T cell and B cell development transcription factors. Its early recognition can let doctor provides appropriate therapy to patient.

The UHV transformers reactive power compensation(RPC) is equipped with two types of medium-voltage side compensation(MSC) and low-voltage side compensation(LSC). The LSC scheme commonly used in China does not conform to the MSC scheme adopted by relevant international standards. The compensation effect and equipment investment are different between these two schemes. Focusing on the 1000kV UHV autotransformer developed by Chinese, this paper theoretically analyzes reactive power loss(RPL) during operation and the influence of MSC/LSC on the operating voltage(OV). Then simulation is carried out with PSCAD/EMTDC software, analyzing and comparing the fluctuation level and compensation effect of each bus voltage when RPC is performed on different sides of the UHV transformer. The results show that the voltage fluctuation(OF) generated by the RPC on the medium-voltage side of the main transformer is lower than that on the low-voltage side, and the higher the compensable capacity, the smaller the equipment footprint and cycle investment.

In this paper, an artificial intelligence segmented dynamic video image based on the process of intensive cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease monitoring is deeply investigated, and a sparse automatic coding deep neural network with a four layers stack structure is designed to automatically extract the deep features of the segmented dynamic video image shot, and six categories of normal, atrial premature, ventricular premature, right bundle branch block, left bundle branch block, and pacing are achieved through hierarchical training and optimization. Accurate recognition of heartbeats with an average accuracy of 99.5%. It provides technical assistance for the intelligent prediction of high-risk cardiovascular diseases like ventricular fibrillation. An intelligent prediction algorithm for sudden cardiac death based on the echolocation network was proposed. By designing an echolocation network with a multilayer serial structure, an intelligent distinction between sudden cardiac death signal and non-sudden death signal was realized, and the signal was predicted 5 min before sudden death occurred, with an average prediction accuracy of 94.32%. Using the self-learning capability of stack sparse auto-coding network, a large amount of label-free data is designed to train the stack sparse auto-coding deep neural network to automatically extract deep representations of plaque features. A small amount of labeled data then introduced to micro-train the entire network. Through the automatic analysis of the fiber cap thickness in the plaques, the automatic identification of thin fiber cap-like vulnerable plaques was achieved, and the average overlap of vulnerable regions reached 87%. The overall time for the automatic plaque and vulnerable plaque recognition algorithm was 0.54 s. It provides theoretical support for accurate diagnosis and endogenous analysis of high-risk cardiovascular diseases.

Background Porous titanium alloy scaffold fabricated by 3D printing technology could induce osseointegration well to repair bone defect during early postoperative period. However, trabecular histomorphological features and chemical compositions of ingrowth bone in the long term after surgery still lacked in-depth research. Methods Fourteen New Zealand rabbits were divided into two groups (7 rabbits in surgery group and 7 rabbits in control group). A 3D-printed porous titanium alloy scaffold was implanted into right femoral condyle of each rabbit in the surgery group. Preload was produced at the surface between bone tissue and scaffold through interference assembly during implantation process. Rabbits in the control group were feed free. All rabbits were sacrificed to extract femoral condyles at week 12 after surgery. All right femoral condyles were performed micro-CT scanning to test bone mineral density (BMD) and trabecular histomorphological parameters, including bone volume fraction (BV/TV), bone surface/volume ratio (BS/BV), bone surface density (BS/TV), structure model index (SMI), trabecular thickness (Tb.Th), trabecular number (Tb.N), trabecular separation (Tb.Sp), porosity (PO), connectivity density (Conn.Dn), and degree of anisotropy (DA). Scanning electron microscope was used to observe osteogenesis peri-scaffold. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) scanning was performed to analyze chemical compositions of peri-scaffold trabeculae. All trabecular morphological parameters and BMDs were statistically analyzed between surgery group and control group. Results The pores of scaffold were filled with ingrowth bone tissues after 12 weeks osseointegration. However, the mean BMD peri-scaffold in surgery group was 800 ± 20 mg/cm3, which was 18.37% lower than that in the control group. There was a significant decrease in BV/TV, Tb.N, and BS/TV, and there was a significant increase in Tb.Sp and PO between the surgery group and control group (p < 0.05). There were no significant differences in Tb.Th, SMI, Conn.Dn, BS/BV, and DA. Although ingrowth of bone tissue was very effective, some fragmented connective tissues were still found instead of bone tissues on the partial beams of scaffolds through SEM images. It was found from FTIR that there was no significant hydroxyapatite peak signal in surgery group. Collagen in the control group mainly existed as cross-link structure, while non-cross-link structure in the surgery group. Conclusions Preload could promote the same good osseointegration ability as chemical surface modification method in the early term after surgery, and better osseointegration effect than chemical surface modification method in the mid-long term after surgery. However, histomorphological features of peri-scaffold trabeculae were still in deterioration and low collagen maturity caused by stress shielding. It was suggested from this study that extra physical training should be taken to stimulate the bone remodeling process for recovering to a healthy level.

Esophageal cancer is still one of the most common cancers in the world. We review the appropriate treatments at different stages of esophageal cancer and also analyze the advantages and disadvantages of these treatments. The prognosis and recovery of different treatment regimens are further discussed. In particular, post-operative complications are the major causes of high mortality derived from the esophageal cancer. Therefore, we particularly discuss the main complications resulting in high mortality after surgery of esophageal cancer, and summarize their risk factors and treatment options. Background As the common cancer, the complications of esophageal cancer after surgery have been not obtained systematic treatment strategy, focusing on treatment regimens based on the different stages of esophageal cancers. Methods and overview This paper systematically summarizes the appropriate treatment strategies for different stages of esophageal cancers, and their advantages and disadvantages. We particularly focus on the postoperative survival rate of patients and postoperative complications, and discuss the causes of high mortality risk factors after surgery. The risk factors of death and corresponding treatment methods are further summarized in this study. Conclusion Postoperative complications is the main cause responsible for the hard cure of esophageal cancers. The existing literatures indicate that postoperative anastomotic fistula is one of the most important complications leading to death, while it has not received much attention yet. We suggest that anastomotic fistula should be detected and dealt with early by summarizing these literatures. It is, therefore, necessary to develop a set of methods to predict or check anastomotic fistula in advance.

Form-finding design is critical in determining whether a cable-mesh reflector antenna can meet electrical performance requirements. However, the current methods rarely consider the interactive effects between the cable network and the supporting truss in the form-finding process, which requires more iteration steps for good design results. This study presents a force density sensitivity form-finding design method for cable-mesh reflector antennas based on systematic equilibrium equations. The sensitivity matrix of the support truss vertex and the cable network free node is derived with respect to force density, and the form-finding process of the reflector antenna is transformed into a sequential quadratic programming problem that can be easily solved. The antenna meets the accuracy requirements, and has a more uniform distribution of internal cable net tension and a smaller truss deformation as a result of constraining the vertex deformation of the supporting truss and cable tension. For practical engineering problems, more accurate design results can be obtained quickly. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified through numerical examples.

With the continuous improvement of people’s requirements for food safety and quality, cold chain logistics has become the focus of much attention in the logistics industry. my country’s Cold chain logistics is developing rapidly in China, but the overall level is low, and the cold chain loss rate of fresh agricultural products is high, causing huge waste. Road transportation is an important part of cold chain logistics. 90% of the freight volume in the cold chain logistics is completed by road transportation, but the proportion of broken links in the transportation process reaches 60%, which seriously affects service quality of cold chain logistics. Cold chain logistics is directly related to people’s life safety and physical health, and it is also an important way for my country to build a resource-saving society. However, one of the problems with the inadequacy of the cold chain is the incomplete management system, extensive management methods, and imperfect management systems and standards of the cold chain transportation enterprises, refrigerated and heat-preserving vehicles and other basic elements by the industry management department. Therefore, it is necessary to establish a closed-loop management and control system for the entire process of “market access-process monitoring-service evaluation-joint rewards and punishments” centering on road cold chain transportation. The high-quality development of logistics creates a good market environment, improves the service quality and management level of cold chain transportation, and reduces the loss of agricultural products in the cold chain logistics process.

The study objects of this research is Simon Schama’s Power of the Art , a documentary with 8 sets and of length 430 minutes. This research explores the documentary through content analysis. The study analyzes artistic expressions like theme, audio-visual language, montage technique, space-time structure, and so on. The purpose is to study how BBC creators reappear and restore history and explain artistic work through video language. How they use artistic and aesthetic expressions with ideological implications in showing and leading the viewers to think. This excellent documentary owns great reference which is significant for future creation of documentaries of similar state.

Palette mode is a new coding tool included in the HEVC screen content coding extension (SCC) to improve the coding efficiency for screen contents such as computer generated video with substantial amount of text and graphics. It is observed that a local area in screen content typically has a few colors separated by sharp edges. To exploit such characteristics, palette mode represents samples in a block with indexes pointing to the color entries in a palette table. This paper provides a detailed overview of the palette mode in HEVC SCC in terms of palette generation, coding of the palette, and coding of the palette indexes for the samples in the palette block. Several improvements to palette mode coding, which have been proposed but not included in HEVC SCC, are also described. Simulation results are presented to quantify the bitrate savings provided by the palette mode for equal distortions.

Purpose To examine the feasibility of MR diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI) for characterizing nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and diagnosing nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Methods Thirty-two rabbits on high fat diet with different severities of NAFLD were imaged at 3 T MR including diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) and DKI using b values of 0, 400, 800 s/mm2 with 15 diffusion directions at each b value. Apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) was derived from the linear exponential DWI model. Mean diffusion (MD) and mean kurtosis (MK) were derived from the quadratic exponential model of DKI. Correlations between MR parameters and hepatic pathology determined by the NAFLD activity scoring system were analyzed by Spearman rank correlation analysis. Receiver operating characteristic analyses were applied to determine the cutoff values of MD, MK as well as ADC in distinguishing NASH from non-NASH. The diagnostic efficacies of MD and MK in detecting NASH were compared with that of ADC. Results Values for ADC and MD significantly decreased as the severity of NAFLD increased (ρ = −0.529, −0.904, respectively; P Conclusion Diffusion kurtosis imaging was feasible for stratifying NAFLD, and more accurately discriminated NASH from non-NASH when compared with DWI.

Rationale and Objectives Silent T1W and T2W magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be used to study myelination in children, but the success rate of silent diffusion-weighted imaging is unknown. This study aimed to evaluate the success rate and image quality of silent MRI for the brain of children. Materials and Methods This was a retrospective study of 3–36-month children who underwent silent or conventional brain MRI at the People's Hospital of Northern Jiangsu from 01/2015 to 02/2018. The success rates were compared. The acoustic noise of each sequence was measured using a decibel meter. The signal-to-noise ratio and contrast-to-noise ratio of the diffusion-weighted imaging, T2W, and T1W sequences were analyzed. Subjective image quality (lesion delineation, visibility, gray-white differentiation, and overall diagnostic usefulness) was determined. Results The success rate of silent MRI (n = 443) was higher than that of conventional MRI (n = 391) (97.7% vs. 88.2%, p Conclusion Silent MRI can effectively improve the success rate of MRI in children of 3–36 months. Noise is reduced, and the overall diagnostic usefulness is higher than that of conventional MRI. Silent MRI is more suitable for children's brain scan than conventional MRI.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Zero TE–MRA is less sensitive to field heterogeneity, complex flow, and acquisition noise. This study aimed to prospectively validate the feasibility of zero TE–MRA for cerebrovascular diseases assessment, compared with TOF-MRA. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seventy patients suspected of having cerebrovascular disorders were recruited. Sound levels were estimated for each MRA subjectively and objectively in different modes. MRA image quality was estimated by 2 neuroradiologists. The degree of stenosis (grades 0–4) and the z-diameter of aneurysms (tiny group ≤3 mm and large group >3 mm) were measured for further quantitative analysis. CTA was used as the criterion standard. RESULTS: Zero TE–MRA achieved significantly lower subjective perception and objective noise reduction (37.53%). Zero TE–MRA images showed higher signal homogeneity (3.29 ± 0.59 versus 3.04 ± 0.43) and quality of venous signal suppression (3.67 ± 0.47 versus 2.75 ± 0.46). The intermodality agreement was higher for zero TE–MRA than for TOF-MRA (zero TE, 0.90; TOF, 0.81) in the grading of stenosis. Zero TE–MRA had a higher correlation than TOF-MRA (zero TE, 0.84; TOF, 0.74) in the tiny group and a higher consistency with CTA (intraclass correlation coefficient, 0.83; intercept, −0.5084–1.1794; slope −0.4952 to −0.2093) than TOF-MRA (intraclass correlation coefficient, 0.64; intercept, 0.7000–2.6133; slope −1.0344 to −0.1923). Zero TE–MRA and TOF-MRA were comparable in the large group. Zero TE–MRA had more accurate details than TOF-MRA of AVM and Moyamoya lesions. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with TOF-MRA, zero TE–MRA achieved more robust performance in depicting cerebrovascular diseases. Therefore, zero TE–MRA was shown to be a promising MRA technique for further routine application in the clinic in patients with cerebrovascular diseases.

Bacillus is a common bacterial genus in Chinese traditional sun-brewed moromi. Some Bacillus species can metabolize sauce flavour and aroma substances. To address the insufficiency of flavour microbes in soy sauce fermentation, we used 16S rDNA sequence analysis to identify the CS1.03 strain, which was isolated from moromi produced through the traditional and natural sun brewing methods. A Box–Behnken design was used to optimize the addition technology of CS1.03, and ammoniacal nitrogen content and sensory evaluation were adopted as determination indices. GC–MS analysis was also performed to analyse the flavour components. Results identified CS1.03 as Bacillus subtilis. The optimal conditions yielded 10.7 g/L ammoniacal nitrogen in fermented soy sauce with rich aroma and flavour, and a sensory evaluation score of 90.5. GC–MS analysis revealed that the contents of phenol, aldehyde and ketone are all increased. These results demonstrated that CS1.03 could improve the flavour of soy sauce and shows good potential for application in soy sauce fermentation. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1007/s13197-019-03678-w) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Ensuring the stability of the shaft structure is one of the key technologies for the application of raise boring method. In the process of reaming through rock formations with water disintegration characteristics, the impact of water gushing and drenching may induce partial collapse. To solve this problem, an intelligent temporary while-boring support technology is proposed in this paper. Firstly, the main characteristics of the technology are introduced. Utilizing the space inside the raise boring pipes, the material conveying pipes and nozzle can reach the lower part of the reamer to realize spraying support. Secondly, a composite cementitious supporting material with good mechanical properties is developed to ensure the sealing and waterproofing of the surrounding rock. Thirdly, a test study was carried out on key process parameters. The results show that the best engineering economic benefits under the condition that the rotation speed is 2r/min and the distance between the nozzle and the surrounding rock is 1m. Fourthly, an image classification algorithm based on Resnet-34 convolutional neural network is proposed, which realizes the intelligent judgment of the effect of surrounding rock support. Finally, an industrial test was carried out in Lijiahao Coal Mine. The test results show that the intelligent temporary while-boring support technology proposed in this paper has a good performance, effectively achieving the sealing and water resistance of the surrounding rock, and the shaft structure has not been damaged.

In China, rapid development of online food delivery brings massive orders, which relies heavily on deliverymen riding e-bikes. In practice, actual delivery routes of most orders are not the same as the system recommended routes, and the road network information for some areas is outdated or incomplete. In this research, we develop a deep inverse reinforcement learning (IRL) algorithm to capture deliverymen’s preferences from historical GPS trajectories and recommend their preferred routes. Considering the characteristics of food delivery routes, we employ Dijkstra’s algorithm instead of value iteration, to determine the current policy and compute the gradient of IRL. Moreover, we plan routes at the presence and absence of road network information, providing accurate navigation when road network information is unknown. Numerical experiments on real delivery trajectories provided by Meituan-Dianping Group show that our approach improves F 1 - score distance by 8.0 % and 6.1 % at the presence and absence of road network information, respectively.

Purpose : To evaluate the protective effect of melatonin on diabetes-induced cognitive dysfunction. Methods : Rats were fed a high-fat diet + streptozotocin (HFD + STZ) for 15 weeks to induce type 2 diabetes (HFD + STZ group). At the end of the 15-week induction of diabetes, cognitive function in the diabetic rats was estimated using a Morris water maze and an object recognition task. Next, the diabetic rats were treated with melatonin (10 mg/ kg, po) for 3 weeks. Thereafter, cognitive function was reevaluated in the melatonin-treated diabetic rats (melatonin group). Results : There was a significant (p < 0.01) decrease in the serum glucose and insulin in melatonintreated diabetes type 2 rats compared with that of diabetes type 2 rats exposed to only HFD + STZ. Treatment with melatonin (10 mg/kg, po) for 3 weeks in diabetic type 2 rats also caused a significant increase (p < 0.01) in the time spent in the target quadrant and preference index in diabetic rats compared with the HFD + STZ group. There were significant decreases in reactive oxygen species (ROS), oxido-nitrosative stress markers, including thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), nitrite, and depleted glutathione (GSH) level in the hippocampus of melatonin-treated group, compared with the HFD + STZ-treated group. Moreover, the melatonin-treated group showed significant inhibition of nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) and reduction in the levels of proinflammatory cytokines. Conclusion : The results demonstrate that melatonin prevents cognitive dysfunction in type 2 diabetic rats by attenuating oxido-nitrosative stress and NF-κB-mediated neuroinflammation. This effect suggests that melatonin may be useful for the management of cognitive dysfunction in patients suffering from diabetes. Keywords : Cognitive dysfunction, Melatonin, Neuroinflammation, Nuclear factor kappa-light-chainenhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB), Oxido-nitrosative stress, Type 2 diabetes

We report a case of 50-year-old man with a severe acute ischemic stroke followed by intracerebral hemorrhage and brain abscess due to systemic infection. His initial intracranial radiographic findings were normal but three days later MRI scan of the brain revealed well-defined rounded cystic lesion on the T2-weighted and T1-weighted images in the right basal ganglia; the lesion presented an area of diffusion restriction on DWI; lately the lesion was confirmed to be an early stage of cerebral abscess. A week later the patient was noted to have worsening neurological status and left extremity weakness, and emergency brain CT scan revealed massive intracerebral hemorrhage in the right occipital lobe; he underwent intracranial hematoma evacuation surgery. The hematoma was removed successfully, and the systemic infections were treated with antibiotics.

A pilot study to measure ambient gamma dose rate and radon and thoron progeny concentrations was made for eight dwellings selected in Yangjiang, China. Indoor and outdoor ambient gamma dose rates were 110–370 and 100–220 nGy h−1, respectively. Doses received from indoor terrestrial radiation were estimated to be 0.6–1.8 mSv year−1. Radon, thoron and thoron progeny concentrations were 19–98, 18–1120 and 0.4–10.3 Bq m−3, respectively. This pilot study showed that the position of passive-type monitors to be placed and the deployment period should be carefully determined for estimating reliable annual average concentrations.

In this paper, a multi-objective economy/security unit commitment approach is proposed, in which security region is considered as constraint and one of the objectives. Augment ε-constraint method is used to minimize the total operational costs and maximize security region. Meanwhile, Pareto optimal solutions are found. Finally, fuzzy decision making process is employed to select the best compromise non-dominated solution. The effectiveness of the proposed unit commitment approach is verified on a small scale power system over 24-h period.

Influence of exciting laser sheet intensity distribution on the fluorescence intensity distribution in a Planar Laser-induced Fluorescence(PLIF) experiment was analyzed.Based on cylindrical lens array,a laser sheet shaping system was designed.According to the requirement of PLIF,several parameters were optimized with ray tracing method.The laser beam shaping experiment system was established and applied to the PLIF experiment for dye laser beam shaping and acquiring smoothing laser sheet with the nonuniformity no more than 4%.With the uniformity laser sheet beam,PLIF was applied to the measurement of fluorescence imaging of OH in alcohol flame and CH4/air premixed combustion.

In order to solve the weighing problem of a type of incubator shakers, a new weighing method, combined with numerical analysis and experimental verification, is proposed. The numerical analysis based on the software of ANSYS Workbench indicates that the sum of the two-point strain in the mechanism is found to be constant and there is a fine linearity relationship between the sum of the two-point strain and the weight of load, so as to offer a measurement method for indirect measurement of the loading weight and this measuring method has been verified by experiment.

Isolated grid (IG) usually has small inertia constant, and the primary frequency regulation ability of IG is limited. In addition, high penetration level of photovoltaic power plants (PV-PPS)integrated to IG deteriorate system inertial and primary frequency regulation ability. To ensure the stability of frequency, UC model considering dynamic frequency limit (DFL) is proposed in this paper, and PV-PPS are deloaded to participate in frequency regulation. Based on frequency response model with PV-PPS participating in frequency regulation, the expression of required minimum frequency regulation capacity of PV-PPS is deduced, which guides PV-PPS retain sufficient but not excessive capacity. Then, a UC model with DFL and frequency regulation capacity of PV-PPS constraints is proposed. And the problem is decomposed into a master problem for UC with DFL and a subproblem for PV-PPS' frequency regulation capacity assessment. Because the master problem is a complex nonlinear mixed integer optimization problem, in order to avoid complexity solving procedure, unit regulation power is used to present frequency regulation ability and generate optimization cut. The optimization cut and benders cut are used for eliminating frequency limit/regulation capacity violations in iteration method. Finally, an IG test system is used to verify the effectiveness and advantages of the proposed scheme, comparing with other two schemes: conventional UC and UC considering DFL without PV-PPS participating in frequency regulation.

This paper studied the ultrasonic removal of indigenous blue-green algae taken from Lake Taihu. The results showed that higher ultrasound frequency benefited the removal of indigenous algae. But in consideration of complex condition of the natural lakes and reservoirs such as the lack of powerful electrical supply system, low sound frequency is more suitable. Because of slightly improvement in the algae removal rate constants among the low frequency range (20-100 kHz), 20 kHz is the best ultrasound frequency for indigenous algae removal. Moreover, little change in the microcystins concentration was found with sonication at 20 kHz, 2W for 60s, which was compared with the increased microcystins from 2.67 to 2.851 mg/L after sonication at 1000 kHz, 2W for 60s. the concentration of chlorophyll.

Direct preparation of activated carbon (AC) from coal was reported by microwave heating with potassium hydroxide as activation agent. Electrochemical properties of AC electrodes were investigated by cyclic voltammetry, constant current charge–discharge. The results show that functional groups on AC include –C=O, –O–H and –C–O. The micropore volume of AC from different coal totals 48.5–95.6%. The total pore volume of AC from different coal passes through a maximum with the decrease of volatile mater content in coal. The specific surface area and total pore volume of AC from Qing ting coal reach 1874 m2 g-1 and 1.00 cm3 g-1, respectively. The specific capacitance and energy density of AC from higher coal rank is usually bigger than that of AC from lower coal rank.

A molecular Filtered Rayleigh Scattering(FRS) diagnostic system was demonstrated to measure thermodynamic properties in combustion environments.The diagnostics system was composed of a narrow line width laser,a molecular/atomic absorption filter and a collection device such as ICCD.The absorption filter was used to modify the spectra of the Rayleigh scattering signal from the flow field illuminated by a laser sheet from a Nd:YAG pulsed laser.The laser was tuned to an absorption line of iodine vapor contained in the filter.This caused Mie scattering and background scattering from solid particles and strong absorption on the surface while much of Doppler broadened Rayleigh scattering was transmitted through the filter.The thermodynamic parameters were deduced from the measured transmission of the molecular Rayleigh scattering.The FRS diagnostic system and the iodine filter cell were described.On the basis of diagnosing FRS image and measuring iodine vapor absorption spectrum,the 2D temperature and density fields of methane/air premixed flame were obtained.The measured density at 15 mm above the burner surface is 0.19 kg/m3,and temperature is(1 827±84) K,which is good agreement with the results measured by using CARS method in the same condition.The uncertainty of temperature measurement by FRS is less than 8%.Furthermore,FRS technique was used to diagnose the atomization steam and supersonic exhaust flows.The results turbulence structures on the area of laser action were obtained.These demonstrate the abilities of the FRS technique to measure temperature and density fields and to enhance flow visualization in a combustion environment.

For the purpose of providing a method to estimate the effect of vibration on the optical performance of a burning diagnosis optical system,a numerical calculation method for the misaligned optical system under interference vibration was proposed.Based on the finite element analysis software ANSYS,the physical model of misaligned optical system under interference vibration was developed and the transient dynamic analysis was inspired by a reflector displacement in the vibration response.Then,the dynamic response of the reflector was obtained by transient dynamic analysis.On the basis of the matrix optics,geometrical optics theory and the mechanic vibration theory,the vibration misalignment matrix of planar reflector was analyzed,and the vibration misalignment model was also built.Meanwhile,the method of simulating calculation of misaligned optical system under interference vibration was inferred.Furthermore,an experiment was carried out to validate the method.The results show the the relative error of simulating calculation and experimental data can reach 4.1% and 0.8% in the horizontal and vertical directions,respectively.

The aluminum profile can be formed into a complicated part such as 360º abnormity section circle parts that is difficult to be manufactured by other techniques. A new bending method was proposed for bending process. The push-bending principle, deformation procedure, curvature spring-back, section distortion and wrinkling are studied numerically. All cross-sections for the profile are provided a rather homogenous deformation degree. The curvature value of component and the distortion of section keep high consistence in push-bending process. The wrinkling tendency is reduced with increasing relative cross section thickness t/H and die radius R. The numerical model represents the observed response in the laboratory tests fairly well.

Method of off-axis rotated scan is studied in order to improve the thickness uniformity of the film by pulse laser deposition (PLD). Based on the principle and spatial distribution of plasma,radial distribution formula of film thickness is formed. Effects on uniformity of film deposited by method of off-axis rotated scan are simulated numerically. The simulated results show that optimize of d (distance between sputtering dot and foundation) and r (interval between particle center and foundation center ) are primary means for improving the uniformity of film. In addition,influence of electromotor rotate speed,working time and laser repetition frequency is considered. Simulated with optimal parameters,maximum radius of film diameter over 40 mm is obtained when 95% uniformity is required.

To study the protective role of Baicalin on rats thymus with severe acute pancreatitis (SAP). The SAP rats were randomly assigned to the model control, Baicalin treated and Octreotide treated groups. Normal rats were assigned to the sham-operated group. The rat survival rates, pathological changes of thymus, apoptotic indexes and expression levels of NF-kappaB, Bax, Bcl-2, Caspase-3 and P-selectin of all groups were observed and recorded at 3, 6 and 12 h after operation, respectively. Rat survival rates were significantly higher in both Baicalin- and Octreotide-treated groups than those in the model control group at 12 h (P0.05). The thymus pathological score was significantly lower in Baicalin treated group than in control group at 3 and 12 h (P0.05). The expression of NF-kappaB, Bax and Bcl-2 in thymus tissue was negative in all groups. At 3 h after operation, the staining intensity, positive staining rate and intensity of Caspase-3 protein in the thymuses of the Baicalin treated group were significantly higher than those in the model control group (P0.01). At different time points after operation, no marked difference was observed in the staining intensity of P-selectin protein between the Baicalin treated group and the model control group (P0.05). At 6 h after operation, the positive staining rate and intensity of P-selectin protein in the Baicalin treated group was significantly lower than those in the model control group (P0.05). The apoptotic indexes were significantly higher in treated group than in model control group at 6 h (P0.05). Baicalin has a protective role on the thymus of SAP rats, and its effect of decreasing inflammatory mediators level in blood, inhibiting P-selectin expression and inducing apoptosis of thymocytes may involve in the mechanism of its protective role.

To investigate the effect of dexamethasone on the expression levels of P-selectin protein in multiple organs of rats with severe acute pancreatitis (SAP).Rats were randomly divided into sham-operated, model control, and dexamethasone-treated groups. At 3, 6, and 12 h after operation, the expression levels of P-selectin protein in one-third of the rats in each group were observed.In the treated group, the expression levels of P-selectin protein in the pancreas head (at 6 h), lung (at 12 h), liver (at 3 h), and spleen (at 6 and 12 h) were significantly lower than those in the model control group (P0.05). Additionally, the products of the staining intensity and positive rate of P-selectin protein in liver (at 3 h), lung (at 6 and 12 h), and spleen (at 12 h) in the treated group were significantly lower than those in the model control group (P0.05).Dexamethasone can inhibit P-selectin protein expression in multiple organs of SAP rats.

Baicalin reduces the severity of severe acute pancreatitis (SAP) in a rat model. This study was carried out to examine the effect of baicalin on TNF-alpha mRNA, caspase-3 and P-selectin protein expression in the pancreas of rats with SAP.Rats with SAP were randomly assigned to untreated, baicalin-treated, octreotide-treated and sham-operated group. The TNF-alpha mRNA expression level, caspase-3 and P-selectin protein expression levels of pancreatic tissue were measured 3, 6 and 12 hours after operation.The caspase-3 protein expression level was significantly higher in the treated groups than that in the untreated group at 3 hours (p0.01). P-selectin protein expression level in pancreas of the treated groups was significantly lower than that of the untreated group (p0.05 or0.01). TNF-alpha mRNA expression level in pancreas decreased in baicalintreated group while untreated group increased at different time points (p0.05).Baicalin increases caspase-3 expression and inhibits TNF-alpha mRNA and P-selectin protein expression in pancreatic tissue of SAP rats.

To observe the protective effects of Salvia miltiorrhizae injection on multiple organs of rats with SAP or OJ. Two hundred eighty-eight rats were used for SAP-associated experiments and OJ-associated experiments. The rats were randomly divided into sham-operated, model control and treated group. According to the different time points after operation, the SAP rats in each group were subdivided into 3, 6 and 12 h groups while the OJ rats were divided into 7, 14, 21 and 28 days groups. The mortality rates, pathological changes and ICAM-1 (only in lung), TLR4 (only in liver), Bax and NF-kappaB proteins expression in multiple organs (liver, kidney, lung, intestinal mucosa, spleen, thymus and lymph nodes) were observed, respectively. The mortality rates of treated groups decreased in both SAP and OJ experiments. Compared to model control group, the pathological changes can be seen in treated groups including; (1) the pathological changes of multiple organs in SAP and OJ experiments were improved, the pathological severity scores of kidney (at 6 h), intestinal mucosa (at 12 h), spleen (at 6 and 12 h), thymus (at 3 and 6 h) and lymph nodes (at 3 and 6 h) in SAP experiment and of liver (on 21 and 28 days), lung (21 days), intestinal mucosa (on 21 and 28 days) and spleen (on 21 and 28 days) in OJ experiment significantly declined (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01); (2) the positive rate of Bax protein in pancreas (at 3 h) and liver (on 6 and 12 h) in SAP experiment and in liver (on 28 days), kidney (on 21 days), and thymus (on 28 days) in OJ experiment were significantly lower (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01); (3) the positive rate of NF-kappaB in liver (at 12 h) and kidney (at 6 h) in SAP experiment and in liver (on 21 days), kidney (on 28 days), intestinal mucosa (on 28 days) and thymus (on 14 days) in OJ experiment significantly decreased (P < 0.05). (4) the positive rate of ICAM-1 in lungs (at 12 h) in SAP experiment was significantly less (P < 0.05). Salvia miltiorrhizae injection can protect multiple organs of SAP or OJ rats and inhibit the expression of ICAM-1, TLR4, NF-kappaB and regulate Bax proteins. Salvia miltiorrhizae may relieve the inflammation response and enhance the immunity function of SAP and OJ rats.

We investigated the effects of Baicalin and Octreotide on the levels of endotoxin and TNF-α in blood and the effects of apoptotic changes in multiple organs of SAP rats, and explored the underlying therapeutic mechanisms of Baicalin and Octreotide. In this study, 135 SAP rats were randomly divided into model control, Baicalin treated and Octreotide treated group (n = 45), respectively, the same number of normal rats were included in sham-operated group (n = 45). The above-mentioned groups were further subdivided into 3, 6 and 12 h subgroups, respectively (15 rats in each subgroup). At 3, 6 and 12 h after operation, the mortality rate of rats, endotoxin and TNF-α levels in blood as well as the pathological severity scores, expression levels of Bax protein and apoptosis indexes in multiple organs were determined. Compared to model control group (1),both drugs can relieve the pathological injuries of multiple organs and decrease significantly the levels of endotoxin and TNF-α in blood and the mortality rate of rats in treated groups (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01); (2) the expression of Bax protein was upregulated in pancreas, lung, intestinal mucosa (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01) but downregulated in spleen and lymph nodes (P < 0.001 and P < 0.05, respectively) in Baicalin treated group; The apoptosis indexes significantly increased in pancreas, intestinal mucosa, lymph nodes and spleen (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). (3) the expression of Bax protein was upregulated in pancreas and lung but downregulated in spleen and lymph nodes (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01) in Octreotide treated group; The apoptosis indexes significantly increased in lymph nodes and spleen in Octreotide treated group (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01). Baicalin and Octreotide share a similar therapeutic efficacy in the treatment of SAP via a mechanism that is associated with inhibiting the levels of TNF-α in blood and induce apoptosis in multiple organs.

To study the efficacy and mechanism of Salvia miltiorrhizae injection in the treatment of severe acute pancreatitis. SAP rat models were prepared and randomly divided into model control group and treated group. The sham-operated group was also set. At 3, 6 and 12 h after operation, the mortality rate, ascitic volumes, pathological changes in the pancreas, contents of amylase and endotoxin in plasma as well as IL-6, IL-18, ET-1 and NO in serum, the staining intensity of Bax and NF-κB p56 proteins, and the changes in apoptosis index of pancreatic cells in rats in each group were observed. The pathological severity scores (at 3, 6 and 12 h after operation), contents of plasma endotoxin (at 6 and 12 h after operation) and serum IL-6 (at 6 and 12 h after operation) were significantly lower than those in model control group (P < 0.05, P < 0.01 and P < 0.01, respectively); the staining intensity and the product of the staining intensity and positive staining rate of Bax protein in the pancreas were significanly higher than those in model control group (P < 0.01). Salvia miltiorrhizae is able to reduce the contents of plasma endotoxin and serum IL-6, promote the expression of Bax protein in pancreas, improve the pathological changes in the pancreas, and decrease the mortality rate of rats, thereby showing therapeutic effect on rats with SAP.

Background Ulcerative colitis (UC) is conventionally treated with sulfasalazine and other aminosalicylic acids. The symptoms of UC can be rapidly controlled, but high recurrence, severe adverse reactions and other shortages exist commonly. Whether electroacupuncture combined with medicine can make up these shortages remains unclear. Objective This study was to observe the regulatory effect of electroacupuncture combined with medicine on monoamine neurotransmitter in hypothalamus of rats with ulcerative colitis, and to analyze the pathogenesis of UC and the action pathway of electroacupuncture combined with medicine. Design A randomized controlled observation. Setting Shanghai Institute of Acupuncture and Meridian. Materials Thirty involved male SD rats of clean grade, weighing (200±20)g, were provided by the Experimental Animal Center, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Sulfasalazine was produced in the Shanghai Sanwei Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd [certification No. (1995)002083]. Methods This study was carried out in the State Laboratory (grade 3) for Acupuncture and Immunology, Shanghai Institute of Acupuncture and Meridian. The involved 30 rats were randomized into 5 groups: normal group, model group, electroacupuncture group, medicine group and electroacupuncture combined with medicine group, with 6 rats in each group. Rats in the latter 4 groups were prepared into models of UC. In the electroacupuncture group, Zusanli(shuang) point was selected. Electro-acupuncture apparatus (G6805 II type) was connected to the point and used to stimulate it with continuous wave, frequency of 2 Hz, electrical intensity 4 mA, 20 minutes a day, for 14 days successively. In the medicine group, rats were intragastrically administrated with sulfasalazine, twice a day, 3 mL once, for 14 days successively. In the electroacupuncture combined with medicine group, rats were treated with electroacupuncture and medicine simultaneously as described in the previous two groups. Rats in the model group and normal control group were untouched except for being fixed. Main outcome measures The levels of noradrenaline acid tartrate (NE), 3-methoxy-4 hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG), dopamine hydrochloride (DA), 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC), 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) hydrochloride, homovanillic acid (HVA) and 5-hydroxyindole acetic acid (5-HIAA) of rats in each group were detected by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-electrochemical method. Results All the 30 involved rats entered into the stage of final analysis. Detection of NE and MHPG levels: After treatment, NE level in the hypothalamus of rats was significantly higher in the electroacupuncture combined with medicine group, electroacupuncture group and medicine group was all significantly higher than that in the model group, respectively (P Detection of DA and DOPAC levels: After treatment, DA level in the hypothalamus of rats was very significantly higher in the medicine group than in the model group (P Detection of 5-HT, HVA and 5-HIAA levels: After treatment, 5-HIAA level in the hypothalamus of rats was significantly higher in the medicine group than in the model group (P Conclusion The abnormal synthesis and metabolism of monoamine neurotransmitter in the central nervous system is one of pathogenesis of UC. Electroacupuncture combined with medicine might reach its goal of treatment by regulating the monoamine neurotransmitter disorder in the hypothalamus of rats with UC.

Objective: To explore the effect and mechanism of matrine (Mt.) on myocardial interstitial fibrosis induced by pressure overload. Methods: Pressure overloaded myocardial hypertrophy was produced by banding of aorta abdominalis in 67 male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing (200±15) g. The rats were assigned into one of the following groups: sham-operation control, operation control, operation group treated with matrine (15 mg/(kg·d)) and treated with carvedilol (Car.) (3.6 mg/(kg·d)) group. The rats were given drugs one day after operation. Five weeks after treatment, the left ventricular weight (LVW) was measured and the volume of myocardial cells was detected with Hematoxylin-Eosin (H-E) stain and Masson stain was used to assess the level of fibrosis of the myocardial matrix. Myocardial metalloproteinase activity was quantified with zymography, and survival rate was calculated. Results: Survival rate significantly decreased (P