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Sinomenine (SIN) is commonly used as part of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) therapy in China, but there is still no published evidence of the efficacy of SIN monotherapy. This work investigates the efficacy and safety of SIN in treating RA patients and analyzes the correlation between ornithine level and the alleviation of disease activity in RA patients. In this 24 week, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trial, people with mild to moderate RA were randomly assigned (1:1:1, stratified by hospital) to receive SIN (120 mg, twice daily), methotrexate (MTX) (10 mg per week), or SIN + MTX therapy. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients who achieved a 50% improvement in the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria at week 24 and who showed improvement according to the clinical disease activity index (CDAI). In this prospective subgroup analysis, we also assessed whether the 24 week alterations of disease activity in the treatment group were significantly correlated to the levels of blood ornithine. Of the 135 enrolled participants, 38, 39, and 36 patients were treated with SIN, MTX, and SIN + MTX, respectively. In the SIN-treated group, 52.63% of patients achieved ACR50 after 24 weeks of treatment, which was comparable to the results in the MTX-treated and SIN + MTX-treated groups. Hepatic and gastrointestinal disorders were the main adverse events; however, the ratio of patients suffering from hepatic disorder in the SIN group (1/38) was much lower than that in the MTX (10/39) and SIN + MTX (8/36) groups. A total of 221 serum samples were collected at the four follow-up time points in the three treatments, and the levels of ornithine, citrulline, and arginine were obtained through ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC-Q-TOF/MS). The serum ornithine level decreased after the 24 week treatment along with a decrease in disease activity, and may reflect therapeutic responses with a sensitivity value of 80%. In conclusion, SIN revealed a comparable efficacy to MTX for treating RA patients, but with fewer side effects. In addition, the serum ornithine level was found for the first time to have a close correlation with the alleviation of RA, which shows the value of this measure as an assessment indicator of drugs in treating RA.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) requires long detection time and makes patients uncomfortable. The proposed compressed sensing MRI compressed sensing with shearlet dictionary and non‐local similarity model is established with shearlet dictionary and non‐local similarity. The shearlet dictionary is adopted in MRI compressed sensing to represent breast tissues with sparser data in different scales and directions. The non‐local similarity of an image is integrated to the model to preserve the lesion details of the reconstructed MRI images. The proposed model is solved by the split Bregman algorithm to obtain the optimized image iteratively. Experiments are performed on practical MRI breast images with sampling data of 13% and 10%. With the decrease of sampling data, the proposed method can reconstruct the image with better visual effect and higher peak signal‐to‐noise ratio (PSNR) and structural similarity index (SSIM) than traditional methods. There is an improvement of 13 dB of PSNR and 0.2 of SSIM under 10% data. The proposed method can reconstruct MRI images with less data and higher reconstruction quality compared with the traditional methods.

Objective: The immunological features between neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD), multiple sclerosis (MS), and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody-associated disease (MOGAD), lacked systemic comparisons. Accordingly, we aimed to investigate immunological differences between NMOSD, MS, and MOGAD. Methods: Patients with MOGAD, MS, and NMOSD who received immunological tests including cytokine profiles and cytometry analysis of the lymphocyte subgroups were retrospectively reviewed and divided into training and validation sets. Discriminatory models based on immunological data were established to identify optimal classifiers using orthogonal partial least square discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA). Constructed models were tested in another independent cohort. Results: OPLS-DA of the immunological data from 50 patients (26 NMOSD, 14 MS, and 10 MOGAD) demonstrated the discriminatory values of a relatively low level of T-lymphocyte subsets, especially the CD4+ T cells, in MOGAD; a decreased NK cell, eosinophil, and lymphocyte level; an elevated neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in NMOSD; and a declined IFN-γ-producing CD4+ T cells/Th with an increased IL-8 concentration in MS. All the models (NMOSD vs. MS, NMOSD vs. MOGAD, and MS vs. MOGAD) exhibited a significant predictive value and accuracy (>85%). Conclusions: NMOSD, MS, and MOGAD may be different in pathogenesis, and several immunological biomarkers can serve as potential classifiers clinically.

Extracting photogenerated species from bulk to surface is an essential process for gaining efficient semiconductor-based photocatalysis. However, compared with charged photogenerated carriers, neutral exciton exhibits negligible response to electric field. Accordingly, traditional strategies involving band-alignment construction for boosting directional transfer of charge carriers are impracticable for extracting bulk excitons. To this issue, we here propose that the extraction of bulk exciton could be effectively implemented by surface modification. By taking confined layered bismuth oxycarbonate (Bi2O2CO3) as an example, we highlight that the incorporation of iodine atoms on the surface could modify the micro-region electronic structure and hence lead to reduced energy of surface excitonic states. Benefiting from the energy gradient between bulk and surface excitonic states, iodine-modified Bi2O2CO3 possesses high-efficiency bulk exciton extraction, and hence exhibits promoted performance in triggering 1O2-mediated selective oxidation reaction. This work presents the positive role of surface modification in regulating excitonic processes of semiconductor-based photocatalysts.

Today, the manner in which we communicate has greatly advanced. The technology is not just about machines, but people with technology together. Machine-to-machine (M2M) communication is unavoidable in the Internet of things. However, at the same time, there are more attacks against the M2M system. Therefore, a reliable and secure authentication mechanism is required. Blockchain technology is decentralized and highly secure while being tamper-proof. This protects M2M service providers by eliminating the single point of failures. This paper proposes a blockchain-based authentication scheme that uses a practical Byzantine fault tolerance (pBFT) consensus mechanism for M2M security in cyber physical systems. By implementing a blockchain to an M2M system, it provides an ID for devices on the blockchain. Simulation results have shown that the data on the chain cannot be altered. A pBFT consensus algorithm also ensures that the blockchain network is able to come to a consensus with faults.

AIM: To study the effect of miR-26b on lens epithelial cells induced by transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) 2 and the underlying signaling pathways. METHODS: Human lens epithelial cell line B-3 (HLE-B3) was incubated with TGF-β2 (5 ng/mL) and then transfected with miR-26b mimics. The expression of miR-26b was determined using quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), while 5’-bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) and wound-healing assays were used to measure the growth and migration of HLE-B3 cells, respectively. The expression of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers and the activity of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway were measured by Western blotting assay and immunofluorescence staining. Electron microscopy was also used to observe cellular morphology. RESULTS: The expression levels of miR-26b were significantly reduced in human posterior capsular opacification-attached lens tissue and TGF-β2-stimulated HLE-B3 cells. In the presence of TGF-β2, the growth, migration, and EMT of HLE-B3 cells were distinctly enhanced; these effects were attenuated by the administration of miR-26b mimics. Furthermore, the overexpression of miR-26b significantly reduced upregulation of the PI3K/Akt pathway when stimulated by TGF-β2 in HLE-B3 cells. Moreover, the addition of an activator (740 Y-P) led to the upregulation of the PI3K/Akt pathway and abolished the protective effect of miR-26b on the HLE-B3 cells that was mediated by TGF-β2. CONCLUSION: The miR-26b suppresses TGF-β2-induced growth, migration, and EMT in HLE-B3 cells by regulating the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.

Background: Coronary allograft vasculopathy (CAV) is a devastating sequela of heart transplant in which arterial intimal thickening limits coronary blood flow. There are currently no targeted therapies to prevent or reduce this pathology that leads to transplant failure. Vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) phenotypic plasticity is critical in CAV neointima formation. TET2 (TET methylcytosine dioxygenase 2) is an important epigenetic regulator of VSMC phenotype, but the role of TET2 in the progression of CAV is unknown. Methods: We assessed TET2 expression and activity in human CAV and renal transplant samples. We also used the sex-mismatched murine aortic graft model of graft arteriopathy (GA) in wild-type and inducible smooth muscle–specific Tet2 knockout mice; and in vitro studies in murine and human VSMCs using knockdown, overexpression, and transcriptomic approaches to assess the role of TET2 in VSMC responses to IFNγ (interferon γ), a cytokine elaborated by T cells that drives CAV progression. Results: In the present study, we found that TET2 expression and activity are negatively regulated in human CAV and renal transplant samples and in the murine aortic graft model of GA. IFNγ was sufficient to repress TET2 and induce an activated VSMC phenotype in vitro. TET2 depletion mimicked the effects of IFNγ, and TET2 overexpression rescued IFNγ-induced dedifferentiation. VSMC-specific TET2 depletion in aortic grafts, and in the femoral wire restenosis model, resulted in increased VSMC apoptosis and medial thinning. In GA, this apoptosis was tightly correlated with proliferation. In vitro, TET2-deficient VSMCs undergo apoptosis more readily in response to IFNγ and expressed a signature of increased susceptibility to extrinsic apoptotic signaling. Enhancing TET2 enzymatic activity with high-dose ascorbic acid rescued the effect of GA-induced VSMC apoptosis and intimal thickening in a TET2-dependent manner. Conclusions: TET2 is repressed in CAV and GA, likely mediated by IFNγ. TET2 serves to protect VSMCs from apoptosis in the context of transplant vasculopathy or IFNγ stimulation. Promoting TET2 activity in vivo with systemic ascorbic acid reduces VSMC apoptosis and intimal thickening. These data suggest that promoting TET2 activity in CAV may be an effective strategy for limiting CAV progression.

A method based on the resonance frequency shift of coaxial resonator is presented to detect metal surface cracks. Theoretical analysis prove that the resonance frequency shift is always greater than a threshold instead of decreasing as the crack size decreases. Therefore, it can avoid the problem of missing inspection in crack detection. The experiment detects that the threshold of the designed sensor is 2.12 GHz, which is only 3.6% error from the theoretical result. And the designed sensor will produce a frequency shift of 2.16GHz when detecting a 0.2 mm wide crack. Further analysis shows that the sensor can be used to detect tiny cracks on the metal surface with micro-roughness. The width information of the crack can be obtained by scanning, which proves that this method has good potential in the imaging of metal surface cracks. In addition to detecting surface cracks on metal plates, the sensor can also be used to detect the crack on the surface of metal balls.

Hongquan Guo,1,&ast; Wei Xu,1,2,&ast; Xiaohao Zhang,3,&ast; Shuai Zhang,4 Zheng Dai,5 Shun Li,6 Yi Xie,3 Yingle Li,1 Jianzhong Xue,7 Xinfeng Liu1 1Department of Neurology, Jinling Hospital, The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210002, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Neurology, Affiliated Changsha Central Hospital, University of South China, Changsha, Hunan, 410000, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Neurology, Jinling Hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210002, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Neurology, The Affiliated Hospital of Yangzhou University, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, 225001, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Neurology, The Affiliated Wuxi People’s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Wuxi, Jiangsu, 214023, People’s Republic of China; 6Department of Cerebrovascular Disease Treatment Center, Nanjing Brain Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210002, People’s Republic of China; 7Department of Neurology, Changshu No.2 People’s Hospital, Changshu, Jiangsu, 215500, People’s Republic of China&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Xinfeng LiuDepartment of Neurology, Jinling Hospital, The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, No. 305 East Zhongshan Road, Nanjing, 210002, Jiangsu Province, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86 2584801861Fax +86 2584805169Email xfliu2@vip.163.comJianzhong XueDepartment of Neurology, Changshu No.2 People’s Hospital, No. 18 Taishan Road, Changshu, Jiangsu Province, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86 13506247572Email xjz2021@sina.comBackground and Aims: A reliable predictive score system to identify the risk of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH) after intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) in acute ischemic stroke patients is of great essence. We aimed to develop a nomogram for predicting the risk of sICH after IVT in Chinese patients.Methods: We recruited acute ischemic stroke patients who were treated with IVT from five advanced stroke centers in China from April 2014 to November 2020. sICH was diagnosed according to the European Cooperative Acute Stroke Study II (ECASS-II) definition. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to construct the best-fit nomogram. The discrimination and calibration of the nomogram were evaluated by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC-ROC) and calibration plot.Results: A total of 1200 patients were enrolled, of whom 66 (5.5%) developed sICH. In the multivariate logistic regression model, atrial fibrillation (odds ratio [OR] 3.25; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.89− 5.60; P < 0.001), baseline glucose level (OR, 1.13; 95% CI, 1.07− 1.20; P < 0.001), neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (OR, 1.05; 95% CI, 1.01− 1.09; P = 0.024) and baseline National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) (OR, 1.07; 95% CI, 1.04− 1.10; P < 0.001) were independent predictors for sICH and were used to generate the nomogram. The nomogram demonstrated good discrimination as the AUC-ROC value was 0.788 (95% CI, 0.737– 0.840). The calibration plot revealed good calibration.Conclusion: The nomogram consisted of atrial fibrillation, baseline glucose level, neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, and NIHSS score may predict the risk of sICH in Chinese acute ischemic stroke patients treated with IVT.Keywords: stroke, intravenous thrombolysis, symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage, nomogram, predict

Objectives To compare the DNA-based sputum evaluation with histopathology for the diagnosis of tracheo-bronchial tuberculosis (TBTB). Study design Case series. Place and Duration of Study: Tianjin Haihe Hospital, Tianjin Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Tianjin, China, from January to June 2017. Methodology TBTB patients, who underwent bronchoscopy during the study period, were included. Their bronchoscopy presentations, histopathology, and induced sputum deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and culture results were analysed. Results were expressed as frequency percentage. Results There were 110 subjects. Most patients were young females with coughing. The main TBTB subtype was fibrostenotic, while the most common findings were single level lesions and lobar bronchi. The diagnostic rates were 40.43%, 67.86%, and 68.54% for DNA-based analysis of induced sputum, histopathology, and induced sputum culture, respectively. Only in the edematous-hyperemic subtype was the positivity rate of DNA-based analysis of induced sputum higher than in histopathology. In the fibrostenotic subtype, the histopathologic results were superior for diagnosis. Conclusion A combination of induced sputum and biopsy using DNA-based methods is a superior and exact method to diagnose TBTB. DNA-based analysis of induced sputum for mycobacterium tuberculosis can be used for preliminary impressions. Key Words: Tracheo-bronchial tuberculosis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Pathology, Multiplex polymerase chain reaction, Sputum.

Objectives Acute vertebrobasilar artery occlusion (VBAO) is a devastating type of stroke with a high mortality rate. This study aimed to investigate the predictors of 3-month and 1-year mortality in VBAO patients receiving endovascular treatment (EVT). Materials & methods Consecutive acute VBAO patients undergoing EVT between January 2014 and December 2019 were retrospectively analyzed in a prospectively maintained database. Multivariate logistical regression models were used to explore the potential predictors of mortality at 3 months and 1 year, respectively. The discrimination of the final model was assessed with the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve. Results A total of 100 patients were enrolled in this study (mean age 62 years; 77.0% male). After excluding patients lost to follow-up, the overall mortality rate was 34.3% (34/99) at 3 months and 45.4% (44/97) at 1 year. The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score at 24 h (Odds ratio [OR], 0.676; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.540-0.846; p = .001) and mechanical ventilation (MV) (OR, 7.356; 95% CI, 2.200-24.593; p = .001) were predictors of 3-month mortality after adjusting for potential confounders in multivariable analysis. Furthermore, the GCS score at 24 h (OR, 0.714; 95% CI, 0.590-0.864; p = .001), intracranial hemorrhage (OR, 7.330; 95% CI, 1.772-30.318; p = .006), and MV (OR, 5.804; 95% CI, 1.841-18.294; p = .003) were independently associated with mortality at 1 year. Sensitivity analyses showed similar results. Conclusion The 24-h GCS score and MV were common predictors of 3-month and 1-year mortality, and ICH was an additional predictor of 1-year mortality.

Photocatalytic water oxidation is a crucial step in water splitting, but is generally restricted by the slow kinetics. Therefore, it is necessary to develop high-performance water oxidation photocatalysts. Herein, the Fe-doped Bi2WO6 nanosheets with oxygen vacancies (OVs) were synthesized for enhanced photocatalytic water oxidation efficiency, showing a synergistic effect between Fe dopants and OVs. When a molar fraction of 2% Fe was doped into the Bi2WO6 nanosheets, the visible-light-driven photocatalytic oxygen evolution rate was increased up to 131.3 µmol·h−1·gcat−1 under ambient conditions, which was more than 3 times that of pure Bi2WO6 nanosheets. The proper doping concentration of Fe could promote the formation of OVs and at the same time modulate the band structure of catalysts, especially the position of the valence band maximum (VBM), leading to effective visible-light absorption and enhanced oxidizing ability of photogenerated holes. With ameliorated localized electron distribution, fast charge transfer channel emerged between the OVs and adjacent metal atoms, which accelerated the charge carrier transfer and promoted the separation of photoexcited electrons and holes. This work provides feasible approaches for designing efficient two-dimensional semiconductor water oxidation photocatalysts that could utilize visible-light, which will make more use of solar energy.

The renewable-electricity-powered CO2 electroreduction reaction provides a promising means to store intermittent renewable energy in the form of valuable chemicals and dispatchable fuels. Renewable methane produced using CO2 electroreduction attracts interest due to the established global distribution network; however, present-day efficiencies and activities remain below those required for practical application. Here we exploit the fact that the suppression of *CO dimerization and hydrogen evolution promotes methane selectivity: we reason that the introduction of Au in Cu favors *CO protonation vs. C−C coupling under low *CO coverage and weakens the *H adsorption energy of the surface, leading to a reduction in hydrogen evolution. We construct experimentally a suite of Au-Cu catalysts and control *CO availability by regulating CO2 concentration and reaction rate. This strategy leads to a 1.6× improvement in the methane:H2 selectivity ratio compared to the best prior reports operating above 100 mA cm−2. We as a result achieve a CO2-to-methane Faradaic efficiency (FE) of (56 ± 2)% at a production rate of (112 ± 4) mA cm−2., The electroreduction of CO2 offers a promising approach to produce carbon-neutral methane using renewable electricity. This study shows that the introduction of Au in Cu enables selective methane production from CO2 by regulating *CO availability.

Although a few semiconductors can directly absorb infrared light, their intrinsic properties like improper band-edge position and strong electron-hole interaction restrict further photocatalytic applications. Herein, we propose an exciton-mediated energy transfer strategy for realizing efficient infrared light response in heterostructures. Using black phosphorous/polymeric carbon nitride (BP/CN) heterojunction, CN could be indirectly excited by infrared light with the aid of nonradiatively exciton-based energy transfer from BP. At the same time, excitons are dissociated into free charge carriers at the interface of BP/CN heterojunction, followed by hole injection to BP and electron retainment in CN. As a result of these unique photoexcitation processes, BP/CN heterojunction exhibits promoted conversion rate and selectivity in amine-amine oxidative coupling reaction even under infrared light irradiation. This study opens a new way for the design of efficient infrared light activating photocatalysts.

An accurate control-oriented electrothermal model is of great importance for onboard temperature monitoring and efficient performance management of lithium (Li)-ion batteries in automobile applications. This article presents a control-oriented electrothermal model for pouch-type electric vehicle batteries. This model uses the Chebyshev–Galerkin (CG) approximation method and captures the heat generation of positive and negative tabs, the heat flow between the tabs and the body, and the uneven heat generation inside the battery. This model consists of two lumped-mass submodels for positive and negative tabs and a 2-D CG submodel for the main battery body. The heat generation in the 2-D CG model is strongly dependent on the electrical parameters that are conversely functions of battery temperature. The lumped-mass models are decoupled from the 2-D CG model and parameterized separately by the particle swarm optimization algorithm and validated against the temperature measurements (covering three test scenarios) of a 20-Ah pouch-type Li-ion iron phosphate battery. The results demonstrate that the coupled model accurately predicts the temperatures of the tabs and the temperature distribution inside the battery. Besides, the computational complexity of the coupled model is also evaluated, and the result shows that the model has great potential for real-time temperature monitoring and efficient thermal management.

The demand for DC gas-insulated switchgear/gas-insulated transmission line (GIS/GIL) becomes more and more urgent in recent years owing to the rapid development of high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission systems. Insulators in DC GIS/GIL could easily accumulate a large number of charges on its surface during long-term operation, which might lead to overstressing of polymeric insulation or surface flashover. Therefore, it is of great significance to propose an effective method for dissipating extra surface charges. However, achieving charge dissipation without opening the tank is still a great challenge to SF 6 -insulated equipment for a long time. In this paper, a novel method, which is named X-ray based non-contact charge dissipation method (XNCDM) for insulators in SF 6 -insulated equipment, is proposed. The effects of X-ray irradiation on the charges dissipation and the influences of irradiation dose were experimentally investigated in SF 6 . The mechanisms underlying are discussed in detail. Results show that surface charges on the insulator can be almost completely dissipated after short-time X-ray irradiation with enough dose, owing to the significant enhancement of electric conduction along the insulator surface and charge neutralization by gas ions near the gas-solid interface. This paper provides a novel technique for realizing rapid surface charge dissipation on the insulator, which is of great significance for a variety of engineering applications of DC GIS/GIL.

Laser-supported laparoscopic partial nephrectomy is a promising new technique, but remains under experiment. We presented our single institutional experience of laparoscopic partial nephrectomy using the 980/1470-nm dual-diode laser system to investigate its feasibility, and oncological and functional outcomes. The study retrospectively evaluated 25 patients with small exophytic renal tumors, who underwent laparoscopic partial nephrectomy using a 980/1470-nm dual-diode laser. The demographics, surgical data, complications, pathological variables, oncological, and functional outcomes were reviewed. The changes in hemoglobin and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) before and after surgery were statistically analyzed. The investigators operated on a total of 25 patients. The off-clamping technique was performed for 23 cases, while the other two cases required renal artery clamping due to unsatisfactory hemostasis. The tumor diameter was 24.6± 6.2 mm, and the mean operative time was 104.4± 23.4 min. The median estimated intraoperative blood loss (EBL) was 100 ml (range 50-600 ml). No major complications (Clavien-Dindo >II) occurred perioperatively. The mean change in hemoglobin before and after the operation was 9 g/l, with a P value of

Background 3D facial scanning has changed the way facial aesthetic is evaluated and has numerous advantages for facial analysis. The specific relationship between lip vermilion morphological changes after orthodontic extraction treatment has not been fully explained. The objective of this study was to evaluate 3D morphological changes after orthodontic extraction treatment in lip vermilion of adult females with dentoalveolar protrusion using a structured light-based scanner. Methods Forty-two female subjects (25.2 ± 1.9 years) were recruited as the treatment group; these patients had undergone extraction treatment and achieved better sagittal profiles. Twenty female subjects (25.5 ± 2.1 years) were enrolled in the non-treatment group; these patients did not require any orthodontic treatment. The follow up time for the treatment group was more than 24 months and for the non-treatment group was more than 12 months. 3D facial scans were captured using 3D CaMega. Six landmarks (Ls, Li, R.Chp, L.Chp, R.Ch, and L.Ch), three linear measurements (mouth height, philtrum width, and mouth width), and three area measurements (upper, lower, and total vermilion area) were measured. The spatial deviations of three volumetric measurements (upper, lower, and total vermilion) were constructed for quantitative analysis. Color-coded displacement map were constructed for visualization of the soft-tissue displacement as qualitative evaluation. Results Mouth height and philtrum width decreased (-0.93 mm and − 1.08 mm, respectively) significantly (p = 0.008 and p = 0.027, respectively), and no significant (p = 0.488) change in mouth width was observed in the treatment group. The lower and total vermilion surface areas decreased (-51.00mm2 and − 69.82mm2, respectively) significantly (p = 0.003 and p = 0.031, respectively) in the treatment group, but no statistically significant (p = 0.752) change was detected in the upper vermilion. In the treatment group, significant retractions were observed in the color-coded displacement map, and three volumetric measurements of vermilion changed significantly (p = 0.012, p = 0.001 and p = 0.004, respectively). Significant differences were found between the treatment group and the non-treatment group in the linear, area and volumetric measurements. Conclusions This study established a method for qualitative and quantitative evaluation of the lip vermilion. Significant 3D retraction of the lip vermilion after the extraction treatment was found, with morphological variation between upper and lower vermilion.

We aimed to investigate changes in pulmonary function and computed tomography (CT) findings in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) during the recovery period. COVID-19 patients underwent symptom assessment, pulmonary function tests, and high-resolution chest CT 6 months after discharge from the hospital. Of the 54 patients enrolled, 31 and 23 were in the moderate and severe group, respectively. The main symptoms 6 months after discharge were fatigue and exertional dyspnea, experienced by 24.1% and 18.5% of patients, respectively, followed by smell and taste dysfunction (9.3%) and cough (5.6%). One patient dropped out of the pulmonary function tests. Of the remaining 54 patients, 41.5% had pulmonary dysfunction. Specifically, 7.5% presented with restrictive ventilatory dysfunction (forced vital capacity

Pseudoaneurysm (PSA) formation is the most common arterial complication of endovascular procedures requiring arterial puncture. The present study reported a case of a 72-year-old male patient with iatrogenic femoral artery PSA treated with contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS)-guided thrombin injection. Conventional ultrasound (US) and CEUS were used to diagnose, guide treatment, and evaluate the treatment efficacy. In the case, the PSA was successfully occluded with 1000 IU of thrombin. During the follow-up after 48 hours of thrombin injection, US found that the PSA had complete thrombosis without arterial supply. No complications occurrence in the course of the treatment. CEUS-guided thrombin injection for the treatment of PSA was effective and safety and the associated literatures were also reviewed.

When an electromagnetic transient occurs in a transformer, certain parts of the winding will be over stressed internally, which in severe cases will lead to the destruction of the winding insulation. Excitation inrush current and short-circuit current are the main causes of winding damage during electromagnetic transients, resulting in or accelerating winding damage, and the presence of short-circuit current and excitation inrush current can greatly reduce the service life of power transformers. The process of closing and energizing a transformer generates a large excitation inrush, and when the current amplitude is the same, the excitation inrush generates a greater electromagnetic force than the short-circuit current. In this paper, the field-path coupling method and the finite element method (FEM) are combined to analyze the magnetomechanical effects on the transformer winding through the principle analysis and simulation, comparing the excitation inrush and short-circuit current scenarios, analyzing and concluding the leakage characteristics of the excitation inrush and short-circuit current and the winding force deformation results.

Most convolutional neural network‐based single image super‐resolution (SR) methods do not take full account of the hierarchical features of the original low‐resolution (LR) images, including the intra‐channel spatial feature information and the inter‐channel feature information, which decreases the representational capacity of the network. A deep multi‐level upprojection network (DMUN) is proposed to solve this problem. Local feature up‐projection unit is adopted in DMUN to obtain high‐resolution (HR) feature of different levels and then to reconstruct the SR image. Residual up‐projection group in DMUN mines the hierarchical LR feature information and its corresponding HR residual information recursively. A residual recorrection mechanism is further introduced, which adopts HR residual information to re‐correct HR features and enrich the details of the output image. Finally, the original residual block with spatial‐and‐channel attention mechanism is improved, which adaptively recalibrates features by considering the intra‐channel spatial relationships and the inter‐channel pixel‐wise interdependencies simultaneously. Experiments on benchmark datasets show that DMUN achieves favourable performance against state‐of‐the‐art methods.

It is essential to acquire the location of sensor nodes in the wireless sensor networks (WSNs), since the data collected with nodes would become meaningless without their location. In the existing studies, range-free localization schemes have been proved suitable to large-scaled WSNs due to the low cost in hardware implementation. However, the defect of those schemes is their poor accuracy in anisotropic networks with coverage holes. To tackle this problem, we propose a range-free localization scheme that combines the advantages of geometric constraint and hop progress-based methods. The geometric information provided by the combination of anchor pairs and unknown nodes is used to design the discrimination conditions, and each node divides the anchor pairs into one of three proposed categories. For different categories of anchor pairs, corresponding methods are proposed to estimate the distancse between sensor nodes. In this way, the trade-off between distance estimation accuracy and anchor utilization can be achieved. Simulation results indicate that the proposed scheme outperforms other schemes in terms of localization accuracy and proportion of outliers with acceptable computational and time complexity, where the localization accuracy and proportion of outliers in the proposed scheme are improved by up to 47% and 61% compared to DV-maxHop.

In order to keep a lithium-ion battery within optimal temperature range for excellent performance and long lifespan, it is necessary to have an effective control strategy for a battery thermal management system (BTMS) consisting of electric pump, cooling plate and radiator. In this paper, a control-oriented model for BTMS is established, and an intelligent model predictive control (IMPC) strategy is developed by integrating a neural network-based vehicle speed predictor and a target battery temperature adaptor based on Pareto boundaries. The strategy is applied to plug-in electric vehicles operating in electric vehicle mode. Results show its superiority in terms of battery temperature control, battery lifespan extension and energy saving. Under the new European driving cycle, average difference between the real-time battery temperature under the novel IMPC and its target temperature is 0.26 °C, and maximum temperature difference among modules is 1.03 °C. Moreover, compared with the on-off controller, model predictive control (MPC), and MPC with VSP, state of health under IMPC at the end of the driving cycle is 0.016%, 0.012%, and 0.008% higher, respectively. At this moment, the energy consumption of IMPC is 24.5% and 14.1% lower than that of the on-off controller and traditional MPC, respectively.

ConspectusExcessive use of fossil fuels has not only led to energy shortage but also caused serious environmental pollution problems due to the massive emissions of industrial waste gas. As the main component of industrial waste gas, CO2 molecules can also be utilized as an important raw material for renewable fuels. Thus, the effective capture and conversion of CO2 has been considered one of the best potential strategies to mitigate the energy crisis and lower the greenhouse effect simultaneously.In this case, CO2 electroreduction to high-value-added chemicals provides an available approach to accomplish this important goal. Nonetheless, the CO2 molecule is extremely stable with a high dissociation energy. With regard to the traditional electrocatalytic systems, there are three main factors that hinder their practical applications: (i) sluggish carrier transport dynamics; (ii) high energy barrier for CO2 activation; (iii) poor product selectivity. Therefore, solving these three crucial problems is the key to the development of efficient electrocatalytic CO2 reduction systems.Considering that the CO2 molecule is a typical Lewis acid with a high first ionization energy and electronic affinity, electron-rich catalysts could help to activate the CO2 molecule and improve the conversion efficiency. In view of this, atomically thin two-dimensional electrocatalysts, benefiting from their significantly increased density of states near the Fermi level, have great potential to effectively accelerate the dynamics of electron transport. Moreover, their high fraction of surface active sites and enhanced local charge density could remarkably reduce the energy barrier for CO2 activation. Furthermore, their modulated electronic structure could alter the catalytic reaction pathway and improve the product selectivity. Meanwhile, the concise two-dimensional configuration facilitates in situ characterization as well as the establishment and simulation of theoretical models, which helps to reveal the mechanism of electrocatalytic CO2 reduction, thereby speeding up the development of CO2 conversion technology.In this Account, we summarize recent progress in tailoring the electronic structure of atomically thin two-dimensional electrocatalysts by different methods. Meanwhile, we highlight the structure-property relationship between the electronic structure regulation and the catalytic activity/product selectivity of atomically thin two-dimensional electrocatalysts, and discuss the underlying fundamental mechanism with the aid of in situ characterization techniques. Finally, we discuss the major challenges and opportunities for the future development of CO2 electroreduction. It is expected that this Account will help researchers to better understand CO2 electroreduction and guide better design of high-performance electrocatalytic systems.

In this paper, a grouping-based uplink orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) random access method is studied which can improve users’ satisfaction in the next generation wireless local area networks (WLANs). The next generation WLANs standard, IEEE 802.11ax introduces a random access mechanism, uplink OFDMA random access (UORA), to allow users to access channel randomly. Although UORA has the advantages of low signaling overhead, no need to report uplink transmission requirements, it does not have any characteristics to improve users’ satisfaction. Because the AP can’t allocate resources to users adopting UORA, some users’ quality of experience (QoE) will decline greatly. In this paper, a grouping-based UORA (G-UORA) method is proposed. The AP determines the number of groups, and then clusters users to different groups according to their utility. Then, the AP assigns resources to these groups to maximize the total utility of all users. We present a theoretical utility prediction model of G-UORA and propose the corresponding resource allocation algorithm based on utility. According to simulation results, the algorithm achieves better users’ satisfaction and fairness than the traditional UORA mechanism in IEEE 802.11ax and the user utility gain is 1.6 times. Therefore, the proposed method has greater practical significance.

Although insulin is known to affect neointimal hyperplasia via distinct signaling pathways, how neointimal hyperplasia is affected in insulin‑deficient type 1 diabetes remains unknown. The aim of the current study was to investigate two major signaling branches of insulin action regulating neointimal hyperplasia following arterial injury in type 1 diabetes with or without exogenous insulin administration. Rats were treated with vehicle (control group), streptozotocin (STZ) alone (STZ group; uncontrolled type 1 diabetes) or STZ followed by insulin (STZ + I group; controlled type 1 diabetes). Subsequently, a type 1 diabetic rat model of carotid artery balloon injury was established. Following this, the intima‑to‑media area ratios were examined for evidence of neointimal hyperplasia in the carotid arteries of the rats by performing hematoxylin‑eosin staining. Furthermore, the protein expression of extracellular signal‑regulated kinase (ERK), phosphorylated (p‑) ERK, protein kinase B (Akt) and p‑Akt in the carotid arteries of the rats was determined via immunoblotting. Moreover, an in vitro model of type 1 diabetes was induced by incubation of primary vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) with glucose and/or insulin. Cellular proliferation and signaling protein expression levels in VSMCs were determined by measuring the incorporation of tritiated thymidine and performing immunoblotting, respectively. The results demonstrated that compared with that in control rats, neointimal hyperplasia and expression of p‑Akt in uncontrolled type 1 diabetic rats were significantly decreased. This decrease was recovered in controlled type 1 diabetes with insulin therapy. Furthermore, the difference in the expression of p‑ERK between groups was not significant. Additionally, the results of the cell experiments were consistent with those from the animal studies. In conclusion, the preferential signaling along the phosphatidylinositol 3‑kinase/Akt pathway of insulin action in response to insulin restoration may contribute to neointimal hyperplasia. The present study provides a novel approach for the further treatment of neointimal hyperplasia in type 1 diabetes.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) made a huge effect globally. With the assistance of mixed reality (MR) technology, complicated clinical works became easier to carry out and the condition had been greatly improved with high-tech advantages such as improved convenience, better understanding and communication, higher security, and medical resource saving. This study aimed to introduce one kind of MR application in the fight against COVID-19 and anticipate more feasible smart health care applications to enhance our strength for the final victory.

Identify the treatment effects and risk factors for mortality in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis receiving antituberculosis treatment under the Directly Observed Treatment Short-Course (DOTS) program to reduce the mortality rate of tuberculosis. A retrospective cohort analysis was conducted on the outcomes of antituberculosis treatment of 7,032 patients with tuberculosis in the DOTS program, in the Tuberculosis Management Information System from 2014 to 2017 in Tianjin, China. The Kaplan–Meier method and multifactor Cox proportional risk regression model were used to analyze the risk factors for mortality during antituberculosis treatment under DOTS. The success rate of antituberculosis treatment was 90.24% and the mortality rate was 4.56% among 7,032 cases of tuberculosis in Tianjin. Cox regression analysis showed that advanced age, male sex, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positivity, first sputum positivity, retreated tuberculosis, and a delayed visit (≥14 days) were risk factors for mortality in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis receiving antituberculosis treatment under DOTS. The treatment effects in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis during antituberculosis treatment under DOTS were positive in Tianjin. Advanced age, male sex, HIV positivity, first sputum positivity, retreated tuberculosis, and a delayed visit (≥14 days) increased the risk for mortality during antituberculosis treatment.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the vector outcomes of small incision lenticule extraction (SMILE) in correcting moderate to high myopic astigmatism under astigmatic axis marked condition. METHODS: In a prospective, longitudinal, interventional study, 71 eyes (71 patients) that had with-the-rule preoperative cylinder refraction exceeding 1.50 diopters (D) were corrected with the VisuMax femtosecond laser (Carl Zeiss Meditec AG) at Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center. Refractive outcomes and astigmatic vector were evaluated preoperatively and at 1, 3, 6, and 30 months postoperatively. RESULTS: At 30 months postoperatively, the efficacy and safety indexes were 1.04 ± 0.18 and 1.15 ± 0.17, respectively. The magnitude of the surgically induced astigmatism (SIA) (2.13 ± 0.71 D at 1 month [ P 1m-pre = .018], 2.12 ± 0.72 D at 3 months [ P 3m-pre = .006], 2.13 ± 0.69 D at 6 months [ P 6m-pre = .010], and 2.19 ± 0.72 D at 30 months [ P 30m-pre < .001]) was slightly higher than that of the target induced astigmatism (TIA) (2.07 ± 0.69 D). Only the y-coordinate of the SIA vector had a significant overcorrection compared to that of the TIA vector ( P 1m-pre = .033, P 3m-pre = .011, P 6m-pre = .012, P 30m-pre < .001). The corrected index (CI = |SIA|/|TIA|) varied from 1.03 ± 0.07 at 1 month to 1.06 ± 0.10 at 30 months, which was higher when correcting moderate astigmatism than when correcting high astigmatism ( P = .041) at 30 months postoperatively. CONCLUSIONS: SMILE had long-term safety, efficacy, predictability, and stability when correcting moderate to high myopic astigmatism under astigmatism axis marked condition. Meanwhile, a cylinder overcorrection was observed due to the overcorrection of y-coordinate astigmatic power, which implied that the vector adjustment of the cylinder refraction nomogram should be considered. [ J Refract Surg . 2020;36(9):585–591.]

Neuroinflammation contributes to the pathogenesis of early brain injury induced by subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Previous reports have demonstrated that triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 1 (TREM-1) regulates inflammatory response caused by ischemic stroke or myocardial infarction. However, whether TREM-1 could modulate neuroinflammation after SAH remains largely unknown. Here, using a mouse model of SAH, we found that the expression of TREM-1 was mainly located in microglia cells and increased to peak at 24 h following SAH. Then, TREM-1 antagonist or mimic was intranasally administrated to investigate its effect on SAH. TREM-1 inhibition with LP17 improved neurological deficits, mitigated brain water content, and preserved brain-blood barrier integrity 24 h after SAH, whereas recombinant TREM-1, a mimic of TREM-1, deteriorated these outcomes. In addition, LP17 administration restored long-term sensorimotor coordination and cognitive deficits. Pharmacological blockade of TREM-1 reduced TUNEL-positive and FJC-positive neurons, and CD68-stained microglia in ipsilateral cerebral cortex. Neutrophil invasion was inhibited as protein level of myeloperoxidase (MPO), and MPO-positive cells were both decreased. Moreover, we found that LP17 treatment ameliorated microglial pyroptosis by diminishing levels of N-terminal fragment of GSDMD (GSDMD-N) and IL-1β production. Mechanistically, both in vivo and in vitro, we depicted that TREM-1 can trigger microglial pyroptosis via activating NLRP3 inflammasome. In conclusion, our results revealed the critical role of TREM-1 in neuroinflammation following SAH, suggesting that TREM-1 inhibition might be a potential therapeutic approach for SAH.

EGFR-T790M and BRAFV600E are the common resistance mechanisms to EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). Standard treatment for the triple mutations of EGFR-19del, T790M, and BRAFV600E is still under debate. Herein, we present a case of therapeutic efficacy of osimertinib and dabrafenib plus trametinib on a 63-year-old man with advanced lung adenocarcinoma. This patient reached a remarkable progression-free survival of 9 months without any serious adverse reaction. At the progression of the disease, C797S mutation in cis was detected by liquid biopsy. Subsequently, brigatinib with cetuximab was administered but no curative effect was observed. Then, therapy was changed to apatinib combined with osimertinib. The subsequent CT scan showed that the lesions reached stable disease (SD), and the survival benefit has been evaluated. This case showed that the combination treatment of osimertinib and dabrafenib plus trametinib might be a great treatment option for NSCLC patients with triple mutations (EGFR-19del/T790M/BRAFV600E).

OBJECTIVES Cardiovascular dysautonomia can be present at early, late and even prodromal stages of Parkinson's disease. This study aimed to describe the characteristics of 24-h ambulatory blood pressure (BP) monitoring and investigate the frequency of cardiovascular dysautonomia in Parkinson's disease without an abnormal BP history. METHODS Parkinson's disease patients without history of abnormal BP were consecutively enrolled from three Chinese centres, on whom office BP measurement, neurological evaluations and 24-h ambulatory BP monitoring were performed. RESULTS Totally, 101 Parkinson's disease patients (42.6% women) with an average age of 66.6 ± 8.2 years were included in our cohort, and data analysis revealed that 26 (25.74%) patients suffered from orthostatic hypotension, among whom 18 (69.23%) were symptomatic. Patients with orthostatic hypotension compared with those without had significantly higher nocturnal SBP level, and more severe nonmotor symptoms, autonomic dysfunction and cognitive impairment. Further, 54 out of 101 (53.47%) individuals had a reverse dipping pattern in SBP and/or DBP. Reverse dippers had more cases of orthostatic hypotension (P

Brand user imagery is an important aspect of brand association and, consequently, brand equity. Extant conceptualizations emphasize content features of brand user imagery (e.g., convergence and favorability) but neglect the structural element of the concept, namely the clarity of the imagery. The purpose of this paper is to present the concept of brand user imagery clarity (BUIC) as a distinct and salient aspect of brand user imagery. Drawing on the associate network theory of memory, we offer a conceptualization of BUIC and then proceed to empirically validate a BUIC scale using data from 1172 consumers across four surveys and multiple industries. Results demonstrate the reliability of our 5-item BUIC scale. The scale consistently demonstrates convergent validity and discriminant validity (in relation to brand user imagery favorability, brand prestige, brand quality, and brand personality). Assessment of nomological validity identifies premium pricing strategy as a key determinant of BUIC and self-brand connection as an important outcome. This study contributes to branding literature by proposing BUIC as an important structural feature of brand user imagery and developing a reliable BUIC scale. It also contributes to the consumer–brand relationship literature by indicating the significant effect of BUIC on self-brand connection.

Due to limited information reported on the clinical characteristics and outcomes of Burkitt lymphoma (BL) patients with gastrointestinal (GI) involvement, here we used the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database to perform our study in a population‐based scale. Extranodal GI involvement was categorized into gastric and intestinal primary sites. A total of 477 BL patients with GI involvement extracted from the SEER database between 2004 and 2015 were included in this study, 112 (23.5%) with the stomach and 365 (76.5%) with the intestine. Our study demonstrated that gastric involvement, older age, male gender, black race, advanced‐stage III/IV, no‐chemotherapy, and earlier years of diagnosis were associated with a significantly worse overall survival (OS) in GI BL patients after adjustment in multivariate analysis, whereas marital status did not significantly influence OS. Notably, BL Patients with gastric involvement had a significantly inferior 5‐year OS in both univariate and multivariate analysis, as compared to those with intestinal involvement (37.8% vs. 70.2%; Univariate: HR = 2.637, P, Our study included 477 Burkitt Lymphoma (BL) patients with gastrointestinal involvement extracted from the SEER database between 2004 and 2015, 112 (23.5%) with the stomach and 365 (76.5%) with the intestine. We demonstrated that BL patients with gastric involvement had an inferior prognosis compared to those with intestinal involvement (5‐year OS 37.8% vs. 70.2%). In subgroup analysis, gastric BL patients had a consistently worse OS than intestinal patients regardless of gender, clinical stage and year of diagnosis.

Excitonic processes in semiconductors open up the possibility for pursuing photocatalytic organic synthesis. However, the insufficient spin relaxation and robust nonradiative decays in semiconductors place restrictions on both quantum yield and selectivity of these reactions. Herein, by taking polymeric carbon nitride (PCN)/acetone as a prototypical system, we propose that extrinsic aliphatic ketones can serve as molecular co-catalysts for promoting spin-flip transition and suppressing non-radiative energy losses. Spectroscopic investigations indicate that hot excitons in PCN can be transferred to ketones, while triplet excitons in ketones can be transferred to PCN. As such, the PCN/ketone systems exhibit considerable triplet-exciton accumulation and extended visible-light response, leading to excellent performance in exciton-based photocatalysis, such as singlet oxygen generation. This work provides a fundamental understanding of energy harvesting in semiconductor/molecule systems, and paves the way for optimizing exciton-based photocatalysis via molecular co-catalyst design.

Background and purpose There are limited data on the association between uric acid (UA) and symptomatic intracranial haemorrhage (SICH) in patients who have undergone mechanical thrombectomy [endovascular treatment (EVT)]. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the role of serum UA level in SICH after EVT in a real-world practice. Methods Patients were selected from the Endovascular Treatment for Acute Anterior Circulation Ischemic Stroke (ACTUAL) registry. SICH was identified using the Heidelberg Bleeding Classification. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to explore the relationship between serum UA and SICH. Results Among 611 enrolled patients, 90 (14.7%) were diagnosed with SICH within 72 h after EVT. Patients with SICH had a significantly higher level of serum UA (median, 341.0 vs. 302.0 μmol/L; P = 0.003) than those without SICH. Univariate logistic regression analysis indicated that patients with UA levels in the fourth quartile, compared with the first quartile, were more likely to have SICH (odds ratio, 2.846; 95% confidence intervals, 1.429-6.003; P = 0.003). The association remained significant after multivariable adjustment for potential confounders. Furthermore, the multiple-adjusted spline regression model showed an inverted U-shaped association between UA and SICH (P = 0.047 for non-linearity). Conclusion Our study indicated that increased serum UA level was independently associated with SICH after EVT in acute ischaemic stroke.

Deep neural networks (DNNs) are vulnerable to adversarial attack despite their tremendous success in many artificial intelligence fields. Adversarial attack is a method that causes the intended misclassfication by adding imperceptible perturbations to legitimate inputs. To date, researchers have developed numerous types of adversarial attack methods. However, from the perspective of practical deployment, these methods suffer from several drawbacks such as long attack generating time, high memory cost, insufficient robustness and low transferability. To address the drawbacks, we propose a Content-aware Adversarial Attack Generator (CAG) to achieve real-time, low-cost, enhanced-robustness and high-transferability adversarial attack. First, as a type of generative model-based attack, CAG shows significant speedup (at least 500 times) in generating adversarial examples compared to the state-of-the-art attacks such as PGD and C&W. Furthermore, CAG only needs a single generative model to perform targeted attack to any targeted class. Because CAG encodes the label information into a trainable embedding layer, it differs from prior generative model-based adversarial attacks that use n different copies of generative models for n different targeted classes. As a result, CAG significantly reduces the required memory cost for generating adversarial examples. Moreover, CAG can generate adversarial perturbations that focus on the critical areas of input by integrating the class activation maps information in the training process, and hence improve the robustness of CAG attack against the state-of-art adversarial defenses. In addition, CAG exhibits high transferability across different DNN classifier models in black-box attack scenario by introducing random dropout in the process of generating perturbations. Extensive experiments on different datasets and DNN models have verified the real-time, low-cost, enhanced-robustness, and high-transferability benefits of CAG.

The poor conversion efficiency of carbon dioxide photoreduction has hindered the practical application at present, and one of the prime reasons for this obstacle is the inefficient solar energy uti...

Black phosphorus nanosheets (BPNSs) have been actively employed as nanomedicine agents for photothermal and photodynamic therapy by virtue of their unique optical properties. However, their chemical reactivity as a competent biomaterial has not been fully explored yet. Here, we report on the use of BPNSs as reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavengers to cure acute kidney injury (AKI) in mice. Importantly, in vivo analysis in mice revealed that BPNSs were preferably accumulated in kidney. We found that BPNSs alleviated oxidative-pressure-induced cellular apoptosis. In a ROS-triggered acute kidney injury (AKI) model, BPNSs effectively consumed ROS in kidney, demonstrating high efficacy for curing AKI. BPNSs also exhibited excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability, making them promising candidates for therapeutic treatment of AKI and other renal diseases.

In recent years, in the process of oil and gas exploration and development, the situation of drilling tools drilling out of the reservoir often occurs. Due to the lack of directional indication, the traditional LWD(Logging While Drilling) natural gamma measurement technology cannot guide drilling tools to return to the reservoir efficiently. In order to solve this problem, this paper improves the traditional radiometric gamma measurement technology and establishes a set of azimuth gamma imaging model. Firstly, the basic imaging model is established based on HSI (Hue, Saturation, Intensity) color space. Then, the study focuses on the design of the gamma data quality control algorithm, which can effectively suppress the original gamma data noise. In addition, the cubic spline interpolation algorithm is selected to support the model to obtain 360° omni-directional gamma data. Finally, the image processing technology based on fast grayscale grouping is applied in this study, which greatly improves the imaging effect. Field application shows that the model runs stably on site, and the azimuth gamma image is well indicative. It can monitor the relative position relationship between the borehole trajectory and the formation, which effectively improves the reservoir encounter rate, and has high application and promotion value.

Recent developments in technology have introduced dramatic changes to the practice of the accounting profession. This paper provides a comprehensive review of current developments in big data, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and blockchain utilized in general business practice and by specialized practitioners in the accounting profession worldwide. This paper explores the evolution of the accounting profession following these recent technological developments and assesses the impact of future developments. Inherent challenges and opportunities posed by these new technologies pertaining to accounting professionals and accounting educators are also examined, including an increased demand for IT professionals with accounting experience as opposed to accounting major graduates. Considering the dramatic changes and developments of AI applications in accounting, this paper reflects how all these technologies and the associated requirements of job candidates will affect the desired capabilities of accounting graduates and provides further discussion regarding what higher institutions and their accounting graduates can do to adopt such changes.

Background Thermal ablation (TA), as an alternative to surgery, has shown some benefits in the treatment of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) patients, especially for those who are at high risk for surgery or refuse surgery. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the efficiency, safety, and economy of TA, compared with those of routine surgery (RS), for the treatment of PTMC. Methods PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang, and VIP databases were retrieved from inception to 10 January 2020 to identify relevant original studies on comparison of TA and RS for treatment of PTMC. The recurrence rate, recurrence-free survival (RFS), complication rate, operation time, postoperative length of stay, and cost during the perioperative period were extracted as main indices. The pooled standardized mean difference (SMD) or odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated and analyzed. Chi-square test and I2 statistic were applied to determine the heterogeneity among studies. The sensitivity analysis was applied to explore the origin of heterogeneity, and the publication bias was evaluated by Egger’s test. Results Seven retrospective studies with a total of 867 patients met the eligibility criteria and were included in the final meta-analysis. Our study demonstrated that TA showed significant reduction in complication with a pooled OR 0.24 (95% CI 0.13 to 0.43), postoperative length of stay with a pooled SMD −3.14 (95% CI −4.77 to −1.51) and cost during the perioperative period with a pooled SMD of −1.69 (95% CI −3.18 to −0.20). It also demonstrated that both TA and RS had similar pooled proportion of recurrence of OR 0.93 (95% CI 0.38 to 2.30) and recurrence-free survive (RFS). The sensitivity analysis showed that each included study had no significant effect on the results and the results were stable and reliable. The Egger’s test demonstrated publication bias was acceptable. Conclusions TA may not be oncologically inferior to RS, and it is a relatively safe and economical alternative for the treatment of PTMC.

Carbon dioxide photoreduction currently suffers from low photoconversion efficiency and poor product selectivity. Ultrathin two-dimensional materials, which possess highly active sites with high density and high uniformity, can serve as ideal models to tailor three crucial parameters that determine the carbon dioxide photoconversion efficiency and product selectivity. In this review, we summarize the extended absorption spectrum range enabled by ultrathin two-dimensional semiconductors with defect levels and intermediate bands, as well as conductors with special partially occupied bands. Moreover, we overview the boosted carrier separation efficiency aroused by ultrathin two-dimensional semiconductors with defect states, surface polarization states and built-in electric fields. We also review the accelerated redox reaction kinetics induced by ultrathin two-dimensional semiconductors with in-plane heterostructures, isolated single atoms and abundant low-coordinated dual-metal sites. Finally, we end this review with an outlook on unsolved issues concerning highly selective and efficient photo-conversion of carbon dioxide into C2+ products by ultrathin two-dimensional materials with dual or multiple active sites.

A novel sensor based on spoof surface plasmon polaritons is presented to detect defects in film-coated metals and non-metallic materials. The sensor is a flexible strip that can be easily wound around various shapes of the material under test (MUT) and by scanning the surface of MUT with the designed sensor, the defects of the MUT can be detected. Since the sensitive area of the sensor is strip-shaped, the detection only needs to be scanned in one direction (most sensors need to scan in two orthogonal directions) which improves the detection speed and reduces the complexity of detection process. The detection are based on monitoring change of the transmission coefficient which is caused by the disturbation of electromagnetic field around the spoof surface plasmon polaritons. The sensor is flexible, sensitive and the detection speed is fast.