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Abstract Background Long non-coding RNAs (LncRNAs) have been extensively studied to play essential roles in tumor progression. However, more in-depth studies are waiting to be solved on how lncRNAs regulate the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods Different expression levels of lncRNAs in HCC cells were compared by analysis of Gene Expression Omnibus and The Cancer Genome Atlas databases. The effects of lncRNA FTO Intronic Transcript 1 (FTO-IT1) on HCC cells were assessed by gain- and loss-of-function experiments. Colony formation assay, Edu assay, glucose uptake and lactic acid production assay were performed to evaluate the regulation of proliferation and glycolysis of HCC cells by FTO-IT1. The binding between protein interleukin enhancer binding factor 2/3 (ILF2/ILF3) and FTO-IT1 was determined by RNA pull-down, mass spectroscopy and RNA immunoprecipitation experiments. RNA stability assay, quantitative reverse transcription PCR and Western blot were employed to determine the regulatory mechanisms of FTO-IT1 on fat mass and obesity-associated (FTO). Methylated RNA immunoprecipitation assay was used to assessed the regulation of key enzymes of glycolysis by FTO. The role of FTO-IT1/FTO in vivo was confirmed via xenograft tumor model. Results LncRNA FTO-IT1, an intronic region transcript of FTO gene, was highly expressed in HCC and associated with poor prognosis of patients with HCC. FTO-IT1 was related to proliferation and glycolysis of HCC cells, and contributed to the malignant progression of HCC by promoting glycolysis. Mechanistically, FTO-IT1 induced stabilization of FTO mRNA by recruiting ILF2/ILF3 protein complex to 3’UTR of FTO mRNA. As a demethylase for N 6-methyladenosine (m6A), FTO decreased m6A modification on mRNAs of glycolysis associated genes including GLUT1, PKM2, and c-Myc which alleviated the YTH N6-methyladenosine RNA binding protein 2 (YTHDF2)-mediated mRNA degradation. Therefore, the upregulated expression of FTO-IT1 leaded to overexpression of GLUT1, PKM2, and c-Myc by which enhanced glycolysis of HCC. Meanwhile, it was found that c-Myc transcriptional regulated expression of FTO-IT1 by binding to its promoter area under hypo-glucose condition, forming a reciprocal loop between c-Myc and FTO-IT1. Conclusions This study identified an important role of the FTO-IT1/FTO axis mediated m6A modification of glycolytic genes contributed to glycolysis and tumorigenesis of HCC, and FTO-IT1 might be served as a new therapeutic target for HCC.

Abstract Tumour cells mainly generate energy from glycolysis, which is commonly coupled with lactate production even under normoxic conditions. As a critical lactate transporter, monocarboxylate transporter 4 (MCT4) is highly expressed in glycolytic tissues, such as muscles and tumours. Overexpression of MCT4 is associated with poor prognosis for patients with various tumours. However, how MCT4 function is post-translationally regulated remains largely unknown. Taking advantage of human lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) cells, this study revealed that MCT4 can be polyubiquitylated in a nonproteolytic manner by SYVN1 E3 ubiquitin ligase. The polyubiquitylation facilitates the localization of MCT4 into the plasma membrane, which improves lactate export by MCT4; in accordance, metabolism characterized by reduced glycolysis and lactate production is effectively reprogrammed by SYVN1 knockdown, which can be reversed by MCT4 overexpression. Biologically, SYVN1 knockdown successfully compromises cell proliferation and tumour xenograft growth in mouse models that can be partially rescued by overexpression of MCT4. Clinicopathologically, overexpression of SYVN1 is associated with poor prognosis in patients with LUAD, highlighting the importance of the SYVN1-MCT4 axis, which performs metabolic reprogramming during the progression of LUAD.

Objective Hip arthroscopy for the treatment of symptomatic borderline developmental dysplasia of the hip (BDDH) has been controversial. The purpose of this study was to retrospectively analyze minimum 2‐year outcomes of BDDH after arthroscopic surgery and explore the criteria and thresholds of the lateral center‐edge angle (LCEA) in arthroscopic surgery for BDDH. Methods Data were retrospectively collected from patients aged 18–50 who underwent arthroscopic surgery for BDDH and had an LCEA 18–25° between September 2016 and June 2020. The consistency of interobserver and intraobserver measurements of bone‐edge LCEA was analyzed. Patients were divided into two groups based on LCEA (18–20°and 20–25°) and the results of arthroscopy compared between groups. Patient‐reported outcome (PRO) scores, consisting of the modified Harris hip score (mHHS), the visual analogue scale (VAS) and the international hip outcome tool‐12 (IHOT‐12), the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) and patient acceptable symptom status (PASS) were calculated. Results In 52 patients with ≥2‐year follow‐up, female patients accounted for 71.2% and the mean age was 30.8 ± 8.4 years (range: 18 to 49 years). There was a high level of agreement when measuring the bone‐edge LCEA definition of BDDH (Kappa = 0.921). Interobserver repeatability (ICC = 0.909, 95%CI: 0.847–0.947) and intraobserver repeatability (ICC = 0.944, 95%CI: 0.905–0.968) were excellent for bone‐edge LCEA measurements. In addition to LCEA and Tönnis angle, there were no significant differences in α angle, neck stem angle, femoral anteversion angle, medial joint space, Tönnis grade of osteoarthritis, acetabular retroversion (8 sign), Cam deformity and anterior inferior iliac spine (AIIS) morphology between the two groups (p > 0.05). Intraoperative findings and procedures showed no statistical difference between groups (p > 0.05). The mean follow‐up time was 44.4 ± 11.0 months (range: 25 to 64 months). Postoperative VAS, mHHS and IHOT‐12 scores in the LCEA 18–20° group and the LCEA 20–25° group were significantly improved compared with those before surgery, and there was no statistically significant difference in the percentage of MCID and PASS (mHHS and iHOT‐12) between the groups (p > 0.05). Conclusion Patients in the LCEA 18–20° group and the LCEA 20–25° group achieved favorable outcomes after arthroscopic surgery. LCEA 18° (bone‐edge) should be the threshold for hip arthroscopic surgery in BDDH patients without obvious hip instability.

Objectives: This paper presented a detailed analysis of the epidemiology and molecular characteristics of staphylococcal food poisoning (SFP) that occurred in a hotel in Hangzhou. Methods: A total of 46 guests at the hotel underwent an epidemiological survey. Samples of stool from patients, vomit, swabs from the kitchen, leftover food items, and anal swabs from food handlers were taken and investigated for the presence of potential pathogenic bacteria. Molecular techniques and whole genome sequencing were performed to track the evolution of Staphylococcus aureus associated with the outbreak of SFP. Results: Forty-six individuals displayed gastrointestinal symptoms. Seventeen isolates of S. aureus were discovered to carry the seg, sei, sem, sen, seo, and selu genes found in a specific enterotoxin gene cluster (egc) operon, but without the presence of classical enterotoxins such as SEA ∼ SEE. All egc-positive isolates shared identical pulsed-field gel electrophoresis profiles and were classified under new ST7591 (Clonal Complex 72) with identical spa typing t148. In addition, some isolates of S. aureus obtained from food sources sold in Hangzhou over the past 3 years and carrying egc genes were grouped under the ST72 lineage (CC72). Through whole genome sequencing, a strong genetic connection was revealed between these egc-positive isolates and clinical ST72 S. aureus found in China. Conclusions: S. aureus with non-classical egc enterotoxins was suggested to be a potential cause of SFP in humans.

Aerodynamic contour dimensional accuracy is very important for the stable and safe flight of aerospace vehicles. Nevertheless, due to the influence of various factors such as material properties, machining and manufacturing deviations, and assembly and installation deviations, key structural geometric dimensions are frequently exceeded. Therefore, this paper investigates a data-driven combined vector loop method (VLM)–Skin Model Shapes (SMS) method to realize aerospace vehicle structural geometric accuracy analysis; assembly optimization targeting contour deviation is also achieved. Tests are carried out on a typical aerospace vehicle’s underconstrained structural workpieces to validate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Snow Lotus Seed (SLS), esteemed for its nutritional and market value, faces challenges of authentication due to the absence of appropriate testing standards and methods. This results in frequent adulteration of SLS sourced from Gleditsia sinensis (G. sinensis) with other plant seeds endosperm. Traditional chloroplast DNA barcoding methods are inadequate for species identification due to the absence of chloroplasts in G. sinensis seeds endosperm. In this study, the homology of 11 ITS genes among 6 common Gleditsia species was analyzed. Universal primers suitable for these species were designed and screened. A DNA barcoding method for distinguishing SLS species was developed using Sanger sequencing technology, leveraging existing GenBank and Barcode of Life Data System (BOLD) databases. Optimized sample pretreatment facilitated effective DNA extraction from phytopolysaccharide-rich SLS. Through testing of commercial SLS products, the species origin has been successfully identified. Additionally, a novel instance of food fraud was uncovered, where the Caesalpinia spinosa endosperm was used to counterfeit SLS for the first time. The study established that the developed DNA barcoding method is effective for authenticating SLS species. It is of great significance for combating food fraud related to SLS, ensuring food safety, and promoting the healthy development of the SLS industry.

A kettle reboiler uses the latent heat from the condensation of high-temperature and high-pressure steam in the tube to produce low-pressure saturated steam in the outer shell. The deposition of particles on the tube may change the boiling heat transfer mode from nucleate boiling to natural convection, thereby deteriorating the heat transfer performance of the kettle reboiler. Therefore, it is very important to explore the deposition characteristics of particles in the kettle reboiler. In this study, the RPI boiling model based on the Euler–Euler method is used to analyze the water boiling process on the surface of the tube bundle. The DRW model and critical adhesion velocity model based on the Euler–Lagrangian method are used to calculate the motion of particles during the boiling process and the deposition (rebound) behavior. The results show that the boiling of liquid water enhances the local flow velocity of the fluid, so that the maximum flow velocity appears around the near-wall region. The local high-speed flow disperses the particles in the wake flow of the tube bundle, which inhibits the impact of particles on the wall. As the particle size increases, the wall adhesion and fluid drag on the particles are weakened, and the gravity effect gradually becomes dominant, increasing the residence time of the particles in the tube bundle and the frequency of particle impact on the wall. The particle deposition ratio first decreases and then increases. Ultimately, most particles will be deposited in the low-speed area at the end of the tube bundle.

It is very important to carry out effective safety inspections on suppression rigging because of the bad service environment of suppression rigging: marine environments. In this paper, the multi-parameter simulation method in ANSYS and ANSYS Electronics Suite simulation software is used to simulate the effect of geomagnetic fields on the magnetic induction intensity of defective pressed rigging under the variable stress in marine environments. The results of the ANSYS simulation and geomagnetic flaw detection equipment are verified. The simulation results show that, according to the multi-parameter simulation results of ANSYS and ANSYS Electronics Suite simulation software, it can be found that, under the action of transverse force, the internal stress of the pressed rigging will affect the magnetic field around pressed rigging with defects. With an increase in internal stress in the range of 0~20 MPa, the magnetic induction intensity increases to 0.55 A/m, and with an increase in internal stress in the range of 20~150 MPa, the magnetic induction intensity decreases to 0.06 A/m. From the use of a force magnetic coupling analysis method, it can be obtained, under the lateral force of the defects in suppressing rigging, that magnetic flux leakage signals decrease with an increase in the rigging’s radial distance. The experiment results show that the difference between the peak and trough of the magnetic induction intensity at the pressed rigging defect calculated by the ANSYS simulation is very consistent with the results measured by the geomagnetic flaw detection equipment.

Lysine plays a crucial role in promoting development, enhancing immune function, and improving the function of central nervous system tissues. The two configurational isomers of amino acids have significantly different effects. Currently, methods for chiral recognition of lysine have been reported; however, previous detection methods have drawbacks such as expensive equipment and complicated detection processes. Fluorescence analysis, on the other hand, boasts high sensitivity, strong selectivity, and simple operation. In this study, we synthesized four novel Binaphthyl-Amine (BINAM)-based fluorescent probes capable of specifically identifying the L-configuration of lysine among the twenty amino acids that constitute human proteins. The enantiomeric fluorescence enhancement ratio (ef or ΔIL/ΔID) reached up to 15.29, demonstrating high enantioselectivity. In addition, we assessed the probe’s recognition capabilities under varying pH levels, reaction times, and metal ion conditions, along with its limit of detection (LOD) and quantum yield. Our results suggest that this probe serves as a highly stable tool for the detection of chiral lysine.

Abstract The effective management of osteomyelitis remains extremely challenging due to the difficulty associated with treating bone defects, the high probability of recurrence, the requirement of secondary surgery or multiple surgeries, and the difficulty in eradicating infections caused by methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Hence, smart biodegradable biomaterials that provide effective and precise local anti‐infection effects and can promote the repair of bone defects are actively being developed. Here, a novel nano‐micro composite is fabricated by combining calcium phosphate (CaP) nanosheets with drug‐loaded GelMA microspheres via microfluidic technology. The microspheres are covalently linked with vancomycin (Van) through an oligonucleotide (oligo) linker using an EDC/NHS carboxyl activator. Accordingly, a smart nano‐micro composite called “CaP@MS‐Oligo‐Van” is synthesized. The porous CaP@MS‐Oligo‐Van composites can target and capture bacteria. They can also release Van in response to the presence of bacterial micrococcal nuclease and Ca2+, exerting additional antibacterial effects and inhibiting the inflammatory response. Finally, the released CaP nanosheets can promote bone tissue repair. Overall, the findings show that a rapid, targeted drug release system based on CaP@MS‐Oligo‐Van can effectively target bone tissue infections. Hence, this agent holds potential in the clinical treatment of osteomyelitis caused by MRSA.

Partial endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EndMT) is an intermediate phenotype observed in endothelial cells (ECs) undergoing a transition toward a mesenchymal state to support neovascularization during (patho)physiological angiogenesis. Here, we investigated the occurrence of partial EndMT in ECs under hypoxic/ischemic conditions and identified general transcription factor IIH subunit 4 (GTF2H4) as a positive regulator of this process. In addition, we discovered that GTF2H4 collaborates with its target protein excision repair cross-complementation group 3 (ERCC3) to co-regulate partial EndMT. Furthermore, by using phosphorylation proteomics and site-directed mutagenesis, we demonstrated that GTF2H4 was involved in the phosphorylation of receptor coactivator 3 (NCOA3) at serine 1330, which promoted the interaction between NCOA3 and p65, resulting in the transcriptional activation of NF-κB and the NF-κB/Snail signaling axis during partial EndMT. In vivo experiments confirmed that GTF2H4 significantly promoted partial EndMT and angiogenesis after ischemic injury. Collectively, our findings reveal that targeting GTF2H4 is promising for tissue repair and offers potential opportunities for treating hypoxic/ischemic diseases.

Monitoring spores is crucial for predicting and preventing fungal- or oomycete-induced diseases like grapevine downy mildew. However, manual spore or sporangium detection using microscopes is time-consuming and labor-intensive, often resulting in low accuracy and slow processing speed. Emerging deep learning models like YOLOv8 aim to rapidly detect objects accurately but struggle with efficiency and accuracy when identifying various sporangia formations amidst complex backgrounds. To address these challenges, we developed an enhanced YOLOv8s, namely, AFM-YOLOv8s, by introducing an Adaptive Cross Fusion module, a lightweight feature extraction module FasterCSP (Faster Cross-Stage Partial Module), and a novel loss function MPDIoU (Minimum Point Distance Intersection over Union). AFM-YOLOv8s replaces the C2f module with FasterCSP, a more efficient feature extraction module, to reduce model parameter size and overall depth. In addition, we developed and integrated an Adaptive Cross Fusion Feature Pyramid Network to enhance the fusion of multiscale features within the YOLOv8 architecture. Last, we utilized the MPDIoU loss function to improve AFM-YOLOv8s’ ability to locate bounding boxes and learn object spatial localization. Experimental results demonstrated AFM-YOLOv8s’ effectiveness, achieving 91.3% accuracy (mean average precision at 50% IoU) on our custom grapevine downy mildew sporangium dataset—a notable improvement of 2.7% over the original YOLOv8 algorithm. FasterCSP reduced model complexity and size, enhanced deployment versatility, and improved real-time detection, chosen over C2f for easier integration despite minor accuracy trade-off. Currently, the AFM-YOLOv8s model is running as a backend algorithm in an open web application, providing valuable technical support for downy mildew prevention and control efforts and fungicide resistance studies.

This Letter presents results from Kepler photometric light curves and a high-resolution spectroscopic study of a super-Li-rich giant KIC11087027. Using the light-curve analysis, we measured the star’s rotational period P _rot = 30.4 ± 0.1 days, which translates to rotational velocity V _rot = 19.5 ± 1.7 km s ^−1 . The star’s location in the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram, derived values of ^12 C/ ^13 C = 7 ± 1 and [C/N] = −0.95 ± 0.2, and the inferred asteroseismic parameters from secondary calibration based on spectra suggest the star is a low-mass red clump giant in the He-core burning phase. Using Gaia data, we found evidence of variation in radial velocity and proper motion, indicative of presence of an unresolved binary. The large V _rot is probably a result of tidal synchronization combined with the aftereffects of He flash, in which the size of the star is reduced significantly. The simultaneous presence of features like high rotation, very high Li abundance, strong dust shell, and strong flares in a single star is relatively uncommon, suggesting that the star experiencing tidal synchronization has recently undergone He flash. The results pose a question whether the binary interaction, hence the high rotation, is a prerequisite for the dredging up of the high amounts of Li from the interior to the photosphere during or immediately after the He-flash event.

Abstract Ovarian tissue cryopreservation is considered to be the only means to preserve fertility for prepubertal girls and women whose cancer treatment cannot be postponed. However, ovarian tissues are inevitably damaged by oxidative stress during cryopreservation, which threatens follicle survival and development, and thus affects female fertility. Therefore, reducing tissue oxidative stress injury is one of the major challenges to achieving efficient cryopreservation of ovarian tissues, especially for whole ovaries. Here, we proposed a new method to improve the antioxidant capacity of whole ovaries during cryopreservation, static magnetic field assisted thawing. The results demonstrated that the antioxidant capacity of the ovarian tissue was significantly improved by static magnetic field treatment. In addition, ovarian tissue allograft transplantation was carried out, which successfully achieved vascular regeneration and maintained follicular development. The findings of this study not only provide a new reference for the preservation of female fertility, but also is a major step forward in the cryopreservation of tissues and organs. It will have good application prospects in the field of assisted reproduction and cryo‐biomedicine.

Abstract Although reservoirs serve as a lifeline for drought mitigation and adaptation, reservoir‐based droughts (RBD) have received limited attention. Especially RBD that incorporate reservoir evaporation have remained overlooked. Here, we develop an Integrated Reservoir Drought Index (IRDI) using a Frank copula by combining the effects of reservoir storage and evaporation rate for 164 global reservoirs. Results show that Africa, South America, and Australia have experienced relatively longer RBD, whereas Asia and Africa have experienced more intense RBD. Furthermore, when significant (p‐value

The phase space, as coded by kinematic parameters and chemical abundances, is crucial for understanding the formation of the Galactic disk. Using red giant stars from the Galactic thin disk with [Fe/H] > − 0.8 and low- α ratios identified in LAMOST-Gaia, we detect numerous ridges and undulations in the R – V _ϕ diagram coded by median V _R . Strikingly, the slope of these features changes from −22 km s ^−1 kpc ^−1 to −8 km s ^−1 kpc ^−1 at R ∼ 11.5 kpc. Accordingly, the R _g – V _ϕ plane, also coded by median V _R , reveals wave-like structures that propagate outwards in the inner disk but reverse direction and move inwards beyond R _g = 11.5 kpc. The most prominent feature is the G1 group, distinguished by its wider spread and negative median V _R at R _g ∼ 15 kpc, contrasting with the narrower G0 group that exhibits positive median V _R at R _g < 11.5 kpc. Furthermore, the [C/N] versus [Fe/H] relationship for the G1 group mirrors the opposite trend compared to the G0 group. Since [C/N] serves as a proxy for age, this contrasting behavior suggests an inverse age–metallicity relation for the G1 group. Comparison with the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy reveals that the G1 group possesses distinct [Mg/Fe] and [Al/Fe] ratios, yet its [C/N] versus [Fe/H] pattern is similar to that of the Sgr dwarf galaxy. Based on these observations, we proposed that the inward-moving and asymmetric velocity wave G1 might be linked to the minor merge of the Sagittarius galaxy.

The velocity interferometer system for any reflector (VISAR) coupled with a streaked optical pyrometer (SOP) system is used as a diagnostic tool in inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments involving equations of state and shock timing. To validate the process of adiabatically compressing the fuel shell through precise tuning of shocks in experimental campaigns for the double-cone ignition (DCI) scheme of ICF, a compact line-imaging VISAR with an SOP system is designed and implemented at the Shenguang-II upgrade laser facility. The temporal and spatial resolutions of the system are better than 30 ps and 7 μm, respectively. An illumination lens is used to adjust the lighting spot size matching with the target size. A polarization beam splitter and λ/4 waveplate are used to increase the transmission efficiency of our system. The VISAR and SOP work at 660 and 450 nm, respectively, to differentiate the signals from the scattered lights of the drive lasers. The VISAR can measure the shock velocity. At the same time, the SOP system can give the shock timing and relative strength. This system has been used in different DCI campaigns, where the generation and propagation processes of multi-shock are carefully diagnosed.

Abstract Acid-sensing ion channel 1a (ASIC1a), a prominent member of the acid-sensing ion channel (ASIC) superfamily activated by extracellular protons, is ubiquitously expressed throughout the human body, including the nervous system and peripheral tissues. Excessive accumulation of Ca2+ ions via ASIC1a activation may occur in the acidified microenvironment of blood or local tissues. ASIC1a-mediated Ca2+‑induced apoptosis has been implicated in numerous pathologies, including neurological disorders, cancer, and rheumatoid arthritis. This review summarizes the role of ASIC1a in the modulation of apoptosis via various signaling pathways across different disease states to provide insights for future studies on the underlying mechanisms and development of therapeutic strategies.

Introduction: Gastric cancer (GC)is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in China and immunotherapy emerging as a revolutionary treatment for GC recently. Tumor mutational burden (TMB) is a predictive biomarker of immunotherapy in multiple cancers. However, the prognostic significance and subtype of TMB in GC is not fully understood. Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the prognostic value of TMB in Chinese GC and further classify TMB-high GC (GCTMB-H) patients combing with mutational signatures. Methods: Genomic profiling of 435 cancer-gene panel was performed using 206 GC samples from Chinese people. Actionable genetic alterations were compared across all the samples to generate actionable subtyping. The prognostic value of TMB in Chinese GC was evaluated. Mutational signatures were analyzed on TMB-H subtype to stratify the prognosis of TMB. Transcriptomic analysis was applied to compare the distributed immunocytes among different subtypes. Results: 88.3% (182/206) of GC samples had at least one mutation, while 45.1% (93/206) had at least one somatic copy number alteration (SCNA). 29.6% (61/206) of GC samples were TMB-H, including 13 MSI-H and 48 MSS tumors. According to distinct genetic alteration profiles of 69 actionable genes, we classified GC samples into eight molecular subtypes, including TMB-H, ERBB2 amplified, ATM mutated, BRCA2 mutated, CDKN2A/B deleted, PI3KCA mutated, KRAS mutated, and less-mutated subtype. TMB-H subtype presented a remarkable immune-activated phenotype as determined by transcriptomic analysis that was further validated in the TCGA GC cohort. GCTMB-H patients exhibited significantly better survival (P = 0.047). But Signature 1-high GCTMB-H patients had relatively worse prognosis (P = 0.0209, HR = 2.571) than Signature 1-low GCTMB-H patients from Chinese GC cohort, also validated in TCGA GC cohort, presenting highly activated carbohydrate, fatty acid or lipid metabolism. Conclusion: The Signature 1-high GCTMB-H could be a marker of poor prognosis and is associated with metabolism disorder.

Abstract With the rapid development of stem cell-related therapies and regenerative medicine, the clinical application of stem cell products is on the rise. However, ensuring the effectiveness of these products after storage and transportation remains a challenge in the transformation to clinical trials. Cryopreservation technology allows for the long-term storage of cells while ensuring viability, making it a top priority for stem cell preservation. The field of cryopreservation-related engineering technologies is thriving, and this review provides an overview of the background and basic principles of cryopreservation. It then delves into the main bioengineering technologies and strategies used in cryopreservation, including photothermal and electromagnetic rewarming, microencapsulation, and synergetic ice inhibition. Finally, the current challenges and future prospects in the field of efficient cryopreservation of stem cells are summarized and discussed.

Climate change has a significant impact on agriculture. However, the impact investigation is currently limited to the analysis of meteorological data, and there is a dearth of long-term monitoring of crop phenology and soil moisture associated with climate change. In this study, temperature and precipitation (1957–2020) were recorded, crop growth (1981–2019) data were collected, and field experiments were conducted at central and eastern Gansu and southern Ningxia, China. The mean temperature increased by 0.36°C, and precipitation decreased by 11.17 mm per decade. The average evapotranspiration (ET) of winter wheat in 39 years from 1981 to 2019 was 362.1 mm, demonstrating a 22.1-mm decrease every 10 years. However, the ET of spring maize was 405.5 mm over 35 years (1985–2019), which did not show a downward trend. Every 10 years, growth periods were shortened by 5.19 and 6.47 d, sowing dates were delayed by 3.56 and 1.68 d, and maturity dates advanced by 1.76 and 5.51 d, respectively, for wheat and maize. A film fully-mulched ridge–furrow (FMRF) system with a rain-harvesting efficiency of 65.7-92.7% promotes deep rainwater infiltration into the soil. This leads to double the soil moisture in-furrow, increasing the water satisfaction rate by 110-160%. A 15-year grain yield of maize increased by 19.87% with the FMRF compared with that of half-mulched flat planting. Grain yield and water use efficiency of maize increased by 20.6 and 17.4% when the density grew from 4.5×104 to 6.75×104 plants ha–1 and improved by 12.0 and 12.7% when the density increased from 6.75×104 to 9.0×104 plants ha–1, respectively. Moreover, responses of maize yield to density and the corresponding density of the maximum yield varied highly in different rainfall areas. The density parameter suitable for water planting was 174 maize plants ha–1 with 10 mm rainfall. Therefore, management strategies should focus on adjusting crop planting structure, FMRF water harvesting system, and water-suitable planting to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change and enhance sustainable production of maize in the drylands.

Cu–Ti alloys are candidates for replacing Cu–Be alloys owing to their excellent mechanical properties, bending properties, and stress relaxation resistance. However, the precipitation behavior of Cu–Ti alloys remains poorly understood. In this study, diffraction patterns, orientations, and morphologies of continuous and discontinuous precipitates in a Cu–3 wt% Ti (Cu–3Ti) alloy are investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). In the peak-aging condition, numerous rod-like nanosized continuous precipitates (CP) of β′-Cu4Ti are uniformly distributed in the Cu–3Ti alloy. The CP retain their tetragonal structure, and their orientation relationships with the matrix are determined as [001]Cu//[001]β' and (010)Cu//(310)β', exhibiting six variants. With increasing aging time, discontinuous precipitates (DP) of β-Cu4Ti grow at the grain boundaries, displaying an orthorhombic structure (a = 0.453 nm, b = 0.4342 nm, and c = 1.293 nm). The orientation relationships between the DP and the Cu-matrix are determined as (Laughlin and Cahn, 1975; Han et al., 2016; Datta and Soffa, 1976; Han et al., 2020; Huang et al., 2023; Soffa and Laughlin, 2004; Wang et al., 2021; Si et al., 2016; Markandeya et al., 2004; Nagarjuna et al., 2001) [1-10]Cu//[501]β and (111)Cu//(010)β. Typical diffraction pattern models of the CP and DP in different directions were simulated, and the simulations were in good agreement with the experimental data.

Abstract Introduction Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) may play a role in evaluating treatment response after definitive chemoradiation therapy (dCRT) for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). This study explored the prognostic markers of EUS with biopsies and developed two nomograms for survival prediction. Methods A total of 821 patients newly diagnosed with ESCC between January 2015 and December 2019 were reviewed. We investigated the prognostic value of the changes in tumor imaging characteristics and histopathological markers by an interim response evaluation, including presence of stenosis, ulceration, tumor length, tumor thickness, lumen involvement, and tumor remission. Independent prognostic factors of progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were determined using Cox regression analysis and further selected to build two nomogram models for survival prediction. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, calibration curve, and decision curve analysis (DCA) were used to respectively assess its discriminatory capacity, predictive accuracy, and clinical usefulness. Results A total of 155 patients were enrolled in this study and divided into the training (109 cases) and testing (46 cases) cohorts. Tumor length, residual tumor thickness, reduction in tumor thickness, lumen involvement, and excellent remission (ER) of spatial luminal involvement in ESCC (ER/SLI) differed significantly between responders and non-responders. For patients undergoing dCRT, tumor stage (P = 0.001, 0.002), tumor length (P = 0.013, 0.008), > 0.36 reduction in tumor thickness (P = 0.004, 0.004) and ER/SLI (P = 0.041, 0.031) were independent prognostic markers for both PFS and OS. Time-dependent ROC curves, calibration curves, and DCA indicated that the predicted survival rates of our two established nomogram models were highly accurate. Conclusion Our nomogram showed high accuracy in predicting PFS and OS for ESCC after dCRT. External validation and complementation of other biomarkers are needed in further studies.

In this paper, the influence of bismuth content and heating rate on the morphology of MnS inclusions in bismuth-containing free-cutting steel during heating was investigated through in situ observation experiments and 3D electrolytic corrosion experiments. By observing the microscopic morphology of inclusions in the original sample, it was found that MnS inclusions in the sample were rod-shaped, spherical, irregular, small in size, and mostly clustered at the grain boundary in the form of chains and divergences. With the addition of bismuth, MnS inclusions of a larger size appear in the steel, and the inclusions distributed at grain boundaries are also reduced. When bismuth (0.010~0.020%) is added to the steel, MnS is mainly spherical and uniformly dispersed in the steel matrix. If the bismuth content is too high, the inclusions aggregate. Through in situ observations of the inclusions in the sample, it was found that the addition of bismuth in the heating process delays the appearance of ferrite grain boundaries and contributes to the spheroidization of MnS inclusions. Mn and S elements can fully diffuse slowly in the matrix with a heating rate below 1 °C/s and a long holding time (300 s), which provides the possibility for the spheroidization of MnS inclusions.

Objective To study the platelet transfusion predictive models in tumor patients and evaluate its application effect. Methods A retrospective study was conducted on 944 tumor patients, including 533 males and 411 females who received platelet transfusion in the Affiliated Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine of Xinjiang Medical University, the Affiliated Cancer Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University and Kailuan General Hospital from August 2022 to January 2023. Multivariate Logistic regression analysis was used to establish the platelet transfusion predictive models, and Medcalc15.8 software was used to draw the receiver operating curve (ROC) to evaluate the application effect of the prediction model. The actual application effect of models was verified through 162 female clinical cases and 172 male clinical cases. Results The incidence of platelet transfusion refractoriness in tumor patients was 28.9% (273/944), with 33.2% (177/533) in males, significantly higher than that in females [23.4% (96/411)] (P

Abstract Background Cholesterol gallstone disease is a common disease. Reducing cholesterol burden is important to prevent/treat gallstone. In this study, we investigated the application of diosgenin (DG) to prevent the formation of gallstone in mice. Methods Adult male C57BL/6J mice were fed with the lithogenic diet (LD) only or LD supplemented with DG or ezetimibe for 8 weeks. Incidences of gallstone formation were documented. Intestine and liver tissues were collected to measure the lipid contents and expression of genes in cholesterol metabolism. Caco2 cells were treated with DG to monitor the regulation on cholesterol absorption and the transcriptional regulation of Npc1l1 gene. Changes of gut microbiota by DG was analyzed. Intraperitoneal injection of LPS on mice was performed to verify its effects on STAT3 activation and Npc1l1 expression in the small intestine. Results LD led to 100% formation of gallstones in mice. In comparison, dietary DG or ezetimibe supplementary completely prevents gallstones formation. DG inhibited intestinal cholesterol absorption in mice as well as in Caco2 cells by down-regulation of Npc1l1 expression. DG could directly inhibit phosphorylation of STAT3 and its transcriptional regulation of Npc1l1 expression. Furthermore, DG could modulate gut microbiota profiles and LPS mediated STAT3 activation and Npc1l1 expression. Conclusion Our results demonstrated that dietary DG could inhibit intestinal cholesterol absorption through decreasing NPC1L1 expression to prevent cholesterol gallstone formation.

Abstract Surface water reservoirs are increasingly being relied upon to meet rising demands in the context of growing population and changing climate. However, the amount of water available in reservoirs (and the corresponding trends) have not been well quantified at the global scale. Here we use satellite observations to estimate the storage variations of 7245 global reservoirs from 1999 to 2018. Total global reservoir storage has increased at a rate of 27.82 ± 0.08 km3/yr, which is mainly attributed to the construction of new dams. However, the normalized reservoir storage (NS)—the ratio of the actual storage to the storage capacity—has declined by 0.82 ± 0.01%. The decline of NS values is especially pronounced in the global south, while the global north mainly exhibits an NS increase. With predicted decreasing runoff and increasing water demand, these observed diminishing storage returns of reservoir construction will likely persist into the future.

Abstract To reduce the chance of being infected by the COVID-19, wearing masks correctly when entering and leaving public places has become the most feasible and effective ways to prevent the spread of the virus. It is a concern to how to quickly and accurately detect whether a face is worn a mask correctly while reduce missed detection and false detection in practical applied scenarios. In this paper, an improved algorithm is proposed based on the YOLO-v4 algorithm. The attention mechanism module is added to the appropriate network level to enhance the key feature points of face wearing masks and suppress useless information. Apart from that, three attention mechanism modules are added to different layers of the YOLO-v4 network for ablation experiments, including CBAM (convolutional block attention module), SENet (squeeze-and-excitation networks) and CANet (coordinate attention networks). The path-aggregation network and feature pyramid are used to extract features from images. Two network models were compared and improved in the experiment, and it is found that adding the dual-channel attention mechanism CBAM before the three YOLO heads of YOLOv4 and in the neck network had better detection performance than the single channel attention mechanism SENet and the coordinated attention mechanism CANet. The experimental results show that when the attention module CBAM and the YOLO-v4 model are integrated, the accuracy of the selected MAFA + WIDER Face dataset reaches the highest value of 93.56%, which is 4.66% higher than that of the original YOLO-v4.

Abstract Background Previous studies have shown inconsistent findings regarding the association of light to moderate alcohol consumption with cause-specific mortality. Therefore, this study sought to examine the prospective association of alcohol consumption with all-cause and cause-specific mortality in the US population. Methods This was a population-based cohort study of adults aged 18 years or older in the National Health Interview Survey (1997 to 2014) with linkage to the National Death Index records through December 31, 2019. Self-reported alcohol consumption was categorized into seven groups (lifetime abstainers; former infrequent or regular drinkers; and current infrequent, light, moderate, or heavy drinkers). The main outcome was all-cause and cause-specific mortality. Results During an average follow-up of 12.65 years, among the 918,529 participants (mean age 46.1 years; 48.0% male), 141,512 adults died from all causes, 43,979 from cardiovascular disease (CVD), 33,222 from cancer, 8246 from chronic lower respiratory tract diseases, 5572 from accidents (unintentional injuries), 4776 from Alzheimer’s disease, 4845 from diabetes mellitus, 2815 from influenza and pneumonia, and 2692 from nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, or nephrosis. Compared with lifetime abstainers, current infrequent, light, or moderate drinkers were at a lower risk of mortality from all causes [infrequent—hazard ratio: 0.87; 95% confidence interval: 0.84 to 0.90; light: 0.77; 0.75 to 0.79; moderate 0.82; 0.80 to 0.85], CVD, chronic lower respiratory tract diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, and influenza and pneumonia. Also, light or moderate drinkers were associated with lower risk of mortality from diabetes mellitus and nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, or nephrosis. In contrast, heavy drinkers had a significantly higher risk of mortality from all causes, cancer, and accidents (unintentional injuries). Furthermore, binge drinking ≥ 1 day/week was associated with a higher risk of mortality from all causes (1.15; 1.09 to 1.22), cancer (1.22; 1.10 to 1.35), and accidents (unintentional injuries) (1.39; 1.11 to 1.74). Conclusions Infrequent, light, and moderate alcohol consumption were inversely associated with mortality from all causes, CVD, chronic lower respiratory tract diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, and influenza and pneumonia. Light or moderate alcohol consumption might also have a beneficial effect on mortality from diabetes mellitus and nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, or nephrosis. However, heavy or binge had a higher risk of all-cause, cancer, and accidents (unintentional injuries) mortality.

Islet transplant has proven to be one promising strategy for diabetes treatment with minimal invasiveness, which restore the patient's endocrine function and avoid exogenous insulin injection. In the past decades, the ever-increasing diabetic population has brought more demand for this technology, therefore, accelerating the development of numerous engineering technologies optimizing the transplantation efficiency. In this review, we summarized the emerging engineering approaches in this field, aiming to provide a general understanding of islet transplantation challenges and the cutting edge of engineering technologies. Firstly, we introduced the islet product sources used for transplantation and analyzed their respective advantages and disadvantages. Afterwards, we focused on the advanced engineering strategies for maintaining islet graft viability and function in the transplantation. Finally, we summarized the engineering challenges and potential research directions in this field.

Copper(II) (Cu2+) is essential for plant growth and development. However, high concentrations are extremely toxic to plants. We investigated the tolerance mechanism of cotton under Cu2+ stress in a hybrid cotton variety (Zhongmian 63) and two parent lines with different Cu2+ concentrations (0, 0.2, 50, and 100 μM). The stem height, root length, and leaf area of cotton seedlings had decreased growth rates in response to increasing Cu2+ concentrations. Increasing Cu2+ concentration promoted Cu2+ accumulation in all three cotton genotypes’ roots, stems, and leaves. However, compared with the parent lines, the roots of Zhongmian 63 were richer in Cu2+ and had the least amount of Cu2+ transported to the shoots. Moreover, excess Cu2+ also induced changes in cellular redox homeostasis, causing accumulation of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and malondialdehyde (MDA). Conversely, antioxidant enzyme activity increased, while photosynthetic pigment content decreased. Our findings indicated that the hybrid cotton variety fared well under Cu2+ stress. This creates a theoretical foundation for the further analysis of the molecular mechanism of cotton resistance to copper and suggests the potential of the large-scale planting of Zhongmian 63 in copper-contaminated soils.

Abstract Lead (Pb) is a known environmental risk factor in the etiology of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The existing reports suggest that Pb exposure increases beta-amyloid (Aβ) levels in brain tissues and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and facilitates the formation of amyloid plaques, which is a pathological hallmark for AD. Pb exposure has long been associated with cerebral vasculature injury. Yet it remained unclear if Pb exposure caused excessive Ab buildup in cerebral vasculature, which may damage the blood–brain barrier and cause abnormal Ab accumulation. This study was designed to investigate the impact of chronic Pb exposure on Aβ accumulation in cerebral capillary and the expression of low-density lipoprotein receptor protein-1 (LRP1), a critical Aβ transporter, in brain capillary and parenchyma. Sprague–Dawley rats received daily oral gavage at doses of 0, 14 (low-dose), and 27 (high-dose) mg Pb/kg as Pb acetate, 5 d/wk, for 4 or 8 wks. At the end of Pb exposure, a solution containing Aβ40 was infused into the brain via the cannulated internal carotid artery. Data by ELISA showed a strikingly high affinity of Ab to cerebral vasculature, which was approximately 7–14 times higher than that to the parenchymal fractions collected from control brains. Pb exposure further aggravated the Aβ accumulation in cerebral vasculature in a dose-dependent manner. Western blot analyses revealed that Pb exposure decreased LRP1 expression in cortical capillaries and hippocampal parenchyma. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) studies further revealed a disrupted distribution of LRP1 alongside hippocampal vasculature accompanied with a decreased expression in hippocampal neurons by Pb exposure. Taken together, the current study demonstrated that the cerebral vasculature naturally possessed a high affinity to Aβ present in circulating blood. Pb exposure significantly increased Aβ accumulation in cerebral vasculature; such an increased Aβ accumulation was due partly to the diminished expression of LRP1 in response to Pb in tested brain regions. Perceivably, Pb-facilitated Ab aggravation in cerebral vasculature may contribute to Pb-associated amyloid alterations.

The microstructure, mechanical properties and three-body impact abrasive wear behavior were investigated. The results indicated that martensite transformation occurred even under air-cooling, and fully martensitic structure consisted of lath martensite and a small amount of twinned martensite was obtained. And the martensite auto-tempering occurred during the subsequent air cooling process, resulting in precipitation of fine ellipsoidal V(C, N) particles and acicular η-Fe2C cementite in the matrix. Meanwhile, the tensile strength, yield strength, Brinell hardness and impact energy (−40 °C) of experimental steel were 1526 MPa, 973 MPa, 454.3 HB and 28 J, respectively. The strengthening mechanism analysis showed that solution strengthening was still the dominant strengthening method even though a large number of carbides were precipitated in the matrix. The dislocation strengthening was limited due to lower dislocation density, and the hot rolled recrystallization led to considerable grain refinement strengthening. Moreover, the results of three-body impact abrasive wear tests indicated that the wear resistance of experimental steel reached a same level as commercial Hardox450 steel. The wear mechanisms of experimental steels were plastic deformation fatigue, abrasive embedded and cutting. The mass loss rates of experimental steel and Hardox450 steel were 0.0033 g/min and 0.0032 g/min under the impact energy of 2.5 J, respectively.

The optimal aging temperatures of 400–550 °C for high strength steels falls into the dangerous temperature range of temper-embrittlement. To obtain a good low-temperature toughness, temperatures above 600 °C are usually selected for aging treatments, resulting in a huge loss of strength. In this work, the effects of aging treatments at 500 and 550 °C on the impact performance of a Cu precipitation-strengthened steel at a low temperature of −80 °C were systematically investigated. The solute segregation at lath boundaries is found to be the main factor controlling the low-temperature toughness. Excellent impact performance of ∼180 J at −80 °C along with a high yield strength of ∼1050 MPa and a total elongation of 19% can be obtained by controlling the segregation of solute elements, specifically Mo and Mn at the lath boundaries. The evolutions of matrix and precipitates during aging treatments were investigated. The strengthening and toughening mechanisms are also critically discussed.

Abstract Background Spontaneous uterine venous rupture combined with ovarian rupture in late pregnancy is extremely rare. It often has an insidious onset and atypical symptoms, develops rapidly, and is easily misdiagnosed. Wewould like to discuss and share this case of spontaneous uterine venous plexus combined with ovarian rupture in the third trimester of pregnancy with colleagues. Case presentation A pregnant woman, G1P0 at 33+4 weeks of gestation,was admitted to the hospital due to threatened preterm labour on March 3, 2022. After admission, she was treated with tocolytic inhibitors and foetal lung maturation agents. The patient's symptoms did not improve during the treatment. After many examinations, tests, discussions, a diagnosis, and a caesarean section, the patient was finally diagnosed with atypical pregnancy complicated by spontaneous uterine venous plexus and ovarian rupture. Conclusions Spontaneous rupture of the uterine venous plexus combined with ovarian rupture in late pregnancy is an occult and easily misdiagnosed condition, and the consequences are serious. Clinical attention should be given to the disease and prevention attempted to avoid adverse pregnancy outcomes.

As we face increasing challenges of world food security and malnutrition, coarse cereals are coming into favor as an important supplement to human staple foods due to their high nutritional value. In addition, their functional components, such as flavonoids and polyphenols, make them an important food source for healthy diets. However, we lack a systematic understanding of the importance of coarse cereals for world food security and nutritional goals. This review summarizes the worldwide cultivation and distribution of coarse cereals, indicating that the global area for coarse cereal cultivation is steadily increasing. This paper also focuses on the special adaptive mechanisms of coarse cereals to drought and discusses the strategies to improve coarse cereal crop yields from the perspective of agricultural production systems. The future possibilities, challenges, and opportunities for coarse cereal production are summarized in the face of food security challenges, and new ideas for world coarse cereal production are suggested.

A fresh wave of technical change is seen as one of the most effective ways to achieve sustainable agricultural development due to the declining carrying capacity of resources and the environment. China, a nation with a sizable population, has drawn immense research attention over the following question: How can China promote agricultural transformation and achieve high-quality agricultural development through technological innovation? Based on the panel data that considers 28 provincial-level administrative regions in mainland China from 2010 to 2018, the study utilizes two-way fixed models; thus, it tests the impact of domestic agricultural research and development on high-quality agricultural development. Furthermore, it utilizes the moderating effect to verify the relationship between the two aforementioned factors under the influence of foreign technology introduction, human capital, and financial support. We observed the following: First, the high-quality agricultural development that characterized all the Chinese regions exhibited a steady upward trend. The industrial system, ecological system, and management system exhibited considerable development, whereas the development of the production system was lagging. Second, domestic agricultural research and development has promoted high-quality agricultural development. Third, under the moderating effect of foreign technology introduction, human capital, and financial support, the promotion effect of domestic agricultural research and development on high-quality agricultural development has gradually weakened. This study presents various proposals; thus, it strengthens the role of domestic agricultural research and development in promoting high-quality agricultural development.

Nucleotide second messengers play an important role in bacterial adaptation to environmental changes. Recent evidence suggests that some of these regulatory molecular pathways were conserved upon the degenerative evolution of the wall-less mycoplasmas. We have recently reported the occurrence of a phosphodiesterase (PDE) in the ruminant pathogen Mycoplasma bovis, which was involved in c-di-AMP metabolism. In the present study, we demonstrate that the genome of this mycoplasma species encodes a PDE of the GdpP family with atypical DHH domains. Characterization of M. bovis GdpP (MbovGdpP) revealed a multifunctional PDE with unusual nanoRNase and single-stranded DNase activities. The alarmone ppGpp was found unable to inhibit c-di-NMP degradation by MbovGdpP but efficiently blocked its nanoRNase activity. Remarkably, MbovGdpP was found critical for the osmotic tolerance of M. bovis under K+ and Na+ conditions. Transcriptomic analyses further revealed the biological importance of MbovGdpP in tRNA biosynthesis, pyruvate metabolism, and several steps in genetic information processing. This study is an important step in understanding the role of PDE and nucleotide second messengers in the biology of a minimal bacterial pathogen.

BackgroundAccording to a recent report by the WHO, approximately 17.5\% (about one-sixth) of the global adult population is affected by infertility. Consequently, researchers worldwide have proposed various machine learning models to improve the prediction of clinical pregnancy outcomes during IVF cycles. The objective of this study is to develop a machine learning(ML) model that predicts the outcomes of pregnancies following in vitro fertilization (IVF) and assists in clinical treatment.MethodsThis study conducted a retrospective analysis on provincial reproductive centers in China from March 2020 to March 2021, utilizing 13 selected features. The algorithms used included XGBoost, LightGBM, KNN, Naïve Bayes, Random Forest, and Decision Tree. The results were evaluated using performance metrics such as precision, recall, F1-score, accuracy and AUC, employing five-fold cross-validation repeated five times.ResultsAmong the models, LightGBM achieved the best performance, with an accuracy of 92.31%, recall of 87.80%, F1-score of 90.00\%, and an AUC of 90.41%. The model identified the estrogen concentration at the HCG injection(etwo), endometrium thickness (mm) on HCG day(EM TNK), years of infertility(Years), and body mass index(BMI) as the most important features.ConclusionThis study successfully demonstrates the LightGBM model has the best predictive effect on pregnancy outcomes during IVF cycles. Additionally, etwo was found to be the most significant predictor for successful IVF compared to other variables. This machine learning approach has the potential to assist fertility specialists in providing counseling and adjusting treatment strategies for patients.

Importance: Postmenopausal women affected by overweight and obesity are susceptible to a variety of diseases due to inflammation. Exercise may reduce the risk of disease by attenuating low-grade chronic inflammation. Objective: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate the effects of exercise on inflammatory markers in postmenopausal women struggling with overweight and obesity. Method: Literature as of May 2023 was searched from databases such as Cochrane, Embase, Pubmed, Web of Science, and EBSCO and English-language randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that meet the inclusion criteria were selected. Studies were included based on the following criteria: (A) Written in English; (B) RCTs; (C) Postmenopausal women impacted by overweight and obesity as research objects; (D) Outcome measurements include CRP, TNF-α, IL-6, and adiponectin; (E) Duration of the exercise intervention is eight weeks. Results: A total of 34 articles and 2229 participants were included. Exercise can significantly reduce the level of C-reactive protein (CRP) (MD: -0.59, 95 % CI: −0.87 to −0.31, p

To implement state policies of zero-markup drug policy and medical service fee adjustment for public hospitals, this study constructed game models of the pharmaceutical supply chain, consisting of a drug supplier and a public hospital. The study obtained the optimal medical service level and pricing under the new state drug policies. In addition, it analyzed the impacts of the degree of public benefit of hospitals on the medical service level, the medical service price, and the drug price. Finally, from the perspective of cooperation between drug suppliers and public hospitals, the specialized coordination contract was designed to maximize overall social welfare. This study found an anomalous but meaningful conclusion: in the background of the zero-markup drug policy, a higher public benefit of hospitals could increase the drug prices, but it could reduce the medical service prices further to cut down on the overall treatment fees for the patients. The novel coordination contract can optimize the pharmaceutical supply chain and achieve a win-win situation for the drug suppliers, public hospitals, and patients. When the public benefit of hospitals is higher, the profit of a decentralized decision-making supply chain is greater than a centralized one, while the pharmaceutical supply chain will not coordinate itself.

Brucellosis is considered one of the most hazardous zoonotic diseases all over the world. It causes formidable economic losses in developed and developing countries. Despite the significant attempts to get rid of Brucella pathogens in many parts of the world, the disease continues to spread widely. Recently, many attempts proved to be effective for the prevention and control of highly contagious bovine brucellosis, which could be followed by others to achieve a prosperous future without rampant Brucella pathogens. In this study, the updated view for worldwide Brucella distribution, possible predisposing factors for emerging Brucella pathogens, immune response and different types of Brucella vaccines, genomics and proteomics approaches incorporated recently in the field of brucellosis, and future perspectives for prevention and control of bovine brucellosis have been discussed comprehensively. So, the current study will be used as a guide for researchers in planning their future work, which will pave the way for a new world without these highly contagious pathogens that have been infecting and threatening the health of humans and terrestrial animals.

BackgroundDepression and anxiety are common comorbidities in cardiovascular clinic outpatients. Timely identification and intervention of these mental and psychological disorders can contribute to correct diagnosis, better prognosis, less medical expenses, and improved quality of life. The convenience of online doctor-patient communication platforms has increasingly attracted patients to online consultations. However, online health care and offline health care are very different. Research on how to identify psychological disorders in patients who engage in an online cardiology consultation is lacking. ObjectiveThis study aimed to explore the feasibility of using a self-rating scale to assess mental illness among patients who consult with a cardiologist online and to compare the differences in anxiety and depression between online and offline patients. MethodsFrom June 2022 to July 2022, we conducted follow-up visits with 10,173 patients on the Haodf platform. We conducted detailed consultations with 286 patients who visited the same cardiologist in the outpatient department. We used the self-rated Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) and Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) scales to assess anxiety and depression, respectively. We analyzed the influencing factors related to the degree of coordination of online patients. We also compared the prevalence of anxiety or depression between online and offline patients and analyzed the factors related to anxiety or depression. ResultsOf the 10,173 online consultation patients, only 186 (1.8%) responded effectively. The response rate of the offline consultation patients was 96.5% (276/286). Frequent online communication and watching live video broadcasts were significantly related to effective responses from online patients (P

From the perspective of institutional change of IPO regulation, this paper discusses the relationship between IPO pricing regulation and audit fees in China. This paper finds that the audit fees of IPO companies are higher in the stage of pricing regulation in comparison to the stage of pricing marketization. We also find auditors charge higher audit fees for the private companies than state-owned companies during the IPO pricing regulation period. Furthermore in regions with tighten legislation, IPO audit fees are higher in the IPO pricing regulation period.

Abstract Gears play an important role in virtual manufacturing systems for digital twins; however, the image of gear tooth defects is difficult to acquire owing to its non-convex shape. In this study, a deep learning network is proposed to detect gear defects based on their point cloud representation. This approach mainly consists of three steps: (1) Various types of gear defects are classified into four cases (fracture, pitting, glue, and wear); A 3D gear dataset was constructed with 10000 instances following the aforementioned classification. (2) Gear-PCNet+ + introduces a novel Combinational Convolution Block, proposed based on the gear dataset for gear defect detection to effectively extract the local gear information and identify its complex topology; (3) Compared with other methods, experiments show that this method can achieve better recognition results for gear defects with higher efficiency and practicability.

Abstract Background The snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus roxellanae) is an endangered animal species mainly distributed in China and needs to be protected. Gut microbiome is an important determinant of animal health and population survival as it affects the adaptation of the animals to different foods and environments under kinetic changes of intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Therefore, this study aimed to elucidate gut fecal microbiome profiles of snub-nosed monkeys affected by several extrinsic and intrinsic factors, including raising patterns (captive vs. wild), age, sex, and diarrheal status to provide a reference for making protection strategies. Results The 16S rRNA gene sequencing was firstly used to pre-check clustering of 38 fecal samples from the monkeys including 30 wild and 8 captive (5 healthy and 3 diarrheal) from three Regions of Shennongjia Nature Reserve, Hubei Province, China. Then the 24 samples with high-quality DNA from 18 wild and 6 captive (4 healthy and 2 diarrheal) monkeys were subjected to shotgun metagenomic sequencing to characterize bacterial gut microbial communities. We discovered that the raising pattern (captive and wild) rather than age and sex was the predominant factor attributed to gut microbiome structure and proportionality. Wild monkeys had significantly higher bacterial diversity and lower Bacteroidetes/Firmicutes ratios than captive animals. Moreover, the gut microbiomes in wild healthy monkeys were enriched for the genes involved in fatty acid production, while in captive animals, genes were enriched for vitamin biosynthesis and metabolism and amino acid biosynthesis from carbohydrate intermediates. Additionally, a total of 37 antibiotic resistant genes (ARG) types were detected. Unlike the microbiome diversity, the captive monkeys have a higher diversity of ARG than the wild animals. Conclusion Taken together, we highlight the importance of self-reprogramed metabolism in the snub-nosed monkey gut microbiome to help captive and wild monkeys adapt to different intrinsic and extrinsic environmental change.

Ordos Basin is rich in shale oil resources. Fuxian area in the southern Ordos Basin is an important area where Sinopec is expected to make a breakthrough in the exploration and development of lacustrine shale oil. To further identify the exploration target of shale oil in Chang 7 Member of Fuxian area, Ordos Basin, this study systematically analyzed the sedimentary characteristics, source rock characteristics, reservoir characteristics, oil-bearing characteristics, fracability and preservation conditions of Chang 7 Member in this area. The results show that: (1) the organic matter abundance of shale in the Chang 7 Member is high, and its type is dominated by type I-II1; the maturity is also relatively high, with Ro generally greater than 0.8% in the central and western parts, which is favorable for the generation and accumulation of shale oil. The development of fractures is pretty low, and thus the structure preservation conditions are relatively favorable. Delta front deposits are mainly developed in the northeastern part, while deep lake - semi-deep lake mudstone and gravity-flow deposits are developed in the western part, and the shale oil types are mainly type II and III. (2) Comparing with the western Ordos Basin, the reservoir in Fuxian area has rapid lateral variation and relatively thin cumulative thickness; the thickness of high-quality shale and maturity are low, resulting in low intensity of hydrocarbon generation and low mobility of oil-bearing saturation. Therefore, there is still a need for further improvement and refinement in the exploration evaluation, effective development and engineering techniques. (3) Integrating sedimentary characteristics with shale oil types, source conditions, oil-bearing properties, mobility, fracability and preservation conditions, it is clarified that the Type II shale oil of Chang 72 sub-,Member in Fuxian area is the current realistic exploration type of shale oil, and its favorable target is located in the development area of delta front in the central part and gravity flow in the western part.

In real life, there are a lot of uncertainties in engineering structure design, and the potential uncertainties will have an important impact on the structural performance responses. Therefore, it is of great significance to consider the uncertainty in the initial stage of structural design to improve product performance. The consensus can be reached that the mechanical structure obtained by the reliability and robustness design optimization method considering uncertainty not only has low failure risk but also has highly stable performance. As a large mechanical system, the uncertainty design optimization of key vehicle structural performances is particularly important. This survey mainly discusses the current situation of the uncertain design optimization framework of automobile structures, and successively summarizes the uncertain design optimization of key automobile structures, uncertainty analysis methods, and multi-objective iterative optimization models. The uncertainty analysis method in the design optimization framework needs to consider the existing limited knowledge and limited test data. The importance of the interval model as a non-probabilistic model in the uncertainty analysis and optimization process is discussed. However, it should be noted that the interval model ignores the actual uncertainty distribution rule, which makes the design scheme still have some limitations. With the further improvement of design requirements, the efficiency, accuracy, and calculation cost of the entire design optimization framework of automobile structures need to be further improved iteratively. This survey will provide useful theoretical guidance for engineers and researchers in the automotive engineering field at the early stage of product development.

Abstract Background Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) has a dismal prognosis, and hypoxia plays a key role in metastasis and proliferation of ESCC. Thus, we aimed to develop a hypoxia‐based gene signature to assist in the treatment decisions and prognosis. Methods We performed consensus clustering analysis on samples from GSE53625 dataset from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and used weighted gene co‐expression network analysis to filter out candidate modules, which were then intersected with differentially expressed genes from clustered subgroups to obtain hypoxia‐related genes (HRGs). After that, the aforementioned genes were used to construct risk score models and validated in The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database and Cox regression analysis were used to construct a nomogram. Immunohistochemical was used to detect protein expression levels of relevant genes. Moreover, the relationship between risk scores and tumor microenvironment was explored. Results A hypoxia risk model containing six genes (PNPLA1, CARD18, IL‐18, SLC37A2, ADAMTS18, and FAM83C) was constructed by screening key HRGs. Poorer prognosis in the high‐risk group than in the low‐risk group. And Cox regression analysis showed that risk score was an independent prognostic factor. The nomogram based on risk scores could well predict 1‐, 3‐, and 5‐year survival. P53, Wnt, and hypoxia signaling pathways may be some regulatory mechanisms of hypoxia associated with the tumor microenvironment. In addition, we confirmed the high expression of BGN and low expression of IL‐18 in ESCC tissues. Conclusions Our study determined the prognostic value of a 6‐hypoxia gene signature and a prognostic model, providing potential prognostic predictors and therapeutic targets for ESCC.