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In recent years, the combination treatment of chemotherapy and photothermal therapy (PTT) has emerged as an efficient approach to improve anticancer activity. Here, we combine zeolitic imidazolate framework-67 (ZIF-67) and CuSe to build a multifunctional therapeutic platform (ZIF-67@CuSe@PVP) with an efficient chemo-photothermal therapy for cancer treatment. ZIF-67@CuSe@PVP nanoparticles were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV-vis, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), and nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms. These nanoparticles exhibited excellent pH-responsive doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX) releases due to the decomposition of ZIF-67 and excellent photothermal conversion efficiency (36%) without apparent deterioration during three cycles.

Lenvatinib (LT) is gradually replacing sorafenib as an alternative targeted drug against advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the anticancer effects of LT are still limited because of its low cytotoxicity, multidrug resistance (MDR), and tumor relapse. Herein, we constructed a smart biophotonic nanoplatform to overcome the barriers preventing high performance. LT and copper sulfide nanocrystals (Cu

A mild strategy for fabricating nanoporous silver (np-Ag) pieces was reported via preparation of Ag–Ga alloys in relatively low temperature and subsequent electrochemical dealloying in nitric acid (HNO3) aqueous solution. After selectively etching Ga out of the Ag–Ga alloy, a typical three-dimensional (3D) bicontinuous nanoporous structure with a pore size of ∼67.21–159.33 nm was observed. A series of studies have shown that the addition of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) results in minimum pore size. The coarsen exponent (n) is 1.61, and the activation energy was calculated to be 27.04 kJ mol−1. The ζ′-AgGa alloy prepared at low temperature can be used as the precursor for the preparation of fine np-Ags, and this method provides a new strategy for the industrial production of dealloyed np-Ag.

Background There have been few literature reports on the use of perioperative parameters to predict the risk of albumin transfusion after spinal tuberculosis surgery based on the application of nomogram and propensity score matching (PSM) analysis. Objective The purpose was to predict the risk of albumin transfusion after spinal tuberculosis surgery based on a combination of PSM and nomogram. Methods The clinical data of the patients were collected in our hospital, including preoperative clinical data, preoperative laboratory tests, and postoperative clinical data. All data were divided into 2 groups, including the albumin transfusion group and the non–albumin transfusion group. The PSM analysis was used to adjust the baseline data of the 2 groups. The nomogram was further constructed. The practicability and predictive ability of the model were evaluated. Results A total of 494 cases were collected in this article; 102 pairs by PSM analysis were used to construct the nomogram. There were statistical differences in surgical approach, aspartate aminotransferase/alanine aminotransferase levels, drainage, and kyphosis by logistic analysis, and these parameters were included in the construction of the nomogram. The C-index of the prediction model was 0.734. The area under the curve was 0.73 and the net benefit was between 0.13 and 0.99. The calculated C-index was 0.71 by the internal verification method. Conclusions The PSM analysis had a good matching effect and the nomogram had a good predictive ability. Surgical approach, aspartate aminotransferase/alanine aminotransferase levels, drainage, and kyphosis might be predictors of albumin transfusion after spinal tuberculosis surgery.

Objective The present study attempted to predict blood transfusion risk in spinal tuberculosis surgery by using a novel predictive nomogram. Methods The study was conducted on the clinical data of 495 patients (167 patients in the transfusion group and 328 patients in the non-transfusion group) who underwent spinal tuberculosis surgery in our hospital from June 2012 to June 2021. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to screen out statistically significant parameters, which were included to establish a novel predictive nomogram model. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, calibration curves, C-index, and decision curve analysis (DCA) were used to evaluate the model. Finally, the nomogram was further assessed through internal validation. Results The C-index of the nomogram was 0.787 (95% confidence interval: 74.6%–.82.8%). The C-value calculated by internal validation was 0.763. The area under the curve (AUC) of the predictive nomogram was 0.785, and the DCA was 0.01–0.79. Conclusion A nomogram with high accuracy, clinical validity, and reliability was established to predict blood transfusion risk in spinal tuberculosis surgery. Surgeons must prepare preoperative surgical strategies and ensure adequate availability of blood before surgery.

This integrated bioinformatic study aimed to investigate potential prognostic candidates in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In the GSE14520, GSE101685, and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) datasets, differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified and functional pathways of common DEGs were enriched. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) model was used to screen the potential parameters associated with overall survival (OS) in HCC patients. Metabolic pathways were the most significantly enriched functional pathways of common DEGs in these three datasets. After LASSO model analysis, HMGCS2, UGP2, BCLC staging and TNM staging were screened as potential prognostic candidates for OS in HCC patients in GSE14520. HMGCS2 in the metabolic pathway was significantly downregulated in tumor tissues and peripheral blood mononuclear cells in HCC patients (all p 5 cm, multinodular, advanced tumor staging including BCLC, TNM and CLIP (all p

Studies have found that both FibroScan (FS) and Gd-EOB-DTPA-enhanced T1 mapping magnetic resonance imaging (Gd-MRI) could assess liver fibrosis (LF) with high effectiveness. The aim of this study is to compare their accuracy in the quantitative evaluation of LF in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB), and to explore the diagnostic accuracy of their combination. 160 patients with CHB were included in this study. FS and Gd-MRI were performed within 3 months before the pathological LF staging, which was classified according to the Scheuer-Ludwig scale. The liver stiffness measurement (LSM) was obtained by FS. T1 mapping images of the liver before and 20 min after enhancement were obtained by Look-Locker Gd-MRI. There were 45, 35, 31 and 49 patients with stage S1, S2, S3 and S4 LF, respectively. LSM increased and the reduction rate of T1 relaxation time of 20 min (rrT120min%) decreased with the severity of LF. The area under curve (AUC) of LSM, rrT120min% and LSM + rrT120min% for the diagnosis of ≥ S2 LF were 0.892, 0.811 and 0.900, respectively. The AUC for ≥ S3 LF was 0.883, 0.838 and 0.899, respectively. The AUC for S4 LF was 0.882, 0.894 and 0.928, respectively. The diagnostic accuracy of FS is better than that of Gd-MRI in the evaluation of ≥ S2 stage LF. The combination of these two methods significantly improved the diagnostic efficiency in the evaluation of S4 stage LF.

Research on designing local feature descriptors has gradually shifted to deep learning. Different from other computer vision tasks, the biggest challenge for local descriptor learning lies with the formulation of loss functions. Existing methods solve the problem by leveraging Siamese loss or triplet loss and improve the performance of the learned descriptors by a significant margin. However, the widely used Siamese loss and triplet loss cannot fully utilize the context information. In this paper, we propose a novel loss function to introduce more context information to facilitate training. After incorporating the proposed loss function into training, our learned descriptor demonstrates state-of-the-art performance in patch verification, image matching and patch retrieval benchmarks. The pretrained model will be publicly available at https://github.com/clelouch/CANet.

Objective This study was aimed to reveal the molecular mechanism of bone destruction due to macrophage polarization leading to during extrapulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB) infection. Methods The dataset GSE83456 was downloaded from the GEO database, and the xCell tool was used to obtain the 64 types of immune cells. The flow cytometry was performed to identified the differences between M1 and M2 macrophages between EPTB and the healthy controls (HCs). The enrichment analyses were performed on the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and their functionally related modules. The hub genes were screened out, and their relationships with EPTB and the immune cell subtypes were further analyzed. Results The flow cytometric analysis validated this hypothesis of M1-macrophage polarization correlated with the pathogenesis of EPTB. Of the obtained 103 DEGs, 97 genes were upregulated, and 6 genes were downregulated. The GO and KEGG pathway analyses showed that the DEGs were particularly involved in the immune-related processes. The hub genes (STAT1 and CXCL10) might be involved in M1-macrophage polarization and correlated with the pathogenesis of EPTB. STAT1 and CXCL10 could also behave as biomarkers for EPTB. Conclusion STAT1 and CXCL10 were involved in the M1-macrophage polarization and correlated with the pathogenesis of EPTB. Besides, both of them could also behave as biomarkers for EPTB diagnosis and provide the required clues for targeted therapy in the future.

We established a relationship among the immune-related genes, tumor-infiltrating immune cells (TIICs), and immune checkpoints in patients with osteosarcoma. The gene expression data for osteosarcoma were downloaded from UCSC Xena and GEO database. Immune-related differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were detected to calculate the risk score. “Estimate” was used for immune infiltrating estimation and “xCell” was used to obtain 64 immune cell subtypes. Furthermore, the relationship among the risk scores, immune cell subtypes, and immune checkpoints was evaluated. The three immune-related genes (TYROBP, TLR4, and ITGAM) were selected to establish a risk scoring system based on their integrated prognostic relevance. The GSEA results for the Hallmark and KEGG pathways revealed that the low-risk score group exhibited the most gene sets that were related to immune-related pathways. The risk score significantly correlated with the xCell score of macrophages, M1 macrophages, and M2 macrophages, which significantly affected the prognosis of osteosarcoma. Thus, patients with low-risk scores showed better results with the immune checkpoints inhibitor therapy. A three immune-related, gene-based risk model can regulate macrophage activation and predict the treatment outcomes the survival rate in osteosarcoma.

For airborne gravity gradiometry in rugged terrain, helicopters offer a significant advantage over fixed‐wing aircraft: their ability to maintain much lower ground clearances. Crucially, this provides both better signal‐to‐noise and better spatial resolution than is possible with a fixed‐wing survey in the same terrain. Comparing surveys over gentle terrain at Margaret Lake, Canada, and over rugged terrain at Mount Aso, Japan, demonstrates that there is some loss of spatial resolution in the more rugged terrain. The slightly higher altitudes forced by rugged terrain make the requirements for terrain correction easier than for gentle terrain. Transforming the curvature gradients measured by the Falcon gravity gradiometer into gravity and the complete set of tensor components is done by a Fourier method over gentle terrain and an equivalent source method for rugged terrain. The Fourier method is perfectly stable and uses iterative padding to improve the accuracy of the longer wavelengths. The equivalent source method relies on a smooth model inversion, and the source distribution must be designed to suit the survey design.

Developing of high efficient electrode materials for CO2 reduction is very important in CO2 conversion and recycling utilization. In this work, we have fabricated ZnS/Zn electrode using sulphur infiltration method. This method is a well-developed technology in surface treatment. ZnS/Zn electrode fabricated via sulphur infiltration method has a crucial advantage: because sulfur atomic is infiltrated into Zn substrate, a translation layer is formed and sandwiches between ZnS layer and Zn substrate. As a result, ZnS connects with Zn substrate firmly, and the exfoliation of ZnS layer from Zn substrate is avoided. The ZnS/Zn has been investigated as the cathode for CO2 electro-reduction in propylene carbonate/tetrabutylammonium perchlorate (PC/TBAP) in membrane electrolysis cell. The current density of potentiostatic electrolysis remains stable at 6.72 mA/cm2 at voltage −2.4 V and the faradaic efficiency of CO formation reaches to 92%. Comparing with Zn electrode, ZnS/Zn exhibits higher catalytic activity.

IntroductionThis study aimed to identify important genes associated with melanoma to further develop new target gene therapies and analyze their significance concerning prognosis.Materials and methodsGene expression data for melanoma and normal tissue were downloaded from three databases. Differentially co-expressed genes were identified by WGCNA and DEGs analysis. These genes were subjected to GO, and KEGG enrichment analysis and construction of the PPI visualized with Cytoscape and screened for the top 10 Hub genes using CytoHubba. We validated the Hub gene’s protein levels with an immunohistochemical assay to confirm the accuracy of our analysis.ResultsA total of 435 differentially co-expressed genes were obtained. Survival curves showed that high expression of FOXM1,\ EXO1, KIF20A, TPX2, and CDC20 in melanoma patients with 5 of the top 10 hub genes was associated with reduced overall survival (OS). Immunohistochemistry showed that all five genes were expressed at higher protein levels in melanoma than in paracancerous tissues.ConclusionFOXM1, EXO1, KIF20A, TPX2, and CDC20 are prognosis-associated core genes of melanoma, and their high expression correlates with the low prognosis of melanoma patients and can be used as biomarkers for melanoma diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis prediction.

IntroductionOsteosarcoma is among the most common orthopedic neoplasms, and currently, there are no adequate biomarkers to predict its prognosis. Therefore, the present study was aimed to identify the prognostic biomarkers for autophagy-and immune-related osteosarcoma using bioinformatics tools for guiding the clinical diagnosis and treatment of this disease.Materials and MethodsThe gene expression and clinical information data were downloaded from the Public database. The genes associated with autophagy were extracted, followed by the development of a logistic regression model for predicting the prognosis of osteosarcoma using univariate and multivariate COX regression analysis and LASSO regression analysis. The accuracy of the constructed model was verified through the ROC curves, calibration plots, and Nomogram plots. Next, immune cell typing was performed using CIBERSORT to analyze the expression of the immune cells in each sample. For the results obtained from the analysis, we used qRT-PCR validation in two strains of human osteosarcoma cells.ResultsThe screening process identified a total of three genes that fulfilled all the screening criteria. The survival curves of the constructed prognostic model revealed that patients with the high risk presented significantly lower survival than the patients with low risk. Finally, the immune cell component analysis revealed that all three genes were significantly associated with the immune cells. The expressions of TRIM68, PIKFYVE, and DYNLL2 were higher in the osteosarcoma cells compared to the control cells. Finally, we used human pathological tissue sections to validate the expression of the genes modeled in osteosarcoma and paracancerous tissue.ConclusionThe TRIM68, PIKFYVE, and DYNLL2 genes can be used as biomarkers for predicting the prognosis of osteosarcoma.

The current study is aimed at developing and validating a nomogram of the risk of failure of internal fixation devices in Chinese patients undergoing spinal internal fixation. We collected data from a total of 1139 patients admitted for spinal internal fixation surgery at the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University from May 2012 to February 2019. Of these, 1050 patients were included in the spinal internal fixation group and 89 patients in the spinal internal fixation device failure group. Patients were divided into training and validation tests. The risk assessment of the failure of the spinal internal fixation device used 14 characteristics. In the training test, the feature selection of the failure model of the spinal internal fixation device was optimized using the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression model. Based on the characteristics selected in the LASSO regression model, multivariate logistic regression analysis was used for constructing the model. Identification, calibration, and clinical usefulness of predictive models were assessed using C-index, calibration curve, and decision curve analysis. A validation test was used to validate the constructed model. In the training test, the risk prediction nomogram included gender, age, presence or absence of scoliosis, and unilateral or bilateral fixation. The model demonstrated moderate predictive power with a C-index of 0.722 (95% confidence interval: 0.644–0.800) and the area under the curve (AUC) of 0.722. Decision curve analysis depicted that the failure risk nomogram was clinically useful when the probability threshold for internal fixation device failure was 3%. The C-index of the validation test was 0.761. This novel nomogram of failure risk for spinal instrumentation includes gender, age, presence or absence of scoliosis, and unilateral or bilateral fixation. It can be used for evaluating the risk of instrumentation failure in patients undergoing spinal instrumentation surgery.

The gut microbiota system plays a vital role in liver diseases. This study aimed to address the diversity of gut microbiota and its correlations with clinical parameters in healthy individuals, chronic liver disease (CLD), and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. Fecal specimens of nine healthy individuals, 11 CLD, and 21 HCC were collected. The diversity of gut microbiota was examined by PCR and Illumina MiSeq sequencing and analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing database. The correlations between gut microbiota and the clinical parameters of participants were also addressed. Compared to healthy individuals, Firmicutes at a phylum level decreased in CLD and HCC patients and Proteobacteria increased (p < 0.05). The composition of Blautia on a genus level in CLD and HCC patients significantly decreased compared to healthy controls (p < 0.05). Firmicutes composition was negatively associated with age and number of males (p < 0.05) and was positively associated with monocytes, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) levels (p < 0.05). At a genus level, Blautia composition was negatively associated with cirrhosis, age, and number of males (p < 0.01), while it was positively associated with red blood cells (RBCs), triglycerides, HDL-C, and lymphocyte levels (p < 0.05). Conclusively, there was a significant compositional difference in gut microbiota in CLD and HCC patients compared with healthy subjects. Firmicutes and Blautia in gut microbiota system lessened in CLD and HCC patients. Clinical biochemical parameters have an impact on the diversity of gut microbiota in liver diseases.

In this paper, lanthanide metal-organic frameworks (Ln-MOFs, Ln = Ce, Gd, Ho) were facilely synthesized by ultrasonic method and applied in enhancing chemiluminescence (CL) emission of NaIO4-H2O2 system. The synthesized Ln-MOFs were characterized to be nanosheet-like shapes. Comparing with the NaIO4-H2O2 system without Ln-MOFs, the CL intensities of Ln-MOFs-NaIO4-H2O2 systems were enhanced 28, 32 and 67 times by Ce-MOFs, Gd-MOFs and Ho-MOFs, respectively. Catalytic properties of Ln-MOFs accounted for the improved performance in CL and increased the generation of some reactive oxygen species (ROS) (·O2−, 1O2 and ·OH) which induced CL enhancement. The large surface area of nanosheets and structural defects generated during the ultrasonic synthesis process could facilitate the exposure of catalytic active sites and ROS generation. This work gave insights into developing novel CL systems based on advanced materials with effective surfaces.

Tuberculosis infection activates the autoimmune system. However, the role of host-pathogen interactions involved in Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection is unclear. In this study, we analyzed 6 spinal tuberculosis tissues and 6 herniated disc tissues by using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry coupled with tandem mass spectrometry, and immunohistochemical staining was performed for validating the results. We identified 42 differential immune-related proteins and 3 hub genes that are primarily localised in the tertiary granule and involved in biological processes such as cellular response to the presence of cadmium ions, regulation of ion transmembrane transport, transmembrane transport, and inflammatory responses. Genes encoding cytochrome B-245 beta chain (CYBB), matrix metallopeptidase 9 (MMP9), and C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 10 (CXCL10) were identified as the hub genes that exhibited anti-tuberculosis activity and were responsible for macrophage resistance against M. tuberculosis. In conclusion, CYBB, MMP9, and CXCL10 resist M. tuberculosis infection through chemotaxis and macrophage activation. Our results indicate that CYBB, MMP9, and CXCL10 could be considered as molecular targets for spinal tuberculosis treatment, which may significantly improve patients' quality of life and prognosis.

Background The aim of this study is to explore the use of preoperative imaging stability studies of adult lumbar spondylolisthesis and it's effects on intraoperative correction, postoperative observation, and clinical efficacy. Methods We retrospectively analyzed a total of 104 patients diagnosed with lumbar spondylolisthesis who underwent Posterior lumbar interbody fusion surgery between 2011 and 2014. The qualified patients were divided into two groups; group A (study/unstable group: 52 cases) and group B (control/stable group: 52 cases). Group A was further divided into group A1 (slip instability: 27 cases) and group A2 (angular instability: 25 cases). The preoperative lumbar sagittal plane translation distances and segmental angle of the preoperative lateral X-rays, hyperflexion X-rays, and hyperextension X-rays were measured and compared with their third-day postoperative lateral X-ray, and slip rate. The occurrences of intraoperative or postoperative complications, one-month postoperative follow-up data, including JOA, and VAS scores were access to evaluate the clinical efficacy of the treatment. Results Satisfactory postoperative radiographic correction was recorded in all groups. Better correction and correction was observed in group A1 patients and group B patients who used puller screws compared to those who used normal screws (P

Background: Ewing's sarcoma (ES) is the second most prevalent malignancy among bone tissue tumors, and there is no adequate prognosis biomarker. The protein encoded by CCT6A is a molecular chaperone. Early studies have suggested that CCT6A is involved in the development of many cancers, however, there is no clear evidence of a role for CCT6A in ES.Methods: In this study, we performed a bioinformatics analysis of 32 Ewing sarcoma specimens from the GSE17618 dataset for differences in gene expression and overall survival, event-free survival, and gene expression in different subgroups. Results: After three screenings, we identified CCT6A as highly correlated with Ewing's sarcoma prognosis. Survival analysis showed low overall survival (OS) for CCT6A high expression (P=0.024). On the other hand, Cox regression analysis showed that CCT6A expression, event-free survival (EFS), and age were strongly associated with the prognosis of Ewing sarcoma, identified as independent poor prognostic biomarkers. (CCT6A: P=0.015; Age: P-value=0.026; EFS: P-value=0.001). Conclusion: The expression level of CCT6A is strongly associated with the prognosis of Ewing's sarcoma. High expression of the CCT6A gene may serve as a biomarker for poor prognosis in patients with Ewing's sarcoma.

The authors have requested that this preprint be removed from Research Square.

In this work, cerium-doped LaF3 nanoparticles (LaF3:Ce NPs) were successfully synthesized and characterized. Its chemiluminescence (CL) property was studied, and it was amazingly found that it intensely enhanced the ultra-weak CL of the NaNO2-H2O2 system. The CL mechanism was systematically investigated and suggested to be the recombination of electron-injected and hole-injected LaF3:Ce NPs. The new CL system was developed to be a facile, original, and direct method for nitrite analysis. Experimental conditions were optimized and then a satisfactory linear relationship between CL intensity and nitrite concentration was obtained. This work introduced a new pathway for the research and application of traditional fluoride NPs doped with RE3+.

Pressed condensation is a key process before the reclamation of loose corn straws. In this study, the effects of stabilization time on the relaxation density and dimensional stability of corn straws were studied firstly, and then the stabilization time was determined to be 60 s by comprehensively considering the compression effect, energy consumption, efficiency and significance. On this basis, the effects of the water content (12%, 15%, 18%), ratio of pressure maintenance time to stabilization time (0, 0.5, 1), maximum compression stress (60.4, 120.8, 181.2 kPa) and feeding mass (2.5, 3, 3.5 kg) on the relaxation density, dimensional stability coefficient, and specific energy consumption of post-compression straw blocks were investigated by the Box–Behnken design. It was found that the water content, ratio of pressure maintenance time to stabilization time, maximum compression stress, and feeding mass all very significantly affected the relaxation density, dimensional stability coefficient and specific energy consumption. The interaction between water content and maximum compression stress significantly affected both relaxation density and specific energy consumption. The interaction between the ratio of pressure maintenance time to stabilization time and feeding mass significantly affected the dimensional stability coefficient. The factors and the indices were regressed by quadratic equations, with the coefficients of determination larger than 0.97 in all equations. The optimized process parameters were water content of 13.63%, pressure maintenance time of 22.8 s, strain maintenance time of 37.2 s, maximum compression stress of 109.58 kPa, and raw material feeding mass of 3.5 kg. Under these conditions, the relaxation density of cold-pressed straw blocks was 145.63 kg/m3, the dimensional stability coefficient was 86.89%, and specific energy consumption was 245.78 J/kg. The errors between test results and predicted results were less than 2%. The low calorific value of cold-pressed chopped corn straw blocks was 12.8 MJ/kg. Through the situational analysis method based on the internal and external competition environments and competition conditions (SWOT analysis method), the cold-pressed chopped corn straw blocks consumed the lowest forming energy consumption than other forming methods and, thus, are feasible for heating by farmers. Our findings may provide a reference for corn straw bundling, cold-press forming processes and straw bale re-compressing.

Surge control is always an important issue in compressor health management. Although the traditional PID anti-surge methods has made some achievements, the adaptation across variable working conditions is still a challenge. Meantime, reinforcement learning (RL) has been proven strong adaptability and high accuracy in recent years, however, few researches attempt RL in surge control applications. Therefore, this paper proposes a RL anti-surge method for compressor. In specific, a novel architecture based on Actor-Critic algorithm is presented, and the relative structures are re-designed aiming at the issue. Moreover, the simulation of supercharging system is conducted to validate the proposed method, in which the compressor operation models are static and dynamic, respectively. The results show that the agent of Actor-Critic can sense the state of the compressor in real time and then output the appropriate anti-surge valve opening which not only avoids the surge, but also ensures the working efficiency at a high level. Comparing with the traditional PID anti-surge method, the superiority of the proposed method such as the strong adaptability across variable working conditions is verified.

Summary Gravity data is a powerful tool for oil and gas exploration. Airborne gravity (AG) and airborne gravity gradiometer (AGG) systems each excel at measuring gravity, but at different ends of the typical exploration bandwidth. In order to realize the full benefit of each system type through their combination, a common method of noise estimation is required. This common methodology allows for selection of the ideal cut-off wavelength for a matched pair of high-pass and low-pass filters. We demonstrate the method using an example survey dataset where both AG and AGG data were collected simultaneously.

This study was aimed to reveal the role of ferroptosis in tuberculosis infection. To elucidate the ferroptosis-related DEGs, GEO datasets associated with tuberculosis infection were downloaded. The two external validation GEO datasets were exploited for subsequent verification of the ferroptosis-related DEGs. We further evaluated the correlation among the ferroptosis-related DEGs, therapeutic effects, and drug resistance. Finally, we tried to reveal the engagement of the ferroptosis-related DEGs in bone destruction during TB infection. The present study identified SOCS1 as the only ferroptosis-related DEGs. Compared to the non-TB patients, up-regulation of SOCS1 was evident in the TB patients. After receiving standard anti-TB treatment, significant down-regulation of SOCS1 confirmed its acceptance as the marker for therapeutic efficacy. The involvement of SOCS1 has also been suggested in the regulation of the micro immune environment in TB. Furthermore, SOCS1 might play an important role in causing bone destruction during TB infection. FRGs-SOCS1 may be the key gene involved in the pathogenesis and progression of TB infection.

Electro-reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) to carbon monoxide (CO) has been extensively studied on metal and alloy electrodes for many decades. However, owing to their disadvantages of low current density and high over-potential, the practical application of these electrodes has been limited. Hence, it is highly desirable to explore new and high efficient electrode for CO2 reduction to CO. Ag2S has been widely studied as electrode material in electrochemistry due to its unique properties, such as high conductivity, chemical stability, and easy to be prepared. In this work, we have fabricated an Ag2S electrode via electro-oxidation of Ag in aqueous solution. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) confirm that Ag2S has been modified on Ag foil, which made the electrode surface roughness. And then, we have evaluated the performance of Ag2S electrode as the cathode for CO2 reduction in propylene carbonate/tetrabutylammonium perchlorate. The cathodic current density reaches to 9.85 mA/cm2, with the faradic efficiency for CO formation remaining stable at 92% during 4 h long-term electrolysis.

Since the first Falcon AGG survey in 1999 (van Leuwen et al., 2000), fixed-wing airborne gravity gradiometry (AGG) has proved to be a valuable tool for mining and oil and gas explora¬tion (Dransfield, 2007). The more compact digital Falcon AGG allowed the system to be installed in a helicopter and helicopter AGG surveys began in 2006 (Boggs et al., 2007). Compared with fixed-wing aircraft, the helicopter platform can fly surveys low and slow, offering superior spatial resolution as well as an improved signal-to-noise ratio (Dransfield, 2007). The superior spatial resolution and improved signal-to-noise ratio provided by helicopter AGG enhances its capability to detect smaller targets and better delineate subtler features. Dransfield and Christensen (2013) reported a HeliFalcon performance of 6 Eo RMS at 45 m resolution in vertical gravity gradient, by far the finest spatial resolution of any airborne AGG system. Another advantage afforded by helicopter AGG is its capa¬bility to follow terrains more closely especially in areas of high relief. Christensen and Hodges (2013) compared the vertical grav¬ity gradient from HeliFalcon with the simulated fixed-wing result over the Iron Range survey in the Canadian Rocky Mountains where the terrain variation reaches 1900 m. They showed that in this terrain, a fixed-wing survey would have to fly at ground clearances of more than 1000 m for much of the survey area. This high ground clearance would have greatly suppressed the signal at short wavelengths and degraded the spatial resolution. In this paper, we look at the HeliFalcon AGG survey conducted in the Aso-Oguni area exploring for geothermal fields, examin the technical challenges presented by the rugged terrains, describe some aspects of the data acquisition and processing, and present the survey results.

Developing low cost and high efficient electrode for carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction in organic media is essential for practical application. Zn is a cheap metal and has high catalytic effects on CO2 reduction to carbon monoxide (CO) in aqueous solution. However, little attention has been given to investigate the performance of Zn in organic media for CO2 reduction. In present work, we have conducted CO2 reduction in propylene carbonate/tetrabutylammonium perchlorate on Zn due to that propylene carbonate is a widely used industrial absorber, and tetrabutylammonium perchlorate is a commonly used organic supporting electrolyte. In addition, because electrochemical reduction of CO2 to CO naturally produces H2O, we have discussed water effects on CO2 reduction in propylene carbonate/tetrabutylammonium perchlorate+6.8 wt % H2O. Our experiment results reveal that the faradaic efficiency for CO formation reaches to 83%, and the current density remains stable at 6.72 mA/cm2 at voltage −2.3 V for 4 h. Interestingly, Zn presents higher catalytic activity than Ag, and slightly lower than Au. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results confirm that no poisonous species is formed and absorbed on the cathode, which is an important advantage in practical application.

In this paper, cerium-doped LaF3 nanoparticles (LaF3:Ce NPs) were synthesized and applied in enhancing chemiluminescence (CL) process of NaIO4–H2O2 system. The CL intensity was enhanced 42 times compared to that of NaIO4–H2O2 system without LaF3:Ce NPs. The CL mechanism was systematically investigated and accounted by the annihilation between electron-injected and hole-injected LaF3:Ce NPs. Experimental conditions were optimized to obtain the optimum CL. This work introduced a new pathway for enhancing traditional luminescent process through developing advanced nanomaterials.

In recent years, both nanomaterials (NMs) and microfluidics have unprecedented development. NMs with specific morphologies and versatile surface functionalization offer new opportunities for developing ultrasensitive and selective microfluidic methods. With some inherent merits, microfluidic chip has introduced a new avenue for NM synthesis. The combination of NMs with microfluidics provides improved methods alone with superior synthetic efficacies. Therefore, it is necessary to summarize research advances in NM-based microfluidic methods and microfluidic-based NM synthesis. In this review, NM-based microfluidic methods are categorized into optical, electrical, magnetic and acoustic methods according to the integrated techniques while microfluidic-based NM synthesis is summarized to be spherical (0D), one dimension (1D), two dimensions (2D) and three dimensions (3D) NMs according to the sizes of NMs synthesized on microfluidic chips. The ultimate goals are to stimulate the design of exquisite microfluidic platforms and efficient synthetic strategies of NMs for biochemical analysis.

Background Tuberculosis (TB) is a global health problem that brings us numerous difficulties. Diverse genetic factors play a significant role in the progress of TB disease. However, still no key genes for TB susceptibility have been reported. This study aimed to identify the key genes of TB through comprehensive bioinformatics analysis. Methods The series microarray datasets from the gene expression omnibus (GEO) database were analyzed. We used the online tool GEO2R to filtrate differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between TB and health control. Database for annotation can complete gene ontology function analysis as well as Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway enrichment analysis. Protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks of DEGs were established by STRING online tool and visualized by Cytoscape software. Molecular Complex Detection can complete the analysis of modules in the PPI networks. Finally, the significant hub genes were confirmed by plug-in Genemania of Cytoscape, and verified by the verification cohort and protein test. Results There are a total of 143 genes were confirmed as DEGs, containing 48 up-regulated genes and 50 down-regulated genes. The gene ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analysis show that upregulated DEGs were associated with cancer and phylogenetic, whereas downregulated DEGs mainly concentrate on inflammatory immunity. PPI networks show that signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1), guanylate binding protein 5 (GBP5), 2'-5'-oligoadenylate synthetase 1 (OAS1), catenin beta 1 (CTNNB1), and guanylate binding protein 1 (GBP1) were identified as significantly different hub genes. Conclusion We conclude that these genes, including TAT1, GBP5, OAS1, CTNNB1, GBP1 are a candidate as potential core genes in TB and treatment of TB in the future.

Objective This study is aimed to develop a new nomogram for the clinical diagnosis of osteoarticular tuberculosis (TB). Methods xCell score estimation to obtained the immune cell type abundance scores. We downloaded the expression profile of GSE83456 from GEO and proceed xCell score estimation. The routine blood examinations of 326 patients were collected for further validation. We analyzed univariate and multivariate logistic regression to identified independent predicted factor for developing the nomogram. The performance of the nomogram was assessed using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. The correlation of ESR with lymphocytes, monocytes, and ML ratio was performed and visualized in osteoarticular TB patients. Results Compared with the healthy control group in the dataset GSE83456, the xCell score of basophils, monocytes, neutrophils, and platelets was higher, while lymphoid was lower in the EPTB group. The clinical data showed that the cell count of monocytes were much higher, while the cell counts of lymphocytes were lower in the osteoarticular TB group. AUCs of the nomogram was 0.798 for the dataset GSE83456, and 0.737 for the clinical data. We identified the ML ratio, BMI, and ESR as the independent predictive factors for osteoarticular TB diagnosis and constructed a nomogram for the clinical diagnosis of osteoarticular TB. AUCs of this nomogram was 0.843. Conclusions We demonstrated a significant change between the ML ratio of the EPTB and non-TB patients. Moreover, we constructed a nomogram for the clinical diagnosis of the osteoarticular TB diagnosis, which works satisfactorily.

This work presents the synthesis of amorphous ruthenium-based/hemp stem activated carbon (HSAC) composites by a liquid phase co-precipitation method. It is the first time that a solution of tetramethylammonium bicarbonate is used as the precipitant. The result reveals that the as-synthesized ruthenium oxide particles are small in size and homogenously distributed on the activated carbon surface. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) and galvanostatic charge-discharge (GCD) results show that the ruthenium oxide/HSAC composite has a high mass-specific capacitance (652.79 F g−1 at 5 mV s−1) and excellent rate capability. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) experiments further demonstrate that it has a low device series resistance (0.653 Ω), which has a great enhancement by contrast with the state-of-the-art previous reports. High specific capacitance, outstanding cycling stability, and facile preparation conditions make the electrode material potentially promising for energy storage and conversion devices.

Flexible liquid metals of GaIn alloy have been prepared using the melt technique as a novel radiation attenuation material. To determine the radiation shielding performance, the mass attenuation coefficients (μm) of samples were calculated using MCNPX and XCOM program within 0.015–15 MeV energy range. Afterward, LACs, HVLs, TVLs, and Zeff values were obtained to determine the radiation shielding performance. It is observed that Ga20In80 alloy has the most remarkable radiation shielding ability for studied samples. Moreover, the transmission behavior of rays in GaIn alloys was investigated. We simulated the weight of GaIn alloy to be 13% lower than lead with the same transmission coefficient, which is consistent with the XRD experiment. Interestingly, the special fluid property of GaIn alloys imparts an extraordinary self-healing capacity to repair the macro-voids and defects resulting from radiations.

Electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) into carbon monoxide (CO) is of interesting because this method has a promising prospect in the chemical industry. Since CO 2 is a non-polar molecule, and has high solubility in organic solvent, it would be beneficial to conduct CO 2 reduction in organic electrolyte. However, because the electrochemical reduction of CO 2 into CO naturally produces H 2 O, this reaction actually proceeds under the influence of H 2 O. In present work, we have investigated a variety of commonly used organic electrolytes with the aim to look for an organic electrolyte which is suitable for industrial application. By comparison, we have selected tetrabutylammonium perchlorate (Bu 4 NClO 4 )/propylene carbonate (PC) as the desirable one. It has been found that the presence of H 2 O in Bu 4 NClO 4 /PC plays a crucial role in improving the performance of Bu 4 NClO 4 /PC, such as increasing conductivity, decreasing viscosity, promoting CO 2 solubility. In addition, owing to the hydrophobic nature of PC, H 2 O can separate from Bu 4 NClO 4 /PC when its content exceeds 6.8 wt %. This advantage is crucial for industrial application. We have conducted CO 2 reduction in Bu 4 NClO 4 /PC containing 6.8 wt % H 2 O at Au electrode for 4 h. The Faradaic efficiency for CO formation and the cathodic current density have been stabilized at 84.3% and 6.3 mA/cm 2 after 30 minuet of electrolysis, no degradation has been observed on the performance of Bu 4 NClO 4 /PC, indicating NBu 4 NClO 4 /PC has a promising perspective in the chemical industry.