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miR-34, whose mimic was used on phase I clinical trial, has been extensively reported since its dysfunction in various cancers including non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, the roles of miR-34 family members in the progression of lung squamous carcinoma (SCC) in patients who have occupational-exposure experience are unclear yet. Here, we comprehensively investigated the expression levels of miR-34 family members in SCC patients and compared the roles of them in SCC in vitro and vivo. The results showed that the average levels of miR-34a and miR-34b/c were decreased in patients. The analysis of miR-34a to miR-34b/c levels in patients graded different stages or metastases or recurrence showed that miR-34b/c was reduced earlier and more significantly than miR-34a. In vitro assays demonstrated that both miR-34a and miR-34b/c inhibits SCC cells proliferation, migration and invasion via Notch1 pathway, while miR-34b/c effects more than miR-34a does. As miR-34a was significantly decreased in cancer recurrence, the further analysis of relationship between miR-34a and stem cell adhesion molecular CD44 showed that miR-34a was significantly correlated with CD44 levels in patients. Knockdown of CD44 significantly blocked miR-34a mediated inhibition of cell migration and invasion. Treating the purified CD44hi cells with miR-34 overexpression lentivirus inhibited the tumor outgrowth. By contrast, anti-miR-34 facilitated tumor development of CD44low cells. Our study showed that miR-34 family members are negative regulator for SCC development, even though the inhibition is mediated by multiple and complicated signal pathways, which provides theoretical basis for SCC treatment and a biomarker candidate for SCC prognosis.

Persistent apical periodontitis is a critical challenge for endodontists. Developing root canal filling materials with continuous antibacterial effects and tightly sealed root canals are essential strategies to avoid the failure of root canal therapy and prevent persistent apical periodontitis. We modified the EndoREZ root canal sealer with the antibacterial material dimethylaminododecyl methacrylate (DMADDM) and magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs). The mechanical properties of the modified root canal sealer were tested. The biocompatibility of this sealer was verified in vitro and in vivo. Multispecies biofilms were constructed to assess the antibacterial effects of the modified root canal sealer. We applied magnetic fields and examined the extent of root canal sealer penetration in vitro and in vivo. The results showed that EndoREZ sealer containing 2.5% DMADDM and 1% MNP had biological safety and apical sealing ability. In addition, the modified sealer could increase the sealer penetration range and exert significant antibacterial effects on multispecies biofilms under an external magnetic field. According to the in vivo study, the apices of the root canals with the sealer containing 2.5% DMADDM and 1% MNP showed no significant resorption and exhibited only a slight increase in the periodontal ligament space, with a good inhibitory effect on persistent apical periodontitis.

High level of uric acid (UA) is the major origin of gout, and is highly associated with various pregnant complications, such as preeclampsia and gestational diabetes. However, UA’s level and role in the very early stage of pregnancy has not been uncovered. This study aims to investigate the relevance of serum UA and decidualization, an essential process for the establishment and maintenance of pregnancy in women and mice during the early stage of pregnancy. In this study, we first proved that expression level of UA synthase xanthine dehydrogenase (XDH) is highly increased along with decidualization of endometrial stromal cells in both in vitro and in vivo models. Furthermore, serum and endometrial levels of UA are higher in mice with decidualized uterin horn and in vitro decidualized stromal cells. The existence of monosodium urate (MSU) crystal was also confirmed by immunostaining. Next, the roles of MSU on decidualization were explored by both in vitro and in vivo models. Our data shows MSU crystal but not UA enhances the decidualization response of endometrial stromal cells, via the upregulation of inflammatory genes such Ptgs2 and Il11. inhibiting of Cox-2 activity abolishes MSU crystal induced higher expression of decidualization marker Prl8a2. At last, in women, we observed enriched expression of XDH in decidua compare to non-decidualized endometrium, the serum level of UA is significantly increased in women in very early stage of pregnancy, and drop down after elective abortion. In summary, we observed an increased serum UA level in the early stage of women’s pregnancy, and proved that the increased level of UA results from the expressed XDH in decidualizing endometrium of both human and mouse, leading to the formation of MSU crystal. MSU crystal can enhance the decidualization response via inflammatory pathways. Our study has uncovered the association between UA, MSU, and decidualization during the early stage of pregnancy.

Sepsis has emerged as a global health issue, and accounts for millions of deaths in intensive care units. Dysregulation of the immune response reportedly contributes to the pathogenesis and progression of this lethal condition, which involves both the dysfunction of immune cells and incompetent immunomodulatory mechanisms. High mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) is known as a later inflammatory mediator and is critically involved in the severity and prognosis of sepsis by inducing intractable inflammation and dysfunction of various immune cells. In the present study, we found that intracerebroventricular (ICV) injection of Box A, a specific antagonist of HMGB1, restored the dysregulated response of splenic dendritic cells (DCs) in septic mice by enhancing the expression of surface molecules, including CD80, CD86, and MHC-II, as well as improving DC priming of T lymphocytes. Cerebral HMGB1 was also confirmed to have potent inhibitory effects on DC functions when administrated by ICV injection in normal mice. The brain cholinergic system was found to mediate the immunomodulatory effects of central HMGB1, as it exhibited enhanced activity with persistent HMGB1 exposure. Furthermore, the inhibitory effects of cerebral HMGB1 on the response of peripheral DCs were also blocked by α7nAchR gene knockout. These findings provide novel insight into the relationship between cerebral HMGB1 and splenic DC dysfunction during sepsis, which is, at least in part, dependent on cholinergic system activity.

ObjectivePD-L1 is one of the predictors of immunotherapy efficacy. Our goal was to analyze its expression and prognostic significance in high-grade salivary gland carcinoma (SGC).MethodsPD-L1 expression was evaluated using paraffin-embedded specimens from patients with surgically treated high-grade SGC, and it was scored by the tumor proportion score (TPS), combined positive score (CPS), and immune cell (IC) score. Associations between clinicopathological variables, disease-free survival (DFS), overall survival (OS) and PD-L1 expression were assessed.ResultsTPS≥1% occurred in 47 patients with an incidence of 43.1%, and it was significantly related to an advanced tumor stage. In patients with TPS

Abstract Background There is a large amount of controversy about the best management of the mandible in oral squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), mainly owing to the inability to acquire accurate bone invasion status. Therefore, our goal was to analyse the oncologic safety in patients undergoing marginal mandibulectomy (MM) for cT1-2 N0 SCC of the lower gingiva. Methods Patients undergoing MM for untreated cT1-2 N0 SCC of the lower gingiva were retrospectively enrolled. The main endpoints of interest were locoregional control (LRC) and disease-specific survival (DSS). Results A total of 142 patients were included in the analysis, and a pathologic positive node was noted in 27 patients. Cortical invasion was reported in 23 patients, and medullary invasion was reported in 9 patients. The 5-year LRC and DSS rates were 85 and 88%, respectively. Patients with bone invasion had a significantly higher risk for recurrence than patients without bone invasion. However, the DSS was similar in patients with versus without bone invasion. Patients with a high neutrophil lymphocyte ratio had a higher risk for worse prognosis. Conclusions The oncologic outcome in patients undergoing MM for cT1-2 N0 SCC of the lower gingiva was favourable; bone invasion was not uncommon, but it significantly decreased the prognosis in patients undergoing MM.

Residual cancer after incomplete ablation remains a major problem for radiofrequency ablation (RFA). We aimed to investigate the synergetic treatment efficacy of RFA combined with ultrasonic cavitation for liver tumor. Sixty rabbits with VX2 liver tumor were randomly divided into three groups. Group A was control group without any treatment. Combined ultrasonic cavitation with RFA was performed for group B1. Group B2 underwent RFA alone. The histopathological results were compared at the 5th, 11th, and 18th day of experiment, and the survival time and metastasis were assessed. The tumor volume growth rate, percentage of necrosis area, microvessel density, and apoptosis index showed significant differences among these groups at the 5th day, 11th day, and 18th day of experiment (P < .05). In contrast, the difference of metastatic score was not significant at the 5th and 11th day (P > .05). At the 18th day, the metastatic score of group A was significant higher than that of group B1 (P < .05), whereas the differences between group A and group B2, or group B1 and group B2 were not significant (P > .05). The median/range interquartile of survival time in groups A, B1, and B2 were 25/8 days, 50/19 days, and 48/20 days, respectively, and there was significant difference between groups A and B1 or B2 (P < .05). The difference between groups B1 and B2 was not significant (P > .05). Ultrasonic cavitation after incomplete RFA for liver tumor improved the antitumor effect, which could be considered as a potentially useful combined therapeutic strategy for liver malignancy. Keywords: Radiofrequency ablation, Ultrasound, Liver neoplasms, Residual cancer, Microbubbles

Abstract Background This study sought to determine whether thyroidectomy is associated with self-reported cough through a prospective analysis. Methods Patients undergoing unilateral thyroidectomy were prospectively enrolled. The control group was selected to avoid the effect of general anaesthesia. The experimental group consisted of 300 patients (202 females and 98 males) who underwent thyroidectomy, with a mean age of 48.6 years, and the control group consisted of 103 patients (53 females and 50 males) who underwent other head and neck operations, with a mean age of 50.3 years. All patients were required to complete the Leicester Cough Questionnaire (LCQ) preoperatively and 2 weeks postoperatively. Results The postoperative mean total LCQ scores in the experimental and control groups were 17.9 ± 5.0 and 19.8 ± 4.2, respectively; the difference was significant (p = 0.014). Adverse event analysis showed that patients in the experimental group scored significantly worse on items for chest or stomach pains, phlegm, feeling in control of coughing, sleep disturbances, coughing bouts, frustration, and feeling fed up with coughing. In the analysis of the three LCQ domains, a significant difference was noted in the physical domain between the two groups (p

Based on the characteristics of hydrodynamics and sediment transport in the bar area in the Modaomen Estuary, a flume experiment was performed to study the evolution of the longitudinal profile of the mouth bar. The mouth bar evolution was investigated under the impacts of floods with different return periods as well as flood-wave interaction. The results showed that floods with different return periods had significant influences on the evolution of the river mouth bar. Particularly on the inner slope of the mouth bar, the sediment was substantially active and moveable. The inner slope and the bar crest tended to be remarkably scoured. The erosion was intensified with the increase of the magnitude of floods. Moreover, the bar crest moved seawards, while the elevation of the bar crest barely changed. Under the flood-wave interaction, a remarkable amount of erosion on the inner and outer slopes of the mouth bar was also found. The seaward displacement of the bar crest under the interaction of floods and waves was less than it was under only the impact of floods, while more deposition was found on the crest of the mouth bar in this case. Keywords: Modaomen, Mouth bar, Wave, Flood, Flume experiment, Sediment transport

Abstract Metabolic reprogramming is a central hallmark of cancer. Therefore, targeting metabolism may provide an effective strategy for identifying promising drug targets for cancer treatment. In prostate cancer, cells undergo metabolic transformation from zinc‐accumulating, citrate‐producing cells to citrate‐oxidizing malignant cells with lower zinc levels and higher mitochondrial aconitase (ACO2) activity. ACO2 is a Krebs cycle enzyme that converts citrate to isocitrate and is sensitive to reactive oxygen species (ROS)‐mediated damage. In this study, we found that the expression of ACO2 is positively correlated with the malignancy of prostate cancer. Both zinc and p53 can lead to an increase in ROS. ACO2 can be a target for remodeling metabolism by sensing changes in the ROS levels of prostate cancer. Our results indicate that targeting ACO2 through zinc and p53 can change prostate cancer metabolism, and thus provides a potential new therapeutic strategy for prostate cancer.

To evaluate the dynamical downscaling prediction skill on the averaged precipitation in flood season over Chongqing, using WRF model based on Beijing Climate Center (BCC) second-generation seasonal prediction model system (BCCv2) product, we have conducted a dynamical downscaling prediction test based on the hindcast data over Chongqing during the flood season of 2016 from BCCv2, and compared the effect of different PBL parameterization schemes on the precipitation prediction before and after the dynamical downscaling. The results show that the dynamical downscaling can improve the original prediction in which BCCv2 predicts less precipitation than observation, and the spatial distribution of BCCv2 hindcast data has also been improved by the downscaling. Comparison of precipitation prediction results after using the four PBL parameterization schemes, i.e. MYJ, MYNN2, YSU and ACM2, indicates the YSU has a relative less prediction bias against observations compared to other schemes, although the difference among the four schemes is not very significant. Analysis on the bias of atmosphere circulation between prediction and observation and the nudging test results show that dynamical downscaling can improve the prediction of geopotential height over southern Tibet Plateau and southern China and then weaker moisture transfer by westward wind over southern Tibet Plateau, although the northward moisture transfer over Guangdong and Guangxi is still weak. The bias between boundary field and observation may be connected with the less predicted precipitation than observation over Chongqing during the flood season of 2016 in the dynamical downscaling prediction.

The objective of this paper is to evaluate the impact of various risk factors on traffic crashes presenting different collision types at freeway diverge areas. Three-year period crash data from 367 freeway diverge areas were obtained. Three types of collisions, including rear-end, sideswipe, and angle collisions, were considered. A random parameters multivariate Poisson-lognormal (RP-MVPLN) model was developed to accommodate both correlations between crashes across collision type and the unobserved heterogeneity across observations. For the performance comparison, an MVPLN was developed and compared with the RP-MVPLN model under the Bayesian framework. The result showed that the RP-MVPLN model outperformed the MVPLN model, which highlighted that accounting for the unobserved heterogeneous effects of risk factors could improve the model fit. The model estimation result showed that the risk factors, as well as their impacts on different collision types, were different. The mainline annual average daily traffic (AADT), the lane-balanced design, and the number of lanes on the mainline were found to be significantly associated with all types of collisions, whereas the deceleration lane length and road surface type only affected rear-end crashes. The exit ramp length and ramp AADT had significant impact on rear-end crashes and sideswipe crashes, but they did not affect angle crashes. The speed limit was negatively related with rear-end crashes and angle crashes, while it had no impact on sideswipe crashes. Three risk factors, which are the mainline AADT, ramp AADT, and speed limit, were found to have significant heterogeneous effects on crashes across observations.

To solve the problem of rising energy use and CO2 emissions, China issued the 14th Five-Year Plan in 2020, emphasizing the need to reduce its carbon intensity and achieve a carbon emission peak before 2030. In order to estimate the future path of carbon peak in China, a novel dataset was constructed to analyze 30 provinces in China, and found that the realization of carbon peaking in 2025 requires a reduction of 1.072 million tons of carbon emissions in 2025, at which point peak carbon emissions will be 11,008.4 million tons. Due to this energy gap caused by carbon emission reduction the total amount of clean electricity has reached 3600 billion kWh. In carbon emission allowance trading, provinces with large carbon emissions, like Jiangsu and Guangdong, prefer to buy carbon allowances, while those with small carbon emissions like Shanxi and Inner Mongolia prefer to sell carbon allowances. In the energy trading market, the overall situation meets the 14th Five-Year Plan of west-east and north-south power transmission, except for Shanghai, Hainan, Hubei, and other provinces selling power, due to excessive power generation from a particular energy source.

With the development of metal-based drugs, Ru(II) compounds present potential applications of PDT (photodynamic therapy) and anticancer reagents. We herein synthesized two naphthyl-appended ruthenium complexes by the combination of the ligand with naphthyl and bipyridyl. The DNA affinities, photocleavage abilities, and photocytotoxicity were studied by various spectral methods, viscosity measurement, theoretical computation method, gel electrophoresis, and MTT method. Two complexes exhibited strong interaction with calf thymus DNA by intercalation. Production of singlet oxygen (1O2) led to obvious DNA photocleavage activities of two complexes under 365 nm light. Furthermore, two complexes displayed obvious photocytotoxicity and low dark cytotoxicity towards Hela, A549, and A375 cells.

Environmental factors play an important role in the development of ulcerative colitis (UC). However, only few studies have examined the effects of air pollution on UC occurrence. We conducted a time–series analysis to explore the association between short-term exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and outpatient visits for UC in Beijing, China. In total, 84,000 outpatient visits for UC were retrieved from the Beijing Medical Claim Data for Employees between January 1, 2010 and June 30, 2012. Measurements of daily PM2.5 concentrations were obtained from the United States Embassy air-monitoring station. A generalized additive model with quasi-Poisson link was applied to examine the association between PM2.5 concentrations and outpatient visits for UC stratified by sex, age, and season. We found that short-term exposure to PM2.5 was significantly associated with increased daily outpatient visits for UC at lag 0 day. A 10 μg/m3 increase in PM2.5 concentration at lag 0 day corresponded to a 0.32% increase in outpatient visits for UC (95% confidence interval (CI), 0.05–0.58%; P = 0.019). There was a clear concentration–response association between daily outpatient visits for UC and PM2.5 concentrations. The PM2.5 effects were significant across all sex and season subgroups, without evidence of effect modification by sex (P = 0.942) or season (P = 0.399). The association was positive in patients younger than 65 years old but negative in those 65 years old or older, although the difference was not significant (P = 0.883). In conclusion, our study demonstrated that short-term exposure to ambient PM2.5 was significantly associated with an increased risk of daily outpatient visits for UC, especially in younger people. Additional studies are warranted to confirm our findings.

The core device of dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) system is a wavelength division multiplexer/demultiplexer, among which the arrayed waveguide grating (AWG) device has the most superior optical performances. The optical performances of AWG are mainly affected by the structure parameters such as the waveguide spacing, the width and length of the tapered waveguide and the number of arrayed waveguides. Taking the 40-channel AWG as the research object, by combining theory with simulation, this paper analyzed the influence mechanisms and laws of AWG structure parameters on its optical performances including insertion loss, loss non-uniformity, adjacent crosstalk, and 3 dB bandwidth. Then, the sensitivities analysis of AWG optical performance was carried out by using the direct derivation method and the finite difference method in the sensitivities analysis method, so as to obtain the influence degree of each structure parameter on the optical performances. Finally, based on the influence rules and sensitivities of structure parameters on optical performances, this paper adopted some methods to optimize the structure parameters of AWG, and optimized the insertion loss, loss non-uniformity, adjacent crosstalk, and 3 dB bandwidth to about 1 dB, 0.35 dB, −30 dB, and 0.42 nm, respectively. The research methods and conclusions of this paper can provide references for the optimization of optical performances and layout design of other types of AWG.

Understanding the spread of infectious diseases is an extremely essential step to preventing them. Thus, correct modeling and simulation approaches are critical for elucidating the transmission of infectious diseases and improving the control of epidemics. The primary objective of this study is to simulate the spread of communicable diseases in an urban rail transit station. Data were collected by a field investigation in the city of Ningbo, China. A SEIR-based model was developed to simulate the spread of infectious diseases in Tianyi station, considering four groups of passengers (susceptible, exposed, infected, and recovered) and a 14-day incubation period. Based on the historical data of infectious diseases, the parameters of the SEIR infectious disease model were clarified, and a sensitivity analysis of the parameters was also performed. The results showed that the contact rate (CR), infectivity (I), and average illness duration (AID) were positively correlated with the number of infections. It was also found that the length of the average incubation time (AIT) was positively correlated with the number of exposed individuals and negatively correlated with the number of infectors. These simulation results provide support for the validity and reliability of using the SEIR model in studies of the spread of epidemics and facilitate the development of effective measures to prevent and control an epidemic.

Exploring the influencing factors of intercity travel mode choice can reveal passengers’ travel decision mechanisms and help traffic departments to develop an effective demand management policy. To investigate these factors, a survey was conducted in Xi’an, China, to collect data about passengers’ travel chains, including airplane, high-speed railway (HSR), train, and express bus. A Bayesian mixed multinomial logit model is developed to identify significant factors and explicate unobserved heterogeneity across observations. The effect of significant factors on intercity travel mode choice is quantitatively assessed by the odds ratio (OR) technique. The results show that the Bayesian mixed multinomial logit model outperforms the traditional Bayesian multinomial logit model, indicating that accommodating the unobserved heterogeneity across observations can improve the model fit. The model estimation results show that ticket purchasing method, comfort, punctuality, and access time are random parameters that have heterogeneous effects on intercity travel mode choice.

This study conducts a comprehensive comparative analysis of regression-based multinomial models and artificial neural network models in intercity travel mode choices. The four intercity travel modes of airplane, high-speed rail (HSR), train, and express bus were used for analysis. Passengers’ activity data over the process of intercity travel were collected to develop the models. The standard multinomial logit (MNL) regression and Bayesian multinomial logit (BMNL) regression were compared with the radial basis function (RBF) and multilayer perceptron (MLP). The results show that MLP performs best in terms of predictive accuracy, followed by BMNL and MNL, and RBF is the least accurate. The performances of all models were examined against changes in data balance, and it was found that rebalancing can improve fitting performance while slightly reducing the predictive performance. This comparative study and its parameter estimation shed new light on the comparison of traditional and emerging models in travel behavior studies, and the findings can be used as heuristic guidance for all stakeholders.

Driving safety is considered to have a strong relationship with traffic flow characteristics. However, very few studies have addressed the safety impacts in the three-phase traffic theory that has been demonstrated to be an advancement in explaining the empirical features of traffic flow. Another important issue affecting safety is driver experience heterogeneity, especially in developing countries experiencing a dramatic growth in the number of novice drivers. Thus, the primary objective of the current study is to develop a microsimulation environment for evaluating safety performance considering the presence of novice drivers in the framework of three-phase theory. First, a car-following model is developed by incorporating human physiological factors into the classical Intelligent Driver Model (IDM). Moreover, a surrogate safety measure based on the integration concept is modified to evaluate rear-end crashes in terms of probability and severity simultaneously. Based on a vehicle-mounted experiment, the field data of car-following behavior are collected by dividing the subjects into a novice group and an experienced group. These data are used to calibrate the proposed car-following model to explain driver experience heterogeneity. The results indicate that our simulation environment is capable of reproducing the three-phase theory, and the changes in the modified surrogate safety measure are highly correlated with traffic phases. We also discover that the presence of novice drivers leads to different safety performance outcomes across various traffic phases. The effect of driver experience heterogeneity is found to increase the probability of the rear-end crashes as well as the corresponding severity. The results of this study are expected to provide a scientific understanding of the mechanisms of crash occurrences and to provide application suggestions for improving traffic safety performance.

ObjectivesOur goal was to analyze the possibility of using metabolic tumor volume (MTV) to predict occult cervical metastasis and survival in cT1-2N0 squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the tongue.MethodsData on the primary tumor MTV and cervical node status as determined by the maximum standardized uptake value were retrieved. The sensitivity and specificity in predicting occult metastasis were calculated with a fourfold table. Associations between occult metastasis and clinicopathological variables were evaluated by univariate and multivariate analyses. The main study endpoints were locoregional control (LRC) and disease-specific survival (DSS).ResultsA total of 24 (20.3%) of 118 patients had occult metastasis. An MTV cutoff value of 4.3 cm3 showed a sensitivity of 50.0% and a specificity of 76.6% in predicting occult metastasis. The sensitivity and specificity of PET-CT in predicting occult metastasis in cT1 tumors were 66.6 and 89.8%, respectively, with values of 83.3 and 67.3%, respectively, when combined with the MTV. The sensitivity and specificity of PET-CT in predicting occult metastasis in cT2 tumors were 72.2 and 82.2%, respectively, with values of 88.9 and 57.8%, respectively, when combined with the MTV. Patients with MTV ≥4.3 cm3 had a higher occult metastasis rate than patients with MTV

Objective: To investigate factors associated with length of stay in hospital of patients with traumatic spinal cord injury in China, based on recent data spanning a period of 10 years. Methods: The study was conducted in the China Rehabilitation Research Center, Beijing, which is the largest rehabilitation hospital in China. Associated variables were statistically analysed, including sex, age, marital status, patient’s home address, and payment method as demographic variables, and cause of injury, severity of injury, level of injury, spasticity, osteoporosis, neurogenic bladder, and complications as clinical variables. Univariate analysis and multiple linear regression analysis were used to determine the association between length of stay and these var-iables. Results: A total of 2,110 participants were included in this study. Median length of stay in hospital was 113.5 days. Longer length of stay correlated significantly with higher age, single status, being struck by an object, motor vehicle collision, complete injury, and complications. Patients whose injury resulted from a fall from a low height, those with neurogenic bladder, and/or patients of older age had shorter lengths of stay. Conclusion: Analysis of data for patients with traumatic spinal cord injury, spanning a recent period of 10 years in China, shows that close attention should be paid to those patients with osteoporosis, spasticity, complete injury, injury caused by object striking or motor vehicle collision, patients with single status, or who are in the age range 15–29 years. Active measures should be taken to reduce length of stay in patients with complications, such as urinary tract infection, respiratory infection, or neuropathic pain.

Xuefu Zhuyu decoction (XFZYD) performs multiple functions for traumatic brain injury (TBI) treatment. However, its clinical application is limited by the incomplete exploration of targets and inadequate discussion of mechanisms. We aimed to investigate the metabolic alterations of XFZYD in acute and chronic stages of TBI. Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into the sham, controlled cortical impact (CCI) and XFZYD group. Behavioral and histopathological tests were used to evaluate the neuroprotective effects. Coagulation assays were performed to assess safety. Moreover, we analyzed the metabolomic profiling of hippocampal samples with different time intervals after CCI by high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). Differential metabolites were screened by multivariate data analysis. To further uncover the association between candidate metabolites and biological interaction networks, we applied bioinformatics analysis using MetaboAnalyst 4.0, STITCH 5.0 and TCMSP. The potential mechanism was verified by ELISA and Western blot. XFZYD ameliorated neurological deficiencies post-CCI without impairing blood coagulation in the rat’s model. Seventeen and fourteen metabolites were filtered on d 3 and 21, respectively. Eleven of potential metabolites were common at these time points, involving two significant pathways (arginine and proline metabolism, phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis). Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and the related pathways were specifically affected by XFZYD at the acute phase of TBI, while biosynthesis of amino acids was the major pathway influenced at the chronic phase. This study provides broad insights into the therapeutic effects of XFZYD in treating TBI through the whole phases.

Background: Premature birth is associated with high prevalence of neurodevelopmental impairments in surviving infants. The putative role of cerebellar and brainstem dysfunction remains poorly understood, particularly in the absence of overt structural injury. Method: We compared in-utero versus ex-utero global, regional and local cerebellar and brainstem development in healthy fetuses (n ​= ​38) and prematurely born infants without evidence of structural brain injury on conventional MRI studies (n ​= ​74) that were performed at two time points: the first corresponding to the third trimester, either in utero or ex utero in the early postnatal period following preterm birth (30–40 weeks of gestation; 38 control fetuses; 52 premature infants) and the second at term equivalent age (37–46 weeks; 38 control infants; 58 premature infants). We compared 1) volumetric growth of 7 regions in the cerebellum (left and right hemispheres, left and right dentate nuclei, and the anterior, neo, and posterior vermis); 2) volumetric growth of 3 brainstem regions (midbrain, pons, and medulla); and 3) shape development in the cerebellum and brainstem using spherical harmonic description between the two groups. Results: Both premature and control groups showed regional cerebellar differences in growth rates, with the left and right cerebellar hemispheres showing faster growth compared to the vermis. In the brainstem, the pons grew faster than the midbrain and medulla in both prematurely born infants and controls. Using shape analyses, premature infants had smaller left and right cerebellar hemispheres but larger regional vermis and paravermis compared to in-utero control fetuses. For the brainstem, premature infants showed impaired growth of the superior surface of the midbrain, anterior surface of the pons, and inferior aspects of the medulla compared to the control fetuses. At term-equivalent age, premature infants had smaller cerebellar hemispheres bilaterally, extending to the superior aspect of the left cerebellar hemisphere, and larger anterior vermis and posteroinferior cerebellar lobes than healthy newborns. For the brainstem, large differences between premature infants and healthy newborns were found in the anterior surface of the pons. Conclusion: This study analyzed both volumetric growth and shape development of the cerebellum and brainstem in premature infants compared to healthy fetuses using longitudinal MRI measurements. The findings in the present study suggested that preterm birth may alter global, regional and local development of the cerebellum and brainstem even in the absence of structural brain injury evident on conventional MRI.

Few large multicity studies have assessed acute effect of tropospheric ozone pollution on pneumonia risk. We aimed to examine the relation between day-to-day changes in ozone concentrations and hospital admissions for pneumonia in China. We conducted a national time-series study in 184 major Chinese cities from 2014 to 2017. City-specific relation between ozone concentrations and pneumonia admissions was evaluated using an over-dispersed generalized additive model. Random-effects meta-analysis was conducted to pool the city-specific estimates. Two-pollutant models were fitted to test the robustness of the relations. We also investigated potential effect modifiers. Overall, we observed increased admissions for pneumonia associated with ozone exposure. The national-average estimates per 10-μg/m3 increase in ozone were 0.14% (95% CI: 0.03%–0.25%) at lag 0 day in the whole year, 0.30% (95% CI: 0.17%–0.43%) at lag 0 day in the warm season, and 0.20% (95% CI: 0.05%–0.34%) at lag 1 day in the cool season. Two-pollutant models indicated that the ozone effects were not confounded by PM2.5, SO2, NO2 or CO. The association between ozone and pneumonia was stronger in the elderly. Ozone levels and gross domestic product per capita reduced the effects of ozone, and smoking enhanced the effects of ozone. In conclusion, we estimated an increase in daily pneumonia admissions associated with ozone exposure in China. As the first national study in China to report acute effect of ozone on pneumonia hospitalizations, our findings are incredibly meaningful in terms of both ozone pollution related policy development and pneumonia prevention. Keywords: Air pollution, Pneumonia, Ozone, Time-series study

Objective. The genetic variant rs2237895, located in the Potassium Voltage-Gated Channel Subfamily Q Member 1 (KCNQ1) gene, has been replicated to be associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) susceptibility, but the relationship with lipids is conflicting. Furthermore, the common genetic predisposition to T2DM and lipids was not fully detected. Methods. In total, 5839 individuals (2220 were T2DM patients) across 2885 families were included. The effect of rs2237895 on T2DM and lipids was estimated using linear regression and logistic regression models after adjustment for multiple covariates. Mediation analysis was then used to test whether KCNQ1 participated in T2DM pathogenesis via lipid-mediated pathways. Results. Per allele-C of rs2237895 was associated with 17% (11-23%, P

The objective of this study is to analyse the relationship between secondary crash risk and traffic flow states and explore the contributing factors of secondary crashes in different traffic flow states. Crash data and traffic data were collected on the I-880 freeway in California from 2006 to 2011. The traffic flow states are categorised by three-phase traffic theory. The Bayesian conditional logit model has been established to analyse the statistical relationship between the secondary crash probability and various traffic flow states. The results showed that free flow (F) state has the best safety performance of secondary crash and synchronized flow (S) state has the worst safety performance of secondary crashes. The traditional logistic regression model has been used to analyse the contributing factors of secondary crashes in different traffic flow states. The results indicated that the contributing factors in different traffic flow states are significantly different.

A new and improved method based on the number of iterations is proposed to reduce the dynamical degradation of the digital chaotic map in this study. We construct a control function by introducing iteration time instead of external systems, thereby replacing the control parameters in the original chaotic map. Experimental results show that the chaotic map based on the iteration-time combination method is more complicated and effective. The period is extended without completely destroying the phase space, which indicates that our method is effective and can compete with other proposed techniques. A type of pseudorandom bit generator based on the iteration-time combination method is proposed to demonstrate its simple application.

This paper aims to explore the factors influencing passengers’ satisfaction toward bus transit and develop the improvement strategy for the small-medium city. Data including individual attributes, travel activity attributes, and perceived service attributes were collected in the city of Weinan, China. The ordered logit (OL) model and ordered Probit (OP) model were employed to explore the significant factors associated with passengers’ satisfaction toward bus transit. The odds ratio (OR) was applied to quantitatively measure the effects of the significant factors. Improving strategies of bus transit service were proposed based on the model results using the three-factor theory. Results show that the OL model outperforms the OP model. The age, daily average waiting time, perceived waiting time, transferring convenience, the attitude of the driver, intelligent travel information service, hygienic environment inside the bus, ticket price, bus route setting, and bus stop setting significantly affect the passengers’ satisfaction. Among them, the ticket price, perceived waiting time, bus stop setting, intelligent travel information service, transferring convenience, and bus route setting were identified as exciting factors. It is recommended that optimization of bus route and bus stop setting, building bus dedicated lanes, optimizing dynamic charging system, and providing intelligent travel information service could be effective strategies to improve passengers’ satisfaction toward bus transit in Chinese small-medium cities.

Bacterial histidine kinases (HKs) play key roles in the response to stimuli and are regulated by reversible phosphorylation. Here, the authors show that the activity of a HK in the plant pathogen Xanthomonas campestris is modulated by irreversible, proteolytic modification in response to osmostress.

Background/Aims: Ventricular septal defects (VSDs) are one of the most common types of congenital heart malformations. Volume overload resulting from large VSDs can lead to heart failure (HF) and constitutes a major cause of pediatric HF with a series of often-fatal consequences. The etiology of VSD with HF is complex, and increasing evidence points toward a genetic basis. Indeed, we identified an L2483R mutation in the ryanodine receptor type 2 (RyR2) in a 2-month-old male patient with VSD with HF. Methods: We generated integration-free induced pluripotent stem cells from urine samples (UiPSCs) of this patient using Sendai virus containing the Yamanaka factors and characterized these cells based on alkaline phosphatase activity, pluripotency marker expression, and teratoma formation. Then, we induced the derived UiPSCs to rapidly and efficiently differentiate into functional cardiomyocytes through temporal modulation of canonical Wnt signaling with small molecules. Real-time PCR and immunofluorescence were used to verify the expression of myocardium-specific markers in the differentiated cardiomyocytes. The ultrastructure of the derived myocardial cells was further analyzed by using transmission electron microscopy. Results: The established UiPSC lines were positive for alkaline phosphatase activity, retained the RyR2 mutation, expressed pluripotency markers, and displayed differentiation potential to three germ layers in vivo. The UiPSC-derived cells showed hallmarks of cardiomyocytes, including spontaneous contraction and strong expression of cardiac-specific proteins and genes. However, compared with cardiomyocytes derived from H9 cells, they had a higher level of autophagy, implying that autophagy may play an important role in the development of VSD with HF. Conclusion: The protocol described here yields abundant myocardial cells and provides a solid platform for further investigation of the pathogenesis, pharmacotherapy, and gene therapy of VSD with HF.

Abstract The photovoltaic performance of axial and radial pin junction GaAs nanocone array solar cells is investigated. Compared with the cylinder nanowire arrays, the nanocone arrays not only improve the whole optical absorption but more importantly enhance the effective absorption (absorption in the depletion region). The enhanced effective absorption is attributed to the downward shift and extension of the absorption region induced by the shrinking top, which dramatically suppresses the absorption loss in the high-doped top region and enhances the absorption in the depletion region. The highest conversion efficiencies for axial and radial GaAs nanocone solar cells are 20.1% and 17.4%, obtained at a slope angle of 5° and 6°, respectively, both of which are much higher than their cylinder nanowire counterparts. The nanocone structures are promising candidates for high-efficiency solar cells.

BACKGROUND:The effects of ambient particulate matter (PM) pollution on pneumonia in adults are inconclusive, and few scientific data on a national scale have been generated in low- or middle-income countries, despite their much higher PM concentrations. We aimed to examine the association between PM levels and hospital admissions for pneumonia in Chinese adults. METHODS AND FINDINGS:A nationwide time series study was conducted in China between 2014 and 2017. Information on daily hospital admissions for pneumonia for 2014-2017 was collected from the database of Urban Employee Basic Medical Insurance (UEBMI), which covers 282.93 million adults. Associations of PM concentrations and hospital admissions for pneumonia were estimated for each city using a quasi-Poisson regression model controlling for time trend, temperature, relative humidity, day of the week, and public holiday and then pooled by random-effects meta-analysis. Meta-regression models were used to investigate potential effect modifiers, including cities' annual-average air pollutants concentrations, temperature, relative humidity, gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, and coverage rates by the UEBMI. More than 4.2 million pneumonia admissions were identified in 184 Chinese cities during the study period. Short-term elevations in PM concentrations were associated with increased pneumonia admissions. At the national level, a 10-μg/m3 increase in 3-day moving average (lag 0-2) concentrations of PM2.5 (PM ≤2.5 μm in aerodynamic diameter) and PM10 (PM ≤10 μm in aerodynamic diameter) was associated with 0.31% (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.15%-0.46%, P < 0.001) and 0.19% (0.11%-0.30%, P < 0.001) increases in hospital admissions for pneumonia, respectively. The effects of PM10 were stronger in cities with higher temperatures (percentage increase, 0.031%; 95% CI 0.003%-0.058%; P = 0.026) and relative humidity (percentage increase, 0.011%; 95% CI 0%-0.022%; P = 0.045), as well as in the elderly (percentage increase, 0.10% [95% CI 0.02%-0.19%] for people aged 18-64 years versus 0.32% [95% CI 0.22%-0.39%] for people aged ≥75 years; P < 0.001). The main limitation of the present study was the unavailability of data on individual exposure to PM pollution. CONCLUSIONS:Our findings suggest that there are significant short-term associations between ambient PM levels and increased hospital admissions for pneumonia in Chinese adults. These findings support the rationale that further limiting PM concentrations in China may be an effective strategy to reduce pneumonia-related hospital admissions.

Multidrug resistance is a serious problem and a common cause of cancer treatment failure, leading to patient death. Although numerous reversal resistance inhibitors have been evaluated in preclinical or clinical trials, efficient and low-toxicity reversal agents have not been identified. In this study, a series of novel quinoline compound derivatives from NSC23925 were designed to inhibit P-glycoprotein (P-gp). Among them, YS-7a showed a stronger inhibitory effect against P-gp than verapamil, as a positive control, when co-incubated with chemotherapy drugs at minimally cytotoxic concentrations. YS-7a suppressed the P-gp transport function without affecting the expression of P-gp but stimulated the ATPase activity of P-gp in a dose-dependent manner. Next, molecular docking was used to predict the six most probable binding sites, namely, SER270, VAL273, VAL274, ILE354, VAL357, and PHE390. Moreover, YS-7a had no effect on cytochrome P450 3A4 activity and showed little toxicity to normal cells. In addition, combined treatment of YS-7a with vincristine showed a better inhibitory effect than the positive control verapamil in vivo without a negative effect on mouse weight. Overall, our results showed that YS-7a could reverse cancer multidrug resistance through the inhibition of P-gp transport function in vitro and in vivo, suggesting that YS-7a may be a novel therapeutic agent.

Objective: Melatonin has a protective role in adults with cardiovascular disease, but the effects of melatonin in children with cardiac dysfunction are not well understood. This study was designed to explore the variations in melatonin, myeloperoxidase, and caspase‐3 levels in children suffering from heart failure. Methods: Seventy‐two pediatric patients with heart failure and twelve healthy children were enrolled in this study. A modified Ross scoring system was used to evaluate clinical cardiac function. Patients with a score of >2 points were included in the study and were divided into three groups according to severity of heart failure: mild (score: 3–6), moderate (score: 7–9), and severe (score: 10–12). Echocardiographic parameters, laboratory data, and serum levels of melatonin, myeloperoxidase, and caspase‐3 were measured and analyzed in all patients. Results: Compared with patients with mild and moderate heart failure, patients in the severe heart failure group had significantly decreased left ventricular ejection fraction (p 2 pontos foram incluídas no estudo e foram divididos em três grupos de acordo com a gravidade da insuficiência cardíaca: leve (escore: 3‐6), moderada (escore: 7‐9) e grave (escore: 10‐12). Os parâmetros ecocardiográficos, dados laboratoriais e níveis séricos de melatonina, mieloperoxidase e caspase 3 foram medidos e analisados em todos os pacientes. Resultados: Em comparação com os pacientes com insuficiência cardíaca de gravidade leve e moderada, os pacientes no grupo de insuficiência cardíaca grave apresentaram redução significativa da fração de ejeção do ventrículo esquerdo (p

Abstract We optimized the performance of GaAs nanowire pin junction array solar cells by introducing AlGaAs/GaAs heterejunctions. AlGaAs is used for the p type top segment for axial junctions and the p type outer shell for radial junctions. The AlGaAs not only serves as passivation layers for GaAs nanowires but also confines the optical generation in the active regions, reducing the recombination loss in heavily doped regions and the minority carrier recombination at the top contact. The results show that the conversion efficiency of GaAs nanowires can be greatly enhanced by using AlGaAs for the p segment instead of GaAs. A maximum efficiency enhancement of 8.42% has been achieved in this study. And for axial nanowire, by using AlGaAs for the top p segment, a relatively long top segment can be employed without degenerating device performance, which could facilitate the fabrication and contacting of nanowire array solar cells. While for radial nanowires, AlGaAs/GaAs nanowires show better tolerance to p-shell thickness and surface condition.

Abstract An innovative solar cell based on a nanowire/quantum dot hybrid nanostructure array is designed and analyzed. By growing multilayer InAs quantum dots on the sidewalls of GaAs nanowires, not only the absorption spectrum of GaAs nanowires is extended by quantum dots but also the light absorption of quantum dots is dramatically enhanced due to the light-trapping effect of the nanowire array. By incorporating five layers of InAs quantum dots into a 500-nm high-GaAs nanowire array, the power conversion efficiency enhancement induced by the quantum dots is six times higher than the power conversion efficiency enhancement in thin-film solar cells which contain the same amount of quantum dots, indicating that the nanowire array structure can benefit the photovoltaic performance of quantum dot solar cells.

Summary: Recognition of the host plant is a prerequisite for infection by pathogenic bacteria. However, how bacterial cells sense plant-derived stimuli, especially chemicals that function in regulating plant development, remains completely unknown. Here, we have identified a membrane-bound histidine kinase of the phytopathogenic bacterium Xanthomonas campestris, PcrK, as a bacterial receptor that specifically detects the plant cytokinin 2-isopentenyladenine (2iP). 2iP binds to the extracytoplasmic region of PcrK to decrease its autokinase activity. Through a four-step phosphorelay, 2iP stimulation decreased the phosphorylation level of PcrR, the cognate response regulator of PcrK, to activate the phosphodiesterase activity of PcrR in degrading the second messenger 3′,5′-cyclic diguanylic acid. 2iP perception by the PcrK-PcrR remarkably improves bacterial tolerance to oxidative stress by regulating the transcription of 56 genes, including the virulence-associated TonB-dependent receptor gene ctrA. Our results reveal an evolutionarily conserved, inter-kingdom signaling by which phytopathogenic bacteria intercept a plant hormone signal to promote adaptation to oxidative stress. : How pathogenic bacteria use receptors to recognize the signals of the host plant is unknown. Wang et al. have identified a bacterial receptor histidine kinase that specifically senses the plant hormone cytokinin. Through a four-step phosphorelay, cytokinin perception triggers degradation of a second messenger, c-di-GMP, to activate the bacterial response to oxidative stress. Keywords: histidine kinase, ligand, cytokinin, autokinase activity, phosphorelay, response regulator, two-component signal transduction system, Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris, virulence, oxidative stress

We report the first preliminary and extensive study on the solution self-assembly behaviors of poly(vinylidene fluoride)–b-polystyrene (PVDF–PS) block copolymers. The two PVDF–PS polymers we examined have the same length of PVDF block with number averaged repeating unit of 180, but distinctly different lengths of PS block with number averaged repeating unit of 125 and 1202. The self-assembly experiments were carried out in a series of mixture solutions containing a good solvent N,N-dimethylformamide and a selective solvent with different ratios. Our results showed that the self-assembly process was greatly affected by the two factors we examined, i.e. the length of the PS block and the solvent composition. We hope that our study could stimulate more research on the self-assembly of PVDF-containing polymers in solution. Keywords: Self-assembly, Block copolymers, Poly(vinylidene fluoride)

In order to detect X-corner (or X-point) features more accurately and apace, this article presents a novel and fast detection method based on block-by-block search strategy. Unlike general pixel-by-pixel searching method, the sampling window is first moved along the image block-by-block to find the X-corner candidates rapidly keeping in view the four-step and min-step-distance constraints. During the motion, some overlap is kept between the adjacent sampling windows in order to ensure that all X-corners could have a chance to reside inside, avoiding the possibility of that some X-corners may locate on the edge. Moreover, labeling technology is adopted to prevent duplicate candidates. After the collection of X-corner candidates, the neighborhood variance and centrosymmetry constraints are used to exclude outliers, and the intersection lines is calculated as the sub-pixel position of true X-corner. The experimental results using synthetic and real images show that the presented method approximately takes just about 13 ms to detect 52 X-corners in an image size of 1024 × 768 on a computer having Intel Core i3 CPU at 3.6 GHz and 4GB RAM. The proposed method has faster detection speed compared with the latest methods such as ChESS, SC, and Micron Tracker system while possessing the same or higher detection precision.

Light is a major limiting resource in aquatic ecosystems and numerous studies have investigated the response of submerged macrophytes to low light conditions. However, few studies have tested whether different light response strategies can also have consequences for macrophyte distribution along different littoral slopes in lakes, which are known to affect macrophyte biomass due to differences in drag forces and sediment characteristic. In this study, we tested (1) whether two macrophyte species of different growth forms (canopy-forming: Potamogeton maackianus, rosette-type: Vallisneria natans) differ in their response strategies to low light conditions and (2) how these responses influence their distribution along different basin slopes in the mesotrophic Lake Erhai, China. We hypothesized that the canopy-forming species responds to low light conditions at deeper sites by stem elongation while the rosette-type species increases its shoot chlorophyll content. As a consequence, P. maackianus should have a higher susceptibility to drag forces and thus prevail at sites with lower slopes. Sites with higher slopes should offer a niche for rosette-type species like V. natans that can better withstand drag forces. We surveyed the distribution and abundance of the two macrophyte species at 527 sampling points along 97 transects in Lake Erhai and measured their height, leaf and stem/rhizome biomass, and leaf chlorophyll a content at different water depths. Our results confirmed stem elongation as a strategy to low light conditions by the canopy-forming species P. maackianus, while V. natans produced more chlorophyll a per shoot biomass at deeper sites to tolerate shading. As hypothesized, these alternative response strategies to low light conditions resulted in a trade-off regarding the plants ability to grow at different basin slopes. P. maackianus was dominant at sites with low-moderate slope (0–4%) and low-moderate water depth (2–4 m), while sites with high basin slope (4–7%) combined with moderate-high water depth (3–5 m) were dominantly colonized by V. natans. The latter habitat thus represents a potential refuge for rosette-type macrophyte species that are often outcompeted when shading increases during eutrophication.

BACKGROUND:Epidemiological studies have provided compelling evidence of associations between ambient temperature and cardiovascular disease. However, evidence of effects of daily temperature variability on cardiovascular disease is scarce and mixed. We aimed to examine short-term associations between temperature variability and hospital admissions for cause-specific cardiovascular disease in urban China. METHODS AND FINDINGS:We conducted a national time-series analysis in 184 cities in China between 2014 and 2017. Data on daily hospital admissions for ischemic heart disease, heart failure, heart rhythm disturbances, and ischemic stroke were obtained from the database of Urban Employee Basic Medical Insurance (UEBMI) including 0.28 billion enrollees. Temperature data were acquired from the China Meteorological Data Sharing Service Center. Temperature variability was calculated from the standard deviation (SD) of daily minimum and maximum temperatures over exposure days. City-specific associations between temperature variability and cardiovascular disease were examined with overdispersed Poisson models controlling for calendar time, day of the week, public holiday, and daily mean temperature and relative humidity. Random-effects meta-analyses were performed to obtain national and regional average associations. We also plotted exposure-response relationship curve using a natural cubic spline of temperature variability. There were 8.0 million hospital admissions for cardiovascular disease during the study period. At the national-average level, a 1-°C increase in temperature variability at 0-1 days (TV0-1) was associated with a 0.44% (0.32%-0.55%), 0.31% (0.20%-0.43%), 0.48% (0.01%-0.96%), 0.34% (0.01%-0.67%), and 0.82% (0.59%-1.05%) increase in hospital admissions for cardiovascular disease, ischemic heart disease, heart failure, heart rhythm disturbances, and ischemic stroke, respectively. The estimates decreased but remained significant when controlling for ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5), NO2, and SO2 pollution. The main limitation of the present study was the unavailability of data on individual exposure to temperature variability. CONCLUSIONS:Our findings suggested that short-term temperature variability exposure could increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, which may provide new insights into the health effects of climate change.

Short-term traffic speed prediction is a key component of proactive traffic control in the intelligent transportation systems. The objective of this study is to investigate the short-term traffic speed prediction under different data collection time intervals. Traffic speed data was collected from an urban freeway in Edmonton, Canada. A seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average plus seasonal discrete grey model structure (SARIMA-SDGM) was proposed to perform the traffic speed prediction. The model performance of SARIMA-SDGM model was compared with that of the seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average (SARIMA) model, seasonal discrete grey model (SDGM), artificial neural network (ANN) model, and support vector regression (SVR) model. The results showed that SARIMA-SDGM model performs best with the lowest mean absolute error (MAE), mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), and the root mean square error (RMSE). The traffic speed prediction accuracy under different time intervals were compared based on the SARIMA-SDGM model. The results showed that the prediction accuracy improves with the increase in time interval. In addition, when the time interval is greater than 10 min, the prediction results yield stable prediction accuracy.

Apoptosis of CD4+ T cells plays a central role in the progression of sepsis because it is associated with subsequent immunosuppression and the lack of specific treatment. Thus, developing therapeutic strategies to attenuate the apoptosis of CD4+ T cells in sepsis is critical. Several studies have demonstrated that Mdivi-1, which is a selective inhibitor of the dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1), attenuates apoptosis of myocardial cells and neurons during various pathologic states. The present study revealed the impact of Mdivi-1 on the apoptosis of CD4+ T cells in sepsis and the potential underlying mechanisms. We used lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation and cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) surgery as sepsis models in vitro and in vivo, respectively. Our results showed that Mdivi-1 attenuated the apoptosis of CD4+ T cells both in vitro and in vivo. The potential mechanism underlying the protective effect of Mdivi-1 involved Mdivi-1 reestablishing mitochondrial fusion-fission balance in sepsis, as reflected by the expression of the mitofusin 2 (MFN2) and optic atrophy 1 (OPA1) , Drp1 translocation, and mitochondrial morphology, as observed by electron microscopy. Moreover, Mdivi-1 treatment reduced reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and prevented the induction of endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) and associated apoptosis. After using tunicamycin to activate ER stress, the protective effect of Mdivi-1 on CD4+ T cells was reversed. Our results suggested that Mdivi-1 ameliorated apoptosis in CD4+ T cells by reestablishing mitochondrial fusion-fission balance and preventing the induction of endoplasmic reticulum stress in experimental sepsis.

Sepsis remains one of the leading causes of mortality in intensive care units, but there is a shortage of effective treatments. A dysregulated host immune response and multiple organ injury are major factors for the pathogenesis and progression of sepsis, which require specific mechanism and treatment. In the present study, we performed an intracerebroventricular (ICV) injection of BoxA, a specific antagonist of high-mobility group box 1 protein (HMGB1), in septic rats that were produced by cecal ligation and puncture surgery; we further assessed the functional changes of multiple organs and splenic T lymphocytes. We found that the inhibition of cerebral HMGB1 significantly alleviated multiple organ damage under septic exposure, including damage to the heart, liver, lungs, and kidneys; reversed the immune dysfunction of T cells; and increased the survival of septic rats. These data suggest that central HMGB1 might be a potential therapeutic target for septic challenge and that inhibition of brain HMGB1 can protect against multiple organ dysfunction induced by sepsis.

Plant plasma membrane (PM) plays important roles in immune response. Here, we utilized quantitative mass spectrometry to explore rice PM protein composition and dynamic changes during Magnaporthe oryzae infection. We report, thus far, the largest rice PM proteome dataset with 3,906 identified proteins, among which 484 proteins were differentially expressed after M. oryzae infection. One third of the identified proteins are predicted to have at least one transmembrane domain. Half of the identified proteins are predicted to have binding functions and over one third of the proteins have enzyme-related functions. In addition, Gene Ontology analyses revealed that abscisic acid (ABA) and cytokinin (CK) signaling were sequentially activated after M. oryzae infection in rice. We found that the activation of ABA signaling and the suppression of rice immune response occurred at the early infection stage, while the activation of CK signaling, the upregulation of sugar transporter genes expression, and the nutrient efflux of infected rice cells occurred at later infection stage. Thus, we further propose that M. oryzae activates ABA signaling to repress rice immune signaling for initial invasion and redirects nutrient efflux of infected cells for massive growth at the later infection stage.

Wheat and maize are increasingly used as alternative crops to sunflower monocultures that dominate the Hetao Irrigation District in China. Shifts from sunflower monocultures to alternate cropping systems may have significant effects on below-ground microbial communities which control nutrient cycling and influence plant productivity. In this research, rhizosphere bacterial communities were compared among sunflower, wheat and maize cropping systems by 454 pyrosequencing. These cropping systems included 2 years wheat (cultivar Yongliang 4) and maize (cultivar Sidan 19) monoculture, more than 20 years sunflower (cultivar 5009) monoculture, and wheat-sunflower and maize-sunflower rotation. In addition, we investigated rhizosphere bacterial communities of healthy and diseased plants at maturity to determine the relationship between plant health and rotation effect. The results revealed taxonomic information about the overall bacterial community. And significant differences in bacterial community structure were detected among these cropping systems. Eight of the most abundant groups including Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Acidobacteria, Gemmatimonadetes, Chloroflexi, Actinobacteria, Planctomycetes and Firmicutes accounted for more than 85% of the sequences in each treatment. The wheat-wheat rhizosphere had the highest proportion of Acidobacteria, Bacteroidetes and the lowest proportion of unclassified bacteria. Wheat-sunflower cropping system showed more abundant Acidobacteria than maize-sunflower and sunflower monoculture, exhibiting some influences of wheat on the succeeding crop. Maize-maize rhizosphere had the highest proportion of γ-Proteobacteria, Pseudomonadales and the lowest proportion of Acidobacteria. Sunflower rotation with wheat and maize could increase the relative abundance of the Acidobacteria while decrease the relative abundance of the unclassified phyla, as was similar with the health plants. This suggests some positive impacts of rotation with wheat and maize on the bacterial communities within a single field. These results demonstrate that different crop rotation systems can have significant effects on rhizosphere microbiomes that potentially alter plant productivities in agricultural systems.