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Objective Deep venous thrombosis (DVT) is a common complication in patients with traumatic injury. Tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) is a natural anticoagulant protein in the extrinsic coagulation pathway. However, the relationship between DVT after trauma and the anticoagulant activity of TFPI remains unclear. In this prospective study, we investigated the role of TFPI in trauma patients with DVT to evaluate whether the anticoagulant activity of TFPI measured by a new functional assay can be used to help predict the risk of DVT. Patients and methods: This prospective nested case-control study enrolled trauma patients and healthy volunteers. Forty-eight trauma patients diagnosed with DVT and forty-eight matched trauma patients without DVT were included in the study. 120 healthy volunteers were also included as controls. Blood samples and case information were collected at admission. Patients accepted angiography before surgery to diagnose DVT. The parameters examined included TFPI anticoagulant activity, free-TFPI antigen, blood cell counts, and routine clinical coagulation tests. Results: For the parameters of TFPI anticoagulant activity, three were markedly increased in the DVT group compared to the non-DVT group (TFPI initial anticoagulant time ratio, P = .022; TFPI whole anticoagulant time ratio, P = .048; and TFPI anticoagulant rate, P = .034). The free-TFPI antigen concentration also showed a significant increasing trend in trauma patients with DVT compared with trauma patients without DVT (P = .035). Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified four independent factors for the development of DVT (TFPI initial anticoagulant time ratio, free-TFPI antigen, prothrombin time, and red blood cell count). We calculated the TFPI correlation coefficient and found that the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was .821. Conclusions: A novel functional assay was developed to measure the anticoagulant activity of TFPI. The anticoagulant activity of TFPI can be used as a potential biomarker for diagnosing DVT in trauma patients.

The risk of cognitive impairment in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is significantly higher than that in the general population, but the exact neurophysiological mechanism underlying this is still unclear. An abnormal change in the intrinsic anticorrelation of the dorsal attention network (DAN) and the default mode network (DMN) is thought to be the mechanism underlying cognitive deficits that occur in many psychiatric disorders, but this association has rarely been tested in T2DM. This study explored the relationship between the interaction patterns of the DAN-DMN and clinical/cognitive variables in patients with T2DM. Forty-four patients with T2DM and 47 sex-, age-, and education-matched healthy controls (HCs) underwent neuropsychological assessments, independent component analysis (ICA), and functional network connection analysis (FNC). The relationship of DAN-DMN anticorrelation with the results of a battery of neuropsychological tests was also assessed. Relative to the HC group, the DMN showed decreased functional connectivity (FC) in the right precuneus, and the DAN showed decreased FC in the left inferior parietal lobule (IPL) in patients with T2DM. Subsequent FNC analysis revealed that, compared with the HC group, the T2DM patients displayed significantly increased inter-network connectivity between the DAN and DMN. These abnormal changes were correlated with the scores of multiple neuropsychological assessments (P < 0.05). These findings indicate abnormal changes in the interaction patterns of the DAN-DMN may be involved in the neuropathology of attention and general cognitive dysfunction in T2DM patients.

High-speed long-span 4-1 cable robots (4-1HSLSCRs) have the characteristics of a simple structure, superior performance and easy control, and they can be used comprehensively in coal quality sampling, water quality monitoring, aerial panoramic photographing, etc. However, because of the high-speed movement of the end-effector and the unidirectional constraint property and nonlinear characteristics of the long-span cables, the dynamic stability of the 4-1HSLSCRs presents severe challenges. This paper, as a result, focuses on the two special problems of carrying out dynamic stability measurement and a stability sensitivity analysis for the 4-1HSLSCRs. First, a systematic approach that combines the cable tension, position and velocity of the end-platform based on both the dynamic model and the determinations of the cable tension is proposed for the high-speed robot, in which two cable tension and two position influencing factors are developed, respectively, whereas a velocity function is constructed, which represents the influence of the end-effector velocity on the dynamic stability of the 4-1HSLSCRs. Second, a grey relational analysis method for analyzing the dynamic stability of the 4-1HSLSCRs is developed, where the relationship between the dynamic stability of the 4-1HSLSCRs and the influencing factors (the position and velocity of the end-effector, as well as the cable tension) is investigated in detail. Finally, the measure approach and sensitivity analysis method for dynamic stability of 4-1HSLSCRs, namely, a camera robot with a high speed and long-span cables, is verified through simulation results. The results show that the large-span cable sags have significant effects on both the cable tensions and the dynamic stability of the camera robot, whereas the stability sensitivity evaluation results indicate that the effect of the stability sensitivity of the cable tensions on the dynamic stability of the camera robot is the greatest, followed by the velocity of the end-effector, and last is the position of the end-effector.

Purpose: To assess the efficacy and safety of pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) as a treatment for intraocular retinoblastoma (RB) patients. Methods: Twenty-eight RB patients who had PPV were recruited in this retrospective case study, using the digital wide-angle retinal imaging device to record and assess disease condition. Results: The mean value of follow-up time was 79.4 months from diagnosis and 73.1 months from PPV. Up to the end of the follow-up time after PPV, the 5-year survival rate was 96.4%. Ultimately, 35.7% patients underwent enucleation of the eyeball. Among patients with salvaged eyes, 50% had no light perception vision. During the postoperative follow-up time, 14.3% of patients required no further antitumor treatment, and the remaining patients still need to continue to receive systemic or local antitumor treatment, such as chemotherapy, arterial interventional therapy, laser treatment, cryotherapy, and so on. The complication after PPV include cataracts (46.4%), iris adhesion (7.1%), emulsification of the silicone oil (17.9%), band degeneration of the cornea (10.7%), glaucoma (3.6%), and retinal neovascularization (3.6%). Conclusion: According to our observations, we recommend that the utmost care should be taken when considering PPV for the treatment of activated RB. When weighing the risk of tumor recurrence and metastasis, PPV is not suitable for routine treatment. It is necessary to fully grasp the operative indications and strictly observe operation specifications, which includes close postoperative follow-up.

Although the academic community has consistent with the key role of entrepreneurial team knowledge diversity (ETKD), which serves as a critical catalyst of creativity in organizations, the extant research on the link between knowledge diversity and creativity is mainly concerned with individual creativity in single-level analyses. With emerging entrepreneurial ventures increasingly relying on innovation enhancement in the form of teams, there is research motivation to explore how team-level creativity develops. In this sense, this study attempts to investigate the underlying mechanism through which ETKD is associated with team-level creativity. Through a multilevel mediation model, this study proposes that ETKD can facilitate team creativity (TC) sequentially transmitted through individual-level team members' knowledge sharing (KS) and creativity. Based on a survey of 252 team members from 42 entrepreneurial teams in China, multilevel structural equation modeling (MSEM) is applied to test the top–down relationship between ETKD and KS, as well as the bottom-up link between individual creativity and TC. The findings show that our hypotheses are supported. Our findings provide some of the first empirical evidence to examine how knowledge-based diversity of entrepreneurial teams facilitates TC potential by multilevel approach. Theoretical contributions and practical implications are also offered.

BackgroundPerioperative hypersensitivity reaction (HR) is an IgE-FcϵRI-mediated hypersensitivity reaction with degranulation and activation of mast cells and basophils. Several studies have focused on assessing the degranulation and activation of mast cells and basophils to diagnose and predict the prognosis of drug induced HR. However, it is challenging to isolate sufficiently pure mast cells and basophils from human sources to investigate. Effective biomarkers to assess mast cells and basophils activation in vivo could potentially have high diagnostic and prognostic values. In the present study, we investigated EVs pelleted from serum in patients with succinylated gelatin induced HR.MethodsExtracellular vesicles (EVs) were isolated using a total exosome isolation kit and ultracentrifugation, characterized by Western blot, transmission electron microscopy, and nanoparticle tracking analysis. Basophils were isolated from fresh peripheral blood by negative selection using Basophil Isolation Kit II. Human mast cell line was stimulated with IL4. The expression levels of proteins related to the hypersensitive response were evaluated by Western blotting and flow Cytometer. Histamine and tryptase levels were tested using a commercial ELISA kit, and gene expression of inflammatory mediators was evaluated by qRT-PCR. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the specificity and sensitivity of biomarker in predicting HR.ResultsThe concentration of EVs and protein expression level of CD63, FcϵRI, CD203c and tryptase were significantly (p< 0.05) increased in HR samples. The expression level of mast cell/basophil specific CD203c were significantly increased in EVs derived from serum and basophils of HR patients, and the CD203c+-EVs production in mast cells is dramatically increased in the presence of IL4, which positively correlated with histamine, tryptase and inflammatory mediators. Moreover, the ROC curve of EVs concentration and CD203c expression indicated that CD203c+-EVs had a strong diagnostic ability for HR.ConclusionSerum CD203c+-EVs serves as a novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for HR.

This paper conducts a parametric analysis on the response of geopolymer-based ultra-high-performance concrete (G-UHPC) slabs reinforced with steel wire mesh (SWM) subjected to contact explosions using the validated Continuous Surface Cap (CSC) model. Firstly, based on the available experimental data, the CSC model parameters, which account for the yield surface, damage formulation, kinematic hardening, and strain rate effect, were comprehensively developed for G-UHPC. The modified CSC model was initially assessed by comparing the quasi-static test results of G-UHPC. Then, the numerical modeling was performed on 200 mm thick SWM-reinforced G-UHPC slabs against 0.4 kg and 1.0 kg TNT contact explosions. The fair agreement between the numerical and experimental data concerning the local damage of the slabs was reported to demonstrate the applicability of the material and structural models. With the validated numerical models, a parametric study was further acted upon to explore the contribution of the variables of SWM, slab thickness, and TNT equivalence on the local damage and energy evolution of G-UHPC slabs subjected to contact blasts. Moreover, based on simulation results from the parametric study, an updated empirical model was derived to evaluate the local damage pattern and internal energy absorption rate of SWM-reinforced G-UHPC slabs.

This paper presents the reverse priority impedance control of manipulators with reference to redundant robots of a given task. The reverse priority kinematic control of redundant manipulators is first expressed in detail. The motion in the joint space is derived following the opposite order compared with the classical task priority–based solution. Then the Cartesian impedance control is combined with the reverse priority impedance control to solve the reverse hierarchical impedance controlled, so that the Cartesian impedance behavior can be divided into the primary priority impedance control and the secondary priority impedance control. Furthermore, the secondary impedance control task will not disturb the primary impedance control task. The motion in the joint space is affected following the opposite order and working in the corresponding projection operators. The primary impedance control tasks are implemented at the end, so as to avoid the possible deformations caused by the singularities occurring in the secondary impedance control tasks. Hence, the proposed reverse priority impedance control of manipulator can achieve the desired impedance control tasks with proper hierarchy. In this paper, the simulation experiments of the manipulator will verify the proposed reverse priority control algorithm.

Background: A delay in the diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) reduces the eligibility and outcome of patients for thrombolytic therapy. Therefore, early diagnosis and treatment of AIS are crucial. The present study evaluated the sensitivity and accuracy of serum extracellular vesicle (EV)-derived miR-124-3p in the diagnosis and prediction of AIS.Methods: An miRNA expression profile was downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and analyzed by R software. EVs were harvested from the serum of AIS patients using a total exosome isolation kit and characterized by Western blotting, a transmission electron microscope, and the nanoparticle tracking analysis. BV2 microglia were pre-stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), followed by miR-124-3p treatment for 24 h and subsequent analysis of viability, apoptosis, and migration (scratch assay), and Western blotting. The relative expression of the selected genes was assessed by qRT-PCR. The phosphorylation of Erk1/2, PI3K/Akt, and p38MAPK in BV2 microglia cells was evaluated by Western blotting, while the luciferase reporter gene assay detected the correlation between key genes involved in the pro-inflammatory signaling pathways and miR-124-3p.Results:hsa-miR-124-3p was downregulated in AIS serum compared to the non-AIS serum (p < 0.05), and the gene expression of has-miR-124-3p in EVs was negatively correlated with serum pro-inflammatory cytokines and the NIHSS (p < 0.05). In addition, miR-124-3p promoted the viability and inhibited the apoptosis of LPS-induced BV2 microglia. Furthermore, miR-124-3p reduced the phosphorylation of Erk1/2, PI3K/Akt, and p38MAPK, and promoted the migration in LPS-induced BV2 microglia (p < 0.05).Conclusion: Serum EV-derived miR-124-3p serves as a diagnostic and predictive marker for early-stage AIS.

Diabetes-related brain damage can lead to cognitive decline and increase the risk of depression, but the neuropathological mechanism of this phenomenon remains unclear. Different insular subregions have obvious functional heterogeneity, which is related to many aspects of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM)-related brain damage. However, little is known about changes in functional connectivity (FC) in insular subregions in patients with T2DM. Therefore, we aimed to investigate FC between different insular subregions and clinical/cognitive variables in patients with T2DM. Fifty-seven patients with T2DM and 55 healthy controls (HCs) underwent a neuropsychological assessment and resting-state FC examination. We defined three insular subregions, including the bilateral dorsal anterior insula (dAI), bilateral ventral anterior insula (vAI), and bilateral posterior insula (PI). We examined differences in FC between insular subregions and the whole brain in patients with T2DM compared with HCs. A correlation analysis was performed to examine the relationship between FC and clinical/cognitive variables. Compared with HCs, patients with T2DM showed significantly decreased FC between the dAI and the right inferior frontal gyrus, right superior/middle temporal gyrus, right hippocampus, and right precentral gyrus. FC between the vAI and the right supramarginal gyrus, as well as the PI and the right precentral/postcentral gyrus, was reduced in the T2DM group compared with the control group. In the T2DM group, we showed a significant negative correlation between glycated hemoglobin concentration and FC in the dAI and right hippocampus (r = −0.428, P = 0.001) after Bonferroni correction. We conclude that different insular subregions present distinct FC patterns with functional regions and that abnormal FC in these insular subregions may affect cognitive, emotional, and sensorimotor functions in patients with T2DM.

56 representative wheat flour samples were detected by Farinograph, Extensograph, Alveograph and Glutograph-E respectively, and the relationship between rheological properties such as farinogram properties, tensile properties, alveogram characteristics and glutomatic properties of wheat flour dough were studied.The results showed that there were significant or extremely significant correlations among some indexes of these rheological properties, and some indicators had their own specificity.In order to improve the efficiency of research and detection, the appropriate indicators should be selected to evaluate the quality of wheat and flour according to the purpose of detection and the end-use of food.

A suspended cable–based parallel robot (CBPR) composed of four cables and an end–grab is employed in a pick–and–place operation of moving target gangues (MTGs) with different shapes, sizes, and masses. This paper focuses on two special problems of pick–and–place trajectory planning and trajectory tracking control of the cable–based gangue–sorting robot in the operation space. First, the kinematic and dynamic models for the cable–based gangue–sorting robots are presented in the presence of model uncertainties and unknown external disturbances. Second, to improve the sorting accuracy and efficiency of sorting system with cable–based gangue–sorting robot, a four-phase pick–and–place trajectory planning scheme based on S-shaped acceleration/deceleration algorithm and quintic polynomial trajectory planning method is proposed, and moreover, a robust adaptive fuzzy tracking control strategy is presented against inevitable uncertainties and unknown external disturbances for trajectory tracking control of the cable–based gangue–sorting robot, where the stability of a closed-loop control scheme is proved with Lyapunov stability theory. Finally, the performances of pick–and–place trajectory planning scheme and robust adaptive tracking control strategy are evaluated through different numerical simulations within Matlab software. The simulation results show smoothness and continuity of pick–and–place trajectory for the end–grab as well as the effectiveness and efficiency to guarantee a stable and accurate pick–and–place trajectory tracking process even in the presence of various uncertainties and external disturbances. The pick–and–place trajectory generation scheme and robust adaptive tracking control strategy proposed in this paper lay the foundation for accurate sorting of MTGs with the robot.

Since most of the cable-driven parallel manipulators (CDPMs) are small in dimension or low in speed, the self-weight or inertia of the cable is neglected when dealing with the problems of kinematics, dynamics and workspace. The cable is treated as a massless straight line, and the inertia of the cable is not discussed. However, the camera robot is a large-span high-speed CDPM. Thus, the self-weight and inertia of the cable cannot be negligible. The curved cable due to the self-weight is modeled as a catenary to accurately account for its sagging effect. Moreover, the dynamic model of the camera robot is derived by decomposing the motion of the cable into an in-plane motion and an out-plane motion, based on which an iterative-based tension distribution algorithm and a workspace generation algorithm are presented. An optimization model is presented to simultaneously improve the workspace volume, anti-wind disturbance ability and impulse of tensions on the camera and pan–tilt device system (CPTDS) by selecting the proper optimal variables under the linear and nonlinear constraints. An improved genetic algorithm (GA) is proposed, and the simulation results demonstrate that the improved GA offers a stronger ability in global optimization compared to the standard genetic algorithm (SGA). The ideal-point method is employed to avoid the subjective influence of the designer when performing the multi-objective optimization, and a remarkable improvement of the performance is obtained through the optimization. Furthermore, the distribution characteristics of the optimization objects are studied, and some valuable conclusions are summarized, which will provide some valuable references in designing large-span high-speed CDPMs.

Cognitive impairment in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is associated with functional and structural abnormalities in the intrinsic brain network. The salience network (SN) is a neurocognitive network that maintains normal cognitive function, but it has received little attention in T2DM. We explored SN changes in patients with T2DM with normal cognitive function (DMCN) and in patients with T2DM with mild cognitive impairment (DMCI). Sixty-five T2DM patients and 31 healthy controls (HCs) underwent a neuropsychological assessment, independent component analysis (ICA), and voxel-based morphometry (VBM) analysis. The ICA extracted the SN for VBM to compare SN functional connectivity (FC) and gray matter (GM) volume (GMV) between groups. A correlation analysis examined the relationship between abnormal FC and GMV and clinical/cognitive variables. Compared with HCs, DMCN patients demonstrated increased FC in the left frontoinsular cortex (FIC), right anterior insula, and putamen, while DMCI patients demonstrated decreased right middle/inferior frontal gyrus FC. Compared with DMCN patients, DMCI patients showed decreased right FIC FC. There was no significant difference in SN GMV in DMCN and DMCI patients compared with HCs. FIC GMV was decreased in the DMCI patients compared with DMCN patients. In addition, right FIC FC and SN GMV positively correlated with Montreal Cognitive Assessment and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores. These findings indicate that changes in SN FC, and GMV are complex non-linear processes accompanied by increased cognitive dysfunction in patients with T2DM. The right FIC may be a useful imaging biomarker for supplementary assessment of early cognitive dysfunction in patients with T2DM.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is related to a variety of cognitive impairments that may even progress to dementia. Studies have found the angular gyrus (AG) is a cross-modal integration hub that is involved in a variety of cognitive processes. However, few studies have focused on the patterns of resting-state functional connections (rsFCs) of the AG in patients with T2DM. This study explored the functional connection (FC) between the AG and the whole brain and the relationship between the FC and clinical/cognitive variables in patients with T2DM. 44 patients with T2DM and 43 sex-, age-, and education-matched healthy controls underwent resting-state fMRI and received neuropsychological assessments. Compared with the control group, the T2DM group showed abnormal rsFCs between the AG and multiple brain regions. The FC between the left AG and the left medial temporal lobe in the T2DM group was positively correlated with scores on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, after a Bonferroni correction (r = 0.40, P = 0.009). Collectively, patients with T2DM have abnormal FCs between the AG and extensive brain regions that may be related to various cognitive processes.

Drop jump (DJ) is often used as a plyometric exercise to improve jumping performance. Training from improper drop heights and for improper durations lead to unfavorable biomechanical changes in the lower extremities when landing, which result in reduced training effects and even lower extremity injuries. Purpose. To study the effects of repeated DJ training at drop heights of 30 cm, 40 cm, and 50 cm (drop jump height (DJH) 30, DJH40, and DJH50) on lower extremity kinematics and kinetics. The 1st, 50th, 100th, 150th, and 200th DJs (DJ1, DJs50, DJs100, DJs150, and DJs200) were recorded by using a BTS motion capture system and force platform. The MATLAB software was used to compare the kinematic and stiffness data of DJ1, DJs50, DJs100, DJs150, and DJs200 with one-way ANOVA repeated measure. If there were significant differences, the LSD method was used for post hoc comparisons. Methods. Twenty healthy male Division III athlete volunteers were selected as subjects, and 200 drop jumps (DJs200) were performed from DJH30, DJH40, and DJH50. Results. The jumping height (JH), contact time (CT), and GRF increased with drop height, and the stiffness of the legs and ankle at DJH30 was higher than that at DJH40 and DJH50 (p

Objective. Testicular germ cell tumors (TGCT) are a serious malignant tumor with low early diagnosis rates and high mortality. Methods. To investigate novel biomarkers to predict the diagnosis and prognosis of this cancer, bioinformatics analysis was used as an accurate, efficient, and economical method. Results. Our study detected 39 upregulated and 589 downregulated differentially expressed genes (DEGs) using the GEO and TCGA databases. To identify the function of DEGs, GO functional analysis, three pathway analysis (KEGG, REACTOME, and PANTHER), and protein-protein interaction network were performed using the KOBAS website, as well as the String database. After a series of analyses in GEPIA and TIMER, including differential expression, we found one candidate gene related to the prognosis and diagnosis of TGCT. LAPTM5 was also associated with CD8+ T cell and PDCD1 expression, which suggests that it may affect immune infiltration. Conclusions. LAPTM5 was identified as a hub gene, which could be used as a potential biomarker for TGCT diagnosis and prognosis.

To evaluate variations in coagulation, fibrinolysis and endothelial marker expression in cirrhotic patients and to explore their clinical value and predictive performance in cirrhotic patients with or without portal vein thrombosis (PVT), we performed a case-control study with 175 cirrhotic patients and 50 healthy individuals. 99 patients had PVT and another 76 patients did not. All participants were evaluated for plasma levels of conventional hemostatic markers. Thrombin-antithrombin complex (TAT), plasmin-α2-plasmin inhibitor complex (PIC), thrombomodulin (TM), tissue plasminogen activator inhibitor complex (t-PAIC), von Willebrand factor antigen (vWF: Ag) and coagulation factor Ⅷ (FⅧ: c) were also assessed and the ratio of TAT/t-PAIC was calculated. We analyzed differences in these biomarkers among the three groups and constructed receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Patients with PVT exhibited significantly higher TAT and TAT/t-PAIC than cirrhotic patients without PVT (both P < 0.001). Areas under the curve (AUC) of ROC analyses for TAT and TAT/t-PAIC were 0.68 and 0.66, the cut-off levels were 1.55 ng/ml and 0.46, with sensitivities and specificities of 78.79% and 51.32% regarding TAT, 39.8% and 90.79% regarding TAT/t-PAIC. Levels of FⅧ: c and vWF: Ag in patients with PVT were significantly lower than those without PVT (p = 0.026 and p = 0.027, respectively). The AUC ROC , cut-off level, sensitivity and specificity of FⅧ: c were 0.64, 111.1%, 66.67% and 60%, respectively. For vWF: Ag they were 0.61, 429%, 89.66% and 38.71%, respectively. Cirrhotic patients have disorders of coagulation, fibrinolysis and the endothelial system. TAT, TAT/t-PAIC, FⅧ: c and vWF: Ag can be used as potential biomarkers for predicting PVT in cirrhotic patients.

Background: Cerebral palsy (CP) is a syndrome of non-progressive motor dysfunction caused by early brain development injury. Recent evidence has shown that immunological abnormalities are associated with an increased risk of CP.Methods: We recruited 782 children with CP as the case group and 770 healthy children as the control group. The association between IL-23R single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs; namely, rs10889657, rs6682925, rs1884444, rs17375018, rs1004819, rs11805303, and rs10889677) and CP was studied by using a case–control method and SHEsis online software. Subgroup analysis based on complications and clinical subtypes was also carried out.Results: There were differences in the allele and genotype frequencies between CP cases and controls at the rs11805303 and rs10889677 SNPs (Pallele = 0.014 and 0.048, respectively; Pgenotype = 0.023 and 0.008, respectively), and the difference in genotype frequency of rs10889677 remained significant after Bonferroni correction (Pgenotype = 0.048). Subgroup analysis revealed a more significant association of rs10889677 with CP accompanied by global developmental delay (Pgenotype = 0.024 after correction) and neonatal encephalopathy (Pgenotype = 0.024 after correction).Conclusion: The present results showed a significant association between IL-23R and CP, suggesting that IL-23R may play a potential role in CP pathogenesis.

The role of the cerebellum in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has been receiving increased attention. However, the functional connectivity (FC) between the cerebellar subregions and the cerebral cortex has not been investigated in T2DM. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate cerebellar-cerebral FC and the relationship between FC and clinical/cognitive variables in patients with T2DM. A total of 34 patients with T2DM and 30 healthy controls were recruited for this study to receive a neuropsychological assessment and undergo resting-state FC. We selected four subregions of the cerebellum (bilateral lobules IX, right and left Crus I/II, and left lobule VI) as regions of interest (ROIs) to examine the differences in cerebellar-cerebral circuits in patients with T2DM compared to healthy controls. Correlation analysis was performed to examine the relationship between FC and clinical/cognitive variables in the patients. Compared to healthy controls, patients with T2DM showed significantly decreased cerebellar-cerebral FC in the default-mode network (DMN), executive control network (ECN), and visuospatial network (VSN). In the T2DM group, the FC between the left cerebellar lobule VI and the right precuneus was negatively correlated with the Trail Making Test A (TMT-A) score (r = −0.430, P = 0.013), after a Bonferroni correction. In conclusion, patients with T2DM have altered FC between the cerebellar subregions and the cerebral networks involved in cognitive and emotional processing. This suggests that a range of cerebellar-cerebral circuits may be involved in the neuropathology of T2DM cognitive dysfunction.

Effective treatments for neurodegenerative diseases need to be developed. MiR132 is abundantly expressed in the brain, and it modulates neuron morphology and plays a key role in maintaining neuron survival. Regulating miR132 can effectively improve the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. It can also reduce cell death after cerebral hemorrhage, improve the microenvironment of hematoma lesions and provide a certain protective effect from brain damage after cerebral ischemia. MiR132 has great potential in the treatment of cerebral ischemia and Alzheimer’s disease. To prevent the decline of miR132 of miR132 levels in the blood, we used mouse and rat models of Alzheimer’s disease with ischemic brain injury, and then delivered Wheat germ agglutinin (WGA)-NPs-miR132 intranasally to treat neurological damage after cerebral ischemia. Synaptic protein expression levels in Alzheimer’s mouse models increased significantly after administration. We propose that, nasal delivery of WGA-NPs-miR132 is an interesting novel therapeutic approach for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.

Purpose: The main objective of this meta-analysis was to compare the effectiveness of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and of moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT) on cardiometabolic health in childhood obesity and determine whether HIIT is a superior form of training in managing obese children's metabolic health.Methods: Relevant studies published in PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, the Cochrane Library, EBSCO, and CNKI were searched, restricted to those published from inception to 1 October 2019. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) depicting the effect of HIIT on childhood obesity were included.Results: Nine RCTs involving 309 participants were included in the meta-analysis. Among the 309 participants, 158 subjects were randomized for HIIT, while the others were randomized for MICT. Significant differences were observed in the body weight (mean difference [MD] = −5.45 kg, p = 0.001), body mass index (BMI; MD = −1.661 kg/m2, p = 0.0001), systolic blood pressure (SBP; MD = −3.994 mmHg, p = 0.003), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP; MD = −3.087 mmHg, p = 0.0001) in the HIIT group relative to the baseline values. Similar effects were found in the MICT group, as depicted by the significantly decreased values for body weight (MD = −4.604 kg, p = 0.0001), BMI (MD = −2.366 kg/m2, p = 0.0001), SBP (MD = −3.089 mmHg, p = 0.019), and DBP (MD = −3.087 mmHg, p = 0.0001). However, no significant differences were observed in the changes in body weight, BMI, SBP, or DBP between the HIIT and MICT groups. Furthermore, our studies showed that both HIIT and MICT could significantly improve VO2peak (HIIT, MD = 4.17 ml/kg/min, 95% CI: 3.191 to 5.163, p = 0.0001; MICT, MD = 1.704 ml/kg/min, 95% CI: 0.279 to 3.130, p = 0.019). HIIT also showed more positive effects on VO2peak (SMD = 0.468, 95% CI: 0.040 to 0.897, p = 0.006) than MICT.Conclusion: HIIT positively affects the cardiometabolic risk factors in childhood obesity. Similar positive effects on body composition and blood pressure were established. Moreover, HIIT can improve cardiorespiratory fitness more significantly than MICT. These findings indicate that HIIT may be an alternative and effective training method for managing childhood obesity.PROSPERO Registration Number: CRD42018111308.

At present, the existing standards (AISC360-16, EN1994-1-1:2004, and JGJ138-2016) lack relevant provisions for steel-reinforced concrete (SRC) composite columns with high-strength steel. To investigate the axial compressive mechanical performance of short high-strength steel-reinforced concrete (HSSRC) columns, the axial load test was conducted on 12 short composite columns with high-strength steel and ordinary steel. The influences of steel strength, steel ratio, and the section form of steel on the failure modes, bearing capacity, and ductility of the specimens were studied. Afterward, the experimental data were compared with the existing calculation results. The results show: compared with the specimens with Q235 steel, the bearing capacity of the specimens with Q460 steel increases by 7.8–15.3%, the bearing capacity of the specimens with Q690 steel increases by 13.2–24.1%, but the ductility coefficient increases by 15.2–202.4%; with the increase of steel ratio, the bearing capacity and ductility of specimens are significantly improved. A change of the steel cross-section could influence the ductility of SRC columns more than their bearing capacity. Moreover, the calculation results show that present standards could not predict the bearing capacity of HSSRC columns. Therefore, a modified method for determining the effective strength of steel equipped in HSSRC columns was proposed. The results of the ABAQUS simulation also showed that the addition of steel fibers could significantly improve the bearing capacity of Q690 HSSRC columns. The research results provide a reference for engineering practices.

An approach of ease-off flank modification for hypoid gears was proposed to improve the meshing performance of automobile drive axle. Firstly, a conjugate pinion matching with gear globally was developed based on gear meshing theory. Secondly, a modified pinion was represented by a sum of two vector functions determining the conjugate pinion and the normal ease-off deviations expressed by both predesigned transmission error function and tooth profile modification curves to change the initial contact clearance of the tooth. Thirdly, the best ease-off deviations were determined by optimizing the minimum amplitude of loaded transmission error (ALTE) based on tooth contact analysis (TCA) and loaded tooth contact analysis (LTCA). Finally, the results show that effective contact ratios (εe) are established by clearances both teeth space and of contact elliptical, and greatly affect ALTE. The εe is a variable value with increasing loads for the tooth with modification. ALTE decreases with increasing εe. After εe reaches the maximum, ALTE increases with increasing loads. The mismatch of the best ease-off tooth is minimal, which contributes to effective reduction in ALTE, thus significantly improving drive performance.

Background: The study explored the influence of repeated drop jumps (DJs) from different drop heights on the lower extremity bilateral asymmetry and muscle activation of countermovement jumps (CMJs). Methods: Eighteen male athletes performed 200 drop jumps (DJs200) from three drop jump height (DJH30, 40 and 50 cm). The CMJs were performed before the first DJ and after the 50th, 100th, 150th and 200th DJs, recording them as pre-CMJ, CMJs50, CMJs100, CMJs150 and CMJs200. One-way repeated measures ANOVA was used to compare differences among the three drop heights at pre-CMJ, CMJs50, CMJs100, CMJs150 and CMJs200, respectively. Results: The peak ground reaction forces (PGRF) of CMJs100, CMJs150 and CMJs200 at DJH50 were greater than at DJH30 and DJH40 (all p < 0.05). The muscle activation during CMJs50 at DJH50 was greater than at DJH30 and DJH40 (all p < 0.05). The muscle activation during CMJs100, CMJs150 and CMJs200 at DJH50 was smaller than at DJH40 and DJH30 (all p < 0.05). The PGRF had no significant difference among the three different drop heights during CMJs50 (p > 0.05). Conclusions: The DJs50 at DJH50 had no effect on the bilateral asymmetry and increased muscle activation of CMJs. The excessive DJs100 at DJH50 increased bilateral asymmetry and decreased CMJ muscle activation during CMJs.

Background: Heat treatments are applied to ginseng products in order to improve physiological activities through the conversion of ginsenosides, which are key bioactive components. During heat treatment, organic acids can affect ginsenoside conversion. Therefore, the influence of organic acids during heat treatment should be considered. Methods: Raw ginseng, crude saponin, and ginsenoside Rb1 standard with different organic acids were treated at 130°C, and the chemical components, including ginsenosides and organic acids, were analyzed. Results: The organic acid content in raw ginseng was 5.55%. Organic acids were not detected in crude saponin that was not subjected to heat treatment, whereas organic acids were found in crude saponin subjected to heat treatment. Major ginsenosides (Rb1, Re, and Rg1) in ginseng and crude saponin were converted to minor ginsenosides at 130°C; the ginsenoside Rb1 standard was very stable in the absence of organic acids and was converted into minor ginsenosides in the presence of organic acids at high temperatures. Conclusion: The major factor affecting ginsenoside conversion was organic acids in ginseng. Therefore, the organic acid content as well as ginsenoside content and processing conditions should be considered important factors affecting the quality of ginseng products. Keywords: ginseng, ginsenoside conversion, heat treatment, organic acids, thermal stability

Abstract Background Many X-linked non-syndromic hearing loss (HL) cases are caused by various mutations in the POU domain class 3 transcription factor 4 (POU3F4) gene. This study aimed to identify allelic variants of this gene in two Chinese families displaying X-linked inheritance deafness-2 (DFNX2) and one sporadic case with indefinite inheritance pattern. Methods Direct DNA sequencing of the POU3F4 gene was performed in these families and in 100 Chinese individuals with normal hearing. Results There are characteristic imaging findings in DFNX2 Chinese families with POU3F4 mutations. The temporal bone computed tomography (CT) images of patients with DFNX2 are characterized by a thickened stapes footplate, hypoplasia of the cochlear base, absence of the bony modiolus, and dilated internal acoustic meatus (IAM) as well as by abnormally wide communication between the IAM and the basal turn of the cochlea. We identified three causative mutations in POU3F4 for three probands and their extended families. In family 1468, we observed a novel deletion mutation, c.973delT, which is predicted to result in a p.Trp325Gly amino acid frameshift. In family 2741, the mutation c.927delCTC was identified, which is predicted to result in the deletion of serine at position 310. In both families, the mutations were located in the POU homeodomain and are predicted to truncate the C-terminus of the POU domain. In the third family, a novel de novo transversion mutation (c.669 T > A) was identified in a 5-year-old boy that resulted in a nonsense mutation (p.Tyr223*). The mutation created a new stop codon and is predicted to result in a truncated POU3F4 protein. Conclusions Based on characteristic radiological findings and clinical features, POU3F4 gene mutation analysis will increase the success rate of stapes operations and cochlear implantations, and improve molecular diagnosis, genetic counseling, and knowledge of the molecular epidemiology of HL among patients with DFNX2.

Abstract. The majority of patients who experience cutaneous adverse drug reactions (cADRs) concurrently receive multiple medications, meaning that the causative drug remains unidentified. We explored the association between human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles and cADRs, regardless of the allergenic drug, to investigate whether different drug-induced cADRs were associated with the same or similar risk alleles in a Han Chinese population. We genotyped a sample of 146 cADR patients and 230 population controls from the same hospital and systematically analyzed the association between HLA Class I genes and cADRs. The carrier frequency of HLA-B∗46:01 in cADR patients was found to be significantly higher than that in population controls (P = .0021, odds ratio [OR] = 2.18, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.33–2.58). Subgroup analysis showed that HLA-B∗46:01 was significantly associated with urticaria and erythema multiforme (P = .0077, OR = 2.53, 95% CI: 1.30–4.91; and P = .0049, OR = 2.77, 95% CI: 1.39–5.50, respectively). Furthermore, a significant association was also detected between HLA-A∗02:01 and erythema multiforme (P = .0038, OR = 2.65, 95% CI: 1.31–5.33). This study is the first to demonstrate that HLA-B∗46:01 is a risk allele for cADRs in a Han Chinese population, indicating that screening for HLA-B∗46:01 prior to the administration of medication may predict the risk of developing cADRs.

In this paper, we study the minimizing problem $$ S_{p,1,\alpha,\mu}:= \inf_{u\in W^{1,p}(\mathbb{R}^{N})\setminus\{0\}} \frac{ \int_{\mathbb{R}^{N}}|\nabla u|^{p}\mathrm{d}x - \mu \int_{\mathbb{R}^{N}} \frac{|u|^{p}}{|x|^{p}} \mathrm{d}x} {\left( \int_{\mathbb{R}^{N}} \int_{\mathbb{R}^{N}} \frac{|u(x)|^{p^{*}_{\alpha}}|u(y)|^{p^{*}_{\alpha}}}{|x-y|^{\alpha}} \mathrm{d}x \mathrm{d}y \right)^{\frac{p}{2\cdot p^{*}_{\alpha}}}}, $$ where $N\geqslant3$, $p\in(1,N)$, $\mu\in\big[0,\big(\frac{N-p}{p}\big)^{p} \big)$, $\alpha\in(0,N)$ and $p^{*}_{\alpha}=\frac{p}{2}\big(\frac{2N-\alpha}{N-p}\big)$ is the Hardy–Littlewood–Sobolev upper critical exponent. Firstly, by using refinement of Hardy–Littlewood–Sobolev inequality, we prove that $S_{p,1,\alpha,\mu}$ is achieved in $\mathbb{R}^{N}$ by a radially symmetric, nonincreasing and nonnegative function. Secondly, we give a estimation of extremal function.

With the evolution of wireless communication service types to massive,large connections,small traffic scenarios,mobile Internet has marched into the Internet of things.Carrying on business networking wireless network deployment in communication operators,which provides a wealth of industry applications also enable operators facing huge end-to-end backward challenges to business.An end to end service guarantee system based on the signaling big data and covering the “terminal pipe and cloud” was proposed and constructed,and the six network dimensions in the user,terminal,wireless,transmission,core network and digital network was solved,as well as the four stages of network access,service access,network switching,and service quality of six dimensions and four stages facing the Internet of things.In order to solve the problem of inter professional collaboration and demarcation,the assistant operator completes the transformation from the traditional KPI (key performance indicator) index mode to the service aware KQI (key quality indicator) end to end full process business guarantee mechanism,and provides the end to end full process one key positioning ability guarantee for the Internet of things applications.

In this article, we consider the problem $$ -\Delta u =\Big(\int_{\mathbb{R}^{N}} \frac{|u|^{2^{*}_{\mu}}}{|x-y|^{\mu}}\,\mathrm{d}y \Big) |u|^{2^{*}_{\mu}-2}u + f(x,u) \quad\text{in }\mathbb{R}^{N}, $$ where $N\geqslant3$, $\mu\in(0,N)$ and $2^{*}_{\mu}=\frac{2N-\mu}{N-2}$. Under suitable assumptions on $f(x,u)$, we establish the existence and non-existence of nontrivial solutions via the variational method.

Abstract In this paper, we study the following biharmonic equation: {Δ2u−Δu+λV(x)u=α(x)f(u)+μK(x)|u|q−2uin RN,u∈H2(RN), $$ \textstyle\begin{cases} \Delta^{2}u - \Delta u + \lambda V( x)u = \alpha( x) f(u) + \mu K(x) \vert u \vert ^{q-2}u \quad\text{in } \mathbb{R}^{N},\\ u\in H^{2}(\mathbb{R}^{N}), \end{cases} $$ where Δ2u=Δ(Δu) $\Delta^{2}u=\Delta(\Delta u)$, N>4 $N>4$, λ>0 $\lambda>0$, 1

Objective: To explore the potential predictors of a live birth (LB) outcome among subfertile couples of Asian ethnicity undergoing the first fertility treatment cycle; to assess the cumulative live birth rates after successive cycles; and to determine the incidence rate of spontaneous conception (SC). Methods: Subfertile couples were grouped according to treatment modalities at the first fertility treatment cycle: intrauterine insemination (IUI), in vitro fertilization (IVF), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and no treatment, and were followed-up for duration up to seven years. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used for statistical analyses. Results: Age of female subjects [35-38 years, odds ratio (OR): 0.39; ≥ 39 years, OR: 0.14], uterine factor subfertility (OR: 5.24), and treatment modalities (ORs: IUI 0.25, IVF 2.33 and ICSI 1.91) significantly predicted a LB outcome (P

Skeletal muscle suffers atrophy and weakness with aging. Denervation, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial dysfunction are all proposed as contributors to age-associated muscle loss, but connections between these factors have not been established. We examined contractility, mitochondrial function, and intracellular calcium transients (ICTs) in muscles of mice throughout the life span to define their sequential relationships. We performed these same measures and analyzed neuromuscular junction (NMJ) morphology in mice with postnatal deletion of neuronal Sod1 (i-mn-Sod1-/- mice), previously shown to display accelerated age-associated muscle loss and exacerbation of denervation in old age, to test relationships between neuronal redox homeostasis, NMJ degeneration and mitochondrial function. In control mice, the amount and rate of the decrease in mitochondrial NADH during contraction was greater in middle than young age although force was not reduced, suggesting decreased efficiency of NADH utilization prior to the onset of weakness. Declines in both the peak of the ICT and force were observed in old age. Muscles of i-mn-Sod1-/- mice showed degeneration of mitochondrial and calcium handling functions in middle-age and a decline in force generation to a level not different from the old control mice, with maintenance of NMJ morphology. Together, the findings support the conclusion that muscle mitochondrial function decreases during aging and in response to altered neuronal redox status prior to NMJ deterioration or loss of mass and force suggesting mitochondrial defects contribute to sarcopenia independent of denervation.

The Remedial Action Scheme (RAS) is designed to take corrective actions after detecting predetermined conditions to maintain system transient stability in large interconnected power grids. However, since RAS is usually designed based on a few selected typical operating conditions, it is not optimal in operating conditions that are not considered in the offline design, especially under frequently and dramatically varying operating conditions due to the increasing integration of intermittent renewables. The deep learning-based RAS is proposed to enhance the adaptivity of RAS to varying operating conditions. During the training, a customized loss function is developed to penalize the negative loss and suggest corrective actions with a security margin to avoid triggering under-frequency and over-frequency relays. Simulation results of the reduced United States Western Interconnection system model demonstrate that the proposed deep learning–based RAS can provide optimal corrective actions for unseen operating conditions while maintaining a sufficient security margin.

Background: The purpose of this study was to explore the gaze behavior of tennis players with different skill levels when receiving serves through eye movement information. Methods: The skill level was divided into group A (experts, with more than 10 years of playing experience) and group B (novices, with less than 2 years of playing experience). We compared the differences in gaze behavior between groups A and B at the head-shoulder, trunk-hips, arm-hand, leg-foot, racket, ball, and racket-ball contact area seven positions using the Eye-gaze Response Interface Computer Aid (ERICA) device. Data were analyzed using two-way ANOVA. Results: Compared with the novices, the experts have more gaze time in the head–shoulders, rack, and ball when serving forehand (p < 0.01). The experts also have more gaze time on the head–shoulders, trunk–hips, racket, ball, and racket–ball contact area when serving backhand (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Expert athletes have a longer stare time for a specific position, which mainly determines the direction of the ball. Tennis coaches can increase the gaze time for these four positions and improve tennis players’ ability to predict the direction of the ball.

The difference of drop heights will affect the biomechanics of lower extremities during drop-jump (DJ) landing. Therefore, this study explored the effects of drop heights and training volumes on interjoint coordination and the side-to-side asymmetry of the lower extremities during landing. Twenty males were randomly assigned to perform 200 DJs (DJs200) from 30, 40 and 50 cm (drop-jump height (DJH) 30, DJH40 and DJH50) platform. One-way ANOVA repeated measure, using MATLAB software, was used to compare the differences of interjoint coordination, side-to-side asymmetry of ground contact time (GCT) and the maximum impact in vertical ground-reaction forces peak (I-vGRFpeak) in the 1st, 50th, 100th, 150th and 200th jumps (DJ1, DJs50, DJs100, DJs150 and DJs200). To examine whether significant differences exist, the least significant difference’s (LSD) method was used for post-hoc comparison. The mean absolute relative phase (MARP) and deviation phase (DP) of hip–knee were lower than DJH50 at DJH30 and DJH40, while side-to-side asymmetry of GCT and I-vGRFpeak were greater than DJH30 and DJH40 at DJH50 within DJs200 (all p

Ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi can form symbioses with plant roots, which play an important role in regulating the rhizosphere microenvironment. As a broad-spectrum ECM tree species, Pinus massoniana forms symbiotic relationship called mycorrhiza with various ECM fungal species. In this study, four types of forests were selected from a 38-year-old Pinus plantation in eastern Sichuan, namely, pure P. massoniana forest (MC), P. massoniana mixed with Cunninghamia lanceolata forest (MS), P. massoniana–Cryptomeria fortunei forest (ML), and P. massoniana–broadleaved forest (MK), the species mixture ratio of all forests was 1:1. The ITS2 segment of ECM root tip sequenced by high-throughput sequencing using the Illumina MiSeq sequencing platform. (1) The ECM fungi of these four P. massoniana forests showed similar dominant genera but different relative abundances in community structure during the three seasons. (2) The alpha diversity index of ECM fungi was significantly influenced by season and forest type. (3) Soil pH, soil organic matter (SOM), total nitrogen (TN), C/N ratio, and total phosphorus (TP) influenced the ECM fungal community structure in different seasons. In summary, there were significant differences in ECM fungal communities among different forest types and different seasons; the colonization rate of ECM fungal in P. massoniana–Cunninghamia lanceolata was the highest, so we infer that Cunninghamia lanceolata is the most suitable tree species for mixed with P. massoniana in three mixture forests.

AIM:To observe the clinical efficacy and safety of vincamine sustained release capsules on non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy(NAION).METHODS:Patients who were diagnosed with monocular onset NAION in acute stage from January to September 2015 were divided into two groups. Routine treatment such as steroid pulse therapy and neurotrophic treatment were given to all the patients. Vincamine was added to the treatment group patients with 30mg twice a day for 3mo. The best corrected visual acuity(BCVA), mean deviation(MD)of visual field, retinal nerve fiber layer(RNFL), ganglion cell complex(GCC), pattern visual evoked potential(PVEP)and OCT results were analyzed before and after the treatment.RESULTS: Totally 42 eyes of 42 patients were enrolled in our study. There were 27 patients in the treatment group, aged from 33 to 79 years old, the average value was 55.55±11.83 years old. The control group has 15 patients, aged from 40 to 70 years old, the average value was 55.71±10.06 years old. There were no statistical differences between the two groups in the baseline. After 3mo of the treatment, MD value of the two groups were lower compared with the baseline, the difference was statistically significant in the treatment and control group respectively(t=2.342, 2.692; P=0.027, 0.041). The difference of PVEP amplitude and potential of the two groups before and after the treatment were not statistically significant. The thickness of retinal nerve fiber layer and the ganglion cell complex were all lower than the baseline, and the difference was statistically significant(PCONCLUSION: Vincamine is helpful in the treatment of non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy.

One common complication after joint arthroplasty is venous thromboembolism (VTE). Therefore, it is essential to measure the changes in coagulation and fibrinolysis in order to predict VTE among patients who underwent joint arthroplasty. This study aimed to identify potential useful biomarkers for prognosing to VTE. This was a prospective cohort study enrolling 83 patients who underwent joint arthroplasty. The levels of d -dimer, thrombin–antithrombin complex (TAT), plasmin–α2-antiplasmin complex (PIC), soluble thrombomodulin, and tissue plasminogen activator inhibitor complex were measured on day 0 (before surgery) and days 1, 3, and 6 after surgery. Ultrasound examination was used to diagnose VTE on preoperative day 0 and postoperative day 6. A total of 35 patients developed VTE after surgery. Patients with VTE exhibited significantly higher levels of d -dimer and TAT on postoperative days 3 and 6 (all P < .05). The area under curves (AUC) of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) were 0.65 and 0.68 and 0.68 and 0.74 for d -dimer and TAT levels on postoperative days 3 and 6, respectively. The level of TAT/PIC ratio on postoperative day 6 was significantly increased among patients with VTE compared to non-VTE patients ( P < .0001). In addition, the AUC of ROC, cutoff level, sensitivity, specificity, positive-predictive value, and negative-predictive value of TAT/PIC ratio were 0.78, 4.03 ng/TU, 97.14%, 33.33%, 51.52%, and 94.12%, respectively. The high sensitivity and negative predictive value of TAT/PIC ratio make it a potential prognostic index for diagnosing VTE during the early phase of postoperative joint arthroplasty.

The design, implementation, and testing of a control system for a flexible microgrid (MG) is presented in this study. The MG controllers can be implemented in a real-world MG with multiple smart switches, photovoltaic panel system, and battery energy storage systems (BESSs). With the benefits from smart switches, the MG has unique characteristics such as dynamic boundary and flexible point of interconnection (POI) concepts. To control such a unique MG and realise the dynamic boundary, an MG central controller and two types of local controllers are implemented. Compared to the MG with fixed boundary, the MG with dynamic boundary can have smaller BESS capacity, better utilisation of renewable energy, and multiple POI options. Also, compared with IEEE Std 2030.7–2017, the topology identification and active and reactive power balance functions are newly designed to realise the dynamic boundary concept. The planned islanding and reconnection functions are modified to realise the flexible POI concept. These functions are introduced including the software architecture, cooperation, and interaction among them. Finally, a hardware-in-the-loop testing platform based on the Opal-RT real-time simulator is set up to verify the performance, realisation of the dynamic boundary, and flexible POI concepts with four comprehensive test scenarios.

It is essential for flapping-wing micro aerial vehicles to have a driver with compact size, low mass, and high conversion efficiency in low-power application. In this article, a dual-stage low-power converter driving for piezoelectric actuator was designed and implemented, which can be applied in flapping-wing micro aerial vehicles. Using the “simultaneous drive” method, an Residual Current Devices (RCD) passive snubber flyback DC/DC step-up converter cascaded with a bidirectional active half-bridge drive stage is designed. The flyback converter is controlled by pulse width modulation in discontinuous conduction mode to ensure the stability of the output high voltage. The half-bridge drive stage takes the approach of comparing the output voltage signal with an ideal waveform lookup table to generate arbitrary unipolar signals. The proposed converter has a weight of 345 mg, a size of 285 mm 2 (19 × 15 mm 2 ), a maximum output power of 500 mW, and a maximum conversion efficiency of 64.5%. An experiment driving for piezoelectric actuator was performed to observe the displacement generated by the converter. According to the experimental results, this converter can be applied in flapping-wing micro aerial vehicles.

Although the entrepreneurial intention of university students has been studied from different perspectives, the results are still not convergent, and the mechanism and outcomes related to how entrepreneurial intention could be affected by different factors lacking integrated investigation and comparative research. Based on emotional theory, the theory of planned behavior (TPB), and entrepreneurial cognitive theory, as well as the perception of specific situations encountered by university students, this paper attempts to explore entrepreneurial intention from three perspectives, including individual, family and school; and constructs an integrated model that includes entrepreneurial passion, role models, entrepreneurial education, entrepreneurial self-efficacy, and entrepreneurial intention. Based on a survey of university students in the Pearl River Delta of China, this paper attempts to explore the intrinsic mechanism of the development of entrepreneurial intention from these three perspectives. The results show that entrepreneurial passion, role models, and entrepreneurial education could have different effects on entrepreneurial intention; additionally, entrepreneurial self-efficacy plays an important mediating role. The research findings contribute to the literatures regarding the factors influencing entrepreneurial intention, providing empirical evidence to formulate policies to encourage university students’ entrepreneurship practices and help to enhance effectiveness of entrepreneurship education.

Although safflower seed extract exhibits pharmacological activity against various diseases, the effects of its individual compounds on osteoarthritis (OA) have not been elucidated. Here, we evaluated the effects of these extracts and their single compounds on OA. N-(p-Coumaroyl) serotonin and N-feruloyl serotonin, main components of safflower seed extract, were isolated by high-performance liquid chromatography. Under in vitro OA mimic conditions, the expression of the matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) MMP3/13 and a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs (ADAMTS) ADAMTS5 were reduced in mouse chondrocytes treated with safflower seed extract. Furthermore, the oral administration of safflower seed extract attenuated cartilage destruction in a mouse OA model induced by destabilization of the medial meniscus. N-(p-Coumaroyl) serotonin and N-feruloyl serotonin, but not serotonin, reduced MMP3, MMP13, and ADAMTS5 expression in IL-1β-treated chondrocytes. Additionally, they significantly blocked the nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) pathway by inhibiting IκB degradation and p65 phosphorylation. Our results suggest that safflower seed extract and its single compounds can attenuate cartilage destruction by suppressing MMP and ADMATS5 expression. The anti-arthritic effects are mediated by NF-κB signaling and involve the inhibition of IκB degradation and p65 phosphorylation. These results indicate that safflower seed extract may serve as a novel therapeutic agent against OA.

For the purpose of investigating the microstructural evolution and the mechanical response under applied loads, a new phase field model based on the Ginzburg-Landau theory is developed by designing a free energy function with six potential wells that represent six martensite variants. Two-dimensional phase field simulations show that, in the process of a shape memory effect induced by temperature-stress, the reduction-disappearance of cubic austenite phase and nucleation-growth of monoclinic martensite multi-variants result in a poly-twined martensitic microstructure. The microstructure of martensitic de-twinning consists of different martensite multi-variants in the tension and compression, which reveals the microstructural asymmetry of nickel-titanium (NiTi) alloy in the tension and compression. Furthermore, in the process of super-elasticity induced by tensile or compressive stress, all martensite variants nucleate and expand as the applied stress gradually increases from zero. Whereas, when the applied stress reaches critical stress, only the martensite variants of applied stress-accommodating continue to expand and others fade gradually. Moreover, the twinned martensite microstructures formed in the tension and compression contain different martensite multi-variants. The study of the microstructural dynamic evolution in the phase transformation can provide a significant reference in improving properties of shape memory alloys that researchers have been exploring in recent years.