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Background With the gradual increase of infertility in the world, among which male sperm problems are the main factor for infertility, more and more couples are using computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA) to assist in the analysis and treatment of infertility. Meanwhile, the rapid development of deep learning (DL) has led to strong results in image classification tasks. However, the classification of sperm images has not been well studied in current deep learning methods, and the sperm images are often affected by noise in practical CASA applications. The purpose of this article is to investigate the anti-noise robustness of deep learning classification methods applied on sperm images.Methods The SVIA dataset is a publicly available large-scale sperm dataset containing three subsets. In this work, we used subset-C, which provides more than 125,000 independent images of sperms and impurities, including 121,401 sperm images and 4,479 impurity images. To investigate the anti-noise robustness of deep learning classification methods applied on sperm images, we conducted a comprehensive comparative study of sperm images using many convolutional neural network (CNN) and visual transformer (VT) deep learning methods to find the deep learning model with the most stable anti-noise robustness.Results This study proved that VT had strong robustness for the classification of tiny object (sperm and impurity) image datasets under some types of conventional noise and some adversarial attacks. In particular, under the influence of Poisson noise, accuracy changed from 91.45% to 91.08%, impurity precison changed from 92.7% to 91.3%, impurity recall changed from 88.8% to 89.5%, and impurity F1-score changed 90.7% to 90.4%. Meanwhile, sperm precision changed from 90.9% to 90.5%, sperm recall changed from 92.5% to 93.8%, and sperm F1-score changed from 92.1% to 90.4%.Conclusion Sperm image classification may be strongly affected by noise in current deep learning methods; the robustness with regard to noise of VT methods based on global information is greater than that of CNN methods based on local information, indicating that the robustness with regard to noise is reflected mainly in global information.

Abstract The high redox potential of Zn0/2+ leads to low voltage of Zn batteries and therefore low energy density, plaguing deployment of Zn batteries in many energy-demanding applications. Though employing high-voltage cathode like spinel LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 can increase the voltages of Zn batteries, Zn2+ ions will be immobilized in LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 once intercalated, resulting in irreversibility. Here, we design a polymer hetero-electrolyte consisting of an anode layer with Zn2+ ions as charge carriers and a cathode layer that blocks the Zn2+ ion shuttle, which allows separated Zn and Li reversibility. As such, the Zn‖LNMO cell exhibits up to 2.4 V discharge voltage and 450 stable cycles with high reversible capacity, which are also attained in a scale-up pouch cell. The pouch cell shows a low self-discharge after resting for 28 days. The designed electrolyte paves the way to develop high-voltage Zn batteries based on reversible lithiated cathodes.

Abstract Background Indobufen is widely used in patients with aspirin intolerance in East Asia. The OPTION trial launched by our cardiac center examined the performance of indobufen based dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, the vast majority of patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and aspirin intolerance were excluded. We aimed to explore this question in a real-world population. Methods Patients enrolled in the ASPIRATION registry were grouped according to the DAPT strategy that they received after PCI. The primary endpoints were major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACCE) and Bleeding Academic Research Consortium (BARC) type 2, 3, or 5 bleeding. Propensity score matching (PSM) was adopted for confounder adjustment. Results A total of 7135 patients were reviewed. After one-year follow-up, the indobufen group was associated with the same risk of MACCE versus the aspirin group after PSM (6.5% vs. 6.5%, hazard ratio [HR] = 0.99, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.65 to 1.52, P = 0.978). However, BARC type 2, 3, or 5 bleeding was significantly reduced (3.0% vs. 11.9%, HR = 0.24, 95% CI = 0.15 to 0.40, P

Abstract Bioinspired micropillar adhesives have shown broad application prospects in space capture and docking, due to their strong adhesion, good environmental adaptability, and reusability. However, when performing space missions, unavoidable contact collision with target objects may cause large deformation of the micropillars, resulting in the loss of adhesion ability. This study reports a novel micropillar adhesive through the in‐plane combination of micropillars (IPCM) with different aspect ratios, consisting of small pillars for retaining strong adhesion and large ones for resisting overload‐induced adhesion failure. It is demonstrated that the IPCM array can still maintain 85% of the adhesion peak after static large deformation compared to a general micropillar array composed of the same pillars. The impact of element size and layout of the IPCM, as well as detachment velocity on adhesion performance under high preload is discussed. Furthermore, finite element contact analysis qualitatively reproduces the experimentally observed micropillar deformations and attributes the overload‐induced adhesion failure to the redistribution of surface normal stress. Finally, the potential application of the IPCM in dynamic capture is demonstrated on different objects. The proposed IPCM opens up new design concepts for practical applications of bioinspired adhesives in space capture and docking.

ABSTRACT: The development of large-scale and intensive breeding models has led to increasingly prominent oxidative stress issues in animal husbandry production. Chlorogenic acid (CGA) is an important extract with a variety of biological activities. It is an effective antioxidant drug and shows different antioxidant capacities due to its different chemical structures. Therefore, it is a new research target to determine the proportion of chlorogenic acid isomers with high antioxidant activity to resist the damage caused by oxidative stress. In this experiment, the antioxidant activities of the chlorogenic acid monomer and its compounds were compared by a series of in vitro antioxidant indexes. Based on the above experiments, it was found that LB and LC have superior antioxidant abilities (P < 0.05). Subsequently, 300 healthy 1-day-old Arbor Acres (AA) male broilers with no significant difference in body weight (about 44 g) were randomly selected and randomly divided into 5 groups with 6 replicates in each group and 10 chickens in each replicate. One group was the control group, 1 group was the model group, and the remaining 3 groups were the experimental groups. At 37 d of age, animals in the control group were injected with normal saline, and animals in the other 4 groups were injected with 1 mL/kg 5% hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) through the chest muscle before the supplementation. The control group (control) and the model group (PC) were fed a standard diet. The remaining 3 groups included the CGA group, LB group (CIB), and LC group (CIC). In these groups, 50 g/t chlorogenic acid, LB compound, or LC compound were added to the basal diet, respectively, and the other feeding conditions remained consistent. The addition of the LB complex to the diet could significantly improve the growth performance and antioxidant performance of broilers (P < 0.05), upregulate the expression of Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) pathway-related genes in liver and jejunum (P < 0.05), regulate the disordered intestinal flora, and alleviate the damage caused by oxidative stress. These results suggested for the first time that the LB complex exhibited superior effects in vitro and vivo.

Abstract According to the Montreal Protocol, the production and consumption of ozone-layer-depleting CCl4 for dispersive applications was globally phased out by 2010, including China. However, continued CCl4 emissions were disclosed, with the latest CCl4 emissions unknown in eastern China. In the current study, based on the atmospheric measurements of ~12,000 air samples taken at two sites in eastern China, the 2021–2022 CCl4 emissions are quantified as 7.6 ± 1.7 gigagrams per year. This finding indicates that CCl4 emissions continued after being phased out for dispersive uses in 2010. Subsequently, our study identifies potential industrial sources (manufacture of general purpose machinery and manufacture of raw chemical materials, and chemical products) of CCl4 emissions.

Abstract Optimal integration of transcriptomics data and associated spatial information is essential towards fully exploiting spatial transcriptomics to dissect tissue heterogeneity and map out inter-cellular communications. We present SEDR, which uses a deep autoencoder coupled with a masked self-supervised learning mechanism to construct a low-dimensional latent representation of gene expression, which is then simultaneously embedded with the corresponding spatial information through a variational graph autoencoder. SEDR achieved higher clustering performance on manually annotated 10 × Visium datasets and better scalability on high-resolution spatial transcriptomics datasets than existing methods. Additionally, we show SEDR’s ability to impute and denoise gene expression (URL: https://github.com/JinmiaoChenLab/SEDR/ ).

ABSTRACT: This study examines the price structure of milk powders targeting Chinese older adults, with special emphasis on the assessment of front-of-pack (FOP) voluntary well-being messaging (VWM), using a hedonic price model. Data of 456 sets of product prices and attributes were collected from official stores at online shops, TMALL.com and JD.com, in China. Prices were recorded 10 d before, during, and 10 d after a major online promotion event (November 11, 2021). A hedonic price model was employed to decompose explicit market prices into individual product attributes implicit prices, including essential attributes, such as milk source, brand origin, package material, and nutritional composition, and nonessential attributes conveyed by FOP VWM, regarding nutrition, ingredients, health, sensory qualities, and certification. Results showed that above and beyond essential attributes, nonessential attributes conveyed by FOP VWM were significantly associated with price. Specifically, significant price premiums were associated with dietary fiber claims (+12.7%), no added sugar (+19.0%) and potential health benefits (+19.3%), as nutrition-, ingredient-, and health-related FOP VWM respectively. However, nutrition claims regarding calcium and fat were negatively associated with price (−21.2% and −8.0%, respectively, when they were presented). Additionally, nutrition claims for protein and vitamin D, introducing farm environment, referring to imported ingredients, declaring specific ingredients added, describing sensory characterizes and providing certificates on FOP were not significantly associated with price in this market. These findings provide manufacturers with information to better differentiate their products by producing and advertising attributes most valued by consumers.

Abstract Human cancer cell lines have long served as tools for cancer research and drug discovery, but the presence and the source of intra-cell-line heterogeneity remain elusive. Here, we perform single-cell RNA-sequencing and ATAC-sequencing on 42 and 39 human cell lines, respectively, to illustrate both transcriptomic and epigenetic heterogeneity within individual cell lines. Our data reveal that transcriptomic heterogeneity is frequently observed in cancer cell lines of different tissue origins, often driven by multiple common transcriptional programs. Copy number variation, as well as epigenetic variation and extrachromosomal DNA distribution all contribute to the detected intra-cell-line heterogeneity. Using hypoxia treatment as an example, we demonstrate that transcriptomic heterogeneity could be reshaped by environmental stress. Overall, our study performs single-cell multi-omics of commonly used human cancer cell lines and offers mechanistic insights into the intra-cell-line heterogeneity and its dynamics, which would serve as an important resource for future cancer cell line-based studies.

Federated Learning (FL) has emerged as a transformative paradigm in machine learning, enabling decentralized model training across multiple devices while preserving data privacy. However, the decentralized nature of FL introduces significant security challenges, making it vulnerable to various attacks targeting models, data, and privacy. This survey provides a comprehensive overview of the defense strategies against these attacks, categorizing them into data and model defenses and privacy attacks. We explore pre-aggregation, in-aggregation, and post-aggregation defenses, highlighting their methodologies and effectiveness. Additionally, the survey delves into advanced techniques such as homomorphic encryption and differential privacy to safeguard sensitive information. The integration of blockchain technology for enhancing security in FL environments is also discussed, along with incentive mechanisms to promote active participation among clients. Through this detailed examination, the survey aims to inform and guide future research in developing robust defense frameworks for FL systems.

Abstract The heterogeneity of functional cardiomyocytes arises during heart development, which is essential to the complex and highly coordinated cardiac physiological function. Yet the biological and physiological identities and the origin of the specialized cardiomyocyte populations have not been fully comprehended. Here we report a previously unrecognised population of cardiomyocytes expressing Dbhgene encoding dopamine beta-hydroxylase in murine heart. We determined how these myocytes are distributed across the heart by utilising advanced single-cell and spatial transcriptomic analyses, genetic fate mapping and molecular imaging with computational reconstruction. We demonstrated that they form the key functional components of the cardiac conduction system by using optogenetic electrophysiology and conditional cardiomyocyte Dbh gene deletion models. We revealed their close relationship with sympathetic innervation during cardiac conduction system formation. Our study thus provides new insights into the development and heterogeneity of the mammalian cardiac conduction system by revealing a new cardiomyocyte population with potential catecholaminergic endocrine function.

Magnetic Pulse Welding (MPW) is a new solid-phase welding (no heat input and no auxiliaries) technique. This results in joints with almost no brittle intermetallic compounds (IMC) and hence provides excellent joint quality. In this study, 316L fabricated by additively manufactured (AMed 316L) and conventional rolled AA5052 aluminum alloy were welded by MPW. Moreover, it was compared with conventional rolled 316L (C316L). Shear tests were used to characterize the mechanical properties of the joints. Laser confocal microscopy, Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), and Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) were used to characterize the microstructure and elemental diffusion of the joints. It was found that the strength of both joints was higher than that of the base material. In addition, sufficient elemental diffusion was achieved at the weld interface. No significant weld defects and IMC generation were observed at the interface of the AA5052-AMed 316L joint. Finally, Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamic (SPH) was used to analyze the formation mechanism of the transition zone morphology. This study demonstrates for the feasibility of MPW technology for welding additive manufacturing materials.

To fully leverage the advantages of both hot air drying and radio frequency vacuum drying, a segmented combination drying technique was applied to post-harvest Cistanche. This new drying method involves using hot air drying in the initial stage to remove the majority of free water, followed by radio frequency vacuum drying in the later stage to remove the remaining small amount of free water and bound water. During the radio frequency vacuum drying (RFV) phase, the effects of temperature (45, 55, and 65 °C), vacuum pressure (0.020, 0.030, and 0.040 MPa), plate spacing (65, 75, and 85 mm), and slice thickness (4, 5, and 6 mm) on the drying characteristics, quality, and microstructure of Cistanche slices were investigated. Additionally, infrared thermal imaging technology was used to examine the surface temperature distribution of the material during the drying process. The results showed that compared to radio frequency vacuum drying alone, the hot air–radio frequency combined drying significantly shortened the drying time. Under conditions of lower vacuum pressure (0.020 MPa), plate spacing (65 mm), and higher temperature (65 °C), the drying time was reduced and the drying rate increased. Infrared thermal imaging revealed that in the early stages of hot air–radio frequency vacuum combined drying, the center temperature of Cistanche was higher than the edge temperature. As drying progressed, the internal moisture of the material diffused from the inside out, resulting in higher edge temperatures compared to the center and the formation of overheating zones. Compared to natural air drying, the hot air–radio frequency vacuum combined drying effectively preserved the content of active components such as polysaccharides (275.56 mg/g), total phenols (38.62 mg/g), total flavonoids (70.35 mg/g), phenylethanoid glycosides, and iridoids. Scanning electron microscopy observed that this combined drying method reduced surface collapse and cracking of the material. This study provides theoretical references for future drying processes of Cistanche.

Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs) are essential supplementary structures used in tropical tuna purse-seine fishing. They are strategically placed to attract tuna species and enhance fishing productivity. The hydrodynamic performance of FADs has a direct effect on their structural and environmental safety in the harsh marine environment. Conventional FADs are composed of materials that do not break down naturally, leading to the accumulation of waste in the ocean and potential negative effects on marine ecosystems. Therefore, this work aimed to examine the hydrodynamic performance of biodegradable drifting FADs (Bio-DFADs) in oceanic currents by numerical modelling. The Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes equation was used to solve the flow field and discretized based on the realizable k-ε turbulence model, employing the finite volume method. A set of Bio-DFADs was developed to assess the hydrodynamic performance under varying current velocities and attack angles, as well as different balsa wood diameters and sinker weights. The results indicated that the relative current velocity significantly affected the relative velocity of Bio-DFADs. The relative length of the raft significantly affected both the relative velocity and the relative wetted area in a pure stream. Finally, the diameter of the balsa wood affected the drift velocity, and the sinker’s relative weight affected the hydrodynamic performance of the Bio-DFADs.

The preexistence of immune cells in the tumor microenvironment substantiates the efficacy of immunotherapy in cancer patients. Although the complex intratumoral immune heterogeneity has been extensively studied in single cell resolution, hi-res spatial investigations are limited. In this study, we performed a spatial transcriptome analysis of 4 colorectal adenocarcinoma specimens and 2 paired distant normal specimens to identify the molecular pattern involved in a discontinuous inflammatory response in pathologically annotated cancer regions. Based on the location of spatially varied gene expression, we unmasked the spatially-varied immune ecosystem and identified the locoregional “warmed-up” immune response in predefined “cold” tumor with substantial infiltration of immune components. This “warmed-up” immune profile was found to be associated with the in-situ copy number variance and the tissue remodeling process. Further, “warmed-up” signature genes indicated improved overall survival in CRC patients obtained from TCGA database.

The basic analysis steps of spatial transcriptomics require obtaining gene expression information from both space and cells. The existing tools for these analyses incur performance issues when dealing with large datasets. These issues involve computationally intensive spatial localization, RNA genome alignment, and excessive memory usage in large chip scenarios. These problems affect the applicability and efficiency of the analysis. Here, a high-performance and accurate spatial transcriptomics data analysis workflow, called Stereo-seq Analysis Workflow (SAW), was developed for the Stereo-seq technology developed at BGI. SAW includes mRNA spatial position reconstruction, genome alignment, gene expression matrix generation, and clustering. The workflow outputs files in a universal format for subsequent personalized analysis. The execution time for the entire analysis is ∼148 min with 1 GB reads 1 × 1 cm chip test data, 1.8 times faster than with an unoptimized workflow.

Mitochondria-associated ferroptosis exacerbates cardiac microvascular dysfunction in diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM). Nicorandil, an ATP-sensitive K+ channel opener, protects against endothelial dysfunction, mitochondrial dysfunction, and DCM; however, its effects on ferroptosis and mitophagy remain unexplored. The present study aimed to assess the beneficial effects of nicorandil against endothelial ferroptosis in DCM and the underlying mechanisms. Cardiac microvascular perfusion was assessed using a lectin perfusion assay, while mitophagy was assessed via mt-Keima transfection and transmission electron microscopy. Ferroptosis was examined using mRNA sequencing, fluorescence staining, and western blotting. The mitochondrial localization of Parkin, ACSL4, and AMPK was determined via immunofluorescence staining. Following long-term diabetes, nicorandil treatment improved cardiac function and remodeling by alleviating cardiac microvascular injuries, as evidenced by the improved microvascular perfusion and structural integrity. mRNA-sequencing and biochemical analyses showed that ferroptosis occurred and Pink1/Parkin-dependent mitophagy was suppressed in cardiac microvascular endothelial cells after diabetes. Nicorandil treatment suppressed mitochondria-associated ferroptosis by promoting the Pink1/Parkin-dependent mitophagy. Moreover, nicorandil treatment increased the phosphorylation level of AMPKα1 and promoted its mitochondrial translocation, which further inhibited the mitochondrial translocation of ACSL4 via mitophagy and ultimately suppressed mitochondria-associated ferroptosis. Importantly, overexpression of mitochondria-localized AMPKα1 (mitoAα1) shared similar benefits with nicorandil on mitophagy, ferroptosis and cardiovascular protection against diabetic injury. In conclusion, the present study demonstrated the therapeutic effects of nicorandil against cardiac microvascular ferroptosis in DCM and revealed that the mitochondria-localized AMPK-Parkin-ACSL4 signaling pathway mediates mitochondria-associated ferroptosis and the development of cardiac microvascular dysfunction.

As neural network inference demands are ever-increasing in intelligent applications, the performance optimization of model serving becomes a challenging problem. Dynamic batching is an important feature of contemporary deep learning serving systems, which combines multiple requests of model inference and executes them together to improve the system’s throughput. However, the behavior characteristics of each part in deep neural network batching systems as well as their performance impact on different model structures are still unknown. In this paper, we characterize the batching system by leveraging three representative deep neural networks on GPUs, performing a systematic analysis of the performance effects from the request batching module, model slicing module, and stage reorchestrating module. Based on experimental results, several insights and recommendations are offered to facilitate the system design and optimization for deep learning serving.

Adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma (ACP) presents a significant challenge to neurosurgeons despite its benign histology due to its aggressive behavior and unique growth patterns. This narrative review explores the evolving landscape of ACP treatments and their efficacy, highlighting the continuous development in therapeutic approaches in recent years. Traditionally, complete resection was the primary treatment for ACP, but surgical -related morbidity have led to a shift. The invasive nature of the finger-like protrusions in the histological structure results in a higher recurrence rate for ACP compared to papillary craniopharyngioma (PCP), even after complete macroscopic resection. Given this, combining subtotal resection with adjuvant radiotherapy has shown potential for achieving similar tumor control rates and potentially positive endocrine effects. Simultaneously, adjuvant treatments (such as radiotherapy, intracystic treatment, and catheter implantation) following limited surgery offer alternative approaches for sustained disease control while minimizing morbidity and alleviating clinical symptoms. Additionally, advances in understanding the molecular pathways of ACP have paved the way for targeted drugs, showing promise for therapy. There is a diversity of treatment models for ACP, and determining the optimal approach remains a subject of ongoing debate in the present context. In order to achieve a good-term quality of life (QOL), the main goal of the cyst disappearance or reduction of surgical treatment is still the main. Additionally, there should be a greater emphasis on personalized treatment at this particular stage and the consideration of ACP as a potentially chronic neurosurgical condition. This review navigates the evolving landscape of ACP therapies, fostering ongoing discussions in this complex field.

Cl-redox reactions cannot be fully exploited in batteries because of the Cl2 gas evolution. Here, reversible high-energy interhalogen reactions are demonstrated by using a iodine-based cathode in combination with a Zn anode and a Cl-containing aqueous electrolyte solution.

Advances in spatial transcriptomics technologies have enabled the gene expression profiling of tissues while retaining spatial context. Here the authors present GraphST, a graph self-supervised contrastive learning method that learns informative and discriminative spot representations from spatial transcriptomics data.

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is an important crop that provides essential proteins and oils for human and animal consumption. 9-cis-epoxycarotenoid dioxygenase (NCED) have been found can play a vital role in abscisic acid (ABA) biosynthesis and may be a response to drought stress. Until now, in Arachis hypogaea, no information about the NCED gene family has been reported and the importance of NCED-related drought tolerance is unclear. In this study, eight NCED genes in Arachis hypogaea, referred to as AhNCEDs, are distributed across eight chromosomes, with duplication events in AhNCED1 and AhNCED2, AhNCED3 and AhNCED4, and AhNCED6 and AhNCED7. Comparative analysis revealed that NCED genes are highly conserved among plant species, including Pisum sativum, Phaseolus vulgaris, Glycine max, Arabidopsis thaliana, Gossypium hirsutum, and Oryza sativa. Further promoter analysis showed AhNCEDs have ABA-related and drought-inducible elements. The phenotyping of Arachis hypogaea cultivars NH5 and FH18 demonstrated that NH5 is drought-tolerant and FH18 is drought-sensitive. Transcriptome expression analysis revealed the differential regulation of AhNCEDs expression in both NH5 and FH18 cultivars under drought stress. Furthermore, compared to the Arachis hypogaea cultivar FH18, the NH5 exhibited a significant upregulation of AhNCED1/2 expression under drought. To sum up, this study provides an insight into the drought-related AhNCED genes, screened out the potential candidates to regulate drought tolerance and ABA biosynthesis in Arachis hypogaea.

Our preliminary research proposed the cytochrome P450 family 7 subfamily A member 1 (CYP7A1) and hydroxyacyl-coenzyme A dehydrogenase trifunctional multienzyme complex beta subunit (HADHB) genes as candidates for association with milk-production traits in dairy cattle because of their differential expression across different lactation stages in the liver tissues of Chinese Holstein cows and their potential roles in lipid metabolism. Hence, we identified single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the CYP7A1 and HADHB genes and validated their genetic effects on milk-production traits in a Chinese Holstein population with the goal of providing valuable genetic markers for genomic selection (GS) in dairy cattle, This study identified five SNPs, 14:g.24676921A>G, 14:g.24676224G>A, 14:g.24675708G>T, 14:g.24665961C>T, and 14:g.24664026A>G, in the CYP7A1 gene and three SNPs, 11:g.73256269T>C, 11:g.73256227A>C, and 11:g.73242290C>T, in HADHB. The single-SNP association analysis revealed significant associations (p value ≤ 0.0461) between the eight SNPs of CYP7A1 and HADHB genes and 305-day milk, fat and protein yields. Additionally, using Haploview 4.2, we found that the five SNPs of CYP7A1 formed two haplotype blocks and that the two SNPs of HADHB formed one haplotype block; notably, all three haplotype blocks were also significantly associated with milk, fat and protein yields (p value ≤ 0.0315). Further prediction of transcription factor binding sites (TFBSs) based on Jaspar software (version 2023) showed that the 14:g.24676921A>G, 14:g.24675708G>T, 11:g.73256269T>C, and 11:g.73256227A>C SNPs could alter the 5′ terminal TFBS of the CYP7A1 and HADHB genes. The 14:g.24665961C>T SNP caused changes in the structural stability of the mRNA for the CYP7A1 gene. These alterations have the potential to influence gene expression and, consequently, the phenotype associated with milk-production traits. In summary, we have confirmed the genetic effects of CYP7A1 and HADHB genes on milk-production traits in dairy cattle and identified potential functional mutations that we suggest could be used for GS of dairy cattle and in-depth mechanistic studies of animals.

This study applied direct-contact ultrasound-assisted Vacuum Far-Infrared (VFIR) to dry Cistanche slices, investigating the influence of radiation temperature (45 °C, 55 °C, 65 °C), ultrasonic frequency (20 kHz, 40 kHz, 60 kHz) and ultrasonic power (72 W, 96 W, 120 W) on the physicochemical properties, drying characteristics, and microstructure of Cistanche slices. The results showed that the application of ultrasound had a significant enhancement effect on the drying process, with drying time decreasing as radiation temperature, ultrasonic power, and ultrasonic frequency increased. The drying rate curves under three experimental factors exhibited a brief acceleration stage followed by a deceleration stage. Under different drying conditions, the contents of Iridoid and phenylethanoid glycosides in dried products were higher than those under natural drying (ND). Specifically, the content of catalpol at 55 °C, 96 W, 40 kHz (0.56 mg/g) and the content of Leonuride at 55 °C, 96 W, 60 kHz (0.67 mg/g) increased by 1.81 and 1.9 times, compared to ND. The rest of the nutrient content and antioxidant activity increased with the increase in ultrasonic frequency. Compared to ND, ultrasonic-assisted VFIR drying improved the color and rehydration capacity of dried products. Observation of the microstructure revealed that the application of ultrasound made the interior of Cistanche slices loose and porous. In summary, ultrasonic-assisted VFIR drying not only enhances the drying rate but also improves the quality of dried products.

Abstract Background Donor-derived cell-free DNA (dd-cfDNA) has been applied to monitor acute rejection (AR) in kidney and heart transplantation. This study was aimed to investigate the application of dd-cfDNA levels in the diagnosis of AR and chronic lung allograft dysfunction (CLAD) among the lung transplantation recipients (LTRs). Methods One hundred and seventy LTRs were enrolled at the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University between 1 June 2015 and 30 March 2021. Patients were divided into 4 groups: stable group, AR group, infection group and CLAD group. The level of dd-cfDNA was analyzed using target region sequencing and the performance characteristics of dd-cfDNA for diagnosis of AR and CLAD were determined, respectively. Results Kruskal–Wallis test showed that there were some significant differences in the level of dd-cfDNA (%) among the 4 groups, with p

The Al–Si coatings are commonly used for hot-press-forming (HPF) steel to prevent oxidation in the automobile industry. However, due to the presence of Al–Si coating, undesirable intermetallic compounds are easily formed in the welds of HPF steel. In this work, an environment-friendly and effective nanosecond pulsed laser cleaning process was used to remove the Al–Si coating, and HPF steel with varying thicknesses of coatings was prepared for laser welding. The microstructure and mechanical properties of laser welded HPF steel with different thicknesses of coatings were further investigated. The results showed that there was a threshold of power to remove the Al–Si coatings in the laser cleaning process. The reduced thickness of coatings not only could improve the stability of the welding process due to the diminishing of metal vapor generated by coating ablation, but also decrease the content of the Fe–Al phase in the welded joint, which is detrimental to weld performance. The tensile strength and cupping test pass rate of weld joints gradually increased with the decreasing thickness of coatings to 5 μm. After that, the Al–Si coating almost had no effect on the mechanical properties of the laser weld joints. The laser weld joint with 5 μm-thick of Al–Si coating showed, a tensile strength of 1435.05 MPa, a microhardness of 488.38 HV and a pass rate of 100% for the cupping test.

Cell type epigenetic and topographic information of primate brain is lacking. Here, authors identified transcriptional regulatory network, gradient expression pattern and disease vulnerability at cell type level in PFC, M1 and V1 of monkey brain by snRNAseq, snATAC-seq and Stereo-seq.

Tissues rely on collagen for structural and biological integrity, as well as for function and strength. Several collagen sources have been investigated due to its wide variety of applications, such as collagen from cows and pigs. However, mammalian-based collagen has been limited by diseases like bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and other religious limitations. Hence, fish collagen has caught the attention of the research community because it is easy to extract, has a high level of collagen content, excellent absorption properties, a low molecular weight, biocompatibility, little risk of disease transmission from animals to humans, negligible environmental contamination, and fewer ethical and religious concerns, posing as an ideal resource for product development. This review focuses on the growing role of marine collagen in the advances of various biomedical applications, such as drug delivery, tissue engineering, regeneration, and wound healing, which will be covered in depth.

Background: Periprocedural myocardial injury (PMI) is a common complication of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) associated with poor prognosis. Inflammation has been demonstrated to exert a crucial role in PMI. However, how the inflammation is initiated or sustained in PMI remains elusive. Methods: RNA-seq in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from 3 Non-PMI and 6 PMI patients was performed with subsequent bioinformatics analysis. RNA-seq results were verified in a patient cohort. We also established the coronary microembolization (CME) mice model to mimic PMI. The activity of caspase-1 in PBMCs was detected by flow cytometry. The levels of interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-18 and cardiac troponin in plasma were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: We identified a total of 901 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between Non-PMI and PMI patients. These DEGs participated in several inflammation-related processes. NOD-like receptor signaling pathway was significantly enriched in pathway analysis. All the key genes composed in the NLRP3 inflammasome, including NLRP3, PYCARD, CASP1 and IL1B, were upregulated in PMI patients. The activation of NLRP3 inflammasome was then verified by increased activity of caspase-1 in PBMCs, and elevated levels of IL-1β and IL-18 in plasma in PMI patients. Spearman analysis confirmed tight correlations between caspase-1 activity, IL-1β, IL-18 levels and troponin T level. In addition, caspase-1 activity, IL-1β and IL-18 levels were also enhanced in CME mice. Conclusions: We discovered that NLRP3 inflammasome was involved in PMI, thus providing evidence supporting the therapeutic value of NLRP3 inflammasome-targeted strategies in PMI.

The linearity of conductance modulation of the artificial synapse severely restricts the recognition accuracy and the convergence rate in the learning of artificial neural networks. In this work, by alloy electrode engineering, a Ti–Ag device gained the forming-free property because Ag ions were promoted to migrate into the GeTeO _x layer to form a thicker conductive filament. This facilitated a uniform change in conductance with the pulse number, and the alloy synapse achieved a significant improvement in linearity (350%), which demonstrated its enhancement in recognition accuracy. To further validate its potential as a comprehensive artificial synapse, the multi-essential synaptic behaviors, including spike-timing-dependent plasticity, spike-rate-dependent plasticity, paired-pulse facilitation, post-tetanic potentiation, and excitatory post-synaptic current, were achieved successfully. This work proposes a promising approach to enhance the performance of conductive bridging random access memory synaptic devices, which benefits the hardware implementation of neuromorphic systems.

The predominant form of aquaculture is the facility fishery, which is also subject to significant impacts from marine disasters. Conducting research on the extraction of facility fishery areas based on remote sensing technology is crucial to efficiently comprehending the configuration of coastal culture patterns and to establishing scientifically sound plans for managing and administering these areas. The extensive dispersion of facility fishery areas in coastal regions poses a challenge to the conduction of comprehensive field surveys. The utilization of satellite remote sensing images for information extraction has emerged as a significant area of research in the fields of coastal fishery and ecological environment. This study provides a systematic description of the current research status of coastal fishery area extraction methods using remote sensing technology from 2000 to 2022 reported in the literature. The methods discussed include the visual interpretation method, image element-based classification, object-based classification, supervised classification, unsupervised classification, and neural network classification. The extraction accuracy of each method in the coastal facility fishery area is evaluated, and the advantages and disadvantages of these methods, as well as their limitations and existing problems, are analyzed in detail, to construct a reference framework for the investigation of the high-precision extraction of facility fishery areas from satellite remote sensing images.

In China, milk is promoted both as an optimal food and gift for older adults. To understand the product factors affecting older Chinese adult milk choices, choice simulations and surveys were conducted in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, and Shenyang, China. Participants (n = 1000, aged 45–55 years old and 65–75 years old) were asked to choose one milk product out of eight alternatives for self-consumption and gifting, respectively, and to indicate product factors under their considerations. Results showed that, for self-consumption, the top four most popular milk products (two with domestic brands and two with international brands) were chosen by 84.9% of the participants. Females and younger participants were more open to international brands than their counterparts. Popular milk products differed across cities, potentially due to brand familiarity. Brand (85.9%), on-the-pack, nutrition-related well-being messaging (72.9%), price (63.1%), shelf-life (63.0%), and production date (57.6%) were the most frequently reported product factors considered when choosing milk. More males considered price than females (66.9% vs. 60.0%, p = 0.02). Female and older participants showed greater concern for certain detailed product factors, such as production date and shelf-life, than their counterparts. Variation across cities was limited, with participants in Chengdu and Shenyang showing less concern for certain product factors such as on-the-pack, certificate-related well-being messaging. When milk products were chosen as a gift, although overall milk choice ranking remained similar, package style received increased attention (32.0% vs. 40.8%, p < 0.01), whilst all other product factors, especially price (63.1% vs. 49.5%, p < 0.01), were considered by significantly fewer participants. These findings provide valuable marketing insights, helping to understand consumer preferences and considerations in the process of milk purchase decision-making.

The ranging error model is generally very complicated in actual ranging technologies. This paper gives an analysis of the biased distance substitution and proposes an unbiased multilateral positioning method to revise the biased substitution, making it an unbiased estimate of the squared distance. An unbiased estimate of the multilateral positioning formula is derived to solve the target node coordinates. Through simulation experiments, it is proved that the algorithm can improve the positioning accuracy, and the improvement is more obvious when the error variance is larger. Experiments using SX1280 also show that the ranging conforms to the biased error model, and the accuracy can be improved by using the unbiased estimator. When the actual experimental error standard deviation is 0.16 m, the accuracy can be improved by 0.15 m.

Abstract Background Bovine parainfluenza virus type 3 (BPIV3) infection often causes respiratory tissue damage and immunosuppression and further results in bovine respiratory disease complex (BRDC), one of the major diseases in dairy cattle, caused huge economical losses every year. However, the pathogenetic and immunoregulatory mechanisms involved in the process of BPIV3 infection remain unknown. However, the pathogenetic and immunoregulatory mechanisms involved in the process of BPIV3 infection remain unknown. Proteomics is a powerful tool for high-throughput identification of proteins, which has been widely used to understand how viruses interact with host cells. Methods In the present study, we report a proteomic analysis to investigate the whole cellular protein alterations of MDBK cells infected with BPIV3. To investigate the infection process of BPIV3 and the immune response mechanism of MDBK cells, isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation analysis (iTRAQ) and Q-Exactive mass spectrometry-based proteomics were performed. The differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) involved in the BPIV3 invasion process in MDBK cells were identified, annotated, and quantitated. Results A total of 116 proteins, which included 74 upregulated proteins and 42 downregulated proteins, were identified as DEPs between the BPIV3-infected and the mock-infected groups. These DEPs included corresponding proteins related to inflammatory response, immune response, and lipid metabolism. These results might provide some insights for understanding the pathogenesis of BPIV3. Fluorescent quantitative PCR and western blotting analysis showed results consistent with those of iTRAQ identification. Interestingly, the upregulated protein MKK3 was associated with the p38 MAPK signaling pathway. Conclusions The results of proteomics analysis indicated BPIV3 infection could activate the p38 MAPK pathway to promote virus replication.

Long-lasting zinc metal electrodes are crucial in developing commercial zinc-based batteries. Here, the authors investigate the different morphology evolution between the stripping and plating process and propose electrochemical protocols to prolong the lifespan of zinc anodes.

Local lactate accumulation greatly hinders tissue repair and regeneration under ischemic condition. Herein, an injectable microsphere (MS@MCL) for local lactate exhaustion was constructed by grafting manganese dioxide (MnO2) -lactate oxidase (LOX) composite nanozyme on microfluidic hyaluronic acid methacrylate (HAMA) microspheres via chemical bonds, achieving a long-term oxygen-promoted lactate exhaustion effect and a long half-life in vivo. The uniform and porous microspheres synthesized by microfluidic technology is beneficial to in situ injection therapy and improving encapsulation efficiency. Furthermore, chemical grafting into HAMA microspheres through amide reactions promoted local enzymatic concentration and activity enhancement. It was showed that the MS@MCL eliminated oxidative and inflammatory stress and promoted extracellular matrix metabolism and cell survival when co-cultured with nucleus pulposus cells (NPCs) in vitro. In the rat degenerative intervertebral disc model caused by lactate injection, MS@MCL showed a long-term therapeutic effect in reducing intervertebral height narrowing and preventing extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation as well as inflammatory damage in vivo. Altogether, this study confirms that this nanozyme-functionalized injectable MS@MCL effectively improves the regenerative and reparative effect in ischemic tissues by disposing of enriched lactate in local microenvironment.

Aims: Altered lipid, energy metabolism and sleep disorders had been linked with coronary heart disease (CHD), however, the metabolic signatures and sleep rhythm in non-obstructive coronary atherosclerosis-CHD remain unclear. This pilot study aims to investigate the lipidome and central carbon metabolites profiles and associated sleep characteristics among CHD patients without traditional risk factors. Methods: From January to July 2021, 15 CHD patients and 15 healthy controls were randomly selected from the cardiology unit of Zhongshan Hospital, Shanghai. A total of 464 lipids and 45 central carbon metabolites (CCM) were quantified in blood plasma. Metabolic signatures were selected through orthogonal projections to latent structures discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) and principal component analysis (PCA) was conducted to link the profiles of identified metabolites with CHD risk, sleep patterns, cardiometabolic traits and cardiac electrophysiologic parameters. Results: Using OPLS-DA, we identified 40 metabolites (variable influence on projection >1) that were altered in CHD patients, with 38 lipids, including 25 triacylglycerols (TAGs), 8 diacylglycerols (DAGs), being elevated and two CCM metabolites (i.e., succinic acid and glycolic acid) being reduced. Using PCA, four principal components (PCs) were identified and associated with increased risk of CHD. Specifically, one standard unit increasement in the PC that was characterized by high levels of DAG (18:1) and low succinic acid and the PC that was characterized by high levels of two sphingomyelins [SM (26:0) and SM (24:0)] was associated with 21% [odds ratio (OR) = 1.21, 95% CI: 1.02,1.43] and 14% (OR = 1.14,1.02,1.29) increased risk of CHD, respectively. Further regression analyses confirmed that the identified metabolites and the four PCs were positively associated with TG and ALT. Interestingly, glycolic acid was negatively associated with sleep quality and PSQI. Participants with night sleep mode tended to have a high level of the identified lipids, especially FFA (20:4). Conclusion: In the present pilot study, our findings provide clues on alterations of lipid and energy metabolism in CHD patients without traditional risk factors, with multiple triacylglycerols and diacylglycerols metabolites seemingly elevated and certain nonlipids metabolites (e.g., succinic acid and glycolic acid) decreased in cases. Considering the limit sample size, further studies are warranted to confirm our results.

Objective: Glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK3β) has been recognized as a suppressor of Wnt/β-catenin signaling, which is critical for the stemness maintenance of breast cancer stem cells. However, the regulatory mechanisms of GSK3β protein expression remain elusive. Methods: Co-immunoprecipitation and mass spectral assays were performed to identify molecules binding to GSK3β, and to characterize the interactions of GSK3β, heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90), and co-chaperones. The role of PGK1 in Hsp90 chaperoning GSK3β was evaluated by constructing 293T cells stably expressing different domains/mutants of Hsp90α, and by performing a series of binding assays with bacterially purified proteins and clinical specimens. The influences of Hsp90 inhibitors on breast cancer stem cell stemness were investigated by Western blot and mammosphere formation assays. Results: We showed that GSK3β was a client protein of Hsp90. Hsp90, which did not directly bind to GSK3β, interacted with phosphoglycerate kinase 1 via its C-terminal domain, thereby facilitating the binding of GSK3β to Hsp90. GSK3β-bound PGK1 interacted with Hsp90 in the “closed” conformation and stabilized GSK3β expression in an Hsp90 activity-dependent manner. The Hsp90 inhibitor, 17-AAG, rather than HDN-1, disrupted the interaction between Hsp90 and PGK1, and reduced GSK3β expression, resulting in significantly reduced inhibition of β-catenin expression, to maintain the stemness of breast cancer stem cells. Conclusions: Our findings identified a novel regulatory mechanism of GSK3β expression involving metabolic enzyme PGK1-coupled Hsp90, and highlighted the potential for more effective cancer treatment by selecting Hsp90 inhibitors that do not affect PGK1-regulated GSK3β expression.

During winter and early spring, pasture supply is usually lower than the demand in New Zealand dairy farming systems and thus the ‘autumn saved pastures’ (stockpiling) are introduced to fill the gap. This study aimed to investigate the chemical, physical, and degradation characteristics of ryegrass pastures, the predominant forage in New Zealand, grown in autumn and winter. To serve as ‘autumn saved pasture’, nine ryegrass cultivars, comprising three types (three perennial, three hybrid, and three Italian), were grown in late autumn (Autumn) and early winter (Winter) and harvested after 7 and 9 weeks of regrowth, respectively. The experiment had two experimental factors: ryegrass type (or cultivar) and harvest season. These experimental factors were in a randomised block design with the forage plot as the experimental unit. The degradation characteristics were assessed in the rumen of fistulated cows using the in situ incubation technique. Perennial ryegrass had a greater neutral detergent fibre (NDF) concentration (468 g/kg dry matter (DM)) than the hybrid (435 g/kg DM) or Italian (414 g/kg DM) ryegrasses. Italian ryegrasses had the greatest soluble fraction of DM (64.2% vs. 46.7% and 40.7%) and the greatest degradation rate of an insoluble but degradable fraction of DM (0.221 vs. 0.189 and 0.145/h) than the hybrid and perennial ryegrasses. Compared with the Winter ryegrass, the Autumn ryegrass had a greater crude protein concentration (246 vs. 208 g/kg DM) and a greater NDF concentration (486 vs. 392 g/kg DM) but a lower calculated soluble carbohydrate concentration (152 vs. 263 g/kg DM). It is concluded that there are notable variations among the cultivars, highlighting distinctions in parameters, such as NDF concentration, soluble fractions, degradation rates, and nutrient content among the perennial, hybrid, and Italian ryegrasses, as well as the seasonal variations observed between autumn and winter growth. These findings will not only facilitate enhanced nutrition for dairy cows as they undergo the transition phase but also have practical implications for future research and dairy cow nutrition.

Gas protection is a crucial part of quality control in laser welding, especially for titanium alloy, which oxidizes easily at high temperatures. Substantial experiments concerning shielding gas characteristics in the welding process have been implemented. However, the common analysis conducted is simplistic and lacks a theoretical basis. This paper presented an investigation of the shielding gas behaviors based on numerical simulation and a titanium alloy laser welding experiment. The numerical model was established and validated by experiment. Subsequently, the temperature field and gas flow fields were calculated. By combining the two fields, the threshold temperature of gas protection was determined, and the influence of shielding gas parameters on the protection effect was examined. The results revealed that the protection of the high-temperature zone was primarily influenced by the nozzle height, nozzle inner diameter, and nozzle angle, while the plasma suppression effect was mainly correlated with the nozzle inner diameter and gas flow rate. These initial findings provide scientific guidance for the better quality production of laser beam welded components made of not only titanium alloy but also other metallic materials.

Nowadays, the detection of environmental microorganism indicators is essential for us to assess the degree of pollution, but the traditional detection methods consume a lot of manpower and material resources. Therefore, it is necessary for us to make microbial data sets to be used in artificial intelligence. The Environmental Microorganism Image Dataset Seventh Version (EMDS-7) is a microscopic image data set that is applied in the field of multi-object detection of artificial intelligence. This method reduces the chemicals, manpower and equipment used in the process of detecting microorganisms. EMDS-7 including the original Environmental Microorganism (EM) images and the corresponding object labeling files in “.XML” format file. The EMDS-7 data set consists of 41 types of EMs, which has a total of 2,65 images and 13,216 labeled objects. The EMDS-7 database mainly focuses on the object detection. In order to prove the effectiveness of EMDS-7, we select the most commonly used deep learning methods (Faster-Region Convolutional Neural Network (Faster-RCNN), YOLOv3, YOLOv4, SSD, and RetinaNet) and evaluation indices for testing and evaluation. EMDS-7 is freely published for non-commercial purpose at: https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/EMDS-7_DataSet/16869571.

Objective: Nocardia are infrequent pathogens that disproportionately afflict organ transplant recipients. The present study aimed to summarize the clinical manifestations, diagnostic approaches, and treatment strategies of nocardiosis in lung transplant recipients. Methods: This retrospective study reviewed the clinical data of adult lung transplant recipients who were complicated with nocardiosis between January 2018 and December 2021 at the largest lung transplant center in South China. Results: The incidence of nocardiosis was 4.2% (13/316), including 9 cases of pulmonary nocardiosis and 4 disseminated nocardiosis (blood, pulmonary and intracranial). The accuracy in diagnosing nocardiosis was 77.8% by culture and 100% by metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS). Nocardia farcinica was the most common causative pathogen. Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole–based combination therapy was administered initially, followed by a single antibiotic as the maintained therapy, lasting for 4–8 months. Conclusions: mNGS is more accurate than culture in diagnosing nocardiosis. Most patients responded well to the antibiotic therapy with combined antibiotics at the initial stage followed by a single antibiotic treatment.

Abstract Background High-throughput next-generation sequencing (HT-NGS) has the potential to detect a large variety of pathogens; however, the application of HT-NGS in lung transplant (LTx) recipients remains limited. We aimed to evaluate the value of HT-NGS for pathogen detection and diagnosis of pulmonary infection during early-stage post-lung transplantation. Methods In this retrospective study, we enrolled 51 LTx recipients who underwent lung transplantation between January 2020 and December 2020. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) samples were collected for the detection of pathogens using both HT-NGS and conventional microbiological testing. The detection of pathogens and diagnostic performance of HT-NGS were compared with that of conventional methods. Results HT-NGS provided a higher positive rate of pathogen detection than conventional microbiological testing (88.24% vs. 76.47%). The most common bacteria detected via HT-NGS during early-stage post-lung transplantation were Enterococcus, Staphylococcus, Pseudomonas and Klebsiella, while all fungi were Candida and all viruses were Herpesvirus. Uncommon pathogens, including Strongyloides, Legionella, and Mycobacterium abscesses were identified by HT-NGS. The sensitivity of HT-NGS for diagnosing pulmonary infection was significantly higher than that of conventional microbiological testing (97.14% vs. 68.57%; P

Mechanical stability of flexible batteries is the guarantee for delivering stable performance. The interacting external and inner forces determine it.

Abstract The effective treatment of advanced cervical cancer remains challenging. Herein, single‐nucleus RNA sequencing (snRNA‐seq) and SpaTial enhanced resolution omics‐sequencing (Stereo‐seq) are used to investigate the immunological microenvironment of cervical squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC). The expression levels of most immune suppressive genes in the tumor and inflammation areas of CSCC are not significantly higher than those in the non‐cancer samples, except for LGALS9 and IDO1. Stronger signals of CD56+ NK cells and immature dendritic cells are found in the hypermetabolic tumor areas, whereas more eosinophils, immature B cells, and Treg cells are found in the hypometabolic tumor areas. Moreover, a cluster of pro‐tumorigenic cancer‐associated myofibroblasts (myCAFs) are identified. The myCAFs may support the growth and metastasis of tumors by inhibiting lymphocyte infiltration and remodeling of the tumor extracellular matrix. Furthermore, these myCAFs are associated with poorer survival probability in patients with CSCC, predict resistance to immunotherapy, and might be present in a small fraction (< 30%) of patients with advanced cancer. Immunohistochemistry and multiplex immunofluorescence staining are conducted to validate the spatial distribution and potential function of myCAFs. Collectively, these findings enhance the understanding of the immunological microenvironment of CSCC and shed light on the treatment of advanced CSCC.

Background: The perturbation of fatty acid metabolism in heart failure (HF) has been a critical issue. It is unclear whether the amounts of circulating carnitines will benefit primary etiology diagnosis and prognostic prediction in HF. This study was designed to assess the diagnostic and prognostic values of serum carnitine profiles between ischemic and non-ischemic derived heart failure. Methods: HF patients (non-ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy: DCM-HF, n = 98; ischemic heart disease: IHD-HF, n = 63) and control individuals (n = 48) were enrolled consecutively. The serum carnitines were quantitatively measured using the UHPLC-MS/MS method. All patients underwent a median follow-up of 28.3 months. Multivariate Cox regression analysis was performed during the prognosis evaluation. Results: Amongst 25 carnitines measured, all of them were increased in HF patients, and 20 acylcarnitines were associated with HF diagnosis independently. Seven acylcarnitines were confirmed to increase the probability of DCM diagnosis independently. The addition of isobutyryl-L-carnitine and stearoyl-L-carnitine to conventional clinical factors significantly improved the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) from 0.771 to 0.832 (p = 0.023) for DCM-HF diagnosis (calibration test for the composite model: Hosmer-Lemeshow χ2 = 7.376, p = 0.497 > 0.05). Using a multivariate COX survival analysis adjusted with clinical factors simultaneously, oleoyl L-carnitine >300 nmol/L (HR = 2.364, 95% CI = 1.122–4.976, p = 0.024) and isovaleryl-L-carnitine p = 0.026) increased the prediction of all-cause mortality independently, while linoleoyl-L-carnitine >420 nmol/L, succinyl carnitine >60 nmol/L and isovaleryl-L-carnitine

This study aimed to identify suitable predictors of nitrogen (N) use efficiency (NUE; milk N/N intake) for cows that differed in breeds and were fed with ryegrass pasture, using existing data from the scientific literature. Data from 16 studies were used to develop models based on the relationships between NUE and dietary and animal-based factors. Data from a further 10 studies were used for model validation. Milk urea N (MUN) and dietary water-soluble carbohydrate-to-crudeprotein ratio (WSC/CP) were the best and most practical animal- and diet-based proxies to predict NUE. The results indicate that it might be necessary to adopt separate models for different breeds when using WSC/CP to predict NUE but not when using MUN.

The mechanical behavior of bolted connections in high-strength (HS) steel structures is a matter of concern, since the less ductility compared to mild steels may affect the load transfer and stress distribution of bolted connections. Conducting advanced finite element (FE) analysis incorporating validated material plasticity and ductile fracture criterion allows for a deeper understanding for the load transfer mechanism of HS steel joints. This paper focused on the plasticity and ductile fracture behaviors of HS (S700MC and S960Q) center-holed (CH) plates under tension, which are the essential component in bolted connections. Firstly, a combined linear and power law was used to calibrate and describe the post-necking stress–strain relations of the investigated HS steels. Then, a void-growth-model based on Rice–Tracey criterion was used to simulate the ductile fracture of five groups of CH plates with different hole diameters. The tensile strength and deformation capacity of the CH plates were discussed. The results showed that S700MC had a strain-hardening plasticity until the tensile fracture, while S960Q had a strain-hardening plasticity with a strain-softening behavior followed near the tensile fracture. Incorporating the calibrated plasticity and ductile fracture criterion in FE analyses generated close force-displacement curves as the experimental results. The equation specified in Eurocode produced conservative predictions for the net cross-sectional tensile strength of the investigated HS steels.

A primary problem affecting the sustainable development of aquaculture is fish skin diseases. In order to prevent the outbreak of fish diseases and to provide prompt treatment to avoid mass mortality of fish, it is essential to detect and identify skin diseases immediately. Based on the YOLOv4 model, coupled with lightweight depthwise separable convolution and optimized feature extraction network and activation function, the detection and identification model of fish skin disease is constructed in this study. The developed model is tested for the diseases hemorrhagic septicemia, saprolegniasis, benedeniasis, and scuticociliatosis, and applied to monitor the health condition of fish skin in deep-sea cage culture. Results show that the MobileNet3-GELU-YOLOv4 model proposed in this study has an improved learning ability, and the number of model parameters is reduced. Compared to the original YOLOv4 model, its mAP and detection speed increased by 12.39% and 19.31 FPS, respectively. The advantages of the model are its intra-species classification capability, lightweight deployment, detection accuracy, and speed, making the model more applicable to the real-time monitoring of fish skin health in a deep-sea aquaculture environment.