Search

Objective: To solve the problems of low accuracy and poor efficiency in the existing rice quality testing methods of food enterprises. Methods: Based on a hyperspectral data acquisition system, a fast and non-destructive detection method for stored rice quality was proposed, which combined an improved bacterial foraging algorithm and least squares support vector machine. By applying the improved bacterial foraging algorithm, the hyperparameters (regularization parameter and kernel parameter) of the least squares support vector machine were optimized to achieve rapid and non-destructive detection of rice quality. its performance was analyzed through experiments. Results: The proposed method can achieve rapid and non-destructive detection of fatty acid content in stored rice, with a determination coefficient of 0.940 5, root mean square error of 0.543 5, and an average detection time of 1.12 seconds. Conclusion: The proposed detection method has high detection performance, which can be used for the identification and detection of rice quality.

Abstract To investigate the necessity and potential application of structural genes for expressing heterogenous genes from Sindbis virus-derived vector, the DNA-based expression vector pVaXJ was constructed by placing the recombinant genome of sindbis-like virus XJ-160 under the control of the human cytomegalovirus (CMV) promoter of the plasmid pVAX1, in which viral structural genes were replaced by a polylinker cassette to allow for insertion of heterologous genes. The defect helper plasmids pVaE or pVaC were developed by cloning the gene of glycoprotein E3E26KE1 or capsid protein of XJ-160 virus into pVAX1, respectively. The report gene cassette pVaXJ-EGFP or pV-Gluc expressing enhanced green fluorescence protein (EGFP) or Gaussia luciferase (G.luc) were constructed by cloning EGFP or G.luc gene into pVaXJ. EGFP or G.luc was expressed in the BHK-21 cells co-transfected with report gene cassettes and pVaE at levels that were comparable to those produced by report gene cassettes, pVaC and pVaE and were much higher than the levels produced by report gene cassette and pVaC, suggesting that glycoprotein is enough for Sindbis virus-derived DNA vector to express heterogenous genes in host cells. The method of gene expression from Sindbis virus-based DNA vector only co-transfected with envelop E gene increase the conveniency and the utility of alphavirus-based vector systems in general.

Purpose: There is limited research on whether Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPIs) will affect the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in treating hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).This study aimed to determine whether PPIs affect the survival outcomes of patients with HBV-associated advanced HCC receiving combination therapy based on ICIs. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-associated advanced HCC who underwent ICIs combination therapy from January 1, 2020, to December 30, 2022. Patients were stratified into PPI and non-PPI groups based on whether they received PPI treatment within 30 days before or after ICIs therapy. Patients' survival and the risk of PPI-associated mortality was assessed. Adverse events were also evaluated. Results: A total of 183 patients with HBV-associated HCC treated with ICI combination therapy were included. The median survival time (12.5 months vs 13.7 months, P = 0.285) and incidence of adverse events (P = 0.729) did not significantly differ between the PPI and non-PPI groups. Even after propensity score matching, the difference in median overall survival (OS) between the two groups was not significant (10.7 months vs 11.4 months; P = 0.596) and the patient's OS is not significantly related to the dosage of PPI application (P > 0.05).However, according to our subgroup analysis, among HCC patients with a serum HBV DNA concentration ≥ 200 IU/mL, the use of PPIs significantly increased the risk of mortality in patients receiving ICI combination therapy (P = 0.024). Conclusion: PPIs do not notably influence the survival prognosis of patients receiving ICI combination therapy for HBV-associated advanced HCC. However, among patients with high levels of HBV DNA, PPIs increase the risk of mortality. Therefore, antiviral therapy should be intensified in the patients with HBVDNA > 200 IU/mL. Additionally, PPIs do not impact the incidence of adverse reactions in these patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ongoing outbreak of 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) originating from Wuhan, China, has spread rapidly across the world (1). Both human-to-human and asymptomatic transmission have been reported (2,3). Phylogenetic [...]

This study focuses on determining the optimal MRI scanning parameters for precise localization of MR-line markers, and to investigate their apical reconstruction error. In the study, it was assumed that the front seal of each MR-line marker was identical. Three MR-line markers were individually placed at the tips inside the tubes of plastic sharp needles. The position of the plastic-tipped sharp needles was marked with three additional MR-line markers. These needles, along with the markers, were then fixed into the same L-shaped (rectangular) mold to ensure that the plastic sharp needles and their corresponding MR-line markers maintained a stable, horizontal alignment and were immobilized during the process. The physical distance measured between the tips of the two MR line markers, one located inside and the other outside the plastic sharp needle, was approximately 2.30mm. To evaluate the apical reconstruction error of the MR-line marker,10 sets of MR images were acquired with varying slice thicknesses, including T1-weighted images with thicknesses of 3 mm, 2 mm, and 1.4 mm, and T2 -weighted images with thicknesses of 3 mm, 2 mm, and 1 mm. The analysis of the image distance between the MR-line marker tips, both inside and outside plastic sharp needle, revealed that the probability of the measurement of the MR-line marker being within 1 mm accuracy was 92.59%. It was observed that the thickness of the MR images positively correlated with both the mean and standard deviation of the image measurement value in T1-weighted scans. Additionally, the standard deviation of MR-line marker image measurements in T2-weighted scans showed a slight increase as the layer thickness was reduced to 2mm. Upon comparing the results from the three sets of MR-line marker image measurements, it was found that the overall results of T2-weighted scans at 3 mm and T1-weighted scans at 1.4 mm were similar. However, it is important to note that the thinner slice parameter not only restricts the length of the scan, but also leads to increased scanning time and additional time required for contouring before brachytherapy treatment, resulting in increased discomfort for the patient. Therefore, a scanning parameter of T2-weighted scans at 3 mm is recommended for the reconstruction of the MR-line marker. The study demonstrated that the MR-line marker possesses significant potential for clinical application, particularly in the precise localization of plastic sharp needles. This finding is pivotal as it provides a crucial experimental foundation for the implementation of an MR-only workflow in interstitial gynecologic brachytherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]